Samsung D500 Review

[hbk88in]

Samsung D500
Unanimously Voted the best phone of the year 2005 by the GSM World Council, the phone is clearly not a disappointment.



Key Features
• 262k colors display
• Bluetooth
• 96 Megabytes of memory
• Mp3 Player
• 1.3 MegaPixel Camera

Whats in the box?
•Handset
•External Speaker
•Battery
•Handsfree kit
•Handstrap
•Manual

Build
The D500 is smaller than what it may seem in its images. The dimensions of the phone are 93.5 x 45.7 x 23.5 mm and weighs only 99 grams. The phone is made of very high quality plastic which is sturdy and scratch resistant till a certain extent, which covers the sides and battery of the phone. The rest of the material used is like the black part of the SonyEricsson T610. The sliding mechanism is certainly better than the older sliding phones like the Nokia 7650, Siemens SL55 etc. Just a push of the finger slides open the upper screen, revealing the flat keypad beneath and the 1.3 Megapixel cameras, mirror and flash behind. The phone can be operated for most of the tasks like navigating through the menu, making calls from the phonebook, playing music etc. On the left side of the phone is the volume key and on the right side are the camera key, external speaker/handsfree plug and the infrared port.

Display
The Samsung D500 boasts a beautiful screen with a resolution of 176 x 220 pixels, showing 262k colors. Samsung has chosen a TFT display, which means lesser visibility in sunlight. The display indoors is bright and very crisp, as good as the display of the infamous SonyEricsson S700. The display is divided into 4 parts, from top to bottom, first comes the battery meter, signal strength, alarm icon etc. Next is the time, day and date row. Third part, the major part of the display is for the wallpapers and at the last and bottom most part is menu and contacts soft key. The phone offers 4 color options or ‘skins’, and new skins cannot be downloaded. Animations can be set as wallpapers. There is still no screensaver feature and the screen turns almost blank, only the time, day and date are black, while in standby mode.

Software
The D500 carries better software than the older D410. Pressing the menu key opens up a 9 icon menu. Java is supported and games can only be downloaded through WAP by default, but some tweaks are available to alter the same. The software is fast and stable. The phone has a built in MP3 player which proves to be very useful wit the availability of 96 Mb of shared memory. The phone also has the capability to playback videos. The phone accepts images in .jpg, .gif and .bmp format. The phone also has a voice recorder and also plays .amr files. The mp3 player has 2 types of ‘equalizer’ values, which means you can either have vertical bar’s jump up and down while listening to music or you can have bar’s move horizontally. The calendar can have up to 400 entries and the phonebook can store 1000 numbers. The organizer is good, but not too great. The good part about the organizer is that 3 alarms can be set simultaneously and anniversary function is also supported. The phone also shows the world time and has an inbuilt calculator, converter, timer and stopwatch.
Pros:
Fast and stable
Nice look to the mp3 player
A Play list can be created
3 Alarms can be set simultaneously
Cons:
Not smart phone software (Symbian, Windows etc.)
Games cannot be transferred through the computer without tweaking

Connectivity
The D500 is the first Samsung phone to offer Bluetooth, which works very well at a good speed. Transferring 40 Mb of data from my computer took less than 20 minutes. The part I found nice is that while transferring files from the phone, the device can be searched from the send menu itself. This instead of first pairing the device from the Bluetooth menu, the device can be searched while sending itself which means quicker and less irritating operation. The phone also offers infrared connectivity which works both ways, i.e. from and to other phones. The phone has GPRS connectivity and setting can be received over the air.

Messaging
The phone supports multimedia messaging and there is a choice between the limit, 100kb or 295kb depending upon your service provider. Messaging is fun because of the flat keys and ample spacing between the keys. A very interesting thing about the messaging part is that up to 10 numbers can be blocked which means short messages from those 10 particular numbers will be automatically blocked by the phone.

