What Do You Use Your SGS2 For? - Galaxy S II Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

It's fascinating to see all the passion behind some of the posts on things like games, still photos, video, and audio. Some people seem to care a lot about certain things while others care less.
So, using the categories below, what percentage of your time on the phone is spent in each? I think it'll be fun to see how differently we all use our phones. Commentary on how the phone performs in your most important categories would be interesting too.
I'll start:
Voice/Productivity/Web/Photos&Video/Audio/Games
15/40/20/5/20/0
BTW, the tally should always equal 100%
My phone arrives Friday so no commentary from me until then...

why did not you add a multiple-choice poll to the thread????? would have been much easier.

agreed

Probably 50/50 AngryBirds/Charging

20% - troubleshooting battery problem
75% - showing off
5% - phone/text/etc.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA Premium App

Dashers said:
Probably 50/50 AngryBirds/Charging
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Lol, my sgs 2 is charging 12 h a day now

Flashing 100% .
rumours that you can do things like internet messaging and talking to people is really a bit far fetched .
jje

100% posting links of vidoes of it to friends with inferior phones.
Okay... *all* friends.
I can't wait for it to arrive!
Then it will be 100% showing it off to them!
;3

everything you can imagine, except making actual phone calls

I use it to pick up women

DocRambone said:
Lol, my sgs 2 is charging 12 h a day now
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are you serious?! my SGS 2 lasts me 1 and a half days, with moderate / heavy use, i'll be downloading from the market, leaving wifi on, listening to music, sending files from my laptop to my phone over wifi ( try to use as little cables as possible ), going on this forum + engadget, few calls and texts.

Games seem to eat up a LOT of battery life.
As for me... Video, Music, games - Beats is addictive as hell, plus the retro game emulators, showing it off
...and...
paying for my bus and train rides with the NFC chip.

Sticks02 said:
Games seem to eat up a LOT of battery life.
As for me... Video, Music, games - Beats is addictive as hell, plus the retro game emulators, showing it off
...and...
paying for my bus and train rides with the NFC chip.
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In South Korea has the NFC chip system really taken off? Is there a good security system in place for NFC based smartphones say if the person looses / has his phone stolen?

I shall be collecting mine in 2 hours.
Tonight I intend to use it to film Mrs. BB3311 and myself whilst engaging in lewd acts.

Related

new game - robotek hd by hexage

hexage, the makers of radiant hd, evac hd, and totemo hd released a new game today called robotek hd. im a huge fan of everything theyve made thus far and robotek hd is another killer game!
you got that right! ive been playing it nonstop
omg. i discovered this on my own from the suggestions on the web version of android market and can i just say...
best. game. ever. (i think)
everything about it is so frikkin cool!
My son loves this game. I haven't been able to pry the NOOK out of his hands all day!
only bad thing about the game is you cannot beat it without spending about 12 dollars on upgrades
You got this on the Android Market? Can't find it for my Evo. Ill try the NC tomorrow.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA Premium App
addicted...
ramiss said:
You got this on the Android Market? Can't find it for my Evo. Ill try the NC tomorrow.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA Premium App
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Not finding it either (on my manualnootered nook). Market online says not compatible.
bobo12 said:
Not finding it either (on my manualnootered nook). Market online says not compatible.
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im running cm7 - gb 2.3.4
luciferii said:
only bad thing about the game is you cannot beat it without spending about 12 dollars on upgrades
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I spent .99 in order to unlock the recharger node and now when I run out of charge just beat the recharger node for charge I currently have over 2000 charge and almost finished the game
Sent from my NookColor using Tapatalk
bobo12 said:
Not finding it either (on my manualnootered nook). Market online says not compatible.
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Dunno' why, but I couldn't find it when I searched "Robotek". A search for "Hexage Ltd" displayed all their games, however, including this one. I was able to download and install. I'm on CM7.
getwilde said:
Dunno' why, but I couldn't find it when I searched "Robotek". A search for "Hexage Ltd" displayed all their games, however, including this one. I was able to download and install. I'm on CM7.
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Tried that, got everything but Robotek.
Hexage's Robotek Cheats Big Time
Don't play this game. The AI cheats big time and gets all the impossibly lucky rolls. Its hack attack is uncannily accurate while yours is so weak. Total imbalance. You have to keep paying real money to win. Don't get suckered.
I have a pretty good strategy and its allowed me to beat the toughest nodes. I have not made any inapp purchases. If you look over the readme, it explains the AI and its occasional "cheating".
This game is very beatable without in-app purchases.
Just use Titanium backup and restore if you lose.
I have over 1000 charge points at level 12 because I'm batting a thousand using Titanium.
thanks luciferii, now I'm addicted
thinking of trying totemo next.
I dont know how a so repetitive game can be so addictive...
its just too fun!
I recently finished Robotek and was able to draw a good conclusion as to why it has so many bad reviews and accusations of cheating AI on the Android Market. The dev claims the AI is "damn good" in the FAQ, but it really isn't. I finished the game with about 6500 charge, no in-app purchases, and defeated the level 50 mainframe. Lost the occasional game, but can confidently say every loss was completely out of my control.
Robotek isn't rigged, which initially crossed my mind and almost made me quit as I ran low on charge. It was a fair assumption: this is far from my first or most complicated/difficult strategy game. I knew the rules and knew what to do, yet still managed strange and irritating losses. The problem was obvious: perfect rolls, which give a powerful unit/effect/attack plus an extra turn, occur far too frequently. This is the source of all the frustration that has led so many people to ***** and moan about the gameplay. As a turn-based strategy (albeit a simple one), no amount of skill can save you if the opponent continues getting free turns while you wait idly and get pummeled.
In the early game, the player has fairly low HP and a few perfect rolls on the AI's side can quickly kill you. In the late game, you can lose upwards of 200 HP from this common scenario and still recover for a comeback win. This would explain why newer players rushed to the Market to slam the game of cheating, while those who stuck it out said winning without paying was doable and not difficult.
If the dev would greatly decrease the chance percentages of perfect rolls, then the number of complaints would go down with it. I've angrily played through too many rounds where the AI got anywhere from 4 to 8 perfect rolls, while I had none. Cheating or not, this is very poor game design and it happens frequently enough to make any sane person want to quit in anger. I recall around level 15 playing one particular mainframe and losing to it with nearly all HP intact. I played it again, using the same exact strategy as before, and quickly won with full HP. Downright silly.
To be fair, I played a number of games where I was the one with "luck" on my side. It made the game no more enjoyable and really made it seem worse. I often took stock Droid and Drone up to Hero across several turns of careful strategy, making my way towards a sound victory.. only to be rewarded with a bunch of unnecessary perfect rolls that made the whole experience feel very cheap and easy.
The other main issue is the low level of control at the player's hands. I wouldn't suggest getting rid of the slot machine, since this is obviously a unique aspect of the game. I would suggest allowing a player to choose which unit attacks which. At the very least grant the player the ability to assign the attack order! Too often an Elite or Hero Droid wastes its powerful laser on a low-HP unit or shield when a stock Tankbot could've done the job. Or my units directing attacks at a harmless messed-up Tankbot while leaving a dangerous Drone alive to fight another turn.
I think all of this masks how weak the AI actually is and simply adds an unneeded layer of frustration, causing less-patient players to jump at the in-app purchases. I gave Robotek a 2-star rating when I thought the game was cheating, and left it at 2 stars when I came to realize its actual problems.
The suggestion that this game is not rigged is just utterly ridiculous, although I agree with much of the rest of the above post. It may just be that it takes some folks longer than others to see that. There is no debating whatsoever (with me, at least) that this is a classic pay-to-win setup. 'Pay-to-win' is synonymous with 'rigged-by-design'. Yes, it is possible to win a fair number of rounds without paying a dime, but especially in multiplayer mode, your ranking will never advance very far without paying, or without using a hack or cheat of some kind (like some of the folks using Titanium backup to reduce damages). If you do not pay (and no one should), the game will make sure that the odds are stacked heavily enough against you that your wins will be limited. In other words, Robotek IS rigged.
I find this entire pay-to-win model obnoxious at best, and downright creepy at worst. It also seems to me that a person has to be especially desperate, or just a pretty bad player, in order to even want to spend money to be better able to defeat one's robotic foes.
To me this whole approach is disingenuous, and I will personally never give Hexage a dime. I'm even mean enough to say that all I wish for them is bankruptcy. However, I gather it isn't just Hexage doing this. That is unfortunate, and a weakness of closed-source, for-profit apps and app stores. Such games take on the flavor of the arcade games that were mainly after a person's quarters. I read somewhere recently that this kind of thing may be the wave of the future. I certainly hope not.

How has your GS2 been brilliant?

