The Real (and Virtual) Adventures of Nathan the IT Guy » Samsung

AT&T Samsung Galaxy S4 is Bootloader Locked

Nathan Simon — Wed, 01 May 2013 12:44:08 +0000

Guys, when will you get it in your head that only the people that WANT to mess around with their phone will install a proper recovery platform like TWRP (Team Win Recovery Project 2.5, or twrp2 for short, is a custom recovery built with ease of use and customization in mind.) People who don’t know what I am talking about (90% of all phone users) really don’t care. But 10% is a lot of people, I am one of those 10%. I have an HTC One, and I already unlocked the bootloader and installed a custom ROM onto it, called CleanRom 1.5. What CleanRom does it remove the bloatware that companies like AT&T put onto their phones. So when my phone’s OS crashed and I cannot use my phone, I can use TWRP to restore my OS to a point in time when it worked properly, that easy, if its a hardware issue, as long as it boots and works as designed, they still replace the hardware, easy as pie… So as I mentioned, the 10% that know enough to unlock the bootloader and load their own OS, should know enough to take the proper precautions to protect themselves…

egzthunder1 over at XDA Developers states,

I can draw two conclusions:

You have some of the worst contract reviewers and negotiators on the planet when it comes to dealing with US carriers.

You are indeed turning a page in history and have started going down a path where developers and hobbyists are not really welcome anymore.

The path you are taking right now is likely #2, as you obviously can spend a pretty penny on half decent lawyers (based on recent wins against Cupertino’s finest). In fact, it seems to me that you are turning into what you claimed to despise the most. You have absolutely, positively, nothing at all to gain from locking the bootloader (and neither does AT&T for that matter), and in fact, you are simply losing a good stream of bug reviewers and people who can discover pretty serious flaws in your code.

Wake up and smell the coffee, Android is an open and flexible OS, stop locking people out of their right to modify and tweak as they please…

Samsung Galaxy Mega Series

Nathan Simon — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 12:24:22 +0000

What’s this you ask? Well the Mega Series of phone is Samsung’s newest breed of smartphone or phablet as some like to call them. At a whopping 5.8″ and 6.3″ display size, these phones should be able to act as micro tablets (then again probably not, keep reading). Still great maybe for the office, I wouldn’t be caught holding one of these to my ear, let’s assume most people will use head sets!

What I do not get is that each phone, as big as the display is, will not have true HD displays, the 5.8 will get 960×540 and the 6.3 will get at least 1280x720p. They both have larger batteries, 2600mAh and 3200mAh, and since the display’s aren’t high resolution they should be lighter on power than the Galaxy S4.

So If you are looking for a bigger version of the Galaxy S4, you are looking in the wrong place, these phones are not meant to intrude on the S4′s market, but to help Samsung compete in the 5″+ category.

Samsung Galaxy S4 Official Specifications

Nathan Simon — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 12:48:08 +0000

So they finally announced the galaxy S4, with that said, I think they have made the decision for me, to get the “HTC One” or wait for the next iteration of the HTC. But since you are here because of the title “Official Specifications” I will provide them below.

Official Samsung Galaxy S4 specs

Network: 2.5G (GSM/ GPRS/ EDGE): 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 MHz; 3G (HSPA+ 42Mbps): 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100 MHz; 4G (LTE Cat 3 100/50Mbps) : up to 6 different band sets(Dependent on market)
Display: 5 inch Full HD Super AMOLED (1920 x 1080) display, 441 ppi
Processor: 1.9GHz quad-core processor / 1.6GHz octa-core processor (will differ depending on market)
OS: Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean
Rear Camera: 13 Mega pixel Auto Focus camera with Flash & Zero Shutter Lag, BIS
Front Camera: 2 Mega pixel camera, Full HD recording @30fps with Zero Shutter Lag, BIS
Video: Codec: MPEG4, H.264, H.263, DivX, DivX3.11, VC-1, VP8, WMV7/8, Sorenson Spark, HEVC; Recording & Playback: Full HD (1080p)
Audio: Codec: MP3, AMR-NB/WB, AAC/AAC+/eAAC+, WMA, OGG, FLAC, AC-3, apt-X
Camera Features: Dual Camera: Dual Shot / Dual Recording/ Dual Video Call Drama Shot, Sound & Shot, 360 Photo, Cinema Photo, Eraser, Night, Best Photo, Best Face, Beauty Face, HDR (High Dynamic Range), Panorama, Sports
Additional Features: Group Play: Share Music, Share Picture, Share Document, Play Games Story Album, S Translator, Optical Reader Samsung Smart Scroll, Samsung Smart Pause, Air Gesture, Air View, Samsung Hub, ChatON (Voice/Video Call, Share screen, 3-way calling) Samsung WatchON S Travel (Trip Advisor), S Voice™ Drive, S Health Samsung Adapt Display, Samsung Adapt Sound Auto adjust touch sensitivity (Glove friendly) Safety Assistance, Samsung Link, Screen Mirroring Samsung KNOX (B2B only)
Google Mobile Services: Google Search, Google Maps, Gmail, Google Latitude, Google Play Store, Google Plus, YouTube, Google Talk, Google Places, Google Navigation, Google Downloads, Voice Search
Connectivity: WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (HT80), GPS / GLONASS, NFC, Bluetooth® 4.0 (LE), IR LED (Remote Control), MHL 2.0
Sensors: Accelerometer, RGB light, Geomagnetic, Proximity, Gyro, Barometer, Temperature & Humidity, Gesture
RAM: 2GB
Internal Storage: 16/ 32/ 64 GB User memory + microSD slot (up to 64GB)
Dimensions: 136.6 x 69.8 x 7.9 mm, 130g
Battery: 2,600 mAh

The options that stand out to me are the 2600 mAh battery, that should carry a user 24hrs on medium use, and the octa-core processor (depending on market). 8 cores is nice, but what will you really use it for? My Dual Core Snapdragon processor is perfectly fine, I would hope that Samsung utilized the fastest storage memory possible, or the phone will still lag. With this aside, the phone will definitely sell, Samsung has the American market, Apple, your days on top are numbered.

Meet the Samsung 8-core Exynos 5 Octa mobile processor

Nathan Simon — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 14:22:25 +0000

Samsung sure isn’t backing down from NVIDIA, announcing an 8-Core Mobile Processor. Didn’t they just announce a new Quad-Core Processor? Yes I believe they did, considering I wrote an article about it!

Because it’s using this strategy, this chip is more suitable form small form factor devices like phones. Samsung says this tech will allow the chip to use up to 70-percent less power than a traditional quad-core A15 SoC, or even a dual core Exynos 5 like the one seen in the Nexus 10. source AndroidCentral

Samsung used the big.LITTLE technology developed by ARM for its Exynos 5 Octa chipset. The Samsung processor is built using four ARM Cortex A15 cores, most likely clocked at 2.0 GHz, used for the tasks that require more processing power (games, photo/video editing, etc.) and four ARM Cortex A7 cores, probably clocked at 1.7 GHz, for the basic tasks. Source Android.gs

This seems very promising, but then again, the processor isn’t currently the battery drain, it’s the screen, in the end, every little bit helps. I sure look forward to seeing this in our future smartphones!

Smaller Memory Chips for Smartphones in Production

Nathan Simon — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 13:56:01 +0000

That’s right Samsung has done it, they have shrunken their memory chips by 20 percent. Samsung has shifted from a 20 nanometer process to 10 nanometer process., you read that right TEN. Since the chips are smaller all their features are more closely smashed together increasing their speed and efficiency by up to 30 percent. Not only is that great news because of the fact that our phones, tablets, and phablets will be faster, but it will allow for more space in the phone itself, think of more battery!

SEOUL, Korea, November 15, 2012 – Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the world leader in advanced memory technology, today announced a next-generation 64GB embedded multimedia card (eMMC) using 10 nanometer (nm)-class* process technology. The new 64Gb NAND memory went into production late last month.

The 64GB eMMC Pro Class 2000 measures 11.5mm by 13mm, which represents a 20 percent reduction in size over the conventional embedded memory form factor (12mm by 16mm). source Samsung Press Release

What does this mean to me personally? I currently am using an HTC One XL (the L denotes LTE) and its quite fast as it is. Can I hold out till the new year when phone with the new chips start shipping? I am not too sure about that. I have been pretty excited to get my hand on the new BlackBerry 10 phone, but if I do get a BB10 phone, that will be the last for a while. I will keep my ears to the ground and wait for the next big thing!

Samsung Galaxy S3 Review

Nathan Simon — Sat, 26 May 2012 19:05:45 +0000

Engadget got their hands on a Samsung Galaxy S3 and did one heck of a review on it… There are pictures, videos, and comparison charts. Here is an excerpt of the final words.

The best thing about the Galaxy S III? That it’s more than the sum of its parts. Individually, the slightly larger and better display, stronger processor and faster camera may not sound that special, but in daily operation they score major combo points: gathering up all the best bits of the older Galaxy S II and re-working them into a solidly modern (read: mid-2012) device. The power- and storage-hungry Android user simply cannot go wrong with this purchase, and neither can those looking for a great camera.

The worst thing about the GS III? No matter how hard it tries, it just isn’t greater than the sum of the HTC One X’s parts. That’s not to say it falls short, but merely to emphasize that times have changed since last year’s Galaxy S II, which landed on an unsuspecting world that was largely devoid of predators. The Snapdragon variant of the One X has similar computing power, battery life and photographic credibility, but it also has a much better user interface that sticks more closely to the guiding ethos of Android 4.0. The One X also has a more forward-looking physical design, while the GS III clings to the tried and true styles of old. Perhaps the biggest sacrifice you’d make by going for the One X over the GS III is the loss of the cheap storage offered by the microSD card. That’s a painful thing to give up, but given how deeply we feel about the need for Android to move forward and not get stuck in a Gingerbread-flavored groundhog day, we might just take the hit.

Read the rest of the review here.

Samsung takes top spot.

Nathan Simon — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 02:35:12 +0000

Samsung takes top spot in mobile sales, that makes sense since they sell so much product to so many different areas of technology. Obviously it has a lot to do with the Samsung Galaxy SII, the Samsung Galaxy Tab, and the Samsung Galaxy Note. Nokia is not to far behind, and Apple takes third… What about HTC you say? Well with the recent release of the HTC One X family in Europe and US/Canada, they are doing much better. Go here to read more.

Samsung Galaxy S3 Teaser Flop?

Nathan Simon — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 12:49:19 +0000

Thenextgalaxy.com is supposed to be a teaser website for the masses, but it seems to be down… if you have patience, it will eventually be back up. I think everyone and there dog or cat is clamouring to see what Samsung has in store for us…

GizmoCanada.com has some quotes from other websites that have seen the video. Its not the most exciting, but its definitely a teaser…

The official announcement of the S3 will take place May 3rd… so we don’t have that much longer to wait.

Check it out here.

RIM Wants You! (Developers)

Nathan Simon — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 03:06:27 +0000

If you are a developer, do what you have to to get your hands on BB10! Who wouldn’t want the chance to program for what might possibly be the next best OS out there…

RIM is hosting a BlackBerry 10 event in Orlando in May to coincide with its annual BlackBerry World user conference. There, a limited number of developers will have the chance to tinker with the product.

“Although the device and the software that developers will see are not indicative of what BlackBerry 10 will be at launch, it’s a great chance to get building and see how their BlackBerry 10 apps will run in real life,” Victoria Berry, senior manager of PR and social media, developer and apps at RIM told TechNewsWorld.

Go here to read more.

Samsung Lotus Glass vs Gorilla Glass 2

Nathan Simon — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 17:55:41 +0000

Both made utilizing Corning’s technology, but Samsung’s manufacturing process allows for far superior screen quality… 2 of the most important qualities you look for in a smartphone these days, durability and visual quality.

Corning released some information stating that Lotus Glass is just as strong as Gorilla Glass 2, yet because of the manufacturing process, it has an enhanced picture quality, better response time, better resolution, and reduces the screen’s power requirements(someone explain this one to me please!)

It has also been brought to my attention that Lotus Glass is going to be used in conjuntion with Gorilla Glass, and will not be a used separately. This will make for one tough smartphone display. Go here to read all about it.