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Given same costs, which would you prefer?
I originally wanted to go to the Sensation, and I waited for it. But, lukewarm initial reviews, $5 more a month for a limited 2GB data cap (vs unlimited and LTE on VZW), and a more active development community with the Thunderbolt convinced me to change my order to VZW.
However, considering the terrible battery life of the Thunderbolt, the fact that I don't get LTE in my office or at home (1x and 3G are my normal connections), and the Tbolt being slightly inferior in the hardware department, I am thinking that i should switch back to the Sensation idea. I get 20% discount with Verizon, versus 12% on Tmobile.
I want to trust that upcoming Gingerbread ROMs for Thunderbolt will result in a better product on a faster network. I'm just somewhat underwhelmed with the Tbolt after a week.
Thoughts?
personally, i would look at it like this
1. what carrier has stronger signal strength where you are
2. LTE vs Hardware. your either going to get amazing download and upload speeds when LTE finally rolls out in your area and imo its amazing + its unlimited if you are grandfathered in; or you can get slightly improved specs which honestly, wont really matter in day to day usage. The only differences you'll really see are when you play high end games or something like that.
3. Which phone has a more developed community. As far as i know, the thunderbolt has a huge community just like the original incredible. Even now, after so many years the incredible is still getting roms. I saw a sense 3.0 rom on an incredible!
sooo up to you lol. your going to be using the phone not me :]
You know I was at the same exact crossroads. I just came off of my 2 year contract with T-Mobile and I was pondering buying the Sensation or switching to Verizon (which has much better coverage in my area). I like the Sensation just a tad better due to its dual core processor and how much shimmer it is. This goes without saying, the Sensation is one sexy phone. It all came down to the carrier for me. In my house I would average 1-2 bars. So I went with VZW and the Thunderbolt. Honestly I love the Thunderbolt. It's great. For you, I would say go with the carrier that has better service in your area which I believe is safe to say Verizon.
Sent from my HTC Thunderbolt using XDA Premium App
if you don't get Ltd where you are most I would go with the sensation
Yeah, it is completely a coin toss. Look at the development community here vs. Sensation, the Tbolt is much more active.
Considering the hell that an AT&T buyout would bring to Atmosphere, I'd be far happier stuck on VZW for two years.
If I can just work around this battery misery, I think the Tbolt will be fine.
Sent from my TBolt using XDA App
BoulderGeek said:
Yeah, it is completely a coin toss. Look at the development community here vs. Sensation, the Tbolt is much more active.
Considering the hell that an AT&T buyout would bring to Atmosphere, I'd be far happier stuck on VZW for two years.
If I can just work around this battery misery, I think the Tbolt will be fine.
Sent from my TBolt using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Im getting about 8-10 hrs. on mine right now
setup in sig
Sensation looks pretty sweet. If Verizon had it in their line up it would be a top choice.
Agreed with everybody else. Depends on the carrier. If no LTE get the sensation.
T-Mobile will throttle down your data after you hit the 2GB ceiling, get Verizon before the 7th of July and you're locked in with unltd data with no cap or throttle, be it 3G or LTE. Even if you don't have LTE yet, you will eventually. The majority of features on a smartphone use network data, so all the memory and processing power technology has to offer means absolutely **** when your data stinks.
Sent from my ADR6400L using XDA App
If you don't get LTE in your area, download LTE On/Off or a similar program and switch to CDMA Auto. This will greatly improve your battery life.
I would take a not-so-hot device on Verizon's 4G any day over a "hot device" on a non Verizon carrier any day!!
Plus, the TB is definitely hot
Let me offer my feelings, because I have just completed the exact same journey you are embarking on, meaning I had a Sensation on Tmo, and just witched to VZW for the Thunderbolt. Here are my impressions:
HTC Sensation 4G:
I used to be on my company's corporate plan with blackberrys but recently accepted a new job, which allowed me to get whatever phone/carrier I wanted. I had used Tmobile years ago and did the whole HTC HD2 custom ROM thing and had a really good time with it. The sensation always claimed to be on 4g mode and I got relatively good speeds. I could always stream music/videos without any delay, and Speedtest would report about 3mbps on average, with a peak of 8 on a couple of occasions. Coverage was excellent & no dropped calls.
The phone itself is a work of art. It's very light, had outstanding battery life under heavy usage, and Sense 3.0 is beautiful. The tweaked functionality of the camera app among other things was nice. My favorite feature of course being free built in hotspot/tethering. However something was missing.
I really missed the screensize of the HD2. While both are 4.3" diagonal, the S4G has a higher aspect ratio, so the phone is actually skinnier. I didnt like this. I really liked how readable text was on my HD2, and the proximity of icons/buttons when texting were. All in all, the HD2 was simply the perfect size for me.
Then I went to a VZW store and made then unbox a thunderbolt for me so I could try it out without those security wires attached to it. I immediately fell in love and knew within seconds that this was the phone for me. I ran out the buyers remorse period on tmobile just to make sure, and finally made the switch on Monday! I cant tell you how pleased I am. The phone just feels right in my hands.
Every time I used the S4G I was constantly judging it for its screensize. This was a huge bummer, because I could never enjoy the phone. Every time I picked it up all I could think about was how much more smushed and how much scrolling I needed to do to get the same screen real estate visible on the Thunderbolt.
Thoughts on the Thunderbolt:
People arent lying, the battery life is borderline abysmal, but this is actually fine with me since I work behind a desk. I am actually charging it via USB as we speak. I'll probably also plug it into my car charger so it's boosted by the time I get home. I seem to get about 4-6 hours of heavy usage out of it (I was recording myself giving seminars this morning, then surfing all through lunch using the kickstand). I dont mind the battery life since I can easily keep it juiced, but I would NEVER recommend this phone for anyone on the go.
The only thing I actually dont like is how bulky the phone is. Even my HD2 was slimmer/lighter. Maybe its the LTE modem, or maybe it's the kickstand, but the phone feels fat in my hand. In fact, I've basically traded one nuisance for another, nagging on the S4G due to size, and nagging on the TB due to weight. Time will tell if I begin to regret my decision, but I think the other benefits will make up for it.
