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Google branded hardware has a notorious reputation for problems about 1-1.5 year down the road. This has happened with every single Google device anyone in my f

by sfifs 8y ago

Google branded hardware has a notorious reputation for problems about 1-1.5 year down the road. This has happened with every single Google device anyone in my family has ever owned and so we've basically stopped buying Google. Very few manufacturers apart from Samsung come close to Apple in terms of sheer hardware quality and service support and Apple OS's lack of customisability, pathetic camera and lack of 3.5mm jack completely rules it out for me. That's basically why I have paid a premium for Samsung over the years. I may look at Huawei too now that they appear to have significantly upped the hardware quality game. Being virtually stock Android, pre-installed software is easily disabled (even FB) - the only major complaint is inability to assign Bixby button to something else without rooting.

lozaning 8y ago
It's now possible to reassign the bixby button to something else without rooting the phone.
- sfifs 8y ago
  Oh interesting. How do you do that? I don't see anything obvious in the settings area.
  - lozaning 8y ago
    You've gotta make sure that all your native samsung apps are up to date and then you should see the setting: https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/how-to-remap-the-bixby-button/ https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/how-to-remap-the-bixby-... Rooting will still give you the most functionality, but Samsung has finally at least partially relented.
    - sfifs 7y ago
      Ah thanks! Wasn't seeing this option
saulrh 8y ago
? I used a Nexus 5 up until last year. Ended up upgrading last year, not because it had issues or because lineage stopped releasing for it, but because IT at my new job refused to let six-year-old devices on the network. Meanwhile, my parents complained continuously about their three-year-old iPhones getting slower and slower. Anecdotes, yeah, but...
- aosmith 8y ago
  My nexus 5 still works, I don't use it anymore but the thing was an absolute tank.
  - neilv 8y ago
    The Nexus 5 is one of my favorite devices for PostmarketOS (project to get sustainable mainline Linux on smartphones and tablets): https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Google_Nexus_5_(lg-hammerhead) https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Google_Nexus_5_(lg-hammer...
  - PascLeRasc 8y ago
    I loved mine, I'd still be using it if I could have found one that didn't have motherboard issues. It was a pinnacle of industrial design and I'm sad that smartphone designs have moved away from it.
  - robocat 8y ago
    Nexus 5 was not a tank in my experience. On mine the plastic frame cracked between the power button and the volume control (I think a reasonably common problem with this phone, I've never had a frame crack on any other phone). After that one button gets stuck on, which makes phone cycle reboot - OK - I can workaround that. Then the microphone went bad: that is caused by the crack causing pressure on the micro-connector which causes an electrical issue. That wasted more time and eventually my workaround for that issue failed. I have had close experience with 5 different Nexus devices, and 4 of the 5 had nasty failure modes. The Nexus line has been far less reliable than the iOS devices I have had experience with, and all the Apple devices got far more security updates over their useful life. Note: I usually use Android phones and iPad tablets (although I have also personally had iPhones and Android tablets).
wtvanhest 8y ago
I have been a samsung buyer for at least 6 years and 4 phone models. The bixby button is an absolute deal breaker for me. I dont know what i will do, but it wont be a samsung with bixby
ddalex 8y ago
I assigned the Bixby button to WhatsApp in settings, no root needed
lsiebert 7y ago
Tasker can assign the Bixby button as of the newest update that just dropped. Also double clicking power and volume up and down long presses (though I had to use adb to enable the volume on my phone, none of this requires root). I hadn't messed with tasker in a long time but that got me back.

by sfifs 8y ago

lozaning 8y ago

It's now possible to reassign the bixby button to something else without rooting the phone.

sfifs 8y ago
Oh interesting. How do you do that? I don't see anything obvious in the settings area.
- lozaning 8y ago
  You've gotta make sure that all your native samsung apps are up to date and then you should see the setting: https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/how-to-remap-the-bixby-button/ https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/how-to-remap-the-bixby-... Rooting will still give you the most functionality, but Samsung has finally at least partially relented.
  - sfifs 7y ago
    Ah thanks! Wasn't seeing this option

saulrh 8y ago

? I used a Nexus 5 up until last year. Ended up upgrading last year, not because it had issues or because lineage stopped releasing for it, but because IT at my new job refused to let six-year-old devices on the network. Meanwhile, my parents complained continuously about their three-year-old iPhones getting slower and slower. Anecdotes, yeah, but...

aosmith 8y ago
My nexus 5 still works, I don't use it anymore but the thing was an absolute tank.
- neilv 8y ago
  The Nexus 5 is one of my favorite devices for PostmarketOS (project to get sustainable mainline Linux on smartphones and tablets): https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Google_Nexus_5_(lg-hammerhead) https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Google_Nexus_5_(lg-hammer...
- PascLeRasc 8y ago
  I loved mine, I'd still be using it if I could have found one that didn't have motherboard issues. It was a pinnacle of industrial design and I'm sad that smartphone designs have moved away from it.
- robocat 8y ago
  Nexus 5 was not a tank in my experience. On mine the plastic frame cracked between the power button and the volume control (I think a reasonably common problem with this phone, I've never had a frame crack on any other phone). After that one button gets stuck on, which makes phone cycle reboot - OK - I can workaround that. Then the microphone went bad: that is caused by the crack causing pressure on the micro-connector which causes an electrical issue. That wasted more time and eventually my workaround for that issue failed. I have had close experience with 5 different Nexus devices, and 4 of the 5 had nasty failure modes. The Nexus line has been far less reliable than the iOS devices I have had experience with, and all the Apple devices got far more security updates over their useful life. Note: I usually use Android phones and iPad tablets (although I have also personally had iPhones and Android tablets).

wtvanhest 8y ago

I have been a samsung buyer for at least 6 years and 4 phone models. The bixby button is an absolute deal breaker for me. I dont know what i will do, but it wont be a samsung with bixby

ddalex 8y ago

I assigned the Bixby button to WhatsApp in settings, no root needed

lsiebert 7y ago

Tasker can assign the Bixby button as of the newest update that just dropped. Also double clicking power and volume up and down long presses (though I had to use adb to enable the volume on my phone, none of this requires root). I hadn't messed with tasker in a long time but that got me back.