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"This one is going back to Helio" on by brbubba
Pros: Google Maps is Incredible, small form factor, nice screen
Cons: poor battery, slow apps, poor ui, flimsy keys
Summary: When I saw the google maps w/ GPS I was immediately in love. Thats what initially made me take the jump. However, all the shortcomings of this phone don't make up for how incredible google maps is.
Pros:
-Did I mention how cool google maps is! Well its awesome, if I am ever out and I need to get somewhere I just look it up. Also need to find a number? Do a business search and it pops up the phone number too in case you want to call them. This is a killer app.
-Great looking screen.
-Small form factor.
-Camera takes decent snapshots.
-Generally looks like a hot phone.
Cons:
-Case feels very cheap.
-Battery latch is poor and occasionally the battery can pop off the back if you are not careful
-Tend to fat finger the keys a lot, can't distinguish between keys without looking right at it.
-Battery life is pretty bad. With moderate internet usage expect to charge every day. I charge mine every other day with very little internet usage. Also the battery meter is defective and will display one bar remaining for an entire day.
-Opening menus can be slow if you have a lot of apps installed. Helio's H.O.T. app brings it to its knees, takes 30 seconds to open the app menu.
-Texting is horrible, it doesn't properly capitalize new sentences, appears not to learn new words, and won't spell contractions without an apostrophe.
-No MP3 Ringtones!!! In this day and age this is a joke. It uses the MMF format which is absolutely horrible, its a polyphonic system which sounds like crap compared to MP3 on my Nokia. Also you have to jump through hoops to actually create an mmf file.
-Poor menu system, not intuitive. Difficult to find customizations.
-Slow camera shots, takes a few seconds after you hit the button.
-GPS is slow to update, so as you drive around the dot doesn't follow you in real time. A minor gripe.
-Would love to use buddy locations, but who the hell uses Helio besides me. Someone needs to come up with a common standard for this.
-Internet surfing is almost useless, once you leave Helio's portal it won't render half of the web pages I tried to visit.
-No way to get new wallpaper on the phone without paying Helio. Ringtones are possible, but a real PITA.
-Helio's music transfer software is flakey and took me an hour to get working.
-Battery connector feels like it might snap off if you got slightly rowdy with it. Also the phone display stays on while charging.
I really wanted to love this phone, but compared to my old Nokia with Symbian OS it just can't compare. I'm still within my 30 days so I think this one is going back and I am just getting a newer quad band nokia on ebay. Brings a slight tear to my eye when I think about having to give up google maps. -
"CNET I THINK YOU RATED THIS PHONE MUCH TOO HIGH!" on by Kenneth Kotovsky
Pros: HELIO STANDS BEHIND THEIR PHONES... iF YOU'RE NOT HAPPY THEY AREN'T HAPPY AND WILL DO EVERYTHING IN THEIR POWER TO APPEASE YOUI
Cons: Too Dainty a Phone... I'm constantly afraid I'll drop it!, and if this baby falls you might as well kiss it bye-bye!!!
Summary: WHAT HAS TAKEN PLACE ON THE INSIDE OF THE SANSUNG DRIFT IS TRUELY REMARKABLE.... WHAT HAS TAKEN PLACE ON THE (OUTSIDE OR SHELL) OF THIS SAMSUNG PHONE IS TRUELY MEDIOCRE!!! PLEASE DON'T GET ME WRONG BUT THE DRIFTER IS SO SMALL THAT, (Please forgive me on the next few sentences as I'm not a sexist), but the drifter is sooo small compared to the Hero Made by PANTECH, that I don't think it would survive with the first accidental drop that weve all experienced. The shell of the unit is made of CHEAP PLASIC, and it reminds me of a women's clothing accessory rather than a 21st. century cellular phone. Once you open up the inside it gets worse, as I found the keys so small and flat that I was constantly pushing the wrong ones, causing allot of constant frustartions! (Maybe it would be a good idea to supply a stylus with this phone, like a PDA comes with, So less errors would be made...) I'm not trying to knock Helio as they they've come a long way since coming out on the market... But since the same features existed in both the Hero and Drifter, why weren't the bluetooth, GPS, and Buddy Finder just incorperated into the HERO? (tHEY DID IT WITHE THE RAZR PHONES, THAT HAVE BECOME SO POPULAR?) THe Hero phone I considerer to be a "Mans" phone, Large buttons, a little heavier than most cell phones but it felt good in the hand, and w=is well proportioned for a man's ear down to his mouth. I do believe Helios target market was originally geared for the 18 to 25 year crowd, with a consistant market at the MALE populus.... Hang in there Helio... With persistance and a little fortitude you'll make it, but for me I think I'll be sending my Drift back to you (as I have the 30 day (Happiness Return) Warranty promise from your orgaqnization to receive a total refund... And just reactivate my "hero"... It might not have bluetooth,GPS, or Buddy Tracking, but it's a dependable, reliable phone that I know will last me for years to come.......
