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JackieInCo

Suspended
Jul 18, 2013
5,178
1,601
Colorado
I wish people moving from iPhone to Android for the first time would always pick the stock Google phone the Nexus or pixel is the best way to experience Android for the first time and I my opinion Samsung's a bad way to experience Android for the first time.

Right off the bat, the Pixel has "raise to wake" standard. Plus the OS is super smooth zero lag.

I think you'd have a much happier time going to the Pixel.
I did that. Back then I bought the Nexus 4 as my first Android phone and besides the phone running pure Android, it was probably the worst phone experience I ever had. Phones have gotten 100% better since then and Samsung has improved 100% since then. There is zero lag and the Touchwiz interface has just become so polished now.
 
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hemon

macrumors 6502
Oct 4, 2014
323
114
I did that. Back then I bought the Nexus 4 as my first Android phone and besides the phone running pure Android, it was probably the worst phone experience I ever had. Phones have gotten 100% better since then and Samsung has improved 100% since then. There is zero lag and the Touchwiz interface has just become so polished now.

I can just confirm this too: mine S8 with Touchwiz interface has ZERO lag and it is just smooth! Also: I debloated it without rooting and it is very clean.
 
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Shanghaichica

macrumors G5
Apr 8, 2013
14,725
13,245
UK
I did that. Back then I bought the Nexus 4 as my first Android phone and besides the phone running pure Android, it was probably the worst phone experience I ever had. Phones have gotten 100% better since then and Samsung has improved 100% since then. There is zero lag and the Touchwiz interface has just become so polished now.
Look even my S5 didn't lag. The only Samsung phone that I've had that ever lagged was the original galaxy note. It was one of the most unstable piece of hardware I've ever used.

Every Samsung phone I've used since then (S4, note 3, S5, note 4, S7 edge) has not lagged.

Also why does everyone talk about Touch wiz like it's some kind of disease. It has gotten better over the years but I've never had a problem with it and I've used it since 2012. It's feature packed.
 

The Game 161

macrumors Nehalem
Dec 15, 2010
30,980
20,169
UK
So just because you read about some people having lag makes the s8 a laggy phone? I've read more posts and reviews from people saying the totally opposite.

And I've had the s8 myself since release and have zero lag and I can tell you that the touch latency on this thing is one of the best, if not the best on any Android I've tried.

Dad has S8 plus and no lag at all

Samsung phones simply do not lag anymore. No more than any phone out there

Even my 7 plus lags at times
 

monty77

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Mar 4, 2005
594
173
UK, South Coast
Sunday update

- Had my first proper issue today. Was preparing some offline maps in google maps (at the airport preparing to go) and the thing starts to crawl. Keyboard not responsive, home button not responding. finally got into the task switcher and a 'close all' got me going again but this is EXACTLY the kind of BS that put me off Android in the past, iPhones just dont do that
- Picked up a S3 gear at the airport playing with it now, really nice hardware actually and really nice that it looks and feels like a proper watch. I was never a heavy AW user anyway, just notifications and activity really. Always on screen is a HUGE plus. Makes me wonder what it's like working with the iPhone actually - might end up being a good combo lol

Might be an iPhone 8 order after all ... we shall see, I still have 2 weeks with this thing but glad I've packed the iPhone just in case!
 

torana355

macrumors 68040
Dec 8, 2009
3,633
2,734
Sydney, Australia
Sunday update

- Had my first proper issue today. Was preparing some offline maps in google maps (at the airport preparing to go) and the thing starts to crawl. Keyboard not responsive, home button not responding. finally got into the task switcher and a 'close all' got me going again but this is EXACTLY the kind of BS that put me off Android in the past, iPhones just dont do that

Thats bizarre, ive not had anything like that happen to me. It could be any number of things that caused it. However a quick google search for iPhone freezing brings up a large number of results so I would say iPhones are not free from these types of issues.
 
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monty77

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Mar 4, 2005
594
173
UK, South Coast
Thats bizarre, ive not had anything like that happen to me. It could be any number of things that caused it. However a quick google search for iPhone freezing brings up a large number of results so I would say iPhones are not free from these types of issues.

I should have added. In my experience. All things have issues I get that but was hoping not to hit something quite so soon. I actually want to like this thing
 

torana355

macrumors 68040
Dec 8, 2009
3,633
2,734
Sydney, Australia
I should have added. In my experience. All things have issues I get that but was hoping not to hit something quite so soon. I actually want to like this thing
I understand, unfortunately all computers and phones have hiccups at some point. In my experience the S8 plus has been as good as any phone ive used in this department. I will say I reboot my phone once a week, I find it runs best this way. I don't think you need to restart iOS devices to keep them running smooth so thats a downside of Android for sure. Its the same with OSX, I never have to restart my MBA it runs great for months on end without being turned off, however my windows pc needs to be restarted often.
 

JackieInCo

Suspended
Jul 18, 2013
5,178
1,601
Colorado
Look even my S5 didn't lag. The only Samsung phone that I've had that ever lagged was the original galaxy note. It was one of the most unstable piece of hardware I've ever used.

Every Samsung phone I've used since then (S4, note 3, S5, note 4, S7 edge) has not lagged.

Also why does everyone talk about Touch wiz like it's some kind of disease. It has gotten better over the years but I've never had a problem with it and I've used it since 2012. It's feature packed.
I used my S7 Edge just a short while ago and the lag on it was very noticeable after using my S8+ and Note 8.
 
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The Game 161

macrumors Nehalem
Dec 15, 2010
30,980
20,169
UK
Sunday update

- Had my first proper issue today. Was preparing some offline maps in google maps (at the airport preparing to go) and the thing starts to crawl. Keyboard not responsive, home button not responding. finally got into the task switcher and a 'close all' got me going again but this is EXACTLY the kind of BS that put me off Android in the past, iPhones just dont do that
- Picked up a S3 gear at the airport playing with it now, really nice hardware actually and really nice that it looks and feels like a proper watch. I was never a heavy AW user anyway, just notifications and activity really. Always on screen is a HUGE plus. Makes me wonder what it's like working with the iPhone actually - might end up being a good combo lol

Might be an iPhone 8 order after all ... we shall see, I still have 2 weeks with this thing but glad I've packed the iPhone just in case!

My iPhone did something like this yesterday

It happens even on iPhones
 

Hustler1337

macrumors 68000
Dec 23, 2010
1,854
1,611
London, UK
Sunday update

- Had my first proper issue today. Was preparing some offline maps in google maps (at the airport preparing to go) and the thing starts to crawl. Keyboard not responsive, home button not responding. finally got into the task switcher and a 'close all' got me going again but this is EXACTLY the kind of BS that put me off Android in the past, iPhones just dont do that.

Was you downloading the offline maps in the background when this happened? Just offering a possible explanation, but in all honesty, I've had my fair share of freezes and unresponsiveness with my iPhones over the years and it's always when you're in a hurry or when you need to carry out an important task! :p
 

The Game 161

macrumors Nehalem
Dec 15, 2010
30,980
20,169
UK
Was you downloading the offline maps in the background when this happened? Just offering a possible explanation, but in all honesty, I've had my fair share of freezes and unresponsiveness with my iPhones over the years and it's always when you're in a hurry or when you need to carry out an important task! :p

Can happen for me when downloading loads of apps
 
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Puddled

macrumors 6502a
Jun 9, 2017
548
602
Sunday update

- Had my first proper issue today. Was preparing some offline maps in google maps (at the airport preparing to go) and the thing starts to crawl. Keyboard not responsive, home button not responding. finally got into the task switcher and a 'close all' got me going again but this is EXACTLY the kind of BS that put me off Android in the past, iPhones just dont do that
- Picked up a S3 gear at the airport playing with it now, really nice hardware actually and really nice that it looks and feels like a proper watch. I was never a heavy AW user anyway, just notifications and activity really. Always on screen is a HUGE plus. Makes me wonder what it's like working with the iPhone actually - might end up being a good combo lol

Might be an iPhone 8 order after all ... we shall see, I still have 2 weeks with this thing but glad I've packed the iPhone just in case!

Downloading off line maps is data and cpi intensive. By closing all apps, you shut down the map app which stopped the hold up.

The phone was probably unpacking and formatting the data as quick as it could lol.
 
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sophie_

macrumors newbie
Sep 9, 2016
12
6
Long time iPhone and MacBook user and just bought an s8+ last week. It's gorgeous! I agree with all your points OP.
Really wish I could replace Bixby with Google Assistant. There's just so much customization we can do with these phones. It was a bit overwhelming at first but now I like all the options. One thing I don't think I'll get used to are the ugly emojis.
 
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Fille84

macrumors 6502
Aug 6, 2013
281
231
I think that's the answer. I've read the Exynos S8+ is very much lag free, compared to the Snapdragon version. For some reason the Exynos is just optimized better or something, and the SD835 seems to have more complaints on slight micro stutters.
Yeah. But most of the reviews I've read and watched on YouTube is made by Americans which I assume use the Snapdragon. So I still believe it's a very smooth and fast device regardless what processor it has. I would say it's an app that causes the stuttering or some process that runs in the background. If it's a process it will likely go back to normal after a while after it's finished.
 

monty77

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Mar 4, 2005
594
173
UK, South Coast
OK so a few days in now and things improving:

- Smartwake app has mostly removed my craving for raise to wake, not 100% reliable though. Battery seems OK so far
- I really like wireless charging, thought it was a gimmick before I'll admit. Obviously iPhone8/X resolves this anyway
- BxActions app (while a slight pain to install) has removed my Bixby annoyance

Still though I miss:

- Tap to scroll to top (system wide)
- Apps that allow touchID to authenticate

Beginning to like the Gear S3 frontier I picked up also, it's nice to have a smart watch that looks like a watch and the rotating bezel is fantastic.

Moved to Evie launcher too, it's flexible and very slick to look at. Although I wish you could remove the top search bar when the search bar itself is so easy to summon .. clicking at the top of the screen is a pain so I'm never going to use it there - seems like an odd choice.
 

Puddled

macrumors 6502a
Jun 9, 2017
548
602
OK so a few days in now and things improving:

- Smartwake app has mostly removed my craving for raise to wake, not 100% reliable though. Battery seems OK so far
- I really like wireless charging, thought it was a gimmick before I'll admit. Obviously iPhone8/X resolves this anyway
- BxActions app (while a slight pain to install) has removed my Bixby annoyance

Still though I miss:

- Tap to scroll to top (system wide)
- Apps that allow touchID to authenticate

Beginning to like the Gear S3 frontier I picked up also, it's nice to have a smart watch that looks like a watch and the rotating bezel is fantastic.

Moved to Evie launcher too, it's flexible and very slick to look at. Although I wish you could remove the top search bar when the search bar itself is so easy to summon .. clicking at the top of the screen is a pain so I'm never going to use it there - seems like an odd choice.


*Samsung have just released an update that allows you to turn bixby off.
*Samsung PASS is fantastic. Works a treat in allowing apps to use FP for authentication. Its a samsung app so perhaps you missed in set up? You can download it from the galaxy store. The Samsung browser has FP authentication
*Evie is excellent. Nova is a std go-to which will allow you to remove the search bar.
 

lowendlinux

macrumors 603
Sep 24, 2014
5,460
6,788
Germany
Name one app that Samsung does better than Google ? And no S-Pen stuff, because obviously stock Android doesn't do that.

To be honest I despise Touchwiz, Lagwiz, or Grace UI, whatever they call it today, it's still a super bloated OS. Look in Developer Options, under "Running Apps" holy cow Batman there's like ten million apps running in the background on a Galaxy phone. Do they same on a Pixel, and it may be a dozen or so. On my Nexus 6P I have 9 services running in the background. Point being, when there's like 20+ services running in the background that contributes to micro stutter and slight lag.

I owned the S8+ for a week, and FACT it still lags and stutters, sure it's minor and only does so very little for a split second here and there, but it's there. Sure it's way better than horrid S4 days, but it's still there. My Nexus 6P, ZERO lag, warp speed smooth.

Read the S8 forums, now that the been out for almost siz months, there's plenty of posts about lag getting worse as the months pass by with the S8. Not making that up

Here's the thing what you and I want out of a phone are different than what most people want. You have you're Nexus, you like your ROM's and such there's only a couple people in here that are like that most just want a phone hence Samsung.
 
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hallux

macrumors 68040
Apr 25, 2012
3,443
1,005
Apps that allow touchID to authenticate

Any apps in particular? I've found all of my financial apps use my fingerprint unlock (on my Nexus), as does my password manager which auto-fills passwords in apps so that takes care of the rest anyway...
 

Tig Bitties

macrumors 603
Sep 6, 2012
5,517
5,692
Here's the thing what you and I want out of a phone are different than what most people want. You have you're Nexus, you like your ROM's and such there's only a couple people in here that are like that most just want a phone hence Samsung.


yeah it seems that way. I keep forgetting MacRumors is not XDA :) Now there's SamSheep.

To me I think it's a national tragedy, and there should be a day or morn over the loss of unlocked bootloaders like back in the day. The S8+ running Lineage ROM 15.0 would be a nerds wet dream.

One of my fav all time phones was my ATT Galaxy Note II back like 5 years ago. I rooted that beast within the first hour, and installed a custom ROM the next day. That phone had so much development it was crazy. Tons of stock Touchwiz type ROM's, and tons of AOSP ROM's. And most of the good ROM's were rock solid stable, but the best thing was, they squeezed out every ounce of battery life, my ROM'd Note II was giving me 8hr Screen On time. And the phone was crazy fast too with all the tweaks.

Back then you could root and ROM any Samsung carrier phone. And it wasn't a rocket science to do it, was almost as simple as a Nexus phone.

Oh I miss those days.
 
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