Epic 4G Forum Members Initial Thoughts & Reviews

[skbgiants]

I own an EVO and my wife purchased the EPIC. Here is the DEAL BREAKER for me. The stock calendar ( on the EVO, HTC Calendar is the same as Android calendar) however on the Epic, syncing with Google calendar..the phone numbers you place in a new event are NOT CLICKABLE! This is a CONFIRMED ISSUE via Samsung. What in THE f?

As a person who owns their own biz, this is flat out unacceptable, as the calendar is the most used app on the phone. The HTC stock calendar can do this, as well as clickable websites..etc. TOTAL deal breaker for my wife. She's returning it and will "try to get used to a virtual keyboard". The EVO is flawless in this regaurd, and this is coming from a guy who always said since my Treo 650 days "I will NEVER have a phone w/ out a physical keyboard." And yes..we've tried Gemini Calendar and all the rest. It just Blows.

Long Live Android 2.2 and the EVO w/ Sense. (I will be rooting tomorrow though )

 

[Don.P]

I had a Sprint HTC Touch Pro and spell check while texting. The Epic 4g seems to be missing this feature!!
Any add on's or fixes?

 

[tgaskill]

I have to start off by saying that the first thing that took me by surprise was the screen. I watched many hands-on reviews, and everyone commented on how great the screen is, but it just blew me away.
I'm an Android virgin, with my previous phone being a BlackBerry Tour. The only things I really miss about my BlackBerry are BBM and the great battery life. It's just nice to be able to know if the recipient has read your message and know when they are typing a reply. It's definitely something I can go without, though. The difference in battery life will take some getting used to. My BlackBerry could go all day without a recharge, while (so far) my Epic needs recharged after a few hours of steady use.
I was easily able to set up my work email, which is an Exchange account. The push email even seem faster than my BlackBerry, which surprised me. I'm confused as to why I have a Gmail app and two sets of Gmail folders in my Mail app. It's on my list of things to search on the forums.
The speakerphone comes through loud and clear. I've received no complaints about poor voice quality, and the signal seems to be about the same as my BlackBerry.
Having never used an HTC Android phone, I can't compare TouchWiz to Sense, but I'm pleased with how TouchWiz handles the home screens and Widgets. My only complaint about the Widgets is that you can't customize the colors. I hate pink, and the feeds and updates widget is an ugly pink color.
The media player is a great replacement to the iPod touch I sold after buying the phone. The picture and video viewers are equally nice. The YouTube app is fast, clear and a million times better than anything available for BlackBerry. I'm looking forward to trying out Samsung MediaHub. I'm also anxiously awaiting the release of Netflix for Android. If it's anything like the iPhone/iPod touch app, I'll be addicted immediately.
One other thing I've yet to figure out (and another on my list of things to search the forums) is whether I can customize the LED notification light colors depending on the type of notification. I tried the "Missed Call" app, and it seemed to change the vibrate pattern but not the color of the LED. I know the phone has at least a red and a blue LED, but I'm not sure if it has as many as my BlackBerry did. I used BerryBuzz for my BlackBerry and loved it.
In conclusion (to my realllly long post), I would recommend the Epic to anyone who has a BlackBerry, but is hesitant to try something new. That was me, and now I don't think I'll ever go back.

 

[bipoler#AC]

I had a Sprint HTC Touch Pro and spell check while texting. The Epic 4g seems to be missing this feature!!
Any add on's or fixes?

in the keyboard settings you can edit your dictionary However it doenst work unless your using 1 of the virtual keyboards, it appears to be disabled when typing with physical keyboard

 

[m3lover1]

Had the Evo since the launch of it, but gave it to my dad and got the epic.

Love the phone, never thought I would like a slider phone, but this one is an exception. The screen looks gorgeous, although I am a bit disappointed at the screen-door effect. I also think this is the best looking variant of the Galaxy S line.

Couple major gripes I have though.

First, for the life of me I am having a hard time setting up my exchange email. It was quite a bit easier on the Evo.

Also, on the Epic, I can only change the email check frequency to one hour max. On the Evo, I can set it to check every hour from 7am to 4pm (work time) and check every two to three hours outside of those time ranges. I just feel if I can do that I can squeeze a little more time out of the battery.

