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- Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 380 reviews Back to product review
- My rating: 0 stars
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13 out of 13 people found this review helpful
3.5 stars
"Multi-media phone, yes - Smartphone, no"
Pros: GPS, screen, TV, Live Search, Interface
Cons: SMS, contacts, no flash, No desktopp sync
Summary: I have had the phone for over 24 hours now; I got to get a day early (6-19-2008). I was excited about this phone, and I still am, but it has already let me down a bit.
Bottom line, if you want a multi-media phone, this is a good one to get. However, if you are looking for a smartphone this is not it.
It seems like the phone does some amazingly hard things well, but when it comes to the easy stuff, it fails miserably.
I am really hopeing to edit this review, when Sprint and Samsung (hopefully) put out an update. Until then...
The sleekest part of this thing is the GPS. It could actually replace a portable GPS, not as functional, but it does the main job, but has an advantage in that it has a lot of data behind it.
One feature related to GPS is the Live Search. Hold in a button, tell it pizza, and up comes pizza places nearest you in a directory format. Click one and get all the info you can use, and then click map, directions, and get full GPS from where you are to it.
Another example: Find cheapest gas stations nearest to your location. Works, and is cool.
The web interface is good, but feels hurried. I really expected more. The Rev A has great speed.
The screen is nice, large, and has a great resolution. Watching TV on it is nice.
However, like I said, it does some simple things badly. Let's go over SMS.
There is no preset text message, so everything you might send has to be typed each time. There is no text prediction to complete words, so each word must be fully typed. The only way to navigate in a text message as you compose is to minimize the keyboard, use the (soft) nav-keys, and then bring the keyboard back up. The keys on the qwerty (soft) keyboard are a tad small and I am continually having to correct, although it does have a spell-checker. There are more, but you get the idea.
All these may seem little issues, but put them all together and you have an issue. It would have been SO simple to make sure this part worked well.
Also a problem is the contacts section. It is really clunky, and has no flow to it. There is no grouping, and no real search capability, only an alpha-scroller. Like the SMS grips, there are a bunch of littel things that add up to be a pain. For example, when you put a picture in for a contact, there is no way to rotate or pan the picture. So far this means that I have a bunch of sideways head shots, and crotch shots for my contact photos.
Stupid oversight.
I really want to like this phone, and because Sprint offers a full 30 day return, I will use it for the next two weeks, and see if there is an update. If not, it will go back, and I will wait for it, or a better phone.
Additionally, I really wanted a mail and calendar sync. You can do the mail sync, but only if you have an Exchange server. I really wanted this device to sync with my outlook via desktop ala the mogul or touch (by HTC).
Don't get me wrong, I love the MM things this phone does right. Music, web, TV, radio, etc... However, the reality is that most of us use our phone 90% of the time for text and calls, email, and scheduling. All the places where this phone is weak.
Sprint? Samsung? Please add what you can in an update so I cn keep this phone!
- 3 replies to this review
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have you tried google sync? its worth checking into
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Thank you for sharing that the Instinct won't sync. If they fix this problem, I hope they will let us know because it looks great otherwise. I don't know whether to get a Treo or Centro or other phone.
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Thanks for you review re the same things I am curious about before buying. GPS is a main reason, along with speakerphone and ease of use while travelling. However, am hesitant to buy without good phone/email features. So if the powers that be are listening, I totally agree with your request for quick updating; would have thot Windows Mobile would be part of pkg, also.
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