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Galaxy Note 4 to OP3T

I have seen numerous mentions of Note 4 owners in the threads of this sub forum mention that they are considering a purchase of a OP3T coming from a Galaxy Note 4. I am one of those individuals that has done this and I'd love to hear other peoples thoughts on why they held on to there Note 4's for so long? And why this particular model of Oneplus has gotten us to consider leaving our expandable storage, removable battery larger screen, etc?
For me, the development was there with the Note 4 (if you got yours early enough to unlock the bootloader and root/rom it up). Now with the death of the Nexus line and the Note 7 fiasco, I was looking for an upgrade that offers great current specs and customizability. I guess you could say that "I settled" (pun intended) on Oneplus for this move. On top of all of that, this will be my first Oneplus device and I like the idea of a reasonable pricing structure that Oneplus provides with it's larger storage option. I personally think that they have remained competitive in the industry and I'll be more than happy to shell out the small amount extra to have these upgrades to the original OP3.
I realize that there is a Note 5 to OP3T thread but it didn't quite match what I've been seeing, so many times in the threads, as far as upgrade popularity. So I wanted to start this thread to get an idea of what other Note 4 owners thought.

I'm going from a Note 3 to a OP3t. I'd been looking nonstop for months for a gently used Note 4 to hold me over until the next note release but I just can't wait that long, and people want $400+ for a used note 4 that's still locked to a carrier. So for $639 I went with the 128gb model. No need for expandable storage at that point, all I ever use the SD on my N3 for is when I flash a rom and want to do a twrp backup. I'll just grab a USB-C flash drive for that and use it when I need it. Don't care about removable batteries either, never once swapped a battery on a smartphone. Besides, with this new dash charge thing, I shouldn't have to anyway, right?
It's still a little pricey, but for an unlocked handset with 128gb storage, and a flagship level processor I think it'll be a good purchase.

Point by point. The screen size I assume it would be roughly the same, But downgrading from 4K to to just FHD would help on the battery life by a large margin. Unless you have specific use for VR and very large screen resolution which most people don't, then stepping back to FHD seem like a batter idea.
Removable battery, I only see two reason for replaceable battery. One is for swapping out battery when you ran out and two is in case of emergency, then ability to fully remove power like you drop a phone in a pond/toilet. At this point in time, and in my experience, these larger new phone get a very good battery life, and many can be remedy via powerbank And ever since I have a mobile phone, I never have water issue. So, I'm willing to take that risk.
Expandable storage, to tell the true I still would prefer to have that option even with the 128GB model. But the fact is life is not perfect, and I can get by w/o it. Digging a little deeper, there are a few things that I considered. First off, you have 128GB option, and if you think about it most people don't need more than that. If you are currently using a 128GB SD card and still not satisfy, then OP3T may not be for you either. Second is speed, most smartphone w/ microSD card slot are never going to be that fast; while many don't need that much speed, it improve thing like game loading. Most apps will not need to store data on the SD but for games, you have a blob(OBB) sitting on the large space and some time on SD card, which can slow things down considerably. Another thing is a simplification, well I view this one as a trade off. As a geek I don't care much whether things goes on internal memory or external SD, as long as I know where everything is and how to back things up. This is not an issue for me. But having just one large storage area does simplify thing for most people, it also means easier to back thing up. Considering the faster NAND means faster transfer speed for backing up stuff out of the phone also.
In term of custom ROMs and stuff, the true is yes there is option to the bootloader unlocked Note 4, but it's never near the level of OnePlus. If you look at CyanogenMod web site, you can see that the most up to date for Note 4 is CM12.1, while even OPO is up to 14. Sure there are other AOSP ROM in the XDA, but at some point you want things to be just stable and at the minimum up to date security patches. This can complicate things if you have to jump from ROM to ROM just to keep the security patch up to date.

Well set your priorities and decide. I obviously own a Note 4, that's why posting in this topic. Going for OP3T will give you better battery life. Significantly faster fingerprint sensor. Probably a little better camera (I am not sure about this camera part, the sensor is pretty small in comparison with Note 4, but its a newer sensor!), Dash charging, which is the best charging technology out there, and Oxygen OS with lots of dev support (though that's for OP3, not T), needless to say almost any skin is better than TW.
What will you lose in the process then? I think video quality, the video samples from OP3 were really average, no fine details! Asking several Samsung users tells me that call quality on OP3 isn't as great! Note 4 has excellent call quality. GPS accuracy is also not as good! There is the touch latency, 65 ms on Note 4 vs 95 on OP3, and then the last thing, the Pentile 1080p display. I couldn't care much about the resolution, but its Pentile, so not 1080p at first place! But if Anand's chart of OP3's screen calibration is right then the saturation and colour accuracy should be much better on the OP3 than Note 4.
That's all. I myself am really torn. My Note 4 is already on sell on eBay. I am torn between Pixel XL and OP3T. While the former's price is unnecessarily huge, OP3T's price is a no brainer. Don't know yet really.

ithehappy said:
But if Anand's chart of OP3's screen calibration is right then the saturation and colour accuracy should be much better on the OP3 than Note 4.
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I did see that article from Anandtech as well, but that option was in developer settings. Do you know if this option was finally in the normal setting and if it is a default now?

someone0 said:
I did see that article from Anandtech as well, but that option was in developer settings. Do you know if this option was finally in the normal setting and if it is a default now?
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It's still under developer settings and it also might not stick after a reboot, got this response after asking the same in OP3 WhatsApp group. That's not cool
Sent from my SM-N910G using Tapatalk

ithehappy said:
It's still under developer settings and it also might not stick after a reboot, got this response after asking the same in OP3 WhatsApp group. That's not cool
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I can only hope the initial stock ROM on 3T have that fixed and be a default, since it will be different (newer) than the OP3 at this moment. From what I see on the reviews, there is some UI changes as well.

Some questions I have before I buy a OnePlus 3T

So I am planning on getting a 128 GB OnePlus 3T, but I have some questions.
How is a phone without a SD Card? All devices I have had so far have SD Card slots, now I store my images on there but on the OnePlus, there is no SD Card slot, so I will have to store my images on the phone, which makes me scared.
What if the phone would just die on me and I would have to reflash OxygenOS then the Data section containing my images would also be wiped? I backup my images using Google Photos but I prefer to also have the original image file, should I just make a backup on the images like every week?
And last question, I have heard that the included warranty is really bad and that it can be a little pricey when sending it to Germany for repairs, is that true?

I was in the same boat as you before I got my Oneplus 3T. All my previous phones had SD cards. I came from a 16GB S5 with a 32GB memory card running CM13. For that reason I opted to get the 128GB 3T. I have yet to try installing any custom Roms on my device but I love having all the extra storage space at my disposal.

I've used phones without an SD card slot for a while now. I honestly haven't missed it. Using google photos has been great, and then if you have to wipe the data partition of your device ever, if you use TWRP to do it, it doesn't wipe your photos or videos.
As for the warranty, I have no idea for your location, but I'm in the US and had to my warranty on my OnePlus 2. Things seemed to go about as smooth as most other companies. A couple of minor frustrations, but overall went pretty smoothly.
I purchased and received a 128GB OnePlus 3T (I'm writing this response on it actually!) and am absolutely loving it so far! I would say that this is one of my favorite devices I've ever owned, next to my OnePlus One!

