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Sorry for the long post btw, but here is my review of the HTC One for those who are interested
Just going to add my review, I have had the phone since Friday afternoon and it is now Tuesday afternoon.
I am coming from a HTC Sensation which I’ve had since launch so it was being to feel old, battery get rubbish etc... I have had a HTC for the past 5 years, so yes I am a bit of a HTC fan boy, but I’ll try be as honest as possible. (I was quite willing to go to the s4 if they improved things but they didn’t)
Build quality and physical features:
Firstly like everyone has said, the build quality and feel of the phone is amazing! Better than the iPhone. It is light but it isn’t too light
If that makes sense, it heavy enough to make it feel premium. It looks gorgeous feels gorgeous and is gorgeous. I don’t find it slippery in my hand, however when it’s in your pocket because of its height and smooth back I do feel abit uneasy about it slipping out when you’re sitting down.
I think the size is perfect for me, but that’s personal preference. The volume buttons are nice, in the right place, feel good and easy to press. The
The micro usb is on the button , which is a plus for me to put into my android dock, but is much more to the right hand side, would of been nice for it to be more central but I’m being picky.
The power button is flush and smooth, and far to over the left hand device to me making it awkward if you have small hands (luckily I don’t) however I am totally used to it now so it doesn’t bother me anymore.
The button layout I actually love now I am used to it. Android phones only need 2 buttons, and long as you remember the double tap or hold down home shortcuts you will be fine. You get used to it way to quick, so much that I used my sensation the other day and kept pressing the wrong buttons on it.
Battery: (using auto brightness, power save off, WI fi on mostly.)
Ok so I wasn’t expecting much until I started reading the reviews of people saying it’s awesome. It isn’t awesome, it’s ok. Through a work day with light usage I get from 100% to about 80%, which is more than anyone else. Though saying that it seems most of my battery is trying to find mobile signal (I get crap signal for every network at work) so I’m trying to go aeroplane mode as no point searching for signal that isn’t there, I’ll keep you all updated on how this works out.
Then when I get home I whack out the games, do bit browsing, check Facebook, text all night etc… and it does drop quickly. Both nights I have gone from 80% to 0% in about 5/6 hours with heavy usage. Which tbf isn’t bad, but it’s not great.
Point to add, I’m still messing about with settings and apps, and I do find myself just turning my phone on to play with it , so I’m expecting the battery life to improve when I stop being a little kid . I have also drained it fully and fully charged it 4 times.
For example useage today, my brightness is at lowest it will go, wifi off, radio on, its been on for about 6 hours, about 30 mins screen on, and i have been playing music for about 10 minutes on full volume, my battery is at 79%.
Sense 5:
Very very nice, big improvement over 4 I feel. Nice and clean, simple to use and lots of nice little features, as well as some annoying ones.
I like the icons, I love the message app, it allows you to change theme of how the texts set out, so for example texts sent by you show up one colour, by the other person another, and then a different background. It’s just the little things like that that make a difference. Settings are similar to 4 so nothing to go on about there.
Blink feed is handy, but more a gimmick I feel, they need to greatly improve the sources because all I see at the minute is my Facebook newsfeed which annoys me slightly. But it has potential.
I like when you unlock the screen it goes to where you were last. And the lock screen is very nice and simple. It does annoy me how the preview texts come up though, at the bottom but only 2 lines of it, not like sense 4 when you got the bubble in the middle.
The thing that annoys me is with no menu button you can’t quickly change your wallpaper or go into settings etc... You have to drag down the notification bar and go to settings. When in an app and pressing home button, you go back to the app draw and not the home screen, that annoys me, but is useful every 1/10 times you press it! I would have also liked a quick settings bar but I have an app to do that anyway.
These are all little niggle bits which most of you won’t mind about, and can be resolved with rooting/little software tweaks by htc.
Screen:
Nothing more to say than amazing. Best screen I have seen on a smartphone hand down, viewing angles, colours etc... all brilliant. And the right size
Camera:
I haven’t had a massive play with the camera but what I have I have been impressed. There is virtually no shutter lag which is brilliant (big thing coming from sensation) you press the button it takes a picture, and keep pressing it, it keeps taking pictures. The quality in low light is amazing; you can just see on the screen how much light it is picking up.
The video quality is great and that extra microphone does make a difference to sound quality, there is a lack of bass however but it is crystal clear. Can also take pics while videoing which is handy?
The amount of options to edit your photo is ridiculous; I think I will need a year with the phone to work out all of them! Unsure whether this is a good thing or bad, after all if it’s there but not used, what’s the point? But it is nice you have the option.
Boom sound:
This is the one feature that is literally drawing dropping; the sound that comes out of this phone is amazing. Out of the people I’ve shown they have all been amazed and said wow that is so loud and clear for a phone. The need for those little crappy portable speakers is gone, it still can’t replace a good dock but it comes close.
This is also makes a huge difference when playing games and apps etc... the sound quality and loudness makes it just that much more enjoyable!
Although please note, you will never miss an alarm again! They do need to lower the volume a bit to compensate for the loudness, as stupid as that sounds.
Other:
The processor is amazing and lag free. However it does heat up, not as much as my sensation does when put under heavy load, but it’s noticeable. Plus side is it will make a lovely hand warmer in those cold months, downside I’m guessing the heat with affect battery life.
HTC ONE Vs. Sony Xperia Z
Luckily my brother decided to buy the sony xz the day before I got my one, and I got the chance to compare the phones (sorry no pics or videos didn’t have the time)
I have to say the htc one was better, in my opinion in most ways, it felt better, looked better, nicer screen, better viewing angles, better camera (only tested at a restaurant in low light though).
The only thing I prefer about the sony was the fact the power button was on the side, which made it very easy to press.
Closing thoughts:
The HTC One is no doubt the best phone on the market at the minute in my opinion. It has pretty much everything you want from a phone. It can be improved, of course it can, but HTC are onto a winner here. Everybody who has seen/heard it has said wow that is a nice phone, how much is that etc… Obviously we can’t compare it fully to the s4 yet, which will be its biggest rival, but I think the 2 phones will have different audiences. The question is, will this phone withstand the test of time with key lime pie looking to be released and maybe a nexus 5, we will see!
Please leave your opinions/comments, but note this is my personal view but I welcome a healthy debate on the subject! I hope this helps those who are looking at buying this phone.
UPDATE 21/3
Ok some now ive had the phone nearly a week i have some things to add.
Firstly anybody worrying about the notification LED, dont , it is bar far brightest i have had on any phone (including htc sensation and desire) it might be smaller but it is noticeable, when charging it obviously isnt on full brightness, but when you get a notification its easily see able.
2ndly the battery: I was having play and found i was get some wakelock issues from google maps and fb. I turned off google now and have seen a massive improvement in battery life.
Currently today im on 65% , phone has been on for 13 hours, about hour of screen on time. about 30 mins of playing real racing, tiny bit of checking wi fi etc.. Before i would on about 30% . Therefore my opinion has greatly improved over the battery. Can last me 2 days if i really want it too.
On a side note, i am getting my phone exchanged at end of march due to gap (see the thread on gap issue if you want more info) but i am truely happy with this phone now the battery has improved, and im getting used to doing things slightly different way.
Re: My HTC One review
Nice review. Thx
Ur review about the battery is more reliable to me than those who States 6hours sceen on. 6hours for me is only possible if u just leave the phone on desk with screen on untouched lol.
One question. Can you make a call to someone using speaker and see if the other side Can hear u well?
Also any scratches yet? Is it ez to get scratched?
Thanks
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2
ksarius said:
Nice review. Thx
Ur review about the battery is more reliable to me than those who States 6hours sceen on. 6hours for me is only possible if u just leave the phone on desk with screen on untouched lol.
One question. Can you make a call to someone using speaker and see if the other side Can hear u well?
Also any scratches yet? Is it ez to get scratched?
