mdkxtreme

I'm down to meet with you guys. But please let's call it an Acurazine meet instead of Off Topics/Ramblings/Android meet

speedemon90

yea

hey you busy today??

Yea I got a Android meet for my car forum.

*crickets*

speedemon90

So I was reading an article on forbes on how to expect this next galaxy to be the last smartphone they make where they try to be like the iphone. And with other things mentioned in the article, I feel like if Samsung and Google worked hard together, they could really take over the digital life in a home.

Think about everything samsung makes. Fridges, washing machines, laptops, smartphones, tv's. They really have the potential to sync everything in a home.

The whole android@home thing. I never knew what exactly they wanted to do with that, but it never kicked off. Google should partner with Samsung on this if they really want to bring the digital life into our home.

The biggest thing I can see is with the fridge. Imagining finishing up a gallon and just tell your fridge to remind you to get milk. It syncs with your smartphone, but it also brings up list of local deals from grocery stores in the area and display it on the fridge. Coupons if there are any. This is where advertisements come in and I guess it wouldnt be annoying since its perfectly relevant.

mdkxtreme

It's all about timing. I think that idea is too advance right now for the mass consumer.

speedemon90

Probably right. They should work on getting Tv's right first haha. Need to get the TV's to work with the cable box's.

We have a samsung smart tv but I rarely go to it. Its slow, and I dont really care for all those apps. Integrate Google Now with the TV/Set top box.

So when i turn it on it will know what I want to watch

how tight would that be haha

Doom878

Climbing aboard the Android train. Note 2 refurb for ATT $0.99 plus activation.

stogie1020

OK, finally gave up on the DroidX and got a DroidM.



I have found the screen brightness controls, but does anyone know of a way to adjust vibrance/gamma? I feel like my eyes are getting a sunburn looking at this thing...

CGFebTSX04

Lol. The vibrancy thing is normal for AMOLED screens. They like to supersaturate colors. As far as calibrating them, I don't think its possible without root and someone having to create an app (and maybe kernel) to do it out of the box. For night time viewing, I use Screen Filter as it helps with the screen being too bright even at the lowest setting:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...NvbS5oYXhvciJd

CGFebTSX04

That's a pretty good deal. Only for new contracts though. For those interested:

http://www.att.com/shop/wireless/dev...id=h31dec7Fp4W

CGFebTSX04

http://www.theverge.com/2013/3/11/40...htc-one-review

Seems pretty positive all around. Their battery review is a little iffy considering they've only had the device for 2 days and they were probably testing every feature on the phone...Other sites are saying they're getting about 6 hours of screen on time so that should give you roughly an idea of how well it does.

Also, I'm guessing the camera will get some more optimizations before they're finally released to market as it looks like its making the pics too soft. HTC just needs to market this thing now and hopefully allow S-Off to be possible on this phone.

Doom878

No it worked for upgrades too. That's what I did.

CGFebTSX04

Oh nice. Saw the thread last night on Slickdeals where people were saying it was for new. Now I see people are saying its working for upgrades as well. Pretty good price and it should work on T-Mobile as well if you unlock it.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=2068041

stogie1020

OK, thx. Have screen filter, but am just setting the display to be a little less bright. I am sure I will get used to it, but it looks a little childish IMO.

Also, this Droid M is SLICK. As in, there is not a single square millimeter of non slippery plastic. I never use cases or bumpers, but I may need to with this phone...

MWalsh9152

youre clearly too for this...you should give it to some young whippersnapper....maybe your fiancee?

stogie1020

That's what I was thinking! "geez, these things are designed for kids!"

she has the iphone and hates android. Pshhhhh.

MWalsh9152

so far Im pretty underwhelmed by my new GS3 meh

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

Honestly, I was too. Maybe my expectations were too high, but I wasn't impressed by it one bit.

MWalsh9152

the battery life out of the box was phenomenal too!

I'm seriously considering just going back to a blackberry again. It worked much better for what I needed, and with superior battery life

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

I still have a Seidio extended battery that Im not using. Its had one charge through it. I ran out of time to return it to Amazon. I also have the Seidio clip if you're interested.

is300eater

Android's not for everyone.

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

^ True

stogie1020

Speaking of battery...

I bought my new phone at costco and ended up doing a "new plan" using a business name instead of an upgrade on my personal account. Saved $20 on the cost of the phone AND got the following from motorola/costco:

$50 play store credit
accessory pack with car-travel/wall charger and screen protector
two belt holsters (does anyone except Walsh use these?)
car dock for use as a NAV
Battery pack (micro USB) to give the phone a charge when it runs low.

the last item sounds awesome! Just need to mail away the forms...