The GS2 is an amazing piece of technology so I'm wondering if we can share amounst the forum how the many features of our smartphone have been brilliant in real life situations.
My example;
Recently whilst on a trip to Valencia from the UK the "european maps" on my satnav couldnt find my hotel and I ended up in an orange grove about 10miles from my hotel. I turned on the GS2 (I had a 30Mb a day roaming data bundle on Orange) and searched hotels address which it quickly found, I then opened the address in Google Maps and then using the navigation facility got the directions, the "sat nav function gave us accurate directions right to the hotel.....Brilliant.
For me, it's the fact that the hardware isn't being used to it's potential..clearly, it's very powerful. You get that feeling when using it. It wants to do more. I use everything the device has to offer, and i very rarely encounter any problems..i particularly enjoy the camera. It's fantastic, imo. With hdr+ it becomes incredible.
I can't wait to see the gs2 fully utilised...if it happens lol.
manmikey said:
The GS2 is an amazing piece of technology so I'm wondering if we can share amounst the forum how the many features of our smartphone have been brilliant in real life situations.
My example;
Recently whilst on a trip to Valencia from the UK the "european maps" on my satnav couldnt find my hotel and I ended up in an orange grove about 10miles from my hotel. I turned on the GS2 (I had a 30Mb a day roaming data bundle on Orange) and searched hotels address which it quickly found, I then opened the address in Google Maps and then using the navigation facility got the directions, the "sat nav function gave us accurate directions right to the hotel.....Brilliant.
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I don't see how this experience is unique to the SGSII, pretty much any smartphone nowadays can do what you just did
manmikey said:
The GS2 is an amazing piece of technology so I'm wondering if we can share amounst the forum how the many features of our smartphone have been brilliant in real life situations.
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By being reliable. Coming from an N900 there were lots of times where I'd go to use a function and something wouldn't work (BT audio for example). The SGS2 is brilliant with its reliability - at least compared to an N900!
Loving it so far (nearing 5 months with it).
I can't really think of anything that about the SGS2 that has made me go WOW to be honest, starting to think I have a dud as I don't really believe the hype, screens bright ok but it'll kill your battery, camera well its average at best, certainly no better than any other modern smart phone camera i've used.
Coming from a SE X10i. This phone just basically feels10 times better. Better screen, Camera, video, etc.
Fast,reliable,has this phone,never gets boring. Need I say more!?
G Sensor defect. After 1 month of using it....really highend
Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk
Loads a 100mb PDF instantly,full sized cbr comic files instantly, extremely fast loading practically anything, GPS fixes fast best camera I have used on a mobile, and to top it all off, just been playing emmisary of war, runs fast and looks amazing on the greatest brightest screen on the market
lawl coming from a blackberry this phone is more than brilliant. I also like the reliability you're talking about. I think that the screen at it's lowest contrast is awesome and i won't kill your battery.

This phone vs. iPhone

Name your pros and cons for having each. I'm deciding whether to get this or the 4S. Obviously you're on here cuz you probably have the GS2, so I'm expecting some good pros! But I also want to be aware of things I might miss or run into. This is probably easier for people who've had an iPhone in the past, but really, you can participate either way.
Edit: I'm also really concerned about battery life. What kind of battery life do you get? How long does it go without a charge, and what kind of screen-on time do you get? And how does this compare to the battery life of your past iPhone (if you've owned one)?
my gf has the 4s i have the gs2. her phone is tiny, its really disappointing to use. I used to own an iphone 4 and was very pleased with the os, now though whenever i hold one i get sad because there's so much goodness being spoiled by that small screen.
anyway, on to the part that matters to you: battery life.
This one really varies, when i first got the gs2 and android i would get about the same battery life as her 4s but i was a noob and had all sorts of background data going and wasting battery. Since i've downloaded juice defender ultimate and set it up correctly, i get about 24 hours or more out of the phone b4 needing to charge.
Go with the gs2.
systoxity said:
my gf has the 4s i have the gs2. her phone is tiny, its really disappointing to use. I used to own an iphone 4 and was very pleased with the os, now though whenever i hold one i get sad because there's so much goodness being spoiled by that small screen.
anyway, on to the part that matters to you: battery life.
This one really varies, when i first got the gs2 and android i would get about the same battery life as her 4s but i was a noob and had all sorts of background data going and wasting battery. Since i've downloaded juice defender ultimate and set it up correctly, i get about 24 hours or more out of the phone b4 needing to charge.
Go with the gs2.
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24 hours? That's sweet. How much do you use the phone during that time? Heavy or moderate user?
the only thing that iphone wins in is the connectivity with a mac (ical, address book, itunes) i know there are apps for this and while they are good, they dont match the easiness (IMO)
I was an Iphone user since the 2007 when it first came out. I have had everyone one of them since. I just switched to the SG2 from my 4S and I absolutely love this phone. Yeah, the Iphone has a polished OS, but I had to jailbreak it to use any of the better functions.
I rooted and put a rom on this puppy and I get 48 hrs of battery life moderate use. If I go heavy I can easily get 24 hrs...
i have the skyrocket now and i'm really disappointed with it. longtime 3gs user and android is definitely less polished with many more force closes than ios. another thing is that you're always worried about whether or not an app is poorly written and just spinning in the background. i don't have energy to deal with such things- when i download an app (words with friends or facebook are two really good examples on android vs. iphone) i just want it to work and not screw up my phone. yes, i know there are other apps other than words with friends but everyone i know uses words with friends and i don't think i could convince everyone to switch over just to play with me.
that said, yes you can do a lot more but you really have to mess with all the settings to get them just right. and even then the battery life is awful.
i'm a med student so i spend long hours studying and listening to music on my phone. with my 3gs i could easily get through a 12+ hour study session listening to music the whole time with frequent browsing to look up drugs, diseases, etc.
yesterday i was in the library for a little more than 10 hours with my skyrocket (on wifi the whole time) and it was at 10% when i left whereas the 3gs would be 50%+
hurley81388 said:
i have the skyrocket now and i'm really disappointed with it. longtime 3gs user and android is definitely less polished with many more force closes than ios. another thing is that you're always worried about whether or not an app is poorly written and just spinning in the background. i don't have energy to deal with such things- when i download an app (words with friends or facebook are two really good examples on android vs. iphone) i just want it to work and not screw up my phone. yes, i know there are other apps other than words with friends but everyone i know uses words with friends and i don't think i could convince everyone to switch over just to play with me.
that said, yes you can do a lot more but you really have to mess with all the settings to get them just right. and even then the battery life is awful.
i'm a med student so i spend long hours studying and listening to music on my phone. with my 3gs i could easily get through a 12+ hour study session listening to music the whole time with frequent browsing to look up drugs, diseases, etc.
yesterday i was in the library for a little more than 10 hours with my skyrocket (on wifi the whole time) and it was at 10% when i left whereas the 3gs would be 50%+
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The skyrocket has much lower battery life than the Galaxy S II because of the 4g. I usually get a whole days worth of usage out of mine (14+) by the end of the night with about 2-3 hours of screen on time and still have about 40-50% battery left.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using xda premium
I had an iPhone 4, before 3gs and 3g.
I hated having to wait for jailbreaks to use some features.
Hated Itunes with a passion.
The OS felt boring without jailbreaks.
Bluetooth is closed to share files, songs with other people.
Can't use it as a mass storage device, everything from pc have to go through itunes.
Means you can't copy files directly from other pc, have to rely on third party apps like dropbox which sucks for big files.
Only thing I miss is Activator, which is a jailbreak tweak.
I'm going to attempt a different approach here....
You need to ask yourself what type of user you are. Either a tech/geek/hacker (whatever you want to call it) or someone I would call a general user. By general user I don't mean light phone user. I mean somebody who doesn't want to monkey with settings/themes/roms/kernels etc. The tech user will probably always pick the android over the iphone for its ability to be modded. The iphone is good because you don't have to think about it. Let Apple do all the worrying for you and just use it.
This is not to say that the GS2 is not a great device for a general user, or that an iPhone is not a great device for a techy, but they both shine in different ways. Take a look through the themes section and check out some screen shots of the GS2. Look at all the different ways you can make it personal. The iphone (non jailbroken) will always look pretty close to everybody else.
To answer your battery question though, I easily get 24hrs with moderate to heavy use (caveat: I run an app called tasker that helps with battery saving. Great app).
GeremyHamlett said:
I'm going to attempt a different approach here....
You need to ask yourself what type of user you are. Either a tech/geek/hacker (whatever you want to call it) or someone I would call a general user. By general user I don't mean light phone user. I mean somebody who doesn't want to monkey with settings/themes/roms/kernels etc. The tech user will probably always pick the android over the iphone for its ability to be modded. The iphone is good because you don't have to think about it. Let Apple do all the worrying for you and just use it.
This is not to say that the GS2 is not a great device for a general user, or that an iPhone is not a great device for a techy, but they both shine in different ways. Take a look through the themes section and check out some screen shots of the GS2. Look at all the different ways you can make it personal. The iphone (non jailbroken) will always look pretty close to everybody else.
To answer your battery question though, I easily get 24hrs with moderate to heavy use (caveat: I run an app called tasker that helps with battery saving. Great app).
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I agree with you about what kind of user you are. The iPhone is meant for certain people while android is meant for others. It really comes down to what you want from your phone. If you like the freedom of changing every little thing about your phone then go with the Galaxy S II. If you like something that you don't have to mess with much and still have a good user experience, get the iPhone.
I say go gs2. Better community, xda is awesome. More customizable stuff...and androids eat apples.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using xda premium
Pretty much just echoing what has already been said, but I switched from the 4 and while it was a beautiful piece of hardware, I had so many headaches dealing with Apple's restrictions. I'm not much of a widget guy and keep just one homescreen with almost nothing running in the background and get amazing battery life, certainly just as good as the 4 if not better (flashing UnNamed helped as well, but not necessary).
