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It's a bold move from Vodafone, releasing this new OS and phone to go with the new 360 service. It's certainly a differentiator from the other networks out there, but if we're honest, we not sure it's going to become integral to people's lives.
We liked
There's a lot to like on the Samsung H1, with the bright and vivid OLED screen and the huge internal memory.
We like being able to deal with our friends online and not have to worry about setting things up on the phone – but whether others will be so bothered to organise all their contacts online to do so, we're not sure.
The 3D view is really cool, and the touchscreen nice and responsive too, flanked by a decent camera with 720p HD recording.
We disliked
We're not convinced by 360 – to us, it seems like a nuisance at times. No Facebook messaging, an erratic email system and a dodgy keyboard all add up to something that doesn't make us instantly fall in love – and we think that's what Vodafone's going to need to make the service a success.
Verdict
The Vodafone 360 Samsung H1 is a phone that would be OK if released by itself, an it's boosted by the presence of the new interactive service.
Kudos have to go to Vodafone for developing a whole new OS to go with the phone – but good luck trying to explain to people how 360 is not just on the H1 and is a wider service.
An overly complex setup might put some customers off too, especially if they're not getting more than a few Facebook updates and some emails as a reward for being an early 360 adopter.
A vibrant screen and generous storage are let down by a ropey media player and a few too many bugs in the system – Vodafone needs to iron these out quickly to make 360 a success.
