Related
So, I have Had my AT&T Note edge since around April 2015. When I first Got the phone I was very happy with the new innovation of the edge screen and found it quite useful. Before, I had the Note 2 and I was in love with it, I had many different roms and dev's are still coming out with new roms for it and the only reason I got the new phone is because the screen cracked and I did not want to pay another 150$'s for a phone that was worth less than that on eBay.
Since receiving my note edge I have found nothing but problems with it (obviously after honeymoon period with the edge screen, lol). The battery life is abysmal at best, the screen transitions are slow and tedious at times, sometimes I have to launch the task manager and clean the apps(which that in enough itself is a challenge to get to launch), even if I am only using 20% of my memory. To put a little perspective on this, I have been rooting/jail breaking phones since the first iPhone came out back in 2007 and I have also switched out hardware on phones so I do know what I am doing and I realized when I bought the phone that it may be a while till a decent root/rom came out for the phone but honestly not one root or one rom for the AT&T note edge has come out.
I bought the phone knowing I would have to wait for a root/rom but I did not expect stock to be so terrible. Even after the lollipop update, the phone may have gotten a little worse, to the point where sometimes my screen will stay black when I get a phone call then when the phone almost stops ringing the screen will come on and I can then answer (most of the time). To say I am disappointed in Samsung would be an understatement. Mind you, I fell in love with my note 2 and had it until it was non functioning anymore and more expensive to fix than replace. I have nothing but praise for Samsung but they really let me down with this phone.
I have taken all the steps I can think of to increase performance even to the point of just wiping it clean and starting from scratch and it's still no where close to the performance of my note 2
All this is to ask if anyone out there can give me some suggestions of a phone that A) has the ability to be rooted B) has sufficient roms out there to test out and find a good one. Money is not a problem but I figured that this would be one of the best places to ask because I am sure all you note edge fanboys and girls were looking at other phones before you decided on the note edge and I am sure there are other people like me who probably had too high of expectations for the note edge.
I would also consider staying with the edge if the root/rom would come out soon, but I honestly don't see that happening in the near future.
Also one last thing, I am not opposed to any brand or model I just prefer a 5" screen or bigger. Also, I have checked out the Neptune Suite which looks incredible. unfortunately, I can't post a link but just search it and you'll find it.
You can get root. It's just tough. The recommended way (depending on your variant) is to get CWM and root through recovery then flash whatever recovery you want to use. For me its TWRP. The above method works on my SM-N915G.
One thing I have seen and am a bit butt hurt by is the significant downturn on custom roms for this device, or at least for my variant. The note 4 has had heaps of dev work however this beauty of a phone has been neglected. More than likely die to uptake. I just hope that they bring out an edge 2 this year and that is widely taken up, so we can get some damn customisation. I hate this 5.0.1 touch wiz rom. I have constant lag issues and its just not on. However I digress. It's a beast of a phone. Just don't expect to many roms available seeing as it is hitting end of life i.e. new version coming soon
Flame_Beard said:
You can get root. It's just tough. The recommended way (depending on your variant) is to get CWM and root through recovery then flash whatever recovery you want to use. For me its TWRP. The above method works on my SM-N915G.
One thing I have seen and am a bit butt hurt by is the significant downturn on custom roms for this device, or at least for my variant. The note 4 has had heaps of dev work however this beauty of a phone has been neglected. More than likely die to uptake. I just hope that they bring out an edge 2 this year and that is widely taken up, so we can get some damn customisation. I hate this 5.0.1 touch wiz rom. I have constant lag issues and its just not on. However I digress. It's a beast of a phone. Just don't expect to many roms available seeing as it is hitting end of life i.e. new version coming soon
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I completely agree with you that the note edge is a beast. It has all the features I was looking for in a phone EXCEPT the fact that the rooting is a mission and when you're finally done, there is little to no reward. I would have rooted a while ago but the root seems fishy at best and the temp root... well, its a temp root, lol. I miss my note 2 just for the pure simple fact that they had every single rom you could think of for that thing, hell, I would even switch to the note 4 if it was more heavily supported. Honestly, I am just saddened by AT&T's choice to lock everything and Samsung's horrific TouchWiz UI. We all know its awful. I am a die hard samsung fanboy but man, they are letting the ball drop. like the note 5, possible no removable back? What is this HTC?! I hope AT&T/Samsung realize that locking the bootloader is a pointless exercise. What modder out there ever returns their stuff for warranty?! Enough of the rant. I am most likely going to be switching to T-mobile by the end of this year(for other reasons than the phone) and was wondering if there is a better options than the note edge coming soon?
Flame_Beard said:
You can get root. It's just tough. The recommended way (depending on your variant) is to get CWM and root through recovery then flash whatever recovery you want to use. For me its TWRP. The above method works on my SM-N915G.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
also, from everything I have read, there is no secure root for the SM-N915A. I could be wrong but I don't think so unfortunately
mikeyvalentine said:
also, from everything I have read, there is no secure root for the SM-N915A. I could be wrong but I don't think so unfortunately
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is ROOT, for an SM-N915A but you have to be on kitkat and NOT lollipop. Also root for this device is "TEMP" and not permanent, after a reboot, you loose root.
IceTwig said:
There is ROOT, for an SM-N915A but you have to be on kitkat and NOT lollipop. Also root for this device is "TEMP" and not permanent, after a reboot, you loose root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's the problem, If it was a perm root. I wouldn't be so negative about this phone but since its only Temp. I feel like I kind of got cheated with this phone. It's powerful but a hog with its power, its got a great display but mainly because of the edge, and a nice size battery that, again, gets killed by the display(even at low brightness) I might have just got a lemon from the start, its happened before. I just wish that rooting this phone was easier and more satisfying than "oh sweet, I was able to root my phone! Better not restart and better be okay with the non existent roms out for it right now!"
More than likely because when Samsung released this model, they initially said that they were going to drop only 1000 units so as to "test the market waters" for the device. So sad to see because she really is a beaut. I won't be moving to a Note 4, I have a new phone owed to me by my carrier this month, so I will be waiting to see what this years Note/Note Edge offering is and I will make the change then, Fingers crossed they do run with the Note Edge design. Also too, if they follow suit with their Note lines of phone as they have with Their Galaxy S line (no expandable memory, no removable back plate) I will not be buying Samsung again. Other than the lengthy feature set for the Note Edge, the fact that they have expandable memory was the tipping point for me. Failing that I will be going elsewhere from now on. Sad to say it, but Samsung is following in Apples footsteps by telling the consumer what they can and cannot do with a device that they choose to buy.
Note 4 Story
Why this thread? Short background - I am building a '61 Chevy Bubbletop, and have a thread in a Chevy fourm that I have been posting pics, etc. Have had a lot of interest and helpful feedback. I thought it would be fun, and maybe helpful to some (maybe even me), so here goes.
I will have the phone in hand Monday. So first, background on my Note 4, and what I'm hoping to experience with the V20.
I have come to the point that I prefer to not install ROMs. I find that typically, no matter how great and stable everyone says a ROM is, it always has some issue of some kind. (Of course even stock ones do to).
So I went a long time w/o rooting or applying a ROM. I finally just had to have root. So I sold my AT&T Note 4 (couldn't root it), and purchased a T-Mobile Note 4 which could be rooted. I rooted it and used like that for quite a while.
I am one that uses a LOT of apps. (The phone is to use, no?) And with that comes more memory use, and lag. The phone got so laggy I just had to try a ROM. I tried 2-3 with varying success. I finally tried Maximum Overdrive's ROM for the Note 4 (he is now working on a ROM for the V20).
It was like a different phone. Fairly fast, not near as much lag. It has allowed me to extend the life of the phone over the past year. In fact, it works well enough that I wonder how smart I am spending several hundred dollars for a new phone.
So why the new phone? I moved to Florida a year and half ago, and AT&T's data here sucks ripe lemons. I'm going to move to Verizon. (My daughter has them, and we have compared speeds etc., and Verizon is much better here).
Choosing the V20
It has been a few months that I have been on the watch for my next phone. I won't bore you with the long story of that...just a few details.
One of my 'must haves' for the next phone was to have 6GB of memory...due to my high application load. Over time my highest priority switch from 6GB of memory to capability to use a phone on both GSM and CDMA (read that AT&T/Verizon) networks. That way I can tergiversate regarding carriers.
So, some of my top phone choices dropped off the list. In fact, pretty much all of them except for the US996.
Concerns
I do have a few concerns about the V20 that I hope will be alleviated quickly:
Battery - I've been reading posts regarding battery and it does not sound good. Since moving to the Max Overdrive ROM on the Note 4, my battery is unbelievable. I'd hate to go downhill with this phone. This may be something that necessiates rooting.
Camera Lens - I'm sure everyone knows why this is a concern
Performance - I read, for the most part, that this phone performs well. But I also read a lot of complaints about LAG. Ugh...my high app use may make this a likely scenario for me
Camera - I see some complaints about low light pics. But I've seen a lot of praise for the camera as well
Initial Plans
Once I get all apps installed, and data imported/restored for those that need it, I plan to use it stock for at least 30 days and see how it goes. Depending on how it goes, especially related to the concerns above, I'll either keep it and move forward, or return it.
I'll start out with it on AT&T. May hold off moving to Verizon until I pass the 30 day return availablility.
Rooting
I would really like to root the phone. But, as that the only way to unlock the bootloader is via the LG site for this phone, I don't know if I will or not...at least this early with the phone. Why does that make a difference? Will lose warranty, as they indicate that on the LG site where you go to get it unlocked.
Apply Rom?
Given that there is a Maximum Overdrive rom for the V20, you'd think I would want to put that on. Actually, this is true...but he is only making one for the 918, as that is the phone he has. So, I will miss out on that honey.
I have read some positive info on a couple others out there, but do see constant issues, even with just rooting. It's not near as smooth as a Samsung (I base that opinion on the issues I see here vs. have experienced with the Samsung). So, I'm skittish about doing anything to it. Given the 996 unlocking flags the phone as out of warranty, I fear that a bricked phone will be a several hundred dollar loss.
Summary
So, looking forward to getting the phone and seeing how it goes, and having fun communicating here about the journey.
ewingr said:
Note 4 Story
Why this thread? Short background - I am building a '61 Chevy Bubbletop, and have a thread in a Chevy fourm that I have been posting pics, etc. Have had a lot of interest and helpful feedback. I thought it would be fun, and maybe helpful to some (maybe even me), so here goes.
I will have the phone in hand Monday. So first, background on my Note 4, and what I'm hoping to experience with the V20.
I have come to the point that I prefer to not install ROMs. I find that typically, no matter how great and stable everyone says a ROM is, it always has some issue of some kind. (Of course even stock ones do to).
So I went a long time w/o rooting or applying a ROM. I finally just had to have root. So I sold my AT&T Note 4 (couldn't root it), and purchased a T-Mobile Note 4 which could be rooted. I rooted it and used like that for quite a while.
I am one that uses a LOT of apps. (The phone is to use, no?) And with that comes more memory use, and lag. The phone got so laggy I just had to try a ROM. I tried 2-3 with varying success. I finally tried Maximum Overdrive's ROM for the Note 4 (he is now working on a ROM for the V20).
It was like a different phone. Fairly fast, not near as much lag. It has allowed me to extend the life of the phone over the past year. In fact, it works well enough that I wonder how smart I am spending several hundred dollars for a new phone.
So why the new phone? I moved to Florida a year and half ago, and AT&T's data here sucks ripe lemons. I'm going to move to Verizon. (My daughter has them, and we have compared speeds etc., and Verizon is much better here).
Choosing the V20
It has been a few months that I have been on the watch for my next phone. I won't bore you with the long story of that...just a few details.
One of my 'must haves' for the next phone was to have 6GB of memory...due to my high application load. Over time my highest priority switch from 6GB of memory to capability to use a phone on both GSM and CDMA (read that AT&T/Verizon) networks. That way I can tergiversate regarding carriers.
So, some of my top phone choices dropped off the list. In fact, pretty much all of them except for the US996.
Concerns
I do have a few concerns about the V20 that I hope will be alleviated quickly:
Battery - I've been reading posts regarding battery and it does not sound good. Since moving to the Max Overdrive ROM on the Note 4, my battery is unbelievable. I'd hate to go downhill with this phone. This may be something that necessiates rooting.
Camera Lens - I'm sure everyone knows why this is a concern
Performance - I read, for the most part, that this phone performs well. But I also read a lot of complaints about LAG. Ugh...my high app use may make this a likely scenario for me
Camera - I see some complaints about low light pics. But I've seen a lot of praise for the camera as well
Initial Plans
Once I get all apps installed, and data imported/restored for those that need it, I plan to use it stock for at least 30 days and see how it goes. Depending on how it goes, especially related to the concerns above, I'll either keep it and move forward, or return it.
I'll start out with it on AT&T. May hold off moving to Verizon until I pass the 30 day return availablility.
Rooting
I would really like to root the phone. But, as that the only way to unlock the bootloader is via the LG site for this phone, I don't know if I will or not...at least this early with the phone. Why does that make a difference? Will lose warranty, as they indicate that on the LG site where you go to get it unlocked.
Apply Rom?
Given that there is a Maximum Overdrive rom for the V20, you'd think I would want to put that on. Actually, this is true...but he is only making one for the 918, as that is the phone he has. So, I will miss out on that honey.
I have read some positive info on a couple others out there, but do see constant issues, even with just rooting. It's not near as smooth as a Samsung (I base that opinion on the issues I see here vs. have experienced with the Samsung). So, I'm skittish about doing anything to it. Given the 996 unlocking flags the phone as out of warranty, I fear that a bricked phone will be a several hundred dollar loss.
Summary
So, looking forward to getting the phone and seeing how it goes, and having fun communicating here about the journey.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
just so you know att only has a 14 day return policy
jerrycoffman45 said:
just so you know att only has a 14 day return policy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know. I purchased from B&H Photo. Besides. AT&T doesn't sell the 996, I don't think.
But thanks for the warning. Had I purchase it from them, and expected 30 days, it would have been a pain to learn the hard way that I can't return it if I decide to.
I had the Note 3, 4 then 7 and this phone is larger than all 3. I just recently switched from Sprint and traded in my s7 edge for the V20 and I am happy so far. I purchased a OtterBox Defender case for the phone and with it installed I no longer have any worries of the camera glass, the case is very solid. Plus I left the factory plastic on the camera which people say will help if the phone was to be dropped.
Good luck!
I had been anxiously awaiting the Note 7. At the time 6GB memory was the top of my 'must have' list. So, when it came with 4GB, I was disappointed and decided to watch for a while. Then we know what happened.
I've actually been very interested in chasing some of the better priced competitors, such as Axon 7 or OnePlus 3t. But both the cameras were rated poorly, and then are GSM only.
But, I'm getting tired of these $800 prices. Rumor now is 1K for the Samsung 8.
I ended up purchasing an open box V20 from B&H, has full factory warranty. Got it for 675, no tax, no shipping.
ON the case, I have been using a Bestbuy PLatinum case, which comes with a belt clipped holster, and a kickstand in the case itself. Been great for me. Coming from IT and needing the phone on my at all times, and not wanting to fight the pocket, I used that.
Turns out it is made by Seido, and they have the same for the V20. It arrived from Amazon today. I'll add some pics when I get the phone and get it set up.
This story will continue. Hopefully it will be a pleasant one.
ewingr said:
Note 4 Story
Why this thread? Short background - I am building a '61 Chevy Bubbletop, and have a thread in a Chevy fourm that I have been posting pics, etc. Have had a lot of interest and helpful feedback. I thought it would be fun, and maybe helpful to some (maybe even me), so here goes.
I will have the phone in hand Monday. So first, background on my Note 4, and what I'm hoping to experience with the V20.
I have come to the point that I prefer to not install ROMs. I find that typically, no matter how great and stable everyone says a ROM is, it always has some issue of some kind. (Of course even stock ones do to).
So I went a long time w/o rooting or applying a ROM. I finally just had to have root. So I sold my AT&T Note 4 (couldn't root it), and purchased a T-Mobile Note 4 which could be rooted. I rooted it and used like that for quite a while.
I am one that uses a LOT of apps. (The phone is to use, no?) And with that comes more memory use, and lag. The phone got so laggy I just had to try a ROM. I tried 2-3 with varying success. I finally tried Maximum Overdrive's ROM for the Note 4 (he is now working on a ROM for the V20).
It was like a different phone. Fairly fast, not near as much lag. It has allowed me to extend the life of the phone over the past year. In fact, it works well enough that I wonder how smart I am spending several hundred dollars for a new phone.
