One of the freshest-looking phones to come out of late, the Samsung B3310 (aka the Corby Mate) is a definite attention-getter.  If nothing else, people are bound to fawn over the unusual positioning for the T9-style keypad, which sees its keys lined up along one side.

Physically, it's a good-looking compact phone, with a youthful design.  The decision to place the number keys on the left hand side makes it possible to use them when you pull down the side-sliding QWERTY keyboard.  It sounds like a functional and novel idea, but the actual implementation isn't very comfortable.  In fact, it made typing numbers a bit cumbersome unless you've got the phone on landscape mode (and even then, it's not the best).  Build is entirely plastic, although construction feels solid.  The screen is a little too small at only 2 inches, but it does offer good resolution (320 x 240) and bright colors.

As a phone, the Corby Mate manages excellent calls, making for clear conversations and natural-sounding voices.  Those on the other end reported a similar pleasantly performance.  Speakerphone sounded a bit too tinny, but it could have been a problem on the unit.  Battery life is rated for five hours of talk time, which should be good for two or three days of normal use on a non-3G handset.

Considered a budget messaging phone, it does come with a small but tidy range of features.  It has the basics covered well, with a 1,000-entry phone book, messaging (SMS, MMS and email - no IM) and standard PIM tools.  There's also stereo Bluetooth, a web browser (strictly GPRS/EDGE, though) and an FM radio.

The music player (which you can load up with songs via SD card) is just average, but the big letdown is the lack of a 3.5mm jack.  It can be a real issue with "cheaper" phones and this one is no exception - the bundled buds are quite unappetizing.  The 2.0 megapixel camera manages decent-looking shots, however.

Overall, the Samsung B3310 is a slider with a very pronounced selling point - an unusual keypad configuration that you're likely to either love or hate.  It comes in a bevy of very bright colors, so the young ones should find it affable.  If you can get used to the slightly cramped keyboard (it's a compact phone, after all), it could be worth the $150 or so price (exact retail pricing depends on where you are).

I always laugh when some manufacturer comes up with a strange-looking phone, then hide my head in shame once everyone raves about how that odd design made the phone so much easier to use.  Maybe it will turn out the same way with the new Samsung B3310, a painfully pink phone with a side-mounted row of numeric buttons.

Most likely the first phone to feature such a keyboard layout, the B3310 sports a 12-button alphanumeric keypad lined on a single row right on the edge.  In case you're feeling less enthused by the unusual presentation, it also comes with a side-sliding QWERTY keypad for better messaging convenience.  Once the slide mechanism is out, the odd row of numbers actually begins to make sense - it serves as a set of number keys when you're typing, just like on an actual PC keyboard.

Details of the baby pink device include a 2.1-inch LCD with 176 x 220 pixels, a 2-megapixel camera module (with video), stereo Bluetooth, a built-in music player, FM radio and microSD card expansion.  Geared towards young female basic phone users, it comes with email and IM support, direct links to social networking sites and no 3G.

The Samsung B3310 has been announced for the UK, with no pricing details released.  No word on plans for the phone in other markets.