Samsung Galaxy Attain 4G

“The Samsung Galaxy Attain 4G is a perfectly useful midrange LTE smartphone for MetroPCS. With better call quality and a higher-res display, it would have replaced the LG Esteem as our pick. But as it stands, the Esteem gets you a bigger, nicer display and better call quality, albeit for $100 more.”

“There are two things to consider when buying any phone: the handset itself, and the network to which it's tied. For 200 bucks, the Samsung Galaxy Attain 4G is a pretty nice package for a midtier Android phone: it looks pretty good, it has two decent cameras, all the Android perks, and 4G LTE support.Yet if you use a lot of data, the phone is only as good as its network. MetroPCS offers a valuable service and all-you-can-eat business model for customers who don't want to be tied to a two-year contract. For those longtime customers, Metro's 4G LTE network is much faster than the 2.5G (1xRTT) network that's been ferrying data all along, a step up those loyalists can appreciate. However, it's harder to keep that in mind when MetroPCS' LTE network has spotty performance in my tests, and falls back to the 2.5G network when 4G isn't available.So is the phone good? It'll be one of the stronger choices for MetroPCS' lineup, and one I'd easily recommend for someone who would use data occasionally, or who is dedicated to the wireless provider. However, if you're looking for something higher-powered, you'd do well to check out that LG Connect 4G, and if you're a data-hungry information fiend, I'd have to caution expecting lightning-fast speeds at every turn.”

“The Samsung Galaxy Attain 4G is a decent little phone. It does most things well, though it stumbles badly in a couple of places. The hardware works very well and still manages to look modern. The screen is good and battery life is even better. The Attain 4G offers a good software experience with Android 2.3 Gingerbread, has just as many tools as today's leading devices, and delivers great images and video from the camera. However, I have serious concerns about the Attain 4G's network performance. Even under strong coverage, the device had a hard time connecting to and using the network properly. Voice quality was terrible, and the Attain was prone to dropping calls more often than any other phone I've tested in recent memory. If your a fan of pre-paid services and have solid MetroPCS coverage where you live, the Attain 4G could be worth considering if you're a heavy data user and don't care much for voice performance, but I'd only buy this device if MetroPCS's LTE network is available in your area.”

“The Samsung Galaxy Attain 4G may not be the best LTE phone we've ever reviewed, but at $250 with no contract, this handset is definitely a good deal. It's a shame that the phone ships with so much bloatware, but overall the Attain is worth a look--especially if you're shopping for a 4G Android phone without the burden of a two-year commitment. So long as you don't mind a few ads here and there, the Attain is a solid choice.”