So why the new phone? I moved to Florida a year and half ago, and AT&T's data here sucks ripe lemons. I'm going to move to Verizon. (My daughter has them, and we have compared speeds etc., and Verizon is much better here).
Choosing the V20
It has been a few months that I have been on the watch for my next phone. I won't bore you with the long story of that...just a few details.
One of my 'must haves' for the next phone was to have 6GB of memory...due to my high application load. Over time my highest priority switch from 6GB of memory to capability to use a phone on both GSM and CDMA (read that AT&T/Verizon) networks. That way I can tergiversate regarding carriers.
So, some of my top phone choices dropped off the list. In fact, pretty much all of them except for the US996.
Concerns
I do have a few concerns about the V20 that I hope will be alleviated quickly:
Battery - I've been reading posts regarding battery and it does not sound good. Since moving to the Max Overdrive ROM on the Note 4, my battery is unbelievable. I'd hate to go downhill with this phone. This may be something that necessiates rooting.
Camera Lens - I'm sure everyone knows why this is a concern
Performance - I read, for the most part, that this phone performs well. But I also read a lot of complaints about LAG. Ugh...my high app use may make this a likely scenario for me
Camera - I see some complaints about low light pics. But I've seen a lot of praise for the camera as well
Initial Plans
Once I get all apps installed, and data imported/restored for those that need it, I plan to use it stock for at least 30 days and see how it goes. Depending on how it goes, especially related to the concerns above, I'll either keep it and move forward, or return it.
I'll start out with it on AT&T. May hold off moving to Verizon until I pass the 30 day return availablility.
Rooting
I would really like to root the phone. But, as that the only way to unlock the bootloader is via the LG site for this phone, I don't know if I will or not...at least this early with the phone. Why does that make a difference? Will lose warranty, as they indicate that on the LG site where you go to get it unlocked.
Apply Rom?
Given that there is a Maximum Overdrive rom for the V20, you'd think I would want to put that on. Actually, this is true...but he is only making one for the 918, as that is the phone he has. So, I will miss out on that honey.
I have read some positive info on a couple others out there, but do see constant issues, even with just rooting. It's not near as smooth as a Samsung (I base that opinion on the issues I see here vs. have experienced with the Samsung). So, I'm skittish about doing anything to it. Given the 996 unlocking flags the phone as out of warranty, I fear that a bricked phone will be a several hundred dollar loss.
Summary
So, looking forward to getting the phone and seeing how it goes, and having fun communicating here about the journey.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
About Battery>> Remember that a) you will be dealing with a phone with IPS screen instead of AMOLED (this has a huge impact on the battery). b)the amount of apps that you have (specially those that requires to sync in the background are often part of the issue of battery drainage (my v20 used to last up to 7+ or 8+ with screen on with just about 7 user apps and the rest system apps, now i have 85 user apps + the system apps which make my phone last about 5+ hours screen on). On the other hand, The Doze mode of this phone is INSANE!!!! OUTSTANDING! With screen off your phone can easily last a day or even two (if you like to listen to music with pandora or Spotify >>> it will still last a lot with screen off).
About Camera Lens>> This is just an opinion but im starting to believe that the camera lens sensitivity is just to a small percent of the stock. Believe me when i tell you that i have throw my phone so hard to the wall (by accident) and with that kind of pressure (even with the poetic revolution cover) it should have made the glass of the camera crack (not to mention my phone has fell a lot). On the other hand, do not remove the plastic it comes with , just to be safe.
About Performance>> The phone is fast but just like any other phone, regardless of the processor, or the amount of ram, it has its limits. Thus, at the beginning i had a blazing fast LG V20. But put 85 user apps inside any phone and see how this will change lol. IT still fast. But every once in a while i experience a little lag. But that is just when i have only 500+mb left of ram. ( how can i know my ram quickly? OvrDrive Rom has the ram bar)
About Camera>> The camera does become slower when you are at very dark environments. But many report, including me, that using manual mode and adjusting it to your liking will make it very fast. I believe the issue is the automatic mode. Although sometimes for me the automatic mode in the dark works great. Also, some people report their photos looking like water paint (it does happen to me only with the wide angle camera. Not very often, but it does)
Now, if you are looking for developments and all that, this phone seems to be going in the right direction. We pretty much have root for every variant, we have some custom stock roms, and also we have LineageOS, Resurrection Remix, and AOKP among others so far for almost every variants.
Appreciate the input. We'll see how my experience goes.
I have a comment/reply or two in blue down in the quote of your response.
jinkerz9430 said:
About Battery>> Remember that a) you will be dealing with a phone with IPS screen instead of AMOLED (this has a huge impact on the battery). b)the amount of apps that you have (specially those that requires to sync in the background are often part of the issue of battery drainage (my v20 used to last up to 7+ or 8+ with screen on with just about 7 user apps and the rest system apps, now i have 85 user apps + the system apps which make my phone last about 5+ hours screen on). On the other hand, The Doze mode of this phone is INSANE!!!! OUTSTANDING! With screen off your phone can easily last a day or even two (if you like to listen to music with pandora or Spotify >>> it will still last a lot with screen off).
Yup. All understood. My comparison will be to my almost 3 year old Note 4. It has all the apps I will have on the V20, Doze mode (Max Overdrive ROM), etc. This has a just barely smaller battery than the Note 4 (which is disappointing...would prefer a fatter phone with fatter battery). So, I would hope the processer is more efficient, and in the end, at least as good on battery as my Note 4.
About Camera Lens>> This is just an opinion but im starting to believe that the camera lens sensitivity is just to a small percent of the stock. Believe me when i tell you that i have throw my phone so hard to the wall (by accident) and with that kind of pressure (even with the poetic revolution cover) it should have made the glass of the camera crack (not to mention my phone has fell a lot). On the other hand, do not remove the plastic it comes with , just to be safe.
I will definitely have the phone in cases. Hopefully I'll have same experience as you.
About Performance>> The phone is fast but just like any other phone, regardless of the processor, or the amount of ram, it has its limits. Thus, at the beginning i had a blazing fast LG V20. But put 85 user apps inside any phone and see how this will change lol. IT still fast. But every once in a while i experience a little lag. But that is just when i have only 500+mb left of ram. ( how can i know my ram quickly? OvrDrive Rom has the ram bar)
I'm sure it has it's limits. I do abuse them, with lots of apps. MOre than 85, I'm sure. I do have a tendency to freeze apps I don't use often. But of course that requires root. With the Maximum Overdrive ROM on my Note 4, the lags aren't too bad. I'm thinking (hoping) that this phone will shine in comparison to my Note 4 with the better specs.
About Camera>> The camera does become slower when you are at very dark environments. But many report, including me, that using manual mode and adjusting it to your liking will make it very fast. I believe the issue is the automatic mode. Although sometimes for me the automatic mode in the dark works great. Also, some people report their photos looking like water paint (it does happen to me only with the wide angle camera. Not very often, but it does)
I use some modes other than automatic on my Canon. I'm excited to see the capabilities of the camera on this phone. With an understanding of shutter and aperture as an advantage, maybe I'll be very happy with it.
Now, if you are looking for developments and all that, this phone seems to be going in the right direction. We pretty much have root for every variant, we have some custom stock roms, and also we have LineageOS, Resurrection Remix, and AOKP among others so far for almost every variants.
If only Overdrive developed for the 996, I would know what ROM to use. I will likely hold off on ROMS for a while. I still see lots of folks struggling with the ROMS and reporting issues or help needed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tomorrow...the journey begins
SHAMELESS PLUG, to remind everyone that not everyone has 800$ to throw at a phone upfront.
I was in your boat. I had my eyes dead set on the US996.
Did my research and ended up on the H918.
Look at the ROM development, it's flooded with H918 support.
Will the US996 pick up traction and have as much support as the H918? Who knows.
I even wanted the dual sim, but that isn't even rooted if my memory serves correctly.
Regardless, this phone is stellar.
WETA rom has an US996 version, which I'd definitely recommend. I have my eyes on Max Overdrive, NATF and Resurrection remix, but after flashing WETA, i wouldn't change a thing.
Best of luck to you, m9.
Thanks for the best luck wishes.
I am seeing more dev for the 996. I am hopeful that I'll be happy with it stock. Although, I really want Root, so I may give in.
