I picked up my Samsung Galaxy S4 (SGH-I337) from an AT&T store about two months ago. I got a case for it, car charger, gorilla glass, etc. As previously having been an Apple iPhone user wanting a change, I initially took a great liking to the phone and it's technological features. However, it's been two months in and the cracks are starting to show... big time.
My first issue is the audio quality. Even with the volume cranked at the max, the audio output through my headphones (or any output) just sounds muffled, flat and soft, especially compared to the output on my iphone 4s. I've tried playing with the EQs with apps and different sets of headphones - the same problem persisting. I did a little research and found that the audio chip in the Galaxy S4 isn't great and that's why the sound is inferior to my iPhone. Okay, no problem, maybe I could live with that.
Then about 2-3 weeks ago I updated to Android 4.4.2. I thought that this would be a good thing; 'why wouldn't you update your phone's firmware, making it perform even better?' - was my assumption. Turns out this was an awful idea, as ever since then I've been having to completely restart my phone every hour or two because the network service completely drops. It'll go from three bars (rarely do I ever see five or six) and crash to zero/no bars randomly, without warning and seemingly no provocation. I've tried clearing the cache, restarting in "safe mode" and a full on factory reset - all rendered completely useless. This problem is extremely frustrating - as sometimes I wont even know that my network service has been 'out' for sometime and I will miss calls, text messages, emails, etc. There have been times where I've sent out text messages that never got delivered because my service was randomly dropped. As I said before, the only way to get it back is to restart the phone.
I've read of the 4.4.2 Kitkat issues of Galaxy S4 users - and none of them quite seem to describe what I just have here. Doing more searching, I've found that some users have experienced this long before the update came out, making me think that this is an actual hardware issue that must be addressed. If this is the case and I decide to cash in on the manufacture's warranty, as I understand, I'll have to send my phone in (and be without a phone for however long it takes) and they'll send me a refurbished model of the phone. This would also mean that I'd lose my gorilla glass installed on the phone (unless Samsung would be kind enough to replace the glass or refund me).
As a customer, I find all of this to be outrageous. They clearly just sold me a phone that only seems to work when it wants to - and even then it only works 'okay' in some areas. I really don't mean to start an Apple vs Android debate but in the years I've had iPhones, I have never experienced any problems like this - or any problems in at least 10 months after purchase and even then, they were minor.
Am I overlooking something? Are there easy solutions here - Can someone give me some insight here; are there viable options that don't amount to me losing in some way, ultimately - or have I just been robbed?
My first issue is the audio quality. Even with the volume cranked at the max, the audio output through my headphones (or any output) just sounds muffled, flat and soft, especially compared to the output on my iphone 4s. I've tried playing with the EQs with apps and different sets of headphones - the same problem persisting. I did a little research and found that the audio chip in the Galaxy S4 isn't great and that's why the sound is inferior to my iPhone. Okay, no problem, maybe I could live with that.
Then about 2-3 weeks ago I updated to Android 4.4.2. I thought that this would be a good thing; 'why wouldn't you update your phone's firmware, making it perform even better?' - was my assumption. Turns out this was an awful idea, as ever since then I've been having to completely restart my phone every hour or two because the network service completely drops. It'll go from three bars (rarely do I ever see five or six) and crash to zero/no bars randomly, without warning and seemingly no provocation. I've tried clearing the cache, restarting in "safe mode" and a full on factory reset - all rendered completely useless. This problem is extremely frustrating - as sometimes I wont even know that my network service has been 'out' for sometime and I will miss calls, text messages, emails, etc. There have been times where I've sent out text messages that never got delivered because my service was randomly dropped. As I said before, the only way to get it back is to restart the phone.
I've read of the 4.4.2 Kitkat issues of Galaxy S4 users - and none of them quite seem to describe what I just have here. Doing more searching, I've found that some users have experienced this long before the update came out, making me think that this is an actual hardware issue that must be addressed. If this is the case and I decide to cash in on the manufacture's warranty, as I understand, I'll have to send my phone in (and be without a phone for however long it takes) and they'll send me a refurbished model of the phone. This would also mean that I'd lose my gorilla glass installed on the phone (unless Samsung would be kind enough to replace the glass or refund me).
As a customer, I find all of this to be outrageous. They clearly just sold me a phone that only seems to work when it wants to - and even then it only works 'okay' in some areas. I really don't mean to start an Apple vs Android debate but in the years I've had iPhones, I have never experienced any problems like this - or any problems in at least 10 months after purchase and even then, they were minor.
Am I overlooking something? Are there easy solutions here - Can someone give me some insight here; are there viable options that don't amount to me losing in some way, ultimately - or have I just been robbed?
