Samsung Galaxy S4 Launch Event - Live

Post by **FlyingPenguin** » Mon Mar 18, 2013 7:42 am

Emailed client who has a Galaxy S3 and had complained to me a few months ago about it having terrible reception. Asked her if it had improved. Her response:

"No it stinks and Sprint has no interest in trying to help."

EvilHorace · Post by **EvilHorace** » Mon Mar 18, 2013 5:58 pm

Well, you could always try it and exchange in right away if it turns out bad. I know you've got a few days or so to do that and you'll know soon enough.

I have US Cell because around here, they're known to have the best coverage.

Btw.....where's Reno? I know he's got one too. I asked him recently and he still likes it.

normalicy · Post by **normalicy** » Mon Mar 18, 2013 6:49 pm

Ditto on Sprint being crap. I thought T-Mobile was rough, but now I want them back.

Post by **FlyingPenguin** » Mon Mar 18, 2013 7:00 pm

Sprint is just fine on my Evo. No one around her has 4G - we're in the boonies. The only 4G is micro cells located in the cell phone stores.

I like Sprint. 3G here in Florida is reliable and has good coverage, and when I go to Miami or Tampa I have 4G. Been using Sprint for 12 years and as long as they continue to have no bandwidth caps, I'll keep using them.

Since my Evos are still working fine (heck, my Evo is practically brand new since they replaced it under insurance in November), I may just keep using the phones and not bother renewing the contract for now.

Key Keeper · Post by **Key Keeper** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 12:46 pm

I just couldnt live with the horrible battery life of the Evo. Im on Note 2 now.

Post by **FlyingPenguin** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 4:25 pm

Evo has great battery like for me. Lasts the whole day easily with 4G disabled. It's 4G that sucks it down, I agree.

I also upgraded to larger capacity batteries last year (same size, just higher capacity, so no extra bulge on the back).

I also strictly manage background services. I think people who suffer from low battery life with ANY phone just have too much going on. For instance I don't do any background syncs. I have all my apps configured to sync when they open or manually. I don't need push notifications for anything, and I only need to check my mail when I want to.

EvilHorace · Post by **EvilHorace** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 6:39 pm

I talked to a guy with a fairly new S3 and Sprint today. He says no problems here with 3G either and he says Sprint is in the process of upgrading their network too.

Post by **FlyingPenguin** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 7:11 pm

It all depends on how close the towers are, and this is a rural area.

Actually Sprint is using Wimax for 4G which is now dead. They are in the process of moving to LTE which is what everyone else is using. It's going to take them some time to migrate.

Old phones like the Evo aren't LTE compatible, but then again LTE isn't going to come anytime soon.

Here in the boonies we don't even have Wimax, and we're probably pretty low on the list for LTE, so 3G is it for us for a while.

Like I said, I think I'll stay out of contract and keep using the Evos for now. Meanwhile I'll ask around to see what performance is like on newer phones on the other networks around here.

I don't NEED a new phone, it's just that the S3 does look pretty sexy. I'm also looking at the Samsung Note. I for one LIKE a stylus.

Err · Post by **Err** » Tue Mar 19, 2013 7:30 pm

The only problem I've had with my S3 is the LTE. I don't have it at home but at work AT&T turned it on. If I forget to close an app that syncs or retrieves data, my battery will be sucked dry in no time at all. This doesn't happen on the 3G/4G oe WiFi. There is no way to disable the LTE without completely turning off the data. LTE is blazing fast but I could do without it if it's going to drink my battery. From what I can find out, this is a known issue not only with Samsung but also with some of the iPhones. It's something to do with the radio on the phones constantly switching between the 3G/4G and LTE in combination with apps that pull data in the background. As long as you're actually using the phone, you're fine. The drain happens in standby.

ZYFER · Post by **ZYFER** » Sun Mar 24, 2013 2:55 am

I've got Metropcs, they have a pretty good coverage area for 4GLTE in Florida and the US. They are merging with T-Mobile right now. They don't tend to have as many super powered phones, but they have decent ones I think. Strictly a no-contract tax included type of service which is nice. Sadly, they may not be as fast as other carriers data wise, but it is good enough to get stuff done.

Here is an idea of their coverage map:
http://www.metropcs.com/metro/maps/coverage-map.jsp

It will only improve as the merger is fully set in place as Metropcs will have full access to T-mobile's network.

There are some decent apps out there to manage your battery better. As well as auto turning off syng and whatnot. Something you might want to consider looking into if battery life is an issue. The biggest thing is the delay for the screen turning off. If you go under System settings and power saver, you can get a good idea of what is draining your battery the most. For example, 39% of mine was the screen.

Also, be sure to check for updates for the phone, in many cases there are updates which improve battery life.

Post by **FlyingPenguin** » Sun Mar 24, 2013 8:58 am

Well I talked to someone who got an S3 just 2 months ago on Sprint and she says she sees not reduction in reception. Maybe they fixed it in the latest ones.

Executioner · Post by **Executioner** » Sun Mar 24, 2013 12:15 pm

I have a Razor Maxx that I got about a year ago on Verizon. I almost always have 4G coverage (~90% of the time). Battery last almost 2 full days, but one thing I don't like about the phone: the battery can not be removed.
There have been some threads in the Android forum about people bricking their phone (phone battery goes to 0 and charging does not re-charge it).
To me, it's amazing what these phones can do today. Seems like there is more technology R&D being spent on phones than PC's.

EvilHorace · Post by **EvilHorace** » Sat Apr 20, 2013 9:04 pm

My S4 was pre-ordered on the 16th and will be here in about 4 weeks they say. Can't wait!

EvilHorace · Post by **EvilHorace** » Sat Apr 27, 2013 7:02 pm

in about 4 weeks they say

Nope, got an email last night that it was being shipped and it arrived this morning, 1.5 weeks after ordering it.

Setup was easy and painless and I'm still playing with all the new stuff as I'm new to smart phones and Androids too. Similar apps, etc to my Ipad, Touch devices but far more versatile. I went to the US cell store to have my contact list transferred and the place was empty, was in/out in minutes. They said it was only the 3rd S4 that they've seen so far from the pre-order. They're still not available in stores.
It's on the large side for a phone but it fits in my pockets so I'm OK with its size. I've ordered a thin case for it from Amazon as I hate those thick ones like Otterboxes.

Post by **FlyingPenguin** » Sat Apr 27, 2013 7:32 pm

Just be aware, that unlike the Apple app store, the Android store (Google Play) is the wild west. No one is really vetting those apps. So ONLY download apps that have been around a long time and are well reviewed.

Some suggestions (all free versions unless otherwise noted)

- Dolphin Browser (WAY faster than any other browser for Android). It's all I use.

- AK Notepad (Nice notepad app that will optionally sync with a free account at Catch.com. I keep my shopping lists on it mainly, and sync it between all my devices)

- Fox35 Weather. Just about the best weather app out there. Much better than Weather Channel's bloated app. It always defaults to Orlando as you home but you can change that.

- MyBackup Pro. This is a paid app, but it's the best way to backup your Android device if you don't root it. I recently used a backup from it to restore my stuff to a replacement phone when my phone died. I also used it to clone everything on my original Nexus7 tablet to my second one. It was very painless.

- Google Goggles. Take a picture of a product label or bar code and it does a Google search on it.

- MapMyRide. Nice GPS app that records your travels if you bike or hike.

- ES File Explorer. Basically gives you the equivalent of Windows Explorer on your Android device. All folders can be browsed and it has built-in viewers for most document types. Even a media player

- Flipboard. Really nice way to read the news. It's basically an RSS feed reader but it presents everything in a manner reminiscent of leafing through a magazine. It's the primary way I read news now on my phone and tablets.

- AutoRotate Switch. If the phone doesn't have a simple way to toggle screen rotation on and off, then you'll want this. Instead of diving deep into the settings menu, one touch toggles it on or off.

- Wifi Analyzer. Much easier way to connect to a Wifi hotspot and it's a useful tool to scan Wifi hotspots.

- Watchdog Lite. Very useful for detecting mis-behaving apps that are using too many CPU cycles and running your battery down.

- Zoner Anti-Virus. I do NOT allow it to run all the time. I only use it to scan when I want to. I disable scheduled scans.

- EasyTether. This is a paid app but you should try the free version first to make sure it works on your particular phone. Free version does not allow you to browse SSL sites ([url]https://)[/url]. It allows you to use the phone as a modem for your laptop/PC via USB without paying anything extra to your carrier. Little mentioned fact is that most Android phones can tether without an extra fee (you DO have to pay to use your phone as a Wifi hotspot).

As for playing music, I don't use the phone as my primary music player (I have an iPod Touch for that), but I have Pandora installed and some MP3 files loaded on the memory stick. There is no default music folder in Android and the default player will scan all your folders for music, but I find it's best to create a "My Music" folder on your stick and put all your music in there in sub-folders by genre or artist or whatever. Then I use ES File Explorer to play them.

If you're new to a smart phone, then you should google for tips on extending battery life. Most importantly you do NOT want applications to receive data updates in the background. Turn email auto update or push, off. I have my phone setup so that the only time it checks email is when I open my email app (I have it set to check mail "manually"). I also have gmail turned off, but I do leave Calendar and Contact sync enabled in the background. You want to leave GPS and Bluetooth off unless you're using them.

Be aware that Android phones will automatically sync their contacts & calendars to a Gmail account which is real handy. It allows me to sync them between all my devices and my PC. When you buy a new phone someday you just tell the new phone what your Gmail account is and all your contacts and calendar entries come back.