Gadgetrepublic.com - Gadget Review

Xoxo ... Gossip Girl

If you've ever watched the hit US TV series following the lives of rich, spoiled socialites from Manhattan's Upper East Side, you will know that the mysterious Gossip Girl receives and distributes most of her juicy scandal via mobile phone.

Gossip-hungry guys and girls alike singe their manicured fingertip, such is the speed of typing on their handsets that come equipped with slide-out QWERTY keyboards (natch) much like the one on the Samsung Ping.

You see, the Ping is all about being social and therefore is designed to get you typing, texting and updating your Facebook status quicker than you can say, "Serena van der Woodsen".

^{Get your Facebook on with the Samsung Ping}

Size isn't everything ... Facebook is

The Ping comes in three classy but girly colours: grey, jade green and metallic pink, and while the screen is quite small at 2 inches, this is all about bijoux - compact and cutesy technology that still does the job.

The 2-megapixel camera takes a decent picture, and as a Samsung phone it has the legacy of great features: you can choose from four shooting modes, four resolutions, night mode, a timer, various effects, including black and white and sepia, 21 fun frames and a white balance.

Flickring star

It also has a camcorder mode and with shortcuts to several online community photo sites including Flickr, Photobucket and Picasa, you can upload them straight to your account.

Facebook and MySpace are located on the home screen menu and they display with the same style of theme and font as your Samsung user interface. Co-ordination is everything.

Obviously enough, this isn't the phone for the business user but if you know any teenaged girls or even ladies in their twenties that love to text, facebook and snap pics, this is the perfect design, size and QWERTY keyboard layout for their needs.

And a cherry on top

It also has an MP3 player, calendar, organiser and all of the usual functionality, including mobile web browser and email, plus a few quirky extras: there is a fake incoming call function that will help you duck out of a disastrous date and a music recognition app like Shazam.

Despite its small and cute nature, this is a sturdy little phone and the slide-out keyboard is firmly attached so if you're going to be throwing it into the depths of your handbag amongst cosmetics, books, an umbrella and the like, it will fare just fine.

Pros: Pocketable size, cute design, easy access to Facebook and decent camera.

Cons: Small screen, no Twitter application or Gmail/MSN integration.

Price: The jade green is available exclusively from Vodafone at €99 prepay, and the pink and grey exclusively from Carphone Warehouse at €99 prepay.

By Marie Boran