S8 and Google Cardboard VR movies? - Samsung Galaxy S8 Questions and Answers

I have just enough money to get a grey market S8 so please don't lose your time advertising GearVR here
My question is about Google Cardboard compatible headsets like Fiit VR or BoboVR and S8 for VR movies:
Will the S8 use its full 5.8'' screen to play the video or you will have black bars left and right making the viewable screen are as small as 5-5.1''?
Even if you use the bigger resolution videos like Oculus so it can pan on the whole screen area?

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[Q] Googlecardboard with the Aquos 306SH

5 Days with the Aquos and I'm still kicking the tires. I just recently ran across the Google cardboard VR project and thought it was pretty cool. Here is a summary video;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SxAj2lyX4oU
You can download the apps from the Google playstore searching with the keyword "Cardboard"
The Sanyo Aquos looks like it would be a good phone for this; except I'm running into an issue. The motion tracking doesn't seem to work. Its so slooooww if it's functioning at all. I was wondering if some other Aquos users could download the cardboard demo app and see if motion tracking works for you.
cbsites said:
5 Days with the Aquos and I'm still kicking the tires. I just recently ran across the Google cardboard VR project and thought it was pretty cool. Here is a summary video;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SxAj2lyX4oU
You can download the apps from the Google playstore searching with the keyword "Cardboard"
The Sanyo Aquos looks like it would be a good phone for this; except I'm running into an issue. The motion tracking doesn't seem to work. Its so slooooww if it's functioning at all. I was wondering if some other Aquos users could download the cardboard demo app and see if motion tracking works for you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is no gyroscope on this device which is why google cardboard menu doesn't function. There are other VR apps like Glitcher VR that use camera tracking that work OK with the Sharp Aquos.
ivanthec said:
There is no gyroscope on this device which is why google cardboard menu doesn't function. There are other VR apps like Glitcher VR that use camera tracking that work OK with the Sharp Aquos.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. I've never had a phone without a gyro before and just assumed the Sharp (oops not Sanyo) Aquos would have one as well. I was just looking at the specs on the phone at http://www.gsmarena.com/sharp_aquos_crystal-6590.php when I noticed it there was no gyroscope sensor. Kind of disappointing.
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Update.:
I just downloaded the Glitcher VR app and all it does is take the front facing camera image a run it through cardboard SDK and present the same morphed camera image as left and right. There is no stereo or motion tracking that I can see. Still a pretty cool app so thanks for that. Sooo no root, no gyroscope. a broke wifi and screen that can easily be scratched. I'm about ready to pitch the thing and move on.
Looks like if you want to do Google Cardboard VR forget this phone.
cbsites said:
Thanks. I've never had a phone without a gyro before and just assumed the Sharp (oops not Sanyo) Aquos would have one as well. I was just looking at the specs on the phone at http://www.gsmarena.com/sharp_aquos_crystal-6590.php when I noticed it there was no gyroscope sensor. Kind of disappointing.
======
Update.:
I just downloaded the Glitcher VR app and all it does is take the front facing camera image a run it through cardboard SDK and present the same morphed camera image as left and right. There is no stereo or motion tracking that I can see. Still a pretty cool app so thanks for that. Sooo no root, no gyroscope. a broke wifi and screen that can easily be scratched. I'm about ready to pitch the thing and move on.
Looks like if you want to do Google Cardboard VR forget this phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do be aware, Google Cardboard is very enthusiast-oriented. Enthusiasts and tech-heads would prioritize higher quality hardware.
Wifi is also only an issue if you're in locations that warrant 802.11x and WPA Enterprise. I've not had any cert issues on the home and school wireless I use. I do have the issue of Chrome always reminding me that I am not on a secure network at school when it gets to the portal, but that's par for the course on public networks.
Root is on the way, judging by cbsites and his efforts, and the screen is harder to mess up than you think. Mind you, most people would be wise to attach a screen protector to absolutely any touch device they get, whether it's acrylic or Gorilla Glass 3. That's my opinion, at least.

Watch display sizes / large watches?

