GROUND RULES:
Who should keep reading:
Current owners of Triumph or perspective buys who are trying to cut through all the trolls, flame wars, useless and/or misleading information from the (many) other threads, to find out what or if anything was wrong with their phone, how to identify these problems and most importantly, how to make intelligent decisions on whether to return or exchange before the 30 days run out.
Who should stop now and go read a book instead:
People who have (or think they have) perfect phones and feels it’s necessary to defend the Triumph’s honor at any mentioning of a problem. People who believes everybody else is clueless therefore it’s necessary to advertise basic settings changes as cure-alls (i.e. enable “use wireless networks,” it will fix your GPS problems). please give others more credit than that. And last but not least, people who hate the T and thinks it’s just the worst phone ever made… you have no reason to stay here.
Still with me? Good…
I have personally owned two T’s. the first one had several problems that I ended up returning, the second one was much better but not problem free. I also have access to two other T’s owned by friends. Everything I post here are based on facts that I have personally observed, not second-hand info or hear-say.
** GPS problem:
First of all, Google Map does NOT depend on GPS. Being able to see your location on the map means NOTHING when it comes to GPS location. In order to test if you have a GPS problem you have to either use an app like GPS Test or start Google Navigation. All tests should be done outdoors under open sky and while you have a valid data connection (for A-GPS data download). The GPS should lock-in within 2 minutes or less (Google Navigation should start showing your real time location as a blue arrow and start giving you turn by turn instructions).
A few minutes after a gps lock, you should have a location accurate to within 15ft or less. If google nav consistently shows a visible blue circle (of any size) around your current location, then it is unable to give you an accurate location lock, it is a problem.
If you have any problem at all with GPS lock or location accuracy, your phone has a broken GPS. Take it back for an exchange! Do not listen to people saying that you could fix it by running some magical software or do a special gps dance. You are wasting your time. If it wasn’t broken in the first place then you would have no need for those “fixes.” My first phone had an almost unusable GPS, the replacement and both of my friend’s phones have no problem whatsoever. Using GPS Test app, I was able to clearly see how the satellite signal levels were 30-50% lower on the previous T when compared to my OV, while the replacement had levels that are comparable to the OV.
** Data disconnect and/or drop to 1x when GPS is turned on.
I did not notice this behavior on any of the 4 Triumph I tested on. GPS and wireless signal can not interfere with each other, so if this happens consistently and is making data connection unstable or GPS lock problematic then there’s most likely a hardware problem. the phone should be exchanged.
** Screen flicker, white out, color cast:
If your screen ever turns white completely, or has a VERY heavy color cast, the answer is obvious, get it exchanged. meanwhile, all Triumph’s screen have overall “cooler” color when compared to my V. there were slight variations between each phone but as long as it was not extreme (i.e. making white look blue and red look purple) it should not be considered a problem. Just make sure you have removed the top layer screen protector before making a judgement.
slight screen flicker while turning on/off the phone repeatedly might not be worth an exchange for that reason alone. My first phone and one of my friend’s phone had the flickers, while my replacement and the other friend’s phone did not. The slight flicker did not both me or my friends at all.
**screen protectors:
Yes, there are two screen protectors. No, there’s absolutely no reason to keep the top layer. The second layer is very well applied and I doubt it’s meant to be taken off. You will never be able to apply another protector as well as that. If you have screen sensitivity issues, I’d suggest exchanging the phone rather than taking off that second layer of protector. None of the 4 phones I tried had any sensitivity issue with the protector attached. If you had to take it off then your phone has a problem.
** visible touch screen sensor elements:
If you can see “dots” on the screen under normal use, you are seeing the sensor elements embedded in between glass players. You should NOT be able to see them in any way during normal use. Exchange the phone if you do. it was a known LCD panels manufacturing problem on some earlier phones (mostly HTC). None of the Triumph I have seen had that problem.
** Signal level:
All four of the Triumphs had lower signal dbm numbers when compared to my OV. However, with my borderline coverage (-105dbm at home and -110dbm in the office), I had not experienced any drop calls on the T. Data connections were marginal but no worse than the OV. Do not make any decision based on dBm numbers alone. dbm is a relative value and do not mean what a lot of people seemed to think it means. In any case, exchanging the phone is not going to help in any way.
** WIFI disconnect:
I have not run into this with Triumph however, I had similar issue running AOSP rom on my OV while having no problem with other roms. This is likely something caused by the combination of router and phone software. My suggestion would be to try as many different routers as you can also try router settings such as G vs N, WEP vs WPA, hidden vs broadcast… if you have same problem everywhere then by all means try an exchange, I doubt it would help however.
** Touch button in sensitivity:
This happens randomly on all the T I have tested. It is likely a software problem that will not be fixed by exchanging the phone.
** Camera clicking while focusing:
All 4 phones had slight clicking noise while focusing but none had trouble actually gaining a focus. Exchange if you can’t get it to focus at all. the clicking seems to be normal however.
** Camera color cast:
None of the phones I have tried had problem with “green/blue color cast in the middle of the screen” as some have reported. If you have already removed the green screen protector on the camera itself then you probably have a real problem and should exchange the phone. just check your expectations – cell phone cameras have cheap plastic little fish eye lenses. Don’t expect results like your Canon or Nikon.
** phone stops charging while on:
I noticed two things: 1. some micro-usb chargers such as the one that came with OV would at times refuse to charge while the phone was turned on. Unplugging a couple of times may fix it. I haven’t had problem with stock T charger or the charger that came with my BlackBerry. 2. The charger will shut off once the phone temperature reaches 42c. this is most noticeable while in a hot car with phone on the dashboard. This is normal and is the result of an (over)sensitive overcharge protection.
** light leakage around bottom edges:
All the phones I have tired had various degrees of light leakage. It is consistent with problems reported on other versions of the same phone released earlier. the leakage was only visible in relative darkness so personally I did not think it was worth worrying about.
** Mismatched MEID:
To check your phone’s MEID, go to settings-> about phone -> status. The MEID should be an 18 digit number matching the stickers on the box, outside of the battery door and behind the battery on the back of the phone. Both of my phones had mismatched MEID. The phone itself was showing a 17 digit number while the stickers all have 18 digit numbers. an 0 in the middle is missing on the phones. One person (VM rep?) in an earlier thread had said VM was aware that 3,000 phones had this MEID mismatch so it seemed to be a known problem.
Some people have reported trouble using Google Voice on phones with mis-matched MEID. I have not been able to verify that myself.
** software version 38 vs 39:
Both of my Triumphs had version 38 software. the previous one had horrible GPS and some screen flickering while the replacement did not. There were also some obvious software differences between the two phones, despite the same software version. The replacement phone camera default to 5mp, while the previous one default to VGA resolution. The previous phone gallery had four random pictures referencing some Chinese websites (seemed to be leftover web cache). These pictures were in the ROM and did not go away after hard reset. The replacement phone had an empty gallery. One of my friend’s Triumph came with v.39 software which also had some screen flickers.
By itself, the software version did not indicate a good or bad phone. test everything!
The main thing to keep in mind is that there are many reported problems, not all of them were all that crucial. Given the obvious inconsistencies in build quality, it is a real possibility that the exchange would turns out to be much worse than the original phone. you really have to look long and hard at each problem and make an educated decision for yourself. Meanwhile, there’s absolutely no reason to put up with major things like a broken LCD or gps or insensitive touch screen. Take it back to the store!
This list was put together over several days, mostly as notes to myself. So please excuse me if it rambles a bit. Let me know if there’s something else you would like me to check.
Thanks and good luck.
I never even realized the 2 screen protectors but sure enough, they are there. As far as the light issues at the bottom of the screen, I definitely see it on mine as well.
microphone is awful.. sounds like there is tape on it. i checked, there isn't.
Heading to exchange it.
awesome write up. thank you sir
Another issue I just found out Im having is with my bluetooth. I have a Jawbone Icon and the sound seems overloaded. When I connect my older motorola BT headset to it, it works fine. Strange indeed!
My 30 day return period ends this weekend so I have to make a decision. GPS is really the only problem I have, and it is intermittent. I was hoping a software fix would come out so i wouldn't have to worry about exchanging.
As far as my bluetooth issues with the sound overpowering, I actually just bit the bullet and bought the a MOTO BT today to see how it would work. No issues. Fishy...
my biggest problem is that i cant seem to be able to stream music properly in google music. does everyone have this problem or should i exchange?
I even had full bars yesterday, and it was barely sputtering out any music.
crxmax said:
my biggest problem is that i cant seem to be able to stream music properly in google music. does everyone have this problem or should i exchange?
I even had full bars yesterday, and it was barely sputtering out any music.
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Click to collapse
I doubt that is a hardware issue. Probably a result of VM's network. Try running a speed test app and see what kind of speeds you are getting. I prefer "Open Signal."
the speeds i got on all the tests were all drastically different. I say an average of about 350kbs...is that normal?
