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Samsung Focus S
This Samsung Focus (TM) S is no longer available.
Reviews
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5 starsstars
190
190 reviews with 5 stars.
4 starsstars
51
51 reviews with 4 stars.
3 starsstars
17
17 reviews with 3 stars.
2 starsstars
12
12 reviews with 2 stars.
1 starstars
9
9 reviews with 1 star.
Overall Rating
4.4
236 out of 269 (88%) reviewers recommend this product
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Summary of Reviews
AI-generated from customer ratings & reviews, and may include incentivized reviews.
- The device has a bright, vibrant AMOLED display and a sleek, lightweight design.
- It offers fast, responsive performance with a smooth user interface.
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Average customer ratings
Design
Design, 4.5 out of 54.5
Features
Features, 4.5 out of 54.5
Most helpful favorable review
5 out of 5 stars.
Wow. Best phone I've ever used.
14 years ago
I've always been interested in Windows Phone 7, but decided on Android (HTC Inspire) instead. After having that phone for about six months (right after the Android 2.3 update was released), it started having all kinds of problems, so I decided to look into an upgrade. My boss at work had a Samsung Focus and loved it, plus the Windows Phone Mango update had just come out at that time, so it seemed like the right time to try out a Windows Phone. I went with an HTC HD7S because I have never liked Samsung's phones (I had a Samsung Jack... worst phone I ever had), with the express intent of upgrading to the HTC Titan when it came out because it was due to come out within a month of my upgrade. I loved that phone, but wanted 4G speed, so it was either the Titan or the Focus S that would be my next phone.
Well, the Titan ended up coming out the week AFTER my return period ended on the HD7S, so I didn't have much choice. In retrospect... it might have been the luckiest mistiming ever.
The first thing you notice on the Samsung Focus is the design of the phone. It's wafer-thin, much like the rest of the Samsung Galaxy II line. Pick up the phone, it feels as light as you would expect, but doesn't feel cheap. The only qualm I have about build quality is the battery door is a bit flimsy.
Turn on the phone and you'll be greeted with one of the most beautiful phone screens you've ever seen. The Super AMOLED screen on the Focus S is crystal clear, rivaling the iPhone 4S in color and clarity. With the screen on, the black background of the home screen is so deep it's nearly impossible to tell where the screen ends.
The phone's camera is an 8 megapixel shooter with flash, autofocus, and digital zoom. The camera takes great photos. The only gripe here is the camera has a very wide field of view, so everything is very small unless you zoom in, and zooming in with the digital zoom causes the clarity to suffer.
Battery life on the Focus S is very good. I routinely get a full day's use out of the phone with constant use. Once I even forgot to plug the phone in overnight and it still had at least 15% battery life remaining when I woke up. (There's no numerical display for battery life, but at 15% the phone will start to warn you that battery life is low.)
Most importantly, the Windows Phone 7.5 (Mango) OS is one of the best phone OS's I've used. I've used iOS, Android, and BlackBerry, and Windows Phone 7.5 tops them all in almost every area. Frequent Facebook user? Windows Phone 7.5 integrates Facebook into the OS. No need for an app; everything is handled natively. The same goes for Twitter as well. Because of this OS level integration, Windows Phone 7.5 can do some things that other OS's struggle to handle, or can't do at all. For example, every contact has a "What's New" and a "History" page, which show you everything that contact has posted on Facebook and Twitter accounts of theirs that you're following, as well as a history of everything they have done directly with you, be it Facebook shares, phone calls, texts, emails, etc. You can pin your most frequently used contacts to your home screen, and the Live Tile for that contact will show you the most recent action from that contact's What's New/History page.
Quite possibly the best part of Windows Phone 7.5 is its email handling. The Outlook client for Windows Phone 7.5 is outstanding. Message threading is an absolute GODSEND for people like myself who work in a position where they are routinely dealing with multiple people about the same project. Messages are grouped by subject, so you can trace an email thread in chronological order from start to finish in one place, regardless of which folder that email actually resides in. No more missed replies because you didn't check all your email folders for new emails, no more confusion when emails come in out of order, everything is all in one place. This alone has saved me countless hours of tracking down emails multiple times. I'll never be able to go back to unthreaded emails. The email client syncs up to Hotmail, Microsoft Exchange, POP3/IMAP, and Gmail, and handles them all with ease.
One of my biggest issues with Android (specifically Sense UI from HTC, but I noticed this on other Android handsets as well) is AutoCorrect. The AutoCorrect functionality in iOS and Android annoys me because it forces you to change a word if it detects something it thinks you meant to type. Not so with Windows Phone 7.5. It will correct most simple mis-spellings automatically, but when it comes across a word it can't determine, it handles it much better than iOS or Android does. Instead of forcing you to change the word to what it thinks you meant, Windows Phone 7.5 will simply leave it underlined with the red squiggly line you know and love from Microsoft Word. Clicking that word again will bring up the suggestions, or the option to add it to the dictionary. A simple change, but BRILLIANTLY executed. Also, the Windows Phone 7.5 keyboard is just about as perfect as you can get. It's an absolute dream to text on. Typing out a full-length email is about as painless as it can possibly be on a handheld device. I send most of my emails from my phone, and it takes me no longer to do it from the phone than it does from my desktop.
The bottom line? The Samsung Focus S, with WIndows Phone 7.5, is an absolute powerhouse of a phone and should be high on anyone's list, especially if they are using the phone for business. You will not be disappointed.
96 people found this helpful
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Most helpful critical review
1 out of 5 stars.
DO NOT GET THIS PHONE
13 years ago
This phone is terrible. It lags, freezes, and is so NOT customizable. Its so un-fun to use and it just a waste of money. It will randomly shut off. NO WAY.
8 people found this helpful
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1 to 4 of 279 reviews .
1 – 4 of 279 reviews
5 out of 5 stars.
Focus and in love
12 years ago
I'm in love and do not want to "upgrade" to another phone.
I had this phone since it came out and have no plans on giving it up. The quality of this phone is beyond and ahead of other maker. They really FOCUS and broke the mold with this phone.
ProsBuilt-in speakers, Bright display, Inexpensive, Durable, Realistic color, Lightweight, great camera quality, speaker are nice and loud no distortion
Yes, I recommend this product.
Originally posted on Samsung US
5 out of 5 stars.
Powerful, Attractive, Lots of apps, ONE OF THE BEST SAMSUNG PHONE
12 years ago
Very fast processor
Better then Android phones
Very well built
Very thin
Large crystal clear display
Fun to use
Its like a mini tablet PC because it can open and run everything, all programs and applications.
Long lasting and scratch proof
Long battery life and good speakers
ProsBuilt-in speakers, Bright display, Durable, Realistic color, Lightweight, large 4.3 inch crystal clear display, very thin, well built, very fast, its a mini tablet pc
Yes, I recommend this product.
Originally posted on Samsung US
2 out of 5 stars.
It's an ok phone
12 years ago
I was looking for a Windows Phone that I could synchronize with my computer. Unfortunately this phone is a disappointment when it comes to that. It's the biggest mistake ever made by Microsoft. I had 2 other Windows Phones before and with those you could synchronize directly with your computer. With the new Windows Mobile OS they really screw it up. The camera in this phone has a good quality resolution. I like that you can navigate fairly easy on the web. The amount of apps that you can get for this phone is very good. I really miss my full keyboard, but in the other hand, you get a bigger screen to watch videos and photos. The life expectancy of this phone is not very good... only about a year or so... another disappointment. The Operating System is a real disappointment. I hope this gets fix soon... don't know what were they thinking!
ProsBuilt-in speakers, Bright display, Lightweight
ConsNot high def, Did not meet expectations, expensive, not durable enough, not synchronizable with computer, ms office mobile is a disappointment
No, I do not recommend this product.
Originally posted on Samsung US
2 out of 5 stars.
13 years ago
The battery needs charged every day
The button for the camera is on the side of the phone and every time you barely touch it the phone goes to the camera
Phone is not very user friendly
no way to look up apps not listed on Marketplace.
to make a call you have to look up the person you are calling tap on that then you have to tap on it again to make the call
Cannot delete calls history one at a time you have to delete all calls.
No, I do not recommend this product.
