HTC Sensation -v- Samsung Galaxy II?

MarkDavis

MarkDavis

MarkDavis

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Read the reviews etc, but still can't decide.

Main 'must have' requirements are:-

1. The thing needs to work well, no strange quirks etc.
2. Must be able to easily provide WiFi tehering (via '3') ie act as a WiFi hotspot without rooting, hacking etc.
3. Good music player.

Preferable:

4. Good battery life
5. Decent screen for video

Views?
 
Galaxy S II is the better phone without a doubt mainly due to the Sensation being bloated up with HTC's god awful Sense UI.
 
ManCuBuS said:
Galaxy S II is the better phone without a doubt mainly due to the Sensation being bloated up with HTC's god awful Sense UI.
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Just because something is in addition to stock Android doesn't mean it is 'bloatware', don't be so silly. And Sense is very highly rated so you're in a bit of a minority there too. The mail client is great and so are the widgets. I certainly miss it on my SGSII.
 
Robbo said:
This.

Long story short, the Galaxy S II is unanimously the better phone overall.

As for Sense UI being called 'god awful'... oh dear :o
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Oh dear?

Its not needed on modern versions of Android period. Since I removed it from my DHD its added half a day extra battery life and the whole handset experience is a lot smoother and quicker.

Even running another Launcher over the top of it doesn't work as most of it still runs in the background anyway.
I agree some of the wigdets are useful but none of it is a must have and I miss nothing about it what so ever.
 
It is still very much needed, maybe not by you but it's arguably HTC's biggest selling point on all of their Android phones to the general public.

They need it.
 
Wicksta said:
The mail client is great and so are the widgets. I certainly miss it on my SGSII.
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The LauncherPro Plus widgets might suit, although they're probably not quite as fleshed out as the Sense ones ( never used a Sense UI phone, so that's a guess )

There's even a few Sense skins for LP on the market.
 
Ah, thanks for the pointer to the other thread.

With regard to Wifi tethering on the Galaxy II is it just a case of ticking a tickbox in the UI?
 
The Launcher Pro widgets are all mainly eye candy stuff, I want decent widgets like the Sense email one for my Exchange Activesync.

ManCuBus, I've never used a Desire HD but my trusty old Desire runs Sense no problem at all without any lag. I notice no battery improvement on non Sense based ROMs, and believe you me I've tried many. Are you sure you're not just one of these people who goes on Quadrant scores? The 'bloatware' comment leads me to believe so. Quadrant scores aren't relative to real world usage.
 
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Wicksta said:
The Launcher Pro widgets are all mainly eye candy stuff, I want decent widgets like the Sense email one for my Exchange Activesync.

ManCuBus, I've never used a Desire HD but my trusty old Desire runs Sense no problem at all without any lag. I notice no battery improvement on non Sense based ROMs, and believe you me I've tried many. Are you sure you're not just one of these people who goes on Quadrant scores? The 'bloatware' comment leads me to believe so.
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Nope purely based on personal experience, quandrant scores are a load of scrote tbh and mean nothing as you are not doubt well aware.

I too have tried at least 15 different rom's on my DHD and found Sense nothing but intrusive and after HTC's 2.3 official update also buggy as hell.

I'd happily take stock Gingerbread over Sense or any other UI tbh.

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on this point as our experiences quite clearly differ.
 
OK but I'd say you're certainly in the minority when it comes to not liking Sense. For most it's a selling point. ;)
 
If you did do any reading then you would have known what the general consensus was:p
If you like Sense UI get the Sensation
I you are a fanboy get the Senssation

If you want the best phone out there at the moment...get the SGSII.
 
I'm a bit of a Sense fanboy and while nice, it doesn't save the Sensation.

Anyone who isn't a Sense fanboy would think the Sensation is utter rubbish when up against the SGS II.
 
Robbo said:
Long story short, the Galaxy S II is unanimously the better phone overall.
Click to expand...

Just read that thread - a lot of pointless waffle in that thread about screen technologies and iPhones and Sense rather than phone specific issues! Even Fox chipping in with his usual 'whatever I own is the best' comments :D

Yep, I guess its the Galaxy II then. Seems to be fit in with reviews out there, particularly the Techradar head to head comparison. http://www.techradar.com/news/phone...nes/htc-sensation-vs-samsung-galaxy-s2-961874

My key question is still - do you just tick a box in the UI to activate Wifi hotspot with the S2?
 
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Fox doesn't say what he owns is the best, he just calls everyone 'weird' for comparing phones because "they're all exactly the same, pretty much".

Same goes for cars then! :p

MarkDavis said:
My key question is still - do you just tick a box in the UI to activate Wifi hotspot with the S2?
Click to expand...

I'm not sure if there is a faster way to do it, but you go Settings > Wifi > Tethering and the option is there that takes you to the app for it.

You would be able to make a shortcut to it, no doubt.
 
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Ah, cheers Robbo. Think I'm going to order one tomorrow - main aim to is take advantage of 3's One Plan's eat all you want data and hook it up to my laptop to save on landline broadband costs.

The big screen and all the rest is a bonus!
 
As long as you have a good Three signal, that should be fine.

You can also tether it with a wire, if for some reason the wifi was an issue, I'm sure it won't be though.
 
I have both the Sensation and GSII sitting right in front of me. I bought the Sensation in Hong Kong on a whim after setting out to find the GSII and not being able to find it. When I got back I took the plunge for the GSII and am very satisfied with that decision (once I get rid of the Sensation!).

Things better about the GSII than the Sensation (for how I use it):
- My Sensation had dust under the screen, I've read other people having the same fault.
- The screen even though it is better resolution is a lot worse than the GSII SAMOLED screen
- It was choppy when trying to watch 720p MKVs, the GSII is perfect and looks amazing. I used my Cowon S9 which has an AMOLED screen while travelling to watch xvids so I was kind of bumbed with the quality of video playback on the Sensation. I've read this may be a driver issue that could be fixed, which I imagine it will.
- The GSII can be rooted
- I think the battery is better but I've never properly tested it

Things better about the Sensation than the GSII:
- The Sensation is a lot better for browsing, the extra resolution is really noticeable.
- Sense UI even if it is referred to as bloatware is a much much better than Samsungs Touchviz (ugh). It is a slicker interface though I found the scrolling of menus a bit choppy at times.
- Build quality is much better, the GSII feels like you could snap it in your hand

Basically for me it all comes down to the screen, if the Sensation had an SAMOLED screen I would be in heaven. The difference in screen quality between the 2 really is night and day, especially for video.
 
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