(40 out of
50)
Perfect Choice for a 1st Android Smartphone5
Posted by:
BuffaloSteve from Buffalo, NY on
05/01/2012
Migrated from the trustworthy LG Dare to the Samsung Stratosphere, and have been completely satisfied after 6 months of use. Learning about Android's many features is a continuing process, since some are hidden. Primarily purchased this phone for easy access to the full Google suite, and it has not disappointed. Some bloatware is included which will never be used, but that's typical of nearly every other phone.
Battery life is excellent. Typically after 1.5 days, usually more than 30% is still remaining. Samsung battery charger has high power output, and charges battery in a couple of hours. Use included "Task Manager" liberally to assure that apps are truly closed and are not unintentionally consuming precious battery resources. ("My Mobile Recovery" is a useful app, but tends to be a disproportionate power hog.)
Screen has excellent clarity, and touch sensitivity is likewise excellent. Quality sliding keyboard is invaluable for longer e-mail's or at the end of a long day when tired fingers just don't work well on a virtual keyboard.
Have only used the camera a few times and as expected, it's much better than what I've been used to. If I want to take quality pictures, however, I still rely on my Canon digital camera with an optical zoom.
Voice quality is as good as the best, old-style cell phone, and perhaps even as good as a land-line. 3G/4G transitions are seamless; 1X signal strength is about the same as the older LG Dare, about average.
The music player is high quality, and the micro-SD card is a breeze to load with tunes from a PC. Long plane rides are now much better with the Stratosphere's fine music and game apps.
"E-Mail" client is mysterious, and seems incompatible with G-mail. It was disabled, and G-mail is now accessed directly.
Only surprising disappointment was Samsung's mediocre collection of ringtones for both calls and notifications. For example, the notification ringtones for calendar events were all soft and short; if the phone was in another room, it could not be heard, even at the loudest volume. Therefore, be prepared to download many more suitable ringtones.
Both VZW's and Samsung's telephone support have been good when the on-line instruction manual was inadequate or when there was a conflict among updates.2 out of 2 found this review helpful.
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Great phone5
Posted by:
gabthebard1 from White Bear Lake, MN on
04/25/2012
I absolutely love this phone. Has a ton of great apps and the music player is great. Sounds great too. Nice big screen. Battery life is good too. Can listen to music for hours.2 out of 2 found this review helpful.
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Horrible built phone.1
Posted by:
evolved from Mchenry, IL on
04/24/2012
I had got this phone in nov. 2011 for a black friday deal. However I've been through couple phones and all with the same problem. It doesn't want to charge. First phone lasted about a month. When it started having small issues charging here and there. after a week of issues it would not charge at all. My friend has a samsung so I put My battery in his phone and boom, no problem charging. So I claimed the phone and got a new one. well again I'm having the same problems. however some chargers work and some don't. It will on some chargers say charging and never charge, also will say 100% charged only to take it off and it says it's dying and needs to be charged. Also my memory card seemed to crash in this phone as well. This could have been just the memory cards time but rather untimely. I bought a charge kit that charges the battery seperately so I don't have to keep sending the phone back and forth. I also have had issues with case's I bought for the phone. I do pull the battery out of it to charge it, so i gave up on the case's because they simple wear out quick and won't reclip onto the phone properly. I will never buy another slid phone again because of this issue. I owned the droid x before this phone and I think it was a way better phone. I gave the Motorola to my Fiance, so I will not be getting that back. I will be going back to motorola as soon as my other 2 phones come off contract, which is shortly. If I where you I would not buy this phone. Looks nice but is built horrible. To add to this I did not drop the phone at all but did use a car charger a lot.0 out of 0 found this review helpful.
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After much research the winner is....4
Posted by:
sams1997 from Rockland Cty, NY on
04/18/2012
Did a lot of research before purchasing 4 phones for the whole family. My teenage boys think this phone is great. My wife is enjoying the apps and 4G access to websites and mail. Wanted a phone with slideout keyboard. So far so good.3 out of 3 found this review helpful.
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not worth the hassle1
Posted by:
dragnldy from hopewell, va on
04/04/2012
so far have been back 2 times as does not sync with aol.-need to go again! - constantly looses password for aol - e-mail - input minimum of 8 times a day! - will not connect at some locations like McDonalds etc.
seems to have a mind of it's own. If turned off - alarm does not automatically come on - you oversleep ! not loud enough to hear ring - have to keep face down. speak text - words not always what you say but like that feature as hands free in a car. wish i had never bought - have insurance - this is a VERIZON ISSUE with compatibility! - others that have on a different server - no problems ! memo feature - does not show up that you have anything to do!0 out of 4 found this review helpful.
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Excellent All-around phone5
Posted by:
stefbil from Grand Blanc, MI on
03/17/2012
I absolutely love this phone. It never locks up on me, it has a fast browser, and I love the slide out keyboard. The camera is great as well.3 out of 3 found this review helpful.
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Everything I wanted in a smart phone5
Posted by:
TommyTH from Roanoke, VA on
03/01/2012
This is everything I wanted in a smart phone. Had to reset phone once (by pulling the battery) because I was getting server connect failures. Battery life is a little weak but I expected that for all that a smart phone can do these days. I like the physical qwerty keyboard when I create emails and for texting.3 out of 3 found this review helpful.
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Happy with new phone5
Posted by:
SJCatlady from South Jersey on
03/01/2012
Phone has been great so far. I haven't figured out everything it can do yet, but I'm working on it. Having some trouble connecting to the internet at times, but I'm hoping it's just me doing something wrong. Like I said, I'm still learning. I don't have it turned on all the time because I would have to charge every night and I don't always remember to do this. I'm learning how to use the keypad by sliding my figure around (don't remember what it is called). It's fun, but I do have to correct words a lot. Still learning this, too.3 out of 3 found this review helpful.
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LOVE this phone!!!4
Posted by:
JodieY from Dracut,Ma on
02/17/2012
love this phone, great picture,app selection, easy to use.4 out of 4 found this review helpful.
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Great Phone5
Posted by:
SparkyKris from Greene, NY on
02/16/2012
I have MS and have slight tremmors in my hands and cannot use an ALL touch screen. This phone is awesome!! I can text just like I could with my BlackBerry but have the convenience of all the apps from the android. I LOVE this phone!! I always wanted a Droid, but, couldn't use the touch texting keyboard. I would get extra letters all over the place and would get frustrated. This phone is perfect for me!!!8 out of 8 found this review helpful.
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Great phone, Unresolved Photo Sync probs though.4
Posted by:
Raceinlady from Thousand Oaks, CA on
02/15/2012
Still havnt been able to Sync Photos through ITunes even though your Sales staff tried to help for almost 2 hrs in store.
Would be nice to have working since I'm a Photographer.2 out of 4 found this review helpful.
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good 4 g phone for the price4
Posted by:
security1 from Clermont Fl on
02/08/2012
Easy phone to use. voice quality not too bad. Good camera and good slide out key board. Does freeze up on occasion. I am pleased with the phone.2 out of 2 found this review helpful.
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Excellent phone....4
Posted by:
NanainNC from Dallas NC on
02/08/2012
Phone is easy to use. Easy to see. Battery life is to short. .2 out of 3 found this review helpful.
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Great Phone5
Posted by:
InventoryGuy from Fargo on
02/08/2012
Love it. Listen to music through my car stereo on it. Navigation will turn down the music tell me when/where to turn and then turn the music back up.1 out of 1 found this review helpful.
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Good Phone - Small Virtual Keyboard Keys4
Posted by:
eman17 from Manasas, VA on
02/06/2012
I like the phone. Have difficulty with the small keyboard keys - either the slide-out keyboard or the virtual keyboard. Seems to download very fast, and it's easy to access features & download Apps/Widgets. Like the solid feel.0 out of 1 found this review helpful.
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Great phone5
Posted by:
rpgwolf from Middletown RI on
02/02/2012
So far so good, has great reception but wish battery lasted longer3 out of 3 found this review helpful.
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Upgrade5
Posted by:
Plug11111111 from Henrietta, NY on
02/02/2012
I absolutely love this phone. I am amazed at all of the features this phone has and how easy it is to use. The only down fall with this phone is the driver. You will have to call Samsung, not Verizon to figure out how to transfer files on the computer. Other than that I wouldn't trade it for the world.5 out of 5 found this review helpful.
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Good touch screen phone4
Posted by:
crsva from Salem, Va on
01/30/2012
Dislike there are no notification lights but otherwise phone is great for all uses2 out of 3 found this review helpful.
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great phone for the price5
Posted by:
sgbleds from on
01/28/2012
This is a great phone and an even better price. I would reccomend to anyone looking for an affordable 4g phone. The only drawback is the balck due to the slide out keyboard that I do not use; however that is a plus to most consumers. So far I am happy with my choice.1 out of 2 found this review helpful.
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LCD screen broke in five days1
Posted by:
mb1968 from Pittsburgh, PA on
01/25/2012
After five years using Blackberrys I decided to switch to an Android device to share apps between my cell phone and tablet. I got this phone on Saturday and the sales person insisted I bought the Geek Squad protection plan as he had seen the exact same phone break a few days earlier. I declined, believing Samsung would not manufacture a shoddy product. Turns out I was mistaken. In literally five days the LCD cracked on the inside, and the phone died. I never dropped the phone or anything like that. I went back to the store and was essentially told "you should have bought the Geek Squad protection. Call Samsung." I called, and literally heard that "these things happen." The recommendation I got at Samsung was to find a cell phone repair shop on Yellow Pages and spend $100 to get a new screen (Samsung itself would charge $150).
Of course, I am distraught. Maybe I was just drawn a bad hand this time around, but after five years never having had a problem with BB, it feels wrong to have a cell phone die in your hands after five days.
I hope other buyers have better luck.4 out of 4 found this review helpful.
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