Samsung Galaxy S

[mac(maybe)]

I know, I know.... this is like calling names at Buckingham Palace in front of the Queen... but since Samsung Galaxy is really a cool phone, and also cheaper than the iphone, I am considering this alternative.

Are there reports of compatibility between this phone and MBP? To which extent?

Thank you in advance...

 

[ElCidRo]

I had a 3GS than decided to upgrade to SGS instead of the iPhone 4.
The screen is really nice - true black looks so awesome in the dark However the plastic on the phone is really crappy and also the apps.
I like to try out a new game from time to time while waiting for someone/something (the curse of being punctual); quality games on Android are few and some of them lagged, which is kind of weird considering they worked fine on my 3GS...

So I sold my SGS and bought another 3GS - because of my previous move, buying the SGS, I didn't have the money to get the iPhone 4 - FML!

Still, for me, the iPhone 3G S is better than the SGS... Now I am waiting for the next generation.

 

[croooow]

I've played around with some Android phones and was pretty impressed. I'm still on an iPhone now...

 

[George Knighton]

I know, I know.... this is like calling names at Buckingham Palace in front of the Queen... but since Samsung Galaxy is really a cool phone, and also cheaper than the iphone, I am considering this alternative.

Are there reports of compatibility between this phone and MBP? To which extent?

I don't think you're going to have compatibility issues as much as you're going to have issues with regrets later.

I don't know...I am sure it will work and be fine, but most of us aren't going to understand your choice. Have you really looked at the iPhone 4 and compared it to your device you're considering? I wouldn't give it the first thought, really...wouldn't ever do that.

I can see how somebody who has to do a lot of business work, has to do a lot of typing, might deliberately want to step down to, say, a Blackberry Bold or something like a Nokia E-class just to be able to type better. But I cannot imagine why somebody shopping at the top end of the scale would prefer anything to the iPhone 4.

The way the iPhone 4 memory works, the way that the browser automatically re-draws to fit the screen when you zoom in and out (most Androids cause you to have to scroll to see everything). The integration of the memory and processor is so good that there is a visual difference in the smoothness with which the zooms and re-draws are done. The Samsung and even the new and much praised Droid 2 Global will hitch and hang visibly when you're zooming in and out of a complicated Web page.

I don't know.

I hope you're happy with your choice. You won't have any compatibility issues, probably, but I wouldn't do it in a million years!

Let me add that I know the iPhone 4 isn't perfect, especially if you are a heavy user.

Apple needs to give us workday users better tools like MCleaner and iBlacklist, without having to jailbreak the phone to use them. Nokia gives you Advanced Call Manager and Office completely free of charge, and we have to jailbreak with all of its risks to get the same functionality on our much more expensive iPhone 4's.

So I understand stepping down to a keyboard device with all these native or free security and management tools. But at the high end, I think the iPhone 4 is still the obvious best choice, even with the 1.2 GHz Droid 2 Global out there with its keyboard.

 

[mac(maybe)]

Let me add that I know the iPhone 4 isn't perfect, especially if you are a heavy user.

Apple needs to give us workday users better tools like MCleaner and iBlacklist, without having to jailbreak the phone to use them. Nokia gives you Advanced Call Manager and Office completely free of charge, and we have to jailbreak with all of its risks to get the same functionality on our much more expensive iPhone 4's.

So I understand stepping down to a keyboard device with all these native or free security and management tools. But at the high end, I think the iPhone 4 is still the obvious best choice, even with the 1.2 GHz Droid 2 Global out there with its keyboard.

Thank you George. Indeed, I haven't chosen yet, that's why I am here...

 

[pricej636]

Thank you George. Indeed, I haven't chosen yet, that's why I am here...

Went with an android phone for a while, ended up coming back to apple and iphone 4. What I didn't like was the "syncing" between android and OS X. If you use google and gmail for everything then obviousy you are fine. But if you use anything else and rely on syncing calender and/or contacts from phone to computer and vice versa then its not nearly as simple as the iphone/itunes syncing.

Also for me it was pointless to have mobileme and not have a iOS device.

 

[mac(maybe)]

The way the iPhone 4 memory works, the way that the browser automatically re-draws to fit the screen when you zoom in and out (most Androids cause you to have to scroll to see everything). The integration of the memory and processor is so good that there is a visual difference in the smoothness with which the zooms and re-draws are done. The Samsung and even the new and much praised Droid 2 Global will hitch and hang visibly when you're zooming in and out of a complicated Web page.

Just a curiosity: have you tried it on the Samsung with Android 2.2?
I ask since I have seen very good reviews

 

[benson197]

This is coming from a former Nexus One owner (sold it when I switched to AT&T and bought two iPhone 4s - one for myself and one for my wife).

