This great dual band, entry-level phone boasts features more often found on more expensive handsets. With support for multimedia messaging, mobile instant messaging, and AT&T wireless Internet services, this phone is anything but plain Jane. It's the perfect complement to AT&T wireless service.
Design
The Samsung 426 sports a slim, sleek clamshell design with a large 128 x 160 color display with 65,000 colors. A stub antenna is placed on the top right side of the unit. Up and down buttons for volume control are placed on the left side. Most of the phone's features and on-screen menus are controlled by a five-way center button on the handset's control pad. There's a standard jack on the top of the unit to accept universal hands-free headsets, while the phone's charging and data ports are placed on the bottom of the unit.
Calling Features
The 426 features 40-chord polyphonic ringtones, and in addition to the built-in ringers you can download more from Cingular's MEdia service. A vibrate alert silently notifies you of incoming calls when you want to be discreet. The phone's internal memory lets you create an internal phone book of 500 alphanumeric entries. Caller ID, call forwarding, call waiting, three-way calling and other standard features help you more efficiently handle your phone conversations.
Messaging, Internet and Tools
The 426 has all the bases covered when it comes to messaging and Internet connectivity. The phone features support for AOL Instant Messenger (AT&T messaging charges apply), and there's also a built-in web browser for mMode downloads and mobile web browsing. AT&T's mMode service lets you receive and send emails, read news headlines, get sports scores, download games and ringtones, and more. Traditional text messaging, as well as picture and sound messaging are also supported by the phone. T9 text entry, which is a technology that makes it easier for people to enter words and text on handsets, is built into the unit-- a plus for mobile email and text messaging users.
The phone supports the GPRS wireless data protocol, meaning that when used with an AT&T data plan and the phone's data port, the 426 can be used as a wireless modem for laptops and PDAs.
A number of handy software tools are bundled with the 426 including a calculator with currency converter, an alarm, a to-do list, and a calendar.
Imaging and Entertainment
The 426 allows you to set screensavers, themes and wallpapers to suit your tastes. The phone is Java enabled, meaning it supports games written on the Java platform. The unit ships with three games and more are available via the AT&T mMode service service.
Vital Statistics
The 426 weighs 2.80 ounces and measures 3.30 x 1.80 x .80 inches. Its lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 7 hours of digital talk time, and up to 216 hours of digital standby time. It runs on the 800/1900 MHz GSM/GPRS frequencies. The phone comes with a one year limited warranty.
What's in the Box
Samsung 426 handset, AC battery charger, lithium-ion battery, user manual.
1 bad bad phone
I bought this phone because of my good experience with a previous Samsung phone (made in 2000). But it turned out that some things I liked about my old phone were removed from a new one. Plus the phone had glitches which required me to take out the battery and put it back to get the phone into the working condition. I later on needed to exchange the phone.
I should admit that the phone looks great.
Also note that the phone doesn't have an external display which prevents you from checking the time easily.
2 Never experiened any problems at all. Great phone!
This phone is perfectly reliable and I have never had problems with any of my 426's (dropping them will probably cause damage--as if dropping your computer, your TV, or any other electronic device wouldn't. So my best advice is to not drop it). The audio and video quality is excellent and Samsung has great support. The only drawbacks are that it doesn't have a camera, nor does it have a speakerphone. The hands-free headset that Samsung makes is great, however, and the phones are meticulously customizable. These phones are great for handing out to family members (especially student) and co-workers alike. It isn't stuffed with tons of extra games and applications, but if you are looking for a good phone to make calls from rather than to plan your life with, this is a great buy.
3 GREAT PHONE; SLEEK LOOKS AND SOLID RECEPTION
Dont believe the naysayers, this is a great little phone and is perfect for those who just need a solid, reliable phone without the frills... samsung easily makes the best-looking and best performing clamshells, and this phone blows away my previous nokias and motorolas. great looks and performance,lots of bang for the buck... reception up and down the east coast is solid, and is superior to other carriers i've experienced. yes, it doesnt have the external lcd, but it hardly matters.
4 Pathetic phone, pathetic service
I would prefer to give this phone no stars. Today I am to receive a third replacement. I bought the original in March, 2004. Think of the worst voice quality you have ever heard, multiply it by 10, and you will have an idea of what to expect with this phone and AT&T service. Calls drop even when the signal strength is full, and don't be surprised if you have to constantly ask the voice at the other end to repeat him/herself. Since AT&T will soon merge with Cingular, (which will no doubt result in many layoffs) apathy runs rampant in their customer service ranks.
The early versions of this phone had defective firmware, which AT&T prefers you don't know about. Press *#9999# and make sure the version number is 1.6 or later. There are a few things to like about the phone. It is small, and the colour screen looks good, and it is easy to use. Connection to a computer via a data cable is easy, and the GPRS software can be downloaded for free from Samsung's website. Too bad it will not sync with MS Outlook. There is, however, nothing to like about the combination of this phone and AT&T's service.
5 Be aware if you want to use unlimited mobile to mobile
This phone is pretty good. But earbud with the phone is bad. And this has some problem with calling to someone who also has unlimited mobile to mobile. My roommate also confirmed about the problem. (He has the same phone). So, I switched back to a Nokia phone. I used Nokia before this, and Nokia is better than this phone. 426 has bright screen and fantastic melody, and small size, but quality is just average. I know that samsung phones in Korea are excellent, but I don't know why samsung still sells old phones in USA. You can't find these phones in Korea anymore. (more than 2 years old...)
6 Poor reception and even poorer AT&T customer care service
First I thought this is a great phone. The stylish design, super light weight, nice color screen. Compared to my 4-year-old Nokia Candy Bar, it was like a miracle. However, during the first call from my home to my friend's home phone, the call dropped 4 times within 2 hours. First I thought that my room was having a reception problem, but the phone was always showing full reception with 4 standing bars. Besides, my 4-year-old Nokia, also from AT&T, seldom had a reception problem at the same place. As I used this phone in various places, it became evident that this phone has a reception issue.
Since it was frustrating to get disconnected every 15 minutes or so during conversations, I decided to return the phone and cancel the 1 year contract by using 30 day risk free trial, which AT & T was advertising everywhere. Since mistakes in the cancellation could cost a few hundred bucks, I asked about the return and cancellation procedure and any costs for this 30 day risk free trial repeatedly. Surprisingly, the costs of this trial changed every time I talked to the AT & T representatives.
The first representative with whom I talked before I returned this phone told me that I had to pay for the activation fee, monthly regular fee, and other small fees. A few weeks after I returned the phone, I called AT & T and made sure if it was cancelled on time. I also asked the costs again. She told me that it was totally free since I returned it during the trial period. I made sure if all costs, including the activation fee and the monthly fee were free. She said that she could not find any fees on her screen for my account. So I forgot about that phone and I was enjoying another new phone from Nokia.
And then, about a month later, I received a sudden bill from AT&T. It stated that I owed over $200 to AT&T. It billed the early cancellation fee $175, GSM America Local for 19 days $25.80, activation fee $36, and other small fees. I immediately called AT&T. The story seemed too complicated to the first representative, so his supervisor answered my billing questions. She credited the activation fee and the early cancellation fee. At end, the total price became slightly less than $60. I'm still not so sure how much the true price is, but the last offer seems acceptable. Looking back transactions with AT&T, I believe that the source of this mess is their organizational problem rather than individual employee's faults. It appeared that each customer representative was just performing what he/she was told. I just hope I won't get another surprise attack from AT&T.
If you happen to retun your phone to AT&T by using their trial period, keep all documents and be prepared for their ambush.
7 Very Happy With This Phone!!!
Excellent phone...great reception...nice and small..very bright display.....loud ringtone..overall, I would recommend it.
8 moderate phone
Good deal. Good phone.
~But, definitely expect some call drops. Even tho I had 4 bars of signals, my call gets dropped sometimes.
9 AT& T and Samsung do NOT play well together
MAKE SURE YOU GET THE EDCI SOFTWARE. At&t was aware of software incompatibilities with this phone in February. It's August and I still got the "EWJ5" software. When you get your phone, hit *#9999# and check your version. As I type I am on hold with Samsung (over 30 minute hold queue). It looks like I'm going to be without a cell phone for a WEEK while they put the software on the phone that should have been on there in the first place. Basically the software problem makes the phone connection like a bad Cellular connection in the middle of nowhere. GSM my foot.
So I order two of these phones on a Thursday. With free "express shipping." Whatever. I got one phone on Friday and I haven't seen the other one yet. AT&T customer care promised me a $20 per phone credit when I purchased, but "migration" only gave me a $15 per phone credit. (bait & switch) Whatever. I am *this* close to my 30 day return to AT&T. I'm already out shipping ($10 per phone). The phone's not bad, usability-wise, but I can't recommend the AT&T + x426 combo.
10 New AT&T Customer
I recently purchased this phone and was initially very happy with it. As with all cell phones depending where you are at the time you will get poor reception. However, in certain places without any reasoning 1 minute my phone screen says "AT&T Wireless" and the next it says "Emergency Calls Only". You cannot make any outgoing calls and cannot receive any incoming calls-a couple of minutes go by and all of a sudden your screen says "AT&T Wireless" mind you I have not moved from the spot in which I was standing or sitting. This is very frustrating to say the least (occurring several times a day) and AT&T has no idea why this happens. Needless to say I am returning the phone-I need a phone I can depend on, not one that I am depended on!
11 I really like this phone
I bought the phone a couple of weeks ago and I really like it. It is so small and cute. The reception is great. The only reason I wasn at all dissapointed is because it doesn't have some things that I expected it to have (such as assigning ringtones to each phone book entry, or sound recorder). I can't be too upset though, because I didn't research the phone at all before buying it. It is very easy to use, and I would recomend it.
12 Great Phone
Had verizon phone no service in many area's switched to AT&T have 5 bars and great reception very little dropped calls great battery life. I find that the caller ID on covers for the most part are useless display to small to see with this phone you open phone and it is large display you can set phone to either accept call or put in voicemail. It has to be the best phone I have owned crystal clear both to myself and people I speak to on GSM. Has bright display and loud ringer had audiovox had low volume on speaker and ringtones.
13 Amazon is great.. phone is great, just say away from AT&T
WARNING: AT&T representatives ("Dawn: R361" and "Max: N360") themselves said during my troubleshooting (as detailed below) that I should NOT have bought through Amazon, and that they have received a barrage of complaints from Amazon buyers! I still really like Amazon, but they're integration with AT&T is non existent. People should not have to wait 2-3 days for service after they receive the phone. Buy the same phone on Amazon, but a different carrier.
14 horrible phone!
Warning -- do not buy this phone. it is horrible! I owned it for 3 months before selling it on Ebay for extra cash! the speaker quality sucks. I found myself having to talk VERY loud for anyone to hear me. There is no caller ID on the outside so you can't see who is calling unless you open the phone up. the ring tones are so so so cheesy! other than that the phone is easy to use and light weight. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
15 not perfect, but pretty darn good for a cheap phone
Just a comment to Mike. According my AT&T store, there was a shipment of these phones that was put out, which had a defect in the mic. It caused people to sound distorted digitally and often too loud to the people on the other line. I had the same problem, the phone was exchanged and the problem disappeared.
The phone does have its negatives: lack of caller ID on the outside (which they have on the T-Mobile model) and horrible ringtones will probably the first features most users will notice. I do think it is easy to use and, although it lacks the greatness of Nokia phones, is still a great little phone. Ultra light and very comfortable, large display and buttons, good menu structure, easier to find many of the options within the menus and good connection/battery life.
If you're getting it on Amazon, the value is unbeatable! Just don't expect to get a 300 dollar phone for free (or even money back).
16 X426 with 1.6 firmware is good!
I picked up this AT&T phone recently (6/5/04) as an upgrade from a Sony-Ericsson T-306. The Sony had good sound and battery life, but mediocre reception. The Samsung is much better in terms of reception and I like the small form factor better than the small, yet somewhat bulkier T-306. I had read the reviews critical of this phone especially the sound quality issues and was somewhat hesitant when the AT&T sales rep suggested it when I told her I was looking for a GSM flip phone. She assured me that this phone had upgraded firmware (1.6) and it was a lot better than the older version. They had been getting a lot of returns with the older version, but none with the newer firmware. My experience, after a month, has been pretty good. I asked people about the sound quality and they all thought it was fine. The reception is pretty good and although I wish it had more ringtone selections, I'm pretty satisfied with this phone.
17 very good phone
i have had my x426 for 2 weeks now. i love this phone. i have not had any problems but sometimes the phone can be a little slow to do something after you push a button. the only thing i wish this phone had is a outside screen. but i can live without it. when att sells a upgraded version of this phone, maybe outside screen and camera, i will buy it. but for now i love this phone. unlike my nec 525, this phone does not drop calls and sounds good even with low signal. the battery life is also good. my nec 525 would last if you were lucky 3 days. i can go about 5 days with moderate talk.
18 Accessories
I'm getting this phone soon but I can't find accessories anywhere (car charger, bodysuit,beltclip...) Where can I find these stuffs?
19 Great Phone
I just recently purchased this phone and I must say that I am impressed. I have had two phones prior to this one a Ericsson and a Motorola C333. Both of those phones were horrible!! The Samsung is an excellent phone for those of us listed as "heavy users". The talk time is great! It has enough features for a business user and is fully integrated for play. The only feature is that it does not have an external caller ID and you must turn the folder function off in order to screen calls when flipping open the phone. If function is on, you answer the phone by flipping it open not allowing you to see who is callng first. Other than that, a very good phone.
20 This phone needs an important firmware update!
First of all AT&T's digital (TDMA) service is better than their "next generation" GSM service. Don't let the sales representatives fool you by saying that you will receive increased service...because this "next generation" stuff will set you back three generations. They promote their new GSM America plans by stating that there are no roaming charges...yea but if there's no service and you can't make a call, of course I won't get hit with roaming charges. My phone either says "searching" or I can have 5 signal bars and it will say "Emergency calls only". It makes me wanta dial 911 and beg for help with this phone. Like the others have said before me...stick with your digital plan for now, this new fangled stuff just doesn't cut it. As for the phone itself, every one of my friends tell me to stop shouting into the telephone...I'm not a loud person at all but this phone seems to amplify my voice five times over. Yes the ring tones are corny...could it be they want you to buy better ones? And yes, you should disable that blue "M" button in the middle of the phone, because if you hit it by accident you will definitely be charged. There is no external display, but I have even gotten used to that at this point. I live in NYC, and in NYC you can't drive a car and talk on the cell phone at the same time without getting a ticket. Good luck finding a hands free car kit for this phone. (...) One tip...The old version of the firmware that came with this phone is no good. The old version is 1.5 and the new one is 1.6 which fixes most of the above mentioned problems. To check what firmware version you have on this phone, type *#9999# into the phone and see what it tells you. If it says 1.5 X46UEWJ5, then you need the firmware updated. If it says 1.6 X46UEDC1 then you are in good shape. To have the firmware update you have to visit a local AT&T store or a Samsung dealer, or have it shipped to Samsung for repair by calling 1-800-726-7864. Check out this website for more information on this subject. I'm glad to help and finally put an end to this problem.
(...)
21 Nice Phone
I have used this phone for around 6 months now. Thats right that at&t service could be frustrating some times but then only thing that is better than at&t in terms of coverage is nextel. Nextel was my first choice but the phones that they offer are old, outdated, junky motorola crap. I made a choice between good looking phone or better coverage and I glad to say this that good looking phone choice worked for me.
I just can't imagine myself with those chunky motorola phones. I have not be able to locate any bugs in my Samsung phone.
22 poor sound quality, poor ringtones
I replaced my ancient Nokia cell phone with this one and, while I'm pretty happy with the tiny form factor and the color screen, this phone is pretty disappointing in two of its most important features: the sound quality is pretty bad and the ringtones that ship with the phone are extremely annoying and definitely not usable in a business situation. I spent a few bucks downloading a better ringtone but it was a hassle.
23 Keep looking
I don't know if it's AT&T's poor coverage, a bad phone, or both, but the sound quality is marginal at best. Calls get dropped occasionally. You'll love this phone if you like having to repeat yourself over and over again. The only good feature is the screen is big and functions are easy to use. I'm sure there are better phones out there . . . keep looking!
24 buggy phone and horrible customer service
I recently bought this phone and 'upgraded' my service from tdma to gsm. The phone has issues, and after searching around on the web I learned that there is a firmware update that makes this phone work perfectly. Since I ordered my phone long after AT&T decided the phone had sufficient problems to justify rewriting the firmware, I felt I deserved to receive a properly functioning and up-to-date phone in exchange for adding a year on to my contract. Long story short, they strung me along for a week, I spent about 4 hours on hold with so-called customer *care,* got verbally attacked by an employee at a brick-and-mortar location(she didn't even let me fully explain what was happening before screaming me out of the store), and I finally closed the account. I've been an at&t wireless customer since 1999 and I used to be really satisfied with the service, especially customer care a few years ago, but it really seems like all they care about anymore is getting a check from me every month and it doesn't matter to them whether or not I can effectively use the service for which I am paying.
25 Service Versus Phone
The phone is fairly good except for one major detail. The signal is very weak on the phone. Otherwise, it is a very basic and easy to use phone with most of the features that you will find in cell phones now.
AT&T I've found to be a bit terse at times. They avoid telling you about certain charges and even on occasion I've asked the Customer Service and they don't know... or they have told me erroneous information. They will always give you credit for mistakes that they make, but it has been trying at times.
The service of AT&T in general does not have a very good mobile internet plan or what would be called GPRS. They go by blocks... example: 1 megabyte for 7.99 and so on. The data plans are not what I was hoping for.
Otherwise, their coverage is very good and their plans are very competitive.
26 ATT Service
Phone works great, but AT&T's customer service could care less if you have a problem. They ended our last conversation with, it's AT&Ts police not to issue any credits when you have a problem. Sprint would go out of there way to help me, should never have gone with AT&T.
27 Stay away from AT & T
I bought this phone from Amazon and signed up for AT & T service. I connected the phone to my laptop and used the internet. I logged into my account and saw no change. I assumed that I had the first month free like I had had with Sprint. I contined to use the internet for two hours and fifteen minutes in TOTAL. The next day I logged in and found I owed AT & T $650.00!!! That's not a typo. Six hundred and fifty US dollars. If I had seen usage reflected in my account I would not have used it for another second! Also watch out for the "M" button in the center of the phone --its very easy to press and not necessarily easy to disable (I immediately disabled it when I got the phone) Don't expect any help from AT&T -- they will only say PAY UP!! They DON'T CARE if you made a mistake or that you misunderstood! Read the FINE PRINT! All I did was download a legal MP3, read my email and a few newspaper headlines. AT & T charges by kilobyte, not mega byte and not by time. So just downloading (very slow) the front page of any newspaper for example might cost you 15 dollars -- I'm guessing because how can you can tell how much you've used/spent? I guess you have to trust that when AT & T says that you owe them $650 or whatever that you do. Computers never make mistakes? Also it seem THE SKY IS THE LIMIT! Who knows, if I did not check my account and continued using the internet to the end of the month I could owe them 6,500 or 65,000 by now! Now to cancel my service, it will cost $200 more! I will cancel and won't return!! Sprint was way better, especially for data use and fewer dropped calls!! What a nightmare. There is a reason AT & T is rated NUMBER ONE for customer complaints!!!
28 Awful voice quality!!!
Ok, I've actually owned 4 of these Samsung 426X phones. On the positive, they are attractive, light weight, beautiful color screen, and good battery life. On the very bad side, voice quality was so poor as to be unacceptable. My wife and I each got this phone and tried playing with mic to mouth distance and volume controls, and we always got lots of background noise and a garbled as if you were underwater sound. We went back to our local service provider (At&T Wireless) and exchanged for 2 new Samsung 426 phones and got the same result. Went back to the store, tried several other phone models and tested cell to land line quality, and the Samsung was clearly the worst available. We finally ended up with a basic Nokias and are very satisfied...not as high a style as the Samsung, but functional where it counts.
29 Not nearly the best
After having a Siemens S46, I thought I was just spoiled. But after comparing this phone to others, I see that it really is just that bad.
First, the good. The ringtones and sounds are quite clear and nice, it supports animated wallpapers and Java, the installed games are good, the display is bright and clear, it's small and light, the battery life is pretty good...and that's all I can think of.