How's the display in terms of quality vs QHD? And how's sound from the device?
Sent from my SM-G935T using Tapatalk

So I am planning on getting a 128 GB OnePlus 3T, but I have some questions.
How is a phone without a SD Card? All devices I have had so far have SD Card slots, now I store my images on there but on the OnePlus, there is no SD Card slot, so I will have to store my images on the phone, which makes me scared.
What if the phone would just die on me and I would have to reflash OxygenOS then the Data section containing my images would also be wiped? I backup my images using Google Photos but I prefer to also have the original image file, should I just make a backup on the images like every week?
And last question, I have heard that the included warranty is really bad and that it can be a little pricey when sending it to Germany for repairs, is that true?
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I moved all my files from my old phone that was backed up to my PC a day before I got this and used send anywhere to send all my music and important photos etc to my new op3T I also purchased a USB C to USB A 64 GB just to make backups for that "just in case" but Google photos and drive are great for primary backups.

nano303 said:
How's the display in terms of quality vs QHD? And how's sound from the device?
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On a 5.5 device or below 1080p is sufficient for normal usage of modern mobile. Maybe not VR but I'm not interested in that yet, first generation of a new bit a of tech is a waste of money to me. But coming from a Z3+ and looking at my girlfriend's Note 4 I say the display is great, a lot better than my Sony in terms of contrast but equal in colour. I think Sony make some amazing IPS displays, it I has a more balanced colour than the Samsung even without turning on sRGB. Where sound goes being 100% stock headphones are louder than my old phone and the note. The quality of the audio is actually better than it too also a lot better than the note, have to use my Fiio to get "comfortable" listening experience on my Sony. There isn't any advanced audio settings like clear audio, ds xx etc but still clear , crisp and loud enough on 32 Ohm headphones. And the bottom firing speaker took me by surprise, it gets loud for notifications and ringtones. It has got some depth if watching some YouTube at higher volumes it get very high in treble depending on what's going on. Rounded up great screen for normal non VR use, great audio from both 3.5 and speaker (surprised myself) will also be trying USB audio soon in the future. For the price it is a steal tbh it is my first OP came from iPhone 4, Xperia Z3 and Z3+ while also using Samsung s4, note 4 and LG g5 for some periods. And this is my top most enjoyable experience's yet of any phone I have had the pleasure of using.
I will add this in as my opinion but this device slides into that "Nexus" void.

LMcR92 said:
On a 5.5 device or below 1080p is sufficient for normal usage of modern mobile. Maybe not VR but I'm not interested in that yet, first generation of a new bit a of tech is a waste of money to me. But coming from a Z3+ and looking at my girlfriend's Note 4 I say the display is great, a lot better than my Sony in terms of contrast but equal in colour. I think Sony make some amazing IPS displays, it I has a more balanced colour than the Samsung even without turning on sRGB. Where sound goes being 100% stock headphones are louder than my old phone and the note. The quality of the audio is actually better than it too also a lot better than the note, have to use my Fiio to get "comfortable" listening experience on my Sony. There isn't any advanced audio settings like clear audio, ds xx etc but still clear , crisp and loud enough on 32 Ohm headphones. And the bottom firing speaker took me by surprise, it gets loud for notifications and ringtones. It has got some depth if watching some YouTube at higher volumes it get very high in treble depending on what's going on. Rounded up great screen for normal non VR use, great audio from both 3.5 and speaker (surprised myself) will also be trying USB audio soon in the future. For the price it is a steal tbh it is my first OP came from iPhone 4, Xperia Z3 and Z3+ while also using Samsung s4, note 4 and LG g5 for some periods. And this is my top most enjoyable experience's yet of any phone I have had the pleasure of using.
I will add this in as my opinion but this device slides into that "Nexus" void.
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Thank you soo much for your help. You answered my question very professional
Sent from my SM-G935T using Tapatalk

LMcR92 said:
I moved all my files from my old phone that was backed up to my PC a day before I got this and used send anywhere to send all my music and important photos etc to my new op3T I also purchased a USB C to USB A 64 GB just to make backups for that "just in case" but Google photos and drive are great for primary backups.
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Question, is the 3T worth it according to you and should I get 128 GB or 64 GB?

Question, is the 3T worth it according to you and should I get 128 GB or 64 GB?
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It's personal choice but I went for 128GB as I have a lot of Flac music files and take a lot of pictures and videos, now I can mess with RAW too. 128 GB just gives you that headroom for the future and never worrying about storage space.

LMcR92 said:
It's personal choice but I went for 128GB as I have a lot of Flac music files and take a lot of pictures and videos, now I can mess with RAW too. 128 GB just gives you that headroom for the future and never worrying about storage space.
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What about the battery life? On my current phone I get around 1 - 2 hours SOT while just watching YouTube, Checking if my friends have sent me something on Snapchat... And using XDA.

What about the battery life? On my current phone I get around 1 - 2 hours SOT while just watching YouTube, Checking if my friends have sent me something on Snapchat... And using XDA.
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This was the other day non stop use. Just now sitting at 70% 2h 43m SOT so average around 10% an hour when using it as a phone, YouTube,music streaming Tidal. Huge improvement over my Z3+ that I had to tailer use for as it got 3-4h SOT but heat was mental and didn't game much on it because of that and this 3T I can use in whatever way I want.

LMcR92 said:
This was the other day non stop use. Just now sitting at 70% 2h 43m SOT so average around 10% an hour when using it as a phone, YouTube,music streaming Tidal. Huge improvement over my Z3+ that I had to tailer use for as it got 3-4h SOT but heat was mental and didn't game much on it because of that and this 3T I can use in whatever way I want.
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So it costs 521$ for me to get the 128 GB version, in your opinion is it worth it? And also what about the size (Coming from a S4 Mini with 4.3" screen)

If you have the money and are happy I would say go for it. My Z3+ was 5.15 but is the same surface are as the 3T so it wasn't as big as I thought you just get more screen than head and chin. It's thin and feels quality my first metal phone. Feels 10x better than the lg g5 as it has a plastic primer coat and easy to get about the screen. It is slippery though so I would advise a quality case, my go to make is spigen. And like I said quality it great I would recommend watching the jerryrig video on YouTube. It's actual sapphire on the camera

I had a 32gb note 5 that never even got half full in over 12 months. Obviously I saved a little cash and went with the 64. Mainly because when I selected 128 at checkout it looked like a longer wait. In reality I have no need for the extra 55GB of storage.

I have yet to kill the battery on my device in a day. I'm extremely expressed with the battery life so far.

One question
How much storage do you get in 128 GB version?

WoodyTiger01 said:
One question
How much storage do you get in 128 GB version?
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113.2GB's

undergrad said:
113.2GB's
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Thanks :good:

