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If you are only into the latest and greatest hardware, and have to have dual core CPU's, this is not for you!
If you are actually interested in this phone, hopefully this will be of some help
Form Factor & Appearance
First off, this phone feels great in the hand. I don't have particularly large hands, and the Desire HD felt a bit too big, but this is perfect. It's nice to hold in landscape in two hands, or to use in one handed operation. The materials are nice and expensive feeling, very strong and sturdy construction, and it has enough weight to feel expensive without being heavy. The soft touch rubberised back is comfy to hold in the hand (even with the big ridge). From a looks perspective, to me it is a very attractive phone (from the front it looks like an iPod touch without the home button), very clean lines with almost the entire of the front being taken up by the 4" screen. The 4 capacitive buttons are accurate and responsive, and the rotating feature is a nice touch. They are completely invisible when not lit, which gives the phone a very clean appearance when the screen is off.
Screen - 4" SLCD
Let me start by saying yes, next to an AMOLED or a SAMOLED the colours do not 'pop' as much, but it is in my opinion a lot clearer (this may not be true of SAMOLED+ as that no longer uses pentile, but I have no way of comparing). In short it is a very nice screen. It is crisp and clear, and the colours are accurately represented to my eyes. Pictures and videos are sharp and pleasing to look at, and I have read for an hour on the Kindle app without problem. Games like Angry Birds look bright and colourful, but blacks are deep enough to not distract when watching a movie in the dark.
Horsepower - 1GHz MSM8255 Snapdragon & 768MB RAM
This thing is snappy. I am beginning to wonder what this dual-core noise is about as this phone literally flies through screens without a hint of lag or stutter. Whether it be browsing the web, playing games, adding contacts or using the sat-nav, I have not noticed a single hint of slowdown. I used a wide range of what I would consider to be fairly hardware intensive apps, including Angry Birds, Raging Thunder, Asphalt and CoPilot all of which ran without a hitch. For the benchmark junkies it linpacked ~ 38 MFLOPS, Neocore'd ~ 57 FPS and Quadranted ~ 1700.
Storage - 1.1GB Internal App Storage & 8GB Class 4 SDHC (Bundled)
Although I would like all internal storage, I am happy with the current arangement of > 1GB app storage and microSD cards. 1GB is more than enough for me, and I am planning to add a 32GB Class 10 microSD at the end of this month (here is the cheapest I have found if you are interested). Some may find this OK, some might want all internal storage, matter of personal preference really.
Cameras - 8MP Rear facing inc. Dual LED Flash & 1.3 MP Front Facing
The camera on the back is one of the nicest Android shooters I have had the privilege to use. Pretty sure it is the same as the one on the Desire HD, it takes clear crisp and bright pictures, the auto focus and face detection working quickly an accurately, and the time between being able to take photo's is very minimal (even when tested with a crappy Class 2 SD at 8MP!). The LED's provide very harsh, bright and unflattering lighting, but as no one appears to want to put a proper Xenon flash on an Android phone, it's the best we can get . They do however make for an excellent flashlight, and can be used with video recording. The camera can record 720p footage at 30FPS, and is pretty standard fare, while you won't be recording the next hollywood blockbuster on it, it is more than good enough for your next YouTube masterpiece of "Guy falling off skateboard" . The zoom level is not fixed for camera recording either, which is a nice feature to have.
The front facing camera is bog standard, good enough for video calling, and works well as a pocket mirror.
Battery - 1450 mAh
The battery life on this surprised me, especially after the Desire HD. HTC seemed to have learnt from their mistakes as this phone can get through more than 24 hours with fairly heavy usage. Might take a few more days to get a more acurate idea of how it will last, but I am pleasantly surprised
Other Notable Features -Notification LED, Dual Mics & FM Radio
An annoying feature missing from the samsung and Motorola phones, HTC have included a notification LED on the Incredible S (much to my delight). A small feature, but a much needed one and worth noting IMHO. The dual mics for noise cancellation work well and are a welcome feature, and something some have been phasing out is the FM radio. It hasn't been turned off yet!
And now for the cons...
This phone isn't without it's downsides. If I were putting together a list of improvements...
Better loudspeaker - the loudspeaker is very weak, and could do with improving.
Xenon Flash - Missing from all Android phones IMHO
Dedicated Camera Button - I don't see why people keep missing this simple yet much needed feature
Mini HDMI Port - It includes DLNA support, but a mini HDMI port would have been nice
Conclusion
HTC say this phone sits between the Desire S and the Desire HD, but I beg to differ. To me this is a Desire HD 1.5. Not a revolution of the flagship, but a marked improvement in several areas. The change in design and the slight shrink in screen size make it more comfortable to hold an easier to sit in the pocket. The smaller screen also helps the larger battery to fix the major flaw in the DHD, and the front facing camera makes the phone relevant n a world where video calling is trying to become popular (again, am I the only one who had a video mobile phone 8 years ago?!). I would recommend this phone to anyone looking for an upgrade now, unless you want to wait for the dual core craze to begin.
This phone was purchased at Carphone Warehouse on Vodaphone, 24 Months @ £30 with 500 min, unlimited texts and 500MB internet (free phone).
Note: I actually got this phone for my Fianceé as she was due an upgrade. She had a Samsun Pixon M8800 and she thinks it's the best thing in the world ever, and hasn't spoken to me for two days as she has been too engrossed in it . I am seriously considering one as an upgrade from My Hero, and will probably have my own before tomorrow is finished. I will upload some pics of the device, and sample footage and pics from the camera when I get the chance
Great review!
Can you confirm AWS band on the Incredible S?
GSMArena used to have a 900/1700/2100 HSPDA band spec for this phone, but has now changed it to 900/2100.
