Advice needed: Buying new Samsung Galaxy S3 @ 29K without bill

D

digitalkerala

Broken In
The local dealers quote a price of 33,500 rupees for SGS3 with bill & warranty. He also offered another box packet without bill & warranty for 29K. Is buying this phone risking warranty but on other end saving 4.5K advisable? Has anyone experienced any bad things with grey product of Samsung before?.

One friend suggested to go for the deal without bill as 29K is a very catchy price. He was also saying, with or without bill, the moment if any user drop down their phone; then the warranty is lost. In both cases if drop & damage of screen happens then we need to spend about 8K for replacement of screen.

I’ve some queries. Is every grey product imported off the track without taxes?. Is product allotted for Indian market also available without bill?. I’ve heard the Verizon model of SGS3 have lot of complaints (80 to 90% of defects if any mentioned in various forums are related to Verizon) & international version of S3 especially the one available in India have least complaints mentioned so far.

How can I confirm if this grey product of S3 is the one packed for Indian market? Or else, how to confirm if it is an international version?.

Should i buy S3 without bill for 29K? does it seem safe? or Should i opt for Indian version with bill for 33.5K?. Advice please
 
Flash

Flash

Lost in speed
Moreover, i've heard complaints about S3. So,if you buy without bill - you will have to struggle a lot, when something gone bad.
 
OP
D

digitalkerala

Broken In
Gearbox said:
Moreover, i've heard complaints about S3. So,if you buy without bill - you will have to struggle a lot, when something gone bad.
Click to expand...

Hi Gearbox, What complaints? Anything specific. One of my main concern is screen cracking (that is the widely mentioned complaints in american forums, where screen acquires a hair line crack without drop of the phone, either due to pressure of handling or mishandling the phone in jeans pocket etc. But, these complaints are mostly reported with Verizon versions, and rarely i have heard this with international version or the batches sold in India). As far as i believe even if you have bill & warranty, for a screen replacement of any phone, we need to pay extra.

I have already ordered & received this leather case for S3. So i guess this hard case will protect the screen completely with accidental drop & falls. I also have ordered Spigen screen protector
Zenus Galaxy S3 Prestige Vintage Signage Diary Series - Galaxy S3 - Androids

Other tiny complaints might be replacement of earpiece, agps unit, usb ports etc (if they fail during the first 12 month) which will be done free of cost during the warranty period. But, considering a saving of 4.5K rupees, and chance of getting an error unit at 1 or 2% is it still risky?. 4.5K is a big saving for me. Confused between 2 options & i plan to buy the phone on next monday.
 
Flash

Flash

Lost in speed
Not to scare you, but here's a tidbit
Samsung Galaxy S3 Review: Top Negative Comments and Complaints Roundup : Tech : Latinos Post
 
S

sharang_3

Journeyman
Gearbox said:
Not to scare you, but here's a tidbit
Samsung Galaxy S3 Review: Top Negative Comments and Complaints Roundup : Tech : Latinos Post
Click to expand...

android phones arent lke good old nokia that would survive anything..best to take one with warranty and stay safe..seen so many frnds with android having problems in starting 2-3 months ..
 
Hrishi

Hrishi

******************
Doesn't this phone has Gorilla glass or something similiar ?? How come they can't handle pressure , GG is meant for that purpose itself.
Btw , its not advisable to buy w/o bill & warranty product unless you want to sell them after a couple of weeks or months use.

Chances are likely to develop hardware related issues within an year of use.
IF you running on a limited budget then look for a used one in mint condition with warranty instead of one w/o bill.
 
thetechfreak

thetechfreak

Legend Never Ends
1 sentence- as the phone is officially available in India don't get it without a bill. No matter what he says. It might be a hassle if something goes bad in warranty period.
 
OP
D

digitalkerala

Broken In
Hi Rishi, Yes this phone has Gorrilla Glass2, an improved version over the one used in Galaxy S2. But, I heard this is 20% less thinly, though they claim this to be scratch resistant, it is not crack resistant. There are 100s of YouTube videos showing Galaxy S3 drop test & in many cases an accidental drop can crack the screen like spider web if there is no proper shock absorbing cases like Otterbox etc.

Any phone above 4 Inches is highly risky with screen crack from drop & fall. Regarding the pressure handling, assume u push this 8 to 9mm thin phone into your jeans pocket (sit on bike or car) & definitely a pressure is applied with bending of 15 to 20' degree. Remember that S3 casing is a flexible plastic & the corning gorilla glass is merely 1 or 2mm thick so, placing this phone in jeans / pants pocket can give huge pressure, if not in one day, but with regular use it can produce hair line crack or touch sensitivity issues.

I guess Samsung have done their best to keep a 4.8 inch screen phone light weight & thin and its mostly users mishandling giving issues.

One of my friend who uses htc one x got a hair line crack in the display & he is sure he hasn’t mishandled the phone. But, later he found out that it is due to his habit of leaving the phone on bed while he sleep and might be natural roll over the phone while sleeping giving enough pressure to crack the screen. For 3 weeks he was blaming that HTC is a bad company & lecturing every other friend not to go for it? Odd thing is even after replacing the screen, he said he can’t change the habit of leaving the phone in bed, just for he is a word with friends game addict.

Manufacturing defects might be 1 to 2% maximum, and I guess 90 to 95% of small & tender problems we hear about phones or any gadgets from our friends or online reviews, forums are partially out of a users / buyers mishandling. None of us are transparent easily to admit our own mistakes & might end up blaming the phone company. A friend of mine using S3 blames always on S voice features & say the phone is defective, also say the camera is bad, it is not 12mp pixels compared to sony’s xperia series. S voice is a half baked technology or a partial gimmick, not a phone defect.


Hi Sharang, I agree android phones aren’t like good old nokia phones. Symbian was the best once & sturdiness & features of nokia phones was amazing in those good times. But, if nokia was releasing android phones today, definitely they might be having 6 to 8 entry level android phones (with 256 or 512 Mb Ram) below 10 to 15K, and naturally they will also have the same lagging issues or low ram efficiency to perform multi tasking. And if Nokia have a clone of S3 or S2 or Note series with 4 to 5 inch screen display & with 8mm thickness, certainly they will have the same pressure handling issues of screen with users handling. Android need to mature more & hope it will in few years ahead. If anyone closely observes the 50 to 60% of android phone complaints in internet, most of them are either lack of knowledge in using android by first time users. Rests are mostly lagging issues or compatibility issues running apps & games or Medias in low memory phones.

Thankyou guys, I have decided to go with a purchase with bill & warranty. Will buy this in next few hours. Though saving 4.5k is a big deal for me & tempting offer, I fear to risk on grey product now.
 
aroraanant

aroraanant

Explorer
With Bill S3 is easily available for 33k and if you buy it in some deal or with a coupon from websites like ebay it costs you 32k or less.
So if you get it without bill for 25k then may be it is worth otherwise not.
I think if anyone is buying a phone without bill then there should be difference of around 30% then it is worth
 
Flash

Flash

Lost in speed
As he said above, buy with coupons in eBay.
Both ICICI & HDFC has 7% off coupons, active till Dec.31,2012.

Assuming 33k as the price, you can save upto 2300+, thereby the final price will be ~31k

Use this All Bank Ebay Deals, for other bank coupons.
 
Hrishi

Hrishi

******************
Gearbox said:
As he said above, buy with coupons in eBay.
Both ICICI & HDFC has 7% off coupons, active till Dec.31,2012.

Assuming 33k as the price, you can save upto 2300+, thereby the final price will be ~31k

Use this All Bank Ebay Deals, for other bank coupons.
Click to expand...
+1 , go for this.
 
vipul619

vipul619

whodiswhodat
I was recently getting my friend an Xperia P, and saw a guy with a S3 that was burnt inside out.
So be sure to get a bill, coz as said above, we no more have the Nokia like quality around, anyone can get a defective handset, so why risk 29k. Think of 4k as an insurance money :D
 
z3rO

z3rO

Journeyman
Its available for 30k here. Dunno about site reputation but they provide manufacturer warranty.
 
perplexed

perplexed

Journeyman
Rishi. said:
Doesn't this phone has Gorilla glass or something similiar ?? How come they can't handle pressure , GG is meant for that purpose itself.
Btw , its not advisable to buy w/o bill & warranty product unless you want to sell them after a couple of weeks or months use.

Chances are likely to develop hardware related issues within an year of use.
IF you running on a limited budget then look for a used one in mint condition with warranty instead of one w/o bill.
Click to expand...

Gorilla Glass makes the surface scratch resistant. Plz note.. the surface. It is not related to the overall structural strength of the screen.
 
OP
D

digitalkerala

Broken In
Hi everyone thanks for all your advice. I’ve finally got the phone with bill & warranty for 33.5K. Samsung doesn’t offer extended warranty, so preferring to consider an insurance instead (I heard they cover theft, accidental damage & basic services)

The phone is perfectly good & very happy with the usage. With nearly 3 hours voice talk (regular call , skype, fring or viber), with 1 to 2 hours of browsing, 2 hrs of music and with about 12 to 14 apps in background sync on end of 24 hours it still shows 39% battery.

The only disappointing thing about this phone is that the bundled headphone is not comfortable to fit into my ears. It slips or falls instantly. The design of the earphone is not suitable for my ears (guess it is problem with my ear lobes shape :p hehe). The apple ipod touch’s earphone is not compatible with S3. Can anyone suggest an alternate earphone for S3?
 
A

achyutaghosh

Journeyman
digitalkerala said:
Hi everyone thanks for all your advice. I’ve finally got the phone with bill & warranty for 33.5K. Samsung doesn’t offer extended warranty, so preferring to consider an insurance instead (I heard they cover theft, accidental damage & basic services)

The phone is perfectly good & very happy with the usage. With nearly 3 hours voice talk (regular call , skype, fring or viber), with 1 to 2 hours of browsing, 2 hrs of music and with about 12 to 14 apps in background sync on end of 24 hours it still shows 39% battery.

The only disappointing thing about this phone is that the bundled headphone is not comfortable to fit into my ears. It slips or falls instantly. The design of the earphone is not suitable for my ears (guess it is problem with my ear lobes shape :p hehe). The apple ipod touch’s earphone is not compatible with S3. Can anyone suggest an alternate earphone for S3?
Click to expand...

Congratulations on buying the best allrounder phone in the market. Looks like you are quite happy with it- happiness will be multiplied once you get your jelly Bean upgrade. I got mine a couple of days back and the update has been true to its name of Project Butter :)
Use the power saving features to extract more juice- mine usually lasts more than 2 days on a single charge and this includes mail syncing all day. The provided earphones are the in-ear type, and this one usually adjusts to the shape of the ear, so am a bit surprised with your problem. There are millions of headphones to choose from though
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom