Samsung unveils Samsung Galaxy Pro

By Chris Parsons  | Mar 07 2011 | 9:41 am  | 28 Comments

In Singapore today, Samsung unveiled its most recent addition to the Samsung Galaxy line-up of devices. The Samsung Galaxy Pro is a full QWERTY keyboard shot right in the direction of BlackBerry devices everywhere. Samsung however has kept the specs rather modest for this device:

  • Android 2.2
  • 800MHz CPU
  • 2.8-inch touchscreen display
  • 3MP camera
  • Wi-Fi
  • Samsung Social Hub Premium

The device will hit UK carrier Three in the coming months and while no pricing or specific launch date was given, Three did give us all a video walk-through of the device already. Jump on past the break for a better looks at the Motorola Droid Pro competition. [Samsung Hub]

Chris Parsons

Chris Parsons Writer

"Born and raised in Nova Scotia, Canada. Chris is fluent in all mobile languages and loves anything with a power button."

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There are 28 comments

sethgoldstein says:

The Samsung Galaxy Pro is definitely a very attractive phone. For those Blackberry users who like the full keyboard it's great. But I really have an issue with the size of the screen. It might be in landscape but it's so small.

Comparing this with the Motorola Droid Pro, I think the Droid Pro still has an upper hand. The screen is big enough to ignore the keyboard if needed.

I like my Droid X and was surprised when I realized I didn't need a physical keyboard to write on it successfully.

packerbacker says:

The screen is definitely way too small for my liking. But it's a really attractive phone. It's not disproportionate like the Droid Pro. For its size, the screen looks good on the Galaxy Pro. But for someone with a Fascinate, I could never put up with a screen that tiny!

twomix9900 says:

I've always thought Samsung had a whole department dedicated to essentially COPYING (not renovating) their competition--just look at how similar TouchWiz is to iOS and how similar SGS & SGS2 looks like iPhone 3/4. But this is too much...now they're copying Motorola's nomenclature & style, which is also a copy of Blackberry?

Why aren't they getting sued again?

sookster54 says:

Apple hasn't sued Samsung because Samsung provides hardware components for Apple, if they had sued then Samsung would halt the supply line.

bkj216 says:

Wow its launching with Android 2.2? If Sammy can't release NEW phones with 2.3, what hope do current Sammy customers have of getting 2.3/4 in the future?

El Jefe says:

None. It's Samsung, what else do you expect. Their business model is to release phones with the older OS & not update past that, then in 6months when all the current owners of the Galaxy S Pro are demanding it, they will instead be told to just buy the Galaxy S Pro 2.

strick1226 says:

Wow. That's a shockingly diminutive screen. Maybe you can get away with that on the older BlackBerry devices... but on an Android phone? I'm not sure that's going to work so well.

Otherwise it looks quite nice.

Macterryh says:

I'm Sorry, Samsung. But That Looks Like A #DroidBerry; Lol.

eahinrichsen says:

I think that's the point. I love my Nexus One, but I don't use it for video or rich web browsing all that often, and I sometimes miss the form factor and messaging ease of my old BB 9700. I actually would have been extremely interested in the Charm if it hadn't been underpowered. I'd probably find this very attractive if I weren't sure it'd be six months behind the curve in terms of updates forever.

Also, I used to have the Samsung BlackJack WinMo phones and if I recall, Samsung didn't know how to make a damn keyboard.

netposer says:

Why all the hate about screen size and how it looks like a Blackberry?

If you want every phone to look the same go buy an iPhone.

Android has different sizes and form-factors. If you don't want a small screen and a physical KB then don't buy it.

Many more people can now enjoy Android with phones like this and the Droid Pro.

CeluGeek says:

First, there was this Samsung QWERTY-bar phone rumored for Sprint, which looked like a Droid Pro clone, and now Samsung is copying the Charm!

Newsflash: If you absolutely have to have a front-facing QWERTY keyboard, GET A BLACKBERRY! Every manufacturer thinks producing a phone with a front-facing keyboard is a license to put crappy specs in it. While BlackBerrys are still underspec'ed, at least you can get something higher than QVGA for a screen, and apparently soon, break the 3MP camera barrier.

eahinrichsen says:

The specs on this aren't that bad. I'm not thrilled about Froyo, but for a phone with so little screen real estate, 800MHz should be sufficient. Fewer pixels to render and much less likelihood of the user being a heavy media/game user.

sookster54 says:

I like Blackberries, I really like the Curve & Bold candybar and QWERTY keyboard. However I like Android and its flexibility much more, and what more could you ask for with both the candybar design and Android OS combined?

dchawk81 says:

I kind of like it.

