Considering buying a Samsung Focus

[liaoliaoinchina]

Hi all,
My Dell Venue Pro was sadly stolen the other day. I'm getting severe Windows Phone withdrawal right now, and I'm scouring Taobao (Chinese equivalent of eBay/Amazon) for cheap Windows Phones. The cheapest first-gen device that I can get boxed right now is a Samsung Focus. Samsung/

I have some questions about the Focus though.
1. If I buy a Focus, will I get updates at the same speed as an unlocked phone, or will I have to wait for AT&T to approve them?
2. Is there a SIM unlocking process for the phone if I'm using it outside of the United States?
3. What experiences do you guys have with your own SD Cards?
4. How's the Pentile Screen?

Any other thoughts on the Focus are welcome.

 

[HeyCori]

1. If it's carrier unlocked then you will receive updates before AT&T releases them. If it's not carrier unlocked then you're stuck waiting on AT&T.

2. AT&T could give you the unlock code. What country do you live in/going to?

3. A lot of people in this thread have had luck. I used to have a Sandisk 16GB (can't remember the model number) but it started to cause reboots so I took it out.

4. Personally I've never had a problem with the pentile. I mostly had a problem with the dim whites. It's really noticeable when I compare my Titan's keyboard to the Focus.

 

[Neibl]

3. The SD Cards is a tricky experience, but if you are smart it can be so awesome to have 36gb on your phone. The key is to not buy a cheap bulk package SD card since so many of them are fake knock-offs. You need it to come in manufacturing wrapping from a reputable dealer to have a chance of it working. I will put the link of the one I have that worked great and reviews have said similar things if u search through for Focus stories. It is no guarantee that it will work, but IMO it's worth the risk, makes the focus a pleasure to use.

Link: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...ag=hawk-future-20&ascsubtag=UUwpUvbUpU1623430

Make sure you purchase the "Retail" one, Good Luck if you get the focus, great phone.

 

[chaitanya91845]

1) Why won't you buy an unlocked phone? it would save you from the At&t headache. I just don't wait for Zune to issue updates. I use the "cab sender" method to update my phone.

2) You get unlock codes on ebay, although I donno how they work or if it is even legal!

3) I purchased a Samsung 16gb class 4 SDHC card and it worked just fine. But there is no consistency in user experience, even for cards of the same brand and class!

4) Pentile was never much of an issue for me But the whites are quite dim.

 

[bigkevbosky]

Hi all,
My Dell Venue Pro was sadly stolen the other day. I'm getting severe Windows Phone withdrawal right now, and I'm scouring Taobao (Chinese equivalent of eBay/Amazon) for cheap Windows Phones. The cheapest first-gen device that I can get boxed right now is a Samsung Focus. Samsung/

I have some questions about the Focus though.
1. If I buy a Focus, will I get updates at the same speed as an unlocked phone, or will I have to wait for AT&T to approve them?
2. Is there a SIM unlocking process for the phone if I'm using it outside of the United States?
3. What experiences do you guys have with your own SD Cards?
4. How's the Pentile Screen?

Any other thoughts on the Focus are welcome.

1) Us owners of the Focus don't have to wait for AT&T to give us updates. Thanks to windowbreak, you can get developer + interop unlock for your phone easily, and then update all the way to 8107. That's the version I'm on - I manually update it. Works like a charm.

2) Yep. Pretty sure you just call AT&T and they'll give you an unlock code.

3) Sandisk works best. Use Sandisk. My 16GB has never given me a problem, ever.

4) Better than the LCD in my Streak and better than the LCD that my old HTC Inspire had. Don't really notice pentile at 4 inches.