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Lets talk about Android

I have been having numerous arguments with people regarding Android vs the rest.
We all know that Android is an operating system, that is used by many phone manufacturers - therefore it CANNOT be compared to iPhone directly and vise versa!
Same thing is about Windows OS.
What I am trying to say is that Android equipment manufacturers have to step up the game. I believe that making a new phone every other month is a BIG NO NO. Especially when the phone is not well tested.
As an example, I own myTouch 4G. First one had a washed out screen and not working Genius button. Second one had a spic of dust under the screen, but lucky for me - it had both good screen and eMMC. So I decided to keep it. Other folks have their phones die on them because of the bad eMMC chip.
Similar issue goes to the G2 (I read about bad eMMC chips). I also heard that Sensation has some issues too!
I witnessed people exchanging up to 7 phones, and yet to get a good one.
On the other hand, Samsung devices are seem to be very plastic on the touch. I did held them in hand. Yes, the screen looks gorgeous, but the phone itself feels bad in the hand.
LG is another story.
I haven't tried or read about SE phones.
You would ask, why the hell did I write this all?
I simply want to voice my opinion. I just sick to see all these phones popping out and then read that one has bad power button, another has 2 types of screen, and then get one of them. I really want to see Android rise up in class!
Heck for not having problems I could have gone with iPhone, but I am an Android fan and chose it because it can do what I need!
I believe with the resources that Samsung, HTC, LG and other have - they can do so much better!
Lets discuss what bad sides Android phones have and what can be improved. I think it is more productive topic than fighting over blindly.

The reason for Samsung's "plastic" feel is durability, you drop a metal phone then the weight is going to make it more likely to break, the plastics Samsung uses often just has the back pop off, maybe a scratch.
As for HTC, they're just not a quality company. They build devices that are pretty from afar but once you use them they often have horrid flaws. Very little quality control.

There's nowhere near the level of QC there used to be in the 'real' smartphones - Treos, Communicators, iPAQs etc.
I think they do a pretty good job, there's a fit and finish for just about every taste out there today. The target audience has changed a lot, the userbase has expanded exponentially, plus there are many more manufacturers today, all vying for a slice of the pie - price competitiveness has a lot to do with this, too.
It sucks, but these things are built to be thrown away. Why pump billions of dollars into the fit and finish of something outdated two weeks after it hits the streets? Sucks for us, but 'near enough is good enough' for the manufacturers, and fair enough in my opinion

z33dev33l said:
The reason for Samsung's "plastic" feel is durability, you drop a metal phone then the weight is going to make it more likely to break, the plastics Samsung uses often just has the back pop off, maybe a scratch.
As for HTC, they're just not a quality company. They build devices that are pretty from afar but once you use them they often have horrid flaws. Very little quality control.
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Agreed about Samsung durability, I've dropped my phone on probably every surface and it is still good.
As for android there many problems with the OS. No hardware acceleration is probably big on my list. My nexus runs pretty good but I do notice lag from time to time. Stock browser is a joke to use, hella amounts of lag when viewing pics and forget about even viewing flash, so opera for me.
I hope ICS will live up to the hype, because I'm really digging the Nokia and windows mobile deal. Only time will tell...
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using XDA App

I was rooting for androids latest iteration to blow at least iOS out of the water but if that leaked nexus build is a final it doesn't even look smooth on a nexus device...

Who know?Probably NOT a final build as it as no acceleration. Word is that ICS will have hardware acceleration for both the interface and browser.
We will see.It does look impressive though....
On quality:My HTC Desire is horrendous, all buttons are almost dead, that has to do with quality. On the other hand my Huawei IDEOS X5 is surprisingly good for what i paid for (hint: zero but costs about 199euros).
If you want quality go for a truly expensive and good phone like the gs2, if not buy smething cheaper.
P.S. the buttons on the iphone 4 HAVE problems.3 of my friends went to the applestore to change them.That is not good build quality imho.

Eh, I like dells build quality though they fail as a software company. Honestly though I do hope ics is more impressive than it looked in that video because that was just slow and choppy, then again I guess the default UI of android isn't what's supposed to sell android. It's the customization options available.

I have a HTC Desire HD, and in my oppinion Android+Sense is the best mobile combo. all the good things from android + an awesome HTC skin.
Company's like Samsung don't make skins for their phones. I think that they should start making them. Ans if they do that, i might buy a Samsung phone or something like that after my HTC. But if they dont start making skins, i don´t want them...

i like my desire with htc sense, also like iphone with long time battery.

z33dev33l said:
The reason for Samsung's "plastic" feel is durability, you drop a metal phone then the weight is going to make it more likely to break, the plastics Samsung uses often just has the back pop off, maybe a scratch.
As for HTC, they're just not a quality company. They build devices that are pretty from afar but once you use them they often have horrid flaws. Very little quality control.
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+1
i own HTC devices with metal... and all of them are broken, chipped so badly i have to pull out my sandy paper or file to smooth the metal back out, because the phone shell has been ripped apart after many close encounter with the floor
since i switched to Samsung the plastic design has proven that it can handle the drops much better than the metal

I got an issue with samsung and their software updates.
I've been lucky so far with HTC. Good build quality and frequently updated software.
If I need to trade off iphone quality for the freedom of Android, I will.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

There got to be some military grade glass, that will hold all kinds of abuse. My back cover of Glacier is already swinging from side to side. I really hope that this upcoming Nexus will fix all of the issues I, and many other, have with Android phones build quality.
I still do not get, where did samsung got info that 4.65" screen is good for everyone?

hmm. interesting thread, and views.
my experience hasn't been so great with samsung phones. i had a samsung moment and that thing was terrible. and apparently the gs2 is having some problems as well. users have reported problems with the screen/display having some kind of stain like color on it, and the wifi antenna has also been reported by many to be skittish.
not surprising to me. that's what happens when you push a device out based on deadlines rather than completion of thorough testing. regardless of what company is putting the phone out - HTC, samsung, LG... any of them will have problems if they don't ensure a good testing phase pre-release.
i went from the moment to the evo 3D, and the difference is night and day. and i have handled a gs2 and all i can say is i am not impressed. it feels weak and flimsy and in the end, it's still a samsung to me, with the samsung company behind it. i will never own one. but that's just me.
meanwhile, my evo 3D seems to be just a powerhouse in the performance area. i consistently hit quadrant scores over 4300 and linpack scores of 100+ and RL benchmark is completed in about 18 seconds.
there are merely a couple phones out there putting numbers like that down consistently. i know it is that fast in reality, as well, because performing tasks such as viewing, zipping, and opening pdfs from my work email are done extremely fast, and significantly faster than when the phone wasn't rooted with a custom rom/kernel.
just my opinion, but if you can't see the advantage in power and functionality in the android OS, you are not using your phone for anything other than playing games and texting.

I played this bubble game, it's fun. After a few rounds I found myself always stopped in the middle by the app ad and when I restarted the game, the previous records were all gone. Annoying!

Europa. said:
I played this bubble game, it's fun. After a few rounds I found myself always stopped in the middle by the app ad and when I restarted the game, the previous records were all gone. Annoying!
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I love the relevance! Made my day so far

I agree with most of your arguments, but there's nothing we can do about it.
Manufacturers are still going to release one smartphone per month because people are used to buy tons of different phones to show to their friends.
More smartphones = more profit.
Doesn't matter if for the market it would be a lot better to play with only one "model" like iPhone does.
Let's hope that Google's Nexus can step up its game and be the iPhone rival.

Galaxy S4... And others.... a bit.... meh?

This is likely to be first time in 7 years i haven't upgraded my phone upon a handset refresh.
I'm a terrible phone whore with very little loyalty to brand, i like to own the best phone of the moment and hop between manufacturers. I'd imagine most people on here do the same, with the exception of the insanely irreverent fanboys. Recently (Last 2 years) i've owned.. S2, iPhone 4S, S3, HTC One X and Nexus 4. (Also throw in a couple of dips to Sony and Windows Mobile for brief periods).
First of all, the S4 and the HTC One look like cracking devices. In my eyes they both have positives and negatives and if push came to shove and somebody forced me by gunpoint to pick one, i'd be hard pressed to make a decision.. Perhaps S4 but only because of the battery life and timely updates.. There really is little in it.. Anyone who thinks so is only splitting hairs.
If you're sat using an S2 or a mobile a good 2 years old i can truly appreciate what a jump that the S4 or HTC One to be for you. But if you're the kind of person who upgrades over a 12 month period, there really is little to excite at the moment.
I can't help but feel disappointing..
CPU:
This is the most frustrating topic... We've been steadily increasing in power with little gains in power management, Nvidia tried their best with that '5th core' but ultimately left us all wanting... I'd say the biggest single concern for most smartphone users is battery life now, struggling to make it through a heavy day is part and parcel of owning a mobile.
We are so very close to big.LITTLE kicking in and it seems to be that Samsung and HTC kicked off a little early, shown by the (almost complete) lack of availability of their Exynos variant..
If i bought the S4 or HTC One i'd feel almost cheated if the rumored battery performance of the upcoming CPUs in this segment are anything to go by.
Screen:
Mobile phone addiction aside, one of my other rather 'nerdy' fascination is with audio visual kit, much to my wifes misery.. Screen quality is undoubtedly a big thing for me, yet even i struggle to justify the move from a 720p resolution to a 1080p resolution on a screen only 4.7-5" big..
I've seen the HTC One in person and while i will confess at close proximity i can distinguish the difference, it is by no means the jump the market departments of said companies would like you to think.. I'd go as far to say that most (myself included) would struggle to notice the difference between the two during regular daily use.
LTE:
This is less the mobile manufacturers fault and more the networks but 4G coverage is absolutely woeful when you consider the mass rollout of hardware to utilize. I always thought the S3 LTE was pointless but was convinced this was the early warning sign the governments / networks needed to shift into gear, it doesn't appear to have happened. It's like giving everybody a Bugatti Veyron and telling them they're only allowed to drive it in speed limited residential areas..
I've got friends in the states and U.K and despite the rather gut-wrenching price they pay for LTE price plans, the performance seems poor. I do think we are a good year away from 4G being a realistic benefit to the average consumer, with small pockets of countries experiencing early gains if they live in the capital.
The only positive i can take away from all this is my other half does not have to watch me trawl through reviews, debate the best deal and then watch me giddy on the day of delivery...
Here's hopping next year is a little better!

Have to agree with this, nothing special so far

@OP ( dont wanna quote the whole post lol), trust me when i say that i am one of the biggest phone junkies around, i owned almost all of the flagship of 2012 and plan on owning quite a few in 2013. I see what you're saying when you say " meh" cause phones like the nexus 4, S3, Optimus G and note 2 are already mighty powerful but i think this is where samsung and HTC lead the pack and differentiate themselves with other brands. HTC came out with the best design a phone ever had ( in my opinion) and fantastic sound quality while samsung is expanding its crazy awesome features ( gimmicky for some, absolutely great for me). Its hard to outdo the great phones that came out last year so my question is what did you expect?

I think you need to find more hobbies/occupations in your life tbh.

But to be honest, we are at a point where technology, and especially phones are improving at a very systematical and incremental ways.
Slightly better processor
Slightly better camera
Slightly better screen
Slightly better battery
Really, we will be stuck on this pattern until something revolutionary comes into the mobile market.

JaeKay said:
But to be honest, we are at a point where technology, and especially phones are improving at a very systematical and incremental ways.
Slightly better processor
Slightly better camera
Slightly better screen
Slightly better battery
Really, we will be stuck on this pattern until something revolutionary comes into the mobile market.
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Click to collapse
Yeah, but with all that, there's a lot that's looked over. Like if you have a Samsung Smart TV you can stream what is on your TV to your phoen anywhere you go.
We now have a IR controller with a built in TV Guide. Built in reminder to remind you also. Links to Rotten Tomatoes for movies.
There's a lot more. I just don't know what is revolutionary anymore. The problem is other technology has to catch up, like TVs, Amplifiers and audio receivers, car GPS, etc. The only thing the phone can do now is control and interact with other things.
What can honestly be revolutionary with current technology and our phones now?

How about work on voice call clarity. This quality has been the same Damn thing since the nokia brick phones lol
Sent from my ADR6425LVW using xda app-developers app

Squirrel1620 said:
How about work on voice call clarity. This quality has been the same Damn thing since the nokia brick phones lol
Sent from my ADR6425LVW using xda app-developers app
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The thing is in a day I make max 20 min call time but day in day out 4+hours screen time, iyam this is the norm so this dictates developments, so I bet we get stuck with ok call quality.

Euthye said:
The thing is in a day I make max 20 min call time but day in day out 4+hours screen time, iyam this is the norm so this dictates developments, so I bet we get stuck with ok call quality.
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20 min the norm? Speak for yourself.

j510 said:
20 min the norm? Speak for yourself.
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I know but how about getting a different phone if your prime use is phoning, like a 2g that'll give you 2/3 days, or if you're making calls while indoors plug it in or use a land line, flagship smartphones are computing devices not really phones any more.

