Database Users

If not the Nexus S, what will it be?

I can hold it until Q1 of 2011. If Nexus S isn't worth replacing my Nexus One, what do you think will it be?

I won't be buying the S, even if I was up for an upgrade. No notification LEDs, no external SD card support, no significant hardware upgrades.
I'll wait and see what the dual core world has in store for us in the near future. I do like the LG Star a lot.

Also, for all those in the market, I'd at least wait until CES in January before making any decisions.
Unless you can't wait.

gibosn6594 said:
I won't be buying the S, even if I was up for an upgrade. No notification LEDs, no external SD card support, no significant hardware upgrades.
I'll wait and see what the dual core world has in store for us in the near future. I do like the LG Star a lot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I never really paid much attention to the LG Star, but now since I keep hearing it being mentioned, I did a quick Google search.
It definitely destroys the NS it seems in terms of hardware..

boring device, I was expecting at least a keyboard, I might jump to sprint and get the EVO, this is my desired device so far:
-qwerty keyboard
-Call End hardware buttons, front hardware butons for home back and menu
-4" screen

I'm holding out for something made by HTC... Dual core with a decent gpu... Gingerbread or better.. no keyboard needed... a decent external speaker.. and 4"+ display with a better resolution than wvga.. hdmi out .. 4g etc..
i can wait... my N1 is more than adequate for the time being

Well, I plan to stay on Tmobile so I guess Im going to keep waiting as I agree with many others, The S is not a big enough improvement over the Original.

On Tmo as well with N1.
I'm thinking of grabbing up a MT4G for now, bc I'm looking for a new device. The Nexus One is an awesome device, it's just that as a year approches, I need something new. The MT4G is will be a great interim phone until something with:
Dual Core
4+" AMOLED/SLCD
768MB+ RAM
2.3 Stock
HSPA+ support
and why not throw a front facing camera just so people can't hate on it.
Oh and made my HTC!

http://www.engadget.com/2010/12/08/nexus-s-will-drop-super-amoled-in-favor-of-super-clear-lcd-in-ru/
If this is true and if it is available outside of Russia, then NexusS with LCD looks to me like the interesting option again. Even despite of boring amorphous rounded shape and cheap plasticky feel.
I simply hate the grainy looks and pentile artefacts of the current SAMOLED generation.

Possibly the PlayStation phone. Battery life would have to be killer.

Damn... I would rather it have a super clear LCD too... hate the RGBG pixel arrangement =(
draugaz said:
http://www.engadget.com/2010/12/08/nexus-s-will-drop-super-amoled-in-favor-of-super-clear-lcd-in-ru/
If this is true and if it is available outside of Russia, then NexusS with LCD looks to me like the interesting option again. Even despite of boring amorphous rounded shape and cheap plasticky feel.
I simply hate the grainy looks and pentile artefacts of the current SAMOLED generation.
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Click to collapse

An Orion chip will seal the deal for me .

moto olympus could be a nice option

I don't get the HTC hype from everyone.
Sure, they used nice materials for the N1 exterior, but the screen is pathetic, the power button eventually fails, the volume buttons fail, and the speaker is terrible.

gibosn6594 said:
I don't get the HTC hype from everyone.
Sure, they used nice materials for the N1 exterior, but the screen is pathetic, the power button eventually fails, the volume buttons fail, and the speaker is terrible.
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Click to collapse
Exactly how long does it take for this to happen? Honestly I'm curious, I assume since I got it in March this would've happened already ._.

gibosn6594 said:
I don't get the HTC hype from everyone.
Sure, they used nice materials for the N1 exterior, but the screen is pathetic, the power button eventually fails, the volume buttons fail, and the speaker is terrible.
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I have to agree, other than the really nice exterior of the N1, nothing else is really that great. The speakers are just HORRIBLE - and the screen is just unbelievable. I am happy to have some plastic to be honest if it means a very good screen and speakers.

ma2k5 said:
I have to agree, other than the really nice exterior of the N1, nothing else is really that great. The speakers are just HORRIBLE - and the screen is just unbelievable. I am happy to have some plastic to be honest if it means a very good screen and speakers.
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Funny this.
That "unbelievable" AMOLED screen is actually produced by the same Samsung and was rawed as the ultimate and absolutely gorgeous AMOLED, the final answer to all the OLED problems. Then couple of months later came Super-Amoled and it is the same story once again.
Just wait for Ultra-Amoled and all the forums around the world will immediately explode with comments stating, that those S-Amoleds are just plain horrible

ma2k5 said:
I have to agree, other than the really nice exterior of the N1, nothing else is really that great. The speakers are just HORRIBLE - and the screen is just unbelievable. I am happy to have some plastic to be honest if it means a very good screen and speakers.
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It may not happen at all, but it's a pretty widespread and well known N1 issue.
Mine has just started to get pretty bad and I got mine in January.

Got a G1, because it was supported by the google and the community, got a Nexus 1 for the same reasons. I will not be getting the NS, and will wait til whatever google declares as the successor to that.
It will easily be 12 months away, but I think I can manage with the N1 until then.

Eclair~ said:
I never really paid much attention to the LG Star, but now since I keep hearing it being mentioned, I did a quick Google search.
It definitely destroys the NS it seems in terms of hardware..
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LG Star looks interesting, but doesn't LG produce low class phones ? I hope it will have vanilla Android without some custom LG UI.

