Nexus 10 vs Note 10.1 (Poll and Opinions) - Nexus 10 General

Hi, I am looking for a highen tablet and the two that are considered the "best" are the Google Nexus 10 and the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1. 60% of the time that I will be using this tablet is going to be for android app development and quick reference, ie googling a question. The other 40% is mostly going to be used for school and sometimes games . Any ideas which one I should get? Thanks.

RandomAwesomeGuy said:
Hi, I am looking for a highen tablet and the two that are considered the "best" are the Google Nexus 10 and the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1. 60% of the time that I will be using this tablet is going to be for android app development and quick reference, ie googling a question. The other 40% is mostly going to be used for school and sometimes games . Any ideas which one I should get? Thanks.
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Unless you really need the wacom tablet features, for you I'd say the Nexus 10 without any hesitation. The Nexus line has developers as a target audience, and it'll be faster to get Android updates. As far as 10" tablets go, there simply is no better option for development. The higher resolution screen and A15 processor also make it more future proof than the Note 10.1.

RandomAwesomeGuy said:
Hi, I am looking for a highen tablet and the two that are considered the "best" are the Google Nexus 10 and the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1. 60% of the time that I will be using this tablet is going to be for android app development and quick reference, ie googling a question. The other 40% is mostly going to be used for school and sometimes games . Any ideas which one I should get? Thanks.
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nexus 10
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium

As long as you posted it in the n10 forum all the comments will say buy n10 because they already prefered it over other devices, same will happen when you post in the note forum , so the best way to know is to try both by yourself and decide, both are the best in market btw so don't go for anything other than them
Sent from my GT-N8000 using xda app-developers app

I can't really tell you which is better because both are "good" tablets. Neither is great in my opinion, though for me, I preferred the nexus 10 over the note 10.1 (and I own a note phone).
Reasons: Nexus 10 resolution is fantastic but the contrast compared to a superAMOLED screen is pittiful. Nexus 10 displays blacks like greys. Still, the resolution makes up for it because even with my eyeball one inch from the screen, I cannot see a pixel.
Another negative that nexus is probably not so good for developing is 4.2.1. At least half my apps crash on the nexus, or are simply not optimized for the crazy high resolution. While developing for 4.2.1 would be smart, keep in mind that most devices are still on ICS or gingerbread still. When I go to an app in the market half of the 1 star reviews are from people saying it crashes on xxx device running 4.0/2.3 android.
So pick you poison. Luckily the note 10.1 can be found on "deals" for less than the $500+ nexus 10.

LxMxFxD said:
I can't really tell you which is better because both are "good" tablets. Neither is great in my opinion, though for me, I preferred the nexus 10 over the note 10.1 (and I own a note phone).
Reasons: Nexus 10 resolution is fantastic but the contrast compared to a superAMOLED screen is pittiful. Nexus 10 displays blacks like greys. Still, the resolution makes up for it because even with my eyeball one inch from the screen, I cannot see a pixel.
Another negative that nexus is probably not so good for developing is 4.2.1. At least half my apps crash on the nexus, or are simply not optimized for the crazy high resolution. While developing for 4.2.1 would be smart, keep in mind that most devices are still on ICS or gingerbread still. When I go to an app in the market half of the 1 star reviews are from people saying it crashes on xxx device running 4.0/2.3 android.
So pick you poison. Luckily the note 10.1 can be found on "deals" for less than the $500+ nexus 10.
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I pretty agree with this, but my apps don't crash on 4.2.1, none, and nexus 10 costs 400$ and 500$, not only 500$.

I would go for the nexus 10. Better screen, better support, fast updates, and no stupid Samsung UI. Oh and the nexus has one of the newest exynos processors.
Sent from my Nexus 10 using xda app-developers app

specter491 said:
no stupid Samsung UI.
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The "pure Google" thing is getting funny. What could possibly be better about having less features rather than more? Back in the days of 512K of RAM when SoCs were slow and overlays crude, poor performance drove people to AOSP/AOKP and de-bloated custom ROMs. That's not really the case anymore. The h/w is now more capable than the UI and apps running on it.
I played with a friend’s N10 over the holidays and, feature wise, it was a barren wasteland compared to the Note. The phone UI on a 10" tablet is bizarre. Similarly he was amazed at what the Note could do that his N10 couldn't. The N10 has a faster SoC than the Note but when you factor in the PPI it's pushing and that memory bandwidth is hard-partitioned to support the display it's certainly not any faster. And with app incompatibility because of the resolution some apps behave poorly or don’t work at all.
The Note has IO accessories available to match the N10's ports, takes up to a 64GB exFAT SD card for expansion, has an IR port, larger speakers than the N10, and gets significantly better battery life and charges 1/3 faster. It also doesn't have light bleed. Without question the N10 will get updates ten times faster than the Note. But so what, it'll still do 1/3 of the things the Note can do right now. It'll just be Google's barren OS with updates. I've disabled Google Now because I don't use any of their native apps that it depends on to harvest data and for some reason it thinks I work at a McDonalds because I stop at one frequently. As a value-priced consumption device with a great display the N10's a solid choice. For people interested in creating and managing content the Note's a better choice. Its 147PPI display is fine for pics and videos and doesn't require upscaling like the N10's display does. It's obviously not as good for text and computer generated content like the UI and that's a compromise you have to make to get the additional features. So for people looking for something beyond consumption I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss the Note. It's already sold 5MM units and I'd be surprised based on its limited distribution if the N10's sold 1MM.
OP, if the things in this video mean anything to you consider the Note. If all you care about is consumption and the display the N10's a better choice.

BarryH_GEG said:
The "pure Google" thing is getting funny. What could possibly be better about having less features rather than more? Back in the days of 512K of RAM when SoCs were slow and overlays crude, poor performance drove people to AOSP/AOKP and de-bloated custom ROMs. That's not really the case anymore. The h/w is now more capable than the UI and apps running on it.
I played with a friend’s N10 over the holidays and, feature wise, it was a barren wasteland compared to the Note. The phone UI on a 10" tablet is bizarre. Similarly he was amazed at what the Note could do that his N10 couldn't. The N10 has a faster SoC than the Note but when you factor in the PPI it's pushing and that memory bandwidth is hard-partitioned to support the display it's certainly not any faster. And with app incompatibility because of the resolution some apps behave poorly or don’t work at all.
The Note has IO accessories available to match the N10's ports, takes up to a 64GB exFAT SD card for expansion, has an IR port, larger speakers than the N10, and gets significantly better battery life and charges 1/3 faster. It also doesn't have light bleed. Without question the N10 will get updates ten times faster than the Note. But so what, it'll still do 1/3 of the things the Note can do right now. It'll just be Google's barren OS with updates. I've disabled Google Now because I don't use any of their native apps that it depends on to harvest data and for some reason it thinks I work at a McDonalds because I stop at one frequently. As a value-priced consumption device with a great display the N10's a solid choice. For people interested in creating and managing content the Note's a better choice. Its 147PPI display is fine for pics and videos and doesn't require upscaling like the N10's display does. It's obviously not as good for text and computer generated content like the UI and that's a compromise you have to make to get the additional features. So for people looking for something beyond consumption I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss the Note. It's already sold 5MM units and I'd be surprised based on its limited distribution if the N10's sold 1MM.
OP, if the things in this video mean anything to you consider the Note. If all you care about is consumption and the display the N10's a better choice.
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Just like stock doesnt work for you, Touchwiz simply doesnt work for others. Some dont like it because its ugly, some dont like it because it introduces compatibility problems with apps (a really big concern for this post considering OP is a dev), some dont like them because they slow down the device (more so with Motorola's skins). The only advantage I see with Touchwiz over stock is the multiwindow stuff, and then its nothing that others, be it Google themselves or devs here, couldn't replicate.

Jotokun said:
Just like stock doesnt work for you, Touchwiz simply doesnt work for others. Some dont like it because its ugly, some dont like it because it introduces compatibility problems with apps (a really big concern for this post considering OP is a dev), some dont like them because they slow down the device (more so with Motorola's skins). The only advantage I see with Touchwiz over stock is the multiwindow stuff, and then its nothing that others, be it Google themselves or devs here, couldn't replicate.
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It also has S-Pen features, but as you said, it really goes both ways.
Also, it's not a question of "can" they do it. It's more of a question of "will" they do it. Just because Google or some dev "can" replicate it, doesn't mean it'll come to the N10.
I'm not siding with either one here, but they both have their merits and faults.
As for app development, I'd think the N10 is a better choice for you mainly because it'll be up to date software-wise for a long long while and you can continue to develop apps.

Jotokun said:
Just like stock doesnt work for you, Touchwiz simply doesnt work for others. Some dont like it because its ugly, some dont like it because it introduces compatibility problems with apps (a really big concern for this post considering OP is a dev), some dont like them because they slow down the device (more so with Motorola's skins). The only advantage I see with Touchwiz over stock is the multiwindow stuff, and then its nothing that others, be it Google themselves or devs here, couldn't replicate.
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You're absolutely right - it's a matter of individual choice. With h/w having reached the state it has performance increases are measured in milliseconds. For people that are more interested in benchmarks and picking up 1/10 of a second in screen transitions than actually getting stuff done a Nexus device is an excellent choice. By the time you add (if they exist) non-integrated third party apps from developers ranging from excellent to sketchy to replicate the Note's features you have as much (if not more) bloat on it and the apps don't work as well together. Can you wireless transmit content from your N10 to any HDMI-equipped output device? By the time Miracast reaches critical mass the N10 III will be out. Someone above mentioned Nexus as a developers platform. Those days are gone too. With value-based starting prices for the N4/N7/N10 of $299/$199/$399 respectively and a decidedly lower focus on build quality Nexus is now a mainstream consumer product with its lead feature being price/value. The GN which was a revered device on XDA only sold 750K copies. That sort of says something about what's really important to making a device commercially successful and being “pure” and getting “fast updates” doesn’t seem to be it.

BarryH_GEG said:
The GN which was a revered device on XDA only sold 750K copies. That sort of says something about what's really important to making a device commercially successful and being “pure” and getting “fast updates” doesn’t seem to be it.
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The GN was banned at least once in the US from my knowledge, and given the short lifespan of smartphones, it's only natural that the GN was already superseded by the imminent S3.

lKBZl said:
I pretty agree with this, but my apps don't crash on 4.2.1, none, and nexus 10 costs 400$ and 500$, not only 500$.
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Nexus 10 16GB is $444 with shipping & tax, Nexus 10 32GB is $553 with shipping and tax.
I got mine on a "deal" from staples because I had a $10 off coupon and shipping was free. After tax it was still $533. Google charges tax to every state in USA as far as I know, except the states without a sales tax. New Hampshire?
As for apps crashing... HDhomerun 2 crashes constantly, chrome has completely locked up my device, and other apps just randomly force close. I've only had the device for 2 days and its running completely stock. I know that over time things will crash less so i'm not complaining a whole lot. But its quite annoying.

404 ERROR said:
The GN was banned at least once in the US from my knowledge.
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It was banned very late in its lifecycle when sales were already down to a trickle because better spec'd devices had been out for a while. The point that I was making is that the GN was available at subsidized prices similar to other phones with overlays from the U.S. carriers. Its "pureness" and "fast updates" didn't sway mainstream consumers for it to have sold so poorly during its peak selling period. Outside of XDA, people like overlays because they make devices easier to use which is why the OEMs offer them.
Here's an article talking about it...
Google just can't catch a break with its Nexus phones. While the "pure Google" experience of the company's Nexus phones tends to generate fanatical loyalty from extreme Android frothers, it seems to appeal to almost no one else. In a federal court today, a Samsung lawyer said the sales of its latest Galaxy Nexus phone were "so miniscule" that it isn't a threat to anyone. Samsung's lawyers said the company took in about $250 million from the Galaxy Nexus during the first two quarters [where revenue is in the billions] it was on sale. That isn't nothing, but it's far short of a hit. Available on Verizon, Sprint, and in an unlocked model for T-Mobile and AT&T, the Nexus managed to sell at about the level of T-Mobile's Galaxy S 4G when it had its two best quarters. It fell far short of a hit like Sprint's Epic 4G or Verizon's Fascinate, according to court documents from Samsung's big California patent case against Apple.​
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2408712,00.asp

BarryH_GEG said:
It was banned very late in its lifecycle when sales were already down to a trickle because better spec'd devices had been out for a while. The point that I was making is that the GN was available at subsidized prices similar to other phones with overlays from the U.S. carriers. Its "pureness" and "fast updates" didn't sway mainstream consumers for it to have sold so poorly during its peak selling period. Outside of XDA, people like overlays because they make devices easier to use which is why the OEMs offer them.
Here's an article talking about it...
Google just can't catch a break with its Nexus phones. While the "pure Google" experience of the company's Nexus phones tends to generate fanatical loyalty from extreme Android frothers, it seems to appeal to almost no one else. In a federal court today, a Samsung lawyer said the sales of its latest Galaxy Nexus phone were "so miniscule" that it isn't a threat to anyone. Samsung's lawyers said the company took in about $250 million from the Galaxy Nexus during the first two quarters [where revenue is in the billions] it was on sale. That isn't nothing, but it's far short of a hit. Available on Verizon, Sprint, and in an unlocked model for T-Mobile and AT&T, the Nexus managed to sell at about the level of T-Mobile's Galaxy S 4G when it had its two best quarters. It fell far short of a hit like Sprint's Epic 4G or Verizon's Fascinate, according to court documents from Samsung's big California patent case against Apple.​
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2408712,00.asp
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I thought it was much earlier, but regardless, you're right in that fast updates and pureness don't sell. But I sincerely doubt that hardware itself is also what makes sales soar. Yeah, the S3 sale is simply outstanding, but I'm sure the majority of S3 owners only bought the S3 because it's something new (among the iPhones) and because they "heard" from nearly everywhere that it's a smartphone that can compete well against the iPhone. And yes, the hardware helps with that definitely, but the majority don't care if it has an Exynons 4412 SoC inside clocked at 1.4 gHz.
What I consider as the best reason for poor Nexus sales is that Google just sucks at advertising. I never saw once in my life a billboard or a TV commercial about the Galaxy Nexus on it. I only knew about it because I like tech and try to keep up with what's new. I see Google doing a better job with the recent Nexus line though, but now that Samsung has gained so much popularity with its own flagship line, people are going to keep their eyes on any new pure Samsung products (the S4 and Note III).
So how does this relate to the OP - it really doesn't .
I will have to agree that anything in the Nexus line is a better developer platform. Yes, it's commercialized as an average consumer product, but the long support from Google will give it the advantage in development because you can continue to develop apps without having to worry about breaking compatibility in newer devices. Also, you won't have to deal with ROM ports that may work but also may also not work completely.

Google Nexus 10 or Note 10
I think that is one hard question to ask? I think Galaxy Note 10 is really awesome phablet, i mean, tablet if you really like writing or drawing stuff on the go, but the size can be the problem if you want to carry it to public area.
So maybe you should pick up Note 5.5-inch instead.
Google Nexus 10 is also one great device, especially with its eye-pleasing screen and fast performance. I also like when Google Earth is run on this device.
Yeah, it's hard question.

Hi all, thank you for your responses. My next question is: I been going to stores looking for the tablets on display, but no luck for finding a Nexus 10. Does it feel cheap? Also from going to the stores, I really like the feature on the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 that has the navigation controls on the bottom left and the toggles/notifications menu on the right, but the nexus has only the navigation controls in the center. Is it bothersome or does it feel normal to use. Note: I have been using an iPhone and iPad for regular use/programming, and I only had contact with an android device at the stores and using the strictly developer use only android tablets at school, they are all 7-inch tablets, and you get in a lot of trouble if you play with them. Thank you, again.

First thing you'll notice is the screen on the N10 is miles better than the Note 10.1. When the Note gets a SAMOLED I'm getting one. Until then the N10 is the better machine. Plus the faster CPU, and they're both Samsung, why would anybody choose a Note 10.1 instead? Only the stylus. So make that your pivot question. Do you need a stylus or not.

RandomAwesomeGuy said:
Hi all, thank you for your responses. My next question is: I been going to stores looking for the tablets on display, but no luck for finding a Nexus 10. Does it feel cheap? Also from going to the stores, I really like the feature on the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 that has the navigation controls on the bottom left and the toggles/notifications menu on the right, but the nexus has only the navigation controls in the center. Is it bothersome or does it feel normal to use. Note: I have been using an iPhone and iPad for regular use/programming, and I only had contact with an android device at the stores and using the strictly developer use only android tablets at school, they are all 7-inch tablets, and you get in a lot of trouble if you play with them. Thank you, again.
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The Nexus certainly does not feel cheap. The plastic has an almost rubbery feel, not at all cold like metallic tablets and not rigid or creaky like most other Android tablets. IMO its one of the best feeling tablets out there.
The buttons on left, notifications on right are how things were done on Android tablets from 3.0 through 4.1. The new layout doesn't quite feel as natural in landscape, but it was done in the name of consistency with phones and probably is the right move for the future. While Samsung might stick with the traditional layout, there's also a very good chance that in a future firmware update the Note 10.1 could adopt the N10's button layout. I wouldn't say its bad, far from it. The old layout is just a little more comfortable, since if you're holding your tablet with both hands you dont have to let go on one to do something (home/back/etc.).

Jotokun said:
The Nexus certainly does not feel cheap. The plastic has an almost rubbery feel, not at all cold like metallic tablets and not rigid or creaky like most other Android tablets. IMO its one of the best feeling tablets out there.
The buttons on left, notifications on right are how things were done on Android tablets from 3.0 through 4.1. The new layout doesn't quite feel as natural in landscape, but it was done in the name of consistency with phones and probably is the right move for the future. While Samsung might stick with the traditional layout, there's also a very good chance that in a future firmware update the Note 10.1 could adopt the N10's button layout. I wouldn't say its bad, far from it. The old layout is just a little more comfortable, since if you're holding your tablet with both hands you dont have to let go on one to do something (home/back/etc.).
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Thanks, from my knowledge, the Nexus 10 has two pull down menus from the top, is this correct? And what is each one? Also, Does any one know if there is a rom/mod that enables the old layout? Thanks, again.

Related

Would you buy the Note again?

