Samsung Galaxy Ace Review

Style and handling summary for Galaxy ace review

It sits comfortably in the hand, and appears a decent, stylish device. The build quality isn't up there with some of its competitors, and the display proves simply average

User friendliness summary for Galaxy ace review

The hard home button is handy, and the TouchWiz overlay is simple enough to not hinder Android's easy interface

Feature set summary for Galaxy ace review

A decent snapper, Wi-Fi and good GPS, however it's a shame there is no HD video recording

Performance summary for Galaxy ace review

The Ace can be speedy and effective, but if you have too many programs running at once the phone does slow down, which is unfortunate

Battery power summary for Galaxy ace review

Battery life is decent - even better than the iPhone 4 - it's probably best to charge every day, but you will get through two days if needs be

>

While the iPhone 4 is desirable, it's hardly cheap. So, if you'd like a similar device but at a far lower price, you could look at this lookalike courtesy of Samsung. While the maker hasn't claimed the Ace as an iPhone rival, it's hard to deny the similarity between the two phones.

First impression

Okay, so let's see how similar the Ace is to the iPhone. Well, first it boasts a simple front with a central button (which is rectangular, not circular) underneath the display. Apart from this, it's as minimalist as the iPhone - until, that is, you tap the home button and a pair of touch-sensitive lights appear. These two are for back and menu functions.

The edge does look metallic, but doesn't act as an antenna as it does on the iPhone 4 (some might say this is an advantage!). The edge is also where you'll find the power button and the volume controls. You'll also discover a microSD slot here. 

On the reverse, you'll discover something else not found as yet on the iPhone 4 - a white cover. Actually you are able to choose either white or black cases. It has slightly rounded edges and doesn't appear as slim as the iPhone 4 either.

So, at a first glimpse, you could mistake it for a more expensive Apple device. But look again and you won't make the mistake twice. The screen, for instance, is hardly in the ‘Retina' category. The resolution is half that of the Apple display - at 480x320 it is the same as that on the iPhone 3GS. It's hardly awful, but neither is it exceptional - it's no AMOLED screen, which is Samsung's landmark feature. So anyway, let's stop comparing it to Apple's handset and get on with the review.

Android

Running on the Ace is not the latest version of Android - it's version 2.2.1. Mind you, there was little changed in version 2.3 so it's not a big problem. Samsung has its own interface for Android - called TouchWiz - though it's not as good as HTC's Sense. Samsung even has some of its own apps - although there's not many. There's a social networking hub, for instance, which will load a browser and send you to sites such as Facebook or Twitter, so is not hugely useful.

However, what does stand out is the inclusion of Swype - this is a nifty, though rather unusual, way of using the virtual keyboard, where you can drag your finger across the keys and the application will predict which word you are trying to type. It's also worth trying out its rival Swiftkey which is excellent at predictive text.

The main features

This may be an affordable device, but its still boasts a five-megapixel snapper with LED flash. It offers no HD video recording but we were totally satisfied with the quality of the resulting pictures.

There's plenty of smartphones with 1GHz chips these days, and the Ace only manages an 800MHz processor. This slower chip is often evident when you're left waiting to get on with whatever you're doing.

Oddly, your choice of wallpapers is pretty limited - in fact there's only one. It's new and rather nice - it shows a stylish selection of line-drawing trees swaying in the forest - but we thought it strange that there is nothing else to choose from. However, we do know that live wallpapers drain battery power - and the Ace does have excellent battery life.

The verdict

The Samsung Galaxy Ace looks good, and it would be very appealing looks-wise if it weren't so easy to compare it with the iPhone 4. Naturally, it can't compete with the Apple device, but it is far cheaper and runs on Android, which many will prefer. Plus, it has decent specifications and is a joy to use.

By Miles J Thomas on 20th April, 2011

Tags: Samsung Galaxy Ace