Samsung BEAT DJ M7600 Review

Introduction:

Today we introduce the Samsung BEAT DJ M7600 that has something to offer to people, looking for a cell phone with beautiful face and funny character, i.e. appealing outward appearance and a variety of entertaining options. A key aspect is the Beat DJ app that allows users to create the musical mixes they have always dreamed of, by roping in both creativity and imagination on the job.

Design:

Okay, let´s get right to brass tacks – the phone looks undeniably great, although not everyone would find its brave design likeable. Still, we believe that people who are on the lookout for a fresh and youthful looking device will dig it. We needed just a few seconds to get used to it (because we are young and attractive, you know). Its overall shape is really hard to describe, so take a look at the images, they speak volumes. Don´t be scared though, the handset is used in pretty much the standard way. Its front side is railed in with a metal-like frame that proudly says: “Audio by Bang & Olufsen ICEpower” and screen is what the BEAT DJ improves on alongside of previous devices of the series. It is touch-sensitive, measures 2.8 inches and perfectly goes with the overall style. It is a good thing that Samsung have incorporated the AMOLED technology, which delivers 16 mln color support and incredible image quality no matter the viewing angle. Unfortunately, the display seems allergic to sunlight and the details become almost invisible when you take the phone outdoors, so you will find it rather hard to use in the open.  Note that the area below the screen is touch-sensitive as well, so you can use it in the Beat DJ app. As a whole, the overall display sensitivity is really good and if it wasn’t for the lagging interface, using the phone would have been a great experience. But, we will get back to the interface later.



You can compare the Samsung BEAT DJ M7600 with many other phones using ourSize Visualization Tool.



There are three hardware keys at the bottom that strictly follow the rounded edge and tend to be somewhat uncomfortable, because they are positioned too low for your thumb. It may sound a bit odd, but due to the unique form-factor, the handset does not have four distinct sides. They all merge into a harmonious shape that, by the way, looks quite funky in bluish-violet. It is a beauty to behold indeed. Fortunately, the microSDHC slot has found its place on the right, so you will be able to hot-swap memory cards with ease. Again, Samsung has done great by incorporating standard mircoUSB port. Being a music phone, the Samsung BEAT DJ M7600 should offer sound that’s powerful enough to let you fully enjoy your favorite songs. And it feels great when things come up to expectations. The stereo speakers perform great and deliver loud and clear sound. One of them is on the top side and the other on the bottom. The 3.5mm jack (a must-have feature for any music phone these days) is right on top and is the only element that breaks the perfectly round curves.


The 3-megapixel camera with autofocus, LED flash and a small mirror isalso entirely in unison with the overall “funky” design of the phone.

Interface:

Nowthat you have a good idea of what the Samsung BEAT DJ M7600 looks like,it is about time to get down to its functionality. Actually, youalready know the interface. How come? The new “musician” comes with atouch sensitive screen and the latest TouchWiz user interfacethat we know from other devices of the manufacturer. Once again, youare free to customize it by placing various widgets on the home screenand the manufacturer’s efforts have not been wasted. There are plentyof mini apps, but the best thing is you have the special widget thatallows users to download more, classified in several differentcategories. At the time of this review, the available widgets are 29and some of them have found their place on the phone. We do hopeSamsung put more efforts in diversifying its catalogue, so we can haveeven more varied options.




You can access your favorite contacts(which are “photo contacts” here) by sliding a finger to the right.Adding new entries is not complex and seems like a nice idea of themanufacturer. You just need to pick a picture, tag the face, assign itto a specific number and you are game.  Sliding a finger to your lefttakes you to the main menu. The other way to navigate to it is viaicons at the bottom of the screen, where you also have ones that giveaccess to the phone book and the on-screen keyboard.

Come to the phone contacts,we need to point out the interface is pleasing, easy to use and addingcontacts is comfy. Well, you don’t have options like storing people´skid’s names or the first time they have had a cheese cake, but still,each entry has standard fields for quite many numbers, email addresses,fax numbers and the likes. You write messages using the standard screenkeyboard that is comfy to use thanks to the good display sensitivity.There is no on-screen QWERTY, but it would have been a pain to usegiven the display size.


There is nothing surprising in terms of organizer functionality. Of course, must-haves like calendar, alarm clock, notes, tasks, world clock, etc. are all here.


Everythinglooks cool, but we simply must tell the interface is rather sluggish.Sometimes lagging gets so severe that people who flip out easily canfly off the handle in a snap.

Now, let’s get down to the key aspect of the Samsung BEAT DJ M7600 – namely, music.