I want to import for T-Mobile USA, but need to know if it supports AWS.
Great review, I have exact same deal from Carphone as you, and i am delighted with the phone, it is truly awesome. I agree with everything you said, except I am not so sure about the battery life. Mine has not had a great deal of use today, but its been off charge for only 12 hours and I reckon it will need to go on the charger pretty soon if I do a bit of surfing this evening. Cheers
Bands are as follows:
HSPA/WCDMA:
Europe/Asia: 900/AWS/2100 MHz
Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE:
850/900/1800/1900 MHz
Hope that helps!
Thanks for this review... One thing i wanted to ask was how "fingerprinty" does the phone get?
I'll be upgrading from the HTC Hero, which has stood up quite well thanks to the efforts of various devs.
I'm also planning on buying it handset only as i'm on an amazing phone plan and i'd rather get lower line rental than the free phone! Prices i've seen are around £480-£500... not yet sure if it's worth that.
Bantu85 said:
Thanks for this review... One thing i wanted to ask was how "fingerprinty" does the phone get?
I'll be upgrading from the HTC Hero, which has stood up quite well thanks to the efforts of various devs.
I'm also planning on buying it handset only as i'm on an amazing phone plan and i'd rather get lower line rental than the free phone! Prices i've seen are around £480-£500... not yet sure if it's worth that.
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Much better than those plastic phones i.e Samsung Gal S & Neux 2. The screen will get fingers prints (as per most phones) but the back is covered in a rubber coating which is nice to grip and leaves no prints, unless the fingers were covered in grease in the first place
Note: CPW £449 pay as you go.... Their phones are unlocked. I know cos I have brought my last 3 handsets inc the HTC Incred S from CPW
l0st.prophet said:
If you are actually interested in this phone, hopefully this will be of some help
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Click to collapse
Very much so, best run down I have seen upto now! Thanks for the taking the time out and I look forward to hearing more from you and seeing the pics you are planning to upload.
Bantu85 said:
Prices i've seen are around £480-£500... not yet sure if it's worth that.
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Totally agree especially given that HTC market this as being 'in between' the Desire and the Desire HD. Should it not therefore hold an in between price tag too?
ganstakillerz said:
Note: CPW £449 pay as you go.... Their phones are unlocked. I know cos I have brought my last 3 handsets inc the HTC Incred S from CPW
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Nice tip, thanks for that, still pricey but a little less painful I guess!
I actually went back today and got my own, so I will upload all the pics & video tomorrow. I am also looking into rooting it as no devs appear to have picked one up, but I am not making any promises, I am working pretty much totally off the internet and what info I can piece together
l0st.prophet said:
I actually went back today and got my own, so I will upload all the pics & video tomorrow. I am also looking into rooting it as no devs appear to have picked one up, but I am not making any promises, I am working pretty much totally off the internet and what info I can piece together
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Click to collapse
Hah, so you and your other half are sat in silence now as you both play with your new toys I take it? ;-p
Excellent, great to hear. I think it's early days for the devs at the moment and when it starts to show on Verizon etc state side I think we can expect more from this - after all, it's always only a matter of time isn't it
Thanks for your input, I am considering picking one of these up myself as I really do not want anything above 4" and the only real 'superphones' that have come out of MWC 2011 are 4.3 - with the exception of some of the lesser tried and tested makes.
The speaker REALLY puts me off though, I had really hoped HTC would have learned their lesson!
xspyda said:
Hah, so you and your other half are sat in silence now as you both play with your new toys I take it? ;-p
Excellent, great to hear. I think it's early days for the devs at the moment and when it starts to show on Verizon etc state side I think we can expect more from this - after all, it's always only a matter of time isn't it
Thanks for your input, I am considering picking one of these up myself as I really do not want anything above 4" and the only real 'superphones' that have come out of MWC 2011 are 4.3 - with the exception of some of the lesser tried and tested makes.
The speaker REALLY puts me off though, I had really hoped HTC would have learned their lesson!
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Click to collapse
I personally use the headphones and don't use the loudspeaker, but I can see it being a turn off if it is important to you. I don't mind it for watching a youtube video and turning on SRS helps, but it is still pretty tinny. I wish I had a DHD to compare to so I could let you know how it matches up, but I don't know anyone with one
Well from my short time with both devices I can say that neither are great but the DHD seemed marginally better to me. That said, I spent a good few days with the DHD in different ambient conditions whereas I spent minutes with the Incredible S and was only able to listen to the audio supplied on the phone which to be fair is a poor example.
I don't want to listen to music on the phone but as I say, watching video's / clips the tinny sound is very grating. Seriously considering getting one on an 'able to return' basis though to see if I can put up with it as this phone seems to have everything else I want.
Maybe someone else with this and the DHD will be able to comment on the speaker comparison?
l0st.prophet said:
If you are only into the latest and greatest hardware, and have to have dual core CPU's, this is not for you!
If you are actually interested in this phone, hopefully this will be of some help [/SI
Hi to all, could you tell me about the flash player in this phone? has it the one that desire hd has?(10.1) or the lite edition?
thank u
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Click to collapse
HD2_MANIAC said:
l0st.prophet said:
If you are only into the latest and greatest hardware, and have to have dual core CPU's, this is not for you!
If you are actually interested in this phone, hopefully this will be of some help [/SI
Hi to all, could you tell me about the flash player in this phone? has it the one that desire hd has?(10.1) or the lite edition?
thank u
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It has full Flash 10.1 (soon to be 10.2)
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Click to collapse
Any info on how it handles video codecs? I assume out of the box it will not play avi / divx?
Presume such apps as Vplayer / QQPlayer and Rockplayer will let you play a full sized avi with no fuss though and remain in sync throughout?
xspyda said:
Any info on how it handles video codecs? I assume out of the box it will not play avi / divx?
Presume such apps as Vplayer / QQPlayer and Rockplayer will let you play a full sized avi with no fuss though and remain in sync throughout?
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Click to collapse
I found that it does actually play some avi files without the likes of rockplayer; however when using rockplayer it seems to be flawless, though sound is adequate rather than amazing via loud speaker, ear phones is perfectly acceptable.
Great review!
Cheers!
I am currently deciding between this and the DHD... I prefably like the DHD for it's price. Much cheaper than the Incredible. The battery performance on the incredible actually sounds bloody amazing according to your review! The DHD 1230Mah battery is it's weakness point. I am in a dilema on which to get...
Like you said though, it isnt a MAJOR upgrade. So should i get the DHD for a worse battery but for a cheaper £389 compared to £499?
Cheers!
remember it's £459 if buying from CPW - you can buy the cheaper PAYG deal as they are all sim free anyway!
xspyda said:
remember it's £459 if buying from CPW - you can buy the cheaper PAYG deal as they are all sim free anyway!
Click to expand...
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thanks! any chance for a link?
Sure ...
Here ya go
Thanks for posting this review and the follow-up. I'm looking at getting this phone instead of the DHD because of the poor battery life and the uni-body design of the DHD.
Make the encryption optional
Make the LED light work without rooting
-Camera software tweaks to improve shutter speed, vid recording in Hangouts, etc
-Unlink notification/ringer sounds
-Make the ascending ringtones optional!
-Optimize the sw to get better battery life.
optional ascending ringtones
Faster Autofocus/Picture taking
Better focusing in Video
Yes, better battery life is a must also.
Better video quality ,it looks really bad . improve the camera its all software issues that need fixing. My battery life is better than my note 3 so no complaints about that. Change the really big dumb icons to a normal size. The DPI on this phone should be between 400/450. Make the dial app one process to get to instead of two. I shouldn't have to click the dial icon to have to click another icon just to get to the dial.
Better battery
Much slimmer body (7mm or less)
Best QHD/4K Display (dont want it, but it will happen regardless...so might as well make it the best display possible, unlike the N6's sub-par one)
4gig DDR4
64bit top processor
Front facing speakers
Tiny front bezels
6.2inch screen in the same body size as a Nexus 6
IR blaster
Camera software that actually can better an iPhone 7 in all lighting conditions; optimize the stock camera software to Apple/Samsung levels.
20mp rear dual camera with dual tone flashes (dual camera phones are producing better images)
5-10mp front camera with flash
NFC
Wireless charging
Completely water proof
Notification LED
Fingerprint scanner (the same kind as the iPhone where you press your finger, not swipe it)
Better designed phone in terms of aesthetics, the giant NEXUS logo is a bit tacky
Full metal phone
support for the fastest LTE available and fastest WiFi & Bluetooth
Battery life that lasts 3days at least
4K video recording that works
OIS - but an advanced version
Decently priced
The list goes on...
In all seriousness while my list is completely doable and Google is capable of making such a phone, it likely wont. This is not how companies work - since when did any company release a phone that perfectly matched what your expectations were? In my opinion, never, there is always something left out which could've been added. For example the PS4/Xbox One were made on a budget to be cost effective, and as a result they are not powerful machines like their predecessors were when released. The next 'Nexus' phone (or whatever it will be called) will be a minor upgrade on the Nexus 6. Sure, it will likely have 64bit processor, a new camera sensor and different design. But it will also likely be outclassed by other phones on the market, like the Note 5, just like how the Nexus 6 is outdone by the Note 4 in terms of features (not just talking software; Note 4 has a better screen, camera hardware and arguably better quality battery despite being the same size). Phones are increasingly receiving smaller and smaller upgrades. Are phone cameras from 3 years ago dramatically worse than today? Not really. Are phones from 2+ years ago that much slower in normal use (calls, texts etc) compared to today's new phones? They are slower, but in normal use, completely fine and not that bad. The rate of progression in phones is slowing down a little, so the next Nexus wont be a huge upgrade in terms of everyday use.
spartanm99 said:
Better battery
Much slimmer body (7mm or less)
Best QHD/4K Display (dont want it, but it will happen regardless...so might as well make it the best display possible, unlike the N6's sub-par one)
4gig DDR4
64bit top processor
Front facing speakers
Tiny front bezels
6.2inch screen in the same body size as a Nexus 6
IR blaster
Camera software that actually can better an iPhone 7 in all lighting conditions; optimize the stock camera software to Apple/Samsung levels.
20mp rear dual camera with dual tone flashes (dual camera phones are producing better images)
5-10mp front camera with flash
NFC
Wireless charging
Completely water proof
Notification LED
Fingerprint scanner (the same kind as the iPhone where you press your finger, not swipe it)
Better designed phone in terms of aesthetics, the giant NEXUS logo is a bit tacky
Full metal phone
support for the fastest LTE available and fastest WiFi & Bluetooth
Battery life that lasts 3days at least
4K video recording that works
OIS - but an advanced version
Decently priced
The list goes on...
In all seriousness while my list is completely doable and Google is capable of making such a phone, it likely wont. This is not how companies work - since when did any company release a phone that perfectly matched what your expectations were? In my opinion, never, there is always something left out which could've been added. For example the PS4/Xbox One were made on a budget to be cost effective, and as a result they are not powerful machines like their predecessors were when released. The next 'Nexus' phone (or whatever it will be called) will be a minor upgrade on the Nexus 6. Sure, it will likely have 64bit processor, a new camera sensor and different design. But it will also likely be outclassed by other phones on the market, like the Note 5, just like how the Nexus 6 is outdone by the Note 4 in terms of features (not just talking software; Note 4 has a better screen, camera hardware and arguably better quality battery despite being the same size). Phones are increasingly receiving smaller and smaller upgrades. Are phone cameras from 3 years ago dramatically worse than today? Not really. Are phones from 2+ years ago that much slower in normal use (calls, texts etc) compared to today's new phones? They are slower, but in normal use, completely fine and not that bad. The rate of progression in phones is slowing down a little, so the next Nexus wont be a huge upgrade in terms of everyday use.
