I actually got this phone taking an online survey. The phone was mailed to me with no instructions on how to use it. The point of the survey was to see how easy it would be for people to figure out how to work the different fucntions. It was extremely easy to do. The phone is great in every function.

jibby92

Murphysboro, IL

After owning the Samsung Sway for 8 months, I must say that I am very dissatisfied with it!  During the first few months, I loved it and nothing went wrong.  I even recommended it to a family member of mine.  That has definitely changed and I would not recommend it to anyone.  It was the free phone from our provider at the time.  I was excited to have a slider phone and a bigger screen than my last phone.  The pictures taken by this Samsung Sway seem to be of good quality-- which is why I gave this 2 stars and not just one.  My husband and mother also have this phone and both of them have a very short battery life after only 8 months of owning their phones.  My phone seems to last longer, but if I let it get cold at all (by putting it in the cupholder of my car while driving or if I take it out on a fall day) the screen turns into this plaid-looking design of colors.  I can't read anything on it when that happens.  It is VERY frustrating.  I used to be able to close it and warm it up to fix it, but now I have to turn it completely off and leave it in my hands for a few mins before trying again.  Awful phone.  Don't get it.

cole0349

Minneapolis, MN

I chose the Samsung Sway when we went in to our cell carrier to renew our contracts. I prefer a phone that is more basic in nature. I personally do not want a phone that has the texting keypad since I rarely text nor one with quick internet capabilities. I just needed a basic phone that had a decent camera in case I wanted to take pictures. Overall, I am satisifed with this phone. I find that it is very easy to slide open. I hold the edges and back of the phone with the outer edges of my hand and place my thumb on the screen and push up to slide open. It is very thin and sleek in design. At times, this can be problematic because it really does make it slippery! The camera is decent and actually better than most of the other cameras on the more 'basic' phone models I looked at. It does have a little bit of a delay, so you almost have to take the picture a second ahead otherwise you may miss the moment you wished to capture if it was a non-posed picture.  The keypad is smaller, so if you have larger fingers it may be harder to be precise in pressing the numbers. I have no problem with this personally. I have a relative who also has this phone and we have both noticed that it seems to pick up a lot of background noise if you are in a semi-noisy environment when talking. (The person on the other end of the call can hear a lot of the background noise happening on the your end.) I have had this phone for about 8 months now, and I am now noticing that the battery life is much shorter than the battery life on my husband's phone (different phone, but we got them both at the same time). I often end up charging it once a day or once every 1 1/2 days now. *Battery life has a lot of factors that affect it, though. I talk on my phone more than he talks on his. I use my blue tooth more often than he uses his. Overall, my battery has had more hours of usage than his, so I'm not sure that the shorter battery life is just from my individual circumstance or if a lot of other people have had this issue as well. I probably should just get a new battery.  Bottom line: I really like my phone. It is great for what I need to use it for.

shawblaster

Casper, WY

I had the Samsung Sway for two years, but after six months, I had to replace it once, and the next one was never perfect either. The screen went bad on my first one--there were lines going all across the screen so that I couldn't see to do anything. So I got a new one, but that one developed some lines too and wasn't ever clear again. The camera was terrible; despite having more mega pixels than my last phone, it was nothing in comparison. I had to charge it every single night; it was usually down to one bar of battery by the end of one day. On the good side, this phone does look pretty sweet. It's thin with a sleek design, easy to use, was free with my Verizon contract, and had great reception in most places. I wouldn't buy this phone again though, just because it had too many problems and the battery does not last at all. I like the design enough though that if they came out with a newer version where the battery lasts and the screen doesn't fail, I would get that. But in the meantime, I wouldn't recommend buying this phone.

GretchenEichstadt

Hales Corners, WI

Let me just start this by saying that I have had 4 different Samsung Sways in the past year.  It has one specific problem that I think is just a manufacturing defect - it's just not made well.  The phone is a slider and it's small and cute and has some fun features, but after getting my first one, probably within a month or two the screen image started scrambling.  I had to go get it replaced.  It was replaced because it was a manufacturing problem.  The same thing happened with my second and third phones as well, and the problem started way to early to be because of wear and tear.  This 4th version I've had has lasted the longest, but is now doing the same thing.  Lucky for me, my "new every two" discount is coming up within a week! Anyway, it's a cute phone, small too.  I like the different keyboard sound features and the fonts.  The camera is decent, but nothing wonderful either.  I don't use it for anything but calls and texts and taking pictures of my kids. Other than that screen problem, I haven't had any other issues with it.  But that's a pretty major problem to deal with in a phone.  You kindof need the screen to know what you're typing in or who's calling.  I would NOT recommend this phone if you want reliability.

sarlinz

Hammonton, NJ

There are days when I love my phone. And then there are days when I absolutely hate it. It is compact and fits well into my pocket or purse, but with the buttons on the front, and no cover, I'm constantly bumping the keys and doing things I do not mean to do. For example, while the phone is closed, you have to press a key twice to unlock it. You would think this would be difficult, but if the phone is in my purse and also hitting against my iPod, it will unlock itself and work it's way into a program or call someone. I've had multiple charges for using a data plan because of this little "feature." The number keypad is flat and there is not much to distinguish one number between another so it's really difficult to dial a number in the dark. And forget it if you have larger hands.The buttons are WAY to small for big fingers to navigate. My other complaint is that the camera has a pretty large delay. You have to press the button in anticipation of the picture.

turnersmom79

LaGrange, GA

  Samsung - Sway SCH-U650 Cell Phone -  When I picked out this phone, I had high hopes for it. I was primarily looking for a simple phone that would be good for texts, taking pictures and some basic other functions.When I first received this phone, I did like it and I love that it is a slider phone and that the buttons are shielded when its in your pocket. The phone is also very slim and slender making it easy to fit in a pocket or your purse. After a couple months of using the phone, I noticed that this phone is not all that great and the problems I have had with this phone are: * Camera quality is not good. The pictures come out grainy. I don't use my phone to take pictures, but was slightly disappointed in the quality of the pictures. * The screen is TERRIBLE!! I kept getting tiny white lines on the screen -- that at first was annoying, but after while the lines prevent you from seeing the screen at all. I literally would have to make a phone call for a few minutes to get my screen back to normal. In addition, when the phone is turned off and then back on, red lines appear on the phone. * Battery life is short Based on the above, I would not recommend this phone to anyone. It fails to be functional and while the slim design is nice, it is not worth the hassle.  

LissaJ

Evans City, PA

When I picked out this phone, I had high hopes for it. When purchasing a phone I was primarily looking for a fairly simple phone that would be good for texting, pictures, and other basic functions. I love that it is a slider phone and that the buttons are shielded when its in your pocket. The phone is also very slim and slender making it easy to fit in a pocket or your purse. However after about a week of use, I discovered that this phone isn't durable and not made well. Problems I have with this phone: - Camera quality is not good - The screen is AWFUL. I kept getting these tiny white lines on the screen. I must say that Verizon was very good about replacing the phone, no questions asked. However, I went through 4 phones in 10 days all with this same problem. Finally, they upgraded my phone for free. But it was a pain to be constantly switching phones. - Not durable. It breaks easily and can't  handle rough handling to any extent. - Battery life is short - The slider stopped opening smoothly after one week So while I did enjoy the size, simplicity, and slider features of the phone, it failed to be functional and durable. I don't recommend this phone.

graciaann

Minneapolis, MN

I was so excited to get a slider phone.  The Sway seemed like the most attractive choice.  It looks sleep and has a big screen, which I really like.  The slider is much more convenient than a flip phone, its faster to open and easier.  Plus the slider doesn't have a problem with a hinge that flip phones sometimes have. My mother-in-law got the same phone (the Sway) about the same time I did.  She has had it replaced 4 times because the screen goes out. She's been told they will not replace it again. Whenever my phone gets turned off or the battery dies, when it comes back on the screen is completely unreadable. You can still see color, but the screen is all lined and you can't read anything.  Typically if i shut it off and turned it back on a few times, or wait for ten minutes or so, it returns to normal. I've been told not to push the screen when I open the phone, but the screen is most of the front of the phone, and there isn't really anywhere else to open the phone without pushing buttons. So it isn't as convenient as I hoped it would be.  Also, this wouldn't been such a big problem, if the battery wasn't so bad. I don't talk on the phone much, but I do text about 10 to 30 times a day.  With previous phones, and the same amount of usage, I would charge my phone about every other day to every third or fourth day. WIth the Sway, I have to charge it every night.  If I actually talk on the phone, it will day during the day. I charge it fully, and it lasts about ten hours with between 10 min to an hour of talk and 10 to 30 texts. I was very disappointed by this. My mom got the same phone at the same time. She traded it in twice for a new phone because the battery died so quickly.  The third phone was just as bad and she ended up trading for a different model. I wish I had traded mine for a different model, because it is a huge hassle to have to charge every night. If I spend one night camping, I have no phone the next day. I've been told the battery should last longer, but they gave me a new one and it lasts the same as the old one. All in all, I like this phone as long as the battery doesn't die.

vkmcdougal

Sandy, UT

I got this phone because there happened to be a good deal on it at the Verizon store at the time, but I've been very happy with it overall. The automatic keyboard locking drove me nuts at first, but I got used to sliding the phone open to unlock it, and I'm glad I'm not pocket-dialing everyone in my phone book as I probably would be otherwise. The number keys are a little hard to access because there in the recessed part of the phone exposed when it slides, but after a bit of practice I can text just as quickly as I could on my old phone. One other minor complaint: the caller ID displays the phone number larger than the person's name, where I would much prefer the opposite. Otherwise, no real problems: no dropped calls, good volume, reasonable battery life, decent camera, and I love how thin and sleek it is.

kvander

Providence, RI