Trip down memory lane: how was/is YOUR Nokia 8 experience? - Nokia 8 Guides, News, & Discussion

If there is a soul from HMD-Global/Nokia reading this forum, you, XDA fellow may have, just as I'm having now, a moment to share your thoughts and experiences with this sometimes loved sometimes hated device...
First step was acquiring the phone, ever since I heard the old and famous Nokia was making a comeback I couldn't wait to grab my own piece of the fun but damn that was hard to get!
Since the holder of the manufacturing rights would not then, and still not to this date, sell it in this part of the globe (Brazil to be exact) I had to handle it somehow.
Just out of nothing in March 2018 I saw a friend on vacation in Sweden, posting pics on social media bragging about the weather there. That was my chance!
So I sent him the money to buy two phones, one blue(mine) another silver(for my father) and after a few days I had them. In my hands. The freaking legendary phone resurfaced!
Well that was my first thought after taking it from the brand new box.. Booted it for the first time and there was the anywhere knowable startup tone from some twenty years ago again!
Got an Oreo 8.0 stock version but some bugs too, like the ever unable to maintain connection Bluetooth or the horrible ghosted/blurred LCD if used above 20% brightness.
No problem I thought, just a few hours driving it stock it was time to really make it my own! Let's get down to XDA!
Bam, almost nothing was available at the time because HMD had shipped it with a locked bootloader! Yay a piece of confidence in it was lost that day..
But there was this dude, whose name its written within the stars, he was asking for IMEI's to FREELY calculate the unlock keys with a method that he probably devised with knowledge obtained by @hikari_calyx
I knew that was a shady thing around here (still is! don't post your IMEI online!) but hey that was the only option available back then.
After a couple of hours I got the response and followed the instructions and that was it, the blue one was unlocked! I hurried and asked my father to send me his IMEI so I could unlock his silver TA-1004 (he never had the time to, more on that later) and again after a few moments came in the second unlock key. A GOOD SIX MONTHS BEFORE THE OEM. FREE. TIMES TWO. Can you believe it?
Now that I had the bootloader unlocked the fun was about to begin or so I thought.. Back then and even now not a single developer released a fullblown custom rom for the Nokia 8. Well not even an pached up customized version of the original.
All of that may be because of the intended audience the OEM expected to have, white collar executives wanting a secure and steady device. HMD sacrificed a much broader userbase on this premise. They held back the official bootloader unlock method for ages and never properly released the source code for it.
Then a few days after the unofficial unlock in early April @2WildFirE released the first working TWRP! That was great because I just learned about the new A/B partition method and briefly read about Magisk's systemless root.
That was it, no custom rom but I could make it the way I wanted using GravityBox and a whole bunch of Magisk and Xposed modules!
The blue one went on and i kept it upgraded on all security patches until December 2018 because on January 2019 Pie 9.0 was brutally updated with little to no warning and after the reboot there was no root and everything else that came with it.
There was no possible way to downgrade and without root no way to fully back it up. Just saved the most important things and rolled back to 8.0 then gradually one by one installed the monthly security patches.
Did I mention that for each month when you had an security patch available you'd have to flash a new patched by yourself boot image or the wifi would not work? For a couple of months you had to do it by hand, but @bidhata was making it easier by sharing pre-rooted images!
There was no official Xposed or even GravityBox available for Pie then so I would stick to the last December 8.1 patch.
To this day the blue TA-1004 is in one single piece without much damage because I'm generally careful with my phones but I couldn't tell the same about the silver one because its dormant in many pieces in a box after my old man dropped it off the counter with the back of the phone on hard concrete. The thing blew in multiple shards of glass, never to be fixed because of the stratospheric prices for a dubious LCD replacement.
It sits there, hoping to live again with its almost new battery or maybe its mainboard on the blue one, that blue Nokia 8 that stays now in my office desk even after almost two years of constant charging cycles is beginning to show up signs of wear, staying off the charger no more than 4 to 5 hours with moderate use as a wifi SIP phone only.
From time to time I check the Nokia 8 forum to see if there is some hope, have noticed that @THMSP has achieved an awesome method (with a great name btw) to use project treble roms but I had it enough already to keep trying banging my head into it.
Since last November I bought a Xiaomi Mi 9 (now updated with a custom rom without all of that "official" embedded crappy datamining bloatware) that I effortlessly typed this from and even with the two weeks time waiting to unlock it, the rooting experience and the multitude of available custom roms made the blue Nokia 8 dull as a brick phone of the past.
So well this is my rant doubling as an warning to all of you manufacturers and OEMs over there. The moral of all this is, if you want your pretty little phone to be held in grace DO release it unlocked or with a possible way to unlock and provide working source code just as all the big players do.
Or else you may end up with a four/five (or how many?) camera phone with the same processor from the past year's flagship that has not achieved desired selling numbers, that even with the price drops stays on storage or display at stores or worse, be know to be the one with a yellow BANANA(!) phone design repurposed from a 1990's era.

Indeed, remembering the Nokia N900 as the holy grail. A half ready phone, it was a joy to use anyway, got a large dev boost of the users due open source and how easy it was to adopt.
And I was looking forward to this too with Zeiss optics and a neat price. But it didn't turn out that way, I have to agree, HMD has done everything possible for me to keep away from them.
The factory locked bootloader is one thing, sure if it works maybe a good alternative to iPhone's but nay. If you don't provide security updates day 1 after a a zero day. It makes no sense to slow thing down. The user experience is quite mediocre compared to any LineageOS or nexus/pixel phone.
GPS Compass bug was there several months, got me lost in Brussels. Bluetooth is yet to date vulnerable (CVE-2020-0022).
And the short lifetime of regular updates just another reason to stay away. Who wants to spend hard earned bucks on something that is going to live 23months after it's launchdate, not after 20-6 months after you got it in store? . If they only released proper buildable source code and let the for example LineageOS take this further it surely would have been something to consider.
Right now, HMD is drilling it's own hole. Wondering why the sales figures are going down. Every manufacturer that has seen their glory days keep releasing 23 different models each year. It's impossible to keep them maintained.
My next is probably a china phone of some sort with LineageOS support or even an iPhone, atleast that way I know I will get updates for years to come. I refuse to buy a new wear and tear phone every 12 months, just madness.
Nokia had is opportunity to make something good, and surely they hardware is still alive, probably best in class when it comes to reability. But sadly the company behind it doesn't have any pride left to give their products proper/workable source code or updates.

Related

Moto X Style Official Nougat Update delayed till May.

Moto germany , confirmed the delay in update scheme due to some last minute issues.
http://m.gsmarena.com/motorola_delays_nougat_update_in_germany-news-23150.php
Very disappointed as the phone is almost two years old but no major update was done. Google may release Android 8.0 by May.
ntkhoa said:
Very disappointed as the phone is almost two years old but no major update was done. Google may release Android 8.0 by May.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
5.1.1 to 6.0 wasn't a major update? I am not thrilled with the delay, but let's not forget how quickly the MXPE received Marshmallow. The Z line is their primary focus now, that's how it goes!
cool, only 3 months more to get already outdated 7.0 thanks lenovo
iks8 said:
cool, only 3 months more to get already outdated 7.0 thanks lenovo
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I know I love this phone but moving on to the OPO 3T because of this reason
zapty said:
due to some last minute issues. marketing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Fixed that for you.
So typical for moto. They're going to wait for us to do all the hardwork for them, and then roll out an update right around the time that its no longer needed by us.
As long as lineage keeps updating the phone I will use it until the phone dies but this will definitely be my last Moto phone.
Everyone is all pissed but Google just ended support at 2 years sharp on the Nexus 6 and Nexus 9. The manufacturers are still in a 2 year support paradigm related to contracts.
