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Samsung S25/ S25 Ultra
- Thread starter Dave245
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Interesting, I have a Honda as well, albeit a newer model, and AA works perfectly. You've probably tried already, but did you uninstall any AA updates or uninstall completely and reinstall? You can also try a beta build of AA and see if that makes any difference. On my OnePlus phone when I initially got it, it would automatically run in charging only mode when connected to my car (wired). I had to go into Dev settings and switch the default to USB transfer mode, and it has worked every time since I adjusted that.
Appreciate all the help everyone. I've literally tried all of those steps and no dice. Sounds like it's just a simple bug fix that needs to happen on the Android Auto side has several people are reporting the same issue I'm having on Reddit.
Enjoying case-less life during the evenings 😁.
Wondering if my current Android Auto issues with getting "Hey Google" to play Apple Music are related to using Gemini vs standard assistant? They are different things right? Lol I feel like an idiot but I think I agreed to use Gemini for hands free hey google at some point, but not sure if switching it is possible or advisable.
I can't get Hey Google to play individual songs even though Apple Music is my default music app unless my phone is unlocked and Apple Music is on the screen.
I can't get Hey Google to play individual songs even though Apple Music is my default music app unless my phone is unlocked and Apple Music is on the screen.
Woohoo! Somehow I got Android Auto to connect on both cars. Don't even know what I did right this time. Haha.
I wonder if it's Google or Apple making it more difficult. It handles YouTube Music flawlessly.
My guess is they both make it difficult. I have found Gemini is great for some things, but it fails miserably at some basic tasks.
Only this shot makes me wanting this phone so badly 🙈🙈🙈
But no money for a second phone sadly
I'm sure most people are happy with the haptics but I found them a bit lacking in the keyboard area.
So a tip for those using GBoard feeling the same.
Go into GBoard settings and in 'preferences', scroll to 'vibration strength on keypress' and change it on the manual slider to 20ms.
Makes them feel a little more prominent. I tried loads of different strengths, anything past that though turns it from a 'nudge' into a full on vibrate which just all mushes together with each keypress.
In other updates, I continue to love this phone. I NEVER expected to enjoy this device so much but it really is ticking practically every box. It's a great looking phone, i love the design and think it even looks great just sat on a desk. The screen is amazing, Dolby Atmos with Apple Music sounds insane, camera performance has been solid and finally really good battery life. I ended the evening yesterday after heavy usage, with over 8 hours screen on time and charged when I went to sleep at 6%. A success!
Me buying, enjoying and keeping a Samsung phone was not on my 2025 bingo card! 😁
So a tip for those using GBoard feeling the same.
Go into GBoard settings and in 'preferences', scroll to 'vibration strength on keypress' and change it on the manual slider to 20ms.
Makes them feel a little more prominent. I tried loads of different strengths, anything past that though turns it from a 'nudge' into a full on vibrate which just all mushes together with each keypress.
In other updates, I continue to love this phone. I NEVER expected to enjoy this device so much but it really is ticking practically every box. It's a great looking phone, i love the design and think it even looks great just sat on a desk. The screen is amazing, Dolby Atmos with Apple Music sounds insane, camera performance has been solid and finally really good battery life. I ended the evening yesterday after heavy usage, with over 8 hours screen on time and charged when I went to sleep at 6%. A success!
Me buying, enjoying and keeping a Samsung phone was not on my 2025 bingo card! 😁
The haptic feedback is what I miss most from Pixel. Not just the actual engine but how it is used throughout the OS.
It makes everything feel more alive if that makes sense.
Otherwise I continue to be happy with the S25. It feels like the most complete and fun phone I've ever had.
Agreed. Pixel haptics are king. iPhones keyboard are largely pointless too, despite clearly having a great haptic engine etc. Only Google have nailed it IMO.
My thoughts too! The S25 Ultra is the best phone i have ever had bar none....
It is the most feature packed complete phone i have ever had. It is not perfect...some phones do some things better and some things not better. But overall the S25 Ultra has the best user experience of any smartphone i have used so far.
agreed it's an amazing device.... I do wish they had followed pixel and got the faceID approved for secure access to banking apps etc
I did not know it was approved on the Pixel, I always thought as it security level was so low banks did not approve it
Is it just a US thing and not international banks ?
