Axon 7 USA 4GB/64GB vs. OnePlus 3 USA 6GB/64GB - Some Guys Review - ZTE Axon 7 Guides, News, & Discussion

PURPOSE
So 1st and foremost, the plan here is to give you my experience with these 2 phones. Granted, I have only used the Axon 7 for about 3 days now and can say I have yet to fully break it in to find everything that may or may not be right / wrong with it. However, this will be a unbiased look and comparison. I'm neither a fanboy or sheep. No brand affiliation. Not a programmer either, just a pro-sumer Senior Member of XDA willing to get trolled, flamed, etc. for sharing a look at these 2 phones. Hopefully, I can give "the everyday guy / gal look" without getting bogged down in stats, variables or benchmarks. Here goes...
MY BACKGROUND
No one special. Just a guy that likes the latest tech... phones being at the top of the list. I am a nerd. No doubt about that. I think anyone that knows about XDA probably is to some extent. No brand loyalty. Recently, I have had the privilege to try out the following phones:
1. Axon 7
2. OnePlus 3
3. HTC 10
4. LeEcco Le Max 2
5. Huawei P9
6. LG G5
7. Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge
8. Huawei Mate 8
9. Huawei Nexus 6P
10. LG Nexus 5X
11. Samsung Note 5
12. Apple iPhone 6s+
And probably some more, but these are the most recent. Does that make me qualified to make a review... Maybe. It does make me an idiot that likes new phones, though. I am always looking for something that meets my needs but also is a good phone. Currently with TMobile but have been with ATT, Verizon & Sprint at some point over 20 years of using cell phones.
MY NEEDS
I drive about 40 miles everyday to work (yes, my work week is currently 7 days a week with a few occasional days off). So, with this in mind and where I drive, I need the minimum requirements:
1. Can Stream Music
2. Bluetooth is fully compatible with my 2016 vehicle
3. An equalizer of some sort since I have only switch out my new cars speakers for better ones and don't plan on changing or adding a better sound system.
4. Decent pictures when needed
5. As a nerd, I like to "mesmerize" people with a pay with your phone app like Apple Pay or Android Pay
6. Works with my Huawei Watch
7. Relatively not laggy - will sometimes do some ROM-ing or some customization but since I tend to get rid of the phones quickly I try not to void warranties or make it too non-stock
THE COMPARISON
I am looking at my experience with the OnePlus 3 and the Axon 7 under/around these requirements and some normal stuff like battery, screen, snappiness, heat, speakers, etc. Here goes:
SOUND OVERALL
There is not too many times when I do a review comparison where 1 phone just crushes the other... and I don't mean like crushing an empty aluminum beer can in your hand crushing... I mean like BigFoot crushing late model junk cars at the end of a Monster Truck Rally Crushin'.... 'Mericaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!! Sorry got carried away there a second. Honestly, how phone manufacturers cannot include a system-wide sound equalizer with all the other STUPID GUI tweaks and bastardizations they do to Android especially is beyond me in 2016. Most people are transitioning to bluetooth headphones or have bluetooth in their cars and for the most part use streaming services to/for music. Yes, there is the occasional dude with the $1000 plug-in headphones that also plugs into a in-line $2000 DAC that only listens to download Loseless Quality Music with the Music App that came with the phone.... with a show of hands, how many fall into this category??? Then why pray tell is this the only music equalization most manufacturers are catering too on their phones (Apple included)? I don't know just wanted to rant a little. With that said though, the inclusion of Dolby ATMOS without having to root on the Axon 7 plus its dual stereo forward facing speakers makes this a non-competition. Yes, you could add ViperATMOSBeatsDon'tcare Mod.zip to a rooted TWRP OnePlus 3... but why should I have to? Why can't some system-wide equalizer be included Mr. FlagShip Killer? Look at their own Community Forum and its one of the most active requests since the OnePlus 3 came out (along with actually using all the RAM the phone has)... Good Work ZTE!!! I'm sure for all you headphone people too that the AXON 7 would dominate even though I have zero to judge that on since I have never taken either the OnePlus 3's headphones nor the AXON 7's headphones out of the box.
WINNER: AXON 7 BigFoot- Crushing OnePlus 3 Grave Digger.
BATTERY
People get bent out of shape nowadays about the "wall hugger" syndrome... this is the need to re-charge your phone more than once, twice, 3-times etc. per day and being attached to a charger constantly. Well, we only have ourselves and technology to blame. Battery technology has yet to progress to a point that adequately matches all the other advances cell phones have made... I can remember in the 90's getting my first Li-ion Battery Cell Phone and was like "WOW!!! I can charge this anytime I want, days of battery life, no need to discharge the whole phone before recharging and no need for extra batteries..." Fast forward almost 30 years... AND its the same type of battery... So no phone truly wins here until technology gets better. This too along with our need for skinny things... women, cocktails, bank account, soda, etc. have phones getting increasingly skinnier without ever considering what it has do with the battery is disturbing. If only we could get back to the simpler times of a bagphone, then the battery could be as big as you want it... AHHH, the simpler times. HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! Really though, the batteries on both phones perform very similar in my use. The place where they differ the most is the charging. For OnePlus 3, you have to use their proprietary DASH Charge as oppose to QuickCharge 3.0. This means you can only buy OnePlus 3 chargers (or some not trustworthy knock offs) to take advantage of feature... it's not so bad now that they made the car charger available again on their website and the phone comes with a wall plug with the feature... it's just a departure from the standard many others are using and requires new accessory purchases... basically a OnePlus Money Grab.... DASH Charge is slightly faster but not enough for anyone but a battery loving neophyte to really take notice.
WINNER: AXON 7 - Sorry QuickCharge 3.0 Industry Standard beats proprietary DASH Charge even though DASH Charge is slightly faster.
HEAT
Not going to spend much time here. Both phones run Snapdragon 820's. Both phones are metal... guess what... they get hot under stress... so no winners here, only losers. Neither had to be powered off for getting too hot though, like my S7 needed to when I was doing its initial setup... so there's that. :good:
WINNER: Both or None... They get hot under processor stress and in the dreaded "At an event and have your camera constantly on then stick it in your pocket only to have 3rd degree burns on your thighs or butt" Test
SNAPPINESS
Neither phone I have taken the time to Mod or root or stare at compassionately... but both perform really well like they should. Now, let the 6GB vs. 4GB debates begin!!! First, it is well known that even after 2 updates, the OnePlus 3's RAM management is still wonky and does not fully utilize all that RAM. No matter. I can't see an advantage yet. Yes you could AnTuTu-whogivesapoop test them all day. I rather just talked about how using the phone feels. Neither have extensive bastardizations over stock android so neither grinds the phone to a halt like TouchWizCement does. I run the BETA of Sense 8 Launcher for All Android Phones on both. Both phones perform well with it. I have played Pokemon GO! on both along with Clash Royale... both run fine. GPS works good on both and locks in fairly quickly. It isn't the best I have seen but not the LG Worst either Until there's another processor to look at, I think most manufacturers are taking full advantage of the limits of the 820. Throwing RAM at it doesn't dramatically do anything either. I guess it good to always have it in your back pocket if needed.
WINNER: ONEPLUS 3 - Simply because it has more RAM, no real-world experience proves it faster. Fanboy Benchmarkers withstanding
************DISCLAIMER / NEWSFLASH************* FOR IT PEOPLE FROM NEW JERSEY AND/OR GENERAL KNOW-IT-ALLS
YES... One can easily claim that RAM on the face of it has nothing to do with Snappiness since no present day Android phone fully utilizes 4GB let alone 6GB of RAM... The point to be made here is that the OP3 although having more RAM has no advantage in snappiness over an AXON 7. With that said, since both phones cost the same, neither phone is snappier, why not pick the one with more RAM based on stats alone... for this particularly on the face of it unrelated category? Furthermore, there has been many tests of the OP3 that show that RAM in a way DOES influence its snappiness when compared to 4GB phones... not because of the amount of RAM but by OP3's RAM MANAGEMENT. Lastly, although it may seem like a marketing ploy now for OP3 to have 6GB of RAM since it is not needed since it is not utilized.... I have kind of heard this argument before... when phones had 1GB of RAM and 2GB phones were introduced, then when 3GB phones were introduced, etc. etc. and from basically every iSheep out there, that more RAM does not necessarily make a phone better or faster. Albeit true for the most part for Apple because they spend a vast amount of time developing their RAM Management and have iOS lock down, for Android and what seems to be a lack of development on this front, RAM amounts increase to handle the sloppiness of the RAM Management and/or lack of focus on developing this overlooked section of the phone's programming. Basically, OP3 moves the needle for better or worst towards 6GB at the same price as 4GB... more is more in this one scenario only...
DISPLAY
Not much to mention here either. Both have good displays. On paper, the AXON 7's is better. I would say that the average person not knowing that one has higher resolution than the other would have a hard time calling it out. Color reproduction is about the same on both as well. Neither have a "always-on" feature which would have been nice. Both have LED's for notifications. Here's where once again you just have to stick with the stats and say....
WINNER: AXON 7 - higher stats mean better screen right!!!!???
PHONE DESIGN
Wow! a bit to talk about here. Let's start on both phones exterior features and design. Both are designed well. Definitely not ugly by any stretch of the imagination. The AXON 7 was designed with help from BMW and significantly improves on the previous generation iteration, like having actual speakers in both of the speaker grill looking forward facing top and bottom of screen. I do have the gold AXON 7... the color isn't the greatest but I wasn't going to wait for the gray one to come out to test it... I might return the gold for a gray if they become available in my return window. The OnePlus 3 is a pretty phone too. It doesn't have a firm like BMW attached to it, but one feels they did a good job of improving on the OnePlus 2 design without getting away from their bread and butter core design elements. With that, I love the alert slider... call me an isheep but I feel to this day that it is the single greatest design advantage the iPhone has had over any Android phone for years now. Although not as perfectly functional as Apples is, the OnePlus 3 is a great feature. Both have excellent fingerprint readers. Very fast. For my use case, a front facing fingerprint reader is better. That's my use case, in a cradle, in my car, that I get in and out of while sometime leaving my phone in the cradle, makes the front facing reader slightly more convenient. NFC chip and camera placement good on both as well. AXON 7 does have one design characteristic that I found annoying and I noticed while playing Clash Royale.... the power button is on the right side of the phone near the center. While playing and trying to drag drop to the top of the screen, you can easily inadvertently toggle the on/off button, this might be the button is overly sensitive or just my clumsiness. OnePlus 3 scores some extras too with swapstyle cases... Why can't other phone manufacturers take notes here. I think it is great that I can get relatively cheap exclusively designed nice looking cases for my OnePlus 3... for the AXON 7, I'm stuck with Chinese knock off cheesy poop designed cases with TPU raining from skies... I need a case and sure the first thing that comes to mind when I get a nice looking professionally designed by BMW phone is to put it into a TPU trashcan of a case because 0.0 (zero point zero) cases by ZTE are available or even look worthy of residing on the phone.... yep, I so love it. AXON 7 does step it up with one thing, SD card compatibility. More storage... sure I can use that anytime...
WINNER: TIED - OnePlus 3 would have won here, but not having SD Card capability is just dumb... especially since you used the space for a dual SIM.
*********************ADDITIONAL DESIGN DISCUSSION************CAPACITIVE BUTTONS ON THE AXON 7**********************
Purposely I left this discussion out about the capacitive buttons on the AXON 7. WHY? You may ask. At first, like many, when I heard that not only does the AXON 7 only have capacitive buttons without the option to toggle to turn them off for on-screen buttons, the buttons themselves do not light up, did make me a little worried. But to not buy a phone based on a untested worry is just fear mongering at it best, plus I bought my AXON 7 from Amazon so that I could easily return it if I hated it. Well, surprisingly the capacitive button "issue" is really just a bunch of hype... yes, I do think that OP3 has the advantage here with the toggle for on-screen and that its buttons light up. However, the AXON 7 does provide a on-screen button solution although it is way more sloppy looks wise then OP3's. The whole light up button thing to me can be excused by what was an intentional design choice by ZTE. So, unlike the OP3 which has its all app and back buttons spread out along the bottom of the display, the AXON 7 distinctively has its all-app and back buttons crowded towards the center closer to the central home button. Why do this? Well, from my use in dark rooms and at night, it makes not seeing the actual buttons not an issue. Let me explain further. I know from muscle memory that the home button is in center of the bottom of screen... pretty easy to hit in a completely dark room unless I'm drunk that is... being able to do this on muscle memory then in turn with a slight adjustment to the right, makes it easy to hit the back button (setup for right hand in the AXON 7's setting) and same to the left with the all apps button. If the buttons were spaced out like OP3's without lights then it would be an issue... but in this case and what I hope is design answering function, the AXON 7 doesn't have an issue... once again to me, maybe not you.... hahahahaha
CAMERA
I have done a couple of these reviews and every time I point out that I am not a big fan of cameras on phones. I went to school for photography and movie making back when film was still used. Have seen lenses that cost more than my current house and have seen Ansel Adams original prints first hand. So, it makes me a camera snob... thus, my opinion of on phone cameras is that they are all Bantha PooDoo. However, improvements are made with every new phone and even though innovations have seem to slow in favor of the pixel wars... one day they might be great.
Looking at both and later I will put up some similar shots from both, each phone have decent cameras. The OnePlus performs better in low light especially however I would not count the AXON 7 out in the cold as I feel that the AXON 7's low light difficulties might be able to be corrected with feature updates. The AXON 7 does have it's ripoff version of a "live photo" that works pretty decent plus some decent scenario modes that just work better for pictures I may take. The OnePlus 3's camera software is just basic with good custom manual settings. The AXON 7 has manual mode as well. Like I said, I will upload some similar shots from each and you can decide.
WINNER: TBD
CONCLUSION
So, what can I conclude? Both phones are awesome... Both have plus and minuses. I don't think there's a clear hands down winner and would not want to argue that point. I can only tell you that beyond everything else that the lack of a system-wide equalizer for sound just annoys little brown stinkies out of me. My commute to work is a big part of my day sometimes 7 days a week. I want to listen to Sirius XM app and Google Play Music so it sound great in my car. I want to set some equalization that make it sound awesome then forget it is even there. Not constant resetting of bass boost, tweaking sound to have it all reset again and again. Why provide a basic equalizer in Google Play Music on the OnePlus 3 that always has the bass setting reset when a call comes in, you switch to a new app or the crappy RAM Management software kicks it out of memory even though you locked it into memory on the all apps screen? That just pains me... If OnePlus does listen to their customer base, maybe just maybe they will add one in a future OTA update. Who knows. Having had the original AXON, I have to say that this phone is definitely an improvement and is worth checking out if you liked the original. I am still a little off-put by the fact that ZTE has done very little to support this phone with accessories like cases and stuff making me hit Aliexpress for the Oscar the Grouch specials that they have there. Could you survive with either one of these phones as your next new phone... of course! Hopefully, this little review will help you out in that decision. Lastly and as always, this is just Some Guys Opinion...
:highfive:

