Develop Bugs

[Q] Help! Need Help Deciding to Buy Note 2!

So i currently have a Galaxy S IV i9500 and want to buy the Note II N7100. This might sound strange but hear me out.....
So i bought the Galaxy S IV the as soon as it released....i thought it would be a great phone! (I was upgrading from a S III). It is a great phone no doubt but when upgrading from the S III (which was a great phone too) i felt that not much had changed. I felt that it had nothing greater to offer than the s3. Except for the screen i saw no real difference.
The performance was not hugely faster than S3 and since the s4 has an a 1.6ghz a15 core at 1.6ghz when on load, i think the 1.6ghz a9 on note 2 might be on par for usual everyday tasks. T
The screen size felt same as on the s3 even though it is .2 inches bigger. Now looking at the note 2 i feel that it has much more to offer. It has a bigger screen, bigger batter and S Pen (something new to play with).
However since i have used the s4 the display really is the factor that has me stuck in a loop on whether i should sell the s4 and buy the note 2. So is the difference in resolution really a big issue? I currently dont have access to a note 2 thus am unable to compare so i would like opinions to help decide. Does the 720p resolution on note 2 look pixelated on comparison to s4? Also will the processor and gpu on n2 get outdated soon? How long before N2 is unable to run the latest games and apps?
Thanks Everyone for Reading and all Opinions are welcome. Cheers

There is thread like this and by owningn N7105, I really know what you feel.
I was dancing on the wire if I should by Htc One, Xperia Z, S4 or Note 2 after Sensation Xl.
Xperia was and is really beautiful piece but it didnt do it for me... I have used S3 alot and when I got my hands on S4 I was really disappointed.
It is great phone but nothing I didnt have that WOW-feeling so I bought Note and for the first time, I feel everything is there and I dont have to "settle" for something(except external keyboard but they are hard to find nowadays. Damn you Motorola!).
But I couldnt see any big difference between screens. Also Note has 1,6Ghz quad core + 2Gb so no worry about power... It can do what ever you want. And after little tweaking, its batterylife is just AMAZING.

[Q] Does 1GB and 2GB RAM really matters?

I am planning to buy Note2 or SG3 but m lil bit confused btween these two awesome devices..the only pro i see in note 2 is larger screen,s-pen and 1GB additional RAM compared to SG3.Whereas SG3 has lot more functions and features than note 2.
So i need help from u guys that which phone is better among the two..
Also does 2GB of RAM really matters for a PHONE??I mean its a phone not a PC..what do u guys think?

It does. That's why I sold away my s3 before its value depreciates too much.
It's pretty frustrating when your app closes whenever you open a few more apps.
Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 2

Believe me go for the note from 2 it has a lot of more features. I had the s3 for a month and it is nothing special compared to the note 2.
Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 4 Beta

No competition. Note 2 or nothing!
Haha. But S3 is good as well.
An extra gig of RAM could go a long way.

Is S3 anyway better than note 2 ? S3 has better pixel density(306 ppi) compared to note 2(~267ppi).. Has anyone noticed any difference in display and clarity?

mannyvinny said:
Is S3 anyway better than note 2 ? S3 has better pixel density(306 ppi) compared to note 2(~267ppi).. Has anyone noticed any difference in display and clarity?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
With the screen calibration of Perseus and other kernels' you don't need to stress about pixels per inch.

Simone said:
With the screen calibration of Perseus and other kernels' you don't need to stress about pixels per inch.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Means,i need not to worry about the screen clarity and display as S3 has..does it has any noticeable change in screen when both are seen side by side?

mannyvinny said:
Means,i need not to worry about the screen clarity and display as S3 has..does it has any noticeable change in screen when both are seen side by side?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Perseus both on S3 and Note 2, there will be more clarity on the S3 of course because of more PPI.
But with screen calibration, it could possibly beat a retina Apple display.

in my opinion the S3 is not as clear.
this is because the S3 has a pentile screen(2 colors per pixel instead of the regular 3), so while it has a slightly higher ppi it has a lower sppi and a noticeable pattern in the screen that looks a bit like a chain link fence.
and I don't know what you've heard about the features on the S3, but as far as I know the note 2 has all features the S3 has and some exclusive features.

It would be safe to say that with additional ram on the note 2, it's future proofed against newer Rom updates. 2GB is becoming the trend and will be required as more and more features are being added to roms. Since you mentioned the S3 has more features, I am curious to know what extra features does the S3 have over the Note 2?
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda app-developers app

It is the Note 2 which has the greater range of features, not the other way around.
Sent from the mighty Note II

bushako said:
It would be safe to say that with additional ram on the note 2, it's future proofed against newer Rom updates. 2GB is becoming the trend and will be required as more and more features are being added to roms. Since you mentioned the S3 has more features, I am curious to know what extra features does the S3 have over the Note 2?
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After reading above comments and user reviews,my reaction towards S3 is-How the fu**in hell i was wondering to buy S3 ..fu*k u S3.:laugh:

The international LTE version of s3 has 2gb ram and the same processor as note 2

Samsung Galaxy S3 = Phone benchmark
Samsung Galaxy Note 2 = Phone BENCHMARK ALL CAPS

mannyvinny bro, i was also in same situation when i was planning to buy the phone about a month back. Both are lovely sets. In my case, in the end .. 2gb ram was THE ONLY reason i bought the note2. See s4, xperiaz, htc one .. all new devices are coming with 2gig ram. Trust me this was real factor i got this beast. Secondly larger screen is always plus. And pixel density, i dont hardly see any difference :silly:
So, my suggestion.. go for note 2. Spend your hard earned money on some feature proof device.
edit, do read the SDS issue related thread before purchasing!

Buy an S3 i9305 with 2gb. I'm thinking of moving there as my note's size is beginning to bug me. Yes 2gb is a bliss when I tap to open Facebook and it opens instantly, as opposed to my previous note1 which killed it everytime in need of free ram, as it is a really heavy app 70+MB. Because in reality 1gb ram translates in 200-300mb free, which can be filled really quickly and it's really frustrating and embarrasing waiting for some secs for apps to load, when I have a beast of a phone.

i used both GN2 and S4.....and i like note2 more than s4......big screen long hr battery for internet surfing and gaming....and how can my fingers replace the amazing spen
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda premium

fade2black101 said:
The international LTE version of s3 has 2gb ram and the same processor as note 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There's still an issue with the S3 LTE which is the fact that LTE consumes more power and yet the battery pack remained unchanged. Also the LTE version only has an additional ram but not the same CPU clock speed as the Note 2, by default at least.
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda app-developers app

I owned an S3 and a Note 2 and I can tell you in my opinion it does make a difference, Note 2 is noticeably better.

S4 TouchWiz functions on S4 mini?

TouchWiz S4 Mini was gutted in terms of some cooler TouchWiz function available on the regular S4, namely:
Air View, smart stay, smart scroll, air gesture, multi Window, TV remote, etc.
However, I have seen they are porting S4 room into regular S3. I would imagine it should be even easier to do it with S4 mini (especially, as pre-sale versions already had (some of those?) features that were later disabled).
Is there a good chance for a rom that will contain those S4 things that are now missing from S4 mini?
This is one of the main question I ask myself while deciding whether I should get S2 or S4 mini, as S3/S4 is more of a spade, than a mobile phone.

There's TV remote on s4 mini (ir blaster )
Also, does the S2 have those features? If it doesn't then you might as well get the S4 Mini for the performancd

Whosat said:
There's TV remote on s4 mini (ir blaster )
Also, does the S2 have those features? If it doesn't then you might as well get the S4 Mini for the performancd
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, S2 doesn't have those features but is 100 euro cheaper than S4 mini, so I would like to know if there's a point of that price difference.
So the remote is there (I don't care much for it). How about chances to get the rest of the features with a S4 rom port?

impactor said:
No, S2 doesn't have those features but is 100 euro cheaper than S4 mini, so I would like to know if there's a point of that price difference.
So the remote is there (I don't care much for it). How about chances to get the rest of the features with a S4 rom port?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The things that the S4 Mini will never get are things like Air Gestures since the Mini doesn't have the front facing IR sensor that the S4 has so it can't detect movement.
However things like smart scroll is POSSIBLE in a ROM since that just uses the front-facing camera, so smart scroll is a software exclusion not a hardware issue. As for multi-window that too is software related so MAYBE a ROM might have it but remember that is some serious work so you may never see it.
As for Smart Stay....the S4 Mini already HAS that...
Regarding porting an S4 ROM to the S3/S4 Mini as I said above Air Gestures will NOT work since the IR sensor for that is missing.

Thank you, that explains quite a lot.
So I am still stuck between a S2 and its amazing development resources, or S4 mini, which for the moment has next to none. And I don't know if it will ever have enough to produce some really interesting ROM options.
S4 mini advantages:
- camera wide lens as in S3 (can someone confirm? I hate narrow lens of regular S4)
- slightly better screen
- slightly better camera
- slightly faster (don't really care, cause I never game, only multitask)
- might get some S4 functions down the line
S2 advantages:
- 100 euro cheaper
- huge amount of roms
- roms with changable dpi (remedies the issue of lower resolution, making it even possibly an advantage over S4 mini without this function)

impactor said:
Thank you, that explains quite a lot.
So I am still stuck between a S2 and its amazing development resources, or S4 mini, which for the moment has next to none....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well it seems you have made up your own mind here
If being able to choose from large amounts of ROM's is what you want then maybe the S2 is what you want but remember the s4 mini only came out around July/August so not really a lot of time to create stable ROM's.
All I can say is that the S4 Mini is much more future proof in terms of hardware specs so that should count for something. If you wanted to stay stock then my argument would be simple since the s4 mini would definitely be updated by Samsung since it is a rather beefy phone but since you're interested in using various ROM's then the S2 seems like a winner at the moment. Main phone such as the S2 or S3 and S4 would get more ROM support since they were "flagship" phones when they came out.
Take this in mind, look at how much support the S3 Mini has gotten and then apply that to the S4 Mini (but in my opinion the S4 Mini seems to be more popular than the S3 Mini so it may get more ROM support, but give it some time)
To end off as a closing argument. If you want a phone NOW then I would say the S2 since you clearly want ROM choices BUT take into consideration that the S4 Mini has only been around for 1-2 months.
That's the best I can do, hopefully it has helped in your decision.
*Addressing one of your advantages of the S4 Mini, the S4 Mini is not slightly faster than the S2. It is MILES faster. It's getting +-19500 in Antutu 4 whereas the S2 is only getting +-10500
*Also what do you mean by wide lens camera? You mean like choosing a wide capture mode? The S4 Mini does let you choose full resolution 4:3 which are squarish or you can choose slightly lower resolution 16:9 pictures which are widescreen. But ye maybe I don't know what you mean.

Eradica said:
Take this in mind, look at how much support the S3 Mini has gotten and then apply that to the S4 Mini (but in my opinion the S4 Mini seems to be more popular than the S3 Mini so it may get more ROM support, but give it some time)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good point. Haven't thought of looking into that.
*Addressing one of your advantages of the S4 Mini, the S4 Mini is not slightly faster than the S2. It is MILES faster. It's getting +-19500 in Antutu 4 whereas the S2 is only getting +-10500
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am not sure where would I see this speed difference if I don't game.
*Also what do you mean by wide lens camera? You mean like choosing a wide capture mode? The S4 Mini does let you choose full resolution 4:3 which are squarish or you can choose slightly lower resolution 16:9 pictures which are widescreen. But ye maybe I don't know what you mean.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, that's not what I mean. If you look at the difference between the area of the picture S3 and S4 fit into the frame (check out S4 gsmarena review) you will be amazed by how much narrower is the lens of S4. That's a serious issue for me.
I read S4 mini's camera is nearly the same as S3's so I would like to know if the viewing angle is also as wide.
Also, do you think prices of S4 mini will drop when Note 3 comes out?

The speed improvement will be clearly reflected in your multitasking. Also note the amount of ram the s2 has vs s4mini.
The prices are unlikely to drop as they are of very different functions and target very different user groups.

[Q] Galaxy Tab S or S2 ?

Hi Guys,
My 2012 Nexus 10 is showing its age and I am desperate for a new tablet. I waited so long for Galaxy Tab S2, but I am kinda disappointed with its spec. old 5433 SoC and 4:3 screen with downgraded ppi and resolution ! so I am thinking about Galaxy Tab S, what do you think about it after lollipop update ? I heard many users complained about its lags and underpowered SoC, would you recommend it ? also how is the custom ROM community for it ? I can see there are a couple custom ROMs but are there stable enough to for daily usage ? I remember exynos had very limited developer support, so there was not many great ROMs for exynos devices out there, what do you think ? Galaxy Tab S or S2 ?

The S1 is a masterpiece the S2 is a frankenstein monster, 4:3 spit, virtually mono sound spit, so looks plain jane spit, no camera flash spit, no if-red spit, portrait design spit, I though it was an Galaxy Tab A by the photo`s it looks so cheap.
Exynos version has loads of rom`s, snapdragon version hardly any, If you want stability stick to kitkat, if your fine with flashing have fun with different roms.
John

But what about the lags and stutters on kitkat ? I heard lollipop fixed that. is it true ?

I have had no lag or stutter on my 10.5" kitkat , I had it running continuously for 160 days, I never shut it down or restarted it, I only did a restart to re-calibrate my battery but i had no problems with the battery, it was just maintenance.
But i am not a gamer, I mostly watch video`s and browse the internet for at least an hour every day, but white on an oled display eats the battery, if you do a lot of browsing use night mode or get an lcd tablet.
John.
fifthelement said:
But what about the lags and stutters on kitkat ? I heard lollipop fixed that. is it true ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

hmm. hard question. I personally would not get either right now. The s2 looks like a step backwards in the key areas, the darn screen.
the s has the lovely screen, but unless you can get a decent deal, its too long in the tooth to spend out a lot for.
its so irritating as there are no tabs which tick all the boxes. the experia z3 is good, but the res is lower, but everything else is up to speed.
dont get me wrong, I really do like my tablet, but who knows what is coming out in the next few months, or will be announced. I hope finally there is something which is progress in all areas.

The Tab S2 has a lower resolution screen than the Tab S (both resolution AND PPI), a significantly smaller battery and a marginally upgraded processor.
I'd wait for the true successor to the Tab S - which will likely a more upmarket SAMOLED tablet, priced higher than the Tab S with a full metal body (Like the Galaxy Tab A) and more of a competitor for the iPad.

I prefer plastic to metal, metal is cold and when bent or dented it does not spring back like plastic also it blocks radio waves so you have to have non metal sections to let the waves in and out, Samsung are masters of durable plastic, you can bend the battery cover of their phones almost in two and it will spring back without any damage try that with metal.
John

So I bought my Tab S around a month ago and I have to say I'm in love with it! After seeing the specs of the Tab S 2 I knew straight away the device for me.
The tab s in my opinion tick pretty much every box the only thing I wish was better is the GPU for gaming (not that it plays games badly - they play well enough) but I can be quite picky and if I'm not getting the max FPS from a game I feel upset! Everything else on the tablet is perfect and I'm the kind of chap that sells his devices every couple of months for the latest better version but this is the first device I've come across that I've not even looked at replacing, well worth the £300 I spent for it. The xperia z4 tablet is now out and it's specs are majorly impressive but it's thick bezels I think make it an ugly design, I love the thin sides of the Tab S, another tablet I've been looking at is the Microsoft Surface Pro 3 but again after seeing it in the shop I think it's quite ugly and put a Bluetooth keyboard, mouse and hancom fine with my tab s and it's replaced my laptop, which I'm selling on eBay at the moment as it hasn't been used since I bought my tablet.
I'm a network manager at a school and have used my Tab S for a hell of a lot including connecting to multiple servers and writing 30 page policies. It's a great little device.
I upgraded to Lollipop but I'm using IronRom instead of stock and I have to say it's very stable and very fast. No lag. On antutu I got around the 4100 mark with all my GPU and CPU over locked it's just as powerful as an S5 phone. I'd recommend it to anyone and already multiple family members and the girlfriend have ordered one after seeing mine.
Sorry this was long but I hope it helped

Comes down to a few questions:
Do you value performance. The Exnos 5420 is a 2 year old processor. The 5433/7410 is a 1 year old processor (though it is a 20nn version of the 7420 in the S6)
Do you value battery life. The Tab S2 8.0 has a battery that is 20% smaller than the original tab. It may be that the 20nn processor and smaller newer screen are more efficient but I don't expect better battery life.
Do you value longevity/updates: The Tab S2 is a year newer so it will have its updates discontinued later than the Tab S.
Does display ratio matter to you: If you mostly read, the Tab S2 may be a dream come true. If you mostly watch videos, it's a disaster.
Do you value internal storage: Other than a best buy limited edition model, the Tab S has 16gb storage. The S2 has 32GB.
It seems like the Tab S2 is a Galaxy Note 4 (international) turned into a tablet. The Tab S was the Galaxy Note 3 (international) turned into a tablet.
This is a tough question for me. I re-bought the Tab S 8.4 for 190 (ridiculous deal best buy had a few months ago) after leaving it late last year to try other tablets (The Xperia Z3 Tablet and the Venue 7840). I also bought the Tab S 8.4 on day 1 last year (great deal, $350 for the tablet, Samsung cover, and 16gb sd card) to replace my Tab Pro 8.4 that I bought on day 1. I'm leaning towards getting it if the same deal is in play.

I have asked basic maths for help:
smaller side of t800 is 5.87 inch and of t810 is 5.82 inch...
So I do not see any advantage for browsing in new generation...

rp3 said:
Comes down to a few questions:
Do you value performance. The Exnos 5420 is a 2 year old processor. The 5433/7410 is a 1 year old processor (though it is a 20nn version of the 7420 in the S6)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately yes he is right here as the Tab S processor is a year older, though I find it very quick and non-laggy when using IronRom on lollipop. As stated above the one thing I'd change is GPU performance but remember you always have over clocking when you root!
rp3 said:
Do you value longevity/updates: The Tab S2 is a year newer so it will have its updates discontinued later than the Tab S.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Best thing about android is that you can flash a custom ROM so updates never bother me as I can always flash a latest build of Cyanogenmod if needs be.
rp3 said:
Do you value internal storage: Other than a best buy limited edition model, the Tab S has 16gb storage. The S2 has 32GB.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have 16GB internal storage on my Tab S including a 128GB memory card. Everything including apps is stored on my memory card thanks to the app "foldermount" you must be rooted though, I don't think the Tab S 2 has expandable storage but I could be wrong.

Good Point the S1 beats the S2 in both horizontal and vertical resolution, so the S2 is not really better for browsing, though you have to turn the S1 10.5" to portrait mode as it`s an landscape tablet while the S1 8.4" is an portrait style already.
http://www.phonearena.com/phones/co...ch,Samsung-Galaxy-Tab-S-10.5/phones/9385,8662
http://www.phonearena.com/phones/co...nch,Samsung-Galaxy-Tab-S-8.4/phones/9384,8663
John.
ivanox1972 said:
I have asked basic maths for help:
smaller side of t800 is 5.87 inch and of t810 is 5.82 inch...
So I do not see any advantage for browsing in new generation...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Thank you all for your responses and opinions, I guess I would go for a Galaxy Tab S. but I will wait until S2 is released so I can get a good deal. I expect galaxy tab s gets a discount when s2 is released.

S1 - just bought my third for the household, was holding out for the S2 but so glad i did not wait for a iPad Air copy.

This morning I read that the S2 comes with Android 5.0.2 and started to laugh. Seriously 5.1.1 has been out for months including on a few Samsung devices. At the glacial pace that Samsung updates their tablet OS versions Android M will have been out for at least three months before the S2 gets v5.1.1, what a joke.
That on top of an older processor makes you wonder why they even bothered. I'm very happy to have bought my S 10.5 at almost $70 less retail, a few months ago, rather than this laughable new flagship tablet. Samsung's advantage of the best screen technology in the industry is getting sabotaged by very odd engineering decisions. It seems like the tablet division is run by their B team.
Sent from my SM-T800 using XDA Premium HD app

Frankly speaking, I would never buy an S2 over the Tab S. At the moment on the Tab S you can have Lollipop, Xposed, custom kernels with F2FS, and the tablet flies, literally.

Yeah, but with the S2 you have like errr emm eerrr nothing help!!!!
John.
stopa10 said:
Frankly speaking, I would never buy an S2 over the Tab S. At the moment on the Tab S you can have Lollipop, Xposed, custom kernels with F2FS, and the tablet flies, literally.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

www.youtube.com/watch?v=P28m9cwa47E
Samsung tab s2 hands on and comparison with tab s. In English . According to this guy tab s2 has much more per and pricing will be matched to tab S.

ivanox1972 said:
I have asked basic maths for help:
smaller side of t800 is 5.87 inch and of t810 is 5.82 inch...
So I do not see any advantage for browsing in new generation...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, the advantage is that is almost the same viewing area but in a smaller and lighter package. Also, much more natural than the awkwardness that 16:10 is in portrait on such a large tablet as the tab S IMO. YMMV.

yohandesilva1 said:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=P28m9cwa47E
Samsung tab s2 hands on and comparison with tab s. In English . According to this guy tab s2 has much more per and pricing will be matched to tab S.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That video sure did nothing to change my mind that the S2 is a step backward. Especially the comparison of reading the magazine which showed nothing visually while the video playback did demonstrate the smaller picture and unused screen black bars. Is Samsung going to pronounce, to video watchers, that the black bars on video playback is actually a way to extend your battery life? Which maybe needed as the thinner design and aspect ratio has reduced overall battery size. It is going to be tough to polish a turd and sell it at a flag ship price.
After reading the S2 details I'm still amazed that the OS is v5.0.2 and it does not have the same processor that the S6 phone uses. What were they thinking?
Sent from my SM-T800 using XDA Premium HD app

Screen on my S4 mini broke, what would you suggest?

Hello all!
After a lot of hard use, the screen on my beloved S4 mini broke and are not usable..
I don't think its really worth buying a replacement screen for this old phone, but looking around on newer models, i feel like we are really lucky to have this great community and development still around.
If your phone broke what new one would you get? Or would you get a new s4 mini again? I mean, 8mp camera, low resolution screen... The specs for this phone are really bad, but the roms/development around it is just amazing it seems. And yea, i have been really happy with it the last 2.5+ years.
The other problem is that i dont really want a phone that is much bigger than this one currently is, as i think it has a great size..

Linkdk said:
Hello all!
After a lot of hard use, the screen on my beloved S4 mini broke and are not usable..
I don't think its really worth buying a replacement screen for this old phone, but looking around on newer models, i feel like we are really lucky to have this great community and development still around.
If your phone broke what new one would you get? Or would you get a new s4 mini again? I mean, 8mp camera, low resolution screen... The specs for this phone are really bad, but the roms/development around it is just amazing it seems. And yea, i have been really happy with it the last 2.5+ years.
The other problem is that i dont really want a phone that is much bigger than this one currently is, as i think it has a great size..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
it will depend on your financial stats , if i was in your place and my financial stat is lets say average or even a little better i would go for the S5 mini

Hedi.Karray said:
it will depend on your financial stats , if i was in your place and my financial stat is lets say average or even a little better i would go for the S5 mini
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Money is not the biggest problem really, but i dont want to give 1000$ for a flagship phone, because it's not worth it imo
Yea i looked at the s5 mini, but as far as i can tell, its not really much better. The resolution is a little better and then it features a quad core cpu. But the rest is pretty much the same, and its already 2+ years old
What about the Galaxy A3? is a little bigger (4.7"), but has some better specs. But it doesnt seem it much supported by rom builders.. Or maybe the Xperia Z5 compact, but its like double the price of the S5 mini.
I wish samsung had continued their Mini series..

Linkdk said:
Money is not the biggest problem really, but i dont want to give 1000$ for a flagship phone, because it's not worth it imo
Yea i looked at the s5 mini, but as far as i can tell, its not really much better. The resolution is a little better and then it features a quad core cpu. But the rest is pretty much the same, and its already 2+ years old
What about the Galaxy A3? is a little bigger (4.7"), but has some better specs. But it doesnt seem it much supported by rom builders.. Or maybe the Xperia Z5 compact, but its like double the price of the S5 mini.
I wish samsung had continued their Mini series..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well there is no big difference between the s4 mini and the A3 only in screen size and CPU which is not something will make me personnaly want it , and nooooooooo stay away from the Xperia if you love custom roms and those stuff , they are so complicated and some of them even dont accept custom roms ( locked bootloader ) i decided to never own an xperia again in my life even for free
try looking in the Galaxy J there are some great phones too

Hedi.Karray said:
well there is no big difference between the s4 mini and the A3 only in screen size and CPU which is not something will make me personnaly want it , and nooooooooo stay away from the Xperia if you love custom roms and those stuff , they are so complicated and some of them even dont accept custom roms ( locked bootloader ) i decided to never own an xperia again in my life even for free
try looking in the Galaxy J there are some great phones too
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm well the A3 has better screen, better cpu, better camera and better battery but it seems the battery is not removeable though.
Haha yea alright point taken about the xperia

the s4 mini is a good phone and it wins on more phones, i suggest you to replace the screen or to buy the new s4 mini plus

I was also considering a Z3 compact when seeing a replacement for my beloved Xperia Ray, but went for a refurbished S4 Mini. A great little phone, and excellent dev support (thanks to @arco68). I liked the sleek appearance of the A3, but it's bigger than the S4 Mini and Z Compacts.
Nice comparison tool here:
http://www.phonearena.com/phones/si...mpact,Samsung-Galaxy-A3/phones/7788,9611,8932
Cheers!

I'm also looking for a replacement. So far, I tried:
- Samsung S5 Mini - larger, pentile screen = text looks fuzzy, has GPS hardware issue
- Moto X 2013 - has 5.1 official, great screen, but: larger, software keys make usable space same as S4 Mini, no sd card, has radio standby bug
- Sony Z5 Compact - expensive, really blocky & heavy - not very compact when compared to all the others in list, software keys make usable space *less than* S4 Mini
- Samsung A3 2015 - larger & blockier, very light, nice materials, only Android 5.0 with probably no update, specs almost same as S4 Mini (Plus / VE)
- Samsung A3 2016 - even larger, pentile screen = text looks really fuzzy, worse than S4 Mini...
- Moto G LTE 2013 - larger, but ergonomic, heavy, Android 5.1, sd card, only 1 GB RAM & 8 GB space
So far, only A3 2015 & Moto G LTE 2013 are acceptable, but no real upgrades (apart from not being stuck on KitKat...).
There are other new phones similar in size with S4 Mini, but all are huge downgrades: Lenovo A1000, Samsung J1 Mini, chinese phones...
So far, staying with S4 Mini seems the only good option...

What about the S3 Mini
I have both the S3 and S4 Mini, I prefer the S3, S4 is stuck at 3G, also the S3 is a little smaller than S4, Just my humble opinion.

Keep s4 mini is best ever
Inviato dal mio GT-I9195 utilizzando Tapatalk

bjwx2 said:
I have both the S3 and S4 Mini, I prefer the S3, S4 is stuck at 3G, also the S3 is a little smaller than S4, Just my humble opinion.
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I also checked the S3 Mini as soon as it was released. Unfortunately, it was also pentile, and at that resolution it was very visible.

nick_white said:
So far, staying with S4 Mini seems the only good option...
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I know, right? It's crazy to think that our ~3 year old phone is still one of the best compact devices available.
I had hoped that the iPhone 5SE would encourage other manufacturers to release new <4.5" devices with modern specs. Every so often I check to see if any new, compact Android phones have been announced, but it seems 5.0" is considered the 'sweet spot' these days.
It's a shame the One Plus 3 Mini rumour was quashed - that would have made for a nice little device.
Cheers!

JimmyRay said:
I know, right? It's crazy to think that our ~3 year old phone is still one of the best compact devices available.
Cheers!
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Yea exactly. But my s4 mini is also getting a little 'boring' to look at, the same about the s5 mini, so i would like some other design. Sonys experia models looks pretty good, but they are all 5", like the xperia XA, it looks very good
If i chose to buy the galaxy A3, it would definitely be the 2016 edition

nick_white said:
- Samsung A3 2016 - even larger, pentile screen = text looks really fuzzy, worse than S4 Mini...
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what do you mean that the text looks 'fuzzy'? I went to the store to look at it yesterday, i think it looked pretty good

The font lines are zig-zagged instead of straight because the pixels "borrow" subpixels from the adjacent ones. It's not obvious to anyone. I mostly read PDFs and browse desktop versions of sites, so the text is small and uses few pixels, so it makes a huge difference to me. I compared the 2016 model to the 2015 one, and to S4 Mini side by side, and the new model was worse than both.