Samsung Solstice SGH-A887 first look

Features
The Highlight has a generous 2,000-contact phone book with room in each entry for four phone numbers, four e-mail addresses, three instant-messaging handles (AIM, Windows Live, and Yahoo), a URL, a birthday, a company name and job title, a nickname, two street addresses, and notes (the SIM card holds an additional 250 names). You can save callers to groups and you can pair them with a photo, an alert tone, and one of 25 (72-chord) polyphonic ringtones. We like the handy scroll bar that lets you move quickly through a long list of contacts.

Basic features include a vibrate mode, text and multimedia messaging, a calendar, a calculator, a memo pad, a task list, a tip calculator, an alarm clock, a world clock, a timer, a stopwatch, a currency and unit converter, and a speakerphone. You'll also find speaker-independent voice dialing and commands, USB mass storage, PC syncing, a file manager, Web-based POP3 e-mail, instant messaging, a voice memo recorder, GPS support with AT&T Navigator support, and full Bluetooth with a stereo profile. Instant messaging is not included, unfortunately.

The 2-megapixel camera takes pictures in five resolutions, from 1,600x1,200 pixels down to 320x240 pixels, and you can choose from four quality settings. Other editing options include four color effects, exposure metering, four white-balance settings, an adjustable brightness, a night mode, and a self-timer. The Solstice also features three shooting modes (continuous, panorama, and mosaic), 20 frames, and a "smile shot" option that promise to detect when a subject is smiling. Photo quality was excellent, with bright colors and little image noise.

The camcorder shoots clips in two resolutions (320x240 and 176x144) with sound. Editing options are similar to the still camera, though somewhat less extensive. Clips meant for multimedia messages are capped at 1 minute, but you can shoot for longer in standard mode. When finished with your shots and clips you can save to the phone, send them to a friend in a multimedia message, or transfer them to a computer via a memory card, USB cable, or Bluetooth. The Solstice also supports AT&T's Video Share service.

As a 3G (UMTS) phone, the Solstice offers the full set of AT&T's wireless broadband multimedia services. You'll find AT&T Video (streaming-video content) and AT&T Mobile Music (wireless song downloads through partners). The experience with the two applications is similar to that on other AT&T phones; both are minimalist in their designs, but the music player supports a wide variety of file formats (MP3, AAC, eAAC+, and WMA) and it offers useful features, such as album art, playlists, shuffle and repeat modes, and an airplane mode.

The Solstice follows its 3G predecessors by offering a solid selection of music-related features, such as support for XM Mobile, a Music ID app, music videos, and a community section with access to fan sites and downloads. You also get an application for creating your own ringtones and saving music tracks as ringtones.

The Solstice's full HTML browser is workable, but nothing special. It's relatively easy to enter URLs using the virtual keyboard and save bookmarks, but we can't abide the magnifying glass zooming method and the display is just a bit too small for comfortable viewing. Scrolling around the display was easy most of the time, but there were occasions where it felt a little jerky. Also, since the Solstice defaults to a WAP version of a Web site when one is available (which is usually the case), there should be an easier way to switch to the full HTML version.

The Solstice offers a large number of apps, most of which are subscription-based. They include My-Cast Weather, WikiMobile, Yellowpages Mobile, MobiVJ, MobiTV XM Radio, and Mobile Banking. Gamers can play Tumbling Dice and test demos of Block Breaker, Diner Dash 2, The Sims 3, and World Poker Tour Hold Em 2. You'll have to buy the full versions for extended play. You also can download additional wallpapers and ringtones and you can create your own tones using an integrated app.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• Samsung
• Solstice
• SGH-A887
• first
• look

[puzzake]

i hate how in some reviews people are like "it's nothing we havent seen before" or they compare it to other phones. just do the fricken reveiw!!

[Fruticuti18]

does anyone know for texting can you type with your fingernails? i have really long nails so its hard to use my fingertips. I know with the iphone it doesnt repspond to fingernail touch but the AT&T LG VU does, i really like this phone but i need to know if it responds to fingernail touch! please reply to me anyway possible! thank you!!!

[vicky97100]

i dont rlly think its a smartphone im not sure and they dont sell this phone anymore i think they only seel the solstice two

[VengeancexVideos]

@vicky97100 stupid question cuz i cant find this anywhere...is this phone a smart phone or no?

[vicky97100]

i have this phone but im gettin a differemt one in january but this phone is rlly good the only thing i hate is when i lose connection on the internet if someone can help me out with that i would be rlly grateful but all in all its a rlly good phone but im excited to get my new phone in a couple of months

[FreeHugFriday121]

@Sylviee14 yep.

[Sylviee14]

When you receive a message, does it tell you WHO sent you that message?

[Gazabadmon9]

Does anyone know how ican put images onto my samsung solstice from the computer??

[Taylena34]

@Fruticuti18 yea i also have long fingernails and you just press lightly for it to work! hope this helps!

[xDEADLOCKEDx2468]

Anyone know how to set up .mp3 files as a ringtone from the SD card? I'm trying to do it with this phone but the option remains unavailable.

[nick246824]

@Fruticuti18 yes it does. Ive had mine for two years and i use my nails sometimes to text

[JAMoore0123]

@AcidBlood42 the voldume button, just press it when your looking at the message either up or down itll adjust it