I keep all my banking in the Samsung safe area so Face ID is somewhat irrelevant as I use a strong password to unlock , then fingerprint to authorise transactions within the app
I think I'm the rare type that literally has no preference between FaceID and Fingerprint. As long as they work.
Is it safe to download and install the February update firmware from Sammobile on my unlocked device? The firmware is for AT&T but the phone model (SM931U) is the same as my unlocked phone. Will it brick the phone since the firmware is AT&T? I am just curious about Odin and was reading about it. I don't think it'll work, curious if anyone has tried it.
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I love FaceID for the accuracy and quickness but now that the fingerprint is as good as it is on the S25U it really is a non issue. Plus when I'm wearing my CPAP mask in bed I can appreciate having an on screen FPS versus having to type in a PIN which I have to do on my iPhone because FaceID doesn't work with my mask on.
I haven’t tinkered with my phones for many years now so no real advice but can I ask why you can’t just wait until it’s rolled out to you?
I’m not being funny at all btw, just curious if there’s something in the update that is worth while downloading asap
Oh I'm not going to do it 😂 . I don't want to brick the phone or waste my time. Was just curious whether anyone has tried. I know people flash carrier locked phones with unlocked firmware.
Quick mini update/review. Man, I should really post these with a picture of me doing a facepalm like they do on YouTube. I'm going to separate these by what's most important to me in a smartphone:
Ease of Use - So this is going to sound very similar to my S23 Ultra thoughts from 2 years go, but Samsung has absolutely closed the gap on the amount of clicks it takes to get what you need done. I'd say even more so now. I can't remember if it was actually a thing 2 years ago or if I just didn't use it right, but the ability to swipe up to launch the app drawer and then have a finder if fantastic! It has allowed me to bypass the settings app by simply typing what setting I'm looking for. Want to check your battery stats? Swipe up, click on Search, and type in Battery, and boom, you're there. App Library on Apple is a mess. On Samsung, I currently have 8 rows of 3 apps (24 Total) on my Edge panel, and could add more if I want. I organize it to my liking...and can switch apps within an app instead of closing the current app. Samsung used to be gimmicky and I'd grow tired of all the options. Now I would say if you know what you're doing, it makes you more efficient.
Battery - Still undecided. I think the latest iPhone is probably still slightly better, but it's good enough and the Super Fast Charging 2.0 is a good trade off even though the batter hasn't been quite as good as the iPhone. I'm also on day 5 of owning it and have been finding all kinds of cool **** like Live Wallpapers, so battery is draining quicker because I'm on the phone more.
Camera - I haven't used it as much as I'd like, but I'm happy to report that I've had zero issues of shutter lag with my dog, and I took a couple pics of my younger dog having some crazy moments outside. Still more to test but I don't think I'm going to feel like I'm missing anything. One note. The audio eraser is cool, but I was a bit disappointed when I was trying to erase voices from a video taken at one of my acoustic gigs, only for it to delete my own voice too, haha.
Feel in Hand - It's pretty easy to hold but it is a tiny bit slipperier than the iPhone 15 Pro Max, but not awful. By the way, the Kindsuit Case is nice but I thought I was going to snap my phone in half when trying to remove it!
Typing - It is just a joy to use Gboard compared to the iPhone keyboard. Holy cow. Of all the things that are different on this phone, this is the one thing that has probably bettered my experience the most.
Music - I'm a bit undecided on what I want to do. Apple Music has always been my favorite, but now that I'm trying YouTube Music, I'm really loving it as well. Works great with Gemini too, though the interface could be simpler. I do like Spotify too and might try that as I know it's always baked into OneUI so well.
Other Software Notes -
- The OneUI Lockscreen now completely matches Apple's, I have the same widgets (Weather and Reminders) but they are more symmetrical.
- Notifications are much nicer to manage. I like that I can swipe from notifications panel to quick settings. Apple needs to do that.
- I missed Live Wallpapers. And I love being able to use my own videos as Live Wallpaper too!
- OneUI 7 is such a breather of fresh air compared to iOS which is in major need of an overhaul from the ground up. I know a lot of S24 users are pissed about the delays, but it could be worse if you were on Apple having the same issues over and over that are never fixed.
Overall I'm really pleased so far other than the Android Auto issue I had but is now resolved. That would have been a deal breaker so I'm glad we're all good there. In all honesty, it doesn't seem like a HUGE upgrade from Apple but there are a lot of things I like more and I'm happy with the move. It's nice that my wife and I can quick share photos when at home and that'll be even more enjoyable when our baby arrives in June! Oh, one other note. The Silver Watch Classic 6 is about as elegant of a smartwatch that I've ever owned. And maybe it's just because I'm not a super power user with watches, but I don't really see a difference between this and the Apple Watch Ultra. They both do the things I need them to do and have the exact same battery life.
Stay tuned for more!
Ease of Use - So this is going to sound very similar to my S23 Ultra thoughts from 2 years go, but Samsung has absolutely closed the gap on the amount of clicks it takes to get what you need done. I'd say even more so now. I can't remember if it was actually a thing 2 years ago or if I just didn't use it right, but the ability to swipe up to launch the app drawer and then have a finder if fantastic! It has allowed me to bypass the settings app by simply typing what setting I'm looking for. Want to check your battery stats? Swipe up, click on Search, and type in Battery, and boom, you're there. App Library on Apple is a mess. On Samsung, I currently have 8 rows of 3 apps (24 Total) on my Edge panel, and could add more if I want. I organize it to my liking...and can switch apps within an app instead of closing the current app. Samsung used to be gimmicky and I'd grow tired of all the options. Now I would say if you know what you're doing, it makes you more efficient.
Battery - Still undecided. I think the latest iPhone is probably still slightly better, but it's good enough and the Super Fast Charging 2.0 is a good trade off even though the batter hasn't been quite as good as the iPhone. I'm also on day 5 of owning it and have been finding all kinds of cool **** like Live Wallpapers, so battery is draining quicker because I'm on the phone more.
Camera - I haven't used it as much as I'd like, but I'm happy to report that I've had zero issues of shutter lag with my dog, and I took a couple pics of my younger dog having some crazy moments outside. Still more to test but I don't think I'm going to feel like I'm missing anything. One note. The audio eraser is cool, but I was a bit disappointed when I was trying to erase voices from a video taken at one of my acoustic gigs, only for it to delete my own voice too, haha.
Feel in Hand - It's pretty easy to hold but it is a tiny bit slipperier than the iPhone 15 Pro Max, but not awful. By the way, the Kindsuit Case is nice but I thought I was going to snap my phone in half when trying to remove it!
Typing - It is just a joy to use Gboard compared to the iPhone keyboard. Holy cow. Of all the things that are different on this phone, this is the one thing that has probably bettered my experience the most.
Music - I'm a bit undecided on what I want to do. Apple Music has always been my favorite, but now that I'm trying YouTube Music, I'm really loving it as well. Works great with Gemini too, though the interface could be simpler. I do like Spotify too and might try that as I know it's always baked into OneUI so well.
Other Software Notes -
- The OneUI Lockscreen now completely matches Apple's, I have the same widgets (Weather and Reminders) but they are more symmetrical.
- Notifications are much nicer to manage. I like that I can swipe from notifications panel to quick settings. Apple needs to do that.
- I missed Live Wallpapers. And I love being able to use my own videos as Live Wallpaper too!
- OneUI 7 is such a breather of fresh air compared to iOS which is in major need of an overhaul from the ground up. I know a lot of S24 users are pissed about the delays, but it could be worse if you were on Apple having the same issues over and over that are never fixed.
Overall I'm really pleased so far other than the Android Auto issue I had but is now resolved. That would have been a deal breaker so I'm glad we're all good there. In all honesty, it doesn't seem like a HUGE upgrade from Apple but there are a lot of things I like more and I'm happy with the move. It's nice that my wife and I can quick share photos when at home and that'll be even more enjoyable when our baby arrives in June! Oh, one other note. The Silver Watch Classic 6 is about as elegant of a smartwatch that I've ever owned. And maybe it's just because I'm not a super power user with watches, but I don't really see a difference between this and the Apple Watch Ultra. They both do the things I need them to do and have the exact same battery life.
Stay tuned for more!