thedalmeny said:
This is likely to be first time in 7 years i haven't upgraded my phone upon a handset refresh.
I'm a terrible phone whore with very little loyalty to brand...!
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While I agree that the upgrades in the GS4 are barely a full generation ahead of the GS3, which is unfortunate given how much a jump the GS2 was over the GS1, and how much the GS1 was ahead of anything else at its time... there is a sort-of point about diminishing returns here as well. It's harder to "improve" certain aspects but so much, as we're beginning to hit the limits of what can even be perceived as an upgrade.
I mean, think about the screen. Very low res -> QVGA -> WVGA -> 720p -> 1080p. Well that's great, but for the next generation, where do you go? There's really no perceivable need to put anything higher into a sub 5" device. Maybe flexible screens? Unbreakable screens? etc etc? That's still not gonna actually increase the photonic information presented to your eyes from the device.
Or take the physical phone body. The GS4 is pushing the screen so far that it's easily covering 80-90% of the entire front surface area. So okay, next gen, you make the entire front surface a screen. Then what? Make the phone thinner? Well, at a certain point you hit a limit there as well. People can only grasp and comfortably hold objects of up to a certain depth. When you get it smaller than that, you're basically just printing a screen onto a knife blade. So that's no good...
Let's try connectivity. LTE and 802.11ac? Most cell networks couldn't saturate their LTE links if they tried, they simply don't have the capacity yet. And even if they did... You're telling me you can even find a use-case where your phone is pumping out/in 100+ mbit/s of data? I mean, at home it's nice to move music/videos/files around sure. But I highly doubt anyone is routinely moving gigabytes of data per hour on any sort of mobile device. Once you hit what you need for say HD video streaming... where else is there to go? Again, the next generation doesn't really need to move data any faster than this.
Sensors? Well, there's actually lots of room for improvement here. And also, un-coincidentally, this is where the GS4 has some the of greatest advantage over other current/last generation devices. While we're still pretty far away from a proper tricorder, we can now sense via magnetometer, accelerometer, gyroscope, light sensor, infrared sensor, microphones, thermometer, hydrometer, barometer, and two cameras... But building sensors isn't the hard part. It's building clever software to do something with these sensors.
I could go on further... but the point I should think is clear. Yea, it's a bit disappointing that nothing since the original GS1/GS2 has really been a full "generation and a half" ahead of the competition... but a large portion of that is simply because we're beginning to hit the ceiling with some of these improvements. Yea, in 20 years "phones" will be unpredictably evolved from what we have now. But I bet the screens still won't have any higher effective PPI than what we're approaching now...

nastyhobbits said:
posting to hit 10 posts so I can actually post in development section....wth.....
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Wrong and wrong.
1) There's a reason you need to post elsewhere first.
2) The fact that you say "what the hell" to that requirement further shows you are not yet ready to post in development.
3) Spamming random unrelated comments into random threads is not the way to reach the 10 post minimum
I suggest you start by reading the rules and the stickies.
Have a nice day, and welcome to XDA.

Im only getting it becuase i wanted a smaller note 2 with no spen. The s4 gives me that with plenty of horsepower. Plus the 32gb $250 price point is a good sell. If the htc one had a replaceable battery it would of been a no brainer based on design alone.

nastyhobbits said:
posting to hit 10 posts so I can actually post in development section....wth.....
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*Face palm* If there's one place where you never post something like that, it's XDA. The moderators here take people who break the rules pretty seriously.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

I wish we could have a revolutionary phone come out like the Galaxy SII did. Even today, Galaxy SII is unsurpassed with performance. Is there any app or game that it can't run? I mean, it came out nearly 2 years ago, and still has not been matched by an app.
I hope Galaxy SV comes in the way of the revolution.

Euthye said:
I know but how about getting a different phone if your prime use is phoning, like a 2g that'll give you 2/3 days, or if you're making calls while indoors plug it in or use a land line, flagship smartphones are computing devices not really phones any more.
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I never said my prime use is phone calls. I just said 20 min is not the norm. And again where do you get your information. No matter what phone whether it is a dumb phone or smart phone, one of the main focus of a phone period involves making phone calls. Otherwise it would be called a multimedia device and not a phone.

jahjah440 said:
I wish we could have a revolutionary phone come out like the Galaxy SII did. Even today, Galaxy SII is unsurpassed with performance. Is there any app or game that it can't run? I mean, it came out nearly 2 years ago, and still has not been matched by an app.
I hope Galaxy SV comes in the way of the revolution.
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Wait, what, lol!
Pretty sure the Gs1 started the trend there. Gs2 was nice, but nothing revolutionary.... The s3 was by far the best in the series thus far, until this one comes out.
With that said, I like my Note 2 more so than my s3.
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk 2

I think the Note series has been pretty revolutionary and Samsung has worked hard to come up with clever things to do with the stylus.
I don't know what big hardware improvements are left to do. The one I would like the most is 3-D capabilities, both screen and camera, like the Evo 3D. I would imagine in the last two years the technology has gotten better and Samsung could market it a lot better than HTC. Plus there is more 3D content than two years ago. Samsung could also do cool things with 3D and the hover technology.

j510 said:
I never said my prime use is phone calls. I just said 20 min is not the norm. And again where do you get your information. No matter what phone whether it is a dumb phone or smart phone, one of the main focus of a phone period involves making phone calls. Otherwise it would be called a multimedia device and not a phone.
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Ah well tough break, I guess this phone isn't for you then.

Shammyh said:
While I agree that the upgrades in the GS4 are barely a full generation ahead of the GS3, which is unfortunate given how much a jump the GS2 was over the GS1, and how much the GS1 was ahead of anything else at its time... there is a sort-of point about diminishing returns here as well. It's harder to "improve" certain aspects but so much, as we're beginning to hit the limits of what can even be perceived as an upgrade.
I mean, think about the screen. Very low res -> QVGA -> WVGA -> 720p -> 1080p. Well that's great, but for the next generation, where do you go? There's really no perceivable need to put anything higher into a sub 5" device. Maybe flexible screens? Unbreakable screens? etc etc? That's still not gonna actually increase the photonic information presented to your eyes from the device.
Or take the physical phone body. The GS4 is pushing the screen so far that it's easily covering 80-90% of the entire front surface area. So okay, next gen, you make the entire front surface a screen. Then what? Make the phone thinner? Well, at a certain point you hit a limit there as well. People can only grasp and comfortably hold objects of up to a certain depth. When you get it smaller than that, you're basically just printing a screen onto a knife blade. So that's no good...
Let's try connectivity. LTE and 802.11ac? Most cell networks couldn't saturate their LTE links if they tried, they simply don't have the capacity yet. And even if they did... You're telling me you can even find a use-case where your phone is pumping out/in 100+ mbit/s of data? I mean, at home it's nice to move music/videos/files around sure. But I highly doubt anyone is routinely moving gigabytes of data per hour on any sort of mobile device. Once you hit what you need for say HD video streaming... where else is there to go? Again, the next generation doesn't really need to move data any faster than this.
Sensors? Well, there's actually lots of room for improvement here. And also, un-coincidentally, this is where the GS4 has some the of greatest advantage over other current/last generation devices. While we're still pretty far away from a proper tricorder, we can now sense via magnetometer, accelerometer, gyroscope, light sensor, infrared sensor, microphones, thermometer, hydrometer, barometer, and two cameras... But building sensors isn't the hard part. It's building clever software to do something with these sensors.
I could go on further... but the point I should think is clear. Yea, it's a bit disappointing that nothing since the original GS1/GS2 has really been a full "generation and a half" ahead of the competition... but a large portion of that is simply because we're beginning to hit the ceiling with some of these improvements. Yea, in 20 years "phones" will be unpredictably evolved from what we have now. But I bet the screens still won't have any higher effective PPI than what we're approaching now...
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I have to disagree about LTE. That 100mbs conection is shared across possibly 100's of users and it does not take alot to bring it down to it's knees.
Video of sub 500kbs LTE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-VVwPqhXwI
That and really 2,3,4,5,10 GB is not really that much data if you plan using the LTE speeds fully. If I didn't have a unlimited plan, my bill would be higher in a month than what my phone cost.
I will say your right about the screen 1080p is good, well really for most 720p does the trick. ( I can still see the dot's on a 720p 4.3in screen though, but most can't.)

