Related
Im going to be coming over to the Epic from the hero. Just wondering if it is worth it or not yet. I still see there are issues and all, but I dont mind that. As long as samsung is diligently working on a fix. unlike HTC, I hope samsung is a tad better.
mroneeyedboh said:
unlike HTC, I hope samsung is a tad better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's debatable - Samsung's history is not great in fixing things.
That said, as a new Epic owner myself, I do feel like some people are getting a little crazy about a few issues that for most people are going to be relatively minor or even unnoticed. The two issues that come up a lot are GPS and the 3G upload speed. Both of these *seem* to be relatively simple fixes; the GPS issue just seems to be relying on outdated data cache (solution: flush the cache), while the upload speed seems to have been broken with an earlier software update... meaning it should be easy enough for them to fix it again. *Should be* being the key phrase. If Samsung doesn't see the cost benefit from doing so, then they will just keep advertising and selling the phone as is.
In actual practice, I haven't yet run across a situation where these issues have really affected me, though it does annoy me that I can't really do video calling if I wanted to, and that if I shot a video and wanted to directly upload it to YouTube or something, I probably couldn't really do that either. But these are hypotheticals; these are not things I normally do every day. As for GPS, I've been using it for turn-by-turn directions and haven't had any problems, though I know what the problem actually is and that I might run into it at some point. But my dedicated GPS unit had this same issue and I dealt with it for the first year that I owned it (at which point it too received an update... that I paid $80 for).
I'm still in my return window but there isn't really a phone I'd want to return the Epic for. I need a keyboard and the only other phone that really appeals to me is the Droid 2, but I don't want to pay extra for Verizon's plans. So I'll probably just keep the Epic and hope they fix the issues; it's not like they're real killers the way I use the phone. Overall this is a great phone. Sucks up juice a little more than I'd like, but it's insanely fast, has a screen that might even be *too* good (the screen uses most of the battery, and I don't need perfect black levels on my phone), has the best keyboard available on a phone right now, and is generally just a pleasure to use as long as your usage pattern doesn't run into those couple issues it has.
badasscat said:
In actual practice, I haven't yet run across a situation where these issues have really affected me, though it does annoy me that I can't really do video calling if I wanted to, and that if I shot a video and wanted to directly upload it to YouTube or something, I probably couldn't really do that either. But these are hypotheticals; these are not things I normally do every day. As for GPS, I've been using it for turn-by-turn directions and haven't had any problems, though I know what the problem actually is and that I might run into it at some point. But my dedicated GPS unit had this same issue and I dealt with it for the first year that I owned it (at which point it too received an update... that I paid $80 for).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why does everyone say that they can't do video calling?
I constantly Fring camchat with my friend on her Evo on 3G. She says the video quality isn't perfect on her end, but its never prevented me from video calling! Even on low bars (1-2 bars) i still can comfortably have a conversation over the webchat.
mroneeyedboh said:
Just wondering if it is worth it or not yet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes.
Not if u plan on using 4g indoors.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
I think this phone is great, the gps is good enough but it could be better, I never use the gps inside my house, so I don't really care the indoor, now once I step outside it only takes couple second to lock me.
About the 3g, well I have the same issue but most of the time I'm in a wifi (House, work) so I don't really care about it, but I would be nice if they have some fix to it...I don't get 4g neither in house and work, so don't care about it either.
The I came from the TP2 and just android itself made me jump to this phone, I really hate the keyboard compare to the tp2, so far I haven't use video calling from phone to PC which is what matters to me (please skype hurry up).
The screen on this phone is just great!!! Perfect for movies (not from the Hub, too expensive) I got the movie from my bro hd2 and they look great, now I need to get avatar from my friend I see myself using the phone for movies so much but whenever I want to its totaly worth it.
For games, well its fast! The response to me its awesome, I don't usually play on my phone but I just download a game Caligo Chaser and its a very addictive game (rpg), but the graphics on the game looks very good on the Epic.
I would say keep the Epic, its a good phone, i will be keep her for a good 1 year and that's when my upgrade is due and I'll get a new one, just like I did with my tp2. The problems with the epic are so minimal compare to other phones, every phone that have release will always have problems, and that's how it always will be. I hope sammy won't take too long to fix it tho.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
You won't notice the gaming difference until you load up toonwarz or another graphically intense game. I believe most 2D games will run the same on most phones with a relatively new processor... though it goes without saying that everything looks great on the SAMOLED screen
Thanks guys. I dont plan on doing any uploading or 4g tethering inside my home. just using the internet at work etc.
Also kinda sucks on the battery life. What are people getting roughly with battery life?
Im also coming from the hero to the epic becuase of the physical keyboard. I cannot stand the lag on hero's keyboard. Is there any lag etc with the physical keyboard?
mroneeyedboh said:
Thanks guys. I dont plan on doing any uploading or 4g tethering inside my home. just using the internet at work etc.
Also kinda sucks on the battery life. What are people getting roughly with battery life?
Im also coming from the hero to the epic becuase of the physical keyboard. I cannot stand the lag on hero's keyboard. Is there any lag etc with the physical keyboard?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I came from the Hero as well. Trust me, you'll be satisfied. I was running Darchstar's Cyanogen and whatever the nfiniteFX ROM was on my Hero and I THOUGHT I didn't notice any keyboard lag, but coming to the Epic, I realize I was completely wrong. There is no lag anywhere on this phone as far as I am concerned.
Just what I wanted to hear. haha One thing I did notice is that the hero lags up in general after a while IMO. Does the epic seem to do that so far?
I to came from a Hero, loved that little phone, the Epics screen is just. Insane to say the least. The camera quality to top notch, better than the Evos, I have done personal tests and have seen this. The battery life could be better but with updates those will help, its still a very new phone!
Well it's pretty much the best phone on the market right now. That said, there are issues. Make sure before you take your phone home that the capacitive buttons work. They either do or don't in most cases anyway.
I had 2 bad ones and an evo before switching to this on. Some people including myself have noticed image retention but i think thats a rare issue with the epic. Also the GPS is not good until the froyo update (hopefully). All that aside this is the best phone i have owned. Google Navigation works pretty well though and endomondo tracks very well as well.
I hope this helps.... Like I said i also had the Evo and once you see the Epic screen you wont like anything else. My new one is pretty solid and I 'm happy with it. I just want the flipping update already.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
mroneeyedboh said:
Also kinda sucks on the battery life. What are people getting roughly with battery life?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm getting about 14 hours with regular use. I could probably stretch that if I needed to. If I use it really heavily, including navigation, I might only get 8-10 hours.
In regular use that's long enough for me to go through a normal day, come home and just start charging it for the night once it gets really low.
But this is the first phone I've owned that I've actually bought a car charger for, just in case. If I see it getting low during the day, I will charge it on my way home from work.
This is not great, but my wife's iPhone is actually worse. She can't make it through a full day no matter what she does. Her phone is charging right now and it's 7:30PM; that's pretty normal for her. With me, it's not a regular thing to do that, it's only if I've been playing with it all day.
Also, like all phones the battery takes a few cycles to show an accurate charge. So when you first get the phone, it seems REALLY bad. I got like 5 hours on my first charge. But over time the gauge gets more accurate and you figure out little tricks to maximizing the battery (like dark wallpaper; bright pixels use a lot more power on an amoled screen), and it improves a lot.
All these hater threads being posted about "I'm returning the Atrix" , "The Atrix Screen is horrible" and "The Atrix doesn't do this..." I decided to show this device some love. We all know it's an electronic device/phone first and sometimes things are broken or just not working right...I get that! However, let's not let the VERY FEW bad things out weigh the MANY GOOD things about the Atrix. Let's enjoy our new toy and give props when props is due.
So I wanted to start this thread for people like myself to post reasons why you bought the Atrix, what you like about it and why you might decide to keep it past your 3o day return period.
I'll go first:
What I like about the Atrix is the sleekness of it. The light weight feel in the hand. and The snappiness of it. One of the reasons I think I may keep the Atrix past my 30 day period is because I feel that if Motorola does allow the bootloader to be unlocked the devs will make this phone one of the most powerful devices out if used to the best of it's ability. And if they don't release the bootloader, I'll still be happy with it and still keep it.
I like that I don't have to have a charger at my desk, car, home desk, couch, night stand, etc. the battery life is great for me.
I like that the screen practically fills the face. I like the resolution and crispness.
I love the form factor. I like how it fits in my hand, the placement of the fingerprint sensor works perfect for me.I like that it's light but doesn't feel cheap or fragile.
I like that it's not tied to a pc like my iphone.
I love how fast it is, I have no issues with lag or un responsiveness.
I love that it isn't an iphone. I like iphones..I love my atrix
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
Ill join in.
I love the weight of this phone, its not heavy like most other phones. Its more like what you expect it to be like.
The phone fits your hand VERY well. The finger print reader is positioned so that if you cradle the phone correctly, your index finger is resting on the finger print reader a good portion of the time.
I have yet to have any problems of this phone slowing down.
The battery life is AMAZING! Now I might not be the uber smartphone user that has the phone in front of his/her face 24/7 (driving/walking down halls running into people) but I still use this phone a lot and it easily lasts a full day on 1 charge.
The screen is perfect, everyone saying that the screen sucks need to wait till software comes out that utilizes this resolution. A good 90% of the stuff on the market right now was not made for the resolution on this phone. Also the real estate of this screen is amazing. They utilized all the screen space they could on this phone.
I will also be keeping this phone past the 30 day return period since I feel that the phone flat out works right out of the box. Yea a custom rom would be cool but this phone does everything I need it to do and more without breaking a sweat.
+1 for the Atrix
I really love the battery life. I got home from work tonight at 6:30 and still had 50% and I used it a ton today.
Speed. Silly speed for days. I've not seen any of the lag I hear about and it never locks up on me.
Games are insanely good, especially Tegrazone approved games. Samurai 2 and Dungeon Defenders is sick.
I dig the size and weight. It doesn't feel like a brick in my pocket.
Love the fingerprint reader as unlock.
The screen is fantastic and realistic.
Camcorder has taken some really great videos for me. I recorded almost an entire live concert with it from the send row and it looks and sounds fantastic. I recorded from the car dock to test it and at 45mph the video was crisp and didnt' stutter.
The car dock owns.
This one even surprises me: I don't hate blur. Yes, I said it.
I like the blur widget options along with the standard Android widgets. I find that with the power of the phone that blur doesn't offer any slow down. I wouldn't like it with a 528mhz processor, but it screams on the Atrix so I'm good with it.
Wow, it is nice to see a thread in which people want to say positive things!
Just to add to what everyone has already said (I'm a big fan).
I already love the device. If the bootloader is ever unlocked... holy 'smokes'... it will just be like another christmas - in the middle of the year.
no dropped calls
better signal (probably helps the no dropped calls stat too)
much better battery life
good hi def screen
great speaker
fast as hell
The Bishop said:
no dropped calls
better signal (probably helps the no dropped calls stat too)
much better battery life
good hi def screen
great speaker
fast as hell
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I like having alerts, ringtones, and battery life as proficient as blackberrys.
acPIZZA said:
Wow, it is nice to see a thread in which people want to say positive things
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know right....I got tired of seeing all these negative threads about people returning the phone, they expected certain features that's not here so they're gonna return the phone etc. It was getting crazy.
Sent from my MB860 using Tapatalk
I love how i dont have to root it to to get rid of the lag isues tht other phones have.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
This is my first smart phone, so I have no prior experience to compare my Atrix experience to. Because of my lack of experience with such devices, I know I am not taxing it, putting it through the rigorous paces that others do, or even utilizing much of its potential. But I like it, and I'm pleased with it.
