Straight Talk 3G & WiFi Samsung T528g
Phone Dimensions: 4.33” x 2.00” 0.50”Touch Screen Dimensions: 1.5" x 2.4" - 3" Diagonal
Weight: 3.24 oz.
Technology: GSM 3g
Form Factor: Capacitive Touch screen
WiFi: Yes
Rear Camera: Yes , 2 mp
Front Camera: No
Data: Yes - fast 3g
Signal Strength: Excellent
Audio Quality: Excellent
Durability: Excellent
Battery Life: Up to 11 days (standby), Up to 6 hours (talk time)
Storage: External micro SD card (not included)
Extra Features: Full html browser, social network connectivity, connect to home wireless network, mp3 player, video recorder, downloadable apps.
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Description
The Samsung T528g is the first affordable 3G touchscreen from Straight Talk. This handset comes full of surprisingly advanced features typically reserved for higher priced models. 3G connectivity being the most noteworthy because until now, only the $200 Straight Talk Nokias were 3G capable. Another excellent feature usually not found in value models is WiFi connectivity. For under $100 you get fast 3G connectivity AND the ability to connect to wireless networks. Luckily you can use the $30 plan with this phone. You are not forced into the Unlimited plan like the Straight Talk Nokia phones. To sum it up, the T528 is an affordably priced, feature rich phone that lets you take advantage of
Phone Look and Feel
The T528g is a slender and relatively compact candy bar style handset. Despite the relatively large 3" screen, the phone is actually on the small size. This makes for an easy carrying phone that fits nicely in your palm. Even with its small size, the phone has 3 physical buttons for quick navigation (Send, End , Back) all residing just below the screen. Side buttons include volume, camera quick launch and screen lock. The screen lock was particularly nice as you don't have to wait for the phone to lock itself, just press it when you're done. The camera button does get pressed by accident every so often but it does not get triggered when the screen is locked. A convenient feature on the T528 is the side sd card port so no need to remove the back cover or battery. Other small details like the sliding charge port door indicate this is a quality built phone.
Most impressive on this phone is Samsung's TouchWiz 2.0 interface. While not a true Operating System, the TouchWiz interface makes it feel like one. Call it a smartphone lite if you will. Favorite Apps and widgets can easily be moved to one of 3 customizable desktop screens. Simply slide the left onscreen tab and drag your widgets to the desktop. Of course you can also access apps via the standard menu button. A totally surprising feature here was the motion sensor. While not quite as advanced as say an iPhone, it does adjust your keyboard from keypad to QWERTY depending on vertical or horizontal positioning. This works in both browsing and texting modes.
All in all, a very good looking phone with an interface that feels very much like an advanced smartphone.
Find out if the Straight Talk Samsung T528g is Available in your Area
Touchscreen
The responsive touchscreen is a true standout on the T528. This was a true shock because we were expecting the less responsive resistive type. Much to our surprise, the T528 uses the capacitive type touch screen (same type used on iPod Touch, iPhone, etc). This makes the screen super responsive compared to the other Tracfone touchscreen offerings. In case you're wondering, it does not support pinch zoom in/out type touches though you can zoom in and out with 1 finger by keeping your finger on the screen. Nonetheless, the quality touchscreen still scored high on the list.
Browser
The built in Samsung Dolfin browser is quite impressive for a non smartphone. The browser supports full HTML on non mobile sites so they look almost as good on the phone as they do on your computer. Zooming in and out is easily achieved by double tapping the screen or by holding your finger on the screen. Most awesome is the browser's Javascript support so dynamic sites don't loose much by way of functionality. One thing that was totally unexpected is the phone's ability to play YouTube videos while on WiFi. The phone does this by automatically launching the built in flash player when you select a Youtube video, no need to install extra apps. The browsing experience is really enjoyable and doing it on WiFi is not only free of charge but super fast!
Find out if the Straight Talk Samsung T528g is Available in your Area
Features
The T528g comes loaded with features. A previously mentioned, the built in Wifi and 3g data connectivity are the main attractions on the T528g. Other notable features include built in Facebook and MySpace widgets. Yet another unexpected feature is the email client for accessing email servers like Microsoft Exchange, Gmail, Yahoo and others directly without having to use the browser. As with all new phones, the T528 includes mp3 music player, video recorder, digital camera , voice recorder and more. Music lovers will love the ability to sync your phone via Windows Media player which makes it super easy to add songs. The T528 has plenty of features to keep most people more than happy.
Conclusion
To sum it up, the T528g is an advanced phone that offers just about every feature you can possibly expect from a device. For under $100, you aren't going to find another Straight Talk handset that offers so much for the price. The only real negative to report is that at this time, you can't get new apps. The Samsung App store is pretty pathetic and the phone does not support Java apps. That being said, the feature set is quite impressive considering the value pricing. Don't let the lack of app availability deter you from this phone because it's got just about everything you will need. Hurry up and get this one quick because advanced Straight Talk phones like this don't usually last very long!
Find out if the Straight Talk Samsung T528g is Available in your Area
