Samsung Galaxy S5 review

When I first switched to Iphone from the then old Nokia phone, I was hooked and thought that I will never switch to an Android phone. Even up to now, I have upgraded to Iphone 5 and haven't bought or used an Android phone. Whenever I play with my friends' phones that uses Android, I can never get use to the operating system. It's just different.

But...there comes a day when I'm forced to use an Android phone lol.

And it's a Samsung Galaxy S5!

And this is NOT an ad haha I just wanted to share its features. I've heard good reviews about this phone but I'm still skeptical because this would be my first Android phone.

I've been getting used to it and now find it quite amusing. Samsung phones have this Samsung Galaxy Life app which gives its users great promotions from time to time. How cool is that? I mean which girl doesn't like a good promotion? Haha

You can redeem ongoing promotions from time to time.

Okay, that aside, the phone itself has a huge screen which can be a good or a bad thing. For me, I like my phones small and handy not big and bulky so bringing it everywhere can sometimes be quite a hassle. On top of that, this S5 is supposed to be my second phone so it can be quite a handful. However, good thing is that the S5 is quite lightweight and not too heavy.

Big screen also means, bigger keyboard and less typing mistakes. The S5 has a numeric keyboard on top of the qwerty so it's easier to type.

And big screens are also better for games! I rarely play games but for those who are addicted to candy crush, this would be good for you =)

The S5's best feature would be the screen's resolution. It's different from others. The screen is much brighter and vibrant. It is full HD and pictures look so much better on the S5. Speaking about pictures, the camera is another great feature. It has a 16MP back camera and 2MP front camera. Taking pictures just got better! It has HDR for brighter and vivid capture, selective focus to focus on the main subject and fast auto focus! Who needs a camera when you have an S5? hehe

Pictures taken using Samsung Galaxy S5. #noedit

Those Christmas trees are gorgeous, right?? I'm in love.

But I also found out, pictures can look fantastic only in good lighting. If not, heavy editing is needed.

The most talked about feature is the Heart Rate Sensor in the S Health app. Galaxy S5 is the first smart phone with a built-in Heart Rate Sensor which enables you to measure your heart rate directly on your phone. You can now check your heart rate at any time of the day and manage your condition and stress accordingly. In fact, the heart rate sensor is pretty accurate! This is because I compared it with the blood pressure machine at home and both showed almost the same reading.

Place your finger right under the back camera and it will measure the heart rate from there. Not bad, huh?

The S Health app can also be your personal fitness tracker. It can be a pedometer and measure your steps as well ^^

Further, this is a 4G phone powered with LTE. It has a Download Booster where the speed of LTE & Wi-Fi can be combined to give you an unrivaled network experience! When you need to download files in a hurry, turn on the LTE and Wi-Fi together and experience approximately 80-90% of the added network speed of LTE and Wi-Fi. How cool is that?

Other features include:
-RAM : 2GB
-16/32GB User Memory + microSD slot (up to 128GB)
-IP67 certificated Dust & Water Resistant (but not waterproof)
-Ultra Power Saving Mode

Now, the cons is the cluttered screen. I'm quite OCD and the first time I on the phone and saw all the apps cluttered I went into full OCD mode and re-arranged them.

It has the main screen with shortcut apps and..

...it has an apps screen.

I'm pretty used to Iphone where there's only one main screen with the apps so I'm still getting used to this S5.

Although S5 is supposed to have a good battery lifespan but as all smartphones are, battery drains quite fast as well. And oh, if you have a hard time finding the 'Do not Disturb' button, it's actually called Blocking Mode where you will not be disturbed during sleeping time or in a meeting.

Further, pictures in Facebook cannot zoom in to the maximum. It seems this is an Android problem. However, I can zoom in to the maximum in the gallery photos. Also, I would prefer if my notifications pop out when my screen is locked. Now, it just makes a notification sound with blinking light. I have to unlock to see my messages/email/etc.

Overall, I am quite impressed with some of its unique features. But I'm not sure, would I get used to an Android phone? Probably sticking to Apple is best haha