Galaxy S App Help

[_wolf_]

Hi Everyone,

I'm new to the forum and to the world of Android. I'm gonna be buying the Samsung Galaxy S in a couple of hours and I wanted to ask y'all:

1.) Is there a built in GMail app or do I have to download something new?

2.) Is the default text messaging good or do I need to download something better?

3.) What is a good browser for this phone?

Are there any cool tricks which you guys would like to share?

I went through the stickies and looked at how I can protect myself from Malware, etc. I think I know the basics.

I apologize if I sound silly...this is my first Android phone and the reason why I am getting it is because of the awesome reviews. I'm also shifting from being a devout Nokia user to something totally different so I am kinda anxious, you know?

If y'all could share anything I would really appreciate it. Maybe there's a Galaxy S thread...I'll do a search.


Thanks in advance!

 

[muab]

Hi Everyone,

I'm new to the forum and to the world of Android. I'm gonna be buying the Samsung Galaxy S in a couple of hours and I wanted to ask y'all:

1.) Is there a built in GMail app or do I have to download something new?

2.) Is the default text messaging good or do I need to download something better?

3.) What is a good browser for this phone?

Are there any cool tricks which you guys would like to share?

I went through the stickies and looked at how I can protect myself from Malware, etc. I think I know the basics.

I apologize if I sound silly...this is my first Android phone and the reason why I am getting it is because of the awesome reviews. I'm also shifting from being a devout Nokia user to something totally different so I am kinda anxious, you know?

If y'all could share anything I would really appreciate it. Maybe there's a Galaxy S thread...I'll do a search.


Thanks in advance!

Welcome to the Android club.

I have heard very good things about the Galaxy S although I am not familiar with the phone in any detail.

I believe I can safely answer your questions because they should be more or less universal questions regarding Android, rather than your specific phone.

1. You will do everything with your phone in conjunction with 1 or more Gmail accounts. It will come with a gmail App as part of the basic equipment, and I find the basic Gmail App is entirely adequate.

2. The default SMS messaging program with Android is fair to good. Unless the Galaxy has something whizbang, you should find the standard Android messenger and it is just peachy. A fair number of people do not like that way messages are threaded etc... and I would say over 50% of those who choose a different SMS App choose "handcent" for that job. Some people simple add "SMS Popup" to the stock SMS App.

3. The stock browser should be okay. Dolphin (or Dolphin HD) is probably the most popular browser people use instead of the standard one. I think Xscope might be the second most popular. Using Dolphin or Xscope will allow you to download/access some file types the stock browser just won't handle.

Cool tricks...hmmm... AppBrain is probably the coolest "trick" off the top of my weary mind. It is a free App. Download it, then install the PC portion on your PC and then try shopping for Apps using AppBrain instead of just accessing "Market:" on your phone. It is much easier and faster than doing your shopping on the phone through Market alone.
Also another good tip is to realize all paid Apps on the Market can be test-driven for 24 hours. If you uninstall the App in less than 24 hours you will get an automatic refund.


Cheers and good luck.

 

[_wolf_]

Welcome to the Android club.

Thanks

I'm just about to go buy my phone.

1. You will do everything with your phone in conjunction with 1 or more Gmail accounts. It will come with a gmail App as part of the basic equipment, and I find the basic Gmail App is entirely adequate.

That sounds good. I have like 3 Gmail accounts lol...As long as I can read/send/receive emails I am fine.

2. The default SMS messaging program with Android is fair to good. Unless the Galaxy has something whizbang, you should find the standard Android messenger and it is just peachy. A fair number of people do not like that way messages are threaded etc... and I would say over 50% of those who choose a different SMS App choose "handcent" for that job. Some people simple add "SMS Popup" to the stock SMS App.

I remember reading about Handcent on these forums. I will definitely make note of this. Thanks!

3. The stock browser should be okay. Dolphin (or Dolphin HD) is probably the most popular browser people use instead of the standard one. I think Xscope might be the second most popular. Using Dolphin or Xscope will allow you to download/access some file types the stock browser just won't handle.

Noted. I will check both these out.

Cool tricks...hmmm... AppBrain is probably the coolest "trick" off the top of my weary mind. It is a free App. Download it, then install the PC portion on your PC and then try shopping for Apps using AppBrain instead of just accessing "Market:" on your phone. It is much easier and faster than doing your shopping on the phone through Market alone.
Also another good tip is to realize all paid Apps on the Market can be test-driven for 24 hours. If you uninstall the App in less than 24 hours you will get an automatic refund.

AppBrain sounds awesome. I'm in Bombay (India) and we don't have a fully functional 3G network at yet (on Vodafone) so I think the AppBrain will be really useful.

I don't mind buying a good app as long as it is something I am going to use. I will definitely keep the refund timeline in mind once I downoad AppBrain.

Thanks a lot for this.

So, to summarize:

1.) GMail stock app is fine.
2.) Handcent for SMS.
3.) Dolphin or XScope browser
4.) AppBrain

Thanks once again!

 

[bealsy]

dude, have a Galaxy S... fire away

* messages is basically the same as the iPhone. Is brilliant in my opinion.
* built in browser is good on the Galaxy S - the phone is quick enough to handle anything around at the minute. Dolphin HD runs cack on the Galaxy S. Much prefer the built in one, although Opera is good if you need ultra quick loading.

 

[goodm0urning]

it comes with swype built into it that's the preferred method of texting for most people. once you get used to it, it is crazy fast

 

[_wolf_]

Thanks guys. I am currently waiting for my Vodafone SIM card to adapt lol...This is a totally different matter but I got a new SIM on my prepaid plus I upgraded from Pre-Paid to Post-Paid so this is gonna take another 8 hours before I can make calls.

However, I have explored the phone quite a bit. The interface is really nice. I already got handsent and I activated my Gmail account before I had to switch SIMs, etc.

Thanks a lot for the help. As soon as this phone is up and running I am probably going to have a bunch of questions.

I have one question for now:

SO I took my SD from my old Nokia 5800 with all my music, videos, etc and put it into the Galaxy S.

I dunno how to transfer this from the external memory to the internal one. Do I need to connect it to my comp and do it? Is that the best way to go about it?

 

[_wolf_]

I have another question: so I downloaded Handcent and I put it as my default message sender but my notification is still saying that I have unread messages. Is there any solution to this?

 

[ryandelman]

I have another question: so I downloaded Handcent and I put it as my default message sender but my notification is still saying that I have unread messages. Is there any solution to this?

to shut off the "double notification", just go into the native messaging client settings and de-select "notifications on".

Then you'll only see the Handscent notifications when you get a new message.

-Ryan

 

[_wolf_]

^^ figured out a way to solve this. Nevermind about Handcent.

 

[_wolf_]

to shut off the "double notification", just go into the native messaging client settings and de-select "notifications on".

Then you'll only see the Handscent notifications when you get a new message.

-Ryan

Thanks I got it on my own though. Sorry for the late response. I did the same thing you just wrote out

 

[chawski]

just to add about swype... once you get used to it, it really is great. the only thing that i hate about it is, where i live, its rather humid. it works great when inside an air conditioned building, but once you go from cold and dry to hot and humid, the screen gets kinda sticky. not sure what the climate is in your part of the world, but something to keep in mind. I ended up just getting smartkeyboard pro and havnt looked back.

 

[_wolf_]

just to add about swype... once you get used to it, it really is great. the only thing that i hate about it is, where i live, its rather humid. it works great when inside an air conditioned building, but once you go from cold and dry to hot and humid, the screen gets kinda sticky. not sure what the climate is in your part of the world, but something to keep in mind. I ended up just getting smartkeyboard pro and havnt looked back.

Thanks. I haven't used Swype as yet because I'm just getting used to the regular QWERTY keyboard lol...I've always opted for the AlphaNumeric option on my Nokia 5800 so I'm still learning to use qwerty. And it is very humid and hot in Bombay...but since I work in an A/C'ed environment it shouldn't be such a big deal.

 

[artvandalay22222]

Pandora
Launcher plus pro
mixzing
ventriloid and xfdroid -if your a pc gamer
sound hound is cool