What do you think of the A9?

I think it's got a cute camera, but all around it just... sucks. The battery is even worse than my Nexus 5, and the phone is just ugly, especially in the front, in my opinion.

Actually I like the design much better than the M9, not too worried about the battery, and it seems HTC has finally overcome it's greatest flaw in its camera.

Wish it has a dual SIM function (it's important in SE Asia and developing countries) and waterproof.
Otherwise, it's pretty nice.

I just can't believe they are still plastering a fugly logo on the front taking up valuable screen real-estate. I'll never buy another HTC as long as they keep doing that. At the very least they got rid of the "hardware" buttons... except then they replaced it with a larger hardware button copying samsung and apple. The waste of space is just terrible. Nexus 6 has slightly more than half an inch in top/bottom bezeling combined while these things look like they are rocking 1.5 inches or more!
Not to mention it's looks like a sad copy attempt at newer samsung/iphone styles - hardly unique at all. I don't think the copy-cat ploy is going to work for the third guy doing it. I'd bet money that this is yet another flop.
http://www.xda-developers.com/the-a9-is-not-the-hero-htc-needs-nor-the-one-it-deserves/

Xenosis said:
I just can't believe they are still plastering a fugly logo on the front taking up valuable screen real-estate. I'll never buy another HTC as long as they keep doing that. At the very least they got rid of the "hardware" buttons... except then they replaced it with a larger hardware button copying samsung and apple. The waste of space is just terrible. Nexus 6 has slightly more than half an inch in top/bottom bezeling combined while these things look like they are rocking 1.5 inches or more!
Not to mention it's looks like a sad copy attempt at newer samsung/iphone styles - hardly unique at all. I don't think the copy-cat ploy is going to work for the third guy doing it. I'd bet money that this is yet another flop.
http://www.xda-developers.com/the-a9-is-not-the-hero-htc-needs-nor-the-one-it-deserves/
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I don't think the design is necessarily a bad thing. It may be emulating Apple, but it's still metal and it will appeal to quite a number of people, if not for the design then for the build quality alone. With that being said, the battery is most likely gonna drag the phone down, unless they can do what the Moto G is doing with their battery, which by the way is larger than the A9.
Also, I hope there are capacitative back and recent apps buttons to complement the physical home button. Otherwise, the home button kinda becomes redundant, even with a fingerprint scanner, because you have the full set of controls on the screen right above the home button.

Using HTC 8 years now but couldn't find new model for me. Like the design but inside phone is not what you expecting from phones these days.
Just to hang for time that HTC makes serious phone I switched to OnePlus 2.

HTC A9
Very bad design, I think they need to change thier concept designer and CEO then they try to find another inspiration like One M7 & 8 and I think they will not be able to do that until they think out of Apple hater Box

bennaye said:
I don't think the design is necessarily a bad thing. It may be emulating Apple, but it's still metal and it will appeal to quite a number of people, if not for the design then for the build quality alone. With that being said, the battery is most likely gonna drag the phone down, unless they can do what the Moto G is doing with their battery, which by the way is larger than the A9.
Also, I hope there are capacitive back and recent apps buttons to complement the physical home button. Otherwise, the home button kinda becomes redundant, even with a fingerprint scanner, because you have the full set of controls on the screen right above the home button.
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Bad? nah. Sad? I think so. Who needs more of the same thing? It's because they are failing that they decided to copy what they thought would be a safe bet. Personally I'm not even too bothered by the small battery as I pretty much always keep my phones around 50% and up as wherever I am there is usually a place to charge them. Fast charging will make that even more feasible. (Probably their logic)
In my opinion, the fingerprint scanner should be on the back of every phone, like many are already doing, not the front. Or even on the side makes more sense. It should be in a place that is easy to access with only one hand. The bottom of the front of the phone makes it so you have to support it with the other hand while swiping to do it comfortably.
My point is that any capacitive/hardware buttons that can be done in software are redundant and they are especially atrocious when taking up screen real estate. When done in software, the screen can be 1/3 inch to 1/2 inch larger.
When I got my One m7 way back, I thought it was awesome and compared to what was out there, it was. That is until other phones came out that were the same size but had smaller bezels, didn't waste space with a giant logo and capacitive buttons. A clear successor in design IMO.
Maybe it's just me but since everyone can do nice specs, a decision on a phone comes down to smaller things and for me, screen size/quality is one of the most important. The way the front of the phone looks is important, and how well utilized the space is is important. HTC has always done a horrible job utilizing space well so far as I've seen.

I hate it. The design is fine but why? Don't copy Apple just to get a few new users to switch. Stick with the M8 style design with some differences. Bezeless? The specs are not that great. They even removed boomsound wtf. (unless it is considered a mid range phone).
They need to spend some money and get ultra specs. They need a 4k screen, ultra boomsound speakers that are really loud with a pop out speaker like the old HTC Surround while keeping it a thin phone, Snapdragon 820 with 2 gh and 3-4 gigs of ram, a 25 ultra pixel rear camera with Nikon DLSR sensors to bring the ultimate in picture taking and making it the best camera phone ever even better than some stand alones, 6 ultra pixel front facing cam, 3500 MaH battery. Now if they did that, I'd buy that in a heart beat or are these features too unrealistic?
HTC needs to realize people care about what is written on the specs sheet next to the phone in a phone store. People see low numbers (even though the processor may optimize it to make the low numbers feel like higer for example battery MaH) they will go to another phone that has higher numbers on the specs sheet.

I just really hope they change their mind about their design philosophy to me its not a good change, but I applaud the hardware and the fact they have marshmellow running on it already

MsEvyLynch said:
I hate it. The design is fine but why? Don't copy Apple just to get a few new users to switch. Stick with the M8 style design with some differences. Bezeless? The specs are not that great. They even removed boomsound wtf. (unless it is considered a mid range phone).
They need to spend some money and get ultra specs. They need a 4k screen, ultra boomsound speakers that are really loud with a pop out speaker like the old HTC Surround while keeping it a thin phone, Snapdragon 820 with 2 gh and 3-4 gigs of ram, a 25 ultra pixel rear camera with Nikon DLSR sensors to bring the ultimate in picture taking and making it the best camera phone ever even better than some stand alones, 6 ultra pixel front facing cam, 3500 MaH battery. Now if they did that, I'd buy that in a heart beat or are these features too unrealistic?
HTC needs to realize people care about what is written on the specs sheet next to the phone in a phone store. People see low numbers (even though the processor may optimize it to make the low numbers feel like higer for example battery MaH) they will go to another phone that has higher numbers on the specs sheet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't agree with you on this, HTC hasn't copied from Apple. But it is other way round.

