Samsung recycled Galaxy parts once again
with the two cameras of the ATIV S. Both the 8MP f/2.6 rear camera and the
1.9MP f/2.8 front camera are taken directly from the Galaxy S III and Galaxy
Note II. On bright days and in good light in the house, it leads to sharply
focused photos from the rear camera, with soft backgrounds in macros and color
accuracy. However, the rediced dynamic range is maintained, and the sensor did
not win the best award in low light performance or image stabilization like the
Lumia 920. Dark scenes without flash (which is fairly bright) has led to either
a lot of noise or pitch black elements. We had the opportunity to shoot with
the ATIV S and Note II for a while, and many photos taken by the two cameras
were nearly identical – mostly good, sometimes bad.
A
photo taken by the ATIV S
However, suppose we were taking photos with
the same settings, here the ATIV S proved embarrassing. Windows Phone 8 will
allow you to tweak the core image details such as exposure, filter-based
effects and white balance, but there is no built-in burst mode, high dynamic
range modes, panoramas or precision controls like metering. Samsung has not preloaded
any application that helps take advantage of Windows Phone 8’s Lens features to
extend the functionality of the camera, so we had to find the appropriate application
or leave it alone.
Some basic things became personal due to
Microsoft's approach. The tap-to-focus feature does not work if you are not
shooting a photo, which makes you either have to risk with the results or lock the
focus using the hard key. The settings menu obscures most of the screen, preventing
the preview from any mode changes. Did it boast the near-zero shutter lag? Shot-to-shot
times are still fast, but not instant anymore when Microsoft inserts animation
transitions, and without continuous shooting mode. It is true that many casual
photographers won’t care about it, or do not even notice; we just do not like
the ATIV S with one hand tied behind his back.
Fortunately, video recording is much better.
Windows Phone leaves fewer settings to play with, but the 20Mbps recording is very
fast during the day and is still sharp as long as the phone is not shaken.
Exposure changes begin smoothly and fast. Capturing videos in the dark is the
only area of the phone that falls off the limit. The microphone faces a similar
ceiling, collecting subtle details in quiet environments but it doesn’t work
well when there is much wind and noise. We will choose Samsung’s Windows Phone
to record videos in many situations... but not for a nightclub.
Software
The
introduction of resizable tiles has done a great job in providing direct
information that interests you.
We have studied Windows Phone 8 several
times, and of course the ATIV S shares the same UI, so we will not repeat
everything here. As ever, it is a special approach to the smartphone software,
and the introduction of resizable tiles has done a great job in providing
direct information that interests you. IE 10 is a fast modern web browser. As
we suggested earlier, the ATIV S gives a feel as if sometimes it were solving
the problems that we found in the Galaxy S III, especially for those who are
not fans of big screen or a lot of information on the screen. The Windows Phone
keyboard is still one of the easiest keyboards for typing on, at least on Samsung’s
big screen, with smart autocorrection as well as straightforward text selection.
In any matter, there are some undeniable
flaws that need to be improved. Multitasking is a little inconvenient.
Notifications are more popular than ever, but the lack of a notification center
(Microsoft says it is due to time constraints) means that you may miss an
important message if you do not pay attention while in an app. Also, Microsoft
needs to go beyond having 46 of the top 50 Android and iOS apps – it takes the
top 500, because there are so many things to have in addition to an unexpected
success, whether it's Path or Remember the Milk. Those who live in Google’s
ecosystem will find it difficult to make the jump, despite third-party
alternatives like MetroTube that occasionally fill in the gaps.
Most people who support Windows Phone have
their custom apps set to change a very uniform experience, and Samsung is very
eager to follow that way. We'd call its strategy a collection. While Nokia focuses
mostly on their position, and HTC is a fan of little conveniences, Samsung
wants to cover a few areas at the same time. Company loyalists will most likely
recognize its cross-platform messaging service ChatON as well as the Music Hub,
which (at least in Canada) concentrates on the music store run by 7digital.
There are a few less common additions such as Family Story, which shares memos
and photos between groups like a cross-OS version of Microsoft's own Rooms;
Live Wallpaper, which shuffles photos on the lock screen; a MiniDiary app for
cataloging memories with photos and voice; Now, a hybrid news and weather
aggregator; and a self-explanatory Photo Editor.
In fact, these applications have really
erratic quality. We use Now mainly for news and weather, like the HTC hub. The Photo
Editor application rapidly crops photos or adjusts contrast before we share
photos with the world. Live Wallpaper and Music Hub feel abundant, and we do
not see many values of MiniDiary when its content is completely disconnected
from the outside world. Meanwhile, ChatOn and Family Story are encountering
criticisms due to its small community (we have struggled to find and recruit users
among hundreds of contacts) and the mysterious login process based on phone
numbers. To be honest, we prefer Nokia’s mapping suite and HTC’s excellent
phone options.
We
use Now mainly for news and weather.
At least Microsoft's strict stance on user
experience has given the ATIV S some benefits. Samsung’s apps are treated as
ordinary third-party applications and can be removed entirely if you cannot
bear them; they stay in Windows Phone Store’s Samsung Zone in case you want
them back. Bad software of the carrier is here, but you can still uninstall the
applications from AT&T, Bell, Rogers, etc. if they become a hindrance rather
than help. The loadout is also lightweight – our Bell unit has just a lone
Mobile TV portal instead of the several non-removable apps we usually see on
the provider's Android series. There is a feeling that it is our personal
device, not just a moneymaker for the network.