Newsflash - Having 6gb of RAM doesn't make a phone more snappy than a 4gb phone... people need to stop thinking this...4gb is more than enough RAM for even the most hardcore user...6gb is just a gimmick for sales.

gparmar76 said:
Newsflash - Having 6gb of RAM doesn't make a phone more snappy than a 4gb phone... people need to stop thinking this...4gb is more than enough RAM for even the most hardcore user...6gb is just a gimmick for sales.
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Click to collapse
Newsflash- didn't say it did but with proper RAM management it COULD in theory be more snappy if it kept more apps in memory not requiring them to be reloaded. Also if the phones are the same price why not have more. Was pretty much my point. It makes no difference but higher quantity wins out. Your argument is the same for better displays 1080p is good enough why would you need more? Because they can and do... Snore

mahst68 said:
Newsflash- didn't say it did but with proper RAM management it COULD in theory be more snappy if it kept more apps in memory not requiring them to be reloaded. Also if the phones are the same price why not have more. Was pretty much my point. It makes no difference but higher quantity wins out. Your argument is the same for better displays 1080p is good enough why would you need more? Because they can and do... Snore
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Click to collapse
lol...why don't you read what you wrote...Snappiness -OP3 simply because it has more RAM.
All I'm saying is you're wrong...the OP3 could very well be "snappier" but it sure as hell isn't because it has 6gb of memory... memory management issues or not...the only time RAM would take away from a modern day smartphone's speed or cause heavy lag would be if it had very low amount of RAM (512mb or 1gb)....even 2gb phones run great on Android M...most high end phones that have 3 or more GB of memory never use all of it...you could load up 250,apps simultaneously and you would never use 4gb of memory...trust me I've tried and I'm using the OP2...most if not ALL issues related to lag these days or just spotty performance in the UK is related to the OS and how the OEM implemented it...heavy skinning, bloatware, etc etc.

gparmar76 said:
lol...why don't you read what you wrote...Snappiness -OP3 simply because it has more RAM.
All I'm saying is you're wrong...the OP3 could very well be "snappier" but it sure as hell isn't because it has 6gb of memory... memory management issues or not...the only time RAM would take away from a modern day smartphone's speed or cause heavy lag would be if it had very low amount of RAM (512mb or 1gb)....even 2gb phones run great on Android M...most high end phones that have 3 or more GB of memory never use all of it...you could load up 250,apps simultaneously and you would never use 4gb of memory...trust me I've tried and I'm using the OP2...most if not ALL issues related to lag these days or just spotty performance in the UK is related to the OS and how the OEM implemented it...heavy skinning, bloatware, etc etc.
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Bra- I know you guys in the UK think you invented English language but...
The whole paragraph explains that neither the Axon 7 or the OP3 is faster or more snappy. In so much as this is true, why not have 6GB of RAM if it doesn't cost more. Thus exactly what I wrote rather than the trainwreck you wrote :
WINNER: ONEPLUS 3 - Simply because it has more RAM, no real-world experience proves it faster. Fanboy Benchmarkers withstanding
Which simply means in headlines, newsflashes or whatever else makes you feel like you are telling someone that you're important that when 2 phones perform the same, might as well have the one with more stuff, regardless if it helps or not...
I prefer that I pick who puts words in my mouth and it turns out you're not one of them

mahst68 said:
Bra- I know you guys in the UK think you invented English language but...
The whole paragraph explains that neither the Axon 7 or the OP3 is faster or more snappy. In so much as this is true, why not have 6GB of RAM if it doesn't cost more. Thus exactly what I wrote rather than the trainwreck you wrote :
WINNER: ONEPLUS 3 - Simply because it has more RAM, no real-world experience proves it faster. Fanboy Benchmarkers withstanding
Which simply means in headlines, newsflashes or whatever else makes you feel like you are telling someone that you're important that when 2 phones perform the same, might as well have the one with more stuff, regardless if it helps or not...
I prefer that I pick who puts words in mouth and it turns out your not one of them
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Click to collapse
"BRA" It was spell check that changed UI to UK... would have thought that was clearly evident...but alas...
And I know what he was implying...bra...lol...aren't bras worn by women? Maybe you mean Bruh?

gparmar76 said:
"BRA" It was spell check that changed UI to UK... would have thought that was clearly evident...but alas...
And I know what he was implying...bra...lol...aren't bras worn by women? Maybe you mean Bruh?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope I meant to call you "bra" and spell check had my back. Bruh is for my bruhs. "Bra" is for someone exactly like you because since you must wear them since you're a little biatch... Trolling flaming gnome. Go get in line for Harry Potter and have a nice day BRA

