Database Users

size and build quality

how do you guy's live with the chunky size of the unit and is the build quality as bad as some reports ?
thank you

i am on my 4th mda
1st: crashed a lot and keyboard not quite set right into the frame - wireless manager button sticks up slightly
2nd: metal top plate offset and scratching my ear
3rd: loud creaky hinge with loud clicks
4th: camera fault - big white dot on photo's
on my 1st exec i have a misaligned keyboard as with mda 1, and minor camera pixel dropouts
i think build quality is pretty awful, and will keep* my exec and get the mda swapped out for a vario or something.
* might take it back and see if I can get a fully functional device from them, after all I paid 99 pounds for it :lol:

I had one MDA Pro and now I have an XDA Exe and both were/are excellent, great quality devices.
About the size - I had all the previous XDAs so I got used to the big phones already. I'm not using any bluetooth headsets, and I always carry it in my jeans back pocket , no problems at all for me.

I am on my first and only Jas Jar - the thing is brilliant- no problems at all. As for size, I always use mine with a BT headset and voice command when making or recieving a call, so no problem there either.

I am on my 3rd Jasjar. First was taken away by my boss. 2nd had an Arabic/English keyboard and did not like it. Now on 3rd unit for over 2 months. All had excellent build quality. No complaints from me whatsoever.
Kind Regards

Mine seems fine so far. Havent noticed any problems and im usually one for spotting things. Was worried about dead pixels but both my wizard and uni are clear as a bell.

i find the entire flimsy plastic body of the MDA Pro to be quite a weak design. I put my first one in my pocket, jumped in the car, drove for an hour, took it out and the phone had been bent in my pocket slightly. No apparent external damage but the screen had a beautiful crack right through the middle.
At one of their shops they accused me of damaging the device myself, but fortunately the insurance paid out, even though I had to pay an excess. I have never had any problems with my XDA2 or my MDA3 and for this to happen within 5 days of actually getting the phone, I am not very confident it will last 18 months.
Furthermore I keep discovering pieces of software are not included - Messenger (which is a shame as always good for long journeys on a train) and most of all - Calculator - I can't believe it, not even the old basic one.

I think you should look once again :wink:
There is a calculator in PROGRAMS
and the MSN Messenger is in POCKET MSN, first position from the top

lloydalikes said:
i find the entire flimsy plastic body of the MDA Pro to be quite a weak design. I put my first one in my pocket, jumped in the car, drove for an hour, took it out and the phone had been bent in my pocket slightly. No apparent external damage but the screen had a beautiful crack right through the middle.
At one of their shops they accused me of damaging the device myself, but fortunately the insurance paid out, even though I had to pay an excess. I have never had any problems with my XDA2 or my MDA3 and for this to happen within 5 days of actually getting the phone, I am not very confident it will last 18 months.
Furthermore I keep discovering pieces of software are not included - Messenger (which is a shame as always good for long journeys on a train) and most of all - Calculator - I can't believe it, not even the old basic one.
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No offense but why would you drive for an hour with an MDA Pro in your pocket. Surely glove box, dashboard, passenger seat or a passenger holding it for you would have been preferable.
To be fair you cant blame the design for that. If youve had it in your pocket and obviously bent it in some way, then the screen being damaged isnt beyond reason.
Its no good buying one of these devices and then expecting it to fit in a shirt pocket like it isnt there. Its a big phone, end of !
As ive said before, the design seems ok to me and its everything I have expected it to be so far. Maybe in months to come I might find one or two shortcomings but not so far.

Maybe my opinion will sound odd to most of you, but I really find Wizard much more "bulky" looking than the Universal. This thing is so thick!!! Even if overall in size the Universal is bigger, it's got excellent proportions and it just "looks the bollocks!!" as my friend said :wink: Of course I'm talking about the XDA Exec which for me looks way better than M5000 or MDA Pro...

rottie said:
Of course I'm talking about the XDA Exec which for me looks way better than M5000 or MDA Pro...
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Totally agree with that comment! Just swapped from an MDA Pro to an XDA Exec and it actually seems smaller. I guess what they say about black being more slimming is true

rottie said:
Maybe my opinion will sound odd to most of you, but I really find Wizard much more "bulky" looking than the Universal. This thing is so thick!!! Even if overall in size the Universal is bigger, it's got excellent proportions and it just "looks the bollocks!!" as my friend said :wink: Of course I'm talking about the XDA Exec which for me looks way better than M5000 or MDA Pro...
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Couldn't agree more, I think the Wizard looks FAR bulkier, yet because it's a bit smaller and traditionally-XDA style, people say THAT's the smaller of that and the Exec.
The Wizard is a good phone, admittedly. However, a lot of excess plastic if you ask me.
And black is the ONLY colour for the Universal! hehe
Ant

I have the Universal and the wife has the Wizard, I am costantly amazed at what both devices are capable of. When using my Universal in the car it sits on the dash with the four rubber feet, screen open and on display, works and looks fantastic. I love the larger screen on the Universal and also like the 3g support. As for size I prefer the Wizard, It just feels more comfy to hold and use like a phone, I still feel weird holding the Universal to my ear, I don't use a BT headset yet, keep trying to find a surgery that can give me a bluetooth implant behind my ear :shock: I actually find myself using the keyboard on my Universal less and less now, and opting to leave it screen out and use the onscreen keyboard. The twist is nice but I am sure its is already getting slack. I guess my ideal device would be a hybrid of the two, wishfull thinking and totally over the top but, same size as the wizard, same screen as the universal and with 3g but the screen, imagine opening a wizard with the base being thicker than the screen and as you slide it open the screen tilts up and can rotate so its perpendicular to the keyboard so it looks like the universal, keep going and it ends up facing the keyboard and would close back down screen facing in, no need to twist the screen about a single swivel anymore.
I may even knock up a short avi so you can see it in action.
Regards

I am on the whole , pretty happy with my Exec
The only thing that bothers me is that it seems (only very slightly) slower than my old Magician !
I have had to learn how to answer calls on it (i.e if it rings while it is closed then LEAVE IT CLOSED TO ANSWER IT ! ) Which leads me to my only real gripe - No way of seeing who is calling with the clamshell closed
As for the size thing - anyone who buys one of these knows exactly what they are buying into - I personally have no problem with big phones wouldn't want the Exec any smaller

I've probably said it too many times... I love my phone! in spite and despite of...
When you love something that much, you get to love every bit of it.. bulky size and all. I still look sheepish when answering a call with a brick in my ear but I glow when all my officemates jot their notes on a paper while I just type it on my dopod900.
I still go berserk when the ringtone suddenly changes to another despite my change in the registry but I think I can live with going to settings and all..
So there, Im gonna borrow McDonald's slogan and say "Im Lovin' It!"

I do not see any problem with the size and build of the Uni.
I have the first XDA for 3 years or so, and now I use both the Uni and the XDA. Because I have been using the XDA so long, I do not have any problem with the Uni. They are both relatively about the same size and weight and same usage. Nobody laughes at me when I hold the big phone next to my ear, because I have done that for years with my XDA.
I laugh at myself when I noticed how funny its when having a bug (BT headset) in my ear now.
Overall I really like the Uni though it still cannot replace my XDA fully in certain environment where I do not want to take the risk of having the Uni handles the job. But in office and home, Uni is perfect.
Software wise, when the XDA came out, the software loaded were really buggy, it took years before finally everything became really stable, so with that matter of fact, I could accept Uni at its right now with hope it will be close to 100% perfect in the near future.

jasjar with no build or quality problems, and I love everything except the name. (I'm still planning to get around to using that sugar cube.)

