Review: Samsung Galaxy S II -The Good, the Bad and the Who Knew?

Samsung Galaxy S II

You put a Samsung Galaxy S II phone in front of a couple of programmers and they collectively salivate and say…sweeeet and it’s Android!  Programmers have been gravitating to the Android platform and to devices such as the Samsung Nexus and now Samsumg Galaxy S II because it’s an easier platform on which to build and launch apps especially when compared to the Blackberry Apps Development and Deployment.

You put it in front of an everday consumer  and you get…whoa! that screen is nothing short of spectacular…and it’s sooo thin -the Samsung Galaxy S II with dimensions of 125.3 x 66.1 x 8.5mm mean it’s one of the thinnest smartphones on the market at the moment, rivalling the likes of the iPhone 4 and Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc. The back panel is sorta flimsy though. Youtube videos play in HD like quality, with the loudspeakers holding their own. The internet browsing is pretty fast  and the pinch to enlarge, swipe to scroll is smooth…all that with the ease of the touchscreen. Gamers would be also pretty happy with this device.

You put it in the hands of a blogger or online magazine publisher and they see the possibilities of an all-in-one multimedia publishing assistant. You can use the voice recorder app to do podcasts; use the 8 Megapixel camera to take sharp and clear photos of people, places, events and things, email mail them and edit for your ebooks, digital magazines and blogs. You can definitely use the 1080p video recording HD quality video recording to record video interviews, create your own mini Youtube TV show series. The video recording feature possibilities are excellent!

We Love it For
Very fast reaction times
Slim design
Ridiculously large and clear screen…wow
Clear call quality
1080p video recording
An all-in-one multimedia publishing device

We don’t like it For
Flimsy back cover
Samsung Apps portal
The patent fights its in with Apple

Who Knew ?!
The Samsung charger fits all of the latest Blackberry phones and vice versa. hmmm

Samsung in the Jamaican Market
Samsung is a phone brand that’s been having play in the low to medium priced segment of the consumer market here. This Galaxy S II smartphone puts it in direct competition with Blackberry and iPhone. Everyone knows that Jamaica is a Blackberry country, they have 70& of the consumer and business market -primarily for its positioning as a device for business,for professionals. The most used features by that market is email, and of course Blackberry Messenger (BBM) and how that eliminates the extra voice and text costs.

If Samsung wants to make an impact in the Jamaican market, it can seek advocates in key influential programmers who are testing and building apps for the Android platform. It can also seek a niche play, by partnering with the creative industry professionals, who could be persuaded to see this device as an all-in-one solution for their on-the-go multimedia and online publishing needs.

This is the first of our gadget reviews this week to help you decide on what to get your gadget loving friend for Christmas.  Watch for another gadget review tomorrow.