Develop Bugs

[Q] Should I buy the HTC Desire Z?

I want to buy the HTC Desire Z but a few things that I read on the net are really freaking me out:
1) BATTERY LIFE: Some users say the battery lasts for less than a day, while others say they have no problem for 2 days. Now I have a ZTE Blade(which I plan to sell) that also has bad battery life, somewhat similar, so its kinda OK as long as its not really that bad.
I wont really have the Wifi turned on 24/7, coz I am a conservative user(although when I get the phone initially I'll check it out every 10 seconds... only for some days).
Can the battery life be fixed by using custom ROMs or Kernels or is it just the underpowered battery pack?
2)Keyboard Hinge: It seems that the screen falls loose when you turn the phone upside down. Some people complain of loose hinges .
I will be using the keyboard frequently.
3)LAG AND BUGS: Actually, its software related so it doesn't really matter I would probably flash a Custom ROM as soon as I get.
So should I buy this phone or not? Please tell me about the other problems in this phone...
If you say "NO", then please suggest an alternative in the same price segment!
Thanks a lot!
Regards,
jj_95nano

I've had my Desire Z since august last year.
Pros:
-great dev support with PLENTY of ROMs to choose from, you get choices between AOSP, GB Sense, GB MIUI, ICS Sense and ICS MIUI.
-good sound quality output through headphone jack
-great screen with nice viewing angles and colours.
-good battery life lasting 2 full days regularly for me under light to medium use.
-great keyboard which has a good feel to it.
-fantastic build quality, i've dropped my DZ a bit more than a handful of times and it barely has any scratches anywhere.
-the "z-hinge" is much more sturdy than it seems and it will definitely last the test of time.
-the phone is blazing fast with AOSP ROMs and can play pretty much every game right now.
-Call quality is really good when there is good reception (read below)
Cons:
-sometimes not-so fantastic performance when it comes to Sense ROMs.
-my keyboard is becoming unresponsive and requires very hard pushes to register the keys Q,W,E and more recently the space bar is having this issue too.
-i have had both wifi and cellular signal death grip issues that occur when the keyboard is out and my hands are wrapped around the device.
-With wifi, a full bar signal can drop down to half signal or less than half if you hold the device as i described.
-With cellular signal, i have very poor reception at my house where i'll get 3/4 bars at the most but a lot of the time, if i hold my phone for more than 30 seconds while the keyboard is out with my hands wrapped around it, i will end up completely losing reception. That said, this has been an issue with previous phones of mine anyway though.
-The device does get hot at times where it can make your hands sweaty but it never really gets burning hot.
-call quality is quite terrible for me at times at my house due to the bad reception that i have and the death grip issues seem to interrupt calls as well at times as i've had a drop outs during calls before.
I hope that helps a bit. Oh and about the tightness of the Z-hinge, i can hold my phone upside down with the keyboard open without it closing, it takes a little bit of practice but my hinge is quite tight and it's still as tight as it was when i bought my phone so as mentioned earlier, the hinge will definitely last the tests of time.
Overall, the pros outweigh the cons for me simply because of how much i love android, so i'd give the phone about an 8/10. If you can find it for like $250USD or less, i'd buy it if i were you, but otherwise, i would just wait for the next best qwerty slider.

magic_android said:
I've had my Desire Z since august last year.
Pros:
-great dev support with PLENTY of ROMs to choose from, you get choices between AOSP, GB Sense, GB MIUI, ICS Sense and ICS MIUI.
-good sound quality output through headphone jack
-great screen with nice viewing angles and colours.
-good battery life lasting 2 full days regularly for me under light to medium use.
-great keyboard which has a good feel to it.
-fantastic build quality, i've dropped my DZ a bit more than a handful of times and it barely has any scratches anywhere.
-the "z-hinge" is much more sturdy than it seems and it will definitely last the test of time.
-the phone is blazing fast with AOSP ROMs and can play pretty much every game right now.
-Call quality is really good when there is good reception (read below)
Cons:
-sometimes not-so fantastic performance when it comes to Sense ROMs.
-my keyboard is becoming unresponsive and requires very hard pushes to register the keys Q,W,E and more recently the space bar is having this issue too.
-i have had both wifi and cellular signal death grip issues that occur when the keyboard is out and my hands are wrapped around the device.
-With wifi, a full bar signal can drop down to half signal or less than half if you hold the device as i described.
-With cellular signal, i have very poor reception at my house where i'll get 3/4 bars at the most but a lot of the time, if i hold my phone for more than 30 seconds while the keyboard is out with my hands wrapped around it, i will end up completely losing reception. That said, this has been an issue with previous phones of mine anyway though.
-The device does get hot at times where it can make your hands sweaty but it never really gets burning hot.
-call quality is quite terrible for me at times at my house due to the bad reception that i have and the death grip issues seem to interrupt calls as well at times as i've had a drop outs during calls before.
I hope that helps a bit. Oh and about the tightness of the Z-hinge, i can hold my phone upside down with the keyboard open without it closing, it takes a little bit of practice but my hinge is quite tight and it's still as tight as it was when i bought my phone so as mentioned earlier, the hinge will definitely last the tests of time.
Overall, the pros outweigh the cons for me simply because of how much i love android, so i'd give the phone about an 8/10. If you can find it for like $250USD or less, i'd buy it if i were you, but otherwise, i would just wait for the next best qwerty slider.
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Click to collapse
Thank you for answering!
But there are a few new problems(Call reception, bad signal) that you have just enlightened me about. But should it really matter at a place with full network strength?
But seriously, the PROS seem tooo attractive! The number of ROMS is amazing.
I guess I might just go to an E-store and check out the DZ today!
Then I'll make up my mind.
Thanks again for your helpful post.

