Folks living in the US have yet another cell phone to choose from this time round, and T-Mobile USA will be the carrier of choice if you are interested in bringing home an 8 megapixel shooter that comes with a built-in phone, or is that a phone that has an integrated 8 megapixel camera? The lines are clearly blurred with the Samsung Memoir, which is a full touch screen handset that boasts premium multimedia features and the mentioned camera as its main selling points. Megapixel count has increased by a bunch since the early days of VGA cameras in cell phones, and seriously, unless the lens technology is improved, most of the time a higher megapixel count doesn’t really help as you would be better off with an real dedicated digital camera in the first place. More on the Samsung Memoir right after the jump.

Let’s take a look at the Memoir’s 8 megapixel digital camera. Good to know it comes with Xenon flash unlike LED ones that are pretty weak in other handsets, a 16x digital zoom, five shooting modes for easier shooting, as well as video capture capability. As for its user interface, Samsung will rely on its tried and tested TouchWiz that ain’t too shabby, actually, since I’ve already given it a go on the Samsung Omnia earlier this year. It isn’t as effective or easy to use compared to Apple’s iPhone, but it certainly is an improvement over the older button-and-menu driven interface.

Other features found on the Memoir include a full touch screen virtual QWERTY keypad and multiple messaging capabilities (text, multimedia messaging, instant messaging and e-mail) that makes it easy for you to stay connected no matter where you are. This 3G handset also comes with assisted GPS navigation for turn-by-turn directions, an integrated music and video player as well as stereo Bluetooth connectivity. The built-in speakerphone allows you to make voice-activated dialing, letting you concentrate on the road with two hands on the wheel. There is no word on when T-Mobile will make the Memoir available and for how much, but we’re looking at February.

Press Release