Clamshells aren't the most exciting handsets around, but the Nokia 2720 Fold isn't half bad. Not only does it have some decent features, it comes with looks that does seem just a tad more attractive than other phones with a similar form factor.

Physically, you'll most likely love the smooth lines, stylish appearance and glossy finish. While good-looking, the surface is an absolute magnet for fingerprints. Weight is extremely light, making it very easy on the pocket. Despite that, overall construction feels sturdy, with extra thick hinges to inspire further confidence.

The black and white external display measures 1.36 inches and displays only the most basic information. Flipped open, it shows off a 1.8-inch LCD, with 128 x 160 resolution and 65,000 colors. Both the T9-style keyboard and the navigation array are designed really well, making input largely trouble-free.

As a phone, the 2720 Fold makes for high-quality calls that are noticeably clearer and better-sounding than other handsets in the same price range. Callers, on the other hand, can detect some amount of sharpness, but reported excellent conversations anyway. Speakerphone was decent and usable, but is far from the best. Battery life is rated at three hours, which should make it good for a day or two of regular use (maybe more if you seldom make calls).

Being a cheap phone, features are obviously a little on basic side of the spectrum. You get a 500-entry phone book, Bluetooth, messaging capabilities (SMS, MMS, IM and IMAP/POP email), WAP browsing (Opera Mini) and PIM tools.

More advanced features include a 1.3 megapixel camera and a music player. The camera module barely offers any options, but manages average quality for such low-resolution hardware. Music player is basic, which is expected, but the 2.5 mm jack just makes it downright disappointing.

Want a cheap phone for North American use (yep, it's strictly for local users)? The Nokia 2720 Fold is absolutely down there in terms of value. Features are very slim, but at the price ($20 on T-Mobile, $9.99 on AT&T and $125 unlocked), I can't see anyone complaining.

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The LG Helix is the first AWS-capable phone ever released by the Korean company.  Apart from that, however, there's not much to set it apart - it's about as simple as a clamshell handset can get.

Physically, it's a traditional flip phone through and through.  It's slim, compact and should easily fit in your pocket, all while sporting a blocky, rectangular design.  The Cricket version for the US comes in silver and pink (neither of which are particularly affable);  hopefully, they'll bring in the more attractive orange version too.  As clamshells go, it sports two displays - a 1-inch color LCD outside and a 2-inch panel (with 220x176 resolution) inside.

As a phone, it makes for largely inconsistent call quality - there's occasional choppiness and crackly audio.  Speakerphone was predictably tinny, but usable.  Battery life is rated at five hours of talk time, which makes it good for a couple days of regular use.

There aren't much here in terms of features (and that's not an understatement).  You get the basics - a 1,000 entry phonebook, standard messaging, some PIM tools, Bluetooth and a WAP browser.  As expected, there's neither 3G nor Wi-Fi.  Surprisingly, there's no music player in sight as well.

LG threw in a 1.3 megapixel camera, however, with a good amount of editing options.  The picture quality was actually very good for such a basic camera, so that's a silver lining.  Rounding out the feature set are a few games (Super Street Fighter and Where's Waldo) and apps (MyBackup and MyPerks).

Overall, it's tough to recommend the LG Helix.  While I can understand the lack of features (it's $119.99 without a contract), the spotty call quality is an absolute deal-breaker.  It could be the network or the phone's fault, though.  If Cricket has good presence in your area, it might be worth the purchase.

While geared towards basic users, the Nokia 6350 brings along a good set of extra features to go with its attractive clamshell design.  It's not the kind of phone that's designed to impress, but you'll have all your standard communication needs met with a few bonuses thrown in.

Physically, it looks just a tad better than your average flip phone, featuring slim lines, smooth corners and a nice material on both cover sides.  It doesn't open all the way through.  Instead, it creates an arc that allows the screen to slightly incline, which is an overall better way of using the device. Nokia claims the model is free from harmful materials and is 80% recyclable.

It features a small, full-color 1.36-inch screen outside and a  2-inch LCD inside.  Both panels manage brilliant colors with plenty of details.  The keyboard is well-spaced and the navigation array is spacious, making it very easy to use.

As a phone, the 6350 manages very good calls, with clear, loud  and uninterrupted  sound.  The full-duplex speakerphone also performs admirably.  Overall phone speed is quite snappy and is paired with a fast 3G connection.   Battery life is rated at 4.2 hours of talk time.

Running S40, it comes with all the basic handset capabilities, including a 1,000-contact address book, Bluetooth 2.1 and full messaging support (SMS, MMS, IM and web-based email).  It can also operate in AT&T's PTT network.  The 2.0 megapixel camera offers a good range of editing options but the photo quality just leave much to be desired.

The phone's 3G was fast, making for quick downloads of music and files.  Streaming video loaded well, but playback quality was another matter altogether.  Suffice to say, it will make do as a music phone, but could be pushing it too far for video.  It comes with a good number of Java apps pre-installed, including MobiTV, Juice Caster (for IM) and YellowPages Mobile.

Overall, the Nokia 6350 is an excellent phone for basic communications as well as downloading.  As a multimedia device, though, both the camera performance and video playback just aren't up to par.  At the low price it's selling for, however, it sounds like a good deal all the same.

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Unlike most clamshell devices that are too basic to warrant much attention, the Motorola Entice W766 includes a good range of multimedia features with pleasing performance.  Even better, it's priced along the same lines as simpler, less-featured handsets.

The front lid of the phone sports a small 1.8-inch colored LCD, together with touch-sensitive multimedia and  call controls (Bluetooth and speakerphone).  This makes it easy to use the handset's music player and basic controls without flipping it open, although they are a bit cumbersome to use.  Audio quality is actually good, with a nice-looking interface.

Physically, the Entice comes with an understated modern design, sporting lightweight form and compact dimensions.   The handset's build is sturdy, with a well-made hinge and an overall nice feel.  Larger inside display is a 2.2-inch QCIF screen, with a low 176 x 220 resolution.  Despite the dearth of pixels, images managed to look sharp and bright.  Keypad sports a comfortable set of raised, RAZR-like keys.

As a phone, the clamshell device manages fantastic calls, with natural-sounding voices, clear tone and ample volume.  Speakerphone was similarly good, sounding just a tad metallic, with very clear performance.  It has a rated battery life of 5.5 hours, making it good for at least two days or more before requiring a charge.

On the features end, it comes with the usual basics, like a 1000-entry phonebook, some basic apps and a decent messaging suite (SMS, MMS, IM and web-based POP3 email), among others.  More premium capabilities include an onboard GPS and 3G support.  It posts decent broadband speeds, making it a good phone for both web browsing (no full HTML support, though) and using your provider's numerous broadband services (it's released in the US by Verizon).

The integrated 2.0 megapixel camera offers a decent set of options (including self-timer, color settings and various editing tools), managing surprisingly good quality.  Videos are pretty bad, so best forget about it.  It also supports microSD cards up to 8GB.

Overall, the Motorola Entice is a decent midrange phone.  The good multimedia capabilities, broadband support and $19.99 price (from Verizon, with a two-year contract) make it an enticing choice for everyone in search of a low-cost handset that packs a couple of extra features.

Those in search of a basic phone without any contract tie-ins should take a look at the Samsung Mantra, the Korean manufacturer's second phone released in the US by Virgin Mobile.  While it's not exactly the kind of device that will make heads turn, it packs in an agreeable aesthetic and easy-to-use design that should make it a worthy choice for less-demanding mobile users.

The direct follow-up to the Samsung Slash, the Mantra sports similar functional features, better call quality and considerably more affable looks.  With a clamshell form factor, simple lines and understated color scheme, it's the kind of phone that blends in the background.  Body is made of plastic, but the hinge and overall build feels sturdy.

Like other flip phones, it comes with two screens - a sub-1-inch external panel (96 x 96 pixels) and a bigger 2-inch internal LCD (160 x 128).  Obviously, it doesn't offer the best images, but are useful enough for its intended purposes, namely texting and managing contacts.  UI is highly intuitive and easy to navigate, with the buttons plush and convenient to handle.

Call quality was good, although sound distorts a bit when set at the highest volume level, both on the handset and on the speakerphone.  Battery lasted well over five hours of talk time.

As expected, the Mantra isn't heavy on extra features.  It does fit in all the standard basic capabilities (SMS, MMS, voice recordings, etc), though, along with a few bonuses.  Users get IM support, web-based POP3 email, Bluetooth, a WAP 2.0 browser and a VGA camera.  The camera has a few shooting and editing features, which help make it just a tad more usable.

Overall, the Samsung Mantra is just what you'd expect from a basic phone, with nothing awful that holds it back (as with the Slash's looks, for instance).  Available for $59.99 for a prepaid service from Virgin Mobile, it's also priced particularly cheap.

You might remember the Sony Ericsson T707 as the clamshell phone that debuted in the hands of Maria Sharapova not too long ago.  Clad in glossy, eye-catching colors, it's easily one of the most visually appealing handsets available today.

Looks aren't everything for the T707, but that may certainly be its most compelling feature.  With a decidedly sexy design and plenty of attractive touches, it's the kind of phone you can't help but be drawn to, as soon as you set your gaze upon it.  Once you turn the handset on, the external shell becomes even more lovely, with the outer panel glowing and pulsating to alert you of a message or a missed call.

Build of the entire phone is very sturdy, from the outer chassis to the inside panels to the top-mounted hinge.  It sports a well-designed T9-style keypad that delivers good typing experience.  Display is a 2.2-inch LCD, with bright colors and sharp details.

As a phone, the T707 offers good calls and a wide range of messaging support.  Performance is just about what you'd expect from standard Sony Ericsson phones, making it a largely predictable experience.  One of the company's trademark activities, as of late, has been to bundle its releases with apps of all sorts, and this phone is no different.  It comes with custom-made versions of popular services like Google Maps, YouTube and Facebook, among many other third-party offerings.

On the features end, the T707 bundles a good set.  It offers gesture controls, HSDPA connectivity, stereo Bluetooth, a 3.2 megapixel camera and music playback.  Web browsing is fast, though, the screen is really too small to be all that enjoyable.  Camera comes with a good range of features, although photo quality is decidedly average.  For the music player, it supports both MP3 and AAC files, and offers above-average audio quality.  This is dampened a bit by the use of a proprietary headset jack, forcing you to use the unappetizing set of earphones bundled with the phone.

Overall, the Sony Ericsson T707 is a fashion phone.  It looks good and packs in a decent feature set, but isn't all that useful if you want to squeeze as much as you can out of your handset.  At its price (we've seen it sell between $250 to $350, as of now), it sounds like it can carry its own weight, making it a good purchase, provided that a "hot, sexy phone" is at the top of your priority list.

Sony Ericsson

We rarely get to see smartphones sporting a clamshell form factor, with the design cue typically reserved for lower-end devices with more basic features. It's that reason why a handset like the BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8230 feels relevant - it offers something different for those whose tastes might not exactly be the norm.

Since RIM decided to keep it within a reasonable size for a flip phone, the 8230 isn't able to fit in a full-size QWERTY keyboard. Instead, it uses a SureType entry panel, which allows for semi-QWERTY typing, with two characters assigned for each key. Like we said about the Samsung SGH T349, the partial QWERTY takes a bit of getting used to, although it does allow for some pretty fast texting once you get the hang of the layout.

Physically, I find the Pearl Flip to be one of the sexier clamshell phones around. While it does come in a little bulky, the entry-level smartphone talents more than make up for it.

As a phone, it offers great voice calls, with loud volume and zero interference the whole time we tried it. Speakerphone was similarly pleasant. It fits in all basic phone features you can expect from a modern handset, along with Blackberry's signature range of messaging capabilities. Like other RIM devices, it supports SMS, MMS, IM and multiple email accounts of pretty much any configuration you can ask for.

