[Q] Problems with my X2, need advice - Motorola Droid X2

I don't know what site would be the best place to post this, but this site seems reputable because of its co-development with Ubuntu on Ubuntu Touch. If there would be a better place to ask this, please make suggestions.
Sorry that this is so long. I tried to include the minimum while still including info that would help others best answer my questions.
My Mobile Technology History
I got my first 'smartphone' in 2005. It was the Verizon XV6700 which ran Windows Mobile 5. I decided to get one after carrying around two devices - my cellphone and my PDA. I've had a cellphone since 1989 and got my first PDA in 1999. I've had every kind of cellphone from an old 'bag' phone, to a 'brick' phone, to a candybar phone, to a flip phone, to a smartphone. For PDAs, I've had the Handspring Visor (running a modified Palm OS) and a few Dell Axim X5s (running PocketPC).
My Technology Experience Summary
(NOTE: The only reason I am sharing this in this post is because that although my primary use and first priority for my smartphone is everyday use, I also would like to do some app development with my smartphone. If money was no object, it's obviously much wiser to have a separate device for everyday use and another for developing apps, but that isn't an option right now.)
I have a BS degree in Computer Engineering Technology and worked 15+ years in the Aerospace-Defense industry. Although my degree is both hardware and software, my experience has been mainly software. Although the majority of that was Windows development (applications, libraries, and device drivers), I also have some experience with Unix and Linux. As for languages, my experience is mainly with C/C++ but I also have some Java and some scripting languages. The only mobile development experience I have is with Windows CE and PocketPC (both applications and libraries).
Because of having extensive Windows desktop software development experience and some CE software development experience, at first I thought I'd stay with the Windows OS. However, after having to stop working due to health reasons, the resources once available to me for developing for the Windows platform are not available to me right now. So, I've since changed my mind and decided to go with Android platform because (1) it costs the least to develop (no annual developer fee, free developer tools, etc.); (2) it's popular; and (3) apps are developed in Java (so since I'm new to developing and marketing my own apps, I can make the most use of the code base with the least amount of effort).
My Current Situation
I bought my first two Android devices around Christmas 2011 - an Amazon Kindle Fire and a Motorola Droid X2. My experience with my Kindle Fire has been great. Although there are things about the UI that I don't like or care for and there are certain features that I wish it had, it has been very stable for a first generation device. Unfortunately, my experience with my Droid X2 has not been as great. Here are some problems that I have been having.
sluggish response
duplicate text messages
Google Services not automatically syncing in background
battery quickly dying despite using battery saver app and doing hardly anything
battery showing as critical then showing at 50% after reset
random reboots
wallpaper changing back to default
After I do a factory reset, all the problems go away and the phone runs great and performs as I would expect. My phone has the most recent updates through Verizon. I've searched the web to see if others are experience the same problems and if any solutions are offered with no success. I've tried running an anti-virus app but that seems to make no difference. I don't install a lot of games and only install well rated apps (using both number of downloads and number of people giving a rating into consideration).
Although I've never had an iPhone or any other Apple product for that matter, I know that they are known for user-friendliness. Three of my children and my daughter-in-law have iPhones and I've never heard them complain. Being the fact that this is one of my first Android devices, I don't know if the problems I'm experiencing are issues with:
all Android devices and versions
this version of Android
just Android smartphones
all Motorola Android devices and versions
just Motorola smartphones
this particular Motorola smartphone (whether hardware and/or software)
Decisions, Decisions!
My current 2-year contract on my Droid X2 ends January 2014. I have a family plan with some phones under contract so changing carriers is not an option right now. Currently, Motorola is offering up to $100 for trading up to a Jelly Bean device. Money is a little tight right now so I can't spend a lot of money on another phone. I would prefer to stay with Android because I would like to start developing some apps.
With all this said, these are my courses of action as I see them:
Keep my Droid X2 with it factory ROM because there resolutions to some of its issues.
Keep my Droid X2 and install a more stable ROM that make the phone more reliable.
Trade in my Droid X2 for either a Razr M or Razr Maxx HD and get the $100 Verizon gift card. By doing so, I can get the M for free with $50 left over, the Maxx HD for $50, however, I'd have to use one of my Verizon upgrades and sign another 2-year contract.
Just deal with your Droid X2 for now, however, when the right time comes, ditch Motorola smartphones and go with a different smartphone manufacturer.
None of the above.
If I choose action 3, I don't want to trade one set of problems for another set. Obviously, there are going to be problems with any phone for no phone is perfect, however, my current set of problems are such that my phone becomes practically unusable. I can deal with a few annoyances, but I need a reliable phone. I am in a wheelchair and spend a considerable time alone, whether home or traveling, and so reliable performance is a necessity.
If I choose either of the last two actions, these are the features I use/need and those I'd like to have:
NEED: phone
NEED: text messaging
NEED: email
NEED: web browsing
NEED: music
NEED: GPS and navigation
NEED: videos
NEED: microSD card expansion
NEED: camera (photos and video)
LIKE: face camera (for Skyping)
So my questions are:
Which courses of action above would be recommended?
If action #1, any tips, tricks, helpful hints, or recommendations in troubleshooting and resolving my Droid X2 its issues?
If installing another ROM on my Droid X2, which ROM(s) would be recommended?
If trading up to either a Razr M or a Razr Maxx HD, which would be recommended? Any notable issues with either of these to take into consideration?
If going with another phone, any recommendations?
The End!
Thanks for taking the time to read this and hopefully respond with some helpful info and suggestions.
John

---

Barnabas96 said:
I don't know what site would be the best place to post this, but this site seems reputable because of its co-development with Ubuntu on Ubuntu Touch. If there would be a better place to ask this, please make suggestions.
Sorry that this is so long. I tried to include the minimum while still including info that would help others best answer my questions.
My Mobile Technology History
I got my first 'smartphone' in 2005. It was the Verizon XV6700 which ran Windows Mobile 5. I decided to get one after carrying around two devices - my cellphone and my PDA. I've had a cellphone since 1989 and got my first PDA in 1999. I've had every kind of cellphone from an old 'bag' phone, to a 'brick' phone, to a candybar phone, to a flip phone, to a smartphone. For PDAs, I've had the Handspring Visor (running a modified Palm OS) and a few Dell Axim X5s (running PocketPC).
My Technology Experience Summary
(NOTE: The only reason I am sharing this in this post is because that although my primary use and first priority for my smartphone is everyday use, I also would like to do some app development with my smartphone. If money was no object, it's obviously much wiser to have a separate device for everyday use and another for developing apps, but that isn't an option right now.)
I have a BS degree in Computer Engineering Technology and worked 15+ years in the Aerospace-Defense industry. Although my degree is both hardware and software, my experience has been mainly software. Although the majority of that was Windows development (applications, libraries, and device drivers), I also have some experience with Unix and Linux. As for languages, my experience is mainly with C/C++ but I also have some Java and some scripting languages. The only mobile development experience I have is with Windows CE and PocketPC (both applications and libraries).
Because of having extensive Windows desktop software development experience and some CE software development experience, at first I thought I'd stay with the Windows OS. However, after having to stop working due to health reasons, the resources once available to me for developing for the Windows platform are not available to me right now. So, I've since changed my mind and decided to go with Android platform because (1) it costs the least to develop (no annual developer fee, free developer tools, etc.); (2) it's popular; and (3) apps are developed in Java (so since I'm new to developing and marketing my own apps, I can make the most use of the code base with the least amount of effort).
My Current Situation
I bought my first two Android devices around Christmas 2011 - an Amazon Kindle Fire and a Motorola Droid X2. My experience with my Kindle Fire has been great. Although there are things about the UI that I don't like or care for and there are certain features that I wish it had, it has been very stable for a first generation device. Unfortunately, my experience with my Droid X2 has not been as great. Here are some problems that I have been having.
sluggish response
duplicate text messages
Google Services not automatically syncing in background
battery quickly dying despite using battery saver app and doing hardly anything
battery showing as critical then showing at 50% after reset
random reboots
wallpaper changing back to default
After I do a factory reset, all the problems go away and the phone runs great and performs as I would expect. My phone has the most recent updates through Verizon. I've searched the web to see if others are experience the same problems and if any solutions are offered with no success. I've tried running an anti-virus app but that seems to make no difference. I don't install a lot of games and only install well rated apps (using both number of downloads and number of people giving a rating into consideration).
Although I've never had an iPhone or any other Apple product for that matter, I know that they are known for user-friendliness. Three of my children and my daughter-in-law have iPhones and I've never heard them complain. Being the fact that this is one of my first Android devices, I don't know if the problems I'm experiencing are issues with:
all Android devices and versions
this version of Android
just Android smartphones
all Motorola Android devices and versions
just Motorola smartphones
this particular Motorola smartphone (whether hardware and/or software)
Decisions, Decisions!
My current 2-year contract on my Droid X2 ends January 2014. I have a family plan with some phones under contract so changing carriers is not an option right now. Currently, Motorola is offering up to $100 for trading up to a Jelly Bean device. Money is a little tight right now so I can't spend a lot of money on another phone. I would prefer to stay with Android because I would like to start developing some apps.
With all this said, these are my courses of action as I see them:
Keep my Droid X2 with it factory ROM because there resolutions to some of its issues.
Keep my Droid X2 and install a more stable ROM that make the phone more reliable.
Trade in my Droid X2 for either a Razr M or Razr Maxx HD and get the $100 Verizon gift card. By doing so, I can get the M for free with $50 left over, the Maxx HD for $50, however, I'd have to use one of my Verizon upgrades and sign another 2-year contract.
Just deal with your Droid X2 for now, however, when the right time comes, ditch Motorola smartphones and go with a different smartphone manufacturer.
None of the above.
If I choose action 3, I don't want to trade one set of problems for another set. Obviously, there are going to be problems with any phone for no phone is perfect, however, my current set of problems are such that my phone becomes practically unusable. I can deal with a few annoyances, but I need a reliable phone. I am in a wheelchair and spend a considerable time alone, whether home or traveling, and so reliable performance is a necessity.
If I choose either of the last two actions, these are the features I use/need and those I'd like to have:
NEED: phone
NEED: text messaging
NEED: email
NEED: web browsing
NEED: music
NEED: GPS and navigation
NEED: videos
NEED: microSD card expansion
NEED: camera (photos and video)
LIKE: face camera (for Skyping)
So my questions are:
Which courses of action above would be recommended?
If action #1, any tips, tricks, helpful hints, or recommendations in troubleshooting and resolving my Droid X2 its issues?
If installing another ROM on my Droid X2, which ROM(s) would be recommended?
If trading up to either a Razr M or a Razr Maxx HD, which would be recommended? Any notable issues with either of these to take into consideration?
If going with another phone, any recommendations?
The End!
Thanks for taking the time to read this and hopefully respond with some helpful info and suggestions.
John
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
to answer one of your questions. it is specifically THIS phone that is a nightmare. both the razr M and maxx would be miles ahead of this phone. most android phones that came out around the same time as this phone have at least 1 gig of RAM. we have 512 mb . as to your requirements, i would suggest running ECLIPSE instead of stock. while it still isnt perfect, it should atleast run better than the stock ROM. just my two cents for the couple of second i had to post a comment.
the random reboots are due to our lack of ram. the battery jumping around is known as "the gingerbread battery bug". eclipse would have this fixed, as it uses battery files from a version when it was accurate. more than likely, you are on android version 2.3.5, which would mean that eclipse is really the only option.
unless you want to try an SBF back to 2.3.4, in which case there are many other options. cruise the android development section and see what might sound good to you.
also a user on youtube called TOMSGT has plenty of videos about the droid x2 showing various roms, their drawbacks, and their highlights. just search whatever rom you want to check out followed by "droid x2" or "dx2" . it might save you some time.
personally, i run cm9 which is an ice cream sandwich rom. it runs smoother than stock, eclipse, or any gingerbread rom i ever tried. but i am also willing to live without video recording capabilities. some people are not. its all up to what you are willing to sacrifice. ECLIPSE would be the main fully functioning rom to use though. every other rom has one or two drawbacks. and cm10 (jellybean) has quite a few.

---

if you are looking for links sd_shadow's [Collection] of Links for Droid X2
Sent from my Clear using Tapatalk 4 Beta

---

Thanks for replying!
Lorenzo VonMatterhorn said:
to answer one of your questions. it is specifically THIS phone that is a nightmare. both the razr M and maxx would be miles ahead of this phone. most android phones that came out around the same time as this phone have at least 1 gig of RAM. we have 512 mb . as to your requirements, i would suggest running ECLIPSE instead of stock. while it still isnt perfect, it should atleast run better than the stock ROM. just my two cents for the couple of second i had to post a comment.
the random reboots are due to our lack of ram. the battery jumping around is known as "the gingerbread battery bug". eclipse would have this fixed, as it uses battery files from a version when it was accurate. more than likely, you are on android version 2.3.5, which would mean that eclipse is really the only option.
unless you want to try an SBF back to 2.3.4, in which case there are many other options. cruise the android development section and see what might sound good to you.
also a user on youtube called TOMSGT has plenty of videos about the droid x2 showing various roms, their drawbacks, and their highlights. just search whatever rom you want to check out followed by "droid x2" or "dx2" . it might save you some time.
personally, i run cm9 which is an ice cream sandwich rom. it runs smoother than stock, eclipse, or any gingerbread rom i ever tried. but i am also willing to live without video recording capabilities. some people are not. its all up to what you are willing to sacrifice. ECLIPSE would be the main fully functioning rom to use though. every other rom has one or two drawbacks. and cm10 (jellybean) has quite a few.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once you install another ROM on the phone, can you revert back to the stock ROM?
In your opinion, do you think what the Razr M or Razr Maxx HD have to offer compared to the X2 with a custom ROM is worth spending up to $50 out-of-pocket, using a phone upgrade, and going under another 2-year contract (although technically since there's still 6 months left on my current, it would really only be like a year and a half contract)? Personally, I don't need to get the latest and greatest; once a find a phone I like, I'll keep it until it becomes unusable (which my stock X2 as it is now does not qualify). So, if the stock M or Maxx HD are solid phones, I'll bite the bullet. However, I don't want to trade my current set of X2 unreasonable issues for another set of unreasonable issues with one of the Razr phones. Where can I find any issues that either the M or Maxx HD have?
Thanks!

---

Barnabas96 said:
Once you install another ROM on the phone, can you revert back to the stock ROM?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes if you made a nandroid of stock restore that, or flash stock file with rsd lite sbf or xml
In your opinion, do you think what the Razr M or Razr Maxx HD have to offer compared to the X2 with a custom ROM is worth spending up to $50 out-of-pocket, using a phone upgrade, and going under another 2-year contract (although technically since there's still 6 months left on my current, it would really only be like a year and a half contract)? Personally, I don't need to get the latest and greatest; once a find a phone I like, I'll keep it until it becomes unusable (which my stock X2 as it is now does not qualify). So, if the stock M or Maxx HD are solid phones, I'll bite the bullet. However, I don't want to trade my current set of X2 unreasonable issues for another set of unreasonable issues with one of the Razr phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the razr m and max are far better phones than the X2, but you are not going to find a perfect phone
Where can I find any issues that either the M or Maxx HD have?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
try the m and maxx Q &A forums
http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1777
http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1622

---

Barnabas96 said:
Once you install another ROM on the phone, can you revert back to the stock ROM?
In your opinion, do you think what the Razr M or Razr Maxx HD have to offer compared to the X2 with a custom ROM is worth spending up to $50 out-of-pocket, using a phone upgrade, and going under another 2-year contract (although technically since there's still 6 months left on my current, it would really only be like a year and a half contract)? Personally, I don't need to get the latest and greatest; once a find a phone I like, I'll keep it until it becomes unusable (which my stock X2 as it is now does not qualify). So, if the stock M or Maxx HD are solid phones, I'll bite the bullet. However, I don't want to trade my current set of X2 unreasonable issues for another set of unreasonable issues with one of the Razr phones. Where can I find any issues that either the M or Maxx HD have?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In my opinion, unless anyone can get around the bootloader for the x2, its worth ditching. I personally bought out the rest of my contract with my small carrier and upgraded to the galaxy s3. like it has been stated before there is no perfect phone, however manufacturers and android itself have gotten better since the release of the x2. ive looked around some and have found the m and maxx to be much more stable than the x2, with a larger and more supported development here on xda over motorola. personally if you can pick a phone that has better open souce support than motorola id say go for it. i think samsung, htc, lg all have trade up programs but no where near as big of an trade in as motorola.

---

Lrs121 said:
In my opinion, unless anyone can get around the bootloader for the x2, its worth ditching. I personally bought out the rest of my contract with my small carrier and upgraded to the galaxy s3. like it has been stated before there is no perfect phone, however manufacturers and android itself have gotten better since the release of the x2. ive looked around some and have found the m and maxx to be much more stable than the x2, with a larger and more supported development here on xda over motorola. personally if you can pick a phone that has better open souce support than motorola id say go for it. i think samsung, htc, lg all have trade up programs but no where near as big of an trade in as motorola.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i bet the s3 is a dream after using the x2. i wouldnt mind the s4, but lack of funds....so i will also be going s3 later this month. any idea on how easy the rooting process is? it seems like there is a lot more to it when you can flash kernels as well.

---

Lorenzo VonMatterhorn said:
i bet the s3 is a dream after using the x2. i wouldnt mind the s4, but lack of funds....so i will also be going s3 later this month. any idea on how easy the rooting process is? it seems like there is a lot more to it when you can flash kernels as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
pretty easy. i have the verizon version specially customized for my carrier. <for the verizon model> all you have to do is flash a couple files and an insecure bootloader. from there you can load a custom recovery and then flash a superuser zip and you have root. you can do almost anything with the insecure bootloader. kernels, fully funtional roms, anything. i messed up my first s3 and burnt out the voltage regulator. had to have it swapped since i was within the first 30 days of owning it. havent modified my new one. gonna wait to hear from the guys in the IT department for my carrier and see if they had the same issue after rooting.

---

I have heard lots of horror stories. Is it pretty easy to brick and or mangle the s3 ? I like to tinker with flashing roms and such, but I don't want to be super scared about doing so.
Sent from my DROID X2 using xda app-developers app

---

Lorenzo VonMatterhorn said:
I have heard lots of horror stories. Is it pretty easy to brick and or mangle the s3 ? I like to tinker with flashing roms and such, but I don't want to be super scared about doing so.
Sent from my DROID X2 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think so. I've never run into any issues. There are some pretty easy ways to mess it up though. Just do as always and read carefully before doing anything.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda premium