First, you shouldn't have any compatibility issues. Android syncs natively with Google Apps (Gmail, Docs, Calendar, etc.). If you use a different service for email, it should be able to sync with it fine, but you will have to create a Google account to use the phone. As to music, pictures, and other media syncing, that is all done manually by default. There is some software out there (DoubleTwist comes to mind) that will help automate it (and even enable wireless syncing, which is awesome) or make it more iTunes-like if you are into that, or need the software to manage what you are doing.

As to differences, my Nexus One had plain Android 2.2 on it (no skin like the Samsung and HTC phones have), and it was fast and pretty solid. The only issues that I had were occasional hiccups when it didn't close apps that were using memory. But 2.2 was way better about that than earlier versions. Safari is far better on the iPhone than the Android browser. It is faster, and a little more intuitive to use. And most of the features (like pinch to zoom or double tap to zoom in/out) work faster and smoother on the iPhone.

Another big selling point is the App Store. The iPhone has far more apps, both free and paid. It also has more quality apps in my opinion. There is a bit of fragmentation in Android, so many apps that get ported over to Android work on some phones but not others. On the upside, the Samsung Galaxy phones should be fine, since they are current models.

And speaking of fragmentation, that is my biggest complaint of Android. Previous to the Nexus One, I had a T-Mobile G1. I hate that some versions of Android are on some phones, but not all. Android 2.2 is not on too many phones at this point, though it was on my Nexus One like 8 months ago. Android 2.1 is on the majority of Android phones last I looked. And the problem with getting an HTC, Motorola, or Samsung (other than the Nexus S) is that you have to wait for updates to be released by the phone manufacturer so they can update their skin for the OS. iPhones are updated fairly regularly, and the last 2-3 generations of the phones are updated all at the same time.

That said, Android phones can be nice, there are some real nice ones out there. If I were to go back, I'd get the Nexus S, but that is only on T-Mobile right now, and I really wouldn't go back to T-Mobile.

Also, let me know if you have questions. My brother has the Samsung Epic on Sprint, so I can check out whatever you need on that. I also have several friends with the Nexus One, and the HTC Evo for comparison.

 

[gorjan]

I have the Samsung Galaxy S and have mixed feelings about it.

At of the box it's VERY slow (both 2.1 and 2.2), but after running some lagfixes and other tricks it runs very well. The issues is that you shouldn't be required to run lagfixes and tricks from the fine people over at xda-developers to get a high-end phone running on par with competition. If I were to buy a new Android phone I'd stay far away from Samsung and go for HTC instead for a couple of reasons:

- the mentioned lag
- OS and firmware updates can ONLY be done through Samsung Kies software that ONLY runs on Windows. So to update from Android 2.1 to 2.2 I had to install Windows on my MBP and remove it afterwards. Not very practical.
- No backups when updating the OS so all the software and settings must be reinstalled and reconfigured after OS updates

If I were to buy a new phone and the choice was between iPhone 4, SGS and HTC Desire HD; I'd choose the iPhone. Everything is more polished on the iPhone. Both iOS itself and the whole iPhone/iTunes-ecossytem with OS updates, backups/restores and apps. I have tried Android and as thing are right now I's never pick an Androidphone over an iPhone.

Good luck on your choice and I hope you can use my post for something useful.

 

[gonnabuyamacbsh]

I gave the SGS running Nero V3 with a Voodoo kernel. Fast as hell and I love it. The thing with android is that you have to customize it to how you want. Had the iphone and I got tired of the looking at the same thing over and over again. I do with the phone pretty much anything you can do with a laptop.

 

[fortunecookie]

A friend of mine bought a samsung galaxy tab. Its really nice, software on it is also amazing. While using it though, it feels like it ripped off the ios' design. Yeah its nice, I wonder why he is still envious of my ip4. I guess no matter what google does with their android, they will always be 2nd to apple with their ios.

Iphone is still the best (for me)

 

[gorjan]

I gave the SGS running Nero V3 with a Voodoo kernel. Fast as hell and I love it. The thing with android is that you have to customize it to how you want. Had the iphone and I got tired of the looking at the same thing over and over again. I do with the phone pretty much anything you can do with a laptop.

Sure, but the thing is not everybody has time to play around with lagfixes, custom fw and kernels. Had I known that I would have to install 3rd party stuff to make the phone run on par with comparable phones, I would have stayed far, far away from android.

 

[bocomo]

I have the Samsung Galaxy S and have mixed feelings about it.

At of the box it's VERY slow (both 2.1 and 2.2), but after running some lagfixes and other tricks it runs very well. The issues is that you shouldn't be required to run lagfixes and tricks from the fine people over at xda-developers to get a high-end phone running on par with competition. If I were to buy a new Android phone I'd stay far away from Samsung and go for HTC instead for a couple of reasons:

- the mentioned lag
- OS and firmware updates can ONLY be done through Samsung Kies software that ONLY runs on Windows. So to update from Android 2.1 to 2.2 I had to install Windows on my MBP and remove it afterwards. Not very practical.
- No backups when updating the OS so all the software and settings must be reinstalled and reconfigured after OS updates

If I were to buy a new phone and the choice was between iPhone 4, SGS and HTC Desire HD; I'd choose the iPhone. Everything is more polished on the iPhone. Both iOS itself and the whole iPhone/iTunes-ecossytem with OS updates, backups/restores and apps. I have tried Android and as thing are right now I's never pick an Androidphone over an iPhone.

