So what makes these phones different from any other low-priced feature phone? Well, for one thing, they're quite nicely designed. I was impressed by their sturdy build and curved ergonomic shape. The Chat 3G's full QWERTY keyboard might be one of the best I've seen on a feature phone. The puffed, oblong keys were comfortable to use and I appreciated the large spacebar and handful of shortcut keys. I might change my mind, of course, after a longer period of use, but I appreciated the amount of thought that went into the keyboard's design.

The headlining features of these phones, however, are their integrated online applications. Both phones have one-click access to Facebook, Twitter, Skype, IM and e-mail clients that are continuously updated over the air. Conveniently, logging into these apps is only required once; they're always on.

Another cool feature is that the new devices can sync with DRM-free music on iTunes or Windows Media player. The software, powered by DoubleTwist, can sync photos and videos as well.

Both phones have a Netfront browser, which isn't as advanced on what you'd find on a smartphone, but still as good as any feature phone I've seen. You can also multitask via a hardware button on the phones' spines to open, close and switch through various apps. You can also sync your address book with Facebook--a trend we've seen on more advanced phones like the iPhone 3GS and the Palm Pre.

The Chat 3G has a 2.4-inch screen, built-in GPS, 120MB of memory (expandable to 4GB) and a 3.2-megapixel camera with autofocus. The Mini has a 2.2-inch display, 100MB of memory (expandable to 4GB) and a 2-megapixel camera.