 

[paulh13]

My set-up with my Exchange email went pretty smoothly. I did not like the small font size and was not able to find any way of changing it. I posted on the forum a request for help. Cory said that he had searched for way and was also unsuccessful and suggeted trying Touchdown from the Market.
I did... and it is awesome. It was easy to install and it provides a way to change the font size among many, many other great features. It is a 30 day free trial and then $19.99 to purchase.
You might want to give Touchdown a try.

 

[m3lover1]

Oh btw, prior to the Epic's release, when I still had the Evo, I thought that I wouldn't notice the .3" difference in screen size. Now that I've used the Epic for couple days, the difference is noticeable. Not too bad, but in certain cases it does. I tend to notice it the most when I'm in landscape mode in the home screen (I'm using Launcher Pro Plus).

 

[Devtodi]

you have to understand

that my last phone was a Treo 755p so clearly I am thrilled with everything on this phone. Its a bit more complicated and I need to learn how to keep my apps closed down to save battery life but once Froyo comes to town, all will be
sweee-eeet.

 

[whippingboy]

....

Also, I could use someone else's help to confirm this possible bug using the email app (not gmail). While on a phone call, enable WiFi or 4g (if you have it in your area) and surf the net. No problem, right? Now try and do a refresh of your email through the email app on your epic. I couldn't connect to server and it's rather frustrating to not be able to access my email accounts while on the phone with the person sending it to me.

I'm not an authority on the matter- but I had this issue on EVO as well- I could NOT get certain email accounts to sync over wifi. Never solved the issue within the 1st 29days the phone was out- and I returned it for a number of reasons.

I swear the Epic 3g is faster (at least where I work and at home) I rarely feel the need for wifi...but I would like to see this issue addressed.

 

[kenjancef]

Ok... here is my 2 cents about the Epic... and remember, this is only MY OPINION!!! YMMV...

I swapped out my EVO for the Epic this morning, and I will give my 1/2 day review, using it so far...

First off, I LOVE LOVE LOVE the screen.. the colors are rich, blacks are dark, and looks very crisp and clear.

Setting up my Exchange email account was a bit tricky, but got it working in minutes. The only issue I have is that my Calendar isn't syncing, which I use all the time to log my IT calls. I am hoping that it is the Android 2.1 Calendar issue that some have, maybe 2.2 will fix it. I have had no issues with the Calendar on the EVO on 2.1 or 2.2.

Setting up GMail accounts were just as easy, and, unlike the EVO with 2.2, I have no issues using 2 GMail accounts. If you don't know what I mean, go to the EVO forums and search for it. Pain in the butt... but works woth the Epic.

I can't seem to get used to the colors used for the Exchange email, and I can't find where to change it, which tells me I am screwed, guess I'll have to get used to that.

Can't really comment on battery life yet, since I was just able to get the battery fully charged (I've been drivinig around a lot today...) The battery was probably the main reason for leaving the EVO behind.

As for speed of the phone, the Epic seems much more fluid than the EVO. I would always experience stuttering on the EVO, either with scrolling or switching screens. The Epic just seems to flow...

Camera: Wow... what can I say... For me, the EVO camera SUCKED!!!! I know I've read that you can use different modes, programs, and such, but why should you have to if you are sporting an 8MP camera??? I was at a car show a few weeks ago, and took a bunch of pictures with my EVO, and after reviewing the pics (on the phone AND on my PC), I noticed that some of the cars were the wrong color, a car that was purple was actually blue in the picture. Well anyway.. I took about 506 shots with the Epic, and all I can say is wow... and for me I use it a lot because I have a 3-year old and I always like to be ready with a camera without having to tote my Canon T1i around.

The keyboard is really nice, and I was a Blackberry user for over a year, and I'm glad I have a physical keyboard again. The keys respond well. Just one big problem: Since I've been using a virtual keyboard for so long I keep forgetting that I have a physical keyboard!! I start typing.. and then think... "Oh, damn, I have a real keyboard! What am I doing?". The one thing that is kinda strange is that when open, the keyboard looks slightly crooked... the right side seems lower than the left, not by much, but enough for me to notice and inpect every time I open it. No biggie...

