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Review on πŸ’» Samsung Galaxy S8 SM-G950 Unlocked 64GB US Version Midnight Black with US Warranty by Aaron Ali

Revainrating 5 out of 5

Mostly positive and detailed feedback.

ATTENTION: 99% of negative reviews are SELLER FEEDBACK! People bought used goods or from private sellers and got something that is not covered by Amazon. BUY NEW ON AMAZON. If you don't know how to shop, I suggest you double-check where the item in your cart came from and before you checkout. NOTE! After owning the phone long enough to get to know it, I decided to leave a decent review, detailing some of the pros and cons and some neutral points. My rating is as follows: (See comments at the end about unlocking and using Verizon - this phone is 100% unlocked!) Pros: 1. Very sleek design. Very good screen and overall great phone.2. The camera/VCR is EXCELLENT. Just like this one. I took great pictures indoors and outdoors (even in low/no light). I'm really excited and didn't expect it to be this good. (See the last photo. The photo was taken on the phone s8)3. Pixel Ratio/Screen Size. I took s8 because I didn't want to have a huge computer in my bag and there is a lot of space in it.4. Very fast. The processor is still fast enough to do everything you have to offer, even on medium battery settings (which can be adjusted to your personal preference).5. Ratio of RAM and storage. Ideal. Plenty of RAM for multitasking and plenty of storage for 4k videos/images PLUS room to expand with SD storage which is also getting much better and bigger. But 64GB is entry-level. eat your heart apple.6. Excellent speaker! i mean wow this thing is getting loud. I didn't expect such a great sound either. You will not have any hearing problems even in noisy environments. Seriously amazed here.7. Energy Saving/Battery Life. Simply put, AMOLED offers amazing battery life and the 3,000mAh battery holds a charge well. Very good. Much better than iPhone.8. Fast charging. The lowest battery level I've ever had is around 60% and it charges in less than an hour.9. AMOLED screen. As mentioned in #7, it helps with battery life, but other than that, it has plenty of brightness and image sharpness. I also noticed in #3 that the screen size and pixel ratio are amazing. You'll notice this if you're gaming a lot or during 4K upscaling, and probably more often on the s8+.10. Accessories and headphone jack. There is a headphone jack! rzunimag. The accessories that come with the phone are great. Fast Charging Cable, Type-C to Mini USB Extension Cable and USB to Type-C Extension Cable. The headphones are great too. By far one of the best headphones I've had in terms of headphones and you don't have to pay for good quality here. The material they have is excellent and they come with different sizes of earphones.11. Waterproof. While I haven't tested it and probably never will, it's a great feature. I still don't recommend soaking your phone.12. Pocket Settings. It's possible to keep the screen off when it's in your pocket or something like a purse. Just like this one. If you're dialing a number in a row, you're probably not navigating the settings well enough. Remember that Android has many settings and it would be wise to review them all, including the main options that Samsung.13 has to offer. widget size. In fact, you can customize the size of each widget and include more applications on the pages, as well as a default launch bar. You can also change the lock screen apps if you want. Personally, I have a camera and a phone application on the lock screen, and I keep all applications on one page, in folders, the weather, the Google search bar with a microphone button, and finally the control panel for quick access to Bluetooth and auto-sync buttons etc. etc. All on one page, with plenty of free space. Half of the screen is even blank. Thank you for customizable widgets. Neutral: 1. Bixby button. The button is below the volume buttons, so there's nothing you can do about it. However, you can disable Bixby. Most of the reviews here don't understand this and can't even describe how to do it. See the bottom of my review for simple instructions.2. phone length. I admit it's quite long. Maybe I'm just used to an older, smaller phone, but the one-handed operation takes some getting used to. Also pay attention to the edges of the screen. Too many palms and you will scroll. I still don't see this as a downside, it just takes some getting used to and as stated in the pro section the overall screen size is perfect.3. edge lighting. A little torn on this one. Looks cool but almost useless. It's basically notification before notification. So you have to double tap and then unlock. IMHO it looks really cool but SAMSUNG needs to give us more control over it.4. Always in view. This can also be turned off. I find it 100% useless but by no means negative. I feel it could definitely satisfy some users who like to be able to always look at their phone. I personally turned it off and honestly didn't look at it anymore.5. color settings. I've always disliked Samsung's default colors. Especially on TV. However, it is possible to change them to your liking. I went with the default setting, but there's even a change balance option that lets you tweak a bunch of swatches you like, white and black to your liking, and all sorts of other options to suit your personal preferences. This is a really great setting, but it's neutral and unprofessional simply because it comes with a very saturated color by default. So I recommend adjusting this to suit your own eyeballs.6. Clock/lock screen theme settings. In order to change the lock screen clock, you need to register with Samsung Themes and install a theme, which can be somewhat custom. I did this and deactivated my account. The settings are saved and everything is fine. Still neutral because I think Samsung should provide a way to change the default lock screen clock to a few preset clocks. Standard IMHO, ugly and not aesthetically pleasing to read. Cons: 1. Typical Android settings. Everything is always there. This is not a Samsung issue, it is an Android issue. I recommend going through each option and app to change each setting. Sometimes it can take the first week of owning an Android phone for things to get right. It also almost always has a HUGE impact on battery life. There are settings in the settings submenu. So please go to the Android settings! Their poor battery life has nothing to do with this phone. This is due to negligence and laziness.2. "OK Google". It always seems to be enabled, even when disabled in Google settings. I have a search bar and I have disabled all settings on both my phone and google but for some reason it still shows up when you say those two nasty words. However, if you don't set it up, you'll just be prompted to set it up. Almost the same as Bixby, but it's a minus because I don't want my mic on. General. I think Samsung should fix this first, even Bixby issues some people don't like or can't change. all glass The phone is by no means rugged. It doesn't look like a cheap POS, but it's all glass. This is a disadvantage because most of us tend to fall and even if we don't, it's very easy to make a mistake. Overall it looks fantastic, but no glass back is needed either. I highly recommend that you get a case, and if you're indeed prone to falls, get a big, durable case like an otter with a screen protector. With all smartphones there will always be a risk, but the glass S8 just seems pointless. However, I have NEVER dropped a phone in a way that broke it (fingers crossed, knock on wood).4. The fingerprint scanner. What a stupid placement of the fingerprint scanner. Near the camera lens? Come on. I personally don't use it at all, but if I used it and wanted to take a picture, you would clean the lens as soon as you unlocked it. No one wants to take blurry photos because they used the fingerprint protection feature. I like the Google Plus option, but I think Apple's home button is the best. Note: THIS PHONE IS UNLOCKED. It can be used with ANY carrier. If you don't pay attention to who or where you buy it from, then at least leave a review about the seller instead of the product. 99% of the negative reviews relate to these. Please be aware and only buy new Revain phones. I never recommend having such a product repaired or buying it from a private seller, regardless of their rating. You just never know. As for Bixby, you just don't need to customize it and hold down the home screen like you would add a widget, swipe left and press the button to turn it off. It won't remove it, but it will stop it from doing any of the crazy things those other reviews are talking about. I HAD NO PROBLEMS with Bixby because I disabled it. Also, make sure you go through your settings, including Android's built-in sub-settings like background data usage, etc., and turn them all off. Folks having battery issues, I guarantee it's not the s8's fault. It's Android and you won't have the best life on iOS unless you can get through the settings. PASS THE SETTINGS! everyone. Single. one. Over and over again for a week until you find all the nooks and crannies. There are many! All in all this phone is amazing. The list of pros, cons and neutrals is just my opinion and opinion. I recommend the phone. At least if you're able to think of it and try it, go to your local store and get an issued card to play with, but it's not the same as owning one. I was torn between the Google Pixel XL and this one, but as it dropped in price it became a lot easier for me to make a decision. I liked the idea of a bigger phone, but my only thought was how big it would be in my pocket. So I went with the standard s8 and am very glad I did. I do a lot of fishing, hiking, and outdoor activities, and 90% of the time I try to keep my phone in my pocket in case of an emergency. Usually off because there's no signal where I'm going anyway. Any review that has an overwhelmingly negative opinion is probably a bit of a troll or didn't do any research and was an impulse buy in my opinion. I think you can get used to this phone and if you're complaining about the things I've outlined here, the only culprit is you. So give it a try, learn ALL the settings, get used to Android and don't drop this phone lol! Thank you for reading.

Pros
  • beautiful thing
Cons
  • There are nuances

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