![]() ![]() ![]() They’re there if you want them, and out of your way if you don’t. It also chopped out some of the existing ones, offering them instead as optional free downloads. This time around, the company didn’t just avoid the temptation to add even more S apps. In the past, Samsung has had a tendency to fill its phones to the brim with its own apps-S Note, S Translate, S This, S That–which let them do a lot of stuff right out of the box, though not always all that well. (Apologies, but I didn’t dunk my iPhone–which makes no similar claim–for the sake of comparison.) Less Apps, More Filling After I removed it and toweled it off, it was fine. With it in place, I left the phone lounging in a tub of water for 20 minutes. The main clue that the S5 is meant to weather the elements is the tiny door that protects the USB port it’s easy to flick on and off, and if you forgot to nudge it back into place, you’ll get an on-screen reminder. ![]() Its IP67 rating means that it’s designed to survive being submerged in up to one meter of liquid for up to half an hour. And although you might think that the pop-off back would leave the S5 more vulnerable to the elements than a sealed-up phone, this is also the first Galaxy S to tout a water- and dust-resistant design. I’ve not yet seen any real alternative, given that Dropbox doesn’t work well on my Mac.The removable plastic back does have a couple of significant virtues: You can swap in a spare battery or pop a memory card into the MicroSD slot for affordable storage expansion. I love seeing a photo I take on the iPhone appearing almost instantly on my Mac and iPad. One thing I do miss with the Android phone is Photostream. Maybe it just shows how unreasonable we are to expect each new generation phone to be a leap forward. After living with the iPhone 4 since 2010, I didn’t think the slightly larger screen of the iPhone 5 was an upgrade. They’re all great phones but I love the S5’s bigger screen. They compare it unfavourably with the iPhone 5S and HTC One M8. Some reviewers have criticised the S5 for feeling cheap because of its plastic back. And the freedom that Android allows is a bit like leaving home for the first time: you realise that you can decide. I was ready for a new type of device after almost four years with a barely changed iPhone and iPad interface. The combination of native Android and Samsung’s TouchWiz is much cleaner, especially if you’re moving from Apple’s iOS devices such as the iPhone and iPad. It’s so much nicer than the S2 I used briefly in 2012 after using it for a major media event. I’ve fallen in love with my Galaxy S5 over the last seven days. It may take you a day or two to get used to the fingerprint technique: you need to swipe down over the trail and the home button. Think about which fingers and thumbs you’ll find most convenient and comfortable to use on the phone when you’re out and about – and store these digits. Unlike the iPhone 5S, the S5 lets you use fingerprint authentication to do more: for example, to use your finger to shop and pay with PayPal. I found it easy to use, especially after I had stored different fingerprint angles, such as swiping from the side. The Galaxy S5 takes fingerprint authentication to a new level. Disable S Voice by unlicking Open via the home key if you’re not using it regularly. Double clicking the phone’s home button activates S Voice, and when you press the home button the phone waits for a second press in case you want to use voice control. S Voice is, as you’d expect, deeply integrated in the S5 but you may want to make the phone a bit quicker by disabling it. The Galaxy S5 comes with two voice control services, Samsung’s own S Voice and Google Now. (The same goes for Galaxy Gifts and the pedometer.) Touch and hold the icon, and drag it to the ‘remove’ dustbin at the top of the screen. If you’re not going to use it, you can get rid of it. Samsung’s My Magazine is a version of Flipboard that takes up a screen of the S5. When I first got my iPad in 2010, I liked Flipboard, the app that aggregated content from various news sites. It’s easy to use and predicts what you’re about to type very effectively. The SwiftKey Android keyboard is the best I’ve tried so far. ![]()
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