Look at the after effect lol
Recently I started talking about CHATGPT, Gemini, Grok, Claude and other AI, this is solely because of two reasons; for the sake of SEO and using my content experience to put Hive on the Google ranking.
My second reason is also because I've been doing some heavy research on a particular venture in trying to embark on (will share it if it becomes a success). I also think that people wants to read real life experience of AI usage from some specific point of view and not from the POV of paid KOLS and marketers.
I also talkes about ONEUI 8.5 coming to Samsung in my last post, so I'll just continue in this post.
Why I didn't upgrade my iPhone 12
iPhones have led when it comes to usability and functionality, but android and Samsung have provided more everyday functionality. I like to say that Samsung copies iPhones in hardware and software.
iPhone came up with the dynamic island thingy and Samsung copied it on the latest s26 series.
The switch from titanium to aluminium was also done by the iPhone firstly and then it was copied by Samsung, then Samsung in the latest updates with the new 8.5 has again copied iPhone with the way it arranges the whole gallery thingy: you can now view people who has appeared a lot in your pictures from the gallery, I think this feature was already there from 2020 on tnt iPhone and Samsung has been copying it, but the latest update was like a fork or clone of that UI, and the good thing is that we all love it.
This isn't to say iPhone hasn't copied Samsung, infact there was a rumor that iPhones once used Samsung lens and all that, but this has to be a rumor because iPhones still have better camera hardwares than Samsung.
This isn't to say the Samsung is completely defeated by iPhone in this area, infact the Samsung s26 matched the 17 pro max at every level and still defeated it in many photography areas, but iPhone still continue to take it when it comes to nighttime videography.
The AI kings
This isn't a phone about Samsung and iPhone, but I guess we cannot talk about AI without talking about these two powerhouses.
I've not used AI on the latest iPhone powerhouse (from the 15 to 17) my last flagship iPhone was the iPhone 12 and I never even thought of buying another iPhone, this was simply because the iPhone was seriously limiting.
I work a lot online and must times the internet is better accessed with an Android and that's why I currently use a Samsung. In 2019 Samsung was the best android phone out there, but today, not anymore.
Value for money
Devices like Oppo, Xiaomi and many others packs massive hardware for even cheaper prices and in 2026 the Vivo, especially with it's flagship device, the Vivo x300 ultra. Infact this device is 30 to 40% cheaper than the s26 ultra, and over 50% cheaper than the iPhone 17 pro max, but rivals them in quality and even does better than them in so many areas.
Samsung is solid, no doubt but we also have to remember that Nokia was king back in the day and today the brand is dead.
Value for long-term
Samsung understands the importance of remaining relevant and that's why they've packed a lot of AI gestures, and these updates are what makes it worth the money.
I think this device might be my last Samsung though, because obviously I want to also buy stuffs for cheaper and get the best value for money.
I haven't used the latest iPhones so I don't know about their AI capabilities, but I'm sure Samsung must've copied it too.
Check these out.
This doesn't mean I'm not blown away by the value Samsung offers, infact these features are actually great and I don't know if Vivo will continue offering this for long-term.
Check out a few pictures, I've remade using their AI features, infact the S25 Fe can even shoot in the HDR10+ in the main lens and these are the type of the updates that makes the S25 series true flagship levels. What do you think of these pictures I remade?