New phone. Again

[detron]

I find it ironic that they do not want people "hacking" their phones to do even more, when that is exactly how we got to the point of having a smart phone in the first place.   

wihtout hackers, or boundary pushers.  a cell phone would just be a phone.  someone always try to make what they have do more.

the first Generation XBOX was hacked to be a home theater system, and what did the next PlayStation have built in?  yep, that.

[jzmtl]

What unauthorized changes have you made?

I agree about the annoyances of not being able to modify your own items, but I think even Samsung has a long way to go before it becomes like those other guys.

Def

Sent from my smurfing hunk of techno sorcery

I rooted it an hour after I brought it home. 

Don't really care about if I can upgrade OTA,  it's just the way they do things. Car manufacturers can't void your warranty unless they can prove the damage was caused by your mod, but phone manufacturers can do what's essentially void your warranty if your swap in an aftermarket radio.

[jzmtl]

I find it ironic that they do not want people "hacking" their phones to do even more, when that is exactly how we got to the point of having a smart phone in the first place.   

wihtout hackers, or boundary pushers.  a cell phone would just be a phone.  someone always try to make what they have do more.

the first Generation XBOX was hacked to be a home theater system, and what did the next PlayStation have built in?  yep, that.

It is. I hacked my s2 for features I want, guess what I find in s5 stock,  exactly the things I hacked for.

[Whoey]

If I was looking at any of the Galaxy range I'd probably want to buy a Google Play Edition.

Software wise I love how bloat free that my Nexus 4 is vs my wife's Galaxy core... Of course it does come loaded with Google bloat...

I think it's great that Samsung is trying to include a bunch of apps to cover features that people may want, but it'd be great if you could axe it (ChatOn on my wifes phone for example). She has loads of samsung crap that keeps wanting to update that she never uses.

[Grant Lamontagne]

Yeah I hate the Samsung apps too. I never use them, but that's the problem with Android.  Luckily I can actually deactivate a lot of crap on the s5 that I had to pit up with before, so I'm happy about that.

So far I'm still very happy with this phone.  I can't remember how long the honeymoon with the s3 was, but I'm pretty certain the s5 is already past the point where I started to dislike the s3.

Def

Sent from a digital multitool

[Syph007]

the first Generation XBOX was hacked to be a home theater system, and what did the next PlayStation have built in?  yep, that.

Both my tvs in the house still use original xbox's for media streaming.    12 years old and still ticking.  I have a roku as well for netflix and the other modern stuff.

[jzmtl]

Yeah I hate the Samsung apps too. I never use them, but that's the problem with Android.  Luckily I can actually deactivate a lot of crap on the s5 that I had to pit up with before, so I'm happy about that.

So far I'm still very happy with this phone.  I can't remember how long the honeymoon with the s3 was, but I'm pretty certain the s5 is already past the point where I started to dislike the s3.

Def

Sent from a digital multitool

The hardware is indeed quite impressive. I'm playing with camera and the hdr is super fast and looks great, you can take full size 16 mpx  photos while shooting 1080 video etc.

I've uninstalled all the Samsung and bell bloat.

[captain spaulding]

Just got a new phone. Free phone with a $30 air card for the month. Totally piece of crap phone, but all I need it to do is make phone calls.

[jerseydevil]

Just got a new phone. Free phone with a $30 air card for the month. Totally piece of crap phone, but all I need it to do is make phone calls.

Hey, if it works it works.  My phone and plan are actually from Walmart, a Galaxy Centura and $45/month unlimited phone, text, and web.  I've had the service for years now, and have never had an issue with it.

[Grant Lamontagne]

Can't argue with a plan like that.

Def

Sent from my smurfing hunk of techno sorcery

[Mercury]

Still liking the S5 Grant?  I've had mine since May, and I'm pretty happy.  It's a bit too big for me, so next time I upgrade I will be getting a smaller phone. 

[jekostas]

Just got my dad a Motorola G to replace his POS Samsung slider phone.  He drives up from Vancouver to Kelowna (~4 hours with no traffic) alone or with my Mom on a regular basis and I wanted him to have a reliable phone that stood a chance of actually getting service..

For the ~$130 I paid (plus $1 for unlocking) it's a frankly exceptional phone.  It doesn't touch my Nexus 5 spec or capability wise but for the price I have no complaints.

Also, apparently it can survive quite a dunking in water, which is surprising since it's not IPX rated.

[jzmtl]

Still liking the S5 Grant?  I've had mine since May, and I'm pretty happy.  It's a bit too big for me, so next time I upgrade I will be getting a smaller phone.

It's about my limit for one hand operation, especially with a case. The 1920x1080 screen is fine enough that I can't see individual pixels even when I try, so interesting to see where they go from here consider the size and resolution has reached practical limit.

[Grant Lamontagne]

I am very much still enjoying the S5.  In fact I'm posting on it now.

I still find the auto correct on it to be rather tyrannical but I'm very impressed that it hasn't slowed down or gotten bogged down yet.  The S3 I had prior to this was great for the first couple of weeks then started to get sluggish, but the S5 is still going strong and I haven't done anything with it that I didn't do with the others.

I like the screen size. I'd still rather something bigger since spreadsheets are a pain to read in direct sunlight, but I suppose there is a convenience factor to take into account.

I really liked my HTC Touch, I really liked my Motorola Atrix and the S3 was a good phone (for a few weeks) but I have to say, this S5 is the best phone I've had so far.

