Samsung Galaxy Reverb Review, no contract Android smartphone for Virgin Mobile
by Antonio Wells
Nov 5, 2012 10:29 AM –
Samsung Galaxy Reverb is a budget friendly version of Samsung’s iconic Galaxy S3 phone. Though you lose some TouchWiz features like S Voice, a voice controlled assistant or motion gestures such as swiping to screenshot, however, you do get a newer version of Android (Ice Cream Sandwich) software and get it for $250 without a contract on Virgin Mobile. Looking at Virgin’s current Android smartphone lineup and wondering if you should buy the Samsung Galaxy Reverb? Find out in this review!
Price: $249.99 no contract
Carrier: Virgin Mobile
Pros & Cons:
Pros
- Has newer version of Android, 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich!
- Good camera with dedicated shutter button plus front-facing camera!
- Sprint ID, for switching app and theme profiles!
Cons
- No 4G, and in my tests, in Chicago, 3G Internet speeds were painfully slow.
Design
Samsung Galaxy Reverb AndroidTapp Webpage
Upon first glance, the Galaxy Reverb resembles the Galaxy S3, however, further inspection tells that it’s in the family but very different. Instead of the hardware button, the Reverb has three soft buttons along the bottom row. Towards the bottom bezel it comes to a point at the chin. Though this phone is extremely light, a characteristic of Samsung smartphone design, it is rather thick- at 0.44 inches. It has a metal band around it yet the back is textured plastic which makes for gripping in the hand easier.
Samsung Galaxy Reverb Compared to Galaxy S3
It has a vivid 4 inch AMOLED screen, front and rear HD cameras (an LED flash on the latter shooter), 1.4GHz single core processor, ships with only 2 GB storage but expandable to 64 GB via microSD card, measures 4.8″ by 2.52″, and has a long-lasting 1700 mAh battery.
Features
The Samsung Galaxy Reverb ships with a more recent flavor of Android, that being version 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich with TouchWiz atop. In my review of the many motion gestures of the Galaxy S3, I griped about how gimmicky some of those features are in real world practice. It seems those motion/gesture controls are regarded as premium and are not present in the Reverb. Though many are not missed, I do however, miss the convenient one where you can simply pull the phone to your ear if typing a text message to a contact to initiate a call. Oddly, to take a screenshot, you press and hold both the top Sleep/Wake button and Home button, whereas, on all other devices with ICS and newer, you press and hold both Sleep/Wake & Volume Down buttons- a thing of note.
Stock TouchWiz versus Virgin Mobile ID
Since this is a Virgin phone that is owned by and runs on the Sprint network, you see many other characteristics of the parent, a standout feature being Sprint ID. The phone defaults to the vanilla TouchWiz UI when you first turn on but soon prompts you to switch to the Virgin Mobile ID pack, a collection of themes, apps and widgets that give Virgin’s entertainment lifestyle flair.
Cameras
Samsung Galaxy Reverb Camera Shooting Modes
There is a good 5-megapixel camera with LED flash capable of 720p HD video recording on the rear, plus front-facing camera for video calling & chats. It’s a stripped down version of the S3, meaning you can shoot default single shot mode, a smile detection mode, panorama mode, and funny cartoon mode; but no HDR, Face Detection, Share shot and Buddy Photo Share. Aside of the advanced photo features, I found that the pictures were a bit washed out. For advanced users you can manually configure white balance, exposure, ISO and image metering; so you could at least get better photos.
Samsung Galaxy Reverb Sample Photo
3G, no 4G
Samsung Galaxy Reverb 3G Internet Speedtest
Unlike the EVO V, which has 4G via WiMAX, the Reverb runs on Sprint’s 3G mobile Internet. For the average user, to be honest, 3G Internet is totally fine, yet in my experience with it in Chicago it has been painfully slow. On average I received about 500 kbps download and about 200 kbps upload. This slower speed became noticeable when streaming videos or Virgin’s own Live Music service.
Call Quality
Call quality from the recipients side was impeccable and I only heard slight audio degradation!
Performance and Battery life
Samsung Galaxy Reverb Benchmark Tests Quadrant and Antutu
For most phone operation in daily use, the Reverb was without hitch. Just because it’s not one of the newer dual-core doohickeys doesn’t mean it’s a slouch. However, you can see the performance slight stutters if trying to play, say, Zombie Swipeout, which is buttery smooth on the S3. Since this is a single core, yet zippy phone, with a 1700 mAh battery, I expected it to last long- and it did. On average, as a light user, it lasted well over one day without a charge.
Pictures
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Samsung Galaxy Reverb
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Samsung Galaxy Reverb Front Camera
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Samsung Galaxy Reverb AndroidTapp Webpage
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Samsung Galaxy Reverb Rear Camera
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Samsung Galaxy Reverb Dedicated Camera Shutter Button
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Samsung Galaxy Reverb Bottom USB Port
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Samsung Galaxy Reverb Side Camera Button
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Samsung Galaxy Reverb Side
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Samsung Galaxy Reverb MicroSD Card Slot
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Samsung Galaxy Reverb Compared to Galaxy S3
Tags:
Android 4.0,
Ice Cream Sandwich,
ICS,
Samsung,
Samsung Galaxy Reverb,
Samsung Galaxy Reverb Review,
TouchWiz,
Virgin Mobile
Categorised in: Android Phones, Featured, News
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