S9 Plus going back

[andrew_ackley]

So you got the phone today, and you already had a bunch of screen protectors already ready to go, tried all of them, determined in a matter of hours that it’s slow, and not as fast as a Pixel?

Man, you’re fast lol

That's what I thought. He's just trolling smh

 

[NIZMOZ44]

Got it today, and came to this sobering conclusion fairly quickly:

- feels much slower than the Pixel 2 XL I sold for this one. Talking about the Exynos version

- won’t work with any kind of screen protector I’ve tried so far (two glass, one plastic). First phone I’ve ever had that gets its sensitivity drastically reduced even with a plastic screen protector. I won’t use this without a screen protector, too clumsy for that.

- while previous S8s and the Note 8 allowed me to uninstall most of the Samsung bloatware, this one doesn’t. Could be a carrier specific thing though.

- camera is great I suppose but won’t make up for the points above

Not sure how Samsung is planning on getting away with that, considering the S9 Plus with 64gb costs more than an iPhone here.

Anyway, first Samsung phone I’ve ever sent back. Had really been looking forward to this one :-(

My Note 8 with this protector on it works great. No issues with sensitivity.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...ag=hawk-future-20&ascsubtag=UUacUvbUpU6184761

 

[zipro]

So you got the phone today, and you already had a bunch of screen protectors already ready to go, tried all of them, determined in a matter of hours that it’s slow, and not as fast as a Pixel?

yes, and your point being? They ship earlier here than in the US - I always order a few protectors because usually one of them doesn't work or I mess up the installation. And yeah, the speed difference is painfully obvious.

 

[zipro]

Sounds honestly like u werent sure if u wanted it in the first place and are just looking to justify sending it back.

Uh no - that's not true. I really wanted it, mainly because the Pixel has a terrible screen.

 

[zipro]

Anyone that has their already, can you see if Samsung removed the picture in picture feature? You should be able to hit the home button whole watching Netflix, YouTube or navigating on maps and it'll keep a small window open instead of closing it out.

yeah that's not there as far as I can tell

 

[zipro]

My Note 8 with this protector on it works great. No issues with sensitivity.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...ag=hawk-future-20&ascsubtag=UUacUvbUpU6184918

Thanks - I never had an issue with screen protectors on the Note - the S9+ seems to have a less sensitive panel though.

 

[zipro]

And for those who are saying I’m lying / trolling: here are the ones I’ve tried so far. The Eiger is on at the moment but sucks just as bad as the others.

 

[chanchan05]

Anyone that has their already, can you see if Samsung removed the picture in picture feature? You should be able to hit the home button whole watching Netflix, YouTube or navigating on maps and it'll keep a small window open instead of closing it out.

Doubt they remove it. They've had that since Marshmallow. Here's a screenshot from an S7 Edge on Nougat. Picture in picture in picture.

 

[zipro]

And here's a brief speed comparison between the two. It's unscientific but illustrates my point - the Pixel 2XL doesn't just feel a lot zippier to me overall, despite it's last-gen processor and smaller RAM size, it also loads larger apps faster in my opinion.

For this setup, the S9+ was set to FDH+ resolution and no apps were in the background on either phone.

Only thing I noticed is that the network speed seems slower on the Pixel 2XL, at least for my setup here (Unifi AC-Pro, both phones connected to the same 5ghz WLAN).

https://youtu.be/Dpryfk4LsjI

 

[anon(1733)]

I would try the Zagg Elite. It got great reviews on the Note 8 as well as the White Dome. Like I said previously. Out of all the reviews I read those are the only two consistent ones that were good. Well the first Zagg was horrible. They changed it around December and It seems they figured it out.

 

[chanchan05]

And here's a brief speed comparison between the two. It's unscientific but illustrates my point - the Pixel 2XL doesn't just feel a lot zippier to me overall, despite it's last-gen processor and smaller RAM size, it also loads larger apps faster in my opinion.

For this setup, the S9+ was set to FDH+ resolution and no apps were in the background on either phone.

Only thing I noticed is that the network speed seems slower on the Pixel 2XL, at least for my setup here (Unifi AC-Pro, both phones connected to the same 5ghz WLAN).

https://youtu.be/Dpryfk4LsjI

Except there are caveats.

1. Two phones with the exact same hardware don't load the same game at the same speed, what more 2 phones of different hardware and optimization. You would better portray what you are claiming using multiple different apps and games like how phonebuff and xeetechcare does.

2. We know that the S9 SoC is supposedly more powerful, but with intentional crippling. Considering the crippling is a hardwarw throttle, I'd expect subsequent monthly updates to include performance tweaks.

Those are the only things you need to consider when faced when an S9 that is performing less than expected.

But anyhow, I agree with the above posters that you do not buy Samsung for the speed. Historically the Snapdragon Samsungs are among the lower end of speed among their peers. When buying a Samsung, you should know that all their features come at the price of absolute performance.

 

[neil74]

I too have read that the exynos version should be faster than the SD version. If it is not then this is either a software or hardware issue that I would expect to be resolved either with an update or replacement.

Mine arrived today, setting it up now....

 

[zipro]

Except there are caveats.

1. Two phones with the exact same hardware don't load the same game at the same speed, what more 2 phones of different hardware and optimization. You would better portray what you are claiming using multiple different apps and games like how phonebuff and xeetechcare does.

2. We know that the S9 SoC is supposedly more powerful, but with intentional crippling. Considering the crippling is a hardwarw throttle, I'd expect subsequent monthly updates to include performance tweaks.

Those are the only things you need to consider when faced when an S9 that is performing less than expected.

But anyhow, I agree with the above posters that you do not buy Samsung for the speed. Historically the Snapdragon Samsungs are among the lower end of speed among their peers. When buying a Samsung, you should know that all their features come at the price of absolute performance.

I agree with all of what you said - the question is just: why would you buy an S9 over a Pixel? I personally hate the Pixel's screen, that's why I figured I'd try the S9+. But apart from that, camera-wise the Pixel is excellent (as is the Samsung), but the S9 is slower and yeah, the screen protectors are an issue for a lot of people - I'm sure I'm not the only one here.

 

[chanchan05]

I agree with all of what you said - the question is just: why would you buy an S9 over a Pixel? I personally hate the Pixel's screen, that's why I figured I'd try the S9+. But apart from that, camera-wise the Pixel is excellent (as is the Samsung), but the S9 is slower and yeah, the screen protectors are an issue for a lot of people - I'm sure I'm not the only one here.

Personally I would buy a Samsung over a Pixel for several reasons, most of which probably will not apply to you folks, but boils down to two things:

Support. I live in South East Asia, and Google is practically nonexistent here in terms of services. Play Music isn't available, selection on Movies and TV and Books are horrendous compared to say Netflix, and Kindle. Plus there is no official retailer for the Pixel. Buying a Pixel here is practically the same as buying a no name brand in if you're living in the US. Considering the fiasco on the screen and several members here actually going through 3 returns of the phone, Pixels are a bullet dodged.

Features. I appreciate Samsung features a lot. I use them a lot. In fact, I consider the Google apps except for the Play Store as bloat. They're the ones that get disabled on my device. It's mostly Samsung or Microsoft apps that I use. Heck Google's own Messenger doesn't even have the simple feature of pinning frequent contacts to the top of the conversation list, or even see the contact groups I made on my Gmail contacts for mass/group texting. Google's apps are just so lacking in features that from my point of view they might as well be useless.

Buying Pixel vs Samsung is basically buying a Subaru WRX vs an Audi A4, or BMW 320. Sure the Subaru is faster, but it's seats are less comfortable, there are less airbags, the ride on the Audi is smoother, etc. Sure the speed and capability of the WRX is fun for weekend fun driving, just as the speed of the Pixel is appreciated in gaming. But for everyday traffic grind I'd much more prefer the comfort of the Audi, just as I'd prefer all the features and creature comfort Samsung has that's already there without having to look for aftermarket solutions.

 

[cactuspete23]

Sad that the New phone did not work out for you.

 

[geraldem]

I would try the Zagg Elite. It got great reviews on the Note 8 as well as the White Dome. Like I said previously. Out of all the reviews I read those are the only two consistent ones that were good. Well the first Zagg was horrible. They changed it around December and It seems they figured it out.

I would love to get Elite, but sold out everywhere. Where did you find?

 

[tadpoles]

I have one coming monday!! Ill post some pics and my impression then!

I can confirm this. Just got one for the Note 8 and it works great. Highly recommended!

 

[Guyinbox]

Doubt they remove it. They've had that since Marshmallow. Here's a screenshot from an S7 Edge on Nougat. Picture in picture in picture. View attachment 280369

Yes on my s7 i believe you could drag down from the top corner to minimize a window. In Oreo it's automatic with certain apps when you got the home button.

 

[daswooski]

Yes on my s7 i believe you could drag down from the top corner to minimize a window. In Oreo it's automatic with certain apps when you got the home button.

Wow, lots of things to consider. If you purchased the Samsung protection plan and even if you did not, my advice is to at least wait 1-2 weeks and try it as you should still be able to return it. Maybe there is a software update coming...or maybe you might have a defective unit? Seems like Everytime we make Snap decisions without fully considering things we regret it later.
I do hope whatever you decide that you are happy...

 

[daswooski]

I can confirm this. Just got one for the Note 8 and it works great. Highly recommended!

//uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180310/cd243105bf19760204527c4a944d5e27.jpg

I also tried several on my S8 and I am very happy with the OTAO