OT-ish: "Got m'self a new phone" blues

Aug 25, 2026 Last reply: 10 hours ago 2 Replies
A

Traded in my old Samsung (an A10) for a "pre-loved" S24 the other day. ( I want it above all for the camera, so I can ditch my rather old compact digital camera.)



So now I'm on an S24/Android 16 instead of the A10/Android (?)14. I'm thrashing around like a 4-year-old thrown in at the Shallow End.



Everywhere I turn there's something 'wonderfully' New, which I have to make a decision about. when I haven't the faintest idea what it is. Much less do I have the time, let alone desire, to go read all about this New Feature (an activity, I've found, which is like opening a Russian Doll).



But enough: two giants are fighting for my attention: Google, and Samsung ("Galaxy"). ( I suppose that's one advantage of an iPhone: There Is Only One Way: the Apple way.)



I don't keep anything on my phone: I transfer photos to my Mac, and I don't do _any_ money busines, of any sort. In other words, I don't have a big commitment to clouds, or all the many other services that the two giants are offering (I think).



Can I ignore them both, or should I go the Google way, or the Samsung way? Is there a recommendation? (they're both offering AI at every turn, as well ..... *more* faffing about.



Another John


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T

Pick your overlord. ;-). Personally I use a lot of Google products and accept a certain amount of “quid pro quo” for using their free apps. As for other companies like Samsung etc, they can f*ck right off. ;-)

Tim

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J

I've had an inherited Samsung for about ten years, and I've yet to open the Samsung app group. I use Google maps and very occasionally, email.

Here was I thinking 'it's just me who doesn't trust the buggers'.

It's all about handing over your stuff to somebody else, and almost certainly the sign-up agreement allows them to do whatever they want with it. Long gone are the days of 'we only pass on your email, we don't read it'.

My philosophy is to just use it for the things I want to do with it, which is mostly to be a dumb terminal to a couple of house databases. It's used as a phone, and to authenticate to an ever-growing number of vendors. I wonder how many of them have a credible back-up plan when the phone inevitably gets lost or stolen. "Yes, of course you can change your mobile number, sir. We just need to send you a text to confirm your identity first".

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