Samsung Jet S8000 Preview

Interface:

Now, think of at least two different, touch sensitive screen makes by Samsung that utilize exactly one and the same interface. Yes, most of them run the famous TouchWiz, but there are differences, always, no matter how insignificant they may be. What all phones have in common is a home screen full of widgets. You have three different screens on the Samsung Jet S8000 where apps can be placed plus there is the option to download more. There is a small icon that gets you to the widget settings menu on top of the list. We couldn’t set single wallpaper that shows on all three screens as we can on the Samsung Star S5230, Preston S5600 or any Android powered cell phone, but may be this is to be changed when retail units arrive. Still, you have this nice option to unlock the device and start apps by drawing a symbol on the screen. Pretty cool if you don´t feel like searching for buttons and icons or holding them pressed.


The most significant change to previous TouchWiz versions is to be found in the main menu, or is rather the main menu itself. Now it´s divided into three separate screens that are switched between by sliding your finger and give you access to all telephone functions (quite similar to the iPhone, really). This way there is no need for submenus that host their own dedicated functions, say, an Organizer you need to open to get to your Alarm Clock, Calendar etc. Unlike the iPhone and the S-CLASS 3D interface, TouchWiz doesn’t allow icon rearrangement.

Speaking of the new LG interface, let’s see why the new TouchWiz is constantly compared to it. Of course, it´s the 3D cube. Well, it´s really three dimensional here, since all six sides are usable. While the one found on S-CLASS 3D devices allows you to navigate between home screens, the cube on the Samsung Jet S8000 lets you access multimedia, entertainment and internet content, although all these have limited functionality if visualized through the cube itself. For an instance, the Gallery previews your pictures in reduced size only; the audio player only shows songs and album art of the last playlist loaded etc.



Holding the button that loads the cube interface gets you to the so called Motion Gate, where two shortcuts are to be found, which can be assigned functions to your own liking through the settings menu. Either of them can be selected by shaking the phone and controlled through the accelerometer. Say, a simplified camera interface is started through a double shake. Honestly, far be it from us to pass final judgment, we believe these two only exist to show that complex functions can be implemented through the accelerometer and despite the fact it´s pretty useless in places like the main menu.

The Samsung Jet S8000 delivers comfy onscreen keyboard that changes depending on the application and of course, you also have hand writing recognition. Similarly to the LG ARENA KM900, it offers support for Microsoft Exchange server. Sound of incoming calls can be muted by turning the phone sideways and device switches over to the built-in loudspeaker automatically the second you place it onto a flat surface. All told, these are all the novelty features in this version of the interface. Now, let´s take a look at the browser and multimedia capabilities of the phone.