[Q] S5 on Stock Android 4.4 video - Galaxy S 5 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

I'm looking for a video and review of the S5 running on stock android, maybe even some benchmarks if available. I am thinking of upgrading my phone and the S5 is on my shortlist. I can't stand the touch wiz interface from Samsung. I haven't been able to see anyone running the S5 stock. I'm not into themes or cracked apps, I just wan't a vanilla experience. I need to know if the camera is as good running stock 4.4, than it is on the Samsung's rom.
I'm coming from an old iphone 4, so honestly any phone now out is an upgrade lol. I post quite a few pictures to Ebay/Facebook for my business so speed and the camera are my two main concerns. The removable battery and micro SD take care of my other two. Any input would be appriciated as I'm not sure if I should just hold off for the next iPhone in September.

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Will the S4 be the last Samsung Smartphone you buy?

Sadly due to all the crap Samsung is doing atm with it's smartphones I've decided to part ways with my S4 while it still worth something, & that will be my last Galaxy S i buy.
As from now on the only Android smartphone i will buy will be the Nexus range, as i want the freedom to do what i want with my Smartphone, without having to worry about warranty problems should something go wrong with the hardware, that is not the fault of a custom rom or kernel.
I'm using my trusty little Nokia 800 as backup now until the Nexus 5 32gb launches which i'll be ordering as soon as it shows up on the Play Store in the UK, I'm just hoping now the camera & video recording quality is at least on par with the Galaxy S3 this time around unlike the Nexus 4 which tbh had a terrible camera.
The S5 can be the best thing since slice bread, but with all the lockdown Samsung is currently doing it might aswell rename itself Apple.
Anybody else also plan on ditching Samsung due to the way they are going?
ixon2001 said:
Sadly due to all the crap Samsung is doing atm with it's smartphones I've decided to part ways with my S4 while it still worth something, & that will be my last Galaxy S i buy.
As from now on the only Android smartphone i will buy will be the Nexus range, as i want the freedom to do what i want with my Smartphone, without having to worry about warranty problems should something go wrong with the hardware, that is not the fault of a custom rom or kernel.
I'm using my trusty little Nokia 800 as backup now until the Nexus 5 32gb launches which i'll be ordering as soon as it shows up on the Play Store in the UK, I'm just hoping now the camera & video recording quality is at least on par with the Galaxy S3 this time around unlike the Nexus 4 which tbh had a terrible camera.
The S5 can be the best thing since slice bread, but with all the lockdown Samsung is currently doing it might aswell rename itself Apple.
Anybody else also plan on ditching Samsung due to the way they are going?
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FOr me Yes and no I love the TW features and pure android is smooth and fast but again its boring as well....When i say TW features I aint talking about the gimmicky ones but the useful ones like the camera, and others I am tempted to buy the nexus 5 but as my s4 is just 2 months old and especially after the brilliant job samsung has done with the 4.3 update am not sure I will stick to the S4 atleast till the S5 arrives
Updating my phone to 4.3. Heard that It is smooth and that's what I want. Sometimes I think to get Nexus 5 but then I realize how useful TW features are to me.
I've used Xperias (for a year or so) and even iPhone (for somedays) but none satisfied me as much as S4.
The most important thing that keeps me on Samsung is the Camera. Features + Quality. Yes, I'm sticking to Samsung
Definitely. I've had the S2 for 1.5 years and then the S4 for six months. I'm thoroughly bored of the Galaxy S range now. Gonna switch to some other OEM for the next phone. Or a nexus maybe if it doesn't compromise on screen, battery life and camera.
100% no samsung for me in the future. With no sources for exynos and all the knox ****, I am fed up. I could live with TW but the fact its laggy even with 2 gb ram and an octa core processor, I think I will look at other options.
Cheers!!
sent from my S4 (9500 international)
I hate Samsung and their current Knox implementation, turning them into Apple basically. Also I feel their AMOLED technology is nowhere near perfect (low brightness, unreadable under direct sunlight compares to LG screen or Iphones). However, no other phone in this current generation I can switch into. Newest releases contains so many flaws that are such a deal breaker for me: LG G2 without micro sd; Iphone 5s with terrible iOs 7; Xperia Z1, well, let's just say that it doesn't even ring any bells around. All and all, as much as I loathe my s4, I still have to stick with it because there is no other viable alternative that suit my needs currently. Probably won't be using s5 and try to avoid samsung like a plague next generation.
I went with the S4 GPe, and didn't look back. I looked at the Nexus 4, and it lacked features that I needed; no LTE, no 1080p screen, not enough storage or MicroSD to make up for the lack of storage, and no removable battery. Even the Nexus 5 won't have a removable battery, and while 32GB is an improvement, i need at least 48GB for my usage (I have 80GB on mine).
count me in.... i'm fedup with all samsung crapness... next will be a sony or a nexus for me
I'm done with Samsung definitely my next is gonna be something else, not because I think they suck or I'm against their practices but cause I've been using Samsung exclusively since the Galaxy S up till my current S4 and I think I need a break from Sammy!
AsterFenix said:
