Database Users

Vibrate really weak?

So I got my Nexus 4 and overall I love it. It was a nice upgrade from the Galaxy Nexus. 2 issues im having though are
1. The vibrate seems really week. Much weaker than the Galaxy Nexus. Its so weak, if I lay the phone down flat on a table I cant hear it vibrate. I even have an app installed to make it vibrate longer.
2. My led light doesnt seem to work. I installed light flow and nothing. It worked fine on the Galaxy Nexus.
I dont know if I should try and return it to google for another one simply for the vibrate issue or what.

I can confirm the weak vibration. I had a G2 which I could hear rattle against the table. N4 is nowhere near as powerful.

the vibration intensity of the LG Optimus G variants are also the same. i have noticed that Samsung makes the best motors for this function. HTC/LG/Moto appear to use the same, or similar, motor.

The vibrate is really bad. Its basically useless. I just might disable it. I cant get any of the LED notification apps to work. I tried trusty light flow and nothing. The only time the LED works is when I press the option to test it and then its only 1 color.

Ok so an app called sms popup was preventing light flow from working for some reason. I uninstalled it and now light flow works as it should. An FYI if anyone does a search

First time I've owned a phone built by LG and the vibration really is pathetic.

Yeah, I can't feel anything either. :/

I am disappointed with the vibration as well, I can live with it though. I have not had issues with flow light, in fact it's a great app to allow me to set vibration reminders in custom intervals
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

I'm disappointed in the weak vibration..no tingling sensation in my pants

Wondering about this as well; the vibrate actually works fine when I've got the N4 in a pocket but when it's on a table or desk, I can't hear/feel it at all. One thing I've noticed is that if I can get one of the longer edges to touch the desk, the vibrate seems much stronger on the edges of the N4 (no bumper here). When it's just face up the vibration just isn't strong enough through the back of the device to notice.
I've read other posts in this forum where people feel like the N4's vibration is actually stronger than the GNex. Is it possible that something needs to be replaced in these devices with weak vibration motors?

I actuallyl iked the vibration on the N4.
Using a custom kernel such as Francos increases the vibrate intensity.

zephiK said:
I actuallyl iked the vibration on the N4.
Using a custom kernel such as Francos increases the vibrate intensity.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I highly recommend flashing Franco's kernel. Fixes the vibration, improves performance, improves battery life and improves the colours on the display.

The weak vibrate is because the nexus 4 uses a linear oscillating vibration motor instead of a counter weighted rotational motor. A linear oscillating motor produces crisper, smoother, and quieter vibrations, but it isn't clanky, rattly, or annoyingly gritty sounding like a counterweighted motor used in most other phones.

nkedge said:
Wondering about this as well; the vibrate actually works fine when I've got the N4 in a pocket but when it's on a table or desk, I can't hear/feel it at all. One thing I've noticed is that if I can get one of the longer edges to touch the desk, the vibrate seems much stronger on the edges of the N4 (no bumper here). When it's just face up the vibration just isn't strong enough through the back of the device to notice.
I've read other posts in this forum where people feel like the N4's vibration is actually stronger than the GNex. Is it possible that something needs to be replaced in these devices with weak vibration motors?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Confirmed, when I hold the buttom of the phone standing up to the desk,the vibration actually goes to the desk.
---------- Post added at 10:54 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:52 PM ----------
Well, at least it isn't as strong and loud as the one in my iPhone. That sure was annoying.

AshtonTS said:
The weak vibrate is because the nexus 4 uses a linear oscillating vibration motor instead of a counter weighted rotational motor. A linear oscillating motor produces crisper, smoother, and quieter vibrations, but it isn't clanky, rattly, or annoyingly gritty sounding like a counterweighted motor used in most other phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is good information to know. Upon unboxing my N4 I definitely felt that the N4's vibration was DIFFERENT. When I say different, I meant in a good way, it just feels more real and thats the only explaination i could say but the way you worded it was just what I was trying to say but could never think of the words.
I disliked my old phones' vibration where they rattle and sounds like a car motor.

zephiK said:
This is good information to know. Upon unboxing my N4 I definitely felt that the N4's vibration was DIFFERENT. When I say different, I meant in a good way, it just feels more real and thats the only explaination i could say but the way you worded it was just what I was trying to say but could never think of the words.
I disliked my old phones' vibration where they rattle and sounds like a car motor.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Definitely agree. I really like the way the N4 vibrates, but I just wish I was able to notice it when it's on a flat surface. Figured it had something to do with a difference in motor; glad to know I'm not crazy!

I agree about the vibration, almost useless (I find the maximum ringtone in my pocket on the street to be too quiet too).
Lightflow works with no problems for me, did you enable it in the "accessibility" settings?

I like the vibration on this phone a lot better than my old gnex
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

play.google [DOT] com/store/apps/details?id=com.dunnow.software.vibrationTuner
I've wrote this app to solve this issue. Njoy!

mrvirginia said:
i have noticed that Samsung makes the best motors for this function.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As an owner of a S2 i couldn't disagree more

Vibration getting weaker...

I've had my Nexus 4 since the first batch, my sister just received her Nexus 4 last week. I've noticed that her vibration is more pronounced than mine, such as with typing and unlocking the screen. This might sound dumb, but does the motor have to break in, therefore get weaker after awhile? I'm thinking about trying to get a replacement. Any ideas?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2

Yeah Ive had mine for about a month and I do remember the vibration being a lot better when I got it out of the box.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

I haven't noticed any change on the vibration strengt... it has a crappy little vibrate now as it was when out of the box... The Nexus 4 has the worst vibrator in a mobile device I ever saw.

OK good, so I'm not going crazy.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2

I haven't noticed it getting any worse, but I must say it is a pretty bad motor.
Sent from my Paranoid Nexus 4 using Tapatalk²

I noticed, that it has gone slightly softer. But it has never been really "good". I set a higher value for Vibration in Trickster, so it isn't that bad.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium

yesterday i got my second device from the rma... and i have to say that on my first devices the vibration were much better... it sounds quit but good....but on my new devices it stronger and it sound hollower....
It's annoying... but it's not defect or what are you think....

I actually find mine vibrates quite well, a little bit better than my Nexus S.

mmhhh oke...but is there someone, where can agree my description of the hollow sound!?

I think it's either hit or miss. My original nexus 4 is pretty good but one the the RMA's I received had a really sluggish and weak motor that made a lot of noise.

Are you going to change your device?

My original Rev 10 had the best screen I’ve ever seen, but the vibration function hardly worked. I actually did an RMA on the device because I thought the vibration didn't work and the ear piece would buzz like hell. I really wish I didn’t do that! The screen was worth dealing with the vibration sucking. Long story short, After I returned the original device, I rooted my RMA replacement and found that the vibration function could be adjusted using an app called Fauxclock123. With that said, the N4’s intensity is set at around 60-70% from the factory. I set mine at about 86% and it felt pretty good. My 3rd device is a REV11 and has the worst screen of the bunch, but the vibration intensity is very strong from the factory.
Please keep in mind that the N4 uses a Linear actuator for its vibration. A linear actuator feels better and makes less noise (less springy), however this is at the expense of intensity. Apple put linear actuators in some of it’s Verizon phones and it caused a bunch of complaints from buyers. My brother has an iPhone with this motor and it feels much weaker than the N4.

"Vibration getting weaker"..that's what she said
"Vanilla android >jail broken iOS>90" TV's"

Weak Vibration

Is it just me or is the vibration really weak? I missed a ton of messages and calls already due to not even feeling it. I called myself to test it out and the vibration even in my hand feels very weak. Maybe I'm just numb to vibrations because the X 2014 was so aggressive, but it seems super weak on the 6p.
Anyone else having issues? Is there anyway to alter my vibration strength?

Hmmm might be defective as this is the first post or comment regarding this. You would need to compare it to another if you can find in next few days

I'm actually rma'ing mine because the vibration is audible, like it's rattling against something.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using XDA Free mobile app

akellar said:
I'm actually rma'ing mine because the vibration is audible, like it's rattling against something.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wish mines were a little more audible. I haven't been using my 360, but it seems I will need to if this is just the level of vibration. I just called myself with it on a table. I can't feel it on the table like half an inch from the phone. I'm pretty sure the vibration should be stronger than that.

The vibration is odd indeed, its almost a resonating sound and a light vibration.
Wait till we have control.over the kernel and we can edit its values

Really weak vibration here too. Have another coming for my wife on Monday. I'll compare with that one before deciding if its worth talking with Google over. The vibration is much lighter than my old nexus 6.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using XDA Free mobile app

You're not imagining it. The vibration is very weak on this phone.
I've missed loads of notifications too. It's pretty much useless in my pocket.
Waiting for CM based roms. Hopefully they're continue to have a setting like they used to have to increase the vibration strength.

The vibration is weak but I rather like it. I never feel it in my pocket on any phone. It's way better than the n6. The vibration on that was super loud and really annoying
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

Can another compare it to the LGG3?

It's one of the weaker vibrations on a phone I've felt. I have a N6, Note 3, G2 and G3 and the 6p comes no where near them

The vibrator motor on mine is also weak. Much weaker than my N5. I am hoping a mod can increase its strength.

very weak. really wish it was stronger. I just pulled my Android Wear watch out of the drawer it's been sitting in for 3 months....

brikholl said:
Really weak vibration here too. Have another coming for my wife on Monday. I'll compare with that one before deciding if its worth talking with Google over. The vibration is much lighter than my old nexus 6.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Any comparison yet? I'm so curious lol

It's very weak compared to the Nexus 6, that's for sure. It's strange after the Moto X 2013 and then the Nexus 6.
I can barley hear the Nexus 6p on the desk next to me, but I could hear the Nexus 6's vibration from the next room over.

It's not just week and hard to hear but the resonance is something like nails on a chalkboard. I no like it.

It's lighter but not bad. I dislike when the vibration on a phone causes rattles. This feels solid and fine. It's not defective because it's different from another device.

I'm finding the vibration strength to be extremely weak, and the default duration to be very short with this phone. I wish makers would put more priority on the motors. It feels as bad as my HTC Hero2. Sure, it's loud and feels alarming when testing it in hand or on a table, but it can be unnoticeable when it's in certain positions in my pocket. My galaxy s2 and s4 were much better, but I wouldn't call those great either. I miss you, nokia 3390 earth shaker.
Are there any recommended notification managers for marshmallow that lets you play with the duration?

Coming from Note, S4 and Note 3 with stock AT&T and XDA roms. I miss the intensity of those phones compared to my new Nexus 6P.

Going from HTC M8 to the nexus 6p the vibration sucks. Any way to increase strength/duration?

hayleystarr said:
Going from HTC M8 to the nexus 6p the vibration sucks. Any way to increase strength/duration?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here. I am coming from m8 and I barely feel it meanwhile m8 is like a taser which works great.

Rattling vibrator?

How does 6p vibrator do? My nexus 6 makes crazy rattling noise almost non usable. This is thr biggest buying factor for me.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

It's 100 times better. The N6 vibrator SUCKED. It would scare the crap out of me every time it went off on my desk.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

6p is ever so much better than the n6 and the 5x. Nice little purr compared to the n6 which sounds like it's going to vibarate to pieces!

I do love the actual sound of the vibration. It is a purr like, and it feels very compact instead of ratting anything around.

So it looks like more like samsung vibrators right?
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

best vibrator ever... (that's what 'she said) - no punt intended

Much better than the Nexus 6, that had an awful loud buzz rather than vibrate, people knew you had a notification from miles away! The 6P has a really nice subtle vibration, so nice I actually keep the haptic feedback on, on the nexus 6 with that on it was like a big clunk every time you pressed the screen.

Its fine with me. I don't like how loud it is when you double tap the power button to open the camera. Can't find a way to disable it either.

I don't think anybody on reddit has anything but good things to say about it

The vibration motor is not as good as samsung. It is better than N6 but still the same sound but quiter. It feels a bit cheap. I think about send it back to google because of that. It's a high rattle sound coming from the camera lense.

Rattling Speakers!

Been using my phone for a bit over a day now and I noticed that the bottom speaker has a slight rattling noise to it, especially at full blast. It's almost as if the speaker is too loud for its own good. It is really noticeable with higher-pitched tunes, such as the one from the following link:
https://youtu.be/GYtck_85rJQ
Can anyone test this out and confirm?
Volume-wise, they seem to be pretty even. However, as someone who listens to music a lot, I know this is going to drive me crazy.
By the way, this issue is obviously not present when connected to a headphone or via Bluetooth. So its definitely the speaker itself.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

akarol said:
Been using my phone for a bit over a day now and I noticed that the bottom speaker has a slight rattling noise to it, especially at full blast. It's almost as if the speaker is too loud for its own good. It is really noticeable with higher-pitched tunes, such as the one from the following link:
https://youtu.be/GYtck_85rJQ
Can anyone test this out and confirm?
Volume-wise, they seem to be pretty even. However, as someone who listens to music a lot, I know this is going to drive me crazy.
By the way, this issue is obviously not present when connected to a headphone or via Bluetooth. So its definitely the speaker itself.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My phone has a rattle on the top speaker. I received a new device from Google which had a jaundice yellow screen but no rattle. I sent back the device with the bad screen and will request another RMA for the original device.

I read this & gave mine a good shake. I'm good but I'm glad you posted to look out for it.

Just tested on 2 phones, both seem fine.

madmuthertrucker said:
I read this & gave mine a good shake. I'm good but I'm glad you posted to look out for it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm pretty sure he means the noise the speaker makes while playing music, not a physical rattle from shaking the device.

Yes. It's more like a buzzing sound when something high pitched is playing. As if the speaker can't handle the loud volume.

Oh I see. Ok I tested the video and mine is fine. The speakers don't sound over driven.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

akarol said:
Been using my phone for a bit over a day now and I noticed that the bottom speaker has a slight rattling noise to it, especially at full blast. It's almost as if the speaker is too loud for its own good. It is really noticeable with higher-pitched tunes, such as the one from the following link:
https://youtu.be/GYtck_85rJQ
Can anyone test this out and confirm?
Volume-wise, they seem to be pretty even. However, as someone who listens to music a lot, I know this is going to drive me crazy.
By the way, this issue is obviously not present when connected to a headphone or via Bluetooth. So its definitely the speaker itself.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@akarol, what's the manufacturing date of your 6P? To see your manufacturing date, boot into the bootloader and select "Barcode". One of the barcodes should have a date, mine was October 31st. I'm curious to see if the speaker rattle issue is particular to some 6Ps manufactured on certain dates. I'm pretty sure I experienced some slight rattling on my bottom speaker while playing the music rhythm game Deemo. It doesn't really bother me that much though, and it would be too much of a hassle for my parents if I were to RMA the device, especially so soon after I just got it.

Got mine 2 weeks ago from Best Buy Canada, but didn't notice that issue at first. I suspect that this may be amplified by time, or maybe I just didn't pay attention at firt. I did what you said to see the manufacturing date and mine is October 24th. Maybe this is specific to early production devices. I am gonna exchange it in store today and see if the new one is fine.
Can anyone with this issue confirm if the new one is fine or the same?
Thanks.

I think it's present on all devices and those who say aren't there just don't have the ears for it. I'm on my 3rd RMA and it's still there. All 3! I'll probably just keep the original device.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

akarol said:
I think it's present on all devices and those who say aren't there just don't have the ears for it. I'm on my 3rd RMA and it's still there. All 3! I'll probably just keep the original device.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The video you posted doesn't cause it for me. However, the launch screen of clash of clans does. Ah well.