One thing for sure, it is confusing having all various models in the same forums, and most folks don't indicate which model they are on.
ewingr said:
Appreciate the input. We'll see how my experience goes.
I have a comment/reply or two in blue down in the quote of your response.
Tomorrow...the journey begins
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah i would say that Max ovrdrive and Weta are the 2 most stable ones regarding stock roms. Have you tried to talk with OvrDrive ? The h918 and US996 are pretty much alike in all the aspects except some frequencies added to the us996. Maybe you can be a tester for the us996 version. But yeah, first try the phone for a while without any root until the 14 days or possibly some more days are over. If you decide to keep it, then you can jump into the v20's board lol . By the way, you said that you rather a fatter phone? I have seen some battery replacements from third party brands such as zero lemon (which is usually a great brand that produces great batteries) their batteries have way more mah than the original battery from the v20. But it comes with a cost that you might get along with them. It requires to put a very fat case to the phone. I personally dont like it but if you dont care about how fat it looks then you coupd go for it.
I didn't personally talk to Overdrive, but it was asked in his thread of his ROM would work on the 996, and his reply was he would not be supporting it as he does not have one. I too have noticed that ROMs are working on more than one model.
I'll wait and see how the stock battery works out before I go try a fatter one. I'm hoping to stay in the Seido case and belt clip I had already purchased.
Good news/Bad news
Bad news first...but not that bad
I won't have the phone in hand until late Thursday, instead of today
Now the great news
I'll have a brand new phone instead of open big phone, and will sane $175.
I went to Phandroid a bit ago and they announced a sale of the V20 at B&H for $499.99. I had paid $675 for the open box. I called B&H to see if they would refund the difference. Nope. Buy the sale phone and return the open box phone.
Fine with me ?
ewingr said:
Bad news first...but not that bad
I won't have the phone in hand until late Thursday, instead of today
Now the great news
I'll have a brand new phone instead of open big phone, and will sane $175.
I went to Phandroid a bit ago and they announced a sale of the V20 at B&H for $499.99. I had paid $675 for the open box. I called B&H to see if they would refund the difference. Nope. Buy the sale phone and return the open box phone.
Fine with me
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
my v20's price was practically speaking $331 dollars Brand new sealed . Because of the promotion of the $200 off and the earphone of $149 plus an extra earphone ($149) sent to me from the defective lg v20 returned. I think im going to finish of paying by the 27 of this month
tl;dr version: If I see a US996 for sale that says it "only works with US Cellular" do I take the seller's word for it, or do I know better that the US996 is unlocked for all carriers if you have the right SIM card?
"I've got time" version:
I too am considering a journey from a Note 4 to a US996.
I'm on Verizon, and I just dropped my Note 4 Dev Edition (not that the DE means anything now that the BL unlock was released), cracking the LCD and rendering the digitizer useless. A new(ish) Note 4 is around $200... so I wouldn't bother replacing the screen on my otherwise well-used phone. PS... The phone was in a case, in a belt holster (Spigen Slim Armor / Seidio respectively) and a tempered glass screen protector. ugh.
If it wasn't obvious from my owning a Developer Edition phone... I like to have an unlocked bootloader and root. I had CM13 installed on the Note 4 because TouchWiz was so far behind in a lot of ways. So, I'm considering a V20. I'd rather spend a little more and get a phone that has a SUPPORTED BL unlock method. The Verizon V20 version can be BL unlocked via a hack with a debug bootloader, but it's irreversible and that may lead to issues with being painted into a corner. Enter the US996.
So, I started researching the V20, making sure that there was stable bootloader unlock method, the dev base for ROMs is strong, the reviews are good, etc... and I came across some sales that say that the phone is ONLY for US Cellular. Is this true? The US996 is the unlocked version, correct?
I tried to navigate LG's and USC's websites to get a model number and some info... but I'm not seeing it. Could US Cellular have somehow SIM-locked the phone so that only USC's SIMs work in it? Or... does the seller just not know any better, or wants to play it safe by saying it will only work with the carrier listed?
Thanks for the help! Also... anyone switching from the Note 4, please let me know what you miss. I use my stylus a lot for drawing or annotating on pictures and screenshots... so I think it will be the hardest thing to give up if I go to a V20 or other stylus-less phone.
DrPhant0m said:
tl;dr version: If I see a US996 for sale that says it "only works with US Cellular" do I take the seller's word for it, or do I know better that the US996 is unlocked for all carriers if you have the right SIM card?
"I've got time" version:
I too am considering a journey from a Note 4 to a US996.
I'm on Verizon, and I just dropped my Note 4 Dev Edition (not that the DE means anything now that the BL unlock was released), cracking the LCD and rendering the digitizer useless. A new(ish) Note 4 is around $200... so I wouldn't bother replacing the screen on my otherwise well-used phone. PS... The phone was in a case, in a belt holster (Spigen Slim Armor / Seidio respectively) and a tempered glass screen protector. ugh.
If it wasn't obvious from my owning a Developer Edition phone... I like to have an unlocked bootloader and root. I had CM13 installed on the Note 4 because TouchWiz was so far behind in a lot of ways. So, I'm considering a V20. I'd rather spend a little more and get a phone that has a SUPPORTED BL unlock method. The Verizon V20 version can be BL unlocked via a hack with a debug bootloader, but it's irreversible and that may lead to issues with being painted into a corner. Enter the US996.
So, I started researching the V20, making sure that there was stable bootloader unlock method, the dev base for ROMs is strong, the reviews are good, etc... and I came across some sales that say that the phone is ONLY for US Cellular. Is this true? The US996 is the unlocked version, correct?
I tried to navigate LG's and USC's websites to get a model number and some info... but I'm not seeing it. Could US Cellular have somehow SIM-locked the phone so that only USC's SIMs work in it? Or... does the seller just not know any better, or wants to play it safe by saying it will only work with the carrier listed?
Thanks for the help! Also... anyone switching from the Note 4, please let me know what you miss. I use my stylus a lot for drawing or annotating on pictures and screenshots... so I think it will be the hardest thing to give up if I go to a V20 or other stylus-less phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure what to say. Can you link the one you are looking at? I think by only work with US Cellular, they MAY (I don't know) mean a U.S. Carrier, ie. Verizon, AT&T, Sprint or T-Mobile, as opposed to the company US Celluar.
One thing you need to be aware of for the US996...the only way, right now, that it can be bootloader unlocked is by going to a LG site to get an unlock code from them. At that point it will lose warranty. Due to that, I'll be holding off on unlocking for a while. At least, that is my current plan.
Only thing I miss is the stylus going from the note 3 to the v10.
Though I suppose I don't miss the stylus that much since I jumped from the v10 to v20 instead of going back to the note series.
I would love to see lg put some effort into it and make a stylus based top end model instead of putting a stylus version as a middle model. I was hoping the v series would feature a stylus and the g series be a non stylus version but alas it hasn't happened.
Sent from my LG-H918 using XDA-Developers Legacy app
evo4g63t said:
Only thing I miss is the stylus going from the note 3 to the v10.
Though I suppose I don't miss the stylus that much since I jumped from the v10 to v20 instead of going back to the note series.
I would love to see lg put some effort into it and make a stylus based top end model instead of putting a stylus version as a middle model. I was hoping the v series would feature a stylus and the g series be a non stylus version but alas it hasn't happened.
Sent from my LG-H918 using XDA-Developers Legacy app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But i think that LG is trying not to copy other brands such as samsung. For this reason they should limit the amount of resemblance between the features of each phone. Thus, there are just a handful of LG's with stylus in comparison to the note series . After all i doubt LG wants to experience the same thing that happened with samsung been sued by apple, and then apple been sued back by samsung (quite a hilarious story though lol) but if i had a company such as LG, i would definitely not want to even put a step in court for a battle that can easily last more than a month of constant interventions and proofs and etc... and could easily cost me 100+ or 200+ millions. In a lg v20 , i believe the stylus is not a necessity (Even for people that would love to have stylus for the v series). On the other hand, one could buy one of this or similars:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1xTouch-Scr...485550?hash=item33c8e075ee:g:0RkAAOSwIgNXmXla
and see if there is an application that resembles what one can do with the note's stylus. you will definitely wont find one that will be exactly the same. But maybe similar and who knows maybe better.
DrPhant0m said:
tl;dr version: If I see a US996 for sale that says it "only works with US Cellular" do I take the seller's word for it, or do I know better that the US996 is unlocked for all carriers if you have the right SIM card?