The buttons at the bottom of the phone, not sure I like them. It seems like they need to be calibrated, if that's even possible. I almost have to tap a little below the button for them to work. might just be me, but I'll work on that. Much better than the EVO buttons though... I didn't have a case for the EVO, so when I grab the phone to either use it or put it in my pocket, I was forever hitting the search key and was getting to be a pain, and even when using the camera I would hit it, and it would get me right out of the camera and into the search.

TouchWiz is pretty nice, but takes a bit getting used to coming from Sense. I like them both actually. And it took me a while to figure out how to get an app onto one of the emty screens. On the EVO, there was the + key, but finally figured out that when viewing the apps on the EPIC, holding a finger on one will switch to your screen and you can drop it.

Not sure I like the power button on the side, but kinda getting used to it. I move the keyboard slightly every time I press it, but doubt if I'll hurt the keyboard.

Definitely don't like the charging port on the top. It looks funny in my car, I have a basic holder that grips on both sides, and I got a charging cord sticking out on top... who's idea was it to put that there???? Also kinda kills any idea of a REAL car dock. But I DO like that the port has a cover, protects it from my pocket lint.. and we all have pocket lint, right????

Haven't really used the GPS yet, but i do use Seesmic for twittering, and set the location on, and it looks spot-on. I did turn on the wireless setting for the GPS as noted everywhere, so for now it looks good.


So I hope that if you read this far, you have experienced the same situations as I have, and maybe have a few tips and junk to throw out there. Sorry for being so long too....


Ken
East Providence, RI

ps. They just turned on 4g in Providence on Tuesday, so hopefully that signal hits my house!!!!

 

[m3lover1]

I wish the space bar button would be a bit wider. Is it just me, or whites aren't that bright? When I go to the browser and the background is white, it seems a little dull. Maybe my imagination?

 

[techgeek32#WN]

Direct Outlook Sync, not Exchange

It syncs to MS Exchange, were you trying to do outlook desktop sync? To sync with Exchange server you need to use the "Email" app instead of "Gmail"

I don't use Exchange. I am just talking about syncing with Outlook 2010 directly to my laptop. The EVO works flawlessly because HTC provides HTC Sync, whereas, Samsung does not. I have tried Companionlink and it is awful. You have to download a different contacts and calendar app which is not integrated with the core OS of the phone. Like I said, the Epic will not sell to many business users, granted Exchange works fine but the neon colors on the Epic are very unprofessional and hard on the eyes.

 

[nadeemk]

Review

I love Android, but not all Androids are created equal , so I can't say I like ALL versions of Android (by version I mean, custom skins). I like stock Android but I like the Sense-ible Android a little more.

I owned a Droid Incredible for a week and fell in love with it INSTANTLY (software, UI, form-factor), only to realize I have no Verizon Coverage in my apartment (ZERO BARS, very ironical considering I live in the heart of Seattle and Verizon is all over with their in-your-face adveritising about their coverage).

So I had to sadly part with it (no phone is good enough to overcome the disadvantage of not being able to make a phone call ). Next in line was Sprint
and I had the choice between EVO and the EPIC. In the store, if you have the epic next to the EVO, based on just display its very hard to pick the EVO, the display on the EPIC is JUST AMAZING! plus I had already played around with the Sense UI so it was time to try something new.



PROs

- Gorgeous Display

- Beautiful colors and contrast
- EVOs colors look faded and washed out in comparison.​

- Perfect screen size

- Not as small as the iPhone or the DINC but not as large as the EVO 4G
- It will perfectly suit people who are still on the fence about committing to a 4.3"​

- I like the color scheme for displaying the list of emails (not the color schemes of emails themselves as I have discussed it in the cons section below).
- Speedy and slick

- Very little hiccups, smooth scrolling.​

- Slide-out Keyboard. This can be a pro and con

- Why PRO?​

- Great for people coming from DROIDs and Blackberrys. For people loving tactile feedback.​

- Why Con?​

- Slide-out mechanisms add bulk to phone. Although in EPIc's case, the bulk is not immense.
- It also means there are physical moving parts to a phone and like any machine with physical moving parts, there are potentials for wear and tear.
​

- Swype

- LOVE IT! Best thing sliced bread.. ok well, maybe I'm exaggerating. But seriously, I love this technology. I can't credit Samsung or Android entirely for this feature (since its developed by a 3rd party) but I can credit them for installing it on their phones.​

- Phone dialer is much nicer than that on Sense.


Cons
- GPS GPS GPS

- Takes a while to pick up signal after activated.
- I only turn on GPS on as-needed basis (due to notorious battery life consumption) but each time i turn it on and try to hit 'My Location' on Google Maps, it takes forever to get a fix on it. I have to repeat the process of acquiring 'My Location' repeatedly until it finally acquires it.
- I have NEVER had that issue with my old BlackBerry Curve and with the Droid Incredible.
- The issue creeps into most apps that use location based services.
- Come on! This is basic stuff Samsung!
​

- Sync Issues.

- Took forever to sync Facebook contacts and Exchange contacts (whilst having good signal strength).
​

- Corporate Readiness

- Meeting Reminders not displayed on locked screen!!
- When I configured exchange on my Droid Inc., a group policy or something was pushed down to my phone to enforce numbered (not pattern) screen lock, although annoying.. I think its good, since I work for a major s/w company and I don't want my emails to leak if my phone gets locked.
- On EPIC, no such policy is enforced, making it a corporate security hazard.
​

- Lack of quality widgets. (compared to Sense)

- No good calendar/Agenda Widget, Widgets are weird Purple and Pink borders (not a serious look).
- No good weather widget like that in Sense.
​

- No FM Radio (seriously? Why not?)

- Text layout in exchange and gmail

- Text does not fit screen in potrait mode, flow is not as well organized to fit the screen.
​

- No Feature Parity with other Samsung Galaxy Phones provided by other carriers.

- I really liked the 'Daily Briefing' Widget on the Samsung Vibrant.. where is it?
- Where is the ability to check calls/messages from the locked screen.
​

- The infamous iPhone complex (mentioned more in my closing notes).



General Con
The User Experience designers at Samsung need... well.. Experience! Take some notes from HTC / iOS (yes I said the 'I' word). They also need a lesson in originality. To me it seems like they took stock android and looked at it from all angles and thought "Hmm.. let's try to get all those guys who love the iPhone to start loving Android..... BY MAKING ANDROID LOOK LIKE THE IPHONE", what I mean is, that their intentions seem to be in the right place. But the execution seemed lacklustre and frankly, Copy-Cat-ish.

 

[WildmanRuss]

Both my wife and myself switched from old Krazr phones and entered the smart phone world on 31AUG with the release of the Epic 4G. Here is my feedback:

Aesthetics - I like the design and the keyboard.

Screen - Nice, but I thought the screen on the Epic was supposed to help with the battery life. A friend of mine has an EVO and it appears my battery usage is about the same as his. I need to make sure I am charging on my way home from work else I'll run out of power not long after getting home.

Hardware - Seems very well constructed.

Phone - including bluetooth & speakerphone usage - Bluetooth only OK at this time until a Froyo update as I cannot make voice activated calls with my Jawbone bluetooth headset at this time. A friend of mine who has the EVO said that functionality came after the Froyo update. Speakerphone is louder than the Blackberry phone that I use which my employer provides.

Signal quality (Compared to other devices) - 3G ok, seems to receive WiFi signals a bit weaker than they really are.

GPS - Little use so far of this feature but it looks nice.

Social Networking - Can't answer this one, I have no friends

Email/Calendar - Nice!

Battery Life - See note above, expected it to be much better than my friends EVO but apparently that is not the case. I'm still happy with it though, just have to provide more options for charging it (on the way home, etc.)

Performance - Love it.

Media (music, movies, DLNA) - Nice job with music and movies

Swype vs. Samsung onscreen vs. physical keyboards. - I like the keyboard better than the on screen keyboard.

Camera (both still & video) - Nice!

How the Epic compares to your previous smartphone (if applicable) - Its my first REAL smartphone, other than the BlackBerry provided by my employer.

Disappointments (if any) - I'm pretty happy with it and not disappointed with the purchase at all.

 

[mikepfly2]

Initial Epic Impressions

First Android device, coming from a Blackberry 8830. Have had the Epic for 5 days and overall very happy. Few comments, most of which are the negatives since the positives would take too long to type. Some things may seem frivolous but are just my opinion:

* Aesthetics - Fine, cool looking phone.

* Screen - Beautiful

* Hardware - Very fast, able to run many simultaneous apps at once without missing a beat. Avi movies run flawlessly and gaming is great.

Not a huge fan of power button location: every time I go to push it the keyboard tries to slide out.

Charging/USB port on top is a strange location. Not sure if they make a car mounting adapter but would want to mount landscape for google maps navigation (which is awesome) and wonder how it will be designed with power cord in that place.

Not sure if its just my phone but pushing the menu button in the bottom left is a bit mushy due to the gap b/w the screen and physical keyboard. Going to go to a sprint store and see if it is like that on all the phones.

* Phone - including bluetooth & speakerphone usage: No complaints thus far. A smart phone should be a phone first and this seems to do everything it's supposed to from a voice perspective and has great volume. I also like the phone input screen (typing out the contact name lists those matches).

* Overall User Interface & Samsung TouchWiz: Pretty good.

Have toyed around with HTC and a few things I like better on the HTC is the ability to choose the contact picture between linked contacts (ie google image or facebook). Seems Samsung defaults to google image but I want facebook. Not a big deal, just annoying.
Work around: Manually delete the google image from that contacts profile. Not sure yet if the facebook profile picture will automatically update when the user changes their pic.

Doesn't have ring profiles built in like my blackberry (had to download an app)

Can't see appointments on lock screen..

Had to download Astro app to download attachments in gmail app.

I like the bookmark widget to add bookmarks directly to the home screen but you can't customize the icon. It's just the standard bookmark chevron with the first few letters of the bookmark name. Would like more customization options here (anyone know an app?) b/c if you don't know the bookmark by the first 8 letters or location on your home screen you may pick the wrong link.

Tethering with PDA Net is great (connected right now). Although I understand I may not need PDA Net with froyo.

Wish I could customize the 4 main buttons at the bottom (Phone, Contact, Messaging, Apps). I'd replace the stock messaging with Crunch SMS and maybe use something else for contacts since I get my contact primarily from the phone link. Again, I think I read this might be a Froyo update change.

* Signal quality (Compared to other devices): Fine, live in Chicago

* GPS- Very fast, but a battery drain.

* Social Networking-pretty good, I just use facebook; included widgets are pretty unprofessional looking (pink and purple). Ended up deleting and using facebook app directly or activities tab on contacts.

* Email/Calendar: Serious issue here for Outlook Exchange Users (mind you, I'm coming from a blackberrry)
You can't move emails to folders on the device for outlook mail. This alone could be a show stopper despite all the other positives. The HTC Evo can do it (confirmed) as can the Verizon Droid (I think). I have NO idea why such a basic email function can't be performed on such a smart phone. All the folders are listed at the top of the email view but there is no "Move to" option anywhere. I chatted with a Samsung rep and they say it can't be done. If anyone has a work around let me know. I've tried K9 but it did not seem to work. Hopefully, this is corrected in Froyo; Samsung?

Corporate Global Address book? I couldn't find a way to look up other coworkers who aren't direct contacts in my outlook. This is another big deal for someone coming from a blackberry. I can't seem to look up that contacts info if I need to forward an email or call a coworker who I just email once.
UPDATE 9/13: I was incorrect; you can get to the global address book using the default email app by using the Search Button when adding contacts to an email.

Update: Found NitroDesk touchdown "Exchange for Android". So far it's showing promise for email movement to folders and Global Address Book search. There's a 30 day trial then $19.99. Hoping it does as advertised and will gladly pay the $20. Still wish these core email functions were included by Samsung.

Google Calendar support is good but it doesn't have the option to show all my linked calendars. I have a sports calendar that I can view on the web calendar but can't link it to my phone which is annoying.

* Battery Life: I hope it gets better with normal use. I've been using it pretty heavily to determine if I'm going to keep the phone or not and it's lasting b/w 5-7 hours. The screen is the biggest drain and it seems to go very fast when using the GPS. There are obviously some tweaks I can do but haven't yet. Haven't done much with 4G either which I'm guessing will be a battery hog.

* Performance- Great, no complaints yet. Had a few force closes from shady apps.

* Media (music, movies, DLNA)- Movies awesome, music pretty good. Messing around to figure out how to sync Itune's play list to it which shows promise.

You can't view RTSP feeds: I have a linksys web cam to keep my eye on a thermostat at my parents lake house and a nanny-cam but it won't connect to either. I tried almost every App (Opera mini browser, Doga, AndroStream, etc) and no luck. They are both Linksys WVC54GCA cameras and worked perfectly on my Blackberry. This is another potential show stopper.

* Samsung Widgets reviews: Not a whole lot to say. Glad there are 50k apps to choose from. So far I've downloaded a calendar widget so the date is always displayed, weatherbug (which doesn't seem to update current location for some odd reason), and chompSMS to get better customization of my home screen.

* Swype vs. Samsung onscreen vs. physical keyboards. All great; don't care for the smiley button; as previously mentioned by another user, would have preferred a larger space key. SWYPE is awesome and if I do return the Epic it will be for a phone with a physical keyboard OR SWYPE. Takes some getting used to but is very fast once you get the hang of it.

* Camera (both still & video): Nice pictures and video. Wish I could add a time stamp to the photos (when I use for work). Quality is more than acceptable.

* Disappointments (if any): I've mentioned them in line above but the biggest ones are:

• Lack of folder support for Outlook Exchange Emails
• Battery Life
• Ability to Stream RTSP Feeds

Again, overall, love the phone but a few of the issues may force me to return the phone and go back to Blackberry until Samsung hashes the issues out. Maybe Froyo will solve them (fingers crossed). Speaking of which, any ideas when the update will be rolled out to these Epic devices?

 

[Jaggrey]

The implementation of the GAL is pretty poor. I tried it the way that you mentioned by going to the email, but it only returns the email addresses. It doesn't even return the name of the person! So if you wanted to look up someone, you'd have to be able to recognize their email address. This is a far far cry from the way webOS has it implemented.

 

[liquidxit2]

Well I have had the phone since launch and I have actually had time to rely on the phone more. So here is another stab at these categories.

* Aesthetics: Still like the phone looks and feel. The functionality of the hardware is pretty nice too.
* Screen: Still beautiful. I have mine turned down all the way to help save my battery and eyes. Plus it looks perfect at the lowest setting IMHO.
* Hardware: FAST. The only issue I can say is that they disabled the TV out feature.
* Phone - including bluetooth & speakerphone usage: Call quality is good, speaker phones is as well (great for music and movies too)
* Overall User Interface & Samsung TouchWiz: Love it! I love sense too, but if I had to choose of all the proprietary UIs I would say touchwiz but only because I am more used to it then sense.
* Signal quality (Compared to other devices): Average. Nothing special here, but I have noticed that I get better service with 0-2 bars then other phones in the past.
* GPS: GREAT! I can get google maps up and running with traffic fast and then get sprint nav up and running for turn by turn. No speed issues or location issues at all!
* Social Networking: Works great just like any other smartphone, but with the added advantage of a large high resolution screen and great keyboard.
* Email/Calendar: Email is good, I dont like the load more messages 'feature'. But its worked good for my primary email device. The calender is good as well.
* Battery Life: To be expected. The phone lasts a half of a work day to a full day (work, gym, and home time before bed). It all depends on how I use the phone. I can say I am anxiously awaiting the extended battery from seidio.
* Performance: FAST! Nothing else to say other then fast!
* Media (music, movies, DLNA): GREAT! Movies are crisp and clear (even the old copies from my low res ipod). Music is also crisp and clear whether it be streamed or on the phone itself. I also love the interface for music, but wish that they would have included movies in that as opposed to the gallery. DOnt get me wrong I love the gallery too but its not a movie application IMHO, rather its meant for clips and pictures (does a great job at that though).
* Samsung Widgets reviews: I use the applications widget. Its the only samsung widget I still use and will continue to use.
* Swype vs. Samsung onscreen vs. physical keyboards: Still a HUGE fan of the physical keyboard. I have the virtual and swype turned off as I have it setup to quickly accept a collapsible bluetooth keyboard. Dont get me wrong the virtual keyboard and swype arent bad, just not my cup of tea and soemthing I woudl rather just not use.
* Camera (both still & video): Great! took some nice pics at the football game this past weekend that were amazing!
* How the Epic compares to your previous smartphone (if applicable): Still blows everything I have had out of the water.
* Disappointments (if any): No TV out through the 3.5mm jack, Upload speeds (although this doesnt seem to change my data experiences compared to other phones), still refuses to make me coffee at work AND home, movies should be tied into the music app, and they should have included a much bigger battery for a phone like this (extended soon anyways).

So far I love the phone and the issues arent that big IMHO. Mostly to be expected issues for a newly released phone. I kinda am upset about the 4g monthly payment as I spend most of my time out of 4g coverage or in spotty at best 4g coverage. I am hoping that the 2.2 coming soon will resolve these issues and if they are this will be the closest thing to a perfect phone on the market now (for me that is).

 

[ericdives]

In addition to the link in my sig, see:

A Day With The Samsung Epic 4G

Samsung Epic 4G: vs the Palm Pre, Apps, Tips

 

[jerseykat1]

hardware:
solid feel built well. However the phone was not thought out very well for one handed use (sorry im a blackberry user at heart but i need more out of a phone now), as i would like to see the power button (the one that locks ur phone b4 putting in your pocket) on the screen instead of the keyboad section as i find it very difficult to press sometimes and end up sliding the keyboard a bit, if it were on the screen it would be sooo much more convenient (not a deal breaker).

The sliding keyboard! i know this is a very very difficult one to perfect, and while samsung has done a great job on it, i do find it hard to get it open at times without accidentally pressing something on the screen and opening a app that i did not mean to open. i am right handed as is the majority of the population, so i personally think the keyboard should slide open to the left, this would make one handed sliding very easy.

the menu, home, back, and search hard keys at the bottom of the phone are not giving me the problems that others are reporting. However i wish they were visible at all times, i dont think it would take away from the sleekness of the phone to have them just lightly visible at all times. even when the phone is off. (not a deal breaker but this is review and thoughts, no)

i have no other issues with the hardware. I will say that the phone is very fast (previous phone was a BB tour), and the processor gets things done quickly.

The software/OS/firmware whatever you want to call it:
android 2.1. Its fast, responsive, lots of nice features (i am sure 2.2 will blow it out the water) and its fairly easy to navigate. I do wish it had flash, my friend has a my touch with flash i dont get why my more recent phone does not.

certain applications are lacking mainly the gmail app. i would like to be able to delete emails that i can clearly see is spam from my inbox without having to open them, if you get a lot of spam and junk email it can be tedious to have to delete them all by opening them (i know you can hit menu then delete but it is still a 2 part process, since when does the delete button not delete?). Also i would like to be able to highlight several emails in one shot and do a mass delete (maybe this is possible and i just don't know how because i am new to android so don't judge the phone because of my ignorance).

Facebook application:
i would like to see notifications on my home screen of replies to my news feeds or news feeds that i have responded too. If this is already possible please explain how i can do this. I would also like to see something telling me that i have a new private message. i dont see any of this basic stuff, unless i am missing something.

other than those complaints i am fairly satisfied with this phone, though i would have preferred blackberry style hardware (not a fan of sliding keyboards or full touchscreen devices) The epic IMO is a good compromise until something along those lines comes along. i need my one handed operation and no virtual keyboard will ever be as precise. I do love the big bright clear screen.

i give this phone a 8.9 out of 10 not because it's not a blackberry styled device but because of the gmail app sucking, the sliding keyboard is a bit challenging to open, the battery life could be better ( i wouldnt mind a slightly thicker phone if the battery lasted a full day), and it did not ship with android 2.2. if it were not for those issues i would give it a 10 out of 10.

 

[jenbeast#AC]

I can't see attachments on calendar entries. Not sure if this is an Epic issue or droid issue since I just switched from the Palm Pre.