Database Users

Bye bye zenfone 2

Ok, this is a completely personal opinion. I'm normally a lurker in that I've used xda for years with various devices. However, never have I been more disappointed with a phone then with the zenfone 2. My decision to leave behind the device and android is simply on my experience.
For me I made the purchase whilst in Hong Kong. I moved to windows phone last year and couldn't fault it's speed, usage, memory management or battery life. My 1320 held a charge for days and days. Simply fab.
But whilst in HK I saw, numerous times, the advert for the zenfone 2. It looked good and with the 64gb and 4gb ram combo I just thought wow. So I went for a look and a play. It wasn't an impulse purchase, I took my time over a number of days, plus did my research on the device where reviews said it was a great flagship killer. Fantastic, plus the price in HK was great. So I got one. I added a zenwatch to accompany it.
But, and here's the rub for me. I've had this now for just under 2 months. Despite a large battery, 3000 mah, the sot is pathetic. I've read all the guides, have greenify, rooted the device, used boot manager and xposed, disabled and changed the wakelocks and alarms and its still pathetic. Most of all when you spend out on a device I feel strongly that you shouldn't need to do all of this just to get decent use out of it. The fact that the android OS is still a battery eater just baffles me. The speculation and promise of 5.1.1 just carries on, and whilst there now an abundance of customs coming out I must ask, why can't the manufacturers just listen to its market??!!
So, whilst many people will probably be haters and winner why I've posted this, simply I think those researching about this device should see this opinion. This is also from someone who used android for years, has used iOS and is no stranger to custom ROMs.
The zenfone 2 could be a winner. Emphasis on could. But it's system abuses the battery rather than showing what can be achieved. The camera is average, and on the whole has been a real disappointment.
In conclusion, I respect you all sticking by it, totally respect the devs for bringing cm, paranoid, slim and all the other customs to the device. I truly do. For me it just shouldn't be this way.
So I'm now going to run off, hide, and return once and for all to to windows phone.
Cheers.
Sent from my ASUS_Z00AD using XDA Forums

bay91 said:
Ok, this is a completely personal opinion. I'm normally a lurker in that I've used xda for years with various devices. However, never have I been more disappointed with a phone then with the zenfone 2. My decision to leave behind the device and android is simply on my experience.
For me I made the purchase whilst in Hong Kong. I moved to windows phone last year and couldn't fault it's speed, usage, memory management or battery life. My 1320 held a charge for days and days. Simply fab.
But whilst in HK I saw, numerous times, the advert for the zenfone 2. It looked good and with the 64gb and 4gb ram combo I just thought wow. So I went for a look and a play. It wasn't an impulse purchase, I took my time over a number of days, plus did my research on the device where reviews said it was a great flagship killer. Fantastic, plus the price in HK was great. So I got one. I added a zenwatch to accompany it.
But, and here's the rub for me. I've had this now for just under 2 months. Despite a large battery, 3000 mah, the sot is pathetic. I've read all the guides, have greenify, rooted the device, used boot manager and xposed, disabled and changed the wakelocks and alarms and its still pathetic. Most of all when you spend out on a device I feel strongly that you shouldn't need to do all of this just to get decent use out of it. The fact that the android OS is still a battery eater just baffles me. The speculation and promise of 5.1.1 just carries on, and whilst there now an abundance of customs coming out I must ask, why can't the manufacturers just listen to its market??!!
So, whilst many people will probably be haters and winner why I've posted this, simply I think those researching about this device should see this opinion. This is also from someone who used android for years, has used iOS and is no stranger to custom ROMs.
The zenfone 2 could be a winner. Emphasis on could. But it's system abuses the battery rather than showing what can be achieved. The camera is average, and on the whole has been a real disappointment.
In conclusion, I respect you all sticking by it, totally respect the devs for bringing cm, paranoid, slim and all the other customs to the device. I truly do. For me it just shouldn't be this way.
So I'm now going to run off, hide, and return once and for all to to windows phone.
Cheers.
Sent from my ASUS_Z00AD using XDA Forums
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Dude, i respect your opinion, but forgot something very important.
windows phone, Iphone, Android high gamma (samsung, sony, Lg) 600/1000 USD
Asus Zenfone2 299 USD
good luck !!!

Lumia 930, less cost than zenfone 2, let alone if I went 640xl.
But for me, buying a smart phone shouldn't need so much modding to make it work great.
IPhone. Been there once, never again. At the end of the day I don't need a million apps. I need my stable free, plus battery life so I can use my device for work and play. I can't get that on the zenfone I'm afraid, well not without a charger always in my pocket
Sent from my ASUS_Z00AD using XDA Forums

Good luck! The Asus Zenfone 2 is one of the most confusing devices, I've come across. It's battery life has been receiving mixed reviews, and has been the main reason why I'm still waiting for 5.1 or CM12 beta to be released for it, before I buy. I read in one of the reviews that even for a single piece of zf2, the battery performance is not consistent. The delay in releasing 5.1 by Asus is also frustrating. x-(

i have no problem with battery, with normal usage no need charge during day. 2 sims, 4g always on and many social apps in background.

You can run win7, so more powerfull, more handy and battery life fantaztic compared to netbook and is only a chiper phone so what more?

When you invest on something and it doesn't give the required result, it really feels terrible. Right now, this is the situation with ZF2 users. But still, I have hope on ASUS that they will give 5.1.1 update soon. Hope for the Best!

Asus released zenfone max today 5000 milli amp battery, I am afraid this is their answer to battery usage, not 5.1.1

I wonder what all people, who complain about SOT in ZF2, do when they're screen is on.
But our mileage varies, I guess. Never had a problem with battery life with the ZF2.

vegasdiceshooter said:
Asus released zenfone max today 5000 milli amp battery, I am afraid this is their answer to battery usage, not 5.1.1
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Just looked at it and I'm disappointed Asus put a Snapdragon 410 in the thing.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-T989 using XDA Free mobile app

I'm holding out hope for 5.1.1....but if we don't get it by September, mid to late, I'm going to take the hit, sell this, and get the Moto X Pure edition. Can't fault Asus with their continuous firmware updates, good on them for continuing to try. But with the constant news of major vulnerabilities in the various Android versions, I must have a device I know will be supported for a good long while, and Moto is now proving to be king with that regard.

Why people thinks is bad? now is summertime, in winter will not battery drain. If you work in cool place you will never expect battery issue...
Two day is not enough for a smart phone? How had to be supposed battery life? You say me that other smartphone is too long then zf2? Maybe 3 dayz?