"I've got time" version:
I too am considering a journey from a Note 4 to a US996.
I'm on Verizon, and I just dropped my Note 4 Dev Edition (not that the DE means anything now that the BL unlock was released), cracking the LCD and rendering the digitizer useless. A new(ish) Note 4 is around $200... so I wouldn't bother replacing the screen on my otherwise well-used phone. PS... The phone was in a case, in a belt holster (Spigen Slim Armor / Seidio respectively) and a tempered glass screen protector. ugh.
If it wasn't obvious from my owning a Developer Edition phone... I like to have an unlocked bootloader and root. I had CM13 installed on the Note 4 because TouchWiz was so far behind in a lot of ways. So, I'm considering a V20. I'd rather spend a little more and get a phone that has a SUPPORTED BL unlock method. The Verizon V20 version can be BL unlocked via a hack with a debug bootloader, but it's irreversible and that may lead to issues with being painted into a corner. Enter the US996.
So, I started researching the V20, making sure that there was stable bootloader unlock method, the dev base for ROMs is strong, the reviews are good, etc... and I came across some sales that say that the phone is ONLY for US Cellular. Is this true? The US996 is the unlocked version, correct?
I tried to navigate LG's and USC's websites to get a model number and some info... but I'm not seeing it. Could US Cellular have somehow SIM-locked the phone so that only USC's SIMs work in it? Or... does the seller just not know any better, or wants to play it safe by saying it will only work with the carrier listed?
Thanks for the help! Also... anyone switching from the Note 4, please let me know what you miss. I use my stylus a lot for drawing or annotating on pictures and screenshots... so I think it will be the hardest thing to give up if I go to a V20 or other stylus-less phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been thinking a bit. I know I saw in a thread somewhere about the US996 being the same model for the Unlocked and for a carrier (don't recall if it was US Cellular). I think the key is 'Unlocked'. Maybe you should put your question in it's own post. May bet more input, from someone who knows for sure.
Thanks for the replies. Take a look at this auction: http://www.ebay.com/itm/381960164377
The seller says they are an authorized US Cellular reseller… so it seems they'd know. And I doubt that they'd distort the truth about the phone being unlocked just to keep USC customers. So maybe there are US996s out there that are locked to USC. It doesn't make sense that there'd be a carrier-locked version of the US996 sold by LG… so maybe USC is locking them. Perhaps I'll ask the seller.
I ended up ordering a "like new" note 4 for $200 before I found out that B&H was selling the US996 for $300 off retail, and now I've missed that deal. So hopefully this Note4 really is in new condition and it will serve long enough for me to try out a V20 while the price drops again somewhere else.
Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk
Update… this is the response I got from the seller:
Thank you for your question. We are not selling the phone as compatible with other carriers or carrier-unlocked. We can't guarantee that the phone will work with an another carrier. We are only saying the phone will work with the carrier US Cellular. We can only guarantee that it works with US Cellular.*
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What do you all think?
Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk
Isn't it strange?
The S10e has highly favourable reviews and is supposed to become one of the best selling phones, maybe it could sell even better than the S10.
But it's very quiet around here with not much discussion compared to other phones.
And personally I've never seen an S10e in person even though I've seen plenty of S10 & S10+.
The S10+ Q&A forum has thousands of posts already, and there's 341 here.
So what's happening?
I would say s10e people go see s10 or s10+ forums as there is not much difference.
The S10e is ultimately the third tier device in the S10 line. Enthusiasts are more likely to be the ones to develop for devices in general, and enthusiasts are more likely to go for the first or second tier options.
We may get a small amount of development ported over from the other devices, but odds are this is about the amount of participation we're going to see here.
Maybe because people are satisfied with it. I honestly have no complaint about this device
Because it's locked down... Not much we can do really.
I'm very happy with this phone tho. Don't even need root anymore really....custom kernel would be nice but not likely to see that for long time if ever.
Good old locked af Sammy phones.
wywywywy said:
Isn't it strange?
The S10e has highly favourable reviews and is supposed to become one of the best selling phones, maybe it could sell even better than the S10.
But it's very quiet around here with not much discussion compared to other phones.
And personally I've never seen an S10e in person even though I've seen plenty of S10 & S10+.
The S10+ Q&A forum has thousands of posts already, and there's 341 here.
So what's happening?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're right, brother.
I've been a oneplus user for the past three devices, and this s10E really got my attention.
I ordered a G9700 version from ebay, should come next week
Surprised though there's little talk about it here.
What about TWRP? hmm
Could even survive without magisk nowadays as long as I use themes such as swift installer or even substratum ones.
This device seems unique for what it can offer, almost the same as their big brothers. With such a compact design,
Let's rock it!
jasons1004 said:
Because it's locked down... Not much we can do really.
I'm very happy with this phone tho. Don't even need root anymore really....custom kernel would be nice but not likely to see that for long time if ever.
Good old locked af Sammy phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not if you have the Exynos version ...
You guys have got valid points, however, even the Accessories section (which has nothing to do with being locked down) is super quiet.
The S10 and S10+ are locked down too, yet they still have big communities.
My worry is that the S10e is selling maybe nowhere near as well as people were expecting, possibly even a flop. This will be a problem for future official or non-official support.
No idea.
Major weirdness.
wywywywy said:
You guys have got valid points, however, even the Accessories section (which has nothing to do with being locked down) is super quiet.
The S10 and S10+ are locked down too, yet they still have big communities.
My worry is that the S10e is selling maybe nowhere near as well as people were expecting, possibly even a flop. This will be a problem for future official or non-official support.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't remember where I read the news but I saw that S10+ and S10e both are outsellIing S10. I think this forum just needs more time
I typically get the highest model available when I purchase phones but there was a few things that made me get my s10e. The main thing is that I despised curved screen phones. That's why I've been away from Samsung for years now. Finally is that I do not want to deal with the experimental in screen finger print sensor.
After getting the s10e, The only downside is the absurdly narrow screen. While the screen size is actually larger than my older LG V20 actual usable screen space is less and I feel it when playing puzzle games. Other than that I never thought that I'd be so happy on a non rooted phone. I pretty much destroyed my LG V20 on sprint by installing the best rom that was available and which got rid of lots of things like visual voicemail and many other features.
esqueue said:
I typically get the highest model available when I purchase phones but there was a few things that made me get my s10e. The main thing is that I despised curved screen phones. That's why I've been away from Samsung for years now. Finally is that I do not want to deal with the experimental in screen finger print sensor.
After getting the s10e, The only downside is the absurdly narrow screen. While the screen size is actually larger than my older LG V20 actual usable screen space is less and I feel it when playing puzzle games. Other than that I never thought that I'd be so happy on a non rooted phone. I pretty much destroyed my LG V20 on sprint by installing the best rom that was available and which got rid of lots of things like visual voicemail and many other features. I mainly root to have access to free wifi hotspot and to my surprise, my s10e has no problems getting. There is absolutely no reason to root this device anymore.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
One word: ads. After being pushed onto an S8 when my OP6 broke, I couldn't believe how many ads there are spamming all over the place. It felt unusable. Adaway really spoiled me. At that point I rooted my S8 with Nougat.
There are still some drawbacks to rooting an SD S8 (random crashes and 80 percent battery), but it's still worth it IMO. Enough so that I didn't upgrade to the 10e, even though I like my wife's overall.
Oh, and Titanium Backup too.
I agree root was not necessarily so far. I am using Adguard VPN ad blocking, used ADB to remove bloatware and add some 3rd apps for gestures and other improvements. All ok for now.
root is no longer needed for blocking advertisements. you can use, Blokada, adhell3, Disconnect Pro and private Dns. I use Disconnect Pro in combination with Adguard dns. Dns over tls. perfect combination for adblocking with 0% battery drain
Xda isnt Poppin like it used to and the phone is so good, there's really nothing to complain about or anything. Ppl are just enjoying their phone
Sent from my SM-G970U1 using Tapatalk
I really wish I could use a custom ROM on this. I don't like using stock ROMs and haven't on a single smartphone I've owned... including my first, the Samsung Captivate. I'm currently in love with Resurrection Remix.
Not much to complain about so far. I was getting a bit fed up with the increasingly large screens and weight, so I decided to go for the 10e and so far it is a great phone.
Phh just ordered an s10e, that's great news for any aosp lovers.
