Database Users

Just got a S3 yesterday - my views vs the Note

Well what happened yesterday wasn't planned but I was out shopping with my wife, and I happened to see that the Carphonewarehouse had a white Samsung Galaxy S3 on show. Both my wife and I agreed the S3 was gorgeous to look at. And then I succumbed and bought one sim free. CPW also bought my Note which was a surprise. They also had a range of cases, so I bought one and a Zagg Invisible Shield screen protector which they fitted and guaranteed for 25 years. A good deal and service.
Below are some early opinions vs the Note -
1. The S3 feels more like a phone. Being honest it is far more manageable to use. It is incredibly thin and light and looks amazing.
2. Speed. This things flies compared to the Note. It reads the media on my SD card like a bullet.
3. Touchwiz. The version on here is much better. Then again every piece of software is far more advanced than the Note. Sorry to say this, but Samsung have clearly gone overboard with the S3. Example. The lock screen displays 4 apps for quick launching, weather, and news ticker if you want. Also, can use motion control on the lock screen to launch camera from lock screen. Volume hard keys adjusts ringtone volume, but also has a settings icon. Tap this and then the 3 volumes are available to adjust. In fact as you explore all the software and options there are improvements everywhere.
4. Camera. Rips the Note apart. There is no contest. The S3 is the best camera. It is better than the iPhone 4S too. The quality of the shots is amazing.
5. Audio. Use a wolfram DAC. Therefore after listening to some music, can confirm sound quality is superb.
6. The S3 has a front notification light. Very useful.
As this wasn't planned as such, I have many cases all good ones available. Plus a spare battery and the Samsung battery charger/stand. I will make a list so if anyone wants them, just make me an offer.
If anyone want to know anything specific ask away.

How much did they buy your note for?
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium

1. How is the battery life compared with the Note?
2. After you launched the Calculator, how is the lag when switching between
landscape and portrait modes. The lag on the Note is about 4 seconds.
Did not really measure.

Its all about the battery
Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2

Pretty interesting! I might end up buying this one for my wife

I got mine yesterday too. Not had it long enough to comment on battery life, but it seems to be really good. Tried draining it so I could do a full charge cycle on it. But I gave up after two hours, it was just taking too long to drain the battery.
Calculator takes 1 second to switch from portrait to landscape
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium

Many of the software improvements are also ICS improvements, like the volume control pop-up.
Sent from my Epic Touch (Blazer ROM) using XDA

gavinfabl said:
4. Camera. Rips the Note apart. There is no contest. The S3 is the best camera. It is better than the iPhone 4S too. The quality of the shots is amazing.
If anyone want to know anything specific ask away.
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Click to collapse
I assume you're referring to the main camera. What about the front camera? That's one thing that drives me crazy about the Note -- poor front camera quality compared to the iPhone 4.

I think I'm going to buy it as my 3rd handphone
My main would be Note, 2nd iPhone 4s (company gave me one as part of my job scope).

avocco said:
How much did they buy your note for?
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium
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Click to collapse
I certainly don't want to trade my Note, at least until the Note 10.1 is out but was curious so valued my phone on their website. It offered £205.

The reason I got the note was very simply the bigger the screen you have the better the experience where it counts - web browsing, games, movies.
Therefore personally there is no way the S3 can compete with the note, all of the things you mention are nice to have compared to the must have of the much larger screen.
I suspect from your comments about size and handling you probably weren't suited for the Note, not being funny but it seriously isn't for everyone

real comparison between Note & S3
this ll help all of u to make a decision between galaxy note and S3
http://geekaphone.com/compare/Samsung-Galaxy-S-III-vs-Samsung-GALAXY-Note
i love my GNote specially after ICS
n1 at this site
http://geekaphone.com/recommend

Always best to write a review on a phone after using it for a good week or so, using it as much as possible, i'm sure once its been on XDA for a while it will have as many issues as the next phone.
I tried one for 10 mins in the phone shop. So can only comment on very instant issues.
First thoughts too much like the ONE X, too small now I have used the NOTE, would miss the S-PEN,
nice phone it will sell similar to the S2 I'm sure, I guarantee buy one now at full price your loose way over a £100 by this time next month, wait a month until Samsung leak another super phone they going to release and the price will have dropped.
but that's me being a cynical ole tosser

hajime_android said:
1. How is the battery life compared with the Note?
2. After you launched the Calculator, how is the lag when switching between
landscape and portrait modes. The lag on the Note is about 4 seconds.
Did not really measure.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you sure it takes four seconds to do that flip? Mine (running on stock LPF) almost flip instantly.

Answering all your questions.
The calculator switch is fast like under a sec. Yes I got about £200 but I only gave them the handset. I still have the headphones and charger. eBay would fetch £300 but after ebay takes it fees I would be left with £250 approx. I was happy to take the hit to avoid the hassle and have an instant solution.
I had told my friends that I would keep the Note for at least 2 years. But after seeing and actually holding the Note I was blown away. It is so good looking and it's light thin profile is far more manageable. So yes, from a size point of view I can agree the Note was not for me, even though I had been happy with its size.
However, remember the S3 is only half and inch less screen. Doesn't make a massive difference, but the Note still has the edge.
The link to the comparisons are inaccurate. The S3 has wolfram DAC for audio. There is no contest in that the S3 sounds better. There is a thread in the S3 section all about this.
Camera. The quality of the camera is better. I have taken several photos yesterday. The S3 HDR mode is better than the HDR mode on the iPhone 4S.
Some of the features I like are ICS based but it's the combined effort that makes this phones so good. I have read the comments on the S3 threads, words like epic performance appear, and these are from Note users.
Don't get me wrong, the Note is still a unique product. It's also old now so a new released device should in theory always be better.
I don't regret owning the Note. It caused many conversations with people, like what is that. Any I enjoyed it.

The battery life is epic. Waiting still for it to run flat. It was at 60% out of the box yesterday at around 1pm. It's 40% next day at 7.50am and I have been tweaking it a lot.

THUDUK said:
Always best to write a review on a phone after using it for a good week or so, using it as much as possible, i'm sure once its been on XDA for a while it will have as many issues as the next phone.
I tried one for 10 mins in the phone shop. So can only comment on very instant issues.
First thoughts too much like the ONE X, too small now I have used the NOTE, would miss the S-PEN,
nice phone it will sell similar to the S2 I'm sure, I guarantee buy one now at full price your loose way over a £100 by this time next month, wait a month until Samsung leak another super phone they going to release and the price will have dropped.
but that's me being a cynical ole tosser
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Click to collapse
This is exactly what I'm afraid of I'm getting too used to the big screen, S-Pen, and larger keyboard. If I were to get the S3 in a few months down the line the Note 2 had everything S3 has including that Wolfson DAC I would've wasted my money on the S3. So while the urge to get the latest and greatest tugs at me, I will have to put it off until more information is released on the possible Note 2.
The Wolfson DAC is really the only thing that would make me jump early. Everything else I could live without for now.
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda premium

That's technology for you. I'm sure the Note 2 will be marvellous. But I reckon that's months away still as all production will be focused on the S3.
At the end of the day both devices do the same thing lol

stephencwl said:
Are you sure it takes four seconds to do that flip? Mine (running on stock LPF) almost flip instantly.
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Click to collapse
Just under a second for my Note, running ICS LPY.

Are you comparing the S3 to the note with Gingerbread or Ice Cream Sandwich?
Most of your comments seem software based - and all my speed/software issues with the Note seemed to be solved with ICS (apart from the bugs!).
I wouldn't touch Touchwiz after using the alternative launchers and only use the camera for happy snaps (The DSLR comes out for anything serious!). And now too used to my stylus!
Would love the notification light tho!

I have a HTC onex convince me to switch to a GS3

On launch day i when out and brought my self a One X and for the first few weeks i loved it but as time went on there became more and more that anoyed me about the phone for example the lack of S-OFF, terable battery life and the fact that is completly refuses to get along well with my network "three uk".
Should i switch from the ONE X to a GS3?
and if so what are the reasons behind it?
will the GS3 help to amend any of the issues i have with the ONE X?
Thanks guys

Plz don't be convinced to get a s3! U should be loving the no sd card and non removable battery
☞★Swyped from drajax's Galaxy S3!!! *♂ツ
Hit thanz if I helped!
" Tomorrow .... its a brand new Today "

Here's a great site with everything you need to know http://tinyurl.com/c8mmd3t
By the way, the note 2 is better if you can handle the extra half inch

Switch to note2 not s3
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what worrys me about switching to the note 2 is that it has a serious lack of development
i am a huge AOSP fan but i know that if they get aosp up and running on the note that all of the S-pen feautes wont work and and so that will deem that part of the phone useless :/
i have also read that becasue of a recent fall out between cyanogen mod and samsung that cyanogen wont be suporting the note 2 as a official device which will make AOSP development slow :/

irish-sid said:
Here's a great site with everything you need to know http://tinyurl.com/c8mmd3t
By the way, the note 2 is better if you can handle the extra half inch
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Click to collapse
i have tryed that but all google is going to tell me is how these two phones compare out of the box when they were first released. since then there has been a huge amount of development on these phones thus rendering any review or comparison usless for what i am looking for :/

Explain to me, as if I am very dumb...what's the point on that switch? Both mobile phones are pretty much the same, one is better here the other there. But it's just my opinion. As far as ROM goes, I would be running CM anyway or AOKP or PA and the sorts...so on that point they would be exactly the same.
What I'm saying here is that people worry too much for things like 30mins extra battery and the sorts. My device has one of the worst batteries ever (Galaxy Ace) and still does it's job. With that said...I'd kill for a HTC OneX and I'd buy the HTC over the S3 any day. And let's get real here...There's this thing called Nexus 4 coming soon...I'd buy that XD

the point is the ONE x has so many problems on 3uk its not even funny :/
if im conected to H and for example i go into a building with a lead roof and i loose signal then when i exit the build the phone wont reconect to the network atall it just refuses and even if it does then it will only let me get a GSM signal and im lucky if i get that. i have to force a conection by searching for the networks and then it will recconect. i am not the only one with thus issue as it is comon with 3uk ONE x users and after half a year of doing this i cant be bothered with it anymore :/

Damsung promised to give drivers for Exynos 4 so there will be huge development from devs on xda starting from next year.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app

You said you were a AOSP lover? Aren't those issues caused by AOSP rom? In Portugal CM7 and MMS receiving is broken for example I need to reboot phone, turn data off and back on and then send myself a MMS to force the phone to receive the one someone sent me lol
And from what I recall, from 7 years ago, when I lived in the UK the 3 network sucked bad on pretty much every phone but I guess it would be better by now.
(Just noticed, I'm defending you to keep a HTC over a Samsung phone and I have 3 devices all of them Samsung, just check my sig lololol)

Stilm said:
Explain to me, as if I am very dumb...what's the point on that switch? Both mobile phones are pretty much the same, one is better here the other there. But it's just my opinion. As far as ROM goes, I would be running CM anyway or AOKP or PA and the sorts...so on that point they would be exactly the same.
What I'm saying here is that people worry too much for things like 30mins extra battery and the sorts. My device has one of the worst batteries ever (Galaxy Ace) and still does it's job. With that said...I'd kill for a HTC OneX and I'd buy the HTC over the S3 any day. And let's get real here...There's this thing called Nexus 4 coming soon...I'd buy that XD
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Click to collapse
+1. A friend of mine has a HOX and every time I see it I'm jealous of how beatuful and well made it looks. It also has the best sceen available on a phone right now (htc butterfly doesnt count as it is Japan exclusive) and sense looks better than TW. My GS3 is faster (both are on custom Roms, stock kernels and both are blazing fast but the GS3 is faster and smoother ), TW has more features than Sense, camera and speakers are better, micro SD and removable battery, much better battery life and the Bootloader is unlocked (maybe the most important part for me). Both phones are excelent and I wouldn't switch from one to the other ( even if I had the HOX ). If you have to leave the HOX for something else I would suggest the Note II for its great features, the Nexus 4 if you want stock Android or wait for the international version of the HTC Butterfly.

Faster Exynos 4 processor, Bigger screen, Believe it or not but the S3 feels lighter... And if your not a flash addict Touchwiz is better than Sense.
Plus Exynos 4 documentation coming soon, even tho the Tegra already had that but development here is about to get a whole lot better.

Expandable memory, removable and bigger battery, bigger screen.
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nope i have had these probems with my network from day one even with sence

I switched from HOX to SGS3 a month ago and I didn't regret even for a second. GS3 is a way better for me.

I have a friend that has an HTC One X and i can't understand the "beautiful" compliments, it is nice looking but nothing really "awesome" about it, the edges are rough, the screen is slightly smaller, (I hate LCD's, love punchy colors of Amoled displays and true blacks), Sense is fine but i (personally) like touchwiz a little better, No SD Card (LOL @ HTC, why.. seriously.. why?) and no removable battery.. (Batteries die, yep they lose their hold after a few months / year, and you can't replace it on a One X, you can't even do a quick swap for a backup battery).
All this got me to the conclusion of getting an S3 instead, now got a Note 2, an S3 and soon a Nexus 10 (tablet).

Nike: Just do it!

