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Samsung Galaxy S4 review: Decent, but full of gimmicks
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I've seen Android phones get better and more powerful over the years, as Google and phone manufacturers pack devices with more and more features. There comes a time, though, when less is more. I'm afraid we've reached that time.Samsung's new Galaxy S4 smartphone is an excellent device from a hardware standpoint. Measuring 5 inches diagonally, the screen is slightly larger than that on its predecessor, the Galaxy S III. Yet the S4 is a tad lighter and smaller overall. The S4's display is also much sharper, at 441 pixels per inch compared with 272 on the S III. The S4 has one of the sharpest screens out there.
The Android operating system it runs is excellent, too, and in recent years the Google-made system has become a healthy competitor to Apple's iOS system for iPhones. Like most Android phones, the S4 comes with a suite of useful Google apps, including Gmail, YouTube, Google Maps and the voice assistant Google Now. Because Google lets device makers customize Android to suit their needs, Samsung and others have been adding their own distinguishing features.
And that's the source of the problem. Packed with bags of tricks, phones have become way too complicated for many people to use. In some cases it's because these custom features work only some of the time. In other cases, you're confronted with too many ways to do similar things.
As much as Apple can be criticized for exerting control over what goes on its iPhones, it wins on simplicity. There are no competing agendas - just Apple's.
By contrast, Android has turned into a free-for-all. For instance, the Sprint version of the S4 phone has at least four different ways to watch video - one that comes standard with Android, one added by Sprint and two added by Samsung. Some content works with one but not the others.
And to watch video on one of the Samsung apps, the one called Samsung Hub, you have to navigate through two screens trying to sell you video that I couldn't get to work on the other apps. As much as it adds to the clutter, Samsung would rather you use its service and not the standard Android one. That way, Samsung rather than Google gets revenue from video sales. Samsung Electronics Co. has its own app store, too, to rival Google's own Play store on the same device.
That doesn't mean you shouldn't consider buying the S4.
Another highly praised phone, HTC One(Review I Pictures), has a lot of clutter as well. The display on the One is slightly smaller than S4's, but it has a higher resolution. The One sounds better, too, with front-facing speakers, while the S4 has a speaker on the back. The One might be the one for you if you watch a lot of video and listen to a lot of music. But the One feels heavier and bulkier, and its battery holds less charge than the S4.
The four national wireless carriers, plus U.S. Cellular, Leap Wireless' Cricket and C Spire, will sell the S4 in the United States. Release dates vary, and some will start this week. Expect to pay $150 to $250 up front with two-year contracts (T-Mobile calls them installment plans as it markets contract-free service).
Despite my complaints with all the add-ons on the S4, a number of them show promise
Easy Mode
It's not entirely new, as the S III and the Galaxy Note 2 have it, too. But Samsung makes that option more prominent when people set up the S4 for the first time. Icons in Easy Mode are larger, so you are less likely to hit the wrong one and have to figure out how to go back. You also get fewer choices for customizing the phone and using its camera, so there's less confusion about which to pick. Easy Mode isn't as easy to use as I would have liked, though, because features and settings from the regular mode creep in now and then.
Multi Window
Again, this feature isn't entirely new, but it's the first time I noticed it. It allows you to run two apps side by side, the way you've long been able to on traditional computers. That means I can keep up with Facebook on the top half of the screen, as I send email from the bottom half about all the dumb things my friends are saying on Facebook. Unfortunately, it works with a limited number of apps. Foursquare and Instagram aren't among them. And I needed an online video tutorial to figure it out.
Air View
When you point to an email or calendar entry with your finger, you see contents pop up in a bubble. That way, you don't have to open the entry and find the back button to return to what you were doing. Samsung has this feature on the Galaxy Note 2 phone, but that's designed for use with a stylus. On the S4, you simply hover over the entry with your finger. I wish it would work with more apps. For instance, you can use it with Android's generic email app, but you can't on the one made specifically for Gmail.
All of these would benefit from being part of Android rather than an add-on from Samsung. Easy Mode would truly be easy if it were designed from the start that way rather than as something that couldn't fully separate itself from the main Android. More apps would work with Multi Window and Air View if they were standard features, not ones app makers have to adapt for one by one.
And then there are some features that got in the way
I mentioned the competing ways to watch video and buy apps.
Another is Smart Pause, which automatically pauses video when your look away from the screen. The phone's front camera detects your eyes. Smart, but the feature also pauses the video when you cover your eyes, say, to avoid a gory scene in a horror movie. It's as if the phone is forcing you to look. And there are few times my eyes are glued to video. I typically multitask and watch video while doing other things.
Smart Scroll detects the tilt of your head or the phone to automatically scroll text, such as when you're reading a long article on a Web browser. Smart, but it sometimes scrolls past what I want to read. It's difficult to move the text back without touching the screen, something Smart Scroll is supposed to eliminate. And at times, I have to keep my neck up in an uncomfortable position to stop scrolling.
With Air Gesture, you wave your hand over a sensor for such tasks as browsing a photo album or scrolling through text. I can see it being useful when you need to answer a call while driving (not that you should), but I had difficulty getting the phone to respond properly with photos and Web pages. It reminds me of automated water faucets that won't let me wash my hands no matter how much motion I make.
Fortunately, the phone comes with many of these features already turned off, and you can turn off others you don't need or want. It took me a while to figure out that the Wi-Fi connection on my phone kept mysteriously turning on by itself because of some feature called Smart Mode. So Smart Mode is now off. Group Play is a feature that lets you share music and photos with other S4 users on the same Wi-Fi network. But I don't know of any S4 users, and it doesn't work with Group Play on the S III. I couldn't uninstall the app, so I buried that in a new folder called Junk.
The S4 has plenty of other features I could dismiss. Some might like the camera's ability to erase a stray individual out of photos or to combine several images of motion into a single shot. But I'm a purist, and I'm not a fan of manipulating images. And the feature for using the phone as a TV remote control? That's what remote controls are for.
I shouldn't have to spend a lot of time customizing the phone to turn off or hide what I don't want. Many people never change the default settings. I've been using the S III as my main phone since July, and I've rarely found a need to reach into its bag of tricks. I simply want a phone that is easy to use.
The S4 can be that, but first you must figure out how to hide all its gimmicks.
aukhan said:
[I simply want a phone that is easy to use. The S4 can be that, but first you must figure out how to hide all its gimmicks.
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I have a N2 and a lot of the "gimmicks" on it have been inherited by the SGS4. I like the gimmicks and wouldn't buy a phone in the future that didn't have some of the ones I use regularly. How everyone reacts to Samsung's features is YMMV. Like you said, they can be turned off or people can flash an alternate ROM.
BarryH_GEG said:
I have a N2 and a lot of the "gimmicks" on it have been inherited by the SGS4. I like the gimmicks and wouldn't buy a phone in the future that didn't have some of the ones I use regularly. How everyone reacts to Samsung's features is YMMV. Like you said, they can be turned off or people can flash an alternate ROM.
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well honestly i feel that Custom roms are much 10X times better then stock , But what i feel is Its better to wait for Note 3 , i would rather prefer Note 3 over s4 any day :good:
so.... you're an apple fanboy?
i'd rather choose 1 way of doing things out of 8 possible choices, or 4 like in your example of the video players, than being stuck with only one choice, that WORKS even though you might like one of the 8 choices better.
running gingerbread steeldroid. for my launcher... i use ADW on my droid 3. MX player for my videos. and handcent for my texting. i simply use them by default.
lastly, i feel like this is a review meant for phandroid or android central, not XDA haha.
aukhan said:
well honestly i feel that Custom roms are much 10X times better then stock , But what i feel is Its better to wait for Note 3 , i would rather prefer Note 3 over s4 any day :good:
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Note 3 would be awesome and guess what? The same features that you call gimmicky are one of the main reasons why people love the note in combination with the Spen and the fantastic battery life. The note 2 wouldn't have been as successful if it didn't have an S pen and multiwindow. Imagine if the Note 3 comes out without an S pen and the airview and all that (believe it or not some folks call the S pen gimmicky but those of use that use it for real will find a hard time to part ways with it). Would you still get it? Probably not cause then it becomes a big phone with great battery life but nothing that makes it special or stand out.
People love criticizing Samsung for many things, plasticky, gimmicky, cartooney touchwiz ect.... But those exact same things are what make people want more of Samsung and folks don't take a second to realise it. I actually applaud Samsung for trying to innovate and bring new features to the table, features that like you said, can be turned off anytime if you want.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2
The One might be the one for you if you watch a lot of video and listen to a lot of music
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I disagree strongly here. I watch a lot of movies and listen to a lot of music on my phone, and by all accounts the Galaxy S4 is seeming that it will be the best for these.
-I may be wrong, but AMOLED seems better for darker backgrounds such as watching movies I believe due to it using less battery in such environments, and the saturation color options allow things to pop out even near the screen edge.
-The GS4 offers a slightly larger screen and thus more real estate to view videos/movies on. The HTC has better ppi, but I think it goes without saying that's not going to be as noticeable as the smaller screen, if it can be noticed at all.
-Ear/head phones, wired and wireless, are always better than speakers for listening to movies and music. The speakers from the HTC produce no bass, and as a simple matter of physics, sound traveling through the air isn't going to compare to sound going by wire straight into your ears. More importantly, you can listen to music and movies without bothering other people. As far as headphone quality goes, I recall that both phones were either equal or that the GS4 produced better quality, but I'm not sure.
Lastly, I plan on carrying around a lot of podcasts, music, and videos in storage for when my connection is bad or I have no connection at all, such as being out of network range or the towers being down/needing repair or upgrades. The Galaxy S4 offers expandable storage for all media needs, a perk not offered in the HTC One. I realize this is only one part of your review I'm picking at but I just felt it was worth noting that improved speakers don't necessitate a device is better for music/movies.
barondebxl;. I actually applaud Samsung for trying to innovate and bring new features to the table said:
I totally agree with you , Its a new innovation , let me tell this , I was a real big fan of Blackberry and when i went to purchase this BB9780 Bold the same store person asked me for the requirements what specifically you are looking for said productivity (office Use) , Multimedia , Social networking , he said we had a new launched device Samsung Galaxy note I was not a real big fan of Samsung , Checked the phone came back home said give me a weekend time ill get back , Checked reviews out of Box videos Tips tricks and was amazed everything was outstanding , and now being a proud owner with Custom Rom and hacks and Mods its really difficult to live without it epically the gigantic Display , i am sure the next update will have almost all the features what s4 has but my personal opinion is Note 3 will be worth a wait :good:
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fade2green514 said:
so.... you're an apple fanboy?
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Hard Core Hatter of Apple Iphone but huge fan Macbook Air
All I got from this nonsense post is that you're afraid of gory movies. You big baby.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using Tapatalk 2
Bigjim1488 said:
All I got from this nonsense post is that you're afraid of gory movies. You big baby.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using Tapatalk 2
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Just trying to show Pros and Cons of those gimmicks
Sarcron said:
The One might be the one for you if you watch a lot of video and listen to a lot of music
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Click to collapse
The One i was referring to HTC One
aukhan said:
Hard Core Hatter of Apple Iphone but huge fan Macbook Air
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Lol! Android is open source, fully customizable. Apple is not.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app
jorv976 said:
Lol! Android is open source, fully customizable. Apple is not.
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Yes that is True
Apple is like an Old age phone which i would refer it as an Nokia 6600 with Touch LoL !
aukhan said:
The One i was referring to HTC One
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I know, I was addressing the HTC One vs the GS4 on video/music.
Sarcron said:
I know, I was addressing the HTC One vs the GS4 on video/music.
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hmm ... but still i feel the Stock Headphones needs to be improved a lot .
i love the loud speaker music but stock earplugs are real like dirty sound have to shell out more money and buy other brand earplugs (Beats:good.
aukhan said:
hmm ... but still i feel the Stock Headphones needs to be improved a lot .
i love the loud speaker music but stock earplugs are real like dirty sound have to shell out more money and buy other brand earplugs (Beats:good.
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I find Beats unbearable, especially the non high end ones. Have you been to any audiophile forums at all? Go on and check what most audiophiles have to say about beats audio. Probably you find it great, and lets agree to disagree there.
And the stock headphones aren't that great, but is surprisingly one of the better ones among the rest of the crappier ones. Haven't tried S4/One headphones, but I'm referring to the ones that came with the Note II, which I presume is the same that came with S4 too. Someone had compared all the headphones on head fi, let me see if I can dig that up.
tuxonhtc said:
I find Beats unbearable, especially the non high end ones. Have you been to any audiophile forums at all? Go on and check what most audiophiles have to say about beats audio. Probably you find it great, and lets agree to disagree there.
And the stock headphones aren't that great, but is surprisingly one of the better ones among the rest of the crappier ones. Haven't tried S4/One headphones, but I'm referring to the ones that came with the Note II, which I presume is the same that came with S4 too. Someone had compared all the headphones on head fi, let me see if I can dig that up.
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well the headphones i got with HTC rezound i've been using them quite some time they have started spoiling , will buy some new one in next few days , yes sure i've not been to any forums but this time will check and pick the best ,
What is your preference in earplugs which one do you use ?
aukhan said:
well the headphones i got with HTC rezound i've been using them quite some time they have started spoiling , will buy some new one in next few days , yes sure i've not been to any forums but this time will check and pick the best ,
What is your preference in earplugs which one do you use ?
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Oh I don't use stock at all, but if I'm stuck with stock, Samsung is decent. I use Koss KSC75, which is incredible sounding for it's price - for multimedia uses that is
tuxonhtc said:
Oh I don't use stock at all, but if I'm stuck with stock, Samsung is decent. I use Koss KSC75, which is incredible sounding for it's price - for multimedia uses that is
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i believe those are around 20$ the same in India are sold for 40$
aukhan said:
i believe those are around 20$ the same in India are sold for 40$
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Oh, that's a rip off, but for the quality, I'd pay even 80$ without any thoughts. It rivals many of the high end headphones, it's THAT good. I don't know any <50$ earphones that are even in the same ballpark as KOSS KSC75 anyways.
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I’ve been quite a fan of Xiaomi products ever since I used the awesome little Mi 2S. Till date, the phone is among the most favourite ones that I’ve ever owned!
Come 2014, and I was tempted by more releases… iBuyGou sent over a Xiaomi Mi 4, and although I got to use a lot of phones this year, the Mi 4 and the OnePlus One remain to be among my favourites. And I’m a littlleeee skewed towards the Mi 4 thanks to my preference for smaller phones. Basically, phones that fit in my pocket.
I do a lot of traveling on the motorbike and prefer to have the phone in my pocket than anywhere else. 5.5 inch phones haven’t gotten to a level where they’d fit (in thee sitting position), and therefore the Mi 4 pretty much hits the bullseye as far as size is concerned.
Unboxing video
Form factor… and feel
The Mi 4 looks a lot like another popular phone. The latest edition of that ‘popular phone’ is known for a very unique feature, i.e., bending. However, the Mi 4 looks more like a mashup of the previous versions of the phone. If you are a sucker for original design, you should totally stay out. If not… let’s talk!
The bezels are extremely thin, thinner than any other phone I’ve ever owned. This is really what makes the 5-inch phone in a pocket a possibility, really. A lot of other phones have slim bezels, but the top and bottom part of these devices really makes up with abnormally large chunks of bezel. The Mi 4 however doesn’t do anything of that sort, and offers a very one-handed-usable experience.
The edges on the device are chamfered… or tapered if you like to call it that. This is more noticeable on the part that blends into the front than the rear. Not only does it give the Mi 4 a lovely visual appeal, but also makes the device easier to use… and your hands harder to slit.
Xiaomi phones traditionally featured buttons on the right, with the ability to change the look and feel because they’re attached to the rear cover. This changed with the Mi 3, which didn’t offer a removable rear at all. The Mi 4 does a bit better and does give you the liberty of taking off the rear… if you have a suction cup handy. And even if you do, you do not have the ability to swap the battery which is a bit of a shame. A bit. User replaceable batteries are overrated!
The front of the Mi 4, as I said before, will remind you of ‘the other phone that shan’t be named’. On the top there’s the earpiece in a little slot of its own. I like it when earpieces are at the same level as the body, they otherwise tend to be dust magnets. Anyway.
On the left of the earpiece you see a little back spot which hides the proximity and light sensors, on the left to which sits the famous Mi logo. On the extreme right, you can see the impressive 8MP camera.
Below the screen, there’s the usual set of buttons -- overflow, home and back. Depending on what OS you’re running (MIUI V5 or MIUI 6), the leftmost button will act as either the menu button or the recent tasks button. In my case, it is the latter… because I love the look and feel of MIUI 6.
The chin of the Mi 4 makes home for the reinforced micro USB port and of course the machine drilled speaker grill. Before talking about the sound of it, let me tell you that it looks pretty kickass
Nothing on the left besides the camouflaged SIM slot. The right edge is where you access the power and volume buttons, all covered in great-feeling metal.
The top is where it gets interesting… because not only do you see the standard 3.5mm earphone jack here, but also an IR sensor which is a first for Xiaomi. It is extremely useful as a feature, but unfortunately the range isn’t as much as you’d have liked, on the Mi 4.
Display
Out of all the phones that I’ve had a chance to use and play with, the Mi 4 sits right on top with the other 5 incher… the OPPO Find 5. I totally loved that device but had to let go of it earlier this year to fund another purchase. Anyway, the Mi 4 does look as good as the Find 5 on screen quality terms. Like I’ve said before, 5 inches of screen is the maximum I can handle, and displays like the one used on the Mi 4 really make it worthwhile. I have another phone for YouTube and video, but that phone is increasingly becoming obsolete due to the presence of the Mi 4!
MIUI (6, in my case) lets you choose between 3 color modes and 2 saturation modes. I usually like to have a very balanced and consequently natural display, but on the Mi 4 it is the ‘cool’ color mode I use everyday. To be very frank, the ‘warm’ mode is on the verge of being called yellow; standard and cool are the only modes you will ever choose in between.
Saturation has a couple of modes -- Brilliant and Standard. The difference between these two modes isn’t as pronounced as the ones between the color modes. I use my Mi 4 in Standard mode, Brilliant gives it a tinge of warmness. Comes down to personal preference, imo.
Backlight bleeding is something Chinese phones have been suffering from for a long, long time. Thankfully, it isn’t the case here. Minus a little part. There’s a slight bit of backlight bleeding on the right edge (bottom), which is hardly noticeable and definitely QC-able. You can certainly live with it and it’s far from a deal breaker.
In a nutshell, I’d rate the display a healthy 9/10, at par with the OPPO FInd 5!
Camera
If anything, smartphones from 2013 to 2014 have progressed leaps and bounds on the camera front. There’s of course difference in performance, but it isn’t as significant as the difference (read: improvement) in camera tech.
I LOVE the Xiaomi Mi 4 as a camera phone. It might not have the most number of pixels, or even the most features (it lacks a substantial slow shutter mode, for one), but the Mi 4 does a very good job at capturing moments for you. It’s all about the right timing, and thanks to the super fast focus mode on the Mi 4, I am able to take a lot of pictures at the right time. On terms of camera performance, I would rate the Mi 4 second only to the mammoth OPPO Find 7 (which surprisingly uses the same IMX214 sensor as the Mi 4! But it turns out, there’s a lot more to picture quality than just the sensor )
The Mi 4 carries a lot over from the Mi 3. As in, it features the same ‘vivid’ sort of a picture tone with a little bit of exaggeration; but it’s definitely less than the Mi 3, making pictures seem a lot more real. MIUI 6 might also be a bottleneck as far as hardware performance is concerned, but even then I’m pretty satisfied.
During the initial days with the phone, it had a naggy issue where the camera wouldn’t focus during macro shot attempts. This has since been solved thanks to a multitude of OTA updates (the perks of being on a beta channel…)
The camera app does lack a bit of functionality though, which I hope will be added with future OTA updates. Xiaomi are usually pretty quick in pushing new updates -- weekly, most often.
The camera also does 4K, but it isn’t relevant to me. It isn’t to you too, if you don’t have a 4K aka UHD television!
Another interesting feature is 'Refocus'. As the name clearly suggests, it allows you to focus on parts of an image AFTER clicking. I'm happy to report that it works wonderfully well.
Curious, I wanted to know how it worked. Xiaomi advertised a 0.3 second focus duration, so it wasn't all that difficult. Snooping around the phone's file system told me that the device actually takes multiple photos (4 if I remember right) with different points in focus so that you're able to achieve the magical refocus feature later on. Intelligent, I must say! (HTC had to add a whole another sensor to achieve this )
Battery
I’m very satisfied with the battery life on the Xiaomi Mi 4. It isn’t as good as the OnePlus One, but it falls short only by a shade. On the upside, I get a display that’s way more vibrant and an absolute treat to look at. And according to Android, I look at it about 6 hours before it the phone needs another trip to the wall socket. Speaking of wall sockets, make sure you use the bundled Xiaomi Mi 4 charging adapter. Or be prepared to give it a good few hours of charging (4-5). The stock charger charges up the Mi 4 pretty darn fast; any other charger (even the 2A ones) take way way longer for some reason. Xiaomi don’t advertise anything like VOOC so I’m assuming its some secret tech they’re employing here to get the battery charged fast (unless it is Qualcomm’s fast charging, lol).
My usage often greatly varies from day to day. Most days, I’m left with a good 50% charge at the end of the day, with the phone unplugged for around 18-19 hours along with 3 hours of screen on time. I think this is pretty respectable for a small phone with a 5-inch display, and one that’s so bright.
It might be worthy to let you know about the apps that I use the most, so you get a clearer image about battery life: feedly, Chome, WhatsApp, Pocket, Gmail and a couple other apps that keep changing depending what season it is
All in all I’d give the battery a decent 9/10. Please keep in mind that it took the device a good few weeks before the battery life got to this point; it was far far worse when I started off with using the Mi 4. It could also be the MIUI 6 ROM, but I suspect it has got to do with the hardware itself.
MIUI 6
Its hard to miss what the Mi 4 runs on. Not only because its pretty beautiful and even more functionally useful, but also because of the fact that the media loves to hate the MIUI ROM; at least that section which hasn’t ever used a Xiaomi phone. And I don’t blame them for that. The MIUI ROM does leave an impression of being a bit of an iOS lookalike, but there’s much more to MIUI than that. Calling MIUI a lookalike of iOS is like speaking only one side of the story… if you know what I mean.
Controversy aside, MIUI is pretty useful and handy, but it takes a while to get used to. Especially when you’re coming from another Android smartphone that runs a more closer-to-vanilla ROM.
While I’m yet to come across any significant functional improvements on MIUI 6 compared to the previous iteration of the ROM, I do very much like the look of it. A lot of the settings previously near-unreachable are now easier to get to, which does leave a good impression in the mind of the user. You can now easily switch launchers and other default apps, in a very steamlined manner unlike earlier.
Conclusion
I’ve had the privilege of using a lot of phones this year, including the HTC One M8, OPPO Find 5, Find 7, Xiaomi Mi 3 and of course the OnePlus One besides this… but guess which phone I like the most? Yeah you got it right. Of course this is a very subjective topic, since a lot of smartphone users these days tend to pick phones with displays larger than 5 inches. But I guess I’m just too old skool.
The way the Mi 4 is performing for me right now, I think I would be happy to use it as my main phone for a good one year. Like I mentioned before, battery is a very important component on a smartphone for me, and the Mi 4 hits the sweet spot. It almost lasts as long as the Mi 2S with a 3200mAh battery! (keep in mind that the Mi 2S has only a 4.3 inch 720p screen).
Stuff like an IR sensor (which needs a decent English language app at the moment) make the Mi 4 a real worthy smartphone for the money. I'm waiting to see how it performs in the market when it's available in more countries than just China, especially India. Untill then!
I would like to thank iBuyGou.com for shipping the phone. Go get the phone from them!
A great review! Thank you for your effort. You described most aspects of the phone but everything you wrote was positive. I am iterested in buying that phone so I really need to know things that you disliked.
Usually people that buy a phone and will use it in their everyday life tend to "hide" the flaws so after ALOT of effort I concluded that the weak points of Mi4 is the camera and audio quality. You seem satisfied by the camera but what about the sound?
Thanks again.
mi4 Google
hello
I'm Abhi from mumbai, 00919867788773
I buy mi4 from china last month. All box pack from reputed internet website official paid money.
I have trouble that, I'm not able to start any Google application. Like no Google play store a gmaps and so not able to download any app.
it alwa'ys show warning
No internet access, and security warning that ur Not access to Google application.
I can receive emails And well connected withe wlan and also will sim data.
Have gone in mi market and done all download for Google by Eric...
Also installed all Google framework
But not able to start Google play store and any Google appilcation.
Please give the solutions , how do I star Google play store to download all Apps.
Uninstall and reinstall the play store. Or flash the international version of MIUI at Xiaomi.eu
Sent from my Xiaomi Mi4
ioannis_n said:
A great review! Thank you for your effort. You described most aspects of the phone but everything you wrote was positive. I am iterested in buying that phone so I really need to know things that you disliked.
Usually people that buy a phone and will use it in their everyday life tend to "hide" the flaws so after ALOT of effort I concluded that the weak points of Mi4 is the camera and audio quality. You seem satisfied by the camera but what about the sound?
Thanks again.
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Click to collapse
Hi, thanks for the comment and sorry about the late reply.
The sound from the built in speaker is honestly disappointing. Other phones like the OnePlus One give a much better output. That said, the Mi 4 lacks mostly only on the volume. Quality is rock solid -- but volume is often insufficient.
@yash3339 how is the signal strength, 3g on the indian networks?
Good review!! :good:
I totally agree with this review cos I myself own a MI4 and its been one month since I'm using it and I can say its a power house without burning a lot of money... Outstanding phone... Can't wait for it to get the official Lollipop update
whosaysjohn said:
@yash3339 how is the signal strength, 3g on the indian networks?
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Click to collapse
Signal is perfect. Been using 3G on Airtel without any issues
Krahe8 said:
Good review!! :good:
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Click to collapse
Thank you! Glad it helped.
sidzcool said:
I totally agree with this review cos I myself own a MI4 and its been one month since I'm using it and I can say its a power house without burning a lot of money... Outstanding phone... Can't wait for it to get the official Lollipop update
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Indeed, you got it spot on. Even without Lollipop MIUI 6 is plenty interesting!
I'm using the reliance network here and speed is not that bad... Battery life with wifi is superb
With 2g its almost similar but with 3g due to network strength theres a battery drain, this is a network issue though so its not the fault of the mi4. But hands down this the most powerful device available at this price range. Don't feel uncomfortable when ur friends say its cheap chinese. Just in case if ur friends make fun of ur device, jus laugh back at them cos they have no clue wat they r getting into ..
But Y these devices are priced so low is that ( this is jus my opinion) they dont sell much out of china and advertising is very minimal. yeah i know the mi3 and 1s got great ads in flipkart but stocks were limited and thats y the price is so low. U r paying for wat u actually want rather than wat the manufacturer wants.. But this is my opinion... opinions for me or against me are most welcome
sidzcool said:
I'm using the reliance network here and speed is not that bad... Battery life with wifi is superb
With 2g its almost similar but with 3g due to network strength theres a battery drain, this is a network issue though so its not the fault of the mi4. But hands down this the most powerful device available at this price range. Don't feel uncomfortable when ur friends say its cheap chinese. Just in case if ur friends make fun of ur device, jus laugh back at them cos they have no clue wat they r getting into ..
But Y these devices are priced so low is that ( this is jus my opinion) they dont sell much out of china and advertising is very minimal. yeah i know the mi3 and 1s got great ads in flipkart but stocks were limited and thats y the price is so low. U r paying for wat u actually want rather than wat the manufacturer wants.. But this is my opinion... opinions for me or against me are most welcome
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They have not launched Mi 4 outside of China as yet...xiaomi phones are always priced low...they dont make much from phone but make up through services...
---------- Post added at 10:41 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:40 PM ----------
yash3339 said:
Signal is perfect. Been using 3G on Airtel without any issues
Thanks, bought it a week back...working good so far...
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Click to collapse
whosaysjohn said:
They have not launched Mi 4 outside of China as yet...xiaomi phones are always priced low...they dont make much from phone but make up through services...
---------- Post added at 10:41 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:40 PM ----------
yash3339 said:
Signal is perfect. Been using 3G on Airtel without any issues
Thanks, bought it a week back...working good so far...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Glad to know its working fine for you
sidzcool said:
I'm using the reliance network here and speed is not that bad... Battery life with wifi is superb
With 2g its almost similar but with 3g due to network strength theres a battery drain, this is a network issue though so its not the fault of the mi4. But hands down this the most powerful device available at this price range. Don't feel uncomfortable when ur friends say its cheap chinese. Just in case if ur friends make fun of ur device, jus laugh back at them cos they have no clue wat they r getting into ..
But Y these devices are priced so low is that ( this is jus my opinion) they dont sell much out of china and advertising is very minimal. yeah i know the mi3 and 1s got great ads in flipkart but stocks were limited and thats y the price is so low. U r paying for wat u actually want rather than wat the manufacturer wants.. But this is my opinion... opinions for me or against me are most welcome
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Haha, you got a point there... but I've been using Chinese devices long enough for my friends to truly realize their real value
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Click to collapse
Hey I've been using device for 2 months and I feel that this device is worth its price.. Thats all..
Notification LED
Nice review Yash, addressed most of the queries the prospective users would have.
Hi MI4 users,
I would like to know if the MI4 has a notification LED.
In one review on youtube (I think, Ash's), he did mention that it has a notification LED which lights up to show the phone is charging.
What I want to know is if the LED blinks to notify unread notifications (missed calls, sms, emails, IMs, etc)? Is it a single color LED or does it light up in different colors as per the category of notification.
AP
Hi there,
The led does blink for notification such unread messages (texts, what's app, emails) calls even your clash of clan notification
Actually mi4's led does work as would work any regular led on other phones
Edit : it does light up in different colors as per category
Sent from my MI 4LTE using XDA Free mobile app
By the way, here's how my mi4 lte is doing on a French wireless operator using lte band 3 (1800mhz)
Sent from my MI 4LTE using XDA Free mobile app
This Device so far... is Awesome
Xiaomi Mi 4
Nice review indeed. Thanks a lot for sharing with us.
Recently xiaomi has released another great product xioami Note, which I personally think is cool and better than Mi 4 in many sense. Hope you will write a review on Mi note.
Any more comments on the Battery drain on 3G? I'm switching from a Nexus 5 to Mi4, I don't want to fall into the same low battery trap again :/
cyanide911 said:
Any more comments on the Battery drain on 3G? I'm switching from a Nexus 5 to Mi4, I don't want to fall into the same low battery trap again :/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You'll be fine the mi4 has a much bigger battery. And my mi3 gets good battery life too : p
Sent from my MI 3W
I find s8 plus too tall. There is a limit in how big I want my phone to be. I am also not happy they are doing black bezels even on colored version. That is just crazy, the back of the phone will be in a case anyway.
If s8 plus is too tall, Note8 will be taller and probably foldable. Foldable I would hate and I am betting it will keep breaking with movement. Plus I want a phone in a case and... non foldable!
What to do? Looks like Samsung is losing me:crying:
Samsung are making the bezels black for a good reason, the front of the device is covered with sensors! It looks ugly with all the sensors and camera up top with a colour other than black, they blend in with a black bezel. The black also helps make the screen pop a bit more, makes it look like you're just holding a big screen in your hands. Gold or other colours make the bezels more obvious.
I'm pretty sure you would get used to the size. People used to say a phone looked like a brick with a screen larger than 3 inches, now it's normal to have a 5.5 inch screen. Habits change and people get used to it.
As they are removing the physical button, they need more screen real estate for the on screen buttons, hence the taller more unusual shape.
Well Note7 bezels also had sensors and Coral blue was fenomenal. So no idea what you are talking about.
LG6 is fine with silver bezels too. No need for black.
Samsung is messing it all up in 2017 and that is it.
Sensors... sensors everywhere! It has 3 additional sensors compared to the s7, iris camera, ir led for iris camera, and what looks like led flash.
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Well that is your opinion and that's fine, they are only messing it up for you though. It's going to sell extremely well and it'll be the best phone of the year just like the S7 was last year. I'm pretty sure they won't miss your purchase. Black up front will look good for many, colour isn't exactly the main selling point of any device let alone smart phones. Silly to say they are messing up 2017 because of that. Having the option is nice but it's not the end of the world if you have a more limited colour choice. There are lots of sensors and they don't look great when they stand out. Black hides them pretty well.
What's the point of starting this thread if you don't want to take on board anybody's opinions? It's just a moan thread for you to say how much you hate it. Here is a tip, don't buy it! Get something else that's shiny and blue up front instead.
