Samsung Continuum vs Samsung Fascinate

Introduction:

Verizon customers by now are more likely to be accustomed to seeing high profiled handsets being quickly supplanted by some equally prolific devices so very shortly after they debuted. For example, it literally took a month after the release of the Motorola DROID X before the DROID 2 came onto the scene strutting its stuff. Similarly, we're seeing the same thing happening with the Samsung Fascinate and Continuum as both high-end devices are competing on the same stage during the crucial holiday time period. Both are magnificent in their own regard as they radiate all the refinements expected out of any Galaxy S smartphone on the market, but which one is able to pull out ahead in gaining visibility amongst consumers right now?

Design:

In familiar fashion, there's nothing too compelling in regards to their designs seeing that they're primarily constructed out of glossy plastic that has a tendency of being easily smudged. Moreover, they both utilize an almost identical checkerboard pattern with their rear covers, but it's their overall size that drastically separates them. With the Continuum, we actually prefer its rounded nature seeing that it feels a bit more manageable to hold in the hand – as opposed to the larger feel of the Fascinate. And even though the Fascinate is thinner at 0.39”, versus the still tolerable 0.48” thickness of the Continuum, they're both comparatively the same in terms of weight.  

By far the most alluring thing about both devices are their gorgeous Super AMOLED displays that provide saturated looking colors, deep blacks, near perfect viewing angles, and luminance to glaze your eyes over. However, the difference is the fact that the Fascinate sports a larger 4” display versus the smaller 3.4” one on the Continuum. While the larger display of the Fascinate is more appreciated, it goes without question that as both exhibit WVGA (480 x 800) resolution, pixel density is better on the Continuum, which is mostly noticeable with fine looking text. The sole unique thing about the Continuum though is its secondary 1.8” ticker display that proves its usefulness in displaying a variety of content and notifications. Such additional display is missing on the Fascinate.


If there's one thing we like about the Fascinate, it has to be its easy to see capacitive buttons below the touchscreen. In fact, we didn't have any trouble in figuring out what they are seeing that they're etched into the surface of the panel – which is better than the disappearing ones on the Continuum.


Although both volume rockers offer a sensible tactile response when pressed, we adore the separated buttons of the Samsung Continuum since it's easier to distinguish over the singular one on the Fascinate. Looking at it more, the placement of the microUSB port on the left edge of the Continuum feels more natural than the top side placement with the Fascinate. Though, we do like the sliding cover with the Fascinate's microUSB port which keeps out any dust or debris from entering its innards.

Similarly, we like the location of the distinctive power button with the Continuum versus the recessed one on the Samsung Fascinate. Finally, it appears as though Samsung did it right by packing on a dedicated two-level shutter key and easy to access microSD card slot with the Continuum. With the Fascinate, you'll need to remove its rear plastic cover to gain access to its spring loaded microSD card slot.


In the rear, we find their 5-megapixel auto-focus cameras with complementing LED flashes, but the Continuum houses two rear speakers versus the single one of the Fascinate.

Interface and Functionality:

Aside from some minor widget omissions found on the Samsung Continuum, the core platform experience is no different from one another seeing that we're presented with TouchWiz 3.0 running on top of Android 2.1. Thanks to their wicked fast 1GHz Hummingbird processors, navigating around the two phones is so effortlessly accomplished – which is visibly seen with their smooth scrolling between homescreens and instantaneous application launches. Naturally, personalization is all there at your disposal with the wealth of live wallpapers, widgets, and shortcuts. In the end, there's nothing too compelling that can be found with one handset to drastically catapult it over the other. Still, the experience is top notch as any veteran Android user will quickly take a liking for their peppy nature.



Needless to say that social networking is a high priority item with both devices, but they both have their very own unique offerings to distinguish themselves. With the Fascinate, it boasts the “Feed and Updates” widget that aggregates a variety of content in one centralized hub – plus, it allows you to even post messages to your accounts simultaneously. Conversely, the Continuum's ticker display quickly enables you to view a myriad of content without turning on the handset – which can save on juice in the long run. But when you click the ticker display, it'll instantly power on the handset and jump straight into showing your activity between social networking accounts, RSS feeds , and upcoming events.

With its larger sized display, some will appreciate the real-estate offered by the Fascinate – especially when using the stock Android keyboard in portrait or landscape. However, both handsets pack on the Swype keyboard which makes the experience of inputting text no different from one another. After mastering its unique method, we didn't have any problems in composing any lengthy messages. 

Internet and Connectivity:

Some will probably cry knowing that both handsets lack support for Adobe Flash Player 10.1, but it shouldn't be long before they receive the wholesome goodness of Android 2.2 Froyo. But in the mean time, the web browsing experience on both devices is still pretty exceptional as they even manage to tastefully replicate a kind of a desktop-like experience with support for Flash Lite – meaning that some Flash elements will load up. Apart from that, we're treated to some fluid looking kinetic scrolling and responsive multi-touch gesture support for zooming in/out. However, the Continuum's better pixel density provides better clarity with text, but it doesn't matter when you go into a zoomed in view.



These dual-band (800/1900 MHz) CDMA and 1xEV-DO Rev. A devices will primarily be used domestically in the US, but for those trips abroad, you can always rely on using their 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi for faster data connections. Still a rarity in itself, both smartphones offer the next best thing with Bluetooth 3.0 on board to enable a wide range of wireless devices to connect to them. 

Camera and Multimedia:

Although the two devices pack on 5-megapixel cameras, there is just one minor difference between the quality on both devices. With the Fascinate, there is a subtle haziness with its captured shots, but it's not evident with the ones taken with the Continuum. As a whole, images shot with both devices have a respectable amount of detail which is complemented with some rich looking color tones. And with closeups or macro shots, the cameras are capable of focusing correctly to capture some exquisite looking details. However, the Continuum does a better job of illuminating the scenery with its LED flash over the Fascinate.






When looking at the vast high-end Android offerings on Verizon's lineup, the Samsung Continuum and Fascinate undeniably shoot straight to the top with their stunning video recording prowess. Able to shoot in 720p at a rate of 29 frames per second, there's lot to like about their performance as they establish some nice looking visuals that adjust exposure according to the scenery. All in all, the two smartphones tastefully complement one another with their sharp looking video recordings.

Samsung Continuum Sample Video:



Samsung Fascinate Sample Video:



Looking further into it, their music players aren't different at all as they display the customary set of items as a song is being played – like the album cover and track information. But with the Fascinate, it offers a rotating coverflow-esque interface in landscape when it's activated in the options menu of the player. Conversely, the Continuum relies on the ticker display to constantly provide you quick access to its controls at any given time – but it lacks the coverflow interface of the Fascinate. Audio quality from their rear speakers are no different from one another as they're capable of pumping out slightly stronger tunes over the competition.


There is no arguing that Super AMOLED displays are the most conducive for watching videos, especially when they radiate iridescent colors, but the Samsung Fascinate's larger sized panel can easily steal the show. Still, we managed to load a movie trailer encoded in MPEG-4 1280 x 720 resolution with both handsets being more than ideal thanks to their smooth playback and high detail. So depending on your taste, you might lean towards the Fascinate, but it's not to say that the Continuum isn't a reasonable vessel.


Now even though the Continuum offers 2GB of internal storage with another 8GB thanks to its preloaded microSD card, it's not as good as the 16GB microSD card included with the Fascinate. Regardless, it should nonetheless appease the most casual of users out there.

Software:

With their affinity for everything Bing, as opposed to Google, some may be alienated by Verizon's choice of siding with Microsoft's offerings. Luckily, the Android Market is in full force to quickly enable you to download a plethora of Google or third party apps to undoubtedly supplement the apps that are installed on the smartphones out of the box. These include things like Blockbuster, City ID, Kindle, Need For Speed Shift, Skype, ThinkFree Office, and Voice Commands powered by Nuance. In addition, Verizon of course sprinkles its own offerings with VZ Navigator, V CAST Videos, V CAST Music, V CAST Tones, My Verizon mobile, and 3G Mobile Hotspot – the latter of which allows you to share data connectivity with other Wi-Fi enabled devices.

Performance:

Calling quality for the two smartphones is exceptionally satisfactory as voices on both ends of the line have a natural and distinct tone to them. Even more, it's not muddied at all with any evidence of interference or background noise. When using the speakerphones, it's noticeable that the Continuum's two rear speakers aid in producing some moderately deeper tones, which, however, sound distorted at times. However, dropping the volume down a couple of notches will remedy the issue.

During our testing, we came across a few occasions when the signal strength of the Fascinate was painstakingly less than what's see on the Continuum. Luckily, we still didn't experience any dropped calls with either devices while placing phone calls in high coverage areas.

Continuing on the same path as other Galaxy S devices we've checked out on other carriers, the batteries of the Continuum and Fascinate offer a high level of output from a single charge. In fact, both devices managed to put out 7 hours of continuous talk time before requiring a charge. And as for daily usage, it'll easily last a solid 24 hours of normal usage before it's required to be connected to a wall charger.

Conclusion:

To put it lightly, being the newer handset on the block seemingly has its benefits as it provides manufacturers the opportunity to make corrections and improvements to currently existing handsets on the market. And with that in mind, it's the solid reason why the Samsung Continuum is the better choice as it establishes some improved performance in some key areas over the Fascinate. Even though it might seem that the ticker display is being incorporated lightly to some aspects of the phone, the functionality it has to offer right now is more than alluring versus what's out there. When they're both priced at $200 with a contract, there is no arguing that the Samsung Continuum is the clear choice winner for the time being, that is, in case you are not in love with the Samsung Fascinate's 4” beauty.

Samsung Continuum vs Samsung Fascinate Video Comparison: