Not sure which version to buy... - Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

I'm looking to buy a Note Pro 12.2, I'm on T-Mobile in the US and have a second phone line (that just sits on the table) both my lines have Unlimited calls, text and 4G data.
I was just going to pick up a WiFi only Note Pro 12.2 but if I can buy one that will work with my other line I might as well go that way.
I guess I'm asking which version would be best to buy? I don't care about making phone calls or receiving text on it...if that helps.
I saw this thread but I'm still a little confused which would work best for me. http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-note-pro-12/general/note-pro-t-mobile-t2906352
Edit: I would like to order this today.

Anyone? I have a few that can be bought today at a great price.

Well my reason picking p905 4g variant was fast charge which makes you use the tab while charging without worrying about losing charge !

The Snapdragon version is much more powerful than the Exynos (WiFi) edition.

ShadowLea said:
The Snapdragon version is much more powerful than the Exynos (WiFi) edition.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm trying to find out which version will work best on my carrier, T-Mobile US.
From the thread I linked in the OP I'm thinking an AT&T version (P907A) will work best for me....but I'm not 100% sure so that's what I'm asking here.
Also, can tablets be blacklisted?

bp328i said:
I'm trying to find out which version will work best on my carrier, T-Mobile US.
From the thread I linked in the OP I'm thinking an AT&T version (P907A) will work best for me....but I'm not 100% sure so that's what I'm asking here.
Also, can tablets be blacklisted?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should be able to go with the AT&T version but I am not sure if its unlocked out of box. The device will support the 3G radios for tmobile. It would be like using a AT&T phone on Tmobile, you would only have the hardware to access 3G/HSPA+ but not LTE.
Or you could get the international LTE unlocked version which would work with Tmobile. I think also this one would only work with Tmobile 3G/HSPA+.
---------- Post added at 07:35 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:06 AM ----------
ShadowLea said:
The Snapdragon version is much more powerful than the Exynos (WiFi) edition.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am not quite sure that is true. There are a few benchmarks showing the Exynos cpu performing better than the Snapdragon version.
Here is one:
http://www.techspot.com/review/759-galaxy-note-3/page4.html
Yes its for the Note 3 but its the same cpus in the wifi/lte verisons of the Note Pro.

If you are not really interested in the phone, isn't the plain wifi version good enough? It is whacky fast for me.... the dream android tablet, frankly. I stuck a 128g microsd card in mine; internally it came with the 32g rather than 64g. If I were gonna spend more, it would be on the 64g ram model rather than the faster cpu.
Samsung Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 - w/ New Lollipop!
Samsung Galaxy Note II - Oct L Custom Rom
(My wife's geek for her Asus TF700 w/ ZombiPop)
(My wife's geek for her Samsung Galaxy Note 3)
Retired yet still functional: Asus TF101 w/ Timduru Katkiss Pop

DarkManX4lf said:
I am not quite sure that is true. There are a few benchmarks showing the Exynos cpu performing better than the Snapdragon version.
Here is one:
http://www.techspot.com/review/759-galaxy-note-3/page4.html
Yes its for the Note 3 but its the same cpus in the wifi/lte verisons of the Note Pro.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's because the Exynos is better at doing more weak processes at once, while the Snapdragon is better at CPU-intensive tasks. Most benchmarks do weak processes like browsers and facebook. Not the heavy tasks.
The Exynos is a 1.9Ghz, the Snapdragon 2.3Ghz. If a game requires 2.1Ghz, the Exynos will lag.
Not to mention the incredibly weak Mali GPU that comes with the Exynos. That thing is not meant for GPU intensive tasks. The Snapdragon comes with an Adreno.

shonkin said:
If you are not really interested in the phone, isn't the plain wifi version good enough? It is whacky fast for me.... the dream android tablet, frankly. I stuck a 128g microsd card in mine; internally it came with the 32g rather than 64g. If I were gonna spend more, it would be on the 64g ram model rather than the faster cpu.
Samsung Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 - w/ New Lollipop!
Samsung Galaxy Note II - Oct L Custom Rom
(My wife's geek for her Asus TF700 w/ ZombiPop)
(My wife's geek for her Samsung Galaxy Note 3)
Retired yet still functional: Asus TF101 w/ Timduru Katkiss Pop
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I still want to be able to use data on the go, and since I have an extra sim that has unlimited data that's why I was not leaning towards the WiFi only version. I only said I was not worried about making calls or text because I know none of the US version are capable of that.

DarkManX4lf said:
You should be able to go with the AT&T version but I am not sure if its unlocked out of box. The device will support the 3G radios for tmobile. It would be like using a AT&T phone on Tmobile, you would only have the hardware to access 3G/HSPA+ but not LTE.
Or you could get the international LTE unlocked version which would work with Tmobile. I think also this one would only work with Tmobile 3G/HSPA+.
---------- Post added at 07:35 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:06 AM ----------
I am not quite sure that is true. There are a few benchmarks showing the Exynos cpu performing better than the Snapdragon version.
Here is one:
http://www.techspot.com/review/759-galaxy-note-3/page4.html
Yes its for the Note 3 but its the same cpus in the wifi/lte verisons of the Note Pro.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, I went with a Verizon version, based off some of the post in the thread I linked in the OP. That and I was reading and saw that the WiFi version and AT&T version are prone to the blue screen thing.
Plus I got a pretty good deal on the Verizon version I bought, it's mint condition and comes with the Logitech keyboard case, an extra case and a 64GB SD Card. I picked it all up for just over $400. I have also checked and the IMEI is clear...

ShadowLea said:
That's because the Exynos is better at doing more weak processes at once, while the Snapdragon is better at CPU-intensive tasks. Most benchmarks do weak processes like browsers and facebook. Not the heavy tasks.
The Exynos is a 1.9Ghz, the Snapdragon 2.3Ghz. If a game requires 2.1Ghz, the Exynos will lag.
Not to mention the incredibly weak Mali GPU that comes with the Exynos. That thing is not meant for GPU intensive tasks. The Snapdragon comes with an Adreno.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Might be true on the processes but with gaming, most games run fine on the Exynos version, New games included. The only game that didn't run well was Asphalt 8 and I think it's probably due to not being optimized for the Exynos/Mali combination.
Other new games like Modern Combat etc all run fine.

All benchmarks show a range of differences between the two variants, with the wifi version generally winning in the web browsing category and the LTE one winning at graphics. Most benchmark differences are negligible too. If you search my posts you'll find links to these benchmarks. I'd base your buying decision on reviews and benchmarks rather than opinions. FWIW I have the WiFi variant and have never felt that it needs to be faster; I even stick with Touchwiz. YMMV of course. Peronally I'd get the cheapest version because I don't need any data connection other than WiFi.

netizensmith said:
All benchmarks show a range of differences between the two variants, with the wifi version generally winning in the web browsing category and the LTE one winning at graphics. Most benchmark differences are negligible too. If you search my posts you'll find links to these benchmarks. I'd base your buying decision on reviews and benchmarks rather than opinions. FWIW I have the WiFi variant and have never felt that it needs to be faster; I even stick with Touchwiz. YMMV of course. Peronally I'd get the cheapest version because I don't need any data connection other than WiFi.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's for the reply, I went with a LTE version because I have a extra line with unlimited 4G data that just sits so now I'll get some use of it.

Related

Is the Exynos a waste of time / money?

The legendary Exynos (formerly Orion) we all read so much about a year and a half ago has been on store shelves for quite some time now. While SAMSUNG continues to develop the Exynos architecture - I don't see it catching on to other phones.
Plenty of phones sold by SAMSUNG don't even use the Exynos. It was even stripped from the T-Mobile version of the GS2...
So, is it a complete failure? Should we expect SAMSUNG to just stop development after the GS3 is released worldwide?
whitecrane said:
The legendary Exynos (formerly Orion) we all read so much about a year and a half ago has been on store shelves for quite some time now. While SAMSUNG continues to develop the Exynos architecture - I don't see it catching on to other phones.
Plenty of phones sold by SAMSUNG don't even use the Exynos. It was even stripped from the T-Mobile version of the GS2...
So, is it a complete failure? Should we expect SAMSUNG to just stop development after the GS3 is released worldwide?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Umm, how about no?
Sent from my SGH-I777 using Tapatalk 2
I hope Samsung will continue to develop their architecture because from what I have seen, it is quite powerful. So do I think it was a complete failure? No.
The thing these days is that it is probably easier and cheaper for companies to just use each other's technology, like the Tegra or TI series, than invest in their own R&D. The majority of phone users are not power users and do not care about specs. If it works well then that is good enough. It is not about pushing boundaries for some.
Exynos is actually one of the best SoC's a phone can have (subject to debate). Samsung doesn't put Exynos in every phone because it's a high-end SoC, so they use it in high-end devices such as the Galaxy S line and the Galaxy Note. Apple's Ax processors are even based on Exynos.
The T-Mobile Galaxy S II, as well as all US Galaxy S III's, have Snapdragons because Exynos does not support LTE nor T-Mobile's HSPA+ 42 and 84 Mbps technology, which US carriers strive to make available to customers. Samsung is working on supporting LTE in future Exynos chips though!
As for other manufacturers not implementing Exynos, I'm just going to make an assumption that Samsung's competitors (Motorola, HTC, etc.) would rather use Nvidia, TI, or Qualcomm's chips instead since they don't sell phones.
So no, Exynos isn't a complete failure at all if you ask me!
But didn't anyone else think that they would be more common by now?
What does the wireless band have to do with SOC? Can't this SOC run any algorithms we want it to?
To me, that's like telling someone they need an AMD CPU to use DSL, and an Intel CPU if they want FiOS. Isn't it just a matter of writing a program to do something?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using Tapatalk
whitecrane said:
But didn't anyone else think that they would be more common by now?
What does the wireless band have to do with SOC? Can't this SOC run any algorithms we want it to?
To me, that's like telling someone they need an AMD CPU to use DSL, and an Intel CPU if they want FiOS. Isn't it just a matter of writing a program to do something?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Radio hardware consists of physical transistors. We're not quite at software-defined radio yet.
You DO need different hardware to run DSL vs fios. If Intel built DSL hardware onto its CPU, then you're starting to understand what a SoC is.
Sent from my SGH-I777 using xda app-developers app
ferrocene said:
Radio hardware consists of physical transistors. We're not quite at software-defined radio yet.
You DO need different hardware to run DSL vs fios. If Intel built DSL hardware onto its CPU, then you're starting to understand what a SoC is.
Sent from my SGH-I777 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Right. Computers aren't built with DSL/FIOS/VDSL/etc. modems in them. That's why we use a DSL modem box and connect to it via ethernet. However, the Exynos SoC has a modem integrated on to it that supports certain bands and technologies. The Snapdragon SoC found in the GS2 and US GS3s does not contain an integrated modem, so there is a modem chip separate on the motherboard that supports the carrier's bands and technologies.
There's a bit of a gray area with this though. Sprint's GS2 has a WiMax modem built onto it even though it still has an Exynos chip. Why we don't do that for LTE and T-Mobile's HSPA+ 42/84 is something I'd like to know lol.
whitecrane said:
The legendary Exynos (formerly Orion) we all read so much about a year and a half ago has been on store shelves for quite some time now. While SAMSUNG continues to develop the Exynos architecture - I don't see it catching on to other phones.
Plenty of phones sold by SAMSUNG don't even use the Exynos. It was even stripped from the T-Mobile version of the GS2...
So, is it a complete failure? Should we expect SAMSUNG to just stop development after the GS3 is released worldwide?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow. Short-sighted/simple-minded enough? :silly:
1) Exynos is not a failure. It's been shipped in literally millions of phones. In-house consumption alone probably makes it one of the most popular SoC's on the market right now.
2) Samsung is the world's largest manufacturer of phones. I doubt they even have the fabrication facilities to make enough Exynos chips to put in all the phones they make. Also remember that although Samsung Semiconductor and Samsung Mobile are both owned by Samsung Electronics, they don't always have completely overlapping goals or business interests. And Samsung Semiconductor is also busy making many other things... like the SoC for the iPhone 3G/3GS/4/4S. Or say the vast share of the world's NAND chips.
3) Samsung has a vested stake in not relying totally on another SoC manufacturer for all their phones. It allows them better leverage with other SoC companies, and prevents them from being "blackmailed" by any one company as a source of mobile CPUs. Even if they only shipped the Exynos in 5% of their devices, it would be enough to help leverage Texas Instruments, Qualcomm, etc.
4) While many of the U.S. variants of Samsung phones don't have the Exynos chip, that's mostly for technical reasons (lack of LTE support in the currently released chips), and probably also partially to increase total yield of produced phones. That's just the U.S. market. There is in fact a world outside the United States, with people, and people who buy phones.
So... long story short: The Exynos is not a failure. And I very much doubt Samsung will be dropping development anytime soon.
Moving this to a correct board (nothing to do with the AT&T SII)...
marcocore said:
Sprint's GS2 has a WiMax modem built onto it even though it still has an Exynos chip. Why we don't do that for LTE and T-Mobile's HSPA+ 42/84 is something I'd like to know lol.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is exactly what I was talking about. When something is missing you simply add it on, as with anything else in computing. I just hope this doesn't go the way of Glide from 3dfx.
Anyway, I'm more "put at ease" with the responses here. Thanks xda.
whitecrane said:
But didn't anyone else think that they would be more common by now?
