PLUS
Attractive feminine aesthetic
Inexpensive
Small and light

MINUS
Smallish keyboard
Screen gets dim when viewed off-axis

The feminine CLEO comes in three colours: pink, blue, and champagne (all with daises and leaves stencilled in complementary colours). Its square-ish dimensions give it the appearance of a makeup compact when shut. A small black-and-white display on the front lets users know the time, incoming caller IDs, and if they've missed any messages or calls; a larger, landscape-oriented primary display is located on the interior.

The CLEO opens like any flip phone, but its slightly wider-than-normal proportions allowed Samsung's engineers to fit a full QWERTY keypad on the bottom half of the clamshell, above which reside a standard grouping of mobile controls, including a five-way directional pad, menu selection softkeys, and call and end buttons.

Thumb-typing using the CLEO's slightly rubbery keys proved much more efficient than using a typical alphanumeric pad, but it did take a bit of concentration. Though raised to provide tactile feedback allowing users to feel their way between keys, the buttons were much smaller and narrower than those of the other phones we tested, which led to more frequent typos. (But a teenage girl might not have the same problem!)

Also, the CLEO's screen seems quite dark when viewed from above. Luminosity is fine when line-of-sight is perpendicular to the surface, but it quickly grows dim when tilted just a few degrees toward the user, which we found happened naturally as we typed.

Instant-messaging programs such as Windows Live Messenger and Yahoo! Messenger are supported, as are the corresponding e-mail clients Windows Live Mail and Yahoo! Mail, but most carriers will charge extra should you choose to access these services. Plus, if you opt to use the CLEO for IM or email, don't expect the speed or elegance you'd find in smartphones, which have software and Internet connection speeds better suited for these applications.

The CLEO has a 1.3-megapixel camera with video capabilities, and can also act as a capable MP3 player (assuming you have a MicroSD card to store your music), though it's worth noting that some users have reported problems trying to move songs from their PCs onto the phone. Not surprisingly, many carriers prefer consumers to use their proprietary music downloading services. A headset with a microphone and call-receive button comes included.

Call quality and reception were perfectly acceptable during our tests. Voices were clear, and white noise levels were average. Listeners on the other end of the line noted no aberrations in what they heard. We also liked the easy to access speakerphone, which was surprisingly loud and clear.

The CLEO's battery lasted about a week with light usage, but drained quickly when we sat down and went through our list of tests. Happily, it charged back up just as speedily; just a few minutes of juice gave us another hour of fiddling time.

There's not much to this cute little handset beyond phoning and texting, but if that and a bit of feminine style are what you need, then it will definitely satisfy. It's also worth noting that the women for whom we demonstrated the phone immediately cued to its look and feel. Bell offers the CLEO for free with a three-year contract, or for $279.95 without.

Article Tags:  phone, Bell, smartphone, feminine, messenger, carriers, yahoo, small, messaging, three, colours, using, samsung, CLEO, IM, SMS, texting, MSN, Windows