Will everyone please stop talking about different hardware versions?

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danarama

Senior Member
Aug 22, 2010
31,277
18,811
Oxenhope, West Yorkshire, UK
Serial numbers are not revisions

There's thread after thread after thread about Nexus defects and "311k fixed this but broke that". I've been posting a common response in most of these threads multiple times but it is too much effort to keep doing this.

Now please, all of you do this. Boot into your bootloader and look at your hardware version. It's rev_11, right?

That's because there is only ONE hardware version as per LG's understanding.

So what does 310, 311, 312 mean? Well it looks like month of manufacture doesn't it?! October, November, December?

2013-10K

2013-11K

2013-12K

2014-01K

"But, but, but i've got bigger speaker holes and my buttons don't rattle..."

Sure, manufacturing tolerances mean there will always be slight variances. Devices are built on different manufacturing lines, in different plants, in different countries perhaps - all maintained and calibrated by different teams. This is common. It is impossible (IMPOSSIBLE) to manufacture 2 identical devices. Humans are not good enough at it. This is why all the CPU's are binned between PSV 0-6.. these are within tolerance. Otherwise they'd all be PSV 3, or whatever is thought to be "optimum".

These tolerances mean that there are variations in every single component. No 2 are identical, meaning no 2 Nexus 5's are identical. Technically, every Nexus 5 is a variation. A variation of the perfect one, which probably doesn't exist

All these questions about "If I buy from store x" or "If I RMA now"..... "will I get new version?" Are pointless... there are no newer versions.

The defects reported exist across all the serial numbers. My 310 doesn't have any button rattle. It only rattles the autofocus when I rattle the device from side to side. So to say all 310's buttons rattle and all 311's fixed this is false... and now we have 312's with rattle... what happened? Did LG remove the fix? No! It was never a fix.

It seems some people want to RMA based on their serial number and nothing else or trying to avoid a particular serial... don't. Buy the device normally. If it has specific faults that you're not willing to put up with, RMA it. That's it. Please stop stressing about serial numbers. Buy your device and enjoy it, but please can we try and keep these threads where everyone posts "I've got a 311k and I have x fault" to a minimum? They're not helpful and mean nothing and clog up this forum with nonsense.

I admit the Defects thread may serve some purpose but this is happening there too, meaning the information is tainted.

Further logic

Here's some further logic I would like to include in this post.

The Nexus 5 is not manufactured in batches. It is manufactured 24/7. There is no end of an old batch and beginning of a new batch. The phone that rolls off the production line at 23:59 on October the 31st gets the 310K serial number. The very next phone that rolls off the same line at 00:00 on November 1st gets the 311K serial number.

If a fault had been found in 1 out of every 200 Nexus 5's, where the vibrator motor was faulty, what do you think would happen? Do you think that LG would discard the millions of vibrator motors they have in stock, replace every one with millions more and cease production immediately until the new motor is put in? The fact of the matter is if for every 1 Nexus 5 with a faulty vibrator, there are 199 with a working vibrator, it would be cheaper to repair the 1. What would you do if you were LG? Would you discard 199 good "type A" vibrators and buy 200 "type B" vibrators? Would you stop all of your productions lines and lose money by being unable to service demand? Or would it be cheaper to repair that 1 faulty device with a new vibrator and let the other 199 get manufactured and sold? Would you use up all the old stock of "type A" vibrators until they were gone, knowing only 1 in 200 would be faulty, then when you run out, start using "type B"? I certainly would as that is much cheaper than ceasing production in multiple plants around the world ans scrapping all the good "type a" motors.

In regards to the above, would all "type A" vibrators run out at 23:59 on October 31st, in every plant around the world? Then at 00:00 on November 1st, all "type B" would be used? If you were to scrap all "type A" vibrators and replace them with "type B", would you wait until the next month, when the serial number automatically changes? What would be the significance in that? If you're really going to be bold and scrap them all, you wouldn't wait until the end of the month. if you were happy to wait until the end of the month, then there would never have been a need to scrap them all in the first place. If the bold decision to scrap them ALL is made, you'd do it immediately

If you tightened Quality control, or started adding more glue to hold something in place, would you wait until midnight on the last day of the month to implement it? Why?

If tight rocker buttons and larger speaker holes are a fix and LG have waited to change serial number before implementing the fix, why are there even newer devices with newer serial numbers that do not have this "fix"? If loose rockers are something that needs to be fixed, why haven't all older devices got them? Why hasn't mine?




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danarama

Senior Member
Aug 22, 2010
31,277
18,811
Oxenhope, West Yorkshire, UK
Great explanation! You had me at "manufacturing tolerances". Everyone wants a perfect device, but humans are not.

True. Im not happy if my device comes damaged or actually faulty, it will be RMA'd.

Im happy with my device. I don't care about light bleed that I have. It happens

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ickoicko

Senior Member
Oct 3, 2012
436
55
Pasig
People make imaginary problems with their device and it manifests into some sort of "problem". Damage/faulty = RMA but otherwise they should learn on how to be contented. Google and whoever they partner with is not perfect. Even if they partner with others, still the same result; there would still be some sort of fault/negative side otherwise a very good phone with killer specs.
 

bitdomo

Senior Member
Nov 3, 2011
1,542
1,244
31
Göd
Good to know that I am not alone with this s/n madness.

Sent from my Nexus 5 using xda app-developers app
 

butler83

Member
Dec 10, 2013
7
0
Good post, think when slightly tweaked version of the same phone comes out i.e bigger speaker holes etc people then think my phone needs to go back for exchange when it really probably doesn't.
 

AndrasLOHF

Senior Member
Jan 7, 2013
2,875
2,065
Some people won't be happy until they RMA so many devices for b######t reasons that we pay full HTC and Samsung flagship prices for a Nexus. Even still they'll RMA as they probably did with phones from other manufacturers.
 

meangreenie

Senior Member
Mar 6, 2012
2,584
732
There is a YouTube video that shows a better sound/mic module.. it's probably in the newer models but didn't warrant a revised version number for whatever reasons.
 

95Z28

Senior Member
Apr 29, 2011
798
252
I had a 311k revision 11 that had every problem in the book, weak noisy vibration motor, 3 dead pixels, rattling power button. I RMA'd and got another 311k revision 11. Guess what? Same phone, vibration motor vibrates as it should without being noisy, no dead pixels and buttons are all solid with no rattling!
Love this phone. Can't help but laugh about obsession over a serial number, do these folks do the same with all their devices? Maybe their new car has the wrong VIN, should they try to exchange it?

Sent from my Nexus 5 using xda premium
 
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BirchBarlow

Senior Member
Oct 6, 2013
428
155
Philadelphia
Thank you times 100 Mr. rootSU. If you have a faulty device, by all means return it. As for these people who keep returning perfectly good devices, one after another, thinking if only they return enough devices, eventually they'll win a "new and improved" phone in some mythical Nexus 5 lottery, cut it out. Seriously this behavior will have implications for all us. Google already sells the Nexus devices for basically zero profit in order to grow the Android user base and developer community. Google wants to keep their customers happy, but every time someone returns a device it eats into their bottom line as they obviously can't resell a used device as new. So what do you think they're going to do to recover the cost of excessive and unnecessary returns? They'll pass it off onto the consumer in the form higher hardware prices (do you want to pay $500 for the next Nexus?) and they'll revise their liberal return policy in order to deter excessive returning, thereby making the process more difficult and time-consuming for people who legitimately need a replacement device.

I've said a bunch of times on this forum and I'll say it one more time, there never was a hardware revision, there is only one version as per the revision number in the bootloader. The serial numbers vary depending on where and when the device was manufactured, and as you can see their are slight variations between products produced on different assembly lines. The machines may be calibrated differently from one line to another, some assembly lines have tighter quality control than others, etc. The bottom line is there exists only one revision. Even if at some point Google and LG do decide to revise the hardware, it doesn't entitle everyone who previously bought the device to a replacement. As long as you received a functional device, they're fulfilled their contractual and moral obligation. They don't have to replace previously purchased devices just because they come out with something better in the future. This is just the cost of early adoption. Like I said, if you receive a faulty device, by all means exchange it. If not, enjoy your device and be grateful that you can buy a top-of-the-line Android handset for $400 contract-free and carrier-unlocked.
 

gd6noob

Senior Member
Apr 29, 2011
1,803
268
Finally someone else was tired of seeing these..

ALSO about stuff like "Why you picked N5 over XX phone" or "What you Like or Dont Like".... we dont need more then 1 thread.....
 

ickoicko

Senior Member
Oct 3, 2012
436
55
Pasig
Finally someone else was tired of seeing these..

ALSO about stuff like "Why you picked N5 over XX phone" or "What you Like or Dont Like".... we dont need more then 1 thread.....

The N5 versus G2 got dirty wherein the OP should've started the fire by comparing the N5 and G2. With all these stupendous threads appearing, it makes me NOT want to buy the N5 simply because if I'm a simple user not interested in rooting, unlocking bootloader etc., I would've thought I WASTED my money in all this "imaginary" problems and even if I wasn't a simple user, it would still hinder me because the experiences felt so real...until you realize that turning off one app that you're not using fixes the damn problem.
 

Jsparta26

Senior Member
Aug 30, 2012
1,489
623
Detroit, MI
Clearly this is an unhealthy obsession. There's simply no reason to be this balls deep hung up on a hardware version. Our phones are meant for entertainment. Period. It sounds like these obsessed folks might actually have their priorities all out of whack. If we took a step back and realized that these blips (issues) are not relevant for what's going on in our lives. We can immediately disregard a tiny rattling problem nothing at all. Because its not. Nobody should define their life around a phone. Let's just have fun with our phones and let that be for what it is. Fun. Nothing more.
 

Mindspin_311

Senior Member
Feb 25, 2011
656
35
Sandy Springs, GA
Regarding speaker holes....

If the back cover is being injection molded, which is probably the case, then there could be an issue with the tooling in some form or fashion.

There could be an insert that is used to create those holes. So there is a possibility that the insert was manufactured improperly, and there is only one like that out there. So, every X phone gets larger holes. In the grand scheme of things, its not a big deal to someone who performs the QC. The specified tolerances could be so wide that a variation of that magnitude is still considered a pass.

If the material is slightly different, the mechanical properties could be to the point where the molded material shrinks or "cools" differently causing the holes to enlarge.


There is really no way in telling unless you get a hold of the person at Google/LG who designed the back cover and look at their CAD. Then compare to the tooling and parts themselves.
 
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  • 183
    Serial numbers are not revisions

    There's thread after thread after thread about Nexus defects and "311k fixed this but broke that". I've been posting a common response in most of these threads multiple times but it is too much effort to keep doing this.

    Now please, all of you do this. Boot into your bootloader and look at your hardware version. It's rev_11, right?

    That's because there is only ONE hardware version as per LG's understanding.

    So what does 310, 311, 312 mean? Well it looks like month of manufacture doesn't it?! October, November, December?

    2013-10K

    2013-11K

    2013-12K

    2014-01K

    "But, but, but i've got bigger speaker holes and my buttons don't rattle..."

    Sure, manufacturing tolerances mean there will always be slight variances. Devices are built on different manufacturing lines, in different plants, in different countries perhaps - all maintained and calibrated by different teams. This is common. It is impossible (IMPOSSIBLE) to manufacture 2 identical devices. Humans are not good enough at it. This is why all the CPU's are binned between PSV 0-6.. these are within tolerance. Otherwise they'd all be PSV 3, or whatever is thought to be "optimum".

    These tolerances mean that there are variations in every single component. No 2 are identical, meaning no 2 Nexus 5's are identical. Technically, every Nexus 5 is a variation. A variation of the perfect one, which probably doesn't exist

    All these questions about "If I buy from store x" or "If I RMA now"..... "will I get new version?" Are pointless... there are no newer versions.

    The defects reported exist across all the serial numbers. My 310 doesn't have any button rattle. It only rattles the autofocus when I rattle the device from side to side. So to say all 310's buttons rattle and all 311's fixed this is false... and now we have 312's with rattle... what happened? Did LG remove the fix? No! It was never a fix.

    It seems some people want to RMA based on their serial number and nothing else or trying to avoid a particular serial... don't. Buy the device normally. If it has specific faults that you're not willing to put up with, RMA it. That's it. Please stop stressing about serial numbers. Buy your device and enjoy it, but please can we try and keep these threads where everyone posts "I've got a 311k and I have x fault" to a minimum? They're not helpful and mean nothing and clog up this forum with nonsense.

    I admit the Defects thread may serve some purpose but this is happening there too, meaning the information is tainted.

    Further logic

    Here's some further logic I would like to include in this post.

    The Nexus 5 is not manufactured in batches. It is manufactured 24/7. There is no end of an old batch and beginning of a new batch. The phone that rolls off the production line at 23:59 on October the 31st gets the 310K serial number. The very next phone that rolls off the same line at 00:00 on November 1st gets the 311K serial number.

    If a fault had been found in 1 out of every 200 Nexus 5's, where the vibrator motor was faulty, what do you think would happen? Do you think that LG would discard the millions of vibrator motors they have in stock, replace every one with millions more and cease production immediately until the new motor is put in? The fact of the matter is if for every 1 Nexus 5 with a faulty vibrator, there are 199 with a working vibrator, it would be cheaper to repair the 1. What would you do if you were LG? Would you discard 199 good "type A" vibrators and buy 200 "type B" vibrators? Would you stop all of your productions lines and lose money by being unable to service demand? Or would it be cheaper to repair that 1 faulty device with a new vibrator and let the other 199 get manufactured and sold? Would you use up all the old stock of "type A" vibrators until they were gone, knowing only 1 in 200 would be faulty, then when you run out, start using "type B"? I certainly would as that is much cheaper than ceasing production in multiple plants around the world ans scrapping all the good "type a" motors.

    In regards to the above, would all "type A" vibrators run out at 23:59 on October 31st, in every plant around the world? Then at 00:00 on November 1st, all "type B" would be used? If you were to scrap all "type A" vibrators and replace them with "type B", would you wait until the next month, when the serial number automatically changes? What would be the significance in that? If you're really going to be bold and scrap them all, you wouldn't wait until the end of the month. if you were happy to wait until the end of the month, then there would never have been a need to scrap them all in the first place. If the bold decision to scrap them ALL is made, you'd do it immediately

    If you tightened Quality control, or started adding more glue to hold something in place, would you wait until midnight on the last day of the month to implement it? Why?

    If tight rocker buttons and larger speaker holes are a fix and LG have waited to change serial number before implementing the fix, why are there even newer devices with newer serial numbers that do not have this "fix"? If loose rockers are something that needs to be fixed, why haven't all older devices got them? Why hasn't mine?




    -----------------------
    Sent via tapatalk.

    I do NOT reply to support queries over PM. Please keep support queries to the Q&A section, so that others may benefit
    5
    Thank you times 100 Mr. rootSU. If you have a faulty device, by all means return it. As for these people who keep returning perfectly good devices, one after another, thinking if only they return enough devices, eventually they'll win a "new and improved" phone in some mythical Nexus 5 lottery, cut it out. Seriously this behavior will have implications for all us. Google already sells the Nexus devices for basically zero profit in order to grow the Android user base and developer community. Google wants to keep their customers happy, but every time someone returns a device it eats into their bottom line as they obviously can't resell a used device as new. So what do you think they're going to do to recover the cost of excessive and unnecessary returns? They'll pass it off onto the consumer in the form higher hardware prices (do you want to pay $500 for the next Nexus?) and they'll revise their liberal return policy in order to deter excessive returning, thereby making the process more difficult and time-consuming for people who legitimately need a replacement device.

    I've said a bunch of times on this forum and I'll say it one more time, there never was a hardware revision, there is only one version as per the revision number in the bootloader. The serial numbers vary depending on where and when the device was manufactured, and as you can see their are slight variations between products produced on different assembly lines. The machines may be calibrated differently from one line to another, some assembly lines have tighter quality control than others, etc. The bottom line is there exists only one revision. Even if at some point Google and LG do decide to revise the hardware, it doesn't entitle everyone who previously bought the device to a replacement. As long as you received a functional device, they're fulfilled their contractual and moral obligation. They don't have to replace previously purchased devices just because they come out with something better in the future. This is just the cost of early adoption. Like I said, if you receive a faulty device, by all means exchange it. If not, enjoy your device and be grateful that you can buy a top-of-the-line Android handset for $400 contract-free and carrier-unlocked.
    5
    Point is, people spend hard earned money on a brand new device, they should get basic functionality correct of a smart phone.

    I moved on from nexuses series due to this very reason. You don't let these corps. get away with these defacts and tell other users to stfu and just accept it with faults.

    You probably don't work hard to earn that $1. People are experiencing issues, and i highly doubt they are "making it up".

    You're just a rude lil annoying internet troll dude lol, who believes everything is right and what you claim is perfect, while others are just dumba$$ lol.


    Anyway, this is a useless thread, waste of time, and just to get attention/to be praised, and feel you are all mighty individual.

    Pathetic.

    No one said people didn't have issues. No one said corporations should get away with anything. If you actually read the OP, it says there are no hardware revisions and that the serial number means nothing. Thats all it says.

    People who lack the intelligence to read should refrain from posting.

    Refrain means "stop one's self from doing something". The meaning of words can be found in books called "dictionaries" if you're struggling.

    Idiot!

    Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
    4
    Point is, people spend hard earned money on a brand new device, they should get basic functionality correct of a smart phone.

    I moved on from nexuses series due to this very reason. You don't let these corps. get away with these defacts and tell other users to stfu and just accept it with faults.

    You probably don't work hard to earn that $1. People are experiencing issues, and i highly doubt they are "making it up".

    You're just a rude lil annoying internet troll dude lol, who believes everything is right and what you claim is perfect, while others are just dumba$$ lol.


    Anyway, this is a useless thread, waste of time, and just to get attention/to be praised, and feel you are all mighty individual.

    Pathetic.

    You clearly have missed the entire point of the thread. He's not saying that there are no defects. He's saying that any defects there may be are not in any way related to the serial number of the phone. Maybe get your facts straight before you post.
    3
    Great explanation! You had me at "manufacturing tolerances". Everyone wants a perfect device, but humans are not.