UK 3G Mobile Phones - Samsung F490 Review

Your Samsung F490 Reviews

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Reviewer: Charlotte - UK
Date: 6th May 2008

Amazing phone, stylish & light, I love it

Everyone is moaning about the call lock, they put that on there so some idiot doesn't accidentally cancel the call when you're on the phone! Awkward but it's that or you just keep hanging up on people.

& the touch screen, if you can't work the touch screen why get this phone!

Another good phone from Samsung.

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Reviewer: Yaneil Moses - Catries, Saint Lucia
Date: 4th May 2008

Oh my god what can be done without it.

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Reviewer: Stephen Flynn - London, UK
Date: 30th Apr 2008

I would some up this phone as Style over Substance. I have to agree with a previous review about this phone. When I first received it as an upgrade from Vodafone, I was very excited. It looks great & the touch screen, 5MP camera & Internet make it incredibly attractive.

I have now had the phone for just over two weeks & it drives me crazy. The main problem is that the screen locks when you are making a call, & you have to press the side button to be able to use the call end buttons, which often results in me being unable to hang up calls, which is a source of enormous frustration, particularly when I am busy & they are work calls! I am gradually getting the hang off remembering to press the side button to use the phone during or at the end of a call though.

The touch screen is very sensitive but either chose options without you meaning to, or it freezes & needs several touches before the button actually presses. This is particularly true of the buttons at the bottom which have a tendency to freeze for a few seconds. The scrolling function at the side of the screen if particularly frustrating as it is too narrow, & you end up pressing things you don't want to.

My biggest disappointment is the 5MP camera. You have to hold the camera button down for ages before it works. Also the quality of the photos particularly in the evening & indoors are particularly poor, despite having a flash.

Also the Internet feels basic, nowhere near as impressive as the iPhone. You cannot use the keypad when viewing it from the side view.

The actual features on the phone once you have explored it for a while are quite basic. It feels like this phone was rushed out to rival the iPhone, but having used my friend's iPhone, it does not come close to it. My advice, shell out your money for an iPhone. I have passed the 2 week return window & am now stuck with this phone until December 2009. I feel I might end up buying another handset before then.

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Reviewer: Tim Phillips - London, UK
Date: 29th Apr 2008

Really easy to get used to. I went into Vodafone to get the N95 but when he brought out the F490 for me to look at it just looked so much nicer & weighs a lot lighter. Amasing camera. Samsung all the way.

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Reviewer: Michael - UK
Date: 26th Apr 2008

Yes the keypad does lock during a call but if you think about it then it makes sense it prevents you accidentally cancelling the call!

But everything is absolutely amazing I love it.

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Reviewer: Gary - Bournmouth, UK
Date: 25th Apr 2008

What a phone it's great to look at & although it took a little while to get used to it is great for entertainment & I had a Nokia N95 but I feel this matches it on feature & sound & the design & the screen are better. The camera is just as good. The only thing it lacks is GPS which I won't miss a great deal but a great phone & would strongly recommend it.

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Reviewer: Dan - UK
Date: 25th Apr 2008

Had this phone for a few days now & am really impressed with it. Very nice to look at & does everything you want. The only problem I have is that when you take a picture with the phone, then try to use it as a wallpaper the picture is too big, I have tried changing the size but cannot get the image to fit, but all together a great phone.

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Reviewer: John Kerans - UK
Date: 15th Apr 2008

This is a very nice looking phone, unfortunately it suffers from a number of significant flaws.

The biggest is the touch screen, whilst it's an excellent idea it doesn't work very well, I find that every time I touch my finger to the screen to move down a list in a menu rather than letting them scroll it just selects the first item I touch, making it virtually impossible to scroll through menus.

Secondly the fact that the screen locks when a call comes through, meaning you have to unlock it to answer, it then locks during the call, meaning you have to unlock it again to hang up.

Also the camera is appalling, it takes about 5 seconds (no exaggeration) from pressing the button to taking the photo

Overall it's a very nice looking phone, but it's totally unusable.

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Reviewer: Ben - UK
Date: 14th Apr 2008

This phone is great. Best camera phone in the world. Better than the LG viewty. Get the samsung.

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Reviewer: Rob - UK
Date: 13th Apr 2008

I think phone is good had it for two days at least I can use it Internet is good down loaded ringtones little big but screen nice size fits in my pocket fine. Things work well first touch screen I have had like features it does link up to PC good looks good get one.

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Reviewer: Chris - UK
Date: 13th Apr 2008

I thought I'd wait a couple of days before I'd write a review. So now I can confidently say, wow, this phone is fantastic.

I've just come away from the infuriating Sony Ericsson W850i which browsed the net on its own, played MP3's randomly in my pocket, the lock feature was poor. Glad to get shot of it.

Anyway, the Samsung F490 is brilliant. It's taken a little while to get used to, but the touch screen is really smooth & responsive. You just need to use the tips of your fingers & it behaves well. Text typing is easy, but doesn't lock to predictive text. You have to select it every time you text. Also, the predictive text only gives you a one word option.

However, don't worry about sticky fingers because it comes with a nice cloth case that you can use to clean the screen with. The audio & video playback is perfect. MP4 H263 & H264 compatible. The 5MP camera does auto focus when you gently press the camera button.

All in all, a good phone that you will get to love after a bit of patience. By the way everyone who's seen it have commented on how stylish it is. Very Nice.

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Reviewer: Andy - Leeds, UK
Date: 9th Apr 2008

Seriously if your thinking of getting this phone GO FOR IT! It is an awesome phone & as of yet I honestly can't find one fault, one thing which would make it perfect would be to have Wi-Fi but hey don't let that stop you getting this phone, everything about it is great & I know I have made the right decision!

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Reviewer: Barry - Glasgow, UK
Date: 9th Apr 2008

Overall a good phone with good features. Not so keen on the select & back buttons. Someone else mentioned they were a real pain & I totally agree but might just need getting used to though. Hoping the music & video player are up to scratch as haven't had the chance to use them yet.

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Reviewer: Mandy - UK
Date: 8th Apr 2008

I just got this phone last week, & so far I am chuffed with it. It looks great & the touch screen is easy to use, & the vibration feedback is a nice feature. The interface is very easy & is similar to the menus found on other Samsung's. The camera's OK in daylight but it's not so great taking pictures at night, it's still OK though, you just need to adjust the settings a bit.

When I chose this phone I was concerned about writing a text message without the keypad, but it turns out to be exactly the same as a virtual keypad comes up on the screen & it's very responsive. The phone might be a bit tricky to use if you have big fingers, although mine came with a mini stylus so I am assuming others would too, & this can be used easily & keeps the screen clean. The call/end call touch buttons are also useful, & the only thing I am having trouble with is unlocking the buttons by pressing the camera key when getting a call, but this will hopefully come with time.

The Internet is OK, but I can't really compare it with other phones because it's the first time I've used it on a mobile. It seems to be pretty fast to me though.

As for physical features, the phone is quite thin & light, but some might find it a bit large, although it fits comfortably in the hand. It's very sleek & a definite eye catcher.

You can change the message tone & the ringtone by going into settings, phone profiles & edit normal mode & there's a message icon at the top of the screen. Touch that & it's the profile options for messages, & the second option down is the message alert tone. There are 7 tones you can use or you can use your own music. This is the same to set the ringtone.

Overall I'd recommend this phone to anyone who wants a stylish phone with a fair camera & many features, but the phone itself is a bit pricey & might be fiddly for someone with large fingers!

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Reviewer: James - Worthing, UK
Date: 7th Apr 2008

Having had the phone for nearly a week now, I am still finding the features & touch screen a pain to use. The theory & idea of this phone is brilliant but practicality is poor. The phone front is completely touch & therefore certain features have had to be adapted & now can be tricky to undertake. Answering the phone is the biggest nightmare. If the phone is locked to have to unlock it to answer the call, in standby mode you still have to press a button to enable function to be able to answer the call. Menu design has been taken from previous Samsungs with number buttons & this is evident as the menus are not so easy to flick between. As previous reviews, OK & back buttons are pain as you have to have the right angle of force or they do not accept your touch. This is a Samsung you can change the message tone to you own uploaded tune. Does come with Google maps which is trying to take of iPhone but this phone has not got the functionality nor the technology compared to the iPhone but is 3G.

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Reviewer: Tommo - UK
Date: 7th Apr 2008

Just got this phone & make no mistake it is lovely to look at & use, it falls down for me when it comes to customising options, e.g. Menu colours, to this end, fully changeable themes would have been nice. Don't be afraid of the touch screen I have almost got used to it already. I am putting some videos on it as I type, they'll look magic on a screen this size.

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Reviewer: Joe Baldwin - Gloucester, UK
Date: 7th Apr 2008

Got the phone this morning & first impressions are it looks great. Interface seems to be one of the better touch screens although still not as good as the iPhone. However this phone works unlike the iPhone. Calls are clear & volume is good.

Menu seems easy to use & the on screen keyboard isn't as bad as I thought it was going to be.

Had to turn off the button press noise & vibrate as it was annoying as hell after half an hour.

My only grip so far is the screen isn't the easiest to see when outside in sunlight. Which can be annoying but I'll have a play with the brightness to see if I can find a suitable compromise.

Overall I am happy. I was stuck between this & the N95 8gig & this just won be over on looks.

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Reviewer: Ian - UK
Date: 6th Apr 2008

It's totally rubbish it's big like a brick & just boring, get the LG viewty.

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Reviewer: Ste - UK
Date: 5th Apr 2008

Bit disappointed by this phone, got it on Thursday when it came out & within 4 hours rang Vodafone to change it but have it till Monday when they swap. Far too much messing about to answer & hang up a call, cannot see the screen very well when outside in daylight even with the brightness turned right up. Quite big to hold, back button can be unresponsive & mine one seems to reset itself after a few hours if you don't use it. Waiting to upgrade my phone till this one was realised but not at all what I was told this phone would be. Have had Samsung's for years, the E700, E720, D900, U600 & don't rate this one. Maybe the complete touch screen just does not do it for.

Enjoy it if you can get on with it.

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Reviewer: Mike - Portsmouth, UK
Date: 4th Apr 2008

Nice phone, a bit on the large side but then the screen size dictates this. Touch screen takes a bit of getting used to & the select or back touch screen buttons are really hard to use. It doesn't look like you can change the message tone either. Camera is really good when pictures are uploaded to PC.

All in all, not a bad phone.

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Reviewer: Dee Cook - Middlesbrough, UK
Date: 3rd Apr 2008

I am probably one of the first in the UK to get one of these mobiles I am afraid to say I am a bit disappointed with it, it wasn't worth the wait unfortunately.

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Reviewer: Jane - UK
Date: 31st Mar 2008

Can't Decide Between This & the F700?

Comes Out On the 7th So I Will Have Time To Decide!

Looks a Nice Phone Though Very Nice I Only Wish It Has the cool Keyboard Like the F700?

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Reviewer: Mony - Phichit, Thailand
Date: 21st Feb 2008

Quite a nice phone. Not many features, not the best phone I've had but not worst.



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