Samsung SCH-U540
Average Ratings
Samsung SCH-U540
Good display screen with nice keypad.There
are some design flaws:If you pick up the phone by the base to flip open the phone it
is too easy to activate the camera which is
distracting. Also the navigation keys on all the Samsung phones is very close to the clear
key which allows no tolerance for using the
down button without clearing what you are doing. Another matter of preference that be annoying is the long list of prompts for the voice commands.
Excellent phone, battery needs help
My recent phones are the Motorola E815, then the LG VX8300. I am extremely happy with this one. The only drawback is the battery.
Pros:
Excellent displays
Texts preview on the front
Sound - very loud and clear
UI - lots of customization (for a VZW phone at least)
size/shape it's just comfortable
Cons:
The battery drains faster than it should. Maybe it's the EVDO coverage in my area, but I really wish it was longer.
Phone is Great.
I have had this phone for a couple of days now. I am not sure what people are saying about the battery. I take plenty of pics made calls and still have lots of battery life left. Only charged it once when I got it home. The software is a little lame, but the rest of the phone makes up for it. Sleek design light and durable. It has it all. I say it is a well made phone for teens or an old dude like me.
U540: A good phone for talking
I picked the Samsung U540 after returning an LG VX8300. Verizon allows you to return a phone within 30 days and I just couldn't hear the LG if I was in a noisy place (airport, car with the air conditioner going full blast, etc.). Also, I have some people in my family who tend to speak very quietly, and I couldn't justify getting a new phone and not being able to hear people on the other side.
You can definitely hear and be heard using the U540 - at least in Phoenix and Los Angeles on Verizon.
Pros:
* Can hear and be heard when using the phone, and for me that's the most important thing
* Past experience with Samsung, both between my wife and I, has shown their phones to be durable and dependable
* Large screen is nice
Cons:
* Buttons on the side and the internal antenna means you need to hold the phone in a certain way, or else you'll turn on the camera, speaker phone, or block the antenna
* If your a fan of texting you would be better off with the U740 or similar phone (i.e. the U540 has no qwerty keyboard)
* Camera is nothing special (1.2 mega pixel, I think, and no flash, which can result in pictures being dark)
* Thin design is nice, but I wouldn't characterize the U540 as an especially impressive phone to look at, such as the LG VX8700 or the razor phones
* Verizon makes you pay for good ring tones, wall paper, and all the fun stuff
In short, if you're on Verizon and you need a phone that works well for talking, and everything else is secondary, this phone is a good choice.
Not bad for 10 bucks...
I have had this phone a little over 2 weeks and so far so good. I had the Moto RAZR MAXX for 14hrs and this phone was 160 dollars cheaper and 160 times better.
PROS -
Light weight and slim.
MP3 player is nice.
Bluetooth works well.
Video quality is good.
RF is good.
CONS -
Battery seems weak even w/o MP3 or BT usage
UI of course is not very customizable (VZW issue not Samsung).
SD card goes under the battery door (not a big deal but annoying).
D-pad is too small I either hit CLR or OK by accident.
The leather case is not like the old ones where the clip is permenantly attached to it. DO NOT BUY the plastic holster it will drop the phone with the slightest touch.
Overall I gave this one a 4 due to minor flaws but I think the U540 is a surprisingly good phone. So far it out performs all other phone I have owned but the 8000 which I still miss to this day (previous VZW phones include LG 4400, LG 8000, LG 8300 and Motorola Maxx).
36 Hour Review - So far, fairly happy.
I've had the phone for three days now, and the u540 is treating me pretty well.
Pros:
-Headset jack
-Bluetooth
-MP3 (w ringer id)
-MP3 player
-small/thin easily fits in pocket.
Cons:
-Doesn't work with Garmin Nuvi 660. So much for BT.
-Loading MP3s as ringer only by MMS. Pain.
-no full keyboard.
My previous phone was Treo 650. So, I miss the keyboard pretty badly. I like that there's a headset, because I don't have to remember to charge a BT headset. Besides,it sounds better.
I may take it back, bc I spent ~$650 on the handsfree speaker phone built into my GPS unit. I'd like for all my phones to work with it.
Not a gem, just a lump of coal.
This has been the biggest disappointment I have ever had in a cell in a lot of years. Bluetooth sucks, kills the battery and cannot X-fer tones from phone to phone (even the con-artists at Cingular allow that). This phone has crashed several times and guess what, the main screen just stopped working. Nothing but a blank white screen, (just like the face of the customer service rep I brought it to at the store)! Her exact words were "Sir, I just sell them, I don't know anything about them." To top that, it had a scratch on the external screen, so warranty voided and no replacement!!!
Maybe Verizon they should spend some money on R&D with people who would actually use this phone!!! Not those yuppie, pocket protector PDA nerds that would never use it.
Oh well, I tossed it out the window and will replace it with some cans and string. That would be an upgrade from this phone.
Sweet phone
I just got this from coming from the crappy Razr V3M. What a complete difference, like night and day! This phone is a power house. Has all the capabilities that one would need. It is very fast on connecting to the web, sending texts, and taking pictures. The pictures could be better but that is what normal cameras are for :) The clarity of the calls are exceptional and it sounds like you are on a regular phone. I beyond love this phone. So if you are looking for a replacement phone or just a great phone as a new customer, then this phone is for you. It is not expensive and worth every penny. Great job Verizon and Samsung.
Great Phone
I just selected the u540 over the Razr V9m. My main reasons were price and the new Razr is a bit on the heavy side. So far, so good w the U540. I had switched from the a930 so not much of a learning curve.
Pros:
Good reception
Good clarity and sound
Very light weight - slim razr-like styling without some of the negatives
Works well with bluetooth
Keypad comfortable to use
Adequate camera
Cons:
Need to press in key to get time on cover - could keep this lit with a930
Do not use music keys but have to remember to lock
Battery could be stronger
Excellent phone
It is a phone! If you want a multimedia extravaganza, go get something else. If you want a small, light phone, it's great. a few issues I've read about in several diferent sites: (1) battery life. First time plugging in, it told me it was through charging but then only lasted half a day. Subsequent uses and overnight charges give me 3+ days of talk and standby usage, which is great based on my experiences with prior phones. (2) Echos--I've seen people complain that people they call hear an echo. That's not the phone but the carrier. Received sound quality is good, but it is set for a max default volume, which will distort the earpiece speaker. turn it down a notch or two, it's still loud enough and sounds fine.
PROS: Smallest and lightest current offering from Verizon. No stub. thin as a razr, but smaller in other dimensions. Good signal strength, excellent for use as a phone. The Voice Signal voice activation software is superb. No training required, and it works great with both my pre-pubescent daughter and my gruff, deep old radio voice. MP3's are good using a standard wired headset, gives decent control of playlists, etc. Micro SD cards are cheap. Overall good buttons and layout, except for what I mention below. Bottom line--if you want a light, good phone that occasionally gets used for MP3's as well (like when bike riding or working out), this is a great phone.
CONS: Verizon cripples blue tooth functions so you can't push data. No USB cable or software included. Camera is so-so, but no big deal.Touch sensitive buttons on fron are easily locked out, but not when using the MP3 player, so they can get pressed accidentally (but in practice don't very often).
