Xda-Developers paints a different picture of the Note 7

[queenren]

For now I'm using stock. I have Nova Prime, but haven't installed it yet on my Note 7. I like Samsung's animation and I like the launcher. I just don't like that sometimes it's kinda janky. I especially notice when I unlock my phone. The animation loading my home screen isn't very smooth. I haven't experienced what I would call lag yet. Just some stuttery animation. Just seems to me if samsung developed the launcher they could get their own animations smooth. Nothing I would return it over. Just an observation.

I honestly really do like the phone. Just a small blemish on an otherwise great device.

Actually, mine was the same way when I first got it. I did a hard reset on the device a couple of days ago and I have been stutter free since.

Most times, even on brand new phones, I will perform a hard reset on the device just in case there are any "kinks" in the software. I didn't do it when I first got the Note 7 (I was too excited to set it up) and I paid for it. But a reset did the trick for me.

 

[EnemiesInTheEnd]

He's not talking about the launcher. He's talking about the UX as a whole.

Launchers don't fix everything.

My Note 5 has virtually no lag using Microsoft's Arrow Launcher.

 

[slackerjack]

Well...and let's be fair...the people that are up in arms about "the horrendous lag" are the same spastic monkeys that live their lives on social media...the gotta tweet while Instagramming and the get a Lyft to their next Uber all while uploading comments and live streaming to Facebook. Most people don't live their lives like that and if they did...we'd have a world filled with more worthless sh...stuff to sort through than we already do. Use case people...use case!

I open Facebook on my phone maybe once a day, Twitter maybe once a week...I think I use G+ more than both of them...and that platforms got more issues than a phone can fix . 90% of my life is lived in email and meeting notes...opening those apps a fraction of a second faster has no bearing on my existence. Did you hear that...the mathematician is telling you that hundreds of miliseconds spread across your day equates to...nothing.

 

[eyecon82]

So far my Note 7 has been flawless. I've only had it 3 days but so far, so good.

I just want a decent screen protector. :-\

check out verizon...they have an awesome glass screen protector for $30 installed

 

[pool_shark]

I am not really implying anything. Samsung is succesfull for a number of reasons. Marketing is one of them. People that visit forums like this here do not fell for the marketing hype, but they are definitely influenced by tech reviews and videos. Many of them are part of Samsung's marketing.
Many are not.
I really think that a device so expensive should be at least as fast as a 400$ device. The fact that it isn't shows how badly optimized Samsungs software really is.

You're doing it again. You're like one of those people who say it's the video games that are making kids misbehave.
"but they are definitely influenced by tech reviews and videos. Many of them are part of Samsung's marketing."
I couldn't care less about tech reviews. As far as I'm concerned the only real world review of a device is my own, since I am the one that will use it for my own needs.
You are still saying the that marketing is the sole reason that anyone likes Samsung devices.

 

[dsignori]

I am just bothered to see a company enjoy success when it does not really deserve it.

Doesn't deserve it according to who? To you? To XDA and Anadtech? Please... who cares about those anyway? Spec obsessed folks who only care, about specs.

If you have the phone and you like the phone, it .... doesn't ... matter ,,

 

[petvas72]

You're doing it again. You're like one of those people who say it's the video games that are making kids misbehave.
"but they are definitely influenced by tech reviews and videos. Many of them are part of Samsung's marketing."
I couldn't care less about tech reviews. As far as I'm concerned the only real world review of a device is my own, since I am the one that will use it for my own needs.
You are still saying the that marketing is the sole reason that anyone likes Samsung devices.

I am not talking about you. I am talking about people that read these tech blogs. Sorry if I offended you.

 

[TJA3500]

Having a Samsung galaxy s2, s3, s4, s5, and note 7, Samsung definitely lags. Pure Android experience is way snappier

Even if everyone would agree that pure Android is faster than an OS from Samsung or another brand of phone, does that mean it has a better user experience.
I believe that the average phone user would choose a phone that has more thrills and frills than pure Android.
Myself, I've never liked stock Android. I've always rooted my phones and installed custom roms on them that had more customizations.

 

[petvas72]

Doesn't deserve it according to who? To you? To XDA and Anadtech? Please... who cares about those anyway? Spec obsessed folks who only care, about specs.

If you have the phone and you like the phone, it .... doesn't ... matter ,,

This is my opinion. You are entitled to your own opinion.
Samsung had for years a business practice that I do not endorse. In almost every industry they copied the respective leader. They have been offering cheaper products, but similar to the leaders in each category. Their business practices are very doubtful. They did that for years until they gained traction and became a big player in almost every industry they are in. Now they stopped copying because they don't need it anymore. I cannot support a company that bases its entire operations on business practices that I do not endorse. It is like supporting a thief that stopped stealing because he now has enough money and started a new business. I will not support him.

Anyway, back to the topic. I am happy for everyone that enjoys his/her Note. It is certainly a beautiful phone with lots of functions.

 

[EnemiesInTheEnd]

That's economics. People always follow the leader at the time. Now Samsung is the leader and others are following them.

 

[dsignori]

I am happy for everyone that enjoys his/her Note.

It really doesn't seem so.



You are right, that's your opinion about Samsung and you are entitled to it. If it were me, I would not be so obsessed with a company that you apparently can't stand. Samsung is wildly popular, people love their Samsung phones, and you don't. Hunting down the 2 articles out of the 100+ reviews that have anything negative to say is one way to go

I don't see any news here.

 

[LeoRex]

Well... lag is kind of a generic and misused term... because there are a ton of things that can happen on a phone.. there are processing delays, where it takes a certain amount of time for an app to launch, or process, etc. You have stuttering or jerky operation due to CPU scaling speeds... where it can take a little bit of time for a CPU to go from idle or a low clock rate to full speed.. there are GPU related delays when scrolling through a listview or a long page, etc. And there are also delays due to horrible optimized apps or apps that bog down while rendering content 'off screen'.

It's no great shock that Touchwiz is a bit heavy. Samsung stuffs a LOT of stuff into their framework and at some point, you come to a crossroads; adding functionality vs increasing optimization. Sure, in a perfect world, you do both and you have a zillion fancy features and it all runs slick without any memory footprint, but in practice, you sometimes have to sacrifice one for the other. With the increase in SoC power, a lot of the jank is hidden behind massive amounts of CPU processing. But, just as stuffing a ton of horsepower in an extremely heavy car doesn't fully hide the fact that the car is extremely heavy, there will be instances where you'll see some coughs and hiccups. But it's all up to the user as to how much this bothers them. If you want the smoothest, most fleet of foot device out there, you probably wouldn't be looking at a Note (or any Samsung for that matter) anyhow... it's really not their thing.

FYI: the messy GPU debug data with Hangouts? Yeah, a lot of that is Hangouts... on my 6P, if I just let it sit there, static with no activity, that same debug graph looks like a murder scene for some odd reason. Not to say that it explains away all the other performance complaints in the original article, just that using Hangouts as an example masks the problem because Hangouts, in its own right, is badly optimized.

 

[Gayle Lynn]

As someone that changes phone too frequently, from Note II to S5, and iPhone devices, 5s and 6s+, Apple ios lagging, and giving to turn WiFi off/on regularly. Wanted to like Appke OR Android but never could looking for 'right' phone.

Realky wanted the Note 7, lighter than 6s+ by 40 grams and 2x ram. Wireless, screen. Etc. But didn't want to wait, or buy ground floor first revision and not in til 7.xx was ready.

In between tried the BB PRIVATE which really liked size, performance, different flavors of Android. But had trouble after dropping.

Ended with S7 and Samsung S2 9.7" tablet.

Never read or felt validated over iOS poor memory management, or WiFi issue that S7 does not have. I never trust Apple fan reviews, and use to be part of Apple seed programs.

 

[petvas72]

It really doesn't seem so.



You are right, that's your opinion about Samsung and you are entitled to it. If it were me, I would not be so obsessed with a company that you apparently can't stand. Samsung is wildly popular, people love their Samsung phones, and you don't. Hunting down the 2 articles out of the 100+ reviews that have anything negative to say is one way to go

I don't see any news here.

I didn't hunt these articles down. XDA and Anandtech are very technical websites, and many people respect their reviews and opinions.

 

[msm0511]

Actually, mine was the same way when I first got it. I did a hard reset on the device a couple of days ago and I have been stutter free since.

Most times, even on brand new phones, I will perform a hard reset on the device just in case there are any "kinks" in the software. I didn't do it when I first got the Note 7 (I was too excited to set it up) and I paid for it. But a reset did the trick for me.

I'll give that a shot thanks! I thought about doing that, just haven't tried it yet.

 

[SteelGator]

I really think that a device so expensive should be at least as fast as a 400$ device. The fact that it isn't shows how badly optimized Samsungs software really is.

And if speed were the only important metric on a phone, you would be right. As you have heard from plenty of folks here, it is not the only important metric. There is a lot more that goes into what a person is willing to pay for a phone. I, for one, looked hard at the One Plus especially after the positive reviews. In the end, I made the determination that I would not have been happy with it.

Samsung does not have unlimited resources. They chose to invest in developing their software differently than you think they should. Ever stop to think that you are not the type of person they are developing for? The market is speaking pretty loudly that they are making good decisions and the right investments.

I'm glad we have choices.
Be together, not the same.

 

[EnemiesInTheEnd]

$400 phones are cheap for a reason. Yeah, they are a great value, but if you want the best it is going to cost you. For example, Samsung cameras destroy One Plus cameras.

 

[SteelGator]

This is my opinion. You are entitled to your own opinion.
Samsung had for years a business practice that I do not endorse. In almost every industry they copied the respective leader. They have been offering cheaper products, but similar to the leaders in each category. Their business practices are very doubtful. They did that for years until they gained traction and became a big player in almost every industry they are in [emphasis added]. Now they stopped copying because they don't need it anymore.

Are you a socialist? That is a serious question, not a dig. I read what you wrote and say DAMN, what a good company and a great success story. They have followed a very common business practice called being a fast follower. There are precious few companies that are founded on a truely revolutionary innovation that go on to be a success. Very few fast followers ever become the leader though, but they have. Their success should be celebrated. Apple, by the way, uses the same model . . .

Anyway, you have just said you are a Samsung hater because of their business model. Given that, I'm not sure how your thoughts on any of their products are even relevant.

 

[petvas72]

Are you a socialist? That is a serious question, not a dig. I read what you wrote and say DAMN, what a good company and a great success story. They have followed a very common business practice called being a fast follower. There are precious few companies that are founded on a truely revolutionary innovation that go on to be a success. Very few fast followers ever become the leader though, but they have. Their success should be celebrated. Apple, by the way, uses the same model . . .

Anyway, you have just said you are a Samsung hater because of their business model. Given that, I'm not sure how your thoughts on any of their products are even relevant.

I didn't say I hate them. Hate is a very strong word. I don't like their business practices. Despite that I did seriously consider getting the Note 7.
Everybody is entitled to an opinion. I am glad to have gotten my HTC 10.

 

[Almeuit]

That's economics. People always follow the leader at the time. Now Samsung is the leader and others are following them.

Some yes -- and some no. Some go with what they know / friends know. Others choose on their own. To sit there and say everyone is basically just "following the leader" seems like a far reach IMO.