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Hi. I am sorry if somebody already asked this, but I couldn't find it.
Which one is the best AT&T WP7: Surround, Focus, Quantum?
I am almost sure Focus is the best option. Please shed some light here! Thanks!
It all depends on what you want from a phone. The LG has a full keyboard, The Surround has a sliding speaker system and the Focus would be your average modern smart phone. Personally I chose the Focus because of the 4" amoled display and expandable storage.
Ren13B said:
Personally I chose the Focus because of the 4" amoled display and expandable storage.
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The same for me and its size.
If it's WP7, then none, at least right now.
harolds said:
If it's WP7, then none, at least right now.
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if you're going to post something... at least answer his question. in your opinion it might not be worth buying, but for the many that have, the large majority are happy with it.
harolds said:
If it's WP7, then none, at least right now.
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I love my focus its OS makes the rest look old and dated.
falconeight said:
I love my focus its OS makes the rest look old and dated.
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I totaly agree the focus is the way to go i have 40 gb storage and the os is so much smoother than the rest and the interface makes ios and android look very old. I compaired my focus to my sons iphione4 last night and the iphone 4 side by side was no comparrison from the apps, to the lock screen, intergration, to the homescreen. or even something as simple as answering or rejecting a call from the lockscreen... since people are always complaing about what should be in a os in these days being able to reject a call from lockscreen is one of the most basic and til this day ios still cannot do it... I never heard anyone complaining about this??
I bought the Surround. It was more of personal preference about the look and feel of the device. To me, the Surround looked and felt better.. i liked the soft touch back and the solid heavy feel, and really consider the speaker as just a bonus feature as it only adds 1mm of thickness compared to the identical HTC Trophy. The Focus' Super AMOLED screen was amazing, but I didnt like the glossy plastic look. Its all personal preference and what you are looking for in a phone.
I'd agree with Ren13B. If you need a work phone and plan to write 50+ emails (or you are a teenager and need to send 100+ texts) a day, LG would be a better buy for the keyboard.
If you need a better speakerphone or speakers and don't mind a little bulk, Surround is the one. Also, I have seen Surround going for less at Amazon and Newegg so that's another reason.
For everything else, Focus seems to be the best fit.
rexian said:
I'd agree with Ren13B. If you need a work phone and plan to write 50+ emails (or you are a teenager and need to send 100+ texts) a day, LG would be a better buy for the keyboard.
If you need a better speakerphone or speakers and don't mind a little bulk, Surround is the one. Also, I have seen Surround going for less at Amazon and Newegg so that's another reason.
For everything else, Focus seems to be the best fit.
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that would be a true statement if this was the keyboard of wimdows 6.5 or anything less than wp7 the on screen keyboard is simply unbleavable with its auto correct feature and a 4inch screen you can type as fast if not faster that any hw keyboard... it works that well...
Chose Focus due to memory expansion, screen, and size/quality.
It is interesting to note that, unlike iMapple, the WP7 seems to all have great reception. Have noticed the Samsung Focus has better cell reception than the HTC Fuze and various other HTC/Motorola phones from the past.
I went with the surround. NOTE: I did come from a Samsung Captivate
I went with the surround because:
-better build quality
-nice speaker
-kickstand is nice to have when watching netflix (lol)
-I like HTC over samsung
-Samsung focus felt too flimsy and cheap for me
-Samsung scared me after some of the issues of the captivate (im sure samsung and windows did a better job on the focus, this is just how i feel)
on the other hand though,
SAMOLED is nice, and I do miss, but at the same time the LCD of the Surround is good, but the main thing you are missing is not screen quality, but battery life. I havent had a chance to put my battery to the test, but im sure SAMOLED will trump the HTCs LCD.
The "best" on, of course, depends on what you want from your phone. Personally, I've been burned by lousy hardware from HTC and LG before (several times) and I'm a big Slingplayer user so the large screen, light weight and slim design of the Samsung Focus appealed to me. The other two have are stronger in other areas. Check the specs of each and/or go play with them at an AT&T and decide for yourself.
MarcMaiden said:
I went with the surround. NOTE: I did come from a Samsung Captivate
I went with the surround because:
-better build quality
-nice speaker
-kickstand is nice to have when watching netflix (lol)
-I like HTC over samsung
-Samsung focus felt too flimsy and cheap for me
-Samsung scared me after some of the issues of the captivate (im sure samsung and windows did a better job on the focus, this is just how i feel)
on the other hand though,
SAMOLED is nice, and I do miss, but at the same time the LCD of the Surround is good, but the main thing you are missing is not screen quality, but battery life. I havent had a chance to put my battery to the test, but im sure SAMOLED will trump the HTCs LCD.
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Buyer's remorse no more, check out this page from anandtech:
anandtech.com/show/3982/windows-phone-7-review/28
rruffman said:
that would be a true statement if this was the keyboard of wimdows 6.5 or anything less than wp7 the on screen keyboard is simply unbleavable with its auto correct feature and a 4inch screen you can type as fast if not faster that any hw keyboard... it works that well...
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I don't know if the kb on the 4" Focus screen will make a significant difference or not, I can say I type faster hands down on my Fuze than my iPhone, which according to some have the best on-screen kb.
I have seen videos of people typing insanely fast on iPhone but I think they'd be even faster on a good h/w keyboard like Fuze.
Oranjoose said:
Buyer's remorse no more, check out this page from anandtech:
anandtech.com/show/3982/windows-phone-7-review/28
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For long sessions of browsing webpages with white background or emails, there is no doubt AMOLED screen of Focus will drain the battery faster. I wonder if there will be a way in future to change the background/foreground of the browser / email client inWP7.
Hey guys... Ive had both the Samsung Focus and the HTC Surround... not sure which i want to keep though... Surround is louder which i like ringtone wise and i like the soft touch back.. I liked the screen, camera and thickness of the focus more though.... Just looking to see what other peoples thoughts were or maybe what your determining factor was...
focus, compare the screen of both phones side by side and you'll clearly see the difference
Compare them side by side using office or email and you'll notice the surround looks better. The surround does better with the lighter colors. Size really isnt a factor because even though the Focus is thinner (less then an 1/8 of an inch) because when you compare all 3 dimensions the Surround is actually smaller. Both are good picks. Just go with your gut and I'm sure you'll be pleased either way.
do you use your phone as a multimedia device or a business device? Thats kinda what it comes to.
Been using a Surround for more than a week now. It feels substantial but not clumsy and has excellent build quality. I thought the Samsung felt cheaper and had a more pixilated screen. Vote for Surround.
The ATT store I went to had the Focus and Surround side by side.. played with both and bought the Focus eventually. The Focus is really very thin and light and you wont even fell it in your pocket. Also even though its basically all plastic it does not feel cheap.
Definitely keep the Focus.
The way that I decided between the two (well, three for me) was to stand at the AT&T display and play around with both. With one in each hand, making the decision was really rather easy for me.
I was really impressed by the Focus. The large, pretty screen made me happy. I bought one.
Honestly, my impression of the Surround was that it was a terrible joke gone awry. It makes absolutely no sense to me, and it boggles my mind that the Surround was ever manufactured, much less brought to retail. Every time I see one, I want to slap Ralph De La Vega for polluting my potential choices with garbage like that instead of bringing over quality equipment.
That being said, lots of folk really seem to thing that the Surround is not a miscarried fetus of design, and as such what you should take away when considering your personal device should be what matters to you. Think about what you do or want to do with your phone on a daily basis, and apply that to the choices you have at hand. I ended up choosing the Focus, but you may decide that something else fits your desires better.
I'd hate to be the one to bump a thread but I too am looking at these two devices. I have always used qwerty phones (I have the Tilt 2 now) and HTC. However now AT&T only has the LG to choose from for a kb and its screen is small, quality is nominal compared to the other two and the kb feels horrible to the touch (and cheap).
