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After almost a month with the Vibrant, Why I chose G2..
I really enjoyed the big screen on the vibrant, definitely there is no flaws there, with the gorilla glass the samoled screen was just perfectly crisp.
The camera's daytime shots looked beautiful and camcorder recording was great, 720P quality, and night time mode wasn't too shabby either.
I actually thought the TouchWiz experience was fairly pleasant. Swype was also excellent.
However, theres just so many things wrong with the vibrant that urked me.
My G1 had better reception, 5 Bars, vs the Vibrant's 1-2 Bar or Occasional No Signal
The touch buttons at the bottom of vibrant, while they were pretty sensitive, it felt laggy...
Samsung Built their %$%# file system on their own properietary technology
GPS, Sorta works, but it just felt inferior to the G1's GPS, which is sad.
Ram on the Vibrant.. Although the Vibrant has 512MB of Ram, your lucky to have 100MB ram free. Why? Because its not 2.2, but also when I thought of it, I felt its because Samsung isn't as good at programming efficient kernels for their radio, etc.
128MB Ram (supposedly dedicated to graphics) which is great, but I realized I don't really need that much graphics power, Angry Birds should run fine on just about anything.
My Vibrant would power off in middle of day, or reboot randomly
It felt cheap, the buttons, the plastic backing, so glossy and cheap feeling, I had a nice mesh case would remedied a lot of the feel, but it still felt like a toy.
Sound Quality through the stereo jack, varies, from what I understand, Samsung applies their own EQ baseed on the OHM rating of your headphones or line-level connection.
Poor Software, Support, its Samsung's first generation galaxy phone, maybe next year... We shouldn't have to apply hackish lag fixes to make up for samsung's half-baked file system.
Dude. Wheres my FLASH man!, need Light, also not having Flash Support on websites I wanted to visit pissed me off so many times.
Ultimately, I felt like the Vibrant was an early prototype with lots of issues, and weighing how long each phone would last I felt the G2 would last 2 years like my G1, but the Vibrant I'd be lucky if it lasted a year, especially with it having such flimsy buttons, (power/vol). I basically babied the Vibrant, had a case, and a pouch to keep it extra safe. I didn't feel the need to do that with the G1.
Although I loved the swype on a big screen, I realize, buttons are important, even if you don't need them all the time, especially for games, scrolling through text, flash games, remoting to your pc at home. Connecting to a terminal perhaps?
In this sense, the G2 is the true gaming phone, and not the vibrant, it seems all the vibrant is geared to do is to play avatar movie, and the sims 3 mobile game, so they beefed up the ram usage for the gpu.
Also, who could deny the guaranteed development community that the G2 will definitely have, I felt the entire vibrant development was powered by 3-4 people. Samsung hasn't even come out with 2.2 yet on the vibrant, and even if they do, their crappy file system and kernels is still going to suck up a good chunk of the good it brings. My G1, made by HTC was sturdy, I've dropped it hard countless times onto concrete and it worked fine till the day I got rid of it.
QwertyAccess said:
After almost a month with the Vibrant, Why I chose G2..
I really enjoyed the big screen on the vibrant, definitely there is no flaws there, with the gorilla glass the samoled screen was just perfectly crisp.
The camera's daytime shots looked beautiful and camcorder recording was great, 720P quality, and night time mode wasn't too shabby either.
I actually thought the TouchWiz experience was fairly pleasant.
However, theres just so many things wrong with the vibrant that urked me.
My G1 had better reception, 5 Bars, vs the Vibrant's 1-2 Bar or Occasional No Signal
The touch buttons at the bottom of vibrant, while they were pretty sensitive, it felt laggy...
Samsung Built their %$%# file system on their own properietary technology
GPS, Sorta works, but it just felt inferior to the G1's GPS, which is sad.
Ram on the Vibrant.. Although the Vibrant has 512MB of Ram, your lucky to have 100MB ram free. Why? Because its not 2.2, but also when I thought of it, I felt its because Samsung isn't as good at programming efficient kernels for their radio, etc.
128MB Ram (supposedly dedicated to graphics) which is great, but I realized I don't really need that much graphics power, Angry Birds should run fine on just about anything.
My Vibrant would power off in middle of day, or reboot randomly
It felt cheap, the buttons, the plastic backing, so glossy and cheap feeling, I had a nice mesh case would remedied a lot of the feel, but it still felt like a toy.
Sound Quality through the stereo jack, varies, from what I understand, Samsung applies their own EQ baseed on the OHM rating of your headphones or line-level connection.
Poor Software, Support, its Samsung's first generation galaxy phone, maybe next year... We shouldn't have to apply hackish lag fixes to make up for samsung's half-baked file system.
Dude. Wheres my FLASH man!, need Light, also not having Flash Support on websites I wanted to visit pissed me off so many times.
Ultimately, I felt like the Vibrant was an early prototype with lots of issues, and weighing how long each phone would last I felt the G2 would last 2 years like my G1, but the Vibrant I'd be lucky if it lasted a year, especially with it having such flimsy buttons, (power/vol). I basically babied the Vibrant, had a case, and a pouch to keep it extra safe. I didn't feel the need to do that with the G1.
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Sounds more like the Vibrant broke your heart, than the G2 winning your heart. All phones have issues, If you beleive you will be happier with the G2 then thats all that matters.
Personaly i wont be happy untill tmobile has a Solid 4.3 In display Android phone.
Well said, I do eventually want something with the build quality and feel of the HD2, I saw in the t-mobile store, theres something nice when something is made out of metal, with metallic feeling buttons.
4.3? I'm straight on that. That's HUGE! I can't be carrying box of girl scout cookies sized in my pocket. That's like carrying a first gen PSP in your pocket. (I think)
But I know what you mean, big screens are cool.
I've never owned any popular smart phone, so this will be my first Android phone and I'm glad it's going to be the G2. I just can't wait to hop onto the mobile app world own it up!
U know what gave it away before I read all that?
Your username
Why I probably will sell the Vibrant for the G2 is because of the following Vibrant issues that I have had with three different Vibrants:
1. Have to go into service mode to change the bluetooth settings for people to hear me because I sound too far away otherwise.
2. I can't view full pages with about:debug because it crashes the browser.
3. When I hold the phone close to the bottom I do lose reception.
4. How long it's taking for froyo to come out.
5. Lack of flash (Small not a big problem)
6. And ofcourse the notorious GPS.
To some these might not be a big deal but it was has me really thinking of switching. Don't get me wrong, I love the screen size and the screen itself. But function always comes before form for me.
Lol didn't even notice the screen name.
I just bought my mom the Vibrant.. lol.
She's coming from an old ass Nokia candybar. I hope it's not too difficult for her to get used to.
QwertyAccess said:
My G1, made by HTC was sturdy, I've dropped it hard countless times onto concrete and it worked fine till the day I got rid of it.
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Click to collapse
well, so did I, except 2 weeks ago I dropped my G1 on my wood floor at home, and that finally did the trick. the screen went all staticy and unreadable (though the phone still technically functioned otherwise).
such bad timing because I was gonna get the G2 anyway. but I'm a data addict and had to get a replacement phone for the meantime, also I got a mt3g 1.2. I was surprised, but its like way faster. the 1.2 version has 256 RAM as opposed to the 192 in the G1 and mt3g original, and it makes a huge difference. I don't need compcache turned on to to keep web pages in memory and gtalk signed in. I never realized how much compcache slows down the system.
long story short - as much as the mt3g 1.2 was an upgrade over the G1, the G2 is gonna be like 5 times that. can't wait.
/tangent
QwertyAccess,
I agree, I have been waiting for T-Mobile to release an Android handset with the build quality of the HD2.
The G2 is the closest thing I have seen, it feels very solid and well built.
Now if it would just get here.
Makes me glad we Sprint users got the most unique Galaxy S, flash and keyboard and GPS that works. Plus I can't believe this beast of a phone is so light as well.
Now, a Vibrant to the G2 might make sense to some but I dare say that if Samsung had made the Epic for all the U.S carriers in its current iteration (keyboard + flash), you might be singing a different tune.
Forgive My Brevity. To Be Or Not To Be...
If I end up selling my vibrant for a G2, it will be for a reason a little more bizarre. My 2008 Corvette with an aftermarket exhaust drones, my nokia n95, n85, e71, iphone, etc all worked fine but the Vibrant pics up the drone and noone can hear me when my car is on. I was going to buy a wireless bluetooth to fix the problem but that seems like such a bandaid fix.
PolishDude said:
If I end up selling my vibrant for a G2, it will be for a reason a little more bizarre. My 2008 Corvette with an aftermarket exhaust drones, my nokia n95, n85, e71, iphone, etc all worked fine but the Vibrant pics up the drone and noone can hear me when my car is on. I was going to buy a wireless bluetooth to fix the problem but that seems like such a bandaid fix.
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Click to collapse
why not get the nexus one which has the two mics, it is made for situations like that
PolishDude said:
If I end up selling my vibrant for a G2, it will be for a reason a little more bizarre. My 2008 Corvette with an aftermarket exhaust drones, my nokia n95, n85, e71, iphone, etc all worked fine but the Vibrant pics up the drone and noone can hear me when my car is on. I was going to buy a wireless bluetooth to fix the problem but that seems like such a bandaid fix.
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Click to collapse
had a VW R32 w/aftermarket exhaust that had a horrible drone - only did it between 2200 - 2800 rpm. Unless you're headache proof, it can be eliminated. I found the point on the exhaust line that were vibrating like a tuning fork & secured them it with an additional hanger strap/bracket and wrapped the muffler body with asbestos tape - knocked 80% of the drone out - wife became more agreeable to riding in it after that
I honestly dont find it that bad, every other phone works fine but the vibrant
T-Mobile is swapping my Vibrant for a G2, but I have to wait until the 6th to get it done. On my 3rd Vibrant. GPS and lag issues. I didn't expect them to do a swap. I was expecting to pay something. Nice.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
scmurphy13 said:
T-Mobile is swapping my Vibrant for a G2, but I have to wait until the 6th to get it done. On my 3rd Vibrant. GPS and lag issues. I didn't expect them to do a swap. I was expecting to pay something. Nice.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Who did you talk to
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
I love my G1. It is rock solid. I've dropped it in water until it was several inches submerged... TWICE. I've dropped in on concrete many times. I used the clear, hard plastic, T-Mobile cases, and actually drove off with it on the roof of my car. At 20mph I saw it fly past my window and hit the ground. The case flew off, but the phone is completely fine.
Heck, my wife had one, dropped it in the grocery store parking lot (didn't realize it). I sent a text message to her phone and used GPS Tracker to find the phone. I then went to the parking lot and started calling her phone. It had been run over and thrown into a garbage can. The screen was toast, and the phone was dented and scratched, but the screen still lit up, the GPS still worked, and the phone was still ringing and accepting texts. Amazing!!
I hope the G2 is as good as the G1 was only updated. If so, I'll be very happy.
I've got a coworker with a Droid X. He's had problems with his phone locking up and freezing and needing to be rebooted, much more than I ever had with my G1, even when it was rooted and running all sorts of ROMs.
robavila721 said:
Who did you talk to
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
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Customer Loyalty.
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robavila721 said:
Who did you talk to
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
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Click to collapse
I didn't get a complete swap but the rep I talked too said that if you return your phone two or more times for warranty you can choose another phone per T-mobile policy. I had one warranty swap and a battery issue, the battery issue didn't qualify but if you have done two or more warranty exchanges you can get any other phone of "similar" specs for free. You just have to trade in the old phone.
Call 611 and say cancel when the computer answers. The person you talk to will be loyalty or retention or whatever they call it. They can do almost anything for you. Be nice and explain how much the Vibrant sux and how you want something done about it. They will be more than happy to take care of it for you.
Good morning all,
I created this thread in the Inspire forums and thought I'd bring it over here too. It's just my experiences as a daily carrier of both of these devices. It's aimed at people torn between the two handsets, and also to help me ultimately choose which I prefer to keep. Only one will survive.
I've included my running updates in the OP.
___________________________________________________________________
Hello all!
I've had the daunting task to pick between these two phones for the last couple days. I went into the store to actually get the devices in my hand and fully expected to walk out with the Atrix. I've always had a soft spot for HTC, ever since their WoMo phones. I saw the Inspire and was super impressed at how solid the phone felt in my hand. The phone felt very responsive, and I already knew the XDA Inspire team was cranking out some awesome stuff.
I then grabbed the Atrix and was not nearly as wow'd as I had expected to be. I've been following the phone since it's announcement, and pretty much had made up my mind on the spot to pick it up. After spending a half hour goofing around with both phones, I decided the Inspire really won my heart.
Then it happened... The cold sweats... The tossing and turning in bed at night. Images of the Atrix's Tegra 2 laying waste to the earth and doing vile things to my Inspire. My horrid indecision had struck. I decided that I had obviously made the wrong choice, so the next morning I headed off to the store and bought an Atrix without returning my perfectly set up Inspire. I wanted to play with them both side by side and just return whichever one didn't make me happy.
That was a bit over 24 hours ago. After spending the last day with both of the handsets, I am closer to a decision, but it's damn tough. My overall thoughts and struggles follow:
Motorola Atrix:
-Pros:
- Bright, higher resolution screen
- Dual Core processor (even though I thought the experience was pretty weak)
- Battery (theoretical, as I haven't had it long enough to fully experience)
- This goes to the hardware again, but this phone is quite a bit more future proof.
- The handset is light enough to not remind you it's in your pocket at every step.
- GPS (This is the most rock solid phone GPS I've ever used)
- Incredibly loud speaker
- Tons of ram
- HDMI out
-Cons:
- Cheaper build quality (I feel like I need to qualify this. The phone feels solid, but the battery door is, for lack of a better word, brittle)
- Very poor color representation on the otherwise beautiful screen.
- MotoBlur - This is just a very inelegant, unrefined overlay...
- Strange compatibility issues with certain apps
- multiple force closes
- Weak social media integration
- Odd bouts of lag when least expected
- Locked Bootloader (most don't care about this, but it matters when you have a primary developer that has a history of slow patches, feature adds, and os releases.
- Chicklet keyboard is a touch small for me and requires some focus to not miss type.
**FOLLOW-UP**
- I've removed the call quality knock from the Atrix device. It turns out it was entirely my own fault, and while some people, including Motorola, are reporting issues with sound quality on some devices, mine isn't one of them.
HTC Inspire:
-Pros:
- Excellent build quality (the aluminum uni-body is a joy to hold, and has the extra added benefit of being able to be used to fend off an attacker)
- Beautiful 4.3" screen (Yes, it is big, but I'm a fan)
- Sense (I'm not a fan of these proprietary UI's, but Sense shows that HTC can offer up an experience that is easy to like, and provide an attractive interface for a phone OS that is sometimes described as clinical looking)
- The brilliant development community (currently running CoreDroid /drool)
- Very snappy performance from the second gen Snapdragon CPU
- Tons of ram (Not as much as the Atrix, but enough to be a "ton" in my eyes)
- Lovely camera (I used to not care, but I have a new son, so suddenly a camera climbed up the ladder of important features)
- Fantastic out of the box social media integration
- Has that "Just works like it should" feel to it.
- Very clear call quality
- Second best phone gps I've used
-Cons:
- The screen washes out to a grey slab in direct sunlight
- Stock battery life is horrid
- "Electric Razor" ear screen can have some jagged edges and chafe your ear
- Battery door was a ridiculous design decision
- Very current gen hardware (doesn't mean a whole lot if you're not going to be riding this phone for the next two years, but a new day has dawned and it's name is "Multi-core")
- Stock external speaker/notification volume super weak
- odd placement of the number button on the keyboard (thanks iPhone for etching that into my brain)
- recessed power and volume buttons can be a bit tough to find.
- No internal storage (this is just ridiculous)
- Relatively weak GPU
There you have it. That's what I've come up with so far. At the moment, I'm leaning toward the Inspire, as so many of those issues can be (and have been) corrected through roms. In the end, I just don't really get the warm fuzzies from the Atrix. I feel like it's a brilliant set of components tied together with a really sorry software suite, and a manufacturer that doesn't really understand the strengths of their chosen platform, or the customers that choose it.
I will continue carrying both of the devices for the next couple days, but at the moment, the winner is most definitely the Inspire in my eyes. It just feels like it's been polished to a wonderful android flavored candy shine, and with the community behind it, there's really nothing I feel the device won't be able to handle for quite some time.
**Update 1**
The inspire's build quality is top notch. The screen is perfectly alligned and allows no notable give for me. There is also no more light bleed than you expect from an lcd panel, and none to the touch. The battery cover is a pain. Its actually so well fitted that you have to break it in over multiple removals in order to confidently take it off without breaking it. The sim cover fits nicely, and doesn't pose the same pain that the battery cover does. There is a slight raised edge in the center of the sim cover that takes it just out of flush. Its nigh unnoticable. Viewing angles on the inspire's slcd are fantastic. I can see it clearly in a near complete 180 degree angle, with little to no noticable color bleed. It obviously dims as you move from dead center.
The atrix is in the same boat with build quality for the most part. The phone has a good weight, metal rails down the side, well alligned screen, and mostly tight fitting components. I do have some issues here, though. Mainly with the back cover. As noted in my initial post, its very brittle, thin plastic. If you think I broke a sweat taking the inspires battery cover off, you should have seen me trying to get the battery on the atrix. I pulled the top clip free, and almost bent the cover in half fighting the mid phone clips. Also, the back cover on my atrix doesn't line up flush on one side. The last couple issues are the "creakynesss" of the handset. When I grip the phone tightly I can feel the plastic components giving, and settling into place. Not terribly bad, but noticable. The last issue is the fingerprint scanner. It's been pointed out in some reviews, but the scanner is off center on some devices and just looks shoddily thrown together and misalligned.
The atrix beautiful qHD screen also washes out and tints yellow when viewed at extreme angles.
**Update 2**
I've been using the Atrix today as my primary carry handset, and I must say PROPS to Motorola on this battery... I've been beating on it for all I can muster and with almost two full hours of HSPA+ web surfing, Angry Birds while waiting for my food, poking around in the marketplace, and trying out apps, the phone has dropped 25% of the battery in 7 hours of heavy use. I'm pretty damn impressed with that. My focus would be on the charger right now. I'll be going through the exact same process on the Inspire tomorrow to see how everything shakes out.
**Update 3**
I've been carrying my Atrix for the last two days, and I have to admit... It's amazing... I don't mean to sound disappointed, quite the contrary, but I was coming closer to making my decision, and now I'm struggling again.
New Revelations/Findings:
- The little hitches you sometimes see in games like Angry Birds, when scrolling and pinch zooming are all gone... Like, completely gone. That goes for every game/app i've played that is relatively intensive with animation or processing. The Inspire is definitely no slouch, but the performance edge is fully in the Atrix's court.
- The external speaker of the Atrix is LEGEND-(Wait for it)-DARY! I hopped on a conference call last night and it was right on the edge of being as good as the dedicated conference speakers at my office. Really outstanding.
- The screen is also really pretty. I, once again, had to run from hospital to hospital yesterday and while outside was able to see every color, icon, and word on my screen. It made me secure in the fact that no matter where I took the device, i would be able to rely on it 100%, and it would perform as well as I could ever ask for.
I've been using the anti-glare/anti-fingerprint Case-Mate screen protectors on both of the devices since i've purchased them, and these things just destroy the fidelity of the screen. I will be getting my Realook protectors tomorrow, and will get to experience a bit more vibrance from both screens.
I'm still fairly disappointed with the color reproduction of the qHD screen. It's really in your face when you have the two devices sitting side by side. The SLCD screen of the Inspire is much more natural looking.
MotoBlur is still a disappointment, but after setting up LauncherPro Plus and getting Beautiful Widgets, and exploring LauncherPro's new facebook widget (think FriendStream). It's become nearly a non-issue. I've been using ADW as well, and it's great, but the Atrix seems to love LauncherPro, and I love LauncherPro... Guess that's a match made in Android heaven.
My experience, for most part mirrors yours. I went from the Captivate to the Inspire to the Atrix. I kept the Inspire for about a week and immediately missed the screen on the Captivate.
The Inspire's screen is definitely sharp, but I like the contrast on the captivate. The black text sharpness on the Atrix is really good and very comparable to the Inspire and both beat the pants off the Captivate.
I'd have to disagree with the build quality of the Inspire. Yes, aluminum feels solid compared to the plastic on the Atrix and does give you that solid quality feeling, but I had the same plastic alignment issues with two Inspires I went through. The plastic parts just doesn't line up evenly with the aluminum. The battery door was never a problem with me because of the gaps were plastic met aluminum. I was always able to get my finger nails in two places to pull the cover off easily and without destroying the soft touch cover.
Call quality on the Inspire's headset speaker always sounded tinny and lack the volume of the Atrix. The loudspeaker is really, really weak on the Inspire. The Atrix's loudspeaker has surprisingly good range, I hear a semblance of bass when playing media.
Security wise, the fingerprint scanner is a really good feature on the Atrix, makes me wonder why no one has done it before on a mobile phone. So much faster to unlock securely without a passcode or drawing.
The camera on the Inspire is better than the Atrix. The Inspire's pics come out with more contrast and better color. The Atrix has sharp images, but the color look a little washed out and there way more noise. Seems like Motorola wanted sharper images and turn down the noise reduction. Noise reduction is a big killer when it comes to image sharpness.
+1 just for referencing Barney Stinson.
Haha no, but really, this is a good comparison of the Inspire and the Atrix. I agree with most, if not all, of your pros and cons. I really can't help but emphasize the battery life though. I usually end up having to buy a spare battery and charger set for my smartphones, but it seems really unnecessary for the Atrix. If you're a power user, that's reason enough to pick the Atrix over the Inspire.
I agree almost 100%
I sit here with both phones still. I love the Inspire, and Gingerblur on the Atrix makes me love the Atrix.
The interwebz speed is what is forcing the Inspire as my daily driver at the moment.
I have gone through 3 atrix's already, when i have it, i want to sell it, as you can see in my signature, and when i sell it, i want one. thus #3....
I almost NEED to wait and see 4g... and this backhaul att speaks of....
And then there is the Samsung infuse/enfuse? idk... But they say when its dropped, it will most certainly have the capable speeds, as will the 2 other flagship "4g" phones.
I treat my phones with utmost care, as i usually am selling them for the new and next best thing, and want to ensure they can be purchased as a 10/10 quality. That being said, I will say the case-mate case i have on the inspire gives GREAT protection, but makes a big phone even bigger, the atrix with the bodyglove feels tiny in my hands after 2 weeks of driving the inspire... I recently sold another iphone4, and it reminded me of the atrix in my hands, not build quality, as you mentioned above, but size...
4.3 qHD would be a perfect mix for me, and I am sure is what is in store for future HTC devices... but for now, I am in the same dilemia many are.
to Inspire, or not Inspire and Atrix my way through the rough of it...
to the avg user, hdmi out is no biggie, but to the ub3r geek in me who likes to VPN home, CIFS mount shares, and stream, hdmi is a big deal....
oh woe is me.....
Today Inspire still drives me to and from.... CM7rc4 battery gets me through the day, even as an Exchange Admin with more email on touchdown then most people, including gmail push...
But that said, i come right back with the atrix could get me past a full day!
like the good old Blackberry days..
theres my 2 cents, thrown into the pot, both heads up...
~killster
I'm so sick of these threads.
Man_of_Leisure said:
I'm so sick of these threads.
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Then don't read 'em... Problem solved.
Divinedark said:
Then don't read 'em... Problem solved.
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Just like you have the right to create threads, I have the right to respond to them. If you don't like that, you want a blog, not a forum.
Man_of_Leisure said:
Just like you have the right to create threads, I have the right to respond to them. If you don't like that, you want a blog, not a forum.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are absolutely correct. I appreciate your need to contribute completely unrelated, and pointless reflections on your own worthless personal opinion in my thread. So many others that are trying to decide between these two devices will find your additions to the subject of this thread invaluable. I truly hope that you will continue to follow that urge to spout your own polished, self-important drivel in the rest of the threads on this forum. If you don't, you will effectively be robbing us of your wisdom.
I'm sorry that I wasted your time reading my relatively well researched and thought out comparison between two close competing devices on the same carrier. From this point forward I'll be sure to continue adding to the typical device war crap like "TEH ATRIX IS A$$" and what not. That should sate your thirst for informative and entertaining topics on this forum.
Again. I'm very sorry.
Man_of_Leisure said:
Just like you have the right to create threads, I have the right to respond to them. If you don't like that, you want a blog, not a forum.
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Click to collapse
+1 I'm pretty sure there's already at least fifteen threads about Inspire vs Atrix. I thank you for taking the time to compare both and noting their strengths and weaknesses but like I said, there's already a ton of these threads and they just repeat the same opinions/info.
Clienterror said:
+1 I'm pretty sure there's already at least fifteen threads about Inspire vs Atrix. I thank you for taking the time to compare both and noting their strengths and weaknesses but like I said, there's already a ton of these threads and they just repeat the same opinions/info.
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It's true that there are a lot of posts that contribute this kind of information, but this one in particular was well thought out and written, and that helps provide a better reference for those interested. I also value those posts that say good things about devices. A lot of posts tend to complain about whatever device they're talking about. It's nice to have some good things to say in order to balance out the amount of user feedback.
Sent from my MB860 using Tapatalk
Yea... the majority of threads you see with this same general topic are basically just "The Atrix BLOWS!!!! I'm going back to my Inspire" blah blah blah. He was polite enough to explain his thoughts on the phone thoroughly, and go through his overall opinion on the phone over time, showing what has changed in his mind about each phone. Can kinda think of it more as a "phone review" than a "disgruntled customer".....
There are many Inspire / Atrix threads I've read but this one is a good, unbiased, well written everyday user experience. +1 for op.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
Divinedark said:
I do have some issues here, though. Mainly with the back cover. As noted in my initial post, its very brittle, thin plastic. If you think I broke a sweat taking the inspires battery cover off, you should have seen me trying to get the battery on the atrix. I pulled the top clip free, and almost bent the cover in half fighting the mid phone clips. Also, the back cover on my atrix doesn't line up flush on one side. The last couple issues are the "creakynesss" of the handset. When I grip the phone tightly I can feel the plastic components giving, and settling into place. Not terribly bad, but noticable. The last issue is the fingerprint scanner. It's been pointed out in some reviews, but the scanner is off center on some devices and just looks shoddily thrown together and misalligned.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The battery cover design is one of the things I really like about the Atrix. It is flexible on my phone, not brittle at all. It fits well and is a breeze to get on and off -- after the first time. The first time I was also a little scared and it caught at the middle a little. Since then, it is trivial to do. Of course, it spends most of its time covered by two layers of Otterbox Commuter in my case.
I have not noticed any creakiness -- seems very solid to me. It's reinforced by the Otterbox, so I might not ever notice anyway.
My fingerprint scanner doesn't seem to work at all. I get nothing but too short a swipe messages (works for me about 1 time out of 20). I have been assuming this is due it being placed down in a little hole by the Otterbox. I'm perfectly willing to give that up to get the extra protection and reduced slipperiness. My last unprotected phone (BB 9000) only made it a year before I dropped it many times including into 2 feet of water (don't ask, I need to be drinking to talk about it).
Yea.... i had the Defender for a day or so before i returned it for that one reason. Made it a bit more tricky to use the fingerprint reader. Found that too many times when i went to swipe (almost typed Swype in there... and no, not even on my phone. haha) my finger, it would wind up getting stuck with the outer soft casing of the Defender and either stop mid-swipe or skip part of my fingertip.
fingerprint scanner works great for me; when i first got it i thought it would be a useless novelty.
Slade8525 said:
fingerprint scanner works great for me; when i first got it i thought it would be a useless novelty.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not saying it doesn't work great. It works phenomenally. The issue is that some cases.... or mostly the OtterBox Defender, has quite a large hole where the fingerprint scanner resides.... and part of that hole is surrounded by the soft silicon/rubber of the outer shell of the case, which can make trying to get a solid swipe across the fingerprint reader a bit of a pain.
This is a pretty good review. I too left for an inspire and couldn't be happier, but I can see why people like their Atrix. Having cm7 was the deal breaker for me but if roms aren't a big deal the Atrix might be a better fit. I also had two phones with extremely bad call quality issues but I hear that's more of an isolated thing.
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA Premium App
I came from the captivate...to the atrix to the inspire and back to the atrix ...the only thing I miss from the inspire is htc sense
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
slimslim said:
There are many Inspire / Atrix threads I've read but this one is a good, unbiased, well written everyday user experience. +1 for op.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
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+1 great unbiased and amusing post. I was about to moan when I saw how long your post was, Divinedark but your well thought out/written comparison made me finish it without realizing it.
Well written OP. It's actually like two reviews of both phones and not just which beats which.
Thank you.
Didn't see an aggregation thread of this kind for the Note, thought it might be useful for people.
First off, the Engadget review, surprised me how positive they were!
Then I've got a few of my own pieces (with lots more to come, fire away if you have questions!
Unboxing:
How to Root (Odin method), also has first demo of MHL and the Note that I'm aware of (showing off Shadowgun with a PS3 controller):
What else have people seen that is cool?
http://www.3g.co.uk/PR/Nov2011/samsung-galaxy-note-review-by-3g-co-uk.html
A full fledged review of the Note; much like Engadget, they have nothing but praise for the device.
http://www.slashgear.com/galaxy-nexus-vs-white-galaxy-note-hands-on-27191503/
This is the only video I've seen of the white version making an appearance.
Ooh, thanks for the 3G review, hadn't seen it yet!
Here is part one of my own mega-review:
http://www.androidnz.net/2011/11/galaxy-note-real-user-review-part-1.html
...and another one confirming microSDXC cards work in the Note:
http://www.androidnz.net/2011/09/sandisk-64gb-micro-sdxc-cards-confirmed.html
http://www.pocket-lint.com/review/5615/samsung-galaxy-note-review
Pocket-Lint review
http://www.androidauthority.com/samsung-galaxy-note-first-impressions-30146/
Android Authority First Impressions/Review
I notice in none of those last two reviews do they mention the pentile matrix, or banding, or anything much of substance in relation to the screen. Precisely that sort of thing that makes me increasingly go off those major blogs reviews - they don't really get the concerns of us uber phone geeks...
More stuff, massive connectivity video:
Next part of my review is up here, covers entertainment aspects (audio quality, music and video playback, the browser, gaming).
Part one, if anyone missed it is here, and covers Unboxing, Initial impressions, Design/build quality, Screen and Benchmarks.
Unboxing from amazon.de. Starting right from the delivery box
A review by Ben Stevens of the UK "Which" magazine that gives a nice demo of the Note plus a desk full of official Samsung add-ons including:
Additional Battery Charger/Desk Stand
Horizontal/Vertical Desk Dock Charger
Car Dock
MHL/OTG Interface Leads
Protective Flip Cover.
Thanks NZtechfreak for tip on getting the Youtube video embedded here and for all your excellent experiments and info on the Note.
Had never heard of the Phonejoy gamepad - now have one on back order. Also getting into MHL and OTG experiments myself !
vinokirk said:
Unboxing from amazon.de. Starting right from the delivery box
youtube tags not working right... anyone know how to fix?
Click to expand...
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You just need the ID tag, the string of letters and numbers after the "=" sign.
@htc6500uk: Thanks for that, I have the flip case, but haven't seen the other things.
I am sad to say that after all that waiting and pacing and nail biting, the Galaxy Note was NOT the gadget for me. I actually didn't give it much of a chance. I had it out of the box for about an hour and what I felt to be a "horrible back cover" convinced me to take out my sim, take my Galaxy Tab 5" down and put the Note up in it's place on eBay.
I am not big on tweaking and rooting etc. My gadgets just need to "FEEL SOLID" and the Note didn't .. My Galaxy Tab feels GREAT .. My iPhone 4s feels GREAT ... but the Note was lacking .. JUST MY OPINION .. some people want thin and light weight. I wear a purse so it doesn't matter.
FINGERS CROSSED for some other gadget to come around soon .. I'm kinda waiting for something like the Note from HTC .. I will be in search of a solid feeling gadget, with phone and data on T-Mobile. That's all.
shEEEsh said:
I am sad to say that after all that waiting and pacing and nail biting, the Galaxy Note was NOT the gadget for me. I actually didn't give it much of a chance. I had it out of the box for about an hour and what I felt to be a "horrible back cover" convinced me to take out my sim, take my Galaxy Tab 5" down and put the Note up in it's place on eBay.
I am not big on tweaking and rooting etc. My gadgets just need to "FEEL SOLID" and the Note didn't .. My Galaxy Tab feels GREAT .. My iPhone 4s feels GREAT ... but the Note was lacking .. JUST MY OPINION .. some people want thin and light weight. I wear a purse so it doesn't matter.
FINGERS CROSSED for some other gadget to come around soon .. I'm kinda waiting for something like the Note from HTC .. I will be in search of a solid feeling gadget, with phone and data on T-Mobile. That's all.
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Click to collapse
This is the wrong thread for this type of post... but I must say - what about a unibody frame, beautiful full glass screen and classy (if a little slippery) textured back didnt "feel solid" to you?
You are quite vague in your criticism...
There are no 'official' threads here, frankly, a review is nothing more than opinion. Let's keep the door open to everyone and respect their opinions, people are entitled to them.
THAT... WAS... A REAL... PLEASURE... TO.... READ!!
Grab a cup of coffee or your favourite beverage and enjoy the review. I damn sure did.
http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_note_n7000-review-676.php
You may read my ever updating blogs dedicated to the Galaxy Note here.
Mind you it may not be as professional as the rest of yours but will keep getting updated constantly.
Hmmn, read the GSMarena review, interesting that their audio results were so impressive (I wonder if they still have the problem with testing with headphones, Supercurio previously was very critical of their testing results). Good to see an objective test confirming what my ears told me about the loudspeaker.
The GPS coverage was pretty anaemic, I think mine is much better:
NZtechfreak said:
Hmmn, read the GSMarena review, interesting that their audio results were so impressive (I wonder if they still have the problem with testing with headphones, Supercurio previously was very critical of their testing results). Good to see an objective test confirming what my ears told me about the loudspeaker.
The GPS coverage was pretty anaemic, I think mine is much better:
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Yours was without doubt was better and a joy to watch. I actually watched the whole video/route.
Also I do enjoy reading GSMArena's reviews, because I'm use to them(very old visitor/follower) but surely they are biased from time to time(or at least they seem so) and many times I did not agree with their reviews/remarks/findings etc.
P.S: Different thread for this but, it's kinda tricky that they did NOT mentioned the Note's front glass, since they even state it on their specs. My guess? They did not bother to remove it from the specifications.
For the record NZtechfreak, I love your reviews... to the extent that I have androidnz on my google reader now.
It's rare to find such in-depth coverage of the actual user's experience with a phone.
Review from the Telegraph UK:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/samsung/8894595/Samsung-Galaxy-Note.html
2.5 star rating. Complaints about the Note not replacing pen and paper seem to be the main focus and criticism.
Although I am holding my final judgement of the note until I have it for a while (only had it for a week), my opinion so far differs sharply with this review. I am guessing that the Note will get panned by some for its size, regardless of features or performance.
-Alex-
The Telegraph are just a newspaper though right? Not specifically a tech site? Most newspapers are terrible uninformed when it comes to technology.
Hi guys,
I used to own a samsung omnia7... i loved the screen and general size of the phone, but i had soo much problems with the call quality and signal strength. sometimes it had zero signal in the middle of town, sometimes i had to restart the phone for it to get some signal. and it had always lower signal than friend's phones side by side.
In a call i always had problems, i was not able to hear anything at some point during the conversation. The person called or the person who called me could also not hear me anymore. Sometimes i heard the other side with a robot sound.
I remember some people said the problem was with the way the phone switched between 3g/2g, and it did make sense since sometimes i locked my phone to 2g via diagnosis and it did improve somewhat (signal strenght still low). but it was never fully resolved.
My omnia was stolen and i cant go back to android now. i'm thinking about a focus, there really cheap in amazon this days (240$). other option is a surround (200$). and i guess the other will be the Dell Venue Pro (240$).
I will like everyones opinion because no screen is worth the problems i had with the omnia. and thanks for your help...
ronclone said:
Hi guys,
I used to own a samsung omnia7... i loved the screen and general size of the phone, but i had soo much problems with the call quality and signal strength. sometimes it had zero signal in the middle of town, sometimes i had to restart the phone for it to get some signal. and it had always lower signal than friend's phones side by side.
My omnia was stolen and i cant go back to android now. i'm thinking about a focus, there really cheap in amazon this days (240$). other option is a surround (200$). and i guess the other will be the Dell Venue Pro (240$).
I will like everyones opinion because no screen is worth the problems i had with the omnia. and thanks for your help...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Focus is an amazing phone. The screen is amazing to look at. I've got equal signal strength to my wife's iPhone 4s. We have a weak signal here at home, so it shows up easily.
I bought the Titan, and returned it the following day because I didn't see enough benefit to upgrade from the Focus. I then went and picked up the iPhone 4s (now for sale on eBay). When the Lumia 900 comes, it will be a different story....
I've converted 4 people showing them my Focus. They loved the screen, Windows Phone, and how quick and responsive it was. One guy didn't believe I didn't have a dual-core CPU since my phone was faster on 1 CPU than his dual-core CPU Android phone.
Anyway, I truly believe that some of the issues you describe are partially due to just having some poor or faulty hardware in the phone. Annoying in that it wasn't enough to get a trade-in replacement, but it was to not want to go back to one.
I personally know someone who has a DVP and loves it. The deal on buy.com isn't too shabby either! The screen on the DVP is stunning, bright, and extremely precise. Slide out keyboard is also handy for those that can't quite get the hang of typing on a virtual kb. If I had extra money I'd definitely pick up a DVP.
My Focus is attached to my hip, literally, and my wifes Focus is arriving in 3-5 business days from Buy.com.
Happy decisions!
Thanks man... i sure hope so since i coudn't wait and already bought one from amazon. Amazingly, i paid 480$ for my omnia7 and now only 199$ for the focus (no brainer, so cheap for such an amazing phone).
I agree with you, second gen phones are not worth the extra 200$/300$ at all. My omnia7 was capable enough for me. IMHO only thing 2nd gen has on us, is the front facing cam (which i wont use at all). Howerver... I will buy for sure one of the dual(or quad)-core/hd-screen/wp8 beasts that will no doubt come later this year, THAT will be a real upgrade!
Anyway, for sure the omnia7 has many more threads than the focus about the call quality/signal strenght problem. in fact, i only found a couple of post about it so thats a little reassuring...
witzman said:
Anyway, I truly believe that some of the issues you describe are partially due to just having some poor or faulty hardware in the phone. Annoying in that it wasn't enough to get a trade-in replacement, but it was to not want to go back to one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
True That!
Hello everyone. I haven't received my N4 yet, but I thought I'd check out the forums a head of time to I know what the phone will be like.... But now I'm nervous about it.
Reading the forums I see there are a lot of you guys saying that there are speaker noise, rattling camera, and other defects. Is the Nexus 4 really a defective phone or are there a lot of members here with OCD? (No offense, I've had my OCD moments too)
I was getting excited for a new phone (desperately need one) but now I'm not sure. Are there any of you guys who didn't find defects with the phone and are truly happy with it? Does every Nexus phone release with some quibbles?
Thanks
nexuscanvmx said:
Hello everyone. I haven't received my N4 yet, but I thought I'd check out the forums a head of time to I know what the phone will be like.... But now I'm nervous about it.
Reading the forums I see there are a lot of you guys saying that there are speaker noise, rattling camera, and other defects. Is the Nexus 4 really a defective phone or are there a lot of members here with OCD? (No offense, I've had my OCD moments too)
I was getting excited for a new phone (desperately need one) but now I'm not sure. Are there any of you guys who didn't find defects with the phone and are truly happy with it? Does every Nexus phone release with some quibbles?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Quit listening to overly nitpicky people.
I came from an iPhone 5 which is arguably, in terms of production and build quality, one of the better made phones and I can tell you that the N4 is simply a great phone. I've had it for a few weeks now and am enjoying it tremendously.
I saw all the threads, and while there are a few negatives to the phone, a lot of it is very and I mean very minor. With the exception of battery life (which is another topic in itself) the phone is fine and you will love it.
I got my phone in the second batch at the end of last week. I have found zero issues or defects with my phone! Not even a tiny hairline scratch!
I love my phone. I love the way it feels. I love how smooth it is. I love everything about it and have zero hardware issues......and I'm pretty critical when it comes to the details.
My one issue had to do with AT&T and their horrible service. I switched my account around and messed with APN stuff and now thats all better
Edit: as for battery life, I got 30 hours out of a single charge with moderate use. If you use it heavily, youre going to have battery issues unfortunately but I only charge my phone every 1.5 days
No speaker noise, no rattling here. Although what I can say is, the bottom and top of the plastic rim area has slight creaking, if you push down on it hard enough (not to worry though).
The buttons annoy me quite a bit, compared to the superb build quality of the iPhone 4/4S buttons these buttons are just pfft. They creak, and require you to hit the center of the button (where it clicks) to get the desired function. The sides of the button are virtually useless and go down on the side you push. That REALLY bugs me, but I'll live.
But these 2 issues are not issues that should prevent you from getting the phone. Sure, it won't reach Apple product standards, but it reaches the top of any Android Device I've ever seen. The Gorilla Glass 2 is also very sturdy.
Better quality phones out there I'm afraid. I feel a bit let down. The n4 feels solid but yeah there seems to be a lot of issues..
It has been hyped up a lot I think. It hasn't got great battery, or camera and there's better screens out there too. The performance feels smooth but benchmarks aren't breaking. Something sucks all the juice fast too.
Build wise its solid to hold. But mine for example has loose buttons, not great.
Lots of reports of shattering glass and easy breaks. Impact tests prove this too.
Video recording is.. Ok...but sound could be better, sounds very compressed on videos. Music sounds ok but iPhone sounds better IMO.
I haven't had issues with call quality yet.
Thanks for the positive affirmation guys. I'm upgrading from an Optimus T. It was a really good phone for the price (on prepaid) and wasn't too bad all around. There were some issues of freezing and slow downs but I think that may just because of the software LG had on it, which is why I wanted a pure android device. So hopefully the N4 will fit my needs.
Hear the same ol' complaining but yet when you ask anyone if they're willing to give up their phone, no one will.. you know why? Because it's awesome.
The phone is fast, it's smooth and it's every bit what a smart phone should do.
I for one don't sit there and mash my phone between my fingers or shake my phone till the insides come loose. I had more issues with the iPhone's stupid home button that kept losing sensitivity after months of use.
With some of you guys, did the phone exceed or meet your expectations?
if ur a nitpicky kinda person (and there are a lot on XDA), then u will find faults w/the phone and feel dissatisfied. I upgraded from a Nexus S to this so I'm perfectly content w/the phone. Others who switch from equal or better phones such as the GS3/Iphone/etc might not feel the same level of satisfaction.
I'm coming from a Galaxy S III and couldn't be happier with the Nexus 4. The build quality is outstanding. The device feels solid and is very well built. The only thing I miss from the S III is how the blacks were extremely black. If you are coming from the optimus T then you will seriously enjoy the Nexus 4.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium
jnewman1991 said:
I'm coming from a Galaxy S III and couldn't be happier with the Nexus 4. The build quality is outstanding. The device feels solid and is very well built. The only thing I miss from the S III is how the blacks were extremely black. If you are coming from the optimus T then you will seriously enjoy the Nexus 4.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium
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Hi Guys.. Similar sort of situation. Struggling to make my mind. Got my samsung galaxy s3 a week ago and quite happy so far but today ordered google nexus 4. Do not need it but want it. Now worried about LG brand and built quality. To be frank i have not done any research or comparsions. Need ur expert advice as I am coming from samsung s3 and S2...
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2
Haven't had a single problem with the N4. Had the Gnex before and even with the extended Samsung battery for the Gnex my N4 runs circles around it. I just charged it last night and it ran for 1d 15h 23m and it wasn't even dead yet. I don't use it any differently than my Gnex so I'm quite happy with the battery life. I was also connected to LTE but most of the places I go have wifi which is usually the case for most people. There's nothing wrong with the N4 people just like to be picky.
Quality is very good. Not crazy about the chrome-plated-plastic bezel and buttons, other than that it is fine.
Build quality is outstanding.
Gorgeous display (people complaining only about the limitations of the technology)
Amazingly smooth curved display. This just feels awesome to use... Blows any other glass out of the water (iPhone included) its so smooth...
If you get one with none of the normal defects (which most phones don't have) then you will get a premium phone at a decent price. I feel like I underpaid. Most people are nitpicking and should try making a phone themselves.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium
sum-xda said:
Hi Guys.. Similar sort of situation. Struggling to make my mind. Got my samsung galaxy s3 a week ago and quite happy so far but today ordered google nexus 4. Do not need it but want it. Now worried about LG brand and built quality. To be frank i have not done any research or comparsions. Need ur expert advice as I am coming from samsung s3 and S2...
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you like your battery life, stick with the S3.
I am really happy with it and it is great except I really wish the headphone jack was on the bottom.
I think the quality of the nexus 4 is sshhitty. Se the YouTube link. Don't know how many got this problem. I have the same problem. Don't know what to do? I actually bought my nexus from eBay Germany and I am living in Denmark. Nexus 4 is not available in Denmark yet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXHvSEUsv7Y&feature=youtube_gdata_player
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk
Coming from a Galaxy Nexus, the N4 exudes high-end to me. It looks very sleek. It's about the same weight. I feel more nervous about carrying around naked until my case comes in as it definitely feels more fragile due to the all-glass construction. I didn't notice much of a boost in terms of speed or responsiveness but in terms of 4g speeds it's more than double what I was getting on the GNex; I averaged about 18mb/2mb on several tests on T-Mobile, which is f'n fantastic! I tether a lot with my laptop, so this alone is worth the upgrade to me. I like to flash custom ROMs, but there really aren't many out there right now, so I'm currently running stock rooted, which I find is missing a lot of the shortcuts and features I like in the custom ROMs.
My only real gripe so far is the Clock app. I used my GNex as a bedside clock at night and on the GNex you could just tap it once and the screen would dim out to barely visible at all, but on the N4 it's way too bright in bedside mode, to the point I can't use it as a clock anymore!
Overall, verrry nice phone and build. Mine rattles near the camera, but I found my GNex does as well and so does my wife's iPhone 4. I don't see it as a defect at all. No loose buttons.
I think the Nexus 4's build quality is the one of the best among other phones. It doesn't have that plasticky, inexpensive feel that other Android phones have. This is much more on par with an iPhone. Yes, I did just compliment an Apple product. (You have to admit, they look nice.)
The glass on both sides really helps with that, and I haven't had any of the problems you've listed.
I'm one of those nitpicky guys. I have 5 different Galaxy Notes trying to find a good one. I absolutely love my N4. No issues whatsoever. Antenna good. No creaks. No yellow tinting. No scratches and I've been checking every day since it is currently without a case and I carry it in my pants pocket. Screen is really good though I do miss the amoled blacks. Battery life is great. Had 50% left at the end of the day yesterday with light to moderate use.