Samsung Galaxy S4 Active

[lothar]

Is there an in-depth comparison of Gorilla Glass 3 and Gorilla Glass 2 somewhere?

https://plus.google.com/116988351660148062102/posts/R7EWuTeEbqr

 

[WelshBloke]

Ah. But didn't that only up it to like 3000mAh? So still impressive. Did the kernel come with custom voltages?

You can change the voltages, it's a great kernel in conjunction with STweaks. You can adjust pretty much everything, mines at stock though, I'm too lazy to tweak at the moment.

3000mAh is pretty much a third bigger so it's quite an increase.

 

[santz]

Where did u get the official samsung extended battery, is it also available on amazon, could anyone provide a link?

 

[WelshBloke]

Where did u get the official samsung extended battery, is it also available on amazon, could anyone provide a link?

You know I can't remember where I got it from (it's either old age or the night shift I've just finished), it's pretty readily available (this is for the S3 though).

 

[santz]

Full in depth s4 active battery test analysis
http://blog.gsmarena.com/samsung-galaxy-s4-active-battery-tests-are-done-results-inside/

Talk time: hrs
S4 active - 16:40
S4 Regular - 18:03

Web browsing: hrs
S4 active - 7:24
S4 Regular - 7:35

Video Playback: hrs
S4 active - 7:03
S4 Regular - 12:30

Endurance rating: hrs
S4 active - 57 hrs
S4 Regular - 69 hrs

Meaning of endurance rating from GSMArenas:
"Finally, our overall longevity rating (endurance rating) gives you an idea of how much battery backup you can get on a single charge. A score of 40h means that you'll need to fully charge once every 40 hours if you do one hour of 3G calls, one hour of video playback and one hour of web browsing daily. Essentially, it's an aggregated and normalized score, which factors in the three mentioned tests along with the real-life standby power consumption, which we also measure."

 

[gorcorps]

Damn...That sucks. You claim it's better than your Galaxy S III, well that sucks too.
Even my Nexus 4 is much better than that and people always complain about it's battery.

Umm...That's not at all true for most phones released the past 2 years unless you either bought one of those cheap $150-200 no contract pre-paid phones or you have some rogue app draining your battery.
Even on my Galaxy S II, I got more than 1 hour of screen time before reaching the 35% mark and no, I never had to disable email syncs or toggle GPS.
If you have to disable all those things that make it a smart phone, then you might as well buy a feature phone.

Given the battery on both this phone and your Galaxy S3 sucks ass, I'd say you have some sort of rogue program that you probably installed on both.
There is not one review on the web out there claiming that the Galaxy S3 has a 1-1.5 hour screen time...Not on GSMArena, not on Anandtech, and I'm sure it's not on one of the other inferior battery testing sites like Engadget/Verge/and others either.

Install BetterBatteryStats and investigate to find out what's causing wakelocks.

Hmm, must be something consistent then because I also had the gs2 and it was worse than the gs3. They didn't start that bad but over time I couldn't get through the day with minimal use. I'm not sure what it could be because there aren't that many apps I install on each new phone.

I use better battery stats, that's how I found out my gps on the active was auto updating. When I checked on a solution, nobody had one other than "turn off auto updates".

 

[WelshBloke]

Hmm, must be something consistent then because I also had the gs2 and it was worse than the gs3. They didn't start that bad but over time I couldn't get through the day with minimal use. I'm not sure what it could be because there aren't that many apps I install on each new phone.

I use better battery stats, that's how I found out my gps on the active was auto updating. When I checked on a solution, nobody had one other than "turn off auto updates".

Lots of things poll the gps in the background.

Facebook, Google now, Google maps, those are the first to spring to mind but there's a bunch of others.

 

[Germanic]

Full in depth s4 active battery test analysis
http://blog.gsmarena.com/samsung-galaxy-s4-active-battery-tests-are-done-results-inside/

Talk time: hrs
S4 active - 16:40
S4 Regular - 18:03

Web browsing: hrs
S4 active - 7:24
S4 Regular - 7:35

Video Playback: hrs
S4 active - 7:03
S4 Regular - 12:30

Endurance rating: hrs
S4 active - 57 hrs
S4 Regular - 69 hrs

Meaning of endurance rating from GSMArenas:
"Finally, our overall longevity rating (endurance rating) gives you an idea of how much battery backup you can get on a single charge. A score of 40h means that you'll need to fully charge once every 40 hours if you do one hour of 3G calls, one hour of video playback and one hour of web browsing daily. Essentially, it's an aggregated and normalized score, which factors in the three mentioned tests along with the real-life standby power consumption, which we also measure."

