Samsung Galaxy A03s smartphone review: Cheap phone, good call quality

[Redaktion]

Compared to last year, Samsung hasn't changed much in the Galaxy A03s. The very affordable phone at least comes with more stable Wi-Fi, which was one of our biggest points of criticism with the predecessor. Is the Galaxy A03s worth it or is it too expensive for 160 Euros?

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Samsung-Galaxy-A03s-smartphone-review-Cheap-phone-good-call-quality.586550.0.html

[DAVID M CAVAN]

I didn't read the entire article, yet I feel compelled to voice my total frustration of my first ever experience of having to use a smart phone to place calls and texts ever in my entire life, which was the Samsung Galaxy A03s, and for which I was not involved with the purchase of it for my usage. If it matters, I live alone and use my laptop with a large 15.6" inch screen whenever I go online, and being handicapped, I'm home 99% of the time, so there's never any need for me to use a phone to go online with. I'm sure there are ways to sidestep the problems I've had using the A03s, but sadly, there isn't any instruction manual included in a new A03s's packaging that even begins to show the very basics of how to use this phone. Having never been taught how to use finger gestures, even as simple as swiping, this just complicated the A03s's usage for me even further. Here's just a few of my problems. First, the A03s shuts off if nothing is being typed or clicked on within 5 seconds, when I then have to enter my password just to get back to what I was doing. This isn't a "smart" phone, it a hinderance to the user. I'm sure there is a way to adjust this, but I couldn't find one in the settings, which leaves me with no choice to state this an extremely frustrating and stupid feature for the phone to have, or at least in my case, because I'm home alone when I use it, and have no fears of it being stolen. Simply put, if any "smart phone" doesn't have the ability to turn off the screen saver function and/or the lock out feature of the phone, it's a stupid phone, and nothing but an inconvenience to the user. Second, I had to go through numerous menus on the A03S to try and find, then shut off anything that uses up mobile data, because I have no use for them and did want any mobile data charges on the bill. This in turn, apparently affects other applications and/or functions of the A03, like the camera, when trying to transfer pictures I'd taken with the A03s to my laptop using a data transfer USB cord. There is no easy way to simply shut off all of the phone's online apps to prevent it 100% from using any mobile data whatsoever, or to determine if the A03s is only using a separate wi-fi source for the data required by apps to function properly, whether the app is running in the foreground or the background. Simply put, I hate being tricked in to having to pay for any mobile data used by my phone for any application, especially if the apps were using mobile data instead of an alternate wi-fi source, without my knowledge or usage. Third and worst, (although I have more problems with using the A03s), but somehow, by scrolling through the A03s menus, I must have done something wrong, because now, there is a smaller screen with 4 individual bars to adjust the levels of the volume for a wrench, a bell, a speaker and a music note. Sadly, I can't get this volume screen to disappear, which is a very big problem because it prevents me from entering all of the numbers of my password to unlock the phone, and now I think the phone is locked up. Samsung has created a phone that has a volume level screen that can't be removed, and in turn, prevents the owner from entering all of the numbers in the password to unlock the phone. And this is a smart phone? The bottom line is, I'm ready to throw this A03s phone against the wall, smashing it into 1,000s of pieces. I may be out of touch and old fashioned, or even call me stupid, but my attempts to use a smart phone over the last 30 days have been nothing but pure aggravation and frustration, it has not made my life any easier, and to the contrary, has been nothing but a complete waste of my time and energy trying to figure how to use the A03s. Just to answer an incoming call, I have to some kind of special finger gesture, instead of simply tapping the green phone icon that appears. How stupid is that? Making matters worse, now I don't have a functioning phone to use until this piece of sh*t A03s is fixed by T-Mobile, or I get another phone. Based on my recent experience, I'll take an old, dumb flip phone over any 'smart' phone every day of the week, and twice on Sundays.   

[RobertJasiek]

Although my reasons differ a bit, I understand your rejection of smartphones. I have never had any but use a landline phone. I also do not want to give in and accept the manufacturers' agenda. A smartphone should serve us instead of us having to serve it and them. Follow your wishes and enjoy a "dumb" phone!