Verizon Pre-order, Release date, and speculation thread

[Rdjr74]

Perhaps no harm no foul, since I got to test the GS3 and all the cases launching with it during a "power lunch". The good news is the store area I tested at has a mid level signal and the GS3 seemed to work great for media streaming and downloading. Plus similar dBm to the Razr- THERE at least.

The bad news is the display IMO is dim and gray/white. My Razr and the Gnex are brighter at 60% than the GS3 at 100%. The manager and sales staff agreed. The common comment was the display looked like it had a tint coating that was dimming it.

I am stunned, since did not expect this at all. Perhaps on its own, ignorance is bliss, but it looks like it has sunglasses on compared to the Gnex and Razr. Not sure I like it. Was hoping the auto image adjustment was the issue, but same result- dim and off-white.

Added:

It is ironic that the thing I assumed was great (display) was not- for me.

Rushmore I assure you the display is incredible. I was commenting in another thread about it. I was also worried about the display as I had return my nexus once due to banding. That screen was very dull and just didn't get bright as I wanted. I'm here to tell you, you can rest easy because this screen in no way resembles my nexus. Not even close. I was jeloius of my wife's rezound because her screen was so nice. Well, mine is just as nice if not nicer then her rezound.

 

[VegaLA]

It wasn't that bad at all. Activation by the phones itself didn't work but I called CS right away because I knew there was this ongoing problem. In 5 minutes they had it done on their end, with my unlimited plan still in tact. I made sure to confirm that with them.

Cheers. It just arrived like no more than 10 minutes ago so retired the Droid X and turned this on for Activation. Screen stated 'Activating' but has now gone blank. Will check my plan on VZW's site to make sure I don't get screwed out of my Unlimited Data Plan.

 

[dmanindfw]

Now, the only reason I am concerned is that I haven't charged it yet, and this turns off the phone service to my DX, so I have 'no cell phone' now until I get the S3 charged and set up. It would have been nice of them to tell me in the instruction sheet that this procedure also activates the phone. I'm not ready yet to 'move' into the S3. Need to do some housekeeping on my 16GB SD card before I move that, etc.

And of course it remains to be seen if I kept my unlimited data. They don't mention that either.


Really the display area of the S3 doesn't look all that much bigger sitting next to the DX, but overall the phone is a little bigger. And THIN.

Your probably fine to use it w/o waiting for it to fully charge...your call though.

First thing I did after activating both mine and my wife's phone was to log into VZW.com and check for unlimited data. It was there so no concerns.

I also (and wife) are coming from the DX. It is a HUGE difference...the screen/colors are a LOT better. It is SO vibrant. When you first boot it up, it will blow your mind what a difference it is. I would suggest switching off auto brightness. You will also note that the first time you open the browser, it's very dim. Just hit the menu button and scroll down through the options. Enable desktop view and also go to the browser brightness option (yes the browser has it's own) and adjust as necessary.

Coming from the DX, having only 3 buttons (1 physical, 2 "virtual") on the S3 takes some getting used to, but I actually like it, other than the occassional fat finger of the hidden, virtual buttons.

I think you'll be as impressed as both my wife and I.

 

[dmanindfw]

Perhaps no harm no foul, since I got to test the GS3 and all the cases launching with it during a "power lunch". The good news is the store area I tested at has a mid level signal and the GS3 seemed to work great for media streaming and downloading. Plus similar dBm to the Razr- THERE at least.

The bad news is the display IMO is dim and gray/white. My Razr and the Gnex are brighter at 60% than the GS3 at 100%. The manager and sales staff agreed. The common comment was the display looked like it had a tint coating that was dimming it.

I am stunned, since did not expect this at all. Perhaps on its own, ignorance is bliss, but it looks like it has sunglasses on compared to the Gnex and Razr. Not sure I like it. Was hoping the auto image adjustment was the issue, but same result- dim and off-white.

Added:

It is ironic that the thing I assumed was great (display) was not- for me.

Sigh...rush, rush, rush...is there no end?

I thought the ONLY deal breaker for you was reception in your "fringe" area (you don't happen to live in the mountains of West Virginia do you?).

The screen is BEAUTIFUL. The white is white but not blindingly white if that makes sense...I suppose I can see where you might say that it has a slight gray tinge to it maybe, but I think it's very easy on the eyes. The thing is the colors are very vibrant, but not so unrealistically so, and even better, the blacks are very black. Overall it has very good contrast...the colors that are suppose to "pop" (as my wife enjoys saying) do.

Some things to keep in mind...auto brightness IS dim. Turn it off and adjust. Also turn up brightness in browser settings (is this where you noticed it was dim?). I'm sure you already know this, but never hurts to mention again.

Also consider the environment as I'm guessing you were under flouresents (sp?) and they can affect things.

Here's to hoping you get yours soon and hopefully LOVE IT

 

[jbdan]

Got wife's SGS3 and called to activate sim. They said the # was already activated on another device lol

20 minutes later he says to activate they must change unlimited data (order June 10th) on her line to the new shared plan. He put in a request to change it back to unlimited data and will call me when the change is confirmed.

Oh the great bureaucratic joy of dealing with companies like this

The phone is stunning though that's for sure!

 

[SirKronan]

Got wife's SGS3 and called to activate sim. They said the # was already activated on another device lol

20 minutes later he says to activate they must change unlimited data (order June 10th) on her line to the new shared plan. He put in a request to change it back to unlimited data and will call me when the change is confirmed.

Oh the great bureaucratic joy of dealing with companies like this

The phone is stunning though that's for sure!

That's why I'm just hoping to do a SIM swap from my Nexus ... I wasn't so sure about always calling to activate to make sure you have your data. I was told that a simple SIM swap from LTE device to LTE device should do the trick unless there's something wrong with your SIM card, which would necessitate that call regardless. My account is renewed already on the unlimited data for another 22 month contract, which is tied to the SIM now, not the phone, so hopefully the phone, SIM, and network just do their job and make the simple swap....

We'll find out soon. I'm printing a screen shot of my account just in case. Will try it out as soon as TiBu is done with it's thing.

Just got my SGSIII out of the box, by the way!! Not noticeably larger than the Galaxy Nexus, but noticeably thinner. It's quite nice. I wouldn't call it marble white though, more of a pearl white.

Excited!! Hoping to all of you that don't have them yet that you do SOONLY!!!!

 

[thelastdraco]

Just said activation failed and to re boot

log on to your vw online account. go to my verizon, pick the phone number you are upgrading, then click "activate or switch device". Let that finish, turn your S3 on, wait 5mins. It should work.

 

[rushmore]

All I was doing was comparing the three devices together and when I was in the Play store to put the Speed app on the devices, noticed the SG3 looked dim, so figured the auto bright was on.

The manager was there at the time and said the contrast looked weak compared to the Gnex and Razr. You do not notice unless comparing them at same time. As far as pixel density and color, the GS3 looks sweet, but at least for the unit we looked at, the contrast and brightness were better on the Gnex and Razr.

I agree 100% based on Anandtech and a few other worthy media reviews, plus user reviews it makes no sense. The thing is though, it stood out to me and I was not even looking for it. My focus was signal reception and trying out cases.

Added: This will not stop me from getting it, but did surprise me none the less. Something must have been wrong.

 

[bellefsen]

I decided to pull the trigger and order (2) - S3s on 6/13/12 in order to keep my unlimited data. At that time, my contract situation was as follows:


Line A: feature phone, $10 limited data plan, upgrade eligible, NE2 discount available
Line B: 3G smartphone, unlimited date plan, upgrade eligible, no discount available
Line C: 3G smartphone, unlimited data plan, upgrade eligible, no discount available


I wanted to use the NE2 discount on Line B and order the second phone on Line C, but the CSR could not figure out how to do this on Lines B & C and get the NE2 discount applied. As per the CSR’s suggestion, I ended up ordering the 2 phones on Line A & B with the intention of never activating one on Line A…just activating them immediately on B & C. It should be pretty straightforward to activate the Line B phone, but I am unsure of how to activate the second phone directly to Line C. I really want to keep unlimited data on Lines B & C.

Any suggestions?

 

[uhohsteveo]

Mine was delivered at 2:15pm.

ahhh!!! I must rush home.... at 4:30.... when I'm off the clock....

 

[Devz]

Got mine around 1pm today while at work. Only played around a little, but LOVE it. Hope everyone else left in this thread gets theirs soon!

Goodbye Droid X

 

[question729]

Got mine around 1pm today while at work. Only played around a little, but LOVE it. Hope everyone else left in this thread gets theirs soon!

Goodbye Droid X

Hopefully the rest of us are all taken care of by tomorrow, but I think I saw some folks pushed to 7/19...

 

[rehpyc]

Got mine around 1 as well. Chose to resist the urge to play with it and plugged it in for a full charge and left the house. Tonight I have my fun

 

[SirKronan]

Got mine around 1 as well. Chose to resist the urge to play with it and plugged it in for a full charge and left the house. Tonight I have my fun

I couldn't resist.

Well, I popped in the SIM card, let it do its activation thing, and I'm good to go. It said my new phone number correctly within moments, and I have successfully added my accounts so far without any trouble. I just logged into Verizon Wireless again to double check everything, but it correctly shows my white Galaxy S III, and continues to show my same unlimited data that I had before.

Win!!

All it took was a simple SIM card swap, so if you have a 4G LTE phone with a microSIM card in it already, you should just have to swap, rather than call in and listen to them try to convince to to switch to the new magical shared plans!

 

[bennybbc]

My daughter got her SGS3 yesterday. We had some trouble activating it...It wouldn't activate. We called Verizon and the CSR walked us through it. Still didn't activate. My wife took the phone to the Corp. Verizon store. They said it wouldn't be able to activate until the 12th and we would lose our unlimited data. She used their land line to call Verizon and the Verizon CSR said we needed special permission to keep our unlimited data and that would take about a day to accomplish. She and my daughter came home somewhat depressed. I told them to just call and talk to another Verizon CSR and get it straightened out. She did and in just a few minutes the phone was up and running with unlimited data...And fairly crappy reception...

Today I got my SGS3. I had the same activation issue so I called Verizon and spoke to a CSR. He ended up having to do something on his end, (Not sure what) but after about 30 minutes on the phone my new SGS3 is up and running with unlimited data...And really, really crappy reception...

It's dropped 4 out of the 4 calls I've made or received. It will barely receive 1x. This is in an area where I normally get good phone coverage and pretty decent 3G coverage. Oh well...I'm continuing the report on the "Reception thread".

Benny

 

[WhoDoo Voodoo]

OK, after a day with this thing I can say it seems as good as advertised. The OS is good, the signal is good, it jumps like a cat when you touch it. About to run my N64 emulator on it tonight to give it the real test though.

 

[BraulioB]

Well, I pre-ordered the SG3 at a local Verizon Go.Wireless dealer in mid-June. I got a printout showing I would keep my unlimited and paid my $199 on the spot (was able to spread it out onto 2 credit cards which Verizon's site wouldn't let me do). First thing the dealer told me when I first went in was that shipment date was pushed back to July 10th, I was OK with that. He said, when it came in, he'd call and I could come in and we'd set it up together at the store.

ITS WAITING FOR ME TO GET OFF WORK!!! WOOHOO!!!

30 more minutes and I'm off to pick up the bad boy.

 

[rushmore]

My daughter got her SGS3 yesterday. We had some trouble activating it...It wouldn't activate. We called Verizon and the CSR walked us through it. Still didn't activate. My wife took the phone to the Corp. Verizon store. They said it wouldn't be able to activate until the 12th and we would lose our unlimited data. She used their land line to call Verizon and the Verizon CSR said we needed special permission to keep our unlimited data and that would take about a day to accomplish. She and my daughter came home somewhat depressed. I told them to just call and talk to another Verizon CSR and get it straightened out. She did and in just a few minutes the phone was up and running with unlimited data...And fairly crappy reception...

Today I got my SGS3. I had the same activation issue so I called Verizon and spoke to a CSR. He ended up having to do something on his end, (Not sure what) but after about 30 minutes on the phone my new SGS3 is up and running with unlimited data...And really, really crappy reception...

It's dropped 4 out of the 4 calls I've made or received. It will barely receive 1x. This is in an area where I normally get good phone coverage and pretty decent 3G coverage. Oh well...I'm continuing the report on the "Reception thread".

Benny

Sorry you are having reception issues. My initial test was positive, but not for sure until testing in my defacto fringe areas with own G3.

As far the the data, as long as you ordered before 6/28, VZW publicly stated you can keep unlimited, so should just be a "formality". They even reiterated yesterday for people that ordered before 6/28 and are having problems with unlimited sticking to accounts, they get to keep unlimited.

 

[rushmore]

OK, after a day with this thing I can say it seems as good as advertised. The OS is good, the signal is good, it jumps like a cat when you touch it. About to run my N64 emulator on it tonight to give it the real test though.

You too The bigger display and no navigation buttons in the way should help with virtual controls. I also have FPse and MAME Reloaded. For emulators, the S4 dual 1.5ghz is a better option than the quad version.

 

[Fahrenheit85]

Had my phone half a day and so far I'm loving it.

 

[Eryl Flynn]

Signal for me is about what my DX was, same DB at my desk and near to zero in this conference room I am in every morning. So I would say it has good reception, not great. Think some VZW phones get a little signal in that room, but not much.

 

[laptopquestion]

I decided to pull the trigger and order (2) - S3s on 6/13/12 in order to keep my unlimited data. At that time, my contract situation was as follows:


Line A: feature phone, $10 limited data plan, upgrade eligible, NE2 discount available
Line B: 3G smartphone, unlimited date plan, upgrade eligible, no discount available
Line C: 3G smartphone, unlimited data plan, upgrade eligible, no discount available


I wanted to use the NE2 discount on Line B and order the second phone on Line C, but the CSR could not figure out how to do this on Lines B & C and get the NE2 discount applied. As per the CSR

 

[powdbyrice]

ugh. my wife picked up my phone from fedex just now. i'm stuck at work for another hour.

the anticipation is killing me.

 

[Minimike]

Mine came at 12:39 today - was switched to Verizon rep on activaion attempt, All went erll and I got them to reierate my unlimited was still here. While I was out, my son's ex-wife got a new phone in a store and switched the entire plan to Share Everything. I found this out when I returned and signed on to Verizon as a check. Verizon tells me, :though sh**, you lost it." Now I guess my son will have to pay all overages on my line and my grandson's line because he was too cheap to cover his ex's $30 2GB plan. Verizon sas this change is irreversible and I have nothing to stand on to complain.

 

[shotinthenads]

Mine came at 12:39 today - was switched to Verizon rep on activaion attempt, All went erll and I got them to reierate my unlimited was still here. While I was out, my son's ex-wife got a new phone in a store and switched the entire plan to Share Everything. I found this out when I returned and signed on to Verizon as a check. Verizon tells me, :though sh**, you lost it." Now I guess my son will have to pay all overages on my line and my grandson's line because he was too cheap to cover his ex's $30 2GB plan. Verizon sas this change is irreversible and I have nothing to stand on to complain.

I'd kick my son so hard in the *ss that his ex wife would feel it. No not really, but holy crap, why have an ex on the family plan? Just asking for trouble.