I'm using a galaxy s for a while til my iPhone 5 arrives, then the plan was to give it my mum to replace her rubbish htc. However given the trouble I'm having with it, I'm not sure which is worse! I wondered if anyone had come across these issues and knows how they may be resolved?

Firstly, my google search bar has stopped working. Whenever I use it, it just says 405 error. Infuriating.

Secondly, Facebook notifications - there aren't any, but they are set up to work.

Thirdly - battery life. This thing doesn't even last a day. Anyone got any tips or tricks? Not much point of a smartphone when everything must be switched off!

Fourth, it lags and sticks quite a bit, is this just a 'normal phenomenon' in a phone that's meant to be comparable to an iPhone 4?

Fifth, the photos in the gallery can only be viewed while the phone is held sideways, even if they were taken in portrait, so you get to view a tiny little photo. I can't find any setting to stop this

Sixth, the text messaging! Omg, who though this **** up?! You must open your conversation thread, then tap each individual message to mark it read even though you've already read it. Again, I can't find any setting to stop this!

There are things I like about the phone, and I thought that maybe one day I might try an android, but tbh right now - not a chance in hell!

Edited 13 October, 201213 yr by Loz

1 if you mean the search widget, if you've updated the search app remove and recreate it. If not update it

2 is this the official app or a Samsung widget? Is it the current version?

3 how often do you have Facebook, Twitter and any email app syncing? Try increasing intervals and turning off "notify for unsecured networks" in wifi settings

4 use an app called spare parts to find apps hogging cpu time and also draining battery. Might be same culprits as 3

5 ditch the default message app and try handcent instead.

I'm assuming you're running the latest firmware update?

Thanks for your post the google thing is the search bar thing that is automatically there on the phone, I don't think I have changed or update anything, I've only been using the phone for 4 days haha! Just one time it started throwing up the error instead of a search result. How do I update it?

I believe it is an official app? It is the one that came up when I searched for Facebook. My mum has had the same problem with her htc, it used to give her notifications and now doesn't. The app was only downloaded 4 days ago.

I should be able to have it syncing all the time. This is my gripe! I have turned the auto sync off now. I have had the brightness right down low, the GPS turned off. It makes the phone utterly useless.

I shall get that app and give it a try!

Ah, I didn't know I could use a different message thing, I'll look into this. Does it not get confused? Do I need to delete the proper one? I don't want to have random icons hanging around doing nothing. Lol.

As for firmware, the android stuff means nothing to me! I has what it came with, on the about phone bit it says "2.1 update 1" I can't say I know how to update these, plus I know people are having problems updating these as a friend at work has just bought one too and it won't update.

To update it try going into settings, then down to About Phone and you should be able to update the firmware there.

I love how handcent is basically an iPhone lookalike! Haha! I hate using third party apps,especially for something as inbuilt into the phone as texting?! This iPhone better hurry up. It's so nice to have something that just works!

Screen, just went in but nothing seems to give an option to actually update, it just tells me what it is.

Hopefully it will be rooted tomorrow so it can run on a more up to date OS, which might solve a couple of problems, we shall see.

Can rooting be undone? If so, is it difficult?

Yeah you can unroot. Plenty of guides on YouTube. I use cyanogenmod on my S2 as it gets rid of the stoopid voice command thing.

Edited 13 October, 201213 yr by Schern

Google search is an app. It's in the app store.

The message app Samsung use is very basic. Handcent simply gives you back what it should do from the box.

It's not about turning things off. Gps and wifi will sleep unless being used by an app, so can be left on. Apps like Facebook are continually checking for updates, which uses the data connection which leads to high battery use - more so the lower the signal.

Do you really need to know about every status update the nanosecond its made? If yes then battery life is the price you pay in return. I have mine set on 2hours,but anyone classed as a close friend come through within 15min.

You'll still kill an iphone battery in similar time with some apps if syncing constantly. I know people who can't make a day on their 4s and then rubbish other devices battery life.

My iPhone lasts me a whole day at least with everything turned on and yes I get notifications instantly. I also get emails instantly. As for GPS I disagree. Every android I've had, and my mums, dies within hours if the GPS is left 'on'. It seems to not turn properly off and must search in the background or something.

iPad lasts several days, again everything is instant. I will look for this search app. I didn't realise it was an app, I thought there might be SOMETHING actually properly integrated to the phone! I can't believe how much people rave about these things!

Just tried looking for the google search to update it and I can't find anything in the App Store. Only google image search and voice search!

Can't find it either, but it only updated the other day.

If Gps is killing your battery then you have an app constantly running that is using it did you find that spare parts app? If not try systempanel lite. That'll point you to the culprit of battery drain and cpu hogging.

Facebook will be one of the culprits I suspect.

Thirdly - battery life. This thing doesn't even last a day. Anyone got any tips or tricks? Not much point of a smartphone when everything must be switched off!

Fourth, it lags and sticks quite a bit, is this just a 'normal phenomenon' in a phone that's meant to be comparable to an iPhone 4?

Fifth, the photos in the gallery can only be viewed while the phone is held sideways, even if they were taken in portrait, so you get to view a tiny little photo. I can't find any setting to stop this

Sixth, the text messaging! Omg, who though this **** up?! You must open your conversation thread, then tap each individual message to mark it read even though you've already read it. Again, I can't find any setting to stop this!

