Samsung Epic 4G Reviews

[sciwizam]

The usual suspects are to blame:

Engadget

Gizmodo

Slashgear

Laptop Mag

Damn, the Avatar clip in the Media Hub demo in the Slashgear review looks amazing.

 

[Bateluer]

Many of our annoyances probably won't bug people who are just getting into Android for the first time, but some seasoned users -- particularly of stock Eclair or Froyo -- will be ready to punch Samsung's UI designers in the face after just a few minutes with the Epic.

That's awesome.

 

[dguy6789]

Call me crazy but after a few minutes of playing with a Vibrant, I liked Touchwiz 3.0 more than Sense or stock Android.

 

[dougp]

Call me crazy but after a few minutes of playing with a Vibrant, I liked Touchwiz 3.0 more than Sense or stock Android.

I think TW is much less ingrained into Android than Sense. I do utilize most of the features, unlike on my Aria where I HATED Sense. Though, there is one downfall to TW - the stupid battery is fully charged, please unplug message.

 

[Bateluer]

Call me crazy but after a few minutes of playing with a Vibrant, I liked Touchwiz 3.0 more than Sense or stock Android.

Regardless, you'll have a choice soon. There'll be a CM spin for the SGS phones before too long, which will be stock Android. And likely have a full array of themes for your pleasure.

 

[Pliablemoose]

Engadget:

Surprisingly, the now-infamous AGPS bug is still alive and well right now on the Epic. We're not sure how Sprint can justify releasing it with this bug now so well-known, well-documented, and critical to the operation of the phone -- seriously, it cannot find you most of the time -- but we suppose it'll just get fixed at the same time as the remainder of the Galaxy S models in September. In other words, unless we see a quick firmware update prior to the 31st, don't expect Google Maps to work particularly well out of the box. Oh, and here's another bug: like the Captivate and Vibrant, the Epic doesn't seem to want to mount as mass storage. We weren't able to get it working in USB debugging mode on our Mac, either, though we were able to download media to Image Capture without a problem -- it seems as though the computer is treating the phone as a camera, not a drive.

Giz:

4G

Like the EVO, the Epic 4G has 4G. If you're in a 4G area, that's going to give you speeds at about three times as fast, even if building penetration isn't that great.

Slashgear:

Best of all, the GPS issues which many have reported affecting Galaxy S family devices aren’t apparent on the Epic 4G, with our review unit proving capable of quickly establishing a fix and tracking it accordingly.

Samsung needs to resolve the GPS issue promptly, interesting how Slashgear & Engadget had such different experiences.

4G doesn't work well in buildings? WTF? You pay extra and the signal doesn't penetrate buildings well?

 

[sciwizam]

4G doesn't work well in buildings? WTF? You pay extra and the signal doesn't penetrate buildings well?

Wimax uses higher frequency band, I believe, 2.5Ghz compared to LTE's 700Mhz.

 

[Fingolfin269]

So why in the world do these manufacturers continue to develop their own customized ui implementations? Is stock really that bad? Are they trying to promote the economy through job creation?

 

[randomlinh]

So why in the world do these manufacturers continue to develop their own customized ui implementations? Is stock really that bad? Are they trying to promote the economy through job creation?

differentiation.

 

[AstroManLuca]

Sounds like typical Samsung fail-hardware. They might fix the GPS problems, eventually, but don't expect them to do anything else.

 

[abaez]

Does anyone else see the 30fps cap lag like on the EVO? I'm hoping that isn't the case.. this doesn't have HDMI out so they'll have to find another excuse...

 

[MrX8503]

Does anyone else see the 30fps cap lag like on the EVO? I'm hoping that isn't the case.. this doesn't have HDMI out so they'll have to find another excuse...

So far the only phone that is plagued with the 30fps cap is the EVO.

 

[ponyo]

Does anyone else see the 30fps cap lag like on the EVO? I'm hoping that isn't the case.. this doesn't have HDMI out so they'll have to find another excuse...

No 30fps cap.

This doesn't have HDMI out but you can use HDMI via microUSB to HDMI connector. You can also connect to TV via 3.5 mm headphone to composite cable. It also supports DLNA so if you have DLNA compliant devices like PS3, Xbox360, TV, PC, media boxes, etc. you can stream photos, music, and music wireless using the included Allshare program.

Allshare works flawlessly. I can watch movies or TV episodes on my phone and then later finish it on my big screen TV using Allshare. Simple and no wires to mess with. Same for music and photos. Brilliant.

 

[ThePresence]

Ok, so do I get an Evo or do I hold out for an Epic? I need advice!

 

[Deeko]

Ok, so do I get an Evo or do I hold out for an Epic? I need advice!

Depends on what you're looking for.

Screen:
Evo (+)larger, (-)LCD
Epic (-)smaller, (+)SAMOLED

Form Factor
Evo (+)Thinner, (-)Heavier, (-)No Keyboard
Epic (-)Thicker, (+)Lighter, (+)Keyboard

Software
Evo (+/-)Sense
Epic (+/-)TouchWhiz

Processor
Evo (-)Snapdragon
Epic (+)Hummingbird

Its fairly even and a lot of it is just personal preference (sense vs tw, keyboard vs thin). Personally, a keyboard is a big plus for me, so I'm going Epic.

 

[zerocool84]

I love a qwerty keyboard but an willing to give it up for the larger screen. Honestly once you go that large like on the Evo, it's really hard to go back. Plus in the review they said it feels decently smaller than the Evo which is good cus I always carry my phones in pockets. Also I like Sense more than Touchwiz but would root either of them anyways so that's not a big deal.

 

[Deeko]

I love a qwerty keyboard but an willing to give it up for the larger screen. Honestly once you go that large like on the Evo, it's really hard to go back.

I have the HD2 now. I almost think its too large. The 4" screen on the Epic isn't exactly tiny.

 

[ChronoReverse]

If the Epic didn't have the GPS issue, it'd be hands-down THE phone I'd get.

 

[zerocool84]

I have the HD2 now. I almost think its too large. The 4" screen on the Epic isn't exactly tiny.

Well yes but you get a larger screen in a smaller package. Plus it's cheaper as well.

 

[halik]

If the Epic didn't have the GPS issue, it'd be hands-down THE phone I'd get.

Read the update, there is not GPS issue. Just gotta turn off some option or something