DragonSlayer95
Resident Air Bender
Last rumor I heard about that, the g3 was poised to possibly have expandable storage.
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The Return of the Micro SD slot?
- Thread starter dontpanicbobby
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Last rumor I heard about that, the g3 was poised to possibly have expandable storage.
CafeKampuchia
Android Expert
Yup. That's what they're all saying.
funkylogik
share the love peeps ;)
I have the same problem on my 16gb nexus 7. A nandroid and a titanium backup use a 3rd of the storage. Hopefully getting an otg soon :thumbup:
nickdalzell
Extreme Android User
why would anyone want a dongle hanging from their microUSB port over an SD card slot? OTG is NOT a proper replacement for expandable storage. Leave it to Google to force their stupid cloud crap down our throats. they already got the SD slot removed from Motorola phones, i am guessing Samsung is next on the chopping block. one advantage Android had over Apple, gone. am i the only one seeing Google turning into the new iPhone?
Two of the newest Motorola phones, the Moto E and Moto G 4G LTE, both have an SD card slot for expandable storage.
Why not? Don't assume everyone shares your opinions on this or any other matter; we all have our own pet peeves about Android depending on how well it matches our personal requirements and preferences - and we're all different.
In any case I doubt anybody "dangles" an OTG device from their phone/tablet any more than I "dangle" the 2TB USB 3 portable HD from my netbook when I'm using it.
Horses for courses. I have no objection to having an SD slot but I only need one if a device has insufficient internal storage for my day to day needs, which is not the case with my current Android devices. OTG is much more useful for those times I need to attach some seriously large mass storage devices and I'd need it whether there's a SD slot or not.
funkylogik
share the love peeps ;)
The way i use my tablet it wouldnt really bother me having a cable hanging out, half the time i use it its plugged into the charger anyway........ wow... just stopped myself in my tracks lol... say for example i wanted to use otg with a thumb drive to play a movie, does otg have like "pass through" so i could be charging at the same time?
Anyway my main use of expandable storage via otg would be for backups so having it hanging out there wont be a problem :thumbup:
Anyway my main use of expandable storage via otg would be for backups so having it hanging out there wont be a problem :thumbup:
Occasional use, accessing large portable drives, transferring data from one card format to another via card reader?
Correct, it's not a replacement at all but simply another type of expandable storage.
What on earth has OTG got to do with cloud storage? It's a local solution, just as an SD card slot is.
If that was the case then SD cards would have become extinct back when the Nexus 4 appeared. The fact that SD support is actually being reintroduced by OEMs who previously abandoned it should tell you that Google aren't calling the shots.
I think you are, although surely it would be "the new Apple"?
I use Samsungs OTG USB cable sometimes for reading thumb drives but as a long term option it's not for me. What if I lose the cable or misplace or lose the thumb drive? That would mean I'm SOL. With a built in SD card reader the data is always there, especially the way Samsung implements it.
nickdalzell
Extreme Android User
Cloud storage indeed has no relevance to OTG. I meant that aside Google's stupid reasoning behind their anti-SD slot stance, the real reasons imply they want us all in their cloud. They want to have us use their new cloud apps. Hence ChromeOS, Chrome web apps, Play apps moving to the cloud, etc.
Unfortunately, for the few of us like myself, who live on the fringe of data service, the cloud is a total failure. That Play Music all-access subscription sounds nice until your songs stop playing when you take a nice drive in the country, or your music rebuffers over and over again during a nature walk. Suddenly, having MP3s stored on an SD card sounds more logical. Also, no risk of it vanishing if the service goes belly-up like Ubuntu One did (and many cloud services before it)
With the loss of the SD slot, all you have to get expandable storage on a Nexus device or Google Play device is via OTG, which increases bulk and reduces portability.
And then there is KitKat...
Unfortunately, for the few of us like myself, who live on the fringe of data service, the cloud is a total failure. That Play Music all-access subscription sounds nice until your songs stop playing when you take a nice drive in the country, or your music rebuffers over and over again during a nature walk. Suddenly, having MP3s stored on an SD card sounds more logical. Also, no risk of it vanishing if the service goes belly-up like Ubuntu One did (and many cloud services before it)
With the loss of the SD slot, all you have to get expandable storage on a Nexus device or Google Play device is via OTG, which increases bulk and reduces portability.
And then there is KitKat...
Medion
Android Expert
Nick -
I'm doing everything that I can to find ways around the MicroSD limitations. The easiest way is to transfer files from USB. The stock music and gallery apps will have no problem picking up music, pictures, and videos (just can't edit/delete them without plugging in to USB).
Google Music now allows you to pin your music collection to the SD card, so that's useful. If they would do the same for other media, that would be fantastic. For now, I use FolderSync to synchronize my media to the SD card. It can be done, but with limitations that require workarounds. For one, I have to sync it to the /android/data folder. Then, I need to use gallery apps that can see hidden files.
It was a pain to learn, and it's certainly not better in any way, but it's doable.
I'm doing everything that I can to find ways around the MicroSD limitations. The easiest way is to transfer files from USB. The stock music and gallery apps will have no problem picking up music, pictures, and videos (just can't edit/delete them without plugging in to USB).
Google Music now allows you to pin your music collection to the SD card, so that's useful. If they would do the same for other media, that would be fantastic. For now, I use FolderSync to synchronize my media to the SD card. It can be done, but with limitations that require workarounds. For one, I have to sync it to the /android/data folder. Then, I need to use gallery apps that can see hidden files.
It was a pain to learn, and it's certainly not better in any way, but it's doable.
Well, don't buy those models, buy from someone who listens to your consumer demands.
I'm glad to see its return.
nickdalzell
Extreme Android User
If google has enough influence (look what they did to the Galaxy S5 UI and apps. It is a bad rendention of a Nexus phone) the SD slot will eventually vanish. No model will exist to meet the demand i and many others have. If you cannot see how Apple-like Google has become lately, the way they kill AOSP development, want the Play store to be the only store, etc.
Sure, Google Play Music allows local 'pins' but only in a DRM infested, proprietary format accessible only by the Play Music app. As in no Samsung Music, equalizer or voice control. Now if they would use MP3 or FLAC, sure. The app also requires periodic data connections to verify you own the music, which still results in the playback stopping if you are not in an area with signal.
It isnt about transfers, its about expanding storage and not eating your internal memory alive. As apps, games and their endless updates get bigger, even the 64GB tablets will run out. Without an SD card, your either forced to uninstall stuff, buy a new larger capacity device, or use a hideous unportable dongle (oh god anyone remember corded floppy drives?)
What i dont grasp is why taking away sd slots is only wrong when Apple does it, but perfectly justifiable when Google does it.
Sure, Google Play Music allows local 'pins' but only in a DRM infested, proprietary format accessible only by the Play Music app. As in no Samsung Music, equalizer or voice control. Now if they would use MP3 or FLAC, sure. The app also requires periodic data connections to verify you own the music, which still results in the playback stopping if you are not in an area with signal.
It isnt about transfers, its about expanding storage and not eating your internal memory alive. As apps, games and their endless updates get bigger, even the 64GB tablets will run out. Without an SD card, your either forced to uninstall stuff, buy a new larger capacity device, or use a hideous unportable dongle (oh god anyone remember corded floppy drives?)
What i dont grasp is why taking away sd slots is only wrong when Apple does it, but perfectly justifiable when Google does it.
Blame the RIAA and the record companies for that, because they assume you're a thief who's going to steal their music.
nickdalzell
Extreme Android User
Funny you say that, as all my Amazon MP3 store purchases play in my music app of choice. I am not forced to use Amazon's player or Google's. Nor does my entire library suddenly vanish if i am in a zero coverage area when it checks into its cloud.
Renting vs purchasing.
Renting music, e.g. Google, you're paying a monthly subscription for their service. Stop paying, no more music. Service is discontinued, no more music. Music is locked down with DRM, because the RIAA are terrified that you're going to upload an almost unlimited supply of their music to some illegal sharing site or whatever.
Purchasing music, e.g. Amazon, iTunes, you're paying a buck a song. Want a lot of music? - better have a deep wallet. But the purchases are yours forever and have no DRM restrictions, and will always play regardless if you're on-line or not.
Or they try that, succeed for a while, then the fail comes out and in May of 2014 we start talking about the return of the SD card.
Hilarious straw man argument.
I've been the loudest voice warning about it for over two years now.
It sounds like you're the one just noticing it lately lol.
So. SD card. Seems to be on the comeback.
The rest of your comment I answered two years ago and last year.
Medion
Android Expert
I'm glad that it's having a comeback in a physical sense. However, the changes in KitKat make using it a lot more difficult than it needs to be. But this is just an example of growing pains. As more developers utilize the new built-in SD permissions, and more apps make use of SAF, we'll see Android intelligently allocate data between internal and expandable storage (which seems to be the underlying intent behind the KitKat change, in addition to security).
Google has been introducing serious screw ups since Jellybean.
As you say, it's up to app developers and when that fails, there's always root and appropriate mods.
Long road around but still...
dibblebill
Android Expert
Or you download DRM free mp3 songs on your computer from Google and sync then manually later
N American S5s must differ wildly from those sold in Europe, then. The UI we get over here is pure unadulterated TouchWiz, which has NEVER looked remotely like the vanilla Android seen on Nexus devices.
Leaving aside Samsung's long-standing inclusion of external SD storage, every current Sony has an SD card slot. HTC have reintroduced it in the M8. Huawei include SD card support in their devices. IOW there are far MORE devices WITH it than without.
As pointed out above, that's surely down to licencsing restrictions.
Complain to Samsung; my Sony allows Play Music full access to the built-in Walkman EQ, so it's down to the OEM.
Google only "do it" with Nexus devices, and it's been that way for a long time. As explained ad nauseum, most OEMs are still happily providing SD card support.
nickdalzell
Extreme Android User
Just like iTunes.
As for the Galaxy S5, yeah Nature UX is GONE. Replaced by Google-inspired flatness and most of Samsung's apps GONE. It is downright hideous, so 1991.
http://www.androidpit.com/galaxy-s5-first-hands-on-review-samsung-gets-flat
many others suggesting Google forced Samsung to ditch most of their skinning. A sad day if this carries over to their tablets.
What is the point of a 1080p display with high PPI if you are only drawing a UI from the days of America Online 4.x? I will never understand flat design and people's love of it. It is boring, hideous and unnatural. All the depth and beauty just gone. And now websites are doing it. Oh, and it isnt enough to go flat. Every update after makes it more and more like Fisher-Price.
Yeh, and with iTunes you're paying around a dollar a song, unless you're ripping your own CDs. As you're purchasing them outright, you have every right not to be restricted by DRM.
And you're not.
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