Whilst the Galaxy was the Korean manufacturer’s first stab at an Android phone, it is the new Samsung Galaxy Portal that sends their efforts into the stratosphere.

Rather than opting for heavy customisation and a tailored user experience, Samsung have married a strong form factor to the vanilla Android platform with the Galaxy Portal, offering the resultant package at a highly competitive price point.

It’s clear that the manufacturer still does hardware right, iterating on the original Samsung Galaxy i7500 with a slightly heftier frame and more elaborate physical button placement on the bottom of the Galaxy Portal.

Offering a more curvaceous feel whilst retaining the same 3.2-inch, 320 x 480 resolution display, there are few complaints to be had on the handset front, the handset accented with hints of colour and bolstered with the usual suite of smartphone specs including 3G, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.1 support.

As for Android, some outlets are in fact selling the Samsung Galaxy Portal fully kitted out with the latest Android 2.1 ‘Éclair’ software, but ours was unfortunately still running on the now-creaky 1.5, which is definitely starting to show its age.

Without any snazzy graphical overlays such as Sense on the HTC Desire or the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10’s ambitious TimeScape, the Galaxy Portal feels relatively simplistic – yet still intuitive -  to use.

The Galaxy Portal i5700 may be a no-nonsense device in terms of features, but the handset is also pretty light on the frills. The specs are in fact a step down from the Galaxy i7500, with the camera shorn of its LED flash and now snapping with only 3 as opposed to the original’s 5-megapixels.

The display takes a slight dive in that it is now a TFT as opposed to a shiny OLED display, but this is hardly a difference for anyone other than the most ardent screen lovers, and the capacitive display is no less responsive for it.

The Samsung i5700 Galaxy Portal is still packing some serious smartphone heat under the bonnet though, with a speedy CPU running the show. The 800MHz processor does in fact make the handset a joy to use - from apps to browsing and viewing videos; it simply makes everything more responsive, and in turn the handset becomes more satisfying to use.

If you’re looking for memory, however, you’ll have to shell out as the Galaxy Portal follows the trend of most Android phones by requiring an SD card to bulk up.

The 180MB of internal memory is meagre, whilst the included 1GB card is hardly enough for a movie these days. Thankfully, the Galaxy Portal does support the major formats of music and video; that is once you procure some space to put them.

These concessions have presumably been made in a conscious effort to keep the cost low and bring an affordable Android handset to bear on the market, and the Galaxy Portal is an unmitigated success in this respect, available on £15 per month contracts for free.

The Android Market is filling its virtual shelves daily (as the manufacturers backing the platform are so eager to remind us), although the selection of productivity and social networking applications currently available far outweigh games and other distractions in both quality and quantity.

The Android staples of search and Exchange support for corporate e-mail are still present and correct, although the newly-unveiled Google Maps turn-by-turn navigation isn’t quite working, thanks to the earlier version of the software on board. Hopefully an update could bring the Galaxy Portal up to speed on that side of things…

The basic calling and messaging functionality also remain unchanged, with the i5700 boasting a hefty battery that we got almost two days out of, despite some fevered use!

All in all, the Galaxy Portal will prove most alluring to those who want a decent smartphone experience in spite of Android, rather than because of it.

Little effort has been made to spruce up the bare bones Google operating system, but rather than a bewildering array of features to make for bullet points on the box, Samsung have concentrated in clever nips and tucks to make the Galaxy Portal a strong mid-range device.

All that the Samsung Galaxy Portal needs now is constant support and software updates to keep the handset relevant amongst its Android siblings, and the handset is sure to remain appealing to those looking for a fully fledged smartphone on a budget.