Samsung Instinct User Reviews

im really shocked w the internet speed and the browser. its the best internet i had and seen on a phone. its fast quick and easy to use.

this phone is the best phone in compare of any other provider and network. i swiched my lines from verizon to sprint and i had AT&T befor. not w this phone i get reception everywhere and i can use all of my services everywhere. i couldnt use vcast, navigation and tv with verizon in my area and at&t had lots of drop calls. totally happy w the phone and even more with sprints awesome network. thanks to samsung and thanks to sprint. get more cool phones though please so i can have my whole family bring their services over.

the camera has no zoom or flash
the battery cover is a pain to get off
texting is not meant for people who text alot
no hole for stylus


however, i like
the gps
live search
internet
email alerts
visual voicemail

I've had the phone for about 3 weeks now. Its fast and looks good in public. It is not perfect. Like speaker phone. how on earth do you turn it on? Sound quality is lacking. Phone locks up at the most worst time, like when your boss is using it....

I've had this phone for 12 days now.

I live in San Jose CA, the signal here is pretty strong most of the time

Lets get to the reviewing

E-Mail.

It's great if your a person who likes to check mail on the go its very hard to write out an email on this thing without using the stylus another thing, why include a stylus in the package if there is no where for it to be held.

Texting.

Texting on this phone is horrible.. if your just using hands you have to be precise or have little fingers the back space key should be alone its next to the key that makes the on-screen keyboard drop down, the keyboard is way to small it should be improved with-in some updates (cross your fingers)

Voicemail.

I haven't really got a chance to use the voicemail function although i'm sure its just normal voicemail..

Navigation.

This is the cool thing about this phone it has a GPS built into it! but guess what most of the time you use it its gonna tell you to take a long route to somewhere, the list of places needs to be updated there is a whole foods near a college called de anza its closed.. but the phone tries to take you there anyways luckily before you get to that whole foods you can see the new one that opened across the street, anyways the GPS is accurate about 75-80% of the time

Calculator.

There is a lot of cool stuff in here feet,distance,temps, tip calc.. i like it its a lot of stuff

Notes.

Haven't really used it that much although you have to use that horrid on screen keyboard..

Calendar.

The calendar is cool if you need to be reminded of stuff..

Music.

The music is cool if you don't have a music mp3 player already stick with that, the music player on here you can pause it once your screen is on hold

"Live TV"

This is a joke, its like watching youtube on a 56k dial up connection its all pixelated most of the time..

Web.

The web is not that great everything is WAY to small..

Weather.

Not updated enough i checked weather.com it said 95 outside, and the phone said it was 86..

Radio.

There is no FM tuner on here i was expecting to be able to get all the stations in my local area no such luck they are being broadcasted to sprint back to your phone

Camera.

The camera acutally takes good photos i like it its like a real digital camera you hold it on the side and the camera button is on the top right..

I guess thats it about my little review i will be going and trading this phone in for a HTC mogul then if and when the touch diamond comes to sprint i will be getting that phone, also your mail in rebate takes about 6-8 weeks to get to you.. the lady was really nice she gave me a stamp/envelope to send the mail in rebate to the HQ for my rebate..

amyways good luck if you get this phone i hope you have a better experience than i did.

I recently purchased an LG Dare from Verizon and this Instinct to test them at the same time under both carriers worry free return policy. I really did love the Instinct. The Sprint Network, not as much. lol The Sprint Instinct has everything the Iphone should have but didn't, everything you want in a phone, and more. The Hotmail access, Gmail, Yahoo, etc. Amazing Touch pad response, sound quality people raved about how well they could hear me. The Sprint netowrk for speed was fantastic, reliability, where it worked, wonderful. All the features of the Sprint phone absolutely amazing. The camera was nice, no complaints at all. I wish you could choose the orientation for texting and typing for all applications instead of the phone choosing for you though, that is a bit irrtating. The spell check is nice, but a bit annoying when texting, so I choose to turn it off as it doesn't recognize any lingo normally used in texting. So onto theLG DARE. I was excited about the Dare mainly because it's Verizon. The Network is so superior I was hoping this would be their closest thing to an Iphone or fully functional, and useable touch device. Unfortunately, they have fell short. The phone feature on this phone is fantastic. The call quality while good, is not as clear or crsip as Sprints people would notice while talking to me. The dialing on the touch pad was easier and a little more responsive than the insticnt, but not enough for me to dislike the instinct or complain. It was a truly good touch pad on this device overall. The dialing and homescreen apps were very sensative to touch and quickly responsive. Texting, was another story. While the phone changes from landscape to portrait just like the iphone, it has a 3-4 second delay in doing so, it's incredibly slow. Then the texting is easy to make errors on the touch pad. I mad multiple mistakes which is very frustrating. This phone being smaller and lighter than the instinct made it feel cheaper and harder to text and type on. The email is a joke. It's not "included" with the phone or plan as is with the instinct or iphone. You have to use Verizon's Mobile Email from their APPS. It's slow, you have to basically click it, and when and email comes, it alerts you like a text message logging you in to your Windows Live or whatever your email is. Whereas the Instinct works more like POP3 or IMAP does on the Iphone, instant and refreshable right from the device without and APP download or another $5.00 monthly fee like Verizon requires without paying for the Premium package in which it's free. All the Features you get with the Instinct are extras on this phone. VZ NAvigator all that work nothing like LIVE SEARCH or anything on the Instinct. You could actually push the side button on the Instinct and say "take me to STARBUCKS" and off you'd go. This phone merely will dial #'s and basic LG features. Nothing new. The Web Browsing is no more HTML advanced than previous Voyager or LG phones. The phone itself is fine, the Network does work in places the Sprint did not. Verizon is by far a better carrier I feel in most places. Their Network in all my travels get's reception everywhere other carriers do not. For instance, I had the Instinct and Dare with me all week. I had multiple locations The Instinct had 0 bars, The Dare full or awfully close. Movie Theatres or elevators, Verizon works, Instinct struggles or simply couldn't. So there's something to be said for a great phone only being as good as the network, and a lousy phone actually being able to work everywhere though. If you're a tech guy, love phones and gadgets, you stay in major metro areas, The Instinct is incredible, does everything the iphone should have and still more than the new one coming out. If you travel, need a more reliable touch device and don't mind paying al'a'carte for Navigator, Email, and extras, the Dare will do the same a little less fashionable, and cool, but certainly as effective overall in the end.

I really like the phone overall. It definitely keeps me entertained. So far some of my favorites features are: gps (w/voice recognition), being able to pick what order you wish to listen to in voicemail. easy disposal of items in waste bin, very user friendly, being able to set up my faves page, there's more but that's what stands out right now (I've only had the phone for 3 days).
BUT...............
The major draw back (that makes me consider going back to my treo) is the calender. Here's why: I can't scedual more than 2-3 wks of appointments (it gets full). There's no day, week, month options. You have to create time slots, no repeat (i'm an acupuncturist, I had to hand imput every single day, just to find out I was full after 2 wks). It takes like 5-6 button to input one name( and i'm not talking about the letters used to input the title/name of appointment). Everytime you have to cancel the alarm option (my phone would be going off needlessly 8-10 times a day). The time is not already on a hourly default, so one always has to scrowl down the hrs and the mins, and when your done with that don't forget to do the same with the end time. Unless, you only have a few appointments a month the whole program is utterly useless. I would gladly download something, pay extra to have that one so very important piece that steals my peace of mind and functionality of the phone.
My only other disappointment (which I could easily live with) is that I think the resolution should/could be higher, and that you use your own music as the ringer.
I'm considering getting a new generation Iphone too, but unlocking it cause At & T sucks in my area.
Sadly, I'm am going to have to give up the phone because first and foremost I need a phone (which it excels), but equally important I need to scedual my patient. Seems stupid to pay over $100 a month and not be able to scedual appointments. For me, the search goes on :(

Got two of them Last Friday used a week and GREAT PHONE. The only thing the web brouser need replaced. The one in the phone is Bad!
Also I'v had a problem with extension numbers. Entering the phone numbers to the contact list will not allow you to add T for shot pause
but will allow you to add a P for long pause. Should allow you to add
letters from keyboard not only number pad.
Home run for SPRINT!. Sprint always had the best service in the Seattle area. Mow we have a cool phone that works with it.

I love this phone, the touch screen is so smooth and easy. Hands down the best phone Sprint has ever had.

OMG I LOVE IT -- IT SO BETTER THEN MY OLD AND NEW IPHONEs (yes you read that right!) TILL HELL W/ATT!

This phone is amazing!! I work for sprint and I got it a week before it came out. First I thought the phone was all bugged since not a single web feature worked. Than Management came and he told me web services were off until the 20th so I was relieved. Phone works great speed is amazing. I read someone had slow bluetooth transfer? Mine transfered extremely fast I transfered all my phone book 200+ numbers within a minute which I was suprised... Navigation actually works 10 times faster than the $500 GPS I bought for my dad.. Cant complain on this phone.

Price is definately amazing very affordable and great.
I believe this is a definate Iphone killer because my friend she was playing with my phone and took her only 10 mins to tell me I can keep her Iphone, which I have no use for. So yea this phone is definately a great investment!! MUST GET!! two thumbs up.

Well basic too say is a very good phone for working people not for teenagers,Its gprs and all coverd,is really a job phone

Problem with the back cover.

The BEST Ive seen in a while , I work at an Indirect store and I would hands down recommend this phone to people!! The phone is user friendly and very intuitive. All the features are fast and smooth, and the touch screen technology is amazing, better than the i phone because the i phone works with heat sensative and thats horrible = ( ...The Instinct web browser is much faster. Can take video, Listen to the radio and live TV. The Instinct has push button voice activation for turn by turn GPS directions for any service availible. Longer battery life, weights lighter and has more memory then the I Phone. The Instinct has voice dialing and memory card slot, not the I Phone.. Sorry, but this is a Phone Killer
one of the other best things about it the texting is greater than what i espected its damn well acurate on point and easy to use = )for heavy texters nice !!!!!!This phone ROCKS!!
AND this comes from i guy who had the i phone for a while belive me its the Instinct is the bes of its kind !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Design: A better anti-glare screen would have rocked but its big with lots of colors so I can't complian ...much

Features: The phone has damn near everything, I think you can pop popcorn on it too ...just gotta find the settings for that

Sound: Loud! Clear. Good Bass.
Both voice calls and music come through great, A little distortion at the lower bass frequencies, but as good as most mp3 players out there

Signal: Haven't had a problem or dropped cal (only used it for a day), but its as good as any other sprint phone I've had. Which, has anyways been great for me ...guess it depends on where you live.

Value: Are you kidding me ...you can't get a decent mp3 player for $130, and a phone with anywhere near as many features for less than $200 HA.

So ...this thing is almost too good to be true, and yet I have one on my desk right now. It's not perfect, it freezes from time to time and the touch and slide interface doesn't always do what I want, but its a first generation. And, from the rest of this review you can tell it takes NOTHING away from the experience.

The Good:
-Has everything!
-Cheap! (I got the everything plan with 450 minutes for $70 ...I rarely go over 300 so the plans are easy on the pocket too)
-Durable! (I dropped it twice yesterday), no visible dents or scratches
-MicroSD!! (you can replace the INCLUDE, very nice) 2GB with an 8GB if you like)
-Touch Screen!!!

The Not So Great:
-Slow file transfers over bluetooth (I just plug the SD card in my comp ...light years faster)
-The keyboard display is inconsistent and at times just random, but its very accurate and easy to use
-Navigation system doesn't have my city!!! (Fairfax, VA get it in there damnit)
-Mobile apps are gonna have to update there software to support the on screen keypad (Google Maps and Opera choked :( )
-No condom holder (well I wanted to have any equal number of good and bad so I just put down what came to mind ...and I could see where on would come in handy :-> )

If I were me I would get one ...no its not an IPhone and I have no idea how long the battery will last playing music, but no matter what I find out about this phone from here on, its so worth the price, I feel like I bought a stolen phone. If you take the time to look at the positives of the phone and not the fact that the pictures don't turn when you turn the phone, I can't see how you wouldn't love this phone.

-

its still the best.ive been playin wit the phone all night and still havent found anything i dont like

So I've had the instinct for about 48 hrs as of this posting and aside from a few drawbacks it's amazing.

The best feature is the price and options. 3.5mm audio jack, removable battery, upgradable memory ect.
the calls, text, visual voicemail, camera, camcorder and applications are the best I've seen on any phone.

The live search and GPS navigation paired together are worth the $129.00 price tag alone.

The interface is simple and intuitive, almost playful.

once you pick up an iphone again you will understand how cool haptic feedback is.

The internet browser is super fast and easy to use.

Conectivity to the PC is very easy and file transfers are as easy as using a thumb drive.

Drawbacks:
It's easy to see why Sprint threw in an extra battery, you will need it. GPS will drain a fully charged battery in less than an hour. Video or web browsing in about 2hrs.

Browsing the web: most video and audio embedded in HTML sites will not play back. YouTube is an exception.

Like the iphone you cannot cut and paste text.

Some features promised before release are not included: voice recording, zoom and flash on the camera.

mp3s on the phone cannot be used as ringtones, a feature that was disappointingly missing, the $99.00 Palm Centro does it.

Any URL or phone number in a text or email cannot be used to directly connect to it. (the live search or browser works so good it can be worked around)

the included earbud headphones stink. the microphone is located on the right side ear wire and it's weight tugs it out of your ear with the slightest movement.
Tv and radio quality is not great. Sound quality from the speaker is good for voice but not optimized for dynamic music frequencies (plugging in a quality headset or car adapter completely changes this)

Overall this is a fantastic phone, probably the best I've ever used. It's not as classy as the iPhone but everything on it works all the time (no dropped AT&T calls or snail like Internet.)

it could be the best $129.00 ever sold.

Ok its a great phone i have been with sprint for 4 years and waited for this phone i was the first person to get in my town and i have to say i am very impress with everything on it, but i do have to say the sound quality isnt the best i mean for calls its great but like listening to music no i mean if that is something you like i mean its okay but not the greatest i wish it would be better but oh well everyhing else is great on it the touch and everyhing is awesome to i knew how to use this phone once i got it so i was happy i also love the fact it was 129.99 i mean thats better than most phones out there and epecially better than the Iphone hate Apple but ya.

wwwwoooowww!!!!!I've been watching the phonedog reviews at phonedog.com about the instinct.noah,the phonedog,has been saying that the instinct phone is not as fast as the iphone.and that the multimedi capabilities are not as good as the iphone's either.I bought this phone to see for myself.ITS FRICIN AWESOME!!THE FEATURES ARE MUCH BETTER THAN THEY SAID.ITHINK THEY ADDED SOME FEATURES TOO.I THINK THEY ADDED JAVA CAPABILITY!!!THIS PHONE IS THE BEST

this is the best phone i have ever own. it is so fast and the camera works so good. the favirtes meun is great. this is the best and fastest phone ever.

I love verizon....but I must say.... 2 thumbs up on this phone. It's really the iphone killer, because i had an iphone and apple's software just is crazy! you have to update it, and restore it, but the instinct is normal. I love the layout, and the send end and clear buttons that the iphone doesnt have. if you're looking for a phone well under $150....guess what? this phone is just $129.99! the iphone 3g is $199-$299, and it's worse than the $399 and $499 versions.