In a nutshell: The
Samsung Pixon 12 is the world's first 12 megapixel camera phone.
Not only does it have an outstanding photographic capability, but
it comes with virtually every other high-end feature that you might
expect. Whilst not a smartphone, it's a 3G touchscreen phone with
a media player, FM radio, full screen web browser, GPS with Google
Maps, WiFi and support for memory cards up 16 GB. On the negative
side, it's expensive and has below average battery life, but it
still gets our thumbs up. Check out the top 10 independent deals
for the Pixon 12 below, or click to read the full
review and user reviews.
Top 10 internet deals
Samsung
Pixon 12 Review
Review:
September 2009.
The
Pixon12 is a 12 megapixel version of the Samsung
Pixon and was released in the UK on 1 August 2009. In fact it's
the world's first 12 megapixel camera phone. Samsung have upgraded
a number of features of the original Pixon, adding a fabulous OLED
screen with a massive 480 x 800 pixel resolution, support for DivX/Xvid
video move playback, WiFi, HSUPA for faster uploading of photos
and videos, and support for memory cards up to 16GB.
It was Samsung who launched the world's first
8 megapixel camera phone (the
Samsung i8510),
and they are clearly determined to hold on to their camera record
beating. Samsung may not have quite the reputation of Sony or Canon
in the digital camera world, but they've been one of the big manufacturers
since the early days of digital cameras and their competence shouldn't
be doubted. Many will point out that more megapixels don't necessarily
mean greater picture quality, but we're happy to confirm that the
Pixon 12 really does deliver results that match expectations. Of
course with no optical zoom, the Pixon 12 is never going to beat
a prosumer digital camera in a straight comparison, but it is one
of the best camera phones that we have seen. As well as the headline-grabbing
12 megapixel resolution, the Pixon 12 offers a very well integrated
camera-like interface that makes the advanced features accessible
and easy to use. The range of options is far more than is usually
seen on a mobile phone, but for the casual user, the Smart Auto
setting means that the Pixon 12 can be operated as a point-and-shoot
and will still take excellent photos. It captures images very quickly
too, which hasn't always been the case with previous Samsung phones.
The Pixon 12 manages to take very good quality images under a wide
range of lighting conditions. Key to this is the xenon flash, that
illuminates much more competently than the LED flash normally found
on camera phones. It's also worth noting that the lens is wider
than on most other camera phones (28mm compared with 35mm), meaning
that you can get more into the picture.
The video recording capabilities of the Pixon 12
are impressive too. The video camera can record at up to 720 x 480
pixels, which, whilst it cannot match the HD resolution of the i8910
HD, is still an impressively high resolution. The video records
at 30 frames per second in high resolution, but can also record
at 120 frames per second in lower resolutions, enabling the possibility
of slow-motion playback. Although the still camera uses a xenon
flash for maximum brightness, there's also a LED light that can
be used as a video light. You
can also make video calls using the secondary front-facing camera.
The OLED display on the Pixon 12 is superbly detailed,
with an ultra-high resolution of 480 x 800 pixels and 16 millions
colours. This is an excellent screen that does full justice to the
photographic capabilities. It's also a nice display for a touchscreen
phone, although it's very slightly smaller in physical size than
the display on the original Pixon. The phone uses Samsung's TouchWiz
user interface and is generally an easy phone to use, despite its
advanced functionality. The easy access to a QWERTY keyboard is
a big bonus, and the media functions work particularly well with
the touchscreen design. Heavy duty texters should be aware that
this may not be the best choice of phone however.
The other media options include a music player,
FM radio, video player and a full screen web browser, all of which
work very well. There's also a GPS receiver built in, with support
for Google Maps.
Connectivity is excellent, with Bluetooth, USB
and WiFi available. The internet connection is very fast, with support
for both HSDPA and HSUPA, giving fast uploads as well as fast downloads
up to 7.2 Mbps on a 3G network. The one thing missing is a 3.5mm
audio jack, which limits the range of headphones that can be connected.
Battery
life is a weak area. This shouldn't be a surprise for a 3G phone
with a large touchscreen display, not to mention the gas-guzzling
xenon flash, but even so the Pixon 12 seems to eat batteries even
quicker than most similar phones. Expect to charge it regularly,
perhaps even daily.
The
Pixon 12 isn't a smartphone. This limits the number of apps that
are available, but it does make the user interface fast and more
robust. It's a high-spec touchscreen phone with an obviously outstanding
camera and pretty well everything else that you'd expect too. It's
complex, so shouldn't be your first choice unless the camera really
appeals, and the battery life is distinctly below average, but nevertheless
within its niche it's close to being perfect.
Features of the Samsung Pixon 12 include:
12 megapixel camera with 4x digital zoom, autofocus
and power LED & xenon flash
Video camera (720 x 480 pixels, 30 frames per
second) / 3G video calling
Display: AMOLED, 16 million colours, 480 x 800
pixels (3.1 inches) with auto rotation
Music player (MP3, WMA, AAC, AAC+, e-AAC+ formats)
plus DivX/Xvid video support
Memory: 150 Mbytes plus MicroSD memory card
slot (up to 16GB supported)
Personal organiser functions
Quadband GSM (850/900/1800/1900 MHz) plus 3G
Size: 108 x 53 x 14 mm
Weight: 119g
Talktime: 3 hours
Battery standby: 250 hours
Samsung Pixon
12 Consumer Reviews
Love
your mobile? Hate it? Please share your experiences to help other
people choose the phone that's best for them. Please do not review
this phone if you have not used it. This is a review site, not a
forum, so please don't just ask questions. Please do not use swear
words or offensive language, and please, no advertising!
Average
rating from 27 reviews:
Reviewed by Nick from UK on 28th
Jan 2010
I;ve had this phone for nearly 2 months and I REALLY hate it. It
doesnt like to surf the net at all. if you go from a 3G area to
2G is comes up 'DNS Failure' and you have to close the browser and
re-open it so it can log onto the 2g network. it also wont allow
the browser open along with anything else such as the gallery and
asks you to close something. it also freezes breifly when a text
comes throu. the speaker for everything including the message notifications
is always covered when the phone is put down so you never hear anything.
The final straw is the fact it constantly drops signal. all the
time. its only saving grace is the camera and the fact that the
battery life IS decent. i get three days once i drained the test
charge the phone comes with and charged it for 12 hours! normal
charging afer that Rating:
Reviewed by Desalegne Mebrate from Ethiopia
on 16th Jan 2010
one of the best ever since produced,I love samsung Rating:
Reviewed by V from UK on 15th
Jan 2010
Well, I bought this phone for its camera, to be precise the flash!
And yes, in that area it completely delivers! However, there are
a few areas which in my opinion really let it down! For starters
the most ridiculous and non-sensical predictive text input! Writing
texts (of which I do plenty) is an ever lasting and annoying carry-on!!
Give me a Nokia any day! Also, I like my phone to fulfil a complete
'personal organiser' function and this one does a poor job of it.
The reminders, schedules and tasks are all set out in a tricky to
get to fashion, not at your fingertips where I think they should
be. And then there's the 'New PC Studio'! Who on Earth thought of
that one? PC Studio 7 did everything you could wish it to do and
was a lot more overseeable and easier to operate. The New PC Studio
in comparison is full of useless features and is in my eyes an overall
headache! Despite the great camera (flash) I'm wishing I hadn't
bought this phone. Rating:
Reviewed by Hannah from England on
27th Dec 2009
the phone is amazing, the only faults i find with it; is that when
on the phone, i have to put people on loudspeaker to be able to
hear them clear enough and when on the internet; the screen enlarges
and decreases alot but once its loaded its fine, just the whole
loudspeaker thing im going to have to come to grips with. Rating:
Reviewed by laura from london on
13th Dec 2009
it is A great phone .great camra great everything ..you should buy
this phone Rating:
Reviewed by Grattus from England on
13th Dec 2009
Have had this phone for about a month now and the longer I have
it the better I like it. Never really been a fan of touchscreen
phones but the market for high end devices seems dominated by them.
However, the user interface for this device is very slick and easy
to use, the touchscreen response is very quick and simple to manage
even for me! The screen resolution is superb, the icons and menu
layouts good once you master where everything is (read the manual!).
