Samsung's making this way more confusing than they need to, but hey, it's their phone and they have every right to do so -- they just better not come crying to us when their customers in the UK need service on their F480s while on holiday in France and no one in the shops knows what the heck a Tocco is. Turns out that the very same model that just became the Tocco for the UK market is being called the "Player Style" for France, which we will plainly admit is a pretty awesome name. Why can't it be Player Style everywhere? And actually, shouldn't it be Tocco in Italy, Player Style in the UK, and maybe something like Joueur de Style or just plain F480 in France? Our head's starting to spin; pardon us while we lie down for a couple minutes.

[Via Unwired View]

Samsung's Armani-like F480 won't be known simply as the F480 when it floods the market; that'd be far too ordinary, apparently, so it's been assigned "Tocco," which it turns out is Italian for "Touch." That's an eminently appropriate name for a phone that relies this heavily on finger action thanks to the introduction of Samsung's all-new TouchWiz UI concept, and with 7.2Mbps HSDPA on board, there'll be plenty of touch-controlled browser use, we imagine. Pricing apparently has yet to be set, but we're pretty sure Italian names command some sort of premium over garden-variety letters and numbers.

[Via IntoMobile]

If you thought Samsung's Soul would be content with sitting in Barcelona, you've never had the pleasure of vacationing in Las Vegas. Sure enough, the Soul is following the HTC Touch Dual in making its US debut at CTIA 2008, and it's quite alright if your palms are already beginning to get sweaty. After all, what else would you expect from looking forward to a quad-band / HSDPA 7.2Mbps slider with a 2.2-inch QVGA display, 5-megapixel camera (with QVGA movie mode), Bluetooth 2.0, microSD expansion slot and Magical Touch navigation? Beyond that, the long-awaited miCoach is also making its US debut in the desert, along with a number of other global handsets (F480, F400 and G810). The sad part here is that none of the mobiles are actually slated to go on sale here in America -- yeah, it's a bit depressing to know they're sitting within our borders as we speak and won't be available for purchase, but there's always next year (right?).

If you've seen our shots of Samsung's Armani redo, the F480, you might have noticed it's running a new OS. The UI -- called TouchWiz -- is based off of the company's Croix interface (which apparently was rushed out to compete with the iPhone), and will be used on all of the upcoming finger-touch phones from the manufacturer. The cats over at Phone Scoop had a chance to go one-on-one with TouchWiz at Mobile World Congress, and they've put together a pretty informative video that shows off the UI doing its thing. The inclusion of a new widget system, expanded menu options, and overall speed bump make this OS a notable step up from Samsung's previous offering. Take a look at the video after the break to see the system getting all funky-fresh.

[Thanks, Martijn]

The Samsung F480 is a pretty slick device, featuring the new TouchWiz UI -- which to be honest, is a little weak looking -- a 5 megapixel shooter, widgets that can be added and dragged about on the home screen, and input feedback via vibration. It is without a doubt a well put together piece of hardware, has outstanding connectivity -- ahem! North American HSDPA, Samsung? -- and will undoubtedly be a hit once it lands in April or May this year.

If mobile-review is right, then Samsung is about to unleash more than a dozen new phones at Mobile World Congress. Rather than overwhelm you with the lot, we've whittled down the selection to a few of our faves. First up, the F480 (pictured left) which casts aside its Armani rags for full-on Samsung branding. The 11.5-mm slim handset with 2.8-inch, 240 x 320 touchscreen features Samsung's latest Croix OS with tactile feedback. It's now sporting 3G connectivity, FM-radio, and the ever so popular 5 megapixel camera (with LED flash). Release is expected in April or May for between €350 and €400. Next up is Sammy's "Dual Touch Chic" G400 flip. Both the internal (2.2-inches, QVGA) and external displays are touch-sensitive surrounded by an all-metal shell. Expect a 5 megapixel camera, FM-radio, and 100MB with microSD expansion when it launches in by May for about €300. Last up is the latest B&O hookup, albeit in a more consumer acceptable slider format. Like the i450 before it, the F400 is a dual-slider: slide the front face up to reveal a keypad, down to slip the phone into music mode with exposed B&O speakers. Otherwise, it's a 3G phone with 2.2-inch QVGA display, RDS-enabled FM radio, and microSD card when it pops in late March with a €370-€390 price tag.