Samsung Galaxy S 4G Android Smartphone Review

We've seen quite a few Android-powered phones with 1GHz processors and adequate internal storage and RAM. The Galaxy S 4G has these same specs, so we expect it to perform along the same lines as many of today's other powerful and popular phones. Indeed, the Galaxy S 4G feels just as zippy and responsive as many of the other phones in Samsung's Galaxy S line. Simply put, we were pleased with the speed and performance of the Galaxy S 4G.

We've said before that Samsung has a winning technology in the form of the Super AMOLED display. As the saying goes, if it's not broke, don't fix it. We're glad to see that Samsung is continuing to use this bright and vibrant display on many of its high-end smartphones.

Click to enlarge

As in the past, we found the Super AMOLED touchscreen to be bright, colorful, and sharp. Viewing angles are also excellent. As you'll recall, Super AMOLED enables phone manufacturers to make even thinner phones while also providing more vivid colors and terrific viewing angles. The only downside to this display is that the screen is a bit difficult (but not impossible) to view under direct sunlight. The screen did attract some fingerprints during our test period, though they didn't appear to interfere with the responsiveness of the phone.

The front-facing VGA camera on the Galaxy S 4G is designed for video chat, while the rear-facing 5 megapixel camera is designed for picture taking and video capture. Images captured with the rear-facing 5 megapixel camera were respectable, but we felt some colors were slightly off. Also, the Galaxy S 4G does not have a built-in flash, so you'll forever be reliant on available light when taking pictures with the phone. Overall, many of the images we captured were very sharp and vibrant, but a few seemed to be slightly faded.

Click to enlarge

Battery Life Experience -

Samsung claims the battery life of the Galaxy S 4G is up to 6.5 hours of talk time and up to 12.5 days of standby time. During our testing, we had no problem getting through an entire day (approximately 16 hours) with the Galaxy S 4G while talking, texting, surfing, checking email, and browsing the web periodically throughout the day. Of course, battery life will vary greatly depending on your use of the phone and its data capabilities.