Is anyone having trouble using the 3D as a phone? I'm finding that this phone drops calls WAY more often than my TouchPro2 did. Drops them in places where the TP2 sailed right through. And even when the call is well-connected, I find that I can't understand what people are saying to me over the phone, and they report the same thing about my conversation to them. I'm constantly saying "What? Could you repeat that, please?", and so are the people at the other end.
This is an amazing device for many things - Hotspot, Navigation, Music and Media, Games, etc. - but as a phone, it leaves a lot to be desired.
I haven't had any trouble with dropped calls, but I usually have good signal when I use it. I do think the sound quality sucks compare to the evo. I called XM radio on my 3D and I could barley understand what the guy was saying. Stupid offshore call center doesn't help of course but still call quality was better on my evo. My speaker almost sounds kinda blown but I put another 3D side by side mine it sounds exactly the same.
I have an old sanyo 7050 for my work phone, call quality on that runs circles around the evo.
Do a search and try some of the tweaks to get better reception. If that does not work exchange it.
I gave up on it and took it back to Sprint yesterday. It just kept dropping calls in weak signal areas, and even when calls were connected, intelligibility suffered in both directions. So I'm back to using my old Touch Pro 2, and everyone is telling me that the sound is much better. I'll miss all the cool features of the 3vo - it really is a great device in many ways - but at least now I can count on my phone to make phone calls.
Of course, I'm running Android on the TP2, so it's not as bad as it seems!
Now I just have to figure out what's the next great phone coming along on Sprint. Hopefully they'll come up with something new sometime later in the year.
I get the same amount if dropped calls as my EVO. Either your area has some signal issues or maybe you have a defective phone.
DarkManX4lf said:
I get the same amount if dropped calls as my EVO. Either your area has some signal issues or maybe you have a defective phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You mean maybe I "had" a defective phone. Could be. Yes, my area definitely has signal issues, always has. Sprint has the best coverage in the area, but it's not that good. Still, the difference between my TP2 and the Evo3D is dramatic. The TP2 gets through the weak spots without losing the call (in most cases). The Evo3D just drops them. I never owned the older Evo - maybe it would have had trouble here, too. But quite a few people have said that the new Evo is not as good as the old one in this area.
Maybe the next HTC will be better. I hope so. I'm sure that the 3D will be fine for those who spend most of their time in strong signal areas. But I don't recommend it for those who are farther out from the city and/or suburbs.
Definitely sounds like it was an issue with your phone. I went from a TP2 to the 3D and haven't seen any real difference with the signal I'm pulling or my call quality. My wife tells me I sound the same, maybe better than before.
Yeah I'm having issues also. My signal isn't great at my house, but my evo usually was fine, did drop calls though. The 3d is killing me, its impossible to be on the phone for any duration. Only have a few days left, wanted to throw it last night, sucks i really like this phone, but may go back.
Sent from my PG86100 using XDA Premium App
sleekgreek said:
Yeah I'm having issues also. My signal isn't great at my house, but my evo usually was fine, did drop calls though. The 3d is killing me, its impossible to be on the phone for any duration. Only have a few days left, wanted to throw it last night, sucks i really like this phone, but may go back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just to close the loop on this discussion, after I returned the EVO3D, I waited for Sprint to come out with an Android phone that would have better call quality. On Saturday, I bought a new Motorola Photon 4G. It is an excellent Android phone, quite comparable to the 3D in most respects. Obviously, it doesn't have Sense (which some people seem to really like - personally, I'm indifferent to it). And it doesn't have the 3D gimmick (which I consider a blessing - the Photon has an 8mp camera instead!).
But most important, the call quality is excellent. It has a much better grasp of the signal than the 3D, it has yet to drop a call. And the voice quality is much better in both directions. This is what drew me to this phone - all the online reviews that I found were consistent in noting the very good call quality. Turns out they were right.
I'm sure most people here are delighted with the 3D, and I was as well - except for the call quality issues. If you live and work where there is a strong Sprint signal, you'll probably never have a bit of trouble. But for those who live farther out from the city, where the towers are farther apart, the new Photon4G is a very good choice. I'm really glad that I made the switch!
Either way, enjoy!
Mine dropped a bunch of calls too. I am now back to using a nexus s.
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using XDA App
Could just be a defective network and not the phone. Just saying.. LOL....
