Samsung's Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch: The verdict is in

By JR Raphael (@jr_raphael)

Well, my friends, it's been quite the week.

As you may know, I've spent the past seven days using Sprint's new Samsung Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch. The expectations for this phone are sky-high, so I was really looking forward to seeing whether it would actually deliver.

In short, it does -- with both style and grace. The Epic 4G Touch kicks some serious keister; if you're a fan of Samsung's Galaxy line, you won't be disappointed.

After spending a week using the phone as my own, I have some pretty detailed thoughts about where the device excels, and also why it might not be the right choice for everyone. Click over to my in-depth Epic 4G Touch review for the full report.

Before you go, though, let me share some random tidbits with you about the software on Samsung's latest Galaxy phone. These are things I observed during my time with the device that didn't quite fit into the review but struck me as interesting enough to be worth mentioning. Think of them as the "deleted scenes" of the story -- the extra goodies you get for buying the DVD. Err, reading the blog. Whatever. You know what I mean.

• Bonus fact #1: Samsung's new TouchWiz UI has an "enhanced" lock screen. Provided you don't set a security pattern or passcode, the system's lock screen shows you swipeable indicators anytime you have a missed call or text message; swiping them takes you directly to the appropriate application. The downside: There is no indicator for new Gmail messages, and texts received via the Google Voice app don't work with the system.

• Bonus fact #2: Speaking of Google Voice, you can opt to integrate Google Voice with the main system text messaging app on the Epic 4G Touch. With this feature enabled -- and it's turned on by default -- all of your Google Voice messages will show up in both the Google Voice app and the Messaging app. Could be handy if you go back and forth between the two and want a catch-all solution.

• Bonus fact #3: The Epic 4G Touch lets you resize widgets, a la Android 3.1. The function doesn't work with just any old widget, though -- only with the TouchWiz widgets that come preloaded on the device. Still, it's a pleasant enough, if somewhat limited, addition.

• Bonus fact #4: On the subject of widgets, the Epic 4G Touch is absolutely loaded up with 'em. Samsung has bundled in customized widgets for AccuWeather, AP Mobile, power settings, voice commands, and Yahoo Finance. It also has four different built-in calendar widgets, seven clock widgets, and a "program monitor" widget (basically a link to a bundled task killer-like app, which unfortunately encourages the antiquated idea of needing to regularly "kill" tasks on your Android phone).

• Bonus fact #5: Samsung's software puts a power widget right into your pull-down notification panel. It provides switches for toggling Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, sound, and 4G.

• Bonus fact #6: The new Epic's app drawer is a bit different. In my review, I talk about how it gives you the option to create folders within your main app list. It also, however, gives you a few other options for how you want your apps to be displayed. By default, the system puts newly added apps at the end of the list rather than fitting them in alphabetically. Hidden in the app drawer's options, you'll find a selector that allows you to change to a more traditional alphabetical grid or even a plain horizontal list design.

• Bonus fact #7: The Epic's UI features four docked icons that remain present throughout all of the home screen panels. By default, they're shortcuts for Phone, Contacts, Messaging, and Applications. You can change those shortcuts from within the app drawer -- something that took me a little while to figure out. While in the app drawer, you press the phone's "Menu" key and select "Edit." There, you can drag any shortcut down to one of the docked spots. It's good that the dock is customizable, but the tool to actually customize it sure isn't easy to find.

• Bonus fact #8: The Epic 4G Touch has extra voice control functions built in via Vlingo. They're branded as "Samsung Voice powered by Vlingo," but they look more or less like pieces of the regular Vlingo app to me.

Some of these things are nice touches, and they may be welcome additions for users who aren't prone to exploring and customizing on their own. My problem with most of them, though, is that you could easily the achieve the same functions with far greater flexibility by adding the pieces on your own, a la carte, via third-party apps (WidgetLocker, Notification Toggle, Vlingo, and so on). But some people may appreciate the ready-out-of-the-box experience.

I get into that issue and much more in my full Epic 4G Touch review. Click on over, won't ya?

REVIEW: One week with Samsung's Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch

JR Raphael writes about smartphones and other tasty technology. You can find him on Facebook, Twitter, or Google+.

Article copyright 2011 JR Raphael. All rights reserved.