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Consumer Reports Rates Galaxy S8 Over iPhone 7 as 'iPhone 8' Rumored to Address Most Shortcomings
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I think it is reasonable to compare the current best from both companies? It is not as if the iPhone costs less the older it gets? it you have $800 to spend, don't you just compare $800 phones?
[doublepost=1497480287][/doublepost]
With an Apple-branded Samsung made device!
You speak with such conviction. LoL! Your source: Written by one of the "respected journalists" that decided to leave -- no sour grapes indeed.
I rate your reference, alternet.org, as a respected and trusted publication, above them all. Exactly as you do. /s
My own experiences with Consumers Reports have been positive at large.
So, let us agree to disagree.
You read and follow alternet.org to guide you, and I will continue to use Consumer Reports as initial guidance for products I have no expertise to distill the good from the chaff -- products such as mattresses, large appliances, and services.
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I've owned almost every iPhone, the Galaxy S5 and S8+, and Google Pixel XL to name a few. I also worked in an AT&T retail store for 2 years. The Galaxy S8 is the best phone I've ever owned/used both in hardware design and software features. Samsung Pay and Google Assistant are miles ahead of Apple. Plus I love the integration with Google services. Wireless charging has become a must have feature for me. The S8 definitely has it's flaws though. The software isn't as polished as Apple and the Bixby button is pointless.
That being said, I'm very excited to see what Apple introduces this fall as I'm still an Apple fan at heart and would love to see them surpass Samsung again.
That being said, I'm very excited to see what Apple introduces this fall as I'm still an Apple fan at heart and would love to see them surpass Samsung again.
How does Samsung pay differ from Apple Pay? How is it miles away ?
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It makes sense because they are the two most recent phones from the leading cellphone companies.
Don't worry, you will when the iPhone 8 is rated better than the Galaxy S8 in a few months.
I also have both and agree. There is so much more that I miss when I go from the S8+ to the iP7+ vs the other way around. Both phones are extremely reliable.
The best battle will be between the upcoming iPhone 8 (premium model) and the Note 8.
It works at any location because the phone puts out an NFC and MST signal. MST basically tricks the card read into thinking a card was swiped. You also get Samsung pay rewards just for using it. I'm up to a $50 gift card.
The S8 is a nice design but I still think curved displays are pointless, it seems such a useless thing when watching videos for instance.
It's definitely beautiful - but due to the bezel-less design, it was a pain viewing Netflix/Hulu without hitting multiple on-screen buttons. Couldn't find a setting to properly lock the screen. Samsung exceeds in hardware yet the software always leave little to be desired.
I don't have that problem. Netflix auto hides onscreen buttons, and only shows up again when you tap the screen.
In other words, S8 has form as well as function over the Iphone 7.
Hardware
- Large OLED infinity WQHD+ display with high 85% screen/body ratio and HDR support.
- Wireless Charging
- Fast Charging (50% in half hour and full charge in 1 hr 30 min - for S8+)
- Headphone jack
- Dual SIM card support.
- MicroSD card support (additional 256 GB)
- Built-in pedometer + heart rate/SP02 sensor
- IRIS scanner - for security
- IP68 water resistant rating
- USB-C/UTG
- HDMI out - supports full 4K screen output to TV
- Bluetooth 5.0
- LED Notification Light
- LTE - highest Cat 16 support
Connectivity
- WIFI Display (or miracast) built-in. Mirror phone screen to any wifi-capable TV without any additional setup/intermediate hardware (like apple tv). Coupled with a wireless mouse/keyboard via UTG to phone then you have pseudo-desktop.
- DLNA built-in support : stream music/video to any DLNA enabled devices without needing any setup.
- Sidesync : operate phone from any PC/mac within wifi network. Phone screen appears as a virtual window in PC/mac. You can use PC mouse/speaker/mic to make calls or continue an editing session or run any apps in the phone from the PC. Similar to Iphone hand-off/continuity but more flexible.
- DEX docking station- transform phone into a full desktop.
- Transfer any files between any devices via Wifi-Direct / BT. No additional setup/hardware requirement.