This will be my first Samsung in a while

here's the minireview (after i bought it so late, knowing there's no Note21 coming, and written some summary about rooting):
Looks: who cares, it's hidden in the case, every phone nowadays looks the same. Thou naked, Note10 is the hottest phone, and this one looks similar to it. How does it help? You can enjoy it on the internet, like a window shopper. Your ugly case will decide its fate! For truly unique look,. get a foldable.
Body: heavy as hell, what can I say. Ultraultrathin case on the way to compensate. You have three choices: X-Level case, pitaka case, or give up. I miss the Bixby button to program it in Xposed Edge and there's no Lockdown option anywhere. On 1+ I could use unique wakelock geatures or unique fingerprint menu to trigger some stuff. Here there's no immediate shortcuts unfortunately.
Battery: hesitated for a month reading horror stories about battery. With A11, root, usual wakelocks (AOD, dt2wake, raise2wake), bluetooth & location tracking & VPN running nonstop and 1:1 data and 200 apps as on all past phones, and even without 1+ aggressive RAM cleanup, i must claim the battery is fantastic on Exynos. 3 days easy with my relaxed usage, which is just like OnePlus 6-7-8 I used to have.
Charging: pretty fast for a single battery. You saw the results on gsmarena. Not bad for an emergency topup. Highly compatible with many chargers (unlike 1+). Of course it can't match 8T or 1+9 speed, but very close to 8Pro. But you have tons of chargers around the world at your disposal. Shame on 1+ for this "Apple" type of strategy. In my huge collection of cables and USB testers I have just one of each which supports "Warp". I charged each 1+ at 8W thanks to this as I refuse proprietary methods. Still I did have their Qi charger to celebrate the addition of Qi, and interestingly Note20 won't charge from it.
Fingerprint: better than S10, potentially faster than Oneplus, however it's killed by a massive sluggish response to unlocking. Simply put, finger is recognized very fast but then there's a huge delay til screen is unlocked or app accepts it!
Camera: took an hour to carefully analyze few pics made in the same place, under 2x zoom I couldn't fault it and only found issues on 1+ side. The 1+ 8Pro, which is my reference flagship of 2020, featured issues: yellow tint, massive hair artifacts which look like compression, massive transition artifacts (like a botched Bokeh on a picture which is not even portrait mode!), less detail in each pic, lot of extra noise, highlight clipping. On the other side, this Note didn't have any issue. I'm bit shocked, i expected more balanced battle. Not like 10:0 for Samsung. It's just one mode tested: AUTO on main camera. Nothing else matters because thats how pics are made by people (that's what Xperia owners don't get: "but but you need to use the Pro mode" ). I don't make pics, but i can see the phone will be inheritable within family very easily as they love cameras.
Software: bloated into oblivion, had a lot of work with the guide so expect some serious time burnt on debloating this monster as 1+ owners laugh into your face. Rooting and updating will be only with cable and via Odin, as you can't even enter recovery and DL mode without PC anymore. So the sd card will not save your arse when abroad. However unlocking bootloader is without "agreement", so the warranty is still valid in EU. As bragged earlier, lot of functionality forces you to login and the account demands even your phone number aaaaand I couldn't even fake email and phone! They're so dedicated to capture your real identity so it's best to stay logged out. Even the frikking wallpapers which are ugly this season cannot be changed. But on the other side, the OneUI OS gives you way more than bland 1+ or Xperias, there's always some extra for you. Like the hints in Settings, one hand use, the SmartStay, the cool magnifier, the Spen actions, voice control of camera, camera minivideos, the kid mode, the notif reminder, e-z split screen, the conversation bubbles, richer AOD, rotating wallpaper, Bixby routines, Edge panel etc. Notifbar is full of shortcuts which usually indicates how rich OS is. There are even apps, like video or song browser, something that no longer exists in many OS. Notably the firewall is missing. So overall, after debloating it's stronger perhaps more productive than those vanilla OSes. I love the split screen can be done with dragging from Edge panel.
Speed: massive improvement vs s10 generation i'd say. For the first time, i see Samsung device can be snappy. But don't expect 1+ speed, it's not THAT fast. It's still just Exynos. I even noticed lagging animations here and there, but it's not nonstop like on gen10.
Display: 8Pro and Note20 were rated as the best displays by several ranking agencies and im not paranoid enough to claim their rankings are bogus. Just like i don't hate Dxomark or even positives boasting DisplayMate. Having quite many flagships in past I can see Samsung is always more readable than any other brand. I appreciate the brightness during the day and night. It doesn't force you to increase brightness manually every single night. Now the dark environment use: the backbleeding isn't obtrusive like on Tab S* or OLED TVs, it doesn't have status bar burnt like 8Pro, and it's pretty uniform. With gray color and low brightness I could see the screen blink once which was scary but couldn't replicate it anymore. Well in any case, we do NEED new display technology to replace this pulsating OLED nonsense. No problem with swiping like on Xperia5ii or ZFlip, not many mistouches, the curve is gentle. The resolution is limited at 120Hz but I will say it again: i cannot see more pixels or any detail better under physical magnifier. FullHD is better than Xperia1ii [email protected] any time that's why I couldn't buy that Sony. I do lower resolution on every phone, incl 8Pro which can run 2K @120Hz.
Network: another improvement since S10 is improved network, just like notebookcheck reports, it's in back to top league with 8Pro. WAN speed averages for me: 482/290 on Note20U, 440/234 on 1+8Pro, 481/147 on S10. Pure WiFi AC speed averages were 600/709, 648/706, 610/696 respectively. Making S10 quite good for LAN despite initial horrible S10,S10+,Note10,Note10+ results on notebookcheck, well i'm testing them in same exact position at the same time, so my results are more real at this point.
SD card: nothing exciting here happened over a decide except when they remove this feature. No advancements were made to utilize UHS2 or UHS1+ speed of Extreme cards. Benchmark is 61MBs, so it's not capped like Xperia to 30MBs. Again, can't use sd card to recover your ROM, but rather to store encrypted backups (from OAndbackup currently as 3C can't encrypt and TitaniumBackup is dead).
Overall gen.10 Samsung owners (S10,S10+,Note10,Note10+) have every reason to update their midrangers. Others will buy S21 as it's finally got a decent Exynos. I personally won't buy 227 frikking gram brick without sd card. For 1+ owners it's a preference of freedom to root, (insert "irrational" in EU) fear of losing warranty, "i'm tired with Samsung", properietary charging (1+), sd card, too much bloat, lot of extras vs vanilla etc. Both are strong flagships, didn't expect such good battery and camera result here. After disappointing Z Flip and Xperia5ii, and a decent pause in Samsung ownership (I didn't keep Note9 and S10 for myself so my last longterm device was S8) i'm keeping this as a main driver. I can clean it up very well, there's no snitching, there's zero Samsung connections active and battery clearly proves it. So for rooted users this device is a gem. Nema problema.

Thanks for sharing.
Keep in mind that it's just your personal opinion, and other users might have different opinions.

There is a note 21 coming. Not sure where you got that from but they said it some timr ago when rumors started circulating that a new note IS comimg
And how the hell are you getting 3 days of use?! When i use my phone super light for two days i barley make it to thr second night and even somethimes i need to give it few mins of juice in thr car or somwhere just so i can make it. And that id with very light use.
What bloat are you reffering too, do tou have a contract pgone or sim free? I have sim free and the only bloat i have is the odd sammy software that i occasionally rven use.
Ps. OneUI is not an OS but skin.
Re speed i am an owner od s10, note21 and s21 and i see verry little differrnce between thr s10 and note21, although i do not play games but i use photoshop, lightroom, drawing software and some other similar there is not much difference to say it is massive. There is, it is normal but not massive for sure and all 3 phones feel snappy as hell. Started using sammy with the s7 again and from that point on one from each generation and all felth at their time spanny and very goos.
The only bad thing i have expirianced with my s10 is wifi connectivity, it was poor compared even to my older phones, and with the note 20 ultra 4G is very VERY poor. Or the regular pgone signal. I constantly loose wifi or 4G in places where my other friends do not on all 3 of my phones since the s10 including my note 20 ultra.
As a previous one plus owner i can tell you that the only difference in quality for comparing Oneplus and samsung is thr camera. Nothing else. Onepkus makes solid phones, and they are getting expensive to a point where you comoare them with the top hitters of samsung but the camera is light years behind, there are not even in the same ballpark to compare there.

It_ler said:
Thanks for sharing.
Keep in mind that it's just your personal opinion, and other users might have different opinions.
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No harm in having different opinions we are all different people after all.

tixooo said:
There is a note 21 coming. Not sure where you got that from but they said it some timr ago when rumors started circulating that a new note IS comimg
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well..that's a rumor agains rumor
tixooo said:
And how the hell are you getting 3 days of use?! When i use my phone super light for two days i barley make it to thr second night and even somethimes i need to give it few mins of juice in thr car or somwhere just so i can make it. And that id with very light use.
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yeah im also lightly using the phone.. but it's nonstop connected to PC and watches, VPN, location tracking, all typical wakelocks on. After time, I'd say it's the same as you describe, 3rd day so so. But it's way better than as people described on the forums "horrible Exynos battery". It scared me away from buying for a good month.
tixooo said:
What bloat are you reffering too, do tou have a contract pgone or sim free? I have sim free and the only bloat i have is the odd sammy software that i occasionally rven use.
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well there was a link to debloat. Of course, Samsung is still the leader in bloatware. Heavily bloated like always.
tixooo said:
Ps. OneUI is not an OS but skin.
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let's not nitpick. We could say the same about Linux distros etc. The whole user facing solution is the OS.
tixooo said:
Re speed i am an owner od s10, note21 and s21 and i see verry little differrnce between thr s10 and note21, although i do not play games but i use photoshop, lightroom, drawing software and some other similar there is not much difference to say it is massive. There is, it is normal but not massive for sure and all 3 phones feel snappy as hell. Started using sammy with the s7 again and from that point on one from each generation and all felth at their time spanny and very goos.
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Had S7 to S10, but it wasn't snappy at all. This is first time it feels that way, thou vanilla OSes like Oxygen are snappier and stutterless. Sure enough i will like newer CPU on newer models, but I just did a sanity check - it is quite snappy.
tixooo said:
The only bad thing i have expirianced with my s10 is wifi connectivity, it was poor compared even to my older phones, and with the note 20 ultra 4G is very VERY poor. Or the regular pgone signal. I constantly loose wifi or 4G in places where my other friends do not on all 3 of my phones since the s10 including my note 20 ultra.
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Hmm, that was one problem fixed with Note20. No more moaning from my family about Wifi once upgraded S10->Note20. Connectivity good overall.
tixooo said:
As a previous one plus owner i can tell you that the only difference in quality for comparing Oneplus and samsung is thr camera. Nothing else. Onepkus makes solid phones, and they are getting expensive to a point where you comoare them with the top hitters of samsung but the camera is light years behind, there are not even in the same ballpark to compare there.
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Well, that's only one difference. The main difference for me is the software. This is where OnePlus saves money, by not inveting a penny to enrich the experience and add some productivity gains. This is where OneUI OS shines.

