Can someone tell me why we can't get a 32 or 64 gig phone?

[EarlyMon]

That's Post of the Year, for me, EM. Info.

But what is it with the hundreds of apps you guys have?

Never mind.. don't want to derail this, one of the best threads around, imo.

Thanks!

I don't think it's derailing because it's in context.

I'm not a gamer. But I am an information junkie. No one browser is ok for me, I never know when I'll hit a page that looks bad on one browser but ok in another. I always have at least 6 browsers, then Choose Browser to manage them. Same idea on my news readers. Video players. Music players. PDF readers. Office apps. And I hated my built-in calendar, so there's another. Altogether I have 6 keyboards.

Some people get their customizations by changing the home screens around (oops, yeah, custom launcher, Nova there). I keep mine simple. My Android customization comes from my app flexibility for what I want - mass consumption of information at any time and being able to interact with it as I need or just how whimsy takes me.

In each app category, could I choose and live with a best and reduce my clutter? You bet.

But I don't have to be limited that way, and that's how I exercise my Android choice.

I may be the odd duck in my app mix, but I think I'm mainstream in that it's all about the apps - otherwise, I'd find a way to get my StarTac some service.

 

[rushmore]

I stand corrected on the 30%. The mix is about 15%, so half the total. Counting the iPhone which has no sd card for media, the number is higher. I just spoke to my corporate work contact who corrected me on that. He is also checking with his Samsung regional contact on if Verizon plans on offering the 32GB model. Will update when i get a call back.

 

[EarlyMon]

Yeah that was my next question and my point about launches before the SGS3 - will Verizon not offer the model you want or will they just not offer it right away?

 

[rushmore]

I should have thought of this before (duh). The good thing about this person is he helps train the corporate store teams along with key OE reps like HTC, LG and Samsung for new device roll-outs. As long as not confidential information, they can tell me.

Update:

No call yet. He did say he would call back once the Samsung rep replied back.

 

[rushmore]

The Samsung rep has to check to confirm 32GB status (Monday). The good news is no bad news as of yet. My corporate rep does not know of any intent not to carry the 32GB as of yet either, so a vague glimmer of hope with a Dumb and Dumber' "still a chance".

I am not too hopeful to be quite frank about it.

Funny review point from a good site called Techradar. They gave the device 4.5/5.0, but the one thing they did not like:

"9GB simply isn't enough to start with, and coupled with the fact any photos you've got in Dropbox will store here as a cache, movies and music from Samsung Hub will download here and any large apps will also be caught on the internal memory means we can see this running out FAST."

This is what I have been saying too FWIW- not much, and expect (OK, hope) carriers to change their tune sometime this year. The big misnomer going on is a lot of people assuming you can put apps on the SD card. Even some of the media are parroting this inaccuracy. Neither cloud or sd card works for app installs.

 

[greggebhardt]

DropBox can be your friend. It works across all platforms and is secure.

 

[Hadron]

The point TechRadar were making was that it cached images in internal storage, so if you have a large gallery synced there, this could add to a lot of space.

I don't think rushmore drew attention to this as a criticism of Dropbox, but as a further reason why for some people the SD is not a substitute for internal storage. (Though if the app does cache a lot of info, it might be nice to be able to choose the location if there is a choice available).

I can't comment directly as I stopped updating the Dropbox app a long time ago. Ironically I in fact stopped when they introduced the photo syncing features that are the subject here, since to me this was unwelcome feature creep - of course it may have been a desirable addition for others.

 

[rushmore]

Dropbox is of course a functional equivalent to external storage and not app space. If you buy the 16GB S4, do not expect to do much gaming as far as the newer 3D games. I fill that up with just six games, considering other apps and the OS needs some of that 9gb of space too. Considering how much of the "16gb" is free, seems obvious a 32gb version should be offered.

On a positive note, better to be "stuck" with my 32gb S3 than my G1 I kept that for the two years and then bailed to VZW for the Incredible. I cried back then about no 3.5mm audio jack and low storage too

Odd the carriers appear to be going full circle on app storage while misleading consumers they can put apps in the sd cards and use the cloud. This in spite of Samsung offering 16, 32 and 64GB versions.

 

[BzB]

i absolutely despise the "cloud" and keep as little information/data there as possible. the requirements (vague sla's that may reduce the privacy of your information) and limitations (connectivity and related costs) make it an unattractive alternative to on board sd storage for me. none of my pictures, videos, music, or docs are set up to sync to cloud services. the only thing i sync to the cloud is contacts and calendar information.

it's understood how some manufacturers are pushing it as an alternative to on board storage when they offer small capacities and no sd expansion. it's also very good for redundancy, back up and file sharing for those that don't want to think too much about it. that said, it doesn't seem carriers do a good job of explaining what the cloud means and the service providers don't readily expose the fine print. so from my perspective most consumers don't fully understand what they're getting into when the subscribe to cloud storage services. doesn't seem to stop manufacturers/carriers for leveraging it as an option to limited storage though.

 

[EarlyMon]

We use Dropbox for sharing family photos, and like not having to think about it, it's pretty good. The family all has one bookmark to our shared folder, easy and just works.

Not sure, but while _every maker_ touts the cloud, I think that last year's feedback has taught them lessons.

 

[rushmore]

My local Att corporate store has the S4 in stock. I went in after delicious Thai lunch and they had a demo up and running and a nice sales lady said they had them in stock to sell. I got to use the S4 for a few minutes and plan to go back later and test heavy CPU apps like MAMEreloaded with the game Dead or Alive (herky jerky slow on the Snap dual and Tegra 3, but near playable on the A6X).

This 32gb issue is now even more frustrating since the display was great, especially since a tad smaller than the S3. Not seeing what folks are talking about with the build. Though I agree with the S3 view in some regards, the S4 is nicer to hold, not slippery and feels like a quality device.

Sadly, I will pass on the S4 though unless a 32gb version is released. If it is, my guess is it will be months for VZW, if ever. I expect bad news from the my VZW contact, since no SKU code apparently exists for the 32gb version. That is usually a bad sign.

In fact, I will not bother with testing MAME since no point. I need space for my apps and juggling is not in any stretch an option.

 

[silentwitness]

I am also patiently waiting and hoping they release the 32gb international version of the phone phone. I'm stopping myself from getting tempted to pick up the 16gb like I did with the s3. I'm from India and one of my friends asked in the Samsung store when the 32gb would be launched and they say they will not launch it in India but I am not sure if it's true or just a ploy to get people to buy the 16gb version.

 

[raheenb]

According to AppMgr III, "This device does not have a real primary external storage, or the primary external storage is emulated. Moving app to SD function cannot be supported by this device". I also tried App2SD, and the built in app-manager...same deal.

If anyone knows a way to get apps to install data externally, please let me know (without root, preferably). Example: I downloaded NFS Most Wanted...it's 2GB in total size that on my old Evo 3D would have installed (mostly) to the SD card...but it's not an option on the S4.

This really sucks because the system is taking up a TON of space...out of the 16GB, only 9.72GB appears available for use which is very little by today's standards! Had I known this was the case, I may have waited for the 32GB...

FYI, for anyone who doesn't know yet, the path for the external card is "/mnt/extSdCard"...I was able to have Rhapsody and my email App (Aquamail) save downloads there which will help save space, but this isn't (typically) an option for games which have use data files.

Otherwise...great phone!

 

[EarlyMon]

According to AppMgr III, "This device does not have a real primary external storage, or the primary external storage is emulated. Moving app to SD function cannot be supported by this device". I also tried App2SD, and the built in app-manager...same deal.

If anyone knows a way to get apps to install data externally, please let me know (without root, preferably). Example: I downloaded NFS Most Wanted...it's 2GB in total size that on my old Evo 3D would have installed (mostly) to the SD card...but it's not an option on the S4.

This really sucks because the system is taking up a TON of space...out of the 16GB, only 9.72GB appears available for use which is very little by today's standards! Had I known this was the case, I may have waited for the 32GB...

FYI, for anyone who doesn't know yet, the path for the external card is "/mnt/extSdCard"...I was able to have Rhapsody and my email App (Aquamail) save downloads there which will help save space, but this isn't (typically) an option for games which have use data files.

Otherwise...great phone!

I've moved your post to this thread, we've been discussing that issue in detail, you might want to read back, up to you.

Jellybean, 16 GB phone, you're not going to get apps to sd working properly without root, so far as I know, and even then, it may not be what you expect.

 

[davoid]

That said, the S3 was also a highly anticipated launch, but had 32gb out of the gate. Catch was the launch was on weighted average, a month later in relation to global area launch. The S3 launch was more staggered in that regard.

Well the 32GB S3 might have been available in the US out of the gate, but it certainly wasn't in the UK where the international S3 was first launched. I and many many other people got a 16GB S3 because that's what there was available. It was still the best phone on the planet (in my opinion ) at the time. The 32GB version didn't arrive until later. The difference this time is that we have a simultaneous launch either side of the Atlantic, and the US is likely to see similar limited release of the 32GB devices as the UK experienced on initial launch.

Anyway, from what I've heard, aren't you lucky that VZW are even launching the phone this early? I recall you yourself have been predicting a launch several months behind every other carrier. For me, it's impressive Verizon are selling the phone at all with the complaints I hear from our US cousins.

I can imagine the S4 will sell very well in the 16GB variant in just the same way as did the S3, although I agree with you that 16GB is getting a bit small in light of ever-increasing app size.

I also agree with EarlyMon that it would anyway have been a strategic catastrophe to delay launch in today's climate, merely to wait on a 32GB variant.

I don't say "merely" to demean your requirement for a 32GB device, but to contextualize Samsung's perspective in terms of their predicted sales.

memory is cheap and ubiquitous so them not offering the 32gb or higher has to be a strategic decision and not an oversight...at least, that's what i would think...

An interesting perspective, considering Samsung themselves produce microSD cards... so possibly not an oversight. </CONSPIRACY>

 

[rushmore]

I actually said Verizon would be four weeks later, which appears to be correct I would add a but since no 32gb yet, no harm no foul.... I guess...

Agreed on the 16gb only theory (production expediency for launch) and is why I mentioned that, since hoping that IS the reason for the 32gb delay, hence my "likely months away" point.

Nope, not dinging the launch too bad- as long as at some point in the next few months a 32gb is actually offered. 9gb ain't going to cut it for us folks that game and use the more data heavy apps.

Applying Apps2sd with JB is problematic at best and you will need to always leave the sd card in or the device will screw up. Not to mention even with a 64gb card it will be 15 usable GB less than the 32gb with a 64gb card. I keep all my music, PSX roms and a few shows on the 64gb card and only have 1.2gb free on it. Added: Actually, Apps2sd with JB is very problematic to the point of not being worth it for all but the most experienced modders that do not mind an unstable device.

Like mentioned before, I use my S3 as an all in one device. Handy when traveling and I am in a lot of places where cloud and wifi are not options. Extra batteries ARE though

 

[rushmore]

Still no confirmation on if VZW will or will not. The only thing "known" is the 16GB is the only version for the carriers to ship so far. The question is was this due to the theory of "Samsung production focusing on one model", or is this all the carriers ordered (I did not think of this to ask at the time)? Even the 16GB version is supply constrained.

BTW, the Gottamobile assertion there will not be a 32GB is conjecture based on the assumption the 32GB S3 is being moved out of stores due to sales. The 32GB was moved from VZW stores in order to make room for newer models and position the 16GB S3 as a low cost entry device for the segment at $99 or less for a two year contract.

Nobody from Verizon of an official capacity has publicly stated there will not be a 32gb version offered. At&t though apparently have SKUs at least for the 32GB version, where as Verizon apparently does not....

I have read growing concern about the storage and pushback in regards to sales staff misleading customers about installing apps to the sd card. Since reading forums is really a bubble, I will not assume that reflects a general customer concern, but hope there is enough word clouding accumulation that it "forces" a release of 32GB versions at some point- if not planned now........ Yeah, right.

 

[rushmore]

This is ironic. Considering the small storage, most will not be playing many Gameloft games due to their 1.5GB or higher size. MW4 is actually 1.9GB, counting user data. Gameloft should be paying carriers to offer large sizes Edit: Actually, MW4 is almost 2.1gb

Gameloft Optimizes Handful of Popular Games for the Samsung Galaxy S4 – Droid Life

To further the irony that Droid-Life apparently missed from their own site:

Samsung&#8217;s 16GB Galaxy S4s Actually Offer Just Over Half of That in Usable Storage – Droid Life

They actually mention sd card as an option and the way worded imply (if intended or not) the same wrong thing sales staff are saying to people about apps can be installed to sd cards:

"Yes, the Galaxy S4 does support expandable storage, but at this point a heavy user is basically forced to buy an SD card in order to maintain a large app library or keep lots of media on their device." Easy to read that and take the wrong way- or did they mean it that way?

 

[goonryan2005]

32gb should be coming to AT&T in due time.

 

[rkkeller]

We get your unhappy about the 16gb size limit and some other things by the tons of other posts but enough with negative thread upon negative thread already.

Your not happy so don't buy it and just leave us alone.

 

[rushmore]

How is it a negative thread posting non subective information? I simply link the information without conjecture to suggest a negative view. Is this a fanclub site or a tech forum?

I have the S3 and fully intend on getting the S4 if a 32GB is launched. If a 32GB is confirmed not to be released, fair cop on me leaving, since your premise would then be absolute.

Edit: I sent a note to a Mod mentioning they can move the thread if they would like to the 32/64 thread. Still not seeing the negative view. I have dogged the S3 about weak 3G signal and own it.

 

[rushmore]

32gb should be coming to AT&T in due time.

They apparently have a SKU for it, so seems logical

Verizon on the other hand.... .....

 

[BzB]

if 16gb version sells like hotcakes across carriers then 32gb will likely be pushed back and/or have low availability. and it looks like the 16gb is selling very well so far with all the pre-orders being sold out or potentially being delayed "due to high demand".

the large majority of consumers can make due with "only" with the 16gb (9gb ) version because most don't use apps that require lots of data storage and the sd card takes care of the media piece. the carriers know this and they also know they can keep the price and their subsidies much lower with this version. margin and contracts are key.

 

[rushmore]

I think that considering the trend of app sizes and the content scaling now in relation to the new chipsets, the current storage size of the S4 will begin seeing accumulated pushback from consumers- If larger sizes are not offered as options to consumers.

Case in point, Gameloft is adapting their apps and advertising for the S4 with some apps ranging from 1.5 to 2.1gb in size. Something has to give.

 

[Hadron]

Except that we are atypical customers in one important respect: we know that larger capacity versions (will) exist. I suspect most people who walk into a phone shop won't ask about a 32GB or 64GB model because they won't know about it - they'll just be told "this is the S4, it's got 16GB storage and an SD slot".