Think people get a bit hung up on the battery life partly because of the way it is reporting it as android OS using a lot, rather than it actually being particularly bad. It certainly isn't fantastic battery life, and is quite variable depending how you use it, but I generally get through a day without recharging and get around 4 to 6 hours SOT. That's on performance mode with Max brightness too. Good enough, certainly better than my old iPhone 5 which used less juice when sleeping but drained fast when screen was on, especially texting, Facebook and camera. So I am OK with the zenfone (Mine is the 550 though). I also think general performance is satisfactory and the camera is passable. Considering the price, I don't think I can have any major complaints. I am still happily enjoying my zenfone everyday

obscuresword said:
Just looked at it and I'm disappointed Asus put a Snapdragon 410 in the thing.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-T989 using XDA Free mobile app
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And 720x1280 resolution, Adreno 306 to save battery... Can't have it all!

blazzer12 said:
And 720x1280 resolution, Adreno 306 to save battery... Can't have it all!
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You can if manufactures are thinking lol. Seriously, they could have used the Snapdragon 615 and kept the resolution the same for performance . Oh well at least it offers a better value (IMO) compared to the Moto G since it cost like $160.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-T989 using XDA Free mobile app

Everyone is entitled to their choice, and I certainly won't fault you for your decision to leave the Zenfone 2 behind.
I'm not a fan of Windows Phone myself, but I will agree it's more efficient than Android, and runs smoother on lower-end hardware. For me though, it just doesn't have the selection of apps I prefer, nor the customization of Android.
Either way, your concerns with the Zenfone 2 are justified, and I can understand why you are getting rid of it. I personally love it, but then again I can live with the battery

Personally I share the same sentiments on the ZenFone 2. I came from an Xperia T2 ultra Dual. 6 inch 720p display kitkat and 3000mAH battery and I have to say ZenFone 2 sucks in the battery life department but is flawless operation just rocks. I would get 2 days of battery on a single charge on the T2 ultra with light usage but the phone froze once in a while. Now with the ZenFone 2 551 2gb 16gb, with a 3000 mAH battery i hardly get 8hrs of life on 1 charge. Am forced to look for quick charge 2.0 car charger and travel charger. I left home at 12pm with a full battery and made 3 calls of 10minutes max, replied to this forum and about 30 mins of browsing and 2 and half hrs later it's at 59% WTF!
If it were the Xperia i would have been at 95-90 % on battery.
On a positive side the ZenFone is a performer minus the battery life issue.
Sent from my ASUS_Z00AD using Tapatalk

Ginuz said:
You can run win7, so more powerfull, more handy and battery life fantaztic compared to netbook and is only a chiper phone so what more?
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Maybe I don't understand.... You can run win7 on ZF2??? I'd be interested in that, could you give a link?
Never heard about someone succeeding to do it... Just lot of people willing to... The only solution I've heard about is chrooting linux distros... kinda dirty way to run an OS, in my opinion...

Not sure about anyone else but I've had no issues with mine either with battery or beat-up of lollipop (knock on wood). I've had tons of android phones and my last was the galaxy s5, this zf2 has exceeded all my expectations and the battery life is about the same as my s5. For the price, this phone packs a punch, if anyone wants the perfect phone then you'll probably be spending twice or three times the price and I'm sure you'll pick something wrong with that phone also but now it's an 800 dollar phone instead of 299 ?
Sent from my ZF2ze551 with TapaTalk

mnt27 said:
Maybe I don't understand.... You can run win7 on ZF2??? I'd be interested in that, could you give a link?
Never heard about someone succeeding to do it... Just lot of people willing to... The only solution I've heard about is chrooting linux distros... kinda dirty way to run an OS, in my opinion...
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Not natively, only in an emulator. Kind of like in vmware or virtualbox.

Buying advice: Asus ZenFone 2

I am in the market for a new cell phone to replace my current Samsung Galaxy SIII Mini. Given my budget, I have nearly settled on the Asus ZenFone 2. At $299 for an upper-middle tier cell phone with 64GB of storage and 4GB of RAM, it seems like a solid bet. The only real downfall I have discovered from my research thus far is the ZenUI which overlays the stock Android experience and the massive amount of bloatware that comes pre-installed on the phone.
If I were able to safely get rid of the bloatware and make the phone more like a pure stock Android experience, I would buy it in a heartbeat.
I consider myself fairly able to work with technology, although I have never actually rooted, flashed, or otherwise modded a cell phone. So, I am looking for some guidance. Do you think the ZenFone2 warrants a purchase in spite of the concerns outlined? If no, do you have any suitable reocmmendations in that budget range? More importantly, do you think I would be able to modify the phone to get rid of bloatware and make it a more stock Android experience?
Sorry if this questions has been asked previously. As I mentioned, I am very new to this, certainly new to the forums, and just looking for guidance. Thanks!

Bloatware thing is overblown, you can disable every single preinstalled app on the phone. The performance is amazing, this is a lag free phone. However, I do no recommend this phone simply based on the battery life, its terrible. There is no way around it.

yumms said:
Bloatware thing is overblown, you can disable every single preinstalled app on the phone. The performance is amazing, this is a lag free phone. However, I do no recommend this phone simply based on the battery life, its terrible. There is no way around it.
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I'm not as concerned about the battery life as I am generally near a charger. But, do you think the battery issues might be address through an Android update (I hear 5.1.1 is coming soon to Asus) or even a root/mod like Cyanogenmod?

dchadjohnson said:
I'm not as concerned about the battery life as I am generally near a charger. But, do you think the battery issues might be address through an Android update (I hear 5.1.1 is coming soon to Asus) or even a root/mod like Cyanogenmod?
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Battery life is little fixed for me on this new updates,it's not that bad,but just wait for 5.1.1 update or Android M 6.0 update,zenfone 2 will shine for sure
---------- Post added at 04:36 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:35 PM ----------
and btw don't install Cm 12.1,i tried it and it's worse than asus stock rom,trust me...

The only bad thing about the phone (550ML) is the battery backup and the memory usage.
Except that, it is good.
Depending where you are, i could advice your to buy the redmi note 2, lower price, more powerfull, pictures a bit better in low light environment, sound better, 5 hours SOT and not three like this phone, lower and brighter screen...

I bought the WW version of the phone you are considering, after upgrading from a S4. Unlike a lot here on XDA, I have left it at stock, with 64gig of storage and 4gig of ram who cares about the bloatware. With Auto Start Manager you can disable anything you want to anyway. It does what I want it to do and I am not stuck to the carrier's software update schedule as I was with the S4.

I've had ZenFone 2 for about 1 month now. My previous phone was first gen Moto G.
ZenUI is surprisingly good. I usually have Google Now launcher or Nova Launcher but I've been sticking with ZenUI. The bloat is only a minor inconvenience.
As for performance: the phone is a beast! Astonishing considering the price. I have 1.8ghz 4gig ram version.
The screen is good. It doesn't get dim enough and so is not ideal for nighttime use. I tried to use rootdim to no avail. I use phone at min brightness for most of day.
Battery life is poor! Struggle to get 3hrs screen on time. I'm a medium to heavy user. Have to charge it twice a day. Hoping this can be improved with 5.1.1. If, not then might consider one plus one.

m98221 said:
I've had ZenFone 2 for about 1 month now. My previous phone was first gen Moto G.
ZenUI is surprisingly good. I usually have Google Now launcher or Nova Launcher but I've been sticking with ZenUI. The bloat is only a minor inconvenience.
As for performance: the phone is a beast! Astonishing considering the price. I have 1.8ghz 4gig ram version.
The screen is good. It doesn't get dim enough and so is not ideal for nighttime use. I tried to use rootdim to no avail. I use phone at min brightness for most of day.
Battery life is poor! Struggle to get 3hrs screen on time. I'm a medium to heavy user. Have to charge it twice a day. Hoping this can be improved with 5.1.1. If, not then might consider one plus one.
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Use lux light as it dims the screen to great nighttime viewing and I get decent screen time and I'm a heavy user as well
Sent from my ASUS_Z00AD using XDA Free mobile app

I have never experienced the poor battery life others complain of on this phone.
Sent from my KFTHWI using Tapatalk

corrsea said:
I have never experienced the poor battery life others complain of on this phone.
Sent from my KFTHWI using Tapatalk
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yeah me too, I get battery backup around 5 hrs easily and the only thing I dont like is memory management and blaotwares that's all but as someone said earlier you can disable and I did around 13 apps xD
Camera and performace and battery is very good. Waiting for 5.1.1'

[/COLOR]and btw don't install Cm 12.1,i tried it and it's worse than asus stock rom,trust me...[/QUOTE]
Well what people need to understand is that ALL of the AOSP roms for the zenfone 2 are in BETA STAGES! Meaning its not 100% stable. Not the devs fault as they are doing there best to get it to a stable release.
As for recommending the phone to OP. Yes I do, is in my list its one of the top phones for 300 and under this year. Now its not perfect(battery, junk bloat, screen brightness, screen to body ratio) but for the 4gb model if you tweak and make it yours you will love the speed and its flagship experience at a mid level price point.