Now the bad. The signal strength is he worst of any phone I've ever seen. I can have 3 bars and they will spontaneously disappear, and I've had, honestly, over 100 dropped calls over the past two months or so. Covering or even touching the antenna results in reduced signal strength. The ringtones included are not very good. You cannot directly bookmark a page. There is no external display. It won't ring and vibrate simultaneously. It doesn't auto-save sent text messages. You can't see how much space is used by tones, pictures, and games. No Bluetooth or IrDa. And to the other reviewers, I think that it is more the phone that is the cause of your signal woes, because with my S46 I had a much better time with signal strength.
I highly dislike Nokias, but I'd recommend one over this phone. Better yet, get a Siemens, the BMW of AT&T's selection.
30 426
It is just sufficient. The ring tones are for adolescents, Samsung should have added at least one tradional sound. It should also have been designed with an external caller ID, it takes time to slide the phone out of the case, flip it open, read the number, then hit accept. I personally found the silver colored buttons with royal blue numbers hard to distinguish from the silver colored background. I miss my old Motorola V60.
31 terrible ring tones
nice display of numbers when dialing - but caution, even though it comes with 40 ring tones, all save one or two are TERRIBLE. there is a catch, att wants you to sign up for m mode to download other ring tones at a cost.
32 Very Disappointing Phone and Service
I've had AT&T service since 1998. For Christmas 2003 I purchased two of these phones (originally for my wife, but I had to get one for myself as well) and upgraded my service from digital to gsm. My reception and coverage on the digital plan was stellar, but the reception and coverage of the gsm service is beyond frustrating. I don't know if it's the phone or the service. I suspect a combination of both. Dropped calls, garbled transmissions, and slow connecting has become something I have come to expect since I "upgraded" my service and got this phone.
Apart from the connectivity issues, the phone itself is very sleek. Nice ringtones and excellent screen resolution. The only thing it's missing, besides decent reception, is external caller id and a better mic. The over sensitive microphone hasn't been a problem on my phone, but if my wife has her volume turned up she'll sometimes start to distort.
33 Average at best
Pros:
Very small, lightweight. Fits easily in pocket.
Nice color screen.
Cons:
Not as user friendly as my last Nokia phone.
Has no external caller id. Have to open phone. By default, opening the phone answers the call... had to read the manual to disable this feature.
If you are older than 16, you won't like the ringtones.
It's always searching for a signal, but this may be more a function of the service in my area.
No pause capability for programmed numbers. So you have to remember any extensions for people...
Short battery life.
Microphone not too good. To others, voice has "digital" sound.
34 Missing a few things.
Much better than a Nokia I had. Reception is better but still not great. I blame AT&T for that. This phone is nice and small. I like the clam shell design. It does not flip as easily as the Motorola that is similar in size and price. I agree 100% with another review, THE TONES ARE HORRIBLE. Another feature missing that I miss is auto-update of time and date. I travel extesively and I now have to manually adjust the time. The ear piece is OK. Buy one that fits your ear. Bottom like good phone not great.
35 Nice cute phone, but still needs improvement
This is my third cell phone so far. It looks really nice with an ultra bright and clear 65K color screen. Lightweight and slim design makes it very carriable to be fit in any pocket. After using it for a month, I found some places not too satisfied. First no outside ID display, you need to open the folder to check time and caller id. Second those polyphonic ringtones are really weak and hard to hear if it is in your purse or some places 10FT away. The location of earbud plugin is too closer to the antenna, the static noise is very easy to get into your call specially for those low quality earbud.
And some other features are not too user-friendly by specially comparing with Nokia cellphone I used before. My final words, don't buy it unless in a super deal.
36 Great Phone!
I have had my phone for about a week now, and it is great. You get free mmode and ringtones for a month which is great cuz the ringtones on the phone suck lmao. The only bad thing about this is that the microphone is very sensitive and all the background noises cut into to the reception. All Samsungs are like that. Everything else is perfect. The Call Conference is really cool and the graphics are amazing. I definatly would recommend this phone to anyone, especially for the price I paid at the AT&T store ($50.00).
37 wonderful little phone
I love this phone. It's small, good-looking, very reliable, it gets good reception, and it has a very clear color display. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is because it doesn't have an external caller ID, but I can live without that. It comes with internet, which by the way is very easy to use.It's not too expensive either. It's a great phone.
38 GREAT PHONE!
I am used to having a Nokia phone that I didn't have to worry about breaking no matter how many times I dropped it so I was nervous about getting a flip phone. But this phone seems well made and I like that the antenna doesn't look like it will come off easily. The phone is great. It has a nice screen, it has great reception, & it's easy to use. The only reason I didn't give the phone 5 stars is that the ringtones on it are HORRIBLE!!! Also it needs external caller ID. other then that I am very happy with my phone.
39 Some Significant Problems.
This is a nice phone with quite a few good features. We got ours with AT&T Wireless for cheap.
We had been happily using TDMA phones for several years, and the quality and signal reception where we live is good enough that we just turned off our regular landline phone about a year ago. TDMA has worked fine as our primary phone.
But this phone is GSM, a newer digital type of cel phone, and the audio quality is significantly poorer than our old TDMA phones! This by itself may cause us to return the phones.
