Android phone with physical buttons
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I'm currently using the Samsung Galaxy S5 Active, which has physical home & navigation buttons, plus an extra physical, customizable button on the side.
I maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay be thinking of upgrading the phone soonish (WAT LORNE UPGRADE WORLD ENDING OMFG)
Are there any Android phones on the market that have physical buttons anymore? I know there's the Samsung S7 Active, but I may also want to try a non-Samsung phone. Because Samsung hardware sucks.
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@lorne-kates It doesn't suck, it's so hot it's on
. Literally.Sadly, I don't know of any phones meeting your requirements.
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Physical buttons? What are you, some kind of cave-luddite? Next you'll want a "3.5 mm jack" or "expandable memory"
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@hungrier said in Android phone with physical buttons:
Physical buttons? What are you, some kind of cave-luddite?
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@hungrier said in Android phone with physical buttons:
Next you'll want a "3.5 mm jack"
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@hungrier said in Android phone with physical buttons:
or "expandable memory"
Yes
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@lorne-kates I dunno about the hardware, really. Samsung software is some of the shittiest, but I'm not well acquainted with the hardware sucking. I could be wrong, but I'm just saying.
A current-gen phone would be a good idea for maximum lifespan against obsolescence, but if you want physical buttons you're SOL in that category. Even the S8 Active doesn't have them anymore. Although, to be fair, their on screen home button sucks less than normal, since it's pressure sensitive even when it's hidden.
But yeah, I'm pretty sure the S7 Active is your best shot here. If physical buttons are a must-have, anyway. If there is any breathing room in that regard, I would highly recommend you not get the S7 Anything because holy shit does the software suck and even rooting can't fix some of it. @benjamin-hall was right on the money, even if he was making a crack about the Note - S7s can lag to shit and heat up to the point you'd think it was doing some serious graphical processing, from doing random shit like opening an app.
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@hungrier said in Android phone with physical buttons:
or "expandable memory"
It's OK, Android helpfully made SD cards almost useless so you don't have to bother getting a phone that supports them.
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@anonymous234 I thought the newer ones let you format the SD card so that it becomes a part of system memory. At least mine does.
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@pie_flavor It does, it's called "adopted storage". But it still doesn't let you move unapproved apps into it. In fact, as far as I've been able to figure out, doing that doesn't change anything at all, except for the card now being encrypted.
See my old thread about it: https://what.thedailywtf.com/topic/21429/android-6-0-adoptable-storage-is-complete-bullshit
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@anonymous234 it's still quite useful for storing media, but yeah it's like it much better if you could use it for apps in a non crippled way
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I just checked - it also moves some cache etc.
It seems quite useful - atleast on 7.0 onwards.
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@pie_flavor said in Android phone with physical buttons:
@anonymous234 I thought the newer ones let you format the SD card so that it becomes a part of system memory. At least mine does.
Maybe on newer versions this functions correctly. As it is, I have a shiny 64gb card that's 96 percent free because almost nothing can be moved into it.
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@tsaukpaetra said in Android phone with physical buttons:
@pie_flavor said in Android phone with physical buttons:
@anonymous234 I thought the newer ones let you format the SD card so that it becomes a part of system memory. At least mine does.
Maybe on newer versions this functions correctly. As it is, I have a shiny 64gb card that's 96 percent free because almost nothing can be moved into it.
What the fucking shit? There is absolutely no way I'm upgrading my phone if I don't have full control over the SD card.
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@lorne-kates Oh, you do. But you have no control over what the OS decides to automatically put onto it. Unless you root, that is.
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If Canada is anything like Blekistan, you're pretty much shit outta luck. The only model I can think of with physical buttons is Samsung Galaxy Xcover 4, and it's pretty overpriced for its specs. It does have a physical 3.5mm jack and an SD card slot, but it also has a 1280x720px display, 2 gigs of RAM, and it's also pretty heavy at 172g, and it's comparatively large to other 5" display phones due to the reinforced body.
I suppose the RAM could be fine if you install LineageOS or something similar that doesn't have the usual load of Samsung shitware making it run like molasses. There seems to be decent support for the device, but I have no firsthand experience.
Also you'd have to live with giving money to Samsung...
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@pie_flavor said in Android phone with physical buttons:
@lorne-kates Oh, you do. But you have no control over what the OS decides to automatically put onto it. Unless you root, that is.
I am rooted.
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When I was phone shopping, I came across a caterpillar (yes, that one branded android phone which was designed for construction work. Built like a tank, and had physical buttons.
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@luhmann said in Android phone with physical buttons:
@tsaukpaetra said in Android phone with physical buttons:
I am rooted.
I wish...
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@lorne-kates said in Android phone with physical buttons:
There is absolutely no way I'm upgrading my phone if I don't have full control over the SD card.
Just buy an iPhone then
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@tsaukpaetra said in Android phone with physical buttons:
@pie_flavor said in Android phone with physical buttons:
@lorne-kates Oh, you do. But you have no control over what the OS decides to automatically put onto it. Unless you root, that is.
I am Grooted.
I am Groot.
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@timebandit said in Android phone with physical buttons:
@lorne-kates said in Android phone with physical buttons:
There is absolutely no way I'm upgrading my phone if I don't have full control over the SD card.
Just buy an iPhone then
Full control of nothing is not directly better of partial control of something.
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@luhmann said in Android phone with physical buttons:
@tsaukpaetra said in Android phone with physical buttons:
I am rooted.
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@e4tmyl33t said in Android phone with physical buttons:
I am Groot.
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@the_quiet_one said in Android phone with physical buttons:
When I was phone shopping, I came across a caterpillar (yes, that one branded android phone which was designed for construction work. Built like a tank, and had physical buttons.
Made Mighty | Cat phones
Our most reliable phone ever.Introducing the Cat® S75 – The phone that shrugs off anything that life throws at it, even loss of signal! Buy from a retail partner RELIABILITY: UNEQUALLED. Choose a phone that won’t let you down. Ever. Reliable, rugged and ready for anything, the Cat S75 keeps out...
..... SD slot, rugged design, physical buttons, and a BUILT-IN FLIR CAMERA?
For ~$600 CAD
This is a contender!
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@timebandit Also:
Android™ 6.0 Marshmallow
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@timebandit said in Android phone with physical buttons:
@lorne-kates said in Android phone with physical buttons:
For ~$600 CAD
Look again
eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay
In fact, there's auctions ending even cheaper!
https://i.imgur.com/JfM8kqv.png
Buy a phone new? Fuck that noise.
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@rhywden something tells me that this would not upset lorne
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And it's rootable!
https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/development/guide-how-to-root-cat-s60-t3698046
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@rhywden If it was $600 CAD with all those features, I would gladly accept Marshmallow
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@timebandit said in Android phone with physical buttons:
@rhywden If it was $600 CAD with all those features, I would gladly accept Marshmallow
I'm a bit sceptical that they're backporting security updates...
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@bb36e said in Android phone with physical buttons:
@rhywden something tells me that this would not upset lorne
You're right, I don't give a fuck AND it'd be an upgrade for me.
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@lorne-kates said in Android phone with physical buttons:
@the_quiet_one said in Android phone with physical buttons:
When I was phone shopping, I came across a caterpillar (yes, that one branded android phone which was designed for construction work. Built like a tank, and had physical buttons.
Our most reliable phone ever.Introducing the Cat® S75 – The phone that shrugs off anything that life throws at it, even loss of signal! Buy from a retail partner RELIABILITY: UNEQUALLED. Choose a phone that won’t let you down. Ever. Reliable, rugged and ready for anything, the Cat S75 keeps out...
..... SD slot, rugged design, physical buttons, and a BUILT-IN FLIR CAMERA?
For ~$600 CAD
This is a contender!
I've got one of those. the FLIR has helped me fix heat leaks in my house, found out that the people that did the bathroom were complete fucktards and is terribly nice for checking the tire temperature spread on track days. As well as how the engine is running by checking if the collector heats up evenly, along with a slew of other things.
The LED flashlight is also pretty decent, since it's got two leds.
They are not the best at getting OS updates out, but at least you tend to get the security patches, and there is no fucking preinstalled facebook or other such shit. The few apps that it does come preinstalled with can be deleted as well.
And I haven't managed to break it yet, and I break phones on a regular basis.
I also like that I can clean it properly with soap and a stiff hand brush. Cleanest phone I've owned. And if you accidentally drop it in a creek, it will survive.
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@timebandit I don't see a price listed on the page itself, so I assumed that the price was taken from a different site.
If the price were on that page, then presumably the Canadian price would be on the product page on the Canadian English site too.