Thanks
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2
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Click to collapse
Yer i am questioning some of the people who are saying battery is so good, i have always been light on my battery and it is not lasting
as long as my htc sensation. Im trying different things with it atm to see if i can make it last longer, but i mean it still lasts a full day, just about though.
I have been on the phone to a few people and they say the speaker phone is good, not amazing or the best they have heard, but good.
While not on speaker phone people have said its really clear and very little background noise.
No scratches at all yet, ive had no case on it or anything but not a thing, its looks as good as it did on the first day.
The back doesn't smudge at all, and the screen just wipes clear on your shirt.
I hope you have some sunshine to try the screen under direct sunlight
How do you feel the weight of the phone in hand compared to Sensation?
GPS lock is faster too?
vegetaleb said:
I hope you have some sunshine to try the screen under direct sunlight
How do you feel the weight of the phone in hand compared to Sensation?
GPS lock is faster too?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
We had some the other morning , not alot mind you and i didnt have any problems with viewing the screen, only half brightness, but it wasnt particularly sunny!
GPS lock is much faster than sensation, used to take about 30 seconds on sensation, takes about 5/10 on the one.
Weight wise its feels lighter than the sensation, i have to say as silly as it sounds i think htc have got the weight spot on.
Light enough to hold in and watch film etc.. not too light to feel cheap.
Fair review, nice to read a 'real users' thoughts on the battery, I can only see good things coming for this handset.
I honestly think it'll do the the SGS4 what the SGS3 did to the HTC One X, steal all of it's limelight!
Re: My HTC One review
The-Last-Hylian said:
Fair review, nice to read a 'real users' thoughts on the battery, I can only see good things coming for this handset.
I honestly think it'll do the the SGS4 what the SGS3 did to the HTC One X, steal all of it's limelight!
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Click to collapse
I don't know if this is a subliminal message towards my post but whatever. At the end of today it will be two days with the phone. I am noticing that battery life is decent. Not as great as I was hoping it to be, however yesterday I did use the phone really heavily as I had a day off. Unplugged at 100% battery 11am and it was at like 3% come 9pm. That's pretty good but I was hoping it would last at least another hour or two hours. I did have to put it on power saver mode at 20% so that's a thing to note. As I get used to the phone and it goes through a couple of charges I think I will really be able to tell properly but for now, that is all.
Sent from my HTC One using xda premium
TXH
Thanks for the interessting Review !:good:
Thanks for the review. It's always better to hear from the end user instead of web reviews alone. Gives a more balanced opinion. One quest if possible. Any chance you could record loud music maybe from hi Fi or music channel or club to see how sensitive the mic is. You don't have to upload to YouTube. Or if anyone else could test. My One X and Sensation were really poor even though HTC boasted about stereo mic
Once again thanks.
agent.m said:
Thanks for the review. It's always better to hear from the end user instead of web reviews alone. Gives a more balanced opinion. One quest if possible. Any chance you could record loud music maybe from hi Fi or music channel or club to see how sensitive the mic is. You don't have to upload to YouTube. Or if anyone else could test. My One X and Sensation were really poor even though HTC boasted about stereo mic
Once again thanks.
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Click to collapse
Ive recorded sound coming from my bose sound system and it is very good. Better than any smartphone i have heard, it does restrict the bass abit , but you get clear audio so the sacrifice is worth it.
Im updating original as well since i have a few to add about the battery.
Are you having problems with the back button?
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2
ksarius said:
Are you having problems with the back button?
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2
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Click to collapse
nope, sometimes you have to press the back or home button twice but i think down to just missing the exact spot.
But not having the problems some others have described
Phil750123 said:
nope, sometimes you have to press the back or home button twice but i think down to just missing the exact spot.
But not having the problems some others have described
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Click to collapse
The predictive text input is fecking horrendous........only thing I found wrong with the phone....
I think the back and home button issue is down to the small footprint of the actual buttons, i reckon people expect to just be able to hit around the area of the button for it to work when in fact it needs to be more precise.
Good or bad?......up to the user, i think good.
dai_griff said:
The predictive text input is fecking horrendous........only thing I found wrong with the phone....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Install swift key and never look back
Sent from my MB886 using xda app-developers app
So you're returning it for the gap issue?
This worries me. When I had a Desire HD, the speaker blew. I had to give my phone to Telus so they could send it to HTC to have it repaired. They sent it back and it wasn't fixed at all, so back it went. I had to use an HTC Hero for a month.
When I had my iPhone, I just walked into the apple store and they gave me a new one.
I'm worried I am waiting all this time and I'll get a gapped phone, or what have you.
---------- Post added at 06:55 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:54 PM ----------
dai_griff said:
The predictive text input is fecking horrendous........only thing I found wrong with the phone....
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Click to collapse
I thought I saw in a review that the keyboard was way better than any previous HTC phone. It wasn't bad at all on my HTC Desire HD. How bad could it be now?!
Ballfuzz said:
So you're returning it for the gap issue?
This worries me. When I had a Desire HD, the speaker blew. I had to give my phone to Telus so they could send it to HTC to have it repaired. They sent it back and it wasn't fixed at all, so back it went. I had to use an HTC Hero for a month.
When I had my iPhone, I just walked into the apple store and they gave me a new one.
I'm worried I am waiting all this time and I'll get a gapped phone, or what have you.
---------- Post added at 06:55 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:54 PM ----------
I thought I saw in a review that the keyboard was way better than any previous HTC phone. It wasn't bad at all on my HTC Desire HD. How bad could it be now?!
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Click to collapse
I cant comment on the keyboard as i just installed swift key as i used it on my own phone and cant go wrong with it.
Yup getting it exchanged, but tbf most people seem to have a gap, so im hoping just because its the first batch, and things will improve.
But yer im not worried about the gap now, but to me it what can happen in 6 months time, with use etc.. it will probably expand and
cause problems, so best to get it sorted now.
I did send a pic to htc and they told me to get it exchanged.
:highfive: congrats to those who have it early.
so tell us what you think about it, the feel on the hand, how fragile does it look and feel (is it slippery like the sony phones with glass, grippy?) , hows the performance of the camera, screen, battery, etc.
It's only been half a day but my early impressions are as follows,
-Fingerprint scanner is wicked fast.
-Screen is beautiful
-It is fast fast fast. I love Samsung devices and I admit that lag was always an issue. I have not been able to slow it down yet. Really I havent. Lol. Even the recent app switcher is fast.
-Like the themeing a lot. I can't wait for more themes.
-Feels good on the hand. The edge does make it a bit different to hold but I love the curved screen. Makes using the phone a pleasure.
-I have only taken a couple pictures but they turned out great. More on that later.
I'm sure I'll have more as the days pass..
I played with the phone in a T mobile store. For about 20 minutes battery was down to 93% from 100%.,Power hungry. Could you guys confirm?
Also I found the browser cannot hide the status bar hence no full screen browsing. Please also confirm this?
S6 edge in the bestbuy which is unbranded has no ability to sort the menu alphabetically. But T mobile edge has an option to sort.
You're correct on the status bar. Too early to know on the battery. The option to sort might have come in the software update that dropped today. Not sure though.
does this look like the edge to u? i think phonearena made a mistake
http://www.phonearena.com/news/Sams...r-but-survives-this-violent-drop-test_id67696
It looks like the edge
The regular s6 has very recognizable edge as well and that is not it
Sent from my SM-G900P using XDA Free mobile app
avenging said:
does this look like the edge to u? i think phonearena made a mistake
http://www.phonearena.com/news/Sams...r-but-survives-this-violent-drop-test_id67696
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Click to collapse
Yup, that an Edge, and damn did she slam that hard! Good to know it can survive what she just did, lol.
From a performance point of view there is no doubt in my mind the Edge is going to be great, the only doubt is battery life... I realise its a bit early for conclusions yet but once people have used their phones for a week or so, its the questions that everyone wants answering. Everyone's use patterns are different but as long as I can make it through a heavyish day ok, I'll be happy with that.
madpete said:
From a performance point of view there is no doubt in my mind the Edge is going to be great, the only doubt is battery life... I realise its a bit early for conclusions yet but once people have used their phones for a week or so, its the questions that everyone wants answering. Everyone's use patterns are different but as long as I can make it through a heavyish day ok, I'll be happy with that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's battery is only 7% less in capacity than S5, so I see no reason why battery life would be extremely different. The screen has higher res, but CPU is much more power efficient.
Szadzik said:
It's battery is only 7% less in capacity than S5, so I see no reason why battery life would be extremely different. The screen has higher res, but CPU is much more power efficient.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes...still, I'd rather yes some real numbers from someone who actually has the phone. We know very little about its battery performance yet, and I have seen mixed reviews with some saying its good and others poor.
I should just say that I have the phone pre ordered and I'm looking forward to getting it, battery is the only doubt I have...I'd just like to see some numbers and I think most other people would too.
madpete said:
Yes...still, I'd rather yes some real numbers from someone who actually has the phone. We know very little about its battery performance yet, and I have seen mixed reviews with some saying its good and others poor.
I should just say that I have the phone pre ordered and I'm looking forward to getting it, battery is the only doubt I have...I'd just like to see some numbers and I think most other people would too.
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Click to collapse
I have pre-ordered it as well, but it is still 2 weeks before shipping. We will all see in due time. People in the US are already getting theirs, so we should have some info within a week as batteries start working normally after a few charges.
Also could you guys confirm available free memory?
I went to Best Buy yesterday to get a look at the S6 edge. Needless to say, I was very impressed. Touchwiz seems lightning fast compared to 4.3 on my S4. The shortcuts and ease of access really convinced me to buy this (when green comes along). The edge display looks absolutely amazing and does, in fact, feel more immersive. I love the metal frame and the new headphone jack location. Basically, this thing looks and feels all-around perfect. The black looks BLACK in person, whereas online it gave me the belief that it was a deep-blue. Don't know if I want to settle for the white 32GB or wait a month or two in hopes of the green appearing.
varunkumars said:
Also could you guys confirm available free memory?
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Click to collapse
I forgot to look. With all my apps and a couple hundred pix loaded on have 107 gigs available.
varunkumars said:
Also could you guys confirm available free memory?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the 32GB should have around 22-25GB available
and
the 64GB should have around 53-56GB available
Szadzik said:
It's battery is only 7% less in capacity than S5, so I see no reason why battery life would be extremely different. The screen has higher res, but CPU is much more power efficient.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Eh, you forgot to mention that the screen was actually more efficient, too. Not only is it 14nm, the screen is like 23% more efficient than the screen on the Note 4, iirc.
tehdef said:
Eh, you forgot to mention that the screen was actually more efficient, too. Not only is it 14nm, the screen is like 23% more efficient than the screen on the Note 4, iirc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was not aware the screen would be more efficient with that much higher resolution, but that is a good thing to know as well. Might mean all this whining about smaller battery size is just for the sake of whining.
Thanks for your answers guys. Today again I walked into Best buy and T mobile stores to do my research more. What I found,
Battery: Yesterday when I played with the phone I suspected it to be Power hungry. But I think I should take it back. Battery is ok not bad after all. I am comparing with my LG G2(has a good battery, 3000mah) and I measured the time it takes to drop every %. S6 takes a little more time than the G2 to drop which tells me the battery is good. Also the picture below. I don't have an S5 so I can't really compare with that. I played a couple of games that were installed on the phone and the battery is still ok. This is by no means a scientific way of measuring, neverthless I wanted to share this with you guys.
Although I have chargers at home, car and work still a good battery(if not the best) gives a sense of confidence. and satisfaction that I have the best phone irrespective of all the breath taking features. Don't you agree?? S6 may not disappoint I believe.
Browser/Browsing: Browsing is a breeze. No sense of lag anywhere. But the status bar doesn't hide which I assume is a part of Lollipop. I would be curious to see if a dev can come up with a mod. A full screen immersive browsing on the S6 's beautiful screen would be super cool.
Youtube/Video: Flawless like its predecessors. Nothing special to mention.
Music: Flawless sound like its predecessors. No distortion. Sound is very clean with the headphones. I listen to a lot of Music and sound quality is very important for me. When I played the music on speaker I felt some vibration I wonder what that is??? I wonder if it is the speaker giving the vibration.
Menu:Arrangement of the apps in the menu is nice and simple although I would prefer the icons to be a little smaller. T mobile phones come with an option to sort alphabetically. AT&T don't have the phone for display yet(Slackers:crying so can't tell. All in all I like this new menu. No complaints.
GPS: I didn't spend a lot of time here but I thought it locked quick enough. Nothing special and no complaints.
Screen Quality : I thought the screen is much better than S5 (in the store) and on par with the note 4. But my G2 has a different color temperature which I believe make whites look a little bluish where as S6 whites are yellowish. To me both are ok. But I really have to admit the additional pixels on S6 make no difference in picture quality (S6 vs G2). Really a 1080p screen would have been enough. To clarify I am not complaining, just my opinion. Viewing angles are good unlike G2 (LG's for that matter).
I have to tell you, normal people passing by with no phone knowledge would stop by and take a glimpse at the edge screen, They all seem to like it. Seems like edge is getting all the attention it deserves.
Build/Design: This is where S6 edge outshines every other phone in the market. In my opinion, till date this the best design ever period. I have seen some complaints about finger prints. It is not bad after all. Looks like white takes less finger prints than others. Excellent build quality and feels solid in hands. Thums up.
Single handed use: It can be used single handed with no issues. Menu is set up for single hand use which I really like. Although my hand is not very big it fit nicely in my hand. Not sure about the non-edge S6. Should be the same.
Speed This is one thing that is very crucial. All android phones I used so far tend to be fast initially but as I go adding/deleting apps and other files phone tends to get laggy. It really gets on my nerves. But even as a brand new phone they stutter at times. But with S6 it is blazing fast. No lag anywhere (at least I did not see). App drawer is a little slow to open. Samsung probably configured it to be slower on purpose. Some might misunderstand it to be a lag, just a heads up. Speed speed speed is what it is.
Camera: I need not specially tell you about the camera. There are expert reviews which claim this to be the best camera. Flawless. Double press on the menu opens the camera in split seconds which is very impressive.
I care less about the heart rate sensor so did not test it. Although I care about finger print scanner I could not test it because it is not my phone.
This is a big leap forward not just for Samsung but for android as a whole.
I was disappointed about the battery yesterday but liked it today and took some time to test all the features. I like the phone, will get one. White Color 32gb. AT&T.
tdphotos said:
the 32GB should have around 22-25GB available
and
the 64GB should have around 53-56GB available
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Click to collapse
I think he meant the true amount of RAM available. (Should be less than 3 GB)
Status bar maybe due to Lollipop. Its present on my Pure Edition Moto X and my Atrix HD running CM12.
Sent from my XT1095 using XDA Free mobile app
Here we go another boring review of the ZF2, I'll try to make it short and sweet...
Canadian Version, Asus Zenfone 2, 4g/64gb Silver version
What I came from?
Samsung Galaxy S5 16g, truly loved this phone when I got it less then a year ago. Has been serving me good until Lollipop update which on a 16gb version phone doesn't leave you much to play with. Even apps/games copied to MicroSD, I was left with 1 gb left on the phone to use and no idea what was chewing up the memory. My S5 was starting to lag a bit on a daily usage.
When I got the ZF2...
I wasn't looking to get a new phone but when my neighbour bought one, she had me set it up for her, that did it, I went out and bought it the next day, it was truly that good in my hands. It literally blew my S5 away in so many ways and I'll outline some of them here.
Unrealistic reviews...
I did a lot of reading that evening on the ZF2 before I got it, a good 10 hours of reading to be exact. The only things that I didn't like pre-purchase was the obvious, battery life, top power button and the non-removeable battery. I was quite amazed that a lot of people were listing negatives of the ZF2 compared to high end phones, ok ppl, this is not rated as a high-end phone although it competes quite close to them. You need to understand that you are comparing a $380 cdn phone to $800 to $1100 phones, apples and oranges folks.
Some glitches I've noticed...
Well, only one but not a huge deal. A couple of my games start up fine but controls are way off, ie. the controls are mirrored, meaning where the screen joysticks are, the sensitive is actually mirrored vertically, weird. The rest of my games are fine, just a couple I've noticed. Again, I don't play a lot of games so not a big deal. The other is we have LTE here and I'm use to the LTE icon on the status bar, on the ZF2, it just says 4G, which is basically the same thing, again, cosmetics, the speed is the same if not faster then my S5 for internet.
What I love...
Not sure what everyone is complaining about the battery, I haven't noticed any excessive drain then the usual, I get a whole day of usage from mine and even a bit left over before it hits the charger. This was the same as my S5 maybe a tad more probably because of the bigger screen. The fast charging makes up for this, the S5 took forever to charge. Also, the S5 was waterproof IF you remember to close the sync door lol.
In the end my decisions were the 64gb, you don't know how much nicer that is compared to a 16gb until you have the amount of apps/games I do Speed, this phone is insanely smooth and fast, I've used the Galaxy S6 and I'm not able to tell the difference between the two under normal use. Dual-sim, I use a US/Mexico Roam Mobility sim, so I can just leave this in my phone and activate it when I'm in those areas, nice and convenient. Screen size is nice and big but I'm not a big screen phone fan, single hand use is tough. Fast battery charging, this phone charges super fast.
Overall this phone I've had for about a week now has served me well. The screen is not as bright as my SuperAMOLED S5 but again, the price makes up for that. Screen looks good to me though, pictures are vivid, HD MKV movies play perfect, no complaints there. The outer case is fine, a little slippery, doesn't look cheap, volume buttons are oddly in the center on the back but I'm starting to like it there, I use to have fiddle around with my S5 on the sides and almost dropped the phone a couple of times doing so, the ZF2 volume buttons I think is more accessible because my index is naturally there when talking on the phone. A couple of things I did find interesting, the ZF2 has better call quality and reception then my S5 which I find quite odd for a phone that's much cheaper. Unassisted GPS works and syncs very fast using Sygic.
For the price and the caliber of this phone, I say I made the right decision. Unlocked, dual-sim, 4 gb/64gb, Quard-core, 5.5" screen, fast charging, you really can't lose. I just can't wait to get my protective case and glass screen protector, I'm really paranoid about dropping or scratching it now So, I will give it another week or so, if it performs like it does now still, my unlocked Galaxy S5 will probably go on sale with the unfortunately ZF2 incompatible Galaxy Gear watch (damn Samsung )
I can highly recommend the zenwatch to go along with your ZF2. It also punches well above its weight for the price.
Congrats Minim3. I just picked up a 4gb/64gb model in gold today from NCIX. Loving it so far.
Sent from my HTC One using XDA Free mobile app
What I hate about zf2 is its black plastic bezzel got scratches easily if you are not using any case, second its button does not have any background lights
Yea I've literally received mine today but the first thing I've done is put it in a case. No matter how small a nick you get it will always annoy you.
As to backlit capacitive buttons that's a matter of preference. The last phone I had with them was the S3 and the first thing I did with it was switch the lights of as they annoyed me so much. (-:
Sent from my ASUS_Z00ADA using Tapatalk
When ppl are reviewing this phone how come no one mentions the 100GB Google drive offer, at least for me this was a fifty dollar value.
Sent from my ASUS_Z00AD using XDA
Yes codgib, that was a very welcome bonus. I am so pleased with this phone and the bonus.
Sent from my ASUS_Z00AD using XDA Free mobile app
nice review,
the 2nd sim slot is useful for me too, and the double tap to turn on/off is very useful on that big screen (even it consume power)
I've had mine for a few weeks now. I got the 1.8GHz/4GB/32GB model. I came from a 1st gen Moto G.
Pros
- Big, colourful display
- Good performance (in general and on gfx-heavy games)
- Multitasking is a breeze thanks to the RAM
- Great reception (at least compared to my previous phone)
- Native call recording
- Expandable memory
- OTG (although seemingly not NTFS. Disappointing)
Cons
- Average camera (although the app itself is much better than the base Google Camera)
- Average sound volume. I had to bump the dB levels of my mp3s before transferring to the phone (although it's fine through headphones). Misleading speaker grille at the rear of the phone (I was aware of this before purchase)
- Below average sound quality (bass seems almost non-existent/tinny)
- Average screen brightness. Can be very difficult to use in direct sunlight (The 720p model apparently has better brightness)
- Average battery life
- Power button is awkward to reach at times, saved only by double-tap on/off screen
- Volume up/down button on the rear. I use my phone to play radio/music so it sits on a table etc. Having to lift the phone to adjust the volume is a bit of a nuisance
- Can get sluggish after a while (granted, this is really more down to the 5.0 LP memory leak issue)
- Too much pre-loaded software
Yes I forgot those, good call. Was so use to my s5 buttons lighting this will take time to get use to.
Nice review, I have also had mine for almost a month now.
I am quite fond of the device, and have no major issues with it. I am still getting used to the size, and ZenUI is not my favorite., but a custom launcher makes it "feel" better to me. The latest update has done wonders for battery life, which I was initially concerned about as mine was drastically different then the one a good buddy picked up on the same day. For my usage patterns the phone works perfectly well; call quality, camera, audio, radios, and screen responsiveness included.
Some of my biggest pros for the device are: overall speed, storage, SD Card, battery life, camera, quick access lock screen apps, USB OTG, and tap to wake. Oh, and quick charging is awesome, I love it.
My cons are mostly related to all of the ZenUI apps now listed on "My Apps" in the Play Store, the occasional missed gesture, and lack of customization options for the tools on the quick settings panel (which is a nice option to have, but I would like take better advantage of it, especially from the lock screen). I would have loved to have had wireless charging, but if that is a trade off for quick charging, I am fine with it.
All in all, I am more than pleased with the device, and will recommend to anyone not scared of the size.
Maybe we are one of the lucky ones not experiencing the battery drain issue, I get a full days use with some left over on mine, which is what I got from my Galaxy S5. Yeah, I hear ya, the ZenUI is a bit gruesome but I'm a big fan of Nova Prime and that was installed pretty quickly after.
As for the bloatware, some are actually useful, it's not really creating an issue for me, just hide the apps if you don't want to see it and I use the Startup Manager to disable startup on most of them, no biggie. I am however a bit disappointed and I hope Asus reads these threads, with all the bloatware, you would think they could at least put in an app that syncs with Outlook Contacts and Calendar, it is a pretty widely used program but I'm force to buy a 3rd party app that syncs contacts and calendar. I've tried Outlook.com etc, but I'm not a big fan of dumping my contacts and calendar online and syncing that way. Samsung has Kies to do this and so does LG, really, with all the bloatware how hard is it for Asus to create a simple and effective sync app for Outlook.
I hear you with the size thing and the phone is a bit slippery, until my case and screen protector arrives, this is will be handle with extra care, gorilla glass or not I thought my S5 was big to handle, this one is bigger, will take a bit to get use to but I think the phone is worth it.
jaysus145 said:
Nice review, I have also had mine for almost a month now.
I am quite fond of the device, and have no major issues with it. I am still getting used to the size, and ZenUI is not my favorite., but a custom launcher makes it "feel" better to me. The latest update has done wonders for battery life, which I was initially concerned about as mine was drastically different then the one a good buddy picked up on the same day. For my usage patterns the phone works perfectly well; call quality, camera, audio, radios, and screen responsiveness included.
Some of my biggest pros for the device are: overall speed, storage, SD Card, battery life, camera, quick access lock screen apps, USB OTG, and tap to wake. Oh, and quick charging is awesome, I love it.
My cons are mostly related to all of the ZenUI apps now listed on "My Apps" in the Play Store, the occasional missed gesture, and lack of customization options for the tools on the quick settings panel (which is a nice option to have, but I would like take better advantage of it, especially from the lock screen). I would have loved to have had wireless charging, but if that is a trade off for quick charging, I am fine with it.
All in all, I am more than pleased with the device, and will recommend to anyone not scared of the size.
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godgib said:
When ppl are reviewing this phone how come no one mentions the 100GB Google drive offer, at least for me this was a fifty dollar value.
Sent from my ASUS_Z00AD using XDA
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phppt. In my case because I got 1TB when I picked up the i3 Acer chromebook last fall... 100GB is nothing...
Something that I forget to mention on the negatives, now having had the phone for several weeks now using it daily are the non-backlit capacitive buttons. In the dark, I generally hit them correctly but having them lit would've been nice to have.
The top power button doesn't really bother, but I'm not sold on the rear volume buttons.
Side mounter externally accessible uSD and SIM slots would've been better as well as a more readily user replaceable battery, beyond that I'm with the review coming from a nexus 5 with the added bonus that this phone is capable of twice the bandwidth(4G) that my n5 was capable of in the identical geopgraphical locations as well as apparently overall better antenna design(better signal reception from just above the n5 to WAY better in many cases...).
cutterjohn said:
phppt. In my case because I got 1TB when I picked up the i3 Acer chromebook last fall... 100GB is nothing...
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Nothing when compared to 1TB maybe, but it's still a considerable chunk of 'free' cloud space. I still have my 50GB from my Moto G offer and that was ~18 months ago. To be honest, I only use ~8GB on my Dropbox/Drive anyway so it wasn't a big pro.
I think their gist was that they didn't make a big (or any) deal of the 100GB. I (and most others) didn't even know it was a thing until we got the phone. The 1TB on those Chromebooks was offered as an incentive and as a kind of offset for the small SSDs that normally come with them. What's on yours? 32/64GB?
I appreciate the free 100gb of cloud storage.
Sent from my ASUS_Z00AD using XDA Free mobile app
100 GB or 1 TB, all I know is you can never have too much Google Drive :good:
cutterjohn said:
phppt. In my case because I got 1TB when I picked up the i3 Acer chromebook last fall... 100GB is nothing...
Something that I forget to mention on the negatives, now having had the phone for several weeks now using it daily are the non-backlit capacitive buttons. In the dark, I generally hit them correctly but having them lit would've been nice to have.
The top power button doesn't really bother, but I'm not sold on the rear volume buttons.
Side mounter externally accessible uSD and SIM slots would've been better as well as a more readily user replaceable battery, beyond that I'm with the review coming from a nexus 5 with the added bonus that this phone is capable of twice the bandwidth(4G) that my n5 was capable of in the identical geopgraphical locations as well as apparently overall better antenna design(better signal reception from just above the n5 to WAY better in many cases...).
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I'm with you on the capacitor buttons but I'm starting to get use to it, the double tap on and off on the screen is actually becoming very handy. I come from the Galaxy S5, the lit buttons were nice I wish they had the double tap on and off, I much prefer that.
As for the volume button, I actually find it more natural for me the way I hold the phone if I need to turn the volume up or down while speaking on the phone, personal preference. Also, I'm use to putting my phone down face down on a table/desk because I'm paranoid about something dropping on my screen, this happened to my Galaxy S3, face up on my desk, I went to pick up my coffee mug and it slipped, landed right center on my S3 screen and cracked it and the mug wasn't very high off the desk, ever since then I've been paranoid about leaving my phone anywhere face up. That said, when I'm playing music on my phone, while face down, it's much easier to adjust volume when it's easily accessible on the back top rather then on the sides. Again, personal preference.
Absolutely, side mount accessible cards would be great, but again, you're comparing a phone that's less then half the price of most of the phones that have those features. Even some of the more expensive flagship phones don't have these options either. ie. Nexus, no exp. memory, built in battery also, the new S6 Galaxy, built in battery, no SD Card expansion etc etc. I read endless reviews and I find it hilarious that people out there want a Mercedes Benz phone but want to pay Honda Civic prices. When you build a phone at this price, some corners have to be cut, then when a phone comes out with all these features and the price is high, people complain about the price, you can't win.
I love the phone for what it is and how much it broke my bank, if it does what I need it to do and it's better then my last phone, then I see it as a investment, it's a new phone, there will be issues as all new phones do, Galaxy S6 is having their list of problems just now popping up and so on. The phone is only about a month old maybe? I won't write it off, way too early, talk to me in about 6-8 months, if the same issues persist, then that's another story.
My brother just got his Galaxy S6 Edge phone, I told him about this phone and all he does is knocked the phone down because he has the "almighty" Galaxy S6 Edge, we start comparing features and honestly, it's not that big a list, yes, granted, it has a beautiful screen, bit faster processor (but if you put the two side by side and actually use it, I really can't tell that much of a dif), wireless charging but no SD expansion slot. That's great, but then I asked him how much he paid for it..... $900 plus taxes. No comments.
Got the phone on Nov 2nd, replacing my old V20, (and a severely damaged V30 that "mostly" worked)
There's a few things that I've got to get used to that aren't the same on the older V's ... these aren't necessarily complaints, just things I've got to reprogram my brain/fingers because there are two new buttons and the button in the middle-back has changed functionality.
To Start:
The button on the back no longer "button-clicks" to Turns On/Off the screen. It only acts as a Finger Print Scanner. You can program that button to open the phone screen, but it won't close the screen ... to do that you've got to push the button on the right side of the phone. (NOTE: That button will turn on/off the screen as well). After a very long time with the V20/30, this remapping of my fingers is taking longer than I expected. I'm not sure why we can't open and close the screen with the sensor on the back, but I'm certain someone will know/share a hack to make it do both soon. (..and with that hack, include a way to disable that right button screen on/off altogether).
There are now 3 buttons on the Left side, two for volume of course and one for "OK Google". I am well over 6 feet tall and have hands/fingers to match, so this phone fits 'deeply' in my hand and the "OK Google" button intrudes into my grip of the phone and I'm inadvertently activating OK Google too often as it sits too low on the housing. If it were higher, or on the right side with the Power/Screen button that might be a better placement for me ... people with smaller hand/fingers may find the new button orientation a pleasurable new feature ... and I hope that's the consensus ... in the meantime, I'm sure I'll acclimate to the newer ergonomic design soon and this won't be an issue.
Screen: The screen is beautiful. It's not quite as "brightly" (my term for the look of the Sammy screens, as to me the screens almost look 'back-lit') as the Note 9, and that's my preference. I feel the LG gives a more natural colorized screen ... and after adjusting the V40 to the same preferences as my V20/30, the screen is noticeably crisper and clearer.
Speed: When downloading podcasts, the time is greatly reduced. Flipping from one App to another, or when using one App while another is in use streaming music or even a video, the phone has no lag, nor does it slow down as the V20 did. Downloading pictures and videos seem to be quicker too. It's quite noticeable and I'm very happy with the improvements.
Pictures: I haven't done much in the way of taking pictures (yet), but the few I've taken are pretty damn good! ! ! I like the options on what lens to shoot with and there's a host of other options I've yet to explore ... but taking a few of my Asian Leopards in Auto Mod on the Standard Lens, the images are sharp, VERY clear and better than the V20/30. More on this when I get more time with the Camera side of the phone.
Bloatware: Geeeezus ... they've stuffed a lot of crap into the phone. Some of it we can't delete (yet) but we can disable, while some are obvious paid placement; Facebook, but no Instagram, yet they're the same company and no Twitter? Then there are gaming/gambling apps ... I'm no prude and parents need to step up know what's going on in their kids phones, but that kind of App shouldn't come stock in my opinion.
Good Stuff:
Some of the Widgets have upgrades that should've been available a long time ago. You can now set transparencies, excellent 'stock' addition to the Widget options, especially on the Calendar and other large, multi-grid Widgets.
Screen Saver options have increased and include better/customizable options ... including running-app operation abilities.
Sound: I saved the best for last in this review.
My biggest complaint about the V20/30 was the speaker. It NEVER got loud enough! I've experimented with Volume Apps and other tricks, yet couldn't get enough out of it to clearly hear over the tire-noise when driving either the Honda or the 6 Series BMW ... it was mandatory to have earbuds at the office, car or house to hear anything. Sometimes I used an old trick and kept a wide cup around just to put the phone in that to amplify the sound. NOT ANYMORE! ! ! The speaker has power! ! Can't believe I'm about to type these words, but depending on what type of music or Podcast you're listening too ... maybe too much power. Classical and other 'low-base' music can be played at full crank, but any/everything else has to be a click or two lower on the volume buttons or the sound will distort. If you're holding the phone or lay it on a hard surface, it will vibrate too ... on the hard surface that vibration can be part of the distortion, but a few clicks down on the volume button and you've got great, loud, sound.
Whether or not it's stereo seems to be a big convo on the forums ... and unless you're holding the phone up very close to your face, I've never understood how anyone could differentiate a stereo phone from a single speaker phone except for the extra volume. But with the new sound engineered into this phone, only the ultimate, well trained, audiophile will know the difference from 4 feet away.
As for headphone use, the DAC system seems to be the same in this phone as it was in the V20/30. They say they've got a new company tuning it, but after a few hours from Classic Rock, Classical, some old-school hip-hop and some PodCasts, my ears can't tell a difference. I switch between a set of custom molded-to-my-ears wired studio earplugs and the Westone W40's ear buds .... neither could be considered anything less than significantly upgrade ear pieces.
That's my quick, 48 hour review of the V40, on the Verizon Network. I really like the improvements, look forward to getting used to the new ergonomics and seeing all the hacks and internal upgrades that get shared on this new phone.
Hope you found it helpful.
Been loving mine so far! Have had it for about a week.
Just got mine on Monday. Fantastic phone. Still keeping my V20.
Need to experiment more w/the camera.
Display is very sharp.
Love the quad dac and still using my 128 gb sd card.
Had mine for a couple weeks now. Came from an LG G6 and I'm really liking this phone so far. Not one complaint.
SaintlySins said:
I like the options on what lens to shoot with and there's a host of other options I've yet to explore ... but taking a few of my Asian Leopards...
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Wait... You have Asian leopards?!
I have had mine since the 20th and these are my thoughts so far! I am coming from a new iPhone 8+, and still have my three year old LG V10.
The good?
1. The screen is beautiful! I would have preferred if they made it a bit wider where it was 18:10, but I will get used to it. Most large phones seem to be made this way now.
2. The phone is very fast and fluid like a new phone should be
3. It does have a lot of garbageware on it out of the box, but most if it I was able to uninstall. This is pretty much unavoidable if you want an Android device unless you get a Pixel.
4. I got it for half price!! ;p)
5. My wildlife photos I have on my SD card look great! I have not tried the camera yet, but rarely use my phone as a camera. I also have not listened to any of my music on it, but if it is anything like my V10, it will be great!
The bad?
1. Not that I would fill it up, but after three years the onboard storage is still 64GB? Should have been 256GB. I know it will take a 2TB microsd card when they are available, but if you install a ton of apps, this storage is better to have on the phone. Again, I would not fill it, I am just a bit surprised at this.
2. I wanted a glass protector on it, but I have yet to see one that gets good reviews. Maybe this is because it is so new. I bought an Otterbox for it and I cannot believe they left off the protective screen. I may take the screen off my V10 case and see if I can get it on the V40 one.
3. It does not have a replaceable battery. If you register the phone with LG within 90 days after you but it, they will extend your warranty for another year. The built in batteries are a bad design in my opinion.
Anyhow, I am just glad to be off of the Iphone and back on an Android device!
treesap said:
Wait... You have Asian leopards?!
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Been away a while, sorry for delayed reply.
Yes, but don't think it's like Wild Kingdom here ... they're cross-bred to be domesticated (mostly). They're a bit smaller than Savannah's, yet just as exotic looking and way less maintenance. More 'house-cat-ish'. Quite affectionate, one even plays fetch ... for h o u r s if you've the time and patience to keep throwing the ball.
Incredible phone. Not sure why they moved the power button though. I came from v20.
wing_addict_usa said:
Incredible phone. Not sure why they moved the power button though. I came from v20.
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Agreed! I liked it on the back with the fingerprint sensor.
After ownership of LG's Leon, G4 and the V20 I went with the Samsung Galaxy Note 8/9 when it came time to upgrade. I had good experiences with all of my LG phones but when they dropped all of the features that made them stand apart from the herd (swappable batteries, IR blaster, etc.) It was time to part ways. I had no interest in LG all through the various V30 releases and the G7 ThinQ. The V40 caught my attention with all the features it brought to the table but at nearly a grand asking price it was pretty much a nonstarter. But when I ran across an offer for a new in the box for $400 USD. it was an offer I could not refuse. This device is feature packed, functional and fun. It's like a V20 on steroids. I do a lot photography and this phone's camera and video capabilities add a layer of creativity not to be found on any other device. It replaced my still very much alive and kicking V20 as my daily driver and it does everything I ask of it from navigation to hands free phone calls and does it all well.
Don’t think there is a lot of overall love looking at this LG v40 thread..nobody seems to visit it or answer questions etc..maybe not a very popular device me thinks..and I just purchased one..dooh
Don't despair my friend. You purchased a great device. The action is over on the LG V40 Reddit or Android Central forums.
Medevac1 said:
Don't despair my friend. You purchased a great device. The action is over on the LG V40 Reddit or Android Central forums.
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Thanks will head over and take a look..cheers.
Had my LG V40 a week or so now and boy..I LOVE IT!!!
sas007 said:
Had my LG V40 a week or so now and boy..I LOVE IT!!!
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Cheers!
Now I have the proper UK stock of the LG V40 instead of the bloody Hong Kong version I love it even more...
Yes, yes, it's possible to love a phone. Heck, you sleep next to it, don't you? Rate this thread to indicate your love for the LG V60 ThinQ, all things considered. A higher rating indicates that the LG V60 ThinQ is an incredible phone that you enjoy tremendously. You love it.
Then, drop a comment if you have anything to add!
Count me in as very happy
I just moved over from the s20 ultra. I'm a big fan of larger phones. That phone though had all kinds of issues..the camera couldn't focus. It was aggravating.
My last LG phone was my beloved LG G2. I used that phone for many years.
I jumped in on T-Mobile BOGO offer. So glad I did.... I love this phone.
Works great, it's fast, battery lasts all day. I particularly like how it integrates the IoT devices in my house. Samsung devices is actually extremely clunky. You have to into repetitive menus to get to a device. This is very intuitative.
I use the dual screen as more of an occasional thing at home. Don't like the adapter to charge it but oh well...mainly use the V60 as a stand alone device.
Count me as a headphone jack promoter. I have Bluetooth headphones but sometimes I'm at a place and I don't have them. Being able to plug in any old pair of headphones was vital to me. I went without for the newer Samsung and it really bugged me. The cost for manufacturers is really low to keep it.
Camera is great for everyday life needs. Samsung has a documented issue that's been around since my s9+ days where it would only text a shorter video clip. Why? I don't know. It was nice to be able to send video clips of my son to family and the video length stays the same.
Very happy with the device and hoping to be using it for many years ahead before the next upgrade.
