Review: Samsung C3303K Champ

I easily get bored. It's one of my biggest problems, actually. That's why you'll find me tweeting "Whoop. There goes my commitment again." once in a while.

Fortunately, I don't get bored with people. I know how to keep real friendships, and I stick myself to my loved ones with super glue. Unfortunately, that's the ONLY thing in my life that I don't get bored with. So you can safely bet that you'll soon be reading more stuff about things that I don't use/eat/play/visit/listen to/wear/do anymore. (But I promise, I will keep updating this blog regularly.)

Like for instance, I'm now getting bored with my Samsung phone. It's a C3303K, a.k.a. Champ. It looks like this:

I got it from my Globe postpaid plan a few months ago, but it didn't come free. I had to shell out additional money to obtain it. The free phones were crappy and I needed an upgrade. It was the cheapest among the phones that were seemingly better than the last one I owned (Motorola Z3), so I chose it.

And now, I don't want it anymore. Well, it's not that I'm hating it, I just want a better phone. A phone that has wi-fi features and a better camera. Okay fine, it's my fault. My flawed research led me to believe that this phone had wi-fi, but it turned out that it doesn't. I can access the Internet but for a price, and most of the time, the web pages load like crap. So that's one major disappointment.

Number 2, I have a major problem with the camera. The resolution (1.3 MP) is good enough, but I just can't freakin' press that freakin' "button" when I want to take a photo without looking at the screen. Whenever I want to take a picture of myself alone or with other people, I have to exert so much effort in positioning my finger correctly on the screen where the "button" is and keep it that way as I angle the phone. It's just... BLEH. Exerting effort on trivial things is never my thing. Consequently, my picture taking habits decreased dramatically, and that's why I don't upload pictures anymore.

But hey, this phone has merits, too. Like most Samsung phones, the music features ROCK. I can play the radio without using earphones, the speakers produce excellent sound (rating: 4.5 stars), and most PC headsets can be plugged in. The widgets feature also makes things convenient for me because I can open any application with just a few, err, touches. And last but not the least... the screen lock button on the side. It's one of my favorites because it locks the screen with just one press and it "eats" people who take time figuring out how to unlock it.

In a nutshell, here's what I don't like about the phone:

• No wi-fi
• Web pages load poorly
• Takes too much effort to take photos
• Good enough camera (best is what we want)
• Unusable while connected to a computer

And here's what I love about it:

• Superb sound and radio functions
• Widgets
• Screen lock button (manual locking)
• Up to 10 alarms (for procrastination)

For some people, the music functions would suffice. But for me, they're not enough to keep me interested in it for a long time. If something's not able to do what I expected it to do, I get bored with it quickly. So, what exactly do I want in a phone? Well, I want it to be an all-in-one device. I should be able to call and send messages with it, surf the Internet with it, listen to music with it, and take pictures with it. I currently don't have a specific model in mind, but as much as possible, I want it to be a smartphone. (No, not a blackberry, please.) That means, I have to start saving up for one. But for now, I'll just envy my sister for having a Nokia E63.

Will you suggest a phone for me? And please do share your experiences with your own Samsung Champ. Comments are very much welcome. =)


P.S.
For an in-depth review of the phone, browse GSM Arena.