A7 2018 community missing? - Galaxy A3, A5, A7, A8, A9 Q&A, Help & Troubleshoot

Hello everybody, i was looking into the a7 2018 forum and it looks like no one has this phone! There isn't a single custom rom or recovery, not even a guide to root the phone.
But if you look on facebook or the official forum there is plenty of people asking for features and more.
I mean this phone has problems right now and samsung is doing nothing to solve them, there is a huge gap that can be filled by modders.
Stuff like:
- It has a 24.8mp Sony IMX 576 sensor but there is a problem in the image processing, Samsung is using the Superpixel feature that turn 4 pixel into 1 for a brighter image during low light captures, and because of this a lot of details of the camera are loss, is there a way to switch off this feature that right now it's always ON even during the day.?
- It has the same sensor of the A9 but it's lock to 1080/30fps for marketing purposes, the A9 is able to record in 4k/30, can someone modify the camera features in order to enable the 4k/30 or even more 4k/60?
- This phone is able to record real 720/960fps for 1/3 of a second, but it is lock to record in slowmo at 720p/120 and 240, is there a way to bring it up to at least 1080p?
There is so much potential in this phone and no one is looking into it.

To be honest, I would not be surprised if no one had this phone, as for the same price you can now buy an unused S7 which can e.g. record 720p/240 and its specs are quite a bit better honestly; I am not saying that you made a mistake buying the A7 – I would actually do the same if I preferred bigger phones.
IMO the S7 offers the best price to quality ratio though.
P.S. I personally own an A3 2016, purchased in 2016, as it cost was relatively low.

Related

Galaxy S5 to S7 (SM-G930F): An Upgrade or Really... Downgrade?

So I got myself a Galaxy S7 (SM-G930F) to replace my almost 2 year old Galaxy S5. After a few days of usage, here is what I think.
What I like on S7 compared to S5:
- much more responsive interface and overall experience, UI feels silk-smooth, the phone is properly fast
- all glassy (front and back) and beautiful, feels expensive (judging from posts on this forum, a very important feature for some users ;])
But that's about all to like. And this is what I dislike about it:
- While glass back of S7 looks very nice, it is much more slippery than plastic back of Galaxy S5. It is so slippery, that sometimes it is scary just to take it out of the pocket. So while I never needed a case with my S5, I may need it with S7
- No IR blaster. No idea why Samsung ditched such useful feature (LG G5 has it). It is very small and exists in waterproof S5, so space and waterproof-ness should not be a problem. And it is really useful, because you can skip renting remotes for TV and airco units in the hotels, if you already have IR blaster on your phone. So, Samsung, why to remove a useful feature which is also fun and helps to save money?
- No removable battery. This is not a very big issue for me, since I rarely needed extra battery on my S5, but some people (especially those traveling) are relying on it. Definitely nice to have in a phone. However, it may be that having non-removable battery helped to achieve IP68 dust/water-proof rating compared to IP67 on S5.
- Only 32 GB version at launch. Keeping in mind that Samsung gives away Samsung Gear VR virtual reality headset with all S7 pre-orders (and VR demos/games take lots of space), 32GB suddenly does not seem quite a lot.
- Finally (and this annoys me most, since I am living in a place where winter is something that happens every year), for some unfathomable reason Samsung removed "Touch Sensivity" option from the ROM, which allows to operate the phone with the gloves on. This is just a software feature (since the touchscreens are crazy sensitive these days anyway) and it doesn't cost anything for Samsung to keep it in the phone. Nevertheless, on a new Galaxy S7 it is nowhere to be found. Samsung, are you listening - what the hell??? Now we can only hope someone (maybe even from XDA developers) will add this feature back as a standalone program/xposed framework module/etc.
There is one more problem - there is still no root for SM-G930F, at least not yet, but hopefully Chainfire will soon get his hands on it. So overall, even if the phone is faster and smoother, compared to Galaxy S5, it feels more like downgrade than the upgrade...
Best,
satanxda
One of the primary reasons as for why Samsung went for the complete glass redesign on the S6 (and later the S7) were the lackluster sales of the S5 as compared to the S4, the best selling android phone of all time. According to a list on wikipedia the S5 sold approximately 11 million units, while it's predecessor landed at an impressive 80 million. This probably wasn't the only reason for the design change though, as Samsung have been going after Apple's marketshare aggresively in the past two releases.
The removable battery and IR blaster were most likely removed because there were too few people using them.
I agree completely on the last two points though. It's odd if they removed the touch sensitivity thing, but there might be a technical reason behind it.
i just upgraded from the s5 to the s7 as well. I agree the back s5 felt a lot better in hands. I hate using a case, it defeats the purpose of making the phone so thin. I also didnt realize that there is no IR blaster until i read your post. whats move fun than getting drunk in bar and changing the tv channels or turning up or down the music
So the better camera, bigger battery, higher res screen, no ugly waterproof flaps you don't like? You're right it really is a downgrade, but only in your eyes.
Lol
Last year "No expandable storage! Screw you Samsung"
gives expandable storage
This year "Only 32GB's? Screw you Samsung!"
samsung cry cry
peachpuff said:
So the better camera, bigger battery, higher res screen, no ugly waterproof flaps you don't like? You're right it really is a downgrade, but only in your eyes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't get it wrong - this post is not about the inevitable progress in CPU, screen and camera areas. It is about Samsung killing useful features for no reason.
P. S. You loose 4 Megapixels for camera as well with S7, so it may not be a camera upgrade in all ways ;] And the bigger battery only compensates for more pixels on the screen.
satanxda said:
Don't get it wrong - this post is not about the inevitable progress in CPU, screen and camera areas. It is about Samsung killing useful features for no reason.
P. S. You loose 4 Megapixels for camera as well with S7, so it may not be a camera upgrade in all ways ;] And the bigger battery only compensates for more pixels on the screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Uhh no. Megapixels do not make a quality camera. That's like saying your S5 would be an "upgrade" over some DSLRs. The reason some of the features were removed is just that they aren't practical. Sure, the IR blaster is cool, but I played with it once and never used it again. I'd imagine that's how 95% of the people who buy the phone are.
32gb internal memory is not a problem when you have 200gb expandable storage.
Removable battery is a non issue when you have both QC2.0 wired charging and fast wireless charging. If you're that concerned, buy a $20 power bank and charge your phone 3+ times on a single charge.
I went from an S5 to the S7 too. Expandable storage is a must. Hands down it's an upgrade. Yeah, I was bummed there was no IR blaster but then after setting it up on my S4 and S5 later I found I never used it. Wireless charging is built in and on the S5 you had to add it on and if you wanted a case after going wireless charging on the S5 you were limited. Wife heard the S7 didn't have that flap on the USB port and immediately said order me one. Granted root is not available yet but how soon after the S5 came out did it get root? Themes built in........ I can go on and on and on.
Things I don't like compared to my S4:
No removable battery - this I think I can live with without much angst, although I'd prefer removable
Glass back - slippery and fragile, might force me to use a case, which adds bulk that I do not like and have never needed with any phone. I really don't care at all what it looks like
Size and weight - about same width and thickness, but it's unnecessarily tall, and it's substantially heavier, which is a negative and will be an even bigger negative if I have to use a case
Otherwise, it's a pretty sizable upgrade in every other way. 32GB - hopefully there will be a 64GB or 128GB variant that will fully work on T-Mobile (WiFi calling is still an important feature to me), although it is a step up from the 16GB that I'm used to, and I can plunk in my 128GB SD.
I'm going to wait for prices to drop a bit, for Samsung to push out an update or two, and see how root/ROMs shake out.
satanxda said:
Don't get it wrong - this post is not about the inevitable progress in CPU, screen and camera areas. It is about Samsung killing useful features for no reason.
P. S. You loose 4 Megapixels for camera as well with S7, so it may not be a camera upgrade in all ways ;] And the bigger battery only compensates for more pixels on the screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On paper, the Galaxy S7 camera has lower specs: 12 MP on the back (compared with the S6 16 MP) and 5 MP on the front. While the new camera may produce a lower number of pixels, it makes up for this with dual-pixel technology; a feature that promises an increase in image clarity despite the lower pixel numbers.
The S7's camera focuses up to four times faster than the S6's. The camera's aperture is also lower, at f / 1.7, which means better low-light performance. Together, these enhancements mean that the Galaxy S7 focuses up to four times faster in low-light conditions and twice as fast in daylight.
TonyStark said:
On paper, the Galaxy S7 camera has lower specs: 12 MP on the back (compared with the S6 16 MP) and 5 MP on the front. While the new camera may produce a lower number of pixels, it makes up for this with dual-pixel technology; a feature that promises an increase in image clarity despite the lower pixel numbers.
The S7's camera focuses up to four times faster than the S6's. The camera's aperture is also lower, at f / 1.7, which means better low-light performance. Together, these enhancements mean that the Galaxy S7 focuses up to four times faster in low-light conditions and twice as fast in daylight.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, you said it - faster focus in exchange for a loss of 4 Megapixels. Less megapixels is not necessary a bad thing if the pixels are bigger (this way you get less noise), but it is still 4 Megapixels less ;] (which matters since there is no optical zoom in the phone, so zooming digitally means cropping your photo)
satanxda said:
Samsung removed "Touch Sensivity" option from the ROM, which allows to operate the phone with the gloves on. This is just a software feature (since the touchscreens are crazy sensitive these days anyway) and it doesn't cost anything for Samsung to keep it in the phone. Nevertheless, on a new Galaxy S7 it is nowhere to be found. Samsung, are you listening - what the hell???
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for sharing this deal breaking piece of information, looks like I'm stuck with my S5. It's frustrating that Samsung never really "gets it". They can't compete with Apple on design aesthetics, they can't compete with Nexus on Android integration. We buy Samsung phones because they have features that other manufacturers overlook. I love my S5 because it's better than my S2. I would love the S7 if it was better than the S5, but it's not. Removing valuable features keeps people from upgrading. If you're correct about this being a software feature, there is hope, but I'm guessing it's hardware.
32 GB Memory with no 64 GB Option = Unforgivable
Loss Of IR Blaster = Not a deal breaker for me, but I understand why this will piss a lot of people off.
Loss Of FM Radio = Could care less.
Loss Of Removable battery = Get over it, fast charging and portable chargers are perfectly acceptable solutions for me.
No Root = I used to care about this, but it bothers me less and less with each new version of Android. I just don't have the time to invest in the complications of rooting anymore. Being on Verizon just makes this worse.
No USB 3 = Bummer, doesn't make sense to remove it.
I'm headed to the Verizon store with my motorcycle gloves to see what happens. If there's a complete loss of touchscreen functionality, I'll probably just keep going with my S5.
i bought the same phone today and it shows signal without putting the sim on.//
how to remove this??
LKS007 said:
i bought the same phone today and it shows signal without putting the sim on.//
how to remove this??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think you can remove it - it's for emergency calls
The S7 camera kicks butt, that's coming from someone who use the Canon 5D3 regularly with 35L II, 85L II, 100L 2.8 IS macro, and 70-200L 2.8 IS II lens. I would gladly take lower aperture and give up few megapixel, hell...if S7 came with f/1.4 lens I wouldn't even mind going down to 6~8MP. You shouldn't use your phone to make poster or big prints to hang on your wall so anything more than 8MP on a phone camera is just gimmicky. LOL
ben805 said:
The S7 camera kicks butt, that's coming from someone who use the Canon 5D3 regularly with 35L II, 85L II, 100L 2.8 IS macro, and 70-200L 2.8 IS II lens. I would gladly take lower aperture and give up few megapixel, hell...if S7 came with f/1.4 lens I wouldn't even mind going down to 6~8MP. You shouldn't use your phone to make poster or big prints to hang on your wall so anything more than 8MP on a phone camera is just gimmicky. LOL
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. I have my self a Canon 6D with high end lenses. The S7 photo quality is really impressive for such a small piece of hardware. Even with less Mpx, the sharpness is way better than with the S6, and the low light photos are impressives. And you can get the Raw. Photographers that opened the RAW files in lightroom are generally impressed by the overall quality of this phone. Hell, I'm finally happy to be able not to bring my DSLR for every situation I might take a photo.
I compared my old S4, my wife S6, and my workplace iphone 6S, believe me, the S7 is the only one that can actually be compared to compact camera
So the s7 camera is a beast? Im an android fan and i admit that in the past apple had the best mobile cameras. The note 3 and 4 had great cameras as well. I think android surpassed apple in the mobile camera area.
I upgraded from S5 also and only feature i really miss is IR.
Ok so the only feature I miss is an unlocked bootloader. I miss my root

HTC 10 or S7

Hi everyone ,
I thought of getting the s7 edge but the 10 was pretty impressive. Which should I go for ? I flash Roms a lot and will definitely root it. I will be getting it unlocked for sure.
I had the HTC ONE M8. My contract was up this year. I went for the S7 EDGE and aside from missing the IR blaster, I don't regret it. However the lack of decent tempered glass screen protectors for the S7E is irritating.
That said, if the Edge model did not exist and the choice was between regular S7 and HTC 10, I would have stuck with HTC. The Edge uniqueness pipped it for me. I actually use the Edge UI quite a bit.
FYI some more background, I left Samsung years ago and switched to HTC for two reasons 1) fed up with TouchWiz and bloat ware 2) plastic materials. Something I felt HTC were addressing with their Sense and metal materials. I've gone full circle again. TouchWiz is less bloated now and actually enjoyable to use. And the hardware feels premium.
Sent from my SM-G935F using XDA-Developers mobile app
Are you getting the international S7? Because AFAIK, The US models don't support unlocking/root... so that's a big negative. Also, I never had a good experience using an international Note 5 on T-Mobile USA's network (if you're US based).
Each phone has pro's and cons. The S7 is certainly more polished right now, but HTC has been pushing updates daily to fix issues. Performance should ideally be faster on the HTC just because it is less bloated. I really appreciate HTC embracing stock Android as much as possible. I'll give you a quick rundown of my opinion on the devices... I'm having such a hard time deciding, I actually just ordered both and plan on using them back and forth to hopefully decide which I will use until the next Nexus or Note 6.
S7E:
+Insanely fast autofocus... camera is reliable right now. Better manual controls
+Great sunlight brightness
+Waterproof
+OLED screen
+Unique design
+Larger screen
+Huge battery
+Better slow motion video, and 60 FPS video
+Wireless charging
+UFS storage speeds
-micro-USB, v2.0
-TouchWiz
-No root capability for US models yet?
