Intro
There is a secret about “Samsung Continuum Phones“, they give you something that no other Android phone gives you. What is it? Ooh, now I have you! ”
Looks
It is a bit taller than normal it seems, maybe it is because it adds a ticker. That is right, there is a ticker at the bottom, it gives you updates on when someone messages you on Facebook, Google Chat, MSN, etc.! It is really great and tells me all kinds of data without pulling down the notification bar. It will also tell you RSS feeds and twitter feeds as well, it is like a widget but on the bottom of the phone.
Hardware
It is a Galaxy S and so we get a 1 GHz Hummingbird processor, it is fast and slick on the device. It has a nice flush 3.5 mm headphone jack and a microSD card slot capable of holding up to 32 Gig and has 2 gig built onboard.
Screen
The screen is a super AMOLED 480 x 800 pixels that is 3.4 inches. It also has a 1.80 inch ticker screen that I mentioned before; it is 480 x 96 pixels and both screens are capacitive. They are both quite bright and easy to read, day or night.
Battery
The battery lasts a while even with two screens going. It is a 1500 mAh and the talk time is regulated at 7.00 hours where as standby sits at 312 hours. Impressive all around, you get a thin phone that gets a good battery with this device.
Operating System
Another Galaxy S that is a 2.1. Sadly it does not yet have 2.2, it may soon, let’s hope. You get the TouchWiz UI here so if you are not a fan, maybe try something else, however, it is hard not to be a fan, it is pretty good.
Software
Like I mentioned, it has TouchWiz, which I was not a fan of initially but have grown to enjoy. When you pull down the notification bar you get options on Wi-Fiand sync etc. It also bounces and has an iPhone-like app drawer which appeals to Android fans and other phone enjoyers as well.
Keyboard
There is no physical keyboard on this device either, it is long and thin. It also has Swype, Android and Samsung keyboards, so you get three to choose from. Swype is fast, the Android keyboard is what most devices come stock with and the Samsung is a slight variation on stock.
Web Browsing, Camera and Video
You get a 5 MP camera here, we have 720p HD video recording which is nice, a lot of devices support that now and it is really great that this one does as well. The browser is fast and nice, it does a good job as usual.
Call Quality
Verizon’s network is fast and gets a call clear, it has good 3G connection and so you get a good internet connection as well. Fast 3G and good calls is what anyone wants.
Pros:
- It is light and thin
- The headphone jack is also flush
- Good Camera 5 mp
- Android 2.1 gives this phone a nice touch
- Swype pre-installed
- TouchWiz UI is great.
Cons:
- Wishing it had a hard keyboard
- The ticker is just a BIT small, but it is hard to make it any bigger with out making the phone bigger
Conclusions & Final Thoughts
Not many negative thoughts on the Continuum, I was excited to get it and I am sad to see it go, the ticker made twitter and my RSS feeds very nice to use. The TouchWiz UI is really growing on me. I am hoping CES. You know, even though I used the Galaxy Tab a while back, this phone doesn’t feel like it, they are running the same OS and settings (minus the tab being 2.2) but they feel pretty different. I do like this phone.