Customer Reviews

Samsung Reclaim M560 Phone, Earth Green (Sprint)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The new Reclaim M560 phone from Samsung has a lot of great features, but the flimsy LCD and the flat small keyboard are disappointing.

PRO:
Awesome battery life

Qwerty Keyboard

Very clear menus and navigation

Fast internet (for mobile "m" sites only)

Easily customizable buttons to add (or remove) quick links (See Below)

Direct Facebook, Google, Google Maps, Browser, My Space, Twitter, You Tube Mobile quick links

Access web based email accounts

2MP camera/video camera

GPS (but only using Sprint Navigation)

Has a microSD slot

Bluetooth compatible

Not too big or too small

Made of 80% recyclable or "green" Materials (so they claim)


CONS

THE LCD IS EXTREMELY FRAGILE! If you don't have a service plan or you do anything physical while using, DON'T GET THIS PHONE!

I carried a heavy box down a flight of stairs and must have leaned on the phone in my pocket because when I took it out, the internal LCD had shattered without leaving the slightest mark on the outer plastic coating.

The qwerty keypad is too small and too flat for man hands, I have to type with my fingernails and even then I make mistakes. I imagine if you are on the small side or a female then this will not be an issue.

You cannot access the GPS feature unless you use Sprint Navigation.

Voice quality is a little static prone.

The internet browser is only for mobile sites and doesn't work for some sites at all.


UPDATE 6/19: 6 months later and I never really got used to the keyboard, it's not like I can make my fingers smaller. I have also grown frustrated at the lack of mobile sites and am wishing for a true web browser.

Just got this phone two days ago and so far I think I'm keeping it. I chose it because of the price, the look, the size, and it had more/better features for the price than the other phones that made my short list. I also considered the Lotus and the Rumor2. Back to the reclaim though. I love that it feels sturdy and very light. The keyboard is a bit small which would be ok if the keys weren't flat and even. It's difficult to hit just one key at a time or to get the right key. After two days of practice I'm getting better at it so I think in another week or so I won't even remember having trouble typing. I do like that this keyboard is smaller so I can still text with just one hand if I want to. For that reason I am willing to learn how to deal with the smaller keyboard. The rumor has very easy menus to navigate and I really like the carousel although I'm still learning how to personalize it for myself. It has a nice loud speakerphone (extremely loud really) which is important to me because I primarily listen to audiobooks on speaker. It also has a nifty dedicated speaker button which I adore, no more accidently hanging up searching for the speakerphone. Someone else mentioned having to buy features for it but I was impressed that it came with the tv and gps without having to pay extra. I just kicked ATT to the curb for that exact reason and it is why the sprint phone won. Maybe it's because I chose the unlimited data plan. So far my only big complaint is the music player. I'm used to being able to navigate my phone and text while the music player is up but I haven't even figured out how to minimize it on the reclaim yet. If there isn't a way I will probably try to find a sprint phone that will allow me to do that. All in all it's a really nice little phone and you can't beat the price. Hope I can find a way to make the music player work the way I want it to. update: couldn't stand the keyboard. returned it and got a palm pixi.

When I bough this phone, It was one of the cheaper ones being offered by Sprint after the discount. After owning it for several weeks, I have to say my expectation are met. The sound quality is great, the screen is big enough to see what I am working on. I am a fan of Sprint's threaded messages. As a fairly heavy data user, I am impressed with the battery.

The big critique is that the keyboard is hard to navigate. I don't have big hands for a guy, and I keep hitting the wrong keys. I replaced my old LG Rumor with this phone, and typing was easy with my thumbs. With the Reclaim, my typing is much slower because I now type with my right forefinger making sure my nail hits the correct key. Overall I am pleased with my phone, I only wish I could have financially justified a more high-end phone. The Reclaim is perfectly functional, but it does not inspire gadget envy.

I've had this phone since September, and it's the best phone I've had. I don't have a data plan, so I can't attest to the web features, but everything else is great. Some of my favorites are:
-large screen that is easy to read
-keyboard makes texting quick and easy
-good camera for a cell phone
-customizable shortcuts from the home screen
-good size. It really feels nice in your hand

I've had one bad experience, which is why I give this phone 4 stars. I'm guessing I just got a dud originally. A few weeks ago I noticed the screen was darker than before, then a week ago the screen burnt out completely. I called Samsung customer service, and the guy was really great about getting my phone fixed free of charge since it was a manufacturing defect and it was still under warranty.

Overall, this is a great phone that is easy to use.



UPDATE: I've had this phone for almost a year now, and I continue to believe it is a great phone for my purposes (talking, texting, and occasional picture taking). Despite being dropped several times, it is still working great. In response to the concern about pocket dialing, this has only happened to me once. With this phone, if you don't press the end key to exit what you are doing (texting, contacts, etc) and return to the home screen, sliding the phone closed will not lock it. This is a handy feature when you don't need the keyboard for what you are doing (ie reviewing photos), but it can be a bit annoying if you forget, and I could see how you might end up pocket dialing. It hasn't been a big problem for me, and I hadn't even thought about it until I read the other review.

This is the best phone I've ever owned. Great interface. All the graphics and fonts look very nice. I like the way notifications for texts and calls pop up. Texting on the reclaim is quick and fun. There are dedicated buttons for texts and emails on the slide-out keyboard. It's energy efficient, conserves battery power when low, and charges very quickly. It takes nice pictures as long as there is adequate light. I love the way it looks and feels in my hand, and the green color is very unique and eye-catching. Packaging is eco-conscious: minimal and made with recycled material. I never want to use another phone again.

The Key Guard on this phone is useless. If you carry this phone in your pocket,you WILL end up pocket dialing all the time. The texting buttons are pretty small, but you can see this when you first open the phone. I am constantly getting Updates for this phone which apparently do nothing more than reset the stupid carousel at the bottom of the phone. Granted, I think the carausel is useless anyway...
If you need a solid functional phone, this is not it. The "features" far outweigh its usefullness. The pocket dialing is a viscious pain in the behind.

The Sprint store I bought the Samsung Reclaim M560 phone from had two colors; light-green and dark-gray. I was told the green one is usually for women and the gray for men, so I got the gray one for free after rebate with a two-year renewal plan. The phone is not the latest and greatest, but for those who aren't picky about cell-phones like me, it is acceptable. It has the standard direct interfaces to Google, Facebook, Myspace, GPS and the Internet. It allows you to add the so-called bubbles which are nothing but icons displaying the latest news or financial or weather information on the screen. In addition to a 2 M-pixel camera, it also comes with a mini-USB interface for charging the phone, a micro SD slot and a 512MB micro-SD card. Something I don't like about this phone is it is difficult to keep track of the text messages since it mixes both sent and received messages in the same group unlike typical phones I had in the past where the two were separate. So if you're looking for a reasonably low-cost cell-phone without super-fancy features like those by HTC or iPhones, Reclaim M560 is for you.

Sorry to report that my Samsung Reclaim M560 is not all it (re)claims to be. When sliding your phone to open it when a call is coming through you accidently hit the end button that does just that. Sure the phone has a lot of features, however, you have to purchase them to use them. All in all I guess it is ECO friendly because as soon as my contract is up i'm going to recycle it and do the planet a favor. YEAH.