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Ok had a play with ZL and XZ in a local store..I am surprised by these things:
As we know most things about the XZ i wont go onto those points..rather ZL.
1. ZL is more brighter and better contrast than XZ..And no the values of calibration were set to 0 on ZL..i put up sony live wallpaper [purple] on both and ZL was visibly more brighter and vibrant!I Wonder what was sony thinking not giving its flagship that same screen? :/
2. Sound through headphones and speakers both were better on ZL..Dont know why? i can understand speakers bcoz of water proofing.
3. Easier to use due to small size and withe same size screen is a plus.
And alas i am confused :/ Dont wanna loose the build quality of XZ but want a brighter screen too!
Have any pictures that you can post for us?
randy_c said:
Have any pictures that you can post for us?
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I will be posing pictures and videos of mine in a few hours! Damn fedex didnt say it would had came yesterday doesnt even show on the tracking but they left a stupid note.
Does the little door on the back for the sim/micro sd make the phone look cheap cause you can see it and it doesn't 100% look flush? I'm on the fence because I haven't seen the phone and it might make it look/feel cheap because of this.
tenshi888 said:
Does the little door on the back for the sim/micro sd make the phone look cheap cause you can see it and it doesn't 100% look flush? I'm on the fence because I haven't seen the phone and it might make it look/feel cheap because of this.
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Nah, its perfect fit on mine (one needs to press the flap firmly to make it fit flush). And it only looks elegant to me (i like it better than glass back on XZ), not to mention the better (more comfortable) grip it provides esp. for single hand use wrt XZ. I would suggest you to go n have a look at it in person. Also, i find the overall build quality of XZL better than my Xperia S and far better than my Note 2 :good:!
P.S: I compared the ZL screen with two XZs and found that it (ZL) screen had better contrast/vibrance than one XZ but no discernible difference with another one. The internal speakers on ZL are louder than Z. Then there are other apparent differences (size, placement of front & back camera etc.). One thing that i'm really enjoying on ZL is the notification LED at the bottom, pretty awesome n unique imo :victory:!
Dpk1 said:
Nah, its perfect fit on mine (one needs to press the flap firmly to make it fit flush). And it only looks elegant to me (i like it better than glass back on XZ), not to mention the better (more comfortable) grip it provides esp. for single hand use wrt XZ. I would suggest you to go n have a look at it in person. Also, i find the overall build quality of XZL better than my Xperia S and far better than my Note 2 :good:!
P.S: I compared the ZL screen with two XZs and found that it (ZL) screen had better contrast/vibrance than one XZ but no discernible difference with another one. The internal speakers on ZL are louder than Z. Then there are other apparent differences (size, placement of front & back camera etc.). One thing that i'm really enjoying on ZL is the notification LED at the bottom, pretty awesome n unique imo :victory:!
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Thanks for the information, i do love the ZL at least on paper. How's the shutter key, is there a long delay in opening the camera app after pressing it? Finally, does the phone feel thick at 9.8? Thanks again!
tenshi888 said:
Thanks for the information, i do love the ZL at least on paper. How's the shutter key, is there a long delay in opening the camera app after pressing it? Finally, does the phone feel thick at 9.8? Thanks again!
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Shutter key is good (actually better than my Xperia S). It launches the camera app in 1-1.5 sceonds from sleep (i.e no delay imo). Once camera app is ready, pressing the shutter key zaps the image with no delay/lag. And no, the phone actually doesn't feel thick to me, maybe because of the curved back. My note2 felt thicker (at 9.4mm). XZ is slimmer but not as much as one would think compared to ZL (given 7.9mm vs 9.8mm).
tenshi888 said:
Does the little door on the back for the sim/micro sd make the phone look cheap cause you can see it and it doesn't 100% look flush? I'm on the fence because I haven't seen the phone and it might make it look/feel cheap because of this.
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yes it does look cheap as u can clearly see the gap as much as u push it in..it looks like an after jod..they shud have put it on the sides like the XZ.
And as far as looks and feel go u cant compare it to XZ..XZ just looks way more premium than ZL..ZL's front is great but the back looks cheap,,just holding the XZ makes u wanna take it home
ethan3686 said:
yes it does look cheap as u can clearly see the gap as much as u push it in..it looks like an after jod..they shud have put it on the sides like the XZ.
