Samsung Captivate Glide Android Phone (AT&T)

Great Phone December 9, 2011

Reviewer:  John H. Eickhoff 

Finally an Android Phone with a good keyboard. I purchased this phone from the AT&T store the day it was available. It is more than I had hoped for. I saw it announced and was awaiting its release. In preparation I checked out some of the other Samsung keyboard phones for Verizon and Sprint to see what I thought but was very disappointed. The Captivate is so much better than the older keyboard sliders Samsung made for other Carriers.

Keyboard is great the slide is solid and feels like it will last. They keyboard spacing is good also. They keyboard touch and feel is well done.

The screen is perfect. It is crystal sharp and I have had no issues with its touch sensitivity.

Camera. It is an 8mp phone cammera. It is good for a quick point and shoot camera but lacks the features of a high end point and shoot camera. It compares to the other good camera phones of 5mp or higher.

Space. I am not sure how it calculates space but it does not seem to have 8gig like is advertised although I am not sure what it is counting. I stuck a 32gb card in it and have more room than I need. The Internal SD shows up as 4gb and then another 2 if you add in some protected storage.

Web browser is so much faster than my old HTC Tilt 2 Windows phone and being a true touch screen it works great.

Dual Core processor keeps everything running faster than you will notice. I have lots of games and movies and it runs fine.

Size: This is a great size. They kept it thin even with the slider and it is not so big as to be a full size tablet like the Galaxy S2 Rocketship at 4.5 inches.

Now the bad. It is from AT&T. They bloat it with worthless trial software. some of it runs so it taking up processing power even though you declined buying it. Of course there is no way to remove it. In defense of AT&T's poor practices they all do it.

Battery life. I have never had a phone I am happy with the battery life and this one is no different. At times you can almost hear the life being drained out of it. You will never get more than a days use out of it. Plan on charging it every night (and sometimes more).

Did not come with syncing to outlook. You can sync to Google but why do I want my information in Google's hands. Plenty of free synching software is available so this is not an issue.

I love the phone. It was a perfect replacement for my HTC Tilt 2 (windows mobile). If I had to do it all over again I would still buy this phone.

Best Physical QWERTY GSM Android Smartphone March 4, 2012

Reviewer:  M. Muzammil "IncidentFlux"  (Ajman, United Arab Emirates) -

My first phone was a physical QWERTY Nokia 5510, and my last was a Nokia E71 (Unlocked). These phones have very well built hardware keyboards, Samsung is not entirely there yet, but this is a very well built classy looking phone.

Note: AmazonWireless was selling this as "Unlocked" which implied that it won't need a network unlock code, so I had to get it unlocked. Now I'm using it in the United Arab Emirates.

Pros
1. Slider is well built, the spring action is helpful. Hopefully it won't get loose over time.
2. The 4" screen is ideal for me, since I mostly listen to radio.
3. The slider on the USB door is very cool, keeps the dust out.
4. Beautiful back-light keyboard, very clear.
5. Fantastic value for the price.

Cons
1. Major con - No notification light. (Rooting allows touch button lights to become notification lights)
2. Major con - Android doesn't clearly indicate if caps lock or num has been engaged on the physical keyboard.
3. Minor con - No slot to attach a hand strap. (workaround: get a case)
4. Major con - Speaker should've been stereo and on the sides, for louder sound. (workaround: use apps like Volume+ or Equalizer)
5. Major con - No hardware FM radio receiver. Really useful if you're out roaming or on vacation.

Observations
1. Not Samsungs fault, but it's hard to find good quality leather covers for sliders.

Edit:
The AT&T ROM has carrier restrictions which means you can't manually toggle between 2G and 3G networks. This is not a deal breaker, but those who don't use data packages or want to conserve battery can't switch to 2G if they want to.

Even after sim unlocking you can't do network searches, other network's sim will work, but you won't be able to see a list of them. This is not an Android or Samsung limitation, since flashing with other ROMs from XDA will release you from these restrictions.

2nd Edit:
The GPS receiver on this phone keeps accurate locks on satellites, I was driving at 140 Km/hr and Google Latitude was tracking me accurately, even exiting at high speeds or traffic jams. I don't have a data package and it was switched off as well. So it wasn't getting any help from AGPS.

3rd Edit:
The [[ASIN:B005V7WIA2 SanDisk 64GB Mobile Ultra MicroSDXC Class 6 Memory Card with SD Adapter - Retail Packaging]] works really well, without any issues. This phone keeps getting better and better!

4th Edit:
If you're not happy with the battery life, try these larger capacity third party batteries:
1. 1,950mAh - [[ASIN:B007KCWQ4O Mugen Power Slim Extended-Capacity Battery for Samsung Captivate Glide i927]]
2. 3,600mAh - [[ASIN:B007KCWQ8K Mugen Power Extended Battery w/ Battery Cover for Samsung Captivate Glide i927]]

Great Cell! June 4, 2012

Reviewer:  Ronald 

I bought this phone searching for an upgrade for my old galaxy 3. I wanted something current, with good specs and if possible with a keyboard. I have to say that this cell is just what I wanted. I haven't seen it lag in any way, the screen is gorgeous (even if it's only a super amoled, not an amoled plus like some sources say) and it runs many games and emulators without a hitch. The keyboard is nice to have although It takes some time to get used to it. The camera is great, to the point that I don't take my standalone digital camera anywhere anymore. The battery is just good, It lasts a day with normal to heavy usage, but just that, you may want to invest in a car or portable charger if you use it heavily all time. I highly recommend this cell for anyone that wants a QWERTY smartphone, I couldn't be more happy with it.

Love this phone! February 19, 2012

Reviewer:  D Allen  (CO, USA) -

I've had my Samsung Captivate Glide for a little over a month now and I love it. My previous phone was an older Motorola flip phone so this phone felt large to begin with, but after using it for a couple weeks, the bigger screen is worth the extra size. The QWERTY keyboard has a nice feel and is large enough to make typing easy. Nice camera w/flash, haven't tried the camcorder yet. WiFi works great! The screen is sharp and clear and the touchscreen is really nice. The battery seems to last better than I've heard about smartphones, I usually have 1/4 to 1/2 a charge left at the end of the day.

My only (really minor) complaint: although there are lots of protective covers out there supposedly for this phone, the only one I've found that fits the phone is the dusty blue Body Glove cover sold by AT&T; the others are too "thick" and don't allow the phone to slide smoothly.

the i927 April 9, 2012

Reviewer:  Charles W. Jefferson 

This device is awesome!!! I truly enjoy the responsiveness the ease of use out of the box. And the clarity of the calls. Not too big to hold in your hand to use and not too small to be highly functional.

Where has this device been all my life???

I especially enjoy the full keyboard. The device is very light considering that it has a full keyboard. I have had extremely good usage times out of the device.

All and All I say this is a very very nice device to have in your tool belt.