Samsung's Galaxy S8 Will Feature a Headphone Jack, Desktop Dock, 'Infinity Display' and More, Says In-Depth Report (theguardian.com) 146
The Guardian has published a considerable amount of information on Samsung's upcoming Galaxy S8 smartphone. The phone will reportedly launch in March with a headphone jack and a desktop dock, among other features. From the report: Samsung's Galaxy S8 will come in two sizes, have an almost bezel-less, edge-to-edge "infinity" display and an iris scanner, the Guardian has learned. The two variants will have screens in the 5in to 6in region, with the devices having the same or smaller proportions of previous versions of Samsung's flagship smartphone but with larger displays, according to several well placed sources talking to the Guardian. The S7 was available with either a 5.1in and 5.5in screen. The two smartphones are codenamed Dream and Dream 2, representing the smaller and larger Galaxy S8 respectively, according to two sources. Both versions will have screens that curve down at the left and right sides of the device similar to the Galaxy S7 Edge, two sources have said. The so-called "infinity display" will cover the majority of the front of the device, with very little body on the top and bottom of the screen not dedicated to the display. Two sources said there wasn't even room to put a logo or brand name on the front of the device. Samsung has moved the fingerprint scanner to the back of the device, multiple sources said. The Galaxy S8 will have a traditional 3.5mm headphone socket, according to several sources. Samsung also plans a range of new accessories for the Galaxy S8. Two sources said a new dock and service that turns the Galaxy S8 into an Android desktop computer, connecting to a monitor, keyboard and other peripherals called DeX (desktop extension) will be available. DeX has been likened to Microsoft's Continuum, which connects Windows smartphones to a desktop extension to allow them to be used as Windows PCs, but only with Windows Store applications.
One word: Cowardice (Score:5, Funny)
Jacks and docks are remnants of the past best forgotten and left behind. This is a company doomed to crumble by not looking to the future.
Re:One word: Cowardice (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:One word: Cowardice (Score:5, Funny)
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Is there any fidelity lost plugged your corded headphone into the lightning-to-3.5mm dongle on the iPhone, or a similar one that Samsung would use?
My understanding as a non-audiophile was actually that moving the DAC further away from the other components would actually reduce certain types of electrical noise. But even without that, it should be no worse from an audio quality point of view.
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It would be acceptable if they had a phone with a big enough battery that people didn't have to charge it throughout the day. If you could get 2-3 full days out of your phone, I bet people wouldn't care that you couldn't charge and use the phone at the same time. The problem is that people feel the need to charge their phone multiple times throughout the day just so the battery doesn't die.
Re: One word: Cowardice (Score:2)
My understanding as a non-audiophile was actually that moving the DAC further away from the other components would actually reduce certain types of electrical noise.
I'd guess that's usually mooted by the increase in jitter (timing issues) and distortion (cheap aftermarket DAC's).
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At best he adapter will be about as good as a basic phone jack. It's too small to contain much more than a combined DAC/amp and minimal support electronics. The amp will be class D, probably one of the newer types that uses a switching power supply to go beyond the supply rails.
Teardown here, but you can't see much: https://www.ifixit.com/Teardow... [ifixit.com]
Re: One word: Cowardice (Score:4, Informative)
The dac in the apple provided dongle is inferior to that in the iphone 6.
Re:One word: Cowardice (Score:5, Insightful)
Meh. It's not better if it requires a dongle (let's see them put an SPDIF port on a phone
Similar with phones lacking user replaceable batteries and memory card slots - that's just planned obsolescence, and form over function. I'm (and I suspect many others) am no longer seeing any useful innovation which would support the traditional 2 year upgrade cycle, so they need to force obsolescence. They better make it cheap then, because I'm not paying hundreds of dollars for fashion and bragging rights.
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Which, of course, is a remarkably easy argument to shoot down. Just point out that a sizable percentage of headphones sold (and probably the majority) cost under $10, and that any external DAC and amplifier that could reasonably be fitted inside a sub-$10 pair of earbuds without tripling the cost is almost guaranteed to be much lower quality than the DAC and amplifier inside even a low-end cell phone. And fo
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Personally I prefer a phone that's IP rated and not the size of a brick than one with a replaceable battery.
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It doesn't have to be the size of a brick to have a replaceable battery. Gluing the phone together like the S7 is makes it virtually impossible to install a new battery. It doesn't have to be that way.
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It doesn't have to be that way.
You should let all the engineers know that you fixed their problems. Marketing people don't care, they just want it thin, but you seem to have figured this all out.
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I'm (and I suspect many others) am no longer seeing any useful innovation which would support the traditional 2 year upgrade cycle
Exactly. I have a 2-3 year old Galaxy S5 now, and I really fail to see what newer phones offer that this one doesn't. The screen on this thing is already great (super AMOLED) and the resolution very good; any extra resolution really isn't going to make a noticeable difference. This phone is waterproof, unlike many others. It also has a removable battery, something that's mos
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Exactly right! Bluetooth was not designed for stereo audio. I know several people who have bluetooth headphones (not Airpods, none of my friends are that stupid! ) and they are all disappointed in the quality of the sound compared to a $5-$7 pair of ear buds. And the facts are that the Airpods are easily lost, must be recharged after every 5 hours of use, and will have to be replaced in a year or two (as the batteries cannot be replaced) and cost more than many Android phones that are superior in every p
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I have Bluetooth headphones and although I don't use them when I really want audio fidelity, they are quite useful for certain situations. I mostly listen to podcasts and find that my enjoyment of the podcast is completely unaffected by whether or not I'm using Bluetooth. The other situation where I use them is when working out. In this case, I just don't want my headphones tethered to my phone. I guess the audio quality is a bit worse, but I'm really not too worried about it as I just need something to fi
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Being an audiophiles myself, over the years I have learnt not to trust the DAC on board but to use my own. So, headphone jack is more than welcome to disappear, RIP.
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Not at all. For audiophiles such as myself...
Do you keep your cell phone on a vibration isolated sand table?
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Re:One word: Cowardice (Score:5, Insightful)
It's a fucking PHONE. I'm not expecting it to sound like my home DAC + tube amp and high end cans.
The inconvenience of needing an external solution, and the SEVERE inconvenience of not being able to charge the fucking thing while using a lightning headset or whatever, is enough to dissuade me from EVER considering an iPhone again.
If your friend is an "audiophile" why is he even using a phone for his music?
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It's a fucking PHONE. I'm not expecting it to sound like my home DAC + tube amp and high end cans.
The inconvenience of needing an external solution, and the SEVERE inconvenience of not being able to charge the fucking thing while using a lightning headset or whatever, is enough to dissuade me from EVER considering an iPhone again.
If your friend is an "audiophile" why is he even using a phone for his music?
OH, so NOW the audioPILE is arguing AGAINST The Absolute Sound?!?
And, my schizoid friend, my audiophile friend doesn't "use his phone for his music"; nor do I. But occasionally, we all find ourselves out of reach of our "good" systems, don't we?
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Actually a lot of audiophiles do use phones these days. Some phones have really good headphone amplifiers (Samsung especially) and most Android phones support USB DACs. There are a huge number of portable USB DACs available.
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Actually a lot of audiophiles do use phones these days. Some phones have really good headphone amplifiers (Samsung especially) and most Android phones support USB DACs. There are a huge number of portable USB DACs available.
So, all the people that have been screaming about Apple removing the analog jack, and here are people willing to carry around an external DAC.
Sigh.
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Hardly "all the people", just the hardcore audiophiles. The majority of people screwed by losing the headphone jack are the ones who listen all day at work and can't charge at the same time without an adapter chain.
And in any case, audiophiles prefer Android because USB gives you a much wider choice of DAC than Lightning.
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Hardly "all the people", just the hardcore audiophiles. The majority of people screwed by losing the headphone jack are the ones who listen all day at work and can't charge at the same time without an adapter chain.
And in any case, audiophiles prefer Android because USB gives you a much wider choice of DAC than Lightning.
Even if you "listen all day" at work with an iPhone 7, you would have had to leave home with around 10-12% charge to get into a situation where simply listening to music would run you out of battery. I simply can't believe that that is anything like a common occurrence, especially with people who "live in their phone".
I can see why there would be more DACs available for USB than Lightning. Hopefully, the move to USB-C in the new MacBooks and MacBook Pros is the harbinger of change for Apple's mobile devic
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This seems unlikely, considering that the iPhone 7 only has a small 1960mAh battery. Apple don't have any magic super efficient radios or a way to drive headphones that uses less energy than everyone else. Their off-the-shelf flash memory and RAM isn't lower power than the competition.
In fact, we can make some educated guesses here. The last iPod Touch (6th gen) had a 1000mAh battery and Apple claimed up to 40 hours of playback. Let's take their word for it, they are saying 25mAh/h in the best case (screen
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This seems unlikely, considering that the iPhone 7 only has a small 1960mAh battery. Apple don't have any magic super efficient radios or a way to drive headphones that uses less energy than everyone else. Their off-the-shelf flash memory and RAM isn't lower power than the competition.
In fact, we can make some educated guesses here. The last iPod Touch (6th gen) had a 1000mAh battery and Apple claimed up to 40 hours of playback. Let's take their word for it, they are saying 25mAh/h in the best case (screen off, everything in minimum power). So around 200mAh for an 8 hour work day, or 10% of the iPhone 7's battery. But of course the iPhone 7 has other stuff to keep alive, like the cellular/wifi radios (so it can accept incoming calls and notifications/messages), it has the Bluetooth radio to keep on for the headphones. Let's say the rest of the hardware comes out even (e.g. more RAM, but it's lower power), it's still impossible for it to play all work day on your claimed 10-12% battery.
Plus the earpods only get 5 hours battery life anyway so you need two pairs of them, or some other type which you must remember to charge up or keep plugged in.
So, you are calling Apple a liar?
Remember, the A11x SoC has FOUR cores (a first for Apple SoCs), and two of them are special "low power" cores. I would imagine that if you are simply listening to music, that is a prime example to something that can be handled entirely by the low-power cores.
Add to that that Apple is VERY good at power-management, and I would bet that listening to music on the iPhone 7 series is an EXTREMELY power-parsimonious activity.
Anecdotes are not data, of course; but with my iPh
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Go look up some datasheets for Bluetooth chips. In fact, here are some datasheets for you:
http://ww1.microchip.com/downl... [microchip.com]
http://www.bluecreation.com/fd... [bluecreation.com]
15 to 30mA for music streaming, which depends on range and how crowded the 2.4GHz band is. There is no getting around this, no amount of clever power management will help. Radios use power, Bluetooth mandates the time that the radio must be turned on, it just can't go significantly lower. So no matter how efficient the CPU and everything else is, all day
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Go look up some datasheets for Bluetooth chips. In fact, here are some datasheets for you:
http://ww1.microchip.com/downl... [microchip.com] http://www.bluecreation.com/fd... [bluecreation.com]
15 to 30mA for music streaming, which depends on range and how crowded the 2.4GHz band is. There is no getting around this, no amount of clever power management will help. Radios use power, Bluetooth mandates the time that the radio must be turned on, it just can't go significantly lower. So no matter how efficient the CPU and everything else is, all day on 10% is impossible.
What did I tell you about JUST looking at datasheets and trying to infer an embedded SYSTEM's requirements/performance?
You are the one that brought BT into this. Apple's battery-life tests were no doubt done with no headset of any type, or with the wired headset. Of course, using BT earpieces would bring that down a little. Now, LynwoodRooster, who claims to be a designer of BT devices, sez the iFixit teardown of the iPhone 7 shows that Apple is using a Murata-branded BT/WiFi COMBO module [murata.com] (See step 15 of [ifixit.com]
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It's rare for people to "carry around" an external DAC, just like you don't carry around a good pair of headphones - you have them where you listen to music.
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It's rare for people to "carry around" an external DAC, just like you don't carry around a good pair of headphones - you have them where you listen to music.
WTF ever. This is way past pointless.
Re:One word: Cowardice (Score:5, Insightful)
It would be one thing if Apple hadn't completely mollified the naysayers and those with beloved analog headsets by both including a Lightning-based headset AND a simple Lightning to 3.5 mm adapter cable; but they did.
First, fanboi, when you 'mollify' your customers, you're being patronizing and insulting - much like your post. Second, Apple's workaround requires an adapter, which adds a bit of clunkiness and can easily get lost. Third, the headphones then connect to the bottom of the phone - not the most convenient thing. Fourth, you can't externally power the phone while having a headset connected - and that's a big downside for a lot of people.
One of the biggest advantages of using a digital output that an alleged "audiophile" like you has completely overlooked Is the fact that, by using an external DAC, you completely free yourself from the constraints of the analog output circuitry in the iPhone.
True, but beside the point. Users COULD have both the 3.5mm jack AND the digital audio output, if it wasn't for Apple's laughable definition of 'courage'.
Didn't think of THOSE ones, didja?
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Third, the headphones then connect to the bottom of the phone - not the most convenient thing.
The headphone jack has been on the bottom of the phone since at least the iPhone 5c.
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It would be one thing if Apple hadn't completely mollified the naysayers and those with beloved analog headsets by both including a Lightning-based headset AND a simple Lightning to 3.5 mm adapter cable; but they did.
First, fanboi, when you 'mollify' your customers, you're being patronizing and insulting - much like your post. Second, Apple's workaround requires an adapter, which adds a bit of clunkiness and can easily get lost. Third, the headphones then connect to the bottom of the phone - not the most convenient thing. Fourth, you can't externally power the phone while having a headset connected - and that's a big downside for a lot of people.
One of the biggest advantages of using a digital output that an alleged "audiophile" like you has completely overlooked Is the fact that, by using an external DAC, you completely free yourself from the constraints of the analog output circuitry in the iPhone.
True, but beside the point. Users COULD have both the 3.5mm jack AND the digital audio output, if it wasn't for Apple's laughable definition of 'courage'.
Didn't think of THOSE ones, didja?
I knew I was using "mollify" incorrectly, but was too lazy to think of the word I really wanted.
You can either use the adapter or the supplied Lightning headset, or even a BT headset. Why would the adapter just jump off the end of your headphone cable? They do sort of "click" at both ends, you know...
Considering the iPhone 7 is rated at 40 hours of music playback, and the 7 Plus at 60 hours, this "not being able to charge" meme is kinda stupid. Plus, I can get 60% charge on my iPhone 6 Plus in around 20
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not in the same universe as what can be achieved with an external DAC
Having a phono jack does not prevent you from using an external DAC. I do it with my Android phone all the time: USB-OTG adapter + USB DAC. It switches over automatically and works great... But when I don't have a DAC and I just want to connect to a car's line-in, the 3.5mm jack is still there for me.
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not in the same universe as what can be achieved with an external DAC
Having a phono jack does not prevent you from using an external DAC. I do it with my Android phone all the time: USB-OTG adapter + USB DAC. It switches over automatically and works great... But when I don't have a DAC and I just want to connect to a car's line-in, the 3.5mm jack is still there for me.
And so is the supplied adapter cable. Your point being?
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Jacks and docks are remnants of the past best forgotten and left behind.
I don't really care about jocks and dicks, what I want to know is can I start a fire with it like the 7 could?
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but none run anything but android, so that doesn't really count.
Let them run Linux/WinXP-8.1.
Lenovo K80M
ASUS ZenFone 2
Take a Droid 3 case/design with it's slide out keyboard, removable battery, microsd slot(that can be changed w/o powering off), hdmi, usb, audio jack and put an Intel M-5y70 or more power efficient in it, that can run real OS's and that's all any respectable IT professional would own. Add a 2nd microUSB port to use for charging/bus.
Predictions based on Samsung Ownership (Score:3)
The dock thing will not be popular, even if it works Samsung will force users to use some terrible Samsung software and it will be awful.
It might be a pretty good phone though.
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Done well, the dock as desktop thing could be really cool.
But this is Samsung, so it won't be.
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Since this new phone (and the S7 and the S6 and probably the S5) will have adequate memory and processor to do all of what most people need to do on a computer, hooking up a big display, KB and mouse will finally get us realistic device convergence. ONE device that does all we need and we can have it with us all day.
Of course, when it falls into the toilet we're REALLY screwed because ... we only have the one device.
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At least that's my prediction, based on my own use of Samsung products.
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or it'll catch on fire.
Removable battery? (Score:5, Insightful)
No? Oh look, my Galaxy S5 still works great (yes I can ignore the crack on the screen...).
I mean yeah, it is kind of a nit pick but I'm on my third battery right now and will probably be ordering my fourth before too long. The S5 is plenty fast enough to do everything I do with the phone, including a number of games. Just don't see what a new phone provides that an old one doesn't, including some things new phones don't provide that old ones did.
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Yeah, but now you have to charge and carry around 2 batteries.
I'm not even sure how you charge your battery when its not in the phone? Chargers for just your phone batteries hasn't been mainstream since the StarTAC was a big deal.
To each their own, but the idea of carrying around 2 batteries isn't making me even slightly envious of your $25 2ndary batter that 'only takes 30 seconds to replace'....If i really wanted more portable juice i'd probably carry one of those external usb battery packs to 'charge on
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Which obviates the need for carrying around a spare battery.
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Sure, but if your phone wasn't 5 years old, you could get a 50-75% charge in under 30 minutes -- even without Qualcomm QuickCharge most phones in the last 2+ years charge at 2 Amps or higher. USB-C phones charge at 3 Amps or higher.
Which obviates the need for carrying around a spare battery.
Still not worth the cost of a new phone to me. Great if that is what you want though.
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Haven't spent over $210 on a device|phone. $169 Xiaomi, and the potential replacement, a Nexus 6, 64GB for $209.
I always bought the expensive phones because Verizon was going to charge me a new phone fee even if I didn't buy one. Now that they've dropped that charge, time to start looking at more practical ones.
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Yeah, but now you have to charge and carry around 2 batteries.
I'm not even sure how you charge your battery when its not in the phone? Chargers for just your phone batteries hasn't been mainstream since the StarTAC was a big deal.
To each their own, but the idea of carrying around 2 batteries isn't making me even slightly envious of your $25 2ndary batter that 'only takes 30 seconds to replace'....If i really wanted more portable juice i'd probably carry one of those external usb battery packs to 'charge on the go'. Even that seems more convenient than whatever you must do.
I think the point is to replace the battery when it stops holding a decent charge (instead of the whole phone), not swop them when one runs dry.
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I think the point is to replace the battery when it stops holding a decent charge (instead of the whole phone),
Could be. But in that case, the S5 didn't hold enough charge to get me through a day when it was brand new.
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Both of mine did just fine with battery life over the course of a day.
Perhaps you were holding yours wrong?
(One died a water death after being dumped out of a canoe. It did come back to life a couple of years(!) later. The other had microphone death, which I guess is kind of common when doing confirmation-biased research.)
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Both of mine did just fine with battery life over the course of a day.
Perhaps you were holding yours wrong?
If by wrong you mean "too much" then perhaps. Mine would last a day too if all I did was make a few calls and receive a few texts and check email once or twice. The S5 easily handled a day of just being 'on' just fine -- but fell over if before the day was over if i need to take a lot of calls, use the navigation, etc etc. While the S7 edge lasts a day of me me using it pretty heavily.
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Battery life on the S5 was terrible. Barely lasted me the day... often came up short.
My current S7 Edge generally goes all day just fine, sometimes I can even squeeze 2 if i forget to charge it.
My S5 got handed down to another family member as it is still working fine.
But I would never go back.
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And the 'pad thing', as much as I enjoy the wireless charging, is especially true when your phone lives in a case.
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Even not on the pad my S7 will have at least a 80% charge come morning if I missed the pad and my battery was full when I went to bed.
I never charge my S6E+ at night. If it's fully charged at lights out, it's at 98% or 99% when I get up in the morning. Can't imagine what would cause it to drain down to 80%.
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A new battery would last at least two days for me, unless I was playing games on it all day. With an old battery it doesn't bother me any to have it plugged in to my computer while I'm at work. Just can't see paying for a new phone just for that.
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What the duck are you doing to your battery that only cause them to last 6 months!
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Common factors : Heavy usage, battery often at 100%, heat, fast charge, bad luck.
And for replacement batteries : poor quality third party, refurbished, in stock for too long and in poor conditions.
Batteries also tend to degrade well before they die. You can live with it, many people don't even notice, but if you barely make it to the end of the day, spending $25 and 30 seconds to get a fresh battery may be worth it. The old battery can be kept as a spare.
WTF is an "Android Desktop"? (Score:3)
Doesn't make it actually practical in the real world.
You can do that right now (actually, for the past few years) with an iPhone using AirPlay (or the HDMI adapter), a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse (yes, iOS can use them just fine), and an AirPrint-compatible printer. Again, doesn't make it actually practical for anything but the most limited of use-cases.
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*Releases smartphone! :Look at all the things it can do!
"Nah its too small it will never be a practical replacement for a PC"
*Releases tablet! :Look at all the things it can do now that it has a large screen!
"Nah it doesn't have a physical keyboard, it will never be a practical replacement for a PC"
*Releases Android Desktop! :Look at all the things it can do now that it has a dock, keyboard, mouse, external screen and all the other PC things that make your PC a PC.
"Nah it still isn't practical for reasons I
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"Nah it still isn't practical for reasons I won't share"
I am not sure if your comment was directed at me; but I'll bite...
Reason #1: Lack of Desktop-Quality Applications (not "APPS").
Reason #2: See Reason #1.
Reason #3: If you HAVE to hook up a dock, external display, and keyboard/mouse in order to PRACTICALLY use your Phone as a PC in other than an "emergency" situation, then WHY NOT JUST USE A LAPTOP???
Reason #4: See Reason #1.
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It was only partially directed at you. Mostly it's directed at people who dismiss everything.
The why not just use a laptop, is the most classic example. Not all of us want a dedicated device for a dedicated workload and then the management hassle of working between them.
I put it to you, if all you do is type documents (there are perfectly find office tools available on android, your lack of quality applications if you define quality by doing what it needs to and not bolting on every tiny little piece of cra
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It was only partially directed at you. Mostly it's directed at people who dismiss everything.
The why not just use a laptop, is the most classic example. Not all of us want a dedicated device for a dedicated workload and then the management hassle of working between them.
I put it to you, if all you do is type documents (there are perfectly find office tools available on android, your lack of quality applications if you define quality by doing what it needs to and not bolting on every tiny little piece of crap ala MS Office 20##) and browse web, why OWN a laptop? Then when you look at the devices you have you'll answer the question of why not use a laptop.
I believe your example comes under the definition in my original post about "...for anything but the most limited of use-cases.", now, doesn't it?
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FFS, I could do that years ago with a Droid 4, using micro-HDMI for display and any random Bluetooth or USB OTG accessories that I felt like.
For the Droid Bionic, they even made a lapdock, with a built-in keyboard, monitor, and pointer.
Fast forward, and I can do it with an S5 using wired MHL for video display and Bluetooth peripherals.
Or just about anything else Android using Chromecast and whatever peripherals.
It's a shitty idea in that it is clever, efficient and seems useful, but really isn't useful at a
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FFS, I could do that years ago with a Droid 4, using micro-HDMI for display and any random Bluetooth or USB OTG accessories that I felt like.
For the Droid Bionic, they even made a lapdock, with a built-in keyboard, monitor, and pointer.
Fast forward, and I can do it with an S5 using wired MHL for video display and Bluetooth peripherals.
Or just about anything else Android using Chromecast and whatever peripherals.
It's a shitty idea in that it is clever, efficient and seems useful, but really isn't useful at all.
My point exactly.
Just like that Moto phone that advertised being a "dockable" "transfoming" device. Went exactly NO WHERE.
And as I point out, just like the Droid 4, you have been able to do that with an iPhone for years, too. Don't know ANYONE who actually would do that by CHOICE, other than in an "emergency" situation.
Maybe someday...
No Bezel? Why? (Score:1)
I mean, I get that it probably looks cool and all, but how the hell do you hold it without selecting something on the screen? I have an S7 Edge now, and I have to say that were it not for the extended battery life, I could care less about the curved screen. I want to be able to hold it in one hand without having to be super cautious of how I hold it.
I dunno, maybe I'm doing it wrong...
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I have an S7 Edge now, and I have to say that were it not for the extended battery life, I could care less about the curved screen
Yeah... i've had mine for a year now and have only activated the extra edge functionality via the side of the screen a couple times. I don't think having the screen go up to the top would cause me any issues. I'd miss the the physical home button on the bottom though if that goes away... its nice to have some idea which way is up. :)
The flashing when it rings on silent face down is nice... but could have been done with LEDs... doesn't need a curved screen.
The battery life is the main thing i was looking for
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Indeed, though I had the Note 7 and it had very, very good edge touch rejection. I have the S7E now and I mostly keep it in a thin case to prevent edge touches (and to keep it in good shape - I'm pretty clumsy). My biggest beef with both it mis-touches when picking it up - it's so thin and the case so slippery that to grip it almost requires you touch the screen. My second is the optical distortion at the edges - the Note 7 wasn't bad, the S7E is pretty significant.
I'm a little disappointed that the Note 8
Motorola Atrix lives! (Score:2)
Now when people have more data in the cloud and less on their phone, i don't think we really need a dock. It's a nice to have, i guess, but id never use it - bringing a dock someplace i might as well have a laptop.
Turns out jackless isn't taking the world (Score:1)
Headphone jack? (Score:3)
Waiting for the next logical step (Score:3)
Apparently a phone without a border is deemed the pinnacle of human achievement by phone manufacturers. Still, I think it's not good enough. I'm holding out for a phone where the screen actually extends beyond the physical phone. Not this sissy "right up until the edge but no further", no silly "wrap around and continue on the back", no, I want a phone where the screen is larger than the physical device itself!
What's that? Pointless? Impossible? Well, that didn't stop you for this model, did it?
Missing feature (Score:1)
I've had to return my S7 Note and miss not having a phone with the emergency firelighter feature. Will this be on the S8?
Too late (Score:2)
I'm very jaded about Samsung - nice hardware, terrible, terrible software and a load of bloatware you really don't want. Maybe it's an age thing, but the latest 'flagship' phones don't really excite me any more. The 'edge' screens look nice, but I'm not sure they actually add all that much to the experience.
For now, I'm using a Wiley Fox - it's great, it does what you want and you can uninstall all the bits you don't want. It's also £180 (compared to something like £700 for the newest generation
And more? (Score:2)
Headphone jack on a hand grenade (Score:2)
"Samsung's Latest Unstable Hand Grenade Will Feature a Headphone Jack..."
There. Fixed that for ya.
Note 7 Hardware Reuse (Score:1)
They gotta do something with all that recalled hardware from the Note 7. I'm wondering if they put it into the S8 or Note 8.
Yes on headphone jack, yes on removable battery, and please bring back my FM radio (headphone jack is needed for the antenna).
Bezels exist for a REASON, people (Score:2)
It's so you can HOLD the damn thing with HUMAN FINGERS comfortably, without covering the screen. My current phone has a mere 4mm between the left and right sides of the screen and the physical edge of the phone. My life would not be made better if the screen itself were 8mm wider or if the phone itself were 8mm narrower. It would, in fact, be a bit *worse* because my fingers would cover little bits of the content every so often.