On TMO, within my first week on the S4G I had already used 1gb. Granted I was playing around with it a bit more than usual, but still. I think we're all gonna hit 2GB a lot sooner than we realize, and the carriers on banking on this (hence the reason they made them). Having 100% unlimited grandfathered 4G with the TB was probably my second biggest selling point. I dont like using a phone and constantly checking the MyAccount app, or 3g watchdog to determine how close I am to running over. It kinda sours the whole experience. With the TB I can just kick back relax and know I'll never be bothered with it.
And speaking of bulk/kickstand issues, I just want to say how AWESOME this kickstand is. I am constantly using it (even though it's only been 3 days lol). I love being able to stand it up and flick through web pages with 1 finger while I eat a sandwich or pasta or something at work. I'm really shocked they arent doing this will all their phones now.
Oh yeah, one other thing, performance. Believe it or not, but the TB actually feels snappier to me running Froyo than the S4G. Dual core or not, the S4G's framerate when switching homescreens always had a little choppiness to it. This really blows and feels like you're using a bogged down phone. The TB always has wonderfully smooth transitions. Obviously this is due to lack of 3d fx, but I'd rather have a smooth simply interface than a clunky advanced one. The only feature of Sense 3.0 I actually used was the lockscreen widget. It's pretty hand to be able to open emails/sms messages from here, but it really only saves you from 1 extra step when you use a standard lockscreen. All the other upgrades apps were pretty useless. Yeah the new weather widget is awesome and I would just stare and stare at it for minutes at a time. That was on my first day. On the 2nd day I never even noticed it. I even used the weather as my wallpaper, and still I didnt notice it.
P.S. I was really nervous about this whole ATT thing too. ATT has given some blanket statement that existing 4g users on Tmo's network will be "given an opportunity to upgrade" or something along those lines. Basically you WILL have to get a new phone eventually. LTE is NOT what Tmo is using, and ATT wants that spectrum baaaaad. Believe me, once it's theirs they are going to use it, and completely redeploy it for real 4G as they can. If you're LUCKY, they MIGHT do it in a series of phaseouts, letting users of phones like the S4G exhaust their contracts before each little piece of spectrum is gobbled up and transformed into LTE space. And thats assuming they're going to play nice, and since when has ATT ever played nice? ATT is always the first carrier to impose some asinine rules or restrictions on their services. They are the last company I would trust to be fair and not just force me to renew my contract in 13 months or be dumped to 2g speeds forever.
Hope that helps!
Verizon + Unlimited 4G LTE on the Thunderbolt can't be beat.
Thank you very much for taking the time to write that up, RunNGun!
You've hit upon many of my concerns and observations. I was actually thinking that the Sensation's aspect ratio difference and smaller size would be a positive for me. the Thunderbolt with a silicone bumper case feels as massive as the old Apple Newton I had in 1994.
But, I'm a relatively substantial guy at six feet and 215lbs, so it's not overwhelmingly large. I think that the 4" AMOLED of the Samsung Galaxy S line is the sweet spot for me. but, when I had one on AT&T, I returned it within three weeks. And I am glad that I did.
I'm getting about the same battery that you are. I also have USB at work and chargers all over the house, cars and motorcycles so I'm quite covered for applying power. I might get 8 hours on the stock battery, with wifi off and green power on.
I'm holding off the root and flash until I am out of return period and whatever upgrade that may come has been seen. I did port over my TMobile number that I've had since 1998, so I am pretty much sold on the Tbolt. i did a Speedtest in the car at a stoplight the other day and got 30mbit! And, I've already burned through 5+ Gigs of data just letting the bloatware do its thing and playing some Pandora.
I had a very good experience with Tmobile on my old Nokia 5800. But that sucked so badly for data services, that i only had text and voice on it. However, i could always make a call, where my GF on iPhone 4 has about a 50/50 chance of getting service or an inbound call.
I've also had good experiences with VZW in the past, but CDMA is such dead tech, it is hard to buy into it in 2011. I'd prefer a true world phone for my travels.
Cheers again for a great synopsis.
So you got the TB then? I have to agree with you about CDMA, but with a carrier as big and powerful as VZW I guess it doesnt really matter, they've certainly proven that it is a reliable platform and they can do great things with it. I wish I could use my phone overseas too, but at least I'll always have my wife's HD2 which is GSM for those occasions.
BTW I forgot to mention that my battery life is stifled from use of bluetooth a lot. I basically leave bluetooth on 24/7, GPS too, even though I'm not really using GPS that much. I dont actually shut off the radio. WiFi is always off. The first day I actually got 12 hours out of it before charging, because I was just too busy to play with it. Hard to say what my ultimate average will really be.
Currently with Sprint and have an EVO 3D. Really thinking about switching now that Verizon's offering 4GB for $30. Is the Droid RAZR as cool as it seems? Any comparisons to the Evo/Evo 3D? Thanks.
I just made the switch from the Evo 3D (had an Evo 4G before that) for the same reasons. Things I've noted:
Negative first:
- For me at least, the RAZR does have shorter battery life than the 3D. It appears to have some idle issues. Using the "smart" actions helps this, but I'm still not 100% satisfied relative to the Evo3D.
- I somewhat miss Sense on the 3D although I think the RAZR is smoother with less lag
Positives:
- Hardware is very nice. I really like the lighter weight and reduced thickness
- For my area at least, Verizon's network is a huge improvement. 3G is much faster and of course I have very fast 4G now
- Radios are better. Wifi has better range and I think the cell radio is better also. I was using the Verizon PRL hack on my Evo3D previously and it didn't perform as well as the RAZR on Verizon
Overall I'm very happy with the change, although a big part of that is just getting off of Sprint's worthless network. The only real complaint is the battery life issue and not everyone seems to be experiencing it, so YMMV. It's not horrible either. With light/moderate use I can get 10-15 hours. Basically a full day.
I'm also thinking of switching from my 3D to the Razr. With Amazon's $0.01 on new contract deal and the double data promotion, I'm very tempted. My only hesitation is whether or not to wait for the Nexus. Is the Razr worth getting or should I wait for the Nexus?
talon95 said:
I just made the switch from the Evo 3D (had an Evo 4G before that) for the same reasons. Things I've noted:
Negative first:
- For me at least, the RAZR does have shorter battery life than the 3D. It appears to have some idle issues. Using the "smart" actions helps this, but I'm still not 100% satisfied relative to the Evo3D.
- I somewhat miss Sense on the 3D although I think the RAZR is smoother with less lag
Positives:
- Hardware is very nice. I really like the lighter weight and reduced thickness
- For my area at least, Verizon's network is a huge improvement. 3G is much faster and of course I have very fast 4G now
- Radios are better. Wifi has better range and I think the cell radio is better also. I was using the Verizon PRL hack on my Evo3D previously and it didn't perform as well as the RAZR on Verizon
Overall I'm very happy with the change, although a big part of that is just getting off of Sprint's worthless network. The only real complaint is the battery life issue and not everyone seems to be experiencing it, so YMMV. It's not horrible either. With light/moderate use I can get 10-15 hours. Basically a full day.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I switched from the Evo 4G on Sprint to the Razr on Verizon and I agree with everything above. The Evo was great - the Razr is better. But the big difference is how much better the Verizon network is compared to the crappy and unreliable Sprint network. It's just gotten terrible in the last year.
dstudios said:
I'm also thinking of switching from my 3D to the Razr. With Amazon's $0.01 on new contract deal and the double data promotion, I'm very tempted. My only hesitation is whether or not to wait for the Nexus. Is the Razr worth getting or should I wait for the Nexus?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well you know you're going to get about a dozen opinions on that question.
My reasoning, which is not 100% based on fact, is IMO Motorola has some of the best radios and fringe reception was very important to me. I've also had some so-so experiences with Samsung which turned me off from the Nexus. But getting ICS and less bloatware, more pure Android would be nice. Just depends on what is most important to you. I have a friend that has the Epic 4G Touch on Sprint and is very happy with it (except for Sprints god forsaken network of course).
And I'm really jealous I missed the $.01 deal...
talon95 said:
Well you know you're going to get about a dozen opinions on that question.
My reasoning, which is not 100% based on fact, is IMO Motorola has some of the best radios and fringe reception was very important to me. I've also had some so-so experiences with Samsung which turned me off from the Nexus. But getting ICS and less bloatware, more pure Android would be nice. Just depends on what is most important to you. I have a friend that has the Epic 4G Touch on Sprint and is very happy with it (except for Sprints god forsaken network of course).
And I'm really jealous I missed the $.01 deal...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just be careful to base your decision on more than software availability. ICS will come to every top tier phone, just be patient. Hardware should drive your choice; if you like the h/w, then get the phone, cuz h/w is the bottom line. No os or ota revision can completely eclipse the actual physical capability of the device.
Sent from my DROID RAZR using xda premium
i also swapped from the Evo3D to the RAZR.. it's an awesome improvement. i used to think sense was great but the RAZR's UI is sooo smooth and the screen looks amazing compared to the 3vo.. not to mention the network, it's not even comparible.. i don't know how i lasted so long on sprint lol.. the look and feel of the phone is badass too..
definitely a good switch IMO
Well I still have sprint (just cant get over the unlimited data) and Have the epic 4g touch but I had an Evo 4g, and then a Evo 3d so I think I can chime in on this. Im one of what seems like only a few who loved the Evo 3d which to me the only problem I had with it was the thickness and weight. The Razr is light and thin and smooth but dont think that your going to notice a performance boost from the hardware alone, cause you wont.
Now network performance is another thing up until recently sprint had great reception for me but lately, its horrible and I know towards the end of next year and the next they will have completely changed the network and will have one of if not the best network out. But lets face it we pay our bill every month and lets just say in this instance time is most definetly money.
So to recap
Pros
Thin-Smooth-dual core- Will def see ICS sooner than later-NETWORK
Cons
No ICS currently-almost no development support as of now-camera
Get the phone you'll love it. And if your like me and getting it for .01 its a no brainer. Your practically getting the same phone as the Galaxy Nexus -ICS.
I did the $0.01 Amazon deal and ordered the RAZR today... I'm switching from Sprint and the Evo 4G. I just got so fed up with Sprint's crappy network. I go visit my mom (where I originally bought the Evo), and I have zero reception. I go to visit my dad who lives near a major city, and I have zero reception and have to charge my phone 3-4 times a day because of it unless I put it into airplane mode. Ridiculous. I was a little late placing my order today, so the phone is on back order until December 8. I'll update with my initial reactions in a couple weeks.
EDIT: Oh, and charging it 3-4 times a day because of crappy reception is with an extended battery, too!
talon95 said:
Well you know you're going to get about a dozen opinions on that question.
My reasoning, which is not 100% based on fact, is IMO Motorola has some of the best radios and fringe reception was very important to me. I've also had some so-so experiences with Samsung which turned me off from the Nexus. But getting ICS and less bloatware, more pure Android would be nice. Just depends on what is most important to you. I have a friend that has the Epic 4G Touch on Sprint and is very happy with it (except for Sprints god forsaken network of course).
And I'm really jealous I missed the $.01 deal...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You didn't miss it, it's on til the 28th! I got mine for a penny, got it delivered the next day for free, and I couldn't be happier! I switched from Sprint (OG EVO-> EVO 3D-> Photon) because their CS SUCKS. After 6 EVOs (4 for me, and 2 for my fiancée after I upgraded) and nothing offered but crappy refurbished phones and insults, with no way to escalate issues, it was time to go.
I really loved my Photon, but after their CS made my fiancée cry, it was time to go.
I ABSOLUTELY LOVE my RAZR! It's like my Photon, but WAY FASTER! I'm only 3 days in, and the first day, I had some worries about battery life after it dropped from 100% to 70% after an hour or 2, but I was patient, and knew that it takes a few days for everything to settle in, and OS, UI & kernels to play well together. Yesterday, I got exactly 11 hours out of it with HEAVY usage.
I'm not a big fan of Blur, but after setting everything up the way I like (LP pro, widgets, and junk), it's amazing! Looking forward to ICS early next year, too!
My opinion may be biased, since instead of hunting down the CS rep that made my lady cry, I dumped them, but either way, I'm happy!
\\Carved into this thread by my RAZR//
http://android-gz.com
So, like many people, I purchased the Galaxy Nexus on launch day. I stood in line for 20 minutes and couldn't have been more excited to take the beauty home. The screen and ICS are incredible, and no phone in production comes close to mirroring the way the software works on that phone (including iOS devices). I cannot express my love for pureblood ICS any more than I do...it literally has been the perfect phone for me (in terms of software). But I also have to use it as a mobile device.
The data connectivity on the Nexus is *horrific*. This was the first Samsung CDMA device I've ever owned and, despite hearing the horror stories of the poor radio reception, I jumped in without regard because of the Nexus name. Sadness soon filled my heart as the places I normally tend to travel to became borderline deadspots of wireless reception, killing my heart as well as my data connectivity. Despite having perfectly clear voice communication and always being able to receive text messages instantly, the data connection would bottom out somewhat frequently. I work about a quarter-mile from the lake and, while at work, I have no data connectivity at all. Other members of my team using Rezounds or RAZRs have 2-3 bars of 4G or drop to 5 bars of 3G...while I have no bars in sight!
After exchanging the phone multiple times, getting new SIM cards, hard-resetting the device multiple times, and trying out all of the other "This will fix it" attempts through Verizon customer service...I was authorized to get a new device. The only problem? They could only "Warranty" the phone, which meant I could only pick a phone I had owned previously. As I'm a new Verizon customer, that equated to either the Rezound (which I "rented" for a week prior to the Nexus launch) and the Nexus (which, again, I'd exchanged multiple times). Then I was offered another option: Early Upgrade.
The customer service rep authorized me to do an "Early Upgrade". Being only 6 months into my contract, I was more than happy to pay $200 to get a new RAZR Maxx (the only phone I wanted -- despite the lack of high screen resolution, it gets phenomenal battery and and incredible reception) and start over my contract, especially because I can now sell my Nexus to recoup the cost.
Long story short: I'm now a happy customer. Sitting in the same place that my Nexus always sat on my desk, the RAZR gets 2-3 bars of 4G (average speedtest: 8-10Mbps) while the Nexus had no data connection at all. On top of it, my Nexus had to be plugged in during the day (arguably because of the bad reception, but even with good reception it wouldn't end the day with more than 15% battery if I didn't charge it mid-day), while the RAZR Maxx can be unplugged all day and used more than average...while still ending at 60-65%. This 3300mAh battery is mind-blowing.
So, despite my heavy dislike of Motorola's "Motoblur", and their upgrade policy...I'm more happy with a Motorola device than the Nexus. Simply put: It works for the things I need it better than the Nexus did. I had grown accustomed to not having a data connection in a majority of the places I frequent, and now I'm excited to realize that I once again do!
(This isn't meant to dissuade anyone from the Nexus or to poke fun at the phone...I still loved my Nexus, it just didn't work the way I needed it to. I just wanted to express myself!)
The MotoBlur won't be an issue for long. Motorola's version of Ice Cream Sandwich is very similar to Google's pure experience, and even better in some enhanced applications. Congratulations on the new phone.
Congrats
ICS will be phenomenal on RAZR, just wait and see.
Hey; thanks for the brain dump! I've just updated my Fascinate to the latest AOPK build of ICS (4.0.4), but in a month I've got my "new every 2" upgrade coming, so I've been glancing at a new phone...the Maxx.
My only concern: how is the screen quality compared to my Fascinate? I absolutely *love* my screen; it's beautiful! But you mentioned a lack of high resolution on the Maxx.
Thoughts?
wilddoktor said:
Hey; thanks for the brain dump! I've just updated my Fascinate to the latest AOPK build of ICS (4.0.4), but in a month I've got my "new every 2" upgrade coming, so I've been glancing at a new phone...the Maxx.
My only concern: how is the screen quality compared to my Fascinate? I absolutely *love* my screen; it's beautiful! But you mentioned a lack of high resolution on the Maxx.
Thoughts?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Facinate is A 800x480 Super AMOLED display at 4".
MAX is a 960x540? Super AMOLED advanced display at 4.3".
I don't think you will miss your Facinate screen.
FYI I went from a Nexus S to the RAZR MAXX so I can actually give you user experience.
Every once in a great while I notice the Pentile display of the RAZR MAXX. The other 99.999% of the time I find myself loving this screen more and more everyday.
Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2
Your spot on about Reception, where I work there was NO reception inside so we got a cell repeater and set it up and my RAZR Maxx can carry on a conversation from 50% further away from the indoor antenna then my old Env Touch could, and on the drive into work the "deadzone" I have to pass thru is like half the size it was I can carry on conversations where I couldn't even get text messages out before (used to start at the top of the hill now I can get well into the valley before it drops) and we don't even have 4G here yet.
I also came from a nexus to a razr maxx. The nexus had a beautiful screen, and pure ics. But the flaws killed it for me. Horrible 4G connectivity, low battery life even with oem and seidio extended. Call quality was horrible and speakers was low. I love my razr!
Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2
I work on the move: I have three different buildings I need to do IT for and all of them are full of computer illiterates. One of them has steel framework and another is right on the fringe of cell reception and on the opposing side of a small mountain. The MAXX gets at least 3 bars in most places, even in the innermost parts of the mountainside building and allows clear calls from everywhere.
I usually go to bed with about 60% battery remaining because I use the phone for LogMeIn Ignition a substantial amount, which looks good even on the pentile display. I am much happier with this phone than any other I have previously owned (even if my workplace did buy me this phone) and am anxiously awaiting official ICS.
I got a GN two weeks ago, kept it for the max 14 days, but had to send it back today. Very hard to do as I had been following it since it had been rumored. Tried all I could to work with the battery life but it just wasn't cutting it. Ordered the Maxx today...thanks for the post...I'm just that much more psyched now!!!
It really sucks you had to pay, and burn up an upgrade. I think it all depends on which service rep you get when you call. As we speak my Razr is on it's way for over night shipment on warranty call. I currently have the DROID Bionic. I've had issues with GPS and now duplicate messages. I called Verizon and she established it was the phone and not the server and claimed she would send me a replacement. I informed her it would be my 4th Bionic being warrantied out and would like a different phone. At first she offered me the HTC Rezound, which I wasn't interested in. I told her I wanted a Motorola device and asked about the Razr. She placed me on hold to check, and said I could in deed get one. I asked for white and she accepted that as well. Currently out of town working right now, but my wife is bringing it to me since it showed up yesterday. Just my path to the Razr
Sent from my DROID BIONIC using XDA
I have an engineering Galaxy Nexus that I had before it was even released.
I tried to tell people the truth about all of its failings and was generally received with extreme negativity and disbelief and even nastiness from the hoarde of Nexites.
I am admittedly a committed Motorola devotee, but I really wanted to like the Nexus because there is so much that is very enjoyable about it to use and at that time, the only device with ICS etc., but it was such a disappointment from a basic phone use standpoint that I couldn't use it at all as my main device.
I had a nexus and got tired of all the issues even with the latest leaks and OS updates so I got rid of it and now have a maxx. The battery life alone on lte makes waiting for ics easier. Plus once the maxx gets ics it will be a better overall phone( and I am talking about actually being a phone not well it has a locked bootloader bs) since it has much better radios and reception than samsung and the nexus.
The thing is, I've always loved Nexus devices. I ordered a Nexus One the day it went live, and then I bought another one when they came out with the real AT&T version. I love the dev community and ICS is *mind-blowingly* great. The problem is the reception and battery life are ridiculous. In almost all of the places I frequent I had either no data connectivity or very little of it...and they're all within the confines of the major Cleveland metropolitan area (I live in Cleveland, I work 20 min west of Cleveland in one of the biggest suburbs, and most of the other stuff I do is just south of Cleveland...also in big suburbs).
With the Razr Maxx? Perfect reception and great battery life. I couldn't be happier with my decision.
And as for the screen resolution: What I meant is that it doesn't compare to the 720p screen resolution of the Galaxy Nexus. Watching HD videos on that screen is just incredible (for its size, it's incredible). Watching the same HD videos on this screen is just...acceptable. It's definitely no worse than any of the other non-HD phones on the market.
oildriller83 said:
It really sucks you had to pay, and burn up an upgrade. I think it all depends on which service rep you get when you call. As we speak my Razr is on it's way for over night shipment on warranty call. I currently have the DROID Bionic. I've had issues with GPS and now duplicate messages. I called Verizon and she established it was the phone and not the server and claimed she would send me a replacement. I informed her it would be my 4th Bionic being warrantied out and would like a different phone. At first she offered me the HTC Rezound, which I wasn't interested in. I told her I wanted a Motorola device and asked about the Razr. She placed me on hold to check, and said I could in deed get one. I asked for white and she accepted that as well. Currently out of town working right now, but my wife is bringing it to me since it showed up yesterday. Just my path to the Razr
Sent from my DROID BIONIC using XDA
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Click to collapse
I hate to tell you this, but I think the CSR agent did you a disservice. What I mean by this, is you asked for a white RAZR, and she said okay. The RAZR MAXX only comes in a single color. The RAZR is a fine phone EXCEPT for its battery life. It's about the same as the Bionic, Nexus, and all other VZW 4G phones except the RAZR MAXX. The RAZR MAXX is the phone you should have asked for.
I too went from the GNex to the Razr. Going back to GB was a little unsettling at first since. I only had the GNex for less than 10 days, but I've been running ICS on my Touchpad for months. But my first GNex had the volume up key stop working. The second one had mediocre reception and really poor battery life. But I agree with the above poster that said you should have opted for the Maxx. The battery life is great.
evltwn72 said:
I hate to tell you this, but I think the CSR agent did you a disservice. What I mean by this, is you asked for a white RAZR, and she said okay. The RAZR MAXX only comes in a single color. The RAZR is a fine phone EXCEPT for its battery life. It's about the same as the Bionic, Nexus, and all other VZW 4G phones except the RAZR MAXX. The RAZR MAXX is the phone you should have asked for.
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Click to collapse
How would it be a disservice? I had the Bionic, got a newer phone with better hardware, newer OS, and sooner to get ICS. I asked for white after she upgraded me. The only difference in the Razr and Razr Maxx is the battery, so really I got basically the same product......on a side note, I didn't loose my upgrade. So this summer I can still upgrade if I choose to do so. Payed no money whatsoever for the Razr, so I don't see how this wasn't a win-win. IMO
Sent from my DROID RAZR using XDA
oildriller83 said:
How would it be a disservice? I had the Bionic, got a newer phone with better hardware, newer OS, and sooner to get ICS. I asked for white after she upgraded me. The only difference in the Razr and Razr Maxx is the battery, so really I got basically the same product......on a side note, I didn't loose my upgrade. So this summer I can still upgrade if I choose to do so. Payed no money whatsoever for the Razr, so I don't see how this wasn't a win-win. IMO
Sent from my DROID RAZR using XDA
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Click to collapse
As long as you're happy. I had a RAZR, and returned it when the MAXX came it. The battery difference is huge. I get between 20-30+ hours of use out of a single charge without having to "dumb down" the phone.
wilddoktor said:
Hey; thanks for the brain dump! I've just updated my Fascinate to the latest AOPK build of ICS (4.0.4), but in a month I've got my "new every 2" upgrade coming, so I've been glancing at a new phone...the Maxx.
My only concern: how is the screen quality compared to my Fascinate? I absolutely *love* my screen; it's beautiful! But you mentioned a lack of high resolution on the Maxx.
Thoughts?
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Click to collapse
I went from my fascinate to a rezound and love it. But I'm still getting a nexus with my upgrade and my wife a razr maxx with hers.
As far as screen goes until I can fully compare the nexus to this rezound, I'd have to say the rezound wins in that department over the other 2.
And with the extended battery I can see well over 20 hrs with 4 hrs of screen on (don't have to use the screen too much to change songs). So "if" the gnex fails as much as people say, it won't be hard to go back to a rezound.
Sent from my ADR6425LVW using Tapatalk 2
Love the devs here for our beloved fassy but I really need 4gLTE and being unlimited I have to buy phones at full price. I really need to give up my fassy also for the fact that I miss calls that just go to voice mail. So now the question REZOUND or RAZR? I do like both and feel the rezound may be built a lil better and have a better screen. I also dig the s-off. Any thoughts? I cant afford a s3 now and I dont want to wait...VZW will not give me a replacement even though its been replaced twice!
Hate to say it, but why not just go to Sprint? You'd have unlimited data, 4G LTE, and be able to get the Galaxy 3 with a discount...
Anyway, a quick google search brought up this article that will probably help you make your decision: http://www.phonearena.com/reviews/Motorola-DROID-RAZR-vs-HTC-Rezound_id2897
edit: Personally, I'd get the Razr. The display is better (super amoled), it's a lot thinner/lighter, better build quality, and bigger battery.
Crawshayi said:
Hate to say it, but why not just go to Sprint? You'd have unlimited data, 4G LTE, and be able to get the Galaxy 3 with a discount...
Anyway, a quick google search brought up this article that will probably help you make your decision: http://www.phonearena.com/reviews/Motorola-DROID-RAZR-vs-HTC-Rezound_id2897
edit: Personally, I'd get the Razr. The display is better (super amoled), it's a lot thinner/lighter, better build quality, and bigger battery.
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Click to collapse
I know I do love my samoled on the fassy and I like not being blasted in the face by the lcd backlight at night! When I looked at the razrs they had a weird green tinge to them that I a lot of people have complained about. Sprint and LTE i thought didnt go togeth4er in the same sentence lol...I dont believe LTE is coming anytime soon where im at in the metro detroit area. I told the CSR on the phone that $210 is cheap for the ECF for VZW and go over to metro pcs with the s3 and LTE!
As a person who made the move from Fascinate to Razr Maxx; please do not get the Razr/Maxx. Why not just go with a used VZW SGS3? My brother has the Rezound and he figures it loses about 1% battery per minute the screen is on at 30% battery regardless of what activity he is doing and the locked bootloader on the Razr along with one weird recovery makes it a jarring transition from Fascinate to Razr.
Definitely go with the rezound. Work on aosp is coming along nicely and is pretty close to being stable. The rezound has better specs by far, the screen resolution is amazing on it.
yeah for the price(rezound) $175 its a good bargain I basically want a cheap 4glte phone until the price drops on the gs3. I think that will pretty soon when all the new motos drop and the new iphone5 and nokia...Orig i wanted a nexus but the reception issues are a deal breaker for me.
How much is the Razr? If you haven't watched the video comparison of the 2 phones at the end of that review I linked, I strongly suggest you do because the HTC looks really bad... at least to me. The better resolution doesn't matter much when the screen is all muddled and dark
Crawshayi said:
How much is the Razr? If you haven't watched the video comparison of the 2 phones at the end of that review I linked, I strongly suggest you do because the HTC looks really bad... at least to me. The better resolution doesn't matter much when the screen is all muddled and dark
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It looked like there was a weird glare on the rezound's screen, or the brightness was turned down too low.
th3b3 said:
yeah for the price(rezound) $175 its a good bargain I basically want a cheap 4glte phone until the price drops on the gs3. I think that will pretty soon when all the new motos drop and the new iphone5 and nokia...Orig i wanted a nexus but the reception issues are a deal breaker for me.
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Click to collapse
The rezound is only $100 on amazon, so you could get it for even cheaper. Have you held the gs3? The bigger size (width, not thickness) could be a factor, but not for most people.
It's definitely not bad. I got a chance to go hands-on with the G3 at work as I convinced a buddy of mine to get it. It is big, don't get me wrong, but not so big as you feel like you're holding a tablet or something. The fact that it's so thin is mostly why it doesn't feel ridiculous, because if it was bulky like the iphone it would be a different feel entirely. It's really too bad that Verizon doesn't have a version of the One X because that's pretty much the only other phone that can hold a candle to how nice the G3 is. Also, why not consider getting a used Galaxy S2? That phone is still really really nice...
teh s3 is legit!
No I cant upgrade my phone because of unlimited data on VZW so I'm stuck with buying a phone off craigslist or ebay. I might just get a rezound with a broken screen or something they are really cheap to fix. I'm basically just wanting a 4glte phone to hold me over until the s3 drops in price. Ive held the s3 its perfect in my hand.
Damn man, how much data do you use? I'm constantly on my phone browsing and watching youtube, and yet when I see what I used it's always under 2GB (their lowest tier data plan now). I'm on unlimited data now myself, but considering how it all pans out I won't really care when they take it away from me... but I guess it would be different if I needed my phone for a tether or something
seriously between 30-40GB per month! I dont have home internet...Thats all 3g too! I cant wait to start burning up some 4glte LOL!
Alright I guess I can see how you wouldn't want to drop that unlimited if you use that much But just be careful when you're on 4G, they say that Verizon throttles it's top 5%
Crawshayi said:
Alright I guess I can see how you wouldn't want to drop that unlimited if you use that much But just be careful when you're on 4G, they say that Verizon throttles it's top 5%
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LOL Ive been throttled one month. It actually isnt bad they only target torrenting traffic which is cured with some hiding and encryption settings in uttorent! VZW only throttles that not radio or video apps or web browsing! I also think its only for 3g as their LTE is just for data so its not an issue.
There are folks still upgrading and keeping unlimited data...you might have to haggle with vzw, but I bet you can get it done!!
So, based on my lurking here, I'm going to be in a small minority on this one. I own the Electrify, have it unlocked and after running jokersax's cm10 for a while, I returned to the stock cm7 build (cybix, I believe...) cause I like the 15 hour battery life I get from it. Anyways, not the point...
