Samsung Intercept Prepaid Android Phone (Virgin Mobile)

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 3.9 x 2 x 0.8 inches ; 3.5 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B004Y05F70
• Item model number: Intercept
  

By : Samsung
List Price : $149.99
Price : $69.99
You Save : $80.00 (53%)

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Experience the power of Android and the convenience of a prepaid phone plan with the Samsung Intercept. Behind this great 3.2" touchscreen is a great slide-out full QWERTY keyboard giving you four rows of letters, numbers and shortcut keys--pretty handy for texting or IMing. Just as convenient is the threaded messaging feature that makes it easy to follow conversations. The high-end processor (800 MHz) means higher-quality graphics and faster performance. The Intercept has 256MB internal memory available and is expandable via SD cards.

Apps aren't the only thing you can enjoy in the thousands. The Intercept comes with a built-in music player so you can groove to thousands of songs on the go. You can also snap thousands of stunning images with the 3.2-megapixel camera. There’s video recording too.

Featuring a 3.2" WQVGA touchscreen and full slide-out QWERTY keyboard.

Right out of the box, the Intercept comes loaded with cool social apps that let you post your status as you walk out of the store. Snap a shot while you’re at it and share it right away with all your buddies with one-touch picture posting. Keep up with your coworkers too--check work email or review business documents with the file viewer.

Android Operating System

The Samsung Intercept is powered by the Android operating system (2.1) with deep integration of Google services and access to thousands of apps to customize your phone via the Android Market. Your phone's Google Apps, such as Gmail, Calendar and Contacts, give you access to the same personal information (e-mail, events, and contacts) that you add, view, and edit on your computer using Gmail or Calendar. Synchronize the Google Apps you want to keep information up-to-date.

Android Market

Want apps? You got ‘em. Not by the dozens, but by the thousands. Thousands of apps are available at Android Market--everything from time-mode games and critical business tools to entertainment apps and real-time news widgets. More are added every day.

Vital Statistics

The Samsung Intercept weighs 4.9 ounces and measures 4.43 x 2.19 x 0.59 inches. Its 1500 mAh lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 6.4 hours of talk time, and up to 254 hours of standby time. It runs on Sprint's 3G 800/1900 CDMA/EV-DO Rev. A frequencies.

What's in the Box

Samsung Intercept smartphone, li-ion battery, charger, 2 GB microSD memory card, quick start guide.

Virgin Mobile Prepaid Pricing

With Virgin Mobile, you can pay only for the calling time you use. You can choose a monthly Beyond Talk plan with unlimited data and messaging and just the right amount of talk minutes for your needs.

Beyond Talk Unlimited Plans

Virgin Mobile customers have access to the Sprint Nationwide Network, reaching more than 278 million people across the United States (see a map of Virgin Mobile's coverage area).

Key Features

• 3.2-inch WQVGA touchscreen for clear images and easy touch access
• Slide-out QWERTY keyboard for a tactile typing experience
• Android 2.1 operating system with over-the-air upgrade capability for future OS releases
• 3.2-megapixel camera
• 2 GB microSD card with support for optional cards up to 32 GB
• 256 MB internal memory
• 800 MHz processor for efficient multitasking
• Bluetooth for hands-free calling with connected wireless headsets
• Voice Search to find nearby locations or web content just by speaking
• WiFi connectivity for sending emails, browsing the web, or checking for status updates
• Virgin Mobile Live streams music 24/7 from past and present Virgin Mobile Festival artists
• Tools: Calendar, Calculator, Flashlight, Alarm Clock, World Clock, Stop Watch ; Timer
• Google mobile services including Google Search, Google Maps, Google Talk, Gmail, YouTube, and syncing with Google Calendar
• Rich email client supports MS Exchange, Gmail, Yahoo, AOL, Windows Live Hotmail, POP3/IMAP
• Outlook syncing capability to synchronize business mail, contacts, and calendars automatically
• Sprint's 3G network lets you enjoy faster web surfing, downloads, messaging, and more on your phone
• Opera Mini mobile web browser for surfing the web

Also Available for this Android Device

Amazon Appstore for AndroidGet a great paid app for free every day.

KindleBuy a book once and read it everywhere with our free Kindle Reading App for Android.

Amazon MP3Shop 15 million songs and stream your Cloud Drive music directly from your Android device.

IMDBFind local movie showtimes and TV listings, watch trailers, and search the world's largest source of entertainment information.

AudibleDownload audiobooks directly to your Android device, then listen wherever you go, get audiobook news, earn badges, and more.

Amazon MobileShop for millions of products, get product details, and read reviews--right from your mobile device.

Virgin Mobile Samsung Intercept VMM910SMKIT18L

 

Samsung Intercept Prepaid Android Phone (Virgin Mobile)

 

Technical Details

• Android 2.1 Operating System
• 3.2" WQVGA touchscreen
• Slide-out QWERTY keyboard
• 3.2 MP camera
• What's in the Box: Samsung Intercept smartphone, li-ion battery, charger, Quick Start guide

Costumer Reviews

First off let me tell you that I switched from an iPhone 4 to this phone! Why would I do such a thing? Well, because I am sick and tired of paying so much for a phone contract. ATT charged me $40 for 450min, $25 for 2gb of web, $20 for unlimited texting= $85. But somehow that number always ends up over $100 because of bunch of taxes and fees (and I don't go over my minutes ever). Let's see, VM charges me $25+$2tax for 300 minutes, unlimited web+text. Well, I need unlimited web, because I use pandora radio all day long, so the 2gb limit on ATT wasn't cutting it for me. So I am saving over $80 a month, meaning this phone pays it self off in 3 months. That is the contract part. So, this is the number 1 reason you should buy this phone, FOR SAVING MONEY! $80 of savings per month X 24 months (which is the contract you would sign with any carrier out there) is $1820. I don't care how rich you are, I am sure you can use an extra $2K.

Now let me review the phone. To all you android fan boys out there, google limits what you can do with your phone just like apple, but I will agree not as much. Just as I had to jailbreak my iPhone, I had to "root" this phone, to allow such things as tethering. Just check out the app store to see how many "Root Only" apps there are out there to validate my point. The 3G is noticeably slower than ATTs but it is much faster than edge, so it will do. The phone isn't as user friendly or as fast as an iPhone 4, but it is much more customizable. And yes this phone can be rooted. The phone runs os 2.1 but, sprint will have 2.2 so even if VM doesn't update, someone out there will make this possible. Overall the phone is great, and does everything that I want it to do. I'm old school with texting, so I love the fact that it has a keyboard, The battery life isn't too bad, probably because the phone is bulky. Camera on this isn't all that, so don't expect to take breath taking photos. Touch screen and buttons are very responsive, so that's a good thing.

Overall, in my opinion, this is not THE iPhone, or Droid X, but it comes dangerously close. And for $25 a month, you can't go wrong. If you love the iPhone, and can't give it up, I'd say, do it, and get urself a iPod Touch with this phone. And if 300 minutes are a problem, you can always use skype or get 1200 for $15 more. This is not an A+ smartphone, and VM is not an A+ carrier, but the value is UNBEATABLE! And as a student, I am willing to sacrifice the unnoticeably small shortcomings for very noticeable amount of savings.

I hate to spend money. I've been using the same old Nokia with T-Mobile TOGO for several years ($.10/minute). So when I saw that Virgin Mobile was offering a smartphone for $25/month I thought it was too good to be true. Researching various other websites I saw that the biggest drawback to Virgin Mobile was bad customer service. When the price of the Samsung Intercept dropped from $250 to $175 on the Virgin Mobile website I figured that was a price I was willing to gamble with.

PURCHASE: I ordered the phone on Dec 14 and due to snow in the area it didn't arrive until Dec 18 (can't complain about free fedex). I was able to activate it (mostly) that night using the internet (note that it says you have to charge the phone for 2hrs minimum before use) and was soon downloading freeware to fill up my multiple screens. To activate the phone I decided to bypass the credit card option (I had read multiple accounts of "accidental" double-billing) and chose to use 'fill-up' cards that you can usually find discounted on the web (i.e. instead of $25/month I'll be paying $23 by using callingmart and other websites).

PROBLEM: The problem occured when I tried to make an actual call. I was able to text/web-search and everything else just fine. I was not able to make a normal phone call and the voice on the phone said I was out of minutes. Fortunately when it tells you you have no minutes it asks if you would like to add minutes. I said "yes." It asked me how I would like to add minutes and I said "operator" only to find that Virgin Mobile's customer service is only open from 4AM to 7PM Pacific time. I called the next morning and was told by their Indian bureau that their computers were not functioning and to call again in 2hrs. I called 2hrs later and got their Filipino bureau and was told to remove the battery for 2 minutes, and then try the phone, and if that did not work then to try it again in 1 hr. 1hr later still no phone! I called again and got Mary in the Filipino bureau. I explained the problem and within minutes she had reset my phone and got it working.

CONCLUSION: The moral of the story is that it's a great phone. You might have to jump through hoops to get it working, but the customer service is polite enough and you apparently just have to keep at it until you find the few knowledgeable techies over there. The phone does consume a lot of batterie life (I might have to look into different apps to work on this) - after playing with it for about 3-4hrs I was down to 60% battery power. The phone might look and feel plasticky, but it still seems solid enough. The slide out keyboard is awesome since I hate using the touchscreens on my friends' iPhones. The phone is very easy to work out and for more in depth explanations of icons and functions there is a manual on Virgin Mobile's website. If you were using an old 'candy-bar' phone like I was or (heaven forbid) a monochromatic phone, this is the one to upgrade with!

UPDATE: A friend of mine successful loaded GooglePhone which allows him unlimited phone minutes with this phone in the US - Therefore you can have unlimited Data/Texting/Internet/Phone for ~$25/month (the closest thing to this is Cricket, and they want $40/month!)

 

Samsung Intercept Prepaid Android Phone (Virgin Mobile)