Galaxy S3

Lots of things on the tech websites about this phone that's just been released.
Yet, it seems they are slavering about all the new specs - quad core processor, 1GB of RAM, massive screen.

Personally, I'm not interested. I used to be, but this just leaves me cold. Why does a phone need a quad core processor? My PC can play video games and it has a dual core.
Does the newest version of Android need a quad core to run properly? Sure I read that somewhere. If so, then maybe they need to work on their coding.

The screen is fair enough, and they've gone for a high PPI. But is it too big? Reviews say you need to shuffle your hand up and down it.
Also the phone is supposedly quite plasticky

I got one of those Nokia Lumias recently. Supposedly they're not selling well because they don't have a dual or quad core processor in them.
Yet, the phone never pauses or stutters regardless of what you're doing. It's made from a nice material and the screen is a good size and very clear.
The Windows Phone UI is the nicest of the lot. Android's UI is a dog's dinner, and a poor copy of iOS which was nice when it came out but is kind of dated.

I guess the secret to the iPhone's success is that they don't chase the geeky top specs, but make a phone that feels good in the hand and has a decent sized, but very clear screen.

Originally Posted by yourguitarhero

The screen is fair enough, and they've gone for a high PPI. But is it too big? Reviews say you need to shuffle your hand up and down it.

They obviously know their target audience.

Plasticky? I've not seen the S3, but a bloke in the office has an S2 and I was quite shocked at just how flimsy and plasticky that is. The first thing he did was to get a hard case for it so it doesn't snap in half in his pocket.

Say what you like about the iPhone, but it does feel pleasingly solid. I wouldn't have got the bumper for mine if it wasn't for the antenna problem (poor design there though).

I've found using the Note, which is quite a bit bigger than the S3 hasn't been a problem, other than typing in Landscape mode (distance is too far to Swype quickly) but I'm sure I could customise that problem away if I bothered.

YGH, the Quad core is great for mobile devices as it can switch off unused cores when they're not required and each one can have voltage and frequency set to optimise the power usage to the task. Techy yes, but it works.

Originally Posted by yourguitarhero

Lots of things on the tech websites about this phone that's just been released.
Yet, it seems they are slavering about all the new specs - quad core processor, 1GB of RAM, massive screen.

Personally, I'm not interested. I used to be, but this just leaves me cold. Why does a phone need a quad core processor? My PC can play video games and it has a dual core.
Does the newest version of Android need a quad core to run properly? Sure I read that somewhere. If so, then maybe they need to work on their coding.

The screen is fair enough, and they've gone for a high PPI. But is it too big? Reviews say you need to shuffle your hand up and down it.
Also the phone is supposedly quite plasticky

I got one of those Nokia Lumias recently. Supposedly they're not selling well because they don't have a dual or quad core processor in them.
Yet, the phone never pauses or stutters regardless of what you're doing. It's made from a nice material and the screen is a good size and very clear.
The Windows Phone UI is the nicest of the lot. Android's UI is a dog's dinner, and a poor copy of iOS which was nice when it came out but is kind of dated.

I guess the secret to the iPhone's success is that they don't chase the geeky top specs, but make a phone that feels good in the hand and has a decent sized, but very clear screen.

That's about the size of it I think. Android *needs* a quad core in the same way that iOS *needs* a dual-core. It's just not as optimised and needs more power to work as well.

The PPI of the S3 screen is good, and the overall resolution is kind of higher than the iPhone for example, but remember that they're not 'whole' pixels in the sense that other phones use them, so the number of sub-pixels is about the same.

I quite like Windows Phone but not convinced yet.

Originally Posted by Kneerly Down

I've found using the Note, which is quite a bit bigger than the S3 hasn't been a problem, other than typing in Landscape mode (distance is too far to Swype quickly) but I'm sure I could customise that problem away if I bothered.

YGH, the Quad core is great for mobile devices as it can switch off unused cores when they're not required and each one can have voltage and frequency set to optimise the power usage to the task. Techy yes, but it works.

Yeah, the Note is a funny one! Maybe Apple should do an iPad with the phone gizomos in it.

I guess what I'm saying about the quad core is that maybe they should spend the money on ergonomics instead?

Originally Posted by yourguitarhero

Yeah, the Note is a funny one! Maybe Apple should do an iPad with the phone gizomos in it.

I guess what I'm saying about the quad core is that maybe they should spend the money on ergonomics instead?

It's not really an 'either, or' though is it?

The iPad, and any Apple product, doesn't look likely to have a 'proper' stylus though - they appear ideologically against it...which is a shame.
If they did an iPad with a Wacom style stylus I'd have bought one instead of the Note. But now I've used the Note I'm not so sure.
Might go for the Samsung Slate...if I could have linked SIMs I'd probably go for the Slate and a dinky phone instead of current Ultraportable and Note.

Did you see the launch - extract below.

I wonder wtf this world is coming to when in the same week doctors announced a retina implant for blind people without hardly any fuss. Meanwhile, as the clip shows, thousands of techno dick heads wait for the grand master to walk on the stage to announce a consumer gizmo.

BBC News - Samsung Galaxy S3 smartphone unveiled

Originally Posted by KorkyKat

I wonder wtf this world is comin

I know! News in 'reporting news' shocker!

I had a look at these Galaxy phones when I was looking to upgrade mine last month, I'm sure they can do all sorts of whizzbang things and are very impressive technically.But,...
....they've passed a size that makes them an easily stowable and discreet piece of technology. Its just too big for what it is, so I stuck with the iPhone.

Originally Posted by Monstyr

....they've passed a size that makes them an easily stowable and discreet piece of technology. Its just too big for what it is, so I stuck with the iPhone.

I never have a problem stowing mine and it's a fantastic size for what it is...which is a smartphone.
I borrowed a friend's iPhone 4S recently and found it terrible, the screen is just too small now for how I use mine.

amazing piece of technology, fabulous screen, some nice touches on the interface.

But it's gigantic.

Originally Posted by Screwdriver

amazing piece of technology, fabulous screen, some nice touches on the interface.

But it's gigantic.

Talking of gigantic I have the Galaxy Note coming next week - I've been using the Iphone 4 after swapping from Blackberry. The note is half the size of the Tab but has a nice large screen on it. I use my workphone for making actual calls so I'll look no more of a pillock than usual....

If you don't want to use it for calls, why did you buy the Note as opposed to a larger tablet?

Originally Posted by Deer Stalker

Talking of gigantic I have the Galaxy Note coming next week - I've been using the Iphone 4 after swapping from Blackberry. The note is half the size of the Tab but has a nice large screen on it. I use my workphone for making actual calls so I'll look no more of a pillock than usual....

I use my Note for calls.
At first I thought I'd get a discreet bluetooth headset but I have the phone in a 'wallet' case and don't notice any funny looks.
I had decided that I don't care if I look a pillock anyway, and the Note is proving very good for calls unlike some smartphones.

My favourite app at the moment is Skyvi as it's VERY quick for replying to texts and 95%+ of the time gets the reply right even with high background noise.