Samsung Galaxy S4

[techead]

meh, I wish Samsung would lose the plastic and go with a unibody or something?

Im not that impressed tbh, maybe my expexctations are a bit high lol

 

[Velenoso]

So by keeping the design pretty much the same as the S3, Samsung succeeded in making all the comments in the Iphone threads moaning about how unimaginative Apple has become by bringing out a similar looking phone... null and void.

meh, I wish Samsung would lose the plastic and go with a unibody or something?

Im not that impressed tbh, maybe my expexctations are a bit high lol

+1000 what the **** were they thinking
I had a feeling they would keep this ****ty plastic design.

Might as well go back to iphone.

 

[Hamster]

I'm due for an upgrade soon (on Android 2.3) but there is nothing out there that appeals to me (the galaxy range never excited me and this one doesn't do anything for me either). I just hope and pray the 5S will be awesome or that they bring out a mini version of the 4S. That plastic body kills it for me though...

 

[linkinpark]

Despite the slight disappointment at the styling of the device, i am happy that its not phablet sized. So i will probably get this when it comes out here.

 

[goofball]

Thinking the S4 mini might be interesting this time round.

The S4 Maxi? uhm... no thanx.

 

[techead]

Judging by the lack of feedback in this thread, people aren't THAT excited about the S4?

 

[memphis32]

Judging by the lack of feedback in this thread, people aren't THAT excited about the S4?

Until it arrives, then everyone will be like: "I gave in and got me one, and it's down right the best thing out there..." Expect many of those in the near future...

 

[prod]

I'm getting one, that's for sure

The only thing people seem to be able to bash it about is the fact that it resembles the S3. :erm:

 

[Demon7]

I was absolutely praying it did not look like the S3....
Unfortunately it does resemble it, but there are distinct differences... and luckily for me, the factor that made me dislike the S3, is exactly what they changed...
I'm not committed yet, but will more than likely get it when it arrives...

 

[opinionhated]

The S4 is the king on specs (i'm thinking that processor will blow the HTC One out of the water). But not the best overall package.

BTW: The S4 is SMALLER than the S3 despite the bigger screen (and lighter )

S4: 136.6 x 69.8 x 7.9 mm (5.38 x 2.75 x 0.31 in)
S3: 136.6 x 70.6 x 8.6 mm (5.38 x 2.78 x 0.34 in)

 

[Crowley]

I like the S3's look and prefer the plastic.

Sue me.

 

[opinionhated]

I like the S3's look and prefer the plastic.

Sue me.

Apple might

 

[kingrob]

The weather widget on the S4 must be the fugliest weather widget I've ever seen.

WTF Samsung??

 

[Bryn]

The weather widget on the S4 must be the fugliest weather widget I've ever seen.

WTF Samsung??

It's not bad. Other weather conditions might have better images. The worst weather widget in existence is the Accuweather one.

 

[opinionhated]

When being better doesn't equal victory: Samsung's curious overshadowing of HTC

http://www.engadget.com/2013/03/15/samsung-htc-design-marketing-battle/

 

[Bryn]

When being better doesn't equal victory: Samsung's curious overshadowing of HTC

http://www.engadget.com/2013/03/15/samsung-htc-design-marketing-battle/

I'm not even slightly surprised that Samsung is owning HTC. I've used a One X and a Desire HD and neither impressed me. Beats Audio for one thing is enough to send me running in the opposite direction, but apart from the build quality it's just a less impressive, less pocket and palm friendly Android experience with a less powerful non-removable battery and no microSD support. I should mention that I really don't like Sense.

 

[oronte]

The S4 is the king on specs (i'm thinking that processor will blow the HTC One out of the water). But not the best overall package.

BTW: The S4 is SMALLER than the S3 despite the bigger screen (and lighter )

S4: 136.6 x 69.8 x 7.9 mm (5.38 x 2.75 x 0.31 in)
S3: 136.6 x 70.6 x 8.6 mm (5.38 x 2.78 x 0.34 in)

I have to say that the dimensions and weight are really impressive to me.
It's smaller and lighter than the Xperia Z (same thickness though), but based on the reviews I've read the Xperia Z has an ergonomics problem when held in the hand for a while - the S4 is more impressive when you think that Samsung still included hardware buttons so none of the 5 inch display is lost to the software button bar. Most dimensions are better than the HTC One as well - thinner and lighter with a bigger screen.
The part that flabbergasts me is the larger battery, the insane number of sensors, a full 5 inch display and then an Octacore? How do they fit all of that in a package that's thinner, but about the same size as their previous flagship?

As with everyone else, I'll note that the Xperia Z and HTC One have beautiful designs and the S4 is not visually interesting by comparison, but I think that Super Amoled screen and the tech inside give it the edge (for me). Looking at a new phone the Xperia Z reviews all note the poorer screen quality, poor battery life and not so great ergonomics. The HTC One seems much better than the Z, but for me the limited storage (according to their Facebook page they will only launch the 32gb version in SA) is a deal breaker, so however good the HTC One may be I have to stop looking at it right there (though I bet the storage probably won't be an issue for 90% of the people out there - in which case it's a much harder decision).

Overall I'm impressed with it, if I owned an S3 I'd see no reason to get it and I've noted before the Samsung strategy is some improvements over previous models (but nothing earth shattering) so that an S2 owner ready for an upgrade now will be more than pleased with an S4, while an S3 owner won't feel like they lost out by not waiting for the S4 to be released. I have a Galaxy Note 1 and the considerably smaller footprint, thinness and lower weight with only a slight loss in screen size makes this the perfect phone for me now. I'm in no way a fanboy of Samsung, in fact, I really wanted to try another manufacturer with this upgrade (and I think the HTC One is a solid choice for those who don't need the storage or removable battery), I'll certainly wait for the reviews to come in, but it looks like the S4 is a winner to me.

PS: I generally like Touchwiz and after trying all the major launchers in the Play Store I always come back to Touchwiz. It's really improved with every update to my Note.

PPS: Why are some people complaining about the pentile screen? Seriously, you use your phone an inch away from your face? That's about the only way you'll be able to tell the difference in reality, or maybe you walk around with a microscope which you pull out before you use your phone? At this pixel density it really makes no difference.

 

[JimboBob]

PPS: Why are some people complaining about the pentile screen? Seriously, you use your phone an inch away from your face? That's about the only way you'll be able to tell the difference in reality, or maybe you walk around with a microscope which you pull out before you use your phone? At this pixel density it really makes no difference.

Agreed, this site has nice close ups of the screen on a PRE-production S4.

http://mobile.it168.com/a2013/0313/1461/000001461394_all.shtml

 

[milomak]

is it likely that rooting can be done via recovery as opposed to using something like odin?

 

[linkinpark]

"Virgin Mobile said that they have not received formal confirmation yet from Samsung, but added that they expect to launch the device in early April 2013."
http://mybroadband.co.za/news/smartphones/73412-samsung-galaxy-s4-sa-launch-window-emerges.html

I can't wait!! Only a month to go!!