It is very light, easy to pocket, and it fits my hands well. Sheathed in the Body Glove Mirage TPU case, it is secure in my grasp.
It has a great screen. Even small text in web pages is crisp and readable.
I love having an internet browser with me all the time. I used it today in my garden to look up information on soil preparation.
Texting on this phone is a dream. It has a great virtual keyboard. The screen is wonderfully sensitive to a quick and light touch, which makes typing very fast and accurate.
The phone is fast and delightfully responsive. There is virtually no latency when accessing menus and apps.
The battery life is excellent. I can use it all day without running it down completely. Recharging overnight is all that's needed.
LOVE my Atrix
FAST, absolutely no lag, 1 gig of RAM, great quality construction, GREAT screen despite what others think (just look at a hi res video), a pleasure to play with!!
The phone is great out of the box compared to how the Captivate was. This phone is a smartphone on steroids. Plenty of power, RAM, and internal storage for applications for daily use. The fingerprint lockscreen is pretty nifty. 4in is the perfect size in my opinion and the phone is nice and loud.
The drawbacks are the screen isn't as good as SAMOLED, Motoblur is kind of a bummer, and white notification bar is annoying. I am really nitpicking but there isn't too much to complain about the phone.
ok honestly, i just got mine yesterday and didn't see any of the complaints that people are making about it that would make somebody wanna return it, either u got a defective device or u just complain entirely too much(easy fix, return it for another one that works duh). they talking about speed test this and that compared to the iphone/inspire/evo/etc. but no phone is perfect and honestly this phone is better then all of them. Yea it's running motorola Blur, but motorola blur isn't bad at all, the phone that made it look bad was that weak backflip that had sooooo many bugs, i kno cause my sis has it. Another thing, people are complaining about the bootloader, the devs are currently working hard to crack it, and very soon will from looking at their thread. Just wait til this thing is rooted, it's gonna shock a lot of people that returned it for these future phones that come out, so please(not everybody) stop complaining so much and making people seem like this phone is horrible just because u don't like it and it's not 2 seconds faster then your ROOTED device or inspire, u may just have a defective device......
sorri about the rant but after playing with this phone for a day it kinda frustrated me seeing people giving up on this phone soooo quickly, but i like everything about the phone nothing has disappointed me yet
Coming from a (stock) Nexus One that was the best phone I EVER used, this phone is:
- sexier
- faster
- lasting longer
- much nicer to watch videos on
- impossible to fill up with apps (!!!)
It is in general an awesome phone! Sure, glitches here & there, however nothing that will not be fixed in an imminent update.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA Premium App
G1-8701 said:
sorri about the rant but after playing with this phone for a day it kinda frustrated me seeing people giving up on this phone soooo quickly, but i like everything about the phone nothing has disappointed me yet
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1; I understand Motorola has a history of locking down their phones, and the Xoom is a different device entirely...but the fact they're giving that the option of a lockable/unlockable bootloader gives me some hope.
It took some time for the Captivate development to take off, but once people were able to utilize i9000 ROMs/kernels, there were a ton of ROM/kernel options, and almost all of those piggybacked i9000 development from people outside of the United States. So I'm planning on sticking with this phone for a while, unless the Atrix part of the XDA forums here becomes a desolate wasteland and the phone gets abandoned. As somebody mentioned in another thread, once this phone comes out on different carriers in different countries, there should be a lot more people plugging away on the development side.
That said, I love the hardware portions of this phone; it feels solid, the battery cover looks nice, the camera is fantastic, the GPS works great, the screen is solid (if not spectacular, yet), I missed having a flash on my camera and LED notifications, and even with the Motoblur bloat still there...it's snappy.
battery life, battery life, battery life. and did i mention battery life?
over 40 hours on my last charge. im pressed.
i was thinking about returning due to locked bootloader......but the fact of the matter is, i can still do far more customization to this phone with a locked bootloader than i could on a jailbroken iphone (what i came from). i loved the roms/kernels for the captivate that i had for 3 weeks, but even with that phone supercustomized and overclocked, it still didnt perform as well as the atrix.
I like when chicks see me with this badass phone. I usually get laid. This phone is a chick magnet.
D1rk said:
I like when chicks see me with this badass phone. I usually get laid. This phone is a chick magnet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Funny as hell...lmao...Good Post!
I'd like to second everyones opinions about the phone. Coming from a iphone 3g ill never go back. I believe when froyo catches up with better apps to support the atrix's dual cores's and att finally upgrades there cell towers' and the phone has only been out for a little more then 2 weeks I'm sure the devs here need more time to play around with the phone. As I'm not rooting yet ill wait for the gingerbread update and att to upgrade there cell towers before I start rooting. But anyway back to subject I am very pleased with the phone as I agree with all comments that members have posted about the positive things.
Ps. I am pleased to live beside a att cell tower mainantance worker and he has said that middle-eastern southern U.S. towers will be updated to the LTE network no later than this years 2nd quarter and he also made a comment about att working with verizon getting everything going?? But he couldn't provided any hard prof.
Now my fingers hurt thanks swype.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA Premium App
First of all, I've never used a phone that some people didn't hate. The Atrix is the best Android phone. It beats the Nexus S and it beats the oversized, overhyped Desire HD. It beats all the plastic Samsungs. The form factor is perfect. The weight and balance are perfect. The screen is excellent. Call quality is excellent. I like it. I write about smartphones and I use them all. This beats all Androids as far as I'm concerned. And like all Androids, it isn't a boring iPhone, and let's face it that is a boring device.