jj_95nano said:
Thank you for answering!
But there are a few new problems(Call reception, bad signal) that you have just enlightened me about. But should it really matter at a place with full network strength?
But seriously, the PROS seem tooo attractive! The number of ROMS is amazing.
I guess I might just go to an E-store and check out the DZ today!
Then I'll make up my mind.
Thanks again for your helpful post.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I bought my DZ a year and a half ago and i've never encountered major issues other than ROM depending ones.
I live in a french "big city" and never have signal troubles.
Sure he doesn't have incredible performances (mostly with Sense 3.x Roms) and if you want to use it while lying on your bed and holding it above you you will suffer of a loose hinge but if you can find it at a reasonable price, it's still a good deal and one of the best with an HW Keyboard.

Might be worthwhile to check out the official review thread in the General section.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA

If you live somewhere with good reception and you can get the desire z at a good price, then i'd say go for it . When i have good reception, calls sound pretty much perfect. It's just that my carrier somewhat sucks haha.

magic_android said:
If you live somewhere with good reception and you can get the desire z at a good price, then i'd say go for it . When i have good reception, calls sound pretty much perfect. It's just that my carrier somewhat sucks haha.
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Thanks for replying!
My carrier sucks too, but only outside the city, but I get full signal strength with my ZTE Blade in my house. Considering that the ZTE Blade has similar network issues, I think I don't mind the bad reception issue. Things are getting positive for this phone... I couldn't go to see it today, but I'll try tomorrow!
Ditamae said:
Might be worthwhile to check out the official review thread in the General section.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA
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Its great you pointed me out to that thread, it added to my knowledge about the DZ!
And I also found a ZTE Blade owner who had upgraded to DZ on that thread!
TenMaKo said:
I bought my DZ a year and a half ago and i've never encountered major issues other than ROM depending ones.
I live in a french "big city" and never have signal troubles.
Sure he doesn't have incredible performances (mostly with Sense 3.x Roms) and if you want to use it while lying on your bed and holding it above you you will suffer of a loose hinge but if you can find it at a reasonable price, it's still a good deal and one of the best with an HW Keyboard.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, HW keyboard is important as I always face issues with my existing phone when it comes to using the on-screen keyboard. Well, I'll just grin and bear the loose hinge.
Thanks to everyone on this thread. I seem to like the phone now.I just need to see it in reality to make up my mind.

it's just the keyboard issue, other than that , the phone is awesome

Very quick fix if you feel the keyboard is loose. Check the thread on the spring fix. I did both mine and my girlfriends g2s in 20min. As for reception there are more radios to pick from then on any other device I've used so chances are at least one is good in your area and this may help with battery life too. Also I get about 20 hrs give or take with most roms and I'm a heavy user. My gf still has over 80% battery when she plugs in at night as a light user. Not to mention many after market batteries to pick from.
Did a lot of research before I bought us both g2s and I could not find a better option for us as the keyboard was the hw biggest need for us
Sent from my HTC Vision using xda premium

The screen is meant to be loose, in that it allows you to flip the keyboard open and closed with almost no effort. I actually find it pretty tough to hold the phone in such a way, that it opens when upside down. Any contact with your fingers/hands on the "screen" portion of the phone will prevent it from opening accidentally. You actually have to be holding the back "half" of the phone without touching the front "half" in order for it to open while upside down. A few people have mentioned that the phone opens when they are using the phone and laying down. But I often use my Z while laying on the couch, and have never found this to be an issue. My opinion is that the hinge "issue" has been completely overblown, and don't let it negatively sway your opinion of the phone.
Battery life is obviously a very difficult thing to compare between users, as its very dependent on how you use your phone, and also reception. But with fairly moderate use, the Z will easily get you through the day, and then you charge overnight. With light usage, I can often get 2 days. On the other hand, when I'm hiking in the woods, in poor reception areas, I can kill the battery in 8 hours or less, without even using it. Forcing the phone to EDGE seems to help, as some of the battery drain seems to be from the phone constantly trying to connect to a dodgy 3G signal. Similarly, in less populated areas (but still in built up towns) I will sometimes get battery life much less than the usual 1-2 days I can get at my home and work locations. I guess the moral of the story, your mileage will certainly vary. But for average conditions, I'd say the Z has pretty good battery life for a smartphone.
All that said, the Z is a solid phone, and a great community here. But I'd be hard pressed to recommend buying one at this time. The phone is a year and a half old. The CPU and memory specs are really showing their age. And its unfortunate that flagship devices with hardware keyboards seem to be becoming an extinct species. I'd only consider this device if you really require a hardware keyboard, and can get a good price.

redpoint73 said:
The screen is meant to be loose, in that it allows you to flip the keyboard open and closed with almost no effort. I actually find it pretty tough to hold the phone in such a way, that it opens when upside down. Any contact with your fingers/hands on the "screen" portion of the phone will prevent it from opening accidentally. You actually have to be holding the back "half" of the phone without touching the front "half" in order for it to open while upside down. A few people have mentioned that the phone opens when they are using the phone and laying down. But I often use my Z while laying on the couch, and have never found this to be an issue. My opinion is that the hinge "issue" has been completely overblown, and don't let it negatively sway your opinion of the phone.
Battery life is obviously a very difficult thing to compare between users, as its very dependent on how you use your phone, and also reception. But with fairly moderate use, the Z will easily get you through the day, and then you charge overnight. With light usage, I can often get 2 days. On the other hand, when I'm hiking in the woods, in poor reception areas, I can kill the battery in 8 hours or less, without even using it. Forcing the phone to EDGE seems to help, as some of the battery drain seems to be from the phone constantly trying to connect to a dodgy 3G signal. Similarly, in less populated areas (but still in built up towns) I will sometimes get battery life much less than the usual 1-2 days I can get at my home and work locations. I guess the moral of the story, your mileage will certainly vary. But for average conditions, I'd say the Z has pretty good battery life for a smartphone.
All that said, the Z is a solid phone, and a great community here. But I'd be hard pressed to recommend buying one at this time. The phone is a year and a half old. The CPU and memory specs are really showing their age. And its unfortunate that flagship devices with hardware keyboards seem to be becoming an extinct species. I'd only consider this device if you really require a hardware keyboard, and can get a good price.
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Click to collapse
I guess if I buy the phone, I'll have better battery life as I have my cellular plan limited to 2G so that is going to make a big difference. Anyways its not like my existing phone(ZTE Blade) has great battery life and reception, so I'm used to this.
And ay the community here is AMAZING, the number of ROMs and Radios is superb! I am no fan of OC'ing so CPU speed doesn't matter. HW keyboard is soo tempting.
Thanks a lot for all your responses... I'll search for the spring fix for the keyboard...

jj_95nano said:
I am no fan of OC'ing so CPU speed doesn't matter.
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Click to collapse
Actually have to say that this statement is a bit backward. If you were into overclocking, that would make up a bit for the lower "stock" CPU clock speed of 800 MHz. As it is, the CPU on the Z is good enough for most tasks. But newer CPUs are pushing 1.5 GHz, and multi cores, and you can really tell the difference. My tablet is a HTC Flyer, with a 1.5 GHz CPU, and it just, well . . . flies. So much more smoother interface experience (even with Sense), smooth video playback (Rockplayer), and this is only with single core (most phones are now coming dual core, and quad core coming soon). Plus 1 GB of RAM means much less dropping of apps from memory. My Flyer acts like I wish my Z would.
Again, don't get me wrong. The Z is solid, and will still have plenty of life left, if you really need the keyboard. But its nowhere near cutting edge, and for me its time to move on. I'll likely be picking up the One X when its released.

redpoint73 said:
Actually have to say that this statement is a bit backward. If you were into overclocking, that would make up a bit for the lower "stock" CPU clock speed of 800 MHz. As it is, the CPU on the Z is good enough for most tasks. But newer CPUs are pushing 1.5 GHz, and multi cores, and you can really tell the difference. My tablet is a HTC Flyer, with a 1.5 GHz CPU, and it just, well . . . flies. So much more smoother interface experience (even with Sense), smooth video playback (Rockplayer), and this is only with single core (most phones are now coming dual core, and quad core coming soon). Plus 1 GB of RAM means much less dropping of apps from memory. My Flyer acts like I wish my Z would.
Again, don't get me wrong. The Z is solid, and will still have plenty of life left, if you really need the keyboard. But its nowhere near cutting edge, and for me its time to move on. I'll likely be picking up the One X when its released.
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I mostly agree with this post and his previous one.
I'm also considering buying an HTC One X.
It seems so great : Tegra3 1.5Ghz QuadCore - 1GB RAM - Screen resolution : 1280*720px, Internal Memory 32GB, Front Camera, NFC, Native ICS + Sense 4 in its full version
Compared to our DZ, that's just like WOW !!
But no hardware keyboard anymore and no real HDMI connection (you need a special cable).... for a 600€ phone.... that really pisses me off.

@ the OP, i think you should wait a couple of months until some new phones come out so that you have more choice. I'm personally HIGHLY considering getting a One X or One S if i can find the money for it as the keyboard on my phone is driving me nuts xD.

