Topic: Droid X > Droid Bionic

[Flaxen Hegemony]

Just picked up the Droid Bionic the other day, and holy shit, does it drink the battery juice.  I'm getting 9-12 hours on a charge, and that's with the extended battery.  Turning off LTE doesn't help much, and the only other thing on is corporate email.  Will probably return it and go back to the trusty X.

This first generation of LTE chips apparently draw a ton of power, so unless you want and need a lot of streaming data on your phone, it may be better to hold off until next year.

[Frys Girl]

Thanks for the tip. I love my iphone, but I'm tempted by the Droid stuff that is out there.

[Michael Vandeven]

if you're tempted by the droid phones, then i recommend the following:


http://www.virginmobileusa.com/cell-phones/motorola-triumph-phone.jsp


pay $300 (or less since they have a few android devices to choose from) and you'll have a really awesome android phone with 1200 minutes and unlimited data/text for only $45 per month... NO CONTRACT!!!!!!!!!!!  and if you don't care about talk time, you can save even more by using their cheapest plan which also has unlimited text and data with 300 minutes for $35. 


it is, as far as i've seen, the best deal in mobile.  i'd drop verizon NOW and switch to this if i weren't going to be stuck with $400 in early termination fees plus the cost of two phones.  switching would save me $110 per month, and i suspect the differenece in service would be negligible, if anything at all.  the phones run on sprint's network, and sprint has a nice network around here.  i think i'll just wait for my verizon contract to expire... but when it does... verizon can blow me.  i'm tired of being financially raped by them every month with no possible means of escape.

[Theron]

Oh man, so true.  Verizon has financially raped me for 7 years now.  Been looking for a way out for a long time and my contract is up soon.  They have great phone service but their customer service is crappy, they always make you talk to a computer.  I've tried to threaten to leave them but they never give an inch as far as lowering my bill.  I'm going to look into this virgin mobile thing.

[Michael Vandeven]

I'm going to look into this virgin mobile thing.

a good idea.  just find someone in your area who has sprint, and find out how their service is.  this will give you an idea of what to expect from an android device on virgin.

[Lovely Bones]

Taking this thread in a slightly different direction, does anyone have recommendations on iPhone4S vs. Droid Bionic?

We're considering our first smart phone purchase as an upgrade in January.  (I know.  We're woefully behind the rest of the world.)  Interested in any feedback especially on quality of photos and videos, the Siri feature on the iPhone, instability issues on the Droid, etc.  We're reasonably tech savvy, have read all the reviews.  Now interested in "real people's" experiences if you've got 'em.

TIA for any feedback. 

[Michael Vandeven]

Taking this thread in a slightly different direction, does anyone have recommendations on iPhone4S vs. Droid Bionic?

We're considering our first smart phone purchase as an upgrade in January.  (I know.  We're woefully behind the rest of the world.)  Interested in any feedback especially on quality of photos and videos, the Siri feature on the iPhone, instability issues on the Droid, etc.  We're reasonably tech savvy, have read all the reviews.  Now interested in "real people's" experiences if you've got 'em.

TIA for any feedback.

what carrier will you be using?

[Lovely Bones]

what carrier will you be using?

Verizon.  Had AT&T in a past life, been with Verizon the last two years.

[Flaxen Hegemony]

Verizon.  Had AT&T in a past life, been with Verizon the last two years.

Is it possible for you to wait a little longer on your smartphone?  The reason I say that is because currently both the iPhone 4S and Droid Bionic have dreadful battery life.  The Bionic is due to the 4G, and Apple is apparently still working on the 4S.  Even with the latest 5.0.1 firmware, people are still having battery issues.

If you need/want a smartphone, but don't need 4G, I would suggest either the older iPhone 4 (non S), or a Droid 2 or 3.  I'm still using my Droid X.  Even though it is a little old for a smartphone, it still works great and the latest version of Android works fine on it.  You might need the "latest and greatest" if you do a lot of video streaming or web surfing, but otherwise, you don't need the fastest processor.  I mainly do corporate email, texting (unfortunately), light surfing and simple apps, and the Droid X is fine for me.  It would be on the slow side if I streamed a lot of content.

[Michael Vandeven]

Verizon.  Had AT&T in a past life, been with Verizon the last two years.

Get the Samsung Nexus. Without question.

Sent from an old HTC Incredible.

[Michael Vandeven]

Get the Samsung Nexus. Without question.

Oops... I mean the Galaxy Nexus. It is the greatest Android device in existence.



Sent from an old HTC Incredible.