-Fingerprint reader is slower and must press power button
-Curved edges can distort colors (turn blue/green) on white browsing screens
HTC 10:
+Brighter screen in manual brightness
+High fidelity speakers and headphone jack, DAC/amps. High-res audio recording
+Lighter OS
+Better looking display whites
+Type C USB, v3.1
+Unlocked bootloader
+Better front and rear camera hardware (bigger pixels, OIS on front - software needs more polishing)
+$599 after discount code
-eMMC storage speeds
-Smaller display
-Only splash resilient
-Small battery for thickness
-No sunlight brightness boost mode
-LCD contrast (very good, but still nowhere near OLED)
If the 10 were OLED and 5.5", it would have been the perfect phone...
I love HTC, but now, i would pick the S7 edge.
Htc 10 is a good device. The S7Edge is a great device. You pretty much get the best components on the market. Htc 10 asks way too high of a price for what it offers, using emmc storage, bad optics for the camera, OIS not so good either, display is not that good unless you get a specific brand (basically a lottery), it gets too hot too fast ( search htc 10 forums)
The only reason you might wanna consider the 10 is maybe audio, not that its that much better than the S7Edge exynos. Samsung pretty much created the best device money can get to date.
FalconFX said:
Htc 10 is a good device. The S7Edge is a great device. You pretty much get the best components on the market. Htc 10 asks way too high of a price for what it offers, using emmc storage, bad optics for the camera, OIS not so good either, display is not that good unless you get a specific brand (basically a lottery), it gets too hot too fast ( search htc 10 forums)
The only reason you might wanna consider the 10 is maybe audio, not that its that much better than the S7Edge exynos. Samsung pretty much created the best device money can get to date.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're down talking the phone way more than it deserves. Have you even used it yet to back up those claims?
The latest eMMC is not THAT much worse than UFS. Most people are likely to not even notice a difference because once things are loaded in the RAM, it's moot.
How does it have bad optics? LOL. It uses the same sensor as the 6P which BEATS the S7E in plenty of low light tests due to superior HDR processing. The HTC with a bigger aperture AND OIS is a recipe for perfection if HTC can get the camera software right, which so far has gotten better, but is not where it needs to be. And how is the OIS bad?
I haven't seen much complaining about the panels. Apparently the more rare Sharp panels don't have an issue in landscape with polarized sunglasses and may have less visible tinting at extreme angles. But from what I saw in a YouTube video, after 2 weeks, the pink tint was practically gone at extreme angles hinting to it being an adhesive issue in the LCD which will clear up after a little bit of use.
Don't know anything about the heat actually being an issue. Apparently people feel the heat easily - it is an aluminum phone, so maybe it's just better at dissipating it, but I would bet that the S7E is less prone to thermal throttling with its vapor heat pipe. Not an issue for me because I never game on my phone.
Nitemare3219 said:
You're down talking the phone way more than it deserves. Have you even used it yet to back up those claims?
The latest eMMC is not THAT much worse than UFS. Most people are likely to not even notice a difference because once things are loaded in the RAM, it's moot.
How does it have bad optics? LOL. It uses the same sensor as the 6P which BEATS the S7E in plenty of low light tests due to superior HDR processing. The HTC with a bigger aperture AND OIS is a recipe for perfection if HTC can get the camera software right, which so far has gotten better, but is not where it needs to be. And how is the OIS bad?
I haven't seen much complaining about the panels. Apparently the more rare Sharp panels don't have an issue in landscape with polarized sunglasses and may have less visible tinting at extreme angles. But from what I saw in a YouTube video, after 2 weeks, the pink tint was practically gone at extreme angles hinting to it being an adhesive issue in the LCD which will clear up after a little bit of use.
Don't know anything about the heat actually being an issue. Apparently people feel the heat easily - it is an aluminum phone, so maybe it's just better at dissipating it, but I would bet that the S7E is less prone to thermal throttling with its vapor heat pipe. Not an issue for me because I never game on my phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just the fact that you said that HTC has bigger aperture means you know s***t about cameras, The smaller the number the wider the aperture, 1.7 is better than 1.8. here is a comparison :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFww3-Ne3Fk
When i said optics i meant the lenses, not the sensor, but considering how you dont know which aperture size is better, there is no reason to waste my time on photography 101.
The S7 is the fastest device of the year (exynos), in day to day usage & in heavy tasks.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvytFwkI8BA
As i said, the 10 is a good device, but not a great one, for the price they are asking for it, they are delivering the basic things, which every device this year does very well, and arguably the S7 excels not only at the basics, but goes beyond that with extras, (Wireless charging, heat pipe, IP68, etc).
FalconFX said:
Just the fact that you said that HTC has bigger aperture means you know s***t about cameras, The smaller the number the wider the aperture, 1.7 is better than 1.8. here is a comparison :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFww3-Ne3Fk
When i said optics i meant the lenses, not the sensor, but considering how you dont know which aperture size is better, there is no reason to waste my time on photography 101.
The S7 is the fastest device of the year (exynos), in day to day usage & in heavy tasks.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvytFwkI8BA
As i said, the 10 is a good device, but not a great one, for the price they are asking for it, they are delivering the basic things, which every device this year does very well, and arguably the S7 excels not only at the basics, but goes beyond that with extras, (Wireless charging, heat pipe, IP68, etc).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My comment of having a bigger aperture was directed towards it being larger than the 6P, not the S7E. I am well aware that the S7E has a larger aperture, but the 10 has larger pixels. I'm not sure which would equate to taking in more light, but considering the 6P has been capable of producing better shots than the S7E in many scenarios at night, the 10 should be even more capable with its larger aperture (than the 6P).
Exynos is not available here in the US unless you get the international version, which is not worth it considering the issues that may arise trying to use it on US carriers based on my experience with an international Note5 on T-Mobile USA's network. If OP is outside of the US, then that is cetainly something to consider.
The S7 has its additional features, as does the 10. The heat pipe is only relevant if you heavily use the device. IP68 is cool for sure, but I don't know how well I'm warming up to the idea of getting the phone wet regularly. Wireless charging is pointless because it is a lot slower than wired, and you can't really use the phone easily when it's charging like that. The 10 has FAR superior audio (at least vs the SD 820 variant), has a larger aperture for the front camera along with OIS, more refined speaker audio, higher manual brightness, USB Type C v3.1, is less bloated, and - this is a big one for me - doesn't require you to hit a home button for fingerprint unlock OR to go home. I don't know why, but I hate pushing down on a button, especially to unlock the device.
I'm not arguing that the S7 isn't a great device. That's why I have ordered them both to see which suits me best. I'm just saying that calling the 10 only a "good" phone is a bit unwarranted at this point. HTC put a lot of effort in the right places and left it unlocked from the start, and has pushed updates daily since it launched. Samsung hasn't really innovated much like they could have. Last year's Note5 was a huge showcase of that... nothing new other than the updated design.
HTC 10 I liked best the camera.
Nitemare3219 said:
My comment of having a bigger aperture was directed towards it being larger than the 6P, not the S7E. I am well aware that the S7E has a larger aperture, but the 10 has larger pixels. I'm not sure which would equate to taking in more light, but considering the 6P has been capable of producing better shots than the S7E in many scenarios at night, the 10 should be even more capable with its larger aperture (than the 6P).
Exynos is not available here in the US unless you get the international version, which is not worth it considering the issues that may arise trying to use it on US carriers based on my experience with an international Note5 on T-Mobile USA's network. If OP is outside of the US, then that is cetainly something to consider.
The S7 has its additional features, as does the 10. The heat pipe is only relevant if you heavily use the device. IP68 is cool for sure, but I don't know how well I'm warming up to the idea of getting the phone wet regularly. Wireless charging is pointless because it is a lot slower than wired, and you can't really use the phone easily when it's charging like that. The 10 has FAR superior audio (at least vs the SD 820 variant), has a larger aperture for the front camera along with OIS, more refined speaker audio, higher manual brightness, USB Type C v3.1, is less bloated, and - this is a big one for me - doesn't require you to hit a home button for fingerprint unlock OR to go home. I don't know why, but I hate pushing down on a button, especially to unlock the device.
I'm not arguing that the S7 isn't a great device. That's why I have ordered them both to see which suits me best. I'm just saying that calling the 10 only a "good" phone is a bit unwarranted at this point. HTC put a lot of effort in the right places and left it unlocked from the start, and has pushed updates daily since it launched. Samsung hasn't really innovated much like they could have. Last year's Note5 was a huge showcase of that... nothing new other than the updated design.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I dont know whats so amazing about higher manual brightness being higher, i keep mine on auto, and outdoors i can see the screen no problem, the 10 has way worst outdoor visibility.
Phones are getting stagnant. The S7Edge is the farthest a device can get as a whole package. Next year is where innovation should be made. Any device that you buy this year will have no problem bolding up beyond 2 yrs. I feel like sammy did the right thing with the s7, its improved in every possible aspect. As i said, the htc 10 is a good device compared to this year's flagships, but its the a great upgrade from the M9 and M8.
The htc 10 would be a great phone if priced well. 500$ is the best price for it. It doesnt offer much from the 6p, so it should be priced against it.
I have one more T-Mobile jump until it resets in June. Then I get 3 more upgrades for the year. I'm going to look at the HTC 10 but I don't know if I'll take the leap. Battery life is most important to me and I don't think the 10 will come close to the 8 hours SOT I'm getting with my S7E.
Sent from my SM-G935T using Tapatalk
Nitemare3219 said:
Are you getting the international S7? Because AFAIK, The US models don't support unlocking/root... so that's a big negative. Also, I never had a good experience using an international Note 5 on T-Mobile USA's network (if you're US based).
Each phone has pro's and cons. The S7 is certainly more polished right now, but HTC has been pushing updates daily to fix issues. Performance should ideally be faster on the HTC just because it is less bloated. I really appreciate HTC embracing stock Android as much as possible. I'll give you a quick rundown of my opinion on the devices... I'm having such a hard time deciding, I actually just ordered both and plan on using them back and forth to hopefully decide which I will use until the next Nexus or Note 6.
S7E:
+Insanely fast autofocus... camera is reliable right now. Better manual controls
+Great sunlight brightness
+Waterproof
+OLED screen
+Unique design
+Larger screen
+Huge battery
+Better slow motion video, and 60 FPS video
+Wireless charging
+UFS storage speeds
-micro-USB, v2.0
-TouchWiz
-No root capability for US models yet?
-Fingerprint reader is slower and must press power button
-Curved edges can distort colors (turn blue/green) on white browsing screens
HTC 10:
+Brighter screen in manual brightness
+High fidelity speakers and headphone jack, DAC/amps. High-res audio recording
+Lighter OS
+Better looking display whites
+Type C USB, v3.1
+Unlocked bootloader
+Better front and rear camera hardware (bigger pixels, OIS on front - software needs more polishing)
+$599 after discount code
-eMMC storage speeds
-Smaller display
-Only splash resilient
-Small battery for thickness
-No sunlight brightness boost mode
-LCD contrast (very good, but still nowhere near OLED)
If the 10 were OLED and 5.5", it would have been the perfect phone...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks a lot for the comparison. It's really helpful. I'll just get the S7 and the 10 at a go. I'll return either one. BTW I live outside the States.
And thanks, everyone for your thoughts.
Nitemare3219 said:
Are you getting the international S7? Because AFAIK, The US models don't support unlocking/root... so that's a big negative. Also, I never had a good experience using an international Note 5 on T-Mobile USA's network (if you're US based).
Each phone has pro's and cons. The S7 is certainly more polished right now, but HTC has been pushing updates daily to fix issues. Performance should ideally be faster on the HTC just because it is less bloated. I really appreciate HTC embracing stock Android as much as possible. I'll give you a quick rundown of my opinion on the devices... I'm having such a hard time deciding, I actually just ordered both and plan on using them back and forth to hopefully decide which I will use until the next Nexus or Note 6.
S7E:
+Insanely fast autofocus... camera is reliable right now. Better manual controls
+Great sunlight brightness
+Waterproof
+OLED screen
+Unique design
+Larger screen
+Huge battery
+Better slow motion video, and 60 FPS video
+Wireless charging
+UFS storage speeds
-micro-USB, v2.0
-TouchWiz
-No root capability for US models yet?
-Fingerprint reader is slower and must press power button
-Curved edges can distort colors (turn blue/green) on white browsing screens.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
100% incorrect. When the phone is in sleep you simply need to press the home button down with a finger/thumb that's been setup and the phone will unlock. The physical pressing of the home button wakes the device then the fingerprint is immediately read. You don't even need to release the button. The power button on the side at no point needs to be touched.
Beefheart said:
100% incorrect. When the phone is in sleep you simply need to press the home button down with a finger/thumb that's been setup and the phone will unlock. The physical pressing of the home button wakes the device then the fingerprint is immediately read. You don't even need to release the button. The power button on the side at no point needs to be touched.
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Click to collapse
Sorry I used the wrong wording. I know you don't have to hit the power button - what I implied was you must hit the home button, physically push it down to wake the device for your fingerprint to be read. If Samsung would have found a way to avoid that requirement, the fingerprint sensor would be a lot more appreciable to me. I dislike the physical home button all together truthfully. I strongly prefer the 10's home button.
I've been using the S7E for a few days now. The 10 has been sitting at home, and will likely be getting returned. It's a good phone in a lot of ways. Maybe even a great phone. But every other phone out there is the best at something. The 10 is best at almost nothing, but good/great at everything. Problem is, most of those phones that are the best at something are also good/great at everything else too.
My biggest complaint with the 10 is the display. It just sucks compared to OLED. It has crazy motion blur, low brightness below 75%, a pink tint to the entire screen even viewed straight on, and has lesser contrast (but very good contrast for LCD). That combined with the display being SMALL, makes it a loss for me. I just don't want to use it as much as I do the S7E or the 6P.
I was really excited about the audio. I was really excited about the camera. I was really excited about the build. It gets all of those things right. But so do the other two phones I mentioned for the most part (headphone audio isn't that good on the S7E, but it's not bad enough to make me not want to use it). With a 5.5" OLED display, the 10 would've been phone of the year in my book, no questions asked.

If You want to upgrade your S6E+ with a new phone to get better photos read this

Hello! :angel:
On the 19th of January 2018 marks the official launch of the new Samsung Galaxy A8 2018 edition. From that day forward You can easily buy that new phone and You mustn't go through any pre-order procedures anymore.
