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9 of 9 found the following review helpful:
 Unimpressed Aug 07, 2007
By Brian J. Jolley
I had a Samung phone before and knew how the buttons all worked. I assumed Samsung would maintain the same good-sense button logic on newer, similar model phones. I was wrong. I've got a few problems which I outline below:
LOCK BUTTON SUCKS - I keep my phone in my pocket. Even though I've enabled the Lock feature, you can unlock it without opening the phone, so you can accidentally unlock it. (What kind of lock is that?) When it unlocks while in my pocket, sometimes the camera feature gets pressed, and I have a dozen black photos of the inside of my pocket. Similarly, the voice dial can be enabled, and I hear a voice from my pocket asking me to re-say the name I wish to dial. "Wish to dial?" I locked the dang thing! I didn't want to call anyone!
CONTACT LIST SCROLLING - My old Samsung had external side buttons that, when showing the contact list, would 'page down' or 'page up' scrolling through the contact list. On the u540, the buttons do nothing, and you have to choose the first letter of the name of the person you wish to call from the keypad. It requires far more attention to chose a letter than to just scroll down.
DEFUALT RINGTONES STINK - This may just be because of my carrier (Verizon), but all the default ringtones are irritating. There's nothing mellow or unobtrusive. If you want to have something else, you have to pay extra. Since mine is a company phone, I don't think management is gonna like paying for 'ringtones' or having to go to the effort of getting $3 from me. What a hassle. Also, after browsing the Verizon site, all the ringtones are pop songs. Whatever happened to a simple ring?
LITTLE BUILT-IN MEMORY - You can take photos, video and listen to music! But only if you go and buy a chip. Some aren't too expensive, but it's still just another barrier to enjoying the phone.
SLOPPY HINGE - I'd expect a product like this to be made to tight specs. When the phone is closed, the 'screen' half is loose. It wiggles on top of the 'button' half and gives the phone a flimsy feel to it. Also, you'd think with stereo speakers on the outside on top, you'd think the phone has speaker phone ability. It doesn't.
SOME GOOD POINTS - It's sleek and thin (though if you get the extended battery like I did, it ain't so thin). I seem to be easily heard by people I call, and the buttons are large enough to press easily. The screen is bright and readable. The camera has some good controls on it (exposure bias, ISO, etc), which surprised me.
All in all I'm disappointed. I really just want a good phone as a phone. Make calls, accept calls, and usually sit there quietly. Given the chance again, I would not choose this phone.
***EDIT***: I've since discovered that my carrier, Verizon, has put its own interface/software on this phone to make it match all its other phones (in order to simplify tech support, I suppose). Most of my complaints about this phone actually stemmed from the fact that Verizon did a poor job of making the buttons work sensibly, including the poor selection of default ringtones. With another carrier/interface this phone would likely perform differently. This discovery partially renewed my confidence with Samsung technology, though further aggravates my frustrations with Verizon Wireless.
8 of 9 found the following review helpful:
 Samsung missed the point Jul 03, 2007
By NRC344
The purpose of a cell phone is to communicate. This phone does have many features and does have style, but it can't communicate. The talk-out is perfect, no complaints from callers. The problem with this phone is the earpiece. The volume is loud and can rattle the phone, but the earpiece hole doesn't let the sound out of the phone. Very hard to hear and understand the caller. The phone may be OK with bluetooth. Took mine back after two weeks and exchanged for a LG 8600. Big difference in voice reception.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
 good phone, mediocre battery life Oct 08, 2007
By 1fastdoc
I replaced an older Samsung A670 with this phone several months ago and am overall very pleased with it. It is much thinner and lighter and can easily be forgotten in my pocket.
Reception: It's a little better than my previous Samsung and on par with my wife's Motorolla crazr. It works just about anywhere to include basements and elevators. I don't know what was wrong with the previous reviewers speaker but I can understand others just fine. I also keep the volume all the way up and it doesn't cause my phone to rattle.
The default ringtones do stink but I have yet to see a Samsung where they don't. I think the designers have a 70's disco fetish. There are a couple basic ringtones and those work well for me.
The lock button feature does suck on this one. It doesn't seem to stay locked on my phone for very long. I have yet to take a picture with it in my pocket though. That happened daily with my old A670.
Battery life: I'm actually on my 2nd phone and 3rd battery. I was surprised when my first phone ran through it's charge within 36 hours of minimal to moderate use. I used to charge my A670 2-3x/week and my old LG once per week. This thing is on the charger at least every other night and many times every night. I am not a heavy cell user. We tried changing phones first with the same results. Then we changed batteries and there did seem to be some improvement. The tech at the Verizon store said that it's normal to have to charge the phone every night. I don't think he read the manual for the phone.
I don't use the mp3 player function but I'd be willing to bet it would eat the battery very quickly. The camera is acceptable but it's still a cameraphone, which I don't think is good for much.
Perhaps the fact that the phone comes unlocked has something to do with it because the mp3 buttons are pretty sensitive. I wear loose slacks though so there is not a lot of pressure on the buttons. It is an annoyance but it's not enough to outweigh the lightweight and slender design, which is the most important feature for me.
The construction is no different that other cells I've used. Drop it and it may loosen. Mine has maybe 1mm of deflection when I try to slide the two halfs back and forth. I like something that feels solid, not like it was made by a toy manufacturer. This phone is solid (and it's been dropped a few times).
If I had to go buy another cell phone right now I'd buy this one again.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
 Great Phone! Jul 22, 2007
By Penny
Although I've only had this phone for about 4 days, so far I am very happy with it. Not only is it lightweight, small and attractive, but the features and menu screens are impressive and easy to navigate. The speakerphone is wonderful...very loud and clear which is especially helpful if you live in a state where using a cell phone while driving is illegal.
Great phone and reasonably priced considering everything it has to offer!!!
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Overall Great Phone for the not-so-high-tech user Mar 05, 2008
By Alison N. Leroy
I've had this phone for almost a year. I've had Samsung phones for many years now, and this phone lives up to it's Samsung name. A few notes on this phone....
Previous reviewers stated that the lock button does not work. The button on the side only locks the front media player buttons. It does not however, lock the phone. To do that- you need to go into the menu.
I have had no problems with the speaker either.
And it DOES have speakerphone.
This phone is very sturdy and durable.
I did have to replace mine a few times, though- once was because an omeba type ink stain appeared on the inside of the screen- the tech was perplexed and said he'd never seen anything like that, and just replaced the phone.
Overall I love this phone, and the simple easy to use interface makes it even better. I have very good luck with my battery. I usually charge it every other night. And i do text and talk intermittently throughout the day. I plan to stick with samsung as long as they continue to make great phones like this one.
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