Call Features
The phone has an inbuilt speakerphone and also comes with an external one. The phone also has a voice clarity function which cuts most of the background noise from the other side and giver better sound quality. The sad part is that calls cannot be recorded. The good part is that the loudspeaker can be turned on by pressing the ‘ok’ key rather than from the call menu.

Camera
1.3 Megapixel camera, Video and flash, all that it required to complete a camera phone. The camera is very good and the videos are crisp. Flash plays its part in lighting up the photos. The bad part about the camera is that the resolution it shows before taking the picture is 10 times worse than the outcome, so it’s a bit confusing. The phone offers 8x Zoom at VGA Resolution. The camera on the whole is as good as the one on The SonyEricsson S700i. Photos taken from the camera can be zoomed from the image viewer. Frames can be added to the pictured either while taking them or after they have been taken.

Ringtones
The phone supports MP3, Midi, amr and MMF ringtones. The sad part is that the phone does not ring and vibrate simultaneously while receiving a call in the case of midi ,mp3 and amr ringtones, it vibrates first and then rings or just rings. This is a major drawback of the phone. However, the phone does support ‘mmf’ ringtones which vibrate and ring at the same time, but that is completely upto the ringtone itself. As far as loudness is concerned, the phone is very loud indeed and can usually be heard ringing in a crowd.

Multimedia Functions
The phone has 96 Megabytes of memory which means about 32 songs of an average size of 3 megabytes. The phone comes with an external speaker which can be attached to enhance the sounds of the phone. The video playback is smooth and clear. Music playback is also clear and a playlist can be created within the phone itself.

Privacy
The phone can be locked, as in while starting up the phone will require a password to be activated. Also, Images, sound, videos, multimedia messages and music can be locked, which mite prove to be a useful feature.

Conclusion
For starters, the phone is very good looking and has most of the modern day features. The phone is really easy to use and the slider is not at all a problem. The camera is great and the multimedia functions can prove to be very entertaining.Priced at Rs.20,000(New delhi), I would recommend the phone to people looking for stylish phones and not having a limited choice of brands.

[drgrudge]

A Good review man!
But one suggestion, can u just highlighting (by font color/bold ) ur sub sections so that it is easy to read and looks better.

Man, again i would not go for a non symbian phone that too a mob which costs 20k.

Also is there any option for MMC's ?

Still it looks better than clampshell phones but there are better phones available...

[hbk88in]

Thanx drgrudge. Yeah i will work on the highlighting part next time.
sorry to inform u, but unfortunately there is no slot for MMC's.
that's usually not a problem for most people because the phone has 96mb memory which is more than sufficient.
As far as the symbian thing is concerned...i do agree it is a major setback..but ive seen a lot of people buying symbian phones and not taking advantage of the operating system due to either lack of knoledge about the same or because of the non-availability of resoruces.
I've used non-smartphone's ranging from SonyEricsson T610 to Motorola E398 and SonyEricsson K700i. I have used the nokia 6600,7610,6260 and SonyEricsson P900 in the smartphone range. But i gota say...having a smartphone is a luxury...but most of them are ugly. Looks are very important for me, next importance is given to features. I mean i would never buy a phone like the Motorola V3 just coz its awesome looking, but only has 5 mb of memory. This is just my point of view. I basically use my phone like a phone and for music, and ofcourse the occasional gaming.so im all good with this one.
-Anish

[drgrudge]

Originally Posted by hbk88in

sorry to inform u, but unfortunately there is no slot for MMC's.
that's usually not a problem for most people because the phone has 96mb memory which is more than sufficient.

Hmm..., if this phone a mp3 player player then i am sure sky should be the limit in case of memory, more the memory, more songs on ur phone.

But since this phone lacks symbian it's affect wont be felt much...

