The Samsung Sync, SGH-A707, is one of my favorite phones I have ever used (and people who know me know I’ve gone through a lot of phones). I’ve had it for a while, and have decided to review it.
Features
The Samsung Sync offers a wide variety of features, such as Bluetooth, a Music Player, T9 text entry, a Camera, and Web Browser.
Customization
One of the very few things I don’t like about this phone is how it restricts you to basic customization. Because of this, advanced users who want to change everything on the phone won’t really enjoy it. However, it does have areas of hacking, such as games (explained later), but without a data cable, and some moderate hacking skills, your basically stuck with what your given. Hacking can be made easily, as you can get assistance and good tips/tutorials at http://thesynchole.com/ , a very active forum. Some of the restrictions include:
- You cannot have a ringtone longer than 30 sec. or over 300 kb (600 kb on Cingular branded Sync)
- Your stuck with one basic color scheme (black and orange)
- Games must be downloaded from the network’s (AT&T’s) site, however hacking can change this
- Java/J2ME games cannot be loaded from SD Cards
- Service contacts in the address book (such as *646# for Minutes, or 611) CANNOT be erased. This is the same with preloaded applications, pictures, and ringtones. However, this can be changed with hacking.
Games / Entertainment
Another thing I didn’t really like was you most likely always had to pay for games, and they had to be downloaded from the wireless provider’s site. Games can’t be loaded from SD Cards. However, I was able to get a cheap data cable from eBay, and was able to install my own J2ME/Java games on to the phone. (I found all my free J2ME games from http://mobiles24.com/ , and step-by-step instructions on how to get games onto the phone from http://thesynchole.com/ ). As mentioned above, without a data cable to change somethings around, and BitPim (an application that allows you to access the phone’s files), preloaded games and applications are most likely un-deleteable, and will stay on the phone taking up valuable space.
For the Media Player, I found that the music was easy to organize, and played well. However, I found it annoying that you could only change the actual file name on the phone, not the artist, or song name. Because of this, some songs showed up as “Track 2, By Unknown Album”. I did, however like the fact that the music could be played with the phone closed, and there are three external buttons that allow playing options, as well as the two side buttons.
Design / Functions
One of my favorite things about the Samsung Sync is its very slim design. Although not as slim as a Razr, I found that is was just slim enough, compared to the Razr, which I though was a little to slim. Just a small note: this phone sometimes has a lot of lag time, although it is mostly unnoticeable.
The phone features an external display, with three buttons on the main interface (when closed), with one set of volume keys on the left, and a side button that allows access to the Media Player/Camera/Profiles on the right. This is probably one of the biggest things that annoys me about the phone: the backlight for the phone never stays on long enough. In addition to this, none of the side buttons allow you to reactivate the light with out holding one of them down for about 3-4 seconds. The volume buttons on the side are basically useless, unless the phone is open. However, I did like that you can take a picture of your self with the phone closed, while you can see your self on the external screen.
The external screen basically shows either a custom message, picture, or just the time. The time is shown regardless of what you choose. It also shows the signal strength, network (either EDGE or 3G), the profile selected (ex. if on silent, there would be a vibration symbol), and the battery life. Additional icons come when needed (such as new messages, missed calls).
The Micro SD Card can be inserted to the right side of the phone, however I found it very hard to insert/take out the card without using a pen or pencil to poke it, which I find can eventually become frustrating, especially if you need to do this multiple times over a short period.
The camera take VERY good images (examples coming soon). Image size can be set to a maximum of 1600×1200, and a minimum of 240×180. Even while the quality was set to “Fine” (over “Super Fine”), I found image quality excellent, and is one of my favorite features, and is very comparable to regular cameras. The Sync has a 2.0 megapixel camera. There is no flash, but as long as your in a well lighted-room, pictures should come out perfect.
Battery life was OK. The Samsung Sync offers talk time battery life of 4 hours, and standby time of 240 hours (10 days). However, a day of gaming on it brought the battery life from full to almost empty, so if you are planning on using it for extended use, be sure to bring a charger.
Organization
The Sync offers basic functions for organizing and planning, including a calendar, tasks, and notes. Most of these I strongly disliked, including the calendar. For someone who has a lot of dates to enter in, you don’t have a lot of options. To enter events, you are restricted on title size, details, and location, and this all varies between the type of event (appointment compared to a “Important” event). In addition, you are restricted to the amount of events you can do (100 for appointments, 50 for anniversaries and holidays, and 20 for important and private). The amount of notes/tasks you can create is also has a maximum.
The alarm, I found, was very loud, and you are able to set up to 5 at a time. However, when an alarm goes sounds, you must manually turn it off (by going all the way back to the alarm settings). A timer and stopwatch can also be set, but the stopwatch can not continue after you exit out (it will reset to 0).
Conclusion
I really enjoyed this phone, and I highly recommend it to any one, however I EXTREMELY recommend getting a USB data cable from eBay, or somewhere, or else you may not be able to customize or change what you want.
Links to remember
http://thesynchole.com/ – A very active forum where you can get help on hacking your Sync, get step by step instructions on how to install JAVA/J2ME games, or just to talk about your phone.
http://mobiles24.com/ – A site where you can get free games, ringtones, and wall papers for your phones. *Note: in order to install the games, you must have a data cable and follow the instructions at http://thesynchole.com/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=1158 .
http://www.phonearena.com/htmls/Samsung-Sync-phone-pa_1762.html – Full specifications on the Samsung Sync.
