So… there is now a Samsung Galaxy phone made out of metal, and it is called the “Alpha”. Yeah, metal. I know right? I made fun of it myself for a while too. But after thinking about it for a while, I think I actually kind of like it now. The reason is that I see the Alpha as the precursor of things to come from Samsung in the further future. Even Samsung themselves call it the "the evolution of Galaxy Design," adding that it showcases a "new design approach" for the company.
First off, I want to make it clear that I am not a fan of Samsung products and software. I have always preferred HTC’s devices over Samsung’s ever since the HTC One X. But that is not to say I don’t appreciate the things that Samsung has done for the industry. I do have an open mind when it comes to mobile technology, and if Samsung plays their cards right, my future daily driver could well be a Samsung Galaxy device.
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Design:
Anyway the Galaxy Alpha is made out metal, a process which you can read about here. Which is kind of refreshing coming from Samsung which has been known for their plasticky devices. The device actually does look pretty nice. I really like the subtle curves on the side of the device and around the micro-USB port. The precision drilled speaker grills are really nice too. The buttons seems to be nicely crafted too with a consistent shape with the phone itself, which is again, a nice minor detail.
The fact that it is only 6.7mm thin with a 4.7” display is nice too, hopefully a sign of smaller flagship devices to come.
But in terms of design, that is pretty much where the good changes end. The front and back still looks like every other Samsung devices. While I do like the speaker grill design of Samsung (which maintains cleanliness in the long run), the home button (for easy access to turn on display while the phone is lying flat), and the removable back and battery, the rest is pretty uninspiring. Something I hope will be further improved upon in the future.
An interesting read would be this post showcasing the work of Aziz Firat, a visual designer based in Netherlands, and how he would redesign the Samsung brand.
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Specs:
The 4.7-inch display is a modest 720p, with a 12-megapixel rear camera and a 2.1-megapixel front camera, (depending on your region) a quad- or octa-core (built on Samsung’s new 20nm process) processor, 2GB of RAM (interestingly no micro-SD card slot), and a modest 1860mAh removable battery. By all intents and purposes, this doesn’t look like a flagship device at all especially when compared to the Galaxy S5, but what it does show (at least to me), is a value over efficiency rather than brute force (if the battery life is decent). Something I have always preferred.
So hopefully this will be indicative of the direction Samsung will be taking going forward with all their phones.
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OS/UX
I’ll just start with the fact that I think the current TouchWiz has too much bloat for its own good. While it has been improved over previous versions, the OS still feels like it has been held back by TouchWiz. Which is what I could say about HTC’s older devices as well, but Sense 6.0 as it is, is a huge improvement over its predecessors and has gotten to the point where I prefer it over stock Android.
While there isn’t a preview of the OS given, I’m sure we well see more come September when the Note 4 launches. As it is, TouchWiz still has too much bloat for its own good. I’m not just talking about OS features, but apps as well, in particular Samsung apps. Perhaps apps like Chaton, S Voice, S Memo, and etc are popular in their home country, but those apps aren’t catching on in international markets as far as I can tell. A report earlier this April by Strategy Analytics, a Newton, Mass.-based research firm showed how little Samsung apps were being used on Samsung devices in the U.S. based on app usage time. Perhaps it is time to start considering removing those apps for international markets and moving them to the Play Store as downloadable apps.
TouchWiz is pretty much the main thing stopping me from getting a Samsung Galaxy phone.
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Miscellaneous
Remember how useful air gesture was and how you couldn’t live without it? Neither can I. Remember how the new heart rate monitor on the back of the S5 changed the way you used your smartphone? Neither can I. Remember how the finger scanner changed the way you unlock your device? Neither can I.
When you compare the implementation of a finger scanner on the S5 versus the one on the iPhone 5S, there is a world of difference in how well they both worked. I feel like Samsung needs to be a bit more selective in the things they add to their OS. Don’t add feature for feature sake. Take Moto X for example which had features which are actually useful and change the way people use their phone for the better.
Samsung had many innovative features in their OS, but most of them are hidden amongst a bunch of other useless features.
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I’m sure Samsung isn’t oblivious to the fact that tech reviewers in general seem to prefer the HTC One M8 over its own products, and I’m sure Samsung already knows why that is as well. Here is a company that saw the potential of Android and took it to new heights. Here is a company that did what it needed to and change with the times with the advent of the iPhone (compared to Nokia, and BlackBerry). But bottom-line is they need to start actually listening to their consumers’s feedback. Listen to what people are saying about the company.
I know they want to promote their own apps and services, but they need to be a lot more selective at doing it. Think about how your consumers will benefit from this feature, not how you can market it.
Samsung has always had good specifications, now with the Galaxy Alpha I see it as a step in the right direction when it comes to design and built quality. Now, they need to tone down their software shit.
Maybe if they could do that, I am more than willing to use one as my daily driver without the need to install a custom ROM over it. I look forward to the day when I could use TouchWiz and say,”Hey, I would use this over stock Android because the features it provides are actually really useful!”
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