you're kidding right ;-) it's their time to spend how they like and no one's wasting Samsung's time, money is being spent in return for goods, exactly what Samsung wants!
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Samsung galaxy S23 and S23 ultra
- Thread starter The Game 161
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you're kidding right ;-) it's their time to spend how they like and no one's wasting Samsung's time, money is being spent in return for goods, exactly what Samsung wants!
mjschabow
macrumors 603
Thanks for the well thought out response! I think the other thing weighing on me is that I might decide to trade the iPhone in and then a month or so down the road, switch back. Just throwing money out the window at that point. Did the same thing a while back so I think part of it is self awareness of old habits. I really do want to try to make the switch work and I have no interest in having two phones.
I'm going to give it through the weekend since this is my first full uninterrupted weekend with this phone. I have until Monday to either trade in my iphone or initiate a return.
don't even go there..... as I look guiltily around the room at all the apple kit, windows kit..... gulp.
I really do envy people who can just make a decision and stick with it
Ludatyk
macrumors 604
Completely understand.
But I think your frustration should be more toward carriers than Apple... they took the idea of texting and enhanced for their users. There is RCS available... but if carriers don't apply pressure in the direction of Apple to use RCS, then I don't see how it's Apple's fault.
My solution would be to allow carriers to have their own servers for RCS... leave Google out of it, but at least have Google work on features for RCS whether that be encryption or updates. That way Android to iOS or vice versa can have modern chat features... Apple can even keep the green bubbles.
And those chat features will be run through carrier's network... but keep iMessage under Apple. The tough part is how the experience with group messages be with Android and iOS. That's why I can understand Apple is not willing to give it a try because how will iMessage and RCS servers coexist on a group thread.
For me, icons on the status bar indicates what I need to tend to... not much more than that. And I don't like having too many icons in the status bar that it will cover it up entirely.
Umm... highly doubt it. It's either you like Android notifications or don't lol.
They say it takes 2 weeks to break old habits and also to form new ones, Change is hard even when changing to something that is objectively better,
Dave245
macrumors G4
Understandable, even tho I'm enjoying my S23 Ultra even more than I did the S22 Ultra, I've come to the realisation that I will never part with my iPhone completely. There is something about the iPhone and IOS that just isn't matched by anything else, it can be said for Apple in general to be honest. I have a Mac, AirPods Pro, HomePod, Apple Watch Ultra, Apple TV, Apple Music and Apple Fitness+ There is nothing that replaces the Apple experience.
That being said it doesn't mean I can't admire other brands, I do genuinely enjoy my S23 Ultra so far and I'll continue to do so. Some days I'll use the S23 Ultra all day as my main phone, other days I will take the SIM card out and put it in my iPhone 14 Pro Max and use that all day.
Enjoy what you enjoy, that can mean multiple devices if that works for you. It works for me, when September comes I will more the likely buy the iPhone 15, but it doesn't mean I don't enjoy my Samsung devices also.
mjschabow
macrumors 603
That's so true, and I definitely did break away from the ecosystem this time, so that's a plus. I really think familiarity is the biggest thing that causes the anxiety I'm having.
As someone who works in the graphic arts industry on a Mac everyday I have thought about switching to Apple completely many times, that ecosystem is something that I kind of envy, I could only imagine how hard it would be to leave it behind.
I'm lucky i switched to Android back in the iPhone 4 days before the eco system really started to kick off. I thought about getting an iPhone as a second phone to see what it's all about but I primarily use whatsapp for messages and you can't sync it across 2 phones.
Cause iphone flickers in freq that is multiple uf freq camera is shooting.. 14 pro max flickers in 240 or 480 hz freq, i guess zolotech was shootin in 240 ?
OMG I’m here. My husband’s here. One of the kids is here. Nobody ever rang the bell. They left a $1000 plus phone out on a bench in the rain! And it’s also freezing out. So I can’t turn the phone on just yet. It’s like ice. Kind of reminds me of when I got Snowball, my Pixel 2.
“Someone left the cake out in the rain”…well, Ms. Donna Summer, I know now that “someone” was my USPS delivery person. 🙄
And there was just the worst bubble wrap packing job ever.
The screen does have the lamination defect people have been talking about on social media. When the phone reaches room temperature and I can actually turn it on I’ll see if that’s actually any kind of problem. Honestly we all probably have it and for most people it isn’t a problem. So I’ll keep my fingers crossed and get back to you all on this.
Edit: nope, defect isn’t a problem at all. The display looks loads better this time already. The blue shift is about the same as before but the consistency across the screen is better. Well let’s see how it goes. I’m hopeful/cautiously optimistic.
“Someone left the cake out in the rain”…well, Ms. Donna Summer, I know now that “someone” was my USPS delivery person. 🙄
And there was just the worst bubble wrap packing job ever.
The screen does have the lamination defect people have been talking about on social media. When the phone reaches room temperature and I can actually turn it on I’ll see if that’s actually any kind of problem. Honestly we all probably have it and for most people it isn’t a problem. So I’ll keep my fingers crossed and get back to you all on this.
Edit: nope, defect isn’t a problem at all. The display looks loads better this time already. The blue shift is about the same as before but the consistency across the screen is better. Well let’s see how it goes. I’m hopeful/cautiously optimistic.
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I feel for some of you guys on here, getting anxiety and whatnot over which phone to use sounds horrible and I hope at the end of the day you get more joy out of these great phones than anything else.
Technerd108
macrumors 68040
Using the s23 ultra now for just less than a day and I have a few impressions.
I think it is the fastest Android device I have ever used. Saying that from a Samsung is impressive. I reset the phone when it updated and was able to eliminate some of the bloat. There are more apps you can uninstall than in the past which is good. I actually have a pretty slim install considering. Still just the system is at 55gb. But considering I have 512gb storage it really isn't an issue.
The build quality on this phone is impressive. I love the square or rectangular shape. This certainly feels like a Samsung phone. Because of the shape watching videos and browsing the net is more optimized to fill all the screen.
The spen is pretty cool. Being able to use it as a remote control and selfie button is pretty cool. It also works for music controls.
The speakers on this phone are probably the best I have heard. I adjusted the settings and EQ as well as enabled Dolby Atmos. It is loud. Great stereo sound and some bass for a phone. The speakers are fantastic.
The battery life is excellent. It just feels like a device of this caliber should. If you use it lightly it is certainly a two day phone and probably a three day phone. For Android that is impressive. I know with adaptive battery it should get better in a couple weeks time.
I set up the text to speech in the phone app and look forward to using it to screen calls. It doesn't seem as intelligent and feature rich as Google call screening but hopefully it will evolve over time. Just happy to have this feature.
The screen. I hate, hate curved displays. Specially how the image is distorted at the edges. Well this is the best curved display I have used. No distortion. Very slight curve. I still wish it was flat but if I have to have it this is not a bad experience. 6.8" of quad hd is impressive. It has really slim bezels. The color temperature is a little off compared to my Pixel which is probably the best color profile on any phone screen I have ever used. But in certain situations the screen just pops. Almost like 3d. It is very smooth.
One UI 5.1 is pretty good. I like Pixel UI a little better but the gap has shrunk a lot. Some UI elements of Pixel are better but some of One UI 5 are better. Of course the amount of customization in One UI is about the best there is.
Cell reception is really good. I get better reception across the board wherever I am at.
With the faster 4200mhz ran vs 3200mhz ddr5 and the faster ufs 4.0 and the overclock 8 gen 2 I don't see this device slowing down for a while. It is just fast.
We will get up to Android 17 and another year of security updates after that.
I really feel like this is a device that I will be happy with for years to come. I mean I am such a nerd and always changing stuff but with call screening, the speed, the support, Samsung has a device that honestly competes with iOS/iPhone in longevity and exceeds in some ways. I think I might just settle down for a while.
I have yet to really try the cameras yet. Will post when I get a chance.
To me this is a very well designed and thought out evolution of the note series. On every metric it is great.
Lastly, this device benchmarks faster than a i7 Intel tiger lake processor. Pretty good job for Qualcomm. They still have catching up to do with a series but they are doing a lot better.
Maybe it is just the newness but I could sell my Pixel and just use this phone exclusively. I won't because I like having a backup device but this is the first phone I don't miss anything. I don't feel like I am compromising in any way. Almost every phone I have had I felt like I was compromising something. This device is as close to a perfect phone as it gets.
I look forward to using it over time and discovering more uses.
I don't know what Apple is going to bring with the iPhone 15 Pro Max that would pull me away from this phone. The 14 pro max is outclassed by the s23 ultra this time around in my humble opinion and with no disrespect to iPhone users.
I think it is the fastest Android device I have ever used. Saying that from a Samsung is impressive. I reset the phone when it updated and was able to eliminate some of the bloat. There are more apps you can uninstall than in the past which is good. I actually have a pretty slim install considering. Still just the system is at 55gb. But considering I have 512gb storage it really isn't an issue.
The build quality on this phone is impressive. I love the square or rectangular shape. This certainly feels like a Samsung phone. Because of the shape watching videos and browsing the net is more optimized to fill all the screen.
The spen is pretty cool. Being able to use it as a remote control and selfie button is pretty cool. It also works for music controls.
The speakers on this phone are probably the best I have heard. I adjusted the settings and EQ as well as enabled Dolby Atmos. It is loud. Great stereo sound and some bass for a phone. The speakers are fantastic.
The battery life is excellent. It just feels like a device of this caliber should. If you use it lightly it is certainly a two day phone and probably a three day phone. For Android that is impressive. I know with adaptive battery it should get better in a couple weeks time.
I set up the text to speech in the phone app and look forward to using it to screen calls. It doesn't seem as intelligent and feature rich as Google call screening but hopefully it will evolve over time. Just happy to have this feature.
The screen. I hate, hate curved displays. Specially how the image is distorted at the edges. Well this is the best curved display I have used. No distortion. Very slight curve. I still wish it was flat but if I have to have it this is not a bad experience. 6.8" of quad hd is impressive. It has really slim bezels. The color temperature is a little off compared to my Pixel which is probably the best color profile on any phone screen I have ever used. But in certain situations the screen just pops. Almost like 3d. It is very smooth.
One UI 5.1 is pretty good. I like Pixel UI a little better but the gap has shrunk a lot. Some UI elements of Pixel are better but some of One UI 5 are better. Of course the amount of customization in One UI is about the best there is.
Cell reception is really good. I get better reception across the board wherever I am at.
With the faster 4200mhz ran vs 3200mhz ddr5 and the faster ufs 4.0 and the overclock 8 gen 2 I don't see this device slowing down for a while. It is just fast.
We will get up to Android 17 and another year of security updates after that.
I really feel like this is a device that I will be happy with for years to come. I mean I am such a nerd and always changing stuff but with call screening, the speed, the support, Samsung has a device that honestly competes with iOS/iPhone in longevity and exceeds in some ways. I think I might just settle down for a while.
I have yet to really try the cameras yet. Will post when I get a chance.
To me this is a very well designed and thought out evolution of the note series. On every metric it is great.
Lastly, this device benchmarks faster than a i7 Intel tiger lake processor. Pretty good job for Qualcomm. They still have catching up to do with a series but they are doing a lot better.
Maybe it is just the newness but I could sell my Pixel and just use this phone exclusively. I won't because I like having a backup device but this is the first phone I don't miss anything. I don't feel like I am compromising in any way. Almost every phone I have had I felt like I was compromising something. This device is as close to a perfect phone as it gets.
I look forward to using it over time and discovering more uses.
I don't know what Apple is going to bring with the iPhone 15 Pro Max that would pull me away from this phone. The 14 pro max is outclassed by the s23 ultra this time around in my humble opinion and with no disrespect to iPhone users.
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Technerd108
macrumors 68040
That is the problem with Amazon. They just don't care what they are delivering.
Hope this one is a keeper for you!! Fingers crossed 🤞!
Once it thawa out I have a feeling it will be better than what you had!
You have to update us how it is when you get the chance.
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Technerd108
macrumors 68040
Just used Bixby text to speech on a spam call! I love it. In practice it works just about the same as Pixel.
Oh this is a great feature Samsung!!
Oh this is a great feature Samsung!!
I've used it a handful of times already but the caller just hangs up as soon as they hear a computerized voice.
mjschabow
macrumors 603
Also, mission accomplished haha.
out of genuine interest, what it is with your graphic arts on the mac that can't be done just as well on windows these days?
It looks really nice so far.🙂 Unfortunately I have to leave. 🙁 Gotta take care of my mom. Assisted Living is falling down on the job lately, hopefully a temporary situation, as they’re having yet another staff turnover—at least I think that’s what’s going on since I don’t recognize most of the staff again. I’ll be back later to finish setting up. I am setting up as all new!
Ludatyk
macrumors 604
Is there a contract required in order to get the Ultra half price? And if I'm not mistaken you still have a S22... you wasn't willing to trade that in?
sporez
macrumors regular
@mjschabow regarding the pull back to apple, even after having my fold4 since last August and using it as my primary device for 90% of that time I still get this feeling quite a bit. Which is why I'll probably be getting the 15 Pro max come September. The fold is a great device but there's just certain apps that are only on iPhone/work better on iPhone. Plus the airpods/apple watch are better than Samsungs alternatives in my opinion so the ecosystem as a whole is a bit better on the ios side.
So all this to say, don't feel bad it happens to lots of us. I've just come to accept that I enjoy both ios and android.
So all this to say, don't feel bad it happens to lots of us. I've just come to accept that I enjoy both ios and android.
Technerd108
macrumors 68040
You have to use Google Fi unlimited $50 plan for four months. That is it. Device comes unlocked.
Trade in value with Google Fi was terrible so I sold it on Swappa for just about the cost of the ultra at half price. Plus they bumped up the specs to 512gb, 12gb ram model.
I checked all the deals from Samsung, Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile and this was the best with no 36 month pay back. No locked device. Half of the base model cost with mid range model specs and tax was on the discounted price too.
Most of the others will give you $800 off with trade in. Then they want you to have an $80 a month plan to get it. And they were selling the base model in some cases with 256/8gb.
With Fi I got half off no trade in. I don't have any credits. Plan is no contract after 4 months. Device is unlocked. I could then sell my s22 on private market for more than trade in which allowed me to buy the s23 ultra at practically no cost.
After my experience with Boost mobile and mint I might just keep Fi. But we will see. It is basically $25 a month more than I was paying for 4 months. $100. Then I can decide to keep Fi or go to another carrier.
Best deal I could find.
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Technerd108
macrumors 68040
I am sorry for the assisted living situation. My Mom is also in assisted living and it took a couple places and a few years to find a decent place. They are incredibly expensive and it is just a tough situation. Wishing you the best. Take time for your own mental health too.
Look forward to your impressions when you have the time.
mjschabow
macrumors 603
Just installed Pixelful icon pack on OneUI. Really enjoying wasting Samsung's time with this look!