This is the design that HTC has pioneered and continued to evolve. There is a reason why iPhones and Samsung devices now look like they do, because HTC has a superior design. They always seem to fall short when it comes to specs and marketing.

Xenosis said:
My point is that any capacitive/hardware buttons that can be done in software are redundant and they are especially atrocious when taking up screen real estate. When done in software, the screen can be 1/3 inch to 1/2 inch larger.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My point was that since HTC already went with a physical home button at the front which doubles as a fingerprint scanner, they might as well include the other capacitive buttons. Having just one button on the front seems kinda pointless. But I do agree that the fingerprint sensor should be on the side or on the back.

MsEvyLynch said:
I hate it. The design is fine but why? Don't copy Apple just to get a few new users to switch. Stick with the M8 style design with some differences. Bezeless? The specs are not that great. They even removed boomsound wtf. (unless it is considered a mid range phone).
They need to spend some money and get ultra specs. They need a 4k screen, ultra boomsound speakers that are really loud with a pop out speaker like the old HTC Surround while keeping it a thin phone, Snapdragon 820 with 2 gh and 3-4 gigs of ram, a 25 ultra pixel rear camera with Nikon DLSR sensors to bring the ultimate in picture taking and making it the best camera phone ever even better than some stand alones, 6 ultra pixel front facing cam, 3500 MaH battery. Now if they did that, I'd buy that in a heart beat or are these features too unrealistic?
HTC needs to realize people care about what is written on the specs sheet next to the phone in a phone store. People see low numbers (even though the processor may optimize it to make the low numbers feel like higer for example battery MaH) they will go to another phone that has higher numbers on the specs sheet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dude, first of all, anything that has to do with Nikon sucks. Second of all, complaining like that just makes you look bad.

herzig.grant said:
Dude, first of all, anything that has to do with Nikon sucks. Second of all, complaining like that just makes you look bad.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not complaining, I'm just stating what HTC needs to do to get back where they need to be. Going this route is just making it worse for them.

Honestly I think it is a dumb a** phone and it seems like HTC is in self destruct mode

MsEvyLynch said:
I'm not complaining, I'm just stating what HTC needs to do to get back where they need to be. Going this route is just making it worse for them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah you have a point.

I've used HTC phones basically for almost every upgrade I had. I found their build and quality to always be top notch. What I liked about HTC is that you can almost always unlock the bootloader and go the custom rom route and the boomsound speakers. The One A9 ditched everything to try to get more people to like HTC. What I want is a HTC phone with top notch specs 5.1-5.5" screen, I could care less about finger print scanning but sure whynot, a nice shooter with OIS and a competitive price point and I think they should be able to get back. Sense skin on the HTC is what makes the experience unique.

nice especially the design though I'm not impressed with its built and other stuff. sticking with the N5 ndysf

Best thing about HTC these days is still Sense interface. Stock android, Samsung etc...OS/look/feel is garbage. I remember when I first got the Nexus, the one with the led trackball..years ago. I almost dumped that thing in 1 day until I found the ability to get an updated Rom with better apps/design and look/feel of the phone. HTC was a saving grace. Get rid of Blinkfeed, keep the clean/polished apps of Sense and interface...and put some real serious hardware in the phone.
Only good thing about this is going to be marshmellow/developers and the ability to have all carriers supported and unlocking out of the box in the US. Otherwise, from the forums, you can see how support of the M9 and later variants have decreased over the years.
Don't know. Maybe sell the M9 and try the A9...I don't do much with my phone, and the little I do, I really need a better polished interface that Apple/MS have done well for years versus the Android.
Shoot, been playing with Candy 5 on my M9 which is pretty close to Marshmellow and standard Android, what a piece of garbage interface/apps they still produce Google....pretty pathetic considering.
Unfortunately, I'm on Verizon for the next year...likely jump ship in 14 months and go back to something like ATT/Cricket and universal/GSM phones. Good thing my wife/kids have iPhones that will work on any network already. Just need to dump my VZW M9 and move on with my life...gheez. The mobile/cell phone business is really a joke with many manufacturers, such a cluster these days and so many options, most Android.

Quick opinion on someone who has the phone...

I, like most of you, was waiting impatiently for this device for the past few weeks. I was given a retail model on Thursday early and wanted to let my thoughts after 48 hours.
I have to say I haven't been this disappointed in a phone in a while. While the phone is a looker, fundamentals are quite lacking.
Battery life - Same as the S7 and that's not a good thing. Has the same inconsistent issues of quick drains while running idle. As an example, was working on my house yesterday for roughly 4 hours and left the phone down with out being touched. Left it at 90% and came back at 74%. Again no usage. I have 3 other Android phones with more apps running and this doesn't happen except on Samsung. They will never change in this regard. Every year I have hope and get sucked into buying one. Same results.
Fingerprint sensor- I was one of the people that thought all the complaining was unwarranted about the fingerprint sensor placement. I thought this is just an issue for certain people with finger dexterity issues or just looking for something to complain about. Boy was I wrong. It's actually worse! It works maybe75% of the time and that is only using my right hand. Forget about the left hand.. way too awkward and difficult to do with one hand. At first, I thought no biggie, I'll just use face scanning or supplement with Iris scanning. Face scanning again is hit and miss and forget about Iris scanning if you are anywhere outside of bright light. I had the note 7 and that seemed to work a ton better. Maybe a software fix coming? Back to the fingerprint issue.. Samsung Pay doesn't even come preloaded on the phone! Why?!?! Because the NFC chip is on back so have fun using the sensor and holding it to a pay device. I was perplexed how this was a main selling point with the s and note series of last year and how it couldn't be preloaded. Hell it is on the gear S3. I used it 3 times yesterday at 3 different stores. I had to hold the phone upside down and the back facing the terminal. Picture that for a second... Holding your finger on a sensor which is located on the back and also having to have the back of the phone facing the CC reader at the same time. It's unreal. It's absolutely crazy that they threw this phone with the sensor placement at last minute and gathered...Oh yeah how are they going to use Pay? Ah just don't preload it and we won't get so many complaints. If you think I'm full of it.. go try it.
As mentioned with unlocking with the fingerprint, the new home button is virtually useless. I am trying to understand why they are trying to reinvent the wheel and not just use the tried and true method that every Android manufacturer has used for the past few years. It takes a ridiculous amount of time to unlock this phone. Too many steps.touch the side button or home button, wait for face unlock to work and if it doesn't then do finger gynastics with the fingerprint sensor. Seriously I wind up just using pattern after both fail. I use my V20 as my DD and it's 100% unlocking with the fingerprint on one touch Everytime. What the [email protected]#&$ were you thinking Samsung?
Audio - I love music and media and I am a wanna be audiophile. The headphone jack output and sound is no better than the S7. Lower output than most phones and music has a tight soundstage. Sound is tinny and missing elements you would hear on other high end phones. The Bluetooth audio is actually better but that was the same as the S7. It's nothing to write home about to be honest. I knew it wasn't going to be V20 quality but I was hoping for better with the akg tuning and Harmon partnership.Maybe those changes will come to the note 8?
Not all is bad with the phone, I love the screen and how I missed wireless charging! But there are fundamental ergonomic design issues that make this phone clumsy to use day to day. It's like you have to think to unlock it instead of it being second nature. People will see what I mean when they get their device. It feels like Samsung rushed again to market a product. I am praying that the note 8 is the next big thing.

sillyphillie said:
It feels like Samsung rushed again to market a product.
I am praying that the note 8 is the next big thing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How is this "rushed"? Samsung has had a full year since last year's Galaxy S7, and all the manufacturers have a team actually start working on the NEXT release before they launch the current one. So, OVER a year.
Are you suggesting Samsung do what Apple does? Release a new phone EVERY TWO YEARS? And then the ones in between are just to fix what they screwed up? iPhone 4S = iPhone 4 antenna fiasco fix.
And as for "big", the Notes are TOO big. I will never own a Note phablet.

Just giving my take. This phone is definitely not ready for prime time in my opinion. RAM management is also an issue I forgot to list but that has always been an issue with Samsung so nothing to see here on that. Knew that coming in. Just disappointed they didn't do much to address. Again these are my opinions.
Camera is definitely improved though... Sweet shots I'm getting.

Samsung pay didn't come preloaded in my Verizon S7 Edge, I had to download it. But I do see what you're saying about paying with your fingerprint. But I, myself, have the gear S3 so feel there's no need to use Samsung pay on my phone since the watch does it.

sillyphillie said:
Just giving my take. This phone is definitely not ready for prime time in my opinion. RAM management is also an issue I forgot to list but that has always been an issue with Samsung so nothing to see here on that. Knew that coming in. Just disappointed they didn't do much to address. Again these are my opinions.
Camera is definitely improved though... Sweet shots I'm getting.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It may not be ready for Prime Time, but they had plenty of time. Any design failures is on Samsung -- their skill set, their design/manufacturing expertise.
Whereas "rushed" is like Google's 2016 Pixel with the HUGE bezels because Huawei turned them down for a Google Pixel phone with no manufacturer branding, and they had to go to HTC and use a re-purposed frame HTC already had -- and they only had 9 months to design/test/release a phone. THAT is "rushed". They couldn't even make it waterproof like they wanted because they ran out of time.
The Pixel and Pixel XL aren’t waterproof because Google ‘ran out of time’
http://www.androidauthority.com/google-pixel-xl-waterproof-724120/
According to Pierce, when he asked Google why its phone isn’t waterproof, its response was, rather simply: “We ran out of time”.
Pierce states that the development cycle for the smartphone was uncharacteristically short, reportedly “nine months and a week” from design to launch, as Google abandoned its original plans for the phone at the end of 2015.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samsung has no such excuses, unless you are just saying they are incompetent.

I completely agree hence why I sold my pixel months ago. I'm not saying other manufacturers aren't rushing either. Just making a note that Samsung is as well. Anyway.. my take as someone who has the phone already. Hoping software fixes some of the concerns. But that fingerprint sensor and Samsung pay is there to stay.

ChazzMatt said:
Whereas "rushed" is like Google's 2016 Pixel with the HUGE bezels because Huawei turned them down for a Google Pixel phone with no manufacturer branding, and they had to go to HTC and use a re-purposed frame HTC already had
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Come on its a brand new design... http://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=8346&idPhone2=8297
Any phone coming out after the s8 and g6 with ugly ass bezels will be dead on arrival, lets see if htc has enough time to shrink those bezel's.

Re: Samsung pay, there are more than a few phones with rear fingerprint scanners and NFC chips that have been out for some time. I've never found this an issue nor have I heard complaints like this. As of right now the technology you're longing for (a front facing under the screen fingerprint scanner, since that's the only feasible alternative with the infinity display) simply hasn't been released. Unfortunately, the reality is it's these shortcomings that are debatably left out (intentionally?) to keep interest in the next iteration and keep overhead down. Hence why we never get the perfect smart phone. I'll you know when I get the device but I assume it's no different then the others: shiny, new, with some improvements, likely the best phone out, but still short of the perfect phone. (Never get too high of expectations, these companies are here to be profitable) I had the G6 all of 2 days before I was left unimpressed, hopefully that's not the case with the S8.
Oh well take my money. Thanks for the write up!
---------- Post added at 05:55 AM ---------- Previous post was at 05:53 AM ----------
peachpuff said:
Come on its a brand new design... http://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=8346&idPhone2=8297
Any phone coming out after the s8 and g6 with ugly ass bezels will be dead on arrival, lets see if htc has enough time to shrink those bezel's.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HTC is screwed if the renditions/leaks are accurate. Still has same general design and big ol bezels

sillyphillie said:
I, like most of you, was waiting impatiently for this device for the past few weeks. I was given a retail model on Thursday early and wanted to let my thoughts after 48 hours.
I have to say I haven't been this disappointed in a phone in a while. While the phone is a looker, fundamentals are quite lacking.
Battery life - Same as the S7 and that's not a good thing. Has the same inconsistent issues of quick drains while running idle. As an example, was working on my house yesterday for roughly 4 hours and left the phone down with out being touched. Left it at 90% and came back at 74%. Again no usage. I have 3 other Android phones with more apps running and this doesn't happen except on Samsung. They will never change in this regard. Every year I have hope and get sucked into buying one. Same results.
Fingerprint sensor- I was one of the people that thought all the complaining was unwarranted about the fingerprint sensor placement. I thought this is just an issue for certain people with finger dexterity issues or just looking for something to complain about. Boy was I wrong. It's actually worse! It works maybe75% of the time and that is only using my right hand. Forget about the left hand.. way too awkward and difficult to do with one hand. At first, I thought no biggie, I'll just use face scanning or supplement with Iris scanning. Face scanning again is hit and miss and forget about Iris scanning if you are anywhere outside of bright light. I had the note 7 and that seemed to work a ton better. Maybe a software fix coming? Back to the fingerprint issue.. Samsung Pay doesn't even come preloaded on the phone! Why?!?! Because the NFC chip is on back so have fun using the sensor and holding it to a pay device. I was perplexed how this was a main selling point with the s and note series of last year and how it couldn't be preloaded. Hell it is on the gear S3. I used it 3 times yesterday at 3 different stores. I had to hold the phone upside down and the back facing the terminal. Picture that for a second... Holding your finger on a sensor which is located on the back and also having to have the back of the phone facing the CC reader at the same time. It's unreal. It's absolutely crazy that they threw this phone with the sensor placement at last minute and gathered...Oh yeah how are they going to use Pay? Ah just don't preload it and we won't get so many complaints. If you think I'm full of it.. go try it.
As mentioned with unlocking with the fingerprint, the new home button is virtually useless. I am trying to understand why they are trying to reinvent the wheel and not just use the tried and true method that every Android manufacturer has used for the past few years. It takes a ridiculous amount of time to unlock this phone. Too many steps.touch the side button or home button, wait for face unlock to work and if it doesn't then do finger gynastics with the fingerprint sensor. Seriously I wind up just using pattern after both fail. I use my V20 as my DD and it's 100% unlocking with the fingerprint on one touch Everytime. What the [email protected]#&$ were you thinking Samsung?
Audio - I love music and media and I am a wanna be audiophile. The headphone jack output and sound is no better than the S7. Lower output than most phones and music has a tight soundstage. Sound is tinny and missing elements you would hear on other high end phones. The Bluetooth audio is actually better but that was the same as the S7. It's nothing to write home about to be honest. I knew it wasn't going to be V20 quality but I was hoping for better with the akg tuning and Harmon partnership.Maybe those changes will come to the note 8?
Not all is bad with the phone, I love the screen and how I missed wireless charging! But there are fundamental ergonomic design issues that make this phone clumsy to use day to day. It's like you have to think to unlock it instead of it being second nature. People will see what I mean when they get their device. It feels like Samsung rushed again to market a product. I am praying that the note 8 is the next big thing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have never used a fingerprint scanner or whatever on a phone, just good old passcode/pattern. It blows my mind people getting all uppity (no you, people in general) over a freaking unlock method to their phone. It's like a new Porsche/Mercedes and instead of talking about its performance people get all hung up on the palm sensor to unlock the door all the while they have the keys. Phones are all about the screen and apps, etc. Who gives a hoot about a stupid fingerprint sensor.

i plan to use samsung pay with Pin instead of fingerprint since it' on the back

Should we cancel our pre-orders then? I'd be more than happy to stick with my Note 4 than pay £55 a month for the next 2 years.

The funny thing about this bezel less design is I really think it's more beauty than function. Maybe it's the bezel less combined with the edge display but I feel less secure with this phone. I have a gs7 and lgv20 I keep referencing back to and when you are out and about the flat display lends to more secure in the hand feel. Maybe even more comfort.
Every year we hear how awesome a phone is from MWC through the first round of reviews. I'm really wanting to know what the consensus will be on this phone. The LG G6 was a darling when announced now the shine has come way off and people are finding out the size and feel are not what's it's cracked up to be. I'm going to give this phone more time and hope it grows on me.

The Phone Company said:
Should we cancel our pre-orders then? I'd be more than happy to stick with my Note 4 than pay £55 a month for the next 2 years.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
everyone's got a different opinion... i am still happy to proceed with my s8 plus, and keep in mind... these folks complainin abt battery life are the US models running SD... and we've got exynos

Is Exnos a more thrifty battery chip?
I will get the EU model in any case.

After a week, I've had a change of heart...

I've either cognitively dissonated myself into loving this phone, or it is really quite good. The official camera fix did some good and leaves open the good possibility that further refining will yield a great result, or I'll stick with the progress being made on the GCam port and use the native app for great monochrome shots (I love the B&W sensor and it is EXCELLENT). That said, no cases... I guess no problem - I ordered some SquareTrade insurance coverage today - if it drops or dies, they'll replace it for a hundred beans - I can handle that kind of coverage...
I'm not seeing the same quality defects others are reporting with their handsets (light bleed, TMOB signal issues, etc.) so either I got a keeper or others are being overly sensitive (nothing personal guys).
I asked for and will likely receive a return package, but I think I'll be sending it back empty. Sorry for the trouble Essential, but you are in my daily carry category now - my S8+ will stay ready for outdoor action as needed (water resistance, etc).
The aesthetics are what has done it for me... Maybe you feel the same? The feeling I get holding and using the Essential do indeed remind me of the first day with the OG iPhone - only ten years better. Hell - I still have some great pics I took with that lousy 2MP, fixed focus, no flash shooter from 2007 on my drive.
Anyway, just one man's changed opinion. If it grew on you too, please post your thoughts. I'm interested to know how many others have now caved.

rootdude said:
I've either cognitively dissonated myself into loving this phone, or it is really quite good. The official camera fix did some good and leaves open the good possibility that further refining will yield a great result, or I'll stick with the progress being made on the GCam port and use the native app for great monochrome shots (I love the B&W sensor and it is EXCELLENT). That said, no cases... I guess no problem - I ordered some SquareTrade insurance coverage today - if it drops or dies, they'll replace it for a hundred beans - I can handle that kind of coverage...
I'm not seeing the same quality defects others are reporting with their handsets (light bleed, TMOB signal issues, etc.) so either I got a keeper or others are being overly sensitive (nothing personal guys).
I asked for and will likely receive a return package, but I think I'll be sending it back empty. Sorry for the trouble Essential, but you are in my daily carry category now - my S8+ will stay ready for outdoor action as needed (water resistance, etc).
The aesthetics are what has done it for me... Maybe you feel the same? The feeling I get holding and using the Essential do indeed remind me of the first day with the OG iPhone - only ten years better. Hell - I still have some great pics I took with that lousy 2MP, fixed focus, no flash shooter from 2007 on my drive.
Anyway, just one man's changed opinion. If it grew on you too, please post your thoughts. I'm interested to know how many others have now caved.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I really want to like it, I'm trying real hard.
The performance sucks and is not faster than a Moto Z with a Snapdragon 821.
This phone does some really aggressive thermal throttling.
This bothers me.
I really want to like it.

I kind of came to the same conclusion the other day. Software can always be improved with updates, and there's not another phone out there built with better materials. It looks, feels, and is, an upscale phone.

tech_head said:
I really want to like it, I'm trying real hard.
The performance sucks and is not faster than a Moto Z with a Snapdragon 821.
This phone does some really aggressive thermal throttling.
This bothers me.
I really want to like it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm interested to hear what you know about thermal throttling. I'm a power user and I play Royale like an idiot and I haven't even felt it get warm, nor do I see the incredible battery drain I see with other devices I've played on in the past (the Pixel XL was the worst for that power drain). Do you have CPUZ installed on it and can get some screenies of the throttling b/c of overheat conditions?

rootdude said:
I'm interested to hear what you know about thermal throttling. I'm a power user and I play Royale like an idiot and I haven't even felt it get warm, nor do I see the incredible battery drain I see with other devices I've played on in the past (the Pixel XL was the worst for that power drain). Do you have CPUZ installed on it and can get some screenies of the throttling b/c of overheat conditions?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't see/feel the phone get hot. That's the point, before it even gets hot the CPU gets throttled.
If I artificially cool the device or I'm in a cold environment; I can run Antutu and get close to the Qualcomm numbers for their reference platform in the 178k range. I can do that only in a cold environment. If the device is in a warm room the performance drops to 160k or so. If the room is hot or if I try to run again the performance can drop to 150k. I have seen the results drop to below 120k.
Geek bench scores are somewhat better but not great.
1900 single core and 6000 multicore.
The renderscript score is about 8000. Which puts in 33% behind an iPhone 7.