I hate Samsung and their current Knox implementation, turning them into Apple basically. Also I feel their AMOLED technology is nowhere near perfect (low brightness, unreadable under direct sunlight compares to LG screen or Iphones). However, no other phone in this current generation I can switch into. Newest releases contains so many flaws that are such a deal breaker for me: LG G2 without micro sd; Iphone 5s with terrible iOs 7; Xperia Z1, well, let's just say that it doesn't even ring any bells around. All and all, as much as I loathe my s4, I still have to stick with it because there is no other viable alternative that suit my needs currently. Probably won't be using s5 and try to avoid samsung like a plague next generation.
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iOS 7 isn't all that bad tbh from what I've seen of it, my sister just got herself an iPhone 5s, so like anything i had to have a good look at it & at one point i was actually tempted to get myself a 32Gb iPhone 5S, but the screen abit on the small side for my liking.
The camera on the otherhand is brilliant, really have to give Apple credit for this, the camera functions itself is very basic not many options to mess with, but soon as you take a picture 99% of the time the images are spot on & even stay looking decent in low light aswell, something i found impossible to do on the S4 was to get a decent image in low light as most of the time it came out as a blurry mess due to the camera lag, which the 5s doesn't have a problem with.
If the iPhone 6 has a bigger screen & iOS 8 allows widgets then i might be slightly tempted to switch next year & just have a Nexus 2014 tablet for my Android fix.
I'm new to Samsung. Can somebody tell me what the knox implementation is?
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
As long as they keep releasing phones with Google Edition roms available, I'll stay with Samsung. 1080p amoled + sdcard + switchable battery + decent camera + stock android = almost the perfect device for me (performance could still be better, but that is mostly an android problem (and don't give me **** about how your phone isn't lagging because it is, you just might not perceive it)).
Yup Sony for me next time. I've had every Galaxy S since the S1 but Samsung have really put me off.
Sent from my GT-I9505
Give me a nexus with an awesome camera, Bluetooth 4, beep n go, and a memory card slot and I'll give up Samsung.
Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk
Maybe is my Last, i'm taking a Sony device
Sent from my GT-I9500 using xda app-developers app
I'll definitely stick to samsung, take note that this is just my personal opinion.
I like touchwiz, for me it's very simple, i've had the xperia z for a couple of months, s4 camera i would say is far better, and i don't like the way the sony launcher is. And definitely the screen on the sony ones has not impressed me at all, i even owned an xperia tx but on all sony is prone to quick scratches even the sony z1 has the same screen compared to samsung's screen, which are much better.
The only drawbacks i have against samsung is about the plastic body, and chinese manufacturers can easily make a copy of the phone!
well despite the fact that for the i9500 in terms of rom development is slow, i prefer stock rom! it's very stable!
so i will definitely stick to samsung unless s5 mess things up
i would then move to an htc phone maybe! :3
kesh9293 said:
I'll definitely stick to samsung, take note that this is just my personal opinion.
I like touchwiz, for me it's very simple, i've had the xperia z for a couple of months, s4 camera i would say is far better, and i don't like the way the sony launcher is. And definitely the screen on the sony ones has not impressed me at all, i even owned an xperia tx but on all sony is prone to quick scratches even the sony z1 has the same screen compared to samsung's screen, which are much better.
The only drawbacks i have against samsung is about the plastic body, and chinese manufacturers can easily make a copy of the phone!
so i will definitely stick to samsung unless s5 mess things up
i would then move to an htc phone maybe! :3
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People on about knox bootloader etc being implemented and that samsung have locked there bootloaders,yeah its a blow but then again we have to remember that Sony,Lg and HTC also lock there bootloaders so its nothing new,yeah Sony screens arnt that great anymore,they look a bit washed out now,T was nice device,I loved my T before it got beer damage,in my opinion the Hardware of the s4 isnt to bad,yeah it is plastic which is a let down but the software is the issue,its heavy due to all the bloatware,slim roms work really well but is it my last Samsung phone,we shall see,at the moment i think HTC one is best alternative,the only thing that gets my back up with Samsung isnt with the s4,thats surprising but with the Galaxy Camera,lovely device but its like theyve forgoten it already ,no updates for past 6 months
jaykresge said:
I went with the S4 GPe, and didn't look back. I looked at the Nexus 4, and it lacked features that I needed; no LTE, no 1080p screen, not enough storage or MicroSD to make up for the lack of storage, and no removable battery. Even the Nexus 5 won't have a removable battery, and while 32GB is an improvement, i need at least 48GB for my usage (I have 80GB on mine).
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Click to collapse
Same here. Removable battery is priority #1 for me. SD card slot is a very close second. I also like the shape/profile of the GS4 over Nexus devices, but that is a minor concern compared to the previous points. LTE is also very nice, but not a necessity for me. If a Nexus device had removable battery and SD card, I'd probably choose it.
If there is another high end phone with removable battery, sd card slot, ir blaster and a Qualcomm SOC I will buy non Samsung.
But those things are more important than anything else.
Sent from my GT-I9505 using xda app-developers app
Keep S4 for a while.
S4 is good choice. I have octa core version and with litlle work new jb 4.3 can be rooted and debloated. Knox applications should be removed ,possibly with aromafm in recovery before booting.

Is S5 faster than Nexus 5 ?

I have Nexus 5 and I like how fast and fluid its interface is.
I've been thinking whether I should upgrade to S5 (snapdragon), but scared of its slow touchwiz.
Does anyone have both phones ? How S5 compares in terms of UI responsiveness ?
Pure and raw responsiveness is superior in the N5.
Pure android has no lag whatsoever.
Touchwiz has its laggy places but it's tolerable. I come from an N5 and don't regret it.
The battery life and camera are totally worth it.
Sent from my SM-G900H using Tapatalk
The S5 is a quick device and is responsive in day to day to use with only the occasional stutter under heavy usage.
With that said, the Nexus 5 is the quicker device but keep in mind the Nexus 5 is a very barebones device compared to the S5.
It would be simply illogical to expect the S5 to be quicker than the Nexus 5 when it is filled to the brim with features and additional services which maintaining a basically identical processor.
It's like expecting a stock car with all the seats, features and technology still intact to be quicker than the exact same car with all the seats and features removed.
It really comes down to your values, if you value a "quicker" UI over a more a feature packed OS than keep the Nexus 5.
If you care more about software features, image quality, removeable memory, superior battery life and additional hardware features and are also capable of putting up with the occasional stutter then the S5 is the device for you.
Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk
Yeah owned the n5 before I switched to the s5. The n5 was definitely smoother to use. But I like the bells and whistles the s5 have.
Sent from my SM-G900I using Tapatalk
The S5 can't even best a lowly little Motorola Moto E (link).
jodvova said:
I have Nexus 5 and I like how fast and fluid its interface is.
I've been thinking whether I should upgrade to S5 (snapdragon), but scared of its slow touchwiz.
Does anyone have both phones ? How S5 compares in terms of UI responsiveness ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wrote a little about n5 and 5s here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=52722060
Tapatalk-kal küldve az én Nexus 5-el
Does anyone know whether there are already custom roms available that are as close as possible to a barebone android for S5 ?
jodvova said:
Does anyone know whether there are already custom roms available that are as close as possible to a barebone android for S5 ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you look in the original dev s5 fourms you'll see a few AOSP roms in there already. This is what will give you a close to bare bones experience. Ive tried a few and its an immediate improvement in responsiveness over the touchwiz crap. They aren't ready for daily use yet as they barely support calling/sms/data and have trouble with sensors, haptic feedback etc but its looking very hopeful so far, i'm impressed how far along they are already.
If you can't put up with touchwiz at all then don't get an S5, because it isn't certain that custom roms will fully work. However the battery life and removable SD slot were more important to me than getting a pure android experience.
To be honest is you are going to install an aosp rom on s5 and remove all the useful stuff associated with touchwiz you may as well use the N5 and save a few hundred. You would be removing a lot of what makes an s5 an s5
TW has carried the stigma with it from s1 when, granted, it was pretty bad. Now however its not bad at all and actually adds some very useful things.
Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk
Thanks!
Are there any rumors about the introduction of GE version at Google I/O this summer ?

[Q] Samsung Rom differences between devices

Hi
I am considering buying a new phone - Note4 (I have Note2 right now) and I went to a shop with most modern phones to compare. I was focusing mainly on Samsung's phones and I noticed there are huge differences between ROMs even when the android version is the same.
Galaxy Alpha's ROM has a different theme and in general the phone works definitely faster than Note 4 or Galaxy S4 or Galaxy S5. I noticed f.e. that finally there is no delay when switching between the phone tab and the contact tab (previously looked like separate apps on Samsung's ROMs). It was not the case in the Note4! Alpha has android 4.4.4 ROM and so the Galaxy S4/Note4 which is slower than the Alpha. Galaxy S5 UI is faster than Note4's but it has 4.4.2 preinstalled. I tried two different Note4 phones and the same results. I don't even mention the design because Note4's touchwiz looks almost the same as the one delivered for Note2 with the latest update. Alpha's ROM looks much better.
Do you know what may be a reason?
Maybe thay platformed their products to some lines: Note, S ...
With a ton of Spem features they would not want rebuild bases on latest UI like Alpha. I think they based on Note series to dev more features, tweak more to match demand, business plan or something else...
My wife is using Note 2 and I can say that you will enjoy Note 4 which has many things upgraded from Note 2. A big step.
We will have another big step by next Lollipop update
Yes that's correct that there are improvements comparing the original Note2's ROM version to Note4. The problem is that I am completely not satisfied with the Note2. It's so slow it is generally not usable without flashing with the cyanogenmod or something else. I want to buy a device I can use without rooting it at the first day and loosing a warranty. I was quite happy with the speed of the Alpha but completely not happy with what I saw in the Note 4. The problem is that it seems that the Alpha is the only Samsung's device right now which works without any jitters but it has so weak battery it won't last a full day when using more intensively. Maybe as I work in the IT I am less patient with the hardware but I could imagine the original Note4 hardware with a stock ROM would be probably much better.

AOSP Rom...

Hey all, excuse my ignorance but what is stopping development of an AOSP rom for the note 4? I can't stand TW and can't wait to get rid of it.
utopiate said:
Hey all, excuse my ignorance but what is stopping development of an AOSP rom for the note 4? I can't stand TW and can't wait to get rid of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
S Pen maybe ?
I'm not sure. It's a new device, just enjoy what can be enjoyed with the device for now..
AFAIK, you'll lost all samsung gimmicks if use AOSP, and the note 4 will become just a big phone like other big android phone out there.
Just my opinion though, I'll buy phone from other manufacturers with same specs but lower price if want to use AOSP
Another phone with the same specs? Explain? I've been trying to decide between the Nexus 6 and the Note 4 for weeks now, with the Nexus 6 coming out soon I decided to wait beforr I bought the Note 4, just incase..
Turns out its the only comparable phone to the Note 4 except it doesnt have a Micro SD slot, it has lesser front and rear cameras, and a personal preference is physical buttons so I dont lose any screen space.
I'm still sold on the Note 4 until someone with better or equal specs and has better AOSP support is released.
As for why there are no ROMs yet, it probably has something to do with getting a new kernel working, this was a similar issue with the Note 3, AOSP ROMs took forever to be released, I regret nothing except losing the ability to record 4k video, but Android L Google Camera fixes that.
Bring on the Note 4 Android L builds
The s pen still works great as a stylus on Cyanogen, and there's apps that replicate most of the spen stuff.
So it's just a kernel we are waiting for then?
VeeDaub said:
Another phone with the same specs? Explain? I've been trying to decide between the Nexus 6 and the Note 4 for weeks now, with the Nexus 6 coming out soon I decided to wait beforr I bought the Note 4, just incase..
Turns out its the only comparable phone to the Note 4 except it doesnt have a Micro SD slot, it has lesser front and rear cameras, and a personal preference is physical buttons so I dont lose any screen space.
I'm still sold on the Note 4 until someone with better or equal specs and has better AOSP support is released.
As for why there are no ROMs yet, it probably has something to do with getting a new kernel working, this was a similar issue with the Note 3, AOSP ROMs took forever to be released, I regret nothing except losing the ability to record 4k video, but Android L Google Camera fixes that.
Bring on the Note 4 Android L builds
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The one plus one, the xperia z ultra, htc one max, there's quite a few big phones m8
Oh, physical specs, I thought you meant technical specs like RAM, Storage, CPU, GPU, Display Construction.
Sure there are big phones but I havent found anything yet that has more features then the Note 4, only thing close is the Nexus 6 IMO but with no physical buttons, the same IMX214 sensor from the Note 3, and no external SD its not even a competition.

