Just got the Samsung Epic... initial impressions and warnings.

[ponyo]

What if your phone is dead or is dying? In this case I had to talk on the phone while plugged in.

Not a problem. People are nitpicking. I dont have a problem using and talking while plugged in. I prefer at the top as I can place my phone in the cup holder easier.

 

[Deeko]

Further impressions:

-The screen really does do a good job with sunlight. I would say its slightly more readable than the LCD screen on my HD2 was, and worlds ahead of the standard AMOLED on my Zune HD.

-Battery life is not great. I put it through some moderate usage today - about 20 minutes of GPS nav w/ 4G enabled, some texting/IMing, a few short phone calls, some browsing, a lot of sitting on my desk at work (where I only get about 1 bar of signal - verizon signal at that - which strains the battery), and a restart. It lasted just under 7 hours. I've seen phones do worse than this, but still, not ideal.

-I had my first GPS-related issue. Not only did it refuse to lock on to my signal, even after killing the app, it wouldn't stop trying, and bogged down the phone until I pulled the battery. This was an attempt at using Sprint's Navigation app, which frankly I don't plan on using anyway.

-Even with a ton of apps installed, still moving pretty snappy

 

[Robert Munch]

Where the hell is the battery status indicator? Not the one on the top right corner. I checked settings > about phone > status > battery status NO LUCK Also, noticed the recording is a little grainer than the Vibrant. Loving the weight of this device though.

 

[Deeko]

Yea its weird, in the settings it just says charging or not charging, not the %. I have an app that acts as a desk/alarm clock (bedside) that shows it, i fire that up when I want to see the exact amount.

 

[qwertyaas]

You know, at first I thought this was stupid (on my Captivate.) Then, as I continued to use my phone more often when it was plugged in, or while I was on my computer, I realized how genius it was. Works perfectly, and I don't have to deal with it when moving around on my lap or making sure it's in position properly. Only thing that sucks is configuring a dock.

I agree. The top slot is great when using the phone while charging. But while talking on the phone while charging, not so comfortable.

 

[Glitchny]

Further impressions:

-The screen really does do a good job with sunlight. I would say its slightly more readable than the LCD screen on my HD2 was, and worlds ahead of the standard AMOLED on my Zune HD.

-Battery life is not great. I put it through some moderate usage today - about 20 minutes of GPS nav w/ 4G enabled, some texting/IMing, a few short phone calls, some browsing, a lot of sitting on my desk at work (where I only get about 1 bar of signal - verizon signal at that - which strains the battery), and a restart. It lasted just under 7 hours. I've seen phones do worse than this, but still, not ideal.

-I had my first GPS-related issue. Not only did it refuse to lock on to my signal, even after killing the app, it wouldn't stop trying, and bogged down the phone until I pulled the battery. This was an attempt at using Sprint's Navigation app, which frankly I don't plan on using anyway.

-Even with a ton of apps installed, still moving pretty snappy

FYI i've heard that 4g/WiFi eats the battery, so if there is a powerstrip widget or something available that lets you toggle 4g on and off it might help save battery.

 

[Deeko]

FYI i've heard that 4g/WiFi eats the battery, so if there is a powerstrip widget or something available that lets you toggle 4g on and off it might help save battery.

It does and there is. Its actually nice, the notification shade has the powerstrip toggles for wifi, bluetooth, 4g, and gps built in. I just wanted to do some real world type testing.

 

[MrX8503]

According to the recent anandtech review, this is the fastest most smooth Android phone to date. Unfortunately its battery life is also the worse.

I used a DroidX recently and by gosh, that thing is laggy as hell. I honestly wouldn't know what to choose between the DroidX's stellar battery life, or the Epic's speedy UI with terrible battery life.

I think a few more Android phones later we'll have a perfect Android device.

 

[KingGheedora]

I agree that the power plug on top is cool.

Only thing that sucks is configuring a dock.

I was gonna ask what you meant by this but I realized you probably meant that having the button on top means docking is weird. Are there any docks for captivate/galaxy s, and if so how do they deal with this?

 

[Tom]

"6. Coming from Windows Mobile and a Touch Pro 2, I wish I would have gotten an Android sooner. It is literally orders of magnitude better than WM in its UI, its smoothness, and it's ability to do things."

Could you elaborate ? I use a Touch Pro2 and I've considered getting an Evo or Epic. I use WM6.5 with Sense and Cookies Home Tab, comparing this to Android reviews on Youtube I don't see what advantages there are ? I'd like the better camera and processor, but as far as operating system and apps, why do you like your Epic better ?