yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Galaxy S 4 General] rakeshishere:
Stop flaming you two and get a room. I like a healthy discussion and people need to stop belittling other users if they think they're smart than the whole world.

[MENTION=853050]puremind[/MENTION]

I was referring to buttons below the screen and not the power button. HTC wants to differentiate themselves from other OEMs and I can agree to their decision of not including removable battery & sd slot but the way the buttons are placed on the phone makes me go mad at them :banghead:
[Galaxy S 4 General] exsing:
I have had the S4 since launch.

Was deciding between that or the One. Have not regretted since and don't think I will.

The S4 is very nicely built despite it being plastic. The screen size also makes a difference for me personally given I like to watch videos on it.
[Galaxy S 4 General] barondebxl:
I agree. Last thing on this, if puremind would focus on discussing things instead of practicing his "mentalism" here, we wouldn't be here in the first place, just saying.

Anyways, I cannot wait for my I9500 but i'm a little concerned now, my good friend Gee2012 returned his S4 because he couldn't bare the lag and the "bloat". He is definitely a Samsung guy as well. Oh well, we'll see what happens.
[Galaxy S 4 General] BarryH_GEG:
And I yours. :) A last bit of philosophy because we're driving people crazy. These are words I've learned to live by.

"Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves."

- Carl Jung

I think you nailed the strengths in your summary of the One. Now you'll have to bookmark that post so you can go back and compare the same likes/dislikes when you get the the i9500. ;)

"The power button at the top left is pissing me off."

When you look at the "guts" of the One HTC had to do a lot of magic to get everything crammed inside while still accommodating the space at the top and bottom that needs to be clear for the antennas. The power button placement is the same reason the reparability score is so low.

"A HUGE step up over the HTC One X ( tegra version)."

That's a pretty low bar. ;)

"The 3 dot menu on the bottom didn't bother me one bit."

Things like this are why I think HTC operates in a different world from everyone else. The One X was released with it and then it was removed. The DNA/Butterfly were released with it and then it was removed. Why in the hell is it back in the One only to most likely be removed via a future update? The One's display is already smaller than the SGS4's so taking up valuable space needlessly just seems bizarre.

Not to burst your bubble but BlinkFeed's just a white label version of NewsRepublic. ;) And, at least to me, it's no more a "unique" feature than some of Samsung's in terms of being able to live with alternatives from Play.

SAN FRANCISCO, April 25, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Mobiles Republic, the leading mobile news syndicator, today announced it is the technology and content provider powering HTC BlinkFeed, a new experience that creates a customizable live stream of news and social updates on the home screen of the new HTC One.​

http://www.bloomberg.com/article/2013-04-25/aRxhA0kGlaFo.html

Change for change sake is indeed stupid. No value was added by the change. In fact, to your point, one less button introduces more double tapping which is a loss not a gain. I get why they are doing it; they want people to view them as unique. But taking things away and introducing additional steps isn't the way to do it. We may not like Samsung's approach to human factors but for the most part they are consistent.

Then you'll appreciate this. Not everything needs to be analyzed. ;)

"Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar."

- Sigmund Freud
[Galaxy S 4 General] barondebxl:
Damn Barry where have you been lately? Lol. Thanks. I know you aren't surprise that I already changed phones. But the HTC One is truly remarkable. The display is ( in my opinion) its biggest strength. It makes the whole experience on the phone such a pleasure. My GT-I9500 should be here by Wednesday and i'll see how it compares to the One. This should be interesting cause I always been a touchwiz fan with the features and all that and the Note 2 and S3 performed really well when I had them. The S4 does have some lag, I know I cant stand lag but let's see if it is really as bad as ppl say it is. My good friend gee2012 returned his and it really concerns me. Him and I went through pretty much the same phones at the same time and I know he enjoys Samsung phones so that's not a good signs. We'll see. Worse/best case , i go back to the HTC One that i already miss :)
[Galaxy S 4 General] puremind:
I embrace every reflection from every mirror held in front of me, because it is part of what I am and whom I like to be.
[Galaxy S 4 General] rakeshishere:
Even "loyal" HTC users would frown upon this decision. If the change is useful & productive it'll have my vote but change it just to be different you'll make me furious.

In Samsung world s/w experience is consistent across phones and it's also same with h/w (button placement and even design :p) as well. People laugh at Samsung phones having same design but then why change when it's not broken philosophy sometimes works wonders
[Galaxy S 4 General] barondebxl:
Absolutely. HTC could have kept the stock multitasking, add a menu button ( seriously who the hell cares about the HTC logo on the front when there's a big a$$ logo on the back?) and change a couple things here and there. Its funny cause its just small dumb details but can affect the user experience quite a bit.
[Galaxy S 4 General] puremind:
Yes, this reminded me of a quote from the great German writer:

“If you hate a person, you hate something in him that is part of yourself. What isn't part of ourselves doesn't disturb us.”

Hermann Hesse, Demian

"Not knowing whether something is to be discovered is one of the greatest pleasures of looking into everything."
[Galaxy S 4 General] gavinfabl:
I have had the HTC for nearly 2 months and the S4 for 3 weeks for review.

Build - its a draw, in fact I prefer the S4 as its more comfy to hold but the HTC screen goes brighter.

Battery / Memory - the 32gb HTC gets me buy but long term I would change it for the 64gb version which would work nicely. The S4 internal memory is not enough in 16gb. It should never have been released this low. 32 or 64gb models should be released soon and that will be a good thing. The micro SD card is ideal if you take a lot of photos and or have a lot of music.

Battery life - with 1080p a replaceable battery for the demanding screens is a must. I think the S4 wins here. And it has quick charge. The HTC battery life is good. But it's too slow to charge. , although this slow charge prolongs the battery life. If you are playing games, I would prefer quick charge, or change the battery to keep gaming.

Polish - the HTC wins. The whole phone has been made to look the business from hardware to software screens.

Camera. - HTC is a social camera. It will always get a photo wherever you except distant landscapes are no way as good as the S4. With the S4 you might need to be in the right mode, but you are able to take a stunning photo. Because the HTC memory is fixed , the smaller photo sizes work well and with dropbox Or Flickr automatic uploads possible on the HTC memory is not as big a problem. S4 overall wins. The HTC has captured some stunning shots of my dogs better than any phone or DSLR. S4 is still ahead. The HTC creates 30 sec video highlights of an event automatically. These are a godsend and I would miss them if I didn't have the phone.

Sound - speakers is a clear win for the HTC. Headphone jack. HTC wins again. The i9505 suffers from crackling - what was Samsung thinking when it released this.

Features - S4 wins

Conclusion - each phone is different. It's personal preference. The S4 is not finished and once Samsung have released software updates to fix the bugs it will be fine so long as you have a 32gb version. I would be very happy with this. But 16gb is only available so the HTC is my fav for now.
[Galaxy S 4 General] whitemamba:
3D graphics in HTC One and Galaxy S4

Well I did a little research about the 3D graphics score on the One and the S4, and guess what I found?

Scores from the One over clocked (CPU: 1890 MHz, GPU: 450 MHz):

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?p=41254412&highlight=12413#post41254412

Scores from the One stock (CPU: 1740 MHz, GPU: 400 MHz):

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?p=41260850&highlight=everything#post41260850

Scores from the S4 GT-I9505 (CPU: 1890 MHz, GPU: 450 MHz as well):

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?p=41136265&highlight=benchmark#post41136265

Scores from the S4 GT-I9500 (for fun):

Seems like the performance in 3D graphics goes as follows:

GT-I9500 < GT-I9505 < or = HTC One Stock (despite lower clock speed) < HTC One Overclocked (to have the same specs as the S4)

What is even more appalling that even at a lower clock speed, the HTC One seems to be able to match and even beat the S4 GT-I9505 by a bit. I really don't know what's happening, apart from maybe the drivers on the One are more optimised.

