Develop Bugs

Review/Comparison: Desire Z vs. Touch Pro 2

I’ve defected from Windows Mobile and the Rhodium over to Android and the HTC Desire Z (code name Vision). About a million years ago (late December, actually) Jackos asked that I write a review/comparison of the device, for which I am happy to oblige. Unfortunately, a newborn baby, holiday travel, and work travel have conspired to delay me from writing such a review. But I’m finally taking the time to fulfill the promise. Jackos thought such a review would be useful for those that are looking to upgrade from the Rhodium, so hopefully that is still relevant. Based on a recent thread, I would think so! http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=949121
The move to a different OS was certainly something that I’ve been debating for some time. But as we all know (and possibly unwilling to admit), Windows Mobile is outdated and nearing the end of its useful life. Windows Phone 7 so far is a big disappointment to me. The OS seems very limited in many of the same ways the iPhone is, with reviews at various websites and comments by users verifying this notion. One article I read about WP7 was that the OS is not a good choice for power users. Android was looking more and more attractive to me. To me, it carries on the spirit of Windows Mobile in terms of customization. Things are not accessed quite the same way as Windows Mobile (there is no registry), but there is still tons of customizations, mods, and hacks available.
Being the owner of the Tilt (Kaiser) and Tilt2 (Touch Pro 2, Rhodium), I’ve become a big HTC fan, and wanted something similar, with a hardware keyboard. The Desire Z has a very similar form factor to the Rhodium, with a hardware keyboard, nearly the same screen size, and similar dimensions. I found out that Bell Canada released the HTC Desire Z in November, with 3G bands compatible with ATT's network. I decided to take the plunge. Not an easy pill to swallow, as an unlocked, unsubsidized device like this goes for a premium price of around $600 (and obviously not for everyone). But what the heck, its a been a good year, and I decided to get myself a Christmas gift. Of course, if you are in Canada, Europe, or on T-Mobile, you have access to specific versions for those locations and carriers at a much better price.
Let me tell you guys, this device is amazing. The build quality is excellent, the phone feels very high end, with most of the body being a gorgeous brushed aluminum, accented with some slightly grippy/rubbery “soft touch” plastic (also nice looking, and does not cheapen the appearance). The feel of the phone is much nicer, and seems more sturdy then the Rhodium.
The camera is 5MP with a LED flash, and yields somewhat better photos than the Rhodium. The screen is gorgeous. While the iPhone “Retina” and Samsung AMOLED displays get all the hype, the super LCD screen on the Desire Z is still very nice. Direct comparisons I have read rate it only slightly below the quality of the iPhone or Galaxy S displays. Touch response is excellent, and registers multi-touch very well.
Much has been said about this phone’s unique “Z Hinge”. See the Engadget review, if you aren't familiar with the Z-hinge: http://mobile.engadget.com/2010/11/25/htc-desire-z-review/
Some have complained about the phone not staying firmly enough in the keyboard open or closed position, or have expressed concerns of the durability of the hinge. Personally, I like the hinge and how it is designed to open easily with the flick of your thumb. But if you’re in doubt, you might want to play around with it in person before committing to buying the phone.
The keyboard itself is very good. But strangely, not quite as nice as the one on the Touch Pro 2. The the keys are slightly smaller (and one less row of keys), and do not have quite as much “travel” when pressing the keys. It feels like a slight step backward from the Rhodium, but still one of the best keyboards around. Having come from the ATT version of the Rhodium (which replaced the row of numbers with random symbols and punctuations), the missing 4th row of keys is not a big deal. But owners of other Rhodium variants will no doubt miss the number-dedicated row of keys.
Another piece of hardware that is strangely not as good as the Rhodium is the speaker. The speaker on the Desire Z is not quite a loud as on the Rhodium, but the difference is fairly minor, and most people will probably overlook this. The 3.5mm headphone jack is a welcome addition, and good riddance to adapters and special headphones that were needed on the Rhodium (at least the GSM version).
At the time of the phone’s release, this was one of the fastest Android phones available (although there is a new generation of dual core Snapdragons coming soon). Don’t be fooled by the fact that the CPU is clocked at 800 MHz. This is a newer generation of Snapdragon than the 1 GHz ones found on phones such as Nexus One and the EVO, with a different fab process and faster GPU also. The Desire Z benchmarks faster than those phones, as well as the Galaxy S, Droid X, and others. The CPU can also be easily overclocked to 1 GHz without over-volting and affecting battery lift; and much higher than that with over-volting.
Battery life seems somewhat shorter on the Desire Z compared to the Rhodium. I was often able to get 2-3 days on a change on my old Tilt2. On the Desire Z, I usually have to charge every night. I can maybe get through a day and a half; but at least a day with all but the heaviest usage. And to be honest, I’m using the phone much more than I did my old Rhodium, so that is a factor as well.
I've played around with Project Android on my trusty old Tilt2, so Android is not completely new to me. It took me a bit getting accustomed to where some things are located, but that is true with switching to any new phone OS. The OS is overall pretty user friendly. It just takes a little while to dedicate to memory where some settings and other things are located. And there is certainly a learning curve once you are ready for customizing/modifying. There is lots of new terminology, process, and tools to learn if you want to “root” (gain super user rights to access system files) and flash a custom ROM, or do other system modifications.
Knocks on Android for not being as "smooth" as the iPhone seem largely unfounded to me. The Desire Z is super smooth, and of course has tons of customization and functionality that the iPhone will never have. And if you coming from Windows Mobile, you are going to be blown away by the smoothness and stability of the OS. The only real performance weakness I’ve seen so far is switching from portrait to landscape on the homescreen, particularly when you have lots of widgets loaded.
Using the phone is a pleasure. Browser rendering is fast, with the stock browser working very well, and Flash enabled. I’ve been previously in denial that capacity touchscreens are a good thing, but multi-touch pinch-to-zoom really does make browsing a joy. Text selection (such as for cut/paste) is aided by a zoom feature that activates with a long touch on text, and also by the optical trackpad (which allows moving the cursor by single characters).
I already keep my contacts, email, and calendar on Google. So the Google integration is awesome for me. I just entered my Google login and password, and it synched all that stuff in a couple minutes. If you are not a Google user, things might be slightly annoying, as the OS will try to steer you toward creating a Google login. Google Navigation is built-in, and will give you point-to -point directions, with audio cues, and first person perspective. It works better than the tools on Windows Mobile such as Google Maps and Bing. It works so well, in fact, that I've often been using Google Nav instead of my Garmin Nuvi GPS unit in the car.
I knew moving to Android would open up a lot of software options, and in this I was not disappointed. There are tons of useful applications and games on the Android Market, and the list is constantly growing. Software developers have embraced Android, which is a refreshing change coming from Windows Mobile. Yes, there is a ton of fluff and junk in the Android Market. But most of the major applications you can think of have a quality Android version.
I’m not a developer. So I can’t comments on the development potential of this device and Android versus Windows Mobile. But so far there is pretty good developer support on the Desire Z. And many have claimed that developers will support this phone for a long time, as they seem to favor devices with a hardware keyboard. There are several stable custom Froyo (Android 2.2) ROMs available, including Sense and non-Sense options, as well as CyanogenMod (a popular and highly customized Android ROM). Gingerbread (Android 2.3, the latest version, just released) ROMs are in the works, with alpha/beta versions already available for testing. Personally, the stock ROM has been so stable and usable for me, I haven’t really been that tempted to flash a custom ROM yet, versus a Windows Phone, where a custom ROM is virtually a necessity.
I’ve babbled on for much too long. In short, if you are looking to upgrade from the Rhodium to something with a similar form factor, the Desire Z is highly recommended. Here’s a quick summary of the Desire Z versus my old Rhodium:
Pros
OS is light years ahead of Windows Mobile (smooth, stable, fast)
Awesome build quality, with a sturdy feel
Better display
3.5 mm headphone jack
Great selection of quality applications
Slightly better camera (5MP) with LED flash
Cons
Keyboard not quite as good
Speaker not quite as good (minor)
Shorter battery life
Z Hinge durability may be an issue
P.S.: If you like the review, please click the "Thanks" button below!

I really appreciated reading this review. I'm a Tilt 2 user, that hasn't found anything new out there to make me want to give up my Rhodium and I have the same feelings regarding Windows 7, so I'm very hesitant to give it a try. Android is completely new to me, but from what I've read, it seems like the natural progression for those of us on Windows Mobile.
I'm on AT&T, so I will keep a watch on this phone if AT&T decides to release their version down the road (but I won't hold my breath ). I've never used unlocked devices either so, unless they come down in price, I won't be experimenting with this model for a while.
Thanks again for posting this. I look forward to reading more about your experiences with this device.
Have fun!
Debbie

Thanks for the review. I enjoyed reading it. Well done, sir!
For a conclusion: Was it worth the money if upgrading from Rhodium?

DebbieNY13 said:
I'm on AT&T, so I will keep a watch on this phone if AT&T decides to release their version down the road (but I won't hold my breath ). I've never used unlocked devices either so, unless they come down in price, I won't be experimenting with this model for a while.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Having finally lost iPhone exclusivity, AT&T seems to be starting to release some decent Android devices, such as the HTC Inspire (Desire HD variant). I'm skeptical they would release the Desire Z, but maybe they will release a future HTC device with a QWERTY keyboard. One can only hope.
If the keyboard is not an absolute requirement, the Inspire looks like a very nice phone. Larger display than the Desire Z, 1GHz processor (faster then the Z), and a slightly better camera. I've actually been finding myself using Swype more and more, and the keyboard less and less. So that has me rethinking the whole QWERTY keyboard thing, a little bit. Although I still use it from time to time for longer texts and emails.
BTW, if you like the review, please click the "Thank you" button!

Jackos said:
Thanks for the review. I enjoyed reading it. Well done, sir!
For a conclusion: Was it worth the money if upgrading from Rhodium?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're very welcome.
For me, spending the money was worth it. It was a lot of money to spend on a phone, but I absolutely love it. I tried to stick with WM as long as I could. But everything just works so much better on the Desire Z. I knew it would be a big improvement, but all my expectations were exceeded.
If you are in a market where your carrier offers this phone for a subsidized price, its a no-brainer.

Very nicely written
I have a TP2 now, also considering the Desire Z since it has a (rare these days) hardware keyboard.
Seeing how the DZ performs (especially when overclocked, wow!) does make me feel quite confident it's somewhat future-proof performance wise.
I do love the tilting screen of the TP2 very much, especially when I'm at the computer and using the TP2 for MSN or FB chat or something like that. Like having a miniature laptop
Have you ever missed the tilting screen of the TP2?
When my contract expires next month I can get a free DZ if I extend my contract.
I'll go to the T-Mobile store tomorrow and see if I can play around with one

ericino said:
Very nicely written
I do love the tilting screen of the TP2 very much, especially when I'm at the computer and using the TP2 for MSN or FB chat or something like that. Like having a miniature laptop
Have you ever missed the tilting screen of the TP2?
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Click to collapse
Personally, I was finding myself using the tilt feature on the TP2 less and less. Lots of times, I found it easier to just slide the phone open, write a quick text, then close it quickly, without having to mess with tilting the screen up and down. But of course, this is a personal preference.
The only times I've been missing the tilt screen is while watching video. With the TP2, I could tilt the screen up, then place the phone down on a table to watch. HTC should have added a kickstand, like on the Desire HD. It would have been a very easy to add, and super useful.

Perfect review!
I'm also considdering the DZ, and the review almost answered all my question.
But I still have one question: What do you do if you want to navigate without being online?
So if you're abroad and don't want the rediculous roaming costs, how do you navigate?
I now use TomTom really a lot, and I don't know what to use when I switch to the DZ.
TomTom has all the maps on the memory card, is there a good replacement for Android? With regular updates?

ronh said:
Perfect review!
I'm also considdering the DZ, and the review almost answered all my question.
But I still have one question: What do you do if you want to navigate without being online?
So if you're abroad and don't want the rediculous roaming costs, how do you navigate?
I now use TomTom really a lot, and I don't know what to use when I switch to the DZ.
TomTom has all the maps on the memory card, is there a good replacement for Android? With regular updates?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is a paid Android app called Copilot, which is supposed to be pretty good, and does what you want. But I haven't personally used it. There are others, as well.
Also, the Euro version of the Desire Z has a feature of the "new" Sense called HTC Locations, which has a 30-day free trial, than once you pay the monthly fee or buy a lifetime license, you can navigate using maps downloaded to the SD card. Unfortunately, Locations and the Car Panel were removed in the Bell Canada version of the DZ. Likewise, the T-Mobile G2 does not have it, as it is Sense-free. But the feature can be obtained by flashing the stock Euro ROM to either the Bell DZ or the G2. I haven't done this, and I have no idea how well Locations works in the US. But comments by DZ users in the UK and Europe indicate they seem to like it.

i too miss my tilt 2, especially the tilts sliding kb. thats why i come back to these boards every now and again.
i got an evo back in august. i never thought id get another smart phone without a keyboard since i have had the 8125 8525 8925 and tilt2. its been a much easier transition than i thought moving to a phone with a giant screen let alone switching to a different os
almost anything i could do with wm i cant do with android only better. android is way more reliable and the tilt2 was a touch underpowered.
as soon as someone comes out with a 4.3inch lcd with a sliding kb that will be my next phone
off topic, don't believe the hype about the evo battery being weak, i get 24-40 hrs per charge, average is probably around 30 hrs and that's with 2 weather apps, face book, 4 emails accounts and Google searches off and on all day with gps location and blue tooth on. i also have a stock rom, although its rooted.
btw tc excellent read.
oh and as far as gps, i too was curious about the navigation, google nav is the best gps nav app i have ever used, but it does rely on a cell phone data connection, i think it gets enough of the info cached ahead incase you loose signal but if it needs to reroute and you dont have signal you are dead in the water. so i went on to try a few stand alone gps apps and i ended up going with aura, it looks pretty and it works but i dont like it, but its a good backup to have incase i dont pay my bill, lol, or loose signal.

Redpoint i hate to rain on your parade, but i went and seen that you have quite a few threads some of which are here in the Pro Tilt 2 forums regarding this new phone you are in love with, why not go to the forum for that phone ?
here make it easier for you...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=594
Sorry the tilt is a great phone although it is getting dated, but that is no reason for what you are doing ....

F2504x4 said:
Redpoint i hate to rain on your parade, but i went and seen that you have quite a few threads some of which are here in the Pro Tilt 2 forums regarding this new phone you are in love with, why not go to the forum for that phone ?
here make it easier for you...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=594
Sorry the tilt is a great phone although it is getting dated, but that is no reason for what you are doing ....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was specifically asked for a comparison between the Touch Pro 2 and the Desire Z; for TP2 owners who may be interested in upgrading. If it was a straight up review of the DZ only, and no mention of the TP2, I would agree with you. But as you can see from reading my review, I make ample comparisons and references to the TP2, so I believe its appropriate here. The DZ is also a very logical upgrade from the TP2 versus just about every other phone on the market, due to its very similar form factor and same manufacturer.
You said I "have quite a few threads" about the DZ. But this is the only thread I started. I posted a reference to this review on 2 other threads started by others. Those threads were started by users looking for an upgrade similar to the TP2, so that actually reinforces my decision that this forum is the correct location for the review/comparison.
I did debate it for a while (of where to post), and your comment is not unreasonable. But I didn't see the Desire Z the best place to post it. The huge majority of the users on the Desire Z/Vision forum already own the phone, and they don't need to see a review for it. If the moderators don't agree with my judgment call, they can move the thread.
And you linked to the forum for the Desire, not the Desire Z. They are completely different phones.

Considering what HTC 7 Pro has become, looks like the Desire Z is the only one phone coming from HTC to replace the TP2. What a pity!
I'll wait until something new comes out to replace my PPC. TP2 still does a great job for me.
Thanks again for the review.

potna said:
i got an evo back in august. i never thought id get another smart phone without a keyboard since i have had the 8125 8525 8925 and tilt2. its been a much easier transition than i thought moving to a phone with a giant screen let alone switching to a different os
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It true, with Swype, I actually find myself using the screen keyboard much more than I would have thought. In fact, for my next phone I may seriously consider one without a hardware keyboard . . . maybe. But I personally can't stand typing on-screen without Swype.
potna said:
oh and as far as gps, i too was curious about the navigation, google nav is the best gps nav app i have ever used, but it does rely on a cell phone data connection, i think it gets enough of the info cached ahead incase you loose signal but if it needs to reroute and you dont have signal you are dead in the water. so i went on to try a few stand alone gps apps and i ended up going with aura, it looks pretty and it works but i dont like it, but its a good backup to have incase i dont pay my bill, lol, or loose signal.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've had that same thought about having a nav program that doesn't need a data connection, so I have a backup in case I am in an area with dodgy coverage, or for foreign use. I might check out something like Copilot, which is only $5 for the US maps (and interestingly $80 for Europe!).

I would like to thank you also for the comparison and ask you about what I haven't read elsewhere.
Is there ability for teleconferencing inDesire Z?
Besides the mentioned problem with the DZ's speaker there were a few times that the feature was (even more than welcome) life-saving while using my rhodium. That, and the Excel files editing.
Also, (a "pro-" feature, not mentioned elsewhere) what about video out?
Am I asking for too much?

Redpoint:
I too have made the upgrade, from TP2 to G2 (Desire Z). Your findings mirror mine almost exactly.
Just in case any one is curious, I'll add my 2 pence.
I still kind of miss the resistive touch screen (think gloves or stylus for precision), but the cap screen is über responsive, and as you said, multi touch is pretty sweet.
I do not miss the complete lack of development of applications for WM. At least at any corporate or popular apps level.
I do miss the great MS Office and Outlook integration. Android does play nice with Exchange, though.
FWIW: Tmo G2's do have a Office compatible suite that should work for docs and xls, but I didn't get a chance to use it. I flashed to a new ROM too fast
I still have the TP2, and will likely futz with it some more, but the G2/DZ is a worthy successor.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA App

calrification on pro2 vs DZ
Sir/s,
i would like to know if DZ has the following functionalities:
1. exchange sync of email, calendar and contacts.
2. when you download exchange email, is it in html format?
3. can DZ record 2 way voice call? (not via speakerphone)
Above are the features that im frequently using on pro2.

ICS 4.0 Set for Q2 2012? Motherfu-

Well, it's going to be a lengthy wait till we get the official release of ICS.
http://mobilesyrup.com/2011/12/26/l...with-lg-optimus-lte-lg-optimus-2x-and-others/

Read comments at :http://www.facebook.com/notes/lg-mobile/ice-cream-sandwich-ics-os-upgrade-schedule/334420639902596

Now that I've experienced this gorgeous 720 display, I can't go back to any lower, but it seems to me with the way things are going, I wont hesitate ditch LG for any other brand once such resolution is available...
It's a shame, LG, you could've been great...

honest question-
why is this a bad thing? i mean, my phone works fantastically.
sure, i, like you, like to be a first adopter and enjoy leading-edge tech, but what's in ics that's such a leapfrog advancement above and beyond gb 2.3.5 that it's worth ditching a device that performs very very well?
again, honest question, i can't deny i've asked myself this very question. i just can't justify giving up this phone because it won't have the official ics for another 3-6 months-ish.

Well, for starters you and I have different level of acceptance. When I buy a gadget with $600 price tag on it I expect it to be working absolutely flawlessly, perfect, or at least not worse then 1 years old gadget. Nitro out of box might seem fast, at first, but it hiccups, screen and buttons are not very responsive (just tell me how many times you pressed back button and nothing happens, before you realize you have to press exactly at that arrow, which is nearly invisible until you press it (face palm) or when you press something on screen and it takes 1/2-1 sec before something happens? 1.5ghz dual core my ass, excuse my french), compass doesn't work, no notifications through headset (I've been using it successfully on 5 different phones). And if you start installing some basic apps, you'll see how quickly the screen become sluggish, in fact, my 1 year old HTC Inspire with single core 1ghz cpu has better screen response, smooth scroll, just like iphone and it's full with installed apps. Ok, it's could be the apps not optimized for such resolution, but wouldn't you expect hardware to compensate?
Said that I was hoping to see a quick update that hopefully would address all or most of these issues, but it doesn't looks like it's gonna happened anytime soon.
So, for the next half a year or more we stuck with what we got. Yes, yes, we all hope the developers will jump on and we'll see some roms going on, but it's not what I'm talking about, it's the whole official level of support, it's the "lets sell them this half-done product and maybe we'll throw them an update or two a year later" attitude. Other companies probably do the same and some even worse, but c'mon just look at LG Thril, these poor bastards have been expecting GB update back in September, now they have to wait another 6 month!
Of course I'm very disappointed about it.

Also when you use GPS navigation and car charging, this nitro will get very hot and it refuses to charge!
I also have Samsung skyrocket, the phone never get hot like this!

