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This is my first post, so please excuse this if it is in the wrong place.
I've been lurking for a while now and seeing all the rage brewing in here over the lack of Froyo for the Epic. For now I'm going to believe that Sprint and Samsung are actually working to put out a quality update that fixes a lot of the original problems like GPS. This isn't really the point of this thread, so refrain from "warnings" about their willingness to update (it's pretty apparent).
So I will move on to the feedback I would like. I wish to know, in terms of hardware quality, how good the Epic is. I'm looking to purchase this phone based on the wonderful screen, the keyboard and the Hummingbird processor. Since I don't know anyone who owns it I have no idea how well it holds up. Has anyone had to replace their device a lot? Are there any sort of common manufacturing flaws?
I only ask for this information because I'm seeing if buying this phone for its hardware, rather than software, could be wise decision. If I want good software, I'll wait as long as I'm willing for an OTA and then I'll flash. Again, that's not the point of this thread.
Thank you for taking the time to read this. I'm glad to be a member of this forum, so please take care of me (is that an appropriate thing to even say in this situation?)
armada786 said:
This is my first post, so please excuse this if it is in the wrong place.
I've been lurking for a while now and seeing all the rage brewing in here over the lack of Froyo for the Epic. For now I'm going to believe that Sprint and Samsung are actually working to put out a quality update that fixes a lot of the original problems like GPS. This isn't really the point of this thread, so refrain from "warnings" about their willingness to update (it's pretty apparent).
So I will move on to the feedback I would like. I wish to know, in terms of hardware quality, how good the Epic is. I'm looking to purchase this phone based on the wonderful screen, the keyboard and the Hummingbird processor. Since I don't know anyone who owns it I have no idea how well it holds up. Has anyone had to replace their device a lot? Are there any sort of common manufacturing flaws?
I only ask for this information because I'm seeing if buying this phone for its hardware, rather than software, could be wise decision. If I want good software, I'll wait as long as I'm willing for an OTA and then I'll flash. Again, that's not the point of this thread.
Thank you for taking the time to read this. I'm glad to be a member of this forum, so please take care of me (is that an appropriate thing to even say in this situation?)
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I agree. After making the mistake of buying the hero primarily for the software, only to see almost everything that made it special get worked into android by default, and having the official update take 10 years, but having leak based roms so readily available, I decided to buy based on hardware only. I stopped running sense pretty much the second I could, and CM6, and now CM7 are fantastic.
The software will catch up thanks to the devs.
I haven't had my Epic long enough for any problems to manifest, but no real complaints so far either.
armada786 said:
So I will move on to the feedback I would like. I wish to know, in terms of hardware quality, how good the Epic is. I'm looking to purchase this phone based on the wonderful screen, the keyboard and the Hummingbird processor. Since I don't know anyone who owns it I have no idea how well it holds up. Has anyone had to replace their device a lot? Are there any sort of common manufacturing flaws?
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Click to collapse
I got my phone in early September and haven't encountered any flaws related to hardware with my device. All my issues have been software related.
This is just my feeling of it, I haven't done a technical breakdown, just using it day-to-day.
I enjoy it, I haven't had any hardware issues at all. The camera takes great pictures, the accelerometer is sensitive, the screen is fantastic, I've not had any issues with the keyboard (although many people say they have), and I've not had issues with the GPS either (again, many people say they have).
The people who I show the phone to usually have the same reaction to the screen: they are very impressed.
The CPU & GPU are really good, I have yet to have issues with them that aren't of my own making (like putting way too many programs on it). Every 3D thing that I have runs very fast on it.
Like I said, nothing technical, just a day-to-day usage.
I think the internal specs speak for themself. I've played with a couple different android of friends (droid x, incredible, etc) and none of them felt as snappy as my Epic. As far as the quality, overall I think it's pretty solid, especially the screen. Dropped my phone in my garage a couple weeks ago, only thing that scratched was the plastic corner of the phone. Screen still looks like new and I don't bother with a screen protector. My only real beef with the build quality is the slider mechanism seems to loosen after some use but only to a point where it won't worsen. Only notice it when it's closed. With the keyboard out it's solid. I've had 2 Epics, because the first one had a faulty 4G radio and both we're very tight out of the box and eventually loosened like this after being broken in.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
The only hardware problem I have had is my slider. When my phone is closed and you look at it from the side I have a decent size gap between the two pieces. It's very annoying I just don't feel like taking it to get another one yet. Other than that it's awesome. The screen is beautiful and it might feel cheap but it's more durable than the evo. My wife has an evo and my phone can Take more of a beating than hers can.
Hardware wise, the phone is solid. But why would you possibly be looking to buy an Epic now? There are dual core monsters about to be launched all over the place and they destroy the Epic with relation to speed and capabilities. Seriously, read through this:
Anandtech Optimus2x review
muyoso said:
Hardware wise, the phone is solid. But why would you possibly be looking to buy an Epic now? There are dual core monsters about to be launched all over the place and they destroy the Epic with relation to speed and capabilities. Seriously, read through this:
(link removed. can't post links as a newbie even if they're in a quote?)
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Thanks to all the replies so far! They're very helpful. The reason I don't want to go with the new dual cores is mainly for price reasons and as a casual user I don't really know the difference. I guess the browser would be a lot more snappy but the battery life can't be great. I think the Epic will do what I want (gaming, good casual usage, great keyboard) at a decent price without getting left too far behind with the new beasts coming to the table.
Hi guys looks like I'll be going for the Note 4 as I defect from Apple. What's confusing me however are the the options 910C or 910F i.e.e Exynos or Snapdragon. I'm in the UK on O2.
I've done LOTS of google searching on various forums and reviews, and read most forum posts in English as well as other languages translated and if there's one thing I've learnt is that there doesn't seem to be a consensus. I've learnt some swear that C (exynos) is better, others say F (snapdragon). I've heard it suggested that one of them is better for sound quality (can't remember which). I've read that C is better in benchmarks but not in the real world (and I've read the opposite!). I've read that F is better for games due to the better GPU but C better for multitasking. I've heard that now C is better as lollipop uses 64bit, but I've read people say that's not true. I've also read that F is better for custom ROMs (but again I've also read the opposite!) Basically I've heard opposing views for everything and am putting it down to (as ever with internet searches) older posts perhaps before lollipop and people not being able to compare.
So today, 22nd April 2015, when more people have been using these and lollipop is now mainstream can anyone shed light on the latest opinion?
I'm paritcularly interested in:
General speed
Support for custom ROMs etc
Any opinions appreciated!!! I know you guys are mainly developers (and I apologise if I'm wasting your time - I've read some threads on here already on 910c v 910f) but you're the best as you understand the benefits of the extra cores more than anyone else and are more likely to have tried both!
Thanks in advance guys
I previously owned the F and I saw a little lag when scrolling. It also overheated and stopped charging in my car when I used it for navigation. I am not sure if it was a faulty unit but my N version has no lag and very cool even when I run 2 navigation apps at the same time in split view.
I'll let the others answer your question.
@applehater00
Snapdragon have more support for custom roms, a bit faster then exynos, overheating a bit(depends on which chipset and your usage)
Exynos are a bit cheaper, a bit less perfomance, more battery friendly, no overheating at all
I had the n910c exynos. Experienced minor lag only when using the app switcher / previous apps button. Was a lot slower to open apps than the nexus 6 I sold it for. Didn't like the poor signal strength, which is ultimately why I sold the phone, however, I can't say whether any of that was related to the exynos chip. Lack of choice in custom ROMs bothered me slightly, however, with the wanam lite ROM, I didn't really need any other.... Even on my nexus 6 I keep it stock and just change the kernel.
Nexus 6 has much stronger signal strength and is by far my favourite phone I've ever owned. Note 4 has put the nail in the coffin for Samsung for me until they can ditch touchwiz and leave android the f%&£ alone.
No overheating issues with the exynos note at all.
Nexus 6 has the same snapdragon chip as the snapdragon note 4, and I'd choose this phone every time over the note 4, however, if I did go back to a note 4, it would still be the exynos version
Thanks guys for the replies but this illustrates the problem
One of you suggests snapdragon may be relatively laggy, one of you suggests that actually exynos is slower and one of you suggests that although in your experience and exynos chipped device was slower than a snapdragon chipped device you used, you'd still go exynos.
Really appreciate all replies so far thanks! Good to know it's still as muddy as my reading suggested!
It all boils down to whether you want to install custom AOSP roms or not.
If you like Samsung software then get either of them, the performance differences are negligible either way. You have a detailed benchmark at phonearena, but all they show is that Exynos is a bit faster cpu, while Snapdragon is a faster GPU.
On the other hand, if you like Android as Google designed it and want to use AOSP or CM, the Snapdragon version is currently your only choice. Exynos has CM development, but they have a hard time of getting the radio working.
Cheers I think you've probably hit the nail on the head.
I don't know anything about romming as I've only ever been an iOS man. I jailbreaked a lot there but jailbreaking is different I imagine. Jailbreaking is something I did partly for 'free' apps initially (but I soon realised apps aren't very expensive anyway and buy them anyway) but mainly because iOS is extremely limited and basically junk unless you free it up. I'm tired of havign to JB iphones all the time just to bring them up to Android's standard.
So with Android why would I want to ROM? Wouldn't I lose all the S-pen and other features?
Ok, I realise now this is veering off the original topic somewhat so feel free to flame me for hijacking my own thread and deviating it, but it is relevant, because it seems that if I want to do this then I'll go with the snapdragon, otherwise I'll go Exynos.
As a techy type guy who loves control I suspect I'd love to rom it (or whatever) but not quite so sure about it yet....
applehater00 said:
Thanks guys for the replies but this illustrates the problem
One of you suggests snapdragon may be relatively laggy, one of you suggests that actually exynos is slower and one of you suggests that although in your experience and exynos chipped device was slower than a snapdragon chipped device you used, you'd still go exynos.
Really appreciate all replies so far thanks! Good to know it's still as muddy as my reading suggested!
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You can thank Samsung for much of the lag, like the Recents Button.I can only recommend our SimplRom collection for the C and the F, we managed to increase the speed and new builds with tons of enhancements are coming very soon too. Both chips are similarly capable and it really comes down to custom rom support in my personal opinion. Which is better for Snap, no doubt. I'm developing SimplKernel for the C and F at the moment and there is just more there for Snapdragon than for Exy. Its easy and fun making stuff for F and a huge pain with weird stuff everywhere with C.
I can only recommend you the F, both for installing Custom stuff and also if you should ever want to develop for it. Kernel-wise at least
What are your guys' methods to extract the best possible performance from the SD 810 in our Nexus 6p? I think everyone is aware that this chipset is prone to throttling extremely quickly for a mobile chip. I've experimented with massive underclocking both the big and little cores, changing governors, different kernels and other things. Unfortunately, I don't think it is possible to undervolt the 810. It's amazing that such a massive company like Qualcomm gave the go ahead to release a chip with such fundamental problems even if they were under pressure to release a 64 bit chip. Makes me think that they may value profits over their consumers experience.
So again I ask, what is your method of obtaining the best, no lag/stutter, performance out of our beloved Nexus 6p and it's infamous Snapdragon 810?
I did the hard thermal mod here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/nexus-6p/general/guide-improve-cooling-greatly-reduce-t3323898
And use the thermal soft mod here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/nexus-6p/development/cttmod-mm-t3386953
Even then, it will throttle during heavy gaming but nothing like before. It's rare I play long enough that it starts shutting down cores. Usually a half hour at a time. For my purposes it has all but eliminated thermal induced lag. Definitely shouldn't have to go through all that though lol.
To be honest things run great for me. It was the best they had to offer this past year. I'm not complaining. Best phone I've ever owned that's for sure
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
hawkswind1 said:
I did the hard thermal mod here:
And use the thermal soft mod here:
Even then, it will throttle during heavy gaming but nothing like before. It's rare I play long enough that it starts shutting down cores. Usually a half hour at a time. For my purposes it has all but eliminated thermal induced lag. Definitely shouldn't have to go through all that though lol.
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I think you may have forgotten to include the mod links in your post. If they provide the improvements that you described, I'll definitely be trying them out.
michaelearth said:
I think you may have forgotten to include the mod links in your post. If they provide the improvements that you described, I'll definitely be trying them out.
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I think you will change your mind when you see the hard mod :laugh:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/nexus-6p/general/guide-improve-cooling-greatly-reduce-t3323898
This is the best phone ever created. There are absolutely no issues with the 810 because I've never personally had any. That means the issues don't exist. Don't ever talk bad about this phone because I spent my hard earned money on it so it's automatically the best. Just positive posts please.
michaelearth said:
I think you may have forgotten to include the mod links in your post. If they provide the improvements that you described, I'll definitely be trying them out.
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Not sure why the links disappeared, but I added them back.
Im interested in getting the 810 to perform better. I had a snap dragon 610 phone that performed well and had battery life that would last all day. Is there a way to underclock the 810 down to how the 610 soc would run.
hawkswind1 said:
And use the thermal soft mod here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/nexus-6p/development/cttmod-mm-t3386953
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I installed this mod several days ago and have noticed significant improvements regarding thermal throttling. The 810 still throttles but it helps delay it by a noticeable amount of time. Definitely recommend to anyone looking to improve performance.
Also, the dev is actively working to improve the mod so it can only get better from here on out.
shawn1482 said:
Im interested in getting the 810 to perform better. I had a snap dragon 610 phone that performed well and had battery life that would last all day. Is there a way to underclock the 810 down to how the 610 soc would run.
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Different soc, different architecture, im afraid not possible
Hi guys
Don't know if this is the right spot to post this but, I need some help chosing a smartphone. Since I'm upgrading from a note 3 SM-9005 I would like to upgrade to something similar. So what brings me here to this forum? I love galaxy s7 edge and I would love to get it. But... since I can only buy the international version and from my experience with an galaxy S2 and sammsung 0 suport over the cpu source code, I am afraid the phone dosent get custom rom suport in the future. I've been browsing around and reading a lot, but tbh I'm not totally convinced I should spend money on this since theres a lot of diferent opinions on the device.
Several other things concern me:
The adreno performance is something I like, even though exynos has better batery life (comparing adreno and mali in terms of gaming and everyday usage)
the diference in the camera sensors
Future custom ROM suport
Overal Fragility of the device (I've been browsing around this forum, and saw several complaints about screen cracks, burned out micro USB amongst other problems)
Is the diference between 2k and 1080p displays noticeable?
So guys, I want to known your opinion about this phone. From both exynos and snapdragon users of what makes this phone worth over other brands .
Also, I encourage sugestions of other brands since I want something future proof.
Sorry if my english sucks, but Its not my main language.
Sincerely
Shade
Shadeftw said:
Hi guys
Don't know if this is the right spot to post this but, I need some help chosing a smartphone. Since I'm upgrading from a note 3 SM-9005 I would like to upgrade to something similar. So what brings me here to this forum? I love galaxy s7 edge and I would love to get it. But... since I can only buy the international version and from my experience with an galaxy S2 and sammsung 0 suport over the cpu source code, I am afraid the phone dosent get custom rom suport in the future. I've been browsing around and reading a lot, but tbh I'm not totally convinced I should spend money on this since theres a lot of diferent opinions on the device.
Several other things concern me:
The adreno performance is something I like, even though exynos has better batery life (comparing adreno and mali in terms of gaming and everyday usage)
the diference in the camera sensors
Future custom ROM suport
Overal Fragility of the device (I've been browsing around this forum, and saw several complaints about screen cracks, burned out micro USB amongst other problems)
Is the diference between 2k and 1080p displays noticeable?
So guys, I want to known your opinion about this phone. From both exynos and snapdragon users of what makes this phone worth over other brands .
Also, I encourage sugestions of other brands since I want something future proof.
Sorry if my english sucks, but Its not my main language.
Sincerely
Shade
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Hi shade,
I can answer a few of those questions for you.
Difference in cam sensors, is negligible from what I can tell.
Custom ROMs? Nope. It's all just stock based ROMs with a few tweaks, CM does exist but it's far from stable and plenty of stuff doesn't work yet.
If you're an idiot, it'll break. Be careful, use a thin case, and original cables, and you can't go wrong.
Yes it is, and once you get used to it, 1080p seems a bit... well... boring. Just kidding, the difference is noticeable, but unless you use your phone to watch HD movies, it makes no difference in normal usage like roasting a friend in a group chat or using Snapchat.
I don't have the Snapdragon one, but just know, if you do get one, the chances of getting Custom ROMs goes from 'a bit' to 'none at all' since the SD 820 variants all have locked bootloaders.
If you're really looking for something future proof? How about a OnePlus 3T? You'd save a ton of money, get some more internal storage, 2 extra gigs of RAM and a ton of custom ROM support.
I'll sell you mine with two cases (unicorn beetle pro, clear speck candyshell) and a 2 year square trade warranty! All can be yours, make me an offer I can't refuse!
moSess said:
I'll sell you mine with two cases (unicorn beetle pro, clear speck candyshell) and a 2 year square trade warranty! All can be yours, make me an offer I can't refuse!
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This was pure genius xD
murtaza02 said:
Hi shade,
I can answer a few of those questions for you.
Difference in cam sensors, is negligible from what I can tell.
Custom ROMs? Nope. It's all just stock based ROMs with a few tweaks, CM does exist but it's far from stable and plenty of stuff doesn't work yet.
If you're an idiot, it'll break. Be careful, use a thin case, and original cables, and you can't go wrong.
Yes it is, and once you get used to it, 1080p seems a bit... well... boring. Just kidding, the difference is noticeable, but unless you use your phone to watch HD movies, it makes no difference in normal usage like roasting a friend in a group chat or using Snapchat.
I don't have the Snapdragon one, but just know, if you do get one, the chances of getting Custom ROMs goes from 'a bit' to 'none at all' since the SD 820 variants all have locked bootloaders.
If you're really looking for something future proof? How about a OnePlus 3T? You'd save a ton of money, get some more internal storage, 2 extra gigs of RAM and a ton of custom ROM support.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for awsering
So the 820 has a locked bootloader? That sucks a lot. Well, I guess with the news that cyanogenmod is dead it isen't relevant anymore. I have a good deal for a S7E Gold for 400€ so I'm going to get it.
Thanks for your help! Merry Christmas
smg9350 is all unlocked and smacks exynos around in the benchmark area. Dont give the guy bad info.
Shadeftw said:
This was pure genius xD
Thanks for awsering
So the 820 has a locked bootloader? That sucks a lot. Well, I guess with the news that cyanogenmod is dead it isen't relevant anymore. I have a good deal for a S7E Gold for 400€ so I'm going to get it.
Thanks for your help! Merry Christmas
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Well travis82 just mentioned that the SM-G9350 which is the Chinese variant has the Snapdragon 820, and an unlocked bootloader.
Just check what bands your carrier uses for 3G and LTE and make sure the phone supports them, if you're interesting in buying the chinese variant.
travis82 said:
smg9350 is all unlocked and smacks exynos around in the benchmark area. Dont give the guy bad info.
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Jeez, okay, no need to get so hostile.
You gotta admit that the Exynos has way better battery life though.
nah i seem to get better battery than exynos varients. more cores doesnt mean better overal. ie: amd vs intel. is one example. but really the op should wait for next years flagships, they will be much better, and a die shrink to boot.
Well I went ahead and bought the phone. So now I am suprised that it has the xsg csc. Do you guys known if I can flash my country's original stock rom without tripping knox?
it's all a matter of opinion. I've ran circles around an s8+ exynos.. not sure where people are seeing this so dramatic an increase. it's barely anything that will keep up with this chip except maybe the new one..
Here I've pulled a basically idle SnapDragon from cpu info.. I challenge anyone to PLEASE post one that even remotely and FACTUALY supports this obvious absurdity...
Thanoseid.bat said:
it's all a matter of opinion. I've ran circles around an s8+ exynos.. not sure where people are seeing this so dramatic an increase. it's barely anything that will keep up with this chip except maybe the new one..
Here I've pulled a basically idle SnapDragon from cpu info.. I challenge anyone to PLEASE post one that even remotely and FACTUALY supports this obvious absurdity...
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Click to collapse
I was actually a Snapdragon user always. And that's the first time i use exynos.
But history shows that exynos is better in the long run. Battery wise it is also better. And i see it now.
Your post hardly makes sense. I don't understand what point you are trying to make
My exynos s8 doesn't need to strain my as much at idle as yours does though
Thanoseid.bat said:
it's all a matter of opinion. I've ran circles around an s8+ exynos.. not sure where people are seeing this so dramatic an increase. it's barely anything that will keep up with this chip except maybe the new one..
Here I've pulled a basically idle SnapDragon from cpu info.. I challenge anyone to PLEASE post one that even remotely and FACTUALY supports this obvious absurdity...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
wezzel98765 said:
Your post hardly makes sense. I don't understand what point you are trying to make
My exynos s8 doesn't need to strain my as much at idle as yours does though
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My bad. I got it wrong
Not entirely sure what we're looking at here but here's my snapdragon at idle
SirNamero said:
Not entirely sure what we're looking at here but here's my snapdragon at idle
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Omg its so slow, only 300mhz?!? Something must be wrong...
Why do some people make it out to be some sort of competition ?
peachpuff said:
Omg its so slow, only 300mhz?!? Something must be wrong...
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I know right? I tried underclocking it but that just made it worse. I tried putting it in my car and driving really fast cause maybe it just needed to physically move fast, but I just got a speeding ticket. I submitted a ticket to Samsung but they just told me to by an S9+. I'm at a loss here.
CuBz90 said:
Why do some people make it out to be some sort of competition
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Because e-peen is the most important thing in the world ok? So the real question here is why aren't you contributing to the competition??
no one claims exynos is faster they are on-par with each other. otherwise they would have sold these phones as different models. However, I believe if they were not forced to Samsung would sell exynos galaxy's to USA as well. exynos is a beter chipset for galaxy devices because its designed by samsung. snapdragon 835 etc is a generic SoC.