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Kinda hard to change all that in a simple software update.
knitler said:
Kinda hard to change all that in a simple software update.
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Click to collapse
I read the thread as update to the Nexus 6, did not think of it as a software update.
However better camera software would be good. When I say better, I mean far better post-processing, faster focus and better use of the hardware. Not sure that will ever happen though, since it really hasn't ever happened before to make any major upgrades. Encryption being a choice would be good too.
spartanm99 said:
I read the thread as update to the Nexus 6, did not think of it as a software update.
However better camera software would be good. When I say better, I mean far better post-processing, faster focus and better use of the hardware. Not sure that will ever happen though, since it really hasn't ever happened before to make any major upgrades. Encryption being a choice would be good too.
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Click to collapse
I just bought manual camera from the play store. The app is pretty awesome. It supports raw... Pictures snap instantly. So far im impressed. Huge upgrade over the Google camera.
Smallsmx3 said:
I just bought manual camera from the play store. The app is pretty awesome. It supports raw... Pictures snap instantly. So far im impressed. Huge upgrade over the Google camera.
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Click to collapse
Until it supports video it's a no-go for me.
Smallsmx3 said:
I just bought manual camera from the play store. The app is pretty awesome. It supports raw... Pictures snap instantly. So far im impressed. Huge upgrade over the Google camera.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've just read about this app. It appears to be a huge improvement over the stock camera but it does need to have the option to save your settings, use the front camera and use video recording on both front and rear cameras. I'm sure they will implement these features though, it is the next logical step with this app. Happy that someone is making a high quality camera app - it is a good start.
I'll likely buy it eventually if video recording is supported for both cameras as well as the front camera being supported, naturally. So far, it looks good.
Thanks for sharing this info!
bonebeatz1234 said:
Better video quality ,it looks really bad . improve the camera its all software issues that need fixing.
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Click to collapse
I am an Android fan, and a professional photographer. I know what really upscale gear costs, as I use it almost daily.
The video recording quality of the N6 is atrocious. Very poor encoding, very poor S/N. And this applies to both 1080p and 4k. I know the 4k video recording was a marketing gimmick - a test so to speak - but I fully expected the 1080p to be without the same artifacts and poor S/N when recording.
My beef is easily replicated - the background brightness "stairsteps" instead of smoothly transitioning if you move your camera (up and down slowly - watch the background adjust as the angle changes) to change the angle of view. If a blank wall is behind the subject, you can see the brightness "click" up and down as the brightness/contrast level changes. Same thing occurs with the sky if it happens to be the background. It should be like a smooth volume control, not a click-stop. This results in it being unusable when viewed.
I am not suggesting it work in extremely low light. I'm talking bright, indirect lighting (always better than harsh direct light). It just fails in these mild conditions.
I have no way to know if this can be upgraded in software.
Side by side with an iPhone 6Plus shooting simple 1080p video there is simply no comparison, The N6 sucks, and it otherwise pleases me very much.
I have all of the third party apps and really enjoy the flexibility they impart. My favorite is Cinema FV-5. Unfortunately, they do nothing whatsoever except leverage the APIs. They do not introduce better encoding, etc.
The way this camera behaves with video recording is not even close to parity with other upscale devices. Remember, i am not talking about still photo capture, nor am I referring to video playback. I am perfectly fine with those on this device. I have very upscale gear, mostly I rent Red, and I shoot 4K weekly. I just want reasonable video.
I am hoping for the best.
Insights are welcomed. I love my phone, except for this and it frustrates me to sense video recording is a marketing buzz word versus a core feature.
Multi window.
dan04103 said:
Multi window.
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There are alternatives on the play store, but not as powerful/clean as Samsung's integrated framework of course.
C00lBeanz said:
Make the encryption optional
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Click to collapse
DEFINITELY will not happen. Best you can hope for is HWCRYPTO, which will yield the performance of no-crypto, so problem solved regardless.
Make the LED light work without rooting
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I realllllllly doubt you'll see this. Google is not known for altering user facing features after a device is launched.
1. No forced encryption.
2.Fix USB OTG so flash drives actually mount.
One hand mode.
bench_strength said:
I am hoping for the best.
Insights are welcomed. I love my phone, except for this and it frustrates me to sense video recording is a marketing buzz word versus a core feature.
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Click to collapse
So you are a professional. What are you expecting?
There is a cost of miniaturization.
The sensors are so small compared to the REDs you use or SLRs.
Phone to phone comparison is probably a better way to look at it. Without looking at the specs and hardware for iphone 6+ and nexus 6, apple just sourced a better camera on the market. It's the same deal with the fingerprint scanner as well. They bought it all up, and left none of the 'good' stuff for moto/google.
8Fishes said:
So you are a professional. What are you expecting?
There is a cost of miniaturization.
The sensors are so small compared to the REDs you use or SLRs.
Phone to phone comparison is probably a better way to look at it. Without looking at the specs and hardware for iphone 6+ and nexus 6, apple just sourced a better camera on the market. It's the same deal with the fingerprint scanner as well. They bought it all up, and left none of the 'good' stuff for moto/google.
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Click to collapse
I agree with your analysis, up to the point where I use the camera for still shots. It works very well, especially with stock HDR+ or with a third party app to control all of the core tools. I am completely OK with it.
