Database Develop

Lousy build quality these days?

Hi,
just wanna ask if the lousy build quality is normal for the Diamond. I've yet to see one that is problem free - and I had half a dozen in hands.
Mostly the dpad is not level and one edge lifts up.
Then often the power button is not level.
Then I've seen that the stylus does not get sucked in completely as it should be by the magnet.
And finally I've seen that the battery cover does not close completely (leveling at the top end) and come off very easily?
Given the fact that I only paid 290 Euros for my brand new Diamond and the features it packs I can endure a lot.
But given the fact that I know HTC from devices like the Qtek S110 I'm really dissapointed.
The build quality of HTC seemed to have gone downhill by a lot - Diamond problems like the one noted, Touch HD color peel off, Xperia X1 cracks and color peel.
What the heck are those chinese doeing? Do they think because they are the only ones building WM phones these days customers are willing to put up with such crap???

Mmmm...
I must be the odd-one out then because mine is really smart... no such issues?! Battery cover good, stylus fits, buttons level. Mine is HTC branded, may be its the network providers' manufacturing plants that are less than top quality?
I know for a fact that all brands are not built in the same plant. Having said that, the quality should be equal where ever they're built

i have the MDA version and the build quality on it is good. Nothing sticking out of uneven.

I've only tested HTC's own devices. And I've yet to see one that is free of flaws. Even the new D2 has problems like dust under the screen etc.

Private-Cowboy said:
I've only tested HTC's own devices. And I've yet to see one that is free of flaws. Even the new D2 has problems like dust under the screen etc.
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All I can say then Mr Cowboy, is that you've been damn unlucky. I've been using HTC devices since 2001, and I've had one device in all that time which I could fit in your 'duff' catergory?!

Actually, HTC are Taiwanese.
Apart from the obvious xenophobia, I have also noticed that one edge of the D-pad is raised, allowing the light to leak through. I'm a bit disappointed - the Diamond is my first HTC device, and one of the reasons I bought it was hearing how good the build quality generally was on HTC phones.

Well some say Taiwan is still China. Besides that I've used HTC devices for quite a few device generations. The best one prolly was my magician - rock solid and still runs strong with no signs of any wear.
The Diamond on the other hand simply does not feel solid and clearly shows what I would describe as cost reduction effects. If you treat the Diamond as a ... device you prolly don't care. And I don't do either very much because I got mine recently very cheap (because the D2 was sitting right besides the D1 in the store the D1 was sold for less then 300 Euros).
You get a mighty good load of features for less then 300 (my old Eten X500 had cost me double that) so I don't wanna complain too much. But I feel that I'd be prepared to pay another 100 for solid build quality (metal casing etc).
I've taken a very close look at other HTCs on display in various stores around town and all of them had at least minor flaws. The black X1s already showed color peel off like the Touch HD and even the display unit of the D2 had visible dust under the screen - and I don't think it was on display for very long.
That said I think the Diamond will be my last HTC. The features are great but I simply like a bit more solidity. I exchange my own Diamond twice to end up with one that I can half way live with - first one had a stylus problem (not sucked in properly) and a power button problem (wouldn't turn own sometimes - maybe because the power button was not level and did not press properly), the second one had a royally screwed dpad (bent inwards on the right side and lifting up on the left side) and non-fitting battery cover and the third only has a bit of the pad lifting up on the right side (not as much as the second).
I looked through 6 stores in town and my percentage of a 100% perfect HTC was - 0%, none, nada.
Maybe german stores only get the crap productions because germans usually don't complain much, who knows. ;-)
I even have a X1 lying around here (ordered because I was thinking about returning my Diamond) but I'll return the X1 instead. The X1 is also HTC meaning it's disaster (cracks and/or peeling) in the making and I'm not prepared to pay a 170 Euros on top of my Diamond for that.
On the other hand build quality in general has gone downhill as it seems. Even coworkers of mine complain about the shoddy build of there iPhone-Toys. And they paid much much more than I did for my Diamond. Maybe the X2 will be what I'm looking for given the fact it's made by Foxconn/Asus.

grahamkdt said:
I know for a fact that all brands are not built in the same plant. Having said that, the quality should be equal where ever they're built
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Prove it. Carrier brand snobbery is not going to get us anywhere.

I don't believe that either. For one HTC might be THE defacto PDA-monopolist but generall they are a rather small company. I don't think they have a lot of plants all over Taiwan.
And why should carrier devices should be build with higher 'tolorances'? Some carrier devices can be built a bit more solid - like the XDA Diamond given the different back cover - when they are changed from the original.

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.

Light Bleed

screen edge bleed. How many of you have light bleed from around the display area when viewed at an angle? I've gone in to try 3 different phones from 3 diff deliveries and they ALL do it. Even the 3 display model do it. It's driving me nuts. Show of hands to say I'm not crazy and there is still hope to find a good one...
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using xda premium

No, they do that, trust me. It's the way they are assembled. I noticed it as soon as I got the phone, but it doesn't bother me because I know a lot of HTCs are like this. It isn't a defect in quality; rather, a result of the design. Unless your screen is leaking and letting in dust, don't worry about it. It might be annoying at first but you get past it. My Vivid does this and so have the other three HTCs I've had in the past.

Agree completely. I'm on my second Vivid, and both had/have light bleed, especially noticeable when looking at the phone flat towards the top of the phone. I'm a first-time HTC guy so I initially thought the same...that it was an issue with my phone. However, trips to see Vivids at multiple AT&T retail stores, and my second phone, made me comfortable that it was not just "my phone".

That it is endemic to every phone you see means HTC cant build a damn phone properly. Ive never had this issue with my Tytn, Tytn II, EVO, EVO 3D, Inspire. Meaning they can do it right, it is NOT an acceptable result for this phone. The rezound doesnt do it, nor does the sensation. Im going back and if this last shipment doesnt have it fixed its bye bye. God HTC used to be such high quality, now they are turning into metal bodied samsungs...

gtkansan said:
That is is endemic to every phone you see mean HTC cant build a damn phone. Ive never had this issue with my Tytn, Tytn II, EVO, EVO 3D, Inspire. Meaning they can do it right, it is NOT an acceptable result for this phone. The rezound doesnt do it, nor does the sensation. Im going back and if this last shipment doesnt have it fixed its by by. God HTC used to be such high quality, now they are turning into metal bodied samsungs...
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God damn, calm down. That the light bleeds doesn't necessarily mean the design is wrong or of poor quality. That's just the design. It doesn't affect the way the phone works or how tough it is, it's JUST designed like that. Go ahead and exchange it, your new Vivid will have the same problem and you'll probably just be more bitter about it. Just because one or two phones from a company aren't designed as well as you'd want them to be, doesn't mean the whole company is junk. If you want, go exchange it for a Skyrocket and wince at the ****ty resolution, ghost lines running down the screen and cheap plastic. But none of that should matter because the screen won't bleed.
I have a car from 1991 with 221,000 miles on it. Not that much for that car in particular. I also have a car of the same make from 2000. And while there are definitely differences in build quality and material, the newer car has 322,000 miles on it. Both are running beautifully. Original engines and transmissions, starters, alternators, AC compressors, and basically everything else. But eh, the one from '00 has slightly harder dashboard material, so it's crap and that company can't build cars right.
But you know what, to each his own. *Just my opinion.

markjo said:
God damn, calm down. That the light bleeds doesn't necessarily mean the design is wrong or of poor quality. That's just the design. It doesn't affect the way the phone works or how tough it is, it's JUST designed like that. Go ahead and exchange it, your new Vivid will have the same problem and you'll probably just be more bitter about it. Just because one or two phones from a company aren't designed as well as you'd want them to be, doesn't mean the whole company is junk. If you want, go exchange it for a Skyrocket and wince at the ****ty resolution, ghost lines running down the screen and cheap plastic. But none of that should matter because the screen won't bleed.
I have a car from 1991 with 221,000 miles on it. Not that much for that car in particular. I also have a car of the same make from 2000. And while there are definitely differences in build quality and material, the newer car has 322,000 miles on it. Both are running beautifully. Original engines and transmissions. But eh, the one from '00 has slightly harder dashboard material, so it's crap and that company can't build cars right.
But you know what, to each his own. *Just my opinion.
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Uhm light bleeding out the edges of the display is not a 'designed that way' type issue. Its a 'we have no quality control' issue. Next youll say that the screen coming unglued from the incredible/evo a while ago was a design aspect. Come on man. To those of us who actually design and build such products, its a manufacturing issue, not design. NO ONE designs them this ****ty.

gtkansan said:
Uhm light bleeding out the edges of the display is not a 'designed that way' type issue. Its a 'we have no quality control' issue. Next youll say that the screen coming unglued from the incredible/evo a while ago was a design aspect. Come on man. To those of us who actually design and build such products, its a manufacturing issue, not design. NO ONE designs them this ****ty.
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I build engines and work on cars for a living. I do know where you're coming from. So it wasn't designed with as tight tolerances as it could have been or other phones are. But that does not necessarily mean it is of poor quality. They could (and yeah they really should) have built the phone a bit differently so as to avoid that light bleed. It isn't pretty especially with devices that do it more than others.
But you know, I still have my Incredible. It drowned in a river once, fell from the roof of my house (yeah...), has been dropped numerous times, and was submerged into a toilet by a 2-year old at one point. nasty **** man.. but I still have it. I use it as a "micro" tablet around my house. And I've never had a single problem with it.
Now that may just be my luck with my device but in all honesty, I have no problems believing it to be reliable. Others may not be so lucky. But in the case of the Vivid, I agree with you one hundred percent - the light bleed is something that definitely should not be present. But I don't really think it's that big of a problem in terms of actual quality. In manufacturing or in design, it isn't the best. But the device as a whole is solid and sturdy. With my first Vivid, after I bricked it (well not really bricked but gave up on it), I knew I was to exchange it. So I tried gauging the durability of the thing by twisting it, hit it on the table a couple of times and stuff. It was still fine.
Oh and I had a Captivate since new. The GPS never worked no matter what tweaks I did to it, the loudspeaker took a dump two months in, the volume rocker is so soft you don't feel a click, and it overheats while charging, even when it's off. Otherwise it was a great phone.. but eh. Too many bad experiences with Samsung in the past.
I don't know. I do respect your opinion man and don't underestimate your knowledge. Simply expressing my own.

I noticed this on my vivid a few days after I got it but didn't post about it because it doesn't really bother me. You can only see it if you tilt the phone forward and look into the housing and how many of us are going to do that other to look at the "defect." As long as it doesn't effect me using the phone then I'm good.

dtorrez1883 said:
I noticed this on my vivid a few days after I got it but didn't post about it because it doesn't really bother me. You can only see it if you tilt the phone forward and look into the housing and how many of us are going to do that other to look at the "defect." As long as it doesn't effect me using the phone then I'm good.
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I read in bed at night and in the morning, so the display is dimmed down, but the light bleed stays nearly the same brightness.... its very distracting.

Where Does All That Light Go?
If your phone bleeds light around the edges (of the screen?), where does it go? Will the vivid eventually run out of light when it all bleeds out?
Seriously, I took the case off my Vivid, took it into a dark room, and turned it on. No light coming around the edges of the screen. Of course, even if the screen was not seated properly and some light leaked out around the edge, I wouldn't see it because of the case. I guess I got a phone from a better batch.

None here...
I have absolutely no light bleed on my phone, and even if it was there its a phone not a pace maker , I've seen the Vivids with the bleed at the store and it still wasn't that bad. Someone is being overly dramatic.

brucegil said:
If your phone bleeds light around the edges (of the screen?), where does it go? Will the vivid eventually run out of light when it all bleeds out?
Seriously, I took the case off my Vivid, took it into a dark room, and turned it on. No light coming around the edges of the screen. Of course, even if the screen was not seated properly and some light leaked out around the edge, I wouldn't see it because of the case. I guess I got a phone from a better batch.
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Im not talking about light coming out AROUND the glass. Im talking about where the bezel meets the actual display area.

Is this light underneath the glass and visible through it? Is it leaking from where the plastic sides of the phone meet the glass, or what. If you could show pictures or actually clarify further, it'd be easier to understand. Now I don't think we are all imagining the same kind of light bleed you are seeing.
The gap around the glass and the gap where the bezel meets the display are the same thing..
In the case of what brucegil is referring to, no light is bleeding on my Vivid. Nor did it bleed on my last one or my past HTC devices. What I and I believe everyone else thinks you're referring to is the light you can see around the edges of the screen when the phone is viewed at an angle. That light is underneath the glass.

I just returned my black vivid for a white vivid today and my black one had a lot of light leak but this white one doesn't have any
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using xda premium

I have yet to see any light bleed, honestly. Maybe I got lucky?
Sent from my HTC Vivid via Tapatalk

Enclosure (casing) loosens with use

So, yesterday I got to look at and hold a black HTC One from the mobile phone vendor at my local Costco. I was pretty shocked.
Now, I know that demo units are not functional and are often beat up, but I wanted to check out the build quality of the case and the overall aesthetics of the black model. This one didn't look scratched or chipped anywhere, but the case was separating all over!! The seams looked horrible!!
I wonder if this will become more reported as time goes on and people have used theirs a while.
My current HTC Glacier build quality is wonderful!! But I was not at all impressed by how well the enclosure held up after a bit of use.
I really have been holding out for this phone, but I dunno now! I need to go look at some more demos.

Quality Control Issues

I don't know what everyone else's experience is with quality control but here's mine:
The first X5 Pro I had, I had to return for a replacement because I discovered in low light (dark room) there was a stuck pixel on the screen which was permanently lit green. This isn't acceptable on £1000+ device.
Now, my replacement device feels different in the hand. People will probably think I have OCD, but it looks like the ceramic back is actually somehow a fraction of a millimetre smaller than it should be, therefore the aliminium edges of the device do not blend seamlessly into the ceramic back cover and give that smooth, pebble-like feel. It now feels like I have a sharp edge resting against my palm or fingers when I hold the device.
Most people would probably not notice this but I do.
My wife has the X5 Pro in Black and doesn't have this issue.
I read somewhere about the ceramic milling process means that every since piece of ceramic is unique, but obviously within a certain tolerance, and the backs are matched up with the camera lenses during the production process.
I've attached a picture to try and convey what I am talking about. Unfortunately I don't have a picture of the back of my first device, which felt perfect in the hand.
It looks like there is around 0.5mm gap between the back and the edge of the device.
Would you return your device due to this, especially when you know what it should be like?

Morning chap,
Re the green pixel, I haven't had any and agree is unacceptable.
Re the back. I have a slight edge too but assumed that's how they all were. Doesn't bother me as I have a case around it. You may want to return it if it really is annoying you and you are 100pc sure that the first handset was seamless...(are you sure? Mind tricks?)...but no guarantee a replacement will be any different.
Interested to see how you get on.

OnePlus2Oppo said:
Morning chap,
Re the green pixel, I haven't had any and agree is unacceptable.
Re the back. I have a slight edge too but assumed that's how they all were. Doesn't bother me as I have a case around it. You may want to return it if it really is annoying you and you are 100pc sure that the first handset was seamless...(are you sure? Mind tricks?)...but no guarantee a replacement will be any different.
Interested to see how you get on.
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Haha, yeah, my first thought was mind tricks, but my wife has the black one and it defo doesn't dig into your hand in the same way. Looking at them side by side, the back on her black X5 pro blends seamlessly into the frame whereas mine has an obvious lip.
Yes you are right about a replacement being no guarantee of being better. This is the first phone in 10+ years that I am using without a case because it feels so natural to hold, but when it digs into your hand and you can feel the ridge, it definitely isn't pleasant to hold.
Anyway, phoned the carrier and after a lengthy call with me trying to explain the issue to one of their first line tech support, it's getting replaced by courier tomorrow.
If this was an iPhone there would be threads all over twitter with people going bananas so I don't see how I should need to settle for second best when this phone costs more than most iPhone models bar the 13 pro max!

This is a good review with hi-res images of the sides of the phone, and on which you can see no visible lip (although harder to see on the black model).
Oppo Find X5 Pro Review - Slick smartphone with a Hasselblad camera
Review: The Oppo Find X5 Pro 5G employs 12 GB of RAM, 256 GB of UFS 3.1 memory, a triple camera with two Sony IMX766 sensors, very fast charging and an accurate LTPO AMOLED display.
www.notebookcheck.net

Ha now you got me thinking!
I can't hold this phone without a case, too slippery.
Agree, regardless when you spend a grand and ain't happy you should deal with it, no matter the issue. See if you can put up an image of the Mrs phone

Will do when she gets home

So, got the replacement and it definitely does not have the same issue.
This one is perfect, the back blends seamlessly into the sides.

Pleased you're happy mate. The pix don't make it easy to see the difference if I'm being honest. I'd kick off with Oppo if I were you. 1000 quid phone.