The camera is as good or better than any I have used (and I have
had the Satio, C905 and N86!). The only 2 negatives I have are that
battery life is relatively poor (have all settings as low as possible,
brightness, ringtones, alert noises etc) but this will hopefully
be improved once extended life batteries become available. The only
other negative is that the accompanying cd will not load the software
to enable my pc to synch with the phone. Also will not load from
the Samsung website but have been able to transfer pics using the
pcs software so not a major issue. In conclusion, the Pixon12 is
a stylish, high end device that is easy to use and produces fantastic
results from the camera. What more would you want from a cameraphone! Rating:
Reviewed by Claire from UK on
10th Dec 2009
Had this phone for about 4 days, and took it back! Was a good camera,
but considering all the hype not that fantastic! Reception was terrible
because of the casing. Slow as well. And very annoying! Getting
the Jet now in Lilac, much faster, and decent camera considering
its only a 5mp. Rating:
Reviewed by Anon from UK on 5th
Dec 2009
Pixon 12 is brill phone, but only niggle is when you try to navigate
the internet, the screen has mind of its own enlarging and shrinking.
Just need to find out to stop it doing this!!!!! Rating:
Reviewed by Aditya from Mumbai on
4th Dec 2009
Pixon12 camera is fantastic. Features like WiFi, GPS, Internet,
AMOLED screen are useful. But I found some problem with Media player.
Changing sound effect has NO EFFECT after saving, it works before
saving. When background play setting is OFF and we remove handsets,
still the sound is played. This is so frustating. Please inform
me if some of you have found out any solutions to this. Rating:
Reviewed by Alex from England on
29th Nov 2009
I love this phone absoulutley fatastic it has a great camera google
maps which finds your curent location wic came in handy last week
as a got lost in tandalhills it is reat for the internet with a
big scree easy use for texting no problems what so ever but it was
stolen from colledge but i am happy to pay for a brand new one!
MUST BUY BEST PHONE I HAVE EVER HAD ! ! ! Rating:
Reviewed by Tristen from UK on
22nd Nov 2009
The phone camera is great. Rating:
Reviewed by laura from lincoln on
19th Nov 2009
i have this phone it is really good .the camra is good its not slow
..it just really good i recomend that you get this phone if you
want a good phone and a good camra .. Rating:
Reviewed by Hello from USA on
3rd Nov 2009
amazin fone The camera is AWESOME Rating:
Reviewed by Julie from Bournemouth on
2nd Nov 2009
Bought the Pixon 12 together with the SE Satio. Pixon blew Satio
out of the window - better battery life, easier OS, smaller and
neater when holding in hand. Screen is beautifully bright, no problems
with sound. I have had a lot of camera phones (the best up to date
being the Nokia N82) but this phone definitely beats the lot. Wonderful.
Rating:
Reviewed by tom from cheshire on
5th Oct 2009
had my pixon 12 for about 6 days now and had nothing but problems
with it dont like it atall Rating:
Reviewed by Dan from UK on 25th
Sep 2009
This phone is perfect. It is basically an I-phone with a 12 MP Camera.
Awesome!!!!!!! Rating:
Reviewed by lee j from birmingham on
25th Sep 2009
upgraded to this from my previous lg viewty had this phone since
this mornin , been usin it non stop and ogt it all set up perfect
for me , the battery dont seem to bad , camera is brilliant , internet
speed is fab , touch screen is great , does what it says on the
tin , end of the day you people expect a lot , its a phone your
meant to make calls and texts off it as long as it does that then
whats to moan about , you want a good picture - go buy a camera
you want good internet speeds - get a pc with broadband you want
good music player - get a mp3 player you want a decent sat nav -
go buy a sat nav but overall for what it is its amazing phone -
no problems yet - touch wood if you got the option go for it Rating:
Reviewed by Matt from England on
20th Sep 2009
This seems to be a bit of a Marmite phone looking at the reviews.