This is largely why I went to AICP with 7.1.1 and on-time monthly Android security updates. Plus, a lot more functionality and customization. The same was true with LiquidSmooth when Samsung stopped supporting the Galaxy S3 before. Every device ceases to be supported at some point. That's why we hang out here and work together to extend the life of our favorite hardware. I, too, and disappointed that Lenovo dropped meaningful support for the Pure 2015 last year, but AICP has gotten me over the sting.
I am betting Google's announcement about killing the Google now launcher factors into this. OEMs now have to build their own launcher
We could get 7.1.2 directly also... We never know what's gonna happen anyways but now I'm pissed off by this and I'm surely going to buy nokia phone next time... This is such a disgrace...
I would like to use linageos but rom without fully working moto display is not for me, I bought this phone for this function and stereo speakers. Im ok with android 6, I dont feel loosing some functionality.
Tapatapatap Moto X Style
gemtin92 said:
I would like to use linageos but rom without fully working moto display is not for me, I bought this phone for this function and stereo speakers. Im ok with android 6, I dont feel loosing some functionality.
Tapatapatap Moto X Style
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
what is not working in lineage? what do you mean "not fully working moto display"?
I am at same situation, would like to use Lineage instead of orig. rom. thx
IMO the guy who has regularly said he doesn't think we'll ever get Nougat will be vindicated. The MXPE has been a commercial failure and retailers regularly have it on fire sale for $250 or less - they can't get rid of them. There's almost no chance Lenovo will go out of their way to continue spending man hours on the update this spring if they're "having problems" (more likely, they never started working on an update to begin with).
Purchasing this phone is certainly one of my bigger electronics regrets. If I could go back in time, I'd pony up the extra $100 for a 6P, no question. Now the price differential between a used MXPE and 6P is even bigger than that, which says a lot.
Commercial failure perhaps but that is Lenovo's fault. They incorrectly thought that the Moto name meant they had no need to advertise.
Won't wait. Will buy Mate 9
ominousnimbus said:
IMO the guy who has regularly said he doesn't think we'll ever get Nougat will be vindicated. The MXPE has been a commercial failure and retailers regularly have it on fire sale for $250 or less - they can't get rid of them. There's almost no chance Lenovo will go out of their way to continue spending man hours on the update this spring if they're "having problems" (more likely, they never started working on an update to begin with).
Purchasing this phone is certainly one of my bigger electronics regrets. If I could go back in time, I'd pony up the extra $100 for a 6P, no question. Now the price differential between a used MXPE and 6P is even bigger than that, which says a lot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's always so interesting to see different peoples opinions.
I'm bought the 6P when it came out. It was a great phone, notice I said was. If you hit the XDA forums you will see loads of; bootloop of death, battery issues. It seems the battery is wearing prematurely and causing non repairable failures. This is the majority opinion of the reason for the failure, but again is only opinion. I kept my phone pristine and a few weeks ago got the dreaded BLOD. Huawei did send me a refurbished phone back; it was slightly dinged, but I sent them a 32gb and they sent me a 128gb back. They didn't offer a loaner, so I picked up a MXPE and have to say I like it so much when I got my 6P back and I've not bothered to do much with it.
jackpollard said:
It's always so interesting to see different peoples opinions.
I'm bought the 6P when it came out. It was a great phone, notice I said was. If you hit the XDA forums you will see loads of; bootloop of death, battery issues. It seems the battery is wearing prematurely and causing non repairable failures. This is the majority opinion of the reason for the failure, but again is only opinion. I kept my phone pristine and a few weeks ago got the dreaded BLOD. Huawei did send me a refurbished phone back; it was slightly dinged, but I sent them a 32gb and they sent me a 128gb back. They didn't offer a loaner, so I picked up a MXPE and have to say I like it so much when I got my 6P back and I've not bothered to do much with it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, this may be a case of "the grass is always greener" for me. I wasn't aware of widespread 6P issues, but a bit of research indicates they've sprung up over the past few months.
On paper, the 6P is a slightly faster version of the MXPE (plus fingerprint sensor) that still gets regular updates, whereas the MXPE was more or less abandoned in the software department within 6 months of release. The microSD slot was a big factor that swayed me at the time of purchase, but if I'd known how quickly support would be abandoned vs. 2+ years of continuous updates (even monthly security patches) on the 6P, it wouldn't have been enough.
Of course, if you end up with a bricked paperweight 6P, superior software support isn't going to do you much good. Sorry to hear about your experience.
I will add this: the icing on the cake with Lenovo's non-support is that they void your warranty for unlocking the bootloader and trying to stay up-to-date using custom ROMs. Given that I'm already on my second (RMA) MXPE, I don't trust the hardware enough to lose the warranty, so I'm stuck on Marshmallow forever most likely.
ominousnimbus said:
Well, this may be a case of "the grass is always greener" for me. I wasn't aware of widespread 6P issues, but a bit of research indicates they've sprung up over the past few months.
On paper, the 6P is a slightly faster version of the MXPE (plus fingerprint sensor) that still gets regular updates, whereas the MXPE was more or less abandoned in the software department within 6 months of release. The microSD slot was a big factor that swayed me at the time of purchase, but if I'd known how quickly support would be abandoned vs. 2+ years of continuous updates (even monthly security patches) on the 6P, it wouldn't have been enough.
Of course, if you end up with a bricked paperweight 6P, superior software support isn't going to do you much good. Sorry to hear about your experience.
I will add this: the icing on the cake with Lenovo's non-support is that they void your warranty for unlocking the bootloader and trying to stay up-to-date using custom ROMs. Given that I'm already on my second (RMA) MXPE, I don't trust the hardware enough to lose the warranty, so I'm stuck on Marshmallow forever most likely.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the well stated response.
I've not been a fan of Lenovo since the Superfish malware and the rest of the crap they install became public knowledge. But I kind of hoped they would of left Motorola somewhat autonomous but I see they did not. The lack of promised updates is inexcusable, it's a lie plain and simple. The whole bootloader thing, while I personally think is wrong, its my damn phone let me do what I want, at least they tell you up front and don't make you guess.
While not nearly as egregious the fact Google discontinued the whole Nexus line and has Pixel exclusive is somewhat annoying. I can almost understand it from a business standpoint, but you could of at least threw the Nexus crowd a crumb and kept say the unlimited photo thing as a Pixel exclusive and give us the Pixel experience. Honestly, the last rom I was running was 100% N and Pixel modded and I'm OK with MM and the Moto voice is pretty good. I did read rumor of N in May for the MXPE, so I hope thats true.
Some guy is on his 5th rma for his 6P! I'm not sure if he is throwing them out the window, but that's pretty sad.
I suppose bottom line is you can't go wrong with either, they both have pros and cons.
I bought this phone 15 months ago for 4 main reasons :
Larger secreen than my previous phone
stereo front-facing speakers
design
low price
During that time it hasn't given me any problems and has done everything I wanted from it.
So, OK, it hasn't got the very latest Android "upgrade", but if I was really that bothered I'd unlock the bootloader and install a custom ROM. (I'm out of warranty anyway). But why? The phone works perfectly fine.
To put this into context, I bought a £35,000 car last September. The 2017 models will now get Apple Carplay & Android Auto - but this will not be retro rolled out to my car.
And you guys are pissed off at no updates for a $300 smartphone?

A Journey - From Note 4 to the LG US996

Note 4 Story
Why this thread? Short background - I am building a '61 Chevy Bubbletop, and have a thread in a Chevy fourm that I have been posting pics, etc. Have had a lot of interest and helpful feedback. I thought it would be fun, and maybe helpful to some (maybe even me), so here goes.
I will have the phone in hand Monday. So first, background on my Note 4, and what I'm hoping to experience with the V20.
I have come to the point that I prefer to not install ROMs. I find that typically, no matter how great and stable everyone says a ROM is, it always has some issue of some kind. (Of course even stock ones do to).
So I went a long time w/o rooting or applying a ROM. I finally just had to have root. So I sold my AT&T Note 4 (couldn't root it), and purchased a T-Mobile Note 4 which could be rooted. I rooted it and used like that for quite a while.
I am one that uses a LOT of apps. (The phone is to use, no?) And with that comes more memory use, and lag. The phone got so laggy I just had to try a ROM. I tried 2-3 with varying success. I finally tried Maximum Overdrive's ROM for the Note 4 (he is now working on a ROM for the V20).
It was like a different phone. Fairly fast, not near as much lag. It has allowed me to extend the life of the phone over the past year. In fact, it works well enough that I wonder how smart I am spending several hundred dollars for a new phone.
So why the new phone? I moved to Florida a year and half ago, and AT&T's data here sucks ripe lemons. I'm going to move to Verizon. (My daughter has them, and we have compared speeds etc., and Verizon is much better here).
Choosing the V20
It has been a few months that I have been on the watch for my next phone. I won't bore you with the long story of that...just a few details.
One of my 'must haves' for the next phone was to have 6GB of memory...due to my high application load. Over time my highest priority switch from 6GB of memory to capability to use a phone on both GSM and CDMA (read that AT&T/Verizon) networks. That way I can tergiversate regarding carriers.
So, some of my top phone choices dropped off the list. In fact, pretty much all of them except for the US996.
Concerns
I do have a few concerns about the V20 that I hope will be alleviated quickly:
Battery - I've been reading posts regarding battery and it does not sound good. Since moving to the Max Overdrive ROM on the Note 4, my battery is unbelievable. I'd hate to go downhill with this phone. This may be something that necessiates rooting.
Camera Lens - I'm sure everyone knows why this is a concern
Performance - I read, for the most part, that this phone performs well. But I also read a lot of complaints about LAG. Ugh...my high app use may make this a likely scenario for me
Camera - I see some complaints about low light pics. But I've seen a lot of praise for the camera as well
Initial Plans
Once I get all apps installed, and data imported/restored for those that need it, I plan to use it stock for at least 30 days and see how it goes. Depending on how it goes, especially related to the concerns above, I'll either keep it and move forward, or return it.
I'll start out with it on AT&T. May hold off moving to Verizon until I pass the 30 day return availablility.
Rooting
I would really like to root the phone. But, as that the only way to unlock the bootloader is via the LG site for this phone, I don't know if I will or not...at least this early with the phone. Why does that make a difference? Will lose warranty, as they indicate that on the LG site where you go to get it unlocked.
Apply Rom?
Given that there is a Maximum Overdrive rom for the V20, you'd think I would want to put that on. Actually, this is true...but he is only making one for the 918, as that is the phone he has. So, I will miss out on that honey.
I have read some positive info on a couple others out there, but do see constant issues, even with just rooting. It's not near as smooth as a Samsung (I base that opinion on the issues I see here vs. have experienced with the Samsung). So, I'm skittish about doing anything to it. Given the 996 unlocking flags the phone as out of warranty, I fear that a bricked phone will be a several hundred dollar loss.
Summary
So, looking forward to getting the phone and seeing how it goes, and having fun communicating here about the journey.
ewingr said:
Note 4 Story
Why this thread? Short background - I am building a '61 Chevy Bubbletop, and have a thread in a Chevy fourm that I have been posting pics, etc. Have had a lot of interest and helpful feedback. I thought it would be fun, and maybe helpful to some (maybe even me), so here goes.
I will have the phone in hand Monday. So first, background on my Note 4, and what I'm hoping to experience with the V20.
I have come to the point that I prefer to not install ROMs. I find that typically, no matter how great and stable everyone says a ROM is, it always has some issue of some kind. (Of course even stock ones do to).
So I went a long time w/o rooting or applying a ROM. I finally just had to have root. So I sold my AT&T Note 4 (couldn't root it), and purchased a T-Mobile Note 4 which could be rooted. I rooted it and used like that for quite a while.
I am one that uses a LOT of apps. (The phone is to use, no?) And with that comes more memory use, and lag. The phone got so laggy I just had to try a ROM. I tried 2-3 with varying success. I finally tried Maximum Overdrive's ROM for the Note 4 (he is now working on a ROM for the V20).
It was like a different phone. Fairly fast, not near as much lag. It has allowed me to extend the life of the phone over the past year. In fact, it works well enough that I wonder how smart I am spending several hundred dollars for a new phone.
So why the new phone? I moved to Florida a year and half ago, and AT&T's data here sucks ripe lemons. I'm going to move to Verizon. (My daughter has them, and we have compared speeds etc., and Verizon is much better here).
Choosing the V20
It has been a few months that I have been on the watch for my next phone. I won't bore you with the long story of that...just a few details.
One of my 'must haves' for the next phone was to have 6GB of memory...due to my high application load. Over time my highest priority switch from 6GB of memory to capability to use a phone on both GSM and CDMA (read that AT&T/Verizon) networks. That way I can tergiversate regarding carriers.
So, some of my top phone choices dropped off the list. In fact, pretty much all of them except for the US996.
Concerns
I do have a few concerns about the V20 that I hope will be alleviated quickly:
Battery - I've been reading posts regarding battery and it does not sound good. Since moving to the Max Overdrive ROM on the Note 4, my battery is unbelievable. I'd hate to go downhill with this phone. This may be something that necessiates rooting.
Camera Lens - I'm sure everyone knows why this is a concern
Performance - I read, for the most part, that this phone performs well. But I also read a lot of complaints about LAG. Ugh...my high app use may make this a likely scenario for me
Camera - I see some complaints about low light pics. But I've seen a lot of praise for the camera as well
Initial Plans
Once I get all apps installed, and data imported/restored for those that need it, I plan to use it stock for at least 30 days and see how it goes. Depending on how it goes, especially related to the concerns above, I'll either keep it and move forward, or return it.
I'll start out with it on AT&T. May hold off moving to Verizon until I pass the 30 day return availablility.
Rooting
I would really like to root the phone. But, as that the only way to unlock the bootloader is via the LG site for this phone, I don't know if I will or not...at least this early with the phone. Why does that make a difference? Will lose warranty, as they indicate that on the LG site where you go to get it unlocked.
Apply Rom?
Given that there is a Maximum Overdrive rom for the V20, you'd think I would want to put that on. Actually, this is true...but he is only making one for the 918, as that is the phone he has. So, I will miss out on that honey.
I have read some positive info on a couple others out there, but do see constant issues, even with just rooting. It's not near as smooth as a Samsung (I base that opinion on the issues I see here vs. have experienced with the Samsung). So, I'm skittish about doing anything to it. Given the 996 unlocking flags the phone as out of warranty, I fear that a bricked phone will be a several hundred dollar loss.
Summary
So, looking forward to getting the phone and seeing how it goes, and having fun communicating here about the journey.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
just so you know att only has a 14 day return policy
jerrycoffman45 said:
just so you know att only has a 14 day return policy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know. I purchased from B&H Photo. Besides. AT&T doesn't sell the 996, I don't think.
But thanks for the warning. Had I purchase it from them, and expected 30 days, it would have been a pain to learn the hard way that I can't return it if I decide to.
I had the Note 3, 4 then 7 and this phone is larger than all 3. I just recently switched from Sprint and traded in my s7 edge for the V20 and I am happy so far. I purchased a OtterBox Defender case for the phone and with it installed I no longer have any worries of the camera glass, the case is very solid. Plus I left the factory plastic on the camera which people say will help if the phone was to be dropped.
Good luck!
I had been anxiously awaiting the Note 7. At the time 6GB memory was the top of my 'must have' list. So, when it came with 4GB, I was disappointed and decided to watch for a while. Then we know what happened.
I've actually been very interested in chasing some of the better priced competitors, such as Axon 7 or OnePlus 3t. But both the cameras were rated poorly, and then are GSM only.
