• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Samsung Galaxy S4 (new flagship Android phone from Samsung)

C

CheesecakeRecipe

Stormy Grey
Considering what this baby's packing, $250 doesn't seem super outrageous to me for contract. Would absolutely love to see them hack another $50 off that pricetag though.
 
O

Onion_Relish

Member
-Pyromaniac- said:
Yeah there's no way this launches at a higher price than the note 2. I could swear the iphone was 159.99 though. Maybe that was the 4S.


ew get a nex4
Click to expand...

Youre correct. Original 3 year pricing for 4/4s was 160.

It's hard for me to guess a potential Canadian launch price point. My guess is that they will release at 160 as this was the s3 starter price, but my gut tells me they might Jack it up to 180 due to the prestige factor. Also Samsung will finally have 3 tier pricing with s2 at 0, s3 at 50-80 and s4 at 160. Original notes are around for 0 and the note 2 will fluctuate beyween 50-100.

And I'm sure the s4 mini will come along and replace the s2, keeping the price ranges intact.
 
P

-Pyromaniac-

Member
Onion_Relish said:
Youre correct. Original 3 year pricing for 4/4s was 160.

It's hard for me to guess a potential Canadian launch price point. My guess is that they will release at 160 as this was the s3 starter price, but my gut tells me they might Jack it up to 180 due to the prestige factor. Also Samsung will finally have 3 tier pricing with s2 at 0, s3 at 50-80 and s4 at 160. Original notes are around for 0 and the note 2 will fluctuate beyween 50-100.

And I'm sure the s4 mini will come along and replace the s2, keeping the price ranges intact.
Click to expand...
either way, 160/180 isn't bad at allllllll. Hopefully it sticks to that.
 
S

SirMossyBloke

Member
Onion_Relish said:
Youre correct. Original 3 year pricing for 4/4s was 160.

It's hard for me to guess a potential Canadian launch price point. My guess is that they will release at 160 as this was the s3 starter price, but my gut tells me they might Jack it up to 180 due to the prestige factor. Also Samsung will finally have 3 tier pricing with s2 at 0, s3 at 50-80 and s4 at 160. Original notes are around for 0 and the note 2 will fluctuate beyween 50-100.

And I'm sure the s4 mini will come along and replace the s2, keeping the price ranges intact.
Click to expand...

S3 has already been $0 for a while now, Note II is $50.

Both of those have been flying off the shelf.
 
T

The Abominable Snowman

Member
Through my experience with TMobile, I know there will be ways to get it way cheaper than $250. Call retention and threaten to go with Sprint, and they'll likely hack $50 off the top
 
R

reKon

Banned
Were their any cases on the GS3 that actually made the overall phone much better looking? Design is the only thing holding me back just because the HTC looks so much better and apparently has amazing speaker quality.

I don't even think that the GS4 is ugly, but if I could get a nice case for it and makes it visually appealing, that's a big plus because it's already very thin.
 
D

DrFunk

not licensed in your state
relevant:

SamsungExynos5OctaLTE.png


It looks like the Samsung Galaxy S 4 two model debacle is not a repeat of last year. Last year, the Samsung Galaxy S III came out with a quad core Exynos 4 processor in Europe without LTE, and a dual core Snapdragon S4 Plus in the US with LTE support. The reasoning was that the Exynos 4 integrated radios only had support for HSPA+ 21, so they couldn’t use it in the US (whose carriers demanded LTE). Later, Samsung built an external modem with LTE bands and created the Galaxy S III LTE, along with all models of the Note II running an Exynos 4 quad core.

However, when we heard that some countries will be getting the Exynos 5 Octa core Galaxy S 4 and some (like the US) will be getting a Snapdragon 600, we were disheartened. The Exynos 5 is not only cooler sounding (octa core!), but is literally better sounding (thanks to the amazing Wolfson Micro amp). Performance arguments will be saved for later. People thought that the Octa didn’t support LTE, even though Samsung already developed the external modem. That was debunked by the Samsung Exynos Twitter, who stated that the Octa supports all 20 bands of LTE. Awesome right?

Unfortunately, this does not change the fact that the US is getting the Snapdragon 600 model. This is probably due to shortages in Exynos 5 chips, and is quite upsetting. I guess it’s time to get importing!
Click to expand...

http://www.droiddog.com/android-blo...rt-lte/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
 
V

Victory Red

Member
reKon said:
Were their any cases on the GS3 that actually made the overall phone much better looking? Design is the only thing holding me back just because the HTC looks so much better and apparently has amazing speaker quality.

I don't even think that the GS4 is ugly, but if I could get a nice case for it and makes it visually appealing, that's a big plus because it's already very thin.
Click to expand...

I'd like to know this as well. A friend of my recently had some time with the S4 and he said it "feels" significantly better than the S3. Maybe since it has more screen and less plastic. He said it feels more solid and well constructed.
 
L

leadbelly

Banned
reKon said:
Were their any cases on the GS3 that actually made the overall phone much better looking? Design is the only thing holding me back just because the HTC looks so much better and apparently has amazing speaker quality.

I don't even think that the GS4 is ugly, but if I could get a nice case for it and makes it visually appealing, that's a big plus because it's already very thin.
Click to expand...

To be honest, I don't think it really matters all that much which phone you choose. I personally would go for the HTC One because it is probably the best looking phone I have seen. Aesthetically it really is a pleasure to look at.

The S4 is supposed to be the better phone in a number of areas, but I'm not sure it really amounts to anything. I recently went from a HTC sensation XE to a Nexus 4, and there is quite a noticeable difference. When you're comparing the HTC One to the GS4 however, the difference is far less pronounced. What you've got is two very powerful phones that will deal with any task effortlessly.

It's got me thinking actually; we are reaching the point of diminishing returns when it comes to general usage of a smartphone. When you have a device that is incredibly fast, even though another device may be a little bit faster, it doesn't really mean all that much because the slower device is already fast enough. It might load a browser a fraction of a second faster. You might just about be able to blink in the time it takes the slower device to complete its task. When you're talking such minuscule time differences it's not enhancing the experience in any significant way.

The truth is, you're not going to be thinking, "Man this phone is slow!" if you decided to opt for the HTC One over the S4. There are of course other areas like the camera or games where there might be a significant advantage, but then the camera on the HTC One is probably good enough for what most people use it for, and I doubt there will be many, if any, Android games that will push the hardware for a couple of years.
 
R

reKon

Banned
leadbelly said:
To be honest, I don't think it really matters all that much which phone you choose. I personally would go for the HTC One because it is probably the best looking phone I have seen. Aesthetically it really is a pleasure to look at.

The S4 is supposed to be the better phone in a number of areas, but I'm not sure it really amounts to anything. I recently went from a HTC sensation XE to a Nexus 4, and there is quite a noticeable difference. When you're comparing the HTC One to the GS4 however, the difference is far less pronounced. What you've got is two very powerful phones that will deal with any task effortlessly.

It's got me thinking actually; we are reaching the point of diminishing returns when it comes to general usage of a smartphone. When you have a device that is incredibly fast, even though another device may be a little bit faster, it doesn't really mean all that much because the slower device is already fast enough. It might load a browser a fraction of a second faster. You might just about be able to blink it the time it takes the slower device to complete its task. When you're talking such minuscule time differences it's not enhancing the experience in any significant way.

The truth is, you're not going to be thinking, "Man this phone is slow!" if you decided to opt for the HTC One over the S4. There are of course other areas like the camera or games where there might be a significant advantage, but then the camera on the HTC One is probably good enough for what most people use it for, and I doubt there will be many, if any, Android games that will push the hardware for a couple of years.
Click to expand...

It's the camera, software, durability, developer friendliness and battery are reason's I'd choose the S4 over the HTC One. The great design and speaker output are the only reasons why I'm considering the HTC One. The HTC One wasn't even on my radar until I really actually looked at it.
 
L

leadbelly

Banned
reKon said:
It's the camera, software, durability, developer friendliness and battery are reason's I'd choose the S4 over the HTC One. The great sign and speaker output are the only reasons why I'm considering the HTC One. The HTC One wasn't even on my radar until I really actually looked at it.
Click to expand...

Yeah. Those are good enough reasons to choose that device. For me personally, those features wouldn't be enough to lure me away from such a beautiful looking phone though. The S4 is probably better in all those areas, but I know the HTC One certainly isn't bad in those areas. I probably wouldn't be dissatisfied with the phone in any way.
 
Mook1e

Mook1e

Member
I think it's great that at least according to GSMarena, the One has good battery life. The choices available for Android buyers are outstanding. Bring on the Note 3 info! I may even upgrade from the 2 if there are as many improvements plus the same/smaller form factor.
 
S

SirMossyBloke

Member
Mook1e said:
I think it's great that at least according to GSMarena, the One has good battery life. The choices available for Android buyers are outstanding. Bring on the Note 3 info! I may even upgrade from the 2 if there are as many improvements plus the same/smaller form factor.
Click to expand...

If the Note III is anything like its predecessor expect a 2 week battery at full use, and a half year standby time.
 
U

Unknown Soldier

Member
reKon said:
http://blog.gsmarena.com/samsung-ga...firms-amoleds-can-finally-do-accurate-colors/


211qvyuvdclt3ctn.gif
Click to expand...

