Verizon currently has all three (S5, M8, and G3) for $99.

7/11/2014 8:40:14 AM

So after the KitKat update, half the chargers I've used for my S3 don't work anymore. Most won't charge the phone at all, and a couple of them will charge intermittently, up and down every few seconds.

Quick search shows shitloads of people have the same problem and both Samsung and Verizon are aware. I wonder how much effort they'll put into an update to fix it, being it's probably viewed as something that will drive people to upgrade their phones.

7/11/2014 10:24:31 AM

So I ended up getting the LG G3 over the weekend. Played with it at an AT&T store and basically bought it on an impulse. I was originally turned off by reviews saying the screen wasn't bright enough but the first thing I did was take it outside into direct sunlight. It could definitely be brighter but it was totally readable. I've had it for about a day now and battery life is definitely a huge improvement over my old phone, especially when idling.

7/14/2014 4:18:49 PM

Also Knock On is officially my favorite secured screen unlock method. You can tap the code anywhere on the screen, while it's off, and it rarely fails to recognize a correct sequence. I think with the power button on the back, it's the way the designers intended the phone to be used. You can make a sequence as simple as 3 taps on the same spot.

7/14/2014 7:02:15 PM

How do you feel about the size? Does the build quality feel good?

7/16/2014 1:58:27 PM

^^ that is a pretty killer feature. i wish there was an android app that performed as well as it...


edit - damn this shit is complicated: http://nexus5.wonderhowto.com/how-to/get-all-lg-g2-knock-knock-features-your-nexus-5-for-faster-sleep-wake-0154032/

[Edited on July 16, 2014 at 2:14 PM. Reason : link]

7/16/2014 1:59:26 PM

Quote :

"How do you feel about the size? Does the build quality feel good?"

It's definitely a big phone, but all the Android flagships are huge. LG did a good job with this thing though, the bezel is very small and the way the back tapers down to the sides makes it feel smaller than it is. I honestly hated the trend of bigger and bigger phones but this one is very easy to handle. Build quality feels good, it's light but not too light, and feels like it would survive a good drop. Knowing me, that will be thoroughly tested in the next few weeks lol

Oh, and it has one of those screens where the LCD is very close to the glass, so icons and stuff seem like they are floating over the surface.

[Edited on July 16, 2014 at 2:39 PM. Reason : :]

7/16/2014 2:34:51 PM

Installing the 4.4.4 update to my Maxx. Hopefully it doesn't fuck anything up.

7/18/2014 10:18:13 PM

Fuck whoever in google thought it was cool to just randomly move the god-fucking-damm comma on the android keyboard

7/23/2014 12:31:17 PM

swiftkey >

7/23/2014 9:16:07 PM

SK was kinda laggy on my last phone...haven't tried on current on

7/23/2014 9:54:57 PM

Swiftkey worked flawlessly on my old ass Droid2

What kind of phone did you have previously??

7/23/2014 10:27:39 PM

Galaxy Nexus

7/23/2014 10:29:46 PM

swype >> google with gesture typing >> swiftkey >>> stock

7/24/2014 3:56:11 AM

I use Swype with Swiftkey. I take it that's the best of all.

7/24/2014 9:29:58 AM

yeah, not sure what ^^ is talking about.

7/24/2014 10:43:38 AM

Swype (or anything like it) makes me want to shoot myself. Swiftkey's predictive text is so good, I don't get how drawing your way around a keyboard could be better but to each his own.

7/28/2014 9:55:56 AM

Because with a non-physical keyboard it's about the fastest way to type

7/28/2014 10:03:34 AM

Most of the time, I can touch about 8 letters and complete a full sentence with Swiftkey.

7/28/2014 10:44:37 AM

http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/news/mobile-phone/3508162/nexus-6-release-date-specs-features-uk/

7/30/2014 10:18:20 AM

^ reported by IBT:

5.9in QHD display (android police says 5.9")
1440x2560 resolution (534ppi)
Octa-core MediaTek processor
64-bit processor
Fingerprint scanner
IP67-certified dust-proof and water-resistant device
Lollipop (i assume)

the 5.5" screen size might be a dealbreaker (and 5.9" definitely would), though i suppose it depends on the actual dimensions...the 4.7" screen size of my N4 seems to be the sweet spot for me, though it's still around 5.3" x 2.7"

i wonder when the trend toward larger phones will stop and what the screen size will be...i know phablets are cool right now, but i'm not really interested

[Edited on July 30, 2014 at 1:38 PM. Reason : .]

7/30/2014 1:33:22 PM

Quote :

"i wonder when the trend toward larger phones will stop and what the screen size will be"

I don't see it stopping any time soon. At one point the trend was to make them as small as possible. But that was before companies started advertising movies, youtube, netflix, etc for your phone.

7/30/2014 2:25:47 PM

A bunch of paid apps for free in the Amazon app store today and tomorrow

7/31/2014 11:06:15 AM

^ any highlights?

7/31/2014 12:13:07 PM

I downloaded a bunch just so even if I didn't want them I could download them for free in the future.

- CalenGoo calendar app which was like $5 normally. Didn't look super awesome but I haven't tried it.
- Essential Anatomy 3 - pretty awesome looking anatomy app. It was like 450 megs and normally went for about $20.
- Language Coach some foreign language translator app
- MathsApp which is a graphing calculator
- My Alarm Clock which I guess is just some beefed up alarm app
- Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary - not sure why you'd need this with Google Now and a browser, but it was like a $30 app so why not
- Photo Editor+ might be cool
- Sonic Racing - sonic the hedgehog game...will probably try on my tablet
- Weather Live - some weather app designed originally for Amazon devices I think

weather and calendar app, among others, have widgets

7/31/2014 12:41:26 PM

so...the nexus line might be going away? not until after the N6, i would assume

http://www.theverge.com/2014/4/29/5664702/google-nexus-to-be-replaced-by-android-silver

8/4/2014 1:14:27 PM

That blows.

8/4/2014 1:32:45 PM

Quote :

"In exchange for this new contribution, Google will gain tighter control over the software shipping on the selected phones. The promise is that the company will clean up third-party bloatware, ensure prompt and reliable software updates, and introduce a real standard and consistency to the user experience across Android Silver devices. "

Why is this bad?

Quote :

"The one missing piece from this puzzle is what Google will do with the mid-range market that the Nexus program is expected to vacate. Android Silver is gunning for the high end, so who will step up to fill the void left in the middle?"

[Edited on August 4, 2014 at 4:04 PM. Reason : Android Bronze?]

8/4/2014 4:02:37 PM

Seems like they're getting rid of Vanilla Android

8/4/2014 4:08:40 PM

Chocolate Android?

8/4/2014 4:27:53 PM

that rumor has been floating around for a while now (see: article was written back in April). it kinda lost steam once I/O came and went without any major news and the announcement of Android One.

8/4/2014 5:13:15 PM

Just got my S5 today. Haven't turned it on yet and there were 3 major annoyances already.

1) Sim card removal. Had to use tweezers.

2) USB cover, impossible to remove without nails. Had to use a credit card.

3) USB plug on the phone is not any sort of standard, it is proprietary. Fuck all of my other chargers I guess.


This is not a good start.

8/5/2014 2:38:06 PM

it's a 3.0 micro b connector. any micro usb will attach to it. the other part of it is just for extra data throughput

[Edited on August 5, 2014 at 2:53 PM. Reason : my note 3 uses the same thing]

8/5/2014 2:53:33 PM

That's good to know

8/5/2014 3:01:33 PM

Dropped my G3 twice today while trying to carry on a conference call while helping family get to a doctor's appointment. Hit the ground screen down, once on a carpet and another time on hard vinyl. No visible damage, but the back flew off and the battery came out both times, so it dropped my call

8/5/2014 5:54:16 PM

Quote :

"1) Sim card removal. Had to use tweezers. 2) USB cover, impossible to remove without nails. Had to use a credit card."

I'm sure part of this is because it's water proof...needs to be tighter/smaller?

8/5/2014 7:00:15 PM

I am sure that is the case for the USB cover, but the Sim card seems like it could have been spring loaded like most others.

8/6/2014 11:15:42 AM

Very happy today... found a workaround for FoxFi on Galaxy S5 (verizon). It was working okay, but required you to have a password lock on the phone - which is annoying. This resolved it for me and now I can use a simple pattern unlock instead:

Quote :

"found a fix for getting all lock screen options back. log into google device manager: http://google.com/android/devicemanager click on the lock button for your device. enter a new pass and save. now go to your phone and use the new pass to unlock the phone. you should now be able to go to your lock screen settings and pick whichever lock option you need. "

8/6/2014 3:00:48 PM

The S5 will charge with micro usb charger just plug it in on the right side.

8/6/2014 3:01:49 PM

^ Yup, I was too hasty in my review. I kinda was hoping that was the case without taking a better look at it, but it just reminded me way to much of iPhone crap at first glance.

8/6/2014 3:16:00 PM

The smart remote feature is fucking awesome.

8/6/2014 4:43:37 PM

Nexus being replaced by silver is a rumor from way back. Google has changed their tune, just a week or two ago, some VP stated nexus was not going away.

[Edited on August 7, 2014 at 9:23 PM. Reason : and theres rumor that silver is being scrapped]

8/7/2014 9:22:29 PM

wife and I got our S5s this week. LOVE IT! My only complaints so far are:

1. The charger cable that it comes with doesn't seem to be very stable when plugged in. It seems to pull out of the phone quite easily.

2. The automatic download apps that you can't uninstall that serve absolutely no purpose.

Also, my wife switched from an iphone and had to jump through some hoops that pissed me off to receive texts from other iphone users on the S5. It took a day or two but it seems to be working right now.

8/8/2014 10:32:07 PM

You can disable those apps.

Settings>apps>select the app>disable

Wastes space. But gets it out of your way.

8/9/2014 7:17:28 PM

just don't disable Google Play Music even if you don't plan to buy any music from Google Play. Disabling it will prevent your phone from being able to play audio files.

8/9/2014 7:20:34 PM

^^Yeah, I've done that to all that I can. Theres still a few that don't have that option though IIRC

8/9/2014 11:10:02 PM

Like what?

8/10/2014 11:04:24 AM

Think I'm going to order the LG G3 as my next phone. It was between that and the S5. S5 was appealing but I didn't want a smaller phone (Have GNII now).


[Edited on August 14, 2014 at 11:40 AM. Reason : s]

8/14/2014 11:36:31 AM

the G3 or the G3 Stylus?

8/14/2014 12:17:49 PM

Why would anymore get that? It's 720p at 5.7" and only 1GB ram. That would be a huge downgrade from my Galaxy Note II.

8/14/2014 12:34:23 PM