Database Develop

Diamond build quality *re-visited*

I know there is already a post on this, but it applied mostly to grey market diamonds. I would like to hear from some people who have recently bought official HTC diamonds from their service providers.
My phone's screen is perfect. No yellow tints and no lines/rainbowing. However, the top and bottom panels are not flush with one another meaning that at a certain angle, the backlight bleads out a little on the left side where the panels meet. In addition, the top panel does not align with the rim of the phone properly so that there is a thin gap - this is quite annoying as the gap appears to have already accumilated dust/lint.
My phone is from Orange and I received it a few days ago. I can't say that these 'issues' bother me too much, but I would like to hear how common they are and whether they might pose problems etc. If this is a rarity and I have been unlucky I may consider swapping it for another Diamond.
Thanks,
S.

*bump*
Why the silence guys? :-(
Share your thoughts please. I lead a pretty hectic life so build is v. important for me, so your opinions/perspectives would really help.

Only thing I have noticed on mine is that the printed ring around the wheely thingy is not central.
Seriously, I think it's fine.

My Diamond is perfect. Came from my provider here in Finland, and no issues with build quality at all.

Probably not silence, more likely most have no issues!
Certainly none with mine.

I have a TMobile MDA Vario IV Compact and have no hardware build quality issues (don't get me started on the default software branding ! YUCK !)

Fair enough. The question is, do I swap this diamond which works flawlessly and has a great screen, for another which in all probability will not, for the sake of cosmetic perfection?
I'm thinking NO.

Grey market ?!
My HTC is 100% official but I bought it directly from a high street dealer rather than from my GSM provider.
I usually do that for two reasons - Firstly it's quicker when you want to get hold of new trendy phones Secondly I don't have to bother with simlocking and operator limitations
....and the rebate is often better.
Please don't think that only operator branded copies are genuine.
BTW - You should keep your handset if you're happy with it

FH1 said:
Only thing I have noticed on mine is that the printed ring around the wheely thingy is not central.
Seriously, I think it's fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i have the same problem .. .. well it isnt really a problem at all ... and i have a dead pixel .. but just 1 pixel in a 640x480 screen is not noticeable at all

perfect diamond here. got it from provider first day it came.

got mine today on t-mobile uk. its perfect!

Had mine since it was launched on Orange and the only problem I have is one dead pixel which is stuck on blue. It's almost impossible to see without really looking for it though so doesn't really bother me.

same here.. bought it from vodafone. not a single *build* flaw

So no-one can see any amount of white light leakage through a tiny gap where the two panels meet then? I must have an extremely rare phone! lol.

I have a slight gap with light leakage, doesn't bother me as you can't really tell with the top and bottom screen protector on and lined up peroperly.
I don't think its very rare as I've seen a few video's with the same problem. I read someone on here had the same issue and tried returning it but was apparently told it was within HTC's build tolerance.

When you say screen protector, do you mean a third-party one you have bought yourself?
Interesting re HTC build tolerance. Hmm...

I use a martin fields protector which comes with the screen protector and a protector for the bottom button bit.

kien said:
I have a slight gap with light leakage, doesn't bother me as you can't really tell with the top and bottom screen protector on and lined up peroperly.
I don't think its very rare as I've seen a few video's with the same problem. I read someone on here had the same issue and tried returning it but was apparently told it was within HTC's build tolerance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have this "gap" as well, but it is miniscual and I'm sure its on most of the devices....you just have to look real Hard.

My gf's Diamond is almost perfect. I just noticed the stylus to be slightly misplaced... But she didn't even noticed it, so it's not a big deal.

Mine looks perfect, but I have a little backlight leakage on the bottom of my screen. Means a yellow/white spot on the bottom of my screen.

[Q] Back battery door loose

I just got my HD7 today and there is a noticeable amount of space between the part of the back you can remove and the bottom of the back. There is some creaking between the two back plates. The bottom backplate is higher raised than the top back plate. Is it supposed to be like this or did I just get one that was messed up. (FYI, I love my WinPhone7)

It is also on mine.