Sent from my PG86100 using XDA App
I have not.dropped a call in years until.the 3vo. Just last week It dropped maybe 4 calls - thus the swap back to the Nexus.
I have excellent call quality with my evo3d.
I'm located in Hawaii, no dropped calls but call quality isn't that great compared to Evo4G. Hopefully it's something that's fixable!!!
Alchem!st said:
Could just be a defective network and not the phone. Just saying.. LOL....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Perhaps so. But the new phone is on the same network, and it's not dropping any calls. For that matter, neither did my old TP2. I guess that's really my point - the 3D doesn't do nearly as well as other phones with lower signal levels. As long as you've got good signal, it works fine. Sprint coverage is better in some places than others, so YMMV. In any event, I'm not knocking the 3D - it's a great device. It just didn't work very well as a phone in my geography.
Gilliland said:
Perhaps so. But the new phone is on the same network, and it's not dropping any calls. For that matter, neither did my old TP2. I guess that's really my point - the 3D doesn't do nearly as well as other phones with lower signal levels. As long as you've got good signal, it works fine. Sprint coverage is better in some places than others, so YMMV. In any event, I'm not knocking the 3D - it's a great device. It just didn't work very well as a phone in my geography.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hm my 3D gets better coverage in my house than my Hero or Evo did, and about the same as my epic4G did.
ill be honest. this thing blows when it comes to signal. maaybe a different radio may fix it. But I used to have sprin and the OG evo(switched for tmobile and came back for the 3d)..and the coverage was so so inside my apartment. the 3d doesnt work at all. People keep telling me they are calling me and **** and my phone doesnt ring. My brothers OG Evo works fine. I want to exchange it, but I dont think a new one is going to change anything. Call quality is also terrible even in good signal areas.
Im getting my phone replaced since my camera went bad, but my biggest concern on this phone would have to be call quality. I could barely understand the sprint rep when talking to me. If they don't fix the call quality on this phone, I will have to replace it. This is ridiculous, and my HTC Hero was amazing in call quality. HTC Hero and HTC EVO 3D ran on the same network, so it must be a phone issue.
I haven't had any issues with quality, but I guess u live in an area with strong service
Gilliland said:
Just to close the loop on this discussion, after I returned the EVO3D, I waited for Sprint to come out with an Android phone that would have better call quality. On Saturday, I bought a new Motorola Photon 4G. It is an excellent Android phone, quite comparable to the 3D in most respects. Obviously, it doesn't have Sense (which some people seem to really like - personally, I'm indifferent to it). And it doesn't have the 3D gimmick (which I consider a blessing - the Photon has an 8mp camera instead!).
But most important, the call quality is excellent. It has a much better grasp of the signal than the 3D, it has yet to drop a call. And the voice quality is much better in both directions. This is what drew me to this phone - all the online reviews that I found were consistent in noting the very good call quality. Turns out they were right.
I'm sure most people here are delighted with the 3D, and I was as well - except for the call quality issues. If you live and work where there is a strong Sprint signal, you'll probably never have a bit of trouble. But for those who live farther out from the city, where the towers are farther apart, the new Photon4G is a very good choice. I'm really glad that I made the switch!
Either way, enjoy!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did the same thing, except my evo 3d had a major screen-freakout I couldn't fix. I also had sprint buy-back my otterbox and that money went towards the car-dock for the photon (which is freaking awesome btw). The Photon is actually a wonderful piece of hardware too. It's much lighter, so it "feels" cheap, but in all actuality it's comparable build quality. The Moto UI they have in it is a lot closer to vanilla android than HTC sense IMHO, but I'm flexible as far as that goes.
There are some features I'll miss about my 3vo, but frankly the 3d imaging made me nauseous, I didn't care for Sense, and the photon does seem to have better signal/call quality.
I'd put both devices in the same tier. Dual-core powerhouses that will provide plenty of use for a long time... but I'm kinda favoring the photon, which surprises me more than anything.
Related
Long time Sprint user who has been anticipating the new Evo 3D. Well, I received it Wednesday evening via the Premier early release and love how smooth the interface is. WiFi is super fast. It is definitely a great experience utilizing the multimedia aspect of this phone. Spiderman was pretty cool, but haven't really played with 3D yet.
My first call the person on the other end said I sounded a tad hollow. Made a few other calls with no problem besides sounding hollow. I am in San Antonio and 95% of time have pretty good reception. Now in most areas when making calls, the reception goes in and out with the display on the phone corresponding by going dead then back on. Tech support had me perform a hard reset, update my profile with still no fix. They suggested to take to a Sprint repair center and I told them a new phone shouldn't be performing like this. I am pretty bummed as the other aspects of this phone are killer. Any ideas besides replacing with a new one?? Thanks everyone.
Hmm that's weird. I have no suggestions other than to take it to a sprint store. The first call i made, the person on the other end said i call quality was awesome.
Good luck
I'd almost say I'm seeing the same. I had the NS4G for 12 days, before today switching to the e3d. While the NS4g would have a low 1 bar, and terrible wifi, it would hold call quality. Today inside the house, the e3d all calls seem to fade in and out corresponding with bar, and dba. I'm hoping it is something that others are seeing and will be fixed.
Otherwise I guess I still have about 14 days to swap this one out.
No issues here. I talked to my 90 year old grandmother today beside the building generator(while it was running) with no issues. I could hear her fine and she could hear me fine.
lol apparently I roam in my house, according to sprint this area is completely covered, with 3g even.. and I get about 300kbps
about to be regretting paying my ETF
I'm having a similar issue. I used to get 5 bars in my home on my Evo 4G, I get 1 Bar on the 3D. I'm not sure why this is happening, my wife now has my 4G and is getting 5 bars sitting next to me. Maybe I got a bad radio or something.
vinterchaos said:
lol apparently I roam in my house, according to sprint this area is completely covered, with 3g even.. and I get about 300kbps
about to be regretting paying my ETF
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you switch back to your previous carrier your ETF would be credited back, if it's T-Mobile you should just get the Sensation 4G..
txdiceman said:
Long time Sprint user who has been anticipating the new Evo 3D. Well, I received it Wednesday evening via the Premier early release and love how smooth the interface is. WiFi is super fast. It is definitely a great experience utilizing the multimedia aspect of this phone. Spiderman was pretty cool, but haven't really played with 3D yet.
My first call the person on the other end said I sounded a tad hollow. Made a few other calls with no problem besides sounding hollow. I am in San Antonio and 95% of time have pretty good reception. Now in most areas when making calls, the reception goes in and out with the display on the phone corresponding by going dead then back on. Tech support had me perform a hard reset, update my profile with still no fix. They suggested to take to a Sprint repair center and I told them a new phone shouldn't be performing like this. I am pretty bummed as the other aspects of this phone are killer. Any ideas besides replacing with a new one?? Thanks everyone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you ever get the phone replaced? My girlfriend's 3d is getting bad or no reception in places where her Hero worked fine. I'm wondering if I need to get it replaced too.
I , too, have bad reception on my EVO3D. My hero used to have good quality. I think it's a bad radio as well.
I took the OTA update. Call quality & reception has been terrific and thats feedback from fellow Sprint pals in addition to AT&T and Verizon users. I am in Columbia, SC where 4G does not exist yet.
Also noticed that my speaker (not speaker phone) volume is much louder after the OTA...
xweaponx said:
I took the OTA update. Call quality & reception has been terrific and thats feedback from fellow Sprint pals in addition to AT&T and Verizon users. I am in Columbia, SC where 4G does not exist yet.
Also noticed that my speaker (not speaker phone) volume is much louder after the OTA...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I also took the OTA. Louder speaker volume, no reception issues. I fluctuaute from 4-5 bars. Spouses is the same way.
The only issue that I have is the tunnel effect. People can hear me fine and I can hear them fine, it just sounds like they are far away. Loud, but far away
Sent from my PG86100 using XDA App
Finally used the phone after owning it for 5 days. To me, it sounds fine. Of course, had 3 bars of 4G being in NYC.
Hey XDA!
first off let me say yet again how much appreciate this community and think so highly of everyone who supports, and contributes.
so heres my question/rant i have.
I am on the Rogers network, and in city areas, it works great no issues however i live in a small town, and signal is weak(er) in some spots.
However, let me rant a second here... I have a samsung captivate which is on the dev side of things... AMAZING, all the hard work those guys put into this device blows me away and i appreciate it everyday. What i dont appreciate is not being able to call my grandma and say merry christmas.
if i use my phone at my house, i get service if i stay perfectly still in one spot... but if i raise my leg, or look at the ceiling the call drops... (ok so my house is a dead spot?)
wrong... I got choked at my phone and put my sim in my old Blackberry 9000 and had HIGH QUALITY calls, no hitting or missing just clear awesome phone calls...
So... what android phones (because i <3 my droid) have high quality antennas in them like my BB or the BB's in general so i can get phone calls and when i phone rogers and layeth the smackdown, i know what i would like.
Once again much love everyone
Gorship.
bump bump bump it up
I live in rural Texas. For some reason here, samsung phones always have weaker signal. No problems with motorola, though.
Sent from my DROID3 using XDA App
The best phones I've ever had have had external antennas. Sadly, I don't think those are in style anymore
My old Palm Treo 700P can make calls in places where my new android candybar sure can't.
I wish I had some sort of antenna I could plug into my phone so that I could get a signal at my desk at work.
Newbee to this section and photon in general. My son has an epic touch 4g and is very much unhappy with dropped calls, texts that arrive hours later, things that pertain to the phones ability to make calls etc. I have heard that the photon is very good as a phone, maybe it has a stronger antenna or something? I myself have an evo 3d and it's not the greatest as far as phone calls either. To me all of these devices are pretty close spec wise (dual core, good graphics,etc) so i was thinking about trying to trade one of the phones for a photon. Do you think i would notice an improvement in call quality? If i do trade should i look for a phone that has not been updated past a certain point (for rooting purposes)? thank you for your time.
woody296 said:
Newbee to this section and photon in general. My son has an epic touch 4g and is very much unhappy with dropped calls, texts that arrive hours later, things that pertain to the phones ability to make calls etc. I have heard that the photon is very good as a phone, maybe it has a stronger antenna or something? I myself have an evo 3d and it's not the greatest as far as phone calls either. To me all of these devices are pretty close spec wise (dual core, good graphics,etc) so i was thinking about trying to trade one of the phones for a photon. Do you think i would notice an improvement in call quality? If i do trade should i look for a phone that has not been updated past a certain point (for rooting purposes)? thank you for your time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
would definitely notice a difference, p photon been a great phone best I've ever owned....yeah try to get on thats on 2.3.4.... if your planning on unlocking, I think root can be done either way but if you want to unlock the bootloader need the older version, granted I have no idea if the newest photons on the shelves have been updated though so might be worrying for nothing, but best to play it safe ya know
Sent from my MB855 using xda premium
my father in law just upgraded to the photon and loves it. It came with 2.3.4 from Best Buy and I had no problems rooting and unlocking out last night.
The photon has been the best phone I've had also. Compared to my wife's Epic and some friends Evos it gets signal and doesn't drop calls like there's do.
Sent from my CM9 beast
Coming from a plethora of samsung devices I am blown away by the signal quality and strength of this phone.
Sent from my Photon 4G via Tapatalk 2
xopher.hunter said:
Coming from a plethora of samsung devices I am blown away by the signal quality and strength of this phone.
Sent from my Photon 4G via Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1....Compared to E4G and ogEVO the Photon is miles above them for signal strength and overall "phone function" usage.
The photon definitely has a better radio than other phone I've seen. I have friends on sprint who will barely hold 1-2 bars of signal while my photon has a solid 4. I've never had a single dropped call and only had late texts one time, and a simple reboot fixed it.
Sent from my MB855 using XDA
i agree to all. High quality radios in the Photon that will provide you with great communications. For smartdevices, its up there but not 1st. for a phone where communication is key, it is untouchable. you will be impressed by the call quality if you buy one.
woody296 said:
Newbee to this section and photon in general. My son has an epic touch 4g and is very much unhappy with dropped calls, texts that arrive hours later, things that pertain to the phones ability to make calls etc. I have heard that the photon is very good as a phone, maybe it has a stronger antenna or something? I myself have an evo 3d and it's not the greatest as far as phone calls either. To me all of these devices are pretty close spec wise (dual core, good graphics,etc) so i was thinking about trying to trade one of the phones for a photon. Do you think i would notice an improvement in call quality? If i do trade should i look for a phone that has not been updated past a certain point (for rooting purposes)? thank you for your time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Phone is Great if you roam on Verizon!!!"
Sent from my MB855 using xda premium
As a phone, it gets some weird popping sounds sometimes, like a short in the speaker. Makes me think the other person hung up.
There was an audio routing issue at launch that has since been fixed and not the MoPho is superior in many ways. CDMA is reliable so far as retaining calls, dropped calls are typically a network issue, that said the issues you've seen with other phones dropping calls are probably device specific and should be regarded as such. Unless you're talking about a device sounding "tinny" or garbled or echoes ect. call quality is usually network related.
Photon owns. Best phone I've ever had. Out of box, Modded, whatever. MoPho.
As a phone the Motorola Photon 4G is the best phone on Sprint. Motorola is known to make great wireless radios. You will get better signal with the Photon than any other phone on Sprint.
So if you're a person that actually counts on getting all your calls, text, and voicemails on time, currently the Photon is your best option on Sprint. I use to have the Epic Touch, great device in all aspects except for being a phone.
Sprint is the worst major carrier in the U.S. in my opinion. I've been with all 4 majors. The only thing good about Sprint is unlimited plans. Their prices aren't too far off other carries. You may save a few bucks but it's not major. Just good plans. I changed to Verizon. You pay more but I get signal everywhere and I'm a person that relies on phone calls.
Sent from my DROID RAZR using XDA
Currently looking at the S3 or the EVO right now to change up from my S2 (it's starting to mess up hardware wise) While I love my S2 there were always issues with Samsung radios and being for lack of a better word piss poor signal wise. Just kinda looking for some info oh what you guys think about your EVO's and radio signal as well as hardware vs the S3. I can read reviews all day long but looking for some real word use from actual owners who have been using the phone for a few.
anything helpful would be great
Thanks
And ermf wrong forum (at school and tired meh)
Edit
I'm not worried about the LTE issues I've been reading about right now as Seattle does not have any LTe coverage (and from the looks of it were not getting it till sometime next year) So this would be 3G based radio performance that I'm asking about.
I don't have any signal issues. I have a few dropped calls now and then but I think that's a Sprint issue. Camera and camera software is topnotch. Speaker sounds good. Bluetooth works good. WiFi and data act weird sometimes, seems like the phone has a rough time switching between the two. Proximity sensor sometimes doesn't work right in low light situations. All in all I think it's a good phone. Runs fast, sense reloads once in awhile.
Agreed...the phone is solid, I'm happy I went with it instead of the gs3. Sprint's service on the other hand...
Sent from my EVO LTE
premo15 said:
Agreed...the phone is solid, I'm happy I went with it instead of the gs3. Sprint's service on the other hand...
Sent from my EVO LTE
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Eh I'm ok with the Sprint service here (at least for me) The S2 has been solid for me just recently it's been having reboot issues out of no where even with pure stock so I know it's hardware issues which I'm going to get it replaced but I've been looking at the S3 and the EVO as well to replace it. Reading the forums it's looking like some are having issues with 3g and most are having issues with LTE which like I said honestly does not bother me being as I have not LTE here in Seattle for awhile :/
Yeah, we in Seattle are hosed for a while
If you get the Evo, bear in mind, there is currently no S-off method for the version you'll likely get. I haven't had any WiFi issues like other poster mentioned and I love this device.
That said, posting here, you're likely to get biased advice. Hopefully you posted in both forums.
from my flying AOKP'd Evo LTE and xda premium
never had any issues with radios or signal.
I have an upgrade starting today, have original gnexus that came out almost 2 years ago. I love the phone but the signal is horrendous 3g/4g doesn't matter.
This phone looks great, to be honest not sure what phone to get, I don't care about rooting or upgrading rom's just don't have time for that need a phone that works.
Between the ones I have.. Ive got a 515.09 and .10 and both on LTE here average around -86-90 dbm , 3-4 bars all day
Sitting at -89 on my Note 3 right now, in my area I don't really notice a difference in signal
NeoMagus said:
Between the ones I have.. Ive got a 515.09 and .10 and both on LTE here average around -86-90 dbm , 3-4 bars all day
Sitting at -89 on my Note 3 right now, in my area I don't really notice a difference in signal
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
so not major differences? Maybe i just got a bad gnexus, but I did exchange a few times right now sitting at -93 to -103 in 3g with 2 bars
with 4G I have one bar with -111
I just know compared to my daughters iphone she has much better signal then my gnexus, so I know something is up with this phone.
How is the camera on the note3 compared to gnexus? Is it better at least? I know it a cell phone, but gnexus camera was hit and miss.
I've never had an issue with the signal on either of mine .. might be a fringe area as well .. chances are though if its bad with the 515 it'll be bad with the Note.
Camera wise, jmo but I dont really like the Note 3's camera. Shots dont turn out well on mine often I liked how fast the GNex instantly snapped shots and I do prefer AOSP over TW
NeoMagus said:
I've never had an issue with the signal on either of mine .. might be a fringe area as well .. chances are though if its bad with the 515 it'll be bad with the Note.
Camera wise, jmo but I dont really like the Note 3's camera. Shots dont turn out well on mine often I liked how fast the GNex instantly snapped shots and I do prefer AOSP over TW
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks really torn, would have liked to just go to nexus 5 but I am stuck with verizon.
Choices really s4, note3, LG G2, or htc one or i guess that new htc max
Out of those any idea which has the best signals? I know this might be wrong forum to ask about other phones but not sure where to ask
Motorola phones are generally regarded as having good radios, but I personally haven't used one since the Bionic
The note 3 is the greatest phone on the market.
Signals are amazing.
Camera is amazing.
Battery is amazing.
Screen is amazing.
Speed is amazing.
It's only flaw is the lack of AOSP.
And if you ask most of us here, you will find that many of us agree AOSP on this device is a Downgrade.
You lose out on so many features.
With that being said.
You'd be a fool to buy any other current phone for Verizon.
(Maybe the exception for the LG G2)
I just got the note 3 and had come from the thunderbolt. Signal was better on the bolt unfortunately but when the signal is good man does the note fly.
Edit: 3g is always strong but when you get stuck on 1 to 2 bars on 4g the phone will just sit there sometimes.
Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk
barrackOBAMA said:
The note 3 is the greatest phone on the market.
Signals are amazing.
Camera is amazing.
Battery is amazing.
Screen is amazing.
Speed is amazing.
It's only flaw is the lack of AOSP.
And if you ask most of us here, you will find that many of us agree AOSP on this device is a Downgrade.
You lose out on so many features.
With that being said.
You'd be a fool to buy any other current phone for Verizon.
(Maybe the exception for the LG G2)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After several devices, and trying CM variants since I dunno.... CM8 or CM9, I am worm out on AOSP. The signal specifically is always worse on AOSP than stock Touch wiz.
OP, I've been through the Fascinate, Charge, GS3 and now the Note 3. It seems to me (at least in terms of Samsung radios) that they finally got it right. I get better signal with the N3 than the GS3 which wasn't very old really. Both wifi and 4G. In places where I used to barely get any signal or the sporadic 1xRtt data I get a marginal 3G signal. That's good for the place I test it weekly which is like a Faraday cage. Most people in class with me have zero signal. For reference on AOSP on my GS3 I would have nothing there, zero, even texts fail there.
Last night I did a test with the wifi radio. I walked outside my place nearly 100 ft and was STILL getting usable signal using the 5ghz band of my router (Netgear WNDR3700) which to be fair has a lot to do with that test. I could have switched to the 2.4ghz band for improved range but in between these two apartment buildings I am probably picking up on 30 routers at once so 5ghz gives me much better SNR. It's noticeably improved over the GS3 as far as wifi.
All in all I am very happy with reception considering it's a Samsung. I put it nearly on par with coworkers Motorola Razr Maxx and similar handsets. Keep in mind I am in a very well established heavily covered LTE market metro area. You I think you still have a 14 day trial period with Verizon, why not give it a try.
Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk
I was in a similar situation - loved the GNexus, other than poor signal as well as battery life. Stock ROM, also no time/interest in flashing ROM's, or even rooting.
The GN3 is a breath of fresh air. The battery life is incredible. I've only had it a month, and haven't done significant traveling, but the signal has just never been a problem. When I've tested it, it's been as good as my wife's Galaxy S4, which was clearly better than my GNexus.
The browsing experience with Chrome is also incredible - it seems as fast as my desktop loading pages and responsiveness (the GNexus wasn't bad, but this is dramatically faster). The display is gorgeous, and I love the size.
By a stroke of good fortune, it seems to work better with my BlueAnt S4 (visor-mounted bluetooth speaker device). It also works quite well with S-Voice, for truly hands-free operation when driving (I use Car Home Ultra with it).
So yes, for me at least, it simply works without me having to do much other than customizing appearance and apps. I have no regrets at all in going to the GN3 from the GNexus.
Probably best for the sticky here ...http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2466108