Smartphones these days

[gray2018]

So is it just me, or is the smartphone game starting to get stale? It seems like there isn't anything exciting or new anymore. Year after year, smartphone manufacturers release the newest, updated version of their line of devices with better specs. But it seems like the past year or two, things have started getting boring. For example, the S24 Ultra when it comes out. Were gonna have another large "S" note-type device with an s pen. One of the upgrades it seems is the rumored addition of now 144hz refresh rate screen. Wow. So exciting. Not. I am sure there will be some other spec upgrades, but new features are nice too.

It seems like there really isn't any innovation anymore, and I'm sure that's not limited to just Samsung. Bring back SD card support. Bring back the headphone jack. Bring back some older features like IR blaster. something. Mix it up a little.

Anyone else having any kind of similar sentiments?

 

[J Dubbs]

I've found the folding phones, especially the Flips, to be a neat innovation. I know they aren't for everyone... if you like traditional phones there hasn't been much exciting going on in that area for a while.

I'd like to see some forward movement on possible hologram projections, so instead of a normal video chat you could do it Star Trek style but I'm sure that's a long way off I'd even like a true 3D screen with no glasses needed... Lenovo has already introduced that on a prototype laptop that got quite a bit of interest from the tech reviewers. Maybe coming to phones in the next few years?

 

[joeldf]

Smartphones are tools. Choose the one that best suits your needs - whatever they may be - and get on with life.

I've never really thought of smartphones as more than that. It's a rectangular slab-o-glass (except for the earlier physical keyboard phones of course), and been that way for more than a decade now.

I can make calls, e-mail, take project site visit photos, play my music, watch YouTube while waiting for my son in the school car-pool line... I don't need it to dance on the table to entertain me.

I only need a new phone if the old loses capabilities I need either because the phone is just to old or apps I use update to the point of needing newer OSs, or I break the screen - which has now happened to me a second time with my current S20 FE. I'm still using it, but I do need to new one as gliding my finger over the shattered part is not fun.

But, in the end, what do you actually expect smartphones to do?

 

[fuzzylumpkin]

Smartphones are tools. Choose the one that best suits your needs - whatever they may be - and get on with life.

I've never really thought of smartphones as more than that. It's a rectangular slab-o-glass (except for the earlier physical keyboard phones of course), and been that way for more than a decade now.

I can make calls, e-mail, take project site visit photos, play my music, watch YouTube while waiting for my son in the school car-pool line... I don't need it to dance on the table to entertain me.

I only need a new phone if the old loses capabilities I need either because the phone is just to old or apps I use update to the point of needing newer OSs, or I break the screen - which has now happened to me a second time with my current S20 FE. I'm still using it, but I do need to new one as gliding my finger over the shattered part is not fun.

But, in the end, what do you actually expect smartphones to do?

Then why do you hang around an enthusiast forum?

 

[fuzzylumpkin]

So is it just me, or is the smartphone game starting to get stale? It seems like there isn't anything exciting or new anymore. Year after year, smartphone manufacturers release the newest, updated version of their line of devices with better specs. But it seems like the past year or two, things have started getting boring. For example, the S24 Ultra when it comes out. Were gonna have another large "S" note-type device with an s pen. One of the upgrades it seems is the rumored addition of now 144hz refresh rate screen. Wow. So exciting. Not. I am sure there will be some other spec upgrades, but new features are nice too.

It seems like there really isn't any innovation anymore, and I'm sure that's not limited to just Samsung. Bring back SD card support. Bring back the headphone jack. Bring back some older features like IR blaster. something. Mix it up a little.

Anyone else having any kind of similar sentiments?

Yeah, we reached peak phone 4 or 5 years ago. Stuff has been very boring... folding phones are fun and all, but they kinda feel like just a gimmick because they can't come up with anything actually interesting.

Not sure the solution is to reintroduce old defunct features though.

 

[Bkdodger1]

I think we should be concentrating more on software improvements across the board and what they bring to the table.. If you're not into a foldable which I understand because of the prices and just in general people are not confident yet with durability then the regular slap phones there's really not much more innovation IMO to bring to the table.. most of these phones bring a lot to the table already...

 

[EnthalpiousKitten]

They need to bring back memory card slots in high end phones. I find it pathetically unacceptable to sell S series phones that have 128 or 256GB of storage and no slot, especially with how obscenely high the prices are lately. Most low and mid end phones have the slot, there is no reason other than corporate greed to not have them in high end phones.

 

[Kizzy Catwoman]

So is it just me, or is the smartphone game starting to get stale? It seems like there isn't anything exciting or new anymore. Year after year, smartphone manufacturers release the newest, updated version of their line of devices with better specs. But it seems like the past year or two, things have started getting boring. For example, the S24 Ultra when it comes out. Were gonna have another large "S" note-type device with an s pen. One of the upgrades it seems is the rumored addition of now 144hz refresh rate screen. Wow. So exciting. Not. I am sure there will be some other spec upgrades, but new features are nice too.

It seems like there really isn't any innovation anymore, and I'm sure that's not limited to just Samsung. Bring back SD card support. Bring back the headphone jack. Bring back some older features like IR blaster. something. Mix it up a little.

Anyone else having any kind of similar sentiments?

Hi there. Yes it is getting stale. For me, the pixels are bringing the most excitement this year. Their software upgrades linked to hardware upgrades are truly innovative. Have been beta testing iOS 17 and even though I have a 3 year old phone (12 Pro Max) there is nothing compelling with the iPhone 15 to encourage an upgrade. The new OS works flawlessly on my older hardware and the software upgrades are not as revolutionary compared to Google’s. I can see a clear upgrade from my 2 year old Pixel 6 Pro to the 8 Pro but there wasn’t between the 6 and the 7. I feel that Samsung is in the same hole as Apple now and their phones just have no compelling reason for an upgrade unless your phone is several years old.

In fact I have a Samsung S10+ and I can’t see any reason to get a newer Samsung. My phone has a ceramic back and 512GB storage and works well. It is fast and the cameras are OK. The screen is beautiful and for me getting rid of it is a waste of money.

So yes, smartphones have stagnated. The only innovation comes from foldables and Samsung has stagnated there too. The folds are incremental updates now and it is left to other manufacturers to move the format forward.

 

[MotorMike2020]

In fact I have a Samsung S10+ and I can’t see any reason to get a newer Samsung. My phone has a ceramic back and 512GB storage and works well. It is fast and the cameras are OK. The screen is beautiful and for me getting rid of it is a waste of money.

Not only have phones flatlined many years ago, but they continue to REMOVE features from the "flagship" devices, tout them as being the greatest device ever made at the hyped up unpacked events, and then have the audacity to charge incredible prices for the lack of functionality.
Ive been using an S10 for 3 years now, and was recently looking for something with a larger screen. Since expandable memory is a mandatory requirement there were ZERO choices from Samsung. So.... Brand new Note 10 plus ! And problem solved. Perfect device in every way. Don't care at all about the lack of updates. It will never matter...

 

[Joshua Luther1]

They need to bring back memory card slots in high end phones. I find it pathetically unacceptable to sell S series phones that have 128 or 256GB of storage and no slot, especially with how obscenely high the prices are lately. Most low and mid end phones have the slot, there is no reason other than corporate greed to not have them in high end phones.

You can blame apple for that. Upgrading storage in a smartphone is a rip off. But people have to pay for it either way. Either when they buy their phones or with cloud storage. I suppose with an android phone you could transfer your files to your computer, but I don't know how many people actually do that anymore. Unless they are a content creator who use their phones as their primary camera. Because for sure if they have a dedicated DSLR, they are transferring their photos and videos to their computer to edit them. You can also setup a home NAS to backup your data if you don't want to use cloud storage.

 

[Joshua Luther1]

Hi there. Yes it is getting stale. For me, the pixels are bringing the most excitement this year. Their software upgrades linked to hardware upgrades are truly innovative. Have been beta testing iOS 17 and even though I have a 3 year old phone (12 Pro Max) there is nothing compelling with the iPhone 15 to encourage an upgrade. The new OS works flawlessly on my older hardware and the software upgrades are not as revolutionary compared to Google’s. I can see a clear upgrade from my 2 year old Pixel 6 Pro to the 8 Pro but there wasn’t between the 6 and the 7. I feel that Samsung is in the same hole as Apple now and their phones just have no compelling reason for an upgrade unless your phone is several years old.

In fact I have a Samsung S10+ and I can’t see any reason to get a newer Samsung. My phone has a ceramic back and 512GB storage and works well. It is fast and the cameras are OK. The screen is beautiful and for me getting rid of it is a waste of money.

So yes, smartphones have stagnated. The only innovation comes from foldables and Samsung has stagnated there too. The folds are incremental updates now and it is left to other manufacturers to move the format forward.

I just bought the S23 ultra and I can see myself keeping this phone for a long time. There are so many features to use I need to take a class on how to use them.

 

[EnthalpiousKitten]

You can blame apple for that. Upgrading storage in a smartphone is a rip off. But people have to pay for it either way. Either when they buy their phones or with cloud storage. I suppose with an android phone you could transfer your files to your computer, but I don't know how many people actually do that anymore. Unless they are a content creator who use their phones as their primary camera. Because for sure if they have a dedicated DSLR, they are transferring their photos and videos to their computer to edit them. You can also setup a home NAS to backup your data if you don't want to use cloud storage.

Remote storage may work for most people who keep just media, but I need to have locally mounted storage. I not only keep an archive of APKs that I need access to all the tine, but I also use tons of space for emulator images (I'm big into mobile emulation of retro computers), and alot more things where local storage is needed. Sure wish my S10 Lite's OLED screen and battery werent worn out to the point I can get a decent mid ranger with an SD slot for less than repairing this thing, otherwise I'd keep this until the security updates ended and got too old.

 

[Kizzy Catwoman]

Remote storage may work for most people who keep just media, but I need to have locally mounted storage. I not only keep an archive of APKs that I need access to all the tine, but I also use tons of space for emulator images (I'm big into mobile emulation of retro computers), and alot more things where local storage is needed. Sure wish my S10 Lite's OLED screen and battery werent worn out to the point I can get a decent mid ranger with an SD slot for less than repairing this thing, otherwise I'd keep this until the security updates ended and got too old.

The security updates on S10 lite are at an end I think.

 

[EnthalpiousKitten]

The security updates on S10 lite are at an end I think.

Yeah or soon to end, not sure since the slightly older regular S10 series ended early this year, and they are in quarterly deployment this year. It sucks also that many phones do not have an option to run a custom OS cause of locked bootloaders, cause of done right you could extend the life of a phone without compromising security at all. Oh and never mind the zero day maintenance mode vulnerability I irresponsibly disclosed after Samsung ignored me, that allows me to attempt execution of certain types of apps during part of the mode switch process which is very dangerous if someone mixes that with the dual-encryption access that "direct boot" aware apps have.

 

[joeldf]

Then why do you hang around an enthusiast forum?

To stay up on OS and app development. That's what makes things work, and what we actually interact with.

I've made my opinions knows over the years on things like curved screens and now foldables. Stuff like that doesn't impress me.

 

[tismydroid]

Then why do you hang around an enthusiast forum?

Lots of reasons beyond being an android enthusiast to use this forum.

 

[fuzzylumpkin]

Lots of reasons beyond being an android enthusiast to use this forum.

That's very true, I'm just curious how you get to find out... I'm sure there is some very good conversations to be had on some car enthusiast or sports forums, but I'll never know, because it's impossible for me to care about those things to get there in the first place.

 

[joeldf]

I got here by first joining the CrackBerry forum. Since this was a sister forum, I was kind of already a member, just hadn't posted to it for the first several years. Then my oldest son got a Galaxy S2, then an S4, so I figured I'd better keep up with development of those devices. Then I finally dropped BlackBerry in 2017, and got an S8. So that's when I really jumped the fence to this side.

In the 10 years I used BlackBerry starting in 2007, I only used 3 devices - Pearl 8100, Torch 9800 and Z10. That tells you how much of a gadget hound I am... not.

I still post to the CB forums because I keep the Z10 running on Wi-Fi and maintain my email on it in case questions pop up there that I can help with.

Kind of what I do here. I really only answer questions that I can help with, comment on Samsung or even Amazon Fire tablets, and after all this time, make a few snarky comments... just because

 

[gray2018]

Not only have phones flatlined many years ago, but they continue to REMOVE features from the "flagship" devices, tout them as being the greatest device ever made at the hyped up unpacked events, and then have the audacity to charge incredible prices for the lack of functionality.
Ive been using an S10 for 3 years now, and was recently looking for something with a larger screen. Since expandable memory is a mandatory requirement there were ZERO choices from Samsung. So.... Brand new Note 10 plus ! And problem solved. Perfect device in every way. Don't care at all about the lack of updates. It will never matter...

Note 10+ is a fine device. Best phone I've ever used. Speaking of such, where did you get a brand new one?

 

[MotorMike2020]

Note 10+ is a fine device. Best phone I've ever used. Speaking of such, where did you get a brand new one?

I was able to get one on Ebay from a reputable (good feedback) wireless dealer. Totally sealed and factory unlocked N975U1... and found that it must have been made in 2022 because the software versions were dated in 2022 and came with Android 12 and UI 4.1 already installed.