I have an unassuming taste: the very best is enough for me.
Oscar Wilde
Hey.
“Corrupt journalist” is the most neutral epithet that is hung on me from year to year. After all, no one in their right mind would choose Samsung, would they? They have terrible Exynos processors in Russia, and the right Snapdragons have been reserved for America, occasionally they are found in other countries or individual products for the whole world. From year to year, the software from Samsung mercilessly slows down, and the PWM in the screens is such that it simply burns out the eyes of the beholder, some recognize it from a distance of several meters. A rare suck, and not a product, no one can take such a smartphone at will. Exclusively because of the money that the company regularly contributes to me personally and to about 11 million other residents of Russia who choose smartphones from Samsung. The company has been number one both in the world and in the Russian market for many years, not only in the category of smartphones, but, for example, in TVs. Of course, you can trick one person into favoring a bad product. But what about the millions of people who buy Samsung smartphones from year to year? How were they bribed, forced to act in such an illogical manner and spend their own money on bad products? Using my own example, I will try to tell you about how this happens. It is possible that my experience will allow you to get vaccinated against this “disease”.
In the anamnesis, you need to recall the phrase I said a little over ten years ago: choosing a TV from Samsung is so strange when there are other companies. At that time, I did not have a single TV from Samsung, the choice always fell on other manufacturers. And then a terrible thing happened, one of the guys wrote a text, and a brand new TV from Samsung was brought to the office. The topic was not about TV, it was needed as an accessory. The picture quality was amazing, literally hitting the eyes. The TV went back, for about six months this topic did not bother. But then it was time to buy a TV set for the kitchen to replace the old one. For the first time, I did not consider brands that I was used to, but added Samsung to them. In terms of most parameters, the Samsung model then left its competitors behind, as a result, it left the store with a TV of this brand. It’s funny, but gradually Samsung TVs began to replace other brands in my home, the process lasted for years, yet we do not change TVs all the time.
About flexible screens and the reasons for my choice of Galaxy Fold
It is important to note that it is difficult to call me an emotional customer, I always try to find the best price / quality ratio. I am interested in comfort, I like technologies that are useful and improve my life, and do not turn into a long list of formal advantages that you never remember after buying. A rational buyer, a person like me, is not at all the one who buys only inexpensive things, such an opinion is wrong. You can pay for certain things, and the price looks very high from all points of view. But for me it is rational, because it gives something that cannot be found in other products.
It’s no secret that I’m a fan of the Galaxy Fold and flexible screens. My main phone today is the Galaxy Z Fold2, and I used its predecessor a year earlier.
What started out as an experimental model quickly turned into a full-fledged commercial product with millions of copies. What is a flexible screen? This is an opportunity to get a large display in a fairly compact case. Since my work is often on the go, in different conditions, the large screen gives more opportunities, not only for work, but also for entertainment.
No company has been able to replicate what Samsung has done, and has meticulously stared at everyone. The same Huawei released the Mate X: a huge screen that folds outward. I’m not ready to blow dust off the screen when I put it in my pocket, and other things suddenly appear there. What looks great at exhibitions is not at all so well received in real life. I honestly used the Mate X for about a month, but the smartphone turned out to be created for presentations and exhibitions, in everyday life it is difficult to use it. Add a price higher than the Galaxy Fold, and the question arises, why buy it in principle.
The Fold didn’t have any other competitors, and the Mate X cannot be considered as such either. Endless presentations from different companies, the promise that from day to day there will be a product that will blow up the market. Nothing happened. For two years I have been using the Fold line, there are simply no competing solutions.
A smartphone that costs 180 thousand rubles cannot be called affordable for the majority. What is the rationale for buying it? And can you find a rational explanation for such an expensive smartphone? You may not like the answer, but rationality is rife. I’ll start with a simple one, this model has no competitors, it is unique in its form factor, which in itself is worth a lot, it still causes surprise among others, sometimes turning into admiration that they were able to come up with something similar. When they find out the price, it becomes quite funny.
I explain that such a large screen replaces a tablet, but at the same time the device is compact and it is a flagship without any discounts. It’s not that expensive for a combo of two devices in a unique form factor. One of my friends laughed at me for a long time, and eventually decided to buy the Fold2. I got used to the device for about two weeks, then became an apologist for flexible screens, claiming that he had never tried anything better in my life. She demands that I set him up with the company, and she pays him interest, since she has already transplanted several of her friends to the Fold.
Something like this happens in life, people try the product under the influence of some reason and then understand whether they need it or not. Like or reject. There is simply no other way. Usually at this moment I am condescendingly told, something like: “Well, I convinced, Fold is good, unique and further down the list, but everything else is frankly bad.”
The middle segment and the people’s smartphone in Russia, what is it?
It is difficult to discuss the taste of fish with someone who has never tasted it, as well as the Sixth Symphony with someone who did not listen to it at the conservatory, but when a neighbor sang the melody from memory. I always ask what exactly the person used, what caused rejection and why. Usually in response I hear a standard set of stamps: a weak battery, a bad camera, a terrible screen with PWM (or without it, but always terrible), buggy software, and everything is constantly slowing down. Sometimes they explain to me that I do not see this, because I use flagships, but people suffer and suffer poorer every day, because “such corrupt bastards” convince them to buy something that is so bad.
For several years in a row, I advise all my friends, acquaintances, those who ask about choosing a model of the middle segment, to pay attention to the A-series from Samsung. Two years ago it was the Galaxy A50, a year ago – the updated A51. Both models are bestsellers by all standards, they are the best-selling smartphones in Russia. In 2020, Galaxy A51 alone occupied 5.5% of the Russian market, in absolute numbers it is 1.76 million units. Impressive, isn’t it?
Who are all these unfortunate people who suffer (just like that, you need to speak with feeling and with the letter “Ш”) from using this apparatus? The audience varies greatly, there are children, young people, older people, and even the elderly! And with such a widespread use of the device, so different consumers, it should cause serious passions and massive returns to stores. Of course, if you follow the logic of those who think that such models are terrible. But this does not happen, and the satisfaction index of the Galaxy A51 stably exceeds 94% from month to month (which is akin to that for flagships, for a model in the middle segment this is a record by any measure).
When Apple released the inexpensive 2020 iPhone SE, it compared it to the Galaxy A51 itself, accusations fell on me that the comparison was unfair! The reason for the dishonesty was that the iPhone SE cost twice as much as the Galaxy A51, and you cannot compare devices of different classes. For me, as a rational person, the value on the price tag is not an explanation that a product is better, but rather a reason for thought. I want to understand what exactly I will get for my money, how good the product is. At the end of 2020, we can say that sales of the iPhone SE have failed miserably, and the explanation is simple – the Galaxy A51 is half the price and is better in almost all aspects. Check out our comparison of these models.
But before us is not a question of comparing the Galaxy A51 with something, but rather the capabilities of this device. They are enough for the eyes of most consumers, they do not need anything else. I am puzzled by any comparison in which it is believed that it is cool when a company knows how to sell you a super-expensive solution, rip off three skins for it, and therefore they are great. In my worldview, good fellows are those who make products for any wallet, and do not make them turn inside out to buy something fashionable and equally useless. Rationality is the main thing in the modern world, why a flagship if an ordinary smartphone is enough for the eyes? And if five years ago it was possible to explain this by the fact that the flagship works faster, the interface has no lags, today everything is fine on the most budget devices, it works quickly and without problems.
Scammers always have specific facts in store that kill on the spot. For example, for many years Samsung has been scolded for using AMOLED screens because they are “terrible”. They usually find Pentile in them, they often repeat that the number of subpixels is less than it should be. In this particular case, the critics remind me of people shouting loudly that they feel that the meat they bought is wrong, they feel that there were not 120 days of grain feeding. A dot on the screen consists of several dots of different colors, the number of subpixels should not worry an adult and healthy person. But the critics are arranged differently, they were not given points. Attempts to explain that the resolution does not change, come across a dull repetition of the same thing – the number of subpixels is less, which means they were deceived.
As a simple person, this approach is incomprehensible to me, my logic is somewhat different. I either like the screen / meat or not. I compare it with what I used before and what I use at the moment. And given that today AMOLED screens have become the norm in all devices, we can say that the market has recognized the victory of Samsung, as well as leadership in their production. Those who foaming at the mouth yesterday argued that Samsung’s AMOLED screens are monstrous, today are proving that Apple is taking these screens and turning them into a completely different product, light-years ahead of Samsung’s original designs. That is, do you understand the logic that is present here? They take other people’s displays, and not the latest generations, and then they suddenly become the best. Marketing truly does wonders for people’s heads and the way they think. There are many such examples, this is just one of many, about the same as about the “terrible Exynos”, which is unworthy to exist. I remember that last year all Exynos developments were supposed to be closed, critics happily commented that Samsung realized mistakes. The Exynos 2100’s release automatically led to grief, as well as an increase in rhetoric about how bad it is. Yes, it will be useful to recall that the company is a leader in the production of semiconductors, as well as new technological standards for the production of memory and processors. The same Qualcomm comes to Samsung to produce their processors, since they simply do not have their own factories and corresponding technologies.
Every time I am offered to buy something second-hand, it surprises me. Why do you need to buy other people’s products in a different wrapper? To overpay? Unclear.
A few words about photography, screens and the final result
When you travel or live to the fullest, you want to share these emotions with loved ones or upload photos to social networks, here everyone chooses for himself. Once I got myself Instagram, after which I began to receive standard questions: what was it filmed for? Familiar and unfamiliar people claimed that I was deceiving everyone, and in the most impudent way. I shoot on a DSLR, and I pass the pictures as taken on a smartphone. You can, of course, imagine that I have plenty of time for such tricks, but the truth is much simpler. I’ve always used devices that are better than the ones people have. And for them, such a quality of images (namely, technical quality) looked like something unattainable. Today, very few people can be surprised by the fact that smartphones can shoot very well, even too much.
Look at examples of pictures that I took on vacation in Altai, where I am now. Just photos that I chose at random from the last.
Every time I sent pictures from my phone to doubters, the conversation turned into a different direction. Those who were adequate were surprised. Those who knew for sure that this was all a deception continued to come up with new explanations until they switched to direct aggression, and that was where it all ended.
Today there is a different stereotype, they explain to me that you can take good pictures only with expensive devices, for example, flagships. But if you have a simple saucepan, then nothing tasty can be cooked in it, you can not even try. When I asked what brand of dishes the speaker prefers, Staub or, perhaps, Le Creuset, as an option, Emile Henry, I hear a misunderstanding. What kind of dishes? What are you talking about? We are talking about flagships, it is well known that only they can take beautiful photos!
This delusion is as far from reality as possible, it limits people in their capabilities. This is approximately like the 90s, when they explained to us from every iron that we, as a country, did not succeed, we can not do anything and nothing good can be expected. The main thing is that people just don’t even try, because it seems to them that nothing will work out.
This picture was taken with the Galaxy A51, it is not a flagship. And this picture was taken on him.
In the summer, I wrote advertising material on how to take pictures beautifully, and for example I took not just the flagship, but the very Galaxy A51. I am not at all afraid to write in advertising materials that they are advertising (the same mark, and it is everywhere, so that readers who are afraid of advertising just pass by). What is the logic of people who simultaneously see advertising materials and editorial ones, but insist that the latter are purely advertising materials, I cannot understand. Even from the standpoint of common sense and finance, there is no point in publishing ads without tagging. But this is a separate topic.
Here is a link to a promotional material that described how to take beautiful pictures with a smartphone, using the example of the Galaxy A51. I am not at all ashamed of this article, as it turned out to be useful to many. And our task is to make any material, including advertising (even more so), useful.
The choice of Samsung smartphones is also important to me because of the quality of the screens. When I shoot with my phone, I almost always see exactly what the end result will be. The screens have the maximum brightness level for their price segments, which means that the picture will be close to what you get. And this allows you not to miss with the same exposure adjustment, to correctly align the frame. Perhaps for some this is a trifle, but it costs a lot to be able to get the best screens in every price segment from a manufacturer who knows how to make them better than others.
Nobody needs it, because I don’t need it – about some chips
I had a remarkable conversation with one blogger, who patronizingly and competently said that I like the Galaxy Note for only one reason – they pay generously for it. There was sadness in his words, he was not paid, it was clear that huge sums were spinning in his head and what he could do with them. To my polite request to explain why he took this, he resourcefully replied: “Now I will prove to you that everything you are telling is a sheer lie. Look, you have a Galaxy Note, we will open the notes that were made with the stylus, and make sure you are a liar. ” I even liked this confidence, and I suggested raising the rates, betting on any amount. Without a shadow of a doubt, the blogger agreed, he was confident that he was right.
I unlocked my smartphone, opened notes in the Samsung Notes application, there were about two hundred of them (I didn’t take a long time to disassemble and delete old ones, I did just that that day). The blogger began to prove that this is just rubbish, there is nothing valuable inside and I do not use the S Pen. He showed me working notes, explained how I use the application and why I don’t need it every day and every minute. In response I heard the typical: “You are all lying.” No apology, no attempt at comprehension, just emotion. Of course, betting with such an earthworm on my opponent’s terms became impossible at that moment. A crystal-clear blogger rode off into the sky, simultaneously blocking me on all social networks (I found out about this by chance and a couple of years later).
And this is one story out of many, and the story is not the most disgusting, so, a fleeting incident. In much the same way, they prove to me that DeX mode is a bad story and no one needs it. Let me remind you that this is when you can connect your smartphone directly to the TV, mouse and keyboard to it, and now you have a computer. Alternatively, you can connect to a monitor. The smartphone turns into a full-fledged computer with a different interface, and for me this is a real way out, I don’t carry a laptop with me all the time, I can work, as they say, from wheels.
The story with the S Pen is also remarkable, indeed, not everyone needs such a stylus and its capabilities. But as soon as a person spends some time on getting used to, explores the possibilities, he imperceptibly gets involved. Writing by hand, taking notes is convenient. In the last generation, it became possible to write and record sound at the same time, and then you can quickly jump to the pieces where you wrote something. Cool? Not the right word for my work. You can call it a trifle, but for someone such a trifle changes everything.
Another “trifle” characteristic of the Note line is the ability to recognize text in any language and in any picture. Yes, there are such programs, but everything is built in from the start and is very convenient. We selected the desired text, pressed the key, and it was copied to the clipboard or notes. It’s hard for me to calculate how much time this opportunity saved me personally, because before I just had to type text from a book or from an advertisement shot on the streets. It all works differently now.
I am especially touched when they try to explain to me that Samsung does not have an ecosystem, everything is scattered and does not work well. A huge number of accessories for every taste, new devices that are usually absent from competitors and only then are repeated by them. All these are “little things”. As well as the ability to quickly connect to a TV, if it’s the same Samsung, transfer at least video to it, at least something else. Not God knows what, but a very useful thing that allows you to simply use different objects in one bundle. And there are hundreds of such bundles, they make life easier. At the same time, I have a MacBook, and there is no discomfort, all the necessary data is synchronized. It is clear that if there was a Windows laptop, there would be much more possibilities, since Microsoft and Samsung have created new options for bundles, added a new quality for work.
Convenience is at the forefront, which is created in detail. There are different approaches on the market, someone does it in the way that is convenient for the company. Someone does as best he can and does not hear consumer feedback. What Samsung does, and what I love about the company, is the ability to hear and fix what is wrong or not working the way most people expect. This is a brand for ordinary people, for the mass consumer. And therefore, it is as flexible as possible in how smartphones are created, they can do more than any other device. And this is a certain level of both quality and capabilities. In each price segment, this price / quality ratio is tried to be attractive.
It is necessary to take stock, why and why
I am sure that critics will consider this article in the category of advertising, there is no doubt that this is predetermined. After all, there are “well-known truths” that cannot be contradicted. But the market and the choice of people say exactly the opposite. What does Samsung buy because it’s the cheapest? Not! The same budget smartphones are far from ideal and excellent value for money, but they are taken because of the general trust in the brand. This is also an indicator of the perception of “no one needs Samsung”, and an indicator when people vote in rubles, and not with unfounded statements somewhere in the network.
For me personally, the Samsung brand is the best choice here and now, and this applies to different products, not just smartphones (for example, SSD series EVO or external T5 drives, some kind of cordless vacuum cleaner, and so on). But this does not mean at all that in my house there are all Samsung brands, in each category there are always favorites and those who look more interesting. We have a choice, and this is the most important thing, everyone can spend their money as they like and on anything. It’s amazing when they blame me for something that I have always opposed, namely the imposition of a choice of a brand.
Why are there so many Samsung on the site? Open the sales data and understand that a third of the market and first place in Russia belongs to Samsung. Write daily about basement China that no one needs? Let me reveal a terrible secret that will upset many, the share of materials about Samsung is even less than the share that the company occupies in Russia. Conspiracy theorists are constantly looking for birds in flight, weather forecast and Sportloto results, what happens in relationships with companies at our resource. It’s time to rip off the masks and admit frankly that we write the more, the more sales the company has and, accordingly, the more interesting it is to the buyer. The rise of Xiaomi led to an increase in the number of publications about them, the fall of OPPO almost removed them from our pages. Promotional materials? Yes, they are. We have a limit on their number so that there are not too many of them. And we always mark them with a plate “As an advertisement”, on the main page there is a mark “P” in the picture. Telegram does not always correctly pull the picture to the article, then this designation is not there, but this is definitely not our malicious intent. We want you to know when you read the ad. We explain to companies why this is important and what they can tell you to build trust. And do not hide behind ornate texts, which are positive for selection and in fact mean nothing.
Perhaps someday there will be a crisis at Samsung and they will start producing bad products. This means that Samsung smartphones will disappear in my pocket and those who are optimal will appear. This has already happened with other brands, there is nothing strange here. I am used to choosing the best products and will definitely not change this habit. Your choice is your business, because neither I, nor someone else on our resource imposes it on you. Our job is to share our thoughts and impressions, to tell how we perceive products. I use Samsung smartphones, I do not hide it and I know well their capabilities, both pros and cons. And you can read it in every article. But it is definitely not worth waiting for the encouragement of fictions about “terrible” screens, stolen subpixels and processors that do not work. It turned out a lot, but it was worth saying. Good luck in your good deeds!
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