Samsung Galaxy S II build and Design

Despite all of its advanced features, last year's Galaxy S looked a lot like the iPhone 3G. The only difference was that it was entirely made out of plastic; one of its greatest shortcomings. Now, just like the iPhone 4, Galaxy S II has developed sharper edges. It is still entirely crafted out of plastic, but seems more convincing this time with solid housing and a modern design.

Its elegant line is evident at first touch, feels light when held, and sounds incredible. Despite the fact that the Galaxy S II has a 0.3 inches larger display than its predecessor, it is significantly slimmer and a few grams lighter. It is 2 millimeters higher and wider with the dimensions being 125 x 66 x 8.5 mm.

Its slim profile is very impressive, and when combined with a large display that takes up nearly the whole front surface of the phone, you get a highly modern and futuristic look. The secret of such a great design is in the Super AMOLED 'Plus' technology, given that it enables the production of significantly thinner screens compared to the Super AMOLED ones, which the "old" Galaxy uses.

The biggest problem with standard AMOLED displays is their drastic loss of contrast when exposed to direct sunlight, making those phones a bad choice for those who spend a lot of time outdoors. This problem was slightly tackled with Super AMOLED technology; however, devices like the original Galaxy S that used it, were still not easy to use in direct sunlight.

Samsung's Galaxy S II comes with the Super AMOLED Plus screen, and progress has been made once again -- the contrast is still lost in sunlight, but not to the extent that using the phone is difficult. Indoors, the Super AMOLED Plus looks very impressive, especially on a lush 4.3-inch diagonal.

Samsung Focus S (AT&T) Review

Those who doubted that Windows Phone isn't a mobile platform to be reckoned with need to check out the new Samsung Focus S for AT&T. Equipped with a fast 1.4-GHz CPU, a vibrant 4-inch Super AMOLED Plus screen, and all the goodness of Windows Phone 7.5, this handset has a lot going for it. Best of all, you can now snag this smartphone for $99, much less than the $199 launch price.

Like a Galaxy S II in Windows clothing, the Samsung Flash S looks very similar to its Android kin. Its front is a smooth slab with gentle curves and rounded edges, and the back has a slight chin at the bottom. On the front is a large 4.3-inch display, framed by a 1.3-megapixel camera and an earpiece above and three capacitive buttons (Back, Search, Windows) below it.

Flat and extremely thin, the Flash S (4.9 x 2.6 x 0.3 inches) sports a marginally smaller profile than the Galaxy S II (5 x 2.6 x 0.4 inches). At a feather-weight 3.9 ounces, this Windows Phone is almost a full ounce lighter than the HTC Radar (4.8 ounces), and a hair lighter than the Galaxy S II and even the diminutive Samsung Focus Flash (both 4.1 ounces).

Of course, the Focus S is much wider than the Focus Flash, its smaller 3.7-inch Windows sibling. The Focus S is less of a fingerprint magnet too, thanks to a textured back plastic battery cover--the Flash's battery door is brushed metal. Similar to the Galaxy S II, the thin cover of the Focus S feels flimsy and flexes easily.

Also on back is the 8-MP main camera and LED flash and speaker. A headphone jack sits on the handset's top edge, while camera and power buttons occupy the right. The bottom lip holds a microUSB port and a thin volume rocker runs along the left side.