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So through a whole of problems with the GS4, and a little stroke of luck, I happened upon a Moto X 2014. I must say, the phone is smooth as butter. But I still feel like something is missing. My battery isn't a great feet, my camera is poor at best. The phone however is the fastest and smoothest I've ever seen an android phone. It makes me melt. But after using the LG G2 which I had for 2 days before this....I miss it comparatively to this. Just as fast, much larger battery, beautiful screen. The Moto X doesn't even have a "power save" feature, and that would at lest be helpful. I almost want to wait for the Droid Turbo, but by then my 14 days would be up. I'm just not sure what to do. So my question to others.....Are you happy with this device? or would you switch, given the opportunity? If so, to what?
In happy, if the camera was better, I would be happier, but I'll hold out for L in hopes of improved camera performance. If not, I have another upgrade in April, maybe grab a turbo if it doesn't look as bad as it has in the leaked photos.
I'm think off going back the LG G2. The camera may be the breaking point for me.
Sent from my XT1096 using XDA Free mobile app
I don't take many pictures, but the ones I have taken have been fine. On par with a majority of the smart phones I have owned except a few that were above average. Most of them are just "meh" and any difference is still not great so I just don't let it get to me. If pictures were priority I would still be on the Lumia 930 hands down, or maybe the iPhone 6 plus, but not most of the Android handsets available that's for sure.
Overall I love the phone though. It just a great phone to use and really when it comes down to it that is what matters. There are things that could use improvement (screen brightness, camera, battery life). But none of those factors are BAD, just not exceptional. I get through a day with ease and the screen is fine except in bright sunlight. The phone makes up for it with a great feel and ease of use. Its super fast and fluid, and little things like ActiveDisplay just make it all that much better of an experience. Of all the phones I have owned in the last year (a lot) it is the first one I feel content with and not pining for a new phone (which is rare for me). I am excited for Android L .
I love my Moto X. I too came from a Galaxy S4 running CyanogenMOD and this is so smooth without having to do any tweaking whatsoever. I've had this phone for 11 days and I already try to wave my hand over other people's phones and expect it to just turn on when I pick it up. These may be new features I can't live without.
Short answer....best phone I have ever owned
I came from the HTC One, HTC One M8, and LG G3. Also had the Nexus 5 as my daily driver before leaving it for LG G3. ... This phone trumps them all (still use m8 for low light photos)
The bad......nothing really. The camera and battery are decent enough.....just nothing to brag on.
As far as performance....nothing is close. So smooth...so fast.....so fluid.
The phone screen looks amazing and the stereo headphone jack is provides the best sound I have heard outside of the HTCOne.
No phone is perfect.....but this phone came very close
I think it's too top heavy and not comfortable to hold. Maybe cuz I got leather and have a subconscious fear of scratching it or something. Ultimately, its fate w/me is doomed due to no root on verizon.
I'll give up the X if nexus comes out on verizon.
soundneedle said:
I think it's too top heavy and not comfortable to hold. Maybe cuz I got leather and have a subconscious fear of scratching it or something. Ultimately, its fate w/me is doomed due to no root on verizon.
I'll give up the X if nexus comes out on verizon.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is the only downfall for me as well. I want gravitybox so bad. Just for the PIE controls so I can hide the nav bar. That extra screen real estate along with the one handed reachability would make this phone perfect for me.
I don't care about the camera quality, not a big deal for me. And the battery life is sufficient for me.
ChristianPreachr said:
So through a whole of problems with the GS4, and a little stroke of luck, I happened upon a Moto X 2014. I must say, the phone is smooth as butter. But I still feel like something is missing. My battery isn't a great feet, my camera is poor at best. The phone however is the fastest and smoothest I've ever seen an android phone. It makes me melt. But after using the LG G2 which I had for 2 days before this....I miss it comparatively to this. Just as fast, much larger battery, beautiful screen. The Moto X doesn't even have a "power save" feature, and that would at lest be helpful. I almost want to wait for the Droid Turbo, but by then my 14 days would be up. I'm just not sure what to do. So my question to others.....Are you happy with this device? or would you switch, given the opportunity? If so, to what?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you'll be happy that L will bring this:
1. power saver built in
2. native code for camera stuff
3. project volt, which is supposed to help in battery
4. ...and much more
right now, there is nothing on the market that I want. so no, i would not switch. next year, maybe
after a week or so of using its okay. battery life sucks, i dont care about the camera, not sure why but many apps crash on it more than my nexus 5, and i can barely just barely see some hiccups/lag when navigating through the homescreen and some apps ill wait for android L tho
FLUFFYMANGOES said:
after a week or so of using its okay. battery life sucks, i dont care about the camera, not sure why but many apps crash on it more than my nexus 5, and i can barely just barely see some hiccups/lag when navigating through the homescreen and some apps ill wait for android L tho
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you have ART enabled?
This phone is not top heavy, the center of its mass is right in the middle of the phone.
