• After 15+ years, we've made a big change: Android Forums is now Early Bird Club. Learn more here.

S6 non removable battery

gregg1100

gregg1100

Android Enthusiast
It seems Samsung is going the way of HTC, apple, Sony and others in making the S6 with non removable battery. The Edge version is supposed to be battery removable, but a lot more expensive.
Why are lots of people after an all metal device?? Hasn't it been shown that in drop tests, the plastic backed phones are stronger( seen that somewhere in phone forums).
Given that my phone and millions of others are in a case, where you can't see if it is plastic or metal backed, I would certainly prefer a plastic backed phone where you can replace a dead or dying battery for a fresh one. If it means I give Samsung a Harvey Smith for bringing out S6 with fixed battery. I will, and go elsewhere.
They can bring out all the Power reduction software they like, but nothing is as easy as slotting in a fresh battery. It could even be a life saver.
WHY don't manufacturers of all goods EVER CHUFFING LISTEN to the people who buy their products.???
 
I 2nd this, definitely. I'm sick of seeing the word "premium" parroted over and over on phone review sites. Okay we get it, metal is nice and plastic is for peasants. And I say this as someone who owns a Note 4 and likes the metal in it.

Like you point out most phones are in cases so it doesn't matter, it's purely for marketing. So your sacrificing swappable batteries and choice for bullshit reasons. If they want to bring out a standard and 'premium' all metal version fine, but don't take away one of the reasons we buy Samsung phones.

I refuse to buy any phone which omits removable batteries and Micro SD card support. These thinsg should be standard like Wi-Fi


One thing though, let's see what they actually release before jumping to conclusions
 
I remain cautious about rumours until we get official confirmation: I remember "reliable sources" claiming that the S3 was going to have a ceramic body, the S4 was going to have a flexible screen, etc.

That said, there's an interesting problem for Samsung. As long as sales and profits kept growing it was natural to keep to the same formula, but profits fell this year. So what do they do? More of the same is almost certainly a recipe for decline, but a big enough change to generate some excitement is going to be a risk.

I agree with Ty: let's wait and see what they actually release. It'll be interesting whatever way they go.
 
Yeah- I realise all is supposition at this stage, but the light is beginning to shine in that direction.
Hope not.
 
HTC did once make a unibody phone with a removable battery (HTC Legend: you removed one of the antenna cut-outs to access the battery).

If the recent pictures were genuine I don't think you could pull the same trick with that chassis, but the site that originally posted them is now saying that they are not the S6 chassis (original) (translation). So let's see.
 
Last edited:
Personally never liked HTC- very low volume and weird UI on the Sensation 1. First and last.
All HTC go on about now is that M8 is a beautiful phone, being all metal, but with case on, looks like any other device. Not interested in what it looks like, as long as it does what it is supposed to do.
 
Ah, the current HTC Ones do not suffer from low volume, and Sense is now much toned-down from what it was in the Sensation days. Of course today's rumour is that Touchwiz will be streamlined for the S6 - again, let's see what this means in practice ;).
 
Where did this rumour come from, some blog or something? Don't really pay much heed until nearer the time.

I just think, "so what if it has a sealed battery, it's not the end of the world", just buy another phone that has a removable battery instead, if that is what you need. Many people I know, apart from students, don't carry around second batteries with them, or if they do, say they're travelling or something, they might have one of those universal USB power-pack things.

BTW IMO metal is only "premium" if it's gold or platinum, and NOT aluminium.
 
Last edited:
gregg1100 said:
Personally never liked HTC- very low volume and weird UI on the Sensation 1. First and last.
Click to expand...

That was a Gingerbread 2.3 phone, four years ago. Things might have changed since then with HTC. I had a Samsung Galaxy S at the time, with 2.3 on it, and I've had four phones since then, of various makes. I remember looking at the Sensation, but at the time it was exclusive to one carrier only, Unicom.Think it was also called the HTC Amaze in certain markets, and probably other names as well, which is what HTC does.
 
Last edited:
"That was a Gingerbread 2.3 phone, four years ago." Quote didn't work for me.

