Recent content by Altema22

  1. Altema22

    December Security Update

    Updated! U24 Pro unlocked on Mint/T-Mobile.
  2. Altema22

    What happened to Android Cental?

    I always liked Phil, and liked his Modern Dad content while it lasted. It's cool that Jerry is still hanging around here, and I still have the Ghostek Sodrop2 headphones he personally recommended years ago.
  3. Altema22

    Exit Review: HTC U12 Plus

    It was with a streak of rebellion that I ordered HTC U12 Plus. Just about everyone was saying "Don't buy it! Run the other way! Flee!", so I bought it anyways, and it turned out to be far better than I expected. Even now, I don't want to retire it, but after AT&T kicked it off their network...
  4. Altema22

    Retiring my original HTC U11

    We have officially retired my HTC U11. I used it myself until getting the u12 Plus, then passed the U11 to my wife who used it since 2019. Physically, it held up VERY well, and everything works. The battery was replaced once, the USB C port was replaced due to damage. The main reasons for...
  5. Altema22

    Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra DXOMARK score of 122

    Agreed. The P40 Pro was clearly better in the sample shots.
  6. Altema22

    Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra DXOMARK score of 122

    The DxOMark articles themselves are interesting and make for a good read, but their scoring system is an inconsistent mess. We know exactly why the Ultra struggles with autofocus: Samsung used too few photodiodes for phase detection for the sensor size, and you can only do so much in software to...
  7. Altema22

    Watch S20 Ultra vs Pro Camera - Can YOU see the Difference?

    The S20 does well, but I think it's main advantage is on-device processing. It's too bad that Samsung cheaped-out on the focus system though. The S20 and S20+ use full sensor DPAF with photodiodes built into every pixel. The S20 Ultra uses PDAF with just a few pairs of pixels available for...
  8. Altema22

    All weather apps are alike

    I care about weather apps, but mostly because I used to drive all over the place to company remote sites. During the summer I often drive a classic car, so rain forecast is important. Accuweather has worked well for me, and it also adds crowd sourced data. Oh, and they also have MinuteCast which...
  9. Altema22

    S20 Plus: Dodgy battery?

    iPhones keep displaying 100% even after the battery drops, and Apple does it to give a perception of better battery life. When my company was doing testing, we had to open the iPhones and take measurements from the battery itself. I watched battery voltage dropping from 4.27 volts down to 4.19...
  10. Altema22

    Wow, this forum is a ghost town! :-(

    I was kinda disappointed that they didn't release a flagship in 2019. They changed Cher's position and have a new guy in charge, and he says they will be refocusing on their flagships. So hopefully, they decided to put all their efforts into 2020, rather than release a stop-gap flagship in 2019...
  11. Altema22

    HTC U12+ emitting chemical smell

    That definitely sounds like the battery failed. I'd ask to buy the remains for parts, but if it had a catastrophic failure, then chemicals from the battery may have leaked into the electronics and ruined the internals.
  12. Altema22

    Goodbye, HTC... :-(

    Yes they did, and it came out very polished. Nice touches like the ringer control popping precisely in the middle of the volume controls, camera updates, improvements to the already fast performance. Matter of fact, the update brought photographs that are more detailed than the iPhone 11 and the...
  13. Altema22

    OLED vs. LCD

    For the most part, yes, you are stuck with OLED on the majority of devices. The mainstream exceptions are the iPhone 11. The HTC U12 is still competitive despite being from 2018, and although we own the iPhone 11 and Note 10+, I keep the U12 as my daily driver because it's that good. I can't say...
  14. Altema22

    Battery life

    No envy here, although the Pixel 4 is the first one that actually looks cool (IMO). Lots of cool stuff going on with the radar and stuff too. That being said, I've actually maxed out at almost 10 hours of SOT, though my average is only about 5 due to heavy gaming and video use.
  15. Altema22

    Battery life

    I don't plug my phone in when using GPS because it can do that, and still have power for the day. And the next day. And sometimes the day after that.