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just a little something. I tried themeing stock gallery that came with 1.9.1, and nothing stuck. Really strange, plus the top bar is all screwed on that stock one. I themed the fixed gallery I linked to yesterday.
there's really not a whole lot to theme here. The one think that gets me is the blurry background, I will research if its possible to keep it one solid focused picture.
works on low and high res.
the top title bar thing, was still a little tough to get aligned, seems to be a problem with many devices I think. looks nice ok in the 160dpi screenshots, but over 200 theres a tiny bit of mismatch, close enough for now.
not much to say, try it out and enjoy.
Saw the 'S' today in the flesh and................what a disappointment. Compared it to Galaxy 2 just on appearance and thought............
Not impressed.
It may have some technical tour de force BUT the physical appearance of the device leaves me cold. It is heavy, p-lasticky and does not exude quality at all. Arc S was ther too and looked so much better and my X10 looked like a nicer device than the 'S'.
it was going to be my next phone BUT this has really turned e off. it does not come across as a quality product in its 'box presentation'. Note I am not commenting on its technical performance. On looks alone it is, in the flesh, a piece of large, fresh water fish.
Sh 1 t.
Bennachie said:
Saw the 'S' today in the flesh and................what a disappointment. Compared it to Galaxy 2 just on appearance and thought............
Not impressed.
It may have some technical tour de force BUT the physical appearance of the device leaves me cold. It is heavy, p-lasticky and does not exude quality at all. Arc S was ther too and looked so much better and my X10 looked like a nicer device than the 'S'.
it was going to be my next phone BUT this has really turned e off. it does not come across as a quality product in its 'box presentation'. Note I am not commenting on its technical performance. On looks alone it is, in the flesh, a piece of large, fresh water fish.
Sh 1 t.
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Well maybe for you but for me it's the best phone in years (and have seen them all lol)
But why post in a user forum here puzzles me when you don't like it...
If somebody compares X S to SGS II, which looks like a plastic piece of shoot,
and says X S is "less impressive" or whatever, I say: buy better glasses,
or just don't use this stuff because it influences your perception.
How long will we read here about the ****n.. Scheissung.
I mean everybody has a different taste and for sure X S can be controversial.
But it's still well made, impressive and distinctive device.
doministry said:
I mean everybody has a different taste and for sure X S can be controversial.
But it's still well made, impressive and distinctive device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But, what a feel - just got my S
Well it's your opinion of course but the SG2 is butt ugly compared to this phone and that's my opinion I love the design and look of it, the sg1 and 2 feel like a fischer price toy phone in my hands.
Oke, thx for your opinion.
But mine is totally the other way around, I think this is one of the most awesome smartphone designs since whatever.
I in fact like the weight, the SGSII is way to light for me, feels like a plastic toyphone from wallmart or something. And it feels way more plasticy than the Xperia S imo.
I should receive mine this week and will be able to give my opinion, but I must say that until now I've never touched more plasticky high end devices than Samsung phones... Samsung sports nice specs, pentile or low res screens and the most shiny scratchable plastics... so much that their most advanced development in terms of materials so far has been non shiny plasticky battery covers...
Maybe Xperia S is 2 mm thicker and that could be a problem if you only want the slimmest device, but apart from that I seriously doubt it could feel worse than a Plastic-Samsung phone
And for the Arc, the plastics were not so good, in fact X10i seemed to use a nicer soft touch battery cover.
Maybe you just don't like the design, and that's all right because nothing appeals to everyone, but low quality plasticky compared with a Samsung? Hilarious.
It's been a struggle for me from day one to like Xperia S after using Arc for a very long time. Performance wise there are no issues with S.
Out the box it did have the WOW factor. My friend got white and I went with black and I personally liked white and I wish I ordered it.
Why I want to get back to Arc?
1. I don't know how much longer it takes me to get it but those capacitive buttons need to be pressed couple of times for me. Especially the back button. I don't know if it's because I am a lefty. But even other buttons, I seem to have to try second, third time and it only gets worse in total darkness.
2. The design doesn't look as nice as in pictures. Feels like an HTC phone. It only looks cool on the back side.
3. The USB flap is a joke and it definitely won't last long for me.
4. The bottom bezel is just too wide as I expected.
5. Front camera doesn't look well designed. You can see metal petals around it making it look like a rushed design.
6. Just too thick after enjoying the sleek curvy Arc.
7. Wish ICS around the corner I think Sony rushed this product which is mostly designed for Android 2.3.7. There is no need for those Capacitive buttons when I don't find they need spot on touch. It's like hitting a bull-eyes for me with back button.
Some Pros
1. Camera responsiveness is amazing.
2. Sleep SE UI which I love and can be had on Arc as well.
3. Transparent strip is super cool design idea. I might actually consider Xperia P after I read user reviews.
Give it a 2nd thought
Aren't u being a little bit harsh on the device
U may be right with some things about the design but it doesn't make it horrible to ditch it that soon...
- the capacitive buttons could be handled by doing a slide motion on it and that gives a dynamic more comfortable move and would be a lot easier for u than righties
- the design is more than awesome, yes not like the arc but it's really neat and every model has to be different than the other, that's life, and so what it's like htc (amazing devices)
- the flap is useful for making the device more sleek and avoiding dirt which ruins most devices in the future, and it is durable and not that fragile as u think, it will last don't worry
- the bottom bezel is nothing of any concern, i advice u not to look at the bottom!
- u may be right about the front camera but not that obvious and could be tolerated
- the thick design makes it more sturdy and well fitted design to hold in hand!
- ICS is not so far away from now, and being it not present out the box is to make u appreciate the device more well in every aspect after the upgrade!!
IMO, enjoy this magnificent phone and look at its bright side and the many more pros of this master piece!!
sevoflurane said:
Aren't u being a little bit harsh on the device
U may be right with some things about the design but it doesn't make it horrible to ditch it that soon...
- the capacitive buttons could be handled by doing a slide motion on it and that gives a dynamic more comfortable move and would be a lot easier for u than righties
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for this tip. The slide seems to nail it now .
I believe you are right about the design issues though. So much so that am now in a quandry over my imminent upgrade.................
kitsVA said:
It's been a struggle for me from day one to like Xperia S after using Arc for a very long time. Performance wise there are no issues with S.
Out the box it did have the WOW factor. My friend got white and I went with black and I personally liked white and I wish I ordered it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry for feeling that way(I wanted to sound like a Sony rep which I am not )
Why I want to get back to Arc?
1. I don't know how much longer it takes me to get it but those capacitive buttons need to be pressed couple of times for me. Especially the back button. I don't know if it's because I am a lefty. But even other buttons, I seem to have to try second, third time and it only gets worse in total darkness.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mine were OK from the begining and then I used the slide trick and made it much better.
2. The design doesn't look as nice as in pictures. Feels like an HTC phone. It only looks cool on the back side.
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Click to collapse
I got the white one and it looks nicer than video and no where close to HTC. This is much more solid that the arc and it looks nice in front (maybe since I have the white one I can see the contrast of black screen with white bezel).
3. The USB flap is a joke and it definitely won't last long for me.
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I agree, and thats why I liked Xperia P but I didn't like Xperia arc usb either, just the big hole that it was like a misplaced design.
4. The bottom bezel is just too wide as I expected.
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Click to collapse
isn't it as wide as upper part of the phone? If you are saying it is long then its because of that transparent part and whatever is inside that bottom. I wish they could do something about it but one issue I had with arc was that bezel is very low and I would hit stuff on screen all the time for no reason. Not to give credit to long bezel on Xperia S. maybe little bit shorter than this.
5. Front camera doesn't look well designed. You can see metal petals around it making it look like a rushed design.
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I could be less visible, maybe they wanted to show off that their phone has a front facing camera in marketing ads before release..
6. Just too thick after enjoying the sleek curvy Arc.
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Agree.
7. Wish ICS around the corner I think Sony rushed this product which is mostly designed for Android 2.3.7. There is no need for those Capacitive buttons when I don't find they need spot on touch. It's like hitting a bull-eyes for me with back button.
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Click to collapse
I would rather to illuminate the buttons on screen and only use the capacitive buttons instead to give more room to screen itself.
ICS should be around corner (beginning of April)
Some Pros
1. Camera responsiveness is amazing.
2. Sleep SE UI which I love and can be had on Arc as well.
3. Transparent strip is super cool design idea. I might actually consider Xperia P after I read user reviews.
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Click to collapse
All those + I am with you for Xperia P. I wish Xperia P had a little bit bigger screen and I wouldn't mind other stuff.
Happy to have Xperia S in white.
Thanks for your review.
Noticed the button response when looking at it in store. Right handed and found it a little unresponsive to my touch. Design is super cool though. Just wish they had waited and released shipped with ics. Looks promising, worries me the amount of them that have been damaged by people, just dropping a small height.
Sent from my LT18i using xda premium
Nimche said:
This is much more solid that the arc and it looks nice in front (maybe since I have the white one I can see the contrast of black screen with white bezel).
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Click to collapse
Build quality is way better than Arc. I just played with my friends white Xperia S again and the bottom bezel doesn't feel long mainly because of the white bezel contrasting from the black screen/glass part of the phone. Looks like I might actually sell black and get back on white. I did this same crap with my Arc. Rushed for Silver from Japan and sold to only get the darker one
All those + I am with you for Xperia P. I wish Xperia P had a little bit bigger screen and I wouldn't mind other stuff.
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After using Arc for so long and now S and with Galaxy Nexus for few weeks, 4" sounds tiny these days . I hate cases but I might just consider one for S. Few more weeks with the phone and I believe the sensitivity of the buttons will probably get better due to Muscle Memory
I have just got my xps it is great no issues at all
Everything is perfect I dont know why people are unhappy dont they know what they want out of the handset I do I am a powrr user this phone is the best out there and it is sony u cant go wrong people
Sent from my LT26i using Tapatalk
So go back then.
I don't know why you feel you should like this phone, taste is subjective. If you don't like it, send it back and stick with the Arc or buy something else.
Don't know where you are or how your bought the device but in the EU the distance selling regulations allow for return within 7 days (apart from damage/misuse obviously) even if you just change your mind. Assuming you ordered online, just do that.
What are the little (or big I suppose) things that make you love your Note over your past phones? Also, if you've installed ICS, what are the little things you notice over GB?
Personally, there are a few things about the Note in general that make it the most awesome phone out there now and the foreseeable near future:
*Obviously the screen. Better than everything out there. 5.3 inches. Bam. Super AMOLED HD. Bam. This thing amazes me and everybody who has seen this thing.
*SPen. I originally thought it would be a cool novelty, but not much more. Boy am I wrong. I'm Swyping this whole message using the SPen and tablet Swype beta. Easily the fastest and most accurate speech entry I have come across. Also, using the SPen is super useful to jot down quick notes. Lastly, it is also really great for navigating the phone, especially while it it's laying on a table or desk. The smoothness that the SPen tip has allows me to only use my pen hand, whereas using a finger requires me to still use my other hand to hold it in place in the desktop because of the friction of my finger.
*Flip cover. I know most people don't like it much, but I think it's great. Not only does it protect my screen in my pocket, but I also love having it cover the screen while holding it up to my head for a call, as it keeps oils off of my screen, especially while I'm sweating during any physical activities. The texture of the back also has a grippy, yet nice to the touch feeling compared to the glossy stock white back. Lastly, it's a great way to hold the phone in portrait mode like a book with my thumb right in the hinge/crease.
Now for the little things about ICS over GB:
*Face unlock. Once you take enough calibration pictures, it's super quick and amusing, not to mention ****ing awesome. I feel futuristic as hell when I use it. Haha.
