Take a close-up look at Samsung's most successful Android smartphone to date.
Jessica Dolcourt
Jessica is a passionate content strategist and team leader across the CNET family of brands. She leads a number of teams, including commerce, performance optimization and the copy desk. Her CNET career began in 2006, testing desktop and mobile software for Download.com and CNET, including the first iPhone and Android apps and operating systems. She continued to review, report on and write a wide range of commentary and analysis on all things phones, with an emphasis on the iPhone and Samsung devices. Jessica was one of the first people in the world to test, review and report on foldable phones and 5G wireless speeds.
Jessica began her leadership role managing CNET's How To section for tips and FAQs in 2019, guiding coverage of topics ranging from personal finance to phones to home. She holds an MA with Distinction from the University of Warwick in the UK.
We won't fault you if you can't keep your eyes off the Samsung Galaxy S II's generous 4.3-inch Super AMOLED display. The smartphone runs Android 2.3 Gingerbread with Samsung's custom TouchWiz 4.0 interface.
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Big and tall
No shrinking violet, the Galaxy S II is tall, but among the world's thinnest phones, at just 0.3 inch thick.
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Handheld
Although tall and wide, the Galaxy S II isn't too heavy to comfortably hold and heft.
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Typing fiend
The phone's width makes for a roomy virtual keyboard. You have your choice of the Samsung standard or Swype.
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Skinny
If you think thin is beautiful, you'll love these dimensions.
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Camera times 2
The 8-megapixel rear-facing camera takes excellent shots for a camera phone, as does the 2-megapixel front-facing camera, which is also useful for video chatting.
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Photo quality
This studio image has a slightly brown cast to it, but we found that most indoor shots balanced colors well with the automatic settings.
