Hi!
I've been reading alot on this forum and im very intersted in the S730, and by reading your posts here the majority seems to think the s730 is a great phone, but noone has said anything considering the video-driver issue in tytnII, whether its a problem in the s730 too?, So how is the video playbak in s730, is it possible to watch a 320x240 movie or TV-series, because i always downsize my shows to 320x240 will i not have any problems?, i currently have an Dell axim x30 which i often use to listen to music or watch movies and it has a 624Mhz processor which gives me smooth video playback, and would hate myself if i bought the s730 and the video playback would be lagging in 320x240...
And also, how is the call quality? is it clear and is the sim-card automatically set up?
thanks in advance...
/Johan
Watching 320x240 is no problem. CorePlayer (TCPMP) handles it well, all is smooth, the cpu power is enough up to 30 - 33 FPS (MPEG-4 ASP, 300 - 400 kbit/s).
What program are you using to downsize the videos?
They way I am currently doing it is too slow
However video playback is perfect. Even with the full resolution video's it only studders on the video and my audio is solid. (core player as well)
Thanks for the answers, and im pleased to hear that watching videos on th S730 is smooth. I'll probably go for this phone, and hope that you guys continue finding good ways of maximizing the performance in the phone!
An btw when I downsize my series or movies i often use pocketdivxencoder found here http://www.pocketdivxencoder.net/ . But most of the videos i downsize are Family guy and American Dad so im not really sure on how the result of a real movie would be, but i guess if you maximize both the video and audio quality , you would still end up with a reasonable small file with nice quality!
But to my other question, is the call quality good? in other words does it perform well as a phone?, and i read about the memory leak which i hope will get fixed, but will it cause any trouble if i listen to music via the bluetooth A2DP profile when not using any other programs?
Cool, filesize isnt a problem with my 6gb sd card. I'll play with it. My way works but too much hassle.
My old phone was not very good, so I cant speak too much about call quality. I find its very good overall, I had one occation where my connection was bad (kinda remote location with 1 bar signal) and the person on the other end said I was full of static, did clear up though.
Thats the only issue I have had. The earpiece speaker volume could go up a little higher but I have never had problems not being able to understand people.
i used TCPMP with mine, and the 400mhz makes a huge difference
i barely have to convert any video now when i'm watching my shows (usually in 700x200 or something like that)
with steady framerate and quality
if it starts to stutter or slowdown, i just turn the quality a bit lower in the player and it plays back just fine
yeap
Ic watched normal divx's on the phone, so yeah its very good
Ive dumped android and Looking at choosing a WP8 between HTC 8X / Ativ S / Lumia 920. Not interested in anything below 1 GB Ram, 16GB storage.. 32 or more is better.
I use my phone for Music / Photos and a few apps like Weave (WP8 version of Flipboard) and some minor customisation apps.
What Ive heard is:
Ativ S has very low almost inaudible ringtone and sound volume, average to poor camera, still on Pentile blueish OMLED display, No samsung support, so no apps but excellent music player (Wolfson sound chip), syncs perfectly with PC and Media centres no issues/ removable battery (good but not essential) and an SD card slot / sparse
Nokia 920.. really buggy broken Nokia music player, Sync to PC with media player issues, erratic and poor battery power (discharges for no reason), but amazing camera, lots of Nokia exclusive and useful apps, bigger 32GB storage Great 4.5" screen.
HTC 8X... 4.3" is a bit small for me, but would go back if phone was fantastic, just 16GB or storage, erratic battery, average camera.
Can anyone help me out with these points, are they true, and which should I look at.
Thanks
NightOrchid said:
Ive dumped android and Looking at choosing a WP8 between HTC 8X / Ativ S / Lumia 920. Not interested in anything below 1 GB Ram, 16GB storage.. 32 or more is better.
I use my phone for Music / Photos and a few apps like Weave (WP8 version of Flipboard) and some minor customisation apps.
What Ive heard is:
Ativ S has very low almost inaudible ringtone and sound volume, average to poor camera, still on Pentile blueish OMLED display, No samsung support, so no apps but excellent music player (Wolfson sound chip), syncs perfectly with PC and Media centres no issues/ removable battery (good but not essential) and an SD card slot / sparse
Nokia 920.. really buggy broken Nokia music player, Sync to PC with media player issues, erratic and poor battery power (discharges for no reason), but amazing camera, lots of Nokia exclusive and useful apps, bigger 32GB storage Great 4.5" screen.
HTC 8X... 4.3" is a bit small for me, but would go back if phone was fantastic, just 16GB or storage, erratic battery, average camera.
Can anyone help me out with these points, are they true, and which should I look at.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd actually pick whichever one has the best deal right now are you getting a new plan or an upgrade? I'd personally just wait for the Nokia 1020. Either that or one with Micro SD.
