Verizon debuts Samsung i760 smartphone, readies more

Despite an apparent leak weeks before, Verizon today officially unveiled the Samsung i760. One of the first smartphones from Samsung to arrive at the provider, the handset is based around a unique diagonal keypad layout that allows quick access to numbers even when the slide-out QWERTY keyboard is in use. Windows Mobile 6 Professional drives the phone and is controlled by a stylus-based touchscreen that helps edit and view documents in Office Mobile.

A 1.3-megapixel camera, EVDO, and Wi-Fi are also standard and give the pick of Internet access whether indoors or out. Online orders for the i760 begin Friday the 19th with retail shops picking up the phone on November 2nd. Verizon lists the phone for $350 with a new two-year contract and a $50 rebate.

The carrier also validated leaked roadmaps today by providing early details of three other smartphone devices. First is the XV6800, an adaptation of the HTC TyTN similar to the Sprint Mogul with EVDO and Wi-Fi access as well as Windows Mobile 6 Professional; Verizon also hopes to release its take on the Treo 755p, which brings a completely internalized antenna design, Windows Mobile 6, and miniSD storage up to 8GB to the Treo 700 design. The SMT5800 is given few details other than its 2-megapixel camera and slide-out keyboard but is known to be a CDMA version of the HTC Vox.

The three remaining phones did not receive pricing or specific launch dates but should be available by the end of the fall.