Wesley1 says:

Enough of these Arm 11 processors already, ffs! They can't play flash video and are slow. You cannot tell me that there are no Cortex A8 processors that are cheap enough for a budget Android phone.

sookster54 says:

Whoa, I swear I'm looking at a Motorola Charm, looks way too identical. Glad that Android manufacturers are making more candybar type phones, not everyone likes software keyboards and at least this one isn't 600MHz (or 720MHz) like the Charm and ChaChaCha (lol) are.

The biggest problem with the Charm when I had it was compatibility with apps from the market, I had to use appbrain and fast web install (which Google nerfed) to install half the apps since they wouldn't display on the 320x240 resolution, hopefully that's been worked out.

ZDriver says:

Useless to call that a galaxy pro, Sammy should have saved that name for a 4" plus super amoled with kick ass specs

TheTolsonator says:

I'm unsurprised, by the other commenters, not the phone itself. I'm using a Palm Pre- currently because I LOVE the full keyboard, and the screen size isn't a downfall at all. Yes the hardware blows, and yes the battery probably won't last through this post, but I still love the front qwerty keyboards...

Had an Evo, didn't like it's size, I like phones I can easily cradle in my hands. If only it would come stateside to Sprint :)

Screensize and "speed" isn't everything guys...And ok, Sammy has a bad reputation for getting updates for the phones (allegedly) but it all falls down to the carriers to get the update out in the end.

dwaynewilliams#WN says:

I like the phone. I prefer sliders but this phone looks like it has promise.

Urukiora says:

It's okay, I guess. I mainly use my SGS to watch videos and play mini games between classes, but the small screen on this would make me very unhappy with what I use my Android for. Then again, I guess it has to do with preferences.

MegaSoundwave76 says:

Different strokes for different folks. For business minded folks that are allowed to use whatever phone their company may allow, this wouldn't be a bad choice. QWERTY keyboard for email, big enough screen to read emails on and messaging, then this would be a great alternative to BB's and some Nokia business friendly phones.

CR6 says:

I agree with the others....screen is too small and it looks too much like a Blackberry. And only 800mhz....I'll pass.

TheANARCHY says:

Actually make the screen about 3.5 to 4 inches, ala the Galaxy S line w/ similar specs, and this would be a decent phone. I used Samsung messaging phones for yrs before moving to the Blackberry 8900, iPhone 3G & now Android (Verizon Fascinate), this type of phone they make pretty good. I always found their messaging phones to be pretty durable with a fairly usable keyboard. Upgrade time for me if there is an Android phone with a keyboard like this that has at minimum Galaxy S specs, even if it is Samsung, I'll be giving it a thorough look. Anything I don't like about it I can just root and make it as I wish anyway.

sookster54 says:

Skip this phone (or any other candybar style Android phone) if you're just interested in a big screen (1000's of Android phones like that) and watching videos, playing games and such, this style is just fine for text messaging, emails, surfing the internet and so forth while still using the Android OS and the apps you have installed. And 800MHz is plenty, there's a handful of new phones with a CPU that low and can still run OS 2.4 (the HTC Desire Z is 800MHz).

Like I said earlier, not everyone is into software keyboards, I use my Desire and sometimes I miss the physical keyboard from my older Blackberries and the Motorola Charm I once had.

fixxxer1022 says:

if this goes to t-mobile or sprint ill be buying this for my wife. she loves her blackberry but i think she will really love this. a damn sexy looking phone IMO.

mavricxx says:

I think it looks great but if it got the same keyboad as the Bold 9000 it would bring in SO MUCH competition to RIM. For those talking about copying, i dont care what you guys are saying. I have no problem with copying and making improvements on it; However, from the specs, this thing is underpowered and it is a disaapointment. Lastly, I think Samsung should have put a few things to distinguish this business product from the rest by adding such nicies as HDMI out, WIDI, DLNA and a front facing cam. One thing that pisses me off about Samsung though...they keep leaving out a camera flash! I mean WTF, what the hell is wrong with them? Looking at it makes me so excited though because I can't wait for the Bold Touch!

eneloop says:

My gf will love this as she doesn't let go of her BB. If not, well there's more girls out there, one will like thi s one lol

Toxikhiro says:

I think this will be okay once you drop touchwiz for Launcher Pro, because you can set the notification bar to hide above the top of the screen. The reason it looks so diminutive is the notification bar. Imagine if you could only use your candy-bar style phone in landscape mode, That notification bar would sure eat up a lot of screen real-estate.

My problem with Samsung is that they would probably call this a mid-level entry, for high-schoolers and stay-at-home moms, and such. But will they price it like a mid-level entry? No. This thing will come out in the US for $200 with a contract, when it should be $89-150.

Plus, Sammy's probable lack of updates makes this an unlikely purchase for anyone who knows what android is capable of. But hey, maybe we'll snag a few BB users. Poor bastards.