*Task manager. Love the swipe to remove thumbnails. Way better/much more visually appealing way of switching between apps.
*Animations. They seem so much smoother in general. Not too much to explain.
*Screen dimming. On GB, the transition from bright to dark just before the screen times out was instant, and the stark change bugged me. On ICS, it fades to the darker setting, and if you touch the screen to brighten it up, it scales back up to bright very smoothly again.
*Swyping while charging. On GB, if my phone was charging, for some reason, Swype would get very jumpy and inaccurate, the trail showing a jagged trail I was supposedly drawing. On ICS, it's just as smooth as when it's not charging.
*Overall setup of the system. The menus, how you add widgets and apps, and rearrange home screens all are more visually pleasing and better to me.
*ICS versions of apps. I love the clean lines of the ICS versions, as well as how some apps are completely different like the ICS version of Google Maps. Included in ICS apps is Chrome beta, which is very nice and smooth, only I wish I could put it in a desktop browser mode, as mobile versions of websites are irrelevant for the most part with this screen.
*ICS made the black crush issue way better. I know they could make it even better, and I'm sure it eventually will be through either Samsung or our awesome devs, but for now it's much better.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using Tapatalk
+1 on the screen/size.
+1 also on the s pen and Swyping..
Also coming from a vibrant I must say the GPS is awesome.
sent from my GNote
I jumped from the Streak to the Note and I have to say I do enjoy the screen much better than my Streak, a lot clearer. But the 2 biggest reasons why I jumped was to move to a device with extra horsepower and a bigger community. DJ_Steve was a godsend for the streak but as time moves on, so do devs and I'm happy to be apart of a community where there are so many devs working all towards making our device the best it can be.
I love how people first make fun of me for having this phone, but then when they actually hold it and play with it they discover how awesome it is
I came from the Samsung Galaxy S III and before that it was the iPhone 4, and iPhone 3g and before that Blackberry. I have been all over the place with phones and I get very excited when anyone releases the next huge phone. My main plan was to get the Galaxy S IV until it was actually revealed and I felt quite let down but what it was offering. I felt like they 'appled' things up by just making tiny upgrades just to get people to buy more of the same thing.
Then I read about the HTC One and was a bit skeptical. They were raving about the speakers and the Ultrapixel and all the other features and I just couldn't get past the fact it was HTC. My friend had the HTC One X and I saw how it lacked in updates and didn't have expandable storage or a removable battery. On my SIII I had an extended battery and would still manage to burn through it in a day of heavy usage. So even though I LOVED most of the things about the HTC One. I was scared of jumping ship and trying it.
As the weeks went on and the reviews came out I begun scouring the internet for every bit of information I could find on the HTC One. I read every review and I swear I surfed every forum and at the end of the day I was still impressed by the device and figured i could get over the lack of replaceable battery and extra space. So I made the leap and got the HTC One on AT&T.
I've had it a few days now and I'm still as impressed with this thing as I was when I was reading all the reviews on it. Everything from the 'BoomSound' to the 'Ultrapixel' camera was spot on like I read. The names of the cool features might be a marketing gimmick but they really are the things that make this phone stand out and make it unique.
BUILD QUALITY:
Do I even need to touch on this? Every review, every person who ever touched this device all same the same thing. That it truly is a sight to behold. Trying to put it up against my S III makes the S III look like a toy. This is one phone that I don't want to get a case for (and still haven't) because I think everyone needs to see the HTC One because this is how quality phones should be made. If you read the forums and some reviews they do mention there could be a slight gap around the plastic antenna band, and on mine that is also true. But it is SO tiny on mine that I don't even think it's an issue.