You made a good choice.
The only other one I would consider is the N10+.
I use the SD card as a data drive. You need a V30 rated card for top transfer speeds.
Sorry Sammy, no SD card, no sale

blackhawk said:
You made a good choice.
The only other one I would consider is the N10+.
I use the SD card as a data drive. You need a V30 rated card for top transfer speeds.
Sorry Sammy, no SD card, no sale
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i have an SD card, in one of Note20 and Ultra, and it's slow just like in every other mobile (apparently there's no device/appliance with higher speed than 90MBs UHS1 cap other than PC/DSLR - e.g. Sandisk Extreme a.k.a. UHS1+ or UHS2). I mean V30 is very slow to me, both sequential and random access. Given the terrible latency a.k.a. 4K speed, i wouldn't use the SD card for anything but backups and static dead files like music/videos. SD cards are a complete joke versus UFS. Also 60Hz screen, not for me, but OK for the person who received Note20 after S10 and never experienced the 120Hz heaven))

doggydog2 said:
i have an SD card, in one of Note20 and Ultra, and it's slow just like in every other mobile (apparently there's no device/appliance with higher speed than 90MBs UHS1 cap other than PC/DSLR - e.g. Sandisk Extreme a.k.a. UHS1+ or UHS2). I mean V30 is very slow to me, both sequential and random access. Given the terrible latency a.k.a. 4K speed, i wouldn't use the SD card for anything but backups and static dead files like music/videos. SD cards are a complete joke versus UFS. Also 60Hz screen, not for me, but OK for the person who received Note20 after S10 and never experienced the 120Hz heaven))
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For the N10+ the V30 is around it's top transfer speeds, the N20 is probably good for more.
The N10+ comes with Pie so no scope storage or the other Q nasties.
Lol, 60hz is 30hz faster than I was raised on being a 60's TV child... I'm not greedy

doggydog2 said:
well..that's a rumor agains rumor
yeah im also lightly using the phone.. but it's nonstop connected to PC and watches, VPN, location tracking, all typical wakelocks on. After time, I'd say it's the same as you describe, 3rd day so so. But it's way better than as people described on the forums "horrible Exynos battery". It scared me away from buying for a good month.
well there was a link to debloat. Of course, Samsung is still the leader in bloatware. Heavily bloated like always.
let's not nitpick. We could say the same about Linux distros etc. The whole user facing solution is the OS.
Had S7 to S10, but it wasn't snappy at all. This is first time it feels that way, thou vanilla OSes like Oxygen are snappier and stutterless. Sure enough i will like newer CPU on newer models, but I just did a sanity check - it is quite snappy.
Hmm, that was one problem fixed with Note20. No more moaning from my family about Wifi once upgraded S10->Note20. Connectivity good overall.
Well, that's only one difference. The main difference for me is the software. This is where OnePlus saves money, by not inveting a penny to enrich the experience and add some productivity gains. This is where OneUI OS shines.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Where are you from, and is your phonr sim free or not?because my pgone is sim free and i have close to zero bloat (except the odd sammy rmail, web browser etc. That i do not consider bloat). For me personally everything google is bloat that you cant remove (i do not like google as you can see )
Unless you are not sim free the phone it self was pretty clean when i purchased it no adds, no usless software (except 1-2 samsung things that i do not use and cant remove) but that is their pgone... It is to be expected to see their software on it.
Re the battery... To be fair i stopped listening to reviewers and people on the net lomg time ago, turns out many are biased towards this or that and tou cant really get the true story. I am extreamly happy with my battery and my camera, two points that are heavily criticized on the forums anywhere and by reviewers.
I still own s7, s8 and s10... And even now if they are not packed with software they hry are not that bad, but during their prime time they were as snappy as ever dor me. Might be a sim free vs not i do not know. All my phomes are sim free.

tixooo said:
Where are you from, and is your phonr sim free or not?because my pgone is sim free and i have close to zero bloat (except the odd sammy rmail, web browser etc. That i do not consider bloat). For me personally everything google is bloat that you cant remove (i do not like google as you can see )
Unless you are not sim free the phone it self was pretty clean when i purchased it no adds, no usless software (except 1-2 samsung things that i do not use and cant remove) but that is their pgone... It is to be expected to see their software on it.
Re the battery... To be fair i stopped listening to reviewers and people on the net lomg time ago, turns out many are biased towards this or that and tou cant really get the true story. I am extreamly happy with my battery and my camera, two points that are heavily criticized on the forums anywhere and by reviewers.
I still own s7, s8 and s10... And even now if they are not packed with software they hry are not that bad, but during their prime time they were as snappy as ever dor me. Might be a sim free vs not i do not know. All my phomes are sim free.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From EU, we don't have any locks by law. Still even such Samsungs are full of processes that waste memory, batter, keep connection, and kill privacy. It's not just what you see as icons. It's Bixby, Samsung Cloud, Find, Galaxy Friends, Pay, push service, logging, debugging, location tracking, knoxx, wifi snitching, Phone assistance, and finally sponsored vendor crap with boosted battery priorities. Can't believe you didn't notice until now There must be tons of threads about this.

doggydog2 said:
From EU, we don't have any locks by law. Still even such Samsungs are full of processes that waste memory, batter, keep connection, and kill privacy. It's not just what you see as icons. It's Bixby, Samsung Cloud, Find, Galaxy Friends, Pay, push service, logging, debugging, location tracking, knoxx, wifi snitching, Phone assistance, and finally sponsored vendor crap with boosted battery priorities. Can't believe you didn't notice until now There must be tons of threads about this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Half of those i use, if not more. So do my friends. As i said define bloat. To me bloat is google everything and thr inability to get rid if it easily. To me bloat is not something you buy and you get the brand services, but other services you do not want likr carier services or others like microsoft/google etc.

It_ler said:
Thanks for sharing.
Keep in mind that it's just your personal opinion, and other users might have different opinions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That response,

doggydog2 said:
From EU, we don't have any locks by law. Still even such Samsungs are full of processes that waste memory, batter, keep connection, and kill privacy. It's not just what you see as icons. It's Bixby, Samsung Cloud, Find, Galaxy Friends, Pay, push service, logging, debugging, location tracking, knoxx, wifi snitching, Phone assistance, and finally sponsored vendor crap with boosted battery priorities. Can't believe you didn't notice until now There must be tons of threads about this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Indeed, that's why a Samsung 4500mAh battery will never be as comparable as lets say a OnePlus' 4500mAh.
First thing one must do, ADB uninstall the hell out of all the Samsung garbage apps and such. For every Google spyware on ONE UI there is also an equivalent Samsung process running.

I was considering getting this phone but Samsung screwed up with the CPU heatsink big time on some of the same variant and it's random, unpredictable. Only observation of abnormal poor heat dissipation or a tear down can reveal which heat sink is used.
Russian heat sink roulette, perfect
I don't have the patience for this kind of poor quality control. It's getting to be a hallmark of Samsung. Why the hell didn't Samsung use only the copper vapor cooling solution on all of it's models? A sick, expensive joke that can't be easily retrofitted or cure by firmware.
Really?
If yours is running hot this may be why.
Here’s Why Some Galaxy Note 20 Phones Have Overheating Problems & There’s Nothing One Can Do
This is unacceptable.
www.mensxp.com

Question Coming from New Oneplus 9 Pro to S21 Ultra

So last week i bought new Oneplus 9Pro was using 7Pro previously
the battery on 9pro is soo worse..... and its not possible for me to charge the phone everytime SOT time is less then 3 hours
heating issues......
if i use camera it work for few min then recording stops getting notification phone heats up....
in the end i am really not satisfied with it.. now i am thinking to switch to Samsung S21 Ultra..
how's the battery life i am from india so ill be getting exynos version.. and can the samsung be easily rootable? any other drawback ?

nitinvaid said:
So last week i bought new Oneplus 9Pro was using 7Pro previously
the battery on 9pro is soo worse..... and its not possible for me to charge the phone everytime SOT time is less then 3 hours
heating issues......
if i use camera it work for few min then recording stops getting notification phone heats up....
in the end i am really not satisfied with it.. now i am thinking to switch to Samsung S21 Ultra..
how's the battery life i am from india so ill be getting exynos version.. and can the samsung be easily rootable? any other drawback ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I went from 9 Pro to the S21 Ultra Snapdragon version a few days ago and it is a very nice device so far. I just got so fed up with OnePlus price increases while having awful customer service again and again, across several years but getting worse and worse with my 7 Pro and 9 Pro.
My takeaway.
1. The S21 Ultra display seems smoother in PokeMon go. the 7 Pro and 9 Pro never felt high refresh rate and I was always a bit bummed it wasn't better, but the S21 Ultra seems so much smoother in FPS refresh.
2. The 21 Ultra seems to have battery optimizations that don't ruin other apps. SMS Backup and restore would fail again and again on my 7 Pro and 9 Pro. I would try to restore 60k messages and I wouldn't have any other apps open, but just having my screen timeout and the app would stop and act like I never started it. I tried disabling battery optimizations, but that didn't fix anything. The S21 Ultra powered through these and didn't raise any issues. In fact, I restored about 800k messages (a lot of old backups I wasn't sure if they had restored properly so just making sure), and the S21 ultra powered through. I even opened Pokemon go while doing this.
4. Battery life on the S21 Ultra seem very good. The display is nice and bright and fluid. One noticably difference is the weight of the device. My 21 Ultra feels way bigger and heavier than my 9 Pro. The fingerprint scanner is always pretty fast and accurate. Also, since the screen isn't curved that much, the screen protectors will be easier to apply and not have them peel up or offer poor protection at teh edges.