8x
of all your options i would suggest the 8x i have it and think its great games are smooth camera is pretty good beats audio is amazing or you can wait for the 1020
Thanks for the replies, appreciated , Im actually 6 months into a 2 year contract with EE, so ide just be swapping my S3 LTE for one of them. I looked at the 1020 and the 8X. Both look great and Samsung is just Samsung.. works with every thing any codec any app.
I like 8X but it would mean dropping from 4.8 to 4.3 screen, but plus side.. No blue-y pentile AMOLED. Im a big fan of Beats.. the sound chip not the crappy headphones (I use Sonnheiser buds anyway).
Theres just too many issues with the 920 for comfort, or I could keep my S3 and pick up a cheap 2nd hand 8x or 8s.
Ill probably go 8X for the camera and screen.. but anymore help would be appreciated.
Cheers
ATIV S has the largest screen and the largest battery (even though it's removable) while still managing to be one of the thinnest WP models. The camera is good for a phone but nothing special the way the 920's camera is. I have no trouble hearing the ringtone, but I keep the volume up when not on headphones. Sound quality is nothing amazing but is certainly adequate for a non-audiophile. It's also the only high-end WP8 device with an SD slot; the value of 80GB of phone storage is incredible for people with large music/video collections. I can atttest to the fact that support from Samsung is meh, but there have been firmware updates released and the OEM apps (things like call blocking and other such utility/feature apps in addition to the general stocks/weather/notes/whatever apps) are updated regularly.
The music player and syncing are using the same software on all WP8 devices so you won't see a difference in supported Codecs on any of them. A Nokia and a Samsung will be exactlly the same in that regard. The display on the Ativ S is the same as on the SGS3 which in both cases means PenTile AMOLED.
The Ativ S unfortunately is the only one of the phones mentioned that does not provide an Equalizer or anything else to improve sound over headphones. You get an Equalizer + Beats on the 8X or Equalizer + Dolby Headphone on the 920/820/925/1020.
As for battery life: the Ativ S will last you definitely longer than the Lumia 920 (the difference is bigger than the 300 mAh difference leads you to believe. At least in my usage and I have both the 920 and the Ativ S.
NightOrchid said:
Nokia 920.. really buggy broken Nokia music player, Sync to PC with media player issues, erratic and poor battery power (discharges for no reason), but amazing camera, lots of Nokia exclusive and useful apps, bigger 32GB storage Great 4.5" screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Besides a buggy whatsapp app (which has been fixed by now) my Lumia 920 has had no problems with the battery what so ever. I am just about to plug it in after 36hrs of usage. The speakers in the 920 are great and the camera is good as well.
I prefer the Nokia music player over the default one. At first it stopped remembering playlists etc, but after a few updates (and now whatsapp doesnt abuse music api anymore) I have no problems with it at all. The Nokia exclusive apps should be the main reason to go with them, so an 820 with replaceable battery and SD card slot could be a good choice as well. I don't use sync to PC so can't help you on that.
Tweekzor said:
...820 with replaceable battery and SD card slot could be a good choice as well...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Got an 820 about a week ago, an am very happy with it. Somewhat inferior camera compared to 920 but otherwise it's very comparable and feels much smaller.
altintx said:
Got an 820 about a week ago, an am very happy with it. Somewhat inferior camera compared to 920 but otherwise it's very comparable and feels much smaller.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The reason I chose the 920 over an 820 was the screen brightness and quality. I loved the design of the 820 more (even though I've grown quite fond of my 920's design) but the screen on the 920 was looking a lot better when I compared them in the store. I've heard other people say the prefer the 820 screen over the 920 though, because of the better display of black so it's just personal preference.
I chose the samsung ativ s for LTE support on TMO. It is the thinnest phone, the sd card support is huge in my book and I love the screen. Pentile or no pentile. I have had no problem finding accessories for it off of amazon - currently sporting a jcase on it. I have seen both the 8x and 920 and they just seemed bigger. I don't have a problem with the ringtones, the speaker phone is a tad low for my tastes.
All that being said - if music is your thing - I would avoid a win8 phone until they fix how to make a playlist. OMG is it frustrating. You need a degree just to figure it out.
Right now for Windows Phone, a Nokia device is the way to go. With all the support the carrier has thrown behind Windows Phone, there is just no other choice. All the exclusive Nokia apps and functionality, the awesome camera on the 920 (and the 1020), and just the general excellent support that Nokia has given WP/Microsoft, its difficult to go with anyone else at this point.
Nokia Music is an app on Nokia devices that is optional. You don't have to use it if you don't like it. I haven't heard any complaints about it, more praise than anything. Windows Phone has a music player built in, and if you are referring to that player being buggy, then its the same on every device, as that is a built-in Windows Phone system app and is no different on any other device from any manufacturer.
Sync to PC is also exactly the same for any Windows Phone device. So if one phone is having issues, you can experience similar issues between all devices from any manufacturer. That being said, the PC software to sync is mostly to blame, as its pretty terrible, but will be updated as time goes on. You can always use mass storage mode to sync media if you choose to, you don't have to use the Windows Phone desktop software.
Battery issues can be found on all devices. Personally I have had great luck with my Lumia 920, providing enough battery power to last me through the day. As with any operating system, the biggest factor in battery life is apps. Everyone uses different apps, and some know how to manage their power usage, while others eat up electricity like its going out of style. Games especially take their toll on Windows Phones, but in most cases, I hear good things about the 920's battery management.
Agree in nokia, except for the lack of SD, nokia is the way to go,
but wait for the 1020 or go for the 925 the weigth of the 920 is not worth unless you are using the wireless power charge.
Lumia.
NightOrchid said:
Ive dumped android and Looking at choosing a WP8 between HTC 8X / Ativ S / Lumia 920. Not interested in anything below 1 GB Ram, 16GB storage.. 32 or more is better.
I use my phone for Music / Photos and a few apps like Weave (WP8 version of Flipboard) and some minor customisation apps.
What Ive heard is:
Ativ S has very low almost inaudible ringtone and sound volume, average to poor camera, still on Pentile blueish OMLED display, No samsung support, so no apps but excellent music player (Wolfson sound chip), syncs perfectly with PC and Media centres no issues/ removable battery (good but not essential) and an SD card slot / sparse
Nokia 920.. really buggy broken Nokia music player, Sync to PC with media player issues, erratic and poor battery power (discharges for no reason), but amazing camera, lots of Nokia exclusive and useful apps, bigger 32GB storage Great 4.5" screen.
HTC 8X... 4.3" is a bit small for me, but would go back if phone was fantastic, just 16GB or storage, erratic battery, average camera.
Can anyone help me out with these points, are they true, and which should I look at.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My advice is: buy a Lumia.
Great camera, high quality materials and Nokia have a big support for his smartphone (all camera's app, Amber update, ecc)
I suppose the ATIV S external speaker could be louder, but it's not quiet. I usually have no problem hearing my phone, and can even play music to a (relatively) quiet room using it. The rear camera is not up to Lumia 920 quality, much less 1020 quality, but it's not bad. The front camera is actually much better than on any Lumia I've seen yet. The display is pentile AMOLED, but the resolution is so high that I have no problem with it, and I haven't observed it to be "blueish". Samsung support was late coming - the phone's firmware shipped with some pretty bad bugs - but there was a firmware update shipped along with GDR2 that fixed most issues for me. The Samsung apps list, while less impressive than the Nokia one, isn't terrible and includes some cool stuff (like app folders) that the others don't have. It's also possible to install apps from other OEMs anyhow. The built-in Diagnosis app is easy to access and includes some cool stuff like wired tethering (gets around most tethering restrictions). The battery is not only removable, it's also larger than that of any other WP8 device.
I received my new Tab S 8.4 LTE just this morning at work, I plugged in the power and fired up the bad boy.
After some quick setups and downloaded some apps, I went to test how the video looks. Took out my 128GB MicroSDXC from the Tab PRO 8.4 (yes, it works in my PRO), it has some high variable bit-rate short music videos I encoded with H264 + AAC (Variable 8Mbps - 40Mbps, 23.97 fps).
First, I used the built in player... and to my surprise.. the video is noticeably playing at a lower frame rate and audio is sliiightly out of sync. Not sure the right word for a video playing a lower frame rate, it is not jittery, not stuttery. I tried all the other videos, the same.... including the Samsung video in the internal storage, which showing ~14Mbps data rate.
I then tried MX Player with all H/W+ deoder switched on, same thing. Then I tried BSPlayer, also with Hardware acceleration, no good. I was disappointed. I searched this forum and googled but I only keep seeing people with micro stutters, but not the issue I'm looking for. Restarted the Tab S, same thing.
I don't understand... the videos are working fine in the PRO. I was thinking maybe QS800 is superior ?
Eventually I decided to just Factory Reset and redo the whole thing again, to see if that fixes it. And it did fix it. Videos are running as smooth as it should again, yay :laugh:
So in case anyone else having video frame rate issue, Factory Reset. Case Closed.
How do you test your video framerates?
That's what I was looking for earlier, but since I was at work, I couldn't look for long enough. Was hoping something like Fraps is available, but I just went ahead and Factory Reset it while I only had a few apps installed.
But the video frame rate issue was noticeable as long as you have watched the video with different means (Computer or another working tablet) to compare.
To check the video's original frame rate itself, and since I use MX Player, I just tap and hold the video file, then tap Properties. It shows frame rate, bit rate, video resolution, codec, etc.