On the features end, the phone comes with an onboard music player (great quality), a 2.0 megapixel camera (average stills, with some amount of shutter lag), aGPS and a full HTML browser. It supports 3G connectivity, although does without Wi-Fi, which is sort of Blackberry's perennial Achilles Heel.

It comes with a great set of bundled apps that include various social networking tools, Documents To Go, five IM clients and Visual Voice Mail. There's also support for the Blackberry App World, which allows it download access to more apps that are compatible with the phone. Despite the broadband capability, it doesn't seem to support music and video streaming services (at least, with Verizon).

Overall, the BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8230 is a good-looking option for first-time smartphone users. It's not the most feature-rich handset available, but it's priced very competitively and fits in, pretty much, every business talent you can find in other Blackberry phones.

Photo Credit: Into Mobile

Like we said in our review of the Motorola Hint QA30, there seems to be a trend among lower-end handsets sporting a square form factor.  US Cellular gets in on the action as well, with a similar offering in the clamshell-styled Samsung Gloss.

As you may have guessed, this is a very basic messaging phone with an odd design that seems to have more in common with a makeup mirror than an actual phone.  However, as one of the smallest full QWERTY handsets around (if not the smallest actually) at 2.55 x 2.94 x 0.82 inches, it's also extremely easy to bring along.  The name is actually a misnomer as the Gloss isn't glossy nor shiny at all.  Instead, it's a very cute device that's likely targeted towards younger female customers.

Personally, I love the way the phone looks and wouldn't mind rocking the gray one if I had no other choice.  As a messaging handset, it's also pretty nifty, with a very good set of QWERTY keys (plenty of separation, good response).  During voice calls, it felt a bit odd holding the form close to your face but I'm sure it's the kind of thing you get over with in time.  Call quality is decent, with a little robotic sharpness on our end.

The inside screen is a bright, colorful and equally square 2.2-inch LCD.  Display is quite beautiful, with good color delivery and fonts that are very easy on the eyes.  The phone runs fast enough with passably intuitive controls and navigation.  Like I said, it's a phone I wouldn't mind using, actually, if all I needed to do is text and call.  It fits in a 1.3 megapixel camera right on the front flap, with a 1.1-inch LCD right below it that you can use as a viewfinder when taking self-portraits.  Image quality from a 1.3 megapixel module, as you can expect, is quite unappetizing.

It's not devoid of good features, however, toting stereo Bluetooth, aGPS, USB mass storage support, voice dialing, a pretty basic music player and  mobile email.  You can set up practically any email account with either POP or IMAP access.  Other capabilities include a wireless web browser (via EDGE connectivity) and microSDHC expansion up to 16GB.

All in all, the Samsung Gloss is a very good messaging phone, with a few nifty features offered as an aside.  If you (or, most likely, your daughter) are on the hunt for a good-looking QWERTY-fitted handset, this should figure prominently among your options.

Tracfone quietly rolled out a new entry-level Samsung clamshell phone called the Samsung SGH-T201G.  It's the mobile  carrier's third Samsung handset, right after the Samsung SGH-T101G (which comes in a candy bar form) and the Samsung SGH-T301G (a standard slider).

Like its two siblings under the Tracfone banner, the SGH-T201G fits low-end specs and the most basic of features (SMS and calls).  Size is a very pocketable 1.8 x 3.5 x 0.8 inches, while packing a classic suite of phone apps like calendars and alarms, looking no different from what they probably did from your very first colored handsets.

Two screens come on board the Samsung SGH-T201G, one external and another when you flip the cover, both featuring a 128 x 160 resolution and 65,000 colors.  It comes with a built-in HTML browser (GPRS connection) with an available memory of only 1.4MB.  Tracfone made no announcements on pricing and availability, but we're guessing it's coming soon.

I'd really like to see data on how many people actually go for these bottom-of-the-barrel devices as they just won't seem to go away.   Personally, I think anyone looking at one of these low-end handsets should take a gander at Chinese phones - I reckon they sell at around the same price a phone like this goes for, with a lot more to offer.

Photo Credit: Phone Scoop