The Droid Charge is the second smartphone capable of using Verizon’s uber-fast 4G LTE network. It’s a handset that many “power users” have been waiting for a long time, as the HTC Thunderbolt finally gets some competition. The Droid Charge design is nice and elegant, but is also aggressive at the same time. This fits very well with the “power statement” that Samsung undoubtedly wants users to project when they pull their phones from their pocket (or purse).
But is the Samsung Droid charge as fast, and powerful, as it seems? And more importantly, does it suffer from the “4G battery curse” that we’ve seen with the competition? You’re about to find out as we dive into the Samsung Droid Charge…
We all have different usage patterns, and that’s why it is impractical to write a dogmatic review that simply says “buy/don’t buy”. I find it more helpful to tell you what I do with these devices, and how they worked for me. From there, you can figure out how things might work for you.
Typically, I check my email often with Exchange, and I reply only moderately because typing long emails with the virtual keyboard is a chore. I browse the web several times a day to check news sites, but I rarely watch movies or play music on my phone. I run apps: mainly the camera app, social networks (often) and a tiny bit of games. I don’t make many phone calls – maybe 10 minutes per day, if at all. This usage pattern affects battery life and my perception of which features are important or not.
I find the Samsung Charge design to be very nice In my opinion, the phone would have looked even better if the Samsung and Verizon logos were on that back, but maybe it’s just me… Samsung says that the Droid Charge is the slimmest 4G LTE phone @ Verizon, but next to the Thunderbolt, it does not look particularly thinner.
Most phones have capacitive buttons, but this one has mechanical ones. I like it.
On the left side, you’ll find a micro-USB port and the volume buttons (I prefer the USB port at the top or bottom…). The top only has a 3.5mm jack audio connector and the right side has a power button. At the bottom of the phone, Samsung uses mechanical buttons for the four Android function keys (Menu, Home, Back and Search). I like those quite a bit, they have a crisp “click” and I have the perception that they react better than the capacitive buttons from previous Samsung Android phones. This might just be perception, but it is satisfying nonetheless.
The back side has a plastic cover with a “faux-carbon” texture similar to the Google Nexus S, which is nice. The design of the camera and flash also look very good. Samsung knows what is doing in terms of design.
The Droid Charge feels bulkier than most smartphones, and so far this seems to be a trademark of 4G LTE phones. The HTC Thunderbolt too is fairly big compared to its 3G cousins.
But is the Samsung Droid charge as fast, and powerful, as it seems? And more importantly, does it suffer from the “4G battery curse” that we’ve seen with the competition? You’re about to find out as we dive into the Samsung Droid Charge…
We all have different usage patterns, and that’s why it is impractical to write a dogmatic review that simply says “buy/don’t buy”. I find it more helpful to tell you what I do with these devices, and how they worked for me. From there, you can figure out how things might work for you.
Typically, I check my email often with Exchange, and I reply only moderately because typing long emails with the virtual keyboard is a chore. I browse the web several times a day to check news sites, but I rarely watch movies or play music on my phone. I run apps: mainly the camera app, social networks (often) and a tiny bit of games. I don’t make many phone calls – maybe 10 minutes per day, if at all. This usage pattern affects battery life and my perception of which features are important or not.
I find the Samsung Charge design to be very nice In my opinion, the phone would have looked even better if the Samsung and Verizon logos were on that back, but maybe it’s just me… Samsung says that the Droid Charge is the slimmest 4G LTE phone @ Verizon, but next to the Thunderbolt, it does not look particularly thinner.
Most phones have capacitive buttons, but this one has mechanical ones. I like it.
On the left side, you’ll find a micro-USB port and the volume buttons (I prefer the USB port at the top or bottom…). The top only has a 3.5mm jack audio connector and the right side has a power button. At the bottom of the phone, Samsung uses mechanical buttons for the four Android function keys (Menu, Home, Back and Search). I like those quite a bit, they have a crisp “click” and I have the perception that they react better than the capacitive buttons from previous Samsung Android phones. This might just be perception, but it is satisfying nonetheless.
The back side has a plastic cover with a “faux-carbon” texture similar to the Google Nexus S, which is nice. The design of the camera and flash also look very good. Samsung knows what is doing in terms of design.
The Droid Charge feels bulkier than most smartphones, and so far this seems to be a trademark of 4G LTE phones. The HTC Thunderbolt too is fairly big compared to its 3G cousins.