₦airaland Forum

Illusionale:
I understand your point sir, but do not address it as care.
This is business and business is and will always be business
It is their business model and they have been executing it with perfection since day one- cut costs and recycle old, about- to die chips and market it effectively.

Every for-profit business is out to make money through one major way. Provide something that people need, and are willing to pay for. By that definition, businesses are catering for consumers, while caring about profit at the same time.

Now, it is indeed true that the priority is money, and cutting cost is a way of maximising profit. But we should all remember that they wouldn't stick their hands into anyone's pockets forcefully.

Transsion is making products for African markets: markets characterised by low purchasing power and high want for foreign products. With such unencouraging reality, the company still manages to thrive and cater to the people. Most of the data on internet penetration, connectivity and online participation from Africa, how many hardware companies do you think has contributed to that?

Oga Bulus in Benin uses WhatsApp Business for his welding business in Enugu. Mallam Audu is communicating with people online in rural Sokoto, what phone manufacturer is making these things happen?

Let's tell ourselves the truth, as shitty as their methods are, Na Tecno and Infinix and Itel dey try for that area. In a country with a huge local currency disadvantage, Transsion hanging around is a good news.

And before you come up with, "oh there are better devices out there like Redmi", I'll like to tell you that it won't be for long. Xiaomi has a long term goal, and budget smartphones for African markets aren't part of it. You can take a look at the trends with Redmi phones since 2018 to see what I'm talking about. There's a clear agenda to upsell you higher end models, and become the next Huawei.

I'm not a Transsion fanboy, and if there's a smartphone brand I'll always pitch my tent with, it's Apple. Because the bald truth is that, if you're truly running after performance at a budget price, iPhones are still the best option. Someone once said, at any price point, a new or used iPhone is still best performance you can get for the money.

You have 90k? Get an iPhone 7 plus. The AnTuTu score completely creams almost all other 90k devices you can get elsewhere. That's just the reality.

Let's just see Transsion for what they are. Mass produced products for a developing market.

TheLoneCitizen:
Those are on paper. This experts have hands-on with both devices.

https://www.phonearena.com/news/Galaxy-S22-Ultra-vs-S21-Ultra-Camera-Comparison_id138541

https://www.sammobile.com/news/samsung-galaxy-s21-vs-galaxy-s22-camera-battle/

Thanks for the references.

But nowhere in any of those articles did the writer conclude that the S21U edges out the S22U in the camera department. In fact, sammobile had a different conclusion for the S22+ instead of S22U.

What I can deduce from your angle is that the newer device can sometimes miss, often in areas that the S21U won't. That doesn't mean the older device is better.

Like someone has pointed up there, folks don't really understand the economics behind budget smartphones these days. And it's always been a weak "X phone can't play efootball 2022, it's trash" narrative.

Do you know much purchasing power your 70k has today? If you knew, you wouldn't expect it to suddenly get you a power beast, simply because you struggled to save it up.

The price imbalance is real, people! And things are going to get worse for smartphone buyers. The chip shortage isn't stopping anytime soon, and it will soon start trickling down to midrange and budget devices.

As I see it, it's even better to have companies like Transsion that care about the budget class here in Africa, because left for higher end brands, they couldn't care less.

So, Tecno and Infinix aren't the problem, it's always been the guys who are interested in benchmarks and numbers but don't understand that these things come with significant tradeoffs and budget cuts these days.

TheLoneCitizen:
Camera and overall value for money.

S21 ultra is better than S22 ultra in those departments.

Value for money? Of course! You buy last year's flagships for the value, that's consumer 101.

Camera? Now that's up for a big debate. In fact, I'll personally disagree with you. For one thing, the main sensor is better on the S22U, even when it's the same 108MP as on the S21U; what with a wider aperture.

Plus, better pixel binning on the newer model. What does that mean in real life? Better point and shoot experience and lesser grainy low light shots on the S22U.