CRY MOAR LCD LOVERS
I WANT TO SEE YOUR DELICIOUS TEARS
CRY AND SUFFER

Mook1e said:
I think it's great that at least according to GSMarena, the One has good battery life. The choices available for Android buyers are outstanding. Bring on the Note 3 info! I may even upgrade from the 2 if there are as many improvements plus the same/smaller form factor.
Click to expand...

Honestly I think if the Note III finally brings hardware AVC 10-bit decoding support in the Exynos 5 Octa on Dat 1080p Super AMOLED HD More Accurate Colors Than LCD screen, I'll have to cave and replace my N2. I spent $760 on my N2, I am not spending chump change to upgrade my phones because Verizon will take away my unlimited data when they pry it from my cold, dead hands.
 
U

Unknown Soldier

Member
SirMossyBloke said:
Just wait until you see the One and S4 side by side. LCD fo life.
Click to expand...

This must be some kind of joke. With the sole exception of sheer brightness under the noonday sun, there is NOTHING that Super AMOLED isn't superior to LCD in anymore. NOTHING.

Someone does need to tap Samsung on the shoulder and quietly ask where their goddamn OLED TVs are though.
 
The Faceless Master

The Faceless Master

Member
Guess Who said:
Actually read the article they sourced and you'll find they still rank the S4 behind the iPhone and One in screen quality, and the only test it beats them on is contrast and black levels (as per usual for AMOLED).

BUT LOL SUCK IT HATERS THERE'S NOTHING LCD DOES BETTER!!!!!!!!!1
Click to expand...

ranks behind in "everything else" aka brightness.

why make it sound like "everything else" is more than one thing?
 
F

FinKL

Member
Fezan said:
Xperia Z vs S4
Click to expand...

Did I understand that right? XZ superior screen, yet to me, I would give it to the S4 from that same video.

I don't know about you guys, but the S4 conference was kinda bad about getting hyped about the phone. I just read the gsmarena.com review and learned a great deal about it. Lots of small nifty features that I didn't see mentioned in the conference (multiwindow for multitasking, smart dial, etc.)

Was in the market for a T-mobile iPhone5 but the S4 pretty much kicks its ass everywhere :(

My 2 biggest gripes with Android is the fragmentation (had G1 & LG G2x) & responsiveness of the phone. Fragmentation will still be an issue with the S4 (S3 is still behind), but the responsiveness should be resolved with all that Ram/Quad-core.
 
T

this_guy

Member
thirty said:
I guess this shows why Samsung wasn't so chatty about the GS4's camera. Nokia's Pureview tech outclasses all other smartphones

Nokia 920 vs Samsung Galaxy 4
Screen-Shot-2013-03-29-at-12.03.15.jpg
Click to expand...

Other comparison shots that show Samsung's night mode look much better than what is shown here.
 
T

thirty

Banned
The guy comparing the pics is neither a Nokia or Samsung fanboy. just so happens that Nokia blog is posting his comparisons. I doubt a Samsung fan site would post the same comparison.

here's another pic
Screen-Shot-2013-03-29-at-12.04.11.jpg
Click to expand...
 
C

Cipherr

Member
Its well known that the 920 is going to continue to be one of the best low light performers camera wise. That's not really shocking at all.
 
Z

zedge

Member
Unless you only take pictures in low light its not that big of a deal. For normal shots in day light my GS3 is better than my 920.
 
P

-Pyromaniac-

Member
I think the verge justified their 920 camera review just fine. The out of the box turn on then snap and shoot experience they didn't find was as good as the best, and for most users, that's what they'll be doing. So they dinged it for that. They also commended the great low light performance, which is definitely the 920s strong suit.

Using the same logic, they'll probably give the S4 a great camera score.
 
A

Anton Sugar

Member
-Pyromaniac- said:
I think the verge justified their 920 camera review just fine. The out of the box turn on then snap and shoot experience they didn't find was as good as the best, and for most users, that's what they'll be doing. So they dinged it for that. They also commended the great low light performance, which is definitely the 920s strong suit.

Using the same logic, they'll probably give the S4 a great camera score.
Click to expand...

True. 920 has had two major updates since launch to its camera firmware, one of them very recently. Both added a lot of clarity/detail to the camera in daylight, but it could be pretty soft at before that.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

  • Locked
Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S6 Edge+ Announced
2 3 4 5 6
279
33K
Rodney McKay replied
  • Locked
Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge |OT| I just had six, and it felt so good
13 14 15 16 17
829
84K
ThanksVision replied
  • Locked
Samsung announces the Galaxy Note 4 and the Galaxy Note Edge
18 19 20 21 22
1K
125K
The Faceless Master replied
  • Locked
Samsung Galaxy S Tablet - new king of the droid tabs? #DATOLED
24
6K
Amaya replied
  • Locked
The Verge: Nokia Lumia 925 better than Samsung Galaxy S4
41
4K
clav replied
Top Bottom