There's not much to do having the Snap SoC(ks)
Still waiting for the promised supper-dupper night mode update, 4 months since purchasing my unlocked S10e and that's too long. Samsung is bombarding the market with so many cheap "A" models now, that they're forgetting their obligations to the owners of top priced galaxy 'battleships' or 'flagships',... whatever.
I like the S10e, but I'm beginning to regret not waiting for the OP7 Pro, they seem to be on top of updates/upgrades. I think I'll give OP7T Pro a try when it gets released in the fall.
mzsquared said:
There's not much to do having the Snap SoC(ks)
Still waiting for the promised supper-dupper night mode update, 4 months since purchasing my unlocked S10e and that's too long. Samsung is bombarding the market with so many cheap "A" models now, that they're forgetting their obligations to the owners of top priced galaxy 'battleships' or 'flagships',... whatever.
I like the S10e, but I'm beginning to regret not waiting for the OP7 Pro, they seem to be on top of updates/upgrades. I think I'll give OP7T Pro a try when it gets released in the fall.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got around the night mode thing by installing a dark theme and using night mode for all my Google apps. Gives me about 85% night mode for everything.
Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk
I'm not sure if I'd like to continue using Samsung, now that the snapdragon versions can't be bootloader unlocked anymore.
I find it extremely frustrating not being able to downgrade my OS from bad updates.
I'm also very frustrated not to be able to do full nandroid backups (including EFS).
Not having any custom roms is also very disappointing.
If exynos didn't have such bad idle battery life, I'd use exynos.
At this point, I think the only thing I'm attracted to on the samsung devices is the color from their amoled.
Good or bad, I'd like to hear you snapdragon users give your opinion on how happy you are with the current samsung snapdragon devices, what would be your ideal alternative device to samsung? And why?
Also, let me know if you're a generic user or hardcore enthusiast.
I've had a Note since the Note 4...which was an absolutely amazing device in my opinion. Most of the stuff I own are Samsung products...except for my laptop. They have quality products...but every year I find it harder to justify the price tag...considering all the competition there is now...amazing devices for much less. I currently have the Note 10 now but I don't really think I'll upgrade to the next one next year. Especially with how far OnePlus devices have come among other devices. Maybe the next Pixel will be worth the upgrade. I used to root, custom roms and all that as well. But, for me it's mostly the price tag that's turning me away from Samsung.
Back in the day of ****ty OEM skins, I was a crack flasher and used TWRP & TiBU almost daily. But Samsung One UI has come a long way since Touchwiz. I actually enjoy using the stock ROM and don't feel the need to immediately wipe it with something else. It already offers 95% of what I'd fix with a custom ROM. I honestly don't miss wiping it and starting all over with each new version of a custom ROM. All of my important files are stored in the cloud or email, and I don't use any apks that are unavailable outside of the Play Store, apk mirror or other web sites, so no need to backup those. I use Adguard which does a great job, so no need to root just for adblocking. I use CCSWE App Manager to disable bloatware that I will never use. My Note 10 battery lasts all day every day, so no need to flash tweaks/mods to eek out more juice. Overall, I really have no need to root anymore. But if I absolutely *had* to root my phone today, I'd probably go with something from OnePlus. I had a P2XL which was a great phone for its time, but the new Pixels are just meh imo. Their camera system is the only thing that sets them apart. The rest of the phone is underwhelming and overpriced for what you get.
Yeah Samsung screens are amazing, and so is there hardware. Example i was trying to WI-FI Direct Joker to my mates Huawei P20 or something can't really remember exact model around 7/8 mins in it was around 40% ish percent i had a phone call i had to run, so i came back 20 mins later used WI-FI direct again we must have got up to 60% this was well over ten mins he had to shoot see what I’m trying to say yeah Huawei, Apple and all the other manufactures are good,
But you can’t beat Samsung hardware. i WI-FI directed the joker it's 2.4 gig file size from my Tab S SM-T705 LTE which is 5 years old to my Note 9 in under 3 mins also my Tab S 8.4 picks up most Wi-Fi hotspots i work in a car park i have tried few year old iPhone and Huawei witch is last year’s model its co-workers phone they pick up eff all i would have to go out of the car park to pick up the hotspots while my Samsung Tab S from 2014 picks up all the free Wi-Fi networks Apple Huawei use trash hardware Samsung hardware Rocks!
People think yeah I’m paying half of what Samsung is charging but when it comes to little things that actually matter in real world usage that's where Samsung is leaps ahead of the competition.
Samsung Snapdragon bootloaders have been locked for years. I used the Note 8 as my primary device for 2 years, and have been using the Note 10+ since release date. The battery life just keeps getting better. I haven't had a reason to root since the Note 4. Android updates don't seem to change much in recent years, they mainly just make the overall system smoother. I've never felt like a previous version was better than the recent update. Overall, I'd rather give Samsung my money to keep making quality products with premium hardware. I also use Dex daily with my Surface Pro.
I really want to go back to a Pixel but I can't do the curved screens. I'm one of those people who actually puts his phones in a case and they don't work well with curved screens.
EDIT 10/6: Pre-ordered 7 Pro. The trade in for my 12 Pro Max with Best Buy was just too good to pass up, essentially makes the phone free once I find something to use the gift card for.
EtherealRemnant said:
I really want to go back to a Pixel but I can't do the curved screens. I'm one of those people who actually puts his phones in a case and they don't work well with curved screens.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use the Zizo Bolt with my Samsung N10+'s and it works very well. Occasionally causes cut/paste problems but going to landscape fixes that. Prevents accidental touches and keeps the phone undamaged. The curved screens absolutely need cases with -slightly- higher than display right/left edge guards or they will likely get destroyed.
Do Pixel's have any curve nested apps like Samsung ie One Handed Operation plus? Otherwise empty curves are sort of wasted space. I use both sides as app launchers and to control various switches.
At first I wasn't sure about the curve display but after a couple months I started to prefer curved over flat. Much easier to keep clean and great for vids. I don't even think about them now after over 2 years. Visually it took some adjustment for me... the visual cortex adapts and integrates.
It has a curved screen. The sneak peak during I/O made that clear.
I'd go back to a Pixel if it didn't suck. P6 was a f&[email protected]( disaster, and still is.
If you don't want a curved screen you can go for Pixel 7 instead of Pro. It has a flat screen!
hemstheworthy said:
If you don't want a curved screen you can go for Pixel 7 instead of Pro. It has a flat screen!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's rumored to have a 6.2" screen which is too small.
I guess Google doesn't want my business so I'll stick with OnePlus.
EtherealRemnant said:
It's rumored to have a 6.2" screen which is too small.
I guess Google doesn't want my business so I'll stick with OnePlus.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
One Plus seems to be putting out some good models. Google is more screwed up than Samsung and Sammy's pretty screwed up nowadays.
blackhawk said:
One Plus seems to be putting out some good models. Google is more screwed up than Samsung and Sammy's pretty screwed up nowadays.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah but OnePlus keeps screwing up the software and there isn't even an MSM Tool for the 10 Pro so if you brick it, which seems to be way too easy to do on OnePlus devices (I have done it multiple times on my 9 despite doing everything right when trying to flash a custom ROM and would have been in a situation if the MSM Tool wasn't available), you are screwed.
Additionally, they have been throttling CPU performance. My Geekbench single core score on the latest OOS 12 is around 800 which makes my 888 slower than the 865. They changed the way they do the throttle as well, it can no longer be disabled with a Magisk tweak. OnePlus' answer to all of us who are complaining about how unresponsive the browser and other operations can be? Toggle high performance mode to force the phone to use high clocks all the time, even when idle, at the cost of much higher power consumption and heat than if they just left the processor alone to begin with. They haven't released OOS12 kernel source that's usable either so no custom kernel around to fix it unless you flash to a custom ROM.
So yeah, I feel like I'm being forced to go back to iOS. At least Apple listens to feedback and fixes bugs, OnePlus doesn't even seem to care about that anymore, and Apple doesn't throttle their SoCs, has prompt updates (OnePlus has been giving India updates first and has been leaving EU and global a month behind and we were already multiple months behind China), and has incredible battery life without having to disable basically every premium feature in the phone.
And yeah, Samsung is a no go for me since the Note 5. Swore that would be my last Samsung and as long as they encrypt the bootloader on Snapdragon variants, I will stick to that.
I guess I better start saving for that 14 Pro Max......