Good luck on your choice and I hope you can use my post for something useful.

wow, those are huge problems

no thanks

 

[gonnabuyamacbsh]

Sure, but the thing it is not everybody has time to play around with lagfixes, custom fw and kernels. Had I known that I would have to install 3rd party stuff to make the phone run on par with comparable phones, I would have stayed far, far away from android.

It ran on par with my sister's iphone4 out of the box. Just tinkered with it to take it over the edge. now it's just a beast. I download school documents, torrents for music and movies, stream live event, and even edit documents on it faster than my laptop. I like the iphone, has a nice premium feel to it, but it's so limited that it felt like a toy to me after a few days.

 

[gonnabuyamacbsh]

wow, those are huge problems

no thanks

Updates happen OTA (over the air) and all your apps and info stay. If your worried you could dl a backup app for free on the android market.

 

[gorjan]

It ran on par with my sister's iphone4 out of the box. Just tinkered with it to take it over the edge. now it's just a beast. I download school documents, torrents for music and movies, stream live event, and even edit documents on it faster than my laptop. I like the iphone, has a nice premium feel to it, but it's so limited that it felt like a toy to me after a few days.

Can't say I agree with you here. Compared to an iPhone 3GS (not even an iPhone 4) my SGS ran irritatingly slow. Slow just bring up the keyboard, not to mention typing. It was usable, no doubt about that, but everything had an irritating lag to it. Now after the lagfix (one click) it's a totally different phone, but you have to compare stock to stock. And when you do that, both the HTC Desire HD and the iPhone blow the SGS away.

Updates happen OTA (over the air) and all your apps and info stay.

Not on all versions. There's no OTA on my European Galaxy S, so you're forced to use Kies.

And one more thing unrelated to gonnabuyamacbsh's post: the screen burns in. I haven't seen this since CRT monitors, but the bar on the top part of the screen (with the clock, battery, etc status) has burned in. It's not extremely visible but you can clearly see it if the screen goes all black or white.

 

[tekmoe]

I've been using the Galaxy S since the day it was released for T-Mobile. I've had no issues with it. It's been thrown around and it still works. I'm using a custom ROM on it. Battery life is ok but it has to be charged everyday. I guess this can be said for most smartphones. The camera is awesome as well as the video recorder. I'm always using it as a portable jukebox with all of my music loaded onto it. I also stream radio stations using the app 'Xiia', much like an Android version of Winamp. The screen is absolutely beautiful. I love showing off my recorded videos to friends. All they can say is "Wow, that looks amazing!".

No regrets going with this phone. In fact, my girlfriend liked mine so much that she replaced her iPhone with one.

 

[gonnabuyamacbsh]

I've been using the Galaxy S since the day it was released for T-Mobile. I've had no issues with it. It's been thrown around and it still works. I'm using a custom ROM on it. Battery life is ok but it has to be charged everyday. I guess this can be said for most smartphones. The camera is awesome as well as the video recorder. I'm always using it as a portable jukebox with all of my music loaded onto it. I also stream radio stations using the app 'Xiia', much like an Android version of Winamp. The screen is absolutely beautiful. I love showing off my recorded videos to friends. All they can say is "Wow, that looks amazing!".

No regrets going with this phone. In fact, my girlfriend liked mine so much that she replaced her iPhone with one.

What rom you running? I'm got nero v3 by team whiskey and am getting about 27 hrs on a charge. They're working on gingerbread right now, i'm excited about that release

 

[mac(maybe)]

What rom you running? I'm got nero v3 by team whiskey and am getting about 27 hrs on a charge. They're working on gingerbread right now, i'm excited about that release

wow
is it difficult to do those things like including nero v3? I work on coding and computational science the whole day... should I spend my spare time in finding bugs and reading man pages of my iphone?????????

 

[mark28]

wow, those are huge problems

no thanks

Just get a normal phone. I still have my own cellphone from 2 years ago. It can do 1 thing all those other smartphones can't, and that is having no single worry about running out of battery.

This problem will not be fixed in the next few year since batteries of smartphones are not improved much.

I have an iPod Touch so maybe that's why I also don't feel the need of an iPhone 4 perhaps.

 

[gonnabuyamacbsh]

wow
is it difficult to do those things like including nero v3? I work on coding and computational science the whole day... should I spend my spare time in finding bugs and reading man pages of my iphone?????????

Installing a rom is easy as hell. I download it straight on my phone and install it. Go to xda to check it out, great dev community there.

 

[applebook]

The main reason why the Galaxy S is terrible:

"PENTILE MATRIX"

Google it for more information.

If you want a "real" Android phone with good built quality and an outstanding IPS display, consider the Droid 2 Global.