Yesterday I received my Samsung Galaxy S6 Active. I've been on the fence about getting one, especially since I have the S5 Active. There didn't seem to be enough of a difference to switch, but I figured I could get it and return it if I didn't like it. Well so far I really like it. Here are items that are making the switch worth while:
Camera - The camera is awesome! Fast and takes great pictures (although the S5 Active does take great pictures also.).
No port covers - It was very nice not having to open the cover every time I need to plug in the USB.
Themes - This is really cool. I didn't have to add anything to install a theme and it's complete. Pretty much everything is themed. The Avengers theme is pretty sweet.
Wireless charging - Although I haven't tried it yet, I'm getting a charging pad as soon as I decide that I'm keeping it.
Some downsides (although I'm good with them):
No micro sd card slot - This one, I can go either way with. I have always added an sd card to any device that had a slot for in case I needed it. So far, I haven't had a time that I actually had to have one. With cloud services and a data connection pretty much everywhere I go, I'm ok with it. Also, I keep a thumb drive with a micro usb connector on it with me most of the time in case I need it.
No removable battery - Again, I can go either way with it. It's nice to just pull the battery on lockups, but that's about it for me. I'm not too worried about switching it out, I normally don't keep the phone long enough for the battery to go bad.
I'm not sure about the battery life yet, but so far so good. After 7.5 hours of medium to heavy use, I'm at 81%.
All in all, I'm pretty happy with it so far.
One week update.
I'm keeping the S6 Active.
The phone is solid and feels good in the hand. The "newer" TouchWiz is ok, but I prefer to use Nova Launcher and the cool thing is that the themes work with it. Again, the camera is outstanding! The battery life is really good. Today I used the phone quite a bit and after 9 hours I'm at 68%. I did notice the occasional lag, but I cleared the cache and it seems to be a lot better.
So, after two weeks with the S6 Active, it's going back to AT&T. There are problems with the touchscreen, especially on the right side. Swiping and scrolling on the right side lags and sometimes dosen't work. There are some issues with using it in water: The dock connected notification pops up when it gets water in the charging port. After the phone was wet, audio from the ear piece and the speaker was really low for about an hour. The phone would not transfer data with a usb cable, even after 8 hours of being dry. It would charge, but not transfer data (I did try 2 different cables and it worked fine with my S5 Active).
Also, earlier today, I had the phone in my pocket and heard it stating that it was going into "VR mode", the screen went black and I could not use the phone. I tried restarting the phone by holding the power and volume down buttons, but it would go back to the black screen when it would reboot. It wasn't until I plugged in a usb cable to try and backup the phone that it started working again.
At this point, I am back to my S5 Active and I'll decide over the weekend whether to exchange the phone or just return.
Sent from my SM-P605V using Tapatalk
Samsung really screwed up removing the port covers.
Disagree completely!
Port covers are just something that breaks causing the phone to fail. Just a matter of common sense to dry your phone off before plugging it in!
Sent from my SM-P600 using Tapatalk
Picked mine up Saturday. Got 5 hours SOT the first day. Gonna hammer the usage today and see how much I have left after 6 hours SOT. Pretty sweet device so far. If it had 64GB of storage, it would be about the best phone I have used in a while!
Sent from my S6 Active!
I completely agree! I used my S6 Active in fresh and salt water this weekend and had no unexpected issues at all.
Once submerged, while recording, the audio was distorted until I blew into the mic sharply to clear off the water. Completely expected and unpreventable and a non-issue.
I may have gotten a bad phone. I blew out the ports and waited at least an hour before plugging it in and still had problems with it. I will probably exchange it later today or tomorrow. I contemplated returning it, but I really did like it before the problems.
I went from an N5 to an Active and I like it, but the new update seems to shoot out the "Connected to Dock" a lot and that is very annoying considering it stops you from doing anything at that moment. It'll just pop up like 20 times in a row.
TommyStarwind said:
I went from an N5 to an Active and I like it, but the new update seems to shoot out the "Connected to Dock" a lot and that is very annoying considering it stops you from doing anything at that moment. It'll just pop up like 20 times in a row.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What are you doing when that pop up comes up? I have the latest update and haven't seen anything like that on my S6 Active.
MarineSSGT0629 said:
What are you doing when that pop up comes up? I have the latest update and haven't seen anything like that on my S6 Active.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It'll just pop up randomly, but when it does it isn't just once. Even restarting the phone doesn't get it to go away. It hasn't done it for a few hours. I'll have issues with it charging and it'll say that with the fast charger. I have a regular usb plugged into it right now and have zero issues. I was however in the pool with it on Saturday to play with the camera underwater. Pocketnow's review on the phone mentions the same thing, but theirs went away after 30 mins.
http://pocketnow.com/2015/06/23/galaxy-s6-active-review
"Take the phone out of the water and you’re bound to see a flickering notification at the top of the screen informing you that the “dock is connected” – an error that doesn’t seem confined to waterproof Samsungs. Considering how long this bug has been around, it’s disappointing that Samsung didn’t correct it before releasing such a supposedly rugged smartphone. Fortunately, the fix is relatively easy: just take a deep breath and blow some air into the USB port like it’s an old Nintendo cartridge, then leave it in front of a fan to dry."
I just picked my active up yesterday. I really really love the phone and the camera and the waterproofing. I had an s6 edge but I was sold a financed (unlocked tmobile) phone without my knowledgd. I really miss the capacitive buttons and the fingerprint reader, as well as the bottom facing speaker. But still an amazing phone. I almost wonder if I should exchange for the leather back g4 though... I'm very Conflicted... what do you guys think? Stick with the active? Or try the g4? (I only get one exchanhe)
I went a head and exchanged mine instead of returning it. This ones to run smoother, the screen seems to be working properly. I did the latest update, but I don't see any difference yet.
Craleb said:
I just picked my active up yesterday. I really really love the phone and the camera and the waterproofing. I had an s6 edge but I was sold a financed (unlocked tmobile) phone without my knowledgd. I really miss the capacitive buttons and the fingerprint reader, as well as the bottom facing speaker. But still an amazing phone. I almost wonder if I should exchange for the leather back g4 though... I'm very Conflicted... what do you guys think? Stick with the active? Or try the g4? (I only get one exchanhe)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you want the waterproofing, you will have to stick with the Active.
The s6 active is the best Samsung phone out right now...it's battery is a beast and it's tough as nails...love it!
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using XDA Free mobile app
Kindly Vote for root...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/general/xda-assist/root-samsung-galaxy-s6-active-sm-g890a-t3257656
I have a nickname for this phone: "Perfect" ? that's how great this phone is in my opinion, still waiting for root though to unleash the beast.
Still missing battery and SD card access not because I really need them (yet) but not having access to all your phone's hardware and software features it feels like the phone is not your property entirely.
Things that impressed me so far are build quality, great grip, screen is amazing making reading and video rendering a pleasant experience, sound quality for calls is great too, not so impressive for music play on speaker or aux on car speakers but good with headphones, pretty fast CPU and RAM, battery life is an improvement I was waiting for for years but missing solar charge (still waiting for this technology to be implemented in smartphones), wireless charging is not my thing because it takes too long.
And of course being a "not bent friendly" device is like having wild berries instead of... you know what ?
Related
I'm thinking of buying the garmin vivosmart but i'm not sure if it is supported by the G2
is there any "smartwear" for taking notifications and display time/day (as small as possible) and it doesn't need to recharge it every night?
Misfit Shine
papathvas said:
I'm thinking of buying the garmin vivosmart but i'm not sure if it is supported by the G2
is there any "smartwear" for taking notifications and display time/day (as small as possible) and it doesn't need to recharge it every night?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm using a Misfit Shine with my LG G2. They are coming out with a "cheaper" model soon, the Misfit Flash, but this will only be about the Shine. As for the website http://www.misfit.com/, so you can check it out. The only thing it doesn't do that you asked about is tracking notifications.
As far as being an activity tracker, it does a pretty good job. There where (don't know if still is) two version of the shine, and it is what it comes with. The version I got came with the magnetic clip and the sports band. The little cheaper model comes with just the magnetic clip. Like most of the trackers, this one is waterproof. Rating for it is 50 meters. So no worries about jumping into the pool with this one and taking a swim.
The major thing about this tacker is that I got mine in April, I just changed the battery a week ago. So it ran for roughly 3-4 months with no charging. But that is the bad part as well, it takes a watch battery. At least the battery is one of the most common ones, and pretty cheap on Amazon. So with this one I was able to get a decent period of time out of it without having to worry about putting it on the charger.
It can tell the time, but does so in a digital/analog way. It shows you where Noon is on it, then shows you the hand, then blinks the minute had for how many minutes past the 5 minute intervals. This is all by the 12 leds on it. To get it to show the time you tap the device two or three times (depending upon settings). This is where the Misfit Flash might be better, as it has a full face button instead of using the accelerometer.
The main negative to this Misfit Shine is that the Android software is a couple of revisions behind ios. It is still useable and will do everything, just annoying seeing a new feature mentioned and seeing that it is only on the ios at this time. Also the software is simple, but they have finally open the API to allow other programs to nab the data. So you might check to see if your preferred health/tracking app has access to it.
Overall I've been quite happy with it. It has survived two trips though the washer, pretty sure it can easily survive more since it is metal. The new Misfit Flash (plastic encloser) might not like the spin cycle as much though.
Hope my little review helps you out some.
Niscandia
PS: I've used it on Cloudy's roms, First on CloudyFlex and now on CloudyG3. I did not try it upon a stock rom.
Sony Smartband
papathvas said:
I'm thinking of buying the garmin vivosmart but i'm not sure if it is supported by the G2
is there any "smartwear" for taking notifications and display time/day (as small as possible) and it doesn't need to recharge it every night?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm using the Sony Smartband with my G2. Overall I like it. I paid $80 for it when it came out earlier this year. The battery life is pretty good ranging from 3 to 5 days of use. It has a companion app that works with it called Lifelog. Lifelog tracks a lot of info. There is no screen on the smartband, but it does have touch controls and vibrates when your phone receives an email or a phone call. It is water resistant. I shower and wash dishes with it on. I think I will pick up the newest version when it comes out.
The one issue that I have noticed and reported to Sony to fix is that text message notifications do not vibrate the Smartband like emails, phone calls, and alarms do.
Also, the band they use did cause a little irritation to my skin. I'm not sure if it s from the material or from the band rubbing against my skin when I was wearing it.
Just like the other poster I am using Cloudy G3.
Can we use mi Band by Xiaomi with G2 .. I mean all of its features ??
Sent from my LG-D802
Here you can buy a MI Band just 28,99$/piece. If you buy and tested please give information of functions.
http://www.pandawill.com/mobile-phone-c1/wearable-devices.html
I use a Pebble Steel with my G2, works like a charm! Bluetooth LE allows my phone to sip power, I don't notice the difference in battery when I'm connected to it at all. The pebble has a week long battery which is amazing as well.
Hi,
I thought I'd share my thoughts on the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 I got last week. It's the LTE model, but UK so still uses the Exynos processor.
Firstly, I've been an Android user for quite a while. Started with the second generation of phones, and got a tablet shortly after. Had a wide range of cheap and cheerful devices , on which I always installed custom roms before becoming settled on Nexus devices a few years ago, and been happy with stock - had a nexus 4 and both generations of nexus 7.
I currently have an LG G3 for my phone (which is great btw)
I tend to prefer a clean, close to stock android experience, and I have always steered away from Samsung - never fancied touchwiz, wasn't keen on the oversaturated and blue hued screens, plus I like being different!. But based on the reviews, and after a quick play in the shop I took the plunge with the Tab S.
Firstly - form factor. I toyed with getting the bigger one, would have been better for work stuff, and watching tv/films at home, but I also use it a lot as an ereader. So the 8.4" form factor was best for me. I have big enough hands to comfortably hold it one handed on the train etc, and it is nice and light. Still sometimes wish I had got the bigger one though.
Interface - I actually like Touchwiz now.... I've not experienced too much lag, and I like the extra bells and whistles. The Notification bar is a little messy, but also has extra functionality so I will let it off (putting the IR blaster remote in there is a great idea) . The quick settings panel on the 2 finger scroll is a little cluttered, but functional too. I have replaced the launcher - I've used Apex for years and have got too used to the control it offer. Lets me get rid of the useless magazine ux too. Main thing about Apex is that it lets me use a much finer grid on the homescreens - I use widgets a lot, and like a lot more control over size and placement.
Screen - It's great. I'd like the whites to be a bit crisper, but the rest of the plusses make up for it. I actually like the active display mode - I keep trying it on basic, based upon other reviews and display tests, but keep turning it back. I like the wow factor. Maybe I will tire of it eventually and want something a bit more reserved, but for now I love it. Even on the active/AMOLED Cinema mode it is nowhere near as garish as early Galaxy displays.
If you want to show off the device, play someone the sample video that comes with the device. Obviously overtuned up to show off the screen but it is impressive.
Software - A lot of rubbish on the device obviously, but some is actually useful. The office viewers are handy, and the pdf viewer is a lot quicker than others I have tried, or using kindle which is very clunky.
Papergarden is actually quite impressive - it's the magazine experience I expected to get on a tablet (And annoyingly you can get more on an ipad...) - not sure how many magazines I will actually buy with my own money though.
Battery - It's ok, doesn't seem as good as my old nexus 7, but maybe I'm using it more, and probably cranking up the screen brightness too (And the 4g must use some too). I'll try it with some more reserved usage. Might try juicedefender on it too (which will probably help my data usage as well).
I also got a dud charger, which I will take back tomorrow - charging on a low power charger (supplied one is 2A) is pretty slow, but that's not the tablet's fault.
In conclusion - It's the best tablet I have had (Also the most expensive so you would expect it to be!). Performance is fine, the form factor is almost perfect for me, UI is good after some tweaking and the screen is great. Will post an update after I've been suing it for a month or two, see if I still feel the same.
Carl
interesting. very similar to me, coming from a N7 and using it a lot for media etc.
I was a very reluctant buyer, only the £50 play voucher pushing me over the edge as there were no other quality tablets out there to replace my nexus 7. I tried it out in john lewis and I was instantly impressed by the size and weight, not much different to the n7 but with the bigger screen.
so bought it, half expecting to just sell it in a year when something better came out. but the more I use it, the more I liked it. Switched out the launcher to nova and I was all set. I had no prior experience of amoled screens before, but as a big media watcher, I am now really glad I accidentally have one. I wouldnt bother so much on a phone, but on the tablet its perfect, I really notice the difference when using my partners regular tablet. I also went about downloading 2k youtube videos and putting them on the tablet and the quality was amazing, now of course its built into the app so even better!
The only lag I notice is sometimes on clicking the home button and I have had others tell me the tablet is bad as it does badly in benchmarks. which to me is crazy but its their call. the battery is not as good as the n7 but if you have the love the extra pixels, they draw more power. Luckily more than enough time for a good solid days usage but the n7 was better.
Active display mode?
I think the OP means "adaptive". The dynamic display mode that puts color and contrast into some kind of super overdrive. Eye candy in my opinion, but not for extended periods of time.
2k screen display consume alot of RAM and battery. Not redcommend for gaming
Seems good but some frustrations
Absolutely the main reason to buy this tablet is the screen. I don't think anything out there can touch it. My biggest issue is the SD card. I have a Patriot 64 GB microSD UHS-1 card and it just doesn't seem to work in this device at all. Tried formatting in Windows (ExFAT) - works great. Put it in my ASUS TF700 tablet - works great. Put it in the TAB S - mounted the card with no trouble but then when I try to write to the card (using the Myfiles app), it locks up. Sometimes it freezes solid and I can't get it to do anything until I pop the card out - then everything immediately starts working again. Obviously a card problem of some sort. So I tried another identical card I had for another tablet...same problem. Tried formatting in the tablet - it locks up. I left it for half an hour and came back - it was formatted but it didn't work at all. Tried a 16 GB FAT32 card - it works flawlessly. So...is it the card or is it the tablet...? Still working on this...
I'm not a fan of the Touchwiz interface but I'm adapting to it slowly. Removed most of the panels that were not useful and it's getting better. I'm really frustrated at how much storage is being used with crapware that I can't uninstall. Like WatchOn - I finally ran it to see what it was all about and there's a message that pops up saying that this service will no longer be in operation after December 31, 2014. Really? So I can't remove the app and I can't even use it now...that is NOT COOL! I've never had a tablet with less than 32 GB before (because the 32 GB version of the tab S seems to be a myth - in Canada anyway). There really needs to be a way to remove some of this stuff...especially since I can't get the SD card to work.
I mainly use a tablet for video - and that's where this really shines. Netflix, MKV files, streaming from my server, etc...works flawlessly! It looks amazing and that's why I bought it! I just wish I could get the storage thing figured out.
I really don't like the dedicated buttons for Home, Back and Recently Used Apps. Why they would reverse the buttons from the Android buttons, I really can't figure out. Often, when I'm in Netflix, I hold the tablet in landscape mode and my finger/thumb keeps hitting the Back button and then I have to reload the movie again...what a pain! I can't see the buttons in the dark either...don't like them! KitKat lets you run apps fullscreen so I don't get the dedicated buttons anymore!
The sound has been okay - probably on par with my Nexus 7 2013...but it distorts at full volume (subtly). Battery life is okay but not great - seems on par with the Nexus 7. The size is good - still fits in my inside jacket pocket like my Nexus 7 did - but has a much larger screen. My eyes aren't great these days so the web page text is fairly small but I'm getting by.
I see no issues with performance at all...not sure why people complain about lag - if there is any it's so subtle...it certainly doesn't affect the usage whatsoever.
I really don't like that you HAVE to use the Samsung charger and you HAVE to use the Samsung cable it came with...they're really acting like Apple in this way. I have 10' micro USB cables I use for all my other devices to charge and they've never had a problem...until I tried them on this tablet. So now I'm stuck with the 5' cable again and the single charger. Looking for options on eBay...
I need to find a case tomorrow...the Samsung book cover is on sale so I'll try it out.
Eventually, I'll get everything working! Still happy with the purchase (it was $50 off) but I'd like to get these little problems resolved!
I hear ya on the WatchOn thing. Waiting a week or two before I start learning to strip the bloatware out but right now I am okay with the stock ROM. Have disabled non-used items for now but as you said with only 16GB to work with I also want it as clean as possible
Will not lie, scared of voiding the warranty. Wishing I had bought the LTE version through Bell becaise through them you can buy insurance...
I picked up a 64GB card (AData) on sale for $30. Working with no issues. Possible the Patriot card is buggy? NCIX.com is a good place to shop
What's up with the USB charger and cable? They're standardised items, no? The whole idea with USB, or so I thought. One usb cable can't differ from another - that doesn't make any sense what so ever...!? Sure, the charger may vary in regard of ampere and volt, but why am one forced to use the supplied Samsung charger / cable?
No idea about the charger. I am using the OEM one for now but have always used a BB one for my S4. Strange
USB cables do vary. Some will only charge, and not carry data. Some will carry more current than others, and will therefore charge more quickly.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using XDA Free mobile app
Snagged one online through Verizon and did overnight delivery. So I'm going to give 2 impressions here
1) Appearance
2) Usabality
For for the 1st impression on appearance the watch is exactly what I wanted, I love the silver, I love the roundness, I LOVE LOVE LOVE a true "always on" screen mode, and I like the leather band. I may actually keep the band for awhile before swapping it out with a silver one somewhere. The watch faces are pretty, the resolution is nice, and the overall appearance of elements is colorful and nice.
EDIT: Ok apparently there was even MORE updates after the initial update payload. I did check that I was running 5.1.1 but after about an hour another "system update swipe left to install" appeared. After that update completed I noticed what appeared to be a bunch more apps sync'ing, such as Maps, Keep, notification toggle, etc. FINALLY once all of these completed the watch appears to have returned to normal and is currently running GREAT. Smooth high fps screen transitions, responsive touch control, responsive voice recognition, etc. Make sure you let this watch sit for a good few hours before attempting to do much with it. Google does A LOT to it in the background at first boot.
For the 1st impression of usability the watch is complete garbage. Lots of "android wear stopped responding", lots of "little cloud indicator showing you have disconnected", and LOTS AND LOTS AND LOTS of LAAAAGGG!! Omg this watch feels borderline beta, completely unstable. Maybe it's because it has only been running for 15 minutes, and maybe it's because it took half an hour to update (I'm guessing Verizon did not ship it with 5.1.1). The thing took forever on first boot, but now that it's running it's just out of control. Totally unresponsive. You'd seriously think something is wrong with it. You tap the screen nothing happens, you tap it again you feel it buzz but nothing happens, you stop tapping and stare at it for 10 seconds and then suddenly 10 things happen. It's as if the watch is just completely clogged up with background CPU tasks that it's playing catchup. Pretty lousy. I'm hoping this will pass after a day of usage or so.
My only gripe right now is that this is really poor form and only furthers the bragging rights Apple users get. My buddy got an Apple Watch and that thing worked beautiful out of the box. Apple knows customers dont want a ****ty first impression and made sure their devices perform amiably the moment it is powered on. Google apparently doesnt give a **** and anyone is allowed to do whatever they want with their brand, such as crippling Android Wear with a clearly untested product launch.
Oh well, only time will tell.
RunNgun42 said:
Snagged one online through Verizon and did overnight delivery. So I'm going to give 2 impressions here
1) Appearance
2) Usabality
For for the 1st impression on appearance the watch is exactly what I wanted, I love the silver, I love the roundness, I LOVE LOVE LOVE a true "always on" screen mode, and I like the leather band. I may actually keep the band for awhile before swapping it out with a silver one somewhere. The watch faces are pretty, the resolution is nice, and the overall appearance of elements is colorful and nice.
For the 1st impression of usability the watch is complete garbage. Lots of "android wear stopped responding", lots of "little cloud indicator showing you have disconnected", and LOTS AND LOTS AND LOTS of LAAAAGGG!! Omg this watch feels borderline beta, completely unstable. Maybe it's because it has only been running for 15 minutes, and maybe it's because it took half an hour to update (I'm guessing Verizon did not ship it with 5.1.1). The thing took forever on first boot, but now that it's running it's just out of control. Totally unresponsive. You'd seriously think something is wrong with it. You tap the screen nothing happens, you tap it again you feel it buzz but nothing happens, you stop tapping and stare at it for 10 seconds and then suddenly 10 things happen. It's as if the watch is just completely clogged up with background CPU tasks that it's playing catchup. Pretty lousy. I'm hoping this will pass after a day of usage or so.
My only gripe right now is that this is really poor form and only furthers the bragging rights Apple users get. My buddy got an Apple Watch and that thing worked beautiful out of the box. Apple knows customers dont want a ****ty first impression and made sure their devices perform amiably the moment it is powered on. Google apparently doesnt give a **** and anyone is allowed to do whatever they want with their brand, such as crippling Android Wear with a clearly untested product launch.
Oh well, only time will tell.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have been using mine for about an hour and have not seen ANY lag. I have also not disconnected from the phone once. my R did it a few times a day. The first boot and connection did take forever, but mine has been working lag free and perfectly the whole time. I know it is early, but maybe you just got a lemon
Pretty much the same experience here. The initial boot and sync process (then subsequent update) take forever, but after that, this thing is butter.
So far, I have to admit I'm not a huge fan of the leather strap. Maybe it just needs time to be broken in, but I'm already eyeing replacements.
Did I mention this thing is GORGEOUS??
L_E_O said:
Pretty much the same experience here. The initial boot and sync process (then subsequent update) take forever, but after that, this thing is butter.
So far, I have to admit I'm not a huge fan of the leather strap. Maybe it just needs time to be broken in, but I'm already eyeing replacements.
Did I mention this thing is GORGEOUS??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes I am the same as you on the strap..... Maybe because it is just so new, it seem to make the watch hover above my wrist
Hello guys, may I ask you how does the watch work when is connected over WiFi? For example are you able to access to your play music library? Or in general are there some unknown tricks? Thanks and good buy
Korean version Vs US version?
Does anyone know if there is a difference between the Korean version that everyone is getting off ebay Vs. The US version say from Google, Verizon, att&t?
AnthonyTex said:
Hello guys, may I ask you how does the watch work when is connected over WiFi? For example are you able to access to your play music library? Or in general are there some unknown tricks? Thanks and good buy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As far as I can tell, the best way to think of the WiFi functionality is "extended bluetooth". It doesn't seem to have any independent WiFI or network functionality. It still has to be talking to the phone, which does have to have some type of connectivity, but the phone doesn't have to be on the same network or on WiFI at all. I turned off both WiFi and BT on the phone, and it could still talk to the watch (through the cell data connection). That added flexibility probably only has a few practical uses, but I absolutely love being able to have the watch and walk more than 20 ft. away while still being connected.
L_E_O said:
As far as I can tell, the best way to think of the WiFi functionality is "extended bluetooth". It doesn't seem to have any independent WiFI or network functionality. It still has to be talking to the phone, which does have to have some type of connectivity, but the phone doesn't have to be on the same network or on WiFI at all. I turned off both WiFi and BT on the phone, and it could still talk to the watch (through the cell data connection). That added flexibility probably only has a few practical uses, but I absolutely love being able to have the watch and walk more than 20 ft. away while still being connected.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you very much
Ok I have had it for day and my initial impression of the Urbane is positive completely opposite of the OP, granted the initial set-up can take up-to 20-30 minute, I've also had the system updated to 5.1.1 .
It is fairly responsive far better than moto 360, not much lags and also the battery life is much better you could easily go through 12 hours of heavy usage or 15 hours for moderate usage. It may have the same innards as the G Watch R but I think LG have done a good job making it look more watch like and something that at first glance looks like a normal watch.
My negatives would be that as I have small wrist it is slightly too big and the strap could have been of better quality. I will go far as to say this is currently the best android smartwatch until moto 360 mk II, Huawei watch etc....
Bottom for line for the money I think it is worth it, cant complain.
How is the vibration on the notifications?
I tried a Moto 360 and I could barely tell when it vibrated.
Any chance of a system and boot dump guys?
pbelcomp said:
How is the vibration on the notifications?
I tried a Moto 360 and I could barely tell when it vibrated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Vibrations good. I will side with Apple as far as being able to customize vibration intensity.
After mine was completely done with its startup I rebooted it and performance has been fine.
Hated the stock strap but I knew I would going in as I greatly dislike cheap leather straps and I had a nice SS bracelet here ready to be installed when the watch arrived. Tested the stock strap for about 15 seconds and went to the jeweler and had them put on the bracelet instead, better in every way. Honestly 22mm is a very common size and there are straps for every owner of all kinds, don't stick with the stock strap for one minute if you don't like it. You can do much better.
Someone paying attention will realize this is not a normal watch but for the most part I think you will have few people notice the watch, it manages to blend pretty well.
If you don't notice the vibration on this one then it isn't a problem, your corpse will not respond to the notification anyways.
tolust said:
Does anyone know if there is a difference between the Korean version that everyone is getting off ebay Vs. The US version say from Google, Verizon, att&t?
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I wonder that either...? If they are all the same I can consider buying from a South Korean seller in Ebay.
were can i purchase it what is this watch is it phone or bluetooth or what it is LG brand.
AnnaCook310 said:
were can i purchase it what is this watch is it phone or bluetooth or what it is LG brand.
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Couldn't understand clearly what you are asking but;
This is a smartwatch for phones running android platform.
It is not a phone. It connects to your phone through bluetooth.
This smartwatch's brand is LG.
You can purchase it from South Korea, USA, UK and some other places as well as from internet, for example from Ebay.
krabman said:
After mine was completely done with its startup I rebooted it and performance has been fine.
Hated the stock strap but I knew I would going in as I greatly dislike cheap leather straps and I had a nice SS bracelet here ready to be installed when the watch arrived. Tested the stock strap for about 15 seconds and went to the jeweler and had them put on the bracelet instead, better in every way. Honestly 22mm is a very common size and there are straps for every owner of all kinds, don't stick with the stock strap for one minute if you don't like it. You can do much better.
Someone paying attention will realize this is not a normal watch but for the most part I think you will have few people notice the watch, it manages to blend pretty well.
If you don't notice the vibration on this one then it isn't a problem, your corpse will not respond to the notification anyways.
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Click to collapse
I don't have my watch yet, but are you saying the vibration is much stronger than the Moto 360? If so, just that is enough to convince me to buy it! P.S. I have always preferred metal bands too.
I have not tried the 360 so I cant comment on its comparative vibration strength. I can say the vibrate on this one is more than strong enough to get my attention when I'm busy. Alarm vibes will continue until you cancel them at least in the near term, I haven't tried leaving it go and seeing if it stops vibrating after so many minutes. The only time I can see myself actually missing an alarm is if I was quite active but theimplication there is I would probably prefer to attend to the activity I was involved in rather than a notification on my watch.
I'm sorry I cant help more, if this is a very strong point you might consider waiting for the phone to be available for fondling in a retail outlet before purchasing.
I'm coming from a Galaxy Gear S and I have 2 small issues. 1st battery life I'm already down to 27% after 7 hrs of use (gear s after 14hr day would still have 70% left) hopefully this will improve after a few days of use. 2nd I wish the display was larger like the 360. Everything looks a little squished to me.
millerd79 said:
I'm coming from a Galaxy Gear S and I have 2 small issues. 1st battery life I'm already down to 27% after 7 hrs of use (gear s after 14hr day would still have 70% left) hopefully this will improve after a few days of use. 2nd I wish the display was larger like the 360. Everything looks a little squished to me.
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Yep... I'm on day 3 or 4 after a full reset post-update, and I'm only getting about 8-10 hours myself. That's with brightness set at 2 and "Always On" screen turned off. Not sure what the culprit is, but I'm going to try one more full reset and resync.
Just picked up my GS6 Active. I held out due to the smaller battery in the GS6. Coming from a GS2 rooted running pure CM, this thing is filled with bloat. Anyone else get one?
Anyway to root this thing to install TiBkup and freeze the bloat?
Considering it just came out today, I'm going to go out on a limb and say no.
Sent from my Galaxy S6 using Tapatalk
You need to be like me and rush out and get one. Since I was on a 4 year old GS2, I couldn't wait any longer.
Jackal2001-
I'm in the same boat; since the GS2 (which I'm still using), this is the first Galaxy S* that's made me want to upgrade. I'm going to (try to) hold off for a week or so though, and see what people's experiences are.
AoN.
I actually skipped the Active this year on purpose. I Just ended up getting a 64GB S6 and putting it in a case. I came from an AT&T S4 Active (SGH-i537) and was disappointed by how restricted it was and how difficult it was to find support in the development community. I waited to get an S6 until a couple weeks ago, until I was sure it was rootable and flashfire was working.
I also didn't want to give up the fingerprint sensor which was a feature that was very attractive to me on the S6. I am now quite happy. I might not be able to shower with the phone now, but the tradeoffs were too big to get me to consider the Active this time around again.
kuaka said:
I actually skipped the Active this year on purpose. I Just ended up getting a 64GB S6 and putting it in a case. I came from an AT&T S4 Active (SGH-i537) and was disappointed by how restricted it was and how difficult it was to find support in the development community. I waited to get an S6 until a couple weeks ago, until I was sure it was rootable and flashfire was working.
I also didn't want to give up the fingerprint sensor which was a feature that was very attractive to me on the S6. I am now quite happy. I might not be able to shower with the phone now, but the tradeoffs were too big to get me to consider the Active this time around again.
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Click to collapse
I'm with you. I much prefer the regular S6 to the Active. I've got a regular S6, gold, 64 GB AT&T model and I love it.
Got one today as well. I believe the kernel is too new to use PingPong Root.
I am actually not that worried about it. I just disabled the apps and done. I'm actually tired of romn' phones and doing all that jazz anymore. If they come out with a one step root I may do that.
I'm more concerned with battery life and don't care about fingerprint scanner. Waterproofing is just a bonus.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using XDA Free mobile app
How much of the 32GB storage is available to the user?
I have 23gb free but I installed some stuff
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using XDA Free mobile app
Pictures?
It is an awesome phone! I wanted the built in weather proofing, and the larger battery is great so I waited patiently! I did not care that the battery could not be easily swapped out, but I did want to be able to replace it myself when it needed it as well as do other minor repairs. At the very least I did not want to mail the phone off but take it in to a nearby repair center. I cannot find unboxing videos or detailed pictures. Can anyone post some especially of the port on the bottom and back? I was set to get this, but it is my understanding that it is going to require a heat gun to take the back off too just to replace the battery or even replace the charging port door--something I can easily do with the regular s5 model? If I had a Samsung repair center near me like an Apple center, I may have still considered this phone. There is still a small part of me that is still hoping against the odds that this thing is not glued together, but I am told it is. Why could they have not just tucked the sides under the metal flaps to hold the back down better and just screwed it down. They have screws there anyway for looks????
I am still trying to decide on getting this or getting something else like maybe the s5.
I am not sure about being limited to the 32 GB storage either, but I think I could get by with an OTG adapter for special events when I needed to record them. Wish there would have been a 64 GB option.
I also do not like the lack of MHL support as our Internet here is slow and not good for Chromecast.
For anything else I for go for pink, frilly looks (I am a middle-aged mom), but I just wanted a phone that I could use without worrying about day-to-day use. So this phone in an Otterbox (the black or gray it is going to come in) is just fine with me!
Thanks for any information for those who went out and got this. I have the feeling I am going to going with another phone though
PinkPower said:
it is my understanding that it is going to require a heat gun to take the back off too just to replace the battery or even replace the charging port door
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Click to collapse
Just so you know there is no door on the S6A, all the ports are just open.
I have it too. So far so good. Upgraded from an active 4.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using XDA Free mobile app
I spent an hour playing with one in the "flagship store" in Boston. I finally decided that I wanted to buy it and the sales guy says oh we only have it in Camo white.. I wanted regular grey. They had 4 display models on the floor. I guess I'll have to order it online..
So I just did an overnight battery test. I have GPS disabled and WiFi set to turn off (more data useage) when it goes to sleep. I have NFC disabled as well as the LED on the front, etc. Overnight for 10 hours the battery dropped 6%. For me that is pretty damn good for a bloated factory image.
So how's the cell signal strength so far? Curious since it's got a different type case as opposed to metal and glass.. Also how's screen look. Solid white background have pink tint?
beaverslayer said:
So how's the cell signal strength so far? Curious since it's got a different type case as opposed to metal and glass.. Also how's screen look. Solid white background have pink tint?
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I see no pink hue, looks solid white to me on a google screen.
If I let this page sit on high brightness, http://jasonfarrell.com/misc/deadpixeltest.php?p=2, I can see either a slight pink tint toward the bottom of the screen or it is me going blind from staring at it.
I don't travel a lot so cell strength seems normal to me.
jackal2001 said:
I see no pink hue, looks solid white to me on a google screen.
If I let this page sit on high brightness, http://jasonfarrell.com/misc/deadpixeltest.php?p=2, I can see either a slight pink tint toward the bottom of the screen or it is me going blind from staring at it.
I don't travel a lot so cell strength seems normal to me.
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Click to collapse
Have you checked to see where it was assemble (Vietnam, Korea, etc...) and what type of camera sensor it has? Isocell vs Sony? Sorry for the 20 questions just wondering how it compare to regular S6.
I made sure it was made in Korea. How would I find the camera sensor info
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using XDA Free mobile app
See if this works. Copied from techtrikz and written by Kannan.
How to identify the camera model on your Galaxy S6/S6 Edge
1. Open phone dialer and enter the below code
*#34971539#
2. This will open the ‘Camera Firmware Standard’
3. Tap on ‘ISP VER CHECK’. This will show up the rear and front camera make.
4. For Sony sensor, it will be ‘SONY_IMX240_FIMC_IS’ and for Samsung Isocell sensor, it will be ‘SLSI_S5K2P2_FIMC_IS’.
I hate the s7. Slow and laggy. Not to mention locked boorloadet. S8 any better?
I made the jump and this device is unbelievably better. Smoothest sndroid phone I've owned since the HTC One X, which was my favorite android phone of all time. After one week of pretty heavy use, no lag. Hate to say it like this but the UI is as smooth as iPhone, minimal if ever stutters. I recommend making the jump. Also the display is as incredible as all the reviews say
Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
F9zSlavik said:
I hate the s7. Slow and laggy. Not to mention locked boorloadet. S8 any better?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've had S7, S7e, HTC 10, and iPhone 7Plus in last year. Jumped to the S8 (standard, not plus). Absolutely happy with my decision. Easily the best phone I've had. UI smooth as butter with no lags, Camera is fast enough that I sometimes take 2-3 pictures before I actually realize the first press of shutter actually took one (quality top notch as well), Screen is gorgeous, storage is abundant, battery life is good (avg 4hr screen time and 28hr per charge for me), iris scanner works through sunglasses and is great extra security.
Only weird thing is fingerprint location...works best of you're holding phone left handed. I just use the iris scanner anyway. My only concern is protecting the beautiful screen...nearly no truly protective or fully effective tempered glass protectors, but I'll take my chances.
I don't think you'll regret it one bit if you go with it.
If you have the money to blow sure, performance wise you are not going to notice anything. The camera is basically the same, front I believe is 8 instead of 5 mp. It is a larger screen, but the aspect ratio is a little weird. But with larger screen at Max resolution your battery is going to die a lot faster. I think you would be better off waiting till the note 8. If I could go back I would have stuck with my S7 edge and waited for the note 8. Still a great phone, but nothing ground breaking.
F9zSlavik said:
I hate the s7. Slow and laggy. Not to mention locked boorloader. S8 any better?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had the note 3 then note 5 and now the S8. I can say the only reason that i would have stayed on my prior phone is because root. There is no root method on here yet and you should stay with S7 until we have root and ROMs to choose from. Here's something that may make your phone snappier:
1. Go to settings
2. Click on Developer tab
3. Scroll to Windows animation scale change it to 0.5
4. Go to transition animation scale change it to 0.5
5. Go to Animator duration scale change it to 0.5
Good luck!
F9zSlavik said:
I hate the s7. Slow and laggy. Not to mention locked boorloadet. S8 any better?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do not own an S7, however I will say the S8 is an amazing device. It's fast as can be, and very smooth. No lag. I put a black Spigen thin fit case on it.
It's everything it's cracked up to be. I'm delighted about how great this device is. The only issue I had was deciding to get the S8 or plus, and I'm very happy I got the regular SO because I didn't realize how much bigger the screen actually is on the regular one. It takes a little while to get used to but the screen is really big.
The S8 is a monster jump, not an incremental one. Every device, except possibly the S7 edge (due to the screen shape) was an incremental change. Small improvements that were debateable in terms of being worth spending your hard earned money. This device is absolutely worth the jump, and I'm totally satisfied spending my money on this. Honestly I have no idea what they can improve, and what could make me buy another phone. This device has it all. Even the battery life is great.
The only "complaints" people have are annoyances. Yeah, the fingerprint scanner is annoying but you get used to it. Yeah the clock on the always on display is weird and annoying. Bixby is kind of useless. But those are, at best, annoyances. The phone itself is just incredible. For 800 dollars, it better be. It truly is worth the money and it puts a smile on my face every time i pick it up.
Buy one.
wil318466 said:
The only "complaints" people have are annoyances. Yeah, the fingerprint scanner is annoying but you get used to it. Yeah the clock on the always on display is weird and annoying. Bixby is kind of useless. But those are, at best, annoyances. The phone itself is just incredible. For 800 dollars, it better be. It truly is worth the money and it puts a smile on my face every time i pick it up.
Buy one.
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Click to collapse
You have to find something to complain about with a phone of this magnitude, and of course people will always latch onto them. I have no doubt that within a few months these will fade away in light of the greater changes on the phone. I'm upgrading from an S4, so it's a monumental change for me... and even with Bixby, there is no way I'm not going to be shell-shocked and impressed.
If you're switching from an S4 the change would be jaw dropping.
This phone (S8) is the best upgrade I've ever had in any single electronics device that wasnt revolutionary, like the PC or first iPhone.
Everything is better, and I'm not just saying that. Opening web pages is faster, switching apps is instant, opening navigation is instant, watching a YouTube video, switching to mail, reading that email, switching back to YouTube is just astonishing how quickly it all happens. Just opening this website and typing on the keyboard is flawless and enjoyable, my old phone was laggy and a pain to do a long response on a message board. Not anymore.
It really is amazing how awesome this phone is. Every single experience when it comes to the phone itself is improved. Again, i don't see how they can make this device better unless new technology is needed (such as Bluetooth 15.0). Could it possibly have better speakers? Of course. But I'm worried about things like speed, response, performance and the screen. I just can't see how they can make a phone faster, or the screen bigger. It's almost edge to edge top to bottom and the only way to get a bigger screen is to get a bigger phone, and I don't want that. It fits perfectly in my hand and I have the font tiny and I can read everything clearly. This phone delivers on everything and I just couldn't be happier (the screen is really something to behold, you'll see). It even looks good in the sunlight and it's pretty much water proof! (I wouldn't swim with it but I wouldn't be worried at all to take a picture while it's raining).
They'd have to invent a phone that does my dishes for me to want to upgrade again, that's how good this thing is. It does everything and it does everything well. I give it a 10/10 because I won't hold something like the fingerprint scanner against them, i consider that personal preference.
Don't believe anyone who says this thing isn't incredible. Walk into a store and check out the display model for yourself. It's well worth the money.
I think the question from the OP is *IF* the jump to the S8 from the S7/S7E is worth it. No one is debating if the S8/S8+ is a terrific device, I think we can all agree that it is. (even though I personally do not own one). I have used the S8+ at length, and yes I think its amazing... however, that being said - I choose NOT to upgrade from my S7E at this time. I think I will hold off until the Note 8 and decide then. I think that might help answer the original posters question without offending anyone who does have the S8/S8+
Since owning the s4 i jumped ship to nexus phones. Because touchwiz lag as hell. I sold the nexus 6p and tried s7 edge. And touchwiz lag still there on the s7 edge. Sold the s7 edge and got the regular s8 and i can tell s8 is smooth like nexus phones. And im glad i tried the s8 again. Hhappy camper here
Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
wil318466 said:
If you're switching from an S4 the change would be jaw dropping.
This phone (S8) is the best upgrade I've ever had in any single electronics device that wasnt revolutionary, like the PC or first iPhone.
Everything is better, and I'm not just saying that. Opening web pages is faster, switching apps is instant, opening navigation is instant, watching a YouTube video, switching to mail, reading that email, switching back to YouTube is just astonishing how quickly it all happens. Just opening this website and typing on the keyboard is flawless and enjoyable, my old phone was laggy and a pain to do a long response on a message board. Not anymore.
It really is amazing how awesome this phone is. Every single experience when it comes to the phone itself is improved. Again, i don't see how they can make this device better unless new technology is needed (such as Bluetooth 15.0). Could it possibly have better speakers? Of course. But I'm worried about things like speed, response, performance and the screen. I just can't see how they can make a phone faster, or the screen bigger. It's almost edge to edge top to bottom and the only way to get a bigger screen is to get a bigger phone, and I don't want that. It fits perfectly in my hand and I have the font tiny and I can read everything clearly. This phone delivers on everything and I just couldn't be happier (the screen is really something to behold, you'll see). It even looks good in the sunlight and it's pretty much water proof! (I wouldn't swim with it but I wouldn't be worried at all to take a picture while it's raining).
They'd have to invent a phone that does my dishes for me to want to upgrade again, that's how good this thing is. It does everything and it does everything well. I give it a 10/10 because I won't hold something like the fingerprint scanner against them, i consider that personal preference.
Don't believe anyone who says this thing isn't incredible. Walk into a store and check out the display model for yourself. It's well worth the money.
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Click to collapse
Oh hell yes, I've already jumped ship with the S8. Unfortunately I am studying abroad and won't be able to get back home for a few more weeks -- then I can finally meet my new S8. And yes, coming from an S4 (which poorly survived an ocean drop), I'm practically salivating at the prospect. The camera could have better, sure. They didn't need to include the atrocious Bixby, definitely. But it's such a great prospect upgrading after 4 years... and I'm hoping that it will be good for me for another 4 years at least, if not more. Meanwhile, my friend with a Nexus 6P is already itching to upgrade to a OP5 when it comes out... heh.
Short answer - Yes
Long answer - Jumped from S7 Edge to S8. Have to say this is the best phone I have ever had. I was a huge fan of the physical home button but I rarely miss it at all. The only problem is me hitting the snooze in the morning on my alarm not as easily as with a button. Fingerprint scanner in the back is super quick and not bad at all. That's how I naturally hold my phone for the most part anyways and I have big hands so there is no real struggle. I've always been wanting to play emulated games on my phone and this thing can handle Gamecube games for Dog's sake! I have a Madcatz controller that is great for gaming with phones and makes the torture that is the MBTA go by like nothing. My brother got one shortly after I got mine and he also says it's the best phone he's ever had. He came from a dying S5 Edge I think. We also got both our phones for $0 down and just restarted payments on a new device. Battery life is way better than S7 at this point and I'm about 40% when I leave work usually. As opposed to S7 where I would have to re-charge at about 3pm if I didn't want it to die on the way home. But as with all Androids the early battery life is way better in the beginning as opposed to 6 months to a year later. Time will tell though.
Edit - Forgot to mention the display. I wasn't a display snob by any means but this phone has now made me one. Incredible, especially when gaming. Completely immersive with the minimal bezels and edge to edge display. It's like a floating screen that encompasses your entire field of vision. Twilight Princess, Smash Bros, and FF7 never looked so good.
Yes, noticeable improvement in performance. That weird S7E lag thing is gone and battery is noticeably better. I think back to the first few months with my S7E, it might have been closer but after a year, the degregation in battery life makes the new s8 seem significantly better. That alone is worth it to me.