Verizon Wireless adds handsets from Samsung, Nokia

Verizon Wireless has added two new phone models, one a dual-hinge flip phone from Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. and another a rebranded Pantech handset from Nokia Corp.
The Samsung SCH-u740, which retails online for $150 (with two-year contract) is positioned for young adults as a messaging phone with a dual-hinge mechanism that allows use as a traditional flip phone while also flipping open horizontally to reveal a QWERTY keyboard. The device uses Verizon’s proprietary e-mail solution and accesses Verizon’s multimedia services, including Vcast music and video. It supports Web browsing, Bluetooth connectivity and provides a 1.3 megapixel camera. The phone is one of five Samsung models available at Verizon, which currently offers 30 handsets.
The Nokia 6315i, priced at $50 with two-year contract, provides a 1.3 megapixel camera, instant messaging, multimedia messaging, Vcast music and video. It is one of two Nokia models available at the carrier, both priced at $30. The 6315i is offered with three free Motorola V325is, presumably with a family service plan.
According to Current Analysis, the Nokia phone-though feature packed and lightweight, with notably good talk time-runs up against internal competition at Verizon, which also offers a more substantially weighted Razr at the same price.
“The lightweight feel that is characteristic of many of Pantech’s models makes the 6315i feel cheap,” according to analyst M. Eitt at Current Analysis.