Samsung Beam?

[KervyDog]

Hi I am new to this site. Just went over to Plaza Singapura to check out Samsung Galaxy Beam (SGB). Now couldnt decide bet Samsung Galaxy S (SGS) n SGB. I know Tethering is available in SGS but can someone plse tell me if SGB comes with tethering as well?
According to specifications on internet, it states SGB supports Wireless Tethering but the salespersons told me it does not support Wireless Tethering. For those who has bought this phone, can u check if you can cable yr SGB to a pc or netbook and use yr SGB as a modem to surf the net? Thanks a million.

 

[RipperJack]

went samsung service centre this morning.
ripper is officially the 1st customer to visit service centre with a Beam

no one there knows how to service the Beam.

ripper asked them how to hard reset the phone.
no one knows. the staff there not trained to service beam yet.
currently, they say there is no way to hard reset the phone manually (with buttons only)

so ripper asked for a 1-to-1 exchange and they agreed. but have to wait for 2 days for the stocks to come

if really no way to hard reset manually, then jialat leh. if ever the beam freezed and cannot reboot like ripper's, then how? exchange new one?
all the info stored inside also cannot retrieve

 

[RipperJack]

It's called "Crazy" for one reason. Because you have to be crazy to set it to that.

well, if it's truly crazy! they shouldn't have added that setting in

 

[KervyDog]

went samsung service centre this morning.
ripper is officially the 1st customer to visit service centre with a Beam

no one there knows how to service the Beam.

ripper asked them how to hard reset the phone.
no one knows. the staff there not trained to service beam yet.
currently, they say there is no way to hard reset the phone manually (with buttons only)

so ripper asked for a 1-to-1 exchange and they agreed. but have to wait for 2 days for the stocks to come

if really no way to hard reset manually, then jialat leh. if ever the beam freezed and cannot reboot like ripper's, then how? exchange new one?
all the info stored inside also cannot retrieve

Hi Ripper,

do u happen to know if Samsung Beam can be used as a modem to surf internet like the Galaxy S? In yr opinion, do u think its a gd buy compared to SGS? Tks

 

[RipperJack]

Hi I am new to this site. Just went over to Plaza Singapura to check out Samsung Galaxy Beam (SGB). Now couldnt decide bet Samsung Galaxy S (SGS) n SGB. I know Tethering is available in SGS but can someone plse tell me if SGB comes with tethering as well?
According to specifications on internet, it states SGB supports Wireless Tethering but the salespersons told me it does not support Wireless Tethering. For those who has bought this phone, can u check if you can cable yr SGB to a pc or netbook and use yr SGB as a modem to surf the net? Thanks a million.

ripper's beam is currently down.

but through yesterday's fiddling, didn't see any settings for wireless tethering.
this should not come as a surprise though.
ripper sees beam as a technically more backwards model than galaxy s although it's launched later.
beam is a novelty model because of the pico projector. specs-wise, other than the projector. higher MP camera with flash and the bigger capacity battery, it doesn't match up to SGS.

 

[RipperJack]

Hi Ripper,

do u happen to know if Samsung Beam can be used as a modem to surf internet like the Galaxy S? In yr opinion, do u think its a gd buy compared to SGS? Tks

see above post about wireless tethering.
maybe other users can find it, but currently, ripper's Beam is dead.

if you care not for the projector, which ripper has to admit is alot more fun than ripper imagined it to be, then go for SGS.

bigger screen
lighter in weight
slimmer in thickness
faster processor

SGS is a quite the winner here.


personally, ripper chose Beam coz of the 8MP camera (comes with flash).
speed-wise, ripper think once Froyo is here, the difference in speed will not be that big.
also more imptly, heard ST managed to extend the SGS exclusitivity for another month and ripper is not going to wait around that long for SGS to reach SH

 

[KervyDog]

ripper's beam is currently down.

but through yesterday's fiddling, didn't see any settings for wireless tethering.
this should not come as a surprise though.
ripper sees beam as a technically more backwards model than galaxy s although it's launched later.
beam is a novelty model because of the pico projector. specs-wise, other than the projector. higher MP camera with flash and the bigger capacity battery, it doesn't match up to SGS.

Hi Ripper,

Thanks for yr prompt reply. truly appreciate yr help. As this will be my first time getting an Andriod phone, I m really a goner! I have been a window mobile user for the past 3 yrs n presently using an HTC HD 2.
I intend to buy this phone to use as a projector in my classroom where I teach - (place where I taught has no projector) . Really wonder if it will come in handy esp when the classroom is brightly lit.

 

[RipperJack]

Does it get hot? How hot?
Does it have a dedicated camera button?
Does it have stereo speakers built in?

Thanks, I am sitting here in Australia rather envious that people are playing with this awesome phone now!

yes it gets hot.
ripper didn't measure when using the projector coz ripper only installed the battery monitor that actually states the temperature of the handset quite late on.
when charging it reached almost 40 deg celsius.

yes, it has a dedicated camera button.
and it allows double action shutter release too
although the tactile feel is not as apparent as omnia2's
on top of that, you can autofocus on any spot by touching the viewfinder.
but ripper strongly recommends using the former method to lock focus as you really don't want to put your hand near the screen that could cause you to brush the "Back" touch-sensitive button. you know what would happen next

stereo speakers or not, ripper's hearing not that sharp to discern
but volume is loud, sound is reasonably good from a built-in speaker.
however, being an ex-omnia2 user, ripper somehow feel that sound quality is abit inferior compared to omnia2.

ripper dun think it's awesome unless u rank it in terms of bulkiness
but it's definitely much more fun than phones that can't project

 

[RipperJack]

Hi Ripper,

Thanks for yr prompt reply. truly appreciate yr help. As this will be my first time getting an Andriod phone, I m really a goner! I have been a window mobile user for the past 3 yrs n presently using an HTC HD 2.
I intend to buy this phone to use as a projector in my classroom where I teach - (place where I taught has no projector) . Really wonder if it will come in handy esp when the classroom is brightly lit.

no projector in classroom?
you are a teacher in africa?!

kidding~ no offence ok?
anyway, ripper is an android virgin too~

the projector WILL NOT come in useful in a classroom unless you are teaching only a handful of students who are sitting only a few metres away from the screen.

the projection is very good in dark places.
ripper had a whole lot of fun last night beaming the screen everywhere after lights out.
the image quality is excellent even when project far far to reach the same dimensions as ripper's 32" LCD TV in ripper's bedroom.

in brightly lit room, the image is still good, but only when the distance is near.
1m to 1.5m max for good results. anything beyond will result in very washed out images.
this means that to get ok quality, the projection won't be very large.
your students must train their eyesights to superhuman levels to read off it.

also, the battery life for using projector is stated as 3hrs so take it with a pinch of salt, 2hrs life?
not very good for work use unless u plug in the charger.

so Beam is good for personal use as a novelty. not so much as a classroom projector

 

[kennyboy]

went samsung service centre this morning.
ripper is officially the 1st customer to visit service centre with a Beam

no one there knows how to service the Beam.

ripper asked them how to hard reset the phone.
no one knows. the staff there not trained to service beam yet.
currently, they say there is no way to hard reset the phone manually (with buttons only)

so ripper asked for a 1-to-1 exchange and they agreed. but have to wait for 2 days for the stocks to come

if really no way to hard reset manually, then jialat leh. if ever the beam freezed and cannot reboot like ripper's, then how? exchange new one?
all the info stored inside also cannot retrieve

Tried this?

http://forum.gsmhosting.com/vbb/f258/samsung-i9000-galaxy-s-hard-reset-1029731/

To Hard Reset Samsung I9000 Galaxy S
1. Turn the power off. If your Samsung Galaxy S is frozen, pull the battery out and reinsert it
2. Hold the Volume Down button
3. Press and release the Power button
4. You are now presented with a menu that allows for Fastbook, Recovery, Clear Storage, and Simlock
5. Select Clear Storage by pressing the Volume Down button
6. Press and release the Power button
7. Now simply confirm your decision: Volume Up for YES and Volume Down for NO

If YES is selected, all data including third-party applications will be deleted from your Samsung I9000 Galaxy S. Once the wipe is complete, the phone will reboot to its factory fresh state.

As for the service crew, it more a case of they dunno rather than no actual way to do it.

 

[kennyboy]

well, if it's truly crazy! they shouldn't have added that setting in

Well evidently it works well on some other models. U must know they cannot ensure it works that great on all models, thus the tag "crazy"

 

[kennyboy]

Kennyboy> Yes, the UI is like that. Btw, nood here. Mind I ask how come there is no DVD rom that bundles with the phone for managing files transfer? Just now the guy, from Singtel shop at Buangkok, said SGS didn't come with DVD rom too, could check with Samsung about it.

nvm, files transfer use mass storage mode. don't bother with KIES, it's a POS software.

 

[KervyDog]

no projector in classroom?
you are a teacher in africa?!

kidding~ no offence ok?
anyway, ripper is an android virgin too~

the projector WILL NOT come in useful in a classroom unless you are teaching only a handful of students who are sitting only a few metres away from the screen.

the projection is very good in dark places.
ripper had a whole lot of fun last night beaming the screen everywhere after lights out.
the image quality is excellent even when project far far to reach the same dimensions as ripper's 32" LCD TV in ripper's bedroom.

in brightly lit room, the image is still good, but only when the distance is near.
1m to 1.5m max for good results. anything beyond will result in very washed out images.
this means that to get ok quality, the projection won't be very large.
your students must train their eyesights to superhuman levels to read off it.

also, the battery life for using projector is stated as 3hrs so take it with a pinch of salt, 2hrs life?
not very good for work use unless u plug in the charger.

so Beam is good for personal use as a novelty. not so much as a classroom projector

No la, me not a teacher in africa - me teaching in a tuition centre, not a school. classroom size not as big as those in schools - abt the size of abt 1.5 HDB bedrooms la. seating capacity of up to 18 students to a class.

 

[RipperJack]

Tried this?

http://forum.gsmhosting.com/vbb/f258/samsung-i9000-galaxy-s-hard-reset-1029731/



As for the service crew, it more a case of they dunno rather than no actual way to do it.

well, it didn't work

ripper also believe there must be a way to manually hard reset it.
but now absolutely no wind of how to do it yet
google doesn't yield much results either

 

[RipperJack]

Well evidently it works well on some other models. U must know they cannot ensure it works that great on all models, thus the tag "crazy"

well, one thing for sure, ripper's never gonna touch that crazy setting again

 

[RipperJack]

No la, me not a teacher in africa - me teaching in a tuition centre, not a school. classroom size not as big as those in schools - abt the size of abt 1.5 HDB bedrooms la. seating capacity of up to 18 students to a class.

too bad, otherwise you can punish noisy students by blowing the vuvuzeulas at them

but anyway, hope ripper has put your hopes of using the Beam in the classroom to eternal rest. a pico projector is simply not adequate yet.

 

[KervyDog]

yes it gets hot.
ripper didn't measure when using the projector coz ripper only installed the battery monitor that actually states the temperature of the handset quite late on.
when charging it reached almost 40 deg celsius.

yes, it has a dedicated camera button.
and it allows double action shutter release too
although the tactile feel is not as apparent as omnia2's
on top of that, you can autofocus on any spot by touching the viewfinder.
but ripper strongly recommends using the former method to lock focus as you really don't want to put your hand near the screen that could cause you to brush the "Back" touch-sensitive button. you know what would happen next

stereo speakers or not, ripper's hearing not that sharp to discern
but volume is loud, sound is reasonably good from a built-in speaker.
however, being an ex-omnia2 user, ripper somehow feel that sound quality is abit inferior compared to omnia2.

ripper dun think it's awesome unless u rank it in terms of bulkiness
but it's definitely much more fun than phones that can't project

Sound quality may not be a issue here since you can plug external speakers (wif woofer) via the 3.5 mm ear jack.

 

[kennyboy]

well, it didn't work

ripper also believe there must be a way to manually hard reset it.
but now absolutely no wind of how to do it yet
google doesn't yield much results either

Hmmm...since Beam is closer to Spica, maybe can try some of the Spica hard reset methods?

 

[kennyboy]

Sound quality may not be a issue here since you can plug external speakers (wif woofer) via the 3.5 mm ear jack.

Looks like you're pretty set even though ripper has thoroughly recommended against it.

 

[KervyDog]

too bad, otherwise you can punish noisy students by blowing the vuvuzeulas at them

but anyway, hope ripper has put your hopes of using the Beam in the classroom to eternal rest. a pico projector is simply not adequate yet.

tks ripper, u have been a great help...continue to have fun once u got back yr phone n plse update us wif any new findings you may have with this gorgeous phone. Hmm, me most likely getting de phone but must pay a heavy sum of money ($1198) :