All Things Android - Apps, Phones, Tablets - Discussion

I can't offer any explanation for that, all I can say is that it doesn't match my experiences.
I used an S4 for months, all stock and never had any lagging issues. Heck I even use a Mega for work which has much poorer specs and lagging isn't an issue except it takes widgets a while to load after the handset restarts.

I don't think I would ever advise that any more.
Obviously I'm not the most impartial person but having used the S3 and S4 for extended periods, I just don't see a need to flash a custom ROM - in fact, when I think back to my Galaxy Nexus days, I had far more issues with custom ROMs than I do stock.

 

My girlfriend had a Galaxy S 3 with Sprint, and it was nice and snappy in the beginning, but 6 months later it was horribly laggy. Couldn't run even basic games without lag. Restored it back to factory settings, did not fix it. Wonder if it was a similar issue with the Galaxy Nexus and the stock Google image not running GC correctly (whole OS was so laggy).

I bought a Galaxy Nexus as a ghetto tablet and the stock image has been fine minus the GC issue in 4.2.2 for all gnex. Toro (Verizon) and Toroplus (Sprint) had much later releases for 4.3 vs the T-Mobile/AT&T version (Maguro). I actually had to put CM10.1 on the Galaxy Nexus and it fixed nearly all the issues.

But my point was users should have a smooth experience with their phones. That's one reason why I went iPhone (that and Verizon didn't have any Android phones I wanted at the time). I actually used my Nexus 4 stock for about a year, only did OTA Android updates. Never needed to root/flash a custom ROM, because stock Android is smooth and fast. It's sad how Google isn't more strict about what crap they can put on their OS, IMO it doesn't give users the same experience. It's one thing with a 800 dollar flagship phone vs a 250 dollar unlocked cheap phone, but all phones should strive for vanilla Android, and IMO all phones should receive an option for vanilla Android. It's unfortunately Google also doesn't have control on hardware minimums, that also leads to an different experience.

If/When I go back to a SIM carrier, Nexus 4/5 or Sony Z1 might top the list for a SIM phone, I like Sony's UI for Android.

 

I couldn't disagree more.
Trying to use Nexus devices now, I find them so basic, so limited.

Maybe if Google implemented the best of the manufacturer functions, then there would be a strong argument for all devices staying stock but that'll never happen.

 

What do you find so limited about it? All I do on my phone is; check mail, surf some web pages, check messages, browse Facebook/apps, watch some videos and maybe once in awhile play games. I don't feel you need a super fancy UI to do all of that. My usage patterns are no different on iOS, all I want is decent battery life, somewhat durable/reliable. I don't need top end specs, you do not need an 8 core phone to browse Facebook. Unless you are doing real work on your phone, then you made the wrong electronics purchase..

I like the simpleness of vanilla Android. Why do I need to wave to answer a phone? It's super gimmicky at best. It would be one thing if you could uninstall bloatware, but you can't, thus I can only recommend vanilla Android.

 

It doesn't do a large number of the things I use and like.
Multi-window, Air View and particularly the S-Pen are all things I use daily. Not to mention the various camera modes which, while I may not use all the time, are really fun.

That presumes that everyone else you know has precisely the same needs as you.
One man's gimmick is another man's God-send.

 

I've got a Galaxy S3 that's now about a year old. Here's what I found combats lag without the need for a custom ROM:

(1) Switch from TouchWiz Launcher to Nova Launcher Prime. TouchWiz Launcher seems to introduce a LOT of lag, and also seems to drain the battery unusually quickly.

(2) In the application manager, "turn off" apps you never use from Samsung and from your carrier. CityID, Flipboard, Group Play, Music Hub, etc. I've currently got 33 apps "turned off."

Neither of these require rooting, reflashing ROMs, etc, and neither can do any permanent harm or brick a device. If an app cannot safely be turned off, Android won't allow it to "turn off" in the application manager. And you can always turn it back on again if you change your mind or have bad results.

Thanks to those two changes, my GS3 now runs as quickly and smoothly as my wife's Moto X, which is far newer, has far less user-installed software and a near-vanilla install of Android.

 

I've come back to Nova recently - it's possibly the least interesting looking but you can ratchet up those transition animations to the max - Minimal transitions FTW. Going to WP doesn't feel inferior, but since the screens are so similar iOS just feels like I'm swimming in molasses by comparison. I'm actually fairly happy to use a Sony stock, but Brokefeed had to go on the One.

 

Now I'm almost the exact opposite. I will only run Touchwiz for my UI. I found it far easier for me to navigate than Sense, Nova, or whatever Motorola is now calling their custom launcher. I know it causes a lot of lag and battery drain, but its a downside I'm willing to live wit.

I installed Root Uninstall to remove (not freeze, but totally remove) any of the bloatware apps. That includes most of the apps you listed. I have learned from experience that sometimes the app or service will start itself under certain circumstances.

 

I like the Touchwiz skin--I like the toggles in my notification bar, the split-screen multitasking, etc--I just don't like the Touchwiz launcher. Curiously, the lag and the battery drain seems largely connected to the launcher, even though the launcher is not where the added utility of TouchWiz is found. Replace the launcher and your battery drains noticeably slower, there's noticeably less lag, even though you're still able to use all the TouchWiz features like split-screen multitasking.

You can even set up Nova Launcher so that it looks like TouchWiz Launcher--wallpaper fixed in place, app tray on the right of the dock, and dots instead of a bar for which homescreen you're on--and you probably couldn't tell at first glance that you weren't using TouchWiz Launcher, but it'd just run so much better.

 

Can someone please tell me how to get my S3 to stop trying to push 4.3 into my phone. I've seen some tips on other forms but my phone doesn't have the app they suggest turning off. I'm on Sprint if that makes a difference.

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk

 

Like has been stated previously... it's one thing talking about a Samsung S3/4 in the way Samsung themselves intended, as they sell them in the EU. In the US they're so bloated with crap that a stock firmware image for a Galaxy Note II was the same size as a Windows Vista/7 ISO image. That's crazy. Completely. There's no need for there to be that kind of bloat, and it's not surprising the US model S3/4's are bogged down, because their stock images are no smaller. But that's unavoidable, as US carriers have a stranglehold on what they sell and what they won't.

My INTL N7100 ran TouchWiz, and just about everything else thrown at it, like a complete bawse. My US S3 couldn't deal, out of the box. It went straight to CM. CM on the Qualcomm Galaxy phones is as stable as a Nexus, IMHO.

 

Are you rooted? If you're rooted, you can go into /data/fota/ and delete the update zip in that folder. At least, that's what I did. It won't stop the notifications, but it will prevent the update from starting on it's own.

The only sure fire way to stop the update is to actually update to 4.3. Here is the ROM zip I used: [ROM MK3 ROOTED] SPHL710 All In One Installer [ODEX/DEODEX] - xda-developers

There are many more out there. Some which are vanilla android with all the bloatware removed and such.

 

I've only owned a handful of Exynos powered Samsung devices, but all of the Snapdragon, pre-4.3 Samsung phones I've owned lagged to some degree. My S3 recently received the 4.3 update, and it reduced lag considerably.


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No, I'm not rooted. I saw one method that you had to repeat at each startup but would then prevent the popup. But the app listed was not there.

Flown in by carrier pigeon.

 

It's hard to stop and prevent when you're not rooted. But I wouldn't update to the 4.3 using the Sprint update. That will infect your bootloader with a little bug called KNOX. That will basically give Sprint a backdoor to seeing if you ever root and modify your SGS3.

 

Go Jump off a bridge.


THANK YOU!


@Vogel: Thanks, I'll try that . Timeriffi turned out to be a fluke.

 

Fascinating. I'll put it on the books.

 

its awesome you should try it! protect your precious mini me whilst doing it.

 

I have to say, Touchwiz isn't bad on the Note 3. The battery drain I experienced on my Note 2(s), Galaxy S3(s), and Touchwiz is nonexistent.

 

Apparently my car Bluetooth problem has to do with CM11. I got it to work for audio, but I had to turn off the contacts/phone log/messages features. So now I can listen to Pandora or my music and I can do calls but I have to initiate it from my phone.

 

CyanogenMod 11 (and to a degree CM 10 as well) has ongoing problems with Bluetooth on many models. That, in addition to camera app instabilities are my two main issues with the CM 11.0 M3 release on my GS3.

 

So switch to another baked ROM. There are AOSPs out there which have full functionality (or as close to it as baked ROMS can be) for the Note 2.

 

Well... Anyone else disappointed?

 

I'd been hoping for a QHD screen.
The leaks and rumours seemed fairly conclusive, so I'm a little confused.

