Samsung Transform Ultra Hands-on

Looking back at it, the Samsung Transform might not have been a standout hit for Sprint – especially when it was following soon after the release of the mighty Samsung Epic 4G last year. Interestingly enough, it’s breathing some new life over on Boost Mobile’s lineup where it’s being upgraded in both the design and hardware front to make it somewhat of a head turning device for the prepaid carrier. Following after the Samsung Galaxy Prevail from earlier in the year, the Samsung Transform Ultra appears to supplement the prepaid carrier’s offerings by sporting a modest $229.99 no-contract price point.

To tell you the truth, the Samsung Transform Ultra has a slightly better build than the original Samsung Transform – although, we’re still not too convince with the keyboard it’s packing. Sporting that characteristic plastic shell, it contributes in keeping the handset very lightweight, but it’s far from embodying a premium handset. With the landscape 4-row keyboard, buttons are almost flush to the surrounding surface – thus, offering only a subtle feel against our fingers. Plus, there isn’t as much of a tactile feel when pressing down on buttons.


Naturally, we’re not all that blown away by its 3.2” HVGA display, mainly because its color production appears to be on the bland side. Although it’s not something we commonly find on prepaid smartphones, it actually sports a front-facing VGA camera – while the rear tucks away a 3-megapixel snapper. More in the lines of a mid-range device, it’s powered by a 1GHz single core processor, which seems to handle the stock Android 2.3 Gingerbread experience relatively well without much fluff.


So yeah, Boost Mobile customers will surely appreciate this one since it sits just a tiny bit above the carrier’s existing Samsung Galaxy Prevail – while being the sole Android offering to feature a landscape style keyboard. Flashing its $229.99 price to everyone, it’s undoubtedly something that’s going to generate some commotion considering there’s no-contract signing required with it.

Samsung Transform Ultra Hands-on: