Database Develop

A couple of questions

Hey guys,
So, I'm seriously considering the MI5 but there are a few things that I'd like to clear up before I commit. First off, before going on the various forums on the net I pretty much had no clue how many bloody problems this phone seems to have. This whole forum is almost literally filled to the brim with various horror stories and such. Is this just bad luck/can at least a few people verify they have used their MI5 for at least 2-3 months with NO ISSUES WHATSOEVER? You know, like you would expect from any (esp. flagship) phone?
For the second question.. I was told that initially the low light performance of the camera was incredibly crap (well, for 2016 standards anyway) but that the updates since have actually made the low light camera even better than the S6 (which I find hard to believe 2.0 vs 1.9 but whatever). Anyways, can anyone here (with one of those handily happily working mi5's with no issues ) post some night time photography samples you've captured recently, and tell me more about it? The reason I'm asking both these questions is that I have the option of spending about 40e more for a pretty much brand new LG G5 with an additional camera friend (not that important, but hey, nice) or buying a new MI5. In both cases I really don't feel like I'm going to get much of a warranty.. I really do like the design of the MI5 way more, price too, but if the night time camera is still crappy and the phone is a total gamble on whether it will brick any or all of its parts at any given time, then I'm definitely going the LG route
Thanks in advance!

I don't have any problem other than a few software problem like memory management and android pay. The low light pics are **** as usual, but this is a hardware issue. Pixels are too small to capture light in a dark environment, you cannot do anything about it. If you want good low light photos, then find a phone with 12mp camera and 1.4µm+ pixel size.

Erica Griffin finally reviews the OnePlus 5

Really enjoy Erica's reviews, they're always much more technical and informative than the usual YouTube journo type channels:
...and yes, she went there with the benchmark "cheats"
Her final judgement seems to be a lot like mine, it has great potential so give OnePlus and the XDA community time to get their heads round it before forming an overall opinion on it, there will be a lot of updates while OnePlus try to perfect the software and features and it will most likely become a developer's favourite plaything to code for.

Nice video. GJ Erica.
One thing Erica said is that "this is particularly a nerd's phone." It got me thinking about why I ordered the OP5. I'm a nerd. I could have gotten the S8+ or Pixel XL, so why didn't I?
Ok, so... I liked the Nexus for the price and performance. I feel the market is saturated in devices which are GROSSLY over priced. $1000 for a cellphone is insanity. I also like the freedom of choice in ROMs, the customizations I can make, and a phone that is a "spec beast" that cuts out the useless fluff. In short, I like choice and performance. The XDA user-base should know what I'm talking about. I don't want to have to buy in to another ecosystem, which you're practically forced to do when you get a Samsung device. The Samsung experience is actually worse than just that, now that I think about it. Samsung's ecosystem is trapped inside the Android ecosystem, so even if you eventually move to another Android phone, you might as well be going through the pains of moving to an iPhone depending on how much of the Sammy Koolaid you drank. That's neither here nor there, so I digress...
With Google killing off the Nexus line, what other options are out there? The Pixel line went full-retail-retard and started competing against the HTC/LG/Sammies of the world, especially in price. No thanks. Should I then go down the Chi-phone rabbit hole with Honor and Xiaomi and the like? I'd rather not. So, in my view, the OP5 is pretty much the next Nexus, for all intents and dolphins. No one seems to think of this phone that way. I guess that's why all the camera / screen resolution hate seems utterly asinine to me. I guess I'm used to having issues at launch as a Nexus user.
But seriously, If you can't stand that the OP5 uses a 1080P display, or wanted a super refined camera experience like the Pixel or GS8+, why didn't you buy a Pixel or GS8+? Did you think OP has the resources that Google and Sammy have? Did you think an S8 quality phone was just going to magically spring forth from OP's arse for $500? Where exactly did your expectations come from?
From my point of view, people who are in an uproar about those things seem to have WILDLY off expectations, and are missing out on what makes this device great. Further, as a fan of tweaking things, I can't wait to see what patches or custom ROMs can do to make those "issues" null and void. So, to the Outraged I say this: go ahead and return your OP5, because it really isn't the phone for you - but not for the reasons you think.