Seems like the Galaxy S4 Active's battery is slightly less durable than the Galaxy S4.

 

[santz]

how i wish the s4 active had the same battery rating as the regular s4, i think it looks much batter, plus has extra buttons, plus is water proof.

imagine not caring about rain while walking with your phone in winter......

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

Lots of things poll the gps in the background.

Facebook, Google now, Google maps, those are the first to spring to mind but there's a bunch of others.

none of those should poll your gps in the background except for maps if you're navigating.

 

[Apex]

how i wish the s4 active had the same battery rating as the regular s4, i think it looks much batter, plus has extra buttons, plus is water proof.

imagine not caring about rain while walking with your phone in winter......

Did you see the water dunk test? I'd be surprised if the normal S4 couldn't take a bit of rain.

http://crave.cnet.co.uk/mobiles/gal...n-our-brutal-destruction-test-video-50011470/

 

[WelshBloke]

none of those should poll your gps in the background except for maps if you're navigating.

All those poll the gps.

 

[WelshBloke]

Did you see the water dunk test? I'd be surprised if the normal S4 couldn't take a bit of rain.

http://crave.cnet.co.uk/mobiles/gal...n-our-brutal-destruction-test-video-50011470/

I think there's a difference between "might survive that if you're lucky" and "designed to cope with that, no worries".

I've dropped my S3 into a full bath and it was fine but I still want to avoid getting it wet unnecessarily, with a waterproof phone you don't need to worry.

 

[gorcorps]

So I did a test with the phone in the pool yesterday, where I jumped in with the phone in my pocket and then took it out. Yes it survived, but then it thought my headphones were connected and started to autolaunch things. Even after it was out of the pool for a couple hours it still had this problem. I rolled up some paper towel to clean out the jack and it still didn't work, but after a few times plugging and unplugging real headphones it figured itself out.

At this point I'm kind of regretting my decision. I don't absolutely NEED the water/dust proofing, but I thought if I could get the equivalent of the GS4 in a more durable design I'd be better off. The thing is, you don't get all of the GS4. The screen is different though its still nice, but the camera doesn't seem much better than the GS3. The battery life is definitely the most disappointing, as it seems no better than my GS3 when it was new despite being a bigger battery. Is that hit in battery life worth it for a bit of water resistance? I'm not sure it is right now, especially given the issues I saw after getting it wet. I have another week to return it if it really doesn't work for me, and I'm strongly considering going to just a GS4 instead.

 

[lvrzhn]

Just wanted to mention that at the same percentage screen brightness the Active is almost twice as bright as the regular S4. You can go to a store see for yourself. The Active is definitely the better choice for outdoors. Of course if a battery comparison were done at 50% brightness the Active would have shorter life since it is not AMOLED, but it would also be more usable (the S4 display is very dim at 50%).

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

All those poll the gps.

How does Google Maps poll the GPS in the background? If you're talking about latitude, it uses cell data to determine your location. Facebook doesn't activate GPS in the background. Nor does Facebook constantly update your location in the background with cell data.

They only use GPS when you open the app. So maybe if you spend 3 hours surfing Facebook you might have GPS battery drain... It's also hard to explain but I don't think Facebook keeps the GPS on consistently. It definitely stops upon obtaining a lock, but it only turns on if you post a status I believe... It's GPS behavior is inconsistent, but either way it means that 3 hours of FB app open != 3 hours of constant GPS.

 

[Apex]

I think there's a difference between "might survive that if you're lucky" and "designed to cope with that, no worries".

I've dropped my S3 into a full bath and it was fine but I still want to avoid getting it wet unnecessarily, with a waterproof phone you don't need to worry.

Agreed, though surviving over 2 minutes of full immersion means with some rain, it's more like "most likely will survive unless you're unlucky."

Side note, saw NeverWet at Home Depot yesterday. Was tempted to try it out. Anyone see the video of it with the iPhone?

 

[blairharrington]

So I did a test with the phone in the pool yesterday, where I jumped in with the phone in my pocket and then took it out. Yes it survived, but then it thought my headphones were connected and started to autolaunch things. Even after it was out of the pool for a couple hours it still had this problem. I rolled up some paper towel to clean out the jack and it still didn't work, but after a few times plugging and unplugging real headphones it figured itself out.

At this point I'm kind of regretting my decision. I don't absolutely NEED the water/dust proofing, but I thought if I could get the equivalent of the GS4 in a more durable design I'd be better off. The thing is, you don't get all of the GS4. The screen is different though its still nice, but the camera doesn't seem much better than the GS3. The battery life is definitely the most disappointing, as it seems no better than my GS3 when it was new despite being a bigger battery. Is that hit in battery life worth it for a bit of water resistance? I'm not sure it is right now, especially given the issues I saw after getting it wet. I have another week to return it if it really doesn't work for me, and I'm strongly considering going to just a GS4 instead.

I think your test was the mistake. I don't think it's meant to survive a jump in the pool. I imagine the force your created by entering the water in a jump is more dangerous for the phone versus an accidental drop that ends up in the bottom gently.

The Active is also said to be water resistent for 1 meter at 30 minutes. Anything deeper could potentially be more dangerous.

I think the phone is for accidental spills and if you want to take photos underneath water but not beyond anything 1 meter deep. It's your phone. Your choice. But I think your mistake was the test itself.

The design of the Active isn't more durable. Screen is just as prone potentially to cracking as the regular S4. The only real resistance is water, to a point, and dust.

I can't speak for your battery needs because we are all different in that regard. Personally I find the battery life to be essentially on par with my iPhone 5, which works fine for me. There is also potentially the choice for a spare battery.

I went with the S4 because it didn't have an OLED screen and the physical buttons and water resistance are huge bonuses for me personally. Very happy with my decision so far.

If you really aren't happy with the Active then get the regular S4. Better camera and lighter.

 

[rcpratt]

I don't know wtf the point is if it can't survive a quick jump in the pool.

 

[Tencntraze]

I just saw a Samsung commercial the other day where a guy gets thrown in a pool with his Active, with the caption of "Pranks" or something similar. That's a pretty strong implication that it should be able to survive the pool, unless you did a pencil dive to the deep end bottom.

 

[poofyhairguy]

Yup, you are right. The Active commercial has a guy in a pool:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9O2i28DU7fY

 

[gorcorps]

It did survive the pool, it just acted funny until I cleaned out the headphone port. I don't doubt it's waterproof, but the water still shorts the contacts in the port making it act funny.

 

[gorcorps]

This is applicable to the gs4 too, but I really dig the IR blaster and the built in "watch on" app. I completely forgot about it until this weekend. I thought it didn't have the right code for my TV, but it seems I just really have to tilt my phone down to get it working. Kind of awkward but the app is so convenient I don't care.

 

[Germanic]

I've actually cleaned my Galaxy S4 with surface wipes which contain a lot of moisture and it didn't get damaged.

I've even seen videos where the Galaxy S4 was immersed in water for a few minutes and it was still working.

I guess the Galaxy S4 Active is meant for people who want a phone that can stay underwater for 30 minutes and want that extra bit of reassurance when there may be a lot of torrential rains or possibility of flooding.

Or those who use the phone while taking a shower.

 

[TraumaRN]

I've actually cleaned my Galaxy S4 with surface wipes which contain a lot of moisture and it didn't get damaged.

I've even seen videos where the Galaxy S4 was immersed in water for a few minutes and it was still working.

I guess the Galaxy S4 Active is meant for people who want a phone that can stay underwater for 30 minutes and want that extra bit of reassurance when there may be a lot of torrential rains or possibility of flooding.

Or those who use the phone while taking a shower.

I can tell you why I want it, because I'm a long distance runner and in the summer I sweat heavily(obviously) Even protected inside my runner's armband eventually the neoprene gets literally wet with sweat and then my GS2 gets damp. Nothing bad has happened(yet) but it still worries me.

Moreover I run year round rain/snow/whatever. As of now if I know it's going to rain I have to carry plastic baggies to put my phone in, just in case. With the S4 Active I wouldn't have to do any of that, just make sure the back is on tight and the microusb port is sealed and away I go. That little bit of extra peace of mind is what I'm looking for.

The 8MP is fine for my purposes, because if I actually want good pictures I'll bring my DSLR. Besides for 90% of quick shots 8MP is plenty.

As far as battery life goes, because I've got a GS2 I'm sure the battery life will be much better then what I'm used to.