redpoint73 said:
Actually have to say that this statement is a bit backward. If you were into overclocking, that would make up a bit for the lower "stock" CPU clock speed of 800 MHz. As it is, the CPU on the Z is good enough for most tasks. But newer CPUs are pushing 1.5 GHz, and multi cores, and you can really tell the difference. My tablet is a HTC Flyer, with a 1.5 GHz CPU, and it just, well . . . flies. So much more smoother interface experience (even with Sense), smooth video playback (Rockplayer), and this is only with single core (most phones are now coming dual core, and quad core coming soon). Plus 1 GB of RAM means much less dropping of apps from memory. My Flyer acts like I wish my Z would.
Again, don't get me wrong. The Z is solid, and will still have plenty of life left, if you really need the keyboard. But its nowhere near cutting edge, and for me its time to move on. I'll likely be picking up the One X when its released.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't want to contradict you, but I never overclocked my existing phone which is only 600MHz and I was pretty satisfied because I used custom ROMs. The only Overclocking that I did was to OC the GPU. But the stock 800MHz on DZ is good with custom ROMs as I saw on youtube...
Well I'm still a teen so the One X is a tad too expensive. I txt, so HW keyboard is a necessity. I have an iPod touch 4 for 1GHz . I use that for Gaming, media, etc(you obviously know)...
Yes the market is full of Dual and Quad core phones and tabs out there but I might just venture out to that segment when I'm actually looking for a good quality phone to use long-term when I'm older(Coz my parents don't think I'd handle those kinda expensive Gizmos)
magic_android said:
@ the OP, i think you should wait a couple of months until some new phones come out so that you have more choice. I'm personally HIGHLY considering getting a One X or One S if i can find the money for it as the keyboard on my phone is driving me nuts xD.
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Click to collapse
After reviewing the phone in a store I was pretty impressed and there really wasn't anything wrong with the keyboard(firm enough) on that piece so I think I'll just have to have my fingers crossed to get a piece that has a stiff keyboard.
I need to buy a phone quick as my ZTE Blade's value is going down and I don't want to spend too much on upgrading. The only competitor IMHO to the DZ is Xperia Pro. So I think I'd either buy the DZ or the Xperia Pro...

You're talking about the mini pro? Or is there another version of it? The dz will probably have a larger community since that device wasn't advertised too much. It's still a great device though, a friend of mine's got it and I had the chance to play around with it.
The phone's hardware, as redpoint73 stated, is indeed starting to age. It can last for a bit more than a year, if you don't mind the slower hardware. So, it might just be worth it if you upgrade every 1,5-2 years.
Sent from my DZ.

crestofawave said:
You're talking about the mini pro? Or is there another version of it? The dz will probably have a larger community since that device wasn't advertised too much. It's still a great device though, a friend of mine's got it and I had the chance to play around with it.
The phone's hardware, as redpoint73 stated, is indeed starting to age. It can last for a bit more than a year, if you don't mind the slower hardware. So, it might just be worth it if you upgrade every 1,5-2 years.
Sent from my DZ.
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Click to collapse
No I'm talking about this: http://www.gsmarena.com/sony_ericsson_xperia_pro-3779.php <<< It has a resolution of 480x854, so its bigger and it has a 1GHz processor. Only thing is that it does not have a good community(or maybe no community...)
I bought my ZTE Blade just 5 months back, so you know that's pretty short... I will obviously upgrade in the future if there is another phone that I fall in love with
http://www.gsmarena.com/sony_ericsson_xperia_pro-3779.php

jj_95nano said:
I don't want to contradict you, but I never overclocked my existing phone which is only 600MHz and I was pretty satisfied because I used custom ROMs. The only Overclocking that I did was to OC the GPU. But the stock 800MHz on DZ is good with custom ROMs as I saw on youtube...
Well I'm still a teen so the One X is a tad too expensive. I txt, so HW keyboard is a necessity. I have an iPod touch 4 for 1GHz . I use that for Gaming, media, etc(you obviously know)...
Yes the market is full of Dual and Quad core phones and tabs out there but I might just venture out to that segment when I'm actually looking for a good quality phone to use long-term when I'm older(Coz my parents don't think I'd handle those kinda expensive Gizmos)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its largely a matter of personal preference and needs, so feel free to disagree! Its you buying the phone, after all. But for me, its really quite evident when comparing the Z to more modern phones, the difference in CPU. Lightweight ROMs help, but its really just a Band-Aid when the CPU is falling this far behind. But if you're on a budget, and can get a good deal on a Z, its still a solid phone.
Slightly off topic, but speaking of CPUs on newer phones, have you guys seen the recently posted benchmarks on the US (AT&T) version of the One X (actually One XL)? Dammmnnnn, this thing embarrasses every phone currently on the market, including the Galaxy Nexus. Much less an older phone like the Z:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1565181

jj_95nano said:
No I'm talking about this: http://www.gsmarena.com/sony_ericsson_xperia_pro-3779.php <<< It has a resolution of 480x854, so its bigger and it has a 1GHz processor. Only thing is that it does not have a good community(or maybe no community...)
I bought my ZTE Blade just 5 months back, so you know that's pretty short... I will obviously upgrade in the future if there is another phone that I fall in love with
http://www.gsmarena.com/sony_ericsson_xperia_pro-3779.php
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Click to collapse
I think that we don't care about the slight difference between the 2 processor as you can OC your DZ from 800Mhz to 1.8Ghz without problems (i know u can even go higher but i've never tried). Even if you're not fond of OCing, that's still a possibility.
Screen resolution doesn't seem relevant to me neither. 480*800 VS 480*854.....
On the other hand, the community should be a major argument as it's the one thing that allows our DZ not to be totally outdated.
P.S: Sorry, i'm pretty sure my english is terrible

TenMaKo said:
P.S: Sorry, i'm pretty sure my english is terrible
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Click to collapse
Um, almost perfect, actually. And more better than many native English speakers on XDA. ;-)

How is it so far?

Hi all, haven't got one yet and still have my n7 (2012). They're are sold out right now at my local store. My question is what the title says. How is it? I haven't got the chance to get one in my hands yet. Is it leaps and bounds better!? I've read reviews and check forums and am still unsure if I want one. Any opinions are appreciated.
Sent from my Lean Mean Jelly Bean Machine.

Just read some of the threads.
There are some issues with the screens right now on some devices. Still worth the risk as it is a huge upgrade to the 2012 Nexus 7. No more lag, unbelievable screen, lighter, and thinner. Definitely worth the money.

Well, I usually do not do reviews of mainstream devices, since that is well covered by the "big boys",
But I was secretly waiting for an opportunity to make some comments:
In short, it is an incredible tablet.
Much nicer to hold than any other tablet I've owned/tried. I really like how thin it is, and the texture of the back.
I handed it to my son, and he loaded one of these games where you control something using the accelerometers. He has a Nook Color (With CM7), so he has a similar device to compare it too. He immediately commented how nice it was to hold and play the game.
The screen is incredible too. Way more resolution than my old eyes need, but even with my glasses things look great.
Web pages look more Desktop-like than any other tablet, including 10 inchers. Page rendering is also desktop fast. (Actually faster than this 10+ year old AMD machine I am typing on now, even with lots of RAM, and Xubuntu 12.04, which I credit with prolonging it's life this long).
WiFi, Works great with solid connections, great speed and lots of (indicated) signal. (As compared to other devices).
An iDM5 combination bluetooth speaker, and keyboard paired over BT with no problem at all. I am also using an Apple magic mouse. All re-connect quickly too.
Works (as one would expect) seemlessly with my Chromecast.
Another big plus for me was Standard USB charging. Pretty much anything charges it with no problem.
Now the complaints:
Yes, it has stereo speakers, but they are not that loud or great sounding. Using the EQ in Google Music does not help. Attempting to add Bass only causes it to sound muffled.
I have a Huawei u9508 with 2 speakers on the back, near the bottom (close together). It gives me more volume, more bass, and more stereo effect (OK, that last one may just be a perception thing).
Take the stereo speakers out of your purchasing decision. As of right now, it effectively does not have any better audio than a (than some) single speaker tablet(s).
To be clear (pun) The sound is by no means bad, it's just disapointing considering all the Fraunhofer hype.
Lack of an SD slot almost made me not buy the Nexus. I really miss it. I have a lot of things that use those cards, and not being able to just slot them in the Nexus is a big hit.
I also wish Google would stop "Apple-izing" things. Android had USB Storage mode for most of it's life. I wish it still did. Yes, there are work-arounds, and perhaps it is "safer" not to have it, but it is a clear case of "Defective by Design", in my opinion.
I miss the standard Android (AOSP) Browser and Music Player. (See these forums for installing the AOSP browser, and recommendations for other audio players.)
I do like the fact that it is (except for the Google Stuff) bloat-ware free. It is a very clean, fast, and good-looking factory ROM (I'm an Android purist.)
Also, you know that the community will support the device for years to come, whether or not Google does.
I have not tried Qi charging or NFC.
Should you buy one?
Well, you should not buy any other 7 inch tablet over this one -- I think that is pretty clear.
It is just a question if you need a (another) 7 inch tablet. In my case, I really needed a new tablet. My Archos 80 G9 was (something I cannot describe here with out getting banned) on the day it was made, and I had dissasembled it many times to fix broken USB connections, etc. Lately it would reboot everytime I squeezed the case a bit too hard.
Alternatives I concidered:
Acer A700 -- Same True HD resolution on a 10" screen -- SD card slot -- Dolby Stereo Speakers -- NVIDIA Tegra 3.
Chinese iFive X2 -- Same True HD resolution on an 8.9" screen -- SD card slot -- Front facing stereo speakers -- USB charging.
Say what you want about Chinese tablets, but the iFive X2 was the only one that really met my requirements (desirements). If you believe the iFive website, and some of the reviews, it actually looks like the build quality is pretty good. I may still buy one.

Awesome, zero complaints. Don't let all the negative threads get you down, mine arrived flawless shipped from New York to Ontario, Canada.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda app-developers app

Linuxslate said:
In short, it is an incredible tablet.
Much nicer to hold than any other tablet I've owned/tried. I really like how thin it is, and the texture of the back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So true...
It was the first thing I noticed after opening the box and even after 1 week, I am still amazed by the weight, the texture and how fast everything is... Switching between apps is so fun now
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda premium

My God is it ever amazing. Such a huge upgrade over last gens model. It is a joy to do everything with this tablet. Feels and looks oh so premium as well. Unbelievable how it costs so little in comparison to other tablets. I don't want to type an extremely long review, but even if I did, words cannot express how happy I am with this tablet.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk HD

Awesome.
I was convinced last year that the original nexus 7 was too small so I got the iPad mini which was great for 6+ months. After I downloaded iOS 7 I thought what a joke ios7 will be and in general for traveling the mini was a major pain(loading movies, documents etc for offline use).
So recently I replaced my mini with a note8 for 2 weeks traveling and thought this is a keeper...then the new nexus 7 came out and I picked it up with the plans to return it after some testing....WOW I ended up returning the note 8 and keeping the N7!
No regrets...love the form factor even with a few hiccups (sometimes screen will just pause for a second and rare crashes).
SO I am using my N7 so much I might sell my Samsung s4 and get something cheaper (I.e. nexus 4) since it just sits when at home.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 4