During my free time I jumped into a couple of stores to see if there is a worthy candidate to replace our beloved S6E+.
To be clear one thing with You right from the begging - I was only checking if the quality of the camera photos were better or worse in comparison to Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge Plus.
Since there has been also other Samsung Galaxy phones in the stores I’ve visited - I’ve checked them too.
The results may come for You as a bit of a surprise.
Notice that the photo quality measurement was judged by myself only and it was always done indoors with much light in the room (no surprise here since it has been done in shopping centers).
If any of You is considering upgrading S6E+ to a newer model taking into consideration only the photo output of the camera please hold and see what was the verdict. Please read below.
So with no further ado, here are the results:
In all models, the HDR was set to AUTO, flash was always set to disabled.
Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge Plus vs. Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge
Winner = Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge Plus and I might say it won easily. The S7 Edge has the biggest difference in photo quality of all the devices I’ve tested!
Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge Plus vs. Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018 edition)
Winner= Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge Plus. I’ve noticed that A8 tries to get better image quality impression by getting more brightness on the photos which is done automatically. In opposition to S7 Edge there is less difference in photo quality between the two compared models.
Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge Plus vs. Samsung Galaxy S8
Winner = TIE. S8 used automatic brightness adjustment to make photos look better. That was very hard to decide which was the real winner or looser in this one.
Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge Plus vs. Samsung Galaxy S8+
Winner = Samsung Galaxy S8+ - again, automatic photo brightness adjustment makes the pictures taken by that phone better. There’s just a little little bit more sharpness in S8+ images.
Samsung Galaxy S8+ vs. Samsung Galaxy Note8
Winner = Samsung Galaxy Note8 – again, images are brighter but they are more sharper too. This is the first real threat to S6E+ and first very good candidate if you want to upgrade S6E+ only by pursuing a better photo quality. Note8 is on the the top of the mountain when it goes for camera picture quality!
Well, that’s pretty much it.
I hope I helped You with upgrade or no upgrade decisions.
Thank You for the time taken to read my post
Before You upgrade Your S6E+ to a newer Samsung to get better photos
please delete this reply Mr Admin.
My mistake. Sorry.
androidbadboy said:
please delete this reply Mr Admin.
My mistake. Sorry.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why do you want to delete? I agree with your opinion and I liked very much this thread. I'd like also add one thing: the number of pixels has a lot of importance when you see the pics in your pc, zoom on or, mainly, when you send them to your smartTV by smartconect. In these cases, S6 edge plus is much better than all of the others with a 16 Mp resolution in 16:9 format against only 12 Mp (4:3 format) and 9 Mp (16:9 format) of the S7, S8, note 8 etc. Remember: to see the true photo quality is not in the small oled screen of the phone (with a lot of artificial tricks and ppi) neither in Facebooks etc! Is in real life like in pc, smartTV or when you print them in paper and here, S6 edge plus photos are long steps ahead and are much better. Here you can see all artificial manipulations of the newer phones, like sharpening... Also that S6 is the only one that has the real and best resolution in 16:9 format perfectly adjusted to Tv's, pc screens etc - in 16 Mp! The maximum resolution in this format performed by S7 and S8, note 8 is only.... 9 Mp!!!! Almost HALF! hehe
For photography and camera in general, I don't swipe FOR SURE
flechinha said:
Why do you want to delete? I agree with your opinion and I liked very much this thread. I'd like also add one thing: the number of pixels has a lot of importance when you see the pics in your pc, zoom on or, mainly, when you send them to your smartTV by smartconect. In these cases, S6 edge plus is much better than all of the others with a 16 Mp resolution in 16:9 format against only 12 Mp (4:3 format) and 9 Mp (16:9 format) of the S7, S8, note 8 etc. Remember: to see the true photo quality is not in the small oled screen of the phone (with a lot of artificial tricks and ppi) neither in Facebooks etc! Is in real life like in pc, smartTV or when you print them in paper and here, S6 edge plus photos are long steps ahead and are much better. Here you can see all artificial manipulations of the newer phones, like sharpening... Also that S6 is the only one that has the real and best resolution in 16:9 format perfectly adjusted to Tv's, pc screens etc - in 16 Mp! The maximum resolution in this format performed by S7 and S8, note 8 is only.... 9 Mp!!!! Almost HALF! hehe
For photography and camera in general, I don't swipe FOR SURE
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Click to collapse
1. I don't want to delete the whole topic, just the first reply to it (#2) cause I messed up something while changing the main topic title.
2. Thank You very much for Your input and kind words. I completely agree with your arguments.
3. BTW During my testing I was zooming after the photo was taken to see how the pixels appear. I compared the two devices: one phone in one hand, the other phone in the other hand and I've searched for differences in image quality.
androidbadboy said:
1. I don't want to delete the whole topic, just the first reply to it (#2) cause I messed up something while changing the main topic title.
2. Thank You very much for Your input and kind words. I completely agree with your arguments.
3. BTW During my testing I was zooming after the photo was taken to see how the pixels appear. I compared the two devices: one phone in one hand, the other phone in the other hand and I've searched for differences in image quality.
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Click to collapse
Thank you for your words too.
For this comparison you need, AND MUST, have the both files of taken photos in these different phones compared in the same equipment with same screen as also with the same color and image treatment. As you know, the screens of these phones are very different in size, ratio, dpi, bright scale, color treatment (I think S8 and note 8 have hdr screen) etc.. As you said, was not the case, so that comparison isn't accurate. Any case and with no doubts, the zoom range admitted by phones for those pictures with less resolution (12 Mp) is lower in scale compared with zoom range reached with a 16 Mp photo, for not to see the weackness and imperfections. You'd see in maximum zoom range reached by S6 photos how would be the quality of S7, S8 and note photos - miserable!
At the end, take exactly the same scenario at the same time with these phones and, after that, take theses files to your PC with a accurate color screen in preference, zoom in and out and you'll see great differences in quality, highlighted S6 in comparison with all the others.
Also, there is someone here in xda who is a professional photographer that has made this comparison. His opinion is the same - S6 was the last with a true 16:9 and 16 Mp camera much better than following phones. We're talking about natural noise, sharpness and quality. S7 and following are very artificial in treatment, focused to AMOLED screens or low resolution app's like facebook, in that you can't notice the natural quality. Even for DxOMark, before he changed the rules caused by the 2 cameras fashion, S6 edge plus has the second best cell camera in the world, much better than S7 and iphones...
Best regards
flechinha said:
Thank you for your words too.
For this comparison you need, AND MUST, have the both files of taken photos in these different phones compared in the same equipment with same screen as also with the same color and image treatment. As you know, the screens of these phones are very different in size, ratio, dpi, bright scale, color treatment (I think S8 and note 8 have hdr screen) etc.. As you said, was not the case, so that comparison isn't accurate. Any case and with no doubts, the zoom range admitted by phones for those pictures with less resolution (12 Mp) is lower in scale compared with zoom range reached with a 16 Mp photo, for not to see the weackness and imperfections. You'd see in maximum zoom range reached by S6 photos how would be the quality of S7, S8 and note photos - miserable!
At the end, take exactly the same scenario at the same time with these phones and, after that, take theses files to your PC with a accurate color screen in preference, zoom in and out and you'll see great differences in quality, highlighted S6 in comparison with all the others.
