samsung needs to knock it off (rant)

[TrackerF16]

i need somewhere to vent where my griping will at least be understood

samsung needs to knock this crap off, motorola has this crazy concept.. they drop a press release for a phone... and then they RELEASE IT!!, word got out about the droid razr, what? 2 or 3 weeks ago, and its already for sale

HTC drops word on a phone and within a month or two its AVAILABLE.. or it at least has a release date

this is the second phone ive had my eye on from samsung, and so far, this launch is behaving alot like the galaxy S2 launch.. with a whole lot of speculation, and not alot of concrete ANYTHING. months go by with no word, is it so bad to at least put SOME of the speculation to bed?

i mean, sure, you dont want to put out a release date for fear of disappointing your consumer base. but at the same time, when you hear nothing about the phone that almost a month ago got a worldwide press release. and that looked like it was ready to go then (they sure didnt look like rough prototypes to me).. because oh yeah, thats right, its a pure google phone.. you dont need to do manufacturer specific skins, and then carrier specific apps.. you just need to build it, and then release it

if there has been some kind of a delay in production because of the flooding in tiawan, then say that. going to be a verizion exclusive till the end of the year?.. SAY IT. give us something, all the silence is doing is driving away consumers.. how many people has samsung already lost to people sick of waiting for them to say or do something. how many people saw the droid razr come out and decide that they are sick of waiting. how many people saw the vivid, and jumped ship. seriously, all this waiting game is doing is costing them money.. people will hold on alot longer if you at least let them them grasp at straws

if a global device isnt ready for global distribution. DONT SHOW IT OFF UNTIL IT IS. seems like a pretty rational concept to me, you think apple does a press release for the new iphone without having the distribution in place, and the contracts already signed? i would have been alot happier letting the nexus live in speculation until it was READY, and then doing a reveal.. sure some people might have to wait longer than others until its theirs, but at least the important information is there, like WHEN, WHERE, PRICE, CARRIER. this "iron curtain" from google and samsung is getting old

sorry if rants arent allowed, and im sure an admin will lock it if ive overstepped what i should have posted.. but please tell me in not the only one thinking of buying a different phone (from a different manufacturer) simply on a matter of principal

 

[toonhead85]

Hre here brother, i feel your pain. I sit here at work struggling with: do I go out and buy a Samsung GSII Skyrocket or wait for the Galaxy Nexus (to replace my 3 month old Neuxs S). I want the Galaxy Nexus, but dont want to end up waiting until September of NEXT YEAR, and I really dont want to import (with a price tag of over $700).

I feel ya!

 

[chmcke01]

Hre here brother, i feel your pain. I sit here at work struggling with: do I go out and buy a Samsung GSII Skyrocket or wait for the Galaxy Nexus (to replace my 3 month old Neuxs S). I want the Galaxy Nexus, but dont want to end up waiting until September of NEXT YEAR, and I really dont want to import (with a price tag of over $700).

I feel ya!

I agree, I wish they would just tell us. If it isn't coming to AT&T until next year then I am going to go ahead and get something else. I like Android a lot better than Apple but like you said, they handle their press releases MUCH better. On the day of the announcement we knew what date the iPhone 4S would be available, what carriers would offer it, and even the price.

I have to wait until December to upgrade anyway, but if I don't hear anything by then I will get the GS2 or the Skyrocket (still making up my mind). I would rather know NOW that it isn't coming until the end of January than find out in mid January that it is "only two weeks away!"

 

[DFWPhotoguy]

Agreed. This entire winter release process is completely screwed up and shines a glaring light on how no one is talking to each other for product launches. I dont blame it completely on Samsung though, I think that its a combination of stupid US carriers, Google (ICS is probably partly to blame here) and Samsung.

I have been off contract since August, just waiting for the release of either the Nexus, the Note or the S2 (now the skyrocket).

Every single person on the product team for Samsung, Google and the carriers should be kicked in the ass for this clusterf#$#@ of a launch/announcement/release process.

What this means is that us, the consumers see the blaring dysfunction between all three parties. Its clear that there is a communication breakdown and even some animosity between the three parties and it needs to be corrected ASAP.

AT&T, hurry the frak up and announce what is coming down the pipeline in the next 30 days!

 

[fogel35]

Agreed. This entire winter release process is completely screwed up and shines a glaring light on how no one is talking to each other for product launches. I dont blame it completely on Samsung though, I think that its a combination of stupid US carriers, Google (ICS is probably partly to blame here) and Samsung.

I have been off contract since August, just waiting for the release of either the Nexus, the Note or the S2 (now the skyrocket).

Every single person on the product team for Samsung, Google and the carriers should be kicked in the ass for this clusterf#$#@ of a launch/announcement/release process.

What this means is that us, the consumers see the blaring dysfunction between all three parties. Its clear that there is a communication breakdown and even some animosity between the three parties and it needs to be corrected ASAP.

AT&T, hurry the frak up and announce what is coming down the pipeline in the next 30 days!

That last sentence is exactly the reason you will not see what is coming in the next 30 days. Carriers are in the business of selling phones instead of selling service. When your contract is up they want you in the store upgrading now and not waiting for a device they some day may or may not carry.

If one day the telcos get in the business of selling service instead of hardware this may change.

 

[thekid4287]

That last sentence is exactly the reason you will not see what is coming in the next 30 days. Carriers are in the business of selling phones instead of selling service. When your contract is up they want you in the store upgrading now and not waiting for a device they some day may or may not carry.

If one day the telcos get in the business of selling service instead of hardware this may change.

This is patently false. Carriers charge $200 -- maybe $300 -- for the latest-and-greatest phones, when you sign a 2-year contract. If you average the cost of a $300 phone across a 24-month period, it ends up costing a consumer $12.50/month. Not only is that half of what a standard data plan costs on AT&T, but when you take voice and texting plans into consideration phone sales end up being a rather small fraction of the carriers' overall profit.

They don't want you rushing into the store to buy a new phone just because they make money off the phone... they want you to commit to paying for another two years of their service.

But yeah, Samsung/AT&T, this is ridiculous. I was eligible for an upgrade in May of this year, about the time when the Galaxy S2 came out in pretty much the rest of the world. By the time it finally came out on AT&T, the Galaxy Nexus was rumored to be arriving shortly, so I held off. I wish AT&T would implement a plan pricing scheme similar to T-Mobile where you get a discount for bringing your own phone to a 2-year contract... then we could all just order internationally when it comes out, rather than waiting until next July for AT&T to finally sell a subsidized version.

/rant

 

[fogel35]

This is patently false. Carriers charge $200 -- maybe $300 -- for the latest-and-greatest phones, when you sign a 2-year contract. If you average the cost of a $300 phone across a 24-month period, it ends up costing a consumer $12.50/month. Not only is that half of what a standard data plan costs on AT&T, but when you take voice and texting plans into consideration phone sales end up being a rather small fraction of the carriers' overall profit.

They don't want you rushing into the store to buy a new phone just because they make money off the phone... they want you to commit to paying for another two years of their service.

But yeah, Samsung/AT&T, this is ridiculous. I was eligible for an upgrade in May of this year, about the time when the Galaxy S2 came out in pretty much the rest of the world. By the time it finally came out on AT&T, the Galaxy Nexus was rumored to be arriving shortly, so I held off. I wish AT&T would implement a plan pricing scheme similar to T-Mobile where you get a discount for bringing your own phone to a 2-year contract... then we could all just order internationally when it comes out, rather than waiting until next July for AT&T to finally sell a subsidized version.

/rant

I think what I said went whipping over your head here. They sell phones on contract which you stated correctly. Yes the margins on hardware is small but they use selling hardware to get you into a service contract. When a contract is up what do 98% of U.S. customers do? They go into an at&t, Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile, or any authorized retailer store to buy a phone and resign a contract. They use the idea of replacing your phone to get most people into the store to buy service or re-up service. They are selling phones in order to sell service.

Now imagine if they didn't have a new phone dangling in front of people to enter a new 2 year service agreement? What if it was up to the manufacturer to sell phones directly to customers? Do you think you would see as many "delays" or long waits on new phones that would work on carriers?

Here is what would happen. Carriers would be forced to compete service against service instead of using hardware to lure customers to their service. No sense having exclusives any more. Manufacturers would actually have to compete on price directly to the customer, making equipment prices come down.

 

[chmcke01]

I think what I said went whipping over your head here. They sell phones on contract which you stated correctly. Yes the margins on hardware is small but they use selling hardware to get you into a service contract. When a contract is up what do 98% of U.S. customers do? They go into an at&t, Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile, or any authorized retailer store to buy a phone and resign a contract. They use the idea of replacing your phone to get most people into the store to buy service or re-up service. They are selling phones in order to sell service.

Now imagine if they didn't have a new phone dangling in front of people to enter a new 2 year service agreement? What if it was up to the manufacturer to sell phones directly to customers? Do you think you would see as many "delays" or long waits on new phones that would work on carriers?

Here is what would happen. Carriers would be forced to compete service against service instead of using hardware to lure customers to their service. No sense having exclusives any more. Manufacturers would actually have to compete on price directly to the customer, making equipment prices come down.

That still doesn't make much sense. Like you said, my contract is up and I am looking to upgrade to the "latest and greatest" device out there. This means that I could drop AT&T and go to a different carrier if they aren't going to offer the device I want. So, this gives them even more incentive to offer the phones the people want. The Galaxy Nexus has to be the most anticipated smartphone this season, possibly even this year. I have heard from several people their intentions to switch to Verizon for the Galaxy Nexus.

Does AT&T think the Skyrocket will be good enough for us? Or do they think we will wait? To be honest, I would wait if I had a release date and it wasn't too far off. February 1st would probably be my limit...if it will be out during or before January then I will wait for it but chances are they won't announce a release date until a couple weeks before the release and by then I probably will have either switched to Verizon or just gone with one of the GS2 models.

 

[fogel35]

That still doesn't make much sense. Like you said, my contract is up and I am looking to upgrade to the "latest and greatest" device out there. This means that I could drop AT&T and go to a different carrier if they aren't going to offer the device I want. So, this gives them even more incentive to offer the phones the people want. The Galaxy Nexus has to be the most anticipated smartphone this season, possibly even this year. I have heard from several people their intentions to switch to Verizon for the Galaxy Nexus.

Does AT&T think the Skyrocket will be good enough for us? Or do they think we will wait? To be honest, I would wait if I had a release date and it wasn't too far off. February 1st would probably be my limit...if it will be out during or before January then I will wait for it but chances are they won't announce a release date until a couple weeks before the release and by then I probably will have either switched to Verizon or just gone with one of the GS2 models.

I am not sure how else to explain this to you so you will understand. You say you are looking to upgrade to the latest and greatest device out there. What if it wasn't up to the carriers to decide what is the latest and greatest to carry in their stores? Let me try this a different way. What happens if you want a new TV? Do you buy it from Time Warner, Direct TV, Comcast, Dish Network, etc? Now do you think at&t, verizon, etc sell phones? What if you could shop for your phone the same way you do a TV?

You prefer to swap service to just get the phone you want? So you prefer the Telcos determining your phone selection? By all means that is okay if you do.

I would prefer to pick out any hardware I want and then shop for my provider that offers the best service for me.

 

[chmcke01]

I am not sure how else to explain this to you so you will understand. You say you are looking to upgrade to the latest and greatest device out there. What if it wasn't up to the carriers to decide what is the latest and greatest to carry in their stores? What if you could just walk into the mobile section of Best Buy like you do to the Computer section and just pick out the latest or greatest and hook it up to the service you want to use?

You prefer to swap service to just get the phone you want? So you prefer the Telcos determining your phone selection? By all means that is okay if you do.

I would prefer to pick out any hardware I want and then shop for my provider that offers the best service for me.

I agree that a system like that would be preferable, no doubt. I am just saying the way things are now, they need to compete to keep customers so I don't know why they are not releasing information about the Galaxy Nexus. Either Samsung/Google needs to announce that AT&T will not be offering the device or AT&T needs to announce whether/when the phone will be offered. Verizon was quick to announce that they would carry it, why won't/can't other carriers do the same?

 

[fogel35]

I agree that a system like that would be preferable, no doubt. I am just saying the way things are now, they need to compete to keep customers so I don't know why they are not releasing information about the Galaxy Nexus. Either Samsung/Google needs to announce that AT&T will not be offering the device or AT&T needs to announce whether/when the phone will be offered. Verizon was quick to announce that they would carry it, why won't/can't other carriers do the same?

I am not sure the carrier will think they need to announce if they are carrying the phone or not. At least not with an Android device. It would be like announcing they are going to carry the Nokia 800 Lumia. 98% of the customers are going to just be comparison shopping, looking for the free phone, or where is your iPhone.

The only knuckleheads that wait for announcements is us chum that like a platform enough to care about it.

 

[Tom S.]

I agree. It's disappointing because this could really be a break out device for Android. The launch presentation itself was pretty bad too. You would think billion dollar companies like Samsung and Google would put on a better show. I know putting on a show shouldn't matter, but it works well for Apple.

I know the whole thing about Verizon being the best network is great, but it only matters if they actually try to sell it and get more people to know about Android and ICS. I'll bet $100 you will never an advertisement on TV pushing this phone from Verizon.

 

[UltraDroid]

I had heard a rumor that Verizon changed their mind and wanted to back out of the deal for reasons that aren't entirely clear - maybe because Google wouldn't let them load their bloatware on the Nexus.

-Mike

 

[Savetherocks]

They couldn't load their bloatware on the iPhone, either. This is just as monumental a phone, so why not comply with Google's standards (although it'll be better for me if it isn't a Verizon exclusive)?

 

[UltraDroid]

Common sense thought here - there's no WAY that Samsung and Google will let a CDMA carrier like Verizon be the sole company to sell their flagship phone in the US market, so there will *have* to be a GSM version offered for sale by AT&T and/or T-Mobile.

My two cents worth...


-Mike

 

[Savetherocks]

Some people are saying that they could have signed a temporary exclusivity deal. If a T-Mobile or AT&T version is coming, why is it that every leak and inside source happens to be from Verizon? What I'm hoping for is Google selling an unlocked GSM version like they did with the previous Nexus phones (that way you can just buy an iPhone 4S for $200, sell it, and use the money to buy the Galaxy Nexus as if it were subsidized).

 

[UltraDroid]

Some people are saying that they could have signed a temporary exclusivity deal. If a T-Mobile or AT&T version is coming, why is it that every leak and inside source happens to be from Verizon?

Because Verizon gets it first, and you can tell by their heavy advertising that they're *thrilled* with being the first to offer it in the US.


-Mike