This is my first tablet ever. And the second android device. The first being HTC Desire, which after OC-ing didn't feel bad.
But I wanted something that could deliver superb performance without the whole process of rooting, unlocking and flashing. So I bought this one, and I can say that this one's the best I've used ever. I have had my hands on those iPads some of my friends have, but they don't sound all that convincing.
There have been no lags at all that I have been able to identify. But still, I'm planning on going through the fun of rooting unlocking and flashing process. Just because I'm a flashaholic.
Regarding the device itself, I have found that the display is more blue-oriented. It has a much colder display than my HTC Desire. But it does look good on it. The data transfer speeds are superb. No performance issues so far. Battery lasts about two days, since I don't actively use it, occasional wifi and browsing, but no more than that. I mainly read books on it, and have successfully devoured 5 books in two weeks (I'm an avid reader , never mind). Others have been facing Wifi issues, but not me. Mine seems adequate. I've got a 3mbps connection in my country, which is the fastest here
There is some dust on the upper left corner, but since there are no dead pixels, I haven't returned mine for the fear of getting a dead-pixels-infected one. I use the tablet without any external peripherals, apart from my custom made earphones, which give a good amount of clear sound with good levels of bass, even without any audio mod.
I don't use the stock things, no... That's right, I've never learned how to use those For music, I have PowerAmp, for movies, MXPlayer, for pictures, QuickPic, for internet, OperaMini, the legendary ES for file browsing, and upcoming root mode
So far, all these apps have been superb in performance at least compared to my HTC Desire.
I should probably be saluting Asus and Google, for this combined effort to hand us quadcore Snapdragon 1.5 GHz, HD display equipped, nice tablet for under 30k in my country.

Thanks for the in depth answers. Went and got one at office max Friday. Last one with too plus a 20% discount from my boys at drippler.. App. Haven't even opened it yet Lol waiting on my screen protector n case from amazon. Now what to do with the old one?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

should i buy this phone?

hi guys
i'm nexus 4 owner and wanned to buy new phone.. and i'm thoroughly confused :/
my expections:
first of all... speed speed speed..!
i dont mean benchmark numbers or either gaming performance (i don't play games) i just want fast and super responding interface
2.battery 3. developmental support.. 4.screen 5.camera
i decided to buy s5.. but when i played around with it, totally disappointed :/ really slow interface.. i don't know how is it in non stock based custom roms..
does this phone have some super fast and snappy (probably non stock based ) roms?
then i cheked m8 .. it was lovely fast.. but i think camera is aweful stupid htc ... just put simple 13mp camera
g3 also checked it's videos.. shamefully it's slow just like s5 just have quicker animation speed.. but i want touch responsive phone.. not fast animated..
i heard it'll get better after updates.. i dunno how much..
plz help...

I recently purchased one from T-mobile.
I'm returning it soon for a Nexus 6 I think. I went in with my 2nd z3 (junk, contrary to what anyone else tells you, it's junk) and ended up with the G3 because it was the best option at the time.. It's not slow, but it's definitely laggy. I'm somewhat of a power user though, in fact I do quite a bit of my work on the road via my phone, managing to have 20 - 30 browser tabs open at once, 10 - 15 skype conversations going, etc. etc. etc. The LG skin alone makes it laggy for me, but add in my regular use and it becomes fairly bogged down. It's a gorgeous device though. You probably do not put your device through the same paces that I do on a daily basis, so take it for what it's worth. But also note that there are threads on nearly every forum on changing the thermal mitigation, etc, etc, etc, etc. in order to smooth the phone out.
It's laggy by nature, no way around it. I'm sure that you can fix this by rooting and romming, but I'm past those days in my life, I'd rather run stock android than deal with it anymore.
Cheers.

Phone for me is amazing now with custom Roms. Very fast device with zero lag. GL

If I understand things well, LG phones are really performance inconsistent. Some (like mine, fortunately) have no recognizable lag, excellent battery life (I typically get 6.25 hrs SOT, for example), etc. Some, however, are plagued with lag and less than excellent (but still good) battery life. If my reading was right, that was true of the G2 as well.
If you are comfortable with using or learning to use custom roms, you'll be good. They're coming relatively quickly of late, and the stock based roms are generally excellent (Cloudy G3, for example, is great and allows the latest official firmware on any g3 device model).
That said, it isn't perfect. Some people struggle with oversharpening of the text (a lg software issue), and generally people agree the brightness is unimpressive (my old nexus s is much brighter, for example). People generally love the camera, the screen size (and colors and contrast become quite good with a quick change in the settings). It's pretty fast (especially on firmware 10m and up, where many have reported the lag to be gone), pretty cheap, and looks pretty.
So:
Speed: good, getting better with updates. Bit of lag may present depending on firmware (which can be worked around) and luck. Custom AOSP builds are the fastest I have ever tried running.
Battery: has been amazing for me, and generally good for others. That said, not as good as for example) the G2 due to the screen.
Development: Decent, but growing steadily. Bump means all devices are currently unlocked.
Screen: Beautiful, natural colors. Top of the line sharpness and clarity. Limited brightness. Can be improved in contrast and color depth fairly easily.
Camera: absolutely fantastic
Conclusion: coming from nexus, you might prefer the new nexus 6 just on grounds of nexus excellence. You might prefer the m8 if you can get over the camera based on popularity of sense (which is incredibly popular, though i personally hate it) and out of the box lag free experience. Perhaps the Note 4 even. It all depends on you, really, and what fits you best. But honestly, i think this is an incredible device, and it's getting better.

my notes about teh G3
- Speed is what you'd expect from a flagship. Lag problems seems to come from the overly conservative thermal solutions. It slows down to a crawl at the smallest sign of heat. I live in a tropical country, so this turned out to be a problem, until I flashed some thermal mods.
- Battery problems seems to come from rogue apps. I had it, and it was caused due to rogue apps.
- I find the screen overly bright. Yet, I think I became sensible to light, I don't know. I use my laptop at 20% brightness at all times.
- Screen is gorgeous. So is the G2. FHD wouldn't hurt, as QHD is overkill, specially for the battery. If I could choose, I'd get a FHD G3. Colors and sharpness are excellent though. Did I mention it kills the battery big time? Yeah, like battery statistics line is pretty much horizontal with screen off, but when it turns on, it's like 60 degrees downward.
- Development is slow. Only this month it really has started, although this device has been launched months ago. Some devs were holding it, so LG wouldn't block them off on the next bootloader updates, I guess.
- The camera is outstanding. It's really a beast, apart from the small sensor. The OIS really makes up to it. The dual LED (white/amber) allows for very accurate colors, and the laser AF, even though I don't feel much about how it works (I can't really notice it to be ~this~ fast. It's just ok), I like to brag my phone can fire lasers - pew pew.
I think it's the best camera around, which doesn't, specially, breaks the phone body harmony, and take excellent pictures. Oh, and the front camera has a wide angle.
- It's not water-proof. Boo.
- I'll bring together everything I like, but doesn't need a special mention: Wireless charging, IR Blaster (which also learns and detects the remotes), KnockCode/KnockOn, centered volume/power buttons, MicroSD support, removeable battery (and it's pretty slim. You can keep a spare one in your wallet), good looking UI with great add-ons.
I think this pretty much sums it all. ROM Modding may not be your cup of tea, but you don't need much to have fun with the G3. If you live in a warm place like I do, you'd better fix those thermal configs to enjoy a much smoother G3. If you don't live, you're fine! Just use it

1. Install CloudyG3 (i'm still on 1.0 while 1.2 is out, lazy)
2. Apply ART
3. Enable Developer options and set transitions to 0.5
4. Fastest phone i ever used.
Optional:
5. Root
6. Installed a script from razz, the phone is faster.
7. Changed dpi from 640 to 540
Battery, insane... I had 47 hours with 3 hours of screen on time the other day, and had 6 hours sot on occassion over a period of 15-24 hours of usage.
Camera is optically stabilized, superb in good light, laser focused which makes it all the faster.
Screen is awesome.
Sound is awesomely loud. Louder than a friends Xperia Z3(front stereo speakers, pffft), even when the speaker is facing the opposite direction.
Would i recommend it? I would.
Even the official Lollipop is just around the corner..

it would be good if i could see a video of this updates of custom roms.. every video i've seen on youtube g3 is somehow not so fast..
i don't care about brighness i'll never set on 100%.. i just need speed and responsiveness

DWilso3 said:
..., the screen size (and colors and contrast become quite good with a quick change in the settings). ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Which quick change in the settings can you recommend regarding colors and contrast?
edit: got it, it's under Accessibility > Color Correction

Dark Fear said:
it would be good if i could see a video of this updates of custom roms.. every video i've seen on youtube g3 is somehow not so fast..
i don't care about brighness i'll never set on 100%.. i just need speed and responsiveness
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://youtu.be/wSkAywujKXg

If speed and Dev support at two major things you are looking for. You might consider a Nexus5

The thread of undying positivity

So all I see here is bad stuff being said about the Razer phone. I for one seem to be luck enough to have a good unit.
Can we get some love here and say what our favorite thing about the Razer is, or just post a comment saying that you've had no issues and are generally happy.
I love the audio output on the USB C adapter, absolutely unreal!
Next.......:good:
Cheers!

I am enjoying mine. I can make it through 2 days on a charge watch videos and movies that sound good on the speakers. I'm not a big picture taker but when I do I am OK with what I get,have a dslr for good pics.
Oh I forgot, flat screen so glass screen protector covers the whole thing.

Using Sony phones since 2005. Truly impressed with this device

Love the raw power for gaming and emulators as well as the speakers for watching movies with the fam

The battery life... Check
Sound quality... Check
Power for gaming.... Check
Super fast charging... Check
No bloatware... Check
The good out weigh the bad and I love this phone.

dont root yet
Was perfect till i was stupid and broke it by messing up the root

kdogguk said:
The battery life... Check
Sound quality... Check
Power for gaming.... Check
Super fast charging... Check
No bloatware... Check
The good out weigh the bad and I love this phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This... All the way!
I play l2r at highest settings and it's gorgeous, audio sounds amazing through the speakers or headphones and Dolby atmos helps alot.
Can't BELIEVE how fast this thing charges and it lasts for ever.. I literally get over a day's use with an average of 7+ hrs SOT! I've never had a phone that lasted like this thing does.. Any other phone was ~5hrs max with customized kernel/roms.. This thing is crushing that stock!
I also LOVE the squared designs as I hate all these rounded edges now a days.
I truly believe this is a reincarnation of the nexus line! If they would just get the last few software issues resolved and we get a few more developers on board.

