Buying a Note 9 was the worst purchasing decision of my life.

[Bongmaster]

You cannot unlock the bootloader if you have a US model. You cannot flash a custom ROM if you have the US model. If you own an international model, flashing a custom ROM will blow the Knox fuse on your motherboard (which Samsung will use to void your warranty and refuse you screen and battery replacement service)

 

I hate this phone. There are way too many duplicate Samsung apps and services that interfere with the performance and usability of the phone. I needed a package disabler, custom launcher, and USB Debugging just to hide Bixby and Bixby Home from sight.

 

Since the US model model cannot load custom ROMs or be rooted, it will be completely useless when Samsung abandons software and security updates. Get ready to throw this phone in the trash.

 

The sad thing is that I I bought this partially on Linus' recommendation. I thought I was buying a zero compromise Android phone. What I ended up with was almost every compromise except a headphone jack.

 

We as Android consumers need to raise awareness about bloatware and locked bootloaders, because the Note 9 (at least the US model) is electronic waste due to these shortcomings.

 

[Master Disaster]

You bought a Samsung and are surprised by bloat? Sorry buddy but that's on you, Samsung phones are famous for 2 things, amazing screens and bloat (ok 3 things if you count exploding) and even the tiniest bit of research beyond watching a video of a guy who doesn't review phones for a living would have revealed this to you.

 

On my Mum's Galaxy S7 the phone regularly disables the Google Play Store, it got so bad that eventually I rooted it using Magisck and stripped a load of crap out of the phone because she would be ringing me multiple times a day over her phone installing new crap and disabling things she used regularly.

 

This is not a new thing and it's very well documented hence why so many custom solutions to the problem exist.

[Nowak]

You bought a Samsung phone and are surprised by the bloatware?
 

ngl tho I'd love a Note 9, that six gigs of RAM and 128 gigs of storage seems so nice 

[LukeLinusFanFic]

Sorry bud. Try and see if it still has a decent resell value. You seem like someone could appreciate the vanilla Android experience you get with the pixel. 

 

[kirashi]

25 minutes ago, Bongmaster said:

You cannot unlock the bootloader [of most Samsung phones] if you have a US model. You cannot flash a custom ROM if you have the US model [of almost any phone manufacturer]. If you own an international model, flashing a custom ROM will blow the Knox fuse on your motherboard (which Samsung will [attempt to] use to void your warranty and refuse you screen and battery replacement service)

 

I hate this [every] phone. There are way too many duplicate Samsung apps [preloaded on phones by manufacturers] and services that interfere with the performance and usability of the phone. I needed a package disabler, custom launcher, and USB Debugging just to hide Bixby and Bixby Home [useless app #324] from sight.

 

Since the US model model[?] cannot load custom ROMs or be rooted, it will be is completely useless when Samsung abandons software and security updates [out of the box because I have no control over the hardware I own so it's like I'm renting it.] Get ready to throw this phone [brick] in the trash.

 

The sad thing is that I I bought this partially on Linus' recommendation [without doing enough research.] I thought I was buying a zero compromise Android phone. What I ended up with was almost every compromise except a headphone jack.

 

We as Android consumers need to raise awareness about bloatware and locked bootloaders, because the Note 9 (at least the US model) is [most consumer electronics are] electronic waste due to these shortcomings.

 

Fixed your post for you, because I agree 100% that it's absurd consumers are OK with renting a $1200 device for anywhere from 1-5 years, or however long the manufacturer decides to support the device.

[PorkishPig]

Samsung is notorious for having bloat on their premium devices. This has been the case since the dawn of time, and very well may continue to be the case for years. If you were looking to avoid this experience, you should have consulted one of the hundreds of posts on XDA about unlocking the bootloader before your purchase.

 

You should note that this is still Android, however. You still have plenty of options for customize your experience with the device, even if you can't completely disable some Samsung services. You can do things such as installing Nova Launcher to hide Samsung's collection of garbage applications and Bixby Button Remapper to make the Bixby button actually useful.

 

The stock Android experience is why I've been locked into purchasing Google smartphones. I've gone from a Nexus 5X to a Pixel to a Pixel 2 XL over the past 3 years, and have owned a Nexus 7 for 3 years exclusively because of the ROMs available. The only other manufacturer that I would consider is OnePlus, since their phones come loaded with a near-stock version of OxygenOS.

[Master Disaster]

12 minutes ago, Homeless Pineapple said:

Samsung is notorious for having bloat on the premium devices. This has been the case since the dawn of time, and very well may continue to be the case for years. If you were looking to avoid this experience, you should have consulted one of the hundreds of posts on XDA about unlocking the bootloader before your purchase.

 

You should to note that this is still Android, however. You still have plenty of options for customize your experience with the device, even if you can't completely disable some Samsung services. You can do things such as installing Nova Launcher to hide Samsung's collection of garbage applications and Bixby Button Remapper to make the Bixby button actually useful.

 

The stock Android experience is why I've been locked into purchasing Google smartphones. I've gone from a Nexus 5X to a Pixel to a Pixel 2 XL over the past 3 years, and have owned at Nexus 7 for 3 years exclusively because of the ROMs available. The only other manufacturer that I would consider is OnePlus, since their phones come loaded with a near-stock version of OxygenOS.

Lineage is a god send, the only reason I bought my Galaxy Tab S2 was because it has a supported version of Lineage 16.

 

Bone stock android is an amazing experience compared to almost any manufacturer installed OS.

 

I'm actually running Android Q on my Pixel 3 XL right now.

[PorkishPig]

17 minutes ago, Master Disaster said:

Lineage is a god send, the only reason I bought my Galaxy Tab S2 was because it has a supported version of Lineage 16.

 

Bone stock android is an amazing experience compared to almost any manufacturer installed OS.

Yep, Lineage is fantastic. It's the only reason I still use my Nexus 7. I've been rocking a Pixel 2 XL almost purely because of the software experience, and I have a spare Pixel 1 on the beta to test out Android Q.

 

I'm always jealous of Samsung's hardware, but the software is just too much of a compromise. I just wish they were an Android One partner, but that's wishful thinking.

[dizmo]

Hate to say it, but you really should have done some research before dropping that kind of money on a device. This is all kind of on you.

Interestingly, I've never had any of Samsung's duplicate apps interfere with my usage of any Samsung phone...and no, I don't use their apps.

 

Android is moving security updates to the Google Play store, so really, as soon as that takes effect that issue shouldn't be that much of an issue at all. Sure, you might not get more than 2 full blown Android updates, but this isn't a Pixel device...which IIRC only gets 3. Want more? Go to Apple. It's been that way for ages, though, so again, you shouldn't be surprised.

 

What you've listed are more personal gripes. I know many people that have absolutely no issue, and not that many people root their device compared to those that do. The Note9 is a great device for 95% of people that are going to buy it, apparently it just isn't for you.