Please note this blog post Review on the new Samsung Galaxy S4 is my words, and I was not paid to write anything, nor was I told what to write. If you know us at all we don’t like to be told what to do!!! Including our kids.
For weeks now I have been saying “I so need a New Phone“. My old phone is a Samsung and is not really that old…its about an year old. But with living in our Motorhome it has been dropped many times by all of us, and its also been swimming in the pool in Mackay (remember the time I had to jump in and save one of our boy’s friends while they were swimming?)
So the phone was playing up – yes I had dried it out with a bag of rice for about a week after it had water in the screen. And yes you could still see some water in the screen.
Sometimes messages would take three days to be sent to another person, sometimes messages would come in at 3.00am in the morning, from others who sent us messages days ago. Then sometimes I couldn’t call, or receive calls!
I loved the ease of knowing how to use my Samsung phone so even though I kept saying I needed a New Phone, I never got around to buying a new one.
Last Friday I entered a competition on line with Telstra. It was like the Universe was telling me to jump on over and enter…..because by Friday night I was told that I had won.
Flip Me Out – Pinch Me.
I had no idea how I was going to get to Sydney, nor what I was going to do with my younger boys.
But that was minor detail. The bigger detail was that the Tuesday Night at the Opera House was a Product Launch for the New Samsung Galaxy S4 phone which was not even available in the shops as yet.
Its really weird but after we looked around our Motorhome we realised we are the perfect fit for Samsung.
We have a Samsung Fridge. One that David did a lot of research on and found the Power usage was the same as if he purchased the Motorhome Brand (expensive) fridges!
We have three Samsung Tablets for our Boys. Gifts given at Christmas time, and work just as well as iPads but without the expensive price tag!
Before I purchased my Canon Camera we had two Samsung Cameras…and if I hadn’t dropped them and smashed the screen inside we would still be using them because they took good quality photos. Actually if I had known that Samsung had the same camera like my Canon then that is the brand that I would have purchased.
*(we now no longer walk around carrying Camera’s or phones. Everyone has to sit down to use them and use our Canon Camera with the strap!!!)
Many know that I have blogged and done vlogs about our Telstra Internet issues, but that is not here or there…and is not something that would turn me away from entering competitions with them.
Because really we are a New Way of living on the Road, and I reckon that Telstra knows that there is a lack of Internet Packages for people who do not have Fixed Address (Nomads Living/Travelling on the Road) and before long there will be Internet Providers who will have to address the situation.
Yet I prefer Telstra over all of the other Phone/Internet Providers. Mostly because I KNOW who I am dealing with when speaking to them at a Telstra store, or over the phone. And every time I have spoken to the people in the company, with regards to our internet issues we have been treated with respect!
Back To What’s Important
After confirming that we had won, and many details sorted for the evening it was a case of “OH, my gosh. What will I say? What Will I Wear?” Being in a relaxed lifestyle means that most of my clothes are casual – oh OK my wardrobe is WAY out dated.
So first things first. A BIG shopping trip to Stockland. Where new shoes, new shirt, new pants were purchased. Thanks to Natalie on our Facebook page for helping me out with what to wear!
Tuesday came before I realised it.
It was a mad dash getting our Motorhome cleaned.
And getting Kyle ready – the driver (whose name was Nick) was happy to drive Kyle around to his Dad’s work before we headed into Sydney.
Once I was checked into the Hilton (gosh do I have a blog about that story, coming soon!), where I meet the other Blogger Michael, it was a quick change of clothes, fixed my hair and then down to the fun side of the evening.
Sorry I was so Nervous That I forgot to Smile!
Presented With The Samsung Galaxy S4 Phone ::
At first I was beyond scared about the new technology. You see I know how important having a phone is, and I know that Technology brings our world closer together so I embrace it online and love it. With no fixed address and living our way of life Technology keeps us connected with family, friends and helps us connect with other like minded travellers online.
Yet my old phone was that behind the times….I could only use our Facebook Page on it, and my camera was no longer working on the phone so I relied on using my big Canon Camera when out n about. Then normally I would upload onto my computer after we got home from where ever we had been for the day.
So for me to take all of the features on-board, and to understand what each feature was able to do I was listening and trying to remember everything.
I knew that I had to use “Play Store” to download “Twitter“, “Pages Manager” for facebook and “Pinterest” as well as “Youtube”.
I was also keen to Join Instagram but I thought for the Product Launch night it would be best to stick with what I know I can easily up load to each social media platform. And I am glad that I listened to my instinct.
We had about 30-40 minutes presentation on the phone, and was able to ask as many questions as we liked. Then it was a matter of waiting to head to the Opera House.
The Opera House Is Blue ::
For the product launch the evening theme was blue. From the Blue Carpet, to the Blue Roses, to the Blue Colour on the outside of the Opera House to even Blue accessories on the waiters! It was a sea of blue, and it was a room full of packed happy beautiful people.
A room full of VIP Media.
Trying to remember how to use the phone I was taking way too many photos, lots of videos as well as drinking yummy cocktails/Beers/Orange Juices in between sampling the delicious food. There was one dish that I kept my eye out for – it was a Eggplant Yummy Dish, one that I wish I knew the Recipe for so that I ask David to make it!!
Samsung Galaxy S4 Features ::
There are far too many features for me to share but here are a few of my all time favourites ::
* Sound n Shot
* Drama Shot
* S Translator (perfect for travellers!)
* Story Album
* Air Gesture
* S Health (so going to be my new best friend for ever!!)
Sound n Shot ::
You take a photo with sound! So that someone is saying a sentence or two while you are taking the photo!
Drama Shot ::
The Drama Shot will be perfect for our son Kyle. He never can stand still so I am never able to get a really good photo of him. It works while someone is moving – for example :: Running, kicking a ball or riding a scooter. You can take consecutive photos of anyone moving and then the photo is put into one shot. Incredible!
Story Album ::
I have yet to try Story Album but I am so keen. Its like a Scrapbooking Album feature – so that you can create your own online album and share with family/friends. Because all of my scrap booking items are stored in our shipping container it will makes sense to use Story Album for everyday family photos!
Air Gesture ::
I actually got to see Air Gesture in action with the representative who demonstrated the phone to us. What it does is free your hands up so that if you are cooking from a recipe and you have food on your hands, all you need to do is wave your hands two times over the screen of the Samsung Galaxy S4 phone and it will roll the screen up or down depending on what you are needing. Perfect for busy Mums/Dads/Grandparents!
S Health ::
S Health app is something that I am keen to look into in more depth. It means that you can track how many steps you are doing in one day, record your daily food intake and help you manage your Health. Basically its an application that will help you set fitness goals, check your progress and keep track of your overall health.
PERFECT for those that are not good at keeping records (yeah I am hopeless with paper work)
Another Amazing Feature ::
Samsung Smart Pause Feature allows you to watch a Video with your eyes. When your eyes turn away from the Video to look at someone/something other than the Phone then your video will pause. When you look back at the phone your video will start from where it was paused. I can see this feature being my favourite because I will never lose my spot watching a video again when my boys need my attention!
What Would I Say Was The Best?
My over all view on the Samsung Galaxy S4 Phone is that the motto given to the phone is on par with the features ::
A Life Companion for a richer, simpler and fuller life
It will connect with others like no other phone has.
It will also lead technology into the future, and will raise the bar for those who are into keeping up with the latest technology. After all we are in a day n age where its common not to have a Land Line Phone at home anymore but is common to have at least two mobile phones – one for business one for personal usage
There will become a time where there will be no need for home phones.
There will become a time where all school work will be either completed with a iPad, Samsung Tablet, Computer instead of Paper/Pen.
There will become a time where technology will out smart our way of life – and where it will make our lifestyle way different then what its like now.
Phone Benefits ::
The SGS4 is lighter than any phone I have seen before (I have seen many whenever we go into a Telstra Store), as well as a bigger screen.
Would I recommend it to others? Yes – actually I am now wanting to get my hubby one for Christmas so that we can stay connected easily where ever we are around Australia!
Because I am new to the Samsung phone, and not used to all of its features I will be playing around with taking photos/videos as time goes on, and probably will have more to share once I do know how to operate the phone more easily.
My Favourite Feature (so far) ::
Taking photos of our days out n about with my family, with the feature of being able to turn the screen to facing us so that I can capture a photo as we are looking at the camera. Also being able to take videos while out n about is so very handy.
The easy ability to share our day on Instagram has also won me over! I love how technology can connect us all no matter where we live.
The Samsung Smart Pause is also getting a good workout!
What Feature Do You Like in the SGS4 Phone?
Do You Have or Are You Getting A Samsung Galaxy S4 Phone?
Thanking you for following our Journey.
Cheers
Lisa
New Life On the Road.
PS :: Thanking you Telstra for the competition. Thanking you for the night in the Hilton, The Opera House Launch Experience, for arranging Nick (the driver from Sydney) to pick me up and take me home, and for letting me experience the Samsung Galaxy S4 Phone – Technology at its finest.
How exciting!!!! What a great experience all round. Woot woot!
I was a Samsung Global Blogger finalist last year in the lead up to the London Olympics and I soooooo wanted to win their phone. But alas I did not with the phone nor the trip to London to report on the games.
Oh well.
Happy you got your phone though!
Cheers
Leanne @ Deep Fried Fruit
Hi Leanne,
Gosh going to London for the games would have been so super cool!!! Maybe next time you will be the finalist that goes?
Thanking you for your great feedback – it was a blast. And the phone has SO much features that I keep on discovering more…..will have to do another blog post soon about what my family thinks!!
Cheers
Lisa
That’s amazing! Congratulations!!! Looks like a fab evening out. What a blessing! We’re Samsung fans too.
Little Gumnut recently posted..Bass Point National Park
It was so very good – and yep Samsung Rocks 🙂