Top features of the Samsung Galaxy S
Since its release in March 2010 the Samsung Galaxy S I9000 has sold over five million units and was arguably the first Android device to really stride away from Apple’s all conquering iPhone in the smartphone race.
Six months on and the device is still going strong and users are still flocking to the pocket powerhouse in their droves. But what, you may ask yourselves, makes the I9000 such a good purchase? Well, we thought we’d give you five good reasons to make the Galaxy S your next handset:
Power – If you’re looking for the most powerful Android device on the market (for now at least) look no further. The Galaxy S boasts a 1GHz ARM Cortex processor which makes the phone fly, and the inclusion of 512MB RAM and a mouth-watering 2GB ROM mean you won’t have to go looking for a new device in a few months when bigger and more labour intensive applications and OS requirements become the norm. The I9000 is as close to future proof as you’re going to get in the crazy world of mobile technology and that alone is reason enough to invest in one.
Camera – The Galaxy S brings a whole host of features along with its 5-megapixel camera. Image stabilisation, blink detection, smile and face detection and geo-tagging all come packaged with the device, ready to make your photographic experience user friendly and effective. Anything less than the best just wouldn’t fly with this device, so naturally it captures video at 720P resolution at 30FPS, meaning you don’t have to take your camcorder with you wherever you go any longer. It also has a front-facing camera that will likely come well into its own with the introduction of Android 2.3, which will bring with it, video-calling.
Connectivity – Connection standards are something of a speciality with all Android devices. You expect Wi-Fi, 3G, HSDPA and Bluetooth and you get all of these with the Galaxy S, with the added bonus that the Galaxy S is the first handset to be empowered with the new Wi-Fi Direct standard, which allows enabled devices to connect to one another without the need for a wireless hotspot, meaning you can share photos and videos with your friends, stream your media wirelessly to an enabled media player or PC and even play multiplayer games with other Wi-Fi Direct users.
UI – With the Galaxy S you get the benefit of Samsung’s TouchWiz UI, which sits on top of the default Android user interface. TouchWiz includes custom widgets, shortcuts and other options and refreshes the visual appearance of Android, which can sometimes look a little plain. As part of their customisation efforts Samsung have also included the excellent Swype keyboard, which is widely regarded as the most effective touch-screen input method available today. Within a few minutes you’ll be texting and emailing like a pro, and you won’t have to worry about those dreaded touchscreen auto-correction errors either, as Swype is the best in the business as knowing what you mean.
Screen – We saved the best until last here. The super AMOLED screen on the Galaxy S is simply stunning. Colour and contrast are second to none, it’s vivid, rich and amazingly bright, and breathes life into every visual aspect of the user experience. It’s also Gorilla Glass which means you won’t find it easy to scratch or damage. If you want an immersive experience when watching videos or viewing photographs the Galaxy S should be your go-to device. It’s that good.
The Galaxy S was a beast of a device when it came to market in the summer and since then it has gone from strength to strength. It still represents the very best Android experience a user could want and the foresight of the manufacturer means it will likely be at the top of its game for a while yet. The added bonus of it being 6 months old means that you can expect to get some great subsidies from providers, so you end up with a top of the line handset and a monthly outlay that won’t depress you! Win/win.