So I'm going to buy a S4 soon, and I had the question that many of you probably had also: which version to buy?
Reading all over the internet, I9500 has better performance, but I9505 has better battery life.
Having a better battery is something really important, and that's a great point towards the I9505 (from what I've seen). But the performance differences really make any noticeable difference at all?
I don't consider LTE network a point, because here in Brazil that's something way beyond our network capabilities, and probably we won't be seeing the light of 4G in the next 5 years.
I'll be mostly using the device to listen to music, WiFi and gaming, while it should last for at least 6 hours without getting battery at critical levels, and recharging it every day for the whole night until morning. I have a I9000, and it became so awfully slow and unstable over the time, I have to make full wipes at least 3 times a month, can't install any games or "heavy" apps, and listening to music has become a pain, as everytime I unlock the screen or go to the app drawer, the sound playback lags, freezes, and sometimes reboots the phone. I am pretty sure I won't be having any of those issues with the S4, but I really don't want to get any closer to a lag with listening to music or playing.
Price is also not an issue, both models are the same price here.
And last, modifying the device, in terms of root and ROMs and such. I have to struggle everytime I want to change something like that on my I9000B, because most of the developed stuff is for the I9000 and aren't "fully compatible" with the I9000B. Are the same options for the I9500 available to the I9505? At least in the number of options, and is it easy to make root and such?
So, what do you say, xda members?
Zkaar said:
So I'm going to buy a S4 soon, and I had the question that many of you probably had also: which version to buy?
Reading all over the internet, I9500 has better performance, but I9505 has better battery life.
Having a better battery is something really important, and that's a great point towards the I9505 (from what I've seen). But the performance differences really make any noticeable difference at all?
I don't consider LTE network a point, because here in Brazil that's something way beyond our network capabilities, and probably we won't be seeing the light of 4G in the next 5 years.
I'll be mostly using the device to listen to music, WiFi and gaming, while it should last for at least 6 hours without getting battery at critical levels, and recharging it every day for the whole night until morning. I have a I9000, and it became so awfully slow and unstable over the time, I have to make full wipes at least 3 times a month, can't install any games or "heavy" apps, and listening to music has become a pain, as everytime I unlock the screen or go to the app drawer, the sound playback lags, freezes, and sometimes reboots the phone. I am pretty sure I won't be having any of those issues with the S4, but I really don't want to get any closer to a lag with listening to music or playing.
Price is also not an issue, both models are the same price here.
So, what do you say, xda members?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I say I9505 is the best choice, because with it, you have the choice of:
1. Stock ROM/Custom ROM based on Stock
2. Google Play Edition ROM/Custom ROM based on Play Edition
3. CyanogenMod ROM or AOSP/Unofficial Kangs based on CyanogenMod4 or AOSP
This is why the I9505 will be my next device.
donalgodon said:
I say I9505 is the best choice, because with it, you have the choice of:
1. Stock ROM/Custom ROM based on Stock
2. Google Play Edition ROM/Custom ROM based on Play Edition
3. CyanogenMod ROM or AOSP/Unofficial Kangs based on CyanogenMod4 or AOSP
This is why the I9505 will be my next device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good, but I'm most worried about battery and performance. but I'll surely keep that in mind when choosing. TouchWiz is not that bad, but after some time you realize that it's quite ugly and boring, also big in sizes, and lacking some customization (or maybe that's just in my head, been years since I last saw TouchWiz). And rooting is something I'll really need. Does it use an app, like one click and it's rooted, or it's a root via kernel?
cf-autoroot through ODIN... I9505 is the better option for customisation, not many countries got the I9500...
I get around 2 days with my I9505... Some gaming the odd call and quite a few emails and sms.... Not to mention GPS now and then and weather updating every 6 hours... I also use my phone as my alarm clock.
Rooting the I9505 and restoring the phone back to stock are a piece of cake bro, Triangle Away doesn`t work yet on the I9500 atm so no way to reset the binary flash counter. I would definately choose for the I9505, much more roms and kernels available to choose from.
