Samsung Instinct
Cellphones Buying Guide
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August 20, 2008 12:56
4.5/5
I was a 6 year Tmobile user and wanted to get an iPhone 3G but I was told about this sprint instinct as well, after comparing both phones I will tell you why I decided on the instinct. I will mention though the camera is only 2mp and the video I took was meh, but that wasn't an important part of my decision making because I don't use my phone for that much.
iPhone Vs Instinct
Memory - The instinct only comes with 2gig chip but since it is cheaper than the iphone you can buy an 8 gig chip and come out even.
Battery - The iphones battery is built in, a major complaint even with iphone lovers, you have to PAY apple to replace your battery once it is junk. And for anyone who has ever owned a phone, you know the longer you own your phone the less charge time you have. The instinct actually comes with a spare battery and a charger so you can be charging your battery while still using your phone.
Computer interface - The best thing about the Instinct is NO ITUNES! I really hate itunes, I love my ipod shuffle for the gym but wish it didn't need itunes. As long as you have your USB cable you can easily transfer media, from and to on any computer with a USB port without downloading software. If you are technically challenged and like itunes, samsung has bundled a media software with the phone that is just like itunes.
Service Provider - If you research Sprint vs AT&T you will see that Sprint gives you a little more bang for your buck. For instance, if you where to chose similar rate plans for unlimited internet, you will find that with ATT texting is not included, you have to pay EXTRA to buy a texting package. I would think most people who have these kinds of phones would be doing a lot of texting, especially if you are buying this phone for a teenager. With Sprint unlimited texting was included in the price, I basically saved myself 240 dollars a year by not having to buy this service with ATT, hmm maybe with my savings I can buy a new iPhone to piddle with.
So in short as much as I wanted an iPhone, the instinct proved to be the winner for my choice in more ways than one, I just couldn't justify spending extra for an iPhone.
Updated on Sep 18, 2008Wanted to add that I went on vacation and I fell in LOVE with the GPS, it helped me get around town to shop/eat, You can even rait these places. The only flaw I saw, was when I was comparing it with mapquest it was an hour off I was wondering why. But near the end of my trip I was on I40 and it looks like I was veered off on new construction, my GPS basically told me I was off course and it looked like I was driving off road. You could tell that this part of I40 was fairly new construction, once that part ran out my GPS found me back on the old I40 and it recalculated my time and shaving off almost an hour off my destination. Mapquest 1, GPS 0
To be fair at the very end of my trip mapquest was off, it wanted me to turn on a road in 8 miles to the right but the road was only 3 miles long and I could go right or left, so I went right. I fired up my GPS and it told me I was going the wrong way, it got me back on course and guided me to the Motel
Mapquest 0, GPS 0 -
June 19, 2008 08:36
4.5/5
Like a nerd, I went to get my Instinct the today first thing in the a.m. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to navigate. didn't take long to pick up on how to work it and navigate it. Love the touch screen, call quality has been excellent and I love the features. The turn by turn GPS and the Live search are AWESOME. The voice recognition software is flawless as well. The only flaw is that it obviously isn't as 'beautiful' as the iphone and the internet surfing so far as been a little disappointing.
I was one of the guys on the fence about dropping sprint because of their lackluster phones (I had a treo 700wx that was junk)and grabbing an iphone. But sprint has finally put out an excellent phone, with a price point and plan that can't be beat! -
June 30, 2008 03:44
Good
1.5/5
The new Samsung Instinct is like a "Dumb Blonde." I'm blonde, so I can say it. I've been the brunt of many "blonde jokes" for years. The Instinct is cute and sleek on the outside, with not much substance beneath the surface.
This is a great, FUN phone. If you like to have a good time, this is the phone for you. If you're looking for a smart phone, you'd be smart to look elsewhere. A brunette (ie- Mogul) would be e better choice. I'll be returning this, and going back to my Mogul.
This phone has very limited web access. To access many common websites (eg-Ebay), you must set the browser to "mobile" mode. In this mode all graphics are missing, and site is in text mode. You're lucky if you can sign in. I actually found it unbelievable that such a high tech phone would have such limited web surfing capability. My friend was trying to check email on Hotmail account, and could not sign in. It was not JAVA supported. After spending over an hour with Sprint tech support (another nightmare) and going to TWO corporate Sprint stores (and visiting tech support live), it was confirmed that the browser is very limited. None of them could access Hotmail either. Sprint would have been much better off using Windows,.
The Bluetooth is also very poor. I have to switch hands free off in my car since nobody can hear me, only catching about every third word. I never had this problem w/Mogul (same car).
I even find the multimedia to be below average. There is a delay on CNN, and picture often freezes. If I want to watch TV, I'll stay home.
