Samsung Captivate :: Timestamps On Text Messages Are Wrong / Battery Has Standby Time?

First time poster and long time reader. First off I got the Captivate today and love it. I had the Aria and took it back and got this today. I just have a couple of questions. I will list them so it doesn't get confusing.

1. I saw in a few reviews that the battery has standby time of over a month and is generally very good and is a big part of why I bought the phone. That being said, since a full charge at 2:00pm, I am currently (9:00pm) in the yellow on my battery with normal use (ie minimal web browsing, 4 phone calls all under 2 minutes, about 10 total texts and 3 downloaded apps, and just browsing the phones features all while having a task manager). Should I just charge it after a few days and see where I am at?

2. My house usually gives me a pretty good signal but for some reason, I only have 1-2 bars in most of the areas. However, I seem to still be able to do things such as make phone calls with no bars. As for the "death grip", I also have held the phone with a case on it and the signal diminished very quickly which concerns me. A steady 2-3 bars I would be fine with, but 1 bar is unacceptable.

3. Timestamps on text messages are wrong just like they were on the Aria. It is a minor thing but it bugs the hell out of me.

Overall the phone is awesome but I buy a phone for two reasons, number one it has to be a good phone (call quality and reception) and number two it must have an above average battery (7 hours with minimal usage concerns me). I hope I am just overreacting but these are issues I think should be talked about.