Phone Scoop - Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon Info

User Review: this he is a winner

Wed, 25 Apr 2007 21:39:59 GMT

anelroa submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 4.5 (out of 5)

he is really a winner, a very good creation of samsung, as always to the vanguard of the technology by you raise of the other companies. thin and strong extreme design to blows. perfect to take it where it is due to his so very small weight.

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User Review: all that glitters......

Sun, 11 Mar 2007 00:36:45 GMT

nokiarules submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 3.5 (out of 5)

I'll start by writing, I can not recommend or not recommend this phone. It is beautiful, feels nice, great in a shirt pocket, as it is so thin and light.
Most of the menu is very logical and simple to use. Of course it is, they pretty much coppied Nokia, but could not, quite emulate Nokia' perfection.

Just about every aspect of the menu is the same EXCEPT, profile settings. If you work in an industry, where at a moments notice, you have to shut up.. POW Nokias profiles are quick and easy to change. This phone, the samsung, after a week of using it, I have no idea if it even has that feature. AND I still can't figure out how to silence the keypad. I am NOT kidding. I text a lot, and the keytones are so loud, people in other rooms can just about here the keys being pressed. Very annoying. Which is a shame as other than Nokia, this is the easiest phone to text with. Not as many texting features as with Nokia, but still very good compared with most of the garbage out there.

I read Kebs review, and agree with most of it, other than the camera location part. If memory serves me correctly, Keb prefers the camera on the NON sliding part of the phone.
Which would expose the lens. By having the camera on the back of the front piece, which slides up from being protected by the back piece. the lens is therefore protected,
I had the older slim slide some time ago, and believe it was the opposite of this phone. though can not remember for sure.

Samsung. If you are going to copy Nokias menu, do NOT change anything. They got it right. I still keep my old Nokias. Depending on where I am working, I need a phone with no surprises. And while I do enjoy the samsung, as about a fifteen year, many, many Nokia model user, they never let me down.

Make the menu identical to the Nokia, get the Carl Zeiss lens for the camera. Keep the rest of the phone exactly as it is....and nothing would be better.... unless Nokia made it!

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User Review: Excellent phone WoW!

Sat, 10 Feb 2007 23:57:17 GMT

ryanop submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 5 (out of 5)

This is the best phone I'v seen yet.

»Pros«

Slim
Comfortable in your had
Easy slide
Big screen
Video capable (My Favorite Feature)
Very nice camera
Good sound (For such a small package)
Good battery life(Considering all the features)
Excellent reception(T-Moble)

NO CONS!

Well worth the money!
If you have the money and you want an Excellent phone, BUY IT!

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User Review: Phone was great...Until it died.

Fri, 26 Jan 2007 21:03:29 GMT

lilman10 submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 3 (out of 5)

I bought this phone in August of 06. This phone was everything I hoped for and more.
Slim design
Great reception
Good battery life

Then the screen died on me one day. Since then I have called Samsung US, Samsung UK, the company I bought it from, and then Samsung US again.

Samsung US told me that since the phone was not in their system, they could not repair my phone. They advised that I call Samsung UK, since it appeared to be a UK phone. I bought a calling card and called Samsung UK hoping that they could help me.
Samsung UK let it be known that since I don't have a UK address, they couldn't fix my phone either, since they wouldn't send it back to the US. They then informed me that the warranty on the phone was a global warranty, and that Samsung US could indeed fix my phone.
I called Samsung US back and spoke to a supervisor. She told me that what Samsung UK told me about the global warranty was untrue. She needed to check on some things and would give me a call back in 15 minutes. 3 days later I gave them a call back. I tried to escalate it to a supervisor again. They basically told me that they couldn't help me with my warrantied Samsung product. I actually got hung up on by a supervisor. Fing idiot had no recollection of talking to me or hanging up on me when I called him back 10 minutes later.
My last hope was to call the online retailer that I bought the phone from. They again told me that the warranty was global. They suggested that I call Samsung. :\

The worst part about this whole run around is that they have since then released this phone, this exact phone, in the US under a different name.

Ok I'm lying, the worst part is that I have to go back to my Moto V551. Moral of the story: Don't buy phones online.

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User Review: EXCELLENT!!

Sat, 20 Jan 2007 22:34:29 GMT

HenriWizkid submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 5 (out of 5)

This phone is the best in the market, and the coolest i think. i mean, you just don't get better than this. great sound quality, brilliant display, great games, i downloaded some more of my carrier website.

Pros:
Brilliant display
Great sound for calls and music
Such a sleek design, smooth slide
Awesome keyboard
Great camera
Easy to use
Bluetooth
Expandable memory

Of course, these are just some of the pros i find on the phone. there are just so much more.