Originally Posted by hbk88in

As far as the symbian thing is concerned...i do agree it is a major setback..but ive seen a lot of people buying symbian phones and not taking advantage of the operating system due to either lack of knoledge about the same or because of the non-availability of resoruces.
I've used non-smartphone's ranging from SonyEricsson T610 to Motorola E398 and SonyEricsson K700i. I have used the nokia 6600,7610,6260 and SonyEricsson P900 in the smartphone range.

Hmm..., who said, ppl dont use because of lack of resources? That's not true (hope u got wht i meant )

Also for me symbian is more important than multimedia capabilities..., we always can install a mp3 player via installing software, i even saw a FM radio player for 6600.....

Me and nemisis also had a long arguement over which phone to buy (6230i or 7610), the former had mp3 player/fm thing and the latter had symbian/big screen size etc.., i believe it boils down to ur personal preference....

Originally Posted by hbk88in

But i gota say...having a smartphone is a luxury...but most of them are ugly. Looks are very important for me, next importance is given to features.

no one buys a moto razr V3 for it's feature , features wise this phone sucks, even otherwise it's not that good (it's looks).
I prefer a flip phone like D500/410/400 rahter than a clampshell model or a bar model.

[hbk88in]

Yeah i get what you mean dude...
See to tell you the truth...most people around me have bought Nokia's just because they're nokia's...i have this cousin hu got a 6600...hasnt used the symbian OS for nothing more than an MP3 Player...he regrets buying that brick 'coz he could have got a moto E398 for a lesser price...this is the case with most people around here...i mean all people dont have access to softwares like most of the people here( ).
and you have to agree that the D500 is the sexiest and the most complete phone around..looks, most features,awesome camera and enough memory.
and btw that radio thing for 6600 is like an online thingie...u need GPRS for that...i tired it wit the 7610 already

[drgrudge]

Originally Posted by hbk88in

Yeah i get what you mean dude...
See to tell you the truth...most people around me have bought Nokia's just because they're nokia's...

Hmm..., yeah most of them buy for it's name. It is the market leader and we get good resell value as well.
Now Nokia phones are soon gonna be "Made in India (chennai)" phones.

Originally Posted by hbk88in

i have this cousin hu got a 6600...hasnt used the symbian OS for nothing more than an MP3 Player...he regrets buying that brick 'coz he could have got a moto E398 for a lesser price...this is the case with most people around here...i mean all people dont have access to softwares like most of the people here( ).

Hmm..., different ppl have different needs, IMO, we can't get the perfect mobile, no matter what price range it is. We will have to compromise on certain features.

I don't know abt other ppl, but for me, i need a symbian phone and i can get softwares easily

Originally Posted by hbk88in

and you have to agree that the D500 is the sexiest and the most complete phone around..looks, most features,awesome camera and enough memory.

Yeah, i like the way it looks. As i have said earlier, i like these flip phones.
But telling that it's a complete phone is not justified. IT costs 20.5k here at chennai. For that price i can get a 6670/7610 (and save 1.5k) or 6630 (without bill).

And the memory thing is not expandable remember that, sky should be the limit in case u get a mp3 playing mobile.

Originally Posted by hbk88in

and btw that radio thing for 6600 is like an online thingie...u need GPRS for that...i tired it wit the 7610 already

Yeah, i knew it, u don't get any indian stations or indian/hindi songs. U need GPRS for the same, and it's really good if u like english songs and stuffs.

[hbk88in]

Dude chennai's expensive...here the 6670 is for 16.5k and 7610 is for 17.7k...and i got my D500 for 19.5k...
These nokia's may have good features but dey're BIG and UGLY , the way i see it.
See the thing about GPRS is that airtel dosent give actual gprs for pre-paid users, just access to their portal and hutch charges 99 bux a month which is too much for my pocket...soz im happy listening to my own rock music on my phone.
another thing about nokia is that every phone of theirs becomes popular within 1 month of its launch..and i seriously do not like carrying around common phones...but i have to draw the line somewhere soz i compromise on buying the rare type phones...
anyhow it all ends up to ure like's and dislikes.
-Anish

[drgrudge]

Originally Posted by hbk88in

Dude chennai's expensive...here the 6670 is for 16.5k and 7610 is for 17.7k...and i got my D500 for 19.5k...