mahst68 said:
PURPOSE
So 1st and foremost, the plan here is to give you my experience with these 2 phones. Granted, I have only used the Axon 7 for about 3 days now and can say I have yet to fully break it in to find everything that may or may not be right / wrong with it. However, this will be a unbiased look and comparison. I'm neither a fanboy or sheep. No brand affiliation. Not a programmer either, just a pro-sumer Senior Member of XDA willing to get trolled, flamed, etc. for sharing a look at these 2 phones. Hopefully, I can give "the everyday guy / gal look" without getting bogged down in stats, variables or benchmarks. Here goes...
MY BACKGROUND
No one special. Just a guy that likes the latest tech... phones being at the top of the list. I am a nerd. No doubt about that. I think anyone that knows about XDA probably is to some extent. No brand loyalty. Recently, I have had the privilege to try out the following phones:
1. Axon 7
2. OnePlus 3
3. HTC 10
4. LeEcco Le Max 2
5. Huawei P9
6. LG G5
7. Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge
8. Huawei Mate 8
9. Huawei Nexus 6P
10. LG Nexus 5X
11. Samsung Note 5
12. Apple iPhone 6s+
And probably some more, but these are the most recent. Does that make me qualified to make a review... Maybe. It does make me an idiot that likes new phones, though. I am always looking for something that meets my needs but also is a good phone. Currently with TMobile but have been with ATT, Verizon & Sprint at some point over 20 years of using cell phones.
MY NEEDS
I drive about 40 miles everyday to work (yes, my work week is currently 7 days a week with a few occasional days off). So, with this in mind and where I drive, I need the minimum requirements:
1. Can Stream Music
2. Bluetooth is fully compatible with my 2016 vehicle
3. An equalizer of some sort since I have only switch out my new cars speakers for better ones and don't plan on changing or adding a better sound system.
4. Decent pictures when needed
5. As a nerd, I like to "mesmerize" people with a pay with your phone app like Apple Pay or Android Pay
6. Works with my Huawei Watch
7. Relatively not laggy - will sometimes do some ROM-ing or some customization but since I tend to get rid of the phones quickly I try not to void warranties or make it too non-stock
THE COMPARISON
I am looking at my experience with the OnePlus 3 and the Axon 7 under/around these requirements and some normal stuff like battery, screen, snappiness, heat, speakers, etc. Here goes:
SOUND OVERALL
There is not too many times when I do a review comparison where 1 phone just crushes the other... and I don't mean like crushing an empty aluminum beer can in your hand crushing... I mean like BigFoot crushing late model junk cars at the end of a Monster Truck Rally Crushin'.... 'Mericaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!! Sorry got carried away there a second. Honestly, how phone manufacturers cannot include a system-wide sound equalizer with all the other STUPID GUI tweaks and bastardizations they do to Android especially is beyond me in 2016. Most people are transitioning to bluetooth headphones or have bluetooth in their cars and for the most part use streaming services to/for music. Yes, there is the occasional dude with the $1000 plug-in headphones that also plugs into a in-line $2000 DAC that only listens to download Loseless Quality Music with the Music App that came with the phone.... with a show of hands, how many fall into this category??? Then why pray tell is this the only music equalization most manufacturers are catering too on their phones (Apple included)? I don't know just wanted to rant a little. With that said though, the inclusion of Dolby ATMOS without having to root on the Axon 7 plus its dual stereo forward facing speakers makes this a non-competition. Yes, you could add ViperATMOSBeatsDon'tcare Mod.zip to a rooted TWRP OnePlus 3... but why should I have to? Why can't some system-wide equalizer be included Mr. FlagShip Killer? Look at their own Community Forum and its one of the most active requests since the OnePlus 3 came out (along with actually using all the RAM the phone has)... Good Work ZTE!!! I'm sure for all you headphone people too that the AXON 7 would dominate even though I have zero to judge that on since I have never taken either the OnePlus 3's headphones nor the AXON 7's headphones out of the box.
WINNER: AXON 7 BigFoot- Crushing OnePlus 3 Grave Digger.
BATTERY
People get bent out of shape nowadays about the "wall hugger" syndrome... this is the need to re-charge your phone more than once, twice, 3-times etc. per day and being attached to a charger constantly. Well, we only have ourselves and technology to blame. Battery technology has yet to progress to a point that adequately matches all the other advances cell phones have made... I can remember in the 90's getting my first Li-ion Battery Cell Phone and was like "WOW!!! I can charge this anytime I want, days of battery life, no need to discharge the whole phone before recharging and no need for extra batteries..." Fast forward almost 30 years... AND its the same type of battery... So no phone truly wins here until technology gets better. This too along with our need for skinny things... women, cocktails, bank account, soda, etc. have phones getting increasingly skinnier without ever considering what it has do with the battery is disturbing. If only we could get back to the simpler times of a bagphone, then the battery could be as big as you want it... AHHH, the simpler times. HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! Really though, the batteries on both phones perform very similar in my use. The place where they differ the most is the charging. For OnePlus 3, you have to use their proprietary DASH Charge as oppose to QuickCharge 3.0. This means you can only buy OnePlus 3 chargers (or some not trustworthy knock offs) to take advantage of feature... it's not so bad now that they made the car charger available again on their website and the phone comes with a wall plug with the feature... it's just a departure from the standard many others are using and requires new accessory purchases... basically a OnePlus Money Grab.... DASH Charge is slightly faster but not enough for anyone but a battery loving neophyte to really take notice.
WINNER: AXON 7 - Sorry QuickCharge 3.0 Industry Standard beats proprietary DASH Charge even though DASH Charge is slightly faster.
HEAT
Not going to spend much time here. Both phones run Snapdragon 820's. Both phones are metal... guess what... they get hot under stress... so no winners here, only losers. Neither had to be powered off for getting too hot though, like my S7 needed to when I was doing its initial setup... so there's that. :good:
WINNER: Both or None... They get hot under processor stress and in the dreaded "At an event and have your camera constantly on then stick it in your pocket only to have 3rd degree burns on your thighs or butt" Test
SNAPPINESS
Neither phone I have taken the time to Mod or root or stare at compassionately... but both perform really well like they should. Now, let the 6GB vs. 4GB debates begin!!! First, it is well known that even after 2 updates, the OnePlus 3's RAM management is still wonky and does not fully utilize all that RAM. No matter. I can't see an advantage yet. Yes you could AnTuTu-whogivesapoop test them all day. I rather just talked about how using the phone feels. Neither have extensive bastardizations over stock android so neither grinds the phone to a halt like TouchWizCement does. I run the BETA of Sense 8 Launcher for All Android Phones on both. Both phones perform well with it. I have played Pokemon GO! on both along with Clash Royale... both run fine. GPS works good on both and locks in fairly quickly. It isn't the best I have seen but not the LG Worst either [emoji14] Until there's another processor to look at, I think most manufacturers are taking full advantage of the limits of the 820. Throwing RAM at it doesn't dramatically do anything either. I guess it good to always have it in your back pocket if needed.
WINNER: ONEPLUS 3 - Simply because it has more RAM, no real-world experience proves it faster. Fanboy Benchmarkers withstanding
DISPLAY
Not much to mention here either. Both have good displays. On paper, the AXON 7's is better. I would say that the average person not knowing that one has higher resolution than the other would have a hard time calling it out. Color reproduction is about the same on both as well. Neither have a "always-on" feature which would have been nice. Both have LED's for notifications. Here's where once again you just have to stick with the stats and say....
WINNER: AXON 7 - higher stats mean better screen right!!!!???
PHONE DESIGN
Wow! a bit to talk about here. Let's start on both phones exterior features and design. Both are designed well. Definitely not ugly by any stretch of the imagination. The AXON 7 was designed with help from BMW and significantly improves on the previous generation iteration, like having actual speakers in both of the speaker grill looking forward facing top and bottom of screen. I do have the gold AXON 7... the color isn't the greatest but I wasn't going to wait for the gray one to come out to test it... I might return the gold for a gray if they become available in my return window. The OnePlus 3 is a pretty phone too. It doesn't have a firm like BMW attached to it, but one feels they did a good job of improving on the OnePlus 2 design without getting away from their bread and butter core design elements. With that, I love the alert slider... call me an isheep but I feel to this day that it is the single greatest design advantage the iPhone has had over any Android phone for years now. Although not as perfectly functional as Apples is, the OnePlus 3 is a great feature. Both have excellent fingerprint readers. Very fast. For my use case, a front facing fingerprint reader is better. That's my use case, in a cradle, in my car, that I get in and out of while sometime leaving my phone in the cradle, makes the front facing reader slightly more convenient. NFC chip and camera placement good on both as well. AXON 7 does have one design characteristic that I found annoying and I noticed while playing Clash Royale.... the power button is on the right side of the phone near the center. While playing and trying to drag drop to the top of the screen, you can easily inadvertently toggle the on/off button, this might be the button is overly sensitive or just my clumsiness. OnePlus 3 scores some extras too with swapstyle cases... Why can't other phone manufacturers take notes here. I think it is great that I can get relatively cheap exclusively designed nice looking cases for my OnePlus 3... for the AXON 7, I'm stuck with Chinese knock off cheesy poop designed cases with TPU raining from skies... I need a case and sure the first thing that comes to mind when I get a nice looking professionally designed by BMW phone is to put it into a TPU trashcan of a case because 0.0 (zero point zero) cases by ZTE are available or even look worthy of residing on the phone.... yep, I so love it. AXON 7 does step it up with one thing, SD card compatibility. More storage... sure I can use that anytime...
WINNER: TIED - OnePlus 3 would have won here, but not having SD Card capability is just dumb... especially since you used the space for a dual SIM.
CAMERA
I have done a couple of these reviews and every time I point out that I am not a big fan of cameras on phones. I went to school for photography and movie making back when film was still used. Have seen lenses that cost more than my current house and have seen Ansel Adams original prints first hand. So, it makes me a camera snob... thus, my opinion of on phone cameras is that they are all Bantha PooDoo. However, improvements are made with every new phone and even though innovations have seem to slow in favor of the pixel wars... one day they might be great.
Looking at both and later I will put up some similar shots from both, each phone have decent cameras. The OnePlus performs better in low light especially however I would not count the AXON 7 out in the cold as I feel that the AXON 7's low light difficulties might be able to be corrected with feature updates. The AXON 7 does have it's ripoff version of a "live photo" that works pretty decent plus some decent scenario modes that just work better for pictures I may take. The OnePlus 3's camera software is just basic with good custom manual settings. The AXON 7 has manual mode as well. Like I said, I will upload some similar shots from each and you can decide.
WINNER: TBD
CONCLUSION
So, what can I conclude? Both phones are awesome... Both have plus and minuses. I don't think there's a clear hands down winner and would not want to argue that point. I can only tell you that beyond everything else that the lack of a system-wide equalizer for sound just annoys little brown stinkies out of me. My commute to work is a big part of my day sometimes 7 days a week. I want to listen to Sirius XM app and Google Play Music so it sound great in my car. I want to set some equalization that make it sound awesome then forget it is even there. Not constant resetting of bass boost, tweaking sound to have it all reset again and again. Why provide a basic equalizer in Google Play Music on the OnePlus 3 that always has the bass setting reset when a call comes in, you switch to a new app or the crappy RAM Management software kicks it out of memory even though you locked it into memory on the all apps screen? That just pains me... If OnePlus does listen to their customer base, maybe just maybe they will add one in a future OTA update. Who knows. Having had the original AXON, I have to say that this phone is definitely an improvement and is worth checking out if you liked the original. I am still a little off-put by the fact that ZTE has done very little to support this phone with accessories like cases and stuff making me hit Aliexpress for the Oscar the Grouch specials that they have there. Could you survive with either one of these phones as your next new phone... of course! Hopefully, this little review will help you out in that decision. Lastly and as always, this is just Some Guys Opinion...
:highfive:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks but no thanks... You actually didn't influence my thoughts. More like 1 step forward, 1 step backward, your pros fit both phones matched your cons
Sent from my SM-A9000 using Tapatalk

Thanks for your comparison! Not sure why people are so arrogant or condescending. Appreciate your effort writing this up so some of us can make a better decision.

ashburton said:
Thanks but no thanks... You actually didn't influence my thoughts. More like 1 step forward, 1 step backward, your pros fit both phones matched your cons
Sent from my SM-A9000 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's the whole point. Too many so called "real" reviews online do not give an honest opinion and are influenced by the author getting free stuff, free phone, etc. My point is to not make you say "hey I need to go get one of these phones now" but rather "I did know that and didn't know this... now I do." Thanks for reading!

Charkol said:
Thanks for your comparison! Not sure why people are so arrogant or condescending. Appreciate your effort writing this up so some of us can make a better decision.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep!! You got the point exactly. I'm not here to "influence" anyone into making a decision. I'm not a ZTE or OP3 salesperson. Just laying out real world facts as I see them (Thus the title of the post). Too many blog reviews make phones out to be the greatest thing since sliced bread or the bottom layer of poop in an unattended bird cage (like the stuff stuck to newspaper on the bottom). The fact of the matter is that these people tend to be influenced in other ways (monetarily, free stuff, etc.) to make or break a review. Just because I posted in the AXON 7 forum, does not mean that the AXON 7 wins every category automatically. The AXON 7 is a good phone but not without some flaws, same with the OP3. It's knowing what flaws you can live with and which ones you can't that should influence your decision rather than Some Guys Opinion hahahahahaha :highfive:

Post some stats of battery life comparison. I highly doubt the A7 gets better battery than the OP3.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using XDA-Developers mobile app

mahst68 said:
Nope I meant to call you "bra" and spell check had my back. Bruh is for my bruhs. "Bra" is for someone exactly like you because since you must wear them since you're a little biatch... Trolling flaming gnome. Go get in line for Harry Potter and have a nice day BRA
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Click to collapse
I'm an American and am embarrassed to read what you wrote.
Sent from my SM-G935T using Tapatalk

darkjedi said:
I'm an American and am embarrassed to read what you wrote.
Sent from my SM-G935T using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are an American?
Sent from my Nexus 6P using XDA-Developers mobile app

darkjedi said:
I'm an American and am embarrassed to read what you wrote.
Sent from my SM-G935T using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am too but he stopped commenting so there's that. Sorry I know it was very lame

brickedvice said:
Post some stats of battery life comparison. I highly doubt the A7 gets better battery than the OP3.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using XDA-Developers mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Didn't say it did actually.... I said it performed similarly. I also said that the OP3 actually charges faster. Why did I pick the AXON 7 then.... well, that's the question isn't?
Oh wait... it's right there in the Battery paragraph if you only took time to read thoroughly... thanks!

I guess, that the snappiness of the OnePlus 3 isn't only because of more Ram, but also because of the much slimmer Oxygen OS.
I didn't receive my OnePlus 3 so far, but even when it's faster, I think I can't live without those awesome speakers of the ZTE Axon 7.

mahst68 said:
Didn't say it did actually.... I said it performed similarly. I also said that the OP3 actually charges faster. Why did I pick the AXON 7 then.... well, that's the question isn't?
Oh wait... it's right there in the Battery paragraph if you only took time to read thoroughly... thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your review was kind of big b.s that's why no time to waste on reading all of it. Do a better job next time. Thanks!
Sent from my Nexus 6P using XDA-Developers mobile app

Cypher_01 said:
I guess, that the snappiness of the OnePlus 3 isn't only because of more Ram, but also because of the much slimmer Oxygen OS.
I didn't receive my OnePlus 3 so far, but even when it's faster, I think I can't live without those awesome speakers of the ZTE Axon 7.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep. I wish I could get past the sound thing. Unfortunately it consumes about an hour of my day everyday if not longer. You'll enjoy the OP3. Great phone!!

brickedvice said:
Your review was kind of big b.s that's why no time to waste on reading all of it. Do a better job next time. Thanks!
Sent from my Nexus 6P using XDA-Developers mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why is it a bs review? Explain

Related

Any converted HTC Advantage/Athena/Ameo/X7500/X7501/X7510 users?

I've been in several discussions with users that have come from (or previously owned) the 5 inch HTC Advantage. I see Dell Streak users have a thread to compare/contrast to the Note, so I thought I would do the same for the Advantage. This may help some to decide to move from the Advantage to the Note - or not.
For those that don't know what the Advantage is, it came out 5 years ago - the first phone with a 5" screen. It also included a detachable keyboard, stereo speakers, video port, stylus/pen, and a 8 GB hard drive when most SD cards at the time were below 2 GB. It had its problems, too. Since it was so far ahead of its time it was fairly bulky and heavy even with the keyboard removed. It didn't have a private speaker for phone calls. It had room for a vibration motor internally but it was never implemented even in later models, presumably because it caused problems with the hard drive. The other references in the thread title are the development name, and model names/numbers used by various carriers. Here is the XDA forum for the Advantage: http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=351
My personal reaction, as I've told several already, is the Note is by far a better phone. Physical stats, operating system, having things like a private speaker and vibration which the Advantage should have had, all add up. Not to mention that the Note costs 1/3 of what the Advantage did so you have far less to loose. The Note/Android has its deficiencies. I've had to install a half-dozen apps to add features which were built into Windows Mobile - things like incremental ring volume, ability to get more than a single system notification for things like texts and calendar appointments (miss the first one and you've missed your appointment!), or keeping the screen from timing out when it is plugged in or for specific apps. But at least you can extend/improve the OS with apps without unlocking/rooting or flashing to a whole new OS. Which many Advantage owners did including me.
All that said, the Advantage held a special place in my heart. In the 4 1/2 years I used mine, I often told my wife it was the best gadget I had ever owned and I meant it. Which is saying a lot with all the gadgets and computers I've owned since 1984. But the Note is so good that if IT had come out 5 years ago, I'm sure I would be saying the same thing about it right now. Buy one.
I have a x7501 for a few years, but haven't been actively using it in the last few years also (went to iPhone, Android etc). I am interested in the Note, but haven't decided to get one yet.
But I think one fundamental difference is that the Athena is a keyboarded device (you can use it without, but you also loose the stand at the same time). Its stereo speakers and other positioning makes it a mainly landscape orientation device.
I really don't care about its thickness, it's not that bad. It is a bit thick w/ its leather case, but it does that to any other devices anyway.
What I don't like about the Athena: battery life, speed (I'm shocked reviews that said it's fast), photo taken with camera (rear) has off (red) colour (no ROM can fix that). Especially the last piece, it's unforgivable for a $1,500. USD product! The 8GB HDD is both slow, and battery eating, and cannot be turned off.
I just can't say I like it as much as some of you do. I don't hate it, but I don't think it was worth the $1,000. I paid for. If I had paid $1,500. then, I'd have sued them (just kidding).
I lugged the keyboard around for 1 1/2 years, but finally left it on my work desk permanently. Only used it there when I was streaming XM.
I never had a problem with battery life, it would last me much longer than the 12 hours I would go between unplugging in the morning and plugging it back in when I got home. Never had a problem with the camera, either. Good colors all around, not that the quality was that great.
I think you'll like the Note, all the advantages (pun intended) of the 7501 and none of its problems. After you add some apps to tweak the downfalls of the OS.
i'm one, see my siggie
i've had still have that gigantic heavy monstrous HTC 5" for the longest time
still trying to get Android installed on it someday
I had the x7501, then the x7510, and the note is 1/2 as thick, has a "phone" speaker, and besides all of the obvious spec advantages, is lighter and easier to hold. The screen is far more responsive than the old tft pressure technology without the inaccuracy of the iphone/android capacitive blunt-object to write/draw with issue.
all thumbs up for the note... though the Advantage was WAY ahead of its time.
I don't understand these threads. I get that the advantage was way ahead of its time, but it's 5 years old. 5! Would anyone seriously pick the advantage over the note?
I sold my x7501 long ago. Good times, lol.
nstong said:
I don't understand these threads. I get that the advantage was way ahead of its time, but it's 5 years old. 5! Would anyone seriously pick the advantage over the note?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I guess sometimes people can't let their old devices go.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using XDA
This isn't about keeping the Advantage. Its about comparing one to the other for those that are familiar with the Advantage and loved all of its features.
I think it is not about keeping the Advantage / Athena, may be it's partly nostalgia, partly comparing what's missing on current devices (bad things are not missed, I'm talking about things that users might like or prefer):
1. Stereo speakers. How hard can that be? But so far, iPhone doesn't have it, none of my Android phones up to 4.65" have it, my Tablet P by Sony has a tiny mono speaker. Only the Playbook (once had, now sold), and the Samsung Q1 have stereo speakers and good sound.
2. The metal case has pros and cons. It can get dented and discolouring when bumped / scratched, but it made it more sturdy as it is metal. But at least it is unique, and also makes it feel more premium (until it gets dented, like mine, from dropping, that is). Now everything besides iPhones are just plastics.
3. Magnetic keyboard. Now, no more, never seen and all give way to on screen ones, except a few. But those few, including Blackberry, do not want to do a magnetic keyboard, may be it's the cost, or fear of bad contacts. But again, this is very unique and hasn't been replicated. The see thru window to mimic the status bar on it makes it even cooler.
4. External connections for: USB host (only very lately, there are USB OTG for Android devices, before this, support was very poor, mostly only HID stuff), VGA out, cellular antenna, GPS antenna. Granted, the last 3 are not as needed today, and some Android devices have HDMI outputs that replace VGA more or less.
right now, few Android phones can stand on a desk unless with a kick stand case (which is usually the kind I buy, as I want it stand similar to what Advantage can do w/ the keyboard).
I think some clamshell MIDs like UMID / Viliv had come close to the design of Advantage but physically not as cool, no magnetic keyboard etc.
I guess the problem with modern design is that nobody would make a $1,500. device unless it is for industrial or military use, so they have to save cost and won't engage in fancy design and materials. In the case for Advantage, it's HTC flagship product, so they went all out.
Looking at current HTC products now, there aren't anything really special (I'm talking strictly from the physical point of view, since operating systems are all the same across the manufacturers anyway).
People are often amazed when I tell them that the Note is my third 5" phone. I loved the Advantage and the Dell Streak I had before the Note. No way I can go to a smaller screen. Very happy that the rest of the world is catching on to the benefits of a large screen device. And there are things I miss from Windows Mobile. I found it easier to flash ROMs and change the look and feel of the device.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using xda premium

Buying Le Max 2 - Help with Info Please!

