Samsung Galaxy Music review: practicable but poorly specced

Based on price and practicality, the Samsung Galaxy Music GT-S6010 is a decent fit for someone who enjoys listening to music while in the classroom, on a train ride, jogging and not much else.

If you’re looking for the latest, greatest device to surf the web, play games and watch videos on, please redirect yourself to the nearest exit of this post. These are not the specs you’re looking for. However, the Music does have a few friendly functionalities up its sleeve that would surprise your average high-end gadget freak. These include a comfortable navigation experience and a monster battery life.

As I mentioned above, this budget-friendly mobile boasts a healthy, durable battery life. Though, this goes hand in hand with the fact that it doesn’t require much power in the first place. The 3-inch screen, 850MHz single core CPU and 512MB RAM are not heavy burdens for a 1300mAh battery. Yes, it does host some facepalm moment-worthy specs. You were warned.

Slippery first impressions

On first impressions this little buddy looks like a pressed-down soap bar. Given the specific model I was reviewing is also coincidentally white, the soapy idea stuck through all the way. The Music is also available in blue and yellow though. The whole of the body is dominated by either of these three colors except for the metallic chrome-esque linings that runs down its sides, and the bezel which is the usual black.

Although reminding me of a bar of soap, upon picking it up the curvature of this Music makes it a non-slippery, comfortable device to hold. On the left hand side it has a volume rocker as well as a microSD slot for expandable storage up to 32GB. The expandable storage slot goes on top of the internal 4GB. The extra storage option is a welcome feature for those naughty pirates out there wanting to swap music-filled memory cards among friends.

The overpowering characteristic that makes this Galaxy stand out among the rest of its peers, is its speakers. The face of the phone has two white stereo speakers at the top and bottom that seem to curve with the help of the phone’s soapy form factor. At the back, the disappointing 3MP camera with no flash is centered. Yes, yet another facepalm moment.

On the opposite end, you’ll find the power button and the pause/play button on the lower right side. Also, when you hold the button down for a few seconds, the music player will open up. The fact that this music button is located where it is, makes it very intuitive for starting or pausing audio on the run and it’s a welcome feature. When this guy is in your pocket, you can easily feel the button out with your thumb. I have had a few cases though where, after putting the phone in my pocket, music started up accidentally.

At the top, the Micro USB is tucked away behind a protective latch next to the earphone input. At the bottom you’ll find a dedicated mic input.

Usability: A trade-off of mixed emotions

Although it’s a below-average 3-inch screen, navigating from page to page is pretty responsive, smooth and grippy. The phone comes with Android’s Ice Cream Sandwich and Samsung’s TouchWiz technology. Only now and then you’ll find a two second delay when opening an app. Android Jelly Bean has recently started rolling out for the Music, but this won’t make up for its backward hardware.

For music boffins, this little guy will unfortunately fail to knock your socks off. The phone carries the catchphrase “All your music at its best.” This, supposed to be its greatest selling-point, is average at best. Yes, it’s portable and easy to pause and play, but that’s probably all it is. The stereo speakers can go loudish but the sound quality isn’t great.

It comes with WiFi, GPS, and FM support. The radio I used a lot. Browsing the internet though is sluggish and uncomfortable given the small design.

The 3MP camera is nothing to write home about. The shutter lag feels stiff while the 320×240 videos ain’t worth watching on a bigger screen.

Is the Music worthy of a bard’s tale?

Throughout this article I refer to the Galaxy Music as “buddy”. I decided not to drag its name through mud and nails too much as I oddly enough enjoyed this phone (on some levels). It’s a friendly little phone with some usability, just mired by sluggish specs.

Keeping in mind that the phone is aiming for those bargain-hunters out there, better and cheaper options sadly exist. The Galaxy Pocket currently goes for US$110 on Amazon compared to the Galaxy Music’s US$168. US$58 is a big difference for an extra button on the side with similar performance.

Verdict: Although not the most attractive phone on the market, it has a comfortable and practical design. It does not have state-of-the-art specs. More accurately, the hardware is straight out poor. This though, compliments the battery’s likable durability. The tiny display makes typing messages and other tasks frustrating chores. The added physical pause/play button though makes up for that, and makes your listening experience surprisingly more comfortable than what it is on a higher-end model with a massive screen.

Score: 6/10