I've actually had 3 HD7s so far and each one had a different fit on the battery door. The one I have now has the best fit of them all but the first one, the top of the door stood out further than the rest of the door. The top wasn't flush with the side like the middle and bottom.
Quality control is lacking at HTC these days. The first one had signal problems. The second one had dead pixels all over the screen. So far this third one hasn't shown any problems.
I do believe, though, that the HD7 is the most gorgeous of all the WP7 devices yet. To me it's like a refined and polished HD2. It is everything I wanted in the HD2's appearance.

Make sure it is snapped into place properly. It may seem that it has seated properly but it needs a good press down with thumbs and it should snap into place and sit flush.

MartyLK said:
I've actually had 3 HD7s so far and each one had a different fit on the battery door. The one I have now has the best fit of them all but the first one, the top of the door stood out further than the rest of the door. The top wasn't flush with the side like the middle and bottom.
Quality control is lacking at HTC these days. The first one had signal problems. The second one had dead pixels all over the screen. So far this third one hasn't shown any problems.
I do believe, though, that the HD7 is the most gorgeous of all the WP7 devices yet. To me it's like a refined and polished HD2. It is everything I wanted in the HD2's appearance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
With the amount of devices HTC keeps churning out almost every second, its no wonder they are making mistakes in quality assurance on some of them.
I too have the same gap between the top cover and the bottom radio cover, you can see the sim through the gap.
Its odd that the Desire HD got a better unibody design than the HD7 and yet they are both practically siblins.
Would it have also killed them to put and SLCD instead of stantard LCD? I know amoled supplies are low and Samsung cockblocked Super Amoled distribution.
Such a large screen deserves higher quality.
I'm pissed off with HTC but I really really like my HD7 with WinPhone 7. Zune is fecking awesome.

bazanime said:
With the amount of devices HTC keeps churning out almost every second, its no wonder they are making mistakes in quality assurance on some of them.
I too have the same gap between the top cover and the bottom radio cover, you can see the sim through the gap.
Its odd that the Desire HD got a better unibody design than the HD7 and yet they are both practically siblins.
Would it have also killed them to put and SLCD instead of stantard LCD? I know amoled supplies are low and Samsung cockblocked Super Amoled distribution.
Such a large screen deserves higher quality.
I'm pissed off with HTC but I really really like my HD7 with WinPhone 7. Zune is fecking awesome.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. I expected a bit more hardware wise also. But I look at it like a refined and polished HD2. It looks exactly like what I've wanted my HD2 to look like. I was even envious of the Evo when I saw it. But this HD7 is even better looking than the Evo. That sweet black-chrome surround and those nice silver sound producing grills. The use of soft buttons, getting away from the hard buttons of the HD2. The super clean rear side and the even-better-looking-than-the-Evo kickstand.
As long as I look at the HD7 as an HD2.2, I'm content. WP7 is the real glory of this device. Such a sweet mobile OS.

MartyLK said:
I agree. I expected a bit more hardware wise also. But I look at it like a refined and polished HD2. It looks exactly like what I've wanted my HD2 to look like. I was even envious of the Evo when I saw it. But this HD7 is even better looking than the Evo. That sweet black-chrome surround and those nice silver sound producing grills. The use of soft buttons, getting away from the hard buttons of the HD2. The super clean rear side and the even-better-looking-than-the-Evo kickstand.
As long as I look at the HD7 as an HD2.2, I'm content. WP7 is the real glory of this device. Such a sweet mobile OS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've never had a HD2 so i cant comment much on your experience, but I agree that the HD7 looks beautiful and well designed, i really like the weight and the black chrome surround. I could have done without the grills, but I'm getting used to them.
What I would have like are that materials used be more akin to the Desire HD, less plastic more metal for the main enclosure, then plastic elements where its needed. Alas, I'm sure there will be a WP7 htc HD8 phone like that in a few months with built in 32GB storage, then we HD7 owners will be crying.
I'm quite content, i just need WP7 to be updated with some fundamental features missed at launch to appease the power user in me.

I just got it yesterday so I took it back to t-mobile today and they exchanged it for me. It was such a hard choice whether to get this or the mytouch 4g.

rllong1 said:
I just got it yesterday so I took it back to t-mobile today and they exchanged it for me. It was such a hard choice whether to get this or the mytouch 4g.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had the MyTouch 4G and had data problems. Turns out it (Android) uses a separate data service than WinMo and mine was WinMo. But I hated the plasticy look of the front button panel and the protrusion on the USB and HP connectors. It ruined the aesthetics. I wished I had gotten the G2 instead. But I returned the MyTouch and later got another HD7, for which I am glad.

MartyLK said:
I've actually had 3 HD7s so far and each one had a different fit on the battery door. The one I have now has the best fit of them all but the first one, the top of the door stood out further than the rest of the door. The top wasn't flush with the side like the middle and bottom.
Quality control is lacking at HTC these days. The first one had signal problems. The second one had dead pixels all over the screen. So far this third one hasn't shown any problems.
I do believe, though, that the HD7 is the most gorgeous of all the WP7 devices yet. To me it's like a refined and polished HD2. It is everything I wanted in the HD2's appearance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would have much rather had the hd2's metal battery cover over this one, but overall I am pleased with the design.
My signal seems a little worse, but I'm not sure if its a defect or just the way it is. Trying to give microsoft some time to see if an update might be coming for the radio.
As far as QC for this device, my back is flush, but if you play with the battery cover, you can make a small gap to see the sim.

Rare Camera Button Scratch

I dont know if someone of you have the same problem, but one day I took my hd7 out of my pocket for taking a pic and saw this rare scratch oxide color on my camera button... I always have it in a case, and i use it in a pocket where only is my phone.. I dont know, it is like the crome paint is falling ... I dont take a lot of pics.. so i cant undestand....

It's not rare.
It's about build quality.
Because i got this thing after bought 1 month (and the volume button next in the few month).
I ask the other people and they got this too.

when my screen died on me... i sent the hd7 to htc, they changed the buttons as well for me with the screen....

I also have it

Could anyone post some pictures? My HD7 has been in an Otterbox so the buttons are still fully chrome. My only gripe is that since this was a refurbished replacement, there appears to be some paint buildup on the camera button resembling a small bump.

it's a shame.
i got my scratched and oxided button after 1 month of purchasing the phone,
i thought that HTC make its phones with high quality, but i was wrong,
HTC made this phone with low level of quality. at least it's true about it's button ).

well.. thanks everyone now I know It's about build quality.... i owned a hd2 and the quality is amazing... but hd7 ...

I wouldn't say HTC's build quality is amazing apart from the HD2 (just glass and metal overall, but had the dead touchscreen issue). They always seem to cheap out on some parts such as the faux chrome or buttons on the HD7 or end up with a crapload of issues such as dust under the screen/FFC, creakiness, superior/inferior screens on the same device, overheating, touchscreen issues, etc. (Mytouch 4G comes into mind). They do however manage to make the device feel like a solid brick.

Want to upgrade from HTC One M7 to Z3 Compact, need input

Hi folks, I liked my HTC One M7, I've been using it for 1 year but recently it has to go to to repair because the camera went purple-tint and vibration motor is dead. Based on my experience local technicians has notoriously sloppy work, so I don't expect this phone will be running trouble-free until my biannual upgrade cycle. So I want to sell my One for a new phone while it still has considerable resale value.
I don't think I liked the bigger-is-better screen hip (One is my biggest phone so far), Being able to operate phone with one hand is definite must for me. So HTC One M8 and Nexus 6 should be out of picture. After a bit of research among the crowd of mini-edition of flagships I think Z3 Compact would be a good candidate.
I used Xperia Pro in the past and I liked Sony build quality mostly.
So HTC One former user, what do you miss when upgrading to Z3 Compact?
I have already thinking about a few downsides:
1. (1080p 4.7 in vs 4.6in 720p), also reportedly Z3C compact has issue with collor accuracy and viewing angle
2. Metal vs plastic -- boy I love my One metallic feel and look, but I guess tempered glass and polycarbonate plastic are classy in its own right?
3. IR Blaster - absolute gem for the lazy me. AC, TV, Stereo with One phone to rule them all (pun intended)
4. Speaker - Both has front firing stereo speakers, but it appears One gain the upper hand?
And of course a few niceties:
1. Waterproof.
2. Smaller footprint with essentially same size of screen.
3. Better processor
So what do you think folks? or should I wait for Z4C which basically will come to my country in mid 2015 (back to bi annual cycle)?

Honestly if you don't need the waterproofness then you are just as good staying with the M7 (all though the camera on the Z3C is better)...
I had the M7 for a year too and in everyday use the M7 is matching the ZC3. I like the size of the Sony better though and you will not miss the full HD screen should you choose to do the change anyways...

Put it in respective for you. I had the m8 and was unlocked and s off. Speakers where giving trouble due to work conditions with dust. Changed to the z3 compact and thought I'd miss having root and customs roms. But I'm not I love the size and feel of the phone. And I'm getting 2 days use of the phone which never happened with any android I have. I'm a heavy user though.
Cell reception and WiFi is better than the m8 as well and both are unlocked from factory

WhizzWr said:
Hi folks, I liked my HTC One M7, I've been using it for 1 year but recently it has to go to to repair because the camera went purple-tint and vibration motor is dead. Based on my experience local technicians has notoriously sloppy work, so I don't expect this phone will be running trouble-free until my biannual upgrade cycle. So I want to sell my One for a new phone while it still has considerable resale value.
I don't think I liked the bigger-is-better screen hip (One is my biggest phone so far), Being able to operate phone with one hand is definite must for me. So HTC One M8 and Nexus 6 should be out of picture. After a bit of research among the crowd of mini-edition of flagships I think Z3 Compact would be a good candidate.
I used Xperia Pro in the past and I liked Sony build quality mostly.
So HTC One former user, what do you miss when upgrading to Z3 Compact?
I have already thinking about a few downsides:
1. (1080p 4.7 in vs 4.6in 720p), also reportedly Z3C compact has issue with collor accuracy and viewing angle
2. Metal vs plastic -- boy I love my One metallic feel and look, but I guess tempered glass and polycarbonate plastic are classy in its own right?
3. IR Blaster - absolute gem for the lazy me. AC, TV, Stereo with One phone to rule them all (pun intended)
4. Speaker - Both has front firing stereo speakers, but it appears One gain the upper hand?
And of course a few niceties:
1. Waterproof.
2. Smaller footprint with essentially same size of screen.
3. Better processor
So what do you think folks? or should I wait for Z4C which basically will come to my country in mid 2015 (back to bi annual cycle)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi mate,
i "upgraded" from M7 to the Z3C. here some infos:
1) i personall find the diplay quality and resolution great with the z3c, i have no complains about the angle or colours, it looks perfect for me.
2) the z3c feels very quality, the "plastic" at the sides looks good and fits perfect with the glass front/back. if its too slippy for you, just buy a cheap rubber case.
3) i didnt need it, as i use a app via wlan for my receiver from the provider
4) the speakers from the M7 are definitely better, the speaker from z3c cant get be that good, as they more turned inside for waterproof. its its loud enough. you have an build in equilizer (the m7 just a switch for Beats Audio), with z3c you have multiple surround modes, sudio modes, effects, bass boost, profiles etc.
The Z3C seems to be more fluend in the user interface, buts that personally. i bought it because of his size.
Only buy it if the size of the M7 doesnt fit to you and keep it mind that the M7 has plenty ROMs and Kernels, but the Z3C has near nothing and you risk lose of DRM keys if you unlock Bootloader.
I would flash the Google Play [email protected]
So its not an "upgrade" its more a "switch"

Z3c is the phone that never gives you anything to think/worry about. It's just there, always ready (up to 3 days use for me) never too big to hold, never too small to read. It never annoys you with unlock lag or stutter while using it, even the camera with its dedicated button feels just good...
With my previous phones I always tried to tinker around and improve this and that. With my z3c I never had that urge. It works just the way I expect it to. If I haven't made myself clear enough: I love it.

I agree with all of them here.
Though i would not consider it a necessary upgrade as you already have a nicely running, fast phone.
In your place i would wait at least for the announcement of the new Z generation. If there is a Z4 Compact, i would take a look at the specs and see if it fits your needs. Maybe it gets a metal frame again? Maybe it will get an IR blaster?
I dont think Sony will make their compact series much bigger.Maybe thinner and lighter?
Also the waterproofness will probably stay as it is heavily advertised as such.
I own the Z3C, my roommate the M7, so ill talk about it a bit.
I cannot handle the One with one hand. So in handling and feeling the Z3C wins by far. Just using one hand and being able to do anything is just plain awesome.
720p is enough for this screen size and will consume less battery. you cant have it all . Compared to the M7 I only notice the slightly bigger screen.
The screen is bright and sharp, i dont know why anybody really cares about color accuracy on a smart phone. Hell im not doing photoshop with it. Viewing angles are okay, not the best but again , most of the time you are the sole consumer of its content. I dont find myself looking at videos with another person often enough that this may in any way pose a problem or annoy me. Only funny thing i noted is that the screen turns black when i hold my phone in landscape mode and look at it with polarized sun glasses. Funny, must have to do something with the screens technology.
Battery life is very good, like twice the One (though i dont know how his phone is configured, if at all).
Speakers are totally fine but again you have to question what you really need them for. Calls? sometimes. Gaming? Jeah but who REALLY listens to the (mostly annoying) sound when immersed in some heavy gaming. Music? Hell no, I would start to hate my own music, but ppl are different. But in the end you are right the One delivers better especially at higher volume levels.
Phone fells well made and classy, no downside to metal except the One fells more sturdy, the Z3C a bit more need-a-case-fragile. I wont do the real testing though .
As the announcement will happen in the foreseeable future, I would at least wait until you get your phone back from the repair . In my country HTC gives away new phones pretty quick under warranty repair, so maybe youll get a new one. This again could give you a nice resell value.Though i dont know if your repair is under warranty or not.
In the end if I were you i would stay with the M7 a bit and see what the future brings. The resell value of your M7 will drop but so will the price for the Z3C. The ONLY reason i see for you to switch to the Z3C is really the footprint/size and only then when it really, really annoys you. I would never go back and consider myself having found the perfect size in a smartphone with the Z3C.

Foxhunter123 said:
Honestly if you don't need the waterproofness then you are just as good staying with the M7 (all though the camera on the Z3C is better)...
I had the M7 for a year too and in everyday use the M7 is matching the ZC3. I like the size of the Sony better though and you will not miss the full HD screen should you choose to do the change anyways...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Fair enough, I would take your advice if only my HTC One weren't going to repair.
snwman said:
Put it in respective for you. I had the m8 and was unlocked and s off. Speakers where giving trouble due to work conditions with dust. Changed to the z3 compact and thought I'd miss having root and customs roms. But I'm not I love the size and feel of the phone. And I'm getting 2 days use of the phone which never happened with any android I have. I'm a heavy user though.
Cell reception and WiFi is better than the m8 as well and both are unlocked from factory
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cool, I had trouble getting a consistent signal with my One on certain sport, whereas my old Xperia pro is doing just fine. Battery would be a plus
darkarvan said:
Hi mate,
i "upgraded" from M7 to the Z3C. here some infos:
1) i personall find the diplay quality and resolution great with the z3c, i have no complains about the angle or colours, it looks perfect for me.
2) the z3c feels very quality, the "plastic" at the sides looks good and fits perfect with the glass front/back. if its too slippy for you, just buy a cheap rubber case.
3) i didnt need it, as i use a app via wlan for my receiver from the provider
4) the speakers from the M7 are definitely better, the speaker from z3c cant get be that good, as they more turned inside for waterproof. its its loud enough. you have an build in equilizer (the m7 just a switch for Beats Audio), @z3c you have multiple surround modes, sudio modes, effects, bass boost, profiles etc.
The Z3C seems to be more fluend in the user interface, buts that personally. i bought it because of his size.
Only buy it if the size of the M7 doesnt fit to you and keep it mind that the M7 has plenty ROMs and Kernels, but the Z3C has near nothing and you risk lose of DRM keys if you unlock Bootloader.
I would flash the Google Play [email protected]
So its not an "upgrade" its more a "switch"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed, when I say "upgrade" it means switch to a more recent phone; built it OEM equalizer sure is nice, I have been fan of Sony's customization since the Mega Bass Era.
2mal16 said:
I agree with all of them here.
Though i would not consider it a necessary upgrade as you already have a nicely running, fast phone.
In your place i would wait at least for the announcement of the new Z generation. If there is a Z4 Compact, i would take a look at the specs and see if it fits your needs. Maybe it gets a metal frame again? Maybe it will get an IR blaster?
I dont think Sony will make their compact series much bigger.Maybe thinner and lighter?
Also the waterproofness will probably stay as it is heavily advertised as such.
I own the Z3C, my roommate the M7, so ill talk about it a bit.
I cannot handle the One with one hand. So in handling and feeling the Z3C wins by far. Just using one hand and being able to do anything is just plain awesome.
720p is enough for this screen size and will consume less battery. you cant have it all . Compared to the M7 I only notice the slightly bigger screen.
The screen is bright and sharp, i dont know why anybody really cares about color accuracy on a smart phone. Hell im not doing photoshop with it. Viewing angles are okay, not the best but again , most of the time you are the sole consumer of its content. I dont find myself looking at videos with another person often enough that this may in any way pose a problem or annoy me. Only funny thing i noted is that the screen turns black when i hold my phone in landscape mode and look at it with polarized sun glasses. Funny, must have to do something with the screens technology.
Battery life is very good, like twice the One (though i dont know how his phone is configured, if at all).
Speakers are totally fine but again you have to question what you really need them for. Calls? sometimes. Gaming? Jeah but who REALLY listens to the (mostly annoying) sound when immersed in some heavy gaming. Music? Hell no, I would start to hate my own music, but ppl are different. But in the end you are right the One delivers better especially at higher volume levels.
Phone fells well made and classy, no downside to metal except the One fells more sturdy, the Z3C a bit more need-a-case-fragile. I wont do the real testing though .
As the announcement will happen in the foreseeable future, I would at least wait until you get your phone back from the repair . In my country HTC gives away new phones pretty quick under warranty repair, so maybe youll get a new one. This again could give you a nice resell value.Though i dont know if your repair is under warranty or not.
In the end if I were you i would stay with the M7 a bit and see what the future brings. The resell value of your M7 will drop but so will the price for the Z3C. The ONLY reason i see for you to switch to the Z3C is really the footprint/size and only then when it really, really annoys you. I would never go back and consider myself having found the perfect size in a smartphone with the Z3C.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah the problem is in my country there is no such thing as "new replacement" (we have weak to non existent consumer protection law). Everything is going to be repaired if possible, even 1 weeks old item. My repair is still covered under warranty, but the problem is loca technician works are sloppy, this is not isolated to HTC, I have experienced this kind of service with various official brand-name repair shop (laptop, tv, phone). In fact my HTC one is returned with a faulty volume button, just yesterday. (I kinda have predicted something like this would happen). So I have to return it back for re-repair.
I hope you get the idea, say if If I wait for Z4 compact I'm honestly afraid if my One decided to act up again in the future (which is likely thanks to imperfect repair job). The repair cost would diminish the resale value! So better be safe than worry, get a new phone, be it lower spec but I have peace in mind.
I can't agree more with using a phone one handedly and doing another things with the other hand. That said I can handle One with one hand just fine.
It isn't terribly nice coming from a good screen to less than good screen, IMO. Regarding speakers in some emulated console game such as Pokemon and Zelda, music and FX are awesome elements.. so nice speaker is nice
--
Everyone, thanks for the input.. more or less I get the picture of the pros and cons. Anything else I should know before I bite the bullet?

I think you are good to go. I also think you wont notice the "downgrade"as regards certain aspects as screen and speakers except in described scenarios. Ignoring the Ir blaster issue of course. Get Nova launcher to get rid of the Sony ui, get a tempered glass Front screen protector a magnetic charger (the "annoying " flap opening for charging was not discussed) and a micro sdcard if you need it and you will be fine. And ensure your phone is water proof with the pressure Sensor Test right when you get your new phone. At least that's what I would do.
Would be Nice to hear your impressions afterwards (since I think you already made up your mind about the switch )

no regrets (almost...)
The M7's display is still one of the best. I definitely notice a difference, but the Z3c's is sharp enough that I dont miss the extra pixels. The Sony's DPI is better than my Nexus 7 (2013), which is more than fine for me.
Metal v. Plastic, meh, I prefer that the Z3c doesn't have the sharp edges of the M7. The Sony feels MUCH more comfortable in-hand. As for durability, just don't drop it and you'll be fine
I do miss the IR blaster, but I only used it occasionally. Besides, I have a Harmony, so I'm ok with the loss. You might not be though!
The Sony's speakers are really good, even great, but the M7's are in a different class. On my Sony, the speakers are close to if not as loud as my M7, but the M7 is definitely clearer, with more bass. However, I rarely listen through the speakers. In most situations there are others around me, plus earphones are just so much better anyway, so not a big deal for me.
For me, the SD slot of the Z3c outweighs the better speakers and screen on the M7. 16 gigs is enough for my music and apps. I use a 64 gig card for videos/photos. Feels great! I know the M8 has an SD slot too, but it's just too big for me.
Another big thing for me is the waterproof rating. With kids, being able to take pictures anytime, anywhere is a huge benefit. Now, I can do it with my phone instead of having to carry a waterproof camera.
The only regret I have after making the switch, is that the M7's flashlight app is better, with the 3 brightness levels. Seriously. That's it. For everything else, I'm loving my Z3c!

[Q] Buy z3c or is there an alternative?

hi, after two years of good service my z1c screen has a crack in it which makes upper part pf my screen unuseable. So i am thinking of buying the z3c but then i read all the reports about (spontaneous) cracks on front and back. I try to get an objective view on this but this is quite difficult. How often is this happening? If i read amazon.com comments most people seem happy. If i read german amazon comments, much mure people complain about broken screens... What do you suggest i do? I was looking at alternatives like htc mini 2 but one of the things i really dont want to give up is the battery capacity! Your opinion?
Regards
Frederik

I was in the same situation 1 month ago. Galaxy alpha was the only compact alternative, but i didnt want to give up my almost 4 years old sgs2 with 16+32 gb storage for fixed 32gb, not to mention battery capacity. So i called a service that replaces the fronts and backs of new phones, and they told me not to buy sony, because they are overhelmed with their handsets. So, i went and got myself a Z3C
I ordered 0.3mm glass for front and 3 different cases for back (using cheap silicon case with screen protection atm) to make it as safe as i can - so far everything is working as it should, and i'm very happy with it
Btw, glass on the back is 13$, front digitizer is 33$, and whole front with display is around 170$ (parts only)
Camera glass (which is plastic actually) is 4$, but its not easy to replace any of these. I also got myself a magnetic cable to minimize the use of flaps for usb port.
Thats about it... I also read many bad reports about spontaneous cracks, but decided to try my luck... As i said before, so far - so good
Hope this helps, sorry for being biased, but i really like it.

You get the gamble of an issue with every phone, but there'd be a call back if there was a wide spread complaint that exceeded a high enough number. That said yeah, there's a fair number of reports but most people are happy - it's unlucky people that aren't for obvious reasons.
I cracked my Xperia Z (C6603) and wondered if it was time to upgrade, or repair it. The repair cost would've been 280$ for a legitimate repair (I don't like buying third-party materials), and buying a new one would've been 350$. Since the Z3C was out and I found the Z too big for my hand anyway (Barely reach notifications when holding it), I figured I'd sell my cracked one (the current eBay est was roughly 100$), and 550$ for the Z3C in my country.
Since the Z3C was pretty much a no brainer if you want quality + hardware (All 'compact' variants don't compare spec wise) so I jumped in, and about 2 months I think now and my phone has been perfect to me besides the Cyanogen I'm using.
Figured the 100$ of selling the Z could effectively 'make up' what I paid for the Z3C... if I'd sold it. Still on my desk.
So maybe you can sell your old, cracked phone and 'save' with a Z3C. If you want compact, honestly there's no better choice if you're looking to upgrade.
If you want to save then you can always just get a repair or sell and rebuy a new Z1C.
If I were you, I'd assume that you'll get a perfect phone that wont ever crack unless you drop it. Weigh the other factors; Save Money or Upgrade.
If you aren't having any performance issues with anything like games, why bother upgrading?

Just like with any device, if something goes wrong, people write about it. I've had zero problems with my device, and I have not started any threads stating so. If the screen does spontaneously crack, you should be able to get it repaired or replaced under warranty, so why avoid it?
This is the best phone you can get under 5 inches. The performance is top notch, the battery life is amazing, the camera is just okay, but its waterproof and isn't bogged down by a heavy skin like Touchwiz. It's not a flawless phone, but none are! Even the fan favorite iPhone has it's issues (too slippery, camera lens that sticks out, large bezel around screen, poor battery life).
Get what works for you and don't look back!

Ok guys, i guess these posts were all i needed. Got mine via amazon yesterday. Took the mandarin red one.