Hello,
I'm looking to buy this phone. I currently have an Axon 7, but I can potentially return it if I order soon, and this phone is half the price for similar specs.
Therefore, I wish to know a few things, if anyone will oblige:
1. Can people please take some screenshots of the interface? I want to see just how cancerous the skin is. Specifically, I would like to see settings.
2. Can someone get me LxW measurements on the screen please? I thought 5.5 wouldn't be much smaller than six, but it turns out it almost fits on that screen. I love phablets!
2.5. Can somebody run some benchmarks? I'd be particularly interested in seeing The slingshot one from 3dMark.
3. How'd you say the camera is, in your subjective experience?
3.5. As presumably the folks here have followed development fairly closely.... how's it looking for Lineage/CM/Something else close-ish to stock? If video recording is the only issue, I have no problem with that.
4. Anything else I should know?
THANK YOU VERY MUCH!
you can find most of those info on YouTube and gsmareana.
btw why would you return your axon 7 for a max 2?
appsmarsterx said:
you can find most of those info on YouTube and gsmareana.
btw why would you return your axon 7 for a max 2?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
X2
All you ask is in youtube.
Actually, it isn't, hence why I came here. I know the rules. Look and then ask for help, my annoyance is how often I do and am dismissed out of hand by people who don't realize that several hours of googling for some obscure answers can be otherwise resolved in a few minutes f their kindly donated time with a ruler and some perspective, and that's when Google does actually have something. In this case, I'm confident to say it lacks what I'm interested in knowing in more than superficial detail.
Or at least, 4 hours into YT and written reviews and I have yet to see what I'm asking for. Please, if you're going to tell someone to just google it, make sure it actually will help, and if not, don't waste time with such an answer.
I've seen only the launcher a very quick look at the settings root, and no dropdown for notifications in that time.
As to photos, I trust the people here to be more in my camp in terms of expectations. The cam looks sharp enough.
Nobody has yet listed the screen dimension in anything but the diagonal, and I don't have a good point of reference for that. I also see fairly rampant issues w/ the fp scanner, and id be interested to know whether those have abated.
As to why I would replace an Axon 7 with it... the 7 is $513 cad. The LE Max 2 is $270 cad. 47% cheaper. It's a lot of money to leave on the table if the differences are negligible.
2 min in google:
https://www.kimovil.com/en/where-to-buy-leeco-le-max-2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yBjaMT5nXU
https://www.kimovil.com/en/compare/leeco-le-max-2,zte-axon-7
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWf8LC7Z210
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ifnXV6g87mY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HP9eAgfZnac
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-L-0sMjLPE
if you want know more info about the interface there are plenty of videos on eui.. and there are plenty of benchmarking videos too.. why waste 4 hours?
if you don't like the stock launcher, install something like Nova or Pixel.
dimensions
http://m.gsmarena.com/leeco_le_max_2-8051.php
156.8 x 77.6 x 8 mm (6.17 x 3.06 x 0.31 in)
appsmarsterx said:
if you want know more info about the interface there are plenty of videos on eui.. and there are plenty of benchmarking videos too.. why waste 4 hours?
if you don't like the stock launcher, install something like Nova or Pixel.
dimensions
http://m.gsmarena.com/leeco_le_max_2-8051.php
156.8 x 77.6 x 8 mm (6.17 x 3.06 x 0.31 in)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Of the phone, not the screen, I want the screen dimensions and I'd rather have avoided having to do algebra to get it. I checked GSMarena already. I did get some of the more obvious things like Benchmarks out of the way, along with photos, but I don't trust the interface to remain the same on a generic branding.... I wanted to see it specifically on this phone, and every review I've found, if they even address such things, only offers brief flash of the root menus.
One thing I would really like to know it's almost certain the reviews don't touch upon.... how is the hitbox for the capacitive buttons? I have a BLU Pure XL too, and those are extremely narrow, it's quite annoying.
TheLastCanadian said:
Hello,
I'm looking to buy this phone. I currently have an Axon 7, but I can potentially return it if I order soon, and this phone is half the price for similar specs.
Therefore, I wish to know a few things, if anyone will oblige:
1. Can people please take some screenshots of the interface? I want to see just how cancerous the skin is. Specifically, I would like to see settings.
2. Can someone get me LxW measurements on the screen please? I thought 5.5 wouldn't be much smaller than six, but it turns out it almost fits on that screen. I love phablets!
2.5. Can somebody run some benchmarks? I'd be particularly interested in seeing The slingshot one from 3dMark.
3. How'd you say the camera is, in your subjective experience?
3.5. As presumably the folks here have followed development fairly closely.... how's it looking for Lineage/CM/Something else close-ish to stock? If video recording is the only issue, I have no problem with that.
4. Anything else I should know?
THANK YOU VERY MUCH!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
TheLastCanadian said:
Of the phone, not the screen, I want the screen dimensions and I'd rather have avoided having to do algebra to get it. I checked GSMarena already. I did get some of the more obvious things like Benchmarks out of the way, along with photos, but I don't trust the interface to remain the same on a generic branding.... I wanted to see it specifically on this phone, and every review I've found, if they even address such things, only offers brief flash of the root menus.
One thing I would really like to know it's almost certain the reviews don't touch upon.... how is the hitbox for the capacitive buttons? I have a BLU Pure XL too, and those are extremely narrow, it's quite annoying.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Standard size hitbox, warriors rogues dks should still stay behind the boss, ranged attacks should still be made from max range 30-40 yrds.
Used screen size is 126mm x 71mm. Will answer more when I can, not had it long.
Well, I bit.
The Axon 7 is nice, but if we're being realistic I mostly just use my phone for web browsing anyway. Paying $513 for that doesn't make much sense when I can get similar specs for $270. We'll see. Worst case scenario I suffer with it for a while and then just buy a flagship when my cheap ass finally learns its lesson.
TheLastCanadian said:
Well, I bit.
The Axon 7 is nice, but if we're being realistic I mostly just use my phone for web browsing anyway. Paying $513 for that doesn't make much sense when I can get similar specs for $270. We'll see. Worst case scenario I suffer with it for a while and then just buy a flagship when my cheap ass finally learns its lesson.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been in your camp 1.5 years ago. Coming from Xperia, I said I want to buy a cheap one until a good flagship comes out. And so I bought the Le 1s, a 200$ phone when it just came out. I have to say that I was impressed that I can do whatever I need with it with so much ease, and it doesn't have to cost a kidney.
However, when Le Max2 came out, I ordered it immediately and handed over the 1s to my mom who is still using it without problems as we speak.
The interface is the same, I can tell you that there are no big differences, so if you will google the interface of any LeEco phone, it will be the same as on Max2 as far as I'm concerned.
The screen is a bit bigger than on the 5.5" phones and thus the footprint is taller and wider. Somehow a little difficult to sit with it in the front pocket. I remove it when driving, sitting at the table, most of the times I forget to take it out when I'm putting my shoes on and I do feel it.
Should I ask, why not go for the Pro3 when it has a bigger battery, FHD 5.5" screen, better CPU? The difference between FHD and QHD were tested with a photo taken from a mirrorless camera and it turned out it's very hard to spot the better sharpness on Max2 than on Le 1s.
I would go for the Pro3 now but my dad is yet to get used to touchscreen phones, so I'll keep it a bit more.
Considering the price/ what you get, as of now, I'd still go with LeEco anytime. The thing to keep in mind is to order it 2-3-4 months after release because the price would have dropped significantly.
valy_cta said:
I've been in your camp 1.5 years ago. Coming from Xperia, I said I want to buy a cheap one until a good flagship comes out. And so I bought the Le 1s, a 200$ phone when it just came out. I have to say that I was impressed that I can do whatever I need with it with so much ease, and it doesn't have to cost a kidney.
However, when Le Max2 came out, I ordered it immediately and handed over the 1s to my mom who is still using it without problems as we speak.
The interface is the same, I can tell you that there are no big differences, so if you will google the interface of any LeEco phone, it will be the same as on Max2 as far as I'm concerned.
The screen is a bit bigger than on the 5.5" phones and thus the footprint is taller and wider. Somehow a little difficult to sit with it in the front pocket. I remove it when driving, sitting at the table, most of the times I forget to take it out when I'm putting my shoes on and I do feel it.
Should I ask, why not go for the Pro3 when it has a bigger battery, FHD 5.5" screen, better CPU? The difference between FHD and QHD were tested with a photo taken from a mirrorless camera and it turned out it's very hard to spot the better sharpness on Max2 than on Le 1s.
I would go for the Pro3 now but my dad is yet to get used to touchscreen phones, so I'll keep it a bit more.
Considering the price/ what you get, as of now, I'd still go with LeEco anytime. The thing to keep in mind is to order it 2-3-4 months after release because the price would have dropped significantly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My brother has a OP3T, and while I won't say there's anything inherently wrong with 1080, I can definitely see a difference in images on my 2K Blu Pure XL. I need a phone that has ROMs available, as I really don't trust the Chinese to design a non-garbage OS, and a major part of the allure for the Le Max 2 was the 5.7" screen. I'd have taken just shy of six if I could've gotten it, but alas, some compromises must be made.
It'd also be simple insanity to argue against a $270 price point on a phone that people say isn't inherently flawed (aka: not garbage). The axon 7 costs $513, for services/components I'm unlikely to use (I rarely put anything on phone speakers, and rooting would void their warranty anyway - plus, I take impeccable care of my devices).
Then go for it if you're into a bigger screen. 270 cad will sure be a cheap purchase but I do suggest to go for 4/64 version for few bucks more. I have 4/32 and after transferring some pictures from my camera, keeping some ROMs, apps, having my own pictures in, looks like some 4-5 GB left. I'd have to clean to use multirom Also go for the Grey version as the Rose Gold is too pinkish depending upon the light, but it's mostly pink...
To keep it short:
Pros:
- big screen
- sufficient RAM and a very good CPU
- easy to tinker with
- USB C
- Dual SIM
- cheap
- practically unbrickable
Cons:
- somehow twistable up to some extent, but nothing major; you can bend it back with your own hands, and had never been an issue
- quite large for the pocket
- camera could've been better
This is my opinion about the Max2. I would buy it again if you'd ask me
valy_cta said:
Then go for it if you're into a bigger screen. 270 cad will sure be a cheap purchase but I do suggest to go for 4/64 version for few bucks more. I have 4/32 and after transferring some pictures from my camera, keeping some ROMs, apps, having my own pictures in, looks like some 4-5 GB left. I'd have to clean to use multirom Also go for the Grey version as the Rose Gold is too pinkish depending upon the light, but it's mostly pink...
To keep it short:
Pros:
- big screen
- sufficient RAM and a very good CPU
- easy to tinker with
- USB C
- Dual SIM
- cheap
- practically unbrickable
Cons:
- somehow twistable up to some extent, but nothing major; you can bend it back with your own hands, and had never been an issue
- quite large for the pocket
- camera could've been better
This is my opinion about the Max2. I would buy it again if you'd ask me
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you know if they make this in a gold (yellow) colour?
I cancelled my order because while the images and colour description said "Golden", their chat reps insisted it would be Rose Gold, which doesn't do it for me.
They do have Gold (as they call it Force Gold) which is like normal yellow version. The other Gold is Rose Gold.
Do search for "Force Gold" color.

Nexus 6P -- Worth Upgrading From in 2017?