Well, many people have already give you a help but here it goes another one. This phone is just amazing. For this price you only have OP2 or Moto X to compete (both are a little bit expensive).
My battery reach to 4.30h SOT and i have always wifi, bt and 4g on. Play about 1h games, lots of browsing and social networks. 30m talking. In the end of day still have my battery around 25%. Not bad but with 5.1.1 hope this improve. There is very little bloatware and you can remove them or disable easily.
The bad things is the screen body ratio is bsd and make the phone biggest, the camera is not brilliant, the power button on top, the screen brightness.
But every phones have pros and cons so, for me, this is the best for the price
Already bought another for my sister and i recommend alot. Very happy user

Kambz1994 said:
and btw don't install Cm 12.1,i tried it and it's worse than asus stock rom,trust me...
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Strongly disagree with that, it is improving daily and imho already surpasses the ASUS stock firmware. CM has given me a new found love for and enjoyment of this excellent phone.

Delgadovsky said:
Well, many people have already give you a help but here it goes another one. This phone is just amazing. For this price you only have OP2 or Moto X to compete (both are a little bit expensive).
My battery reach to 4.30h SOT and i have always wifi, bt and 4g on. Play about 1h games, lots of browsing and social networks. 30m talking. In the end of day still have my battery around 25%. Not bad but with 5.1.1 hope this improve. There is very little bloatware and you can remove them or disable easily.
The bad things is the screen body ratio is bsd and make the phone biggest, the camera is not brilliant, the power button on top, the screen brightness.
But every phones have pros and cons so, for me, this is the best for the price
Already bought another for my sister and i recommend alot. Very happy user
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I get more than 5 hrs xD

See xD

903tex said:
[/COLOR]and btw don't install Cm 12.1,i tried it and it's worse than asus stock rom,trust me...
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Well what people need to understand is that ALL of the AOSP roms for the zenfone 2 are in BETA STAGES! Meaning its not 100% stable. Not the devs fault as they are doing there best to get it to a stable release.
As for recommending the phone to OP. Yes I do, is in my list its one of the top phones for 300 and under this year. Now its not perfect(battery, junk bloat, screen brightness, screen to body ratio) but for the 4gb model if you tweak and make it yours you will love the speed and its flagship experience at a mid level price point.[/QUOTE]
Lol, cm12.1 and aosp roms are in beta version so they need time to be stable. They aren't ridiculous noob

If you're not a hardcore gamer, then better wait for the Zenfone 2 Laser (ZE550KL) variant with Snapdragon 615 and 3GB RAM. I had almost decided to buy the ZE550ML, although I was apprehensive about the battery life, when I read about the new model. It costs marginally higher than the ZE550ML, but should have better battery if somewhat less performance. Plus 3GB RAM should still take care of the ZenUI bloat.

Gustapo said:
If you're not a hardcore gamer, then better wait for the Zenfone 2 Laser (ZE550KL) variant with Snapdragon 615 and 3GB RAM. I had almost decided to buy the ZE550ML, although I was apprehensive about the battery life, when I read about the new model. It costs marginally higher than the ZE550ML, but should have better battery if somewhat less performance. Plus 3GB RAM should still take care of the ZenUI bloat.
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2 Gb ram is enough for gaming if you know how to use phone

ASUS ZenFone2 is a great phone!
Okay, so I'm a bit biased...but this phone is actually really good! (I came from a Nexus). Battery life is really dependent on your location, signal, usage scenarios, etc. But I'm on T-Mo in the Bay Area where signal isn't the best, I use the phone for work and have gotten through an entire day 7-10PM with at least 20% left. Bloatware can be disabled on the latest firmware.

Yeah, I've disabled 23 bloatwares xD

Where are the positive experiences?

I've been reading up about the Z5C because it's the only small yet powerful android phone currently on the market. Of course I always check XDA for root/rom/support experiences, and here I mostly see negative experiences. So many people are saying this is their last Xperia or that if the new Android M doesn't fix it's issues then they're going to switch to different phone, etc. This disheartens me greatly because I see no other viable option for a new sub-5 inch phone. I currently have a 1st gen Moto X - XT1053 Dev Edition. I love the phone and everything about it, but it's getting to be a bit slow with 2013 hardware running 2016 apps, and I think I will need an upgrade by 2017. I would buy another Motorola, but Lenovo has decided that Motorola should only make shovel sized phones (which goes against everything in Motorola's original vision.)
So where does that leave us who don't like gargantuan phones but still want a quality device? Do I wait and see if fixes come for the Z5C memory leak, stuttering, and its other issues? A few people report that their phone doesn't have these issues, do I gamble and hope I get a good one like that? Is there some other small form Andriod smartphone out there that I should consider? Or do I give up and get a 5+ inch device? It seems the Samsung G6 or G7 would be the next smallest option.
I would love to hear everyone's thoughts and comments on this.

DrvLikHell said:
I've been reading up about the Z5C because it's the only small yet powerful android phone currently on the market. Of course I always check XDA for root/rom/support experiences, and here I mostly see negative experiences. So many people are saying this is their last Xperia or that if the new Android M doesn't fix it's issues then they're going to switch to different phone, etc. This disheartens me greatly because I see no other viable option for a new sub-5 inch phone. I currently have a 1st gen Moto X - XT1053 Dev Edition. I love the phone and everything about it, but it's getting to be a bit slow with 2013 hardware running 2016 apps, and I think I will need an upgrade by 2017. I would buy another Motorola, but Lenovo has decided that Motorola should only make shovel sized phones (which goes against everything in Motorola's original vision.)
So where does that leave us who don't like gargantuan phones but still want a quality device? Do I wait and see if fixes come for the Z5C memory leak, stuttering, and its other issues? A few people report that their phone doesn't have these issues, do I gamble and hope I get a good one like that? Is there some other small form Andriod smartphone out there that I should consider? Or do I give up and get a 5+ inch device? It seems the Samsung G6 or G7 would be the next smallest option.
I would love to hear everyone's thoughts and comments on this.
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You ever consider the Z3 Compact? Or you picky on year and specs?

uchechris said:
You ever consider the Z3 Compact? Or you picky on year and specs?
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I'm picky on specs... Though I did consider it today and I watched several Z3C vs Z5C videos. I like it except that it's only one year newer/faster than my current phone, and it's only available in 16GB. My Moto X, being the Dev Edition, is a 32GB and it's usually full. the Z3C has an SD card slot, but not everything can go on an SD. If I was going to go with a Snapdragon 801 phone from 2014 I'd probably choose the Moto X 2nd gen and give a little on size to retain the seriously awesome Moto Display capability.