READY...?
Canadian Rogers Version i7747m is what I have.
I wanted the HOX bad. Loved the look. LCD whites are WHITE. Form factor and unibody are great especially if you plan to NOT use a case. Yet the S3 won 51% to 49%.
But having owned this i747m for 3 months now, stock rom, rooted, some framework mods for extra features and cosmetics....I am absolutely floored. (minus a few super minor non issues)
- 32gb +32gb = 64gb storage
- removable battery
- light and thin...so getting a case is not a bulk builder. With case it's still lighter than my old trusty HD2
- 2gb ram with up to 50 background apps in memory (Ask Zeppelinrocks Dev about this....it's a NEW record for a stock device) Wicked Multitasking as we say it.
- Fast, great standby drain, no SOD or Hot Reboots etc.
- Touchwiz....MEH...tried it for a week and ditched that ui for Go Launcher EX which has infinitely better and more custom options.
- Replaced some stock apps with IMO...superior apps (Handcent, Kaiten Mail, PowerAmp)
- my Super Amolded screen shows whites as very close to white and looks incredible playing games or watching movies.
- LED notification is fat and not too bright. It's a warm light and multi colored....and WORKS.
- camera and camcorder are great. Just took a video tonight of some backyard ground fireworks and it came out great...sound and all. Camera is very fast, burst shots...powerful flash etc. Some issues with low light conditions.
- LTE...for us here...is smoking fast data speeds even on 1 bar signal.
- usb can also output analogue and digital audio.
- physical home button. I learned that I prefer this especially to turn the screen on. It's most natural.
- development is aggressive...especially European models. I don't care much about this anymore...since for the first time since froyo, I have a near 100% working device without issues. I can't believe it. I am a stickler for details.
If I was living in Europe, I would get the i9305. I would not even think about getting a device with less than 2gb ram. I could write a book on it.
Like DeadSOL says, and Nike....and ..even Ben Stiller....Juz Doooow eet !!!

If you're an AOSP lover you should stick with a nexus 4 but, keep in mind that the on screen buttons will take up some of the screen real estate.
Oh by the way I have both the one X and the s3 and if you do make the switch you'll be dissapointed by its cheap plasticy feel but you'll be amazed by its battery life.
Sent from my GT-I9300.

Switch to nexus 4
Sent from my GT-I9300 with a BIG

Reason not to sell the S3 for the Nexus 4

Ok seems alot of people in here are planning on selling their GS3 for the Nexus 4, I personally won't be here why.
First up storage 8 or 16GB just isn't enough full stop, I use my S3 for alot of things & i can tell you now 16GB fills up quickly, you have to be very selective on what you use your N4 for.
Camera, I love the camera on the GS3 as it got plenty of feature's, plus recording things in either 720p or 1080p looks good even without modding the camera software, upto now some reviews on the camera on the N4 seem to put it behind the S3 ie slow to focus, and noise from the lens when it focus when recording video, pocket lint seem to have this problem with 2 devices they tested.
Sound Wolfson DAC, the N4 doesn't have one, I love my music and was gutted when the GS2 had crappy audio, compared to the GS1 which was superb, even if the sound is decent again storage on the nexus 4 is a problem.
Removable Battery, I have 2 Samsung Batteries for my phone, now i do alot of walking in some very remote places last thing i need is for my battery on my phone to go dead and stuck without a phone, I take alot of pictures and video with my GS3 when out and about so it eats into the battery alot, plus if i ever have an serious accident while out having that extra spare battery with me could be a lifesaver hence why i always like to carry a spare, might even buy another just to be on the safe side.
Features i'm a fan of touchwiz, it brings to the GS3 alot of useful features ya don't get on stock android like smartstay, camera software ect ect.
Hardware, this to me is what alot of people are planning on selling the GS3, because the N4 has 2GB of ram & the latest quadcore processor at 1.5GHz, I've never yet encountered a problems using my GS3 with 1GB of ram running anything, and by the time it does start running into problems i'll be on either a GS4 or GS5 which in the case of the GS4 will be 2GB anyroads, yeah 2GB of ram on the N4 will come in handy at some point, when the next proper update is released IF you keep you N4 that is, which i know alot on here won't & as soon as the GS4 or whatever else next year is released, the N4's that you sold your GS3 for will be up for sale again.
All in all i still think the GS3 is a better smartphone than the N4 if you look beyond specs alone, and i certainly won't be getting shut of mine for the N4, my next upgrade will be the GS4. :good:

