Question from newbie - SGS4

[gallopiton]

Hello there,

hope you are doing great... I would like to ask some questions since i have no experience with an android phone... my wife decided to get a Samsung GS4 as her new phone... I have a bb phone so i am not sure how different things could be in an android and/or samsung phone... my questions are:

1.- she is getting the phone at T-Mobile USA, most likely paid in full price... the problem is that at least in the store they have only the 16GB version, and knowing that the OS takes about 7GB, you only have left 9GB for app and other stuff... good thing that it has a memory card but can you save app in the memory card in that phone? at the store the representative said that you can mostly app save them in the memory card, but i want to be sure that this is actually right...

2.- the other option is to buy the 32GB version, but i am not sure if you can order one of this at T-Mobile, its website only offers the 16GB version, not 32GB (does anyone know if this is possible? the T-Mobile Rep thinks that it is possible but couldn't get the info in his computer when i asked)... In case that we buy an unlocked phone in internet, what model do we need to buy in order to work at this carrier? I am guessing that maybe the android phones are similar to bb, where you need to buy a phone compatible with the antennas in your carrier in order to work properly... it is the same in an android phone, and if so, what model is the correct one for T-Mobile USA?

3.- my third question is in relation with samsung as a company... if we buy the phone factory unlocked in internet, and your phone has some problems, you will have to deal with the manufacturer... buying an unlocked phone would be good because i understand that you will save a lot of space with no bloatware preloaded, but if dealing with samsung is in general a bad idea then the bloatware is better than the extra space in the internal memory... how are your experiences in this regard?

many thanks for all the technical answers and point of views that you can give me... it will help my wife a lot in order to make a better informed purchase... thanks!

EDIT: just out of curiosity, if the answers you kindly provide me can also include if there is any difference if the phone is a HTC One instead of Samsung GS4 would be great... thanks again!

 

[Golfdriver97]

Hello there,

hope you are doing great... I would like to ask some questions since i have no experience with an android phone... my wife decided to get a Samsung GS4 as her new phone... I have a bb phone so i am not sure how different things could be in an android and/or samsung phone... my questions are:

1.- she is getting the phone at T-Mobile USA, most likely paid in full price... the problem is that at least in the store they have only the 16GB version, and knowing that the OS takes about 7GB, you only have left 9GB for app and other stuff... good thing that it has a memory card but can you save app in the memory card in that phone? at the store the representative said that you can mostly app save them in the memory card, but i want to be sure that this is actually right...

2.- the other option is to buy the 32GB version, but i am not sure if you can order one of this at T-Mobile, its website only offers the 16GB version, not 32GB (does anyone know if this is possible? the T-Mobile Rep thinks that it is possible but couldn't get the info in his computer when i asked)... In case that we buy an unlocked phone in internet, what model do we need to buy in order to work at this carrier? I am guessing that maybe the android phones are similar to bb, where you need to buy a phone compatible with the antennas in your carrier in order to work properly... it is the same in an android phone, and if so, what model is the correct one for T-Mobile USA?

3.- my third question is in relation with samsung as a company... if we buy the phone factory unlocked in internet, and your phone has some problems, you will have to deal with the manufacturer... buying an unlocked phone would be good because i understand that you will save a lot of space with no bloatware preloaded, but if dealing with samsung is in general a bad idea then the bloatware is better than the extra space in the internal memory... how are your experiences in this regard?

many thanks for all the technical answers and point of views that you can give me... it will help my wife a lot in order to make a better informed purchase... thanks!

EDIT: just out of curiosity, if the answers you kindly provide me can also include if there is any difference if the phone is a HTC One instead of Samsung GS4 would be great... thanks again!

1. No. Unless you are rooted and have proper applications you cannot move apps to the External SD card. Even if you did, the process would be slow every time the app loads, due to the fact that the whole app doesn't shift to the External, so that 2 or even 3 places the OS has to look for all the data it needs.

2. From my understanding you are correct in your thinking. Match proper radios to proper carriers and you are good to go. I do not know which specific model you would need, and I think part of the problems is there is no 32 GB devices for T-Mo just yet. Thus why the rep couldn't find one for you.

3. I am going to be honest, I don't think you will be able to find an unlocked S4 on the net. At least not right now. They will all be tied to carriers, so bloatware will be on all phones. (I could of course be wrong. I am guessing on this point). If you can get an unlocked phone, there will be less bloat. But most of the OS space is taken up by features, not really bloatware. Bloatware typically eats up your RAM.

3b. Here is an additional piece of info. I would highly suggest going into Best Buy. Chances are you will get the phone for just as much, if not less. Their protection plan is often better for less money. And sadly, the sales reps at Best Buy know better than the reps at Carrier stores...sad.

4. I don't quite understand the addendum, but I am going to take a stab at it. Bloat is bloat on whatever phone it is. I believe HTC's version of the OS is slimmer so more space for you on the Internal; however be advised, there is no External SD slot. So, you buy a 16 GB, that's all you get. I am not cutting down on the HTC. It is a great device, and many people like it, but the External seemed like a selling point to you, thus why I pointed it out.

I would honestly suggest waiting a little bit longer. Play with both the HTC and the S4. Do a little more research. Go outside the Carrier stores. If you know people who have these new phones, ask for their opinion on just that phone. Ask to play with theirs a little.

Overall, if your wife is new to Android as well, keep in mind there is going to be a big learning curve, no matter which device you choose. But, whatever you pick, pick for your own reasons, not another person's.

Welcome to the Android forums. Hope you enjoy whatever device you choose. Any problems, we are all here to help.

 

[gallopiton]

1. No. Unless you are rooted and have proper applications you cannot move apps to the External SD card. Even if you did, the process would be slow every time the app loads, due to the fact that the whole app doesn't shift to the External, so that 2 or even 3 places the OS has to look for all the data it needs.

2. From my understanding you are correct in your thinking. Match proper radios to proper carriers and you are good to go. I do not know which specific model you would need, and I think part of the problems is there is no 32 GB devices for T-Mo just yet. Thus why the rep couldn't find one for you.

3. I am going to be honest, I don't think you will be able to find an unlocked S4 on the net. At least not right now. They will all be tied to carriers, so bloatware will be on all phones. (I could of course be wrong. I am guessing on this point). If you can get an unlocked phone, there will be less bloat. But most of the OS space is taken up by features, not really bloatware. Bloatware typically eats up your RAM.

3b. Here is an additional piece of info. I would highly suggest going into Best Buy. Chances are you will get the phone for just as much, if not less. Their protection plan is often better for less money. And sadly, the sales reps at Best Buy know better than the reps at Carrier stores...sad.

4. I don't quite understand the addendum, but I am going to take a stab at it. Bloat is bloat on whatever phone it is. I believe HTC's version of the OS is slimmer so more space for you on the Internal; however be advised, there is no External SD slot. So, you buy a 16 GB, that's all you get. I am not cutting down on the HTC. It is a great device, and many people like it, but the External seemed like a selling point to you, thus why I pointed it out.

I would honestly suggest waiting a little bit longer. Play with both the HTC and the S4. Do a little more research. Go outside the Carrier stores. If you know people who have these new phones, ask for their opinion on just that phone. Ask to play with theirs a little.

Overall, if your wife is new to Android as well, keep in mind there is going to be a big learning curve, no matter which device you choose. But, whatever you pick, pick for your own reasons, not another person's.

Welcome to the Android forums. Hope you enjoy whatever device you choose. Any problems, we are all here to help.

Hey GD, thanks for the answers and welcome me at the forums... yes, i should have been more specific regarding why i added the HTC One... i know that it doesn't have memory card to extend the space, but i was wondering about if i need to buy an specific model to work at T-Mobile as well... the T-Mobile rep was very nice and gave us a lot of details about the phones (he owns an HTC One at the moment, previously he had an S3).... he actually said that he had load the app in the memory card instead of the built in memory... when i asked if this didn't lag the phone he said that just a bit, can't really tell... to me that sounded weird since obviously you need time and processing to find and out together the fragmented app in your physical memory... i asked him why did he change the S3 for the One and he said that in general, besides some features, the OS is the same, but the hardware was the difference for him to make the switch... and yes, i am learning all i can about android (even when the phone is not for me)...

 

[Golfdriver97]

Hey GD, thanks for the answers and welcome me at the forums... yes, i should have been more specific regarding why i added the HTC One... i know that it doesn't have memory card to extend the space, but i was wondering about if i need to buy an specific model to work at T-Mobile as well... the T-Mobile rep was very nice and gave us a lot of details about the phones (he owns an HTC One at the moment, previously he had an S3).... he actually said that he had load the app in the memory card instead of the built in memory... when i asked if this didn't lag the phone he said that just a bit, can't really tell... to me that sounded weird since obviously you need time and processing to find and out together the fragmented app in your physical memory... i asked him why did he change the S3 for the One and he said that in general, besides some features, the OS is the same, but the hardware was the difference for him to make the switch... and yes, i am learning all i can about android (even when the phone is not for me)...

So long as you go to an authorized t-mo retailer, you don't need to concern yourself over which model to get.

Sent from a M.O.A.R. Galaxy S3

 

[monsieurms]

Some large apps, things that store lots of material, will install themselves to the card, but I admit I'm dismayed that I cannot move apps myself to the card.

Still...I think for the vast majority, 16gb will be fine.

Now, I'm NOT a newbie to Android. After setting up my S4, I did as follows:
--Installed every app I had on my old phone after over 2 years of computing;
--Then installed several big apps I didn't have space for (like the free city travel guides from Trip Advisor--quite an awesome deal..);
--Then I downloaded "extras" of things I couldn't afford the space for before, like the French language upgrade that Samsung offers for its S Translate app
--My variable items like Contacts, Facebook, etc, can take up a fair bit of space. (I think Contacts are 350 megs!) But that's not an issue any more.

At the end of the day, I had 7.3 gigs free. I do have a 64gb card--not sure what automatically installed there, but I use that mostly for MP3s.

Now, that seems to be a fair bit of headroom for the 16gb version. Again---I'm not a new user. This setup is what I've acquired and wanted and used over two years. It's a mature setup. It's not like I'm going to find 87 more apps tomorrow that have to be installed.

Just out of paranoia, would like to find the equivalent of the old feature on my old phone that allows me to "clear all caches" at once. But it doesn't seem to exist.
I was nervous about buying the 16gb--but this isn't likely to be something I keep more than 2-3 years, and it seems fine, with a card.

The one exception people keep pointing out is gamers who DL huge apps. That's not me. If it's you, take note.

Most I suspect will do fine with 16gb.

 

[gallopiton]

thanks for your replies, the information you gave was useful to my wife... have you both a great weekend

 

[planoman]

No, you cannot save apps to SD card as many have said. This used to be possible but android has changed this a while back. Apps are stored in the internal memory. Pics, videos and music can be stored on the SD card. I have about 75 apps and they take less than 2GB. So the 16GB model may be plenty...depending on the apps your wife has. 9GB is a lot of apps if no huge games are downloaded.

I think ATT has an exclusive on the 32GB model right now. I think you can get an international S4 unlocked if you are willing to pay. It will work on T mobile but not sure it will get their LTE so you may want to check the frequencies. Also the warranty would be from Samsung USA IF they choose to help you. Sometimes they will depending on their workload. I recommend getting a third party insurance policy like square trade. International phones have no carrier bloat and when I had the international note it got updated all the time directly from Samsung, not from the carriers.

The HTC One would be a good choice as it has the 32/64GB for apps but no SD card slot and ultimately less storage space than the S4 since you can get a 64GB micro sd card.