Database Develop

Thinking of getting this phone, have a few questions before I do..

1. How often do OP update their phones, do the older model get ignored compared to the new ones ?
2. How easy is it to unlock/flash new roms on this phone, since this will be my primary focus ?
3. How bad is touchscreen latency and camera performance with latest update ?
4. Should I be worried about bad after-sales here in UK ?
Please feel free to mention any other points about this phone that might help me in making my decision.
Cheers

_ray_ said:
1. How often do OP update their phones, do the older model get ignored compared to the new ones ?
2. How easy is it to unlock/flash new roms on this phone, since this will be my primary focus ?
3. How bad is touchscreen latency and camera performance with latest update ?
4. Should I be worried about bad after-sales here in UK ?
Please feel free to mention any other points about this phone that might help me in making my decision.
Cheers
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Click to collapse
1. i had an OPO and i guess it not supported anymore, but i installed a custom ROM the first day i got it and custom ROM support is amazing, there is still a big community. Guess there wont be many other devices being better off.
2. couldnt be easier. All u need to do is just follow the instruction given for the ROM. Support in this forum is also given.
3. For me the latency is the same as it feels with my gf's pixel phone. Camera i cant say much cuz the only fotos i do is about documents and writings. But these are super easy to read. I have no idea thogh how beautiful pictures will get.
4. what do u mean? there wont be any sales on the phone

I came from the D855 (G3) was a huge step i was going to wait for SD835 smartphone but my phone died, so i wanted something super fast, and unlocked, when i mean unlocked is a company that gives you acess to the hardware this is bootloader unlock, as many companys do NOT, the phone is tremendous fast, fingerprinting in 0.2sec it opens before you blink, the screen looks way better than my G3 which was the first 2k screen, its vivid and bright, dash charging is awesome it charge your phone way to fast xD, its the first phone that i dont need to let it in charger over night, 3.4A battery is more than enought, 8h+ of SOT? i had at must 1.5 to 2h of sot on my D855, huge huge difference, for the moment this is by a large margin the best device you can buy, as for the cameras or any other features i dont care, they do the work just fine, i have a mirrorless camera for photography so i dont care about the camera, its still packs a 16MP on front camera which get you a very sharp face if you are a selfie person, anyother i just got this phone by its hardware, super fast and cheap for a flagship? i spent 439 + karbon case this phone worth every penny, so go for it it feels very nice in the hand, and the metal its of nice quality! it even comes with a screen protector by default thats a nice touch from them! oneplus is a great company you wont Regret it!

1. How often do OP update their phones, do the older model get ignored compared to the new ones ?
OnePlus does a decent job but don't expect Nexus-grade updates. You'll mostly be relying on the XDA community.
2. How easy is it to unlock/flash new roms on this phone, since this will be my primary focus ?
Very Easy. Unlock bootloader from bootloader menu, flash twrp via fastboot, flash a custom rom and that's it.
3. How bad is touchscreen latency and camera performance with latest update ?
Touchscreen latency was never THAT bad unless you're a pretentious user. You shouldn't worry this because most custom kernels improve it, and at some point it will be fixed completely by OnePlus. Camera is decent, the sensor is the same as the one in V20. It's the processing that sucks compared to other phones, so don't expect much.
4. Should I be worried about bad after-sales here in UK ?
Not sure what you mean. But i'm certain you will be satisfied of the phone for the price paid.

xhitm3n said:
I came from the D855 (G3) was a huge step i was going to wait for SD835 smartphone but my phone died, so i wanted something super fast, and unlocked, when i mean unlocked is a company that gives you acess to the hardware this is bootloader unlock, as many companys do NOT, the phone is tremendous fast, fingerprinting in 0.2sec it opens before you blink, the screen looks way better than my G3 which was the first 2k screen, its vivid and bright, dash charging is awesome it charge your phone way to fast xD, its the first phone that i dont need to let it in charger over night, 3.4A battery is more than enought, 8h+ of SOT? i had at must 1.5 to 2h of sot on my D855, huge huge difference, for the moment this is by a large margin the best device you can buy, as for the cameras or any other features i dont care, they do the work just fine, i have a mirrorless camera for photography so i dont care about the camera, its still packs a 16MP on front camera which get you a very sharp face if you are a selfie person, anyother i just got this phone by its hardware, super fast and cheap for a flagship? i spent 439 + karbon case this phone worth every penny, so go for it it feels very nice in the hand, and the metal its of nice quality! it even comes with a screen protector by default thats a nice touch from them! oneplus is a great company you wont Regret it!
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Click to collapse
I was on exactly same situation last week. [emoji2]

_ray_ said:
1. How often do OP update their phones, do the older model get ignored compared to the new ones ?
2. How easy is it to unlock/flash new roms on this phone, since this will be my primary focus ?
3. How bad is touchscreen latency and camera performance with latest update ?
4. Should I be worried about bad after-sales here in UK ?
Please feel free to mention any other points about this phone that might help me in making my decision.
Cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HI,
Note: I had the op3 and now i am using the op3t from dec.
1. Updates on the op are fairly quick, as of now we have an open beta for 7.1.1 with march security patch. We will be getting the full update sometime in this month.
2.This is where the op devices shine the most.The op community is great,you will get the community app installed on the device. you can find all required the guides for unlocking,roms and troubleshooting there.The op3t has support for all the popular custom roms so you can get the updates asap.
3.The touch latency issue is still there but it is not that bad.The camera is not bad at all.Its a great camera for the price and takes great pics in good light conditions but the low light photos are not that great.If you are a serious camera buff you might be disappointed.
4.After sales is bad here in India. Its handled by a company called servify. Had the op3 and i broke it in 3 weeks of purchase. I had got their one year "accidental damage protection" thingy so i went to the service center fairly optimistic . After looking at the phone they said "the back of your is damaged and we do not cover cosmetic parts under our insurance, we will fix the screen for free". I was angry but agreed to get it fixed any way. After that they say if you want to go through our insurance you have to open a claim via the op app,we cannot do it here. I returned home did what they said and after two days i got a call from some shady insurance company refusing my claim saying there is something wrong with my paperwork.Even after doing all the things they said they still refused it. But I loved my phone so tried to get it repaired any way. Here op3 costs 28k. After making a claim they told me i have to pay 12k for the screen,10k for the back and 1k for repair . Thats 23k,roughly 83% of what i paid for the phone in the first place.

Alek123 said:
1. How often do OP update their phones, do the older model get ignored compared to the new ones ?
OnePlus does a decent job but don't expect Nexus-grade updates. You'll mostly be relying on the XDA community.
2. How easy is it to unlock/flash new roms on this phone, since this will be my primary focus ?
Very Easy. Unlock bootloader from bootloader menu, flash twrp via fastboot, flash a custom rom and that's it.
3. How bad is touchscreen latency and camera performance with latest update ?
Touchscreen latency was never THAT bad unless you're a pretentious user. You shouldn't worry this because most custom kernels improve it, and at some point it will be fixed completely by OnePlus. Camera is decent, the sensor is the same as the one in V20. It's the processing that sucks compared to other phones, so don't expect much.
4. Should I be worried about bad after-sales here in UK ?
Not sure what you mean. But i'm certain you will be satisfied of the phone for the price paid.
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Click to collapse
I was having same issue last week but now OK.

Thanks for the replies everyone.
One thing i am quite worried about is that like most companies the older models of OP have been not getting any updates from OP at all, e.g Android 7.0. Also custom ROM development on older models seems to be very slow and most major Dev have moved on to newer models unlike older Nexus which is still supported after all those years. I know I can get Nougat support via custom ROMs but support for old devices is one of the main things I am looking for, since I am planning to keep my phone for at least 2 years.
I think i am going to hold on to my G3 for a bit longer and see what other options are available later on during this year.

_ray_ said:
Thanks for the replies everyone.
One thing i am quite worried about is that like most companies the older models of OP have been not getting any updates from OP at all, e.g Android 7.0. Also custom ROM development on older models seems to be very slow and most major Dev have moved on to newer models unlike older Nexus which is still supported after all those years. I know I can get Nougat support via custom ROMs but support for old devices is one of the main things I am looking for, since I am planning to keep my phone for at least 2 years.
I think i am going to hold on to my G3 for a bit longer and see what other options are available later on during this year.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Edit: just look at the first OnePlus model and the 7.1.1 roms and kernels that are available and beeing actively supported, this is a 3 year old phone.
If you`re always looking for the next big thing or latest technology you can never ever buy a phone again. There will always be new devices that will be released throughout the year I ordered mine (coming from a iPhone 7 Plus) because i think and according to the reviews its a solid phone for a descent price.

Quality Upgrade?

I've had this Nexus 6 since it first came out and now it's giving me signs of stutter (especially with the camera app or snapchat), the battery also seems to be wearing out, barely lasts me half a day and I constantly have to charge it. I want to upgrade this device to something much better, but I would like to point out that I am on Verizon so CDMA devices only, (I wanted to get the OnePlus 3T).
So instead I started contemplating on upgrading to the S8+ especially with that $100 off deal at best buy, not really interested in the Pixel XL though or iphone lineup (had an iphone for 4 years, its boring). I had a Galaxy S5 before for about a month or so and it had a defect in the camera so I got a refund on that and got a Nexus 6 instead and now here I am 2 years later. Would definitely love to give Samsung devices another try. Anyways, what do you guys think? Which device should I upgrade to or any suggestions?

Change your carrier. If you have Verizon, your options are pretty much what is available from Verizon, and all of them are going to have a locked bootloader, even the Pixel/Pixel XL. Switching to a GSM carrier like T-Mobile will allow you to get the device you truly want.
And, before you say "but I like Verizon", Verizon uses CDMA, and CDMA is a living fossil that doesn't know that it's supposed to be extinct.

Strephon Alkhalikoi said:
Change your carrier. If you have Verizon, your options are pretty much what is available from Verizon, and all of them are going to have a locked bootloader, even the Pixel/Pixel XL. Switching to a GSM carrier like T-Mobile will allow you to get the device you truly want.
And, before you say "but I like Verizon", Verizon uses CDMA, and CDMA is a living fossil that doesn't know that it's supposed to be extinct.
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I see where you're coming from but switching to T-MOBILE is not an option, where I work and live I used to get little to no reception with them, from there I switched to At&t and the service was even worse, they're also very bad in customer support whenever I had problems.
Hence me having to stick with Verizon.

Then your only real option is to head to Lenovorola's website and purchase an unlocked CDMA device from them. It's the only way to preserve your ability to modify the device, since it should not have a locked bootloader. Samsung isn't an option as they lock bootloaders on all US devices now, plus there's Touchwiz to consider. Most of the other manufacturers focus on GSM because of its worldwide reach.

Have you done a factory reset recently? That may improve both lag and battery. Also, someone mentioned that the April update improves lag.

Strephon Alkhalikoi said:
Then your only real option is to head to Lenovorola's website and purchase an unlocked CDMA device from them. It's the only way to preserve your ability to modify the device, since it should not have a locked bootloader. Samsung isn't an option as they lock bootloaders on all US devices now, plus there's Touchwiz to consider. Most of the other manufacturers focus on GSM because of its worldwide reach.
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To be honest, I don't care much for modifying my device anymore, I use it as is for calls, texts, web browsing etc. Maybe the occasional file transfer between my PC and that might be all. And regarding TouchWiz, that is true, but I'm hoping there will be some sort of pixel launcher available to flash for S8+ in the near future or can get something off of the play store.
runekock said:
Have you done a factory reset recently? That may improve both lag and battery. Also, someone mentioned that the April update improves lag.
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Click to collapse
Right now I'm on Pure Nexus ROM and the functionality is great, the stutter is only evident when I multitask heavily which leads to fast battery drain as well as taking pictures. Can't tell you the number of times I missed those one in a million moments because the camera app took too long to load or take the picture.
Also I've done many clean installs, these sort of problems seem to stick.