Your points about sensors is true, no debating that.
The still photos and the video use the same lens. The photos are tack sharp if care is taken (3rd party) or HDR+ is used exclusively.
The video appears to be almost completely dependant upon processing. Processing is software. I would like to think they could improve this significantly IF they gave two hoots.
Sending back my Nexus 6p to replace with op3t been wanting this phone for some time. Aside from asking many different questions my main thing would be the camera . Initially videos and blogs on the camera said it's in n par with a s7 or note 5 quality . But I'm hearing negative talk about the rear cam blur and clarity. Is there a known issue ? A camera mod or fix or is this just bias opinion. I guess I'll find out soon .
Sent from my Nexus 6P using XDA-Developers Legacy app
androidddaaron said:
Sending back my Nexus 6p to replace with op3t been wanting this phone for some time. Aside from asking many different questions my main thing would be the camera . Initially videos and blogs on the camera said it's in n par with a s7 or note 5 quality . But I'm hearing negative talk about the rear cam blur and clarity. Is there a known issue ? A camera mod or fix or is this just bias opinion. I guess I'll find out soon .
Sent from my Nexus 6P using XDA-Developers Legacy app
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Click to collapse
For me the camera it just fine , I mean I don't expect professional results it is a phone camera if I want better results go for a pro one
One a bright day the camera is perfect wonderful pics , but as light reduces the camera loss some quality and sharpness
I mean for 439 dlls it a good camera
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using Tapatalk
I love this phone and the latest. Oxygen OS update fixes alot of the camera issues witch were fine according to me but im not a camera guy. I got it for the processor and 6 gigs of ram and so far this thing has only impressed at ever corner you can't go wrong with this phone especially at this price point.
I'd say given good amount of lightning, the camera gets pretty decent performance. Once its in lowlight, it definitely has some catching up to do compared to devices like S7, 6p.
There is apparently an issue with the camera on OnePlus 3T where focus stops working. I have read multiple reports now and I am affected myself. Some say this is a hardware issue and some had their phones already fixed by OnePlus. Someone else said a software update fixed it for him so maybe there are multiple issues at work. But those are all defects where the camera stops working properly. Until this happened, the camera was fine and I couldn't complain about the quality at all.
Outdoor photos with any degree of sunlight are excellent. Indoors, with any amount of sun coming through windows also are great. Indoors, with artificial lighting is where it gets trickier. The lower the light, the longer it takes to auto focus; and if your subject is moving, the pics are more likely to blur. If you have some patience, and know how to take pictures, you can get decent results. And you may have to take several photos, knowing some will have blur.
The best example would be indoor pics of my young kids (which I take a lot) which can never stand still for long, even for a picture. But even with some decent amount of artificial light, and a bit of patience, I get some very good pics most of the time.
Another option on the OP3T, is you can change the camera to "manual" mode. This allows you to manually set the ISO, white balance (type of light), etc. This can get you faster focus and better results in lower light. But not everyone may want to take the time to manually tweak these settings.
I take a good amount of smartphone pics, and the camera is important to me. Overall, I'm pleased with the camera on the OP3T. But given, I'm coming from an older phone, the HTC M8 (which is going on 3 years old). On the other hand, the amount of effort it takes to get unblurred photos on the OP3T is not out of line with when I use my DSLR camera.
Maybe a phone like the Samsung GS7 can take more focused pictures, more consistently, and with less effort. And of course there is something to be said about that. But there is also a price. Most folks who criticize the camera on the OP3T are comparing it to flagships like the iPhone 7 or Samsung GS7 which cost almost twice as much (okay, the price of phones vary a lot over time and by region - but you see what I'm getting at). The OP3T simply can't compete as it lacks the fancy features such as dual camera, laser focus + phase detection etc. which all cost money. But what you have is a phone which competes with the current flagships on almost every level (processor, RAM, build quality) with just a bit of compromise on the camera, screen resolution, and waterproofing.
came from a 6p, have had trouble getting my camera to focus, but still love the phone
Ok ever since Ive seen this phone I've been smitten with it., but the price has scared me off a bit...it does seem to have some down to a relatively reasonable price and its got me thinking again. The Camera is what intrigues me the most, as with most people I would assume.
Here is what gives me pause though...from a lot of accounts it doesn't do very well taking pictures of people and just about every real review Ive sen says the camera oversharpens a lot, in any situation. My dilemma is I take a lot of pictures of my kids, as a lot of people do, so crappy pictures of people is sort of a dealbreaker for a phone. The low light performance seems amazing and teh 3x zoom I could definitely get some use out of, but the beauty mode and sharpening is stopping me from buying this phone.
Are there any ROMs that can be flashed that addressed this? Is this something someone could find in the software of the phone and disable? VIA a rom again obviously because it cannot be disabled in stock form it appears.
I find with people oh and dogs it can be a a little slow I am thinking of jumping ship to the note 9 as that camera is lightening fast plus you can add a memory card
When you come to scenary I have to say wow
The attached pic is unedited
I have to say however it's an amazing device it's fast and fluid operating system wise i have always used iPhones and am happy to have moved to android just wish camera person wise was more polished
Sent from my CLT-L29 using XDA Premium HD app
Yeah that's great, but as you probably know people and dogs rarely stand still..babies even worse. If it's a little slow that's a definitely no, I got a note 8 and even that is a bit slow at times and I miss the shot Im trying to get.
My other options are a p2xl or a Oneplus 6, or keep the Note 8 but the GF needs a new phone
loki993 said:
Yeah that's great, but as you probably know people and dogs rarely stand still..babies even worse. If it's a little slow that's a definitely no, I got a note 8 and even that is a bit slow at times and I miss the shot Im trying to get.
