Good article on why Samsung (and other companies) are getting rid of MicroSD Cards

[rushmore]

How is using a blatantly Samsung biased article an objective point of industry direction in the OP? Analysts say Samsung is doing it to gain the profit margin rather than card makers. That seems a "duh" point really, since of COURSE that is why they are doing it. The micro sd card business is growing and showing no sign of hitting a peak. New fabrication and tech also has caught up with the speed of flash and will be released in mass production next year.

The article respectfully reads like propaganda and not a direction of technology, but of one company's mobile division business model strategy for products.

 

[tech_head]

I need an SD card because I don't want to pay Verizon or anyone else to access my data.
I don't store my data in "the cloud" because it's not secure.
What if I can't get service? Then I own a brick.

I demand the ability to access my data on removable media and any company that won't build that phone won't get my business.
My wife tried the non-removable media with an LG G2. EPIC FAIL!!!!

Phone died and couldn't get her new pics off the phone.
Just say no to AT&T, Verizon, etc. to making you pay to get access to your data.
Unlimited for most folks is gone and it's the carriers that want microSD gone also.
They can then charge for access to your data.

 

[wvtarheel]

All postings since the note 5 introduction and only trying to derail the thread with pro Samsung arguments.I thought after getting caught with the s6 and the hired marketers Samsung would do a better job this time guess I was wrong again.

It might be time for your bosses to stop acting like Apple and get back to the stuff that made them famous. I.e top end phones with more functions than everyone else.

I'm not a paid shill, just a person with a point, who was able to make it without attacking anyone's integrity. You can't say the same thing. I haven't posted here for long but google my handle and you will see numerous accounts across all sorts of forums over many years including an old account on reddit where I'm a moderator on one of the default subreddits. Calling me a paid shill isn't going to sway anyone to your side of things. You just make yourself look like a child.

 

[yourphonemyphone]

How is using a blatantly Samsung biased article an objective point of industry direction in the OP? Analysts say Samsung is doing it to gain the profit margin rather than card makers. That seems a "duh" point really, since of COURSE that is why they are doing it. The micro sd card business is growing and showing no sign of hitting a peak. New fabrication and tech also has caught up with the speed of flash and will be released in mass production next year.

The article respectfully reads like propaganda and not a direction of technology, but of one company's mobile division business model strategy for products.

Most websites(AndroiCentral included) are too chicken to confront Samsung about this issue. That "other" Android website kept on posting stories about why Samsung wasn't not listening to its customers and insisted on removing the SD card slot from the S6. They were not invited to Samsung's most recent event... in fact, Samsung was so petty and they no longer ship review devices to them. Can I name the website and not getting AndroidCentral in trouble with Samsung USA marketing people?

 

[Dark Penguin]

I'd rather have 64GB or 128GB of fast reliable internal storage. Also, it's one less license that Microsoft can leech off of Android.

I wouldn't miss the microSD card with that much internal storage, either, so if that concurrently becomes the standard then my point becomes moot.

With my current S5 having only 16Gb internal, I definitely need my 32Gb external card, and may be upsizing to a 64 before I replace this handset.

Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk

 

[syspry]

I need an SD card because I don't want to pay Verizon or anyone else to access my data.
I don't store my data in "the cloud" because it's not secure.
What if I can't get service? Then I own a brick.

I demand the ability to access my data on removable media and any company that won't build that phone won't get my business.
My wife tried the non-removable media with an LG G2. EPIC FAIL!!!!

Phone died and couldn't get her new pics off the phone.
Just say no to AT&T, Verizon, etc. to making you pay to get access to your data.
Unlimited for most folks is gone and it's the carriers that want microSD gone also.
They can then charge for access to your data.

How is the cloud not secure when you can encrypt your data on your end, and then on top of that encrypt your cloud data on the better cloud services? Granted nothing is as secure as a hard wired connection, and never has been. But in that case you could also ask yourself why are you using WiFi on your home network instead of running Cat cables to every room? You stand about as much chance of having some creep in your neighborhood hacking into your home network as you do having your data on Drive or Dropbox hacked.

 

[wplust]

Totally disagree with article. It assumes that SD cards will be obsolescent because of data speeds, but completely ignored availability and cost. The domestic carriers are not giving everybody unlimited data, and frequent travelers don't have their unlimited music collection available at their whim. The SD card gives one flexibility. For people on a budget, it gives them the ability to choose lower priced plans, cheaper phones, and avoid additional cloud subscription costs. For travelers, they gain the ability to have instant access to more of their media collection. The cost of an SD card is far cheaper than getting a phone with additional internal memory. Taking that away doesn't add anything, it takes it away. The argument in this article has zero merit.

Sent from my XT1060 Moto X DE

 

[rushmore]

How is the cloud not secure when you can encrypt your data on your end, and then on top of that encrypt your cloud data on the better cloud services? Granted nothing is as secure as a hard wired connection, and never has been. But in that case you could also ask yourself why are you using WiFi on your home network instead of running Cat cables to every room? You stand about as much chance of having some creep in your neighborhood hacking into your home network as you do having your data on Drive or Dropbox hacked.

