The Samsung Galaxy S 4G for T-Mobile is an update of T-Mobile's popular Samsung Vibrant Android smartphone. It is virtually a clone of the original Vibrant, but comes with Android 2.2 Froyo pre-installed, has a forward-facing camera for video calls, and offers super-fast HSPA+ "4G" data speeds. It even has a larger battery than the original. The Galaxy S 4G does lose the Vibrant's 16GB internal SD card though, replacing it with a 16GB memory card in the microSD expansion slot.
Core features like the very capable 5 megapixel camera, which records wonderful 720 HD video, and the
All of this adds up to a new device that offers mostly big pluses over the original, and very few minuses. If you liked the Vibrant, you're sure to love the Galaxy S 4G.
Hardware
As a Samsung Galaxy S based smartphone, the Galaxy S 4G for T-Mobile features a simple touchscreen slab design. What makes that design special is not its style, of which it has some, but rather the brilliant properties of its 4-inch, 800 x 480 pixel
That big display ensures that the Galaxy S 4G is not a particularly petite phone, though: 123 x 64.5 x 10.0mm (4.8 x 2.5 x .4in). That makes it narrower, shorter, and thinner than a Motorola DROID X, but not much so.
Apart from the display, the design is simple. There are 4 touch sensitive buttons at the base of the phone, and a volume rocker on the left edge that is balanced by a power/lock button on the right edge. The 3.5mm headphone jack is at the top, next to a micro-USB port for power and data that features a sliding cover.
The rear of the phone has silver metallic look to it, and feels slightly warm to the touch - in spite of being made of plastic. The 5 megapixel camera sits on the back, sans flash, and there is little else to the rear cover except for the speaker grille and a slight bulge (an additional 1.5mm) at the bottom of the phone. The rear cover can be easily removed to reveal the microSD memory card slot (16GB card included), but the battery need not be removed to swap cards.
The build quality of the device is good, and I prefer the less glossy look and feel of the new back cover to that found on the original Vibrant. It's still not as nice as the metal back on the Captivate, but it's a step in the right direction.
Usability
In spite of what you have heard about Samsung's TouchWiz in the past (including what we've said on this site), the user interface work that Samsung is doing is good. TouchWiz 3.0, as it appears on Samsung's first generation Galaxy S smartphones, is user friendly, attractive, and sensible. It still lacks the spit and polish of HTC's Sense, but it is desirable none the less.
The new main menu, with its ability to be arranged into panels of the user's choosing, is a great example. The shortcut buttons for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, and Silent mode that appear in the notification area are another. Even Samsung's new homescreen is nice: there are plenty of widgets, and users can add, remove, and rearrange home screen panels as they like. There's even an HTC Sense-like pinch gesture to see thumbnails of all the home screen panels at one time.
The Android 2.2 OS still has some issues of its own, though. The back button doesn't always perform as a user might intend. At least Samsung has added a proper task manager to the device.
The Galaxy S 4G's contact system is very nice. It is easy to find a contact, thanks to the list's index letters and easy searching, and shortcuts to frequently accessed contacts can be placed on the home screen. The phone imports contacts from Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter and will make use of their contact photos, as well. Status updates can be viewed from a tab in the Contacts app, where users can do things like reply and retweet. The ring profile support on the phone is minimal, but text input options are well rounded, and include the very nice Swype keyboard system.
While there is much on the phone that can be customized, such as home screen layout and (live) wallpapers, there is no real theme support. I really do appreciate being able to reorganize the main menu, though, and the ability to swap out the Contacts and Messaging icons at the bottom of the screen for those of other functions.
Lag was a common problem on the original Samsung Vibrant. The problem was due to the way the file system was structured. I'm pleased to report that the Galaxy S 4G doesn't have these issues. The 1GHz processor in the S 4G performs just as you would expect: very quickly.
Calling / Data
One thing that the Samsung Galaxy S 4G does really well is find a signal. This is, by far, the best T-Mobile USA handset I've tested when it comes to GSM reception. 4G reception is also way above average for T-Mobile devices. This helps the Galaxy S 4G offer really solid call audio. Even the speakerphone is acceptable. Want even better call audio, though? Just make use of T-Mobile's Wi-Fi calling features, which allows the Galaxy S 4G to make and take calls over a home or office Wi-Fi connection. The Wi-Fi calling feature still uses your contract minutes, but it's great if you have a weak signal at your home or office.
The Galaxy S 4G puts in a stellar performance when it comes to data. While some will argue T-Mobile's use of "4G" is dubious since HSPA+ is a 3G based technology, there's no arguing with the network's performance. Even on weak connections I was able to pull down 2.5 to 3Mbps data speeds, and managed well over 1.5Mbps for uploads. In stronger signal areas the speeds often breached 5Mbps on the downlink. That's blazing fast, and certainly tops what Sprint's WiMAX network offers in my area.
What good is all that data if you can't share it, though? That's why there's a Mobile AP feature on the Galaxy S 4G, which allows others to make use of the S 4G's data over a Wi-Fi connection. You can't use Wi-Fi calling while this feature is enabled, but it's great to have for business trips. There's also Bluetooth wireless support for headsets, stereo headphones, and media sharing, and you can always rely on USB connectivity for drag and drop access to files.
Messaging
Like most Android smartphones, the Samsung Galaxy S 4G has great messaging capabilities. Samsung has added some of its own apps for messaging on the Galaxy S 4G, though, that make it more colorful and even more useful. The brightly colored threaded SMS/MMS system is very nice, for example. It now supports contact photos, and the improved cursor control of Froyo make text editing much simpler a task than it was on the Vibrant.
The Galaxy S 4G has full support for IMAP, POP, and Exchange email through a very pretty application that Samsung has added to the phone. Moving between folders is very easy thanks to the TouchWiz 3.0 sliding tabs at the top of the inbox. Multiple email accounts can be configured, and Contacts and Calendar data can be pulled in from Exchange accounts along with mail. Gmail is handled by a separate Gmail client, and it, too, supports multiple accounts for mail, contacts, and calendar data.
Facebook is the only dedicated social networking app pre-installed, but official (and non-official) apps for Twitter and MySpace are readily available (and free) if the built-in support in the Contacts app proves insufficient. Instant Messaging support is limited to a pre-installed Google Talk client, but apps for other systems are also widely available.
Apps / App Store
Apple may still reign supreme when it comes to the number of applications its app store offers, few are going to be able to argue that the Android Market's roughly 130,000 are insufficient. The updated version of the Market software makes browsing a bit easier, and more visually appealing, too.
For their part, T-Mobile and Samsung loaded the phone with plenty of good stuff. Slacker Radio, Qik Video Chat, ThinkFree Office, and the full length Inception movie are pre-loaded. Samsung's cute Memo, Write and Go, and Mini Diary applications back up a very solid Calendar app that pulls in data from multiple Gmail and Exchange data sources.
Google's Maps, Navigation, and Places applications are pre-installed on the Galaxy S 4G. T-Mobile also offer's its own TeleNav GPS navigation solution, as well as T-Mobile TV and DriveSmart, a system that routs calls to voicemail when it detects that you are driving.
Browser
The web browser that is built into the Samsung Galaxy S 4G is first rate. The large, colorful display and accurate touchscreen provide the perfect foundation for what turns out to be a competent and fast web browsing experience. Pages render the way they are supposed to, and they load up quite quickly.
Zooming can be accomplished multiple ways, including through the use of multi-touch gestures and double tapping on the screen. When the browser zooms in or out, text re-flows to keep everything readable, too. Unlike the original Vibrant, the new Galaxy S 4G comes with Adobe Flash 10.1 pre-installed, and it performs admirably well in most situations (such as YouTube).
Camera
The Samsung Vibrant had a very capable camera, one that I made use of personally for a long time. That why I'm surprised to find that the camera in the Galaxy S 4G seems even better when it comes to photo quality. The focusing might be a bit slower than on the Vibrant, but the quality of the images the camera produces is really great. The user interface is also easy to use and visually appealing.
The lack of a flash, however, means that the phone really needs a good ambient light source before it can snap a photo. You'll have to hold the phone still to have a chance in darker environs. The missing hardware camera shutter button makes that that a bit harder since you need to tap or press-and-hold on the touchscreen to snap a photo. I do like the wide array of features on the camera, though, such as face detection, anti-shake, and blink detection. The stock Android 2.1 gallery application does an acceptable job of presenting the photos to user, too.
Music
The Samsung developed music player on the Galaxy S 4G is a step forward from the stock Android player, in my opinion. I like the the look and layout of the app, and appreciate the quick access to playlist creation, the many equalizer presets, and even the simulated 5.1 channel surround sound. If also features a nifty cover flow like look when the phone is held horizontally (though that feature is off by defauly). The application works with both 3.5mm wired headphones as well as Bluetooth stereo wireless headphones.
I managed to successfully sync the device with a copy of WinAmp on my PC, and all the cover art transferred over as expected using the
Battery
The Samsung Galaxy S 4G comes equipped with a 1650mAh battery, one of the largest on the market and a full 10 percent larger than the battery found in Samsung's Vibrant. In spite of that, T-Mobile and Samsung still list the battery life as being the same: 6.5 hours of talk time or 16.7 days of standby time. Regardless, we all know bigger is better when it comes to power capacities, and the result is that it should be very easy to get through a full day of normal use on the Galaxy S 4G.
If you live in a stronger signal area, and don't have to rely on Wi-Fi for data and voice, you will get an easy day and a half out of this device.
Reviewer Spin
The Samsung Vibrant was my daily phone for quite a few months. I really enjoyed using it, once I dealt with the lag issue, that is. Luckily, the Galaxy S 4G has no such lag issues and does pretty much everything as well or better than the Vibrant. It runs Froyo out of the box, has a new front camera for video chatting, and offers absolutely blazing data speeds. Add Wi-Fi calling and 3G Hotspot support to the mix, and you've got a really nice smartphone.
Even with the advances in display technology that we're seeing, I still find the Super AMOLED display on the Galaxy S 4G to be among the very best available. It's a rock star feature that people notice every single time they pick up the phone, and it's just one more reason to love the Galaxy S 4G. It's a great device.
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