Another beef I have with this phone is that it only lets me put names into it's phonebook up to 16 characters long. So for example, the name "Singleton Real Estate" doesn't fit. The manual says that the length of the names you can put in is determined by your SIM card, which is a little memory chip you put in the phone when you activate it.
Well this sucks because I have numerous business and friend contacts that require more than 16 characters. I need to be able to have entries like "Some Company - Bob Jones", "Some Company - Tom Smith", etc. This phone does not let me do that.
I realize for many people this will not be a problem, but if you want a phone for more than just friends and family calling, this may be a problem for you. Look through your existing celphone phonebook and see how many entries you have that are longer than 16 characters before you buy this one.
There are some awkward interface issues with using the phone, but so far nothing that I can't live with. The mMode feature seems like a neat gizmo, but when I activated it, it cannot locate where my phone is, which renders a lot of the "go2" functionality inoperative. But that's not a show-stopper for me: the mMode thing is a neat toy, but not something I'm really depending on.
Overall, the phone is nice and small, lightweight, loud ring tones, bright display, smaller than a pack of smokes, and the problem of seeing callerID before answering can be fixed by disabling "Folder Active" in phone options as a previous reviewer noted. I like the ergonomics, but the functionality just doesn't seem to be there...
We'll live with the phones for a few weeks and decide whether to take advantage of the 30-day return policy. At this point I think we're going to return these phones because of the sound quality and the brain-damaged phone directory limitation.
40 The worst I have ever owned.
It looks great, its light, but you sound like your talking underwater. The clarity is nonexistant. I tried the suggestions of lowering the volume to compensate for the microphone but then you can't hear anyway. I had to jump thru hoops to have A t @ T let me return this. Their "resolution specialist" told me he would exchange the Samsung with another of the same type. When I told him I did not want the same phone, he told me I was not interested in being helped.."thank you for calling A T & T and hung up on me.
41 EXCELLENT PHONE!!!!
I've had this phone for about two weeks now. It is easy to use, has one of the most vivid and colorful screens I've seen and has excellent reception. It looks great, the buttons are very ergonomic and the construction of the phone is very precise and tightly engineered. The screensavers (animated) and polyphonic ringtones are outstanding and you can download many many more to boot. Although this phone doesn't have a built-in camera...who cares? It's a phone, an internet device and that's enough. With this phone tucked in your pocket; you are always connected to anyone you want to talk to and all the information from the internet to keep you informed. I love it!!
42 Great overall phone....
I have had my phone for nearly two weeks. Its by far the best phone I have ever owned. The reception is really good. It took me about 5 minutes to learn the new display and options. Its probably the next easiest phone to use to the Nokia cell phones. The battery life is exceptional. The phone has made crystal clear calls each and every time. Within the past two weeks I have had two friends go out to get themselves this phone after they fell in love with it. I like the fact that the attenna isn't really flimsy and breakable. This phone is made rather solid for a flip phone. I would recommend this phone to anyone who would like an affordable phone (I got mine for free due to a promotion!) with great functionality.
43 Great Phone, with Powerful Mic
I recently purchased this phone from AT&T and upgraded to GSM service. At first I was hesitant to purchase the phone because of all the terrible reviews. However, after owning the phone for about 4 days, I am experiencing first-hand, the sound quality issues that everyone has mentioned. After testing my phone a number of times, the problem is that the mic is too sensitive. With flip phones, the contour of the phone fits with the natural contour from your ear to your mouth, and users tend to hold the mic close to their mouth. This causes a lot of breathing noise to distort the clarity of your voice. The best remedy is to hold the mic atleast 2 inches away from your mouth. If you do a test by calling a landline and leaving a message on your home answering machine, you can hear the difference. First, test the mic at close range and read a sentence. Then hold the phone two inches away from your mouth and read the same sentence. When you check your machine, you will hear the difference. Overall, I like the features of the phone. The menus are very user-friendly, and the compact size is great. The phone tends to slip out my hand, so a leather case would make the phone less slippery, and would provide more protection. The speaker is great. All my calls come in clear. The graphics are very cute. The text is easy to read. Aside from the sensitive mic, which can be remedied) the phone is great.
44 Nice phone - lame ringtones
Altogether, this seems to be a great phone. Easy to use, nice menus, great size. But the included ringtones are tacky and obnoxious; I can't believe Samsung couldn't even include one "simple" ringer.
45 Nice little phone
My husband and I purchased our Samsung x426 phones about 3 weeks ago. The phone is small, lightweight, and stylish. After reading some reviews, i was a bit worried. But we haven't had many problems. The one problem that keeps popping up in the reviews is the mic being to sensitive, it is. But all you have to do is adjust the volume on the side of the phone, and don't talk with the phone inside of your mouth. As for the dropped calls, that would be your service provider. All and all, this is a great phone and i would recommend it highly.
46 Great phone
Light, sleek, small. Option to block caller ID. One button silent mode. Calling groups with specific pictures and ringtones. No external display, but option to not answer when opening. The vibrate & ring alert option vibrates for a few seconds then rings. Alarms do not have a snooze option.
47 Microphone is awful!
I just got this phone as I switched from T-Mobile to AT&T and the mic volume is unbearably loud and is unajustable. Though I am not a particually loud person, my voice is garbled and distorted when speaking on this phone, I am going to have to exchange it.
48 GREAT PHONE
this phone is wonderful!!! I use it all the time and i never have any problems with it. It is great. Don't listen to what other people say about it because it is so good and good reception and dont read other peeps cauze they are wrong(well.. only some). its great so buy one today!
49 It looks good!!
I ordered this phone on the 14th of Feb and received an estimated delivery date from the 26th of Feb to the 4th of March. There seems to be some sort of a glitch in the system coz I received my phone on the 18th of Feb.
Have not had a chance to use it yet. Just opened the box and the phone looks awesome. It is sleek and light. It looks way way better and smaller than my current Nokia 3360.
Will update my review after using it for some time...
50 Not so good sound quality or range in DC
I like the look of this phone, as well as the light-weightedness. The main disappointments are the sound quality...it sounds horrible on the receiving end (lots of static), and the range of service in the DC area. My friend also has AT&T service, and uses the cheapo phone that came free with his plan. His phone receives calls in the metro, inside buildings, in basements.....and this one does not! I don't want to opt for a bulky phone, but it seems like the smaller ones don't provide as good a range as the others.
51 It's a great phone
Jeong, it might be that Amazon hasn't updated the status of your order yet. A few hours after I received the phone, I got an email from them that they had just shipped the order. Also, I got the phone in exactly one week of placing the order...surprisingly quick. The last time I ordered, it took 2 weeks. Anyways, I'm sure when you placed the order, they gave you an estimated delivery date. So, chill! If you wanted it so urgently that 11 days seem to be too much to wait, you should've ordered with one or two day shipping (if you did, then ignore my comments). As far as the phone is concerned, it's pretty neat. The mic is indeed quite sensitive. So, set the mic level to be the lowest and the other party will still hear you clearly.
I'm giving it 4 stars coz I haven't gotten a chance to test all the features yet. And, also, bcoz there is no external display.
52 It's a great phone
Joeng, it might be that Amazon hasn't updated the status of your order yet. A few hours after I received the phone, I got an email from them that they had just shipped the order. Also, I got the phone in exactly one week of placing the order...surprisingly quick. The last time I ordered, it took 2 weeks. Anyways, I'm sure when you placed the order, they gave you an estimated delivery date. So, chill! As far as the phone is concerned, it's pretty neat. The mic is indeed quite sensitive. So, set the mic level to be the lowest and the other party will still hear you clearly.
I'm giving it 4 stars coz I haven't gotten a chance to test all the features yet. And, also, bcoz there is no external display.
Addition: The mic is really troublesome. If you speak with the mic very close to your mouth, it might become very difficult for the other party to understand what you are saying. Other than that, this phone is simply awesome.
53 It takes time to receive this order
Technically, I don't own this cell phone. Not yet.
I ordered this phone on Feb. 5. And the order is not even shipped yet.
If you have already ordered this item with a new service plan,
take a deep breath and try not to think of it for sometime.
Amazon haven't disappointed me so far, but this time they did.
Maybe too many orders?
54 Bad Echo, Sound
This phone sounds ok on my end, but it is a little static-y where my old phone was totally clear. When I'm talking to other people, though, they say I sound horrible, there's a bad echo and some static. I'd guess it's a bad microphone, but since the other reviews are so positive, maybe this is the GSM service in my area. I was on TDMA before. But I am also in the middle of Chicago, one of the biggest cell markets in the country. You'd think the service would be better.
55 Great Little Phone
I am not a big cell phone person, and have not owned many myself. However I am used to borrowing peoples' phones and have a definite sense for them.
I bought a Motorola T721 originally, but could not get decent reception in my house. Now, I know I am up against the foothills of the mountains, surrounded by trees, and that my neighbors tend to get bad reception. I was afraid that I simply was not going to be able to enjoy GSM.
Enter the Samsung x426. The reception on the phone is just great. I can get all kinds of bars of signal where people around me do not. The features on the phone are easy to use and make sense to me. The microphone is pretty sensitive, but not nearly as bad as some people with the original versions of this phone. I got mine from the Internet. I was told by a clerk in the AT&T store that every single one of these they had sold had been returned. The store must have gotten a bad batch. If you get a bad batch of these, you will want to exchange. But everyone I call says the voice quality is very clear and easy to listen to.
I love mine.
56 Great phone and something to think about
This is probably the best phone I have ever had--it combines the ease of use found in most Nokia's with reception quality of most Motorola's. Before buying, however, I would like to address a couple of issues that might be helpful for those who are considering switching to GSM service.
I had been a TDMA (digital) subscriber with AT&T for about 3 years when I decided to switch to AT&T's GSM service. That was back in August and the phone I got was a Nokia 6800, I believe, the 'keyboard' phone, as I call it. I had some problems with GSM, including dropped calls with full reception, inability to send/receive text messages, the phone would constantly say I had voice mail when I didn't, so I switched back to digital.
This past week, I decided to give GSM another try and so far couldn't be happier with the services. Seems to me that most complaints about the AT&T GSM services come from people who use either a Nokia or a Motorola GSM phone. I was one of those people, but with this Samsung I have no problems whatsoever. Even when the reception strength on this phone is zero bars, somehow it still dials out and the quality is good.