If you hold both devices for a side by side camera comparison, and the S21U wins, it might only be in seldom shots, or might be because of bug issue in the S22U somewhere.

lovedoctor26:
I'm not sure he meant the S22U. Wat he meant is dat the S21U beat the S22. Remember S22U and S22 are two different phones.

That was what I thought initially too.

TheLoneCitizen:
I meant the ultra.

Then that's up for debate. The S22 Ultra is an incremental model to the S21 Ultra - or at least it's supposed to be. Naturally, you get slightly better components on the newer device.

So, in what area do you think the S21U better than S22U?

TheLoneCitizen:
Even s21 ultra beats s22.

Yes, sure. The top-of-the-line Galaxy flagship from last year beats the base model Galaxy flagship for this year.

The ease at which people call devices trash these days sha...

Anyway, the 12S series from Xiaomi is quite something: the 12S Ultra does pretty well in some areas, and not so much in other areas. It's no Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra beater tho, but the opposition is noted.

Scientheosopher:
I'm not implying that. Slowly re-reading my full reply will convince you.

"... Xiaomi device...".
I'm not a Xiaomi fan. I'm just admirer, because they offer better value for money phones compared to, for example, Samsung and Oppo, though lately, they are messing up in some areas that I find dear. I'm my pocket/need fan.

Note: Mad= foolish (person).

It's fine to be on the side of your pocket/need. But I still think the average spending habits of a Nigerian phone buyer is too complicated to be categorised into a bipolar "wise/foolish" decision box.

Let me explain

The average Nigerian adult has to save up for a new phone. Now, here's the thing about saving for a new phone: you'd think a person would be most rational when they have limited resources here in Nigeria, but that's not so. Most people work with a weird order of needs/priorities here.

It's why you'd hear something like, "the money don follow another way o" implying that the money at hand for one purpose has been used to meet another unexpected need, probably because the first one "took a while".

Here's an example:

I have saved up 80k for a new device, and due to the nature of my work, I needed to get that device on Monday unfailingly. If after Monday, I still have access to that 80k without buying the phone, I can't trust myself not use the money on food, transport, and other overhead needs. I'd have to start the saving process all over again.

That's the thought process of a regular Nigerian gadget user.

So if I reach for a device whose purpose is to allow me meet my Monday deadline, and can perform okay "without comparison" to its rivals, I'm good. Of course, I know there has to be a better device for my 80k out there, do I want that? Sure! But with my condition, I don't have the time yet to seek for it.

That's just one perspective.

Another one is for people who buy phones with a fraction of their income. These are people who buy phones based on how much they can comfortably afford from their earnings. They don't save up, they just buy when it's convenient.

These are more familiar people, but even they have peculiarities that makes their phone choices neither wise nor foolish sometimes.

An example

Say I make 100k a month right now, and would love to get a new device. I'd like to finance the phone in just 2 months with enough left to meet other needs. By my calculations, I can spare 100k in those two months.

I can choose to buy any 100k phone. I might or might not consider value for money as much, because it doesn't matter anyway. What matters is how prudent I am with my earnings. I wouldn't want to spend all my salary on a Redmi Note 11 Pro because it's what I prefer. That device is a value for my money, but still a value I can't entirely afford, considering other needs.

This is the situation for a lot of people, some of whom earn significantly less than 100k a month sometimes.

All I'm saying is that whatever device they decide to buy at that point, makes sense from their point of view. If they later found out that they got shortchanged on the deal, they move on in the hopes that they'd have more money to avoid such next time.

You have a better understanding of what a phone can do/should do for the money it's asking. But the reality is that such rational knowledge is secondary in the minds of some phone buyers (a lot of phone buyers, dare I say).

To them, there's the device they love, the device that "would do for the moment".

Scientheosopher:
"Until you people accept that WE BUY MOBILE PHONES FOR DIFFERENT REASONS."

