Eleven photos of the entire unboxing and booting of the Samsung Intercept, the first 3G prepaid Android phone in America.
Got questions? We’ve got the device… ask away in the comments.
Christopher Price
Christopher Price is the Founding Editor of PhoneNews.com. Today, he leads the team building Console, Inc. - a new kind of Android™ device. He still likes to pontificate... a lot. You can visit his personal blog at ChristopherPrice.net.
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You are incorrect Christopher. The Motorola i1 for Boost Mobile was the first prepaid Android OS device to the US market.
Please verify that the phone can be activated at the lower $25 plan as opposed to being charged the $10 Blackberry tax. I know you’ve mentioned this already but just want that the activation on the $25 plan goes without a hitch or doesn’t require jumping any hoops.
Hi i wanted to hear what your personal take on the phone is. Do you think that the phone is responsive, is the processing speed adequet and also, when your done reviewing the phone can you send it to me lol. Thanks
Typos corrected.
Anyways, yes Carlos… you can activate on the $25 plan without the BlackBerry tax.
Can you sideload apps? Meaning can you download an apk and install that directly, or must you download and install apps through the Android Market?
Cris, we haven’t done a full review, but essentially this phone’s shortcomings are clearly well made up for by what this phone delivers on the plan side.
Is it a Galaxy S or a Droid 2? No. But it’s half the full-retail price of those phones. You’ll save enough money that you can go buy an iPod touch 4G within a few months from the money you saved.
I agree with Cris, it would be nice if you could give a full review of the phone Chris.
My situation might be a little unique, but I currently have a Touch Pro2 on a SERO plan, and was thinking of paying the extra $20 to get an Epic. However, if it is capable enough, I could get both an Intercept on VM, and keep my Touch Pro2 on SERO for roughly the same monthly fee.
Sure we could just read a review somewhere else on the Sprint version, but I sort of trust PhoneNews to give a more honest review of what the phone is like in the real world, vs the more “mainstream” sites.
Hi folks, we’re working on a full review.
Just wanted to chime in to note that we fixed a glitch on the unboxing page. Larger versions of the photos should load now, if you were having issues previously.
Well never mind, you just replied to Cris while I was typing the above comment.
Mike Ross, you can sideload apps/apks on the Samsung Intercept/M910 from your microSD card. The app I would recommend using to do this is a free app from the Android Market called Onymous App Installer. You must also go into Settings -> Applications and make sure the Unknown Sources box is checked. If you do this Mike and you install a third party app via the sideload method and it causes issues with your device, you can’t blame anyone for it.
Don’t forget people that with any of the Virgin Mobile devices that you can not use any of the wireless services when roaming off Sprint’s CDMA network as Sprint does not currently have wireless roaming partnerships with any wireless carrier for their prepaid customer base.
How much is it going to sell for?
Is the phone crippled in any way?
Actually the Kyocera Zio was the first 3G Android phone.
Chris,
You lose credibility when you make statements like “the Samsung Intercept, the first 3G prepaid Android phone in America.” and then when people call you on it you say “Typos corrected.” You tend to come off arrogant about your knowledge of the industry and then act like mistakes are just typos. It turns people off of your reporting. You did the same thing on the Google Voice article this week. They only become typo’s when people call you out because your reporting isn’t accurate and is full of errors. I still check in every now and then because you cover some stuff others don’t, but you are becoming more and more irrelevant and harder to read. I am not trying to be a jerk, I am just telling you what I see.
I imagine the Virgin Mobile firmware flashed Samsung Intercept/M910 will be in the $250-$350 price range. I’m fairly confident the device won’t be enabled for Sprint 3G services like the Sprint TV(MobiTV powered) or Sprint Naviation(TeleNav powered).
Ray, the reason I ask about sideloading is because some phones on AT&T had this option disabled. I’m curious if this phone under VM does the same. Also, Target stores have been selling them before release for $250 list price, or sometimes $230 discounted.
Sideloading is very much present and supported on the Virgin Mobile Intercept. Only AT&T does that evil in America.
As to MobiTV and Sprint Navigation… those are not on any Virgin Mobile device. Virgin Mobile is a rather autonomous MVNO, much like Boost Mobile. But, with products like Slingbox and Google Maps Navigation, there’s really no need for those services to begin with.
Parrott84, it obviously was a typo. We were one of the first to cover the Motorola i1 on Boost, in fact, I’d go out on a limb and say the first.
We lose no credibility for calling a typo a typo, and our prior reporting clearly established the context of the typo.
P.S. As to the Intercept netting free VoIP with Google Voice, that wasn’t a typo. Google Voice even touts the combination with Gizmo5 and other SIP services… it’s a fully-supported solution.
Chris, with the utmost compassion, I have to say I agree with parrot84…
… about nothing at all. He’s totally wrong! Keep up the great work, and don’t let the typo patrol bring you down.
Where in the world did you get the thing?
Chris, Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile are no longer MNVOs. Both are Sprint Nextel prepaid products and roll up to Sprint’s Prepaid Group just as Comon Sense (sold through Wal Mart) and Assurance Wireless (currently available in 11 states) do too. Slingbox requires an external piece of hardware from which I believe is around $150 and if you lose cable signal at your house, no television watching for you. I hate to say it Chris, but Google Maps Navigation is no where near the quality of the Sprint Navigation powered by TeleNav.
Well christopher I have a couple questions and i want a very straitforward answer.My first question is do we have to upgrade to the 35 dolar plan of can we stay on the 25 dollar beyond talk plan?My second question is how much will the actual phone cost?And my third question is will we be able to acces the android market on the phone w/ the beyond talk plan.
Jimmy,
1. No
2. $250-350(Depending on where you purchase one)
3. Yes
I just checked my local Target today. They were out of stock on the shelf and in the back (should get more tomorrow), but for this week Oct 3-10, mine is offering a $20 gift card with your (list price) $250 Intercept. I’m definitely hitting them up tomorrow.
Ray, where do you see the $350 price???
And thanks for the unboxing Chris. You’ve eased my mind knowing I have access to the Market and sideloading.
Well i have 2 more questions 1.My first question is what does it mean when a phone is”crippled or locked down in anyway”?
My second question is is the samsung intercept”crippled or locked down in anyway”?
Here’s my two cents.
I picked up the phone last night at Target in DC. It works ok. I had read some reviews and thought it might be a bit of a turd but it’s not been that bad. I’ve only got a Blackberry 8830 to compare it to.
My only gripe so far is the google search function and text to speech. There seems to be a bug where if you’ve got bluetooth enabled it hampers the text to speech and when you try to search using voice you get a loud whine(feedback) coming from the speaker. If bluetooth is off and the phone has been reset no problems.
I signed up for the $25 plan, and what a bummer had to pay state tax on it!
I’ve downloaded a bunch of apps from the Android Market. Used the GPS navigation. Took vid and pics.
All in all for $25 a month you can’t beat it.
Can’t wait to hear how to get the VOIP calling now.
Ray, Boost and Virgin are commonly still considered MVNOs. While they are 100% owned by Sprint, they operate and market themselves as third-party offerings, only making reference to using the Sprint network.
As to Slingbox, you can get a Slingbox AV for much less than $150, probably less than half that. In our tests, it works fine on mobile Slingbox clients.
And on the Google vs TeleNav front, well, we’ll have to agree to disagree on that one.
Jimmy, in the Android phone world, a crippled phone is one that doesn’t allow for sideloading. Meaning, a phone that cannot use applications from sources other than Google’s Android Market. This type of hindrance stifles innovation and prevents you from running applications that carriers may not like.
There are other ways Android phones can be hindered, but those can usually be overcome with third-party apps (such as PDANet), and in rare cases, rooting the phone if necessary.
1.Is the Samsung intercept crippled or locked in any way? 2.Is it true i can not download more graphic intense games to the phone. 3.Besides having Sprint tv and things like that on the phone is it almost COMPLETLEY identical to the sprint version of this phone?
Mike, My bad, the Samsung Intercept/M910 sells for $249.99 plus applicable sales tax.
If anyone wants the apk file for Skype, shoot me an email and I’ll send it to you seeing how Verizon Wireless now have exclusivity to it and was pulled form the Andorid Market. I’d recommend Fring which is in the Anroid market for VoIP app. I hope that Froyo does become an offical update for the Samsung Intercept/M910 see how it will not be released for the Samsung Moment/M900.
I have on VERY inmportant question does this phone support usb tethering.If not can you tell us a way to work around this to enable it to support usb tethering
Jimmy, writing this from my tethered laptop right now. Used PDANet from the Android store. Not sure how much data I can get with the free version! But it works!!! Now just need to get it to work with the iPad and we are golden.
So jason you are saying if i download this app i can tether to my pc.If i can is it wireless or by usb
Jimmy, the free version of PDANet will allow you to connect your Samsung Intercept/M910 to a PC via Bluetooth DUN (wireless) or USB (wired). After 30 days, you have to purchase a license if you wish to have access https sites.
Ok that makes sense.So let me get my facts strait.The phone is compatible w/ the 25 dollar beyond talk plan and the phone costs 250 dollars.It can use the android market and is not”crippled” and as for tethering i have a 1 month free trial then i have to pay for it.is all this correct?
Jimmy, you only have to pay for tethering with PDANet after the first month if you want to access secure (HTTPS) web sites. Plus you can avoid that restriction by using Bluetooth instead of USB.
And, we’ll be showing how to enable USB tethering using Samsung’s interface shortly.
please post a review up quick! i can’t wait.
I’m really interested in the Sipgate.com + sipdroid + Google Voice + GV app combo to get unlimited voice minutes through the 25/month plan.
I’m wondering if anyone out there has gotten this to work correctly. Is there any issues that anyone has ran into, going this route? As in, is there really bad lag at times, or possibly times where someone can’t reach you? How easy is it to switch from calls going through Wifi to calls going through the OTA data network?
So, I can connect my Intercept (using PDANet) to my laptop and surf the web? Anyone want a fairly new Mifi2200? lol.
I believe the Sanyo Zio on Cricket Wireless was actually the first 3G Prepaid Android phone. It was out about a month ago
We’ll stay out of the debate as to if Cricket is prepaid or monthly no-contract postpay. Cricket lacks a nationwide footprint as well. If you want to get pedantic, T-Mobile affiliates in Iowa have been selling Android on their monthly no-contract postpay as well… I don’t see anyone giving that much time of day either.
Does the intercept send pics over Bluetooth?
if i pay $25 a month what if I diddnt pay it on the due date what will happen to the phone
Does a microSD card come with it>
can i port over my phone # from an out of contract verizon phone?
Answering these in order…
* Yes, you can send files and multimedia over Bluetooth.
* If you don’t pay the $25, your account will have a $0. Your line stays active (up to a year, I believe) without needing to get a new phone number. When you want to keep using service, just re-up with another $25.
* A 2 GB microSD card is included, and the phone is SDHC compatible.
* You can port numbers from Verizon to Virgin Mobile, both in and out of contract. If you are still in a contract with Verizon, keep in mind you will be billed an ETF for porting out early.
So if you can port from Verizon then that means that you can port from Sprint? ( this might be a dumb question but I just want to make sure)
So it only tethers over Bluetooth or USB? No way to share the connection with my iPod touch?
Can’t Wait till i get my SAMSUNG INTERSEPT on the 29th