Galaxy S6

[ukalum]

Anyone reading the reviews about the Samsung Galaxy S6 coming out this month? Apparantly the S5 didn't sell as much as they had hoped.

The S6 has gone to the metal body, eliminated the microSD card slot, and now is sealed in the back so that you can no longer replace the battery. Eliminating the card slot may be a show stopper for me, since all my music, photos and videos are stored on the MicroSD card. I loved the convenience of moving the card from one phone to another when you upgrade. Not being able to replace the battery means that if the battery goes bad, you essentially need another phone. They have essentially turned the phone into the iphone 6.

From what I have read, Google and others are trying to force everyone into using cloud storage. I think this all, change for the worse.

 

[bigblueinsanity]

That's likely a deal breaker for me too. Android has always been about freedom and customization; everything the iPhone prohibits.

This is basically a Samsung iPhone. Great specs. But if I want to be locked down, I'll just get an iPhone. And I suspect several will feel the same.

 

[Beavis606]

Sticking with S5

 

[We-Todd-Did]

Originally posted by Beavis606:
Sticking with S5

Same here. I see no need to change snd, if I did, I would probably look at others. The "edge" thing seems to be a pretty trivial thing to make a specific model for.

Is there some practical reason to seal the battery? I know one of the LG phones is sealed as well.

 

[Beavis606]

^ I skimmed an article on cnet or somewhere the other day that said all of the changes Samsung made for the S6 are cost-savers.

 

[funKYcat75]

Aren't those two of the biggest things about the Galaxy S series that were so much better than the iPhone? Seems dumb to change that.

(I've had both, so I'm 'allowed' to comment without being a fanboy)

 

[UKStoops81]

I currently have the S4, if Samsung S series is the same way, no expandable memory, then I'll be looking for a different brand when its time to upgrade.

 

[bbonds]

-- Not being able to replace the battery means that if the battery goes bad, you essentially need another phone. They have essentially turned the phone into the iphone 6.
...

Um what? Jesus Christ dude, you can get the battery replaced with getting a brand new phone.

 

[ukalum]

Originally posted by bbonds:

-- Not being able to replace the battery means that if the battery goes bad, you essentially need another phone. They have essentially turned the phone into the iphone 6.
...

Um what? Jesus Christ dude, you can get the battery replaced with getting a brand new phone.

That's not the way the iphone does it. The battery is sealed. If it goes bad, there's no back cover to remove and replace the battery. You have to send the phone in, and apple just replaces the phone. Any data you have on the phone is lost unless you had it backed up.

The S6 will be the same way.

 

[razinkane1282807]

Originally posted by funKYcat75:
Aren't those two of the biggest things about the Galaxy S series that were so much better than the iPhone? Seems dumb to change that.

(I've had both, so I'm 'allowed' to comment without being a fanboy)

Thwy are actually to big things that Samsung has advertised as to why they are better than iPhone. I find it a bit hypocritical.

I work in the cell phone industry and have always had iPhone (including the 6+) but recently switched to the note 4 so I to can speak on the matter without any fanboydom.

 

[bbonds]

Those two screws on the bottom allow the back to come off. I've had my battery replaced in store. It took 5 minutes.

 

[_ukcat]

I had S4 and dropped in the Lake and I am using old iPhone waiting until my contract was up to get new S6. I had not seen where they will not have SD card slot so I will not be going to S6 now. Probably just get S5 or a Note.

This post was edited on 4/7 9:21 AM by _ukcat

 

[LineSkiCat]

Samsung is starting to annoy me, especially the Galaxy S line. They are trying so hard to be Apple, from nixing features that separated Galaxy from the iPhone, to releasing a phone every year that really isn't any different from the previous version (or even 2 previous versions!). To make matters worse, the S line is basically just the guinea pig for the Note line, where all the changes and fixes to their phones seem to emerge.

The S5 was decent, but not great. I skip generations, so I wouldn't be getting an S6 anyways. But if the S7 isn't dramatically different (and I don't mean adopting all of the iPhones crap sort of different), I'll be looking to HTC/LG for my new phone. Apparently, their newest models blew the Galaxy S out of the water anyways... they just can't compete in sales and market share.

Also, I think Apple AND Samsung both face-planted on their first foray into the "wearbable" market, at least from a design standpoint. As far as 1st generations go, I think companies like Fitbit and Garmin won the battle. If they are smart, they will continue to integrate with the smartphones and continue innovation... something Apple and Samsung have gotten extremely lazy about. I'd take the new Fitbit over the iWatch or Gear any day of the week... but maybe that's because I'm more interested in the fitness portion than the average user.

 

[Mossip]

Originally posted by LineSkiCat:
I'll be looking to HTC/LG for my new phone. Apparently, their newest models blew the Galaxy S out of the water anyways... they just can't compete in sales and market share.

Really looking hard at the HTC M9. I stream a lot of music via spotify, and HTC supposedly makes the best speakers. Question for you audiophiles: if I'm using good headphones, does the source (i.e. phone speakers) make a difference?

Also, does anybody know how far behind the HTC camera is lacking? My Note 3 is pretty shitty when taking photos in artificial light, so I don't know if I want to sacrifice even more if the M9 is that much worse.

This post was edited on 4/11 4:13 PM by Mossip

 

[ukwizard]

My S5 did a update the other day and now my mobile data doesn't work...period.

 

[Bill Bryson's Beard]

Here's a review of the M9: http://www.theverge.com/2015/3/22/8272727/htc-one-m9-review

Samsung is the latest in a long line of android makers to nix swappable batteries and expandable storage. Do any of the (major) brands allow it anymore?

 

[Mossip]

Originally posted by Bill Bryson's Beard:
Here's a review of the M9: http://www.theverge.com/2015/3/22/8272727/htc-one-m9-review

From that review. Well... shit:

THE M9'S NEW CAMERA DOESN'T RESULT IN BETTER PICTURES

 

[LineSkiCat]

Originally posted by Mossip:

Originally posted by LineSkiCat:
I'll be looking to HTC/LG for my new phone. Apparently, their newest models blew the Galaxy S out of the water anyways... they just can't compete in sales and market share.

Really looking hard at the HTC M9. I stream a lot of music via spotify, and HTC supposedly makes the best speakers. Question for you audiophiles: if I'm using good headphones, does the source (i.e. phone speakers) make a difference?

Also, does anybody know how far behind the HTC camera is lacking? My Note 3 is pretty shitty when taking photos in artificial light, so I don't know if I want to sacrifice even more if the M9 is that much worse.

This post was edited on 4/11 4:13 PM by Mossip

I'm behind, I thought the M8 was the most current HTC phone. I remember that one did apparantly have what many said was a weak camera... But it did have some features that were nice. It was a real fast "point and click" camera. I guess the photos did have some additional "noise", but not sure that matters when 99.9% of your photos are viewed on the phone or on Facebook/Instagram. Unless you are blowing these photos up and doing editing, I'm not sure it matters.

And IIRC, The HTC was only better for music lovers because of the nice external speaker. I don't think there was anything on the inside that made it better.

If you have good headphones, I think HTC's Audio features don't matter.

 

[ukalum]

Originally posted by Bill Bryson's Beard:
Here's a review of the M9: http://www.theverge.com/2015/3/22/8272727/htc-one-m9-review

Samsung is the latest in a long line of android makers to nix swappable batteries and expandable storage. Do any of the (major) brands allow it anymore?

I think I read in a review that there are still one or two, but I can't remember which ones. In a couple years, swappable batteries and external storage will be a thing of the past. They are all trying to get thinner and thinner, so eliminating the swappable battery and the SD card slot is the sacrifice they're making.

The S6 has options for up to 128 GB of internal storage, but most people don't even come close to using up the internal storage they currently have. What I like about the SD card is that when you upgrade phones, you can simply remove the card from the old phone and insert it into the new phone, thus not having to transfer all your data into the new phone. In addition, if the phone goes kapoot for any reason, you still have all your data on the SD card; just remove the card. All my data is backed up on external hard drives anyway. It's just a pain in the ass to have to redownload into a new phone.

Swappable batteries aren't that big an issue for me as long as a replacement battery can be installed by the user. I have a thin power block that I can use to rechare and power the phone if necessary when I'm on the go.

I was wrong about the user not being able to replace the battery on the Iphone. Amazon sells replacement battery kits for the Iphone, which includes the battery and the special tools that you need. But it can be tricky and you had better know what you are doing. Iphone batteries are also glued into the phone.

 

[ukrjr1]

Just got the S6 today. Still playing around with it, I like it so far...but I'm a phone simpleton. How do I get my contacts from my S3 to the S6?

 

[_ukcat]

Originally posted by ukrjr1:
Just got the S6 today. Still playing around with it, I like it so far...but I'm a phone simpleton. How do I get my contacts from my S3 to the S6?

I always had my contacts restored when syncing with my gmail account.

 

[LineSkiCat]

Verizon has a cloud app that can do it for you. Or try searching for some of the Android Transfer apps. I used one a while back (since deleted) that let me pick all the types of data I wanted transfered... Pics, video, contacts etc... you then press a button and it transfers over. Mine used NFC between the two devices and it worked great.

A search in the App store or in Google should give you an idea.

 

[Beavis606]

Originally posted by ukrjr1:
Just got the S6 today. Still playing around with it, I like it so far...but I'm a phone simpleton. How do I get my contacts from my S3 to the S6?

Samsung Smart Switch app on both phones = transfer any kind of files you want: music, video, contacts, apps, etc.

 

[ukrjr1]

Originally posted by Beavis606:

Originally posted by ukrjr1:
Just got the S6 today. Still playing around with it, I like it so far...but I'm a phone simpleton. How do I get my contacts from my S3 to the S6?

Samsung Smart Switch app on both phones = transfer any kind of files you want: music, video, contacts, apps, etc.

I downloaded that...is it supposed to take forever? I gave up and ended up doing the Google...would like to sync my apps, pics and music though.

 

[We-Todd-Did]

I used Smart Switch for my s5 and it does take a long time because it's using bluetooth. I selected everything I wanted and went to bed.

 

[ukrjr1]

Originally posted by We-Todd-Did:
I used Smart Switch for my s5 and it does take a long time because it's using bluetooth. I selected everything I wanted and went to bed.

That's probably what I'll do tonight. Anyway, I've had the S6 for several hours...not a whole lot different than my s3.

The good? It charges really, really fast and the pictures are awesome.

Like I said before, I'm a simpleton when it comes to phones so I wouldn't notice anything technical.