Hmm..., yes, the sales tax is very high in tamil nadu compared to other states. And to top it all, no VAT in here as well.
I really get surprised when ppl here quote less price for mobiles.

Originally Posted by hbk88in

These nokia's may have good features but dey're BIG and UGLY , the way i see it.

Hmm... big? ugly?
lol,
6260 -->clampshell/shivel model
7600 --> leaf shaped
6610/3200/and others -->ordinary bar shaped
3300/n gage --> horizontally bar shaped
3220 --> wave covers, neon lights thing
3100 --> dancing keypad thing when the phone rings
9500 --> 2 lcd's and a pencil box...
3660 --> a round keypad thing

Ok. anyway it may boil down to a personal preference.

Originally Posted by hbk88in

See the thing about GPRS is that airtel dosent give actual gprs for pre-paid users, just access to their portal and hutch charges 99 bux a month which is too much for my pocket...soz im happy listening to my own rock music on my phone.

Hmm... airtel GPRS sucks and who want their airtel masala and live thing?
Hmm..., hutch is good for GPRS man.., for 99rs. i can do the following:
* u can access WAP sites...
* u can send unlimited MMS...
* u can download rigntones (either free or by paying)
* u can acess Y! account
* Y! messenger
* also gmail with prper settings (search the forums, mail2and has posted in software section how to..)
* u can use the phone as the modem and browse (dont know whether u can use in SE phones)
* lots more like jokes, snippets...

Originally Posted by hbk88in

another thing about nokia is that every phone of theirs becomes popular within 1 month of its launch..and i seriously do not like carrying around common phones...but i have to draw the line somewhere soz i compromise on buying the rare type phones...

Hmm..., i really don't go by looks and style to get me a phone. I would like to have a good set of features for my phone. Looks are secondary, features first.

Hmm, nice one, atleast the yadded bluetooth, but again, y not expandable memory

[hbk88in]

If only they added expandable memory...i mean samsung can add a transflash expandable memory card in their phone with a 3GB microdrive (to be launched in a while...Samsung i300 with windows mobile)...but they cant add a memory card slot to the D500...which has 96Mb memory...weird strategy these phone makers follow...but still a GREAT phone..

[quad master]

Gr8 review hbk88in

[mail2and]

the screen as god as s700i? I though e700 was better than s700i... get ur facts right dude...

[hbk88in]

no dude...the screen on E700 is no way better than the S700i...ive seen all three phones...S700i beats E700 all the way..so does D500...i believe my eyes than what people may say...i actually tried the same wallpapers on E700 and D500...The D500...good and crisp...the E700 good...but not as good as D500....
and thanx quad master..
-Anish

[mail2and]

i never said e700 was better than d500... how can it be? i just said... s700i and e700 screens are almost the same.... my class mate hs s700i and i hv e700.... in daylight.... e700 beats s700i hands down....

[hbk88in]

ah allright ...sorry for the confusion
but how can the E700's screen be better than S700's screen? E700--->65k colors whereas s700 has 256k colors.
isnt it possible that the brightness level on the S700 was set to minimum or something like dat?
coz when i saw the S700 and the E700, S700's screen was much better than the E700...indoors atleast...but then again, i havent used either of the phone's properly..but what my eyes saw waz that S700's screen was much better than the E700's screen.
-Anish

[rohanbee]

I just got this phone as well. I originally wanted to buy a clam shell phone (dont ask me why!!! ) but then i saw the D-500 (actually mine is the D-508 this is supposed to be an upgraded version of the original but i haveen't bothered to check what!)). Overall an excellent phone i must say. This is my first samsung phone after a long list of sony ericsson ones.

