Guest DistortedLoop Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 (edited) I can't emphasise enough how careful I am with my devices, which is why this is particularly worrying... the device is 2 months old, so I worry others have this to come... Yes, your experience makes the rest of us a bit nervous. My phone's a few weeks newer than yours. I wonder if the materials are all the same. Seems like you and I have different backs in appearance, so perhaps in materials as well? Since I had a Magic beforehand, I found out not to put coins or keys into the same pocket together with a smartphone. My phone looks new eventhough I got it quite early. First thing to put on would be the screen protector. Never did look back since then. Recently, I wrapped the back cover with a translucent carbon fibre-like wrap at a nearby shop. It is available here in Singapore. It looks clean and you can still see the 'with Google' and 'Samsung' print. The SGS is supposedly make of "gorilla glass" isn't it? If that's the case, there's no reap point in using a screen protector to protect it. The stuff is extremely difficult to scratch, even intentionally. I would't try to though. I have thought of putting an Invisible Shield backing on my SGS, but not for protections per se, more as a way to make it less slippery feeling in my hand. Edited August 16, 2010 by DistortedLoop Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Paul Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 I've been looking at protectors, but 1 - I hate them and 2 - none of them seem to protect the action button... P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Paul Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 Oh an 3 - I shouldn't have to, my Nexus One looks good as new! P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest DistortedLoop Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 (edited) I've always got mine in a soft Mofi pouch. Case and button has a few tiny scratches but nothing major. HOWEVER I've recently noticed a nice little hairline scratch right down the middle of the screen. I'd imagine it was caused by the marble fastening on the pouch, which is amazing seeing as the scratch tests around the net showing keys and the like failing to do any damage at all. Of course, as soon as I post almost impossible to scratch, I see a post where someone's scratched theirs. Ouch, and LOL at me. My original iPhone got a mystery scratch on the glass within a week of purchase, but my next iPhone (same original model), my iPhone 3G, iPhone 3G, iPhone 4, Nexus One and SGS (so far) have all managed to go scratchless despite not using protectors on them and the occasional drop. Sometimes even keys go in the pocket with them. I'll never understand how my first iPhone got a scratch. It got all the kid glove treatment, nothing else in the pocket, never dropped, etc. Sh*t happens sometimes, I guess. :-( Since the screen really is the major selling point of the SGS in my opinion, scratching it would be devastating, sorry to hear that. Edited August 16, 2010 by DistortedLoop Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Speckles Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 Mine looks fine so far. I've had it a couple of weeks now and hardly ever use the button in the center (maybe thats why). I am a little confused why the middle button wasn't a soft button like the buttons either side of it, but it seems like they really wanted to go for the iPhone look in both hardware and software/gui. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mekerz Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 The Galaxy S truly is built very badly, if you've owned some of the more robust phones on the market - you would know this. Want proof? Go hold a Samsung Galaxy S and a Samsung Genio Touch in a local phone store. You'll find they're made of the same flimsy plastic. One costs £100 SIM free, the other costs £400+, speaks for itself in my opinion. I might have good hardware, but Samsung cheaped out on the quality of the casing and the software. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest DistortedLoop Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 The Galaxy S truly is built very badly, if you've owned some of the more robust phones on the market - you would know this. Want proof? Go hold a Samsung Galaxy S and a Samsung Genio Touch in a local phone store. You'll find they're made of the same flimsy plastic. One costs £100 SIM free, the other costs £400+, speaks for itself in my opinion. I might have good hardware, but Samsung cheaped out on the quality of the casing and the software. You're absolutely joking, right? You're comparing the price of a 2.8" 240x320 TFT screen device with 40MB memory, a slow CPU and a 2MB pixel camera to the price of a 4" Super AMOLED 800x480 with 8/16GB memory and the fastest CPU & GPU on the market as some indication of the quality of the phone...? Obviously the SGS will cost significantly more. I'm not sure what your point is other than that Samsung makes both high end and low end devices with cheap plastic for the backs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JuW Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 Just wanna show you, how my phone looks after 2month use. Ok, I treat my phone like a flower... :D lol! (Click to enlarge). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mike Beecham Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 Just wanna show you, how my phone looks after 2month use. Ok, I treat my phone like a flower... :D lol! (Click to enlarge). very clean and tidy...mine is pretty much like that, apart from the rear cover which is slight (ever so slightly) worn in a couple of places. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MAMBO04 Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 (edited) Paul, i totally agree with your points. When i first went to see the SGS in a store i was so put off by the plastickyness of it that i didn't get it until after a few weeks later when Virgin called me and gave me a kick ass deal and i thought what the hell, it's a wicked phone just not made out of metals :D so i got it, and to be honest it's not an ugly phone, it's nice and it's really light, but the plastic-ness is an issue and i can't BELIEVE Samsung didn't make it out of better materials, i mean it's supposed to be a 'flagship' phone and it's plastic!? pfftt it's sturdy which is okay, and atm i have no scratches i've had it for less than 28 days, just one scratch on the main menu button which i agree: crap quality. i've wrapped my SGS with god knows what haha, i got the invisibleSHIELD protector first day and a silicone back case to keep it safe, so that's okay, but the weird thing is when i take my SGS out of the case there are little scratches on the back, dunno how they got there because i never take it out of the case! I think Samsung needs to fix the quality of this 'flagship' phone, the plastic feel is crap and i've gotta say, the only reason i liked the iPhone 4 is because of it's superior build quality, i mean damn have you held that thing in your hand? feels premium and looks premium too, but the price tag is a bitch which is the downside! Overall, my SGS is OK but i fear that it too will become worn out in a few months as Paul has stated, funny thing is the Omnia i900 was made out of good materials, i mean that actually felt solid and it wasn't that bad, and it's like they've gone back 2 years with the design of the SGS, and trying to mimick the iPhone aesthetics just shows how Samsung can't think of different ideas. Oh i still think we should all complain about it, i certainly am, charging us 500 quid + for good hardware BUT horrible aesthetics. Look at HTC, their phones are so solid, i was tempted to get the Desire but the SGS is superior (hardware wise). I'll shove every good example in their face :D Tbh they could have atleast covered the button in glass, as they were so desperate to make the SGS look like an iPhone they missed that crucial element.. haha But yeah sorry to hear about your problems Paul, i think you should contact Samsung anyway for the hell of it and bash them around about it! Oh and has anyone seen how much you get for the SGS when you recycle it? £94. what a joke. for the iPhone 3GS you get £200, BS! Edited August 16, 2010 by MAMBO04 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Paul Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 I'll be interested to see how this topic goes in a few weeks / months. I'm 100% convinced my wear will surface for others (unless of course I have some random dodgy unit!) :D P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest fozzieb Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 Managed to blag myself one of these, I already have a Desire and will be interested to see how they compare. One will be sold on, hope the ware and tear is not common to all Galaxy S's Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest SpruceyB Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 Mine which I've had for over a month has no wear & tear yet, well 1 tiny scratch on the back cover but I really had to search. I've not been particularly kind to it either, it has shared a pocket with keys on more than 1 occasion. We'll see how it looks in a few more months I guess, especially after this weekend, where the phone is likely to take a few drunken knocks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest aeo087 Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 (edited) This is what worries me: I would expect that I could sell this phone in a year or two and get a reasonable amount for it. If you buy an iPhone this year and want to sell it in 2 years you still get about 200 dollars or more for it, which means the upgrade to the new phone is free (other than the contract renovation). Will we see the same result for Android phones? The SGS is the best thing out there this summer, but we all know by the time winter hits it will barely be in the top 5. I think 2011 will be all about intel-based Android devices, Tegra, and dual core cortex A9s... Those new architectures will leave the hummingbird in the dust, I think the Cortex A8 architecture has reached the end of its road with Hummingbird and the new OMAPs. Android is in dire need of a UI-dedicated core or at least some form of hyper-threading and assistance from the GPU; I find it very ridiculous that my UI completely freezes while installing an app or doing anything CPU intensive. If the new architectures can alleviate that problem I think we will all want to change our phones next year... How much will our SGS be worth then? Edited August 16, 2010 by aeo087 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mekerz Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 You're absolutely joking, right? You're comparing the price of a 2.8" 240x320 TFT screen device with 40MB memory, a slow CPU and a 2MB pixel camera to the price of a 4" Super AMOLED 800x480 with 8/16GB memory and the fastest CPU & GPU on the market as some indication of the quality of the phone...? Obviously the SGS will cost significantly more. I'm not sure what your point is other than that Samsung makes both high end and low end devices with cheap plastic for the backs. Of course I'm not joking and it's pretty obvious what I'm getting at. I'm saying Samsung's Flagship device is just as poorly constructed as their low end devices, which is just wrong. If you're paying this sort of money, whether it be upfront for the device or via a subsidised contract - you expect the phone to be better built than the Galaxy is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest DistortedLoop Posted August 16, 2010 Report Share Posted August 16, 2010 Of course I'm not joking and it's pretty obvious what I'm getting at. I'm saying Samsung's Flagship device is just as poorly constructed as their low end devices, which is just wrong. If you're paying this sort of money, whether it be upfront for the device or via a subsidised contract - you expect the phone to be better built than the Galaxy is. I still don't see the point of the comparison. The price difference between the SGS and the low-end phone you compare it to is obviously from the cost of the components that make the phone a high-end phone (high resolution Super AMOLED screen, top of the line CPU/GPU, lots of expensive nand memory, super accurate touch panel, etc); this is no indication of the build quality, or lack thereof. It doesn't make sense. You're assumption seems to be that the low-end device AND the SGS are both built poorly as a design decision, I don't see any proof of that at this time. So far, it seems like only Paul's got serious issues with the build of his particular phone, the bulk of respondents here claim no unusual signs of wear and tear. The few complaints we have here beyond Paul's could be said of any device. I myself pointed to a scratched screen for no reason on my original EDGE iPhone and of significant scratching and cracking on my iPhone 3G - I don't think anyone would argue those were cheaply made devices. I can't argue that the plastic backing of the SGS doesn't "feel" cheap after coming from a Nexus One, but I also can't say that it's a cheaply built phone based on my 5-6 weeks experience. It's survived a drop to the hardwood floor, riding with keys in my pocket, riding with another unprotected iPhone 4 in the same pocket (glass on glass rubbing), heavy use of the home button, and heavy use in general. No signs of scratching or damage to mine, so I won't concede that it's actually built cheaply at this time. The SGS phone's amazingly light in the hand a good 40 grams lighter than iphones and almost the same lighter than the Nexus One. Maybe the design decisions were with that in mind, not to build a cheap product. Who's to say? We'll only know if in the coming months more people start complaining of abnormal wear & tear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mrshark Posted August 17, 2010 Report Share Posted August 17, 2010 Oh an 3 - I shouldn't have to, my Nexus One looks good as new! P they cloned so much the new iPhone, that now even galaxy s needs a bumper, lol :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest derbysig Posted August 17, 2010 Report Share Posted August 17, 2010 (edited) i noticed this issue too... basically....i got myself a back casing to protect the side and back of the phone. as for the front...a normal screen protector! and for the home button...i bought a cheap protector and scaled it down to fit it in to prevent anything... worked well for me... unless you wanted something of extreme quality...probably you guys can try the zagg overall protector for SGS. Had tried the samsung omnia version before, gotta say that is kciks ass! Edited August 17, 2010 by derbysig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest hacq Posted August 17, 2010 Report Share Posted August 17, 2010 agree that the sgs is trying to replicate the iphone too much. the home button should have been a soft button like menu and back. i actually enjoy using the soft buttons much more than physical ones. it's nice to just softly tap the back button and get it to register rather than pressing a physical one like like htc desire (which is kinda hard) :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tribaal Posted August 17, 2010 Report Share Posted August 17, 2010 Well, here's my "me too" post - not a single scratch after months of intensive usage. I'm really not tender with my phones: I dropped it a few times already, sit on it on a regular basis and use it all the time. Yet, not a single scratch or wear. Fingerprints are very visible on such a shiny object, but it's nothing a little cloth can't handle. Looking forward for another JP3! I've been running froyo on mine for a while now, and it's quite nice (except the famous read only SD card, everything else is fine) Cheers - Trib' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest irenic Posted August 17, 2010 Report Share Posted August 17, 2010 I am always disappointed with the build quality of SGS. i know phone is not built to be dropped, but sometimes accidents happen. i dropped my 2 old week SGS a month ago on a street and the chrome frame break into pieces. my back cover was all right but not long after that lots of tiny hairline scratches appears due to wear and tear. huhu. as a comparison, my friend's iPhone 4 also dropped but it survived without any single scratch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest chickie.tobias Posted August 17, 2010 Report Share Posted August 17, 2010 only have the device for a week now... no signs of finish issues... but based on your posts... seems like I will need to be prepare for the worst :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MAMBO04 Posted August 17, 2010 Report Share Posted August 17, 2010 i noticed this issue too... basically....i got myself a back casing to protect the side and back of the phone. as for the front...a normal screen protector! and for the home button...i bought a cheap protector and scaled it down to fit it in to prevent anything... worked well for me... unless you wanted something of extreme quality...probably you guys can try the zagg overall protector for SGS. Had tried the samsung omnia version before, gotta say that is kciks ass! dude i tried doing that i and i ended up with some weird cut diamond shape for the button haha, did you measure the buttons size and then cut it out? i just cut it out i guess lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dagrim1 Posted August 17, 2010 Report Share Posted August 17, 2010 Using this phone for about 2 months now and still looking as new so can't say I suffer the same issues as Paul... About the plasticness of the device. True but I don't consider it to be a disadvantage (anymore). I came from a HD2 which feels more solid and way more heavy. Now it just feels bulky and the Galaxy is very light and easily pocketable. I dropped it once or twice and no signs of those accidents remain. About the ppl complaining about the phone breaking when dropping it. Just bad luck imo. It can sometimes just drop in the wrong way, hit just that point and break. It can also drop 10 times and not damage at all. I dropped a mirror once and it didn't break, that was just damn lucky not a sign of robustness. Drop it 10 times and see what happens. Anyway, no issues with build quality here and actually enjoy the lightness of the phone now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Andrew Luecke Posted August 17, 2010 Report Share Posted August 17, 2010 I don't have the same problems, but it's possible it isn't an isolated issue. White Apple Macbook's a few years back encountered issues with the casing yellowing. Apple revised the cases slightly to fix these problems (by changing the surface design), and accepted the computers back to have their cases replaced. So, it's entirely possible that Samsung will revise their casing and allow it to be replaced too.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now