There are things I like about the phone, and I thought that maybe one day I might try an android, but tbh right now - not a chance in hell!

3 - check the battery save mode under settings, think mine is when hit 30% switch most things off like 2g/3g, gps, bluetooth etc etc. Less frequency on updates, facebook tend to be really bad as its very cpu hungry. If you dont need your FB to be instantaneous I'd suggest get rid of 3rd party app and use browser to check FB. There will be app culprits which drain your battery, many games and apps come with google ads and they take a percentage too. hence you get paid apps or rooting ability to block google ads.

4 - when your in battery saving mode the cpu may been turned down to save battery. this will make it lag, annoyingly sometimes it doesn't switch itself off this mode so i tend to untick dumb down cpu speed

5 - cant do much with that, it goes to the width of the vertical side of the phone same goes for iphones etc.

6 - Had this issue too before on another samsung phone, try deleting the cache or data under app manager if you can. Else like above mentioned use a 2rd party msging service.

If im honest though I am a huge android fan it is quite rough around the edges if you're coming from a non android base. But I take it as this - Android OS is like a diamond in the rough, iOS is like a polish turd. Sure its shinier but if you spend enough time with an iOS you'll soon realise what it actually is. Same applies for Android.

Tbh I've never had this sort of trouble with any IOS, I have never had to ask for help. FB on my iphone doesn't drain the battery, well, sure it will use it, but I was never at 50% battery at midday! You shouldn't have to root a phone to make it work.You shouldn't have to swap inbuilt apps for 3rd party ones because they are so poor. You shouldn't have to switch everything off to make your phone useable, else you may aswell have a 3210. Everything I like about this phone is everything i cant have - widgets, which look nice or are useful, but drain the battery, live wallpapers drain the battery, gps drains the battery, it gets airpush adverts - how invasive!! So basically, may aswell have an iphone, as all the extra bits of android have to be turned off! It really does feel cheap and unfinished. I seriously hope the S3 is unrecognisable from this thing!

I don't want to be messing around trying to rectify everything android and samsung have done wrong. I'd rather have something that works efficiently and without issue straightaway. At least now I'm satisfied I made the right choice with all my IOS products. To me, if you buy an android phone you must be someone who is into developing and knows about computers and electronics inside out. You aren't buying android at all, you're simply buying a device with a fast processor and you're then removing everything from the device and replacing it with things which (I assume?!) work. I don't have the time or inclination to learn how to do these things, I'd rather the people who made the device got it right in the first place! That is what I am paying for. For an everyday user android is a royal pain in the butt. This is the conclusion I have drawn lol.

Even with all these suggestions to improve it (for which I thank you all) it all still seems a bit overfacing, and some of it I don't quite understand.

The comment about the photo gallery - it is not the same on iphone. If I take a photo in portrait, it will display it when I hold the phone portrait. this thing wont.

Gadgetman - I downloaded that app spare parts, but if I'm honest it meant very little to me :( I didn't find a section of it which displayed lists of apps and said they were using too much power. It only seemed to show the apps I have used, which is to be expected......

handcent does seems a better text thing, it's just annoying that it's called 'handcent' instead of 'messaging' or 'text' or something. It's silly things like that which annoy me, makes it look cheap.

Edited 14 October, 201213 yr by Loz

I have got this systempanel app now, It is listing 'active applications' 'service only processes' and 'inactive apps'. I assume I am interested in the active ones. It shows things such as googlemail and handcent - shouldn't they be running to pick up messages? If not, do I have to find a way to close them down after every use?

edit: they are all showing minimal percent useage, between 0-3%, surely they can be the cause of the drain? The highest one was fb at 2.8%, hardly massive though is it?

Edited 14 October, 201213 yr by Loz

How olds the phone? If its an original galaxy s then the battery is unlikely to be at its best anymore.

It'll only be monitoring since installation. 3% now over a day might be much more.

Don't agree android is for developers only, but you do need to understand what the settings are and do.

Ios is great if you don't, as everything is off by default. The 4s and 5 introduced multi processing meaning less sleeps and battery life dropped. Even now apple let very few apps run constantly. Apple protect you from yourself which some people like and some don't.

I think if your s was setup correctly you'd enjoy it more - without needing to turn every thing off.

How olds the phone? If its an original galaxy s then the battery is unlikely to be at its best anymore.

Good point. I misread it was an S2

the picture viewing thing mgiht be a case of that you havnet got autorotation turned on?

It'll only be monitoring since installation. 3% now over a day might be much more.

Don't agree android is for developers only, but you do need to understand what the settings are and do.

Ios is great if you don't, as everything is off by default. The 4s and 5 introduced multi processing meaning less sleeps and battery life dropped. Even now apple let very few apps run constantly. Apple protect you from yourself which some people like and some don't.

I think if your s was setup correctly you'd enjoy it more - without needing to turn every thing off.

it's a phone, a commercial product for the general public - it should just work

My friend has just been round and spent ages rooting it and I now have ice cream sandwich without the horrible touch wiz Samsung rubbish on it. It looks much sleeker, my Google bar works again and the text system should be much better.

I agree with the above - it should just work. I couldn't have done that on my own!

http://blogs.which.co.uk/technology/smartphones/5-ways-to-improve-your-mobile-phone-battery-life/

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/253152-which-tests-battery-life-for-smartphone-browsing/