Geeks + Gadgets = Love. But is this the case with the Samsung Captivate?
We usually purchase new phones every 18 months. Last December we broke down and upgraded to iPhone 3GS models, and have been pretty happy with our phones. Sound quality aside, of course, iPhone has served us pretty well over the past 8 months.
As we looked at options for the geek kids, we started talking about upgrading to the iPhone 4 and giving our 3GS models to the two younger boys. We kicked it around a bit and decided to investigate. Two weekends ago we visited Best Buy and AT&T. He walked out with the Samsung Captivate and I walked out with my iPhone 3GS firmly in hand, with no thought of upgrading any time soon.
Fast forward a week and I was thinking I would upgrade to the iPhone 4. Until I got into the store and found that it’s a 7-10 day wait. > . < I am not very good with waiting, so I reluctantly purchased a Samsung Captivate. Reluctantly — in case you missed that in my previous statement.
I have spent about 24 hours with my Captivate but I have to say that as of this moment, I am less than *ahem* captivated by my new device. I want to like it. I want to be happy with my purchase. I have a rather uneasy feeling that my impatience has overridden my common sense and I have gone the wrong direction.
Don’t get me wrong – it is fast and it does have some sweet features. And I’m no Apple Fan Girl. But in all honesty, I don’t want to have to think about how to use my phone. And this dang thing has a learning curve. It also requires me to kill off apps. I want to close it and be done with it, not have to kill it in order to keep it from running in the background.
I don’t know y’all….we shall see.
For those spec hounds, here is the information on the Samsung Captivate (SGH-i897 Galaxy S).
Processor: Arm Cortex A8 1Ghz Processor (hummingbird)
PowerVR SGX540 Graphics Core Processor
Memory (RAM): 512MB
Storage: 16GB Internal (+16GB expandable through MicroSD)
Android Version: 2.1 (Eclair)
Network/Connections:
Bands: 2G : GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900, 3G : HSDPA 850 / 1900 / 2100 7.2Mbps
GPRS: Class 12 (4+1/3+2/2+3/1+4 slots), 32-48kbps
Wireless: b/g/n; DLNA
Bluetooth: v3.0 Profiles: GAP, SSP, SDAP, HSP, HFP1.5, A2DP, AVRCP, SPP, DUN, FTP, SAP, BPP, OPP, PBAP
USB: Micro v2.0
Dimensions:
H/W/D: 4.82in x 2.53in x 0.39in
Weight: TBA
Screen: 4 inch Super AMOLED
Resolution: 480×800 16M Colors
Audio/Video:
Connection: 3.5mm Audio Jack
Codecs: MP4 / DivX / WMV / H.264 / H.263 player, MP3 / WAV / eAAC+ / AC3 / FLAC player
FM Radio: Yes
Camera:
Resolution: 5 MP 2592×1944 Auto-Focus
Digital zoom
Shot Mode: Single shot, Continous, Panorama, Beauty, Vintage, self shot, action shot, addme, cartoon shot, smile shot
Photo Effects: Normal, Negative, Black and White, Sepia
F-Stop/Aperture: 2.6
Focal Length: 3.79 mm
Focus Range: 120 cm
Image Format: JPEG
Flash: No
Video:
Recording: 720p (720×1280) 30 fps
Front Facing Camera: TBA
Battery:
1500 mAh Li-ion Battery
Standby: 2G Upto 750 Hours 3G Upto 576 Hours
Talk: 2G Upto 13 Hours 3G Upto 6.5 Hours
I played with the Captivate for a while. Its ok. We upgraded to the Evo (we have Sprint) and I am still in love. Unlike the Pre, which I despised by the 31st, point of no returns, day, I am still finding new things to like about the Evo every day.
I like the ability to play with my screens and stuff. It makes it more personalized for me. Too bad Sprint has shinned the phone with some apps they want you to have. I have google maps, why do I want Sprint Navigation??
While I loved my friends iPhone 4g screen, it was getting on the small side of what I wanted. Also, ATT locks 3rd party apps. Sprint at least lets Android install 3rd party “at your own risk.”
You may get Froyo soon enough. While not a huge update, it did make my Evo run faster and added a few cool things. Hopefully your Captivate will grow on you. I had heard such great things about the Galaxy S, that I was sure it was going to be a hit.
Mike, I never liked the feel of the Pre. It felt like a kiddie phone in my hand. I have heard good things about the Evo.
James and I were talking about this on the drive in this morning. To be fair, it has only been two days. There are things that I like – the integration with Google Voice being high on my list of likes. The sound quality is not appreciably better or louder, however, despite soundbytes that it was supposed to be. I also dislike the Android Marketplace. I think it rather sucks, to be perfectly honest.
I think for folks used to Android OS phones, Captivate is a great option. I’m just not sure it will work for me.
I will give it another week to ten days before I decide. I’m not locked in either way. At the end of the day, even if I decide to keep it, we recycle phones often enough that if I truly hate it, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel.
Also, check out some of the cooler apps. Tasker is a nice one to automate your phone to do certain tasks based on time of day/ things you do/ position of phone, etc. You can set it to auto start pandora or other music program when you plug in head phones, turn off all wifi, sound, etc. when you lay it face down.
I have also heard good things about Launcher, especially from previous iPhone owners.
The Lifehacker website has a bunch of good articles on android.