Samsung SCH-U740 Alias
Average Ratings
GREAT..BUT PROBLEMS
OK well see o got this phone and it was very nice and with version if you don't like the phone then you can exchange it in the next 30 days so i liked it and after 30 days my phone start cutting off and giving me problems besides that its good but like i took it back and you have to go through a process and it sucks cause you get the software program and then i got the same phone but i got it replaced and it doing the same thing power cuts off i a middle of a text and calling
Signal Problems
I got the U740 in August of 2007. It is my 3rd Samsung. My main problem is that over the past 15 months the signal has gotten progressive worse. I used to get a signal everywhere. I get no signal in buildings more than 3 stories. When I visit my parents I get no signal and they do; we all have Verizon. I also randomly lose signal in downtown Baltimore when I'm outside!! My other phones had external antennas. I wish this phone did. If you know a way to improve the signal, please advise.
Pros:
Full qwerty is the main advantage.
Text up to 10 ppl at once.
Small, lightweight
Hinge holds up through abuse.
Cons:
Battery life is short (charge every day)
Sometimes freezes.
Signal gets worse over time.
Sometimes doesn't receive texts.
After 8 months of use.
I was looking for a phone with a full keyboard, and I really like clamshell phones for their ease of speaking (not needing to move phone to have position of ear and mouth), and I ended up with this. I use it everyday, and it is my only phone I have (no landline at home). Call quality is first for me since that is what a phone is really for, and next would be texting, and then other stuff. Call quality is great, and I would compare it to a landline. Texting took some getting used to, but once I learned the "feel" of the keyboard, I can now text with my thumbs, and text as fast as I can on my desktop keyboard, and I don't get many errors. I actually get more with a computer keyboard. I haven't had any problem with the hinge, and yes, I did drop it a couple of times. If you get the premium plan from Verizon you get so much included. I use the VZ Nagigator regularly, and the music player is a great substitution for my ipod when I don't have it with me. Overall a great phone.
Me likey
This phone, in my opinion, is one of the better phones. Maybe not as of right now, but its quality is what I'm talking about. I did have the enV2, and I went through 3 of those. When I went to get a new phone, this is what they recommended me to get. And I did. The only thing that I don't like about it is the quality of the pictures, and the fact that there's not really an east way to text without flipping it in either direction. But you learn to deal with it. When I first got it, I learned how to use it right then and there. My mom on the other hand, with the standard flip/camera phone, can not. She doesn't understand what's the numbers and what you use for the keyboard. The only thing that phased me was how to open it. Sounds childish, I know. But its true. This phone is a good phone and its a lot better than some of the other phones that's out there.
DO NOT BUY
If I was to give in to Verizon and accept another one of these phones today, it would be my 6th phone. Does that say anything about the phone? Don't get me wrong. It's got lots of nice features, the QWERTY is great, a bit small for men, but women in general have smaller fingers so they don't mind the small keypad. The main problem is this:
Everyone drops their phone. If you drop this phone, the sounds goes out. The person calling will be able to hear you, but you can't hear them. That's it.
In all...do not buy this phone. I don't know what Samsung did wrong, because I have been a customer for 16 years, and NEVER had a problem like this...but don't buy it.
Fun Concept at First
I had the original Alias. It's a really nice concept for a phone, but I had problems with all of the ones I received. My first one started randomly powering down and wouldn't receive all my phone calls or texts or send out all my texts or connect all my outgoing calls. My next two replacements did the same thing with the calls and texts. My phone wouldn't ring, also, when I got calls or text sometimes too.
Pros:
1. QWERTY keyboard (although it's a little small)
2. The dual flip was really cool and I got a lot of comments about it
3. The screen was nice, compared to the original Env
4. You can have fun fonts for the numbers when dialing
5. Great phone for texting
Cons:
1. The battery life is not all that great
2. The camera could be a lot better
3. To type on the keyboard, you have to use the tips of your fingers
4. The phone doesn't have a setting for high and vibrate
My new phone: LG Dare (get this phone)
Great at first
I have the first version that came out in October of '07, and at first I was so excited to get this phone. It worked fine, the unique key layout really stood out, and I was happy no one else really had it at the time. But now, a year later, things've changed. It shuts off all of the time, there is a big green pixely blob in the upper right hand corner with lines running from it. My service randomly shuts off and doesn't return for hours. While the phone is good because texting takes a matter of seconds, other features could be improved...
PROS:
-The size is really nice, it's very slim and attractive.
-The layout of the keys is awesome, I've always compared it to that of the enV and Voyager. What I like most is that the control pad is on the left rather than the right, and I could not see myself getting used to it being on the right.
-Battery life lasts a good amount, yet the phone does tend to overheat.
-Besides VCast, being that I don't use it, all of the other features are good. The one thing I could not live without on this phone is the alarm clock. But, it could be like that on all verizon phones...
-Camcorder records videos for a really good amount of time, I've had phones in the past that only record for 15 seconds at a time, and this was a really nice change.
CONS:
-One thing that this phone does not have that my old phone had was the ability to view text messages from the front display.
-The screen does get stuck when flipping and you end up having to re-flip.
-Clamp is not very sturdy at all, has potential to break sometime soon.
-Camera should be better for 1.3mp
I have not included all, but I hope my review helped. 2.0 out of 5.0.
Awesome phone!!
It's an amazing phone. Some people complain about the keyboard, but i think its the perfect size. Plus the buttons are spaced out so you won't "fat-finger" it or whatever. It has a LOT of options, great memory and a beautiful vivid screen, great camera and video camera too. I love the duo flip as well. Its also stronger than it looks. I can't tell you how much times Ive dropped this phone :-D it still hasn't broke! It has great sound, too, nice volume. Also unlike the EnV, it's very slim and compact and still has all the options and specs needed to make it a great phone. (Definitely better than the EnV)
I love to text message with around 5,000 a month, and let me tell you, this phone has a tremendous keyboard, perfect for a text-a-holic :-D
I recommend this phone to anyone. Buy it! :-D
my favorite phone ever!
i'm completely in love with the design and functionality of this phone. if you text a lot, you will absolutely love this phone. i drop my phone a lot, i prefer a flip phone so i dont scratch the screen. the envy is a great phone for texting, but its so large i had to return it. and i carry 2 phones with me all day, so the small size of the alias is a huge selling point for me. i recently purchased the envy2 for $50, had it for 30 days and returned it because i still love my alias. i have pretty fat fingers and rarely, if ever, find myself annoyed at the small size of the keys, no prob there. i have a dig camera and an ipod, so i dont use my cell phone for pictures or playing music, and cant really comment on these features. call quality is excellent, especially the speaker phone. whenever i get a call when i'm driving, i hit the speaker button, close the phone (speaker still works with phone closed), throw it on the dash and people on the other end say its just as clear as when i'm holding the phone to my face. plus, if someone texts me while i have it on speaker, i can open the phone back up in horizontal mode (for the qwerty keyboard), send a text back, close the phone and throw it back on the dash. (do i need to put a disclaimer that you shouldn't text and drive???). when you hit the keys to text while on speaker, the other party doesnt hear any beeps or anything each time you press a button. no the phone isnt perfect, because you lose some of the menus available when you have it open in horizontal/qwerty mode, but nothing that critical. and i dont like the gold color of my phone, but they also make it in black and the new silver looks great to me. so for me, i think this phone is perfect because of its size, speakerphone features, and the horizontal/qwerty keyboard for texting. i give it a 4.5 rating because not all menus available in horizontal mode, other than that, i love it. dropped it several times, very durable.
