vB Easy Archive - Samsung A707 Negatives

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Samsung A707 Negatives
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Posted by: Bloom

Picked up this phone yesterday, and found a few things that really bug me about it. So much so in fact that I think I'll be returning it. My complaints are as follows:

Calendar Alarms. The phone will turn itself on for regular alarms, i.e. daily alarms, however if you have an alarm set for a calendar event such as a birthday or appointment, it only works if the phone is powered on. If your phone happens to be off when the calendar event alarm is supposed to go off, you'll totally miss it. This is the first Cingular phone I've had that doesn't power on for Calendar alarms.

Pictures. What is up with the screen settings? I bluetoothed over a bunch of pictures from my old phone, and they all came over with no problems. Unfortunately, when I saved them, they went from looking crisp and sharp to soft, blurry, and almost out of focus. I tried MMSing them to myself to see if that would make a difference; it did not. I made sure I had the settings on "superfine" quality, and that still did not make a difference. For pictures that I use as wallpapers to look better on my V3i than the A707 is a joke.

Music Player Although I like it's functionality, I found the sound quality to be less than average. Also, it seems that unless you are using Windows Media Files, the phone can't read any information other than the song title. No artist, no album. Making playlists to allieviate this is a very long and drawn out process.

There were a couple of other bugs I found dealing with contacts that have been transferred over from another phone. If you have a contact from another phone that has just one street address, i.e. a business address, transfer it over to the A707. Then, edit it and add in a field for a personal address. Save the contact, and see what happens. On mine, it would totally delete the first street address, and just display the new one. If I manually entered in all of the contact information instead of bluetoothing it over, then it would display both addresses.

Overall, I really wanted to like this phone. I like the display and UI for the most part, but having personal pictures look blurry, and no option to have calendar alarms power the phone on (even though regular alarms do) is a real deal killer for me.

Guess I'll keep waiting for the Nokia N75.

Posted by: egale1

I have a microsd card filled with mp3 files. The player shows artist, album, title, etc. Possibly the music files you are having problems with were not created properly with the info. If you search the net, there are free progs you can download which you can use to edit and fill up the info so it does show on the player.

Also, sound quality is quite good. Coming from a W810i the sound is certainly on par or even better. The W810i had those annoying crackling and popping between songs where the A707 doesn't.

Posted by: Bloom

Quote:

Originally Posted by egale1

I have a microsd card filled with mp3 files. The player shows artist, album, title, etc. Possibly the music files you are having problems with were not created properly with the info. If you search the net, there are free progs you can download which you can use to edit and fill up the info so it does show on the player.

I tried dragging and dropping with a card reader, bluetoothing directly, converting from AAC to MP3....all with the same results. It's been frustrating.

Posted by: xxCingularxx

Your returning a phone that doesn't turn to remind you about a appointment...WOW hahahahahaa

Posted by: mbranscum

Quote:

Originally Posted by xxCingularxx

Your returning a phone that doesn't turn to remind you about a appointment...WOW hahahahahaa

Really...who turns their phone off anyway???

Posted by: panerai7

Bloom, what size pictures are you trying to setup as a wallpaper? Because if you're trying to use the same wallpaper from v3i which is only 176xsomething in 240x320 screen - it will look blurry and plain crappy if you stretch it over a larger screen. Just a thought

Posted by: wcl884

Now I'm having doubts about switching from W810i to A707. Thanks for the feedback.

I'll have to have a quick hands on demo before ordering from Crapular's website.

Posted by: NOSintake

Quote:

Originally Posted by panerai7

Bloom, what size pictures are you trying to setup as a wallpaper? Because if you're trying to use the same wallpaper from v3i which is only 176xsomething in 240x320 screen - it will look blurry and plain crappy if you stretch it over a larger screen. Just a thought

i was thinking the same thing. if you try to bring a picture thats smaller than the screen, then it might try to resize and pixelate the picture a little

Posted by: cuidinsider

go return ur phone and get on that has a pink dot on the phone box then ur mp3 player problems will be solved lol

Posted by: Bloom

Quote:

Originally Posted by panerai7

The images from my V3i were 640 X 480. The ones I bluetoothed from my computer were original large sizes, untouched. Same goes for the mms ones as well. I tried resizing them a number of different ways, but could not get them to display properly on the phone. You should try this same experiment on your A707, and let me know if you get it working.

For the other posters giving me grief about turning my phone off.....yes, there are times when my phone is off. Every Cingular phone I've had before the A707 turns itself on if you have a calendar reminder set. While this is obviously trivial to you, it's VERY important to me, as I have over 300 entries in my current calendar (I use it for business), and can't afford to miss any reminders, even if my phone happens to be off. Why they would make the A707 able to turn on for regular alarms, but not for calendar alarms seems almost like it's incomplete so to speak.

Posted by: Bloom

Quote:

Originally Posted by cuidinsider

go return ur phone and get on that has a pink dot on the phone box then ur mp3 player problems will be solved lol

The one I got has no pink dot on it, however they told me that they never received the "original" defective models, and that these were the newest ones. All of the artist/album/song information comes over fine if I transfer the music from WMA files. If I use MP3 or AAC files however, just the song titles come over.

Posted by: thinlyveiled

Quote:

Originally Posted by xxCingularxx

Your returning a phone that doesn't turn to remind you about a appointment...WOW hahahahahaa

That's a pretty serious oversight from a UI perspective. I think s/he has every right to dislike the phone for that reason.

Posted by: thinlyveiled

Quote:

Originally Posted by mbranscum

Really...who turns their phone off anyway???

Anyone who boards an airplane.

Posted by: egale1

The one I got yesterday had the pink dot on the box! They originally told me they had none to sell as they had returned the original shipment. Upon second look they found the ones with the dot.

I would agree. You must go back and get one with a dot! Otherwise, it sounds like you have a defective unit.

Posted by: Bloom

Quote:

Originally Posted by egale1

The one I got yesterday had the pink dot on the box! They originally told me they had none to sell as they had returned the original shipment. Upon second look they found the ones with the dot.

I would agree. You must go back and get one with a dot! Otherwise, it sounds like you have a defective unit.

I actually found the pink dot on my box, so I have one of the newer versions.

I think I found out the problem with the pictures. When you go into the menu to resize them, if you look at what they would look like at 320 x 240 vs. 640 x 480, there seems to be no difference. My guess is that the phone is automatically putting the pictures in at 320 x 240, and even when you try to bump them up to 640 x 480, it's still keeping them at 320 x 240. I can't seem to get it to display at the higher resolution.

Posted by: cuidinsider

u gotta goto zoom not resize hahahahah thats what your doing wrong hahahah

Posted by: Bloom

Quote:

Originally Posted by cuidinsider

u gotta goto zoom not resize hahahahah thats what your doing wrong hahahah

Not sure what's so funny, but I have tried zoom with the same results.

Look smart guy, I came here for help not crap. If you don't have anything positive to say, why bother posting? Does it make you feel "kewl" or something? Grow up.

Posted by: cingularfreak12

I love the phone, I've used every app on it, and used it for tethering! Love it all for now!!

Posted by: quillhill

I'm curious, since you rely heavily on the calendar on your phone, why you chose a regular phone versus a smartphone, like say the 3125, for example? I understand wanting the A707. I lust for it myself, but as a secondary phone. I have a Blackberry and I understand how important those alerts are ... my phone is usually on all the time, though, but there are some people, like yourself, who don't have the phone on all the time.
I wonder if there might be some setting you can change so the phone powers on for calendar alerts ... or if not, might there be an alternative option...hmm.
Everybody has things about the phone they use that are must-have features. Just because it's not the same for doesn't mean you should belittle them for it.

