Samsung SCH-V960 sports new optical joystick

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The new Samsung SCH-V960 features a brand spanking new input technology that the company is describing as an "optical joystick".  I give Samsung an A+ for breaking away from the d-pad or mini-joystick commonly used on Nokia handsets.  The optical sensor button looks easy to use – simply place your finger and move a cursor to navigate through menu.  This experience is very much like moving a cursor of a mouse around on your PC.Samsung, you had me at "360 degrees of freedom".

It's also Samsung's first phone to have an Illumination sensor that adjust the screen brightness.  Other features include a QVGA display with 262k colors, EVDO, Bluetooth, microSD external memory slot, and 2-megapixel camera.

The SCH-V960 is set to launch in Korea later this month.  The price is still yet to be announced.

Samsung SCH-V960 Press Release