Long road from Inspire to Atrix

Good morning all,
I created this thread in the Inspire forums and thought I'd bring it over here too. It's just my experiences as a daily carrier of both of these devices. It's aimed at people torn between the two handsets, and also to help me ultimately choose which I prefer to keep. Only one will survive.
I've included my running updates in the OP.
___________________________________________________________________
Hello all!
I've had the daunting task to pick between these two phones for the last couple days. I went into the store to actually get the devices in my hand and fully expected to walk out with the Atrix. I've always had a soft spot for HTC, ever since their WoMo phones. I saw the Inspire and was super impressed at how solid the phone felt in my hand. The phone felt very responsive, and I already knew the XDA Inspire team was cranking out some awesome stuff.
I then grabbed the Atrix and was not nearly as wow'd as I had expected to be. I've been following the phone since it's announcement, and pretty much had made up my mind on the spot to pick it up. After spending a half hour goofing around with both phones, I decided the Inspire really won my heart.
Then it happened... The cold sweats... The tossing and turning in bed at night. Images of the Atrix's Tegra 2 laying waste to the earth and doing vile things to my Inspire. My horrid indecision had struck. I decided that I had obviously made the wrong choice, so the next morning I headed off to the store and bought an Atrix without returning my perfectly set up Inspire. I wanted to play with them both side by side and just return whichever one didn't make me happy.
That was a bit over 24 hours ago. After spending the last day with both of the handsets, I am closer to a decision, but it's damn tough. My overall thoughts and struggles follow:
Motorola Atrix:
-Pros:
- Bright, higher resolution screen
- Dual Core processor (even though I thought the experience was pretty weak)
- Battery (theoretical, as I haven't had it long enough to fully experience)
- This goes to the hardware again, but this phone is quite a bit more future proof.
- The handset is light enough to not remind you it's in your pocket at every step.
- GPS (This is the most rock solid phone GPS I've ever used)
- Incredibly loud speaker
- Tons of ram
- HDMI out
-Cons:
- Cheaper build quality (I feel like I need to qualify this. The phone feels solid, but the battery door is, for lack of a better word, brittle)
- Very poor color representation on the otherwise beautiful screen.
- MotoBlur - This is just a very inelegant, unrefined overlay...
- Strange compatibility issues with certain apps
- multiple force closes
- Weak social media integration
- Odd bouts of lag when least expected
- Locked Bootloader (most don't care about this, but it matters when you have a primary developer that has a history of slow patches, feature adds, and os releases.
- Chicklet keyboard is a touch small for me and requires some focus to not miss type.
**FOLLOW-UP**
- I've removed the call quality knock from the Atrix device. It turns out it was entirely my own fault, and while some people, including Motorola, are reporting issues with sound quality on some devices, mine isn't one of them.
HTC Inspire:
-Pros:
- Excellent build quality (the aluminum uni-body is a joy to hold, and has the extra added benefit of being able to be used to fend off an attacker)
- Beautiful 4.3" screen (Yes, it is big, but I'm a fan)
- Sense (I'm not a fan of these proprietary UI's, but Sense shows that HTC can offer up an experience that is easy to like, and provide an attractive interface for a phone OS that is sometimes described as clinical looking)
- The brilliant development community (currently running CoreDroid /drool)
- Very snappy performance from the second gen Snapdragon CPU
- Tons of ram (Not as much as the Atrix, but enough to be a "ton" in my eyes)
- Lovely camera (I used to not care, but I have a new son, so suddenly a camera climbed up the ladder of important features)
- Fantastic out of the box social media integration
- Has that "Just works like it should" feel to it.
- Very clear call quality
- Second best phone gps I've used
-Cons:
- The screen washes out to a grey slab in direct sunlight
- Stock battery life is horrid
- "Electric Razor" ear screen can have some jagged edges and chafe your ear
- Battery door was a ridiculous design decision
- Very current gen hardware (doesn't mean a whole lot if you're not going to be riding this phone for the next two years, but a new day has dawned and it's name is "Multi-core")
- Stock external speaker/notification volume super weak
- odd placement of the number button on the keyboard (thanks iPhone for etching that into my brain)
- recessed power and volume buttons can be a bit tough to find.
- No internal storage (this is just ridiculous)
- Relatively weak GPU
There you have it. That's what I've come up with so far. At the moment, I'm leaning toward the Inspire, as so many of those issues can be (and have been) corrected through roms. In the end, I just don't really get the warm fuzzies from the Atrix. I feel like it's a brilliant set of components tied together with a really sorry software suite, and a manufacturer that doesn't really understand the strengths of their chosen platform, or the customers that choose it.
I will continue carrying both of the devices for the next couple days, but at the moment, the winner is most definitely the Inspire in my eyes. It just feels like it's been polished to a wonderful android flavored candy shine, and with the community behind it, there's really nothing I feel the device won't be able to handle for quite some time.
**Update 1**
The inspire's build quality is top notch. The screen is perfectly alligned and allows no notable give for me. There is also no more light bleed than you expect from an lcd panel, and none to the touch. The battery cover is a pain. Its actually so well fitted that you have to break it in over multiple removals in order to confidently take it off without breaking it. The sim cover fits nicely, and doesn't pose the same pain that the battery cover does. There is a slight raised edge in the center of the sim cover that takes it just out of flush. Its nigh unnoticable. Viewing angles on the inspire's slcd are fantastic. I can see it clearly in a near complete 180 degree angle, with little to no noticable color bleed. It obviously dims as you move from dead center.
The atrix is in the same boat with build quality for the most part. The phone has a good weight, metal rails down the side, well alligned screen, and mostly tight fitting components. I do have some issues here, though. Mainly with the back cover. As noted in my initial post, its very brittle, thin plastic. If you think I broke a sweat taking the inspires battery cover off, you should have seen me trying to get the battery on the atrix. I pulled the top clip free, and almost bent the cover in half fighting the mid phone clips. Also, the back cover on my atrix doesn't line up flush on one side. The last couple issues are the "creakynesss" of the handset. When I grip the phone tightly I can feel the plastic components giving, and settling into place. Not terribly bad, but noticable. The last issue is the fingerprint scanner. It's been pointed out in some reviews, but the scanner is off center on some devices and just looks shoddily thrown together and misalligned.
The atrix beautiful qHD screen also washes out and tints yellow when viewed at extreme angles.
**Update 2**
I've been using the Atrix today as my primary carry handset, and I must say PROPS to Motorola on this battery... I've been beating on it for all I can muster and with almost two full hours of HSPA+ web surfing, Angry Birds while waiting for my food, poking around in the marketplace, and trying out apps, the phone has dropped 25% of the battery in 7 hours of heavy use. I'm pretty damn impressed with that. My focus would be on the charger right now. I'll be going through the exact same process on the Inspire tomorrow to see how everything shakes out.
**Update 3**
I've been carrying my Atrix for the last two days, and I have to admit... It's amazing... I don't mean to sound disappointed, quite the contrary, but I was coming closer to making my decision, and now I'm struggling again.
New Revelations/Findings:
- The little hitches you sometimes see in games like Angry Birds, when scrolling and pinch zooming are all gone... Like, completely gone. That goes for every game/app i've played that is relatively intensive with animation or processing. The Inspire is definitely no slouch, but the performance edge is fully in the Atrix's court.
- The external speaker of the Atrix is LEGEND-(Wait for it)-DARY! I hopped on a conference call last night and it was right on the edge of being as good as the dedicated conference speakers at my office. Really outstanding.
- The screen is also really pretty. I, once again, had to run from hospital to hospital yesterday and while outside was able to see every color, icon, and word on my screen. It made me secure in the fact that no matter where I took the device, i would be able to rely on it 100%, and it would perform as well as I could ever ask for.
I've been using the anti-glare/anti-fingerprint Case-Mate screen protectors on both of the devices since i've purchased them, and these things just destroy the fidelity of the screen. I will be getting my Realook protectors tomorrow, and will get to experience a bit more vibrance from both screens.
I'm still fairly disappointed with the color reproduction of the qHD screen. It's really in your face when you have the two devices sitting side by side. The SLCD screen of the Inspire is much more natural looking.
MotoBlur is still a disappointment, but after setting up LauncherPro Plus and getting Beautiful Widgets, and exploring LauncherPro's new facebook widget (think FriendStream). It's become nearly a non-issue. I've been using ADW as well, and it's great, but the Atrix seems to love LauncherPro, and I love LauncherPro... Guess that's a match made in Android heaven.