Ok guys ive been reading mixed comments about the Atrix that its good and that its not. I was in 2 minds whether to get the Atrix or the LG Optimus 2X. Originally I was gonne get which ever I could get my hands on 1st. Both have their pros and cons i.e. camera, ram, locked bootloader, screen quality, internal memory etc
Well I decided to get the LG and this comment made in the o2x forum sealed it
Ive been using my atrix couple weeks an am falling out of love with it fast, after yesterday it ramdomly shut off 2x an today once sofar. The screen is beging to bother me the screendoor washed out look. Allready returned lapdock, that cant even compare to a real laptop in my opion. So im looking hard at the Lg 2x for an upgrade of camera, gyroscope, performance, faster upgrade to gingerbread, real mirroring, 1080p recording an play back, 7.1 sound, totaly unlocked phone. Yes 512mb memory is trade off, but operating system will handly that, an the battery is non issue, I'll have a spare battery or a charging source anyway. Not to mention not paying 20/month to not tether, an having my data speeds throttled down to 1.5mb down an 310kb up lat of 350-800. An Atrix doesnt do LTE
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But now im stiill thinking what to do as Im so impatient and want a dual core phone asap. So I made this poll to see everyones view
Coming from a N1, there's not that much improvement. I'm satisfied, but not amazed by this phone. Still debating if I should return it and wait it out.
My impressions:
-Definitely faster, everything is much snappier, but browsing-wise there's not much of a difference.
-Screen is bright and sharp (as long as you don't put your face within inches of the screen you won't really notice the pentile display. But it's still an annoyance when you notice it)
-Camera is marginally better. Pretty disappointing for a flagship device. Plus the media gallery lags like this is a 2 year old phone when zooming in and out.
-GPS is amazing
-Pretty much Motorblur slows this phone's speed and potential. If this device was stock or able to flash truly custom ROMs, it'd be screaming in speed and blow every competitor out of the water.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
Custom ROMS would make it a whole lot better.
19 voters.. 2 responses.. lol
I think it lives up to the hype.. couple quirks I miss from my captivate but.. besides that the phone is solid.
Now I just got to wait for Tango to support our phones :T
Came from the LG Expo. A much better improvement than the last generation phones. The phone just beats about everything out of the expo. Only thing getting to me is that the expo's fingerprint scanner doubled as a trackpad (would've been nice to have for editing text's)
harolds said:
Custom ROMS would make it a whole lot better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This pretty much summed it up
I think this is a situation that there is not enough tangible usage of a dual core for majority of people. Most of people wont notice any improvements in UI speed. We need evolution of software just like in iOS that despite this same architecture people could understand what the new software is bring them.
It feels a bit like a premature technology and we are all living dreaming of tomorrow while we are beta testing for Motorola/Samsung/HTC.
Just 2 cents.
Believe what you want but I love the Atrix. Had a captivate and it doesn't compare. My phone has never rebooted or lagged- I don't know what others do to theirs but my phone is rock solid.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
I'm lovin mine all around. For people who return it because of locked bootloader, I'd say that you knew that when you bought it if it's a dealbreaker.
The webtop dock alone has made this phone exceed the hype. All thanks to the devs
You guys rock
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
i have a nexus one and now and atrix and have had it for about a week and i love it. It works great, no random reboots or anything ... just smooth sailing.
I know i can not customize it like I could my N1 but I think that day will come in time. I'll wait ...
Yes, it lived up to the hype in my opinion.
Came from Nexus One. Love the Atrix. It fast and solidly built. Im not sure why everyone said motorblur slow the phone down. I use ADW launcher and it scream.
The Atrix doesn't live up to the Best of CES 2011 hype. The locked bootloader, 1080p "coming soon" recording, overpriced lapdock, overpriced multimedia dock, and good-but-not-great screen keep it from living up to the incredible hype it garnered when it was announced.
Your poll is worded slightly differently: Was the Atrix worth it?
I just came from an ancient Iphone 3g, so the Atrix is absolutely amazing in pretty much every way compared to it and finally getting to use my upgrade was absolutely worth it!
I originally tried out a Captivate for about a week back when I first came up for an upgrade last november. It kept turning itself off (not sleep, total shutdown so I wouldn't receive calls, txt, email ect.) which was a deal breaker. The useless GPS didn't help it's case either. Screen was gorgeous, speed was decent, build quality was ok, battery life was ok. Anyways, I sent the Captivate back after a week, I couldn't have a phone that didn't take phone calls.
First and foremost I love the speed. This thing is lightning fast and seems to have horsepower to burn under the hood. Second is the battery life, I get home from work most of the time with over 40% battery power remaining which is absolutely astounding, my iphone couldn't make it through a full day without getting some juice at my desk and while the captivate did, it was usually at 10-15%. I'm also using the Atrix more than either of the others because I don't feel like I have to conserve battery power to make it through the day.
After those two big features, there are a bunch of less important things that I like:
Finger print scanner is great, I can unlock the phone without even looking at it. I know this doesn't sound important, but it's surprisingly useful when I'm just trying to pull information off my phone quickly and can have it already unlocked as I'm pulling it out of my pocket.
GPS is the best I've experienced on a phone, and better than some dedicated GPS units I've had the displeasure to work with.
Build quality (contrary to some reports I've read) is quite good imo. The phone itself is very sturdy feeling when held by the sides. The back cover is a bit flimsy, but it is also what convinced me to skip getting a case for the Atrix, if it gets scratched I'll just get a new back.
Gorilla Glass is not glued to LCD. Should keep repair costs down.
HDMI out is great, webtop with working firefox extensions is awesome.
Some good, some bad:
Screen resolution is good (colors not so much). The auto-brightness seems to be set a little low imho. I only notice a pentile effect on particularly small+thin fonts.
Camera is surprisingly good in low-light and indoor conditions. Not especially great overall though, tint seems a little off. May just need to set up a custom photoshop filter to correct it.
Call quality is good in quiet conditions, very clear reception and a detailed microphone. Not so good in noisy or windy conditions, the mic picks up a lot of extraneous noise, people are often asking me what's going on or where I am now based on background noise.
I haven't had much reason to use the front facing camera...frankly with AT&T's network I think video chat is a gimmick more than anything else.
