Samsung SYNC SGH-A707
Phone Scoop Review
Dec 28, 2006 by Eric Lin
Our in depth review of Cingular's slimmest 3G phone yet. read review ›
User Reviews
Average Ratings
BEST PHONE EVER!!!!!!
This is the best phone I have ever had in my life and I have probably gone through every brand of phone out there. There is nothing wrong with my SYNC that I can think of. It's perfect.
Pro's
-Great inner screen
-Great MP3 and speakerphone sound quality
-Great service no matter where I'm at(AT&T)
-Good sized buttons
-Great camera
-Great EVERYTHING!!!
Con's
-The only con is that everyone in the world doesn't have this phone. Great job Samsung. One of your best phones yet.
Samsung Sync a definite keeper
I had a Nokia 3120 that fell in the toilet and got ruined. So I went out yesterday and picked up the Samsung Sync. I have only had it for a limited amount of time, but I already have found wonderful things about this device and they are listed below.
Pros
- quad band world phone
- red (my favorite color)
- key lock for the outside buttons
- music player
- large font
- good camera (better than what I had)
- loud ringtones (good for those noisy places where you can hardly hear your phone)
- nice overall design
- good external display
- big buttons
- can edit ringer profiles
- supports mp3 ringtones
- 3G phone (AT&T employee said it boosts the signal, so I would get better coverage)
Cons
- no keypad lock for the keypad inside
That's about everything I can think of that is good and bad about this phone. I highly recommend it for those looking for another phone who want quad band and are looking for the features that I listed as pros.
Was reluctant to drop my Moto...but Im happy
I had a Moto L7 and really liked it...nothing wrong with it at all. But..it was time for a new toy.
PROs:
Good Design
Good Reception
GREAT Camera
Decent MP3 player
Sturdy Build
High Speed Web (3G)
GREAT Screen
Inexpensive!
CONs:
It seemed a bit big at first...but it really isn't.
I would certainly recommend this phone to anyone looking to upgrade their current handset. Its top notch technology at a decent price.
How to get the most out of your A707 with a Mac
The Samsung A707 has full compatibility with a Mac (not iTunes, obviously) if you don't mind taking the extra time to work around the lack of USB support. I have a Mac PowerBook G4 with bluetooth, otherwise you will need a compatible card reader for the microSD/transflash.
Using the microSD:
Try removing the battery and SIM card when inserting the microSD. It needs to fit flush into the phone, and jamming it in with a finger nail to get it to show up briefly on the screen is not a permanent fix. Once I removed the SIM, the microSD locks right in. You might repeat this lengthy process each time you want to remove/replace the microSD card. BTW, Kingston 2GB card does work, and on my phone it displays 1.95Gb usable memory.
Transferring files:
I used the bluetooth file transfer on my Mac, which bypasses the lack of compatibility with iTunes/Mac. You will have to individually select songs using the Finder, locked songs won't play. Search web for workaround. Alternate use a multi-card reader through the USB or PC card slot.
Listening to music:
go to an online store and buy a Samsung to 3.5mm jack adapter and use your favorite 3.5mm headphones. Why spend $100 or so on a pair of bluetooth headphones when for $10 you can get an adapter. The one I got is supposed to work as a headset for the phone, but in five attempts with different callers I never heard them (though they heard me). The music player is excellent on this phone, but I admit I'm going deaf so listen for yourself.
Read the manual, it is also available online, I haven't found any roadblocks that weren't covered in the manual. There are a lot of forums with good information, but you can write it down that I said the Kingston 2Gb will work with the Samsung A707. If you can't get it to work, try my work-around. If not, return your phone, because a lot of us are using the 2Gb microSD in this phone regardless of Samsung/Cingular claims that the A707 only supports up to a 512Mb card.