Sure. No one is disputing that. It's your money so you can do with it as you want. What aches Atheistandproud is:
"What actually pisses me of is that there's a group of people on this section, they never post or educate anyone. They never try to correct false impression/advertising. All they do is wait around for other people to post so that they can criticize. Most of the time, their criticism is stupid at best and destructive at worst."; and" Some people will post that Helio G88 is the most powerful gaming processor alive and they'll never come out to correct such misinformation. Ever."

"Na hype for this NL made me buy Xiaomi Note 3 then. I see no difference between em all."

Was the phone factory faulted? If Yes, you should know that mistake, for whatever reason, is an inherent part of production process. Even identical twins aren't really all that identical. So if Nature can make two seemingly the same people different, you should see no reason why this isn't possible with humans.

Yet there're counters for this. Companies that mean business like Xiaomi usually have return/replacement policy as well as bugs fix measures in place. I guess you didn't know, or the process was too lengthy/stressful so you gave up.

"All I want in a phone is big screen and huge battery. We use mobile phones for different reasons."

We are the same here, except there's a slight but significant caveat on my side. Big screen and huge battery aren't enough. I want to know whether the materials that are used to make them can last, among others, in relation to the price they are being sold.

"No matter how much you shout here.. people will still buy Tecno and Infinix more than your so called best phone."

You are wrong here, expect if you're referring to "deluded/mad" people. Yet they can be cured, even if it's momentarily. You are a proof to this. You were supposedly among them, but the Xiaomi phone you tried turns out to be below expectations. So with the sharing of sound information as Atheistandproud and cos are doing, they will eventually see the importance of the knowledge.

The reason Transsion is dominanting the market is because of the availability of parts for her phones and a gullible marketing strategy that's working yet, because we are mostly hard to learn people.

"Why is that? Because they prefer the brand."

A preference based on ignorance? If Yes, I agree. This means if they become aware of how they are being cheated, they will jappa. Good.

"All these downgrading and mouthwash on transition phones needs to stop."

It will. But only when Transsion stop selling low grade phones at the price of high ones. And most importantly, her marketers/fans learn to use adjectives like arguely, likely, and currently when doing their trades/hyping.

Implying that anyone who wilfully picks a transsion device over a Xiaomi device is either deluded or mad is a bit extreme, don't you think?

edaklas:
My Infinix s5 lite charges so slow please help, I have changed USB cables and charges, sometimes the cables work properly for 1 week and start the same issue. Who knows what can be done

This particular model is only capable of 6W max charging, no matter the charger used. There's nothing you can do, but manage or change the phone.

So, I was watching Chris Harris having a go in the new Lotus Emira, and I must say, Lotus nailed the perfect sportscar emotion to a tee.
Lightweight, moderately powerful, manual transmission, mid-engined, handsome looks. It's just right. Feels like something you'd love to drive daily, unlike, say, a overpowered McLaren GT.

What I like about the car is that it doesn't look as overconfident or planted like a Porsche, yet it maintains character. Sure, Porsche is the better deal for the money, but the Emira does make many people rethink dream three-car garages

uniquetechng:
Can you mention the flagship you're referring to ? Even with the ban they're still the in the top 5 best phone companies in the world, I am currently using Mate 30 Pro released in 2019 and I can tell you that that its better than even 2022 phones from Xiaomi. Its still the number one phone in China, their current flagshphones will murder any flagship from Xiaomi, Vivo and OnePlus especially P50 Pro and Mate 40 Pro. I will take those two phones over iPhone 13 Pro Max and Samsung S21

These are your sentiments bro, and while it's fine that you have them, they aren't objective.

Here's facts. Huawei's last flagship, the P50 pro uses Kirin 9000. That's the same chipset on the P40 Pro. Now while that's a quick chip, there's no denying that it's two years old at this point, and it shows. It would go toe-to-toe with SD888 at best.

To say the P50 pro is better than current Xiaomi and Oneplus flagships is a bad tech joke, like, bro are you even playing? These devices have cycled through SD888+, SD Gen 1 and even SD Gen 1+ . I'd leave you in the hands of atheistandproud for a proper tutorial on how these chips are a whole new kind of beasts powering current flagships (sorely leaving out Huawei)

You use a Mate 30? Great. Fantastic device. I get that you love it; a 2019 device that's still smooth as ever in 2022. Picking Huawei over latest iPhones and Samsungs is allowed too.

But don't think, even for a second, that Huawei can hold a candle against the likes of Xiaomi, Oneplus and Samsung in 2022. Those guys are currently bearing down on the game like no one's business.

uniquetechng:
They still have some of the best phones around, they actually didn't fell off but had issue with American and was subsequently banned by Google.

I am big fan of Huawei and I am already on my 5th Huawei phone.

They fell off bro. Big time. Most of the "quality" you still see in Huawei is now recycled to no end between itself and its Honor sister brand. In some cases, it's only the nameplate they swap, while the hardware is the same.

Their flagships are now nothing to write home about, since they have one or two year old chipsets powering them. Honestly, that trade ban did a real number on Huawei global mobile division, and it fell off the cliff like that.

Huawei in China is a different story entirely.

Rareoil:
Lol why would Google leave their own platform and start Cary their apps to windows store.

Even apple facetime is not on playstore.

Third party developers like candy crush and WhatsApp (before they were acquired) didn't find it necessary investing in a platform with less users.

On point.

Super sedans are where it's at right now. And boy, is BMW handing Benz some whooping! Right now, with all the beauty and flair the AMG E-Class offers, the M5 is still quicker, sharper and the best all-round driving experience for any car lover.

My dream three-car garage would be:

BMW M5 CS
Merc AMG GT R
Porsche Taycan (For the mere sake of the current EV craze)

Nokia Lumia is the reason for my raging love for smartphones. In its prime, the lineup felt the most fun with Live Tiles, and its flagships had interesting features (The Lumia 1520 had Zirconium buttons, how posh!)

Alas, the smartphone space was in a massive flux at the time, and only a few knew it. When Apple made moves like iOS 7, and Android was bumbling along, it really seemed like they were the dumb ones. How the tables turned!

Lumia lost hard, but its legacy is quite something. In my opinion, it made pre-2015 era the most valuable section in mobile device history, before things settled into slabs of metal and glass chock full with more and more power.

I remember when I first heard the 1020 had 41MP. Bonkers at the time. The good times those were.

omotolsy:
OneGeek.

We know the shortcomings at this time, if anyone decides to use an LG.

This is just a video for decision making.

This is the first explanation made in the video.

We LG lovers will enjoy the V60 till we dont want to.

If anyone is on a budget and wants a good feel of premiumness as i said go for the V60.

Sure thing bro. The case about going for the device as a fan or value seeker is abundantly understood.

calddon:
lg just released android 12 for korea and recently Verizon on the lg velvet, v60 should follow alongside other models

That we're even talking about Android 12 coming to a flagship LG device in Q2 2022 already settles the issue. Android 13 is around the corner, and everyone else is getting ready for beta programs for it. The V60 would most likely never reach that point.

skywalker240:
Those are the only edge the Samsung has over it, a decent device the V60 is though

Really?
How about the guaranteed Android updates?
A dynamic Android skin that people actually love to use?
Class-leading, Battery-saving LTPO variable refresh rate?

The V60 could compete toe-to-toe with the S20 Plus, at best. Even now, you'd be picking it almost solely for the price (and the headphone jack) over the S20 Plus.

Let alone the S21 Ultra (the phone still to beat in the industry today) and S22 Ultra (its more powerful successor)

calddon:
the v60 still packs a decent hardware, especially for audiophiles.

It really does, I'll admit. But those audiophiles would have to deal with no foreseeable Android updates or security patch updates, and an LG UX that's tolerable at best. Solid "midrange-tier" compromises.

An impressive review. The voice over has potentials, so keep improving bro.

The devices themselves are kinda mismatched in my opinion though. The V60 is past 2 years, with a parent company that's discontinued mobile hardware development. It's always going to be cheaper and a steal on the market.

For the price of a brand new S21 ultra, you could buy two V60s. Value seekers know this is a no-brainer.

As per moving with the big boys, the V60 has been left behind, demoted to compete with midrangers instead.

dboyoji:
I do not see anything wrong with what Xiaomi did. Most times it is to get better battery performance.

Then why put a high-end chipset in it in the first place? Every brand seems to be doing it, and it's wrong.

Why put the latest chipset in the phone, only to peg its performance back 50% to save battery? Worse still, you won't mention it to anyone?

It now seems like a numbers race which doesn't pay anyone.

ICEWIN:
I doubt.
go and try such in iPhone 6,7,8,c, xs, xs mas it lag.
only iPhone 11 pro upward can meet up with what u stated above.
flagship Android of older models beat up the above iPhone I stated above. likes of Samsung s8 above don't lag, and other top notch Android phone.
iPhone lag alot too.
My xsmas lag each time I use Lightroom and sketchbook but work fine in my s9 back den in 2017 what do you have to say about that?

Your case with Lightroom and Sketchbook on your XS Max and Galaxy S9 is most likely an edge case, and iPhone might have had a software bug which an update could easily dispel.

When you mention older iPhone models, of course we have to put things into context. The iPhone 8 downwards had to make do with 3GB RAM or less. Sure, there'd be limitations all 3GB RAM devices must face.

But your admission that Samsung S8 models don't lag is a bit of a stretch. Initially we weren't even talking about performance, just memory management. Trust me, 4GB of RAM on the S8 has always, and will always struggle against the 3GB RAM on the iPhone 8 of same year. Use cases may vary, and that's why the discussion is only on RAM management.

Side note: Bro, you're sure about the year you were using your iPhone XS Max and Galaxy S9? Because those two phones didn't come out until 2018.

Muokechiedozie:
rumors also have it that the iPhone 14 will feature 8Gb RAM, meanwhile som android phones have 12,15,18 GB of RAM[color=#000099][/color] and some companies ar planning on 24GB RAM. Android users are living in the future of iPhone users

You've just touched on the very thing that makes Apple iOS at least 5 years ahead of Android.

18GB of RAM on an Android phone is much, but the Android OS makes a blurry mess of optimisation that you can't use it where it matters. On the other hand, 4GB of RAM on an iPhone is so tightly optimised that you forget about the count.

Apps would open fast on an 8GB iPhone, and would stay open for as long as you need them. In fact, Apple advises that you don't clear apps out of memory, because the memory is that good. Android? Well, the numbers are high, but apps can decide not to play well, and dump themselves out of memory. It's a mixed bag really on higher-RAM Android phones. The consolation is that "the higher the RAM, the less likely I get to experience memory hiccups"

Then there's the read/write speeds and consistency. Honestly, only a few devices can currently compete, and with the iPhone 14 coming up, the gap would be wider still. However you want to look at it, that "rumoured" 8GB on the 14 series will utterly destroy anything else on the market - current or future.

Side note: Chugging more RAM into an Android phone is kinda like giving car engines turbochargers. It's cool and powerful and all, but carheads would tell you the pains they go through with "turbo lag". The engine dumps all that power on you sometimes when you don't expect, and when you do need it, you can't be 100% certain what you'd get.

Android updates have been a difficult thing to do for companies. What's interesting to me is that Samsung offering 4 years of major updates doesn't guarantee they'll lead the software race.

Case in point, OnePlus. For years, this company blazed the trail when it comes to Android updates. They were the standard and the only way was up... Until they fell down.

OnePlus started turning out half-baked updates that was riddled to death with bugs. Even with a well populated beta program, their major Android updates killed OnePlus devices. There were update recalls upon recalls.

Now, you might say the problem was partly because of the shakeup in leadership when Carl Pei left. However, I think it's much deeper than that. Android updates are simply just difficult, and you can't be sure of anything.

It's great that Samsung stated their commitment to longer Android updates, at least their phones may retain more resale value that way. In countries where Android updates are a deal breaker, it's a huge plus too.

The new Galaxy smartphones are out of Samsung's stables, and they've got the exciting outlook enthusiasts have been hoping for.

Now, I won't get into the technical details of the phone. There's lots of previews and hands-on videos on the internet, so this is only going to focus on key points taken from those early takes.

I'd like to start with Samsung's own official introduction of the S22 Ultra. The video is as you'd expect. Samsung takes care of their marketing department really well, and they should. The video is captivating, calling you to experience the product. It's just not straight up lustful and seductive as Apple does theirs.

Moving on to the design, there's not much to say. The devices look refined and mature. Exactly what the note line could have been last year. No frills back for the Ultra model. Reviewers were on and on about it, but I think dem too dey hype am. Samsung Galaxy A32 had the exact same concept and I didn't hear any of them sing.

Then comes the first shot in the foot. S22 Ultra has a base 8GB RAM. I remember stating on here that in the Android world, you don't take back features anyhow. Last year's S21 Ultra had a base 12GB RAM, so the decision to halve it this year wasn't thought out. Their excuse was that the RAM expansion software would make up for it. It won't. Every model gets the software eventually, so what's the point? That 8GB model no go sell where it matters.

Next is the price. Okay to me but I have issues with reviewers saying it's the same as last year's lineup. Yes, we get it, but that's a joke that's getting old. Do you mean to tell me that Samsung won't make their profit if they left the prices between $700-$1000? Capitalism can be a bit too much on these people sha, and consumers thank them for something that's common sense. I blame Apple for all that.

What Samsung doesn't know is that Xiaomi is still in sight. Yes, their methods are all over the place, but they do produce results. If that company trigger a price war, they can sustain it longer than Samsung can. You might say, "but Samsung makes screens and stuff for smartphones". Yes, same as Sony with camera lenses, but we know where their Xperia phones are at right now.

The tagline for the Galaxy S22 Series smartphones is "Epic Standard". Cheesy I must say, but it works. The design can conveniently carry through the year just as the S21 series before it, and the S10 series (S20 series design was too derivative, doesn't count).

For us here in Nigeria, the trope still counts. The S22 is here, that means S21 price go drop so that S20 price go come down and my money fit buy S10.

Flamees:
Finger print is more secured
Imagine when you're sleeping and your babe just puts your iphone to your face kasala go burst
But imagine when she's trying to raise your finger as a sharp man u go wake up

She would have to hold both your eyes open too while at it.

With fingerprint, she only has to nudge you to free your hands. It's much more convenient for anyone to cop your fingerprint when you're asleep

Amb1045:
Went through the comments noticed that a lot of people did not read the post or did not understand what facebook CEO are saying. Lol. They said due to high rate of apple iPhone users ( apple phones has new application that blocks facebook from accessing users cookies to know what they where searching for online) this application is affecting their businesses of advertisement. Imagine if you pay for ads and you have no good returns, you no go like pay for another one. Android users come here dee make noise. Lol. No comparison between nairaand and facebook. Nairaland do not run ads like facebook. Search for anything on your google app go to facebook you will see that stuff on facebook while scrolling on your wall. But big tech apple iPhone has an app that block such interaction between google n facebook. Now their down fall is near when more people begin acquire more iPhone. Everything that goes up will surely comes down with time.

I think your last point holds true for the most part. Eras come and go, and Facebook knows that. They just didn't like Apple dictating it for them. Kinda like you having it in mind to do the dishes, but when someone reminds you, you don't feel like doing it anymore.

Facebook is simply passing secondary aggressions on Apple. They're not really mad that iPhones are blocking their Ad tracking, they're actually mad that people are willing to try out more "Privacy" features going forward.

McGg:
The future holds more than the meta verse vr

Which is why investors are quite chill about news like this

HERE Maps of old.

Offline maps would make sense in Nigeria, and I don't mind HERE bringing that to the people