Now I am trying to figure out which of these two phones (Focus/Surround) I want.
Focus: I like the focus for its larger screen, lighter weight and the fact that is has 1gb internal sys mem (sys mem, not storage mem). However all of the store displays of all AT&T stores I went to have a slight image burned onto the screen. They told me the screens are on 24/7 but still...the other phones don't have that. Also it lacks 50% of the space since it doesn't have the 8GB card in it.
HTC Surround: I like the brightness a little more on this screen, plus the HTC software (ie, youtube). The sound is a better obviously and it has the extra 8GB card. The screen is a little smaller though, it has way less sys mem (not storage mem), and less talk time (battery life)...at least based on specs.
I need good images, accurate keyboard for a touch kb, use it for business and space....well I have a 8GB SanDisk so I'm sure it would work in the Focus so space isn't much a concern. Battery life is important as I use my phone a lot. Also important is speed....the HTC has 1/2 the sys mem pretty much as the Focus does...yet I haven't heard anyone make any comments about this yet.
PS: Oh! and I can get the HTC Surround for 1 penny but the Focus is $99.....so that also obviously adds a little imbalance.
jh20001 said:
I'd hate to be the one to bump a thread but I too am looking at these two devices. I have always used qwerty phones (I have the Tilt 2 now) and HTC. However now AT&T only has the LG to choose from for a kb and its screen is small, quality is nominal compared to the other two and the kb feels horrible to the touch (and cheap).
Now I am trying to figure out which of these two phones (Focus/Surround) I want.
Focus: I like the focus for its larger screen, lighter weight and the fact that is has 1gb internal sys mem (sys mem, not storage mem). However all of the store displays of all AT&T stores I went to have a slight image burned onto the screen. They told me the screens are on 24/7 but still...the other phones don't have that. Also it lacks 50% of the space since it doesn't have the 8GB card in it.
HTC Surround: I like the brightness a little more on this screen, plus the HTC software (ie, youtube). The sound is a better obviously and it has the extra 8GB card. The screen is a little smaller though, it has way less sys mem (not storage mem), and less talk time (battery life)...at least based on specs.
I need good images, accurate keyboard for a touch kb, use it for business and space....well I have a 8GB SanDisk so I'm sure it would work in the Focus so space isn't much a concern. Battery life is important as I use my phone a lot. Also important is speed....the HTC has 1/2 the sys mem pretty much as the Focus does...yet I haven't heard anyone make any comments about this yet.
PS: Oh! and I can get the HTC Surround for 1 penny but the Focus is $99.....so that also obviously adds a little imbalance.
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Speed is never mentioned because its not that big of an issue. Windows Phone 7 was designed specifically for these devices and as such, has a minimum system requirement, and because of that, they both work very well on any of the devices on the market currently. The extra memory doesn't make much of impact on performance.
To be honest, aside from the SAMOLED screen, the Focus looks boring and feels cheap. Also, Samsung's track record for supporting their own devices has been subpar at most, for this reason alone I steer away from Samsung devices unless its a Samsung TV.
The Surround doesn't win any design awards, but I do think it looks better than the Focus and doesn't feel cheap. The speaker, while not really useful, is great for pumping out music and video (which is good since WP7 is a media-centered device). Not to mention the awesome support that HTC devices get from HTC, from software to updates, HTC has a much better track record than Samsung.
And when it comes to smartphone battery life, I think its safe to say you're not going to get great battery life period. You are gonna have to plug in your phone at least once a day, and anyone expecting it to last any more than that will be in for a surprise. So I usually ignore battery life when looking at phones (unless the battery life is really dismal).
Obviously they both have their ups and downs and its up to you to decide whats most important to you. The screen burn-in issue on the Focus is one I've heard before, so that actually would bother me quite a bit. I haven't heard any issues with the Surround really.
I just hope if I were to choose HTC, if it will last with good use until the end of the day. I am perfectly fine with charging my phone ever night. It's just when I have to charge it i the middle of the day and wonder if I even have a charger near me that bothers me. My tilt 2 has even had this issue (although usually it does ok).
can't speak much for the surround but i have a HTC 7 Trophy and it lasts through the day. however, i use mine for radio for like 6 hours of the day and by about 7pm it's dead, so i charge it at work. but still, that is using the radio for 6 hours...
which one is having trouble getting updated? get the other one.
nrfitchett4 said:
which one is having trouble getting updated? get the other one.
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lol, this has been another factor in choosing. It's the Samsung Focus that has been having troubles. That alone has put a lot of favor towards the surround for me and installs a lot of negative assumption in Samsung's build quality.
jh20001 said:
lol, this has been another factor in choosing. It's the Samsung Focus that has been having troubles. That alone has put a lot of favor towards the surround for me and installs a lot of negative assumption in Samsung's build quality.
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Why don't we wait and see how a real update is handled. If NODO comes out at the same time for both devices (even if it was delayed because of the Samsung), it really doesn't matter, because both received the update at the same time.
Weighing in on the question at hand. The Focus takes some of the best pictures of any smartphone on market today. If that is important to you, then that is reason enough to get the focus.
The Focus has a very nice screen, with gorilla glass. The battery life is top notch. The external speaker isn't bad. Fast NAND memory that may likely be more reliable.
The Samsung simply has higher quality components, even though the two devices share many of the same components.
Now, I do have the Focus, but when buying a WP7 device I wasn't bound to any single carrier, so I was able to research out all the devices thoroughly, and the Focus is the one I went with.
Well I do know that I thank all for their feedback. I have decided to order the HTC Surround. There has been good reasons for both sides to get either phone but the more I read online, the more I see people complaining about the screen burn-in issue as well as upgrading windows and the history of Samsung's own efforts to update their products.
Once I have the Surround I will share my own feedback to help contribute to the pot of knowledge.
Get the Focus. Its faster, has better specs, better battery life, better screen, etc.
Sent from my Samsung Focus using Board Express
I have a Captivate at the moment but am considering a Focus, no other phone is even in the running. I have been spoiled by the Samsung screen.....nothing else will do. I've looked at the surround but it just can't compare.
jh20001 said:
more I read online, the more I see people complaining about the screen burn-in issue as well as upgrading windows and the history of Samsung's own efforts to update their products.
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I really think this is going to end up like the whole plasma screen burn in issue - something we will hear about for years to come that is more of an issue in word than in reality. Regardless I hope that the Surround works out for you.
As a Surround user, I can say that the battery life is terrible. I love the phone although with moderate usage I still end up having to charge it around 5 PM if I plan on going anywhere that evening. Or if I make any long phone calls.
Hi all,
Every time I get a new phone, I like to write a guide giving my impressions and help anyone that may be interested in getting it as well.
Just to give you an overview, I've had android devices since September 2010.
Device history: Motorola Cliq>MyTouch 3G Slide>HTC G2> MyTouch 4G Slide
Now onto the Glide...
Build quality is solid, albeit cheap at times. It's very plasticky and light. All of my previous phones have felt much more dense in the hand. The shiny plastic bezel around the sides gets scratched up very easily, as does the top bezel over the screen. The top bezel wear is mostly from using the keyboard, as when you go to press the top keys, your fingernails may scrape the bezel. The back cover is nice, although I prefer soft touch finishes. My G2 felt the best in the hand. Back cover withstands knocks fairly well, and doesn't show scratches easily.
The charging port cover is a nice touch.
This is the biggest device I've owned thus far, and the bulk is becoming apparent. I wish Samsung worked a little harder on getting the form factor down in size a bit, because I feel as though it's not as optimal as it could be. When I pick up a phone, I want to feel that I'm holding nothing but the screen and keys I need. This phone feels a little wider and taller than necessary. Very blocky. If they tapered the edges more, this phone would be much easier to hold. There's a lot of space between the soft keys and screen and around the screen in general. This is about as big as I will go for form factor, because it's just starting to get a little unmanageable.
I wish Samsung made the screen a little bigger or added a trackpad, instead of making room to stick their logo on the front. The amount of space it takes up is deliberate and offsets the entire screen on the phone.
Screen: It's very bright and colorful. I appreciate the extra screen space over my old phones. This is about the limit for screen size for me. I don't think going any bigger would make the phone any better. I will however mention that the screen resolution is quite low for a screen this size. I didn't think I would notice it as much, but text does become hard to read when you try to zoom out on a webpage. 75% of the time, this is not a big deal but it's prominent enough that I mention it. There's a subtle hint of sharpness missing when it comes to the screen.
I hope that future phones will work more towards having edge to edge displays or displays without bezels (such as the Droid Razr M).
Keyboard: It will take some time to get used to, but it's a decent keyboard. Tactile feedback, although the keys are flat. Not the best keyboard I've used, but heaps better than my previous phone the 4G Slide. The keys are big enough that the flatness doesn't matter much. But it is hard to type on this phone without looking, if that's your thing. The G2 keyboard is hands down the best keyboard I've used on a device. I like the accent colors for different symbols and numbers
Battery: The stock battery that comes with this phone is very good. It holds a charge very well and can last you through the whole day with light to moderate use. I find myself charging my phone less than my previous phone, even though the screen size is bigger. Definite plus.
Speed: This is all relative now. Any phone you buy today will have more than enough power for your daily tasks and beyond. I have noticed that the Tegra 2 chipset is terrifically fast and tackles anything I throw at it effortlessly. I did not expect anything less. I would like to point out that, when under load, the phone does not feel as hot as my older phones did, even though the temps still go fairly high. While playing GTA Vice City over an hour the temperature peaks at around 50 degrees Celsius. I suspect the plastic helps with this, as when my G2 got that hot, the metal accents made it uncomfortable to hold.
What's interesting to note is this: http://www.notebookcheck.net/Mobile-Processors-Benchmarklist.2436.0.html
The Tegra 2 ranks all the way down at 640. But just the fact that it's on the list impresses me. I expect that phones will catch up to laptops in terms of computing power within the next 1-2 years. They are already matching laptop chips from 8 years ago.
Faults:
I sorely miss my physical trackpad. I used it on a daily basis, and it's a blaring omission on this device. I would always use my trackpad to wake the phone, as it's very easily accessible and the easiest button to locate on a device. It's also much easier to reach for, vs. the power button. The similar sized Relay 4G manages to incorporate a physical button (not trackpad) in the same size as the Glide. The trackpad was also a great way to edit text on screen without the keyboard open.
Speaking of the power button, I kinda wish it was placed up top. It's in an awkward position, very close to the top corner of the phone. If it's going to be that high up the side of the device, might as well put it on top because you index finger has a longer reach than your thumb (yes, I've thought about this extensively).
The charging port is poorly placed. It's almost impossible to use the keyboard if your phone is charging. There's no good way to wrap your hands around the phone when charging. Also puts unnecessary strain on the cable and port if you're talking on the phone while charging, as it's at the top of the phone. Having the headphone jack right next to it only compounds the problem. Although the keyboard is still ok to use when you have only headphones plugged in.
There is no notification light. Very big miss on Samsung's end with this one. Why they couldn't throw one in is beyond me.
I will update this review, the more I own the phone. If there's anything you'd like me to comment on or compare, please let me know. I'd be more than happy to add it.
Nice review, you showed pretty much the most important downsides of the phone. I would also add RDS radio, which to me is the most important omission. The led notification can be decently passed with NoLed app.
I got mine just a week ago, and I can say I enjoy it, it's surprisingly powerful. As my first smartphone, can't really compare, but overall, it met all my expectations, and for the money I paid (155$) it is a pleasure. In Europe one can't really find anything close as performance to this.
Great phone overall.
Indeed this is an S2 variant with QWERTY sans FM radio hardware and larger screen. I was thinking of getting an S3 Mini instead will probably go for a second Captivate Glide for my gym and car audio use.
God knows when we'll see an S3 QWERTY variant.
Long live hardware QWERTY keyboards!
incidentflux said:
Indeed this is an S2 variant with QWERTY sans FM radio hardware and larger screen. I was thinking of getting an S3 Mini instead will probably go for a second Captivate Glide for my gym and car audio use.
God knows when we'll see an S3 QWERTY variant.
Long live hardware QWERTY keyboards!
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I doubt we'll ever see any more QWERTY devices. The last one was released in September 2012, and there hasn't been any word on a new phone coming out. And very few of the phones available are actual high end premium stuff. Not the mid range garbage you're used to seeing all the time.
They are getting quite rare and hard to come by.
incidentflux said:
Indeed this is an S2 variant with QWERTY sans FM radio hardware and larger screen. I was thinking of getting an S3 Mini instead will probably go for a second Captivate Glide for my gym and car audio use.
God knows when we'll see an S3 QWERTY variant.
Long live hardware QWERTY keyboards!
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S3 with a keyboard would be so sweet!
JB
dudejb said:
S3 with a keyboard would be so sweet!
JB
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http://www.christianpost.com/news/samsung-galaxy-s3-with-qwerty-keyboard-launching-on-t-mobile-this-month-81229/
http://www.samsung.com/us/mobile/cell-phones/SGH-T699DABTMB-features
Speaking of the Relay 4G, I actually just picked one up.
I can safely say, the hardware is flawless. It actually covers EVERY one of the faults I listed with the Glide.
I don't want to trade in my Glide just yet though, considering dev support for the Glide is much further along (nearly perfect).
If anyone would like direct comparisons or side by side details, please let me know. Both of these phones are arguably the best Android QWERTYs currently on the market.
gtmaster303 said:
Speaking of the Relay 4G, I actually just picked one up.
I can safely say, the hardware is flawless. It actually covers EVERY one of the faults I listed with the Glide.
I don't want to trade in my Glide just yet though, considering dev support for the Glide is much further along (nearly perfect).
If anyone would like direct comparisons or side by side details, please let me know. Both of these phones are arguably the best Android QWERTYs currently on the market.
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agreed ... i need to get me a relay as well...
gtmaster303 said:
Speaking of the Relay 4G, I actually just picked one up.
I can safely say, the hardware is flawless. It actually covers EVERY one of the faults I listed with the Glide.
I don't want to trade in my Glide just yet though, considering dev support for the Glide is much further along (nearly perfect).
If anyone would like direct comparisons or side by side details, please let me know. Both of these phones are arguably the best Android QWERTYs currently on the market.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi gtmaster! I found this forum (and you!) looking for a comparative between captivate glide and relay. I read your great review about the glide, and I'll be very interested if you could write some sort of summary telling what is better and what is worse in the relay.
Of course my biggest concern is how the keyboard performs (if not I wouln't be looking for a qwerty ), but for example, how the 5MP camera in the relay compare to the 8MP in the glide, regarding pictures and videos?
Thanks in advance mate!
ninguno2 said:
Hi gtmaster! I found this forum (and you!) looking for a comparative between captivate glide and relay. I read your great review about the glide, and I'll be very interested if you could write some sort of summary telling what is better and what is worse in the relay.
Of course my biggest concern is how the keyboard performs (if not I wouln't be looking for a qwerty ), but for example, how the 5MP camera in the relay compare to the 8MP in the glide, regarding pictures and videos?
Thanks in advance mate!
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Sorry, been pretty caught up lately, but I haven't forgotten about you. I'll try and get some comparisons up tonight. 12 hours shifts really do take a toll on you
Sent from my Captivate Glide
I think this is a great review. I just wanted to add a few notes from my own perspective.
Keyboard: This is the worst keyboard I've ever owned. My previous devices have been blackberries up until getting a Stratosphere last year. It's soft, the targets are imprecise, and the tactical feedback is... squishy. Being 4-rows sucks, and aside from that it's marginally worse than the Strat in feel (strat is 5 row and, well... better.) Still, compared to BB, a joke. This keyboard actually drops to the level of being fatiguing to use. Where I would have no problem writing a novel on the BB, and a blog post on the Strat, I've actually started to use the virtual keyboard even for poking around in C source files on the terminal in VIM.
Hardware: Damn this tegra 2 is fast and silky. I have a side-by-side debian install and even building C++ projects I feel is only limited by the SD card speed. I can't see needing to upgrade this guy for a long time. Unless the Blaze has a much better keyboard (and has 1900mhz support, I travel the globe, dammit.)
Network: Has been pretty good. I'm travelling in Costa Rica right now, and I get HSPA+ almost everywhere. A few times I have had to re-register on the network (even a reboot wouldn't get me back) but I blame that on latin america cell service.
Wifi: Reception is about on par with other phones. Not as good as my Nexus7, nowhere near as good as my laptop, but if I'm reasonably close to the signal it does OK.
Battery: Bad. I got even got a giant 3800mah beast. Fortunately with thegreatergood's cm10.1, latest litekernel, inverted apps, and ondemand governor, I've gotten it to where it is serviceable. Being a former BB user, I still scratch my head when people think getting through almost an entire day with barely using your device before it dies means it's good. I can get about 2-3 hours of screen time now before things start to get low, and it can idle for days. I'd like more, but soldering the stock battery in parallel to this monster I have in here doesn't seem like an awesome idea.
Overall I'm extremely pleased with this device. It's so fluid and smooth - all of that "Android lag/stutter" I've come to expect over the years (developing on android and such, just never using one as my personal device) is all gone. It's not as "smooth" as my wife's jesusPhone4s, but god the UI on her phone seems so primitive and ugly compared to mine.
I feel like this is the first phone (thanks to thegreatergood, dman and CM10 team) that I'm really happy with since my torch, but I use it more than the torch because that was basically only good for talk/text/email. This phone is inferior at the text/email part, but better at everything else. And I can run a full blown Django dev server on it so I can code on the road .
Review Relay 4G
ninguno2 said:
Hi gtmaster! I found this forum (and you!) looking for a comparative between captivate glide and relay. I read your great review about the glide, and I'll be very interested if you could write some sort of summary telling what is better and what is worse in the relay.
Of course my biggest concern is how the keyboard performs (if not I wouln't be looking for a qwerty ), but for example, how the 5MP camera in the relay compare to the 8MP in the glide, regarding pictures and videos?
Thanks in advance mate!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So in response to your query (better late than never)...
The Relay 4G is much better than the Captivate Glide in a lot of key areas. I feel as though Samsung deliberately took the Glide back to the drawing board and corrected most, if not all of the flaws the phone had.
For starters, it's a much better device to hold. The back of the Captivate Glide is very slippery, despite being raised and textured plastic. I don't know why but I'm always scared of dropping it. The Relay 4G has a soft touch finish on the back which nicer to hold and easier to grip. Even though the Relay is marginally bigger than the Glide, the tapered and rounded edges make it fit in the hand naturally. The hand is not made to accommodate flat and angular objects well. This is especially apparent when you hold up an iPhone 4/4S/5. Sure, it's a high end device and feels like a luxury item, but it never felt ergonomic.
The phone has a notification light (Hurrah!). It also has a physical home button. It's well placed and easily accessible, making the phone to turn on a breeze.
The keyboard. Ok, this is where things get interesting.... It's not a bad keyboard by any means. I've used quite a few keyboards over the past few years and this one is somewhere in the middle. On the one hand, the keys are very responsive and properly spaced out (horizontally). But on the other hand, the whole orientation of the keyboard is shifted to the left for some reason. It doesn't feel centered or natural. You can grow accustomed to anything over time, and this by no means a deal breaker but it is a quirk to be mentioned. Also, I noticed that the keys themselves are very thin. Although the typing and feedback is precise, there's not much room between the keys vertically. I feel like Samsung focused hard on trying to cram a number row into a dedicated keyboard space and slightly ruined it.
The camera is decent. It's by no means the best camera you will ever use, and it will get the job done in a pinch. But don't ditch your old point and shoot for this camera. There's a lot of noise whenever you take pictures with a lot of detail. If you put in a little effort though, it will give you some great shots for a phone. I think when Samsung was designing this phone, the camera is where they cut corners and I'm glad they decided to do that here. I'd rather they cut corners here than with the keyboard, battery, or design.
The way I see it is, if you're buying a phone for its camera, you're buying it for the wrong reason. The cameras that manufacturers slap onto the back of phones these days are monumentally better than they used to be, but in the real world they still pale in comparison to a dedicated point and shoot. Sure you can probably get some amazing shots when you put them side by side. But with the phone, the angle, lighting, distance, location, status of your marriage, amount of mortgage you have left, what day of the week it is, and what kind of car you drive all have to be just right to get those amazing shots. Smartphones are closing the gap, but we're not there yet folks...
Overall the Relay feels solid in the hand, but at the end of the day it's still plastic. I don't care what you have to say about plastic or what kind of finish you put on it. The phone still feels cheaper (notice I didn't say cheap outright). It's solid I'll give you that, but you don't get the sense that you have a high end crafted device. Nor is this meant to be. Plastic and quality never go in the same sentence, no matter how hard you try. You cannot escape the fact that this phone is very generic bland looking, plasticky, and boring black. Personally I don't care so much for looks as I do for functionality, but ever since I've moved away from HTC devices and into Samsung devices, I noticed that the physical presentation of the phone isn't anything to write home about. Although I will say the styling is slightly better than the Captivate Glide. But that's like saying Rosie O'Donnell is slightly better looking than Whoopi Goldberg.
The Relay is, what the Captivate Glide should've been. After spending some time with the Relay, I realize that the Glide was more of an afterthought, rather than an actual phone designed for people who love a keyboard. So would I say you get one? ABSOLUTELY. But do I expect more from Samsung, or any manufacturer that's going to make the next android QWERTY? Yes.
Does any of that really matter? Not in the least. Because whoever makes the next QWERTY (assuming there is one), knows that it's a lukewarm market with no competitors and the sole buyers being the low-mid range market, texting teenagers, and us.
Thank you for your reviews.
I don't own a Relay, but reading the specs it looks like glide has better camera (as you said), more powerful processor (please correct me) and gorilla glass, which Relay doesn't have.
Relay apparently has no FM Radio, which is a lack in Glide (not the main, yet i would enjoy).
Glide has 4 soft keys on the front, instead of Relay's 3 (and i think this is a point for Glide, for esthetics and functionality).
Looking at the specs, i don't understand what makes Relay so far better than Glide.
sbiricuda said:
Thank you for your reviews.
I don't own a Relay, but reading the specs it looks like glide has better camera (as you said), more powerful processor (please correct me) and gorilla glass, which Relay doesn't have.
Relay apparently has no FM Radio, which is a lack in Glide (not the main, yet i would enjoy).
Glide has 4 soft keys on the front, instead of Relay's 3 (and i think this is a point for Glide, for esthetics and functionality).
Looking at the specs, i don't understand what makes Relay so far better than Glide.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, the glide is definitely slower. Gorilla glass is just a gimmick as far as I'm concerned. Sure it may be stronger, but it all depends on how you drop your phone. If it impacts a certain way, it will crack. Sometimes you get lucky and it won't. It has more to do with the design rather than the glass itself.
I would much rather have a physical home button, even if it means I lose a soft key. The ease of use is tremendous.
The relay is an all around better package than the glide. It's not amazingly better in any single way, but all the little changes add up to make a big difference.
Sent from my Captivate Glide
Battery on the Glide, and Relay AT&T
Hello,
Thanks for the great reviews.
I've got two questions, first is the Relay an AT&T phone? I was under the impression it was not.
Second, with regards to the battery on the Glide, for me I've found it rather disappointing, if I barely use the phone, I can get two days out of it. This is not ideal, I don't want a phone just to sit around, I want to talk, text, that's the main maybe some google play stuff, a hard day of use and I've got to charge the battery nightly. I'd love to know tips on battery improvement or a battery of the extended variety that will work with the glide?
Thanks.
tech927
1 full day's use with a battery is not considered to be dsiappointing in the Android world. It is rather considered fair.
tech927 said:
Hello,
Thanks for the great reviews.
I've got two questions, first is the Relay an AT&T phone? I was under the impression it was not.
Second, with regards to the battery on the Glide, for me I've found it rather disappointing, if I barely use the phone, I can get two days out of it. This is not ideal, I don't want a phone just to sit around, I want to talk, text, that's the main maybe some google play stuff, a hard day of use and I've got to charge the battery nightly. I'd love to know tips on battery improvement or a battery of the extended variety that will work with the glide?
Thanks.
tech927
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The relay is a tmobile phone, but it supports AT&Ts bands.
There are quite a few battery threads out there. Go search
Sent from my Galaxy S Relay
I would like to preface this with a couple of items:
1. I have owned these Samsung mobiledevices:
Vibrant
GS 2
GS 3
GN 2
N 10
So it IS fair to say that I have a preference for Samsung devices
2. My unit, mfg date 5/11 ...does not seem to suffer from some of the screen issues that others are having. As for overheating... my GS 3 and GN 2 get blisteringly hot when running 3D intensive games. That, is a reality of mobile gaming... that much computing power in such a small, passively cooled form factor is a recipe for poor heat dissipation. Thus, I do not find the GS 4 to be any different (neither a step back nor an improvement in heat dissipation.)
Those caveats aside, here are my initial impressions:
1. Aesthetically speaking, this is the closest in form to an iPhone that I have perceived a galaxy device to be. Does it bother me...not particularly, but it does give credence to those who bemoan "copy cat" and others who say that the galaxy design ethos is a bit... "tired".
2. Remaining on aesthetics for a moment, which is a very subjective matter....mind you, the GS 4 does not hold a candle to the HTC one. In my opinion, one is a ground-up rethink of mobile design with "form" being a primary emphasis... the other a simple continuation of a design that has met with success in the market. While the GS 4 is not ugly... the HTC One IS stunning. I tip my cap to HTC... (and to some extent sony), and hope that it will push Mobile Divisions to approach future design, with part ruler and part brush.
3. Durability: Now I don't have the stones to just drop my phone; nor has my ownership period been long enough to rebuke anyone else...but the device feels surprisingly sturdy in my hands. Reading some of the comments on the board... and coming from the Brick that is the GN 2 (which survived several falls unscathed), I expected the GS 4 to be a porcelain doll. Frail and fragile to the touch. Not the case. It is clearly lighter than the GS 3 and slimmer as well, but it does not feel like it was done to so at the expense of durability. Now I know that there are plenty of comments and reviews that dispute this... but, in MY hands, some of the initial concern that was raised by all reports has been dispelled. I hope (keyword) that the hairline fractures some have experienced are a mfg anomaly and not a design flaw.
4. Smart gestures: I am one, who truly thinks that this could be a revolution in mobile technology...and I admire what Sammy is trying to accomplish here. But (you knew one was coming), the current implementation just feels not-ready-for-primetime. The gestures do not respond as intended all the time... and sometimes they just flat out don't work. When they do... it is impressive, and is a window in the future of interaction with technology. Given time, I think samsung will iron the kinks out.... I just don't think we will see that on the GS 4.
5. UI: Touchwiz is a love or hate proposition for many... personally, I tend to use some functions and replace others. That being said, whether its smart gesture integration, poor coding or loads of bloatware...sammy dropped the ball here. The UI feels clunky and gimmiky... and lags on hardware that should easily breeze through transitions, screen renders and app launches. You can literally feel the Snapdragon chomping on the bit... being restrained by a poorly designed UI. This to me, was the largest disappointment. Not because I don't think I can fix with kernel and Rom installations... but rather because I was so impressed with how far touchwiz had come on my GN2. This feels like a huge step back... with stutters and judder reminiscent of my Vibrant. For me aesthetics are a luxury... but function is a necessity. Multi-window does feel much smoother in this implementation...so there is that, but still, for shame sammy (don't take 1 step back for every 2 forward). Again, our community will most certainly solve these issues... but it should not exist out of the box for premium hardware.
6. Camera: Very simply, impressive. Will it replace your D9...or any nice DSLR? No. Does it take sharp photos, with a bevy of adjustments, filters and post processing perks? Yes. Can it serve as an everyday shooter? Absolutely. Crisp photos, quick autofocus and no shutter lag make it a joy to snap shots with. Low light performance does lag behind some other phones (notably Nokia and HTC)... but I find this to be the only shortcoming.
7. GPS: It works. Well. I will never....ever.... ever...forget the vibrant debacle. It is the first thing I check on all my TMO samsung devices
8. Display: I left this for last... because, really if you didn't read anything else (TL;DR) then know this: the display ALONE is worth the price of admission. Maybe I have been conditioned as such... but when it comes to mobile devices give me the deep blacks of AMOLED over LCD. Furthermore, sammy had learned a bit from the community, and toned down some of the intrinsic oversaturation. The clarity, rendering and overall visual candy of the 1080x1920 Super AMOLDED is OUTSTANDING. Apple, HTC, LG all make excellent flagship phones... this is reality. No one touches the display technology of Samsung, yet... this is fact. The pixel density allows for the obliteration of any aliasing due to the pentile arrangement. It is jaw-dropping. For those who have gotten a device with screen issues... I wouldn't wait, return it and return it and return it until you get one that is perfect, because it is well worth the hassle.
Conclusion:
Is the Galaxy design, tired and in need of a refresh...probably. Is the HTC One the "prettiest" device on the market... certainly. Did touchwiz initially sour my excitement...definitely. However, those who compare the GS3 to GS4 evolution to the iPhone X to iPhone Xs tract... neither know android nor samsung hardware. Though the design is not a complete or even partial refresh (though I love the way the GS4 feels in my hand as compared to the GS3 and even my GN2) this phone is clearly the next step forward in Samsungs continued mobile presence. The hardware is top notch and only slightly fettered by TW. The display is stunning and the camera and accompanying software a leap forward from both the GN2 and GS3. The continued dedication to sd card expansion and removable batteries should not be underscored.
Perhaps the GN3 or the next GS will feature an aesthetic redesign befitting the hardware inside... and if that is of the utmost importance, than by all means you can wait. Or buy the One, (which in my time with, I did truly enjoy...). But...
If you are eligible for the upgrade... or have some coin kicking around, I can say with all confidence that Galaxy S4 is a top flight device... and quite possibly the best available on the market today.
Nice review Poser. I too have had an GS2, GS3, GN2 and now GS4. I feel you have hit it right on the head. TW is disappointing and the hardware isn't very exciting (except cam). But the device is top notch and Sammy did a good job overall. I came from VZW to Tmobs because of Wifi call/text. Such a great feature!!!
I just got a s4. My old phone was the s3. The phone is great but heres my view on it. It is no different than the s3 except it is faster cpu wise and has a higher res screen. If u had an s3 next to an s4 (like i do) and played around with both of them you would think its the same phone. Some of the features are pointless on the s4. Like air guestures (in my opinion). They are novelties. Why wave my hand 3 inches above the screen to scroll through pictures when i could simply just lower my finger 3 inches and swipe through my pics? All and all it is the fastest phone out and im happy i got it. But if i was goin to keep my s3 though, there wouldnt be much differance.
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda app-developers app
As much as some people despise TouchWiz and the Samsung Apps that are preloaded, I actually like using some of the features.
I think, so far, my favorite is the Air Hover where I can preview emails.
Nice op. I had the S3 on Sprint, which was a great device as long as I was on Wifi. So far I have been very happy with the S4 on T Mobile. All the pros as noted above, plus an affordable data plan with excellent coverage for my areas. The wifi calling feature is simply awesome and all carriers should have this technology built in. As far as touchwiz goes, I find it to be functionally quite similar to vanilla android, meaning the basic functions work the same way. For example, adding widgets or adding a shortcut to the dock is done easily (as opposed to how the latest Sense does it). The esthetics are a different matter but are easily altered. Lag is zero with some basic tweaks.
Very well worded essay, Poser. My thanks for addressing aspects of the phone that are important to me (how well the GPS works in particular, which few people seem to comment on). I too hope (and expect) that the reports of screen cracks are an indication of defective samples and not a design flaw. I find it hard to believe that the design would not have been subject to a battery of stress tests.
I spent some time looking at and handling the phone at Best Buy, and I liked how it felt in my hand. That experience makes me dismiss comments about the plastic construction. Seeing the phone up close and personal also showed me just how gorgeous the display is (it truly is eye candy), and thanks for emphasizing this point.
Some additional thoughts:
1. Wifi calling is exceptional when it works flawlessly... I have noticed that it does experience voice dropouts, call answering issues and connecting issues. This was a problem that was present in my S3 GN2 and S4, and does seem to be software propigated (independent of access point).
2. Disabling smart gestures and home key activation of S Voice... SIGNIFICANTLY reduces lag
3. The screen is Amazing. I cant say this enough,
Coming form sgsii
While rebooting, flashing roms, running ANY benchmark, taking video, or browsing the web the phone compared to my SGSII gets way hotter than i would have ever imagined. maybe it is just my phone, however i cant get a stable overclock at all. my MAX stable OC is 1999mhz..... really? that's just a 100mhz overhead from stock........ a 5.2% increase in speed is all i can get.......... in contrast my SGSII i was able to get 300mhz out of it (25% increase in speed) and it would run cooler than this phone on stock.....
however at stock speeds the SGS4 is snappy, lag free, FAST, comfortable to hold, poor battery life, bright screen, alright overall
7 out of 10 is what i give MY phone. as it did meet my personal expectations. I was hoping for 2.2ghz cpu stable 550mhz gpu and then i could see it getting as hot as it is now. i guess i just got a poor OC phone
I'm thinking about shorting the circuit board while it is on, and if that doesn't work, i will hook up usb cable to straight 120VAC wall current and see if it explodes. at least i would get a different phone....
overall disappointed in the phone i got, however the phone itself, like most Samsung products is GREAT!
jimmboonline said:
While rebooting, flashing roms, running ANY benchmark, taking video, or browsing the web the phone compared to my SGSII gets way hotter than i would have ever imagined. maybe it is just my phone, however i cant get a stable overclock at all. my MAX stable OC is 1999mhz..... really? that's just a 100mhz overhead from stock........ a 5.2% increase in speed is all i can get.......... in contrast my SGSII i was able to get 300mhz out of it (25% increase in speed) and it would run cooler than this phone on stock.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, IIRC the GS2 only had a dual core CPU clocked around 1.2-1.5GHz, so to be fair you can expect the GS2 to be cooler and more stable since the stock speed is lower and less cores.
jimmboonline said:
I'm thinking about shorting the circuit board while it is on, and if that doesn't work, i will hook up usb cable to straight 120VAC wall current and see if it explodes. at least i would get a different phone....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd like to see a video of that...
Poser said:
I would like to preface this with a couple of items:
1. I have owned these Samsung mobiledevices:
Vibrant
GS 2
GS 3
GN 2
N 10
So it IS fair to say that I have a preference for Samsung devices
2. My unit, mfg date 5/11 ...does not seem to suffer from some of the screen issues that others are having. As for overheating... my GS 3 and GN 2 get blisteringly hot when running 3D intensive games. That, is a reality of mobile gaming... that much computing power in such a small, passively cooled form factor is a recipe for poor heat dissipation. Thus, I do not find the GS 4 to be any different (neither a step back nor an improvement in heat dissipation.)
Those caveats aside, here are my initial impressions:
1. Aesthetically speaking, this is the closest in form to an iPhone that I have perceived a galaxy device to be. Does it bother me...not particularly, but it does give credence to those who bemoan "copy cat" and others who say that the galaxy design ethos is a bit... "tired".
2. Remaining on aesthetics for a moment, which is a very subjective matter....mind you, the GS 4 does not hold a candle to the HTC one. In my opinion, one is a ground-up rethink of mobile design with "form" being a primary emphasis... the other a simple continuation of a design that has met with success in the market. While the GS 4 is not ugly... the HTC One IS stunning. I tip my cap to HTC... (and to some extent sony), and hope that it will push Mobile Divisions to approach future design, with part ruler and part brush.
3. Durability: Now I don't have the stones to just drop my phone; nor has my ownership period been long enough to rebuke anyone else...but the device feels surprisingly sturdy in my hands. Reading some of the comments on the board... and coming from the Brick that is the GN 2 (which survived several falls unscathed), I expected the GS 4 to be a porcelain doll. Frail and fragile to the touch. Not the case. It is clearly lighter than the GS 3 and slimmer as well, but it does not feel like it was done to so at the expense of durability. Now I know that there are plenty of comments and reviews that dispute this... but, in MY hands, some of the initial concern that was raised by all reports has been dispelled. I hope (keyword) that the hairline fractures some have experienced are a mfg anomaly and not a design flaw.
4. Smart gestures: I am one, who truly thinks that this could be a revolution in mobile technology...and I admire what Sammy is trying to accomplish here. But (you knew one was coming), the current implementation just feels not-ready-for-primetime. The gestures do not respond as intended all the time... and sometimes they just flat out don't work. When they do... it is impressive, and is a window in the future of interaction with technology. Given time, I think samsung will iron the kinks out.... I just don't think we will see that on the GS 4.
5. UI: Touchwiz is a love or hate proposition for many... personally, I tend to use some functions and replace others. That being said, whether its smart gesture integration, poor coding or loads of bloatware...sammy dropped the ball here. The UI feels clunky and gimmiky... and lags on hardware that should easily breeze through transitions, screen renders and app launches. You can literally feel the Snapdragon chomping on the bit... being restrained by a poorly designed UI. This to me, was the largest disappointment. Not because I don't think I can fix with kernel and Rom installations... but rather because I was so impressed with how far touchwiz had come on my GN2. This feels like a huge step back... with stutters and judder reminiscent of my Vibrant. For me aesthetics are a luxury... but function is a necessity. Multi-window does feel much smoother in this implementation...so there is that, but still, for shame sammy (don't take 1 step back for every 2 forward). Again, our community will most certainly solve these issues... but it should not exist out of the box for premium hardware.
6. Camera: Very simply, impressive. Will it replace your D9...or any nice DSLR? No. Does it take sharp photos, with a bevy of adjustments, filters and post processing perks? Yes. Can it serve as an everyday shooter? Absolutely. Crisp photos, quick autofocus and no shutter lag make it a joy to snap shots with. Low light performance does lag behind some other phones (notably Nokia and HTC)... but I find this to be the only shortcoming.
7. GPS: It works. Well. I will never....ever.... ever...forget the vibrant debacle. It is the first thing I check on all my TMO samsung devices
8. Display: I left this for last... because, really if you didn't read anything else (TL;DR) then know this: the display ALONE is worth the price of admission. Maybe I have been conditioned as such... but when it comes to mobile devices give me the deep blacks of AMOLED over LCD. Furthermore, sammy had learned a bit from the community, and toned down some of the intrinsic oversaturation. The clarity, rendering and overall visual candy of the 1080x1920 Super AMOLDED is OUTSTANDING. Apple, HTC, LG all make excellent flagship phones... this is reality. No one touches the display technology of Samsung, yet... this is fact. The pixel density allows for the obliteration of any aliasing due to the pentile arrangement. It is jaw-dropping. For those who have gotten a device with screen issues... I wouldn't wait, return it and return it and return it until you get one that is perfect, because it is well worth the hassle.
Conclusion:
Is the Galaxy design, tired and in need of a refresh...probably. Is the HTC One the "prettiest" device on the market... certainly. Did touchwiz initially sour my excitement...definitely. However, those who compare the GS3 to GS4 evolution to the iPhone X to iPhone Xs tract... neither know android nor samsung hardware. Though the design is not a complete or even partial refresh (though I love the way the GS4 feels in my hand as compared to the GS3 and even my GN2) this phone is clearly the next step forward in Samsungs continued mobile presence. The hardware is top notch and only slightly fettered by TW. The display is stunning and the camera and accompanying software a leap forward from both the GN2 and GS3. The continued dedication to sd card expansion and removable batteries should not be underscored.
Perhaps the GN3 or the next GS will feature an aesthetic redesign befitting the hardware inside... and if that is of the utmost importance, than by all means you can wait. Or buy the One, (which in my time with, I did truly enjoy...). But...
If you are eligible for the upgrade... or have some coin kicking around, I can say with all confidence that Galaxy S4 is a top flight device... and quite possibly the best available on the market today.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
great review OP, thanks!
Anyone who decided to return their s7 and go for the HTC 10, is there anything you miss from your s7?
Thanks!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/htc-10/help/planning-to-switch-s7-edge-t3371639
I really want the HTC 10 but their shoddy release so far is making me very impatient. I may be forced into an S7, sadly.
The only thing I miss is the wireless charging.
I have both phones currently.
What I've noticed so far that I miss about the s7: it's narrower. With the leather case on it, it's only 20 thousandths of an inch thicker than the htc10 without a case. The case selection for the s7 is so much better. I'm sure it's more than cases, but that was the issue I encountered the most. The screen auto brightness adjusted faster on the s7. The s7 being waterproof... I actually have this cross my mind every day or two, but I haven't been in a situation yet where it would have mattered.
For the HTC, the radio is better. I'm on Verizon, specifically the CDMA radio has better reception for longer. The speakers are better for sure. I'm getting 30 to 45 minutes better battery life on average. It's nice not theming everything black by necessity. The home button being capacitive is so nice compared to the s7. Fluid Android is fluid.
Both phones are Verizon.
Sent from my HTC6545LVW using XDA-Developers mobile app
Forgot the waterproof thing. Would be nice to have, but in 20 years I've never lost a phone due to water damage so not a huge loss. Screen on the S7 is brighter outdoors.
I miss the multi window on most Samsung's
I miss the battery life my exynos s7 edge provided. However I'm still making it the entire day with my HTC so it's not a big deal
Sent from my HTC 10 using Tapatalk
Thanks for the replies!
Came from a T-Mo S7 Edge to a T-Mo HTC 10.
Right off the bat, the most glaring advantage that I missed from the S7 Edge was the screen. The colors just pop on that gorgeous amoled. In the days since I've bought my HTC 10 I've grown to like the cooler color temp on the LCD but I'd trade it for those oversaturated colors in a heartbeat lol.
Battery life has been a wash for the most part between both devices with the S7 Edge pulling ahead slightly (3600 mah battery so its to be expected).
Performance wise -- Sense blows Touchwiz out of the water. Its gotten better with each iteration of Touchwiz but micro-lag and even sustained lag rear their ugly heads when navigating through Samsung's flavor of Android. The HTC 10 handles everything with ease and never slows down. S7E does as well for the most part, but the lag is unavoidable in some instances. All of this being said, I did find the S7E to run much cooler than my HTC 10.
Finally, if you plan on making any modifications or if you're somebody who is into tinkering with your Android devices, avoid the S7/S7E at all costs. The HTC 10 is the best device for this due to dev friendly community and HTC's willingness to allow you to modify their devices. The HTC 10 has an unlockable bootloader and some day has a very good chance of seeing many competent AOSP roms. AOSP on the S7/S7E is currently a pipe dream. Even custom roms are a no go at this point and Samsung's knox/bootloader security only becomes more of a pain in the ass for devs with each iteration. It really has taken a toll on what used to be a thriving community for the Samsung devices.
All in all, I am extremely satisfied with switching from the S7E to the HTC 10 for what its worth.
I actually went through the S7, HTC 10 and landed on the S7 Edge. Here's my opinion for what it's worth:
I really thought this would be the perfect HTC phone, and I actually really wanted it to be the one since I think the company has had great ideas in the past that have been trampled by poor execution. My first Android phone was the HTC One M7, and aside from the so-so camera, it was one of my favorite phones ever. BoomSound, Sense, and the phone's overall look were something totally new and refreshing. After reading the reviews of the M8's camera, I decided to pass and went back to Apple for a year. When the M9 came out, I jumped on it, and quickly jumped off after I had a few days to learn all about the Snapdragon 810 and its thermal issues. I picked up an LG G4 next, which was serviceable, but nothing special. I always had my eye on HTC though waiting for the 10.
Once it came out, I made sure to read all the reviews that I could, crossing my fingers that HTC would hit the mark. After I saw that the camera was finally up to snuff, I took the plunge and bought it. $699 is a steep price for a phone, but I managed to catch the $100 discount offer and got it for $599 before tax, which was great. I also got it in 2 days, which was nice considering I heard that some people here on XDA were having ordering problems.
After using the phone for a few days, and comparing it side-by-side to the S7, I started to make a mental list of pros and cons
PROS
- Screen: HTC has always had good screens on their flagships, and the 10 is no different. Bright and vibrant colors with great viewing angles. Obviously they're not as saturated as Samsung's AMOLEDs, but you can set the LCD display to vivid mode to approximate it, or sRGB mode for nice accurate colors
- Sound Quality: While the external speakers aren't as good as the original BoomSound, they're more than capable and produce an interesting sound. The BoomSound equalizer settings also makes your music sound great with headphones. I didn't get to test out HTC's own earbuds though since they didn't come with the US version
- Build Quality: The phone feels as solid as ever, but that's also a con that you'll see below
- Battery Life: I never had any trouble getting through a whole day of texting, web browsing, light gaming and listening to music
- Camera: While it might not be able to quite pass Samsung, it gives them a good fight. Easily the one of the top cameras on the market behind the Galaxy Brothers, and HTCs best camera ever. The selfie cam is great too, and it's actually better than what Samsung has to offer on it's S7 models. My only little gripe with the rear camera is that the laser autofocus can be a little spastic, going in and out of focus when you activate it, but I feel like another software update can take care of that
- Fingerprint Scanner: One of my favorite features. It was really quick to read my fingerprint, and since it's a a capacative sensor instead of a physical button, you don't have to press it down to activate the display and scanner. Just put your finger on it and it works
CONS
- Sense: I loved the previous versions of Sense, but I think HTC toned this one down a little too much. I appreciate the fact that there aren't any duplicate apps like there are on most devices, but I feel like taking out the HTC Gallery and Music apps was a mistake. Visually, this version is a mix of classic Sense and stock Android, which doesn't always combine well. Some of Sense's elements (like the weather clock) are starting to look a little dated compared to the competition too, so the contrast between MM and Sense is a little jarring on some menus. I also don't understand why HTC kept the 4x4 homescreen now that the phone has a 5.2" display. With so much real estate to work with, the gaps between apps are pretty big, and I feel like there should be a setting to go to 5x5 since most other OEMs include that. The Quick Settings menu also can't be modified like it could be in older Sense versions and competitor UIs, and you have to either double pull to extend it, or swipe down with two fingers. If I wanted a Nexus, I'd have bought one
- Build Quality: As I mentioned above, the phone feels really solid, almost to the point of being heavy. It weighs 6 grams more than my old G4, which was mostly plastic, and you can feel it. It's very noticeable when it's in your pocket, and makes a bit of a thud when you put it down on a table. Even adding a thin TPU case to it also increases the weight to the point where I felt uncomfortable handling it one-handed
- Screen-Body Radio: My LG G4 had a 5.5 inch display and was 148.9 mm tall. The HTC 10 has a 5.2" display and is 145.9 mm tall. So the phones are relatively the same size and the 10 has a noticeably smaller screen.
- FM Radio: HTC has included FM radio support from the M7 - M9, and I was really surprised that it didn't continue that trend with the 10. Carriers like T-Mobile & AT&T are requesting that OEMs enable their device's FM chips, and T-Mo just got Samsung to flip the switch on the S7's radio, so I don't understand why HTC didn't just keep doing what they were already doing.
- Headphone Jack: Most phones had their headphone jack at the top up until a few years ago. Putting it at the bottom made it easier to just slip the phone in your pocket without tangling the headphone cord. With the advent of fingerprint scanners, it made even more sense, since you could grab the phone and unlock it before you even got it out into the open. Having the jack back up at the top made me have to think every time I pulled it out and have to flip it back around.
- Notification LED: Back when I had the M7, I was OK with having a tiny notification LED embedded in the speaker grid that only flashed 2 colors, even though other OEMs already had multicolor LEDs that could be programmed using their own software or apps like Lightwave. Three years later, the only thing HTC has changed is that the LED is just below the speaker. It still only blinks amber or green, so there's almost no opportunity to customize
I really wanted to like this phone, and I tried very hard to convince myself that it was good enough, but at the end of the day I was disappointed that HTC spent the last year getting so many things right like the camera and the phone's overall look, and blew it on some other areas that would have been really easy wins. Granted, nothing that I listed above is a horrible flaw, and I know that everyone has their own list of requirements for their ideal device, but I felt like I was making too many compromises with the 10. I know that I could always load up a ROM or download a new launcher, but it would only solve a few of my cons.
Again, these are my personal opinions, and my thought process is that if I'm going to spend that much on a flagship device that I want to keep for 2 years, I need to feel like I'm getting what I paid for. Unfortunately the 10 didn't quite hit that mark. It's not a bad phone by any stretch, and it may be the one for you. I decided to return my S7 and the HTC, and went with the S7 Edge, which rocks a 5.5" screen, 3600 mAh battery, and is only 5 mm taller than the 10. It's also 4 grams lighter and 1.3 mm thinner, and feels a lot better in my hand even with a case. It costs about $70 more the 10 at full retail, but I feel like you get a lot more for your money.
Maybe the water resistance feature, otherwise, I didn't care for anything else. The 10 seems solid, doesn't lag as much as the samsung. I am unlocked and rooted , so it is something I am grateful for after rocking the s7 for only 1 months.
I am getting better battery performance with the HTC 10 compared to what I got with the s7.
Personally nothing is missed I had the s7, now it's my wife's lol
Love this HTC 10
Got the s7e one week to test, before i got my preordered htc 10. Screen(manufacter;sharp) is much better and much more natural than the S7 "comic style" display no matter which calibration i used. Also there are "pentile micro dots" visible while zooming in a white page on the amoled of the s7.
UI: Much smoother, and the stockish design of the ui is perfect for me as i came from a thc m7 gpe. Also less bloatware on the 10.
Cons: thermal throttling seems to be more a problem of the 10 as on the s7e exynos. Hope custom kernel or software update will change the clocking, as it throttles the CPU at 38degrees celsius to 1,36 max clock at the moment.
S7e cam is slightly better in my opinion.
Which fingerprint sensor do you guys think is better?
I had a s7e, I find the fingerprint sensor on the 10 better. I haven't really had too much throttling so far either.
Sent from my HTC 10 using XDA-Developers mobile app
I've heard in quite a few reviews that the HTC 10 sensor is superior to the S7/S7 Edge.
Alot of S7/S7 Edge reviews describe the sensor as hit or miss.
Sammae7 said:
I've heard in quite a few reviews that the HTC 10 sensor is superior to the S7/S7 Edge.
Alot of S7/S7 Edge reviews describe the sensor as hit or miss.
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Ah, I see.
Just to be clear, I own neither but have played with both in store and I do extensive research before purchase.
Based on the above, I do much prefer the HTC 10.
xperia x root said:
Got the s7e one week to test, before i got my preordered htc 10. Screen(manufacter;sharp) is much better and much more natural than the S7 "comic style" display no matter which calibration i used. Also there are "pentile micro dots" visible while zooming in a white page on the amoled of the s7.
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You have to be kidding. If you set any Samsung phone to "Basic," it is the most color accurate display on a smartphone, period. There is no "comic-ness" to it. It is a true reproduction of sRGB which actually looks extremely dull and boring, but it's accurate. The 10 is an LCD which is vastly inferior to OLED panels in phones. Worse viewing angles, and subjectively terrible contrast since 1700~:1 is garbage compared to infinite contrast.
I find it hard to believe you can see "micro dots" on a 500+ PPI screen. I can make out the edges of pixels on my 6P due to lack of antialiasing, but I haven't tried to on the S7E. Either way the 6P had to be up in my face, and I had to look hard to see it. But there were certainly no visible dots.
Lifehags said:
Which fingerprint sensor do you guys think is better?
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The 10's fingerprint sensor pad is too small in my opinion, but it is still better than the S7/E. Reason being it's capacitive, and a hair faster. Samsung are idiots for continuing to use a physical home button, and one you have to press to unlock the phone. But the accuracy rate of the S7/E is a lot better than it ever used to be - especially if you program the same finger twice (something I do on every device anyway). It may tell you the finger is already programmed, but just do the initial scan really far back from the pad of your finger, then it will let you scan wherever you want to again.
Have my exynos s7 edge on sale while I got this one to use. The HTC 10 is a great phone but in my opinion, not better than the s7 edge. What I miss mainly is the screen. I love LCD but the AMOLED display on the s7 edge is quite Good. Don't like the over saturation but got used to it. It's a darn good display. Sadly my HTC 10 display has a pink tint to it and the bottom of the phone has a strong pink tint to it (likely not a sharp panel from the few comments I've seen here and there). So far, battery life has not been great. My s7 was one of those that went long on battery. I can Un plug at 7 am and plug back in at midnight with 7 hours screen on time. With the same usage on my HTC, I'd be charging only @ 6pm with less screen on time. Also the camera is descent but doesn't focus like the s7 edge does @ night and ui wise, I've spent the phone micro stutter much more than my edge but not to the annoying degree. That's about it. What I live about this phone...the damn DAC. Holy crap it's good. Even listening to spotify feels like I'm listening to something almost magical lol.
Small things. GPS takes a while to lock and wifi module isn't as good as the exynos. I have 175mbps connection. I get the full thing in my room with both phones. In my restroom, 20 feet away from my room, my HTC only pulls 50mbps while the galaxy pulls 125mbps. Also, I got wifi in my car while parked in the street in front of my house. With the HTC, wifi disconnects in the exact same spot.
Sent from my HTC 10 using Tapatalk