Galaxy S5 Waiting Lounge

[pc747]

[video=youtube;2D051uDJNt8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2D051uDJNt8[/video]

It has been unpacked at Barcelona and now we wait to unpack it the day we purchase it. Until then we will talk it up and share our thoughts about the device here. So just take a seat as we wait.

 

[pc747]

[video=youtube;y2WuehmBUPo]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2WuehmBUPo[/video]

Galaxy gear 2, Galaxy Neo, and Galaxy fit

 

[pc747]

Galaxy S5 ROM is a bit of a monster, taking up nearly 8GB of storage | Android Central

8GB of storage....REALLY?

 

[dezymond]

Hmmm can't say I'm too impressed of what was revealed. I don't feel like it's a real significant upgrade over what the s4 already offers, just as what many s3 owners said about the s4.

At this point, and I've been saying it for well over a year now, this proves to me that hardware has hit a plateau. The fingerprint scanner, I see it not really being used to its full potential (use with PayPal and such), but simply as another way to unlock the screen. The heart rate monitor, I like this addition, but I don't think it'll be used as often as Samsung hopes it will be. These two are cool features, but they're novelties, again just my opinion.

One thing that does impress me is the camera and its new software which I hope makes it to the s4 through an update (unless it's limited by new hardware in the camera).

I've only skimmed a few articles and watched a handful of first impression videos, but I do look forward to an in-depth review in the future. However, when it comes to actually wanting to upgrade, it would be a pass for me right now.

 

[pc747]

dezy you right hardware has seemed to hit a plateau. I am interested in what will come of the nexus 6. Other than that I am holding on to my note 2 a little while longer. With that said I think this is an awesome update from a person coming from the s3, s2, rezound, etc. The s4 is not a bad phone at all and I think samsung is trying to do like apple with minimum updates so not to alienate their customers while giving them a phone to upgrade to every 2 years. It really is a smart play despite the blow back from phone geeks.

 

[pc747]

[video=youtube;sCpwu4uClpU]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCpwu4uClpU[/video]

[video=youtube;jUX2t1QjfVw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUX2t1QjfVw[/video]

[video=youtube;4vJmW8xpC9M]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vJmW8xpC9M[/video]

 

[dezymond]

dezy you right hardware has seemed to hit a plateau. I am interested in what will come of the nexus 6. Other than that I am holding on to my note 2 a little while longer. With that said I think this is an awesome update from a person coming from the s3, s2, rezound, etc. The s4 is not a bad phone at all and I think samsung is trying to do like apple with minimum updates so not to alienate their customers while giving them a phone to upgrade to every 2 years. It really is a smart play despite the blow back from phone geeks.

For sure it's a significant upgrade from the generation of the s3 and rezound. No doubt that Samsung has followed Apple's way of updating hardware (which is not a bad thing), but I think they're also following this route because of cost. The rumored 2k resolution screen, 3gb RAM, or any other crazy specs that were thought of wouldn't have made this phone priced to compete, it would've been more expensive, I think at least. Rumors of an all-metal design would've drove up costs or would at least require sacrifices to other specs of the phone to keep the price competitive, so I thought that wouldn't happen either.

Design wise, it's about what I expected. I am glad they seemed to have dropped the high glossy plastic especially on the battery cover, but the new cover to me seems a bit out of place. If it's anything like the 1st gen Nexus 7 back then it's great to hold, but I personally would've preferred a design similar to the Note 3 back and the revised s4 back cover.

Part of me wishes they took a gamble on a complete re-design of the series like how HTC did with the One. HTC was known for plastic-y phones at one point and now they've earned the award of arguably the best looking device on the market. Can't go wrong for Samsung playing it safe though, the sale numbers don't lie or indicate a complete revision. The addition of it being waterproof is definitely welcomed though.

 

[MarBearCat]

A heart rate monitor is not needed on a smart phone.
People who actually use them would have them on a
much handier unit, like a watch or arm strap.

What would be cool and more usable to the common
smart phone user, if one can be created is a blood
pressure monitor on a phone.

Now THAT would be something most people could
have a use for!

=^.".^=

 

[dezymond]

A heart rate monitor is not needed on a smart phone.
People who actually use them would have them on a
much handier unit, like a watch or arm strap.

What would be cool and more usable to the common
smart phone user, if one can be created is a blood
pressure monitor on a phone.

Now THAT would be something most people could
have a use for!

=^.".^=

Indeed it's not needed, but it can be a nice add-on, especially since they're pushing S Health. Especially nowadays where our cell phones have become such an integral part of our everyday lives.

I go hiking just about every week, a good 4-6mi each time on different trails and the one device I always bring is my cell phone as I'm sure many others do. As tame as it may sound, hiking does get your heart rate up a bit and I can picture a few people who do this actually using the heart rate monitor. I'm not all into the numbers of exercise (except for distance walked), but just out of curiosity it would be nice to see how fast my heart really is beating after a good hill climbed or at the end of the hike.

I've also seen a few runners with their phones attached to an armband. I wouldn't be one to buy such a thing, but to the few I have seen who do this, the heart rate monitor would also be helpful to them.

As for your BPM idea, that may just be the next big thing. Especially with the way people log their health records with apps and various devices.

 

[Bluesman2008]

Does anyone know if the S5 will continue using wireless charging? If not, that's a deal breaker for me. I'll keep my S4.

 

[JoDroid]

The company I work for can pre-order the S5 today 3/28/14 from Verizon!! :cool-b:

 

[JoDroid]

I went to preorder the S5 for my Brother on my family plan and I have to give up my unlimited data?? :shocked-b::sad-b:

 

[Jeffrey]

Bummer!!

 

[JoDroid]

Still looking forward to the S5 as I still have the S3. Mine is through my company and I took the 6 gigs for my Brother who doesn't use as much as I do anyway. He'll never use the 6 gigs.

 

[MailboxHead]

I have the S3 and really want the S5, but I have the 32 GB and I don't see a 32 GB S5, so I think I'm going to wait for a bit to see if the S5 32 GB comes out. This is the longest I've had a phone (my parents never used their upgrades until recently, so I could get a new phone pretty frequently) and I'm just itching for a new one! I'm going to get the white and hope that they offer a wireless charging back in blue, because I love the idea of a white front/blue back.