"When my Samsung Soul was written-off, uninsured, with seven months still to run on my contract, I had to look into the options for a cheap temporary phone. Not wanting a granny-phone, I settled on an LG Cookie initially but then saw the reviews for the Samsung Tocco Lite.
Having now owned this phone for two weeks, I can honestly say it's blown all my expectations out of the water.
For starters, the phone is undeniably very good-looking, making the original Tocco look quite uninspired, and has a very eye-pleasing and sharp display. The Tocco-Lite certainly looks far more expensive than it's £100 price tag.
The touchscreen interface is snappier and more responsive than any other Samsung touch-screen I've tried. The vibration feedback feature helps you to get used to using a full touch-interface, but after a while, you'll probably find it faster and easier to turn it off. The interface is fun to play with and the look is highly customisable (something lacking from many touch-screen phones). You can literally change the entire look of your home screen in a few presses. Furthermore, the widgets make it easy to quickly access the features you use most and offer quick shortcuts to your favourite websites.
The phone book is organised very clearly and a large side-scroll bar makes it easy to locate contacts without having to the previous Tocco's bothersome tap-scroll technique.
Texting is an absolute doddle. You can use the standard numeric pad, with the t9 feature thankfully improved from the Tocco-Ultra, reverting back to standard punctuation input. By far the easiest and most accurate way to text is to turn the phone on its side and use the full QWERTY pad (which also offers t9, but is snappier without). Tricky at first, but very easy to get the hang of - don't be fooled by the small keys. Within a few days it feels so natural you'll probably never use the tradtional method again. You'll also have to get used to this input method for the web browser, as the lack of t9 makes using a standard multi-tap number pad a chore.
The web browser is very easy to use and is very handy for occasional browsing - but the lack of 3G speeds means that hardcore mobile internet users would be better off digging deeper into their pockets and getting another phone.
Like all Samsung models, it's very easy to customise alert profiles. You can chose any sound file as your ringtone and set different ones for different contacts. Message alerts are similarly easy to customise. There's also a handy fake-call function should you need an excuse to make a speedy exit from a miserable social event.
The camera is very good considering the low price of the phone and takes clear, high quality photos. The only drawback is the lack of a flash, so it's no good for drunken night out photos.
Now for the drawbacks. The phone is a little too lightweight, lending a bit of a flimsy feel. I do fear that if I drop it on a hard surface, it would die. Although the build quality is good overall, the back panel is very prone to scratches. And, as with most touch-screen phones, scrolling through lists is something you'll probably never find a knack to and can be mildly frustrating at times.
But other than that, it's a snappy, fun and feature-packed phone that doesn't make compromises for its low price tag. Although it isn't a smart phone, it certainly looks and feels like one and only the desire for faster internet speeds will persuade me to upgrade in seven months time.
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