Smartphones from Samsung in the modern world are considered one of the best, because for a long time the manufacturer tried to produce high-quality, comprehensively thought out devices. However, in order to take a leading position, a start spurt was needed. They became a line of devices called Samsung S2, the characteristics of which at one time were considered top-notch. Let's take a closer look at the two main models included in this line, as well as some additional accessories. Let's start with a basic gadget called the Samsung Galaxy S2.
Appearance and equipment
The smartphone was released back in 2011 and immediately attracted the attention of the public. The company even faced a shortage of finished products, so buying a gadget immediately after the release was problematic. The standard package included not only a charger, a USB cable, the smartphone itself and a battery for it, but also a branded wired headset with pretty high-quality sound. This made it possible to minimize the need for additional accessories. Thus, the buyer could only attend to the purchase of a protective cover, this was the end of the costs.
Externally, the Samsung Galaxy S2 Prime smartphone , the characteristics of which we will consider a little later, looked stylish and attractive. This is a classic candy bar with a relatively compact size, because it uses a display with a diagonal of only 4.3 inches. At the bottom of the display is a proprietary distinguishing feature of the Samsung devices - a small physical button that allows you to return to the main screen from any application. Among the physical controls there are also lock and volume buttons located on different side faces of the device.
The back cover is removable and has a rather large cutout, which houses the camera and LED flash. For ease of use, a USB jack is located at the bottom of the smartphone, and a 3.5 connector is at the top. The case received square strict outlines, which made it more attractive compared to the previous model.
Display
The main reason for the shortage of this model in the market was the display, made using innovative Super AMOLED technology. At that time, its production was not as developed as it is today, so it was produced in very modest quantities. The popularity of the model was so great that production capacities were simply not enough. As a result, the company's management decided to produce two models in parallel with the same characteristics, but different displays. The i9003 model, which used a standard TFT-matrix, had a lower cost, but was also popular.
The main feature of Super AMOLED displays is good color reproduction and a margin of brightness, which is enough for comfortable use of the device in the sun. In addition, such displays consume less energy during operation, which positively affects the technical characteristics of the Samsung Galaxy S2 GT-I9100 regarding autonomy.
The display resolution is 800 * 480 pixels. By modern standards, this is not so much, but such indicators are quite enough to not notice pixels in everyday use on a 4.3-inch display. Users who have been using a smartphone and analyzing the display characteristics of the Samsung S2 9100 for several years often notice that there have never been any complaints about the display.
Autonomy and battery
The manufacturer considered that to optimally preserve the appearance and reduce the thickness of the case, you can use a battery with a capacity of 1650 mAh. For modern smartphones, this would be frankly not enough, but this model has not too demanding hardware and an economical display. As a result, even when working in third-generation networks, the battery charge is enough to easily survive the whole day without recharging. At the same time, the user can continue to correspond as usual in messengers, surf the Internet and talk on voice.
Of course, everything is within reasonable limits, but for the average layman this is enough with his head. So, speaking the language of numbers, you can talk continuously for almost 7 hours. And if you leave the phone in standby mode and do not touch it, then it will live without charging for about 12 days. Moreover, in order to fully restore the energy reserve, less than 3 hours of time is required. Consequently, the smartphone Samsung Galaxy S2 autonomy characteristics can not be called ideal, but they are quite acceptable for the average user.
Communications and Wireless Features
The device is equipped with all kinds of modules that allow it to communicate with both a computer and other gadgets and peripherals. The most common option at the time when it was released was Bluetooth. Module version 3.0 allows you to connect multiple devices without problems, for example, a wireless stereo headset, fitness tracker and Samsung Gear S2 Classic. The characteristics of the data transfer rate did not decrease, just the work with each of the devices was carried out sequentially. It is worth noting that if the files were transferred between two identical devices, then a Wi-Fi module was used to speed up this procedure, and the speed increased to an impressive 24 Mbps. This allows you to exchange not only small files like photos, but also send videos or archives with data.
When connecting to a computer via USB, the device will prompt you to choose one of three connection options that should be used at the moment. Two of them are absolutely standard - this is a connection as a multimedia device and as a simple memory drive (in this mode, direct access to the installed microSD memory card is opened). But the third one is different, because it is a proprietary “chip”, a peculiar characteristic of the Samsung S2 phone. It is designed to synchronize with the Samsung Kies program, which can store all the data from the device, including phone numbers, SMS messages and much more. At that time, synchronization with Google services was not so developed, and a similar approach was useful for those who were worried about the loss of valuable data in case of theft of the device or its malfunction.
