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So who's invested in the samsung ecosystem?
- Thread starter cuzo
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Samsung partnering with Microsoft went quite sometime ago. I forgot when, but I think they already had a sort of partnership in the days of S6 or S7, definitely when Samsung started pre-installing Microsoft apps on their phones.
I don’t have all the gadgets, but integration of Samsung phones with Windows 10 is quite good thanks to OneDrive. Samsung Gallery app on my phone syncs with OneDrive, and OneDrive syncs with the photo app in Windows 10. Text messages via Windows also works through the my phone app, although connectivity reliability is a bit dodgy. I don’t use a lot of SMS though so I don’t use that. Other apps WhatsApp web or telegram handles my messaging needs.
I wonder if things be a would be better if I used a Samsung laptop. I heard that Huawei phones and laptops can do something similar to Apple’s Airdrop, but only with Huawei devices.
I don’t have all the gadgets, but integration of Samsung phones with Windows 10 is quite good thanks to OneDrive. Samsung Gallery app on my phone syncs with OneDrive, and OneDrive syncs with the photo app in Windows 10. Text messages via Windows also works through the my phone app, although connectivity reliability is a bit dodgy. I don’t use a lot of SMS though so I don’t use that. Other apps WhatsApp web or telegram handles my messaging needs.
I wonder if things be a would be better if I used a Samsung laptop. I heard that Huawei phones and laptops can do something similar to Apple’s Airdrop, but only with Huawei devices.
I hear you can receive your text messages specifically on a note 20. I'll look for the article.
Really because I hate the apple watch but the price of the se isn't bad I really just want a manlier watch lol.
Maybe the 44 is a bit better than the 42mm.
Really because I hate the apple watch but the price of the se isn't bad I really just want a manlier watch lol.
Maybe the 44 is a bit better than the 42mm.
I'm about to be. I just posted about it on this section. Note 20 Ultra 5G as a single device for personal computing on DeX and stuff. To me, things like that plus the ecosystem appeal being a former Apple fan on a Rene Ritchie level! The Watch is the only worthy competitor to Apple Watch IMO, and the buds seem good - I think they're ugly af. They also have 'Experience Stores' like a copy of Apple, so in a sense, from an Apple minded consumers point of view, they're the only other company offering the same extent of products and it looks like they're trying to make it as seamless.. whether or not it is yet, I can't tell you... but I'm about ot find out.
Copying is the highest form of flattery?! lol
Copying is the highest form of flattery?! lol
I've accidentally invested in the Samsung ecosystem. 
I'm really appreciating my Galaxy A20 smartphone... my smartphone needs are modest and the A20 feels like a flagship. I picked up a Galaxy Tab A 10.1 (2019) last year because it seemed far better than the Fire HD 10 than the difference in price would indicate. That has turned out to be a winner. Last week I picked up a Galaxy Tab S6 on a killer deal. (I'll be starting a thread here to cover my experiences with it).
I really am not a fan of any ecosystem. I find it to be an annoyance that companies expect consumers to be locked in to their services... I'm an old school tech dinosaur that just likes to buy hardware without signing up to be part of a "community" or an ecosystem.
I'm really appreciating my Galaxy A20 smartphone... my smartphone needs are modest and the A20 feels like a flagship. I picked up a Galaxy Tab A 10.1 (2019) last year because it seemed far better than the Fire HD 10 than the difference in price would indicate. That has turned out to be a winner. Last week I picked up a Galaxy Tab S6 on a killer deal. (I'll be starting a thread here to cover my experiences with it).I really am not a fan of any ecosystem. I find it to be an annoyance that companies expect consumers to be locked in to their services... I'm an old school tech dinosaur that just likes to buy hardware without signing up to be part of a "community" or an ecosystem.
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I would definitely go all in. The Samsujg Watches look way better than Apples IMO and I am in a position where I don't rely on the apple ecosystem. I don't need a £1000+ MacBook to browse the web and send an email.
So having a MacBook is pointless. I sold mine about 3 years ago now and bought a £250 Chromebook and it was the best decision I've made.
Love the Chromebook and much prefer it to the overpriced MacBook I was using.
Sure, for professionals who use their MacBook and iPad together for photo editing and whatever it's a great combo. But the average user not so much.
We have an OG iPad Pro in our house which we share and neither of us ever touch it. I use it occasionally for business purposes and that's it. Not interested in it.
I find so much more freedom outside of Apple products and I'll never get trapped in the ecosystem again.
So having a MacBook is pointless. I sold mine about 3 years ago now and bought a £250 Chromebook and it was the best decision I've made.
Love the Chromebook and much prefer it to the overpriced MacBook I was using.
Sure, for professionals who use their MacBook and iPad together for photo editing and whatever it's a great combo. But the average user not so much.
We have an OG iPad Pro in our house which we share and neither of us ever touch it. I use it occasionally for business purposes and that's it. Not interested in it.
I find so much more freedom outside of Apple products and I'll never get trapped in the ecosystem again.
Samsung has an ecosystem? I mean, sure they got the 'galaxy store' but comparing that to Play Store is like comparing a Ford Mustang to a Pinto.
Samsung has cleverly created an ecosystem by stealth. Yes, you can buy their earbuds and watches etc but the true strength is their partnership with Microsoft.
Every single PC running Windows 10 can now have their messages, notifications, phone calls etc on their PC desktop - just like Apple. You can even mirror your display and run phone apps right there, too. It works with other Android phones with varying levels of functionality as well, but with Samsung devices it‘s flawless. You even get universal copy and paste between phone and PC.
They also preload Office and OneDrive and allow you to sync your phone gallery straight to OneDrive‘s camera roll. Having Word, Excel, OneNote and PowerPoint seamlessly function on those big, beautiful Samsung AMOLED screens (especially on productivity-focused phones like the Note) out of the box is an arguably stronger ecosystem in some ways than Apple’s iWork apps and iMessage restricted to only Mac devices.
Every single PC running Windows 10 can now have their messages, notifications, phone calls etc on their PC desktop - just like Apple. You can even mirror your display and run phone apps right there, too. It works with other Android phones with varying levels of functionality as well, but with Samsung devices it‘s flawless. You even get universal copy and paste between phone and PC.
They also preload Office and OneDrive and allow you to sync your phone gallery straight to OneDrive‘s camera roll. Having Word, Excel, OneNote and PowerPoint seamlessly function on those big, beautiful Samsung AMOLED screens (especially on productivity-focused phones like the Note) out of the box is an arguably stronger ecosystem in some ways than Apple’s iWork apps and iMessage restricted to only Mac devices.
I do similar only it's switching from older Samsung to modern Samsung/LG/Apple. Every device is already set up and paid for so it's as simple as switching around SIM cards. For some reason though when I hear 'ecosystem' I think software. App store, digital content tied to whatever ID, whether it's Apple, Google, Microsoft or Samsung.
This isnt just Samsung, its Android devices with a Cast toggle or mirror toggle in the drop down area. This has been around since 2017. I dont see a reason to mirror my phone on my PC but it is there.
I do have my Pixel connected to my PC to get messsages, emails and get and recieve calls which is useful but the mirroring thing, i dont see the use but thats me.
I know, Your Phone has been around a while. The difference is Samsung devices don’t require it to be downloaded - they have a “Link to Windows” function baked in that makes things a little more seamless to set up for the average user.
They also have app integration that goes beyond the mirroring/cast functionality - you can run multiple phone apps in individual windows on your PC and even pin them to the taskbar. This was unveiled at Samsung Unpacked for the Note 20 but seems to have rolled out to all Samsung devices now.
I didnt download anything either. There is an app called Your Phone Companian and also you can do the mirror thing on the PC with no download. This is a video from Dec 2017.
On Samsung devices you don’t have to download anything. Not even an app on the phone.
Read my post again. Your Phone Companion isn't needed on Samsung devices, it's baked in. OneDrive also syncs at OS level with Samsung Gallery. You don't need to mirror the screen to run phone apps either, you can run them individually on your PC and pin them to taskbar.
These are minor improvements over Your Phone on any Android device but are one less path of resistance and makes everything feel a bit less disconnected.
OK, just saying it's been able to do this for a while. Getting an app takes 20 seconds. Having it baked in I guess is nice.
I used the app on my GS9, so not sure if my P4a is working off of that since I already had it and my apps went on the P4a when I set it up or had it baked in. I just synced my phone to the PC and it worked.
Either way, it's the same.
Samsung Gallery is going away in June. I got a notice of that on my Tablet.
All my pics are on my Google Photos and One Drive so no big deal.
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In my own experiences, using the Windows 10 messaging feature was nowhere near as easy, or as reliable as using an iPhone with a Mac and having it handoff phone calls/messages. I could either receive but not send, sometimes not get notified, and it often disconnected randomly. I eventually disabled it and just keep my phone near me at all times.
No, that was when I was still using an iPhone 6S and tried using 'your phone' app to connect to Windows 10, then comparing its reliability with the similar feature on the Mac. The Mac worked flawlessly. My Windows 10 would miss half the texts, and I'd respond and it just went into the ether, never showing on the screen. My contacts also never received texts sent from Windows. It was great about 75% the time for receiving text notifications which was all it was good for (no phone calls, sorry) but I could hear my phone's text tone just fine. Don't need redundancy.
Eventually it was much less a headache to downgrade in the end
P.S., on my gaming rig, currently the only PC I'm using that runs Windows 10, the 'yourphone.exe' app/service ate up 15% CPU and 1% GPU. Enough to lose some FPS in games to an annoying state. I ended up removing that, Cortana, and Window update.
Eventually it was much less a headache to downgrade in the end
P.S., on my gaming rig, currently the only PC I'm using that runs Windows 10, the 'yourphone.exe' app/service ate up 15% CPU and 1% GPU. Enough to lose some FPS in games to an annoying state. I ended up removing that, Cortana, and Window update.
No, that was when I was still using an iPhone 6S and tried using 'your phone' app to connect to Windows 10, then comparing its reliability with the similar feature on the Mac. The Mac worked flawlessly. My Windows 10 would miss half the texts, and I'd respond and it just went into the ether, never showing on the screen. My contacts also never received texts sent from Windows. It was great about 75% the time for receiving text notifications which was all it was good for (no phone calls, sorry) but I could hear my phone's text tone just fine. Don't need redundancy.
Eventually it was much less a headache to downgrade in the end
P.S., on my gaming rig, currently the only PC I'm using that runs Windows 10, the 'yourphone.exe' app/service ate up 15% CPU and 1% GPU. Enough to lose some FPS in games to an annoying state. I ended up removing that, Cortana, and Window update.
15% of your CPU? Your must have an old CPU.
My husbands Samsung card arrived today. I’m so jealous. We don’t have the Apple card in the U.K.
doesn't feel like we ever will but why say it's coming when it's clearly not lol