But, I'm getting tired of these $800 prices. Rumor now is 1K for the Samsung 8.
I ended up purchasing an open box V20 from B&H, has full factory warranty. Got it for 675, no tax, no shipping.
ON the case, I have been using a Bestbuy PLatinum case, which comes with a belt clipped holster, and a kickstand in the case itself. Been great for me. Coming from IT and needing the phone on my at all times, and not wanting to fight the pocket, I used that.
Turns out it is made by Seido, and they have the same for the V20. It arrived from Amazon today. I'll add some pics when I get the phone and get it set up.
This story will continue. Hopefully it will be a pleasant one.
ewingr said:
Note 4 Story
Why this thread? Short background - I am building a '61 Chevy Bubbletop, and have a thread in a Chevy fourm that I have been posting pics, etc. Have had a lot of interest and helpful feedback. I thought it would be fun, and maybe helpful to some (maybe even me), so here goes.
I will have the phone in hand Monday. So first, background on my Note 4, and what I'm hoping to experience with the V20.
I have come to the point that I prefer to not install ROMs. I find that typically, no matter how great and stable everyone says a ROM is, it always has some issue of some kind. (Of course even stock ones do to).
So I went a long time w/o rooting or applying a ROM. I finally just had to have root. So I sold my AT&T Note 4 (couldn't root it), and purchased a T-Mobile Note 4 which could be rooted. I rooted it and used like that for quite a while.
I am one that uses a LOT of apps. (The phone is to use, no?) And with that comes more memory use, and lag. The phone got so laggy I just had to try a ROM. I tried 2-3 with varying success. I finally tried Maximum Overdrive's ROM for the Note 4 (he is now working on a ROM for the V20).
It was like a different phone. Fairly fast, not near as much lag. It has allowed me to extend the life of the phone over the past year. In fact, it works well enough that I wonder how smart I am spending several hundred dollars for a new phone.
So why the new phone? I moved to Florida a year and half ago, and AT&T's data here sucks ripe lemons. I'm going to move to Verizon. (My daughter has them, and we have compared speeds etc., and Verizon is much better here).
Choosing the V20
It has been a few months that I have been on the watch for my next phone. I won't bore you with the long story of that...just a few details.
One of my 'must haves' for the next phone was to have 6GB of memory...due to my high application load. Over time my highest priority switch from 6GB of memory to capability to use a phone on both GSM and CDMA (read that AT&T/Verizon) networks. That way I can tergiversate regarding carriers.
So, some of my top phone choices dropped off the list. In fact, pretty much all of them except for the US996.
Concerns
I do have a few concerns about the V20 that I hope will be alleviated quickly:
Battery - I've been reading posts regarding battery and it does not sound good. Since moving to the Max Overdrive ROM on the Note 4, my battery is unbelievable. I'd hate to go downhill with this phone. This may be something that necessiates rooting.
Camera Lens - I'm sure everyone knows why this is a concern
Performance - I read, for the most part, that this phone performs well. But I also read a lot of complaints about LAG. Ugh...my high app use may make this a likely scenario for me
Camera - I see some complaints about low light pics. But I've seen a lot of praise for the camera as well
Initial Plans
Once I get all apps installed, and data imported/restored for those that need it, I plan to use it stock for at least 30 days and see how it goes. Depending on how it goes, especially related to the concerns above, I'll either keep it and move forward, or return it.
I'll start out with it on AT&T. May hold off moving to Verizon until I pass the 30 day return availablility.
Rooting
I would really like to root the phone. But, as that the only way to unlock the bootloader is via the LG site for this phone, I don't know if I will or not...at least this early with the phone. Why does that make a difference? Will lose warranty, as they indicate that on the LG site where you go to get it unlocked.
Apply Rom?
Given that there is a Maximum Overdrive rom for the V20, you'd think I would want to put that on. Actually, this is true...but he is only making one for the 918, as that is the phone he has. So, I will miss out on that honey.
I have read some positive info on a couple others out there, but do see constant issues, even with just rooting. It's not near as smooth as a Samsung (I base that opinion on the issues I see here vs. have experienced with the Samsung). So, I'm skittish about doing anything to it. Given the 996 unlocking flags the phone as out of warranty, I fear that a bricked phone will be a several hundred dollar loss.
Summary
So, looking forward to getting the phone and seeing how it goes, and having fun communicating here about the journey.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
About Battery>> Remember that a) you will be dealing with a phone with IPS screen instead of AMOLED (this has a huge impact on the battery). b)the amount of apps that you have (specially those that requires to sync in the background are often part of the issue of battery drainage (my v20 used to last up to 7+ or 8+ with screen on with just about 7 user apps and the rest system apps, now i have 85 user apps + the system apps which make my phone last about 5+ hours screen on). On the other hand, The Doze mode of this phone is INSANE!!!! OUTSTANDING! With screen off your phone can easily last a day or even two (if you like to listen to music with pandora or Spotify >>> it will still last a lot with screen off).
About Camera Lens>> This is just an opinion but im starting to believe that the camera lens sensitivity is just to a small percent of the stock. Believe me when i tell you that i have throw my phone so hard to the wall (by accident) and with that kind of pressure (even with the poetic revolution cover) it should have made the glass of the camera crack (not to mention my phone has fell a lot). On the other hand, do not remove the plastic it comes with , just to be safe.
About Performance>> The phone is fast but just like any other phone, regardless of the processor, or the amount of ram, it has its limits. Thus, at the beginning i had a blazing fast LG V20. But put 85 user apps inside any phone and see how this will change lol. IT still fast. But every once in a while i experience a little lag. But that is just when i have only 500+mb left of ram. ( how can i know my ram quickly? OvrDrive Rom has the ram bar)
About Camera>> The camera does become slower when you are at very dark environments. But many report, including me, that using manual mode and adjusting it to your liking will make it very fast. I believe the issue is the automatic mode. Although sometimes for me the automatic mode in the dark works great. Also, some people report their photos looking like water paint (it does happen to me only with the wide angle camera. Not very often, but it does)
Now, if you are looking for developments and all that, this phone seems to be going in the right direction. We pretty much have root for every variant, we have some custom stock roms, and also we have LineageOS, Resurrection Remix, and AOKP among others so far for almost every variants.
Appreciate the input. We'll see how my experience goes.
I have a comment/reply or two in blue down in the quote of your response.
jinkerz9430 said:
About Battery>> Remember that a) you will be dealing with a phone with IPS screen instead of AMOLED (this has a huge impact on the battery). b)the amount of apps that you have (specially those that requires to sync in the background are often part of the issue of battery drainage (my v20 used to last up to 7+ or 8+ with screen on with just about 7 user apps and the rest system apps, now i have 85 user apps + the system apps which make my phone last about 5+ hours screen on). On the other hand, The Doze mode of this phone is INSANE!!!! OUTSTANDING! With screen off your phone can easily last a day or even two (if you like to listen to music with pandora or Spotify >>> it will still last a lot with screen off).
Yup. All understood. My comparison will be to my almost 3 year old Note 4. It has all the apps I will have on the V20, Doze mode (Max Overdrive ROM), etc. This has a just barely smaller battery than the Note 4 (which is disappointing...would prefer a fatter phone with fatter battery). So, I would hope the processer is more efficient, and in the end, at least as good on battery as my Note 4.
About Camera Lens>> This is just an opinion but im starting to believe that the camera lens sensitivity is just to a small percent of the stock. Believe me when i tell you that i have throw my phone so hard to the wall (by accident) and with that kind of pressure (even with the poetic revolution cover) it should have made the glass of the camera crack (not to mention my phone has fell a lot). On the other hand, do not remove the plastic it comes with , just to be safe.
I will definitely have the phone in cases. Hopefully I'll have same experience as you.
