Database Users

[Q] Did you have to replace your NookColor due to quality problems ?

I'm more and more concerned about the quality of the NookColor due to countless complaints about the display and charging issues.
I have NC on order and it makes me nerves since I'm not located in US
Did you have to replace your NookColor ?
PLEASE PEOPLE VOTE, even if you have nothing to say to get large sample of users to see if this is real problem
THANKS
107 votes now and about 30% failure rate is very bad Looks like it is not unusual to return the device several times. Shame on the manufacturer to have this kind of quality control!

Yes, I had to replace my NC (Christmas gift) within the first 2 days. However, it was due to a sound issue - also discussed on several websites - and it couldn't have been an easier process. My local B&N said that of the hundreds of NCs they'd sold, mine was only the 2nd exchanged. I think that's a pretty safe ratio. My new one has had no quality issues at all. Given that I've had to replace PCs, smartphones and other electronics for quality issues, this doesn't seem too out of the norm.

I've had to replace mine as well. First due to sound issues. Now the piece of plastic around the "N" button isn't completely flush with the screen. I'm not taking it back for that reason because the rest of the hardware is fine. I do, however, have to get a new NC cable since the one i have now won't charge my NC. If it's not one thing, it's another.

Had to replace mine too, xmas gift, due to screen quality. There was a lot of light leaking along the bottom edge and a dead pixel. Super fast and easy, even transfered the extended warranty right over to the new serial. New NC is perfect so far.
Those with sound issues what were your symptoms?

Mine's been great. I certainly wouldn't discourage anyone from buying.... I'm not discounting the issues people have had (multiple returns is certainly eyebrow-raising), but I'm sure for every problem you hear about on the forums, there are many with no problems that you just don't hear about.

Mine has been great, aside from one dead pixel. Can't even notice it for the most part, especially since adding one of the anti-glare screen covers.
Sent from my LogicPD Zoom2 using XDA App

I just replaced mine today for sound issues!! Every time it would hibernate I would lose all sounds and the only way to get them back was to reboot.

Not an issue in sight. No screen problems. No sound issues. My biggest complaint is no bluetooth.
Sent from my NC 1.0.1 AN2.12.18

Thanks for all replies folks!
I feel better now
It will be interesting to see more votes in couple days.

No problems at all here 3 weeks in. I visit the B&N forums somewhat frequently and never heard of the sound problem before reading this thread.
My biggest problem is reboots after rooting.

First one dust under screen, dead pixel dead center.
Second one dead pixel lower right corner.
If you look at various sites, you will realize that there really is a quality problem that seems to be more centralized to screen issues/plastic noise.
Also realize that most of the issues are not major hardware failures but simple flaws.
Another thing to notice is that people are willing to exchange multiple times in efforts to find a keeper because the unit is just that good.

3rd one is on it's way! 1st & 2nd one had display issues...!!! Stupid me bought it online & as a bonus, it can't be exchanged in local B&N shops...

Yep ... 5 times. 6th (current) one is great, first 5 all had dead pixels.
I suppose it does say something about how awesome I find the device (once rooted), for me to go through that much trouble driving around getting it replaced ...

Got mine on release day and have had -0- problems ... got a second one a week b4 Christmas and it also was 'perfect' .. no performance or plastic problems ... live in a 'low demand' area I think and perhaps B&N is 'reprocessing' some of the returns that then get shipped to high demand area? Or maybe it's just luck of the draw ... anyway am really pleased with the two I have ...

3 weeks of hard use and no problems, but not rooted. yet.....

My front Bezel starting becoming unstuck at day 12 of the 14 day return period. It was showing the stretching glue on the left side that creaked. I noticed it warping and looked at it in landscape mode from the top.. Surprise!
-CC

Ok, I am B&N is sending my 3rd replacement. (Not Rooted!)
1st one would not boot/reset after plugging it in to recharge.
2nd one reboots and reloads on its own. Called tech. support and had me do a factory reset but the next day did the same thing but came up with an install failure.
My cousin bought one on release date and had no problems with her's.