My other options are a p2xl or a Oneplus 6, or keep the Note 8 but the GF needs a new phone
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Click to collapse
That's the problem people move and the AI modes say keep still even once shot
I played with the note 9 last night and it was lightening fast
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mancuk29 said:
I find with people oh and dogs it can be a a little slow I am thinking of jumping ship to the note 9 as that camera is lightening fast plus you can add a memory card
When you come to scenary I have to say wow
The attached pic is unedited
I have to say however it's an amazing device it's fast and fluid operating system wise i have always used iPhones and am happy to have moved to android just wish camera person wise was more polished
Sent from my CLT-L29 using XDA Premium HD app
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Slow to focus or slow shutter speed? Anyway I don't find it slow by any means, one of the fastest to both focus and fire of a shot to be honest
I've found the rear cameras work really well - it is fast to focus, the night mode and B&W are really good. Turn off the AI as I think it's not very good. For just a point and shoot, I think the Pixel 2 will give you better results. If you are willing to put in a bit of work into your shots, I think the P20 Pro will give you excellent results. Now, if you are talking about the front camera, it is not very good (IMO). So, if you use the front camera quite a bit, I might suggest other options for you.
From what I hear, the video is not very good either (I don't shoot video, so I cannot comment first hand). I've read that the rear camera processing software was done by Leica and the front camera and video was done by Huawei - that may explain the difference in quality between those.
Overall, I find the hardware excellent but am not so fond of EMUI (esp. the memory management, notifications and AOD).
I take loads of photos of my kids, who never stop moving. Ever. Most of the time it takes amazing shots, but sometimes they're a bit blurry.
The over softening of faces has been reduced on recent updates, and if you're in portrait mode you can dial it down with a slider (it's called beauty level).
You'll struggle with ROMs now though - Huawei have stopped giving bootloader unlock codes. This means you won't be able to flash anything, and even if you could it has completely stifled development. Personally I wouldn't buy it now because of this (you also won't be able to root). But the photos really are incredible so if you can put up with stock software and no root then get it.
rajeshr said:
I've found the rear cameras work really well - it is fast to focus, the night mode and B&W are really good. Turn off the AI as I think it's not very good. For just a point and shoot, I think the Pixel 2 will give you better results. If you are willing to put in a bit of work into your shots, I think the P20 Pro will give you excellent results. Now, if you are talking about the front camera, it is not very good (IMO). So, if you use the front camera quite a bit, I might suggest other options for you.
From what I hear, the video is not very good either (I don't shoot video, so I cannot comment first hand). I've read that the rear camera processing software was done by Leica and the front camera and video was done by Huawei - that may explain the difference in quality between those.
Overall, I find the hardware excellent but am not so fond of EMUI (esp. the memory management, notifications and AOD).
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Yeah honestly I don't use a front camera a lot and even when I do the quality doesn't really matter all that much.
I do do a lot of point and shoot, the quick snap of a kid doing something . But I do like having the extra functionality if I really wanted to take the time to get a really good shot. That's just not always practical.
krs360 said:
I take loads of photos of my kids, who never stop moving. Ever. Most of the time it takes amazing shots, but sometimes they're a bit blurry.
The over softening of faces has been reduced on recent updates, and if you're in portrait mode you can dial it down with a slider (it's called beauty level).
You'll struggle with ROMs now though - Huawei have stopped giving bootloader unlock codes. This means you won't be able to flash anything, and even if you could it has completely stifled development. Personally I wouldn't buy it now because of this (you also won't be able to root). But the photos really are incredible so if you can put up with stock software and no root then get it.
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Click to collapse
yeah, it seems that people were trying to get Huawei to allow people to unlock again. Eh may it would be better to just wait until that happens.
Ok so a few things.
The device as a non rooted device is as good as they come.
Design
Battery
Camera
Performance
Storage
System
Can't fault any of it.
My wife has the phone as stock and she loves it.
I have the phone with the bootloader unlocked, debranded and rooted and I love it.
I can do a lot more than my wife can with it due to the flexibility of being able to remove bloat and install things like lineage and mods like swap torpedo for speed.
Personally if I was unable to unlock the bootloader, there is no way I would contemplate buying this phone, not for its price or for it's hindered lack of unlocking options.
My advice, you cannot unlock the bootloader any more.
Pixel 2 XL It's just dropped by £100
OnePlus 6T when it arrives
Pixel 3 when it arrives.
Not this phone, unless you are going to never hope to root it.
No one of the things I would need would be to get rid of EMUI because people don't seem to like it and from what I hear I wouldn't like it either. I would by buying it with the intention of swapping something more stock ish on it, so if I can't do that its really a non starter.
I'm really looking at a 2xl probably from swappa there are a bunch of refurbs or buybacks on there for a pretty decent price and there is the 200 off deal from Fi too.
I am considering the 6, yeah the 6t will be out but not until November and even then what can they do to change it? wireless charging is almost a sure bet, but not sure what else. Maybe a bit of work on that notch but that doesn't bother me too much. My note 8 has wireless charging and I never use it, so I can do without that.
The 3XL was what I wanted originally but the more leaks I see of the phone the more I don't like it. Again I'm not a notch hater like some people seem to be but it is rather large on the 3xl it seems and with the chin on the bottom it makes the screen look oddly placed...aesthetic issues only though.
The big thing though is it looks like it's only going to have 4 gigs of ram and a battery that's not any larger than its predecessor and for a phone that's likely going to cost around a thousand dollars that's just not acceptable. Now if they come out and say we could only fit this battery and 4 gigs of ram in it because our sensor is bigger than the P20 pros, or something else crazy like that, they may have my attention, but until I hear something like that Im not so interested. Even then, Huawei managed to fit a 4k battery and 6 gigs of ram and 2 more cameras in their phone in addition to the big one...so even that would be a weak excuse, but I could settle for that.
Loving my pro. Coming from Samsung for over ten years, I really like emui. Very easy to use. Very customizable. Thumbs up from me.
Sent from my CLT-L09 using Tapatalk
Opinions are like a-holes, so I thought I'd stay in character & post mine.
This is my first Samsung. Until now, 9 of 10 phones I've owned have been Moto - I used to work for the company and got stuck on them (even when they went to Google then Lenovo). All phones have been rooted since 2010 when I got my first Droid Razr. It's been about 6 years since I've been cutting edge - my last phone was so incredibly reliable I got stuck on it. I've never owned an iPhone & never will. This past December my house decided to overhaul our devices, so I got the s21 Ultra for ~850 USD after discounts. I've been on Verizon since 1999.
My primary uses for owning a mobile device are directly related to the Windows & Linux experiences I have in my life. I want something with maximum horsepower, something I can lock down the best I can, tweak, web/text/data etc., a cutting edge camera, quick & easy 24/7 webdav, and seamless connection/configurability to my NAS. I don't play games (yet) and don't use any social media apps. My machines have to do exactly what I say, quickly, and look good doing it.
There are plenty of people here who could flesh out the technical better than I, but the reason I wanted to share my thoughts here is because I absolutely love this phone & cannot stop talking about it. I love the feel of it, the weight, the screen, the speed & the camera. When I take the few extra seconds to frame & configure a shot, the photos/videos dust the iPhones everyone else uses in my house. One of the things I don't hear many talk about with this phone is how it feels in your hand & on your face when you're actually on a call. Never have I held such a quality device - it's less like a slab and more like a monolith. Anyone who has spent that extra money on say, a car, can attest to this. I really believe I got what I paid for and that's such a terrific feeling I seldom feel anymore.
So when I got the phone I flashed it out of the box to A12 XAA 4BUKF before I even simmed it. Because root was not available, I used ADB AppControl (phenomenal software) to tweak & script the changes I made. I am one of the lucky ones who was able to run 12 with minimal issues. After reading some of the thoughts on 12, I flashed back to A11 XAA 4AUJ7 to test it. Here are my general thoughts on Android 11 vs 12.
Quick notes: I do not use Bixby, I kept only the Samsung apps I ended up liking such as Gallery, Camera, Calculator, Keyboard & Voicemail. I ditched all the rest. I use Signal for texting, Edge for browsing and a few older misc. apps/widgets for everyday stuff.
FunctionEdgeCommentsData SpeedsTie80-150mbps 5G in the NW suburbs of ChicagoCall QualityTieBloatTieBoth are loaded with garbage. If for whatever reason I was restricted in my abilities to adb into this phone, I would not own it.Camera12• The stock camera app produces superior pictures on 12 imho, but both require manual iris intervention before every shot.
• If memory serves me right, the stabilizer "click" when you tilt the phone is not present like it is on 11. Can someone on 12 confirm this?Processing Speeds1111 is smoother and slightly faster.OneUI12• Real close but 12 edges out 11 because of the 85% charge option & ability to add an image to the peek/always on screen.
• Again I am one of the lucky ones as both were equally stable
*** As a new Samsung user, I'm floored by the customizability of OneUI and I love it. I could write pages about the changes I made in here. Bravo Samsung.Battery11Distant first place. The battery on 11 feels nearly twice as good. I get just at/under two days on a 100% charge with moderate use.Overall Personal Preference12But I am staying on 11 for now because of the battery, unfortunately. There is just no comparison.
*** Flashing this phone has been a seamlesss experience and not once has it *****ed at me about a single thing.
After weeks of research, attached are the apps I've frozen which produce no drain. I went much further than this, but reverted back to this in the end due to some perceived drain. Here are some pictures & a video I've taken with the stock app just for giggles - view settings can be changed to thumbnails using the icon on the top right of the page. These are untouched outside of the phone.
Outstanding phone, best I've ever owned, and I'm going to keep it for years. I would love to hear some counterpoints on what I've listed here.
Hi, thanks for the detailed review. Is that Exynos or Snapdragon?
ssj100 said:
Hi, thanks for the detailed review. Is that Exynos or Snapdragon?
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Totally. Snapdragon.
@burnxtc the one counterpoint that helps null Android is Samsung's going chintzy and removing the SD card slot. That combined with the new Google Android OS's new forced encryption and scoped storage the S21U is more Apple than Android.
Samsung hasn't been firing on all cylinders for way over a year. The N10+ was the last homerun flagship release Samsung made... in my opinion.
burnxtc said:
Totally. Snapdragon.
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Click to collapse
Interesting that you also notice the "processing speeds" to be a bit slower with 12. I definitely noticed it with the Exynos here (have owned it since pretty much release). Since 12, I've also observed issues with:
Picture in Picture, Split Screen etc - Refresh Rate drops to 60Hz (EXYNOS)
Hi there, I'd not noticed this before the Android 12 update, but refresh rate appears to drop from 120Hz to 60Hz when using Picture in Picture or Split Screen views. Can anyone else reproduce this please? You can confirm this by going into...
forum.xda-developers.com
And certainly animation "jitteriness" not infrequently has suddenly become noticeable where it didn't really exist on 11.
ssj100 said:
Interesting that you also notice the "processing speeds" to be a bit slower with 12. I definitely noticed it with the Exynos here (have owned it since pretty much release). Since 12, I've also observed issues with:
Picture in Picture, Split Screen etc - Refresh Rate drops to 60Hz (EXYNOS)
Hi there, I'd not noticed this before the Android 12 update, but refresh rate appears to drop from 120Hz to 60Hz when using Picture in Picture or Split Screen views. Can anyone else reproduce this please? You can confirm this by going into...
forum.xda-developers.com
And certainly animation "jitteriness" not infrequently has suddenly become noticeable where it didn't really exist on 11.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The refresh rate stuff is definitely something missing from my review. I am all eyes when I've read about it on this forum and learning much more about it.
ssj100 said:
Interesting that you also notice the "processing speeds" to be a bit slower with 12. I definitely noticed it with the Exynos here (have owned it since pretty much release). Since 12, I've also observed issues with:
Picture in Picture, Split Screen etc - Refresh Rate drops to 60Hz (EXYNOS)
Hi there, I'd not noticed this before the Android 12 update, but refresh rate appears to drop from 120Hz to 60Hz when using Picture in Picture or Split Screen views. Can anyone else reproduce this please? You can confirm this by going into...
forum.xda-developers.com
And certainly animation "jitteriness" not infrequently has suddenly become noticeable where it didn't really exist on 11.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The forced encryption maybe but certainly the scoped storage is sucking away cpu cycles for nothing. It's like air drag on a jet fighter, you can jam in bigger engines but the drag is still there slowing it down and burning more fuel.
For what? I like my Androids fast and loose.
burnxtc said:
The refresh rate stuff is definitely something missing from my review. I am all eyes when I've read about it on this forum and learning much more about it.
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Click to collapse
It's a big problem on all variable rate displays. All suffer from reduced color rendering to a greater or lesser degree.
Display reliability has also dropped it seems. That's a big reason I decided on buying a second N10+, probably the best display out there for color rendering, still. It slaughters the Apples too.
Still waiting for the newest model reviews but don't expect the color rendering index to increase much or at all; variable refresh rate displays are extremely hard to color calibrate, just too many variables. They are smooth but eat power. My SOT is 7-12%@hr with a 4300 mAh battery using 35-50% manual brightness. Ram usage almost never exceeds 5.3gb so it's snappy. The memory is roughly 20% less efficient than what you have.
So where's all the battery going on the newer models?
So pick your poison. For me it was choosing a phone over 2 years after it was first released. I have 2 N10+'s, the oldest will be 2.5 yo in March.
A Snapdragon variant 512/12gb running on Pie.
Current load will be 2 yo in June, still fast and stable, security isn't an issue. Only repair was a battery replacement back in April 2021. It looks and runs like new, zero detectable display degradation in this heavily used device. It's a beast. The reliability, display quality, battery life (trade offs: no 5G, variable refresh rate, and slower cpu/memory), form factor (7mm thick), SD card slot, the device is just stunning, and fun to use are some of the factors that made me go with a second one. I have twins...
blackhawk said:
It's a big problem on all variable rate displays. All suffer from reduced color rendering to a greater or lesser degree.
Display reliability has also dropped it seems. That's a big reason I decided on buying a second N10+, probably the best display out there for color rendering, still. It slaughters the Apples too.
Still waiting for the newest model reviews but don't expect the color rendering index to increase much or at all; variable refresh rate displays are extremely hard to color calibrate, just too many variables. They are smooth but eat power. My SOT is 7-12%@hr with a 4300 mAh battery using 35-50% manual brightness. Ram usage almost never exceeds 5.3gb so it's snappy. The memory is roughly 20% less efficient than what you have.
So where's all the battery going on the newer models?
So pick your poison. For me it was choosing a phone over 2 years after it was first released. I have 2 N10+'s, the oldest will be 2.5 yo in March.
A Snapdragon variant 512/12gb running on Pie.
Current load will be 2 yo in June, still fast and stable, security isn't an issue. Only repair was a battery replacement back in April 2021. It looks and runs like new, zero detectable display degradation in this heavily used device. It's a beast. The reliability, display quality, battery life (trade offs: no 5G, variable refresh rate, and slower cpu/memory), form factor (7mm thick), SD card slot, the device is just stunning, and fun to use are some of the factors that made me go with a second one. I have twins...
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That is absolutely incredible, I had no idea the N10+ was that right on the money - "Visually Indistinguishable From Perfect." No wonder they're still fetching that price.
Curious, did you do the battery replacement yourself & was there any degradation to the "structure" after you got it done? I've done batteries on a dozen phones/tablets, but taking my Samsung apart looks really daunting.
burnxtc said:
That is absolutely incredible, I had no idea the N10+ was that right on the money - "Visually Indistinguishable From Perfect." No wonder they're still fetching that price.
Curious, did you do the battery replacement yourself & was there any degradation to the "structure" after you got it done? I've done batteries on a dozen phones/tablets, but taking my Samsung apart looks really daunting.
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Click to collapse
I like it's square display corners, only the N20U has those too but that damn cam hump. In person the square corners look so much better.
Being raised on CRTs, I'm sick of rounded corners
The Zizo Bolt case mates perfectly with the 10+ making it easier to use and has great drop protection... so I knew casing the second one be easy. These corner hitters need a case. The spen's Smart Capture and bt shutter release are hard to live without once you use them. Deciding took some time.
It was between the N10+ and the N20U as the SD card slot is mandatory for me. In the end the trouble free and snappy fun nature of the 10+ won out. Never thought I would have done that in 2019, thought for sure I be wanting the next Samsung flagship in 2022. Ummm, thanks Samsung?
Had a shop do the replacement as I was intimidated too. I watched and learned. Use a little anhydrous isopropyl in a syringe to help loosen the double sided tape on the rear cover (and heat) and battery. Not bad if you take your time and have the right tools... easy does it, no rush.
Get the OEM rear cover seal or a good aftermarket one. Lol, never test if it's water tight even with the factory done one.
In the end I realized I could do a better job myself, but that in person demo really helped a lot. And yeah, I was a menace, asking questions... got my money's worth