I have to say I am very happy with my Pixon 12, as it ticks all
the boxes for me. I've ready about the battery life, but it compares
well with my Nokia N82. With my usage it's lasting me 3/4 days between
charges. Positives: Superb Camera qualtiy, Camera startup time (locked
phone to picture taken in less that 3 seconds) Screen (resolution
and viewing angle are top notch), Snappy UI, Seamless WIFI (when
setup properly). Negatives: The touch screen isn't the most accurate,
the web browser is great for WAP but crashes on busy propper web
sites, I do miss my series 60 apps. Concluion: If you are looking
for an internet phone that you can expand with apps and games, then
this isn't the phone for you. If you're looking for the best camera
phone, with pretty good calling/texting, then I can't recommend
the Pixon 12 enough. It also help that I got mine second hand for
half price on eBay... Rating:
Reviewed by Neil from UK on 7th
Sep 2009
I like the phone too - the camera is amazing when it works but a
lot of my pictures don't work and I get a message saying 'capture
failed' does anyone know why this is (it seems to happen a lot indoors
- when the flash is on - not matter what setting i choose) - are
my setting wrong or something? Any help would be appreciated! Rating:
Reviewed by B from UK on 2nd
Sep 2009
Fantastic phone - Best phone I have ever used and I have used plenty,
including the brick called n97! The phone is so easy to use - fantastic
camera - great looks - and the new interface is such an improvment
over the s8300 and original pixon. The Pixon12 runs the same fast
800mhz processor that the samsung jet uses, so the phone is very
fast, even with the menu transition effects turned on there is no
lag! Highly Recommended. Rating:
Reviewed by Mattty. from England on
1st Sep 2009
ive had this phone almost 3 weeks now. Used to own the LG viewty
which i renewed for this. The samsung pixon 12 blows it out of the
water. My sister has the lg viewty smart it doesnt even compare
to this phone. The interface seems abit more lively, but the fact
its all based around a cube is a gimmick. If you are buying this
phone its for the camera, not the smartphone capabilities, whether
it has an app store such as ovi or itunes or for its music like
the walkman phones. For a camera phone the shots are amazing. I
dont think you will find a camera phone that could beat it, we'll
just have to wait and see how SonyEricsson stand up to the competition.
Ok the battery life isnt the best, but is it really much trouble
putting it on charge every night, i can assure you it isnt, i manage
it and im so soo lazy; trust me. The oled screen is lush and everyone
seems to comment how bright and bold the colours are in my photos
when viewing them in the well layed out media browser. All in all
dads money has been well spent. I got a well good deal with phones4u,
£35 for 18months, 1200 minutes, unlimited texts and internet and
a free phone. The only thing i would change about this phone is
its interface, it could just be abit more lively and animated like
the sclass found on the LG's which i find really fun to use with
the iphone like icons.:) Rating:
Reviewed by Cold_Turkey84 from UK on
1st Sep 2009
I have had this phone for exactly a week now and have 2 main issues
with this phone. I got it just before going to work at reading festival
and the screen broke on the second day. It ran out of battery and
when i put it on charge the screen just came up with a garbled mess
in charging mode, I turned it on and the garbled mess changed but
was still totally garbled. With all intention of taking it back
I put it on charge 1 more time, more garbled mess, so i went to
turn it off and like magic my sreen came back with no problems at
all! I am totally at a loss to explain it but am happy it's back.
Other than that it is a good phone if a little slow due to the touchwiz
interface. Camera and video facilities are excellent, just disappointed
I couldn't take the pics and vids I wanted to. Rating:
Reviewed by i luv me from mars on
16th Aug 2009
Alright phone battery life not to good but other features ok! Rating:
Reviewed by Older user from UK on
16th Aug 2009
Had this phone for just over a week now. Previously owned Samsung
i8910 but returned it because of disappointing video recording performance.
This seems much better - no lost frames, auto focus on video is
excellent. Also tried the LG Renoir (which I thought was good on
the video front) and would say this is even better. Auto camera
lens cover is also a welcome addition. Still images are very good,
improved by both xenon flash and video light. The touch screen UI
isn't fantastic (not as intuitive as Nokia or SE imho) but certainly
easier to use and more responsive than the i8910. Downsides for
me: Screen is clear and vibrant but size makes web browsing a bit
of a chore (although in fairness, this is I guess true of many smaller
touch screens). Despite its great features, the handset looks a
bit "anonymous" and won't turn heads (if you're into that sort of
thing of course ;-)) Organiser function appears to limit calendar
entries in length, so synching with Outlook not as great as say,
my previous K800i. On the whole, I got this for its video and camera
features, and on that score have not been disappointed. Rating:
Reviewed by Haseeb Sheikh from England
on 14th Aug 2009
After the pixon and the omnia, it is a decent phone with an excellent
display, speaker is decent and quite loud, louder than the 5800
but the omnia is better but is a good phone Rating:
Reviewed by tony from uk on 13th
Aug 2009
rubbish phone many problems poor battery life always crashes. If
you have any common sense get the new nokia n97 best phone ever
made Rating:
Reviewed by theincrediblemobileman from
space on 11th Aug 2009
great phone with great features must by :) Rating: