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Announced just Tuesday, the Samsung Epix is new on the AT&T network.  The 3G phone appears to be the torch bearer for the BlackJack family as it continues on in the same tradition: a smartphone that gets the job done.  I’ve had the phone for a few hours and have my initial impression to report.  I’ll report back in an couple of weeks with an in-depth look.

In short, this is one good looking business phone.  Its understated gray exterior screams, “I make way more than you think I do” and the classy chrome-like band around the phone is retained from the BlackJack 2.  The phone feels good in the hand, not heavy but solid.  I just feel more important using it.

Optical mouse

I really didn’t pay much attention to the spec sheet concerning this item as a feature like this is open to personal interpretation especially when Samsungs touts you can just turn it into a d-pad if you liike.  That says to me they weren’t sure if we’d like it.  So far, I do like it.  It is very easy to move the cursor around, the gripe I harbor is one swipe doesn’t get the cursor all the way across the screen.  It ends up only going about 2/3 of the way.  Odd.

Size matters

The Epix is almost an exact copy of the original BlackJack, just a hair bigger.  According the specs, it is 4.56 x 2.41 x 0.51.  The screen moves to touch with haptic-like feedback and increases to 320x320 vs the older 320x240 on the BJ 1 and 2.

Batteries included

My biggest complaint about the BJ2 was the new battery created just for it.  Seems Samsung listened, as this new Epix uses the same big battery from the BJ1.  Yeehaw!  All you BlackJack 1 users put off upgrading for a good reason.

Windows 6.1 - I was wrong?

I make proportionally more fun of Windows Mobile than I should.  So far, working with Windows Mobile 6.1 has been okay.  The onscreen menus that pop up when a call comes in, such as speaker phone, hold, note among others, were a very welcome surprise.  My longer term test will focus on this bit as well.

Touch-y

I liked the jog-dial from the first generation; apparently I was the only one, as it was promptly removed for BlackJack 2, but I am finding with the touch screen, I don’t need it.  In fact, I can place a call without touching a single button (except the odd one on the side to wake the phone up - it seems to be set up to sleep in 5 seconds at the moment).  So far, I like the touch screen a lot.  My man-sized fingers are navigating it okay, but that on screen keyboard is just too much; and not in a good way.  But it is there if you really want it.

So for business folks, this version seems right up their alley. 

Product page: [AT&T]