User Review: Had it for 2 weeks, somewhat disappointed

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 22:10:02 GMT

cageycruz submitted this review of the Samsung Galaxy Stratosphere II:

Overall rating: 3 (out of 5)

I picked this phone mainly because I wanted a slide out keyboard and Android 4. The keyboard is a disappointment. The keys are just too tiny unless I use my fingernails. Thumb typing will fat finger adjacent keys constantly. There is also a bug with the shift key. Press it and it will capitalize the next 2 letters, like THis. And it seems to get stuck in CAPS LOCK sometimes.

I tried pairing it with an Apple bluetooth keyboard. It worked. But there are still finicky problems with the shift key.

Pros:
Verizon data network seems good. I've had good reception streaming video even in areas where my iPhone would drop calls routinely.

I'm liking Android for its sync with Gmail, contacts, calendars. Much better than firing up iTunes.

Cons:
Battery life. Watch 2 videos of 15 minutes, surf the web for 30 minutes, check a few emails, send 4 text messages, answer 1 call for 3 minutes and the phone is down to 50% battery life. This with WiFI and GPS off. My iPhone would easily go 2 days. This phone I have to charge at home, again when I'm at work, and I'm going to buy a car charger. Might even buy a second battery.

It's hard to open the keyboard. The first time I tried it I dropped the phone. Often I accidentally hit a button on screen while trying to open the keyboard. It's taken a bit of practice.

A lot of my other gripes come from learning Android. It does not seem as intuitive. I could not even figure out how to answer a call and dropped the first 2 calls I received. (You have to push the answer button AND slide your finger across the screen.)

It's not very loud, even at its highest volume. Outside in the city, with some traffic and construction noise I could not hear anyone. The speakerphone isn't loud enough. And the alarm I fear isn't loud enough to wake me. And the annoying warning keeps popping up saying playing at high volume will damage your hearing.

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Phone Scoop - Samsung Galaxy Stratosphere II Info

User Review: Had it for 2 weeks, somewhat disappointed