And don't say the One has more development done already, mind you it is only on Jelly Bean 4.1.2, and if it is upgraded to 4.2.2, the drivers would be upgraded as well, so it is only bound to get better.
[Galaxy S 4 General] puremind:
I don't think I was commenting on how unique it is. Rather I was commenting on the superb execution:

Does not require diving down into categories to see more news in each of them - offers an at a glance view that merges multiple sources into a seemless fabric

More granular category selection than equivalent apps

Well animated

Remembers what I have already read

Multi-language sources

Sometimes applications can be spoiled by poor implementation. In many Samsung apps I don't like the clunky implementation, for example most of their apps have tabs and retractable panes instead of swipe though panels (Health app, Watch On). Also many menus are too convoluted and suffer from multi-layered nesting (e.g. try adding a remote control for a new device that is not a TV and not a Set Top Box in Watch On - so convoluted).

Mind you, I don't think HTC's TV app is perfect either. Apps that I don't feel like making over are rare enough that they deserve some applause.

---------- Post added at 07:49 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:36 AM ----------

The best explanation to this was given by AndreiLux

In a nutshell, the 320, as tested by demanding 3D benchmarks, is more future proof and will start showing its full potential for gaming when games have evolved to take advantage of its architecture. This explains why benchmarks don't all agree with currently observed in-game performance.

Because the S600 is more widespread, we can expect to see more games that will benefit from the Adreno 320's architecture in the coming months, so it is a definite plus for that GPU.

The fact that that GPU perfroms more poorly in the S4 than in the HTC One may actually have to do 4.2.2! Many users have reported degraded performance for 4.2.2. We will have to see how the HTC One fares with 3.2.2.
[Galaxy S 4 General] gavinfabl:
Replying to post above.

Samsung should as I said fix most things. The did with the S3. My only concern is the audio cracking on the i9505, I'm not sure software can fix it. I'm hoping it will. A small point. The HTC infra red blaster is better. I read somewhere about this. I'm referring to hardware capability.

The bloatware on the S4 is what makes it a Samsung. I like that. At least you can decide what to remove etc but it does seem daft that to reduce lag you need to turn so much off.

At the end of the day they are 2 different phones. I wish I could combine them. No phone is better than the other. It just depends on what's more important to you.
[Galaxy S 4 General] barondebxl:
I so wish that I could combine both phones too. There isn't a superior phone when it comes to these 2, it cannot be said enough. Its just a matter of preference. I'll find out soon enough which one I prefer :victory:
[Galaxy S 4 General] sangerpb:
I don't agree with your stunning shots better than a DSLR. My GS4 or your HTC don't even come close to my beginner Canon T3i. I don't buy a phone for a camera or video recorder.

I own the 32GB S4 and I love it, I'm running AOKP right now and the GS4 runs the way it should have. I hate TW but I do love all the fancy samsung goodies. AOKP offers me as close to ASOP as I can get right now and I'm happy for that. Take away TW and flash a custom ROM and the GS4 comes to life. I came from an iphone 4S and I feel the HTC One feels too much like an Iphone. I also hate the button layout, I really hate not having virtual buttons. I love the virtual button on my nexus 7 and the nexus 4. Samsung and HTC need to love the physical buttons.
[Galaxy S 4 General] rakeshishere:
This!!

I know people in real life who care about its looks than what it does. I always want more from my phone & wish Samsung had good UI designers.
[Galaxy S 4 General] barondebxl:
I also agree. I think that its pretty clear at this point. But yeah, android 4.2 is also to be blamed, it does have many bugs. Battery life on the N4 isn't good either and 4.2.2 is to be blamed as well. 4.3 cant come soon enough.

