The Samsung Chat 335 (styled as Ch@t 335) is an entry-level smartphone. It's meant for users with a strong SMS habit who also want online connectivity without shelling out too much money.
The Samsung Chat 335's stand-out features - apart from its inexpensive price tag - are its qwerty keyboard and Wi-Fi connectivity.
Samsung Chat 335: Features
Along with the qwerty keyboard, the Samsung Chat 335 has a 2.4in TFT screen with a resolution of 320x240 pixels and 256K colour output.
It has a 3.5mm jack for plugging in headphones and uses a microUSB port to charge and connect to the PC. The Chat has 60MB of internal memory and supports microSD cards up to 8GB (it comes with a free 2GB microSD card). The Chat supports Wi-Fi and Bluetooth but no 3G and GPS. The Chat also has a 2Mp fixed-focus camera with no flash that can record videos in CIF resolution (176x144).
The Samsung Chat also comes pre-installed with a couple of social networking and chat applications that include Facebook, Twitter, Palringo, MSN and Yahoo.
Samsung Chat 335: Design & Usability
Our colleagues at PC World India put the Samsung Chat 335 through its paces in their lab. here's how it got on.
The tale of the Samsung Chat 335's design and usability can be told in two parts: the surprisingly good and the surprisingly bad.
The good is that the Chat is one of the best-looking phones at this price. It looks stylish and elegant with a brushed-metal look on the keyboard and the front buttons complemented by a metallic rim.
The Chat is light but feels solid in the hand and is quite slim too. The presence of the optical trackpad is also nice since when done well, the optical trackpad is better to use than a D-pad. Also, the Chat's user interface (UI) is easy on the eye and has a simple design with a couple of customisation options.
The bad begins with the keyboard which is very disappointing to use in spite of looking good. The keys are too soft and aren't sufficiently raised making it difficult to type on. Also, on pressing a key almost every other key around it wobbles, which takes away from the usability. The optical trackpad is also a little too sensitive and not very accurate. Even after I had set the trackpad's sensitivity to its lowest, the Samsung Chat 335 was difficult to control.
The Chat's screen is average but at least the UI looks good on it. However, it handles terribly under sunlight and videos, even indoors, don't look great on it.
Samsung Chat 335: Browsing and Multimedia
The Samsung Chat 335 is definitely not a phone you want to browse the web on. In fact, it won't let you browse most of the internet, as it almost always runs out of memory on sites that aren't optimised for mobile browsing. Also, the optical trackpad makes it difficult to browse on the small screen.
The Chat has a surprisingly capable 2Mp camera. Although you probably shouldn't rely on it for anything more than casual shots, it takes colourful and sharp pictures - although it does falter indoors because of the absence of auto-focus. The Chat records very ordinary videos which are only good for watching on the phone's screen.
Images shot with the Samsung Chat 335
The Chat is pretty good at playing music. The phone is capable of loud volumes and it has a decent set of EQ settings too.
Samsung Chat 335: Comparison with rival phones
The Samsung Chat 335’s looks, features and price (£96) put it in competition with the Nokia C3. The Samsung has an edge over the Nokia in terms of looks, screen quality and multimedia, whereas the Nokia has a better keyboard, is better to use and costs a bit less. It’s actually quite difficult to separate the two, although I would say the Nokia has the slightest of edges over the Samsung.
On the other hand, it might be worth spending a little more and opting for the Nokia E63.
Next page: Our expert verdict >>
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Comments
Slevens said: My samsung chat won't turn on, fully charged and all just froze switched off and I've only got it today so not to keen on taking it back,any ideas?
Sukdeb said: I also have same problem. If anybody know the way, please reply...
Christin said: How do i send images. when i send them the message is received at the other end but not the image.
PwincessPresh said: Soo should i gt 1 or nott ?
Sami said: I have the same problem. did you find a solution?
Bhfuller208 said: Just got this phone. It will call out but turns itself off when there is an incoming call. Any ideas?
kikks said: menu -> settings -> pc connectionsyou can either download samsung kies software from their website(select samsung kies option) or use it like you would a pendrive(mass storage)
Melanie-Jane Ewart said: how do i switch the bluetooth off?
Io98 said: Get the Blackberry
Bubbles said: When you are doing outgoing texts, is it possible to turn off the annoying ring it makes on sending it. I don't want to have to turn the silent profile on.
Filly Nelson said: Please let me know because I also didn't get a CD driver with it
Filly Nelson said: I love my Samsung Chat 335 since August 2011. I am however struggling to download pictures from my PC to my Samsung cellphone
stf said: i didn't get installation cd when i bought it. can someone tell me where can i download a free software or smthg? so i can connect it with my pc. tnx
stf said: exactly!
stf said: omg.. that ur phone is connected with ur pc
Stf said: go to menu -> apps -> wi fi -> on
SUJAI 2255 said: IT HAS SLOW BLUETOOTH CONNECTIVITY..AND DOES'"NT WORK ALL KIND OF IMAGES...
Emmamoney said: how do you turn the wifi on??
No 1seasider said: hello can any1 tell me what the symbol on the screen inbetween bluetooth and sound symbol which looks like a computer with arrows pointing both way is plz
Mimaslilworld said: would you recommend the mobile? Im tyed between getting this phone or a blackberry, or the samsung galaxy ace. The thing thats stopping me getting this phone is the key pad. iv heard good and bad remarks.