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@powerlord UK price is £600, US price is $650, Canadian price is "see sales rep". But the bands it supports are the same as used in Canada, so a Canadian would have no problem importing it.
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@carnage said in Android phone with physical buttons:
I've got one of those.
Only thing giving me pause is the 720x1280 screen, since I'm coming from a 1080 screen. I don't have a point of comparison for that. How does the screen / text / etc look? I don't really watch movies (e: on the phone), but it'd be good to know the resolution isn't shit and all the text on websites is blurry.
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@timebandit
At least the phone under discussion is easy to clean
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@luhmann said in Android phone with physical buttons:
@timebandit
At least the phone under discussion is easy to cleanAnd rugged.
Filed under: Rough anal sex
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Well fuckity fuck fuck. The S5 Active phone fell yesterday. It's supposed to be rugged, but I guess the 2' drop to tile was too much for it. Screen started glitching out yesterday, touch controls stopped responding. This morning random boots, and the screen wasn't coming on. I know from experience this means the digitizer is fucked. There's a small chance it's a loose connection between digitizer and motherboard. I MAY be able to fix it-- but the screen is also starting to crack. It may not survive being pried off to get at the connector.
I may be buying this phone sooner than expected.
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Nope, never mind, it wasn't the screen that cracked. It was the LCD digitizer itself. It's toast. Therefore...
https://i.imgur.com/akhTcw0.png
I'll have to switch back to my iPhone 4s in the meantime. Good thing I stored all the data and apps I could on the SD card.
Also, if I recall correctly, that is the last Samsung device in my current rotation. The printer died, the laptop died (both mine and my wife's), my "starter" Galaxy mini phone died, and this is basically the third time the Galaxy S5 active died (I repaired it a couple times).
So this is the final "fuck off Samsung", for their shitty, shitty hardware.
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@lorne-kates Really? You could agree on $420.50 but not $420.00 or $420.69? Come on man, you should have gotten on that.
Anyway that's $332.78 when converting from Canadian Pesos.
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@lorne-kates said in Android phone with physical buttons:
Only thing giving me pause is the 720x1280 screen, since I'm coming from a 1080 screen. I don't have a point of comparison for that. How does the screen / text / etc look? I don't really watch movies (e: on the phone), but it'd be good to know the resolution isn't shit and all the text on websites is blurry.
I have a 4.6" display 720p phone and text is definitely a tad bit fuzzy compared to a 1080p. That said, I only notice this if I find myself looking at the letters and it's not very bothersome. Larger text looks just fine.
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@jazzyjosh said in Android phone with physical buttons:
You could agree on $420.50
?
I see $402.42, plus shipping + duty
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@lorne-kates Exactly. $402.42 + $18.08 = ...
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@jazzyjosh said in Android phone with physical buttons:
@lorne-kates Exactly. $402.42 + $18.08 = ...
Ah.
Meh, I have no control over it. It's a $USD listing, so it's whatever it ends up in $CAD. Blame the chemtrail lizards in charge of the economy for picking today's exchange rate.
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https://i.imgur.com/4qwE2yj.png
AKA me sitting by the post box for the next two weeks like a dog waiting for Master to come home.
isithereyetisithereyetisithereyet?
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I was looking at a CAT model some time ago, without the FLIR. Too bad they're so unbelievably huge... but then again almost any phone on the market today is too big to use with one hand, so I suppose one could go all in and stop caring if it's a little bit too big or plain enormous. The future is shit.
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@lorne-kates said in Android phone with physical buttons:
So this is the final "fuck off Samsung", for their shitty, shitty hardware.
Now I remember why I hate Samsung hardware. When my power port got busted, there was precisely one phone repair shop within thirty miles that would do it for less than $300. Reason being that the screen is about as strong as paper, and he was the only one that seriously believed he could unplug the power port from the motherboard without shattering the screen. They seem to be taking their design cues from Breathe-O-Smart.
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@blek said in Android phone with physical buttons:
Too bad they're so unbelievably huge...
Look the joke is going to be giggity for a bunch of stuff but im on a damn iPhone 4s with a screen size pf 80 x 24 so fuck multiquoting cant wait for new phone
but then again almost any phone on the market today is too big to use with one hand, so I suppose one could go all in and stop caring if it's a little bit too big or plain enormous. The future is shit.
