Samsung Galaxy S 4: A slim stripper with palms hovering over its body Modern smartphones are little more than promotional vehicles for manufacturer services, and the Galaxy S4 is a perfect example, arriving heavily laden with all the things Samsung thinks we should be doing with them. Like a respectable lapdancer, the Galaxy S4 responds to a roving eye and fingertips hovering over its slim body …
Good to see Samsung doing this - far better than waiting for others to come up with something and doing a "me too". It might not have the feature I personally want, but all the same - I'm glad they did it.
In today's climate (across all industries), it appears the ones making headway are the ones willing to take risks rather than play safe. Non-IT example: Ducati.
It doesn't seem to work for the mobile networks. All of their offerings are bad and nobody wants or uses them.
Imagine if the WWW had been limited to the computer it was developed on, everyone would have needed to buy a NeXT workstation and server to use it.
The reason email, www, usenet and other things are so widespread and useful is because they were Internet standards.
We need more open Internet standards, too much proprietary crap is being invented and then shelved.
I guess Samsung is hoping that some developers will not realize (or care) which APIs are Samsung-specific (i.e. proprietary) and which will work across all of Android. Tall order - for now. But already Samsung represents a huge chunk of Android handsets. At some point, developers will just say f#c% it and write to those APIs hoping to differentiate themselves from other apps - even if they forego the ever shrinking non-Samsung Android market.
When a recent article reported that Google is worried about the increasing importance of Samsung in the Android market and that GOOG had discussions with other Android vendors on how to counter that, it showed that this is definitely a possibility.
If I were Google Id be worried by this (Samsung have too small a share on WP8 for MS to worry). Samsung is seeming to put a lot of effort into an OS agnostic ecosystem that they could easily port to Tizen which coupled with the fact surveys show consumers buy Galaxy phones because of the Galaxy brand, not because they are Android phones and Samsung is Google's biggest phone seller it looks like Samsung might just kick the leg away from Google's dinner table.
I saw a similar article... The one I read was parroting information from an interview conducted with Gene Munster (A senior analyst apparently) by a clearly Apple biased reporter from Bloomburg who actually said that he normally only covers Apple. At no point was there any mention of Google being worried Gene Munster mentioned that he thought Google might feel this way later down the line.
I took it as FUD in the same way that the claims of Android fragmentation becoming a serious issue are periodically trotted out.
Why would Google care that one vendor has the majority of the market anyway? We'll all still be using Google's services regardless of the vendor/manufacturer. If Samsung make the decision to fork android and try to lock everyone into their own services then I think many people would stop buying Samsung phones.
If Google were really worried then they would be using Motorola's hardware division to flood the market with Nexus devices to counter Samsung.
Google could not afford to flood the market. Compared to Samsung they are a tiddler. As for forking Android, Apple already forked BSD to make iOS, and it did them no harm. Big enough market share and you can get away with a lot, Windows for instance.
The IR transmitter wasn't mentioned here but for me, of the new/unique features in the S4 that is the most interesting for me.
A universal remote app that can control any TV in the house regardless of the little ones throwing the actual remote in the toybox/kitchen cabinet/under the couch/etc... not to mention the fun that could be had remote controlling devices in other circumstances.
Much easier than setting up a Pi as a web enabled IR blaster....
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In what way are Ducati taking risks that pay off?
Their previous MotoGP bikes were risks that didn't pay off. Their current MotoGP bike is a complete lack of risk and is still not paying off. Unless you want to consider using the same pos bike as last year a risk? Their current WSB / Superstock bike is based on the previous MotoGP bike concept and so far isn't looking all that clever.
Their actual retail range? Most of them are larger bore / updated versions of bikes they have been building for years. Admitedly they sell very successfully but I fail to see the risk taking.
@AceRimmer and you've lost MHL (which is the main reason I haven't switched to cyanogenmod on the i9300 S3) and the ability to touch focus with the flashlight on, among other issues.
You can turn off most of the Samsung specific additions on their phones by tweaking the settings, installing a new launcher, etc. but it won't turn it in to a Nexus. Certain parts of the system (notification drawer, appearance of dialogue boxes, etc.) are hardcoded and only changing ROM will change them.
Unfortunately, the Exynos drivers are closed-source and so certain features are less than optimal on open source ROMs. The US versions on Qualcomm chipsets tend to have better support.
Samsung have been good (read: better than a lot of the rest) at supporting their older phones though, with the S2 getting Jellybean updates and the S3 is meant to be getting a lot of the S4 software ported to it, where the specific S4 hardware isn't required.
Thanks for making my head assplode ;)
I can't decide whether to downvote you for raising the political correctness or upvote you for taking the piss out of it!
I'll assume from the tenor of your post that you're opposed to that brand of anti-sexual PC tripe and give you an upvote along with the benefit of the doubt...
Personally the biggest problem I have with Samsung handsets at the moment is them apparently cramming their unlocked handsets with apps that I have no interest in - especially since they seem for the most part aimed at German users (presumably when I bought my handset from Expansys it came from there - it was labeled as the European version but with a UK plug if memory serves).
The problem is these apps get re-installed with each update, even if I had previously uninstalled them. Add to this the broad nature of the permissions* coupled with the lack of any opportunity to not install them beyond refusing the update and I end up with the sort of situation I try to avoid by not buying operator provided handsets.
Oh well...
(*) One of the apps for example has the following assigned to it: PRECISE LOCATION (GPS AND NETWORK-BASED), FULL NETWORK ACCESS, READ YOUR CONTACTS, READ PHONE, STATUS AND IDENTITY, VIEW NETWORK CONNECTIONS, VIEW WI-FI CONNECTIONS, RECEIVE DATA FROM INTERNET, READ CALL LOG - and also starts automatically when the handset is switched on and can modify USB storage.
"...the broad nature of the permissions..."
That seems to be the rule rather than the exception these days. I'm wondering how much of this is due to the app itself and how much is the result of the GooCruft (tm) 1.0 (beta) shiteware that always seems to be embedded, even on the non ad-supported stuff.
I was fairly surprised to see that the current version of Chrome now requires full access to the phone side of things (WTF for?). Back using the stock browser now.
Good to know. For a brief time (for 9 months) I switched from iPhone to Android (Samsung Galaxy S2) and could not stand all the preloaded stuff - especially since some of it actually seemed to consume my most precious resource at the time: battery (presumably because these apps used the cell network to report back to home base :-(
When ICS came out I was at least able to disable these apps. I had no idea that you could not remove any of these apps with an unlocked phone (I guess Samsung considers them "built-in" apps - in iOS there are less than a handful of these - e.g. "Weather" - so it's not as annoying, I guess).
"Add to this the broad nature of the permissions* coupled with the lack of any opportunity to not install them beyond refusing the update"
Go into settings -> applications -> <insert name of app here> select "disable" - app no longer runs and the setting persists as long as you don't do a factory reset.
For permissions management get a free privacy app like LBE Privacy Guard - it lets you turn on and off all permissions individually for each app, including system apps.
Its nice to have options :-)
I don't know what your lifestyle is like but for me the phone is definitely a minor part of the functionality, something I use < 5%. I guess this is where they get the 'Life Companion' from, trying to break away from the 'Smar tPHONE' moniker and trying to avoid the old acronyms like PDA etc.
If you are not using your phone to make calls you need to get out more and make friends.
We have a social circle and team policy, no emails, no texting, making phone calls is the only acceptable way to arrange events.
It makes you feel you are still human and has none of the ambiguities of a poorly worded emal or text.
My phone does Gbytes a month on wifi, hundreds of Mbytes of data, hundreds of texts and I've never got near my minutes allowance.
I once read an article in Wireless World about how we missed the chance after WW2 to build a data rather than a voice network because the Post Office didn't grasp the opportunity that Colossus, Typex and the like had created. Well, now we've done it. And messaging is just so much less intrusive than voice.
Manufacturer-provided pre-loaded apps are usually horrible. Unless Samsung are foresighted enough to make APIs available that are generic enough so that other manufacturers can include them as part of their Android distributions on phones which have similar features and which any developer can use to build apps with, these new shiny ideas will never catch on.
Not forgetting that the chances of Google letting any manufacturer include their stuff in Android are between remote and non-existent. Google's always called the tune and that's not going to change. In a couple of years time you could even imagine online tech rags calling on Google to let Android go from its stifling clutches.
"Unless Samsung are foresighted enough to make APIs available that are generic enough so that other manufacturers can include them as part of their Android distributions on phones which have similar features and which any developer can use to build apps with, these new shiny ideas will never catch on."
No one seems to think Apple restricting everything from other manufacturers is a problem, and Samsung sell more phones than Apple, so there's plenty of Samsung only potential customers for developers to chase.
Its up to other manufacturers to match those and come up with innovations of their own to pass Samsung feature-wise - isn't competition great?
Appalling re-shapes an existing idea and the unwashed sing and dance and cheer “Oh Appalling, you’re so good, great and true. No one can innovate like thee.” Typical dumb ‘cains.
Samsung innovates and the unwashed cry out that their innovations are rubbish, until they realise what can be done (i.e. waiting for a killer application of said innovation, instead of finding out for themselves).
Why is it the same old story day in and day out?
There does seem to be a lot of patriotic South Koreans posting on the Internet at the moment, but I suppose it's a change from all the Californians. And the Canadian who must spend his entire waking life trying to boost BlackBerry.
It's a pity we pissed away all our phone makers, isn't it? Designing the processors and the graphics isn't quite the same.
Just like I had on Pocket PC 2002.
And Windows Mobile 2003.
And 5.
And 6.
And Maemo.
Well done for bringing us this revolutionary new tech, Samsung! I shall sit here and watch with the bemusement I normally reserve for Apple, as everyone praises you for inventing decades-old technology.
Android fans have been holding up Samsung as the gold standard of innovation and constantly criticize Apple for not having done anything new since the iPhone 4.
And now we see the results of a year's worth of innovation at Samsung: a screen that's a tiny fraction of an inch bigger, with an increase in pixel density that literally can't be seen by human eyeballs. The rear camera gets a huge increase in resolution that likely only makes it worse, at least in low-light situations. Oh, and it has a barometer sensor. Breathtaking indeed.
But I don't mean this as criticism. Frankly I'm glad companies have all but announced that there will only be incremental improvements from now on so we can finally skip all the flame wars about which phone company "innovates" the most.
(Although I would really like somebody to FINALLY "innovate" a good electronic wallet, to pay for things, store coupons and tickets, store ID/membership cards, store business cards, store receipts, etc. Apple's Passbook app is a farce and I assume Google's attempt is too, since I never see anybody using it.
I would also like to see somebody make a good fingerprint scanner because pressing the home button, swiping, and entering a passcode takes up a significant amount of my day that I would like back, please.)
Wow.. comparing "an extra row of icons and wallpapers" to "IR, wallet, video conferencing, gallery creations, a kick ass processor, eye sensors, NFC wallet, more sensors than you can shake a leg at and a bunch of other innovations".
No wonder you post anonymously.
Change the wallpaper in your iPhone to something less green..
First of all, I don't know who you're debating because it's certainly not me. If you bothered to read my post, I'm not saying that Apple is "innovating" any more or less than Samsung now.
Second--I consider your list of new Samsung "innovations" to be gimmicks, on a similar level to what Apple has been releasing with Siri, Passbook, etc. Of course with each new release these companies make sure they have a laundry list of new features but I expect most people will either disable them or never use them. Seriously, when was the last time you really wanted to check the barometer with your phone?
Your lack of knowledge on the subject of Samsung phones doesn't really add any credibility to your comments. My sgs3 has a barometer, the new sensors that have been added are for temperature and humidity. No i don't 'directly' use the barometer very often, but my navigation/gps logging apps use it to augment the woeful inaccuracy of GPS (a general gps failing, not specifically a samsung one. By the way, the glossnas capable gps chipset on the sgs3 is SUPERB).
Now come on app devs, we now have a devise that can act as a portable weather station! (anemometer excluded).
For outdoors types/hillbaggers, you have a device that can log your track, interpolate altitude accurately, warn about impending lows/highs/weather fronts, keep a record of your vitals and all this without needing to be networked! Now add the potential that networking can bring to this: mountain rescue, wunderground with a MILLION mobile weather stations etc....
This level of inovation just proves that Samsung can really bring about Cunning Stunts.....
.... and confirms that Apple and there fanbois are just a bunch of Stunning C.........
"This level of inovation just proves that Samsung can really bring about"
It's NOT innovation. It's simply incremental engineering. They've put more pre-existing electronic gadgets into the same size space than they were able to last year. That's not innovation in my book. Innovation is coming up with something new or a very different way of using something pre-existing.
It's nice to see incremental engineering and more "stuff" in the same size box as last year and at about the same price as last year, but that's been going on for years. It's not new or innovative.
"an increase in pixel density that literally can't be seen by human eyeballs."
If you hold the screen close to your eyes you can see a change in pixel density like that easily - time to stop parroting Apple's figures, which are calculated at a specific viewing distance.
"The rear camera gets a huge increase in resolution that likely only makes it worse, at least in low-light situations.'
What on earth are you talking about - I haven't seen any reviews saying that
Or are you one of these ignoramus' that still thinks fewer megapixels = better in low light? perhaps a decade ago when digital cameras were in their infancy, but these days noise is lower and more easily removed with more pixels on a given size sensor.
"it has a barometer sensor."
As someone who spends a lot of time doing nature photography outdoors in unfamiliar countries that would be a useful feature actually.
"But I don't mean this as criticism."
Sure as hell sounds like it Apple fanboi
"farce and I assume Google's attempt is too, since I never see anybody using it"
Or you could, you know, actually try using it yourself (radical idea I know)
I'd say get a clue before posting in future, but putting down ignorant fanbois is kinda fun...
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