I guess you just didn't own the Note7 to see how amazing it looked in blue and how many heads it turned. Are you saying estethics are not important? They are and they influence sales, especially after Note7 they will.
peachpuff said:
Sensors... sensors everywhere! It has 3 additional sensors compared to the s7, iris camera, ir led for iris camera, and what looks like led flash.
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Click to collapse
And just what is wrong with the blue on this picture? Nothing, except it is a fake picture apparently.
I didn't say aesthetics are not important, I said the reason that have a black front are because they care about aesthetics. The design looks fantastic to me and everybody reporting on the leaks thus far. The S8 has more sensors up front than the Note had. They have different colours but chose to have black on the front for the reason I already stated. That will not effect sales.
The Note isn't their best selling device, it's more of a niche product and that allows them to experiment. It did indeed look pretty good, almost identical to the S7 Edge including specs. The colour is nice for people that like that but black and white is always the more popular option. You can get a case with any colour you like, there is barely any bezel to colour anyway. It's a very very small part of the phone. Note 7 has very large bezels in comparison.
Design aesthetic is more than just colour you know? They wanted the front to look like it's just a giant screen. The sensors take away from that. I don't want to argue, it's all personal opinion anyway. Buy something more you.
The coral blue was so popular in Note7, they made s7 edge in it subsequently. And this popularity made them "keep" it for the s8. We will see if it doesn't matter. They took a financial hit counting in billions because of Note7 so I don't think it is a niche product LOL. I don't normally care about s series, I will only care if Note8 will indeed be foldable.
Exactly, they have the S8 in blue and other colours. That's what I am saying, it's just the front of the phone that's black. No product in the world can be for everybody as we all have different tastes.
That's how recalls work, they are expensive. They did a double recall and it worked out at around 2.5 million phones. They are not sales figures. That includes all phones shipped to retailers. It's a niche product compared to other mobiles in the market. I didn't say people don't buy it. The S8 is their mass market device. Even minor Chinese brands sell more handsets than the Note range. It's large, expensive and has features aimed at the business market. Recalling any product means a huge loss of profit. It costs a fortune to develop, market and produce the handsets and a lot of money to take them all back twice and scrap them.
Only a few companies actually make any profit on phones, Apple, Samsung, Oneplus and some Chinese brands. The majority are losing money.
Mate, the S8 comes in different colours and looks pretty good so far. No phone is perfect. They can't make everybody happy. It's still the best option for Android fans alongside the Google branded phones and these days, Oneplus too. Let's agree to disagree.
notefreak said:
And just what is wrong with the blue on this picture? Nothing, except it is a fake picture apparently.
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Click to collapse
Its the sensors not the color, why can't you understand that. Besides most people put them in a case anyway because they're so slippery, so my lovely titanium s7 doesn't look so lovely anymore.
Does seeing all these sensors look good to you?
Yes, it is fine, would have looked better in blue
I'm so afraid that the bootloader is going to be locked like the S7, S7 edge, and the Note 7. I'm probably going to wait and see what happens once the phone drops.
JodyBreeze901 said:
I'm so afraid that the bootloader is going to be locked like the S7, S7 edge, and the Note 7. I'm probably going to wait and see what happens once the phone drops.
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Click to collapse
US I take it? Didn't have that problem here in the UK, I unlocked mine and was flashing ROMs quite happily up until I sold it. Is it not possible to import one that can be unlocked? I guess US devices have slightly different hardware to support your carriers. Hopefully it'll be the same again here and we will get Samsung's own SoC and the ability to unlock the bootloader. I would hate not having that option!
How will the edge work? Is it an independent screen?
Does it have removable battery?
Is there an IR Blaster?
MSK1 said:
How will the edge work? Is it an independent screen?
Does it have removable battery?
Is there an IR Blaster?
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Click to collapse
No offense, but are you living under a rock? There are literally thousands of articles over the last month or so that give answers to almost any question you can ask about the S8. And as of today we know almost everything. Of course there is no removable battery. The IR blaster is 99.9% likely to NOT be included. The edge screens are pretty commonly well known how they work from previous edge phones - there can/will be tweaks, but we pretty much know what people can do with them.
teegunn said:
No offense, but are you living under a rock? There are literally thousands of articles over the last month or so that give answers to almost any question you can ask about the S8. And as of today we know almost everything. Of course there is no removable battery. The IR blaster is 99.9% likely to NOT be included. The edge screens are pretty commonly well known how they work from previous edge phones - there can/will be tweaks, but we pretty much know what people can do with them.
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Click to collapse
[emoji1]
I have been living more than contently with my now dear departed Note Edge....
I have been content enough to not need to play away... Nor has my gaze wandered...
I am now making some tentative steps... Please be gentle...
I'm pretty confident the majority will be in favor of the black bezels. Hides the sensors, highlights the infinity display much better, and much less distracting when watching a movie, just like in cinemas. You don't see colored bezels or sides in movie theaters do you? Plus with the screen off the black bezels make it look super futuristic
MSK1 said:
[emoji1]
I have been living more than contently with my now dear departed Note Edge....
I have been content enough to not need to play away... Nor has my gaze wandered...
I am now making some tentative steps... Please be gentle...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was a bit cranky when I made that post the other day (nothing related to the S8 just life stuff), so I apologize for my tone.
I think the S8 is going to be one of those phones that is they type that changes the landscape of smartphones. Lots of new things with the S8 that are breaking ground and will be heavily copied. For good reason - it is the compilation of what many of the smartphone world has been asking for in a phone for years. I think this would be a very worthy phone to make the jump from your Note Edge.
I have been a Note series user since the Note 2. The Note 7 was the best overall phone made to date - until the S8 comes out. I have made the move to the S7 for obvious reasons, but it was only for a few months until the S8 came out. I think you will find the enhancements well worth your money. Sounds like it was time for you to upgrade anyway with your phone now being departed.
I'm waiting for some real reviews on the S8/8+ as the current "reviews" are just overviews. I want to see how the battery really performs.
I'm also considering just waiting for the Note 8 to come out and do a comparison at that time? Release this summer anyone think?
As the title asks: has anyone here got the phone yet? What are your thoughts on it? I got mine yesterday. So far, I'm impressed yet slightly bored due to the lack of new features.
The phone itself is amazing, quick and beautiful. The fingerprint scanner is fast, the phone is comfortable to hold but lacks anything exciting from it!
Post some thoughts below!
Have you tested Displayport Alt? It's part of the USB 3.1 standard and any USB-C to HDMI/Display Port adapter should work, even if it's branded for a laptop for a laptop.
Sumenthus said:
Have you tested Displayport Alt? It's part of the USB 3.1 standard and any USB-C to HDMI/Display Port adapter should work, even if it's branded for a laptop for a laptop.
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Click to collapse
No I haven't tried that actually. I'll have to look it up and see if I can try it! I'll report back if I manage.
My immediate reaction is, I wish this thing was in the omnibalance design. It is too chunky for me, I don't like the curve of the back which is really quite thick in the middle. Very slippy as well, slips all over the place..
It is very quick, the screen is very nice and as usual, for me anyway, battery life is very good.....darn it, if only the XZ2 was a bigger screened version of the XZ1 form factor.
This phone needs a case - no doubt about it - it could be very slippery otherwise.
I've come from the Pixel 2 XL (due to Google's inability to code updates properly; luckily they refunded me even after 5 months!) - the XZ2 certainly is bigger and heavier but it fits better in my pocket...
There were nice things Google had done to Android that improves the user experience that the Sony like others will not have. Nothing functionally different just a bit 'dull' in terms of experience.
The camera of the XZ2 is not up to Pixel 2 standards but I've yet to play with it properly.
I like the XZ2 - I hope I feel this way in six months time.
murrayalex said:
My immediate reaction is, I wish this thing was in the omnibalance design. It is too chunky for me, I don't like the curve of the back which is really quite thick in the middle. Very slippy as well, slips all over the place..
It is very quick, the screen is very nice and as usual, for me anyway, battery life is very good.....darn it, if only the XZ2 was a bigger screened version of the XZ1 form factor.
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Click to collapse
I agree with the phone being slippery! I can't even hold it between my shoulder and ear without it wanting to fall within seconds! Also needs a screen protector which I've had no luck finding.
As for the form factor, it doesn't seem half bad in all honesty. I come from the HTC 10 so for me it feels nice to hold and I personally like the curve on the back!
smallfish82 said:
This phone needs a case - no doubt about it - it could be very slippery otherwise.
I've come from the Pixel 2 XL (due to Google's inability to code updates properly; luckily they refunded me even after 5 months!) - the XZ2 certainly is bigger and heavier but it fits better in my pocket...
There were nice things Google had done to Android that improves the user experience that the Sony like others will not have. Nothing functionally different just a bit 'dull' in terms of experience.
The camera of the XZ2 is not up to Pixel 2 standards but I've yet to play with it properly.
I like the XZ2 - I hope I feel this way in six months time.
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Click to collapse
+1 for dull. That's the first thought I had after setting it up. I want to root/unlock the bootloader so I can put xposed on it for customisation but I don't want to lose the DRM keys either.
Love it! I came from Z3... Fast, good battery life in my opinion. Nice screen, doesn't feel that thick to me. The only thing I dislike is how slippery it is. Bought a Qi charger that I put it on first night I had it. Looked like It was laying still. 20 minutes later it woke me up when it had slid off and hit the floor ? it survived, but I instantly ordered a case for it.
I will charge it on the floor for now ?
Devzz said:
As the title asks: has anyone here got the phone yet? What are your thoughts on it? I got mine yesterday. So far, I'm impressed yet slightly bored due to the lack of new features.
The phone itself is amazing, quick and beautiful. The fingerprint scanner is fast, the phone is comfortable to hold but lacks anything exciting from it!
Post some thoughts below!
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Click to collapse
You are right the phone is a little boring but that's not a bad thing.. As it works as expected.
I got the s9 returned it now as couldn't make phone calls with it (a highly reported bug)
Also Samsung blocked call recording apps
pepzin said:
Love it! I came from Z3... Fast, good battery life in my opinion. Nice screen, doesn't feel that thick to me. The only thing I dislike is how slippery it is. Bought a Qi charger that I put it on first night I had it. Looked like It was laying still. 20 minutes later it woke me up when it had slid off and hit the floor it survived, but I instantly ordered a case for it.
I will charge it on the floor for now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is why Sony built Wireless Charging Dock WCH20 like this
https://www.sonymobile.com/global-en/products/accessories/wireless-charging-dock-wch20/
Great phone, snapy, it boots like a beast, camera is awesome and i think i will get used to the shape, it feels ok in hand, nice UI, bu unfortunately after i got it i realized botom speaker is making strange noises, allmost unberable, so i bring it back for exchange tomorrow, bought in Slovenia, seal was broke, so watch out for that
stipi69 said:
Great phone, snapy, it boots like a beast, camera is awesome and i think i will get used to the shape, it feels ok in hand, nice UI, bu unfortunately after i got it i realized botom speaker is making strange noises, allmost unberable, so i bring it back for exchange tomorrow, bought in Slovenia, seal was broke, so watch out for that
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks! That's a really good tip, people need to ensure the device is new and the phone hasn't been used before! Sorry to hear it's making noises though. Good luck with getting a working version after exchanging!
Devzz said:
Thanks! That's a really good tip, people need to ensure the device is new and the phone hasn't been used before! Sorry to hear it's making noises though. Good luck with getting a working version after exchanging!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After couple of updates, reboots and full night charge speakers settled, it works o.k. I am buffled... I had an apointment today for immediate phone exchange but will cancel it leter, cause i cant be sure if that was software related between updates.
I tried so hard today in morning, max loudness and shaking etc, it performed flawlessly... So i keep it, if error reocurs i still have waranty ?
I encourage you all to buy it, it is a beast
The phone it's good, fast and stable. But sincerely if I could go back i buyed a pixel 2 xl. I've enabled volte but don't work, camera it's not impressed me also front camera it's average. Impossible to use without cover, i buyed a cover from amazon. For tempered glass i advice brotect airglass, it's the only with no halo and no brightness lost
Zazzinho said:
The phone it's good, fast and stable. But sincerely if I could go back i buyed a pixel 2 xl. I've enabled volte but don't work, camera it's not impressed me also front camera it's average. Impossible to use without cover, i buyed a cover from amazon. For tempered glass i advice brotect airglass, it's the only with no halo and no brightness lost
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Only trouble for me with pixel us that call recording does not work on it otherwise I would have got one
After a few days of use, the phone is a solid choice.
Striking a good balance with a decent screen size & still manageable to use one-handed.
The display is plenty bright , even in sunlight outdoors, colors are excellent, right up there with the best AMOLED displays on the market.
Sound from the FF Dual speakers is plenty voluminous, quality is there as well, tweak with your music/equalizer app of choice or, as I do, use what's on board.
The addition of wireless charging is welcome, THX Sony!
Ditto for the US model having a working FPR.
I'd prefer a front or side-mounted FPR, but, use of the FPR is waaay down on my list of desired features, I can take or leave it, regardless of position, or, missing altogether.
Battery life, well, JMHO, you'd be hard pressed to find any phone that's not at least acceptable & this one is no different. The discussions on battery life are subjective at best & range to the ridiculous.
My 2¢ on the subject:
If you're employed/in-school, or otherwise engaged in activities that take priority over using your phone full time, odds are you can make it 1.5-2 days between charges on any phone. If you have more free time than that, YMWV.
No phone is perfect & this one, while I think is a keeper, has a few areas in need of improvement.
1) No 3.5 mm jack. While this is of no consequence to me, nevertheless, it was a boneheaded decision to drop the option, 'nuff said.
2) It's gotta be the slickest (read:SLIPPERY) phone I've ever used. If you're gonna use a case, this is moot, but, when I'm @ home, I like to shed the case for a more comfortable grip. The fit in hand is perfect, but, I do wish Sony woulda/coulda done something with the back glass to ensure a more secure grip. (Textured glass, a la Sandstone finish, just spit-ballin' here).
3) The super-sized vibration motor is, IMHO, total nonsense. The space it occupies would have been better utilized for the MIA 3.5 mm jack, larger battery, an I-R Blaster.
One or all of these would be welcome, compared to the gimmicky vibration motor.
4) No 6GB RAM option Stateside (possibly in other markets as well,worth looking into before buying).
I bought a 6GB RAM model on Swappa, but, having the different RAM versions, especially in the price range, is a head-scratcher.
Overall, a very nice phone for every day use. As for recent offerings (six months or so), I've used the following:
Sony Xperia XZ Premium
Note FE
Mi Mix2 (highly recommend)
Huawei Mate 9 Porsche Design
Note 8
Xiaomi Mi A1
RazerPhone
Moto X4 (Android One)
OnePlus 5T
Galaxy S9+
Huawei Mate 10 Pro
I'd take this one, the Sony Xperia XZ2, every time, without hesitation. Still have the Xiaomi Mi Note2 as a 2nd phone..........................,the Mi Mix2, OnePlus 5T & Samsung Galaxy Note FE were/are viable daily drivers,can't go wrong w/either one of 'em.
They're all great phones, but, for my use, the XZ2 is tops.
Put a stylus on your phone already Sony,& I'd probably never give the competition more than a casual glance....
I was going to send it back after a few days but it is growing on me, the screen is really really nice, with good deep blacks and superb brightness and clarity (it is hard to believe it is not a higher resolution), it is very fast and it has a very premium feel (if a little slippy). I also have the XZ1 and prefer the form factor of the XZ1 but the XZ2 has more going for it as an overall package. Some online reviews have been quite dismissive at times of this phone but it does have something, a bit of character?
Personally, I'd never buy a Samsung for a lot of reasons and I suppose you could call me a bit of a Sony fanboy in that I've owned lots of them down the years. This is the best Sony phone for a good long while, a great all rounder.
Very pleased with this one.
KOLIOSIS said:
After a few days of use, the phone is a solid choice.
Striking a good balance with a decent screen size & still manageable to use one-handed.
The display is plenty bright , even in sunlight outdoors, colors are excellent, right up there with the best AMOLED displays on the market.
Sound from the FF Dual speakers is plenty voluminous, quality is there as well, tweak with your music/equalizer app of choice or, as I do, use what's on board.
The addition of wireless charging is welcome, THX Sony!
Ditto for the US model having a working FPR.
I'd prefer a front or side-mounted FPR, but, use of the FPR is waaay down on my list of desired features, I can take or leave it, regardless of position, or, missing altogether.
Battery life, well, JMHO, you'd be hard pressed to find any phone that's not at least acceptable & this one is no different. The discussions on battery life are subjective at best & range to the ridiculous.
My 2¢ on the subject:
If you're employed/in-school, or otherwise engaged in activities that take priority over using your phone full time, odds are you can make it 1.5-2 days between charges on any phone. If you have more free time than that, YMWV.
No phone is perfect & this one, while I think is a keeper, has a few areas in need of improvement.
1) No 3.5 mm jack. While this is of no consequence to me, nevertheless, it was a boneheaded decision to drop the option, 'nuff said.
2) It's gotta be the slickest (read:SLIPPERY) phone I've ever used. If you're gonna use a case, this is moot, but, when I'm @ home, I like to shed the case for a more comfortable grip. The fit in hand is perfect, but, I do wish Sony woulda/coulda done something with the back glass to ensure a more secure grip. (Textured glass, a la Sandstone finish, just spit-ballin' here).
3) The super-sized vibration motor is, IMHO, total nonsense. The space it occupies would have been better utilized for the MIA 3.5 mm jack, larger battery, an I-R Blaster.
One or all of these would be welcome, compared to the gimmicky vibration motor.
4) No 6GB RAM option Stateside (possibly in other markets as well,worth looking into before buying).
I bought a 6GB RAM model on Swappa, but, having the different RAM versions, especially in the price range, is a head-scratcher.
Overall, a very nice phone for every day use. As for recent offerings (six months or so), I've used the following:
Sony Xperia XZ Premium
Note FE
Mi Mix2 (highly recommend)
Huawei Mate 9 Porsche Design
Note 8
Xiaomi Mi A1
RazerPhone
Moto X4 (Android One)
OnePlus 5T
Galaxy S9+
Huawei Mate 10 Pro
I'd take this one, the Sony Xperia XZ2, every time, without hesitation. Still have the Xiaomi Mi Note2 as a 2nd phone..........................,the Mi Mix2, OnePlus 5T & Samsung Galaxy Note FE were/are viable daily drivers,can't go wrong w/either one of 'em.
They're all great phones, but, for my use, the XZ2 is tops.
Put a stylus on your phone already Sony,& I'd probably never give the competition more than a casual glance....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the detailed feedback.
Does VoLTE work on T-Mobile?
dachao said:
Thanks for the detailed feedback.
Does VoLTE work on T-Mobile?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have the H8296 model (non-US).
As for does it have VoLTE?
Short answer: Maybe?
Here's why I say that:
Using the search function in settings nets the following result:
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
However,when navigating from that,I don't "see" it:
If I go here:
I get this:
When I select this option,I lose all APNs & have to manually enter the APN,wash/rinse repeat.
I do see the LTE+ icon in the status bar,not sure if that's related or not:
If you have a dialer code that might reveal hidden settings, that'd be awesome & I'll take a look...
Perhaps flashing US Firmware will show the settings,or,it's already active,but,the setting is unaccessible(?) (a future root solution,perhaps).
If you have a method/app to check/confirm VoLTE,I'd be glad to check it out & share the results ......... :good:
EDIT:
I used T-Mobile's BYOD App to verify VoLTE & judging by their wording, not definitive:
Could be B.S. to get you to buy one of their phones,T-Mobile US just got fined $40 MILLION USD by the FCC for being less than truthful regarding rural service connections/calls...........
https://www.tmonews.com/2018/04/t-mobile-pay-40-million-fcc-settlement-failed-rural-calls/
FWIW,T-Mobile's DIGITS app works just fine:
@KOLIOSIS
The settings are the same as the settings on my XZ.
I don't understand why Sony phones don't support VoLTE but most of the Chinese phones do.
Normally I always go for the top model of a phone that comes out, but this year is a little bit different.
I currently have a pixel 5 and I'm thinking of switching back to a OnePlus device. Before prices were officially announced, I had already set my mind on a 9 Pro.
However, here in Canada, the difference between the regular 9 and the 9 Pro is $500...
Aside from the price, I really like the fact that the regular 9 has a flat screen rather than curved edges. I hate any screen protector other than glass and there are no proper glass screen protectors for curved screens.
The reason I'm torn is because the camera setup is not the same on the regular 9, it does seem quite a bit inferior. It's using the same sensor as the 8 Pro and I think it's missing the telephoto camera entirely as well. It's also missing OIS, which I'm sure can't be good for video stabilization as well as low light photography.
However, the reason I'm still considering it is because I think it still may be an upgrade from my Pixel 5 in every area, except for the camera. I don't know how much better my Pixel 5 camera would be, compared to the OnePlus 9, or if they would come close enough where I wouldn't mind the subtle differences.
What does everyone else think? Anyone else out there with a pixel 5 and looking to switch? Unfortunate how big the price Gap is in Canada compared to the US. I think in the US the price difference is about $240, compared to Canada's $500.
Any opinions or feedback would be appreciated!
Not a Pixel 5 but a Pixel 2, I'm still using this phone as with Android 11 it's still a great phone...granted it does not have the high specs that most phones come with nowadays. But it's just the right size in my hand, works well except for poor battery life.
There are so many new phones out or coming soon...Asus Rog 5, Xiaomi range, Oppo Find X3, and now the OnePlus. A part of me still wants to hold out for the Sony Xperia 1 III if and when it is released....but I would really love a new phone now...not sure which one to go for or wait a while...I'm really leaning towards the OnePlus 9 pro...
I use my phone to make phone calls, Pixel 5 is unusable for call quality. I didn't buy a Pixel 5 but the only person I know who did returned his for that reason. And using his, I agreed with his decision. Google always makes cool phones but ultimately it's an undesirable phone. Pixel 4 physical design was a complete failure. Pixel 5's under screen speaker complete failure. I wish Google would just make the basics amazing, and stop doing dumb ****.
But even physical design Google failed with Pixel 5. That plastic finish is there because they had to do a cutout in the aluminum shell to allow for wireless charging and then covered up that hole with that resin. I swear, Google might have some of the dumbest designers.
I got the Oneplus 9 for $600. That's good enough for me, I think phones are phones. Spending over 1K is insane to me. And this phone should last me 3 years.
As for camera, I would be surprised if OP9 isn't an upgrade since all the reviews are saying in many times OP9 is head to head with Samsung and Apple, Pixel 5 fell behind in the game. I also am believer if camera quality isn't up to snuff, buy a camera... I have never seen a picture from a phone that is half as good as from a camera.
You say the camera is quite a bit inferior, reviews I've seen so far have said for the average user between OP9 and OP9 Plus would not know the difference between the pictures taken. I'm in that camp, I always assume phone camera pics are garbage. After all the rave reviews and hype for iPhone camera, I'm always amazed how bad the photos are. That's what I learned, regardless if it Samsung Ultra or Apple, it's always more suprising to me how bad the pictures are really not much better than a $500 phone's picture.
I think phones might be the biggest tech scams. Just think about how little you get for the money, they are horrific value. But they claim their profit margins are tight, I don't believe them considering their sales volume. Processor that can barely play games. Cameras that are reality worth $20 and nothing more. 6" screen. Horrific audio quality, from speaker and buds. Overall phones are horrific tech in terms of quality, and incredibly expensive.
After that rant, I seriously hope Google doesn't screw over their fans with Pixel 6 and release a solid phone and stop using their fans like guinea pigs for idiotic ideas with half baked implementation. Give them a phone that others can look at and think, gee if I didn't already buy (blank) I'd get that. They have failed with every single Pixel phone in that regard, especially when Oneplus has been doing exactly what Nexus and Pixel fans wanted.
Google should make phones that show Apple users Android can be beautiful, reliable, intuitive. Not making things like under glass speakers, hideous physical designs both front and back etc. Let the other manufacturers like Samsung experiment. Google Pixel should be the best that Android has to offer IMO.
I'm somehow in the same boat.
I've used the pixel 5 for some time and i slowly started missing a bigger screen and oxygen os but most of all decent sound quality so i started looking..
I tried s20fe 5g but traded it within a few weeks for a OnePlus 8t just to see if I'm in to Oneplus again. So far i really enjoy it, except i would love to have a slightly better camera.
So far I've seen quite some reviews of the 9 series and I'm thinking of switching.
I believe it's not the spectacle as they advertised it but it's a great device.
At least the normal 9, the differences with the pro are to little given the price difference.
Normally I would be waiting to see what Pixel 6 will be, but Google has never failed to do something that a Pixel phone would be unusable for me. They always do something stupid and seriously shaft their users. Like they could use better hardware but continue to use the same cameras for every Pixel year after year.