The thing that distinguishes Samsung 426 from some other popular GSM phones is that unlike most Nokias (including the 6800 keyboard model) and most Motorolas (including the new hype MX200), Samsung 426 operates not only on 900/1900 MhZ, but also on 850MhZ, which makes all the difference. Neither of my previous GSM phones had that frequency, which explains why they had so many problems with service. This Samsung 426 is far superior to most other GSM phones that do not have the 850MhZ frequency. If you look at the reviews for the Motorola Mx200, you will see a lot of complaints about the service quality, reception, etc. and a lot of it is because that phone doesn't run on a 850 MhZ.
The menus on this phone are easy to use and to adjust--which is nice for someone who has had Nokia phones for the last three years. It doesn't puzzle you like a Motorola which has the most complicated user menu and profiles in the universe. This phone doesn't have the profile feature of Nokia, but you can do a lot of things, including silencing the phone with one push of a button, which is very helpful.
The phone, dispite it's small size is very functional and the speaker volume is very strong and can be easliy adjusted with the side volume keys. The display is large enough and easy to read, unless the sun hits the display, in which case it's harder to read it.
Though the phone lacks the external caller ID, you can easily set it not to answer the phone when you open the flip. It has great internet capabilities and so far I haven't had any problems with it. For those of you who like to set your phone to vibrate (whatever reasons you might have:-D) - the vibrate feature is pretty good and more powerful than that of most Nokias.
But, nothing can be perfect and there are a few things that I would like to see changed in the upcoming models of this phone. First of all, amid all of its functionality, this phone doesn't have a regular ring tone. It comes with approximately 40 melodies, but no regular ring tone. I had to go online to www.matrixm.com to download some regular ring tones ( 40 cents a piece)cause I got tired of hearing the Mexican Hat dance.
Secondly, once in a while during a call I would hear some background noise--almost very faint radio static. It's very minor, but nonetheless it's still there. I am thinking that since AT&T GSM service is still new it will be fixed soon. But it's a really minor minor distraction.
Finally, though internet-capable, I don't think this phone can sync with Outlook, which is, for some people, a must-have.
Other than that, I think this is a great phone--by far better than most other digital or GSM phones and I would highly recommend it to anyone who wishes to increase the capabilities/receptino quality of their phone and to decrease its size.
57 Samsung x426
I losted my phone a few weeks back(motorola t720). Anyways, I needed a replacement phone that was affordable. I looked and looked until I saw the Samsung x426. It was a beauty when I first saw it. I picked it up and it was so small yet durable. Much better than the flimsy t720. By the quality and features it has I thought I had to pay an arm and leg for it. I asked the employee about the price. I was stunned it was only $170. I thought he made an mistake but it was true. So I bought it and played with it a little( not what you're thinking :) ) I first noticed the bright color screen, it was nice. Then I saw that the RF was way better than the t720 i had. And the sound quality is the best, it is very clear on both sides of the line. Overall I thought it was a good purchase and the quality is just too good. When my friend first saw it, he said he wanted one too. He actually went and picked one up the same day!. Nice phone
58 So far a great phone
I just changed from Nokia 3100 (the new tiny phone) to this Samsung x426. This one has much better reception and clearer call quality. I changed phones within the 30 day limit. As mentioned above, there is no external caller ID; however, you can change the function so that you won't automatically answer the phone when you flip it open. The screen is sharp and you can adjust the backlight from super bright to dim. The usability is almost as easy to use as a Nokia (the most user friendly I think). The only quark I'd say is that the Mmode button within the scroll button gets in the way from scrolling up and down sometimes. Besides that a great phone thus far.
59 great phone
this is a cool little phone. i just bought it yesterday and have been overly pleased with it's features, clarity and (so far) reliability. people say that they can hear me much better and i KNOW that i can hear them much better. then again, the last phone i had was a p.o.s; that may have had something to do with it. not having an external caller ID is a bummer, but i'll get over it. i'm worried about the antenna, though. i hope it doesn't break off easily. i keep mine in my pocket all day long and worry that little sucker will pop off. i suppose if it does any time soon, you all will be the first to hear about it. other than that, i couldn't be happier. cheap cheap cheap price too. great buy. bye.
60 Small, loud, and reliable
I was planning on getting the NEC 525, alas I was eventually put off by its high price and large size. So, I decided to get the Samsung x426. This phone has all the features you could need wrapped into an incredibly small size. The call quality and reception has been excellent everywhere I've gone, and I haven't experienced any dropped calls. But, I'm only giving this phone four stars because of its lack of external caller ID, which I think can be very handy.
Overall, for the money, this is the best purchase you can make for AT&T GSM at the moment, in my opinion.
61 Nice phone!
I just got this phone a week ago and I really like it. It's so light weight compared to the Nokia I used to own. It has nice features, and so far has been very reliable.
62 Awesome
Great for its price! It's one of the smallest and lightest phones at there. Nice screen, good features, and the battery life is good. It does not have a camera, however its the best phone if your not going to use it. I get great reception. I would recommend this to anyone. However theres no external CALLER ID. :(