I also cannot decide between OP9 pro and Galaxy S21 ultra.

I have the Exynos model.
Battery life is immense, I regularly get to the end of a 16+ hour day with circa 40% battery and having had over 4 hours SOT. Reaching 6 hours+ SOT on these phones is easy.
No issues with heating myself, although I've read others who have. My device with normal user hovers in the high 20s / low 30s degrees C, but that's with UK ambient temps. In India that's bound to be higher. If I record video or use the phone for something intense, it will go up to the high 30s but I think I've only seen it over 40 degrees once when I was benchmarking not long after I first got it in March.
I've rooted mine, it's very easy to do. However, I regretted it, but only because my 8 year old son dropped my phone about a week after I did that and Samsung refused to fix it even on a paid, non-warranty repair thanks to their bulls**t Knox policy. As such I'll never buy another Samsung device but I can't lie even though I'm annoyed with them, this is the best phone I've owned and the best phone out there right now I think. I bought a screen assembly for £280 UK, it's really easy to fit and now the phone is as good as new.

I'd go with Note 20U, you'll want the SD card slot.
It's also running on the less problematic Android 10.

Beefheart said:
I have the Exynos model.
Battery life is immense, I regularly get to the end of a 16+ hour day with circa 40% battery and having had over 4 hours SOT. Reaching 6 hours+ SOT on these phones is easy.
No issues with heating myself, although I've read others who have. My device with normal user hovers in the high 20s / low 30s degrees C, but that's with UK ambient temps. In India that's bound to be higher. If I record video or use the phone for something intense, it will go up to the high 30s but I think I've only seen it over 40 degrees once when I was benchmarking not long after I first got it in March.
I've rooted mine, it's very easy to do. However, I regretted it, but only because my 8 year old son dropped my phone about a week after I did that and Samsung refused to fix it even on a paid, non-warranty repair thanks to their bulls**t Knox policy. As such I'll never buy another Samsung device but I can't lie even though I'm annoyed with them, this is the best phone I've owned and the best phone out there right now I think. I bought a screen assembly for £280 UK, it's really easy to fit and now the phone is as good as new.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes samsung service center personal are like dogs......
They sniff your phone to find out how to say to customer your warranty is void

blackhawk said:
I'd go with Note 20U, you'll want the SD card slot.
It's also running on the less problematic Android 10.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How did you come to that conclusion? I've got 256gb in my Ultra and I doubt I'll ever get near to filling it and I suspect the same would apply to the vast majority of other users.
Gone are the days were films and music media needed to be held locally, it's almost all stream services now. Vast storage on a phone these days isn't a necessity for the majority, and that will only become more the case as we move forward.

Beefheart said:
How did you come to that conclusion? I've got 256gb in my Ultra and I doubt I'll ever get near to filling it and I suspect the same would apply to the vast majority of other users.
Gone are the days were films and music media needed to be held locally, it's almost all stream services now. Vast storage on a phone these days isn't a necessity for the majority, and that will only become more the case as we move forward.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can't stream what's not there... and you waste battery. No internet, no music.
With over 200 albums including HDCDs I don't care about online music much other than to sample. This arrangement allows me to fully utilize Poweramp's extensive audio features as well so it sounds better and the playlists/library are embedded and fully backed up.
Zero cloud dependent here.
You need an SD card to use as a data drive for critical data. All my machines are set up with an OS drive and a separate data drive(s).
Android OS's rarely crash until they do. At that point I can do a full restore in under 2 hours with no internet connection. Apps, backup files, everything I need is ready to go. No PC needed either as all the data is already on a .5tb V30 card which is redundantly backed up to a flash drive and hdds just in case.
The data drive also serve as a buffer zone in the case of malware infections. In over 15 years only once did malware breach a data drive; I can't say the same for the OS drives.

blackhawk said:
You can't stream what's not there... and you waste battery. No internet, no music.
With over 200 albums including HDCDs I don't care about online music much other than to sample. This arrangement allows me to fully utilize Poweramp's extensive audio features as well so it sounds better and the playlists/library are embedded and fully backed up.
Zero cloud dependent here.
You need an SD card to use as a data drive for critical data. All my machines are set up with an OS drive and a separate data drive(s).
Android OS's rarely crash until they do. At that point I can do a full restore in under 2 hours with no internet connection. Apps, backup files, everything I need is ready to go. No PC needed either as all the data is already on a .5tb V30 card which is redundantly backed up to a flash drive and hdds just in case.
The data drive also serve as a buffer zone in the case of malware infections. In over 15 years only once did malware breach a data drive; I can't say the same for the OS drives.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah, so you were taking your needs and saying it applied to him. Gotcha.
Personally, I perform a regular Nandroid backup so no matter what happens I have a means of returning it to its previous state.
Even speaking as someone who's worked in IT for 25+ years it sounds like you're using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

Beefheart said:
Ah, so you were taking your needs and saying it applied to him. Gotcha.
Personally, I perform a regular Nandroid backup so no matter what happens I have a means of returning it to its previous state.
Even speaking as someone who's worked in IT for 25+ years it sounds like you're using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Allow me to retort *grin*,
I'm saying simply don't buy a very expensive phone that grossly limits your options by having no SD card support.
For years I used my SD card haphazardly like most until I realized I had a 1tb dual drive computer in my hands.
A SD card used correctly increases not only the memory capacity but the speed, redundancy, versatility and security of an Android. If you root you definitely want one...
So yeah, I think you goofed up

We clearly have different definitions of what constitutes having one's options grossly limited.
Would I choose having an SD card slot over not having one? Yes. Would I describe not having one as being grossly limiting? No. I have enough knowledge of how phones and general technology works to get around any so called limitations the lack of one would bring.
As for the goofed up comment. Odd.

Beefheart said:
We clearly have different definitions of what constitutes having one's options grossly limited.
Would I choose having an SD card slot over not having one? Yes. Would I describe not having one as being grossly limiting? No. I have enough knowledge of how phones and general technology works to get around any so called limitations the lack of one would bring.
As for the goofed up comment. Odd.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's impossible to replace a data drive with up to a terabyte of additional storage. There's no easy workaround to not having instant access to data.
For a high end Samsung you should have this option. That's one reason repeat buyers choose Samsung, options, more then you'll ever likely use but they are there... or should be.
Something the inept marketing people at Samsung chose to ignore.
Actions have consequences Sammy.
I could buy a new flag$hip phone now but I choose not to. Instant karma Sammy...
Meanwhile some of the competition decided they would include SD card slots.
And one of those boasts the new graphene battery technology as well. As Sammy $crews around with their floundering Fold beta hardware some companies are slamming down advanced tech solutions that work.

Ill be getting 512 GB version exynos
one more thing will viper4android works? what are the steps to install viper in samsung

Have bought the 21 Ultra 16 GB RAM 512 GB version
i have wireless charger of oneplus... it seems to be not working with this its detecting and then notification charging paused same thing again and again in loop....

nitinvaid said:
Have bought the 21 Ultra 16 GB RAM 512 GB version
i have wireless charger of oneplus... it seems to be not working with this its detecting and then notification charging paused same thing again and again in loop....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The S21U will charge with any wireless charger that is Qi certified. If it isn't, it may not charge

nitinvaid said:
Have bought the 21 Ultra 16 GB RAM 512 GB version..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nice, top version of SGS21U Give up you're thoughts about in comparison to OP9

Dizzyrul3z said:
Nice, top version of SGS21U Give up you're thoughts about in comparison to OP9
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
sure i will
i just tried to plug the USB type C cable to 3.5MM headphone cable its not working with S21 ULTRA?

Beefheart said:
I have the Exynos model.
Battery life is immense, I regularly get to the end of a 16+ hour day with circa 40% battery and having had over 4 hours SOT. Reaching 6 hours+ SOT on these phones is easy.
No issues with heating myself, although I've read others who have. My device with normal user hovers in the high 20s / low 30s degrees C, but that's with UK ambient temps. In India that's bound to be higher. If I record video or use the phone for something intense, it will go up to the high 30s but I think I've only seen it over 40 degrees once when I was benchmarking not long after I first got it in March.
I've rooted mine, it's very easy to do. However, I regretted it, but only because my 8 year old son dropped my phone about a week after I did that and Samsung refused to fix it even on a paid, non-warranty repair thanks to their bulls**t Knox policy. As such I'll never buy another Samsung device but I can't lie even though I'm annoyed with them, this is the best phone I've owned and the best phone out there right now I think. I bought a screen assembly for £280 UK, it's really easy to fit and now the phone is as good as new.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am not able to figure it out how to root it.... easy way

Beefheart said:
How did you come to that conclusion? I've got 256gb in my Ultra and I doubt I'll ever get near to filling it and I suspect the same would apply to the vast majority of other users.
Gone are the days were films and music media needed to be held locally, it's almost all stream services now. Vast storage on a phone these days isn't a necessity for the majority, and that will only become more the case as we move forward.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It isn't necessary but it's nice to have. I was hesitant to buy the s21 ultra and waited a few months just because of the SD card slot. I can manage to work around not having it but why if you don't have to? I like having my lossless music and all my photos and videos on one card that I can move on to the next phone. Obviously you gotta change with the times now that no phones really have it any more. Though I'm jumping to the Sony Xperia 1 III as soon as it's available.

nitinvaid said:
Have bought the 21 Ultra 16 GB RAM 512 GB version
i have wireless charger of oneplus... it seems to be not working with this its detecting and then notification charging paused same thing again and again in loop....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have the same issue with the onplus wireless charger and any of my Samsung phones. The Note 20 ultra, z Fold 2 or the s21 ultra. Not sure why that is the case. Luckily I have a bunch of Samsung fast wireless chargers laying around as well.

Question Is it worth the upgrade?

I currently have and use a Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra. I love the phone but it feel it's time to upgrade and I'll add this S20 to my pile of phones to play with. So far I like the S21 Ultra better because of the build quality over the S20 Ultra. I like the metal around the camera lens over the glass of the S20 Ultra. I also like the bigger fingerprint scanner behind the screen. Mine bugs out occasionally and can be irritating. The screen is phenomenal on the S20 Ultra and even better on the S21 Ultra. So should I upgrade or wait for an S22 Ultra? Or should I branch away from Samsung? I was a long time HTC user and switched fully to Samsung back at the release of the Galaxy Note 5. I've used and played with many Nexus, Motorola, OnePlus, LG and other phones and I'm stuck on Samsung. Hell I even went back to an iPhone XS Max because my family all has them, and let me tell you, that didn't last long. So I'm just wanting your guys opinions, worth the upgrade now? Wait? Branch away?

Not sure I'd upgrade but my upgrade span is normally two years. But the facts are that the camera is far better, the chipset is far better (regardless of region), it has S-pen support, the screen is better and it looks better.
If you think that's worth the price then go for it.
Check the video below for a more in depth comparison.

Beefheart said:
Not sure I'd upgrade but my upgrade span is normally two years. But the facts are that the camera is far better, the chipset is far better (regardless of region), it has S-pen support, the screen is better and it looks better.
If you think that's worth the price then go for it.
Check the video below for a more in depth comparison.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do agree that it's a better handset all around. I love my S20, but I hate it at the same time with all of its quirks. I guess I haven't looked yet, but I'm sure they are planning the S22 very soon, and it might be worth me waiting for that. I've just had small minuscule issues with my S20 Ultra, like currently waiting on my replacement since my screen quit entirely as well as all the rear camera sensors. I'm using my spare Galaxy A20 that was brand new in the box until my new S20 Ultra gets here. This A20 is super disappointing in terms of performance so I'm trying to not use it as much as I dont have to.

KaydenMcCurdyTech said:
I currently have and use a Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra. I love the phone but it feel it's time to upgrade and I'll add this S20 to my pile of phones to play with. So far I like the S21 Ultra better because of the build quality over the S20 Ultra. I like the metal around the camera lens over the glass of the S20 Ultra. I also like the bigger fingerprint scanner behind the screen. Mine bugs out occasionally and can be irritating. The screen is phenomenal on the S20 Ultra and even better on the S21 Ultra. So should I upgrade or wait for an S22 Ultra? Or should I branch away from Samsung? I was a long time HTC user and switched fully to Samsung back at the release of the Galaxy Note 5. I've used and played with many Nexus, Motorola, OnePlus, LG and other phones and I'm stuck on Samsung. Hell I even went back to an iPhone XS Max because my family all has them, and let me tell you, that didn't last long. So I'm just wanting your guys opinions, worth the upgrade now? Wait? Branch away?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not going to be a night and day differnce. Cameras are definitely better and focus issues are fixed. Screen is only a minor upgrade in terms of quality - unless you want to leverage the new processor to run it a WQHD+ at adaptive refresh rate. Even that is barely discernible against the FHD+ with VRR. At least to my eyes.
Is it worth it monetarily? No. It doesn't make any financial sense dropping that kind of money every year on a handset. THe S21U is definitely better than the S20U, but not $1000 better
Is it worth it as a shiny new toy for playing around (provided money isn't that big a concern for you)? Hell, yeah.
Depends how you define "worth" and what your yearly budget is for gadgets.

enigmaamit said:
It's not going to be a night and day differnce. Cameras are definitely better and focus issues are fixed. Screen is only a minor upgrade in terms of quality - unless you want to leverage the new processor to run it a WQHD+ at adaptive refresh rate. Even that is barely discernible against the FHD+ with VRR. At least to my eyes.
Is it worth it monetarily? No. It doesn't make any financial sense dropping that kind of money every year on a handset. THe S21U is definitely better than the S20U, but not $1000 better
Is it worth it as a shiny new toy for playing around (provided money isn't that big a concern for you)? Hell, yeah.
Depends how you define "worth" and what your yearly budget is for gadgets.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Personally I don't feel its worth dropping $1,000 every year, maybe every 2, sometimes 3 years. I actually paid $1,500 for my S20 Ultra right when it came out. I've just only started to get bored of it or irritated with little issues. But really, I think I'll wait it through and get the next Galaxy that jumps out ahead of competition in relation to specs. They usually wait to see what Apple will do, and try and get a couple steps ahead of them, not just 1 or the same. Sadly enough, Apple is competing side by side now with their new chips and they aren't doing too bad. I'm kind of wanting to try the 12 Pro Max but that would go against my religion.

KaydenMcCurdyTech said:
Personally I don't feel its worth dropping $1,000 every year, maybe every 2, sometimes 3 years. I actually paid $1,500 for my S20 Ultra right when it came out. I've just only started to get bored of it or irritated with little issues. But really, I think I'll wait it through and get the next Galaxy that jumps out ahead of competition in relation to specs. They usually wait to see what Apple will do, and try and get a couple steps ahead of them, not just 1 or the same. Sadly enough, Apple is competing side by side now with their new chips and they aren't doing too bad. I'm kind of wanting to try the 12 Pro Max but that would go against my religion.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think it's a sensible decision to wait for the next galaxy, especially since you have a "relatively" recent device already. Who knows, you may fall for the Z Fold 3 ?
Don't wait for Samsung to copy Apple too much though.... next thing you know, they'll stop including the phone in the box

enigmaamit said:
I think it's a sensible decision to wait for the next galaxy, especially since you have a "relatively" recent device already. Who knows, you may fall for the Z Fold 3 ?
Don't wait for Samsung to copy Apple too much though.... next thing you know, they'll stop including the phone in the box
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I very well could fall for the Z Fold 3, but who knows, I really am not sure I like the folding or flipping phones. I tried that a few times, even sliders, and they just weren't for me. I had every generation of Motorola Droid with the slider since first introduced, actually still have them lol, but the slider I wasn't a fan of. I had a Palm Pre Plus, and I had a Kyocera Echo. Cool concept and way ahead of it's time in 2013/2014, but was glitchy and cheap. I like a solid build. Probably the only flipping or sliding I liked was the original Motorola Razr V3m/or VE20. The Palm slider was nice though.
And you're not wrong on the Apple part . Thanks for the laugh. I think in terms of new phones, Samsung has had the cat in the bag for a long time.

IMHO the decision to upgrade or not comes down to value. By the time the S22 is released the S21 will be a better value and from rumors online it doesn't look as though the S22 Ultra (or whatever it's labeled) will have enough improvements to justify the additional cost. I'm thinking Samsung released the S21 Ultra earlier than previous devices because the S20 Ultra had some issues and it didn't generate sales volume they anticipated. As far as the Fold goes I see only one advantage, it can fold for a larger display. When one compares features with the S21 Ultra it's nowhere near the value especially if the focus is on features. I kinda feel sorry for users who dropped a bundle of money for the S20 Ultra, it's a bit of a tweener who's features were eclipsed in a significant way by the S21 Ultra.

varcor said:
IMHO the decision to upgrade or not comes down to value. By the time the S22 is released the S21 will be a better value and from rumors online it doesn't look as though the S22 Ultra (or whatever it's labeled) will have enough improvements to justify the additional cost. I'm thinking Samsung released the S21 Ultra earlier than previous devices because the S20 Ultra had some issues and it didn't generate sales volume they anticipated. As far as the Fold goes I see only one advantage, it can fold. When one compares features with the S21 Ultra it's nowhere near the value especially if the focus is on features. I kinda feel sorry for users who dropped a bundle of money for the S20 Ultra, it's a bit of a tweener who's features were eclipsed in a significant way by the S21 Ultra.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I couldn't agree more. Now the S20 Ultra is a significantly better phone than the iPhone XS Max I used shortly before it, and the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge I was using before the iPhone. I had the Galaxy S8+ before going back to the S7 Edge, but that phone the first day I got it, it was dropped not even 3 feet onto a carpeted floor and cracked the screen. I immediately sent in for a replacement and not even 6 months of using it, it died. So I dug the trusty S7 Edge out of my drawer and put it back to use.
I did overspend on the S20 Ultra sitting back and looking at it now because I wanted the newest greatest phone and I was eligible for the upgrade, so I just did it. It's little issues with the fingerprint scanner are definitely annoying and the camera was good, but not what I thought it was shook up to be. I also have issues randomly dropping service, even in full bar areas. It games nicely, and the specs are great. I hate that I spent the money I did to get the lower RAM/storage version. But they didnt have a 256 or 512gb in stock. Next one I get will definitely be a 512gb with the highest RAM option. Granted this phone has never slowed down with a bunch of apps, I just ran out of 128gb faster than I thought I would.

KaydenMcCurdyTech said:
I couldn't agree more. Now the S20 Ultra is a significantly better phone than the iPhone XS Max I used shortly before it, and the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge I was using before the iPhone. I had the Galaxy S8+ before going back to the S7 Edge, but that phone the first day I got it, it was dropped not even 3 feet onto a carpeted floor and cracked the screen. I immediately sent in for a replacement and not even 6 months of using it, it died. So I dug the trusty S7 Edge out of my drawer and put it back to use.
I did overspend on the S20 Ultra sitting back and looking at it now because I wanted the newest greatest phone and I was eligible for the upgrade, so I just did it. It's little issues with the fingerprint scanner are definitely annoying and the camera was good, but not what I thought it was shook up to be. I also have issues randomly dropping service, even in full bar areas. It games nicely, and the specs are great. I hate that I spent the money I did to get the lower RAM/storage version. But they didnt have a 256 or 512gb in stock. Next one I get will definitely be a 512gb with the highest RAM option. Granted this phone has never slowed down with a bunch of apps, I just ran out of 128gb faster than I thought I would.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed, with no MicroSD available some users like myself understand the 256GB (about 200GB after system use is deducted) isn't enough. Lots of users are comfortable with this available internal storage for their purposes and utilize external storage devices to compensate but I'm not one of them. I have zero faith in Cloud Storage for privacy and security concerns.
Since you're in the US, if you decide on acquiring a 512GB device the Branded Service Provider's have no 512GB units available, not sure if some of them ever did offer it. Then that leaves you with a couple of options, the Snapdragon or Exynos Global variants. Given a choice I prefer the Snapdragon 888 SoC.
I opted for the Hong Kong (CSC - TGY) 512GB device. In addition to the largest internal storage it offers no carrier bloatware, dual sim's, unlocked bootloader and faster OTA's. There are some downsides as well. It's more expensive since there's no trade-in promotion, so you'd need to sell the S20 Ultra private party if you don't want to add it to your other older units. There is a 1 year warranty but that requires it be shipped back to the original retailer. That didn't bother me since I've never had repair issues with any of my previous Galaxy devices. Lastly, certain Branded Carrier Call Features like 5G and Carrier Aggregation may not work. My device does enable 4G LTE, WI-FI Calling which are sufficient for my usage. My S9+, S10 Plus were Hong Kong variants as well and I had no issues other than what I've already shared.
A Carrier Branded device may be the best value for you based on overall costs but the internal storage constraints killed it for me, 200GB just doesn't cut it. With my S10 Plus it made sense to buy the 128GB variant at a lower price and drop in the MicroSD, problem solved! If the S21 Ultra had external memory I would have done the same workaround and saved about $400 USD. I like the S21 Ultra alot, it's the best device available IMHO, if it had MicroSD I'd LOVE IT!

varcor said:
Agreed, with no MicroSD available some users like myself understand the 256GB (about 200GB after system use is deducted) isn't enough. Lots of users are comfortable with this available internal storage for their purposes and utilize external storage devices to compensate but I'm not one of them. I have zero faith in Cloud Storage for privacy and security concerns.
Since you're in the US, if you decide on acquiring a 512GB device the Branded Service Provider's have no 512GB units available, not sure if some of them ever did offer it. Then that leaves you with a couple of options, the Snapdragon or Exynos Global variants. Given a choice I prefer the Snapdragon 888 SoC.
I opted for the Hong Kong (CSC - TGY) 512GB device. In addition to the largest internal storage it offers no carrier bloatware, dual sim's, unlocked bootloader and faster OTA's. There are some downsides as well. It's more expensive since there's no trade-in promotion, so you'd need to sell the S20 Ultra private party if you don't want to add it to your other older units. There is a 1 year warranty but that requires it be shipped back to the original retailer. That didn't bother me since I've never had repair issues with any of my previous Galaxy devices. Lastly, certain Branded Carrier Call Features like 5G and Carrier Aggregation may not work. My device does enable 4G LTE, WI-FI Calling which are sufficient for my usage. My S9+, S10 Plus were Hong Kong variants as well and I had no issues other than what I've already shared.
A Carrier Branded device may be the best value for you based on overall costs but the internal storage constraints killed it for me, 200GB just doesn't cut it. With my S10 Plus it made sense to buy the 128GB variant at a lower price and drop in the MicroSD, problem solved! If the S21 Ultra had external memory I would have done the same workaround and saved about $400 USD. I like the S21 Ultra alot, it's the best device available IMHO, if it had MicroSD I'd LOVE IT!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh my, I didn't even pay attention to them not including a MicroSD. They did that in the S8 but only the S8, and that's not okay with me. I have a 512gb SD I transfer from phone to phone for photos and file management. That's not going to cut it for me relying strictly on internal storage. Although I seen they make a type C to micro SD adapter that's inexpensive and works well, so I guess if I do upgrade I could do that. But, idk, I'm liking the Note 20 Ultra right now as well.

You should want an SD card.
Samsung's are the most customizable stock Androids on the planet... if you haven't noticed.
The only thing I would consider at this time personally is the Note 20 U or another Note 10+ 512gb Snapdragon variant. I'll wait another year to see if Samsung and Android can get recover from their high G flat spin.
Otherwise I'll default to my former choices. My preferred OS is still Pie and the 10+ is a solid, fast, stable performer. Decisions, decisions...
Samsung's offerings this year so far are weak. Android 11 is looking like another Vista.
That's 2 strikes and the 3rd strike be making the mistake of buying it

blackhawk said:
You should want an SD card.
Samsung's are the most customizable stock Androids on the planet... if you haven't noticed.
The only thing I would consider at this time personally is the Note 20 U or another Note 10+ 512gb Snapdragon variant. I'll wait another year to see if Samsung and Android can get recover from their high G flat spin.
Otherwise I'll default to my former choices. My preferred OS is still Pie and the 10+ is a solid, fast, stable performer. Decisions, decisions...
Samsung's offerings this year so far are weak. Android 11 is looking like another Vista.
That's 2 strikes and the 3rd strike be making the mistake of buying it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't had any issues with Android 11 as of yet, there just wasn't much added. Having no SD Card is a downside for me. I do love how customizable Samsungs are right out of the box. I'll probably get a Note 20 Ultra because why not. I'd get the largest variant available to me.

