Any real-life user reviews?

[JWhipple]

I'm looking to come back to to Android world after a less than favorable experience with the Evo V and then having turned to <GASP> iphone .

So, can anyone lay down word on any problems that people are experiencing with this phone? I'd like to avoid HTC and the Reverb appears to be a halfway decent solution.

Thanks!

 

[VM Jon]

I'm interested in getting some feedback on it as well. I've watched the 3 or 4 guys' on YouTube that has it's initial impressions and they're all good so far but it can't hurt to hear some more. The one girl that gave it 0 stars on the VM site... heh... I don't even think she has the phone. BS review.

 

[pplatzke 72]

I have the reverb and I like it better than lg optimus elite, only down side is stock browser lags a little.

 

[Deleted User]

Just got it myself today. I'm upgrading from the Moto Triumph, here's what I think so far of the Reverb:

Needs to get rid of TouchWiz; Go find Nova or Apex launcher ASAP on the Play Store. The hardware feels awesome, just a tad lighter than the Triumph, and it's nowhere the sluggishness that was mentioned in that one negative review on VM's website (I don't know, maybe she's used to a six-core phone or some nonsense). The 1.4GHz processor does it's job well enough and is helped by the fact that the phone runs Ice Cream Sandwich. That Froyo and Gingerbread weren't the quickest things around on other devices. Zooming around in Maps, and browsing the web feel great. But the camera is average in speed.

The Reverb has a plastic chrome band all around the edge of the phone, the back is a textured plastic that won't slip like butter. Feels more solid than the Triumph. Sound is great thanks to a single, large speaker on the back (that's large by my phone standards); helpful for speakerphone calls and videos. Call quality is also pretty damn good, it can be loud if you want it to be. If you use search a lot, and voice search by pressing and holding the search button on other Android devices, you're gonna miss it on the Reverb (the menu button will bring up search, but not voice search). But it has a dedicated camera button on the bottom-right side!

Ultimately, I wish I could get rid of TouchWiz entirely, hide the battery meter and also hide the AM/PM indicator on notification bar (I know when it's dark outside). So I'll be looking forward to any custom AOSP or CM9 projects.

 

[christiansoto]

Just got it myself today. I'm upgrading from the Moto Triumph, here's what I think so far of the Reverb:

Needs to get rid of TouchWiz; Go find Nova or Apex launcher ASAP on the Play Store. The hardware feels awesome, just a tad lighter than the Triumph, and it's nowhere the sluggishness that was mentioned in that one negative review on VM's website (I don't know, maybe she's used to a six-core phone or some nonsense). The 1.4GHz processor does it's job well enough and is helped by the fact that the phone runs Ice Cream Sandwich. That Froyo and Gingerbread weren't the quickest things around on other devices. Zooming around in Maps, and browsing the web feel great. But the camera is average in speed.

The Reverb has a plastic chrome band all around the edge of the phone, the back is a textured plastic that won't slip like butter. Feels more solid than the Triumph. Sound is great thanks to a single, large speaker on the back (that's large by my phone standards); helpful for speakerphone calls and videos. Call quality is also pretty damn good, it can be loud if you want it to be. If you use search a lot, and voice search by pressing and holding the search button on other Android devices, you're gonna miss it on the Reverb (the menu button will bring up search, but not voice search). But it has a dedicated camera button on the bottom-right side!

Ultimately, I wish I could get rid of TouchWiz entirely, hide the battery meter and also hide the AM/PM indicator on notification bar (I know when it's dark outside). So I'll be looking forward to any custom AOSP or CM9 projects.

u can use the id packs

 

[mb41186]

I got this phone a few days ago and even though it's not considered a higher end phone for some people it's still a really good phone for the price, my only dislike is that it's not 4g capable, although there is no 4g in my area, I know sprint is working on adding a lot of new 4g locations.

 

[danicheman]

Hi,

I felt like chiming in for a review for the Samsung Galaxy Reverb. I ran out to grab one of these earlier this week for my other half. It's been a bit of a learning curve; I didn't know about the "Mobile ID" app. It pressures you to install it so she did, then it wiped her desktop, she uninstalled it and it seemed to revert back to a super stock ICS with google searchbars on every desktop panel. I recommend going into "Manage Applications" then "All" then find "Mobile ID" and then "force stop".

I ended up doing a factory reset to get back to the default look with accuweather. Since then everything has been cool. The speaker is loud, the phone has cool red / blue LEDs that you can set to flash at different times. We found the phone hard to keep a grip on so we quickly invested in a rubber case from Amazon.

I've been bringing up alot of negatives, but we're ultimately really happy with the phone. Upgrading from a mis-behaving two-year-old Optimus V, this is literally twice as good. The screen seems twice as crisp, the processor twice as fast, and it's android 4 instead of 2! I also had a Motorola Triumph, and I can say that this feels like a better quality product. Compared to the HTC with the tacky 3D camera, this phone feels a great deal more sensible. I have the Galaxy Note myself, but the size of the Reverb is perfect for the average user.

VM has come a long way from only offering cheap android phones, to offering the faulty Triumph, to now offering the iPhone and a "Galaxy" class Samsung.

Now all they need to do is step up their game with proper 3G service. We've found it impossible to stream audio (Pandora) or video (YouTube) on it. This is in the Miami and North Miami areas.

Hope this review helps. I highly recommend this phone.

 

[Jimmy422]

I bit the bullet and decided to buy this phone with very few reviews to replace an Optimus V. And I can say I definitely don't regret it.

It's thousands of times faster than an Optimus V, even an overclocked V. I'm blown away at how smooth the transitions are and how fast applications open. This is probably due to the 1.4 GHz processor. This processor is new and fast enough to support applications that the V can't run, like Google Chrome and Temple Run. Haven't had a single problem with it.

The camera takes fairly decent photos. It's nice having a flash.

The screen is very crisp and readable indoors and out. I can't make out the pixels on it, and I think it's a fairly high ppi screen (although I have no idea).

Battery life is pretty good. I've gone roughly 13 hours of moderate-heavy use and made it to 30% battery. Not bad at all.

There's I think 4GB of internal storage. So you WON'T EVER get a low storage warning after downloading 10 apps again like with the V.

Call quality is fantastic. Callers are very clear and they report the same. The speakerphone is LOUD and very crisp. I kept the stock notification ringtones from the V on my SD card and you can hear a noticeable difference just in those.

It also has a notification LED which is SO USEFUL. I don't have to turn on the screen to see I have a notification anymore. I hated that about the V.

Here's what I don't like so much. First off is TouchWiz. I have never understood why manufacturers still want to skin the default Android interface. Okay, maybe back in 2.1 or 2.2 it was a good idea (Since Android was a bit...ugly back then), but now it just looks dumb. I hate TouchWiz on the SIII and I hate it on this phone. Luckily the default launcher is still included and you can switch back to stock ICS with a clearing of defaults for the launcher.

Unfortunately, all the Samsung replacement stock apps (dialer, messaging, contacts, etc) are still there and you can't go back to the ICS version of those as far as I know. These apps are...okay I guess, but the stock ones are way better. I really hope somebody roots this so I can get a fully stock experience.

The default keyboard also sucks. I downloaded the ICS keyboard from the market and I'm not looking back.

I miss the soft touch material of the Optimus. The Reverb tends to slip around a lot more. It's still got a decent grip to it, but I think I'm going to get a case for it.

And finally, I hate the pre-loaded garbage that comes with the phone. The ID pack software can't be unloaded and it will constantly nag you to install it in the notification bar. I did it and it installed a bunch of VM apps and re-skinned the stock icons to a Virgin Mobile style. Luckily you can uninstall the apps and icons and revert back to the mix of TouchWiz apps and ICS launcher.

Overall I love the phone. Don't let the negatives scare you. It's a great phone and completely worth the money. If anyone knows if and where I can get the stock messaging, contacts, and dialer app I will be very happy.

 

[mb41186]

Samsung Galaxy Reverb Review Part 1 (Virgin Mobile) - YouTube

This guy does reviews on every phone that comes out for VM, check out part 1 and 2 of the video if you want to see the phone running and whatnot

Also I'm reading that the Spring Mobile ID has given some people problems? I've had this phone for about a week now and not once have I been notified to download the ID packs, then again I havent touched the Mobile ID app

 

[RyanSupertramp]

I've had many of the phones that VM has. I usually switch phones after a few months when they get a new one. I went from the HTC ONE V to the Reverb and I personally like the Reverb better.
The One V FEELS like a superior phone in the hand and everything works just fine but I found that the Reverb (So far) is much snappier and I have less problems moving from app to app.
The camera takes great photos (For a 5MP). Video is ok, stabilization isn't a strong suit.
I installed the Mobile ID and actually prefer it to the factory settings, especially the folders.
The speaker on the back is the loudest of any phone I've had. It's sounds tinny, but what loud speaker on a phone doesn't sound like that? When you plug the headphones in, you get great sound. I use Skull Candy earbuds and I usually don't even turn the music up all the way because it's literally too loud to handle haha.
With the phone being mostly plastic, I get a GREAT WIFI connection when my HTC One barely found the signal at all. The 3G speeds are just that, 3G speeds. Don't plan on surfing at lightening speed even with full bars.
All in all, I really like this phone. Samsung did it right with this one. Entry/Mid level phone off contract. Great way to go!

 

[dataminer]

I like it, but my last smartphone was an LG Dare, so this is leaps and bounds here. It's responsive, through the stock keyboard app seems a bit 'off' to me. Pressing an S, it registers an S, but when retracting my finger, it switches to a Z. The button on the top right likes to stick to the sides of its receptacle if it's not pressed directly down, but I blame the craptastic rubber case I got off ebay for that. I get great signal, and can even pull GPS from my basement (and I live out in the sticks).

What would really, really, REALLY make it kick-ass, would be some white-hot root action... lol.

Best way, least in my opinion, of finding what sort of net signal you'll get (or signal in general), is a website that displays all the antennas and towers near you, and tells you who owns what, so you can decide based on your house location, your work, commute, etc, if a provider has worthwhile signal for you. Not affiliated with this site in any way... lemme find it... antennasearch.com. I'm a quarter mile from a VM tower, signal is goooood even in the basement.

 

[tyler1998]

virgin mobile uses sprints wimax network for 4g, i read that wimax was discontinued, they may be extending lte, but not wimax

 

[blh2012]

Just out of curiosity, what issues did you have with the HTC Evo V 4G? I personally find it to be one of the best phones I've ever owned.

 

[RyanSupertramp]

Just out of curiosity, what issues did you have with the HTC Evo V 4G? I personally find it to be one of the best phones I've ever owned.

I returned the phone after receiving the Radio Shortage Interference message one too many times. If it didn't have that issue, I would probablystill have it.

 

[blh2012]

I returned the phone after receiving the Radio Shortage Interference message one too many times. If it didn't have that issue, I would probablystill have it.

A ##CLEAR# Reset fixed that problem for me, MOSTLY, I still got the message about once a week. So then I just rooted my phone and flashed a new radio and not only got rid of the error messages, but saw a MAJOR increase in signal and data speed

 

[RyanSupertramp]

A ##CLEAR# Reset fixed that problem for me, MOSTLY, I still got the message about once a week. So then I just rooted my phone and flashed a new radio and not only got rid of the error messages, but saw a MAJOR increase in signal and data speed

Nicely done! At the time, I didn't have a computer to help me do all that so I just took it back. I did like the phone though!