Considering Mate 9 to Note 8 - U.S. users, how is it? - Huawei Honor Note 8 Questions & Answers

Considering Mate 9 to Note 8 - U.S. users, how is it? - Huawei Honor Note 8 Questions & Answers

I have a international Mate 9 right now, and overall it's pretty great, but I dispise IPS LCD and want an AMOLED screen. The best large screen option available for this year appears to be the Honor Note 8, but the biggest downside is that it lacks LTE support in the U.S. I'm on T-Mobile and have LTE where I live, work, and commute, but don't know how well HSPA+ is covered in those areas. This wouldn't necessarily be my primary device though as I also have a Pixel XL with my main SIM in it.
-How's the performance? The Kirin 955 is quite a bit slower than the 960 in my Mate 9, but I do not game or anything with my phone... just normal daily usage.
-How's the camera?
-Has anyone looked into trying to download/install the Nougat beta? I saw it's available to Chinese users, so hopefully someone can find a way...
-What's the software update process look like? Do OTA's actually come through? If not, how do you manually update?

Had 2 OTA updates already, LTE works fine in UK and Note 8 is very fast the Kirin 955 is still very very powerful with 4 ARM 72's and 4 ARM 53's with 4GB of RAM.

I have a Chinese Honor Note 8 and I'm living in Colorado. I'm using Project Fi from Google which technically uses part of Sprint's network, but I get no LTE. HSPA+ works just about everywhere, and I get maximum 40Mbps download speeds when I have a strong signal. Project Fi puts me on the T-Mobile network, presumably because that's the strongest around here. To answer your other questions:
- The Kirin 955 seems slower than I'm use to. I had a Pixel XL before this and a Mate 8 before that, and the Note 8 seems a bit slower than the Pixel when navigating between apps. It's definitely not the flagship processor for Huawei. That being said, it's perfectly acceptable for every day use. The battery life more than makes up for the less than stellar processor.
- The camera isn't as sharp as other phones, but the amount of options you get make up for it. The Huawei camera app has tons of professional grade tweaks and customizations, as I'm sure you're aware of. But when I snap pics, it doesn't look as crisp as other new phones like the Pixel or iPhone.
- My phone is rooted and unlocked, so I do my updates manually. I'm looking for a compatible copy of Nougat, so if you guys have the link could you please post it?

flint24 said:
I have a Chinese Honor Note 8 and I'm living in Colorado. I'm using Project Fi from Google which technically uses part of Sprint's network, but I get no LTE. HSPA+ works just about everywhere, and I get maximum 40Mbps download speeds when I have a strong signal. Project Fi puts me on the T-Mobile network, presumably because that's the strongest around here. To answer your other questions:
- The Kirin 955 seems slower than I'm use to. I had a Pixel XL before this and a Mate 8 before that, and the Note 8 seems a bit slower than the Pixel when navigating between apps. It's definitely not the flagship processor for Huawei. That being said, it's perfectly acceptable for every day use. The battery life more than makes up for the less than stellar processor.
- The camera isn't as sharp as other phones, but the amount of options you get make up for it. The Huawei camera app has tons of professional grade tweaks and customizations, as I'm sure you're aware of. But when I snap pics, it doesn't look as crisp as other new phones like the Pixel or iPhone.
- My phone is rooted and unlocked, so I do my updates manually. I'm looking for a compatible copy of Nougat, so if you guys have the link could you please post it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
-I just got my phone today, and on the 4th floor at work, my Pixel XL is pulling 8 Mbps download on LTE, and the Note 8 was pulling 7 Mbps on HSPA+, so certainly a serviceable connection, which is great. Still, LTE is the future and the fact that this phone doesn't support it in the U.S. is kind of disappointing.
-I haven't used the Note 8 enough to say it's really all that slow... actually it seems perfectly adequate. If you check benchmarks, the performance is actually on-par with the Snapdragon 820, especially with multi-core performance. Graphics performance is where the Note 8 falls on its face... terrible, really. It's too bad Huawei didn't make this a more premium device (hence the Honor branding) and tossed in all the new stuff on the Mate 9. Not as smooth as my Pixel XL, but it's not bad
-I haven't really touched the camera either, and likely never will. It seems like it'd be an average shooter at best.
-Rooted and unlocked, are you running B027 or have you managed to update to B029? I thought I read that root/TWRP was not compatible with B029 yet, but if it is, that'd be great. How exactly have you been doing "manual updates?"
-I tried to use the beta registration website for the Note 8 to get my hands on the Nougat beta... wasn't happening. Looking at the translated comments, it actually looks like this is a closed beta test and they already have the number of testers they want. Short of someone from China posting the update for download, I don't think we'll be flashing Nougat until it hits open beta at the very least, if that even happens.
Taking the phone out of the box, I was really shocked at how big it is... calling the Note7, V20, and Mate 9 "phablets" is meaningless now. THIS is a phablet, truly. In fact, I'm going to end up using it as more of a small tablet with cell connectivity instead of a phone at all. I have zero plans to put my primary SIM in it and use it as my daily driver. I'll use it for browsing and media... that's about it. And that's okay, considering the low price, great hardware, and top notch display. I do wish the display got a little brighter (my guess is it tops out somewhere near 400 nits which is great, but not the best for outdoor visibility). It's very close in brightness to my Pixel XL until I use the kernel/root brightness boost mode that blasts the Pixel XL up to 600-700 nits. The whole reason I dumped the Mate 9 for this phone is because it's AMOLED... and it does not disappoint! Plus it has what appears to be an sRGB mode (or close to it) so you don't have to deal with over saturation if you don't want to. Getting it set up was a little tricky at first due to all the app security features built in to EMUI and having to download all the Google stuff, but it's essentially running perfectly fine now. The "small" display scaling option is still way too large to make use of the display, so I used "adb shell wm density 400" and it looks pretty good to me.
I think my only complaint is not being able to disable the stupid brightness reducer that automatically kicks in when you open some apps like your browser (you can force the brightness back up, but it's annoying to say the least, especially when going in/out of Chrome via Google Now). It also seems like a some apps can't use full immersive mode and hide the on-screen buttons?

Nitemare3219 said:
-I just got my phone today, and on the 4th floor at work, my Pixel XL is pulling 8 Mbps download on LTE, and the Note 8 was pulling 7 Mbps on HSPA+, so certainly a serviceable connection, which is great. Still, LTE is the future and the fact that this phone doesn't support it in the U.S. is kind of disappointing.
-I haven't used the Note 8 enough to say it's really all that slow... actually it seems perfectly adequate. If you check benchmarks, the performance is actually on-par with the Snapdragon 820, especially with multi-core performance. Graphics performance is where the Note 8 falls on its face... terrible, really. It's too bad Huawei didn't make this a more premium device (hence the Honor branding) and tossed in all the new stuff on the Mate 9. Not as smooth as my Pixel XL, but it's not bad
-I haven't really touched the camera either, and likely never will. It seems like it'd be an average shooter at best.
-Rooted and unlocked, are you running B027 or have you managed to update to B029? I thought I read that root/TWRP was not compatible with B029 yet, but if it is, that'd be great. How exactly have you been doing "manual updates?"
-I tried to use the beta registration website for the Note 8 to get my hands on the Nougat beta... wasn't happening. Looking at the translated comments, it actually looks like this is a closed beta test and they already have the number of testers they want. Short of someone from China posting the update for download, I don't think we'll be flashing Nougat until it hits open beta at the very least, if that even happens.
Taking the phone out of the box, I was really shocked at how big it is... calling the Note7, V20, and Mate 9 "phablets" is meaningless now. THIS is a phablet, truly. In fact, I'm going to end up using it as more of a small tablet with cell connectivity instead of a phone at all. I have zero plans to put my primary SIM in it and use it as my daily driver. I'll use it for browsing and media... that's about it. And that's okay, considering the low price, great hardware, and top notch display. I do wish the display got a little brighter (my guess is it tops out somewhere near 400 nits which is great, but not the best for outdoor visibility). It's very close in brightness to my Pixel XL until I use the kernel/root brightness boost mode that blasts the Pixel XL up to 600-700 nits. The whole reason I dumped the Mate 9 for this phone is because it's AMOLED... and it does not disappoint! Plus it has what appears to be an sRGB mode (or close to it) so you don't have to deal with over saturation if you don't want to. Getting it set up was a little tricky at first due to all the app security features built in to EMUI and having to download all the Google stuff, but it's essentially running perfectly fine now. The "small" display scaling option is still way too large to make use of the display, so I used "adb shell wm density 400" and it looks pretty good to me.
I think my only complaint is not being able to disable the stupid brightness reducer that automatically kicks in when you open some apps like your browser (you can force the brightness back up, but it's annoying to say the least, especially when going in/out of Chrome via Google Now). It also seems like a some apps can't use full immersive mode and hide the on-screen buttons?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How I can force the brightness back up?

jopenac said:
How I can force the brightness back up?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you're referring to the automatic brightness reduction caused by apps, you have to manually adjust it higher each time you go into one of those apps.

Nitemare3219 said:
If you're referring to the automatic brightness reduction caused by apps, you have to manually adjust it higher each time you go into one of those apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have the solution for this. You must put Energy plan (Battery menu) in Performance. Sorry by my poor English.

Related

LeEco Le Max 2 6GB/64GB vs. Recent Flagship Phones - Some Guy's Review

PURPOSE
So 1st and foremost, the plan here is to give you my experience with the LeEco Le Max 2 6GB version compared to some other recent flagship phones I have tried. Granted, I have only used the Max 2 for about 1/2 a week 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 3 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. LeEco Le Max 2 6GB
2. HTC 10
3. Huawei P9 4GB
4. LG G5
5. Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge
6. Huawei Mate 8
7. Huawei Nexus 6P
8. LG Nexus 5X
9. Samsung Note 5
10. 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 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. Works with my Huawei Watch
6. 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 Max 2 and the other flagships under/around these requirements and some normal stuff like battery, screen, snappiness, heat, speakers, etc. Here goes:
SOUND OVERALL
Lets start out by saying that I'm not a person that needs a phone that has good external speakers... I really have no use for them and as long as they are loud enough for notifications then I'm cool. Also, I am not a cross-training adventure workout junkie that requires 3.5mm in order to do everything with my phone... I state this now so that I clear the air with the Max 2 being one of the first phones not to have a 3.5mm jack and require a CDLA to 3.5mm adapter or CDLA USB Type C Headphones... I think the Max 2 may even come with the adapter and since I so don't give a brown matter from my butt about it, I haven't even taken it out of its packaging. Personally, the only time I use headphones is skiing and I have bluetooth wireless headphones built into my helmet... and like someone in the 21st century I realize I can have wireless headphones. :good: Now, my main sound experience with the Max 2 is bluetooth to my 2016 HR-V. It connects with zero issues, phone and bluetooth audio both work great. As a bonus, the built-in Dolby ATMOS makes my otherwise tinny speakers without equalization sound great. It also doesn't detract from the volume output like other similar apps... It allows me to blast bassy metal to offend anyone I want, which is a great double bonus situation for me. Nothing like driving by a church blasting GHOST and having the lyrics Hail Satan play loud, clear and rockin' hahaha. Seriously though, in recent memory, this is the only phone from 2016 flagships I haven't had to use a workaround app that drastically decreases the volume. Now I will say that the Dolby ATMOS setting works a little wonky and easily resets itself if you enter into the sound settings or back out of sound setting after enabling... once you know about this though, it is easy to workaround just by hitting home button instead. For the external speaker people, the Max 2 is super loud and the speakers do sound crisp... I think it is stereo speakers as well, if you care about those things... bass-wise, the speakers are not the best but not bad also... definitely as good as of not better than the HTC 10 or LG G5.
WINNER: NO DOUBT SO FAR IN 2016 - LeEco Max 2
BATTERY
From my experience so far, I have had decent battery life out of the Max 2. 3100 mAh does seem a tad small for this larger phalet... but I'm yet to say that its a problem for me. Of recent phones, LG G5 has the worse battery life with the HTC 10 being next in line, then S7 rounded out at the top with the P9... The P9 has a Kirin processor so lets toss it out. Out of the Snapdragons I will say that with my usage so far the Max 2 matches the S7 with battery life from my usage. Max 2 has fast charge as well which helps keep it on par with the other 820's. Just yesterday, I used the Max 2 all-day no recharging with 2 heavy usage periods for a total of 3 hours plus of screen on time playing Clash Royale. The rest of the day was standard usage of checking emails, looking at some news items, etc. It lasted the whole day from 8:30am until 1am in the morning with 15% left. This was on wifi the whole time as well. I feel this adequately meets my needs to last a whole day without recharge (which rarely happens since I always recharge when in my car) with moderate usage all day long.
WINNER: It's close to call but since its the larger phone and still performs well even though no wireless charging - LeEco Max 2
HEAT
I have yet to see a real heat spike with the Max 2. I have heard reports of heat but maybe this is with the 4GB version. Since the lack of need to flush RAM or actively manage memory more critically with the greater space, this may play a factor. Not a super nerdy tech guru on this so someone that understands this more may have to chime in. I have also yet to place it in a what I like to call, a pocket burning situation like at a concert were I'm using the camera a lot, there's high tower saturation causing the radio to work more, etc. I can say the phone barely heated up trying to download a 1.5GB update on LTE... so I guess that says something right? The only other phone that runs this cool is the P9 with it Kirin processor... all the 820's run a little hot when taxed so I would not be surprised if the Max 2 was the same if push to limits. I can say that I have gotten overheat warnings on the S7 when setting up the phone and downloading copious amounts of data.... and my first G5 overheated that it caused an internal malfunction causing me to have to replace the phone under warranty. The HTC 10 seemed to be the coolest out of the other 820's I have tried.
WINNER: Still is the P9 however out of the 820's - LeEco Max 2
SNAPPINESS
I have explained in some of my other reviews, I like to talk about performance in terms of snappiness with normal day to day usage with the phone rather than throw up meaningless to most people AnTuTu stats or whatever. I am going on out on a limp here and saying that the Max 2 dominates of course due to 6GB of RAM... it's like pitting a turbocharged version of a car vs. its not turbocharge version... more under the hood most of the time leads to better performance. No loading issues, no lag from app to app. What I can say is that EUI is a fairly nice GUI take on Android, better than EMUI, but not as nice as the new HTC 10 Sense / Stock like interface. I however did my standard change of porting over the sense launcher to the Max 2 which I just love... as far as getting use to how things work, there is a lot of configuration that can be done with notifications, much like Huawei's EMUI interface that might make it off putting to some... I lucked out and the aliexpress merchant I bought the Max 2 from pre-loaded the Google App Store when I got the phone. I since did 2 updates (one I downloaded and force flashed myself, the other was through LeEco's update system directly) and the app store continues to work fine.... There are redundant apps for email, calendar, message, etc. to google versions... however most of these are built well enough that you might not want or need the google versions. Notifications seem to work OK although some do not like that it does not litter the top of your screen with icons for every single notification.... rather it just typically puts an icon with "..." and a circle at the top... takes a little to get use to, but with a notification LED as well, I think this bypasses this small issue for some. :laugh: Also, people are starting to create ROMs for it and it is easily rootable albeit in Chinese at first, so you can definitely get more out of it with some tweaking.... haven't heard if they released Kernels yet. But it is only a matter of time given it popularity in China.
WINNER: Maybe just because of the 6GB but still... LeEco Le Max 2
DISPLAY
This to me is one of the areas much like sound where if it is not screwing up the way I use the phone then I care less about stuff like resolution. If someone can truly tell a load of difference between QHD, SuperHD, 1080p, etc. etc. good for you. Here what I can say. The Max 2 screen is great! Plus, its the largest compared to the other Flagships I have tried... forgot how nice it is to use a larger phone... It does not suffer from which ultimately made me get rid of the HTC 10 from the screen polarization being applied wrong causing you not to be able to use it outdoors with sunglasses on.... I know right... major f-up IMO that HTC 10 did... I couldn't see it in my car with sunglasses on, too annoying for me. Thankfully, don't have to worry about this with the Max 2 even with a tempered glass screen protector. Since it is somewhat screen related, I can say that the fingerprint sensor is something to be desired. Its slow, sometimes taking 3 tries for it to read properly... I have tried multiple times to reprogram and it does not help. Definitely the G5 and P9 beat it hands down when talking about rear facing fingerprint sensors... Even touchwiz laggy S7 sensor beats it. Hopefully, updates help with this. Like capacitive buttons it has, in the configuration I like with back button on left... apps button also reveals the control center feature on the Max 2... similar to Apples swipe up control center... not placing these toggles in the notification panel is a fresh take on using these toggles and I like it... Color balance seems good on the phone as well if you care about those things... No Always-On feature for the Max 2 either but not a huge deal with a configurable notification LED.
WINNER: The S7 still has the best "looking screen"; G5 has the best always-on screen - Max 2 is ok but not the best in this class of phones.... Does get bonus points for the control center feature and correctly orientated IMO capacitive buttons
PHONE DESIGN
The Max 2 is a good looking phone especially with a premium metal chassis... I do have to say that I had to get the "Gold" version of the phone since it was the only one available at this point in the 6GB Version... I use "gold" here loosely as like other can report... gold is actually rose gold... not that rose gold is bad, but a pinkish phone for a guy is not cool... No matter, I got a Matte black hard case today the covers the back and pretty much takes care of the covering most of the pinkish gold exterior.... I believe there will be other colors out there soon but I could not wait any longer... Camera and button placement is nice. Phone feels great in hand. Although bigger than the other 2016 Flagships, its not gargantuan either... doesn't feel like putting a tablet up to your ear like other phalets can feel like. Pretty thin too and not overly heavy. The biggest design issue is of course no SD Card add-on memory since the SIM tray only accommodates dual SIMs. At 64GB, this isn't an issue for me as I don't save a lot to my phone and jam pack it with needless stuff. The fingerprint sensor is in a good natural position albeit if it only worked on the first try... Its not like Megan Fox / Candice Swanepoel good looking phone rather more like Melissa Benoist / Kate Upton good looking. You ain't going to wake up after a long night of drinking and go "my god... what did I do..." but you are also not getting the top of the heap in design characteristics either. It's nice looking but not someone you'd use your "hall pass" on over your wife, if you get my point..." Notification LED work great and should be noted as not being blinding at night like others can be.... looking at you HTC 10... I like no 3.5mm jack since I don't use it anyway... less holes to get dirt into... in this case, having less holes to stick stuff into wins out!!! :silly:
WINNER: Still S7 for overall design, wireless charging, etc. - Your not bad Max 2, but pinkish gold is makes my balls instantly shrink!!!
CAMERA
Another big deal for some but not really a huge concern for me is the camera on smartphones... Personally and I have gone over the reasons time and time again, I went to school for photography and have used some really great cameras, film and digital. So when you start looking at smartphone cameras, even in 2016, it is still hard to compare to the output of an actual camera. With that said, there is no real gimmick with the Max 2... looks to be an alright camera that I will post examples later of. Doesn't have "superpixels", low light lens, dual lens, etc, etc. etc. It will take pictures decently and in most cases that's all you need it to do. I can say that it does have one of my major pet peeves when it comes to the camera app in video mode... no focus lock.... honestly who uses always on auto focus in video mode.... looks like a bad wedding video... when you are recording something that you are a fixed distance away, like a concert lets say, you don't need for it to re-focus... it annoying. So, I am going to cut this section short and just say, the Max 2 has a camera, its nothing special and if you are ok with a no gimmick no frills nexus like camera than its absolutely fine for what its supposed to do.... :highfive:
WINNER: S7 for low-light, G5 for wide angled, P9 for dynamic range; HTC 10 for camera app & Max 2 for no frills OK no gimmicks camera
CONCLUSION
For my daily usage case, the Max 2 is great! When you consider that it outperforms in most cases phones that are $200 - $400 more than what it costs... It tends to soften the negatives. I think for me the greatest of which is the current functionality of the fingerprint sensor... I hate struggling to get it to read than having to still punch in a pin when it fails. Besides this, all the othe negatives are minor. Camera - its really ok just nothing special. Color - if you can wait, you can get a more manly color unless you want to go with the 4GB version (you can get different colors now). EUI - definitely not as big of a learning curve as EMUI but it does take a little bit of commitment to get use to all the customization you can do. Looks like LeEco plans to release updates frequently since there has been at least one since it released in May... Yeah, it doesn't have a headphone jack... grow up and get with the 21st century... hahaha. To get a 6GB phone, under $500, 64GB internal is not too shabby. Would it be stellar with a SD Card add-on, yep it sure would but I can make do without having the SD Card in most cases unless I really started ROM-ing and backing up TWRPs with it.... I think if you are looking for a good, well performing phone at a good price with some decent specs and killer sound, this does the trick, most definitely. Could it be better, you betcha... but I can say that for any of the 2016 Flagship phones. Lastly and as always, this is just Some Guy's Opinion... :good:

Good review, makes it sound really awesome. My experience is very different.
I have the 6GB version and its regularly becoming warm.
Sound is ok, but Huawei Mate 8 is a different class altogether (better).
As a mid level budget phone the Eco Max 2 is very clearly on the cost performance side.
But I think the battery softens its advantage.
The hardware specs on the Max 2 are all top class, but there is definitely muuuch room for improvement. On the paper the network is Cat 12, but tell you the truth in daily usage it doesnt differ speed to Huawei Mate 8. Same for the user experience speed.
Also its not funny if the phone reboots occasionally
LeTV has fixed some of the issues with the upcoming EUI 5.8 release, but they need to do more !!
If you are thinking about getting it and tweaking it for your local marcet you have to do little homework with Google playstore etc. Its a gadget for geeky power users, but not mainstream user, to many changes required.

EverPing said:
Good review, makes it sound really awesome. My experience is very different.
I have the 6GB version and its regularly becoming warm.
Sound is ok, but Huawei Mate 8 is a different class altogether (better).
As a mid level budget phone the Eco Max 2 is very clearly on the cost performance side.
But I think the battery softens its advantage.
The hardware specs on the Max 2 are all top class, but there is definitely muuuch room for improvement. On the paper the network is Cat 12, but tell you the truth in daily usage it doesnt differ speed to Huawei Mate 8. Same for the user experience speed.
Also its not funny if the phone reboots occasionally
LeTV has fixed some of the issues with the upcoming EUI 5.8 release, but they need to do more !!
If you are thinking about getting it and tweaking it for your local marcet you have to do little homework with Google playstore etc. Its a gadget for geeky power users, but not mainstream user, to many changes required.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Funny mine never rebooted once. No heat even under load. No big modifications to get google play. Mine was stock and able to OTA... Google Play just took a simple APK download and agreeing to "unknown sources." Yes, its not a consumer mainstream phone outside of China... however doing a review on XDA, pretty much means its a review for a more "geeky" crowd easily capable of simple APK downloads from shared sources mentioned at least 10 different times in 10 different posts in this forum. The Huawei Mate 8 succeeds because of Kirin... however of 820's and at this price point, its hard to beat... maybe only by OP3 once they figure out the RAM Management. The camera is better on the Mate 8 but it's not as good as the P9... Plus all in all, its just as difficult to install the Play Store on the Mate8 & P9... both phones I owned and sold, as I was able to get just as good as and somewhat better phone for $200 to $300 cheaper. In the states, all these phones max out our 4G LTE networks so seeing any major difference between the P9, Mate8 and the Max 2 in modem performance is minor. Once again, OGO

Thanks for the feedback, maybe I am just unlucky this time. The apk's I downloaded from apkmirror etc don't seem to work on my Chinese version max 2. I also tried Xiaomi installer version 2, Opengapps, LeTV Playstore zips for same.
I think in terms of price LeTV has found a sweet spot in the marcet, but overall the software quality is just not there yet. However the upcoming update will fix some of it.

Hi,
Thanks for the review. Could you tell me if it has MHL ?
Regards

I tried with my MHL-Adapter, which is working fine with LETV LE 1 (X600). Didn´t work ...

Ok, thanks for the info. MHL is so usefull when you want to see a film at the hotel...

I think it should have MHL (I might have found this hint in some descriptions) but actually it is not working (for me?)...

Having been in IT, the first thing you learn is most problems are usually user problems. Most of the issues that I have come up against are problems of my own doing. For example, some thing may not work because I deleted a necessary file in my quest to remove Chinese Le-bloat. So it has been trial and error. I installed the CM 13 yesterday, but didn't like the tinny sound the speakers were making. Went back to the dev 5.8 stock, installed Google play and a few apps and it's running like a charm. I have not experienced any overheating issues. This phone does everything that one does with a phone very well. I sure you can find an individual that does intense things on their device, but for the average user that surfs the web, watches you tube, plays a few games, sends/reads email and IM's others, this phone is hard to beat. This morning I had an antutu of 140491, which is pretty good considering I only have the 4/32 GB version. Can you say fast phone?!

Hi,
I may add a comparison to a phone that can be considered as the direct competitor to the Le 2 Max : the One+ 3.
There is one area where the Le 2 Max clearly wins : it's the display. I don't care about 2k or FHD. It's hard to tell the difference in real life anyways. But I'm talking about brightness and legibility in sunny daylight conditions. And there, there is no question : the Le 2 Max is superior to the OP3, even after OP3 released the new display drivers that improves things on the brightness side...
And the 0.2" more is a nice addition too... Really noticeable when you used the LeEco for several days and you then go back to OP3
But apart from that (which is really important I admit it), the Le 2 Max is lagging behind in almost every other aspect...
BATTERY LIFE : OP3 wins without a question...In really heavy usage (GPS + BT active +display on all the time) I get about 3h45minutes of battery life with the LeEco... and about 5h30 in the same conditions with the OP3. That's almost 50% better battery. Think the 2K display has a cost unfortunately
SNAPPINESS : the LeEco is OK. But once you compare it to the OP3, the overall feeling is clearly pointing into the OP3 direction !!! And just install a custom ROM like Tipsy, and your device seems to fly, when the Le Eco seems to walk
HEAT : under the heavy usage conditions I described before, the LeEco gets mildly hot. It's much cooler than the Nexus 5 used to be in the same conditions( where it lasted about 1h40 on battery !). But the OP3 is simply almost cool. On that side, OP3 wins...
SOUND : I admit that I don't give a **** about sound coming from the speakers. But on phone calls OP3 clearly wins. On Le 2 Max I have a "ghost sound". I seem to hear everything I am saying to the other person like he has a loudspeaker on. Doesn't happen on OP3.
CAMERA : I am not a great camera user. But both deliver pictures that are good enough for me. But I must say it's difficult to tear them apart
FINGERPRINT SCANNER : it's adictive to use on OP3 because fingerprint is recognized in a fraction of a second and is ALWAYS recognized. I cannot count the times I left my finger on the finger print scanner for seconds before it decided to consider it has to recognize a finger... and then I would say about 30% of the time it doesn't recognize my finger print on first attempt, and about 15% of the time it doesn't recognize it at all so I have to fire it up with the power key and pattern.
DEVELOPMENT : It seems LeEco has no intention at all to consider those phones as an important part of their business. Look at their website : they're ahrdly advertised. Go to their forums : there no activity. An official from LeEco shows up about once every 3 weeks. All in all, discussion and support are simply dead. All tehy keep saying is "Stay tuned, we have a lot to unveil"... but no date nor nothing ! And after 4 months of phone existence what do we have : a tweaked Stock ROM and a CM13 build that is obviously not really actively developped. After 3 weeks of existence, OP3 has tweaked stock ROM, CM13 and 3 derivatives, 3 or 4 AOSP derivatives and just recevied multi ROM... So all problems may have a fix some day... There's really little hope to have that with LeEco
Even CM13 builders doesn't publish their github source which would allow to work on other ROM's...
PERFORMANCE : not that I really care about benchmarks... as I am convinced that 3k or 4k points in Antutu will go unnoticed in real life. But on the OP3 if I run several Antutu tests in a row, I have only a really slight variation in results It goes from 142k to 136-138k on 3rd/4th pass. On x820 results vary from 140k (generally on first pass) and then sink to 110k (sometimes even less) on third/fourth pass... And that sounds really weird to me : maybe there's a throttle on the phone ?
ALL IN ALL : I'd love to keep the LeEco because of it's display. But considering all the "cons" it has, I am afraid it will soon join an ad site for used devices And that's a shame because with a little support from it's manufacturer, it would be THE device to keep
So LeEco : if you hang around here sometime, show us some love and release official device trees.

Well said and your comments are spot on @NexusPenguin
Le needs to release kernel sources to their phones to survive in this industry. They absolutely do not want to go down Xiaomi's footsteps.
If they don't release device trees, most people will simply not buy their Le Max 3 or whatever they release next. Simple to earn bad-will and buey themselves to ground.

it is definitively fast but....
Dear jim262,
it is really fast. With Google Keyboard app, not debloated and after autoupdate to EUI 5.8.016S mine had a Antutu v6.2.1 of 139.159
But:
- I Need a international ROM
- why can´t the user decide wether he want´s the LeTV Software on it or not? So debloate that phone. I don´t want a fixed button on the Screen wich leeds to Chinese Websites. Unfortunately I can´t speak/read Chinese.
- The cam should have more Software ability to take pics with lower size. Actual it doesn´t allow less than 8 MP`s
jim262 said:
Having been in IT, the first thing you learn is most problems are usually user problems. Most of the issues that I have come up against are problems of my own doing. For example, some thing may not work because I deleted a necessary file in my quest to remove Chinese Le-bloat. So it has been trial and error. I installed the CM 13 yesterday, but didn't like the tinny sound the speakers were making. Went back to the dev 5.8 stock, installed Google play and a few apps and it's running like a charm. I have not experienced any overheating issues. This phone does everything that one does with a phone very well. I sure you can find an individual that does intense things on their device, but for the average user that surfs the web, watches you tube, plays a few games, sends/reads email and IM's others, this phone is hard to beat. This morning I had an antutu of 140491, which is pretty good considering I only have the 4/32 GB version. Can you say fast phone?!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

LeTvNewby said:
Dear jim262,
it is really fast. With Google Keyboard app, not debloated and after autoupdate to EUI 5.8.016S mine had a Antutu v6.2.1 of 139.159
But:
- I Need a international ROM
- why can´t the user decide wether he want´s the LeTV Software on it or not? So debloate that phone. I don´t want a fixed button on the Screen wich leeds to Chinese Websites. Unfortunately I can´t speak/read Chinese.
- The cam should have more Software ability to take pics with lower size. Actual it doesn´t allow less than 8 MP`s
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Most of the roms are international roms with the ability to select language when you start.

Yeah, the phone is not a Galaxy S7 killer but I don't think we ever had such a device ~$250 on the market. Oneplus One might have been the only thing that came close but now their devices cost ~400€.
It doesn't have any real weaknesses, only a few things like the camera and software are mid-to-high end.
Clearly we'll see a drop in smartphone prices in the coming years, users won't pay 700€ anymore if you can get the latest for less. And these cheap manufacturers will catch up to Samsung and co. eventually.

mahst68 said:
PURPOSE
So 1st and foremost, the plan here is to give you my experience with the LeEco Le Max 2 6GB version compared to some other recent flagship phones I have tried. Granted, I have only used the Max 2 for about 1/2 a week 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 3 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. LeEco Le Max 2 6GB
2. HTC 10
3. Huawei P9 4GB
4. LG G5
5. Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge
6. Huawei Mate 8
7. Huawei Nexus 6P
8. LG Nexus 5X
9. Samsung Note 5
10. 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 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. Works with my Huawei Watch
6. 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 Max 2 and the other flagships under/around these requirements and some normal stuff like battery, screen, snappiness, heat, speakers, etc. Here goes:
SOUND OVERALL
Lets start out by saying that I'm not a person that needs a phone that has good external speakers... I really have no use for them and as long as they are loud enough for notifications then I'm cool. Also, I am not a cross-training adventure workout junkie that requires 3.5mm in order to do everything with my phone... I state this now so that I clear the air with the Max 2 being one of the first phones not to have a 3.5mm jack and require a CDLA to 3.5mm adapter or CDLA USB Type C Headphones... I think the Max 2 may even come with the adapter and since I so don't give a brown matter from my butt about it, I haven't even taken it out of its packaging. Personally, the only time I use headphones is skiing and I have bluetooth wireless headphones built into my helmet... and like someone in the 21st century I realize I can have wireless headphones. :good: Now, my main sound experience with the Max 2 is bluetooth to my 2016 HR-V. It connects with zero issues, phone and bluetooth audio both work great. As a bonus, the built-in Dolby ATMOS makes my otherwise tinny speakers without equalization sound great. It also doesn't detract from the volume output like other similar apps... It allows me to blast bassy metal to offend anyone I want, which is a great double bonus situation for me. Nothing like driving by a church blasting GHOST and having the lyrics Hail Satan play loud, clear and rockin' hahaha. Seriously though, in recent memory, this is the only phone from 2016 flagships I haven't had to use a workaround app that drastically decreases the volume. Now I will say that the Dolby ATMOS setting works a little wonky and easily resets itself if you enter into the sound settings or back out of sound setting after enabling... once you know about this though, it is easy to workaround just by hitting home button instead. For the external speaker people, the Max 2 is super loud and the speakers do sound crisp... I think it is stereo speakers as well, if you care about those things... bass-wise, the speakers are not the best but not bad also... definitely as good as of not better than the HTC 10 or LG G5.
WINNER: NO DOUBT SO FAR IN 2016 - LeEco Max 2
BATTERY
From my experience so far, I have had decent battery life out of the Max 2. 3100 mAh does seem a tad small for this larger phalet... but I'm yet to say that its a problem for me. Of recent phones, LG G5 has the worse battery life with the HTC 10 being next in line, then S7 rounded out at the top with the P9... The P9 has a Kirin processor so lets toss it out. Out of the Snapdragons I will say that with my usage so far the Max 2 matches the S7 with battery life from my usage. Max 2 has fast charge as well which helps keep it on par with the other 820's. Just yesterday, I used the Max 2 all-day no recharging with 2 heavy usage periods for a total of 3 hours plus of screen on time playing Clash Royale. The rest of the day was standard usage of checking emails, looking at some news items, etc. It lasted the whole day from 8:30am until 1am in the morning with 15% left. This was on wifi the whole time as well. I feel this adequately meets my needs to last a whole day without recharge (which rarely happens since I always recharge when in my car) with moderate usage all day long.
WINNER: It's close to call but since its the larger phone and still performs well even though no wireless charging - LeEco Max 2
HEAT
I have yet to see a real heat spike with the Max 2. I have heard reports of heat but maybe this is with the 4GB version. Since the lack of need to flush RAM or actively manage memory more critically with the greater space, this may play a factor. Not a super nerdy tech guru on this so someone that understands this more may have to chime in. I have also yet to place it in a what I like to call, a pocket burning situation like at a concert were I'm using the camera a lot, there's high tower saturation causing the radio to work more, etc. I can say the phone barely heated up trying to download a 1.5GB update on LTE... so I guess that says something right? The only other phone that runs this cool is the P9 with it Kirin processor... all the 820's run a little hot when taxed so I would not be surprised if the Max 2 was the same if push to limits. I can say that I have gotten overheat warnings on the S7 when setting up the phone and downloading copious amounts of data.... and my first G5 overheated that it caused an internal malfunction causing me to have to replace the phone under warranty. The HTC 10 seemed to be the coolest out of the other 820's I have tried.
WINNER: Still is the P9 however out of the 820's - LeEco Max 2
SNAPPINESS
I have explained in some of my other reviews, I like to talk about performance in terms of snappiness with normal day to day usage with the phone rather than throw up meaningless to most people AnTuTu stats or whatever. I am going on out on a limp here and saying that the Max 2 dominates of course due to 6GB of RAM... it's like pitting a turbocharged version of a car vs. its not turbocharge version... more under the hood most of the time leads to better performance. No loading issues, no lag from app to app. What I can say is that EUI is a fairly nice GUI take on Android, better than EMUI, but not as nice as the new HTC 10 Sense / Stock like interface. I however did my standard change of porting over the sense launcher to the Max 2 which I just love... as far as getting use to how things work, there is a lot of configuration that can be done with notifications, much like Huawei's EMUI interface that might make it off putting to some... I lucked out and the aliexpress merchant I bought the Max 2 from pre-loaded the Google App Store when I got the phone. I since did 2 updates (one I downloaded and force flashed myself, the other was through LeEco's update system directly) and the app store continues to work fine.... There are redundant apps for email, calendar, message, etc. to google versions... however most of these are built well enough that you might not want or need the google versions. Notifications seem to work OK although some do not like that it does not litter the top of your screen with icons for every single notification.... rather it just typically puts an icon with "..." and a circle at the top... takes a little to get use to, but with a notification LED as well, I think this bypasses this small issue for some. :laugh: Also, people are starting to create ROMs for it and it is easily rootable albeit in Chinese at first, so you can definitely get more out of it with some tweaking.... haven't heard if they released Kernels yet. But it is only a matter of time given it popularity in China.
WINNER: Maybe just because of the 6GB but still... LeEco Le Max 2
DISPLAY
This to me is one of the areas much like sound where if it is not screwing up the way I use the phone then I care less about stuff like resolution. If someone can truly tell a load of difference between QHD, SuperHD, 1080p, etc. etc. good for you. Here what I can say. The Max 2 screen is great! Plus, its the largest compared to the other Flagships I have tried... forgot how nice it is to use a larger phone... It does not suffer from which ultimately made me get rid of the HTC 10 from the screen polarization being applied wrong causing you not to be able to use it outdoors with sunglasses on.... I know right... major f-up IMO that HTC 10 did... I couldn't see it in my car with sunglasses on, too annoying for me. Thankfully, don't have to worry about this with the Max 2 even with a tempered glass screen protector. Since it is somewhat screen related, I can say that the fingerprint sensor is something to be desired. Its slow, sometimes taking 3 tries for it to read properly... I have tried multiple times to reprogram and it does not help. Definitely the G5 and P9 beat it hands down when talking about rear facing fingerprint sensors... Even touchwiz laggy S7 sensor beats it. Hopefully, updates help with this. Like capacitive buttons it has, in the configuration I like with back button on left... apps button also reveals the control center feature on the Max 2... similar to Apples swipe up control center... not placing these toggles in the notification panel is a fresh take on using these toggles and I like it... Color balance seems good on the phone as well if you care about those things... No Always-On feature for the Max 2 either but not a huge deal with a configurable notification LED.
WINNER: The S7 still has the best "looking screen"; G5 has the best always-on screen - Max 2 is ok but not the best in this class of phones.... Does get bonus points for the control center feature and correctly orientated IMO capacitive buttons
PHONE DESIGN
The Max 2 is a good looking phone especially with a premium metal chassis... I do have to say that I had to get the "Gold" version of the phone since it was the only one available at this point in the 6GB Version... I use "gold" here loosely as like other can report... gold is actually rose gold... not that rose gold is bad, but a pinkish phone for a guy is not cool... No matter, I got a Matte black hard case today the covers the back and pretty much takes care of the covering most of the pinkish gold exterior.... I believe there will be other colors out there soon but I could not wait any longer... Camera and button placement is nice. Phone feels great in hand. Although bigger than the other 2016 Flagships, its not gargantuan either... doesn't feel like putting a tablet up to your ear like other phalets can feel like. Pretty thin too and not overly heavy. The biggest design issue is of course no SD Card add-on memory since the SIM tray only accommodates dual SIMs. At 64GB, this isn't an issue for me as I don't save a lot to my phone and jam pack it with needless stuff. The fingerprint sensor is in a good natural position albeit if it only worked on the first try... Its not like Megan Fox / Candice Swanepoel good looking phone rather more like Melissa Benoist / Kate Upton good looking. You ain't going to wake up after a long night of drinking and go "my god... what did I do..." but you are also not getting the top of the heap in design characteristics either. It's nice looking but not someone you'd use your "hall pass" on over your wife, if you get my point..." Notification LED work great and should be noted as not being blinding at night like others can be.... looking at you HTC 10... I like no 3.5mm jack since I don't use it anyway... less holes to get dirt into... in this case, having less holes to stick stuff into wins out!!! :silly:
WINNER: Still S7 for overall design, wireless charging, etc. - Your not bad Max 2, but pinkish gold is makes my balls instantly shrink!!!
CAMERA
Another big deal for some but not really a huge concern for me is the camera on smartphones... Personally and I have gone over the reasons time and time again, I went to school for photography and have used some really great cameras, film and digital. So when you start looking at smartphone cameras, even in 2016, it is still hard to compare to the output of an actual camera. With that said, there is no real gimmick with the Max 2... looks to be an alright camera that I will post examples later of. Doesn't have "superpixels", low light lens, dual lens, etc, etc. etc. It will take pictures decently and in most cases that's all you need it to do. I can say that it does have one of my major pet peeves when it comes to the camera app in video mode... no focus lock.... honestly who uses always on auto focus in video mode.... looks like a bad wedding video... when you are recording something that you are a fixed distance away, like a concert lets say, you don't need for it to re-focus... it annoying. So, I am going to cut this section short and just say, the Max 2 has a camera, its nothing special and if you are ok with a no gimmick no frills nexus like camera than its absolutely fine for what its supposed to do.... :highfive:
WINNER: S7 for low-light, G5 for wide angled, P9 for dynamic range; HTC 10 for camera app & Max 2 for no frills OK no gimmicks camera
CONCLUSION
For my daily usage case, the Max 2 is great! When you consider that it outperforms in most cases phones that are $200 - $400 more than what it costs... It tends to soften the negatives. I think for me the greatest of which is the current functionality of the fingerprint sensor... I hate struggling to get it to read than having to still punch in a pin when it fails. Besides this, all the othe negatives are minor. Camera - its really ok just nothing special. Color - if you can wait, you can get a more manly color unless you want to go with the 4GB version (you can get different colors now). EUI - definitely not as big of a learning curve as EMUI but it does take a little bit of commitment to get use to all the customization you can do. Looks like LeEco plans to release updates frequently since there has been at least one since it released in May... Yeah, it doesn't have a headphone jack... grow up and get with the 21st century... hahaha. To get a 6GB phone, under $500, 64GB internal is not too shabby. Would it be stellar with a SD Card add-on, yep it sure would but I can make do without having the SD Card in most cases unless I really started ROM-ing and backing up TWRPs with it.... I think if you are looking for a good, well performing phone at a good price with some decent specs and killer sound, this does the trick, most definitely. Could it be better, you betcha... but I can say that for any of the 2016 Flagship phones. Lastly and as always, this is just Some Guy's Opinion... :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks a lot this is thorough.. Impressive stuff

I really like my Le Max2. It's not perfect, but no phone is. It is certainly a fast and powerful phone. No lag and handles everything I throw at it with ease. Antutu scores of over 140K are crazy in a $230 device!! I am enjoying its audio output and have been mostly very impressed with the photos I have taken so far. The fingerprint scanner is very fast and reliable for me. I quite like eui as it is fairly light and has some very useful features, especially for power management (I have generally been getting 5 to 7 hours SOT). This is my first 2K display phone, and the clarity is fantastic. The black levels are good, and the colours are vibrant. Probably my main criticism of the phone is the viewing angles and max brightness level of the display. Colour shifting is pronounced when viewing at any angle much off straight, and the max brightness is just OK - I would like to be able to crank it up a fair bit more at times.

kanagawaben said:
I really like my Le Max2. It's not perfect, but no phone is. It is certainly a fast and powerful phone. No lag and handles everything I throw at it with ease. Antutu scores of over 140K are crazy in a $230 device!! I am enjoying its audio output and have been mostly very impressed with the photos I have taken so far. The fingerprint scanner is very fast and reliable for me. I quite like eui as it is fairly light and has some very useful features, especially for power management (I have generally been getting 5 to 7 hours SOT). This is my first 2K display phone, and the clarity is fantastic. The black levels are good, and the colours are vibrant. Probably my main criticism of the phone is the viewing angles and max brightness level of the display. Colour shifting is pronounced when viewing at any angle much off straight, and the max brightness is just OK - I would like to be able to crank it up a fair bit more at times.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Anything special you did to improve fingerprint response
Mine does work but it becomes unresponsive if not used for a while but after first unlock the consecutive ones are fast
Which rom are you on?
Did you never had any fingerprint problem?

[email protected] said:
Anything special you did to improve fingerprint response
Mine does work but it becomes unresponsive if not used for a while but after first unlock the consecutive ones are fast
Which rom are you on?
Did you never had any fingerprint problem?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am currently using the Parasite debloated version of S19. I have also used Cuoco92, stock Chinese 17S and 19S, and Indian 16S. Haven't had the slightest problem with fingerprint on any of them. I always register two with the same finger (my right index) and the other with my left index. I'd say it is 99% accurate - it really only misses if I put my finger in at a very weird angle or move it too much. Fast too, not instant but pretty near it - less than a count of one.

kanagawaben said:
I am currently using the Parasite debloated version of S19. I have also used Cuoco92, stock Chinese 17S and 19S, and Indian 16S. Haven't had the slightest problem with fingerprint on any of them. I always register two with the same finger (my right index) and the other with my left index.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So you never have problems like the fingerprint doesn't recognize the first touch?
Or after all night standby the fingerprint takes a few seconds to unlock?
Do you think my fingerprint problem is hardware?
I bought it like 2 weeks ago I can return?
But it's a really good phone for the price
Only things that annoy me is fingerprint and lack of custom rom support both of which letv is to blame

[email protected] said:
So you never have problems like the fingerprint doesn't recognize the first touch?
Or after all night standby the fingerprint takes a few seconds to unlock?
Do you think my fingerprint problem is hardware?
I bought it like 2 weeks ago I can return?
But it's a really good phone for the price
Only things that annoy me is fingerprint and lack of custom rom support both of which letv is to blame
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Honestly never. Scanner has been rock solid for me. What ROM are you on?

One week with the Redmi Note 4

Received my RN4 last week, and after spending a week with it I am definitely impressed.
Observations
1. Battery life is the phone's strongest suit. Can definitely get even better SOT if I was more careful using this thing, but fact is this is the first phone I've owned that I only need to charge once a day. (See attachment for SOT)
2. Build quality is solid as well, but definitely not top notch. Seams can still felt, and SIM tray is a bit hard to push in.
3. Display is great. Nothing out of the ordinary.
4. Helio X20 is a solid chip, but Javascript performance is underwhelming. Does not appear to have many benefits over the SD650.
5. Camera is underwhelming, quality is around the level of the Moto X 2014, but PD focus is quick and accurate, unlike the CDAF on the X14.
6. MIUI is not as intrusive as most Western media will have you believe, but I do not like the aggressiveness with which it kills background processes. GSam Battery monitor doesnt work reliably as it always gets kicked.
7. One handed usage is poor. The next model could definitely use smaller bezels on the X axis.
8. I got an update last week for "bug fixes", but was strangely 1.3GB big and took over an hour to download and install.
Overall, for $200, I'm definitely impressed. Can't say I feel a noticeable performance difference with my last phone, the Galaxy S7. Only place I can feel I got what I paired for is the camera.

AB__CD said:
Received my RN4 last week, and after spending a week with it I am definitely impressed.
Observations
1. Battery life is the phone's strongest suit. Can definitely get even better SOT if I was more careful using this thing, but fact is this is the first phone I've owned that I only need to charge once a day. (See attachment for SOT)
2. Build quality is solid as well, but definitely not top notch. Seams can still felt, and SIM tray is a bit hard to push in.
3. Display is great. Nothing out of the ordinary.
4. Helio X20 is a solid chip, but Javascript performance is underwhelming. Does not appear to have many benefits over the SD650.
5. Camera is underwhelming, quality is around the level of the Moto X 2014, but PD focus is quick and accurate, unlike the CDAF on the X14.
6. MIUI is not as intrusive as most Western media will have you believe, but I do not like the aggressiveness with which it kills background processes. GSam Battery monitor doesnt work reliably as it always gets kicked.
7. One handed usage is poor. The next model could definitely use smaller bezels on the X axis.
8. I got an update last week for "bug fixes", but was strangely 1.3GB big and took over an hour to download and install.
Overall, for $200, I'm definitely impressed. Can't say I feel a noticeable performance difference with my last phone, the Galaxy S7. Only place I can feel I got what I paired for is the camera.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the feedback, I also have an S7 and on the verge of selling to buy either the note 4 or the redmi pro. I know it will generally be a downgrade especially in terms of camera as nothing can touch the S7. But it seems a great device and would let me free up some cash. The redmi pro seems to have a better camera than the RN4 although a bit gimmicky with its dual cams, but both pack nice builds and big batteries. Although I think the RN4's finger print scanner looks better and is in a better location, I'm not really that impressed with the S7's as it still needs to be pushed and isn't that accurate. How do you find audio quality over say a pair of headphones compared to the S7?
Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

gsmyth said:
Thanks for the feedback, I also have an S7 and on the verge of selling to buy either the note 4 or the redmi pro. I know it will generally be a downgrade especially in terms of camera as nothing can touch the S7. But it seems a great device and would let me free up some cash. The redmi pro seems to have a better camera than the RN4 although a bit gimmicky with its dual cams, but both pack nice builds and big batteries. Although I think the RN4's finger print scanner looks better and is in a better location, I'm not really that impressed with the S7's as it still needs to be pushed and isn't that accurate. How do you find audio quality over say a pair of headphones compared to the S7?
Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Very loud, and decently clean and crisp too. There seems to be some decent audio equipment on this thing, both speakers and headphone, and I suspect there may be a discrete DAC on this, impressive for a $200 device. I went for the RN4 over the Pro for one reason and one reason only: there is an official global ROM out for this phone, while the Pro would require me to install GP package through a third-party solution.
I can definitely say that the FPS is way better on the back. Very accurate, and as long as I don't give it some super-weird angle it authenticates me without fail, quicker and more accurately than the S7.

AB__CD said:
Very loud, and decently clean and crisp too. There seems to be some decent audio equipment on this thing, both speakers and headphone, and I suspect there may be a discrete DAC on this, impressive for a $200 device. I went for the RN4 over the Pro for one reason and one reason only: there is an official global ROM out for this phone, while the Pro would require me to install GP package through a third-party solution.
I can definitely say that the FPS is way better on the back. Very accurate, and as long as I don't give it some super-weird angle it authenticates me without fail, quicker and more accurately than the S7.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great that's good to hear, I assumed there was a global rom for the pro but must have been something else I seen. I had a feeling the finger print scanner was better, I do find the S7's quite fussy and a lot of times I exceed the try limit and have to wait 30 secs[emoji34].
I really do appreciate the camera on the S7, although from the reviews I've watched the RN4 seems to have very quick auto focus and capture speeds. It obviously seems to suffer in low light but no phone is immune from this really only to lesser extents. I generally take most photos outside in good conditions anyway and usually of the kids where a quick shutter is needed. The camera app also seems fast to launch as well which again is an important to be able to snap photos quickly.
Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

Wich rom are you using? Do you root it?

gsmyth said:
Great that's good to hear, I assumed there was a global rom for the pro but must have been something else I seen. I had a feeling the finger print scanner was better, I do find the S7's quite fussy and a lot of times I exceed the try limit and have to wait 30 secs[emoji34].
I really do appreciate the camera on the S7, although from the reviews I've watched the RN4 seems to have very quick auto focus and capture speeds. It obviously seems to suffer in low light but no phone is immune from this really only to lesser extents. I generally take most photos outside in good conditions anyway and usually of the kids where a quick shutter is needed. The camera app also seems fast to launch as well which again is an important to be able to snap photos quickly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Fingerprint scanner really is great. Worlds better than the S7. Location isn't always ideal for when the phone is on a table top, but it is great when pulling the phone out of the pocket. I suspect that the only way to solve this is give people two Fingerprint scanners
Camera launches quickly and focus is reliable. Better than my 2014 Moto X ever was. Shutter is not as fast as the reviews make it out to be, but that may be because I have HDR on Auto, and HDR photos do take a while to process. Outside photos are reasonably crisp, inside the noise starts to become uncontrollable. Remember to go to Settings and select image quality "High" and enable "Enhance lowlight pictures automatically" when you get this phone. Hugely important, as the default Medium setting is too aggressive in compressing.

AB__CD said:
Received my RN4 last week, and after spending a week with it I am definitely impressed.
Observations
1. Battery life is the phone's strongest suit. Can definitely get even better SOT if I was more careful using this thing, but fact is this is the first phone I've owned that I only need to charge once a day. (See attachment for SOT)
2. Build quality is solid as well, but definitely not top notch. Seams can still felt, and SIM tray is a bit hard to push in.
3. Display is great. Nothing out of the ordinary.
4. Helio X20 is a solid chip, but Javascript performance is underwhelming. Does not appear to have many benefits over the SD650.
5. Camera is underwhelming, quality is around the level of the Moto X 2014, but PD focus is quick and accurate, unlike the CDAF on the X14.
6. MIUI is not as intrusive as most Western media will have you believe, but I do not like the aggressiveness with which it kills background processes. GSam Battery monitor doesnt work reliably as it always gets kicked.
7. One handed usage is poor. The next model could definitely use smaller bezels on the X axis.
8. I got an update last week for "bug fixes", but was strangely 1.3GB big and took over an hour to download and install.
Overall, for $200, I'm definitely impressed. Can't say I feel a noticeable performance difference with my last phone, the Galaxy S7. Only place I can feel I got what I paired for is the camera.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have been using RN4 for 2 weeks. And I do agree most of the views.
1. Battery: it seems not that good if you care about the numbers. But the overall performance is pretty good. Playing some 3d games with performance for an hour costs less than 10%.
2. CPU: I don't think this is a big leap as I can't from Nexus 5. The performance is not overkill. And I don't feel anything is super smooth. I guess the reason is that 10 cores are still to much for an Android system to operate with. I doubt the kernel fully utilizes the CPU.
3. Camera: don't expect much on it even though they claimed it's 16MP. The quality is quite glitchy in my opinion. If you really care about the quality of the camera on your phone, consider carefully. Despite the quality, the speed is fine as the focus, HDR and burst mode work perfectly fine.
4. MIUI: I just want a CM. That's it.
5. Price: this is the most pulling reason for me to buy this. You can just switch to a new one if this breaks somehow. :laugh:

Hello.
My name is Gabriel, from Romania.
I have a redminote 4 since 25 october 2016.
Since yesterday it doesn't display, in the upper right corner, the icon for mobile data - you know, the H, or H+, or 4G or 3G, next to mobile network signal icon.
The mobile data connection is working good, but the fact that the phone is connected to mobile data is not displayed any more.
Is there any setting for this?
Thanks.

Gabriel Sbircea said:
Hello.
My name is Gabriel, from Romania.
I have a redminote 4 since 25 october 2016.
Since yesterday it doesn't display, in the upper right corner, the icon for mobile data - you know, the H, or H+, or 4G or 3G, next to mobile network signal icon.
The mobile data connection is working good, but the fact that the phone is connected to mobile data is not displayed any more.
Is there any setting for this?
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you solve this? Are you on the global rom?
Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

No.
I had the intention to perform a factory reset during this weekend, but I didn't, I was too busy with other things.
And yes, is the Global ROM - I have Romanian language (not only...)
Thanks.

Gabriel Sbircea said:
No.
I had the intention to perform a factory reset during this weekend, but I didn't, I was too busy with other things.
And yes, is the Global ROM - I have Romanian language (not only...)
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A factory reset is probably the best option take first although it is a pain having to backup/ set everything up again.
Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 video review

Originalas said:
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 video review
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks will watch this later.
Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

gsmyth said:
Did you solve this? Are you on the global rom?
Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello
I have black screen with my Redmi Note 4 but led of charge work have you some ideas how can i solve this issue?
Thanks

2 weeks here...
I bought the Redmi Note 4 - S625 32 GB version as a replacement for another phone from another vendor, my old phone had the same hardware configuration, but was greatly lagging on performance, battery life and customization.
I have long decided on the Redmi, and have gone through several resources and reviews online, and was so far satisfied with what I read.
I was able to buy it at a discounted price in Egypt (USD 160), this is of course not a bargain for the global price, yet locally it was good compared to other similar devices.
I'll go through every aspect of my experience with the phone and provide you with my conclusion in the end.
The phone comes in a small box compared to other phones of the same size, the phone fits in exactly, with the charger and the charging cable, the extra space could've been better used to add earphones to the bundle, something Xiaomi should consider in the future, is to throw in one of their premium earphones.
The phone size is slim and nice to hold, something that counts for it, considering the huge 4100mA battery, I was unfortunate to buy the black edition, which is very prone to fingerprints and you can never keep it clean, let alone it also seemed scratch prone, I didn't want to risk it therefore the first thing I had to do was to go for a silicon cover.
Also the screen glass is clear with smooth edges, and gives the phone a very elegant look, yet I read it's not gorilla glass, so I had to go for a glass screen protector.
The screen is large enough with some bevel edges that could be improved in the future.
The dual SIM slot is an amazing idea, yet with a bit of better design I guess we can squeeze in a place for a memory card.
The camera and fingerprint sensor are very well placed and nice to use, having the camera non-protruding is a good design point, protecting the camera cover from scratches.
I don't mind the camera being 13MP, it has a clear quality, works well with the camera app, and is quiet responsive, I've seen cameras with higher resolution, but were a pain to operate, so good job Xiaomi.
The screen is clear and pleasant to use, I have even use it to watch movies using a VR box with no problems, it is also quiet visible in the sun with bright colors.
One thing I really liked about this phone, is its battery life, I guess Xiaomi went to great effort to squeeze much power into the battery space, and to optimize the power use by applications, clearly there is a power optimization software layer added to the OS to perform this well, I am a heavy user, having the phone in hand all day with the screen on, reading, watching videos, and streaming internet videos and music in the car all day, using maps and GPS applications, and acting as a Wi-Fi hotspot. Still at night, before sleeping, I plug the charger while the phone is at 40%, keeping me assured that even if I forget to charge the phone, it will remain there for another day of moderate use. BATTERY LIFE ON THIS PHONE IS AMAZING.
I have seen people complain that it doesn’t have a fast charging capability, yet it's no problem with a phone that can withhold its charge for two days.
The good thing about this phone is that it has all connectivity features of other similar phones, except for the NFC, which is becoming a defacto nowadays, though the FM radio is good and launches without any headphone connected, however the lack of RDS is a bit annoying, in addition to the fact that the radio interface is boring and non-themeable, I have posted this suggestion in the MIUI forum.
Software performance on this phone is amazing, and the dual app capability is extra nice, it is better than having the second space activated, specially with the availability of individual app locking capability, I can have my work and personal applications in the same space, while giving my work applications the necessary security level required. This beats all other phones offering second space while hogging the memory and system resources, and affecting the performance.
Also Xiaomi's keeping to its promise of a very responsive MIUI, even with an alternative launcher (I'll come to that later), I'm getting a very good performance, no launch delays, no botchy performance, etc... Which shows that enough effort has been put into OS optimization.
I haven't tried installing a custom OS yet, and this is mainly due to the fact that the factory OS is very well performing and doesn't need further optimization, till now!!
I had to resort to installing a third party launcher (Nova Launcher), since I didn't really like the way MIUI launcher treats the applications, without an application drawer, desktops can become really cluttered, specially that I always test new apps and remove them regularly. This may be convenient for iPhone users, but a no no in our Android world, Xiaomi should reconsider.
A nice addition to the UI is the floating ball, it comes with useful shortcuts, but to change them you have to dig deep into the settings, certainly there should be a better way to do this, still it is a good addition.
The screenshot shortcut saves a shot of the current screen and can later send you to the editing part if you need to crop and edit your shot, it would be better if a crop control can appear when a screenshot is requested, so that we can directly choose which part of the screen we want to capture and share directly.
The phone came with android marshmallow, but as soon as I started using it, a new update with nougat was pushed, I also guess and Oreo version in in the pipeline, still you can have the Oreo taste from any custom rom available for this phone, which are really numerous in comparison to phones from other vendors, I guess Xiaomi should capitalize on this as being one of the most custom ROM friendly phones.
The phone, contacts, and messaging native aps are quiet usable, and so far I haven't faced any problem with them, in comparison to other phones that sometimes struggled with my 1500 entry contact list, the Xiaomi is fully capable of handling such a contact list dispersed among two contact providers (google contact and exchange server), and fully capable of flawlessly handling them.
One small glitch with the messaging app is the inability to delete the newly received SMS from the notification area, something that is usually needed nowadays.
Coming to the notification area, I've seen it better implemented in other phones or ROM versions, where you can get full access to the complete message, and be able control it (delete or reply) from the notification area, I know that in MIUI there is the capability to expand the notification for more details by a two finger swipe, but this is impossible with one handed operation.
The phone also comes with nice extra applications, the security app is quiet useful, and hopefully it does what it promises in the background.
The remote app is also a great addition, making you able to control a vast list of IR enabled devices; yet it should be a good addition to be able to add and customize new non-listed devices, such as for example non-standard android tv boxes.
In conclusion:
I really love this phone and don't regret the investment I put in it, Xiaomi is on a very good track, it should soon reach and surpass market leaders if it keeps building such impressive devices with affordable prices, also having that MIUI forum and its community is a good addition of keeping the users close to the vendor.
My recommendation is to work on the software enhancements requested by the users.
My recommendations to the new buyers, is to install good screen and body protection, stay away from the black version, and invest in a good quality headphones to enjoy your Xiaomi.

Thinking of upgrading from a Sprint Galaxy Note 4. Camera quality comparisons?

I've had my Galaxy Note 4 for four years now, and it's time for an upgrade. The only two phones I've been eyeing are the Pixel 3 XL and the Oneplus 6T. There are some other good phones out there, but the others I've looked at are unrootable. I love the camera on my GN4, and was wondering if anyone here has previously owned a GN4 and can give me a picture/video comparison with the Oneplus 6T? I've seen the reviews between the Oneplus 6T and Pixel 3, and the Pixel 3 wins easily. Sad thing about the Pixel 3 is that it's so expensive and has smaller battery, but I do love the camera results! I just have no frame of reference to compare my aging phone with the newer ones.
Thanks!

MrSickle said:
I've had my Galaxy Note 4 for four years now, and it's time for an upgrade. The only two phones I've been eyeing are the Pixel 3 XL and the Oneplus 6T. There are some other good phones out there, but the others I've looked at are unrootable. I love the camera on my GN4, and was wondering if anyone here has previously owned a GN4 and can give me a picture/video comparison with the Oneplus 6T? I've seen the reviews between the Oneplus 6T and Pixel 3, and the Pixel 3 wins easily. Sad thing about the Pixel 3 is that it's so expensive and has smaller battery, but I do love the camera results! I just have no frame of reference to compare my aging phone with the newer ones.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Honestly,if you're pleased w/all things in general with the Note 4,you're giving up a lot of features not found on newer devices.
I definitely recommend keeping the Note 4 before switching to another phone (unless you have a trade-in allowance).
If you're not going to miss an SD Card Slot/3.5 mm audio jack/I-R Blaster/LED Notifications/No Notch, then,you have the gains of more RAM & a newer phone w/better battery life/overall performance.
The OP6T is a nice phone,but,honestly,I think an OP5 or OP5T is a better choice,the former if you prefer the navigation similar to that of the Note4.
(might wanna Google search a camera comparison of the Note 4 to either/both)
Full disclosure:
This advice is coming from a serial phone switcher in recovery/remission ........................ :laugh:

KOLIOSIS said:
Honestly,if you're pleased w/all things in general with the Note 4,you're giving up a lot of features not found on newer devices.
I definitely recommend keeping the Note 4 before switching to another phone (unless you have a trade-in allowance).
If you're not going to miss an SD Card Slot/3.5 mm audio jack/I-R Blaster/LED Notifications/No Notch, then,you have the gains of more RAM & a newer phone w/better battery life/overall performance.
The OP6T is a nice phone,but,honestly,I think an OP5 or OP5T is a better choice,the former if you prefer the navigation similar to that of the Note4.
(might wanna Google search a camera comparison of the Note 4 to either/both)
Full disclosure:
This advice is coming from a serial phone switcher in recovery/remission ........................ :laugh:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
not even a comparison... get it

Logix said:
not even a comparison... get it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do have an OP6T, perhaps you wanted to quote the OP?
Comparing phones is subjective at best,just hitting on the features he'd be leaving behind in "upgrading" to either phone.
To some,those features are antiquated,others no so much.
Given the OP has held on to the phone for as long as he has gives me reason to believe the latter....
Too bad the prevailing trend seems to be getting less for more $$$, it's definitely a trade-off.

I've definitely compared what I would be giving up to what I would be gaining. My Sprint GN4 has been unlocked to work with domestic GSM (I have Cricket wireless now) and I have no LTE, and probably missing a few of the used frequencies (although I have never really checked). I love the screen and the camera on the GN4, but I'm stuck on Marshmallow and no security updates. I've tried Lineage OS both Nougat and Oreo, and both have so many bugs, it's not worth the headache. Not to mention it's getting harder to find batteries for it. Most I find now are "new" but end up being used. The GN4 never really did have that great of battery life, so that's one of the things that makes me want to switch to something else. Not that I'm a heavy user, but when you start using the video and taking lots of pics on the GN4, the battery tends to drain quickly. And I was hoping I would get Android Auto to work without having to plug and unplug it several times for it to connect (It's done it on Marshmallow and Lineage OS). It's almost as if it's not loading the applications fast enough for the handshake with the head unit.
I would miss my SD Card slot, that's why I was looking at the 256GB Oneplus 6T model.
KOLIOSIS said:
Honestly,if you're pleased w/all things in general with the Note 4,you're giving up a lot of features not found on newer devices.
I definitely recommend keeping the Note 4 before switching to another phone (unless you have a trade-in allowance).
If you're not going to miss an SD Card Slot/3.5 mm audio jack/I-R Blaster/LED Notifications/No Notch, then,you have the gains of more RAM & a newer phone w/better battery life/overall performance.
The OP6T is a nice phone,but,honestly,I think an OP5 or OP5T is a better choice,the former if you prefer the navigation similar to that of the Note4.
(might wanna Google search a camera comparison of the Note 4 to either/both)
Full disclosure:
This advice is coming from a serial phone switcher in recovery/remission ........................ :laugh:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

MrSickle said:
I've definitely compared what I would be giving up to what I would be gaining. My Sprint GN4 has been unlocked to work with domestic GSM (I have Cricket wireless now) and I have no LTE, and probably missing a few of the used frequencies (although I have never really checked).
I would miss my SD Card slot, that's why I was looking at the 256GB Oneplus 6T model.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're definitely in the right place for root/ROMs,OnePlus phones get a good variety of development.
One other feature I failed to address (the elephant in the room, LOL) :
Is the S-Pen something you're using a lot of on the Note4?
If not, then this is the place to be.
Guessing you're aware of the current state of things with the newer US Notes & the pros & cons of importing either version (Snapdragon or Exynos).
If nothing else, most T-Mobile US stores have working demos of the OP6T to test drive, see if it's for you. ?
Sent from my SM-N960U using XDA Labs

I was in your same situation. I had GN4 for 4 years and now i bought the OP6t. Honestly i didn't use the camera of smartphone so much and i cant tell you the difference right now but i will do a comparison tomorrow and post the results here
But regarding all other things, the OP6t is the winner. Better display, great battery life, fingerprint sensor is fast enough (never used on note 4 because it was unconfortable for me), there is also the face unlock and it is very fast; you will not see the lockscreen most of times.
The phone is very very fast and well optimized, no lag and didn't heat neither after an heavy usage.
Feel free to ask anything for the comparision
P.s. sorry for my bad english

The pixel 3 if you care about taking pics, rest of the hardware and value go for the 6t.

I think in the 4 years I've had the Note 4, I may have used the S-Pen maybe 10 times. It can be handy sometimes, but not really a show stopper for me.
I had looked at the International versions of the Samsung devices (GN9, GS9+) and sadly, I would be missing some frequency bands on those devices too
KOLIOSIS said:
You're definitely in the right place for root/ROMs,OnePlus phones get a good variety of development.
One other feature I failed to address (the elephant in the room, LOL) :
Is the S-Pen something you're using a lot of on the Note4?
If not, then this is the place to be.
Guessing you're aware of the current state of things with the newer US Notes & the pros & cons of importing either version (Snapdragon or Exynos).
If nothing else, most T-Mobile US stores have working demos of the OP6T to test drive, see if it's for you.
Sent from my SM-N960U using XDA Labs
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

A good camera is important for me. Although I'm not a professional photographer, it has been one of my hobbies for a while. I've managed to capture some really good shots with my Note 4, hence my particular interest in the OP6T as a cheaper alternative to the Pixel 3 XL. I managed to get a look at a Pixel 3 XL in person today and the notch was like a slap in the face. Although, I do know it can be masked out. I don't have any T-mobile stores around that I know of, so I can't check out the OP6T in person. I'm starting to feel like Sheldon on "The Big Bang Theory" where he tries to decide between an Xbox One and PS4
Zekol said:
I was in your same situation. I had GN4 for 4 years and now i bought the OP6t. Honestly i didn't use the camera of smartphone so much and i cant tell you the difference right now but i will do a comparison tomorrow and post the results here
But regarding all other things, the OP6t is the winner. Better display, great battery life, fingerprint sensor is fast enough (never used on note 4 because it was unconfortable for me), there is also the face unlock and it is very fast; you will not see the lockscreen most of times.
The phone is very very fast and well optimized, no lag and didn't heat neither after an heavy usage.
Feel free to ask anything for the comparision
P.s. sorry for my bad english
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

There are some pics of both
Note 4:
https://ibb.co/hvEMh0
https://ibb.co/emM4kL
https://ibb.co/dLD0QL
https://ibb.co/byczKf
https://ibb.co/bVjqQL
https://ibb.co/iqz75L
https://ibb.co/iwidC0
https://ibb.co/mQ4ks0
https://ibb.co/fO69Kf
https://ibb.co/hXzbX0
https://ibb.co/hOZRX0
https://ibb.co/hVbUkL
https://ibb.co/gSGjKf
https://ibb.co/jFNukL
https://ibb.co/j0R4kL
https://ibb.co/cOgn5L
https://ibb.co/nnffQL
https://ibb.co/kOBtef
https://ibb.co/nhpzkL
https://ibb.co/cMU4Kf
https://ibb.co/hOmvQL
https://ibb.co/fMnwX0
https://ibb.co/f1kfQL
OnePlus 6T:
https://ibb.co/mtgJef
https://ibb.co/gGPzkL
https://ibb.co/h2Qdef
https://ibb.co/cO5N5L
https://ibb.co/jwhukL
https://ibb.co/jGSGzf
https://ibb.co/jZNGzf
https://ibb.co/bOLmzf
https://ibb.co/ffPJC0
https://ibb.co/dUjqQL
https://ibb.co/cmG9Kf
https://ibb.co/nyTZkL
https://ibb.co/iKBgX0
https://ibb.co/dT44Kf
https://ibb.co/ipo3C0
https://ibb.co/jZmjKf
https://ibb.co/kKD3C0
https://ibb.co/dYDs5L
https://ibb.co/nwkBzf
https://ibb.co/cbn25L
https://ibb.co/i9nAQL
https://ibb.co/js4PkL
https://ibb.co/dXL8C0
As i said, i didn't use the camera of smartphone so much so probably these shots sucks :silly:
I used the auto mode on both as Note 4 doesn't have the pro mode and also i don't know how to use it on OnePlus 6T.
Well, there is also a port of the google camera for OP6t, I have to try it too, maybe i could take some better shots with it.
Hope this evening i can take some shots with low light and even try the night mode, i will update here if i can

Zekol, I can't thank you enough for those pics! Those were exactly the type of comparisons I needed! The camera's are very close in quality, except the OP6T tends to over sharpen the images just a bit, which may be able to be changed in the app or by use of another camera app. If you do happen to take some night shots, just take a few, no need to work yourself to death
Zekol said:
There are some pics of both
Note 4:
https://ibb.co/hvEMh0
https://ibb.co/emM4kL
https://ibb.co/dLD0QL
https://ibb.co/byczKf
https://ibb.co/bVjqQL
https://ibb.co/iqz75L
https://ibb.co/iwidC0
https://ibb.co/mQ4ks0
https://ibb.co/fO69Kf
https://ibb.co/hXzbX0
https://ibb.co/hOZRX0
https://ibb.co/hVbUkL
https://ibb.co/gSGjKf
https://ibb.co/jFNukL
https://ibb.co/j0R4kL
https://ibb.co/cOgn5L
https://ibb.co/nnffQL
https://ibb.co/kOBtef
https://ibb.co/nhpzkL
https://ibb.co/cMU4Kf
https://ibb.co/hOmvQL
https://ibb.co/fMnwX0
https://ibb.co/f1kfQL
OnePlus 6T:
https://ibb.co/mtgJef
https://ibb.co/gGPzkL
https://ibb.co/h2Qdef
https://ibb.co/cO5N5L
https://ibb.co/jwhukL
https://ibb.co/jGSGzf
https://ibb.co/jZNGzf
https://ibb.co/bOLmzf
https://ibb.co/ffPJC0
https://ibb.co/dUjqQL
https://ibb.co/cmG9Kf
https://ibb.co/nyTZkL
https://ibb.co/iKBgX0
https://ibb.co/dT44Kf
https://ibb.co/ipo3C0
https://ibb.co/jZmjKf
https://ibb.co/kKD3C0
https://ibb.co/dYDs5L
https://ibb.co/nwkBzf
https://ibb.co/cbn25L
https://ibb.co/i9nAQL
https://ibb.co/js4PkL
https://ibb.co/dXL8C0
As i said, i didn't use the camera of smartphone so much so probably these shots sucks :silly:
I used the auto mode on both as Note 4 doesn't have the pro mode and also i don't know how to use it on OnePlus 6T.
Well, there is also a port of the google camera for OP6t, I have to try it too, maybe i could take some better shots with it.
Hope this evening i can take some shots with low light and even try the night mode, i will update here if i can
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

My Friend, you are driving a Model A, it's cool to look back on but this is a modern Corvette, AKA, a performance value able to whoop phones costing twice as much even if it is missing a few Gucci features. I type that having sent the Pixel 3 XL back and buying this phone instead.
The Note 4 was a little before Samsung really started getting good with their cameras, I'm not saying it was bad, I had one and in the day it was great but they got quite a bit more serious a couple iterations later and it shows; their stuff is top notch now. The 6T on the other hand is not top notch now, it's a second tier camera and you can really see this at night where the 6T camera is a fair bit more noise. In the day it's not bad at all though outside of pushing too much contrast outdoors in HDR; the picture will almost invariably turn out with a bright sunny sky looking darker than the reality. Overall though I doubt you will find the camera a downgrade. Portrait mode is actually useful for more than portraits, for example it can make a picture of something like a statue at a museum pop out of the background and it's a nice effect for such photos.
Performance wise this phone is going to be a whole new world of slick, no rom can make up for vastly more computing power elsewhere and you're going to feel it every time you pick up the phone and manipulate the GUI. You're also going to appreciate the little things that OnePlus has injected into the mostly stockish experience. You'll find that OnePlus tends to be an enjoyable ownership experience stock, they are the type of phone that grows on you. Dont want stock you can run dead reliable stockish roms, alternatively, greatly altered AOSP runs which may or may not be , ahem, dead reliable. But that's all part of the fun.
One thing you're going to notice is that the aspect ratio is comparatively sucktacular. The tall thin thing is great for girls but I would much rather have the older aspect ratios. It's annoying as hell when you're surfing the internet in landscape and the website header scrolls down as you scroll down because it can block as much as half the screen and with these thinner aspect ratios that doesn't leave much wihch sometimes making surfing a pain. I'd totally jump on a browser which blocked that behavior, also a phone that went back to the older aspect ratio but I'm digressing. You may not be pleased with the change, all I'm saying.
Minutia... Duel sim is an interesting capability allowing you to ditch a separate work phone, buy data from one carrier, voice and text from another, etc. I think more people would take advantage of it if they gave it a try. You'll be shedding your unholy attachment to chargers and day by day the anxiety you feel when getting too far from a power source is going to go diminish. How much you miss the S-pen will depend on how much you used it. You indicate that was seldom so it shouldln't be a problem. While you may be stepping away from many features I think like most you probably only used a small percentage of Samsung bloat and you're not actually giving up something you never used anyways. The feature thing is not so big as some make out.
All in all I think you're being silly. I don't mean that in a bad way, I mean you've clearly become much attached to what is an ancient device in cell phone terms and your attachment is clouding your judgement. New phones are substantially better in almost every way, I would be surprised if you aren't very impressed with whatever new device you decide to buy.

MrSickle said:
I've definitely compared what I would be giving up to what I would be gaining. My Sprint GN4 has been unlocked to work with domestic GSM (I have Cricket wireless now) and I have no LTE, and probably missing a few of the used frequencies (although I have never really checked). I love the screen and the camera on the GN4, but I'm stuck on Marshmallow and no security updates. I've tried Lineage OS both Nougat and Oreo, and both have so many bugs, it's not worth the headache. Not to mention it's getting harder to find batteries for it. Most I find now are "new" but end up being used. The GN4 never really did have that great of battery life, so that's one of the things that makes me want to switch to something else. Not that I'm a heavy user, but when you start using the video and taking lots of pics on the GN4, the battery tends to drain quickly. And I was hoping I would get Android Auto to work without having to plug and unplug it several times for it to connect (It's done it on Marshmallow and Lineage OS). It's almost as if it's not loading the applications fast enough for the handshake with the head unit.
I would miss my SD Card slot, that's why I was looking at the 256GB Oneplus 6T model.
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I loved my Note5 but having passed on the $500 trade in on the T-Mo Note 9 promo (still too expensive), I figured the $300 back on it for the 6T was too good to pass up. But I had many of the same concerns as you - I absolutely loved the screen on the Note5 and the picture taking quality, along with things like the headphone jack and wireless charging. But I bit the bullet because no more security updates for the Note5, no band 71, and I did notice that *maybe* Google apps were running a bit slower than they used to (figured maybe they were starting to be optimized for newer processors). But the phone was still buttery smooth otherwise.
I'm glad I did it though. It just seems so much faster, and that's saying something because I felt my Note5 was generally pretty fast.
The battery life is freaking phenomenal. That's the only reason I haven't missed the wireless charging. The screen is as good as my Note5, but the auto-brightness is not as "perfect" as it was on the Note. I read there is a tweak coming for that, but it hasn't hit the T-Mo version yet.
@krabman has it so so right with the aspect ratio. Sucktacular is a perfect way of stating it. It makes one-handed use very difficult because of how tall it is. But you get used to that part of it. Landscape is definitely less effective.
As for the pictures, I think it's kind of hit or miss. The low light is definitely better, and bright daylight is great, but I'm not convinced photos in moderate lighting is as good. I would still bite on the phone though. The prices they're getting for Samsung flagships these days are ridiculous. If you have other questions, let me know. Cheers.

Hi, I have the same dilemma and read the post, did you upgrade to op6t and have a better experience with it?

Who came from a Oneplus 7 Pro?

I'm currently using the OP7Pro, have been since launch day and love it. Rocking Dual sims for Personal and Work, both CDMA-Less and works fine. My question is those that have come from the 7Pro to the 8Pro, do you think it's worth it? I typically do upgrade phones once a year, and can never have a large enough screen so the larger screen is a BONUS. I'm in the US so I know I can't use Dual Sims yet, thus why I haven't pulled the trigger. Is the speed increase noticeable? What about the cameras? I live in Hawaii so I take a lot of WA shots of landscapes, so is it that much better?
Just curious to those that have upgraded, in today's times $999 is a chunk of change but I'm willing to pay for a better phone.
Mahalo for any insights/thoughts.

Well, I'm coming from a 7T Pro, so while this may not directly answer to your question I think its comparable enough
I really like the Oneplus 8 Pro compared to the 7T Pro, my comparison in bullet points:
+ larger screen with steeper curves, I always disliked the flatter curves on the 7T Pro/7 Pro displays
+ 120 Hz is really again a noticeable difference for me
+ wireless charging
+ the cameras are really better, noticeably so - and this is comparing stock, I'm still fiddling with getting GCam to achieve optimized results for me. I cannot tell much about WA, sadly, because I haven't used it very much so far. Will do some comparison shots later this week, presently getting out is a bit constrained
+ speed is nice and fine but I don't think its a really significant difference in everyday life - still positive, though
o wireless reception is a mixed bag presently, especially in areas with weak/fluctuating signal strength - I do hope its fixable by OOS update
o size - its again a tad larger than the 7T/7 Pro. While it doesn't feel like that in hand (it actually feels nicer in hand to me !) its still quite a chunk to put into any pocket. For me this is the absolute maximum I can accept on a phone
o battery life so far is OKish, standby is pretty good (better than 7T Pro) but usage is comparable - but that is with stock against custom kernel, so I expect improvements there in the future
No real negatives for me, maybe aside from the fact that this is no longer the "flagship killer bargain" but a flagship at a flagship price. I can live with that because it ticks all marks (aside from size) on a good phone for me and I will simply keep this one longer before exchanging it.
Now I am a phone nerd who likes to tinker with the latest and greatest and thus the upgrade is fine for me. Is the upgrade sensible in price vs features - I don't think so, but thats in the end up personal preferences and financial "headroom" .

I came from op7 pro too because It has the screen broken, and I prefered to upgrade.
If op7pro is perfect, I will not upgrade un your case. I love OP8pro, but the price dont worth the upgrade:
- Gcam is still better than stock camera for me.
- You will lost oneplus gesture and forced dark mode.
+ Design more comfortable.
+ Screen brighter.
+ Wireless charging, for me it's irrelevant.
120 Hz is smoother but, I cant see a big diference. I would like to have 90hz option.

If your Pro is in good working order, maybe wait for the 8T, they'll address any issues that may have been present in the 8.
That being said, this is the first OnePlus where they've got pretty much everything perfect, namely the camera and screen (green tint aside)

OnePlus 8T+5G (KB2007) daily driver review

can a mod please move this to real life reviews I could not post this there all I did was hit the button in the XDA app and it would never post, thanks in advance
Let me start off by saying I'm coming from a rooted OnePlus 7 pro that I had for over a year. And I switched to the 8T+5G as a daily driver almost a week ago. Here are my thoughts...
Display- 5 out 5 amazing
Let me start by reviewing the display, this was my most hyped feature the 120 HZ display coming from the 90 that I already liked I was excited for the 120. First thing out of the box I compared my 7 pro to the 18 just by swiping around playing with the home screen and I saw an immediate difference I loved it! I also use a tool, jOnePlus Tools, app to force 120 all the time. I am not a heavy phone gamer but the little bit of games I do play I love seeing high refresh rates because it just makes everything so creamy smooth. I'm loving the flat screen I hate curved screens.
Connectivity- 3.5 out of 5 meh not bad not amazing difference
I don't live in a major city but I when I have been in the city I didn't notice a huge boost of speeds but checking with speed tests at various locations I've seen roughly 50 to 350 megabits down and a consistent 20ish up.
Hardware- 4 out of 5 pretty sweet
I really like using my phone as a connected android auto for my vehicles head unit and I have a bluetooth connected cobra radar detector so my phone screen is on for radar detector plus phone running AA screen with music and maps running. Now on my rooted 7Pro, this would heat my device and drain it while it was plugged in like it was going out of style, so much so I built a makeshift cooler using one of my air vents and cover for my dash mount to keep it out of the sun. Using this same setup I don't even need my air conditioning running and the 8T stays decently cooled, not cold but definitely not hot without my ac running in my car. I also love the 12gb ram, on my 7pro I usually ran with about 2gb to spare on idle and I never quite liked that it was so little. This is coming from the pc gamer that put 32gb of ram in his pc back in 2016 thinking it might not be enough....
Battery- 3 out of 5 pretty disappointed it doesn't last all day
Let me start by saying that I think this could be a lot better if I had this rooted and was able to properly debloat it. But as of now that's not an option and my review stands. With or without heavy use it does drain fairly fast during the day for me. I only have a couple of apps that are not battery optimized (basically the same setup I had on my 7Pro but without rooted apps and it did last all day with heavy use) I also suspect that forcing 120hz all day makes a difference as well but only time will tell. I also make a point to never fast charge my devices because I want the batteries to last as long as possible so minimal heat
Overall a 3.875 (f*** it call it a 4 out of 5)
So far it's been a good successor to my 7pro.
Ask me about any other details you'd like to know

Is it really "that" much better than say 7t pro 5g that can be picked up for 1/2 as much right now? I'm still on 6T right now, but was looking to upgrade. Still not quite sold on 8T, given how its cam is not exactly getting good reviews. thanks for this review.

RussianBear said:
Is it really "that" much better than say 7t pro 5g that can be picked up for 1/2 as much right now? I'm still on 6T right now, but was looking to upgrade. Still not quite sold on 8T, given how its cam is not exactly getting good reviews. thanks for this review.
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I'm surprised the sensors are the same as 7! However, people on the camera thread are saying GCam helps a lot. Oh, plus they are going to improve the camera on each ROM update of course.

RussianBear said:
Is it really "that" much better than say 7t pro 5g that can be picked up for 1/2 as much right now? I'm still on 6T right now, but was looking to upgrade. Still not quite sold on 8T, given how its cam is not exactly getting good reviews. thanks for this review.
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Click to collapse
Coming from the 7pro, I definitely think it's worth the upgrade. The ONLY thing I could say the 7 pro was better was the screen resolution BUT I'm still happy with it on the 8t especially with the 120hz
Sent from my OnePlus 8T using XDA Labs

I had the 7 Pro...great phone...never had an issue. I now have the 8T...great phone...no problems so far! I think the fingerprint reader on the 7 Pro was a "little" bit more accurate. I have to be more cognizant of placing my thumb dead center on the reader to get an unlock on the first try. It seemed that the 7 Pro was more forgiving on the placement. Signal bars on the shade appear lower...but the reality is not how many bars are showing but the actual signal strength itself which can be viewed in the settings. When looking in the settings they are both the same. I have not had any lost signals or disconnects so far. I liked the pop-up selfie on the 7 Pro because the screen was clean with no punch holes. However, I HATE curved screens...and I hope I never have to buy one ever again...FLAT all the way! I am not one to hold the phone 3 inches away from my face so I do not care, or see, any difference at all between the two when doing normal tasks. 120 refresh rate does make the phone "seem" smoother, but in most real world use running the 8T at 60 is perfectly acceptable. A few years ago the description "buttery smooth" was used extensively on phones that "only" ran at 60...so to me it's more of a gimmick than something necessary to a good phone. I am not thrilled with punch hole selfies...I rarely take any pictures at all and even fewer selfies...but I use a dark wallpaper so you don't really see it anyway. I wish it was centered instead of on the side but that's more of an OCD thing. Does the 8T work better in day-to-day functionality than the 7 Pro? NO it does not! They are both fast, smooth, competent phones that can take pictures, make phone calls, and communicate using email, and texting. So, for me, the deciding factor was the flat screen VS the curved screen. As I mentioned already I hate curved screens as I think they serve no functional purpose on any phone other than to weaken the shatter resistance of an already fragile glass screen.

Thanks. I've researched the 7t pro 5g and development is definitely lacking (no twrp support even). Though I don't customize much these days, having a custom recovery has always been a must. Thanks for your thoughts, guys.

Is Oneplus8T and Oneplus8T+5G has the same codename kebab? As the only difference between them is the IP68 and memory option...
Before purchasing one i just want to make this clear...

tyler19820201 said:
Is Oneplus8T and Oneplus8T+5G has the same codename kebab? As the only difference between them is the IP68 and memory option...
Before purchasing one i just want to make this clear...
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From what I can tell it's the same device. One is just sold by t-mobile the other isn't

spart0n said:
From what I can tell it's the same device. One is just sold by t-mobile the other isn't
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It is weird on gsmarena says the KB2007 T-Mobile version has got IP68 certificate and the rest of 8T does not.

tyler19820201 said:
It is weird on gsmarena says the KB2007 T-Mobile version has got IP68 certificate and the rest of 8T does not.
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They all have the same rubber gaskets covering the ports and sim card tray. They are identical with internal hardware components. Only difference is that OnePlus didn't want to pay the extra money out for IP68 certificate with the non T-Mobile versions. Meaning that T-Mobile wanted this certificate to get customers to buy the device from them. A marketing gimmick both OnePlus and T-Mobile saw profitable potential in.

Database Users

welcome