BLINK FEED/SENSE 5:
I have never used an HTC phone with Sense before, coming from the Galaxy S III SENSE is a HUGE step up from what Samsung had. I would often through CM10 or AOKP on my SIII just to get rid of the horrid UI on the S III. I read in reviews that blink feed was almost worthless and most people wouldn't use it and so I figured that be the case for me too...but the crazy part is, I actually DO use it! While I am sitting at work waiting for something to happen or I'm at dinner waiting to order I'm actually finding myself unlocking my phone and seeing what is going on with the world through Blink Feed. I LOVE RSS readers and being on top of things and Blink Feed helps with this without me having to even load up a third party app or anything. While Blink Feed is good they do need to open it up to allow me to import my RSS feeds and what not (like flip board, etc). Blink feed isn't perfect but I'm surprised by how much I actually use it.
On to Sense 5 I am quite impressed with it. Typically I'll throw Apex or Nova launcher on top of the UI and be done with it but after putting Nova on it for half a day I actually ended up uninstalling it. Part of it was so I could have Blink Feed back but the other part is I liked the overall look of Sense 5. It was clean and the buttons were nice. I wish I could use the Sense 5 icon for internet on instead of the look of the Chrome button since that's what I use and chrome now sticks out like a sore thumb on the dock, but I can live with that. Sense has done some nice things in the app locker section by letting you easily search for apps/hide apps and even put apps in folders. I've found that I use Blinkfeed as my main screen and the app launcher as my 'second screen'. I don't even bother swiping over any more to show more home screens.
CAMERA
The camera was the real reason I was excited about this phone. It was something different and something that sounded amazing on paper. HTC was doing something radically different and instead of going the way of the MegaPixel war, HTC was bypassing it completely. And for me, their bet has paid off. This camera will not be for everyone. For people who want amazing clear and detailed pictures then 4MP will probably not be enough. But I'm the kind of person who likes capturing the moments through out my day and sharing them with friends on FB or on G+. I like taking pictures during almost everything and the HTC One helps me with that tremendously.
Zoe mode is a nice change of pace where instead of just capturing a still pic it does the still with 3 seconds of video/sound. This allows you to then find the perfect picture in the 3 second period and edit and save that or even do things such as picking the best face from people in the photo and combining it into one, removing objects in the background, actually making peoples faces skinnier and many other tweaks. There are some options I don't think I'll ever use such as the option to make eyes bigger but I've used it to make funny pictures of my family by making them look like aliens!
The highlight reel is pretty neat and I find myself creating them and posting them to facebook. I think it was completely stupid of HTC to only include 4 themes and make it that you can't use custom music/themes but I have my fingers crossed that that functionality is coming. The highlight reel is a lot like the blink feed. It's a great start to something that can really shine, but HTC needs to get off it's butt and finish it to make it stand above the crowd.
The UI for the camera isn't very pretty or intuitive but the amount of options it offers easily makes up for it. Coming from the SIII it's pretty cool to be able to change everything about the camera settings and it allows people who take the time to learn to capture some pretty impressive shots. Even on full auto it takes good pictures but I think that one will need to learn to adjust the settings based on the situation they are in to get the best photos possible.
The lowlight shooting is hands down amazing. I was able to take a shot around 830 at night after the sun set, the cars on the road had their headlights on and the street lights on the side of the road were on, but the HTC One captured enough light to make it look like the sun was still out. It is crazy how much light this camera captures and when you're like me and love capturing photos of your kids in the house and might not always be in perfect lighting, then this phone is fantastic. Thanks to the quick capturing taking pictures of fast moving objects is also quite enjoyable. On the SIII (not so much on the iPhone) capturing moving objects would lead to very blurry photos, that isn't the case on the One.
I know this section got a bit big but I just wanted to run down some things about it. I didn't even mention the slow motion video, the hdr, the video hdr and other things such as the sequence shot. I have used the HDR pictures (there is a tweak out there on custom roms to enable front camera HDR too) and it's QUICK. The slow motion video makes the video quality really bad but it's still a fun effect. The camera is just something you need to use to be able to fully comprehend. I'll take a photo of something and show someone and they look at me like I'm crazy because they don't understand why I'm so excited about the picture. It's hard to describe just how low the lighting was in it and how awesome the One captured the photo.
BOOM SOUND/MICS:
Stupid name, awesome feature. I never understood why phones put the speakers on the back/bottom. It never made sense. The screen is on the front so why would I want the sound coming from a different location?! On the iPhones the speaker was on the bottom and on the S III it was on the back and I'd have to do this weird cupping movement with my hand to get the sound to make it around to the front of the phone just so I could actually hear what I was watching! And if I put the phone down some where then it'd get all muffled and horrible. The One does not have this problem at all. I'd say the front speakers can be on par with some netbooks/tablets if not louder. This makes watching videos/listening to music or even taking speaker calls a very good experience. It also has dual membrane mics that do a great job at making sure that you're recording sounds of things you actually want to record. Apparently the company that made them for HTC is being sued in Europe because they were supposed to wait 12 months to use them in another phone, but HTC isn't being held liable in that because HTC had no idea.
Now most of this review seems like it's all glowing and perfect for the One but it does have some issues. Things such as Blink Feed and the Highlight Reel (2 huge features HTC touted) feeling like they aren't finished. Or the fact the LED is only 2 colors (I miss being able to have the Notification LED on the S III let me know exactly what the notification was for before I even had the phone in my hand). I also know this isn't a big thing but I always feel like I'm going to scratch the phone when I set it down someplace just because of the noise it makes. Hard to describe but when you put something metal down it makes quite a bit of noise. I know it won't scratch or anything, but in my mind I can't convince myself it won't!
At the end of the day, I'm in love with the phone. It fits me and my life style perfectly and it captures why I love smart phones. I don't take pictures of my food but I spend a lot of my day capturing memories and sharing them with the people close to me. The HTC One makes doing that and keeping it organized thanks to events very easy! I would still recommend the S III to anyone that wants a great cheaper phone (specially since the price has dropped on it). But if someone asks me what the best phone in, I will say the HTC One without hesitating.
Same thing was going on with me, but I knew HTC always made high quality build phones. I took the jump from an N4 and haven't looked back. Your review was awesome and right on par with my thoughts about this phone too.
Sent from my HTC One using XDA Premium HD app
Great little review! Thanks for taking the time to write it up. I'm trying to hold off on getting the One, but I don't think I can after seeing it all over the place. The thing just looks too damn nice. I'm also really over the plastic body of the S3.
I got a question for ya though.. How is multitasking on the One? I completely hated it on the One X and even ended up returning the phone. I wouldn't even call it multitasking tbh. Dunno if you ever used the One X, but I was curious if any of the problems still persist.
Sent from my SGH-I747 using xda premium
ovoxo. said:
Great little review! Thanks for taking the time to write it up. I'm trying to hold off on getting the One, but I don't think I can after seeing it all over the place. The thing just looks too damn nice. I'm also really over the plastic body of the S3.
I got a question for ya though.. How is multitasking on the One? I completely hated it on the One X and even ended up returning the phone. I wouldn't even call it multitasking tbh. Dunno if you ever used the One X, but I was curious if any of the problems still persist.
Sent from my SGH-I747 using xda premium
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The multitasking was one of the things that turned me off about that phone. From what I heard it'd start closing things after you had one or two things open. With the One I haven't noticed anything like that and when I open my 'Open Apps' by double tapping home it is always full. Now it only shows 9 open apps at any given time. I'm not sure if it closes other apps if you get over that number or not. But if that's the case it hasn't affected my use at all. Maybe HTC wised up after the bad reviews or maybe it's because it has better memory management.
Thanks for the review robamacaf! Well written and very informative.
I have also grown tired of Samsung plastics and gimmicks. My recent devices have been HTC One X, iPhone 5, Galaxy S3, and a Galaxy Note 2.
HTC has always made nice hardware. Dare I say that even the One X had pretty good build quality when compared to the S3.
Like you, I assumed one of the 1st things I would do on the One would be to find a way to rid myself of BlinkFeed. That crazy thing happened to me as well and now I find myself using it and loving it.
Thanks for the awesome review!