Pantech's new Duo handset would probably have tongues lolling to the ground... if only the company hadn't made a version of this phone for Helio over half a year ago. The Duo is essentially the Ocean Lite, stripped down in both size and specs and with Windows Mobile 6 instead of Helio's home-grown OS. As with the Ocean, the stunner here is the hot, hot, two-way slider action: Hold it upright to slide out a standard numeric keypad. Flip it on its side to slide out a backlit QWERTY keyboard and automatically reorient the screen into landscape mode. The phone's OS is surprisingly responsive, call quality is good to great, and battery life, at four and a half hours of talk time, is impressive for a 3G handset. The Duo is missing some of the Ocean's niftiest features, though: There's no GPS, and the camera is knocked down from 2 to 1.3 megapixels. But this means it all comes in a smaller package (over an ounce lighter than Ocean and noticeably more compact). Then again, that creates its own set of problems, as typing is quite a bit more difficult on the smaller keys. These are minor quibbles, however, as the Duo is overall a rousing success, aptly combining the simplicity of a dumb handset with the deep features of a true smart phone. —Christopher Null
WIRED Considerably more portable than Helio Ocean at just 4.4 ounces; fits easily in even small pockets. Easily accessible MicroSD slot. Good audio quality, plus a loud speakerphone.
TIRED Flat, crammed-together keys slow down typing. No Wi-Fi or GPS. Lackluster camera. Some users will bemoan the lack of a touchscreen.
$200 with two-year contract, wireless.att.com