I know I had trouble with some pics I Bluetoothed from the D807 to the CU500 when I had both at the same time. Or maybe it was vice versa. But, I recall that some pics wouldn't even open, and others had the quality issue. I think it may be more about different software and copies of pics than the phone...but that's only a theory. I won't really know more until I try this myself, if ever I could get my hands on the A707.

Anyway, good luck, whatever you decide to do with the phone. Not every phone is perfect for every user.

Posted by: JBoogie

I feel ya on the turning on for calendar events. But the best work around i found for that is to put the phone into "airplane mode" instead of turning it off. I have been messing around with the Samsung PC studio SW and i have not been able to get my walpapers to show up "clearly" its starting to piss me off.

I do have a question for you Bloom. Do you own a Krazr? How is that phone compaired to the A707? I was thinking of leaving Cingular and getting a Krazr.. I know how to mod the crap out of a Moto

Posted by: thinlyveiled

What happens if you resize the wallpaper on the PC (using Photoshop or whatever your favorite photo-manipulation software is) to the native resolution of the target display (176x240 or whatever it is) before sending it to the phone?

Posted by: panerai7

Quote:

Originally Posted by Otterley

What happens if you resize the wallpaper on the PC (using Photoshop or whatever your favorite photo-manipulation software is) to the native resolution of the target display (176x240 or whatever it is) before sending it to the phone?

That's what i meant originally. I always make my wallpapers like that and they always come out perfect. Just make sure you resize it to 240x320, otherwise every phone has its own weird way of resizing for a wallpaper and it almost always comes out not the way i want it.

cheers

Posted by: Bloom

Quote:

Originally Posted by panerai7

Maybe I did get a defective one....now when someone (or myself) e-mails a picture to the phone (in an MMS), there is no option to extract the picture and put it into the "graphics" section so it can be used as wallpaper, caller id etc. Anyone else having this problem?

Posted by: bigmike20

I never turn mine off so that I can check on the time.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Otterley

Anyone who boards an airplane.

Posted by: stevOh

How is the RF and sound quality on the "SYNC"? Any issues?

Posted by: swiftbmx

Quote:

Originally Posted by cuidinsider

u gotta goto zoom not resize hahahahah thats what your doing wrong hahahah

www.m-w.com

Posted by: ilvla2

Quote:

Originally Posted by mbranscum

Really...who turns their phone off anyway???

My dad and mom do, not everybody needs to be in 24 hour mode

Posted by: ilvla2

Quote:

Originally Posted by xxCingularxx

Your returning a phone that doesn't turn to remind you about a appointment...WOW hahahahahaa

For him that's important

I'm sure you do things too that he would laugh at.

Posted by: awj223

The A707, like the CU500, has an external color display. The CU500 would switch the external display off completely (not just the backlight, the entire display) after about 15 seconds. Does the A707 do that?

Posted by: egale1

It does the same.

Posted by: Bloom

Still having problems with the phone displaying pictures in a "soft" almost out of focus sort of way. They're not pixelated, they just look soft if that makes any sense. What's funny is when I go into the photos to see about adjusting them, they look totally sharp, just like the original versions that were either mms'd over, or bluetoothed over. Even if I leave them in their original state, as soon as I hit "save", they end up going back to a soft, semi blurry look. I'm not sure what the problem is, but I'm guessing it's something to do with the firmware/software. Was on the phone with Samsung yesterday, and I walked the guy through the steps, and the same thing happened to him on their demo unit. At least I'm not crazy.

Oh well, I'm done trying to figure out this phone. Hopefully they'll get it right with a firmware upgrade, but until then, I've invested to much time trying to work through it's kinks. I'm returning it today, and will hope for better luck with the Nokia N75 when it's released.

Posted by: panerai7

Bloom, i don't have the phone yet, should arrive on Monday. But, i have a question. Is the user interface a native Samsung or a Cingular's ugly version???