Music functions:

Like we said, the stereo speakers pack quite a punch. The 3.5mm earphone set that comes boxed is also worth being mentioned, since it delivers deep and good sound. Of course, the software behind all this is of utmost importance as well. Once you start the audio player, you will find yourself in the library. By default, you can filter your songs by all tracks available, playlists, albums, Beat DJ playlist, artists, genres and podcasts. However, you can add or remove filters in the settings menu. The other available options are composers, recently played, most often played and recently added content. Quite many nice things and we haven’t even started yet. The interface of the player is really nice and if you feel like taking look at the available albums, a CD select screen is called up. Selecting an album is easy – just keep your finger pressed against a CD of your liking and drag it to the player (by sliding your finger). Of course, if you are not in the mood, you can just tap on the CD to load it into the player and press play to start it. The on-screen keys allow quick access to functions like 5.1 channel sound effect, shuffle, repeat, settings and the key feature of the Samsung BEAT DJ M7600 – the Beat DJ application. Through the settings submenu you select sound effects and equalizer presets and fortunately, they can be customized and fine tuned to your own taste.



The Beat DJ application is the most distinctive feature of the phone. Basically, it gives users the opportunity to have a whale of time as DJs and in our view, the manufacturer has done it up brown. The available options are numerous and provide a nice set of filters and samples you can use to create your own breakthrough mixes. In addition, you get quite a kick out of scratching tracks, which, however, becomes boring quickly, because the effect doesn’t sound all real. After you take a short break, you will eventually find yourself wanting to spin the vinyl again and get around to producing your own chart-topping masterpiece. There are some really cool filters such as tempo, pitch and reverberation change. Actually, these work pretty well and do make the grade. With the reverberation effect you can make a song sound as if played in a large room, while pitch, for example, can be used to transpose a song so that a female artist starts to sound as male (not that Samsung have put the effect with this in mind…). Samples are a bunch of sounds that can be added to a song. There are kicks, hi-hats, voices and so on and picking proper ones allows lending color to a song or making it sound pretty differently. Unfortunately, Samsung hasn’t implemented the function in the best way possible. Only a single sample can be chosen at a time, meaning you will have to play it and get back to the menu if you need another. It would have been much better if we were allowed to choose several at the same time.




How often does it happen that you hear a song and just wish you knew who performs it? For these occasions, Samsung has equipped the phone with a tool, called Find Music. So, the next time you hear an unfamiliar, but great song, just record it with your Samsung BEAT DJ M7600 and get it recognized with Find Music. Another cool feature is Find Tag that is very useful tool, which automatically fixes you up with the right song names and artists, so that you can organize your playlists right.


Multimedia:

Now that we know how the Samsung BEAT DJ M7600 performs in terms of music, let´s get to its video playback capabilities. The BEAT DJ is an awesome phone to watch videos on, because it supports DivX and Xvid files with up to 720 pixel resolution width, perhaps even greater. Videos are played smoothly, there is no skipping of frames, sound is great and thanks to the AMOLED screen, overall image quality is pleasing. MP4/H.264 files are also played without a hitch, but the limitation with them is resolution width not exceeding 620 pixels.



Camera:

The Samsung BEAT DJ M7600 comes equipped with a 3.2-megapixel camera with autofocus, LED flash and mirror. Its interface is really comfortable, with large and easy to press buttons. It sports only must-have functions, so there are no functions to make you scratch your head pondering over their purpose. Snapshots quality is not something unseen and perhaps the best way to describe the camera is to say it is… useable. Snapshots are not blurry, quite the contrary, they have enough details and look pleasingly. Colors, however, are not saturated enough and pictures look somehow lifeless.

The same goes for the videos. Provided you hold the phone steady, everything looks okay in VGA resolution. Sounds are muffled though, which is the fly in the ointment here.

Performance:

We have to admit we appreciate good in-call quality and are always displeased to hear muffled, muted or sharp and unrealistically sounding voices. The BEAT DJ has left us with mixed feelings. We are neither pleased, not disappointed in its performance. On our end, voices were relatively clear and easy to distinguish, but yet, slightly sharper than we would have liked. People on the other end complained we sounded sharply, monotonously and unclearly. Being critical is our daytime job, but as a whole, the BEAT DJ performs acceptably alongside of current devices.

Conclusion:

It is not every day that a leading manufacturer rolls out uniquely-looking phone, especially when it comes to pepping up music series devices. The developers from Samsung have obviously decided to be innovators and we must say they have done their job admirably and the phone makes for a great investment. Aside from its awesome look, the Samsung BEAT DJ M7600 delivers rich functionality and comes with a fancy touch sensitive AMOLED screen. We believe it has the potential to become a smashing, multimedia trend setter and its unique BEAT DJ application will let you have a whale of time. All you need is creativity.

Samsung BEAT DJ M7600 Video Review: