It's upgrade time for me and I've gone for the SGS2.
I really didn't want to go above a 4 inch screen but the reviews here (http://www.techradar.com/reviews/phones/mobile-phones/samsung-galaxy-s2-930907/review) and here (http://www.engadget.com/2011/04/28/samsung-galaxy-s-ii-review/) just couldn't be ignored.
I've upgraded my Hero to a new, unbranded Desire HD which I've already sold on. I'm putting the cash towards a payg deal on O2 where the SGS2 goes for 399GBP - 100+ cheaper than elsewhere.
I'll let you all know what I think of it when it arrives Wednesday.
That's a very impressive phone. So thin and dual core too. I'm not much of a fan of the software that came with the original Galaxy S, but the review suggests they've made strides with respect to that. Sounds like you've got a bargain. Interested to hear more on this one.
Get them while you can. If Apple win their lawsuit they'll be flying off the shelves and into the bin.
http://www.pcauthority.com.au/News/255080,apple-sues-samsung-for-copying-its-tablets-and-phones.aspx?eid=19&edate=20110420&utm_source=20110420&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=daily_newsletter&eaddr=mpless@bigpond.net.au
QuoteThe suit notes says the Samsung devices too closely mimic the rounded corners of Apple's devices, as well as the design of its app icons.
Guess I'll have to get rid of my dining room table then. Damn those rounded corners, I told the missus to go for the square ones that do more injury to young heads.
OB, I was very tempted by this myself the other day.
Can you do me a favour? When you get it can you have a look if it has the O2 branding on it?
I am guessing it will have, but looking on their site I does not show on the front.
Quote from: Naldo;324053OB, I was very tempted by this myself the other day.
Can you do me a favour? When you get it can you have a look if it has the O2 branding on it?
I am guessing it will have, but looking on their site I does not show on the front.
I think CPW are price matching O2 on this and, as you're probably aware, CPW phones are unlocked and unbranded. Might be worth giving them a call.
that one of the HTC sensation for me i reakon
Quote from: OldBloke;324058I think CPW are price matching O2 on this and, as you're probably aware, CPW phones are unlocked and unbranded. Might be worth giving them a call.
I got my phone through CPW it's unlocked, unbranded and they rang up and negotiated the upgrade for me. Save over £300 on the phone. I'm with T-Mobile and I've rung them in the past to try and negotiate a better deal when upgrading and they're very inflexible, so it's always worth going to CPW and getting a better version of the phone and a better deal.
Looks real nice, waiting to see the reports from members OB!
Did you see the bend in the chassis :blink:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1aKCvG7SCo&feature=pyv&ad=7028836811&kw=android
I'd be worried about breaking something!
Quote from: TeaLeaf;324165Did you see the bend in the chassis :blink:
I did ... and put it firmly to the back of my mind :)
Quote from: TeaLeaf;324165Did you see the bend in the chassis :blink:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1aKCvG7SCo&feature=pyv&ad=7028836811&kw=android
I'd be worried about breaking something!
That looked like just the bcak panel to me, but I could be wrong :S
I'm very tempted by it too tbh, looking forward to the OB Review to be posted here imminently!
I am just in my upgrade period, so looking forward to OB's review as its this or the revolver (when it comes out) for me.
If you could get Carphone Warehouse to price match the £399 that O2 are selling it for that would be well worth it. The sceeen looks superb.
It's so big you could almost get away without having a tablet TL!
That looks like a very nice phone but I think I'd prefer a screen size under 4 inches, the Galaxy looks like a bit of a slab. From the video I can actually understand why Apple got upset with Samsung over this phone. It does look very iPhone-like with it's buttons and app draw. While only a complete idiot is going to mistake it for an actual iPhone the 'Apple user experience' was something created by Apple and Samsung seem to be saying 'That's a great look and feel for a smart phone.... lets knick it for our new phone.'
Yeah, them rounded corners are a dead give away!
:getmecoat:
PAH, ;-) The form factor is one thing bit it's so obvious that Samsung lifted the whole user interface from the iPhone. Don't they have patent lawyers on their payroll.
That being said who really cares, if it's a good phone grab it. Waiting for the review.
--
Sent from my Mobile.
I can tell it's turning out to be a damn expensive year. New phone, tablet and a gaming laptop all to be bought in the next 3-4 months. :frusty:
Quote from: TeaLeaf;324214I can tell it's turning out to be a damn expensive year. New phone, tablet and a gaming laptop all to be bought in the next 3-4 months. :frusty:
Nobody told you that you "Have" to buy all those new things.:narnar:
Yes I did! I remember telling myself.
Sent from my HTC Hero using Tapatalk
It was just the plastic back panel. As for not spending all you money on gadgets, then what else would you spend it on? Nothing...There's only gadgets and alcohol, and alcohol is unhealthy.
Quote from: T-Bag;324223alcohol is unhealthy.
Lies! Lies and slander!
OK ... first impressions.
This phone appears to be so damn near perfect I'm struggling to find the negatives. No lag on anything I've thrown at it.
The initial bad news was the phone was locked to O2. A quick browse on the XDA forums had me filling out the webform on mobileunlocked.co.uk. 15 minutes and 14.99 later I had my unlock code. Just need to get rid of the O2 splash screen and it's vanilla.
The screen is an absolute peach - jaw-droppingly stunning. But, to be totally honest, when I first held it I thought, yep, it's just a little too big for my tastes. But it's amazing how soon you change your mind once you've used the browser and the iPlayer.
This going to sound odd but I honestly think they've made it too thin. A phone that size needs to give more of an impression of strength. This doesn't. The plus side, however, is that when I stick a Flexishield on it it won't then feel too fat.
That back cover is a worry. What with swapping SIMs and memory cards it's been on and off a few times and although it still performs as it should it really could have been a bit more substantial.
More to follow but it's fair to say that, so far, I'm extremely pleased with my choice.
Quote from: OldBloke;324258OK ... first impressions.
This phone appears to be so damn near perfect I'm struggling to find the negatives. No lag on anything I've thrown at it.
The initial bad news was the phone was locked to O2. A quick browse on the XDA forums had me filling out the webform on mobileunlocked.co.uk. 15 minutes and 14.99 later I had my unlock code. Just need to get rid of the O2 splash screen and it's vanilla.
The screen is an absolute peach - jaw-droppingly stunning. But, to be totally honest, when I first held it I thought, yep, it's just a little too big for my tastes. But it's amazing how soon you change your mind once you've used the browser and the iPlayer.
This going to sound odd but I honestly think they've made it too thin. A phone that size needs to give more of an impression of strength. This doesn't. The plus side, however, is that when I stick a Flexishield on it it won't then feel too fat.
That back cover is a worry. What with swapping SIMs and memory cards it's been on and off a few times and although it still performs as it should it really could have been a bit more substantial.
More to follow but it's fair to say that, so far, I'm extremely pleased with my choice.
Keep us updated please as this could be the best phone on the market at the moment. Hopefully you can find something wrong with it as its seems all to good to be true at the moment.
DZ
Quote from: OldBloke;324258OK ... first impressions.
This phone appears to be so damn near perfect I'm struggling to find the negatives.
Sounds real nice OB, post up more as you get used to it please, I'm real interested in the user feedback.
If anyone is upgrading and has a clean condition HTC Android phone going spare, I'm looking to pick one up to geek with.
PM me please.
If as and when I'll have an HTC Hero being replaced. I'm hoping 'RealSoonNow'. I'll try to give you a bump when it happens.
Well finally went for it. Had my HTC magic since Android was first released, and it's still running 1.6. It has done me proud mfor the last few years.
This New phone is in a different league. Loving it. The "Swipe" texting is brilliant. As is the voice texting.
Still exploring the device, If anyone has any questions just ask.
I also have this phone, picked it up on Tuesday and I have been really impressed with it.
Samsung give you lots of goodies, the best of which (and most useful) is Kies Air which alows you phone to server a webpage for you with all of your content on your phone from your ringtones and text messages to call logs and 1080p video. Really cool idea.
Thanks for sharing your experiences folks!
I'm still on my HTV Hero, and even though it's rooted, running 2.2 and has given me much joy through the last two years, I'm really starting to fell the need for an upgrade. Haven't really been reading too many reviews yet, but my eyes have picked up the Galaxy S2 as a very good option.
Other then your general impression (both first and after using it for some time) of the phone, I'm also interested in how you find their UI experience (touch wiz, isn't that it?) - especially when coming from HTC Sense or stock android. And how easy is it to root it (and perhaps even install custom roms/plain vanialla android)? And I guess the battery time isn't anything more impressive than anything else these days (i.e. must charge every night)?