You won't need ICS if we can unlock the bootloader. Why is everybody fussin over ICS?? The custom ROMS would be way better than Stock Android ROMs of any version. Just to prove it to u, my Atrix running on CM7 could do about 85% of the things offered in ICS. When I looked at them showcasing the ICS, I kept telling myself, " I have that, and that, and that as well". Nothing is new, except the face recognition unlock and things intergrated from Honeycomb.
So, in my opinion, big deal about ICS. If it does take LG that long to release the update, then hopefully before the time comes, we can get better ROMs.

You are missing very important things about ICS - optimizations.
It's optimized for HD displays, hardware-accelerated 2D drawings (read as UI). Just this two are enough to be excited about...
@netnerd:
it does get very hot with heavy network usage (navigation uses both GPS and network alot, especially if you enabled any additional layers), however mine haven't gotten to the point of refusing charging, perhaps it's your car charger? If it's output only 1.0A, then it might be not enough, cause the wall adapter that comes with phone is 1.1A.
Also note, the "very hot" feel could be due to the metal plate around the camera which is much better heat conductive then plastic, so you'd feel more heat out of it then without it as on Skyrocket...

[email protected] said:
Well, for starters you and I have different level of acceptance. When I buy a gadget with $600 price tag on it I expect it to be working absolutely flawlessly, perfect, or at least not worse then 1 years old gadget. Nitro out of box might seem fast, at first, but it hiccups, screen and buttons are not very responsive (just tell me how many times you pressed back button and nothing happens, before you realize you have to press exactly at that arrow, which is nearly invisible until you press it (face palm) or when you press something on screen and it takes 1/2-1 sec before something happens? 1.5ghz dual core my ass, excuse my french), compass doesn't work, no notifications through headset (I've been using it successfully on 5 different phones). And if you start installing some basic apps, you'll see how quickly the screen become sluggish, in fact, my 1 year old HTC Inspire with single core 1ghz cpu has better screen response, smooth scroll, just like iphone and it's full with installed apps. Ok, it's could be the apps not optimized for such resolution, but wouldn't you expect hardware to compensate?
Said that I was hoping to see a quick update that hopefully would address all or most of these issues, but it doesn't looks like it's gonna happened anytime soon.
So, for the next half a year or more we stuck with what we got. Yes, yes, we all hope the developers will jump on and we'll see some roms going on, but it's not what I'm talking about, it's the whole official level of support, it's the "lets sell them this half-done product and maybe we'll throw them an update or two a year later" attitude. Other companies probably do the same and some even worse, but c'mon just look at LG Thril, these poor bastards have been expecting GB update back in September, now they have to wait another 6 month!
Of course I'm very disappointed about it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this in no way whatsoever describes how the nitro i own functions, i have yet to experience any of the issues you have.
also, i paid $150, not $600.

So, you never experienced any slows down or jittering when scroll apps list or text in other apps? It doesn't delay open any apps for you?
After hard reset everything seems to be smooth, very little jittering in apps scroll, but once some essencial apps get installed, the jittering gets more and more.
The buttons issue, is probably because of unusual layout, but the fact that we can't control lights on them and they almost invisible does make it harder to use.
The $600 is retail price, I payed half of that, but I'm not stuck in the contract. I only mentioned the price just to compare what they ask for and what they actually deliver for that price...

[email protected] said:
So, you never experienced any slows down or jittering when scroll apps list or text in other apps? It doesn't delay open any apps for you?
After hard reset everything seems to be smooth, very little jittering in apps scroll, but once some essencial apps get installed, the jittering gets more and more.
The buttons issue, is probably because of unusual layout, but the fact that we can't control lights on them and they almost invisible does make it harder to use.
The $600 is retail price, I payed half of that, but I'm not stuck in the contract. I only mentioned the price just to compare what they ask for and what they actually deliver for that price...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
it seems to me that the phone gets snappier as the programs most used get used. sure, there have been slow downs, just now going into the market, all my app icons took a moment to pop on screen. i noticed that.
opera, gmail, all the apps i use pop up pretty dang quick, more often suprising me with their quickness v. slow. the scrolling too, i don't find troublesome. yes, over the past several weeks of getting the phone dialed-in like i like it there have been times that i've noticed this and that but now that i am getting it finalized, it is snappy snappy.
and i do notice that sometimes the launcher does not recognize my screen inputs, but the stock launcher noticed them quite well, but to me that just means the launcher is probably not perfected for such a fine screen.
re: the price. i see. even so, sure seems like a better price tag than the google phone. what's retail there, $800? and no deals, subsidized price is locked at ~$300 + i'd pay $20 more a month at verizon.
for me (i.e. not for everyone ) this phone *seems* to make sense. could be wrong but at the same time, we all know what it's like waiting for that super perfect phone.

I tried to stick with the nitro through January and couldn't do it. This news of pics coming in q2 justifies my decision to return it and wait for the galaxy note lte or galaxy nexus for at&t. Hopefully a few devs come along and release this phone from its shackles.
Sent from my Full Android on Wingray using xda premium

It's not even confirmed for the Nitro HD, instead LG said it's up to the carriers. It's only confirmed for the international variant, the LG Optimus LTE.
Source: http://www.phonearena.com/news/LG-e...to-select-devices-starting-in-Q2-2012_id25095

So it's even worse then we thought...carriers will only start thinking rather update or not their devices after LG releases the update...

That's the way it's always worked.
Sent from my LG-P930 using XDA App

Once it's rooted n unlocked, i dont think it matters if u use the optimus LTE update, does it?

yay for us! LoLoL!!!

I think LG is thinking all they need to do is put out a phone with monster specs and that's it, they're done. If it were a few years ago, before people knew that smartphones had an OS let alone know what 'Android' was, then yeah you don't have to care too much about OS updates.
But this is today and the Nitro is a competitor to the Galaxy Nexus. You better believe that EVERY OS update that comes out, the Galaxy Nexus is going to be the first to get it...So any 'decent' competitor should up it's game and follow suit closely behind. And 6 months later ain't closely behind.
I'm starting to talk myself out of the Nitro. My true love and want was the Galaxy Note but I got tired of waiting for a US release and jumped on the Nitro instead. But the funky menu/search button, no indicator LED, bad compass, sometimes sluggish performance, etc...

Unfortunately for us there are no rules or regulations how manufactures should handle their products. That's why they more focus on creating new models rather then supporting already sold, maybe it's a good business, but this actually explains why so many people prefer overpriced Apple products...In fact after playing a bit with iPhone 4s on xmas, I'd be sold for it too if I wasn't interested in doing something myself to phone system as we can on android platform.

im sticking to this phone for now, no matter wat. I will make it work with wat it has, n im sure, in a couple of months or so, we will have much more things with this phone. I mean seriously, this phone is only 23 days old, and we make it seem like this has been out for months and has no hopes of improving. Give it a break and show some patience guys. We are even damn lucky to get a permanent root so easily. look at the rezound, who's been out longer than the Nitro; it still doesn't have a permanent root. And in 23 days, we have the support of a couple of devs trying to get us CWM and several great users working hard figuring out the innards of this phone. To give u an idea, Tenfar did not even come out with CWM for the Atrix until April, almost 2 months down the road.
So you know wat, I'm not giving up on them. They've all worked hard to help us have a better phone, and I am not leaving them and their hard work to vain. I know it's about money and being stuck with a phone for 2 years or so, but hey, that's the price we pay as early adopters to technology. Want something proven and guaranteed, wait a couple of months when everyone already has the phone.
That's my 2 cent on the current situation; about ICS, about Unlock bootloader, about this and that. Things will improve in weeks to come, as long as we stick together and help, instead of complaining on how the phone is lacking this or that.
p.s. always remember, the SG II has a much lower resolution with same CPU, thus performing under less stress. And the Galaxy Nexus has a pentile AMOLED screen, again also using less power thus stressing the CPU less. That's where this phone is getting hit with lag and battery issue.

Good Lawrd: Motorola, back to Wildfire

I have to say I am in shock and awe, considering Motorola's "sharing" nature in the past. But, then again, Google did just recently purchase the giant didn't they. Well, if you are wondering what I am reeling about, check out the latest update of the Android SDK... and take a gander at all the SDKs released for pretty much every current Motorola device. Well, this will mean those phone's will receive some fine-tuned development for applications. And although I haven't cared for the gentle giant much since the late 90's, I do have to say bravo... nice to see you turn over a new leaf. And, I'm going to go out on a limb here.... (given the aforementioned purchase) I kind of wonder what the Google Development devices of the future might look like... and who might manufacture them ::shrug:: I suppose it's the way the cookie crumbles.
I do not own a single Motorola device (though I pondered the Xoom for a bit)... Just thought I'd blog in the general section about a totally unrelated manufacturer.
Oh, since I am duty-bound to mention it, I only own HTC phones (I think six), but the evidence in front of my eyes... well, I might have to spread myself out next purchase.
Since I should keep this Wildfire-centric, I will conclude this lil blog with a general question you guys can all bat around...
What do you think of another Wildfire device (HTC Golf rumored to be HTC Wildfire C releasing with ics)?
Thoughts, opinions, etc all welcome... damn already a thread on that...
Uhhh well, I am looking forward to modpunk's ics.. everyone go hit his thanks button... and I'm pulling my Tmo wfs back out; so, I can take a gander... Looking forward to this... who would of thunk it four months ago? but Qualcomm updates their drivers and you got a dedicated dev working on it non-stop (this is why you should thank him).. Nice to see our lil 600 Mhz devices oc'd and running ics.. what a hoot.

This is my first HTC and android phone and it will be my last. It turned out not to be the disappointment that it could be but only thanks to modpunk's effort and the other devs.
I don't agree with HTC's policy that if you want an update buy an updated device. Just look at the google nexus s phone or any other google phone, it's constantly being updated and the support for the device is incredible.
My next device will be made by samsung or motorola and would definitely have at least 4.0 inch hdpi screen and some decent internal storage.

I haven't really made up my mind yet...
Although I love the Wildfire s for beeing such a compact device I guess I wouldn't be interested in staying in the same smartphone league forever. Therefore the HTC Golf in my eyes wouldn't really be a considerable step forward.
When I saw the recent release of the One X with the built-in quadcore processor and 32GB internal memory space at first that seemed to be the way to go for me but then when I saw the results of the benchmark test where the One S did even better whilst only using a dualcore processor I kind of started to doubt wether this is really gonna be the next device to replace my current Wildfire S... =/
I absolutely love the sense user interface, but probably waiting for the next Nexus Jellybean device could be a smart move even if the odds are that'll probably be a Motorola device then...
I guess the current android version is just not yet prepaired for an efficient use of quadcore processors. Hopefully the next one will fix this.
So even if HTC has plans to roll out a jellybean update for the One series in the future I still guess that going for a Nexus device might shorten the stock firmware updating time for quite a while...
Still there's so much about HTC and the One Series that makes me drool...

All you get from a nice custom rom is speed and battery drain, plus nice gui customization, nothing else. If I were to buy another smartphone I would choose the sensation not xl or xe cause all devs have it and there are hundreds of roms to choose from plus everyday it is always updated. Also it's thin and looks like a phone that doesnt get old on the looks of it. I wouldnt buy a thick phone thats to heavy in the pocket.

Wildfire S, as is the entire Wildfire family, is an economy smartphone. Its been nice to see what can be eeked out of a (lower end) smartphone though.
Galaxy Nexus IS Google's current development device, of course it will get updates first.
Like the Sensation...
I also looked at the dual-touchscreen api (from the Kyocera Echo)... I have to imagine that would be A+ top notch for game emulators (like DS roms and such).
All kind of interesting development going on though (at all times). Anyone tried that Google Drive yet?
Sent from my HTC_A510c using Tapatalk 2

My Wildfire S was just a constant annoyance until I found Simon's thread and upgraded to Sense 3.5. I can't imagine any company/vendor putting out an "economy" phone with so much crap on it. It was like being in a candy store but only being allowed to buy stuff with a dime.

A note on pulling back out my tmo wfs...
I really am a tightwad. But Walmart in conjunction with tmo has a plan...
$30/mo; first 5 gig at 4g speed, unlimited data and msgs, but only 100 calling mins...
Considering I was on the cheapest I could find VM USA:
$35/mo; first 2.5 gig at their fastest 3g speed, unlimied data and msgs, and 300 calling mins.
Now, take calling mins out of the equation by getting some kinda SIP apk, setting up free Google Voice acct and Tele number (incoming calls), setting up a free pbxes.org (router and outgoing calls) and boom.. Tmo the cheapest kid by comparison (and you get all the mins your data will allow... 1500 mins+ easily).
Only found one other service cheaper.. Republic Wireless at $19/mo but you have to buy their modded Optimus S (don't know how I feel about having to have a not-so-well-known company's ROM that strips back functionality of device (by some accounts; ie audio, dsp, etc especially) but its a similar logic to SIPs... It in effect forces WiFi, whenever possible, then routes everything (calls, texts,etc) over IP. I do like their headquartered in Cary, NC which is somewhat close to me and their IP way of doing things... But I like to mod roms and I haven't seen a RUU for their build.
If I could buy a generic Optimus S (Sprint), they hand me the RUU, and whatever cdma workshop tweaks I might need to make, I'd give it a go... but otherwise, its a LG device, and I still only own HTC at present.
Rob
Sent from my HTC_A510c using Tapatalk 2

[Q] Captivate Slide on AT&T or T-Mobile and other general Q's

Hello everyone!
I'm looking for a new phone since my Epic 4G is finally biting the dust. Of course I'd like to stick with a QWERTY keyboard phone so the Captivate Glide may be my next choice! I did have a few questions though:
Ideally I am looking for an unlocked Captivate Glide to use on a monthly AT&T or T-Mobile plan. I hate contracts and I'm looking to travel internationally in the next few years so having a GSM phone will help in that aspect. Is anyone on either of those networks?
How do you all find the battery life typically? On stock or custom?
This phone is looking to be a good replacement for my Epic and I'm interested to hear your feedback

My absolute honest opinion... for the money I paid this phone delivers, its got a dual core processor good screen lots of memory .. the keyboard, however, leaves much to be desired... now my opinion is based on having come from a blackberry bold, the keyboard was awesome. Because of the touch and the keys being so close together I was able to roll my fingers across the keyboard to complete words and rock it back and forth to complete other words.. IE: I'd roll my thumb from e to r to e again to complete spelling there etc.
With the captivate glide keyboard, not only does it take a bit to depress the keys but they are so far apart and I've found I've had a difficult time moving from key to key because of it. As well, once you have a hard case on, its difficult to get to the keys on the top row.
I find myself using the on screen keyboard and only flipping to the physical when I get frustrated with typos (as I was used to on my Galaxy Ace which has only a 3.5" screen .. it was murder trying to type).
Part of me wonders if I should have gotten a Galaxy SII for the interim... I really wanted to get an SIII but there were no free phone offers so I settled on the Glide.
Other negative part is it has a very small user base so the forums here are fairly quiet and only a couple of people are developing for this device. This means things like CyanogenMOD (CM10) and Jellybean, proper ICS builds are a lot slower to come by ... and it is possible that we may not ever see JB on our phones ... Dman appears to be the only person coding JB for our phones, TheGreaterGood has solidified a great ICS rom now (literom 0.8.4) so we have an ICS build improved upon by the most recently released ATT build.
Battery life is good, I get a full day and some out of it, come night time after about 14 hours I'm often at critical but understand I have 2 email accounts in push mode all day, wifi on all day cruising and connecting to various hot spots throughout my clients across the city and I'm in varied coverage areas. (A couple of my clients are in rural area's). This is with my GPS turned off.
My phone was purchased for Rogers network - I dumped them as a provider and switched to Virgin Mobile. I paid the $15 and unlocked my phone using the download util from FastGSM. My phone has NEVER come unlocked and I've flashed numerous roms in GingerBread ICS and JellyBean. There are threads explaining how to unlock for free but personally the 2 minute and guarantee that it would unlock my phone (I unlocked my galaxy ace as well) was worth my time savings
My advice - Find one, play with it. Type up a whole couple-3 paragraphs using the on screen keyboard and the slide out keyboard. I read that I should do that somewhere and I didnt.
I miss the feel of my Ace in one hand with a rubber sleeve on it. I could spin it around and feel it comfortable in my hand, wrap my fingers around it. This one, because of the slider, It feels like it may falll out of my hand easier and there doesn't seem to be an ability to fluently type with one hand (such a drag when driving )
Don't get me wrong, I'm still happy with my purchase but I would have spent far less hours playing with a Galaxy SII tweaking it and trying to get it customized because there is so much more support for it. Not to mention having Google NOW.

I also came from the Epic. It is a little bit different of a phone, but it is much faster, in my experience. It has a dual-core Tegra 2 and an 8 MP camera -- two nice selling points. It also can support a 64 microSDXC card -- I have one in mine and it's awesome.
However, a few drawbacks too -- the top row from the Epic on the keyboard (the numbers) are missing -- we only have a 4 row keyboard. You have to use the alt key to get numbers. Not a super big deal, but takes some getting used to. Also, there is no notification light to my knowledge, either. So don't expect a flashing light to tell you if you have a new email, etc. The final "frustration" is that it is hard to find decent cases for this. Dev's aren't entirely consistent on this device, like they are with the Epic -- We haven't had any "stable" releases of ICS/JB, aside from mods on the stock -- CM support isn't quite there yet. CWM doesn't support external SD's. I guess we were a bit spoiled in the Epic forums. I may be taking a stab at getting external SD support with CWM... and maybe then working on CM support... but we'll see -- have a lot on my plate and I'm not a Java developer by trade (but I am a programmer with over 20 years experience in other languages relevant).
It's a little slimmer and feels a bit sturdier/compact than the Epic, but more or less the exact same size (but different rounding on the corners).
You can pick one up BRAND NEW from NewEgg -- and then unlock it. I got mine for $200 with free shipping, etc, from NewEgg on a sale. Just watch out for it and make sure you're paying attention to the "sales" and coupons, so you know the true price of it -- mine was listed at $225 with a $25 instant rebate (shown right next to the title of it). It was supposedly unlocked (but it's not) -- so I had to buy an unlock code -- and it worked flawlessly. If you look in this forum, you should see a review I posted about it.
I think the phone has a lot of promise, but we need a bit better support. Some things that are important seem overlooked. That being said, it seems like the remaining tasks are pretty simple. Unlike the Epic, which received support for data as one of the last things on the phone -- the Glide got it as one of the first things -- but the physical keyboard isn't working perfectly. Weird nuances like that.
Again, we are lucky to have developers who spend their free time on this -- and anything they've already done can be appreciated. I just wish we had a few others in here who would take up some more of the work and try to fix it, when one of our dev's is working on a side-project, like we did with the Epic.
All-in-all, feels like a good phone to upgrade to. Pretty happy with it. I got an empire case off of Amazon for about $5 and it fits better than the Seidio I have on my Epic. Just ROM support seems a little weak at the moment compared to the Epic.

Wow, thank you both for such detailed responses. One of the things I look for as well is the community that supports the phone which you've both demonstrated is pretty damn good regardless of custom ROM support. Thanks!
The price is the main constriction on whatever phone I plan on purchasing. Next is GSM, then the speed, keyboard, SD card slot, etc. Starting with the price, the new phones are so goddamn expensive! I don't think I could justify spending $600 phone and I really don't want to be on a contract; I'm hoping to do a month to month on either T-Mobile or AT&T. The newer phones are all dropping some of the best features (IMO): keyboard and SD slots. The reason I'm considering this phone is because it's basically the Epic just beefed up!
There are a couple other phones I was comparing this to: Droid 3 and the Mytouch 4G Slide. To be honest, the Captivate Glide has CM9 and CM10 in beta which would be enough custom rom swapping for me. I really want a solid daily driver that isn't going to crash or give me many problems. Any thoughts?

benchwrmr22 said:
There are a couple other phones I was comparing this to: Droid 3 and the Mytouch 4G Slide.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was using a Droid 3 when Rogers offered me this phone for free to re-up on my plan. The heft and feel of the D3 was awesome. Lots of metal, it felt super solid. The keyboard was also great. I'm a big fan of the Droid line (my favourite phone still is the original Droid [I wish I could get another one with a bigger screen and updated insides]) because I love the look and the build quality was great. Also, the HDMI out was sometimes handy.
That being said, the screen on the Glide blows the D3 out of the water. I forget the specifics of the Droid 3 screen, but immediately after I got it home, I noticed that it had a distractingly pixelly screen. The glide also has a full gig of ram as opposed to 512mb and that was a nice upgrade. The battery on the Glide is ever so slightly bigger (1500mah on the D3, 1650mah on the Glide).
While the keyboard on the glide is not as good as the one on the D3, I have no problems touch typing while walking and glancing at my screen periodically. Having all 4 android buttons on the keyboard is also a nice touch. The Glide has a springy mechanism like old qwerty feature phones to pop out the keyboard, whereas the D3, you have to manually push it the whole way. I wouldn't say either is better... just different feel.
As much as the glide rom scene isn't as robust as some phones (don't get me wrong, the guys we have are absolutely awesome), the stagnant development scene for the Droid 3 is what made me switch. Two words: Locked Bootloader. ICS was kind of running on it when I left in July, minus a whole bunch of things (notably the camera). And I skimmed through that forum the other day when I was feeling like busting out the D3 for a couple of days for nostalgia; it doesn't look like a whole lot has changed. Flashing roms on the glide is the pinnacle of convenience. Flashing and running roms on the D3 involved crazy workarounds that slowed the boot time and restricted us to using a GB kernel with heavily modified ICS. Although, I hear there's been some luck in getting unsigned kernels to work, there's still a LOT of driver work that has to be done from scratch to get ICS fully working with the D3's just-good-enough internals.
That's about all I can say about these two phones. I'm no dev and by no means did I look incredibly far into the D3 situation so I could be way off base, but that's how it looked to me.

Well, here's the deal with that, then:
Yes, this phone is way better than the Droid 3/4, in my opinion. I like the keyboard on the Droid better, but this phone has WAY better support and chances for it.
If you want to go month-to-month, consider using StraightTalk -- I have StraightTalk using AT&T's network (since that is what is officially supported here -- since 1900 isn't being supported by T-Mobile yet). $45/month unlimited everything -- and here we don't have hidden data caps, it doesn't seem, so the negatives of the network aren't really there for StraightTalk.
I'm working with the guy who originally ported CWM for our phone (not Aquethys -- utkanos) to make a CWM that ACTUALLY works 100% (currently ours doesn't support external_sd, even though it lists it -- it always fails to see it). Once I have that done, I'll probably be playing around with building CM10 and trying to fix some of the bugs that Team Glide has yet to do. I have no experience with Android development -- but I do have a lot of experience with programming in general -- so hopefully I will be able to get something working. Only thing is that CM10 is a big, nasty compile -- and I'm just using a VM right now, which isn't as powerful as true dedicated hardware. I'll probably have to get a monster server to start real development, but my funds are low. So, depending on how painful and annoying VM development is, I may stop working on anything after the CWM. We'll see what happens!

My very non-dev take on this phone, after having it a year now: My previous phone was a Droid1, which was a pretty good device (very durable) but I definitely grew tired of its sluggish performance, even while running CM7 on it. I was never a fan of the Droid1 keyboard, and I think the Glide is a huge improvement between the 2. No question the keys are a bit flat and widely spaced, but I think they work well once you're used to them. The lack of a dedicated number row is annoying, but manageable.
My biggest annoyance after the Droid1 is the lack of a LED notification light on the Glide. But that just is what it is. Other small gripes are the lack of a good case option (as far as I've seen), since the all-plastic construction of the Glide is rather slippery in your hand. The back cover looks nice and stays on tight during normal operation, but a minor drop seems to make it fly off, causing the battery to fly out, and you're standing there gathering the pieces of your phone and re-assembling it like a buffoon. At least I've been there a few times.
The development support for this phone in the last few months has been great. I was really bummed for quite some time after getting it to see very little support. LiteROM has been a really solid variation of the stock Samsung/AT&T ROM, with version 0.8.4 seeming to be essentially flawless in the last few days I've had it running. I know CM10 is a huge project, but with LiteROM running so well, I really have no need for anything else.
I will likely hang onto this phone after my AT&T contract is up in a year, and also go to StraightTalk. Maybe T-mobile will get their frequencies straight and I'll have the option to give them a whirl next year. AT&T service works pretty well in my area, so at least I know I will continue to get that coverage.
The only other thing that bothers me about this phone is the low ppi of the screen. It looks rather pixelated at times until you zoom into things. Do yourself a favor and definitely don't even glance at a new iPhone screen before checking out the Glide. I think that's the only feature that will eventually convince me to replace the Glide, if someone (Samsung or Moto) comes out with a high-quality GSM slider with a high ppi screen. But it seems phones with physical keyboards get less and less attention, and the Glide might be one of the last good GSM offerings for a while.

Poll: Reason we as people buy a new phone and whats the motive/selling point

Wanted to start a unusual Poll thread about
Why we buy the latest and greatest phones and whats the motive or reasoning behind it?
Not just about the galaxys or s4..even any device...
Whats become the selling point for you as a "INDIVIDUAL" in your case for instance?
Like many of us phone junkies admit we have had to have it the day it drops.. whats the biggest reason and is it a sickness.
Do our old phones really not do what a phones meant to do at the end of a day? just because a new one has taken its place?
Maybe its cause of the new look
Maybe it's due to the rumored batt life
Maybe its a new design
And maybe its just a habit
For me its about the always improving batt life of upcoming devices. ..
Old phones were plagued with batt life issues i believe now we are overcoming that.
Also for me and the s4 it wasnt the cam that sold me I felt the ir blaster was a very unique feature.
What's your reason?
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda app-developers app

I'm a tech junkie so I love having the latest and greatest. I also recently became hooked to root and flashing roms/mods and the development on my previous phone (S3) slowed down a lot. So here I am lol
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda app-developers app

lojak29 said:
Wanted to start a unusual Poll thread about
Why we buy the latest and greatest phones and whats the motive or reasoning behind it?
Not just about the galaxys or s4..even any device...
Whats become the selling point for you as a "INDIVIDUAL" in your case for instance?
Like many of us phone junkies admit we have had to have it the day it drops.. whats the biggest reason and is it a sickness.
Do our old phones really not do what a phones meant to do at the end of a day? just because a new one has taken its place?
Maybe its cause of the new look
Maybe it's due to the rumored batt life
Maybe its a new design
And maybe its just a habit
For me its about the always improving batt life of upcoming devices. ..
Old phones were plagued with batt life issues i believe now we are overcoming that.
Also for me and the s4 it wasnt the cam that sold me I felt the ir blaster was a very unique feature.
What's your reason?
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's almost like a compulsion. I rarely impulse buy and I can take weeks to finally decide on my purchases. I read reviews, speculations, I memorize the specs of all my choices and compare them. The compulsion part comes in because once I get the idea in my head that I really want something I will find a way to get it; I'll make myself believe I need it... I actually almost hate when it comes time to buy a new toy because I put so much time into the pre-purchase. On the other hand, it's also a type of rush. As far as selling points go, it's usually something small and trivial that makes me decide which way to go. Buying my 1st droid I was torn between an LG Nitro and the GS2. I had my mind made up that I wanted the S2 and while in-store I played with both of them. I liked the LG's screen a little bit better and that was the one I bought. The whole reason I got the S4 is because around January I had decided I was going to buy the S3. I had already worked out a deal with a friend to buy his and everything; then I realized the S4's release was very near. In fact, the purchase of this device was the easiest one I've made in quite some time because I had already done the legwork and research on the S3, The hardest part was waiting for release... then deciding which carrier's version to buy, whether to switch carriers or buy outright, etc etc.

Its better to be addicted to new technology then crack. Haha really though it's a hobby for me. Something I enjoy. One can have the fastest and newest features. Plus I like to learn about new technology and development.
Sent from My S4 in BEASTMODE

My current phone, a Galaxy S 1, has super slow NAND, and that affects performance quite alot with newer apps being larger than they were 3 years ago.

I use my phone more than any other device I own. I haven't played my PS3 in months and I barely use my tablet. I chose to buy this device because I wanted to get rid of my Galaxy Nexus before it became obsolete. I work and purchasing something like this does not have an effect on my finances because I can afford my gadgets. I know some people just have to have the latest even if it they have to change their lifestyle in order to do so.
I love customizing my phone, but now that I have this device I don't feel the need to. I wish I had bought the Nexus 4 instead. They have a very active community that is all about helping each other out and they are very loyal to their brand. Seems like most of the people who I have seen in the T-Mobile section are teenagers.
Sent from my SGH-M919 using Xparent Skyblue Tapatalk 2

I'm buying a new phone when my old one breaks or becomes too old/slow/buggy for my needs. And I always buy the top of the line models just because I think they'll serve me longer. For example I don't really need a quad core cpu now, but in 2 years from now it might become a minimum requirement to run Google Maps.

lordcheeto03 said:
It's almost like a compulsion. I rarely impulse buy and I can take weeks to finally decide on my purchases. I read reviews, speculations, I memorize the specs of all my choices and compare them. The compulsion part comes in because once I get the idea in my head that I really want something I will find a way to get it; I'll make myself believe I need it... I actually almost hate when it comes time to buy a new toy because I put so much time into the pre-purchase. On the other hand, it's also a type of rush. As far as selling points go, it's usually something small and trivial that makes me decide which way to go. Buying my 1st droid I was torn between an LG Nitro and the GS2. I had my mind made up that I wanted the S2 and while in-store I played with both of them. I liked the LG's screen a little bit better and that was the one I bought. The whole reason I got the S4 is because around January I had decided I was going to buy the S3. I had already worked out a deal with a friend to buy his and everything; then I realized the S4's release was very near. In fact, the purchase of this device was the easiest one I've made in quite some time because I had already done the legwork and research on the S3, The hardest part was waiting for release... then deciding which carrier's version to buy, whether to switch carriers or buy outright, etc etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Feel just like you man. I have had almost 40 different phones in the past few years. Any high end phone I have probably bought....drives the wife crazy. Funny thing is that I'm not an impulse shopper with anything else but phones. I can walk to the AT&T store right now and chances are I'm walking out with something new.....so I try to avoid them lol
Sent from my GT-I9505G using xda premium

I bought it for the prompt and timely updates from Samsung and T-Mobile.

I'm still in therapy trying to figure out what the cause of this 'have to buy new device sickness' is. I'll post back in a couple of years when I get off the couch
But seriously, I enjoy having a newer version of my current device because it's something new, even if the changes are subtle. But I've always gotten the newer version usually months later, mostly due to not being eligible for a subsidized device under contract for 22 months, for example, with Sprint. But with T-Mobile, I'll be able to get the newer device when available due to their 'No Contract' option with annual eligibility for a new device, and twice a year eligibility for newer devices with the 'Jump' program, although newer versions of the same device, S2-S3 and S3-S4 for example, drop once a year. My last few devices have been Samsung upgrades. But I can change manufactures if the model warrants it, and then it would be possible to upgrade maybe twice a year. But Samsung Galaxy series have been berry, berry good to me
With the above being said, you'll NEVER see me waiting on a line outside the store waiting to get a new device the day it comes out, and obviously you won't see me in a tent overnight or for days on end waiting to be one of the first to get a new device. Now that's a Sickness, imho :silly:
I'll wait a few days or weeks until the device is available without the lines, or when it's back in stock.
Now back to the 'couch' already in session lol!

I bought the phone because I am a huge fan of the newest technology. I skipped on the one simply because the button layout, HTC sense, and the screen being a tiny bit smaller. Having the latest technology intrigues me (and poor impulse control lol) to buy these new gadgets.
As of now I'm really only interested in Samsung and Nexus devices unless something else over shadows those. There's no real good reason for upgrading every time a new phone is available for me. A phone from a year or two ago would suffice but I just have to have the latest and greatest. Its definitely an American mentality.
It's easier to click "thanks" than type it.

I'm still using my Galaxy S1 and after 2.5 years the battery is almost gone.
The phone has become really slow and hangs a lot.
Thus, I just ordered a new S4

I had a LG G2X for over 2 years. Always hated the camera and screen size, but when it first came out it was good. Got slower and slower over the months. Got to the point where if I downloaded an app over 30mb it wouldnt run on the phone so I gave up on it. Looked up all kind of reviews of the S4 for about 2 months before I dished out the cash for it.
The things that one me over were:
Camera
IR Blaster
Performance specs
& Support I THOUGHT it was coming with.

stevessvt said:
I bought it for the prompt and timely updates from Samsung and T-Mobile.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hahaha. Then you bought it for the wrong reasons. Lol

current phone g2x POS , dead pixel (so line on the screen), intermittent Bluetooth cut out when backlit buttons light up or go out. and general nvidia/lg crappy build support for drivers.
going to s4 on the 16th as soon am my contract is over. root remove bloat and be happy.
i replace a phone when it no longer dose what i need it to do. g2x issues gps / Bluetooth , forced to use stock roms if you want to be able to make calls and having working Bluetooth if you made the mistake of updating the base band to get gps working.....been waiting for my contract to be done for the last 2 months i can almost see the light at the end of the tunnel 8 more days and i can retire the g2x to become a backup mp3 alarm clock and gps nav device...

For me its a hobby to get new phones. I havent use any phone for more than 6 months.
Sent from my GT-N8013 using xda premium

I LOVE tinkering and twiddling with my devices. I generally keep a phone over a year or until a badly thought out mod kills it, but last phone had next to no development. I kinda splurged on this one. It's my first very high end one and I LOVE it. Made me realize that almost all the mods I've been doing on various phones were to get them closer to the level this one is.

wanna hear a story i work at a cellphone retail store my boss love iphones
the first time i got a phone was a blackberry slow as **** then i went to sprint and got 2 option the 4s or the galaxy s2
i went with the s2 of course i hate iphones
since then i learn about rooting,flashing etc
xda has the best customer service lol
since then i had the s2,s3,note 2 and now the note 3
why i buy samsung phone easy to customize root,removal battery and sd card
im a music junkie and no other phone has what Samsung phones offer,
i play with all new device since i work in a cellphone retail but in the end samsung for me
sorry for my bad english and bad grammar

Well I have always purchased Android phones, and I picked up the Galaxy S4 after my Galaxy Nexus bit the dust.. switched to T-Mobile to get the unlimited data and I've been incredibly happy with them so far

I like to have the it phone so people admire it, and ask me to customize theirs.
To make $ rooting and flashing it has to be a phone a lot of people have.
For me it's been g1, g2, Hercules, s3, s4. Samsung will likely have the next one: s5
Sent from my SGH-M919 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app