The concept of a dual-screen smartphone is relatively new, and a perfect storm of two schools of thought: if it can be done, it should; and: if one is good, two are better. Well, you can guess how that turned out.
It isn't that the attempt to enlarge the smartphone viewing space is inherently terrible; it's not. The idea of multiplying the screen real estate without multiplying the device's footprint is exactly the kind of technological envelope-pushing that could engender brainier, more powerful smartphones. It's just the implementation that's never found its sweet spot. Alas, take a look.
(Credit: CNET)Samsung took its flagship Galaxy smartphone mold one step further. The Continuum includes a tiny ticker screen across which marches RSS updates, weather, and social networking status updates. Customizability was limited, typing a bit more cramped, and the constant flow or information a little much. While we came to appreciate the second screen, it never really caught on. Read the full review.
(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)The idea of unfolding a dual-screen smartphone into tablet mode is lofty, and certainly unique. We actually liked some of the Echo's capabilities--like turning the bottom 3.5-inch screen into a virtual keyboard while the top screen acts as a broswer, or locking both screens together to summon a 4.7-inch map. However, the handset was bulky, the seam distracting, the learning curve higher than usual, and the phone features otherwise unremarkable. The Echo sold poorly, and was killed off in September. Read the full review.
(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)A screen within a keyboard? Get out! The Doubleplay wedges a tiny 2-inch QVGA touch display in the center of its split keyboard. It alternately shows icons you can press to quickly switch apps, or complementary features, like typing a message while reading your e-mail on the main display. You can see the problems already: the secondary screen bifurcated the keyboard into distal lobes; it was too small to be truly useful, and large enough to be distracting; and in the end, we never quite found our stride. The Doubleplay's disappointing battery life didn't help buoy its appeal.
Read the full review.
(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)One of the most successful applications of the set, Samsung added a second 3.5-inch screen on the inside of its Android smartphone. There are no tricks to learn or secondary function; it's just another screen you access by opening the phone like a book. Still, the added screen-and-keyboard combo thicken the phone, and leave us wondering why, other than as an expression of individuality, we would even need the inner display. Wouldn't the phone work just as well as a traditional slider? The $50 price is right, but Android 2.2 Froyo left us cold, when almost all other new Android phones are Gingerbread-flavored, and Ice Cream Sandwich is just around the corner.
Read the full review.
Read more: http://www.cnet.com/8301-17918_1-57332120-85/dual-screen-smartphones-gone-wrong-roundup/#ixzz1fCzrf7T6
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