Samsung’s P520 Armani handset may have been available for a while now, but that designer cachet means people still ask me whether I think it’s a reasonable buy or not.  Unlike the latest Armani outfit, of course, you could be feasibly stuck with the P520 for the duration of a two-year contract rather than just a season.  So I’m glad to see Unwired View’s review of the handset; now I know that my friends will only really be happy with the P520 if they focus mostly on voice calls or have the money to keep it as a second phone.

The build and materials of the P520 get complimented, and with the size comparable to a credit card it’s good to hear that the whole thing doesn’t feel light and cheap.  However, the touchscreen and camera aren’t so hot; the former has a habit of registering double icon selections, while the latter produces only average images with indoor shots exhibiting a lot of noise.  Not what you’d expect from a 3.2-megapixel unit.  Most surprisingly, the Armani lacks either a 3.5mm headphone socket or an included adaptor to plug in earphones; obviously fashionable people don’t listen to music.

Personally, I think this is definitely a phone for the label hounds – everyone else would be better served with something more up-to-date and that has had less emphasis put on polishing the logo over polishing the features.