Switching to Note 8

[DominionRoofs]

I just can't stand the curved display of the Note. It tall and goofy looking imo..

 

[ihbsbA]

I have the Note 8 and it has precisely two problems IMHO.

1. Samsung is *heavily* pushing their annoying apps and cloud ecosystem on users. It's overbearing to say the least. For instance, I can't remap the ridiculous Bixby button on the side of the phone to camera or anything else. Also, I can't sync my handwritten S-pen notes (I love the S-pen) with any cloud service that is not samsung. Want to integrate your notes with GDocs or Dropbox or anything else? Nope. They even got rid of Evernote integration. Another nuisance is that the photo app doesn't play well with Google Photos, which is my primary tool for editing, storing, and sharing photos. If I can't do that with any photos I just took without closing the Samsung app and opening the Google one, it's a deal breaker.

2. The non-existing side-bezels are unpractical design overkill. I hate hate HATE the stupid 18:9 overly long screens everybody is going with now for no good reasons, and the Samsung one is even longer (at 18.5:9) and the lack of side bezels but with top and bottom bezel make it an awkwardly morphed device. I wouldn't care if it just looked bad, but it's physically difficult to hold and type on because it's so narrow and fingers holding it protrude over the text and keyboard.

We have 2 s8's and an s8+ along with my Pixel XL. The other phones are pretty. They are fast. I'm a little envious. I was a note user from the first Note until my 3rd Note 7 which I had to surrender. In doing so, I had choices. I chose to gamble with the CREATOR of Android. The constant pitch I hear from Apple users is the fact that Apple makes the software AND the hardware. This is why the phones "just work". I have finally found that same experience except in Android (which I love because it's open source and the Android community is far less snobbish, but I digress) I realize that Google doesn't MAKE their hardware, but they do control the software and I trust them to choose the best hardware for their software.

I also completely trust Google to replace any device that has a manufacturer defect with no questions asked. They did so for me last year with a Bluetooth issue I had and I'm sure if the burn-in turns out to be a "thing", they will replace the devices affected.

That being said, man I miss my s-pen and the new features for it look fun. But my experience with every single Samsung device is that eventually it will lag. Like....bad. It will be so bad that I'm forced to hard reset and start fresh. I have not had any such issue with my pixel except after September's update which has rectified itself with October's. Timely updates are really nice and having the new os on release day is very cool.

 

[pappy35]

<snip>
The constant pitch I hear from Apple users is the fact that Apple makes the software AND the hardware.
<snip>

Any they are wrong. Foxconn makes their phones.

 

[jhnnyblze2000]

I had the note 8 and switched to pixel 2 xl. I've had it since the 18th and I have had anywhere between 4-7 hours screen in time consistently and I have not noticed any burn in. My biggest reasons for switching is the screen and size on the note 8. I hate the curved screen. Always have on Samsung phones and the phones too tall. The pixel 2 xl isn't much shorter but it's just enough to make it feel much better in the hand. Also with the 2 xl screen, if this is burn in everyone is seeing that is a problem but they aren't sure if it is burn in or image retention yet. I know lg displays aren't the best but they would have to be the absolute worst screens in the world to have burn in after 2 days. There are videos posted around showing the supposed burn in and then after letting the phone off for awhile or watching a video the "burn in" is gone. To me that sounds more like image retention than burn in. Just my two cents though lol. Enjoy your note though it really is an awesome phone.

 

[cert15z]

I love the Note 8. The only reason I'm giving it up is, I am trying to kick this phone habit and I want something that is going to stay updated for more than the release date. If Samsung was at the point they kept there phones up to date, I would be keeping my Note 8.

 

[neil74]

Honestly the S8+ is the better comparison.

I have a 2xl pre-ordered and other than the screen issues the other thing putting me off is the overall footprint, bigger than the S8+ with a smaller screen. Bigger than it needed to be imo and I think the P2 is the same for a 5" screen.