Cons: NOT AT ALL!!!

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User Review: Style over substance

Sun, 14 Jan 2007 01:33:33 GMT

durtysnkrs submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 2.5 (out of 5)

Bottom line: gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous, but frustrating. if u want people to be jealous, let them look but not touch.

Pros:
-Beautiful, stylish, sleek
-Screen has the best resolution and brightness I've even seen on a cell phone
-Slim, pocketable
-Gets noticed

Cons:
-Reception is crummy. Has a hard time holding the call during hand-off from cell tower to tower. I know this because the call will get weaker and weaker, and down to no bars, and as soon as it drops the call, 5 bars. Very irritating. Doesn't it do everywhere, and not as bad as my old Samsung 777f, which was a real turd. By comparison, my old Razr rocked on signal.
- Another irritating reception issue, below 3 bars, forget it. Either you can't hear them, or they can't hear you. I suspect no US carriers picked up this phone because of the reception issue. I also imagine it works better in Asian cities; probably much higher cell tower denisties.
-Camera res is high, but pics only seem to be focused in the center. Edges are blurred. Flash is weak, but again better than the 777f.
-slider action is a little loose. does not inspire confidence about long term durability. I learned to push it all the way open with my thumb so the slider isnt loose and wiggling while I talk on the phone
-Inability to directly access the expanded memory card from PC makes it virtually useless for uploading music. YOu have to put the music on the phone memory from the PC, which fills up quick cause its only 60 meg, then use the phone to move the files to the memory card. pretty useless as a music player
-the scratch tone when dialing numbers is distracting and irritating, and the way the numbers typed display doesnt resemble typical phone number format. probably because phone is imported.
-feature that remembers where u last were is confusing. it can also get u in trouble if u sent an incriminating text message to a fb and then your bf/gf borrows your phone to text. I learned this one the hard way.

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User Review: This Phone Rocks

Wed, 03 Jan 2007 20:45:53 GMT

Draklore_karas submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 4.5 (out of 5)

And here is why.

this phone has an amazing 3.0 megapixle camera. one of the main reasons i picked it up. i have had many phones in my life, from many companies and this is the best one ive had yet. the media player is ever well done, and the reaction {load} time is acceptable. as with all my phones this one is unlocked. the only thing i have not tried is the web browser... so this is an area i can not comment on. as sad as it is.

Pros-
camera
media player
menu speed
service
style

Cons-
the menu system remembers where u last were {this might be a pro... im not 100% sure}

unknowns-
web browser

thank you

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User Review: Pure joy!

Wed, 03 Jan 2007 17:51:47 GMT

PDXMatt submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 5 (out of 5)

Where to start?

This is by far the most fun phone I have own. An absolute gem. I ordered the limited edition wine colour and it is stunning! The fit and finish of the phone is second to none. It feels so great in the hand. It slides with a smooth ease that is only rivaled by it's Samsung T629 cousin.

Pros:

Solid reception
Camera/Pic quality
Ease of music player
Style
QVGA screen
Fit and Finish quality
Ringtones sound great
Earpiece clarity
Strong vibrate mode
Built in photo editor
A2DP Stereo headphone support
Above average (thin phone) battery life

Cons:

Menu can be confusing.
Received pics small (?)
Cannot set custom tone for messages
Speakerphone only average

It's hard to find many flaws in this device. I love the reaction I get from my fellow phone geeks when they see it. Above and beyond that, it just feels and performs like the $300+ price suggest it should. I'm extremely please with this purchase.

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User Review: Thinnest 3.2mp slider, NOT thinnest slider

Tue, 28 Nov 2006 18:46:19 GMT

QwertyCOMM submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 4.5 (out of 5)

My fist opinion of this phone, is that it is small, stylish and lightweight. Then you get started and the UI is a little complex at first. Each option you choose has a sub-option, and a sub-option for it. The UI looks OK and there is no way yet to change the theme. You can change the wallpaper, but you are stuck with a factory setting theme.

PROS:
-Sharp looking slider phone (thin)
-Camera covered when slider is shut
-Hot Swappable memory card
-Lots of photo editing options
-Loud in ear piece, and great signal strength
-Slides smooth, and locks in place
-Switches through UI, applications fast

CONS:
-No speaker phone
-3D sound, not stereo speakers
-Music files limited
-Must save to phone before memory card
-Noisy pictures
-Limited to stock tones for sms alerts
-Limited to which applications you can assign to Hot Keys

p.s.- do NOT text someone while during a movie, the keys tend to click louder than you realized, even on silent.

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User Review: very good, only a couple issues

Sun, 26 Nov 2006 21:55:46 GMT

chicorazon submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 4.5 (out of 5)

PROS:

Screen: excellent display!

Call volume: overall pretty good

Camera: picture quality is fantastic in the right conditions, great autofocus

Keypad: responsive, well spaced, though the flush makes it difficult to type w/o looking

Ring volume: considering the size of the phone and the fact that the sound comes out of the earpiece, it is fairly loud.

Music player: finally will play in the background, go Samsung!!! Works well overall.

Ring & vibe: finally!!!!

General functionality: very quick and responsive, well organized, good interface. good customization options.

NEUTRAL:

Slide: works well, but seems much looser than that of the d600.

Reception: not the best I've experienced, but not the worst either. But that's why I use Cingular.

Battery life: varies, will last 2 days with limited internet/java usage, 1 day with significant voice and data usage. Get a car charger.

Themes: great for a world traveler, not so useful for somebody who isn't. Would have been better with the option for use of different themed backgrounds regardless of location.

CONS:

Shutter speed on camera: given, it is a 3 megapixel camera, but the shutter is very slow and requires almost no movement on the part of the subject of the picture

Text message composition: probably just a defect in my phone, but when I compose a text message to a specific person and send it, it says that i am sending it to the person either above or below that entry, even though it is sending to the correct person.

Ringer: for some reason, the last 2 Samsungs I've used have rung very quietly for the first second or two, then escalated to the full ring volume. I suppose it can be useful for meetings, so you can catch it before it gets loud, but it's a little obnoxious overall.

Menu: when you leave the menu and come back, it automatically places you on the last place you left off, which is sort of counterintuitive.

While I'm critical, overall I'm very satisfied.

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User Review: Phones pretty sweet if not in US

Thu, 16 Nov 2006 20:16:26 GMT

clarko submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 4 (out of 5)

I just bought the phone from a company in Canada.I live in California and I have Cingular and everything works pretty good but you cannot use media net to download ringtones or graphics or anything for that matter.
The phone as a phone is pretty sweet the camera is awsome but you cannot send pictures messages with it. Music Player is awsome because it plays anything you can think of itunes, wav ..etc.
The slider is alright but for paying close to 400 i would compare it to the t809 with tmobile kinda cheap.
The default settings are kinda hard to deal with but im one who likes full user customization and this dosent really offer that. You only have a choice of black and white skins and about 12 default wallpapers which kinda gets old since you cannot download new ones.
Overall i would say this phone would be great if you could customize in a little better. Wouldnt recommend buying if in the US.

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User Review: Chocolate Killer

Mon, 13 Nov 2006 00:02:34 GMT

mndynasty submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 5 (out of 5)

So sad to see that no US carriers are carrying this phone. They could easly call this phone the chocolate killer.

Pros-
screen
sound
video player
mp3 player
camera
and so much more i can't list.

Cons-
The menu remembers where you were last. i guess that could be both pro or con.
yeah thats about it.

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User Review: Can't Complain this phone is the REAL!

Tue, 07 Nov 2006 00:21:02 GMT

BLakers51 submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 5 (out of 5)

This phone is awesome no flaws to it Samsung Hit It Big!

Pros:
- Nice screen
- Good sound quality
- Slim
- Well made
- Awesome camera 3 Mega pixels
- Awesome video
- Streaming video (may vary)
- Stylish
- Flight mode
- Edge
- Easy slide
- Good battery hold
- Flush keys
- Many games standard (may very)
- Great signal

Cons: NONE!

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User Review: Terrific form factor, horrid performance

Wed, 11 Oct 2006 18:52:02 GMT

Kebs submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 2 (out of 5)

Coming from the Nokia campgrounds, I was excited about the D900. Thinner than any phone I know around, this phone is arguably the best phone to schlep around in a suit - lightweight, thin, and nonobtrusive. It's great when wearing jeans that don't have much of a pocket to haul around a brick, and even better when in a shirt pocket.

As a camera, it doesn't get much better than 3 megapixels! This phone's taken alot of candid shots at weddings, random pictures of scenery, and it's performed wonderfully. Not much to complain about it as a camera phone, other than I would've preferred the camera on the non-sliding portion of the phone.

However, I wouldn't use this phone to record videos; videos come out fairly pixelated when in motion, square-blockish and choppy at its worst. I prefer using the highest resolution/quality settings for videos, but checked out different combinations of the settings, and it still performs terribly.