Also, there is someone here in xda who is a professional photographer that has made this comparison. His opinion is the same - S6 was the last with a true 16:9 and 16 Mp camera much better than following phones. We're talking about natural noise, sharpness and quality. S7 and following are very artificial in treatment, focused to AMOLED screens or low resolution app's like facebook, in that you can't notice the natural quality. Even for DxOMark, before he changed the rules caused by the 2 cameras fashion, S6 edge plus has the second best cell camera in the world, much better than S7 and iphones...
Best regards
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Click to collapse
Thank You for tones of great information.
I know that a precise test would have to be perform like that. I did it this way cause I didn't have access to the files of the phones in the stores for obvious reasons. The second thing is that people tend to judge the photo quality right out of the box shall we say. For example, 2 friends are taking pictures with their different phones and then compare the same object photographed by these phones by putting their devices near each other and judging by just looking at the phone's screen. That's what most people do when evaluating cameras and that's why I sort of did the same. I hope I saved our readers some time or gave them a bit information of what to expect out of the phones that I have compared.
With your information added I think we showed that our beloved Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge Plus is still the king of the mountain.
PS. Which device dares to claim to be number one?
androidbadboy said:
Thank You for tones of great information.
I know that a precise test would have to be perform like that. I did it this way cause I didn't have access to the files of the phones in the stores for obvious reasons. The second thing is that people tend to judge the photo quality right out of the box shall we say. For example, 2 friends are taking pictures with their different phones and then compare the same object photographed by these phones by putting their devices near each other and judging by just looking at the phone's screen. That's what most people do when evaluating cameras and that's why I sort of did the same. I hope I saved our readers some time or gave them a bit information of what to expect out of the phones that I have compared.
With your information added I think we showed that our beloved Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge Plus is still the king of the mountain.
PS. Which device dares to claim to be number one?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah you're right, people want to see and believe what they're are seeing in the moment, no matter the tricks or screens or etc. but for me, the most important is the real file of the photo that I can see, preserve and remind in the future in any equipment. Also when you need zoom a photo in a bigger TV screen, on where all the imperfections come out, a nice photo on the cellularphone can become tremendous here... Keep in mind this, for everybody the best cellphone photos of all the time were taken by nokia brand cellphones, mainly in the old N8 and lumias pureview. Unfortunately the Symbian OS and Windows phone OS didn't let this cellphones shine like they deserve... This is inquestionable but, in the moment in those TFT hd only screens, those weren't the best picture that someone could see...
About your question, sincerely I don't remember which one was considered the best one by DxOMark before new rules, I'm not sure if it was the pixel, but if you want to know, perhaps visiting his site and try to understand it. Unfortunately, also, DxOMark only started focusing in cellphones photography about a pair of years and never had the opportunity to test nokia models cause they are older
Regards
flechinha said:
Yeah you're right, people want to see and believe what they're are seeing in the moment, no matter the tricks or screens or etc. but for me, the most important is the real file of the photo that I can see, preserve and remind in the future in any equipment. Also when you need zoom a photo in a bigger TV screen, on where all the imperfections come out, a nice photo on the cellularphone can become tremendous here... Keep in mind this, for everybody the best cellphone photos of all the time were taken by nokia brand cellphones, mainly in the old N8 and lumias pureview. Unfortunately the Symbian OS and Windows phone OS didn't let this cellphones shine like they deserve... This is inquestionable but, in the moment in those TFT hd only screens, those weren't the best picture that someone could see...
About your question, sincerely I don't remember which one was considered the best one by DxOMark before new rules, I'm not sure if it was the pixel, but if you want to know, perhaps visiting his site and try to understand it. Unfortunately, also, DxOMark only started focusing in cellphones photography about a pair of years and never had the opportunity to test nokia models cause they are older
Regards
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks again,
do you know his website, a contact or something?
androidbadboy said:
Thanks again,
do you know his website, a contact or something?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just Google it.

Considering other options in price range with better camera

Love this phone but after seeing low light comparisons with an ancient Galaxy s5 I was massively disappointed with the low light photographs, which is important to me (as well as overall camera quality). I've familiarized myself with the custom settings and they still don't provide the desired quality.
Considering a 1st gen Google Pixel or Samsung S7 (leaning to the pixel). What phones, including older phones, in a similar price range would be a good trade off?
I don't care about your complaining. Would it help that you compares G5 Plus to 4 years old phone? It makes you feel better? Don't do off topic and just compare phones in the right topic. It's annoying.
maruchandd said:
Love this phone but after seeing low light comparisons with an ancient Galaxy s5 I was massively disappointed with the low light photographs, which is important to me (as well as overall camera quality). I've familiarized myself with the custom settings and they still don't provide the desired quality.
Considering a 1st gen Google Pixel or Samsung S7 (leaning to the pixel). What phones, including older phones, in a similar price range would be a good trade off?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have the Moto G5plus and I compared the shots to 3 other phones I have access to (not all mine). These are all $200 something.
1. iPhone SE - Out of all budget phones, this makes the best pictures in this price range , the reason I won't get it is because the screen size is just a no-go for me. But camera wise, it's top dog, maybe the Note 5 and the S7 would be beating on it (in $200 range)
2. Honor 7X (I owned this for 2 days and returned it, because it had some defects and I chose not to get another one) This makes great pictures IMO, makes better pics than any moto phone although still not as good as the iphone.
3. Moto ZPlay (1st gen) - Don't get this for camera, actually the G5Plus makes better pictures, the only reason it would look better, because of the AMOLED screen it has, but look at it on a PC or another phone and compare the pics, you'd realize that the G5plus made sharper pictures. The Zplay was a mid-ranger in 2016, don't know how the Z2Play is, but as far as I know it has the same exact camera as the G5plus. Moto uses good cameras, but they just can't get their software processing right.
4. Blackberry Priv. - Despite all the other shortcomings (heats up, not so great battery life) this makes really good pictures, has a curved, hres screen too.
5. iPhone 6S- Same camera as the SE. Again, the reason I don't consider it, is because I had it and I got spoiled by my Note 5 (which I broke and gone now) which was way better and the large screen made me hate my iphone screen.
6. Used Galaxy S7 (or edge, but it's $100 more) this has to be the best shooter if you can find one for $200 as a refurb or used. Same thing with the Galaxy Note 4 or 5. Unless of course you hate touchwiz.
7. If you can find a first gen Pixel, you gonna have a good camera. also LG G6 are going dirt cheap on ebay and it's a 2017 flagship. It has an awesome camera with secondary wide angle shot. As of right now I'm getting an LG G6 soon to replace my G5 Plus.
8. Sony experia - I don't know much about it, although people claiming to make as good or even better pics as the S7. Sony seem to be the primary maker of the best cams on most of smartphones so they won't wimp out on putting a really good one on their own smartphones.
maruchandd said:
Love this phone but after seeing low light comparisons with an ancient Galaxy s5 I was massively disappointed with the low light photographs, which is important to me (as well as overall camera quality). I've familiarized myself with the custom settings and they still don't provide the desired quality.
Considering a 1st gen Google Pixel or Samsung S7 (leaning to the pixel). What phones, including older phones, in a similar price range would be a good trade off?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dude, this has the same imaging sensor as the S7 and Pixel, but it was held back by crappy (but fixable) software. There's no way in heck an S5 can compare once you've turned on Camera2 and run the Gcam HDR+ exposure. Out of camera the shots hang on my wall next to ones taken with my $3000+ pro DSLR, and editing the RAW images blows me away every time I try tweaking them in lightroom.
I call shenanigans. I want to see the examples the OP is talking about, or I lay claim that he is only comparing the crippled stock camera app.

Should I get the LG G6 in 2018?

I previously owned a G4 which I had to sell due to the bootloop issues. Then I went on to Huawei Honor 8 (my current phone) which has the poorest official update, root, twrp, cROM support I've ever seen in my life.
My needs are: Good camera, good performance, decent battery life.
My questions are:
Does the G6 have good XDA support?
Does it have good custom ROMs?
How hard is unlocking,rooting,flashing twrp?
How hard is the unbricking process? (Asking this bcz despite all the ****s of my Honor 8, it had a good unbricking process which made taking risks easier)
Note: My budget is limited, the only other options within my budget are: Pixel, OP3t, S7 (all of which are very old).
SirDarknight said:
I previously owned a G4 which I had to sell due to the bootloop issues. Then I went on to Huawei Honor 8 (my current phone) which has the poorest official update, root, twrp, cROM support I've ever seen in my life.
My needs are: Good camera, good performance, decent battery life.
My questions are:
Does the G6 have good XDA support?
Does it have good custom ROMs?
How hard is unlocking,rooting,flashing twrp?
How hard is the unbricking process? (Asking this bcz despite all the ****s of my Honor 8, it had a good unbricking process which made taking risks easier)
Note: My budget is limited, the only other options within my budget are: Pixel, OP3t, S7 (all of which are very old).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, G6 is the most underated phone of the last year, even this year can beat some called "high ends" but to answer your questions:
* Yes, the support for this phone is normal, not huge, not big but you have some development for this phone, some ROM's and Kernels.
* Already answered.
*You need to visit LG Bootloader Unlock page to see what variants of G6 can be unlock, not everyone can be so, be aware first.
*Unbrick is the same as previous models (G4, G5, V10, V20 etc) most needed is Uppercut or LG Bridge to solve the most common issues with this device, wich if you dont mess a lot then you wont have any problem.
You find all Answers in the Forum, when you already open your Eyes in the G6 Forum, LOL.
But for Customisation (root, unblock ...) its pretty hard, only less Variants of the G6 you can unblock and fill with a Custom Rom.
But the Phone itself has a good Battery and Performance
sun_is_shinning said:
Well, G6 is the most underated phone of the last year, even this year can beat some called "high ends" but to answer your questions:
* Yes, the support for this phone is normal, not huge, not big but you have some development for this phone, some ROM's and Kernels.
* Already answered.
*You need to visit LG Bootloader Unlock page to see what variants of G6 can be unlock, not everyone can be so, be aware first.
*Unbrick is the same as previous models (G4, G5, V10, V20 etc) most needed is Uppercut or LG Bridge to solve the most common issues with this device, wich if you dont mess a lot then you wont have any problem.
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Click to collapse
Tnx for the answer. Which variant would you suggest me to get? In my experience, every phone has a variant that's more common and popular than the others.
SirDarknight said:
Tnx for the answer. Which variant would you suggest me to get? In my experience, every phone has a variant that's more common and popular than the others.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i dont know what country you live but if you are from Europe you should get the H870 (not DS wich are Dual Sim, that model dont allow Bootloader Unlock). If you are from US you should buy a US997.
I dont know more variants who can be unlocked at the moment.
Dont opt for the G6. H870DS model has 64GB storage, quad DAC and wireless charging. Some models don't come with all these features. Instead, go for a Nokia or a Xiaomi smartphone instead. Nokia 7 Plus seems to be making a lot of ripples. Or wait for the Nokia X6 instead.
From personal experience, I can tell you this for a fact that LG G6 is a good phone with great performance capabilities, but in order to get that level of performance, you'll need to dive into all the options (gimmicks), like switching off the game battery saver and the LDB from the hidden service menu.
The company software support is a total zombie apocalypse!
Don't fall into the bandwagon, go through the benchmark scores of the phone enticing you and compare it with some competition to know better and make the right call.
It is a best value for money smartphone. You have just to compare its characteristics to others, in order to realize it. Its a flagship smartphone, built in with quality micro devices. Its price has fallen unpredictable and it's good time to buy it. LG service (in Europe) is excellent and immediate. I have tried it. I own a LG G6 (H870).
The dev support for this phone exists, but is very very minimal, since only two versions of this phone are bootloader unlockable.
Custom ROMs are available also, but any AOSP rom isn't going to be able to use the stock camera capabilities. This is a problem with most LG phones I believe, and was the same on my G3.
I'm using stock because the custom roms I've seen aren't 100% functional. Also you're not going to have many apps to customize stock like we did with G3 Tweaksbox for example.
For my US997, Unlock and Root was very straightforward, similar to my Nexus 6P, except you have to get an unlock file from LG's website. (as others have said, you must buy the correct model G6)
I bought this phone because it's a quality phone with a great camera, can root, unlock bootloader, headphone jack, perfect size and has an SD card slot which was important to me. But coming from the Nexus 6P and even the G3 before that, the lack of dev support for this phone is very frustrating.
This phone's stock roms won't let you encrypt data while it's rooted, which means if I lose my phone, anyone who knows how to boot into TWRP can access all of my data.
Because we don't have apps like G3 Tweaksbox or anything similar, you can't do basic stuff like disable the loud volume warning with your headphones on. (This is possible btw, but without a guide idk how to do it)
Overall I'm happy with this phone but if I broke it or lost it right now, I'm not sure I'd buy another one.
I love my G6, H870, rooted and xposed. I can change all I want using Gravity box for Oreo, that is listed as not compatible but it works good. Only thing I miss is dev support...
But....
If I have to buy a phone today looking for tomorrow...
I'll choose xiaomi and 845 chipset.... And treble support... Like a mi mix 2s, or if I can't afford it, a mix 2, about 300 euro..
Just my opinion
siggey said:
I love my G6, H870, rooted and xposed. I can change all I want using Gravity box for Oreo, that is listed as not compatible but it works good. Only thing I miss is dev support...
But....
If I have to buy a phone today looking for tomorrow...
I'll choose xiaomi and 845 chipset.... And treble support... Like a mi mix 2s, or if I can't afford it, a mix 2, about 300 euro..
Just my opinion
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Siggey, do you have a recommendation for a phone that works on all 4 carriers (G6 US997 doesn't support Sprint calling), has memory slot and can be rooted with some dev support
gergev said:
Siggey, do you have a recommendation for a phone that works on all 4 carriers (G6 US997 doesn't support Sprint calling), has memory slot and can be rooted with some dev support
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
with Sprint you have to have an approved IMEI in order to pair the phone with the SIM ICCID and MIN...so even though the Mi Mix 2 should support Sprint, Sprint won’t allow you to use it unless they whitelist it in the store...which is tough to get I hear. Sprint is different from Verizon...Verizon doesn’t block unapproved phones (except during SIM activation) but Sprint in effect does so.
But I'm in europe and I don't know anything about the usa carriers, so I'm sorry I can't help you.
siggey said:
with Sprint you have to have an approved IMEI in order to pair the phone with the SIM ICCID and MIN...so even though the Mi Mix 2 should support Sprint, Sprint won’t allow you to use it unless they whitelist it in the store...which is tough to get I hear. Sprint is different from Verizon...Verizon doesn’t block unapproved phones (except during SIM activation) but Sprint in effect does so.
