Mini-Review: Samsung Galaxy S 9000i
It's been about 10 days since I got my hands on the Galaxy S, and I think a mini-review is in order. I do not consider myself an expert reviewer and more comprehensive reviews, please check Engadget, GSMArena or PhoneArena. However, I can review it from a consumer's point of view as someone who will be using the phone daily and have actually paid for it. Without further ado.
Pros:
1. The huge 4" AMOLED screen: Definitely one of the biggest selling points of the phone is the huge, vibrant screen. Every app, every webpage, is rendered with crystal clarity. The phone feelss very responsive and the touch transitions look smooth.
2. Browsing/Email: The built-in browser is fast at rendering detailed webpages (even JS heavy pages) and with the Froyo update will support Flash apps (The phone comes with Eclair). The GMail app syncs effortlessly with your Google accounts (GMail, Contacts, Calendar on both standard edition and Google for apps) offering you a single point of control for everything. And it allows tethering!
3. FM Radio: Huge plus for someone like me who commutes everyday and loves listening to their favorite radio shows.
4. Swype text input: Definitely something that impresses everyone, miraculous text entry by just dragging your finger across different keys.
5. The battery life: You'd think that with a screen so huge, you'd barely get half a day with it, but I can get two whole days out of it and I'm definitely a phone addict.
6. The Mario Live Wallpaper: Enough said. :D
Cons:
1. No flash: If Samsung included an awesome 5 MP camera and 720p recording, I think it would've been a no brainer to include a flash as well.
2. Samsung Kies: I'm not sure if this is a pain point universally or it's just my old notebook, but it took me a while to download this 130MB PC Syncing app, then at least an hour to install it, and then it threw fatal exceptions and didn't work. I haven't tried re-installing it yet, but that was a major frustration. I hope it's not as bad as iTunes.
3. Android Market: Yes, it's true! Most of the apps in the marketplace are crap except for official apps (Twitter, NYT, etc). I'd like to think of this as an opportunity as a Java Developer, but for the common consumer, it sucks. Google really needs to work on making the market more usable for both consumers and developers, especially for the paid apps.
So who is it for?
Well, if you look at the specs of both Galaxy S and the iPhone4, you'll see very little differences in features (except the death grip, I tried it and the Galaxy S doesn't lose reception). In Australia, the cheapest Galaxy S plan is the $49 cap and the cheapest iPhone4 plan is the $59 cap (Optus, $0 handset), so it is a little cheaper. Any iPhone user should feel right at home on the Galaxy S, it does really feel like a top of the line smartphone. So it all comes down to choice. No longer is the iPhone lightyears ahead of every other phone. If you're sick of Apple's total control over your phone, or Jobs forcing you to upgrade your phone every year, the Galaxy S is for you. Try it, you'll never go back.
