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Hold on tight, we are almost back...

Previously on Lemmy: Sony

Past Discussions:

I thought we should restart the brand discussion with something more popular to give this community relaunch a bit more oomph. So, Samsung it is.

I've never really used a Samsung phone much before, despite them being so popular in the States. Have friends who used them, they usually look nice and high quality, and the Galaxy S Active are the only high-end phones I know that doesn't shatter when you look at them wrong without a case, so, props to Samsung.

There are may reasons I don't like Samsung phones: Hardware fuse disabling Knox on bootloader unlock, Exynos vs Snapdragon models, the mandatory Bixby button, the Galaxy Note 7 that really blew up. To me, Samsung phones are trying so hard to go against what makes Android good, which is the customizability to do whatever you wanted. Android is everything; Samsung is just Samsung.

Personally, I think Samsung is only worth buying at the very high end for the Galaxy S series. I've heard that A series have gotten better, but there always seems to be better choices from Moto/Pixel/Chinese brands on Amazon that it's not worth considering their low tier offering.

What should we do next week? I'm thinking Microsoft, just to make fun of them for the very idea of making a Surface Duo 2.

FAQ:

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[-] s4if@lemmy.my.id 3 points 1 year ago

I use cheap M11 phone. Solid and durable phone but a bit overpriced on my country. It survive my abuse for 2 and half years until now from dropped to gravel repatedly to get washed using tap water (dont try this at home, lol). It also somehow always better at receiving signal than my wife's Xiaomi phone. I love it.

[-] Moonwalk@lemm.ee 3 points 1 year ago

I haven't had a Samsung phone since Android Gingerbread, but I do have a Samsung TV in my guests room and every time it gets turned on, my pi-hole blocks a lot of traffic under the ads and tracking category, so Samsung's phones are probably similar.

I think their screens are really good and they also have 5 generations of foldable devices, more than any other company.

Still, I wouldn't buy one because I don't like their software and they tend to restrict functionality unless you use other Samsung devices. For instance, a Samsung Galaxy watch, even running Wear OS, will not have all the features enabled unless you pair it with a Samsung phone.

[-] DigitalTraveler42@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

When LG folded their mobile division I chose a Motorola over a Samsung.

The only thing I'd buy from Samsung without a lot of persuasion is Samsung's SSD drives, which are usually the best and most reliable on the market.

The main problem is that Samsung is one of the worst hardware manufacturers in terms of valuing privacy, even their TV's are being geared towards spamming ads at you and spying on you through their cameras.

Also Samsung forces Facebook/Meta bloat ware on you.

[-] Kuma@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

I dislike Samsung phones. Always has. But because they are so popular have I tried them two times (I am a bit of a advocate of try first criticize later)I am on one right now (s21). Bixby is my biggest source of annoyance together with all their other apps I can't uninstall and stuff I am used to be able to customize. Bixby wouldn't have been annoying if it wasn't because they force you to use it. I had to turn off the shortcut by setting it to turn off the phone only so now do I need to use a sidebar to do stuff like taking a screenshot. I got used to it but it annoys me when a standard is removed. It is like when you want to do copy on a computer and ctrl + C is an assistant instead and you need to use the mouse now because you can't bind the keys as you wish (it is either assistant or dead keys). the battery is pretty bad too, I am not a heavy phone user (2-3h per day) but it is still at around 30% in the evening. My other phones has been Sony, Huawei and Motorola. So I am used to a battery that last for almost 2-3 days. Samsung also overheat (and I guess that is why the battery is draining). I have my screen brightness at the lowest possible because that seem to be the reason it gets so hot(it gets extreamly hot in a short time on higher brightness) it will get hot if I use it for 15 min or more(non dark mode). My coworker had the same model and the battery almost completely died on him (it started to bloat up) so I am a bit worried the same will be true for mine.

One good thing is their dule Sim, I don't want to use two phones (work and private) and it is pretty easy to switch in the ui.

When this one is dead will I buy a pixel. I like to try out different models and phones even if I love moto. Some day would I like to try a OS like calcy but I need to do more research first.

[-] chk232@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

Used mid end phone m20. Looks good on paper. Shit phone. Can't repair.

Samsung is just apple with Android phones.

[-] Jz5678910@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

I've never had a good experience with Samsung till recently. The s4 overheated an insane amount, the s7 edge dropped wifi left and right, then finally I tried the fold 3 on my 3rd attempt at Samsung.

I enjoyed the phone for the aspect of the fold, the software handled it really well. But, one ui couldn't get out of its own way, it had a lot of nice extra features, but also had a lot of useless (to me) extra features. The bloat like others mentioned was bad. But ok, not super offensive like it was on the old touch wiz.

I kept that phone a little over a year, the battery aged terribly. It started out great, then by the 7 or 8 month mark, it just dove off a cliff. At the 11th month, the factory screen protector, the one that's like essential to the phone, popped a huge bubble right in the middle where the fold happens. Thankfully that was under warranty and I got replaced, but that was when I knew it was time to go.

I picked up a pixel 6 pro and sold the fold 3. I'm now on the pixel 7 pro. I replaced the galaxy buds with pixel buds, but I kept the watch. I will give it to Samsung on that, they have the best wear os watch experience I've ever used.

The experience syncing devices in the ecosystem was very nice, very apple like, and I do miss the quick sync between my phone and tablet. Google messages PWA is nowhere near as nice as the messages app on the Tab S7. Not being able to take phone calls on it anymore kinda sucks too. The earbuds and watch are pretty fluid, but not quite as seamless as when it was all Samsung.

[-] Atemu@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 year ago

Battery life is seriously impressive and they do offer some customisations over stock that aren't even found in LOS but overall pretty meh and bloated.

[-] sentient_loom@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 year ago

I've had a few samsun galaxy phones. They have been really fantastic. Lightning fast and very reliable. The only other smart phone i've had was a sony xperia which was equally excellent. My current galaxy is 3 years old with 6GB of ram and it's still lightning fast.

[-] aluminium@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

My opinion on them based on my last phone I got from them (S22 Ultra Exynos) is pretty mid just like the phone for its price. I overall think they are right now in a bit of a slump and resting very much on their laurels. Their phones are still for the most part very good, market leading in some points even, but they have slowed down the innovation a lot. Like the last 3 Galaxy Ultra phones are pretty much the same product. And the regular S20, S21, ... line also takes 0 risks and cuts one too many corners for my liking. And the whole Exynos situation is just a shame since usually where I live we pay more for less. If they stuck those Chips in 500 - 700€ ish phones and passed along the saving they would wipe the floor with all the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 1 wannabe flaghips.

What I think however nobody will take away from them anytime soon is OneUI. I think right now its the best and most feature complete Android skin and its refreshing seeing Samsung stick and refine one design for this long (before they changed the look and feel every 2 - 3 years). I only wish they would bring back Linux on Dex which was in beta for some time. That would be a killer feature for me!

[-] TrippaSnippa@lemm.ee 2 points 1 year ago

I want to like them, but Exynos has consistently ruined it for me. I live in one of the countries that got the Exynos versions of their flagship phones until very recently. I had a Note 9 which the US-based Android world raved about, but I was unimpressed because the Exynos version was just that much worse and I feel the same way about the Galaxy S21+ I have now.

The processor overheats and throttles after the slightest workload making the system UI a laggy, janky mess and the battery life is mediocre at best. The modem is crap too, it switches between 5G and 4G for no discernible reason far too often.

The camera is infuriatingly slow all around; slow to launch, slow shutter, slow processing and slow UI. I miss so many photos of my toddler because of it. I had my phone replaced under warranty for an unrelated issue and the replacement has the exact same problem.

[-] fury@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

I have a Galaxy A13 as a test phone for work. Not great, but great for the price. The UI is fine. Cheap Android phones have gotten a lot better recently.

I have a Galaxy Tab S8 for myself. I like the 120hz screen and the design, it feels solid and pretty. Good speakers. I also have a Galaxy Tab A7 Lite that I got for free from T-mobile. I like the size

Got a couple of Galaxy Tab S5e at work for testing purposes as well. Currently both of them have been hacked up to install Android Automotive and one of them is in my car serving as my infotainment system. Pretty sweet.

I wish Samsung would allow unlockable bootloaders on their US phones/tablets with cellular radios in them. I want to hack up my A7 Lite to install Android Automotive so I don't have to hotspot to the S5e anymore.

[-] _MoveSwiftly@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

They're the best Android phone, but not the best experience.

When it works, it works really well. I've had many of their Galaxy line up. I've even switched briefly to iPhone and came back to a Galaxy S23 Ultra, and it's so so good.

On the other hand, their budget phones aren't bad. I use one of their really old A lineup phones as a digital dash of OBD2 data for my car. That battery is just amazing, it stays charged for days, takes in the heat, and still operates no problem.

The only issue I have is support. They want to demand similar pricing to Apple, but if something break it's pretty much go fuck yourself attitude.

[-] Ignisnex@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

I had one about a decade ago after my HTC Magic. Didn't like it, never went back. My mother keeps buying them and is infinitely frustrated. She'll also ask for help and I have no idea what to tell her. They move all the settings around, so it's next to impossible to understand unless you already know it.

I know we're not doing Sony here, but the Xperia Performance X was the most amazing phone I've ever seen. Glass slate phone dropped out of a god damned car on the highway at 120km/h. Chipped a corner and went on the work for another 2 years. Same phone went through a foam and mud obstacle course run in no case. Dirt and water wedger in every square inch of the thing, still worked for another 3 years, although the camera lenses did have some water in it (camera still worked though!). Only phone I've ever been impressed by.

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[-] acrobaticpenguin23@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

I've had several Samsung phones over the years and do not like how bloated their apps have become like Samsung Notes, Samsung Health, and such. I liked their software experience when S5 was released much better. Remember Milk Music? 🙂

The only reason to buy a Samsung these days is their top shelf hardware but primarily in. their flagships. Also had hardware issue with last Samsung flagship device I owned and then awful tech support from Samsung to boot.

Moto has really upped their game especially in their Moto G 2023 5G models.(U.S. here) I'll be sticking with Moto mid-range going forward.

[-] Rooki@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

I feel its the "cheap" ( even if it costs so much ) like preinstalled sponsored apps, some bad performance on like 2-3 Year old phones. Not the best ui. But its like the standard in every phone.

[-] MargotRobbie@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

To be honest, I blame Google for not enforcing some parts of the ecosystem strongly enough for that. It took a while for most Windows laptops to be debloated, and I would expect the same from Android eventually.

[-] RandyButternubs@lemmy.nz 1 points 1 year ago

If you get the right model they are nice but stock firmware is not the best not the worst

[-] waterbogan@lemmy.world 1 points 1 year ago

Not Made In China. My A31 is made in Vietnam. Primary reason I bought it

Yes, there is bloatware, but I have disabled a lot of it, and put Nova Launcher on it to clean up the UI and customise to my liking

I have been happy with it, have had the screen replaced on it when it got broken, was not that expensive

[-] TheInsane42@lemmy.world 1 points 1 year ago

I bought a Samsung A13, but found that there is no Lineage for it, it's dumped in the drawer and I installed the latest Lineage on my Nokia 6.1. Alas the Motorola's (Moto G, G2, G4) had hardware issues to soon.

The hardware is great, software of . I love the tablets I have, but again, running Lineage.

When going for another device, Lineage support is main requirement, I don't care to much about the rest. As phone Fairphone or google pixel are considered options for now, but the '18 Nokia 6.1 still works perfectly. Alas there are no relative small (< 5") phones anymore. Loved the size of the Moto G.

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this post was submitted on 24 Jul 2023
184 points (95.5% liked)

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