Related
I have prepared this thread to help myself and others compare and contrast the different phones and hopefully come to a decision here. If anyone has anything to add to the comparison that I have missed, please list it and we can get it all chocked up.
For the record. I have only listed something as a "Disadvantage" if I believe that the category is below what we would expect of the average Android.
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Advantages:
ATRIX
Battery Life - This is a big thing for me. I can make my vibrant last through a 14 hour day by crippling every single possible feature. But people here are saying that the Atrix runs solid though 30 hour periods. This is a huge plus for me.
Higher Resolution (even if its fake) - Even though this resolution is fake and can actually cause text to blur, I can say first-hand that I saw the screen in action at a local wal-mart and found it to be acceptable by my standards. I think it may help overall with browsing. The GS2 has a larger screen size, and no pentile matrix display, which could possibly be considered better. This is one that may work out to be a tie.
Tegra 2 - I list this as an advantage not because it is faster, the various benchmarks for either processor seem to be inconclusive at this point. I am listing it as an advantage because it has its own series of games optimized specifically for it, and because Google has chosen to build their framework around tegra 2.
Webtop - I am initially hesitant to even mention this. The phone has a webtop environment, it is most likely Debian Linux and it is said to also be very sluggish. If, in the future, devs gain access to this environment and find ways to optimize it and add in worthy apps such as Chrome and open office, then this will be a massive advantage, but right now it is pretty much just a gimmick.
The webtop interface retains its session when you disconnect it. So you can plug the phone back into another dock and go right back to what you were doing. This is one of the good things about webtop.
Laptop Dock - We all know it is hideously overpriced right now and maybe in the future a cheaper solution will be available. But regardless of how you get the dock, it is an advantage to run your apps in full screen, even if you don't use the sluggish webtop interface and firefox.
The dock charges your phone, but plays sound through your atrix speakers, it has no speakers of it's own, you can answer calls by removing the phone, picking it up on bluetooth or by just yelling at it from behind the laptop. The phone retains its session when you remove it and there is no special unmounting procedure, you just grab it and run.
GALAXY S2
Screen - Bright beautiful and extremely rich. Those who have seen the screen firsthand have claimed that there is nothing like it at all and that it is miles above even the old Super Amoled display. The 4.3 inch size is also a bonus for those of us with large hands. This is probably the best overall feature of the Galaxy S2.
Camera - 8 Megapixels, and 2 megapixel front facing camera. People say that megapixels don't really matter in the long run but the Atrix camera is also said to have a purple wash to it and that the video can be splotchy in certain situations.
Design - Even though it looks way too much like the iPhone, this phone actually looks exceptionally nice. I like the three button design much better than the 4, the search button is pretty useless overall. The thinness of this phone is also amazing if you are into that sort of thing. Naturally it may come down to the US carriers to ruin the design, but by it will likely be summer before that happens.
32GB internal storage - Expect to pay for it, but it is there, you get 64 gigs total with this phone.
Gingerbread - The Atrix won't likely get gingerbread until at least this summer, this phone will have it much sooner if you get the international version coming sometime this quarter.
Gyroscope - This phone has it, do any apps support it? Not sure, but it is there.
NFC - In the off chance that any stores upgrade to NFC this year, you will have the ability to use it. NFC may have other uses that we haven't envisioned yet. It is a protocol, so it can be applied to just about anything. You could potentially set it up to unlock your home, cars could start with it, whatever.
So it has a lot of potential use other than having your money stolen from you.
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Disadvantages:
ATRIX
Bootloader - To sum it up for those not familiar, the phone can be rooted, a custom ROM can be flashed, but the kernel cannot be altered at all. (someone will likely correct me here) but if part or all of the webtop code is contained in the kernel somehow it will be difficult to alter it to add new software or make it run more efficiently. This would be a terrible shame.
I can tell you that Team Whiskey has made my Vibrant browse faster than I have seen in Atrix videos, with half the memory and a single core processor. It is scary to think of what this phone could actually accomplish if Moto decided to allow it.
Motoblur - I read that this requires you to sign up for an account before you can even use the phone. I find it alarming that Motorola has decided to help themselves to all this information and it makes me wonder just exactly what they really have access to and why.
Crippled FM radio - WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY. All of these phones have both transmitters and receivers for FM. So can someone tell me why in god's name anyone would disable them? FM radio has many more uses than just listening to local stations and why again should I have to burn my limited data on
internet radio when there is a receiver right in my phone?
GALAXY S2
Heat - My current Galaxy S runs very hot already, if the screen is active while the phone is being charged it will heat up to what seems to be a very dangerous temperature. The pre-release Galaxy S2 was said to be scorching hot after running with the screen on and the charger active.
Fail File System, Hideous and crippling lag - Update: the galaxy S2 is said to not use RFS. Chock one up for Samsung.
Updates - Samsung has a horrible reputation for updates when working with US carriers, even for new phones. If it was not for this community I would have likely given up on Android and Samsung altogether. Although I know that part of the update delay has been t-mobile, it is also in Samsung's interests to ship out new phones instead of updating their old ones.
Battery Life I have a feeling that Samsung tried to push the limits to get their phone to be as thin as possible and I am worried that they have done so at the expense of battery life. We won't know for sure until it gets in people's hands but I expect the battery life to be subpar.
NO HID Bluetooth Support (possibly) - I have had a black wiimote sitting here for 6 months waiting to connect to my Vibrant. I love emulated classics but action games are near impossible to play with the on-screen kb. So if you want this feature, I would make sure that the GS2 has it first, because it is not likely that it will.
Availability - What it really comes down to now. Unless you want to shell out over 1000 for the phone, you will probably need to wait 5 months from now for any kind of US availability this summer. And don't doubt that those versions will become crippled and even more bloated in the process. But again there is no locked bootloader here.
Ok I think that covers it. Having written all this down, I think I am really leaning more toward the Atrix. There just doesn't seem to be anything else out there now that will be able to match it at the moment. And as you can see, our experience with Samsung has not been exceptional.
Good comparison there. I am also looking at the exact 2 models and thank you very much, looks like Atrix will too be my choice.
I guess I'll get the atrix laptop dock too and prays for the devs here to make it all better. Otherwise, I think its still a good piece of hardware I don't mind owning.
""Samsung's dual-core, Gingerbread-powered Galaxy S II has appeared on Play.co.uk alongside a tentative SIM-free price and release date. According to Play, which is currently taking pre-orders for the phone, it'll ship Mar. 31 for £599.99 (~$960). Pre-release prices are never guaranteed to be accurate and are always subject to change, but £599 seams like a realistic price point for the Galaxy S II, as it's slightly higher than current single-core offerings from other manufacturers.""
Just published at androidcentral. £599.99 (~$960)?? Get a grip..
Not bad, just a couple of things to note that I thought of while reading. First, the screen resolution can be arguable considering the Pentile screen that the Atrix uses. That gives the SGS2 more sub pixels, but then it's a bigger screen, so less (I believe) pixel density still... it's really kind of a toss up, but I think they will both look great. I think the lower resolution and bigger screen on the SGS2 will look just fine with the full 3 subpixels per pixel.
Also, the SGS2 looks nothing like an iPhone. I wish people would stop saying that about every phone that comes out. Apparently every square black phone with a screen is an iPhone now.
And also it's been reported that the SGS2 does not use RFS.
The Galaxy S2 looks like a great phone, but even as much as I hate Motorola's implementation of the lockdown...I can't *STAND* Samsung for updates. They've promised up and down that they would release updates for every phone since Android came out, and they've delivered on about 3 of those promises...out of probably 20. They are *HORRIBLE* at updating devices and they don't even apologize when they cancel. I would *never* buy a Samsung on the hopes that it would get an updated OS.
As for the screens, I don't really notice much of a difference. I'm a pretty severe audiophile and videophile and although I can tell a difference it's absolutely not enough to make me go with one phone over another. I'm coming from an iPhone 4 which has the best screen to date on a mobile phone...and even between that and my Atrix I barely see a difference. They're both fantastic screens.
hotleadsingerguy said:
The Galaxy S2 looks like a great phone, but even as much as I hate Motorola's implementation of the lockdown...I can't *STAND* Samsung for updates. They've promised up and down that they would release updates for every phone since Android came out, and they've delivered on about 3 of those promises...out of probably 20. They are *HORRIBLE* at updating devices and they don't even apologize when they cancel. I would *never* buy a Samsung on the hopes that it would get an updated OS.
As for the screens, I don't really notice much of a difference. I'm a pretty severe audiophile and videophile and although I can tell a difference it's absolutely not enough to make me go with one phone over another. I'm coming from an iPhone 4 which has the best screen to date on a mobile phone...and even between that and my Atrix I barely see a difference. They're both fantastic screens.
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The updates aren't really an issue for people who visit sites like this. I would never rely on Samsung to update my phone. My Captivate has been running 2.2 for ages while they just released the update for everyone else. Yes, Samsung sucks at updating, but the hacking community will always get it done regardless.
I must be the only one, but i use the search hotkey absolutely all the time. I love it and I realize that you can hold menu for the same effect on the SGS2, but i'd prefer to have the 4th hotkey than their ugly stupid home button. It is not an iPhone, embrace uniqueness samsung.
eallan said:
I must be the only one, but i use the search hotkey absolutely all the time. I love it and I realize that you can hold menu for the same effect on the SGS2, but i'd prefer to have the 4th hotkey than their ugly stupid home button. It is not an iPhone, embrace uniqueness samsung.
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I really miss the hardware home key! The orientation of the 4 buttons makes it a bit awkward to thumb navigate since its so close to the bottom. Its actually one of the things about the sgs2 that is making me think twice about my atrix. Despite how much I love it.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
Man_of_Leisure said:
I really miss the hardware home key! The orientation of the 4 buttons makes it a bit awkward to thumb navigate since its so close to the bottom. Its actually one of the things about the sgs2 that is making me think twice about my atrix. Despite how much I love it.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
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I wouldn't mind if the buttons were hardware, thats another debate. I just want all four of them!
The back button is beyond crucial. Maybe back and home should be two hardware with the other capacitive? For symmetry, obviously a concern for samsung .
I definitely want the new Galaxy S 2. I've heard that the Atrix was a huge let down. I used to own a Captivate and I loved everything about it except the ****ty build quality and lack of flash for the camera. It was so smooth with voodoo and custom roms. The Galaxy S 2 will have an amazing screen and I think it will do average on battery consumption. Just my 2 cents
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
King Shady said:
I definitely want the new Galaxy S 2. I've heard that the Atrix was a huge let down. I used to own a Captivate and I loved everything about it except the ****ty build quality and lack of flash for the camera. It was so smooth with voodoo and custom roms. The Galaxy S 2 will have an amazing screen and I think it will do average on battery consumption. Just my 2 cents
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
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****ty build quality? Like hardware wise? I personally think the Captivate is the nicest of all of the Galaxy S phones. The hardware itself has been absolutely wonderful for me. The software quality leaves a lot to be desired from a stock standpoint though.
AJerman said:
****ty build quality? Like hardware wise? I personally think the Captivate is the nicest of all of the Galaxy S phones. The hardware itself has been absolutely wonderful for me. The software quality leaves a lot to be desired from a stock standpoint though.
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The plastic build was a huge downgrade for me, especially coming from a beautiful iPhone 4. I'm much happier with the Inspire 4G now though. HTC Sense is amazing and super smooth, and HTC build quality is great. The phone feels ultra solid.
SGS2 is apparently RFS-free. Also, some versions will have Tegra2 instead of Exynos - hope this includes us.
People knock Samsung's plastic designs, but they're actually a lot harder to break than the "well-built" iPhone 4.
Very good write up man, these are the posts that I like to see.
By looking at my signature, you can see that I just got the Atrix as well, and I love the phone. Amazingly fast, awesome screen (love the higher density and the effect itbhas on the overall experience), and the battery is pretty good too.
I'm seriously thinking about buying the laptop dock, but I don't know how well that will perform, and I haven't seen any live videos of it.
I really like the design and specs of the GS 2, but there are a lot of possible problems holding me back....
Rooted/ROM Captivate (For Sale)
Rooted Atrix
FLAC Vest said:
Very good write up man, these are the posts that I like to see.
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Thanks a lot, bro.
I am no engineer and I can't build tools. But I can put a few thoughts together and provide someone with some information.
This is an amazing community and what people do here is outstanding, I just want to do what I can to add to that.
King Shady said:
The plastic build was a huge downgrade for me, especially coming from a beautiful iPhone 4. I'm much happier with the Inspire 4G now though. HTC Sense is amazing and super smooth, and HTC build quality is great. The phone feels ultra solid.
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S2 looks like meizu m9
I have both and a Galaxy S 2 on order
Why? I really liked the Captivate. My plan was to use both but the Atrix is so much more fun to use I'm selling the Captivate. Well, maybe. Maybe not.
Yesterday after I removed the SIM card and replaced it, the Atrix went bonkers with freezes and instability issues. After numerous soft resets, two factory resets and replacing the SIM card, SD card and battery a couple of times it seems to be back to normal. I suspect I had reinserted the SIM card incorrectly but maybe there was another issue.
So why would I pay $1000 for the Galaxy S 2? The Captivate was that much fun. Although I'm sure we will be able to do more custom rom's shortly on the Atrix, the Galaxy S 2 sounds like an even bigger blast than either. And boy oh boy does that LG 3D look interesting. But you have to draw the line somewhere.
Here is what the Atrix has that the Captivate does not:
1-better graphics and screen quality, dynamic and vivid visuals, a joy to read and watch (text as well as video quality is sharp and crisp, very clear)
2-more interactive features with outside devices (i.e. computers)
3-interacts more efficiently with e mail, voice and text programs (really like the way it handles multiple incoming calls especially when you are already on one-notification, instructions and directions for handling)(I can now actually use Excel spreadsheets and Word documents) (works well with contacts)
4-updated browser can handle more types of video content and pop up windows better
5-it feels better when you hold and talk or watch or do most anything with it (I did make one call and even though I could hear the other party clearly they could not hear me-I do not what happened.)
My friends all tell me I should get an iphone. I had one for years and the Androids are far more fun. I'll never return. I don't think. LG 3D anyone?
I think Tegra2 is actually a disadvantage for Atrix 4G.
As a new generation dualcore processor, it's early, but not strong.
It's video playback ability of H.264 is limited, but H.264 is currently the most frequently played format.
It has no neon support, big loss on processing power.
Till now Tegra2 has not proven itself in Graphics power. In benchmarks it's no superior to Hummingbird.
However the performance of Mali400MP on GS2 is also questionable, so just wait and see...
hotleadsingerguy said:
The Galaxy S2 looks like a great phone, but even as much as I hate Motorola's implementation of the lockdown...I can't *STAND* Samsung for updates. They've promised up and down that they would release updates for every phone since Android came out, and they've delivered on about 3 of those promises...out of probably 20. They are *HORRIBLE* at updating devices and they don't even apologize when they cancel. I would *never* buy a Samsung on the hopes that it would get an updated OS.
As for the screens, I don't really notice much of a difference. I'm a pretty severe audiophile and videophile and although I can tell a difference it's absolutely not enough to make me go with one phone over another. I'm coming from an iPhone 4 which has the best screen to date on a mobile phone...and even between that and my Atrix I barely see a difference. They're both fantastic screens.
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+1 great post!
King Shady said:
The plastic build was a huge downgrade for me, especially coming from a beautiful iPhone 4. I'm much happier with the Inspire 4G now though. HTC Sense is amazing and super smooth, and HTC build quality is great. The phone feels ultra solid.
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See, I don't understand that. There is far less plastic on the Captivate than the majority of the phones out there. The front is all glass, and the back is mostly metal. It's only the top and bottom on the back that are plastic, and they have both felt very solid to me since I got the phone on launch day. I came from an iPhone 4 as well, and granted nothing compares to the iPhone 4 in build quality, the Captivate definitely doesn't seem bad at all to me.
As long as you're happy with what you have now though, that's what matters. I just think the Inspire is a bit of a waste of money considering it's lack of power compared to all the other phones coming out now. It feels like it's last generation still. I did play with it a little at the AT&T store though, and it seemed nice. If it had come out last summer with the Captivate (even if it didn't have 4G), I might have gotten it. Now I'm going to wait until a dual core offering I like though.
What are your thoughts on the Samsung galaxy S2. Gonna be available for ATT soon .
Why is this in the Nexus One forum?
cymru said:
Why is this in the Nexus One forum?
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The S2 is one of the first devices that's made me think about upgrading from my N1.
question is why is it here. it doesnt help any fellow n1 users
too big, tried it already in a phone store here in Korea. It is VERY light tho, my first thought when holding the phone was, "why did they removed the battery off the phone?", then i pop out the cover and found the battery was there!!! phone is extremely light!!!!!! I was afraid of dropping it when using. 4.3" is too big for my hand, i think 4" is the perfect size for any phone.
Everything is fast and smooth, what else do you expect from a dual core 1.2ghz A9 chip? screen is beautiful, put the nexus 1 screen to dust even at max brightness.
already a thread on this topic in this forum. just search it out and find all the info you need there.
Some of us N1 users like state of the art technology. Wanted to know what other N1 users thought of it. Some are on the lookout for something better . Love the N1, but too many lockups and rom bugs, battery life is poor, screen resolution has been improved on S2 as well as scratch resistant glass. It's something I'm considering for speed, quality and performance. Use my phone daily as a PC/PDA.
But if this was asked in say... the Samsung G II area, then you could get proper opinions from more people who ACTUALLY OWN THE DEVICE.
I'm not interested in Samsung 2 thread opinions! Wanted to ask N1 users. Last I looked it was my post
haha fair enough.
Anyway, i agree with some others, it runs really nicely, but just a wee bit too big for the hand and also i'd prefer the phone to be aluminium and heavier than plasticy and light
Big_O said:
I'm not interested in Samsung 2 thread opinions! Wanted to ask N1 users. Last I looked it was my post
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That's why I'm saying a huge thread in this nexus one forum already exists about the galaxy s2, and u will prob find every piece of info already posted.
I'm switching from my N1 to a SGS2. Currently waiting for it to ship from Handtec. It's the first Android phone since the N1 that really appealed to me.
I´m going to retire my beloved N1 as soon as I can get the S2 from my provider (should be in a week or two) I played with a S2 of a college (who bought it of contract) and I deem it worth to upgrade.
if it had qhd and nfc it would be the ultimate device
i hear it will come with nfc in some markets tho..
samsung always have the latest tech, mhl, samoled2, usb3, bluetooth 3?
well either way to answer this i would just get both phones there is no doubt
Had it for a bit now. You get used to the size pretty fast, before long the N1 seems small. I'm pretty big and I find devices too thin nowdays so I got a case that made it thicker on purpose. Did the same with the N1. If the S2 has any killer feature it would have to be the hardware acceleration in 2D. This really stands out in the browser where pages are rendered with desktop speed and zooming and such have a fluidity that are unmatched with any device I have seen. All lot of the attributes of this phone are pretty obvious. It is much more powerful and that can be seen throughout the gui while in operation and performing any task. This is pretty much a no brainer considering you are comparing what is now a year and a half old device to one which was just introduced. It should not be taken as a knock against the N1 as I am impressed with how well it holds up in comparison, it is no slouch on the latest nightly.
Specific things I do not like about the sgs2.... Hate having the power button on the side. I have turned the phone off several times accidentally and then had to reboot when I went to use it. I do not like having the single hard button surrounded by the two cap buttons arrangement. It kinda screws with the flow of doing stuff on the phone. Touch, touch, touch, oops, should have PUSHED the home button, push, touch, touch, PUSH. Just doesnt seem right to me. Plus while I never actually used the search softkey to search I did use the longpress to access quick settings and now of course used or not that button simply isnt there. I would have greatly prefered a standard 4 button arrangement. The build quality is lower than the N1. It is not what I perceive as terrible like my wifes captivate but the materials and feel of the phone in hand are a step down from the N1. Since both are cased all I really see is the case and screen either way so this one doesnt bother me but its there.
The pluses of the sgs2 are mostly obvious. Being newer and possessed of the latest greatest it is a more powerful device in every way. Again its good to keep in mind that I am comparing to a generationally older phone here and it should not be taken as a knock against the N1 but there it is. The screen is stellar and touch is very accurate. Side by side with cupertinos best the colors appear more saturated but it falls behind slightly in rendering fine text. Overall we both rated it a push while we both rated the extra real estate as a huge bonus. This screen is really good and can stand up to the best out there IMO. Touchwiz is surprisingly not horrible. I have gone back and forth between ADW, LP and TW and ended up actually keeping TW but with most of the "wiz" removed. The built in exchange support is better than the N1.
Overall I'm glad I did it. The N1 is the first device I ever owned where I actively liked it. I still have it, normally I would have put it up for sale the minute the new phone successfully booted. I still load nightlies. The bottom line though is in the pro/con department the sgs2 brings more to the table.
Who came from a Galaxy S3? And how do you like the change? I'm coming over from being loyal to Samsung since the vibrant ( was HTC only before that). I Havnt liked the iterations of sense on previous HTC phones that's why I have been going with Samsung. Is the new sense 5.0 a lot better?
Those switching from s3 to one I would appreciate your opinions
my opinion is that I would never by a cheap piece of over priced plastic ever again. still holds true after holding an S4 yesterday.. software alone doesn't win me over.
me
I come from a galaxy s3....
I dont regret it a bit...
Wait till you hear the speakers....you will love it...
xdracco said:
my opinion is that I would never by a cheap piece of over priced plastic ever again. still holds true after holding an S4 yesterday.. software alone doesn't win me over.
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I always thought you buy HTC for the software and Samsung for hardware. I still have an sgs2 with jb touchwiz (almost the same as the sgs3 ) but I believe Samsung is still lightyears behind HTC software wise. When I got the sgs2 I went for its specs but in the end it's software that gives you a pleasant experience and that pleasant sense experience turned to be very hard to port to Samsung devices.
I previously had a Galaxy Nexus with a port of TouchWiz on it, does that count?
I've actually owned both HTC and Samsung phones, and to this day I still prefer HTC. I started with the Nexus One, and really loved the build quality. I remember disliking the Nexus S when it came out because of its really cheap plastic construction. Samsung did finally win me over with the Galaxy Nexus because of the 720p screen, but it didn't take long to start getting some AMOLED burn on the top and bottom of the screen, and that really annoyed me. Plus the blacks on the N1 and GN weren't really true black anyway, as you can see the "black" pixels are actually still dimly lit when viewing the phones in complete darkness. It's a moot point compared to the display quality of the new Super LCD3, which is pretty acceptably "black" for me in low light.
By going back to the HTC One, I don't have to worry about screen burn, and I get the awesome HTC build quality. Most of my friends that still prefer Samsung are rocking a Note instead, because the S-Pen is really the only unique feature that they need. All the other TouchWiz specific apps are just rehashes of existing Google and other third party apps, so there's no point in spending extra to get the Samsung experience. There's also much less bloat in Sense 5, and I actually love using the IR blaster, and I think BlinkFeed is a pretty decent alternative to Flipboard and Google Currents, at least when I don't want to spend a lot of time configuring my news feeds.
For me, Sense 5 pretty much hits the sweet spot in terms of additional functionality versus bloat. I'm still accustomed to having huge developer support on Nexus devices, but I'm more comfortable running stock Sense than I was with stock Android, and may just keep the stock ROM for a few more months, or even indefinitely.
godutch said:
I always thought you buy HTC for the software and Samsung for hardware. I still have an sgs2 with jb touchwiz (almost the same as the sgs3 ) but I believe Samsung is still lightyears behind HTC software wise. When I got the sgs2 I went for its specs but in the end it's software that gives you a pleasant experience and that pleasant sense experience turned to be very hard to port to Samsung devices.
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true. very true. the software, in the end, is what end users will adapt to. personally, i don't care about the stock software as I end up customizing it anyways. however, i cannot agree that Samsung is for hardware unless you mean bleeding edge hardware and not so much the plastic. Even then, I could care less if a CPU is 200MHz faster than X as memory is a better determining factor, for me anyways.
I came from gs3 lte with 2GB of ram and I still have it. I use gs3 from time to time because I have some game on it with my data.
I have to say, WOW! The One is just so much better in every aspect, I mean every, I cannot think a single thing which it lacks of.
The screen is much clearer, sharper, lighter, it does not have the over saturated colour but still provide deep black.
The smoothness of the os is just so much better on One, even they both have 2 GB ram, s3 just lags here and there, even the basic things. When I did not get the One, I never realised the lag, but now I really can't go back to s3.
The sound, the build quality, the specs, and the camera, do I need to mention again?
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
I personally came from an HTC Desire HD, but my girlfriend has an S3 and for a while I thought I was going to go with one. Great phone and very slick. The plastic construction didn't even bother me as much as I thought it would. I really loved my DHD in the beginning but the newer Sense updates made the phone feel more sluggish IMO, so I was pretty much decided on either an S3 or Nexus 4. The way I saw it, I wasn't going to get an S4 because the improvements were pretty incremental, with a huge amount of bloatware and gimmicky features that I wasn't interested in. Considering I could get an S3 for free on a cheaper, better contract, it just didn't seem worth it.
Anyways, once I saw the phone I was tempted to go back to HTC, and trying it out in person totally cemented it. The screen, speakers and camera are fantastic, and Sense actually provides useful, and completely unique features that really appealed to me. It obliterates Touchwiz in speed and minimalism, whilst improving on the stock Android look and feel. HTC Zoe, lowlight photography and HDR microphone are killer features that I would really miss now if I was to switch to any other phone. It's the best bit of tech I've ever used, and has completely restored my faith in HTC.
To top it all off it's also cheaper than an S4, meaning I'm finally on an unlimited data plan for an extra £12 per year compared to what I was paying before. So with cloud storage I don't even need expandable memory. HTC has done so much right with this phone, and while I can see it's not perfect for everyone, it comes as close as humanly possible for my needs.
I came from S3 having owned S2 before that. Waited till S4 was released to have play with it not impressed soon as held one knew I had to get it. The speakers are awsome so is camera and features everything about it really lol
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
I came from s3 and I'm happy s3 is laggy, and TouchWiz is evil
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DimonVideo.ru
Didn't come from a GS3 but I do respect that phone alot. Fantastic device.
However, I was heavily debating between the GS4 and the One. I must say, the One takes the cake, hands down.
Sense 5 is beautiful, fast, and functional - not nearly as bad as it used to be. I (truly) have not noticed any lag at all yet.
In my personal opinion, I don't care for the GS4 based off the design and TouchWiz.
After you hear the speakers, use the camera, and hold the One... I think you'll be sold, I was.
Just my 2 cents, friend. Let us know what you decide!
I went from a HTC Desire Z --> S3 --> One.
In fact the only reason I chose S3 over the One X last year was because I needed AWS (was on Wind mobile for a while). I actually would have bought the One X if I had the choice.
To me, the S3 is kind of ugly. The plastic (especially the flimsy battery door) really made the phone feel cheap. It's not to say that all plastic phones are cheap, only the way samsung makes them. I had a Nokia N9 for a couple of months and loved the build quality.
The screen on the One is definitely nicer. I prefer the bright, crisp look of LCD vs the pentile screen of the S3.
And the thing that really sucks on samsung devices is the touchwiz. It doesn't matter if you are running gingerbread or jellybean, it pretty much looks the same.
And coming from an desireZ I was surprised that the roms were not compatible even with the identical hardware (ie Wind S3 vs T-mobile S3). With my DZ i used to flash G2 roms all the time even though they had different hw. It seems to be the same case for the One.
The things that bug me about the One are the missing menu button (I know there are some hacks available) and the fact that NAND is write protected (until we figure out S-OFF). I also miss the quick notification menu settings but I'm sure there are apps/hacks that can add this functionality (haven't bothered looking yet).
I also came from a GS3. Its an underwhelming experience on many aspects in comparison to the One. Hated the lag when opening contacts and the dialer, evil Touchwiz. Very uninspiring.
Having said that it was an older device.
The One is just mesmerising....in all the right areas.
Sent from my HTC One using xda premium
Came from the S3 and it was a great upgrade
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
I came from the S3. I love the One. To me Sense 5 is less "cartoonish" than touchwiz.
The cool Touchwiz features like smart stay and such were cool at first but after a while a never used them. To me the incredible sound on this device trumps everything else for me. I watch YouTube and use speaker phone all the time. It makes such a different to use those things on a phone like this.
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
I still love my S3. It was my first truly fast phone and was the largest upgrade in speed, features, and screen. It always worked perfectly and I really didn't "need" an upgrade, but my wife did so I got the One and gave her my S3
The One seems nice so far. There are a few qwirks I'm hoping HTC can address soon, but I expect to like this phone just as much.
Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk 2
I'm coming from an S3 as well. I'm far happier with the One than I ever was with the S3. I always found that Samsung gave their phones a ton of features that never really seemed to work. Like using the accelerometer to flip between pages and using the front facing camera to see my face so that if I'm lying down it doesn't auto rotate. These are great features on paper but in practice they never worked or didn't work very well. The HTC One is pretty much a no frills handset (compared to the S4 in terms of features) that's beautifully designed. Honestly, I hope HTC does well with this phone, it's finally an android experience that I've been happy with.
Came from the GS3. I wasn't sure I wanted the gs4 because it was so similar to the gs3. Once i held the htc one, it was over.
s4
I came from a S4,I didn't like the plastic and now with my One I'm so happy!!
I love sense,build ,sound,display etc etc..........
byebye Samsung!:fingers-crossed:
I came from the Canadian dual core galaxy s3 and I have to say that the One is at least 1000 times better. Sense isn't filled with a bunch of useless software things that clutter up your phone and the battery life is incredible. Not to mention that in games it's much quicker and have yet to experience any lag at all in any games including modern combat 4 which lagged like hell on my SGS3
Author's comments: I have always loved HTC phones, my first high-end phone was the original HTC EVO and I am the maker of the Azrael ROM for that phone (which eventually became Azrael X). I also was a proud owner of a HTC EVO 3D. But I have had my share of Samsung devices as well. I have had the Samsung Captivate, the Samsung Galaxy S3, and most recently the Samsung Galaxy S4. I also tried the Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom but found for me it was impossible to store and I did not like the false advertising as it is NO S4. It is gimped compared to the S4.
So to sum it off, I like Samsung and HTC, I am no fanboy, I simply choose the device I think fits me best. I am also aware there are other threads like this, but this is just another opinion or another review, so to speak. I hope this proves helpful if you are on the fence about either device.
CONSTRUCTION:
Samsung Galaxy S4: I have easily broken every Samsung phone's screen I have ever had (except the Captivate, which seems to be to invincible!). Let me get that out of the way before I go anywhere else. Do not think Gorilla Glass will live up to it's name! I am not abusive to my phones but I have dropped them while at work especially. I am sure everyone drops their phone from time to time, or it falls out of your hoodie (which has doomed 2 of my phones).
The Captivate was a little tank, that phone is smaller but it feels substantial in your hands and I feel it is the most well made Samsung phone. The S3 and S4 feel very plastic in your hands because frankly, they are! The screen on both my S3 and S4 broke with small drops on the edge toward where the power button is, which makes me think it is a weak spot. The rest of the phone holds up well, despite feeling like it will not but unless you have a very protective case which protects the screen, it does not take much to break the glass.
But as far as the overall setup goes (button locations, etc) I like the 3 button navigation, gestures are pretty cool but I did not use them much. The removable battery and Micro-SD card ports are great to have.
HTC One: Much better build quality, a slightly smaller screen, and aluminum both look and feel nice. I have only had mine for a short time but I was able to tell right away that I liked HTC's construction a LOT better than Samsung's. The phone looks cooler, is a little heavier in the hands (which I like, actually), and the design is very nice. I have not dropped this phone yet in 3 weeks I have owned it, but I am certain if I did it would hold up better.
Where I like the S4 better is the fact you can open the back up and there is a Micro SD-card expansion the HTC lacks. If you carry tons of stuff on your phone, the S4 might be a better bet. I also like the 3 navigation keys on the S4 compared to the HTC One's 2. It took me a bit of getting used to navigating the phone without a back button.
My opinion: Samsung Galaxy S4 has more expandability and I like the fact you can access the battery. But for build quality, there is no comparison. The HTC One is better built and would hold up better.
DISPLAY:
Samsung Galaxy S4: I love the display but I have a few reservations. It is 5.0 Inches with 441 PPI, colorful, and overall very nice with a sharp full-HD resolution. I found the S4 has slightly exaggerated colors, which sometimes look "off" to me. I found even the Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom, with it's smaller and lower resolution screen, looked way better thanks to improved color accuracy and the brighter display. The S4 Screen was a bit of a letdown for me, to be honest. Still nice for what it is but I feel they could have made it better.
HTC One: Hands down, a much better display, despite it's slightly smaller size. It is full HD, 4.7 Inches, and an extremely high 468 PPI. The HTC One has one of the best cell phone displays I have ever seen, it is more or less perfect. The PPI is higher than the Samsung's and the colors pop without being over-saturated. It has better contrast than the S4 too, which only has an advantage of a slightly bigger screen.
My opinion: No contest, the HTC One display is sharper, better contrast, and higher quality. The S4 is .3 inches bigger, which is not much. Both look good though
SOUND QUALITY:
Samsung Galaxy S4: Another area I think Samsung dropped the ball is the sound quality. The Galaxy S4 sounds awesome with headphones, no doubt. Yet the built in speaker is low quality and distorts easily at higher volumes. In fact, the S3 had a superior speaker compared to the S4. While loud in a quiet room, it's easy to miss calls unless you have it on vibrate as well. Call quality is good but the earpiece speaker is pathetic. Mine distorted easily, barely went loud enough, and had a tinny sound. The S3, again, had a superior speaker for the earpiece. I also found a lot of the ringtones are downright annoying and I had trouble picking one I really liked. Thankfully, custom ROMS have their own versions that are good.
HTC One: Front facing stereo speakers that sound good and go very loud, Beats Audio, a good earpiece speaker, and amazing sound that comes from the headphone jack. For Multimedia experience, the HTC One walks all over the Samsung Galaxy S4. With sound more than display, there is NO question which is the superior device of the two for music or Multimedia. The built in ringtones and sound samples are superior and sound cooler (unless you are into animal sounds or ethnic sounds).
My opinion: I think the S4 is far inferior to the HTC One is sound, the S4 seems to use low quality components (except the headphone jack circuitry and DAC). The HTC One by a landslide.
USER INTERFACE:
Samsung Galaxy S4: Uses Touchwiz, a lot more like vanilla Android. I like Touchwiz a lot and find it both easy to navigate and easy to use on a regular basis.
HTC One: Sense, which I have always loved. While I am not as used to it as Touchwiz, Sense looks good, has good functionality, and I do like the news and social feeds.
My opinion: This is purely personal preference. Both work good and are easy to figure out. I prefer things about both, I think Touchwiz is a little bit easier (but I am more used to it) and Sense has more features. Both are great.
SPECS:
Samsung Galaxy S4: For raw horsepower, on paper the Galaxy S4 is a step up from the HTC One. Super fast, great with games, and lag is rare. But, I also have seen the S4 lag quite a bit even when just using the phone. In actual use, the S4 is the slower of the two usually. Surprising but true.
HTC One: In execution, I have seen no difference in games or using the device day to day. Despite slightly lower specs, the HTC One is just as fast and if the S4 is faster (which it should be according to benchmarks), you do not see it in use. In fact, the HTC One seems to be the faster of the two in actual use. Benchmarks and specs are great but useless in actual use.
My opinion: Both are snappy and are great for games. I would not buy one or the other because of the specs, but in theory the S4 is slightly superior (but you are splitting hairs, really). Both are currently 2 of the fastest devices around. I find the HTC One the faster of the two in actual use, which is surprising.
CAMERA:
Samsung Galaxy S4: with 13 Megapixels, a back-lit sensor, and a bunch of image editing options, the camera is more than adequate for most people. The front facing camera is pretty decent too, I have managed to take some great photos with the S4 as I am sure anyone can. Ghosting around moving objects is the Achilles heel with the S4.
HTC One: With a 4 Megapixel "Ultrapixel" Camera, though it sounds worse on paper, I find they both tradeoff in the camera department. The colors are less vibrant but more natural looking in general on the HTC One. I found the image stabilization to work better on the One, so it is easier to get a better shot.
My opinion: For more vibrant looking photos, or for larger blowups of taken photos, the S4 is the pick. For more natural color, better image stabilization, and a wider angle, the HTC One is the better device. They both have good cameras though, and I am sure they will satisfy anyone who likes to snap photos with their phones. I prefer the HTC One camera overall though.
DEVELOPMENT:
Samsung Galaxy S4: Awesome developers with decently active development going on. But Samsung has been more active in trying to prevent tampering with the phone, so it is harder to root it and get past the protection. The removable SD Card can save your butt if you get into a bootloop as it allows you to have another means to push a different ROM (or firmware, etc) onto the phone if you get into trouble.
HTC One: HTC is a lot more helpful when it comes to unlocking the phone for developers. They even have a website which allows you to get root access (though still S-On) and is simple to use with full instructions. Once you have done that, getting full S-Off, changing firmwares, and even turning your device into more customizable versions (like the Google Play edition or Super CID which is unlocked) is easy to do. The development is as active as the S4 with a lot of very good developers that have been around a long time.
My opinion: The HTC One is your ticket if you want an easier time gaining full root access and not having to worry about HTC coming out with new ways to thwart you from getting full access. In fact, users with newer Galaxy S4 phones have a bootloader that has yet to be fully cracked, which causes a headache and prevents you from easily changing radios or firmwares. It also requires you to use tricks just to put a custom ROM on the phone.
CONCLUSION: Both amazing phones, you cannot go wrong with either. Both are fast, run the newest versions of Android, and have tons of features.
For raw horsepower, removable storage, and a more vanilla-Android like interface the S4 may be the better phone for you.
For MUCH better sound and video quality, a better and more durable build quality, and a chipset that seems just as fast, the HTC One is your meal-ticket. It is also much easier to customize, so if you want to install and run custom ROMS and keep the ability to run custom firmware and radios, the HTC One is yet again the better advice. If you like Sense, you will love the HTC One!
To me, the HTC One is a better device in all ways that are important. A large part of a smartphone is the display and sound for the games and multimedia, and in that respect the HTC One is the better device.
I will likely have to edit this for mistakes but I hope this is helpful and I tried to be as subjective as possible. Both are super nice and show that technology in these phones is quite amazing and will just continue to improve over time. :good:
Good to hear your opinion. Now mods can you close this thread. What a waste of writing.
No comparison thread, you should know this.
Duuuuuuuude! This is very very detailed,
But its probably gonna get closed man. Comparison threads like this have been closed multiple times in the One forums already.
That being said I agree with most of the points you've covered except for a few.
- You mentioned the button layout and said the One is missing the back button... I'm sure you meant the menu button though. Like it or not "menu" buttons are gonna die out. Googles design philosophy opts for the on screen 3 dot menu buttons inside apps.
- I'm not sure how your s4 managed to match the One in speed. In my time comparing the two directly, the S4 has noticeable lag compared to the One. The One is much smoother in real world use. Benchmarks are completely useless imho.
- Also I know its subjective but the consensus around here seems to be different when it comes to Sense vs Touchwiz. You said both are easy to use, and that Sense has more features. Actually, Touchwiz definitely has more "features" to the point of being bloated and gimmicky. Sense is much leaner and easier to use imo. Sense isn't bloated with things nobody will ever use, part of why its a cleaner faster experience I think.
- Not sure what you mean by the s4 being a good choice if you want a more vanilla android experience... Touchwiz is about the furthest away from vanilla android you can get. If your referring to the legacy menu button then as I've said before, that is actually against googles design philosophy, look at nexus devices. No menu button.
Good write up for the most part, and I agree with your conclusion. :thumbup:
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
Xstop said:
Good to hear your opinion. Now mods can you close this thread. What a waste of writing.
No comparison thread, you should know this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is not meant as a comparison thread, rather my own experience with the phones and to help choose between the two as choosing a device is difficult. For one, what do you care if I write this, does it interfere with your day to day life? Are you a "thread police officer"? At least my thread could be helpful, yours is more of a waste of writing IMO.
FanDroid09 said:
Duuuuuuuude! This is very very detailed,
But its probably gonna get closed man. Comparison threads like this have been closed multiple times in the One forums already.
That being said I agree with most of the points you've covered except for a few.
- You mentioned the button layout and said the One is missing the back button... I'm sure you meant the menu button though. Like it or not "menu" buttons are gonna die out. Googles design philosophy opts for the on screen 3 dot menu buttons inside apps.
- I'm not sure how your s4 managed to match the One in speed. In my time comparing the two directly, the S4 has noticeable lag compared to the One. The One is much smoother in real world use. Benchmarks are completely useless imho.
- Also I know its subjective but the consensus around here seems to be different when it comes to Sense vs Touchwiz. You said both are easy to use, and that Sense has more features. Actually, Touchwiz definitely has more "features" to the point of being bloated and gimmicky. Sense is much leaner and easier to use imo. Sense isn't bloated with things nobody will ever use, part of why its a cleaner faster experience I think.
- Not sure what you mean by the s4 being a good choice if you want a more vanilla android experience... Touchwiz is about the furthest away from vanilla android you can get. If your referring to the legacy menu button then as I've said before, that is actually against googles design philosophy, look at nexus devices. No menu button.
Good write up for the most part, and I agree with your conclusion. :thumbup:
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you, and I am glad you agree with my conclusion. I think Touchwiz is a lot more like vanilla Android, but opinions are just that. As far as looks go, for behavior sure it is nothing like Google's version of Android. The extra button makes it easy to navigate for me. But as I said, I am just far more used to it (plus my S3 had the same.)
I totally agree, the S4 seems the slower of the two devices in use, especially when just using the interface itself. The S4 seemed to lag a lot out of the blue, maybe because they just have so much junk running in the background? I have been running custom ROMS (much cleaner) with overclocked kernels so my S4 was snappy and lost the lag problems, but with the HTC One I did not even have to do that.
ricsim78 said:
It is not meant as a comparison thread, rather my own experience with the phones and to help choose between the two as choosing a device is difficult. For one, what do you care if I write this, does it interfere with your day to day life? Are you a "thread police officer"? At least my thread could be helpful, yours is more of a waste of writing IMO.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is definitely a comparison thread. I mean its pretty much the definition of a comparison thread haha.
He is not a thread police officer but he is right. And this thread is going to be closed once an actual "thread police officer" notices it. Sorry man, these threads are just plain against the rules.
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
Just an fyi....
Gorilla glass has nothing to do with how easily a screen breaks, it is a coating which makes it scratch less easily
crixley said:
Just an fyi....
Gorilla glass has nothing to do with how easily a screen breaks, it is a coating which makes it scratch less easily
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I understand that, but some people may be under the illusion it is strong. I did...before I had the S3 and it broke being dropped less than 3 feet onto an office carpet.
FanDroid09 said:
This is definitely a comparison thread. I mean its pretty much the definition of a comparison thread haha.
He is not a thread police officer but he is right. And this thread is going to be closed once an actual "thread police officer" notices it. Sorry man, these threads are just plain against the rules.
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I guess things have changed here, I have not really used the forums much in a long time. I am not trying to break any rules or do a direct comparison thread, I just know it is hard to pick a phone (I had a heck of a time choosing one more than once) but IMO there is no comparison (hence why I own a HTC One now and had a S4 )
Mods, if this is against the rules please close it and sorry. But even if 1 person finds it useful, it is no waste. I also have seen a few other threads like this on here and they were not deleted (hence why I thought it was okay).
ricsim78 said:
I understand that, but some people may be under the illusion it is strong. I did...before I had the S3 and it broke being dropped less than 3 feet onto an office carpet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Glass is glass....
They never ever marketed it saying it would survive falls better.
So I think to say it doesn't live up to its name is fallacious
crixley said:
Glass is glass....
They never ever marketed it saying it would survive falls better.
So I think to say it doesn't live up to its name is fallacious
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
While Samsung did not (they DO list it as a feature), Corning, the makers of Gorilla Glass, DO market it is the strongest glass you can buy that comes on a phone. If you do not believe me, Google it. It can give you false impressions about it's strengths, but I have dropped my HTC Evo and my Evo 3D (in fact, the Evo 3D fell out of my pocket and rolled down concrete steps) and they both survived without a scratch. I think it is the design of the S4 (glass covers the whole front of the phone) that contributes to this.
Thread closed.
As stated this is a comparison thread and these are not allowed under forum rules. The forum moderators have discussed this and decieded to have the thread closed.
Back from days of Symbian, i have used many smartphones, recently i changed from iPhone 6s to S7, for a change, but touchwiz, or mess of uneven Android apps, lack of silky smoothness, and strange app designs, for example huge header of WhatsApp App, different font size in WhatsApp App's text entry box and bubbles text.
I was amazed reading this story by XDA, http://www.xda-developers.com/with-...delivers-embarrassing-real-world-performance/
wow i don't think like this alone, If i compare it iPhone 6s,
- this phone is not smooth, only Nexus is almost as smooth as iPhone
- even though its a mettle phone, but by looks its same as galaxy s3 bu looks, not by material,
- Its best in stutters, ugliness of software, among all Android Phones, with LG is close 2nd.
- display is good, but being an average user, i find it not different than the iPhone display in real world usage.
- better, battery is the only benefit i am getting from this phone
- with camera i only take pictures of samples and send them over WhatsApp, so both are same.
I feel Samsung must die or learn and make Android closer to stock, they are selling phones only due to marketing and good hardware. Even baby companies like OnePlus can implement Android better than Sammy.
Do you guys agree or think i am crazy!
usmanxhmed said:
Do you guys agree or think i am crazy!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd normally say it's just your own experience and opinion, but given the options you've presented, I'm going with crazy
I love my S7. It's the best phone I've ever had. Mine is butter-smooth, looks and feels awesome, gets an update every month and has an phenomenal camera. I can't agree with you about the screen either--it's worthy of all the praise that's been heaped on it.
Samsung sales and profits are up right now, and Apple's are down. Maybe it's Apple that needs to die and learn. I'm sure marketing is a factor, but in the end, Sammy is ticking all the right boxes for a lot of people.
I do agree with you about one thing though: I wish they'd ditch TW for something closer to AOSP Android.
CafeKampuchia said:
I'd normally say it's just your own experience and opinion, but given the options you've presented, I'm going with crazy
I love my S7. It's the best phone I've ever had. Mine is butter-smooth, looks and feels awesome, gets an update every month and has an phenomenal camera. I can't agree with you about the screen either--it's worthy of all the praise that's been heaped on it.
Samsung sales and profits are up right now, and Apple's are down. Maybe it's Apple that needs to die and learn. I'm sure marketing is a factor, but in the end, Sammy is ticking all the right boxes for a lot of people.
I do agree with you about one thing though: I wish they'd ditch TW for something closer to AOSP Android.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well its great, when you are satisfied with your Phone, if you say your touchwiz is buttery smooth, i feel you may have not used iPhone for a year or so, getting updates are fine, camera's of both phones are good for my limited use, me being not photo lover, screen, you can't go wrong with either. i can't see any advantage of this glorious screen over 720p of iPhone, as i never use VR.
i am not concern with Sales, by F**k**g users with touchwiz torture, they can't tick every box right, just my opinion, touchwiz torture alone, should give them Nokia Fate, my opinion. Not letting AOSP on this very good hardware is also very sad.
Even its my personal experience, i would want to stay away from Sammy for good, even couple of years ago i promised my self, i would never use non nexus Android, its just Google is too lazy to bring new Android,
Wish i could have S7 google play edition.
If I had to compare the S7 with the iPhone 6s, then the S7 would win for me.
Beautiful QHD display vs 720p and you say that the screen doesn't matters to you? The S7 has a bigger screen even tho they have almost the same size.
The iPhone doesn't has OIS "optical image stabilization", doesn't has microSD card slot, it's not water resistant and the basic 16GB version is more expensive than the S7 (at least here).
I think that the 6s is way overpriced for what it offers.
Also the new iPhone 7 will look exactly the same as 6 and 6s.
Ps my S7 is smooth.
I personally don't know what you're on about. I can't compare it to an iPhone, but I've had a Nexus 5 and a OnePlus One that I felt was a little faster. My S7 is just as smooth in the UI as either of those devices, and I used Nova launcher on all three. I can't make mine lag or stutter scrolling between screens, pulling down notifications, opening the app drawer, switching apps, etc.
usmanxhmed said:
Back from days of Symbian, i have used many smartphones, recently i changed from iPhone 6s to S7, for a change, but touchwiz, or mess of uneven Android apps, lack of silky smoothness, and strange app designs, for example huge header of WhatsApp App, different font size in WhatsApp App's text entry box and bubbles text.
I was amazed reading this story by XDA, http://www.xda-developers.com/with-...delivers-embarrassing-real-world-performance/
wow i don't think like this alone, If i compare it iPhone 6s,
- this phone is not smooth, only Nexus is almost as smooth as iPhone
- even though its a mettle phone, but by looks its same as galaxy s3 bu looks, not by material,
- Its best in stutters, ugliness of software, among all Android Phones, with LG is close 2nd.
- display is good, but being an average user, i find it not different than the iPhone display in real world usage.
- better, battery is the only benefit i am getting from this phone
- with camera i only take pictures of samples and send them over WhatsApp, so both are same.
I feel Samsung must die or learn and make Android closer to stock, they are selling phones only due to marketing and good hardware. Even baby companies like OnePlus can implement Android better than Sammy.
Do you guys agree or think i am crazy!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You aren't crazy. I also came from 6S. I think it's all a personal preference and you would be better served with an iPhone. Simple.
For me personally, and while I partially agree with certain parts of the points you listed, overall an iPhone is like a kids toy compared to a robust pocket computer. So the trade off of slightly less polished OS on the S7 is well worth it. Just take Nova Launcher with gesture control and Tasker, just those two apps alone make Android about 1000x better because you literally can design your own way of interacting with your phone down to the smallest detail. But if that kind of stuff isn't for you, then I can see your point and like I said, iPhone just may be better. It's all a matter of perspective.
Travis Bickle said:
If I had to compare the S7 with the iPhone 6s, then the S7 would win for me.
Beautiful QHD display vs 720p and you say that the screen doesn't matters to you? The S7 has a bigger screen even tho they have almost the same size.
The iPhone doesn't has OIS "optical image stabilization", doesn't has microSD card slot, it's not water resistant and the basic 16GB version is more expensive than the S7 (at least here).
I think that the 6s is way overpriced for what it offers.
Also the new iPhone 7 will look exactly the same as 6 and 6s.
Ps my S7 is smooth.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for reply bro,
- i never said screen don't matter to me, i can't stand cheap or inferior screen, like that of Xperia family, all i said what both screens are good and comparable in real life, specs of Sammy screen is higher, that is 2K, but by using both, i see no advantage of 2k Super Amoled screen over IPS 720p screen, in fact i find iPhone screen better due to more condense UI, you can have more text of WhatsApp in iPhone smaller screen then in larger screen of S7, You have thicker fonts on iPhone in twitter App and too thin fonts on Android App, obviously you can shrink or condense the UI, but according to me its not the same, like i mentioned WhatsApp text entry font size and bubble font size is different, is headache for me, no issue for you guys. These are fine touches which iPhone have and Android needs to avoid, though its App fault, Android App fault.
iPhone 6s don't have iOS, for a user like me its not required, i am keen on point and shot camera for work only, those who need iOS can us, 6s Plus, No SD card, people can get higher capacity, i only use 16 GB as i keep removing stuff always and never filled half the space mostly, Over prices, definitely, Sammy is over priced too, ask Oneplus, thats another thing, its price falls in no time bring massive loss to owner.
New iPhone will look exactly same, it must, it will mostly be smooth, hopefully, iPhone has its other flaws, like lack of sharing and transferring file, physical home buttom, which i dont like in sammy too.
At the end of the day, it all comes down to your needs i feel, for you S7 serves better, for someone, slick and smooth elegant UI of iPhone works better, even bigger size bezels of iPhone worked better for me, as i get accident touched on S7 when i try to use it with one hand, due to smaller bezels.
pixel_junkie said:
You aren't crazy. I also came from 6S. I think it's all a personal preference and you would be better served with an iPhone. Simple.
For me personally, and while I partially agree with certain parts of the points you listed, overall an iPhone is like a kids toy compared to a robust pocket computer. So the trade off of slightly less polished OS on the S7 is well worth it. Just take Nova Launcher with gesture control and Tasker, just those two apps alone make Android about 1000x better because you literally can design your own way of interacting with your phone down to the smallest detail. But if that kind of stuff isn't for you, then I can see your point and like I said, iPhone just may be better. It's all a matter of perspective.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for sharing thoughts, I use Nova Prime, as soon as i get any galaxy, but tasker is not for me.
if a user need to root or use apps like tasker or greenify to make there phone work proper, then its not the phone for most you have to admit. To make phone work better, root, change rom, change codes, change this and change that .....
- Some people have business, others have jobs in life, kids and family, they get less time in life, to go forums and do all that, they need a phone, that mostly work and have less limitations, phone you are calling kids phone, all i need to do with that is just to stop the animations, and it becomes smoother, for those who cant alter there phones or who dont have time.
When i use to dislike iPhone, i use to feel you cant use bluetooth, you cant transfer mp3, you cant send a song over whatsapp now or cant receive it, then i found out sharing song over bluetooth is needed less, if needed can use dropbox share, can copy song over wifi or can easily share song vis whatsapp without jailbreak, iPhone found solutions, but Sammy is screwing me and the likes of me from galaxy S3!
usmanxhmed said:
Thanks for sharing thoughts, I use Nova Prime, as soon as i get any galaxy, but tasker is not for me.
if a user need to root or use apps like tasker or greenify to make there phone work proper, then its not the phone for most you have to admit. To make phone work better, root, change rom, change codes, change this and change that .....
- Some people have business, others have jobs in life, kids and family, they get less time in life, to go forums and do all that, they need a phone, that mostly work and have less limitations, phone you are calling kids phone, all i need to do with that is just to stop the animations, and it becomes smoother, for those who cant alter there phones or who dont have time.
When i use to dislike iPhone, i use to feel you cant use bluetooth, you cant transfer mp3, you cant send a song over whatsapp now or cant receive it, then i found out sharing song over bluetooth is needed less, if needed can use dropbox share, can copy song over wifi or can easily share song vis whatsapp without jailbreak, iPhone found solutions, but Sammy is screwing me and the likes of me from galaxy S3!
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Click to collapse
I don't think you know or understand what Tasker does - it helps you automate string of commands or "tasks" that you would do anyway but it dose it automatically for you based on certain criteria like your location for example. It has nothing to do with tweaking your phone to run better or give you better battery life (unless you want that).
You buy the hardware with pre installed software.
You are responsable to customize the software to your needs!
You can modify almost everything. Also uglyness etc. goes away by that!
My Phone is really premium and with beautiful software, with all that modications.
pixel_junkie said:
I don't think you know or understand what Tasker does - it helps you automate string of commands or "tasks" that you would do anyway but it dose it automatically for you based on certain criteria like your location for example. It has nothing to do with tweaking your phone to run better or give you better battery life (unless you want that).
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Yes, tasker is not for everyone specially not for those, who were using iphones lately feel, dont have to use with iphone, sadly this super customize able phone has lost ability to change fonts without root, i want to use roboto fonts, or try iPhone fonts.
Only if iPhone was not over priced, iPhone could get more market or profit share then what it has currently, as many people cant use it due to price as well, in many countries like mine, we have to pay full price to buy phone, and i mostly sell current phone, add money and buy new.
||||| said:
You buy the hardware with pre installed software.
You are responsable to customize the software to your needs!
You can modify almost everything. Also uglyness etc. goes away by that!
My Phone is really premium and with beautiful software, with all that modications.
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Click to collapse
I believe you bro, you basically mean if a user can modify his phone, then he can lay his hand on touchwiz, or he never used iPhone for long, or he dont care about smoothness, apps quality etc.
You sound confused, first you complain about whatsapp's font size, admitting it's the apps fault and then you blame Samsung saying that it should "die and learn".
Next you say that you refuse to use tasker or any other app to make the phone work "properly" and yet you use Dropbox for a simple file share, since Apple doesn't allow you to send files using Bluetooth.
And you find the iPhone's 720p screen better than Samsung's 2K? Its like me saying that my old Nokia 3210 is the best phone ever cause all I do with it is make phone calls and that way the battery lasts for weeks.
Travis Bickle said:
You sound confused, first you complain about whatsapp's font size, admitting it's the apps fault and then you blame Samsung saying that it should "die and learn".
Next you say that you refuse to use tasker or any other app to make the phone work "properly" and yet you use Dropbox for a simple file share, since Apple doesn't allow you to send files using Bluetooth.
And you find the iPhone's 720p screen better than Samsung's 2K? Its like me saying that my old Nokia 3210 is the best phone ever cause all I do with it is make phone calls and that way the battery lasts for weeks.
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Well thanks for reply, but bro you dont read correct, i never said 720p is better than 2k screen, i said both do the job good, both are very good, if you hold both close to each other, both are very good, minor difference can be pitch black screen, according to my average eye.
I am not here to offend those who like S7 a lot, i was just sharing my experience, and i said for others it can be opposite, file sharing is an option, one can live without it, or can use dropbox or email or whatsapp to share a file, which everyone use no matter if he use, android or windows phone or iOS, tasker is a utility to make S7 work proper, dropbox is not a utility to make iOS work smoother, or make UI less of a mess.
Its not like saying anything about 3310, iPhone is a capable phone, dual core 1.4 cpu, 2gb ram, f**ks note 7 in every speed test you find on Youtube, thats another story and i am not interested in it.
i just have to stay with this phone for a while, i wish i can like it more, UI issues which i find little disappointing i can adjust with, i can somehow enjoy benefits that comes with it, like better battery, ability to use to Whatsapp, and few others, at cost of UI and smoothness. Since i dont intend to use phone again for 6 months at least.
Idea of this post is not to offend lovers of S7, i dont know why some folks cant take other peoples opinion about there love child, in fact opinion of XDA developers is same as mine, exactly same, if you can read the link i posted, only reason for the post was thoughts sharing and finding ways to improve the situations, which seems like impossible, even for XDA, even for them its the path of lenthy modifications and somehow magically fix the sh*t that sammy created in form of touchwiz.
XDA says reviewers always praise samsung phones, yet performance is always under par, even less then oneplus, and honour 8, which is bloated and a mid range phone.
To conclude this talk, and to end harsh feelings/heartaches, i would this is a very good hardware, only crippled by software in my case, as i am stock android or iPhone guy, i still remember i had nexus 5, i was so much satisfied, and mediocre screen of nexus 5 never bothered me much due to buttery smooth, elegant, non china UI.
You have to live with prons and cons of all phone, like we have to live with iPhone's as well.
I and many others like me should try to enjoy benefit of this phone and may be somehow we can like it, or when time comes switch it.
I cant root it to keep warranty, or replace roms.
007zzz said:
About content in display,you can change DPI to achieve more texts on the screen.
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I know that, but twitter App font is very thin, despite being at 560 now, but my main issue about inconsistent and less than elegant UI in comparison to nexus remains, is there any way i can change system fonts without root, i want ROboto all over the place.
usmanxhmed said:
Well, you are the one who is fanboy and confused and can't hear a word against your Love
I said iPhone screen is better, not in term of screen quality, but in term of UI, which is part of screen over all experience
- fanboys like you deserve to stay on china type touchwiz for life, keep buying Sammy and they will keep screwing you with China UI
- iPhone screen better because text is smaller but far thicker, i can see more text in a UI
- Twitter and WhatsApp shows more and clearer text in one screen even being smaller, which makes it easy to carry around, yet more contend
- Uniform applications, elegant and consistent layout.
So screen is a combination of over all UI, unlike you common man is not a screen pixels doctor to calculate 2k pixels and keep saying wow, its 2k not 720p, for a common man, both are almost same as far as screen quality goes.
You should not stay in this thread any ways, its not for small hearted fanboys, getting hurt about other negative opinion about there beloved phone.
In my opinion and official opinion of XDA, Sammy does not know how to make a software or even a skin, they take slick Stock Android and pretty much f**k it up from galaxy S1, still selling phones.
But if people like you are satisfied with it, then its fine, they must be doing it right now, other people can use nexus and iphones or even at times HTC if they can reduce screen to body ratio.
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usmanxhmed said:
I know that, but twitter App font is very thin, despite being at 560 now, but my main issue about inconsistent and less than elegant UI in comparison to nexus remains, is there any way i can change system fonts without root, i want ROboto all over the place.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes there is a way to change the font without root. Google store search ifont. The first result is the APP you need. This APP will guide you change font without root.
Thread cleaned.
If you can't make constructive posts then don't post
usmanxhmed said:
Do you guys agree or think i am crazy!
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You have a point. As an ex-ios uset, and loads of android owner (including nexus 5, s6, s7 exynos) i find iOS better in terms of:
- general smoothness
- games load time
- way way better memory managent than android (with 2gigs of RAM it outperforms android with 4-6gig)
- better battery life per capacity (iphone 6s 1750 mah vs galaxy s6 3000 mah)
- in general ios operates at cooler temperature
I really wish android to step up in all above. I am keep using android because i don't like to be limited in apple ecosystem (anyway, ios evolved in good direction, making the OS more versatile and customizable)
Right now I am usint Good Lock which changes many elements of SystemUI. As a launcher i am using the official Google one, and it does occasionally stutter when scrolling between screens. Also I am using the condensed screen mode.