Heck, there are ways now to steal data off cards- no cloud needed- but public access wifi is FAR easier. Cards though require no wifi, no data cap use and less battery consumption. Very objective points that are hard to refute. We can apply subjectivity as far as the user's view on cloud verses local storage, but there is there is no spin that cloud is better in those regards. Go on a business trip a few times and see how convenient the cloud is. Especially overseas

OTG is better than nothing, but can't charge when using, another item to lose/forget, more likely to have data corruption than a docked card, and media apps / Android does not integrate with OTG too well. It does with cards though

 

[syspry]

Heck, there are ways now to steal data off cards- no cloud needed- but public access wifi is FAR easier. Cards though require no wifi, no data cap use and less battery consumption. Very objective points that are hard to refute. We can apply subjectivity as far as the user's view on cloud verses local storage, but there is there is no spin that cloud is better in those regards. Go on a business trip a few times and see how convenient the cloud is. Especially overseas

I was speaking purely in response to his security concerns

 

[Almeuit]

Heck, there are ways now to steal data off cards- no cloud needed- but public access wifi is FAR easier. Cards though require no wifi, no data cap use and less battery consumption. Very objective points that are hard to refute. We can apply subjectivity as far as the user's view on cloud verses local storage, but there is there is no spin that cloud is better in those regards. Go on a business trip a few times and see how convenient the cloud is. Especially overseas

You say it is subjective but everything is subjective. Such as your points above I could refute them really easily for my needs since anything can be subjective. I don't need wifi (unlimited data) -- battery? Never have I been out of power or not near an outlet.

So while I get you like SD cards you can't just look at it from your point and say it is hard to dispute since it really depends on a persons needs. That being said I can see why some are upset and even get the reasons behind having one -- Samsung just decided to remove it. Either from their research or cash (most likely both).

 

[rushmore]

Totally disagree with article. It assumes that SD cards will be obsolescent because of data speeds, but completely ignored availability and cost. The domestic carriers are not giving everybody unlimited data, and frequent travelers don't have their unlimited music collection available at their whim. The SD card gives one flexibility. For people on a budget, it gives them the ability to choose lower priced plans, cheaper phones, and avoid additional cloud subscription costs. For travelers, they gain the ability to have instant access to more of their media collection. The cost of an SD card is far cheaper than getting a phone with additional internal memory. Taking that away doesn't add anything, it takes it away. The argument in this article has zero merit.

Sent from my XT1060 Moto X DE

The most egregious is the data speed part. Consumers use them mainly for media and not core apps and new card tech has caught up for next year release. The catch is Android team since the G1 days HATE sd cards. Were it not for Apple's buyers securing most flash inventory for two years (iPhone launch), The G1 would have had 2 to 4GB of flash and no sd slot. HTC could not afford it due to the cost and this was the issue for another year.

We can ironically thank Apple that Android has sd slots in the first place. Consumer demand for them won't let them die and the are a multi billion business. Samsung is doing their best though to keep the money for themselves and charge more money for less storage- the Apple way.

 

[rushmore]

You say it is subjective but everything is subjective. Such as your points above I could refute them really easily for my needs since anything can be subjective. I don't need wifi (unlimited data) -- battery? Never have I been out of power or not near an outlet.

So while I get you like SD cards you can't just look at it from your point and say it is hard to dispute since it really depends on a persons needs. That being said I can see why some are upset and even get the reasons behind having one -- Samsung just decided to remove it. Either from their research or cash (most likely both).

I said that The points we can not argue are that sd cards do not need wifi or data and consume less battery. One's own feelings of these facts though is the subjective part.

@syspry, I see that now- I took the thread flow out of context, since it kind of changed gears. Sadly, "secure" is a kind of a relative term now.

 

[WarnerYoung]

And recently, I was driving around in an area while listening to my music from my Note 4. There was NO signal in that area. Literally zero (and they even warn you about it). I'm not sure what Samsung's plan is for when users hit dead zones like that. How are you supposed to access the cloud or any remote data?

Yes, I realize this might be a rare occurence in Korea, and pretty rare here in the US, but it does happen. And then again, sometimes even if I have a connection, it might not be very fast, or it might be intermittent. Or I may be getting close to my data cap. The 64GB MicroSD I have gets around all those problems. I'm sure that eventually, in 3 to 5 years maybe, the situations I'm describing will be rare enough not to make a difference. But unfortunately, I'm living in the here and now. When my phone can get a decent connection all the time, and data caps are "reasonable", I'll be perfectly happy to give up my MicroSD card. But until then, I still need it.

 

[Carrtman]

I'm not a paid shill, just a person with a point, who was able to make it without attacking anyone's integrity. You can't say the same thing. I haven't posted here for long but google my handle and you will see numerous accounts across all sorts of forums over many years including an old account on reddit where I'm a moderator on one of the default subreddits. Calling me a paid shill isn't going to sway anyone to your side of things. You just make yourself look like a child.

It's the same every time Samsung releases a new product and all of a sudden their exact defenses for missing important stuff are used. So if you aren't one of their hired marketers I'm sorry and I'll take it back..
But you basically called power users afraid of change when that couldn't be further from the truth.

Personally I hate change but I hate change for the worse even more. The thing is Samsung used to take pride in their unique features, they even went as far as mining as mocking Apple and others as so called wall huggers and now they are exactly the same.

If you believe cloud is the way to go fine, for me it isn't and it never will be I want my stuff locally, accessible at all times and being able to get my pictures, songs movies instantly from one device to another, that's what the sd card is ordering me and I don't care about benchmark speeds. In really don't understand why people feel like being connected all the time is the future when in fact mostpeople I've talked to see it the exact opposite way.

The note line stood for productivity and business usage now it's just a bigger s6 edge which is obviously a downgrade.

Btw. Not using the snapdragon 820 we'll be another mistake because this thing has the power for a 4k display.

Btw 2: SanDisk and others are offering 256 gig sd cards right now that's double the amount of the biggest non sd card phones. Thankfully the sd card isn't going anywhere soon

 

[wvtarheel]

The note line stood for productivity and business usage now it's just a bigger s6 edge which is obviously a downgrade.

Btw. Not using the snapdragon 820 we'll be another mistake because this thing has the power for a 4k display.

Apology accepted, not everyone would man up and say they are sorry. Thank you.

In regard to business, I am a heavy business user who accesses my windows laptop from the road via my android device using citrix on a regular basis. 128 GB on an SD card is a joke from a business perspective. Everyone using it for business (unless you are running your own one man small business) will be accessing their company's servers and DMS through the cloud. I count data in hundreds of terabytes, not GB, for my business. It has to be cloud based if I want access on the road.

In regard to the snapdragon 820, it doesn't get released until 2016 so not sure what your point is. YOu might see it in the S7.

 

[rushmore]

Look at the positive. Unlike people heavily vested in Apple's ecosystem, if not happy with Samsung's new strategic storage premium model there ARE other options. Consumers have a powerful voice in the process: To buy or not to buy.

Typing this on my Note 4 with 8000mah battery and 128gb sd card That would technically be a Note 4 160GB

 

[smooth4lyfe]

Worst article ever. It really doesn't matter if it's 5G or a 10000000G --- the speeds of wireless connectivity has nothing to do with why people want microSD cards. The main reason is because of storage (music, apps, pics, videos) --- you say speeds are getting faster ? Well until data costs from carriers drop DRAMATICALLY then what's the point ? Are people going to take a 300 MB video then upload it to the "cloud" ?? that will cost alot of money per data charges. Not everyone has wireless.

Wireless will be the new norm eventually... Wifi isn't hard to find now and in the future will be almost impossible not to find I believe

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S6!

 

[smooth4lyfe]

L O L

When this happens, pigs will actually fly. I actually think the U.S. mobile market, with its clinging to CDMA technology among other things, is behind the rest of the world. Not to mention the whole "carrier" dynamic, while it gets more phones into more hands, also gets in the way of a phone manufacturer's ability to deliver bugfixes and system updates, with all the bootloader locking and bloatware.

If the U.S. was getting ubiquitous wifi as soon as this comment made it sound, there wouldn't be as much moaning over the move to an Apple-ish "planned obsolescence" model for many Android phones. And the anxiety of streaming over "having actual physical media" wouldn't be a thing, either.

U.S. mobile market is frankly trying to shoehorn all the customers into their new "manufactured scarcity" revenue-generating model, and the pushback is warranted IMO.

Some cities already offer City-wide wifi right now. It's only available in certain cities now... Eventually it will grow

I even think it's possible for those satellite in space to provide worldwide wifi in the future... Maybe I'm thinking ahead but it's a possibility

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S6!

 

[vision63]

Re: Or they may find they made a mistake, and lose a market share.

Coke change their formulas all the time. Not long ago a can of Coke was 220 calories. Now it's just 150 calories. The marketing mistake wasn't because the product was bad. They just chose to make that formula adjustment a way to sell more Coke. By letting their customers know about what changed, the customer rebelled. If they just had moved forward like they always do, the customer would have been none the wiser.

 

[sstephen17]

My first Samsung device was a GS4. Loved the idea of expandable memory and removable battery pack. These were two HUGE features that separated it from the iPhone. I know several people who switched from an iPhone specifically for one or both of these features. Being able to swap out a depleted battery and go back to 100% is a killer feature. Not sure why Samsung would want to get rid of this huge advantage over the iPhone.

My solution is why not make two lines of the next Note? One could have removable battery/micro SD card and the other could be just like the Note 5. I for one would pay more for those two features alone.