Def

Sent from my smurfing hunk of techno sorcery

[Mercury]

I agree.   Size gripe aside this phone is incredible.  I love the remote control app for my TV, and video is stunning on it.   

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

[Mr. Whippy]

+2

The S5 is fantastic performance wise.  I also wish autocorrect wasn't so aggressive, but I can work around it.  It's almost replaced my Nexus 7.  Almost...

It is kinda big, carry wise though...

[Syph007]

Is it bigger than the S3?  I'd very much like larger.  I could upgrade and my wife could carry the s3.

[derekmac]

I want to get an S5, but I'm going to wait until the used prices come down.  They're still way more than I want to spend on one.

[Mercury]

+2

The S5 is fantastic performance wise.  I also wish autocorrect wasn't so aggressive, but I can work around it.  It's almost replaced my Nexus 7.  Almost...

It is kinda big, carry wise though...

I love my nexus 7!!

The S5 is bigger than the S3, and much better. 

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

[Whoey]

I think I'd be game for a Google Play edition Galaxy S4/5. After playing with my wife's Galaxy Core I can honestly say I don't much care for the Samsung overlay on Android.

[comis]

Hey, a quick question about S5.  A friend told me they no longer have google play-store in the phone, and apps could only be downloaded via internet, if I don't want to use Samsung bloatware...is that true? 

The only thing that's could be a show stopper for me is the S4 I am using is full of Samsung bloatware, and man, it really drags everything down.  I think they could be a little delusional to think they are the same as Google, if they just fill their phone with S-calendar, S-store, S-mail...etc.  I hope Samsung would have enough sense to not kill the play-store. 

[jekostas]

Hey, a quick question about S5.  A friend told me they no longer have google play-store in the phone, and apps could only be downloaded via internet, if I don't want to use Samsung bloatware...is that true? 

The only thing that's could be a show stopper for me is the S4 I am using is full of Samsung bloatware, and man, it really drags everything down.  I think they could be a little delusional to think they are the same as Google, if they just fill their phone with S-calendar, S-store, S-mail...etc.  I hope Samsung would have enough sense to not kill the play-store. 

No, this isn't true.  The S5 is a Google-certified device and has the Play store installed.

[Mr. Whippy]

The new S5's are very hard to root.  Not sure it's worth trying anymore.  Biggest bummer is, if you load a program onto a microSD card it may not function correctly, since kitkat doesn't allow you to copy, paste, move items to and from microSD anymore.

[comis]

Hey, a quick question about S5.  A friend told me they no longer have google play-store in the phone, and apps could only be downloaded via internet, if I don't want to use Samsung bloatware...is that true? 

The only thing that's could be a show stopper for me is the S4 I am using is full of Samsung bloatware, and man, it really drags everything down.  I think they could be a little delusional to think they are the same as Google, if they just fill their phone with S-calendar, S-store, S-mail...etc.  I hope Samsung would have enough sense to not kill the play-store. 

No, this isn't true.  The S5 is a Google-certified device and has the Play store installed.

Wheee...that' a little better. 

The new S5's are very hard to root.  Not sure it's worth trying anymore.  Biggest bummer is, if you load a program onto a microSD card it may not function correctly, since kitkat doesn't allow you to copy, paste, move items to and from microSD anymore.

I read about the same thing earlier in this thread, but not loading from external storage is just a big no-no.  I felt it is already happening on my S4, and I really wonder why would they not fix that, and to make it even worse...so the rom on phone would get jam packed and users will feel the drag as the new model comes out? 

[Whoey]

I don't see the issue... Save your apps in the built in storage, and keep media on the SD card... I'm pretty sure I set my wife's phone to store her photos on SD...

sent from my Firespray-31-class patrol and attack craft

[Mr. Whippy]

I don't see the issue... Save your apps in the built in storage, and keep media on the SD card... I'm pretty sure I set my wife's phone to store her photos on SD...

sent from my Firespray-31-class patrol and attack craft

Not sure if it will do that.  It's a security problem.  SD cards are FAT and therefore a folder can't be specified for just one app.  Either there's access for all or for none.  (At least that's how I understood it).  Google decided to prevent you from writing onto the SD card.  I don't think you can save photos to SD.  It's almost like ROM now.

[Whoey]

Since I don't have sd cards on my nexus 4 & 7 I have no idea. My wife's phone is only running 4.1.x not 4.4 that my nexii are

sent from my Firespray-31-class patrol and attack craft

[Mr. Whippy]

Since I don't have sd cards on my nexus 4 & 7 I have no idea. My wife's phone is only running 4.1.x not 4.4 that my nexii are

sent from my Firespray-31-class patrol and attack craft

Yeah, this was a change made in kitkat (4.4.x)  There's the whole towelroot thing that went on.  Then Google hired the guy who figured out the crack for 4.4 to root it.  Now that hole is patched and the guy (geohot) has been hired to seek out and patch holes in software all over the internet for google.  The kid is like 19 years old.

[Whoey]

Sounds familiar, although I haven't been praying much attention to anything this past 9 months or so...

sent from my Firespray-31-class patrol and attack craft

[Mr. Whippy]

Sounds familiar, although I haven't been praying much attention to anything this past 9 months or so...

sent from my Firespray-31-class patrol and attack craft

 

Oh?