ixon2001 said:
Ok seems alot of people in here are planning on selling their GS3 for the Nexus 4, I personally won't be here why.
First up storage 8 or 16GB just isn't enough full stop, I use my S3 for alot of things & i can tell you now 16GB fills up quickly, you have to be very selective on what you use your N4 for.
Camera, I love the camera on the GS3 as it got plenty of feature's, plus recording things in either 720p or 1080p looks good even without modding the camera software, upto now some reviews on the camera on the N4 seem to put it behind the S3 ie slow to focus, and noise from the lens when it focus when recording video, pocket lint seem to have this problem with 2 devices they tested.
Sound Wolfson DAC, the N4 doesn't have one, I love my music and was gutted when the GS2 had crappy audio, compared to the GS1 which was superb, even if the sound is decent again storage on the nexus 4 is a problem.
Removable Battery, I have 2 Samsung Batteries for my phone, now i do alot of walking in some very remote places last thing i need is for my battery on my phone to go dead and stuck without a phone, I take alot of pictures and video with my GS3 when out and about so it eats into the battery alot, plus if i ever have an serious accident while out having that extra spare battery with me could be a lifesaver hence why i always like to carry a spare, might even buy another just to be on the safe side.
Features i'm a fan of touchwiz, it brings to the GS3 alot of useful features ya don't get on stock android like smartstay, camera software ect ect.
Hardware, this to me is what alot of people are planning on selling the GS3, because the N4 has 2GB of ram & the latest quadcore processor at 1.5GHz, I've never yet encountered a problems using my GS3 with 1GB of ram running anything, and by the time it does start running into problems i'll be on either a GS4 or GS5 which in the case of the GS4 will be 2GB anyroads, yeah 2GB of ram on the N4 will come in handy at some point, when the next proper update is released IF you keep you N4 that is, which i know alot on here won't & as soon as the GS4 or whatever else next year is released, the N4's that you sold your GS3 for will be up for sale again.
All in all i still think the GS3 is a better smartphone than the N4 if you look beyond specs alone, and i certainly won't be getting shut of mine for the N4, my next upgrade will be the GS4. :good:
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Click to collapse
Have to agree......removeable battery (lots of times battery pull was lifesaver for me)+removable storage+touchwiz with its features-still with option to install aosp rom (on n4 you are going to be stuck with aosp or miui-which most wont even try)...that outweights those on-paper-superior stats of n4
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app

I was thinking of getting a nexus 4 but saw a review video on engaged and he had drop it the back was cracked that's what has put me off selling my s3 to get a nexus 4

Agreed with the storage and battery parts for sure..those are also the reasons i chose the S3 over the N4.
16GB just doesn't cut it in these times when you have music, high quality video etc.
The S3 and other Samsung's also get a lot of flaming over being plastic and all, but tbh i would rather prefer plastic over glass and metal. At least plastic doesn't break like glass or get scratched like metal

Just wondering why does this deserve its own thread?
Testing JKay alpha on GT-I9300

Krigsko said:
Agreed with the storage and battery parts for sure..those are also the reasons i chose the S3 over the N4.
16GB just doesn't cut it in these times when you have music, high quality video etc.
The S3 and other Samsung's also get a lot of flaming over being plastic and all, but tbh i would rather prefer plastic over glass and metal. At least plastic doesn't break like glass or get scratched like metal
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, I personally do hope their improve the quality than just deliver plastic. Plastic is very Terrible and felt like not premium. Even though I like s3, but I really do hope they will improve their quality, plastic is very bad taste.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium

I will keep my S3 and use it as my main phone. I have already pre ordered myself a LG Nexsus 4 just cuz it is cheap. I will use that when i feel like it so all i will do is swap sims for the day or a week lol..

Totally agree.

I myself was a nexus user through and through until i finally jumped ship and went for the GS3 (didnt wait for the N4). I thought about it for a sec (buying the new N4) then these points just came up and i forgot about it:
1) The Nexus line has always been behind the hardware specs when it came to Samsungs' Galaxy line, poor camera on Gnex etc.
2) i wouldn't change the S3 for the N4 simply because of the 8-16GB space and the non-removable battery is a no no for me.
3) sure benchmarks are all well and truly good on the N4 but the GS3 is right up there in performance.
4) another thing i saw on the N4 is the 4.6" screen instead of the 4.85" on the S3, its not much but definitely a downgrade from your usual viewing space.
5) Great camera on the GS3 and touchwiz is not that bad
6) LG, Yeah Google sends out the updates but never been a fan of LG.

+ I read article (not completely sure, but i think it was from xda) in which nexus4 hardware is examined from two pics, writer found out that even samsungs bad build quality is better than lg4s, there was lots of things that could get loose or lose contacts after change of temperature, age.......
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app

BRAVO! what i wanted to say

Dsnt worth an upgrade the gs3 is amazing
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2

Reasons to buy
CyanogenMod+AOSP = 2 x speed of light + efficient CPU usage with S4 [S4-quadcore+1,5GHz >>>>>>> Exynos]
Opensource
Fast [or even leaked] Android upgrade
More life time
ps: S4 isn't better then Exynos just because of 1,5GHz, it's also because it's opensource, making it more efficient when modding, improving battery life, performance, everything at the same time.
About design: I think that the design is better. The S III looks like a fat boy, if you look at the screen. the corners aren't a perfect line, and I think it's ugly. Looks like a really big phone.
Well, I guess it's enough to convince me to buy N4, but I probably need to wait 5-4 months to launch here and even wait for it to low the price. So it should take about a year...
oh, it's also faster, I'm sure about that. Even the Galaxy Nexus + JB is faster and smoother. Even minecraft runs better [much better, at probably 60fps] on the Galaxy Nexus than the SIII [way lower FPS]

marcellocord said:
Reasons to buy
CyanogenMod+AOSP = 2 x speed of light + efficient CPU usage with S4 [S4-quadcore+1,5GHz >>>>>>> Exynos]
Opensource
Fast [or even leaked] Android upgrade
More life time
ps: S4 isn't better then Exynos just because of 1,5GHz, it's also because it's opensource, making it more efficient when modding, improving battery life, performance, everything at the same time.
About design: I think that the design is better. The S III looks like a fat boy, if you look at the screen. the corners aren't a perfect line, and I think it's ugly. Looks like a really big phone.
Well, I guess it's enough to convince me to buy N4, but I probably need to wait 5-4 months to launch here and even wait for it to low the price. So it should take about a year...
oh, it's also faster, I'm sure about that. Even the Galaxy Nexus + JB is faster and smoother. Even minecraft runs better [much better, at probably 60fps] on the Galaxy Nexus than the SIII [way lower FPS]
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
bad built quality..i had 2 lg phones before and they both had problems with the built quality

So these are your reasons, thank you for sharing. Next time try to put in objective reasons.

moroninc said:
I myself was a nexus user through and through until i finally jumped ship and went for the GS3 (didnt wait for the N4). I thought about it for a sec (buying the new N4) then these points just came up and i forgot about it:
1) The Nexus line has always been behind the hardware specs when it came to Samsungs' Galaxy line, poor camera on Gnex etc.
2) i wouldn't change the S3 for the N4 simply because of the 8-16GB space and the non-removable battery is a no no for me.
3) sure benchmarks are all well and truly good on the N4 but the GS3 is right up there in performance.
4) another thing i saw on the N4 is the 4.6" screen instead of the 4.85" on the S3, its not much but definitely a downgrade from your usual viewing space.
5) Great camera on the GS3 and touchwiz is not that bad
6) LG, Yeah Google sends out the updates but never been a fan of LG.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nexus 4 = 4.7"
Galaxy S 3 = 4.8"

I wonder if the n4 has zero shutter lag and smart stay
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You guys know why I won't buy an n4? Because if you told lg to make a phone that cost the Consumer $300 and put these specs in it, well your gonna have some cheap parts for the rest. Lg sucks and that's the only reason enough to not buy one
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fahadsul3man said:
I wonder if the n4 has zero shutter lag and smart stay
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Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Zero shutter lag first debuted on the galaxy nexus, it was an ICS feature. So yes, of course the N4 has it.
Smart stay is a stupid feature.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda premium

nodstuff said:
Zero shutter lag first debuted on the galaxy nexus, it was an ICS feature. So yes, of course the N4 has it.
Smart stay is a stupid feature.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
b-but the phone understands you.
There isn't a single samsung feature that is useful for me.

[Q] Is the s4 worth the upgrade?

Like the title says is the GS4 worth using my Upgrade or should I wait for something else? I've been on the iPhone for years now I've own several android devices which I still have an hp touchpad running on cyanogenmod 9 nightly on it which is fantastic. What I liked about the iPhone it was just simple and iOS was smooth (starting out with the iPhone 3G vs earlier android devices) now that years has gone by apple is stuck with the same stuff and I'm tired of it. What drew me to the GS4 was all the features it has, but been reading a lot about it and seems most of those features barely works and a lot of people are having problems with it. I would love to get a 32 gig s4 but do you guys think I should wait for something else to come out later this year? I

It is definitely worth the upgrade in my own opinion. The battery life excellent. I am getting 6 hrs screen time vs the 8 I got on the note 2. The screen is gorgeous and not too small. Works great 1 handed. Features are a bit gimmicky but I do like the air gesture and air view. The camera was the biggest selling point to me. Feature rich and fantastic images.

Absolutely, no question in my mind. Battery life is amazing, camera is superb, and even the sound quality out of the speakers is surprisingly excellent. And not to get snarky, but does your iPhone scroll down automatically just by reading your eye motion as you read a webpage? Because my S4 does .
I'll put it this way: I'm a mobile dev, and usually the first thing I do with a new mobile device is go home and root it. I was so happy with my S4 that in the week I've had it I haven't had any inclination at all to make any additional customizations. I'll do it eventually to get rid of some of the bloatware, but the UI is so satisfying out of the box that I don't think I'll ever bother adding a custom ROM or anything like that.
Happy shopping!
Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk 2

Starbuck 0507 said:
the first thing I do with a new mobile device is go home and root it. I was so happy with my S4 that in the week I've had it I haven't had any inclination at all to make any additional customizations.
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Same here. Everything I want this phone to do, it does. I don't have the need to root to gain any features that isn't there in stock firmware.
Beyond that, I'm pretty much just echoing the sentiments of those above. Battery life is excellent (today I'm getting about 6 hours screen on time with an hour of voice calls and plenty of WiFi usage), the hardware is just fantastic and I'm even warming up to TouchWiz, which I hated in the past. It's nice to be able to use my phone and not instantly worry about how I'm affecting my battery life for the rest of the day.

I have 4 upgrades, so I figured why not. The 1080p is a very noticeable step-up and the SoC is very powerful compared to S3 or other phones, except HTC One and Sony Xperia ZL.

MistaBojangles said:
Sony Xperia ZL.
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The S4 kills the Xperia ZL in performance haha. As for the HTC One... DDR3 vs DDR2
(disclaimer: not trying to start a phone comparison war here)
On Topic: The S4 is a great device and it's worth the upgrade from any phone!

I'm definitely going to get the s4! Everyone sold me on it. But rumors are there's going to be a GS4 zoom with a 16MP camera and a GS4 Activ which is dust proof and water proof. So hard to decide! Lol

[Q] Considering a Nexus 4, a few questions for long time N4 owners

Considering picking up a Nexus 4 and would love to hear some pros and cons from long time users of the N4 on XDA that have had the phone for months now, and their real-world usage and opinion (like how the performance/battery holds up after x months of use). I also wouldn't mind hearing about comparisons to other phones with regards to performance if other N4 owner have/use other phones, older or new.
Some background info:
I'm coming from a 2010 HTC Windows Phone, so I'll probably be blown away by what a 2012/2013ish phone hardware is like. WP7 on my HTC HD7 still runs very fast/smoothly in the core OS experience, but once you get to 3rd party app load times on startup, it becomes painful. On top of that MS has all but abandoned WP7, and features-wise, its seriously dated and missing key basic but essential features of smartphone OS's, like ahem orientation lock and a more modern mobile web browser, not even 3rd party apps can help there.

Like you said any 2012/13 phone will amaze you from the phone you have now. You might not even notice the differences between all these new phones.
The closest comparison to this phone would be the s3.
nexus 4 slightly outperforms the s3, you would most notice the smoothness between the two. Battery life, they're roughly the same, except if you use your phone a lot... like extensively than the better choice is the s3. Camera is also better on the s3. Storage goes to s3. But I feel the nexus is the more complete phone... I guess you can say less hiccups.
I would probably choose s4 and htc one over nexus though. Haven't played with them yet, but simply because they're newer lol
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

I love my n4. I'm not a "long time" owner being 2 weeks of owning it, but I'll tell you I love it. I came from a One X running a custom rom and it didn't compare to the speed of the stock n4. It may be a dual core vs quad but still, aosp is just fantastic. Battery is pretty good I'd say. It gets through the day, I'll show some pictures. The lack of LTE and storage isn't a big deal to me because all my music is coming from the cloud and HSPA is fast enough. I haven't even switched to the HSPA+ plan yet because lazy. However, it doesn't play music near as loud as my One X through headphones, but they have a mod for that.
Oh and it charges pretty fast.
Sent from my fridge using XDA Premium

I love my n4. I'm not a "long time" owner being 2 weeks of owning it, but I'll tell you I love it. I came from a One X running a custom rom and it didn't compare to the speed of the stock n4. It may be a dual core vs quad but still, aosp is just fantastic. Battery is pretty good I'd say. It gets through the day, I'll show some pictures. The lack of LTE and storage isn't a big deal to me because all my music is coming from the cloud and HSPA is fast enough. I haven't even switched to the HSPA+ plan yet because lazy. However, it doesn't play music near as loud as my One X through headphones, but they have a mod for that.
Oh and it charges pretty fast.
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Sent from my fridge using XDA Premium

Nexus all the way. It's been a little less than a month of owning it, and it's great. Everything works like it's supposed to work, custom ROMs are easy to install, and I unlocked the bootloader/rooted it in a little less than an hour.

I got mine since december of the past year, and I love it more than ever, looks amazing, runs smooth, can run any game without lag, it fit my needs.
I must warn you to be careful don't drop it
My sister have an galaxy s3 and honestly the Nexus 4 is at higher level

I have the S3 and Nexus 4 and Whereas I love my S3, the N4 is the better phone all around. The S3 has it's better things like storage, LTE, S Calendar, OMLEAD (sp.) Screen (where black background takes no power but on N4 it does) and the camera. The camera is by far the best. Beats the heck out of N4 so if you take alot of pics, you'll want the S3. The N4 does okay on its camera but is no where near S3. BUT...performance wise, the N4 wins, hands down. ASOP is better in my opinion as some of these custome UI's really take a lot of power, etc. Plus, for $350, you get a highend phone for a midrange price. It's a no brainer in my opinion.

I'm happy with my N4. If you need an unlocked phone, for the price you seriously can't beat it. If price is no issue, I agree with Teo032 and I'd go with S4 or HTC One based on hardware.
The one thing about the N4 I'm still getting used to is the lack of storage size. I STRONGLY suggest getting the 16 GB. I got the 8 and I would totally pay $50 for another 8 gigs. I think it currently comes with a free bumper, if not, get one, they're actually pretty cool and my N4 kept slidding off crap because the screen is so smooth.
Good luck!

Nearing two months here. Upgraded from the LG Optimus 2X, the world's first dual core Android.
I absolutely love my N4. For the price it's a steal. The performance just blows me away (I am running CyanogenMod, not overclocked) compared to my old phone which had s**tty drivers and often had lag spikes even with overclocking.
If you compare the N4 to a stock unrooted Galaxy S4 or HTC One (the two powerhouses of 2013), you will actually find that when exiting apps and going around the home screens, the N4 is faster than either phone, because those two powerhouses have to deal with the overhead of rendering an ugly custom skin that adds no value Of course when actually inside an app those two phones will be the performance kings, but the N4 is no slouch either - it nails pretty much every game I throw at it.
These are the only real reasons to forgo the N4 in favour of something else:
1. You have the $$$ and want better build quality
2. You can't live with only 16 GB of internal storage, non-expandable
3. You like having a removable battery (or at least a removable cover to make accessing the SIM easier)
4. You want officially supported LTE that isn't 1700 Mhz
5. You think 4.7" is too big (a fair reason) and want something more compact.
If none of those points apply to you, then by all means, GET THE NEXUS 4!!! Also as a bonus you can load on a Metro UI skin if you miss WP

It's been like ~2 months now, and as most lads above I can sincerely say that it was the best choice possible at the moment (still is imo). Seeing that I simply agree with most of whats above this post, peformance wise n stuff, ill poke it from another point of view. Being an iphone4 user (jailbroken of course), the very first time I had the chance to fiddle with the nexus4 - it stole my heart completely. Versatility is just beyond any limits and if youre looking for a smart purchase, good performance/price ratio AND quality product - N4 is the best choice possible right now. The reason ive been using an iphone for quite a bit was actually lack of android based quality products (well, apart from a couple of htc's maybe ). It is crucial for me since I hate using a phone that reminds me of a plastic toy. N4 is the perfect solution in this case - official android based product combined with decent materials. You have to keep in mind though - it is a fragile piece of equipment and if you have like slippery hands (lol) or simply drop the phone pretty (too ) often - you must get yourself a case/bumper (i would recommend a piece of screen/back protector as well) cuz it might hurt if it bangs the floor

The Best...just saying

I have it for a long time and i must say its a nice phone.
You must be aware tho that there are random wifi issues on this phone that will probably be corrected with a system update.
The stock rom is ok and the stock google kernel uses the perf. branch so do not expect great battery life on stock even when the phone's idle.
A protective case is required or you will screw the back glass easily.
Photosphere is a nice feature included on the phone.
Phone overheats easily
You see the digitizer on screen
But its a great phone and im happy with it. Nothing would beat the galaxy s2 i had lol
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

Ordered mine on day one and received it the following week. I came from an iPhone.
I have had no issues other than Android itself. Some of it is half baked, and fixes can be non-existent. Battery life is OK if you come to the conclusion that some apps are the main cause of poor battery life on Android... it is a bit of a free for all here. I have seen significant improvement since installing Qualcomm's Battery Guru. I have seen 13.5 hours on battery with 2hr 46min screen time and 50% battery left. While it ain't quite an iPhone, it is more than sufficient.
The phone is very poorly documented and much of how it works is a "discovery by braille" experience. The stock mail client is unusable for business... thankfully I found a better one (AquaMail). The little speaker on the back is useless. I mean USELESS.
If I had it to do over again I don't think I'd do anything differently. The only other phone I would consider at this point is the HTC One (almost twice the price). At $350 I am very comfortable using my phone and not worrying about damaging/losing it. If I toast it it is not that big a deal to replace it (unlike the $600-$800 for some competing phones). It does almost everything well, and the little rough spots are minor. I do miss the accessory/software ecosystem that is iOS, but at this point I think I would miss widgets and the open file system even more.

As far as aging goes, I've had mine for a while and it's stood the test of time. My battery life has only gotten better and better, but that's mostly due to constantly improving custom kernels (I use Faux123's). It plays all the games out there. The only drawback is storage.
Sent from an N4 blessed with AOKP and sanctified by Faux123!