Because if it's Cingular's version, they could very well not realize that a707 is basically a z560 everywhere else in the world and it has a QVGA screen. What i am trying to say is that if it's in fact a Cingular's software running on the phone it may not resize the pictures correctly to accomodate 240x320, instead it resizes it to 176x2something and then stretches it over 240x320. Same problem i had with c417 that i got with signup on Cingular, all the wallpapers looked like crap, because of Cingular's firwmare.

By the way can you turn off the operator's logo/"CINGULAR" off the main screen, or did Cingular lay their hand on that too???? I wonder if the unbranded firmware is available to bring this phone back to the way Samsung designed it - that would be the best way to fix all the glitches, like speakerphone operates with flip closed, wallpapers, full mp3 ringtones and so on (just look at how much better w810i unbranded is vs. Cingular version)

Posted by: Bloom

Quote:

Originally Posted by panerai7

Bloom, i don't have the phone yet, should arrive on Monday. But, i have a question. Is the user interface a native Samsung or a Cingular's ugly version???

Because if it's Cingular's version, they could very well not realize that a707 is basically a z560 everywhere else in the world and it has a QVGA screen. What i am trying to say is that if it's in fact a Cingular's software running on the phone it may not resize the pictures correctly to accomodate 240x320, instead it resizes it to 176x2something and then stretches it over 240x320. Same problem i had with c417 that i got with signup on Cingular, all the wallpapers looked like crap, because of Cingular's firwmare.

By the way can you turn off the operator's logo/"CINGULAR" off the main screen, or did Cingular lay their hand on that too???? I wonder if the unbranded firmware is available to bring this phone back to the way Samsung designed it - that would be the best way to fix all the glitches, like speakerphone operates with flip closed, wallpapers, full mp3 ringtones and so on (just look at how much better w810i unbranded is vs. Cingular version)

I think you hit the nail on the head, that's exactly what's happening. It's definitely Cingular's UI, albeit, their 3G UI, but it's still Cingular's. That explains why the pictures are not displaying properly, especially when you try to use them as wallpapers. I don't think there's going to be a fix for this, so unless you can deal with fuzzy looking wallpapers and/or pictures, I'm sorry to say you're in for the same experience with the A707.

Perhaps there's something I'm missing in how to fix this, but after two days and countless hours experimenting, talking with Samsung and Cingular tech support, there's been no solution. I'm returning mine today on my lunch hour.

Posted by: panerai7

Bloom, sorry to hear that you're returning it. As soon as I get it, i am gonna play with photoshop and see what can be done,

Also, have you tried the Samsung's PC Suite to make your wallpapers, possibly download a pc suite for another model like z560 or z540 (both QVGA) and use a707 usb drivers with it. Worst case scenario, i can live with just making a simple monotone wallpaper that's going to look fine even with the handicapped Cingular's resizing software.

Basically, the only reason I am getting a Cingular-branded phone at all is 3g, if european 3g 2100 worked here, I would never bother with their outdated, crippled phones, with sad cameras and limited features. I mean z560 has been out for almost a year now everywhere else.

If you want, wait til i get the phone and see if we can fix this, before you return it, because CU500 alternative is even more sad than a707, I mean in case you want to keep a 3g phone.

Can you remove the operator's logo off the screen??

Posted by: Bloom

Quote:

Originally Posted by panerai7

Bloom, sorry to hear that you're returning it. As soon as I get it, i am gonna play with photoshop and see what can be done,

Also, have you tried the Samsung's PC Suite to make your wallpapers, possibly download a pc suite for another model like z560 or z540 (both QVGA) and use a707 usb drivers with it. Worst case scenario, i can live with just making a simple monotone wallpaper that's going to look fine even with the handicapped Cingular's resizing software.

Basically, the only reason I am getting a Cingular-branded phone at all is 3g, if european 3g 2100 worked here, I would never bother with their outdated, crippled phones, with sad cameras and limited features. I mean z560 has been out for almost a year now everywhere else.

If you want, wait til i get the phone and see if we can fix this, before you return it, because CU500 alternative is even more sad than a707, I mean in case you want to keep a 3g phone.

I didn't try using the PC Suite software on my pictures as I didn't think it would help. When you're in the phone, and then you go into your actual picture to try and manual edit it, the picture shows up crisp and clear, just like it was when you originally send it to the phone. Once you hit save however, it then reverts back to the semi-blurry, soft image that the phone is obviously pre-programmed to display.

Don't get me wrong: I really want to like this phone. The display and the scrolling characters are very nice. Not being able to fully use the display however with crisp pictures, having no ability to have the phone power up for calendar alarms in the event that it's turned off at the time, and the weak music player (in addition to the negatives I mentioned before about the lack of complete MP3 id tags, the sound quality is tinny at best, and not loud enough), I just can't see keeping this phone. My KRZR isn't 3g

, but it still beats the Samsung in just about every other category. The voice dialing on it is perfect, sound quality is great, and the music player, although Java, has good low end to it. Also, calendar alarms work even when the phone is off, so that's a huge plus for me. I'm hoping the Nokia N75 will have these features, and UMTS access to boot.

Regardless, let me know if you get your phone to display pictures correctly. At the very least, I'm curious to see if there is a work around.

Posted by: panerai7

Yeah, i thought about N75 as well, but who knows when it's coming, Cingular is afraid of Nokias and tends to cancel them a lot, I think because they won't sell any other phones if they bring N series Nokia, i mean they still have to sell a year-old v3i for 200 bucks.

Plus, a707 is 49 bucks, N75 will definetely be more expensive and buggy at first as well, especially after Cingular is done with it. In any case I will be getting an unbranded N75, it will definetely be available judging by other Nokia models, probably after Cingular's exclusive expires.

I will keep you posted in this thread, if I got any glitches if any worked out. But, all of the problems you're describing are from Cingular and not Samsung. Because z510, z540, z560, d600, d900 DO power on for alarms and calendar reminders and show wallpapers fine.

By the way i like the KRZR, i just wish it had a larger screen with QVGA res. and of course US 3G

Cheers.

Posted by: Bloom

Quote:

Originally Posted by panerai7

Yeah, i thought about N75 as well, but who knows when it's coming, Cingular is afraid of Nokias and tends to cancel them a lot, I think because they won't sell any other phones if they bring N series Nokia, i mean they still have to sell a year-old v3i for 200 bucks.

Plus, a707 is 49 bucks, N75 will definetely be more expensive and buggy at first as well, especially after Cingular is done with it. In any case I will be getting an unbranded N75, it will definetely be available judging by other Nokia models, probably after Cingular's exclusive expires.

I will keep you posted in this thread, if I got any glitches if any worked out. But, all of the problems you're describing are from Cingular and not Samsung. Because z510, z540, z560, d600, d900 DO power on for alarms and calendar reminders and show wallpapers fine.

By the way i like the KRZR, i just wish it had a larger screen with QVGA res. and of course US 3G

Cheers.

Just tried editing the photos in Samsung's PC Studio. Unfortunately, still ends with the same results; the photos come over sharp, even resized, but once you save them on the phone, it's almost like it applys the soft, fuzzy mask to the photos making them appear a bit out of focus. Bummer. Oh well, I've exhausted every avenue and came up short. Keep me posted on how things go for you.

Bloom

Posted by: panerai7

yeah, that's gotta be Cingular crap working

Posted by: at&t_hitman

I dont really care for the extra step it seems it takes to send a text message. The past few Samsungs require an additional screen instead of just sending once you type up the message.

In addition, on the LG cu500, when you tap the external music controls, you're off and listening to music. With the Samsung you have to use the smart key on the right side of the phone, select the music player THEN youre off and listening to music.

I simply think the LG is the more streamlined 3g phone. While the Samsung is a more appealing design and has a much better screen useability is a big deal to me. Until the 3g razr comes out I have to call the LG the champ. The N75 as a smartphone is not really in the same category as just a regular 3g multimedia cell phone.