Samsung SGH-T509
Average Ratings
Better than the RAZR
This phone is better than the RAZR and less expensive.
I am a long time T-mobile customer and i also work in for another wireless provider.
I had 9 (!!!) replacements for my previous RAZR, this seemed like a good decision. I am very satisfied.
The menus and functions are very fast, no lag. The camera is very nice, compared to every other mid-level phone. The customization of your photos and videos is an added bonus. The EDGE technology is wonderful, especially when viewing web pages or downloading games or ringtones.
SAVE your PENNIES, this phone is worth the price.
Ultra-slim non-phone
The t509 wants to be loved and it's easy to see why since it's one of the best looking phones in T-Mobile's lineup. The slim form, beautiful screen, and price all amount to one tempting little phone.
The casing seems good but not as nice as say the metal casing on the SLVR or RAZR. I suppose, the benefit of not using metal casing is that phone really does disappear when you put it in your pocket. All in all, the phone looks and feels great. It's definitely a looker and fun to whip out (like magic).
Besides style, this phone has a great array of chat clients including AIM, MSN, Yahoo, and ICQ. I didn't try ICQ but the other 3 are a joy to use. They even have animations and sound effects you would expect to see and hear on the desktop version. Inputting text was very easy using the keypad though the clear/backspace key is a tad small.
The Samsung interface is top-notch and looks great on the amazing screen. My only gripe is that you're stuck with the grid menu layout. List and page menu options would have been nice.
Images from the phone's camera look good on the t509's screen and otherwise bad. No surprise there given the price.
It's true that the phone does have ring volume issues. It's not that the phone is too low, it's just that you have to set it to max (5) for it to sound normal. It would have been wise (even necessary) to have the max volume be 25-50% louder.
The t509 is loaded with an awful library of ringtones. Even the T-jingle is some non-standard bizarro remix. In a nutshell, the ringtones are unusable and I had to download the normal T-Jingle myself. Such a trial.
The deal breaker on the t509 is that it's an awful phone for making and receiving calls. Callers sound okay on my end, but I sounded compressed, quiet and metallic. I left a voicemail for myself to confirm and was dissapointed at what I heard.
Pros:
Screen, screen, screen!
Chat clients
Style, size
Bluetooth
Cons:
Doesnât really work as a phone
Ringer volume
Odd, unusable ringtones
awesome phone
ive had this phone for over a month now and i am in love with it. i get compliments on it all the time, not many people have seen a phone this light and skinny. the only con i really have on this phone, is its inability to designate message ringtones for different callers... ive had this function on nearly every other phone i have owned and am a little dissappointed i didnt get it with this phone. the screen quality on it is excellent, as well as the sound quality on calls and during phone conversations.
The Good, Bad, And Ugly
THE GOOD:
The SGH-t509 is exceptionally thin. In fact, it's the slimmest handset currently sold by a U.S. carrier. I should point out, however, that Samsung currently makes two thinner models (the SGH-x820 and SGH-p300) that can be bought for about $400 unlocked--I got this phone for $30. Unlike many others, I get great call clarity with the t509 (I guess I'm just lucky). The screen is great as well, highlighting the beautiful and intuitive Samsung UI. The keys have tactile response and are logically positioned. Also, the phone has a very reasonable battery life and comes with three full games and one demo to fill time.
THE BAD:
Many have pointed out that the phone lacks good ringtone/wallpaper choices. I think this may be because over half of these choices are hidden in the "My Downloads" section, not in the phone's default choices. Additionally, because the handset's speaker is facing bacward, it can be hard to hear it ring when it's on a table. Also, the speakerphone could be louder, and the addition of an MP3 player would be nice. Finally, the camera is just VGA and the menu layout and shortcuts aren't customizable.
THE UGLY:
My biggest complaint about the SGH-t509 is its directional pad. The up button sticks halfway down after being pressed, making the down button click twice when pressed subsequently. Two successive phones have had this problem, but it's beginning to happen less often as the phone is getting broken in (knock on wood). Also, the phone is made of plastic, not metal, so it feels too light and fragile. Additionally, the "Clear" button should have been made bigger (the "Talk" and "End" keys are almost three times as big) because the Samsung UI relies havily on it.
CONCLUSION:
If you're looking for a cheap, fashionable phone with good performance, look no further. However, if you want more features (or an even thinner profile), there are better options with bigger pricetags.