Other than that, about the only thing I don't get is the decision to stick to 2GB of RAM.

 

No different than the standard GS_ I don't like, cheap plastic feel on a flagship phone.

 

Me. The backing is better than the slick GS3 and the garish fake leather of the Note 3, but it still doesn't compete with the premium materials being used by Apple, Sony, and HTC. And like my GS3, the camera lens that projects out is a scratch-magnet if you choose to go case-less.

A heart-beat monitor on the phone seems like a total gimmick. Am I supposed to keep the phone in my hand while I work out?

On the software side, I'm a little flabbergasted that they revised the home screen aesthetic design AND the menu aesthetic design, yet the two looks are still inconsistent.

I mean, it's still a good phone, but it doesn't really bring anything new to the table.

 

Sorry but I have to say - Sony takes the prize for the most beautifully designed phone (along with the Nexus 5). It's amazing, and I'm definitely getting the white version, as black + white just looks that good.

 

If my carrier carried Xperias, I would ditch my Galaxy and never look back. Love what Sony is doing with their phones nowadays.

 

The thing I don't understand is... WHY DOES EVERY SINGLE OEM HAVE TO MESS UP THE SETTINGS APP?! The tabs were straight from someone's nightmares, the icons look to be just the same.

Don't fix it if it's not broken, and frankly, looks just fine (aesthetically).

 

Sony's UI is plain, simple and elegant. I wish Sony was on Verizon or any CDMA carrier. But I eventually will go back to a SIM carrier, for which either a Nexus or Sony phone would suffice.

 

What on God's Green Earth is that abomination?!?

 

I really can't see what's wrong with it - a typical Gnusmas Galaxy phone. Business as usual.

 

Out of all the phones I've seen so far out of MWC, the LG G Pro 2 (which is large), and the Sony Z2 are the absolute best. BY FAR.

Is Samsung still using a sensor without optical image stabilization? Even the Z2 has Sony's SteadyShot Inside.

 

Never thought I'd see the iPhone playing catchup specs-wise with the Android phones.

 

Why wouldn't they? Apple is more efficient than Android in terms of utilizing the SoC, and hasn't ever needed the latest and greatest. But eventually apps will cause all OEMs to keep upgrading the hardware. It's a balance between performance/responsiveness and battery life/heat/reliability. I can safely say, you don't need 4 or 8 cores to do normal tasks like surf the web, check Facebook, check email, occasional gaming. Does subsidies and Google's plan on expanding market share great for consumers, sure it is. It allows technology to grow and keep innovation up. If nobody wanted to go faster, we'd still have single cores with 512 MB RAM.

 

You mean why would they?

I will admit my aunt's iPhone 4S runs smoother than my SGS3. But I also know my SGS3 takes a better resolution photo, and videos on it's screen look better as well. I will be the first to admit that better specs do make the phone experience that much more enjoyable. But how far is too far? Quad-core, Octa-core? Who needs that in a smartphone? I've looked at a 1080 phone screen, and videos didn't look any clearer on the 1080 screen compared to my 720 screen. So why focus on those specs??

I would say a phone with a 720p screen, dual-core CPU, 4GB RAM, 8MP camera is more than enough for the modern schmo. Storage space is subjective as data needs will increase over the times. And microSD cards will never be phased out of phones.

 

iOS is all native code. Optimized to hell and back. Android is layers of abstraction with apps running in dalvik. Sure iOS is going to be better on lesser hardware.

Also, and this maybe just because I have 20/13 vision, but I can definitely tell the difference in a 1080p panel and a 720p panel. It all depends on the panel size. I think 4.3-4.5, 720p is perfect. 4.7+ should be FHD 1080p. Also, your argument about the quad vs octa... just depends on the hardware. Samsung's Exynos 5 Octa is very well optimized (it took long enough), and Snapdragon 800/801/805 are VERY efficient, because they can run full clock speeds at just 1-1.1V.

Anyways, Apple is a monster with their SoC's. A7 was amazing. A8 will be equally amazing. Their purchase of P.A. Semi was brilliant.

 

I feel once you get past 5 inches in screen size, your into tablet territory (phablets be damned).

In that case, of course the display should be running FHD.

