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My next Android handset

T

trick202

Android Expert
Hi all

I'm looking for my next Android handset, but I'm struggling to be honest. I have an iPhone4 at the moment, I've had it since launch. Very happy with it, it's just that after a year of use I'd like a change.

I would like:

1: A large screen (iP4 screen is still the best I've seen, but is looking small these days)
2: Great camera (again, I'm spoilt here already)
3: Premium build quality
4: Solid WiFi and RF performance
5: Something that will last a year and still be relevant (as the iP4 has)
6: Something that the Modding community has adopted

SGS2 looks good at 1,5&6 - but fails on 3&4
Sensation good on 1,3&6 - but bad on 2&4
Incredible S good on 1,3&6 - but bad on 2,4&5
Nexus S good on 1,5&6 - but bad on 2,3&4

I'm confused.com - there's got to be something among the massive choice of handsets that's really great.

Any ideas? I'm not restricted by budget.
 
Thanks for your input.
Yes, it's certainly one of the Favourites. However, I am finding reams and reams of posts about wifi problems, signal issues, device heating up.....The build quality is also a concern coming from the ip4.

I notice the price (play.com and others) has already started dropping.
 
trick202 said:
Thanks for your input.
Yes, it's certainly one of the Favourites. However, I am finding reams and reams of posts about wifi problems, signal issues, device heating up.....The build quality is also a concern coming from the ip4.

I notice the price (play.com and others) has already started dropping.
Click to expand...

The entire galaxy line(to me) always seemed and even felt a bit flimsy, but the vibrant I had wasnt as bad as I thought it would be. Although it did heat up seemingly quick. The other problems are hit or miss...take any phone and some people will swear by it, and others will want to run it over.
 
The Galaxy S series are likely to take a fall better than the IP4. It may feel cheap, but the plastic is high tech and impact resistant. The glass back of the IP4 is known to shatter.

When it comes to RF, plastic doesn't block like metal does, nor does plastic conduct electrical charges from your hand and into the phone's antenna, like the IP4 does.

Here's another thing, why the Galaxy S family is so light and thin. They don't use aluminum for the internal chassis like all other phones do. They use magnesium.

Owning an SGS2, never had wifi issues or RF issues. Rather, RF is splendid. This is the best phone I've owned when it comes to RF. Wifi seems the same as any other device I've seen. I got wifi weak spots in the house, every device has roughly the same reception even my own iPod Touch and my wife's iPhone.

I rarely feel the heat issue on the SGS2 but remember this is perhaps the most powerful processor ever put on a phone, and if you're going to stress it with a heavy 3D game, the chip can get warm (around the camera area).

On the Sensation, the 8mp ain't bad at all, and the processing software on the HTC phones improve with the latest models. I get decent pictures on my Desire Z. The Sensation should do better. RF issues? Never found a problem on HTC phones. Wifi issues? See above.

Nexus S --- It maybe built with plastic, but the phone feels very tight and solid, with some heft into it. This is not a phone that will creak, show light leaks or have moisture creep up to it. And the camera is good. I like what I see on it. RF quality is good and the only thing is I find the wifi reception feels weak at times.

The Incredible S has a great camera. The frame around it is a nice aluminum unibody, but some people dislike the rubbery plastic back which actually has great grip.
 
I don't know why you would fail all these phones with #4 when the IP4 fails at #4.

On the cameras. The IP4 camera isn't that great, the processing software is. Having said that I don't find the colors quite natural, its biased more for saturation. A lot about image quality is really post processing.

I would trust the Samsung camera more than the HTC ones, but the HTC cameras have been improving rapidly such that the phones I see now are clearly better than those introduced months ago. For example the camera and app of the Desire Z is clearly better than the Desire and Nexus One. I believe the ones on the Sensation and Incredible S is/are better than the EVO 4G and Droid Incredible. IMO, the SGS2 camera is the best here, but the other three aren't bad at all. The Nexus S camera IMO is better than the Galaxy S one.

Again the factors why the later HTC and Samsung phones are better than their predecessors in photo quality can come from better image processing.
 
I have never, ever experienced RF or WiFi issues with the iPhone 4.

In any case - I bought a Galaxy S2 this weekend. I have a few initial thoughts:

Screen - nice and bright/large. The clarity is nowhere near as good as the iPhone4. Even with a larger screen, I still need to zoom in to make text legible.
Android has come a long way since my Desire. However, it's still not as fluid as iOS (this is because iOS is an app launcher - that's all it has to do).
Screen is not as responsive as the iPhone's - plenty of taps going unrecognised (I will get used to this, just need to be a little harder with the taps.

WiFi seems to be fine on my handset (I have it switched off though, as I have unlimited data).
RF seems fine to me - although I'll know more when number port is complete and I can use it full time.

As for the camera: it makes no difference what it is that's causing the camera in the iPhone4 to be so good - it's the results that matter, and they are fantastic for me.
I'm looking forward to taking lots of photos with the Galaxy S2 - I have high hopes it'll be good.

Battery is an area I'm going to leave alone until I have regular use out of the phone.
 
trick202 said:
I have never, ever experienced RF or WiFi issues with the iPhone 4.

In any case - I bought a Galaxy S2 this weekend. I have a few initial thoughts:

Screen - nice and bright/large. The clarity is nowhere near as good as the iPhone4. Even with a larger screen, I still need to zoom in to make text legible.
Android has come a long way since my Desire. However, it's still not as fluid as iOS (this is because iOS is an app launcher - that's all it has to do).
Screen is not as responsive as the iPhone's - plenty of taps going unrecognised (I will get used to this, just need to be a little harder with the taps.

WiFi seems to be fine on my handset (I have it switched off though, as I have unlimited data).
RF seems fine to me - although I'll know more when number port is complete and I can use it full time.

As for the camera: it makes no difference what it is that's causing the camera in the iPhone4 to be so good - it's the results that matter, and they are fantastic for me.
I'm looking forward to taking lots of photos with the Galaxy S2 - I have high hopes it'll be good.

Battery is an area I'm going to leave alone until I have regular use out of the phone.
Click to expand...

I've bolded two things you said. You leave wifi disabled because you have unlimited data, but it sounds like you're, at least slightly, dissatisfied with battery performance? Maybe I'm reading too much into it. But if you wish to get more out of your battery, use wifi where you're sure wifi is secure. Coffee shops and other public access points, not so much. Home, friend/family's house, maybe even work, sure. Wifi consumes less power than your 3G radio. Just a FYI.
 
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