*** The Official Samsung Galaxy S4 Thread ***

[Nexus18]

Hi Nexus, just a quick update for you regarding the speakers as you wanted to know about them!

Overall if I'm totally honest I think the Note 2 speaker is a bit louder and more punchier in terms of bass, although the S4 speaker is quite a bit better than the S3's IMO. That being said, I have found the quality to be slightly more crisp on the S4 compared to the N2, although it's not something I'd be able to observe 24/7.

Thanks

That is strange regarding the difference between the note II and GS 3 speaker, in theory they should be pretty much the same , the only difference afaik is the placement

I really wish Samsung had put the speaker on the front, better yet.... dual stereo speakers! I can see this becoming the "norm" for next year devices, well.... I would like to think so anyway

The overblown colours were always a weakness on the S3 and most SAMOLEDS. I never really noticed it until I had the S4 beside it. Much prefer the S4 colours.

The N4 screen is great, its only downfall is the diagonal viewing angles (turns misty) and the blacks aren't as black as the One's.

I personally don't mind the overblown colours "too much", it is very noticeable when side by side with better calibrated screens though, the main things that bothered me about the GS 3 screen were:

- whites
- brightness

well that blows, turns out the NFC chip used in the s4 has changed so all the random tags i have that i use with my work S3 (for automation, work demos and giggles) don't do jack

Yup

http://blog.gsmarena.com/galaxy-s4-doesnt-support-older-nfc-tectile-tags-tectile-2-coming-in-weeks/

Samsung has issued a statement that its new NFC tags, TecTiles 2, will be available in the coming weeks and will be compatible with older NFC-enabled devices.

 

[IS7Doji]

Just been told its now going to be Thursday 9th when i get my phone, Unbelievably mad, i have no working phone, i sold my s2 on ebay so it ended a few days after i should have got my s4, sent it off to the buyer on tuesday, been told around 5 different dates by MPD, feel like contacting trading standards on the matter

I cancelled yesterday with MPD as they were taking forever and not answering apart from facebook. Ordered from P4U , already got it now!!

 

[Kanpai]

Thanks

That is strange regarding the difference between the note II and GS 3 speaker, in theory they should be pretty much the same , the only difference afaik is the placement

I really wish Samsung had put the speaker on the front, better yet.... dual stereo speakers! I can see this becoming the "norm" for next year devices, well.... I would like to think so anyway

No worries!

Well I think the Note 2 speaker is actually physically bigger than the S3/S4 from what I can see anyways, perhaps this is one of the factors why?

I agree about front speakers, I dont think we will see it on the N3 though but on next years galaxy handsets.

Another thing I forgot to mention, the build quality on this is really good. It feels much more premium in my hands compared to the S3/N2 and I think one of the biggest reasons is the 'metal' frame around the frame. It feels great to hold in my hand (very similar to how the iphone5 feels). The back plastic cover is also quite a bit more sturdier compared to previous.

 

[james.miller]

I really dont like the back cover. Its a slippery mess. It looks great and I've no problem with the 'build quality'. But that finish, it's just asking for trouble. I want a textured back cover like the S2

 

[Nexus18]

Hmm, possibly! Will have to see if Brian covered it in his note II review.

Yeah, I am not expecting the note III to be much, if any different to the GS 4, at least nothing substantial anyway, just the usual, extra RAM, bigger screen, stylus, same CPU chipset (most likely the exynos version) + camera + speaker etc. and possibly those new things that have been floating around i.e. metal back and plastic screen.


Likewise, although haven't felt it myself yet but it definitely gives it a more premium look too. Surprisingly it isn't actually metal though, just plastic

 

[Kanpai]

Likewise, although haven't felt it myself yet but it definitely gives it a more premium look too. Surprisingly it isn't actually metal though, just plastic

They're #1 for the best surgeons in the world, comes as no surprise what they've managed to pull of there them Koreans!

Gangnam style!

 

[Jono8]

It's not the way the screen is at all. My whites are perfect white. The S3 LTE looks yellow in comparison.




As for the speaker, it's definitely better than the S2 and S3 LTE, though I've not been able to compare it to a Note 2 - I thought it had the same speaker though?

Well thats the thing, in comparison my S3 looks yellow/green. But then the S4 looks slightly pink/red, although im not sure,.

This just must be how they are though as both the ones i have had seem the same, i guess others arent as sensitive to it maybe.

Also, on both phones if you tilt the screen slightly so you are looking at it from an angle the tint changes slightly to what i would consider a better white.

 

[Nexus18]

I really dont like the back cover. Its a slippery mess. It looks great and I've no problem with the 'build quality'. But that finish, it's just asking for trouble. I want a textured back cover like the S2

They were talking about that on the anandtech podcast and how they would much rather have a textured back like the GS 2 as with the hyperglaze finish, it just gets grubby, scratches easily, feels slimy etc. Brain over exaggerating a wee bit "I can literally see dead skin cells on the back" lol

I think the GS 4 is nicer than the GS 3 in the aesthetics department but imo the glossy finish/look is getting rather dated and cheap looking now, they need to switch to a more modern/minimal finish/texture.

I still don't understand why they didn't have something similar to the ATIV S

Spoiler

You would think it was metal just by looking at it but........... it isn't!

Mrk has done a better job with the finish of the plastic back on the note II too!

Spoiler

Anyone fancy doing the same with their GS 4 back cover?

 

[dbmzk1]

They were talking about that on the anandtech podcast and how they would much rather have a textured back like the GS 2 as with the hyperglaze finish, it just gets grubby, scratches easily, feels slimy etc. Brain over exaggerating a wee bit "I can literally see dead skin cells on the back" lol

I think the GS 4 is nicer than the GS 3 in the aesthetics department but imo the glossy finish/look is getting rather dated and cheap looking now, they need to switch to a more modern/minimal finish/texture.

I still don't understand why they didn't have something similar to the ATIV S

Spoiler

You would think it was metal just by looking at it but........... it isn't!

Mrk has done a better job with the finish of the plastic back on the note II!

Spoiler

Anyone fancy doing the same with their GS 4 back cover?

It's all down to cost and marketing. The ATIV S case will probably be more expensive to produce due to the enhanced finish, but will sell in much lesser numbers. The "premium" look is a marketing device to help an underdog product sell more, where as the S4 they know will sell by the bucket load no matter what so they make it out of random crappy plastic because it doesn't matter and so it's cheaper Those pesky Koreans know what they are doing it seems!

 

[Jono8]

Hm, upon further inspection, this new one seems to have a pink tint at the bottom of the screen...

I might just give up and stay with my S3 for now... This one also has a lip at the bottom where the silver surroung is higher than the the bottom.....IN FACT, i wonder if it is something to do with the bottom of the screen being pressed/glued down too hard, casuing the pink tinge and the lip on the surround.....

I might swap it for one more next week but if that is a pile of rubbish as well i will cancel under the 7 working day thing that Phones 4 U have.

 

[Cosimo]

Anyone fancy doing the same with their GS 4 back cover?

There's no need to ruin it.

 

[Allnamestaken]

My battery still seems really bad seems like I am watching the percentage drop every other minute

 

[Avicus]

Jono, if you've got a pink tint at the bottom of the screen then that's definitely a hardware fault. I've got the same thing, and vodafone are replacing it as soon as they get more stock in.

If it was software (like the red tinted blacks on certain firmwares), then the whole screen would be the same tint.

You should take it back, mate. Not your fault that they've given you two dodgy handsets. See if they've got a display model you can compare it against.

 

[dbmzk1]

My battery still seems really bad seems like I am watching the percentage drop every other minute

Mine is getting better slowly. Wednesday when I got home from work it was beeping and moaning at me, yesterday it was at like 20% and I'm on track to have about 25% today

All the stupid features are off, power saving is on (makes no difference from what I can tell) and brightness at about 25%.

 

[Cosimo]

​

 

[Jono8]

Jono, if you've got a pink tint at the bottom of the screen then that's definitely a hardware fault. I've got the same thing, and vodafone are replacing it as soon as they get more stock in.

If it was software (like the red tinted blacks on certain firmwares), then the whole screen would be the same tint.

You should take it back, mate. Not your fault that they've given you two dodgy handsets. See if they've got a display model you can compare it against.

Well the first one was pink tinted everywhere. Very obvious against my S3. This second one has a dull/pink tint to the bottom of the screen. Going to ask for a nother replacement and go into my local phones 4 u tomorrow when i go shopping and see if i can get another new one.

Pain in the bum but at least it is easy just being able to swap it for a brand new one in store.

 

[Nexus18]

It's all down to cost and marketing. The ATIV S case will probably be more expensive to produce due to the enhanced finish, but will sell in much lesser numbers. The "premium" look is a marketing device to help an underdog product sell more, where as the S4 they know will sell by the bucket load no matter what so they make it out of random crappy plastic because it doesn't matter and so it's cheaper Those pesky Koreans know what they are doing it seems!

Very true, unfortunately

Although I don't think to achieve that sort of finish would have been any dearer at all, certainly not a big difference anyway. If they had to make an injection mould i.e. as they would have done for the GS 2 textured back cover, then it would cost a bit more, but in the grand scheme of things, it wouldn't have been anywhere as much as what it costs to produce the likes of the HTC one chassis.

Hopefully Samsung will change their ways for next years galaxy, especially after all the reviews, they have the potential to make really nice looking premium phones.

 

[Nexus18]

Regarding the difference between the note II and GS 3 speaker:

The Note 2 puts its speakerphone in the same place as the original Galaxy Note, and thanks to the large size of the handset I bet there’s plenty of space for a big driver. The Note 2 also includes a new boost mode I didn’t see on Galaxy S 3 before that boosts speakerphone output volume considerably (The tradeoff is that there is significantly more saturation and clipping with this mode toggled, but it is very, very loud.)

EDIT:

And taken from gsmarena:

The Samsung Galaxy S III and the Samsung Galaxy Note II audio output is so similar that we are convinced the two share the same hardware. The scores of the duo are virtually identical in both cases of our test, with the Note II having so subtle advantage that it's impossible to detect with a naked ear.

No matter which one you choose, you will be enjoying some of the industry's cleanest output and about average volume levels.

Loudspeaker

The Samsung Galaxy S III and Galaxy Note II both scored Good marks in our loudspeaker test. The two speakers aren't tuned the same way though, the S III is louder when it comes to voice, while the Note II does better with ringtones. Their loudness is identical when it comes to music.

 

[kona786]

Hi mate, not rooted yet! Just going through my first full charge and then see what's up!

One slight issue though, my phone seems to be running quite hot, I've had a read over at xda and this seems to have been fixed with a firmware update? There's no updates available OTA so I guess I'll plug the phone into the PC once it's done charging and check KIES. I had a 32gb SD card in there and perhaps mediaserver was the issue; I've taken it out so will monitor that too.

keep us updated when you root.

My phone seems to like the 1.5GHz state a lot

Spoiler

The S3 wireless mirroring dongle works with the S4 too - excellent!

 

[Jono8]

Just put one a side at the Phones 4 u next to tesco where i will be going food shopping tomorrow to swap for another one

If nothing else, at least the placement of these P4U shops are convenient! Havent had to go out of my way at all to swap!