Samsung Note 8

And while we're at it, let me just add that today marks a full month that I have bought the phone. I know still that time is the best indicator, but so far, accusations of "Lagwiz" are completely unfounded.

My Note 8 operates just as, if not more smoothly than the day I first got it. I do not have any issues with lag, with any application or with the phone itself. The phone is well maintained (using the Device Maintenance option), and I regularly trim (using the FSTrim app).

Smooth as glass.
 
That's great to hear, I just don't use a phone where I constantly need to do those to keep the phone speedy. I also tend not to root and get a new rom on my phone. But if it works for you, great.
 
And while we're at it, let me just add that today marks a full month that I have bought the phone. I know still that time is the best indicator, but so far, accusations of "Lagwiz" are completely unfounded.

My Note 8 operates just as, if not more smoothly than the day I first got it. I do not have any issues with lag, with any application or with the phone itself. The phone is well maintained (using the Device Maintenance option), and I regularly trim (using the FSTrim app).

Smooth as glass.
My last Samsung phone was an S7E. I hated it. The sensor was wretched and constantly had to be reprogrammed. I didn't like the curved edges, either. I gave up on it after just a couple of months. I loved my Note 5, however. One of the best phones I ever owned.

Still not sure I'll buy a Note 8. My friend is working overseas until after Christmas, so I've got time to consider the purchase.
 
My last Samsung phone was an S7E. I hated it. The sensor was wretched and constantly had to be reprogrammed. I didn't like the curved edges, either. I gave up on it after just a couple of months. I loved my Note 5, however. One of the best phones I ever owned.

Still not sure I'll buy a Note 8. My friend is working overseas until after Christmas, so I've got time to consider the purchase.
Usually lagwiz doesn’t rear its head until a major patch. To which you may or may not get a fix for.

Btw I agree about the curved display, I really liked the way it looked but the practicality of it was terrible.
 
The curved glass is honestly the only reason I'm not considering even the unlocked Exynos models of the Note. 2.5d glass is already bad enough.

The other problems can be taken care of with a custom ROM or even an LOS/AOSP ROM.
 
Samsung sure took their sweet time updating the unlocked variants, but mine finally had a security update available after manually checking. It's a significant one, enough that you wouldn't want to update if you have any intention of using SamFAIL to root due to changes in the bootloader, but honestly, if you care that much about rooting, you'd probably jump through the hoops to import an Exynos variant anyway.

I'm personally not willing to chance staying too far behind with the one-two combo of BlueBorne and KRACK floating about.

Meanwhile, it's still humming along as smoothly as when I got it. The only thing that remains to be seen is when the hell we're getting Oreo, which almost certainly isn't going to happen until next year given Samsung's track record. (Sure, guys, give the S8 users an open beta and leave the Note 8 folks in the cold, why don't you...)
 
That's great to hear, I just don't use a phone where I constantly need to do those to keep the phone speedy. I also tend not to root and get a new rom on my phone. But if it works for you, great.

I know, but I honestly don't "do" anything. It's all automatic. :)
 
The curved glass is honestly the only reason I'm not considering even the unlocked Exynos models of the Note. 2.5d glass is already bad enough.

The other problems can be taken care of with a custom ROM or even an LOS/AOSP ROM.
I’m personally uninterested in a phone where I have to seek out an image to just fix it.
 
The only thing that remains to be seen is when the hell we're getting Oreo, which almost certainly isn't going to happen until next year given Samsung's track record. (Sure, guys, give the S8 users an open beta and leave the Note 8 folks in the cold, why don't you...)

This is quite possibly the only thing I don't like, and it's Samsung taking too long with the updates. The only pass I'd be willing to give them is the fact that I do see why it'd take this long to test OS updates. There are tons of features baked into the default ROM. I can see them needing some time to make sure everything works.
 
I’m personally uninterested in a phone where I have to seek out an image to just fix it.
While that's true, there isn't actually any phone out there that doesn't have things that isn't improved by a custom ROM.

For Samsung phones, it's usually debloating. Likewise with LG. Pixels tend to need features added. Similar with Oneplus but not as much. (I AM BEING EXTREMELY GENERAL)

It would certainly be nice if there were a perfect phone but there are only very good phones and the ability to add or remove what you want is an enormous perk of unlocked bootloader phones.


Frankly speaking though, if Google had a backup and restore solution as good as Apple's, I'd probably be willing to give up custom ROMs for a "well done as a whole" phone (the Galaxy Note 8 and the U11+ would be my picks for 2017 in such a scenario).
 
It would certainly be nice if there were a perfect phone but there are only very good phones and the ability to add or remove what you want is an enormous perk of unlocked bootloader phones.

Correct. And as a Nexus fiend (I turned my entire family into a Nexus family), the Note 8 has everything my Nexus 6P had. It's as close to "custom ROM" on stock that I've ever gotten in my life. And I wouldn't have been able to get it if I had the locked down Snapdragon variant.
 
Frankly speaking though, if Google had a backup and restore solution as good as Apple's, I'd probably be willing to give up custom ROMs for a "well done as a whole" phone (the Galaxy Note 8 and the U11+ would be my picks for 2017 in such a scenario).

I understand the rest of your post and I agree, one of the issues with Samsung in the past (and I don’t see this changing) is when they Bork a phone you are stuck with it. Unless you are lucky enough to ROM it. To me that’s extreme.

The back up and restore option is quite nice. I love how seemless it is if you do a local store as well. My phone will give me an option to backup as I plug it in or restore it, this has helped me when a patch has ruined an app or an app update went bad.
 
I'm thinking back to why I took advantage of rooting (and later, custom ROM'ing) my Note 4, and the big reason was that 640 system DPI on a physically 515 PPI screen made everything stupid huge. Waste of screen space. But I actually had to rely on Xposed for per-app system DPI, because here's the kicker: Samsung's own TouchWiz bits were not DPI-independent, so I had to keep those forced at 640 DPI to keep the UI working like it should.

By contrast, everything from the Note 5 onward uses a more sensible system DPI of 560, and so does the unofficial LineageOS 14.1 (Nougat) build I currently run on the Note 4. I'm not sure why they don't just go and set it to 515, but eh, it's still a lot better than 640.

Also, speaking of bloat, every time I got a software update on that thing, I needed to update like 290+ bits of software installed on it, which was as slow as you'd expect. The Note 8? Only 80-something with a smattering of third-party apps, though the fact that I haven't gone through the Gear VR setup process on it like my ol' Note 4 does trim it down a bit. Still, it speaks volumes about just how much Samsung got their act together on the software end, since I'm pretty sure that even a clean TouchWiz Marshmallow stock ROM on the Note 4 would've still had 140-something apps to update.

I still can't believe I'm this content without root. Not only did the Note 4 need a much lower system DPI, but it also needed expanded notifications so I could manage my e-mails better just from the tray. The Note 8 allows me to do that out of the box. About the only thing that irks me at the moment is that I can't use my Sixaxis pad as a controller (Sixaxis Controller requires root to get around Sony's non-standard implementation of Bluetooth controllers), and I can't test the native mouse support of certain FPS source ports (which also requires root because Android's mouse support is hot garbage). Both of those naturally center on gaming, and I have much better devices on hand for that.

As for making custom ROMs, well, I gotta sit down and figure out how to do it myself. Working with the Note 4 might be a start, as I still haven't seen anyone put out an Oreo build for it yet, but I mainly want my Cintiq Companion Hybrid to run something that isn't friggin' Jelly Bean for once.

That's the problem with Android devices, really. There was no "IBM-compatible" moment that standardized the way OSes boot on and access the hardware for an entire decade, even across different SoCs, and Project Treble is a long overdue step in that direction. I don't think it'll get manufacturers to get their act together regarding updates, but it makes life much easier for custom ROM developers.
 
1.5 months in. The battery life is getting better. Phone has been off the charger for the entire day. I have 10% battery left. Under heavy usage, I got 6 hours 20 minutes SOT, 1 hour each for phone calls and listening to music.

Can't wait for Oreo to get released on this device. Should only get better.
 
I admit I've never commented on battery life due to how inherently YMMV it is (usage patterns and local coverage being two of the biggest factors), but I'm usually well over 70%, sometimes down in the high 60s, after coming home from a 5-hour-or-so work shift.

Note that that's with streamed music blasting in my pocket and some Web browsing during downtime, which obviously impacts battery life more than if I just wasn't using it. I'd still be in the 90s or high 80s if it was just Web browsing during breaks.

All in all, I've never felt the itch for an extended battery in day-to-day use. It seems to hold its charge during standby better than my Note 4's aged cells, too. That's a very good thing when it's sealed behind a glass back.

Meanwhile, I'm finding more and more cases where Samsung Pay works... except where it doesn't. MST isn't a 100% reliable solution to the lack of NFC terminals, even when the POS terminal's set accordingly; some get "bad magnetic read" errors or whatever, others just oddly don't register despite me holding the phone pretty close to the swipe terminal long enough for it to go through on any other terminal. Of course, I'm not foolish enough to leave my wallet and cards behind in such events, though I don't get the rewards points that way.

That said, I have had more cases than not where it works, to the utter disbelief of the clerks running the register - at which point I mention that it's something every glass-back Samsung phone features, and only those thanks to Samsung holding those LoopPay MST patents.
 
Wanted to give a 3 month update.

1. Lag. Do I get lag? NO. None at all. Still as smooth as the day that I got it.
2. Battery life has indeed gotten better. I average 6 hours SOT now. That's with heavy use.
3. I no longer charge my phone on the weekend. I charge it Friday night, and it lasts till Monday morning.
4. I've had no problem rooting, or keeping the phone rooted.
5. Camera is instantaneous. I capture on average 120+ shots per event, whereas with my Nexus 6P it was a struggle to get more than 50 and have it eat tons of battery.
6. The stylus is super, super useful. I use it on a daily basis for live translating Korean into English, capturing screenshot sections, writing notes, etc. etc. I can't see myself without it now.

After the experience I've had, I'm not sure I want to go back to something like a Nexus unless it's a real killer device. This Note 8 does and has everything my Nexus ever did, and more.

I'm super, super happy.
 
Wanted to give a 3 month update.

1. Lag. Do I get lag? NO. None at all. Still as smooth as the day that I got it.
2. Battery life has indeed gotten better. I average 6 hours SOT now. That's with heavy use.
3. I no longer charge my phone on the weekend. I charge it Friday night, and it lasts till Monday morning.
4. I've had no problem rooting, or keeping the phone rooted.
5. Camera is instantaneous. I capture on average 120+ shots per event, whereas with my Nexus 6P it was a struggle to get more than 50 and have it eat tons of battery.
6. The stylus is super, super useful. I use it on a daily basis for live translating Korean into English, capturing screenshot sections, writing notes, etc. etc. I can't see myself without it now.

After the experience I've had, I'm not sure I want to go back to something like a Nexus unless it's a real killer device. This Note 8 does and has everything my Nexus ever did, and more.

I'm super, super happy.

You charge it Friday night and it lasts till Monday? You definitely aren't a heavy user.
 
You charge it Friday night and it lasts till Monday? You definitely aren't a heavy user.

During the weekdays, I generally smash my phone with usage; very heavy usage. You're right, I don't use it as much during the weekend, but light to medium usage. For instance, I took my phone off the charger this morning, and it's at 55% currently. I don't plan on throwing it on the charger till tomorrow night around 2-3AM.
 
I had my GPS on tracking my day skiing (5 hours worth) as well as some light gaming and web browsing (2 hours worth) and still am at 63% on my Essential phone.

The good battery life you have isn't particularly unusual for 2017 phones.
 
I'm guessing that means the SD835 is worlds apart from its predecessors in terms of energy efficiency. One thing's for sure; it seems to hold up better battery-wise than my Note 4 did, but then I'm talking about faint memories of three years ago compared to a brand new phone that hasn't undergone nearly as much lithium cell degradation.

Oh, and if anyone's wondering about the Oreo update rollout, I'm still waiting. This is about par for the course for Samsung; my Note 4 didn't get any Android feature updates until February of the following year (maybe March), and I have no idea how much better or worse my Note 8 will fare since it's an N950U1 unlocked model not affiliated with any US carrier.
 
I'm guessing that means the SD835 is worlds apart from its predecessors in terms of energy efficiency. One thing's for sure; it seems to hold up better battery-wise than my Note 4 did, but then I'm talking about faint memories of three years ago compared to a brand new phone that hasn't undergone nearly as much lithium cell degradation.

To be fair, mine is a N950N. It's the Exynos version rather than the SD version. I wouldn't be able to root and install a custom ROM if I were using the SD version.
 
To be fair, mine is a N950N. It's the Exynos version rather than the SD version. I wouldn't be able to root and install a custom ROM if I were using the SD version.
Yeah, I'd love one of the Exynos variants with the unlocked bootloader and all, but that's even more cost-prohibitive to import and brings its own set of quirks with use here in the US. They really should just go Exynos across the board like the Note 2 and S6/Note 5.

But no, carriers gotta ruin everything here...

Continuing the update comments: me not being on the January security patch may actually be a good thing, at least regarding root and cross-variant flashing on Snapdragon variants.
https://www.xda-developers.com/samsung-galaxy-s8-note8-bootloader-odin/
 
Qualcomm has some weird patent agreements in the states that basically force all carrier phones to use Qualcomm chips or licensed to use Qualcomm "technology." At least that's what I understand from reading from all these Qualcomm litigations.
 
Yeah, I'd love one of the Exynos variants with the unlocked bootloader and all, but that's even more cost-prohibitive to import and brings its own set of quirks with use here in the US. They really should just go Exynos across the board like the Note 2 and S6/Note 5.

But no, carriers gotta ruin everything here...

Fully agreed. This thing cost me a pretty penny to import. I can vouch there are no quirks, once you flash the proper carrier CSC.

And yeah. I blame this on the carriers. They just want to screw with the phone and lock it down, so Qualcomm it is (because you can't unlock the bootloader).
 
So here we are: March 5, 2018. Still on RA5 with Nougat and a January 1, 2018 security patch. (I bit the bullet and updated anyway, knowing it'll be a needed step on the way to Oreo.)

I'm trying to relive my memories of how long it took the Note 4 to get Lollipop on Sprint, but I'm pretty sure I got that in late February, meaning that Samsung's not even on par with their horribly delayed cadence as usual this time around.

Yes, I know, nobody buys Samsung for updates - official ones, anyway (there's always LineageOS and so forth if you have an unlocked bootloader). But I feel like I should keep everyone posted, as someone who owns the bloody thing, so that they know what to expect if they think about plunking down this much dosh down on a Note 8.
 
So here we are: March 5, 2018. Still on RA5 with Nougat and a January 1, 2018 security patch. (I bit the bullet and updated anyway, knowing it'll be a needed step on the way to Oreo.)

I'm trying to relive my memories of how long it took the Note 4 to get Lollipop on Sprint, but I'm pretty sure I got that in late February, meaning that Samsung's not even on par with their horribly delayed cadence as usual this time around.

Yes, I know, nobody buys Samsung for updates - official ones, anyway (there's always LineageOS and so forth if you have an unlocked bootloader). But I feel like I should keep everyone posted, as someone who owns the bloody thing, so that they know what to expect if they think about plunking down this much dosh down on a Note 8.

I'm not defending Samsung at all. I think they need to get with it and deliver the updates faster. That being said, after using the Note 8 for as long as I have, I can see why Samsung might take so long delivering updates. There are tons of features in the ROM that are deeply ingrained in the OS that just work...not only flawlessly, but also in a highly intuitive manner. AOSP is still porting such features that Samsung has had for a while in their ROMs. So I can understand if they need extra time with testing for stability and what not.

But I agree it shouldn't be absurdly long, like it is currently.
 
My biggest issues with Samsung devices are TouchWiz and the ridiculously slow update times.

Just let us have an unlocked bootloader so we can run custom ROMs!!!
 
Heck, S8/S8+ doesn't even have Oreo. And besides, this will probably be the update that fucks everything up and slows down the phone dramatically based on Samsung's update history.
 
My biggest issues with Samsung devices are TouchWiz and the ridiculously slow update times.

Just let us have an unlocked bootloader so we can run custom ROMs!!!

The Exynos already has an unlocked bootloader. I'm running a custom ROM. Albeit not AOSP.
 
Heck, S8/S8+ doesn't even have Oreo. And besides, this will probably be the update that fucks everything up and slows down the phone dramatically based on Samsung's update history.

Whaaaaaat? Samsung wouldn’t do that then never release a fix for the performance problems.
 
So I had another Samsung Pay moment Thursday night. Scrambled to a local Zaxby's after my work shift to get in on this Repeat Day thing before they closed for the night.

The clerk there insisted it would not work when I tried holding it up to the card swipe terminal and nothing happened. I told them to set it up for a card swipe, trying to explain it... but things weren't working out, so I handed over the physical card.

That's when I noticed the clerk hitting a button on the terminal before swiping it. I immediately put my phone up during the swipe, and sure enough, got a Samsung Pay notification in seconds, which I pointed out to tell them that yes, it DOES work. Everyone was shocked.

Really, that's half the challenge with some of these POS terminals; some of them need to be told there's a card swipe coming before they'll work, and you basically have to trick the clerk into thinking they're swiping the card just so they get it configured properly. That, or it simply does not get a good read with Samsung's MST for whatever reason (it's happened before even when the clerk sets up the terminal accordingly).

Also, the "dummy card" trick is a crapshoot with certain gas pumps. I went to a different station last time and could not get the reader to pick up the MST for the life of me. So much for the rewards points.

Now, as for updates... guess who's still stuck on RA5 12 days later and presumably isn't slated to get Oreo until March 30 at the very earliest? C'mon, Samsung, Android P is getting a developer preview out now, and nobody with your phones has Oreo right now unless they bought an S9. Gee, I wonder why, totally not a planned obsolescence manuever on the software side like that bitten fruit corporation pulled with OS X all the time or anything...

At the very least, those in Europe are getting an Oreo rollout right now. Better late than never.
 
Now, as for updates... guess who's still stuck on RA5 12 days later and presumably isn't slated to get Oreo until March 30 at the very earliest? C'mon, Samsung, Android P is getting a developer preview out now, and nobody with your phones has Oreo right now unless they bought an S9. Gee, I wonder why, totally not a planned obsolescence manuever on the software side like that bitten fruit corporation pulled with OS X all the time or anything...

The irony is that Apple not only delivers timely updates, but is making it considerably easier to hold on to an iPhone for longer (thanks to a shift in strategy for supporting older devices, an option as to whether or not you throttle to protect an old battery, and the increasing baseline performance). At this rate there will be people running the iOS 12 beta before every S7/S8 owner gets Oreo, and that might be generous.
 
The irony is that Apple not only delivers timely updates, but is making it considerably easier to hold on to an iPhone for longer (thanks to a shift in strategy for supporting older devices, an option as to whether or not you throttle to protect an old battery, and the increasing baseline performance). At this rate there will be people running the iOS 12 beta before every S7/S8 owner gets Oreo, and that might be generous.

No kidding, even the iPhone 5S got the iOS 11 update (at the same time as every other iPhone as well) and that was a 4 year old phone at the time of the update.
 
The irony is that Apple not only delivers timely updates, but is making it considerably easier to hold on to an iPhone for longer (thanks to a shift in strategy for supporting older devices, an option as to whether or not you throttle to protect an old battery, and the increasing baseline performance). At this rate there will be people running the iOS 12 beta before every S7/S8 owner gets Oreo, and that might be generous.
Not too big of an irony as Apple has done this since they started with their traditional release cycle.

I guess he irony is in Samsung’s software upgrade cycle. People buy their hardware then get upset when it never gets updated.

This didn’t used to be AS big of an issue but with how integrated smartphones have become the security is needed.
 
People should put their money where their mouths are if they want timely updates. The current market is proof that they don't care.
 
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I think people have started too, but Samsung is great at attracting people in with advertising and having better hardware features.
 
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