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Web Browser
For a phone with rather low-end hardware the browser experience is rather amazing. Maybe it’s because the single core Marvell processor has less pixels to compute but performance is smooth.
Scrolling performance is surprisingly quite close to an iOS, Windows Phone 7 or more expensive Android smartphone and can handle large desktop sites with a surprising degree of ease.
The poor resolution screen means that anything but the main banner and large header text is pixelated or completly unreadable. However this is where the browser’s text flow ability comes into effect. It makes any website or article easily readable.
As is commonplace on a smartphone there is tab or “windows” support, although in the case of the xCover it only supports up to four windows at any one time.
Samsung’s browser adds in a useful ability if the website you are browsing has a RSS feed. Clicking the RSS feed icon in the URL bar will allow you to add the feed to your Google Reader account.
Another useful feature is being able to add a bookmark shortcut to your homescreens. This can effectively replace many applications that are effectively a mobile site in an application. Replacing applications with shortcuts will no doubt help out with the limited memory problem the xCover suffers from.
Adobe Flash Player is not installed from the get go but performance is rather sluggish and you’re better off using the official Youtube application or the closest PC for Flash-heavy websites.
Page Loading
Doing some rather unscientific tests it took the xCover just over thirty seconds to load and render the Kitguru homepage, 3 seconds to load up Google’s mobile search page and 8 seconds to load BBC’s mobile site. This was over Wi-Fi on a 10 Mb/s connection.
Page loading is nowhere near top of the line thanks to the xCovers rather meagre single core Marvell chipset. The low resolution display is going to sit you down in front of a PC sooner than the slower page loading, however.
On a whole page loading was livable but rather poor. I also ran a few tests using Opera Mobile but the different browser made no significant difference to load times.
Other Included Applications
Samsung also includes a Social Hub application which can be summed up in one word: useless. It looks like something even I could code in roughly 20 minutes.
The screenshot explains most of it, but what it doesn’t show is that it doesn’t even load the official Twitter and Facebook applications. Instead the code running (hopefully away) thinks it is smarter to load mobile versions of the sites in the browser.
Bloatware was few and far between with the only third party applications being a download link to Polaris Office in the Samsung app store and a trial version of Cardio Trainer.Although it would be safe to assume there will be some bloatware on your xCover if you source it from a carrier.
That is one hell of a review blair!
Well I have this phone and I think it sucks. id be harder on the product. I am on my third now via the phone company as the first two started developing problems (call dropout etc).
Its a pretty looking phone but its not the greatest.
Thanks Roger!
And Davis, I encountered none of the major issues you have mentioned. But trust me if I did you would hear about them
Like the benchmarks.
What is it like for playing app games? screen no use?
For Angry Birds and the like the display is fine, anything that involves a bit more of a 3D experience it won’t be that amazing. I didn’t really test many games on it to be honest though.
Unfortunately I have to go with any phone I purchase in 2G mode (T-Mobile USA). I am considering the Galaxy Xcover or purchasing the USA identical (Samsung Rugby Smart). But neither are getting rave reviews as far as I can see.
When the Motorola Defy continues to beat the Samsung(s), it really makes me reluctant and I don’t want a Defy.
The Rugby is more like the xCover’s long lost cousin, rather than the USA version of it. The Rugby has the better display, processor, camera and by noticeable amounts as well. That being said I have never seen the Rugby in person, nor used the Defy for long enough to say what it is best out of the two. But I imagine the xCover would come in third
I have an Xcover. It is okay, but it occasionally locks up and I have to remove the battery to reboot. The other thing, something I dislike far more than the phone, is the software that backs the phone to my computer is very limited. For instance I can find no way in which I can backup my txt messages and access them on the computer. The phone has too limited memory to be bothered with music. And why would I put a podcast on the thing? But I can and back it up. But no capacity or messages! I won’t be replacing it with another Samsung when my contract runs out in a year. The camera is okay, the images are quite clear even at quite large magnifications.
Sanda is what men and females call heer but it’s not the most feminine
title out there. Guam is thee only location he’s
beewn residing in. After becoming out of his task forr
years he becawme a dentist and her salary has
been truly fulfilling. Thee favourite hobby for my kids
and me is to go to ballet and I’m attemjpting too make it a profession.