[Lovely Bones]

Is it possible for you to wait a little longer on your smartphone?  The reason I say that is because currently both the iPhone 4S and Droid Bionic have dreadful battery life. 

We're in no real hurry.  We've got regular old dumb phones that are still working fine after two years.  We're just eligible for the upgrade now, and we're both kind of interested in going to a smart phone and upgrading camera/video capability. 

Reviews give mixed messages about the battery life of Droid and iPhone 4S.  Do you have one or both? 

[Lovely Bones]

Oops... I mean the Galaxy Nexus. It is the greatest Android device in existence.



Sent from an old HTC Incredible.

What do you see as the strengths of the Galaxy, Michael?  We didn't even have this one on our list to check out.

[Michael Vandeven]

What do you see as the strengths of the Galaxy, Michael?  We didn't even have this one on our list to check out.

first off, nexus devices are a pure android experience.  they're considered reference devices for the android platform.  they have no manufacturer modifications to the operating system.  a nexus phone's android updates come directly from google, and they are always the first phones to receive new versions of android.  any other android device is usually months behind because the updates for those devices depend on the manufacturer shipping the update AFTER the carrier approves their code.  it's a bureaucratic, inefficient arrangement.  nexus devices bypass this nonsense.  they are the only android devices that do.


second, the specs on the newest nexus device are really sweet.


third, it will take advantage of verizon's new LTE network.  see specs.


i'm dumping verizon because i'm tired of paying so much to have an android device on their network.  switching to virgin mobile to run one of their android devices, and i'll be totally happy with that.  however, if i were staying with verizon, i'd be getting the newest nexus device without question.

Introducing Galaxy Nexus. Simple, beautiful, beyond smart

it is not on sale yet from verizon, but it is expected to be within the next month or two.  keep checking verizon's website. 

[M Knight]

What do you see as the strengths of the Galaxy, Michael?  We didn't even have this one on our list to check out.

I have not researched what the differences are with Galaxy, but I recently bought the Samsung (GOOGLE) NEXUS S, and it is great.  http://www.bestbuy.com/site/null/Google-Nexus-S/pcmcat224600050004.c?id=pcmcat224600050004&ref=141&loc=01

[Lovely Bones]

Thank you, thank you,  Avi, Michael, and M Knight.  Michael, your notes on the Galaxy have been especially helpful.  I'll pass everything on to the boss and see what he thinks.  It will be January at the earliest before we make a move, so plenty of time to wait for the Galaxy to arrive.

P.S. We're kind of stuck with Verizon, I think.  We've got 5 people on a plan and while we're the only 2 upgrading to smart phones, Verizon seems to give us the cheapest deal for what everyone on the plan wants as a whole. 

Again, my whole-hearted appreciation for your time. 

[Avi]

Thank you, thank you,  Avi, Michael, and M Knight. 

Uh, sure. Anytime. But I didn't post anything here because I have a Luddite phone - it doesn't do text or have internet access, not even a camera. Like you, I've been reading here to see if or how I should up-grade. I hate to surrender my general impression of cell phones, ipads, etc., as a yeasty load of bollocks, but circumstances may force me to give up my cool, retro-hipster persona. I would hate for anyone to think I should be thanked merely for this opinion, and, for the record, I don't know a thing about this particular subject.

[Lovely Bones]

Uh, sure. Anytime. But I didn't post anything here because I have a Luddite phone - it doesn't do text or have internet access, not even a camera. Like you, I've been reading here to see if or how I should up-grade. I hate to surrender my general impression of cell phones, ipads, etc., as a yeasty load of bollocks, but circumstances may force me to give up my cool, retro-hipster persona. I would hate for anyone to think I should be thanked merely for this opinion, and, for the record, I don't know a thing about this particular subject.

Well, thanks for the cool dog avatars you always have.  Dogs I know more about than cell phones.

And apologies and thanks to Flaxen H.  I confused you two in my addled brain. 

[Michael Vandeven]

you can view a pretty good review article about the galaxy nexus here.

[Lovely Bones]

Mucho gracias, Michael.  I've passed all this info on to The Decider In Charge.  The camera on this one sounds sweet, that's for sure. 

[McPhallus]

Is it possible for you to wait a little longer on your smartphone?  The reason I say that is because currently both the iPhone 4S and Droid Bionic have dreadful battery life.  The Bionic is due to the 4G, and Apple is apparently still working on the 4S.  Even with the latest 5.0.1 firmware, people are still having battery issues.

The battery problem applied only to a very small number of people, and that number got even smaller after the fix.  I've had the 4S since launch day, and I've never had a battery issue.