KaydenMcCurdyTech said:
I haven't had any issues with Android 11 as of yet, there just wasn't much added. Having no SD Card is a downside for me. I do love how customizable Samsungs are right out of the box. I'll probably get a Note 20 Ultra because why not. I'd get the largest variant available to me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The 20U is a solid platform. Get a good case before you start using it. They are beautiful slippery fish.
The Notes wuv to corner hit and face plant when dropped. The spen corner seems to be their favorite corner to land on
I use the Zizo Bolt and the Gorilla IQ Sheild screen protector. Zero damage in 1.5+ years in spite of nearly a dozen drops from 2-4 feet onto concrete.
A SD card allows you to have a data drive.
All critical data goes here including everything you need to do a full reload including installable app copies. No Playstore needed. This drive is then redundantly backed up to at least 2 hdds that are physically and electronically isolated from each other. Use a V30 rated card or higher.
Lexar's work right out of the box.
The internal memory regardless of its size is the OS drive. Loaded apps and the temporary DCIM and download* folders go here.
You now have a dual drive 1+tb computer in your hand
This is how my 10+ is set up. It runs like a bat out of hell. Current load is over a year old, still running fast and stable. A complete reload takes about 2 hours to set it back up, no internet or PC required.
*transferred to data drive once vetted

blackhawk said:
The 20U is a solid platform. Get a good case before you start using it. They are beautiful slippery fish.
The Notes wuv to corner hit and face plant when dropped. The spen corner seems to be their favorite corner to land on
I use the Zizo Bolt and the Gorilla IQ Sheild screen protector. Zero damage in 1.5+ years in spite of nearly a dozen drops from 2-4 feet onto concrete.
A SD card allows you to have a data drive.
All critical data goes here including everything you need to do a full reload including installable app copies. No Playstore needed. This drive is then redundantly backed up to at least 2 hdds that are physically and electronically isolated from each other. Use a V30 rated card or higher.
Lexar's work right out of the box.
The internal memory regardless of its size is the OS drive. Loaded apps and the temporary DCIM and download* folders go here.
You now have a dual drive 1+tb computer in your hand
This is how my 10+ is set up. It runs like a bat out of hell. Current load is over a year old, still running fast and stable. A complete reload takes about 2 hours to set it back up, no internet or PC required.
*transferred to data drive once vetted
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How big is your SD Card? I'm considering ordering a 1TB card and transferring everything over. I use my phone for editing video, photos, rendering, office, receipts etc. Which is why I haven't played with its OS and such because it just works. I have a 256gb that's nearly full. I'll get a note 20 U and buy a 1tb card and leave my 256gb in my S20 U.

KaydenMcCurdyTech said:
How big is your SD Card? I'm considering ordering a 1TB card and transferring everything over. I use my phone for editing video, photos, rendering, office, receipts etc. Which is why I haven't played with its OS and such because it just works. I have a 256gb that's nearly full. I'll get a note 20 U and buy a 1tb card and leave my 256gb in my S20 U.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a 512gb Lexar V30 card ($65) and currently using about 340gb.
Thinking about upgrading to a 1tb V30 card but they aren't cheap ($180-240).
The V30 is fast enough to stream video and wav files from with no issues. The Lexar writes around a [email protected]
The 20U has a faster bus than the 10+ so it may benefit from a faster card. Not sure as it doesn't apply to me and I haven't pursued it; V30 is fast enough for what I need.
If you have a large database you'll chew up one 1tb fast. My current database is about 1.5tb; really I like to see dual SD card slots

blackhawk said:
I have a 512gb Lexar V30 card ($65) and currently using about 340gb.
Thinking about upgrading to a 1tb V30 card but they aren't cheap ($180-240).
The V30 is fast enough to stream video and wav files from with no issues. The Lexar writes around a [email protected]
The 20U has a faster bus than the 10+ so it may benefit from a faster card. Not sure as it doesn't apply to me and I haven't pursued it; V30 is fast enough for what I need.
If you have a large database you'll chew up one 1tb fast. My current database is about 1.5tb; really I like to see dual SD card slots
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Now theres an idea I can get behind! I have a large database for sure. I sort everything in folders and label everything etc. My phone is my computer lol. I even run my GoPro through my phone to edit and upload video. I would love to see dual SD Cards someday. Maybe even faster cards as well. Phone already are coming out with 16gb of RAM, there is no reason they couldn't do dual storage cards. Actually I know it's possible because I have my SD card in my s20U and I use a USB c to micro USB to my S7 edge with another SD card in it to transfer data, and I set the S7 edge up as a storage drive on my s20U. So they just need to do it already. I think Nvidia needs to try and develop another mobile GPU that's insane and Samung needs to build a media based work usable phone. Like bring back the Galaxy Mega with some decent specs instead of garbage. Use a 120hz OLED panel, like 5.5-6 inches, with a 500+ pixel density, dual SIM, dual SD card, nvidia GPU, best 8 core Snapdragon, 16-20gb ram, s pen, amazing cameras front and rear and just have it blow away the competition. I'd spend 1500 on that all day. That phone would appeal to a fair amount of people. The galaxy Mega didnt sell well along side the note series because they limited it to a single carrier in the US, the specs were ehh at best, the screen was trash and no SPen support.

The Note held a niche until the battery drama and the S Series increased the size of the display. Samsung axed it knowing sales volume would be limited and it would directly compete with the S Series. It's a good device but shaded compared to the S21 Ultra. SoC, CPU, battery, cameras, bluetooth and display resolution. It's less expensive and still offers MicroSD but other than that it's second fiddle. At least you'll have the last of a dying breed. If I were to weight value for the Note 20 Ultra it would be against the A72 at half the price, not the S21 Ultra.

varcor said:
The Note held a niche until the battery drama and the S Series increased the size of the display. Samsung axed it knowing sales volume would be limited and it would directly compete with the S Series. It's a good device but shaded compared to the S21 Ultra. SoC, CPU, battery, cameras, bluetooth and display resolution. It's less expensive and still offers MicroSD but other than that it's second fiddle. At least you'll have the last of a dying breed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
True, I would. But it's pretty comparable with my current S20U except for camera and so forth but still a great device. I've been thinking that's what I'll do instead of the s21U. I'd like to not step away from Samsung. Who knows, if dont like the Note, then I might check out the Z fold. I just know I won't like it though.

varcor said:
The Note held a niche until the battery drama and the S Series increased the size of the display. Samsung axed it knowing sales volume would be limited and it would directly compete with the S Series. It's a good device but shaded compared to the S21 Ultra. SoC, CPU, battery, cameras, bluetooth and display resolution. It's less expensive and still offers MicroSD but other than that it's second fiddle. At least you'll have the last of a dying breed. If I were to weight value for the Note 20 Ultra it would be against the A72 at half the price, not the S21 Ultra.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The rounded display corners suck. In pictures they don't seem bad but in person they look horrible compared to the modern Notes. The colors and gamma of the 10+ are spot on. The display is one of a kind and just drop dead gorgeous. I stream vids constantly on mine.
The 12 gb ram variant of the 10+ or 16gb for the 20U are needed for a power user. The Snapdragon variant is the most desirable but difficult to root.
Battery excursions were a one shot deal although any Li can fail at any time especially when degraded.
The intergrated spen can't be replaced and even though I don't use it a lot, when I need it, I need.
As I learned battery and the C port PCB are relatively easy to replace once you know the tricks. Not near as bad as the reviews rate it.
A case is mandatory or it will get destroyed... sooner or latter.
If you can swing it and are tech savvy, get a Note.
As for being dead, doubtful. Sammy loves to play that to the hilt.
Samsung needs to rethink what their customer base wants rather than dictate what they can have. If Sammy fails to do this or fidgets like LG, they will suffer badly... if you can't rock it, somebody will.
But hey, how much can you expect from a rabid box of gerbils anyway?