[Galaxy S III Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] Aerobotix:
plenty is too much

Hi, i have an SGS2, and was happy about it except a few things, and those few things I am definitely not happy about, same goes for the SGS3. It's head shaking how those engineers never get it right, but that may be like some lightbulb conspiracy. Perfection is a journey not a destination, and they will probably make people buy newer phones all the time. I didn't have any particular reason to buy the SGS3. I got tired of the SGS2 overheating in a few games even though I dont play games.

The SGS3 is slippery like a piece of hand soap, but a nice gel cover really makes a gret difference. As sual samsung failed to protect the camera area on the back, and I actually somehow got a little crack just by the camera hole in the back cover. With a gel cover this is done with. I do like the <almost> flat back, only wish samsung could go all the way. ( I had a HTC Desire HD as well, which had a stupid protruding camera area, making it rock around on any flat surface. same thing with SGS2, samsung just HAD to make the camera area protrude by a 0.5mm..)

They also made the 3 buttons below the screen sit in the wrong place. The middle home button is sitting too low, so is the side menu and back buttons, they are not as easy to get to as on say the SGS2. The design looks kind of OK, but the more rounded shape, makes it more difficult to use with a single hand. I'm not sure the position of the side buttons on SGS3 (and to extend the SGS2) is well placed, using it in landscape mode, one easily push the side butons by mistake. WHy not have the power button ON TOP ? Because Apple forbid this, maybe ? There's already mini jack headphone plug on top, so i'd like the power button up there.The side buttons again are not on the flat side, they are kind of askew tilted to the rear - and using this phone with the left hand only, pressing the power button, the phone can easily slip out of the hand (pop like a hand soap) which is really stupid to keep the side buttons arranged like that. That's about the design comment i have.

It is nice that the phone doesn't run as hot as the SGS2, no less could do anyway.

The screen's matrix is easy to see (not a problem), not exactly a 'retina' screen, but it's a good screen. The contrast/candela is disappointing, being weaker than the SGS2, and no matter the dozens of idiotic youtube reviews of this phone and how amazing it is.. this SGS3 screen doesnt display that strong outside in sunny weather. There is also some kind of oddity with the contrast settings, f.ex. set it at MAX contrast, and watch a video, in certain video players the strong contrast doesn't show - then switch to picture-in-picture and then it does. Or make the video window smaller, then it also shows. Just doesn't make sense. Samsung also does horrific job on the software, whatever stupid ice cream sandwich BS and all those cookie names.. version 4.0.4. i believe the SGS3 i9300 has. they have a setting for auto rotation, or lock rotation, but cannot lock rotation to landscape. That is just too stupid if samsung cannot figure out these setings are a MUST. There's many other of these stupidities, in general lack of settings i suppose. There's many of those 'small things'. Lately there's a pop up message, telling there's a software update, one can only pick 'install now' or 'remind later' - which then turns out you get to pick between <wait 30 minutes/ wait 1 hr, and, wait 3 hrs> no option called 'FORGET IT!'. Things like automation should be customizeable, and not keep bugging the user..

There is one thing annoying, I haven't seen addresed, only seen asked. Taking some pictures, then connect to computer and browse the sd card, these pictures do NOT show up as mini pictures/thumbnails. The SGS3 connects as 'media player' here whatever this means (there's another option 'connect as camera, which doesn't help either). After transferring the whole bunch of pictures to the computer, they DO show up as thumbnails. The SGS2 did not have this annoying problem.

the SGS3 cost about 950$ without subscription, and the SGS2 was about 800$ half a year ago. back then i picked a typical (it was the max) 6 month subscription(+6 months phone settlement) including some usage. Since then, the mobile prices rocketed. See, back then the price would be fifty-fifty phone and usage. But today, even if they introduce these years-long 24 months payments of the phone itself, it is not fifty-fifty anymore. it is more close to, out of those 950$, the 150$ is for the included usage, and the 700$ is just the phone price itself, a ridiculous price in a way.. i did stil pick the 6 month contract, because no way i would want to spend 24 months paying off on something that could grow 'old', get lost/stolen, or get broken pretty fast. Just seeing how there's a new LG 4X hd coming hard, and LG, talking about full HD displays on phones.

Loking through some old cellphone bills, i fell over the Nokia 8210, wasn't that just a sweet thang once! costed uhm was it 600$ or 750$, well that was a memorable phone in my case, along with the Ericsson T66, great breast pocket sized phones.

The SGS3's got the stuff that a SGS2 owner might be looking for, and there's somehow always a compromise, whether one looks to prioritize the design or the internal hardware, ya can't have it all. I wouldn't recommend the SGS3, or the SGS2 to anyone, funny, cause, i'd recommend the OVER other phones. I find the SGS3 creepy. You may not agree, so be it, but what happened to 'mind your own business' ;)

The SGS3 by default watches your eyeballs, to control dim display contrast. Let's just say "it watches your eyeballs to.." the whoole 'permission thing' on apps, are by now scary, if one want a functional app. Try looking through some apps' permissions, it's downright creepy details the permissions one had to agree to. Sure that's not samsung doing that I suppose. Next thing is the phones just loves and loves to suggest uuploading pictures to this and that all the time.

But with phones like these, the camera and the display - it doesn't seem too far in future to imagine fingerprint apps, retina eyeball apps. You gotta wonder what's the real need for a quad core processor.. certainly not a bus ticket app (which among a ton of other apps requite both GPS and network positions etc). As long one cannot control the phones' like one wish, it's more like the phone controls you. Wonder if smartphones make you stupider ;)

No doubt that the SGS3 imo would need a new ROM. in the past i used cyanogenmod on desireHD and SGS2. n the SGS2, it seemed to screw up the camera features and a few other things that were REALLY a darn drag, but on the other hand it gave the settings etc that i was looking for. Not sure any CM "beta" / nightly stuff is interesting to put on the SGS3, but i may look into that ROM that has more settings and removes the all-over commercials and adds that pollute this phone. Criskelo ROM sound like a good alternative ?

From the SGS2 i know that ANy app can screw up the battery and charging among other things. And so it was restoring many apps through titanium backup, from the SGS2 onto SGS3. Presuming that these apps 'think' they are installed on a SGS2 (or wrong display resolution, etc etc). "Battery Monitor Widget" didnt work as it shoud and somehow prevented the SGS3 from charging, eventually BMW got un+reinstalled, which didn't work well, so gone that app is. The battery last quite good compared to SGS2, and THAT'S a real win thing.

BTW on XDA's front page of SGS3, it says it has "1 GB RAM" and "16GB ROM". I believe it has "1GB ROM" and "1GB RAM". If it even makes sence to call it ROM today, as ROm now refer to a firmware in a way..

Other issues may be blamed on gogle, not sure, but they fail to inform alot. the internal memory (16 or 11GB) quickly gets flooded. Installing Tintin, takes up about 2GB, but figures as taking up 32MB or so, clearly confusing. Uninstalling TIntin, one can wonder if it even consider removed those 2GB..sorry the pessimism ;). When in the market (gogle play) there's constantly updates, some so small does it matter? market fails to write the installed VERSION, but oh of course you need the last version, and hardly does many dev's write what revision history there is. And at best there's the inevitable "several bug fixes and improvements" - cannot tell if it's really just that.

Ok sum up, bottom line it is laughable how this phone is promotes, its a joke how these new features are awesome, when they're not. things like punch number and hold up to the ear, then it will dial up for u. come on that's a skip of one thumb press or two. Now, punch in 911 by mistake and a friend calls you, would it call up the emergency, that would be funny! But what i mean is, it's like with Siri, Siri imo is a feature of a operating system, not the phone hardware. Stephen Hawkins must be laughing at Siri. And this method of screen capping by using your flat hand swiping over the screen, what a joke. Just by watching videos on utub, most people including me end up swiping the screen and not capping a thing. All these things like overlay a la 'sense' 'touchwiz' etc can be just some small features that really doesnt matter to most.

The feature of the phone it will hang up an incoming call by placing the phone on its back (like would it matter it the phone is in the pocket..) all those gimmick's are often harder to get rid of than beneficial for a user imo. No need to comment on the slogans 'for humans blabla'. so the ranting may not be all about the SGS3 i know, i just put this out these as imo. the SGS3 is definitey neat and all that, but after a a week or so, hey its just a phone,and yet much more. great to waste time on in a bus or train, or just for map usage and email etc. In the end one cannot get around that it's inevitably a time consumer, and before the SGS3 i wan't pissing people off because the smarty SGS3 wanted attention. Add to that a convenient blinking LED notifier in the upper right corner, still not sure whether to turn this off or not LOL. it seems these days in public we all have our own brave new orwellian world, we're minding our own businesses and you gotta wonder what 'sharing' really means today contrary to a decade or two ago. Confusing merging of social accounts are a PITA and comon known settings as for social apps are a drag as ever to handle, it may be to tptb tells us it's called 'sharing' but to me it's something different.

Hey, if you have a 60mbit connection and gets a fre upgrade to 100mbit, and it seems as slow as before, you gotta wonder who gained then, and what they gained. Probably one day the UL will pass the DL rate/speed/price, and for a reason. ok not to be spreading fear haha.

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The SGS3 audio quality however is awesome, it seems the headset AND phone is much better than SGS2, much better, and its great to bike and listen to music. Admittedly the phone is stupidly large for this purpose! Don't feel the need to use any philips/senheiser headphones here, the samsung headset will do fine.

As for the typical SGS3 reviews, they always mentions something like plastic quality, general 'feel' and all that. Can't really follow these people, they must have penile skin on their hands. The HTX 1x is appealing, but unfortunately doesn't meet the same hardware req's

Secondly (lastly) so many say this phone has no drag/lag - sure it does. That's just very DISAPPONTING, knowing we're talking quad core 1.5ghz. Almost admitting that my old i3Gs was less laggy - almost. Playing around with an SGS3 for a few days and claim it doesn't have lag, then it may be that your brain's refresh rate needs an upgrade first. :laugh:

So much for the world's best phone, maybe it was that, for a week or two, month or two, maybe it never was, whatever. im with a pro apple fangirl, (whereas im the opposite) who ironically bought a white SGS2 after me, but next time shes goin to get an iphone5. aha why not just get an iphone6. "But its not out yet!" Ok, neither is the iphone 5, but you can always pack up your tent and.. :rolleyes: :silly:

so after putting on a gel case, i decided not to sell this SGS3. the SGS2 is so neat im keeping it for absolutely no use/reason too. the hardware and design gets a thumbs up, but the software and limitations within get a thumbs down.

Compared to other phones ? I bought the SGS3 because I liked the SGS2. I havent tried the LG 4x HD, but I do know the HTX onex, it is neat but doesn't go all the way in comparison to SGS3. Samsung should have gone with a non pentile + super amoled display. ain't that just the irony - there's a next smartphone for that. I know people who fail to install an app, so in a way the smarter the phones get, as relative dumbed down people get. just being philosophical here..