Posts Tagged ‘Samsung Intensity’

The Samsung Smooth; Not lovin’ it, I’m leavin’ it!

Bravo to Verizon Wireless representative, Ms. N., who recognized an opportunity to provide above and beyond customer service to ensure the loyalty and happiness of a long-term customer, me.  For the first time in all my years with Verizon Wireless, this time when I signed a new contract and upgraded our phones we received two complete duds, one which was replaced by another of the same that worked just fine, the Samsung Intensity, and the Samsung Smooth, which two replacements later we have yet to get a “good” one.  At this point, I’m not certain if a “good” Samsung Smooth even exists.  Last night, Ms. N., a very competent and thoughtful customer service rep, solved this problem (even though the solution was outside of Verizon’s normal policy) and made me a happy camper.  For history on this saga read here.

The Samsung Smooth is the phone I chose for my mother when we upgraded.  Before cementing my decision, I read the mixed reviews (ignoring those that seemed overly picky and petty), looked at the technical specs, and compared the phone to other similar phones.  I agonized over the choice more than I did for my own because it was important to me that my mother had a compact, reliable device with good sound and reception.  Unfortunately, I was doomed from the moment I clicked the button to select the Smooth.  Yesterday, after going through two substandard Smooths, I received a third device that had equally crappy sound–blocked out entire words and made people sound like they were stuttering. Ugh, ugh, and triple ugh!

All afternoon, I agonized over the phone call that I would inevitably have to make to Verizon.  My mother, determined with feet planted in cement, insisted that Verizon owed us a working phone.  Her advice:  We should keep returning phones until we finally got one that worked or until Verizon allowed us to select another model.  I agreed, but being the one who, as the owner of the plan, has to make these phone calls, I knotted my gut a little.  I’m not good at being stern and forcing an issue. I usually back down easily and retreat with my tail between my legs.  I don’t enjoy having to raise my voice or make “trouble” and we were just outside of Verizon’s 30-Day Worry-Free Guarantee period so some convincing would be necessary.

Last night, I called mom.  Mom prayed.  I prayed.  I got on the phone and dialed Verizon CS.  Ms. N. answered.  Immediately, I could tell that I was talking to someone who could solve my problem with little to no hassle, and I was right.  Thanks to Ms. N I will be purchasing another Intensity at a reasonable price (the same additional amount I would have had to pay when I originally did the upgrade) and returning the Samsung Smooth and good riddance. 

To anyone who is experiencing a problem with Verizon Wireless, my advice, (for what it’s worth and besides avoiding the Samsung Smooth at all costs), be persistent but not mean and ugly.  Try to find a solution to your dilemma without bending their rules.  Don’t accept the answer of the first rep you talk to if you believe that you have not received a fair solution.  It’s unfortunate, but as with people in every walk of life, some are genuinely interested and want to help and others are just doing their job and following “the rules”.  Sometimes the person you talk to at first may not have the authority to bend the rules.  Politely ask for someone who does.  It has been my experience that most Verizon Wireless Customer Service Reps genuinely want to satisfy the customer.  Thanks Verizon!  Thanks Ms. N!

The Samsung Intensity, A Review

Looking over my blog stats today, I observed that I am not the only one out there in cyberland researching and soliciting or giving opinions on the Verizon’s Samsung Intensity.  Because my previous post was more a commentary on my disappointment over receiving a possibly defective phone than a review of the Intensity, I have decided to add the rest of my two cents about this phone for the sake of those who may be currently contemplating a wireless phone choice. 

I really like the Samsung Intensity, give it four stars out of five, only holding back on the fifth star because it is not the ultimate and I have yet to find the perfect phone.  Although I had reception and sound problems with my first device (now returned and replaced), I have been infatuated with this phone from the moment I took it out of the box—the looks and the features and now the clarity of sound.  If you want a cute phone with a slide-down qwerty keyboard for texting, a decent 1.3 megapixel camera, the ability to store and listen to music, a wall charger/USB cable that allows for easy uploading and downloading of pictures, good (I would not say excellent) reception and sound quality, and great battery life, I recommend this one.  The Intensity comes in both black/gray and red.  Pictured above is the red one in memory, sniff sniff, of my original red Intensity that was replaced with a black one by Verizon.  Yes, I’m still slightly traumatized by that.  I bought a red case for it today.

Because I have found that usage habits and pickiness level play a big part in one’s satisfaction with a phone, I’ll tell you a bit about me.  I am a 40-something female who never found the need for a wireless phone until about 6 years ago when I inherited my son’s contract (on which I had co-signed) and phone when he entered the Army.  I’m on a Verizon family plan with my parents, and out of the 700 allotted anytime minutes per month, it would be unusual for me to use 200 even though my wireless phone doubles as my home phone.  Although I don’t spend much time on the phone, I expect the reliability, reception and sound to be of the quality I am paying for (and Verizon is certainly not the cheapest of wireless service providers).  I only recently began texting–I’m lousy at it and send less than 15 per week—but I want a qwerty keyboard with usable-sized keys for when I do.  I don’t generally listen to music on my phone, but I like to have the option available.  I’m on the Internet a lot at home and at work, but I don’t use the Internet on my phone as I am too impatient to deal with the tiny print and screen and I do not want to pay for it.  On the pickiness scale, I’m somewhere in the middle or closer to the obsessive side when it comes to sound quality and functionality but I don’t lose my head over every little blur and crackle or every functional quirk.  Last but not least, I like my phone to be attractive, if a phone can be attractive, but I know beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

FYI, the following are lists of commonly voiced pros and cons that I have seen in recent reviews of the Samsung Intensity along with some of my own thoughts:

PROS

1. Good battery life.  Yup!  So far so good.
2. Qwerty keyboard.  Check.
3. Sleek and attractive.  Yeppers! 
4. Takes nice pictures.  Yes, for a phone, it takes nice pictures.
5. Wall charger doubles as USB connector.
6. Accommodates microSD expansion to 16 MB to store more photos and music. 