 

[billykac]

We have 2 s8's and an s8+ along with my Pixel XL. The other phones are pretty. They are fast. I'm a little envious. I was a note user from the first Note until my 3rd Note 7 which I had to surrender. In doing so, I had choices. I chose to gamble with the CREATOR of Android. The constant pitch I hear from Apple users is the fact that Apple makes the software AND the hardware. This is why the phones "just work". I have finally found that same experience except in Android (which I love because it's open source and the Android community is far less snobbish, but I digress) I realize that Google doesn't MAKE their hardware, but they do control the software and I trust them to choose the best hardware for their software.

I also completely trust Google to replace any device that has a manufacturer defect with no questions asked. They did so for me last year with a Bluetooth issue I had and I'm sure if the burn-in turns out to be a "thing", they will replace the devices affected.

That being said, man I miss my s-pen and the new features for it look fun. But my experience with every single Samsung device is that eventually it will lag. Like....bad. It will be so bad that I'm forced to hard reset and start fresh. I have not had any such issue with my pixel except after September's update which has rectified itself with October's. Timely updates are really nice and having the new os on release day is very cool.

I am totally with you on your point about having Samsung devices in the house. Everyone in my family has an S8 and they are drop-dead gorgeous - the design, build and display. I differ with you regarding Google's responsiveness - although I am glad they met your expectations - they didn't meet mine in the past year with my OG XL. My Note 5 never lagged, so I don't have that in common to keep me from buying Samsung.

I continue to be on the fence with my pre-order b/c as of now, I think Google needs to acknowledge that the there are issues, on a number of fronts, with the display. That may/may not happen. Given my experience with Google, I am not convinced that the fix will be a total recall, with all customers getting a new device with a display that rivals the latest gen Samsungs. If that were to pass, I for one, would be very happy that I stayed with my order. Short of that, I may spend another year, yet again, with a Google phone that is disappointing in some very significant way - for me. While my Note 5 wasn't perfect, my experience was that there were no significant drawbacks whatsoever. It was a great owner experience across the board.

In total, my first year with a Google phone didn't measure-up to that great experience. It's tough to head into a second year buying a second Google phone that already doesn't measure-up, with a distant hope that some aspects of the issues might get addressed. That's my position and concern as of today.

 

[Christopher Gilliam]

I love the Note line of phones and if I ever move away from the pixel XL line of phones I see the Note line as the only real option
I honestly moved from the Note to the Pixel because I felt the software and updates are better and I prefer note camera on the pixels better. I switched knowing the hard wear was not going to match the note for some time of ever

 

[revtech]

Agree with your first point. It's not ideal, but you can remap bixby button with a few small hacks. I have it mapped to flashlight on double click and camera on single.

So, I was about to reply to the guy you quoted and say that I'm pretty sure you can't remap the Bixby button but you can turn it off now . . You seem pretty sure of yourself so can you provide some details about these "hacks" you are alluding to?

 

[billykac]

So, I was about to reply to the guy you quoted and say that I'm pretty sure you can't remap the Bixby button but you can turn it off now . . You seem pretty sure of yourself so can you provide some details about these "hacks" you are alluding to?

I second this.
Info on how to remap would be great!

 

[treiz]

I really wanted the Pixel XL 2 for the OLED screen, large battery, software updates, water resistance, and front facing speakers. I cancelled my Pixel XL 2 preorder because of the cost. Even with all these features I wanted, at the same price as the Note8, the Note was a FAR better value.
.
I returned the Note8 because the speaker sounds like crap, the rounded screen edges are a retarded gimmick and make the phone unnecessarily heavy and difficult to hold, and most importantly the battery life that couldn't get me through a full day.
.
Currently I'm waiting on the HTC U11 Plus. The LCD will not suffer the same issues as the competition and will have more accurate color and be easier to see outside, I tested the standard U11 speaker in store and it sounds wonderful, all I need to hear from their announcement is that it has a big battery and 6gb of RAM and I'm sold.

 

[xxaarraa1983]

So, I was about to reply to the guy you quoted and say that I'm pretty sure you can't remap the Bixby button but you can turn it off now . . You seem pretty sure of yourself so can you provide some details about these "hacks" you are alluding to?

Yes, lookup "bxActions" in the playstore. It will make you download another app and have you set permissions via adb. But all in, it's fairly straightforward.

 

[revtech]

ok, fair enough, I knew there was an app early on that worked but I thought Samsung squashed it somehow

 

[JHBThree]

I decided to switch back to my Note 8 and return my 2 XL for now. I may eventually get another one, but for now it's not worth the money to me.

 

[Cherenkov]

Another vote here to never trust Samsung to keep their software up to date. It's an issue I've had with every phone I've had with them (S5, S6, S7, Note5). Sometimes they patch, sometimes they don't. Sometimes they patch specific carriers but not others. Sometimes a patch comes months late. You can replace the UI, but you can't make Samsung support their products. My unlocked S7 still doesn't have the Blueborne patch yet, 2 months after Google made it available.

Right now there's very little choice for an Android phone which will actually be updated in any kind of reliable manner.

 

[revtech]

Another vote here to never trust Samsung to keep their software up to date. It's an issue I've had with every phone I've had with them (S5, S6, S7, Note5). Sometimes they patch, sometimes they don't. Sometimes they patch specific carriers but not others. Sometimes a patch comes months late. You can replace the UI, but you can't make Samsung support their products. My unlocked S7 still doesn't have the Blueborne patch yet, 2 months after Google made it available.

Right now there's very little choice for an Android phone which will actually be updated in any kind of reliable manner.

And sometimes Google puts out quick and timely updates that lead to numerous threads and posts crying that it broke my phone, or wasn't ready for primetime, or . . .

 

[Zod1010]

I'm in a similar situation as the OP. I got my Pixel XL 2 on Thursday and I'm returning it tonight. Last night I found my screen unresponsive to gestures. An hour later my Bluetooth connection started dropping EVERY time I touched the phone. Taken alongside all the other issues being reported, it's just difficult to believe this phone was well manufactured. That said, I'll likely wait a few weeks and see how google responds. I suspect there will be little they can truly do, other than ride out this storm.

When the dust settles, I suspect I'll end up with a Note 8. I personally think too much is made of TouchWiz. The reality is I ran Nova on my S6, my S7 Edge and my Pixel XL 2. And if anything, I found myself trying to supplement my Pixel with some of the features the Samsung phones build in. So while it’s a shame Google didn’t hit the homerun I was hoping for, I certainly won't mind having a headphone jack, an SD card, and the best-in-breed screen.

 

[billykac]

So while it’s a shame Google didn’t hit the homerun I was hoping for, I certainly won't mind having a headphone jack, an SD card, and the best-in-breed screen.

Ditto.

TouchWiz as a good thing or bad is an oh-so-tired debate. If it works for you, great. If not, Nova. By all accounts, the N8 performance is wonderful. Just enjoy it.

 

[dsignori]

Personally I like touchwiz. So it may not be the fastest. There's a lot of animations but that's easily fixed by adjusting in dev settings. There are however several features. I found useful and are pretty well done.

I like it too. TouchWiz has come a long way over the years and has had many useful features long before "stock" android. In my experience, most people ragging on it either haven't used it recently, or just love to pile on. It's quite a "us vs them " mentality, not just between Android and iOS , but between Android OEMs too sometimes ..

 

[paradroid]

My XL 2 is on the way. The more I read about these phones they sound like a train wreck. Google is not a tiny little startup company, they have billions and billions of dollars and should be able to afford impeccable QC.

I was really looking forward to pure android and project FI, but the first sign of an issue that bugs me the phone is going back and I'll need to stick with and Galaxy S8 until maybe the Pixel 3 comes out.