Database Develop

[Q] Vivid/Skyrocket/Nitro

So I am Unlimited AT&T legacy customer that just went out and baught the HTC Vivid. I baught the Vivid for a couple reasons.
-Upgrade was advailabl a couple months ago. I wanted to lock in my Unlimited Plan before they start deploying LTE in my area. I wanted one the Dual Core, 4.5" screen, LTE phones.
-The display look much sharper sitting next to Skyrocket in the store. Looking at the AT&T Widgets that were the same on both phones. You can really tell the sharpness of the Vivid's screen in comparisance.
-Build quality was more "Solid." Weight was not a defining issue for me.
-I baught a first generation Captivate. So I got burned by the GPS issue. So the Samsung Skyrocket was going to have to be perfect.
-The Nexus is not going to come out for AT&T anytime soon, I think.
-I did not relize that the LG Optimas existed and is coming to AT&T as the Nitro
I am looking for some feed back on why other folks baught the HTC Vivid? Is HTC a solid company when it comes to updating? Do folks have high hopes, looking forward to, Sense 4.0 and ICS? Do any folks have any experince with LG? Did I make the wrong choice now that the LG Optimas is coming to AT&T as the Nitro? The last, and most important, do folks see a solid group of XDA Developers doing their magic on the HTC Vivid?
Now when I got burned with the purchase of the early build Samsung Captivate, and it's horrible GPS. The only thing that made the purchase worth it was the XDA Developers Community and all the effort they put in to it. So in the end I am looking to see which of the LTE, 4.5", Dual Core phones is going to get the most XDA Development, and be a good phone.
Thanks for any responses/opinion

As far as dev support, the Skyrocket has real root, and can run TMo S II ROMs already.
LG has a worse record if possible than Samsung for Android updates. Plus, they don't have much of a following. The build quality is great, but check out the Ghost Town of the Thrill forum. That phone came out in September, its already been passed over by all the dev support.
If you want high end android phone with dev support and don't mind losing LTE the original Galaxy S II is the best phone on ATT. Its almost identicle to the international version. There were ROMs for this phone within 24 hours because all the work on the i9100 was not lost. The first phone on att with ICS will probably be that phone. I would not be surprised if we have ICS before (if at all) att has a subsidized Galaxy Nexus.
I too came from the captivate. I never had the GPS woes everyone else complained about. It was slow to get a lock, but worked solid for me from that point. The i777 original Galaxy S II is much faster to get a lock, but not as fast as my wife's iPhone. I am extrely pleased with my i777, but I don't gave LTE, and would be surprised if I have it next time I upgrade.
I bet the Vivid will pick up a lot of the Inspire crowd, but I don't think it will rival any of the Samsung phones of late.
If I had LTE coverage to play with I might have been tempted, but its still first Gen LTE phone for att, so that scares me from both the vivid and skyrocket.
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)

I actually wound up with one of my Lines being the LG Thrill and that phone is still stuck with Froyo so yea LG has a VERY Bad record of keeping up with updates considering the Thrill isn't even that old. As for the Skyrocket it seems to have a bit of a banding issue like white lines when you are watching movies or what not that is quite aggravating. Oh yea also forgot the Skyrocket Does not seem to have FM Radio built in. It does have an NFC chip though which is kind of a bonus but with the horrid screen it really depends on what your looking for in a device. If you want a fast phone out of the Box and something with NFC than the Skyrocket is what you will want. If you want a phone that has Wonderful resolution and will Be most likely Just as fast as the Skyrocket once it gets root than I would go with the Vivid.

After having owned both the Skyrocket and the Vivid for a few days, here are a couple of my thoughts. I hope this helps your decision process. This is all just my opinion.
I like the feel of the Skyrocket in my hand better.
The Skyrocket's web browser is not resizing websites when you pinch to expand. The Vivid does.
The Skyrocket's screen colors are brighter than the Vivid's, but light colored websites and text on a full white background is significantly dimmer.Reading ebooks is better on the Vivid, or--for that matter--my Inspire.
The Skyrocket has the charging/USB port where it belongs, on the bottom. The Vivid's is on the side. That's worse for charging cradles and using the phone while charging.
I like the screen resolution on the Skyrocket better. Fonts are easier to read for those with less than perfect vision. Some of the Vivid's Fonts are downright tiny.
The Vivid works flawlessly with my Motorola H17 headsets. Cyberon works great. The Skyrocket has been basically useless with the H17; how it works with voice command I don't know. This may be a compatibility issue, but still...
Synching to Outlook with the Vivid is painless and free with HTC Synch. Synching to Outlook with the Skyrocket is a PITA and costs $50. (For the third party PC program.) Perhaps there's a better way I haven't found.
Volume is FAR better on the Skyrocket.
Battery life is better on the Skyrocket.
The Vivid can turn Bluetooth volume down further. That's a big deal when on the phone with a loud talker.
Sense (Vivid) is better than Touchwiz (Skyrocket).
Both have data issues right now.
Both are plenty fast enough.

Nakel said:
After having owned both the Skyrocket and the Vivid for a few days, here are a couple of my thoughts. I hope this helps your decision process. This is all just my opinion.
I like the feel of the Skyrocket in my hand better.
The Skyrocket's web browser is not resizing websites when you pinch to expand. The Vivid does.
The Skyrocket's screen colors are brighter than the Vivid's, but light colored websites and text on a full white background is significantly dimmer.Reading ebooks is better on the Vivid, or--for that matter--my Inspire.
The Skyrocket has the charging/USB port where it belongs, on the bottom. The Vivid's is on the side. That's worse for charging cradles and using the phone while charging.
I like the screen resolution on the Skyrocket better. Fonts are easier to read for those with less than perfect vision. Some of the Vivid's Fonts are downright tiny.
The Vivid works flawlessly with my Motorola H17 headsets. Cyberon works great. The Skyrocket has been basically useless with the H17; how it works with voice command I don't know. This may be a compatibility issue, but still...
Synching to Outlook with the Vivid is painless and free with HTC Synch. Synching to Outlook with the Skyrocket is a PITA and costs $50. (For the third party PC program.) Perhaps there's a better way I haven't found.
Volume is FAR better on the Skyrocket.
Battery life is better on the Skyrocket.
The Vivid can turn Bluetooth volume down further. That's a big deal when on the phone with a loud talker.
Sense (Vivid) is better than Touchwiz (Skyrocket).
Both have data issues right now.
Both are plenty fast enough.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I understand liking super amoled more but actually preferring lower resolution? You must be one of few. Just resize the fonts if they're too small.

Doors anyone know anything about the LG Nitro? It seems to be a solid device specifications wise. How much damage does LG do with their launcher/modifications.
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using xda premium

loriolus said:
I understand liking super amoled more but actually preferring lower resolution? You must be one of few. Just resize the fonts if they're too small.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Many system fonts are not resizeable. Go android. One of the few? Anyone who's vision is less than perfect and doesn't want to put on their reading glasses to use the phone. Now, I believe once the phone is rooted there are apps that can change pixel density? So there probably is a way down the road to fix this. But I'm just talking out of the box experience here. Anyone with the skill/desire to get into that will disregard what I'm saying anyway. I'm just trying to help the unskilled masses make their decision.

CharlesIstus said:
-The Nexus is not going to come out for AT&T anytime soon, I think.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So I start this off with a disclaimer that this is complete hearsay and in no way from an authoritative source. But! I was talking to a friend of mine who works for Samsung America in the PR department about phones, and I asked her about the Galaxy Nexus. While she wouldn't really say much, she did say that if I wanted it on AT&T, I'd have to wait till the end of the 1st quarter or beginning of the 2nd quarter in 2012. So, at some point in the future, the Galaxy Nexus will likely be available for AT&T, but it'll probably be a ways off.

I have heard both good AND bad about LG phones, but this thing looks too tempting to pass up. My week old SGS II will be heading back to AT&T as soon as the Nitro drops.

I was debating the nitro once i heard about it but after having the skyrocket and relazing the only benefit is the screen thats where it stopped. I feel that the dev community and just overall software upgrades (skyrocket is confirmed for sandwich 100%) and other lack of issues on the bulletproof skyrocket makes me believe that i made the right choice. Every time i play with the vivid and skyrocket, yes the crispy screen is nice but once you take them away from side to side the skyrocket isn't too bad.

CharlesIstus said:
Doors anyone know anything about the LG Nitro? It seems to be a solid device specifications wise. How much damage does LG do with their launcher/modifications.
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Media guy here - i have a new in box Nitro HD, LTE, for AT&T, if anyone wants to buy it. PM me if interested. I got to play with it/review it extensively, and it's LG's best efforts to date. The G2x is crap against it, and LG has really stepped it up.
They gave us Nitro HD's to keep, but I'm on T-Mobile, and as much as I'd like to use the Nitro HD, I don't want to use it on Edge, T-Mobile connection, hence my reason for selling. If you want to buy it from me, let me know - thanks!

hinduboy74 said:
I was debating the nitro once i heard about it but after having the skyrocket and relazing the only benefit is the screen thats where it stopped. I feel that the dev community and just overall software upgrades (skyrocket is confirmed for sandwich 100%) and other lack of issues on the bulletproof skyrocket makes me believe that i made the right choice. Every time i play with the vivid and skyrocket, yes the crispy screen is nice but once you take them away from side to side the skyrocket isn't too bad.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If I'm not mistaken LG has said that the nitro along with the 3d optimus (the thrill here in the us) will.br getting ics upgrades. Im considering returning my vivid for the nitro cause of the screen n all I ever do is root to allow for tethering with out paying since I have unlimited data.
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using xda premium

blopez24 said:
If I'm not mistaken LG has said that the nitro along with the 3d optimus (the thrill here in the us) will.br getting ics upgrades. Im considering returning my vivid for the nitro cause of the screen n all I ever do is root to allow for tethering with out paying since I have unlimited data.
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have the Nitro, new in box for sale. As I sad above, I am on T-MObile and can't use it. PM me if interested

I chose the Vivid over the Skyrocket because of the qHD screen and because it had an FM radio. I previously had a Captivate and loved the AMOLED screen, but after lengthy in-store comparison I felt the Vivid's was as good or better than the Skyrocket (at least at full brightness). Both seemed equally snappy. The Skyrocket was much lighter, but I decided I could live with the Vivid's weight.
Bought my Vivid the day it came out, and my only trepidation was, 'Please ATT, don't come out with any 720p phones in the next 30 days.' And sure enough, here comes the Nitro! But even if I could change, I don't think I would. Judging on the specs in Phonescoop (subject to change), the Nitro has the 720p screen, faster processor and lighter weight, but seems to be missing the following features:
- less RAM (720MB vs. 1GB for Vivid/Skyrocket) ** see Edit **
- less internal storage (4GB internal vs. 16GB)
- no FM radio
- no video out ** see Edit **
- possibly less battery life ** see Edit **
Will check out the phone on Monday. Like I said, I really wanted 720p, but I've seen the HTC Rezound in person, and while the text is sharper, it's really only noticeable at very close range - the icon sizes were the same despite having 78% more pixels. So for now, I'm still very happy with my Vivid.
PittFred
EDIT: The Nitro has DLNA, so outputting media on a TV is possible, just not with a cable. Also, Phonearena says the RAM is 1GB, so that 720MB might be the usable figure; comparable to ~800MB for Vivid. Confirmed the 4GB internal storage and no FM radio, which is a minor thing, but I wanted it after AT&T deleted it from the E71x.
The Nitro has an 1820 mAh battery, comparable to the 1850 mAh for the Skyrocket and better than the 1620 mAh for the Vivid, but worse claimed battery life, perhaps a function of the screen. 1800 mAh after-market batteries are available for the Vivid.
After review, the specs are much closer/favorable for Nitro, so it's more of a judgment call.
___
Cingular/AT&T since 2003
Nokia 6200 -> Treo 650 -> HTC 8525 -> Nokia E71/71x -> Samsung Captivate -> HTC Vivid!

RAM
Does 768 to 1GB of ram make a difference? This is some what of a deal breaker for me.

Quick update - the specs are up on AT&T's website. I went to LG's website and downloaded the manual for the Nitro HD (LG P930), and it says that video out by HDMI cable is possible, and over WiFi/Bluetooth/USB in more limited ways. Perhaps these differences are due to differences between international and Americanized models. If correct, Nitro's specs seem even more favorable.

$150 in my area, may have to swap for vivid. ARG

I'm going fir the og gs2 right after church. Vivid is nice but no root, battery life, and some what leggy ui... I came from ios and so fat I am disappoint with android but I think its the phone. Ever since I first got this phone I kinda wish I hadn't.
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using XDA App

Just yesterday my phone didn't make it a whole day. I unplugged it at 7am and then watched some YouTube vids and by 7pm the battery was dead. Heck, at 6pm my battery said it had 40% battery and I used the navigation system for 5mins and it went down to 20%. Its kinda embarrassing when your friend ask for a flashlight so I had him my phone but the battery is to low for the flashlight to turn on. My other friend asked "I thought you had 45% battery an hour ago" and then hands his iPhone 4s to that guy. So no, this phone has been a disapointment. Sorry for the rant
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using XDA App

randrewm97 said:
I'm going fir the og gs2 right after church. Vivid is nice but no root, battery life, and some what leggy ui... I came from ios and so fat I am disappoint with android but I think its the phone. [\b] Ever since I first got this phone I kinda wish I hadn't.
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you think the UI is laggy then, trust me:
You have issues with Android. And may just want to go back to the iPhone.
Because as Android devices go, this phone is the smoothest I've ever seen.
Sent from my HTC Vivid using Tapatalk

[Q] Dilemma now. SGS2 or Vivid?

I've been on Samsung for the last couple years and just picked up the SGS2 a couple weeks ago mainly because it already had root. Now that the Vivid has an unlocked bootloader, just trying to decide if I should jump to it before the 30 days is up?
Anybody here had the SGS2 and gone to the Vivid or vice versa that can assist?
I'm so torn!!

Jirv311 said:
I've been on Samsung for the last couple years and just picked up the SGS2 a couple weeks ago mainly because it already had root. Now that the Vivid has an unlocked bootloader, just trying to decide if I should jump to it before the 30 days is up?
Anybody here had the SGS2 and gone to the Vivid or vice versa that can assist?
I'm so torn!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My opinion: Jump. While I've not tried the GS2, I had a GS1. Other than Voodoo sound, it was pretty rubbish, and I definitely don't trust Samsung to make a smartphone anymore.
Also, Touchwiz looks like poo and runs like it too. Sense is a bit fat, but you get a fully functioning and fully integrated experience.

That all depends....
Do you want an over-saturated, painful to look at, cartoonish display with a bad UI?
Or a higher res, vivid, true color display, decent UI.... and LTE?
See my sig.

ClippinWings said:
That all depends....
Do you want an over-saturated, painful to look at, cartoonish display with a bad UI?
Or a higher res, vivid, true color display, decent UI.... and LTE?
See my sig.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Only advantage the vivid has is LTE, but you can get the skyrocket.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda premium

Longcat14 said:
Only advantage the vivid has is LTE, but you can get the skyrocket.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd consider the display a HUGE advantage.... bigger than LTE even.
the SGSII display is so bad I would have returned mine whether the Vivid was released or not. And that's saying something considering i was using a Dell Streak with a shattered screen previous to my SGSII.
And the Skyrocket is a joke...
It takes the already bad screen in the SGSII, and destroys the pixel density by supersizing it without bumping the resolution.

ClippinWings said:
And the Skyrocket is a joke...
It takes the already bad screen in the SGSII, and destroys the pixel density by supersizing it without bumping the resolution.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. I didn't care much for the Skyrocket.
So, is it safe to say now that the Vivid will probably end up with MIUI and/or ICS eventually?

Absolutely. It's on HTC's official "Will get ICS" list, which makes AOSP/custom ICS even easier.

How's the quality of the phone itself? As in, how does it feel in hand? My local AT&T store didn't have it and the Best Buy near me that does would not open a box for me to look at so I haven't even held it yet.

Jirv311 said:
I agree. I didn't care much for the Skyrocket.
So, is it safe to say now that the Vivid will probably end up with MIUI and/or ICS eventually?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good chance.
Jirv311 said:
How's the quality of the phone itself? As in, how does it feel in hand? My local AT&T store didn't have it and the Best Buy near me that does would not open a box for me to look at so I haven't even held it yet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, have a free "thanks", I missed the quote button.
It feels pretty solid. It's definitely on the heavier side as compared with Samsung phones, but I honestly don't really notice. Far more durable than my Galaxy S Captivate, and less finicky than the Desire HD line.

Jirv311 said:
How's the quality of the phone itself? As in, how does it feel in hand? My local AT&T store didn't have it and the Best Buy near me that does would not open a box for me to look at so I haven't even held it yet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I went from sgsII to Vivid and at first I was very worried I would hate the weight....
BUT after a week or so, at most, I didn't even notice and now, lighter phones like the sgsII and skyrocket feel extremely cheap.
Honestly the build quality of this phone is 2nd to only the iPhone 4 for quality feeling to me... Certainly a huge step above the flimsy plastic Samsung uses.
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using Tapatalk

I had the GSII and the Skyrocket before my vivid. I have to say the dealbreaker for me with the Sammy's was Touchwiz. I hate it. I mean I hate it with a passion. All round the Vivid is more solid. It feels like it will last 2 years if need be.

You should ask this question in the SGS II section, you would get the opposite answers.
You could ask in almost any forum, and always get a response of the forum you are in is better. I would bet even people in the Atrix 2 forum would say that mid range phone is better than both these high end phones.
You can cancel your upgrade, then you have 30 days to decide again. If you just swap phones, the clock doesn't start over, and you only get a few days to decide how you want to spend the next 18 months.
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)

quarlow said:
You should ask this question in the SGS II section, you would get the opposite answers.
You could ask in almost any forum, and always get a response of the forum you are in is better. I would bet even people in the Atrix 2 forum would say that mid range phone is better than both these high end phones.
You can cancel your upgrade, then you have 30 days to decide again. If you just swap phones, the clock doesn't start over, and you only get a few days to decide how you want to spend the next 18 months.
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I may end up trying the Vivid for a couple days to see how I like it. Otherwise, I'll wait on the upgrade.
And I agree, I'm probably asking for some biased responses here but thought I might find somebody who has had both phones that could help.

ClippinWings said:
I went from sgsII to Vivid and at first I was very worried I would hate the weight....
BUT after a week or so, at most, I didn't even notice and now, lighter phones like the sgsII and skyrocket feel extremely cheap.
Honestly the build quality of this phone is 2nd to only the iPhone 4 for quality feeling to me... Certainly a huge step above the flimsy plastic Samsung uses.
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
backtothemac said:
I had the GSII and the Skyrocket before my vivid. I have to say the dealbreaker for me with the Sammy's was Touchwiz. I hate it. I mean I hate it with a passion. All round the Vivid is more solid. It feels like it will last 2 years if need be.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So since you both had both phones, can you shed any light on differences in speed and battery life between the 2 or is it really even noticeable?

ClippinWings said:
I went from sgsII to Vivid and at first I was very worried I would hate the weight....
BUT after a week or so, at most, I didn't even notice and now, lighter phones like the sgsII and skyrocket feel extremely cheap.
Honestly the build quality of this phone is 2nd to only the iPhone 4 for quality feeling to me... Certainly a huge step above the flimsy plastic Samsung uses.
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Jesus, it's hilarious when people pull the "LOL, all phones have better build quality then Samsung phones." No, they all have worse, what you have is better build feel.
Drop your vivid from a 4 foot drop, I dare you, and watch it shatter into a million pieces and dent the **** out of your phone.
Me, I've dropped my skyrocket on concrete countless times, no shattered screen (gorilla glass) and the "flimsy" plastic your talking about, I have one minor scratch.
But, at least it's not as bad as the iOS fanboys and their all glass phone, can't drop that from a 6 inch drop without shattering the back.
---------- Post added at 02:18 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:16 AM ----------
Jirv311 said:
So since you both had both phones, can you shed any light on differences in speed and battery life between the 2 or is it really even noticeable?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm going to assume you mean Skyrocket and SGS II.
The SGS II has the powerful Exynos, so obviously in terms of raw horsepower, it obliterates ALL phones.
The skyrocket has an LTE radio, but honestly, the battery drain is no different then my Infuse, which had AMAZING battery life.
Now that the LTE radio and HSPA+ radio are the same radio (not 2 seperate radios like on VZW's LTE phones and the Vivid), it saves power as it can actually turn off the data when not needed.

It comes down to personal preference. Trying them out is key. Ever tried Samsung touchwiz? Compare it to HTC Sense and there is a huge difference. I'm not alone when I say Sense is the most polished and seamless UI on the market. It integrates many things that other UIs do not. The sheer amount of widgets sense has is pretty amazing too. All of which have a 3d effect when scrolling between screens.
If you will be heavily modding, I say go HTC. Otherwise you will get bored with touchwiz and aosp ROMs, there's hardly even a difference between the two. With HTC you will have a wide variety of sense and aosp roms.
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using xda premium

I've used both- personally owning a vivid, and helping my friend with his gs2, rooting and romming it with cm7 for him.
The GS2 is extremely light, too light for me but I don't think it's truly a negative. His battery lasts longer than mine, however mine is faster. The camera boots faster and overall using the software feels solid. That is with the vivid locked and slowed down by sense to some extent.
One thing of note that no one states about the galaxy s 2. If you want to shoot 1080p video, it forces the sensor to zoom in almost all the way. If you don't believe me- http://forum.xda-developers.com/archive/index.php/t-1085142.html
The vivid does not zoom in at all, making for full sized 1080p footage. I prefer the screen IMMENSELY on the vivid, however I think the gorilla glass is a huge plus on the s2.
Really you need to weigh out what's important to you as both have positives and negatives. After using his galaxy s2 I was extremely happy that I decided to upgrade to the vivid.

Jirv311 said:
So since you both had both phones, can you shed any light on differences in speed and battery life between the 2 or is it really even noticeable?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Battery-wise the Samsung wins, hands down... That's the vivds only weak spot.
Speed, in benchmarks the vjvid gets slaughtered... BUT in reality, its the smoothest phone I've ever used.... So if there is a speed difference it may exist with some graphics intensive games, but is irrelevant in my normal use.
And to answer the question of dropping the vivid... That's what a case is for.... The difference is by the time you put a case on the super thin super dainty sgsII, you loose any advantage of its thin profile.... While the vivid still feels like it was built to handle the zombie apocalypse.
Sent from my HTC PH39100 using Tapatalk

Well, I bit the bullet today and picked up the Vivid. I have a week left of my 30 days and so far I like it. The UI does seem a bit more finished. Definitely a little bit of lag in it but I'm sure a kernel can fix that.
I do like the extra thickness of it. I feel more comfortable holding it. Much less like I'm going to drop it.
Now I have some things to learn. Can somebody point to me some good reading on how flashing, S-Off, etc all work on the HTCs? The Samsung scene is a bit different.

Jirv311 said:
Well, I bit the bullet today and picked up the Vivid. I have a week left of my 30 days and so far I like it. The UI does seem a bit more finished. Definitely a little bit of lag in it but I'm sure a kernel can fix that.
I do like the extra thickness of it. I feel more comfortable holding it. Much less like I'm going to drop it.
Now I have some things to learn. Can somebody point to me some good reading on how flashing, S-Off, etc all work on the HTCs? The Samsung scene is a bit different.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No S-Off yet, but we still have perm root and can flash ROMs. All in one package right here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1416836

Sprint gets the Droid 4 variant, the Photon Q, with upgrades

http://www.motorola.com/us/consumer...,pd.html?selectedTab=tab-2&cgid=mobile-phones
At first glance, I thought this was a Droid 4. But then I saw that Moto took off the capacitive buttons on the bottom of the front of the phone. The Photon Q gets an upgraded 1.5gz dual core processor, and the display apparently has ColorBoost technology (resolution is the same, however).
I always wondered what Moto would do as a one-up on the droid 4. Looks like we have an answer

Motorola has stated that it'll have an unlockable bootloader. Also i think someone said that it has an s4, srsly the only real drawback so far to this phone is Sprint and that qhd display. Still very nice though

* raises fist * Damn you, Motorola! I just got the Droid 4!
* settles down * I still prefer a menu button though
* enables puppy-eyes * Please release an unlocked version in Europe?

I think the SIM card of the photon Q is not removable, so don't worry about getting it.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

If it'll be non-removable SIM card, it's dead phone

danifunker said:
I think the SIM card of the photon Q is not removable, so don't worry about getting it.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It sure is not removable. I hope this is not going to be a new trend. Does not bode well for the Droid 5 on Verizon whenever it will be out.
From the Spec sheets:
Frequency: LTE, CDMA 800/1900 EVDO Rev A, World Phone - GSM 850/1900/1800/900, UMTS 850/1900/2100 (SIM is embedded in the phone, GSM SIM is locked and not removable)

hey all i care about is the fact that they will let you unlock the bootloader, they better do it for the Droid 4 and RAZR too!

Fat chance of that. Verizon thinks that rooted phones can impair the quality of the service they provide. /:

maddeath said:
Fat chance of that. Verizon thinks that rooted phones can impair the quality of the service they provide. /:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
**** Verizon, all they do is pack their phones with bull**** bloatware, delay OTAs by months, overprice, and all that. the only good thing they've ever done for me is not get rid of my unlimited data plan yet. ....yet.... *knocks on wood*

@sjaakbaanan i had the same reaction when reading OP

rubixcube said:
@sjaakbaanan i had the same reaction when reading OP
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Haha, good to see I'm not the only one!
I'm still keeping my hopes up that one day they'll release this or a newer QWERTY over here too, with unlocked SIM. If not this phone, then the next.. and I'll buy it right away!
Maybe we should start some kind of internet petition to bring Motorola QWERTY phones than Europe and see if more than 5 people sign it

Didn't Samsung succumb to internet users when it offered a "developer version" (unlocked bootloader) of the GS3 on verizon (for way more money, of course)? If I'm correct, then it can be done

alex94kumar said:
Didn't Samsung succumb to internet users when it offered a "developer version" (unlocked bootloader) of the GS3 on verizon (for way more money, of course)? If I'm correct, then it can be done
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Yes, and they offered it for 600 USD I believe, which is actually still cheaper than the S3's unsubsidized price over here. So I'm already taking into account that I need to spend that amount of money, as long as they give me the chance
But I think more people want an unlocked S3 (which already existed for Europe anyway) than an unlocked Photon Q, so the power of the internet may be smaller here. Ah well, if I get data to work, I'm fully happy with my Droid 4!

No microSD cards, non-removable batteries and now embedded SIM cards. Are we noticing a trend yet?
Tappin' and talkin' with Tapatalk.

This one takes a microsd, but yeah there's definitely a trend...

my guess is the trend is actually carriers trying to hold on to the old way of doing things. they don't like device hopping and by forcing you to buy a new phone, they are able to bring in additional revenue.
I hate how we're basically the only market that's this way. meanwhile the rest of the world is "free to roam" and prices remain competitive.

Me too
640k said:
my guess is the trend is actually carriers trying to hold on to the old way of doing things. they don't like device hopping and by forcing you to buy a new phone, they are able to bring in additional revenue.
I hate how we're basically the only market that's this way. meanwhile the rest of the world is "free to roam" and prices remain competitive.
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Click to collapse
I hate how the phones seem to be built to break after 2 years. My mom got a phone 13 years ago that is still kicking..its even been dropped in a drink cup....6 years after the cup incident the pixels in the display are finally going out. She loves that thing and is very upset that she has to get a new phone, I am very surprised it's still working. She's even using the original battery! As for me, I love the keyboard on my D4, and now that I have my much-beloved FM radio on it, I probably won't upgrade again, it's just too expensive to. I will just surf ebay and get other D4s. :silly: Anyone else notice that as Verizon gets bigger, the more expensive, dumber and ruder they become? I wish we had more competition.
I have noticed that trend too, and I don't like it. If they wanted to keep things like they were, they would still be making indestructible bricks like what my mom is using. I like the thinner phones, yet I want to be able to rip out the battery if I get frustrated, and I hate needing a SIM card
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Rooted Moto Droid 4 with Spirit FM
Stock Samsung Galaxy S (Samsung Facinate)....Why does it have 2 names?

KrellaKrentoshi said:
I hate how the phones seem to be built to break after 2 years. My mom got a phone 13 years ago that is still kicking..its even been dropped in a drink cup....6 years after the cup incident the pixels in the display are finally going out. She loves that thing and is very upset that she has to get a new phone, I am very surprised it's still working. She's even using the original battery! As for me, I love the keyboard on my D4, and now that I have my much-beloved FM radio on it, I probably won't upgrade again, it's just too expensive to. I will just surf ebay and get other D4s. :silly: Anyone else notice that as Verizon gets bigger, the more expensive, dumber and ruder they become? I wish we had more competition.
I have noticed that trend too, and I don't like it. If they wanted to keep things like they were, they would still be making indestructible bricks like what my mom is using. I like the thinner phones, yet I want to be able to rip out the battery if I get frustrated, and I hate needing a SIM card
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Rooted Moto Droid 4 with Spirit FM
Stock Samsung Galaxy S (Samsung Facinate)....Why does it have 2 names?
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+10
I have been trying to point this out to eveyone I work with especially with all of the HTC devices every time a new ver of the evo is coming out all of sudden the old ver starts to fall apart physically and software !! coincident? i dont think so!!!

I do like my D4. Its been the first DROID phone I've been happy with since the 1. Some other slider is going to have to have some prett decent features to get me to switch. Like a better screen and battery life that lasts days.

What should I do now?
Am one of those who'll want a physical keyboard on Android for sure.
Last year waited so much for Droid 3, but bad reviews didn't let me go for it. Early this year got Xperia Pro, which was working very much fine, and then few weeks ago, STOLEN.
Now on a prowl for another Android + keyboard handset. Found Droid 4, but thanks to GSM radio still off (am from India and on GSM) have been more than eagerly waiting for ICS on Droid 4. Now that it is just rolling out, come across Photon Q.
Very much confused which one to go for, Droid 4 or Photon Q?
# Droid 4 has higher battery life among the two (of the data in hand at present), with ICS so late, Jelly Bean would be light years away.
# Photon Q will launch with ICS, so have a chance for Jelly Bean. But battery life doesn't look promising (reviews after the launch will give exact idea). Apart from that, Photon Q looks better with better processor and bigger screen.
Please advice which one should I really go with.
Thanks!

Opinion on this phone from an LG hater

I've absolutely bashed LG for every phone they made because in all honesty, theyre crap. They are horrible cell phone manufacturers and they should stick to TV's.
After seeing the Optimus4X I was pretty impressed, but it was an LG so I wouldnt buy it anyways.
Then I saw the Optimus G. Hmmmmm theyre getting somewhere, the specs are there and the phone actually looks nice. But its STILL an LG.
Then the Nexus 4....holy cow this thing is amazing. PRICE, specs, build quality (that i can tell from videos)
But its an LG...........
IDC
The fact that it doesnt have LTE or a removable battery or expandable storage was nothing new. They had already said that it was not going to happen. Except for the LTE I mean. Thats not that important. Only ATT is a GSM carrier with LTE right now and they hardly have any. So pretty much no one cares..
BUT ITS AN LG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I could just care less. Maybe they had to use them to keep the price down. Its ok Google. With that firepower, it could be a ZTE or something crappy like that and I would still buy it. Put a case over it and cover that branding LOL.
But all in all, how can you hate a phone this cheap with these specs from Google?
If you do, im sorry but go away. go buy an iphonecrap
I was literally about to pay full price for a galaxynote2. but then this was announced.
I can buy 2 of these if i want for the same money.
Enjoy the phones my friends. I will.
(if you dont go away)

uhh... WHAT!?

As long as its not a kyocera, I'm good with it
Tapatalk² from my Optimus V

Yeah....it looks nice but I'm going to hold off gushing praise until we know it can deliver all that s4 pro performance without overheating and choking down all the battery.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda premium

LGs typically sucked because of the horrible software builds. This being a nexus pretty much eliminates that big issue.
The s4 pro has great battery. The optimus g gets 8 hours screen on. The issue is the prerelease software the reviewers got. Expect the final version to do similar if not better the optimus g.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium

kcls said:
As long as its not a kyocera, I'm good with it
Tapatalk² from my Optimus V
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Hahaha LmAO I have to agree ROFL
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

I'm in the same boat, always bashed LG ever since I recommended the original LG Optimus (A budget phone when it came out) to two friends and never heard the end of it.. apps were crashing without reason, the whole phone would lag up randomly and it was just chaos, I ended up installing CM7 on them both and it stopped some but not all problems.
I didn't even pay attention to the LG market up until recently, I thought well if it's LG then it will have a childish UI and be built for idiots. Wow was I wrong with this one. I haven't been this impressed with the design of a phone since I got my iPhone 4 on launch day. The iPhone 4, if anyone remembers is the only iPhone that I actually appreciate because it was completely different and built to look good while remain more powerful than the competition at the time.
I am going to buy the Nexus 4 as soon as I can and hope that it's just as good as the hype makes it out to be, I've already found a buyer for my S3 i9300 (not LTE version) for a cool $400 which gives me enough money to get the 16GB for $399 here in Australia and only spend $20 on shipping. But if it's anything like the original Optimus, this phone will be finding a place in a drawer and I'll go back to Samsung, Exynos sources/documentation or not.
TL;DR This phone better be good or else my newly regained faith in LG will diminish as quickly as it came.
/rant

Cool story bro
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda app-developers app

DarkRyoushii said:
I'm in the same boat, always bashed LG ever since I recommended the original LG Optimus (A budget phone when it came out) to two friends and never heard the end of it.. apps were crashing without reason, the whole phone would lag up randomly and it was just chaos, I ended up installing CM7 on them both and it stopped some but not all problems.
I didn't even pay attention to the LG market up until recently, I thought well if it's LG then it will have a childish UI and be built for idiots. Wow was I wrong with this one. I haven't been this impressed with the design of a phone since I got my iPhone 4 on launch day. The iPhone 4, if anyone remembers is the only iPhone that I actually appreciate because it was completely different and built to look good while remain more powerful than the competition at the time.
I am going to buy the Nexus 4 as soon as I can and hope that it's just as good as the hype makes it out to be, I've already found a buyer for my S3 i9300 (not LTE version) for a cool $400 which gives me enough money to get the 16GB for $399 here in Australia and only spend $20 on shipping. But if it's anything like the original Optimus, this phone will be finding a place in a drawer and I'll go back to Samsung, Exynos sources/documentation or not.
TL;DR This phone better be good or else my newly regained faith in LG will diminish as quickly as it came.
/rant
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm still using my LG Optimus. It's been the most reliable phone I've had. I've thrown this thing, quite literally, across rooms before, and it's 2 years old and I've yet to put a single scratch on it. Development has been amazing, I'm currently running a completely stable CM9 on it, and there is MIUI, AOKP, CM10, CM7, CNA, you name it, that are all slightly less stable. It might not be the best phone in the world, but it's good. My phone before this was a non-android LG phone, and it was pretty solid too. Software sucked (it was a feature phone. All software sucked for them lol) but once again, the build quality was solid. So far, I've only had good experience with LG Phones, and I'm guessing this Nexus will be a fine addition.
Tapatalk² from my Optimus V

Thanks for your opinion on a phone you only saw pictures of. So comforting coming from a guy that admits to being biased easily.
Oh and BTW... just to help you with electronics... LG produces ****ty TVs...

does this phone support micro sd card?

No but I hear people are fine with that since it has 128gb internal memory, LTE and a reinforced aluminum back and dual removable battery

even i hate lg but the nexus 4 is amazing!! i hated lg for its late updates , ugly firmware...

This hardly needs a thread of its own mate, come on.
Closed.

Initial impressions of N4 - I love it.

I've had my N4 for a about 4 days. I've only had one Android device previously, a Nexus S which I bought at launch nearly two years ago, and which I've been using ever since then. I've played around with some other Android devices here and there like the GS2, GS3, OneX, OneS, and Galaxy Nexus. This new N4 blows everything out of the water, IMO. It is SO fast and smooth, and the screen quality/resolution leaves nothing to be desired. The form factor is beautiful, camera takes great photos (but I'm no photo-expert), video functions work great, etc. Even though there's no improved functionality (or features) compared to my NS, the user experience is just so much better.
Also, HSPA+ speeds are so good, that I can't imagine why anybody would complain about lack of LTE. I'm consistently getting between 8 and 14Mbps download speeds.
Nice work Google and LG!

It really is a blessing for those who only need 16GB and have T-mobile

I've had mine since last week and it's been the smoothest and fastest android experience. I really enjoy how everything works so effortlessly. Battery life has been better than I expected too.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

Kushblow said:
It really is a blessing for those who only need 16GB and have T-mobile
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I have all my music housed in Google Play Music (on cloud), and my photos set to upload to Google+, and I don't have any high-storage apps or games, so my storage needs are very small. I could have easily made do with the 8GB version.

ddb540 said:
I have all my music housed in Google Play Music (on cloud), and my photos set to upload to Google+, and I don't have any high-storage apps or games, so my storage needs are very small. I could have easily made do with the 8GB version.
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Click to collapse
Photos are resized when uploaded to Google+, with the longest side being reduced to 2000px. Just in case you've overlooked this and delete the originals!
I recall that Dropbox auto upload retains the original image, and doesn't consume any of your space, or rather they give you another 500MB every 500MB you auto upload!

LadFromWales85 said:
Photos are resized when uploaded to Google+, with the longest side being reduced to 2000px. Just in case you've overlooked this and delete the originals!
I recall that Dropbox auto upload retains the original image, and doesn't consume any of your space, or rather they give you another 500MB every 500MB you auto upload!
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Good tip, thanks!

The OP obviously didn't use the camera on the GS2, GS3, OneX, etc. He wouldn't be praising the N4 camera if he did. Fact.

akarol said:
The OP obviously didn't use the camera on the GS2, GS3, OneX, etc. He wouldn't be praising the N4 camera if he did. Fact.
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If those cameras are better it does not mean the n4 camera is not good. Why so harsh?
Edit: And what are you basing this on anyway? You don't seem to own them all.

akarol said:
The OP obviously didn't use the camera on the GS2, GS3, OneX, etc. He wouldn't be praising the N4 camera if he did. Fact.
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Ppl also don't use real cameras or they wouldnt praise any phone....

tweaked said:
Ppl also don't use real cameras or they wouldnt praise any phone....
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Doesn't have to be national geographic Pulitzer quality in order to be a compelling shot, or just good enough to tell everyone what you ate for lunch with a good quality image.

akarol said:
The OP obviously didn't use the camera on the GS2, GS3, OneX, etc. He wouldn't be praising the N4 camera if he did. Fact.
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Interesting, I've used all three of the cameras you listed and I think the N4 displays much truer colors. I guess if oversaturation is your thing go with the Samsung. The OneX camera is comparable to the N4s
Love the Nexus 4 haters.....
Newsflash, not one Nexus owner bought the phone because of the camera. Like most high end devices the Nexus has a great camera that does the job just as good if not better than most out there.
Can't the OP be happy with his new phone?
Funny bring up the camera because its the only thing on the S3 that's even in the N4s league. Oh and what did you pay on contract for the S3? I know unlocked they're around 550. Sucker.

I have the N4 and came from the Verizon GNex. The only concern I had when I bought the phone was going to be the lack of LTE. I have the N4 on T-Mobile and running side by side speed tests, I have to say that the N4 beat the Gnex almost every time.

^
I don't understand why people care so much about LTE when the speeds us carriers provide over LTE are nowhere near what the technology is capable of, and often times slower than real world HSPA+ speeds. I'd much rather use HSPA+ if that means better battery life, better coverage, and often times faster speeds. Besides, HSPA+ is already sometimes faster than my home connection. I really don't see the need for 10+Mbps mobile connections at the moment, especially if I'm paying $100+ a month only to get a 1-2Gb cap on Verizon or ATT.

I am glad you like it but as you said you have been on Nexus S for 2 years and playing around here and there with other devices isnt really using and therefore you dont know if something better is out there or not. Enjoy your phone, just dont exaggerate it.

EvoYas said:
I am glad you like it but as you said you have been on Nexus S for 2 years and playing around here and there with other devices isnt really using and therefore you dont know if something better is out there or not. Enjoy your phone, just dont exaggerate it.
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As another user coming from the Nexus S it doesn't surprise me how it is difficult to satisfy people that have to keep jumping to the next latest and greatest device. Over the last few weeks it has constantly amazed me how many people are ditching really great recent phones such as the S3 and one x to get something only slightly newer and (not in everyone's experience) better. I embraced my Nexus S for all it's shortcomings and evolved it through software over 18 months and the great thing for me now is I can truly appreciate how great a leap forward my new phone is. Personally I think it's a suckers game to keep changing phones every few months and unsurprising how much more critical such users will be of their newly acquired hardware.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2

Well to some of us its a very expensive hobby. I have as of now 3 phones including the 8GB N4. I enjoy them all really, no single phone will have everything.

EvoYas said:
Well to some of us its a very expensive hobby. I have as of now 3 phones including the 8GB N4. I enjoy them all really, no single phone will have everything.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's definitely a hobby for me as well - but mine is about Android and how it adapts and evolves. My Nexus S is running a later version of Android than anything other than the N4. The hardware has always been secondary to me and I guess that's how we differ. I'm sure I will see several phones overtake me in the coming months - meanwhile I will enjoy getting the most out of the N4 until the right time comes again to move on.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2

EvoYas said:
Well to some of us its a very expensive hobby. I have as of now 3 phones including the 8GB N4. I enjoy them all really, no single phone will have everything.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hobby for me as well.. And a damn expensive one too lol. I buy all my phones sim free/ unlocked so i dont get tied to any carrier and have owned a lot of Android devices.
I was gona give the N4 a pass, but since I live in Canada i can take advantage of LTE. Just ordered a Nexus 4 16gb when it became available earlier today and have a shipping time of 1-2 weeks. Hope it gets delivered before Christmas!
LTE is a big plus for ME. Out of the 8 popular networks here, 6 of them offer LTE. If its easy for someone to say that he/she dont care for LTE, chances are they never tried it or live in a poorly covered area. But it is understandable since LTE coverage is limited compared to HSPA. Luckily for me i live in an LTE area and yes i am spoiled by it. I even traded my Tegra 3 HTC One X for the LTE Snapdragon one. Just my 2 cents

LTE is amazing no doubts, and I am lucky enough to have an unlimited data plan from way back in the day ao I am grandfathered in as long as I dont upgrade the phone on the contract price which I havent in ages and I dont plan to anyway. But yes, LTE speeds are a God send.

akarol said:
The OP obviously didn't use the camera on the GS2, GS3, OneX, etc. He wouldn't be praising the N4 camera if he did. Fact.
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Click to collapse
The gs3 camera is cool but you can only use it with two hands. When I tried to take one hand they would always come out kinds blurry. I think it's because how big the phone is and the shape it kinda slides in your hand.
Loving my nexus though. It is easier to hold.