Smartphone comparison

I'm also leaning heavily towards the iPhone SE. My 4s is finally crying uncle. In fact, I should just go an order it.

In reply to RealMiniParker: It does all the same stuff, with extended battery life and more memory. Behaves the same way, couple of features are a little different....just different enough to make you curse yourself for doing it the old way. I should be old hat by the end of next week. Samsungs smart switch made it super easy to transfer the old phones contents into the new one. Wife also had and s5 and went to s7. She doesn't accept change all that well with technology, and she hasn't brought up any issues with the switch over.

GameboyRMH wrote: ^There's a good and relevant point: Moving files on and off an android phone is vastly simpler than with an iOS phone, where you have to use goddamn iTunes. That means it would be much easier to get pictures off of the Galaxy S7, which works pretty much the same as a USB flash drive from that perspective.

???? I haven't had a smartphone very long but I don't have any problems getting files off my 5C. Just plug it into the computer and transfer the files just like from a USB drive.

I have an iphone 5s. I would only consider the 5se out of their current models. The 6 and 6+ are too big.

Hal wrote:

GameboyRMH wrote: ^There's a good and relevant point: Moving files on and off an android phone is vastly simpler than with an iOS phone, where you have to use goddamn iTunes. That means it would be much easier to get pictures off of the Galaxy S7, which works pretty much the same as a USB flash drive from that perspective.

???? I haven't had a smartphone very long but I don't have any problems getting files off my 5C. Just plug it into the computer and transfer the files just like from a USB drive.

Yep, pictures and movies are easy to transfer because the phone acts like a camera when plugged into a PC.

Music and other protected content is another matter and that's partially due to DRM and partially due to Apple wanting to sell you that content.

My progression has been Moto Droid X (loved), Galaxy S3 (really loved), iPhone 4s (detested so much I sold it for $100 three months later), currently have a Galaxy S5 Active (super duper love, but I have abused it with a too-big SD card and tons of memory-sucking apps).

Every time I pick up an iPhone I look at the tiny screens, lack of customization, inability to expand memory/storage, lower number of available free apps, and how most iPhones have screens in 13,957 pieces, and I wonder why anyone would ever own one. (outside of the brilliant marketing) That's not a jab at anyone who does, I just really hate iPhones.

I will say, their camera resolution is impressive, but the software is awful. I spent a long time in a restaurant with a 6s trying to take pictures of some girls on a night out and couldn't get a decent shot. The flash was super hot in the middle making their eyes look demonic while not even illuminating their skin or clothes. We struggled for a long time probably taking 30-40 shots with no luck. Then I pulled out my S5 and the first shot was flawless. As long as you have lots of light, the iPhone can take nice shots, but as a point-and-shoot camera, they are useless... especially compared side-by-side to a Galaxy.

My next phone will be an S7.

I moved from an iphone5 to a 64 GB SE a few weeks back. My 5 was extremely reliable for the three years I owned it, so I expect the same from the SE. So far, no complaints. Much better camera. Excellent battery life. Faster processing times. Uh... More storage. I bought an unlocked model, so an unlocked 6s with the same storage would have been an extra $250. Didn't seem worth the extra expense. Either phone designers are in a rut, or we are entering the era of diminishing returns.

Stefan (Not Bruce) wrote:

Hal wrote:

GameboyRMH wrote: ^There's a good and relevant point: Moving files on and off an android phone is vastly simpler than with an iOS phone, where you have to use goddamn iTunes. That means it would be much easier to get pictures off of the Galaxy S7, which works pretty much the same as a USB flash drive from that perspective.

???? I haven't had a smartphone very long but I don't have any problems getting files off my 5C. Just plug it into the computer and transfer the files just like from a USB drive.

Yep, pictures and movies are easy to transfer because the phone acts like a camera when plugged into a PC. Music and other protected content is another matter and that's partially due to DRM and partially due to Apple wanting to sell you that content.

There's software out there to get music off an iPhone/iPod /iPad. It also lets you manage music content without using iTunes.

Yes it cost money, but if you need to get the music off the device I would guess either you lost the original media, or didn't have it.

If it's more than a CD worth of music then the cost of the software is probably less than the cost of the music or your time to re-rip the discs. (Or at least it was when I bought it to get music of a 1st gen iPod).

I know it wasn't an option for you, but last year I had to turn my back on Samsung when all their "great new phones" were missing removable batteries and external memory card slots. So I made the jump to LG with the G4. Still, hands down, the best camera available, even beating the G5. Megapixels aren't the end all be all to digital camera like the advertising would like you to believe. With manual mode, it acts as a DSLR even shooting in RAW format. I won't pretend I know what that means, but my pictures, when properly setup, are phenomal. All my android devices run the same custom rom family, takes about an hour to switch everything over and setup all my shortcuts when I change.

the SE came yesterday.

It's the exact same size as the 5S. It uses the same case.

So far I cannot detect any difference at all other than it's black, and some of the icons look different.

Success? I guess?

tuna55 wrote: the SE came yesterday. It's the exact same size as the 5S. It uses the same case. So far I cannot detect any difference at all other than it's black, and some of the icons look different. Success? I guess?

Work it harder and the improved drive train should reveal itself to you.

My 5 has all but kicked the bucket, so I've been looking into the same question. Here's what I've learned about the difference between SE and 6s: SE is smaller (duh) because it's the 6s crammed in an iPhone 5s' shell. SE has the same rear camera as the 6s, but a worse front facing one. Despite having a larger battery, the 6s has a shorter battery life than the SE due to it's large screen. SE doesn't have 3D touch (where if you push harder on the touch screen, different things happen), 6s does.

KatieSuddard wrote: My 5 has all but kicked the bucket, so I've been looking into the same question. Here's what I've learned about the difference between SE and 6s: SE is smaller (duh) because it's the 6s crammed in an iPhone 5s' shell. SE has the same rear camera as the 6s, but a worse front facing one. Despite having a larger battery, the 6s has a shorter battery life than the SE due to it's large screen. SE doesn't have 3D touch (where if you push harder on the touch screen, different things happen), 6s does.

A colleague got the 6S, since "having the best phone" trumps "having a phone that can easily fit in your pocket", and since price is meaningless to us, since work bought both of them.

The size difference between the 6S and the SE is noticeable with them side by side, but if I only picked up one, I am not sure I could tell you which it was.