My first one(Tursday) came OOB with a borked USB port on the NC. I managed to get the cable inserted twice on Thursday(almost took it back the first time that I plugged it in but the cable finally went in as I was about to give up). The next morning no amount fiddling would get the connector to insert properly.
Had a horrible time exchanging it. The idiot at the register kept trying to tell me that it was "fine" and that was how it was "supposed to be" until I made him hook up the power adapter, point out no LED, took it over to the demo unit and demonstrated there, got them to get their charger out try it in the obviously defective one and couldn't insert that cable either. Finally they gave in and deigned to exchange it. After all of that I had decided to check the exchanges connector right then and there, and lo and behold it was just like the demo unit and obvious VERY clearly inserting unlike the defective unit.
B&N have crappy QA, cs, and sales. No wonder they're in trouble... I think that if anything crops up w/this one before my 14d are up its going back permanently. I probably should've bought it from the Worst Buy literally across the street or Walmart for better cs alone.

Who is manufacturing the NC for B&N ?

lifeisfun said:
Who is manufacturing the NC for B&N ?
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IIRC correctly , the hardware is by Inventec (Taiwan). As far as problems, none... nada... zero... zilch with mine, nor have I had problems with either of the "classic" Nook ereaders that we have.

[Q] 1 or 2 speakers?

I'm confused. I thought I heard stereo sound when I first got it, now it sounds like it's more from the right side. I'm on the phone with Asus now. The guy thinks I only have one speaker. I'm looking on both ends and see little holes on both sides. Can someone confirm if this has stereo speakers or a mono speaker?

this is a known issue.
many having the same issue where sound louder on one side.
edit: and there are two speakers

I plugged it into my car and the right speakers were louder then my left .. weird

CyberChulo said:
I'm on the phone with Asus now. The guy thinks I only have one speaker.
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Asus tech support thought that the Transformer runs Windows 7 when I called for a different issue... it's like a bike mechanic trying to fix an airplane :/
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using XDA Premium App

EP2008 said:
Asus tech support thought that the Transformer runs Windows 7 when I called for a different issue... it's like a bike mechanic trying to fix an airplane :/
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using XDA Premium App
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same here... but I emailed EVERY name I could find on the net of people at the US HQ and a tech actually called me(not one from the call center) and was VERY helpful. I too have the right side speaker louder than the left. Many thought it was a software issue but the tech said none of the ones in the office were doing that and were even(he checked after he saw my email) and were running the same FW. He believes it's a HW issue, like maybe there was a batch that was affected, or maybe it was the first batch (he confirmed my dock was from the first batch) So he is going to use my unit to figure out what the problem is and hopefully then they will be able to resolve everyone's that's having an issue. My replacement will be here tomorrow and I ship out the one with the lower left volume to him so hopefully we find out officially what is causing this.
Trust me the call center is useless!! They said the same thing to me about it running windows 7. After my email the tech at HQ said they have been discussing it a lot and are going to work to get the call center up to speed and know the product off the top of their heads(the call center is in Jamaica btw)

lithiasalesjs said:
I plugged it into my car and the right speakers were louder then my left .. weird
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You mean the right speakers of your car were louder? That would indicate that it is a sw problem instead of a hw problem as graffixnyc suggested.

I knew it wasn't one speaker. I've had the unit for 2 weeks and all of a sudden I only hear from one side. Not that the left side is a little weaker, but none from the left side at all. I'm going to go ahead and do the RMA. Either it's cheap hardware with the speakers (the Transformers is a cheap $$$ you know compared to the other tablets) or I blew out the speaker. It was working fine for two weeks where the audio was centralized without any issues. The last thing I remembered doing before this happened was clearing out the Market cache. I doubt that would've caused this.