- Plug in portable disk/thumbdrive/mouse/gamepad directly to phone using usb cable. Quickly transfer out your files/photos/videos. Or just play a video off your portable drive. Or use a gamepad to play games. Or use mouse to interact with phone.
- Play music to 2 different sound devices via BT 5.0 (e.g. share music to 2 BT headsets). Also set individual app to specific sound source e.g. waze to always output sound to phone speakers and music players to BT. Using sound assistant you can set up different sound profiles depending on situations. Use Adapt Sound to fine tune sound to match you.
- Samsung Pay - can be used at more outlets (since it supports both NFC and magnetic strip)
- File System: something fundamental that we have been using (that's missing from Iphone).
- VR headset support - a whole new experience for you to explore
- With Samsung Connect + SmartThings Hub - provide an integrated eco-system to connect/manage your TV/fridge/appliances or home audio/visual and home accessories like lights/sensors.
- Samsung Flow - to connect/integrate with Windows eco-system.
- Download Booster - combine both LTE and Wifi download simultaneously
OS / Software
AOD - always on display. simple and yet very useful. Plus you can theme it as well.
Multi-Window - run apps in separate top/bottom windows or popup windows simultaneously. e.g continue to view you tube while you are doing a whatsapp chat.
Secure Folder - it is like a second login environment. It has a separate copy of system settings. You can install second copy of your app here and it runs in its own seperate data space. e.g. you can concurrently run 2 copies of whatsapp (one for work number and the other personal) and get notify at the same time. Or setup another Exchange account to sync work email which is only viewable in secure folder.
Game launcher - a separate environment to launch games. You can set sound, notify on/off, no accidental touches, boost performance etc
Immersive mode - set the top status or bottom navigation (or both) to auto-hide to maximise screen area. Can set exclusion for certain apps. Can have floating panel with home, back, task buttons for easy one handed use.
Set default app - you can set your own app to be default app to open different kind of files/data. Or change the soft keyboard.
Shortcut - create shortcuts to anything: one touch direct dial/sms, directly open battery usage in Settings, open specific screen of an app directly etc. Place shortcuts anywhere - in homescreen, notification, side panel etc.
Home/Launcher - fully customizable with themes, widgets, icon packs and live wallpapers - no more boring grid of icons. You can also use other launchers as well. Personalize your UI anyway you like.
Smart Lock - auto unlock when phone is connected to certain pre-specified locations (incl BT/Wifi/geo locations)
Side panels - you can clip part of screen as image/gif/OCR text. Many useful add-on panels as well.
Samsung Health - you can have widget to show your steps, measure your heart rate/sp02/stress, track your workouts all using the phone only.
Google Assistant - use voice command to ask it to do stuff for you.
App Store: Many app stores to choose from. You can also side-load apps giving you more flexibilities and cost benefits.
Other Niceties - (1) record phone calls. (2) smart stay to keep screen on while you are looking at it. (3) Screen recorder to record what's happening on screen (4) answer call by pressing volume key (5) reduce UI size for one handed use (6) take continuous screen shot (7) flip phone over to mute call (8) quickly launch camera by double press power button
Automation
There are unlimited possibilities with Android multi-tasking capability. You can setup tasks which the phone can do automatically for you. This opens up quite a lot of use cases NOT possible with Iphone. Some examples you can have running in your phone.
- auto set ring/network profile depending on situations (at home/work/outdoors)
- auto send SMS when near pickup location (great if you pick up someone regularly)
- redirect important calls to covering when you are engaged.
- start call recording when calls from certain persons.
- auto change wallpaper based on events.
- mute/unmute ring based on calendar meetings.
- timed ring profile.
- tap on NFC sticker - initiated certain tasks.
- auto send canned SMS to birthday
- pull files from certain ftp/http locations to phone periodically or when certain parameters changed
- selective sync from cloud storage to local folders
- auto start/close apps when certain app is started.
- start music app when headphone is plug in
- start certain app(s) on phone remotely or using a SMS.
-set screen to landscape when certain apps are launched.
-auto read out received sms/whatsapp under certain preset conditions like driving/phone turned over/etc
- and many many more.
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In other words, S8 has form as well as function over the Iphone 7.
Not sure if you are serious....
You literally just copy and paste from Samsung ads or something...
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This entire thread is by people "writing" without reading the CR article, starting with the MR article!
A lot of chatter over a single line in a ranking list, with no in-depth comparison of features, and, almost everyone is freaking about it for over 8+pages.
In other words, S8 has form as well as function over the Iphone 7.
Hardware
- Large OLED infinity WQHD+ display with high 85% screen/body ratio and HDR support.
- Wireless Charging
- Fast Charging (50% in half hour and full charge in 1 hr 30 min - for S8+)
- Headphone jack
- Dual SIM card support.
- MicroSD card support (additional 256 GB)
- Built-in pedometer + heart rate/SP02 sensor
- IRIS scanner - for security
- IP68 water resistant rating
- USB-C/UTG
- Bluetooth 5.0
Connectivity
- WIFI Display (or miracast) built-in. Mirror phone screen to any wifi-capable TV without any additional setup/intermediate hardware (like apple tv). Coupled with a wireless mouse/keyboard via UTG to phone then you have pseudo-desktop.
- DLNA built-in support : stream music/video to any DLNA enabled devices without needing any setup.
- Sidesync : operate phone from any PC/mac within wifi network. Phone screen appears as a virtual window in PC/mac. You can use PC mouse/speaker/mic to make calls or continue an editing session or run any apps in the phone from the PC. Similar to Iphone hand-off/continuity but more flexible.
- DEX docking station- transform phone into a full desktop.
- Transfer any files between any devices via Wifi-Direct / BT. No additional setup/hardware requirement.
- Plug in portable disk/thumbdrive/mouse/gamepad directly to phone using usb cable. Quickly transfer out your files/photos/videos. Or just play a video off your portable drive. Or use a gamepad to play games. Or use mouse to interact with phone.
- Play music to 2 different sound devices via BT 5.0 (e.g. share music to 2 BT headsets). Also set individual app to specific sound source e.g. waze to always output sound to phone speakers and music players to BT. Using sound assistant you can set up different sound profiles depending on situations. Use Adapt Sound to fine tune sound to match you.
- Samsung Pay - can be used at more outlets (since it supports both NFC and magnetic strip)
- File System: something fundamental that we have been using (that's missing from Iphone).
- VR headset support - a whole new experience for you to explore
- With Samsung Connect + SmartThings Hub - provide an integrated eco-system to connect/manage your TV/fridge/appliances or home audio/visual and home accessories like lights/sensors.
OS / Software
AOD - always on display. simple and yet very useful. Plus you can theme it as well.
Multi-Window - run apps in separate top/bottom windows or popup windows simultaneously. e.g continue to view you tube while you are doing a whatsapp chat.
Secure Folder - it is like a second login environment. It has a separate copy of system settings. You can install second copy of your app here and it runs in its own seperate data space. e.g. you can concurrently run 2 copies of whatsapp (one for work number and the other personal) and get notify at the same time. Or setup another Exchange account to sync work email which is only viewable in secure folder.
Game launcher - a separate environment to launch games. You can set sound, notify on/off, no accidental touches, boost performance etc
Immersive mode - set the top status or bottom navigation (or both) to auto-hide to maximise screen area. Can set exclusion for certain apps. Can have floating panel with home, back, task buttons for easy one handed use.
Set default app - you can set your own app to be default app to open different kind of files/data. Or change the soft keyboard.
Shortcut - create shortcuts to anything: one touch direct dial/sms, directly open battery usage in Settings, open specific screen of an app directly etc. Place shortcuts anywhere - in homescreen, notification, side panel etc.
Home/Launcher - fully customizable with themes, widgets, icon packs and live wallpapers - no more boring grid of icons. You can also use other launchers as well. Personalize your UI anyway you like.
Smart Lock - auto unlock when phone is connected to certain pre-specified locations (incl BT/Wifi/geo locations)
Side panels - you can clip part of screen as image/gif/OCR text. Many useful add-on panels as well.
Samsung Health - you can have widget to show your steps, measure your heart rate/sp02/stress, track your workouts all using the phone only.
Google Assistant - use voice command to ask it to do stuff for you.
App Store: Many app stores to choose from. You can also side-load apps giving you more flexibilities and cost benefits.
Other Niceties - (1) record phone calls. (2) smart stay to keep screen on while you are looking at it. (3) Screen recorder to record what's happening on screen (4) answer call by pressing volume key (5) reduce UI size for one handed use (6) take continuous screen shot (7) flip phone over to mute call (8) quickly launch camera by double press power button
Automation
There are unlimited possibilities with Android multi-tasking capability. You can setup tasks which the phone can do automatically for you. This opens up quite a lot of use cases NOT possible with Iphone. Some examples you can have running in your phone.
- auto set ring/network profile depending on situations (at home/work/outdoors)
- auto send SMS when near pickup location (great if you pick up someone regularly)
- redirect important calls to covering when you are engaged.
- start call recording when calls from certain persons.
- auto change wallpaper based on events.
- mute/unmute ring based on calendar meetings.
- timed ring profile.
- tap on NFC sticker - initiated certain tasks.
- auto send canned SMS to birthday
- pull files from certain ftp/http locations to phone periodically or when certain parameters changed
- selective sync from cloud storage to local folders
- auto start/close apps when certain app is started.
- start music app when headphone is plug in
- start certain app(s) on phone remotely or using a SMS.
-set screen to landscape when certain apps are launched.
-auto read out received sms/whatsapp under certain preset conditions like driving/phone turned over/etc
- and many many more.
The S8 also works with HDMI out flawlessly. Most people don't know that this feature has came back from the dead since it hasn't been seen since the note 4/ S5 era.
I Iove your post by the way. When Ifanboys see the list, it just rattles their feathers lol.
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Nope. I've been saying this from the beginning. In my opinion it's a stupid design choice to make a handheld device where one must choose between seeing the whole screen and holding it so you don't drop it. Facepalm. No one seems to appreciate this as makers charge headlong into a world where "bezel" is a dirty word. It reminds me of the absurd spec competition of desktop computers in the 90s (whose has more megahertz? my megahertz is bigger than your megahertz!) only now Apple is no longer mercifully above the fray because Jony Ive, a bezel hater, is also running amok with this idea. I feel like the world has taken crazy pills with this one.
And can anyone explain to those of us who rely on bumper cases how that's going to work? Or will we actually be in the surreal situation of begging for a bezel mode in Settings just so we can protect our nearly-$1000 blindly bezel-free handheld device? I swear the SE is looking better and better, even as Apple is surely plotting its demise.
Next up: bicycle manufacturers realize that handlebars interfere with aerodynamics, and LensCrafters starts making designer glasses with solid lenses in colors to match the frames.
The emperor is naked, everyone.
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The S8 also works with HDMI out flawlessly. Most people don't know that this feature has came back from the dead since it hasn't been seen since the note 4/ S5 era.
I Iove your post by the way. When Ifanboys see the list, it just rattles their feathers lol.
I'll add that feature to my list. Actually, you can indirectly deduce this feature from the DEX support.
[doublepost=1497517202][/doublepost]http://www.deccanchronicle.com/tech...-proves-android-more-consistent-than-ios.html
Wow...iphone apps crashed 3 times more than Android.
Anything good about iphone that is not a myth?
Does the merchant has your card number or is it a randomly generated token? I know of Apple Pay the merchant doesn't have your card number a 16 digits token is generated at each transaction it works with nfc as well.
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You're very enthusiastic about this phone I can understand that but personally I don't feel it's a mature enough product they still use someone else's OS they put a lot of layers on top of it the face recognition security can be tricked by a photo the Touch ID is next to camera very inconvenient etc on top of that you don't know if they are collecting data without permission like the microphone in their Smart TVs.