About Performance>> The phone is fast but just like any other phone, regardless of the processor, or the amount of ram, it has its limits. Thus, at the beginning i had a blazing fast LG V20. But put 85 user apps inside any phone and see how this will change lol. IT still fast. But every once in a while i experience a little lag. But that is just when i have only 500+mb left of ram. ( how can i know my ram quickly? OvrDrive Rom has the ram bar)
I'm sure it has it's limits. I do abuse them, with lots of apps. MOre than 85, I'm sure. I do have a tendency to freeze apps I don't use often. But of course that requires root. With the Maximum Overdrive ROM on my Note 4, the lags aren't too bad. I'm thinking (hoping) that this phone will shine in comparison to my Note 4 with the better specs.
About Camera>> The camera does become slower when you are at very dark environments. But many report, including me, that using manual mode and adjusting it to your liking will make it very fast. I believe the issue is the automatic mode. Although sometimes for me the automatic mode in the dark works great. Also, some people report their photos looking like water paint (it does happen to me only with the wide angle camera. Not very often, but it does)
I use some modes other than automatic on my Canon. I'm excited to see the capabilities of the camera on this phone. With an understanding of shutter and aperture as an advantage, maybe I'll be very happy with it.
Now, if you are looking for developments and all that, this phone seems to be going in the right direction. We pretty much have root for every variant, we have some custom stock roms, and also we have LineageOS, Resurrection Remix, and AOKP among others so far for almost every variants.
If only Overdrive developed for the 996, I would know what ROM to use. I will likely hold off on ROMS for a while. I still see lots of folks struggling with the ROMS and reporting issues or help needed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tomorrow...the journey begins
SHAMELESS PLUG, to remind everyone that not everyone has 800$ to throw at a phone upfront.
I was in your boat. I had my eyes dead set on the US996.
Did my research and ended up on the H918.
Look at the ROM development, it's flooded with H918 support.
Will the US996 pick up traction and have as much support as the H918? Who knows.
I even wanted the dual sim, but that isn't even rooted if my memory serves correctly.
Regardless, this phone is stellar.
WETA rom has an US996 version, which I'd definitely recommend. I have my eyes on Max Overdrive, NATF and Resurrection remix, but after flashing WETA, i wouldn't change a thing.
Best of luck to you, m9.
Thanks for the best luck wishes.
I am seeing more dev for the 996. I am hopeful that I'll be happy with it stock. Although, I really want Root, so I may give in.
One thing for sure, it is confusing having all various models in the same forums, and most folks don't indicate which model they are on.
ewingr said:
Appreciate the input. We'll see how my experience goes.
I have a comment/reply or two in blue down in the quote of your response.
Tomorrow...the journey begins
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah i would say that Max ovrdrive and Weta are the 2 most stable ones regarding stock roms. Have you tried to talk with OvrDrive ? The h918 and US996 are pretty much alike in all the aspects except some frequencies added to the us996. Maybe you can be a tester for the us996 version. But yeah, first try the phone for a while without any root until the 14 days or possibly some more days are over. If you decide to keep it, then you can jump into the v20's board lol . By the way, you said that you rather a fatter phone? I have seen some battery replacements from third party brands such as zero lemon (which is usually a great brand that produces great batteries) their batteries have way more mah than the original battery from the v20. But it comes with a cost that you might get along with them. It requires to put a very fat case to the phone. I personally dont like it but if you dont care about how fat it looks then you coupd go for it.
I didn't personally talk to Overdrive, but it was asked in his thread of his ROM would work on the 996, and his reply was he would not be supporting it as he does not have one. I too have noticed that ROMs are working on more than one model.
I'll wait and see how the stock battery works out before I go try a fatter one. I'm hoping to stay in the Seido case and belt clip I had already purchased.
Good news/Bad news
Bad news first...but not that bad
I won't have the phone in hand until late Thursday, instead of today
Now the great news
I'll have a brand new phone instead of open big phone, and will sane $175.
I went to Phandroid a bit ago and they announced a sale of the V20 at B&H for $499.99. I had paid $675 for the open box. I called B&H to see if they would refund the difference. Nope. Buy the sale phone and return the open box phone.
Fine with me ?
ewingr said:
Bad news first...but not that bad
I won't have the phone in hand until late Thursday, instead of today
Now the great news
I'll have a brand new phone instead of open big phone, and will sane $175.
I went to Phandroid a bit ago and they announced a sale of the V20 at B&H for $499.99. I had paid $675 for the open box. I called B&H to see if they would refund the difference. Nope. Buy the sale phone and return the open box phone.
Fine with me
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
my v20's price was practically speaking $331 dollars Brand new sealed . Because of the promotion of the $200 off and the earphone of $149 plus an extra earphone ($149) sent to me from the defective lg v20 returned. I think im going to finish of paying by the 27 of this month
tl;dr version: If I see a US996 for sale that says it "only works with US Cellular" do I take the seller's word for it, or do I know better that the US996 is unlocked for all carriers if you have the right SIM card?
"I've got time" version:
I too am considering a journey from a Note 4 to a US996.
I'm on Verizon, and I just dropped my Note 4 Dev Edition (not that the DE means anything now that the BL unlock was released), cracking the LCD and rendering the digitizer useless. A new(ish) Note 4 is around $200... so I wouldn't bother replacing the screen on my otherwise well-used phone. PS... The phone was in a case, in a belt holster (Spigen Slim Armor / Seidio respectively) and a tempered glass screen protector. ugh.
If it wasn't obvious from my owning a Developer Edition phone... I like to have an unlocked bootloader and root. I had CM13 installed on the Note 4 because TouchWiz was so far behind in a lot of ways. So, I'm considering a V20. I'd rather spend a little more and get a phone that has a SUPPORTED BL unlock method. The Verizon V20 version can be BL unlocked via a hack with a debug bootloader, but it's irreversible and that may lead to issues with being painted into a corner. Enter the US996.
So, I started researching the V20, making sure that there was stable bootloader unlock method, the dev base for ROMs is strong, the reviews are good, etc... and I came across some sales that say that the phone is ONLY for US Cellular. Is this true? The US996 is the unlocked version, correct?
I tried to navigate LG's and USC's websites to get a model number and some info... but I'm not seeing it. Could US Cellular have somehow SIM-locked the phone so that only USC's SIMs work in it? Or... does the seller just not know any better, or wants to play it safe by saying it will only work with the carrier listed?
Thanks for the help! Also... anyone switching from the Note 4, please let me know what you miss. I use my stylus a lot for drawing or annotating on pictures and screenshots... so I think it will be the hardest thing to give up if I go to a V20 or other stylus-less phone.
DrPhant0m said:
tl;dr version: If I see a US996 for sale that says it "only works with US Cellular" do I take the seller's word for it, or do I know better that the US996 is unlocked for all carriers if you have the right SIM card?
"I've got time" version:
I too am considering a journey from a Note 4 to a US996.
I'm on Verizon, and I just dropped my Note 4 Dev Edition (not that the DE means anything now that the BL unlock was released), cracking the LCD and rendering the digitizer useless. A new(ish) Note 4 is around $200... so I wouldn't bother replacing the screen on my otherwise well-used phone. PS... The phone was in a case, in a belt holster (Spigen Slim Armor / Seidio respectively) and a tempered glass screen protector. ugh.
If it wasn't obvious from my owning a Developer Edition phone... I like to have an unlocked bootloader and root. I had CM13 installed on the Note 4 because TouchWiz was so far behind in a lot of ways. So, I'm considering a V20. I'd rather spend a little more and get a phone that has a SUPPORTED BL unlock method. The Verizon V20 version can be BL unlocked via a hack with a debug bootloader, but it's irreversible and that may lead to issues with being painted into a corner. Enter the US996.
So, I started researching the V20, making sure that there was stable bootloader unlock method, the dev base for ROMs is strong, the reviews are good, etc... and I came across some sales that say that the phone is ONLY for US Cellular. Is this true? The US996 is the unlocked version, correct?
