The iPhone is a near-perfect device. That’s why I’m already tired of it.

The problem with perfection is it begets popularity. Seemingly every week, another person in my gadget-loving office walks in brandishing a big grin and an iPhone. While it remains easy to be impressed with Apple’s touch-screen marvel, I want something a little more exclusive whether I’m going to spend $400 on a cell phone. I want one that will inspire oohs, aahs, and, dare I say, a little envy.

To find such a phone, I looked to Korea and Britain. When it comes to mobile devices, our chatty friends across the Pacific and Atlantic are known for getting the latest and greatest a bit earlier than us here in the U.S. Samsung responded to my search with its Giorgio Armani P520, a touch-screen fashion phone released earlier that month in Europe. Although it’s not officially available here, you can buy an “unlocked” version online for

$500 to $600 and soon after insert your tiny SIM card from a U.S. carrier such as AT&T or T-Mobile.

Looking and Sounding Good

The Armani has everything that’s become de rigueur in haute design for mobile devices. Like the iPhone, the P520 is a nonflip, nonslide “candy bar” handset with a front surface that’s nearly all screen. Yet it’s far smaller, barely as thick as a pencil and with a surface about the size of a credit card.

Like an Armani suit, the tailoring on that device is minimalist and elegantly understated. Buttons are, of course, scarce and subtly placed: There are just two at the base, one for placing calls and one for turning the device on and off. Nearly everything else is controlled via the 2.6-in. touch screen, which displays a dialpad for calls and menus for other functions. The phone plus comes with a…

Orginal post by Top Tech News