graffixnyc said:
same here... but I emailed EVERY name I could find on the net of people at the US HQ and a tech actually called me(not one from the call center) and was VERY helpful. I too have the right side speaker louder than the left. Many thought it was a software issue but the tech said none of the ones in the office were doing that and were even(he checked after he saw my email) and were running the same FW. He believes it's a HW issue, like maybe there was a batch that was affected, or maybe it was the first batch (he confirmed my dock was from the first batch) So he is going to use my unit to figure out what the problem is and hopefully then they will be able to resolve everyone's that's having an issue. My replacement will be here tomorrow and I ship out the one with the lower left volume to him so hopefully we find out officially what is causing this.
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Let us know how this goes - I've got the same issue.
I'm hoping it's software, as they can just send out a patch. I'd rather not RMA the unit, but if they determine it's a hardware issue, I'll contact them and get mine swapped out.

Ok. I loaded up some stereo tests from youtube and the left speaker is dead. Try this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8ODm-F9-IM I think this is a hardware issue and not a firmware issue.

My left speaker isn't dead, just less loud. All I need is a balance control. Hmmm, somewhere I have a sound dB meter, have to dig that out and measure the relative outputs.

I had the same issue with left speaker dead. first it was crackling/popping/distorted then dead. Asus gave me a DOA code to give to the retailer for a new one. New one has no speaker issues but does have light bleed which I can live with.
The joys of being cutting edge in tech.

I'm not sure what to do now. Should I get a refund from Amazon and purchase another one or send this one in to Asus?

I just tested mine; received around may 2nd from amazon (ordered on the 26). Speakers seem fine; definitely has right/left and volume is not hugely different. I'm still on the .6 firmware since the .9 is not available ota.

I got my Transformer yesterday, I've just tested the sound and the right speaker is louder than the left. I'm on the latest firmware.
Edit: Do people using different rom's also have the speaker issues?

CyberChulo said:
Ok. I loaded up some stereo tests from youtube and the left speaker is dead. Try this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8ODm-F9-IM I think this is a hardware issue and not a firmware issue.
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Actually a pretty good test. Left seems to be working but definitely less volume and body then right...

Awesome. Definately working, seems quieter, but not by as much as I'd have thought...

Just a note guys, I thought my left speaker was dead and tried the speaker test on youtube. At first it sounded like it was only coming out of the right and it was definitely missing a beat, so I was like "efff ..rma time." Then I played it again and it sounded like it was coming from the left only, so I tried it with headphones on and it was still messed up, and my music sounded wack.
So I just ended up doing a full system reboot and it worked fine afterwards, albeit a small difference in volume if anything. This must be a software issue, I'm sure we'll get a fix soon, ASUS is good about that.

I'm going through the exact same thing. Just opened mine up today. I'm letting the IPS flaw of backlight leakage in certain parts go but every song I play is louder in the right speaker and the left is really low. I'm not trying to overlook your hard work but any help you can provide would be great as to where to start contacting Asus. I don't want to call Jamaica...

My Right Speaker is now dead but it worked last week. The HDMI and headphone jack outputs both speakers.
What did everyone else end up doing on this thread to resolve this? Did it end up as an RMA?

haupman said:
My Right Speaker is now dead but it worked last week. The HDMI and headphone jack outputs both speakers.
What did everyone else end up doing on this thread to resolve this? Did it end up as an RMA?
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I had the popping and creeking issue (left and right) on my speakers a few days ago, but after three reboots they worked again. Maybe a bit more reboots does the trick for you too...

Screen whine ?

I recently purchased an a501 and I noticed for the first time today that it has a faint high pitched whine coming from the back of the unit, most noticeably from the speaker cutouts. It gets louder when plugged into the charger, but is still extremely faint. The noise is not present when using headphones, and adjusting the brightness or turning off the auto brightness makes no difference. I originally thought maybe the speakers were picking up something, maybe from a bad ground, but the noise is extremely consistent. it never changes pitch and only gets slightly louder when plugged in.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbBNIfeDp_4&feature=player_embedded
I have tried a factory reset hoping it was a bad driver install or something , but it is still there.