And I'm not saying the Exynos or Quad Snapdragon aren't efficient or optimized. After all, it did take long enough. What I am saying is why. On a standard smartphone, you won't be running CoD at 60fps all day long. Nor will you be using your smartphone for video post-processing or bitcoin mining. Its like putting a V8 long block into a VW beetle. It just doesn't make sense to me. And with Android switching runtimes from JIT to AOT, one would think the minimum CPU speeds necessary to run the future versions of Android will not increase as drastically as it has been with each successive update of Android.

But that's just me. And I've been told I'm both wasteful and crazy today cause I don't want to recycle our bathwater to use in watering our garden.

 

I feel 1080p is kinda overkill. There isn't a huge difference on such a small screen, and it also makes your SoC work alot harder for not a huge lot of pros. The Nexus 4 was great, if that chassis was refreshed with new specs but keeps the 720p screen, I would rebuy it. I can say I'm not a huge fan of the soft touch on the new Nexus devices. I prefer the glass back of the old Nexus 4.

 

I think the S5 looks like a nice balance between the Note 3 and S4. The Note 3 is awesome, but a little too big to take jogging or fit in skinnier jeans.


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I get the feeling the Note 4 will outsize the iPad mini.

 

More apt would be putting a bi-turbo BMW V6 in a GTI. Efficient when you don't need it, but step on that gas pedal and feel the G-Force.

But either way, why question? If they want to put all that crazy fast hardware in a phone, why not just let them go. Push the envelope as far as they can. Better to have too much than not enough.

 

You still going off about that V12 in the VW Golf? Good Lordy...

Ever heard the phrase, "Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should"?

Putting a larger screen in a phone (or higher resolution one) will mean beefing up the SoC...which the OEMs do as well.

That translates to a bigger battery...

Which leads to a larger chassis...

Oh, wait! If we have to increase the chassis size, we might as well increase the screen size again as well...

Derp, a derp derp derp!

It's a vicious circle HAL. I give props to Apple for sticking to their guns for all these years. They designed the iPhone to be a smartphone, not an eventual replacement the iPad. They give whatever improvements and upgrades they can within the strict confines of minimalistic iPhone design. And that is where all these Android phablets are headed. Buncha r******* fish-squirrels.

So my question is again... why?!

If I were to compare the iPhone 3G to the iPhone 5S in size, here's what I would get:

iPhone 3G	iPhone 5S
4.5"	4.87"
2.4"	2.31"
0.48"	0.30"

Now look at the Galaxy S compared to the Galaxy S5:

Galaxy S	Galaxy S5
4.82"	5.59"
2.53"	2.85"
0.39"	0.32"

All that power they're cramming in there is just making the Galaxy S bigger and bigger. IMHO, it's not worth it. Smartphones were revolutionized to be small devices. I worry by the time the S6 rolls around, its dimensions will be larger than the original Note.

:cry:

 

And then you have LG. They've fit a 5.2" display in a phone the same size as the HTC One which has 4.7".

There's always the Z1 Compact, or mini versions of flagships (which are often less powerful).

But then that's how I live my life... I do things because I can. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn't.

Also, as for the new phones announced today, I'm really interested in that G Pro 2. Along with all the other great features, like microSD support and a 3200mAh removable battery, it also has "1W HiFi Sound". Definitely interested to see what they've done there. If they've strapped an amp to that WCD9320, I'm all over it.

 

The G Pro 2 does look interesting, but anything over 5.5" is already a stretch for me. The Z2 is basically my match from heaven : very sexy, industrial design, amazing screen and cameran and minimalist design. The White Z2 will be mine in July

 

Damn, that Z2 is a nice phone. Almost makes me want to ditch Sprint for T-Mobile just so I can pirate one of those onto it's network (Since Sony will never sell it in the US).

The G Pro 2 still has the small problem of a horn growing out of it's butt...

 

*coughs*

Speaking of runtimes, any idea why the official CM11 nightlies for the i9500 don't support ART while Alberto96's unofficial nightlies do?

 

My music is now all up in my Google. And of course now my primary handsets are back to being Googlified. As someone who prides himself on his relative lack of attachment to the all-seeing eye I'm not sure how I feel about this.

 

Anyone know what DACs the new phones are using? That will probably be a big deciding factor for me when I get a new phone when I return home.

I'll probably use an external amp when I'm home with my higher impedance headphones. If possible I'll be using an external DAC as well if the new phones output a digital audio signal. I just want a phone with decent audio.

Sent from my XT912 using Tapatalk

 

Every time someone refers to a BMW inline-6 as a V6, a third-world country erupts in civil war. Have you no conscience?