Samsung SCH-A530
Average Ratings
Had this phone 1 1/2 years - still love it
I've had this phone since June 2003 - I love it. Its a great size and has a lot of features that I use. I've had great reception here in the Hudson Valley region of New York with the Verizon Network. The only thing I would change on this phone is to add a speakerphone and louder ring tones. I hope that Samsung comes out with this.
Hey it's Poop with a Color Screen
I am finally getting rid of this phone. it's not worth paying the insurance on this puppy. The deductable costs more than the phone.
PROS:
a color screen.
Batterly life was decent. Only because it came with 2 batteries, and cradle.
CONS:
unfortunately you're custizations are limited to "Get it Now" features. Wallpapers and Ringtones. Unless you invest in the usb cable and get the hacking software for it. It was a pain to go through all the hassle. Not worth my time. and time is money.
not to durable. Of course it's probably more my negligence. I dropped the phone twice and it fell in such a way that it broke into 2 pieces.
If you want a phone to be happy about and the price you spent, go with the Samsung A670
Very Good Phone & Still Available
First off, don't listen to what the Verizon store tells you- you can still get this phone for awhile yet if you go through a good 3rd party agent. I had luck with Voice Wireless in CA, but not with places like Radio Shack- phone around.
In any case, its a very nice phone for folks who can't use a camera phone due to security reasons at work (more than a few ppl are in this boat- major phone makers, are you listening? Not everyone is allowed a camera phone at work, and many others already HAVE a camera and don't want the feature increasing the cost of their phone).
PROS:
- Big bright, beautiful color screen (65K colors, strong backlight)
- External display (exactly WHY they took this out of the 530's replacement, the 650, is beyond me. No one I know wants to have to open up their phone in order to see who's calling, and then jab at a button in order to start talking. Dual screens rule, end of story.)
- Good reception
- Very good call quality. Most ppl don't know I'm on a cell phone
- Easy to navigate menus/controls, 'cept for the 'Get It Now' button replacing the OK/Confirm button
- Nice construction... for a plastic phone. No hinge creaking, and the acrylicized plastic resists scratches well.
CONS:
- Remember that big, beautiful, bright color screen? Well, it sucks juice something fierce, making battery life with the standard battery only adequate at best.
Unless you're a light user, you'll want the extended battery, which this phone no longer comes with (about $40-50 to purchase seperately).
- Every once in a blue moon, the phone tells me I'm roaming- even though I'm in a densely populated urban area that I KNOW has towers nearby, and even in locations from which I've made non-roaming calls from before. I update the software and it still happens once in awhile... WHA??
- Get It Now is lame. Overpriced for what it is, and the apps crashed my phone- twice.
- Voice volume a bit low. You'll be using max a lot.
Overall, good, almost great.
Not Bad But...
Not a bad phone but I have a few Gripes with it. Firstly when I first got the phone and used the clip my phone fell out three times in the first week. Then from carrying it in my pocket the antenna broke off and was stuck gluing it back together.
Other than that I like the phone...
A little work horse phone
i give this phone a 4.5 due to its small size itcan take beating.. yes i agree with others about the color.. it seems a bit femine.. but i have to admit this phone rocks... i have not had a single issue with it.... now i have the a530 not the a530s... my phone came with to batties but i a got an extra extended battery because i can be a power user... the internet speeds using it as a modem were great.... i average 90kbs on avearge with my laptop... most places i travel are full service areas so i don't experiance the batt drians like some.. but i know to expect to 1/2 my battery power if i am in a area with where i have 1 -2 bars.... also i power cycle my phone 1 time a day to prevent for a cache type build up... rememebr a cell phone is like a mini computer... it works really well when you think of it that way... anyways i love my phone... and i am going to upgrade to the a670 as it is like it but wqith a camera
a530
i love my phone i have had it for about 4 months i have the silver one it is a very good phone the pro of it is the full color works every where i need it two
i have only one complaits on it it gets hot when talking on it for more than 20 min at a time
and the pro of it that it is fun to use i like that u can eased ant message without ever hear it
good hardware, lousy firmware
I love the hardware (size, styling, weight) of this phone.
But that's all I really like about it.
The color screens aren't reflective so they are almost impossible to read outdoors in sunlight. When the backlight goes off the screens are impossible to read so just to check the time i need to press and hold the side rocker button.
The font used on the outside screen to display the incoming caller's name is very tiny and thin. Most of the screen real estate is wasted on a graphic of a head with colored hair (which you can set to a variety of hair colors). LAME.
This A530s has the worst user interface of any phone I've used before. Trying to do anything is non-intuitive and frustrating.
How nice to be able to store 1000 phone book entries but only 12 characters each? I'd have much preferred only 500 names of 24 characters each. The "Find name" page wastes a lot of screen real estate with the location number of each entry but the phone number type icon (home, office, mobile, etc.) would have been a lot more useful.
Even sending an SMS and looking up the phone number in the phone book is a huge number of clicks.
The voice dialling feature uses an entirely separate phone book from the main book. Want to use a voice dial? Reenter the phone number and name of your contact a second time. And remember to change it both places with they change their number. LAME.
And the hardware doesn't seem that robust, either. After a short drop onto concrete the screen is no longer reliable, turning black, and requiring power off for five minutes to revive it.
Nope, my next phone will not be a Samsung.
NOT WHAT I EXPECTED
I have had this phone since May,04 and I am not very happy with it. It continuously drops calls. Sometimes takes a minute to connect. I travel alot around the state (OHIO) and the phone drops calls where it shows I have full signal. I have had numerous phones in the past. (I am some what a phone geek). This one by far is the worst I have had. Also I am a large man with huge mits and it is hard for me to use with the small buttons. This phone maybe ok with the ladies with small fingers. I bought this phone sight unseen, shame on me for not doing my homework. I am looking for another phone. Possiblily the a650. I don't need a camera or anything that fancy.
ok phone low rings
it is a pretty decent phone. Can't hear rings well. can't assign downloaded pics to picture id callers. otherwise good reception and call quality
Worst phone EVER!!
I should first mention that I work for SprintPCS, and made the switch to Verizon for their in-network. I was expecting better service, and better reception. And working in the field, I know Verizon is the best. But not with this phone.
I have had this phone for 3 months now, and it has been hell. I bought it because it was nice looking and small. I didn't need a camera, or anything high tech, I've got a Sanyo 4500 for that. So I went with the A530. The phone is horrible. It will read that it has 5 bars of service, but some how, the phone will drop phone calls constantly. I can't keep a conversation for longer than 10 minuets with out it dropping. It's something I can't explain. I have friends who have switched from Sprint to Verizon, and are loving it. It must be the phone. There are many little stupid problems with it's software too. The phone is not at all intuitive. You have to read the screen always. I can go on and on with random complaints. But I won't. The phone sucks. The people who have posted reviews previously, I believe posted them right after they got the phone, before they could really test it out. It truly is a bad phone. Poor reception, totally featureless, You can't feel the phone when it vibrates, and can't set it to vibrate with a high ringer. It sucks. The only thing I do like about the phone is the one beep ringer option, which beeps once to let you know some one is calling. That's nice, but thats it. The phone also takes forever to connect to a call often. I will have to wait a full minuet before the phone starts to actually call out. This can't be a Verizon thing, it must be the phone. Or maybe Verizon sucks, what do I know. I'm just going to have to wait for the Motorola V710 to come out. Sorry for the review, I know, it sounds like someone venting. Well, it is. Be warned.
