The Samsung BlackJack II is a major improvement over the original BlackJack and is one of a small number of now aging smartphones that are good enough to still compete with some of the newer devices. It no longer sets the standards but offers a solid performance in a well established package. If you’re considering this device, you might also want to take a look at the Motorola Q9c, offered by Sprint.

Standout Features

• High Speed 3G Connectivity
• Full QWERTY Keyboard
• Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.0 OS

3G Data Network

The BlackJack II is compatible with AT&T’s 3G network so you can expect downloads speeds pretty consistently between 400Kbps and 700Kbps with short burst much faster than that. Microsoft Direct Push is included so you can get corporate email in real time as well as automatic synchronization with MS Outlook applications through the MS Exchange Server. Personal POP3 and IMAP email services are also supported but they are truly pushed to the device. Rather, the phone searches for your email automatically every fifteen minutes so you may get the illusion of push email. The device also comes with an integrated GPS receiver.

Document Management

As a Windows Mobile 6.0 based device, the BlackJack II is equipped with MS Office Mobile Suite which allows for viewing and editing of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents. It also allows for viewing of HTML formatted email.

QWERTY Keyboard

The Samsung BlackJack II features a full QWERTY keyboard with well-spaced, comfortable keys. It also was among the first smartphones to move the navigation wheel from the side to the front of the device. It’s fairly unresponsive by current standards but still is a nice addition to the navigation toggle button.

Multimedia Suite

The BlackJack II is fitted with a 2.0-megapixel digital camera with 4x zoom but no flash. It can also be used as a video camera. Though having a theoretically more advanced camera than the Motorola Q9c, the quality of images was lower. Windows Media Player 10 Mobile is included and it will support a large number of popular audio and video file types. There is not a 3.5mm headphone jack so an adapter would be required to use standard headphones; however, the device support Bluetooth stereo for wireless headsets. In the BlackJack II’s favor, there is 128MB of onboard memory, twice that of the Q9c. The device can accommodate an expansion MicroSD card up to 4GB.

Battery

Rated talk time is 420 minutes while predicted standby time is up to 336 hours.

Design

The Samsung BlackJack II is a compact device that can be used comfortably. It’s offered in a slick, shiny black version or in burgundy with a textured back.

Summary

The Samsung is no longer a cutting edge smartphone but its many capabilities continue to make it a device worth a look.

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