New world phones: thin, smart and sturdy

Gary Krakow Columnist • E-mail

There are phones that work only in the United States, namely ones from Verizon, Sprint and Nextel, which use CDMA or TDMA cellular systems.

But companies that use the GSM standard used all over the planet, sell phones that work all over the world.

Here are three new world phone designs that could work on T-Mobile's or Cingular's GSM cellular network in the U.S. and also all the GSM networks that are available overseas.

Samsung makes some very thin phones but this time they've outdone themselves. They've teamed up with T-Mobile to bring the t519 — also known as the Trace to market. The Trace is super thin and light. It measures 4.5 by 2.0 by 0.3 inches and weighs only 2.5 ounces. It’s slightly wider to make way for a wider screen and somewhat bigger keys. 

The Trace is a GSM/GPRS/EDGE world phone meaning it operates on both U.S. and foreign frequencies. It sports a 1.3 megapixel camera, SD memory slot, an alarm clock function, calculator and a whole lot more. The battery is said to last up to 6 hours of talk time and 8 days of standby.

As for functionality, the Trace is a terrific little (and I stress little) phone. It does everything you might want from an inexpensive cell phone which fits in nearly any pocket. Because of its thin profile, it’s easy to forget you’re carrying it with you.

The Trace sells for $99.99 after rebates. Monthly service plans begin at $39.99.

Motorola is very hot these days. With the RAZR, SLVR and Q they’re in the forefront of cool-looking designs. They’re also making some interesting phones for overseas markets that we’ll probably never see here in the U.S.

Motorola The A1200's see-through cover hides the wires for the earpiece (in the Moto logo).

For instance, the A1200 is a small, thin world smartphone WCDMA and which runs on the Linux operating system. It’s sleek (3.8 by 2.0 by 0.85 inches, 5.6 ounces) with a 240 by 320 pixel, 2.4-inch TFT color touch screen. That means you need to use the stylus to 'dial'  your calls and navigate the other features. Battery life is quoted as nearly 4 hours of talk, 200 hours of standby and nearly 100 minutes of video.

There’s a clear plastic cover that allows you see the screen when it’s closed. That cover also contains the phone’s earpiece cleverly hidden in the Motorola logo.

The handset can handle MMS/EMS and Internet e-mail services (POP3, SMTP, and IMAP). There’s a built-in VGA-quality camera with video capabilities, a MP3 player, and a set of terrific sounding built-in stereo speakers.

When it comes to syncing, the A1200 will talk to your computer via the supplied Motorola Desktop PIM software suite. Unlike previous Motorola Linux smartphones, this one does not allow you to send/receive e-mail for and to a Microsoft Exchange server.

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