Helpful?
Features
Features, 2.0 out of 52.0
Ease of use
Ease of use, 1.0 out of 51.0
Battery life
Battery life, 1.0 out of 51.0
Display
Display, 3.0 out of 53.0
Design
Design, 3.0 out of 53.0
Response from AT&T:
13 years ago
Social Media
Hello,
I’m with AT&T and I’m sorry to hear about this. We will be happy to research this inquiry for you. If you like, you can e-mail your account and contact information to [email protected] and I can review this for you. My normal working hours are 830am to 530pm EST M-F. Thanks, Robert G AT&T Social Media Manager.
1 – 4 of 279 reviews
Questions
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1 - 10 of 22 questions
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Q: can you change size of text
13 years ago1 Answer
- A: On text messages, no you can't. But on some tools, such as the documents on the mobile version their Word, you can.13 years agoHelpful?
Q: Do this phone have a memory card slot?
13 years ago1 Answer
- A: Hi! Great Question! Yes, it does. Check out the following link for the specifics (specifically page 16): http://soc.att.com/pFKkBz. If you have any further questions in regards to this, please do not hesitate to reach out to me via email at [email protected] referencing this post in the subject line. Make sure to include your contact information so that I can reach out. I am available 8-4:30 PM CST, Monday - Friday. Thanks! Charmaine, Social Media Manager13 years agoHelpful?
Q: can i watch youtube videos on this phone? are there alot of free apps like android (games ,fb, pandora sms blockers)?
13 years ago1 Answer
- A: Hi, check out this link and scroll down to the bottom: http://soc.att.com/Ru72Mz. This link shows you the included apps and video options. Keep in mind this smartphone requires a data plan. If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to me via email at [email protected] referencing this post in the subject line. Make sure to include your contact information, so that I can reach out to you. I am available 8-5 PM CST M- F. Thanks! Charmaine, Social Media Manager13 years agoHelpful?
Q: Can you enlarge the font when texting / email?
13 years ago1 Answer
- A: Hi There! Great question. You can check out all of the "how to's" and tips and tricks for this device at http://soc.att.com/QZH1AI. I hope that this helps. If you have further questions concerning the use of your device, please email us directly at [email protected] referencing this post in the subject line. ^Catherine, AT&T Social Media Manager13 years agoHelpful?
Q: Will this phone work as a modem for my laptop?
13 years ago3 Answers
- A: yes.ADD THE HOT SPOT SERVICE TO YOUR DEVISE AND YOU CAN CONECT UP TO THREE DEVICES AT ONCE .13 years agoHelpful?
Q: Can you get free music? like from a music downloader?
14 years ago1 Answer
- A: I can some but have had trouble with ringtones saying it is not supported:(14 years agoHelpful?
Q: Can ringtones be personalized? Can we personalize our own ringtones, like create our own with our music? Or can we only use the ones that come with the phone?
14 years ago3 Answers
- A: i have not found an app that lets you personalize your own ringtonea & i have looked So NO14 years agoHelpful?
Q: How do you block a number and change font size
14 years ago1 Answer
- A: Hi! I’m with AT&T. The Focus does not have a number block feature, but AT&T Smart Limits can help block unwanted calls. Check out http://bit.ly/bHZHXi for more information. http://bit.ly/9XZ1PH has information on what adjustments can me made to the display, as well as Samsung’s contact information if you don’t see what you’re looking for. Thanks! –Jenn S., AT&T Social Media Manager14 years agoHelpful?
Q: Can this phone download and support the Square credit card application?
14 years ago1 Answer
- A: Not at this time.14 years agoHelpful?
Q: Can you listen to music??
14 years ago6 Answers
- A: The Zune interface is not easy to use. Also, if you want to buy music from Zune, that will probably work fine. But if you are uploading music from your computer, the Microsoft operating system is terrible. It refuses to upload your discs with the right order of tracks. It's apparently too dumb to read the numbers at the beginning of the track. You'll probably have to turn your favorites into playlists before they can be uploaded. They also store your albums in a peculiar and useless way. If you're willing to go through all that, it will work fine and has a lot of storage.13 years agoHelpful?
1 - 10 of 22 questions