Don't notice it on my 501. Could be an issue with a somewhat faulty speaker connection internally.
Could be RF interference also. Have you taken it to a different location other than your home?
This is a judgment call on whether to keep it or return it for replacement. So if you can live with it, keep it. If it disturbs you, then replace it.

Moscow Desire said:
Don't notice it on my 501. Could be an issue with a somewhat faulty speaker connection internally.
Could be RF interference also. Have you taken it to a different location other than your home?
This is a judgment call on whether to keep it or return it for replacement. So if you can live with it, keep it. If it disturbs you, then replace it.
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Internal RF noise or audio gain set to high in software. What rom and kernel are you running. I would exchange.

I noticed the whine when charging, its very strange that when i scroll a web page the whine gets louder and quiets when i stop.
Never noticed the whine while not charging, in am not sure it comes from the speakers, if i place my ear on the device i can hear it basically everywhere.
I have a stock a500 on 3.2
My first post on XDA nice to be here

Change it. It shouldn't be doing that. Your new post confirms this.
Probably, something internally, is not shielded correctly. As I stated somewhat earlier as with improper connections and RF interference. But it seems the RF, is coming from your tab. I'll bet, somebody forgot to shield something.
Probably, your tab will not be effected mechanically. Probably last for several years.
But that noise, if it bothers you, is abnormal.

I have a stock a501 with 3.2, from Orange Romania.
may be a software error?

balcanic said:
I have a stock a501 with 3.2, from Orange Romania.
may be a software error?
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I really, really doubt it's a software error. High-pitched interference that goes away when headphones are plugged in, ie. when the speaker assembly is turned off? That actually reminds me of these age-old audio cards built into PC motherboards 6-10 years ago, they almost always produced this high-pitched interference sound that went immediately away if you switched to a proper discrete audio card, without changing any other component or software package in the system.
Nope, I do have to agree with posters above: there's likely shielding missing somewhere or perhaps it's gotten loose and that's why you hear that interference. Such an issue cannot be fixed with software, but it also won't damage anything, ie. it's not dangerous and it won't cause any other damage to your tablet. Backup everything and take it to warranty repair, explain the issue in clear terms and ask for a replacement.

What is strange, it reaches 80% load noise disappears.

The noise does not disappear if i plug in the earphones, perhaps if i stuck them in my ears and play something i wont hear the noise, but its stil there.
My girlfriend has already started complaining about the noise when i charge at night by the bed
Can anybody absolutly confirm they dont have the noise on their a500/501

On my tablet A501 there is this noise. In Romania it is hard to find service stations, to be performant and serious.
There are two service stations approved by the importer.

catalin7810 said:
Can anybody absolutly confirm they dont have the noise on their a500/501
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Well, I can. I have absolutely NO noise whatsoever, when charging or when not charging.

Are you charging it when you hear the noise. The charger's transformer whines when in use. This is common on almost every transformer. The a500 charger is lowd! I can hear it across the room.
Sent from my A500 using xda premium

I have no noise at all out of mine.. If it did it would have been exchanged .
I think this is caused by what electronic people call dirty dc voltage..can be anything from a grounding issue. bad capacitor on the electronics to a trace on the silicon boards to close together. and on and on..
I WOULD SAY send it back or take it in and exchange it .
Noise bothers me very badly i even trained my spouse you YELL AT ME Silently when she is upset about something .
GIGGLES

Frankly, aside from this problem with buzzing, tablet works very well. I think they send back to Orange and to come worse than now.
I sent a message to the service dealing with Acer, but they said that if the tablet is functioning normally, there is no problem.

balcanic said:
Frankly, aside from this problem with buzzing, tablet works very well. I think they send back to Orange and to come worse than now.
I sent a message to the service dealing with Acer, but they said that if the tablet is functioning normally, there is no problem.
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Well, if it functions normally, and you don't wish to argue the point, what can you do? Like you said, get something worse in return? It happens.
If you can live with it, well, then do so. I suppose one could pop off the back cover, and check for shielding, as I believe that is the issue. Probably some idiot forgot to put a little shielding around a certain part during assembly, and you get the RF noise.
Unfortunately, people in the States do not quite understand how things are in some parts of Europe. You just can't return it, when it functions correctly. Not sure about Orange's policy.
Well, it works fine, but, if you have any questions, please let us know. We can help you on the other stuff.
Happy New Year to you!!