I tried to navigate LG's and USC's websites to get a model number and some info... but I'm not seeing it. Could US Cellular have somehow SIM-locked the phone so that only USC's SIMs work in it? Or... does the seller just not know any better, or wants to play it safe by saying it will only work with the carrier listed?
Thanks for the help! Also... anyone switching from the Note 4, please let me know what you miss. I use my stylus a lot for drawing or annotating on pictures and screenshots... so I think it will be the hardest thing to give up if I go to a V20 or other stylus-less phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure what to say. Can you link the one you are looking at? I think by only work with US Cellular, they MAY (I don't know) mean a U.S. Carrier, ie. Verizon, AT&T, Sprint or T-Mobile, as opposed to the company US Celluar.
One thing you need to be aware of for the US996...the only way, right now, that it can be bootloader unlocked is by going to a LG site to get an unlock code from them. At that point it will lose warranty. Due to that, I'll be holding off on unlocking for a while. At least, that is my current plan.
Only thing I miss is the stylus going from the note 3 to the v10.
Though I suppose I don't miss the stylus that much since I jumped from the v10 to v20 instead of going back to the note series.
I would love to see lg put some effort into it and make a stylus based top end model instead of putting a stylus version as a middle model. I was hoping the v series would feature a stylus and the g series be a non stylus version but alas it hasn't happened.
Sent from my LG-H918 using XDA-Developers Legacy app
evo4g63t said:
Only thing I miss is the stylus going from the note 3 to the v10.
Though I suppose I don't miss the stylus that much since I jumped from the v10 to v20 instead of going back to the note series.
I would love to see lg put some effort into it and make a stylus based top end model instead of putting a stylus version as a middle model. I was hoping the v series would feature a stylus and the g series be a non stylus version but alas it hasn't happened.
Sent from my LG-H918 using XDA-Developers Legacy app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But i think that LG is trying not to copy other brands such as samsung. For this reason they should limit the amount of resemblance between the features of each phone. Thus, there are just a handful of LG's with stylus in comparison to the note series . After all i doubt LG wants to experience the same thing that happened with samsung been sued by apple, and then apple been sued back by samsung (quite a hilarious story though lol) but if i had a company such as LG, i would definitely not want to even put a step in court for a battle that can easily last more than a month of constant interventions and proofs and etc... and could easily cost me 100+ or 200+ millions. In a lg v20 , i believe the stylus is not a necessity (Even for people that would love to have stylus for the v series). On the other hand, one could buy one of this or similars:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1xTouch-Scr...485550?hash=item33c8e075ee:g:0RkAAOSwIgNXmXla
and see if there is an application that resembles what one can do with the note's stylus. you will definitely wont find one that will be exactly the same. But maybe similar and who knows maybe better.
DrPhant0m said:
tl;dr version: If I see a US996 for sale that says it "only works with US Cellular" do I take the seller's word for it, or do I know better that the US996 is unlocked for all carriers if you have the right SIM card?
"I've got time" version:
I too am considering a journey from a Note 4 to a US996.
I'm on Verizon, and I just dropped my Note 4 Dev Edition (not that the DE means anything now that the BL unlock was released), cracking the LCD and rendering the digitizer useless. A new(ish) Note 4 is around $200... so I wouldn't bother replacing the screen on my otherwise well-used phone. PS... The phone was in a case, in a belt holster (Spigen Slim Armor / Seidio respectively) and a tempered glass screen protector. ugh.
If it wasn't obvious from my owning a Developer Edition phone... I like to have an unlocked bootloader and root. I had CM13 installed on the Note 4 because TouchWiz was so far behind in a lot of ways. So, I'm considering a V20. I'd rather spend a little more and get a phone that has a SUPPORTED BL unlock method. The Verizon V20 version can be BL unlocked via a hack with a debug bootloader, but it's irreversible and that may lead to issues with being painted into a corner. Enter the US996.
So, I started researching the V20, making sure that there was stable bootloader unlock method, the dev base for ROMs is strong, the reviews are good, etc... and I came across some sales that say that the phone is ONLY for US Cellular. Is this true? The US996 is the unlocked version, correct?
I tried to navigate LG's and USC's websites to get a model number and some info... but I'm not seeing it. Could US Cellular have somehow SIM-locked the phone so that only USC's SIMs work in it? Or... does the seller just not know any better, or wants to play it safe by saying it will only work with the carrier listed?
Thanks for the help! Also... anyone switching from the Note 4, please let me know what you miss. I use my stylus a lot for drawing or annotating on pictures and screenshots... so I think it will be the hardest thing to give up if I go to a V20 or other stylus-less phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been thinking a bit. I know I saw in a thread somewhere about the US996 being the same model for the Unlocked and for a carrier (don't recall if it was US Cellular). I think the key is 'Unlocked'. Maybe you should put your question in it's own post. May bet more input, from someone who knows for sure.
Thanks for the replies. Take a look at this auction: http://www.ebay.com/itm/381960164377
The seller says they are an authorized US Cellular reseller… so it seems they'd know. And I doubt that they'd distort the truth about the phone being unlocked just to keep USC customers. So maybe there are US996s out there that are locked to USC. It doesn't make sense that there'd be a carrier-locked version of the US996 sold by LG… so maybe USC is locking them. Perhaps I'll ask the seller.
I ended up ordering a "like new" note 4 for $200 before I found out that B&H was selling the US996 for $300 off retail, and now I've missed that deal. So hopefully this Note4 really is in new condition and it will serve long enough for me to try out a V20 while the price drops again somewhere else.
Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk
Update… this is the response I got from the seller:
Thank you for your question. We are not selling the phone as compatible with other carriers or carrier-unlocked. We can't guarantee that the phone will work with an another carrier. We are only saying the phone will work with the carrier US Cellular. We can only guarantee that it works with US Cellular.*
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What do you all think?
Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk

Should I buy this phone?

Hi Everyone
I'm looking to upgrade from a Oneplus 3. Previously it was a great price for good specs.
I noticed the magic 3 whilst looking at YouTube and the specs look amazing.
1 - Interested to know of those who have had it for a while would you recommend getting it?
2 - what are the main annoying factors about the phone?
3 - Are there any others in the price range I should consider? I mostly play pubg, do retoo gaming and watch films with my existing phone
Many thanks in advance
Jamie
1 - Difficult to answer....if you're not into rooting and customizing,but happy with a basic Android experience and raw power,you should buy it......otherwise,if you want 100% flagship bells and whistless for half the price,you'll have to search futher,as this phone does not 'has it all' for just €479.
2 - For me,the most annoying thing is that there's much more to squeeze out of the camera,if Nubia's app would match the capabilities......but hopefully, there will be a working Gcam release in the near future.
3 - Xiaomi Mi 9....but I fell for the RM3.....
Many thanks for the reply, I don't mind rooting if necessary.
Also happy with a basic android experience as my oneplus was pretty much that when it first came out.
Thanks for the suggestion I will look into that also ??
Jamie.bshop.1982 said:
Hi Everyone
I'm looking to upgrade from a Oneplus 3. Previously it was a great price for good specs.
I noticed the magic 3 whilst looking at YouTube and the specs look amazing.
1 - Interested to know of those who have had it for a while would you recommend getting it?
2 - what are the main annoying factors about the phone?
3 - Are there any others in the price range I should consider? I mostly play pubg, do retoo gaming and watch films with my existing phone
Many thanks in advance
Jamie
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can tell the battery backup is awesome. Only problem I have is the gaming buttons are too annoying when playing a video.
I have it unrooted without gapps and IMO its better then some flagships. Reason is the big screen and the big battery and the stereo sound.
Also I prefer metal over Glas backside. And NO Notch.