Thinking about dumping Verizon due to their amazingly crappy selection of phones. It also doesn't help that their network in the Seattle area is frequently the 1G network (works great elsewhere when I travel). Primarily I need a phone that has a minimum 48gb space (with SD card) and a large screen. Just wondering the satisfaction with this phone. Currently I'm using a Dinc 1 but it's getting old and the screen is nowhere near the size of the Note.
My gf has a dinc 1, there is no comparison between it and the note. Completely different league of device.
i had a captivate before the note, and even comparing that to the dinc, the dinc comes up short, but now that i have and am used to the note, they both feel like toys in my hand. Just Tiny.
If you want that much space, and a big screen, the note is the biggest screen around. I am really happy with it.
i have been super happy with the note. i would certainly buy it again. i dont regret picking it up on launch day at all.
+1 to studacris as well. everything else seems to tiny. i gave my son my skyrocket and even that 4.5 inch screen seems small. i couldnt not imagine those that have the 3.5 inch screen...cough cough damn fruits.
lol
great phone though
Yes. Screen size has become a much more meaningful spec to me these days. Hopefully they will have a new version (same screen size) out by the time I'm ready for an upgrade. Given Samsung's track record for new phones this seems highly likely. It will be hard to go to a smaller screen, no matter how many megapixels and cores they throw in these phones. When I had the Skyrocket I continued to stay abreast on the latest phones and was also thinking of buying the Nook Tab. Now that I have the GNote I'm not concerened anymore about the upcoming latest and greatest phone/tab. I'm about as satisfied as one can be.
10 char answer - YES!
Yes I would buy the note again without a doubt.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using Tapatalk 2
Definitely would buy again. I am ruined from all other phones, they are just too small now.
The Note is a great phone. I carry my skyrocket while at work. I'm a crane operator so the Note is not practical for that environment and I mostly use my phone for music while working. After work its all Note, especially when I'm out running errands and handling business. I can make notes, schedule appts, make grocery list, create and track agendas etc, much easier and quicker with the Note than I can with my other phones. Reading an ebook in the bed is great on the Note. Also the S-Pen is very nice (Mr. Jobs clearly was wrong), can have a little lag, but I'm sure that will be ironed out in the future.
No question I would buy the Note again.
Awesome phone (one of if not THE best there is today) and I love the feature set as well as capabilities, but the longer I own it, I've got to admit, the more cumbersome it becomes.
I really do like the phone a lot, but I find that I do so in spite of its size. Sure, I love the screen size for the sake of what it "shows you", but form-factor wise from an overall hardware perspective, it's just proving over time to be too big IMHO, and I'm an avg sized guy w/avg to slightly larger-than-avg sized hands.
In short, I don't plan on selling it anytime soon (I'm under contract until Sept 2013, and I'm not a phone jockey who buys and sells these things on eBay like packs of tube socks), but I can't say with any amount of honesty that I'd buy a phone that even approaches this size again.
I'm sure someone's gonna flame me for this response, but I am hoping that the point of this thread is honest disclosure and not just for back-slapping among Note-owners.
-Ryan
YES!
Big time happy with the Note... came from an Infuse 4G and Blackberry Torch before that. No looking back!
No other phone currently on the market appeals to me. I would therefore happily buy the note again.
I would buy it again! Most definitely. The Note is coming to Sprint when they release their LTE. Not sure when or if Verizon is going to release it. The htc one x looks nice BUT I will definitely wait for a NOTE 2. I wont go back to a smaller screen.
-Once you go NOTE, you'd say 4 inches a Joke
I had the iPhone 4 before and the only thing I miss is the Retina Display,other than that, the Galaxy Note is the best phone I've ever had.
I would definitely buy it again.
ryandelman said:
Awesome phone (one of if not THE best there is today) and I love the feature set as well as capabilities, but the longer I own it, I've got to admit, the more cumbersome it becomes.
I really do like the phone a lot, but I find that I do so in spite of its size. Sure, I love the screen size for the sake of what it "shows you", but form-factor wise from an overall hardware perspective, it's just proving over time to be too big IMHO, and I'm an avg sized guy w/avg to slightly larger-than-avg sized hands.
In short, I don't plan on selling it anytime soon (I'm under contract until Sept 2013, and I'm not a phone jockey who buys and sells these things on eBay like packs of tube socks), but I can't say with any amount of honesty that I'd buy a phone that even approaches this size again.
I'm sure someone's gonna flame me for this response, but I am hoping that the point of this thread is honest disclosure and not just for back-slapping among Note-owners.
-Ryan
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Sound like a good honest opinion to me. I personally went for the note for the screen size as the number one factor. I'll probably stick with it until the note 2 comes out, but if I were like you and wanted something smaller I'd probably be looking closely at the sgs3 or asus padfone.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda premium
SG3 around the corner
The Note is a great phone the screen size is great for web browesing and watching hd videos (minus the Black crush/Clipping issues that hopefully will be fixed with ICS) But with the SG3 coming out next month with a 4.65 super amoled+ display with true RBG tiles 300+ ppi, quad core exynos LTE chip inside, ICS onboard at launch (still none of these specs are official just expected).If I were off contract I would have a hard time deciding get the Note or wait for the SG3 or wait longer til Nov for the Note2 with better specs than the SG3. It all depends on what you want out of it and if you want to wait. Personally I like to get a new phone at launch keep it for 20 or more months til the next launch of great phone so I guess I'll be waiting for the Note 3!
The negatives to know about...
The Note does not yet have NFC (Near Field Communication) but there is a custom software fix to enable it (requires root and CWM to install).
The screen also has 2 issues, what some have called black crush, and another completely separate issue called banding. The banding was my issue (I havent noticed any of the "black crush' issues people have been mentioning). I found a setting under the display options to disable saving screen power and it took a day or two and the banding began to disappear (it wasnt an immediate fix).
The last thing about the display is that it is a pentile display. Colours arent 100% accurate so if you are super sensitive to this, you'll notice. The display is a high contrast and slightly over saturated with colour as well so expect this.
The phone does not have the same high quality sound processor that the Captivate had. In fact, its quite lousy. I mean, it works but the experience will be very similar to a built in sound chip on a motherboard rather than having a dedicated sound card.
The phone also does not have a quadcore processor because ATTs LTE does not yet work with quadcores (dont ask me why).
Some have argued that the video chip on the Note is not as fast as Qualcomms.
The last over all issue is the size. Its huge. Its massive. It took nearly a week for me to get used to the size. The biggest problem with the size is that it will occasionally require two hands to reach certain screen locations. You should be aware of this if you occasionally need to do something with your phone and need one free hand (driving for example).
Touchwiz sucks.
On the dev side, things are moving rather slowly compared to other phones, primarily because we still dont have any source code yet (based on my understanding anyway). Once source code is floating around, most of the software issues will be resolved (like Touchwiz).
Now, it may seem like I just trashed the phone. Honestly, I believe in knowing all the negatives up front. Personally, I like my Note. Every phone has its own problems, not one of them is perfect.
Most of the display issues (which are the bulk of the problems) I personally am ok with but Im not super picky in this regard. The sound chip does bother me, Im more of a sound person as I am a musician. The phone having a dual core is fine considering I rarely utilize half of this phones processing power. NFC doesnt bother me because I simply dont have a use case for it.
Would I get a different phone? Probably not.
But if you are considering a different phone specifically due to size, take a look at the Galaxy S2 (the sky rocket on ATT but every carrier has their own branded version). The Galaxy S2 doesnt have most of the screen issues the Note has and is more manageable to people with smaller hands while still being a fantastically great phone (I have two Galaxy S2's).
I dont believe in looking to the future unless you are looking at most a month in the future. If you do, you'll never buy a new piece of hardware as there is always something better around the corner.
I believe the Galaxy S2 or the Note are both future proof thru the next 2 years. While there are better phones coming, these phones are getting to the point that 99% of users will never achieve more than 80% of these newer phones full potential. Processing power is more than enough for anything coming in the next couple of years. Hell, other than the screen size, my Samsung Captivate is more than capable of doing everything out right now and my Captivate is two years old.
For the time being, I would repurchase the Note. Even with ICS still being refined for the time being, it's the most 'future-proof' phone for the time being. It should have this status for at least the next year span (or at least for 6 months).
Considering that I went from the Streak to this, the next 'successor phone' has to be a phablet again....be it Samsung or whichever vendor steps up their game.
Like right now, the One X looks ok...but honestly looks like a GS2 replica basically. (I personally haven't tried it yet...but that's just from skimming online articles about it).
Buy it. You will not be disappointed.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717
Yep without a doubt. Came from an iPhone4. Using one of those now the screen is tiny and it feels like a toy.
I have purchased the Note three times. My girlfriend has one, and I just went back to the Note after trying iPhone for two weeks.
Great phone with ICS installed.
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[Q] Advice Needed: Rooted Note or SGS3

I am still within the window of returning my G Note (which i love except for a few things) and possibly getting a SGS3.
I really like the GNote and the massive screen, the extra real state is really nice! I am on AT&T and really like the idea of the HSPA network backup to the not yet present LTE here in South Florida. I am getting avg between 4-6 mbps DL.
NOTE (AT&T):
Likes:
* HSPA Network on AT&T
* Screen Size
* S-Pen (I actually use the thing)
Dislikes:
* LAG!!! It's minimized using TW, but any other launcher seems to slow it down. Over all it sometimes does not feel as responsive as expected from the specs.
* No OC on ICS (might be wrong here)
* Potential for less Dev support once SGS3 comes out.
SGS3 (VZW):
Likes:
* Camera...I have toddler at home and a quick camera would be great (this is my biggest factor for considering this phone)
* Power...this things seems like a beast!!!
* form factor
* ICS, although I am not as concerned about software bcs it's a matter of porting by one these great devs in XDA.
Dislike:
* Smaller Screen
* Slow 3G speeds when not on LTE area about 50% of time!
Any thoughts that might help me rationalize this decision is greatly appreciate it!
Thank you!
Crey23 said:
Dislikes:
* LAG!!! It's minimized using TW, but any other launcher seems to slow it down. Over all it sometimes does not feel as responsive as expected from the specs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is lag only in the launchers? If so, try Launcher Pro. No perceptible lag for me.
Good luck figuring this out, it's a tight race between these 2 devices.
davaj said:
Is lag only in the launchers? If so, try Launcher Pro. No perceptible lag for me.
Good luck figuring this out, it's a tight race between these 2 devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, it's not limited to Launchers, but they do affect normal navigation. I had ran GO, ADW EX, and Holo....and Holo being the "fastest". I just installed Go Ex and it's really fast. I think it more to do with one the widgets that I was running.
But lag can be seen while unlocking, but I hear that the SGS3 is the same...something to do with deep sleep that Samsung uses. It can also be seen while playing some games like Angry Birds. It ran kind of choppy on my old htc Vision(G2) Oc'd @ 1.2 Ghz, but the Note sometimes shows that choppiness too.
One thing that also concerns me is that the RAM is ually running at 65%-75% capacity anyone else?
I can't decide either. My problem is that I have would have to return my note before ever seeing the gs3. I sold my international note for the one x and didn't like that phone so I would probably regret trading for the gs3 as well. Once you get used to the screen on the note its hard to downgrade. Believe me when I say that the note's screen looks way better than the one x, even the guy at Walmart's at&t store agreed with me. Hopefully when we get a kernel source it will speed up our notes, although my note isn't that bad now.
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First and foremost determine what you need in a phone, do you need the Horsepower of a quad core? Most apps aren't designed to work with the quad cores and I would believe that the support of them in ICS is kind of like windows, yes they will use them, but will it use them effectively? Do you want the screen or the camera more? I know for my needs I prefer the screen and the camera is plenty quick enough for what I do, but I don't have kids. As for lag, if it's really that bad, I'd exchange it for another. I only saw lag on my phone after I had launched 20 or 25 apps, running tons of widgets and hadn't shut my phone down in 3 weeks.
So in the end, the trade off is what will you utilize more and what would be best for you. I for one wouldn't trade my note for anything, but again I came from a streak and make full use of my very large screen and not the camera so much. Not to mention, you could wait to get the S3, get it, and in a year they'll probably release a phone that has 3.2GHz quad cores with brand new LTE system that's 10x faster than what we have now.
Technology has always grown faster than we can keep up with, the real question is, how long will you wait to get the latest and greatest? That's the reason why I haven't upgraded my home PC. There's always a new CPU coming out with a new form factor, or the next best graphics card is going to be released in a month or two. My current logic with it now is, hey it works, it works well, I'll keep it until it doesn't suit my needs anymore.
Just my thoughts on it.
Apex launcher is the best launcher for the note no lag on my end. I couldn't see myself going to a smaller screen. My hands fit the phone perfect.
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I will share my views with my days with the ATT Note. If you are running stock ROM..it was a HORRIBLE experience. I had my Captivate at the time and it was super smooth compared to the ATT Note stock.
If you are cool changing ROMS, which I think you are since you are here, I would expect it to be a lot better.
As for the dev on the ATT one dying after the GS3 comes out...well , unless you are buying an international GS3, I wont expect the dev for it to be that huge either compared to the international version but this is just a guess.
davaj said:
If so, try Launcher Pro. No perceptible lag for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this.
lyall29 said:
I can't decide either. My problem is that I have would have to return my note before ever seeing the gs3....
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Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is exactly my concern.....Yes it might be all that, as the hox was when it came out, but after I played with it for a bit I was not convinced and actually opted for the GNote instead despite the additional $70 that it cost me.
I guess I like to be a s bleeding edge as possible, being that at the speed of industry... in two years, by the time my contract is over, there will be 6.8Ghz eight core, 0.5 TB solid state drive phones with 21MP cameras that wipe my butt too.... But reality is that it might be overkill.
The other thing that attracts me to the SGS# is that finally an Android phone will have as many accessories as an iPhone given the number of pre-sales, and the fact that it will be the flag-ship device for the 5 major carriers in the US/Canada. I am tired of walking into a best buy and see 90 different cases for the iPhone and, if I'm lucky, finding the $hitty Speck case for my Note lol.
Lastly, my other concer is that in order to get the SGS3 I would have to go from AT&T to VZW, and I am not convinced at all of going from lightning fast VZW LTE to crawling speed 3g EV-DO signal. It is reliable in the area, but LTE does not reach 50% of my territory.
I guess I'm going to keep the GNote, root it and wait for a kernel to break 2.0 Ghz blazing fast phone. I have read a few reviews that measure web processing throughput and the Note beats the SGS3 in the benchmark. Also some of the ROMs available have been tweaked to improve DL perfromance quite drastically.
The camera is pretty snappy too....It seems to take long, but when the picture is revealed it look amazing!
Alrighty, a couple of things to keep in mind.
1. While most apps arent designed to utilize quad cores, this isnt likely to stay that way for long. Since quadcores are fairly new and Android app developers can actually update their apps without some sort of approval process, expect support to happen fairly quickly.
2. The SG3 has a stylus too.
3. ICS will be available for the Note probably in the next month or so. The latest rumour is July 13th. It was delayed 2 weeks because Samsung was fixing a kernel bug that caused the international Note to hard brick when flashing ICS roms.
4. The stock apps are interchangeable. The apps on the Note are available for the SG3 and the SG3 apps are available to put on the Note (this will become easier once ICS is official on the Note).
5. While yes, the Note is bigger, it isnt by much.
Now that Ive addressed those points, I want to talk about ram usage and lag.
The very first thing I am going to recommend is a simple factory reset. Strange as it may be, my Note had nothing but problems first day I had it. I should interject here, my Note was brand new, NOT a refurb. I had only installed a few of my own apps (Audible, BeyondPod, Go Launcher, Beautiful Widgets, and Widget Locker) and had NOT (and still havent in fact) rooted it. I also updated as many of the stock apps manually from the market as I could find since I noticed the stock apps were not linked to the market. And apps began force closing left and right, battery was dead within 6 hours of just streaming audio over bluetooth (hardly any screen time), poor performance, etc. Before I returned it, I did a factory reset and it has been running great since (on probably month 3 now of having it, I bought it very shortly after it came out in the states).
Strangely enough, my brothers Samsung GNexus had poor network performance out of the box, we did a factory reset WHILE driving home with his brand new phone (we drove 2.5 hours to pick up his phone so we had the time) and since then, it has been working fine since.
Ram usage is normal for it to be in the 75% range. Android works a bit differently than Windows and their is no negative to high ram usage TO A POINT. Ram usage exceeding at or exceeding 90% however would be troubling and actually cause poor, laggy performance but under 90% is fine. I dont want to go into the details here but a quick Google search, difference between windows and linux ram usage, might be beneficial.
Finally, my raw opinion, the SG3 is the better phone. The screen is better (albeit smaller), slightly faster, etc. Software differences are a moot point since all of that will be changed in a month when ICS is official for the Note and you can just install software from the phone you DONT have on the phone you DO have. Source code has been released for the Note and the SG3 so we may actually begin seeing some decent rom development begin to happen here in the coming weeks for both phones. What I would say is this, if you want a better quality screen and a slightly faster phone spec wise, go with the SG3. If you want the bigger screen, stick with the Note. Personally, I prefer the screen size and since I spent money on an extended battery for the Note (the Mugen 5400 mah), I wont be switching phones any time soon.
I guess the only thing that bugs me with the at&t note is opening apps. When I had the international note it was twice as fast at opening apps and the international gs2 was even faster. The app I use the most is cash flow for my check register. It takes almost 5 seconds to open with the at&t note and like 1.5 seconds with the gs2. I know I'm being picky but I like things to be fast. The HTC one x to me, was even slower than my gs2. Maybe because of the sense UI, but that's what scares me about the gs3 seeing how it has the same processor as the one x. Maybe I need to be content with what I have and quit wanting all the latest and greatest. After all this worrying I'll probably still get the gs3.
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littlewierdo said:
Alrighty, a couple of things to keep in mind.
1. While most apps arent designed to utilize quad cores, this isnt likely to stay that way for long. Since quadcores are fairly new and Android app developers can actually update their apps without some sort of approval process, expect support to happen fairly quickly.
2. The SG3 has a stylus too.
3. ICS will be available for the Note probably in the next month or so. The latest rumour is July 13th. It was delayed 2 weeks because Samsung was fixing a kernel bug that caused the international Note to hard brick when flashing ICS roms.
4. The stock apps are interchangeable. The apps on the Note are available for the SG3 and the SG3 apps are available to put on the Note (this will become easier once ICS is official on the Note).
5. While yes, the Note is bigger, it isnt by much.
Now that Ive addressed those points, I want to talk about ram usage and lag.
The very first thing I am going to recommend is a simple factory reset. Strange as it may be, my Note had nothing but problems first day I had it. I should interject here, my Note was brand new, NOT a refurb. I had only installed a few of my own apps (Audible, BeyondPod, Go Launcher, Beautiful Widgets, and Widget Locker) and had NOT (and still havent in fact) rooted it. I also updated as many of the stock apps manually from the market as I could find since I noticed the stock apps were not linked to the market. And apps began force closing left and right, battery was dead within 6 hours of just streaming audio over bluetooth (hardly any screen time), poor performance, etc. Before I returned it, I did a factory reset and it has been running great since (on probably month 3 now of having it, I bought it very shortly after it came out in the states).
Strangely enough, my brothers Samsung GNexus had poor network performance out of the box, we did a factory reset WHILE driving home with his brand new phone (we drove 2.5 hours to pick up his phone so we had the time) and since then, it has been working fine since.
Ram usage is normal for it to be in the 75% range. Android works a bit differently than Windows and their is no negative to high ram usage TO A POINT. Ram usage exceeding at or exceeding 90% however would be troubling and actually cause poor, laggy performance but under 90% is fine. I dont want to go into the details here but a quick Google search, difference between windows and linux ram usage, might be beneficial.
Finally, my raw opinion, the SG3 is the better phone. The screen is better (albeit smaller), slightly faster, etc. Software differences are a moot point since all of that will be changed in a month when ICS is official for the Note and you can just install software from the phone you DONT have on the phone you DO have. Source code has been released for the Note and the SG3 so we may actually begin seeing some decent rom development begin to happen here in the coming weeks for both phones. What I would say is this, if you want a better quality screen and a slightly faster phone spec wise, go with the SG3. If you want the bigger screen, stick with the Note. Personally, I prefer the screen size and since I spent money on an extended battery for the Note (the Mugen 5400 mah), I wont be switching phones any time soon.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Littleweirdo ...thanks for the explanation and opinion. I share much of what you are saying regarding the SGS3, and I think dollar for dollar the SGS3 is far more powerful than the Note. I looked at our bill, and with the new plans that VZW is pushing out on June 28th, we would actually save about $32 a month from our phone bill (which allone is an enticing reason to change). My concern is the LTE to 3G connectivity of the VZW network...not sure if that is a strong enough argument not to change to VZW. Something can be said about the quality of the VZW network that does, in a way, outweigh sheer DL speeds.
lyall29 said:
I guess the only thing that bugs me with the at&t note is opening apps. When I had the international note it was twice as fast at opening apps and the international gs2 was even faster. The app I use the most is cash flow for my check register. It takes almost 5 seconds to open with the at&t note and like 1.5 seconds with the gs2. I know I'm being picky but I like things to be fast. The HTC one x to me, was even slower than my gs2. Maybe because of the sense UI, but that's what scares me about the gs3 seeing how it has the same processor as the one x. Maybe I need to be content with what I have and quit wanting all the latest and greatest. After all this worrying I'll probably still get the gs3.
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Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My concern with dropping my Note for the SGS3 sight-unseen is that the SGS3 will not meet my expectations based on the hype.
This is the most annoying cellular phone decision (purchase) I have ever done!! LOL!
Please use the Q&A Forum for questions &
Read the Forum Rules Ref Posting
Thanks ✟
Moving to Q&A
lufc said:
Please use the Q&A Forum for questions &
Read the Forum Rules Ref Posting
Thanks ✟
Moving to Q&A
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks lufc, hadn't realized that I wasn't in Q&A. :
Well I bit the bullet..... I switched to VZW. Specs wise the sgs3 seems to be superior, but push come to shove, a $35 a month savings with unlimited voice and text and 4gb gigs once the new pricing plans kick in at the end of the month.
I will miss the huge screen and te s- pen. And I might regret it, but I had to do it from a logical perspective.
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Crey23 said:
Littleweirdo ...thanks for the explanation and opinion. I share much of what you are saying regarding the SGS3, and I think dollar for dollar the SGS3 is far more powerful than the Note. I looked at our bill, and with the new plans that VZW is pushing out on June 28th, we would actually save about $32 a month from our phone bill (which allone is an enticing reason to change). My concern is the LTE to 3G connectivity of the VZW network...not sure if that is a strong enough argument not to change to VZW. Something can be said about the quality of the VZW network that does, in a way, outweigh sheer DL speeds.
My concern with dropping my Note for the SGS3 sight-unseen is that the SGS3 will not meet my expectations based on the hype.
This is the most annoying cellular phone decision (purchase) I have ever done!! LOL!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, Im not a fanboy by any stretch of the imagination. BUT, Samsung hasnt created a crappy phone since prior to the Galaxy S line of phones - I cant speak to anything prior to that because I never owned a Samsung phone prior to the Captivate. They have proven that they are ready to play with the big boys, they are even taking on a certain fruit company in court.
Why WOULDNT the Galaxy S3 not live up to all the hype? All the tech enthusiasts love it, ask anyone who has it outside of the US, they all love it as well. I think its a fantastic device and other than a smaller screen, its an upgrade from the Note in EVERY aspect, including a much higher quality screen.
If I wasnt invested in the Note already (ie a contract & a $100 extended battery), Id be looking very seriously at the S3 because the Note is older tech. Honestly, Id be laughing at the Note's screen size (I did originally before I decided to just see if I could live with it) because hell, its big.
If Im GOING to buy a phone, Im going to get the latest tech because I know that living with a phone for two years is going to be painful during the last 6 months of the contract.
Although I dont see myself wanting to upgrade my phone after two years due to the limited things I actually USE my phone for (podcasts, audiobooks from Audible, driving directions and checking for app updates for the 15 or so apps I have installed), my Note is plenty adequate. Hell, I would still be using the Captivate if it hadnt died on me. It did everything the Note does for me (that I use it for that is) and it even had a MUCH better sound processor (the Note's sound processing is TERRIBLE).
I'm still curious why people talk about the sgs3 like it's a pentium 4 to the notes pentium 2. The us note is a 1.5ghz dual core, the us sgs3 is a 1.5ghz dual core. The sgs3 has more ram, which means very little when appropriate customizations can create a silky smooth experience on either device. And to top it all off, with the right optimizations in the rom and kernel, a 1ghz tegra 2 is just as smooth as these 1.5 ghz chips. My atrix was buttery smooth on cm9, my note is buttery smooth on cm9, and I'm sure the sgs3 will be buttery smooth on cm9. In my opinion, it comes down to aesthetics and screen, because everything else is a variable if you plan to flash.
SGH-i717 mesosphere
littlewierdo said:
Ok, Im not a fanboy by any stretch of the imagination. BUT, Samsung hasnt created a crappy phone since prior to the Galaxy S line of phones - I cant speak to anything prior to that because I never owned a Samsung phone prior to the Captivate. They have proven that they are ready to play with the big boys, they are even taking on a certain fruit company in court.
Why WOULDNT the Galaxy S3 not live up to all the hype? All the tech enthusiasts love it, ask anyone who has it outside of the US, they all love it as well. I think its a fantastic device and other than a smaller screen, its an upgrade from the Note in EVERY aspect, including a much higher quality screen.
If I wasnt invested in the Note already (ie a contract & a $100 extended battery), Id be looking very seriously at the S3 because the Note is older tech. Honestly, Id be laughing at the Note's screen size (I did originally before I decided to just see if I could live with it) because hell, its big.
If Im GOING to buy a phone, Im going to get the latest tech because I know that living with a phone for two years is going to be painful during the last 6 months of the contract.
Although I dont see myself wanting to upgrade my phone after two years due to the limited things I actually USE my phone for (podcasts, audiobooks from Audible, driving directions and checking for app updates for the 15 or so apps I have installed), my Note is plenty adequate. Hell, I would still be using the Captivate if it hadnt died on me. It did everything the Note does for me (that I use it for that is) and it even had a MUCH better sound processor (the Note's sound processing is TERRIBLE).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I hear ya.....I have seen multiple videos on the the SGS3 and it seems like an incredibly fluid device. I have to say the screen real state i will miss, but since I am returning my Note today, and will get the SGS3 in early July I am back on an Blackberry Pearl 8130...the screen size is about 1/4 of the Note's....maybe less LOL. So I think by the time i get the G3 it will seem like a huge screen!
I will miss the S-Pen....I did use it quite a bit. I stopped taking my notebook to meetings bcs all I needed was my note.
pyro254750 said:
I'm still curious why people talk about the sgs3 like it's a pentium 4 to the notes pentium 2. The us note is a 1.5ghz dual core, the us sgs3 is a 1.5ghz dual core. The sgs3 has more ram, which means very little when appropriate customizations can create a silky smooth experience on either device. And to top it all off, with the right optimizations in the rom and kernel, a 1ghz tegra 2 is just as smooth as these 1.5 ghz chips. My atrix was buttery smooth on cm9, my note is buttery smooth on cm9, and I'm sure the sgs3 will be buttery smooth on cm9. In my opinion, it comes down to aesthetics and screen, because everything else is a variable if you plan to flash.
SGH-i717 mesosphere
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are right in the sence that many phones just need to be optimized in order to get them smooth. I did that with my htc Vision/G2 once I rooted, swaped kernels, flashed a "few" ROM's including ICS and had it OC'd to nearly 2x it's rated processor speed. BUT, and you know a but was coming....
There is something to be said of the posibilities of a device being launched nearly simultaneously on all 5 major carriers in the US...no other device has ever done that (at least under the same name, and never in so close proximity of one from the other).
The other thing impressive about the G3 is the hardware, it's got 2GB of ram, and incredible camera, a very good processor (though not the latest), and note like beautiful screen. For me the camera alone draws my attention, and the fact that the spec are as close to bleeding edge as we can get in a production device, makes me pretty happy to know that I can pull of 2 years of no upgrades.
In fact, when I purchased the htc G2 on T-Mobile nearly 2 yrs ago, it was the only phone on 4G network, and it was the best phone out there for a while, and I found no reason to envy any other devices. I switched from it bcs I got tired of the poor data strength of T-mobile in my area, and the fact that sitting at my office, getting signal was a hit/miss situation, but the device itself it's still kicking....it's my toddler's mini tablet at the moment.
littlewierdo said:
my raw opinion, the SG3 is the better phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Amazes me that people make statements like this without ever seeing, touching, or using a phone..
wase4711 said:
Amazes me that people make statements like this without ever seeing, touching, or using a phone..
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Click to collapse
Ive seen it first hand (the international version). The screen is probably the biggest thing about the SG3, its a better quality screen than the Note.
Samsung has NAILED every phone. Would people be buying it otherwise? Look at the world wide sales, look at the tech reviews, there is hardly anything negative to say about it.
In fact, the only negative is that it doesnt have the latest processor, big whoop in my opinion. Oh, and maybe touchwiz, but touchwiz is decent now, nothing like the pile of poo it was on the Captivate.