Pretty Good Phone
I just bought my wife the T509. It is an excellent phone however it doesn't poses the ability to assign mp3's as ringtones. I tried everything I could think of and nothing worked. The only format it recognizes is ".mmf"; in this case you will need an external program to covert the mp3 to mmf. Once converted the sound quality is horrible and very low. Other than that, the phone is outstanding. The graphics are superior to most, even the V3, and it is full of features. The other thing is that with most phones you can pick up a data cable at Wal-Mart or borrow one from a friend. Not with the T509. You will have to purchase one specifically for this phone...or you can do what I did and buy a bluetooth usb adapter from Wal-Mart and sync'd the phone to the PC that way.
Pros:
Small, light weight and thin
Beautiful graphics
Bluetooth
Long battery life
Plays mp3's
Cons:
Annoying key lock feature
No mp3 ringones
Need special data cable
Overall I would recommend this phone to anyone not requiring mp3's as ringtones.
PEOPLE ARE WRONG THIS PHONE ROCKS
I just got this phone and i am really suprised the revies had me questioning whether to buy it but i took a chance knowing i could just return it. so i got it and wow its so small but its not difficult to hold while calling. the ringers are loud, some say they arent but trust me they are i had two fans going on and i could hear it loud and clear. u can customize eveything which is something that i love. the preset ringtones are ok not the best but i dowloaded some. the screen is amazing compared to my nokia 3220. the camera was great i dont no what people were saying when they said it sucked it doesnt, and u can so many different effects which is sweet.overall i am VERRY VERRY pleased and dont regret getting it
PROS
Customazation
loud ringtones
eaasy layout
thin
light weight
CAMERA IS GREAT
LOTS of camera effects
BEAUTIFUL SCREEN
keypad is easy to use and is big enough
Cons
Speaker phone could be louder
maybe a better choice of ringtones/wallpapeR
GREATT PHONE!!!!!!!! BUY IT
Don't waste your money!!!
Don't buy this phone whatever you do. It has the worst reception ever!!!
The point of a phone is for reception, clarity and signal...this phone had none of that!!!
pros: Fun games, great battery, easy set up. Very nice profile.
Cons: Horrible speaker, no good ring tones, no megapixal camera, horrible clarity and volume.
DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME!!!!!!!
DON'T BUY THIS PHONE!!!!!
In the Market for this phone.....
Anyone reading this: Please dismiss my rating as I have not yet bought this phone.
I just switched to T-Mobile after being a customer of Nextel for only 3 months! And right now I have the V188 and I like it so far, but I'm buying the T509 this weekend.
Thanks for all the reviews.
Nice phone for the price.
I recently updated my phone and service, having previously been with Sprint. I settled on T-Mobile and a Samsung t509. I was cautious at first, due to the amount of criticism this phone had generated online. When it came down to purchase time I decided that this phone had everything I needed and the price was right ($50 with a 2 year contract). So far the phone exceeds my expectations in most respects.
RECEPTION
So far, much better than my previous phone and service. For once I can get a signal at my office.
BLUETOOTH
I work in a 100% Maccentric environment. iSync DOES NOT support Samsung phones at present, so that is a check against this phone. On the other hand, I can still use most of the bluetooth capabilities. I can easily sync to my computer using bluetooth prefs and transfer over custom ringtones (in 3gp format). Using Onsync, a shareware app, I can transfer over address book contacts. The only thing I have not figured out at present is how to transfer my photos to my Mac.
CAMERA
VGA, obviously not all that great, but if you're at a bar or out with friends, it gets the job done. If you want a good camera then buy a camera.
SOUND
I don't use speakerphone, so I won't comment on that. Overall, this phone is a bit quiet when it comes to the ringtones, but not so much so that it's a deal breaker for me. Call quality is great, I never have a problem hearing people unless I'm surrounded by loud noises, like at a busy bar.
BUILD
This phone is super slim. It's really unobtrusive in my pockets. No complaints here. Just don't drop it.
MESSAGING
This phone has nice IM functions, I've had no problems logging onto AIM at all. The Text Messaging function (as opposed to IM) is a bit cumbersome due to the extra menus involved, but there may be a way around this. Responding to received texts is super simple though, no extra menu navigating there.
All in all, I'm super happy with this phone despite a few minor flaws.