And as far as looks and feel go u cant compare it to XZ..XZ just looks way more premium than ZL..ZL's front is great but the back looks cheap,,just holding the XZ makes u wanna take it home
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Lol.. certainly not! The sim/sd card slot door/flap fits snugly and doesn't look odd as you state. To prefer matte or glossy back is personal choice but i don't think anything with nice matte finish could be considered cheap! XZ is a beautiful phone, but i'm not a big fan of glossy back as it gets dirty easily (and then really looks cheap ), not to mention the odd / uncomfortable grip while holding an edged flat slab. And i think the front of ZL has killer looks, much better than XZ especially with the screen on & superb LED at bottom (due to same 5" screen fit onto much smaller bezel.. go figure)!
About the premium look or feel, I feel both XZ & ZL possess the premium looks but ZL has better feel in hand, its again personal preference! Currently don't have my camera, so can't post some nice pics of my ZL now. But i managed these from web (see attachments).
ethan3686 said:
yes it does look cheap as u can clearly see the gap as much as u push it in..it looks like an after jod..they shud have put it on the sides like the XZ.
And as far as looks and feel go u cant compare it to XZ..XZ just looks way more premium than ZL..ZL's front is great but the back looks cheap,,just holding the XZ makes u wanna take it home
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I agree that Sony should have put the SD and SIM slots on the sides. The assflap design choice makes no sense to me. However, that said, the ZL feels as 'premium' as the Z does. Now I am not saying this just because I have the ZL. I could have as well bought the Z, but it gets really uncomfortable to hold with to flat surfaces. Play with both for some time and you'll see
If there's a brightness difference between them, there's probably a water/dust related coating on the Z screen that isn't on the ZL.
ok just a correction..What i had seen was a demo unit which [i dont know why] has less brightness and contrast..Saw a retail Xperia Z and its very bright and there is no difference in Z AND ZL...Sorry for my not having researched!
Hmmm great comparison you have! Anyway I really like the waterproofing feature from the Xperia ZL!
AndroidDude11 said:
Hmmm great comparison you have! Anyway I really like the waterproofing feature from the Xperia ZL!
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Hello everyone!
I've got the chance to sell my Nexus 4 and - to be honest - I'm not really sure I want to give it away. For sure its technology is not state-of-the-art, but it's still fighting its own way very well, except for some slowliness in some cases (running 5.0.2).
I was oriented towards Meizu MX4, but I'm very SCARED about the MediaTek SoC. Not for the CPU itself, but about its lack of moddability (besides the not 100% translated OS, it's a custom one and I'd like to choose whichever OS, including AOSP, in case).
Then I saw the LG G3 16 GB with a similar price (around 350€) and I saw it should be a very powerful yet not too much expensive choice.
Also, I'm a Nexus addicted since before it was called Nexus (HTC Magic) and never bought something outside that product line. I'm scared about updates, too.
May you please, PLEASE, convince me to buy this piece of hardware and software, or not? I don't want to spend too much for such devices, though I'd like it to last for at least a couple of years (just like my Nexus 4 (which is LG, too) resulted).
Thank you VERY MUCH!
I actually had the same phone, the Nexus 4, and I loved it. Super good looking on the front with the curved edges and awesome back panel with those reflective, crystal-like dots (almost looked like space!).
And yes the updates. Oh the updates. Perfect.
The only thing going bad was the battery - being irreplaceable and all, I couldn't last more than 6/8 of a day before I had to charge it again. That sucked. I basically had to get a new device which will last me for as long as the Nexus did. And here it is, the LG G3.
Seeing as the Nexus 4 was an LG device from the start, my line of thought was that they improved themselves over time. They did. 2K screen, 3000mAh battery, great camera (certainly an improvement over the N4, especially on the software) and a pretty design overall. Not as pretty as that galaxy-like back panel but hey, I gladly traded that over a replaceable battery - so when this one starts going bad, I can just get a new one.
I had the N4 for almost 2 years and I greatly enjoyed it, and I think you do too. I recommend upgrading to the G3, there's very little chance that you will regret it.
PS - try to get the 32/3gb model, it is certainly much more future-proof.