The Nexus 6P as the definitive (and possibly my last) Android phone?

So, I've owned only Android devices since I began buying smartphones and tablets, but I really feel like very little has changed with regards to Android's performance ever since the Snapdragon 800 in 2013. Even the addition of more RAM and higher-spec processors hasn't really changed much about the AOSP experience, and my old (GPE-converted) Galaxy S4 still feels like I could throw most anything at it.
With the Nexus 6P finally bringing the last few things I really wanted in a mobile phone (the fingerprint sensor, metal, 1440p AMOLED, pure Android without compromising the camera, USB-C), I'm really thinking that this may be my last Android phone for a long while. I feel like, while equally unnecessary, the N6P will offer the pinnacle of stock Android, while rounding out the feature set of all I look for. I was debating whether to cheap out and buy a N5X for dev and general mucking about, but I think I will instead commit to getting the 6P for the above reasons.
My last upgrade to the G3 was almost unnecessary, even though I love the phone. I only upgraded, since my S4's power button broke and headphone jack got a bit wonky. Had that not happened, I think I'd be still using it today as my DD. I didn't even feel the itch to upgrade to any of this year's devices (except the Nexus phones and the buzz around the fp sensor and camera), and I've already had the device for more than a year.
While it may be an unpopular opinion around these parts, I think I may switch to an iPhone (probably the 7+) when my contract is up just to see how that platform improves over the next couple of years. A second GB of RAM totally changed that phone, which shows just how behind they are in some aspects, and where potential lies. I just don't see Android making any earth-shattering changes, mostly because it doesn't need to anymore. OEMs drive their own crap update cycle by bogging down their updates and the like, a problem which never existed on my GPE-converted S4, and won't exist on the Nexus.
Don't really know why I felt like making this post, but I did. :silly:
I agree with you on certain points.
But remember,
my old (GPE-converted) Galaxy S4 still feels like I could throw most anything at it.
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Click to collapse
You did something to your phone in order to be fast / smooth / etc. While we as a community continue to do this and find ways to improve everything.. Android (stock) has come a long way.
I'm really thinking that this may be my last Android phone for a long while.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You reasoning for this is there is nothing really new on Android and Android phones haven't really evolved much but the same goes for iOS. This coming from someone who keeps going back and forth from Android to iOS. iOS is much more polished and needs less specs to run smooth, but you also have to remember they only have to worry about support their own hardware. And while yes, there has been phone upgrades from Apple (bigger screen, etc.), this is stuff Android has been doing for a long time.
It's kind of hard honestly.. after a certain point.. development / upgrades happen slower.. when jumping from phone to phone now, things don't seem like much of an upgrade. I think that's because we upgrade phones so often now, we don't notice the differences as much. But say you had to keep your S4 for another year without the ability to root / install a custom ROM, I'm sure you'd be all over the N6P.
While XDA has made Android development much bigger and contributed in a positive way, it has also kind of spoiled us and made us think the way you are.
For me the big things that keep me on android are customization and the ability to do what I want with the phone (not what Apple or anyone else wants me to do). I would love to say this would be my last phone for a while but 2 things will prevent that....
1. I'm a tech junkie
2. Android support is 2 years
Well, the LG G3 isnt the best phone... you'll probably like the Nexus 6P a LOT!
I said that with the Nexus 6. I might still keep the Nexus 6 but I'm at least going to give the 6P a shot.
Sent from my Nexus 6 using XDA Free mobile app
I'm not far behind but not because Android vs Apple but because my life centers around MS products. I work in IT, exclusively with MS products. Why is my mobile device on a different ecosystem?
I'm excited for what MS has in store for their APIs that allow ios and Android apps to behave as if they're in their natural environment. I think this approach is going to flatten the playing field and OS will no longer matter.
Now if they could just make tech without built in obsolescion the market will start filling with devices that have purpose instead of purely consumerism. There WILL be a threshold of device waste that will force our hand.
Excel made some good points. And I too felt the same about not seeing much improvement from my phone but the continuous development thru ROMs makes it seems like the progress is small but it not....if you tally up the progress over the 1 year iPhone life cycle it is a lot of progress.
Google has too many things going on and unfortunately doesn't take the time to perfect their products except their search engine. They rather create a new product versus refining an existing one.
Imagine if google only had drive, no gmail, no G+, a tablet, one PC, and Android that ran on a single phone from one manufacturer....say LG. And Kept that same phone and just improved the hardware each year and the software as well....and diverted all other efforts towards perfecting that single device. That phone would be light years ahead of apple. Instead google has close to 200 products and services they wear themselves thin with. And tackling the immense task of attempting to make android run seemless and smooth on
Almost 19,000 devices instead of on just a handful of devices plus one phone is the difference between google and apple.
With that said and even with google continuing to expand like they do....I still think Google's android os running on top tier android devices will surpass IPhones in all aspects in couple years.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Free mobile app
Exel said:
You did something to your phone in order to be fast / smooth / etc. While we as a community continue to do this and find ways to improve everything.. Android (stock) has come a long way.
You reasoning for this is there is nothing really new on Android and Android phones haven't really evolved much but the same goes for iOS. This coming from someone who keeps going back and forth from Android to iOS. iOS is much more polished and needs less specs to run smooth, but you also have to remember they only have to worry about support their own hardware. And while yes, there has been phone upgrades from Apple (bigger screen, etc.), this is stuff Android has been doing for a long time
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Partially correct on the first point. It is fundamentally still "stock" (no kernel mods/custom features) on GPE firmware, but yes, I haven't tried stock since the original shipping firmware. I haven't rooted my phones since putting GPE on the S4. My Nexus 9, the G3, and the S4 all run unrooted, the former two of which are on stock firmware. The biggest pain about Android is debloating carrier crapware, a problem nonexistent on Nexus devices.
I feel like Android has matured to the point that there is little left to give. As far as supporting their own stuff, that's why I feel like the N6P would be the ultimate.
WoodroweBones said:
For me the big things that keep me on android are customization and the ability to do what I want with the phone (not what Apple or anyone else wants me to do). I would love to say this would be my last phone for a while but 2 things will prevent that....
1. I'm a tech junkie
2. Android support is 2 years
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree, but customisation is so easy to do on Android without mods or root. The only other phone I was considering was the S6 edge +, which is also comparably restrictive. I just haven't felt the need to root since the S4.
An iPhone, on the other hand, I would be keen to jailbreak instantly. Quite a lot of interesting tweaks come out of Apple's "crack R&D team" (like swipeselection....), and jailbreaking is the only way to stay on that edge and get appropriate customisation.
I would also be using pretty much solely Google apps there anyway, since the default apps are kinda terrible.
bsg411 said:
Google has too many things going on and unfortunately doesn't take the time to perfect their products except their search engine. They rather create a new product versus refining an existing one.
Imagine if google only had drive, no gmail, no G+, a tablet, one PC, and Android that ran on a single phone from one manufacturer....That phone would be light years ahead of apple. Instead google has close to 200 products and services they wear themselves thin with.
With that said and even with google continuing to expand like they do....I still think Google's android os running on top tier android devices will surpass IPhones in all aspects in couple years.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But the diversity is the beauty of Google. The fact that they move the ecosystem forward and have a constant stream of novelty across their business is what helps them succeed. Android itself doesn't really need more improvement, is my argument. It's already there, and their job is to create new services to drive the platform.
Android as an OS already far exceeds that of iOS IMO, especially with Google Now. What I want to see is how Apple catches , since their platform seems to still be in flux (as far as performance and service delivery goes).
You'll change your mind when they release the Nexus 14z, which will project it's 16k display directly to your brain, and be able to read your thoughts instead of having to speak "OK Google".
I'm serious, because Google will have perfected mind control by then and we'll all be drones.
All hail Masters Page and Brin, our merciful overlords!
---------- Post added at 09:33 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:31 PM ----------
Seriously though, I admire your pragmatic upgrade preferences on smartphones.
TemporaryTester said:
But the diversity is the beauty of Google. The fact that they move the ecosystem forward and have a constant stream of novelty across their business is what helps them succeed. Android itself doesn't really need more improvement, is my argument. It's already there, and their job is to create new services to drive the platform.
Android as an OS already far exceeds that of iOS IMO, especially with Google Now. What I want to see is how Apple catches , since their platform seems to still be in flux (as far as performance and service delivery goes).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree with you the software is better but implementing all the services via the OS on a multitude of devices is a difficult task. However starting with this 6P nexus devices I think are on par with iPhone (hardware and software) and I bet will surpass the iPhone 7 next year.
I just wish they worked with one manufacturer to help perfect the hardware and built on a good hardware design instead of going back and forth with with hardware features and designs .....kinda like the 5x with 6P features.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Free mobile app
If the 6P lives up to the hype, the improvements left are physics stuff: battery life, moar camera, lighter/thinner/stronger, waterproof, sapphire display.
That said, iPhones have been such a bitter disappointment since the Gingerbread days. I'm on Apple for the most part (MBr, iMac 5k) and would consider switching to iOS but the differentiators that custom Androids offer simply aren't there, or even possible. The current crop of crippled hardware is missing too much. When Apple makes a real retina display (eg AMOLED 2k) and loses the oversized HTC-ish bezels it'll be worth another look. Assuming Apple gives out widgets, call recording & MinMinGuard too.
WoodroweBones said:
2. Android support is 2 years
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For a Nexus device the support window is 3 years. N5 is 2 years old and just recieved Android 6.0. It will continue to get updates for atleast another full year. Unfortunately that is likely to end when android N comes next fall.
Interesting that this phone has everything you ever wanted. Did you know you wanted a 1440p phone with a fingerprint scanner 2 years ago? Probably not. I'm sure innovation will continue, though maybe slowly. I'd like to see better battery tech.
This is how the technology cycle is. You cant have the same level of developments every year throughout the products/os cycle.
I believe many of the features we see added are already developed. They just hold back so they can have a balance of Big n small changes each year & also market couple of features as exclusives for the latest version.
It is the same with iOs as well. You will not see a lot of big changes. Many of them will be hardware based. As os's get more refined hardware dependency will reduce. Today you can get excellent performance from a mid range android device. Tomorrow it will spread to lower end devices aswell. In principal its a good thing.
Right now the top most focus for any R&D of software or hardware company is battery life. The company that cracks it will play a major role.
CrashTestDroid said:
If the 6P lives up to the hype, the improvements left are physics stuff: battery life, moar camera, lighter/thinner/stronger, waterproof, sapphire display.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really? People are still hung up on sapphire? Sapphire is brittle. I want foldable screens. I still believe Nokia's concept of a phone that trifolds and then bends to fit as a watch is the future. No more carrying a giant brick in my pocket.
Spaderess said:
For a Nexus device the support window is 3 years. N5 is 2 years old and just recieved Android 6.0. It will continue to get updates for atleast another full year. Unfortunately that is likely to end when android N comes next fall.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
True... I guess for me I mean 2 years of getting a new android version but yeah technically 3 years support I suppose.
warplane95 said:
Well, the LG G3 isnt the best phone... you'll probably like the Nexus 6P a LOT!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A G3 running BlissPop ROM is truly a thing of beauty! It's incredibly compact and lightweight for a 5.5" phone, and it flies without the LG software on it. It has a great camera (a step behind the current best, but I've had very few pictures I wasn't very happy with), and the screen as much better than it's reputation indicates it should be ... mostly, I think, because the default brightness is quite low. And the battery life is quite good ... I end most days with 50% after about 1.5 hours of SOT.
I'm mostly upgrading to the 6P because I usually buy a new phone every 6-9 months, but it's been 14 months and I need a new shiny object to fondle. I'm honestly not expecting it to be a whole lot better than the G3 for me ... better screen, better speakers (I hope) and a fingerprint reader may or may not be enough to compensate for the substantial increase in bulk. I had a Note 5 for a week, and it just didn't feel like much of an improvement so I sent it back, which I have never done before.
And my G3 has a replaceable battery, and I could probably be happy with it for 5 more years, if I wasn't such a gadget whore.
Of course I certainly don't think an iPhone is the answer .... that's just ridiculous!
Whoops double post
Here's an idea...try to find a friend with an iPhone who would be willing to trade with you for a week or something. Wipe the phones, trade your SIMs and see how the other side lives.
Sent from my LG-V410 using Tapatalk
Though it had it's issues, the Nexus 6 strong enough in all the categories that I stuck with it for a full year. The only thing strong enough to pull me away now is the 6P. I fully expect it to keep me locked in for the next year as well. However, it could be good enough that I don't feel the need to upgrade to next year's nexus. Only time will tell.

Samsung did it again! Crappie Note 7 memory (RAM) management!

I almost posted this to the discussion thread, but I truly think this deserves an exclusive topic!
Yes, guys, Samsung did it again. Just like Note 5, we now have a crappie RAM management that simply reloads every app and websites again after alternating recent apps/games. Just take a look at this first speed test side by side comparison to the iPhone 6S, made by this YouTube channel. Extremely disappointing! This is absolutely unacceptable for a so expensive device like this! Even worse, but being able to correct manage 4 GB of RAM is ridiculous!
I already ordered a Spigen Wallet S cover and I'm just waiting for Brazilian pre-order to start, but now I need to confess that I'm a bit desperate due to this performance, mainly because this simply doesn't occur when using my Galaxy Note 3!
Anyway, here it goes:
Edit: Another video added! Now against OP3.
viniciusrsouza said:
I almost posted this to the discussion thread, but I truly think this deserves an exclusive topic!
Yes, guys, Samsung did it again. Just like Note 5, we now have a crappie RAM management that simply reloads every app and websites again after alternating recent apps/games. Just take a look at this first speed test side by side comparison to the iPhone 6S, made by this YouTube channel. Extremely disappointing! This is absolutely unacceptable for a so expensive device like this! Even worse, but being able to correct manage 4 GB of RAM is ridiculous!
I already ordered a Spigen Wallet S cover and I'm just waiting for Brazilian pre-order to start, but now I need to confess that I'm a bit desperate due to this performance, mainly because this simply doesn't occur when using my Galaxy Note 3!
Anyway, here it goes:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, as soon as I saw this video, I considered canceling my order. I'm holding out hope that the Snapdragon model doesn't have this issue, but if it does, I'll simply return it. I don't care how much of a fanboy you are, there is simply NO EXCUSE for this on a $900 flagship device with 4gb of RAM.
I understand some frustration, but so people really treat their phones this way in real life? How much app switching do you do? 1 second versus 0.8 seconds really isn't a big deal for most people. Canceling an order over this seems a bit... Hasty.
Sent from my SM-N920V using XDA-Developers mobile app
That is pretty crappy. I hope they fix it.
PsiPhiDan said:
I understand some frustration, but so people really treat their phones this way in real life? How much app switching do you do? 1 second versus 0.8 seconds really isn't a big deal for most people. Canceling an order over this seems a bit... Hasty.
Sent from my SM-N920V using XDA-Developers mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Shows Samsung have not engineered the device properly. Even OnePlus got this right.
Sent from my LG-H850 using XDA-Developers mobile app
PsiPhiDan said:
I understand some frustration, but so people really treat their phones this way in real life? How much app switching do you do? 1 second versus 0.8 seconds really isn't a big deal for most people. Canceling an order over this seems a bit... Hasty.
Sent from my SM-N920V using XDA-Developers mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I truly don't bother about milliseconds delay when opening apps or even seconds more to open games (nowadays it's even pretty rare to me playing games, to be honest), as we saw in the video. The real deal is this frustrating, disappointing and, mainly, irritating "reload everything issue" that was so much discussed when Note 5 was released and recently was so criticized also about the latest 1+ device.
We expect low end devices to throw a cold water bucket on our heads while reloading everything we pick under recent apps, but this is unacceptable for the most expensive phone in the world! This is so basic.
And this is not something about not being real life. This is something about the same issue that Note 5 (don't know if S7 also) faced. You don't need to open multiple games. Just alternate between some light apps and this will be sufficient to TouchWiz kill them at background.
Also, this is ridiculous for a phone that claims itself to be a multitasking monster and it's even able to open multiple apps at once at the same time, splitting screen and/or through those bubbles S Pen feature.
For example, I'm writing all of this using my Note 3 and already alterned between weather app, Google app, Inbox and even Google Translator to help me writing this. Just imagine now if I was using Note 7 and this f* Samsung TouchWiz killing background apps thing just reloaded all my 4 Chrome tabs when I returned to it! I would have lost EVERYTHING I typed!
This is not something we can deal of we can handle/accept. No way!
jah said:
Shows Samsung have not engineered the device properly. Even OnePlus got this right.
Sent from my LG-H850 using XDA-Developers mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, but it got an update to correct this issue. Originally it wasn't right. I remember watching some videos on YouTube about it. So I really have hope Samsung will fix this pretty soon also!
There should be an update for sure Even S7E have a better RAM management. I understand killing games but Youtube and browser or other light apps? Cmon Samsung that's plain stupid.
viniciusrsouza said:
I truly don't bother about milliseconds delay when opening apps or even seconds more to open games (nowadays it's even pretty rare to me playing games, to be honest), as we saw in the video. The real deal is this frustrating, disappointing and, mainly, irritating "reload everything issue" that was so much discussed when Note 5 was released and recently was so criticized also about the latest 1+ device.
We expect low end devices to throw a cold water bucket on our heads while reloading everything we pick under recent apps, but this is unacceptable for the most expensive phone in the world! This is so basic.
And this is not something about not being real life. This is something about the same issue that Note 5 (don't know if S7 also) faced. You don't need to open multiple games. Just alternate between some light apps and this will be sufficient to TouchWiz kill them at background.
Also, this is ridiculous for a phone that claims itself to be a multitasking monster and it's even able to open multiple apps at once at the same time, splitting screen and/or through those bubbles S Pen feature.
For example, I'm writing all of this using my Note 3 and already alterned between weather app, Google app, Inbox and even Google Translator to help me writing this. Just imagine now if I was using Note 7 and this f* Samsung TouchWiz killing background apps thing just reloaded all my 4 Chrome tabs when I returned to it! I would have lost EVERYTHING I typed!
This is not something we can deal of we can handle/accept. No way!
Yeah, but it got an update to correct this issue. Originally it wasn't right. I remember watching some videos on YouTube about it. So I really have hope Samsung will fix this pretty soon also!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My point is that Oneplus is a tiny company compared to Samsung. Samsung should get it right when their product is double the price of the Oneplus 3.
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3003 using XDA-Developers mobile app
PsiPhiDan said:
I understand some frustration, but so people really treat their phones this way in real life? How much app switching do you do? 1 second versus 0.8 seconds really isn't a big deal for most people. Canceling an order over this seems a bit... Hasty.
Sent from my SM-N920V using XDA-Developers mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So, you're telling me you're okay with paying $900 for a device that has 4gb of RAM yet can't even keep two apps running in the background with said RAM? Because that's sad. I feel like people who downplay this have no idea how a smartphone is supposed to work. If you need an example, see the Galaxy S7 an S7 Edge, both made by Samsung, both of which handle RAM management very well. There is literally no excuse for Samsung to set the app cache settings so low on this phone.
People try to defend them by saying "battery life", but that just speaks to a severe ignorance in how RAM is utilized. Sure, if you have a badly coded app running in the background, it will take some extra battery, but for the most part, it takes MORE battery to reload the apps over and over because that's taxing the processor. It's also inexcusable on a device that is supposed to be a multitasking powerhouse for power users.
Hasty? Practical. I fell for Samsung's crap last year with the Note 5 and didn't return it in time. It took them months and an entire new version of Android to rectify the bad RAM management in that device and mine sat in a drawer because I couldn't stand to use it in its crippled state. I'm not going through that again. Not when there are devices for half the price that actually perform like they should.
I have the note 5 and my background apps rarely reload when I switch back and forth.
Sent from my SM-N920P using Tapatalk
durandetto said:
I have the note 5 and my background apps rarely reload when I switch back and forth.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can't believe this video has been posted in three different threads in this and the T-Mobile Note7 forum. Comparing any Android phone to an iPhone is like comparing a diesel car to a gasoline powered one. The two OS's are totally different in their approach to performance. The iPhone 6 with 1GB of RAM out benchmarked Android and the 6s only has 2MB of RAM. There are threads here where people are up in arms the Note7 only has 4GB.
As for memory management there's a balance between keeping multiple apps alive in the background for convenience and keeping too many open which impacts battery life. This is what caused all the recent drama with the OnePlus 3 and its 6GB of RAM keeping fewer apps open than the S7-series. Here's a quote from the OnePlus founder.
After a comparison video earlier this week showed us that the OnePlus 3’s 6GB of RAM might not give it the insane multitasking capabilities we all hoped, OnePlus CEO Carl Pei has responded with a few clarifications surrounding RAM management on the OnePlus 3. On paper, 6GB of RAM would lead most users to believe that they could easily have several apps open at a time without anything reloading, however upon getting devices, many users have found that the phone can only hold 3 or 4 apps in memory before removing them. Why is that the case? Pei [the OnePlus founder] quite simply responded by saying that OnePlus has a “different strategy for RAM management that benefits battery”. While battery is definitely a valid concern with the OnePlus 3 considering the smaller 3,000 mAh capacity, it’s definitely a bit disappointing to see performance given up in exchange. That said however, there is a way to get around this. Carl Pei explained in another tweet that the RAM management can be adjusted in third-party ROMs. So with other ROMs that should be released pretty soon, developers could easily change the RAM management to a far less aggressive setting. A potential fix using the first party ROM is currently floating around on XDA, but Pei reminds us that RAM management is handled by more than just the build.prop, so don’t put too much faith in that “fix”.
http://9to5google.com/2016/06/17/on...-surrounding-ram-management-on-the-oneplus-3/​
Samsung took huge flack on the S6 because it only kept 3-4 background apps alive. It improved on the Note5 to 5-7 which is what I've experienced over the past year. I'd expect similar performance in the Note7. With all the unique strengths and features the Note7 has if the number of background apps open is a top priority maybe folks should reconsider their purchase decision.
BarryH_GEG said:
Comparing any Android phone to an iPhone is like comparing a diesel car to a gasoline powered one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What's wrong with doing that ? If you see that the gasoline powered one is much faster, that might then be a reason to buy that one. Even more so if it's cheaper (like the iphone is nowadays).
As for memory management there's a balance between keeping multiple apps alive in the background for convenience and keeping too many open which impacts battery life. This is what caused all the recent drama with the OnePlus 3 and its 6GB of RAM keeping fewer apps open than the S7-series. Here's a quote from the OnePlus founder.
After a comparison video earlier this week showed us that the OnePlus 3’s 6GB of RAM might not give it the insane multitasking capabilities we all hoped, OnePlus CEO Carl Pei has responded with a few clarifications surrounding RAM management on the OnePlus 3. On paper, 6GB of RAM would lead most users to believe that they could easily have several apps open at a time without anything reloading, however upon getting devices, many users have found that the phone can only hold 3 or 4 apps in memory before removing them. Why is that the case? Pei [the OnePlus founder] quite simply responded by saying that OnePlus has a “different strategy for RAM management that benefits battery”. While battery is definitely a valid concern with the OnePlus 3 considering the smaller 3,000 mAh capacity, it’s definitely a bit disappointing to see performance given up in exchange. That said however, there is a way to get around this. Carl Pei explained in another tweet that the RAM management can be adjusted in third-party ROMs. So with other ROMs that should be released pretty soon, developers could easily change the RAM management to a far less aggressive setting. A potential fix using the first party ROM is currently floating around on XDA, but Pei reminds us that RAM management is handled by more than just the build.prop, so don’t put too much faith in that “fix”.
​
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ram usage itself has absolutely nothing to do with battery usage. Unused ram cells don't consume less battery. What this guy is saying though is that background processes can use CPU cycles: when accumulated CPU cycles cause the CPU to boost its speed, then it will have an impact on battery life. But that's more due to badly written apps, why would a game that the user is not playing want to stress the CPU ? It's like facebook, that's a perfect example of a horrible written app. Regardless off how many apps you are running, that app will drain battery due to doing tons of stuff in the background and keeping your phone awake. So it's not a matter of how many apps you are running simultaneously, it's a matter of which apps you are running.​
Entitlement runs amok. Nobody has a gun to your head and is forcing you to buy it. The other 99% of people who would buy this phone won't care.
GeoFX said:
Entitlement runs amok. Nobody has a gun to your head and is forcing you to buy it. The other 99% of people who would buy this phone won't care.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Man it's just frustration. We all want to buy this phone because it looks so sleak, has this nice catchy iris scanner etc. But then again, it means you'll have to deal with Touchwiz and all of its problems and Samsung's horrible update policy again. The alternative is buying the HTC Nexus next month but that device doesn't nearly look as cool, let alone have new features like an iris scanner. If Samsung would make the Nexus, now that would be a device to look forward to
gekkehenkie11 said:
Man it's just frustration. We all want to buy this phone because it looks so sleak, has this nice catchy iris scanner etc. But then again, it means you'll have to deal with Touchwiz and all of its problems and Samsung's horrible update policy again. The alternative is buying the HTC Nexus next month but that device doesn't nearly look as cool, let alone have new features like an iris scanner. If Samsung would make the Nexus, now that would be a device to look forward to
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can't have it both ways nor can you expect Samsung to listen to bunch of people on xda to devote time and resources to fix things. The limitations of Touchwiz can be 80% mitigated by spending $2 on Nova Prime if you truly hate it.
People need to seriously prioritize what they expect in the phone. Again, nobody is forcing you to buy the phone and if RAM managment or an unlocked bootloader is really that necessary, get a HTC, OnePlus, or the upcoming Nexus. I expect people who can afford a $850 phone to have other more important priorities in their purchasing decisions.
BarryH_GEG said:
Comparing any Android phone to an iPhone is like comparing
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It was also compared to the Note 5 which had the same issue until it was eventually fixed. This information was available in the OP had you read instead of skimmed.
And it doesn't matter what OS is running: Android, IOS, Mac, Windows, Linux, etc., no app should completely reload after it has already been started.
durandetto said:
I have the note 5 and my background apps rarely reload when I switch back and forth.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you had read the post above yours, you would have noticed that the issue had been subsequently fixed in a later patch on the Note 5.
Come on, people: read, don't skim.
GeoFX said:
The limitations of Touchwiz can be 80% mitigated by spending $2 on Nova Prime if you truly hate it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's nonsense. A launcher itself wont change anything regarding the deeper/core android processes like the ram management.
I expect people who can afford a $850 phone to have other more important priorities in their purchasing decisions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I dont know. What I do know is that a lot of Iphone users buy the phone, partly, because they love the smoothness of the interface. In fact I recently spoke to a friend of mine who is a really smart university grad in IT, I found out he was on Iphone which surprised me a bit. When I asked him why he said he couldnt stand Android's interface. I said "You mean Touchwiz". He said "what" ? Lol. What I'm saying is, most people dont even know what Touchwiz is, but they do see that a Samsung phone is just not running as smooth as an iphone and I'm 100% confident that that DOES cause people to buy an iphone over a Galaxy.
GeoFX said:
I expect people who can afford a $850 phone to have other more important priorities in their purchasing decisions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you're paying for the most expensive device available, you will want to do with it whatever you want (unlocked bootloader, ROM it, etc.). It should operate near-flawlessly. Or quickly be patched to. You should demand the absolute best.
Telling people to just accept whatever they get when spending that much money for a device is just unacceptable. Like the old adage goes:
"You get what you pay for."
There's a reason why there are cheaper vehicles, boats, homes, etc. The cheaper they are, the less you're going to get out of them.
Multi-tasking is non-existent when apps reload after they've already been loaded. This is a deal-breaker. I won't be purchasing this device now until it's been fixed. There's zero excuses for a the most expensive flagship device available to have such a glaring and easily-fixable flaw.
gekkehenkie11 said:
That's nonsense. A launcher itself wont change anything regarding the deeper android processes like the ram management.
I dont know. What I do know is that a lot of Iphone users buy the phone, partly, because they love the smoothness of the interface. In fact I recently spoke to a friend of mine who is a really smart university grad in IT, I found out he was on Iphone which surprised me a bit. When I asked him why he said he couldnt stand Android's interface. I said "You mean Touchwiz". He said "what" ? Lol. What I'm saying is, most people dont even know what Touchwiz is, but they do see that a Samsung phone is just not running as smooth as an iphone and I'm 100% confident that that DOES cause people to buy an iphone over a Galaxy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was responding directly to the Touchwiz comment and it's limitations. The RAM management issues go beyond Touchwiz and is probably kernel related.
So who cares about why people by an Iphone vs. a Samsung? It's not like Samsung is losing sleep over the perceived crappy RAM management of their phones affecting sales. I still state that people who can afford a flagship Samsung phone vs. other android phones have other priorities than worrying about this stuff when making their purchase. Things like design, a S-pen, smaller form factors for a given screen size, wireless charging, etc. would be better justifications. Again, if you need the other stuff for dev work or "full" control, get another phone. Samsung won't change anything for people here on XDA so it's pointless having angst over this stuff.
---------- Post added at 10:53 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:50 AM ----------
-BoneZ- said:
If you're paying for the most expensive device available, you will want to do with it whatever you want (unlocked bootloader, ROM it, etc.). It should operate near-flawlessly. Or quickly be patched to. You should demand the absolute best.
Telling people to just accept whatever they get when spending that much money for a device is just unacceptable. Like the old adage goes:
"You get what you pay for."
There's a reason why there are cheaper vehicles, boats, homes, etc. The cheaper they are, the less you're going to get out of them.
Multi-tasking is non-existent when apps reload after they've already been loaded. This is a deal-breaker. I won't be purchasing this device now until it's been fixed. There's zero excuses for a the most expensive flagship device available to have such a glaring and easily-fixable flaw.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe for you but for the 99% of the people purchasing this phone who cares? People don't refuse to buy BMWs anymore because they took away the dipstick to check oil (which they have for close to the past 10 years). Don't think for a minute that you're important enough for Samsung to care that you won't buy the phone because of perceived flaws. I find it hilarious when people ***** about not having root or an unlocked bootloader on a phone and when they finally do get that they cry about not being able to use Samsung Pay. Duh...that's the reason why these phones are locked to begin with.
GeoFX said:
I was responding directly to the Touchwiz comment and it's limitations. The RAM management issues go beyond Touchwiz and is probably kernel related.
So who cares about why people by an Iphone vs. a Samsung? It's not like Samsung is losing sleep over the perceived crappy RAM management of their phones affecting sales. I still state that people who can afford a flagship Samsung phone vs. other android phones have other priorities than worrying about this stuff when making their purchase. Things like design, a S-pen, smaller form factors for a given screen size, wireless charging, etc. would be better justifications. Again, if you need the other stuff for dev work or "full" control, get another phone. Samsung won't change anything for people here on XDA so it's pointless having angst over this stuff.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think Samsung could have pushed Iphone out of the market by now if they had delivered phones that would beat the iphone in every aspect. Samsung's hardware is usually better but their software department is horrible and extremely slow in pushing out updates. The whole reason Iphone still exists is that Samsung is just not delivering what a lot of users want. In fact, if I didnt hate Itunes that much I'd probably kiss Android goodbye and buy an iphone (it works the other way around too, apple could have killed Samsung too, at least in the flagship department, if they listened a bit better to what people want, or did you actually meet someone who likes Itunes ?)