I have no strange noises coming out of my Iconia and my charger doesn't make a noise either.
As far as I'm concerned an Iconia making strange noises is NOT functioning normally. It could be a symptom of a larger problem and your tablet might suddenly die, you can never be too sure if it will or not.
Sent from my Acer Iconia A501 using XDA Premium App.
(Acer Iconia A501 + Samsung Galaxy S I9000T)

My A500, had it for two weeks, whines when it charges. The sound doesn't last long. I'm not sure where it's coming from, but I think the tablet, not the power transformer but will check tonight.
The A500 has a one year warranty (US), so based on what I've read here I won't be sending it in for rma unless it breaks. I love really like the A500 but a year from now will be ready for something new.

starfcker69 said:
My A500, had it for two weeks, whines when it charges. The sound doesn't last long. I'm not sure where it's coming from, but I think the tablet, not the power transformer but will check tonight.
The A500 has a one year warranty (US), so based on what I've read here I won't be sending it in for rma unless it breaks. I love really like the A500 but a year from now will be ready for something new.
Click to expand...
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Noise occurs when using the tablet( when in charging) ? or, when it is in stand by( when in charging)?

A different speaker issue? Too quiet...

I just bought a nexus 7 yesterday, and everything about it is fantastic. No screen issues that people have been talking about, and just a great device. The only problem that I'm having is the speaker is extremely quiet. Headphones sound great, but once I unplug them and turn the volume all the way up, I can barely hear anything, even with my hand cupped around the speaker. I'm a bit nervous to RMA because everything else is flawless on the device. I don't know if this is an issue that people have seen before because I have not read anything about it, but I'd like to know if anyone else has run into it. It's not the worst problem in the world because I use headphones most of the time, but when I want to show people a video or a song they aren't going to be able to hear it I've just been trying to use it to see if it might fix itself (may sound stupid but it has happened before), but I just wanted to see if anyone has had this issue before. Thanks!

My Nexus 7 gets pretty loud, so if your problem is for all sources, it's likely defective.

Another issue is that I bought it from a store, not Google play, so Google won't do an RMA for me. I really don't want to deal with Asus RMA, so if the store I got it from won't exchange it for me (they have a reputation for that), I think I'm kinda stuck with....

ASUS RMAs sound like a nightmare, so I don't blame you. But basically having no speaker would suck too. So I'd probably to deal with the painful RMA as soon as possible and get it out of the way.
The C70K batch that ASUS is making now sounds like it has much fewer defects, so you should get a good replacement.

One Speaker on my 6P was louder than the other.

I received my 6P yesterday, and by this morning I dropped it into a UPS box to send it back.
So, I got the 64GB aluminum version, it arrived a day after I placed my order. I set it up and let it install its OS update, which took forever, then I started to use it. Right away I noticed that the top speaker seemed louder than the bottom speaker when the phone was playing notification sounds. In two phone calls, people complained that it sounded like I was underwater or had them on speakerphone.
I was a little concerned by the speaker issue, so I took the time to play back audio from NPR and then tried a few videos. While playing back video, I flipped the phone this way and that, and moved the phone back and forth from ear to ear just to make sure I wasn't deaf in one ear. The top speaker was definitely much louder than the other. With the mic being housed with the bottom speaker, I'm lead to believe both issues are related.
I contacted customer support and the lady who took my call said that another user had called with the same issue, but she couldn't recall which model they had. She had spoken with the design team about this and they said it was a defect, that both speakers should be firing at the same volume level.
We did the mandatory factory reset and I fired up YouTube - then I moved my old phone back and forth over the speakers of the 6P and she could hear the difference too, so I ended up mailing it back for a refund - I plan to buy another, but an exchange would entail a $549 hold on my bank account, so a refund it is.
So, that said, I'm curious - has anyone else had this issue? I searched the web but didn't find anything, but I've tweeted to some people who were opening new devices and one of them said he felt the top speaker was louder on his unit too (I didn't say which speaker, I just asked if one was louder than the other), while another person said she'd follow up.

It seems like it's a relatively common issue.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/nexus-6p/help/check-speakers-t3237050
http://forum.xda-developers.com/nexus-6p/help/uneven-speaker-volume-t3238144
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3r6faw/nexus_6p_speaker_issue_strawpoll_please_answer_if/

Roxy said:
It seems like it's a relatively common issue.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/nexus-6p/help/check-speakers-t3237050
http://forum.xda-developers.com/nexus-6p/help/uneven-speaker-volume-t3238144
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3r6faw/nexus_6p_speaker_issue_strawpoll_please_answer_if/
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:crying::crying::crying:
Oh dear... I wouldn't have minded it if it was just a tad louder, but it was bad - plus I was having some speaker overdrive issues as well. I guess I'll wait for Google to process my refund and keep an eye on these threads before deciding if I want to take the risk again... Which sucks, because I was loving the phone. Hell, I picked this over a Lumia 950 XL because I wanted to use some half decent apps and have access to Tap to Pay. Sure, Android still waits forever for iOS apps, but Windows waits for never. -_-

I kept my phone regardless of the volume issue... lol.
Here's more reddit post(s) regarding the problem:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3rjbbd/did_anyone_figure_out_if_the_top_speaker_being/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3r45jr/speakers_not_balanced/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3qrjp2/top_speaker_louder_than_bottom_one/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3qso4k/is_anybody_not_having_speaker_balance_issues/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3rak95/did_rma_fixed_uneven_speaker_issue/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3rajy4/can_someone_post_a_video_of_the_speakers_balanced/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3quee4/front_facing_speakers/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3rdslq/google_store_support_says_that_the_volume/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3rekuc/speaker_difference_an_intended_feature/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3rcumg/speaker_imbalance_based_on_volume_level/

Roxy said:
I kept my phone regardless of the volume issue... lol.
Here's more reddit post(s) regarding the problem:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3rjbbd/did_anyone_figure_out_if_the_top_speaker_being/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3r45jr/speakers_not_balanced/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3qrjp2/top_speaker_louder_than_bottom_one/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3qso4k/is_anybody_not_having_speaker_balance_issues/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3rak95/did_rma_fixed_uneven_speaker_issue/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3rajy4/can_someone_post_a_video_of_the_speakers_balanced/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3quee4/front_facing_speakers/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3rdslq/google_store_support_says_that_the_volume/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3rekuc/speaker_difference_an_intended_feature/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus6P/comments/3rcumg/speaker_imbalance_based_on_volume_level/
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I've blogged about this and have included all these links - thanks for the info! I really hope when I buy another one that it don't have the speaker issue. Google needs to step out and address Speakergate so users are aware of this issue.
https://tekmuze.wordpress.com/2015/11/04/forget-bending-the-nexus-6p-may-have-speaker-defect/

I see on Reddit that some people are hearing the exact opposite of what I was told by Google support - Google support is telling them that this actually "feature" and not a flaw, which brings to mind old comics about Windows 95 and 98 bugs being labeled as features... -_-

If it's a "fault" on all phones then surely it's an easy software fix. I'm surprised none of the reviews mentioned it?

Batfink33 said:
If it's a "fault" on all phones then surely it's an easy software fix. I'm surprised none of the reviews mentioned it?
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I too am amazed... But keep in mind that review units are hand picked and sent out by Google, so it's likely that phones without this flaw were sent to the press.