EtherealRemnant said:
Yeah but OnePlus keeps screwing up the software and there isn't even an MSM Tool for the 10 Pro so if you brick it, which seems to be way too easy to do on OnePlus devices (I have done it multiple times on my 9 despite doing everything right when trying to flash a custom ROM and would have been in a situation if the MSM Tool wasn't available), you are screwed.
Additionally, they have been throttling CPU performance. My Geekbench single core score on the latest OOS 12 is around 800 which makes my 888 slower than the 865. They changed the way they do the throttle as well, it can no longer be disabled with a Magisk tweak. OnePlus' answer to all of us who are complaining about how unresponsive the browser and other operations can be? Toggle high performance mode to force the phone to use high clocks all the time, even when idle, at the cost of much higher power consumption and heat than if they just left the processor alone to begin with. They haven't released OOS12 kernel source that's usable either so no custom kernel around to fix it unless you flash to a custom ROM.
So yeah, I feel like I'm being forced to go back to iOS. At least Apple listens to feedback and fixes bugs, OnePlus doesn't even seem to care about that anymore, and Apple doesn't throttle their SoCs, has prompt updates (OnePlus has been giving India updates first and has been leaving EU and global a month behind and we were already multiple months behind China), and has incredible battery life without having to disable basically every premium feature in the phone.
And yeah, Samsung is a no go for me since the Note 5. Swore that would be my last Samsung and as long as they encrypt the bootloader on Snapdragon variants, I will stick to that.
I guess I better start saving for that 14 Pro Max......
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A sad state of ball dropping screwups when an Apple starts looking like a viable alternative.
The only flagship Samsung I would recommend is the Note 10+ N975U1. The Beast is a sublime work horse that just keeps running. New can be had loaded with Android 10, but forget trying to root this variant. It runs well stock though.
After that Samsung started going downhill, more hype than meat. If Samsung had a good new flagship it be in my hand.
Between Google Android 11/12, Samsung's no SD card and other insanities, I went with my second new N10+; twins. The one in my hand will be 3 yo this September, current load is 2 yo.
No detectable display degradation of any kind in spite of thousands of hours of use. It looks and runs like new. The only repair has been a replacement battery, due for another soon as it's heavily used. It's a dual drive 1.5tb machine that doesn't run out of ram.
It's a snappy fast phone that's still fun and fulfills its mission. I'm good for another 2-3+ years. Whatever... I'm not buying the hype or the junk.
blackhawk said:
A sad state of ball dropping screwups when an Apple starts looking like a viable alternative.
The only flagship Samsung I would recommend is the Note 10+ N975U1. The Beast is a sublime work horse that just keeps running. New can be had loaded with Android 10, but forget trying to root this variant. It runs well stock though.
After that Samsung started going downhill, more hype than meat. If Samsung had a good new flagship it be in my hand.
Between Google Android 11/12, Samsung's no SD card and other insanities, I went with my second new N10+; twins. The one in my hand will be 3 yo this September, current load is 2 yo.
No detectable display degradation of any kind in spite of thousands of hours of use. It looks and runs like new. The only repair has been a replacement battery, due for another soon as it's heavily used. It's a dual drive 1.5tb machine that doesn't run out of ram.
It's a snappy fast phone that's still fun and fulfills its mission. I'm good for another 2-3+ years. Whatever... I'm not buying the hype or the junk.
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Click to collapse
I was on iOS from 2017 until 2021. Had the 8 Plus, XS Max, and still have my 12 Pro Max lying here. The lack of customization for notifications bugs me and the annoyance of having to manually sign apps to sideload them was obnoxious but I can live without customization and sideloading if I have a device that just performs well. Apple's hardware is solid too, I didn't have a single hardware issue with any of them.
I can't bring myself to buy anything but new flagships. I would just feel like I threw money away if I went to an older device, even if it's stable. This is obviously a psychological issue, I have many of those lol, but it is what it is. The OnePlus works fine on OOS11 for the most part but again, I can't bring myself to be okay with not running Android 12. I am actually pretty annoyed with some issues with the Indian ROM I flashed on here though so I may just decide to stick with OOS11, root it, and disable the performance throttling either with a custom kernel or by the Magisk module I mentioned because I would probably be able to accept that tradeoff but I always get FOMO whenever a new update comes out.
It's good that you found something you are happy with though. I haven't been totally happy with a phone since the HTC U11 although I will say the 12 Pro Max was close and if it wasn't for the fact that my cheap MVNO doesn't have a carrier bundle on iOS which cost me 5G access, I probably would have just stuck with it. Since I held onto it though and paid in full for my 9, I have a $650 trade in value which will probably drop to $450-$500 when the 14 models drop in the fall which makes the price tag much easier to swallow.
I have some hope OnePlus may get it right with Android 13 so I'm going to see how that goes but if not, and no other viable options (has to have compatibility with all US carriers, has to have an unlockable bootloader, has to have at least a 6.4" screen that's not curved, and has to have at least 8GB of RAM), it's back to Apple.
EtherealRemnant said:
I was on iOS from 2017 until 2021. Had the 8 Plus, XS Max, and still have my 12 Pro Max lying here. The lack of customization for notifications bugs me and the annoyance of having to manually sign apps to sideload them was obnoxious but I can live without customization and sideloading if I have a device that just performs well. Apple's hardware is solid too, I didn't have a single hardware issue with any of them.
I can't bring myself to buy anything but new flagships. I would just feel like I threw money away if I went to an older device, even if it's stable. This is obviously a psychological issue, I have many of those lol, but it is what it is. The OnePlus works fine on OOS11 for the most part but again, I can't bring myself to be okay with not running Android 12. I am actually pretty annoyed with some issues with the Indian ROM I flashed on here though so I may just decide to stick with OOS11, root it, and disable the performance throttling either with a custom kernel or by the Magisk module I mentioned because I would probably be able to accept that tradeoff but I always get FOMO whenever a new update comes out.
It's good that you found something you are happy with though. I haven't been totally happy with a phone since the HTC U11 although I will say the 12 Pro Max was close and if it wasn't for the fact that my cheap MVNO doesn't have a carrier bundle on iOS which cost me 5G access, I probably would have just stuck with it. Since I held onto it though and paid in full for my 9, I have a $650 trade in value which will probably drop to $450-$500 when the 14 models drop in the fall which makes the price tag much easier to swallow.
I have some hope OnePlus may get it right with Android 13 so I'm going to see how that goes but if not, and no other viable options (has to have compatibility with all US carriers, has to have an unlockable bootloader, has to have at least a 6.4" screen that's not curved, and has to have at least 8GB of RAM), it's back to Apple.
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Android 9 may be the best. Haven't played much with the Android 10 N10+ but noticed Karma Firewall lost it's valuable logging feature due to it.
My old free copy of WPS Office works in both version as do most of my trusted overlay apps.
Android 9 and above are all reasonably secure unless you do something stupid. No malware on this 2 yo Pie load yet.
I use Poweramp as my player, just my music files alone are over 225gb.
An SD card is mandatory. I can do a full reload with no internet connection; the SD card is the data drive which is backed up redundantly. Even has all my apps as installable copies, no Playstore needed. So a factory reset isn't that big of a deal if I have to... anytime, anywhere.
Only the DCIM folder (backed up regularly to the data drive), the download folder and the installed apps go on the internal memory. No cloud anything needed or wanted other than Gmail.
So the hardware and firmware aren't my prime consideration, why should they be? It was a step learning curve to optimize these devices. Them fulfilling their mission is my primary consideration. I'm an Android pragmatist, I got out of the Samsung/ Android hype loop over 6 years ago. If not proven good, I'm not using it.
Got lucky with the N10+... always wanted a Note.
Firmware upgrades and updates (apps as well) can and do break things. No need to constantly be chasing the loose ends they create, so I don't.
Pretty much solid play time... that's the plan
Pro version will have a curve screen ... that is a problem with most manufacturer now
i am not a fan of curve screen too.. i went to get p6 and it is ok at first then it has bugs soon after .. another pain is for countries which is not officially sold, it wont be able to use VoLTE and VoWiFi. Need to root and modify the xml ... ah well cant say much about that since it is not official sold.
Seems like OP also is not so great now since they are under OPPO now and Sammy is just too expensive now with more or less not so exiting tech.
