Galaxy S5 on Lollipop

There are many issues with Samsung's version of Android for the Galaxy S5 but there are MANY ways to rectify it without voiding your warranty.  One thing we won't go into here is rooting or installing custom ROMs as both of these actions can void your warranty. If you'd like to root your S5, I used the guide from Android Central which does have information on all variants (also made a tinyURL if you want an easy way to copy/remember the link http://tinyurl.com/rootGalaxyS5)

Backup Your Data

The first thing I recommend is backing up your data, I do this from simply connecting the phone to a computer and copying off all essential data.  Google has it's own backup system for apps and data and if you have the phone setup right, all your data should be safe but better safe than sorry.

Lollipop Post-Install Recommendations

At the time of writing this, all Galaxy S5s are not default installed with Lollipop (Android 5.0) and a lot of phones out of the box tell you to upgrade. After this is done, there are a few speed issues.  The easiest way to fix these is to factory reset the phone AFTER you upgrade it. If you really don't want to factory reset it because you've been using it a while, try to "wipe cache partition". Many claim "wipe cache partition" helped but I found a full factory reset to be more beneficial.

Accessing Reset & Cache Wipe

"factory reset" and "wipe cache partition" are commands both found in the same place. Holding Volume Up + Home + Power while the phone is booting (from off or a reset) will put the phone into a basic mode where you'll find these two commands, along with others.

Annoying Settings You May Want to Change

Settings Menu

The "grid view" of the settings menu is simply annoying and switching this to list view will make your world easier. You may also want to change the settings under "Edit Quick Settings" to include those you use a lot. I barely use most of the default ones and my quick list is pretty small since searching for the one I want isn't a big deal to me.
*Bonus: enable developer options by going to "About device", find the "Build number" and tap it 7 times. A new category is now available called "Developer options", this is where USB debugging mode is now hidden.

Quick Toggle Menu

Quick toggles are found from the pull down menu/notification drawer and it's highly customizable to make certain settings more accessible. You can scroll through your current selected ones, click the icon in the upper right to show all your toggles at once and you can add and remove icons from your available toggles. In the settings for toggles, click and hold one you want to move from one section to another and then drag it where you want it to sit in the order.

Samsung's Software I Recommend Replacing

Android Launcher

The Galaxy S5 comes with Samsung's Touchwiz by default, I've never found it very fast while I have read a lot of people who did like it. If you want the multi window function, which I only find useful on tablets, you'll have to stick with Touchwiz. After Lollipop it really went downhill on my phone. I replaced it with Google's Google Now Launcher. When it starts you'll only have one homescreen but to get more, simply drag an app icon or widget to the right and it will make more. Blank homescreens automatically disappear so make sure at least one item on a homescreen before trying to add a new one.

Keyboard

Although many rave that the Samsung's keyboard has some of the best spacing, it's word prediction is definitely behind the curve in comparison to others available. The current most popular keyboards are Swiftkey (in-app purchases for themes), Swype (full version is $0.99) and Google Keyboard. I feel all three are very comparable and although I use Google's keyboard simply because my words and predictions are stored on the cloud with nothing to buy, I miss having the punctuation symbols above the letters. Check out this thread if you want to see some people talking more about the features of Samsung vs Swype vs Swiftkey.

Calendar

The Samsung calendar app, called Calendar isn't very necessary and I still prefer Google Calendar as it looks so much better and goes beyond a simple boxy look. Samsung's and Google's calendar apps work in tandem as far as syncing go, but if you install Google's you'll want to disable some of the notifications in the Samsung app so you don't get double notifications.

Voice Search

Samsung's S Voice is slow and the voice isn't all that great. Since Google's Voice Search is pre-installed, all you need to do is disable S Voice. By default, S-Voice is bound to double tapping the home button and if you like this option for Voice Search, grab an app called Home2 which will make it possible to bind any app to the home button single and double tap. Just be sure when you are finished setting up Home2 and it asks you which app handles home button pressing as a default you choose Home2.

Memos / Notes

Samsung comes with a note app called Memo which should be replaced with Google Keep. Keep runs a little faster and again, having a free professional app that has cloud storage and doesn't care what phone manufacturer you're using is always a plus. Make sure you disable Samsung's Memo since it will still be running and taking up ram on the phone.

Bendable Glass, Presented By The Mythbusters

I've used Corningware products since I was a kid cooking in my mother's kitchen and to this day she still has the same Corningware dishes. Only recently did I realize Corning also made Pyrex glass and lately they've been working on a new type of glass that I, for one, am excited to see hit the consumer realm especially for mobile devices. I know one company that would hate this product (under their current ideals), Apple. The video about the glass, known as Gorilla Glass with it's own website at TheGlassAge.com. The videos are pretty interesting to watch and having the Mythbusters Jamie Hyneman & Adam Savage Host the series (currently in two parts). Both parts have been attached to this post for your convenience. Interested if your device or future device comes with Gorilla Glass? Check out this Wikipedia page, List of Devices with Gorilla Glass.