I have a Verizon Samsung Galaxy Nexus LTE, rooted running Android 4.0.2. I recently noticed (while playing Doodle Jump) that my accelerometer was slightly off. If I held the phone straight vertical (or laid it flat) the doodle would move to the left. In order to play properly I would have to lean the phone to the right to compensate. I tested this again with two different gyroscope apps. It's off by about 4 degrees (not terrible but enough to be obnoxious). I also used the in-app calibration option which fixed the problem, but only for that app. I re-calibrated my compass to no effect and did a factory reset to no effect. I don't know is this problem existed before I rooted as rooting was the first thing I did.
I'm unsure whether this is worth sending the phone back over (I can re-lock my boot loader if needed). Or if I did, would they even take it back for such a small issue? I've had the phone for about a month now. I would much prefer some sort of software fix. I understand that certain phones had global calibration options in the past. I have root access and am open to some hacking.
Any help is appreciated.
With all these smart people around here, nobody has any suggestions?
The Galaxy Nexus forum is this way:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1336
Yours wouldn't be the first with accelerometer issues.
A few people here and there have been starting to have this problem pop up- including me.
My phone was perfectly fine with absolutely no problems with the touch screen but about three days ago, my phone started acting weird.
At that time, I was running CM 5.1 nightly and then dirty flashed over to the latest. I thought that this was the problem and so I did a clean flash but still the problem was there.
Went back to the original CM nightly that I was previously on and problem is still there.
Tried many different ROMs but the problem is still there..
I can't type out a sentence without my phone failing to register a touch and sometimes registering rapid touches as one - the same problems before Synaptic released a 'fix' for this issue.
At this point, I don't really know what to do but it's aggravating that a phone can't do it's basic tasks such as type.
The phone seems really sluggish when I type - which I haven't encountered before this which slightly leads me to believe that input lag is the crux of the problem however, I can't say for certain.
Can anyone with more expertise help me with this?
Same issue
You_got_owned123 said:
A few people here and there have been starting to have this problem pop up- including me.
My phone was perfectly fine with absolutely no problems with the touch screen but about three days ago, my phone started acting weird.
At that time, I was running CM 5.1 nightly and then dirty flashed over to the latest. I thought that this was the problem and so I did a clean flash but still the problem was there.
Went back to the original CM nightly that I was previously on and problem is still there.
Tried many different ROMs but the problem is still there..
I can't type out a sentence without my phone failing to register a touch and sometimes registering rapid touches as one - the same problems before Synaptic released a 'fix' for this issue.
At this point, I don't really know what to do but it's aggravating that a phone can't do it's basic tasks such as type.
The phone seems really sluggish when I type - which I haven't encountered before this which slightly leads me to believe that input lag is the crux of the problem however, I can't say for certain.
Can anyone with more expertise help me with this?
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Click to collapse
Im having a similar problem. I cant type a single sentence without errors. It doesnt register the touch as well few times. Using a device is so sluggish.. hate it. Tried many roms with clean wipe but without any success. Would be nice if anyone could help with the above issues.
I have similar issues and I don't think it's a software issue - I have never flashed a ROM. I think it's hardware problem, probable the earthing suggested in this post:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/oneplus-one/general/fixing-ghost-touch-grounding-issue-hint-t2951000
There is an app that re-calibrates the touchscreen every time you turn it on, but it doesn't completely solve the problem for me and also prevents unlocking until it has completed, which is annoying. The fact that a re-calibration is needed to even achieve a little stability is consistent with an earthing problem.
If mine gets any worse, and I think it will, I'm going to investigate a warranty claim, but that sounds like a few weeks with no phone, which I can't tolerate.
hi, i'm experiencing the same problems. you can test this when registering 2 touches on the same Y axis (try with anyone of touch test apps).
I think that this is popping out to a lot of people in this moment because of the hot days kicking in. in fact, if your phone is cold (try to put in a fridge for 5 minutes) it will work perfectly, but when it will become hot again in your hands the touch will start to freak out again
What sucks is my phone was perfectly fine a few days ago and we've only had an increase of about 5 deg F over the week.
Occasionally the capacitive buttons don't register either.
Same thing here. Perfectly working screen, flashed 5.1 unofficial some weeks ago and no matter wich versión of cm or what kernel, randomly ghost touches happens.
Now with official 5.1 and ak 200 works better, but it's still there. There must be some kind of firmware/software problem, It's too curious that this issue begin to happend to many people at the same time.
My bro has the same problem, some days after flasing CM12S the screen doesn't feel as responsive anymore.
The screen isn't able to handle multiple touches anymore what makes typing really annoying, scrolling through settings also goes really slow.
Tried flashing latest 12.1 nightly but I don't think any ROM will be able to fix it.
No idea what caused it and if there is a way to fix it.
ZuLa said:
Same thing here. Perfectly working screen, flashed 5.1 unofficial some weeks ago and no matter wich versión of cm or what kernel, randomly ghost touches happens.
Now with official 5.1 and ak 200 works better, but it's still there. There must be some kind of firmware/software problem, It's too curious that this issue begin to happend to many people at the same time.
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This is exactly what happened to me and it seems like it happened to a good number of people around the same time. Either 1)It's a huge coincidence 2)OnePlus rigged our phones to go haywire around this time or 3)Something in one of the nightlys got messed up for a few people however like you said, flashing new roms for kernels doesn't help anymore which makes me want to do a complete wipe - Internal data included.
Same issue
I was sure it's the heat some time back but then this touchscreen fixer app in the Themes and Apps section is actually helping. That makes me wonder if its the firmware, coz the problem only kicked off after the CM12.1 update. A few of my classmates purchased the OPO at the same time as I did and they dont have this issue (they didnt go to CM12.1).
Any tips on what firmware/ROM to revert to?
Edit: I also flashed the Oxygen OS firmware.
It's not a change in the firmware, mine did it spontaneously. It's hardware. OnePlus will do everything they can to spin a software story and indeed it will often be possible to partially mitigate in software, but ultimately everyone with this problem should be getting a replacement. That could be a lot of people.
patp said:
It's not a change in the firmware, mine did it spontaneously. It's hardware. OnePlus will do everything they can to spin a software story and indeed it will often be possible to partially mitigate in software, but ultimately everyone with this problem should be getting a replacement. That could be a lot of people.
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I'd love to see how you jumped to such a definite conclusion. I live in a warm climate to begin with, temperatures are actually lower now than they were a month and a half ago, and the CPU of my OPO has definitely risen above the 41-45 Celcius range that people seem to quote for this current wave of issues (and I have corroborated with my own testing). However, if I go to the recovery, the touchscreen seems to have normal responsiveness, regardless of the CPU temperature. Unless it was a built in hardware malfunction set for a specific moment, the probability of a sample, even of this size, where a series of individuals can all see the exact same lineup of hardware-based issues occurring at the same time, is too ugly for me to try and imagine calculating. But I would fare to bet it isn't high.
However, if a set of users are all changing their software as new versions and builds come out, just as the release occurs... At least then you have a series of events occurring all at the same time. Not causation, but at least there's a stronger correlation than "it's warming up so now we see the hardware defects".
The temperature range this "defect" is being attributed to can be reached quite easily in normal use in temperate areas, but even in colder climates, it should be simple to reach such temperatures if the phone isn't underclocked, as the phone is set to charge, or even if the phone is running a software update of some kind, and countless other things.
TL;DR - Don't jump to conclusions that fast, weather changes aren't a strong correlation.
hyshion said:
I'd love to see how you jumped to such a definite conclusion. I live in a warm climate to begin with, temperatures are actually lower now than they were a month and a half ago, and the CPU of my OPO has definitely risen above the 41-45 Celcius range that people seem to quote for this current wave of issues (and I have corroborated with my own testing). However, if I go to the recovery, the touchscreen seems to have normal responsiveness, regardless of the CPU temperature. Unless it was a built in hardware malfunction set for a specific moment, the probability of a sample, even of this size, where a series of individuals can all see the exact same lineup of hardware-based issues occurring at the same time, is too ugly for me to try and imagine calculating. But I would fare to bet it isn't high.
However, if a set of users are all changing their software as new versions and builds come out, just as the release occurs... At least then you have a series of events occurring all at the same time. Not causation, but at least there's a stronger correlation than "it's warming up so now we see the hardware defects".
The temperature range this "defect" is being attributed to can be reached quite easily in normal use in temperate areas, but even in colder climates, it should be simple to reach such temperatures if the phone isn't underclocked, as the phone is set to charge, or even if the phone is running a software update of some kind, and countless other things.
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The outside temperature being warm would keep the screen hot for a prolonged period of time as compared to the phone heating while charging or intense usage. However, your recovery argument is spot on! The touch works flawlessly in recovery!
goldengargoyle said:
The outside temperature being warm would keep the screen hot for a prolonged period of time as compared to the phone heating while charging or intense usage. However, your recovery argument is spot on! The touch works flawlessly in recovery!
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Well I guess it's good that it's not hardware damage.
Has anyone tried going back to android 4.x to see if it helps- if it really is software?
Surprised there hasn't been more people experiencing this issue given the number of people going to android 5.x
I have the same frustrating issue
Same here, works fine in recovery. Also had this issue arise after the first bout of touch issues: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoFYcFawTI4&feature=youtu.be
(clearing cache seems to alleviate that particular problem)
I think it's a software issue. I mean possibly there is hardware problems too but mine started appearing only after I installed the 5.1 update... also some things for me feel like a software issue for example when scrolling instagram back up to the top. as soon as it gets to the top it bounces back down again.. seems like software problem to me.
This is definitely a hardware issue. My phone was working perfectly. Until I went on a 5 days trip and used it for navigation, and went very hot. Up until then I was on the same CM12 rom for weeks without a problem. Since then, I've flashed many roms and the problem persists. It's definitely a hardware problem. For me it occurs whenever the phone runs a little bit hot. Practically all the time when I'm on 3G. When the phone has been in my pocket with 3G on, it's almost impossible to unlock it when I try to use it.
I contacted Oneplus a week ago and I still try to get them to RMA the phone. They've sent me all sorts of crap emails, I wiped the phone and now they ask me to shoot a video to showcase the problem. This company has the worst customer service you can find. As much as I like the pricing, I won't be bothered again with their devices. I only hope they'll RMA it otherwise I'll open it myself and try to fix the grounding issue. There is a detailed how to which also explains what's the problem.
I always had it but it was so minim that maybe couple of times a day weren't that big problem!
Just yesterday and today the issue is now intolerable! I removed the screen protector and used the stock lollipop keyboard (bcz swiftkey is kinda slower the issue was there more).
It's still very annoying and I can't type easily! I had to remove flow/swype feature to minimize it further!
Seriously considering buying another phone although I wanted to keep it for a year at least! But the hate is growing on me...
HAha exact same problem here happening since 3days.
I was on Euphoria 29/3 build. I flashed ak kernel, after reboot i couldn't type properly anymore. I was like damn, maybe its bad kernel setting or so. Didn't help.
Cleanflashed 3 roms since then, didn't solve anything. All tho touch works fine in twrp for me. So im really clueless. Swiping does seem to work better for some unknown reason to me!
The ghost swipes while typing is driving me crazy. Thinking of going back to 5.0.2 to see if that helps. Do I need to flash an old firmware to go back to a previous Android version
Description of the problem:
This happens several times in a day, but I have had a few days when this did not happen. When waking the phone it becomes super slow, like 1-2 frames per second slow. After rebooting- the recovery is just as slow. Sometimes the view is moved vertically up, the top part that is moved outside of screen and is drawn ant the bottom. Sometimes the image flickers. I have not noticed any pattern what stops this behaviour, it is just over after some time (5s to 2 hours).
What I have tred with no success:
Rebooting, clearing cache, factory reset, bringing the phone to full stock (http://forum.xda-developers.com/oneplus-one/general/tool-oneplus-one-return-to-stock-t2970390), updating to latest version, several ROMs and different kernels with each of them. After flashing any new rom the phone used to work fine for a day or two, then the stutter reapeared. Tried it without installing any apps- same problems.
I had to replace the cracked screen and the camera that didn't focus to far objects. The touchscreen ribbon is now insulated from the metal LCD back since some people suggested this might be the reason for touchscreen responsiveness issues.
It seems that the processes work normally, but the view on the screen is updated slowly.
What made the problem less bad:
I had applied a glass screen protector. Removing it increased the time between slowdowns.
Since I bought the phone secondhand and had tinkered with it I cannot get it replaced.
I have tried everything I could, now I need your help
Any suggestions?
A video to visualize the issue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h8z06xnlqk8
Noone? No ideas?
Hi,
Sounds like a Hardware issue to me.The board ist mostly bad soldered. It can happen sometimes in the factory(not only at OnePlus, Samsung, HTC too), even if they test the devices before shipping.
Background: We had some germans around here had the same issue, they got a new replacment by OnePlus, OPO support told the customers that the hardware was faulty.
Can u afford another Mainboard for the OPO ? That will fix that issues for sure.
Well that makes sense I'll poke around to see if I can get one for as little as possible. So far I'd expect to spend ~250$ and that is just bad business
no worrys, u dont need to spent that much.check aliexpress or if your lucky buy a dropped OnePlus One on eBay. One with working mainboard. It will cost around 30-50% less than a single Mainboard would Sounds ridiculous but its true.