Samsung Fascinate Review: Verizon's Galaxy S Smartphone
by Brian Klug on October 5, 2010 12:01 AM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Samsung
- Galaxy S
- Fascinate
- Mobile
GPS on the Fascinate
I spent lots of time testing the Fascinate's GPS and unfortunately, performance was just as bad as I've heard it being on the other Galaxy S phones. It's really the entire line of device's achilles heel.
There are two real issues with the GPS - fix speed, and overall low SNR. I'll start with Fix speed.
I've seen the Fascinate get fast GPS fixes, and then 10 minutes later get extremely slow fixes. It's completely erratic, and there's no predictability to it. Right out of the box, I timed a whopping five minutes (even connected to WiFi) standing in my yard with a huge swath of visible sky.
Other times, the Fascinate gets GPS fixes quickly like any other modern smartphone - within seconds. At one point, I proclaimed to Anand that I was certain I had fixed the issue by disabling Verizon's location services - all my fixes that day took seconds. As we iChatted for the Apple 27" Cinema Display review, I tried to demonstrate my great success - and of course those fast fixes suddenly stopped. It seriously hasn't been fast since.
The other problem is fundamentally low SNR. Look at this shot, and guess which one the Fascinate is:
That's outside at night in a completely empty field with ideal sky visibility - no clouds, no rain, just cold air. Look at how many satellites the Fasciate has compared to an EVO 4G (right) and Nexus One (left).
Repeat the same thing in my office under a foot from a huge window:
This is the case indoors, outdoors, in the rain, daytime, nighttime, it doesn't matter - GPS is just poor on the Fascinate. The device is almost always at least 1 or more acquired satellites fewer, with slightly worse SNR being reported. It's small consolation that at least on Android we can have apps which read NMEA data so we can diagnose exactly what's going on.
Slow GPS fix times can probably be fixed with a software update. I've read differing reports that the Fascinate already has this fix applied - I can only hope the device I had didn't have it. Poor SNR and signal strength, however, is a problem no more fixable on the Fascinate and other Galaxy S phones than it is on the iPhone 4 - unless of course it's being reported incorrectly by the GPS receiver. I believe that GPS accuracy on the Fascinate isn't really as much of a concern when it takes minutes to get a GPS lock. Anything is better than nothing.
Until the GPS issues are fixed, using things like Google Navigation are downright frustrating. I've literally gone driving with the Fascinate, attempted to use Navigation, only to finally get a GPS lock after I'm 3/4ths of the way there and already looked it up on another smartphone-in-test I've got with me. It's frustrating and maddening to say the least.
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R3MF - Tuesday, October 5, 2010 - link
when is android due to get a GPU accelerated UI?fixxxer0 - Tuesday, October 5, 2010 - link
maybe update the numbers?? i think its more or less similar to the droid 2 for the most part.(sorry if someone already posted this i only read the front page of posts)
jasperjones - Tuesday, October 5, 2010 - link
On page 1: "There's the standard 1.8mm audio jack for headphones." Err, the standard audio jack is 3.5mm. It's a typo, right?alaricljs - Tuesday, October 5, 2010 - link
Standard audio jack "ON A PHONE" which really shouldn't need to be stated since we know this is a phone happens to be 1.8mm.fabarati - Tuesday, October 5, 2010 - link
No phone uses 1.8 mm jacks. The old smaller standard was 2.5, but that's not used all that much anymore either. The confusion arises from the american usage of the imperial system. See, 1/8"=3.5mm.So yeah, typo.
Brian Klug - Tuesday, October 5, 2010 - link
Oops, I meant 1.8", fixed!-Brian
Vepsa - Tuesday, October 5, 2010 - link
What GPS test app are you using?Belard - Tuesday, October 5, 2010 - link
I picked up my Captivate a few days ago. For the most part, the hardware is exactly the same as the Fascinate... But it has a metal cover for the battery and a slick release system... very nice. The BAD thing about the Captivate is the lack of a FLASH for the camera! Really, no flash!?The UI for at&t Android is very much the same shown in this review... but the branding is no-where near as bad (I'm not a Verizon fan because of this) - the at&t apps are out of the way and I believe are removable. There are no at&t book-marks, and at&t listings in the phone-book are removable.
I had a choice between the Samsung Captivate and Sony X10 (Android) - with the Sony being $50 cheaper at $150. Comparing the screen type, the USB cover and easily half as thin body - I went with the Samsung.
After a few days of use and STILL Learning how to use Android - there are a few things I don't like about using these phone which can be "fixed" with software, if they exists.
1 - Lock the main buttons to remain LIT when the screen is... YES, it sucks and I heard there is an option for this, haven't found it yet. UGH!
2 - To use the phone, press the tiny power button - THEN swipe to unlock the phone. This is a pain. I would LOVE the option to INCLUDE the Vol/Rocker buttons to activate the screen, or even the 4 main menu buttons... it should be easy. The rocker button is much bigger and easier to feel. Is there a way to do this (yet)?
Other than that, I'm good with the phone... I know its screen isn't quite as nice as the iPhone4, but I don't want an iPhone... but I am betting that future phones in 2011 will catch up, its nice that you CAN'T see the pixels.
In general, the Captivate will have the exact same performance, higher quality body, less bloat and no flash.
PS: Packaging. at&t is a very small box... not as fancy, but it is better for the environment as well as shipping.
darwinosx - Tuesday, October 5, 2010 - link
Between the bloatware, the GPS, and the non-changeable Bing search this phone is a non-starter. No wonder Verizon is already practically giving them away. Google sure did get suckered by Verizon in a way Apple would never do. I don't care how good Verizons network is, if they keep doing this to phones they are going to lose a lot of customers.Belard - Tuesday, October 5, 2010 - link
Verizon does this to ALL their phones, for years.Oddly, at&t has sometimes copied the SONY UI style to other phones - in the past.