I wonder about the finger print scanner/button longevity.
I wouldn't necessarily say the Atrix is the best phone around, but it was the best phone that fit my requirements (ATT, asap, batt life, fast) and so far I like it a lot.
Running ADW Launcher and really like the Advanced Clock widget.
I took mine back and have the Nexus 1 now; I liked the speed but for the most part, my 2.3.3 phone is about as fast; the main thing slowing these phones down now is the network speeds anyway.
If I'm on a wifi network, they're all pretty much the same speed.
Living up to the hype? Definitely not. There are a lot of small problems with this phone that a lot of people don't like; to me, it feels slightly rushed.
I came from an iPhone 4 and I haven't missed the iPhone experience yet. I started with the HTC Inspire which is a nice phone but the battery is rotten and the volume from the phone was pathetic. The Atrix has been an awesome phone for me. It has pretty good battery life so far and yes there are no truly custom ROMs but Adeo (REDUX) has made the UI lag go away on my end and I know others have said the same thing. I am loving the experience of this phone.
Just know that anytime you get a phone shortly after a better one will come out. It's all user preference and what you want and what you think is important. I'm happy but guy x may not be happy. So use one and if you don't like it don't keep it.
I went from a HTC Fuze directly to the Atrix. I love it. (almost) Everything about it. I have played with the Inspire and a couple other 2.1/2.2 devices (girlfriends captivate) and this thing stomps the crap out of them. The colors are just a little off, but that's probably just me going for an extreme upgrade from the phone I had before.
The *ONLY* gripe I have about it is the locked HSUPA. But with all good things come some bad, I think I'm gonna stick it out with the Atrix. Not only that but Spectral Souls looks amazing on it
Guys, please, help me to make a right decision.
Is it possible to buy AT&T version of Motorola Atrix and use it outside US? Is it simple to unlock it? Or where do you recommend to purchase unlocked phone.
P.$.: does motorola have any plans to upgrade it 2.3/3.1 in the future? As I know it's not the trivial to customize firmware for motorola phones (my old G1 can be customized without any problems).
Thanks a lot.
The phone is great nuff said.... We are all a bit too picky but for what its worth this is really the only phone out right now that can take down the iphone 4. My iphone 4 has just been sitting on my night table since I got the Atrix. Atrix has so much more potential and the Android os is so much more pleasing than iIS. Once the bootloader gets cracked its game over!
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
Genixoid said:
Guys, please, help me to make a right decision.
Is it possible to buy AT&T version of Motorola Atrix and use it outside US? Is it simple to unlock it? Or where do you recommend to purchase unlocked phone.
P.$.: does motorola have any plans to upgrade it 2.3/3.1 in the future? As I know it's not the trivial to customize firmware for motorola phones (my old G1 can be customized without any problems).
Thanks a lot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I am using Atrix on my business trips to EU using local sim cards.
Probably, but the timing of updates is another question.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
i was thinking of getting the sensation but after many complaints of users from the same problems that is going to annoy me like touch screen unresponsive - lag - lock screen problems - bad software by htc
so i m now thinking to get the SG2
but i need the phone for the following reasons :-
1- fast speed and fast performance "no lag at all"
2- games play well on it
3- average battery life
4- good camera
5- sound quality
6- optimized stock software "very important"
and after a small tour in sg2 forums i found some issues people annoyed from it and it is not easy to be ignored
1- many talks about battery issue while some has good battery life and it has resolved ??? Q
2- pink spot on camera ..... does it appear while taking the photo in camera app only or in the taken photo or recorded video ???
3- i was surprised when i saw a complaint of some lag in games ???
4- a small lag for 2 sec after moving the immage of unlocking screen ??
these are 4 issues i want to be sure about and then i can get the phone
Im on my second SGS2 since the first was stolen after 3 weeks.. all i can say this phone is the best smartphone that exists. However only an idiot would go with touchwiz. That **** is so outdated and ugly, i almost puked when i first got the phone.
Here is what you need to go through if you want to make SGS2 the most awesome phone there is (takes about 20 mins and no rooting is required):
-install GO launcher
-install HD live wallpaper for GO launcher
-install GO SMS
-install GO contacts
-install Widgetlocker
-tweak GO launcher to look how you like
There is absolutely no lag, but there was some with touchwiz since the phone comes loaded with 100 widgets on and Touch**** is very unoptimized still.
All of the above apps are free and updated very very frequently
Games play very well on it (lol it has power like no other).
Camera is very good, not the best, but one of the best in the android world.
Sound is better than good although not the best but almost.
Like i said, i had one for 3 weeks, it got stolen and i bought a new one straight away. Didn't even consider anything else. Nothing comes close to SGS2!
Edit * overall it's the best phone. Nokia might have better cameras but the software is laughable. IOS is stupidly closed and you can't make it really work how you want (customization). SGS2 is the best of Android phones by far!
Hi, you are always always going to find problems with which ever phone you go with, sometimes to you can do too much research. This phone is bloody fantastic, I love everything about it. It kicks the crap out of pretty much everything I thow at it, videos, games apps. Battery life isnt fantastic but what to you expect for a dual core CPU running a 1.2 gig, this is laptop territory.
Most vendors will give you a week, to two week grace on your purchase, get it try it, thats by far the best option.
I came from a HD2, wasn't sure how much of an upgrade it was going to be, I also thought I'd miss the sheer number of ROMS available on the HD2. This phone is in a different league to most other on the market and there are now loads of cooked ROMS to choose from. Got mine Free for £25/month, haven't looked back.
buddy01 said:
Im on my second SGS2 since the first was stolen after 3 weeks.. all i can say this phone is the best smartphone that exists. However only an idiot would go with touchwiz. That **** is so outdated and ugly, i almost puked when i first got the phone.
