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iOcean G7 review

*Moved from different thread - this suits better*
Hello everyone,
just made this review about the iOcean G7 a while ago. I cannot post any links or videos yet so I made a small site, for the single purpose it looks a bit better and I can post the photo's and video I made. chinahardware.info/?page_id=9
I left out all the Antutu benchmark stuff, there is already plenty of that to be found. I hope someone finds it informative
Contents
Intro & Specifications.
Screen/Display.
Camera.
Sound.
Overall use & Connectivity.
Conclusion.
Intro & Specifications
Welcome to this iOcean G7 review
The G7 is not the first phone of the Chinese iOcean company but definitely one with a new design. If you are not familiar with the iOcean company you can look up their website iocean.cc or go to their Facebook page. The phone that had put iOcean in the spotlights was the X7 Youth. It has (still) good specifications with a surprisingly low price, making it a very tempting choice. After the X7 Youth there were more ‘adult’ versions as the Turbo, Plus and Elite, all with different sets of specifications and prices. One thing remained: the design. All the X7 models are the same except for their internal hardware components. With the G7 the designers at iOcean made daring step. They slightly changed the design but more obvious: they changed the size of the phone. Where all X7 versions were enjoying a neat 5 inch FULL-HD display, the G7 has a gigantic screen size of 6.44 inch, technically making it a phablet (phone/tablet).
This devices comes with the latest of the MediaTek processors: the MT6592, an octacore processor with the Mali 450 GPU to support it with graphical applications.
My personal questions were if I would be enjoying carrying this colossal phone around and if the GPS-problems with the MediaTek MT6592 would finally come to an end.
Specifications:
General
OS Android 4.2.2
Chipset Octacore Mediatek
CPU 1.7Ghz MT6592
GPU Mali-450 700Mhz
RAM 2GB
Battery 3500mAh
Two Camera’s:
Rear camera 13 mega-pixel
Features F2.0 aperture
LED flash Yes
Video [email protected]
Front camera 5-mega-pixel
Memory
Internal 16GB
SD card Yes: support up to 32GB
Network support
Dual-sim Yes
WCDMA 2100MHz/900MHz
GSM 850/900/1800/1900MHz
Body
Dimensions (mm) 175 x 90.5 x 8.9mm
Weight (g) 205 grams
Colors Black and White (and perhaps a red one?)
Screen/Display
Let’s start with what is most obvious about the device when you see it: the enormous display. With a 6.44 inch display the G7 is one of the biggest devices I ever worked with. It is quite a bit bigger than the Samsung Galaxy Note 3.
For the technicians amongst you: the devices comes with a Retina LTPS display and is an OGS, which stands for One Glass Solution. So the screen will be thin with good viewing angles. Since a large amount of the surface of the phone is consisting out of glass, I am glad they processed the screen with laminated glass, meaning it consists of two or more layers of glass and bonding interlayers before fused together though autoclave or chemically.
The above shows us that the display is big, thin, highly scratch-resistant and with the Retina LTPS it also means the display is bright and vivid. When the screen is on full brightness it is very useable in light areas and outside. I used it for a couple of days now and even on these sunny days I could easily read the screen.
This is supported with a stunning 1920×1080 resolution, granting the screen 342 pixels-per-inch. I used the iOcean X7 with 440 pixels-per-inch and I could see some difference but you would have to look closely and search for it. 342 PPI is still very impressive for a screen size this big and reading text is a real charm on this device. Giving the device a higher resolution screen would not benefit the price and the performance of the G7 and I personally think this was the right decision.
In the box I also found a screen protector which I applied directly but since the layered protection of the screen itself I think this is a personal choice.
Another bonus is the fact that you can operate the device wearing gloves or with wet hands. I found out these few days that the display is highly sensitive and I do no longer need my touch screen gloves in the winter which is a real big plus.
Camera
The camera of the G7 is even being used by iOcean to take photos of the new X8 model, which is coming up halfway in April, for their Facebook page. If the company itself is confident enough about the quality is has to say something, right? The G7 enjoys a 13 mega-pixel rear camera which out-of-the-box shoots at 9.5 mega-pixel. This is probably done to save memory and to quicken up the burst-shoot function. At 9.5 MP all photos will be more than sufficient for most uses: Facebook, Twitter, emailing them to friends/family, etc. Switching to 13 MP decreases the field of view as well a bit of speed in burst-mode but it is still very fast and it is barely noticeable. The front camera is 5 mega-pixel and can be used for conference and video calling or to make the much loved selfie. A trend is to not only increase the mega-pixels of the phone but also the aperture of the lens, meaning more light can travel inside which tends to produce better pictures.
I shot some pictures with the G7 myself and I can tell you they are of very good quality. I used different kind of settings; all photos taken inside were under medium-light conditions and outside it is clearly a sunny day. (They are shown on the website.)
One of the things I like to do with my phone is to watch videos on YouTube, mostly with other people. The low quality of the sound and especially the low maximum volume most of the other Chinese phone suffer from sometimes takes the fun away in doing that but with the G7 that will not be the case. The sound can be set to a very loud level while maintaining good quality with no distortion.
Now, something pleasant happened when I laid the phone on its back while playing music: sound actually got better! Thanks to a very smart design feature the G7 device does not fully touch the surface and thereby covering up the speaker grill. A small tab, looking a bit like a stub of the speaker grill, is attached so room is left between the surface and the device hence the sound waves can move freely. It gives a powerful and full sound which I have not heard with many devices. One small point could be that it makes the phone wiggle a bit when lain down but I highly doubt that would bother anyone.
Overall use & Connectivity
The biggest question for me was whether the G7 would fit in my pocket but even with the flip case it fits. Though it is completely understandable when someone would go for the somewhat smaller X7 or better the X8 in April. This is definitely not a one-handed device and both hands are needed to type. It is very useable for watch movies, series, YouTube and the like as reading and typing text. I am a forced user of the public transport every day and I use that time to read rapports for work, etc. Still not as comfortable as a good physical keyboard, on the 6.44 inch screen it is now also workable to edit and type text.
The overall build quality is very good with no plastic-squeaks, a strongly fit back cover and pretty narrow bezels. The only real point of criticism is that the three android control buttons on the chin of the phone do not lit up so in the dark. This may provide an issue when not completely familiar with the device.
The device supports all normal connectivity frequencies used in the West: for Wi-Fi: 802.11 a/b/g/n for both 2.4G and 5G. For mobile internet: HSPA+ 900Mhz/2100Mhz WCDMA.
GPS
The GPS has been a problem with MediaTek devices since a long time and let me happily start by saying that the iOcean G7 gave me a GPS fix in 3 minutes. This was indoors without any connectivity and updated satellite positions. Outside the same set-up gave me a fix in about 40 seconds. Compared to more expensive and well-known mobile phones MediaTek will always lose the battle but for the average Chinese branded mobile phone user this will be a pretty welcome result.
Conclusion
The iOcean G7 is one of the biggest Chinese phones I have ever handled but also one of the better built and designed. The overall quality of the phone is very good, the camera shoots very worthy photos, the sound capabilities are amazing, playing most games is absolutely fun (no stuttering), display quality is very good at least to say, making the G7 a very enjoyable device for everyday use. Considering all this, the price is very reasonable. If you are looking for an affordable mobile phone with a big display, this is probably the one.
A good functioning GPS and a size that still fits my pocket: my questions are answered, how about yours? Please feel free to post comments or send me a message if you have any more questions.
You can also send me an e-mail: [email protected]
Or look up more information on the official iOcean Facebookpage! Please give them some support and click the ‘like’ button.
chinahardware.info/?page_id=9 for the photo's

I am enjoying the use of the iocean G7. It maybe gigantic but it is not heavy.
Battery life is really good. For light use, you can get up to 4 days. For heavy use, you can get at least 2 days.

Does iocean use a "skinned" version of Android like sense or miui?
sent from Carina Nebula with my Nexus 5 inter dimensional cruiser...

Ltdrev said:
Does iocean use a "skinned" version of Android like sense or miui?
sent from Carina Nebula with my Nexus 5 inter dimensional cruiser...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its Android 4.2.2, I have not played with HTC or Miui but it feel like the standard Android. It came with Google Play Store and all the other apps. Don't think I see any Chinese apps.
It actually came rooted as well.

Ysabelkid said:
I am enjoying the use of the iocean G7. It maybe gigantic but it is not heavy.
Battery life is really good. For light use, you can get up to 4 days. For heavy use, you can get at least 2 days.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello,
My Iocean G7 battery lasts about 1 day (wifi and bluetooth always on).
I didn't find how to install CWM on it so I could do a wipe batterie's data.
Does someone has a CWM for Iocean G7 ?
Thanks

Yes a bit
Ltdrev said:
Does iocean use a "skinned" version of Android like sense or miui?
sent from Carina Nebula with my Nexus 5 inter dimensional cruiser...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had no idea but I did a comparison for you. iOcean did use some sort of theme (not a entire skin) for their Android version but you can switch back to the standard Android look with 2 clicks (icon called Theme) does that.
I am using Themer now but in the video review on my website (chinahardware.info) you can still see the iOcean theme.
Does that answer your question?

Ysabelkid said:
Its Android 4.2.2, I have not played with HTC or Miui but it feel like the standard Android. It came with Google Play Store and all the other apps. Don't think I see any Chinese apps.
It actually came rooted as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mine came with a small theme (mostly the icons were different) but I could switch back any moment.
Yours came rooted? Where did you buy your iOcean G7?

Danacy said:
Mine came with a small theme (mostly the icons were different) but I could switch back any moment.
Yours came rooted? Where did you buy your iOcean G7?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In Settings, under Device Administration, I got Superuser which I turn it on.
I bought my G7 from 1949deal - first time buying from them. Order on Thursday and shipped by DHL and arrived on Monday. I bought the brown case which I think is useless. Cannot find the slip-in case on your video.
I don't use Facebook/bluetooth and have turn off the gesture - thats why I think the battery life last so long.

22
Ysabelkid said:
In Settings, under Device Administration, I got Superuser which I turn it on.
I bought my G7 from 1949deal - first time buying from them. Order on Thursday and shipped by DHL and arrived on Monday. I bought the brown case which I think is useless. Cannot find the slip-in case on your video.
I don't use Facebook/bluetooth and have turn off the gesture - thats why I think the battery life last so long.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You mean the orange case? Try Aliexpress.com It's a sideways flip-cover (bad quality btw).
Cannot find the Superuser setting you mentioned but I thought that will only appear when you root te phone, right?

How is the battery life on the phone? Better than other Android phones or just pretty similar?

Danacy said:
You mean the orange case? Try Aliexpress.com It's a sideways flip-cover (bad quality btw).
Cannot find the Superuser setting you mentioned but I thought that will only appear when you root te phone, right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I bought the orange case - its rubbish.
This guy has a slip case - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXMGeWo0W8Q which is like one of those for spectacles.
Not sure if it is 1949deal that rooted the phone before sending out. I learnt of it from the guy in the above video which is why I bought from the same seller as he did. He mentioned about it here - http://mtkforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=559&p=1929
---------- Post added at 11:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:07 PM ----------
nismofan25 said:
How is the battery life on the phone? Better than other Android phones or just pretty similar?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Battery life depends on how you use it. It has a 3500 mAh battery - huge.
I don't use Facebook or bluetooth or push notification for my GMail. I use Whatsapp, Line, SMS and calls and some surfing.
For light use, I can get more than 3 day. For heavy use, I can get at least 2 days.

I already enjoying the use of the iocean G7. I think its gigantic its not heavy . Battery life is so good. For light use, you can get up to 4 days. For heavy use, you can get at least 2 days. you also use it enjoy it .........................................

Michael Hill said:
I already enjoying the use of the iocean G7. I think its gigantic its not heavy . Battery life is so good. For light use, you can get up to 4 days. For heavy use, you can get at least 2 days. you also use it enjoy it .........................................
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you tell me if the led flash is powerful like Samsung ones I had a few chinese phones but the flash led is weak.
Thanks

cyberbit said:
Can you tell me if the led flash is powerful like Samsung ones I had a few chinese phones but the flash led is weak.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The led flash is strong - red light for Whatsapp and green for Line.
Camera is great - people were impress with it when I took photos in a recent vacation.

good day how to root iocean g7 please help.

Bluetooth
The bluetooth is horrible.
There is lag with the headphone bluetooth, sometimes does not pair with bluetooth on the car.
In others features this phone is really good.
I hope that in the next firmware the iocean improve the bluetooth.

G7 flash and recovery
Hey guys,
I am also a proud owner of my G7... I certainly do love it, at the moment I think I have to flash it to a more recent rom since it came with a 4.2.2.
I want to flash to latest but I dont have a custom recovery installed. Will the inbuilt recovery be fine enough?
I am guessing you guys have an idea of what the way to get a recovery and flash it actually... and I use linux with adb and fastboot installed and it can see my device too although I could get a windows computer is necessary.
Thanks

Recovery
xdadeem said:
Hey guys,
I am also a proud owner of my G7... I certainly do love it, at the moment I think I have to flash it to a more recent rom since it came with a 4.2.2.
I want to flash to latest but I dont have a custom recovery installed. Will the inbuilt recovery be fine enough?
I am guessing you guys have an idea of what the way to get a recovery and flash it actually... and I use linux with adb and fastboot installed and it can see my device too although I could get a windows computer is necessary.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
MIUI is always a good choice
http://www.needrom.com/download/miui-by-miuipro-ru-9/
FunTouch OS was also very good
http://www.needrom.com/download/g7-funtouch-os/
To install:
Step 1: From the links above: download the ROM you want and put it on a SD-card. Not in a folder but in the root of the SD-card. Put SD-card in phone
Step 2: Shut down your G7. Not restart but really shut down. Then:
– Power button + volume button up, to enter the recovery mode. (First hold volume up and then press power button and keep volume button pressed until you see the recovery menu)
– Wipe Data / Factory Reset -> delete all user data (use volume buttons to select)
– Wipe Cache Partition -> Wipe cache
Step 3: Return to recovery main interface Install zip from sdcard -> choose zip from sdcard -> Select your ROM
Step 4: Brush complete, restart the phone Patience required – first boot takes a while

trying to decide between p8 max and Letv Le max x900?

hello
I'm trying to decide which large screened phone to purchase
Huawei P8 max
Letv le max x900
the p8 max has a bigger screen but I am not sure if the letv has a better screen?
also I am not concerned about the size or the 4g connectivity, I wish to know which phone is better with regard to snappiness launching apps and 'multitasking'
which phone has a better sense of 'future proofing' as much as one could say future proofing...
and which phone is just better phone in other aspects?
I would like to hear your opinions please
oh forgot to mention does anyone know which one has a better loudspeaker, I like to listen to music with the loudspeaker (the one at the bottom)
thank you very much!
- Emmanuel

emmanuelw said:
hello
I'm trying to decide which large screened phone to purchase
Huawei P8 max
Letv le max x900
the p8 max has a bigger screen but I am not sure if the letv has a better screen?
also I am not concerned about the size or the 4g connectivity, I wish to know which phone is better with regard to snappiness launching apps and 'multitasking'
which phone has a better sense of 'future proofing' as much as one could say future proofing...
and which phone is just better phone in other aspects?
I would like to hear your opinions please
oh forgot to mention does anyone know which one has a better loudspeaker, I like to listen to music with the loudspeaker (the one at the bottom)
thank you very much!
- Emmanuel
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Be patient & buy the LeMax Pro; build-wise it's quite similar to the x900, but it's using the SD820 cpu which is an entirely different class compared to the overheating SD810.

Listen to adwinp!
Wait for the Le Max Pro, before deciding.
I have the Le Max and P8Max and Mate 8 (Mate 8 is NOT worth the upgrade (IMHO) from the 7/S or P8Max and mine will be sold in the next couple days)
If specs are what you're looking for Le Max wins on paper, if you can't wait for the Le Max Pro.
If camera is the selling point, P8max has a brilliant camera (IMHO better than the mate 8 in low light and auto focus mode is faster) and its better (IMHO) than the Le Max which has a decent camera, which struggles with auto focus, and low light. Don't be fooled by 21MP vs 13MP...or ultra pixel...It sounds good but its not.
If connectivity is your thing...the LeMax will connect to 5g Wifi, the P8Max struggles and 9/10 times won't.
Speakers, P8Max, cleaner sound at high volumes.
Overall speed, about the same really. Where the P8Max can freeze during gaming its few and far between and depends on the gaming...
If custom ROMs are your thing, Le Max has the better support community and it seems to be growing.
If screen size is your thing, its tough to say. Tied. While the 2k screen is nice on the Le Max, the p8max has a brilliant 6.8" screen
If storage is your thing, P8Max Simple. While 128GB is nice on the Le Max. That's it that's all. But even better than that is the 64GB and the ability to add a 200GB sd card. I have a 200GB card in my 703L and their are no issues.
If security is your thing, They are both Chinese phones so while the Le Max and Le Max pro have fingerprint
If build quality is your thing, both quality builds, but the edge goes to the P8Max, its cleaner and well built.
If future support is your thing, Le Max. It has the community support behind it.
I'll say this. While I have been harsh on the P8Max, I would not part with this phone. The Le Max already has me wanting the Le Max pro. Huawei has the screen size right and a 2k screen with 6GB, Mali 880 MP GPU, Kirin 8+1 follow up is the hope and dream... the P8Max screen is just perfect in size. I just prefer it to all others, as I read a ton for work.
The Le Max Pro is going to be a monster of a phone. So if you can wait for that, and are leaning towards the Le Max. Wait.
At the end of it all, you cannot go wrong with what you are picking, its your call, just understand that all phones have their pros and cons. These two are no different.
Good luck.
Cheers.

Excellent pertinent comparison, @TheTruthSeeker. What do you do for a living?
 @emmanuelw - I've been changing phones every ~6 months or so for the better part of my smartphone consumer years since the HTC Diamond Touch (yes I know, I'm ashamed, I was a Windows Mobile user). HTC, Sony, Huawei, ... you name it - I've owned most flagships.
Here's my experience with the device so far:
1: really good all-around build quality - metal + glass. Neither scratch easily (I do not use a phone case or screen protector).
2: huge screen - I wanted to see whether this would blur the line between a smartphone & tablet, as I've been using the latter for most of my multimedia needs (video, gaming).
The device sports one of the best screen-to-body ratios I've seen - one of the reasons I stopped liking HTCs after the original One/m7.
Anyway, watching, playing, reading feels really nice on such a huge screen & I've been reaching less & less for my tablet as it is. Doesn't seem to be too much of a battery sucker at low brightnesses but you feel the drain at higher brightness levels. I'm a 5ft9" guy & usually use the device with 2 hands; 6.8" is a bit too big - 6.2"-6.3" seems to be the sweet spot for me.
3: GPS - gets a fix fast & is usually reliable. Never really had an issue with it.
4: WIFI - as mentioned, won't connect to 5GHz, but 2.4GHz is OK, as are the speeds. No dropouts & doesn't take its toll on the battery. Range capture is OK, nothing to write home about.
5: Audio - one of the low points - if you have good earphones or headphones, the built-in DAC might make up for the crappy device audio. Speaker audio is downright horrible by today's standards.
Best I've experienced are of course HTC, & Sony.
6: Storage - I have the 64Gb + external 128Gb microsd Samsung EVO+. I am installing games with huge space requirements (Final Fantasy, emulators & their ISOs), lots of downloads, lots of audio, & not once have I been nagged for space running low. Storage speed is nothing special, definitely not Samsung-fast.
7: Bluetooth - drops out once in a while, but I rarely really use it.
8: 3G/4G - usually stays connected to 4G in urban areas, but sometime stuggles with keeping a connection where other phones still have connectivity.
9: Camera - quality is OK with decent lighting, but struggles in low light - definitely worse than the LG G4.
10: Touch responsiveness - OK, but not great.
11: Battery life - as long as you're not running on high brighness, it really does offer great battery life.
Barely comes close to 2 days of heavy usage, despite what Huawei advertised.
11: software-wise - gets some updates once every month or so, but even at the dawn of Android N, still didn't receive the Marshmallow update.
Virtually zero community support due to spotty GPL compliance related to the released open source components. Definitely no developer support like in the case of Sony. Zero responsiveness to queries by global support. Rooting & customization will be your only salvation.
Usability - the heavily skinned interface takes some getting used to it but nothing alternative apps can't remedy to. The phone itself is quite responsive, with support for most software features. Doesn't have NFC, but not an issue for me. Some built-in features are really useful, like the permission manager & background app monitor, but both are now a standard in android 6.0.
12: performance - you must keep in mind that the P8max is really a mid-ranger. You might encounter rare initial lags with demanding, big apps or games, but the regular mortal you will rarely feel it.
It all boils down to your needs - what are you looking for in a phone?
The snapdragon platform is mature - will provide excellent performance & compatibility, good battery life (especially on the 16nm FinFET process) & should have plenty of developer/community support. The Huawei Kirin platform is not there yet. I was hoping for changes due to advent of the Nexus 6P, but they used a SD810 instead of a Kirin.
Keep in mind that the Kirin935 in the P8max is an aging platform, but prices should drop in accordance.
Are you a power user - if yes, go for Snapdragon, or for Exynos, but I'd really go for Snapdragon. Mediatek is not there yet.
Are you a mere mortal, looking for regular performance from your phone (save for the big screen) - you can bet on any of them.
I'd really go for the LeMax Pro though, unless other manufacturers announce 6"+ devices (I'm looking forward to a Sony Ultra this year). The Kirin935 & SD810 are a thing of the past now.
Again - what are YOU looking for?

first thank you adwinp and TheTruthSeeker
I will definitely heed to your advice and be patient for now see what comes next
I am leaning more towards the LE Max as future support is important for me I don't change phones often
I also desire to have a phone with a good internal speaker sound but then I guess the new le max will have the same speaker as the older one which I understand is only mediocre in quality...
I do use the phone to play music with sheet music on the go so I look at musical notes on the screen which have to be large and listen through the speaker
at the moment I have a small nexus 4 phone so even the 6.3 inch would be an upgrade screen wise but I am not sure if the speaker on the le max is better than the one on my current nexus 4 I can't find any details on the speaker of the le max...
my main concerns are
- good sound and good LARGE screen above 6 inch
- good support updates and preparation for future (as much as possible)
- smoothness of operation the least amount of lag when launching apps and multitasking (I don't do games though)
one of you mentioned some touch problems with the screen I think, this concerns me as I have such problems in my nexus 4 and they annoy me a lot
I listened to some music on the internal speaker of my cousin's lg g4 phone and was quite impressed with the quality, do any of these phones can compare with the quality of sound of the lg g4?
what other phones are to be waiting for this year, the le max pro the maybe p9 max but is the z6 ultra going to be better than any of these for my needs?
or any other phone you know off bigger than 6 inch?
thank you again!
- Emmanuel

After my Tour to Android and P8Max I would only take a Snapdragon device if u plan to have it longer and want Updates and Roms!
I think the Sony Ultra modell this yeah will be your best choice, I will sell my P8max too if the Specc are good!

thank you Hirs_E_Fruit, why do you think the sony would be better than theLE Max? and another issue is how do we know if sony is actually going to release a z6 ultra, and last are there any other upcoming phones larger than 6 inch?

I think because Sony will sell it worldwide officially so there will be a larger base of community. Rumours suggest there will be 4 Versions of the z6, lets hope its true.
P9max but i would not recommend it anymore.

emmanuelw said:
first thank you adwinp and TheTruthSeeker
thank you again!
- Emmanuel
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
TheTruthSeeker said:
Wait for the Le Max Pro, before deciding.
Cheers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@ Truthseeker: How is the refresh/frame rate on the p8max? I heard it leaves trails, which I find odd. How are the colors/blacks and what about the sharpness (count pixels easily?) Last but not least, is the speaker of good quality? Cheers :good:
adwinp said:
Excellent pertinent comparison, @TheTruthSeeker. What do you do for a living?
@emmanuelw - I've been changing phones every ~6 months or so for the better part of my smartphone consumer years since the HTC Diamond Touch (yes I know, I'm ashamed, I was a Windows Mobile user). HTC, Sony, Huawei, ... you name it - I've owned most flagships.
Here's my experience with the device so far:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@ adwinp: How is the refresh/frame rate on the p8max? I heard it leaves trails, which I find odd. How are the colors/blacks and what about the sharpness (count pixels easily?) You're the only one who said that the speaker is horrible, strange.

adwinp said:
Excellent pertinent comparison, @TheTruthSeeker. What do you do for a living?
@emmanuelw - I've been changing phones every ~6 months or so for the better part of my smartphone consumer years since the HTC Diamond Touch (yes I know, I'm ashamed, I was a Windows Mobile user). HTC, Sony, Huawei, ... you name it - I've owned most flagships.
Here's my experience with the device so far:
1: really good all-around build quality - metal + glass. Neither scratch easily (I do not use a phone case or screen protector).
2: huge screen - I wanted to see whether this would blur the line between a smartphone & tablet, as I've been using the latter for most of my multimedia needs (video, gaming).
The device sports one of the best screen-to-body ratios I've seen - one of the reasons I stopped liking HTCs after the original One/m7.
Anyway, watching, playing, reading feels really nice on such a huge screen & I've been reaching less & less for my tablet as it is. Doesn't seem to be too much of a battery sucker at low brightnesses but you feel the drain at higher brightness levels. I'm a 5ft9" guy & usually use the device with 2 hands; 6.8" is a bit too big - 6.2"-6.3" seems to be the sweet spot for me.
3: GPS - gets a fix fast & is usually reliable. Never really had an issue with it.
4: WIFI - as mentioned, won't connect to 5GHz, but 2.4GHz is OK, as are the speeds. No dropouts & doesn't take its toll on the battery. Range capture is OK, nothing to write home about.
5: Audio - one of the low points - if you have good earphones or headphones, the built-in DAC might make up for the crappy device audio. Speaker audio is downright horrible by today's standards.
Best I've experienced are of course HTC, & Sony.
6: Storage - I have the 64Gb + external 128Gb microsd Samsung EVO+. I am installing games with huge space requirements (Final Fantasy, emulators & their ISOs), lots of downloads, lots of audio, & not once have I been nagged for space running low. Storage speed is nothing special, definitely not Samsung-fast.
7: Bluetooth - drops out once in a while, but I rarely really use it.
8: 3G/4G - usually stays connected to 4G in urban areas, but sometime stuggles with keeping a connection where other phones still have connectivity.
9: Camera - quality is OK with decent lighting, but struggles in low light - definitely worse than the LG G4.
10: Touch responsiveness - OK, but not great.
11: Battery life - as long as you're not running on high brighness, it really does offer great battery life.
Barely comes close to 2 days of heavy usage, despite what Huawei advertised.
11: software-wise - gets some updates once every month or so, but even at the dawn of Android N, still didn't receive the Marshmallow update.
Virtually zero community support due to spotty GPL compliance related to the released open source components. Definitely no developer support like in the case of Sony. Zero responsiveness to queries by global support. Rooting & customization will be your only salvation.
Usability - the heavily skinned interface takes some getting used to it but nothing alternative apps can't remedy to. The phone itself is quite responsive, with support for most software features. Doesn't have NFC, but not an issue for me. Some built-in features are really useful, like the permission manager & background app monitor, but both are now a standard in android 6.0.
12: performance - you must keep in mind that the P8max is really a mid-ranger. You might encounter rare initial lags with demanding, big apps or games, but the regular mortal you will rarely feel it.
It all boils down to your needs - what are you looking for in a phone?
The snapdragon platform is mature - will provide excellent performance & compatibility, good battery life (especially on the 16nm FinFET process) & should have plenty of developer/community support. The Huawei Kirin platform is not there yet. I was hoping for changes due to advent of the Nexus 6P, but they used a SD810 instead of a Kirin.
Keep in mind that the Kirin935 in the P8max is an aging platform, but prices should drop in accordance.
Are you a power user - if yes, go for Snapdragon, or for Exynos, but I'd really go for Snapdragon. Mediatek is not there yet.
Are you a mere mortal, looking for regular performance from your phone (save for the big screen) - you can bet on any of them.
I'd really go for the LeMax Pro though, unless other manufacturers announce 6"+ devices (I'm looking forward to a Sony Ultra this year). The Kirin935 & SD810 are a thing of the past now.
Again - what are YOU looking for?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@adwinp - Thank you for your kind words, I work in the social legal field but repair mobile devices and dab in ROM play here and there. Learning and by no means near a pro/amateur/etc.
I too swap devices regularly and have not held a flagship longer than a year since my blackberry 8800 back in the day! Way back lol.
A wealth of information in your post here, well said and done! Great post!!!
Cheers.
---------- Post added at 02:24 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:04 PM ----------
gideonMorrison said:
@ Truthseeker: How is the refresh/frame rate on the p8max? I heard it leaves trails, which I find odd. How are the colors/blacks and what about the sharpness (count pixels easily?) Last but not least, is the speaker of good quality? Cheers :good:
@gideonMorrison In all honesty, everyday use NO trails or flashing (Everyday use being texts, emails, maybe two dots, chess, checking the weather and the like) but in memory intensive games (chaos rings 2, need for speed MW, 6 guns, anomaly 2, etc) you will notice trails, screen flashing, and (when the device heats up) dreadded laaaaag. It doesn't happen all the time, but often enough to realize this is a midrange phone NOT a flagship, premium device built to dominate from Huawei.
As for the speaker, its decent. It can play at high volumes with no considerable distortion. BUT, do they have the same sound quality of say a Blackberry passport or HTC boomsound, sadly no. But this is my humble opinion. You will enjoy the speaker while on speaker phone, watching youtube videos, etc. True audiophiles will look past the specs and agree that this is a good speaker with ok sound quality.
Hope this has helped.
Cheers!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

TheTruthSeeker said:
@adwinp - Thank you for your kind words, I work in the social legal field but repair mobile devices and dab in ROM play here and there. Learning and by no means near a pro/amateur/etc.
I too swap devices regularly and have not held a flagship longer than a year since my blackberry 8800 back in the day! Way back lol.
A wealth of information in your post here, well said and done! Great post!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cheers.
---------- Post added at 02:24 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:04 PM ----------
gideonMorrison said:
@ Truthseeker: How is the refresh/frame rate on the p8max? I heard it leaves trails, which I find odd. How are the colors/blacks and what about the sharpness (count pixels easily?) Last but not least, is the speaker of good quality? Cheers :good:
@gideonMorrison In all honesty, everyday use NO trails or flashing (Everyday use being texts, emails, maybe two dots, chess, checking the weather and the like) but in memory intensive games (chaos rings 2, need for speed MW, 6 guns, anomaly 2, etc) you will notice trails, screen flashing, and (when the device heats up) dreadded laaaaag. It doesn't happen all the time, but often enough to realize this is a midrange phone NOT a flagship, premium device built to dominate from Huawei.
As for the speaker, its decent. It can play at high volumes with no considerable distortion. BUT, do they have the same sound quality of say a Blackberry passport or HTC boomsound, sadly no. But this is my humble opinion. You will enjoy the speaker while on speaker phone, watching youtube videos, etc. True audiophiles will look past the specs and agree that this is a good speaker with ok sound quality.
Hope this has helped.
Cheers!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks Truthseeker for your extensive reply :good: I remember my old Galaxy Nexus suffering from bad ghosting, which is years ago, but find it somehow hard to believe the Max has the same issue (in the year 2015, that is). Is it something a lot more phones suffer from, because it is a new-ish device and by now you'd think they won't make (old) mistakes anymore. I wonder if I would really really (while gaming/watching movies as well?) notice and be put off about it (trails/ghosting/flashing). Not entirely sure what you mean by flashing however
Good to hear about the speaker. My Alcatel Idol 3 had superb stereo speakers, but have a feeling this one isn't bad indeed.

Mi4c newb questions

Hi all.
This looks like a great community and I wanted to look for your advice.
I'm a longtime iPhone user looking for a way into Android.
I wanted a cost effective, smallish, good battery, dual sim of decent quality. The 4C looks like a good choice.
I want to know how difficult it would be to flash it to run native android the same way the Nexus phones do. I don't want all the bloatware, and since I'm buying online I want a clean install. (No malware)
Is there anything you like about MIUI that I should consider keeping it?
What results should I expect? Will everything work? No dead camera or weird glitches?
Can I do the flash on my Mac?
Any recommendations on where to source my tools?
Sorry for such a basic Q, but I haven't seen it asked in this detail.
I'd like to know what I'm getting into, but definitely want to get off iOS. It's been good but I don't want to carry two phones anymore.

brndnryn said:
Hi all.
This looks like a great community and I wanted to look for your advice.
I'm a longtime iPhone user looking for a way into Android.
I wanted a cost effective, smallish, good battery, dual sim of decent quality. The 4C looks like a good choice.
I want to know how difficult it would be to flash it to run native android the same way the Nexus phones do. I don't want all the bloatware, and since I'm buying online I want a clean install. (No malware)
Is there anything you like about MIUI that I should consider keeping it?
What results should I expect? Will everything work? No dead camera or weird glitches?
Can I do the flash on my Mac?
Any recommendations on where to source my tools?
Sorry for such a basic Q, but I haven't seen it asked in this detail.
I'd like to know what I'm getting into, but definitely want to get off iOS. It's been good but I don't want to carry two phones anymore.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Xioami MI 4c seems like a good fit for you. My iPhone-centric friend said that my phone (the Mi4c) is the Android phone he hates the least
It is very easy to flash an AOSP based ROM (what you called "Native Android") such as CyanogenMod 13 on the Mi 4c. However, it might not be necessary as there are good debloated ROMs available based on MIUI and MIUI has a lot of nice unique features. There are instructions on how to do this on each thread, but message me if you have problems.
MIUI (and ROMs based on it) has far superior camera quality than anything else available for this phone. It also has a lot of manual features (manual focus, exposure, sharpening, saturation, focus tacking, numerous filters), though its long exposure is limited to 2 seconds and focus bracketing can't be manually adjusted. However, audio performance out of the auxiliary port is much better in AOSP based ROMs (MIUI has some audio processing that messes up the audio). Keep in mind that in general the phone feels more snappy on AOSP based ROMs, but in both cases there are very little to complain about.
My recommendation is that you try the MIUI ROM from this site (it is clean, debloated, and properly translated) for a week:
https://xiaomi.eu/community/threads/6-9-8-9.34062/
then switch to CM13 (the nexus-fy version on this site) and decide for yourself which you like better.
I didn't find any bugs in these ROMs, but you'll have to read the respective threads to see if there are problems and if they have been fixed (and how to fix them if it isn't already). Luckily it's very easy to switch ROMs if you encounter problems.
All the tools necessary can be found on this site, but you might need to install "Flashify" from the play store in order to get a custom recovery on your phone if the conventional methods fail (ADB tools).
Things to keep in mind:
- The back cover is nice to touch but scratches easily, so either get a cover or keep in mind you can replace it if you have to.
- The front glass may be vulnerable (no official protected glass is disclaimed), get a tempered glass screen protector.
- The volume and power buttons are plastic
- Battery life is decent but not great (about a days usage, 5h screen on time)
- Camera is great in medium to good light, average in low light - feel free to ask samples
- Audio is great out of the port, and good from the speaker
- Display has stellar contrast, good colour, average brightness and is a bit difficult to read under direct sunlight
- Performance is generally good (there are some hiccups), but by far the best for the price
- The 16GB model is half the price of the 32GB model($110 vs $220 ), check Kimovil to get the best deal (I've used Geekbuying reliably through the years)
- Build quality is good otherwise (barring the above issues). I've used this phone brutally without a cover and it never gave me any problems.
- If size doesn't bother you too much, the Redmi Note 3 Pro is a great alternative. It costs $150, has better performance, awesome battery life, 3GB RAM, 32GB storage and a micro-SD slots. Its cons are you lose out on the camera and audio quality, and the display's contrast isn't as good (1000:1 vs 1600:1). It also gets lots more love from Xda and already have an Android 7.0 Nougat ROM.

Probably the wrong time to buy mi4c as there are better budget phones such as the Lenovo Zuk Z2, great specs for the price. Rom development is another matter though

I got the Mi4s and I'm quite impressed of it. as Mi4s and mi4c is basically the same phone (without fingerprint, mi4s case is in higher quality) I'd recommend you the smiui rom, there you can choose what bloatware/mods you want/don't want and with viper4android the sound is very nice (like on a computer or even better). Also the camera is like in original miui (for me). I get about 1.5 days of normal usage (network always on, 2 sims, whatsapp, y music, telegram, browser, google books...) with smiui rom.

Chinese Rugged phone Uhans k5000 or Nomu s10 pro?

Hello
I am New here.
Please suggest me which one is better ?
both are very similar in most of the specifications.Like a
Screen size, OS, Battery capacity, RAM, Internal Storage, microSD support, dual SIM, and others....
Camera, fingerprint, OTG, processor different.
I am looking your comment under my post.
thanks

I love the way it looks and feels in the hand, the display is decent for every day use and I’m happy with the overall performance of the device.

Nomu S10 Pro
chitra1 said:
I love the way it looks and feels in the hand, the display is decent for every day use and I’m happy with the overall performance of the device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks for your reply

Hi! Very late answer but I bought the Nomu s10 pro to be used on my Enduro motorcycle as Navigator. Way cheaper than Garmin...
I have been using this rugged phone as my daily phone for a few months and I am surprised it works so well considering its price.
Big battery and fast charge - it charges full even if I use Navigation with screen on all time and play music on Spotify while riding.(BT music to helmet) and WIFI is always on.
So far the only downside could be "only" a 720p screen - but then I dont want smaller text to read on the go (i even scaled text up in GUI) for redability
In general - rugged and does what it is designed for - mine came with Android 7.0, not sure if any updates will arrive.

What are 5 specific things you look for when buying a smartphone?

I think we have come to a point where smartphones have reached a mature phase in product design where there can only be marginal improvements in terms of performance and overall experience.
Year on year, there are marginal improvements in hardware and a lot of money is spent in marketing how the current version is an improvement over previous version. Tests are 'designed' to show the current version being 'x%' better than previous iteration, although there is hardly any noticeable difference in real life use.
Today, fortunately, the premium flagships are hardly any better than phones selling at half the price in terms of performance and overall experience. The primary or only differentiating factor is the Camera. So if you buy a $1,000 phone, it is just as good as a $500 phone in terms of performance and overall experience in day-to-day use. The other $500 is primarily for the camera! Ofcourse, there are some other benefits too that come for this premium, such as IP certification, 1 or 2 years of additional software support, etc.
With that background, what are specific things you look for when buying a smartphone today?
Here are some unique features offered by brands:
SAMSUNG​
1. Best cameras on an Android phone. If you have the budget, go for a Samsung flagship because the camera experience is best. Other brands are offering very good cameras too, but then overall Samsung leads here (Pixel is close).
2. Silent Call Recording (as of OneUI 5.0): Fortunately, this feature is still present in Samsung phones when other brands (including OnePlus, Xiaomi, etc.) have unfortunately moved on to replacing their dialers with Google Dialer.
OnePlus/ Xiaomi/ Oppo/ Vivo/ Realme/ Redmi/ iQOO​
1. Superfast charging: This is one area where Chinese brands have nailed it. The dual battery system, and charging technology that limits heating to the charger instead of the phone make this aspect an enviable feature for owners of other brands. Not sure why Samsung and other brands are not adopting similar technology.
2. Specialized cooling hardware: Specialized cooling technologies like vapour chamber, use of graphene, etc. to reduce thermal throttling is another area where they are doing exceedingly well.
3. Built-in firewall: This is one outstanding OS feature that only some brands like OnePlus, Oppo and Xiaomi (including Redmi) provide. It is not available on Vivo. Not sure about other brands.
4. Silent call recording (available as an option):
For OnePlus/ Oppo/ Realme: Install ODialer.
For iQOO/ Vivo: Enable Alternate Dialer and Contacts under Settings/ Apps
Pixel/ Nothing/ Motorola​
Stock Android experience which leaves a lot to desire.
Check out (and contribute to) the comparison of Android 13 features by brand here:
Comparing Android 13 features of different OEMs
In this post, I'm comparing the features available on Android 13 from different OEMs as of the end of 2022. Since some OEMs offer a different set of features for their budget devices, not all features available on one device will be available on...
forum.xda-developers.com

For premium smartphone
1. Stock Android
2. Decent cameras
3. Snapdragon processor
4. "Big battery" at least 5000 mAh or near
5. Build quality (metal frame)
6. Price under $1000 / 1000€ not over
For budjet smartphone
1. Stock Android
2. Decent cameras
3. Snapdragon processor
4. "Big battery" at least 5000 mAh or near
5. Price under $500 / 500€
I did not mentioned screens because i prefer LCD screen but most premium smartphones these days comes with oled screen. It's really hard to find premium high performance phone with LCD screen.

Dayuser said:
For premium smartphone
1. Stock Android
2. Decent cameras
3. Snapdragon processor
4. "Big battery" at least 5000 mAh or near
5. Build quality (metal frame)
6. Price under $1000 / 1000€ not over
For budjet smartphone
1. Stock Android
2. Decent cameras
3. Snapdragon processor
4. "Big battery" at least 5000 mAh or near
5. Price under $500 / 500€
I did not mentioned screens because i prefer LCD screen but most premium smartphones these days comes with oled screen. It's really hard to find premium high performance phone with LCD screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Stock Android is quite basic and leaves a lot to desire for. I'm talking of features, and not UI. Examples would be scrolling screenshots, screen recording, gestures for activating features (e.g. 3 finger screenshot), etc.
Snapdragon processor: why is that a must? The Mediatek Dimensity series of processors are quite capable, and so is Exynos. I don't go by standard tests and numbers shown by them. They don't reflect real-life usage, and can be manipulated.
I'm happy you didn't mention 'glass back', because without wireless charging it is a liability.
And why 'decent' cameras for a premium phone? Great camera should be the criteria since that is what you are paying a premium for.
For me, this is how they would be:
Premium Phone
1. Best cameras
2. Silent call recording
So I'll choose Samsung as this is the only brand today with the above features.
Budget Phone
1. 3.5 mm headphone jack
2. Infrared (IR) blaster
So I'll choose a Xiaomi (Redmi) phone in this category as this is the only brand offering these features.
I'm not mentioning others like display, storage, ram, etc. as pretty much all premium flagship phones offer the same hardware. Same holds true for performance and battery life.

TheMystic said:
And why 'decent' cameras for a premium phone? Great camera should be the criteria since that is what you are paying a premium for.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I mentioned "desent" in both categories because it's mainly up to user who knows what is great camera. All premium and flagship have good cameras, or at least main camera.
Snapdragon because GCam ports mainly works best on Snapdragon phones.

Dayuser said:
I mentioned "desent" in both categories because it's mainly up to user who knows what is great camera. All premium and flagship have good cameras, or at least main camera.
Snapdragon because GCam ports mainly works best on Snapdragon phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you really need GCam for a premium flagship phone? I think the stock cameras do a great job.
I see GCam as a nice solution for mid rangers that lack premium camera hardware and software processing required for excellent shots.

TheMystic said:
Do you really need GCam for a premium flagship phone? I think the stock cameras do a great job.
I see GCam as a nice solution for mid rangers that lack premium camera hardware and software processing required for excellent shots.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No not really needs but it's a choice. It's really what people like.
Let's say it this way and this works for many brands.
If you want over saturated colors and over sharpened pictures, then use stock camera. If you want more natural colors and decent sharp.. use gcam.
and sometimes stock cameras noise processing is too much.
But all these what i said is small things and most of people doesn't really care

Dayuser said:
No not really needs but it's a choice. It's really what people like.
Let's say it this way and this works for many brands.
If you want over saturated colors and over sharpened pictures, then use stock camera. If you want more natural colors and decent sharp.. use gcam.
and sometimes stock cameras noise processing is too much.
But all these what i said is small things and most of people doesn't really care
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is true that often the difference in quality isn't substantial among premium smartphone cameras, and also that the end result is subjective. The cameras on my S22U are very good, and I never felt a need for GCam.
GCam is often found to over sharpen things a bit though.
On a personal level, i prefer great shots over natural ones, as long as saturation and other aspects aren't overdone.

Expandable storage, 1tb minimum.
I demand a dual drive device. Screw Google cattle herding the masses for their self serving ends. To hell with the idea cloud as a viable alternative. Right from the pages of MS's playbook of control.
Spen.
Square display corners, blah, blah, blah.
It's a lost cause... lol, I'll be using the N10+'s/Android 9 and 10 for another 3-5 years. Zero faith in Google or Samsung to get their sorry assets back in line ever again at this point. Junkware.

blackhawk said:
Expandable storage, 1tb minimum.
I demand a dual drive device. Screw Google cattle herding the masses for their self serving ends. To hell with the idea cloud as a viable alternative. Right from the pages of MS's playbook of control.
Spen.
Square display corners, blah, blah, blah.
It's a lost cause... lol, I'll be using the N10+'s/Android 9 and 10 for another 3-5 years. Zero faith in Google or Samsung to get their sorry assets back in line ever again at this point. Junkware.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Expandable storage is something that only very few mid range devices offer. With higher internal storage and cloud services, OEMs have made it clear that it is not something they are willing to support.
A lot of investments are being made in technology and i don't want to lose out on these advancements on a personal level, as some of these features are truly incredible. But I am careful of granting permissions like camera, microphone, sms, etc. to apps and I don't use voice assistants (I'm not comfortable with the idea that something is constantly listening to me or my environment).
But it is a tradeoff, and it has to be that way. Without input, one cannot make use of technology. So everyone must part with an amount of data they are comfortable with. There should be very strong regulations where data being collected is strictly limited and some types of data must never be collected. GDPR is a welcome step in that direction, but is grossly inadequate and therefore ineffective. While it has forced companies to show a Privacy Policy message prompt, it has hardly done anything to what data is being collected, and if it is actually necessary for the product/ service being offered in return.

i always worry ONLY about 2 things when i buy a new phone :
1. can it be rooted
2. is there custom firmware (or is someone working on it)
This is about the only thing i worry about.
i will check later if i can also make a phonecall or take a picture also

contrinsan said:
i always worry ONLY about 2 things when i buy a new phone :
1. can it be rooted
2. is there custom firmware (or is someone working on it)
This is about the only thing i worry about.
i will check later if i can also make a phonecall or take a picture also
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I stopped doing that a few years back. I would rather trust an OEM software than one made by an unknown developer. Besides, some of the developers are very arrogant.
And today, there isn't really anything a rooted device can do which a non-rooted device can't. The risk/ effort is not worth any potential marginal benefit.

contrinsan said:
i always worry ONLY about 2 things when i buy a new phone :
1. can it be rooted
2. is there custom firmware (or is someone working on it)
This is about the only thing i worry about.
i will check later if i can also make a phonecall or take a picture also
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
same but i look for like famous phones among XDA developers

TheMystic said:
I stopped doing that a few years back. I would rather trust an OEM software than one made by an unknown developer. Besides, some of the developers are very arrogant.
And today, there isn't really anything a rooted device can do which a non-rooted device can't. The risk/ effort is not worth any potential marginal benefit.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well, i am running stock for 2 months now and i wish i never flashed stock android 12 because i don't find a way to go back to custom firmware but some things i really miss
- used to have phone call recording,
- adblocking without vpn or heavy battery use,
-youtube vanced working properly,
-wifi and 4g optimized
-battery use optimized and deep sleep working properly (my stock android 12 samsung s10e can run 8 up to 12 hours when i am at work, it is 12-18 hours when running CF. I can no longer survive a day at work without extra charging..
- change splashscreen, boot and shutdown logo, change whatever sound in the firmware,..
- viper sound mod for good sound experience or removing all kinds of annoying restrictions for louder music
- something i miss a lot : configuration of phone like 2 rows instead of one at the top (very uselful to have time with seconds and date on first line and all the notifications go on 2nd line)
- i also miss android auto being able to run other apps,
- i can only shutdown or restart the phone, no other options,
- i can no longer take screenshots from a payment in my banking app (and many other apps), - i can no longer decide i want 7 icons in the first line of the dropdown menu (and many, many, many, many other handy features)
these are just a couple i think about, there is also Xposed with so many handy things
Also if you want a little bit of privacy it is not possible on a phone that is stock android, it is also full with rubbish bloatware such as facebook and other spy programs that i can not remove unless when rooted.
i really see no advantage in having stock android, it makes me feel as if i don't own half of the phone

This is my list: is it bootloader unlockable?
Is it supported by lineage os and twrp?
Is it powerful enough?
If these are yes I could consider buying the device
Price under 500 €

contrinsan said:
well, i am running stock for 2 months now and i wish i never flashed stock android 12 because i don't find a way to go back to custom firmware but some things i really miss
- used to have phone call recording,
- adblocking without vpn or heavy battery use,
-youtube vanced working properly,
-wifi and 4g optimized
-battery use optimized and deep sleep working properly (my stock android 12 samsung s10e can run 8 up to 12 hours when i am at work, it is 12-18 hours when running CF. I can no longer survive a day at work without extra charging..
- change splashscreen, boot and shutdown logo, change whatever sound in the firmware,..
- viper sound mod for good sound experience or removing all kinds of annoying restrictions for louder music
- something i miss a lot : configuration of phone like 2 rows instead of one at the top (very uselful to have time with seconds and date on first line and all the notifications go on 2nd line)
- i also miss android auto being able to run other apps,
- i can only shutdown or restart the phone, no other options,
- i can no longer take screenshots from a payment in my banking app (and many other apps), - i can no longer decide i want 7 icons in the first line of the dropdown menu (and many, many, many, many other handy features)
these are just a couple i think about, there is also Xposed with so many handy things
Also if you want a little bit of privacy it is not possible on a phone that is stock android, it is also full with rubbish bloatware such as facebook and other spy programs that i can not remove unless when rooted.
i really see no advantage in having stock android, it makes me feel as if i don't own half of the phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Samsung is the only (or one of very few) OEM offering silent call recording feature today. Since Samsung flagship has (one of) the best cameras on any smartphone, this is my choice of Android for now.
2. Adblocking is possible using private DNS server (dns.adguard.com) that doesn't require VPN or drain battery.
3. Vanced YouTube (non-root) works perfectly fine on Android 13 (tested on OneUI, OOS and MIUI).
4. Viper makes a marginal difference today, especially over Bluetooth. This makes it unattractive given the efforts required to make it work today.
Many of the other stuff you mentioned are available only on custom ROMs, which I am unlikely to return to. They are non-essential and mostly 'fancy' stuff one can live without.
I use Google apps and some of their services (Photos, Drive, Gmail, YouTube, etc.) are very important for me. I have never seen any significant battery life gains with any custom ROM or tweaks as i can't uninstall Google Services.
Netguard does an excellent job of blocking unwanted apps and services from connecting to the internet.
There were essentially only a handful of things (adblocking, viper, titanium backups, ad-free YouTube) why I was rooting my devices, and pretty much all of those have proper non-root replacements today.