The Samsung Solstice, like its cousin the Highlight, is a mixed bag of clever technology, entry-level features and mediocre performance.
This candy bar touch screen was clearly built for the young at heart and socially engaged, offering one-touch access to Facebook and MySpace, but oddly lacks instant messaging.
Measuring 4.3 x 2.1 x 0.5 inches, it is a slim phone and not unattractive. The 3-inch display offers 400 x 240 pixel resolution which is decent, especially for the $99 price point. Below the screen are three permanent buttons for dialpad, main menu and phone book.
Samsung’s TouchWiz interface works well, offering a column of icons running up the left side of the display, which you can access and move easily. These icons are also translucent, enabling you to see the entire display, which is a nice touch. There is no physical keyboard on the Solstice, so you’ll rely heavily on the UI for most every interaction.
The accelerometer is responsive with no lag issues, and it works well across a variety of applications.The ringer even turns off if you turn the phone face down onto a surface.
The browser was slow, and it had a frustrating default whereby it loads WAP instead of full HTML whenever the option is available, which is most of the time. However, in deference to Samsung and the target audience of this phone, most users will probably not be doing any heavy web surfing.
Other features include a 2MP camera with video, MP3 player, speakerphone, stereo Bluetooth, expandable memory via microSD, the ability to text and MMS, calendar, alarm clock, memo pad, task list, tip calculator and the ever-present world clock.
The Solstice is rated at 5 hours of talk time and 10.4 days of standby time. Please be aware that battery performance is greatly influenced by individual use, so your times may vary.
Overall the Solstice resembles a number of other recent Samsung phones and, while it doesn’t offer anything new, it’s a decent option at a reasonable price for people looking for a touchscreen device and basic features.
Review by: Scott Cerullo
What the Critics Are Saying...
- Ricky Cadden, MobileBurnThe Samsung SGH-A887 Solstice from AT&T is a small, classy-looking device, clad in a black casing with faux leather backplate.
- Kent German, CNETThe good: The Samsung Solstice has an easy-to-use touch interface and a useful set of multimedia features. Photo quality is quite good.The bad: The Samsung Solstice lacks instant messaging and the memory card slot is behind the battery. Call quality, browser speed, and video performance are unimpres...
Prices (Where to Buy)
Common Questions
We've got you covered! Download a free PDF copy of the Samsung Solstice user manual here.
Samsung backs up the Solstice with a 1 Year parts & labour warranty.
If your Solstice has problems and is still within its warranty period, you could contact Samsung support or the retailer you purchased the phone from. You'll find Samsung's contact information here. If your phone is off warranty and needs repair for a physical problem such as a broken screen or bad battery, you should visit an authorized service centre or a local phone repair shop. You can also connect with others in The Informr Community Forum to find and share answers to questions.
Resources
Manuals / User Guides
- Samsung Solstice Manual (PDF)
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