Samsung Galaxy Mini 2

Even for an entry-level device, the mini 2 is rather well-built and feels solid in our hands. The plastic parts are nothing to write home about, but it is presentable enough for it to be seen in public without you feeling self-conscious. Because of its compact size, all the buttons are reachable without much fiddling around, as everything is spaced out just nicely. The mini 2’s 3.27-inch TFT screen is a slight bump over its predecessor, but the significant improvement is that it is so much better to look at now, as it sports a HVGA display, compared to the QVGA one previously.

GENERAL	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 900 / 2100
	Announced	2012, February
	Status	Available. Released 2012, March

BODY	Dimensions	109.4 x 58.6 x 11.6 mm
	Weight	105.3 g
		- Touch-sensitive controls

DISPLAY	Type	TFT capacitive touchscreen, 256K colors
	Size	320 x 480 pixels, 3.27 inches (~176 ppi pixel density)
	Multitouch	Yes

SOUND	Alert types	Vibration, MP3 ringtones
	Loudspeaker	Yes
	3.5mm jack	Yes

MEMORY	Card slot	microSD, up to 32 GB
	Internal	4 GB storage, 512 MB RAM

DATA	GPRS	Yes
	EDGE	Yes
	Speed	HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot
	Bluetooth	Yes, v3.0 with A2DP
	NFC	Optional
	USB	Yes, microUSB v2.0

CAMERA	Primary	3.15 MP, 2048x1536 pixels, check quality
	Features	Geo-tagging
	Video	Yes, VGA@25fps
	Secondary	No

FEATURES	OS	Android OS, v2.3.6 (Gingerbread)
	Chipset	Qualcomm MSM7227
	CPU	800 MHz
	GPU	Adreno 200
	Sensors	Accelerometer, proximity, compass
	Messaging	SMS(threaded view), MMS, Email, Push Mail, IM, RSS
	Browser	HTML
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support
	Java	Yes, via Java MIDP emulator
	Colors	Black/Orange
		- SNS integration - MP4/H.264/H.263 player - MP3/WAV/eAAC+/AC3/FLAC player - Organizer - Image/video editor - Document viewer - Google Search, Maps, Gmail, YouTube, Calendar, Google Talk, Picasa integration - Voice memo/dial - Predictive text input

BATTERY		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1300 mAh
	Stand-by	Up to 540 h (2G) / Up to 420 h (3G)
	Talk time	Up to 11 h 20 min (2G) / Up to 6 h 50 min (3G)

MISC	SAR EU	0.92 W/kg (head)     0.62 W/kg (body)
	Price group

TESTS	Camera	Photo

Introduction:

Android smartphones come in all shapes and sizes, including cute and cuddly, as the case is with the Samsung Galaxy mini 2. This petite-sized entry-level device is the successor to last year's Galaxy mini, and as such, it comes with improvements both on the inside and on the outside. To start, the screen is not only slightly bigger, but also sports HVGA resolution whereas the previous model had a modest QVGA display. Furthermore, the 600MHz processor has been ditched in favor of an 800MHz single core chip. But is its $270 launch price tag justified by what you get in exchange? Let's check the smartphone out and see...

The box contains:

• Wall charger
• Data cable
• Quick start guide

Design:

As you might expect out of an entry-level smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy mini 2 is made out of plain old plastic. There is a chrome-like shiny bezel around its side, while the back cover sports a fine texture that adds a little bit of extra grip and keeps fingerprints at bay. So yeah, no fancy materials anywhere in sight, but thankfully, the handset looks presentable and feels properly built.

The Samsung Galaxy mini 2 looks presentable and feels properly built

You can compare the Samsung Galaxy mini 2 with many other phones using our Size Visualization Tool.

What we are quite happy with is the way the Galaxy mini 2 fits in the palm. It feels like a pebble and rests naturally without being too small to use comfortably. All you need to operate the device is a single thumb. Additionally, the lock key and the 2-button volume rockerare very easy to find and respond with a nice click when pressed. As it is on any recent Samsung Galaxy device, underneath the handset's display we have a physical home key and two capacitive buttons for the home and back functions – properly spaced out and not prone to accidental presses. 

Volume key and microSD slot (left)	Power key (right)	3.5mm jack (top)	microUSB port (bottom)
The sides of the Samsung Galaxy mini 2

Back	Camera	Battery compartment

Display:

Occupying the front of the Galaxy mini 2 is a 3.27-inch TFT LCD display with a resolution of 320 by 480 pixels (176ppi), which is okay for a low-level smartphone. In terms of quality, we are treated to a fairly accurate color reproduction. Only shades of red appear slightly undersaturated, but we don't consider that a dealbreaker in any way. Be aware, however, that the screen's surface reflects a lot of sunlight, which greatly reduces outdoor visibility. It is also inconvenient that an ambient light sensor is missing, meaning that users have to adjust the display's brightness the old-fashioned way – manually. 

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