Zkaar said:
Good, but I'm most worried about battery and performance. but I'll surely keep that in mind when choosing. TouchWiz is not that bad, but after some time you realize that it's quite ugly and boring, also big in sizes, and lacking some customization (or maybe that's just in my head, been years since I last saw TouchWiz). And rooting is something I'll really need. Does it use an app, like one click and it's rooted, or it's a root via kernel?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Like the previous poster, I also agree that CF Root is the way to go.
It's easier to flash and root Samsung devices than just about any other.
Root with CF Root gives you stock recovery if you want to keep it and there's still the option of CWM recovery if you want to flash custom rom or backup your current rom or install zips etc.
And you have Mobile Odin as an option, which allows you to flash even stock rom from your phone. No PC needed. Same genius dev who gave us root made this tool also.
---------- Post added at 01:21 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:20 AM ----------
gee2012 said:
Rooting the I9505 and restoring the phone back to stock are a piece of cake bro, Triangle Away doesn`t work yet on the I9500 atm so no way to reset the binary flash counter. I would definately choose for the I9505, much more roms and kernels available to choose from.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Does Triangle Away work on the I9505?
donalgodon said:
Like the previous poster, I also agree that CF Root is the way to go.
It's easier to flash and root Samsung devices than just about any other.
Root with CF Root gives you stock recovery if you want to keep it and there's still the option of CWM recovery if you want to flash custom rom or backup your current rom or install zips etc.
And you have Mobile Odin as an option, which allows you to flash even stock rom from your phone. No PC needed. Same genius dev who gave us root made this tool also.
---------- Post added at 01:21 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:20 AM ----------
Does Triangle Away work on the I9505?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, it does work on the I9505, not on the I9500 atm.
ultramag69 said:
cf-autoroot through ODIN... I9505 is the better option for customisation, not many countries got the I9500...
I get around 2 days with my I9505... Some gaming the odd call and quite a few emails and sms.... Not to mention GPS now and then and weather updating every 6 hours... I also use my phone as my alarm clock.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
gee2012 said:
Rooting the I9505 and restoring the phone back to stock are a piece of cake bro, Triangle Away doesn`t work yet on the I9500 atm so no way to reset the binary flash counter. I would definately choose for the I9505, much more roms and kernels available to choose from.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
donalgodon said:
Like the previous poster, I also agree that CF Root is the way to go.
It's easier to flash and root Samsung devices than just about any other.
Root with CF Root gives you stock recovery if you want to keep it and there's still the option of CWM recovery if you want to flash custom rom or backup your current rom or install zips etc.
And you have Mobile Odin as an option, which allows you to flash even stock rom from your phone. No PC needed. Same genius dev who gave us root made this tool also.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's more points for the I9505. I'm mostly asking if it's easy to root and flash custom ROMs because I had a hard time doing such on my three I9000Bs, all of them got bricked at some point and not always had success. But that's really good to know.
To close this and make my decision, does the I9500 CPU and GPU make any noticeable difference in performance at all? I have a friend which has the I9500 and tells me that it's way superior than the I9505, but he gives me no details at all. Also, on this review, the man says the I9500 had some instability and lags.
Zkaar said:
That's more points for the I9505. I'm mostly asking if it's easy to root and flash custom ROMs because I had a hard time doing such on my three I9000Bs, all of them got bricked at some point and not always had success. But that's really good to know.
To close this and make my decision, does the I9500 CPU and GPU make any noticeable difference in performance at all? I have a friend which has the I9500 and tells me that it's way superior than the I9505, but he gives me no details at all. Also, on this review, the man says the I9500 had some instability and lags.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The performance difference between the 2 cpu`s is realy marginal and hardly noticable. I think the Qualcomm cpu is more stable and has less bugs and its much more open scource than the Exynos. The lag is mainly caused by the fact the Samsung software is not yet fully optimized for the cpu. It will improve by the next update bro
gee2012 said:
The performance difference between the 2 cpu`s is realy marginal and hardly noticable. I think the Qualcomm cpu is better and its much more open scource than the Exynos. The lag is caused by the fact the Samsung software is not yet fully optimized for the cpu. It will improve by the next update bro
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So I guess it's I9505 then. Both performances are really close (and great), making no difference at all (it's not like I'm trying to play Crysis on the device), but I9505 has better battery life and more ROM options.