The camera is better than that on my Xiaomi mi mix 3.
this phone is amazing, the only bad thing i see it had is not hdmi usb-c to support
I would wait for two main reasons:
1) Asus is going to announce their new ROG phone at the end of this month. While it will probably be a good deal more expensive, It might have some cool features
2) Nubia just announced they are going to release an 855 Plus version of this phone.
Sent from my Note 9 using XDA Labs
Thing is,no matter how long you wait ,there will always be something better on the horizon after your purchase.......no matter which device you've bought...
Hi,
Considering the price and the specs, I think the Red Magic 3 is about the best phone you can have nowadays.
If you buy it, you should consider two things :
- Chinese UI has a lot of features but is ugly and themes are mostly paid ones ;
- Europe/US/Asia ROM has ZERO features.
Once I recovered from the disappointment, the second solution was clearly what I was looking for.
So here is my advice :
- take the Europe/US/Asia version and flash it to your device (if it doesn't ship with that as stock)
- unlock the bootloader
-root your phone.
All this is done in like 4/5 minutes...
Once done, install all apps to add the required features.
You will have a phone that has ONLY THE FEATURES YOU WANT.
No bloat, no unnecessary stuff...
A dream come true
Of course, it comes with a price : once rooted, you will get OTA notifications but won't be able to install them...
Regards.
roadworker said:
Thing is,no matter how long you wait ,there will always be something better on the horizon after your purchase.......no matter which device you've bought...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
True
If you live in North America, I'd steer clear of this company.
I ordered one of their phones last week. I still have yet to receive my shipping notice. I ordered it with priority shipping, and according to their website, it should have shipped within 24 hours of payment.
4 days after it failed to ship, I contacted support, and was told "Be patient". Ever since then, they've stopped responding to emails. They won't give me any sort of clue as to when my order will ship. Apparently this is a frequent occurrence with Red Magic.
They're one of those companies that are only interested in getting devices out to reviewers, everyone else is to fend for themselves.
The support page on their website doesn't work. Apparently they didn't pay for it. Nubia cannot give any answers either, they just argue back in forth in the support email with several of the employees arguing about who's job it is to deal with.
If you ever receive a phone from them, and have an issue, good luck with that. Their current company (if you can call it that) shows that can't deal with supporting their devices. They can't even deal with fulfilling orders.
Stay far far away from this company, for you own good.
Is there likely to significant difference between the 8gb and 12gb ram? I think I'm going to get it but wonder if it's worth the extra money. Also just seen they mentioned the magic 4 by the end of the year. So maybe prices will come down
Well I'm in N.A. and I bought it from the site day it released. Great phone, few bugs at the moment and its a gaming phone at heart with stock Android, easily customizable. Honestly any game task you throw at it handles like a boss. It's an emulation dream with built in buttons. My controller and case should arrive the 22nd and I'm sure it will be great. I can tell you any Bluetooth controller works well on it too. The choice to buy is up to you, basically do you want a gaming phone or something else.
I have had this for two days in the USA and I love it. Usually I have buyer's remorse and would be looking for a new phone by now so I can say it really is great. Battery life is better than my S9 with a Mophie pack so far. Even with playing with it constantly I can't kill it in one day and usually my S9 needs to be plugged in by late afternoon. I have not rooted it yet, and may not. I love a clean version of Android. Not sure why people think that is bad. All the random customization sometimes comes with a speed cost. This phone is just plain fast. Usually I root to get rid of crap so you can see where I stand. If you hate big heavy phones, don't buy it. That is the negative. I had a ZTE Axon 7 and updates were slow so that's another negative. Other than that, super fast, great screen, great battery, strong data signal...it's a buy. Reminds me of the original OnePlus, or the Axon. Phones that were surprising values, but were big and heavy.
Sent from my NX629J using Tapatalk
I'm coming from the OnePlus 3(T) as well, looking for a new device. What I didn't like at the Oneplus were the original ROM (luckily Lineage helped a lot) and the sound and position of the speaker. I loved the front facing stereo speakers of my HTC One (m7) years ago.
So I'm thinking of purchasing the RM3, but at the moment there are no alternative ROMS. Another device I'm looking at is the Black Shark 2, but situation with ROMs and support seems to be even worse.
For the RM3, I have concerns, if a fan inside a mobile will really last for some years, or break down at some time...
I also had the 3T and 1 and the 6T obviously this is just a better phone due to the increases in tech. No way to tell on the fan, I will say...and not sure how ZTE vs it's company Nubia will work, but my Axon 7 had a couple of screen issues due to my dropping it and the speaker stopped working, not sure if it was due to that and ZTE fixed it every time free of charge within the first year. I was very happy with their service on that phone. ROM support will be lacking but it's a clean version of Android so I prefer that
Sent from my NX629J using Tapatalk
---------- Post added at 10:39 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:22 AM ----------
To me...a clean, lean ROM, which the US version is, rooted with Magisk and other mods I choose myself is always the best option. Some custom ROMs can get pretty bloated themselves
Sent from my NX629J using Tapatalk
NexusPenguin said:
Hi,
Considering the price and the specs, I think the Red Magic 3 is about the best phone you can have nowadays.
If you buy it, you should consider two things :
- Chinese UI has a lot of features but is ugly and themes are mostly paid ones ;
- Europe/US/Asia ROM has ZERO features.
Once I recovered from the disappointment, the second solution was clearly what I was looking for.
So here is my advice :
- take the Europe/US/Asia version and flash it to your device (if it doesn't ship with that as stock)
- unlock the bootloader
-root your phone.
All this is done in like 4/5 minutes...
Once done, install all apps to add the required features.
You will have a phone that has ONLY THE FEATURES YOU WANT.
No bloat, no unnecessary stuff...
A dream come true
Of course, it comes with a price : once rooted, you will get OTA notifications but won't be able to install them...
Regards.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It depends on what you are looking for an what you want to do?
If you are a person who is happy with stock ROMs an just leaves cellphones in the state they are in out of the box then yes buy it.
However if you are a person who likes tinkering modifications an custom ROMs the please do not buy this cellphone.
I tried to install TWRP over 2 months ago an got stuck in a fastboot bootloop. Every xda suggestion to fix this plus paying a cellphone repair center an trying heaps of suggestions an it's still non functional.
It has horrible software an is rediculously sensitive to any and all attempts to FLASH ANYTHING.
If red magic 3s break you might never be able to fix them at a software level.
Mine lives in a bag by my bed to remind me not to bite off more than I can chew.
I have a xiaomi Mi9 now an have no real issues with it.
Good luck with your decision
So the options are to buy on Ali are with a stock Global Rom or a Chinese ROM. I see some other posts about people flashing to the Chinese one. Is that the best option to choose? I take it you can still select the language as English and support here etc? Thanks for everyone's responded it's been really helpful. I was thinking of holding out for the 855plus but not sure if I can afford which will be most likely an additional cost for it.
I also have the same question but mine is a bit different. Im convinced i am going to buy it but...
Should i buy it now or wait for the 855+ version? Idc if its gonna be a bit more expensive
xorphaz said:
I also have the same question but mine is a bit different. Im convinced i am going to buy it but...
Should i buy it now or wait for the 855+ version? Idc if its gonna be a bit more expensive
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I would of thought it would be more expensive as they still have the original to sell. Probably will stick another £100 on it or so I reckon ?

should i buy an s9+ ? modding situation?

hello everyone, recently i had some connector-related problems with my s7edge so i'm about to buy my next phone.
i think that, in this "hardware overkill era" (personally i think that from circa 2018 the effective changes in speed became very small and unnoticeable in terms of usage; apps open just a tiny little faster ), choosing a good used it's better than ever. since i don't have much to spend (gotta apply for masters ya know) i was thinking about getting a s9plus or a OP6t. that is because i like a lot the design of both the phones and the different functions (from water resistance, qi charge, better photos and nice notch/slide-less design by s9p to the in-display fingerprint sensor and veeeery nice software of the op6t ). I really wish there was something around 250/300€ with the functions of both but couldn't find it, and since i can actually buy a still premium phone like those for just 250, probably i'll just stick with one of them. which one?
i’d really like to get a stock aosp/pixel experience with the samsung but can't find a good rom, should i choose the op6t? what is the actual modding situation from the inside?