I'm pretty impressed by the overal feel of my Qtek. The plastic feels very strong, it doesn't look or feel like a cheap plactic box. The rotating hinge works flawlessly, but when I put my screen in laptop modus, there is a very minimal play. But I guess this is normal? Can anyone confirm!?

Should I go for xperia or pro 2 what say???

M in total confusion which one to buy
I liked d bigger screen of htc pro 2 and 5 row keypad over 4 rows of x1...
But I really really miss the 3.5 mm jack on touch pro2
I have heard there is a-gps lag inX1 ?? is it true??
Tp2 n X1 both are sexy... Awesome mobiles but x1s made of metal which is really cool..
Hardware specs are almost same except these two differences...
Which would you ppl prefer ?????

I prefer dat dere X1

DatDereX1 said:
I prefer dat dere X1
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Xperia I would suggest. But once the Touch Pro 3 comes out... for sure you have to get Touch Pro 3.
To me, Touch Pro 2 is nothing more than a variation, rather than a big improvement. Then again, I have never Touched a Pro 2.

two words for Ya: form factor. my previous pda was kaiser and before that I had hermes. I always thought that they are both quite small for pda, but then I took my friends xperia into my hands. boy, now that was a difference. not to mention metal housing, I finally don't look like I am holding a huge brick by my ear while on the phone. other specs are also ok, the only thing I miss is tv out, but I can live without it.
to be completely fair, read a lot before choosing xperia. some are getting nasty cracks on plastic parts (replacable under warranty) and phone needs to be tweaked a bit to become a real rocket.

bronx said:
two words for Ya: form factor. my previous pda was kaiser and before that I had hermes. I always thought that they are both quite small for pda, but then I took my friends xperia into my hands. boy, now that was a difference. not to mention metal housing, I finally don't look like I am holding a huge brick by my ear while on the phone. other specs are also ok, the only thing I miss is tv out, but I can live without it.
to be completely fair, read a lot before choosing xperia. some are getting nasty cracks on plastic parts (replacable under warranty) and phone needs to be tweaked a bit to become a real rocket.
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Most of the Xperia is plastic housing inside and out. The metal is mostly the battery cover and the thin area that surrounds the screen.

I'd say try both. I've got an Xperia, and I'm going to get a Pro2 and see what suits me best.
The advantages I see for the TP2 are:
- Significantly bigger screen
- Probably much better keyboard
- Tilting screen (loved it on my kaiser!)
- Quality speakerphone & conference calls could be useful sometimes
Advantages of X1:
- Smaller size & weight
- D-pad and optical joystick
- 3.5mm headphone jack
- If you don't have one yet, it's much cheaper than TP2 if bought 2nd hand (£250 ish on ebay)
I'll give the TP2 a go then sell the one I don't want to keep, but I'd recommend you try both out and see what you like, as in terms of overall capabilities they'll do almost exacrtly the same things.

HTC Hero VS HTC Magic

Hi, I guess this thread is aimed at those who may have a Magic and those who want a hero. Ive been looking at both these devices. I was wondering what makes the hero so much better than the magic? As far as i can tell its mainly the camera and the phone is smaller. Are there many other differences?

ExO_PoLiTiX said:
Hi, I guess this thread is aimed at those who may have a Magic and those who want a hero. Ive been looking at both these devices. I was wondering what makes the hero so much better than the magic? As far as i can tell its mainly the camera and the phone is smaller. Are there many other differences?
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Depending on where you buy the Magic, it may have less RAM than the hero as there are two different RAM configurations available on the Magic (I'm unsure why.)
For me personally, what makes the Hero "better" is that the Magic feels a bit more like a toy than it should - I guess it's just that plasticky look and feel, but its shape and finish is just nowhere near as sleek and slick as the Hero. I like that the Hero's edges are more sqaured off than the Magic's rounded edges - I think that, for me atleast, plays a big part in the cheap-like feeling I get from the Magic.
The only concern I had about the Hero when I first saw it was the chin, however you'll find that the chin is not even noticeable in your pocket and in fact it just helps to protect the trackball from constant wear & tear by rubbing in your pocket throughout the day.
I know a lot of that is my personal opinion, but I hope it can help you out.

iammorris said:
Depending on where you buy the Magic, it may have less RAM than the hero as there are two different RAM configurations available on the Magic (I'm unsure why.)
For me personally, what makes the Hero "better" is that the Magic feels a bit more like a toy than it should - I guess it's just that plasticky look and feel, but its shape and finish is just nowhere near as sleek and slick as the Hero. I like that the Hero's edges are more sqaured off than the Magic's rounded edges - I think that, for me atleast, plays a big part in the cheap-like feeling I get from the Magic.
The only concern I had about the Hero when I first saw it was the chin, however you'll find that the chin is not even noticeable in your pocket and in fact it just helps to protect the trackball from constant wear & tear by rubbing in your pocket throughout the day.
I know a lot of that is my personal opinion, but I hope it can help you out.
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Hey, thanks alot for the reply. I agree, from what i've seen of the magic it does look a bit cheap compared to the hero. Im just saving for the hero and noticed that the magic is almost half the price of the hero. Do you think its justifiable that the hero should be worth spending double on? This would be my first android device and that would play a bit part in it as I am planning to write applications for this OS.

Because there are two different RAM specs on the Magic, it makes it less desirable to buy because you're having to make sure you get the higher RAM, but most are the lower so folk arent buying in case. Does that make sense?
As to the plasticky look - I agree to a degree, but - I rather stupidly dropped my Google ION (Magic from the dev's conference) from quite a height and it slid right across the road.... Result - a few small chips in that shiny plastic coating (underneath is definately a metal shell, likely aluminium) Not a scratch or mark on the screen or back of the handset and working perfectly. Its obviously an extremely robust build quality, and I can say the front casing is definately metal coated with shiny plastic. If I'd dropped my G1 it would have been majorly knackered, as the slider would have opened and that hinge is ridiculously precarious.
I'm also thinking bout getting a hero, as I've been well impressed with the adaptability of android phones and the glitches I've seen have been solved within weeks on here by some clever techy. Software library is WELL underway and I have copilot on my magic Ion running without a single glitch, though I have heard its buggy if you try to get the app without buying as CoPilot are adding in security measures.....
Regarding probs some people seem to be complaining about with albums and media from SD. In my experience as an owner of G1 then Magic, on FIRST USING any gallery/album type app, allow it to load all... it takes a while, because its creating a thumbs database on the device. Once done, access is really quick after that.
Daisy xxx

The Magic does have an overly plastic feel to it. A colleague got one today and I am not too convinced by it.
A big plus for the Hero is the 3.5mm headphone jack. FINALLY HTC caught onto the idea that their consumers want this!
The Hero also has the light sensors to automatically adjust screen brightness (if this works - my Omnia never seems to do it right.)
Multitouch is enabled on the Hero too, so you can pinch to zoom internet browser pages. I dont think the Magic has that!
Ohh yeah and the Flash enabled browser is quit a biggy too (lets just hope the reviews that show it crashing are all early releases and its fixed now!!)
I am only 4 months into a new 18 month contract with Orange but having looked into it a lot over the last few weeks. I want a Hero so much I am likely to pay the £400 SIM free price tag to get one!
Zippyioa

I've got a magic (vodafone UK, lesser ram version ) and love it. My girlfriend has a Hero (orange UK)
I prefer the look of the hero, and in my hand it feels nicer, but that's just preference. I'm more annoyed about the RAM difference grrrrr!

My magic(Ion) has Multitouch Browser I'm running a custom ROM. I'm getting my Her0 sometime soon (When stock arrives LOL) so I'll say more then , but won't knock the magic as its a really robust little device, and of course cheaper than a Hero for somone after something on a budget.
Daisy ....

Dayzee said:
My magic(Ion) has Multitouch Browser I'm running a custom ROM.
Daisy ....
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I stand corrected then
Zippyioa

Does it have to stick out like that?

I really couldn't be happier with my EVO(upgrading from a G1 and T-Mobile's less than impressive data network), but it does have it's flaws. None of which would ever keep me from buying one. Probably my biggest complaint is the styling of the rear camera. It just sticks out way too far in my opinion. It wouldn't be so bad if the actual lens cover was recessed a bit more. I really didnt want thicken the phone up with a plastic or sillicone case. I'm wondering if adding something to the bezel like a washer of some sort, would obstruct the camera when taking video or pictures. Just something I thought I'd throw out there.

that's what she said.
(sorry)

dglowe343 said:
I'm wondering if adding something to the bezel like a washer of some sort,
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Yeah that sounds good!....LOL..what?

There isn't much to say about it to be honest. This is how the Evo was designed and I doubt HTC will make any changes to future models. You know it sticks out like this so best thing you can do is either place it on a delicate surface or just have it with the kickstand on.

The camera on the HTC/Google Nexus One sticks out the same way. On both phones, the speakerphone speaker is right next to the camera lens. My theory for the Nexus One was that they did this intentionally so that the camera bezel would also serve as a way to elevate the speaker a little bit off the desktop to keep it from being muffled sounding when laid directly on the desk. Seems to be same with the EVO.
The only other reason would be they just couldn't get the optics on such a big lens into any thinner a space and rather than thicken the whole phone they just let it stick out. THIN IS IN these days.

I agree, after my G1, thin is a welcomed feature. I guess nothing's perfect. I'm just glad I never got an iPhone.

dglowe343 said:
I agree, after my G1, thin is a welcomed feature. I guess nothing's perfect. I'm just glad I never got an iPhone.
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I've got every model of the iPhone, including the iP4 -it's an impressive piece of hardware, the screen is absolutely gorgeous, really. There's just something about it that's so crisp and easy on the eyes. I still prefer the bigger screens of the N1 and EVO. A 4" iPhone screen would probably be the best thing you could own. Apple screwed up, in my opinion, sticking with the 3.5" screen
re: thin, the new iPhone is too thin for my big hands. It's not comfortable to hold because of its thin form factor with squared edges.
The camera on it takes amazing pictures, right off the camera, they look much better color-wise than the EVO's, but I imagine you could tweak the EVO's pics with photoshop or the like. You have to give Apple credit for getting such a nice camera into such a thin package - at least there's no nipple on the back of the phone.
Software-wise, Android just blows away the iPhone OS in every way. No comparison. Putting up with a nipple on the back of the phone is a small price to pay for all the Android goodness that comes with the EVO and it's like.

distortedloop said:
Software-wise, Android just blows away the iPhone OS in every way. No comparison. Putting up with a nipple on the back of the phone is a small price to pay for all the Android goodness that comes with the EVO and it's like.
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well said. the iPhone is an amazing piece of hardware. but the screen is too small (although i didn't think so before I owned the EVO). and the android o/s does blow it out of the water, at least for us power users/phone dorks. iOS is still better for noobs, and probably always will be.

healthpellets said:
that's what she said.
(sorry)
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LMAO!

OneStepAhead said:
well said. the iPhone is an amazing piece of hardware. but the screen is too small (although i didn't think so before I owned the EVO). and the android o/s does blow it out of the water, at least for us power users/phone dorks. iOS is still better for noobs, and probably always will be.
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EXACTLY correct, on all points.

Build Quality

HI all
I was wandering how is the build quality in this phone?
I would love to give it to my girlfriend but was just wandering after hearing/reading some negative comments about galaxy s 1 build.
Thank you in advance for any comments, or links to articles or such.
Regards
Kirior

I think it's awesome. Even it's plastic, it's really assertive and the back cover stays so tight. Just the opening is a bit tricky... But you only need to do this once, luckily. If you need to change sim-cards or memory cards daily, then I don't recommend this phone.

