Galaxy S4 Questions....Trying to convince myself to stick it out and not go back to iPhone!

[crystal9853]

I am new to the galaxy, droid, whatever you call it! LOL
I like the phone and all the features it has...Way more than the iPhone. It's the small things that are bothering me!

1 (and most important!). I keep missing my text messages and missed calls. The ringtone and text alert works fine...However, if I'm not near the phone to hear them I seem to not see them for hours. The reason being, the notification doesn't stay on the lock screen but for a couple minutes. Is there a way to make the notifications stay there until I unlock the phone? Also, I don't get the number on the icon itself when I do unlock the phone. So I have to actually click on "messaging" to know I have a text. Same for the missed calls.

2. Voicemail....Did I really just go back 10 years with dial-in VM?!! I'm having a hard time adjusting to this one. Having to call in to my voicemail and pressing buttons to save, delete or hear caller info (date/time). Am I missing something here?! Also, I don't get a number on the icon for this either so I miss them too.

3. Sending video clips via text message....I have tried several times to send my videos via text and every time it says it's too large. The last clip I tried was 30 seconds. Really?!

That's all the gripes I have for now. Any help or suggestions is greatly appreciated!!
Thanks

 

[Farish]

I am new to the galaxy, droid, whatever you call it! LOL
I like the phone and all the features it has...Way more than the iPhone. It's the small things that are bothering me!

1 (and most important!). I keep missing my text messages and missed calls. The ringtone and text alert works fine...However, if I'm not near the phone to hear them I seem to not see them for hours. The reason being, the notification doesn't stay on the lock screen but for a couple minutes. Is there a way to make the notifications stay there until I unlock the phone? Also, I don't get the number on the icon itself when I do unlock the phone. So I have to actually click on "messaging" to know I have a text. Same for the missed calls.

2. Voicemail....Did I really just go back 10 years with dial-in VM?!! I'm having a hard time adjusting to this one. Having to call in to my voicemail and pressing buttons to save, delete or hear caller info (date/time). Am I missing something here?! Also, I don't get a number on the icon for this either so I miss them too.

3. Sending video clips via text message....I have tried several times to send my videos via text and every time it says it's too large. The last clip I tried was 30 seconds. Really?!

That's all the gripes I have for now. Any help or suggestions is greatly appreciated!!
Thanks

1. Don't know there is probably an app for that.

2. I am on ATT and they have a Visual Voicemail App. I only had to dial in once to activate it.

3. 1080p camera can make large video files. I have sent a couple videos on mms and never got that warning.

 

[manderson904]

I am new to the galaxy, droid, whatever you call it! LOL
I like the phone and all the features it has...Way more than the iPhone. It's the small things that are bothering me!

1 (and most important!). I keep missing my text messages and missed calls. The ringtone and text alert works fine...However, if I'm not near the phone to hear them I seem to not see them for hours. The reason being, the notification doesn't stay on the lock screen but for a couple minutes. Is there a way to make the notifications stay there until I unlock the phone? Also, I don't get the number on the icon itself when I do unlock the phone. So I have to actually click on "messaging" to know I have a text. Same for the missed calls.

2. Voicemail....Did I really just go back 10 years with dial-in VM?!! I'm having a hard time adjusting to this one. Having to call in to my voicemail and pressing buttons to save, delete or hear caller info (date/time). Am I missing something here?! Also, I don't get a number on the icon for this either so I miss them too.

3. Sending video clips via text message....I have tried several times to send my videos via text and every time it says it's too large. The last clip I tried was 30 seconds. Really?!

That's all the gripes I have for now. Any help or suggestions is greatly appreciated!!
Thanks

I am coming from an iPhone as well (just got my S4 2 days ago). You just need to find an app that does what you're trying to do.

1- Try Lock Screen Notification https://forums.androidcentral.com/e...5vdGlmaWNhdGlvbldhbGxwYXBlciJd&token=jeYB_smC I put that on my Husband's S3 and it works like the iphone.

2- Try YouMail as a visual voicemail app. I have Verizon and they charge $2.99/m for VM, so I use this free alternative. https://forums.androidcentral.com/e...roid.vvm&feature=search_result&token=3MRNh0y_.

3- I am having the same problems and can't help you there. But would love to hear from someone with more experience how to get around this.

 

[SirGeorgeKillian]

Pay attention to the LED light.. It will let you know something is up without having to look at the screen.

Google Voice. Super cool app, just don't sign up for any calling features (an option during setup) gives you visual voice mail that also transcribes the message for you. Also gives you the option to check your voice mail from another android device (such as a tablet)

 

[madlaw1071]

Can't you just pull down the notification shade to see your texts?

Not sure what carrier you have but att has built in visual voice mail.

Posted via Android Central App

 

[planoman]

A 30 second video file shooting in 1080p is over 50MB... try selecting 320x240 in the video setting and then shooting your video for MMS. You could also use google drive or drop box to upload the video and then send out a link to the video...

 

[singjai]

For the missed calls and text messages, there should be a notification on the top left. It takes some time to get used to. I actually got my first smartphone ever 2 weeks ago which was the galaxy s4. Here's a solution you could do to make notifications easier for you. This only works though if you're willing to spend $4.00 for a launcher.
-Download Nova Launcher
-Download Nova Launcher Prime ($4.00)
-Go to Nova Launcher settings > Unread Counts >Download the free TeslaUnread app made by Nova Launcher
-Now there will be Notification badges where you got a missed call, email, text message, etc. You can change how you would like to customize it in Nova Settings.

As for the voicemail, I'm not too sure about that..

The video clips also can be changed. It's sort of a pain though. The reason the file is too large is because the resolution is too high. If you want to end video clips through text message, you have to...
Click Camera>Settings>Camcorder>Video Size>320x240

Now you can send video clips but the resolution won't be so high. However, I'm not so sure how long the length of the video is aloud to be before it gets too large.

 

[Spartacus MD]

I came from an iphone too:

1.) What other have said, you can see it in the top left corner, or in your notifcations, also the led blinks blue when someone has messaged you or called you, and finally if you pick up your phone and havent checked a notification it will vibrate "smart alert". Personally, when i look at my lockscreen i see all my missed calls and texts.

2.) ATT Visual Voicemail app

3.)The samsung shoots video at a default 1080p which is a very large amount of information. the iphone will let you send big files like that through imessenger but not on regular mms. Advice like above, either make the video resolution smaller...or save the recorded video onto your dropbox and link people to it.

 

[infinity12402]

my missed calls and texts show up on my screen, so im not sure why thats not working for you. thats suppose to be a standard thing.
and as someone else said, at&t has a visual voicemail app you can download

 

[crystal9853]

Sounds like AT&T has the voicemail thing down! I have Verizon so they charge for that. I will look for the apps! Thanks everyone. Feeling a little better about leaving team iPhone!!