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M8 is nicer but I think there is tradeoff between treating our phones like jewelry vs treating them more rugged.

I actually saw the white S5 first time like 30 min ago. My girl liked it only because of that heart sensor and the camera was excellent. HTC blows Samsung away when it comes to design / premium finish. Samsung blows away HTC by practicality and camera. Has a removable battery and water-resistant. The water-resistance aspect should start to become standard for all future flagship excluding Apple or HTC if metal is still in for them.

I treat my M7 with so much care and I have the silver one that doesn't love fingerprints like the matte black ones. I know one drop and the whole thing gets messed up and chips away or dents that can never be removed. And fixability is terrible. I love aesthetics and metal as anyone. But there is a tradeoff to everything. I think Motorola generally has good balance with ergonomics, fit, and finish even when they use plastic. Moto X can be more of a phone I wouldn't feel worried throwing into my pocket and dropping it. Looking forward to Moto Maker having leather backs later in the year. Generally, all flagships can be great. Just a difference in preferences.
I agree with you...going forward new flagships should be water and dust resistant. The Xperia Z2 really takes it to new heights with water proofing. When I had the M8 i was always worried I would scratch or dent it. Then if I put a plastic case on it...well what good is having that premium materials if you just cover it up with a plastic case? If the outside materials are so fragile that normal use with damage it.....that is a design flaw in my opinion.
 
Finally got to go hands on in a Vodafone shop; not with the display model as they are all non working replicas, but with the store owners own.

Must say I'm reconsidering my impulse buy after using it.

I like the white version, screen looks great but touchwiz whilst certainly smoother wasn't as fast as my S4 GE. We opened loads of regular apps side by side with each device and my GE was a fraction and I emphasise a fraction quicker every time.

Not keen on the charging port cover; but otherwise its a nice design; but it does feel bigger than the s4 even though its only .1" more


Also got to try out the M8 but only display model; not a working model. I actually wasn't anywhere near as impressed with it as I was when I first saw and picked up the M7. Its nice but not as impressive as I had thought it would be...

So yeah after actually seeing both devices and actually playing with the S5; I'm now thinking I should cancel my S5 order as for me the difference isn't worth a new and contract.

White S5 personally looks much nicer than the black S5 and I prefer the back of the white one; and for me the back actually looks a lot better in person than it appeared in the media....

Conflicted...
 
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Finally got to go hands on in a Vodafone shop; not with the display model as they are all non working plastic fakes, but with the store owners own.

Must say I'm reconsidering my impulse buy after using it.

I like the white version, screen looks great but touchwiz whilst certainly smoother wasn't as fast as my S4 GE. We opened loads of regular apps side by side with each device and my GE was a fraction and I emphasise a fraction quicker every time.

Not keen on the charging port cover; but otherwise its a nice design; but it does feel bigger than the s4 even though its only .1" more


Also got to try out the M8 but only display model; not a working model. I actually wasn't anywhere near as impressed with it as I was when I first saw and picked up the M7. Its nice but not as impressive as I had thought it would be...

So yeah after actually seeing both devices and actually playing with the S5; I'm now thinking I should cancel my S5 order as for me the difference isn't worth a new and contract.

White S5 personally looks much nicer than the black S5 and I prefer the back of the white one; and for me the back actually looks a lot better in person than it appeared in the media....

Conflicted...

You do have 7 days though with vodafone, maybe try it out for a few days and get a feel if you think it's right?
 
You do have 7 days though with vodafone, maybe try it out for a few days and get a feel if you think it's right?

Not here. In Ireland if you use the device you can't return unless its defective.

Return policy is only if its returned unopened and unused.
 
Not here. In Ireland if you use the device you can't return unless its defective.

Return policy is only if its returned unopened and unused.

weird, thought it would be the same everywhere. I know here thats what they do. Unless it's changed as I'm with three now.

What would you be tempted with instead?
 
Not here. In Ireland if you use the device you can't return unless its defective.

Return policy is only if its returned unopened and unused.

On O2 if you upgrade in store you don't get to return it unless it's faulty.

If you do it online you can return it but only if you haven't opened it.
 
weird, thought it would be the same everywhere. I know here thats what they do. Unless it's changed as I'm with three now.

What would you be tempted with instead?

Yep here's they say

Our Return Policy

Less than 14 days

Changed your mind? No problem – you can get a full refund on a phone or accessory if you return it, unused, within 14 working days of receipt. This is in accordance with Distance Selling regulations.


As for what might tempt me next I really don't know at this stage.

Maybe a Lumia 1020 successor (if it has the big 41+ mp camera and a 5" 1080p screen and quad core processor)

And interested in hearing about Moto X+ ( if they don't stagger its release globally)

And I'm actually genuinely interested in the 5.5" iPhone 6

And of course Note 4 whatever that brings to the table....

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On O2 if you upgrade in store you don't get to return it unless it's faulty.

If you do it online you can return it but only if you haven't opened it.

Yeah very draconian compared to those in the states that can use the phones for a couple of weeks.

Maybe the carriers don't trust us :)
 
Yep here's they say




As for what might tempt me next I really don't know at this stage.

Maybe a Lumia 1020 successor (if it has the big 41+ mp camera and a 5" 1080p screen and quad core processor)

And interested in hearing about Moto X+ ( if they don't stagger its release globally)

And I'm actually genuinely interested in the 5.5" iPhone 6

And of course Note 4 whatever that brings to the table....

----------



Yeah very draconian compared to those in the states that can use the phones for a couple of weeks.

Maybe the carriers don't trust us :)

Yeah the note 4 is my next phone most likely. The thought of the a 5’5 iphone 6 is interesting but to me it will be a great device but still when I think hard about it..still no removeable battery, SD card or a phone that lets you format it how you like it. That said the design will be beautiful. Who knows maybe the note 4 will have a metal back. I can see that happening.
 
Sometimes I hate living in Europe...

I'm amazed how in the US they can use their phones for weeks and then return them if they don't like it.

If that were the case here I would have tried almost every flagship phone in the last 2 years :D:D buy it just to play with it and then return it. No questions asked. Love it.

Hate hate the USB cover on waterproof devolves. For me this is a downgrade. I don't need waterproofing. Never needed.
 
M8 is nicer but I think there is tradeoff between treating our phones like jewelry vs treating them more rugged.

I actually saw the white S5 first time like 30 min ago. My girl liked it only because of that heart sensor and the camera was excellent. HTC blows Samsung away when it comes to design / premium finish. Samsung blows away HTC by practicality and camera. Has a removable battery and water-resistant. The water-resistance aspect should start to become standard for all future flagship excluding Apple or HTC if metal is still in for them.

I treat my M7 with so much care and I have the silver one that doesn't love fingerprints like the matte black ones. I know one drop and the whole thing gets messed up and chips away or dents that can never be removed. And fixability is terrible. I love aesthetics and metal as anyone. But there is a tradeoff to everything. I think Motorola generally has good balance with ergonomics, fit, and finish even when they use plastic. Moto X can be more of a phone I wouldn't feel worried throwing into my pocket and dropping it. Looking forward to Moto Maker having leather backs later in the year. Generally, all flagships can be great. Just a difference in preferences.

I agree, the HTC One blows away the S5 in terms of construction and design. That said, if I was buying a phone just to look at on a desk, I'd buy the HTC One M8. But since I'm buying a phone for everyday use and picture taking, the choice is easy.

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Sometimes I hate living in Europe...

I'm amazed how in the US they can use their phones for weeks and then return them if they don't like it.

If that were the case here I would have tried almost every flagship phone in the last 2 years :D:D buy it just to play with it and then return it. No questions asked. Love it.

Hate hate the USB cover on waterproof devolves. For me this is a downgrade. I don't need waterproofing. Never needed.

I'm sure you could yank it off it you wanted to avoid using it. Doesn't seems like its really bolted in there.
 
If people in the US are looking for an unlocked bootloader then TMO is the one to get. Its already been rooted if you don't care about Knox tripping.
 
Hate hate the USB cover on waterproof devolves. For me this is a downgrade. I don't need waterproofing. Never needed.

That's one of the things I like about the Z2, it has a dock connector so if you want you won't have to deal with that USB cover ever and just charge through that and use WiFi for transerfering data. Sony really needs to start releasing these phones here in the US.
 
I'm amazed how in the US they can use their phones for weeks and then return them if they don't like it.

If that were the case here I would have tried almost every flagship phone in the last 2 years :D:D buy it just to play with it and then return it. No questions asked. Love it.

That is what I've done in the past. I'd buy a flagship and then return if I didn't like it. I got a 90 day suspension from returns at Best Buy because of it, though, so I don't do it any more. Now I only buy if I feel confident I'll keep it.
 
The Galaxy S5

Why did Samsung only go with the regular USB connection with a cover that will eventually break off from constant removal for charging the device? They could have cut down wear and tear if they put a magnetic pogo charging port on the S5. And from what I understand, it also charges the device faster than the USB port. I'm aware of the wireless charging backplate covers to be used with Qi but how long does wireless charging take?
 
Over at XDA people are reporting there are no lockscreen widgets on the S5.

Unbelievable. It's one of my favorite features of Android.

Also, if you long press the multitasking button it works as the old menu button.
 
Why did Samsung only go with the regular USB connection with a cover that will eventually break off from constant removal for charging the device? They could have cut down wear and tear if they put a magnetic pogo charging port on the S5. And from what I understand, it also charges the device faster than the USB port. I'm aware of the wireless charging backplate covers to be used with Qi but how long does wireless charging take?

The port is mini USB 3.0. That is just the shape of mini USB 3.0. There is a smaller connection for USB 3.1, but what the S5 has is what's available for mini 3.0.

The cover is to make it water resistant.
 
The port is mini USB 3.0. That is just the shape of mini USB 3.0. There is a smaller connection for USB 3.1, but what the S5 has is what's available for mini 3.0.



The cover is to make it water resistant.


I understand what the USB port is but my question was why couldn't Samsung place a pogo port for fast charging and also less wear and tear to the USB cover. Once that cover breaks off and is lost, it's not longer water resistant. If files need to be moved to and from the device, it could be done wirelessly through Cloud or WiFi.
 
I understand what the USB port is but my question was why couldn't Samsung place a pogo port for fast charging and also less wear and tear to the USB cover. Once that cover breaks off and is lost, it's not longer water resistant. If files need to be moved to and from the device, it could be done wirelessly through Cloud or WiFi.

I had to look up what a pogo port is because I haven't heard of it. I see what you're referring to now. That would be nice to have. Maybe Samsung just wanted to use a standard cable for interoperability.

I understand your concern with the cover. That's the first thing I thought of when I saw it. I've never liked port flaps.
 
Over at XDA people are reporting there are no lockscreen widgets on the S5.

Unbelievable. It's one of my favorite features of Android.

Also, if you long press the multitasking button it works as the old menu button.

They probably just haven't activated it from within security settings.

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. I'm aware of the wireless charging backplate covers to be used with Qi but how long does wireless charging take?

About 65% speed of non wireless charging. Despite being 1/3 slower, Once you go wireless charging it's hard to go back.
 
The Galaxy S5

For those that don't know what the magnetic pogo port is, here are a couple of videos to give you an idea. My Nexus 10 has this port which I use. I'm surprised more cellphone manufacturers don't include this technology in their phones. I believe the Sony Experia Z1 has something similar. It could be used as a great selling feature.

http://youtu.be/TZC_Afj-F30

http://youtu.be/chrdl8EjBbs
 
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About 65% speed of non wireless charging. Despite being 1/3 slower, Once you go wireless charging it's hard to go back.


Why is that? Doesn't the user still have to leave the device on the charging panel? You can't hold the device and use it while it's wirelessly charging. It charges slower. I know Duracell has the Powermat wireless charger but wireless charging doesn't seem to have taken off or it just cost too much. It seems more of an inconvenience.
 
A thread full of Samsung enthusiasts , so could be interesting to read a review written by someone much less happy about many Samsung' s decisions.

http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2014...lenty-of-upgrades-so-why-does-it-feel-so-meh/

To summarize:

TouchWiz is a fragmented clash of three different operating system styles.
They aren't sure a heart rate monitor would be useful on a phone, but the one on this phone is only right about half the time.
The fingerprint reader can't be used one-handed.
The usual cheap-feeling plastic. It's a little improved over the glossy S4 but still not great.
Thanks to the fatter bezels, the S5 design feels like a step backward when compared to the S4. We're supposed to be getting more screen and less plastic, not the other way around. When you see the two next to each other, it's hard to not prefer the Galaxy S4's slimmer design.
 
Has anyone compared the heart rate monitor with an app that uses the camera? Just curious how much more accurate it is.
 
A thread full of Samsung enthusiasts , so could be interesting to read a review written by someone much less happy about many Samsung' s decisions.

http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2014...lenty-of-upgrades-so-why-does-it-feel-so-meh/

To summarize:

TouchWiz is a fragmented clash of three different operating system styles.
They aren't sure a heart rate monitor would be useful on a phone, but the one on this phone is only right about half the time.
The fingerprint reader can't be used one-handed.
The usual cheap-feeling plastic. It's a little improved over the glossy S4 but still not great.
Thanks to the fatter bezels, the S5 design feels like a step backward when compared to the S4. We're supposed to be getting more screen and less plastic, not the other way around. When you see the two next to each other, it's hard to not prefer the Galaxy S4's slimmer design.

I've seen videos of people using the fingerprint scanner one handed on YouTube...

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Has anyone compared the heart rate monitor with an app that uses the camera? Just curious how much more accurate it is.



Yes it's been done here

Samsung Galaxy S5 vs Galaxy S4 vs iPhone 5s: Hear…: http://youtu.be/_yCD9UdrhG8
 
I've seen videos of people using the fingerprint scanner one handed on YouTube...

I've seen an horse flying on YouTube ....

Every "serious" review showed (and criticized) that fingerprint scanner implementation is far from being really usable one handed ...

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Has anyone compared the heart rate monitor with an app that uses the camera? Just curious how much more accurate it is.

According with Ars Technica review, heart monitor is just a gimmick, with an average accuracy of 50% ....
 
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