Welcome to the Samsung GALAXY S how-to videos. We’ll show you how the Samsung GALAXY S works and answer some common questions asked.

 

Samsung GALAXY S is a full touch Android^TM 2.1 (Éclair), updateable to 2.2 (Froyo), device with a large 4” WVGA SUPER AMOLED screen. It is equipped with a 5 megapixel camera with auto focus, smile shot and self shot. Running on a 1 GHz processor, it also has a large 16GB internal storage which is expandable up to 48GB when paired with a 32MB MicroSD card.

 

It also comes with Wi-Fi 802.11n (600Mbps), high speed connectivity via HSUPA 5.76Mbps/ HSDPA 7.2Mbps and GPS (via Google Maps). Power-packed features encased in a sleek device - 9.9mm thin and weighing only 118g.

 

 

Here’s a video on what to expect in the box when you buy your Samsung GALAXY S.

 

 

 

Frequently Asked Questions:

 

Q. Does Samsung GALAXY S support Chinese?

A. Samsung GALAXY S does support Simplified Chinese input, with both pinyin and handwriting modes. There is also Korean language support as well.

 

Change the language input to Chinese 

 

Press and hold within the message input box > Tap on Input Method > Select DioPen Chinese IME

 

For Pin Yin: please ensure that you are using the QWERTY keypad layout

                  > Tap on the ‘Ab’ key so that it changes to ‘中_P’.

 

For Chinese handwriting: Tap on the Settings key

                                     > Select Handwriting box

                                     > ‘中_P’ will change to ‘中_S’.

 

Press and hold the Settings key to get to DioPen Chinese IME settings to change the pen thickness and pen colour.

 

Change the language input to Korean, Thai or Vietnamese   

 

Change the input method to Samsung keypad > Press and hold the Settings key to get to Samsung keypad settings > select the language of your choice.

 

 

Super AMOLED + Camera & Video + Layar

 

 

 

Q. My phone seems to be laggy after a while. What could be the problem?

A. There may be many unnecessary programs running in the background. You can see them by pressing the center square home screen button. Kill the unnecessary apps effectively with a Task Killer application. We recommend Advance Task Killer which can be downloaded from Android Market^TM.

 

Q. Does the Camera have a Self shot mode?

A. Not only does the camera have a Self Shot mode, it also has Marco Mode, Blink Detection and Face Detection. Other interesting camera features include Smile Shot, Beauty Shot, Cartoon Shot, Action Shot, Vintage Mode, Auto Contrast, Outdoor Visibility and Touch Focus. Touch Focus allows you to focus on any point you touch on the screen.

 

Q. What is the resolution of the video recording?

A. The resolution is 1280 x 720. (HD recording up to 30fps)

 

Q. What is Layar Reality Browser powered by Tele Atlas?

A. A first on Samsung GALAXY S, Layar powered by Tele Atlas possesses the greatest number of POIs, custom fitted specifically for the Samsung GALAXY S.

 

 

Swype + Write&Go + ThinkFree +WirelessTethering + Aldiko

 

 

 

Q. What is the Swype Technology used in Samsung GALAXY S?

A. Swype allows a user to enter a word by sliding a finger or stylus from letter to letter, lifting only between words. It uses error correcting algorithms and a language model to guess the word intended. It also includes a tapping predictive text system in the same interface. Swype is designed for use on touchscreen devices with a traditional QWERTY keyboard for text input.

 

Q. What is Write & Go on Samsung GALAXY S?

A. The GALAXY S has an application called “Write and Go” to take any notes down, save for sending out later, updating your Twitter profile or creating a calendar event.  This changes the perception in the past where you need to decide where to save the note before writing anything down. 

 

Q. Can I edit or view my Documents, Excel and PowerPoint files?

A. Yes! ThinkFree Office Mobile includes a word processor (Write), a spreadsheet program (Calc), a presentation program (Show), and a WYSIWYG HTML and blog editor (Note). ThinkFree Office Mobile reads and writes to Microsoft Office file formats (.doc, .xls, and .ppt). ThinkFree Office Mobile has a look and feel similar to Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint, providing a degree of familiarity to new users. 

 

 Q. What is Wireless Tethering?

A. Tethering is the use of a mobile device such as a mobile phone to supply Internet access for another device e.g. laptop, which is otherwise unconnected, using the mobile device as a modem.

 

 

Steps to Activate Internet Tethering

 

Menu > Settings > Wireless and Network > Mobile AP settings > Activate Mobile AP > Go to Laptop Wireless Network Connection > Refresh Network List > Click Connect > Key in Network Key > Connect

 

Q. What is Aldiko?

A. Aldiko is an e-book reading application that runs on any Android device which enables you to download and read thousands of books right on your smartphone.

 

 

Social Hub

 

 

 

Q. What is Social Hub?

A. Social Hub is a service provided by Samsung that offers a convenient, single-point access to all your email accounts, calendars, personal contacts, IM and SNS information. Integration of these information are done at ‘Messaging’ and ‘Contacts’ which are natural starting points for accessing, sending and receiving information. Social and work calendars from all portals and social networking sites are colour-coded and displayed in an integrated view via 2-way synchronization.

 

Please note that only the basic version of Social Hub is offered currently. All Samsung Wave and Galaxy S users will get to upgrade to the premium service once it is made available. Basic service does not support push capability for POP email, IM and SNS. Data charges from Operators apply.

 

Q. Does Samsung GALAXY S come with threaded SMS?

A. Samsung GALAXY S has conversation mode which is similar to threaded SMS. Unfortunately, there is no way to disable this if you do not like threaded SMS.

 

Android Market^TM

 

 

Q. Can Samsung GALAXY S support Android 2.2 Froyo when it is released?

A. Yes. GALAXY S is updateable to Android 2.2 (Froyo). You can visit our service centre once the software upgrade is ready. You’d be the first to know if you sign up as a member at Samsung Mobile website www.samsungmobile.com.sg.

 

Q. Can I download the applications and install them on my memory card?

A. For Android 2.1 (Éclair), this is not possible. But fear not, there is 2GB of internal memory on your GALAXY S for just apps. Android 2.2 (Froyo) should allow installation of applications on the memory card.

| Posted by Admin 11-Aug-2010

2 Comments

 

The first thing I noticed when I received my Samsung GALAXY S was how plain it is. That impression changed quickly when I held it in my hand and turned it on.

The shape is not revolutionary but is very comfortable given it is pretty wide. The comfort comes from having soft curved edges. Other than the curves I came to notice the soft curved bump on one of the edges and strangely without even trying to analyse the reason for the bump I believe I figured it out. It is ever so subtle but by not making the device symmetrical, Samsung gives you a way to recognise which end is the top and the bottom as soon as you pick up the phone without having to look at it.

 

 

There are very few buttons to deal with – a power button, volume up/down rocker and a centre button on the face. All other functions are activated via the huge 4.0-inch capacitive touch screen.

The GALAXY S has a 3.5mm headphone jack for audio and video output. Located near to the headphone jack is an ingenious little sliding cover that protects the microSD connector from dust or damage. This is a really cool feature because most of the other manufacturers use pop-out rubbery covers that eventually wear out or become brittle and then break.

 

On the rear of the GALAXY S body is the 5-megapixel digital camera and surprisingly it does not have a LED flash or Xenon flash. This may limit your usage to only daylight or brightly lit subject shooting. Look out below for my usual gallery of photos. The rear cover features a scale like imprint that reminded me of reptilian skin but it also has an interesting iridescence to it.

A peek under the rear cover reveals the large battery with a capacity of 1500mAh (milliamp hours). It is a pretty big capacity but there are many other factors to consider when looking at just how long the battery will last.

The telco SIM has a slot as does a flash memory microSD card slot. You’ll also notice the speaker for speakerphone operation and if you recall the rear cover has 6 small holes that fit over the speaker.

 

Powering up the Android (version 2.1) operating system installed GALAXY S is quick. As I had not seen the 4.0-inch screen in person prior to receiving mine, I was blown away by the screen that greeted me. The colours are vibrant and the screen is bright, but what contributed to my wide eyed look was the cool animated wallpapers that also interact when your finger taps on them. Samsung's own user interface that deviates away from the stock Android setup. It is nice and with the 1GHz processor and 16GB of internal memory the whole package felt good and fast. The screen touch sensitivity seemed just right and with the slightly larger girth also meant that the onscreen keyboard had larger keys and were better spaced for faster typing.

 

 

A short technology lesson and background on the screen. The GALAXY S uses a SUPER AMOLED (Amorphic Light Emitting Diode) and the 'SUPER' designation means it is superior to other AMOLED systems. For instance, last year Samsung unleashed AMOLED technology when it released the Samsung JET. When I look at the Samsung JET and the GALAXY S side-by-side the new GALAXT S SUPER AMOLED is definately better. Note, that older screen technology uses LCD technology and may incorporate LED backlighting but it pales in comparison to the SUPER AMOLED. A benefit to using SUPER AMOLED technology is the reduction of power consumption and it is quite viewable even in bright direct sunlight conditions.

 

As the GALAXY S is using Android for the operating system you may find that the included applications are generic applications. However, you may not know what the applications are and I thought I'd share some of the applications with you. The GALAXY S is currently exclusive to SingTel and that gives you some unique applications - MobileTV, IDEAS, AMPed, inSing, and the TrafficLive Widget. Also included with mine were some Samsung Apps. This included: Vlingo Voice, Asphalt5, English Dictionary, Chinese Dictionary, blinkx Beat, Road SMS. The other applications are straighforward as are those included with Android. If that's not enough just open the Market to find a free application. Strangely I liked some of the built-in software. I liked the Mini Diary and Memo function. I would have liked to have seen direct link from the Memo to the Calendar for reminders or task lists.

 

 

 

The rest of the phone functions like the telephone and keypad as well as the contact list, email and browser works and does so without issues. So, there isn't anything to fear for the regular mobile phone operation. Moving along to the area that interests me the most, the built-in digital camera. The GALAXY S sports a 5-megapixel camera but does not feature a LED or xenon flash. 5-megapixels is more than enough for many instances especially if you drive your software properly for in-camera processing of the captured images.

The camera interface is straightforward and you can interact with the touchscreen to choose your focusing point. Take note there is no physical shutter button so you will need two hands at all times for operation as a one handed approach makes it difficult to press the virtual on-screen shutter. Two hands also makes for steadier shots, try not to depend on built-in functions like steady-shot or anti-shake. These functions help you but are not always able to 'fix' a blur photo because of the demanding photo taking environment - low light and/or moving subjects.

 

The shooting modes will impress the 'point & shoot' users as it emulates those cameras.

 

The photo results can be browsed using the Gallery application. The Gallery can display your photos in different modes. Thumbnails and an informative 'calendar' type view. The latter mode will lump photos taken on specific dates together.

 

 

There is a built-in slideshow function and as the GALAXY S has a TV-out function you can easily view and share your photos on a bigger screen.

 

I really like panorama photos and have diligently created two to share. The night shot is tough because if you leave the camera settings to Auto ISO your photos turn out very noisy. So, I manually forced the ISO to 100 and then, as best as I could, took the photo without shaking.

The sunrise panorama was shot in the vertical orientation to catch as much detail as possible.

I shot a variety of photos ranging - macro, outdoor, indoor, landscape, food and architecture. This should give you a good idea of how capable the camera is and with such a capable smartphone and thousands of Android applications available, I feel the GALAXY S is a winner. The superb screen, responsive operating system and hardware makes using the phone a joy. I was always drawn back to the phone just to interact with it that doing so so often meant my battery life suffered. If you are a hardcore social media user, I think you'll need to think about having a charger nearby or a spare battery.

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoy the photos and if you get a GALAXY S, you're sure to enjoy taking photos with the phone. In fact, you'll also like shooting videos with it as you've seen from the included sample of the singing and dancing teenagers.

 

-# END #-

| Posted by JamCanSing 17-Jul-2010

0 Comments

Unboxing of the Samsung GALAXY^SPICA

Let’s check out my new toy, the Samsung GALAXY^SPICA.
Before I un-box, let’s take a look what the phone comes with.
• Bundled with 1GB MicroSD card.
• The colour of the phone is Metallic Black
• It is running on the Android^TM platform
• Slim design at 13.2 mm
• 3.2 Megapixel camera with Auto Focus
• 3.2” HVGA TFT LCD screen
• MicroSD slot can support up to 32GB
• Wi-Fi, 1500 mAh battery, USB, Bluetooth
• DivX support

Let’s take a look what’s inside the box!
• Warranty Card
• User Manual
• The phone itself
• 1GB MicroSD Card & Adapter
• Battery
• 3.5mm headset
• USB Cable
• Travel Charger
• Let’s insert the Sim Card, Battery & 1GB MicroSD card
• And switch it on!

Powered by Android^TM 1.5, the interface of the phone is real smooth and easy to navigate. The Samsung GALAXY^SPICA has 3 different home screens that can be alternated by simply swiping across the screen.

To access the phone menu, touch and slide up the menu tab. You can scroll up and down to view all the applications. Touch and hold the application of your choice to create a short cut access on the home page. To delete the shortcut, simply touch and hold the application, drag and drop it into the Trash icon.

Press and hold the idle screen and widgets will appear. These range from basic feature widgets, such as calendar or alarm clock, to third-party apps such as Facebook application.

Just click on the Android Market^TM icon and you can start browsing the catalogue of free and paid mobile applications to personalize your phone with. We will talk about this more in the subsequent videos.

Wi-fi, Conserve Battery, Change Ringtone, Bluetooth Headset pairing

Q: How can I set up Wi-Fi connection, pair my headset with the phone, save battery energy and set my favourite song as my ringtone?
A: Please see the video clip below and follow through the steps.

Steps to set up Wi-Fi connection

Go to Menu > Settings > Wireless Controls > Wi-Fi settings > Select Wi-Fi > Select the network > Key in password

Steps to pair Bluetooth headset

Go to Menu > Settings > Wireless Controls > Bluetooth settings > Select Bluetooth > Select Discoverable > Scan for devices > Select device to pair with

Steps to conserve battery

Go to Menu > Settings > Wireless Controls > Mobile Networks > Select “Use only 2G networks”

Steps to set favourite ringtone

Go to Menu > Music Icon > Select “Songs” > Play the song that you wish to set as ringtone > Click on “Arrow up button” > Select “Use as ringtone”

Set up Email accounts

Q: How do I set up my email accounts?
A: Please see the video clip below and follow through the steps.

Video on email account setup

Steps to set up Gmail^TM account

Go to Menu > Select Google Mail^TM > Tap “Next” > Click “Sign in” > Key in Username & Password > Exit back to Menu > Select “Settings” > Select “Data Synchronization” > Select “Auto Sync” > Go back to “Google Mail” to view the mails, calendar and contacts pushed into your phone

Steps to set up pull (SMTP, IMAP, POP3) Yahoo.com.sg account

Go into your Email and allow “Pop Access” > Click “Email” and “Next” > Key in your Username and password > Select POP 3 Account > Under POP3 server, Key in “pop.mail.yahoo.com.sg” and click “Done” > Click “Next” > Under SMTP server, Key in “smtp.mail.yahoo.com.sg” and click “Done” > Give your account a name for easy reference and click “Done”. You have successfully set up your Yahoo SG account.

*Note: Using Yahoo.com account would require payment. Yahoo.com.sg account is free. Hotmail account will require MSN which is not available on the phone.

Android Market^TM

Q: How to download games or Applications?
A: Please see the video clip below and follow through the steps.

Video on accessing Android Market

Steps to Access Android Market

Go to Menu > Select Android Market > Create/Sign in Gmail

*Google, the Google logo, Gmail, Android and Android Market are trademarks of Google, Inc.

 

| Posted by Admin 26-Mar-2010

0 Comments