What i like about this phone is:-
Excellent clarity in voice and screen

Very large number displays when dialing a call.

Smooth slide action for handling calls or even picking or rejecting calls can be done without this above operation.

Excellent placed keys on the keypad.

Decent camera

What i dont like in this phone:-
No memory card slot hence very limited memory especially if you want to but in like a 50 songs with 8mb over.

Slightly hard to hold when slide operation not in use.

Very fragile phone. If it falls there's no coming back.

Charger has to be put into the slot very carefully + not too many people own samsung phones so just in case you leave your charger home thats it for you.

Oh yes and lastly this tiny speaker which comes with the phone. Firstly seems very fragile and while attached to your phone sticks out and makes the whole package seem even more dangerously fragile!!. Couldnt they somehow just have built this in. Half the time im losing the little thing.

Summary, overall very happy with the buy as i got it at a very decent offer price of 15k only!!!

[cvvikram]

Nice phone.....When compared to SE750i pixel power i think this phone has less...In the sense it may have less clarity...???
D500 supports which resolutions???

[siriusb]

Don't it belong in the MobileMonsters section?

[drgrudge]

LOL see the date of posting
Anyways.. why did u bump this without any purpose?

Moved here

[super_i_man]

boss, good review, keep it up.

[rohanbee]

Hey anyone using a pcsynce software for this phone, looking to do the same but unfortunately got my phone fro abroad and left everything in the box there!

[hbk88in]

@rohanbee- dude download the pc sync software from the samsung website.. but u need a data cable/irda port/bluetooth dongle for it to work with ure phone...
-Anish

[gdatuk]

Originally Posted by "drgrudge

Also for me symbian is more important than multimedia capabilities..., we always can install a mp3 player via installing software, i even saw a FM radio player for 6600.....
.

can u tell me where u found the link for the fm radio?? pl pm

[lighthouse911]

dude.. where are the photos that u hav clicked usin D500..

I juss wanna compare them with 7610

so if u hav them do post them,thanx

[dhan_shh]

I think D600 is available in few weeks,which has all advantage of D500 + Memory card slot +edge and so on..

[lighthouse911]

yeah but it will be priced rather high around 22k-25k

[sidewinder]

Originally Posted by drgrudge

Hmm..., yes, the sales tax is very high in tamil nadu compared to other states. And to top it all, no VAT in here as well.
I really get surprised when ppl here quote less price for mobiles.

Hmm... airtel GPRS sucks and who want their airtel masala and live thing?
Hmm..., hutch is good for GPRS man.., for 99rs. i can do the following:
* u can access WAP sites...
* u can send unlimited MMS...
* u can download rigntones (either free or by paying)
* u can acess Y! account
* Y! messenger
* also gmail with prper settings (search the forums, mail2and has posted in software section how to..)
* u can use the phone as the modem and browse (dont know whether u can use in SE phones)
* lots more like jokes, snippets...

Hmm..., i really don't go by looks and style to get me a phone. I would like to have a good set of features for my phone. Looks are secondary, features first.

Let me tell u one thinh.In kolkata hutch charges a 99 rs monthly charge for gprs nd 10paisa/10kb download....now imagine
as for airtel @rs 99 u can surf on ur mobile unlimitedly nd if u pay rs 249 /month u get to surf with ur compuer for as long as u want...
Airtel here is way cheaper man..or woman!!! (i dont know)

[feelyou]

list of D500 secret codes (same work for e720/E730 and as on E800

*2767*688# = Unlocking Code
*#8999*8378# = All in one Code
*#4777*8665# = GPSR Tool
*#8999*523# = LCD Brightness
*#8999*3825523# = External Display
*#8999*377# = Errors
#*5737425# = JAVA Something{I choose 2 and it chrashed}]
*#2255# = Call List

More SAMSUNG D500 CODES SECRETS

[krates]

arey bhai 2005 ka thread hai yeh