S5 better than S6?

I am downgrading simply because of Cyanogenmod and bigger battery. Good idea or no?
I bought S5 due to CyanogenMod support, removable battery and microSD card slot. Those 3 things were deal breakers for me, when i was choosing my new phone. S6 have amazing specs, and it will be a much much faster device than S5. I heard, that first alpha build of CM was released for S6, but it will take a long time, before it's going to function properly. If you can't live without CM (like me ) and you need that bigger battery (which you can always replace with a spare one ) it is a good idea to downgrade, but if you are thinking about more future-proof phone, which will last longer, i'd go with S6.
luki7151 said:
I bought S5 due to CyanogenMod support, removable battery and microSD card slot. Those 3 things were deal breakers for me, when i was choosing my new phone. S6 have amazing specs, and it will be a much much faster device than S5. I heard, that first alpha build of CM was released for S6, but it will take a long time, before it's going to function properly. If you can't live without CM (like me ) and you need that bigger battery (which you can always replace with a spare one ) it is a good idea to downgrade, but if you are thinking about more future-proof phone, which will last longer, i'd go with S6.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So should i downgrade? I head people having yellow tint in the screen is that true? and can i watch a full hd move on it without charging? and does cm support lte for s5?
shotgun10ga said:
So should i downgrade? I head people having yellow tint in the screen is that true? and can i watch a full hd move on it without charging? and does cm support lte for s5?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I heard about that yellow tint, but people who had that, simply went to their seller/Samsung service with their warranty and they mounted a new display. Fortunately, i haven't got that tint.
You can watch FHD movies without charging, i dunno what's the problem ( or i'm too sleepy, and i can't understand english at this moment :/ excuse me xd )
Yes, CM supports LTE.
That is a purely opinionated question and I'm anxious to see all of the replies to this one but in my opinion the S6 is of course a faster device but I'm with Luki7151 on this. I prefer the S5 because it has:
1.) Removable Battery which comes in handy especially if you're a modder.
2.) Expandable memory which is really the biggest deal breaker for me.
3.) S5 has USB 3.0 port. Don't know why they went back to the 2.0 small port on the S6.
4.) S5 is water resistant
My girlfriend got the S6 and there's nothing my S5 can't do that hers can. In fact, my S5 has more features since hers is stock and I'm running S6 edge custom rom lol. There has also been numerous occasions where I'd watch 3 movies in FHD back to back with screen brightness turned all the way up and still did not have to charge my phone.
For me the possibility to use a micro SD (128 GB) is a very good reason as well!
S6 has USB 2.0 port, because it was a standard in smartphone technology. I can only only list two devices which had USB 3.0 port: Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy S5. Probably it was too odd for Samsung to have two major devices with those USB 3.0 ports, while any other phone had standard 2.0 port, so they reverted it back to old standard.
I cannot say, that S5 is fully IP67 certified (30min to 1m of water), because i have never merged my phones . Although, i can say that it is water resistant, because it survived, when i was cleaning it up under stream of water.
Last but not least. Remember! Flashing an AOSP rom like CyanogenMod, will have some consequences. You won't be able to use fingerprint scanner, heart rate sensor or some Touchwiz related features like one-handed mode or download booster, but for this price, you will get (in my opinion) the fastest running rom on S5, which i have ever flashed
I'm currently using TW Revolution V5.2 and can tell you everything works including finger print scanner and download booster and it is an S6 Edge port so you'll have the S5 with the S6 features if you want a rom with all the stock working features. The rom is in the international section if you wanna try something different out.

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