I've posted a variation of this in a few different topics already, but here goes.
I've upgraded from a rooted open-market LG V30+ (attached to AT&T) to the AT&T variant of the LG V60 5G ThinQ (and got the dual-screen attachment separately as a "freebie").
Other than the lower screen resolution and DPI, I find the phone to be an upgrade in pretty much all categories, ranging from moderate to significant depending on category.
And I don't even mind the screen so much. It means that we get BEASTLY battery levels. Perhaps even overkill (but can you really have too much battery life, though)?
I never liked LG software, so even without root, I was able to use ADB commands to re-establish my preferred V30+ software/desktop home environment without too much hassle.
Namely, I use Nova Launcher Prime as my preferred launcher, Whicons as my icon pack, Fluid Simulation - Trippy Stress Reliever for a pure black OLED-friendly home screen and lock screen background (plus brief, lovely splashes of bright fluid-like colors upon screen wake-up or with screen touches and taps), Fluid Navigation Gestures to replace mostly replace Nova's gestures and totally replace stock Android 10's navigation gestures, and Energy Bar to provide a line with variable heights across my status bar informing me of battery levels (can use color gradations for every 25% block, or in my case, a pure white line across the top of the screen). FNG required setting a special permission via ADB to be able to hide the navigation bar. First time doing that (since all of my prior phones were rooted), but it wasn't too tough to learn and implement. Yes, I wind up with mostly pure black and white home screen and lock screen, but Fluid Simulation provides beautiful splashes of color at just the right times. Energy Bar is a little imperfect thanks to this phone's front-camera notch bisecting the bar. Not much I can do about that, though.
I like the screen well enough. I love the expandable storage. I love the Quad DAC. Even the stereo speakers when not using headphones are better than what you'd get on most other phones, high-end or not. And screen specs-aside, this is a premium flagship phone all the way. AT&T even bumped us from the February 2020 security patch the phone launched with to the April 2020 security patch around a week or so ago, a surprisingly timely update for an LG phone. I almost couldn't be happier with this device. And even if root never happens and this becomes my first ever Android phone to not get rooted, I don't think I'd be terribly disappointed. Not when you consider how happy I already am with the phone.
The only thing that wound up being a total bust is the dual-screen accessory. Not being able to span Nova Launcher, Fluid Navigation Gestures, and my Fluid Simulation background to the second screen is a total deal-breaker. That one is stuck with LG's crap-ass default software, and I don't see any way to change that. And even if I could mirror my device's software environment over to the second screen, the ergonomics of the dual-screen's case makes typing on the primary device in portrait mode almost physically impossible unless you set it down on a table or something and use your pointer fingers to type. Neat idea. Heavily flawed execution. I'm happy, at least, that the attachment didn't come with a second out-of-pocket cost.
TLDR: Love the phone. Happy enough with the screen. Colors pop. Viewing angles feel infinite. Audio continues to be a stand-out. And it meets and exceeds my two deal-breaker smartphone requirements, a 3.5MM headphone jack (Quad DAC is just extra gravy) and expandable storage.
I've had the phone for about 3 or 4 days and I'm enjoying the dual screens (I'm an Uber driver) and the remarkably good sound. Not a fan of the fingerprint sensor as I've noticed that sometimes it doesn't always work. I don't mind the Nova Launcher issue at the moment as the built in Whale Homescreen is still better than Quickstep (hear that Google) in dual screen mode. I love the fact it does have a headphone jack, good bluetooth capability and 4G/5G coverage in areas where the old PH-1 would give me the middle finger of connections. I did NOT choose this phone for the screen refresh rate, as I'm a user who doesn't game much with the phone and don't need the higher refresh rates. I chose it for the dual screen aspect which is clear and good quality on both screens, which is most satisfactory and the best thing since the rather revolutionary G2 Flex that LG has come up with short of a foldable full screen phone.
I have yet to try the camera out, (will miss the Essential's 360 camera), so the jury's still out on quality.
The audio is crisp, clear and very good with the speakers. I've not tried the vocal bokeh yet, but I suspect it will work well.
Overall I'm impressed with this lower end Flagship phone and the case, it does everything I want it to. Oh and the bloatware level with T-mobile and LG is astoundingly low, a shocker indeed. I'll follow up as I use the phone, but over all, LG made a phone that is both a step forward and back on smartphone evolution.
This is Xiaomi-like type of phone... It can be superb, but not straight out the box...
I have had the phone for 3 days now. I really like it. It's snappy. For a 1080p screen. I'm impressed. The speakers are great. Camera is really good. I really recommend getting the wide screen for g8x app. Really adds usefulness for the dual screen. All and all. Really good phone. Hope LG keeps software update come out more frequently.
WildGee said:
This is Xiaomi-like type of phone... It can be superb, but not straight out the box...
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What recommendations do you have to make this phone "superb?" I'm happy with it so far (just got it yesterday) but any ideas to make it even better I'm all ears.
lendawg said:
What recommendations do you have to make this phone "superb?" I'm happy with it so far (just got it yesterday) but any ideas to make it even better I'm all ears.
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First of all, WideMode app is must have to use full potential of Dual Screen. Secondly, file manager from Google does the job, especially there is no proper manager in default - it have powerful cleaning features and what is more - I'ts from Google - no ads and more safety than 3rd party solutions. I'm testing varius Gcam distros, due to terrible software post processing, even in raw photos (UltraCVM is best so far - made for Mi 9T with 64mpx matrix). Then i've changed everything to darkest theme / dark wallpapers, and turned off AoD to protect OLED from burn (V30 case...).
I've had this phone for about a month now and have mixed opinions on it. My favorite phone to date is the V20. I knew I was giving up a lot that I wanted when moving to the V60, but had hoped the other improvements would offset it. When I first set the phone up, I hated it. SOOOOO many features I lost from the V20 that I missed more than expected, and general design changes I dislike.
The phone has grown on me and I'm keeping it. Some things I adapted to, others I can't (this thing is way too tall for one handed use), but I guess it's the least bad phone on the market today. The V20 really spoiled me, so it's a love/hate relationship with the V60.
Mr_Mooncatt said:
I've had this phone for about a month now and have mixed opinions on it. My favorite phone to date is the V20. I knew I was giving up a lot that I wanted when moving to the V60, but had hoped the other improvements would offset it. When I first set the phone up, I hated it. SOOOOO many features I lost from the V20 that I missed more than expected, and general design changes I dislike.
The phone has grown on me and I'm keeping it. Some things I adapted to, others I can't (this thing is way too tall for one handed use), but I guess it's the least bad phone on the market today. The V20 really spoiled me, so it's a love/hate relationship with the V60.
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Besides the 2nd screen, what did you lose? I had a V20 but it's been so long I don't remember what I'm missing ?
Ryano89 said:
Besides the 2nd screen, what did you lose? I had a V20 but it's been so long I don't remember what I'm missing
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Here's my initial reaction list that I posted over on Android Central:
1. It's tall. Really tall. As in I can't reach the top 25% of the screen with one handed use. I'd much rather it have a bezel to house the camera, sensors, and a killer speaker, if not just be shorter all together.
2. Speaking of bezels, it needs one on the bottom too. I have to strain to reach the navigation buttons with one hand use, and constantly typing a row above where I intended on the keyboard. I know i can use gesture navigation, but that has its own drawbacks. A bezel would allow for better one hand use, plus give room to turn that bottom firing speaker up to front firing and better sound. The bottom bezel on the V20 was perfect.
3. It's not the slickest phone I've held, but still slippery. The back glass also feels more like plastic than glass, which I actually like.
4. The flashlight is rather dim compared to other phones.
5. The stock gallery doesn't seem to allow you to sort albums by name, only by date modified. If anyone knows if that's fixable, I'd love to know. Otherwise I'm switching to a third party gallery that is almost a direct clone of the V20's gallery.
6. Could they have cut the side protective film into any more pieces???
7. Anyone that thinks you need above 1080p on a phone display is just blowing smoke. It's the sweet spot on a phone, but the option for 90Hz refresh would've been nice to have (120Hz is not noticably better than 90Hz).
8. I thought i would like what looked like fine tuning of the display color calibration, but I barely saw any differences when making changes.
9. Tons of junk to disable/delete.
10. I can already tell battery life is good, even with all the extra setup going on. Just sucks that it's sealed.
Not on that list is that the screen is not LCD (so now worried about burn in), and removal of proprietary LG apps. I loved Q-slide with the floating applets, their own dialer app, and their files app. Google's dialer doesn't allow blocking phone numbers by area code. Mine is based in a location I no longer live in or have contact with, yet all my spam calls use that area code. Blocking by that was more effective than any filter app. The files app is just too "busy" for me.
Mr_Mooncatt said:
Here's my initial reaction list that I posted over on Android Central:
1. It's tall. Really tall. As in I can't reach the top 25% of the screen with one handed use. I'd much rather it have a bezel to house the camera, sensors, and a killer speaker, if not just be shorter all together.
2. Speaking of bezels, it needs one on the bottom too. I have to strain to reach the navigation buttons with one hand use, and constantly typing a row above where I intended on the keyboard. I know i can use gesture navigation, but that has its own drawbacks. A bezel would allow for better one hand use, plus give room to turn that bottom firing speaker up to front firing and better sound. The bottom bezel on the V20 was perfect.
3. It's not the slickest phone I've held, but still slippery. The back glass also feels more like plastic than glass, which I actually like.
4. The flashlight is rather dim compared to other phones.
5. The stock gallery doesn't seem to allow you to sort albums by name, only by date modified. If anyone knows if that's fixable, I'd love to know. Otherwise I'm switching to a third party gallery that is almost a direct clone of the V20's gallery.
6. Could they have cut the side protective film into any more pieces???
7. Anyone that thinks you need above 1080p on a phone display is just blowing smoke. It's the sweet spot on a phone, but the option for 90Hz refresh would've been nice to have (120Hz is not noticably better than 90Hz).
8. I thought i would like what looked like fine tuning of the display color calibration, but I barely saw any differences when making changes.
9. Tons of junk to disable/delete.
10. I can already tell battery life is good, even with all the extra setup going on. Just sucks that it's sealed.
Not on that list is that the screen is not LCD (so now worried about burn in), and removal of proprietary LG apps. I loved Q-slide with the floating applets, their own dialer app, and their files app. Google's dialer doesn't allow blocking phone numbers by area code. Mine is based in a location I no longer live in or have contact with, yet all my spam calls use that area code. Blocking by that was more effective than any filter app. The files app is just too "busy" for me.
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As far as being slick.. welcome to 2020 everyone has apparently decided that a slippery glass phone is the law now. Lol
5. Gallery app.. I can create an album and name it whatever I want. Is that what you mean?
7. Agree about 90hz
9. Agree about all the preloaded crap
10. Battery life is stellar. A sealed battery is only going to be an issue after 3-4 years so I'm not worried about that one
Other... My LG V60 does NOT have the Google dialer, it's most definitely LG's, at least on the T-Mobile variant
QSlide... I hear ya.. I got the floating bar from apk mirror, but I miss QSlide
LCD screen.. I don't miss it, it was the worst thing about the V20.. the only area that might have to worry about burn in is the navigation keys, bit I don't use them. The amoled screens are significantly better IMO
Dam you Mooncatt I had forgotten about QSlide!! ??
Ryano89 said:
As far as being slick.. welcome to 2020 everyone has apparently decided that a slippery glass phone is the law now. Lol
5. Gallery app.. I can create an album and name it whatever I want. Is that what you mean?
7. Agree about 90hz
9. Agree about all the preloaded crap
10. Battery life is stellar. A sealed battery is only going to be an issue after 3-4 years so I'm not worried about that one
Other... My LG V60 does NOT have the Google dialer, it's most definitely LG's, at least on the T-Mobile variant
QSlide... I hear ya.. I got the floating bar from apk mirror, but I miss QSlide
LCD screen.. I don't miss it, it was the worst thing about the V20.. the only area that might have to worry about burn in is the navigation keys, bit I don't use them. The amoled screens are significantly better IMO
Dam you Mooncatt I had forgotten about QSlide!!
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When I go to the dialer app info, then click on app details, it links right to "Phone" from Google in the Play store. My first taste of it was on the Razer Phone 2 I used briefly, which is where I found the lack of area code blocking. While I know the V20 had the image retention issue, that was specific to that model phone. LCD's in general are fine, and preferable when it comes to something like a phone with a lot of static displays. If having pitch perfect blacks is really that much of an issue, I guess they could do like tv's and have an LED array for localized back lighting. Something else I forgot to mention about the V60 is there's a fair bit of color shift when viewing at an angle.
I've uploaded a screenshot of the stock gallery app on mine showing the option to sort only by date and not alphabetically.
Fyi, I'm on Verizon, which may explain the differences between ours.
Mr_Mooncatt said:
When I go to the dialer app info, then click on app details, it links right to "Phone" from Google in the Play store. My first taste of it was on the Razer Phone 2 I used briefly, which is where I found the lack of area code blocking. While I know the V20 had the image retention issue, that was specific to that model phone. LCD's in general are fine, and preferable when it comes to something like a phone with a lot of static displays. If having pitch perfect blacks is really that much of an issue, I guess they could do like tv's and have an LED array for localized back lighting. Something else I forgot to mention about the V60 is there's a fair bit of color shift when viewing at an angle.
I've uploaded a screenshot of the stock gallery app on mine showing the option to sort only by date and not alphabetically.
Fyi, I'm on Verizon, which may explain the differences between ours.
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My dialer info.. is this different than yours? I know I don't have the Google dialer because that's the one I have in my 6t, and this is definitely not it. I'm curious if Verizon changed that
Ryano89 said:
My dialer info.. is this different than yours? I know I don't have the Google dialer because that's the one I have in my 6t, and this is definitely not it. I'm curious if Verizon changed that
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Oops forgot the screenshot
Ryano89 said:
My dialer info.. is this different than yours? I know I don't have the Google dialer because that's the one I have in my 6t, and this is definitely not it. I'm curious if Verizon changed that
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This is what I get for mine.
Mr_Mooncatt said:
This is what I get for mine.
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Yep.. that's the Google dialer alright.. I used to have Verizon and they were always making weird changes. I don't mind that dialer... But it's weird that we don't have the same one
Ok, I'm a dunce. I checked and found the contacts app hidden from my app drawer in Nova. I thought it and the dialer icon both went to the same app but to different tabs within it. I didn't realize it was LG's dialer and had hidden it thinking it was an extra/redundant app icon. I try to keep my app drawer to 2-3 pages and hide a lot of stuff like that.
I'm exactly the opposite. I swore off lg after I had the v20. For me the camera was terrible and battery life was crap and the phone was slow af. When I saw the reviews for this phone I was almost certain this was the phone for me so I asked some questions on here and played with one in store and that sealed the deal. I've had it since yesterday with almost 21 hours off charger I have 2hr 23min screen time and I'm still at 78 percent battery! That is world's apart from my last phone the 7t pro McLaren. The camera is excellent too and the software is actually much better then it used to be. I'm enjoying the ux. If lg keeps up this good work I will stay with them in the future. Oh and did I mention how damn good the phone speakers sound? Like woah! I'm actually excited already to see what they have in store for the v70!
---------- Post added at 11:56 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:50 PM ----------
Oh and one more thing....I really don't notice the refresh rate is only 60hz and for 1080p this screen is colorful and crisp. Lg hit this one out of the park man this phone is bad ass!
https://photos.app.goo.gl/3ScXXTWfHneSqyUv7
Another reason I love the phone.