Honestly, just as I'm looking around for info about root for Android 10 on the S9+, Its depressing me quite a bit. Seeing that this phone isn't that old, and yet, there's so little activity for it and its non + variant. It's really surprising when In the past I had far less popular and expensive phones, and there were A LOT more people working on custom ROMs and a bunch of other stuff, when they were far older than this phone currently is. Don't get me wrong, there is people working on it, but not many.
I'd definitely look for a different phone at this point if you want a new one.
ReapersDeath said:
Honestly, just as I'm looking around for info about root for Android 10 on the S9+, Its depressing me quite a bit. Seeing that this phone isn't that old, and yet, there's so little activity for it and its non + variant. It's really surprising when In the past I had far less popular and expensive phones, and there were A LOT more people working on custom ROMs and a bunch of other stuff, when they were far older than this phone currently is. Don't get me wrong, there is people working on it, but not many.
I'd definitely look for a different phone at this point if you want a new one.
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I remember the days, i have the s10+ unlocked version (U1) and i upgraded to android 10 and honestly not that hyped about it either. I still have my Note 3 and Note 4 and play with them because i miss the rooting and my freedom to do whatever i wanted with MY phone.
This trend where we can root and unlock will come to an end just like Apple killed jailbraking Samsung is slowly following Apple like a little sheep started with phone jack to locking bootloaders for them rooting is cancer that needs to be eradicated asap.
I bought the s9+ from amazon last week the G9650 and plan on rooting it later because i miss it that much but i'm staying on Pie (9) for a while longer
I wondered about this too and the most plausible explanation is that many of the great Devs aren't from 1st world nations and the phones can be pricey for them to get hold of to produce ROMs etc.
This is especially holds true since high end mobile phones are $1000+ now and their monthly pay might be a couple of hundred.
Honestly I think modding is no longer that fun like before with many security updates to android that complicates
and dicourages hobbyist developer..nowadays it will cost a lot of effort and money for developers just to come up with something..
Wanna play with admin rights and do whatever you want with a smartphone like the good old days ?
Buy a OnePlus device and enjoy.
Stay away from Samsung.
If you care about modding go with oneplus or a pixel device. Stay far away from Snapdragon Samsung devices.

General New XT2115-1 Owner w/questions

I just bought a carrier unlocked version of this phone. It is the xt2115-1. Fastboot commands confirms it is boot loader unlockable. I have not yet unlocked it, or moved my SIM card to it, for that matter. I am coming from a Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite running PE Official, which I love, but the battery is almost toast after nearly 3 years, and my carrier Crickett Wireless keeps sending me messages that my XM8L is not supported after Feb '22.
So I got a pretty fair deal at Sam's Club on this phone ($219). I did look it up here to see how far development has progressed since it was released. I was disappointed to see, not much. Looks like nobody is able to access the /vendor mount and one other (it's late).
I would like to build PE (Pixel Experience) for this phone, but /vendor is pretty much required to do that. Has anyone succeeded in extracting this partition? Or has anyone figured out a reason why it cannot be extracted?
Anyway, I hope we can get some ROMs for this phone eventually. I will do all I can to assist, as I have built ROMs for a few phones, just not this one (or Android 11+). I would also like to eventually build Pitch Black Recovery for this phone, as PBR is the most easy to use recovery, and very powerful too. Just my opinion.
Yeah, just looking at the Sam's Club version of this phone as it is $25 off this weekend, and kind of bummed not much is available at this point. Crossing my fingers there will be some action on this front in the near future.
verbage said:
Yeah, just looking at the Sam's Club version of this phone as it is $25 off this weekend, and kind of bummed not much is available at this point. Crossing my fingers there will be some action on this front in the near future.
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Click to collapse
So did you buy one? I still have yet to root mine, but hopefully will have time this weekend. I hate getting a new phone, especially when the one I had was brilliant! (Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite) Cricket Wireless kept sending me messages that my phone would no longer work on their nework after February, and at nearly 3 years old, the battery is getting tired (easily replaceable, but that doesn't make it compatible with Cricket, and probably AT&T as well). I might wall mount it and use it as a Home Assistant kiosk or something similar, at some point.
Yup, ended up picking up one and it will be a gift for my daughter for X-mas. And I'll probably pick up one for my wife, too, when it goes back on sale again. I have not played with it extensively yet, but it seems pretty impressive for the price. Then again, my daily driver is an LG G4, which was released back in 2015, so probably anything relatively modern will be impressive for me!
We are upgrading for the same reason as you--we use Tracfone with AT&T towers, and yeah, we have been receiving messages about the Feb 2022 deadline.
I think I might take the plunge, and go for a Pixel 6 myself though the base model is like $600. I am dreading the lack of a MicroSD slot, but the camera is apparently stunning. And there is guaranteed tons of custom development on it from the very start given that Google releases the source code for it immediately.
OnePlus is having a flash sale on the OP9 starting in a few hours, and the price will be $600, too, but if you sign up they will give you a $60 voucher bringing it down to $540. But the camera is apparently not as good as the Pixel 6. And I took a look at teardown/repairability info on both, and the Pixel 6 seems much more friendly in this regard.
verbage said:
Yup, ended up picking up one and it will be a gift for my daughter for X-mas. And I'll probably pick up one for my wife, too, when it goes back on sale again. I have not played with it extensively yet, but it seems pretty impressive for the price. Then again, my daily driver is an LG G4, which was released back in 2015, so probably anything relatively modern will be impressive for me!
We are upgrading for the same reason as you--we use Tracfone with AT&T towers, and yeah, we have been receiving messages about the Feb 2022 deadline.
I think I might take the plunge, and go for a Pixel 6 myself though the base model is like $600. I am dreading the lack of a MicroSD slot, but the camera is apparently stunning. And there is guaranteed tons of custom development on it from the very start given that Google releases the source code for it immediately.
OnePlus is having a flash sale on the OP9 starting in a few hours, and the price will be $600, too, but if you sign up they will give you a $60 voucher bringing it down to $540. But the camera is apparently not as good as the Pixel 6. And I took a look at teardown/repairability info on both, and the Pixel 6 seems much more friendly in this regard.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I too wanted a Pixel 6 but the lack of MicroSD killed it for me. There are kernel sources available for this phone, both for A10 and A11. I have grabbed the A11 source code. I want to attempt to build PE for this device at some point. I am still getting used to it however, as I had it a full week before I moved my SIM card to it. The only thing I dislike about it so far is the shear size of it. Such a HUGE phone and much more heavy than my Mi 8 Lite. Something I will just have to get used to. Also, Android Auto is very slow to start and the screen must be on and unlocked before my auto's head unit even detects its presence. Very odd.
Update: I am bootloader unlocked, rooted via Magisk, and have Orange Fox recovery installed (not my favorite). I have also managed to get the /vendor partition pulled. I have discovered a few quirks.
- Apex Launcher cannot backup or restore data. Seems to be some sort of permissions issue. This worked fine before unlocking and rooting, so not sure what the connection could be at this point.
EDIT: Apparently this is a problem with A11 and Apex Launcher. But, my Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite can backup and restore Apex data in A11.
- Magisk can not find nor download any modules. A search always reveals nothing.
I will continue to research the issues at hand. I have wiped and restored from Google cloud numerous times (3 so far) and nothing seems to fix this.
So I have a question when you bootloader unlocked were you on Android 10 or android 11 cause I'm on 11 and my code shows on Motorola site as not eligible
Android version does not matter. Try a different email address. If that doesn't work reset your router and modem and it should cycle the IP address. I get that error alot and both of those have worked equally as well.

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