My experience, for most part mirrors yours. I went from the Captivate to the Inspire to the Atrix. I kept the Inspire for about a week and immediately missed the screen on the Captivate.
The Inspire's screen is definitely sharp, but I like the contrast on the captivate. The black text sharpness on the Atrix is really good and very comparable to the Inspire and both beat the pants off the Captivate.
I'd have to disagree with the build quality of the Inspire. Yes, aluminum feels solid compared to the plastic on the Atrix and does give you that solid quality feeling, but I had the same plastic alignment issues with two Inspires I went through. The plastic parts just doesn't line up evenly with the aluminum. The battery door was never a problem with me because of the gaps were plastic met aluminum. I was always able to get my finger nails in two places to pull the cover off easily and without destroying the soft touch cover.
Call quality on the Inspire's headset speaker always sounded tinny and lack the volume of the Atrix. The loudspeaker is really, really weak on the Inspire. The Atrix's loudspeaker has surprisingly good range, I hear a semblance of bass when playing media.
Security wise, the fingerprint scanner is a really good feature on the Atrix, makes me wonder why no one has done it before on a mobile phone. So much faster to unlock securely without a passcode or drawing.
The camera on the Inspire is better than the Atrix. The Inspire's pics come out with more contrast and better color. The Atrix has sharp images, but the color look a little washed out and there way more noise. Seems like Motorola wanted sharper images and turn down the noise reduction. Noise reduction is a big killer when it comes to image sharpness.

+1 just for referencing Barney Stinson.
Haha no, but really, this is a good comparison of the Inspire and the Atrix. I agree with most, if not all, of your pros and cons. I really can't help but emphasize the battery life though. I usually end up having to buy a spare battery and charger set for my smartphones, but it seems really unnecessary for the Atrix. If you're a power user, that's reason enough to pick the Atrix over the Inspire.

I agree almost 100%
I sit here with both phones still. I love the Inspire, and Gingerblur on the Atrix makes me love the Atrix.
The interwebz speed is what is forcing the Inspire as my daily driver at the moment.
I have gone through 3 atrix's already, when i have it, i want to sell it, as you can see in my signature, and when i sell it, i want one. thus #3....
I almost NEED to wait and see 4g... and this backhaul att speaks of....
And then there is the Samsung infuse/enfuse? idk... But they say when its dropped, it will most certainly have the capable speeds, as will the 2 other flagship "4g" phones.
I treat my phones with utmost care, as i usually am selling them for the new and next best thing, and want to ensure they can be purchased as a 10/10 quality. That being said, I will say the case-mate case i have on the inspire gives GREAT protection, but makes a big phone even bigger, the atrix with the bodyglove feels tiny in my hands after 2 weeks of driving the inspire... I recently sold another iphone4, and it reminded me of the atrix in my hands, not build quality, as you mentioned above, but size...
4.3 qHD would be a perfect mix for me, and I am sure is what is in store for future HTC devices... but for now, I am in the same dilemia many are.
to Inspire, or not Inspire and Atrix my way through the rough of it...
to the avg user, hdmi out is no biggie, but to the ub3r geek in me who likes to VPN home, CIFS mount shares, and stream, hdmi is a big deal....
oh woe is me.....
Today Inspire still drives me to and from.... CM7rc4 battery gets me through the day, even as an Exchange Admin with more email on touchdown then most people, including gmail push...
But that said, i come right back with the atrix could get me past a full day!
like the good old Blackberry days..
theres my 2 cents, thrown into the pot, both heads up...
~killster

I'm so sick of these threads.

Man_of_Leisure said:
I'm so sick of these threads.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Then don't read 'em... Problem solved.

Divinedark said:
Then don't read 'em... Problem solved.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just like you have the right to create threads, I have the right to respond to them. If you don't like that, you want a blog, not a forum.

Man_of_Leisure said:
Just like you have the right to create threads, I have the right to respond to them. If you don't like that, you want a blog, not a forum.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are absolutely correct. I appreciate your need to contribute completely unrelated, and pointless reflections on your own worthless personal opinion in my thread. So many others that are trying to decide between these two devices will find your additions to the subject of this thread invaluable. I truly hope that you will continue to follow that urge to spout your own polished, self-important drivel in the rest of the threads on this forum. If you don't, you will effectively be robbing us of your wisdom.
I'm sorry that I wasted your time reading my relatively well researched and thought out comparison between two close competing devices on the same carrier. From this point forward I'll be sure to continue adding to the typical device war crap like "TEH ATRIX IS A$$" and what not. That should sate your thirst for informative and entertaining topics on this forum.
Again. I'm very sorry.

Man_of_Leisure said:
Just like you have the right to create threads, I have the right to respond to them. If you don't like that, you want a blog, not a forum.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1 I'm pretty sure there's already at least fifteen threads about Inspire vs Atrix. I thank you for taking the time to compare both and noting their strengths and weaknesses but like I said, there's already a ton of these threads and they just repeat the same opinions/info.

Clienterror said:
+1 I'm pretty sure there's already at least fifteen threads about Inspire vs Atrix. I thank you for taking the time to compare both and noting their strengths and weaknesses but like I said, there's already a ton of these threads and they just repeat the same opinions/info.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's true that there are a lot of posts that contribute this kind of information, but this one in particular was well thought out and written, and that helps provide a better reference for those interested. I also value those posts that say good things about devices. A lot of posts tend to complain about whatever device they're talking about. It's nice to have some good things to say in order to balance out the amount of user feedback.
Sent from my MB860 using Tapatalk

Yea... the majority of threads you see with this same general topic are basically just "The Atrix BLOWS!!!! I'm going back to my Inspire" blah blah blah. He was polite enough to explain his thoughts on the phone thoroughly, and go through his overall opinion on the phone over time, showing what has changed in his mind about each phone. Can kinda think of it more as a "phone review" than a "disgruntled customer".....

There are many Inspire / Atrix threads I've read but this one is a good, unbiased, well written everyday user experience. +1 for op.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App

Divinedark said:
I do have some issues here, though. Mainly with the back cover. As noted in my initial post, its very brittle, thin plastic. If you think I broke a sweat taking the inspires battery cover off, you should have seen me trying to get the battery on the atrix. I pulled the top clip free, and almost bent the cover in half fighting the mid phone clips. Also, the back cover on my atrix doesn't line up flush on one side. The last couple issues are the "creakynesss" of the handset. When I grip the phone tightly I can feel the plastic components giving, and settling into place. Not terribly bad, but noticable. The last issue is the fingerprint scanner. It's been pointed out in some reviews, but the scanner is off center on some devices and just looks shoddily thrown together and misalligned.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The battery cover design is one of the things I really like about the Atrix. It is flexible on my phone, not brittle at all. It fits well and is a breeze to get on and off -- after the first time. The first time I was also a little scared and it caught at the middle a little. Since then, it is trivial to do. Of course, it spends most of its time covered by two layers of Otterbox Commuter in my case.
I have not noticed any creakiness -- seems very solid to me. It's reinforced by the Otterbox, so I might not ever notice anyway.
My fingerprint scanner doesn't seem to work at all. I get nothing but too short a swipe messages (works for me about 1 time out of 20). I have been assuming this is due it being placed down in a little hole by the Otterbox. I'm perfectly willing to give that up to get the extra protection and reduced slipperiness. My last unprotected phone (BB 9000) only made it a year before I dropped it many times including into 2 feet of water (don't ask, I need to be drinking to talk about it).

Yea.... i had the Defender for a day or so before i returned it for that one reason. Made it a bit more tricky to use the fingerprint reader. Found that too many times when i went to swipe (almost typed Swype in there... and no, not even on my phone. haha) my finger, it would wind up getting stuck with the outer soft casing of the Defender and either stop mid-swipe or skip part of my fingertip.

fingerprint scanner works great for me; when i first got it i thought it would be a useless novelty.

Slade8525 said:
fingerprint scanner works great for me; when i first got it i thought it would be a useless novelty.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not saying it doesn't work great. It works phenomenally. The issue is that some cases.... or mostly the OtterBox Defender, has quite a large hole where the fingerprint scanner resides.... and part of that hole is surrounded by the soft silicon/rubber of the outer shell of the case, which can make trying to get a solid swipe across the fingerprint reader a bit of a pain.

This is a pretty good review. I too left for an inspire and couldn't be happier, but I can see why people like their Atrix. Having cm7 was the deal breaker for me but if roms aren't a big deal the Atrix might be a better fit. I also had two phones with extremely bad call quality issues but I hear that's more of an isolated thing.
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA Premium App

I came from the captivate...to the atrix to the inspire and back to the atrix ...the only thing I miss from the inspire is htc sense
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App

slimslim said:
There are many Inspire / Atrix threads I've read but this one is a good, unbiased, well written everyday user experience. +1 for op.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1 great unbiased and amusing post. I was about to moan when I saw how long your post was, Divinedark but your well thought out/written comparison made me finish it without realizing it.

Well written OP. It's actually like two reviews of both phones and not just which beats which.
Thank you.

Build Quality

HI all
I was wandering how is the build quality in this phone?
I would love to give it to my girlfriend but was just wandering after hearing/reading some negative comments about galaxy s 1 build.
Thank you in advance for any comments, or links to articles or such.
Regards
Kirior

I think it's awesome. Even it's plastic, it's really assertive and the back cover stays so tight. Just the opening is a bit tricky... But you only need to do this once, luckily. If you need to change sim-cards or memory cards daily, then I don't recommend this phone.

Samsung isn't known as "Samsuck" for no reason. Buy her an HTC phone. I would steer clear of any Samsung phones.
Sent from my HTC using XDA App

stop trolling, it's pretty good even though its plastic it feels solid

Its fine really, solid despite the choice of materials, feels a lot better in the hand than the original.
Link to more detailed thoughts:
http://blog.clove.co.uk/2011/05/16/samsung-galaxy-s-ii-real-user-reviewpart-one/

As the posts above is saying; Nothing to put on the build quality
/CK

PureH2O said:
Samsung isn't known as "Samsuck" for no reason. Buy her an HTC phone. I would steer clear of any Samsung phones.
Sent from my HTC using XDA App
Click to expand...
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God what a ****-nuckle..
Sent from the best phone in the world...

I think a light phone is better. Much less likely to break when dropped because over the same distance there will be much less kinetic energy to dissipate on impact.
Sent from my HTC Hero using XDA App

Not to be a fanboy, but you do want your phone made of lead or what?

PureH2O said:
Samsung isn't known as "Samsuck" for no reason. Buy her an HTC phone. I would steer clear of any Samsung phones.
Sent from my HTC using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To try and add some value to an otherwise useless post, I haven't owned a Samsung phone since the CDMA i730 Windows phone. It was a funky phone without a lot of joy and some really questionable design choices. From there I had a succession of HTC phones spanning six years. They were all solid, ran well, and gave me little to complain about. I got an LG phone which I kept for a whopping three weeks before realizing it was a pile of rubbish. So, with an unbiased view, I chose the Samsuck GS2 and couldn't be happier. Back on topic, the build quality is great. Fit, finish, style, feel are all what you'd expect from a high-end device. Alas, because it's shiny parts are exposed front and back, all that beauty has to be hidden by a case which makes it look pedestrian. I just got my Case-Mate tough case today and the phone now looks mummified. Oh well, at least it's protected.

I really dont understand the questions about build quality the sgs or sgs2. My orignal sgs(vibrant) was heavy duty. Yes its light and yes its made out of plastic. But ive dropped my vibrant from various heights and the battery cover never popped off, no marks on screen or anything. Both phones, specially the sgs2 feel like a lighter, thinner HD2. Niether feels flimsy, cheap, breakable.
One of the Hd2s ive owned fell from bathroom sink to tile floor, and shattered after a 3 -4foot drop.
Build Quality is important to me as I work with dogs(90%) and other various animals. Besides the psycho owners, I deal with psycho 200pound dogs on a daily basis. I get bumped, biten, jumped on, rubbed, attacked etc all day, everyday. Not a single scratch, scrap, dent on the sgs2 and thats with no protection for 3 weeks.
Now the only bad quality choice samsung and other manufactors use is the damn cheap silver/chrome/aluminum bezel around the phones. Since I dont use cases consistently im prone to scratch the bezel by the end of ownership.
Another plus is the couple cases I do have dont add extra bulk like other phones. Im waiting on quality extended batteries to come.

HI guys
Thx for all replies, all in all i have bought SGS2 for her. She is in heavens now i guess that's all that matters and she does take care of the phones so i know i will not land on the floor or such just wanted to make sure.
thanks again and for me the thread is closed.
Kirior

I find the build quality of the S2 pretty decent although I had my doubts when I just got the phone. After using it for a couple of weeks I think the build quality is fine and I'm sure this phone will last a long time.
However, today I had the HTC Sensation in my hands for the first time and I must confess that the build quality of the Sensaion is clearly better.

The build quality is much better than i expected. Yes, it is plastic, but feels pretty solid, no creaking or flex. I have an SE Arc also, similar thickness, but would say that the gs2 is easily the more high quality build of the two.
Regarding the battery cover, it is thin and flimsy, but i cant imagine a new one costing much if you needed one. What bothers me more is the texture, it feels more slick than a shiny back, but a case might fix that.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App

I'm sort of tired of the design complaints...

... More so because all these big tech blog sites always opine on something as personally preferential as the build quality and design and almost pass it off as a "fact" and then you see other sheeps complaining about the same issues most of the time, based off what they read; simply because most people aren't capable of thinking for themself, and like typical consumers, they just get fed what others tell them.
I, for one, have liked the designs and the build qualities of the Galaxy S II and the Galaxy S III over that of the bland and dull looking iPhone and HTC One X. That's just my personal opinion, but what I don't understand is the constant complaints about the build quality.
iPhone has always been praised for its "premium feel" - but really, what are you getting in actuality? The Cheap glass+steel composition that is a shatter magnet? The plastic body on the Galaxy S series is not only in my opinion, superior, in terms of aesthetics, but it's also so much more durable and managable without any sort of expensive casing to protect these more sensitive "premium" builds.
I even see some of the cons of the Galaxy S lines by some people or tech sites being something as subjective in actuality, as design and build quality. It's just downright annoying and I think people should find more legitimate gripes.

megagodx said:
... More so because all these big tech blog sites always opine on something as personally preferential as the build quality and design and almost pass it off as a "fact" and then you see other sheeps complaining about the same issues most of the time, based off what they read; simply because most people aren't capable of thinking for themself, and like typical consumers, they just get fed what others tell them.
I, for one, have liked the designs and the build qualities of the Galaxy S II and the Galaxy S III over that of the bland and dull looking iPhone and HTC One X. That's just my personal opinion, but what I don't understand is the constant complaints about the build quality.
iPhone has always been praised for its "premium feel" - but really, what are you getting in actuality? The Cheap glass+steel composition that is a shatter magnet? The plastic body on the Galaxy S series is not only in my opinion, superior, in terms of aesthetics, but it's also so much more durable and managable without any sort of expensive casing to protect these more sensitive "premium" builds.
I even see some of the cons of the Galaxy S lines by some people or tech sites being something as subjective in actuality, as design and build quality. It's just downright annoying and I think people should find more legitimate gripes.
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Click to collapse
Op you're wrong. It's not cause the tech sites have said that they don't like the design that everyone else doesn't, its cause they expected something newer, more original. I like the design of the S3 and already preordered mine, but I would be lying if I say that I didn't expect the design to be more slick like the HOX. Still I'm liking it more everyday but as the most anticipated android device EVER, people were expectating something more original and a phone's looks matters a lot. The HOX has so many issues, horrible battery life, screen flickering, sense crashing and reloading... And yet I still wanna buy that phone just because it is a thing of beauty. I saw it for the first time yesterday and I personally think it is the most beautiful phone ever made HANDS DOWN. If only the S3 had a better looking body, all the people saying that the S3 is a disappointment wouldnt complain as much. But again I like the s3 design more and more but as the flagship Samsung phone you can't knock people for expecting something better looking.

IMO, HOX looks way better, albeit a bit skate-board'ish (took a while to find the right word) but I aint buying phones for the looks (like my bro who regrets it with sensation).
Build quality and design are 2 different things btw, and HTC's build quality is derp.. they use fancy materials but there are nuff examples of bad-glued screens, light leaks, yellow spots or w/e with 1x and chipping with 1s and it's uber fancy hyped satellite NASA aluminum.

Yeah, well say that to my gs2 owning friend whose phone *creaked* after two weeks of usage.
Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

abhijit1289 said:
Yeah, well say that to my gs2 owning friend whose phone *creaked* after two weeks of usage.
Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2
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Click to collapse
What about my friend who broke her HTC Incredible's screen 2 times already? See I can do that too. It goes both ways.

barondebxl said:
Op you're wrong. It's not cause the tech sites have said that they don't like the design that everyone else doesn't, its cause they expected something newer, more original. I like the design of the S3 and already preordered mine, but I would be lying if I say that I didn't expect the design to be more slick like the HOX. Still I'm liking it more everyday but as the most anticipated android device EVER, people were expectating something more original and a phone's looks matters a lot. The HOX has so many issues, horrible battery life, screen flickering, sense crashing and reloading... And yet I still wanna buy that phone just because it is a thing of beauty. I saw it for the first time yesterday and I personally think it is the most beautiful phone ever made HANDS DOWN. If only the S3 had a better looking body, all the people saying that the S3 is a disappointment wouldnt complain as much. But again I like the s3 design more and more but as the flagship Samsung phone you can't knock people for expecting something better looking.
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Click to collapse
I am not wrong, I'm merely stating my opinion and I made that clear numerous times. You're trying to overshadow my point as invalid to yours or a few others who mirror your sentiment based on some sort of construct that what you feel personally goes. That's sort of the indulgent mind frame we have nowadays.
I could go as far as to say that I'm right and you're wrong based on the same logical thought process you're using.
abhijit1289 said:
Yeah, well say that to my gs2 owning friend whose phone *creaked* after two weeks of usage.
Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No phone is indestructible. But you put it up to comparison to the iPhone per se, I'm sure it would have incurred damage far greater and in less the time; it sounds as if your friend is a bit reckless with his gadgets. I've dropped my Galaxy S II various times without a case and at worst, I got a few negligible nicks on the side of the phone, but the screen has never gotten any gashes or cracks.

megagodx said:
I am not wrong, I'm merely stating my opinion and I made that clear numerous times. You're trying to overshadow my point as invalid to yours or a few others who mirror your sentiment based on some sort of construct that what you feel personally goes. That's sort of the indulgent mind frame we have nowadays.
I could go as far as to say that I'm right and you're wrong based on the same logical thought process you're using.
No phone is indestructible. But you put it up to comparison to the iPhone per se, I'm sure it would have incurred damage far greater and in less the time; it sounds as if your friend is a bit reckless with his gadgets. I've dropped my Galaxy S II various times without a case and at worst, I got a few negligible nicks on the side of the phone, but the screen has never gotten any gashes or cracks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're too angry, take a chill pill. This is what you said ...
"More so because all these big tech blog sites always opine on something as personally preferential as the build quality and design and almost pass it off as a "fact" and then you see other sheeps complaining about the same issues most of the time, based off what they read; simply because most people aren't capable of thinking for themself, and like typical consumers, they just get fed what others tell them...".
what makes you think that everyone else is sheep and it isn't their opinion? Just because most people have the same feeling means their sheeps? And you think you're right about it? If you go to the Galaxy s2 I9100, many users are not satisfied with the new look of the S3 and you would think they should be satisfied since their coming from the Galaxy S2. It proves that theyre not just following what engadget or androidcentral or whatever tech site is saying, they really think it is a disappointment. I see where they coming from. But personally I'm liking it that's why I preordered it and already paid for it. You being mad and saying that everyone is a sheep and following what the tech sites are saying is just silly.

I actually agree somewhat with the OP in that tech blogs do sway peoples opinions even if it's a little. Along with the massive amounts of Hype unseen in any mobile device it's a surprise it's not shot down even more lol.
I personally think it's a freakin beautiful phone. Which is good cause thats all that matters to me.
I really hope this thing does not come with the S4 on T-Mo

The Verge is right. Samsung has the resources to make the most unique and exclusive design ever but the SIII is very generic looking. It's not ugly but it is generic. I would not mind carrying it around but they could have done a lot better.

Gnarfsan said:
The Verge is right. Samsung has the resources to make the most unique and exclusive design ever but the SIII is very generic looking. It's not ugly but it is generic. I would not mind carrying it around but they could have done a lot better.
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Click to collapse
I couldn't agree more, you're absolutely right. It is like Samsung made a " safe" bet on the design. They definitely could have done better.

I would love to know what this "unique" phone looks like. Most encompass the very typical form. What you consider generic, others consider to be justright. Some time too much deviating isn't always a good thing.
Again, it goes back to my point, if legitimate users want to have a bone to pick with the form, that's their own personal experiences, legitimized by the fancy of that particular user. We're all abstract with our preferences. To have some blog site slamming a particular device based on perception materialistic reason is still a bad way to present a phone to readers.

megagodx said:
I would love to know what this "unique" phone looks like. Most encompass the very typical form. What you consider generic, others consider to be justright. Some time too much deviating isn't always a good thing.
Again, it goes back to my point, if legitimate users want to have a bone to pick with the form, that's their own personal experiences, legitimized by the fancy of that particular user. We're all abstract with our preferences. To have some blog site slamming a particular device based on perception materialistic reason is still a bad way to present a phone to readers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just look at the thousands of concept renders for phones released each year by artists. With a little imagination and creativity, anything is possible.

megagodx said:
I would love to know what this "unique" phone looks like. Most encompass the very typical form. What you consider generic, others consider to be justright. Some time too much deviating isn't always a good thing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you see an HTC phone for the first time, even from a distance, you immediately know who made it because they all have some distinct design features. With this phone, I can't think of anything that makes it stand out from the crowd and screams Samsung. You have to check the brand on it to know. It lacks distinct design features which I my self and a lot of reviewers find disappointing. But you may not. Thats how it works.

For me it couldnt look any better basically It's like a big iphone 3gs, no rectangulars, no nasty edges. Its sexy and i'm pretty sure it will lie good in the hand.
And i think high quality plastic is a good choice. It doesnt block signals like most forms of metal, its lightweight, it can be easily colored, it doesnt brake as easily as other materials. Only negative people always bring up is "it feels cheap".
Of course it does matter how something feels to you, but i'd rather have a cheap feeling than signal problems because of full aluminum backs^^

I fully agree with the thread title, since I don't care much about the design although I like the looks of the S3.
The thing that really pisses me off is, that there isn't just one or two threads discussing the design. No, in allmost every thread be it about the display, the cpu, connectivity, sound,... if the people run ot of arguments why their beloved phone <insert name here> is so much better than the S3, they fall back to "but it's so ugly"

Arcadia310 said:
Just look at the thousands of concept renders for phones released each year by artists. With a little imagination and creativity, anything is possible.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah, because the artists actually first off "know ****" about what is actually manufacturable (think of the teardrop shaped iPhone renders) and secondly do the artist never bother to think if that design is actually copyrighted or patented by another company.
as the androidpolice article stated: the design of the galaxy s3 may be only the way it is, because someone allowed apple to actually patent a touchscreen phone design which was already in place before apple first used it and would be a sensible choice to built on on.
to quote the infringement claims by apple:
a rectangular product shape with all four corners uniformly rounded
the front surface of the product dominated by a screen surface with black borders;
as to the iPhone and iPod touch products, substantial black borders above and below the screen having roughly equal width and narrower black borders on either side of the screen having roughly equal width
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Click to collapse
so you see that not using these attributes in a phone does very much restrict the available designs.
it is not samsungs fault that they wanna play fair now.
it is the fault of the patent institution that apple was able to patent such things in the first place.
others like HTC have more freedom in their design choice because apple does not feel threatened by them. You can bet that apple would have sued HTC to their last dollar, if HTC actually would be threat to apple, but since they are not apple just does not care for the moment.
i personaly like the design of the galaxy s3 and am just withholding because i wanna see some more thorouh reviews of it.

v1rtu4l said:
"to quote the infringement claims by apple:
so you see that not using these attributes in a phone does very much restrict the available designs.
it is not samsungs fault that they wanna play fair now.
it is the fault of the patent institution that apple was able to patent such things in the first place.
others like HTC have more freedom in their design choice because apple does not feel threatened by them. You can bet that apple would have sued HTC to their last dollar, if HTC actually would be threat to apple, but since they are not apple just does not care for the moment.
i personaly like the design of the galaxy s3 and am just withholding because i wanna see some more thorouh reviews of it."
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Click to collapse
At last, someone with a good sense !
+100
Best regards

Apple advised Samsung to build ugly phones
On 6.12.2011 a german tech. news site posted the following article
http://www.chip.de/news/Apple-raet-Samsung-Baut-haessliche-Handys-Tablets_53208546.html
(use google translate...)
The headline reads "Apple advises Samsung to build ugly Phones"
It basicly says, that apple send Samsung a letter on how they should design their future phones to avoid being sued over.
When I first read it back then, I thought "WTF!!!".
So it isn't "the S3 was designed by lawyers", but rather "Apple designed the S3"

yeah, the funniest thing is following trademarked feature:
- display coloured icons on the display, when device is on
this is ridiculous!

I will say that the official launch didnt really do the S3 justice for its design. I poked through a gallery yesterday of it and it really is a damn good looking phone. I'm not too concerned with the "feel" of it as I usually throw a slim case on my phones anyway. People said the GS2 felt cheap compared to the HTC Vivid and I didn't feel that. I felt the GS2 was lighter but that doesn't directly relate to a cheap feeling for me. I will most likely be getting the GS3 as my next phone because I've had it with HTC/AT&T locking bootloaders. I feel the AT&T One X is destined for the same failures the Vivid saw for having the bootloaders locked for so long after its release.
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using xda premium

What if the S5 was metal??

Would people still be complaining?
Seriously, over 90% of the time when I see someone with a phone they have it in a plastic case.
The uproar of the S5 is annoying...if it bothers you that much then get the HTC One which will probably end up in a plastic case.
According to AndroidCentral, the S5 screen is now as bright and good as the Note 3 (which has one of the best screens I've ever used), a better camera, and waterproofing, not to mention theyre still one of the few phones to offer a micro sd slot.
If anything it should have had 3GB ram and started at 32GB instead of 16GB, but in every other instance it looks like a solid device.

It does not need metal, but pls not that ugly, even moto g looks better
Samsung is only caring about our money, how to make the most money

I'd go out and say that it looks worse than the S4

Well look at my thread HERE... looks like we may be getting a metal one in May

hamad138 said:
It does not need metal, but pls not that ugly, even moto g looks better
Samsung is only caring about our money, how to make the most money
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samsung has the most aftermarket accessories out of any company other than Apple.
On ebay you can buy a replacement battery door that suits your needs for less than $5.
I dont know, the black looks pretty good to me.

seoulbrova said:
Would people still be complaining?
Seriously, over 90% of the time when I see someone with a phone they have it in a plastic case.
The uproar of the S5 is annoying...if it bothers you that much then get the HTC One which will probably end up in a plastic case.
According to AndroidCentral, the S5 screen is now as bright and good as the Note 3 (which has one of the best screens I've ever used), a better camera, and waterproofing, not to mention theyre still one of the few phones to offer a micro sd slot.
If anything it should have had 3GB ram and started at 32GB instead of 16GB, but in every other instance it looks like a solid device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Waterproof because that's an issue the masses have right? People jumping on the ones who aren't blindly following samsung are equally as annoying.
It should have better material along with a fresh look. It should have a newer version of TW that looks/ feels new and doesn't crush 8+GB of storage. It should focus a little on the sound quality.
The HTC One had a totally revamped design and revamped version of Sense and it only won smartphone of the year. If this phone didn't say Samsung, it would be a huge fail
Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

seoulbrova said:
Samsung has the most aftermarket accessories out of any company other than Apple.
On ebay you can buy a replacement battery door that suits your needs for less than $5.
I dont know, the black looks pretty good to me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The back cover isn't the problem, like you said most are going to use a case. I certainly will buy the Buckdroid and the Otter Box Defender also don't confuse waterproof with water resistant. It's "only" water resitant not water proof.

I don't want metal. Metal = heavier. I would have like a thin bezel though...

I don't mind the plastic at all. Too many people complain about it not being metal. Plastic is lightweight, less prone to scratches or damages when dropped, and you can remove the cover for the battery/SD card, which is always a good thing.

seoulbrova said:
Would people still be complaining?
Seriously, over 90% of the time when I see someone with a phone they have it in a plastic case.
The uproar of the S5 is annoying...if it bothers you that much then get the HTC One which will probably end up in a plastic case.
According to AndroidCentral, the S5 screen is now as bright and good as the Note 3 (which has one of the best screens I've ever used), a better camera, and waterproofing, not to mention theyre still one of the few phones to offer a micro sd slot.
If anything it should have had 3GB ram and started at 32GB instead of 16GB, but in every other instance it looks like a solid device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
People aren't complaining because of plastic. The problem is the hype created becacuse of rumored UHD screen, 64bit processor, a giant battery and even the deal Sammy made with Google. I don't know if 3gb are really is necessary or not, I never used more than 1.3GB but 32GB of storage would be nice. Maybe it's because of the new rumored Galaxy F, they say the GS5 will be cheaper than the GS4 so it kinda makes sense.

no, the material is no problem for me.
what maters to me is:
1. back cover design. I'm not type of people who like to use colorful case, I like the transparent one so when I use my phone, people will know what phone I'm using. And that design is not work for me. I personally more like pattern of the S4 back cover. It feels more elegant to my eyes. And don't say those faux leather in note 3. I like it almost. So if the S5 use those like in note 3. I'll be more attract to s5 rather than z2.
2. the battery. It's already boosted 200 mAh from the s4. That's great but not enough. I own myself a S4. It's pretty durable when use power saving mode. but that's where I hate it. When in power saving mode. When I move from outdoor to an indoor place. The screen is very2 dark and I almost can't see it. I don't know about this mode in S5, or the stamina mode in sony device. If same as in my S4, then I need bigger battery for my next phone so I can use it in full day without those power saving things.
3. As like many other people in xda discuss it about when it's first implemented. knox things. I hate when samsung finally use it. I know it's just a flag, but I didn't know how the regulation about that knox warranty here in my country. And if that knox used as one of main upgrade (like that knox countainer in S4 upgrade from 4.2.2 to 4.3), obviously we here can't use it. And make the upgrade less.. useful I guess. Since phone performance will not dramatically change because the phone still have same component

tarpon6 said:
I don't want metal. Metal = heavier. I would have like a thin bezel though...
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Click to collapse
I totally agree. Plastic is tougher and lighter.

dandroid13 said:
People aren't complaining because of plastic. The problem is the hype created becacuse of rumored UHD screen, 64bit processor, a giant battery and even the deal Sammy made with Google. I don't know if 3gb are really is necessary or not, I never used more than 1.3GB but 32GB of storage would be nice. Maybe it's because of the new rumored Galaxy F, they say the GS5 will be cheaper than the GS4 so it kinda makes sense.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The only thing is, who put out these rumors? Samsung never hinted at any of these.
If the phone were metal, it would be metal. Samsung has always used a good grade of plastic for their high end devices and I prefer plastic over metal for my phone. The design is not ugly either, to me it is a decent design but it's also an uninspiring design looking at two factors.
1. Samsung claimed that the S5 would have a new design, claiming they will go back to the basics with this design.
2. The design looks like the past offerings. I understand brand identity, but aside from the back and the usb port, the design almost matches the S4 and a smaller version of the Note 3.

its not about metal or plastic , its about the design it self :silly:

yahyoh said:
its not about metal or plastic , its about the design it self :silly:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But thinking about it, the resulting design is very logical as opposed to the wet dreams of forumers, it's a mix between the S4 and the Note 3 with a few new elements. As logical as it gets. Not very exciting, but probably a rather good design choice usability wise.

Rippley05 said:
Waterproof because that's an issue the masses have right? People jumping on the ones who aren't blindly following samsung are equally as annoying.
It should have better material along with a fresh look. It should have a newer version of TW that looks/ feels new and doesn't crush 8+GB of storage. It should focus a little on the sound quality.
The HTC One had a totally revamped design and revamped version of Sense and it only won smartphone of the year. If this phone didn't say Samsung, it would be a huge fail
Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
judging by the released shots of the next gen HTC one, it looks nearly identical to this generations.
Waterproof isnt an issue? Do you know how many people get denied service on their phones for "water damage" even though the phones were never dropped in water? I've had it happen to me multiple times merely because steam/rain/humidity turn the sensors on to indicate water damage even though Ive made sure they never got wet.

People can be such hypocrites sometimes, everyone was bashing the iPhone for being the same thing over and over again, then it was samsung and everyone hailed the HTC one, now they are going to release the exact same phone let's hear how they gonna defend that. Problem is its very hard and costly to come out with different designs especially when you're releasing more than one device a year. I don't like the s5 and don't think will buy it
Sent from my GT-I9500 using Tapatalk

I don't care about plastic or metal but let's face ever since the s3 samsung has put out extremely fragile phones that are prone to cracking. The s2 was made from plastic but it could take a beating not the s3 or s4. I use to see cracked iPhone 4 screens but since the iPhone 5 I see less cracked iphones and more and more cracked Samsung's.
The Nexus 5 is made from plastic but it has a very nice feel and feels more durable
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

If it was metal then when it falls and reach the floor the repair cost will be double at least...
...the tiny italic text...

Metal is overrated.
Sent from my LG-D800 using Tapatalk