I don't understand what is so impressive about this phone. Sprint/Samsung have done a great job with media hype, and creating a frenzy over this phone. This phone is a novelty. It's fun, does have a great keyboard and touch, but that's about it. If you want a smart phone, this is not the phone for you. -
June 20, 2008 11:39
3.5/5
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! -
June 21, 2008 04:40
Excellent
2.0/5
For years I've been a user of the clunky, but highly effective 6700sp running on Windows Mobile 6.0. Instinct is a huge disappointment. It did connect fine to my server and found 25 of my emails, but I can't manage the messages apart from deleting, forwarding, replying. With the 6700 I could manage all my folders, move emails to other folders, etc. And everything synched with my Microsoft Exchange Server...calendar, appointments, contacts/addresses, etc. Why didn't Sprint/Samsung stick with the reliable Window Mobile software? If you follow your instinct, you'll stick with what you have or simply get the better IPhone G3. Of course, Instinct is incompatible with MAC, but even on a PC I couldn't get any of the synching software to run successfully. Beyond all of this, Instinct is really unresponsive, and downright quirky. The web works sometimes, and sometimes not. The browser is cumbersome and disappointing. My Instinct is going back on Monday and I'll just go back to my 6700 until the G3 IPhone comes out. Then I'll have to make the decision about moving over to ATT. -
June 22, 2008 11:18
4.5/5
the phone is simply amazing, i would highly recommend this phone to anybody. the email application is awesome, gps is good. I internet is really fast on this phone. the really great thing about it is that it comes with a 3.5 mm jack so you can connect it to the AUX in your car and home stereo. battery dies on me kinda fast luckily it comes with two batteries, although i find the back kind of hard to take off. this phone is also real user friendly and i love the favorite menu where u can text somebody instantly or check your email or go to your music. overall this phone is awesome the only reason i didnt give it a ten is because you can make a lot of mistakes texting if you try to do it to fast. -
June 28, 2008 11:51
3.5/5
For starters, I got this phone on the 20th of July, when it debuted in public.
A couple of things you should know if you're about to read this... I've been with sprint for the longest time now, so I'll write down the last couple of phones I've had with them, starting with the most recent one: Palm 755p --> Palm 700p --> Motorola Razr (Red) --> Samsung A900 (Blade) --> Sanyo 2300.
Just keep that in mind.
I've had the Instinct since it had its debut to the public on July 20, 2008. I went from a palm 755p to the instinct - and the following day, as soon as I figured out what I did, the first thing that came to my mind - what the heck was I thinking?
It looks good, sleeker than an iPhone. Still cuter (a bit) than an LG Vu. It has a lot of features to it. And I can make pretty clear phone calls with it, as long as I'm not surrounded by trees (and really, that's a Sprint thing). It has a built-in turn by turn GPS Navi, which is one of its best features.
But then again, it's not a Palm. It really is just a phone. If I upgraded from a Samsung A900 to the instinct, yes, that would've been a true upgrade. But I went from a PDA to a phone. So, in a way, I kind of downgraded. The calendar, yes, it's there. But, it's not an organizer. It doesn't read word documents (.doc/x), it doesn't read excel documents like I relied heavily on my palm. But - then again, it's just a phone. It was wrong of me to expect that.
For what Samsung intinct (M800) is, it's a decent phone with plus features to it. The Operating System of it is proprietary (meaning, it's between Samsung and Sprint), so I'm limited to just the games that would work on this gadget, like any other phones. So, all those games that are installed on my palm, pretty much - are - gone. The games for the instinct are still very much limited. It's a new phone, and it's a sprint phone, so... gives Sprint a reason to sell games to me.
It's an MP3 player, movie player, and yes... with the help of a 3rd party, I was able to make my own ringtones (people, it's doable). The speakers have good quality on them. I have a car charger as well as a wall charger, so I always keep it charged. Battery life with all these things hasn't been a problem.
I'm happy with it. Again, it's not a PDA... Just a phone. It's not a fair comparison. I can get used to it. I was required to do one of the unlimited data plans, and there wasn't any problem with it.
All in all, it's all good... for now, anyway. -
June 20, 2008 09:13
3.0/5
Phone is great for anyone who doesn't need any features above and beyond the realm of the phone itself. The email capabilities seem great until you hit 25 emails where it maxes out on storage. I missed the ability to add programs even after only having it for a day, things like splashid and sync capabilities with computers is limited if at all. This phone is amazing in my opinion for high school, maybe college but anyone doing any sort of work that has used blackberry or treos before stay away. you'll miss what you had. -
July 14, 2008 11:50
3.0/5
I had been holding my upgrade eligibility for quite some time, and decided it was time to take the plunge with the Instinct.
The phone is gorgeous, no doubt. I like pretty much everything about using it except for the browser. I love the landscape keyboard for texting and email (At least somebody caught on to the gripes about the iPhone). It works great for music. I love the expandable memory which uses a microSD card (2GB included WITH the SD adapter). I love that it came with a spare battery and a small case in which the spare battery can be charged while not in the phone. It seems they thought of everything, except....
My previous phone was the Palm Centro, which I absolutely LOVE. Going from that to the Instinct was absolute torture when it came to browsing the internet. The browser is incredibly slow, and wouldn't pull up many (and I mean MANY) of the pages I used to frequent on my Centro. On top of that, the "vision.sprintpcs.com" home site that seems such an excellent portal on all of the other Sprint Power Vision phones was completely different, and practically useless on the Instinct (unless all you want to see is CNN, ESPN, etc...)
In short, if you're new to surfing the internet on your mobile phone, the Instinct might not seem that bad. But after using the Centro (not to mention playing around with an iPhone here and there), the Instinct absolutely will NOT get the job done.
In the end, I returned the phone and restored my upgrade eligibility and previous contract end date.. The Instinct just didn't get it done for me... Maybe Palm will release that Treo 800 with the palmOS..... -
July 10, 2008 09:01
4.0/5
I have read everyone's reviews and the huge thing that they are bashing this phone for is all worng. I have used every smart phone available for sprint. Where sprint went wrong was to place this under the smart phone section. A smart phone it is not but its still a great phone. You can get your email but its a basic get-your-inbox-set-up. This is more a media phone than a business phone. Yes the new iphone you can get your emails but its the same thing its a media phone not a business phone.
As far as the bluetooth usually its the headset not the phone you get what you pay for and by far the best bluetooth is plantronics for reception.
The bottom line is this is a fun all around phone its not made for business use. If your looking for a great solid business phone that doesnt crash ever, and has a great talk time functionality get a curve there amazing. I loved mine.