The software grew on me as more mods and ADB tweaks come out...but every time I decide to keep it and slap a skin of the back I find new scratches. Now I even have a scratch on the finish on the titanium. No clue where any of these came from. I haven't had a scratch on a phone in years... I upgrade every few months and always sell my phones mint on Swappa. I've had this a week and it's already scratched to ****. I love the look and feel and I'm happy with the software now but man..it's getting destroyed.

NeutronBomb said:
The software grew on me as more mods and ADB tweaks come out...but every time I decide to keep it and slap a skin of the back I find new scratches. Now I even have a scratch on the finish on the titanium. No clue where any of these came from. I haven't had a scratch on a phone in years... I upgrade every few months and always sell my phones mint on Swappa. I've had this a week and it's already scratched to ****. I love the look and feel and I'm happy with the software now but man..it's getting destroyed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Interesting. Mine still looks like it just came out of the box, and it even took a 4 foot tumble to my bathroom floor the other day.

So I hope the new update improves performance.
Right now if the phone gets to an internal temp of 44C it will throttle to less than half the maximum frequency.
This puts the performance, when warm, behind and LG G4, Samsung Galaxy S6 and my old Nexus 6P.
Not happy.

I'm battling the decision now. I'm still in that 15 day return window, and like others am trying really hard to want to like this device.
Love the display. Don't mind that it's not AMOLED - I still get 5-6 hours SoT with moderate-heavy internet/call/text on wifi w/bt connected. No light bleed issues or lifting of panels for me, everything seems in order there.
There are some problems with the software that make me wonder if the problems I have are hardware or software. The micro-stuttering during scrolling (only while touching the screen during scrolling) could be a hardware problem, could be throttling, or could be OS optimization for this device in general. It's smooth as butter as long as I flick-scroll. Even if I slow finger-scroll vs slow flick-scroll the difference is noticeable, goes from stutter to butter. Finger-on-screen lag is like that of a bloated EVO3D trying to flip homescreens.
Then there are the definite software glitches that are present even after a full wipe of the phone (I really wish you could wipe the cache partition on this thing). This includes the occasional 10 second freeze while scrolling, the microstutters mentioned above, having to press back twice when in a conversation in the default messaging app, random screen presses when not touching the screen, regularly having to tap the screen repeatedly to get response from buttons.
And then there's the support - it takes a very long time to get response. I realize they are busy and trying to be responsive, and I am really trying to support this new company... One of the biggest problems I have is for solely existing as a consumer communications device manufacturer, they have some terrible consumer communication processes happening (or complete lack thereof). All I really want to know is that they are aware of and are working on the specific issues. Maybe I have control issues, but the dark is not a friendly place to be with 700 bucks on the line!!
I'm going to leave myself undecided for a few days and see where things go. If I don't see some kind of a software update addressing many of the issues some of us are experiencing I may have to reconsider... Despite all of the short-comings the new company has had as a baby, it's a beautiful baby. Let's just hope it learns fast I'm really hoping the screen issues I'm having are software related, but without confirmation from the company I can't say that I have high confidence right now. I love the feel and design of the device itself, though! *torn*

I am really trying hard to like this device. In terms of overall feel it's immaculate. They did very well on the design of the the phone. My issues come with software and future development. Right now there's clear software bugs and other optimization that needs to be done. If they can work on some of those things the experience on this phone would improve tenfold. Also once they get the source code and kernel out then we can start seeing more Community Development. We could also get things such as custom recovery and root. I'm hoping that in the coming weeks this phone and the community support will improve. I think I'll keep my device for while to see if that happens if not I may be lookin at a Pixel 2.

theandroidbot said:
I am really trying hard to like this device. In terms of overall feel it's immaculate. They did very well on the design of the the phone. My issues come with software and future development. Right now there's clear software bugs and other optimization that needs to be done. If they can work on some of those things the experience on this phone would improve tenfold. Also once they get the source code and kernel out then we can start seeing more Community Development. We could also get things such as custom recovery and root. I'm hoping that in the coming weeks this phone and the community support will improve. I think I'll keep my device for while to see if that happens if not I may be lookin at a Pixel 2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There isn't a massive amount of development on the pixel in relation to other Nexus devices likely due to the A/B partitions so I'm dubious on the pixel 2 at the moment

spotmark said:
Interesting. Mine still looks like it just came out of the box, and it even took a 4 foot tumble to my bathroom floor the other day.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can the QC really be that hit and miss? I have zero scratches as well on front or back.

rootdude said:
Can the QC really be that hit and miss? I have zero scratches as well on front or back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here. The one thing I absolutely love is the build quality. It looks exactly as the day it arrived.

Mine looks like the first day. I'm very impressed with the build quality.
Sent from my PH-1 using XDA-Developers Legacy app

No issues with mine fr a build standpoint. Fell a few times and no scratches. I'm using a glass screen protector even though there is a halo. Rather that scratches than the screen. The update that came out today is probably the software the phone should have shipped with initially... but we were all in a rush to get it. I'm keeping this device for sure! I also like confusing the heck out of ppl... I'm running the Arrow Launcher, blackberry keyboard and I use the iPhone sms sound for text notifications..
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My only complaint really is I think they went too small. Most smarts phones are a little larger.

hoopsdavis said:
My only complaint really is I think they went too small. Most smarts phones are a little larger.
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I think it's refreshing. I mean I love big phones, haven't used a small sized phone in years, but after using this phone for several days, I love how reasonably compact it is with this screen size. I should rephrase, I love big screen size, not necessarily big form factor. So to have this screen size packed in a smaller form, I think it's awesome.

hoopsdavis said:
My only complaint really is I think they went too small. Most smarts phones are a little larger.
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The "small" form factor with big screen is the the biggest reason this phone came into my radar

flakko86 said:
The "small" form factor with big screen is the the biggest reason this phone came into my radar
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Same with me and many others. The big screen in compact size is among the major pros for buying this mobile. Besides that, I was also attracted to the clean design/material used and the pin port for 360 camera and other gadgets.
But I'm still waiting (impatiently) for how the Huawei Mate 10 pro turns out to be before I buy the essential phone. Hoping the Mate 10 pro is as compact and well built as well, combined with supposedly beast new Kirin 970 and improved dual camera, and maybe some new features like AI, Graphene battery, 3D Face recognition (all already introduced on Huawei's Honor magic). It would be the only contender to essential phone on my list. If Mate 10 pro disappoints then by that time Essential phone would be ready to ship out with 360 camera and charging dock in one go.

I have really grown to like this device. I have been using as my DD since the update, no significant issues and certainly no scratches or signs of wear. The size of the device is a key factor for me, I love the form factor.