Weaker vibration compared to other phones - Xperia Z3 Compact Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Has anyone noticed a slightly weaker vibration compared to other phones?
I own a Z1 Compact and the difference is like night and day actually. Maybe a faulty vibration motor in my unit?

No idé vibration is always the first thing I turn of on a phone...

Pretty weak vibrate on mine as well
GOJIN said:
Has anyone noticed a slightly weaker vibration compared to other phones?
I own a Z1 Compact and the difference is like night and day actually. Maybe a faulty vibration motor in my unit?
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I got my Z3C last week direct from Sony. Although I love the phone, the vibrate motor is definitely a weak spot (in my opinion). It is not as bad as the Nexus 4 (which was so weak that I returned it) but it is nowhere as strong as my Galaxy Nexus or GS4 were. It may be nitpicky to some, but I really prefer a strong vibrate mode, since I use that mode a lot.
I use Light Flow to tweak the LED colors and can at least assist the vibrate by changing the pattern/intensity for certain events.
I do not think it is a broken motor in your unit. I think they just opted for "less intense"..heck that may be helping it yield good battery life.

Light Flow helping me a lot
For what it is worth to other users, I tweaked Light Flow to a custom vibrate of 100,1200 for any app I cared about and it has helped me a lot.
All in all, I love the Z3C. I am using Nova Launcher Prime to tweak the icons a bit and to resize the grid scheme to better use the smaller space and Light Flow to maximize the LED notifications and improve the vibrate pattern. Everything else is left alone and working great.
I finally got my hands on a OnePlus One during their "open to the public" sale a few weeks ago. I used the OPO for 4 days and decided that the Sony was the better phone for my needs. The OPO did a few things better, but some things worse, so it was RMAed.
ReschDMD said:
I got my Z3C last week direct from Sony. Although I love the phone, the vibrate motor is definitely a weak spot (in my opinion). It is not as bad as the Nexus 4 (which was so weak that I returned it) but it is nowhere as strong as my Galaxy Nexus or GS4 were. It may be nitpicky to some, but I really prefer a strong vibrate mode, since I use that mode a lot.
I use Light Flow to tweak the LED colors and can at least assist the vibrate by changing the pattern/intensity for certain events.
I do not think it is a broken motor in your unit. I think they just opted for "less intense"..heck that may be helping it yield good battery life.
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Related

[Q] ridiculous screen wake lag

This issue is present in both sony models (xperia Z & ZL). I put my ZL side by side with my old at&t branded DUAL CORE galaxy s3, a nexus 4 (same exact processor), an iphone 5, and an at&t branded htc one.... my brand new crazy expensive ZL takes WAY longer to wake up from sleep then ALL OF THEM. Every one of these phones had a BIG LEAD over my phone. How is there not a thread about this already? When I saw my old GS3 woke up way faster I was sad.... but when I saw how fast the htc one screen woke up I was straight up embarrassed. What are the odds this issue will be resolved? Developers on this forum are very capable and willing to work hard but to an extent. With so much stiff competition I have to ask how many developers will invest their time into even looking into this issue. I have tried every rom/kernel available to me at the moment to no avail. I have tried changing every setting and even eliminated the lock screen... no change. I tried raising the min. cpu speed... nothing.
To make matters worse every single one of the phones I compared my ZL to had better viewing angles and a brighter screen then the POS screen sony decided to cheap out on and stick in this phone. WHAT IS THE POINT OF HIGH PPI IF I CANT SEE ANYTHING ON THE SCREEN UNLESS I HAVE MY PROTRACTOR OUT TO MAKE SURE IM LOOKING AT THE EXACT RIGHT ANGLE. Sony should give you a free protractor key chain with the purchase of this phone I heard about this in reviews but never took it seriously because I didnt realize the extent of the issue. If I look at my phone just slightly off angle the colors are washed out and if its sitting on the table and im looking down on it from my desk the screen is 50% washed out and some colors are muted.
I hear the htc one x had the same wake lag issues and it was resolved via a software update. I wonder if we will be so lucky....
Anyone have any idea or solution to get rid of or at the very least lessen this extremely irritable wake lag?? Let me know !!
raphtal said:
This issue is present in both sony models (xperia Z & ZL). I put my ZL side by side with my old at&t branded DUAL CORE galaxy s3, a nexus 4 (same exact processor), an iphone 5, and an at&t branded htc one.... my brand new crazy expensive ZL takes WAY longer to wake up from sleep then ALL OF THEM. Every one of these phones had a BIG LEAD over my phone. How is there not a thread about this already? When I saw my old GS3 woke up way faster I was sad.... but when I saw how fast the htc one screen woke up I was straight up embarrassed. What are the odds this issue will be resolved? Developers on this forum are very capable and willing to work hard but to an extent. With so much stiff competition I have to ask how many developers will invest their time into even looking into this issue. I have tried every rom/kernel available to me at the moment to no avail. I have tried changing every setting and even eliminated the lock screen... no change. I tried raising the min. cpu speed... nothing.
To make matters worse every single one of the phones I compared my ZL to had better viewing angles and a brighter screen then the POS screen sony decided to cheap out on and stick in this phone. WHAT IS THE POINT OF HIGH PPI IF I CANT SEE ANYTHING ON THE SCREEN UNLESS I HAVE MY PROTRACTOR OUT TO MAKE SURE IM LOOKING AT THE EXACT RIGHT ANGLE. Sony should give you a free protractor key chain with the purchase of this phone I heard about this in reviews but never took it seriously because I didnt realize the extent of the issue. If I look at my phone just slightly off angle the colors are washed out and if its sitting on the table and im looking down on it from my desk the screen is 50% washed out and some colors are muted.
I hear the htc one x had the same wake lag issues and it was resolved via a software update. I wonder if we will be so lucky....
Anyone have any idea or solution to get rid of or at the very least lessen this extremely irritable wake lag?? Let me know !!
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To be honest, I don't notice any wake lag on my device. I was using a Note 2 prior to this phone, and there were complaints about the wake lag which I too noticed. Coming to this phone, my screen is quick to wake up. I have no complaints regarding this.
Screen angle, this is something many have been complaining about but I view my device at the normal viewing angle and so far it doesn't bother me. Yes, when I look at my phone while it being on a table, the color do look washed out, but again, nothing too bad. You're complaining about the lack of brightness on the device, however where are you facing such an issue? Indoors or outdoors? I use my device at the lowest brightness and yet it is brighter than my Note 2. I have no complains over the brightness of this device.
My only issue with it is the battery life and the vividness of the color reproduced by the screen, however I am sure it can be improved by software updates.

[Q] G3 vs Z3C? Opinions

Hey there, I'm planning to give back my g3 to amazon spend 20€ more and get the z3c...
I know this is the z3c forum so I will get more positive reviews about it.
Some extra info: I keep using my nexus 7 2013 for reading and video, with the G3 I didn't use the nexus 7 2013 at all these days so if I keep the G3 I think I will sell the tablet.
G3 foto gets really good with XCam from xdabebb although you can't modify so many values as the z3c manual mode 20 megapixel...
Battery: G3 can give me 5 hours SOT MAX in a day of use, if I forget to charge it It wont get through the second day.
The best thing I like about the LG G3 are the thin bezels and the fact of a 5.5 inch into so small sizes + the screen for multimedia purposes can substitute tablet use.
The worst thing about the LG G3 is the size for 1 hand is nearly impossible and dangerous (phone can easily fall), and the battery + the camera is only good with xdabbeb camera XCam and now with lollipop LG has removed many functionalities about the hardware of the camara that can be accesed
Sorry for the long post
TL.DR: Why should I get Z3 Compact over G3, provide some links in your answers (even I've searched in google quite a lot and not many people compare these 2 due to different screen sizes)
I come from the LG G2 (1 year) -> Amazon Firephone (3 months)-> z3 compact (3 months so far) . However I help my friend to buy a LG G3 and use if for a couple of days. Technically, the LG G3 is mostly identical to the LG G2 (slightly bigger in screen and size, same camera, battery capacity, design and internals (S801 is just an overclocked s800)) However, when the G2 has very good battery life, the G3 is just average. G3 has better camera focus time thanks to laser sensor, but the image quality is mostly the same (they uses the same Sony sensor) The reason I switch to the Z3 compact is G3 is mostly the same as G2 and I need to upgrade my smartphone, as my father love to use the G2, and he's still using. And I advise 4 of my friends to buy sony devices. Our group now have 1 z3, 4 z3 compacts.
The reason for buying z3 compact is:
+ water proof: trust me, my s4 died for just drop into the water for 3 seconds. This z3c has several times accidentally into the water and she lives well. Plus one time listening to music under the heavy rain for more than 1 hour.
+ battery: The best battery life device for more than 10 smartphones I've used in my life. My habit is charge the phone over-night and I have to plug it in normally at 40-50%, 30% on the intensive day and even 70% on the easy one.
+ speakers: It has 2 stereo speakers towards your ears. Most of the other smartphone including LG and has speaker grill at the bottom (one ear in landscape mode) or in the back ?? after using phones with front-facing speakers, you will never go back. And my daddy love my mother's Moto G 2014 just because of those speakers haha.
The reason to not buy the z3 compact is:
-screen size: Depends. Yeah it's very efficiently designed since it has 4.6 inches screen and much smaller than the 4.7 inches galaxy alpha and Iphone 6. However, 4.6 can be considered too small for some. You can buy the z3 in this case, keep in mind that the bigger Z3 doesn't have the as good screen-size ratio as the z3 compact
-camera: IMX 220 is the very good camera (proven in other devices. However, I don't know why Sony can introduce the very bad camera software. It's hard to use, it's complicated, it re-focus when you hit the button even when you already focused just before. Plus, the camera software stays the same without any major updates for nearly 2 years since the z1 and z1 compact. It's a joke when Sony keeps updating theirs other apps like Walkman (now music), Gallery, launcher, themes, major android updates. And don't get me wrong, z3c camera is really good, it just cannot cope with the potential of the sensor itself, and ironically they are the maker of the sensor ha ha. And please not to forget the 2MP front facing camera is just average (with f 2.8 and bad quality) if you are the selfie person.
In conclusion, I'm very satisfied with the z3 compact and will stick with it for a long time.
robocopvn said:
G3 has better camera focus time thanks to laser sensor, but the image quality is mostly the same (they uses the same Sony sensor)
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Hello thanks for your post it was very usefull for me, I also owned the G2 for a while and I must say, from what I remember, the camera noise is much lower in the G3 under low light conditions. The main reason I want to get the z3c is due to the camera (in manual mode you can get impressive pictures & auto mode is improving from what I've read) and the battery. The biggest con I see with the z3c is non-removable battery. When the battery life ends it will mean you have to throw it away or take it to the service center and pay a big amount of money to get a new one.
EDIT: Damn, didn't read you already have a G3, curse my lack of reading skills.
I don't know much about the Z3C as I haven't had much contact with it besides playing with it at some store, but I suppose I can tell you a little bit about my G3
Pros:
+Screen size and resolution - it's just perfect for watching vids, playing games and browsing stuff in your bed. Everything you see is incredibly sharp due to the horrendous resolution. I can definetely say there is a difference between my dad's Z1 (it's FullHD, while Z3C is just HD so the difference is even bigger) and my G3 in terms of clarity of the display. You can literally read ant's-****-sized text.
+Camera - it produces really nice shots, in good surroundings it can give birth to magnificent images you will be proud of. And having the laser focus makes you feel like a James Bond... sometimes
+Performance - yes, the QHD sometimes makes the CPU a bit sweaty, but overall there is little to be desired. You may be disappointed if you expect your phone to switch to landscape mode in a blink, but for a simple user it is absolutely ok.
+Pretty and slim design - not as flamboyant as your favourite drag queen, but I really like the way it looks. Altough it is more like a matter of taste.
+Physical buttons placement - it may seem weird at first, but you will like it.
+Durability - I squeezed it many times in my pocket by sitting or kneeling abruptly, yet nothing happened and after six months my device still looks great. Also, the screen is really scratch resistant, there is no need to purchase any screen protector.
+Great standby time - it will live a looooooong life if you just leave it idle.
+Mod-friendly - easy to root, easy to flash, you can restore it no problem if you screw something up (no fear of permanently damaging the camera like in Z3C's case)
+Removable battery - you will love it if your phone gets stuck for some reason. Just pull the battery and all the bad dreams are gone!
Not-pros:
-Overheating - yep, sometimes it gets hotter than girls in your browser history. Hovewer, it occurs only if you push the phone to the limit.
-Need of tinkering - I mean, LG screwed up the software a little bit so you may want to get rid of some of the annoyances like screen oversharpening (it was so annoying that I've decided to root the device just to repair this one goddamn thing, I couldn't stand my mom's face oversharpened), heating, battery life, etc.
-Battery life - not as good as Z3C's, expect it to have 4-5h SOT and be battery hungry at the end of the day if you use it a lot. There are no perks like Stamina mode, though it can be dealt with through rooting or simply buying a bigger battery.
-Plastic - it doesn't feel as premium as the Z3, it emits some creaky sounds if squeezed, the back of the phone can get scratched if you place it on a harsh surface.
-Dimmed screen - not useless in a direct sunlight, but you will have a hard time reading the text on it.
-Not waterproof - unfortunately it's not as resilient as your ex-friend's head, you shouldn't try to flush it down the toilet.
-No stereo speakers - not like it is really needed on a mobile phone imo, but still.
So the way I see it... if you like small screens, perfect performance, topnotch battery life and water resistance, go for Z3C. But if these things aren't that crucial for you, then you won't be disappointed with LG's flagship child... oh wait, isn't G4 out already? Too lazy to check it, but this can only result in one thing - price drop.
Krastinov said:
So the way I see it... if you like small screens, perfect performance, topnotch battery life and water resistance, go for Z3C. But if these things aren't that crucial for you, then you won't be disappointed with LG's flagship child... oh wait, isn't G4 out already? Too lazy to check it, but this can only result in one thing - price drop.
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Thanks for your opinion, I've been using the G3 for 1 week or so and I got exactly that, 4-5 hours SOT and at the end of the day you had to charge it. The worse part of the G3 in my opinion it is that it was too big and this made even worse the fragile/slipery feeling.
The camera are great in both smartphones, but just today I saw one which was even more amazing, the Microsoft Lumia 640 XL. I had it a while and besides 5.7 inch it felt very solid and comfortable. Now I'm between going full retard and buy the 640 XL for 200€ or the z3 compact for 350€. Both are the best in battery performance and camera (although 640XL goes a bit higher on both due to wp). But z3 compact being so smal and so good camera and battery...
sanogueralorenzo said:
The worse part of the G3 in my opinion it is that it was too big and this made even worse the fragile/slipery feeling.
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Maybe it's just me and my sticky hands, but I haven't had any problems holding it. Never experienced any OMG-GONNA-DROP-IT scenarios (just being overly careful after shattering my last Samsung...). Moreover, I heard that the Z3C is more prone to being dropped due to the glass on the back... yet I'm not sure, the one I played with had some anti-theft gizmos attached to its back, so I couldn't compare :d.
sanogueralorenzo said:
The camera are great in both smartphones, but just today I saw one which was even more amazing, the Microsoft Lumia 640 XL. I had it a while and besides 5.7 inch it felt very solid and comfortable. Now I'm between going full retard and buy the 640 XL for 200€ or the z3 compact for 350€. Both are the best in battery performance and camera (although 640XL goes a bit higher on both due to wp). But z3 compact being so smal and so good camera and battery...
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Yea, Lumias are great photo-taking devices, but you would have to settle for Windows Phone, which is... well, let's say that not everybody likes it. But it's your call, as an Android fanboy I would, of course, choose the Xperia, even though it's photo capabilities may be a bit behind Lumias.

My experience with the OnePlus 3 (OP3 fans may want to ignore this...)

So I got my OP3 around a week ago now and at first, I loved it. It was by far the fastest Android phone I had used (even compared to the 6P)
However, fast does not always mean smooth. Sure, it opened apps fast, but the animations in the UI were very stuttery and janky and were horrible to watch a lot of the time. So I took to XDA with my issue and was told that a factory reset would 100% fix this, so I reset the phone... and for probably 24 hours, the phone was smooth again - hoorah! And then the stuttering slowly crept back in, the keyboard (google keyboard) was slow and froze a few times. My overall impression of the performace of the phone would be that it is fast, but compared to the smoothness of the Nexus 6P, it is below par.
The build quality is pretty good, my only issue being a very wobbly and loose volume button, but other than that, it is just as good as any iPhone or high end phone.
The screen... In short, if you are coming from a 1440p phone, you will notice the difference. Anyone that says they can't frankly needs an eye test. The colours are almost neon compared to AMOLED panels on high end Samsung's (some may like this, I didn't mind it). It gets fairly bright, not as bright as most other flagship phones though. The viewing angels are odd, tilt it one way and the display turns purple, tilt it the other way and it turns blue, slightly annoying.
The headphone jack is on par with the iPhone, which is saying a lot in my opinion. The speakers are absolute trash. Do not expect anything like the quality of the Nexus 6P or the Moto X Pure edition.
The DASH charging feature has got to be the best feature of the phone, it is as good as everyone says it is. The phone can fully charge from 0% in about 70 minutes in my testing, which is far, far faster than the Nexus 6P or any other phone I own.
The battery life is also very good, it outlasts the 6P in my experience and the standby time is also better too (dropping around 0.75% an hour compared to 1-2% an hour drain on the 6P).
The fingerprint scanner is blazingly fast, when it wants to work. I'd say 75% of the time it worked, the rest of the time it did not. I'm sure some smart guy will say that it is centrally positioned and you need to press the centre. I am aware of this and it made no difference, even after adding the same finger 5 times.
The camera is... so-so. It takes acceptable pictures is absolute perfect lighting conditions, but anything less than that and the pictures will look grainy and fuzzy. In low light, you may as well be using an iPhone 3G (I really mean that). Camera fanatics will want to avoid this phone like the plague
The real downfall of this phone for me and the reason I have no other option but to return it, is that the WiFi and cellular reception (at least for me) is worse than any device I have ever used. My iPhone 5s gets 4G pretty much everywhere at maximum speeds, whereas the OP3 managed to get 4G probably 5% of the time and at much lower speeds. The WiFi is terrible, getting around 1-2 MB/S download speed compared to 10-15mb/s on my iPhone 5s. (my internet is usually slow anyway, but the OP3 took it to a new level) This resulted in the almost 3 year old iPhone loading any form of webpage, video or audio significantly faster than the OP3.
To conclude, if you are seriously considering the OnePlus 3, lower your overall expectations. Remember that it is a cheap phone, and it is cheap for a reason. OnePlus had to cut corners somewhere and the WiFi and cellular reception, sadly is where they took a hit. The only advice I can give is that you do have a 15 day return period, so by all means try the phone and if you have a similar experience as me, you can ditch it.
I know a lot of you will hate on this post as you love the OP3 and can't bear the thought of someone saying anything bad about it. I'm not saying it is a bad phone, I think that overall, it's good, but it is not flawless by any means.
I hope this helps at least someone! I will answer any questions if I can.
I don't know what lag or smoothness issues you are talking about but that is your experience and opinion so it doesn't matter to others as long as their phone is super smooth. Since you used the Nexus 6P too though, do you mind posting here a long review for the Nexus 6P as well. I am curious to see how objective you are ?
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using XDA-Developers mobile app
brickedvice said:
I don't know what lag or smoothness issues you are talking about but that is your experience and opinion so it doesn't matter to others as long as their phone is super smooth. Since you used the Nexus 6P too though, do you mind posting here a long review for the Nexus 6P as well. I am curious to see how objective you are
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using XDA-Developers mobile app
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If that is a serious request, then I guess so?
It sucks that I had issues with my device, I really wanted to keep the phone.
gman88667733 said:
If that is a serious request, then I guess so?
It sucks that I had issues with my device, I really wanted to keep the phone.
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Yes it is. I have both phones and have had slightly different experiences from you. I look forward to your post about yhe Nexus 6P.
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using XDA-Developers mobile app
brickedvice said:
Yes it is. I have both phones and have had slightly different experiences from you. I look forward to your post about yhe Nexus 6P.
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using XDA-Developers mobile app
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Would you like me to post it in the same section of the Nexus 6P forums?
gman88667733 said:
Would you like me to post it in the same section of the Nexus 6P forums?
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You can post it here since this is your thread and you already compare it vs the Nexus 6P so it shouldn't be a problem.
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using XDA-Developers mobile app
For those interested in my experience with the Nexus 6P (since I mentioned it a fair bit in my OP3 review) this is how I feel about it.
The 6P, in short, was my favourite Android experience. It was not the fastest phone available, the OP3 is faster. However, it was smoother than the OP3 (I focus on animations and transitions when I say this) Never once did the 6P drop a frame in the general UI of the phone, which is not something I can say for the OP3.
The screen of the 6P is superior to the OP3 as is it brighter (only just) the resolution is noticeably better and the colours were more accurate. However, every single 6P I went through (I had a total of 4 before I eventually gave up) had display issues, most of which were to do with colour banding. The build quality of the 6P is absolutely no where near that of the OP3, 2 of my devices arrived slightly bent, all of them but one had mushy buttons, they all came with some degree of scratching as well. I also noticed that the display was not fully flat on any of the devices I had, this was evident when looking at a reflection on the screen, it appeared very warped.
The headphone jack was the reason I ended up ditching the 6P. Each of my devices, without fail, had an audible hissing or white noise sound at below 50% volume. Most people said I was just unlucky, but for each of them to have this issue... I don't think so. (Yes I tried many pairs of headphones) The speakers are the best I've tried, by far. They are far superior to the tinny, horrible speaker on the OP3.
The camera is a lot better on the 6P too, it produced some fantastic shots, compared to the average - below par photos taken on the OP3.
Battery life was mostly similar, but the OP3 has the edge here. However, I had the 6P for a lot longer than the OP3, so I can't say for sure how it would perform over time compared to the 6P!
Wifi and cellular reception on the 6P was far, far greater than that of the OP3, I never had any issues with my 6P whereas my OP3 gave me constant grief.
This mostly sounds like the OP3 is fairly evenly matched with the 6P, but even having all of the issues that I had with my 6P, I would still choose it over the OP3 100% of the time. It was a more enjoyable and fluid experience that I can't fully explain.
So far, nothing quite compares to Nexus in my experience.
gman88667733 said:
For those interested in my experience with the Nexus 6P (since I mentioned it a fair bit in my OP3 review) this is how I feel about it.
The 6P, in short, was my favourite Android experience. It was not the fastest phone available, the OP3 is faster. However, it was smoother than the OP3 (I focus on animations and transitions when I say this) Never once did the 6P drop a frame in the general UI of the phone, which is not something I can say for the OP3.
The screen of the 6P is superior to the OP3 as is it brighter (only just) the resolution is noticeably better and the colours were more accurate. However, every single 6P I went through (I had a total of 4 before I eventually gave up) had display issues, most of which were to do with colour banding. The build quality of the 6P is absolutely no where near that of the OP3, 2 of my devices arrived slightly bent, all of them but one had mushy buttons, they all came with some degree of scratching as well. I also noticed that the display was not fully flat on any of the devices I had, this was evident when looking at a reflection on the screen, it appeared very warped.
The headphone jack was the reason I ended up ditching the 6P. Each of my devices, without fail, had an audible hissing or white noise sound at below 50% volume. Most people said I was just unlucky, but for each of them to have this issue... I don't think so. (Yes I tried many pairs of headphones) The speakers are the best I've tried, by far. They are far superior to the tinny, horrible speaker on the OP3.
The camera is a lot better on the 6P too, it produced some fantastic shots, compared to the average - below par photos taken on the OP3.
Battery life was mostly similar, but the OP3 has the edge here. However, I had the 6P for a lot longer than the OP3, so I can't say for sure how it would perform over time compared to the 6P!
Wifi and cellular reception on the 6P was far, far greater than that of the OP3, I never had any issues with my 6P whereas my OP3 gave me constant grief.
This mostly sounds like the OP3 is fairly evenly matched with the 6P, but even having all of the issues that I had with my 6P, I would still choose it over the OP3 100% of the time. It was a more enjoyable and fluid experience that I can't fully explain.
So far, nothing quite compares to Nexus in my experience.
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Did you happen to notice how slow the camera app on the Nexus 6P is? Also you mention that you replaced the Nexus 6P 4 times. Did you ever try to replace your OP3? Your unit sounds faulty or you probably used it with a custom rom that had bugs. Reception has been fine for me but I see other people complain about it. When you say that camera is below average, what do you mean or how do you compare it vs the Nexus 6P?
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using XDA-Developers mobile app
brickedvice said:
Did you happen to notice how slow the camera app on the Nexus 6P is? Also you mention that you replaced the Nexus 6P 4 times. Did you ever try to replace your OP3? Your unit sounds faulty or you probably used it with a custom rom that had bugs. Reception has been fine for me but I see other people complain about it. When you say that camera is below average, what do you mean or how do you compare it vs the Nexus 6P?
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using XDA-Developers mobile app
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The camera app on the 6P was slow, yes. It was a lot faster on the OP3. I never ran a custom rom on my OP3. I am sick of having to replace phones over and over, which is why I chose to just return it and not replace it.
The camera of the OP3 is not comparable to the 6P, the 6P is far better (to my eye). The camera on the OP3 has a lot of noise in the photos and also mostly seems blurry.
I wasn't impressed with the OP3 camera, let's put it that way.
Not every phone I've had lately can be faulty, people seem to use that as an excuse for any issue I've noticed.
I do want to stress that other than the few issues I encountered with the OP3, I really wanted to keep it because it could have been almost perfect. But I couldn't make the sacrifice on those key areas.
gman88667733 said:
I do want to stress that other than the few issues I encountered with the OP3, I really wanted to keep it because it could have been almost perfect. But I couldn't make the sacrifice on those key areas.
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That's fine. I think customers shouldn't have to make any sacrifices when they pay for a product. Get the iPhone 7 when it comes out. Apple uses simplistic devices that work out of the box and camera never fails to disappoint. Also their displays are the best when it comes to color accuracy and brightness. Battery life is great too. As far as the OP3 goes I agree with you that the display is average at best and you can easily notice the pixels. I have been satisfied with the camera and battery life so far (although I think they should have put a bigger battery to compensate that camera bump). This is the fastest phome I have used and I have used pretty much all the flagship devices in the last years. You could have tried to change animation speed and see if that could make the animations smooth as you like them on the Nexus 6P. To me they seem fine though. People say that for $400 this phone is the best, but I don't think that should be mentioned when we review the device. Will see what Note 7, iPhone 7 and Nexus 7 bring on the table
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using XDA-Developers mobile app
brickedvice said:
That's fine. I think customers shouldn't have to make any sacrifices when they pay for a product. Get the iPhone 7 when it comes out. Apple uses simplistic devices that work out of the box and camera never fails to disappoint. Also their displays are the best when it comes to color accuracy and brightness. Battery life is great too. As far as the OP3 goes I agree with you that the display is average at best and you can easily notice the pixels. I have been satisfied with the camera and battery life so far (although I think they should have put a bigger battery to compensate that camera bump). This is the fastest phome I have used and I have used pretty much all the flagship devices in the last years. You could have tried to change animation speed and see if that could make the animations smooth as you like them on the Nexus 6P. To me they seem fine though. People say that for $400 this phone is the best, but I don't think that should be mentioned when we review the device. Will see what Note 7, iPhone 7 and Nexus 7 bring on the table
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using XDA-Developers mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I couldn't agree more, the price shouldn't matter when reviewing it. I think I'm going to get the next iPhone when it is released as I am a bit tired of small, yet annoying issues with the android devices that I have used. It's a sad moment for me to decide that, but I think it'll be better for me in the long run.
gman88667733 said:
I couldn't agree more, the price shouldn't matter when reviewing it. I think I'm going to get the next iPhone when it is released as I am a bit tired of small, yet annoying issues with the android devices that I have used. It's a sad moment for me to decide that, but I think it'll be better for me in the long run.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is not easy to transition to iPhone if you are used with Android ecosystem. Apple definitly got its **** together. And there are no new phones coming out every 2 months. It is just 1 iPhone every year.
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using XDA-Developers mobile app
I wanted to chime in this topic as I've had a nexus 6p since November and I just got the one plus three on Wed.
I terms of the nexus 6p. My unit was perfect. No display issues at all, no bending, no audio problems. Still in perfect shape even now.
The main problem I had with the nexus 6p was performance. The phone would run great after a reboot, but it would get progressively slower and laggier as time went on. I would have to reboot the phone every couple of days to keep it running quickly. Also, because it has the snapdragon 810, I would notice significant lag when the phone heated up and the cores would start turning off. This wasn't even while playing games, the phone would start thermal throttling just by using chrome. Its well known that the snapdragon 810 isn't a great SOC, even though the nexus 6p is probably the best implementation of it.
Also, when I first bought the phone, I was getting pretty good battery life, 5+ hours of SOT, now it has gotten pretty bad and I'm only getting about 4 hours of SOT.
I'm surprised that people are complaining about the 1080p display on the one plus three. In my eyes, comparing the n6p and the one plus three, I can barely tell the difference between the two screens. They are both super sharp. The only difference is that the white balance is tuned differently. The one plus three has a more bluish cooler white balance, while the n6p has a warmer yellowish white balance. i'm sure in a couple of weeks/months, there will be custom kernels for the one plus three that will let you tweak the display colors. I find it funny that when the n6p came out, people were complaining that the screen was too warm. Now people are complaining that the one plus three is too cool. People love to complain about anything.
In terms of performance on the one plus three, I've had no issues at all with lag and slowdown. I've had the phone running without a reboot for over 3 days and its still just as smooth and fast as the day I got it. Its much better than the nexus 6p in that regard.
Also, battery life on the one plus three is great. I'm consistently getting over 6+ hours of SOT.
I've also not experienced any of the wifi or LTE issues.
I'm not a big camera person, so either phone is good enough for me.
My biggest gripe with the one plus three is that the adaptive brightness is slow and doesn't work very well. Other than that, the one plus three has replaced my nexus 6p as my daily driver. I love the performance and the battery life.
I'm glad you've had no issues!
Here's hoping it stays that way!
I returned my 1+3 too. I was not compleatly sure to give it back but there were some issues that me me feel not compleatly happy:
-It warms up too much easy in my opinion. Browsing, looking picture in google foto, watching movies in streming , etc...
-it becames hot in playing games
-"fingerprint in the pocket" issue that obliged me to disable fingerprint scan
-in call audio not very good. Voice is not very clear and natural, both parts.
-adaptive display not very fast and, in some situations, became too dark to oblige me to switch in manual mode and make it brighter
-getting hot during dash charge.
-sometimes switching from normal mode to "not disturb" mode with no reason, even if the slide was in normal position
Now that i returned it back.... i don't know what to do......
For other aspects i was very happy with oneplus3 : battery, charging time, dual sim, responsiveness, display, building quality, etc.....
Even with these problems, i cannot see any other phone that fits my needs. S7 edge is the best but too costly.
I'm thinking to buy 1+3 again hoping that mine was faulty. But...still I have not decided. I'll let you know.
I hear you OP, the OP3 isn't perfect (by far), but I like it...
Looks like elemental x kernel released an update with color control.
That's one problem down.
enzooliva said:
I returned my 1+3 too. I was not compleatly sure to give it back but there were some issues that me me feel not compleatly happy:
-It warms up too much easy in my opinion. Browsing, looking picture in google foto, watching movies in streming , etc...
-it becames hot in playing games
-"fingerprint in the pocket" issue that obliged me to disable fingerprint scan
-in call audio not very good. Voice is not very clear and natural, both parts.
-adaptive display not very fast and, in some situations, became too dark to oblige me to switch in manual mode and make it brighter
-getting hot during dash charge.
-sometimes switching from normal mode to "not disturb" mode with no reason, even if the slide was in normal position
Now that i returned it back.... i don't know what to do......
For other aspects i was very happy with oneplus3 : battery, charging time, dual sim, responsiveness, display, building quality, etc.....
Even with these problems, i cannot see any other phone that fits my needs. S7 edge is the best but too costly.
I'm thinking to buy 1+3 again hoping that mine was faulty. But...still I have not decided. I'll let you know.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Buy OP3!! :highfive:
enzooliva said:
I returned my 1+3 too. I was not compleatly sure to give it back but there were some issues that me me feel not compleatly happy:
-It warms up too much easy in my opinion. Browsing, looking picture in google foto, watching movies in streming , etc...
-it becames hot in playing games
-"fingerprint in the pocket" issue that obliged me to disable fingerprint scan
-in call audio not very good. Voice is not very clear and natural, both parts.
-adaptive display not very fast and, in some situations, became too dark to oblige me to switch in manual mode and make it brighter
-getting hot during dash charge.
-sometimes switching from normal mode to "not disturb" mode with no reason, even if the slide was in normal position
Now that i returned it back.... i don't know what to do......
For other aspects i was very happy with oneplus3 : battery, charging time, dual sim, responsiveness, display, building quality, etc.....
Even with these problems, i cannot see any other phone that fits my needs. S7 edge is the best but too costly.
I'm thinking to buy 1+3 again hoping that mine was faulty. But...still I have not decided. I'll let you know.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What phone have you used before?
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using XDA-Developers mobile app

Somebody had the z3 compact WITHOUT issues?

I want a compact phone with long battery life and the only option seems to be the Z3 compact, on paper i love it, seems to be perfect, but what stops me from buying it are the build issues, seems the build quality on the z3c is crap, do people who had this phone for a long time WITHOUT issues exists?
Indoctrinate me, or not
This phone no longer has long battery life if you are on Marshmallow... 4-5-6 hours of SOT is "normal", on lollipop it was like 5-6-7 hours and on kitkat it was 9-10-11...
I love this phone, the camera is good but not perfect (too much noise, my girlfriend's normal Z3 has the same issue, the reason I don't want to stick with Sony anymore... they make the best camera sensors but have the WORST camera software...), my vibrator is very noisy, (it peeled-off inside the housing, when I push it hard next to the bottom speaker it stops being noisy for some time and peels-off again to be buzzy again).
If you want the phone with perfect size, it's a perfect choice. But remember - the official support is already dead so if you like your phone to have "fresh" software, you'll have to look for something else.
IMHO the build quality is horrid!
It has a top left hand CPU heat issue, which will nullify it's waterproofing after a short term of use...
[emoji7]
This is the very reason Sony pulled the swimming pool advertising and have now said you should not swim with it. So how could it achieve its waterproof rating?
Sony downgraded the devices advertised Audio capabilities when upgraded to Lollipop, and at the same time changed Walkman app to Music app.
heat again.
Also the housing is bendable, do not put it in your jeans pocket... Needs an aluminium bumper...
If someone has one in perfect working conditions, he only used the calculator function and nothing else, lived in Siberia.
So buying this phone is a bit like playing Russian roulette
All the issues are related to heat...
No problem with the phone at all. Have it for half a year now. Battery: excellent. I use it for bike navigation. Yesterday screen on with navigation and geo tracking for more than 4.5 hours. No problemo!:good:
Dead touch screen, specially in the notification bar and navigation bar.
You need a dock to keep its waterproof. (This problem is fixed on Z5 compact).
xtbtvd12399 said:
Dead touch screen, specially in the notification bar
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Had this problem last week. Only a small portion of the notification bar works. I'm trying to live with it.
romcio47 said:
This phone no longer has long battery life if you are on Marshmallow... 4-5-6 hours of SOT is "normal", on lollipop it was like 5-6-7 hours and on kitkat it was 9-10-11...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ever thought that it was released with Kitkat when phones had brand new battery, then, year later ppl updated it to Lollipop with year old battery, now on Marshmallow it is two years old so yeah, sure, battery is weaker.
AfroMetal said:
Ever thought that it was released with Kitkat when phones had brand new battery, then, year later ppl updated it to Lollipop with year old battery, now on Marshmallow it is two years old so yeah, sure, battery is weaker.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On Nougat my battery life is long again...
[emoji7]
A.R.I.S.E Z3C CM14.1 Phh.superuser Magisk Substratum
Well, I doubt there are Z3 compacts out there without issues, simply because, as it was pointed out in previous replies, it has design flaws, and that's just obvious and undeniable. All of those with screen peeling off, had it in upper left corner, and to make things worse, it happened in first year of use, usually between 6 and 12 months of use, depending on the exposure to heat. I for example did not play any games on it, so it was not exposed to heat in that way, but during summer it was getting very hot easily, with minimal use, and even with no use, so after exactly 6 months it started to peel of (bought brand new). So for the dude up there who used it for 6 months without problems, one advice, from now on just be careful, it's bound to happen.
Next is the camera, which is not that good as it sounds on paper, mainly because Sony's software is crap, and based on some reports, lens quality is bad as well.
The frame can be bent easily, I was careless so now I have two white spots which are visible on black background.
On the good side though, the phone is quick and snappy, the battery life is excellent, it has a compact body (obviously ), it's beautiful. Battery life is averaging at 8h of SOT on MM with 1day 10h of standby, bit more on LP, and even more on KK, however difference is not big if you know how to setup your phone.
All that being said, I don't regret buying the phone, at the time there was no better package overall, at least for me. Now, however, I'd pick something that's not Sony.
Cirra92's write-up above is spot on...
Exactly correct!
Totally perfect review.
If your device is in good condition, means you only used the calculator function and nothing else, it never left your desk and you live in Siberia...
Forever and hereafter, I will always subconsciously believe that Sony owes me a refund...
Sony believing that not acknowledging it's defects and withholding truth of the fact, as business decision will actually cost more. The shareholders really need to realise this...
I also do not regret buying the phone, the best phone of it's type at the time of purchase.
[emoji7]
The design flaws have obviously been both detrimental to Sony's branding and has eroded any trust many owners have with the brand.
The screen has excellent contrast, noticeable to onlookers...
The specifications are still awesome, and I love the phone
[emoji7] [emoji7] [emoji7]
I know how much cost I have incurred repairing the device with 3 screen replacements, and that's exactly how much Sony is indebted to me...
[emoji41]
A.R.I.S.E Z3C CM14.1 Phh.superuser Magisk Substratum
Touch screen top area not responding issue. Claimed warranty, they changed the screen, but now my screen placement is not well aligned, the right side have a big gap compared to left. Thus, phone looks ugly and not waterproof.
I dont know why the replacement screen (i think) is smaller, thus it's highly possible become misaligned
duke_dreadmoore said:
Touch screen top area not responding issue. Claimed warranty, they changed the screen, but now my screen placement is not well aligned, the right side have a big gap compared to left. Thus, phone looks ugly and not waterproof.
I dont know why the replacement screen (i think) is smaller, thus it's highly possible become misaligned
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've had 3 replacement screens, and the contrast on them have all been different?
A.R.I.S.E Z3C CM14.1 Phh.superuser Magisk Substratum
dnnz said:
I want a compact phone with long battery life and the only option seems to be the Z3 compact, on paper i love it, seems to be perfect, but what stops me from buying it are the build issues, seems the build quality on the z3c is crap, do people who had this phone for a long time WITHOUT issues exists?
Indoctrinate me, or not
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
consider the Iph*ne SE(Bad word on XDA ) or Xperia z5 compact(Both arent worth the price though).
It is impossible to get a good phone in a compact price point anymore. Even the latest X compact has a less powerful CPU. Its very sad how sony ditched us compact users in the dark. :crying:
dnnz said:
I want a compact phone with long battery life and the only option seems to be the Z3 compact, on paper i love it, seems to be perfect, but what stops me from buying it are the build issues, seems the build quality on the z3c is crap, do people who had this phone for a long time WITHOUT issues exists?
Indoctrinate me, or not
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have my Z3c now for 1 1/2 years and had no major problems. The battery isn't as good anymore as it was and the speakers got very silent because i put it under water often.
Never had a cracked or peeling off screen. Got two friends with the same phone, none of them had ever such a problem.
mfnk said:
I have my Z3c now for 1 1/2 years and had no major problems. The battery isn't as good anymore as it was and the speakers got very silent because i put it under water often.
Never had a cracked or peeling off screen. Got two friends with the same phone, none of them had ever such a problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow!!! Very rare...
Congratulations
Hahaha
A.R.I.S.E Z3C CM14.1 Phh.superuser Magisk Substratum
Robot76 said:
Wow!!! Very rare...
Congratulations
Hahaha
A.R.I.S.E Z3C CM14.1 Phh.superuser Magisk Substratum
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
True. I had an unresponsive notification tray area in less than 1 year. But they replaced the screen under warranty in less than a week
duke_dreadmoore said:
Touch screen top area not responding issue. Claimed warranty, they changed the screen, but now my screen placement is not well aligned, the right side have a big gap compared to left. Thus, phone looks ugly and not waterproof.
I dont know why the replacement screen (i think) is smaller, thus it's highly possible become misaligned
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
same here, but i must pay because the warranty is over
(hi! greet from AG )
Robot76 said:
I've had 3 replacement screens, and the contrast on them have all been different?
A.R.I.S.E Z3C CM14.1 Phh.superuser Magisk Substratum
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
whoaaa, does it need one more replacement?
i've already made second replacement, and the contrast is horrible. I wonder what kinds of replacement screens it is and regarding the screen why it's seems common issues with z3c. :crying:
5upers8 said:
same here, but i must pay because the warranty is over
(hi! greet from AG )
whoaaa, does it need one more replacement?
i've already made second replacement, and the contrast is horrible. I wonder what kinds of replacement screens it is and regarding the screen why it's seems common issues with z3c. :crying:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's the thing, why are the screens so different from each other???
[emoji12]
A.R.I.S.E Z3C CM14.1 Phh.superuser Magisk Substratum
If I had the chance to buy again this phone or the iPhone SE, I'd go for the iPhone. My camera died suddenly :/ I've sent my phone 3 times to the service. Next time I'm moving to the Sony XZ or get an iPhone
@Robot76 I have had the Xperia Z3c for a full year now,I haven't had any screen issues or anything like that,I broke the screen once because it fell on the floor,but had nothing like screen peeling off or top part of the screen not working and so on
The only issues I have had were software issues and just slowness in general,I have tried every stock based MM ROM to keep a good camera,but EVERY SINGLE ONE was so f*cking slow,it would crash when I would have music playing,Messenger and Snapchat opem in the same time.
I am currently on AOSP 7.1.1(planning to go to Carbon ROM very soon) and it has been so fast! The only problem I have is when my phone gets hot it doesn't want to charge,I have to let it rest turned off and then charge it.
I just want to ask,do you have similar behavior on CM14.1?

Phone worth buying at 300$ if ill receive it in feb 2020?

hey guys so my country does not have this sale (black fri) and i really like the phone... so a friend agreed to get one for me but he will come around feb next year
so according to you all is it a good purchase or shall i wait for anything else?
thanks in advance
Crusiefire said:
hey guys so my country does not have this sale (black fri) and i really like the phone... so a friend agreed to get one for me but he will come around feb next year
so according to you all is it a good purchase or shall i wait for anything else?
thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, this phone is a spec monster. Great deal for 300!
chpimentelpr said:
Yes, this phone is a spec monster. Great deal for 300!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thank you for replying
but will it be a good buy in 2020 as well?
Crusiefire said:
thank you for replying
but will it be a good buy in 2020 as well?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, there's no other phone at that price point with the specs included.
right before the black Friday when I went to Amazon for the 300$ deal, I saw that they are out of stock. expected delivery February 2020, so went to razer. com and found that they have in stock for the same 300$. so I ordered it right away, shipped on November 28th, coming tomorrow December 6th.
yesterday went back to their website and noticed price is 399$ now.
curious
Hey, akmsr
Let me know how you like it. Mine is coming the 9th. Curious how your experience will be.
Thanks!!
This device is a beast, it will be viable for a pretty long time IMO.
Eagle0527 said:
Hey, akmsr
Let me know how you like it. Mine is coming the 9th. Curious how your experience will be.
Thanks!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have been using it for couple of weeks now. I have OnePlus 6T which is exactly razer 2 (same spec except dual sim and 256 GB storage.)
Signal..... Razer 2 edges out by a tiny margin
User comfort..... 6T
Gaming..... Razer 2
Smoothness..... Razer 2 at 90hz
Sound loudness... Razer 2
Sound using Bluetooth headset , notifications, calls, keyboard experience..... Hands down 6T
Battery life..... Same even though Razer 2 has bigger battery (maybe 90hz)
6T has OLED display so more pleasing to the eye.
I have some apps that don't run properly on Razer 2. After you reboot sometimes it doesn't recognize keystrokes properly. Both phones fast charge with their respective charger. Only reason i got it because of price. Its essentially a 6T with microsd support and 120hz refresh rate for 300$. When you game with higher refresh rate, it shines. It's smaller screen than 6T and I kinda miss the bigger immersive vivid screen but it's okay.
I originally posted my review over at Android Central, but it's fitting here because I wrote it in the context of being a cheap phone and value for the price. Only in my case, I got it for $250 from Best Buy. Long story short, definitely worth it at $300.
------------------------------------------------------------------
After using the Razer Phone 2 for about two weeks now on Verizon, overall I'm happy. I'm actually keeping signal now in places I thought were just dead zones when I was using an LG V20. While that's a major benefit, the V20 has also spoiled me. It's my benchmark when comparing phones because nothing has ticked all the boxes like it did (not even the successors, V30-50).
First the good stuff:
Reception and faster mobile data speeds
VoLTE and HD calling (at least on Verizon)
Flat LCD screen
SD card slot
Loud front facing stereo speakers
Telephoto camera lens
Rear Razer logo lights up with cool effects
Decent battery life
Nova Prime launcher included as OEM stock
Customizable performance options
The bad stuff:
No secondary display or quick slide functions
Speakers are a little muffled (due to water resistance)
Non-removable battery
Glass back
Wireless charging quirks
Power and volume button placement hit and miss
User interface a bit clunky
No headphone jack (USB dongle included)
Camera performance laughable at times
Auto-brightness reacts too quickly
I'm not going to expand on every single point, but there are a number deserving a greater explanation.
In the pros section, the logo lighting up isn't just a static color. It's a multi-LED logo that can cycle through colors, flash as a notification light, simply fade in and out, and a "wave" feature that has the colors shift across the logo. It's not extremely bright and I leave it off most of the time except for notifications. I read it can eat 3%/hr of your battery, so no point leaving it on when I'm mostly alone. If using in public, I'll turn it on to show off. Lol. The performance options allow you to adjust the processor speed, resolution, and maximum frame rates either across the board or on a per app basis. For example, I'll run Shadowgun Legends full tilt, but some of my more relaxing games I run at the lowest settings because they only run low graphics anyway and it saves battery with no performance loss on them.
On the down sides, this phone leaves a lot to be desired. By giving up the secondary display and quick slide functions when I left the V20, a number of actions now take longer. What use to be available from any screen as a single tap or two now requires exiting to the home screen and going to whatever function I wanted. If you've never had that kind of quick actions before, then you're not losing anything going to the RP2. If you have used those features before, you know my pain.
The phone does have wireless charging, but is not fully up to the Qi standard. The reason why is because the charging coil sits lower than standard, making it hard to align on Qi pads. On stand up charging stands, it may be impossible to charge wirelessly. Instead, Razer sells their own Qi charger stand for the phone that does work correctly. It has lighting effects that can sync with the phone, but is also pricey at US$100. I've never bothered to jump on the wireless charging bandwagon, so this isn't a big deal for me. If you want to wireless charge, good luck unless you buy their charger.
The power and volume buttons are on both sides in the middle of the frame. The case I have for it makes the volume buttons hard to push, which can result in also pressing the power button if your fingers or thumb are not spaced right. The fingerprint sensor in the power button is slow to register, making it easy to get "finger moved too fast" errors. It also only activates the reader with the screen on. I think overall I preferred the power button on the back and the FPS to activate even with the screen off. On the RP2 you either put more wear on the power button, or you can turn on the double tap to wake option to turn on the screen and FPS without pressing the power button.
The user interface is also somewhat odd at times. On every other phone I've used, pressing the volume buttons with no audio paying would adjust the ringer volume. Not so on the RP2. The volume buttons only work media volume. To adjust the ringer, or other volume settings, you have to press a volume button, then the settings button on the pop-up (which is located opposite of the buttons, completely non-intuitive). There's is at least a silence toggle on the pop-up. The navigation bar use two buttons + gestures. I think gestures can be great, but the back button is on the far left and hard to reach with my right thumb. Again, I'm missing V20 features, where I had 5 navigation buttons that were able to be arranged in a way I liked. If I could at least have one more on this phone, it would be one to drop the notification shade from any screen for better one handed use. Nova does have a swipe down gesture for this, but that only works on the home screen.
So about this laughable camera. Well everyone is slamming the app for being buggy, having limited controls, and mediocre photos. It's a gaming phone, so some tradeoffs are to be expected. Thankfully I haven't encountered any bugs (I took a system update right after setup that was supposed to address those camera bugs). What made me honestly laugh when I checked some samples is how bad HDR photos are compared to normal photos. HDR is supposed to give greater details and lower noise. Check the two sample photos and you'll see the exact opposite. The non-HDR photo on the left looks better in almost every respect.
The Gcam app has been ported over to the RP2, but I haven't looked into using it. From what I've read, those using it are saying it's worlds better than the stock app. I'd personally rather use a more manually focused (no pun intended) camera app, but it seems the api is firmware limited. When using an app with manual controls, I'm only able to get 1/4" exposure at most. I'm use to 30" maximum exposures.
With all that said, what's it like in everyday use? Mostly good. It's a gaming phone, and as such, plays games very well. Running in full performance mode, nothing has made it so much as hiccup. The screen has a 120Hz refresh rate to really run things buttery smooth, but I've kept things mostly to 90Hz. I don't really see enough difference between the two, so not worth the extra battery hit. The developer options allow showing the current frame rate on screen, and most of the games I play don't make much difference. On one hand, Shadowgun Legends looks phenomenal, but is app locked to 60fps. Actual game play on ultimate graphics hovers around the mid 40's, but still runs smooth. I'll take that over Unkilled, which is a 120Hz rated game from the same developer but doesn't look near as good.
Everything else is nothing special, with the camera app being the lone downfall so far. Being a hobby photographer, that was a huge tradeoff for me, and even average users will dislike it. So with all those downsides and quirks, why do I say it's worth it? Price. I picked the phone up during a Black Friday sale at Best Buy for $250. I basically stole it at that price, and makes those tradeoffs worth it without question. If it were still full, or even half price, that would be another story. It's currently $330 at Best Buy with activation today, but otherwise $380 through them, or $400 direct from Razer. Those prices still aren't too horrible, but anything above $350 would start tipping the scales on the value judgement for me.
Also, an honorable mention for the Dolby Atmos demo video. You can view it on YouTube here, but it's included in the Atmos app on the RP2. I never thought virtual surround sound could be that good, at least not from standard two speakers. Wow!
https://youtu.be/3VZFpwlXKpg

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