Samsung’s new handset featuring the Google Android operating system seems to be a winner all round. It’s as if the company engineers actually spent time analysing other smartphones and then wondering how they could not only do it better, but also more simply. In many ways they’ve succeeded admirably.
Samsung mobile phones have always had a distinctive style, and the Galaxy is no different; anyone familiar with a Samsung will be readily familiar with this and the size and shape fits very comfortably in the hand.
Wanting to turn apps on and off? That’s simple. Just a couple of quick taps on the screen accomplishes it, much better than most of the competition, and means a user doesn’t have to go paging all through the menu.
Those are the big pluses. However, there are negatives, most notably the onscreen keyboard, which is exceptionally awkward to use, and probably deserves a full redesign to be fully functional in landscape mode. Similarly, the lock key definitely appears to have issues, not always working as the user might wish.
Battery life isn’t particularly good either, as several mobile phone reviews of the Galaxy have noted. However, others haven’t had problems with it.
All in all, the Samsung Galaxy is a decent, if not superb, smartphone and the Android under the bonnet works very well, smart and snappy on browsing, as well as for moving between functions. This isn’t going to set the world on fire, though, and it’s not going to topple the iPhone from its throne. But Samsung fans ready for a smartphone will like it.