I have had a Nexus 6P since August 2016 and originally I loved the phone, beautiful display, snappy performance, stock Android, and a terrific camera. But over the months I've started to dislike it more and more. Bulky, heavy brick with a battery that would drop 1% every minute and wouldn't hold charge well even when on airplane mode powered down. And when I did charge it up, it would overheat like a ***** and if I really needed to use the phone while charging, it would lag the phone so hard despite running "one of the smoothest Android experiences on the market." And somedays the phone would just be blazing hot (not fast ) and I would have to throw it in the freezer to cool off. (and gaming was even worse so I stopped, so great waste of 64GB storage)
Moving on from battery and charging; I loved the stereo speakers for blasting videos but taking phone calls, I could barely hear anyone and would have to press phone super close to my ear drum to hear, and when I had iPhone there was no problem like that.
The screen was great, bright vivid but drained battery so I used black wallpaper and srgb mode. I got tired of the onscreen key nav buttons and there was no immersive mode. I was surprised there was no dark theme nor night mode for this phone. Yes the screen was solid and didn't take any scratches or cracks from falls nor from laying next to my keys. And the brightness settings were so fake. Yes you had a toggle from low to high, but the screen was literally the same brightness no matter what option you selected, only the battery saver option would actually dim the screen which is ridiculous. And talking about dim screens -- impossible to see anything on it even at "max brightness" outdoors, even shaded areas I would have to squint so much to make out "oh missed call from mom."
Not everything was bad, I did love the Google Feed and the Data Saver option when I had to watch my data usage but doesn't apply when I have an unlimited data plan. I was actually shocked by the lack of customizability with this phone. You couldn't do much with it. Yay you can move apps wherever and leave hugs gaps on screen and add some widgets but that was about it. Again no dark themes, little choice for wallpaper, no options for multi gesture other than 2-press power button to quick launch camera... But that camera was beautiful but was a nightmare when trying to pics outdoors, b.c you can't see whats on the screen.... And that super laggy HDR tho. Froze my phone several times as well. Snapchat lags everyday with phone as well.
And then the nail in the coffin was the Boot Loop of Death. I was on my way to Yankee Stadium, meeting up with a few friends when it happened. Phone in pocket and I go pull it out to make a call to figure what Gate we are all meeting up at and I see the Google logo. So I think to myself how weird, maybe my slim jeans (i don't wear skinny) were too tight and turned the phone off? So i try turning it on and yep you know what the loop of death is. Made my phone blazing hot and unusable. And my electronic ticket for the game was on there as well.... (luckily I made the game b.c of someone's reliable iPhone) Then the support to get this issue resolved was a nightmare. Google refused since it wasn't bought from their online store; Best Buy refused unless I payed $140; and so I shipped to Huawei and it took then 4 WEEKS to repair it (including a WHOLE WEEK to send me a shipping label THRU EMAIL!!!!) Ridiculous!!!
So overall a shocking terrible experience despite what everyone (esp. major tech vloggers on Youtube said). Never again am I purchasing a google phone. Utterly and purely disgusting. Oh hang, you may say it get timely updates! Um ok, so I say to you why get get updates as soon as they launch when you know there may be problems with that update as well which will make your phone unstable. (Forgot which update it was which made the SIM card not readable...)
Wow so um this kinda turned out to be a rant, but my question is: Is it worth upgrading from the Nexus 6P in 2017?
And if so which phone would you choose ($500 max price range -> unless there is a deal with a flagship phone)
Is the OnePLus 5 a good choice to upgrade too?
No IMHO. Most of the things that you described that you hate seem to be from Bad apps or something reacting badly with your phone. Battery wise also replace the battery and it's good to go for another year. Find out the culprit that is heating up your phone and get rid of it and you should be good to go again. I've had absolutely no issues with my phone and when I did it was because of an app not because of the phone.
Geezerooo said:
No IMHO. Most of the things that you described that you hate seem to be from Bad apps or something reacting badly with your phone. Battery wise also replace the battery and it's good to go for another year. Find out the culprit that is heating up your phone and get rid of it and you should be good to go again. I've had absolutely no issues with my phone and when I did it was because of an app not because of the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How do I even replace the battery, I'm not breaking the phone. This doesn't have a removable back. Also even when I got the phone shipped back to me from Huawei it would heat up like a pancake and all I had were the stock apps that were downloaded with the phone. If you seem to have no problem with yours, I'll gladly trade my phone for yours since as you said "the phone is good to go."
Also how is waking up to a phone that actually gave me burns ok? And the phone was off....
Can I get a professional opinion?
GenericMIKE said:
How do I even replace the battery, I'm not breaking the phone. This doesn't have a removable back. Also even when I got the phone shipped back to me from Huawei it would heat up like a pancake and all I had were the stock apps that were downloaded with the phone. If you seem to have no problem with yours, I'll gladly trade my phone for yours since as you said "the phone is good to go."
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I said MY phone is good to go. Also just stating my opinion as per the IMHO.
i dont seem to have the problems you described however the snapdragon 810 is known for being warm, like my Xperia Z3+ 810 was heating up like crazy, i could cooked a whole egg on it. But that phone was a complete mess.. closed sourced phone.. all we could do is temper with the kernel , underclock etc..
Nr 1, dont use original facebook/messenger/cancer app, use a lite version etc..
2. Debloat your phone
3. Dont play games
4Mess around with diffrent kernels and find what suits you.
Also if youre a owner of the nexus line phones, then you need to flash custom roms/kernels. Thats almost the only reason ive gotten my self a 6p (big screen , good sound, awsome camera)
if u want a close "google stock rom" experience try Cortex Rom.
The fact that the phone does not have a removable back will not prevent you from replacing the battery, plenty of teardowns available everywhere.
If your phone came back from Huawei in such bad conditions, you should contact them again.
I have mine since April 2016 and I replaced my battery last week, now it's running great again. I managed to replace the battery cuz I don't see any reasonable phone to replace my N6P, I'm putting my hope on Pixel 2 (despite the price) - might be an option.
Kungencortes said:
i dont seem to have the problems you described however the snapdragon 810 is known for being warm, like my Xperia Z3+ 810 was heating up like crazy, i could cooked a whole egg on it. But that phone was a complete mess.. closed sourced phone.. all we could do is temper with the kernel , underclock etc..
Nr 1, dont use original facebook/messenger/cancer app, use a lite version etc..
2. Debloat your phone
3. Dont play games
4Mess around with diffrent kernels and find what suits you.
Also if youre a owner of the nexus line phones, then you need to flash custom roms/kernels. Thats almost the only reason ive gotten my self a 6p (big screen , good sound, awsome camera)
if u want a close "google stock rom" experience try Cortex Rom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How do I debloat my phone? I barely have anything on it anyway. And yes I don't use Facebook messenger nor the app. And when I buy a phone expect the software to have basic features included which is why I got Nexus 6P with the stock Android since I was coming from a line of iPhones ever since 3GS. That's why the OnePlus interests me, it's has the software and the customizability already there.
Yep that's why I got the 6P as well, big screen; loud stereo; and good camera. But other than that atrocious. It makes me want to cry. (And the on screen keys take up too much space)
Grushteniak said:
The fact that the phone does not have a removable back will not prevent you from replacing the battery, plenty of teardowns available everywhere.
If your phone came back from Huawei in such bad conditions, you should contact them again.
I have mine since April 2016 and I replaced my battery last week, now it's running great again. I managed to replace the battery cuz I don't see any reasonable phone to replace my N6P, I'm putting my hope on Pixel 2 (despite the price) - might be an option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not even the OnePlus 5?
GenericMIKE said:
Not even the OnePlus 5?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I must say that I don't know much about this phone. Is it stock / easy to tweak as Nexus is? If yes, I might consider it as well.
Grushteniak said:
I must say that I don't know much about this phone. Is it stock / easy to tweak as Nexus is? If yes, I might consider it as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes it's stock Android with a light skin over which gives even more useful features like dark mode and etc.
GenericMIKE said:
Yes it's stock Android with a light skin over which gives even more useful features like dark mode and etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I saw some pictures of it and I'm not that impressed, I still have faith on Pixel XL 2 - S8+ is a very decent phone too, but the screen proportion they adopted now made me sad
I'm probably beating a dead horse here, but I'm waiting to see the Pixel XL 2. Unless it adds significant features that the 6P is lacking like water resistance, dual cameras, and smaller bezels, I might wait for the Pixel 3 or OnePlus 6/5T.
frap129 said:
I'm probably beating a dead horse here, but I'm waiting to see the Pixel XL 2. Unless it adds significant features that the 6P is lacking like water resistance, dual cameras, and smaller bezels, I might wait for the Pixel 3 or OnePlus 6/5T.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Man all you guys (n gals) seem to love the Nexus 6P...
But why??? I don't understand. It's such a heavy piece of hot garage.
GenericMIKE said:
Man all you guys (n gals) seem to love the Nexus 6P...
But why??? I don't understand. It's such a heavy piece of hot garage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not if you run a good ROM and kernel, I only have heat issues when compiling substratum themes
GenericMIKE said:
Man all you guys (n gals) seem to love the Nexus 6P...
But why??? I don't understand. It's such a heavy piece of hot garage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've had nothing but a great experience with my 6P. No complaints whatsoever. If someone else is having issues, that's them, not me.
If your car has been running flawless for 10 years but your neighbor with the same car has broken down countless time, does that mean your car is garbage?
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
richii0207 said:
I've had nothing but a great experience with my 6P. No complaints whatsoever. If someone else is having issues, that's them, not me.
If your car has been running flawless for 10 years but your neighbor with the same car has broken down countless time, does that mean your car is garbage?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ridiculous how it has to be a luck of a draw when you purchase a device....
Disappointing. Anyways got a lawsuit against Google and Huawei already in motion.
GenericMIKE said:
Ridiculous how it has to be a luck of a draw when you purchase a device....
Disappointing. Anyways got a lawsuit against Google and Huawei already in motion.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately, it occurs with all devices. I've seen every device I've owned since the OG Droid have their share of complaints. Some companies offer a return policy in the event you don't like the device and offer warranty for defects.
I've seen people complain about device defects but refuse to get a warranty exchange? Others complain about not being able to get an exchange past the warranty expiration.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
Just get an iphone. You seem to have drunk their marketing juice, and you will always complain until you get an iphone.
Just get an iphone, and enjoy Apples "reliability"
shadowcore said:
Just get an iphone. You seem to have drunk their marketing juice, and you will always complain until you get an iphone.
Just get an iphone, and enjoy Apples "reliability"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why is this the go to for everyone on here? Do we need to be die hard on either or side and make fun of peoples preferences?
Reminds me of the pathetic Dodge vs. ford people and it's pretty sad.
I just sold my iPhone tbh
crixley said:
Why is this the go to for everyone on here? Do we need to be die hard on either or side and make fun of peoples preferences?
Reminds me of the pathetic Dodge vs. ford people and it's pretty sad.
I just sold my iPhone tbh
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I dont mind people supporting the brands they like, but I prefer arguments. I know what iphones are like. I have seen the 4s first hand. And not only was I not impressed, I was shocked at the amount of overhead in simply transfering files.
Then I was shocked at how Apple nickle and dimed everything.
Even if the device was perfect, I would refuse to support Apple becuase of their greed and anti-consumer decisions.
They could be using standard technology, but they use propietary one, and as a result make every gadget expensive.
They dont support headphone jacks.
Their devices are obscenely expensive for what they offer.
They force people to use itunes.
You cant install third-party stores, unlike in android.
The interesting part is that other OEMs copy apple, from their design to their hardware decisions.
Apple makes the OS 64bit, others follow!
Apple introduces fingerprint scanner, OEMs follow!
Apple removes headpohone jack, OEMs follow!
Motorola, HTC, OPPO, Huawei,Xiaomi, Samsung, LG
All of them copy apple.
They are the "champion" of the smartphone business.
If apple decided tomorow to offer smartphones without screeens, you can bet your kidneys they will copy Apple.

Slow up-take? Are people buying this phone? Are you happy?

Usually the weeks after the launch of a phone especially one that was so anticipated the boards are absolutely full of user feedback.
It feels strangely dead here.
I held back on a purchase just to hear what people were thinking - particularly about the standard Mate 10 but there's very little happening.
Even on Google there is very little information on the Mate 10 (a lot on the pro) and very little user follow-up/long term reviews.
It's slightly un-nerving.
So ARE people buying this phone (the pro at least because of the availability)? Are you liking it? What's the experience been like? What DON'T you like......
kolembo said:
Usually the weeks after the launch of a phone especially one that was so anticipated the boards are absolutely full of user feedback.
It feels strangely dead here.
I held back on a purchase just to hear what people were thinking - particularly about the standard Mate 10 but there's very little happening.
Even on Google there is very little information on the Mate 10 (a lot on the pro) and very little user follow-up/long term reviews.
It's slightly un-nerving.
So ARE people buying this phone (the pro at least because of the availability)? Are you liking it? What's the experience been like? What DON'T you like......
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pros
Battery life. Good speed. I have to stress the battery life. The best I've ever had on a phone. EVER. Over 7 hrs SOT. Easily lasts 2 days.
Cons
WiFi is unacceptable. I constantly have to switch to 4g.
Camera for me is not good enough.
A little buggy at times. Couple of random reboots, one or two other minor weird stuff.
I brought this phone whilst my HTC u11+ gets repaired. I thought I may stick with the Huawei, however due to the cons I think I'll go back to the HTC u11+ (a better overall phone for me)
Hope that helps
I've only had the Mate 10 for about a week, and it's growing on me. As posted above, the battery life is SUPERB. 7+ hours of SOT, close to 2 days standby. Fast charging (which requires Huawei's proprietary charger and a 5 amp type C cable) is also amazing. As is the speed and accuracy of the front fingerprint reader (and it's great that it can be tapped, long-tapped and swiped).
I think the screen, camera and speed are all excellent and, having originally thought about returning it (I was coming from a Note 4), I think it's now a keeper, although, like the OP, I'm surprised at how quiet the community has been.
Some cons: I hate the volume buttons placement, on the right side just above power. It's a pain since I like to use them for reading and cursor control, and I'm used to doing that with my thumb on the left side. I also am disappointed that there's not TWRP yet, as I'm used to GMD Gesture Control and Titanium, although I'm finding relatively decent substitutes.
Other pros: 3.0 type C charger, great sound, IR blaster, SD Card, dual-sim, comes with a usable case (the phone is otherwise slippery).
I purchased the regular Mate 10, AL00 rebranded to L29, so it has 6 gigs of ram/128 gigs of storage. I believe I'm having some buyers remorse. It's just not a big enough upgrade from the Mate 9. As a matter of fact, I still often pick up and play around with my Mate 9. I've only had the 10 for about 4 days and am debating on selling it, probably at a $100/$150 loss.
Two aspects I was excited for, the updated screen and offscreen button, both have issues for me. The screen isn't nearly as bright as the Mate 9 which makes it look a little duller, but is much sharper. There is also an adaptive brightness issue which causes certain screens and apps to dim and cannot be toggled off. The fingerprint sensor is still super fast but using it as the offscreen buttons can be problematic for those with larger fingers. It's so small and very close to the app drawer button, provided you use one as I do.
The added thickness is also quite noticeable to me. Despite being taller and wider, the Mate 9 seems more comfortable in my hands.
rogerinnyc said:
Some cons: I hate the volume buttons placement, on the right side just above power.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My s7 edge has the buttons on the different side, and my P10 plus has it on the same side but with a different texture on the power button instead. I have the Mate 10 pro since it's availability, but I sometimes still push the wrong button. It is not a deal breaker, just something to note.
i might consider checking it out if you are selling.
Sammae7 said:
I purchased the regular Mate 10, AL00 rebranded to L29, so it has 6 gigs of ram/128 gigs of storage. I believe I'm having some buyers remorse. It's just not a big enough upgrade from the Mate 9. As a matter of fact, I still often pick up and play around with my Mate 9. I've only had the 10 for about 4 days and am debating on selling it, probably at a $100/$150 loss.
Two aspects I was excited for, the updated screen and offscreen button, both have issues for me. The screen isn't nearly as bright as the Mate 9 which makes it look a little duller, but is much sharper. There is also an adaptive brightness issue which causes certain screens and apps to dim and cannot be toggled off. The fingerprint sensor is still super fast but using it as the offscreen buttons can be problematic for those with larger fingers. It's so small and very close to the app drawer button, provided you use one as I do.
The added thickness is also quite noticeable to me. Despite being taller and wider, the Mate 9 seems more comfortable in my hands.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
daz_2000 said:
Pros
Battery life. Good speed. I have to stress the battery life. The best I've ever had on a phone. EVER. Over 7 hrs SOT. Easily lasts 2 days.
Cons
WiFi is unacceptable. I constantly have to switch to 4g.
Camera for me is not good enough.
A little buggy at times. Couple of random reboots, one or two other minor weird stuff.
I brought this phone whilst my HTC u11+ gets repaired. I thought I may stick with the Huawei, however due to the cons I think I'll go back to the HTC u11+ (a better overall phone for me)
Hope that helps
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're having WiFi issues as well as some random bugs? I haven't heard much of this anywhere so I am curious now. What is wrong with the WiFi? And random reboots? Have you factory reset? What model/version do you have / are you running and did you rebrand?
I have the Mate 10 and since its officially available where i live, the price in Asia and Middle East is a pretty strong point (620$ for 4gb/64gb) and even better i got my hands on a Mate 10 that was only couple days used for 500$. So there is no regrets for me at all considering the excellent pricing for a flagship phone. Moreover i have been using a P9 plus which is almost 2 years old. So the Mate 10 is a proper upgrade for me.
Initially i was breaking my head over whether to buy the Mate 10 or Mate 10 pro (was it worth 200$ more?). It was a debate between big 16:9 screen, QHD, front fp (really important for me), cheaper price versus an oled screen with a 5.5inch gotten taller 18:9 ratio, narrow better in hand feel, blue color, 2 day battery life. Coming from a 5.5 inch oled display phone, i was expecting Mate 10 pro to be the right choice. But after getting the Mate 10 i have to say i don't really feel that urge to get the Mate 10 pro anymore. So i am now in a stage where i just wait and if i come across a good deal for Mate 10 pro i might give it a try.
Initial hands on the phone felt wide to hold but soon after usage of the phone the muscle memory or whatever kicks in and you get used to it. I have used the Huawei TPU case for a while but couple days ago realized again how much thickness it adds to the phone and the real phone without the case feels far slimmer and the edge to edge bezels shows its real self. So i will be getting myself a pouch case to protect the phone in pocket while able to use the phone without any case in real usage rather than miss out such an important part of the phone, the built quality.
The display as mentioned elsewhere i have gotten spoilt by the QHD and big screen. The narrow and tall 18:9 FHD+ just does not woo me anymore. Deeper black of Oled is compensated by the purer white of the IPS. And i don't have a note 8 near me to compare and complain, so in stand alone usage and compared to what phone i was using all along, the display is a great upgrade for me. And yes the battery life would be better with an oled but for my personal usage i go to bed with enough battery to watch a dozen youtube videos and still have at least 30% battery left, and charge the phone back in 30 minutes of shower in the morning. So i have nothing to complain personally.
I am not a camera guy so can't say much other than that it is a huge upgrade from my existing Leica of P9 plus. From all the reviews online, its camera is clearly in flagship territory. And i guess there is a personal preference that comes in that makes people to prefer one among Pixel 2 series, Iphone X, Note 8 and Mate 10 series camera.
I have been using Huawei phones for a while so have a natural inclination to Huawei over other brands. LG & Samsung is a no no for me. One plus feels like a wannabe. Pixel 2 is overpriced outside USA. Personally not inclined to HTC. I was close to getting the Essential phone for being such a compact and minimal bezel phone. But the availability outside US and camera performance kept me away.
The only con is that Huawei did not bring much changes to the UI, whereas they used to have significant UI upgrade with every year. This year they brought out the Oreo and added few Oreo features, and cleaned up the settings and then called it EMUI 8. So not much visible changes to the UI experience and there are still places on the UI where they have to do a lot more refining and staying ahead.
daz_2000 said:
Pros
Battery life. Good speed. I have to stress the battery life.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey, thanks. Yeah the phone suddenly seems lost between the OnePlus 5t, the U11+, the LaV30, the Google, the Apple and the i phone!
Not to mention now, it's very own Honor V10.
The uptake, looking at the boards seems to have been tempered somewhat by....I don't know... The camera? The lack of ear-phone jack? The screen resolution?
I can't put my finger on it but the Mate9 was far more successful in drumming up a critical mass of users here on XDA.
I think Huawei's Mate release this year may have been a little muddled and I get the feeling that the Mate core user actually wants the 10 standard and not the pro and that they can't find it?
The competition is really deep this year.... I'll keep watching the boards but it's like.....brrrrrr.... So far.
Got a Mate Pro. Absolutely love it.
I got a Pixel 2XL at the same time and I really can't decide which one to use. Got the Pixel as my private phone and Huawei as my work phone.
The Pixel camera is as good as the reviews say, but the Mate's is as good if you ask me. It certainly is more flexible and had many more options.
Battery life is excellent as mentioned by others.
The screen is fine and plenty bright enough. I honestly can't see any circumstances where I'd want it to be brighter than Mac can take it.
HDR for YouTube can be enabled.
No issues with WiFi here.
As for slow uptake, a quick search of the internet shows that the Mate at least is breaking sales records for Huawei.
Sammae7 said:
I purchased the regular Mate 10, AL00 rebranded to L29, so it has 6 gigs of ram/128 gigs of storage. I believe I'm having some buyers remorse.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the reply.
Yes, this is the feeling I'm getting looking around the internet, particularly on the screen brightness AND this funny adaptive thing one seems not to be able to control.
I think, particularly with the move from Mate 9 to the 10, with the technology seemingly plateaued for 2017, that perhaps they didn't go far enough in redesign?
The anticipation for the phone is not being matched by the number of people buying. Clearly the fact that it is only the pro being made easily available in the West has something to do with it - because Mate 9 users and Mate 9 pro users are different profiles.
Where the Mate 9 managed to carve out a nice for itself apart from the regular contenders, the pro sat right in the middle of it's competitors, and this year, is overtaken by the screen.
It's fascinating I think - also, what does it mean for discussion on the standard Mate 10? When you go to Google, almost all the results returned concern the Mate 10 pro....and it is being experienced completely outside of the impact that the Mate 9 had.
Anyway, thanks, I'm in Kenya and so both phones have just been released and are available now.
I have this niggling suspicion that the P11 & P11 Plus will have to pull something special out of the box to change the situation.
Also..... The Honor V10 then feels like it's in direct competition - apart from it's screen. It's all very strange indeed.
buckshot4 said:
You're having WiFi issues as well as some random bugs? I haven't heard much of this anywhere so I am curious now. What is wrong with the WiFi? And random reboots? Have you factory reset? What model/version do you have / are you running and did you rebrand?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The WiFi is very slow particularly when I am a little further away from my router. Note. This was not the case for any other phone. E.g. Samsung s8 and HTC u11+. I even did a side by side test and Huawei failed miserably. I am now at a point where I pretty much have to leave WiFi off as do not want to wait for pages to load. I have had 3 random reboots in 7 days.
I have not done a factory reset. And not rooted rebranded etc. I brought from carphone warehouse UK.
Huaweis been really bad with release
Still not available in Australia
virtyx said:
Huaweis been really bad with release
Still not available in Australia
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you sure ? I see Huawei website has provided links to Australian stores and you get a 360 camera free as well.
http://consumer.huawei.com/au/
warea said:
Are you sure ? I see Huawei website has provided links to Australian stores and you get a 360 camera free as well.
http://consumer.huawei.com/au/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Only one store has it contract unfortunately
daz_2000 said:
Pros
Battery life. Good speed. I have to stress the battery life. The best I've ever had on a phone. EVER. Over 7 hrs SOT. Easily lasts 2 days.
Cons
WiFi is unacceptable. I constantly have to switch to 4g.
Camera for me is not good enough.
A little buggy at times. Couple of random reboots, one or two other minor weird stuff.
I brought this phone whilst my HTC u11+ gets repaired. I thought I may stick with the Huawei, however due to the cons I think I'll go back to the HTC u11+ (a better overall phone for me)
Hope that helps
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am undecided between U11+ and mate10.
why repaired u11+ after 2 weeks?
u11+ better camera,auto hdr for photos ,audio and new 18:9 but HTC sense has less feature.
mate 10 Emui has a lot features but no auto hdr for photos, and 16:9
I dropped the HTC and the camera would not load. Other than that I loved it. Screen could be better as LCD. But still very good. I will be going back to HTC over Huawei.
Got mine yesterday sold my iPhone x to get this and love it, mainly bought for projection mode with no need for a dock like the S8 really find this useful.
Would be happier with Google Services.
Sammae7 said:
I purchased the regular Mate 10, AL00 rebranded to L29, so it has 6 gigs of ram/128 gigs of storage. I believe I'm having some buyers remorse. It's just not a big enough upgrade from the Mate 9. As a matter of fact, I still often pick up and play around with my Mate 9. I've only had the 10 for about 4 days and am debating on selling it, probably at a $100/$150 loss.
Two aspects I was excited for, the updated screen and offscreen button, both have issues for me. The screen isn't nearly as bright as the Mate 9 which makes it look a little duller, but is much sharper. There is also an adaptive brightness issue which causes certain screens and apps to dim and cannot be toggled off. The fingerprint sensor is still super fast but using it as the offscreen buttons can be problematic for those with larger fingers. It's so small and very close to the app drawer button, provided you use one as I do.
The added thickness is also quite noticeable to me. Despite being taller and wider, the Mate 9 seems more comfortable in my hands.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got my Mate 10 three weeks ago. In the first week, I was not happy with the phone because it can not get google services in full operation. Google cannot even get the phone number lift out of this phone. However now I am quite impressed by the features from this phone that others mentioned, battery, fast fingerprint. I am particularly happy with camera, screen and buttons. My previous phone was Samsung GS7 Edge.
Now, I will be much happier if I can get Google services work on this phone. Without phone number association to the phone, cannot use find a phone, track a phone, and other administrative features of the phone from google.
I assume your re-branding it to L29 would resolve this issue. I actually tried to use DC-unlocker as well as FH Mate 10 tool. I don't have bootloader code that i could not pass either of the tools. Would you please share your way of re-branding and give me some suggestions?
thank you/
chris
[email protected] said:
I got my Mate 10 three weeks ago. In the first week, I was not happy with the phone because it can not get google services in full operation. Google cannot even get the phone number lift out of this phone. However now I am quite impressed by the features from this phone that others mentioned, battery, fast fingerprint. I am particularly happy with camera, screen and buttons. My previous phone was Samsung GS7 Edge.
Now, I will be much happier if I can get Google services work on this phone. Without phone number association to the phone, cannot use find a phone, track a phone, and other administrative features of the phone from google.
I assume your re-branding it to L29 would resolve this issue. I actually tried to use DC-unlocker as well as FH Mate 10 tool. I don't have bootloader code that i could not pass either of the tools. Would you please share your way of re-branding and give me some suggestions?
thank you/
chris
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Check out the FunkyHuawei thread on this forum. That seems to be the best way to rebrand your device to L29 (or any version for that matter), though you do have to pay to do that. But if it is the difference between having google services and not having google services, I would definitely suggest looking into it!