This phone is lightning quick, feels great in the hand and I just can't imagine going back.
Agree with Geremy.. used a 3GS before, then an Aria, now the SGS2..
How you approach using the phone is the key decision point.
As to battery life,the SGS2 is pretty good for an android phone. On a light-use day (some email, 20 minutes of newsreaders, about an hour of music...I can go 14-15 hours. On a heavy use day, extensive emailing, web browsing for a hours, navigating in car, music while working, phone calls,I will get about 8 hours. BUT I always carry a backup battery, so I don't pay much attention to that issue.. on a heavy day,I will switch batteries at about 4 pm and use the phone until the end of the day... just start charging when I go to sleep, meantime, the second battery is charging in the external charger... the next day,I am ready for either situation.
(actually I have 3rd battery for when I am traveling an don't know how much I will use the phone, or when/ where I will be able to charge it again..).
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using XDA App
Yup
GeremyHamlett said:
I'm going to attempt a different approach here....
You need to ask yourself what type of user you are. Either a tech/geek/hacker (whatever you want to call it) or someone I would call a general user. By general user I don't mean light phone user. I mean somebody who doesn't want to monkey with settings/themes/roms/kernels etc. The tech user will probably always pick the android over the iphone for its ability to be modded. The iphone is good because you don't have to think about it. Let Apple do all the worrying for you and just use it.
This is not to say that the GS2 is not a great device for a general user, or that an iPhone is not a great device for a techy, but they both shine in different ways. Take a look through the themes section and check out some screen shots of the GS2. Look at all the different ways you can make it personal. The iphone (non jailbroken) will always look pretty close to everybody else.
To answer your battery question though, I easily get 24hrs with moderate to heavy use (caveat: I run an app called tasker that helps with battery saving. Great app).
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Click to collapse
I would have to agree with this whole-heartedly. The other main difference are the apps that are available and how well they are written. I fall as someone who is a techy but isn't too much for visual customization. I don't mind the phone looking the same as others, but do like tinkering with the internal processes from time to time.
I used iphone 3gs, 4 and am using ASGS2 now.
iphone +s.
As apple is manufacturer of phone + OS, they know the things inside out and fix the bugs easily and quickly.
Your iphone is guaranteed for at least 2 to 3 future iOS releases though some functions may not work with new releases.
I like Iphone Keyboard a lot, the accuracy of letters while you type in is excellent, with same speed of typing I make a lot of typos on ASGS2, I somehow managed to get nicer typing with help of "Go keyboard (free)" on ASGS2, my sincere thanks to "Go keyboard" Team!
Quality of hardware and resale-able on ebay! your return on investment works!
ASGS2 +s.
Bigger Screen/Display.
Open source, apps from 3rd party like Amazon apps store, support from forums like xda.
Easily unlock-able/ root-able.
More customizable than iphone due to big community of freelancers as you see on xda!! Hats off to them.
Flash videos works here, not on iphone!
I just came from a 3gs. From a core perspective, i.e, web, email, browsing, facebook, twitter, etc. it's pretty much the same. Lots of different options, way more control.
My recommendation is that you go into the store and spend a few hours over a few days playing with the devices. It's hard to get an true feeling of things but it will at least get you more time with Android.
Apple makes a nice product, iOS is solid. But for me the screen size on the 4s screwed the pooch. I'm older (42), and frankly was sick of the smaller screen.
My decision came down to two points:
1) Could I two way sync with icloud calendars (entire house is apple).
2) How much of a pain would it be to get Apple Address Book Contacts into Google
3) How much of a pain would it be to get/sync itunes to it?
Subjective:
4) Would I like Android.
Answers:
1) Smooth Sync for Cloud Calendars - perfect two way sync.
2) Export to vCard - Import to Google. Easy.
3) Doubletwist with Airsync - works like a charm. Installed doubletwist on device and imac, airsync on device and bam! Wireless sync of itunes to GS2.
4) This is the hardest one for you to answer. As a long time apple user I found myself so ingrained with how things looked with Apple that some things were an initial shock. Not that they didn't work, but because the look a little different etc.
I think most has been covered here already but+ 1 if you like to SET UP EVERYTHING the way YOU LIKE IT AND WANT IT TO WORK then OGSGS2. I have never and will never use a iPhone because I like to tinker with my phone to it's Max. And as far as battery life it is pretty darn good. I would say I am a pretty heavy user also.
The area where it levels out is while I was sleeping fyi and forgot to plug it in.
Sent From My KickAss ATT SGS2 SPORTING CM7
I would say that I agree with everyone here so far. I really want to like android- I'm a techy nerdy kind of guy. I would never buy a Mac because I know I can build my own desktop with the same components for half the price and dual-boot hackintosh it if i really wanted the OS (which i don't). I only bought the first original iphone because I could unlock it and use it on my ridiculously cheap grandfathered T-mobile plan at the time (when there wasn't 3g). This was far before the days of untethered jailbreaking and unlocking so it was pretty involved and quite scary because it was fairly easy to brick the phone from my understanding. And I only got the 3gs because android was really unrefined at that point and ATT had no good offerings.
But at the same time my life has gotten busier and busier so I have less time to mess around with different ROMs of varying stabilities and worrying about whether or not that new app I installed is sucking up all of my battery in the background. Or having to unroot the phone before taking it in for any warranty issues. Maybe I'm getting old, grumpy, or work is ruining my life- I'm not sure which one it is haha.
I will say the one feature I LOVE about my SR though is that 4.5 inch screen. I know it has terrible pixel density and all that stuff but I love how big everything is- it's so much easier on the eyes. I also really like the ability to add widgets to the homescreen and that the customization options are there (but something I don't really care for).
But at the same time I think it's the little things where Apple has really outdone everyone. For one thing, the scrolling on the stock web browser is jumpy and I find that using the headphone remote to double click to skip the song is blah. For some reason (as I mentioned before) Samsung also thinks that nobody cares about bluetooth headset voice dialing and left it out of this phone. Also, you can't change the auto-brightness settings at all and the stock settings are horrific. Yes I know there are 3rd party apps for all of these things but then you're introducing another variable which you then have to worry about if it's sucking up all of your battery in the background (in my experience I found both the Dolphin and Opera web browsers to use significantly more processor time than the stock web browser)
Also, yes having a removable battery is awesome and theoretically easy to switch throughout the day but I have the Otterbox Defender on my SR which is definitely not a case you want to be taking apart and putting back together all the time. All of the other cases for the phone (and I'm a clumsy person so I definitely need a case) don't seem much easier to take on and off as well.
Oh well, maybe with ICS Android will smooth out the edges and developers will stop writing crappy code to allow for all sorts of rogue apps....
I had the S2 for about 3 weeks and then returned it to get my wife an iPhone 4s. I currently use my Captivate. I hate Apple with a passion, but I will say the iPhone is just soo polished! If you dont want to hack anything it really is a great phone (minus flash) and battery life is better than ANY Android phone. My wife gets 3 days of life per charge easily. She doesnt have push email but she does use it.
My S2 only got me a day of battery life (push enabled). For me I would stay Android (i love the customizing) but if battery life is a big concern there is no doubt Apple as Android beat. Thats my 2 cents.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
If you want great battery life, go use an old 3310 Nokia phone.

[Q] Need info about battery life

Hi,
I was planning to buy this device. Can someone give me their feedback about the battery life. (Not comparisons to other devices)
If someone can tell me the following, it would be great
-How many hours of music playback (I intend to use bluetooth headset)
-How many hours of video?
-How many hours of internet browsing
Just approximate values should do. Thanks
roc_vader said:
Hi,
I was planning to buy this device. Can someone give me their feedback about the battery life. (Not comparisons to other devices)
If someone can tell me the following, it would be great
-How many hours of music playback (I intend to use bluetooth headset)
-How many hours of video?
-How many hours of internet browsing
Just approximate values should do. Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
1. Music playback I have not tried so do not know.
2. Video - I watch movies and stuff at a stretch for 6-7 hours with a 60-75% volume and brightness of around 25-30% of maximum.
3. Internet browsing again have not checked. But I am guessing it would vary with if WiFi or sim data. I am guessing this also would be around 6-7hours. Maybe some1 else who has tried can tell you about this.
As far as general everyday use goes, I use it for reading ebooks, watching around 2-3hours of videos /day and browsing net via WiFi for about 30-45min/day. With this usage, I the battery lasts me for 12-15hours of active usage with the brightness set to a level of 20% of maximum - sufficient for indoor use. Of course, while on video, the in app brightness is set to higher.
hope this helps. And it is a wonderful device but a bit pricy - but then again its worth it.
One of my colleagues said that his Galaxy tab easily does upto 10 hrs of Browsing on wifi... But thats probably coz of a lower frequency cpu. Now am confused if I should look at the Galaxy as an alternative, especially since its $125 cheaper
Still, I thought that an under-clocked Jetstream ROM can help me get similar battery life, with an option to go back to stock if I ever wanted to.
What say? Is it worth those $125 extra?
I have used the galaxy tab briefly. I definitely like the Jetstream way better. But it depends on you-my main usage on Jetstream has to do with the scribe pen and tons of ebooks. The ability to seemlessly annotate and underline, highlight in the native PDF viewer plus the notes app which is replaced by quill is just as close to brilliant as could be.
10 hours on WiFi only possible I think. I said 6-7hours for a mix of mobile data and WiFi. But as I said I have not tried so do not know for sure.
In any case, the sound is surely better, processor surely ahead. So if 125 is not too much a burden I would surely suggest Jetstream. However, a word of caution. It is likely that customization may be delayed with the Jetstream due to it being relatively newer and a slightly more expensive tab compared to the Galaxy Tab. ICS may see Galaxy Tab a good time earlier compared to Jetstream. There is a Doom Kernel which allows for system mods provided by the person who gave us root-DoomLord. You can under/over clock with that. So think it over before you invest. Tried giving honest overview of the pros and cons from Jetstream point of view. Hope it will help you decide and hope to see 1 more proud Jetstream owner.
Sent from my HTC PG09410 using XDA App
I use my HTC Jetstream daily for work, especially because I use the stylus pen everyday to take notes, mark up PDF's, etc... I have no problem getting all day battery life using my Jetstream.
What I have done is, I have the Jetsream in airplane mode, then I have switched the WiFi on, and seems to give me an extra hour of battery life. I tested once on a weekend where I used the Jetstream all day and lasted about 12 hours. This was browsing, email and watching some YouTube.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I957 using xda premium

