Really Loving my Galaxy Player 4

[delphin]

Picked up a Samsung Galaxy Player 4 a few weeks back, and have to say that it is flat out the slickest piece of electronics I have ever owned bar none.

In the past, I haven't been much of a fan of reading on one of these smaller smartphone style devices, but with the Galaxy Player 4 the screen quality is such a step up from all the devices I have seen in the past that it's a whole new ball game and I am really loving it.

The Samsung Galaxy Players offer most of the features of a cutting edge smart phone like the new Galaxy S2, Nexus, or Note models but minus blood sucking phone data plan. Ok, in fairness, compared to these other Samsung flagship models, there are also some other compromises like a somewhat lower end CPU and Lower Megapixels on the built in camera, but considering that my Galaxy Player 4 cost about a third what an unlocked high end smart phone does, I am not complaining.

In addition to several eReader apps like FBReader, and Coolreader, my Galaxy Player runs TONS of other Android apps like Google Sky, Google Maps, etc.

So it's not just a great eReader - it's a GREAT full featured Android tablet device.

Think about it; for less than what Amazon is asking for their own very basic Android based Kindle, which has no Cameras, Microphone, GPS, Compass, Bluetooth or MicroSD expansion slot, you can get a device that offers ALL those features (plus more) in a tiny ultra-lightweight pocket-sized package.

Of course the Kindles screen is larger, but it's also a lot bulker and heavier, so that's a trade off, and I already have a very nice Vizio 8 inch tablet with a GREAT 1024x768 screen that blows away the Kindles for reading full page PDFs so I wasn't too concerned about that.

So I decided to go with the Galaxy Player 4 as opposed to the 5 inch model and try for as many features as possible in as portable a package as possible.

I suggest you go to a local stocking retailer and audition the 4 inch and 5 inch screen models side by side and make up your own mind, but I don't really think you can go wrong with either.

Battery life is listed as being better on the Galaxy Player 5, so I wasn't sure how the Galaxy Player 4 would stack up, but by managing the power just a little I am getting really good battery life and can easily use the player all day (by setting reasonable screen brightness, and turning off wireless and sync when not needed)

For me, the deal clincher was the fact that the smaller Galaxy Player 4 has an easily swappable battery, and I was able to find a low cost source online for extra batteries as well as a external charger (note the above linked batteries and charger are listed for the Samsung Galaxy S Mini Phone, but also fit and work perfectly in the Galaxy Player 4)

Also, unlike many other Android devices that need to be fully shut down all the time to avoid sucking down the battery in 'sleep' mode, my Galaxy Player 4 uses almost no power when sleeping (which means you can just tap the power button to put it to sleep when not using it and INSTANTLY wake it up for use without waiting for a full bootup).

[=X=]

Nice write up thx, esp on the battery & charger.

I have the Galaxy S, my daughter has the GPlayer 5" great devices she loves her player very much. And with ICS on my GS I'm really enjoying my phone and have no desire to upgrade.

=X=

[delphin]

Originally Posted by =X=

Nice write up thx, esp on the battery & charger.
I have the Galaxy S, my daughter has the GPlayer 5" great devices she loves her player very much. And with ICS on my GS I'm really enjoying my phone and have no desire to upgrade.
=X=

If you already have a high end smart phone, and don't mind racking up the extra battery time, I can see your point.

A separate dedicated media player may still make sense for some smart phone users though if they listen to lots of MP3 music or audio books.

The Galaxy Player is highly optimized as a media player so it has much better run-time when playing MP3s and Video than some smart phones.

I like it because I can easily listen to a full 15 or 20 hour audio book on a single charge.

Video playback is also surprisingly good, and watching two full feature length films during a 5 hour plane flight is also no problem. The video player plays AVI WMV/ASF and MKV formats with XVID, DivX, and H264 codecs suported up to 1280x720 resolution (720p). So far my Galaxy Player has handled pretty much everything that I have thrown at it flawlessly (even exotic 60fps MKV files) and I really like that I can just drag video files onto the player without the special conversions and transfer hassles of the iPod.

I was also pleasantly surprised with the interface and features of the built in media player. For example the built in audio player displays embedded album artwork when available and allows title selection and sorting either using standard Album/Artist MP3 ID3 tags OR using simple Folder/Filename navigation (very useful for untagged or badly tagged MP3s).

The audio player also has a nice instant-access widget that pops up at the top of the lock screen so you don't have to unlock the device to pause your music or skip tracks (In other words, if the device is sleeping with the screen off, the music player still plays, and all you have to do to have instant access to the playback control widget is tap the power button).

The GPS and Compass also work really well, and since Goggle Maps now let's you cache up to 10 local map regions, you can use it offline without a WiFi connection.

And, getting back to the main topic for this forum, I was also very pleasantly surprised to see how well the little Galaxy Player 4 works as a book reader. It's super lightweight, the screen is sharp and clear, and when using it as a book reader at reduced screen brightness (the most comfortable setting) I can easily read for 8 hours or more.

[cfrizz]

Great write up thanks!

[soondai]

I've been circling this thing for the last 3 weeks or so. Unfortunately neither close Best Buy has a working model on display.

Love love love that it has a user replaceable battery. I hate that that is so rare nowdays.

How well does the GPS work with the Navigator app? Have you tried it?

I know there is a 4.2 inch model in the pipeline, but this seems big enough for me. Do wonder if these will go on sale cheap when that one arrives.

[Greg Anos]

Originally Posted by delphin

Picked up a Samsung Galaxy Player 4 a few weeks back, and have to say that it is flat out the slickest piece of electronics I have ever owned bar none.

In the past, I haven't been much of a fan of reading on one of these smaller smartphone style devices, but with the Galaxy Player 4 the screen quality is such a step up from all the devices I have seen in the past that it's a whole new ball game and I am really loving it.

The Samsung Galaxy Players offer most of the features of a cutting edge smart phone like the new Galaxy S2, Nexus, or Note models but minus blood sucking phone data plan. Ok, in fairness, compared to these other Samsung flagship models, there are also some other compromises like a somewhat lower end CPU and Lower Megapixels on the built in camera, but considering that my Galaxy Player 4 cost about a third what an unlocked high end smart phone does, I am not complaining.

In addition to several eReader apps like FBReader, and Coolreader, my Galaxy Player runs TONS of other Android apps like Google Sky, Google Maps, etc.

So it's not just a great eReader - it's a GREAT full featured Android tablet device.

Think about it; for less than what Amazon is asking for their own very basic Android based Kindle, which has no Cameras, Microphone, GPS, Compass, Bluetooth or MicroSD expansion slot, you can get a device that offers ALL those features (plus more) in a tiny ultra-lightweight pocket-sized package.

Of course the Kindles screen is larger, but it's also a lot bulker and heavier, so that's a trade off, and I already have a very nice Vizio 8 inch tablet with a GREAT 1024x768 screen that blows away the Kindles for reading full page PDFs so I wasn't too concerned about that.

So I decided to go with the Galaxy Player 4 as opposed to the 5 inch model and try for as many features as possible in as portable a package as possible.

I suggest you go to a local stocking retailer and audition the 4 inch and 5 inch screen models side by side and make up your own mind, but I don't really think you can go wrong with either.

Battery life is listed as being better on the Galaxy Player 5, so I wasn't sure how the Galaxy Player 4 would stack up, but by managing the power just a little I am getting really good battery life and can easily use the player all day (by setting reasonable screen brightness, and turning off wireless and sync when not needed)

For me, the deal clincher was the fact that the smaller Galaxy Player 4 has an easily swappable battery, and I was able to find a low cost source online for extra batteries as well as a external charger (note the above linked batteries and charger are listed for the Samsung Galaxy S Mini Phone, but also fit and work perfectly in the Galaxy Player 4)

Also, unlike many other Android devices that need to be fully shut down all the time to avoid sucking down the battery in 'sleep' mode, my Galaxy Player 4 uses almost no power when sleeping (which means you can just tap the power button to put it to sleep when not using it and INSTANTLY wake it up for use without waiting for a full bootup).

Thanks for the review. This one had slipped by me, it's exactly what I want!

One question, can you play files (like music files directly off the micro SD chip or do you have to load into the machine?

[RainingLemur]

Originally Posted by Ralph Sir Edward

One question, can you play files (like music files directly off the micro SD chip or do you have to load into the machine?

I assume that if it's just like many other Android phones and devices, you should be able to play stuff straight off the SD card. That's how it is on my phone(s). And, I imagine that the Galaxy Player is pretty much a Samsung Galaxy phone minus the 3g/4g radio.

[MzTinaFL]

I'm in love with mine too! I charge it every night and almost never run out of battery...even on weekends. I primarily use it for e-reading, words with friends and jigsaw puzzles. I don't leave the wi-fi on, checking my online games once or twice a night only...but I have finally learned how to utilize bluetooth to upload files to my galaxy...handy for ebooks.

My favorite ereading software is moon+reader. I just wish I could figure out how to utilize Calibre to send the files to this device.

I did try the Galaxy 5 and found it too big for ereading. And the screen is incredible...so crisp and clear.

I definitely recommend it too

[soondai]

Got mine a few days back and heartily recommend it as well. The screen and size are great for ereading on the go. Use Kindle and CoolReader. Gonna more than pay for itself by letting me keep my dumb phone for a few more years.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by soondai

Gonna more than pay for itself by letting me keep my dumb phone for a few more years.

I do the same. I have an old school flip phone (Samsung). I then pretend I have a data plan and save the $30 I'd have to pay each month. That gives me $360 each year to spend on tech gadgets.

My Tech Fund comes in very handy on Black Friday and for super buys. For example; Walmart recently (08 Feb) had the Fire on sale for $149 ($199 + free $50 GC), so I got one. Now they're about to put the $79 Kindle on sale (29 Apr) for $49 ($79 + free $30GC), so I just might get one.

My Tech Fund allows me to update my gadgets on a regular basis without straining my budget.

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

I do the same. I have an old school flip phone (Samsung). I then pretend I have a data plan and save the $30 I'd have to pay each month. That gives me $360 each year to spend on tech gadgets.

My Tech Fund allows me to update my gadgets on a regular basis without straining my budget.

I cancelled cable TV instead ($100/mo savings) and switched landline from Vonage ($35/month with taxes) to Nettalk (~$35/year with taxes). I don't get easy access to wifi when away from home and data/internet access on my mobile is something I'm not willing to sacrifice. Have to say, the savings on the cable bill easily paid for outfitting each TV in the house with an HTPC and I now have more than $1000 extra tech fund every year.

Frankly, if I didn't use cellular data a lot, I'd just switch to pay as you go prepaid (typically around $0.10/min). Given my usage, I'd be spending less than $10 per month on calls.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

I don't get easy access to wifi when away from home and data/internet access on my mobile is something I'm not willing to sacrifice.

It's the opposite for me. I live in a heavily populated urban area and wifi is readily available. There's either a McDonald's or a Starbucks on practically every corner.

[jlg432]

I bought the SGP 5.0 in Feb 2012 while on a shopping spree to the USA. (I haven't found it available in Ontario, Canada).

I find that I use my SGP 5.0 way more than my larger SGT 10.1 (P7500) even though I managed to get it at a lower cost than my SGP 5.0.

I like the fact that with "MapDroyd" and "NavDroyd" it becomes a totally functional GPSr without the need of wifi.

With YouTube Downloader I can save all kinds of Video for later viewing.

It supports all kinds of e-reader apps, I can check my e-mails, Facebook and with Tapatalk I can easily access my favorite Forums quickly.

I have a case for it that I can attach to my belt via the belt loops. This keeps it safe and secure when I am mobile.

The idea that it also has a camera for stills, video and Document scanning as well as having a built in FM tuner is fantastic. Add to that a Calendar for scheduling and an audio recorder for taking quick notes as well as access to voip (when wifi is available) to make free phone calls. It is an all-in-one device.

If I need to I can tether it to my SGT-10.1 and use the 4G service if required.

So far no complaints at all.

John

[Marseille]

Originally Posted by soondai

Gonna more than pay for itself by letting me keep my dumb phone for a few more years.

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

I do the same. I have an old school flip phone (Samsung). I then pretend I have a data plan and save the $30 I'd have to pay each month. That gives me $360 each year to spend on tech gadgets.

I converged some years ago, now I've deconverged. Technically, my dumb flip phone is a blackberry (pearl flip), but it comes without the services and fees and I just use it for calls on a prepaid service. Looking forward, I might continue to avoid smartphones. I was a PDA user for years before smartphones became all the rage, and I'm pretty happy keeping things separate. I think the right tablet experience might be superior for my uses and save me a lot of money and hassle at the same time.

To each their own though.

[jlg432]

I forgot to mention - we too (the parents) have been using hand-me-down phones for years now on pay as you go service. As our kids swapped their dumb phones for smart phones we just took over the service at the minimum rate until the contracts ran out and switched them over to "Pay as you GO".

We only use them when out and only answer the calls on our Favourite 5 plan.

We don't text or hold lengthy conversation on these. That's what a home line is for.

John