The Sensation that I bought for wife actually had Ice Cream sandwich 4,01 (or similar decimal point) on it. Her hearing is very good, but she struggled to hear the thing ringing in her bag. So I got her a Nokia 820, seems louder than Big Ben when stood underneath the clock. She hated the UI of the HTC as well, so sold it extremely cheaply to a grand daughter, ( read nigh on gave it away, lol ). I have a Nokia 520 as spare- good set of lungs on that too.
 
mikedt said:
Samsung lost my interest when they introduced Knox and non-resettable, warranty void e-fuses, which trip when the device is rooted, and was one of the reasons why I bought a Chinese phone instead.
Click to expand...
What phone did u get mate? I've just pulled the trigger on a OnePlus One and the all plastic build doesn't worry me one bit.
Metal phones do feel kinda "premium" to me but as gregg said, chances are we're gonna slap a case on it anyway.
Like my s3 felt a bit "creaky" when I got it but with the right case on it (Urban Armor Gear), it feels solid and very premium.
Also I think plastic would absorb the shock of a fall better and protect the most important structural part, the display
 
A removable battery isn't about just swapping it when it runs low on juice though, if the battery develops faults then you've got a ton of hassle in swapping the battery through a repair company (like iPhone), a process which ordinarily takes 10 seconds at most. In fact on my Galaxy S4 the battery started developing problems where it'd turn off once it got below 40%. Swapped it for a Rav Power battery and it sorted it right out. Even aside from that though they're unnecessarily taking choice away from people, the whole reason we like Android phones. Yes we can go for a different make of phone but I like the Samsung ones and all the gimmicky stuff they do. It's not like I'm asking them to change them to just suit me, simply leave it as is.

I agree about Knox being a pain in the arse though, I'll put up with bits of bullshit like that because ultimately I like the phones Samsung offer. Though I have a suspicion come upgrade time I'm gonna be going with HTC or Sony
 
mikedt said:
Samsung lost my interest when they introduced Knox and non-resettable, warranty void e-fuses, which trip when the device is rooted, and was one of the reasons why I bought a Chinese phone instead.
Click to expand...
They can't enforce the Knox thing, or any firmware fiddling you may do in Australia, our consumer law provides that it's our property and as long as the customising isn't the cause of the failure for which you are claiming warranty, they have to honour that warranty. Also, even though they may claim to warrant the product for 12 months, in Oz you are able to claim for as long as the product would normally be expected to function, for mobile phones that's deemed to be 3 - 4 years.
 
funkylogik said:
I think plastic would absorb the shock of a fall better and protect the most important structural part, the display
Click to expand...

Tell that to the owners of S4s/S5s I see almost daily with cracked screens due to drops. :(

Unless the chassis is ruggedised the material is immaterial (!) - the shock loading transferred to the display glass will still be sufficient to cause cracking. Ironically the trend towards narrower bezels, meaning less support for the glass, exacerbates the problem.
 
I almost was ready to switch to an LG G3... but ended up picking up the Note 3 because it was available, and unlocked, for the price, whereas nobody that had the G3 would sell an unlocked model at any price, even if they had it in stock.

But I do agree about Knox, and it was one of my reasons for wanting to look elsewhere. I was just relieved that at least I had a valid option in the G3 because it had the removable battery option, and a Zerolemon battery was available for it. That said, I'm happy with my Note 3, even if it isn't LTE.
 
gregg1100 said:
"That was a Gingerbread 2.3 phone, four years ago." Quote didn't work for me.

The Sensation that I bought for wife actually had Ice Cream sandwich 4,01 (or similar decimal point) on it. Her hearing is very good, but she struggled to hear the thing ringing in her bag. So I got her a Nokia 820, seems louder than Big Ben when stood underneath the clock. She hated the UI of the HTC as well, so sold it extremely cheaply to a grand daughter, ( read nigh on gave it away, lol ). I have a Nokia 520 as spare- good set of lungs on that too.
Click to expand...
No one disputed your experience.

The Sensation was released in 2011 as the flagship model with Gingerbread, ICS didn't show up for it until 2012, and by then the One X was already the flagship replacement.

They listened.

In 2013, one of the first mods released for the One M7 flagship was to lower the volume - it was too loud.

The objection was the 2011 model generalization to today, where it doesn't apply.

Just as my 2010 Samsung complaints don't apply today.
 
funkylogik said:
What phone did u get mate? I've just pulled the trigger on a OnePlus One and the all plastic build doesn't worry me one bit.
Metal phones do feel kinda "premium" to me but as gregg said, chances are we're gonna slap a case on it anyway.
Like my s3 felt a bit "creaky" when I got it but with the right case on it (Urban Armor Gear), it feels solid and very premium.
Also I think plastic would absorb the shock of a fall better and protect the most important structural part, the display
Click to expand...

