Samsung Gravity SGH-T459 - Aqua (T-Mobile)
Manufacturer: Samsung Part number: SGH-T459AQUA
- More product information:
- Editors' review
- User reviews
- Specifications
- Product series
- Accessories
- Manufacturer info
- Bottom Line:
- The Samsung Gravity is a great phone for budget-minded texters, but beware its spotty call quality.
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CNET editors' review
Samsung Gravity SGH-T459 - Aqua (T-Mobile) price range: $29.99 - $299.99
- Reviewed by: Nicole Lee
- Reviewed on: 11/20/2008
- Released on: 11/01/2008
The good: The Samsung Gravity is a simple messaging phone with a well-designed QWERTY keyboard, a 1.3-megapixel camera, a music player, and a microSD card slot.
The bad: The Samsung Gravity has disappointing call quality.
The bottom line: The Samsung Gravity is a great phone for budget-minded texters, but beware its spotty call quality.
With phones like the Rant and the Propel, it's clear that Samsung is plowing headfirst into the recent trend of messaging phones with full QWERTY keyboards. So it's fitting that Samsung has come out with yet another one, dubbed the Samsung Gravity, and this time it's for T-Mobile. It looks a lot like the Rant and the LG Rumor with its thick candy bar appearance and slide-out QWERTY keyboard. Features are on the lower end, with a 1.3-megapixel camera, stereo Bluetooth, a basic music player, and not much else. But its keyboard design is great for typing out text messages, and its affordable price makes this a great texting phone for the budget-minded. The Samsung Gravity is available now for $50 in either aqua with white, or lime with gray finish.
Design
When we first took a look at the Samsung Rant from Sprint, we were surprised by how similar it was to the LG Rumor. Both have a thick candy bar appearance with slide-out QWERTY keyboards underneath. But the Samsung Gravity looks even more like the LG Rumor, with very minor differences in keypad design--the layout is a little different, the keys have a more bubblelike texture, and the Gravity slides to the right to reveal the keyboard instead of to the left. Measuring 4.53 inches long by 2.07 inches wide by 0.7 inch thick, the Gravity isn't much bigger than the Rumor, either.
On the front of the Gravity is a 2.1-inch diagonal display with support for 262,000 colors, plus it has a 176x220-pixel resolution. Colors really stand out, and the overall display is bright and vibrant. We like the simple animated menu interface, as well as the large font size. You can adjust the backlight time, add a calendar to the home screen, change the style and color of the information text on the home screen, the size and color of the dialing font, plus the background color when dialing. You can also add a greeting on the home screen if you wish.
Underneath the display is the navigation array, which consists of two soft keys, a dedicated messaging key, a Clear key, a round toggle with middle OK key, and the Send and End/Power keys. The toggle also doubles as shortcuts to your call records, a new audio postcard, the contacts list, and a new message. You can remap the messaging key to point to the in-box, the instant-messaging application, or a new e-mail as well. We're definitely fans of the Gravity's keypad--not only is it spacious, the keys are quite big and are sufficiently raised above the surface of the phone, which makes it easy to dial by feel.
Slide the Gravity to the right, and you'll reveal a full QWERTY keyboard on your left. Once you slide out the keyboard, the screen orientation changes from portrait to landscape mode. To the left and right side of the keyboard are two soft keys, which are appropriate for when the screen is in landscape mode. Similar to the keypad, we found the QWERTY keyboard quite roomy, and each key has a smooth bubblelike texture that make for easy and responsive texting. We wished the keyboard had arrow keys so that we didn't need to use the toggle for navigating the phone when in landscape mode, but it's not a big deal.
The volume rocker and microSD card slot are on the left spine, while the charger/headset jack and dedicated camera key are on the right. On the back are the camera lens and self-portrait mirror.
Features
The Samsung Gravity has almost the same features as the LG Rumor, which means it's not a high-end phone with a lot of fancy features. That said, it does have a few multimedia goodies to keep you entertained. But first, the basics. The Gravity comes with a 1,000-entry phone book, with room in each entry for five phone numbers and an e-mail address. Contacts can then be organized by groups, paired with a photo for caller ID, or one of 19 polyphonic ringtones. Other essentials include a speakerphone, a vibrate mode, text and multimedia messaging, a voice recorder, an alarm clock, a tasks list, a notepad, a calculator, a tip calculator, world clock, a unit converter, a timer, and stopwatch.
Messaging fans will like that the Gravity also supports instant messaging for all the major IM services (AIM, ICQ, Windows Live, Yahoo), and e-mail from a host of providers (AOL, Yahoo, Comcast, Gmail, Mac, Verizon, and more). More advanced users will like the stereo Bluetooth, voice command, and the wireless Web browser.
Though the Gravity comes with a music player, it's nothing to write home about. The interface is quite generic, though you can create playlists and you can shuffle and repeat tracks. You can load music onto the Gravity via a microSD card or PC upload.
The Gravity also comes with a 1.3-megapixel camera. It can take pictures in six resolutions (1,280x1024, 1,024x768, 800x600, 640x480, 320x240, and 220x165), five white balance settings, and nine color effects. Other camera options include zoom, a self-timer, a night mode, exposure metering, multi or mosaic shot, and the choice of three shutter sounds (no silent option unfortunately). Photo quality was decent for a simple megapixel camera. Though the color seemed overcast and dark, the image quality was sharp without a lot of blur. It also comes with a built-in camcorder, which can record in three lengths (limit for message, limit for e-mails, and no limit within the available memory) and three resolutions (176x144, 160x120, and 128x96), with options similar to the still camera.
You can personalize your Samsung Gravity by adding wallpaper, screensavers, and sounds. It also comes with a few games, like demo versions of Block Breaker Deluxe, and Midnight Pool 2. If you want to purchase the full version of the games, and buy more graphics and sound files, you can do so via the T-zones browser.
Performance
We tested the Samsung Gravity in San Francisco using T-Mobile's network. We have to say that we were disappointed with the call quality. Though we could hear our callers and vice versa, they said we sounded muffled, and that there was quite a bit of static. Even on our end, we could hear the static. Speakerphone calls did not fare much better with the tinny sound output. We managed to successfully pair the Gravity with the Aliph Jawbone 2.
Audio quality on the music player was average, with not a lot of bass. The speaker is loud enough, but as we said earlier, the tinny sound output makes us recommend the use of a headset instead.
The Samsung Gravity has a rated battery life of 6 hours talk time and 12.5 days standby time. We had a talk time of 8 hours and 12 minutes in our tests. According to the FCC, it has a SAR rating of 0.487 watt per kilogram.
User reviews
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Good for texting...
by cruelncute on November 29, 2008
Pros: QWERTY keyboard
Cons: Not completely customizable
It's Samsung
Short battery lifeSummary: Here's the thing. It has a QWERTY keyboard. If you're like me and that's all you use your phone for, then this phone is for you. If ...
Summary: Here's the thing. It has a QWERTY keyboard. If you're like me and that's all you use your phone for, then this phone is for you. If you however like taking pictures or videos, playing games, or even talking on it... This isn't the phone for you. I find myself needing to charge the battery nightly. The camera quality is very low, especially in low light or with subjects that aren't completely stationary. The sound quality for playing music is average.
4 out of 4 users found this user opinion helpful.
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needs work
by hudsonknk on December 31, 2008
Pros: nice keyboard for quick texting
Cons: Don't be caught without your charger. One day of use and your dead in the water!
Summary: If you can't afford anything else and just text then go for it. I you like to talk on the phone stay away.
Summary: If you can't afford anything else and just text then go for it. I you like to talk on the phone stay away.
3 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Ideal phone thats great for me..
by ArchieLove21 on December 21, 2008
Pros: Keyboard is stirdy and easy to use
Camera is good
Good sound quality.. has no clue where people are getting bad recception
Easy to figure out without instructions
Overall look of the phone
Can save images off the browserCons: Cant send ringtones to other people in a text, unless fwd'd to me first
Cant customize much (themes, message tone, and soft keys)
No led light or message notification light :(
Battery isnt perfect, but its NOT horrible.Summary: I think this is the phone is perfect for me. I love to text on it, its cute, has a large screen and is fast at loading pages on the ...
Summary: I think this is the phone is perfect for me. I love to text on it, its cute, has a large screen and is fast at loading pages on the net. Alot of people complain about the battery, and its really not that bad. Just your normal average battery. Ive been waiting for a phone like this from Tmob for a long time. Only tiny things are disappointing.. nothing you cant go without!
3 out of 4 users found this user opinion helpful.
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great phone for texting, but it has irritating problems
Pros: ++ qwerty keyboard
++ speakerphone
++ decent sound quality
++ long videosCons: - - BAD battery life
- - photo capture delay
- - camera & video recorder have poor quality
- - text messages get screwed up {read below}Summary: This is a great phone if you really love to text. It's qwerty keyboard is great and spacious for everything. The only thing that gets annoying some of the ...
Summary: This is a great phone if you really love to text. It's qwerty keyboard is great and spacious for everything. The only thing that gets annoying some of the time is how you have to get special characters, but it doesn't take very long. I also like the speakerphone on it, it's decent and loud, so you can have a hands free call. The sound quality on the phone is good in my opinion. I usually have a signal, but sometimes it can go out for no reason. I also like how you can record videos for as long as you want. {though you have to switch this option on when you first get it}
BATTERY LIFE! Its horrible. My friends charge their phone every few days while I have to charge mine every night. Sometimes the battery dies unexpectedly, mostly when someone calls me. It goes from 5 bars to 1 in one hour and stays on 1 bar for five hours, then stays on blinking battery for another 3 hours. You would think it would start blinking when it was really about to die, but it can stay blinking for hours.
Another thing I don't really like about this phone is how when you take a picture, it gets delayed for ten seconds. So I miss those perfect moments. Also it seems that when I'm taking the photos and videos, the quality seems great. However, afterwards, it's not that great at all.
My text messages also get screwed up sometimes. This is a known issue with the phone, where the times on the text messages are off. This also causes them to go out of order. What also happens is that the names. For instance, I can recieve a text message that says its someone, for instance, 'Bob'. But then I can exit the message back to the main screen, go back to the message and it'll say its from 'Fred'. It gets really frustrating sometimes because you can accidentally send the wrong messages to the wrong people.
A couple minor things as well ;
- - t9 is bad
the text predicter for when you're texting with the numbers can get annoying because it doesn't let you unselect the option its giving you. You can turn it off, but that means you have to turn it off each time you want to use the number pad to text
- - picture editor could be better
you can only do one thing to the picture and nothing else unless you keep selecting the edited picture. you can't put text in the pictures either /:
- - low amount of storage
there's a limited amount of storage in the inbox and outbox ... theres more storage room in the outbox ...
- - low memory storage
i have not had my phone a year yet and all my storage room is full ...
- - charge your phone prompt gets annoying
if the battery is blinking {which it does often} there is a prompt almost every minute or so telling you to charge you phone. it gets really annoying, especially if charging your phone is impossible at the moment >>
- - tzones is slow
my friend has a different phone than me and her's loads the tzones a lot faster, so i assume it is the phone and not the service ... sometimes it never loads complete. and if you're on low battery it says there's a network error ...
So the bottom line is ;
great phone for texting, but it has irritating problems.
I am currently looking for another phone. Perhaps the Gravity 2 will have fixed some of these problems. (:2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Quality phone, reasonable price
by bton66 on November 25, 2008
Pros: QWERTY keyboard and the general look of the phone. Nice display size and quality. Love the audio pic message feature. Quickest TZONE navigation that I have ever seen!
Cons: COLORS COLORS COLORS!!! When will tmobile stop releasing phones that are geared toward 6th grade girls? Also the theme colors are horrible unless you LOVE pink. Most guys my age don't care for pink, lime, aqua, etc... Lack of accessories (skins)
Summary: Couldn't be more satisfied. Got mine last week after a horrible experience with the MOTO ACTIVE. The display is large and crisp. Sound quality seems up to par. Slider ...
Summary: Couldn't be more satisfied. Got mine last week after a horrible experience with the MOTO ACTIVE. The display is large and crisp. Sound quality seems up to par. Slider and keys are sturdy. Lots of bells and whistles to explore. The TZONE function is actually worth using as it is reasonably fast. I actually was able to check YAHOO email, myspace, facebook and fantasy football scores quickly and efficiently.
As stated above, why can't they just put out a plain black or brushed aluminum phone, rather than these ugly girly kid colors. TMOBILE should take notes from Verizon here.
Overall great phone. Good for anyone who texts frequently but doesnt need the full internet access of a smart phone2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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THE WORST PHONE I'VE EVER HAD!
by dancer53 on June 27, 2009
Pros: NOTHING!!!
Cons: EVERYTHING!!!
Summary: The messages I get from some people don't show up in the inbox, the ones that actually do show up, are in a differant order than I actually got ...
Summary: The messages I get from some people don't show up in the inbox, the ones that actually do show up, are in a differant order than I actually got them in. Sometimes it will say the message is from a differant contact than who I actually got it from. Or it will just say the persons number [even if they are programed as a contact in the phonebook. When they come it will say a COMPLEATLY differant time when it was recived. Once when I tried to call my friend it said "calling dad." When I talk on the phone the reception never works and the person I'm talking to sound like a robot with half their words missing. They back cover [over the battery/simcard...] is hard to get off. The vibration is VERY loud! Instant messaging is SLOW. They screen can wobble ways it's not supposed to. You have to delete sent & recived messages about every 100 or you won't be able to send or get any. BATTERY LIFE IS THE WORST! I have to charge it about 4 times a day or it will die.
DO NOT BUY THIS PHONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!2 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Cnet's reviewers all usually right..
by mdana85 on February 13, 2009
Pros: The solid feel of the phone, the vibrant screen, email and Iming is easy, good internet, good call quality, solid and easy slider, full keyboard, camera is decent.
Cons: THE BATTERY LIFE IS TERRIBLE.
Summary: I always look to the user reviews on CNET before I purchase any new phone. Unlike other girls, my fetish isn't with shoes, it's with getting new phones- ...
Summary: I always look to the user reviews on CNET before I purchase any new phone. Unlike other girls, my fetish isn't with shoes, it's with getting new phones- even if they're simple, cheap ones. I decided to go a little nicer and get the Samsung Gravity. My friend recently got one and i thought it was really cute and it didn't feel cheap, plus had all the great features that I need, but wasn't overloaded like a smart phone, which I definitely do not need.
I love almost everything about this phone. I read great reviews on the phone itself, but everyone said that the battery life was terrible. I got this phone yesterday, charged it all night long, from 7:30am-1:00 pm, I lost 3 out of 5 battery bars today. I have already called T-Mobile today to return the phone. I text a lot. And today wasn't even a terrible texting day.I used my web browser twice, just to check an email. I love the phone, but I need something with a better battery. I am trying out the Nokia 5610 next, the reviews on CNET say it has an excellent battery life. :) If you use your phone alot, and don't mind charging it everynight, this phone is great. But if you're an avid texter, like me, just take my advice and avoid this one.2 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Fun look and keyboard, but it wasn't enough
by ash1023 on December 16, 2008
Pros: I enjoyed the keyboard and the cute colors.
The phone was not heavy, but felt sturdyCons: Horrible battery life.
Bad reception.
Not loud.
Not very many options, as far as colors and backgrounds.
The text messages are all saved to the sim card.Summary: I have never returned a phone in my life, but was forced to with this phone. Having to fully charge my phone more than three times a day and over ...
Summary: I have never returned a phone in my life, but was forced to with this phone. Having to fully charge my phone more than three times a day and over night was just ridiculous. Cute phone though.
2 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Great Phone
by metallicamaggot7007 on November 13, 2009
Pros: great texting, QWERTY keyboard is very nice and easy to use. great music quality, calling, and web browsing. i've only had it for a few months and i love it.
Cons: i can barley get service at my house. a cell tower is right across the street from my house. turns off and on all the time. can't personalize text tone.
Summary: it's actually a very good phone.
Summary: it's actually a very good phone.
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Camera is very suckish!
by wilbur0092 on November 1, 2009
Pros: I love the battery life, it very unique . great screen .
Cons: Buttons sink in, turns on and offf, gets dents sliding it scraches your phone.
Summary: I like the product because its very easy to use, and great for texting!!!!!
Summary: I like the product because its very easy to use, and great for texting!!!!!
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
Specifications
- Manufacturer: Samsung
- Part number: SGH-T459AQUA
- Description: PRODUCT FEATURES: 1.3 Megapixal Camera with 4x Digital Zoom Bluetooth Wireless Technology User friendly, menu driven access to features and options Instant Messaging capability Sound/Image media capability Fun & Apps feature Organizer feature
General
- Product Type Cellular phone With digital camera
- Service Provider T-Mobile
- Width 2.1 in
- Depth 0.7 in
- Height 4.5 in
- Weight 4.3 oz
- Body Color Aqua
Cellular
- Technology GSM
- Band GSM 850/900/1800/1900 (Quadband)
- Phone Design Slider
- Antenna Internal
- Vibrating Alert Yes
- Polyphonic Ringer Yes
- Call Timer Yes
- Conference Call Capability Yes
- Voice Recorder Yes
- Speakerphone Yes
Messaging & Data Services
- Mobile Email Yes
- EDGE (Enhanced Data Rates For Global Evolution) Yes
- Internet Browser Yes
Digital Camera
- Sensor Resolution 1.3 megapixels
Organizer
- Alarm Clock Yes
- Calendar Yes
- Reminder Yes
- Calculator Basic
Display
- Type LCD display
- Color Support Color
Connections
- Slot Provided 1
Miscellaneous
- Included Accessories Hands-free headset
Power
- Type Power adapter
Battery
- Technology - Lithium ion
- Capacity 1000 mAh
- Talk Time Up to 360 min
- Standby Time Up to 288 h
Product series
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Samsung Gravity SGH-T459 - Lime (T-Mobile)
Manufacturer: Samsung
Specs:
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Samsung Gravity SGH-T459 - Aqua (T-Mobile)
Manufacturer: Samsung
Specs: GSM 850/900/1800/1900 (Quadband), Up to 360 min, With digital camera, 4.3 oz
Accessories
- A-Data Speedy Series flash memory card - 2 GB - microSD (33795596)8.99
- ATP SD Trio Professional PLUS card adapter - flash: microSD - Hi-Speed USB (32128464)17.00
- ATP SD Trio Professional flash memory card - 1 GB - microSD (32733137)15.00
- Centon 2GBRSD3-1 - flash memory card - 2 GB - microSD (33503634)11.84 - 15.99
- Samsung pouch for cellular phone (33639000)11.14
Manufacturer info
- Samsung
- Manufacturer profile
- Browse Samsung products on Shopper.com
-
- Website: http://www.samsungusa.com/
- Address:
105 Challenger Road, Ridgefield Park, NJ 07660 - Phone: 1-800-726-7864
- Fax: 1-973-601-6001
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