Of particular note is the presence of an NFC-module, which is not installed in cheap devices. With it, you can control many gadgets, and the phone is able to replace you with several cards used in everyday life. With the introduction of transport cards, technology has become more in demand than ever. Yes, and banking applications allow you to pay using smartphones that have this feature "on board". The specifications of the Samsung S2 16 Gb allow you to take advantage of all this set of life-saving functions to the fullest.
Mobile Standards
For those who live in large cities, it is important to have support for modern communication protocols. This is relevant, as some operators do not provide services in the usual 2G range at all.
When developing this smartphone, the manufacturer foresaw such scenarios, therefore, according to the official technical specifications of the Samsung Galaxy S2 GT-I9100, it supports all modern 3G communication frequencies used by Russian and European operators. The user will not have problems if he needs high-speed access to the Internet in any place where there is operator coverage. And the quality of calls will always be at its best, since in 3G networks the communication channel usually transmits sound more accurately and better, and it seems that the person you are talking to is right next to you.
Memory and expandability
For its time, the smartphone had a truly unlimited storage. Even in the basic version, a chip with 16 GB of non-volatile memory was installed in it, which was enough for keeping not only the necessary programs, but also a good audio library and even several films. If this was not enough, the user could easily increase the characteristics of the Samsung S2 by installing a microSD memory expansion card with a capacity of up to 32 GB. For comparison, at that time there were still iPhones with a built-in drive of only 8 GB, half of which was occupied by the system, and an expansion slot was not provided. In the case of the model under consideration, the operating system takes up only 2 GB, the rest of the space is given to the owner for undivided use.
"Iron" characteristics
In all of the above, there would be no sense if the phone were low-performance. That is why the manufacturer tried to make it as fast as possible, as far as possible, giving Samsung S2 characteristics that can be compared even with some modern budget models. So, the heart of the device was a processor of its own design called Exynos 4210. It had two cores, each of which is capable of operating at a frequency of up to 1.2 GHz. This is more than enough to complete all the basic tasks. Considering that the device was originally delivered with Android version 2.3 “on board”, you can only imagine how this firmware “flew” on it.
The processor is paired with 1 GB of RAM. This is really a lot, because the shell consumes no more than 200 MB, and the rest of the space can be used by additional programs as needed. This allowed you to run quite heavy games without "brakes", and in general, brought the gadget to the list of top and most common models. Even today, you can find a large number of people who continue to use it, despite their rather respectable age, since the characteristics of the Samsun Galaxy S2 Plus GT-19105 are enough to carry out their daily tasks.
Cameras and photo quality
Samsung did not stint on a high-quality module, and as a result, users got the opportunity to take good pictures in almost any environment. This is a module designed specifically for this model. In combination with chic optics, it is able to get around many modern state employees in color reproduction and preservation of details. It has a resolution of 8 megapixels, and this is a real, not an interpolated value. In low light, it is possible to use a powerful LED flash. Of course, at a great distance, it is unlikely to help, but it is difficult to overestimate its merits in shooting close-up objects. Thanks to these characteristics, Samsung S2 Plus is able to take high-quality photos that are sharp and clear, and auto focus almost never misses. Post-processing algorithms are also up to par.
The camera is a universal solution that allows you to use the basic macro and create panoramic images. If necessary, you can use the digital zoom, the magnification of which is four, but it is worth remembering that the quality of the picture can noticeably decrease.
The device is capable of recording video with FullHD-resolution and a frame rate of 30 units per second. However, users note that when shooting dynamic scenes, it is better to use the previous quality option, with a resolution of 1280 * 720, because otherwise the frames may abound in small jerks, which will negatively affect the viewing comfort. Most likely, this is due to the fact that the technical characteristics of the Samsung Galaxy S2 Plus are not quite enough for streaming video processing of such quality.
The front camera is also quite good. Although its main purpose is video calls, it can easily take good selfies with a resolution of 2 megapixels, as well as shoot videos in the quality of 640 * 480.
Model update
The success of the classic “Galaxy” of the second generation was so great that at some point its restart was planned. As a result, in 2013 the gadget was released, which almost completely repeats its appearance, but with fundamentally different characteristics. Samsung S2 Plus received a new blue color, updated materials from which the body was made.
The camera, battery and display remain the same, but the hardware has become more productive. The most significant difference is the use of the Broadcom BC28155 processor. Although it has the same two cores with a frequency of 1.2 GHz for each of them, in terms of graphics, it turned out to be much faster. The point here is the use of the Broadcom VideoCore IV graphics subsystem. It was she who made it possible to obtain the necessary smoothness in the work of the new firmware Android 4.1, with which this gadget was delivered to the market.
However, in some matters, the characteristics of the “Samsung S2 Plus” have worsened. If the older version had memory chips of 16 and even 32 gigabytes, then here the manufacturer clearly saved by equipping the smartphone with only 8 gigabytes of non-volatile memory. However, support for microSD cards has improved, and the gadget now supports more weighty 64-gigabyte "flash drives".
Positive user reviews about the model
Since the options for 2011 and 2013 are almost identical, the reviews about the characteristics of the Samsung Galaxy S2 Plus are also very similar to the old model. That is why they can be combined together. Among the main positive points, users most often note the following:
- Good survivability. The convenient case, which prevents the phone from dropping, and the durable glass made the device resistant to damage, inevitable in everyday use. If you have at least some kind of protective cover, breaking it is quite difficult.
- Convenient diagonal display. Many users do not want to change the smartphone to a newer model, since most of them have a display with a diagonal of 5 or more inches. However, just 4.3 inches is the golden mean that is optimal for any user, whether a guy or a girl, and allows you to easily reach the upper corners with one hand.
- Good manufacturer support. The gadget received updates until 2015, that is, for 4 years from the date of release. Even by modern standards, he still has an up-to-date version of the operating system that allows you to use all common messengers in full. That is why it is quite suitable as a simple communication device for every day. In addition, the latest updates have allowed it to be used with the Samsung Gear S2 Sport smartwatch. The characteristics of this accessory allow you to expand the functionality of the smartphone itself.
- Quality display. At one time, the device made a splash in the matter of color rendering and picture quality. It's nice to look at her, because she does not create unnecessary stress for the eyes. Many note that they used the gadget even as the main device for watching movies, despite the fact that they had a TV or tablet.
- Quality camera. Samsung has always been famous for its good cameras, and this model was no exception. She is able to take a decent shot, regardless of the environment and the quality of lighting.
- Ability to connect devices via OTG. Even modern smartphones have this function through one, and in 2011 it was a godsend for those who are tightly connected with the digital world. So, this model was highly appreciated by those who were involved in setting up the equipment, thanks to the ability to download from the Internet and dump the necessary software or other information onto a USB flash drive.
- Proprietary interface. Samsung was able to make beautiful even the outdated Android 2.3, and with the release of the update to the more current version 4.1, the situation only improved. Perhaps today everyone saw the same dandelion, which is closely associated with the lock display of these particular devices.
- A large amount of internal memory. Many users note that their smartphones have never used a memory expansion card, since the built-in chip is more than enough for everyday tasks.
As you can see, the model has not just won the hearts of many of its fans. In many ways, this reputation has developed precisely thanks to a thoughtful and balanced interface and high-quality hardware. However, she has a number of negative aspects.
Negative moments found in the smartphone
Not without minuses, which inevitably pursue absolutely any electronics. One of them is the battery capacity. It is sufficient if you use your smartphone as a means of communication. However, if it falls into the hands of an amateur to play or watch a video, and even online, the battery charge is melting before our eyes. In this case, only an external battery or a socket that is constantly under the side can save.
A high-quality display has a nasty feature - it begins to fade after several years of use. Although this feature passed unnoticed by most users who replaced it in time with a newer model. Many who use it to this day note that the picture becomes more faded, and the saturation and contrast are lost over time. And in the sun it is more difficult to use it with every year of operation. Part of the problem with the sun can be solved by purchasing a Samsung Gear S2 Classic. The characteristics of this gadget allow you to make all the important notifications on a small display on your hand, which has a good margin of brightness and color reproduction.
Conclusion
Although the smartphone has a number of disadvantages, it remains a true friend and ally for many. Buying it today is quite difficult, because most of the new devices are already almost collectible and have the corresponding cost, and used ones often consist of some shortcomings that arose as a result of long operation. However, if you get a good copy for an adequate price and there is a need for a high-quality device for communication, you can safely buy it, since it can last several years without any glitches, Samsung S2 features enough for most everyday tasks, and the battery is replaced if necessary for a couple minutes.