This is a discussion on The Samsung Eternity. A PDA-Like Device, But Still Locked-Down Like A Phone. in the Cell Phone Reviews forum at Cell Phone Forums
The Samsung Eternity. A PDA-Like Device, But Still Locked-Down Like A Phone.
PROS:
1. 200MB Of RAM.
2. Pretty Fast Qualcomm MSM6290 Processor.
3. Large Screen 240x400, With 18Bit Res.
4. Powerful 3MP Camera (No Flash!)
5. Widget Feature (You Can Only Use The Widgets That Come With The Phone Though.)
6. CV Videos Look Great When Running On 3G. (Not On EDGE)
7. Video & Music Media Player Surprisingly Good. (I Watched An Entire Movie Off Of The Memory Card And It Didn't Skip Or Get Pixelated. Videos Still Have To Be Converted Through Samsung PC Studio To MP4 Format.)
8. Touch-Screen Is Very Responsive.
9. HTML Browser, But. (Even Though The Web Browser Is A NetFront v3.5; It Still Lacks In Many Ways. You Can't Set The Screen To Render Sites For Better Mobile Access. You Really Can't Customize The Browser At All; Which Is Pathetic. You Can Use Opera Mini Or BOLT As Free Alternatives.
CONS:
1. 3G Coverage Is Extremely Limited. (Causing The Phone To Favor The Much Slower EDGE Network Instead. Thus Making Video Streams, Radio, Ect Choppy And Distorted. You Can Force 3G-Only By Pressing *#6984125*# On The Dial-Pad, Then By Going Into The (3. Network & Call Settings), (2. Network Mode), And Selecting (UMTS 850). But The Phone Will Only Work In 3G Areas.
2. The Phone Will Give You An Option For (Allow, Ask Always) When You Download Unsigned Applications. (This Can Also Be Worked-Around, But It Requires Altering The Software Using TKFileExplorer And A HEX Editor. I Understand Why Both Samsung & AT&T Put This Into Effect, But What They Might Not Understand Is That, WE BOUGHT THE PHONE! We Own It Now; So Let Us Worry About The Dangers Of Downloading Unsigned Software. Don't Put In Nag-Screens To Deter People From Using Third-Party, And Most Importantly, FREE Software.)
3. Only Has A Touch-Screen Input. (This Might Seem Odd That I Would Mention It, But I'm Not A Big Fan Of Touch-Screen-Only Devices. If The Eternity Also Had A Slide-Out Qwerty; Then It Would Be A Much Better Phone.)
4. No Streaming Radio Capabilities. (A Lot Of Multimedia Phones Now A Days Can Stream MP3 Radio Streams Without Using A Dedicated Application For It, But AT&T Only Wants You To Stream Using Their (PAY) Services Applications. You Can Still Stream Live Radio Using Moodio For Free; It Just Requires More Effort.)
5. Games And Applications Are Difficult, If Not Impossible To Use Unless Designed For Use With The Eternity. (Even Then, Some Applications/Games Will Have You Use A Toggle-Like Set Of Touch Buttons At The Bottom Of The Screen.)
6. The Samsung PC Studio Software Is Really Large, It's A Resource Hog, And It Crashes A Lot.
7. GPS Locked-Out By AT&T. (So You Can't Use Any Free GPS Software Like AmAze, Because The Software Won't Be Able To Access The GPS Chipset.)
I Would Say All-In-All The Samsung Eternity Is A Nice Phone. I Wouldn't Spend Retail $399 For It, But Getting The Phone For Free With A Contract Is More Then Worth It. Keep In Mind Though, That AT&T Puts A Whole Lotta Junk App's On The Phone That Carry Monthly Fees. The Applications Won't Even Warn You Of This Fact; You Just End Up Seeing Them Billed To Your Account. So Don't Bother Using The Undeletable App's Like WHERE, AT&T Navigation, Ect. Just Go Download Some Free Apps At GetJar: Free Java, Symbian, Windows Mobile, BlackBerry, Palm and Flash Lite mobile games and applications. Also, check out Samsung Eternity Forum - Samsung Eternity Forum to Get More Help With Maximizing The Use Of Your Samsung Eternity.
((I will keep updating this review as I discover new things.))
Re: The Samsung Eternity. A PDA-Like Device, But Still Locked-Down Like A Phone.
Quote:
Originally Posted by chrystal520
does it have threaded messages? does it come with word processing ?
It does have word processing, but you'd have to get a java app to use it. The phone runs java apps no problem! The master code has been found just to let you know, so it will become customizable in the future.
AT&T Wireless 
Linear Mode