Thanks guys, that's all I needed.
Zkaar said:
So I guess it's I9505 then. Both performances are really close (and great), making no difference at all (it's not like I'm trying to play Crysis on the device), but I9505 has better battery life and more ROM options.
Thanks guys, that's all I needed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Enjoy, and read read and read before flashing to stay out of trouble :good:
if you want a device that can be "played with" (customizations) go with the gt-i9505 (well this is the most flexible device among the s4 variants
but if you are a hardware enthusiast . . go with gt-i9500 (the hardware is worth studying)
but if you want an octa core + lte get the shv-e300s though it requires shipping from korea
and if you want a snapdragon800 variant , just wait for gt-i9506 (selected regions in the future) or ship from korea their SAMSUNG GALAXY S4 LTE-A (shv-e330s)
Sent from Samsung Galaxy S4 LTE (GT-I9505) via XDA Premium App.
Zkaar said:
So I guess it's I9505 then. Both performances are really close (and great), making no difference at all (it's not like I'm trying to play Crysis on the device), but I9505 has better battery life and more ROM options.
Thanks guys, that's all I needed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes your probably better off with the i9505, but i chose the exynos i9500 instead because i always prefered samsungs chipset. What others haven't mentioned, is that the camera quality on the i9500 is a little better compared to the i9505, gsmarena allready confirmed this.
In terms of audio quality, the i9500 is better choice as it has the superior Wolfson DAC.
The i9500 allready had around 6 updates, so its alot smoother and stable now compared to when it first came out, and there's already alot of developer support and custom roms for it.
In terms of battery life, i think both are the same, because before choosing my preferences between the i9500 or i9505 i did a few research aswell and searching on youtube, and each reviewer are about 50/50 on which has better battery life.
What ever you choice, you cant go wrong and both are good devices.
I will also add my weight behind the i9505 for the same reasons stated in the earlier replies. Concerning the faster CPU - the octacore exynos is not a true octacore, so in benchmarks you'll usually see the S600 v/s Exynos 5 Octa end up with an equal number of wins at the end. Sometimes the S600 is better, and other times, the Exynos will score higher. But the most interesting aspect that i personally love, is the much better support for the i9505. This is mainly due to the availability of the S4 Google Edition, where the sources can be adapted (only slightly) to work nicely with the i9505. The same cannot be said about the i9500 which is still lacking drivers, etc. At the end, it all depends on what you're going to do with the device. If you're not into installing custom ROMs, then you might be happier with the i9500.:cyclops:
Hi!
I am very unsatisfied with my battery... It only has 6 months and is not Lasting for more than 2 and half hours of "time on" screen time. Per total I use my phone moderate.
I have tried many ROMs (Cm12 Antares Ones, SlimBean, SLimKat, Echoe Rom v42, v43, Phoenix Rom, Default one, WanamLite, ) but None of them help me in this direction...
I don't think that my battery is Close to death...
I am ready to make some sacrifices considering some Features and Styling, so, if you want, can you please help me with some examples of the lightest ROMs for S4 I9505. Yes, maybe the tiniest ROM that ever exist. Starting With Jelly Bean until Lollipop
Thank you very much
Lightest but most stable ROMs available are the Google Play Edition ROMs. CyanogenMod and AOSP ROMs tend to have a smaller footprint but have had stability issues from time to time.
I have I9505 International variant. Can I install a Google Play Edition Rom on my phone?
I don't know and also didn't understood enough from what I read. Aren't the google Play Editions available only for phones released in USA ?
So do I, and I live in the US. GPE ROMs were for the USA only, but look in the development sections. There are at least two GPE ROMs for the I9505.
This is the most updated. There's also Kangapop, but it doesn't seem to be updated that often.
Have you tried underclocking? Depending on what you're doing with the phone, you won't the the full power.
I underclocked mine to 1.2 GHz and the GPU to 128 MHz. Still run Asphalt 8: Airborne and Ravensword: Shadowlands without a problem (Mostly).
I also run Greenify. I don't like apps running in the background without my permission
i got a galaxy s4 (i9505) today. it is stock with locked bootloader. i will root it and use some xda magic on it
things i care about:
- BATTERY
- music
- taking photo/video
- browsing
i dont care about performance that much since i dont play games
i have a few questions:
1) should i install custom rom or an optimized stock rom and wich?
2) kitkat or lillipop?
3) what is the best kernel?
4) any tips for a new s4 user?
Well, if it's an I9505 it doesn't have a locked bootloader. That "honor" is reserved for AT&T and Verizon models. That said...
1. Stock. AOSP-based ROMs generally require installing a third-party camera app to be able to use features like HDR.
2 and 3. You'll have to try them out for yourself. I personally use Albe95's S6 port which uses the Aurora kernel. His Lollirom uses Imperium kernel IIRC.
4. Read the stickies, then read them some more. Read the thread for your chosen ROM. Most of all, have fun.
Go on youtube and search for wicked android hd.
It's a guy who made reviews on pretty much all the s4 roms here.
If you're going for AOSP style roms (Like CM), Alucard kernel would be my recommendation.
The phone tends to get really hot at times. I guess this is common with the s4. Mine reached 72 degrees celsius while playing GTA San Andreas.
its really hard when a device this popular has been out for 2 years. there are sooooooooo many roms and other mods for it that its really hard to know whats good and what not.
thank you guys for all your help
Wow 72 degrees, mine goes 45 and I have to put the phone down to cool
Hey guys I just installed Goldeneye on my ATT S4. The reason I left 4.4.2 was to hopefully gain a little more speed, I play a game on my phone all the time called Ace Fishing and every now and then I get a reduction in frames that really hurts me ingame.
Well I updated per instructions for Safestrap users and everything got up and running no problem, but this rom uses alot more RAM than the previous version and the lag has gotten atleast twice as bad since upgrading. I always clear activities and clear ram before launching. Its fine for 5 minutes but then all the background tasks start kicking in and when I check it says 1.37gb in use! 4.2.4 I had down to 535-605MB in use while playing. I have disabled every running app I see in the application manager (that it will allow me) I have also done all the tricks I can find online, like disabling S voice, force GPU rendering, I even tried setting limit background process to no background process which made no difference.
Is there anything I can do to make this rom run as fast as 4.4.2 or atleast cut the RAM it uses in half like it was?
(I chose goldeneye full install not slim, would slim be faster?)
Thanks!!
Atually Stock Lollipop is slow as hell compared to KitKat. I've been using GE for some time and I had to go back to 4.4 because the phone was really slow, I mean... Really. I recommend you to install Pure Nexus ROM, I personally think is the fastest. There're also some ROMs LP bases which were compiled preferably for gaming. Search for ROMs in the "Android Development" sub-forum.
Wish you luck.
I found a solution. I bought a galaxy note5. lmao
Hello, I would like to know how are the android 6 roms, especially aosp/aokp or cm?
I want to buy s4 but i need to know if there will be restarts, fcs or other things on custom MM roms in front of stock LP roms.
Thanks
Depends on what model you plan on getting.
Also, stability varies a lot from user to user.
I personally never have any issues with ROMs I use.
Hi there
I would say that Official Cyanogenmod 13 is a good choice or a more optimised one like JDC is a great choice. They are definitely stable and usable as a faily driver.
In terms of which S4 to buy... I would say hold off the American Carrier ones as they prove to be a pain when flashing custom Roms. I'd say the i9500 may not be the best option as though it has slightly better performance with its octa-core processor than the snapdragon ones, it doesn't have 4g capability which instantly makes the phone feel dated. i9506 seems good as it supports the LTE advanced and is faster than i9505, however the main drawback is the custom rom support is not as good as the i9505 model. Overall I would reccomend the i9505 model with Snapdragon 600 processor, LTE capability and the mass custom Rom support.
Please leave a like if this helped!
I would get I9505. Last I used CM on xperia x8, it was fast but had many random reboots and other problems. Since this I have used stock or stock based custom roms with almost no problems. Sometimes when I read about CM/aosp I still find random reboots posts but also posts presenting no problems. Thats why i am asking