Changing the launcher only hides Touchwiz. It doesn't stop the resource drain that has plagued Touchwiz since its inception. Hell, I could drop a copy of Nova Launcher on my roommate's unmodified SIII and hide most of the ugliness of Touchwiz, but I still would have to face the issue that Touchwiz is a resource hog.
If you're not here to mod your device then why are you here? After all, it's called XDA Developers for a reason.

Okay, that sure sounds like you need more ram. And considering that 64-bit is less ram-efficient, 4 GB may not be a noticeable improvement. If you can't get 6 GB, then (oh how I hate saying this) you may want to turn to Apple - they are rumoured to have better memory management.

Strephon Alkhalikoi said:
If you're not here to mod your device then why are you here? After all, it's called XDA Developers for a reason.
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haha you got me there, i myself am a programmer in C++ and C#, but aside that maybe I made an overstatement in not caring about modding. I'm still going to get root and have certain mods and tweaks like YouTube Ad Blockers and LSpeed for init.d changes, but I won't be as avid on it as I used to be.
I decided I'm going to get the S8+ and await root for it.

Since my phone has a corporate partition on it root is not an option for me... so I am waiting for Pixel 2. If I had to have a phone now it would be a Pixel. Touchwiz was so janky (and barely updated) on the last Samsung that I had I will not be going that route again.

aroy97 said:
To be honest, I don't care much for modifying my device anymore, I use it as is for calls, texts, web browsing etc. Maybe the occasional file transfer between my PC and that might be all. And regarding TouchWiz, that is true, but I'm hoping there will be some sort of pixel launcher available to flash for S8+ in the near future or can get something off of the play store.
Right now I'm on Pure Nexus ROM and the functionality is great, the stutter is only evident when I multitask heavily which leads to fast battery drain as well as taking pictures. Can't tell you the number of times I missed those one in a million moments because the camera app took too long to load or take the picture.
Also I've done many clean installs, these sort of problems seem to stick.
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If you're OK with not modifying and/or not rooting the best phone VZW has, and I'm in the same spot you are - except I need to root and modify, is the Droid Z Force. It's an awesome phone - or hold out and pray the Asus Zenfone AR comes to VZW and is affordable

I know it only works on tmo or ATT, but I sold my Pixel, and got this phone, and no doubt, its the best android device I have ever seen or tried..
no real dev for it, but I couldnt care less, since its incredible just stock; plus I still have my shamu if I want to play around, but frankly havent flashed anything in weeks, I like this phone so much..
http://consumer.huawei.com/en/mobile-phones/mate9pro/index.htm

Should I purchase a Galaxy S8?

Hi all,
I have searched to no avail, hopefully this is OK to ask and is the right place to ask it?
I have resigned myself to purchasing a new phone as it appears that my knowledge and expectations are lacking and not correct. Therefore I am looking at the or at least the most popular phone(s) that are supported with custom ROM's as I really want to be left alone and not have a $399 Leather Ikea Sofa follow me around 24/7.
What I would like to know is the following:
1. Does this phone have custom Rom support? Or is it popular enough for this type of support or customization.
2. I basically dislike all the carriers due to them shoving their bloatware, privacy invasion down my throat. I would happily pay for apps that work without tracking me and couches following me around.
3. I have Tmobile, intend on getting the phone through Tmobile, are there reasonably easy ways to Unbloat the phone, have admin rights on the phone, deal with privacy issues, and most importantly get updates all simultaneously? I know that once you Root any Android phone the God Carriers will no longer allow ANY updates to work. Additionally, my experience with Kingroot just switched devils.... I was able to deal with my phone and bloatware however traded for the same ads and bloatware with Kingroot. Maybe its changed, it has been a year since I attempted my last Root. Like I stated,, I would gladly pay for apps that are ad and bloatware free and keeping my privacy....
4. Are there better phones?
Your thoughts, ideas and links would be greatly appreciated. I dont mind a little work getting updates, I dont mind slow updates, or even using the Generic Samsung Android Version, I dont need all the apps in the world, I would prefer reasonable privacy more than anything.
Thanks in advance.

The Galaxy S8 isn't the best device for doing custom ROMs on. You need a device that is open without restrictions, the one that already good has root options and so on. I am not saying there aren't any ROMs for it... You can wait to see if Pixel 2 will be any good. I would suggest you to check out a flagship phones(if you want) and make a list of which ones you like and then search on XDA and check out the ROM section for each phone.

Any suggestions.... Im not to picky... I guess I should ask what is the most popular at this time and why???

Ratfink11 said:
Any suggestions.... Im not to picky... I guess I should ask what is the most popular at this time and why???
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One Plus 5 is a great phone if you like flashing stuff. It doesn't have wireless charging, the display is a 1080P AMOLED, no mechanical image stabilization, and no official waterproofing. Other then that its great.

well, after the S6 ( i believed) samsung tighten up security on their phones, especially for a new phone like the S8. So customize ROM ( AOSP) is pretty much out the door for the S8( at the time of this comment). Well, if you really want S8, go with the Exynos version, since there is some ROMs available. And if you dont like S8, then maybe take a look, and some research at the LG G6, it's solid phone. Great build, good looking, and from a well-known company.

Get the Note 8 when it comes out soon. Don't get US Snapdragon S8 due to UFS 2.0 storage; US Snapdragon S8+ is UFS 2.1 (something like 300MB/s faster read when comparing). Don't expect to root anytime soon unless you get an international Exynos S8/S8+. I am happy with US Snapdragon S8+ but I kinda wish I waited for Note 8. I plan to root my phone as soon as a root method is published. Oh well, I'll just get the Note 9 next Fall.

zone23 said:
One Plus 5 is a great phone if you like flashing stuff. It doesn't have wireless charging, the display is a 1080P AMOLED, no mechanical image stabilization, and no official waterproofing. Other then that its great.
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Agree. OR Xiaomi Mi6 isn't bad choice also.

Buying a G4? Yes or NO?

​First off, yes, I know both are old phones, and probably not the best choice for 2017/2018 use, but I like them anyways, don't judge.
Right now, I have an LG G2(from 2013), I would like to replace it with a G4. I have heard about rampant bootloops from the G4 via Reddit, and to some extent, this forum.
Reddit will have you believe that all G4's will eventually bootloop, no people should ever buy them, they are terrible, get a V20, things like that. Is it true or is the issue just blown out of proportion?
So basically, is it safe to buy a G4?

It's a decent phone but you can do better nowadays. It's my daily phone and it bootlooped and was replaced by LG a year ago.

betatest3 said:
​First off, yes, I know both are old phones, and probably not the best choice for 2017/2018 use, but I like them anyways, don't judge.
Right now, I have an LG G2(from 2013), I would like to replace it with a G4. I have heard about rampant bootloops from the G4 via Reddit, and to some extent, this forum.
Reddit will have you believe that all G4's will eventually bootloop, no people should ever buy them, they are terrible, get a V20, things like that. Is it true or is the issue just blown out of proportion?
So basically, is it safe to buy a G4?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
its unknown if it will bootloop or not.. seems that after 510 batches are better and chances are very very low. last phone i heard it bootlooped was a 603 but like 2-3 reports unlike the old one.. i myself have a 601 wich i flash weekly or every 3-4 days.
so id say if you get a 601 or onwards go ahead. nice camera we have nougat . its night and day difference then MM.

Joe USer said:
It's a decent phone but you can do better nowadays. It's my daily phone and it bootlooped and was replaced by LG a year ago.
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Well, I know I can do better nowadays, it is just that I am not a fan of the changes that have been done to modern phones.
Like the LG UX from G5 onwards, the volume/power buttons placement, 18:9 aspect ratio, headphone jacks being removed, etc...
Thats why I have kept my G2 for so long, but it is starting to overheat, battery is craptastic, and it is in general not able to handle modern functions like WiFi calling, VoLTE, LTE Band 12, Qi charge, among others.
If LG had kept the same button layout, kept the removable battery from the G4(I know G2 doesn't have it, but I expect any upgrade to have it), kept LG UX 4.0(maybe it could use some fixes and refinement, but it is better than the crap they have now), and kept the standard 16:9 screen ratio, I would be perfectly happy to use a V30 or a G6.

