We were dying to call this "Samsung Impression impressions," but we found our verbal dignity just long enough to avoid doing so -- and now that we've gotten that off our chests, let's talk a bit about the phone, shall we? The
Impression is the first phone to be released on a North American carrier with a full AMOLED display, which is basically a win / win scenario -- you get better battery life and crisper, more vibrant colors. "Vibrant" might be an understatement, actually; the screen is absolutely amazing, with mega-black blacks and colors that seem to pop right off the screen. We can't believe we're saying this, but we kinda wish it had
AT&T Mobile TV compatibility.
It's not all fun and games, though -- we noticed a couple shortcomings of the Impression that might give potential buyers pause. Most notably, the smooth, pebble-like shape of the device lends itself to an awful lot of bobbles and potential drops, especially in light of the fact that the entire phone is hard, glossy plastic (it seems like the issue could've been at least partially solved if they'd gone with soft-touch). Also, because the sides of the phone are rounded and you're dealing with a slide mechanism, all of the side-mounted buttons are positioned below the break between the upper and lower halves of the phone; the net effect of this is that they're angled toward the back, making pushing them awkward. We found this particularly true with the right-mounted buttons -- lock / unlock and camera -- because pushing them causes you to unconsciously put pressure on the other side of the phone, which in turn causes it to start to slide open. Bottom line: using the side buttons is awkward, and in general you'll want to be careful when you're holding it.
A couple of UI issues gave us trouble, too. First off, despite the fact that the interface is reasonably well designed to be finger-friendly throughout, the resistive touchscreen wasn't sensitive to every touch of our finger -- a shortcoming of the technology -- and we found that we had to use our fingernails to get the kind of precision and control we wanted in some situations (it almost seems like you can't ship a resistive device without a "just in case" stylus tucked in there somewhere). Second, we discovered that although all of the Impression's native, built-in applications support flawless, fast orientation changes, the Java-based stuff like XM Radio and The Weather Channel (and likely anything else you download) does not -- and in many cases, the interfaces are entirely inappropriate for a finger-controlled touch UI altogether. We wish Samsung and AT&T had put more effort into loading more appropriate apps here, because in a device of this caliber, attention to detail makes a big difference.
Turning our attention back to hardware, the keyboard feels fantastic and is incredibly easy to get up to speed on; you'll be busting out speedy texts in no time. There's one big problem, though -- inexplicably, Samsung has chosen to make the shift key behave as a capitalization mode toggle alone, which means that holding down the key while typing a letter has no effect. Instead, you have to use it in exactly the same way you would a mode toggle on a T9 keyboard, which makes no sense here. We're hoping this'll be quickly addressed via over-the-air firmware update, because it's got to be a bug.
The camera produced decent-quality shots considering there's no autofocus involved on that 3 megapixel sensor (sadly), but our impressions are likely skewed by the fact that everything -- and we do mean
everything -- looks more gorgeous on that OLED display. For what it's worth, shutter lag is nearly nonexistent, which is nice -- but we naturally would've preferred more full-featured optics and at least a basic LED flash. In the multimedia vein, the music player is really usable, uncluttered, essentially lag-free, and offers a selection of automatic equalizer settings -- and as you can probably imagine, album art looks great on the display -- but it's inexcusable that Samsung failed to include a proper headphone jack. Yes, we know that these guys are really tied to their weird proprietary connector that does double duty as a data port and audio out, but it's 2009, and this is seriously no longer cool. Fortunately, the phone's loudspeaker is loud and clear, so at the very least, you'll be able to rock out in a very public manner should the need arise -- and the earpiece is loud enough to damage eardrums, so if you're placing a call next to a jerk blasting music from his own Impression, you'll still have a fighting chance of holding a conversation.
Faults aside, it's hard to not love the Impression; the amazing display is still a bit of a novelty, and call us crazy, but we think that gives it some carte blanche for coming up short in other areas. Yes, we could've used a 3.5mm headphone jack, squared-off sides, a capacitive touchscreen, a better camera -- and hell, you may as well throw in a smartphone OS while we're at it -- but this isn't the
OmniaHD, it's a midrange feature phone with enough dazzle to draw some attention. We think it'll play that role reasonably well.
posted Apr 17th 2009 12:15PM
I thought the LG Xenon was the first AMOLED phone for north america
I don't think the Xenon is AMOLED at all.
I've had mine for about a week now. I've noticed I type more with the touch screen keyboard than I do the sliding keyboard. The far spread needed to hold it makes me type a lot slower that way. The web browser is also pretty good.
I hate the amount of applications (that require monthly fees) that are locked on the phone. The locked photos are also annoying since the phone uses them at random when the phone locks. Outside of the locked content however I really like the phone.
If you're saying that the sliding kyb is overrated, that might just influence my decision....I've been eyeballing the impression vs the nokia 5800...originally I was interested in the Nokia 5730 as it has a qwerty + 3.5mm, but I can't wait any longer. Figure I can just settle with the virtual qwerty on the 5800, as the 3.5mm + good audio is a bigger factor for myself...but damn I want amoled!
@Neon
at&t is horrible at putting bloatware on their devices. and mobile email is useless. not enough people will complain. sad.
I'm just wondering if this is worth it. My upgrade is coming up and I'd trying to decide between this or the LG Xenon.
I'll tell you as much as I really didn't want to do it, I just went no contract with the phone. The extra $150 ($350 total) was worth not being tied to a device for two years.
How much do providers charge you to activate an unlocked device on their network?
dude, the Xenon is a cheap plastic toy version of the Impression, once you get your hands on it you'll know what I'm talking about. Its not nearly as responsive, do yourself a favor and pick up the impression, you'll dig it.
AMOLED is great but a resistive capacitive touch screen and at this price is a deal breaker for me. Looking forward to the AMOLED becoming more prevalent though.
ok. I want to do a video review for engadget. should I get a tri-pod to shoot reviews, or use one hand and hold the product with my other? mmmmmmm what do you say world?....that screen is the shiznick!
i believe you mean "shiznit" but its ok we will just say it was a typo
This phone is heavy as balls. I went in to AT&T last week to buy it and ended up getting the LG Xenon because it was more phone to use plus it weighed about a 3rd as much. My phone shouldn't feel like I'm carrying a bag of rocks in my pocket. The tech is great on this phone, but damn.
Are you kidding me? It's too heavy? Are you some feeble old man, the Xenon feels 1/3rd lighter than every phone because its made out of cheap plastic, enjoy your Playskool phone. The Impression is not heavy at all and its super thin, it weighs the same as a Blackberry Curve, you know one of the most popular phones available?
hows the web experience?
does it compare favorably with the Iphone?
Web would be a big draw for me, ecspecially since att doesnt require a pda data plan with his phone, and it looks like it qualifies for the media net package bundles
is it the same experience as a samsung eternity, how about the lg xenon
i understand att is marketing all of these as messaging devices, but i rarely txt msg, and am more interested in mobile web browsing
The web browser is the standard MEdia Net browser with a few extra functions like full screen mode. For example, Mobile Facebook (m.facebook.com) works great; however, regular Facebook (www.facebook.com) doesn't work because the browser doesn't support the javascript necessary to make the site run. It's not as good as the iPhone's browser to be sure, but it's good for only $10/mth.
I have a piece of crap LG Vu. Mine is one of the junk ones. It goes black for no reason and will NOTcome back on until I remove , then replace the battery. GRRRR. what a nightmare it has been, I got it 3 days ago and decided to return it the very next day. I like the impression, played around with it today at the store. Just trying to decide if it is the phone for me. I like the touch screen ok, but I'm more of a key kind of girl. That's why I'm considering the Impression. I can get 2, yes 2 phones for $269.00 with 2, once again, 2 $100.00 rebate forms. This means I will pay $69 for the pair. WOW what a deal!! Are there any real issues that I should consider? I do NOT use if for the internet AT ALL. thanks! ALT
Where did you find thie offer of 2 Samsung Impression phones for $269 with two $100 rebates? Were you at an AT&T store? The lowest I have found for an upgrade price at AT&T is $199 after rebate. If I could get 2 phones for $69 final price, I would buy they tomorrow.
i got mine yesterday and it was hecka sickkk
like fareals
all my friends are jealous
and when i was playing with it while viewing my pictures
i kinda tilt it and it went to the next one
haha how cooool
right
i totally recommend you teens and adults to buy
the impression.
Worst poem ever.
I got this phone on the 12th. Iys easy to use and the display is awesome.. the pics do not do it justice. of course like any phone there are going to be things that you do not like about it.. but for it not being a smart phone and only having to pay 10 bucks a month for internet rather then 30-50 im good to go. i added to lines to my account and got a buy one get one free for 199. i actually got a lg vu at first and i wasnt happy with it at all so i took it back and got the impression. its new so there arent a lot of things out for it right now but i have been finding more things out now that it has been out for a few weeks. the lock on the side is a pain but i turned mine off. i use the keyboard more then the touch screen and you can use it 3 different ways so to each their own.. its an all around pretty impressive phone for not having to spend a lot of money and it not being a smart phone.
I have had this phone for about a week now. It is a little slippery in my hands. I have been totally impressed with this phone since I first bought it. The AMOLED display is what made me choose this one over the LG Xenon. This display is gorgeous. I have been waiting for an AMOLED device for several years now. Totally worth the wait! The picture is so nice it almost doesn't even look real. It is honestly nicer picture than my 52" Samsung 1080p LCD TV! I feel like I got a whole lot of phone for a very small price. I have converted my divx moves to mp4 @ 320x240 resolution so I can watch them on this gorgeous display. The lock button on the side was a little awkward but I simply disabled it and haven't had any problems since. Some people have mentioned that it is heavy. It might be a little on the heavy side (5.4oz / 152g according to my scale) but I prefer the heavier more sturdy feel than the flimsiness of the LG xenon. Also the spacing on the slide out keyboard as well as the touch keyboards is perfect for my manly hands. The web browsing is very speedy on 3G and is a joy to use. It isn't a full blown browser but for what I need on the go it is great! I actually use my phone more now for instant messaging than I do my computer. It was the other way around a week ago. Others have complained about locked photos and what not but with up to 16GB capacity I don't see a few locked photos as a problem. I only have an 8GB card but it has been plenty so far. I wish more of the apps would offer an unlimited subscription as opposed to monthly but I'm sure there will be plenty of freebies to come. I really only use the audio player in my truck so the lack of an onboard 3.5mm port isn't that much of an issue for me. I use an adapter in the truck and plug it into my radio and I am good to go. Any phone you get is going to have pros and cons. We are far from the perfect phone but this one is pretty damn close as far as I am concerned! Oh and did I mention the breathtaking AMOLED screen?? lol
The guy who did the video review was not very familiar with the phone. Don't let him shy you away from this gorgeous device! You can simply 'flick' the through the widgets similar to the action on the iphones. You can do this with your contacts too. I hope if you buy it you love it as much as I do!
I bought this phone unlocked and am using it with Tmoible. I can not use the Mobile email...it times out and gives me a communication error. Neither Samsung or Tmobile seem to know why this is. Any one have any ideas?