Here is what you need to go through if you want to make SGS2 the most awesome phone there is (takes about 20 mins and no rooting is required):
-install GO launcher
-install HD live wallpaper for GO launcher
-install GO SMS
-install GO contacts
-install Widgetlocker
-tweak GO launcher to look how you like
There is absolutely no lag, but there was some with touchwiz since the phone comes loaded with 100 widgets on and Touch**** is very unoptimized still.
All of the above apps are free and updated very very frequently
Games play very well on it (lol it has power like no other).
Camera is very good, not the best, but one of the best in the android world.
Sound is better than good although not the best but almost.
Like i said, i had one for 3 weeks, it got stolen and i bought a new one straight away. Didn't even consider anything else. Nothing comes close to SGS2!
Edit * overall it's the best phone. Nokia might have better cameras but the software is laughable. IOS is stupidly closed and you can't make it really work how you want (customization). SGS2 is the best of Android phones by far!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
and so what about battery issue ??? with moderate and heavy use how long does it works ??
and pink spot ..... this spot appear on the recorded video or taken pic ???
There is no pink spot. There was no pink spot on the first SGS2 and not on this second one either. If there is you can take it back and demand a new one immediately.
The battery of my first one lasted maximum of 2 days and some hours.. i can't remember exactly. The second one lasted the same until yesterday when i installed some apps that made something go wrong and it only lasted 5 hours and that was on the night when i didnt even touch the phone. I think some process was left running since i saw from the report that system took 75% of battery by itself at night. I think the app was theft aware 2 (it hides itself as system app so thief's don't delete it). I post this info so that people realize that battery drain is mostly caused by apps from the market.
TL;DR: battery lasts 2 days - 1 day heavy use
believe me ,you're as right as your complain but not so perfect not having it.
it is the best smart phone out there now, am not a sales rep neither do i want to convince you but nothing come so close to perfect in the phone world than the sgs2.
all phones got there one problem or the other but you will surely enjoy this one.........read alot about this and that on the forum also till i got mine and wasn't having those problem,dont ask me what i did to my phone cos i did nothing, just download batiste rom and love it .go for it i advice but let the choice be yours
ok thanks guys
but another Q .... about build quality and heat generation
the outer layer of the body of the phone is easy to be removed by scratches or it is fine and durable ?? this is a major factor that makes me toward sensation first
and what about heat generation is it a related to battery drain and solved or not ??
and does the heat affect the device ??? or it is in the normal range
i know it is normal to phone to get hot when charging or using gps or other hard work but my Q is the generated heat is tooo high that annoy or not ??
buddy01 said:
There is no pink spot. There was no pink spot on the first SGS2 and not on this second one either. If there is you can take it back and demand a new one immediately.
The battery of my first one lasted maximum of 2 days and some hours.. i can't remember exactly. The second one lasted the same until yesterday when i installed some apps that made something go wrong and it only lasted 5 hours and that was on the night when i didnt even touch the phone. I think some process was left running since i saw from the report that system took 75% of battery by itself at night. I think the app was theft aware 2 (it hides itself as system app so thief's don't delete it). I post this info so that people realize that battery drain is mostly caused by apps from the market.
TL;DR: battery lasts 2 days - 1 day heavy use
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try Samsungdive - doesn't eat the battery and it's built in!
Well, I started off thinking the SGS2 was not for me, then it grew on me, probably Android more than the phone.
Battery life started off pretty bad, but once you sort of a few things like the AP news widget that drains and uses data, etc...Also my battery lasts and charges faster each day, I guess the battery takes a while to get to its optimum, at first I was struggling with the battery life, now I am as happy as I was with my Iphone4.
Games don't lag at all, well at least not for me, I have now rooted mine so as I can use the chainfire 3D drivers to be able to play Tegra games, which run very smoothly indeed, just wish there were more games, but then that's not the devices fault.
I quite like TouchWiz, works well for me, but now I have just read about this Go UI thingy, I might try it out. Something I am finding more and more each day is how terribly addictive playing about with your Widgets and homescreens is, so much to play with and again, not had any lag whatsoever.
The camera is brilliant, much better then the old Iphone4's faster, clearer, quicker to autofocus, can't work out where this pink stuff is though, my photos seem fine.
Music, I use the built in player make sure 5.1 is set and download free Equalizer from the market, simply perfect sounds.
Another thing that I have not found as well is this wake up lag, perhaps I am so used to the slower performing Iphone 4 that I just don't notice these things.
If you want more imaginative and creative games and applications Android is not for you (but its getting there), go the route of Iphone4.
But if you want a super fast, stable, freedom to do what you like, OK games and Apps, general brilliant allround device, the SGS2 is for you.
xdafun4all said:
ok thanks guys
but another Q .... about build quality and heat generation
the outer layer of the body of the phone is easy to be removed by scratches or it is fine and durable ?? this is a major factor that makes me toward sensation first
and what about heat generation is it a related to battery drain and solved or not ??
and does the heat affect the device ??? or it is in the normal range
i know it is normal to phone to get hot when charging or using gps or other hard work but my Q is the generated heat is tooo high that annoy or not ??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Build quality - IMO : It's very good, there was a video on youtube showing the outer layer being really stretched and it was still like stock after the stretch. And it's anti-stratch(idk how to say), I got no scratch.
Heat generation, while charging it can get very hot, and maybe it get hots sometimes while playing, but I have the feeling it's gone after some times, or you get used to it. It's really bearable.
Battery drain is, for me, solved in XXKG1. Though I can get only 4 hours screen-on time(that's enough for me) with auto-brightness(3 approx. with max brightness), the phone can last a day and a half for me.
I think all smartphone have battery drain problem.
For me... in standby mode 2 days (received some calls)
and 6-8 hours maybe less for heavy use (games+wifi+gps)
but you can use Power saving mode function to save your battery life.
I got the problem about pink spot on my camera but someone said it will be fixed when new rom available.
"a small lag for 2 sec after moving the immage of unlocking screen" - I saw new 2.3.4 has fix this problem.
arabbitte said:
Try Samsungdive - doesn't eat the battery and it's built in!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dive dies when you change sim. I had Dive installed on stolen SGS2 and all it did was say "SIM card has changed" and it didn't give the new phone number of the thief's or nothing. SamsungDive is useless.
Theft Aware still works after Sim change and is way way better in functions.. im not ready to uninstall it yet, but hope to find that the drain is caused by something else.
xdafun4all said:
i was thinking of getting the sensation but after many complaints of users from the same problems that is going to annoy me like touch screen unresponsive - lag - lock screen problems - bad software by htc
so i m now thinking to get the SG2
but i need the phone for the following reasons :-
1- fast speed and fast performance "no lag at all"
2- games play well on it
3- average battery life
4- good camera
5- sound quality
6- optimized stock software "very important"
these are 4 issues i want to be sure about and then i can get the phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1- this phone is lag free even on stock TW4. But Launcher Pro Plus is one of teh best alternative launchers for people that liek to change. And LPP won't affect your battery at all
2- I don't game but it is supposed to be one of the best gaming phones. Phone compatibility shouldn't be an issue as it is one of the top selling android phones
3- Battery life is great compared to most smartphones. It will also depend on your use of it. Most phones will be behind it though with such a screen.
4- Camera is one of the best on smartphones. But, of course, don't expect such a small lens to give you something even near to a DSLR or even a high end compact digital, ok!!
5- Sound quality: just like for point 4: don't expect it to replace dedicated hardware for music amateurs (not the RnB deaf generations )
6- I used it all the way on KE2 and since few days official KF3. Stay official and you'll have less issues if you like stock
and after a small tour in sg2 forums i found some issues people annoyed from it and it is not easy to be ignored
1- many talks about battery issue while some has good battery life and it has resolved ??? Q
2- pink spot on camera ..... does it appear while taking the photo in camera app only or in the taken photo or recorded video ???
3- i was surprised when i saw a complaint of some lag in games ???
4- a small lag for 2 sec after moving the immage of unlocking screen ??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1- Just select apps you need and don't install every freeware you see just to "consume" apps. Limit auto updating apps, limit auto-starting apps, avoid live widgets and limit most widgets. Just general good sense rules like with any OS in the world.
2- People saying they don't have the issue just don't know how to reproduce it. Yes, it has it, like the SGS1 I tested and many other smartphones. It will appear under some special circumstances. As I said, it's a very small lens and will have some limits under many circumstances, like it is with any lens if you know a little about photography. The spot won't ever bother you most of the times.
3- See my answer above about games.
4- This issue is absent. Most people in forums install any thing on their phone and then complain...
any one have dust under screen ???
it is one of the facts that makes me stop thinking of the sensation
Guys..how about the banding issue..? has the banding issue been addressed by the latest software upgrades? or does angry birds, the battery charging meter and live wallpapers still exhibit banding?
No banding, no dust under screen. I dunno how you could even fit any dust under screen, it's not like iphone 3gs with 5mm between screen and glass. I only had the previous for 3 weeks though and this one is about a week old now.
:O the banding issue has been rectified? could you post a pic of the charging screen or angry birds if possible?
anantn said:
:O the banding issue has been rectified? could you post a pic of the charging screen or angry birds if possible?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
we need a confirmation is banding issue is solved ??? means it is software or hardware ???
Ive been wanting to try the atrix i just see a lot of mixed reviews so no where better to ask but here true users! Thanks for any replies maybe yall can help
Its depend on what you want, But for me the phone is a solid one, good gps (coming from htc inspire and the gps there was an horror) the screen seems very nice 275ppi, very fast phone, feels great in the hand. If you looks in the htc's dev there are much more support from dev than the atrix but here the roms are really nice, no craps, no experiments, and in some time we're getting cyan. I really like my phone!
I personally am in love with the phone. Great screen size, great resolution, great touch response, insane amount of onboard storage and ram so that apps never freeze up, and battery life that has made me question what good battery life really should be (even with moderate daily use I can go 30+ hours without a charger, I can go days if I don't use the phone at all, and about 9 hours of intense useage). It runs every app I've encountered like butter, including intense HD games (thanks to the Tegra processor and graphics).
Good phone, fast, slim, etc... but if your looking to get one in the near future, I'd wait till Oct. and get the Nexus Prime. Just my opinion though.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA Premium App
fleurdelisxliv said:
Ive been wanting to try the atrix i just see a lot of mixed reviews so no where better to ask but here true users! Thanks for any replies maybe yall can help
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is a very fast phone, you almost don't have any lag. Nice big 4" screen which works well even under bright sunlight. Though there are a lot of complaints about Motoblur, I kind of like it, it has almost everything I need, on my previous phone Motorola Milestone, I had to install all kinds of widgets just to get my phone to do these things.
More importantly if you are looking for a perfect phone, it is not and there is really no perfect phone. What is important is what are looking for in a phone? If you could list what you are looking for in a phone, then probably the users here would be able to provide you with input as to whether the phone will meet your expectations.
Cheers!
The mixed reviews of the Atrix are caused from the old radio roms which were current on 2.2.2 froyo roms. Now on stock 2.3.4 and latest radio rom, atrix is a true beast. It does everything instantly when you click and the best part, you always have a battery enough for the next charge. I truly love my atrix and always trust it wherever i'm, whatever i tend to do. It has no limits.
Plus, you can extend its functions way more with a lapdock accessory.
I bought mine about a month before the Gingerbread OTA update. As soon as that came out I applied it from MSU, then waited a little more than a week and finally took the plunge and ran mramirezusa's unlock/CWM/root script.
I really like the phone now and have absolutely no issues with it -- though I do miss the "white text on black background" menus in the previous stock ROM. I'm running navalynt's piCRUST ROM to dispense with some of the bloat, but the phone runs fine on the stock 4.5.91/2.3.4 ROM.