Samsung isn't known as "Samsuck" for no reason. Buy her an HTC phone. I would steer clear of any Samsung phones.
Sent from my HTC using XDA App

stop trolling, it's pretty good even though its plastic it feels solid

Its fine really, solid despite the choice of materials, feels a lot better in the hand than the original.
Link to more detailed thoughts:
http://blog.clove.co.uk/2011/05/16/samsung-galaxy-s-ii-real-user-reviewpart-one/

As the posts above is saying; Nothing to put on the build quality
/CK

PureH2O said:
Samsung isn't known as "Samsuck" for no reason. Buy her an HTC phone. I would steer clear of any Samsung phones.
Sent from my HTC using XDA App
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God what a ****-nuckle..
Sent from the best phone in the world...

I think a light phone is better. Much less likely to break when dropped because over the same distance there will be much less kinetic energy to dissipate on impact.
Sent from my HTC Hero using XDA App

Not to be a fanboy, but you do want your phone made of lead or what?

PureH2O said:
Samsung isn't known as "Samsuck" for no reason. Buy her an HTC phone. I would steer clear of any Samsung phones.
Sent from my HTC using XDA App
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To try and add some value to an otherwise useless post, I haven't owned a Samsung phone since the CDMA i730 Windows phone. It was a funky phone without a lot of joy and some really questionable design choices. From there I had a succession of HTC phones spanning six years. They were all solid, ran well, and gave me little to complain about. I got an LG phone which I kept for a whopping three weeks before realizing it was a pile of rubbish. So, with an unbiased view, I chose the Samsuck GS2 and couldn't be happier. Back on topic, the build quality is great. Fit, finish, style, feel are all what you'd expect from a high-end device. Alas, because it's shiny parts are exposed front and back, all that beauty has to be hidden by a case which makes it look pedestrian. I just got my Case-Mate tough case today and the phone now looks mummified. Oh well, at least it's protected.

I really dont understand the questions about build quality the sgs or sgs2. My orignal sgs(vibrant) was heavy duty. Yes its light and yes its made out of plastic. But ive dropped my vibrant from various heights and the battery cover never popped off, no marks on screen or anything. Both phones, specially the sgs2 feel like a lighter, thinner HD2. Niether feels flimsy, cheap, breakable.
One of the Hd2s ive owned fell from bathroom sink to tile floor, and shattered after a 3 -4foot drop.
Build Quality is important to me as I work with dogs(90%) and other various animals. Besides the psycho owners, I deal with psycho 200pound dogs on a daily basis. I get bumped, biten, jumped on, rubbed, attacked etc all day, everyday. Not a single scratch, scrap, dent on the sgs2 and thats with no protection for 3 weeks.
Now the only bad quality choice samsung and other manufactors use is the damn cheap silver/chrome/aluminum bezel around the phones. Since I dont use cases consistently im prone to scratch the bezel by the end of ownership.
Another plus is the couple cases I do have dont add extra bulk like other phones. Im waiting on quality extended batteries to come.

HI guys
Thx for all replies, all in all i have bought SGS2 for her. She is in heavens now i guess that's all that matters and she does take care of the phones so i know i will not land on the floor or such just wanted to make sure.
thanks again and for me the thread is closed.
Kirior

I find the build quality of the S2 pretty decent although I had my doubts when I just got the phone. After using it for a couple of weeks I think the build quality is fine and I'm sure this phone will last a long time.
However, today I had the HTC Sensation in my hands for the first time and I must confess that the build quality of the Sensaion is clearly better.

The build quality is much better than i expected. Yes, it is plastic, but feels pretty solid, no creaking or flex. I have an SE Arc also, similar thickness, but would say that the gs2 is easily the more high quality build of the two.
Regarding the battery cover, it is thin and flimsy, but i cant imagine a new one costing much if you needed one. What bothers me more is the texture, it feels more slick than a shiny back, but a case might fix that.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App