The previous standard for mobile phone cameras--five Megapixels--is on its way out.  After LG's Renoir and Sony Ericsson's C905, Samsung has unveiled its own cameraphone with an 8 Megapixel sensor.  Of course, all those pixels don't necessarily add up to good photos.

Samsung has only recently released both the Player Style and the Player Addict, two other touchscreen phones, but now it's back with another interface that plays out at the end of your fingers rather than on a keyboard.

Here though, the emphasis is different, and the idea seems to be a phone that can compete with a compact digital camera.  That means WiFi has had to make way for a simple 3G connection, and, although you can manually geotag your photos, there's no GPS on board.

All of the signs point to a shift in direction away from piling on the features to go multifunction, favoring a successful implementation of one particular element--in this case, the camera, which can shoot video in 720 x 480 resolution, better than most of the completion.

Samsung has finally returned to its own proprietary software platform for the Pixon, in contrast to the Windows Mobile implementation on the Addict.  With any luck, this switch back to in-house software will improve responsiveness and performance.

Simple Styling

What happened in Samsung's design studios?  Lacking all of the inspiration that they normally show--as they did so successfully on the Player, for instance--they've chosen a very plastic look for the Pixon.

On the front, the Pixon resembles its immediate predecessor, the Player Addict, with a large 3.2'' 240 x 480 pixel screen giving plenty of room.


Looking at it side-on, though, it's a few millimeters thicker because of the new 8 Megapixel sensor, which has replaced the earlier 5 Megapixel version on earlier Samsung phones.    Finally, from the back, the Pixon has been clearly been styled to look like a digital camera.


Along each side of the phone, there are a series of shortcuts which are becoming increasingly standard on modern mobiles.  You can use them to get straight to the camera, adjust the volume and zoom and lock the phone.  Nearby, you'll also find a microSD card slot, where you can expand the default 1 GB up to 32 GB, and a port for charging the phone, either via USB or a mains charger.

If you want to customize your phone, you can slide off the black cover and replace it with an alternative in either purple or red.


TouchWiz interface: widget time

As we mentioned earlier, the Pixon sees a return of Samsung's in-house OS, also seen on the Player Style.  It's a welcome change, as it make the phone faster and means you can avoid the infernal menus found in Windows Mobile, which are likely to drive all but the most patient of users crazy.

The main home screen is now peppered with widgets, and you can add as many as you like by dragging them onto the desktop from a folder.



Some popular content is provided by default, and you download widgets for other sites from a special website.  All of the standard options are there by default, though, including weather updates, a calendar and access to your phonebook and photos.

Can you get to all of this quickly?  Yes, actually: it's at least as fast as the LG Renoir.  The touchscreen is accurate, and each feature loads almost instantaneously without any irritating pauses.  It's a pleasure to use, but still not quite as seamless as the iPhone.


Typing e-mails and messages is easy enough thanks to the touchscreen QWERTY keyboard (the model in the photo above was tested in France and so is displaying an AZERTY layout).  It's never going to be as comfortable as using a real keyboard, but it is an improvement on using a regular phone's numeric keyboard.

Time to Replace Your Camera?

So, is this a cameraphone that you can use every day, or is it more of an emergency option for when your real camera runs out of juice or gets forgotten?  It's important to remember that the number of pixels is in no way a guarantee of good photos because so many other components are involved.

To start with, you need to open the photo menu via the simple, intuitive interface.  The system dedicated to taking photos is particularly clear, and despite the large numbers of options available, you're sure to feel at home here.


Much of the functionality of a digital compact is there, including efficient image stabilization, the choice of scene modes (sports, night and so on) and the ability to control the speed right up to 1600 ISO.

The autofocus isn't the fastest we've ever seen, but you don't need to wait very long for your photo to save before moving on to take the next one.

To take up our original question--can you use the Pixon as your regular camera--our answer has to be a guarded yes, with one or two clear caveats.  During the day, everything works fine, with just a slight red tinge to colors and a little blurriness, meaning there's a lot less noise than there is on the LG Renoir.  The quality of the photos we took was generally good enough for most uses.

When light levels begin to drop, though, the Pixon has to rely on its LED flash, which doesn't really cut it.  Photos quickly gain too much noise and become far less sharp.  Pushing the 16x digital zoom too far also tends to ruin your images.

In short, up against a regular camera, the Pixon (and its competitors the LG Renoir and the C905 for that matter) is so far behind that there's no chance of a photo finish.

The Competition

The Samsung Pixon has to take the prize for the best quality photos, a reputation that's only sullied by a slightly tardy autofocus.  Given that a lot of the attraction in a cameraphone is in its portability--you can keep it in your pocket and take a photo anywhere that the inspiration grabs you--a slow autofocus could well hold you back at the vital moment.

The C905 is less stunning when it comes to the sharpness of the photos it takes, although it's generally OK, but it does have a bright, powerful flash and focuses quickly.  It doesn't have a touchscreen and it's so bulky you're often left feeling like you've got a brick in your pocket.

Finally, the Renoir, which is just as quick off the mark as the C905, isn't quite as good as the Pixon when it comes to the photos takes.  Having said that, it does have an interesting selection of other features.

All in all, these three cameraphones do reasonably well, with the C905 edging out into a slight advantage thanks to its speed and powerful flash.  If the quality of your photos matters more to you than how quickly you can take them, then you would be better off with the Pixon.  For a slimline touchscreen phone with plenty of functionality, it's the Renoir you need.  Once again, it's up to you to choose your priorities and then go for the model that fulfills them best.


The Pixon also does well when it comes to video.  Although its two big competitors are stuck in 640 x 480 resolution, it shoots in 720 x 480 pixels, giving a very good overall quality.   The only thing to warn against is pushing the digital zoom too far, as it just can't do the job as well as an optical zoom would do.  If you want to watch your clips on a TV, there is a video output, but a cable is not supplied.

Poor Sound Quality

Let's not beat about the bush: it's audio that really lets the Pixon down.

We were disappointed for two main reasons.  Firstly, even at maximum volume, you can hardly hear anything unless you in a very quiet room.  Even when you can hear your music, the sound is flat and lacks detail.  Finally, the headphone jack is still proprietary and incompatible with regular 3.5 mm headphones.

The Pixon has a battery life which is just about acceptable, but doesn't quite stretch to two days of continuous use.  Listening to music, it can go for about thirteen hours.

In short, it's an unfortunately average performer compared to other recent mobiles, but is that really good enough?