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

Not too shabby. That just reminded me too, I need to get a car dock for mine.

is300eater

...so, in Ingress... how do you destroy a link? Do you have to be at a certain level?

edit: never mind.... I just Google'd it. Damn, it takes a lot to destroy one

mdkxtreme

The battery drain is due to the bigger screen that phones keep getting. If all you do on a phone is plain text, email, and make phone calls, then yea the Blackberry is sufficient.

Not trying to bash on you or anything but it's like needing a Camry to get groceries but you went ahead and got an Escalade to get groceries and complain about gas mileage.

is300eater

I play that Ingress game a lot when I'm walking around DT Vancouver, yes it's a total battery drainer... but I bought one of those power banks -problem solved

MWalsh9152

out of the box with VERY light usage....took it off the charger in the morning, dead around 1:00. Charged it fully, dead again before bed. Standby next to my bed overnight it dropped almost 50%

I have been able to get it to last up to 36 hours after disabling some of the factory apps now.

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

in all honestly, the battery needs some training....I do the following for a full week...

take it out of the box
charge her up with the phone off....all the way
turn the phone on and remove the charger....use it until it goes DEAD
charge the phone all the way (try not using it while its charging)

I repeat this process for a week, I try not to put it to charge when I have 30-40% battery remaining in the first week....

also, since these screens are HUGE, try reducing the brightness...it might help...

that said, I am a heavy user (I use more than 5Gigs of data EVERY month)....and my original note last me a little more than half a day....the battery on the S3 is a lot bigger (2700mah compared to 3100mah) for a smaller screen...I recently upgraded to Android 4.2.2 and the battery seems to be lasting a lot better...am guessing the S3 should be on 4.2.2, if not try upgrading it

MWalsh9152

as far as battery training goes, Li-ion batteries arent like a NiCad, or Lead acid battery which need training. That said, I am a service technician on batteries....and its ingrained in me to run a battery dead before charging

MWalsh9152

I reduced the screen brightness, and that helped a bit....but like I said, standby all night at first consumed 50% of the battery. Disabling some of the unneeded apps and it will only drop 3-4% overnight now

Before disabling them, I was almost revolving my life around planning on having to charge the damn thing

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

Thats not right. Youve got a rouge app keeping the phone awake.

MWalsh9152

yeah, Im not sure which one it was, but I got it....unacceptable performance with factory setup though!

is300eater

I'm curious if you've got a ton of apps running and not know it

mdkxtreme

That is definitely strange that standby is draining that much on a GS3.

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

2 words for ya

APP KILLER

MWalsh9152

it was constantly launching apps on its own. The ones I was able to deem unnecessary were disabled and that cured the drain issues

Professor

Drop the network data connection unless you need it. My Skyrocket can go 24 hours... but maybe that's because nobody calls me.

CGFebTSX04

The battery may not need cycling but Android does. Android keeps a Battery Stats file that tracks the life of the battery. Sometimes it needs to be reset by draining the battery all the way down and then charging from an all the way dead phone. If its not calibrated properly, it gives out the incorrect amount of battery left on the phone even though it charges up correctly.

With that said, the best way to see what's killing your battery is to check your battery stats. From the Home Screen --> Menu --> Settings --> Battery
From that screen, see what's actually eating your battery. If you want, take a screen shot of it and post it here and we can help you analyze it. If Screen is NOT taking the most amount of battery, then there is something definitely eating up your battery. If it is, then all is well. From what I've gathered, the S3 is capable of having a screen on time anywhere between 3-6 hours depending on usage. Phone idle should at the most take 3-4% per hour if not being used. Any more than that, something's wrong.

Some tips to save battery. DON'T use a task killer ever! Even the one built in that Samsung put in unless you have a hanging app. They do more harm to your battery life. You didn't mention which carrier the S3 is on but if its on AT&T, Sprint or Verizon, turn off LTE when you don't need it. This is probably the battery killer on these phones at the moment with the screen coming next. There are widgets in the Play Store that can help you do this quickly and it will save your battery life a lot. For AMOLED screens, Darker colors = no battery used on the screen. Whiter/Blue colors = full power being used up to light up the screen. What does this mean? Try to keep your wallpaper dark or when you're using an app, use the Dark themes.

You won't get the same battery life as BB because Android has too many background services running to come that close. If you want something similar to the BB battery life you would have to look at the Note II or Droid RAZR Maxx.

speedemon90

Do you care for samsung apps?? I'd go to settings -> application manager then scroll to the right to all the apps. Basically anything thats some samsung app you arent going to use, disable it. Click the app. Force Close it then click diable. Just make sure its an app you dont need. Also your phone probably lags when you click the home screen. I suggest you disable the double tap to activate S-voice. Make sure you do this before you disable the app, if you plan on doing that.