But like you said Samsung will roll out many updates, im sure they are working hard right now to fix things. That's why i'm also getting the I9500, it'll be interesting to see how it performs after Samsung updates the hell out of it.
[Galaxy S 4 General] BarryH_GEG:
Based on "11" being missing from volume, I wouldn't be too woried about it being h/w. The video barondebxl posted talked a bit about some s/w stuff Samsung's doing with audio that HTC isn't. It's probably related to that and that the s/w was rushed.

I've been using IR on Android since last year when Samsung introduced it on the Note 10.1. I'm a big fan. But it's funny to see "better" being brought up discussing a feature that's on less than half a dozen Android devices. The only difference is HTC's IR has the capability of "learning." That's only useful if you're using outdated components or trying to control non-AV items like lights and such. If you're doing the latter you already have better remotes for the job than your Android device. You also won't be using IR, you'll be using RF which you can't use on any Android device. So HTC's definitely better but it's a small feature in the greater scheme of things. I use these two just as often as I do Peel. And they work via Wi-Fi so don’t require line-of-sight as Samsung and HTC’s IR apps do. The first is Google TV and the second is from my cable company.
[Galaxy S 4 General] ste1164:
The weird 2 button placement was because the touch screen connector needed to be placed somewhere. Usually it would be under the screen where the speaker is. But as the speaker is there it cant be placed there so the connector is where the HTC logo is :). I know its a bit weird but thats the reason it was placed there.
[Galaxy S 4 General] puremind:
I have replaced WatchOn with another remote control app. I have also replaced the Stock dialer. I have hated the TouchWizz dialer on my S2 and two years later, it is still the same...

Funny you mention Samsung DLNA. Can someone help me read data from NAS devices on the S4? I use Blubble or Media House Pro from Google Play because standard App doesn't allow me to (would be happy if someone could contribute a solution with stock apps).

HTC focuses on doing a few things really well, whereas Samsung povides imperfect profusion even though Google Play apps has better implementations available. For every example you quote of Samsung being more functional, there is another for HTC. Just a few examples:

Dialer

Camera app (too small controls for 1080p, many frequently used controls at the top of the screen where they can't be reached easily, no option to save and share)

Browser (no text reflow at custom zoom levels, only one standard zoom level and even then browser lags even from another launcher)

Car App

Clock and clock+weather widget: doesn't link to the alarm when time is touched.

HTC Transfer Manager - equivalent Samsung functionality does not transfer from non Samsung devices.

There is no question that Samsung offers more functionality, but since it can be replaced with Google Play equivalents, I think they ought to focus more on the execution so as to make it really unique and value-adding like Blinkfeed does.

I don't think that HTC or Apple only make Apps pretty, I think there is greater care about ergonomy overall. If Samsung could have the same ergonomy for Software that they have for Hardware, that would be fantastic. It is not all bad, some portions of the Software are irk-free. But as a user I am still frustrated about some of the standard functionality.
[Galaxy S 4 General] Slai:
Of course, almost everything can be improved by play store apps. Lock at both devices launchers for instance. Dialer apps. Sms apps. Browsers.

Judging by out of the box usability becomes irrelevant in this context really.

Iunno, personally I don't lack for anything really. Perhaps a launcher that dispenses of the whole grid system and allows me to place things on the homescreen freely.
[Galaxy S 4 General] puremind:
Well it is not entirely true. For most items I have found my preferred alternatives, but for Browser and Dialer, Google Play doesn't work.

Stock browsers are always better optimized in terms of speed. AOSP is probably the only viable alternative.

Stock dialer can't be prevented from treating calls placed in third party apps for some reason

All I am saying is, if you can't add value with an app, don't...just put them in Samsung Apps as recommended apps or better yet, ask users whether they would like to install some recommended GooglePlay apps during the setup instead of that irksome bloating.
[Galaxy S 4 General] Slai:
Perhaps. Personally I use Dolphin on my s4 and it's a far more comfortable browser than chrome and stock. I don't feel it restricts me much, but it does seem to have some issues preventing mobile versions of sites some times.

As for dialler that's probably true. I never had a problem with the TW one. It finds my contacts, it has speed dial and smart dial, it calls when I want it to, and ends calls when I want it to.

Not sure what could be improved but that's just my own ignorance probably.
[Galaxy S 4 General] Gallis109:
nice

thats nice how much is that
[Galaxy S 4 General] Slai:
My ignorance? I'll sell it for fifty.
[Galaxy S 4 General] Gallis109:
removable batteries

i agree because when your battery is acting up just buy a new one swap it out an you good to go
[Galaxy S 4 General] puremind:
I want to be able to start dialing from the recent call list if a contact is not in that list

I want to be able to swipe through tabs instead of having to tap tabs at the top of the screen

I want to be able to scroll the recent call list and then once it reaches the end I want my regular contacts to appear

I don't want a 3 sec lag after each call is finished

Installing a GooglePlay dialer solves some of these issues but not all. I recommend exDialer.
[Galaxy S 4 General] Slai:
Fair enough. I so insanely rarely use any of those things mentioned, so I guess that's why it's pretty much not a problem for me.
[Galaxy S 4 General] leeoleelo:
basically it is all depends on your needs. It doesn't take a genius to even decide which phone do you need to buy if you really know what features do you need for a phone..? :)
[Galaxy S 4 General] puremind:
1. Dialer But why would you want to scroll to your contact when all you have to do is hit 1 or 2 keys on the dial pad. The dial pad is much more efficient at finding contacts. Weirdly, they use swiping to call instead, which is actually slower than a single tap. Try EXDialer - it is closer to the older Sense dialer, which I prefer.

It is not me who prefers swipe through panels instead of tabs - this is the new web development standard, which is why you see many web sites revamping their interface to be more mobile device friendly. In my product development role I frequently define specifications for new software, and my developers all ask me to move to the new standard, and I have come to appreciate the benefits. TouchWizz hasn't been revampled seen how many years? 2-3 years? Since then Tablets have changed the development landscape. It would be nice to see Samsung clean up their outdated designs and keep pace with the new standards.

Even their settings menu uses tabs, and they are at the top of the screen where they can least be reached. How does this help anyone?

2. Browser: Reader doesn't work well with many web sites and is very slow on web pages such as fr.sports.yahoo.com. Lags with no end. Also, the text magnifiying does not work on all text. For example, in this forum, different type of text will scale differently, and this is just a mess, as you end up having to custom zoom anyways, and text doesn't reflow.

FSJ and FT butter smooth on the One, even reflowing text doesn't create any lag. even in the desktop version. But the mobile version is pretty similar to the reader version you describe.

I don't care about diving deep if there is no lag. Hovering is associated with a slight delay. Could it be that the lags are due to the changes needed to enable air features?

3. Alarm: HTC gives you a choice to set the alarm via Google Voice or through the widget. Also tapping the widget is not only interesting for the alarm but also for other time settings - since the widget is here, might as well save yourself additional links.

4. Transfer Tool / Smart Switch: App can't be downloaded on other Android devices, so not supported. What I like in the HTC app is that it also transfers remote controls and TV channel mappings

5. Media Player: I agree but DLNA media players are better in the market anyways. It is not a feature that HTC is promoting or cares much about or they would have implemented more codec support.

6. App integration: What UI integration are you talking about? For the dialer, DLNA video player, Voice Command, Translator, Web browser and remote control app, I couldn't care less about a one size fits all interface and UI integration. Harmonization for the sake of harmonization is not what I want. I want each app to have its own interface based on what is more adapted to its unique set of features and characteristics.
[Galaxy S 4 General] shox22:
No problem at all.
[Galaxy S 4 General] puremind:
It is only when you have tried them that you start missing them :)

---------- Post added at 10:23 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:22 PM ----------

Regarding wireless charging, can someone explain the benefits to me? Can it charge from a 1 meter distance or do I need to put the phone on a dock like I would on a regular charging dock? Also does it charge faster than wired charging?