My only complaint is that the back cover could be a bit beefier. It uses tiny plastic clips to snap onto the main phone body. I wish it used a slide & lock type of affair like the BlackBerry.
I pulled the battery many times while learning how to flash the phone, and the back cover has gotten a little "creaky". Putting a case on the phone will firm it up enough so you don't hear or feel this. And learning how to use adb or fastboot to reboot when possible (instead of pulling the battery) will save wear and tear on the cover. But it's not like I ever need to pull the battery during regular use. I've only needed to do this when flashing didn't work for some reason (usually because I did something wrong).
Before this phone I had an HTC Desire HD. That phone was beautiful but it was simply too big for my hand, I couldn't comfortably hold it and push buttons with the same hand, and I felt that I needed to keep it in my smoking jacket when not in use. Gave new meaning to the phrase "Ginger-bread"; I always held it gingerly like some precious piece of jewelry. A bit too elegant for my tastes -- and heavy to boot.
I was pretty sure that HTC Desire would slip out of my hand within the first week of owning it, so I went back to Costco and picked out the next cheapest Android phone, which turned out to be the Atrix. It's much more my style. Nothing flashy except what's on the inside.
Semseddin said:
The mixed reviews of the Atrix are caused from the old radio roms which were current on 2.2.2 froyo roms. Now on stock 2.3.4 and latest radio rom, atrix is a true beast. It does everything instantly when you click and the best part, you always have a battery enough for the next charge. I truly love my atrix and always trust it wherever i'm, whatever i tend to do. It has no limits.
Plus, you can extend its functions way more with a lapdock accessory.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
QFT
10 char
Useful thread as I very close to buying one. My choices (at the min) are the HTC Sensation, Samsung SII & Atrix and I know that everybody is going to scream 'get the SII' but I don't want a phone with such a large screen. I use my phone a lot but don't read ebooks or surf when in my lounge as I have an Android tablet for all of that.
I want a powerful phone that will run all my apps, allow me to 'play' with ROM's, have DLNA / HDMI connectivity and have a battery life better than 8 hours so (for me) the Atrix seems like the perfect device. I like the idea of the dock as it could replace my tablet but not at the current cost ! The Multimedia dock looks decent though as my plan would be to stream movies from my NAS through Atrix to HDMI TV.
I like the power that the Atrix produces, especially the 1gb ram. No other Android phone runs as smooth that I've used.
With that said, I don't like Qhd. Text font is too small at times IMHO. I've changed the build.prop density, but it can still be an eye strain.
The biggest thing that I want from ICS is hopefully a way to change a screen resolution like a PC.
Do that and this phone would be flawless!...
I came from Samsung Captivate. These are my own thoughts and YMMV
- The screen is not as good as the captivate. I mean yellow color seems funky
- The camera is baaad.
- Rest of the phone is good. 'Solid' is the word I would use. GPS is superlative. Well, i think coming from Captivate any GPS would feel superlative. .
- ROM options are less than that on Captivate, but we had a late start because of the locked bootloader. Soon Atrix will catch up.
I love it and don't regret dumping the captivate.
thanks for all the replies so far! seems like a great phone
Swiftks said:
Good phone, fast, slim, etc... but if your looking to get one in the near future, I'd wait till Oct. and get the Nexus Prime. Just my opinion though.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
who said the next nexus will be called prime? (im just askin!)
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
the one thing i hate most about this phone -
its so f*cking slippery! seriously.. if you have sweaty hands.. good luck holding onto this thing without a case.
other then that ---- the voice quality on phone calls incoming and outgoing is not great, but its also not horrible either --- middle of the pack.
the speaker is very loud, i find using that to talk to people is much easier then holding the phone up to my ear because i can understand people better.
the screen is fine... i like that i can actually see the thing in sunlight.
I've had mine for a little over a month now, I will say that I love this phone.
It is the perfect size for me; big but not too big.
It is FAST
The battery life is better than most smartphones
Camera is OK, it'll pass
ROM selection is growing.
Look and feel are almost HTC like IMHO
Price is spot on!!!
Really enjoyed when I used it. Feels great in hand.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I997 using XDA Premium App
For me it's been a great phone. And I've used a lot of smartphones under different platforms.
Android for me is rock solid and very nice to tweak and work on.
But the Atrix is a device on a different level thanks to it's Webtop implementation when used along with its accesories, specially the Lapdock, which has allowed me to leave my bulky and heavy laptop at home.
I really recommend you to try it and get some (if not all) of it's accesories. You will not regret it.
Sent from my Atrix using Tapatalk
I just got mine last week when they were free at Best Buy. I was planning to hold out for the SGS2 but decided free was a wise option to take. My previous phone was the Dell Streak (standard 1ghz snapdragon phone) and we didn't have much in the way of custom roms so I was excited to switch to a phone with a real development community.
I never even booted the phone into the stock rom. My coworkers all have stock moto phones and motoblur is just bad. But running Alien #4 this phone screams and is glitch free. I think it's literally twice as fast as my Streak and am very pleased with my decision to get this phone. The screen is beautiful and the "4g" speeds are a nice little boost over standard 3g (I live in a town of around 175,000 so it's not a major city and data speeds are nice and fast at all times of the day).
Pros:
-Screaming fast
-Lots of accessories
-High resolution screen
-Huge battery
-Lots of internal memory
-Several good roms to choose from
-Gaming
Cons:
-Feels tiny after having the 5" Streak
-Camera is decent but not as good as others
-Can get pretty hot (but is not as hot as some other tegra2 devices I've tried
Here is a doubter who became a believer after the atrix gbread upgrade:
http://www.phonedog.com/videos/motorola-atrix-4g-gingerbread-hands-on/
"With the Gingerbread update, the Motorola Atrix 4G rises to become the best Android handset on AT&T." ....pretty powerful stuff..
The atrix looks nice but I just wondered about dev support. That's why I got an inspire.