I bought an Oppo Find 7a back in May last year, and still very happy with it. That's got metal sides and a plastic back, but I do keep it in a flip cover case, which I'm sure has saved the glass a couple of times when I have dropped it. Think you'll like the OnePlus mate, it's rather the same phone as the F7a.
 
The_Ty said:
A removable battery isn't about just swapping it when it runs low on juice though, if the battery develops faults then you've got a ton of hassle in swapping the battery through a repair company (like iPhone), a process which ordinarily takes 10 seconds at most.
Click to expand...

Usually if you take a faulty iPhone to an Apple store, the Genius will just swap the whole phone. Or if you take it to a competent indy tech, they can open thing and replace the battery in less than 10 minutes. And they'll usually have iPhone batteries in stock, because iPhones can be very common. So they can do it while you wait very often.


The_Ty said:
In fact on my Galaxy S4 the battery started developing problems where it'd turn off once it got below 40%. Swapped it for a Rav Power battery and it sorted it right out. Even aside from that though they're unnecessarily taking choice away from people, the whole reason we like Android phones. Yes we can go for a different make of phone but I like the Samsung ones and all the gimmicky stuff they do. It's not like I'm asking them to change them to just suit me, simply leave it as is.

I agree about Knox being a pain in the arse though, I'll put up with bits of bullshit like that because ultimately I like the phones Samsung offer. Though I have a suspicion come upgrade time I'm gonna be going with HTC or Sony
Click to expand...

For me in 22 years of owning more phones than I care to remember, I've only ever had a battery go faulty once. In fact I've actually still got and use a six year old MacBook and iPod 5th gen, they're both still on the original batteries, and still work just fine.
 
A trucker mate of mine has just bought a 1+1. Looks good, with 64Gb and Cyanogenmod system running 4.4.4 and with 3gb of ram. When I next see him in the pub, I will have a good look at it. Another mate has bought an Asus Zenphone. Not sure where they are made, but probably China, lol.
At nearly 69, I have to watch what I spend a bit now. An S6 or similar would have been my last big phone expense, but will carry on with my rooted S3 for a bit longer.
 
mikedt said:
Usually if you take a faulty iPhone to an Apple store, the Genius will just swap the whole phone. Or if you take it to a competent indy tech, they can open thing and replace the battery in less than 10 minutes. And they'll usually have iPhone batteries in stock, because iPhones can be very common. So they can do it while you wait very often.




For me in 22 years of owning more phones than I care to remember, I've only ever had a battery go faulty once. In fact I've actually still got and use a six year old MacBook and iPod 5th gen, they're both still on the original batteries, and still work just fine.
Click to expand...

But surely it's a lot easier and cheaper to take 10 seconds and swap the battery yourself? Okay yes it's easy to deal with, but it's still more hassle than it needs to be.

Also the whole point of Android is choice. Personally I'm not that fussed on ROMs as I like the stock experience (I know, it's boring. I even stick with Touchwiz ... ), but others like that choice. It'd suck if Samsung unnecessarily took that choice away because it only affects a minority of users
 
@miketd ahh aye i forgot u got the oppo mate, basically the same manufacturer eh?
@gregg1100 i (and i know im gonna regret it but its all i was willing to spend) got the 16gb version.
I think i can live with that as long as i save nandroids etc to the cloud and am careful how many tunes/apps i keep on it.... i half regret not paying the extra £50 for the 64gb version but i was really pushing it paying £250 for the 16....
 
funkylogik said:
@miketd ahh aye i forgot u got the oppo mate, basically the same manufacturer eh?
Click to expand...

The OnePlus One is made in Oppo's factory, and the company is some ex-Oppo people apparently. The One itself is practically the same hardware, and the first usable custom ROM for the F7a, the devs basically pulled stock CM11S from the One, with some small modifications. And the Ones we buy in China, they come with Oppo's ColorOS, not CM11. I'm very happy with the Oppo, intend to keep it for another year at least.

That's enough OT from me. :D ...our OnePlus One and Oppo Find 7 forums are over there somewhere -------->>
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom