HTC & Robert Downey Jr.

Ryan-3 · 17 Aug 2013 at 13:10

Sundance said:
What makes you associate 'plastic' with 'crap'? I suggest you go on a two day plastics course as I did, and learn about the vast range of plastics and their applications. The polymer selection process and engineering that goes into the single back cover of a smartphone is nothing to scoff at.

If anything, you have fallen for the marketing because I'm pretty confident that, overall, the plastic that Samsung use in the S4 will have more favourable properties than the aluminium used in the HTC One or the iPhone 5. For starters, it'll be far more sustainable...

I'd guess at the aluminium used in the construction of these to just as easily be recycled as the plastic could be in the S4. It will also be much more conductive for the heat produced by the phones, that's before how much more premium (IMO) both the iPhone 5 & HTC One look and feel over the S4.

The plastic used may not be simple, but it's nothing like the well finished aluminium of the other two.

Ryan-3 · 17 Aug 2013 at 14:18

But as the advert is concerned, the theme doesn't go with the H T C bit in the middle. Starts off with some serious stuff, but is trying to be more fun. One or the other please.

Hopefully they can get this marketing campaign to work though.

photoshop · 17 Aug 2013 at 16:01

I keep hearing about this cheap and nasty look of the S4....

How exactly is it cheap and nasty?

It looks great, fits well in the hand and with the exception of TW [which you use the many roms available to get rid of] is a great phone. I know lots of people with an S4 who have come over from iOS and non of them have a problem with it.

This is just something that you see in reviews and on forums- people thinking its cheap and nasty. Real world is a different story.

Do we all buy 1080p TV's for their looks or for the picture they produce..?

Ryan-3 · 17 Aug 2013 at 16:22

photoshop said:
This is just something that you see in reviews and on forums- people thinking its cheap and nasty. Real world is a different story.

Me & Fox both agree that in the hand, the S4 is exactly what the reviewers say. The internals are comparable to its rivals while the construction isn't.

photoshop · 17 Aug 2013 at 16:27

Ryan-3 said:
Me & Fox both agree that in the hand, the S4 is exactly what the reviewers say. The internals are comparable to its rivals while the construction isn't.

The S4 is what exactly what in the hand?!

What exactly is bad about the construction?
That it uses a plastic rear instead of metal?

That doesn't make it bad. Should i damage my rear i can go just get a replacement for under a tenner.....Which would make it a plus. Can you do that with your HTC one?

grudas · 17 Aug 2013 at 16:32

photoshop said:
The S4 is what exactly what in the hand?!

What exactly is bad about the construction?
That it uses a plastic rear instead of metal?

That doesn't make it bad. Should i damage my rear i can go just get a replacement for under a tenner.....Which would make it a plus. Can you do that with your HTC one?

there's nothing wrong with s4.. its just people prefering aluminum over plastic and then go around bashing plastic because they can't find anything better to do..

s4 is great phone to handle and it feels solid, yes it can make a TINY creak but thats because its not a single lump of metal like one is where it has no removable battery, sd slot etc and everything is glued into one big piece of lump which is why it never creaks..

Ryan-3 · 17 Aug 2013 at 17:04

It feels and looks like phones that are less than half the price.

Not once have I found during owning an iPhone that I need more than 32GB storage, or the need of a replacement battery, and I'm exactly the same with the HTC One. Plus, i've never done a drop test, so won't need a replacement back cover.

kona786 · 17 Aug 2013 at 20:04

Ryan-3 said:
It feels and looks like phones that are less than half the price.

Not once have I found during owning an iPhone that I need more than 32GB storage, or the need of a replacement battery, and I'm exactly the same with the HTC One. Plus, i've never done a drop test, so won't need a replacement back cover.

Good for you.

photoshop · 17 Aug 2013 at 20:53

Ryan-3 said:
It feels and looks like phones that are less than half the price.

Not once have I found during owning an iPhone that I need more than 32GB storage, or the need of a replacement battery, and I'm exactly the same with the HTC One. Plus, i've never done a drop test, so won't need a replacement back cover.

It looks like the S3 which was a best seller and still sells well.
Which half price phones are you referring to when you say it feels and looks like?

Ive got a 64Gb SD Card in mine which stores everything i need which includes tons of music, videos, pictures, nandroid backups. It serves as a backup should the phone go wrong. Something that cannot be said for the One.

Wireless charging too which is very convenient for bedside. HTC have wireless?

Spare battery left in the car so if I'm out and about for long periods i know i have a spare should i run out of juice. HTC has interchangeable battery?

Is the rear of the One not prone to scratches or general wear and tear?

[TW]Fox · 17 Aug 2013 at 23:19

photoshop said:
This is just something that you see in reviews and on forums- people thinking its cheap and nasty. Real world is a different story.

I went into a real world shop and picked a real world handset up.

Yup, felt like a cheap plastic phone. Not really any different to something like a Nexus 4 in terms of construction qualty. I'm sure the internals are very snazzy but it didn't feel like a quality product in my hand, so I'm not interested.

photoshop · 18 Aug 2013 at 01:36

[TW]Fox;24786724 said:
I went into a real world shop and picked a real world handset up.

Yup, felt like a cheap plastic phone. Not really any different to something like a Nexus 4 in terms of construction qualty. I'm sure the internals are very snazzy but it didn't feel like a quality product in my hand, so I'm not interested.

And i went into a shop and thought the total opposite which is why i bought the S4 instead of the One.

The front is Glass. The sides are Aluminium. Other than the plastic rear [which doesn't suggest poor build quality] what exactly is cheap about the S4?

[TW]Fox · 18 Aug 2013 at 09:36

You thought the One felt plasticy? Unusual view but fair enough.

I just do not like large plastic surfaces on products, sorry.

Ryan-3 · 18 Aug 2013 at 10:03

[TW]Fox;24787754 said:
You thought the One felt plasticy? Unusual view but fair enough.

I just do not like large plastic surfaces on products, sorry.

My mate is the same as this, defending the S4 as being some holy grail of the phone world. I need none of the extra 'tacked-on' features they've added to try and justify the price they charge.

But for the phones i'm referring to with build quality, are like the Galaxy Ace, the band around the outside feels no better than it.

Nexus18 · 18 Aug 2013 at 11:12

The band on the outside isn't actually aluminium, it is just plastic with an aluminium lookalike finish.

I agree with the comments about perceived/build quality when it comes to phones like the one s, iphone 5, one compared to the galaxy range etc. They just feel so much more solid in the hand and have a high premium feel to it (and not because of the weight as the iphone 5 and one s are very light too)

Plastic can be marked & break just as easily as aluminium too (just look through the GS 3, note II etc. threads across the forums), in some cases aluminium can actually be a lot tougher! (in terms of being more resistant to scratches etc., however, it all depends on how well done the finish process is [anodization]) Look at all the people that have complained about getting scratches on the back of their GS 3 etc.

HTC one holds up very well, loads of videos on youtube where people use keys to scratch the back and they just rub the scratch marks of with their thumb.

At the end of the day, it doesn't matter as the screen is the thing that will break/crack when dropped with both phones. (I don't know about Samsung, but when you send the phone of to HTC to get the display fixed, they will also replace the casing)

Personally it doesn't bother me that much though as I am more than happy with the build and feel of plastic phones especially ones like the one X and the moto X looks utterly fantastic!

The only thing that bothers me about the GS 4 looks is the finish of the plastic. Hate the glossy pattern smooth finish.

kona786 · 18 Aug 2013 at 17:27

The screen on the GS4 is like a gigantic anchovy on a mini pizza, it's soo dominating that it never crosses my mind what the back is made out of,

The screen is just stunning. Other little foibles just don't matter.