Question Pixel 6 - Reality vs Hype/Reviewers

I honestly feel this device has been grossly misrepresented by several youtube reviewers. I don't think Google is to be blamed for the hype. I think the youtube reviewers got this wrong from the get-go. Everybody thought the Tensor chip, updated camera specs, android 12, lower-than-typical price point etc is simply going to route the competition. All that is public generated and not google. But then when the units started to come out, people were going ga ga over it over and over. But then I've had the device for a while now and sadly, i don't share their enthusiasm. I am almost scratching my head and wondering what the hell are these reviewers smoking? Trust me, there is no "issue" with my particular unit. My unit is just fine. However, my complaints are..
1. Camera is not that great. it's good. but not distinctly better than a Samsung or iphone. And what's with it taking a few seconds to "process" all the time?
2. The front camera is laughably bad. Maybe not for still pictures.. but when using it for video calling on duo or Whatsapp it is so freaking grainy like as if it's coming from a 2012 smartphone.
3. The build quality - The phone is a bit too dense for it's size. I have the S21 ultra and even though that is a bigger phone, it feels lighter and thinner in the hand. The Pixel 6 feels like a heavy rock.
4. The auto brightness is wonky. We all know this already. How could google get the autobrightness so badly wrong is mind boggling.
5. The software is good, but honestly I think Samsung has done a great job with one ui 4. I HATE that I have to click things twice to turn off the internet.
6. Why is there no facial unlock? Ridiculous!!! especially considering the fingerprint scanner is a POS. Plus one can't expand notifications from the lockscreen without a facial unlock. Fingerprint scanner unlock will bring you to the home screen.
7. Did I mention the phone is too dense for it's size? Extremely slippery without a case and with a case too bulky than it already is.
8. I always find it interesting that no other phone on the market has as good a network connectivity as Samsung. Samsung phones simply latch on and have good network connectivity. The Pixel 6 is OK.. .. nothing to ride home about.
9. The phone was so hard to find stocked anywhere.. Google completely botched it.
Do any of you guys have any more to contribute to the list? I
You might get the answers you are looking for on Whatsapp or Facebook.
Buying a $600 vs a $1000 phone is some of the real answer.
vandyman said:
You might get the answers you are looking for on Whatsapp or Facebook.
Buying a $600 vs a $1000 phone is some of the real answer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your comment is implying that Google took some really cheap shortcuts to make the phone deliberately this bad and you are saying "you get what you pay for.. don't expect anything more for $600".
I don't think that is the case here. The two back camera lenses are exactly the same from the 6 pro. The chip is the same. The software is the same. I am sure google making this device more dense than a rock has nothing to do with cutting cost. Overall, I think it's just really bad and sloppy design choices and QAQC on google's part.
androidbuff123 said:
Your comment is implying that Google took some really cheap shortcuts to make the phone deliberately this bad and you are saying "you get what you pay for.. don't expect anything more for $600".
I don't think that is the case here. The two back camera lenses are exactly the same from the 6 pro. The chip is the same. The software is the same. I am sure google making this device more dense than a rock has nothing to do with cutting cost. Overall, I think it's just really bad and sloppy design choices and QAQC on google's part.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samsungs $1000 phone has the better camera.
Pixel 6 pro has the 4x zoom.
I do not use a cell phone for photography, the Camara on a cell phone is for taking quick pictures of a convenient moment.
LIke I said you will get more people to agree with you on social media. They are a hell of lot smarter people than here on XDA.
Here is a link for basing the P6 Camara.
The pixel 6 camera sucks
This is probably going to be am unpopular opinion but does anyone else think that the Pixel 6 camera sucks? Pics straight out of device are a) over sharpened and b) flat. The canned filters are poor too. Enhance does nearly nothing, dynamic is a...
forum.xda-developers.com
Please hit the thanks button if this helps you.
Depends what you are coming from and what one compares against. Is comparing with an S21 really fair?
axelmasok said:
Depends what you are coming from and what one compares against. Is comparing with an S21 really fair?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No I am not really comparing with S21 Ultra. I mentioned that phone to say it feels lighter and thinner than the immensely dense design of the pixel 6. Another recent issue I've been noticing is how Google assistant a> does not give a audible feedback when invoked from the lockscreen or elsewhere and b> it gets randomly activated with noises from the TV (which are not saying the keywords).
I am going to wait until Google pushes the next update and see if that hopefully fixes most if not all of these issues. Google is really screwing the pooch on this one.
I am not sure if density is the issue, to me the issue is more about balance. I feel the huge camera bar makes it top-heavy and therefore a bit awkward to hold.
I am satisfied with the Pixel 6. I did my research before buying it, so no surprise on my side. However, I can imagine that some folks found the articles about the best phone of the year and thought that it is altogether better than the flagships, like S21 Ultra. It is not at all about beating everyone. What I got is a reasonable phone for a reasonable price. That's it from my side.
The parity of information is there, you can find all information on the Internet. Actually, we have too many options, so most of the buyers would be less and less happier buying something because of their FOMO.

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