Samsung Instinct

I suppose some congratulations are in order. This past week Sprint announced that the Samsung Instinct became its fastest selling EV-DO handset ever. I’m sure it didn’t hurt that this touchscreen phone’s price had been slashed from $199 to $129 just hours before it became available—most likely out of fear of the iPhone 3G’s impending availability.

In the press release John Garcia, president of Sprint’s wireless division, couldn’t help but take a swipe at the 3G part of the iPhone’s name. He reminded the public that Sprint’s EV-DO Rev A network offers five times more coverage than AT&T’s HSDPA network (based on square miles). He shouldn’t have gone there.

The goal, of course, was to plant the seed of doubt in would be iPhone 3G owners that its increased data speeds won’t wow once you venture outside of downtown. That’s a fair criticism, but it ignores the fact that the iPhone’s Web browser runs circles around the Instinct’s. I’d rather wait a few extra seconds for a site to load in the suburbs and have it look like the real deal than be stuck with a browser that crowds the screen with icons and crudely formats pages. Speaking of circles, I’ve started using the Instinct and I’m sick of staring at spinning circles as I wait for applications to open. It’s like Windows Vista on a phone.

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Sprint just dropped a bomb. We all thought the Samsung Instinct was going to $199, but the carrier announced this morning that it’s going to be priced at a surprisingly low $129 (after a $100 mail-in rebate). Keep in mind that–at a minimum–you’ll need to spring for the $69.99 monthly Simply Everything plan, which includes 450 voice minutes and unlimited data.

Still, this is great news for touchscreen phone fans, even if it doesn’t make prospective iPhone 3G buyers think twice. Think about it. You get a slick and customizable UI, fast over-the-air music downloads, live TV, GPS, Visual Voicemail, sophisticated voice recognition, and a 2-MP camera for $70 less than the Samsung Glyde and LG Vu. Granted, the Instinct’s Web browser is poor, and we wish the device had a built-in accelerometer, but at $129 the Instinct is pretty much a no-brainer for Sprint customers.

Does this sudden price drop make you any more likely to buy the Instinct? Sound off in our poll.

The Samsung Instinct just arrived in our offices about an hour ago and we now have our mini-review up. In the past, we saw the Instinct at CTIA, and recently learned more about it during a Sprint webinar, but we’re excited to finally have one of our own. The Instinct comes packaged in a small box that resembles the size of a hardcover book. Inside that box, you’ll find a ton of accessories. Along with the standard charger, the box contains a USB cable, 3.5mm headset, extra battery, a microSD card, a stylus, and a leather carrying sheath. Read the rest of this entry »

I just sat in on a webinar for the new Samsung Instinct phone from Sprint, presented by David Owens, director of product strategy and commercialization. We’re excited about the Instinct, but this webinar made me feel like I was watching a cheesy show on the Home Shopping Network.

Anyway, here are some of the known highlights of the phone that’s due out in June, followed by a brief Q & A session, during which the dreaded iPhone comparison was addressed . . . kind of.

• Instinct will offer EV-DO Rev. A speeds
• Real Web browsing on the NOW network
• GPS-enabled navigation, 3D maps, voice navigation
• Consumer (POP3) and Business e-mail support
• Visual voicemail
• 2.0-MP camera with camcorder
• Up to 8GB microSD support, 2GB included
• Threaded text messaging
• Voice activation: speech-to-action button offers many functions using voice activation, including call, news, local search, and more. For example, one could say: “Go to Search; Pizza; local places within 10 miles;” select one of the options that turns up, and get audible turn-by-turn driving directions.
• Sprint TV: more than 50 channels of live and on-demand video including Sprint Exclusive Entertainment
• Music: Sideload with media manager or instantly download from Sprint Music Store.
• Weather: Local forecasts will load based on GPS location
• Live Search developed by Microsoft

Does the Instinct sync with Microsoft Outlook?
It does offer push e-mail, but it uses Outlook Web Access to get to the mail. It doesn’t sync with calendar, however.

What’s the battery life?
The kit includes a second battery, because Samsung wants people to feel like the phone is always on. Also included in the box are headphones, a carrying case, a stylus, and a 2GB microSD Card. The 1100-milliamp battery offers more than 5 hours of talk time.

What kind of touchscreen does it have?
While the iPhone has capacitive touch, the Instinct users receptive technology. When you press on something, it registers. The product uses haptic feedback, a faint vibration to indicate you’ve pushed a button. A QWERTY keypad is available in landscape mode, which offers predictive text. You can touch-scroll through pictures and thumbnail galleries.

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Samsung and Sprint are moving touch in an exciting new direction with the Samsung Instinct, a device that offers vibrating tactile feedback, fast EV-DO Rev. A data, and GPS capability in a slick design. What makes the Instinct truly innovative is its customizable Favorites menu, which enables users to access everything, from specific contacts and Web sites to Sprint TV stations, with a single tap.

The Instinct, arriving in June, also impresses with the way it uses voice recognition. Not only can you launch applications and send text messages by pressing the Voice to Action button, you can also look up nearby businesses via Live Search from Sprint. From there you can get turn-by-turn driving directions from the TeleNav-powered Sprint Navigation service.

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Is the iPhone in for some stiff competition from Samsung’s new touchscreen phone?

As we mentioned in our earlier post, the Instinct has a ton of potential. Fascinating features such as the speedy EV-DO Rev. A connection and the voice recognition software piqued our interest.

Now, we’ve had a chance to play with the Instinct in person at CTIA.

Is this an iPhone killer? Take a look at our video and see for yourself.

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