But I'm in europe and I don't know anything about the usa carriers, so I'm sorry I can't help you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That all makes sense. Thank you for your reply.
SirDarknight said:
My needs are: Good camera, good performance, decent battery life.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Does the G6 have a good camera? Sort of. Front-facing camera is a little bit disappointing, but it's not an issue if you don't take selfies. The two cameras at the back are alright, but you're gonna have to use a custom build of GCam for better results.
Good performance? Overall, yeah. Not much I can say here. The built-in gaming settings allow you to change the resolution of games to favor either performance or graphics, if that's your cup of tea.
In terms of battery life, I can get 4-5 hours SoT using instagram a lot and LTE for the majority of the day with music playing in the background. Good enough for me.
Those other options you said you could afford are probably better, though.
I wouldn't recommend it really. LG's quality control is terrible (the fingerprint scanner keeps failing), and their software is always nearly a year late and pretty unstable, aesthetically not to my taste, and doesn't fully support substratum.
Performance, especially in graphics, seems far weaker and unreliable in real world usage than other flagships that have the same chipset. For example, the Google Pixel 2016 can run real racing 3 at default graphics reasonably fluently. G6 on the other hand is almost unplayable at default settings, even at 1080p resolution.
The display however is gorgeous. Blacks look like from an Amoled display, it's reasonably bright and quite saturated. I just wish it was 1080p by design, for performance, brightness and battery gains. I don't notice a drop in visual quality when I use the adb command to change it to 1080p, and that's taking pixel interpolation into account. 1440p is really not necessary, and VR doesn't count because the IPS LCD technology introduces high motion blur in a VR situation compared to amoled.
I continue to love the design of the phone as well, and it's super tough. Drop onto concrete from shoulder height unprotected (oops) gave it no more than a scuff or two. Personally I would have made the top bezel as wide as the bottom bezel but whatever. Just means that 16:9 games and videos are offset to the side which is distracting for me.
TLDR: Don't let that screen to body ratio lure you in. It makes no difference. There are better options for the price these days.
MDW 100 said:
I wouldn't recommend it really. LG's quality control is terrible (the fingerprint scanner keeps failing), and their software is always nearly a year late and pretty unstable, aesthetically not to my taste, and doesn't fully support substratum.
Performance, especially in graphics, seems far weaker and unreliable in real world usage than other flagships that have the same chipset. For example, the Google Pixel 2016 can run real racing 3 at default graphics reasonably fluently. G6 on the other hand is almost unplayable at default settings, even at 1080p resolution.
The display however is gorgeous. Blacks look like from an Amoled display, it's reasonably bright and quite saturated. I just wish it was 1080p by design, for performance, brightness and battery gains. I don't notice a drop in visual quality when I use the adb command to change it to 1080p, and that's taking pixel interpolation into account. 1440p is really not necessary, and VR doesn't count because the IPS LCD technology introduces high motion blur in a VR situation compared to amoled.
I continue to love the design of the phone as well, and it's super tough. Drop onto concrete from shoulder height unprotected (oops) gave it no more than a scuff or two. Personally I would have made the top bezel as wide as the bottom bezel but whatever. Just means that 16:9 games and videos are offset to the side which is distracting for me.
TLDR: Don't let that screen to body ratio lure you in. It makes no difference. There are better options for the price these days.
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If buying used (in very good condition), would you still say it is mediocre value for money? Assuming it is at least 25-35% cheaper than retail. And I would be coming from a G2 (running 7.1.2 and running it well).
4everAnoob said:
If buying used (in very good condition), would you still say it is mediocre value for money? Assuming it is at least 25-35% cheaper than retail. And I would be coming from a G2 (running 7.1.2 and running it well).
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My opinion of the phone has improved slightly since I wrote this, a factory reset improved its performance and fluidity a fair bit. Personally, right now I would get a Xiaomi mi A2 for $250 which is about how much you can get a used G6 for, just due to that clean software. However, the G6 is not bad for that price. Just make sure you factory reset it after installing all the available updates including oreo. And be prepared for graphics performance significantly weaker than other 821 phones, don't know why.
If you intend on playing anything that's more graphically-intense than Minecraft, I suggest you steer away from this phone. Game performance is so sloppy that Cytus II - a 2D game, mind you - can't even run at full speed.
Selfie camera makes you look like a painting. Back cameras are decent from my experience.
Battery life is alright, but you're gonna have to do a lot of weird stuff to make it last a day. Also, my iPhone 5s, which I had laying around since it was released in 2013, can last longer on standby, which says a lot.
In terms of custom rom support, I can't tell you a thing because my variant can't be bootloader unlocked.
I do not recommend this phone. Having had this phone for a year now, I have legitimate grounds to give my opinion on it. Get anything else.
TL;DR: Phone can't play graphically-intense games. Selfie camera sucks. Battery sucks. Don't buy.
Cameras suck? Tell me yer kidding plz...
MAIN CAMERA Dual 13 MP, f/1.8, 30mm, 1/3", 1.12µm, 3-axis OIS, PDAF
13 MP, f/2.4, 12mm, no AF
Features Dual-LED flash, HDR, panorama
Video [email protected], [email protected]/60fps, HDR, 24-bit/192kHz stereo sound rec.
SELFIE CAMERA Single 5 MP, f/2.2, 18mm
Video [email protected]
The rear has dual cameras, one of them being wide angle 12mm. That's so wide it has a slight fish eye effect. The single front camera is wide angle 18mm, very wide for a front camera. They both take great shots, especially with the GCam ports.
Both cameras on the rear are flat, there is no camera 'bump'. Read any of the original reviews, they rave about the cameras. Shocking to see negative comments about the cameras. For the money, especially today prices, probably one of the best camera setups available.
AsItLies said:
Cameras suck? Tell me yer kidding plz...
MAIN CAMERA Dual 13 MP, f/1.8, 30mm, 1/3", 1.12µm, 3-axis OIS, PDAF
13 MP, f/2.4, 12mm, no AF
Features Dual-LED flash, HDR, panorama
Video [email protected], [email protected]/60fps, HDR, 24-bit/192kHz stereo sound rec.
SELFIE CAMERA Single 5 MP, f/2.2, 18mm
Video [email protected]
The rear has dual cameras, one of them being wide angle 12mm. That's so wide it has a slight fish eye effect. The single front camera is wide angle 18mm, very wide for a front camera. They both take great shots, especially with the GCam ports.
Both cameras on the rear are flat, there is no camera 'bump'. Read any of the original reviews, they rave about the cameras. Shocking to see negative comments about the cameras. For the money, especially today prices, probably one of the best camera setups available.
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Who said the cameras suck? They're awesome!
AsItLies said:
Cameras suck? Tell me yer kidding plz...
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Click to collapse
I am not kidding. I never was, never will be. You can have your opinion, and I'll have mine. Was something lost in translation? If it's me you're referring to, I only said the selfie camera sucks. In my post I said, "The back cameras are decent from my experience."
The selfie camera is not good. At least mine isn't. I don't know if there are any differences between models in different countries. Even in the best of lighting, it still pales in comparison to the G4, which I had before this device.

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