What's the worst is that the D900 is the WORST as a phone! The D900's ability to get a solid signal is seriously the worst I've ever experienced! I've used this phone in a variety of urban and open environments - outdoors in a park, indoors in a building, home, work, airports - and on average, I'll be able to make/receive calls about 30% of the time. That is NOT acceptable for a $300+ phone!!!

Forewarning about battery life: you MUST charge it every day.

On an aesthetic point, the menu font looks incredibly cheap. The deeper menus themselves can be confusing at times; even some Samsung users have tried my phone and can't get the hang of it. Nokia users can pick up any Nokia model and feel right at home, which is what I expected when using this phone. Sadly, that wasn't the case for me.

While I love the fact that it's so thin and small, I can't give a positive recommendation for the D900 if it can't even adequately perform its most basic function - to place and receive calls.

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User Review: Simply Outclass

Mon, 18 Sep 2006 15:55:41 GMT

User Review: Great Phone WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mon, 18 Sep 2006 15:20:30 GMT

salmanzk submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 5 (out of 5)

A week earllier I bought this phone. Its looks & feels great, Image and soud quality is cool.
What else do do you want from a mobile? If you compared to its rivals, the N73, the K800, the N80, etc it is much slimmer and better looking, with stylish design and solid construction quality.

The slider is form-factor that is definitely up to date at the moment, has flawless spring mechanism and cleverly hides the bulge of the 3-megapixel camera, which quality in outdoor photos make it one of, the best one among the cellphones nowadays

Pros:
Stylish design with small dimensions and solid construction.
One of the best cameras in mobile phone at the moment.
Bright QVGA display with detailed and realistic image.

Cons:
No

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User Review: Rocks!

Mon, 11 Sep 2006 17:48:42 GMT

stivo submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 4.5 (out of 5)

I've had it for about a week and I love it! Everything works great although I have found some bugs/software issues. The camera is great and the video is very good. The software has some great features like lateral menus (you don't have to back all the way out to get to a related feature, just use the side keys). Although, when transferring contact, there's a bug where I get an invalid date in the birthday field that has to be corrected before it will allow you to save. Also the lack of Mac OS X sync support is a drag, but hopefully will be addressed soon.

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User Review: Don't buy this phone

Fri, 01 Sep 2006 19:48:05 GMT

kavinnguyen submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 2.5 (out of 5)

This phone is one of the best looking phone on the market. But I've been having a few problems with this phone, and I've notice that many people experienced the same problems too. First of all is the sliding design feature. It's a bit "wobbly". Anyways. I also own the Samsung T809 (D820) and it's slider is very smooth and solid. The D900 seems a bit loose. The menu in the D900 is not very appealing at all. Secondly, this phone does not get very good receptions. And please don't blame it on the service provider. I'm with T-Mobile and they have great signal. My T809 gets very good reception. The BIGGEST problem that everyone seems to be experiencing is when you make a call, the phone would restart. Meaning it turns off and on again. I experienced this on the 3rd day I use this phone. After a month it gets worst. When you slide the screen down, it turns off. When you press menu, it turns off. When you make a call, once in a while it would turn off. And I'm sure that everyone has this problem. I this phone is still in it's beta stage, and eventually they will take this model off the market or come out with another similar, more workable model. Anyways, the D900 sucks, don't buy it unless the fix these problems. Don't get my wrong, the phone is great......only for the first 2 weeks. I'm glad it has a 1-year warranty.

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User Review: the good and the ugly

Thu, 31 Aug 2006 19:12:14 GMT

kevin450 submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 4.5 (out of 5)

i bought the d900 unlocked using it in Montreal on Fido(i work for fido as a customer service rep) using it on fido and the first month was pretty good, its a great phone extremly user friendly, great screen resolution, nice mp3 function(i have 2gig micro sd) camera is great, flash is useless but in the day pictures are very nice, the phone also never gets glitchy like my D&G razr that stalls alot, this is very smooth, i had the x820 before and theyre both very good. Now where this is good there is also bad, since about after a month my phone keeps turning off by itself at random times, sometimes it wont happen all day but than it just goes crazy on me, sometimes i slide it down and it shuts off, turn it back on it shuts off. dont get me wrong i love the phone, best phone ive had by far but i just cant wait to get this fixed!!!!!!

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User Review: Samsung D900

Sat, 19 Aug 2006 17:52:43 GMT

nyandrews submitted this review of the Samsung SGH-D900 / Black Carbon:

Overall rating: 4.5 (out of 5)

I just picked up this phone and it is more than I expected. The sound quality and reception are better than the RAZR I had. The camera is quite good. The screen is amazing. The software provided is very user friendly.

The one con that kept me from buying the phone a little earlier is the proprietary charger. Why in this day and age they did not use a mini USB is beyond me.

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