Elnrik said:
Nice video. GJ Erica.
One thing Erica said is that "this is particularly a nerd's phone." It got me thinking about why I ordered the OP5. I'm a nerd. I could have gotten the S8+ or Pixel XL, so why didn't I?
Ok, so... I liked the Nexus for the price and performance. I feel the market is saturated in devices which are GROSSLY over priced. $1000 for a cellphone is insanity. I also like the freedom of choice in ROMs, the customizations I can make, and a phone that is a "spec beast" that cuts out the useless fluff. In short, I like choice and performance. The XDA user-base should know what I'm talking about. I don't want to have to buy in to another ecosystem, which you're practically forced to do when you get a Samsung device. The Samsung experience is actually worse than just that, now that I think about it. Samsung's ecosystem is trapped inside the Android ecosystem, so even if you eventually move to another Android phone, you might as well be going through the pains of moving to an iPhone depending on how much of the Sammy Koolaid you drank. That's neither here nor there, so I digress...
With Google killing off the Nexus line, what other options are out there? The Pixel line went full-retail-retard and started competing against the HTC/LG/Sammies of the world, especially in price. No thanks. Should I then go down the Chi-phone rabbit hole with Honor and Xiaomi and the like? I'd rather not. So, in my view, the OP5 is pretty much the next Nexus, for all intents and dolphins. No one seems to think of this phone that way. I guess that's why all the camera / screen resolution hate seems utterly asinine to me. I guess I'm used to having issues at launch as a Nexus user.
But seriously, If you can't stand that the OP5 uses a 1080P display, or wanted a super refined camera experience like the Pixel or GS8+, why didn't you buy a Pixel or GS8+? Did you think OP has the resources that Google and Sammy have? Did you think an S8 quality phone was just going to magically spring forth from OP's arse for $500? Where exactly did your expectations come from?
From my point of view, people who are in an uproar about those things seem to have WILDLY off expectations, and are missing out on what makes this device great. Further, as a fan of tweaking things, I can't wait to see what patches or custom ROMs can do to make those "issues" null and void. So, to the Outraged I say this: go ahead and return your OP5, because it really isn't the phone for you - but not for the reasons you think.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Excellent, totally agree and the best news to me is that the next Pixels apparently use the same chipset (as do most of the flagship devices coming out at the moment) which means the code for our plaything should be extremely streamlined and optimised once developers get their teeth into it cos they'll have the same (if not similar) drivers/resources as Google's toys.
Except, where those devices only have 4GB of memory to play with, ours has double that in the case of the midnight black. That's why I think the OP5 has the promise to be a devastating device.

Elnrik said:
Nice video. GJ Erica.
One thing Erica said is that "this is particularly a nerd's phone." It got me thinking about why I ordered the OP5. I'm a nerd. I could have gotten the S8+ or Pixel XL, so why didn't I?
Ok, so... I liked the Nexus for the price and performance. I feel the market is saturated in devices which are GROSSLY over priced. $1000 for a cellphone is insanity. I also like the freedom of choice in ROMs, the customizations I can make, and a phone that is a "spec beast" that cuts out the useless fluff. In short, I like choice and performance. The XDA user-base should know what I'm talking about. I don't want to have to buy in to another ecosystem, which you're practically forced to do when you get a Samsung device. The Samsung experience is actually worse than just that, now that I think about it. Samsung's ecosystem is trapped inside the Android ecosystem, so even if you eventually move to another Android phone, you might as well be going through the pains of moving to an iPhone depending on how much of the Sammy Koolaid you drank. That's neither here nor there, so I digress...
With Google killing off the Nexus line, what other options are out there? The Pixel line went full-retail-retard and started competing against the HTC/LG/Sammies of the world, especially in price. No thanks. Should I then go down the Chi-phone rabbit hole with Honor and Xiaomi and the like? I'd rather not. So, in my view, the OP5 is pretty much the next Nexus, for all intents and dolphins. No one seems to think of this phone that way. I guess that's why all the camera / screen resolution hate seems utterly asinine to me. I guess I'm used to having issues at launch as a Nexus user.
But seriously, If you can't stand that the OP5 uses a 1080P display, or wanted a super refined camera experience like the Pixel or GS8+, why didn't you buy a Pixel or GS8+? Did you think OP has the resources that Google and Sammy have? Did you think an S8 quality phone was just going to magically spring forth from OP's arse for $500? Where exactly did your expectations come from?
From my point of view, people who are in an uproar about those things seem to have WILDLY off expectations, and are missing out on what makes this device great. Further, as a fan of tweaking things, I can't wait to see what patches or custom ROMs can do to make those "issues" null and void. So, to the Outraged I say this: go ahead and return your OP5, because it really isn't the phone for you - but not for the reasons you think.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well said, people should know what they are buying - a cheaper phone that can still compete with flagships. Furthermore, you should know of the specific pros and cons the phone has before buying it. Sure, OnePlus has creeped their price up slightly, but it's not like all flagship prices haven't creeped up over the years.

Elnrik said:
But seriously, If you can't stand that the OP5 uses a 1080P display, or wanted a super refined camera experience like the Pixel or GS8+, why didn't you buy a Pixel or GS8+? Did you think OP has the resources that Google and Sammy have? Did you think an S8 quality phone was just going to magically spring forth from OP's arse for $500? Where exactly did your expectations come from?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I didn't buy a Pixel because it is still using S821, i don't like the design, and because it is ridiculously expensive. I did not buy an S8 because i didn't want their bloatware, and because i don't need more than 1080p on a <6" display until mobile VR really takes off. I did not buy the LG G6 because its using S821.
However, here in EU the OP5 128gb version is only slightly less expensive than the 64gb S8, and is more expensive than the LG G6. Therefore i think it is fair to compare against these devices. Especially on the camera when OP decided to push that aspect so hard in their marketing (i mean its on the damn *box*).

Elnrik said:
Nice video. GJ Erica.
But seriously, If you can't stand that the OP5 uses a 1080P display, or wanted a super refined camera experience like the Pixel or GS8+, why didn't you buy a Pixel or GS8+? Did you think OP has the resources that Google and Sammy have? Did you think an S8 quality phone was just going to magically spring forth from OP's arse for $500? Where exactly did your expectations come from?
From my point of view, people who are in an uproar about those things seem to have WILDLY off expectations, and are missing out on what makes this device great. Further, as a fan of tweaking things, I can't wait to see what patches or custom ROMs can do to make those "issues" null and void. So, to the Outraged I say this: go ahead and return your OP5, because it really isn't the phone for you - but not for the reasons you think.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
THANK YOU!!! Wondering if I am the only sane person left on this planet!!!!!!!
Sent from my OnePlus 5 using XDA Labs

Yeah I agree - it's the EXACT reason I bought this phone. Because I'm a nerd. I built a beast gaming rig last summer and I want my phone to match in specs and power. I like a nice camera but I want speed, and I want options down the road when I try to hold onto the phone for 3-4 years, which is unheard of these days, but I think with all the dev support this phone will get I think it's possible
(My 128GB OP5 arrives 7/31 btw)

Note 8 or One Plus 5

Hi, I need some advice on which device I am going to buy. I'm going to use this I guess 3 to 5 years as I dont replace my phone that often so this thread will help A LOT. I'm basing on some reviews, speed tests, but the two seems to be on par with each other. Price is/may kind of an issue here as I would love to use some of the money (if I buy the OP5) for the after sales and some personal stuff. However if the Note 8 is really "bang for the buck" then I'll gladly go with it. I also tried to search some issues. Here's what I found so far:
One Plus 5:
GPS Issue
Bluetooth Issue
Overheating issue
Jelly Effect in screen
Note 8:
Red tint in a lot of device
Light leak (lights leaking on the side of the phone not much of an issue for me)
If you have some issues with the phone, please feel free to reply. It would be appreciated a lot!
I also created Pros and Cons that might help me but I ended up more confused what to buy. Haha.
Pros for One Plus 5
Performance
Price
Dev Community as I love to mod my phone
Fingerprint Scanner placement + the scan speed is so fast
I've seen a lot of people who still uses OPO or OP2 which means that this device last long
The toggle above the volume like in iPhones
Customizable hardware buttons (I really love this one)
Cons for One Plus 5
Issues above as I really need the GPS and bluetooth, and I play heavy games.
No waterproofing
No Micro SD slot (I guess 128gb is enough but I would love to have the option of expanding more)
Pros for Note 8
SPen
Camera
Performance (but I've read OP5 has better. The 8gb ram may be the reason. But please feel free to correct me)
Display is a plus
Iris Scanner and Face Recognition (Is it accurate?)
Cons for Note 8
Samsung phones tend to slow down after months/years of using it.
Price
Body build is somewhat easy to crack due to glass body + curved edge
Samsung is a little bit strict when it comes to flashing Custom ROMS and I dont know if the SPen functionalities will be affected. (Please correct me here)
Fingerprint Scanner placement
I may be wrong with some of this but I've researched and this is what I've seen.
If this is a point to consider, I'm coming from a Xperia Z3Compact which didn't last long (I hated sony to the hell because of this) because of the digitizer issue. However, I enjoyed tweaking that phone. Now I'm forced to use my iPhone5s with jailbreak.
Note: Just to be clear, the devices in comparison are OP5 8gb/128gb and Note 8 6gb/64gb Exynos
Note: I'm posting this to each respective forum to have a fair discussion for each phone. I hope this is allowed. I also hope to help some people that have the same options with me.
Note 8 Thread: Link Here
OnePlus 5 Thread: Link Here
Thank you guys. After a long comparison, I'm going for the OP5 even with the rumors of OP5T. I just hate the back fingerprint scanner placements which is the trend now. And regarding with the bezels, I'm more into those phone with bezels on top and bottom for landscape usage. I've been trying the S8+, and some games that I play doesn't maximize or utilize the whole screen which leaves some part of the screen blank. However, the screen in the Note 8 is A1 dont get me wrong, but I'm more into the performance and the OP5's screen is enough. Thank you guys!

For me would have gone oneplus 5,cause that thing is crazy fast. However the jello, jelly put me right off. And the fact that oneplus 5,would not until now come out in the open about it, really bugged me and beggars belief!. You can see the problem as soon as you pick the device up, so that reason I went note 8 and it's been an amazing experience. I haven't played games on it yet, still enjoying just browsing, multimedia, taking photos of my munchkins etc.

I had the oneplus 5 like 4 phones ago and it was great. No issues whatsoever, no jelly or any of the other issues you mentioned tbh. Bang for bucks it is the best phone you can get. Great for flashing and whatnot. That being said the note 8 has so much more added value and the exynos has a dev community that should keep you flash happy for years to come...

marvi0 said:
For me would have gone oneplus 5,cause that thing is crazy fast. However the jello, jelly put me right off. And the fact that oneplus 5,would not until now come out in the open about it, really bugged me and beggars belief!. You can see the problem as soon as you pick the device up, so that reason I went note 8 and it's been an amazing experience. I haven't played games on it yet, still enjoying just browsing, multimedia, taking photos of my munchkins etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah yes, the jelly effect. I've also heard it too and seen it in facebook. That thing also prevents me in purchasing this device. However, some owners claimed that their device has small to no signs of jelly effect in their device. So I think they have fixed it now, I wish. Thank you for your comment
mrnovanova said:
I had the oneplus 5 like 4 phones ago and it was great. No issues whatsoever, no jelly or any of the other issues you mentioned tbh. Bang for bucks it is the best phone you can get. Great for flashing and whatnot. That being said the note 8 has so much more added value and the exynos has a dev community that should keep you flash happy for years to come...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see. I heard that Snapdragon version is more strict in terms of tweaking than the Exynos version. Thank you for you reply!

lazygeniuslanz said:
Hi, I need some advice on which device I am going to buy. I'm going to use this I guess 3 to 5 years as I dont replace my phone that often so this thread will help A LOT. I'm basing on some reviews, speed tests, but the two seems to be on par with each other. Price is/may kind of an issue here as I would love to use some of the money (if I buy the OP5) for the after sales and some personal stuff. However if the Note 8 is really "bang for the buck" then I'll gladly go with it. I also tried to search some issues. Here's what I found so far:
One Plus 5:
GPS Issue
Bluetooth Issue
Overheating issue
Jelly Effect in screen
Note 8:
Red tint in a lot of device
Light leak (lights leaking on the side of the phone not much of an issue for me)
If you have some issues with the phone, please feel free to reply. It would be appreciated a lot!
I also created Pros and Cons that might help me but I ended up more confused what to buy. Haha.
Pros for One Plus 5
Performance
Price
Dev Community as I love to mod my phone
Fingerprint Scanner placement + the scan speed is so fast
I've seen a lot of people who still uses OPO or OP2 which means that this device last long
The toggle above the volume like in iPhones
Customizable hardware buttons (I really love this one)
Cons for One Plus 5
Issues above as I really need the GPS and bluetooth, and I play heavy games.
No waterproofing
No Micro SD slot (I guess 128gb is enough but I would love to have the option of expanding more)
Pros for Note 8
SPen
Camera
Performance (but I've read OP5 has better. The 8gb ram may be the reason. But please feel free to correct me)
Display is a plus
Iris Scanner and Face Recognition (Is it accurate?)
Cons for Note 8
Samsung phones tend to slow down after months/years of using it.
Price
Body build is somewhat easy to crack due to glass body + curved edge
Samsung is a little bit strict when it comes to flashing Custom ROMS and I dont know if the SPen functionalities will be affected. (Please correct me here)
Fingerprint Scanner placement
I may be wrong with some of this but I've researched and this is what I've seen.
If this is a point to consider, I'm coming from a Xperia Z3Compact which didn't last long (I hated sony to the hell because of this) because of the digitizer issue. However, I enjoyed tweaking that phone. Now I'm forced to use my iPhone5s with jailbreak.
Note: Just to be clear, the devices in comparison are OP5 8gb/128gb and Note 8 6gb/64gb Exynos
Note: I'm posting this to each respective forum to have a fair discussion for each phone. I hope this is allowed. I also hope to help some people that have the same options with me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I a solution for you to avoid those listed "issues" if you decide to buy a Note 8.
Just find a open box or used one and inspect it fully before handing over the money.
Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

marvi0 said:
For me would have gone oneplus 5,cause that thing is crazy fast. However the jello, jelly put me right off. And the fact that oneplus 5,would not until now come out in the open about it, really bugged me and beggars belief!. You can see the problem as soon as you pick the device up, so that reason I went note 8 and it's been an amazing experience. I haven't played games on it yet, still enjoying just browsing, multimedia, taking photos of my munchkins etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Limeybastard said:
I a solution for you to avoid those listed "issues" if you decide to buy a Note 8.
Just find a open box or used one and inspect it fully before handing over the money.
Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've read that solution too haha. And that's a good one. But is there any reason to consider Note 8 for OP5?

lazygeniuslanz said:
I've read that solution too haha. And that's a good one. But is there any reason to consider Note 8 for OP5?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can't answer that question as I don't have any experience with the OP5, to be honest.
Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

lazygeniuslanz said:
I've read that solution too haha. And that's a good one. But is there any reason to consider Note 8 for OP5?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's a personal decision. Only you can weigh the pros and cons of each phone... and you seem to have done a great job of listing them.
The SD card is the dealbreaker for me. I carry about 200 GB of hi-res music. At this point, that's difficult to replicate any other way that doesn't involve paying even more for music I already own.

I've had the oneplus5, now currently have the note 8.
The reasons that made me return the oneplus 5 were as follows
- The jelly screen ....once you see it, it'll bug you forever
- The camera in my opinion wasn't all that..the lack of OIS was really annoying. Videos were shaky as hell! (It was improved with software stabilisation, bit it wasn't anything compaired to realtime optical stablisation
I really wanted to like the phone, it's so cheap for what you get and I love how oneplus allow you to root and mod away.
You need to decide what you'd want from your phone

Thanks but.. some of your "CONS" are off. You didnt go with the majority. On some cons.

note 8- tons more features
one plus- easier to mod
its just that simple; YOU decide whats important to YOU

In 3 or so years you probably won't want a phone with all that bezel. I'll venture out and say if you want a phone that won't feel obsolete sooner than later do to design get the note 8 hands down (or s8+).....imo
Sent from my SM-N950U using XDA-Developers Legacy app

louforgiveno said:
In 3 or so years you probably won't want a phone with all that bezel. I'll venture out and say if you want a phone that won't feel obsolete sooner than later do to design get the note 8 hands down (or s8+).....imo
Sent from my SM-N950U using XDA-Developers Legacy app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think the Note 8 has a higher chance of being obsolete. Reason being the 8GB RAM of the OnePlus 5; it will probably become standard on all devices in 2018 or 2019.
It's not like all that extra screen gives you extra functionality that you won't have if your device has bezels. So I don't see why a device with bezels would become obsolete.
Design is really the last thing you should look at when making your decision. You're gonna use one of those devices, not stare at it and admire its design. You're probably gonna put a case on it anyway, so that whole design aspect flies out the window.

Pwnycorn said:
I think the Note 8 has a higher chance of being obsolete. Reason being the 8GB RAM of the OnePlus 5; it will probably become standard on all devices in 2018 or 2019.
It's not like all that extra screen gives you extra functionality that you won't have if your device has bezels. So I don't see why a device with bezels would become obsolete.
Design is really the last thing you should look at when making your decision. You're gonna use one of those devices, not stare at it and admire its design. You're probably gonna put a case on it anyway, so that whole design aspect flies out the window.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I respect your opinion but I think you're off a smidge. If design were not important there would be no iPhone X. Expect large bezels to be frowned upon in the 2 years. Bezels will get smaller that's just a fact. 8gb is overkill how will OEMs justify the 8gb when Apple does wonders with 3. 6gb will remain the maximum and 4gb the standard. We might see 8gb again but it sure won't become the norm.
Now I know that I referred to Apple as a reference for both arguments but for better or for worse Android sets trends and they cement it. It's just facts.
Design is the reason why many great devices were overlooked this year IE HTC U11 and Sony Xperia Zx1 or whatever (Saw it, laughed, moved on) I agree with you that in the end, Greater scheme and all, it doesn't matter as beauty is subjective but...
8gb standard? Maybe for Chinese OEMs. Bezels? They're flying out the window as we speak ?

douger1957 said:
That's a personal decision. Only you can weigh the pros and cons of each phone... and you seem to have done a great job of listing them.
The SD card is the dealbreaker for me. I carry about 200 GB of hi-res music. At this point, that's difficult to replicate any other way that doesn't involve paying even more for music I already own.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, thats a lot of music you have there. I can't even fill my 32gb from my z3c hahaha. Thank you sir!
Ry2mkk said:
I've had the oneplus5, now currently have the note 8.
The reasons that made me return the oneplus 5 were as follows
- The jelly screen ....once you see it, it'll bug you forever
- The camera in my opinion wasn't all that..the lack of OIS was really annoying. Videos were shaky as hell! (It was improved with software stabilisation, bit it wasn't anything compaired to realtime optical stablisation
I really wanted to like the phone, it's so cheap for what you get and I love how oneplus allow you to root and mod away.
You need to decide what you'd want from your phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, the camera in OP5 kinda sucks at videos. I've watched many camera reviews against Note 8 and boy that OP5 videos are shaky but I think they can do better after software updates. However the stills from OP5 looked good that it made the OP5 worth it atleast at good lighting. Don't get me wrong, the Note 8 outputs are better but I guess it doesn't justify the price differences.
Zeblade said:
Thanks but.. some of your "CONS" are off. You didnt go with the majority. On some cons.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What do you means sir?
wase4711 said:
note 8- tons more features
one plus- easier to mod
its just that simple; YOU decide whats important to YOU
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see, thank you sir!
Pwnycorn said:
I think the Note 8 has a higher chance of being obsolete. Reason being the 8GB RAM of the OnePlus 5; it will probably become standard on all devices in 2018 or 2019.
It's not like all that extra screen gives you extra functionality that you won't have if your device has bezels. So I don't see why a device with bezels would become obsolete.
Design is really the last thing you should look at when making your decision. You're gonna use one of those devices, not stare at it and admire its design. You're probably gonna put a case on it anyway, so that whole design aspect flies out the window.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
mrnovanova said:
I respect your opinion but I think you're off a smidge. If design were not important there would be no iPhone X. Expect large bezels to be frowned upon in the 2 years. Bezels will get smaller that's just a fact. 8gb is overkill how will OEMs justify the 8gb when Apple does wonders with 3. 6gb will remain the maximum and 4gb the standard. We might see 8gb again but it sure won't become the norm.
Now I know that I referred to Apple as a reference for both arguments but for better or for worse Android sets trends and they cement it. It's just facts.
Design is the reason why many great devices were overlooked this year IE HTC U11 and Sony Xperia Zx1 or whatever (Saw it, laughed, moved on) I agree with you that in the end, Greater scheme and all, it doesn't matter as beauty is subjective but...
8gb standard? Maybe for Chinese OEMs. Bezels? They're flying out the window as we speak
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey you guys calm down haha I agree that the design may be obsolete but I think I value the performance than the design itself. I don't want to use a good design phone but stutters or lags even a bit specially when its priced in an almost 1k. But good points guys! :good: :fingers-crossed:

Thank you guys. After a long comparison, I'm going for the OP5 even with the rumors of OP5T. I just hate the back fingerprint scanner placements which is the trend now. And regarding with the bezels, I'm more into those phone with bezels on top and bottom for landscape usage. I've been trying the S8+, and some games that I play doesn't maximize or utilize the whole screen which leaves some part of the screen blank. However, the screen in the Note 8 is A1 dont get me wrong, but I'm more into the performance and the OP5's screen is enough. Thank you guys!

Camera/Photography thread - tips, apps, advice

Hi guys,
I just purchased the S9 and I was supposed to get it Friday. Due to me working remote, I will get it tomorrow.
From my documentation period, I get that the phone has an amazing camera. I tried to stay away from Samsung, even though the camera was top notch due to KNOX and lack of development. My last Samsung phone was an S2, that manged to run up to CM13 like a champ. But the battery life was terrible.
Since then I embraced the Xperia family, which has top notch hardware and almost vanilla Android. I just love the Sony compact phones. Their problem was and it still is to some degree, the camera. So this is the main reason I took into consideration the new Sammy.
I don't know if I will keep my S9, since I own 2 other Xperias, since I got it due to some big discount, but I am interested to hear your opinions and about your techniques of taking photos. My gf has a S7 and I noticed a lot of neat stuff (*cough* raw *cough*) and my best friend has an S8 that takes amazing photos in low light.
The S9 presents itself with a lot of interesting features, like the different aperture camera, raw format, multiframe noise reduction and so on.
I'll even enjoy articles about the theory of photography. It's so much junk of info online, that I don't know what to chose.
Can't wait to read what you have to say. Happy to meet y'all!

Some Guys 24-Hour Review: Nokia 9 Pureview

PURPOSE
So 1st and foremost, the plan here is to give you my first 24-Hours experience with the Nokia 9 PureView compared to some other recent flagship phones I have tried. Granted, I have only used the Nokia 9 for about 24-Hours now and can say I have yet to fully break it in to find everything that may or may not be right / wrong with it. However, this will be a unbiased look and comparison. I'm neither a fanboy or sheep. No brand affiliation. Not a programmer either, just a pro-sumer Senior Member of XDA willing to get trolled, flamed, etc. for sharing a look at this phone. Hopefully, I can give "the everyday guy / gal look" without getting bogged down in stats, variables or benchmarks. Here goes...
MY BACKGROUND
No one special. Just a guy that likes the latest tech... phones being at the top of the list. I am a nerd. No doubt about that. I think anyone that knows about XDA probably is to some extent. No brand loyalty. I have had the privilege to try out the following phones:
1. Samsung S10 128GB / 8GB
2. Google Pixel 3 XL
3. Xiaomi Mi 9 Global Version 64GB / 6GB
4. iPhone XS Max
5. Xiaomi Mi 8 Pro Transparent Global
And probably some more, but these are the most recent. Does that make me qualified to make a review... Maybe. It does make me an idiot that likes new phones, though. I am always looking for something that meets my needs but also is a good phone. Currently with TMobile but have been with ATT, Verizon & Sprint at some point 20 years of using cell phones.
MY NEEDS
I drive about 45 miles each way everyday to work (yes, my work week is currently 7 days a week with a few occasional days off). So, with this in mind and where I drive. I need the minimum requirements:
1. Can Stream Music
2. Android Auto / Apple CarPlay Compatible w/ My 2018 Honda
3. An equalizer of some sort since I have only switch out my new cars speakers for better ones and don't plan on changing or adding a better sound system.
4. Decent pictures when needed
5. Relatively not laggy - will sometimes do some ROM-ing or some customization but since I tend to get rid of the phones quickly I try not to void warranties or make it too non-stock
THE COMPARISON
I am looking at my experience with the Nokia 9 and the other flagships under/around these requirements and some normal stuff like battery, screen, snappiness, camera & software. Here goes:
BATTERY
This has been a hot topic as of late as the larger phones continue to dominate this field (duh... larger phone mean more room for larger battery), however 3340 - 3800 mAh batteries seemed to be the "standard" for phones the size of the Nokia 9. During setup, from 100%, I tortured it setting up all my apps from scratch while on AC-wireless connection... then after all the app downloading, logging apps in and setting up further. I would say a good 5 to 6 hours of heavy use on Wifi drained it to 56% battery... decent performance given the amount of hammering on it I was doing. If normal day away from home is 12 hours with normal use, I feel it goes the distance... Is it a battery champ like the iPhone XS Max, no. Is it one of the better phones in its group like the S10 and Xiaomi Mi 9... you bet. I feel Android One has everything to do with it... More on Android One later.
SCREEN
At a 5.99" OLED at 18:9 aspect, I do feel that the forehead and chin on the phone is a little circa 2017 - 2018. With that said, I do feel it is more pleasant than "Mein Fuhrer" mustache going on with the Pixel XL 3... so much so I had to toggle no notchiness in the developer settings. The "Little Mac" swing and a miss punch out on the Samsung S10 is definitely not my cup of tea ... I found it annoying for one and the fact that they have graphics to swirl around it to make that much more noticeable is even more unsettling. As for the actual screen itself, the colors, brightness and clarity is awesome albeit small especially if you toggle down the screen size in settings... with that, it is a little difficult to manage photos properly with the size of screen. Not impossible but it can try your patience... but the screen itself is definitely better than the Xiaomi Phones and the Pixel 3 XL... the S10 still has the nicest screen but Samsung is getting me annoyed with the continue elongation of the phone... soon it will have a 76:5 aspect ratio... and will look like a Hershey Bar... btw Samsung, don't take design cues from a candy bar company... just sayin'
THE FINGERPRINT SCANNER
Probably the most controversial item on the Nokia 9. Yes it is not great.... I would place it below the scanner in the S10 & Xiaomi Mi 9 but better than the Mi 8.... Pixel 3 XL , you don't count with your don't rock the boat rear sensor... which of course is super fast. Honestly, this tech is not ready for prime time on any of these phones. The S10 comes with a plastic screen protector that makes it hard at first to register the scanner. I felt like I pressing my finger through the display. It did start working decently at about a 90% success rate, after programming fingers a few different time. The Nokia 9 is definitely 75% at best with just one scan of each of my thumbs... as mentioned in different threads, going to add a second scan of each thumb to see of that improves... I feel though that Nokia HMD will patch it to make it slightly better. With facial recognition available, although not as secure, helps for getting into the phone and really the finger print is only needed for the different apps requiring. There's a learning curve for sure to get it to work well but the same goes for the S10... Definitely, not the "deal breaker" everyone's trying to paint... it's the price of new technology
SOFTWARE
Android One to me, besides the Pixel 3 XL and the iPhone XS Max, is in a class of android that Samsung and Xiaomi can't touch. Vanilla Stock Android (for the most part) is a breath of fresh air. Everyone is creaming in their pants that One UI is so much better TouchWiz for Samsung. When your yardstick is the garbage that was TouchJizz, saying One UI is better without qualifying it further is not a great state of affairs. I personally did not find it "that much better" and was immediately looking to replace the launcher with the pixel launcher or similar iteration immediately. I feel as soon as they take away the google assistant screen to the left on the homepage, its a failure... that's of course is a personal preference. Bixby blows... kill him/her off Samsung... and have Bixby take Siri with them... Google Assistant, the swipe left news screen should NEVER be removed... if it happens, then google and android lose a customer for life... just saying... can't wait for timely security updates that will never come to Samsung. Xiaomi on their own do a great job to update. not much to say about their interface other than like most Xiaomi phones... notifications can sometimes be a pain to get to work right due to aggressive battery savings. Xiaomi also does not have the assistant screen to the left :crying: replaced easily with pixel launcher... the S10 was not as easy... could not just use pixel launcher from apkmirror and had to buy action launcher to mimic. The experience of as close to vanilla android on the pixel 3 xl and the nokia 9 just can't be touched. The 6GB phone rocking the 845 performs IMO better than the 855 8GB S10. Even the Xiaomi Mi 9 feels faster than the S10, 845 or 855.
CAMERA
Ok, camera... or as you all know cameras when speaking about any of these phones except you, you "one-eyed monster" pixel 3 xl. Although I haven't put it through the regiment of use cases, The Pentacular camera explosion that is the Nokia 9 is something I'm digging. If your looking for a point and shoot and send master class phone, get the iPhone 8 XS Max, Google Pixel 3 XL or the Xiaomi Mi 9 in that order. For me, Samsung always supposedly has good cameras in their phones but being a person that went to photography school, shot professionally and still cares about the pictures they take... the software non-sense that the S10 does with pixel smoothing, HDR, etc., etc. makes everything no genuine. The other phones too suffer from this at times as well. Don't get me wrong... Night Shot on the Pixel 3 XL is a feet of software magic... quite frankly, google needs to share this tech with other OEMs to make the sustainability of Android that much better. But if your looking for a genuine picture with great image detail and the ability to adjust in-box, the Nokia 9 excels. Yes, you pay for it in processing time. Are you going to want to take this phone to Monaco to caught a F1 car in motion... hell no, but if you want on par caliber shots with a DSLR with RAW Images on outdoor, standard to semi-low light situations... I don't believe there's a camera that compares... for the price... and that leads to...
VALUE FOR YOUR DOLLAR
Although not the cheapest phone, at $600 USD (pre-sale pricing, $700 now), you get a lot of phone for the dollar. The only better value is you just want to go the point, shoot and send route is the Xiaomi Mi 9 at about $530 USD. As always, Samsung at over $800 is not worth it. Not worth it for camera, not worth it for software, design, etc. Samsung Pay to me is the only thing Samsung uniquely has that I wish every phone did. The Pixel 3 XL which I was able to get around $550 was a good value too, but is barely worth it north of $600 buying new. Yes it has the best single shooting camera of practically any phone in its class, but I feel it doesn't run as smoothly as the Nokia 9 with the extra 2GB RAM increase. Of course, Apple cost to value is in a different class... yes the phone is $1100... but you'll also be able to probably sell it in 2 years for $600 as well. Try that with an android phone and you'll get laughed at that it retains 60% value after 2 years. The Nokia 9 packs the right amount of stuff to make it a great value IMO. It would be a slam dunk of course if it had a SD 855 as opposed to 845 but it would be probably $100 more expensive without adding much value. Android One is wonderful and a great choice. Wireless charging (OnePlus, you can't add wireless charging, are you just dumb or what at this point?) The 5 cameras is a great gimmick and works as advertised. Everyone expecting the world out of a $600 phone... it has a better camera then phones $200 - $500 more than what it costs. Can you shoot in a pitch black room... no? Why are you? You creep... you spying on me... it is a little weird
OVERALL
The Nokia 9 is not the phone for everyone. It's the phone for a person that want great value in a phone capable of taking amazingly detailed photos in its price category. Can you point, shoot, send... sometimes. Does the fingerprint reader work ok? Sometimes. Is it a phone pushing some new hardware envelopes in a cost affordable package? Always! The fingerprint reader hate is just that... hate without a 100% justification. Is it an annoyance, it can be... does it overshadow the value of this phone for those of us wanting more from their phone cameras, absolutely not. It is also by no means cutting edge on design... but it doesn't have to be sporting 5 cameras... chins and foreheads are nice when done tastefully (look at Angelina Jolie... maybe not 2019 Angelina maybe circa 2005 Angelina :highfive: ) It not an ugly phone is all I'm saying. Can the big boys in the cell phone game learn something from the once dominate Nokia (actually HMD) is that innovation is needed to remain relevant... think if Apple put 5 cameras on its next phone (would never happen) but what if it did. They'd be like "The Job-biness is Back at Apple" "Apple, the innovators again" and a multitude of other stupid headlines. Lets face it, this phone has a gimmick, a fairly great one but gimmick nonetheless. Will it catch on? Is it years ahead of its time? It just maybe. As always, this is just Some Guys 24-hour Opinion....... :good:

Great first 24 hour impressions

Camera question
Thanks for the review, mine arrives March 18 and looking forward to the camera. The processing time has been mentioned all over the place but I am still unclear as to whether the processing time prevents you from taking the next shot. For example, I would most likely always shoot raw with the full depth turned on. I am more interested in being able to take the next exposure quickly than looking at the last shot on the phone's screen. So, wondering how quickly one can take the next shot.
Thanks!

jhw61032 said:
Thanks for the review, mine arrives March 18 and looking forward to the camera. The processing time has been mentioned all over the place but I am still unclear as to whether the processing time prevents you from taking the next shot. For example, I would most likely always shoot raw with the full depth turned on. I am more interested in being able to take the next exposure quickly than looking at the last shot on the phone's screen. So, wondering how quickly one can take the next shot.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From experience it doesn't keep you from taking the next shot... I haven't done it with say more than 2 or 3 shots though... don't know how far it will let you go and tell you it can't process anymore. The processing is not unbearable either.... its just kids nowadays, if it isn't ready in 1.5 seconds, time to troll Nokia on a phone that is at least trying to change things up.... :victory: