Best Smart Phone set up for SUP?

[SUPflorida]

Time for a phone upgrade. My current Ipone 4S has not allowed me to upgrade my IOS since 6.1.3 because of lack of memory. Other than the camera roll I can't delete any other of a number of photo files that would free up more space....Not on the phone itself, nor thru ITunes on my PC. All the apps, are (or in process of) being reconfigured to work on the later operating systems...which I can not down load. So It seems I'm forced to make a move.

Having used an Apple IPhone for at least the last ten years ( in Life-proof cases the last four) I have had about all I can stand of Apple. Driving 1-1/2 hrs. for service to the nearest Apple store is insane. I don't own Mac and have no desire to, so interfacing with it has been less than steller.
Thinking of jumping ship to Samsung S6Active but read mixed reviews.

Any of you have experience with S6 Active? With/without a case?  Any overheating issues? My wife's IPhone 5S shut down several times while paddling this past summer from overheating in a SaltLife plastic pouch (hanging from a lanyard around her neck). My 4S never did in a Life-proof case inside an identical plastic pouch.

It's either the Galaxy S6 or IPhone 6S plus on my AT&T plan.

What are you guys currently using? Any regrets? The Galaxy S6 is supposed to be water proof to 1.5 meters ...any of you trust that without a waterproof case?

Appreciate your real world SUP user perspective.

[Dwight (DW)]

Sure, we'd all like to see Apple build more stores in the US instead of China.

 You'd prefer to own a phone where there is no store support at all?  Try getting an Android repaired while you wait. Try getting one replaced hassle free in store, or even getting a new one for the Apple oh-shit replacement cost of $225 in store.

Try getting the latest software updates as soon as Google releases them.

The grass isn't always greener.....


FYI, I've been surfing with my Apple Watch since day one. It finally crapped out. I was thankful to have an Apple Store replace it hassle free

[PonoBill]

I've been pretty grumpy at Apple of late, their most recent software releases have kind of sucked, and I seem to get conned into spending a few grand every few years for a new laptop when I really would like to just keep using what I have. So I wandered into the Android world. Holy crap, what a mess. Anarchy. I'm pretty tech savvy, but I went in circles looking at stuff. "Wait, so this Galaxy 8, brand new, runs count chocula frankenberry 4.01 and it's a 2013 model. Where's the 2015? And what the difference between a tab, a memopad, who is ASUS and is it Google or not. "

So yeah, apple is a hell of a lot cleaner. But I did buy an RCA (remember RCA?) tablet for $56 bucks that runs tic tack or jelly belly, or whatever 5.0 Android is, to run the android software for my pixhawk-based drones. It's a nice little tablet for 56 bucks, though kinda slow. But hey, I spent more than that on lunch. And I bought a HP laptop for $300 to do software dev, play with embedded systems, and do drone system calibration. Mac suck for that stuff and I don't like screwing with multiboot. For 300 bucks I can have a dedicated laptop sitting next to my mac stuff.

As for the phones, I really don't want to learn anything new. The nicest thing about iPhones is that even if you've never seen one before, you can pick it up and make it do everything it does. I played with the android phones for a while and gave up. Definitely some reading the manual required--if you can find one.

[p06781]

Love my Samsung note 3 but honestly Samsung got it all wrong on the s6 or note 5 generation. They decided to eliminate a micro SD card slot and not have a user replaceable battery which are my 2 favorite things. They decided to make a more apple like phone and alienating quite a few followers like me.  Android is copying apple and apple is copying android these days.

As far as software,  both platforms have matured now and equally good apps for both.  However getting rid off iTunes is a good thing,  what a pain... 

[spookini]

Samsung makes pretty phones, but they always load their phones with TouchWiz UI which sorta f's up the Android experience.  Plus, if you get it from a carrier, the carriers always load worthless bloatware that can't be deleted.

I recently went with the Alcatel idol 3 unlocked phone. $250. Basically, it's pure Android. Available on Amazon, it's a pretty great phone.  No bloatware. And it's essentially pure Android; if there's any updates for the OS, it downloads immediately.

Not quite as shiny or sexy as Samsung, but check out the online reviews. At $250, it's essentially a throwaway in the event you lose it, break it, or take it snorkeling.

[SUPflorida]

So....DW is for Apple, you bring up good points about replacements.... and the Samsung looks ascetically cheap in comparison to the I Phone...however I found a YouTube video of a Samsung S6 Active being used as a hockey puck and it survived surprisingly well untill it hit the steel goal frame. IPhone would have exploded at the first slap shot.
Pomo Bill you seem kind of split down the middle depending non the application...
Like yourself I'm not into long learning curves anymore but the possibility of better interface with my PC is long overdue. The idea of it being inherently waterproof with no rubber port plugs or any case at all is very attractive. I would use some type of secondary protection like my SaltLife waterproof pouch, but if that were to fail it nice to know the phone isn't going to die on water contact.
I found the operating manual on line and on the surface it seems straight forward and better written than most.


P06781 seems to favor Samsung but doesn't like the limited storage and non removable batteries of the Galaxy S6...

Iv been doing research on the Galaxy 6 Active and the two major complaints that p06781 has have been at least partially addressed in that the phone has a battery that is longer lasting than any othe phone in the Galaxy line up, and Samsung released a 64 gb version. Not as good as a replaceable battery & SD card but the claim is that it made it more waterproof. I was told there were quite a few instances were the owener replaced battery was re-installed improperly and leaked.
Also the rubber ports that were a problem in the first offering have been totally re-engineered, eliminating that problem entirely.

Still not sure which way to go...the switch over would be an undeniable nightmare at first...calendars, notes, apps...a royal pain.....

[Dwight (DW)]

My wife's Apple Watch went on the fritz. Haptic engine got weak. Didn't want to drive one hour to Apple Store so...

Monday evening I filled out repair request online. Tuesday morning fedex drops off shipping return box. I put watch in box and call fedex to come back and get it. Wednesday Apple repair center in PA gets it and ships out a new replacement same day. Her new watch is out for delivery today, Thursday.

You just can't beat that level of service anywhere.

[PonoBill]

If you dance the apple dance just right the service is amazing. But you need to make appointments and walk into a store at the right moment. For ADD guys who don't live in urban centers the walk-in stuff is not quite so great, but still better than anything else. They actually offered to replace the logic board on my old Frankenstein 17" Macbook Pro, and even put all my modifications back in. Price was pretty steep though.  I decided to try reflowing the solder on the board first, and haven't gotten around to it, which means it's sitting on the floor in my office and I've since bought two new macs trying to replace it's functionality and convenience. I guess that price was really OK.

I laugh at people saying LED bulbs are too expensive and then do shit like that.

I'm not thrilled that Apple not only ignores waterproofing, but also has a detector that shows if the phone has gotten too damp which kills any warranty. Waterproof the damned phone!

[SUPflorida]

Ok...went back and forth...played with the Galaxy s6 Active...really quite intuitive... logical in its approach...not a anything like what I was led to believe... Down side...
.3-1/2 pages out 4 pages of apps seemed like totally worthless bloat ware. 

Went with the apple 6S plus...suduced by the screen size...the fact I could transfer all my data easier. They had a life proof case to fit so that's that...

Next day I start looking at the case at work and it it is ever so slightly open at the seams. Go on life proof web site and the say the Nude case is still in development.
Google whether the 6S+ fits into 6+ case.....No.

At&T never answers their phone. Have to wait till 5:30 get off work to take it back.
Life proof site is taking preorders on a shipment coming in, but I don't want to order one if AT&T can give me what I need on the spot...also I wanted to go home and verify they actually sold me a 6+ case before I approached them. They tried to convince me it fit the phone but I had a screen shot of the life proof web site saying it was underdevelopment. They let me return the case, but when I went home and tried to order the case that was available in the afternoon they were already sold out. Now I have a $850 egg I have to baby till Lifeproof receives another shipment. Not a happy camper. Glad I only do this every 3-4 years.

It's really agravating when you try your best to do your do diligence at it still goes south.

[supsurf-tw]

Running a 6S Plus and couldn't be happier with it. My 5 was a piece of junk but this one is awesome.

[SUPflorida]

Do you have a waterproof case for it? If so which one?

[PonoBill]

It's really agravating when you try your best to do your do diligence at it still goes south.

Ain't that the truth. Drives me crazy. But it has lead to a somewhat more effective notion--only buy stuff you love. Cuts way down on the things you buy and the crap that sits on your shelf. Only works for relatively big stuff of course, nobody loves a bag of gravel, but I'm buying eight of them this morning. It's a new notion for me, though I've used it for real estate for twenty years. Works great there. Not sure that it works for electronics. Especially since I bought some cheap stuff recently that I don't love but needed.

[SuppaTime]

Time for a phone upgrade. My current Ipone 4S has not allowed me to upgrade my IOS since 6.1.3 because of lack of memory. Other than the camera roll I can't delete any other of a number of photo files that would free up more space....Not on the phone itself, nor thru ITunes on my PC. All the apps, are (or in process of) being reconfigured to work on the later operating systems...which I can not down load. So It seems I'm forced to make a move.

I have an old 4S also and it is indeed a pain to free up memory on the phone. Apple makes good stuff but they really made a mess of managing the phone from the iTunes app running on Windows. They could have made it so much more intuitive. At any rate it is easy to delete photos from the phone using Windows Explorer.

I keep thinking I should upgrade my phone but realistically it does everything I want, which is constant checking the buoy data and wind reports, texting, Google maps, and finding stores while on the road. I rarely use any apps and I like the smallish size of the thing. The subsequent phones have gotten bigger. Oh yeah, I actually use the phone too. It is my only phone; we have not had a land line phone for 5 years now.
 

[PonoBill]

iTunes has gone so sideways that I hardly use it anymore for anything but phone sync. Who would take a simple and elegant piece of software that does most of the things you want it to and turn it into some bastardized spotify/stored music combo? And if you're crazy enough to buy into Apple's cloud iTunes stuff it erases your music library and moves you to the cloud--where half the time you cant get access. I get that they want to increase revenue from it, but pissing users off is not a great way to do that. Companies running quarter to quarter will always look for a spike that mollifies shareholders rather than long term excellence. Seems ridiculous for a company approaching a trillion in market cap to think that way.

[Dwight (DW)]

I'm not thrilled that Apple not only ignores waterproofing, but also has a detector that shows if the phone has gotten too damp which kills any warranty. Waterproof the damned phone!

You're out of touch in this point. They are, but not officially saying so. Probably because they do replace devices hassle free, while others don't.

Here they dunk them for 30 minutes.

http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/the-new-apple-iphones-survive-a-dunking-test/

Watch is also water proof to 15 meters, but Apple doesn't freely admit that either.

The day is coming. Maybe they need more time before they have it reliable long term and can back it up with their excellent warranty.