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I'm gonna talk about my one week+ old HOX, and like always, I have a lot to say.
To start with, my last phone was the Omnia II, and it was a piece of ****. I had no idea someone was capable of producing something so stupid I'm just totally shocked I mostly used it as a regular phone+music player. It sucked mainly because of the WM6.5 OS, its just funny how someone could even sell such a thing and call it a smartphone. Firstly the performance sucks and it's obvious, nothing goes beyond 10fps in WM6.5, you'd be lucky to get over 5. The music player playlist scrolls at about 3fps, the keyboard has a half second to one second lag, the browser runs at about 0.8fps, it is a full featured browser but you can barely browse the most plain mobile sites. With performance like this, multitasking can kiss my ass, how about get any single task done right before you can multitask? That resistive touchscreen also sucked, I was stupid I didn't do enough research to know the difference. Why would you have a phone screen that is NOT covered with glass? Why? Ignoring the obvious hardness differences, it sucks when those reflections on my screen are distorted, I wanna see a perfect mirror reflection, I'm a perfectionist ok? And of course there are about three apps for WM. I know there are more but they look like windows 95 and has tiny ui elements designed for styluses so they don't count. And those ones that look like windows XP or with lame 3d themes, SPB shell or some ****, those don't count as well.
Look at iPhone! That's how it should be done, everything must be perfectly smooth period. If its not smooth it's not even worth mentioning I don't care how many features you have. iPhone 4 really kicked android in the ass with that retina display. I still don't get it, even today people are releasing phones with this "qHD" resolution, wtf? That's just laughable it's lower than a phone released two years ago! With a much smaller screen! Really? Who's gonna accept that? Sometimes they even call it their "flagship" product, gimme a break. 720p is the minimum period.
So just a few weeks ago I was struggling to decide between the iPhone 4s, HOX the S3, and Sony's yet to be released waterproof 1.5ghz dual core phone. I can't wait for the Sony because iPhone 5 is coming out by the time they release it so that's out of the question. I already have the iPad so I decided to try out an android phone, already got a taste of iOS. I picked the HOX and here is why.
The Galaxy S III isn't as good looking as the HOX to begein with. Maybe Samsung has been having too many problems with patents their design is severely compromised it looks like a really cheap phone but obviously with latest technologies like that screen and its thickness. That bottom part looks really bad it reminds me of a really ugly version of the Omnia II, it looks so 2006 if you unrest and what I mean. That top part also look really bad with those obvious holes for sensors and cameras, they should be hidden like on the HOX. The back side and the rim also look like a very cheep phone but thinner and bigger.
The galaxy s3 screen is also bigger I think, but with the same resolution which makes its bigger size a negative fetus because it's harder to use. Oh wait, in fact it's of a lower resolution because of that pentile ****, it only has 2/3 the number of sub pixels as the HOX. The amoled display is vibrant but that's not equivalent to good because it's too vibrant and the colors are inaccurate. Take a look at a professional display review of the s3 all three primaries are way off they are over saturated. White balance is non existent it's too blue and sometimes green it hurts my eyes. The amoled display is also far dimmer than the HOX, doesn't bother me much but it's also a down point.
The S3 is slightly faster and has a bigger battery. But the Sense UI also look better and no I'm not a fan of flashing ROMs anymore. Honestly I don't give a **** about performance as long as it's smooth I'm happy, and I don't play 3d games at all. I saw this review concluding the s3 has a mich much battery life, I don't know what to say about their stupidity, it must have been tough finding someone to do that video review with a straight face. They test battery life by playing a video that's basically a static image, on max screen brightness. Ok to start with, the HOX has a much brighter screen, in fact, 60% brighter if I remember correctly. So the HOX shouldn't be competing on max brightness. It should be on 60%. Secondly that S3 has a freakin amoled display how can you compare that with an LCD? That stupid video they use is mostly dark blue with a small rainbow so the total display output of an oled display displaying that image is probably less than 33%. So, we should have the HOX's screen brightness decreased by another 66% down to 20% max brightness to be fair. Or, we should have a video with realistic scenarios like full white google home pages. But of course, the s3 with a bigger battery and it's more advanced processor is probably better on battery life in any case, just not by THAT much.
But that battery life advantage doesn't nearly compare with the HOX's much better looking unibody and its solid feel. HOX's better camera quality and speed. HOX's studio quality display, I just wish that display is 10-bit, cuz sometimes you see banding. Beats Audio is mostly advertising but it's not a bad addition.
However, using the HOX for a week, I found a couple of problems with android phones. For example, they're never ashamed of releasing unfinished products are they? How come LWP pauses when I swipe between home screens? Wtf is that all about? Releasing a feature that's partly or completely useless? It's not too bothering on non-parallax and slow LWPs, but that's not the best part of having a LWP is it? That's a big one but there are also some small ones like the photo stack widget, it resets to the first picture all the time. I can't uninstall useless ****s like google+, showme, latitude, local, locations, navigation, car.... I mean do we not have enough navigation apps already? I don't even think you can uninstall the setup wizard. In iOS you can't uninstall newsstand or reminder but at least you can hide them in a folder and their icons look really good, much better than "show me" at least. The system also doesn't come with a file manager, I wonder how youre supposed to empty your download folder, do you just let it eat up all your storage? And oh, the three dots of death, not too bothering, but it just leaves you thinking if HTC even test their phone, might as well just not have any of the touch buttons so I can feel lest wasteful?
and honestly, I don't like android's multitask system, because you don't know what's running and what's not running. In iOS you always know nothing is running, you don't worry about battery life. But in android they could all be running for all I know, but sometimes I also want an app to run in the background. There should be a better way to manage that. Like having a multitask bar like iOS, have most apps go on save state, but you can allow certain apps to run a background process which could be independently managed from save state. So I don't have to either kill an app or let it eat my battery.
Overall, I'm still really satisfied with the device. It's generally as smooth as the iPhone, browser performance is on par with the iPad2 which is good enough. Audio performance is also good with my Etymotic Research MC-5. And the screen is just a treat sometimes I press the power button just to see the beautiful screen showing my wallpaper. And the unibody, it feels much better than the S3 glossy plastic.
thx for this objective review
all ur info r 100% spot on
enjoy the hox, upcoming update that we have it leaked will solve the 3dot menu and 90% if the bugs also boost performance by a good margin (real performance not benchs)
yea too bad HTC made a very big mistake
they worked so hard for such a great device and total reboot for them but then shot themselves in the foot by rushing it out as they were worried about the s3 but it really had the opposite effect many of the early new comer adopters jumped ship (1.26 was a disaster)
speaking of the s3 my employer shares all ur points and he is dying to switch it with the hox
starting from ICS you can disable system apps (not all but most of them, maps and google+ for sure for example, and they bother you... like they bother me, lol)
just dont update them and from application's settings tap "disable" and they'll disappear from launcher (i guess it just "chmod -r" the apk), you dont have to be rooted for that
i've picked mine yesterday, used and bought 06-29 but the owner wanted to try the S3 and payed it a good price... it's awesome, no wifi issues of yellowish screen.
so far i'm really entusiastic...
jacobgong said:
But of course, the s3 with a bigger battery and it's more advanced processor is probably better on battery life in any case, just not by THAT much.
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Great write up. And your bottom line conclusion's spot on. No phone is perfect. You compare the good against the bad against what's important to you and decide from there. No one's "wrong" in picking any of the phones you mentioned if it's "right" for them. After using the phone for a couple of months now there are some things that I'd like to see done differently and make me wonder what HTC was thinking. Then there's things that are so well done and seem so intuitive that they just make me smile. I just played a two hour and forty minute movie using HTC Watch via Media Link and not only did it work flawlessly in 720p, it only consumed 20% of my battery. The fact that a phone, any phone, can now do that is pretty amazing.
As for battery life. Exynos Quad is highly overrated; that or Teg3 is underrated. Comparing the One X to the SGS3 and adjusting for the differences in battery size, the One X actually performs better than the SGS3 in all but video playback where the darks of the content favor AMOLED. It's meaningless in real life because of the smaller fixed battery in the One X, but HTC, Nvidia, or both deserve a lot of credit for extracting that type of efficiency from a chip that's not exactly modern.
Enjoy your new phone...
But for some reason HTC decided you shouldn't be able to disable Google+ or show me, or setup wizard. While you can disable Facebook and YouTube.
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium
jacobgong said:
But for some reason HTC decided you shouldn't be able to disable Google+ or show me, or setup wizard. While you can disable Facebook and YouTube.
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Uninstall updates then you can disable.
Ok so I have owned the S4 for about a week, the HTC One for about 3 weeks and the G pro for 2 days lol. I get myself familiarized real quick with phones so 2 days is already enough for me to give a good opinion. Before I give you guys my opinion let me just say that I am very unbiased, I could care less who makes these phones as long as the product is good but I have used Samsung phones more than any other phones and I do like them a lot. Anyways, here's my take ( my opinion) on these 3 phones:
Build/design/choice of material:
I will say that the HTC One takes this category. I have never really cared on how good a phone looks, I always pay more attention to functionality but the HTC One really deserves a lot of praises. Not necessarily because it uses metal but because of the design. It really does looks stunning with its curved back and the 2 front facing speakers. Talking about the material now, it looks and feels great especially when you pick it up in the morning and get that cold feel, really nice. Overall amazing looking device.
The galaxy S4 also has a very nice design. Yes it looks pretty much just like the S3 but its thinner, a little lighter despite having a bigger screen. The polycarbonate is just fine as it serves its purpose to provide a removable battery. The galaxy s 4 is the phone that feels the best in the hand, sooooo comfortable.
The G pro also has a very nice design, its thin, light for its size ( although I wish that it was just a little lighter but no big deal at all) and overall looks really nice. Much more comfortable in the hand than its competitor, the Note 2.
Button placement:
The HTC One is horrible in this category. I hate the power button at the top left with a passion. I despise it so much, it is so uncomfortable to reach. The volume rocker on the right hand side is just fine. Also don't like that there's no menu button.
The S4 is almost perfect, love the power button on the side as always, I also like the volume rocker on the left but I wish that it was just a little bit lower. Love that there's a menu button.
The G pro is the winner here, power button is perfect, volume is perfect on the middle left plus we get an extra button to access any app we want. Simply perfect. Menu button is great although i'm used to the back and menu the Samsung way ( the other way around) but no big deal, ill get used to it. Love the LED home button!
Display/screen size:
The HTC One display is OUTSTANDING. It is such an amazing display, I cannot emphasize it enough. It is absolutely jaw dropping. Sharp, nice colors ( maybe just a tad bit saturated but I love it). Overall its just an amazing display. You do need however to have the display at least at 50% if you want to see anything in direct sunlight. I like the 4.7 inch size but always prefer bigger displays.
The S4 display is the best Super Amoled display ever. If you're a fan of over saturated colors and deep blacks, this one is unbeatable. It is sharp, blacks are great, whites have a little blueish tint on them but not that big of a deal. Personally I think this display is easier to read in direct sunlight even at 0 brightness because the colors pop regardless. This size display is the best for an average smartphone in my opinion. Samsung did an amazing job at fitting a 5 inch screen on pretty much the same body size as the S3 and it doesn't feel big at all.
The G pro display is also INSANE! Despite having a lesser ppi than the 2 other phones, it is insanely sharp, text is crystal clear, colors are super accurate, viewing angles are excellent ( all 3 displays as a matter of fact). As far as screen size, this is my personal favorite ( im a sucker for big screens). It has the same 5.5 inch screen as the note 2 but doesn't feel too big, its just perfect!.
Overall all 3 displays are great, its just a matter of preference. If you take the display alone then I would give the ever so slight edge ( and I mean so slight that you cant measure it) to the HTC One, followed by the G pro and 3rd the S4 but again all are absolutely amazing. I f you consider display plus screen size, G pro takes it.
Performance:
The HTC One performs so well. It is super quick. Opening apps, exiting apps, swiping through the home screens, browsing the web, performance is nearly flawless ( literally). Once in a blue moon there can be a very slight hiccup but the average person wont notice it. ( Im pretty good at noticing these things).
The S4 performance is good but it does stutter...quite a bit. ( not lag where it completely stops but the animations can stutter a lot). My guess is that android 4.2 and the gazillion sensors are responsible. 4.2 is known to have quite a few bugs, as far as the sensors go they are always activated waiting for the user's gestures/movements so I think it might contribute to the stuttering. There has been a software update the past few days and I think it solved many issues. Don't get me wrong the S4 performs well but stutters a lot ( its hard to explain really).
The Optimus G pro performance is AMAZING. It is so fluid, I never had a device as fluid as this. Just an hour ago I was at work and I showed the phone to one of my co-worker who owns a nexus 4 and talks about how smooth and fast his phone is, I asked him to play with my G pro, you should have seen his face. First thing he said was " Holy sh*t this is so cool" referring to the lock screen animation and then " OMG this is so smooth and fast" as his fingers were gliding through the home screens. Seriously the G pro is INSANELY smooth, by far the smoothest device I have owned yet and I mean it.
If I had to pick a winner it would be G pro followed by the One and S4. The One might be a little quicker than the G pro but the G pro is so smooth and is also quick.
Sense 5/ Touchwiz/ LG's UI:
I like sense 5. Its very nice. Its very simple, in fact sometimes its too simple but it performs well. I thought that I would hate blinkfeed but I fell in love at first sight thanks to the impressive display. What I don't like is that people cant completely remove it if they don't want to use it, I don't like the fact that you have to double tap the home button to access the multitasking and have to close each apps individually. That is just stupid HTC, dumb. Love the music player, don't like that to add an app to the home screen you have to go in the app drawer, hold the app, drag it all the way to the top and then it lets you put it on the home screen, another dumb move. But still sense 5 is very nice nonetheless.
I always liked touchwiz. I thought that it brought many features to the table, I still think it does. But touchwiz is getting old, really old and needs a UI revamp ASAP!!!! Its pretty much the exact same as it is on the S3 and not too different from the S2 except the features. Speaking of features, the S4 has anything possibly imaginable. The bad is that many of them are really gimmicky but the good is that you can turn off whatever you want and I respect that, thank you Samsung for at least giving us the option to remove things unlike HTC lol. My favorite features on the S4 are Airview and multiwindow. Both extremely useful. Airview to access sub menus, preview emails ( don't have to open every email), works as a magnifier glass, works really well. Multi window takes multitasking a step further. Yes it is available on other Samsung devices but it is something that the S4 has over the G pro and HTC One. Air gestures, smart pause are fun for 15 min but then you wont find any use to it ( except for moving apps from one home screen to another with air gesture, pretty useful).
Lg's UI is awesome in my opinion. Starting with the lockscreen, love the animations, in fact I love all the animations of the UI. That's what I love about this device, you can pretty much customize ANYTHING YOU WANT. Colors of folders, lockscreen animations, settings in tabs or list, icons... you name it. Q slide is very nice but doesn't even come close to multi window. LG's UI is very close to touchwiz but they kinda created their own lane and they're doing a very nice job. Once again everything is so smooth, love the quick access button to access any apps on the phone. This UI is like a touchwiz refresh and feels very familiar but different and I love it.
The Gpro UI is my favorite because of the animations, the smoothness and the features. Touchwiz would have tied it if it wasn't for the stutter. Love sense 5 as well.
Camera:
S4 WINS HANDS DOWN, NO DEBATE EVER!!! Such a fantastic camera. The G pro camera is second and the One 3rd although the One is very impressive in low light.
Storage:
Definitely the G pro. Let me explain. Every android phone since ICS can only install apps on the internal storage except the S4 which just had an update to be able to install apps to the sd card. The problem with the S4 move to sd card is that the maximum size app is 40 mb. ( that's what I read) So considering all 3 phones entry models at 199$, the HTC One gives you 32 gig of storage but no possible way of sd cards, the S4 comes in 16 gig with half of it taken by the system and move to sd card only support apps that are 40 mb and under. The G pro comes with 32 gig AND has expandable memory.
Battery life:
Definitely the G pro but everybody knows that, no surprises here with its 3140 mah battery. Not too far behind is the S4 ( GT-I9500 exynos 5 octa version). Plenty of screen time as well and 3rd is HTC One with also great battery life but not better than the other 2. All of them get you through a day with normal use no problem but the G pro is the star of the show.
Music/sound/Speakers:
You already know, the HTC One is UNBEATABLE right now. I don't know if any of you had the privilege to hear the sound that comes out of the One speakers. The sound is so good and loud and clear that it literally puts a smile on my face, literally. It is so crisp, really HTC has Set the bar when it comes to sound quality on a smartphone meaning every new phones that come out will have to beat it to be impressive. Music through the headphones is also great, Beats audio is supported and HTC provides a nice pair of ear buds. Second place goes to the S4. The speakers are plenty loud, just not as clear as the One plus the placement is in the back so it can easily be muffled. Sound through earbuds is nice and loud but again doesn't match the One. Last but not least is the optimus G pro. The sound through the speakers is good ,not great but the volume isn't very high with the headphones. Plus the G pro doesn't come with any earbuds.
Development:
HTC One without a doubt. Not only that HTC provides a method to unlock the bootloader, but the One has S-off now. As you may know, S-off gives you pretty much complete control of your phone and lets you write things on the "write system partition". You can change boot animation, flash radios ect... plus it has super CID which lets you change the ID of your phone from for example an AT&T to the international version so when HTC pushes an update you'll get it on your AT&T phone despite it not being the international version. And the cherry on top of the cake is that any roms on the international HTC One can be flashed to the T-Mobile, AT&T and sprint versions ( some for the sprint versions). That is so amazing. The S4 (Gt I9500 octa core) has an unlocked bootloader, I love Samsung for that. Super easy to root and tools like Odin and CF root by chainfire are awesome. Development is good and will get better. G pro has an easy root method but as you all know the bootloader is locked ( damn you AT&T !). Thanks to thecubed, the bootloader unlock is just a matter of time and once that's done, everybody needs to step back cause the beast will be unleashed!
Call quality
No complains really, all 3 perform pretty well although the advantage goes to the One cause of the speakers for speakerphone calls.
Overall, all 3 phones are amazing. The One offers a quality device, amazing sound, nearly flawless performance and a fantastic display. The S4 is a worthy upgrade to the popular S3, pretty much same body frame but with a bigger screen, lighter, thinner and a bigger battery. Also the best Amoled display and the best camera on a phone yet.
And now the G pro, an optimus G on steroids just like the Note 2 is to the S3. Smoothest experience on a phone, so fast, incredible 5.5 inch 1080p display, fantastic battery life, customizable to the core, nice LED home button, very nice performing camera. My new favorite phone. Cheers!
That was one heck of a comparison... Great job!
Sent from my Xolo_X500 using Tapatalk 2
Nice review...
Thanks for the review! Just wish we had the community the note ii has
Sent from my LG-E980 using Tapatalk 4 Beta
vivebatu said:
That was one heck of a comparison... Great job!
Sent from my Xolo_X500 using Tapatalk 2
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Teardrop45 said:
Nice review...
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ethanemc505 said:
Thanks for the review! Just wish we had the community the note ii has
Sent from my LG-E980 using Tapatalk 4 Beta
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Thank you very much fellas, really appreciate it!
Sent from my LG-E980 using Tapatalk 2
barondebxl said:
Thank you very much fellas, really appreciate it!
Sent from my LG-E980 using Tapatalk 2
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Click to collapse
Just a query... Can you also post the average (I mean ball park without any usage qualifications) SCREEN ON times you for with the 3 phones before the battery ran out?
Tks again
Sent from my Xolo_X500 using Tapatalk 2
vivebatu said:
Just a query... Can you also post the average (I mean ball park without any usage qualifications) SCREEN ON times you for with the 3 phones before the battery ran out?
Tks again
Sent from my Xolo_X500 using Tapatalk 2
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Click to collapse
Sure thing. Don't have an S4 screen shot though.
HTC one:
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G pro:
It's pretty good although I was on WiFi all the time. It takes time to charge though.
For the S4, getting 5hours of screen time with constant use is so easy and I wasn't on WiFi all the time so it's definitely better than the HTC one. Also battery charges pretty fast.
The G pro is amazing, it's better than the S4 (exynos version) but not by much, I would say maybe 30 to 45 min more of on screen time. (Note that I had a custom kernel on the S4). The G pro has excellent stand by time plus the battery charges SO FAST!
Sent from my LG-E980 using Tapatalk 2
Do you think that the G Pro has the most reflective screen out of the bunch? It would make the screen hard to see outdoors and even under strong artificial light.
Sharpshooterrr said:
Do you think that the G Pro has the most reflective screen out of the bunch? It would make the screen hard to see outdoors and even under strong artificial light.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe yes but again I think everything is Crystal clear from 50% brightness and above in outdoors conditions. All 3 displays are phenomenal.
Sent from my LG-E980 using Tapatalk 2
GPro's got a nice big battery, but honestly, it's got NOTHING on the Note II. I've easily done 48+ hours with 5 hours of screen-on time on my Note II.
If the OGPro were out same time as the Note II, it would've been a tough choice between the two phones. I bought the Note II because I wanted the biggest, highest-powered phone you could buy in December.
raduque said:
GPro's got a nice big battery, but honestly, it's got NOTHING on the Note II. I've easily done 48+ hours with 5 hours of screen-on time on my Note II.
If the OGPro were out same time as the Note II, it would've been a tough choice between the two phones. I bought the Note II because I wanted the biggest, highest-powered phone you could buy in December.
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Click to collapse
The note 2 does have a better battery life yes but the G pro isn't too far behind. Right now I'm at 16 hours off charge with a little over 4 hours of screen time with extremely heavy use, only 1 hour of WiFi use, lots of iron man 3 and granny Smith gaming, lots of web browsing and tapatalk and 30% left so battery life is definitely not an issue on this phone but yes the note 2 is a bit better. What I like about these phablets is that they charge so freaking fast ( yesterday my phone charged in 1h20 min from 9% to full charge) and the phone never gets hot/warm. The G pro is the best phablet until the note 3 comes out.
Sent from my LG-E980 using Tapatalk 2
Fast Charging is definitely my favorite feature of the NII and OGPro.
As for that battery info from my Note II, that day I played CSR Racing for about 2 hours, listened to music for 6 hours (about an hour with the screen on) and was on wifi for 90% of the time. Of course I had a smattering of text, maybe 20 minutes of calls and 5 or 10 minutes of browsing. I wasn't using any of the phone's radios heavily that day. The absolute best I pulled out of it was 35 hours off-charge, with 8 hours of screen time, and 12% left.
You're right when you say battery life is not an issue. I have no problems leaving it off the charger for a long time. My S2, I didn't like being more than 20 feet from a charger, and used to have it plugged in, in my truck for the drive to work (30 minutes each way, screen on with music playing).
raduque said:
GPro's got a nice big battery, but honestly, it's got NOTHING on the Note II. I've easily done 48+ hours with 5 hours of screen-on time on my Note II.
If the OGPro were out same time as the Note II, it would've been a tough choice between the two phones. I bought the Note II because I wanted the biggest, highest-powered phone you could buy in December.
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Click to collapse
Honestly, my easily lasts 3 days with 6hrs of screen time, for example now I have 50hrs spent with 57% left and 3hrs of screen time. My advice: don't push brightness over 40% and turn off everything you don't need as explained here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2292012
Billy Madison said:
Honestly, my easily lasts 3 days with 6hrs of screen time, for example now I have 50hrs spent with 57% left and 3hrs of screen time. My advice: don't push brightness over 40% and turn off everything you don't need as explained here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2292012
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Click to collapse
It's definitely possible. I use my g pro heavily because I know the battery can handle it. 7 hours on screen time is more than doable.
Sent from my LG-E980 using Tapatalk 2
G Pro Wins!!
I work with 5 guys that have the S 4. My friend and all his employees att the Att store where he is a manager all have the G pro. Without a doubt I think the G Pro is the better phone. It seems way faster. I was concerned about not being to connect my G Pro to the Tv but I just found a slim port adapter that is supposed to work.
BUT!!!!! Be careful the G Pro glass is weak. I shattered it in the first week with a 2 foot drop waiting for my case from South Korea. Ballastic or Otterbox please get a case out asap!!!
drrandall1 said:
BUT!!!!! Be careful the G Pro glass is weak. I shattered it in the first week with a 2 foot drop waiting for my case from South Korea. Ballastic or Otterbox please get a case out asap!!!
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Broke my Note II's screen from about a foot-ish drop to concrete. That's how I got a OGPro. No phone is immune.
barondebxl said:
Ok so I have owned the S4 for about a week, the HTC One for about 3 weeks and the G pro for 2 days lol. I get myself familiarized real quick with phones so 2 days is already enough for me to give a good opinion. Before I give you guys my opinion let me just say that I am very unbiased, I could care less who makes these phones as long as the product is good but I have used Samsung phones more than any other phones and I do like them a lot. Anyways, here's my take ( my opinion) on these 3 phones:
Build/design/choice of material:
I will say that the HTC One takes this category. I have never really cared on how good a phone looks, I always pay more attention to functionality but the HTC One really deserves a lot of praises. Not necessarily because it uses metal but because of the design. It really does looks stunning with its curved back and the 2 front facing speakers. Talking about the material now, it looks and feels great especially when you pick it up in the morning and get that cold feel, really nice. Overall amazing looking device.
The galaxy S4 also has a very nice design. Yes it looks pretty much just like the S3 but its thinner, a little lighter despite having a bigger screen. The polycarbonate is just fine as it serves its purpose to provide a removable battery. The galaxy s 4 is the phone that feels the best in the hand, sooooo comfortable.
The G pro also has a very nice design, its thin, light for its size ( although I wish that it was just a little lighter but no big deal at all) and overall looks really nice. Much more comfortable in the hand than its competitor, the Note 2.
Button placement:
The HTC One is horrible in this category. I hate the power button at the top left with a passion. I despise it so much, it is so uncomfortable to reach. The volume rocker on the right hand side is just fine. Also don't like that there's no menu button.
The S4 is almost perfect, love the power button on the side as always, I also like the volume rocker on the left but I wish that it was just a little bit lower. Love that there's a menu button.
The G pro is the winner here, power button is perfect, volume is perfect on the middle left plus we get an extra button to access any app we want. Simply perfect. Menu button is great although i'm used to the back and menu the Samsung way ( the other way around) but no big deal, ill get used to it. Love the LED home button!
Display/screen size:
The HTC One display is OUTSTANDING. It is such an amazing display, I cannot emphasize it enough. It is absolutely jaw dropping. Sharp, nice colors ( maybe just a tad bit saturated but I love it). Overall its just an amazing display. You do need however to have the display at least at 50% if you want to see anything in direct sunlight. I like the 4.7 inch size but always prefer bigger displays.
The S4 display is the best Super Amoled display ever. If you're a fan of over saturated colors and deep blacks, this one is unbeatable. It is sharp, blacks are great, whites have a little blueish tint on them but not that big of a deal. Personally I think this display is easier to read in direct sunlight even at 0 brightness because the colors pop regardless. This size display is the best for an average smartphone in my opinion. Samsung did an amazing job at fitting a 5 inch screen on pretty much the same body size as the S3 and it doesn't feel big at all.
The G pro display is also INSANE! Despite having a lesser ppi than the 2 other phones, it is insanely sharp, text is crystal clear, colors are super accurate, viewing angles are excellent ( all 3 displays as a matter of fact). As far as screen size, this is my personal favorite ( im a sucker for big screens). It has the same 5.5 inch screen as the note 2 but doesn't feel too big, its just perfect!.
Overall all 3 displays are great, its just a matter of preference. If you take the display alone then I would give the ever so slight edge ( and I mean so slight that you cant measure it) to the HTC One, followed by the G pro and 3rd the S4 but again all are absolutely amazing. I f you consider display plus screen size, G pro takes it.
Performance:
The HTC One performs so well. It is super quick. Opening apps, exiting apps, swiping through the home screens, browsing the web, performance is nearly flawless ( literally). Once in a blue moon there can be a very slight hiccup but the average person wont notice it. ( Im pretty good at noticing these things).
The S4 performance is good but it does stutter...quite a bit. ( not lag where it completely stops but the animations can stutter a lot). My guess is that android 4.2 and the gazillion sensors are responsible. 4.2 is known to have quite a few bugs, as far as the sensors go they are always activated waiting for the user's gestures/movements so I think it might contribute to the stuttering. There has been a software update the past few days and I think it solved many issues. Don't get me wrong the S4 performs well but stutters a lot ( its hard to explain really).
The Optimus G pro performance is AMAZING. It is so fluid, I never had a device as fluid as this. Just an hour ago I was at work and I showed the phone to one of my co-worker who owns a nexus 4 and talks about how smooth and fast his phone is, I asked him to play with my G pro, you should have seen his face. First thing he said was " Holy sh*t this is so cool" referring to the lock screen animation and then " OMG this is so smooth and fast" as his fingers were gliding through the home screens. Seriously the G pro is INSANELY smooth, by far the smoothest device I have owned yet and I mean it.
If I had to pick a winner it would be G pro followed by the One and S4. The One might be a little quicker than the G pro but the G pro is so smooth and is also quick.
Sense 5/ Touchwiz/ LG's UI:
I like sense 5. Its very nice. Its very simple, in fact sometimes its too simple but it performs well. I thought that I would hate blinkfeed but I fell in love at first sight thanks to the impressive display. What I don't like is that people cant completely remove blinkfeed if they don't want to use it, I don't like the fact that you have to double tap the home button to access the multitasking and have to close each apps individually. That is just stupid HTC, dumb. Love the music player, don't like that to add an app to the home screen you have to go in the app drawer, hold the app, drag it all the way to the top and then it lets you put it on the home screen, another dumb move. But still sense 5 is very nice nonetheless.
I always liked touchwiz. I thought that it brought many features to the table, I still think it does. But touchwiz is getting old, really old and needs a UI revamp ASAP!!!! Its pretty much the exact same as it is on the S3 and not too different from the S2 except the features. Speaking of features, the S4 has anything possibly imaginable. The bad is that many of them are really gimmicky but the good is that you can turn off whatever you want and I respect that, thank you Samsung for at least giving us the option to remove things unlike HTC lol. My favorite features on the S4 are Airview and multiwindow. Both extremely useful. Airview to access sub menus, preview emails ( don't have to open every email), works as a magnifier glass, works really well. Multi window takes multitasking a step further. Yes it is available on other Samsung devices but it is something that the S4 has over the G pro and HTC One. Air gestures, smart pause are fun for 15 min but then you wont find any use to it ( except for moving apps from one home screen to another with air gesture, pretty useful).
Lg's UI is awesome in my opinion. Starting with the lockscreen, love the animations, in fact I love all the animations of the UI. That's what I love about this device, you can pretty much customize ANYTHING YOU WANT. Colors of folders, lockscreen animations, settings in tabs or list, icons... you name it. Q slide is very nice but doesn't even come close to multi window. LG's UI is very close to touchwiz but they kinda created their own lane and they're doing a very nice job. Once again everything is so smooth, love the quick access button to access any apps on the phone. This UI is like a touchwiz refresh and feels very familiar but different and I love it.
The Gpro UI is my favorite because of the animation, the smoothness and the features. Touchwiz would have tied it if it wasn't for the stutter. Love sense 5 as well.
Camera:
S4 WINS HANDS DOWN, NO DEBATE EVER!!! Such a fantastic camera. The G pro camera is second and the One 3rd although the One is very impressive in low light.
Storage:
Definitely the G pro. Let me explain. Every android phone since ICS can only install apps on the internal storage except the S4 which just had an update to be able to install apps to the sd card. The problem with the S4 move to sd card is that the maximum size app is 40 mb. ( that's what I read) So considering all 3 phones entry model at 199$, the HTC One gives you 32 gig of storage but no possible way of sd cards, the S4 comes in 16 gig with half of it taken by the system and move to sd card only support apps that are 40 mb and under. The G pro comes with 32 gig AND has expandable memory.
Battery life:
Definitely the G pro but everybody knows that, no surprises here with its 3140 mah battery. Not too far behind is the S4 ( GT-I9500 exynos 5 octa version). Plenty of screen time as well and 3rd is HTC One with also great battery life but not better than the other 2. All of them get you through a day with normal use no problem but the G pro is the star of the show.
Music/sound/Speakers:
You already know, the HTC One is UNBEATABLE right now. I don't know if any of you had the privilege to hear the sound that comes out of the One speakers. The sound is so good and loud and clear that it literally puts a smile on my face, literally. It is so crisp, really HTC has Set the bar when it comes to sound quality on a smartphone meaning every new phones that come out will have to beat it to be impressive. Music through the headphones is also great, Beats audio is supported and HTC provides a nice pair of ear buds. Second place goes to the S4. The speakers are plenty loud, just not as clear as the One plus the placement is in the back so it can easily be muffled. Sound through earbuds is nice and loud but again doesn't match the One. Last but not least is the optimus G pro. The sound through the speakers is as loud as the S4 but the volume isn't as high with the headphones. Plus the G pro doesn't come with any earbuds.
Development:
HTC One without a doubt. Not only that HTC provides a method to unlock the bootloader, but the One has S-off now. As you may know, S-off gives you pretty much complete control of your phone and lets you write things on the "write system partition". You can change boot animation, flash radios ect... plus it has super CID which lets you change the ID of your phone from for example an AT&T to the international version so when HTC pushes an update you'll get it on your AT&T phone despite it not being the international version. And the cherry on top of the cake is that any roms on the international HTC One can be flashed to the T-Mobile, AT&T and sprint versions ( some for the sprint versions). That is so amazing. The S4 (Gt I9500 octa core) has an unlocked botloader, I love Samsung for that. Super easy to root and tools like Odin are great plus there is CF root by chainfire. Development is good and will get better. G pro has an easy root method but as you all now the bootloader is locked ( damn you AT&T !). Thanks to thecubed, the bootloader unlock is just a matter of time and once that's done, everybody needs to step back cause the beast will be unleashed!
Overall, all 3 phones are amazing. The One offers a quality device, amazing sound, nearly flawless performance and a fantastic display. The S4 is a worthy upgrade to the popular S3, pretty much same body frame but with a bigger screen, lighter, thinner and a bigger battery. Also the best Amoled display and the best camera on a phone yet.
And now the G pro, an optimus G on steroids just like the Note 2 is to the S3. Smoothest experience on a phone, so fast, incredible 5.5 inch 1080p display, fantastic battery life, customizable to the core, nice LED home button, very nice performing camera. My new favorite phone. Cheers!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I disagree on camera quality. HTC One pictures look better overall, even if they are lacking a little detail. The G Pro tends to blur the photos a bit much and you lose a lot of detail that you should have on a 13mp camera.
The GS4 definitely wins on quality, however the camera is slow. Like the rest of the UI, it lags and takes significantly longer to launch and take a picture. This translates to missed opportunities and blurry action shots. I don't have this issue with either the One or the G Pro, although the One is the champ in the fast camera department. Honestly, if Samsung could optimize Touchwize and speed up the GS4's fluidity, it would be boss.
greyhulk said:
I disagree on camera quality. HTC One pictures look better overall, even if they are lacking a little detail. The G Pro tends to blur the photos a bit much and you lose a lot of detail that you should have on a 13mp camera.
The GS4 definitely wins on quality, however the camera is slow. Like the rest of the UI, it lags and takes significantly longer to launch and take a picture. This translates to missed opportunities and blurry action shots. I don't have this issue with either the One or the G Pro, although the One is the champ in the fast camera department. Honestly, if Samsung could optimize Touchwize and speed up the GS4's fluidity, it would be boss.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is your opinion but I definitely disagree with you, the S4 is the best camera on a phone at the moment. The one does not even come close and really lacks detail. If you talk about shutter speed then yes the One is quicker but the S4 excels in detail and the pics looks absolutely stunning.
I don't think it's fair to call the One camera better because it has a faster shutter speed. What about the picture quality (the thing that really matters after all)?
Sent from my LG-E980 using Tapatalk 2
barondebxl said:
It is your opinion but I definitely disagree with you, the S4 is the best camera on a phone at the moment. The one does not even come close and really lacks detail. If you talk about shutter speed then yes the One is quicker but the S4 excels in detail and the pics looks absolutely stunning.
I don't think it's fair to call the One camera better because it has a faster shutter speed. What about the picture quality (the thing that really matters after all)?
Sent from my LG-E980 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You basically reiterated what I said, but camera launch and shutter speed are important because it doesn't matter how good the picture quality is if you miss the moment completely or get a blurry shot due to movement. The whole point of a smartphone camera is speed and convenience, otherwise, you might as well use a DSLR for the best quality.
I regularly miss photos with my GS4 because by the time the screen unlocks and the camera loads, the moment has passed. This is never an issue on the One and rarely on the G Pro.
Sent from my LG-E980 using Tapatalk 4 Beta
greyhulk said:
You basically reiterated what I said, but camera launch and shutter speed are important because it doesn't matter how good the picture quality is if you miss the moment completely or get a blurry shot due to movement. The whole point of a smartphone camera is speed and convenience, otherwise, you might as well use a DSLR for the best quality.
I regularly miss photos with my GS4 because by the time the screen unlocks and the camera loads, the moment has passed. This is never an issue on the One and rarely on the G Pro.
Sent from my LG-E980 using Tapatalk 4 Beta
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Click to collapse
Well once again I have to disagree with you. " the whole point of a smartphone camera is its speed and convenience". What if the pic quality isn't that great?
I don't know about you but most pictures I take are still pics, people posing stuff like that. Yes shutter speeds are great, but ill take the image quality of the S4 with its slower shutter speed over the fast shutter speed of the One but with far less picture quality anyday. I don't understand your point about carrying DSLRs since we are comparing smartphones here. So if I understand correctly, you think the HTC One's camera is better because of faster shutter speed to capture that "moment" while I prefer the S4's camera because its picture quality is absolutely superior. And its not like it takes 10 seconds for the S4 to launch the camera plus capture a pic.
Your quote to my huge post was " I disagree with camera quality", well this isn't even a point to be argued since everybody knows the S4 captures more details with its camera.
I currently have the Note 3 and even though I have to admit, it is an awesome phone when it's rooted and loaded with a custom ROM/Kernel. With that being said, I just don't use the features that make the phone different to the rest, such as the stylus.
I could say that maybe 3-4 times, I've used the stylus, that's it. And lately the dropped calls and the phone as a whole, is getting bit long on the tooth.
Seeing that I really don't need a stylus and the phone is I want to say, a "tad" too big for my hands; is the LG G3 a good phone to switch to?
Would it be an upgrade for me? Or more like a lateral move or perhaps even a downgrade?
Suggestions, advices?
BTW, is it hard to root the LG G3?
I have a note 3 and in the same boat as you. I absolutely despise amoled screens and that's the reason I want to move to lg g3. However, I don't know how I feel about the back minted buttons add I often use my phone on the desk and back mounted buttons can be an issue
Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk
I've had all 3 Notes. I loved the phone. I didn't use the S-Pen that much either. I bought the Note 1, 2 and 3 purely on specs and screen size. Other manufacturers kept an eye on the Note sales and seen they were doing good. Now there is plenty of competition in the 5.5" plus category. If you switched from the Note 3 to to the LG G3 I really don't think you would be disappointed. It's a sweet device. Especially the knock on knock off for the screen.
---------- Post added at 09:33 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:30 PM ----------
nohcho said:
I have a note 3 and in the same boat as you. I absolutely despise amoled screens and that's the reason I want to move to lg g3. However, I don't know how I feel about the back minted buttons add I often use my phone on the desk and back mounted buttons can be an issue
Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
NO issue at all, you can tap to turn on screen, as well as turn it off, there is a option for a volume slider in the notification area. I hardly ever use the buttons.
I cant speak for the note 3 but i do love my g3. The specs are better than the note 3 and it doesnt feel as bulky. Only thing the note 3 has is 64 gb opposed to 32 gb memory. But throw an sd card in and your good. The screen on the g3 is awesome plus the camera is pretty legit too. Hope this helps
Sent from my LGLS990 using XDA Free mobile app
nohcho said:
I have a note 3 and in the same boat as you. I absolutely despise amoled screens and that's the reason I want to move to lg g3. However, I don't know how I feel about the back minted buttons add I often use my phone on the desk and back mounted buttons can be an issue
Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What you hate about the AMOLED screens? I really like the deep blacks when watching a show or movie. It's amazing to see just pitch black where it's supposed to be black.
From what I read, the back buttons take a bit of getting used to until mucle memory kicks in, and it then feels very intuitive. I think I could get used to that.
But back to the screen, what are the pros of the IPS screen over the AMOLED one?
budco2000 said:
I've had all 3 Notes. I loved the phone. I didn't use the S-Pen that much either. I bought the Note 1, 2 and 3 purely on specs and screen size. Other manufacturers kept an eye on the Note sales and seen they were doing good. Now there is plenty of competition in the 5.5" plus category. If you switched from the Note 3 to to the LG G3 I really don't think you would be disappointed. It's a sweet device. Especially the knock on knock off for the screen.
---------- Post added at 09:33 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:30 PM ----------
NO issue at all, you can tap to turn on screen, as well as turn it off, there is a option for a volume slider in the notification area. I hardly ever use the buttons.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea, seems like everyone is raving about that knock on knock off feature. I agree, the Note 3 is indeed a great phone but I just feel that I'm not the person for it. In other words, like I'm not getting the max potential out of it.
AviatorBimmer said:
What you hate about the AMOLED screens? I really like the deep blacks when watching a show or movie. It's amazing to see just pitch black where it's supposed to be black.
From what I read, the back buttons take a bit of getting used to until mucle memory kicks in, and it then feels very intuitive. I think I could get used to that.
But back to the screen, what are the pros of the IPS screen over the AMOLED one?
Yea, seems like everyone is raving about that knock on knock off feature. I agree, the Note 3 is indeed a great phone but I just feel that I'm not the person for it. In other words, like I'm not getting the max potential out of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm also a fan of AMOLED. I like the deep blacks and the vibrant colors. The G3 LCD screen is not bad at all. I've had the last 2 generations of the Nexus 7 so I'm used to both screen types.
AviatorBimmer said:
What you hate about the AMOLED screens? I really like the deep blacks when watching a show or movie. It's amazing to see just pitch black where it's supposed to be black.
From what I read, the back buttons take a bit of getting used to until mucle memory kicks in, and it then feels very intuitive. I think I could get used to that.
But back to the screen, what are the pros of the IPS screen over the AMOLED one?
Yea, seems like everyone is raving about that knock on knock off feature. I agree, the Note 3 is indeed a great phone but I just feel that I'm not the person for it. In other words, like I'm not getting the max potential out of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
While I do agree that amoled screens display deep blacks and all, but thats just part of a story. The fact still stands that amoled screens aee not very accurate color reproducesrs, blue whites, power consuption when displaying anything other than dark colors, burn in issues.
People love deep blacks beacause those pixels are completely shut of. But oversaturation is an issue that still persists on amoled screens. So thos are my gripes.
Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk
nohcho said:
While I do agree that amoled screens display deep blacks and all, but thats just part of a story. The fact still stands that amoled screens aee not very accurate color reproducesrs, blue whites, power consuption when displaying anything other than dark colors, burn in issues.
People love deep blacks beacause those pixels are completely shut of. But oversaturation is an issue that still persists on amoled screens. So thos are my gripes.
Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for that and those are valid concerns, though I don't hold those high in my list of things when it comes to displays. Personally, I will look for perfection when it comes to the projector in my home cinema which powers my 135", 16:9 screen. For the occasional movie or show I might watch on a 5" screen, I don't worry about oversaturation or if the color hue is a bit off. But that is just me and I respect your opinion.
I got the Note 3 with Sprint as soon as it came out last year, Oct 2013. I was the same as you and only used the stylus for a few months before I didn't use it anymore, just didn't really need to or remembered that I had it. The Note 3, with my added case, was a bit too bulky in my hand and my hands are large. After a while of holding it while reading the news or books, my hand would start to cramp. It's a nice phone but just a tad too large to hold and carry in one's pocket.
Holding the G3 is a A LOT better and easier over the Note 3 and the screen is just about as large (0.2" smaller IIRC from the Note 3). It feels a lot more comfortable, even with the a tad bulky Supcase Beetle case on it. Makes a helluva difference on the train, holding the phone in one hand and the pole in the other.
Though, it was a bit unusual to get use to the G3 colors and screen, coming from the extremely saturated Note 3 AMOLED, especially since I had kept it on extra saturated mode (forgot it was on that) for months. The G3 screen looks a bit washed out compared to the Note 3, but you get use to it after a week, as I did. It did win an award for best RGB color representation, if that matters to you.
As with you, I left Sprint due to the very poor coverage, bad call quality and dropped calls. Tmo is much, much better and the G3 call quality is great, especially when it even tells you on a call if the call is HD Voice or not, it'll let you know. It does have Wi-Fi calling and it *might* get the VoLTE later this year if you're in a market with it or soon will be.
I did root my G3 with Purple Drake and it was the easiest root ever I have ever done with rooting my phones in the past 5yrs over seven separate device models since I started rooting, and it's just unbelievably easy and quick to do with the G3 and thecubed's Windows zip. You won't realize it till you actually root it and go "Wow, that was easy."
Also, I changed the DPI on my two G3's to 560 and the screen is much better to navigate and doesn't look so cluttered over the 640 stock DPI, looks much more streamlined and smooth, but you can change it from 530-640 for your tastes. It's a great screen, but the icons are a bit too large and the Notification panel needs to be scrolled once you just get a few popups, but the new DPI fixes that.
There is an app called G3 Tweaksbox that unlocks and lets you modify PLENTY of features and more on the G3 after you root it and install the Xposed installer. I am still using the free version but will be buying the premium ($1.50), as there are plenty more features unlocked with it and very well seems worth it.
Even with the lack of a full ROM for the Tmo G3 so far, the G3 Tweaksbox makes it almost negligible with the features is gives.
The G3 feels just as smooth as the Note 3 and once I cleaned off the bloatware and other programs and processes, it runs smooth and purrs with battery life comparable to the Note 3. I always had my Note 3 on 100% brightness and I'm getting the same battery life on the G3 with the same settings and all on it.
Coming from the Note 3 to the G3, it does take a little learning curve with the rear buttons, cause I kept reaching for the side power button or the hard Home button. But, once you get use to the buttons and layout, it's a wonder you never thought of this layout earlier.
Add in the Knock-On and you're going to be using it nonstop. The one part I did find a bit annoying was when I had my phone flat on the desk all day, face up, I couldn't access the power button to restart. But, I just installed QuickBoot and dropped a widget for Reboot and use that for a super quick restart without having to flip or pickup the phone.
It's good and it's snappy, I don't think you'll be disppointed but not entirely sure you'll be wow'd by it, coming from the Note 3. If you were coming from a earlier generation phone (like the HTC One M7, that my wife had), you'll be really surprised by it, as she was.
But I haven't complained about it, so that, in my opinion, makes it good, because if it wasn't, I would be swapping it for another device.
The one thing you might not like is the extra sharpening on the text that LG did for some extremely odd reason. It only appears with a semi dark background, like white text on gray or vice versa, the text gets a halo effect. You can find plenty of threads about that on here, it's not too distracting and you get use to it after a while, but it's not overly distracting or straining.
That's my opinion on it, if you root and clean up the bloatware and make some easy changes, I think you'll be happy with the phone and what it can and will do.
Any other questions, I'll try and answer them if I can.
AviatorBimmer said:
What you hate about the AMOLED screens? I really like the deep blacks when watching a show or movie. It's amazing to see just pitch black where it's supposed to be black.
From what I read, the back buttons take a bit of getting used to until mucle memory kicks in, and it then feels very intuitive. I think I could get used to that.
But back to the screen, what are the pros of the IPS screen over the AMOLED one?
Yea, seems like everyone is raving about that knock on knock off feature. I agree, the Note 3 is indeed a great phone but I just feel that I'm not the person for it. In other words, like I'm not getting the max potential out of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
One major concern of AMOLED is burn.
Fortunately, I did not have any even after 9 months of use (some look pretty bad on G Flex).
JustLok said:
I got the Note 3 with Sprint as soon as it came out last year, Oct 2013. I was the same as you and only used the stylus for a few months before I didn't use it anymore, just didn't really need to or remembered that I had it. The Note 3, with my added case, was a bit too bulky in my hand and my hands are large. After a while of holding it while reading the news or books, my hand would start to cramp. It's a nice phone but just a tad too large to hold and carry in one's pocket.
Holding the G3 is a A LOT better and easier over the Note 3 and the screen is just about as large (0.2" smaller IIRC from the Note 3). It feels a lot more comfortable, even with the a tad bulky Supcase Beetle case on it. Makes a helluva difference on the train, holding the phone in one hand and the pole in the other.
Though, it was a bit unusual to get use to the G3 colors and screen, coming from the extremely saturated Note 3 AMOLED, especially since I had kept it on extra saturated mode (forgot it was on that) for months. The G3 screen looks a bit washed out compared to the Note 3, but you get use to it after a week, as I did. It did win an award for best RGB color representation, if that matters to you.
As with you, I left Sprint due to the very poor coverage, bad call quality and dropped calls. Tmo is much, much better and the G3 call quality is great, especially when it even tells you on a call if the call is HD Voice or not, it'll let you know. It does have Wi-Fi calling and it *might* get the VoLTE later this year if you're in a market with it or soon will be.
I did root my G3 with Purple Drake and it was the easiest root ever I have ever done with rooting my phones in the past 5yrs over seven separate device models since I started rooting, and it's just unbelievably easy and quick to do with the G3 and thecubed's Windows zip. You won't realize it till you actually root it and go "Wow, that was easy."
Also, I changed the DPI on my two G3's to 560 and the screen is much better to navigate and doesn't look so cluttered over the 640 stock DPI, looks much more streamlined and smooth, but you can change it from 530-640 for your tastes. It's a great screen, but the icons are a bit too large and the Notification panel needs to be scrolled once you just get a few popups, but the new DPI fixes that.
There is an app called G3 Tweaksbox that unlocks and lets you modify PLENTY of features and more on the G3 after you root it and install the Xposed installer. I am still using the free version but will be buying the premium ($1.50), as there are plenty more features unlocked with it and very well seems worth it.
Even with the lack of a full ROM for the Tmo G3 so far, the G3 Tweaksbox makes it almost negligible with the features is gives.
The G3 feels just as smooth as the Note 3 and once I cleaned off the bloatware and other programs and processes, it runs smooth and purrs with battery life comparable to the Note 3. I always had my Note 3 on 100% brightness and I'm getting the same battery life on the G3 with the same settings and all on it.
Coming from the Note 3 to the G3, it does take a little learning curve with the rear buttons, cause I kept reaching for the side power button or the hard Home button. But, once you get use to the buttons and layout, it's a wonder you never thought of this layout earlier.
Add in the Knock-On and you're going to be using it nonstop. The one part I did find a bit annoying was when I had my phone flat on the desk all day, face up, I couldn't access the power button to restart. But, I just installed QuickBoot and dropped a widget for Reboot and use that for a super quick restart without having to flip or pickup the phone.
It's good and it's snappy, I don't think you'll be disppointed but not entirely sure you'll be wow'd by it, coming from the Note 3. If you were coming from a earlier generation phone (like the HTC One M7, that my wife had), you'll be really surprised by it, as she was.
But I haven't complained about it, so that, in my opinion, makes it good, because if it wasn't, I would be swapping it for another device.
The one thing you might not like is the extra sharpening on the text that LG did for some extremely odd reason. It only appears with a semi dark background, like white text on gray or vice versa, the text gets a halo effect. You can find plenty of threads about that on here, it's not too distracting and you get use to it after a while, but it's not overly distracting or straining.
That's my opinion on it, if you root and clean up the bloatware and make some easy changes, I think you'll be happy with the phone and what it can and will do.
Any other questions, I'll try and answer them if I can.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
WOW, thanks for taking the time for writing up such a nice and elaborate post. [emoji2]
I will definitely swing by TMO and check it out in person.
From what it seems, there really isn't even a need to install a custom ROM on it. With that app you mentioned, you can tweak your rooted phone and leave it running like a nicely, streamlined, custom ROM, sort of speak. Kudos for that.
Thanks again, buddy!
BTW, is the UI way better than TouchWiz?
I also came from Note 3.
The hardware is far superior than other high end models, but only G3 is comparable.
I don't want M8 because the battery is not removable (I have to replace battery once sometimes).
The reason why I jumped ship is Samsung's attitude. N900T only supports six languages and there's no other "hidden" languages. I am absolutely fine with English, but I'd prefer Trad Chinese interface (my native), but G3 has a lot of different languages even with Japanese and Arabic.
Note 3 screen is good and the contrast is unlimited, but G3 isn't bad at all. The only downside is mine has "cold" tint under outdoor sunlight. Viewing angle on G3 is pretty close to 180 degree without discoloration.
Even the screen is slightly smaller than Note 3, the total size of G3 is smaller and easier to handle (I have big palm and I can hold Note 8 with single hand).
Tap to wake (Knock on) is a pretty useful feature which I just tap twice to wake the phone though I just press home button on Note 3 to wake, but pressing home button causes some mis-operation sometimes in the bag.
Battery is slightly better on Note 3 (3.2Ah vs 3Ah), but it doesn't matter much because the battery is removable.
Both supports FAT64/SDXC.
Note 3 supports MHL2.0 but G3 does not, but Chromecast comes handy if you want to mirror screen to TV.
Calling quality on G3 is second to none. Wi-Fi calling on G3 is same as with cellular; Note 3, on the other hand, Wi-Fi calling is BAD (fading voice, chopping, distortion).
Though VoLTE isn't available on G3 at this time, I'd disable it because I hear nothing with VoLTE where the network is busy, so I have to use UMTS for cellular calling instead.
USB3 does not have much advantage on Note 3. If you have 2A or higher USB power supply, you can't tell the difference when charging.
Speakerphone and music playback is much louder on G3 (this reminds me S3 day which has exceptional speaker quality) than Note 3.
G3 can get hot easily when browsing internet continuously or playing CPU intensive games. It's same problem as S3 but G3 has thermal throttling. Note 3 seldom has overheat problem.
Music playback quality over headphones G3 is better with 192kbps ogg than Note 3, but the music may stutter (it's rare) when the unit is acquiring signal while Note 3 does not have such problem.
Angry Birds Star Wars and Angry Birds Star Wars II cannot be downloaded from Play Store, but it works fine after sideloading.
I personally prefer G3 over Note 3 though both have top notch hardware.
Good to hear all different inputs. I'm still undecided though. Note 3 is a serious piece of equipment that still holds up very well. But the smaller size on g3 May win me over as the Note 3 is just stupid big.
Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk
Awesome thread so far!!! Nothing better than to read experiences from people just like me and in a similar situation. I agree, the decision is tough because the Note 3 is no slouch! LOL
JustLok said:
I got the Note 3 with Sprint as soon as it came out last year, Oct 2013. I was the same as you and only used the stylus for a few months before I didn't use it anymore, just didn't really need to or remembered that I had it. The Note 3, with my added case, was a bit too bulky in my hand and my hands are large. After a while of holding it while reading the news or books, my hand would start to cramp. It's a nice phone but just a tad too large to hold and carry in one's pocket.
Holding the G3 is a A LOT better and easier over the Note 3 and the screen is just about as large (0.2" smaller IIRC from the Note 3). It feels a lot more comfortable, even with the a tad bulky Supcase Beetle case on it. Makes a helluva difference on the train, holding the phone in one hand and the pole in the other.
Though, it was a bit unusual to get use to the G3 colors and screen, coming from the extremely saturated Note 3 AMOLED, especially since I had kept it on extra saturated mode (forgot it was on that) for months. The G3 screen looks a bit washed out compared to the Note 3, but you get use to it after a week, as I did. It did win an award for best RGB color representation, if that matters to you.
As with you, I left Sprint due to the very poor coverage, bad call quality and dropped calls. Tmo is much, much better and the G3 call quality is great, especially when it even tells you on a call if the call is HD Voice or not, it'll let you know. It does have Wi-Fi calling and it *might* get the VoLTE later this year if you're in a market with it or soon will be.
I did root my G3 with Purple Drake and it was the easiest root ever I have ever done with rooting my phones in the past 5yrs over seven separate device models since I started rooting, and it's just unbelievably easy and quick to do with the G3 and thecubed's Windows zip. You won't realize it till you actually root it and go "Wow, that was easy."
Also, I changed the DPI on my two G3's to 560 and the screen is much better to navigate and doesn't look so cluttered over the 640 stock DPI, looks much more streamlined and smooth, but you can change it from 530-640 for your tastes. It's a great screen, but the icons are a bit too large and the Notification panel needs to be scrolled once you just get a few popups, but the new DPI fixes that.
There is an app called G3 Tweaksbox that unlocks and lets you modify PLENTY of features and more on the G3 after you root it and install the Xposed installer. I am still using the free version but will be buying the premium ($1.50), as there are plenty more features unlocked with it and very well seems worth it.
Even with the lack of a full ROM for the Tmo G3 so far, the G3 Tweaksbox makes it almost negligible with the features is gives.
The G3 feels just as smooth as the Note 3 and once I cleaned off the bloatware and other programs and processes, it runs smooth and purrs with battery life comparable to the Note 3. I always had my Note 3 on 100% brightness and I'm getting the same battery life on the G3 with the same settings and all on it.
Coming from the Note 3 to the G3, it does take a little learning curve with the rear buttons, cause I kept reaching for the side power button or the hard Home button. But, once you get use to the buttons and layout, it's a wonder you never thought of this layout earlier.
Add in the Knock-On and you're going to be using it nonstop. The one part I did find a bit annoying was when I had my phone flat on the desk all day, face up, I couldn't access the power button to restart. But, I just installed QuickBoot and dropped a widget for Reboot and use that for a super quick restart without having to flip or pickup the phone.
It's good and it's snappy, I don't think you'll be disppointed but not entirely sure you'll be wow'd by it, coming from the Note 3. If you were coming from a earlier generation phone (like the HTC One M7, that my wife had), you'll be really surprised by it, as she was.
But I haven't complained about it, so that, in my opinion, makes it good, because if it wasn't, I would be swapping it for another device.
The one thing you might not like is the extra sharpening on the text that LG did for some extremely odd reason. It only appears with a semi dark background, like white text on gray or vice versa, the text gets a halo effect. You can find plenty of threads about that on here, it's not too distracting and you get use to it after a while, but it's not overly distracting or straining.
That's my opinion on it, if you root and clean up the bloatware and make some easy changes, I think you'll be happy with the phone and what it can and will do.
Any other questions, I'll try and answer them if I can.
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Click to collapse
What did you use to change your DPI. I want to try 560 as well. Not sure if I should use an app, xposed, or just change it in the build prop with root explorer
budco2000 said:
What did you use to change your DPI. I want to try 560 as well. Not sure if I should use an app, xposed, or just change it in the build prop with root explorer
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
W A R N I N G:
MAKE SURE YOU BACKUP YOUR DEVICE!!!!!
Once you have you phone rooted, edit build.prop the following line:
Code:
ro.sf.lcd_density=640
to
Code:
ro.sf.lcd_density=560
I am currently using the Nexus 5 and looking at changing to the G3. I have used this program to change the dpi size on the nexus 5. It might work on the G3
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.texdroider.texdroider_dpi
I agree with @JustLok and @mingkee.
I had two Note 3s. The first one would not hold a signal at my house, and I live 25 minutes from downtown Houston. The second Note 3 was no better. So I decided to switch to another OEM. The G3 is a little easier to use one-handed. I always used two hands with the Note 3 because I was afraid I would drop it. But I can comfortably use the G3 with one hand.
As others have noted, the G3 colors are not nearly as saturated as AMOLEDs, but you probably won't miss that after a few days. I had a GNex, Galaxy S3, Note 2 and Note 3, and I don't miss the overblown colors (but I do miss the inky blacks). I got my G3 on release day and have not had any overheating issues, but I don't play a lot of heavy 3D games.
Rooting the G3 is brain-dead simple, thanks to PurpleDrake. And spending $1.50 for the full version of G3 TweaksBox is a no-brainer too. If you used Wanam Xposed on the Note 3, then G3 TweaksBox is an absolute must have. Most people spend that much on soda or junk food every day, so $1.50 is a bargain for something that enhances your phone every day.
Call quality is exceptional, especially on Wi-Fi. UI lag is virtually nonexistent if you install a good launcher like Nova and reduce window animations (under main settings > Dev Options)
Battery life is good, but not the best. My Note 2 and Note 3 had slightly better battery, but the G3 lasts all day, so that is really all I need. I think the Note 3 and Galaxy S5 have better cameras, but the G3 is very close.
In the end, it just depends on your priorities. If you like the extra Note features, then stick with the Note 3 or wait for the Note 4. But if you want something a little more compact without sacrificing screen size, and runs all day without lag, then the G3 deserves a look.
After having the G3 for a few weeks now and on my 2nd one since the first one was a lemon. I don't regret it at all. It's actually easier to hold one handed compared to the N3, battery isn't as good as a N3 and IMHO I prefer the AMOLED screen more. But the G3 is still a very good device and the keyboard is awesome.
What I miss the most from the N3 is the stylus for work and SHealth. I wished LG Health was similar to SHealth is all the options it has but it does its one job very good.
G3 is worth the purchase of you're looking for something different.
Not to be a sick in the mud but the note 4 release isn't too far away, I would wait to see what they offer. I am thinking of getting the g3 as well if the note 4 doesn't wow me.
So, I picked up a Desire Eye on launch day. I feel like I was one of the few people intrigued by this device when it was announced. Since then, it has received almost zero attention: Few reviews, no posts on XDA, very little buzz on the internet in general. So, if you're even remotely considering this device and want a little info, here's a personal perspective from someone who bought the phone.
Disclaimer: I have owned dozens of flagship phones over the last several years. I'm also quite a fan of Sense UI and HTC in general. I did not buy this phone for the front facing camera. I don't care about selfies, so I'm probably not the target audience. I really just wanted an M8 with a better camera.
Display
The display is probably my one gripe about the device so far. I can't quite put my finger on it, but it looks washed out to me. When I first turned it on in the store, it immediately looked dull. A lot of the HTC wallpapers and themes are a sort of pastel, so it's really hard to tell, but next to my iPhone 6 Plus, and even a Windows M8 in the store, it just doesn't look as vibrant as I'd expect. Compared to my Note 4, it looks positively depressing, but that's to be expected. That said, it does get plenty bright. I just wish I still had my M8 to compare it with because I swear the M8 had more contrast and vibrance.
Camera
My only real beef with the M8 was the camera, mainly the low megapixel count which made cropping nearly impossible. It also had trouble with exposure and focus. I was really hoping that they fixed that with this phone. I know it's not their flagship and is, in fact, marketed as mid range, but it's really just an M8 with a different build and cameras. I have taken quite a few photo samples and compared them online to the Z3 Compact, iPhone 6 Plus, OnePlus One, G3, and Note 4. There is definitely more detail and you can crop in much further than the M8, but it still gets soft when you do. I also noticed the same issues with exposure. If you're not careful about where you tap to focus, you'll get a blown out sky or dark subject. Focus is fast, but not always accurate. It sometimes blurs the subject instead of the background. Definitely not on par with the focusing systems found in the Note 4 and iPhone 6 Plus. Colors are good, if not great. They lean toward the warmer and more vibrant side, which I personally prefer. Overall, it's an upgrade over the M8 and on par with phones like the OnePlus One and G3, at least in my testing.
Build
I know a lot of people are fans of metal, but there are advantages and disadvantages to metal and plastic. The advantages here are water resistance and weight. This is a light phone and it feels good in the hand. Coming from my Note 4, it is significantly lighter and easier to hold. It's also fairly grippy. I don't feel the need for a case. My one complaint about build is the size. This thing is big. It's nearly as big as the iPhone 6 Plus and Note 4, which is kind of sad when you consider the 5.2" screen. Part of this is the 13mp front-facing camera. Part is the speakers, even though the grills are much smaller this time around. They still needed that blank "HTC" strip on the front for components and that adds to the overall size. The camera shutter button is very difficult to press. I only see using this thing under water. If you try to use it for normal pictures, you'll get blur because the phone will move when you try to press it. I find this to be a problem on a lot of phones with dedicated shutter buttons, but it's much more pronounced here.
Battery
My other primary concern with this phone was battery. It's the same internals as the M8 with a bigger screen and a smaller battery. While disappointing, so far it's not as bad as I expected. It seems to be about on par with the M8, though I'm not sure how. Standby time is pretty good (in my limited testing so far) and it doesn't drain horribly fast when the screen is on. Since HTC doesn't show screen on time and I had to install GSAM, I don't have any screen on results yet, but I will be testing that over the next few days.
Performance
This is the reason to get an HTC phone, in my opinion. Sense and stock Android are easily the fastest, best performing versions of Android, in my experience. But Sense brings some nice enhancements to the table that I think are worth it over stock Android. There's no lag or delay anywhere on the phone so far. Everything is fast and fluid. It makes my Note 4 look positively slow. Just the gallery lag on the Note 4 alone is enough to drive someone mad. HTC is doing it right. I'm actually a fan of Blinkfeed, too, though I know other people hate it. Since the introduction of Blinkfeed, I almost always end up putting a widget on my left most homescreen of every other Android phone that gives me a full page of news, though nothing quite compares to HTC's solution. I like their enhancements to the gallery, contacts, etc. Very nice overall experience.
Misc.
1. Minor annoyance, but the stock email client makes you tap to show images on every HTML email. Since I actually use it, it's kind of annoying. I wish they would at least give an option in the settings to "always show".
2. Some of the camera features are really need, like face merge and photo strip. I do miss slow motion video and 4k recording, though.
3. Internal storage is only 16gb. You have a little over 9 free out of the box. This is the only other con to this phone, in my opinion.
4. I'm a pretty big fan of the screen on gestures. I basically never have to use the power button. And now we can launch straight into the camera, too.
5. I received an update yesterday and it auto installed. There's no info anywhere on what it was. The phone just rebooted and installed with no warning.
6. There is a ton of bloatware on this thing (AT&T). Seriously, brace yourselves. It's even more insulting with only 16gb to start with.
7. Bootloader is unlockable at HTC Dev so, there's at least hope that we'll get root soon. The main issue will be S-Off, as usual. But I really only want/need root.
8. The front-facing speakers are every bit as good as you'd expect, despite the water resistant membrane and smaller grills. It's pretty impressive how small and unnoticeable they are.
Wrap Up
Overall, I really like the device. My main concerns are camera quality and battery life, which I will continue to test. I really like the user experience overall, though, and it's one of my favorite phones of the year. I don't think this phone is really getting the attention it deserves. Even the tech bloggers seem to be ignoring it. I hope this helps anyone who's on the fence about this phone and/or looking for more information.
Obligatory Camera Samples
Here are some camera samples. XDA is compressing them, but you get the idea.
Thanks for the review and photos. The camera was better than what I was expecting from the sensor HTC is using, to be honest. The only downside from what I've read in your review is the screen: while I don't like oversatured screens, I also don't appreciate "dark" screens (it hasn't to do with brightness, but with the white tone).
Regarding the speakers, I know you don't have a M8 to compare, but do you notice much of a difference between the devices?
Can you please confirm that it has MHL and it works?
For what it's worth, I held my One M8 side by side with a Desire Eye in store and compared the screens while displaying the same images and websites. They looked pretty much exactly the same to me other than a slight difference in size. Didn't think it looked dull. Of course, the lighting in AT&T was pretty harsh so it wasn't the best environment for comparison. Maybe you just got used to the super punchy over saturated colors of the Note 4?
gtg465x said:
For what it's worth, I held my One M8 side by side with a Desire Eye in store and compared the screens while displaying the same images and websites. They looked pretty much exactly the same to me other than a slight difference in size. Didn't think it looked dull. Of course, the lighting in AT&T was pretty harsh so it wasn't the best environment for comparison. Maybe you just got used to the super punchy over saturated colors of the Note 4?
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Click to collapse
That's actually what I was thinking too. Not a bad display by any means.
Thank you for this mini review! Really helpful.
Could you please state in which degree you can use the phone with one hand?
Would it feel closer to the use of a One M8/Galaxy S5/LG G2 or would it compare more to a One Plus One / Iphone 6 Plus (which is for me slightly to big).
The 5.2 inch of the LG G2 is of perfect size, but that phone had way smaller bezzels, so this is in fact something that scares me of the HTC desire EYE.
Waarez said:
Thank you for this mini review! Really helpful.
Could you please state in which degree you can use the phone with one hand?
Would it feel closer to the use of a One M8/Galaxy S5 or would it compare more to a One Plus One / Iphone 6 Plus (which is for me slightly to big).
The 5.2 inch of the LG G2 were perfect.. but this phone had way smaller bezzels, so this is what scares me of the one M8.
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Click to collapse
It's definitely closer to the OnePlus One or iphone 6 Plus size wise, but it is MUCH lighter, which does make it easier to handle with one hand. Unless you have gorilla hands, though, you definitely won't be able to reach all four corners of the screen with one hand.
It's tall, rather than wide.
I got the Desire EYE in the mail 2 days ago, it's a really good phone, really fast, takes nice pictures, overall I'm happy about it, the only downside about it is the internal storage, it has like 7 gb out of the 16 dedicated to the OS and stock apps... But other than that, really good phone!
To start off, I will say I am a big HTC fan. I talked about 7 people into buying the One M8 over the S5 this year. I love Sense, Blinkfeed and the snappiness of their devices. I have since sold my One M8 earlier this summer, around May, and have been jumping around to different devices. I strayed from the One M8 mostly due to the camera and the fact that I like to try the latest and greatest devices. I have been using an iPhone 6 since it launched. When I saw the Desire Eye was announced, I got excited. I was really hoping for an M8 Eye, which I think would have been the perfect smartphone for 2014, but this was almost as good. I picked one of these up on Friday at an AT&T store. The guy kind of looked at me funny when I said I wanted one, I don't think he was trained on the device or knew what it was. I didn't open it until Saturday night, but in the store, when playing with it, the first thing I said was, this screen looks washed out. I think it has something to do with the default theme, when I changed it back to one of the same Sense stock themes on the One M8, it didn't look as bad. It is something to do with that pink color they are using. I am torn on the device, it is like 2 steps forward, a couple steps back. I didn't like the first few indoor pictures without flash I took of my 3 month old daughter, so I switched back to the iPhone 6 yesterday because it was her baptism and I didn't want to miss any shots, or risk them coming out badly. One thing that Apple knows is how to make a camera that focuses fast and gives you good pictures. The Boom Sound is also a bit of a disappointment. The bass and clarity seems to be lacking compared to the M8. I played some Vevo music videos on the demo models in store. I am currently thinking about trying to find a second hand M8 Google Play Edition in mint condition (so I have full T-Mobile support for the $30 SIM I have for my play phone line), and keep either it or the Eye and my iPhone 6.
Y2J
Thanks for the review!
The camera doesn't seem bad but for some reason i was expecting it to have a bit more "wow" factor, don't know why and they the shots seem good enough.
You mentioned no-slow motion (i had actually talked about this in the other thread) and the info i read was that it didn't have. However, i was just watching a video review of the desire eye and in the settings i noticed the slow motion icon and the review actually pressed it and it sayed it was slow motion (its an italian video, i actually looked it up to see the translation lol). It was in the camera interface under the " ... " icon and on the modes (it usually says auto) it has the slow motion icon/cartoon - Here is the video @ 11:45
Still no mention of 4k, so that is not from stock but maybe with a mod.
griffin_1 said:
Thanks for the review!
The camera doesn't seem bad but for some reason i was expecting it to have a bit more "wow" factor, don't know why and they the shots seem good enough.
You mentioned no-slow motion (i had actually talked about this in the other thread) and the info i read was that it didn't have. However, i was just watching a video review of the desire eye and in the settings i noticed the slow motion icon and the review actually pressed it and it sayed it was slow motion (its an italian video, i actually looked it up to see the translation lol). It was in the camera interface under the " ... " icon and on the modes (it usually says auto) it has the slow motion icon/cartoon - Here is the video @ 11:45
Still no mention of 4k, so that is not from stock but maybe with a mod.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't see a slow motion option anywhere in the settings. The only video options are for the resolution (MMS, 1080, etc). One thing they did do right, though, is put the video record button back on the main interface full time next to the camera shutter button. They were crazy to ever take that away.
Quality is okay. It's about on par with the OnePlus One and G3, in my testing. Most of the shots I took were on an overcast day, so not the best testing environment, but overall I think it's acceptable. I think I'd still grab my Note 4 or iPhone 6 Plus if I was going somewhere to take a lot of pictures, but I don't feel like I'm carrying around a bad camera when I have this phone.
griffin_1 said:
Thanks for the review!
The camera doesn't seem bad but for some reason i was expecting it to have a bit more "wow" factor, don't know why and they the shots seem good enough.
You mentioned no-slow motion (i had actually talked about this in the other thread) and the info i read was that it didn't have. However, i was just watching a video review of the desire eye and in the settings i noticed the slow motion icon and the review actually pressed it and it sayed it was slow motion (its an italian video, i actually looked it up to see the translation lol). It was in the camera interface under the " ... " icon and on the modes (it usually says auto) it has the slow motion icon/cartoon - Here is the video @ 11:45
Still no mention of 4k, so that is not from stock but maybe with a mod.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay, I was totally wrong about slow motion. I just found the option. It was not where I expected, but I'm stoked to see that it's there!
Great Slow motion on htc is good, at least if its like on the m8. I think only htc and sony in Android lets you record 120fps and then edit what parts to slow down, which is how slow motion should be. Glad to see its there and websites like gsmarena should mention it and update the specs info with that.
battery update?
G1_enthusiast said:
battery update?
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Click to collapse
Battery is really good for the capacity. Idle drain with my apps and setting was about 3%/hr. With the screen on, it does seem to lose battery pretty fast, but I was still able to get about 10-13 hours of use with around 3 hours screen time. That's not much worse than most of my other phones do, actually.
I would post screenshots, but I no longer have the phone. As much as I really liked it, I just couldn't live with the camera quality. I was really hoping for better. But if camera isn't your #1 priority, this is a great all around phone. Camera is definitely better than phones like the Moto X. I was just hoping for closer to Note 4/iPhone quality.
How do the camera quality and pictures compare to Samsung S4 or S5?
Thanks.
struff said:
How do the camera quality and pictures compare to Samsung S4 or S5?
Thanks.
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My mom has the S5 And I prefer the Eye´s camera, It´s just... sharper and more clear.
sidle said:
My mom has the S5 And I prefer the Eye´s camera, It´s just... sharper and more clear.
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I'm going to politely however completely disagree. There's no comparison. S5 is one of the best cameras you can get.
Sent from my HTC Desire Eye using Tapatalk
robstunner said:
I'm going to politely however completely disagree. There's no comparison. S5 is one of the best cameras you can get.
Sent from my HTC Desire Eye using Tapatalk
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And yet, I like this one more.
Front HTC Desire Eye:
http://i-cdn.phonearena.com/images/articles/143110-image/HTC-Desire-EYE.jpg
Front Galaxy S5:
http://i-cdn.phonearena.com/images/articles/143127-image/Samsung-Galaxy-S5.jpg
Back HTC Desire Eye:
http://i-cdn.phonearena.com/images/articles/143113-image/HTC-Desire-EYE.jpg
Back Galaxy S5:
http://i-cdn.phonearena.com/images/articles/143130-image/Samsung-Galaxy-S5.jpg
Let the photo's speak for themselves. The HTC Desire Eye clearly wins this battle, or even HTC in general. The S5 is litteraly crap in low to medium-light area's.
http://www.phonearena.com/news/Firs...-HTC-One-M8-and-the-Samsung-Galaxy-S5_id61506
Fair enough, but in better lighting the s5 proves much better and rarely overexposed the pictures.
Figured we probably needed a place to put everyone's first impressions.
I'll start with first, this thing is small and light! Coming from a V20 and a Nexus 6 before that, this thing is tiny. Last time I felt like I had a phone this size was the Galaxy Nexus. (Yeah, I know. That one was probably actually smaller than this but still, this thing feels that small in hand to me. I've been using nothing but phablets since that phone.) It feels closer in size to my work iPhone 6s than my V20. That's going to take some getting used to. It's in a case now but still feels small.
Still trying to get used to some app behaviors that seemed to have changed. For instance, Weather Channel app is having all kinds of issues. Shows as a sensitive notification on the lock screen vs my V20 where it isn't, because it isn't. The widget doesn't display information without being cut off. I still need to go log into all my apps and get them set up.
Camera. Haven't really taken any shots with it yet but I did dig through it. First, I'm not happy that it always opens in auto mode. The V20 would open in whatever mode you last had it in. I prefer manual mode and liked that I could just open it, make a quick adjustment to the settings and shoot. Now I have to dive into a menu to get to manual then make adjustments and shoot. It'll slow things down quite a bit. I am happy that Graphy can be shut off. Also, noise reduction can be shut off in manual. It was actually disabled by default. Going to do a lot of test shooting today.
Hoping to hit up the museum I used to work in and always test every camera I own there. Also hitting up an outdoor night event here as well as the jazz club. It's going to get one helluva workout today! Going to take my V20 and Nikon V3 along too. Not sure how much I'll use the V3 outside of the outdoor event. Not going to bother taking my DSLR. (I'm actually in the process of downsizing my photography to smaller cameras. DSLRs have gotten way too clean and clinical for my tastes.)
Nice! I can’t wait to see the pics it takes.
I played with this at Verizon yesterday, and I'm still on the fence. The front facing camera was HORRIBLE. I held my G5 next to it and took a selfie, and the G5 was so much better. The rear camera did seem to take awesome shots, but still slow to take and delay in swiping between front and back cameras, something I really thought they'd have a better handle on by now since I had the same issues in the G4 and G5. I loved it otherwise, I think it's a gorgeous phone, I like the looks a lot more than the Galaxy phones.
I went in wanting the phone, but two separate Verizon reps were adamant in saying I should stay away from LG, that they have nothing but problems, they only sold maybe 2 G6's, they have class action lawsuits against them, and they tell customers to go take a hike when asking for a new phone after having multiple of them die in a row from a known defect. Theyd rather keep sending you defective phones repeatedly under warranty. So idk. I'm reeeally torn between this and the S8+ which has very similar specs and is cheaper at this point, but I don't like having only one rear camera.
Initial results at the museum are looking pretty good. I'm impressed so far for the most part. As for selfie camera issues, I was disappointed at first until I figured out those stupid settings at the bottom of the screen. After you turn off the skin toning and lightning, the images are much better. Then they work well with post processing.
Have you had a chance to play w Bluetooth, GPS, Wifi/Data connection? My G4 had bad bluetooth disconnections and busted gps in the G5. Just curious how the different antennae have been working for you. Good battery life?
ryanpm40 said:
Have you had a chance to play w Bluetooth, GPS, Wifi/Data connection? My G4 had bad bluetooth disconnections and busted gps in the G5. Just curious how the different antennae have been working for you. Good battery life?
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Haven't played with GPS yet. I can't really speak to how well or not how well it works. I used wifi during set-up. It worked but my wifi is slower than my network connection and I regretted using it. Not a knock on the wifi of this phone, it's just that my carrier network is that much faster than my home wifi. Only BT I've done so far is to connect it to my car. That went much better and smoother than my V20. It took me many attempts over an hour and a half to get my V20 and car paired. The V30 paired the first time. The next test will be to see if I have to restart my phone after a few days to keep the connection from going wonky. (Which is a ritual with my V20 that occurred at least once a week.)
I got mine this past Friday. It is slippery to hold, you will def need a case to keep it from sliding out of your hand. I'm still not sure why designers can make insanely powerful devices but can't figure out that you actually need to hold on to it to use it. I'll probably get a DBrand skin or equiv when they are available. It is super light. Kinda feels flimsy it is so lightweight even though it is not. My last phone was a Nexus 6P, before that an HTC M9, before that an HTC M7. All three of those feel like tanks by comparison. I'm not sure yet if that's a good thing or a bad thing.
Camera is nice but uses a lot of noise reduction. It has endless options that will take some time getting used to. I'm not sure yet if it is as good as HTC's U11 which as an incredible camera IMO (my GF has a U11). Looks better than my Nexus 6p for sure though. Much faster too. I love the wide angle lens!
Audio from Headphone jack is insane. I'm using the BEATS headphones from my old HTC One, I can only imagine how good it would sound with high end headphones. Phone speaker is ehhh. Nowheres near as good as HTC or Google phones with front facing speakers. Or HTC U11 which seems to have crazy sound magically radiate into space.
As for speed, its as fast as any other 2017 phone I have tried, the hardware is all the same. The screen is amazing. I mean AMAZING! I can't really see a difference between 1080 and 1440 quality or speed wise. I thought at first there was but now think it is more of a placebo effect. I have been keeping it maxed mostly for the bragging rights of it being higher rez than Apple's silly Superduper mega retina display, what ever that means.
It is to early for me to tell if battery life makes a difference with resolution. I have read it is supposed to eat more power with the higher rez. It isn't as near bezelless as I thought it would be. It seems to be a marketing trend for company renders to show super edge to edge displays until you actually get it and there are good sized bezels. Not that I mind, it is just something I noticed. The screens are not any larger, the phone is just shrinking around it making the device seem small and the screen seem smaller than it is. My Nexus 6p dwarfs the V30 in the hand and the display just feels larger on the Nexus even though it is not. Kind of another odd placebo effect.
Speaking of battery, it seems to last well over a day of playing hard with it but is still to early to tell since I keep plugging it in to transfer files. After the newness wears off I think I will be able to get 2 days out of it.
The power button, or lack there of is great I think. Instead of a dedicated button, it is just the fingerprint scanner. You can click it, hold it to open restart options etc. Works great and is non intrusive by comparison to a dedicated button that I usually hit by accident all the time.
The UI is not terrible. It is fast and responsive. For the record I am a fanboy of Sense and Stock. LG's UI has a lot more options for customization over Stock but some things seem like they just changed from stock to say they did. Especially in the Settings menu where they feel extra pages of settings tabs is preferable than a simple list. The worst part is LG's apps that are mostly broken or limited.
Contacts doesn't work right and crashes sometimes when I try and edit a contact. You can not fully disable it. I'm using Google Contacts when it will let me.
Calendar is ok, about the same as Google Calendar. Again you can not fully disable it for some reason.
Camera app is good so far, or at least I like it.
Messaging app sux. It freezes sometimes and when it works you can't insert gifs. Again you can't disable it. I'm using Google's Messenger.
Keyboard is limited, I just use the Google Keyboard.
Gallery is simple and works for on device pix but doesn't allow cloud access. Since most of my pix are on GoogleDrive I just use Google Photos. And again you can't disable it.
Smart Cleaning is a cleaner app. The phone is so fast I can't see any difference after using it.
LG Health I haven't tried yet.
LG Smart World is just some LG app browsing thing. Haven't really played with it other than browsing themes.
So far I love the phone. Out of 2017 phones I have used the HTC U11 and Essential Phone I like the V30 best of those 3. My biggest complaint is I just wish you could at least disable the LG bloatware apps so they can't start up. Maybe there is a special way to do it aside from rooting the device and going that route.
Hope this helps anyone considering the V30
CHH2 said:
Figured we probably needed a place to put everyone's first impressions.
I'll start with first, this thing is small and light! Coming from a V20 and a Nexus 6 before that, this thing is tiny. Last time I felt like I had a phone this size was the Galaxy Nexus. (Yeah, I know. That one was probably actually smaller than this but still, this thing feels that small in hand to me. I've been using nothing but phablets since that phone.) It feels closer in size to my work iPhone 6s than my V20. That's going to take some getting used to. It's in a case now but still feels small.
Still trying to get used to some app behaviors that seemed to have changed. For instance, Weather Channel app is having all kinds of issues. Shows as a sensitive notification on the lock screen vs my V20 where it isn't, because it isn't. The widget doesn't display information without being cut off. I still need to go log into all my apps and get them set up.
Camera. Haven't really taken any shots with it yet but I did dig through it. First, I'm not happy that it always opens in auto mode. The V20 would open in whatever mode you last had it in. I prefer manual mode and liked that I could just open it, make a quick adjustment to the settings and shoot. Now I have to dive into a menu to get to manual then make adjustments and shoot. It'll slow things down quite a bit. I am happy that Graphy can be shut off. Also, noise reduction can be shut off in manual. It was actually disabled by default. Going to do a lot of test shooting today.
Hoping to hit up the museum I used to work in and always test every camera I own there. Also hitting up an outdoor night event here as well as the jazz club. It's going to get one helluva workout today! Going to take my V20 and Nikon V3 along too. Not sure how much I'll use the V3 outside of the outdoor event. Not going to bother taking my DSLR. (I'm actually in the process of downsizing my photography to smaller cameras. DSLRs have gotten way too clean and clinical for my tastes.)
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Deztroyah said:
My biggest complaint is I just wish you could at least disable the LG bloatware apps so they can't start up. Maybe there is a special way to do it aside from rooting the device and going that route.
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Yep. This method works on G6, so it should work on V30 also, be careful on what you disable, you could potentially brick the device.
BTW any display problems? And what variant did you buy?
Thanks! As for the variant, I have the AT&T 64gig one. There are a few AT&T apps, all can be disabled. I actually use a few of them. And no display problems that I have seen. I think the display is one of the best parts of the device.
Deztroyah said:
I got mine this past Friday...
Hope this helps anyone considering the V30
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Awesome overview :good: Although I already ordered v30 (black, 64gb) from South Korea, it was still nice to read, especially regarding the screen/size. I am not a fan of 18:9 in general since native support is still behind (cropped,zoomed videos), but I like what LG does - basically putting 18:9 screen in a more like 16:9 frame.. this makes it look much better than sausage-style s8/s8+/note8.
Here’s my V30+ first impressions. Will do a deep dive on the camera and audio soon.
https://gavinsgadgets.com/2018/01/0...adphone-jack-with-quad-dac-wireless-charging/
gavinfabl said:
Here’s my V30+ first impressions. Will do a deep dive on the camera and audio soon.
https://gavinsgadgets.com/2018/01/0...adphone-jack-with-quad-dac-wireless-charging/
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Interesting review. Where did you get your B&O branded V30+ in UK? I thought they only had the V30? Did you get it from Italy or elsewhere?
I watched your full YouTube review and I agree people are selling the camera on this phone short. Interesting that all your friends chose the LG V30+ pictures over the Pixel 2 XL pictures. That's one reason I'm not really going to mess with the Pixel camera port.
ChazzMatt said:
Interesting review. Where did you get your B&O branded V30+ in UK? I thought they only had the V30? Did you get it from Italy or elsewhere?
I watched your full YouTube review and I agree people are selling the camera on this phone short. Interesting that all your friends chose the LG V30+ pictures over the Pixel 2 XL pictures. That's one reason I'm not really going to mess with the Pixel camera port.
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Thanks. You’re right. UK only gets standard V30. Wondamobile supplied the V30+. The Pixel 2 will take better pics , but like everything it depends on the scene. I was out this morning with my Canon & V30+ and will get a post up next week with the results.
Ok. Audio review now done on the LG V30 covering speaker, Bluetooth, wired and type c. Over a dozen headphones used too.
https://gavinsgadgets.com/2018/01/1...-wired-over-12-different-headphones-compared/
I'm on my second Sprint lg v30 plus. Had to exchange the first one due to digitizer issues. On one side of the screen. It only responded to taps. My luck I guess.. Overall I like the device. It's light, fast and has a nice design. The camera sucks tho compared to my s8+ especially in low light. Not a bad camera but no where near the pixel 2 or Samsung phones. Was going to get the note 8 but I doubt that will ever get twrp. Hopefully this device gets root and twrp
Ok full review is finished now. Includes a camera showcase and 32 reasons why it's the best phone in the world, with the 32nd reason the best one.
https://gavinsgadgets.com/2018/01/28/lg-v30-review-camera-showcase-this-is-the-best-phone-in-2018/