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Hello,
I was so close to buy the Desire until I saw the ad of the Galaxy S..
Amazing screen (normal under sunlight), more powerful cpu/gpu.. but its Samsung! and after reading lots of comments they said that Samsung is crap! is it right? Why?
If its only the UI that is crap can I root it and install another room?
So, Should I wait for the Galaxy S or get the Desire?
Thanks.
DESIRE without doubt
It all depends on what you want. I have had Samsung phones in the past and they were pretty good. Those types of responses remind me of students in college who say "Yea...that professor is hard and rude...don't take him!'
IMHO the best thing to do is get some hands-on time with both of them if possible. Even try them out for a couple of days. That is the only way you will actually know which one is right for you.
you will actually know which one is right for you.
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Click to collapse
What do u mean by that?
They are the same super phones but with some advantages to the Galaxy, right?
I will use my phone for apps, games, multimedia, browsing etc. (not for business..) so I think both those phones are the top for these kind of stuff..
I just dont understand why everyone hates so much Samsung..
leoon said:
What do u mean by that?
They are the same super phones but with some advantages to the Galaxy, right?
I will use my phone for apps, games, multimedia, browsing etc. (not for business..) so I think both those phones are the top for these kind of stuff..
I just dont understand why everyone hates so much Samsung..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In other words...use your buyers-remorse, return/exchange period to try out both phones. Do research when the Samsung Galaxy S comes out and see what others have to say on the forums.
The worst thing you can do is be biased towards one or the other. If you believe what others say about Samsung and how sh*tty they are, then once you actually do see the phone...you will try to find some sort of discrepancy with it (its simple psychology )
Yes, the Galaxy has a bigger screen and a "rumored" faster processor. However, until the final product is made and released...the hardware and software can still change.
leoon said:
What do u mean by that?
They are the same super phones but with some advantages to the Galaxy, right?
I will use my phone for apps, games, multimedia, browsing etc. (not for business..) so I think both those phones are the top for these kind of stuff..
I just dont understand why everyone hates so much Samsung..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samsung are fully behind their new Bada OS. They've stated that only 20% or less of their devices from now on will run Android and I only expect that to go down. That and HTC are the de facto hardware standard for all Android devices.
Haha you have no clue.
Actually, 50% of Samsung phones will be Android and another 33% will be Bada. The rest is for Windows Phones and other crap.
In response to the thread question: I chose the Desire, because the Galaxy S doesn't have a flash for the camera.
One (and the only!) annoyance with the Desire is the limited internal storage for applications. It's only 140MB. You can install applications to the SD card, but it will still go down. According to Google, the option to install to the SD card will come to Android 'soon'.
The Galaxy S will also have the better screen I think. That's because the Desire's screen is not full 800x480, because it uses a pixel layout with only two sub-pixels instead of three, which makes it seem a little bit blurry (but really just a little bit).
And last, but not least, I think HTC's software is probably better than Samsung's. Sense (even if you don't like the launcher) is a very useful add-on (e.g. the much better dialer) and I am not sure about whether Samsung is able to compete in that regard.
I chose the Desire, because the Galaxy S doesn't have a flash for the camera.
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Click to collapse
It seems that you choose the Desire just because the galaxys doesnt have flash! even though the screen+cpu+720p video recording and still only for the lack of flash you dont choose the galaxys!?
What im gonna do is to wait till its released and read the indepth review about the phone.
Thanks for the replies goys.. i choose to wait.
I feel compelled to point out a few things in this discussion.
First, assuming that "buyer's remorse" is a global standard is a mistake. In many countries, including Sweden where I'm based, you can return products for up to 30 days after a purchase with the caveat that the package/seal is unbroken. This applies to electronics. This means that everybody needs to check up on their local regulations and that of the retailer before you go out and buy something, expecting to be able to fiddle with it and then just return it.
Secondly, calling Bada an OS is a misnomer. It's a platform. A platform that can be placed on many different OS's. To me, it sounds like Samsung will be releasing several phones with Bada on top of their own proprietary operating system until they can either see a clear winner of the OS market share battle or until the OS's catch up with what they want and know they can offer the market in terms of functionality. Of course, where the boundary between the platform and the OS goes is kind of an unknown, but I would be surprised if the Galaxy S didn't have an Android version of Bada placed on top of it - think of it as Samsung's Sense.
Thirdly and lastly, I think there is a lot of displeasure with Samsung among smartphone users because they have a tendency to both promise more than they can deliver and after the first few months of a new smartphone release quit updating the software. I own an Omnia i900 and an Omnia HD i8910 and speak from experience on this front. Mind you, the devices they put out are generally top-notch, but Samsung has a problem managing expectations.
My Desire is currently my main phone, but I'm still interested in the Galaxy S and will be waiting to see what the consumer verdict on it is once it comes out. As others have said, HTC offers a very useful overlay in Sense, the Desire is already rooted (you should never assume a phone will ever be rooted when you buy it, but it's more likely that HTC will, and in the case of the Desire it's already a fact) and, more than anything, the Desire development community is huge, active and dedicated. So at the end of the day, opting to wait several more months just to get a larger screen and a promise of 720p video recording does have its downsides.
I'm pretty interested in the Galaxy S, will almost certainly get one soon after release and see how I like it, so I can give a users comparison of both nearer the time. As per usual I'll keep whichever suits my use best.
Regards the pros for the Galaxy S, these are the main things as I see them, a few mentioned earlier and a few not yet mentioned:
- screen will be considerably better, more battery efficient, better sunlight legibility, larger, won't have the subpixels issue
- better battery capacity
- 8 or 16GB internal memory in addition to card slot
- the stills camera in all situations not requiring a flash is likely to be considerably better than the Desire's
- 720P video capture
- divx/xvid/mkv support out of the box, with certification for 720P avi playback
Worth noting that the last two there may yet come to the Desire, since they have been rumoured to be coming via firmware update for some time.
The main positives for the Desire is Root, more active Dev community, better HTC support in terms of FW upgrades/hotfixes etc.
Lets say it gets rooted, Will I be able to install into the Galaxy S the ROM of the Desire, so I can take advantage of the active dev community?
Thanks.
In theory, yes, you can. But there will be issues, which means it may not be worth it.
I think not, maybe, but different drivers..it would take time for sure!
leoon said:
It seems that you choose the Desire just because the galaxys doesnt have flash! even though the screen+cpu+720p video recording and still only for the lack of flash you dont choose the galaxys!?
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Click to collapse
Yes, just because of the flash. I absolutely need it, that's why I chose the Desire.
Other than the missing flash, the Galaxy looks quite good.
@NZtechfreak
Your points are right, except for the part about the camera. The Desire uses a camera module made by Samsung. The Galaxy will very likely use the exact same camera module. And of course, at night, it will be useless without the flash.
Galaxy S may be better hardware-wise, but..
It's possible that Galaxy S won't have flash (but there are some rumors it will), so that is a dealbreaker for me (the reason why I switched from the Hero).
The other (more important) reason is that previous Android phones from Samsung had almost no scene development going on. Just compare the Dream/Hero scene to the Galaxy i7500.
Last but not least Samsungs support and bugfixing is worse that HTCs (yes, it is possible ).
That is why I decided to go with the Desire. If you don't mind waiting I would suggest to wait for the Nexus Two.
Or you can wait until the Google I/O Conference...
Quist said:
As others have said, HTC offers a very useful overlay in Sense, the Desire is already rooted (you should never assume a phone will ever be rooted when you buy it, but it's more likely that HTC will, and in the case of the Desire it's already a fact) and, more than anything, the Desire development community is huge, active and dedicated.
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Hi all, been reading the Desire threads with interest as I'm able to upgrade in July, currently have a Blackstone, and at the mo it's most definately looking like the Desire will be my new phone, looks like a superb piece of kit, but, I need to use tethering on whatever handset I have, and up until now thought I would have to do this on a Desire via USB, because you can't do it wirelessly unless you root first.
Everything I have read here and anywhere else up until I read the above post says the Desire needs rooting to do this.
So, is it already rooted out of the box or not ? I'm puzzled !
Comments from a tester of RC1 firmware Galaxy S in an Australian forum:
- much faster in use than Desire
- much better screen (brightness, vividness & outdoors visibility)
- better battery life time than Desire with stock ROM (no hacks)
- camera is only ok
- very responsive touch
Just FYI. I think both phones are great.
two phones are great and the galaxy s does have super amoled, altho desire have amoled, super amoled is better under the sun. but somehow i don't like how the galaxy looks. it looks - plain, boring..
hopefully htc will release the update when froyo is out together with some fixes and 720p recording.
The only Android phone I would buy is Google branded or HTC. Because they have much more experience with Android than others, and they are more connected together. Also updates will be much more regular for Desire, since it is almost N1 clone. And community for HTC Android phones is much bigger than for Samsung.
I`m a bit confused right now ... i really loved the HTC evo 4G but since i live in India ... i cant get my hands on that...
The only good phones i am left with are desire , xperia x10 or samsung galaxy
Pls let me know which one should i go for
And i wanted to know how are the games in desire .. are they even comparable to iphone games??... and can it be jailbreaked like the iphone????
heres a youtube vid of nova on the desire
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Vn2DuPeE-E
Avoid the Xperia X10, mainly due to the terrible terrible battery life and the fact it's still running Android 1.6, as well has having much lower performance than the Desire and Nexus One which use almost identical internals.
As for 'jailbreaking', in Android circles the equivalent is known as 'rooting' to enable you to install all the awesome custom firmwares available on this forum to enable new features, speed up your device or even get the latest versions of Android before they're even released.
Games-wise, there is a decent selection, but truthfully the iPhone is the king of mobile gaming. I haven't found this to be a problem however, as I realised after owning an iPod Touch before my android phone that with most games I'll play them for a few minutes when I download them and then never really touch them again. I use music, video, email, social networking and general internet browsing far more.
As for Desire vs Galaxy S...kind of hard to choose.
Galaxy S Pros and Cons:
+ Large, amazing Super AMOLED screen
+ Most powerful Android device out, especially it's GPU (for 3D games)
+ DivX video support
+ Video-out if you want to connect it to a screen
+ Reportedly great sound quality for headphones
+ Battery life better than most other high-end Android phones
- The phone itself looks like a cheap iPhone ripoff (why Samsung why?!)
- Samsung use their 'TouchWiz' interface on top of Android which looks kind of ugly and adds little
- Samsung don't have a good track record with updates...they've confirmed Froyo but no word on whether it'll ever get anything above that
- Reportedly all custom roms will need to be based off Samsung's official roms, so won't have as large a variety as HTC phones
- Apparently many users have had GPS problems
HTC Desire Pros and Cons:
+ Huge variety of custom roms
+ Similarity with Nexus One means since Nexus One gets updates first, most can be quickly ported to Desire
+ HTC Sense interface on top of Android looks great and improves usability (especially the widgets)
+ HTC's default apps for mail, weather, etc are extremely well designed
+ Will most likely be able to run Android 3.0 (Gingerbread) ported from the Nexus One once it's released
+ Very good build quality and nicer-looking hardware
- Battery life not as good
- Smaller screen that's regular AMOLED rather than Samsung's new variety
- Not as powerful as Galaxy S
Hope that helps! I'm currently in the middle of deciding between the Desire and Galaxy S myself, so done a fair bit of research and tried both out.
AXIS of Reality said:
- Not as powerful as Galaxy S
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as you can see my quadrant score says diffrent
That would be because you're running Froyo, which the Galaxy S has been confirmed to be receiving later this year. =P
The more apt comparison is lower on that graph showing the 2.1 Desire and Nexus One far lower than the 2.1 Galaxy S.
well thanks for that .. i am leaning towards htc desire more now ... just to confirm are there any better andriod phones in the market which are gsm and available outside US ??
AndroHero said:
as you can see my quadrant score says diffrent
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Click to collapse
Which battery meter are you using?
vinayendra: since you mentioned only games in your post, my advice to you is to avoid android platform and go with Iphone if games are your priority...
If you still need to choose between these 3 phones, Galaxy would be your choice, cause it's better GPU will be advantage with games
I cant speak for the galaxy S but having used both desire and the xperia the desire wins hands down. The xperia is really laggy and the old version of android is a deal breaker. Once sony pull their fingers out and update the xperia it might be a different story but I dont think we will see that for a few more months yet
the only advantage the xperia has is the large internal apps storage, you dont need to root it if your wanting loads of apps unlike the desire
AndroHero said:
heres a youtube vid of nova on the desire
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Vn2DuPeE-E
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Click to collapse
id love to know how to get that game running on my desire, I had it for my palm pre and loved it but the desire just gives me a black screen then it closes
djoni1980 said:
vinayendra: since you mentioned only games in your post, my advice to you is to avoid android platform and go with Iphone if games are your priority...
If you still need to choose between these 3 phones, Galaxy would be your choice, cause it's better GPU will be advantage with games
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Click to collapse
Games or not my priority .. i already have a ipod touch ... for me the main things are cool apps maybe even GPS , email and very good user interface ... i have a htc 3G touch ... it really sucks ...after having that i had decided not to go for HTC again ... But i cant buy iphone 4 as it takes a year to come to my country ... and i heard andriod phones are awesome ... so going back to HTC
So anyone owns a desire .. plz tell the pros and cons of desire which u felt while using
Take the desire you wont regret it.and someone already mentiond pros & cons on page 1.
You only have to choose
Sent from my HTC Desire using XDA App
AXIS of Reality said:
That would be because you're running Froyo, which the Galaxy S has been confirmed to be receiving later this year. =P
The more apt comparison is lower on that graph showing the 2.1 Desire and Nexus One far lower than the 2.1 Galaxy S.
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can you not read? it clearly says samsung galaxy s 2.2 on the benchmark
pms said:
Which battery meter are you using?
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the one that comes with the expresso theme for 2.2 sence roms
AndroHero said:
can you not read? it clearly says samsung galaxy s 2.2 on the benchmark
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LOL, actually it says <2.2, which is 2.1
djoni1980 said:
LOL, actually it says <2.2, which is 2.1
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Click to collapse
oh yeah so it does lol
If you have access to those phones in India go and try them out in person because you won't have a clue on what everyone is going on about except for prior experience on your old Touch.
An Android phone is perfect if you live your online life through Google, if you don't I suggest you move.
An iPhone is known for simplicity and just working until you somehow manage to get yourself into the zoom feature and you're screwed unless you know the zoom out function. These high end phones are true powerhouses in pocket computing and are for more than showing off to your mates that you have a cool phone. If that's all you're going to do, you deserve an iPhone. If you're rolling up your sleeves and learning how to individualise yourself from every other Android user out there then you will quickly learn about live wallpapers, widgets, shortcuts and button combinations. Go further than that and its roms, themes, radios, adb commands so on and so forth.
Know what you want and shop according to it. One of these phones will tick most if not all of your needs and wants. Or something in the near future will. Between the 2 phones, out of the box you are looking at a difference of interface more than anything else. Really suggest you go try them out.
Sent from my HTC Desire using XDA App
Jabbafat23 said:
If you have access to those phones in India go and try them out in person because you won't have a clue on what everyone is going on about except for prior experience on your old Touch.
An Android phone is perfect if you live your online life through Google, if you don't I suggest you move.
An iPhone is known for simplicity and just working until you somehow manage to get yourself into the zoom feature and you're screwed unless you know the zoom out function. These high end phones are true powerhouses in pocket computing and are for more than showing off to your mates that you have a cool phone. If that's all you're going to do, you deserve an iPhone. If you're rolling up your sleeves and learning how to individualise yourself from every other Android user out there then you will quickly learn about live wallpapers, widgets, shortcuts and button combinations. Go further than that and its roms, themes, radios, adb commands so on and so forth.
Know what you want and shop according to it. One of these phones will tick most if not all of your needs and wants. Or something in the near future will. Between the 2 phones, out of the box you are looking at a difference of interface more than anything else. Really suggest you go try them out.
Sent from my HTC Desire using XDA App
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Click to collapse
I'd mostly agree with that.
Android phones really are 'enthusiast' phones, in the sense that you get out of them what you put in. For example, customising it to work exactly how you want and look how you want it to look.
The iPhone is made as a very controlled system, so you have only the absolute minimum freedom (ie: change your wallpaper or order of icons). This is ideal for many people who want something that just 'works' and has been tuned to be an intuitive experience for the majority of people.
Android is based around making your phone uniquely yours, such as through the use of the homescreens to fill with whatever you want (widgets, controls, shortcuts, folders, etc). What this means is it requires more time and attention than an iPhone, but the end result is a phone and way of working that is of your own design.
Think of it like Lego:
- the iPhone is where you follow the instructions and get what is shown in the picture on the box (which can annoy people who want to do their own thing).
- Android is where you are given a pile of lego bricks to build whatever you want, so it's far more personalised even if it's not as polished as the iPhone (which can confuse or put of people who prefer a guiding hand and it to be done for them)
I'm happy to sacrifice some polish in the interface for the chance to really make my phone mine, but there are many who feel the other way. That's why it's great we have the oppurtunity to choose between Android and iOS (and soon Windows Phone 7, which seems like a halfway point between the two).
thanks for all that ... Now i am convinced to go for a desire which i will buy sometime this week
i have a small doubt ( a n00b one) .. whats the use of "rooting" and installing ROM`s???.. is it the same as "jailbreaking" in iphone where i can install paid apps and games for free and play with my looks ?? ... or is there anyother use??
i have HTC Desire which i bough from a friend in England, (i live in Seattle) and absolutely love it. My co-worker has Tmobile Samsung Vibrant. Ill give my impressions and quick pros and cons, i may sound little bias but here it is.
Samsung Galaxy Pros
Large SuperAMOLED screen, true 800x480 res, multitouch (Which, while is brighter than the Desire, not that much better, almost cant tell the difference.)
Better battery life, Galaxy also comes with 1500 mAh battery whereas Desire come with 1400 mAh ( again only one day of test with moderate use)
Better GPU
16 Gb of internal storage (which is a huge plus)
720p @30 frames video capture (which also is possible on the Desire with a custom ROM)
Cons
Built quality is extremely cheap, back is shiny plastic which is prone to scratches
Has ugly iphone 3GS style bezel around the screen
No camera flash (this one is a huge let down by Samsung which is beyond any comprehension)
Ugly UI which is a blatant iOS rip off (this one may be strictly preferential depending if you like iOS look or not)
Samsungs proven lack of support track record
Not clear whether gonna have large dev support on XDA
External speaker is horrible, tiny sound (Desire is the same)
That is all i can think of at the moment
Desire Cons
Uses old Clear pad 2000 touch panel which lacks true multitouch support or supports it in a broken way (you can google Nexus one touch screen problems, there is 70 pages plus thread about it)
Uses Cheap Pentile pixel arrangement, which some argue is better for media but horrible if ou spend most of the time reading text on your device. ( you can google Pentile on Nexus One, Anandtech.com has very informative article about this)
Eternal speaker is horrible, sound is tiny and quite
video capture is crap
When using on low brightness, screen has pink hue
Battery life is mediocre
Pros
Built quality is way better than Galaxy, also looks sophisticated compared to Galaxy
Camera flash
Huge support from XDA developers since it is almost identical to Nexus One
Runs Sense, although i equally hate Sense, it is a lot better that TouchWiz
Has hardware buttons (this one is a deal breaker for me as Galaxy touch sensitive buttons are unresponsive at times and generally suck)
AMOLED is almost as good as Galaxy's ( aside from cheap ass touch panel that HTC used on Desire and Nexus One, why HTC why)
That is all i can think of at the moment. I am eligible for an upgrade with Tmobile, but i think ill keep the Desire. Just better phone aside from crappy screen. Hope this helps
With devs like utaka giving up n samsung's ****ty attitude,is the future of AOSP development in the dark for this great device with the AOSP roms vanishing slowly?
aamitabh28 said:
With devs like utaka giving up n samsung's ****ty attitude,is the future of AOSP development in the dark for this great device with the AOSP roms vanishing slowly?
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Click to collapse
To the best of my knowledge, there is substantial dev support for the Note II. CM is rolling of nighlies even as we speak and PA is not left behind. JellyBam is also adding his own humble contribution. There are also substantial rom cooks dishing out various verities.
I understand initially, devs kicked against Sammy's policy but I guess Sammy was given a last chance, and we saw some dev activities. I for one actually waited till I saw activities befor ordering mine.
If Utacka is giving up, that will be a shame because, he made us good PA rom in Note I
It's a Great loss..for the community.I loved his work
As for cm 10.1 entropy says its dead on 4412 devices due to lack of sources..darn samsung..why cant they just release the frickin sources!
Not gonna cry too much.. Touchwiz > AOSP in my opinion.
- Camera is way better with a lot more options, notably burst mode and widescreen.. why does stock force you to take 4:3 pictures? this isn't 1998 anymore, all monitors/TVs are widescreen
- Gallery is much improved with different view types, video previews, play on hover, etc..
- FB contact integration out of the box, no need to mess around with Haxsync or other apps
- Multi-window, that alone trumps stock
- T9 Dialer
- Smart stay: When reading long text I got used to touching my screen every 30 seconds to keep it from turning off, never again
- Smart rotate: call this a "gimmick" all you want, but it's really nice to be able to lie down and read something without first disabling auto-rotate
- Contact list: smoothly integrated with the Phone app, no more ugly white theme that's oddly out of place with the rest of the UI
- S-Beam is much faster and more practical than Android Beam (you have both in Touchwiz anyway)
- Not counting all the s-pen apps since those are specific to the Note 2
- Overall feel of the OS feels less segmented and more cohesive
- Loads of small improvement all across the OS, things that make you say "oh nice, I don't need 4-5 steps to do that anymore"
So not too sad to see all the buggy AOSP roms disappear
gabster21 said:
Not gonna cry too much.. Touchwiz > AOSP in my opinion.
- Camera is way better with a lot more options, notably burst mode and widescreen.. why does stock force you to take 4:3 pictures? this isn't 1998 anymore, all monitors/TVs are widescreen
- Gallery is much improved with different view types, video previews, play on hover, etc..
- FB contact integration out of the box, no need to mess around with Haxsync or other apps
- Multi-window, that alone trumps stock
- T9 Dialer
- Smart stay: When reading long text I got used to touching my screen every 30 seconds to keep it from turning off, never again
- Smart rotate: call this a "gimmick" all you want, but it's really nice to be able to lie down and read something without first disabling auto-rotate
- Contact list: smoothly integrated with the Phone app, no more ugly white theme that's oddly out of place with the rest of the UI
- S-Beam is much faster and more practical than Android Beam (you have both in Touchwiz anyway)
- Not counting all the s-pen apps since those are specific to the Note 2
- Overall feel of the OS feels less segmented and more cohesive
- Loads of small improvement all across the OS, things that make you say "oh nice, I don't need 4-5 steps to do that anymore"
So not too sad to see all the buggy AOSP roms disappear
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
100% agree with u , in the other hand i really love aosp roms but not for the Gnote
if u want to run aosp on note2 just throw ur s note pen in the drawer it will become like useless mouse :silly:
i know that maybe aosp roms a bit faster or lighter on ram but note2 have 2 GB of ram and beast cpu so there is no problem with TW
and samsung is the fastest company after Google to update their devices after Google ( i don't have problem waiting 2-3 month to get new android version after google release it )
I bought the note for the spen and its features.
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda premium
It's a great loss... I think that we have a bad future... :crying: I hate Sammy roms...
bxt-sp said:
It's a great loss... I think that we have a bad future... :crying: I hate Sammy roms...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
buy a Nexus :silly:
Sure, but the Nexus doesn't have 5,5", 3100mAh, SD-Card, removable battery, spen,... I prefer my Note phone...with AOSP roms!
aamitabh28 said:
With devs like utaka giving up n samsung's ****ty attitude,is the future of AOSP development in the dark for this great device with the AOSP roms vanishing slowly?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not trying to start a flame war, but did you read his post?:
Im gonna order sony phone (Xperia T or new sony phablet 2013) and continue my work there. Thanks for this and one last time: im not gonna stop updating as long as 4.1.2 is still maintained by CM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
gabster21 said:
Not gonna cry too much.. Touchwiz > AOSP in my opinion.
- Camera is way better with a lot more options, notably burst mode and widescreen.. why does stock force you to take 4:3 pictures? this isn't 1998 anymore, all monitors/TVs are widescreen
- Gallery is much improved with different view types, video previews, play on hover, etc..
- FB contact integration out of the box, no need to mess around with Haxsync or other apps
- Multi-window, that alone trumps stock
- T9 Dialer
- Smart stay: When reading long text I got used to touching my screen every 30 seconds to keep it from turning off, never again
- Smart rotate: call this a "gimmick" all you want, but it's really nice to be able to lie down and read something without first disabling auto-rotate
- Contact list: smoothly integrated with the Phone app, no more ugly white theme that's oddly out of place with the rest of the UI
- S-Beam is much faster and more practical than Android Beam (you have both in Touchwiz anyway)
- Not counting all the s-pen apps since those are specific to the Note 2
- Overall feel of the OS feels less segmented and more cohesive
- Loads of small improvement all across the OS, things that make you say "oh nice, I don't need 4-5 steps to do that anymore"
So not too sad to see all the buggy AOSP roms disappear
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's true, Samsungs ROM is much more useful with this thing. It's just that, this thing is ugly as hell. Compare it to CM Theme Engine - fresh look with the snap of a finger. Outer beauty beats inner beauty? Well, for now I'd stay with Samsung ROM.
Sent and typofied with Note II
No pen no interest, that's what it comes down to I reckon
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda app-developers app
It is not about how sammy roms are more feautured or more beautiful it is about having the possibility of choice. Every populer Android device has this CM or AOSP options until now. And Android is my choice because of its possibilities of being able to transform into different user experiences.. I must decide this, not the company who stoles and lies to the people about discussing and deciding to release the source even though they have to according to the GPL.. . I honestly do not know how many people does not even root their phones but still there are a lot of people out there who believes in the potential of android software to get even better an dthose people deserve to have the option to choose what is best for themselves.. besides I want to believe more developers will develop their 3rd party apps and games for the more available sourced chipsets.. so the-once-most-powerful exynos is going to go down on the developers' preference list..
_delice_doluca_ said:
It is not about how sammy roms are more feautured or more beautiful it is about having the possibility of choice. Every populer Android device has this CM or AOSP options until now. And Android is my choice because of its possibilities of being able to transform into different user experiences.. I must decide this, not the company who stoles and lies to the people about discussing and deciding to release the source even though they have to according to the GPL.. . I honestly do not know how many people does not even root their phones but still there are a lot of people out there who believes in the potential of android software to get even better an dthose people deserve to have the option to choose what is best for themselves.. besides I want to believe more developers will develop their 3rd party apps and games for the more available sourced chipsets.. so the-once-most-powerful exynos is going to go down on the developers' preference list..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1. Absolutely. It's about having the possibility of choice.
I'm not happy at all my phones going on eBay while I can still get a few ££££ .... Samsung just lost a customer....
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda premium
You can use the S Pen with CM or AOSP roms. There are plenty of apps in Google Play that work with the S Pen and most are better than Samsung's S Note. I use Freenote. I use CM and I do not miss any of the Samsung features such as multiview and S Note.
bxt-sp said:
+1. Absolutely. It's about having the possibility of choice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the support. If i was living in another country where i could believe the justice would apply to everyone adn Samsung exists as a company, i would sue Samsung and would not hire a lawyer. I would just say 'we hire the technology for a limited time nowadays. We do not buy it. And if we "tag" the reasons why we choose them by words Android would not get the "perfection", "smoothness", "defragmantetion", "optimised" words. It would get the "customiseblity", "wide range", "choices".. So this means everyone who pays great amount of money to their Android devices actually are aware of the fact that things could go "bad" or they would want more out of their devices. Very very few people buy their products "only" for Gmail checking and book reading. Once you go to the Google Play the problems start and people also start to seek solutions to their problems for their "not-so-cheap" devices. They start to search because deep down every Android user knows there should be a solution to their problems since many many people are using these devices and they paid very high amounts. But as i said, we just hire them. So there is no excuse when the service that we pay for are not there for us. And releasing the sources when a few more devices with Exynos 5 are out will not do any good to anyone because the "hiring" process works with the "valuable in the right time" rule. So there is no meaning of releasing the soruces after our devices are out of date and out of interest anymore. Because once newer devices are out it is going to be like we have paid good amount of moneys for a long await, long enough to reduce our devices values. Once we lose the dominating advantage of our CPUs and GPUs, there will not be any use for the sources because people will be already moved on and we wasted money for a waiting which got us lose money and time. So this is clearly cheating customers, lying and also not obeying to the GPL rules'
So even though i love Samsung devices if there will not be any upcoming good news by the new year My new device will never be a Samsung.. because i was supporting them for supporting my country with some scholarships but with a few hours of search i have learned they got involved with "bribing business" and did not even bother to fire the guy. And also are lying to the public about the sources, they can not even be a man about not releasing the sources. And i am very very sure a few thousand of people would listen to me about phone advises in the popular Turkish forums (i have advised hundereds in face to face). So i will not sink the company obviously but i will not let them get any money from a high amount of people either.
gabster21 said:
Not gonna cry too much.. Touchwiz > AOSP in my opinion.
- Camera is way better with a lot more options, notably burst mode and widescreen.. why does stock force you to take 4:3 pictures? this isn't 1998 anymore, all monitors/TVs are widescreen
- Gallery is much improved with different view types, video previews, play on hover, etc..
- FB contact integration out of the box, no need to mess around with Haxsync or other apps
- Multi-window, that alone trumps stock
- T9 Dialer
- Smart stay: When reading long text I got used to touching my screen every 30 seconds to keep it from turning off, never again
- Smart rotate: call this a "gimmick" all you want, but it's really nice to be able to lie down and read something without first disabling auto-rotate
- Contact list: smoothly integrated with the Phone app, no more ugly white theme that's oddly out of place with the rest of the UI
- S-Beam is much faster and more practical than Android Beam (you have both in Touchwiz anyway)
- Not counting all the s-pen apps since those are specific to the Note 2
- Overall feel of the OS feels less segmented and more cohesive
- Loads of small improvement all across the OS, things that make you say "oh nice, I don't need 4-5 steps to do that anymore"
So not too sad to see all the buggy AOSP roms disappear
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But Touchwiz do not have tablet mode
Sent from my GT-S6102 using xda app-developers app
Elle233 said:
But Touchwiz do not have tablet mode
Sent from my GT-S6102 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So what
Alot of roms dont have tablet mode.
I agree Sammys stock rom isn't the nicest looking but at least give it a few months until there's some decent update before flashing new roms and complaining about stock and lack of development. I don't think the UI will change all that much but just use go launcher or something. If your rooted just freeze everything you don't need wit TB.
People are OBSESSED with new roms and I think alot of ppl do it just to say "Oh you have a Note II, me too. Look at my custom ROM and how cool I it looks". Instead of "Oh you have a Note II, me to. Look how smooth and fluid it works"
Then again I prefer roms build off sammys base (prob all in my head)
Who knows what's happening anymore. I see developers moving to the xperia t...but then I see locked boot loaders and no working camera (cm10).
I see our note 2 with no support from Samsung, although they did say something would happen by the end of the year and no one has patience.
The HTC one x has no expandable memory and the poor tegra 3 chip that was pretty much outdated 2 months after its release.
There's really nothing that can run aosp as well as a nexus device. But then again, they lack features like expandable memory.
So in the end no one will ever be happy with anything.
Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 2
What about the FairPhone project? Anyone interested? I like to see Firefox OS on this device in future, does anyone have my same idea?
Link: Fairphone - Technical Details And Links
I already ordered a FairPhone. But I'm not so interested in Firefox OS, rather in porting the FairPhone OS (which will be based on Android but with some modifications) to other devices and porting some Custom ROMs (I'm thinking of RootBox and SuperNexus cause they're my favorites) to FairPhone. And I'll make lots of videos about it on YouTube (Unboxing, tests, comparisons with other phones and so on...)
MicroDroidXDA said:
... and porting some Custom ROMs (I'm thinking of RootBox and SuperNexus cause they're my favorites) to FairPhone. ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You would be one of my heroes! :good:
Please DO IT :fingers-crossed:
I would like to help, but I'm new to that 'business'.
Looks good, but "fairphone" ?
lol
obleser said:
You would be one of my heroes! :good:
Please DO IT :fingers-crossed:
I would like to help, but I'm new to that 'business'.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So am I, but what the hell, I think learning by doing is the best thing anyway We could just make a team "The noob FairPhone developers"
What are the specifications of FairPhone?
Just found an important quote:
I’m also pleased to announce that all source code for the FairPhone OS and widgets will be free and released to the public.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
=> Im not allowed to post extern urls in my first 10 posts.. so no source here -.-
Props to Fairphone
I just read about the Fairphone for the first time, and I'm absolutely gutted. I was hoping that HTC would've heard our pleas and given us The Next HD2 (in my mind called the HDX in homage to XDA's fierce reverence of the HD2).
Props to Fairphone for giving us what we've been salivating about for years, but the name could definitely have used some more thought...
MicroDroidXDA said:
I already ordered a FairPhone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have ordered one too... But I definitely want to leave Android (after about 4,5 years, since the T-Mobile G1), and I see in FirefoxOS a great potential. So I love to see this really open operating system (sup)ported on the Fairphone
fabian_screta said:
What are the specifications of FairPhone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
CLICK HERE!
Firefox Browser not so good on phone
Its a shame because it's always my first choice when doing a clean install on pc.
Sent from my GT-I8190N using xda app-developers app
---------- Post added at 12:46 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:35 PM ----------
Thanks for the interesting link on fair phone though It's a great philosophy.
Sent from my GT-I8190N using xda app-developers app
Fairphone = adding necessary value(s)
Deedend said:
What about the FairPhone project? Anyone interested?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I find the FairPhone initiative higly symathetic. Glad about this thread too.
People in this community should be considering what goes into our phones and how. The meaning of added value gets forgotten easily, with price substituting value too fast. Global market and supply tend to overwhelm and numb individual consumers. FairPhone is an intelligent way to start balancing that a bit.
It seems the project can use all extra hands and support. For instance, their site could perhaps present important facts and additional selling points better. For me, the adapted UI by Kwame is attractive, as is the basic possibility to install other roms of choice.
Unfortunately, not having contributed 10 useful posts yet, I may not offer 'outside' links here. I can only suggest you check out the Fairphone website yourself, especially the blog page, and follow some of the links provided there.
>> Among other things, you'll find a link to the recent presentation the developers of Kwame gave on their UI proposals on Android 4.2.2. Looking good and smart!
>> To find an interview (in English) with initiator Bas van Abel visit the site of blip.tv/openSUSEtv. Search and you will find
BTW - I'll try and see if I can upload some pdf docs I made of what I found, managing to keep the documents (many slides and pictures) small in size... If it works out, I'll post the docs here.
Let's hope the spark comes across :good:
This project is really cool, since most giant companies as of late dont release sources (Samsung with Exynos, Apple with...everything, etc...)
I have full support for this, although I cant afford it I hope the open source revolution continues
Deedend said:
I have ordered one too... But I definitely want to leave Android (after about 4,5 years, since the T-Mobile G1), and I see in FirefoxOS a great potential. So I love to see this really open operating system (sup)ported on the Fairphone
CLICK HERE!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well the first FairPhone will run Android, that's for sure. I also think that FirefoxOS has a great potential, but I think Android's potential is still growing every day as more and more people become hobby Android developers, and it will take a few years until FirefoxOS will get more popular. So for now I'ma stick with Android.... also because I just love it. Every version is getting better than the one before.
MicroDroidXDA said:
Well the first FairPhone will run Android, that's for sure. I also think that FirefoxOS has a great potential, but I think Android's potential is still growing every day as more and more people become hobby Android developers, and it will take a few years until FirefoxOS will get more popular. So for now I'ma stick with Android.... also because I just love it. Every version is getting better than the one before.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think that Android will become every day more invasive and closed... I admire open developer communities that create a lot of alternative roms, but I think that at this point we need a really open alternative to the giant; and I see in Firefox OS the best in terms of potential to open the mobile world. The system is very unripe (I am testing it on a Geeksphone Keon), but I can see a huge potential in it, and every update it improve a bit. I will follow his evolution with interest, and I hope that in future there will be the chance to put this system on the Fairphone hardware.
Perhaps it will be possible to install Android OR Firefox OS...
If you use Firefox brower in your PC, you will find you never have enough ram to run it, so I thing Firefox is will needs more powerful hardware than Htc one to run it
nattoleon said:
If you use Firefox brower in your PC, you will find you never have enough ram to run it, so I thing Firefox is will needs more powerful hardware than Htc one to run it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Keon works better than a lot of mid range Android that I have tried (remember that it's a developer preview unit)... and the specific of this phone are most like low range phone than mid range.
And, I use Firefox on every PC I use and rarely I experience lack of memory, even if I navigate with a lot of tabs opened!
Deedend said:
Keon works better than a lot of mid range Android that I have tried (remember that it's a developer preview unit)... and the specific of this phone are most like low range phone than mid range.
And, I use Firefox on every PC I use and rarely I experience lack of memory, even if I navigate with a lot of tabs opened!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What can cause RAM shortages while using Firefox are mainly too many extensions added. I suppose any Firefox installation can cause - or rather allow for - memory problems, either on PC or phone, if users do not limit themselves in dressing their browser up with all that may seem fancy.
The extra freedom a browser like Firefox offers us users, comes with the inevitable burden of common sense restraint If that is understood, there's no reason in my opinion why Firefox could not aptly fulfill our needs...
- Tapatalked from Platform I9000, JB 4.2.2, on Mackay Rom & kernel, baseband I9000XXJVT, powered by PolarCell at 1800 mAh
WOW, it seems something is moving... THIS TWEET make me hope! :victory:
Specs keep improving
DozerD said:
BTW - I'll try and see if I can upload some pdf docs I made of what I found, managing to keep the documents (many slides and pictures) small in size... If it works out, I'll post the docs here.
Let's hope the spark comes across :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Alas, slimming pdf files based on presentations full of sheets down to the maximum allowed upload size has failed. The same goes even for the pdf of today's updated, ever improving spec sheet. But an old-fashioned copy-paste abstract might do just as well.
Here are the specs as per today, 28-05-2013, including the Change Log of improvements (italic and bold accents are mine):
Details
SIM Card - Dual SIM, Dual Active (!!)
Memory Card Type - microSD
Keypad Backlight No
Data Port Micro B
USB Version USB2.0
Charge Port MicroUSB Port, Type B
Earphone Jack ¢3.5
HDMI No
GPS Yes
WIFI Yes (more details to come)
BT Yes (more details to come)
FM Yes (!!)
Light Sensor Yes
G-Sensor Yes
E-Compass Yes (!!)
Proximity Sensor Yes
Gyroscope Yes (!!)
Antenna Type IFA
Mic SMD Switch
Speaker 1420*1
Receiver 1208
Motor 1020
Camera Pixel 8 megapixels +1.3 megapixels
Flashlight Yes!
Embedded System Memory 16GB ROM +1G RAM
Memory Card Type microSD
Memory Card Support Capacity 32Gb
Model GSM/WCDMA
Frequency GSM850/900/1800/1900MHZ, WCDMA 900/2100MHz
GPRS Class GPRS Class 12
EDGE Class Multi-Slot Class 12
UMTS Rate HSPA uplink cat7 up to 11.5Mbps (!!!!!) & downlink cat24 up to 42.2Mbps (!!!!!)
Video Decode Format MPEG4/H.264:[email protected] (!!)
Video Encode Format MPEG4/H.263:[email protected]
H.264:[email protected]
Audio Decode Format WAV,MP3,MP2,AAC,AMR-NB,AMR-WB,MIDI,Vorbis,APE,AAC-plus v1,Aac-plus v2,FLAC,WMA (!!!!!)
Audio Encode Format AMR-NB,AMR-WB,AAC,OGG
Photo Format JPEG
Streaming Media Yes
Primary Screen Size 4.3"
Primary Screen Type TFT
Primary Screen Resolution qHD (960x540 pixels)
Primary Screen Color 16M
Primary Backlight Quantity 8
Touchpanel Type Capacitive
Primary Camera Pixel 8 megapixels
Primary Camera Sensor Type CMOS
Primary Camera Sensor to be determined
Primary Camera Focus AF
Primary Camera Data Zoom Level 8
Secondary Camera Pixel 1.3 megapixels
Secondary Camera Sensor Type CMOS
Secondary Camera Sensor to be determined
Secondary Camera Focus FF
Multi-Shot Yes
Camera Scene Normal/Night
Photo Effect Normal/Monochrome/Negative
Video Recording Yes
Logbook of changes:
15 May: Good news! We added e-compass and gyroscope!
24/May: Sim capability has changed to Dual Stand-by. That basically means that you cannot have two calls active at the same time in both of the SIM cards. Though when in stand-by you can get a call on any of the 2 numbers and manage easily your data on one or the other SIM. It is one click to change from one to the other, while you are available on both. Internet works on one of the two (the one you choose), while you can receive calls on both simcards any time.
27/May:
Good news! Our UMTS rate is now better, so faster internet!! It was: "HSPA DL/UL, 7.2 Mbps/5.76Mbps" and it changed to Uplink: cat.7 up to 11.5Mbps & Downlink cat. 24 up to 42.2Mbps
Good news! Our Video Decode Format is better with 1080p! (MPEG4/H.264:[email protected]). That means you can record full HD. Better when you enjoy your videos on your TV for example.
Good news! Our audio encode/decode supports more formats!
===
Furthermore: sales keep rising. With 16 days to the go until the deadline, the set target of 5000 sold FairPhones has been reached by 59% (or 2975 phones). It would seem that the buzz still very much goes on :victory:
To be continued, I think :highfive:
This is a great project. Really hope this takes off - I think I'm going to order one myself.
Introductions ::
Hello there, and welcome to my review of the DOOGEE x30 (32-bit – not L) smartphone! As a casual technology enthusiast, this sort of product truly fuels my interest in the mobile device industry. Manufacturers, like DOOGEE, constantly raise the bar of expectancy-vs-price, by either introducing highly sought-after features to cheaper devices or creating entirely new features that are then introduced through the budget market first. This practice of constantly improving the developing the low-end market makes for an interesting show when one goes to observe the ripples that this creates in the mobile device market as a while. These manufacturers, when they get the formula just right, create devices that can competently perform at a low price point, while displaying very little compromise in overall design, features, and quality. As such, I find the budget market to be an important part of the general mobile device market(place).
Now, for a bit of personal background. This is my third smartphone from DOOGEE, which means that I have a slight, inherent bias. However, I will do my best to curb such, for the sake of an honest and fair assessment of the device in question. I will start with the un-boxing experience, and move forward from there in a semi-natural progression, if you will. The included clips will (unfortunately) be presented in 720p30fps - not true HD. But, it should get the un-boxing experience across in a satisfactory manner - I hope.
Specs ::
Can be found here.
Un-Boxing ::
approx. 15 minutes long
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VI_cLORLc24
* Please note that the first part (the un-boxing) is still being processed, and the second part (the actual review) will be uploaded later this week (and hopefully, in a higher resolution). I hope you all are enjoying your winter holiday this year
Review ::
There is none - it's ded
Pros ::
The CPU is an MTK 6580, which is clocked at 1.3GHz - a decent CPU for this SoC, although 32-bit.*
This phone comes with 2GB of LPDDR3 RAM, which is better than what many other budget smartphones come with (less than 1GB in many cases). In fact, this SoC could be packed with up to 4GB of RAM if they wanted…
The 4-sensor Camera system truly sets this device apart from the competition in terms of photographic capabilities at this price-point (60-100 USD). They record at 5mp and 8mp respectively, meaning that the maximum resolution you can get for an image (from the rear cameras) is 3264 x 2448. Pretty nice for a sub-100 USD smartphone...
The metal frame also helps in terms of durability, and even adds to the overall visual appeal of the phone’s design.
The curved body makes it easy to hold, and ergonomically pleasing to the average user. No pain in the palms to speak of
The phone comes with Android 7, which is a great move - Android 8 is here, and DOOGEE can push an update whenever they’re ready. In addition to that (assuming that DOOGEE does update this phone), it gives users the option to decide on whether or not to move on to 8 - software options. But, while you’re waiting, you can play around with Quick Settings Customization - which is another plus.
This phone comes with 16GB of internal storage as an entry model, in opposed to 8GB (as seen in past models like the x5 and x6). This move is definitely one in the right direction…
The software that comes installed on this device initially appears quite close to stock (Google Apps and all - beyond AOSP) Android, which is great for those of you who want more control over the experience, or a simpler experience when using Android. It’s pretty difficult to spot most of the differences and deviations...
Cons ::
This model’s CPU is 32-bit, which limits the RAM and apps that can be used on this device. As such, it won’t be able to use any software that requires a 64-bit* architecture or more than 4GB of RAM. Remember the x5 Pro and x6 Pro models?
The RAM speed on this device is only 533MHz, which leaves it feeling like low-price DDR2/LPDDR2 (at around 500-600MHz), in opposed to the LPDDR3 it’s actually packing, which (in theory) can reach speeds of around 800MHz.
The Mali GPU included on this SoC is only 2 cores*, which is a bit underwhelming for obvious reasons. A higher clock speed could have helped this a bit.
It comes with some unnecessary apps, which can’t be completely removed without rooting. This needlessly reduces the amount of free storage space on the device. What’s up with the cat hanging from the top of the screen?! The approach used on the x5 and x6 Pro models should be used on this device instead.
It’s theme, while small in terms of performance impact, is an unnecessary and non-innovative deviation from a simpler Google/AOSP UI experience. Once again, the approach used on the x5 and x6 Pro models should be used on this device instead.
The screen, while being HD-Ready, is of the 720p/1080i variety - not the Full HD (1080p) that many have come to expect from their smartphones nowadays. But, this isn’t too much to bare.
The camera(s) only record at 5mp and 8mp respectively, meaning that the maximum resolution you can ever get for an image (from the rear cameras) is 3264 x 2448. While still images are quite nice, video recordings are locked in at 30fps, and may actually be at a lower resolution still.
This device can only receive so much expansion via the SD card slot - 32GB to be exact.
The SoC on this model doesn’t offer 4G(LTE)* capabilities, Bluetooth 5, NFC, or Wireless Charging.
It’s USB 2.0, instead of 3.0. An upgrade to 3.0 would have been nice...
Not so sure about how honest DOOGEE is about the camera.
Some apps I would remove (if I could) include:
Torch*
Themes **
System Manager**
File Manager**
DOOGEE ?
Chrome *g
* Integrate this feature into the Quick Settings - no need for another app
** Can be handled better with 3rd party apps
*g Have better counterparts that are developed by Google, and should be decided on by the user
? What does this app do?! I don’t remember it being around on the older models...
Conclusion ::
Overall, I think that this device is quite nicely-made for this price (60-70 USD), but could be improved upon a bit. While being a worthy successor to the single-digit x-models, I also think that there should be a higher-end model available, for those of us who are willing to pay to have many of these issues alleviated (around say, 100 USD - like last time). In addition to this, from having had the x5 Pro and x6 Pro models, I can’t help but feel just a bit let down this time around. Yet, there isn’t an x30 Pro. Perhaps the x30L* would answer the call? Although, I haven’t been able to find the darned thing, for sale, anywhere!
Overall Rating: 7.0/10
Bottom Line;
Good show, DOOGEE. You do have some places where you can improve. But, I can’t wait to see what you come up with next...
I actually purchased this phone for the mother-in-law. It literally just arrived today. Off the top, it's a very nice phone, especially for the sub-$70 I paid for it. I'm going to be working with this in-depth over the next few days in order to customize it (and see what tricks I can find). I'll report back when I'm done.
UPDATE: Just got this TWRP'd and rooted. Now I can see what this thing can do. :good:
Here we go!...
Bratzilla said:
I actually purchased this phone for the mother-in-law. It literally just arrived today. Off the top, it's a very nice phone, especially for the sub-$70 I paid for it. I'm going to be working with this in-depth over the next few days in order to customize it (and see what tricks I can find). I'll report back when I'm done.
UPDATE: Just got this TWRP'd and rooted. Now I can see what this thing can do. :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll be uploading a review of it this week!
TopHatProductions115 said:
I'll be uploading a review of it this week!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good to hear! I enjoy reviews of these smaller brands. Not everyone can afford a Note 8 cash-out.
I got a few more technical notes. Apologies if I ramble a bit, but I wanted to get this listed so that I don't forget. (Please let me know if you want me to post my root method as I don't want to hijack your thread. I didn't see any other threads pertinent to this phone posted yet.) These notes have to do with modding the phone and how it behaved for me afterwards.
As mentioned earlier, I rooted this phone after playing with the stock version a bit. A note about rooting - there are several posts online that mention rooting via SP Flash Tool. I never got this to work for me. Instead, using ADB and the TWRP version for this phone did the job (there is a trick in doing so as the install wasn't quite so straightforward). Once TWRP was installed, flashing SuperSU went as usual. Root Checker confirmed that root did take.
Custom recovery was possible because Doogee X30's flavor of Nougat 7.0 (which btw this phone has one of the few maker-created launchers that I pretty much like) contains a switch in Settings that allows you to make the bootloader unlockable. A quick run through ADB to actually do the unlocking worked perfectly. However, I now have a "Status Orange" message upon boot-up that claims the phone is now unsafe due to the bootloader unlock. But this doesn't seem to adversely impact operation (at least nothing obvious has presented itself) - very similar to the message I got when I did the same thing to the Galaxy Note 4.
I was able to use Kernel Auditor to do thinks like speed up the CPU and enable init.d (one of the requirements to get Viper4Android to work). CPU tweaks substantially enhanced this phone's performance.
Once rooted, customization became relatively easy. I targeted my usual apps to enhance the phone. SELinux Switcher, Adaway, BusyBox, Kernel Auditor (to tweak CPU performance and enable init.d), and Viper4Android (the package that includes Sony + Dolby Atmos). Rooted apps are all performing as expected.
The factory launcher is surprisingly lite and simple, and I did enjoy it. I would have kept it for the MIL, but I didn't see any obvious way to change the icon set so I went with Evie Launcher (if you see a way, though, please let me know). So far, Evie is working quite nicely.
Wifi speeds are pretty good for a phone in this class; I have no complaints. For cell data, based on the radios supported, this phone can only work at 3G/HSPA+ as there is no LTE radio. However I'll better be able to speak on that once I put in her SIM card and really give this a twirl on AT&T towers.
With the right modifications, I'd say this phone performs similar to those with a much higher pay point. Of course it's nothing near flagship level. However, for the amount of RAM and on-board storage, SD card support, headphone jack and REMOVABLE battery - I'd say this phone is a pretty sweet deal especially for people who just cannot or do not want to spend $$$ for a bunch of features they don't need. Plus if you break this sucker, you're not gonna cry over it. Just save up a few In-and-Out combos in a piggy bank and you can buy another one.
Oh yeah - one final note. Regarding cases, unless you want to pay Amazon's ridiculously jacked-up prices, it's best to order one through eBay from overseas. I got the pleather wallet model and it looks pretty decent. Just saw there is now a genuine full-leather one also on eBay.
---------- Post added at 05:25 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:19 PM ----------
Oh darn it! I just saw that you wanted to remove some system apps. Once rooted, there are apps in Playstore that should let you do just that.
In fact, thanks for that list. I'll check these out and see which ones I can dump. Is Themes tied to the launcher? If so, I may not touch it to avoid problems later. Speaking of Theme - that effing hanging cat can be turned off in the stock launcher settings. There is actually a switch for it. Sooooo annoying!
And your rating is very close to what others are giving (low to mid 7s), so it looks like your instincts are quite on the money.
Just added the first video. Once again, I'm kinda wishing that my dedicated camera was still operational (Nikon COOLPIX), but it stopped working a few months back. I had no option but the Nexus 7 camera (again). I've been using it as my camera for most of my videos where it isn't screen cap.
care to expand on TWRP rooting?!
(there is a trick in doing so as the install wasn't quite so straightforward)
For those wondering how to root this phone, its actually pretty simple. THIS WILL ERASE EVERYTHING.
Assuming you know some basic adb commands..
You wanna start off with making sure your bootloader is unlocked, which can be done fairly easily with ADB tools.
Don't be alarmed when your phone resets a couple times, its erasing data and reformating.
Once your bootloader is unlocked and your phone restarts, remember to reenable USB debugging. and then go to fastboot mode again to flash our recovery.
(I used the recovery link listed in the SUflash method that comes up when googling 'x30 doogee root')
Once our recovery is installed, we'll wanna put the latest version of SuperSU (Make sure its the zip, not the apk) onto your phone/SD card. Boot into recovery, and install SuperSU through TWRP.
Congratz, you've succesfully rooted your X30
Tested and verified on mine. Sorry I could not include links, do not have enough posts. Just wanted to be of assistance!
This device (unfortunately) actually sort needs root to even feel at-home with. Which is sad, because the x5 Pro and x6 Pro weren't like that. I rooted them advanced purposes - not to get them to a decent state...
Help me please!
I stuck my phone in TWRP can you send me a copy of your recovery?
VeteranoX said:
I stuck my phone in TWRP can you send me a copy of your recovery?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I unfortunately don't have the device anymore