Samsung Epic 4G Touch Pro Reviews

The Samsung Galaxy S II for Virgin Mobile gets you a lot of power and 4G speeds, but it comes at a steep price.

You might think the $369.99 Samsung Galaxy S II 4G is merely a repackaged relic offloaded to Boost Mobile by its Sprint overlords. And you’d be right, at least in part, but that’s not the whole story. Sure, the Galaxy S II is by no means a spring chicken, but this gray-haired device still boasts the enviable abilities that helped it achieve legendary status among Android phones. Of course you can opt for the $299.99 HTC Evo Design 4G, which offers Android 4.0 and 4G data for less. I wouldn’t recommend doing so, though, since the Galaxy S II 4G features the same Android software, 4G, a much better camera and display, plus faster performance for $60 more. Despite its age, there are plenty of reasons why it’s Boost Mobile’s flagship smartphone and currently the most capable phone the carrier sells.

The Samsung Galaxy S II 4G for Boost Mobile is pricey up front, but it gets you lots of power and inexpensive 4G data.

The Epic 4G Touch is one of the best phones available on Sprint. It’s slightly faster and overall better than the Galaxy S II, but the large size should give you pause before just picking one up. Still one of the best phones out today.

The level of performance of the Epic 4G Touch is very high and its size makes it very comfortable to use. It feels and performs like the original Galaxy S2, in a slightly different form factor that keeps all the properties of the Galaxy S2. This is by far the best Sprint smartphone today and one of the Android phones out there. And yes, I’m taking into account the whole “plastic” feel of the phone - there’s no denying that, it’s there. Samsung’s detractors have been quick to point this out, and I don’t expect things to change. Put simply, this seems to be the price to pay for the light weight and thinness. This huge 4.52” phone is lighter than the 3.5” iPhone 4… I’m a bit worried about the email app that seems to experience difficulties to fetch data from the network, and uses more CPU than anticipated. I don’t see a logical reason for it, and I’ll run more tests to see if this is due to my Exchange server. I hope that this review has given you a good overview of the Samsung Epic 4G Touch (Galaxy S2) from Sprint. I tried to cover most of the areas that one may want to know, but if there is something else that you would like to ask, or if you simply want to provide some feedback, please leave a comment below. I’ll try to reply as soon as I can.

I really like the Samsung Epic 4G Touch -- it seems that the more I use it, the more I like it. It's quite large, but the big, beautiful screen makes that extra size worthwhile, and it's thin and light enough that you don't really notice just how big it is. Performance is exceptional, voice quality is good, and the camera takes great photosThe only downsides, aside from the rather unfortunate power button placement, are the good (but not great) battery life and the very good (but not excellent voice quality). If I were going to buy a new Android smartphone today, the Epic would be at the top of a very short list.

The Samsung Epic 4G Touch is an almost equivalent version of the Samsung Galaxy S2 that we rated so highly. A few improved features make it one of the best Android smartphones available - however, the higher price it's subjected to and the lack of a decent 4G connection speed mean we can't quite put it in the 5 star bracket... but it's awfully close.

The Samsung Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch pairs what users seem to want most: a ginormous display and a fast wireless data radio. With 4.5 inches of insane Super AMOLED Plus display to gaze at, and content delivered in a snap by the WiMax 4G radio on board, you'd think Samsung and Sprint could call it quits. The biggest problem is that the Epic 4G Touch is, well, so darned big. Its massive size and weight may be too much for some users to handle. Voice quality was good, as was 3G signal performance. WiMax performance was questionable, however. Battery life was weak and requires serious consideration by potential customers. The music and video experience provided by the Epic 4G Touch are also good, and the camera and video camera perform better than average. With solid messaging and social networking applications available, there are few things the Epic 4G Touch can't do. Aside from the few, minor issues we noted, there is very little holding the Samsung Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch back. In fact, it may easily trounce the competition in Sprint's smartphone stable. If the Epic 4G Touch were a horse, it is one I'd bet on.

We were bracing ourselves for a disappointment with the Epic 4G Touch, but the outcome was actually just as pleasing -- if not even more so -- than the original Samsung Galaxy S II. Performance junkies and screen enthusiasts alike will be pleased to see that the same spirit lies within both devices, despite one of the two being tied down to a specific carrier. International travelers may be the most affected by the company's decision to leave out a radio for global GSM roaming, but otherwise it's a dependable, sleek, and enjoyable phone to use with very few negatives -- which is saying a lot for a handheld device. As the powerhouse on Sprint's network and an ambassador of the "Galaxy S II" title in the US, the Epic 4G Touch is definitely worthy to bear the permanent branding that sits on the battery cover.

Now that the Samsung Galaxy S II is available through US carriers, it's much more affordable than it was when sold as an unlocked phone to US customers. As we've said before, we still would like to see a qHD screen on the Samsung Galaxy S II, but the WVGA Super AMOLED display that comes with this phone is a really good-looking display on its own. Simply put, we felt the Samsung Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch performed very well in real-world, everyday usage. We appreciate that the Samsung Galaxy S II has a lightweight and thin chassis as well as some good horsepower under the hood with a 1.2GHz dual core processor and 1GB of RAM. All in all, we still agree with what we said about the unlocked version of the phone: "...the Galaxy S II is possibly the best Android phone we've laid our hands on to date."

We'll be conducting formal lab testing over the next few days, but right now, it looks as though the Epic Touch 4G is the fastest Android smartphone out there. On top of its speediness, it has a superslim design, a gorgeous display, and a superb camera. My only complaint is the amount of carrier and manufacturer-added bloatware on the phone, but that's pretty much par for the course these days.

I must say I struggled to come up with valid Cons (other than the odd GPS issue which we are still investigating) for this outstanding device. Since I'm not a heavy world traveler (or really a world traveler at all), the GSM capabilities are less of a concern than it will be to some. Even the smallish resolution wasn't as distracting as I expected it to be. The Pros in this case more than make up for any inadequacies found along the way. Even if it is a few months old (relative to its initial release), the Epic 4G Touch has not only been able to stand up to its predecessor, but in some ways, stand above the original Galaxy S II. In all, I would highly recommend this phone to anyone in the market for a new device today - even if you have to switch carriers to partake in its awesomeness.

The Epic 4G Touch is among the best Android phones I’ve ever used, no question about it — and considering its Galaxy S II pedigree, that doesn’t come as a big surprise. It’s also perhaps the fastest. The only problem is that a WVGA screen is getting to be a really tough sell in this price range, particularly considering the massive display that only serves to exacerbate the issue; Sprint’s EVO 3D from HTC and Photon 4G from Motorola both do qHD resolution for the same price, so that’s something potential buyers will need to take into consideration.

The Samsung Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch is a great smartphone, through and through. While I did encounter some network troubles (which could very well be attributed to my location), the vast majority of the time I was using the Epic 4G Touch it was a great experience. When we reviewed the original Galaxy S II back in May, we found it to be the best Android smartphone on the market, and four months later, that hasn't changed one bit. The Epic 4G Touch is by far the best smartphone available from Sprint, and is the best smartphone I personally have reviewed all year. It is as close to perfect as I have seen; add in global support and 24-hour battery life, and it would be there.

It’s not really a surprise to us that the Samsung Epic 4G Touch is one of the best Android phones you can buy. We felt that the Galaxy S II kind of set the bar back when we took a look at it in May, and the Epic 4G Touch retains all that we liked from the Galaxy S II and made some needed improvements. We certainly enjoy it now more than ever with its brilliant screen and performance, as well as thin and appealing design, coupled with a high-quality camera and good call quality.

For those who like their screens big, the $199 Samsung Galaxy II Epic 4G Touch should be at or near the top of your list. Paradoxically, it's both lighter and larger than the Photon 4G, although that phone has a crisper qHD display, world-roaming capabilities, and a slightly faster 4G connection. But it's hard to beat the Epic 4G Touch's superb camera, dual-core speed, and better overall screen quality. This is a phone you'll want to get your hands on--assuming your hand fits around it.

The Samsung Epic 4G Touch offers speedy performance, a beautiful screen, and a great multimedia experience to make it one of Sprint's top Android phones, but its large size won't be for everyone.

Make no mistake, this is pretty much the same Galaxy S II we know and love. The display may be slightly bigger, and the phone itself a little larger, but the speedy processor and excellent camera remain. WiMAX is less appealing than the 4G name might suggest, however.