About 3 days ago I started noticing this issue on mine. Mainly, when I was receiving a text, the tone sounded really over-driven for the speaker.
Then I was watching a YouTube video today, and I noticed it a lot. I honestly think it's the speaker itself slightly rattling with high pitched noises.
Kind of disappointed in this. I don't feel like sending it back, but it's sad. Maybe a kernel with a good amount of audio control can solve this. Maybe if I could tune down the highs a bit.
I don't have Nexus Protect or anything, but I know the device is still covered under warranty. Is this something that could easily be claimed under warranty, or probably not?

I honestly think it's a design that flaw. I have it in all 3 of my speakers. All 3 of them it's with the bottom speaker. I don't think RMAing or sending it in would solve anything. Maybe some time after when it's been addressed. I'll learn to live with this knowing that I don't usually keep these things past a year anyways.
Sent from my OnePlus One using Tapatalk

My current issue is with the top speaker, instead of the bottom. And my top speaker is getting progressively worse. It's a very annoying buzzing/high pitched static noise that comes with almost any sound. Notifications, alarms, phone ringer, YouTube videos, etc. Its getting worse, and so I submitted an RMA and have a replacement coming out.
Since you say yours is with the bottom, and mine is strictly with the top, it sounds interesting.
Mine is almost bad enough though that you wouldn't want to live with it. I'll try and get a recording of it.

anyone have any updates on this? I just got mine nexus 6p about 2 weeks ago and it's been driving me nuts. The top speaker has a buzzing sound when playing certain videos, songs or notification tones. One specifically is the "Tethys" notification tone that causes the buzzing pretty badly. I have tried viper4android and tried every configuration possible and it still has the buzzing. Has anyone managed to get a device that does not have this issue?

I've got this similar problem too, with my top speaker. Testing my speakers with this video: https://youtu.be/qNf9nzvnd1k?t=54s top one starts buzzing at approximately 250 Hz, even on half of the volume. Bottom speaker is crystal clear (maybe with exception of 100% volume, but I'm ok with this). After reading this thread's posts I'm not sure if I should send it back on warranty, especially that my N6P is free of any other flaws.
Interesting: bootloader barcode screen shows 12-10-2015 - that's quite old unit, considering the fact that I bought it in the middle of January...

Honestly, I went through 3 and they all had some rattling. Over the months, I haven't noticed it anymore. Either I forgot about it, or it actually improved. As long as the volume is even on both, I wouldn't risk getting a worse device.
Sent from my OnePlus One using Tapatalk

I have the exact same problem with top speaker buzz, really noticeable with the tethys notification sound and in youtube videos with deeper sounds. I have tried RMA'ing twice, the first one the speakers were perfect but had a screen problem so I sent it back and kept my original, and the second had the exact same speaker problem so I kept the original again. I am very frustrated with this. A question I have though is when I just leave my finger on the left corner of the speaker that buzzes, it stops buzzing. Has anyone tried any home repairs? What if we were to put a drop of super glue in the left corner of the speaker? is that likely to fix the problem? I appreciate the help guys.

nicemsp said:
I have the exact same problem with top speaker buzz, really noticeable with the tethys notification sound and in youtube videos with deeper sounds. I have tried RMA'ing twice, the first one the speakers were perfect but had a screen problem so I sent it back and kept my original, and the second had the exact same speaker problem so I kept the original again. I am very frustrated with this. A question I have though is when I just leave my finger on the left corner of the speaker that buzzes, it stops buzzing. Has anyone tried any home repairs? What if we were to put a drop of super glue in the left corner of the speaker? is that likely to fix the problem? I appreciate the help guys.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What do you mean by screen problem?

Rasool-Hamilton said:
What do you mean by screen problem?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you serious?