Fastest phone on the market!

mikeandjaimie said:
This... All the way!
I play l2r at highest settings and it's gorgeous, audio sounds amazing through the speakers or headphones and Dolby atmos helps alot.
Can't BELIEVE how fast this thing charges and it lasts for ever.. I literally get over a day's use with an average of 7+ hrs SOT! I've never had a phone that lasted like this thing does.. Any other phone was ~5hrs max with customized kernel/roms.. This thing is crushing that stock!
I also LOVE the squared designs as I hate all these rounded edges now a days.
I truly believe this is a reincarnation of the nexus line! If they would just get the last few software issues resolved and we get a few more developers on board.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am having problems with L2R for the last 3 months. It will just force close no error after 20 mins plus. If I enhance/level up equipment etc then it will force close earlier. I cannot maintain an hours of gaming before it just force closes. Can you advise what settings, firmware version you are using to get such stable gaming?

Am definitely on the list of those with positive vibes for this phone. Bought it only for 250£ fully boxed with recipt and warranty and it's been great. The bad is the screen in bright day light but all else is absolutely fabulous.

Fast charging and a battery that lasts a whole day (my first phone ever that can do that).
Great screen (too bad about the brightness though).
OS is superfast and free of bloatware. Love Nova Launcher for a couple of years now.
Great phone design (I like the blocky design).

The speakers, screen and battery capacity made me instantly purchase this phone, I'm happy with it.

Been my daily user since release date (pre-ordered).. Besides the screen not being bright and an occasional lockup/restart, best phone i've ever owned.

I would like to chime in here and say I'm a very picky sod when it comes to my smartphone choice, I started with HTC as they were willing to experiment and innovative, I loved my One M7 for its front facing stereo speakers and kept with the range till the M9 when (IMHO) the company lost their way, I swapped to a ZTE AXON 7 as that device was amazing for its power and audio, THIS PHONE KICKS ALL THOSE DEVICES TO THE KERB it's got a great battery, amazing screen, speed, raw power, great WiFi connectivity, frelling amazing Audio and sounds brilliant.
I've owned a general release unit since December and dam I love it, have been asked about it a few times every month and I haven't seen anyone else with one so I feel somewhat superior to others. Even my friend who's been a iPhone diehard is jumping ship to this when he upgrades in August even though it's a few months old
Very pleased, very very impressed with Razers first foray into the smartphone market

Honestly the only issues i had with my razer phone(s) was that the first two that i RMAed had speaker issues along with this one i think. But other than that i had no other issues except some freezing issues which i think were currupted app datas.
I just wish the xda dev side was full of more mods and discoveries about this device.

Is it worth buying this phone at 135$ or ~INR.9999 in 2018?

My main use is camera, video recording, custom ROMs, viper4android and an excellent display. So it it still worth buying today? What problems/limitations do you face with this phone?

thecool_guy2 said:
My main use is camera, video recording, custom ROMs, viper4android and an excellent display. So it it still worth buying today? What problems/limitations do you face with this phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope. Not sure your carrier but if i wasn't on this phone I would spend a little extra and get a pixel. If camera is priority, go Samsung, maybe lg.
My phone, and my wife's z2, can barely multi-task without rebooting below 60% on battery. I used to stick with Moto but not any more.
Good luck

I have had the phone for a few days. Display is nice. But the camera reminds me of my Galaxy S3...a 2012 phone.

I think it's a steal at that price for a new phone. If you are not going to try the mods it's a good phone but the Z series main strength is the mods and that's where you can improve the camera (360 or zoom) and improve the battery and so on...

Battery life is great. Better than my former flagship HTC 10. Definitely worth buying as a secondary phone at that cheap price.

so i am the only one happy with the phone? with the battery mod i get 2 to 3 days with one charge, i mainly use it for facebook instagram and games with the gamepad, a couple 10 mins video call a day,music stream with various apps, online banking tickets management and the usual stuff you do with your phone nowadays.. multitasking is great and i haven´t had a reboot yet..i bought it for 200ish and i think this is already a great price, 135$ would be a no go for me. the z3 is 400ish where i am in EU and lacks the 3,5 jack. plus it´s super thin, sure camera isn´t the best but it does the job..it´s working great with the dual sim. i´m on stock oreo as i´m too afraid to go custom rom losing mods support...what do you guys use your phone for?

inaroom said:
so i am the only one happy with the phone? with the battery mod i get 2 to 3 days with one charge, i mainly use it for facebook instagram and games with the gamepad, a couple 10 mins video call a day,music stream with various apps, online banking tickets management and the usual stuff you do with your phone nowadays.. multitasking is great and i haven´t had a reboot yet..i bought it for 200ish and i think this is already a great price, 135$ would be a no go for me. the z3 is 400ish where i am in EU and lacks the 3,5 jack. plus it´s super thin, sure camera isn´t the best but it does the job..it´s working great with the dual sim. i´m on stock oreo as i´m too afraid to go custom rom losing mods support...what do you guys use your phone for?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed, it is thin and feels light for its size. I put on a 10g Mofi case for extra grip.
Bought for $US170 to use as a secondary phone (mainly internet browsing and Spotify Bluetooth streaming). Very happy. The screen looks like a Samsung.

I bought this phone two months ago, and I enjoy it every day, I love it. Beautiful screen, fast enough for everything I do on a phone, great battery life and it will get Android P. I can recommend this device for sure.