Review: Samsung i8510 – 8 megapixel cameraphone

In some other world markets, the i8510 is being sold as the ‘INNOV8’. It’s a catchier name, but in the very savvy UK market we suspect it would be pointed out that there’s not actually that much innovation going on here. It’s more a case of taking the spec level of the top selling Nokia N95 8GB (large screen, wi-fi, GPS, 5MP camera, etc) and trying to go one better.

Specs & info
Price: contract
Operating system: Symbian OS 9.3, S60 3rd Ed Feature Pack 2
Processor: N/A
Memory: 128MB RAM, 16GB Flash
Dimensions: 106.5 x 53.9 x 17.2 mm
Weigh: 140g
Display size: 2.8 diagonal inches
Display resolution: 320 x 240
Expansion slot: 1 x microSD

Does it succeed? Yes, on the specs front, but a great smartphone experience is much more holistic than just specifications. A lack of maturity in all departments, poor screen contrast outdoors and the absence of clients for (and compatibility with) Nokia’s new Ovi services, such as Maps, Files, Share, Music and Sync, do make for a disappointing experience for someone who’s already tried the N95, N96 or N82.

But we have to start with the camera fitted in the i8510 – at 8 megapixels, with a software-controlled lens protector, more shooting modes (‘Beach’, ‘Autumn Colours’, etc) than you can imagine, a super CMOS sensor that’s more sensitive than anything from Nokia and a hardware stills/video/gallery switch, this is arguably the best camera-phone ever made. No, most of us don’t need 8 megapixels most of the time, but it’s very handy when you want to crop down a photo later to still produce a great photo out of a fragment. One disappointment is that the flash is LED. With so much effort put into the camera, we’d have expected a Xenon bulb, to really help the i8510 stand out. As it is, the Nokia N82 produces much better low light/indoor shots.

The video camera is market-leading too, by virtue of letting you focus on a subject prior to recording – a great system and at the same VGA resolution as the Nokia N95, but spoiled rather by a lip-sync issue in the recording software.

Despite the uprated camera, the i8510’s form factor is thinner than the competing N95 8GB, an impressive achievement, especially as Samsung has also squeezed in 16GB of mass memory plus a microSD card slot. Build quality is great, with a solid sliding action and tethered port covers. The side-mounted 3.5mm socket is for both audio and TV out, again encroaching nicely on traditional Nokia Nseries territory. Stereo speakers are mounted on the underside, matching the Nseries for volume.

The main phone keypad is one-piece but very usable, and there are two extra programmable shortcut keys on the slide, by default mapped to Music Player and RealPlayer. Of special interest is the ‘optical mouse’ inside the d-pad. This operates more like a laptop trackpad and is mainly of use in Web, where it operates the virtual cursor very intuitively, with intelligent page scrolling when the cursor gets to the edge of the screen.

Software is the base S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2 (FP2), although without Nokia niceties such as Maps, Sports Tracker, Location Tagger and Podcasting, which can’t legally (yet) be installed. Samsung has tried to beef things up a little with licensed versions of Route 66, Arcsoft Media Suite (for picture and video editing) and the games Asphalt 3 and FIFA 08, plus no-brainers such as Google Maps, Yahoo! Go and the GPS discovery tool GyPSii.

Along with the built-in S60 Zip Manager and QuickOffice viewers, the package is fairly comprehensive and is further helped by Samsung’s PC Studio being a rebadged version of Nokia PC Suite, meaning that the company has inherited a stable and mature connectivity solution.

Less mature is the firmware in the i8510 itself, with many small niggles – a common problem with early review hardware. Although Samsung is fixing problems and releasing updates in new units (in the Retail channel), we can’t really relax until it has implemented a proper ‘over-the-air’ update – as part of FP2. This facility will be a lifeline to owners of such a cutting edge converged device.

Essential Verdict:

Performance: 8/10
Generally good, but a large music library slowed it down

Design: 10/10
Stunning. Feels terrific in the hand; camera functionality good

Features: 7/10
Plenty for camera buffs, but many Nokia staples absent

Value: 8/10
A lot of smartphone for your money on contract

Overall score: 8/10
Potentially world-beating, fabulous camera, but the poor display outdoors disappoints

Review originally published in Smartphone & PDA Essentials magazine. Words by Steve Litchfield.

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