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[Merged] Samsung Galaxy S / Captivate Android Phone
- Thread starter MattG
- Start date
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I just got back from returning my Captivate. I wanted to like it but at the end of the day the iPhone 4 is a better phone. Today from 7:30 am to 8 pm when I returned the Captivate the battery was below 30%. That was with 1 two minute call, about half an hour of web, and 15-20 texts. My iPhone 4 on the other hand is around 50% after a 9 hour workday streaming Sirius non stop. Web browsing is also better on the iPhone.
I tried out apps that were on both OS's and the Android version didn't run nearly as smooth as the iPhone version. One big gripe I had was MLB at bat. It's the same price on the iPhone and android but the android version can't stream video. Also I use Sirius for hours everyday. The stream never cut out on my iPhone but it stopped streaming so much on the Captivate that I had to use my iPhone on wifi. iPhone apps are higher quality than android apps. Yes there are crappy apps but android has more than their fair share of bad apps but not nearly as many good apps.
The large screens are nice but the OS isn't as good I don't care how open it is. Besides once the iPhone 4 is jailbroken you'll be able to do what you want anyway. Android isn't awful but IMO iOS is superior. Of course all this is just an opinion. I'm just glad to be back to my iPhone. Maybe after Froyo comes out I'll give Android another chance.
I tried out apps that were on both OS's and the Android version didn't run nearly as smooth as the iPhone version. One big gripe I had was MLB at bat. It's the same price on the iPhone and android but the android version can't stream video. Also I use Sirius for hours everyday. The stream never cut out on my iPhone but it stopped streaming so much on the Captivate that I had to use my iPhone on wifi. iPhone apps are higher quality than android apps. Yes there are crappy apps but android has more than their fair share of bad apps but not nearly as many good apps.
The large screens are nice but the OS isn't as good I don't care how open it is. Besides once the iPhone 4 is jailbroken you'll be able to do what you want anyway. Android isn't awful but IMO iOS is superior. Of course all this is just an opinion. I'm just glad to be back to my iPhone. Maybe after Froyo comes out I'll give Android another chance.
No I hated the low res 3GS screen, I was "this close" to dumping it and getting an android phone, but ATT didn't have any good options and im stuck on ATT because of work.
So I was at ATT on launch day for the captivate, but I chose to wait for a higher res screen. At the pace android development is going it should only be three or four months before we see some new and powerful android handsets, plus who knows what windows phone will be like
So I was at ATT on launch day for the captivate, but I chose to wait for a higher res screen. At the pace android development is going it should only be three or four months before we see some new and powerful android handsets, plus who knows what windows phone will be like
Played with the captivate today. First thought was, "doesn't feel like a 480x800 display." Text is not as clear and smooth. Maybe I've just gotten used to iPhone 4 but I swear the 3GS seemed better. Or maybe iOS's font rendering is just better.
The OS itself just felt Windows 3.1ish with icons that seemed like it was 256-colors and lack of shadows to separate UI elements. Animations are not fluid and smooth like iOS and reminiscent of a Chinese knock-off. Web browsing, zooming in and out seemed like a chore. Are there any Android phones that does the tap to zoom to a column like iPhone?
Still, the form factor is much better than the EVO or Droid X, which felt huge in my hand and in my pocket. I would welcome a 4" iPhone.
Hardware is not bad but Android just feels like amateur hour. Since we have hackintoshes, I wonder if someone could figure out a way to install iOS on an Android device.
The OS itself just felt Windows 3.1ish with icons that seemed like it was 256-colors and lack of shadows to separate UI elements. Animations are not fluid and smooth like iOS and reminiscent of a Chinese knock-off. Web browsing, zooming in and out seemed like a chore. Are there any Android phones that does the tap to zoom to a column like iPhone?
Still, the form factor is much better than the EVO or Droid X, which felt huge in my hand and in my pocket. I would welcome a 4" iPhone.
Hardware is not bad but Android just feels like amateur hour. Since we have hackintoshes, I wonder if someone could figure out a way to install iOS on an Android device.
I think you mean fragmentation. But seriously, why would you post this here? No one cares what phone you have. Go make a friend and tell them about your Captivate.
Not at all...you should say too many fanboys ruined this forum......I love apple but jeez, I didnt realize how many people Steve Jobs gets blowjobs from!...lol...If any phone no matter the make or model isnt working for me, Im returning it period! Im using my old berry until the iP4 issues get fixed. No bias here I like both berry and iphone. BUT I do not like android. I returned my iP4 because of all the issues "I" was having with it. I'll be back but the new iphone wasnt working for me atleast. Im happy it has for others.
Now that the Nexus1 has been EOL'd the HTC Aria is AT&T's best Android phone imo. It's a capable little smart phone that isn't meant to compete with the latest and greatest but it gets the job done. It's refreshing to see a small smart phone come out when evrything else keeps getting bigger.
Samsung makes great components but I'm not impessed with the quality of their phones. I don't like the shape of the Captivate either, it looks and feels cheap. I think T-Mobile's Vibrant is the best looking version of Samsung's Galaxy. I also prefer HTC's sense interface over the Captvates interface.
Samsung makes great components but I'm not impessed with the quality of their phones. I don't like the shape of the Captivate either, it looks and feels cheap. I think T-Mobile's Vibrant is the best looking version of Samsung's Galaxy. I also prefer HTC's sense interface over the Captvates interface.
Captivate sucks balls because it is not made by apple's team. Also, you don't get free cases like iphone 4.
Bigger Screen? I don't care
AMOLED? I don't care
More opened? I don't care
Video Wallpaper? I don't care
As long as I am with AT&T network, it has to be iphone for me. If it's not, then I will leave this carrier.
Bigger Screen? I don't care
AMOLED? I don't care
More opened? I don't care
Video Wallpaper? I don't care
As long as I am with AT&T network, it has to be iphone for me. If it's not, then I will leave this carrier.
I'm glad it works for you...enjoy your new phone...now back to our regularly scheduled programming...
IMHO leaving a superior phone because of a corporations actions is a pretty silly reason. In the end they are giving out cases, and finally addressed that there was a problem. Sure it isn't going to satisfy everyone, but if it wasn't the issues with the phone that made you switch then good luck. You will most likely end up regretting it though...
My own, very long, Captivate review...first experience ever with Android....
I went over to the AT&T today to see the Captivate and use Android form the first time ever. I am really getting fed up with my iPhone's reception and proximity sensor issues, plus I don't find the phone comfortable to hold.
I used the phone for about 30 minutes doing common tasks like web browsing, making calls, and writing test messages. Like I said, this was my first experience using an Android phone.
First on the hardware...
I really liked the shape and size of the phone, plus the weight. I believe it's only slightly less weight than the iphone 4 but in my hand, the difference felt mug greater. Maybe it's the round soft touch edges vs the hard sharp edges of the iPhone but it felt great in the hand and also when holding it up to my ear, to me, much better than the iPhone.
The screen size was nice but does not compare to the clarity and brightness of the iPhone. For phone calls and such, it wasn't an issue at all but the difference was pretty big when web browsing. A bit more on that later. The screen really had a blueish hint to it as well.
Touch response was a mixed bag. Flipping through the different home screens was instant, as was typing text. Closing/switching apps however lagged around a second, especially when having say ,the browser open and then pressing the home button to go back to the home screen. I would press it, and it would seem like it didn't register so I pressed it again. I thought maybe it wasn't registering the press but it was the delay. The iphone on the other hand is instant...press the home button and it works, no lag at all.
I liked that you could remove the battery, even though I may never swap it out, but it was nice that you could.
One last thing on the hardware, and maybe I didn't know how to use it correctly, but turning the screen on seemed pretty unintuitive. There was a button on the side...none of the buttons on the bottom worked to activate the screen? Maybe this is in the settings somewhere? It would just make sense to me to use your thumb to activate the screen and then swipe to unlock.
Now on the software...
I've got to first go into what really left an impression on me the most...SWYPE! Holy crap was that awesome! It worked very very well and very fast. Not sure if this is something that all Android devices have but it was pretty impressive.
I did like the way you got through different apps and back again, it was pretty easy to pick up. Having the physical touch buttons at the bottom was nice and Im sure would be even better after getting used to the phone over a few days.
I found the software keyboard better than Apple's...I liked that you could hold down on a letter and get the second function of it, like a number or punctuation, in my opinion thats better then pressing an additional button to pull up a whole other number keyboard.
Searching the phone book and making a call was also better...you don't have to press on search and the type with a keyboard, you can just press a number and it will filter names with the corresponding letter (such as #2 = ABC, the way phones used to be before they had keyboards).
There were two things I didn't like, the first being the overall un-cohesive-ness (yeah, made up my own word) of the UI. It felt as if it was made by different developers that didn't communicate with each other..some menus were white text on black background, others black text on white...just didn't seem to flow. Same went for the icons, they seemed unpolished and low quality, like there wasn't much thought put into the design. This also was the case inside some apps, like the Camera app. The onscreen icons and controls looked cartoonish. Maybe this is something that can be customized that I don't know about?
The other negative was the lag inside some apps, like Browser and Maps. In the Browser, it wasn't lag in opening the site, but when pinch zooming in and out. On the iPhone, it's instant, almost unbelievably fluid but on Android, there was noticeable lag. I also found the zoom in/out on screen buttons annoying as I couldn't "click" on a link under them. The buttons disappeared after a few seconds but was annoying nonetheless. Again, maybe this can be disabled? Overall browsing just felt slower than on the iPhone because of the lag in zooming and panning around a website. The Maps app was the same when zooming and panning and I got an error when trying to do a GPS locate. That has never happened on any of my iPhones.
To sum it up, as others have said, each device has it's advantages and disadvantages. Apple has the UI down, from the design of each icon, to the fluidity and overall feel, it just feels like a complete package. Having said that, Apple seems a bit more concerned on appearance vs actual function and seeing as this is still a phone, it's primary focus should be on that...on having a good signal, on being able to complete the call without muting or putting people on speakerphone with your cheek and being comfortable to hold while talking. I think I need more hand on time and am thinking I will buy the Captivate from Best Buy to use for a week or two and then decide if after 3 1/2 years I'll finally jump off the iPhone wagon.
I went over to the AT&T today to see the Captivate and use Android form the first time ever. I am really getting fed up with my iPhone's reception and proximity sensor issues, plus I don't find the phone comfortable to hold.
I used the phone for about 30 minutes doing common tasks like web browsing, making calls, and writing test messages. Like I said, this was my first experience using an Android phone.
First on the hardware...
I really liked the shape and size of the phone, plus the weight. I believe it's only slightly less weight than the iphone 4 but in my hand, the difference felt mug greater. Maybe it's the round soft touch edges vs the hard sharp edges of the iPhone but it felt great in the hand and also when holding it up to my ear, to me, much better than the iPhone.
The screen size was nice but does not compare to the clarity and brightness of the iPhone. For phone calls and such, it wasn't an issue at all but the difference was pretty big when web browsing. A bit more on that later. The screen really had a blueish hint to it as well.
Touch response was a mixed bag. Flipping through the different home screens was instant, as was typing text. Closing/switching apps however lagged around a second, especially when having say ,the browser open and then pressing the home button to go back to the home screen. I would press it, and it would seem like it didn't register so I pressed it again. I thought maybe it wasn't registering the press but it was the delay. The iphone on the other hand is instant...press the home button and it works, no lag at all.
I liked that you could remove the battery, even though I may never swap it out, but it was nice that you could.
One last thing on the hardware, and maybe I didn't know how to use it correctly, but turning the screen on seemed pretty unintuitive. There was a button on the side...none of the buttons on the bottom worked to activate the screen? Maybe this is in the settings somewhere? It would just make sense to me to use your thumb to activate the screen and then swipe to unlock.
Now on the software...
I've got to first go into what really left an impression on me the most...SWYPE! Holy crap was that awesome! It worked very very well and very fast. Not sure if this is something that all Android devices have but it was pretty impressive.
I did like the way you got through different apps and back again, it was pretty easy to pick up. Having the physical touch buttons at the bottom was nice and Im sure would be even better after getting used to the phone over a few days.
I found the software keyboard better than Apple's...I liked that you could hold down on a letter and get the second function of it, like a number or punctuation, in my opinion thats better then pressing an additional button to pull up a whole other number keyboard.
Searching the phone book and making a call was also better...you don't have to press on search and the type with a keyboard, you can just press a number and it will filter names with the corresponding letter (such as #2 = ABC, the way phones used to be before they had keyboards).
There were two things I didn't like, the first being the overall un-cohesive-ness (yeah, made up my own word) of the UI. It felt as if it was made by different developers that didn't communicate with each other..some menus were white text on black background, others black text on white...just didn't seem to flow. Same went for the icons, they seemed unpolished and low quality, like there wasn't much thought put into the design. This also was the case inside some apps, like the Camera app. The onscreen icons and controls looked cartoonish. Maybe this is something that can be customized that I don't know about?
The other negative was the lag inside some apps, like Browser and Maps. In the Browser, it wasn't lag in opening the site, but when pinch zooming in and out. On the iPhone, it's instant, almost unbelievably fluid but on Android, there was noticeable lag. I also found the zoom in/out on screen buttons annoying as I couldn't "click" on a link under them. The buttons disappeared after a few seconds but was annoying nonetheless. Again, maybe this can be disabled? Overall browsing just felt slower than on the iPhone because of the lag in zooming and panning around a website. The Maps app was the same when zooming and panning and I got an error when trying to do a GPS locate. That has never happened on any of my iPhones.
To sum it up, as others have said, each device has it's advantages and disadvantages. Apple has the UI down, from the design of each icon, to the fluidity and overall feel, it just feels like a complete package. Having said that, Apple seems a bit more concerned on appearance vs actual function and seeing as this is still a phone, it's primary focus should be on that...on having a good signal, on being able to complete the call without muting or putting people on speakerphone with your cheek and being comfortable to hold while talking. I think I need more hand on time and am thinking I will buy the Captivate from Best Buy to use for a week or two and then decide if after 3 1/2 years I'll finally jump off the iPhone wagon.
FYI: Samsung is turning up the viral marketing to potential "disgruntled" iPhone users, so beware the agenda of newbies extolling the virtues of Samsung phones.
Case in point: you could tweet your frustrations and maybe get a free Samsung handset:
http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/mobile/07/24/samsung.replacing.iphones/index.html?hpt=Mid
If that's true, and you really want to base buying a product on the behavior of a corporation and its leadership, then you should be aware that there was a scandal that rocked South Korea pretty heavily when Samsung's chairman and CEO, Lee Kun-hee, was arrested and convicted on bribery and corruption charges. And guess what? They hired him back:
http://blogs.hbr.org/hbr/hbreditors/2010/06/rules_for_political_animals_if.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Kun-hee#Samsung_Slush_funds_scandal
So what's worse: This vague accusation you give of Apples' "actions," or the fact that Samsung willingly seats a CEO who has admitted to political corruption of judges, prosecutors and politicians - you know, things affecting EVERYONE, not just Samsung customers - and exiles the whistleblower who blew the case wide open?
So when can we expect that you'll return that Captivate based on Samsung's "actions?"
Case in point: you could tweet your frustrations and maybe get a free Samsung handset:
http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/mobile/07/24/samsung.replacing.iphones/index.html?hpt=Mid
If that's true, and you really want to base buying a product on the behavior of a corporation and its leadership, then you should be aware that there was a scandal that rocked South Korea pretty heavily when Samsung's chairman and CEO, Lee Kun-hee, was arrested and convicted on bribery and corruption charges. And guess what? They hired him back:
http://blogs.hbr.org/hbr/hbreditors/2010/06/rules_for_political_animals_if.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Kun-hee#Samsung_Slush_funds_scandal
So what's worse: This vague accusation you give of Apples' "actions," or the fact that Samsung willingly seats a CEO who has admitted to political corruption of judges, prosecutors and politicians - you know, things affecting EVERYONE, not just Samsung customers - and exiles the whistleblower who blew the case wide open?
So when can we expect that you'll return that Captivate based on Samsung's "actions?"
When I got my iphone for the first time, it was an instant ease of use. It took zero time to get the hang of it. When I played with Droid X, it took me a few minutes, but found the os awful!!!! The animated background definately slow down the system. If it takes two weeks to learn this android os, then it is not worth it. Android os is crap!!
Fair review - one of the things I noted from your review is the lack of cohesiveness within the OS.
To differentiate themselves from other devices, manufacturers like Samsung integrate their own custom skin onto the Android OS to make their experience "unique" to other manufacturers like Motorola and HTC. This includes custom widgets, custom homescreen interfaces, and yes, the cartoonish icons.
Unfortunately, the need for the manufacturer to add their own "polish" sometimes detracts from the OS. Only HTC seems to have gotten it right. But still, as of today, Android still has much to do in terms of catching up towards the polish of Apple's mobile OS.
To differentiate themselves from other devices, manufacturers like Samsung integrate their own custom skin onto the Android OS to make their experience "unique" to other manufacturers like Motorola and HTC. This includes custom widgets, custom homescreen interfaces, and yes, the cartoonish icons.
Unfortunately, the need for the manufacturer to add their own "polish" sometimes detracts from the OS. Only HTC seems to have gotten it right. But still, as of today, Android still has much to do in terms of catching up towards the polish of Apple's mobile OS.
Apple's IOS has done so well because it aims at the computer illiterate as well as the technically inclined. It can be as simple or as compicated as you want it to be. I seem to attract the Apple simpletons to my posts.
Hey, if you have never jailbroken your iphone, or if you don't understand the benefits of jailbreaking, please do not post HERE!
Yes, Apple has borrowed from the jailbreaking community(folders, custom wallpapers, backgrounding), but this is what let me know they have reached their ceiling. Apple now depends on third party apps. to make the iphone better, but if the developer gets too innovative Apple shuts him down which leads to many of the same types of apps in app store.
Peace again, and yes I am now headed to the android forums.
Hey, if you have never jailbroken your iphone, or if you don't understand the benefits of jailbreaking, please do not post HERE!
Yes, Apple has borrowed from the jailbreaking community(folders, custom wallpapers, backgrounding), but this is what let me know they have reached their ceiling. Apple now depends on third party apps. to make the iphone better, but if the developer gets too innovative Apple shuts him down which leads to many of the same types of apps in app store.
Peace again, and yes I am now headed to the android forums.