Verizon Wireless set a new standard for mobile camera phones today with the availability of the Samsung A990, the first 3.2-megapixel digital camera phone available in the U.S.

Samsung A990 More Photos Read Review View Specs

Enabling photo enthusiasts to take high-resolution photos of a similar print quality as a standalone digital camera, the A990 boasts a number of media features, including video recording capabilities, VCAST to view video and VCAST Music to download music directly to the phone and Bluetooth wireless technology, to allow a customer to print pictures wirelessly from the A990 to a Bluetooth-enabled printer basic print profile.

Using a unique design, the A990 looks first like a phone and then, when the screen is rotated 180 degrees, like a camera with a high resolution screen and features such as a flash and in-camera photo editing software.

As a strong VCAST multimedia phone with full music, video and game capabilities on a high-resolution screen, customers play music on their wireless phones - the same device they have come to rely upon for entertainment, information and mobile communication. VCAST customers can browse, preview, download and play high-quality digital music from the A990 over Verizon Wireless' broadband network, or from a personal computer.

With VCAST on the A990, customers can view video clips from the hottest names in entertainment, news, sports and more in the palms of their hands. VCAST is currently available to more than 150 million Americans from coast to coast.

The A990 also supports Verizon Wireless' VZ Navigator, a tool for customers that includes mapping, audible turn-by-turn navigation and the ability to find over 14 million points of interest. Other key features include:

- 3.2-megapixel digital camera with flash, auto focus, picture editor, PictBridge Digital Printing, zoom, TV-out and 180 degree swivel screen
- VCAST Music - download songs over the air or transfer your own music collection onto removable microSD memory cards
- Device supports dedicated external Music keys for easy use and listening pleasure
- VCAST Video and 3D Games - download or stream video from the best names in news, sports, entertainment and more or download the latest 3D games from top providers
- Get It Now-capable - download games, ring tones, wallpapers and more
- Mobile Web 2.0-capable - customizable, enhanced wireless access to the latest in news, sports, weather and more
Camcorder with up to one-hour recording time
- TXT, PIX and FLIX Messaging capabilities
- Bluetooth wireless technology supports a basic print profile as well as headset, hands free, serial port and dial up networking profiles
- Expandable memory with microSD memory card slot
- Voice dialing with advanced speech recognition
- Quick Search support to find menu items and contacts
- Business Card Scan capability
- Dimensions: 3.80" x 1.88" x .82", 4.40 ounces with standard battery
- T9 easy text input
- TTY compatible
- Bilingual user interface: English and Spanish
- Personal organizer with calendar, calculator, to-do list, currency converter, alarm clock, world time, and a stop watch

The A990 is available for $349.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate with a new two-year customer agreement and is available today online. It will be available in stores on July 24, 2006.

- Samsung A990 Review

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1. Posted by Bushy Turtle	Thu Jul 06, 2006 10:55 am
OMG... this phoen is perfect!... if it wered for the $399.99 price tag
2. Posted by mgoblue	Thu Jul 06, 2006 11:00 am
i remember when digital cameras were just hitting 5 mega pixels. camera phones shouldnt be too far away now. i wonder if this means digital cameras will be replaced by the phone as well. music players will be almost obsolete.
3. Posted by binn22	Thu Jul 06, 2006 12:21 pm
the phone looks great, and i cant wait to be able to get my hands on it, but when is available to purchase?
4. Posted by The Rever	Thu Jul 06, 2006 1:00 pm
The A990 is available now at Verizonwireless.com for $399.99 on a two year contract, less $50.00 rebate. Man, that's a load of money. It will be available in stores on July 24. Wonder just how good that 3.2 megapixels will be? I haven't found a camera on a phone yet which fairly matched up to the megapixels on an actual camera, megapixel to megapixel. Sure looks nice, though.
5. Posted by PunkRock	Thu Jul 06, 2006 10:21 pm
3.2 is definitely appealing but the $400 price tag is a bit too steep for me
6. Posted by steve0092	Thu Jul 06, 2006 11:35 pm
this phone is too costly $400 r u crazy i would rather get the sidekick 3 or $300.
7. Posted by steve0092	Thu Jul 06, 2006 11:40 pm
sony did it first they had 3.2 mp way b4 this phone came out. also they have 2 of them
8. Posted by stargrl357	Fri Jul 07, 2006 11:35 am
I think the A990's claim to fame is being the first 3.2 MP in the U.S. Hah.
9. Posted by Cadd	Fri Jul 07, 2006 12:36 pm
Man... the A990 isn't available in my area online. I don't know if I can wait until the 24th to be in stores!
10. Posted by steve0092	Tue Jul 11, 2006 9:54 pm
Man... the A990 isn't available in my area online. I don't know if I can wait until the 24th to be in stores! lol
11. Posted by Pogo	Tue Jul 11, 2006 11:01 pm
Try giving Sprint a call. I'm sure they'll be able to ship you one by mail.
12. Posted by Cesar2828	Wed Jul 12, 2006 7:43 pm
Does anyone know how much built in memory it has?
13. Posted by capone49	Tue Jul 18, 2006 1:21 am
it has around 56 mb i just got the phone 2 days ago if any one has any cool things let me know i am very pleased with the phone so far and it is very clear on the screen i have not tried to print it out however
14. Posted by Cesar2828	Wed Jul 19, 2006 6:36 pm
I found out that it has around 72 MB. I was looking for information on its built in memory. I found it on this page. http://erms.samsungusa.com/customer/sea/jsp/faqs/faqs_view.jsp?SITE_ID=22&PG_ID=557&PROD_SUB_ID=561&PROD_ID=727&AT_ID=70030 __________________________________________ Samsung SCH-A990 Specifications: System ROM: 128 MB RAM: 64 MB User: Internal Memory Total Download Capacity: 72 MB Ringtones Memory Capacity: 72MB Image Memory Capacity: 72 MB Game/Application Memory Capacity: 72 MB Music On Demand (MOD) Memory Capacity: 72 MB Video On Demand (VOD) Memory Capacity: 72 MB
15. Posted by Cesar2828	Thu Jul 20, 2006 10:22 pm
Hey, is this phone gonna get a review? Does this phone have preloaded games?
16. Posted by bigc-09	Tue Jul 25, 2006 1:40 am
hey i got the phone too how long does your battery last mine doesn't even last a day and im thinking i got a defective one and should take it back
17. Posted by capone49	Tue Jul 25, 2006 9:39 pm
mine too its very aggrevating
18. Posted by rabidmonkey1	Sat Jul 29, 2006 1:06 pm
So, I got this phone recently, and I've been having this problem with it where the trans flash card gets pushed out by the phone and doesn't read it... The plastic sheath that's supposed to keep it in place bends after a while of normal use.... Still waiting to hear back from Verizon... In other news - I've been trying to get my own ringtones on this thing...any suggestions... oh and if you rename mp3 extensions to .qcp extensions, the phone'll play mp3's like its supposed to...
19. Posted by JPWRana	Sat Jul 29, 2006 9:28 pm
First time poster to this forum, welcome everybody!! I have a question. Can this phone play MP3's? In the site, it just says it supports VCAST. Also, can this phone record voice memo's?
20. Posted by Cesar2828	Tue Aug 01, 2006 7:32 pm
First time poster to this forum, welcome everybody!! I have a question. Can this phone play MP3's? In the site, it just says it supports VCAST. Also, can this phone record voice memo's? This phone can record voice memos up to 1 minute each. I don't know about the mp3 player thing.
21. Posted by Cesar2828	Tue Aug 01, 2006 7:33 pm
How many numbers of characters can you type on the messaging feature?
22. Posted by Cesar2828	Tue Aug 08, 2006 11:02 am
This phone has themes!!
23. Posted by Lee280zx	Thu Aug 24, 2006 10:09 pm
I'm posting a thread in the Samsung forum about a static problem I'm having with my SCH-a990. Verizon is telling me it's a known issue.
24. Posted by Lee280zx	Thu Aug 24, 2006 10:44 pm
So, I got this phone recently, and I've been having this problem with it where the trans flash card gets pushed out by the phone and doesn't read it... The plastic sheath that's supposed to keep it in place bends after a while of normal use.... Still waiting to hear back from Verizon... In other news - I've been trying to get my own ringtones on this thing...any suggestions... oh and if you rename mp3 extensions to .qcp extensions, the phone'll play mp3's like its supposed to... You have to use something like the edge of a credit card or a letter opener, small screwdriver, edge of a key, etc. to get the card fully inserted into the phone. Someone with long fingernails could probably do it with their nails. When the card is fully inserted into the phone, it will click into place. When you press in on it again, it will eject. I had the SCH-A970, and it uses the same memory card. You could easily insert the card fully into that phone, and have it click into place, with just your fingernail (even with the shortest of fingernails like I have). This is a bit of a pain, but not a major problem.
25. Posted by MotoChino	Mon Sep 04, 2006 11:15 pm
does anyone have this phone yet? i want to know about how good the battery is because ive only had bad experiences w/ samsung phones as far as the battery life goes
26. Posted by Cesar2828	Thu Sep 07, 2006 7:27 pm
TIP: Some battery are defective and some are not. TIP: Some phone are defective and some are not. It depends on how or how much time you use it. This phone (for the regular) _____ 3:30 hours of talk time and 380 hours of Standby time.
27. Posted by Lee280zx	Thu Sep 07, 2006 9:20 pm
I'd really like to know if some of these phones don't have the static problem I've experienced with both of my SCH-A990s. I must emphasize that the static is not that loud. I'm not even aware of it a lot of the time. But it is always there. The battery life is great. I make a lot of long phone calls (1, 2, 2.5 hours), and it never runs out. But, of course, how and how much you use the camera will greatly affect how much power you have left for calls.
28. Posted by doctadre183	Mon Oct 09, 2006 9:20 pm
i am soo getting that phone
29. Posted by toothjockey	Mon Nov 06, 2006 7:21 pm
I'd really like to know if some of these phones don't have the static problem I've experienced with both of my SCH-A990s. I must emphasize that the static is not that loud. I'm not even aware of it a lot of the time. But it is always there. The battery life is great. I make a lot of long phone calls (1, 2, 2.5 hours), and it never runs out. But, of course, how and how much you use the camera will greatly affect how much power you have left for calls. Lee (if you are Lee), Have you solved your static problem? I am seriously considering this phone, but this is a small concern for me. I also live in San Diego (don't know if that's important). When acknowledging your problem was "known"...did Verizon (or Samsung) have any solutions? Thanks, Don
30. Posted by Lee280zx	Mon Nov 06, 2006 10:40 pm
I went in last week and had the software updated on my phone. I'm using it as I'm typing, and the static is still there. It is slight. A lot of people might not notice it. The manager who updated the software on my phone was the same one who acknowledged the problem. I haven't been back by, so I don't know what he'll say about the problem. Perhaps they've resolved it in later production runs. I'd be interested to know if you have the same problem. Other than that, I love the phone.
31. Posted by toothjockey	Mon Nov 06, 2006 11:41 pm
Thanks, I'll keep you informed if I buy the phone.
32. Posted by garraud	Sat Dec 30, 2006 10:05 pm
I have a Samsung a990, i can not setup it to play mp3.Can someone tell the steps to to rename that?
33. Posted by neonafk	Fri Jan 05, 2007 10:54 pm
did anyone get error 120 on the video while watching a video on the Samsung a-990?

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