Other china phones? that is another story
blackhawk said:
Android 9 may be the best. Haven't played much with the Android 10 N10+ but noticed Karma Firewall lost it's valuable logging feature due to it.
My old free copy of WPS Office works in both version as do most of my trusted overlay apps.
Android 9 and above are all reasonably secure unless you do something stupid. No malware on this 2 yo Pie load yet.
I use Poweramp as my player, just my music files alone are over 225gb.
An SD card is mandatory. I can do a full reload with no internet connection; the SD card is the data drive which is backed up redundantly. Even has all my apps as installable copies, no Playstore needed. So a factory reset isn't that big of a deal if I have to... anytime, anywhere.
Only the DCIM folder (backed up regularly to the data drive), the download folder and the installed apps go on the internal memory. No cloud anything needed or wanted other than Gmail.
So the hardware and firmware aren't my prime consideration, why should they be? It was a step learning curve to optimize these devices. Them fulfilling their mission is my primary consideration. I'm an Android pragmatist, I got out of the Samsung/ Android hype loop over 6 years ago. If not proven good, I'm not using it.
Got lucky with the N10+... always wanted a Note.
Firmware upgrades and updates (apps as well) can and do break things. No need to constantly be chasing the loose ends they create, so I don't.
Pretty much solid play time... that's the plan
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Click to collapse
Yeah I went back to OOS11 last night and I'm going to stick with it for a bit. It seems to work pretty well although I'm annoyed at the discovery that the module that was posted to alter the CPU throttling doesn't actually seem to work fully even on OOS 11.2.10.10. I don't want to go any older than that though so I guess it is what it is at this point. Games definitely are smoother at least. Still not as smooth a iOS though...
I wouldn't mind having an SD card again. I have gotten used to not having one but it does get annoying having to back up my OnePlus backups to the PC when I have to factory reset and then move them back. In the time it took to copy from the PC back to the phone last night, I was able to floss and brush my teeth. When I got back to the computer, the bar was at the very end.
This phone will work for now on OOS11. I really hope that OnePlus listens with OOS13 because I really don't want to buy another phone but being stuck on Android 11 isn't going to be enough for me.
cruzzmz said:
Pro version will have a curve screen ... that is a problem with most manufacturer now
i am not a fan of curve screen too.. i went to get p6 and it is ok at first then it has bugs soon after .. another pain is for countries which is not officially sold, it wont be able to use VoLTE and VoWiFi. Need to root and modify the xml ... ah well cant say much about that since it is not official sold.
Seems like OP also is not so great now since they are under OPPO now and Sammy is just too expensive now with more or less not so exiting tech.
Other china phones? that is another story
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Yeah it's not a great situation for the Android ecosystem as a whole right now really. I may just suck it up and get a 7 Pro. I really don't want to go back to iOS. I have an iPad, that's enough iOS for me.
EtherealRemnant said:
Yeah I went back to OOS11 last night and I'm going to stick with it for a bit. It seems to work pretty well although I'm annoyed at the discovery that the module that was posted to alter the CPU throttling doesn't actually seem to work fully even on OOS 11.2.10.10. I don't want to go any older than that though so I guess it is what it is at this point. Games definitely are smoother at least. Still not as smooth a iOS though...
I wouldn't mind having an SD card again. I have gotten used to not having one but it does get annoying having to back up my OnePlus backups to the PC when I have to factory reset and then move them back. In the time it took to copy from the PC back to the phone last night, I was able to floss and brush my teeth. When I got back to the computer, the bar was at the very end.
This phone will work for now on OOS11. I really hope that OnePlus listens with OOS13 because I really don't want to buy another phone but being stuck on Android 11 isn't going to be enough for me.
Yeah it's not a great situation for the Android ecosystem as a whole right now really. I may just suck it up and get a 7 Pro. I really don't want to go back to iOS. I have an iPad, that's enough iOS for me.
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This is why I committed to using the N10+'s for likely another 2-3+ years by buying a second new running on Android 10. Both will likely never be upgraded beyond 10.
Not for everyone but I absolutely wuv this Note. At this point it's optimized very well and is just a gorgeous beast of a work horse. Using a SD card as the data drive adds a layer of protection and redundantly to the device. With a mobo failure or a system crash the data drive will likely be untouched.
So now the processors are too fast to be practical so they throttle them?
Even though the N10+ doesn't have the thinner cpu chipset form factor or the fastest memory it runs almost as fast as the S22U in normal usage.
With the N9 the lag vs N10+/N20U/N22U is quite noticeable. The S22U has a huge battery and less SOT than the N10+. Weights a full display cracking ounce more too.
For what?
If you listen to all the hype the latest Androids sound wonderful... until you think it through and realize what is important for your device to fulfill its mission. That's why a well designed/built 3 yo model running on 2.5 yo firmware can still effectively compete with the newest phones.
blackhawk said:
This is why I committed to using the N10+'s for likely another 2-3+ years by buying a second new running on Android 10. Both will likely never be upgraded beyond 10.
Not for everyone but I absolutely wuv this Note. At this point it's optimized very well and is just a gorgeous beast of a work horse. Using a SD card as the data drive adds a layer of protection and redundantly to the device. With a mobo failure or a system crash the data drive will likely be untouched.
So now the processors are too fast to be practical so they throttle them?
Even though the N10+ doesn't have the thinner cpu chipset form factor or the fastest memory it runs almost as fast as the S22U in normal usage.
With the N9 the lag vs N10+/N20U/N22U is quite noticeable. The S22U has a huge battery and less SOT than the N10+. Weights a full display cracking ounce more too.
For what?
If you listen to all the hype the latest Androids sound wonderful... until you think it through and realize what is important for your device to fulfill its mission. That's why a well designed/built 3 yo model running on 2.5 yo firmware can still effectively compete with the newest phones.
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Click to collapse
The annoying thing about the throttling is that it's not necessary. I have used a custom ROM on here and they don't have any of the throttling and it's no problem. Sure, the device gets a bit warmer under load, but it's not dangerously hot, we are talking like 42-48C, well within all normal tolerances. People ***** about their devices being warm and everyone suffers for it. Unfortunately every custom ROM I have tried has issues ranging from a stuttering UI to broken NFC and the fingerprint reader being off center so after the last attempt flashing a custom ROM resulted in a brick, I just went back to OOS and stayed there. Maybe it is time to try again though, I will run OOS11 for a few days and see if I can get used to it.
Honestly I really like my Pixel 3 XL, it's just too slow and lacking in RAM for me to make it my daily driver. The memory is more the issue than the Snapdragon 845 honestly.
P3XL was a great phone, i used it until it went dead last year. Then i went for p6 in hope for a better support and features as promised but then again ...
anyway p6 suffers from bugs since first update and i think still until now it has not been sort out yet. The thing i like about pixel is you can still flash it via fastboot and the image it officially available in the support page.
Just that if the country is not an official country that sell pixel then you will be stuck with no VoLTE and VoWiFi and that is a hassle
EtherealRemnant said:
It's rumored to have a 6.2" screen which is too small.
I guess Google doesn't want my business so I'll stick with OnePlus.
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After Carl Pei left Oneplus started going down and now they are one of the worst companies under Oppo and the phone OS, design, and specs are not that good!
hemstheworthy said:
After Carl Pei left Oneplus started going down and now they are one of the worst companies under Oppo and the phone OS, design, and specs are not that good!
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My OnePlus 9 has better specs across the board than the Pixel 6 besides the cameras. OOS12 is terrible but I don't mind OOS11 so if OnePlus goes back to their roots with OOS13 like they are promising, I may stick around, and besides, the custom ROMs for this device are pretty good so I can just as easily just stick to those.
Qualcomm > Samsung and I don't see that changing with the 7 series.
EtherealRemnant said:
I really want to go back to a Pixel but I can't do the curved screens. I'm one of those people who actually puts his phones in a case and they don't work well with curved screens.
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I think the non-pro Pixels are a better value anyways, seeming as this launch won't be too different to the Pixel 6s apart from minor upgrades like a new SoC with moderate performance increase.
razercortex said:
I think the non-pro Pixels are a better value anyways, seeming as this launch won't be too different to the Pixel 6s apart from minor upgrades like a new SoC with moderate performance increase.
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I can't go from a 6.55" screen to a 6.2" screen though. Honestly I would rather have a 6.7"-6.10" screen. I could go from 6.55 to 6.4 but with them shrinking the screen size on the 7, it's a nonstarter.