Appreciate all the feedback guys,
I understand your point about phone cameras not being as good as a dedicated camera, but the thing is it's not as convenient to lug around a dedicated camera for those quick shots you want to take. That being said, it's nice to have as good of camera as you, can given that it's on a phone.
In terms of the Pixel 5's design, I've never been one to be picky about a design of a phone in general so it's not an area of concern for me. I tend to throw a case on my phones anyways, so the design is a non-factor.
However, that under screen speaker is definitely a real thing and something that bugs me a lot. I don't consider the Pixel 5 having a stereo speaker setup because of how bad that top speaker is.
Phone calls are fine if you're in a quiet environment, but if outdoors it's very hard to hear the other person. It's not a good sign when a smartphone is having trouble doing its job as a phone...
This is one of the biggest, if not the biggest reason I want to switch over to the OnePlus 9. It has a dedicated cutout for that speaker grill and there's no nonsense of the speaker being under the screen.
Going back to that camera, it's not so much about the actual hardware as it is about image processing. Even though the Pixel 5 is using an older camera sensor, the pictures that come from it are incredible because of Google's image processing.
Looking up camera comparisons online, to my eye at least, the Pixel comes out with the better shot. It has a lot more contrast and vibrancy compared to OnePlus. There is also a lot more dynamic range and areas such as the sky are not as blown out as they look to be on the OnePlus 9.
I can probably get away with some of those issues by editing the picture after the fact, but sometimes, some aspects of a picture cannot be saved no matter how much editing is done to it.
I'm torn because it seems that in every other aspect, the OnePlus 9 is a superior device to the Pixel 5.
Many people have not complained about performance on the Pixel 5, but I have personally experienced lag and slow down from time to time. I am the type of user who tends to switch between apps and just generally navigate the UI very quickly, and I think sometimes the Pixel 5 has trouble keeping up with that.
After reading your replies though, I am starting to lean towards the OnePlus, as it seems like the pros far outweigh the cons, even though the one pro the Pixel has is of great value to me.
Any additional feedback or opinions are welcome of course, in the meantime I will continue thinking this decision over to see if it would be worth grabbing that OnePlus 9.
The way I see OP9 for me is it's the cheapest way to get premium hardware, $600 for me at least. The hardware and screen matters to me more than camera. And I truly believe among any of the phones $400 and above, most users won't see difference between photos taken on phones. They are all within that margin nowadays.
I truly hope Pixel 6 will offer premium hardware with solid software and no stupid gimmicks. Google offers are truly solid, awesome phone that doesn't use their users as beta testers for stupid ideas.
If so, then yeah I'd trade in the OP9 for a Pixel 6. Cause no question, Google makes the best software on Android platform still, best camera app, best phone and messaging apps and of course best Android experience. But Pixels always have really stupid ideas and treat their paying customers like unpaid beta testers. That's disrespectful.
Ended up caving and grabbed the OP9. As I mentioned in my previous post, there only seems to be one pro for the Pixel 5, which is the camera. In every other category, the OnePlus 9 outshines the Pixel 5.
Regardless of how much significance I hold to that one upside of the Pixel 5 (camera), all the pros for the OP9 made me think it makes more sense to go for the 9 instead.
Not to mention, that under-screen earpiece speaker is hard to deal with. Like @zymphad said, I can also look into the Pixel 6 and see if it's worth switching back to Google for. Otherwise I'll stick with the 9.
As a workaround for the OP9's camera, I can simply just take a handful of shots of whatever I am taking pictures of (hopefully getting one or two good shots out of the handful), and rely on apps like Snapseed for them to "pop" a bit more.
Looks like the phone is going to ship out today, should have it by next week! Thanks again for the input, everyone.
Mine arrived. At work, tomorrow will post modified boot.img to root. Little doubt phone will be great and the Haselblad hype ruined the phone release since the pics are up to stnadard with Samsung and Apple just does not live up to hype, IMO Haselblad failed and they only had one job to provide consistent natural colors across all footage and cameras.
OP9 is a must-skip for me. No dual sim for North America, bad fingerprint scanner, expected OnePlus camera flub, and base OP9 display has low DPI while OP9 Pro has a curve. For iPhone prices they aren't offering iPhone quality. Battery issues seem to be common too. My P5 will last another year.
Unsurprising you whine about a camera that so far from what I've seen from people who make a living reviewing Android phones, OP9 camera is now within the same league as Samsung, loses some, wins some.
Fingerprint reader hasn't failed for me, in all lighting conditions and environment so far. Love it, it's fast and precise.
Battery lol? It's the best in class, fastest charging and seems to last forever.
Whines about the display but bought a Pixel 5. Is this a joke?
For how I use my phone compared to the Pixel 5 failure. Honestly this isn't even vs OnePlus, this is just Pixel 5 being a failure compared to all competition, Samsung, Xiaomi, Oppo, OnePlus, etc.
I use my phone to text, make phone calls, watch youtube, netflix, gaming, reading forums / blogs / news, chatting on discord, sharing memes, listening to music. For what I use my phone, Pixel 5 is dead last compared to all other phones I considered sub $800.
{
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"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
I have always been a Google phone fan, from the g1, og Nexus, Nexus 5, 6p, og pixel, 2xl, 3xl. I love the monthly update and the "pure os". But I just got a op9 from tmo (USA) for a great deal 1/2 off so it comes out to be about 360 over 2 years. For that price I'll deal with the shortcomings of the op9...
I know this is a little old, but I've had the Pixel 5 for a little less than a week and will be returning it. My last phone? OnePlus 6 that I got at launch. I also ordered a OnePlus 9 today.
It's the little things that just kill the Pixel 5 for me:
*Under screen speaker is awful
*The notification/ringer volume either can't be heard or can be heard by everyone, there's no middle ground.
*Can't remove Google Bar or Widget from the homescreen or lockscreen, and Nova keeps bugging out with gestures, so it's not even worth it sometimes.
*The processor. I've installed several apps that just sit there for a while after downloading and don't install for a few minutes. Unacceptable.
*have to switch hands to take a screenshot with the shortcut.
The size is great, but the lack of certain things that should be standard in 2021 is just flat out unacceptable even with some nicer things (call screening is phenomenal). I have a dream that one day all phones will be less than 6.2" so I'm not lugging a tablet around...
XNine said:
I know this is a little old, but I've had the Pixel 5 for a little less than a week and will be returning it. My last phone? OnePlus 6 that I got at launch. I also ordered a OnePlus 9 today.
It's the little things that just kill the Pixel 5 for me:
*Under screen speaker is awful
*The notification/ringer volume either can't be heard or can be heard by everyone, there's no middle ground.
*Can't remove Google Bar or Widget from the homescreen or lockscreen, and Nova keeps bugging out with gestures, so it's not even worth it sometimes.
*The processor. I've installed several apps that just sit there for a while after downloading and don't install for a few minutes. Unacceptable.
*have to switch hands to take a screenshot with the shortcut.
The size is great, but the lack of certain things that should be standard in 2021 is just flat out unacceptable even with some nicer things (call screening is phenomenal). I have a dream that one day all phones will be less than 6.2" so I'm not lugging a tablet around...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm right there with you on a lot of these points. That under screen speaker was just horrible. It's basically a mono speaker, I don't even consider that under screen speaker a speaker to be honest.
I like my big phones though so that's one area we see different but for the majority of it I pretty much switched for the same reasons.
OP9 has its deficiencies mostly in camera, lack of OIS and below average front camera that I NEVER use.
But sometimes it can shine.
Did you take that picture using Portrait Mode or PRO mode?
The only way to get 50MP is using the PRO mode on the app.
First Picture is PRO mode...
Second Picture is Portrait....
My Opinion. I prefer Oneplus over anything.
If your looking for specs yes, I can't believe I would say this but the "new" Red Magic 6R is only $499 and the specs are even higher..
But I'm a OnePlus user through and through. Wont ever change unless they go out of business.
rickysidhu_ said:
I'm right there with you on a lot of these points. That under screen speaker was just horrible. It's basically a mono speaker, I don't even consider that under screen speaker a speaker to be honest.
I like my big phones though so that's one area we see different but for the majority of it I pretty much switched for the same reasons.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You know the microphone is under glass because it's water resistant. I agree though some of googles developers must be some real gems.