My next phone will still be a Motorola. There, I said it. Why? Cause I like buying a phone from a company that's literally right next door. I know they are all made in China, but Moto's headquarters are basically 6 hours from where I live.
I've owned 3 Motorola phones now. They've all had really good radios and been stable and reliable. Granted the Electrify is my 1st smart phone. I've been in places where 3 people around me with Samsung or HTC phones have little or no signal, and my Moto is fine. It's also a good size for my hands, it fits in my palm, it fits in the car's cupholder, it's not garmungus like a lot of the new phones are becoming, but it's not iPhone small.
I like the phone, I dislike that Moto made a (sucky, yes) decision to not release any ICS/JB goodness for it, but that's how business works. They make more money by selling the masses a new phone rather than supporting the old ones. I'm not up for replacement until July of next year, but I probably won't replace my Electrify then either so long as it's still working. The specs are still pretty top-end and I suspect they still will be through 2013.
Thanks for letting me add a (hopefully) positive review on the Photon/Electrify board. It's great being able to lurk around here and learn stuff. :highfive:
I guess I'm in the minority also. This has been the best phone I've ever had, I'm unlocked, and can run whatever I want. I recommended this phone to everyone I know on sprint. It just works
CodeNamed JellyBean MoPho
Nothing wrong with that.
Is there actual proof that the radio or antenna is actually better? If it truely does get better signal across the board. I'm on board. But I need hard evidence
Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk 2
Based on my own use I think it's better than most. I get a strong signal everywhere, including the marginal-coverage areas.
Kevets said:
Based on my own use I think it's better than most. I get a strong signal everywhere, including the marginal-coverage areas.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I liked my photon while i had it, but was VERY frustrated with the lack of support. First Android phone i've ever owned that didn't get updated to a new version of android. I can confirm the signal is a little better as my g/f now rocks my photon and i'm pimpin' a S3 I picked up off contract, but it's marginal really. Photon still has pretty good specs, but i can attest, the S3 is FAST and the big hd screen is pretty nice. Also, the thickness of the phone is shocking compared to my photon. Oh, and one of the best things about it is the unlocked bootloader out of the box. Had CWM installed and rocking a custom ROM within an hour of buying the phone. Based on the raw deal Motorola stuck us with, i most likely will not own anymore of their products. This is coming from a home with a photon and two Motorola Xoom's. Build quality is fantastic, support sucks a fat one except for the Xoom's ofcourse..
mark112089 said:
Is there actual proof that the radio or antenna is actually better? If it truely does get better signal across the board. I'm on board. But I need hard evidence
Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From my experience in selling the phone it does have one of the best radios out there. At least better than the GS2 and the most HTC devices that were comparable spec. I can't really say much for the newer devices as sprint network issues have worsened since the photon went End of life.
I just moved to Moto from iPhone (i know Im a shame to the android community), before that i had samsung and htc.
At&t has spotty service where i live, but the atrix gets service better than the other phones. Im so happy with the service i get with this phone.
Sent from my MB886 using xda app-developers app
the electrify is a great phone and all. only when unlocked really. but it's done the job. i wouldn't say moto gets the best signal. my htc desire actually gets an equal to slightly better signal. so htc makes good phones to i'm testing out samsung tomorrow with the note ii. i hope it's as good as moto and htc.
i will never own another moto though. not after the update fiasco and locked bootloader situations. if i can't touch my own phone. then i don't want it. mainly why i'm moving to the note ii. so much freedom!
Moto build quality and signal quality are the stuff of legend. I don't know that hard evidence exists to prove it, though.
I live way out in the middle of nowhere in North Carolina. Sprint, Verizon, and AT&T don't provide service here. Their service is known to be spotty in the cities like Greenville, New Bern, Jacksonville, etc. Between them, if you have signal at home, generally you have US Cellular. Even with US Cellular, I have signal issues. With a Samsung or HTC, the phone has to be in the window. For the most part, so does the Motorola Electrify, but it can get service (1 bar) at the computer, in bed, or in an extreme case, the bathroom (typically a Faraday cage). So it is a little stronger. And Apple uses Samsung parts, so for the sake of argument I can say Apple=Samsung WRT signal.
Another fun anecdote (since that's all we've got). 2007. Went to visit my mother in California. A state that doesn't even know what US Cellular is. My wife and I have Kyocera KX-5 Slider Remix dumbphones. My mother says "your carrier is who now?". Anyway, we get into town, we have some Round Table (hands down the best pizza I've had), the next morning she wants to take us into the mountains to go visit my nephew. Long story. Anyway, we're out of town. East of San Francisco. There's a city after you're well out of the San Francisco metropolitan area, starts with a C, I think. We stop there for burgers and fries. Another hour, we're in the mountains, middle of nowhere. My mother decides she needs to call somebody. (Probably call ahead.) Takes out her LG flip phone, on Verizon. No Signal. My wife and I check our phones -- we both have 5 bars. She borrows my phone, the call connects, she gets great call quality, no drop, no static. To this day she thinks we have satellite phones like in that one Jurassic Park movie, that get service in the jungle. It's pretty funny. A friend of mine who has worked for Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint tells me that what US Cellular lacks in phone selection, they more than make up for in signal coverage, usually due to roaming agreements with other CDMA carriers. Since US Cellular does not carry the iPhone, I can safely say that Android goes places that iPhone cannot.
OP, you're okay with me. My wife is staying with Motorola as well, and can't understand why I hate 'em now, especially as I got my phone unlocked and running the OS I want. She only upgraded because her last phone was a bona fide piece of sh!t (Samsung Acclaim... 160MB RAM). She will probably use the Electrify until it breaks. 8 months later she has only changed the wallpaper. Unrooted, locked, running Blur Home as the launcher. I put Holo Launcher up there and she didn't like it, made me put it back, haha.
QuimaxW said:
So, based on my lurking here, I'm going to be in a small minority on this one. I own the Electrify, have it unlocked and after running jokersax's cm10 for a while, I returned to the stock cm7 build (cybix, I believe...) cause I like the 15 hour battery life I get from it. Anyways, not the point...
My next phone will still be a Motorola. There, I said it. Why? Cause I like buying a phone from a company that's literally right next door. I know they are all made in China, but Moto's headquarters are basically 6 hours from where I live.
I've owned 3 Motorola phones now. They've all had really good radios and been stable and reliable. Granted the Electrify is my 1st smart phone. I've been in places where 3 people around me with Samsung or HTC phones have little or no signal, and my Moto is fine. It's also a good size for my hands, it fits in my palm, it fits in the car's cupholder, it's not garmungus like a lot of the new phones are becoming, but it's not iPhone small.
I like the phone, I dislike that Moto made a (sucky, yes) decision to not release any ICS/JB goodness for it, but that's how business works. They make more money by selling the masses a new phone rather than supporting the old ones. I'm not up for replacement until July of next year, but I probably won't replace my Electrify then either so long as it's still working. The specs are still pretty top-end and I suspect they still will be through 2013.
Thanks for letting me add a (hopefully) positive review on the Photon/Electrify board. It's great being able to lurk around here and learn stuff. :highfive:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You buy from a company cause its, 6 hours away? They still don't care about updating your phone.
Sent from my MB855 using xda premium
There's nothing wrong with staying with Motorola if that's what you like. I'm on my fifth Photon. I had the random reboot issue. Not updating our phones was the final straw with me. Going to Verizon for the galaxy note 2 when it drops.
Sent from my MB855 using xda premium
On GSM signal strength, my Sony Ericsson Naite is much better than Photon. Call drops are frequent on Photon. On 100$ Naite you can even make GSM video calls where all Androids and Iphones fails.
.................................................
Motorola Electrified Photon 4G
Dark Reality said:
Moto build quality and signal quality are the stuff of legend. I don't know that hard evidence exists to prove it, though.
I live way out in the middle of nowhere in North Carolina. Sprint, Verizon, and AT&T don't provide service here. Their service is known to be spotty in the cities like Greenville, New Bern, Jacksonville, etc. Between them, if you have signal at home, generally you have US Cellular. Even with US Cellular, I have signal issues. With a Samsung or HTC, the phone has to be in the window. For the most part, so does the Motorola Electrify, but it can get service (1 bar) at the computer, in bed, or in an extreme case, the bathroom (typically a Faraday cage). So it is a little stronger. And Apple uses Samsung parts, so for the sake of argument I can say Apple=Samsung WRT signal.
Another fun anecdote (since that's all we've got). 2007. Went to visit my mother in California. A state that doesn't even know what US Cellular is. My wife and I have Kyocera KX-5 Slider Remix dumbphones. My mother says "your carrier is who now?". Anyway, we get into town, we have some Round Table (hands down the best pizza I've had), the next morning she wants to take us into the mountains to go visit my nephew. Long story. Anyway, we're out of town. East of San Francisco. There's a city after you're well out of the San Francisco metropolitan area, starts with a C, I think. We stop there for burgers and fries. Another hour, we're in the mountains, middle of nowhere. My mother decides she needs to call somebody. (Probably call ahead.) Takes out her LG flip phone, on Verizon. No Signal. My wife and I check our phones -- we both have 5 bars. She borrows my phone, the call connects, she gets great call quality, no drop, no static. To this day she thinks we have satellite phones like in that one Jurassic Park movie, that get service in the jungle. It's pretty funny. A friend of mine who has worked for Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint tells me that what US Cellular lacks in phone selection, they more than make up for in signal coverage, usually due to roaming agreements with other CDMA carriers. Since US Cellular does not carry the iPhone, I can safely say that Android goes places that iPhone cannot.
.
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Click to collapse
you made that up, there is no such thing as good pizza west of Chicago
My unlocked Electrify has been a wonderful phone for me and I will keep it for a long while. That doesn't mean I will buy another Motorola though. Me and Motorola are over forever. I had the Desire (upgraded to 2.2) and the Mesmerize (upgraded to 2.2 then 2.3) before and I should have stuck with Samsung. I now use the Electrify and the Galaxy S3. My S3 has already received 2 updates and Jellybean is coming. Samsung for life.
I believe management of Motorola Mobility was screwed up since the takeover; probably lack of leadership and no clarity whatsoever from anyone at the top..
The recent transfer of Soni from Google shows that Google has decided to get serious about MM.
In terms of devices, they have started by cleaning house. EOL most phones, free up labor to concentrate on current & newer devices and creating the BL unlock program.
MM is trying to get back on track.
But for me, its useless; too little, too late.
Next device will definitely not be from Motorola.
Most likely the Note II (not that Samsung is friendly to developers either); but its just a beast of a phone.
Equalizir said:
There's nothing wrong with staying with Motorola if that's what you like. I'm on my fifth Photon. I had the random reboot issue. Not updating our phones was the final straw with me. Going to Verizon for the galaxy note 2 when it drops.
Sent from my MB855 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hope you love the logo branding on the home button
Sent from my MB853 using XDA
Slighter said:
you made that up, there is no such thing as good pizza west of Chicago
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Click to collapse
Yeah, go on telling yourself that. Northern California can keep its pizza secret.
I'm actually a big fan of both Chicago deep dish and Brooklyn wide slices. Round Table is nothing like either of them. On one hand they're just a fancy Pizza Hut or Dominoes, but on the other, they use top quality ingredients and have great recipes that justify them costing 2-3 times more than them.
Sent from my MotoFail Electrify using Tapatalk and Swype.
Motorola will steal your pizza money.
hirent said:
I believe management of Motorola Mobility was screwed up since the takeover; probably lack of leadership and no clarity whatsoever from anyone at the top..
The recent transfer of Soni from Google shows that Google has decided to get serious about MM.
In terms of devices, they have started by cleaning house. EOL most phones, free up labor to concentrate on current & newer devices and creating the BL unlock program.
MM is trying to get back on track...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm hoping they have their house in order by the time I decide to update. If they don't by then, perhaps I'll start looking elsewhere.
Sent from my MB855 using xda app-developers app