I too, as many others have said, feel that the size is a bit too big. I would prefer a phone with less than four inches... But perhaps as OB mentioned, he was sceptic too, but got used to it quite fast... How do the rest of you S2 owners feel about this?
Quote from: Bob;325912... I'm also interested in how you find their UI experience (touch wiz, isn't that it?) - especially when coming from HTC Sense or stock android. And how easy is it to root it (and perhaps even install custom roms/plain vanialla android)? And I guess the battery time isn't anything more impressive than anything else these days (i.e. must charge every night)?
Just as Sense soon became stale for me I could see that TouchWiz would follow suit. This is Samsung's 4th go at getting TW right but I don't think they're quite there yet. I'd been using LauncherPro Plus and Beautiful Widgets on my Hero's custom rom so I stuck them both on the phone and I'm very happy with what they offer me in terms of function and appearance.
Root and custom roms are a doddle (XDA is your friend :)). Having said that, there's been three official rom updates from Samsung since the phone was released and I'm not feeling the need (yet) to put anything else on.
I have no regrets getting this phone. Yes it's slightly bigger than I would have liked but it's only real competitor (HTC Sensation) is not getting anywhere new as good reviews as this piece of kit. Did I mention the glorious screen? :D
Today I finally had it with my old HTC Hero and ordered the Galaxy S2. Going away for the weekend, so really hoping it'll be in place by Monday :woot2:
I've rooted my Hero and installed custom ROMs almost since the beginning, as a bare necessity to get some half-decent performance out of it. With the S2 however, I assume it will work like a charm out of the box. I do consider rooting it (mainly to get full use of Titanium Backup), but keeping t the default OS.
But I have thought about installing a custom ROM straight away (I see the guys over at VillainROM have one going (http://www.villainrom.co.uk/forum/forumdisplay.php/225-Galaxy-S-II-Development), and I've been very happy with what they have done for my Hero). Do some of you that have used the phone got any advice? Are there any particular custom ROMs you have tried and would like to recommend?
And one more thing btw: have any of you found a nice cover/casing for use with the S2 (kinda like those you see for the iphone 4)?
Hi Bob,
You will have android 2.3.3 out the box which is the latest software released. There is an issue with the phone and this version were basically the battery gets eaten by the OS. There is lots of info on the web about this.
2.3.4 partially solves this issue, but has not been released yet. Although it has been leaked on the net.
I rooted my phone and as you mentioned above am using the VillainROM which solves the issue. I have VR 1.6 installed and don't have any issues at all.
There has been a new release of VR 2.0 recently, that uses 2.3.4 as its base. I have not upgraded or read into it yet as I am to busy in RL atm.
Might stay up late tonight and give it a go. If you want me to test anything let me know.
Quote from: Bob;328762And one more thing btw: have any of you found a nice cover/casing for use with the S2 (kinda like those you see for the iphone 4)?
I have a "barely there" case for mine: Link (http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004WWVJ70/ref=asc_df_B004WWVJ703608409?smid=A9XYKUKJ3LFFD&tag=googlecouk06-21&linkCode=asn&creative=22218&creativeASIN=B004WWVJ70) Remember to use the DMW affiliate link!
It retains its slim and lightweight look and feel with decent protection to everything apart from the screen. The phone has "gorilla glass" which I have to say I am very impressed with as its Uber scratch resistant and tough. It does attract fingerprints and smears like a magnet though. I don't have a screen protector on mine as it was un-pleasurable to use on the phone.
If I dropped it from a height the screen would break but that what insurance is for =).
Hope this helps.
DZ.
I use the exact same one DZ without a screen protector.
I have dropped the phone twice now and had no issues.
Screen is still perfect and I have it in my pocket with coins and car keys, not a scratch.
Thanks to both Naldo and DZ for your advice. I'm going to pick up my phone after work today, so getting really exited now! Won't have time to play around too much with installing a different ROM for the next week, but I hope I'll get there in not too long :-)
[strike]I also ordered myself one of those "Barely There" cases, looking good.[/strike] No, I did not. For some messed up reason, Amazon won't ship that item to Norway :angry:
People have been complaining about the battery life on their phones. I have just been to Germany/France/Switzerland for the last 4 days with my phone on but data off. My battery dropped 12% and I was using the phone for an alarm and listening to music for about half an hour. Really impressed with that!
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
Moved over to onto Lite'ning Rom v5.0 XXKG6 last week.
Will let you know if I hit any issues. This one is my favorite so far.
Link >>>> http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1095274