State of the Union - Moto X?

vicegrips · Feb 14, 2014

I posted another thread on here earlier, but Samsung has driven me over the edge. Both my Note 3 and my wife's Note 3 have hardware problems requiring manufacturer replacement. Every Samsung product I buy (including non-mobile) just has problems - I have never had more problems with any other brand. Their support and service is terrible, and if it wasn't for T-Mobile I'd be looking at a 10 day warranty repair through Samsung. So bad quality and bad support just tell me "time to move on."

As mentioned I'm with T-Mobile and my house is in a valley so signal isn't great, but they are mailing me out the signal booster. Otherwise my signal is typically OK. I read up on the Moto X a lot awhile back during initial reviews, but haven't kept up because I went with the Note 3. Beyond obviously losing the stylus and larger screen, is this a fair assessment of what I'll be looking at with the Moto X?

1. No WiFi calling for T-Mobile, but also read a report where the Moto X maintains calls with 8-9db worse signal than other phones.
2. Camera isn't great, but it is much better than initial release.
3. Voice activation is also much more consistent than initial release.
4. Motorola, in warranty situations, mails out a replacement.
5. Great battery life - among the best
6. Less buggy experience as it is closer to stock Android
7. ~$300 in my pocket by the time I sell my replacement Note 3 and buy Moto X with the $70 sale

#6 is interesting to me because what bothers me since switching from Apple is overall quality. In one year with Android I have had hardware problems, endless software bugs, and while I still like Android more than iOS eliminating the headaches with bugs sure sounds appealing right now.

Solutions Etcetera · Feb 14, 2014

If you're comparing Android to iOS 5 or 6, Android still has more bugs. I have avoided iOS 7 thus far. I gave up on Sammy years ago due to reasons you have stated so can't speak for certain, but am willing to bet there are plenty of bugs in all of Samsung's cruft that won't be present on a Moto x.

Don't count on Motorola shipping you a replacement throughout the warranty period.

The radios in the Moto X are superior to the Nexus 4 and 5. I'm in the mountains and never had reliable service at home and around town with the Nexus phones. No problems with the Moto X; one of the best things about this phone! Another is the quality of the speaker (phone).

someguyatx · Feb 14, 2014

My X is on Verizon but yes the signal is excellent. The camera is fine but not as good as Note3. Voice controls work well. Not sure about warranty replacement, doubt it. Considering you are on TMO you can pop your Sim in anything and keep going. Battery life is very good 18+ hours runtime with 3-4 hours of screentime stock unrooted. Nearly stock Android is nice, first android device I have not needed to root and run custom rom (posting this from my rooted hisense sero7 pro tablet). Take the money and run while the Note3 still holds value. MotoX should be worth $150 later this year when you get bored with it.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

bleach168 · Feb 14, 2014

Side by side, my Moto X was 4-5 db lower than my friend's HTC One. Both phones were on T-Mobile.

Don't worry about the warranty. Except for the occasional app crash, my phone runs flawlessly. Though I haven't had an app crash since 4.4.2, so maybe that's fixed now too.

vicegrips · Feb 14, 2014

Cool thanks everyone. I'll go with the Moto X. It sounds like it is the perfect answer to what I need right now.

hovax615@hotmail.com · Feb 14, 2014

vicegrips said:
Cool thanks everyone. I'll go with the Moto X. It sounds like it is the perfect answer to what I need right now.

Never mind...

MOTO X Slapped

alpha-niner64 · Feb 14, 2014

Another owner chiming in here. Been through each company (except Sony cause I'm on TMO). Motorola phones (even the Moto X) have always had the best signal in my area. Where other phones would get -100dB and drop me off HSPA, I can get around -90 below otherwise and maintain a steady connection.

rupterr · Feb 14, 2014

vicegrips said:
As mentioned I'm with T-Mobile and my house is in a valley so signal isn't great, but they are mailing me out the signal booster.

I'm with t-mobile and am in the same signal situation as you. My Moto X signal reception is slightly worse than my Sony Advance, and sometimes I am unable to make a call with the Moto X where I was able to with the Sony.

You and I are in a valley. No carrier can reliably supply a consistent signal in my location and it doesn't matter what brand phone I have. I'm curious that when you get the signal booster if you could report your findings with it here on it's performance.

Since the Moto x does not have wi-fi calling I use the "Xfinity Connect App" to make wi-fi calls if I can't make one regularly, which is rare since I can usually find a signal somewhere in my house, but sometimes I can't. You can make and receive calls from your home phone # from any location where you can get a wi-fi connection. For instance, I can make and receive home phone calls at my workplace thru "Connect App". Obviously, you must be a Comcast subscriber to use it.

vicegrips · Feb 14, 2014

rupterr said:
I'm with t-mobile and am in the same signal situation as you. My Moto X signal reception is slightly worse than my Sony Advance, and sometimes I am unable to make a call with the Moto X where I was able to with the Sony.

You and I are in a valley. No carrier can reliably supply a consistent signal in my location and it doesn't matter what brand phone I have. I'm curious that when you get the signal booster if you could report your findings with it here on it's performance.

Since the Moto x does not have wi-fi calling I use the "Xfinity Connect App" to make wi-fi calls if I can't make one regularly, which is rare since I can usually find a signal somewhere in my house, but sometimes I can't. You can make and receive calls from your home phone # from any location where you can get a wi-fi connection. For instance, I can make and receive home phone calls at my workplace thru "Connect App". Obviously, you must be a Comcast subscriber to use it.

You know I can't give T-Mobile a total pass here because I had AT&T for nearly 14 months in this same house and never had problems. A friend stayed with us for 3 months when they moved out here with Verizon and they also didn't have a problem. As far as I can tell it is because of the placement of T-Mobile's 1 tower, where if I'm not mistaken AT&T has 2 and Verizon maybe 3? I still like TMobile better. They are cheaper and their customer service reps have been great to work with.

Regardless, I do seem to consistently get 1 bar of 4G upstairs so I think the signal booster should work at home. If you are in the same spot you might want to call T-Mobile because they have started sending signal boosters out for free again. They just run a quick study on your area to see if you qualify, the equipment is sent, but you do have to return it if you ever leave.

rupterr · Feb 14, 2014

vicegrips said:
You know I can't give T-Mobile a total pass here because I had AT&T for nearly 14 months in this same house and never had problems.

I understand. In my case no provider can supply a consistent signal where I live. It's all about the towers, and nobody wants towers in there backyard. My local government won't allow them in the area where I live, so I'm stuck. Thanks for the info, i'll check out the tmobile signal booster as I'm sure I will qualify.

@rbiter · Feb 14, 2014

My gsm moto x is pulling down signal where work Samsung Verizon is unusable in a few areas. Damn I miss Motorola and Nokia phones.

Sent from my XT1053 using HoFo mobile app.

emailrob · Feb 14, 2014

Solutions Etcetera said:
If you're comparing Android to iOS 5 or 6, Android still has more bugs. I have avoided iOS 7 thus far. I gave up on Sammy years ago due to reasons you have stated so can't speak for certain, but am willing to bet there are plenty of bugs in all of Samsung's cruft that won't be present on a Moto x.

Don't count on .

My observation is with iOS generally, there may core functionality missing that should really be there. But broadly the OS that is there working pretty well overall.

With Android, there's often a lot of stuff on there that just doesn't work

don't get me wrong, I'm a huge android fan.

Solutions Etcetera · Feb 14, 2014

rupterr said:
I understand. In my case no provider can supply a consistent signal where I live. It's all about the towers, and nobody wants towers in there backyard. My local government won't allow them in the area where I live, so I'm stuck. Thanks for the info, i'll check out the tmobile signal booster as I'm sure I will qualify.

Just a quick note... the T-Mobile (Cel-Fi) require a 3G signal to boost. Since 2G is all that is available at my home, it was not an option for me when I had my Nexus 4.

As for cell towers in your back yard... I wouldn't mind having our small town's tower much closer to me (considering it is disguised as a tree).

vicegrips · Feb 19, 2014

Got the phone not that anyone really needed an update. I can say with certainty the move from the Note 3 screen to the Moto X is a bit of a shock. Especially since I'm going from pure 5.7" usable screen to 4.375" (4.7" includes the buttons). Of course I knew what I was getting into, but that doesn't mean it still can't shock a bit.

This is a really well thought out phone. When this came out I was totally caught up as a new Android user in the "arms race" of software / hardware functionality going on with all the new phones, and I forgot until now how sometimes just a few features that aren't that glamorous on paper can be so nice. This is why I was partial to Apple for so many years, they always seemed to have things setup in a way that made life a touch easier in moments.

This phone takes that to a new level, and I hope they are able to sustain this direction under Lenovo. The notification system, the touchless controls, and the minimal but purposeful software Motorola added is so great. Some of the simple stuff too is great - a more natural unlock motion and the time that fades in when I pull the phone out of my pocket to see what time it is. I can see why so many of you are passionate about the phone. All this stuff on paper is hard to show off, but get it in your hands for a bit and it's a "wow this is nice" experience.

Anyway I'm pleased - thanks everyone.

Cozume · Feb 19, 2014

I had a GNote3 that I returned for my Moto X. Loved, loved, loved the GNote3 screen but hated, hated, hated Touchwiz and the crap Samsung radios.

vicegrips said:
2. Camera isn't great, but it is much better than initial release.

The camera is not great in low light and indoor shots and varies with HDR on or off. It is an ISO/white balancing problem that can be improved with software. There are paid camera apps like Camera Awesome and FV-5 that help but they don't open with the wrist gesture, which is a very nice feature.

Colors are not as vibrant even outdoors, but again paid camera apps help with this as does Snapseed post processing.

vicegrips said:
3. Voice activation is also much more consistent than initial release.

Voice activation is far better on the Moto X than S-voice on the GNote3.

vicegrips said:
5. Great battery life - among the best

GNote3 had a better battery life than the Moto X. But among the non-phablets, the Moto X is second only to the Droid Maxx, which is #1 but isn't on TMobile anyhow.

vicegrips said:
6. Less buggy experience as it is closer to stock Android

It's stock android+ - the plus being touchless controls, motorola assist and active display. Touchless Controls + Motorola Assist = true handsfree driving experience for calls and texts. Active notifications are nice, too.

vicegrips said:
7. ~$300 in my pocket by the time I sell my replacement Note 3 and buy Moto X with the $70 sale

Depends on how much you can sell the GNote3 for.

vicegrips said:
#6 is interesting to me because what bothers me since switching from Apple is overall quality. In one year with Android I have had hardware problems, endless software bugs, and while I still like Android more than iOS eliminating the headaches with bugs sure sounds appealing right now.

Bugs come with the territory on Android. But in return for tolerating some bugs and finding fixes for them, you get freedom. If minimal bugs is important to you, get an iPhone.

SymbioticGenius · Feb 19, 2014

I can't believe the radios on Samsung are still so bad. I would consider the note 3 as a second phone and put CM on it but it would be a pointless endeavor.

MotoX Developer Edition went from German 4.4.2 to Great Britain 4.4.2 to T-Mobile 4.4.2 no problem. Fastboot FTW!

Darth · Feb 19, 2014

SymbioticGenius said:
I can't believe the radios on Samsung are still so bad. I would consider the note 3 as a second phone and put CM on it but it would be a pointless endeavor.

MotoX Developer Edition went from German 4.4.2 to Great Britain 4.4.2 to T-Mobile 4.4.2 no problem. Fastboot FTW!

Based on the phones I've owned...and guests phones, my only phone options that I've witnessed working in my house (not having to go outside to make a call) are Motorola and iPhones.

And most the big phone brands and flagships have entered my house. Lol

Sent from my Moto X cellular telephone...

Solutions Etcetera · Feb 19, 2014

kj2112 said:
Based on the phones I've owned...and guests phones, my only phone options that I've witnessed working in my house (not having to go outside to make a call) are Motorola and iPhones.

And most the big phone brands and flagships have entered my house. Lol

Yes... ironic that it seems the actual "phone" part of most of today's superphones is an afterthought.

Darth · Feb 19, 2014

Solutions Etcetera said:
Yes... ironic that it seems the actual "phone" part of most of today's superphones is an afterthought.

Not for me. 2 years outside making calls on my s2....never again. Gets cold and wet too much. Lol

Sent from my Moto X cellular telephone...

---------- Post added at 05:00 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:59 PM ----------

Texts were tough inside even...and using data if my internet was down...no way!

Sent from my Moto X cellular telephone...

State of the Union - Moto X?

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