Samsung Fascinate (Verizon Wireless)

Now that Samsung's Galaxy S phones have landed at AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint, Verizon Wireless is last in line--which is not necessarily a bad thing, considering Verizon customers have plenty of strong Android phones from which to choose, including the Droid X, Droid 2, and Droid Incredible. So what does the Fascinate bring to the party on Big Red? This handset has the same vibrant AMOLED screen we loved on the earlier models, and unlike AT&T's Captivate and T-Mobile's Vibrant, this model includes an LED flash and mobile hotspot feature. Yes, Sprint's Epic 4G  has these features, too, but its slide-out QWERTY keyboard adds bulk. Still, this $199 smart phone has a number of flaws, mainly attributable to Verizon's content deals with other companies. So how does the Fascinate stack up to the Droids?

Design

The Fascinate has a nearly identical design to the Vibrant; it measures 4.8 x 2.5 x 0.4 inches and, like the Vibrant, has rounded corners, unlike the Captivate's more square design. The device is all black, save for a thin strip of chromed plastic around the edge. Below the keyboard are four touch buttons (Settings, Home, Back, and Search) that are backlit in white, but after a few seconds, the lights turn off, making it difficult to figure out their placement in the dark.

The back of the Fascinate has a subtle square pattern, broken up only by the 5-megapixel camera and LED flash.

Weighing 4.2 ounces, the Fascinate is considerably slimmer and lighter than the Droid X (5 x 2.6 x 0.4 inches; 5.5 ounces) and Droid 2 (4.6 x 2.4 x 0.5 inches; 5 ounces). As such, it's less noticeable when slipped into a pocket.

Ports include a 3.5mm headphone jack and a microUSB port (covered by a sliding hatch) on its top. The left side has volume control buttons, and the right has a power switch. Call us old-fashioned, but we always like a camera button, too. Given its ability to record 720p video, an HDMI port wouldn't have hurt, either. Instead, you're supposed to use AllShare, which streams content over Wi-Fi to DLNA-compatible TVs and other electronics.