New Gear S owner - A couple questions

Greetings, all. Despite all the hype around the Apple Watch and Android Wear, I decided to get a Gear S. It is being delivered today. I have an LG G Watch, but I'm not terribly fond of it and I think the Apple Watch is an overpriced toy.
The Gear S seemed a better fit for me. I'm a fan of big watches and it seems much more functional than Android Wear.
That said, I have a few reservations and I'm hoping the community can put my mind at ease. I don't have it in my hand yet, so I can't look at the app store, so forgive me:
With the screen always on, how long will the battery last?- This is how I use my smartwatches. If I can't glance at the screen to see the time without jerking my wrist around, it's no good to me. I also ride a Harley and can't really afford to be required to make a wrist gesture to see the time.
Is there any kind of Shazam or Soundhound app? I know this seems frivalous, but I saw they had Shazam for the apple watch and it occurred to me how cool that would be.
Which apps do you use the most? Any good ones I should look for immediately?
Do you think it has any kind of future? It seems like it has already been forgotten. The Tizen store is stagnant and Apple and Android Wear seem to be stealing all the spotlight. Am I buying a product that is already obsolete?
Thanks. Just trying to convince myself that I made the right choice. I can return it, of course, but it seems like the best option for me right now.
greyhulk said:
Greetings, all. Despite all the hype around the Apple Watch and Android Wear, I decided to get a Gear S. It is being delivered today. I have an LG G Watch, but I'm not terribly fond of it and I think the Apple Watch is an overpriced toy.
The Gear S seemed a better fit for me. I'm a fan of big watches and it seems much more functional than Android Wear.
That said, I have a few reservations and I'm hoping the community can put my mind at ease. I don't have it in my hand yet, so I can't look at the app store, so forgive me:
With the screen always on, how long will the battery last?- This is how I use my smartwatches. If I can't glance at the screen to see the time without jerking my wrist around, it's no good to me. I also ride a Harley and can't really afford to be required to make a wrist gesture to see the time.
Is there any kind of Shazam or Soundhound app? I know this seems frivalous, but I saw they had Shazam for the apple watch and it occurred to me how cool that would be.
Which apps do you use the most? Any good ones I should look for immediately?
Do you think it has any kind of future? It seems like it has already been forgotten. The Tizen store is stagnant and Apple and Android Wear seem to be stealing all the spotlight. Am I buying a product that is already obsolete?
Thanks. Just trying to convince myself that I made the right choice. I can return it, of course, but it seems like the best option for me right now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Totally agree about Apple watch! But regardless of OEM, I prefer the features of the standalone form factor vs the companion. Having its OWN data connection is invaluable at times. The remote feature is amazing and works very well for a first crack at this feature.
1. The wrist/motion sensor works pretty well on the S. Seems to work 9 outa 10 times you turn to look at time. Having the full screen on will cut usage time in half.
2. I personally have not heard or seen an app like SoundHound for Tizen... yet
3. This is a question that varies widely. Having Opera is a must and I've read a lot about people using Milk, Nike and S-health. I like Bullet News and Engadget's apps as well. S-voice makes sending brief texts and emails a breeze. However, what we really could use is an email client app that doesn't require the phone's connection to send/rcv email.
4. The Tizen store IS growing at a very slow pace, I agree. Not sure what is going to happen in the standalone vs companion war in general. But I will say this...before I bought the S, I had the Omate TrueSmart which took my personal phone out of my already bulging pockets and put it on my wrist. This, in itself, was a great technological step. And even though the TS was riddled with problems, I loved it. Now, with the remote connection always on, my personal phone stays at home connected to the Wi-Fi which feeds the incoming notifs to my wrist.
In conclusion, my personal thoughts on the future of wearables is completely dependent on the consumer market and OEM innovation. I think most future watches will all have the option to be standalone. Battery life will continue to be a big hitch and input methods. In addition, Samsung needs to stop trying to create it's own ecosystem and work with what is already here and accepted, now.
Go get your Gear S... You'll love it!!!
Thanks man. I'll find out soon, if UPS ever gets here.
Sent from my SM-G920I using XDA Free mobile app
Just found a hopeful answer to #2; Gearam Music ID I just downloaded but wife asleep so cannot test yet. Says it does what Shazam does. Also..
There are some good ones out there that you can get:
Xenozu Player for Youtube, works well. click on pic to play, and text for info
GearTweet for Twitter, much improved lately
GearGram for Instagram and plays video as well as shows pics
Basic Video Player, load videos to your Gear through PC to play on app
Wearable Widgets, I can use it to control my lights at home that on on my WeMo switches, using WeMo widgets; I can see my outside surveillance cameras using the IP Cam Viewer Basic widget
IPCameraViewer, I can see my indoor home surveillance camera feed through Gear S app
OperaMini for web browsing
Milk music for streaming to my bluetooth headset at the gym, without having to carry my phone.
S Health, I have used very well to track and motivate myself to move and exercise more. I lost 85 lbs. last year and it gets some credit. Program finally much better than it was.
I too hope they push for more, but in the end it will be up the the other companies and developers and they will probably go to Apple due to shear volume of sales alone.
Good luck.
Cheers,
highlordkram said:
Just found a hopeful answer to #2; Gearam Music ID I just downloaded but wife asleep so cannot test yet. Says it does what Shazam does. Also..
There are some good ones out there that you can get:
Xenozu Player for Youtube, works well. click on pic to play, and text for info
GearTweet for Twitter, much improved lately
GearGram for Instagram and plays video as well as shows pics
Basic Video Player, load videos to your Gear through PC to play on app
Wearable Widgets, I can use it to control my lights at home that on on my WeMo switches, using WeMo widgets; I can see my outside surveillance cameras using the IP Cam Viewer Basic widget
IPCameraViewer, I can see my indoor home surveillance camera feed through Gear S app
OperaMini for web browsing
Milk music for streaming to my bluetooth headset at the gym, without having to carry my phone.
S Health, I have used very well to track and motivate myself to move and exercise more. I lost 85 lbs. last year and it gets some credit. Program finally much better than it was.
I too hope they push for more, but in the end it will be up the the other companies and developers and they will probably go to Apple due to shear volume of sales alone.
Good luck.
Cheers,
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah, thank you for that. I will check out Gearam. I wish IPCamviewer worked with dropcams, but I don't think it does.
I can't download Opera Mini, for some reason. It simply doesn't show up for me in the store. I am in the U.S. on AT&T, but I do have the International model of the GS6. Maybe that's why? Either way, it sucks. I was really looking forward to that one.
Edit: Dammit. Gearam doesn't show up for me, either. If it does have to do with my International model of the GS6, I wish there was a way to spoof my ID for the store.
Try Doreso Music Radar. That is a Shazam like app.
greyhulk said:
Ah, thank you for that. I will check out Gearam. I wish IPCamviewer worked with dropcams, but I don't think it does.
I can't download Opera Mini, for some reason. It simply doesn't show up for me in the store. I am in the U.S. on AT&T, but I do have the International model of the GS6. Maybe that's why? Either way, it sucks. I was really looking forward to that one.
Edit: Dammit. Gearam doesn't show up for me, either. If it does have to do with my International model of the GS6, I wish there was a way to spoof my ID for the store.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really Sorry to hear of issues, as I confirm now that GEARAM Music ID works very well. Just found 5 out of five that I played off my phone.
highlordkram said:
Really Sorry to hear of issues, as I confirm now that GEARAM Music ID works very well. Just found 5 out of five that I played off my phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dammit. I wish I could figure out why apps aren't showing for me.
Sent from my SM-G920I using XDA Free mobile app
1. I don't see any point of using screen always on. It just eats up alot of battery and it's useless. Better choose wake up gesture.
2. Yes it is. The best is Gearam Music ID
3. Some cool apps i use:
XENOZU - you can watch youtube;
Instant Settings - Control your phone wifi , 3g etc.;
Calculator ; GearGram Instagram ; Opera - a must have and My notes
4. Samsung has done a very good job with smartwatches. They are the no 1 vendor. The tizen store it's stronger than Android Wear and Apple in my oppinion , the real problem is the official developers have no interest in developing apps. And individual developers ask for money. Believe me. You made the right choose. I've used the Moto 360, Gear 1,Gear 2,LG G Watch R. I tested the Apple Watch too, it's a bull****. Now i own a Gear S and i think it's the best on the market.
l3o4nn said:
1. I don't see any point of using screen always on. It just eats up alot of battery and it's useless. Better choose wake up gesture.
2. Yes it is. The best is Gearam Music ID
3. Some cool apps i use:
XENOZU - you can watch youtube;
Instant Settings - Control your phone wifi , 3g etc.;
Calculator ; GearGram Instagram ; Opera - a must have and My notes
4. Samsung has done a very good job with smartwatches. They are the no 1 vendor. The tizen store it's stronger than Android Wear and Apple in my oppinion , the real problem is the official developers have no interest in developing apps. And individual developers ask for money. Believe me. You made the right choose. I've used the Moto 360, Gear 1,Gear 2,LG G Watch R. I tested the Apple Watch too, it's a bull****. Now i own a Gear S and i think it's the best on the market.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't see the point in NOT using always on mode. It is a watch, after all. Pretty useless if you can't see the time.
Wanted to give my feedback for your first and fourth question.
Since I had a Pebble before the Gear S, a screen that is always on is very useful. After all, the primary function of a watch is to give you time. Having the screen always on hasn't really impacted my battery life. On average, My Gear S loses about 3.1% - 3.5% battery life every hour with my screen always on. Since my screen is always on, I leave all motion gestures off. With the screen always on, I can easily get a full day of use. Throughout the day, I usually get 3-4 email notifications per hour, 2 text messages per hour, reminders from S-health to take a walk, approximately 2-4 calls, and random social media notifications. On days when I'm going out for a run, my batter life drops quick mainly because of S-health and the heart rate monitor. Even if I'm going for a run, getting a full day of use with the screen on is an easy task.
I'm sure that the Gear S has a future. There are other smart watch platforms such as Pebble, Android Wear, and Apple Watch, but these are just companion devices. To me, the other platforms are very good at telling you that you need to look at your phone. I like to think of other smart watches as handcuffing you to your phone. You really can't do much with the other smart watches without a phone. Tizen/Gear S really shines with stand alone features. The problem is with getting developers for Tizen. I think most developers don't consider developing for Tizen because the Android and Apple names are so well known. I'm sure if we ask the average person if they know what Tizen is, their response would be "What?"

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