Am I the only one that prefers a larger display size? I had the original moto 360 (46mm / 1.56" display) and I absolutely loved the large watch face. Most of my regular (non-smartwatch) watches are also large watch faces.
Why is it that all the new Android Wear watches have such small display sizes. Other than the Moto 360, have you found any Android watches that have a 1.5"+ screen size?
My Moto 360 recently died and I've been holding off waiting for new "Pixel" watches, or large display watches and I feel like I may be waiting forever.
What do you all think? Am I a minority in wanting such a large watch?
I agree. I think they are trying to cater to smaller wrists (women) who are gravitating to the small Apple Watch. I like a bigger display. If a new watch comes out that's no bigger than my Urbane, forget it.
..in my letter to Santa Claus this year I asked him for a much bigger Huawei Watch, like 52mm display size, with a bigger louder speaker that streams audio from my phone (for spoken Google Results, spoken language translation, and tts notifications from messaging apps etc) and a 600ma battery and 22mm band size. Xmas is not far off and I can't wait for Santa to bring it for me!
Join the club, the Casio WSD-F10 is a giant; highly recommended.. lots of screen space.

The Chins

Every review on the interwebz rips on this phone for the non functional blank glass on the top and bottom of this phone. I think it's actually genius. First of all this phone is weighted perfectly. It is not top heavy at all unlike my galaxy s6. Second and really the main reason for them is to hold onto something while watching a video without blocking the speaker.
It's useful in landscape whilst watching videos or gaming but otherwise I'd want them gone. A lot of budget devices had a much better screen to body ratio even before the Pixel was released.

i'm very disappointed with 4k video

Hi guys, have i got a faulty S8? I purchased it 24 hours ago to upgrade from my S5 , and mainly for a better video camera experience.
The S5 gave superbly sharp 4k video in all but the dimmest lighting conditions, though it was very jerky and showed a lot of rolling shutter jello effects.
So I replaced my S5 with the S8 after reading reviews and watching video samples, but with my S8 set to UHD, i'm finding the video looks more like HD as it's no where near as sharp as the S5
looking at grass and leaves in early evening light, they look mushy, whereas my S5 showed every strand of grass pin sharp.
So could it be i have a bad camera, or is the S8's UHD not as sharp as the S5?
I'm coming from a Note 4, and I feel the same way. I mainly bought my S8 for the great camera that was touted, but my Note 4 had much sharper pictures by far. I will make a post with some side by sides eventually comparing the 2. The S8s pictures are more soft around the edges, not as much detail, and with high contrast areas (such as taking a pictures in a car of the gauges, black with white letters) there is a lot of bleed from the white over the black, like a fuzz. Video also seemed better on the Note 4.
This is very dissapointing as I bought my S8 primarily for a 4k pocket size "camcorder" as my S5, though pin sharp, makes 4k video's too shakey and with constant focus hunting.
The S8 was touted as the best camera ever, next to the Iphone7 and google pixel, so naturally i thought that camera tech should have improved since 3 years ago when i bought the S5.
The biggest improvement is that 4k is much better stabilized and very little rolling shutter, but the image quality is just about the same as FHD, the sharpness if the S5 in 4k video is so sharp that i see every pixel is used individually on my 1080 computer screen, yet the S8 sharpness close up on my 1080 screen, you can see several pixels are blended as one colour, this is on the high detail items, as its very dissapointing if your a 4k fan like myself. I really don't understand why they rated the S8 camera so high for 4k, but having said that, I have seen a few Youtube videos of S8 4k footage and it does look really good, which takes me to my next question, what sensor do we have, as apparantly there are two different sensors fitted to S8 models, a Sony or a Samsung sensor, could it be that one is better than the other?
So i'm guessing theres no point it taking the phone in for repair?
I will try and upload comparison screenshots if this site allowes for this.
Post the video on youtube of the s5 and s8 as unlisted.
Problem solved!
Perhaps I jumped in too soon to report the problem of my 4k video, it turns out that the media player that i'm using on my pc is MPC-HC and this player automatically zooms in to a 1080 crop of the 4k video, I found this out by accident when I noticed that the playback looked more zoomed in than i remembered shooting the scenes, so by pressing the number 1 key on the numeral keyboard, the video zooms out to its full frame and now i'm happy to say that the videos are pin sharp from the S8 too.
Funny thing was that the S5 4k videos played at full frame on MPC-HC without having to zoom out and thats why i thought that the S8 was faulty.

Question for S7Edge users that went to S8

Currently on S7Edge but really interested in the s8, i tried it in the store just for a few moments but couldnt really compare how it feels in the hand because all the phones at T mobile are attached with security clamp wires.
So for people who went from s7 edge to S8, how is the feel in the hand, it is narrower so i guess it feels smaller, but it is taller. is it hard to reach up top with one hand?
also how is media consumption (youtube,netflix,hboGo, etc) on this aspect ratio compared to s7? because it is narrower and taller you will have black bars on the sides. It is something i deal with at my desktop computer because I have ultrawide monitor so when i watch movies or youtube i have black bars on the sides. I have come to deal with it though. Does it bother you with the s8? also have you had trouble finding slim cases ad good screen protectors? it was always tough for me with s7 edge
kofman13 said:
Currently on S7Edge but really interested in the s8, i tried it in the store just for a few moments but couldnt really compare how it feels in the hand because all the phones at T mobile are attached with security clamp wires.
So for people who went from s7 edge to S8, how is the feel in the hand, it is narrower so i guess it feels smaller, but it is taller. is it hard to reach up top with one hand?
also how is media consumption (youtube,netflix,hboGo, etc) on this aspect ratio compared to s7? because it is narrower and taller you will have black bars on the sides. It is something i deal with at my desktop computer because I have ultrawide monitor so when i watch movies or youtube i have black bars on the sides. I have come to deal with it though. Does it bother you with the s8? also have you had trouble finding slim cases ad good screen protectors? it was always tough for me with s7 edge
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1) It feels fantastic! I can't tell you how much I like holding S8 vs other phone(unless phone is small) I bought case and even with case it is far more manageable than other big boys. It maybe slightly taller, but it doesn't bother me at all, as the width was the main issue with others.
2) Most apps can use full screen and YouTube for example isn't a problem. There is a button to change the screen width. When you start playing videos, a lot of times it adopts to the screen size.
3) Spigen Liquid Armor case on Amazon, very slim and doesn't add bulk and still holding and typing with one hand is great(I don't have big hands)
4) I like matter screen protectors, which I purchased on Amazon for 8.99 (2 pack) case friendly protector.
Charkatak said:
1) It feels fantastic! I can't tell you how much I like holding S8 vs other phone(unless phone is small) I bought case and even with case it is far more manageable than other big boys. It maybe slightly taller, but it doesn't bother me at all, as the width was the main issue with others.
2) Most apps can use full screen and YouTube for example isn't a problem. There is a button to change the screen width. When you start playing videos, a lot of times it adopts to the screen size.
3) Spigen Liquid Armor case on Amazon, very slim and doesn't add bulk and still holding and typing with one hand is great(I don't have big hands)
4) I like matter screen protectors, which I purchased on Amazon for 8.99 (2 pack) case friendly protector.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thank you, yes the width is what makes me sometimes switch for a few days from my s7edge to my iphone 7.
re: the video stretch thing, so does it stretch the video or simply crop/cut off parts to make it fit
Get the +
Sent from my SM-G955F using XDA-Developers Legacy app
kofman13 said:
thank you, yes the width is what makes me sometimes switch for a few days from my s7edge to my iphone 7.
re: the video stretch thing, so does it stretch the video or simply crop/cut off parts to make it fit
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It may crop the sides slightly. Here are 2 screen shots, fit to screen and crop to fit
surfer1000 said:
Get the +
Sent from my SM-G955F using XDA-Developers Legacy app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The + is really cool but ideally I would rather have something slightly smaller than the s7edge but bigger than my iPhone 7 4.7 inch so the S8 seems right
Charkatak said:
It may crop the sides slightly. Here are 2 screen shots, fit to screen and crop to fit
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah wow that's not bad at all
Can anyone who made the change from an S7 Edge to the S8 comment on the battery life difference?
The battery life on this blows my S7E away! Smaller battery but whatever they did to help the life is great!
Also, the curve on these isn't as aggressive as the S7E so it doesn't feel as narrow and hard to hold. I have no issues reaching anything on screen and the way i hold it my finger rests perfectly on the sensor on the back to unlock it or sign into apps!
I haven't had any problem finding a case that i like either.

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