Samsung Stratosphere rated 3.75 out of 5 by Wireless and Mobile News' Review of Reviews
The Samsung Stratosphere is aptly named because it is not as far out in Samsung specs galaxy as the latest Samsung Galaxy S II or the Samsung Galaxy Nexus but is closer to home in the earth's stratosphere with a processor that was state-of-the-art, last year. It is very earthy because it is currently the only android 4G LTE smartphone from Verizon Wireless with a keyboard. Reviewers pointed out the good aspects of the Samsung Stratosphere.
All reviewers liked the Super AMOLED touchscreen QWERTY keyboard and 4G LTE speed. The Android 2.3 Gingerbread OS with Samsung's TouchWiz were well-liked as well as media sharing with DLNA and Wi-Fi Direct.
As the super dual-core race of hot rod smartphones keeps getting faster, the 1GHz processor on the Samsung Stratosphere is called sluggish and so last-year. However, reviewers commented that photo and call quality were good. One reviewer thought battery life was terrible while another called it excellent. Battery life often relates to usage and setting so its hard tell which reviewer was correct.
The good news is that the keyboard on the Samsung Stratosphere is superb and one of the best around. The Samsung Stratosphere is a what we call a mid-level "yes but" smartphone. Yes it has a keyboard but it doesn't have the fastest processor or a HDMI port or...
Features of the Samsung Stratosphere include a 4" Super AMOLED touchscreen, 5MP camera, front-facing camera, Android 2.3 Gingerbread, Touchwiz, 1GHz processor, 4GB storage onboard, 4GB microSD installed, 4G LTE, DLNA, Media Hub, mobile hotspots, Bluetooth, GPS and Wi-Fi. The Samsung Stratosphere has "enhanced enterprise features" including Cisco, Microsoft Exchange and Sybase Afari as well as VPN, encryption and EAS. QuickOffice is preloaded.
Dedicated keys on the keyboard include "new message", "browser" and "search" keys.
So then who would like a Samsung Stratosphere?
Power lovers may decide to wait for another keyboard Droid. Original Droid owners are due for an upgrade very soon and are used to using a keyboard. When we look at the Droid genealogy there should be another 4G LTE Droid in the making and there is a Droid 4 on the Verizon horizon which is expected to have closer in specs to the Droid RAZR in thinness, processor and power.
The Samsung Stratosphere is for business people who are not data hogs, major video nuts or compulsive web surfers but who need to type email messages or text messages. It is also for bargain hunters.
If you do your price shopping you can get a deal on the Samsung Stratosphere if you check online retailers. Although Verizon Wireless lists the price of the $149.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate with a new two-year customer agreement. Instant Phone Rebate Only Available with Online Purchase. Amazon Wireless is selling it for one cent for new and renewing customers, shaving close three hundred dollars off the price of other 4G LTE smartphones. Wirefly offers a better deal.
Avram Plitch at LaptopMag rated the Samsung Stratosphere 3 out 5 He liked that it has a Super AMOLED touchscreen QWERTY keyboard and 4G LTE data speeds. He didn't like that you will have "trade-off." The Keyboard is fantastic. Battery life is bad and called the worst 4G LTE lasting as little as four and a half hours. 4G LTE tethering speed was excellent. It offered the fastest download speeds measured on a phone. AllShare allows you to share media files wirelessly with other DLNA-enabled devices. The processor is a generation behind its competitors casuing weak benchmark scores. Photo and call quality was good.
Jessica Dolcourt at CNET rated the Samsung Stratosphere 3.5 out of 5 for its QWERTy keyboard, 4G LTE access, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, VPN and good 5MP camera. Call quality was hit or miss while specs seem "rehashed' to last-year's Samsung Epic 4G. The Super AMOLED touchscreen and 4G LTE speeds are impressive.
Sydney Myers at PhoneDog noted that the Samsung Stratosphere touchscreen is brilliant but the resolution of 800x480 is the most intense of pixels. It includes the latest versions of TouchWiz and Android along with a front facing camera. The processor caused occasional hang-ups. The keyboard is one of the best on the market.