Wi-Fi Direct Transfers?

[zr2s10]

I just got an LG G3, coming from a Samsung Galaxy S3. I tried to send a picture using Wi-Fi direct, to my wife's Galaxy Alpha, but it doesn't list Wi-Fi Direct as an option under the "Share" button. I connected both phones using the Wi-Fi Direct setting under the main settings, but it wouldn't bring up an option, and the only thing it would pull up if I hit her phone's ID was "Disconnect?" I also tried to send a file from her phone to mine while they were connected, and it just times out.

Is Samsung the only company that makes this easy? Is "Wi-Fi Direct" under the share button on Samsung actually accessing a program specific to their products? I always assumed that it was a part of Android. But I had my co-workers try it on their phones, connecting with my old Galaxy S3, and it did the same thing as my LG G3. I tried installing a Wi-Fi Direct transfer app, but it appears you have to install it on both devices, and it requires entering codes, and so-on. Major pain in the rear.

I'm thinking of returning the G3 for this, and the way-too-slow flash usage on the camera. My GS3 was much quicker for low light shots, and there are so few settings on LGs camera app, there's no way to make it faster. When taking pictures of a 2 year old, you gotta be quick! I even tried Google's camera app, same issue.

 

[lrrowley]

Android has wifi direct built in but you need software to make the transfer. Samsung has their own software but both devices have to be Samsung to make it work. Like you noted there are apps in Google Play and you just have to install them on both devices. I've used this before between my phones and my Nexus 7. I don't think it's something worth returning your phone over, but if you use wifi direct a lot then it could be.

 

[zr2s10]

Thanks for the reply. That's what it started looking like to me anyway. I noticed that LG has their own thing as well, and it mentions for other LGs only. IF I keep the phone, I'll just install the same Wi-Fi direct app on all of my devices (and my wife's phone). I just assumed that it was the same on all Android devices, because Samsung didn't name their app anything special, and my wife and I both had Samsungs, and my tablet is a Note 10.1, so I didn't know any better. Samsung's app is pretty seamless, it's almost as easy as doing a Bluetooth transfer, so I thought it was a universal integration.

And I agree it's not necessarily worth returning the phone over. But I've noticed some hangups with this and other sites not working and displaying properly. It's not too bad, just an irritant. The big thing for me is the camera. The insane lag when using the flash is completely unacceptable. If I could turn off burst mode, to get everything focused while holding down the shutter button, and then release it to take an instant pic, that would be perfect. But there doesn't seem to be a way, and it's really making me mad that a phone they tout for having an extremely fast camera, misses shots all the time. I'm just not as impressed with this phone as I expected to be. To me, it doesn't offer enough advantage over my old S3 to be worth the Next payment. My S3 kept getting blurred lines in my low light pics, but at least I didn't miss the shot.

 

[xocomaox]

How long does it take for you to snap a picture using the flash?

 

[zr2s10]

It's a good 3 seconds. And if anybody moves, it's blurred. Maybe I just had a bad camera on mine, I don't know. But I pulled the plug last night and swapped it out for an S5 active. I really liked the G3, but some of the things were just adding up, and the flash issue pushed me over the edge. The back buttons and knock on were easy to get used to and kind of nice. Some IP rating would've been nice, but a case could've solved that. If they set up their stock camera app and flash control like Samsung, I would have loved that phone. Every Samsung I checked at the store had the same control on the flash: Turn off "Burst Mode" (not an option on G3), Hold Down Shutter Button (and "Active Key" on the Active), the Flash will light to get the exposure setting, release the button, and the picture is taken instantly. There was absolutely no way to do this on the G3 that I could find. Even different camera apps still waited to run the flash for exposure until after you released the shutter key. I know it sounds silly, but I just couldn't accept that for an "excellent photographer's tool" that they advertise it to be. I used that all the time on my Galaxy S3.

 

[xocomaox]

It's a good 3 seconds. And if anybody moves, it's blurred. Maybe I just had a bad camera on mine, I don't know. But I pulled the plug last night and swapped it out for an S5 active. I really liked the G3, but some of the things were just adding up, and the flash issue pushed me over the edge. The back buttons and knock on were easy to get used to and kind of nice. Some IP rating would've been nice, but a case could've solved that. If they set up their stock camera app and flash control like Samsung, I would have loved that phone. Every Samsung I checked at the store had the same control on the flash: Turn off "Burst Mode" (not an option on G3), Hold Down Shutter Button (and "Active Key" on the Active), the Flash will light to get the exposure setting, release the button, and the picture is taken instantly. There was absolutely no way to do this on the G3 that I could find. Even different camera apps still waited to run the flash for exposure until after you released the shutter key. I know it sounds silly, but I just couldn't accept that for an "excellent photographer's tool" that they advertise it to be. I used that all the time on my Galaxy S3.

That's interesting, I did not realize Samsung phones did it that way. My G3 takes 2 seconds for a picture to be taken with flash in low light situations. I wonder why yours was longer?

How long does it take for your Samsung to snap a picture using the flash? Is it still the 3 seconds?

 

[zr2s10]

It's about the same as the G3, right around 3 seconds. But the key thing is timing of the picture. Since the S5 figures out the ISO when you hold down the button, when you let go, it takes it immediately. That allows me to line up a shot, then take it at just the right moment. For example when trying to take a picture of my son, it's hard to get him to look for that whole 3 seconds, since he's 2, lol. But if I hold the shutter, and release it right when he looks, I can usually get the shot. I didn't realize just how much I used the capability, until I got the G3, and it didn't have it. Plus the G3 tended to give me blurred images, since there was no "action" setting to speed it up. The S5 doesn't have a specific action setting, but you can manually adjust ISO.

 

[lrrowley]

Yeah I agree that LG phones have ridiculous flashes that take forever to fire all the way. My G2 was the same way, worse even.