What does the wireless band have to do with SOC? Can't this SOC run any algorithms we want it to?
To me, that's like telling someone they need an AMD CPU to use DSL, and an Intel CPU if they want FiOS. Isn't it just a matter of writing a program to do something?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK here's my understanding. First all quad core processors are having issues with lte. Second SoC stands for system on a chip. Its how cell phones are so small and thin. But for some reason they are not playing nice to gether. Now Samsung was able to release a variant of sgsiii with its quad core and lte in korea because they kept them separate. But because of this the phone is a little bit thicker then usual.
So they did treat it like a PC and added it like a pci card for desktops. If that helps you understand.
The overall goal is to get it all on one chip. That way it eats up less power and slims down your phone but it is not yet possible. It is being looked into.
Sent from my DROID X2 using XDA
marcocore said:
Exynos is actually one of the best SoC's a phone can have (subject to debate). Samsung doesn't put Exynos in every phone because it's a high-end SoC, so they use it in high-end devices such as the Galaxy S line and the Galaxy Note. Apple's Ax processors are even based on Exynos.
The T-Mobile Galaxy S II, as well as all US Galaxy S III's, have Snapdragons because Exynos does not support LTE nor T-Mobile's HSPA+ 42 and 84 Mbps technology, which US carriers strive to make available to customers. Samsung is working on supporting LTE in future Exynos chips though!
As for other manufacturers not implementing Exynos, I'm just going to make an assumption that Samsung's competitors (Motorola, HTC, etc.) would rather use Nvidia, TI, or Qualcomm's chips instead since they don't sell phones.
So no, Exynos isn't a complete failure at all if you ask me!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's not true any more seeing as the Korean GSIII will have a quad core Exynos and LTE.
tbaker077 said:
That's not true any more seeing as the Korean GSIII will have a quad core Exynos and LTE.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It was true until Samsung produced their new chip within the past month. A quad core exynos with LTE capabilities.
So, his statement as to why t-mobile didn't use the exynos in the GSII and GSIII is 100% correct.
As I understand more, I have more concerns. Let me just say, I know what a SOC is. I'm not that much of a newbie.
I must wonder why the Exynos couldn't handle the T-Mobile HSPA+ network... It's just not that special. It's just 3G on steroids, and from what I see in the real world benchmarks, it is only a hair faster than AT&T's inferior on paper HSPA+ network. I realize it is a technical limitation (by design?), but wonder why SAMSUNG wasn't able (willing?) to design the Exynos SOC to accept it without a magic modem.
I also wonder how serious SAMSUNG is about Exynos if they're ignoring T-Mobile (shipping their flagship phone with an inferior SOC), and completley ignoring LTE up to only recently in one device that will only sell in one market. If SAMSUNG is serious about Exynos, I would think they woulod at least make it available in every market, accepting every type of radio. Traditional 3G, Wimax (we still have a huge Wimax network in the states that isn't going anywhere soon), LTE, and HSPA+. Does any other SOC standard have radio limitations?
I do not expect SAMSUNG to bundle a seperate modem outside the SOC in every market. In fact, I would think they would only do that in Korea and Japan, where they will likely sell more Exynos devices.
I have one more huge concern then. The GS2 i777 was phased out of most AT&T stores (corporate and otherwise) within 2 months of its release in favor of the GS2 "Skyrocket" with its far inferior SOC. Didn't that thing ship with a SOC based on the Cortex A8? Not even an A9?
It almost seems like my carrier did not want me to have a Galaxy S2 (with an Exynos, anyway). I bought mine on clearance at Best Buy... for $50. Within a month of its release, best buy was selling it for just $50 with a contract renewal - down from $200 just a month sooner? I think they wanted to get ride of the GS2 asap so they could order more Skyrockets.
I just don't think companies are taking Exynos seriously in the USA. Ignoring T-Mobile, ignoring Verizon. The only thing they have done right?? Sprint. Adding the Wimax modem without adding bulk to the phone was a brilliant move. That's how they're gonna sell this thing.
whitecrane said:
I have one more huge concern then. The GS2 i777 was phased out of most AT&T stores (corporate and otherwise) within 2 months of its release in favor of the GS2 "Skyrocket" with its far inferior SOC. Didn't that thing ship with a SOC based on the Cortex A8? Not even an A9?
It almost seems like my carrier did not want me to have a Galaxy S2. I bought mine on clearance at Best Buy... for $50. Within a month of its release, best buy was selling it for just $50 with a contract renewal - down from $200 just a month sooner? I think they wanted to get ride of the GS2 asap so they could order more Skyrockets.
I just don't think companies are taking Exynos seriously in the USA. I'm just glad I own one.
Does anyone know if OMAP's are cheaper to produce? It seems to me that there are far more OMAP devices than anything else out there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When it comes to the carrier they don't care about the hardware, because 99% of the consumers have no clue what exynos, snapdragon or tegra mean. What the normal consumer can comprehend is "Hey, this skyrocket has faster internet". So, LTE has become the selling factor.
lowandbehold said:
When it comes to the carrier they don't care about the hardware, because 99% of the consumers have no clue what exynos, snapdragon or tegra mean. What the normal consumer can comprehend is "Hey, this skyrocket has faster internet". So, LTE has become the selling factor.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Fair enough, I agree with you. But why clearance the GS2? My market has no LTE, and probably won't for years to come.
My post above this has been edited quite a bit... in case you want to give it a second read... it's entirely related to the subject matter here.
whitecrane said:
Fair enough, I agree with you. But why clearance the GS2? My market has no LTE, and probably won't for years to come.
My post above this has been edited quite a bit... in case you want to give it a second read... it's entirely related to the subject matter here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup, but the previous generation exynos processors were not compatible with the AWS frequencies which T-mobile uses. That is why there has never been a T-mobile phone with an exynos. The Skyrocket and the T-mobile GS2 were in production at the same time, so it just seemed right to make 2 of the same exact phone (radios can be flashed on both to work on either network) to save money. Then, AT&T (through the eyes of the average consumer) had a GSII that gets slow internet, and a GSII that gets fast internet. They had to phase one out...it just happened to be the I777. It really makes sense from a business stand point, considering chips are so good these days that one can hardly tell a difference between a snapdragon or an exynos, or even quad core from dual core.

The variety of galaxy s3's

I'm looking to buy one to use on T-Mobile prepaid network, since they seem to offer the most data (5gb for $30), which models would fully work on T-Mobile? I know at&t is lte, but T-Mobile is starting an lte thing, so that would be cool. Which can I get without unlocking, if any? And if I have to unlock, is that something I can do myself? I have a decent amount of experience rooting, but this is different. Thank you.
Sent from my HTC One V using Tapatalk 2
Bump
Sent from my HTC One V using Tapatalk 2
deadlocked007 said:
Buy a nexus 4 and then you don't have to choose
Sent from my Evo 3D CDMA using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm sure a lot of people (including myself) would buy a Nexus 4 if the Play Store wasn't sold out all the time
@OP, I personally have never used LTE, but I can't imagine that it's significantly faster in real-world usage than HSPA+. IMO, you should go for an international SGS3 (assuming they work on T-MO US) and live without that ridiculous carrier branding you Americans are used to .
Nickdroid86 said:
I'm looking to buy one to use on T-Mobile prepaid network, since they seem to offer the most data (5gb for $30), which models would fully work on T-Mobile? I know at&t is lte, but T-Mobile is starting an lte thing, so that would be cool. Which can I get without unlocking, if any? And if I have to unlock, is that something I can do myself? I have a decent amount of experience rooting, but this is different. Thank you.
Sent from my HTC One V using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You would need one specifically for T-Mobile's LTE network. If you want to buy a T-Mobile LTE-capable phone NOW, you should get the Note 2, which has an LTE chip/antenna inside that is disabled for now. Just like 3G frequencies differ across carriers, so do LTE frequencies. No existing LTE devices on other carriers will work on T-Mobile's LTE. I believe they're looking to replace their 1700 MHz HSPA+ with LTE but I could be wrong.
Product F(RED) said:
I believe they're looking to replace their 1700 MHz HSPA+ with LTE but I could be wrong.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think so. That's crazy.
The nexus 4, gs3 and gnote II on tmobile all have deactivated band 4 lte chips so when tmobile gets it those phones will have access to it. I suggest you get the tmobile gs3 because the s4 is faster than the exynos 4 and the extra gig of ram makes a difference.
sy224048 said:
The nexus 4, gs3 and gnote II on tmobile all have deactivated band 4 lte chips so when tmobile gets it those phones will have access to it. I suggest you get the tmobile gs3 because the s4 is faster than the exynos 4 and the extra gig of ram makes a difference.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're wrong on all accounts:
1. The Nexus 4 has slight LTE capabilities on one or two bands, which are used by AT&T, and they're weak because there's no power amp for the antenna. It happens to be left over from the Optimus G because they share the same motherboard, but it was cheaper to leave it on then to make a totally separate assembly line. There is no T-Mobile LTE compatibility in the Nexus 4.
2. The Galaxy S3 on T-Mobile doesn't have LTE. T-Mobile themselves said that they're releasing a new version of the Galaxy S3 with LTE for their network. The Note 2 HOWEVER, has been proven to have an LTE chip hidden inside.
3. The Snapdragon S4 is not faster than the Exynos 4. I have the i9300, I can tell you this from experience. You can also look up benchmarks online. The GPU in the Snapdragon S4 is junk for gaming, and the processor itself is not faster overall than the S4. It's not all about "Oh the Gigahertz are more on the S4." That's why so many people were disappointed the US version had an inferior processor. Also, the 2GB of RAM doesn't do anything for performance. It's just future-proofing.
Do your research.
Product F(RED) said:
3. The Snapdragon S4 is not faster than the Exynos 4. I have the i9300, I can tell you this from experience. You can also look up benchmarks online. The GPU in the Snapdragon S4 is junk for gaming, and the processor itself is not faster overall than the S4. It's not all about "Oh the Gigahertz are more on the S4." That's why so many people were disappointed the US version had an inferior processor. Also, the 2GB of RAM doesn't do anything for performance. It's just future-proofing.
Do your research.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just because the s4 is slower on games ( benchmarks are pointless) doesn't mean its worse. Some will not use the exyons at all anymore so there are benifits to using the snapdragon like more developer support
Batcom2
zelendel said:
Just because the s4 is slower on games ( benchmarks are pointless) doesn't mean its worse. Some will not use the exyons at all anymore so there are benifits to using the snapdragon like more developer support
Batcom2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Indeed, I stick away from exynos (and tegra) because of the lack of developer cooperation from them.
And even though the T-Mobile s3 has an inferior processor on paper, (2 vs 4 cores) remember that it is based loosely on the A15 architecture, which is claimed by ARM to be double the performance of the A9 architecture which is in the exynos 4.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk 2
zelendel said:
Just because the s4 is slower on games ( benchmarks are pointless) doesn't mean its worse. Some will not use the exyons at all anymore so there are benifits to using the snapdragon like more developer support
Batcom2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
klin1344 said:
Indeed, I stick away from exynos (and tegra) because of the lack of developer cooperation from them.
And even though the T-Mobile s3 has an inferior processor on paper, (2 vs 4 cores) remember that it is based loosely on the A15 architecture, which is claimed by ARM to be double the performance of the A9 architecture which is in the exynos 4.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I never said it was worse. I just said it's not faster. Also to add on yo what you said, the S4 has better battery efficiency. It really depends on what you're looking for.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2
Thanks for the info guys. So....my question. Will all of the s3's work on T-Mobile hspa+ without being unlocked or?
Sent from my HTC One V using Tapatalk 2
P.s. I find a nexus 4 8gb, brand new on Craigslist, but I have to pay $49 to sign on to solavei wireless (uses T-Mobile) should I just get that, pay the month they make me pay up front, then just switch in a T-Mobile card? Solavei is prepaid, so I'm not worried about black listing.
Sent from my HTC One V using Tapatalk 2
Nickdroid86 said:
Thanks for the info guys. So....my question. Will all of the s3's work on T-Mobile hspa+ without being unlocked or?
Sent from my HTC One V using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Like said MOST OF THEM WILL NOT. Google first, ask later. The s3's from other networks will not work with the 4g/hspa network because they do not have the antenna for the aws spectrum we use.
Sent from my Galaxy S III
Nickdroid86 said:
Thanks for the info guys. So....my question. Will all of the s3's work on T-Mobile hspa+ without being unlocked or?
Sent from my HTC One V using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No. Only the T-Mobile one will work because it's the only one that supports 1700 MHz (AWS). Most international phones don't support 1700 MHz (T-Mobile is 1700 MHz/2100 MHz), but will work on AT&T's bands (850/1900 MHz). However T-Mobile has been very slowly moving over to the same bands as AT&T, so soon you'll be able to use any AT&T compatible phone on T-Mobile.
I'm probably best off buying the nexus 4
Sent from my HTC One V using Tapatalk 2
I would go with a samsung processor because games are not the only thing people do on the phone. Soon emulators for various desktop OS will be available on the phone and their will be a phone OS race. So because masses have exynos. Devs will be forced to work things on exynos and plus exynos is good in data rendering and executing. Plus encrypting your work is really fast on exynos even better than intel processors.
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda app-developers app
qazibasit said:
I would go with a samsung processor because games are not the only thing people do on the phone. Soon emulators for various desktop OS will be available on the phone and their will be a phone OS race. So because masses have exynos. Devs will be forced to work things on exynos
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
See this is where the problem lies. Devs cant work on something without the proper documentation (Which Samsung refuses to release, even after they stated they would.) This is why alot of the CM team has already stated they will not get another samsung device or any device that has this chip in it.
zelendel said:
See this is where the problem lies. Devs cant work on something without the proper documentation (Which Samsung refuses to release, even after they stated they would.) This is why alot of the CM team has already stated they will not get another samsung device or any device that has this chip in it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I have the i9300 and that's the only thing that erks me. We have the more powerful phone, we can modify Samsung ROMs, but we pretty much have (actually stable) nightlies for AOSP/AOKP based ROMs. I would have gone with a US carrier S3 if it wasn't for the S4 Dual. I game heavily (GTA 3/VC, Dead Trigger, NFS:MW, MC4, etc), so I rely on the fastest processor out there. The S4 Dual is capable as a CPU, but the Adreno GPU that comes with it is meh. The 2GB of RAM is just futureproofing and doesn't affect performance. If the US S3's had the S4 Pro (Quad), I'd have bought one. The Note 2 seems enticing but I think it's too big for me.

[Q] Wifi-only (GT-P5113) or AT&T (SGH-I497)

I bought two virtually unused Samsung Galaxy Tab 2s (10.1") on Craig's List at a very good price: one wifi-only model (GT-P5113) and one AT&T 4G model (SGH-I497). One is for me and the other is for my brother, who'll be visiting me from the Netherlands next week. I haven't decided yet which one will be mine.
I'm inclined to give the wifi-only model to my brother and keep the AT&T model myself. Even though I'm not planning to use the 4G capability at this point, it's a nice option to have. Plus, I'm not sure if my brother would be able to use that at all back in the Netherlands.
The main factor for me to choose one over the other is simple performance: which one is faster? The tablets have mostly identical hardware, but there's one big difference: they use different CPUs. If I'm not mistaken, the wifi-only model (GT-P5113) has a 1 GHz, dual-core Texas Instruments ARM Cortex-A9 CPU, whereas the AT&T model (SGH-I497) uses a 1.5 GHz, dual-core Qualcomm "Krait" Snapdragon S4 (MSM8960) CPU. Is there a noticeable difference in performance between these two tablets in everyday use? I'm not a gamer at all and will be using the tablet mostly for everyday browsing, e-mail, and watching videos, both streaming and on the device itself. It's worth noting that I'll probably root the tablet, but I have no plans to install a custom ROM. (It seems there's much more dev activity for the P5113 than the I497.) Is there a Cyanogenmod 10.x version that works with the I497?
One potential downside of the AT&T model is that it's running Android 4.1.2, whereas the wifi-only model is now on 4.2.2. Would you consider that a problem? Of course AT&T could eventually release an update to 4.2.2, but who know when that'll be...
My question to all of you: which one would you keep for yourself: the wifi-only model (GT-P5113) or the AT&T 4G model (SGH-I497)? And why?
Thanks!
--Ron
For those who are interested, I did some direct benchmarking on the wifi (GT-P5113) and AT&T (SGH-I497) versions. I ran AnTuTu and Quadrant Standard on the tablets in their factory-reset state (after installing the benchmark apps from Google Play, of course). These are the results:
Wifi (GT-P5113):
Android 4.2.2
CPU: TI OMAP 4460
Graphics: PowerVR SGX 540
AnTuTu: 8,883
Quadrant: 3,126 (CPU: 4,633; Mem: 2,765; I/O: 6,399; 2D: 251; 3D: 1,580)
AT&T (SGH-I497):
Android 4.1.2
CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon MSM8260A
Graphics: Adreno 225
AnTuTu: 16,102
Quadrant: 5,616 (CPU: 8,877; Mem: 9,583; I/O: 6,425; 2D: 1,014; 3D: 2,180
The AT&T version is the clear winner. That's the one I'll keep, and my brother will get the wifi-only version. It's slower, but at $120 not a bad deal at all.
--Ron
dutch_in_seattle said:
For those who are interested, I did some direct benchmarking on the wifi (GT-P5113) and AT&T (SGH-I407) versions. I ran AnTuTu and Quadrant Standard on the tablets in their factory-reset state (after installing the benchmark apps from Google Play, of course). These are the results:
Wifi (GT-P5113):
Android 4.2.2
CPU: TI OMAP 4460
Graphics: PowerVR SGX 540
AnTuTu: 8,883
Quadrant: 3,126 (CPU: 4,633; Mem: 2,765; I/O: 6,399; 2D: 251; 3D: 1,580)
AT&T (SGH-I497):
Android 4.1.2
CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon MSM8260A
Graphics: Adreno 225
AnTuTu: 16,102
Quadrant: 5,616 (CPU: 8,877; Mem: 9,583; I/O: 6,425; 2D: 1,014; 3D: 2,180
The AT&T version is the clear winner. That's the one I'll keep, and my brother will get the wifi-only version. It's slower, but at $120 not a bad deal at all.
--Ron
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The specs on the AT&T one are a bit better than the Wi-Fi one, keep the AT&T one. What carrier does your brother use in the Netherlands anyway? KPN ? T-Mobile? Dutch in Seattle? I'm Dutch in Minnesota
SebasC said:
The specs on the AT&T one are a bit better than the Wi-Fi one, keep the AT&T one. What carrier does your brother use in the Netherlands anyway? KPN ? T-Mobile? Dutch in Seattle? I'm Dutch in Minnesota
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
He could use the tmobile service on the att model. Thats what I did. I unlocked the sim and now I use tmobile unlimeted for 30$ a month, including lte.
Tab 2 10.1 4g 4.2.2 update?
can anyone help me figure out why the AT&T 4G SGH 1497 (Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10 .1 inch) did not get the Android 4.2.2 update? after I updated the last Update wifi won't work when bluetooth is connected and I cannot find a fix for this other than updating to 4.2.2...
sgtpixel said:
can anyone help me figure out why the AT&T 4G SGH 1497 (Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10 .1 inch) did not get the Android 4.2.2 update? after I updated the last Update wifi won't work when bluetooth is connected and I cannot find a fix for this other than updating to 4.2.2...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is completely up to AT&T. They decide if and when their devices will be updated to a newer Android version.
By the way, I don't believe I'm seeing the issue you're experiencing. I'll check.
dutch_in_seattle said:
That is completely up to AT&T. They decide if and when their devices will be updated to a newer Android version.
By the way, I don't believe I'm seeing the issue you're experiencing. I'll check.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a bluetooth keyboard that is also a metal cover/case and before the last update wifi and bluetooth was good together. now when I connect the Bluetooth keyboard wifi will stay on for a little bit then it will die and look like it searching for a wifi signal if I try to reconnect wifi it just doesn't connect to any wifi anywhere?
Total newbie here. I've been watching several samsung auctions & i had this same question! Glad I stumbled on this thread when I googled it. Can I ask how you are enjoying your i497 model? I too only need it for emails, browsing web, netflix.
Also, what's a good cheap price for these? Is $170 range good for a used one via auction?
Thanks for any help..
Neozx25 said:
He could use the tmobile service on the att model. Thats what I did. I unlocked the sim and now I use tmobile unlimeted for 30$ a month, including lte.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
May you point me in the right direction as to where you got your unlock code? I just acquired the I497, but would like to use my T-Mobile Sim. Glad to hear that the T-Mobile LTE works on the ATT Model. Also did you have to downgrade the kernel or firmware to make use of the code? Mine is currently on 4.1.2, thought I read somewhere that it is unlockable with that version.
I have i497 and like it but there are not any devs building Roms for it
unlock 1497 ATT
James62370 said:
May you point me in the right direction as to where you got your unlock code? I just acquired the I497, but would like to use my T-Mobile Sim. Glad to hear that the T-Mobile LTE works on the ATT Model. Also did you have to downgrade the kernel or firmware to make use of the code? Mine is currently on 4.1.2, thought I read somewhere that it is unlockable with that version.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was able to unlock mine to Tmobile using RegionLock Away off play store. Cost around 3.00 but well worth it and easy
jakmove said:
I was able to unlock mine to Tmobile using RegionLock Away off play store. Cost around 3.00 but well worth it and easy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks again for this info, it worked great. Have you tried loading the official T-Mobile Rom with your SGH-I497?
Unfortunately I can't seem to find much support for this tablet. Even when I installed recovery, it doesn't seem to see my external sd card. Might be because it's 64GB formated (FAT32), will try a 32GB and see if I can backup to it.
I am currently searching for a ROM which is quicker than AT&T's current Jellybean. Will try to remove some bloatware to see if it helps.
Does the GT-P5133 (I believe this is the international variant) work with this tablet with working data access?
Anyway, I appreciate the help.
WIFI + Bluetooth keyboard
:confused
sgtpixel said:
I have a bluetooth keyboard that is also a metal cover/case and before the last update wifi and bluetooth was good together. now when I connect the Bluetooth keyboard wifi will stay on for a little bit then it will die and look like it searching for a wifi signal if I try to reconnect wifi it just doesn't connect to any wifi anywhere?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ihave pretty much the same keyboard, I also had another sold by ATT and had the same issue. Did you find a solution?

Exynos being crippled?

I understand Exynos doesn't work with US CDMA and that is why the Qualcom versions exist. Is Samsung intentionally crippling it's own CPU to keep things the even? Verizon is EOL on their CDMA network next year really only leaving Sprint. Sprint is the 4th carrier now and only has a 12% market share. Canada is already sunsetting their CDMA too. Sprint has 12% (52 million) market share. Samsung has a 25% of that. At most that's 12 million people and much less since Samsung sales low end phones too.
Kind of silly to have to produce two models to cater to that especially with licensing and the fact that it is their chip.
I ask because I saw a thread suggesting that the camera could shoot much higher speeds on the Exynos, but was software limited.
I just want the best I can get!
Has anyone verified NextRadio and the FM antennae yet?
I'd say there are skeptical things with Qualcomm. They must have some impact on this to sell their chips in the US
ls3mach said:
Has anyone verified NextRadio and the FM antennae yet?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On Snapdragon versions, yes. Exynos versions no (I believe).
Sent from my SM-G965W using Tapatalk
Exynos 9810 has no modem built in, and CDMA compatibility has nothing to do with why the U. S. market gets the Snapdragon. Luckily Snapdragon 845 is a better SOC than the Exynos 9810 and you can rest assured you are not screwed.
This really ticks me off to hear if it is true. I am from Canada and purchased the international version this time because I read so much that bragged the Exynos version was so much faster than the Snapdragon version. Paid a pretty penny for it too! I do like my phone but my ANTUTU scores don't seem to be as good as those running SD SOC's.
Samsung apparently has a marketing agreement with Qualcomm to not sell phones with Exynos in the U.S. Otherwise, Samsung could certainly build Exynos based phones with CDMA support if they wanted to.
Guys,
Enjoy your phones, they are both more or less equal with Exynos being very slightly faster in CPU intensive tasks and Snapdragon being slightly faster in GPU (gaming) related tasks. In real world, this difference is almost unnoticeable. (0.5 to 1 second faster game launch on SD).
The good thing is that Exynos is only going to get better due to unlocked bootloader and open source development that will follow.
meyerweb said:
Samsung apparently has a marketing agreement with Qualcomm to not sell phones with Exynos in the U.S. Otherwise, Samsung could certainly build Exynos based phones with CDMA support if they wanted to.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How long is that in place?
I was pretty sure samsung would not nerf their own processor but now I'm sure they did. We can all claim it is for battery reasons or something, but I believe that it is so that it can be neck and neck with the snapdragon.
These screenshots were taken a few minutes ago, after I flashed a custom kernel and unrestricted the 4 big cores so they are able to hit 2.9ghz and the little ones 2.0ghz. I believe that 2.7ghz is what was running for most of the benchmarks, but it hits 2.9ghz on the CPU scaling Log.
Exynos is, in fact the second best processor on a smartphone right after the A11 and would most likely match it on geekbench (surpasses it on antutu even stock) if I could lock the frequency at 2.9ghz but minimum can only be set to 2.0ghz and so it goes up and down and there is only the stock governor to choose from and that is utter crap.
Any doubts I'll help as best as I can.
ls3mach said:
How long is that in place?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No idea, I'm afraid.

Importing Note 20 Ultra 5G from USA to UK

Hi Guys,
I have a possibility to buy an Unlocked version of Note 20 Ultra 5G from the US and ask a friend to bring it to the UK with them.
Apart from Snapdragon advantage, it will be even a little cheaper than buying in the UK.
I am, however, a bit worried about 5G support in the UK. I spent many hours torturing different Samsung US Live Chat Agents and BestBuy Live Chat Agents with the same questions and they all advised that the phone is fully unlocked and 5G will work in the UK. They also said there is no Region Lock so I can directly insert a UK sim card to it.
However, I am taking it with a grain of salt as the agents seem to care about sales only. Also, I couldn't find official band specifications for Note 20 Ultra on Samsung's website (correct me, if I am wrong, please).
Does anyone know if the 5G will work in the UK? Will VoLTE work? I know Samsung Pay won't work but I don't care at all - I always use Google Pay instead.
Also, will I get a Samsung firmware if I buy it from BestBuy, for firmware updates?
I really want to import it but don't want to end up getting a phone that will not have 5G or any other significant feature.
Can you please shed some light on this? Thanks.
You need to check the actual 5G bands on the device are compatible with your cellular provider.
ekerbuddyeker said:
You need to check the actual 5G bands on the device are compatible with your cellular provider.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, this is what I was thinking about too but I couldn't find any band specs on Samsung's website apart from generic 5G thing.
Any idea where can I find them? Thanks.
VirtualWaver said:
Thanks, this is what I was thinking about too but I couldn't find any band specs on Samsung's website apart from generic 5G thing.
Any idea where can I find them? Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
https://www.phonearena.com/phones/S...he Note 20 Ultra is,a starting price of $1300.
https://www.phonescoop.com/phones/phone.php?p=6280
Thanks a lot for the info.
Surprisingly, neither Samsung Chat nor their Facebook support do not know the specs, saying they are not published on the website which is strange.
According to the phonescoop site it doesn't support n78 which is the UK spec, but what is really surprising that it doesn't even list all 4G bands that are supported in the UK but I remember people were saying S20 Ultra was working fine with UK 4G... I am trying to call their e-commerce department to get a confirmation from them directly.
Man, the Samsung really messed the things up with their rubbish processor policy. To be honest I was not bothering until the point when then started to sell Snapdragon in their home country which really speaks loud on how good it is in comparison with Exynos.
This is also a dilemma I am facing as well. I can choose between a US Unlock or an International Unlock. The question I am wondering is whether I can get Samsung Pay to work. I currently live in Japan. I had a Note 8 unlocked international , connected to a US vpn, that I was able to register my US credit cards on Samsung Pay and it worked flawless here. I was able to use Samsung Pay out in town with no problems. Yet ever since the Note 9 I have not been able to get it to work again. My thinking was to instead of buying an international unlocked version, was to get a US unlocked version and try to activate/register Samsung Pay via US vpn to see if it would work. Do you guys think that is doable? Or should I just go for the international Note 20 Ultra and call it a day?
cezeff said:
This is also a dilemma I am facing as well. I can choose between a US Unlock or an International Unlock. The question I am wondering is whether I can get Samsung Pay to work. I currently live in Japan. I had a Note 8 unlocked international , connected to a US vpn, that I was able to register my US credit cards on Samsung Pay and it worked flawless here. I was able to use Samsung Pay out in town with no problems. Yet ever since the Note 9 I have not been able to get it to work again. My thinking was to instead of buying an international unlocked version, was to get a US unlocked version and try to activate/register Samsung Pay via US vpn to see if it would work. Do you guys think that is doable? Or should I just go for the international Note 20 Ultra and call it a day?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was reading in many places that Samsung Pay is region locked so it won't work properly. But it might be different in case of Japan.
I personally don't use Samsung Pay at all so can't say but hopefully someone else would advise.
So I spent another 30 minutes on the phone with Samsung and am, honestly, shocked to say the least.
Not only they had not idea about 5G and 4G frequencies of their own product, they were just repeating something like "well it says it support mmwave and we googled and saw the UK also supports mmwave so it should work" which is complete nonsense (the UK doesn't even support mmwave yet, its a US thing!). The UK is using band 78 which is 3..5Ghz so all I wanted from them is to confirm if the US version has 3.5Ghz or not. Another disappointment on Samsung....
So I am currently stuck, this is, really, a gamble, not sure if the risk worth it or not. Something tells me the 5G won't work in the UK and this doesn't' worth it.
How come Samsung doesn't know what frequencies their own product supports? Is it that hard for them to get? Its rubbish!
Us Note 20 doesn't work with 5G band in UK. If you want a working snapdragon 5G note 20 or note 20 ultra you have to by N986N model from South Korea, which is one sim only but it has 256gb internal storage....
manager77 said:
Us Note 20 doesn't work with 5G band in UK. If you want a working snapdragon 5G note 20 or note 20 ultra you have to by N986N model from South Korea, which is one sim only but it has 256gb internal storage....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, it seems to. I will try my luck with Wondamobile and order the HK version once available. Don't want to buy the Exynos...
Thanks for your help!
It seems like a lot of hassle just to get a snapdragon version. You may gain performance (that's probably not even noticeable in normal every day tasks) and a possible gain in battery life... but gain hassles with the UK network bands, import duty, warranty issues and resale value.
There are meant to be tweaks on the Exynos 990 in the Note20 version, so why not wait and see a reasonable handful of reviews on this subject first?
.
apprentice said:
It seems like a lot of hassle just to get a snapdragon version. You may gain performance (that's probably not even noticeable in normal every day tasks) and a possible gain in battery life... but gain hassles with the UK network bands, import duty, warranty issues and resale value.
There are meant to be tweaks on the Exynos 990 in the Note20 version, so why not wait and see a reasonable handful of reviews on this subject first?
.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is also true, especially the resale value part (Wondamobile covers all import duties, etc so no probs from that side).
I am also waiting for the reviews, even though Ice Universe advised the rumors about tweaked Exynos are not legit. Still, hope dies last
Decisions, decisions
apprentice said:
It seems like a lot of hassle just to get a snapdragon version. You may gain performance (that's probably not even noticeable in normal every day tasks) and a possible gain in battery life... but gain hassles with the UK network bands, import duty, warranty issues and resale value.
There are meant to be tweaks on the Exynos 990 in the Note20 version, so why not wait and see a reasonable handful of reviews on this subject first?
.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Interesting...I know you said wait for the reviews, yet if you had the choice which version would you get or which version do you normally get? I'm looking at making a decision between the snapdragon or the exynos... I'm pretty sure I've always had exynos, yet this maybe the last year I'm able to afford upgrading to the latest and greatest... I want to ensure I'm getting the best bang for the buck... I'm thinking the Korean unlocked snapdragon maybe the best bet.
cezeff said:
Interesting...I know you said wait for the reviews, yet if you had the choice which version would you get or which version do you normally get? I'm looking at making a decision between the snapdragon or the exynos... I'm pretty sure I've always had exynos, yet this maybe the last year I'm able to afford upgrading to the latest and greatest... I want to ensure I'm getting the best bang for the buck... I'm thinking the Korean unlocked snapdragon maybe the best bet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Depending on where you live though, if in Europe than HK would be a better choice as it has a better network compatibility with European 5g and GSM standards than Korean version. I was also reading that Koren version comes with specific Korean settings and bloatware that cannot be removed, hence, it is cheaper than HK version.
I was reading today that one guy on Twitter apparently tested Note 20 Ultra Exynos and said it is more optimised and faster than the same processor in S20 Ultra, but still not on par with Snapdragon.
I will probably try my luck with Wondamobile once they will have the HK version available.
cezeff said:
Interesting...I know you said wait for the reviews, yet if you had the choice which version would you get or which version do you normally get? I'm looking at making a decision between the snapdragon or the exynos... I'm pretty sure I've always had exynos, yet this maybe the last year I'm able to afford upgrading to the latest and greatest... I want to ensure I'm getting the best bang for the buck... I'm thinking the Korean unlocked snapdragon maybe the best bet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see you are in the US, so you will automatically get the Snapdragon version. This is technically a better chipset for both performance and battery life, but the evidence seems to point to about a 6% performance boost (on the Galaxy S20) and about 1hr more battery power. But these figures are only relevant if you are pushing the phone to absolute limits. As with all benchmarking, results are clinical and most likely aren't noticeable in every day usage and the majority of people really don't care much.
However what we do care about (here in non US markets) is that we are paying the same amount (often more) for something that technically has an inferior chipset. But Samsung seemed to have addressed this with the Exynos version having a bigger (256Gb) base storage.
There are rumours banding about that the Exynos 990 has been much improved/ramped up, also addressing the overheating issues on previous devices. So it remains to be seen if this holds true. But the crux of my input here is that is it really worth the OP going to the trouble of importing a phone from the US or S.Korea to the UK, based on all the above? Especially if something goes wrong you most likely don't have a warranty. At the price of a Note 20 Ultra that's a lot of money to lose if you get a fault.
apprentice said:
I see you are in the US, so you will automatically get the Snapdragon version. This is technically a better chipset for both performance and battery life, but the evidence seems to point to about a 6% performance boost (on the Galaxy S20) and about 1hr more battery power. But these figures are only relevant if you are pushing the phone to absolute limits. As with all benchmarking, results are clinical and most likely aren't noticeable in every day usage and the majority of people really don't care much.
However what we do care about (here in non US markets) is that we are paying the same amount (often more) for something that technically has an inferior chipset. But Samsung seemed to have addressed this with the Exynos version having a bigger (256Gb) base storage.
There are rumours banding about that the Exynos 990 has been much improved/ramped up, also addressing the overheating issues on previous devices. So it remains to be seen if this holds true. But the crux of my input here is that is it really worth the OP going to the trouble of importing a phone from the US or S.Korea to the UK, based on all the above? Especially if something goes wrong you most likely don't have a warranty. At the price of a Note 20 Ultra that's a lot of money to lose if you get a fault.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well I live in Japan .. Shipping and importing is not really an issue for me... Even with the improvements to exynos, it still seems the snapdragon is the better chipset (?).. I can source an unlocked 256 snapdragon from Korea, yet now am concerned about the bloatware on the phone... wouldn't the Hong Kong version also include some form of bloatware?
---------- Post added at 06:46 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:35 PM ----------
VirtualWaver said:
Depending on where you live though, if in Europe than HK would be a better choice as it has a better network compatibility with European 5g and GSM standards than Korean version. I was also reading that Koren version comes with specific Korean settings and bloatware that cannot be removed, hence, it is cheaper than HK version.
I was reading today that one guy on Twitter apparently tested Note 20 Ultra Exynos and said it is more optimised and faster than the same processor in S20 Ultra, but still not on par with Snapdragon.
I will probably try my luck with Wondamobile once they will have the HK version available.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wouldn't the HK version include bloatware as well?
cezeff said:
Well I live in Japan .. Shipping and importing is not really an issue for me... Even with the improvements to exynos, it still seems the snapdragon is the better chipset (?).. I can source an unlocked 256 snapdragon from Korea, yet now am concerned about the bloatware on the phone... wouldn't the Hong Kong version also include some form of bloatware?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah sorry, I was just going by the country flag on your profile.
I don't know if the HK version will be full of bloatware. However, I think Samsung have toned down their bloatware over the past 2-3 years anyway (certainly in the UK versions), instead opting to provide links to downloads of their apps that might interest you. I actually really like the Samsung Browser for example but it's no longer installed by default, so I had to install it from the Galaxy Store.
apprentice said:
Ah sorry, I was just going by the country flag on your profile.
I don't know if the HK version will be full of bloatware. However, I think Samsung have toned down their bloatware over the past 2-3 years anyway (certainly in the UK versions), instead opting to provide links to downloads of their apps that might interest you. I actually really like the Samsung Browser for example but it's no longer installed by default, so I had to install it from the Galaxy Store.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will second the Samsung Browser - absolutely the best and works super fast. My to go browser, in fact.
I am not sure about bloatware content but there was a deal on HotUKDeals website where Wonda was selling S20 from Korea and it was cheaper and people was saying the comments that the reason is that it has many pre-configured Korean bloat that cannot be removed even with package managers.
It looks like (from my research on the web) that HK version doesn't have these.
apprentice said:
Ah sorry, I was just going by the country flag on your profile.
I don't know if the HK version will be full of bloatware. However, I think Samsung have toned down their bloatware over the past 2-3 years anyway (certainly in the UK versions), instead opting to provide links to downloads of their apps that might interest you. I actually really like the Samsung Browser for example but it's no longer installed by default, so I had to install it from the Galaxy Store.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem. I do agree that Samsung has toned it down. I think I'll go ahead and pre-order the Korean snapdragon with 256gb in mystic white... mystic bronze looks great, yet I can't do much with it, even putting on a skin the frame would stick out like a sore thumb... If anything I can disable bloatware via ADB shell without root... One of the reasons I buy unlocked phones is because the bloatware on Japanese locked phones are absolutely crazy... The system is also proprietary, losing much of the customization other regions have, along with super long delayed updates...
---------- Post added at 07:18 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:01 PM ----------
VirtualWaver said:
I will second the Samsung Browser - absolutely the best and works super fast. My to go browser, in fact.
I am not sure about bloatware content but there was a deal on HotUKDeals website where Wonda was selling S20 from Korea and it was cheaper and people was saying the comments that the reason is that it has many pre-configured Korean bloat that cannot be removed even with package managers.
It looks like (from my research on the web) that HK version doesn't have these.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll roll with the Korean version for now.. If there is any excessive bloated I'll ADB shell it and if anything else maybe flash a universal ROM later down the road... Thanks for you guys input
cezeff said:
No problem. I do agree that Samsung has toned it down. I think I'll go ahead and pre-order the Korean snapdragon with 256gb in mystic white... mystic bronze looks great, yet I can't do much with it, even putting on a skin the frame would stick out like a sore thumb... If anything I can disable bloatware via ADB shell without root... One of the reasons I buy unlocked phones is because the bloatware on Japanese locked phones are absolutely crazy... The system is also proprietary, losing much of the customization other regions have, along with super long delayed updates...
---------- Post added at 07:18 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:01 PM ----------
I'll roll with the Korean version for now.. If there is any excessive bloated I'll ADB shell it and if anything else maybe flash a universal ROM later down the road... Thanks for you guys input
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Please let us know how once you get it
I will also hold on and wait for Exynos review. Hope it will be available soon.
I am not a gamer at all, but am a power user and do appreciate when the phone heats less and consumes less battery. Also, apparently, Snapdragon's reception is better. So will wait for reviews before getting. For now, I cancelled my Samsung order from the UK.

Categories

Resources