Benchmark if you are into that kind of things - h ttp :// im gur.co m/fnOl PBj
(just remove the spaces)
I too came from a nexus 4 which I still own but getting the G3 has made me realize how much of a good phone the G3 is I've only owned it 2 days it's rooted already gotta get a custom recovery now
Sent from my LG-D855 using XDA Free mobile app
Dumb question: if I buy the phone of color X and I change the cover, does the volume rocker and the camera color change, too, or that part remain the same color of the base? From the photos I see, the "black" cover is not really black, but somewhat greyish. While I don't dislike the white version, I'd like to put dark covers, too.
Thanks
elegos said:
Dumb question: if I buy the phone of color X and I change the cover, does the volume rocker and the camera color change, too, or that part remain the same color of the base? From the photos I see, the "black" cover is not really black, but somewhat greyish. While I don't dislike the white version, I'd like to put dark covers, too.
Thanks
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They remain the same color browse a quickcircle case review, where they physically remove the back cover and you'll see that the buttons on the back are integrated into the phone.
As for the "greyish" color, it's actually metallic brown and looks very pretty. White looks stylish too so it comes down to your choice really.
Well, actually a dark cover with sparkling white parts is not in my tastes, while a light cover with some dark definition is not that bad... IMHO. Imagine the base body in white with this kind of cover: http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51OzrTYR+JL._SY300_.jpg
i just saw this phone on amazon.com for 212$, and looking this specs (snap 820 & 4gb ram) its a deal! but i wanna know about the materials and build quality. the phone feels cheap ? ( i know that for 211 i can't expect much but coming from a nexus 5..) the back is glass or plastic?
another thing , i read that the phone always come with modded roms (not stock zui) so i wanna know if indian stock comes with google play services?
Lfcamara said:
i just saw this phone on amazon.com for 212$, and looking this specs (snap 820 & 4gb ram) its a deal! but i wanna know about the materials and build quality. the phone feels cheap ? ( i know that for 211 i can't expect much but coming from a nexus 5..) the back is glass or plastic?
another thing , i read that the phone always come with modded roms (not stock zui) so i wanna know if indian stock comes with google play services?
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Build quality is good, but I think glass back is fragile and attracts fingerprints and scratches and maybe will break if falls from a good height
Indian Stock comes with Play services
Lfcamara said:
i just saw this phone on amazon.com for 212$, and looking this specs (snap 820 & 4gb ram) its a deal! but i wanna know about the materials and build quality. the phone feels cheap ? ( i know that for 211 i can't expect much but coming from a nexus 5..) the back is glass or plastic?
another thing , i read that the phone always come with modded roms (not stock zui) so i wanna know if indian stock comes with google play services?
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I used to own a Nexus 5 and the Zuk Z2 reminds me of it in many ways - great value, fast performance and a sizable custom rom community so that you can always flash something different. Build quality is pretty good (though I do prefer the soft touch back of the Nexus 5 to the slippery glass back of the Z2), camera isn't better but the battery life is a big, big improvement. I loved my N5 and am very happy with the Z2.
veethree said:
I used to own a Nexus 5 and the Zuk Z2 reminds me of it in many ways - great value, fast performance and a sizable custom rom community so that you can always flash something different. Build quality is pretty good (though I do prefer the soft touch back of the Nexus 5 to the slippery glass back of the Z2), camera isn't better but the battery life is a big, big improvement. I loved my N5 and am very happy with the Z2.
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is really the back of the zuk z2 made from glass? , N5 is a great phone, mine runs pretty well but has some issues ( has been my main phone since its release and i'm a heavy user )
i really looking for a cheap phone because in my country there are many thieves in the street (Venezuela is right at brink of a civil war)
how about the camera ? you said that isn't better , but N5 always had a "meh" camera
Lfcamara said:
is really the back of the zuk z2 made from glass? , N5 is a great phone, mine runs pretty well but has some issues ( has been my main phone since its release and i'm a heavy user )
how about the camera ? you said that isn't better , but N5 always had a "meh" camera
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The back really is glass, so I've put a case on and don't have any real issues. The z2 camera is also "meh" - probably pretty much the same as the Nexus 5 except that it does capture more detail due to the higher megapixel count. It's not too bad in good light, but struggles in low light. If you're not looking for an upgrade over the Nexus camera, you should be happy.
veethree said:
The back really is glass, so I've put a case on and don't have any real issues. The z2 camera is also "meh" - probably pretty much the same as the Nexus 5 except that it does capture more detail due to the higher megapixel count. It's not too bad in good light, but struggles in low light. If you're not looking for an upgrade over the Nexus camera, you should be happy.
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well i use the camera mainly for college task (taking photos of a documents, blackboard or such) and it's very rare when i use it for something else (well birthdays, events and such but you get the point). i think i will buy this one, seems pretty powerful with that snapdragon 820 and 4 gigs of ram. i hope it really last as long as my N5
Good luck! My only parting comment is that you probably need to be comfortable with flashing a custom ROM, because the stock versions are very different from a Nexus experience. It's not difficult to do, though, and you'll be able to end up with a phone that looks and feels very much like your Nexus - just one whose battery lasts a whole lot longer!
After months of "which phone next?", I was solidly set on the X⁴.
While researching this purchase, I found the unlocked, for all US carriers, Z2 Play.
Dilemma revisited...
Is the Z2 Play worth the extra $100?
It does have double the internal storage and ups the RAM by 1GB, so it could easily be justified, with that.
Big concern, will Moto Actions, Voice and Display be the same, on both of these as it is on the Moto X Pure Edition?
I'm really hooked on the custom wakeup word and reading my text to me, while driving.
I'd appreciate opinions and other 'vs.' thoughts.
Hey man, Moto Actions, Voice, and Display are all present on the Z2P. The big difference that you need to think about is that the X4 is 5.2 IPS, has a dual camera and no mods. Meanwhile the Z2P is 5.5 AMOLED, single camera, and you can use mods.
kiden said:
Hey man, Moto Actions, Voice, and Display are all present on the Z2P. The big difference that you need to think about is that the X4 is 5.2 IPS, has a dual camera and no mods. Meanwhile the Z2P is 5.5 AMOLED, single camera, and you can use mods.
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Unfortunately, there is no custom wakeup word in Moto Voice. I played with the app at best buy and it seems to only have 'show me' commands, but I bought Z2 unlocked version on swappa anyways.
Now, I have a 6P 128 and a Moto X Pure 32 to sell.
I'll keep my Moto X Pure 64 as a backup.
ETA, got the wife an X4 and the battery life is just as great as the Z2 Play.
I've had the Z2 Play for almost 2 months and with same daily usage, the battery life far exceeds the MXPE and 6P.
Hey Pablo, after another month, do you have any words of wisdom on preference between the Z2 and X4? I doubt that I would buy any mods for the Z2, but I like the storage capacity it offers. I will definitely root the phone also and it looks like Z2 is ahead in that area right now also. On the other hand, I like the water resistance, display screen, and dual cameras of the X4. I am not having huge problems with my XPE now; battery life is not great and internal storage is jammed full. So I would like to get a new phone, probably by February. Thank you in advance for your time and thoughts.
G_Man18 said:
Hey Pablo, after another month, do you have any words of wisdom on preference between the Z2 and X4? ....
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I was stuck between these two, but ended up with the Z2. The 4 GB RAM and 64GB internal storage did it. I've had it just shy of three months and the wife has had the X4 for a month. With what I now know about the two, the Z2 would be an easy choice for me.
I prob won't get any mods, either, but the thinness is awesome in my pocket, especially compared to the MXPE.
The X4 is a decent phone, but a few things bother me:
A) Only 32GB internal storage which has 13GB taken up by OS files. I've read that it's some doubling of files, in order to make updates smoother.
B) 3 GB of RAM. The wife has not reported lag issues, but I want more RAM to enable the phone to be able to handle future needs.
C) The camera has a really bad lag, between pressing the go button and the pic actually being captured. I've side loaded a Google Camera apk and every time I test it, it snaps pics right after the button is pressed, but in real world use, she misses what she is trying to capture. Very frustrating.
D) Lack of availability of good cases. I like hybrid cases, like Speck or Incipio, with a hard back and grippy sides. There are no major manufacturers cases available for the X4.
E) X4 is kinda fat in thickness, when compared to the Z2 and I prefer the larger screen on the Z2.
Both batteries greatly out perform the MXPE, even when new. With the same daily usage and charging, I am usually left with at least 50%. The MXPE often required charging, in the evening, in order to make it to bed time.
I am really happy with my Z2 choice. I have been using the ONE BUTTON NAV feature and it's pretty awesome. Sometimes I forget which way to swipe it, when in landscape, using a nav dock and sometimes BACK goes all the way to the home screen, instead of just back one page in the app being used, but overall I like it.
I have rooted it and themed it. Making the backgrounds black is my major motivation for rooting. Since lollipop arrived with all of its white backgrounds and icons I have been a theming junkie. I'll be trying Xposed and Gravity Box, soon, but only for a few tweaks.
I really like tempted glass screen protectors! I think they feel better than a bare screen and they give me security piece of mind. I am using a TG PROJECTOR, to I can't recall which, and it is serving me well. It does not cover the entire screen side to side, but covers enough and the cutouts are accurate.
I have the Sleo snap case for weekend carry and is a great low profile and grippy case. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B072562YNT/ref=oh_aui_i_d_old_o1_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I have a Speck Presidio for work days and it's quite grippy.
I also have an Otterbox Commuter for days that require even more protection, but is had a smooth back and is a bit hard to hold on to. I have a GadgetShieldz for a different phone (Z Force I think) that I will add to the back of the Commuter, in hopes of adding grip.
ETA: got the Gadgetshieldz camera and body protectors. I'm not impressed. The sandstone finish seems just as slippery as the Commuter case and the camera protector does not have precise cuts. I reckon they are cheap for a reason.
I have tried this camera protector, but they did not stay applied and are plastic, not glass.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B074FTS66N/ref=oh_aui_i_sh_post_o0_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I have GadgetShieldz camera films for both phones on their way, also.
I tried this case, before better cases were available and returned. It is cheap and not grippy.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B071ZS9R1X/ref=oh_aui_i_r_o1_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Too bad you missed the $350 price, from Moto's site, that was running for a few weeks! There are a couple on swappa.com right now.
After reviewing both, I've determined the Z2 Play as the far superior option. It's faster (even though not on paper), the camera's better, the software's better, and it has a nicer AMOLED screen.
https://thematridox.com/2017/11/17/moto-x4-review/
https://thematridox.com/2017/07/31/moto-z2-play-and-new-moto-mods-review/
Thanks again Pablo for your thoughtful review/comparison. It did help me decide on the Z2P, and they are marked down again on the Motorola site. Not quite as good as the Black Friday deal, but good enough for me to order one. Now I just need to read up on the best root method so I am ready to go when it gets here in a couple of days.
I've got my Z2 Play (4/64) a few months ago. My wife got new X4 (4/64) this christmas. Both phones has advantages and disadvantages. Z2 Play have a better screen (AMOLED) and X4 have a much much better camera (apart from Z2 Play, wich is rubbish in photoshooting...).
Another voice from me, I've bought both phones :
Moto X4:
+ better camera support on XDA (stock camera is OK, but modded GCam... is often better, especially low-light)
+ newer chipset (better LTE modem - 600 Mbit, Bluetooth 5.0, faster graphics)
+ longer foreseen future (as it's chosen by Google for its Project Fi)
+ water/dustproof
- smaller storage (I've just discovered that - having almost no custom apps, just Spotify and GCam plus e-banking) I have only about 5.5 GB left
- hybrid dual-sim tray
- microSD card can only be formatted as portable storage
- slightly less "snappy" device (but this is just an impression maybe, really hardly noticeable)
Moto Z2 Play:
+ bigger, more impressive screen
+ more RAM (so slightly "snappier", just a little bit)
+ more storage
+ Mods support
+ dual SIM and microSD support at the same time - no "hybrid" slot
- GCam currently not possible (and probably never will be), so camera is noticeably worse, despite of its 1.7 aperture and laser AF
- single main camera (well, I really love the wide-angle one on Moto X4)
- Lenovo already has broken its built-in equalizer after one of latest updates - not working (but at least it sounds really OK even without EQ...)
- worse LTE modem (300 Mbit)
Common for both phones :
+ great battery life !
+ really nice sound via headphones
+ great, highly sensitive FM radio tuner
+ fantastic design and build quality
- so-so support for now
Anyone uses these things?
There are plenty of them online but I would like if someone can give me a link to a one that works well with A1 (in terms of size) and covers the camera and not the rest of the space like speakerphone for example.