Samsung GT-E1160 Review

The Samsung E-1160 is a very very basic phone, so basic that it is considered a dumbphone when compared to the smartphones of today. The only appeal of such phones are the lack of camera and its long battery life. Why? Read on to find out.

The phone is a candybar model, meaning what you see is what you get. No flips or slides needed. The design is grooved at the back with curved edges for easy gripping. The colour combination of black and red is also quite ‘fierce’ and thus quite eye-catching.

The keypad is made of rubber and is much larger compared to other phones. Weirdly, it makes quite a lot of noise when you press the buttons so it will be a giveaway if you’re trying to SMS quietly. Even so, its easy to use and your fingers wont slip from button to button even if they’re sweaty.

The OS is also very simple. 9 grid icons, with their respective submenus. You can alter basic settings like ringtone and volume and wallpaper. Generally easy to figure out.

The GT-E1160 has an internal antenna which means that the FM Radio can work without the need for a headset. This is an extremely useful feature since it eliminates the need to bring around a head set which can be bulky. The phone has 2 speakers at the back which are quite powerful, definitely sufficient for listening to hours  worth of radio.

Connectivity

The greatest drawback of this phone is that there is no connectivity options. There is no Bluetooth, no infrared and no cable transfer options. You can only use what is already in the phone. This severely limits your choice of ringtones.

Applications

Samsung GT-E1160 has basic apps like Memo, Calculator, Converter, Timer, Stopwatch, Alarm and Calendar.  It also has a fake call function, which is a fun function to use if you need to get out of an awkward conversation. Simply press and hold a button and a few seconds an incoming call will be received on your phone.

Hardware

The phone only uses its own hone memory without external memory support, which means that about  20 dialled calls, 20 received calls and 20 missed calls and 1000 phonebook entries and 300 SMS.  Even so, the Samsung GT-E1160 has an extremely long lasting battery which is the lithium-ion battery at 1000mAh which will last about 4 days with just one full charge. As an added feature, the phone has a powerful mini torchlight that you might find useful.

Looking at the phone, it’s not the kind of phone you might want at all but this phone was created to serve a very specific group of people: NSFs. During your recruit days, you won’t be able to bring camera phones into Tekong. Your future unit might also forbid such phones. Recruits are also not allowed to bring in phone chargers, so a long lasting battery like this will last your 2+ weeks confinement. This usually leads to a scramble for cheap 2g phones everywhere. Thus you might consider the Samsung GT-E1160 priced @ S$75 at most 7-11 stores.

References: http://handphonesprofiles.blogspot.com/2010/01/samsung-gt-e1160-gave-fm-radio-with.html