With its QWERTY keyboard, black color, and general layout, the SGH-i780 is similar to the Samsung-sourced Blackjack II announced last week by AT&T. In the "win some, lose some" department, however, the device has some enhanced specifications but is not intended for U.S. cellular networks.

Instead, the SGH-i780 is a tri-band (900/1800/1900) device that offers HSDPA/WCDMA/GSM/GPRS/EDGE connectivity. Compared to the Blackjack II, it adds WiFi, the camera steps up to 3.2 megapixels, and there is a front-mounted camera for videoconferencing.

Samsung's SGH-i780 is one of the thinner smartphones yet seen

At 2.6 inches, the SGH-i780's display is slightly larger than the Blackjack II's. Like that phone, it includes Bluetooth 2.0 and GPS functionality.

Also featured, according to the limited information so far released by Samsung, is a microSD slot. Dimensions are 4.6 x 2.4 x 0.5 inches (116 x 61 x 13 mm), making the phone one of the slimmest smartphones on the market.

Pricing and availability information were not disclosed.

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