Ok, seeing as the bootloop issue is not as bad as it seems from Reddit, I have decided, I will probably get a V10.
Thanks everyone!

betatest3 said:
Ok, seeing as the bootloop issue is not as bad as it seems from Reddit, I have decided, I will probably get a V10.
Thanks everyone!
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No problem
Get 6 series g4
v10 bootloops as well

Nexus 6 to G5S plus, thoughts?

Hi all, ready to move on from my Nexus 6. Would love some pro's/con's from this community on how happy I'd be to make this switch. I've ready G5S plus give great bang for buck and has a good modding community which is a must have for me.
Any thoughts on making the G5S + my primary phone??

All I can say is I love mine and I came from a Nexus 4.

You calling it "moving on" rather than an upgrade is pretty accurate. It's an upgrade overall, but not as much as you might think for a 3-year newer model. You need to realize that the Nexus 6 was a $700 phone (when first released) and the G5S Plus is a $300 phone. The improvements with the G5S Plus is that it's 64-bit hardware, even though the stock ROM is 32-bit and most people highly suspect the Oreo update (if it ever comes) will also be 32-bit. Because it's not a Nexus, the G5S Plus has a microSD slot so you have the potential to have a lot more storage, but the camera hardware is not great (despite the fancy dual lens). The camera works out if flash a 3rd-party 64-bit ROM and use the Google Camera, but I can't do that (see below). On the US model there is no NFC, so no AndroidPay (I didn't care, but some might).
My personal experience with unlocking/rooting/ROMing the two phones has been very different when I thought it would be far more similar (since they're both Motorola). The best way to describe the process with the G5S Plus is kludgy, and it's not all that easy to go back to stock since there are no official, signed stock images for the G5S Plus. Stock updates (even security updates) are few and far between. This just isn't a Nexus. The Nexus 6 had a lot more 3rd-party development options and support, and the G5S Plus has now been out long enough that what you see here now is probably all we're going to get. I haven't had much luck with the existing 3rd-party ROMs working well with my carrier (Sprint). The ROM features seem to mostly work fine, but the carrier settings don't work at all on Sprint, and when I try to change them I completely lose my mobile signal and don't get it back until I reset network settings. This makes it highly questionable how successful I'll be with these 3rd-party ROMs when roaming, even just locally in the USA. I have no faith in these ROMs working when roaming internationally. The reason why I'm encountering the same problem with all of these 3rd-party ROMs is I'm pretty sure all of them are using the same base from the same developer. So if you're like me and have a problem with any of these ROMs, you'll likely have the same problem with all of them.
Overall? I wish I'd gotten the Pixel 2 XL. But although I can afford to pay $1000 for a phone, I'm not going to because that's just ridiculous. I've looked around...thoroughly. There just isn't really anything out there any better featured that doesn't at least cost $700, so I'm still using the G5S Plus. I may be a little more limited than you because I'm Sprint (CDMA) whereas people on GSM networks might have more options. I've had to go back to stock rooted 7.1.1, which isn't horrible but not really ideal (and not what I'm used to with the Nexus 6). But I can't successfully get the G5S Plus back to stock unrooted to even take security updates, so I'm on the October security patch. When the stock Oreo update is released, I don't see me being able to take that either. I'm hoping that development community here will put out a flashable stock Oreo ROM then, but then I'll still be in the same boat with OTA Oreo security patches. This is a very capable phone with some nice features, but if you liked being a flashaholic on the Nexus 6, I wouldn't necessarily expect the same experience on the G5S Plus.
FYI, I'm not a developer, but far from being a noob. I've been rooting/ROMing/modifying Android devices (HTC, Samsung, Motorola) since the Froyo days. I would have to rank this phone as the most difficult Android device I've owned to do all that.

I can tell a slightly more upbeat story.
Migrated from a Nexus 6P which I loved dearly, but after spending a small fortune on battery replacements realised it was time to call it a day.
I am very pleased with the Moto. Honestly? I see very little functional difference between this and the 6P in my use case. The screen is slightly smaller. From a Nexus 6 it would be more noticeable I suspect. I recovered the real estate by turning off the nav bar and using fingerprint swipe gestures (which are nice once you get used to them). It is fast and fluid in use and I genuinely don't see anything different in use from the 6P from the end user's perspective. I use my phone mainly for work and the intertubes so not fussed about the camera. When I point it at things what ends up on the phone looks vaguely like what I pointed the phone at. That fulfils my criteria although I have recently started tinkering with some of the hacked GCam apps from the Pixel just for the "because I can" factor.
Internetpilot is right, the development scene is a fraction of what you'd see on a Nexus or Pixel. However, as a long standing flashaholic from the very early days of Android (HTC Magic anyone?) I found myself more than happy with rooted stock for a long time. Moto's stock rom is bloat free and works extremely well. I did try a couple of custom roms early on and found them not as smooth or stable as the stock one, so reverted and ran stock for about six months until very recently.
Internetpilot is right in that it is very difficult to get the thing back to a stock state once you start tinkering. I was in a similar boat whidh meant I couldn't accept OTAs. This was what finally prompted me to try the custom ROM scene again. It has improved in leaps and bounds since last year. Currently running Pixel Experience Oreo and it is rock solid. It's been a keeper for me. But it is worth bearing in mind that if you root then you will be on your own and probably end up forced down the custom ROM boat as I have. It would be a lot easier if Moto had flashable stock images, but it's not a show stopper if your plan was basically to go custom from the get go.
I can't agree with Internetpilot hat it's any major difficulty to unlock, root and flash. You go to Moto's website, you get an unlock code, you unlock your bootloader, you flash TWRP and away you go. Not significantly different from the process I've done on most phones I've had since the HTC Magic days. I've had Sonys that were more grief than this.
I can't speak for any of this CDMA stuff as I am not transatlantically challenged . I've had no problems with my own network provider (Vodafone UK) or roaming on any rom. But if you're stateside clearly that's something you'd need to consider. It's worth also noting that most of the community are in developing countries eg India where this phone has quite a bit of a foothold.
But generally this is a lot of phone for the money. It's a good time for the low-mid range Android phone market. I chose this phone because I didn't want to pay stupid money for a top end device and I really didn't like the 18:9 form factor. The Moto is generally the same form factor as my beloved 6P and the price is right. Now if you have a bit more to spend, the Oneplus 5T looks interesting and perhaps might have a more Nexus-like community. Other options in the Moto's price range include the Honor 7X which I might well have bought instead if it'd been available when I bought the Moto. I am also intrigued by some of the Xiaomi devices. But the tl;dr version? The Moto is highly commended. Would buy again.

Wow, thank you both for your elaborate remarks, really helpful and exactly what I was looking for. So yes I've been rotting for awhile as well (since HTC Eris) and have had some pleasant and less than pleasant experiences. Some earlier Moto droids were obv torture to get unlocked, while the Nexus 6 was certainly quite the opposite.
I'm disappointed to hear dev is so sparse, as the usual spots (Android Police, Auth, 9to5Google, etc) all said this was the best phone to look at for modding after Pixel 2 & OnePlus given it's ease of unlock and robust community. Honestly I find such great value in the ability to unlock, root etc that I do plan on doing so right away and it heavily influences my purchase decision. I suppose if I wanted just one locked in phone experience I would just go to an IPhone, but I want to be able to customize.
From a hardware perspective, I appreciate both viewpoints. Yes don't like the thought of losing screen real estate but not sure what the alternative is as other options I've looked at are 18:9. Played with the 2 XL today and was shocked at the lack of screen space in landscape. Web browsing already is limited given ads in landscape and it seems even worse in the 18:9 ratio. As to software, Internetpilot certainly makes me wary as I'm on VZW, another CDMA. Personally I've generally had a good experience with my network relative to friends of mine on Sprint, but persisting network issues concern me as I also want a smooth experience when on a different rom.
As to the financial point, agreed on both sides. Certainly bang for the buck kind of phone. There are better out there but I too can't stomach the thought of dropping a grand on these, just seems a bridge too far given where the prices were just a few years ago. But at the same time I really don't want to have a phone that is nothing but hassle and constant re-flashes. I'd like to find a rom that is stable, supported and simply support it and continue on.
Well, I thank you both for the time and opinions, really helpful to be sure. Internetpilot I'll certainly dig for other posts with similar concerns but if you care to share some you've come across I'll def have a look.
Thanks again to the both of you.

To clarify a bit -- the phone is no more difficult to unlock, root, and ROM than the Nexus 6. However, the reason I gave it my "most difficult" award (haha) out of all the phones I've owned, is that gaining root on a device that isn't very well supported in the 3rd-party development arena doesn't really do you much good if you can't unroot just as easily. I can't get SuperSU working on this device, so I had to resort to Magisk (which is new to me -- I've always used SuperSU) and when I perform the unroot option via the Magisk Manager app, I end up with a "bad key" error on the bootloader screen and the ROM won't boot. The same thing happens if you try to restore all the original stock partitions via TWRP. Restoring any one of the boot, recovery, and one other partition that I can't remember results in the same "bad key" error. It's gotten to the point that even though I want to get it back to stock unrooted so I can grab the latest OTA security update (and eventually get the stock Oreo update when it's released), I really hate to mess with it. It's not because I think I'm going to brick it -- it's just I know I'll end up spending hours without a phone while trying to get passed that stupid "bad key" error, and then when I finally do that, my data partition will re-encrypt so I'll lose everything and have to set the phone up all over again. Since I'm trying to get it back to stock unrooted, I can't just easily restore my apps/data with Titanium Backup (because I don't have root), so everything is either gone or all messed up, so it's a huge pain in the posterior. Both versions of TWRP we have available for this phone don't reliably backup/restore the data partition either, so you can't rely on TWRP to backup everything if you want to mess around with flashing other ROMs, etc. That's what I mean by most difficult out of all the devices I've owned. When a new ROM is released, you really have to think twice before just backing everything up and flashing it to try it. You just might end up without a working phone for 3 or 4 hours before you get everything restored back to a working state.
I don't think you'll have a problem with Verizon. I know several people who are running 3rd-party Oreo ROMs on this phone on Verizon and they don't have the same issues I do with the carrier settings blowing everything up. It just seems to be Sprint. And to clarify my problems on Sprint, the stock rooted (and unrooted) ROM works flawlessly on Sprint. I can change the carrier settings, update my PRL, even use the "secret" dial codes to change APN settings, etc. But I can't do any of that on any of these 3rd-party Oreo ROMs. The carrier settings default to Global (which strangely works on Sprint's CDMA network), but I can't change Preferred Network Type to "LTE", can't turn on data roaming, can't change the CDMA roaming mode, and can't update the PRL or device config. Like Loccy said, all of the development on this phone is from India where the phone is very popular, so they probably don't know anything about Sprint. But even with these ROMs working fine on Verizon, how long will they be updated/supported? The Moto G6/G6 Plus is likely going to be released during the Summer, and that will probably fizzle the minimal development that the G5S/G5S Plus currently has. I think Moto is going to likely support this phone longer than the 3rd-party development community will.

Yeah, those are all great points. I agree with the heart of your contention in that I absolutely love tinkering with my phone, trying new ROMs, seeing what sort of added and better features I can apply to my device, making it mine instead of having some company tell me what to do with my device. But conversely I absolutely dread those lost days when something doesn't go right and you spend days and weeks scouring the forums and doing research just to get your phone to what you deem to be an operable state. Certainly that can be part of the fun of owning a device like this but with multiple kids, job, and other life stuff getting in the way and not being an engineer by trade or anything technology related it does become a bit of a hindrance at times. I suppose I just want my cake and to eat it too, but that's not the landscape that Android lives in right now.
I also take your point that this is a mid range device that has Hardware limitations and a development community that will only support it for so long. I'd like to make a choice that has a little more longevity built into it like the 4+ years I got out of my Nexus 6.
I think I may actually go for a verizon pixel to xl give it all these conversations, can get one on payment for less than 500 out the door. While I absolutely recognize that I will probably greatly miss having total control over my device, I really like the Android software landscape and it still offers a much richer customization experience than does an iPhone.
Look, really appreciate all your feedback and thoughts. Will let you know some months down the road if the decision was a good one. Cheers.