DrvLikHell said:
I'm picky on specs... Though I did consider it today and I watched several Z3C vs Z5C videos. I like it except that it's only one year newer/faster than my current phone, and it's only available in 16GB. My Moto X, being the Dev Edition, is a 32GB and it's usually full. the Z3C has an SD card slot, but not everything can go on an SD. If I was going to go with a Snapdragon 801 phone from 2014 I'd probably choose the Moto X 2nd gen and give a little on size to retain the seriously awesome Moto Display capability.
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Well theres really isn't anything bad about the Z5 compact.....tho ppl complain about it being overheat and camera being not good, if those things is not an issue to you, then yea the z5 compact is a great phone, i say go for it, been having updates since it just had a update last two days ago

I know where you're coming from. My LG G2 has been getting really slow so I've been wanting a new phone,, but I really don't want a phablet. So I got the z5 compact (international model). It's ok. It isn't everything I hoped. The idle battery life sucks (it loses 1% per hour where as my g2 would only lose 1% every 8 hours. That makes it pretty much a 1 day phone, not 2 for most people I would imagine. And the fingerprint scanner seems to be a piece of garbage. It doesn't work 70% of the time. Other than that the phone is good. It's fast, the screen can get very bright. Obviously waterproof. So yeah, not the battery life king that the z3 compact used to be, and the fingerprint scanner might as well not exist. I bought a nexus 6p - I know I know, it's a phablet and I said I didn't want one - just to test ( I will most likely return it before the 15 day return policy) but I can't tell you how nice it is to have a fingerprint scanner that works 100% of the time and is accessible with both hands. I'm hoping the update that is just now rolling out fixes the fingerprint scanner if possible. So those are my thoughts.

uchechris said:
Well theres really isn't anything bad about the Z5 compact.....tho ppl complain about it being overheat and camera being not good, if those things is not an issue to you, then yea the z5 compact is a great phone, i say go for it, been having updates since it just had a update last two days ago
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Heat isn't an issue because I don't do anything intensive for long periods of time, like gaming. The camera I don't know about. My Moto X camera is ok, my Galaxy S3 camera was good, but that's all I've got to compare to. So maybe if I never had a better one I won't notice.
ksc6000 said:
I know where you're coming from. My LG G2 has been getting really slow so I've been wanting a new phone,, but I really don't want a phablet. So I got the z5 compact (international model). It's ok. It isn't everything I hoped. The idle battery life sucks (it loses 1% per hour where as my g2 would only lose 1% every 8 hours. That makes it pretty much a 1 day phone, not 2 for most people I would imagine. And the fingerprint scanner seems to be a piece of garbage. It doesn't work 70% of the time. Other than that the phone is good. It's fast, the screen can get very bright. Obviously waterproof. So yeah, not the battery life king that the z3 compact used to be, and the fingerprint scanner might as well not exist. I bought a nexus 6p - I know I know, it's a phablet and I said I didn't want one - just to test ( I will most likely return it before the 15 day return policy) but I can't tell you how nice it is to have a fingerprint scanner that works 100% of the time and is accessible with both hands. I'm hoping the update that is just now rolling out fixes the fingerprint scanner if possible. So those are my thoughts.
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I also tried out a phablet, the Asus Zenfone 2. Really awesome phone, but awesomely huge as well. 64GB, 4GB ram, 4 Intel Atom cores, dual sim, SD slot, fully unlockable. I figured if I was going to go big, why not get crazy with specs too. While it performed great and had every option available, it was just too big. I felt like I was pulling out a ham sandwich to make a phone call. I could barely reach the power button one-handed, never mind navigate it one-handed. But my friend was enamored with it, so I sold it to him, and I'm on the hunt again.
The battery life could be an issue. Usually I end up with around 30% left on my Moto, but sometimes I'll have to use it a lot more than normal and hit single digits by the end of the day. I've never had it die on me though. I've heard mixed reviews about the fingerprint scanner ranging from "ok", to "crap." But I don't have one now, so I won't miss it if I don't use it, right? What I'll miss is the Moto Display where it semi-wakes when you pick it up or take it out of your pocket or get a notification. No other phones wake/unlock feature can hold a candle to that.
The thing that concerns me most is the RAM leak that people talk about and the stuttering. A lot of people complain that they have to restart their phone from once a day to once every 3-4 days to restore it's speed. Otherwise it starts to choke even with just one app open. Something about app caching or precaching or whatever, I can't remember. That would be a HUGE problem for me. I want a phone that's as fast today as it was a week ago when I turned it on. Even Windows doesn't have that problem anymore. And stuttering when swiping and/or moving from app to app. That would feel gheto, like I've got a $29 phone from Walmart. If I'm going to pay several hundred bucks for a phone, it needs to move like a several hundred dollar phone. My Moto is still smooth, even when it's loading or navigating a heavy app. It's just a little pokey about it sometimes.
I really appreciate your input guys. It helps substantially because no one I know AFK knows squat about phones.

DrvLikHell said:
Heat isn't an issue because I don't do anything intensive for long periods of time, like gaming. The camera I don't know about. My Moto X camera is ok, my Galaxy S3 camera was good, but that's all I've got to compare to. So maybe if I never had a better one I won't notice.
I also tried out a phablet, the Asus Zenfone 2. Really awesome phone, but awesomely huge as well. 64GB, 4GB ram, 4 Intel Atom cores, dual sim, SD slot, fully unlockable. I figured if I was going to go big, why not get crazy with specs too. While it performed great and had every option available, it was just too big. I felt like I was pulling out a ham sandwich to make a phone call. I could barely reach the power button one-handed, never mind navigate it one-handed. But my friend was enamored with it, so I sold it to him, and I'm on the hunt again.
The battery life could be an issue. Usually I end up with around 30% left on my Moto, but sometimes I'll have to use it a lot more than normal and hit single digits by the end of the day. I've never had it die on me though. I've heard mixed reviews about the fingerprint scanner ranging from "ok", to "crap." But I don't have one now, so I won't miss it if I don't use it, right? What I'll miss is the Moto Display where it semi-wakes when you pick it up or take it out of your pocket or get a notification. No other phones wake/unlock feature can hold a candle to that.
The thing that concerns me most is the RAM leak that people talk about and the stuttering. A lot of people complain that they have to restart their phone from once a day to once every 3-4 days to restore it's speed. Otherwise it starts to choke even with just one app open. Something about app caching or precaching or whatever, I can't remember. That would be a HUGE problem for me. I want a phone that's as fast today as it was a week ago when I turned it on. Even Windows doesn't have that problem anymore. And stuttering when swiping and/or moving from app to app. That would feel gheto, like I've got a $29 phone from Walmart. If I'm going to pay several hundred bucks for a phone, it needs to move like a several hundred dollar phone. My Moto is still smooth, even when it's loading or navigating a heavy app. It's just a little pokey about it sometimes.
I really appreciate your input guys. It helps substantially because no one I know AFK knows squat about phones.
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Click to collapse
You just need to realize that no phone is perfect....all phones has its pros and cons, kinda wish there was more small phones but nowadays its always big phones big phones big phones which is very annoying, but hey welcome to history of technology, it keeps improving every year

Most people come to these forums to fix problems or discuss issues so there won't be a lot of positive threads. But then again there's not much nice to say about the z5c lol if you can live with side charging go with the z3c. The xperia line has a lot of users that are too scared to root so the development is really slim. The z3c is at a more of a mature state than the z5c so it's your best bet.

I guess I just don't understand where did this problem of the phone being slow comes from. Because if there's anything positive that I can say about the Z5 compact that is that it is super fast and I am currently using a Nexus 6p which arguably is the fastest Android experience you can get and the Z5 compact doesn't feel any slower to me. I guess the camera is probably slower because I have noticed it take a half second longer to open than I would expect it and the photos take about a second to 2 seconds to fully load but really other than that the phone is blazing fast in my opinion.

civicsr2cool said:
Most people come to these forums to fix problems or discuss issues so there won't be a lot of positive threads. But then again there's not much nice to say about the z5c lol if you can live with side charging go with the z3c. The xperia line has a lot of users that are too scared to root so the development is really slim. The z3c is at a more of a mature state than the z5c so it's your best bet.
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I don't mind the side charge, but with only 16GB, it's a step down from what I have now in terms of storage. It's also 2 years old and I'm looking for something a little newer. If you go to other forums, there are a larger percentage of people talking about how they love their phone in spite of some issue they created or something they're trying to achieve or fix. I've seen users on the Moto X forum state that they'll give up their phone when someone pries it from their cold dead hands. Others have wept when their phone was irreparably damaged. I've seen the same thing said about the LG G2. You are quite correct about older phones being in a more mature state though. The S6/S7 don't have a Cyanogen build available yet, and neither does the Z5C. But the Z3C does.
ksc6000 said:
I guess I just don't understand where did this problem of the phone being slow comes from. Because if there's anything positive that I can say about the Z5 compact that is that it is super fast and I am currently using a Nexus 6p which arguably is the fastest Android experience you can get and the Z5 compact doesn't feel any slower to me. I guess the camera is probably slower because I have noticed it take a half second longer to open than I would expect it and the photos take about a second to 2 seconds to fully load but really other than that the phone is blazing fast in my opinion.
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It's not that the Z5C is slow all together, the complaints I've been reading are that it slows down after a few days of use due to an issue with the RAM not clearing properly. Everyone says a restart fixes/clears the issue till it builds up again. Sorta like Windows 98. If you don't restart your Z5C for a week, does it still feel just as fast as your Nexus?

DrvLikHell said:
It's not that the Z5C is slow all together, the complaints I've been reading are that it slows down after a few days of use due to an issue with the RAM not clearing properly. Everyone says a restart fixes/clears the issue till it builds up again. Sorta like Windows 98. If you don't restart your Z5C for a week, does it still feel just as fast as your Nexus?
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I can't say that mine doesn't slow down somewhat after a week or so, but I've never had it happen to the point it is unusable. I've gone weeks without a restart with no real problems. I've noticed that it does slow down some, but nothing that I can't live with. And even with a slowdown, are you so in need of being connected 24/7 that you can't take the a minute periodically to reboot?
I've read some varying reports that the 6.0.1 update improves the memory management, and at least helps this issue. However, I haven't had a chance to use flashtool to update yet, so I can't say for sure.
The Z5 Compact (mine at least) does have a bit of the 810 overheating problem. The only time it impacted anything for me, I had been setting in a hot car and then tried to use the camera. I got the 'overheating... camera will close' message. I had that happen to me a few times on the Z3 compact the didn't have the Snapdragon 810 SOC.
Battery life isn't awesome, but then again I'm not really a power user. Little gaming, little social media checking, etc... I work in a location with no signal at all for the phone. It spends almost all of the day trying to connect. I generally go out to the car at lunch for a little while, but that is about all the time it is connected during the day. I don't think it has ever actually died on me doing this. If it has, it was maybe once.
When I'm somewhere that has signal all day, I've never had an issue unless I'm using navigation a lot, or something similar.
I've tried a few other phones over the last few years, and even if they have worked well they are just too freaking big. I've stuck with the Xperia compacts because they are the only <5" phone that offers true flagship specs.
Just my two cents. You're mileage may vary. If you get it and hate it, please don't blame me.

Look if you're happy, you're not gonna bother posting about it. That's human nature. There are a lot of happy users like me who don't have anything to complain about. People will only open a thread or comment if they run into a problem. Anyway, this phone has been fantastic for me since 6.0 update. And now after the 6.0.1 update, the camera starts almost instantly. So I can finally say that this was a worthwhile investment from my part.
Sent from my E5803 using XDA-Developers mobile app

i have z5c 3 months now, using MM and don't have any problems, using my phone for photos, navigation and regular calls and so on, last night i was travel with car, navigation was on 3,5 hours ( connected on charger ), phone was hot but didn't FC navigation and did't have any problems, but when i took it in my hands it was hot, checked temp and it was 42 C, so nothing to wory about, battery life depends how you use it, i can make whole day and before bed time i have over 50% left, but if i use wifi while in bed that 50% will be gone in 2 hours, i never tried on this phone but on my work phone( only calls and sms, data turned off) htc 320 battery last over 15 days in standby without problems, back on topic, camera is great for me, clear nice colors and 4k video recording is great, really can't find anything bed in this phone, if you wanna be sure battery would last whole day charge it over night

The z5c with MM is a very fast and capable multitasker.
The only negative is the camera really isn't a comparison to its competitors.
Sony sent the z5c out with an utterly p!ss poor Lollipop firmware. You can trust those review you've read at that point the z5c "was" an utter disgrace and let a complete let down.
However since MM the device is as you'd have expected it to be. It's a performer and a half.
Again it's only the sub par camera quality that negates away from an almost legendary device.
Sent from my E5823 using XDA-Developers mobile app

DrvLikHell said:
I don't mind the side charge, but with only 16GB, it's a step down from what I have now in terms of storage. It's also 2 years old and I'm looking for something a little newer. If you go to other forums, there are a larger percentage of people talking about how they love their phone in spite of some issue they created or something they're trying to achieve or fix. I've seen users on the Moto X forum state that they'll give up their phone when someone pries it from their cold dead hands. Others have wept when their phone was irreparably damaged. I've seen the same thing said about the LG G2. You are quite correct about older phones being in a more mature state though. The S6/S7 don't have a Cyanogen build available yet, and neither does the Z5C. But the Z3C does.
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Ive never come close to running out of 16gb on internal storage on any phone ive ever had and I've got two grand theft auto installed. I put everything on a 200gb sd, I can't stand a phone without SD slots lol
I agree with other forums showing more love, this is the third Sony phone I've tried over the years and the third one that I have very little nice things to say about it. But the z5c forums have only just started to take off since the US release, it was real real dead before that.

DrvLikHell said:
I don't mind the side charge, but with only 16GB, it's a step down from what I have now in terms of storage. It's also 2 years old and I'm looking for something a little newer. If you go to other forums, there are a larger percentage of people talking about how they love their phone in spite of some issue they created or something they're trying to achieve or fix. I've seen users on the Moto X forum state that they'll give up their phone when someone pries it from their cold dead hands. Others have wept when their phone was irreparably damaged. I've seen the same thing said about the LG G2. You are quite correct about older phones being in a more mature state though. The S6/S7 don't have a Cyanogen build available yet, and neither does the Z5C. But the Z3C does.
It's not that the Z5C is slow all together, the complaints I've been reading are that it slows down after a few days of use due to an issue with the RAM not clearing properly. Everyone says a restart fixes/clears the issue till it builds up again. Sorta like Windows 98. If you don't restart your Z5C for a week, does it still feel just as fast as your Nexus?
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Click to collapse
Yeah in my opinion the phone is still as fast and I do not have to reboot every week or whatever. I would still say that it remains as fast and doesn't seem to slow down at all in my opinion. My sister also has the Z5 Compact and she also does not notice any slowdowns of any sort and doesn't have to reboot regularly and the only does it if necessary while changing SIM cards or something.
So again my main gripes with this phone are the idle battery life which I can live with even though it's really annoying, but the fingerprint scanner is just not good in my opinion. Especially after using a nice one that works every time and seamlessly and it's just so effortless, it's really hard to use this when it screws up more than half the time it feels like. However my sister's Z5 compact fingerprint scanner seems to be a little bit better, I don't understand why. The difference only is that she has the black model and I have the white one and I know that there was an issue with the screen not responding to touch properly when the phones first came out just for the white model so maybe there's a difference in the hardware of the fingerprint scanner as well.

DrvLikHell said:
I've been reading up about the Z5C because it's the only small yet powerful android phone currently on the market. Of course I always check XDA for root/rom/support experiences, and here I mostly see negative experiences. So many people are saying this is their last Xperia or that if the new Android M doesn't fix it's issues then they're going to switch to different phone, etc. This disheartens me greatly because I see no other viable option for a new sub-5 inch phone. I currently have a 1st gen Moto X - XT1053 Dev Edition. I love the phone and everything about it, but it's getting to be a bit slow with 2013 hardware running 2016 apps, and I think I will need an upgrade by 2017. I would buy another Motorola, but Lenovo has decided that Motorola should only make shovel sized phones (which goes against everything in Motorola's original vision.)
So where does that leave us who don't like gargantuan phones but still want a quality device? Do I wait and see if fixes come for the Z5C memory leak, stuttering, and its other issues? A few people report that their phone doesn't have these issues, do I gamble and hope I get a good one like that? Is there some other small form Andriod smartphone out there that I should consider? Or do I give up and get a 5+ inch device? It seems the Samsung G6 or G7 would be the next smallest option.
I would love to hear everyone's thoughts and comments on this.
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Click to collapse
Bear in mind that people who don't have problems have little reason to post on forums.
I went from a XT1058 to a discounted Nexus 5 to a Z5C and have been mostly happy.
The only issues I've had:
- Phone app crashes after a call ends when using Android Auto
- Camera app is a little slow to launch
- No "active display" (i.e. google's equivalent of moto display)
- Absolutely needs a case as it's too slippery to use bare (unlike the Moto X)
- Phone gets really warm after using it with Android Auto

Really after Mm update z5c is blazing fast, no complains what so ever when it comes to performance. Sometimes it gets a bit hot, but nothing to be concerned about. And I don't know why everyone complaints about fingereader, it works 95 proc of time for me. I register same finger three times. I don't really use camera that much, but it opens super fast for me, but even I can tell quality is not great. At least auto mode.

My experience with this device has been mostly a pleasant one. One of the previous poster mentioned that no device is perfect and this one is no different. You will always find something that you feel the manufacturer didn't get right. The gripes I have with this device:
- Slow camera app. (Also, I can't find a burst mode...is there one?)
- Wi-Fi connection when the phone is sleeping (this is sometime-y)
- Some of the Sony apps are useless
The positives:
- Size size size
- Fingerprint scanner is fast (not iPhone fast, but fast)
- Battery life is nice. I've gotten 2 1/2 days (mostly idle time. On screen was about 3hrs)
- Playing hi-res music (subjective...well, I guess all of this is subjective)
- The 820 is a great piece of silicone (it would be extraordinary if not for the occasional heat)
- SD card slot (and the ability to use it to back up your settings)
- The diagnostic tool in the "About Phone" section
- Front facing speakers. Not going to blow your mind, but they're facing you..not away.
I know there are more that I'm missing but the point is that it's been positive. I'm not a big fan of MM, but that is a different story.
Scribe'd on my everlasting Z5C

I dont recomend the z5c at all, i use it for working, and the phone really struggles with facebook pages, youtube, Chrome, facebook, Messenger and WhatsApp all the time receiving notifications and messeges.
The phone overheats to the point that everything lags like a 2008 Android phone.
When i play real Racing 3, i always have couple of Ice cube close to me, for let my phone cools down to avoid lag while playing.
Dont buy it, go for a nexus or Samsung, and sacrifice the size thing, and remember ALWAYS AN ALUMINUM PHONE WILL HAVE LESS HEAT ISSUES THAN A GLASS P PHONE, BECAUSE OF HEAT DISCIPATION.

Anyone regret getting this phone? :/

I have the U11 since inception along with the S8 (exynos variant) and Oneplus 5. I really regret buying it since I cant even sell it now. I'm left with the choice of selling my other two phone and use this :/

KeepItzRoot said:
I have the U11 since inception along with the S8 (exynos variant) and Oneplus 5. I really regret buying it since I cant even sell it now. I'm left with the choice of selling my other two phone and use this :/
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And would you like to explain why you don't want to use u11 and keep other devices instead?
Sent from my HTC One M9 using Tapatalk

What don't you like about the phone? I just got mine and I'm enjoying it so far. Only thing is aftermarket support isn't that great.
Sent from my HTC U11 using Tapatalk

melihcarter said:
And would you like to explain why you don't want to use u11 and keep other devices instead?
Sent from my HTC One M9 using Tapatalk
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The battery life isnt as good, samsung did some vodoo to make their battery last while viewing youtube, the Oneplus sometime beat the S8 if not on par with it. The lack of 3.5mm is such a hassle, I have my personal in-ear monitor, I use it to listen to music, and everytime I go somewhere I have to carried a pigtail. The phone is so much wider to hold with one hand, granted the oneplus 5 isnt far off, but it is bigger, with a case, I feel like its almost the same as my LG V20. One handed usage is such a pain. Not a big deal to me but when it comes to photography, its hit or miss, sometime it over expose sometime it doesnt. Oneplus have this issue too but the S8 really is a happy medium.
The ****ty thing abuot S8 is the damn bixby functionality. Touchwiz has come a long way, and Its awesome now, but bixby need to die. Oneplus is a good phone with top spec, but their screen cannot touch the S8 amoled, viewing it side by side the S8 just trump the oneplus screen. the U11 have good screen, better than the oneplus 5, in this regard.. Seems like every year HTC push out a phone that doesnt WOW or excite you, just leaving you in a state of euphoric until many of it quirks find it way back to the phone....SHame really, fallen from grace down to here.

KeepItzRoot said:
The battery life isnt as good, samsung did some vodoo to make their battery last while viewing youtube, the Oneplus sometime beat the S8 if not on par with it. The lack of 3.5mm is such a hassle, I have my personal in-ear monitor, I use it to listen to music, and everytime I go somewhere I have to carried a pigtail. The phone is so much wider to hold with one hand, granted the oneplus 5 isnt far off, but it is bigger, with a case, I feel like its almost the same as my LG V20. One handed usage is such a pain. Not a big deal to me but when it comes to photography, its hit or miss, sometime it over expose sometime it doesnt. Oneplus have this issue too but the S8 really is a happy medium.
The ****ty thing abuot S8 is the damn bixby functionality. Touchwiz has come a long way, and Its awesome now, but bixby need to die. Oneplus is a good phone with top spec, but their screen cannot touch the S8 amoled, viewing it side by side the S8 just trump the oneplus screen. the U11 have good screen, better than the oneplus 5, in this regard.. Seems like every year HTC push out a phone that doesnt WOW or excite you, just leaving you in a state of euphoric until many of it quirks find it way back to the phone....SHame really, fallen from grace down to here.
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Click to collapse
Before I got mine I did a ton of research. Went to a MeetU event, checked it out in Sprint stores and saw tons of reviews. I knew the stuff I had to live with like the dongle for headphones. Sorry you don't like the phone. I'm assuming you can't return it anymore?
Sent from my HTC U11 using Tapatalk

You are more than welcome to your opinion but why on Earth can you "not sell your phone"?

I like the phone at the moment.I think it will be a problem to resell it because not so many people are using HTC.Nobody from my friends are using HTC.iPhone and Samsung addicted ?

The only thing I regret about the U11 is its size, but I didn't have any way to test it out before purchasing. It's difficult for me to use with one hand. I still have a couple of weeks to return it for a refund, and really the only newer phone that intrigues me is the Essential. But that device feels like a gamble in a few ways.
I don't see why you would have any problems selling the U11. You may not receive as much as you paid for it, but somebody will buy it. Someone bought my 10 a few weeks ago (with several accessors) for $475 very quickly.

No, I made an informed decision and went with the best option for me.
I like that the phone comes with a USB DAC, I like the sapphire blue glass, I use the squeeze feature multiple times in a day, the only thing I've got slight reservations are the change to the warranty stance over unlocking the bootloader and their updates not being fast enough.
E.g. the new update indicates the display sensitivity issue is fixed and yet the 001 WWE users will probably be waiting another month.
But then again, I'd rather have this device over any of the others currently in the market.

KeepItzRoot said:
The battery life isnt as good, samsung did some vodoo to make their battery last while viewing youtube, the Oneplus sometime beat the S8 if not on par with it. The lack of 3.5mm is such a hassle, I have my personal in-ear monitor, I use it to listen to music, and everytime I go somewhere I have to carried a pigtail. The phone is so much wider to hold with one hand, granted the oneplus 5 isnt far off, but it is bigger, with a case, I feel like its almost the same as my LG V20. One handed usage is such a pain. Not a big deal to me but when it comes to photography, its hit or miss, sometime it over expose sometime it doesnt. Oneplus have this issue too but the S8 really is a happy medium.
The ****ty thing abuot S8 is the damn bixby functionality. Touchwiz has come a long way, and Its awesome now, but bixby need to die. Oneplus is a good phone with top spec, but their screen cannot touch the S8 amoled, viewing it side by side the S8 just trump the oneplus screen. the U11 have good screen, better than the oneplus 5, in this regard.. Seems like every year HTC push out a phone that doesnt WOW or excite you, just leaving you in a state of euphoric until many of it quirks find it way back to the phone....SHame really, fallen from grace down to here.
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Click to collapse
Battery life not good?
10 hours screen on time on stock is easily achieved on the u11?
Wow.... Your expectations must be very high

p50kombi said:
Battery life not good?
10 hours screen on time on stock is easily achieved on the u11?
Wow.... Your expectations must be very high
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Click to collapse
10 hours...did you shut off everything, turn screen brightness to 0? I can barely get it past 4 hours.
I use my phone typically with everything on, and auto brightness on. I never have a problem with the oneplus 5 or S8 last beyond 5 hours.

Doughnut said:
No, I made an informed decision and went with the best option for me.
I like that the phone comes with a USB DAC, I like the sapphire blue glass, I use the squeeze feature multiple times in a day, the only thing I've got slight reservations are the change to the warranty stance over unlocking the bootloader and their updates not being fast enough.
E.g. the new update indicates the display sensitivity issue is fixed and yet the 001 WWE users will probably be waiting another month.
But then again, I'd rather have this device over any of the others currently in the market.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I dont have sensitivity issue. All phones works well as far as audio goes, I power my HD800s with a proper DAC/AMP not with a phone DAC/AMP. I cant see any in-ear monitor that cant be power (and power well) with any of these phones, its 2017.

KeepItzRoot said:
10 hours...did you shut off everything, turn screen brightness to 0? I can barely get it past 4 hours.
I use my phone typically with everything on, and auto brightness on. I never have a problem with the oneplus 5 or S8 last beyond 5 hours.
Click to expand...
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Check the megathread, there's screenshots in there. Not from myself but other users

borgsta said:
You are more than welcome to your opinion but why on Earth can you "not sell your phone"?
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seems like no one wants it. It depreciate alot! I had this problem with the HTC 10 too, but being a tech/phone (dummy) I bought another HTC :/

p50kombi said:
Check the megathread, there's screenshots in there. Not from myself but other users
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Click to collapse
thats the thing, phone usage is based on user to user. I am using the phone the same as my 2 other phones and it cant hang. You can go to any phone thread and there are people making ridiculous claim about their SOT, even in the S8. ask how they do it and they throw out a bunch of things they did such as turning down brightness to 0, some even put phone on airplane mode -_- c'mon man.

Im not which region your in OP, but in UK, you can trade your U11 to CEX for £415 against something else in store or £345 cash in hand.. and I think GAME do something similar.. Or eBay about £350-450 , which isnt the best, but if you dislike it that much.. then better some kind of cash than nothing...
The only thing I dislike about the U11 is that f**king News Republic is forced upon us if we want to use BlinkFeed, and your battery problem is caused by "News Republic" which powers BlinkFeed.. I actually really loved BF on the M8 and M9, it was useful, but Ive noticed that on the U11, NR is constantly waking the CPU when phone is sleeping and when your not even using BF at all, bit like UpDay used to be on the S7E. Im actually force to disable both BF and NR... and install G .Newsstand instead. Also, even when you "unfollow" a topic. like Football, or Chinese Politics.. it actually doesnt work.. I STILL those Newsfeeds
Now to me, BF was a great part of Sense UI.. and disabling it, is a bit like not using the Stereo Speakers or the camera.. its a major part of HTC phones.. So Im not happy either.. When HTC went stock Google to reduce the Bloat on their phones, why didnt they just bake Google News and Weather or Newsstand as BlinkFeed..
Other than NR... I love the U11 and my G6, but these 2 are my last Android phones.. my next phone is an Iphone 7 plus..

Battery life is very good. But excellent with a custom kernel. Get about 7 hours of on screen time.

KeepItzRoot said:
thats the thing, phone usage is based on user to user. I am using the phone the same as my 2 other phones and it cant hang. You can go to any phone thread and there are people making ridiculous claim about their SOT, even in the S8. ask how they do it and they throw out a bunch of things they did such as turning down brightness to 0, some even put phone on airplane mode -_- c'mon man.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not though... It's brightness set at 50 at auto, normal usage and even social media apps..
I don't use my phone that much that I can claim 10 hours screen off time, but my phone easily reached 2 full days of my normal usage and 6 hours screen on time during that time...

Loving mine thus far. Coming from the S7, my battery life and performance has been pretty dang good. Even before S7 root, it is noticeably better. When considering the S7 root situation of having to use an engineering boot/kernel, and the mess it made with the battery life/performance...it's night and day.
The lack of headphone jack is somewhat disappointing. In reality I don't find myself needing headphones as often any more now that I'm done with college and all that jazz. The only other complaint I have is the lack of accessories for it.

KeepItzRoot said:
The battery life isnt as good, samsung did some vodoo to make their battery last while viewing youtube, the Oneplus sometime beat the S8 if not on par with it. The lack of 3.5mm is such a hassle, I have my personal in-ear monitor, I use it to listen to music, and everytime I go somewhere I have to carried a pigtail. The phone is so much wider to hold with one hand, granted the oneplus 5 isnt far off, but it is bigger, with a case, I feel like its almost the same as my LG V20. One handed usage is such a pain. Not a big deal to me but when it comes to photography, its hit or miss, sometime it over expose sometime it doesnt. Oneplus have this issue too but the S8 really is a happy medium.
The ****ty thing abuot S8 is the damn bixby functionality. Touchwiz has come a long way, and Its awesome now, but bixby need to die. Oneplus is a good phone with top spec, but their screen cannot touch the S8 amoled, viewing it side by side the S8 just trump the oneplus screen. the U11 have good screen, better than the oneplus 5, in this regard.. Seems like every year HTC push out a phone that doesnt WOW or excite you, just leaving you in a state of euphoric until many of it quirks find it way back to the phone....SHame really, fallen from grace down to here.
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* Battery - my SOT is 6hrs. More than any other phone I had used except for the Mi Mix(9-10hrs). Lots of FB, Viber. Regular text messages and calls. some games.
* 3.5mm - you can't complain about this. You had to know from the start that HTC U11 didn't have one.
* Camera - excellent for me.
* This phone is very fast and smooth I have no complaints whatsoever.

S8 in late 2018?

Looking to buy my wife a new phone cause her iPhone 6S battery is dieing out. I plan to get her the S8 exynos and flash a pixel room. Thought about getting her an S9 buy the exynos version has problems with poor battery. Plus the S8 is on sale for $375.
Her use is mainly messaging, social media apps and youtube. How's the speed/fluidity of the phone?
I ask cause I have a pixel 2xl and it's working flawlessly. Smoother than the OnePlus 6 I had before it. The SD835 isn't far behind the SD845 like one would think. I also heard good things about the exynos 8895.
I really don't want to get her a phone with issues cause I'll end up having to buy her another one. Would appreciate detailed opinions/reviews. Thanks.

Will008 said:
Looking to buy my wife a new phone cause her iPhone 6S battery is dieing out. I plan to get her the S8 exynos and flash a pixel room. Thought about getting her an S9 buy the exynos version has problems with poor battery. Plus the S8 is on sale for $375.
Her use is mainly messaging, social media apps and youtube. How's the speed/fluidity of the phone?
I ask cause I have a pixel 2xl and it's working flawlessly. Smoother than the OnePlus 6 I had before it. The SD835 isn't far behind the SD845 like one would think. I also heard good things about the exynos 8895.
I really don't want to get her a phone with issues cause I'll end up having to buy her another one. Would appreciate detailed opinions/reviews. Thanks.
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I got the phone about a month ago and here are my thoughts:
-Not as fast as a Pixel 2 or a Oneplus 6 but still good enough. You wouldn't call this a slow phone. Apps won't launch as quickly as a phone with stock android, but it's not a big deal imo. Reduce the animation time from developer settings and you'll be good to go.
-Camera is fantastic. Sometimes even better than the S9.
-Battery life is good after some tweaking. I get about 6 hours of SOT and a full day of mixed use.
-Samsung Experience UI is so much better than the old TouchWiz. I'd suggest that you try it before switching to a custom rom. Features like Good Lock can help you customize your phone like never before. It's not the gimmicky bloat of the past.
-The curved screen is a bloody pain for phone cases and tempered glasses. But I still like it. Makes the grip of the phone much better for me. I'd suggest getting a full screen glue tempered glass from AliExpress or a Whitestone Dome from Amazon (this may sound like a trivial point but trust me, it's very important).
I think the S8 is a great value buy over the S9. I got it for about $380 myself and I have no regrets. Fantastic features, keeps the headphone jack.

6 hours sot? do you mind sharing your tricks, master?
i usually have 3 and end the day on 30-40% left at 8 pm
anaway, i can fully recommend this phone, still looks and feels like it came out two weeks ago

TexasHoldemJoker said:
6 hours sot? do you mind sharing your tricks, master?
i usually have 3 and end the day on 30-40% left at 8 pm
anaway, i can fully recommend this phone, still looks and feels like it came out two weeks ago
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https://www.reddit.com/r/GalaxyS8/comments/71imyw/neomancrs_general_battery_and_performance_tuning
I've followed most of these settings.
Make sure you add most of your apps to the "Always Sleeping Apps" list in the battery settings.
Turn off background data for apps you don't need.
Use the "Moderate" setting of battery saving and customize it to your preference.
SOT varies from person to person. On a very heavy day with a full day of 4g use I can get about 4.5-5 hours SOT.
On a light day, I get about 6-6.5 hours
Today was quite a light day. Maybe about an hour of continuous 4g use. Rest has been WiFi and social media.

I only make 3-4h SOT....
So... NO

After year and couple a months that's my opinion.... Awesome

I have this phone for about 10 months now. I had no troubles with it. I haven't seen an app crash since i updated from a really sh phone, alcatel one youch idol mini 3, so from my experience its effin superb phone. Display is amazing, really, amazing. Full screen videos are outstanding, youtube option to zoom till filled is just wow. 2 apps at the same time is my fav option. YT on top and anything else on the bottom. Two accounts for social media apps. Additional storage.. amazing camera with super slo mo 4k video etc.. all in all my experience for s8+ is 9/10

Keep it stock,for a woman its better.

I just got mine second hand about 3 months ago. That is a good deal.
Coming from iphone 6plus(work phone) I did not think I would like it. My other phone at that time was an essential phone. And all my previous phones were pure android. So I did not think I would like the samsung overlay.
It is great the only thing I have done was turn on developer options to get rid if navigation buttons and notification area.
I use it heavily for work email. My app is not battery optimized. Syncing data for changes documents and some tethering data.
Each day I put on the charger at 5:45am and I take it off the charger about 7am and it last me all day until I go to bed about 11pm. I don't pay attention to the battery percentage since I hide the notification at top.
As for speed I don't have a problem.
I would not worry about rooting the phone unless there is a tweak you really need. I have rooted and ROMed every phone but this one. The samsung extras are really good

Muresan01 said:
Keep it stock,for a woman its better.
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Was only thinking to do that to get rid of bloat and make sure it doesn't slow by time as everyone says about Samsung's phones. From the comments I've been getting I see that's not needed anymore. Thanks.

Will008 said:
Was only thinking to do that to get rid of bloat and make sure it doesn't slow by time as everyone says about Samsung's phones. From the comments I've been getting I see that's not needed anymore. Thanks.
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Nah I still got mine other than a couple stock restores due to bricking mine doesn't ever lag. But I am also rooted and tweaked to the max allowable.
I would have to say depending on the price it's still a good option just no root method for US users any more