 CONS

1. Call and End buttons are too small.  I couldn’t agree more!  They are small, vertical and awkwardly located. 
2. Face buttons and qwerty keys difficult to push.  Um, the keys do require a firm touch but I do not find them to be difficult; i.e., not a flaw but more a matter of preference.  I notice the stiffness more on the qwerty keys than on the face buttons.
3. A bit bulky.  It is definitely not as thin and petite as some phones, but if one wants a phone with a slide-down keyboard and decent-sized qwerty keys, I think a bit of thickness is a part of the bargain.
4. Clunky and big.  See above.
5. Auto Lock can be easily unlocked causing butt and purse dialing.  I can’t speak to the butt dialing because I do not keep my phone in my back pocket but my purse did run up some internet usage charges.  I was not happy about that, but (no pun intended) I am getting around this quirk by changing the shortcuts for the directional keys.
6. Muffled, unclear sound and breaking up during conversations.  Hmmmm.  My first model did all of that.  Now, three days into using my current device, I am no longer experiencing the blur and breaking up.  Is the sound as good as my previous phone, a Motorola Krazr?  No, I must admit that it is not.
7. Dropped calls.  Haven’t had a dropped call since I exchanged my first Intensity (the cherry red one, boo hoo).  Ask me in a week or two, and I hope to give you good feedback.

Happy phone shopping and may you choose the best model for you!!

The Samsung Intensity; Love it or Leave it?

And while we’re at it, should we dump the Samsung Smooth in the ocean too! 

Last month, my family and I renewed our contract with Verizon Wireless and were rewarded for our loyalty with shiny, new, updated telephones as part of Verizon’s New Every Two program.  How excited we were when the FedEx man arrived–out with the old and in with the new and all that stuff.  The packages arrived at mom and dad’s house, but they called me at the moment of arrival and I was across the street in no time to begin the necessary charging and programming.  What fun!  I was even late for work on the occasion.  Oops, did I say that.

From the moment I opened my new cherry red Samsung Intensity, I loved it—the look, the features.  It’s the first phone I have ever owned that has a larger screen and a qwerty keyboard with realistically usable-sized keys.  I had spent hours sorting through all of the phone choices before selecting it.  In the past, I have opted for basic, slim, clamshell types with no fancy features or looks.  A phone, after all, by my way of thinking, is a tool and not a fashion statement.  This time, I went for the goods.  I could barely contain my excitement.

How quickly did my jubilation turn to frustration?  Less than two full days after I began using my new jewel, I was talking to my mother on the phone—she chose the Samsung Smooth—and we could barely carry on a conversation for all the breaking up and crackling.  At first, I wanted to blame it on her phone, certain that it, being the less expensive model, would be the culprit, but as the weeks went by without exaggerating I can say that I have never*, in all my years with Verizon, experienced so many dropped calls in such a short period of time nor have I experienced such poor sound quality and reception in areas that have traditionally offered me excellent reception.  With my last Verizon phone, the reception and sound were so good that I forgot I was talking on a wireless phone and even discontinued my home phone service.

Last Tuesday night, just a few days prior to the expiration of our 30-day satisfaction guarantee period, I decided I’d better take action.  First, I called and then marched myself down to a local Verizon Wireless Retail Store to check out our options.  The retail store would have been happy to exchange my phone but they only had in stock the black, not the red (boo hoo), and even if I were willing to take the black, according to the salesperson, I would be charged the $35 restocking fee due to the difference in the sku. What-ev-er!  Next, I called Verizon’s Customer Service.

Three calls, three customer service reps (two very friendly, one semi-rude) and two Verizon customer service surveys later, I was almost resting in the assurance that I had two brand new phones on the way—one Intensity for me and one to replace mom’s inferior Samsung Smooth.  I say almost, because I was experiencing a small, silent lingering doubt that replacements of the same models would be any better than the originals.  And, now, we wait.

Friday after work, I found that the phones had arrived as promised and eagerly tore the packages open.  Disappointment #1:  My phone was black, not the cheery, cherry red of the original.  Disappointment #2:  The phones were certified “like new” rather than new.  It had been my understanding that with the return being within the first 30 days that the phones would have been replaced with NEW.  Oh well, and another what-ev-er!  I recovered from Disappointments #1 and #2 when I found that my “like new” phone worked just fine, ever so much better than the “new” original.  I can always buy a red cover, right?

Ugh!  Disappointment #3 came this morning when I fired up mom’s Smooth and found the sound/reception to be much less than smooth.  In fact, it was so terrible that I called Verizon and told them we would keep the old one and were returning the replacement.  Two Verizon customer service reps later (both pleasant and helpful, thank you), the replacement Smooth that wasn’t so smooth is on it’s way back to Verizon via FedEx and once received Verizon will send out another and hopefully smoother “like new” Smooth.  I wait with bated breath.

*Unless one counts the period of time I spent on the Verizon pay-as-you-go plan with an antiquated Motorola model many moons ago.  That was horrible!