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"Great phone" on by Aeirlys
Pros: GPS, internet capability, all inclusive service
Cons: Music transfer software is janky, battery life
Summary: I've had the Helio Drift for several months, and I love it. I originally bought it for its music player and expandable memory, but find that I use the internet capabilities, and especially the GPS/Google maps functions much more than I thought I would. Say goodbye to 411 charges - Google Maps will find any business you're looking for based on your location! The Buddy Beacon feature would be nice - if I knew anyone else who used this service.
My only complaints are that the music transfer software is seriously janky, it feels like a beta but isn't marked that way, and that the battery life could be better. On the other hand, I don't let this phone idle in standby the way I did with my old Nokia, so it might be that I'm using it more. Battery life, even with heavy internet usage, will get me through the day, but won't last a week like some of the phones I've owned. Invest in a car charger or a separate charger for work and you'll be all set. -
"Helio Drift is a great phone due to the features of gps, buddy beacon & myspace" on by blansang
Pros: GPS , buddy beacon, GREAT INTERNET browser
Cons: battery not so great and some application takes a while to close.
Summary: I'm a Sprint person but their phones are not attractive like the Helio's. I been with Sprint for 4 years but not no more now with Helio.
Okay, Helio Dift is a great phone for parents and boy/girl-friends for the needs to locate each other using the application called Buddy Beacon. Its a great feature for parents to spy on their kids but a bad feature maybe if you dont trust your bf/gf BUT** you can always turn off that feature which is great.
Using the GPS is great feature I feel more safe when I travel, I am one of those people that gets lost quick. With the GPS you can use a feature to find the nearest Starbucks, gas station etc!!!
I mention I was a Sprint customer for 4 years people don't know but I ask the Helio representative about the 3G network. They are actually using Sprint towers lol no wonder their service is great =)
Other features on the phone 2.0 mgp which is sweet. funny standard ringtones. My plan is $65 for 500 mins. starting @ 9 pm is free. I hate this plan I miss my old plan but love the unlimited internet and AIM which this application is like the real thing on a computer but on a phone. Plus, $6 insurance all adds up with tax $81 and change. My sprint was $63 and change with 1K mins. and starting @ 7 pm free with insurace but no INTERNET!! -
"Useful Eye Candy" on by rudeboyrobbo
Pros: Web Browser, Google Maps, GPS, Textiing, Snap Camera, Video Camera, YouTubes, MySpace, Nice phone too.
Cons: Limited battery, Gmail access busted and not addressed
Summary: This attractive little number with the very sharp screen does so much it's hard to know were to begin.
First off, it's a very capable mobile phone. I've been using it for about 6 months now and it's never failed to connect to "something," no matter what sort of buliding I'm in or where I'm traveling. The standard battery is weak, but the extended battery is reasonably priced and not much bigger, plan on getting one.
The web browser is quite capable if you're lucky enough to browse CSS enabled web sites and avoid those that use table-based layouts. And the 3G connection is fast.
The MySpace and Internet Messaging features work well. Text messaging works very well. Picture and Video messaging also, but your friends don't always get the picture - unless you email it. Yes, you can email too.
The built-in Contact List/Phone Book will syncronize with a web-accessable Contact List (after you enable the Helio Mail account on-line.) It's quite intuitive and easy to organize.
OK there was this one time I couldn't make a call, but the 3G connection was available and I was able to text message.
One particulaly irksome defect is that Google's Gmail won't accept my login. It worked once but refused to work ever again. Support was no help. "A bug," they said.
I say, "Fix it!"
The Killer-App on this thing is the built-in Google Map application which has a nice placefinder/routefinder feature that also shows your location on the map via the built-in GPS. It's so nice that you may be tempted to throw away your standalone GPS unit. Believe it or not, google maps download faster on my Drift than on my PC with broadband -- even the satellite view.
Overall, the Drift is a great little gadget that can connect you to the internet in a very useful way, even if the occasional web page freezes things up. At least I don't have to lug around a laptop hunting for WiFi hotspots to make the connection.
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