Should i take my Nexus 9 back for a refund or a repair?

I got my Nexus 9 32gb lte a few months ago from a local retailer (JBHIFI) and there has been a few issues that have since popped up and i'm looking for advice on what i should do. I should start out by saying that it was a floor model with literally nothing else besides the tablet. No charger, no box, no Htc manuals or warranty cards (i know what they look like thanks to my Htc one x and Htc one M9) but at half the retail price i thought it was a good deal. The screen looked good with very little backlight bleeding ( only at the top and bottom and you can't really tell if you're not looking for it) and the housing looked to be in good shape as well but after a few months the issues started to pop up. The first issue i noticed was the tablet gets pretty hot to the point where i can't touch it, I'm not sure if it's a nougat issue but i doubt it, it's specifically hot around the top half and there's a crunching sound when i press down around the top 1/4 of the tablet which leads me to believe the copper shield is having issues. Second issue is the battery life has also taken a pretty big hit, i used to be able to get 6+ hours sot (managed 7 hours once) and now I'm barely able to get 4 hours sot with it frequently only getting about 3 1/2 hours sot before i have to charge it. Third issue is the air bubbles in the corners of the screen. I've got 3 separate bubbles along the top of my nexus 9, one in the top left and one in the top right corner and a small strip very close to the right corner air bubble. I know i have consumer laws on my side in case JBHIFI decide to do nothing to help me and i could force the issue if i wanted to. I'd like to get it fixed but these issues are making me look at other options like a new tablet (not much to choose from though). Any advice would be a great help.
Cheers Mrbtree98
My advice (having one of the finicky ones for nearly 2 years) is to return it. I don't think mine has any actual hardware issues but requires frequent wipes (at least every 8-12 weeks) to avoid lag, freezes, and reboots. The back of the tab-near camera-does get hot especially when using Chrome but the bubble issue would concern me.
Tapatalk on Nexus 9
ritchea said:
My advice (having one of the finicky ones for nearly 2 years) is to return it. I don't think mine has any actual hardware issues but requires frequent wipes (at least every 8-12 weeks) to avoid lag, freezes, and reboots. The back of the tab-near camera-does get hot especially when using Chrome but the bubble issue would concern me.
Tapatalk on Nexus 9
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for your reply. I went back to the store, spoke with the manager and they'll be taking it back with a full refund in the new year because of a massive hardware fault in his opinion. He asked if I could come back after the Christmas/Boxing Day madness which is fine with me. Thank you again for making up my mind on this.
I wish I could help with a suggestion for another tablet. The reason I still have mine is because I've found nothing better. I actually love the form factor, and when it's working well, the display is remarkable.
Tapatalk on Nexus 9
ritchea said:
I wish I could help with a suggestion for another tablet. The reason I still have mine is because I've found nothing better. I actually love the form factor, and when it's working well, the display is remarkable.
Tapatalk on Nexus 9
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I loved my Nexus 9 when i got it but these issues have put a serious dampener on my love with the nexus line, Especially when I'm coming from the Nexus 7 2012 and the 2013 (2012 died from either a mobo failure or a nand failure but the thing served me and later my dad well. The 2013 was easily my best tablet experience to date and still is). Like you said the screen is amazing (minus the bubble issue) and i love the form factor, it's just a shame that google went with the "lets price everything higher" approach which screwed over Aussies with $1000+ Pixels. (128gb Pixel XL comes in at almost $1500) I'll be keeping an eye out on CES and MWC to see what comes out on the tablet scene but i'm hoping for a Galaxy Tab S3 to get announced or for Lenovo to come out with something amazing as they're really the only players in the Australian market outside of windows 2 in 1's from Asus, Hp, etc, Ipads and the Surface lineup.
ritchea said:
I wish I could help with a suggestion for another tablet. The reason I still have mine is because I've found nothing better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Likewise, (and I think most people who use the N9 share this opinion)
When it works, its great. Sadly.....it doesn't always work great, biggest reason for this is that its a 64-bit android with only 2 gigs of memory. thus, your memory is 90% of the time near full capacity.
(Which is why I find my OnePlus 3 for instance with its 6gb of memory a godsend. It might be overkill but atleast I never ever have issues apps force closing etc due to no more memory available)
mrbtree98 said:
I loved my Nexus 9 when i got it but these issues have put a serious dampener on my love with the nexus line, Especially when I'm coming from the Nexus 7 2012 and the 2013 (2012 died from either a mobo failure or a nand failure but the thing served me and later my dad well. The 2013 was easily my best tablet experience to date and still is). Like you said the screen is amazing (minus the bubble issue) and i love the form factor, it's just a shame that google went with the "lets price everything higher" approach which screwed over Aussies with $1000+ Pixels. (128gb Pixel XL comes in at almost $1500) I'll be keeping an eye out on CES and MWC to see what comes out on the tablet scene but i'm hoping for a Galaxy Tab S3 to get announced or for Lenovo to come out with something amazing as they're really the only players in the Australian market outside of windows 2 in 1's from Asus, Hp, etc, Ipads and the Surface lineup.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My first nexus was the Nexus 5, after which I bought the N9. The N5 was a remarkable phone....the N9 also managed to kill my love for the nexus line.
Pixel kosts around € 950,- for the 32gb version and around € 1175,- for the 128gb version in Europa). Which translates to around 1000~ 1250 dollars. Still not as bad as 1500 dollars but I will never ever in my life lay down that much money for just a phone.
Now, as far as recommended tablets go. I cannot recommend Samsung (We have a Tab Pro here aswell), simple verdict on that. Its slow, sluggish, comes with far too many un-installable system junk apps and Samsung can F*** right off with their locked bootloaders, anti-flash policies, KNOX and instant-warranty void if attempt to flash remotely anything.
If I were to count I'd say our Samsung Tab came with atleast 3~4 news apps which it will try to shove down your throat. (As they are baked into the default launcher so you can't even remove or disable them)
Maybe Sony/Lenovo comes out with a good tablet. The only other good aspect about N9 is that it features only Google default apps and very little to no bloat. So its rather clean.
Never thought I'd say this but, If you really need a good tablet. Personally, I'd recommend just getting an iPad instead (Coming from someone who uses 100% Android at all times)
GiantAxe said:
Likewise, (and I think most people who use the N9 share this opinion)
When it works, its great. Sadly.....it doesn't always work great, biggest reason for this is that its a 64-bit android with only 2 gigs of memory. thus, your memory is 90% of the time near full capacity.
(Which is why I find my OnePlus 3 for instance with its 6gb of memory a godsend. It might be overkill but atleast I never ever have issues apps force closing etc due to no more memory available)
My first nexus was the Nexus 5, after which I bought the N9. The N5 was a remarkable phone....the N9 also managed to kill my love for the nexus line.
Pixel kosts around € 950,- for the 32gb version and around € 1175,- for the 128gb version in Europa). Which translates to around 1000~ 1250 dollars. Still not as bad as 1500 dollars but I will never ever in my life lay down that much money for just a phone.
Now, as far as recommended tablets go. I cannot recommend Samsung (We have a Tab Pro here aswell), simple verdict on that. Its slow, sluggish, comes with far too many un-installable system junk apps and Samsung can F*** right off with their locked bootloaders, anti-flash policies, KNOX and instant-warranty void if attempt to flash remotely anything.
If I were to count I'd say our Samsung Tab came with atleast 3~4 news apps which it will try to shove down your throat. (As they are baked into the default launcher so you can't even remove or disable them)
Maybe Sony/Lenovo comes out with a good tablet. The only other good aspect about N9 is that it features only Google default apps and very little to no bloat. So its rather clean.
Never thought I'd say this but, If you really need a good tablet. Personally, I'd recommend just getting an iPad instead (Coming from someone who uses 100% Android at all times)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The only reason i'm looking at a Galaxy Tab right now is because my mum and step dad came to visit and they both have a galaxy s7 edge and the thing bloody flies so i'm hoping that carries over to a future Tab S3 release if it ever comes out but you're right about the bloatware damn things came packed full of crap I wouldn't use but I think Samsung have actually bothered to optimize their skin more than in the past (before they upgraded, they had a galaxy S3 3g 1gig ram version and a og note and those things were turds) but i'll wait and see what happens as i'm not rooting or running custom roms anymore except on my old htc one x. (i'm alpha testing cm13 on it and it's going ok but damn are there issues we need to iron out). I don't think Sony is going to be doing another tablet even thought the z3 compact and the z4 were really good tablets from user and reviewer reports just from the amount of time between releases. It's been well over 18 months since the z4 tablet came out so i'm thinking they've pulled out of the tablet arena because of how poorly their mobile division is doing at the moment. I'm wary on lenovo because my dad had a bad experience with one of their recent 8" yoga tabs. Thing would constantly freeze, lockup then dad would have to reboot it manually so not the best experience there from a hardware point but the software is pretty bare bones and stock like but with lenovo icons, you get the standard google suite of apps and some lenovo additions, some are good and some are horrible (why they changed the look of multitasking and put in their own gallary i don't know but they ruined the look of the os and did not follow material design at all) but they're a more budget option so you get what you pay for. Asus is out as they don't sell their zenpad line here in Australia but i wouldn't have gone there anyways as their update support is absolutely woeful and i think their bloatware situation is worse the Samsung considering they let anyone buy there way in to get their apps installed. I would have looked at a pixel c but it's out of stock at google and some eBay sellers are asking $1000+ so that's out. I'm not in a hurry to get a new tablet thanks to my dad giving me the nexus 7 2013 i gave him back so I've got something to use in the meantime until something comes out at CES or MWC.
GiantAxe said:
Likewise, (and I think most people who use the N9 share this opinion)
When it works, its great. Sadly.....it doesn't always work great, biggest reason for this is that its a 64-bit android with only 2 gigs of memory. thus, your memory is 90% of the time near full capacity.
totally agree
My first nexus was the Nexus 5, after which I bought the N9. The N5 was a remarkable phone....the N9 also managed to kill my love for the nexus line.
I've owned Galaxy Nexus, N4, N5, both N7's. So, the N9 killed any trust for HTC, not Nexus. I got my older son 6P as his N4 was ageing out. Great phone! Too big for my hands, though. As my N5 was slowing down, I bought a 5X (after replacing DH's i4S with one and discovered I liked it). My first android was a pandigital novel which still works. I then got a 10.1" Toshiba Thrive.
Never thought I'd say this but, If you really need a good tablet. Personally, I'd recommend just getting an iPad instead (Coming from someone who uses 100% Android at all times)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I even tried that as we had two in the family. I replaced older son's ipad 2 with Samsung Tab pro 12.2-both sons got one as they have 1000's of digital comics, and that tab was the best for that. Even after jailbreaking the iPad, it was far too restrictive for me. Loved the display on the iPad. I'm just really picky [emoji20]
Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk
Well i took it back and the manager give me a full refund so that's the end of the nexus 9 experiment. Now to play the waiting game to see if any new tablets come out that are interesting.
Good luck.
Sent from my Nexus 9 using Tapatalk

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