Review: UStarcom Super Slice

Forget abstinence. I think teenagers should be encouraged to engage in fun, communicative, quality relationships, preferably with no long-term commitments…plenty of time for that later when they know what they’re really looking for. And so, I am writing to recommend that safest of all possible hook-ups, the pay-as-you-go cell phone plan from Virgin Mobile with UTStarcom’s latest teen sensation, the Super Slice (a.k.a. the PCS 1450).

This candy bar-style handset is the width of a Girl Scout thin mint, only .4 inches. It’s light too, just 2.5 ounces. But this diminutive frame houses an astonishing array of features for an entry-level phone priced now at $49.99 with no contract necessary. The Super Slice is Virgin Mobile’s first phone with built-in Bluetooth. What better way to boost a young person’s self-esteem than to equip them with a Bluetooth headset for mall strolling? It also has a VGA camera, nothing to brag about, but sufficient for quick, Facebook-worthy arm-length self-portraits.

It’s nice to see a pay-by-the-minute phone pack those features, a telltale sign of a mobile industry trend Consumer Electronics Association market researcher Tim Herbert calls “These Go to 11,” meaning that the over 1 billion cell phones expected to be sold in 2008 are getting smaller, faster, and more advanced, all while becoming less expensive.

Virgin Mobile has a number of different pay plans, ranging from 10-cent minutes (for $6.99/month) to a $44.99 for 400 anytime + 2000 nights and weekend minutes. Of course, the carrier is hoping the user, especially that targeted under-25 demographic, will be lured into purchasing all manner of downloads and entertainment services including what the Virgin Mobile website calls “daily good-time nuggets.” I’m generally suspicious of content that sounds like sugary breakfast cereal, but for the sake of research, I investigated the variety of ringtones, screensavers, and games offered as direct downloads to the Super Slice.

The unit comes with three game demos already loaded, the most eyebrow-raising of which was “Sexy Poker,” a demo which begs you to “challenge and undress the hottest women!” I’m more gangster than gambler, however, so I opted to pay $5.99 for “Def Jam FIGHT for NY” so my character, Ludacris, could kick-box a poser named “Method Man” into definitive submission. It was during this rout that I felt the most disappointed with the Super Slice, as its 1.75-inch display, though bright, seems painfully low-res, making the blood-squirts way more pixellated than I’d have preferred. (I was also slightly annoyed by this handset’s charger port cover, a flippy piece of plastic that’s far too tough to get open. Still, this phone has a powerful little battery, so you don’t have to go through that very often.)

More entertaining to me was content including funny pre-written text-messages from Comedy Central and MTV. Clearly, text messaging is a crucial service for this model, and the Super Slice delivers an easy interface and comfortable buttons for quick-thumbing missives. I also love a dedicated button, marked by a dollar sign, which accesses your account in seconds and lets you know your balance, your “minutes today,” remaining minutes, and your usage expiration date…perfect if you’re a teenager (or a paying parent) who’s trying to rein in the bill.

With a matte black finish and curved corners, this handset really has the look of a much more expensive model. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if users get so spoiled by the Bluetooth and interactive media features that they are soon gunning for an upgrade, but until that day, the Super Slice is just the lively, educational short-term relationship you’d want for a mobile virgin.

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