Common Sense and the Truth
It hardly stands to reason that if you click on the negative reviews section and start your search there, that you will find what you are truly looking for (same goes for the positive). I would recommend searching for something in the middle, and deciding what kind of phone would best suit your life and needs. The Samsung Sync, in my opinion, happens to be one of the best phones on the market. Not because it plays the most music, not because it has the best camera, or not because it is the easiest UI to use. Simply put, this phone has come as close to being a "Jack of all trades and a master at most" as any phone currently can. I read a few of the worst reviews and a few of the best and noticed one thing in both . . . extreme exaggerations to one end or the other. I work for an authorized dealer for a company (it's obvious which one by the fact I'm writing a review to that end on this phone) and I was one of the first people to actually receive and start using the Sync when it came out in late October of '06. I won't lie, it was a little unusual at first, but she quickly grew on me and for the past 7 months I have not only come to master but love my Sync very much. It is a very durable phone (keep in mind everyone should keep good care of their phones, water and phones don't mix people), it has (hands down) the best reception of any phone on the market (I camp a lot; reception in the mts, I go to the beach; reception on the coast, I drive daily though the city; reception in the most convoluted areas of the Seattle Metro area), and finally it is so customizable that I am actually torn on whether or not to keep her or start using the BB Pearl I just got. It will be a while before the next greatest phone comes out, I don't know of any currently in the line up or those that are soon to come out that can even come close. I will boldly say that a majority of the negative reviews for this phone are down right fluff. Period. The Sync is one of the best phones on the market.
Awesome phone!!
I received this phone as a gift. At first it wouldn't read my memory card, but after I cleared everything on it to my pc, it re-formatted it and everything was cherry. I wish it was a little louder with the speakers, but since I also got the motorola s-9, it doesn't matter much. I used to think I would not trade my old phone for anything, I was wrong. This phone does everything I could want it to.
cool so far
I got the phone yesterday. It took a few minutes for me to figure out the basic stuff but I got it going pretty easily.
so far the phone has been very good. great screen. mp3's sound good. let's not jinx it. i had a razr and it was a POS.
i'd like to turn off the camera shutter but reading the reviews i don't think it will happen.
here's the one question i have....i'm trying to make the text message notification sound one of my mp3's or a song i've downloaded and it's not letting me. any one have any suggestions?
One Good Choice
I was in a dethmatch between Ericsson w810i, LG CU500 and Samsung A707, A707 wins the battle.
Pros:
0- 2mp camera ***** with lots of features *****
1- Huge Crisp clear Screen *****
2- 3G network supper fast *****
3- UI popup menu style (easy to find everything) ****
4- spring loaded side microSD slot
5- netfront browser opens web pages like on the pc *****
6- could be more good looking but is nice **
7- battery last more than one day using mp3's watching videos and surfing the net. ****
8- lots of customizations ****
9- Animated home-screens (support flash)*****
10- compatible with lots of media extensions.*****
11- picture bridge ***
12- good illuminated buttons and ease to press. good size
13- cingular video, mobitv, mobiradio, xm radio, all runs perfect thanks to the 3G network *****
14- call quality its loud and clear
15- speaker-phone loud and clear
16- ease to switch between BT-Headset and handset on a call
17- call history have calls from more than 1 month in memory
cons:
2- no voice dial
3- have to press outside button 2seconds for use external functions.
4- can not resume apps when close the phone and reopen it.
5- no headphones jack. have to use special ones. $4.00 on ebay
6- not compatible with Gmail java app
Excellent Upgrade from the RAZR
I've been looking for a replacement for my RAZR for sometime. Cingular's lineup has included many forms of the RAZR, but they are little more than color changes or minor feature updates.
After looking at the CU500, I was intrigued by 3G since it's available in my area. Not too long after I noticed the CU500, I looked at the SYNC (A707). The screen almost sold the phone!
Pros:
Screen
UI (Much faster than the RAZR)
RF
Features (Included demos, games, alarm, ect.)
HSDPA (Much faster than EDGE and comparable to EVDO)
Nice camera
Nicely laid out keyboard
Lighter than it looks
Large internal memory
Cingular Video (Pretty neat, I just like to watch little clips)
Easy to learn menus
Heat sensitive music controls
Cons:
Outside Screen
A little on the big side
Doesn't come with headphones or sync cable
I'll be further testing the RF next week when I travel. We'll see how it does on GSM instead of UMTS. So far, it's my favorite phone!
