Samsung Galaxy Ace Review - Quick Commentary by Actual Owner

TP Friend, Marc A. from Quezon City, recently bought a unit of one the better selling Samsung Android phones in the Philippines currently, Samsung Galaxy Ace S5830.

As of writing, Samsung Galaxy Ace sells for only around Php 13,000 in malls.

Last weekend, he emailed me that he wants to submit a quick review of his phone to TP but he's not sure how to go about it. I didn't want to turn him off with the idea of having a write a lengthy piece so I just asked him to submit 5 things he likes and 5 things he doesn't like that much about Samsung Galaxy Ace.

Here's what Marc emailed me:

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Hi TP! The five things I like about my Samsung Galaxy Ace are the following (Edited ever slightly by TP) --

1. The Design - Honestly, I first read about Samsung Galaxy Ace on TechPinas and in your entry, you said that Ace looks like a love child of Samsung Galaxy S and iPhone4. Holding the phone now, I completely agree with you. I'd say that for a midrange phone, Samsung Galaxy Ace surprisingly has a premium design that any guy or girl will fall in love with instantly.

2. The Camera - Of the three midrange Android Samsung phones released in the Philippines earlier this year (Samsung Galaxy Mini, Samsung Galaxy Fit and Samsung Galaxy Ace), Samsung Galaxy Ace is the only one with an autofocus camera and an LED flash. This makes it possible to take photos in dim environments and even macro or close-up shots.

3. It's Easy to Use - Samsung Galaxy Ace is my first Android phone. I'm not really techie so at first I thought I'd have hard time using the phone and navigating Android. But as it turns out, the user interface, which Samsung calls TouchWiz is actually very user-friendly. Once I got a hang of it, I couldn't put the phone down.

4. Touch Sensitive Hardware Buttons - Again, compared to Samsung Galaxy Mini and Samsung Galaxy Fit, Samsung Galaxy Ace is the only one with touch-sensitive Android control buttons in front. Not only do they make the phone easier to use but these touch-sensitive keys also make Samsung Galaxy Ace a lot sleeker.

5. Wide Range of Connectivity Options - Just like far more expensive phones like Samsung Galaxy S2, Samsung Galaxy Ace supports Wifi, Bluetooth and 3G connectivity so there are no compromises in that department. I can connect to free wifi in malls and enjoy 3G connection when I'm on the road.

Sir Mark, I know you asked me to write 5 things I don't like that much about my Samsung Galaxy Ace but I can only think of 3, which are...

1. Short Battery Life - The uptime is plain horrible. I can't even get a whole day of uptime when connected to Wifi. I really wish Samsung put a bigger battery on Samsung Galaxy Ace because it's a good phone. The short battery life is a heartbreaker, really.

2. Low Resolution Screen - Being more expensive than Samsung Galaxy Mini, Samsung Galaxy Ace - I think - should have been given not only a bigger screen but also a far higher-resolution one at that. The display can go from 'just OK' to downright horrible.

3. Limited Samsung Hub Features - I got the chance to play with a friend's Samsung Galaxy S2 recently and felt completely envious of the fact that he can update his Facebook and Twitter accounts straight from Samsung Hub and get that 'via Samsung Mobile' tag on Facebook. My Samsung Galaxy Ace, sadly, can't do that. I mean, this is supposed to be just a software thingy right? Come on, Samsung. I think midrange users deserve to enjoy that feature too!

That's it.

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Thanks for submitting your quick review, Marc! I appreciate it and I'm sure a lot of other TP Friends would learn a lot from it.

To wrap this up, here's my quick hands-on video of Samsung Galaxy Ace taken at PLDT-Smart Jumpstore in SM Megamall last month (I didn't think I'd have to upload it but anyway):