Just balance it on the index finger and you will see.
Best phone I used so far as well. But I never had any flagship devices before. Just a last years moto x, moto g, galaxy i9070... and an HTC one m8 as a phone for work, that's it.
But I saw many friends struggling with flagships while I was enjoying my moto x 2013.
I gave the HTC one m8 back to my boss and use the mx2013 now for my work and the mx2014 for private uses.
The mx2013 gave me an excellent experience, so I had no other choice than buying its successor.
BTW I hated the m8 even compared to the mx2013.
If Motorola doesn't **** it up, I'll buy their devices for a long time.
I could not be happier
Battery life could be bettet but ive yet to run out of it after a full day of work
How do you enable ART and what does it change? I assume this is the ART vs dalvik thing?
Sent from my XT1096 using XDA Free mobile app
ChristianPreachr said:
How do you enable ART and what does it change? I assume this is the ART vs dalvik thing?
Sent from my XT1096 using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's in developer options. Don't enable it. Several users have reported an increase in force closes.
It's a bigger, faster, smoother moto x. If you liked the 2013 x but wanted something bigger, this will make you happy.
I like it, originally I let all the negative reviews get to me and even went back to my nexus 5 for a day. Then I realized how much nicer the moto x is. Its a great well rounded device. Unlocked bootloader with full warranty in tact, good camera, decent battery life, fast updates, near aosp and other great specs. Oh, and every time I'm on the phone I can smell wonderful leather lol.
robstunner said:
I like it, originally I let all the negative reviews get to me and even went back to my nexus 5 for a day. Then I realized how much nicer the moto x is. Its a great well rounded device. Unlocked bootloader with full warranty in tact, good camera, decent battery life, fast updates, near aosp and other great specs. Oh, and every time I'm on the phone I can smell wonderful leather lol.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unlocking the boot loader on the pure edition does not void the warranty? I have heard it does not but not sure.
sent from my 2014 moto X
jmtjr278 said:
Unlocking the boot loader on the pure edition does not void the warranty? I have heard it does not but not sure.
sent from my 2014 moto X
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's what I read from the Motorola feedback network administrator, he said they are "treating the pure edition like the 2013 Dev edition."
I love it, but I am interested in seeing what the Turbo and Nexus 6 bring to table, especially since it'll be on VZW. That being said, jumping to 5.2" from 4.7" was noticeable, can't really imagine carrying around 5.96"...
So my previous phone was a stock, freshly reset Nexus 5 on 5.1.1.
Got my G4 yesterday, did the usual disable bloatware process first. I cannot believe how much crap this phone has from LG and Tmobile. I then installed all of my apps, for some reason the auto restore process never works correctly for me. Google Please fix...
Anywho, the G4 "feels" less responsive then my old Nexus 5. It does not freeze or anything. I just see a short lag spike (best I can do as far as the description goes) in pretty much anything I do on the phone, moving between screens, or opening an email in Inbox and then scrolling, it will stutter the first time Im viewing the email. I changed the Dev settings to .5x for all animations, but that really didnt fix this issue. I can sit the two phones side by side after work today to actually perform some tests, maybe do a video.
The battery on the G4 sits at 100% for like 20 minutes no matter how I use then phone, it then drops like crazy from there. I have not done a full charge cycle, maybe thats just what happens when you start using the phone.
I accidentally removed the Google search bar that was 5x1, tried to re-add it and that widget is not available, only the 4x1 one is there, and you cannot resize it.
The phone got super hot when I was installing all of the apps.
Camera has no settings for quality (fine, normal etc) No option to disable OIS or IS. No option to set frame rate for recording. Kind of weird.
The Memory seems to have the usual Lollipop bug where the system has a memory leak. Such BS that google only fixed it in 5.1.1.
Leather feels nice, unlike anything else I felt on a phone before.
I'm in the same boat. I actually dropped my N5 recently and cracked the screen. I looked for a replacement but no luck. Not even for the screen only. I got my G4 the other day and I like it,but to be sure I just took a look at the N6 to compare. This G4 is almost as big screen wise in person. Plus the quad HD really looks great. So I'm sticking with this G4 (on sprint).
I'm really betting that we'll have root and I can get rid of some of these bloat apps. I can prob disable, but I want em gone. I also hope we get some good kernels. I was running franco kernel ony N5 and had a great experience.
I have a lot of the same experiences as you as well. There's a lot of potential here. Might have to step up myself because I'd love to see a lot of development.
Battery has lasted all day for me which is slightly longer than my N5. And I think if you want to change some of the camera options you prob have to use manual mode. There's a ton of options once you enable that.
You can send your N5 to LG for repair. That's what I did.
It worked about a year ago, hopefully they still offer that service. It was around $150
I had a nexus 5 and the phone was amsome... Wish i can just cram this cam on the N5... But i feel the same with the issues on the g4.. But this screen and and great... I can deal with it for now untill root comes
Sent from my LG-H811 using XDA Free mobile app
The Nexus 5 is one of the best phones of all time. I also feel that the Nexus 5 performs more smoothly than the Galaxy S6, G4, and pretty much every new phone. A fricking phone from 2013 is still spanking 2015 flagships. That's just sad. If the N5 just had a bigger battery and an awesome camera like the S6 and G4, I would probably use it for the rest of my life.
gtg465x said:
The Nexus 5 is one of the best phones of all time. I also feel that the Nexus 5 performs more smoothly than the Galaxy S6, G4, and pretty much every new phone. A fricking phone from 2013 is still spanking 2015 flagships. That's just sad. If the N5 just had a bigger battery and an awesome camera like the S6 and G4, I would probably use it for the rest of my life.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
^YUP^
I feel the same except I had a CM 12.1 LG G2 that I dropped. The G2 feels a lot more smoother, has better battery life and was a better size fit for me. I'm hoping the new nexus 5 will be similar to the G2/nexus 5 2013 which I'll probably get after selling this phone on swappa or something. I'm also debating on returning this for the S6, but the S6 seemed more slower than the G4 when I was in store the other day
I seem to be the only one disappointed from my N5 haha
It freezes too much, camera is terrible (mine got broke.. focus is not working) and not to mention battery life.
I'm planning on switching to the G4 when prices will go down, so this post helped me. If you find it better, and you loved your N5, then I would definitely love the G4
Seems you guys should switch back to the N5. This replaced my N6 and im not looking back, im not getting lag on this phone and the battery is fine.
I also came from a N5. Battery life for me was atrocious and I didn't want to bother with putting a new one in (my luck I'd screw up something). I really like the G4 - the camera is the single best thing (aside from the battery life being better and the battery being user replaceable). But more than that, I like the feel of the phone in hand. That's one of those things you just don't appreciate until you have a device that feels that way.
Other improvements that I like with the G4 not present in the N5 (besides the camera and battery just mentioned)-
700 mhz LTE band 12 (HUGE PLUS for T-mo customers)
VoLTE
Wifi Calling (T-mo) *also no longer drops calls when wifi is lost during a call (lollipop feature)*
Micro SD (finally I can put music on my phone again! I had only 2.5GB free out of the 26.7 or whatever after apps and ONE full nandroid)
IR blaster (I have kids that CONSTANTLY lose our remotes)
Extremely good GPS (not that the N5 was bad, but I don't need to use anything than device only now)
Button feedback and placement (I like the buttons on the back)
(So far) frame isn't cracking *N5 was notorious for getting cracks next to the sim card and volume rocker - mine had this and it bugged the heck out of me*
What I miss from the N5-
Qi charging (good thing my charger was only $7 lol)
Smoothness
Custom color (faux kernel with my own custom color settings - used my colormunki and did it myself)
So for me the G4 is a huge upgrade. I'm sure before long all the issues with stuttering, etc will be resolved.
EDIT: Forgot to mention how much louder the speaker is on the G4... miles above the N5.
I have to agree. The camera is phenomenal on this phone. I love how it feels in my hand, and I couldn't be happier to have a micro SD again. I think we'll be able to fix the stuttering when we have root and development.
~ sent from my LG G4 (H811) using Tapatalk
I agree with everyone's points here. I've had my Nexus 5 from day one and it was hard to give up. Just my battery life was not up to par. Especially with summer coming around, I really didn't want to carry an external charger. The G4 was hard to pass up with removable battery, SD card, display and of course, the camera. Plus, I thought LG did a good job with the N5.
So far the G4 is not as snappy as the N5. So I switched today to Google Now launcher and feels more responsive. The apps still take a tick longer to open. I'll see how it handles the next few days. I have another week to decide if I'll stick out and count on development or go back to N5.
Only thing i miss from my nexus 5 is easy root and it is easier to one hand. But the g4 is one handable, but with a little extra reach for the corners (in 6 1 with large hand).
Last time I used the camera on the G4 the phone got super hot. To the point it uncomfortable to hold next to my face. The glass was hot.
Tmobile said that is not supposed to happen, they are shipping me a replacement... Will report how it compares to the original G4.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
My G4 gets hot right around the button area sometimes. It seems to get hotter than my G3. I notice it when it's in my pocket and I'm wondering what it's doing to make it so hot. I wonder if I have a defective one? Or has anyone else been experiencing that? I thought they went with the 808 instead of the 810 because of the heat problems. I'd hate for this to be a metal phone with it being as hot as that.
rsbenedict said:
My G4 gets hot right around the button area sometimes. It seems to get hotter than my G3. I notice it when it's in my pocket and I'm wondering what it's doing to make it so hot. I wonder if I have a defective one? Or has anyone else been experiencing that? I thought they went with the 808 instead of the 810 because of the heat problems. I'd hate for this to be a metal phone with it being as hot as that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep, that is where it gets hit on the back, and also the glass front on top. That's a defect based on T-Mobile tech support.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
Yep, that's exactly where it gets hot. HOw did you contact them to let them know? Did you call or take it in to the store?
rsbenedict said:
Yep, that's exactly where it gets hot. HOw did you contact them to let them know? Did you call or take it in to the store?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I purchased it on the phone so I called 611 to talk to them.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
Thanks, I'll give them a call.
I love my G4. ditched the Note edge for this bad boy. my first impressions video is below
What's going to be the better phone?
Sent from my XT1650 using XDA-Developers mobile app
I was actually waiting for the N7, but grabbed this to test out for a little bit. If you compare the 2 devices, they are very similar. N7 is a touch bigger at 5.7, has the stylus and is waterproof. Obviously the Z has mods and is thinner. I really like the Z. It's built very well and I like the vanilla android experience much more than TouchWiz. Also, if the N7 has same OS battery drain as the S7e, I will shoot someone!! This battery is fantastic!! I think the N7 shooter will probably be a little better, but the Zs camera is pretty darn good. I may just keep the Z over the N7. But I need to see a ton more mods if that's the case.
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Can you comment more on battery? I had note 5 and s7 and I couldn't stand the random battery drain
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I would say Force. I have the s7 edge seems s7 will be a larger one. It really is personal taste. Grab one and see when it comes out. I found so. E lag still on my edge so far no lag and beautiful screen.
For me the Force is just SOLID.
I have been using Samsungs for the past few years and was going to wait for the Note 7 but the Z Force got me. Battery drain on Samsungs are a joke...and even Samsung couldn't tell me why. My wife's Note 4 would get twice the SOT as me and we got ours at the same time.
I like the big screen of the Note but never really used the SPEN.
Don't get a Samsung Note.
As an owner of two Samsung Galaxy Note 5 devices - they are of suspect quality. Not to mention an exploding battery on my prior Galaxy S4 and a max of 3 metres wifi on my S3... The Note 5 has terrible battery life, even once debloated and rooted with custom kernels - in comparison to my old LG G2. (not to mention it's laggy compared to than that phone)
After having my 2nd N5 in my pocket while traveling to the states, two purple dots appeared and have almost entirely consumed the screen after a couple of days. The terrible customer support in the states won't even fix it as it was not purchased in the US - no **** I'm on holiday Samsung. >_>" These Samsung devices have caused me nothing but grief.
LG and Motorola on the other hand sell much better devices in my opinion.
I have a N7 and a Z Force and short story. N7 is for sale on craigslist.
N7 is slower. Noticeably slower. I get better battery life on the z force and it charges faster.
All and all Moto z is a superior phone. Now the nay Sayers will chime in with this on how its better.
S pen. Screw the s pen
Retina scanner. It sucks and it is a gimmick. Its not secure you can trick it with a proper image. And it takes longer
to unlock. Its a step back from a fingerprint.
Better Camera. Z's camera is just as good you just need to have a steady hand and know how to use the manual controls.
Feels good in the hand. And it does. But that glass scratches almost as easy as the plastic screen on the z. Same goes with the back. It will need a case and a screen protector on it from day one or it will be scratched to high hell.
Water proof. Well i dont use my phone as a fishing lure. And moto's have the water repelling nano coating so im guess it will do just as good when you get the accidental dunk in water.
The N7 is a nice phone. But it fails to bring anything new and exciting. It fails in holding up under normal use. The coating on the screen is very thin and scratches way to easy. Battery life is bad and if you want to use the always on display well my N7 will suck up around 8% of the battery on that. They should of did it like moto's
The note is what it is now. And thats basically an iphone. Its hip and trendy but is stale and has no real innovation. Nothing to wow anyone. Fan boys will defend it to the end saying its so smooth. No its a laggy turd that requires nova launcher and settings changed just to make it smooth. And my N7 was not installing any apps either its touchwiz. Not as bad as before but still laggy and it will never not be laggy.
Want a phone that people will know what it is and say uhhhhh ahhhh he has a note 7. Then go note 7. Want a s pen go note 7. Want a phone thats a improvement over a s7 edge go note 7. Its a s7 edge refinement. But if you want a phone that has a future go Moto z. You want a phone with shock and aww go moto z and slap on a projector mod. Want a phone that you can change to your needs go moto z. Want a phone that gets great battery life and charges at 6amps. go moto z.
Moto z has a future with moto mods. The note 7 what you buy now is what you get. It will never be better. But in a year who knows. With your moto z you might be able to pick up a mod that offers 2 more sd card slots that raids them. Or pick up a mod that allows you to use a m.2 or msata ssd. Maybe a rear eink display. With the z out of the box you get the smoothest fastest android phone out. But you also get a future for your phone with mods. Who knows what can come out but there can be some amazing mods that can transform the z. Maybe a solar panel mod that offers a thin mod that gives you a little trickle charge for the days you do not need a battery mod. Need better wifi? How about a high gain wifi adapter. Thats what makes the z exciting you have something to look forward to.
I had a mod dev kit here. Im working on a mod right now. "i work with electronics" Still getting a feeling for it. But The mod im working on will house a SD or Micro SD card. Have a usb type c port and battery. This will let me transfer files from my phone to my pc using the mod like a portable harddrive. It will also let me toss in another 250gig sd in it and get some battery life. After i finish this then i will see about putting in some stand alone wifi for wireless transfers that will use the mods battery to power it. I can see why people are not really excited about the mods. They just see what are already made. But working with electronics i see the dev kit and i flip out at having phone with a perforated board so i can start prototyping circuits.
skinnytoo2 said:
I think the N7 shooter will probably be a little better,
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually it's not.
I did some testing and the Z Force has better saturation and marginally better detail zoomed in. Seeing all the the S7 vs Moto Z comparisons I thought the N7 would blow the Z Force away.
The choice in phones comes down to preference. I dislike Samsung but the N7 is a pretty good phone. Every feature they could cram in there is in there too. That makes is slightly slower than the Z Force.
This is actually the first time I've had a device beat my wife's in benchmark testing. The Note 3 actually tested better than my LG G4!
I was going to check out the Samsung phones, but I had the original Moto X and I just love the Moto software.. close to stock but with the nice touches like the Moto Display and the gestures (with young-ish kids, the twist to get to the camera is a godsend). I've heard mixed reviews on the Samsung flavor of Android and in the end, I just decided that I just needed to get the Z Force in my hand to make sure I didn't totally hate the feel, and I didn't.
bignazpwns said:
Water proof. Well i dont use my phone as a fishing lure. And moto's have the water repelling nano coating so im guess it will do just as good when you get the accidental dunk in water.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My daughter killed her 1st gen moto x with the nano coating with a dunk in the toilet. I would say the motos are light rain resistant, probably.
Based on everything I've read, I made the jump from Samsung Fan Boy to the Moto Z Force TODAY! I believe I'll be happy.... after I make the necessary adjustments!
beejmeister said:
Based on everything I've read, I made the jump from Samsung Fan Boy to the Moto Z Force TODAY! I believe I'll be happy.... after I make the necessary adjustments!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Love my z,.The projector is the shizznit..Speaker is good..Great to know all the mods can get software updates too..Hope for more mods other than a camera mod...Just don't use camera at all..I've gotta get used to no root and Roms ,
Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk
i am just curious what made you choose the moto z force. i am deciding between this and the lg v20. coming from the note 7.
Sent from my SM-N930V using Tapatalk
The battery mostly, plus, to a lesser extent, the mods and reading how fast and smooth it was.
Battery life, Shatter Shield, and Moto's seeming desire to remain as stock android as possible.
The Mods, especially the external battery mod, also played a big part. Being able to add on extra juice... I tend to be a heavy user of my phone and always kinda worry that I'm going to run out of juice.
I got it because I have had motorola in the past and like them. I had the Note 7 which I loved, but couldn't keep due to the fire issue. This phone had good reviews, fast, large battery. It is a very smooth phone. The negative is that I don't think that there are too many out there so development support may be less than with other phones. It is a good phone.
Most because the LG G5. I had 3 generations of Gs but considered the 5 a wrong step and looked for something else.
The Moto Zs are as unique as the Gs were.
Smithfolk4 said:
I got it because I have had motorola in the past and like them. I had the Note 7 which I loved, but couldn't keep due to the fire issue. This phone had good reviews, fast, large battery. It is a very smooth phone. The negative is that I don't think that there are too many out there so development support may be less than with other phones. It is a good phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@Smithfolk4 i am so disappointed about the note 7. i can't seem to choose a replacement because nothing compares. how do u like it compared to the note 7?
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12iVaL116 said:
@Smithfolk4 i am so disappointed about the note 7. i can't seem to choose a replacement because nothing compares. how do u like it compared to the note 7?
Sent from my SM-N930V using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree it is not the Note 7, but the Z Force is a very good phone. Maybe the next best. You might like the S7 Edge, but I am not a fan of the curved screen and the Edge has a more pronounced curve. Maybe the Pixel XL? I haven't seen one of those. I do really like the Z Force. I wish it had an LED indicator, but I am getting used to the notifications on it and they are fine once you get used to them. I certainly recommend this phone as very good.
I had an original Moto X and loved the ecosystem. The battery was a plus, and definitely why I chose the Force over the non-force Z. The mods are cool, but really had nothing to do with the decision.
I did not have a Note, but had the galaxy phones 2-5, I can say it is hard at first to get used to coming from touch wiz, but a million times better when you get used to it. My coworkers who are note owners...or past note owners envy my phone and talk about how much better and more responsive it is.
I guess to better answer this question it would be helpful to understand your typical usage but my overall experience with it is amazing.
The camera is amazing for a non dslr including low light photo and video. I took a video recording at a concert and was blown away by the audio and video quality.
I played minecraft on max settings hosting a multiplayer world and using a bluetooth controller and performance felt on par with the PS4.
I have used it for running a bluetooth scantool for automotive diagnostics and was impressed by the speed at which it could perform a full scan. Rivaled only my high level ($1,000+) scan tools.
I use it for remote desktop use at work while in the field with a bluetooth keyboard for true desktop computing with no issues.
Project cars has apps which run with the video game and the response is great with no noticable latency.
Controlling Chromecast works extremely well as well as screencasting to include emulators.
Runs fPSe, a playstation emulator with not problem at all.
As you can see I use it for a wide range of things, I could go on but dont want to bore you with irrelevant information based on your needs and expectations of a device.
I too am trying to decide between the LG V20 and the Moto Z Force. Anyone regret the Force? think maybe you should have got the regular Z or the Z Play instead?
CadillacMike said:
I too am trying to decide between the LG V20 and the Moto Z Force. Anyone regret the Force? think maybe you should have got the regular Z or the Z Play instead?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i ended up goong with the v20. will try it out and if i dont like it, i can restock it for $35 and get thr z force.
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12iVaL116 said:
i ended up goong with the v20. will try it out and if i dont like it, i can restock it for $35 and get thr z force.
Click to expand...
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No way for me to compare to a V20, but I've had a Z Force since the first week and have been very happy with it. I had a LG G4 before and there's no comparison in terms of build quality. My G4 failed twice under warranty and always felt cheap. The Z Force feels like a slab of steel in your hand, it's awesome.
I had gotten used to the LG style Android., but the Moto's nearly stock approach is really nice. The only thing I really miss is that you can't switch the "back" and "menu" buttons, which I did because I prefer the back button on the right for easier one-handed operation. Can't do that on the force (without root, which isn't possible yet/ever on my Verizon phone) but I got used to it soon enough.
I do not regret the Force and feel I should have gotten the others, and I am on verizon prepaid the only place that would let me pre order was best buy for $800 said the jbl mod was free but just added the price to the phone. I am glad I got that though, I was going to get the incipio mod and dont feel I have the need for it now.
fr4nk1yn said:
Most because the LG G5. I had 3 generations of Gs but considered the 5 a wrong step and looked for something else.
The Moto Zs are as unique as the Gs were.
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you and i are on the same boat. I left motorola for the lgg2, then g3, upgrade was coming up and g5 disapointed me then i saw the moto z force and started to love it
I like the Moto take on Android. Shattershield has value to me (I didn't feel the need for insurance). Good battery life. Only have the speaker mod but it's good. Camera may be a tick behind the very best, but quite good. The phone is very fast and fluid.
I'm a Moto fan, using the Z force it's one of the best Moto handsets I ever used, design wise, performance and the Moto mods, really it's unique.
Sent from my XT1650 using XDA-Developers mobile app
I have had Motorola since bag phone days, and law enforcement radios prior to that. They know radios, hence phones. Tired of rooting and looking for something for a couple of years. Really like the Z Force.
Sent from my Pixel C using XDA-Developers mobile app
Yes, yes, it's possible to love a phone. Heck, you sleep next to it, don't you? Rate this thread to indicate your love for the Moto Z2 Force, all things considered. A higher rating indicates that the Moto Z2 Force is an incredible phone that you enjoy tremendously. You love it.
Then, drop a comment if you have anything to add!
The best Android phone I've owned to date.
I love the phone enough to buy it multiple times, searching for the combination of carrier compatibility, unlockable bootloader and color.
I also love the phone enough to overlook its main shortcomings (no headphone jack, not truly waterproof, small battery) I love the hardware enough to use an unrooted phone. *gasp* literally every Android device I've ever owned has been rooted within a week, my first was a Nexus one.
This is a bit of a monumental device for me. It's my first ”phablet." My last daily driver was a Sony Z3 compact and a Z1 compact before that. I dropped my Sony trying to put it in my pocket while juggling keys, a backpack and my water bottle. The back glass shattered and the front has a hairline fracture.
Initially I was going to get the Z5 compact but I decided maybe I'd try something a little bigger, so I ordered an Xperia XZ from Amazon. It was a nice phone, but I hated the purplish color of the "black" model and I found myself constantly worrying about it after my last drop, so back it went in about a week.
The thing is, I hate using cases. What's the point in buying a phone you like the look and feel of just to cover it up? Enter the Z2 force. When I first saw promos talking about the shatter proof screen I was intrigued. I was never miffed by the easily scratched screen because an $8 screen protector is all you need to solve that problem.
Between the piece of mind of an unbreakable screen, stupid fast experience, solid aluminum body and gorgeous OLED display this phone is a keeper.
It's one of those phones that got shoved under the rug the second everyone saw the battery specs on paper, myself included. My previous long term daily driver was a Nexus 6 for the most part and that was the last high end, highly customizable Android phone I've used before briefly dailying a Nextbit Robin and then switching to Essential PH-1 for a few months. Both of those have great custom ROM support, but the battery life on both and signal strength on the PH-1 with T-Mobile were barely tolerable, so the only other sub $500 flagship/high end device with an up to date hardware feel was the Z2F from T-Mobile ($375 new), and glad I took the plunge despite the smallish battery capacity. From my experience, Motorola (at least as of their 2013 and newer models) have had a great track record for keeping close to stock Android experience, superb cellular signal, and great battery life and efficiency (despite often using smaller batteries, ie Moto X2, Moto G2, Moto E2). Somehow their devices always had awesome standby to screen on time efficiency. Essential didn't do this for me as much as I wanted to like it (although those on Verizon had a completely different perspective of that device).
This device gets some seriously great battery life (I've managed 8+ hrs sot with 20+ hrs total discharge from 100% charge capacity), excellent signal strength (probably why the battery doesn't suffer too much), solid screen (for those that do lots of accidental drops), front facing flash (with forward facing torch option in Moto camera flash settings), useful Moto gestures to enable main torch and camera with simple chop and twist gestures even when screen is off, solid and super thin build (Jerryrigeverything on YouTube approved it in his infamous bend test, it passed!), and because it's so thin, a simple tpu case gives this phone a perfect grip and thickness. There's a lot to like about this phone, it certainly checks all the right boxes. Most of all, it's the Android device with a Nexus/pixel-like experience; unlockable bootloader, easy to root, custom ROM availability (although from what I gather it currently works best in it's Motorola stock factory firmware form, custom ROMs are currently suffering from weaker cellular signal, failing safetynet due to the current state of selinux being set to permissive, and no sound in default video recording, also on some ROMs WiFi calling and Moto mods have issues), and to be quite frank, this device is very livable with stock firmware, just add root via Magisk and customize from there. Nexus 6 was by far my favorite device, but it is starting to feel a bit dated at this point, it had (and continues to have) some of the best third party dev support, and everything almost always works as good or better than what Google offered in it's stock Android form, that device was truly ahead of it's time and just like this device, was criticized and thrown under the bus numerous times, but low and behold a year or so after it's release, it was one of the best, if not the best device to mod. Of course with this device it's a bit finicky to mod or convert to another carrier firmware (if at all possible), but when it comes to working in it's native firmware for the carrier they were configured to run on, it truly doesn't miss a beat. You get a lot for the asking price, and until another developer device like Nexus 6 comes along, this will serve as a perfect successor for the time being. Yeah I'd love to have the dual front facing stereo speakers, and I'd love to have tons of custom features found in Resurrection Remix ROMs, but not at the cost of battery, cell signal, and failing safetynet check. Many of the custom ROM features can be manually added on stock firmware with root access enabled. Custom firmware just makes it easier to do so and also implements its own features, but often takes away features that are only available on stock firmware, for this reason, Nexus 6 was superior on every front in its time, everything was open source and easy to carry over to a custom firmware. Essential phone is like that, but unfortunately it doesn't play well with all carriers, despite being compatible with every carrier like the Nexus 6.
Some other cool and useful features include:
-Ability to remove navigation bar and allow fingerprint sensor gestures to navigate in the essence of Android P (swipe left for back, right for recents, short tap for home)
-fingerprint scanner also doubles up as a power button (normal tap for turning on to bypass screen lock, and normal press for screen off)
-voice assistant via long press on fingerprint scanner
-Moto voice for useful info on the fly, even with screen off
-Moto display, which unlike ambient display, doesn't waste much battery and is very precise when hovering your hand over and lifting vs keeping face down or in pocket (to keep screen from accidentally lighting up))
-dual rear facing camera with a dedicated rear facing black and white (monochrome) camera as one of the lenses
-twist gestures can double up as front/rear camera swapping
-lift to silence ringtone
-flip device onto screen to mute calls
-built in phone video calling
-power button to end call
-double chop for flashlight
-double twist for camera
-front facing torch through stock selfie camera
-night display (adjusts screen tint based on time if day)
-announce calls while driving
-and last but not least, water repellant nano coating, which is something I can't thank Motorola enough, my Nexus 6, Moto G2, Moto X2, Moto E2 all have this coating and I can confirm it works because the G2 owned by my grandma and my friend's Nexus 6 both fell into a tub and sink full of water, both devices worked without issue after removing them from water. Sure they're not water proof per say, but water proofing requires seals/gaskets and adhesives, both of which are compromised over time due to excessive heat from the internal hardware components and when screens or back glass (where applicable) break. So in essence a repellant nano coating may not be as water resistant as gaskets and adhesives, it does it's job most of the time when accidents happen and can surely withstand rain and shower splashes (just don't go plugging headphones or power cables before drying the ports and device as that may cause a short) and best of all, it doesn't get compromised because your screen broke or because of excessive heat and wear and tear.
The only cons I see are the few carrier and Motorola bloat apps most of which can be disabled (or frozen if rooted).
I enjoyed this device so much that I got one for a friend who had issues with her Nexus 6 charging port. Truly an underrated device that will hopefully get more attention from third party devs sooner than later. Personally, I will go as far as to say that this device should be looked at as a benchmark to beat. I've yet to see a device as well optimized, efficient, and as easy to manage right out of the box for such an awesome price.
Syndrome666 said:
snip
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All the developers for the Nash have been working on getting things fixed. You know good things are coming when LOS might be official soon™
Uzephi said:
All the developers for the Nash have been working on getting things fixed. You know good things are coming when LOS might be official soon™
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I definitely do, this phone's technically a successor to what used to be the Moto X series before the Z line took its place, and those had awesome third party dev support. I'm sure I'll get flashing on the Z2F once I get some free time to mod this thing. Any clue if RR is in the works for this phone?
Syndrome666 said:
I definitely do, this phone's technically a successor to what used to be the Moto X series before the Z line took its place, and those had awesome third party dev support. I'm sure I'll get flashing on the Z2F once I get some free time to mod this thing. Any clue if RR is in the works for this phone?
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No clue about RR but @npjohnson pretty much stated how everything is for LOS, unless something "goes sideways" Lineage will be official VERY shortly. @erfanoabdi also stated fingerprint nav now works with selinux enforcing so very few bugs left now. Pretty sure just a few gerrit reviews and everything before LOS ships official. (Red tape and all)
Uzephi said:
No clue about RR but @npjohnson pretty much stated how everything is for LOS, unless something "goes sideways" Lineage will be official VERY shortly. @erfanoabdi also stated fingerprint nav now works with selinux enforcing so very few bugs left now. Pretty sure just a few gerrit reviews and everything before LOS ships official. (Red tape and all)
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Nice, sounds tempting. I'll have to give it a shot
I like my Z2F a lot! So much I bought a second one, a Sprint version. I enjoyed flashing ROM’s and stuff since the Motorola Droid days before 4G. I’ve had Safe strapped RAZR’s and then the RAZR M with the bootloader unlocked, that was fun till I bought a Moto Z Droid. Fast phone but being on Verizon, no root and no playing with ROMs.
I think the Z2F is a great phone, lots of ram so the bloat apps don’t matter much but I miss flashing ROMs. So I purchased a Sprint Z2F and as soon as the UPS guys delvers it, I’m going to activate it on Sprint, Unlock the boot loader, root it and tryout some ROM’s. And after a month or so I want to unlock it and add it to my Verizon account. Should be fun.
Still Loving the performance of this device 5 months later. I think my next device will be the z3 force.
A nicely packed set of features, still a mixed bag
Just got this device couple weeks ago, because: seemed a nicely packed set of features, I needed a new one after 3 years, and it was on sale locally for ~240€, about a third of the 2017 MSRP of 799€. So am happy with seeing and getting that bargain!
However, with the previous device being a Moto X Pure, which had just gotten tediously slower and slower over the last year or so, I find the differences in specs add to it not feeling like the real thing. Like that nightly purchase impulse this posting is severly subjective. I'll mark the so-sos with o and plusses and minusses (where it compares favourably or less than to my previous Moto experiences) in the list below.
o Moto X Pure has stereo speakers, the Z2 Force has 1 mono speaker. Watching the occasional video it certainly feels ok, but definitely "lopsided", thinner, inferior to front-facing stereo speakers. Yes, why, Captain Obvious told me, how did you know?
+ For telephone calls both call quality and, in quiet environments, the speakerphone functionality is just about right. People understand me well and I can hear everyone clearly.
+ Bluetooth connections work well and are quicker to establish. It seems as if the bluetooth range has also increased slightly.
o As of yet, the lack of a 3.5mm headphone jack hasn't actually bothered me. Since I'm on the traditionalist side I would have liked one, and sorta expect a hi-def moto mod for this some day.
- The main camera is meh when used with the vanilla Moto app. Really sorry to say that, but I am disappointed. 12MP does not mean much on paper, but the artificial sharpening puts me off. Probably I compare too much with the X Pure's 21MP and subjectively much better image quality, but in low light and less-than-ideal light conditions and when seeing strong contrasts I am unhappy with the Moto camera app. Maybe I have just gotten used to the X's quirks, but still. Disclaimer: need to take more pictures; I might set up a public album for this.
+ Using OpenCamera though I am getting different and better results. So overally I tend to use this now. Suggestions? Should I try FV-5 or Ektacam?
+ Using the Vignette camera app (as I did on all previously used devices) I can get proper results, even though I suspect it does not use the 2nd camera.
+ The snapdragon 835 is superfast, and the Z2 force with these recent price drops in Europe possibly one of the cheapest devices having it
+ the 6GB memory means I can multitask as hell and there indeed is very little reloading an app
+ I got used to having a fingerprint sensor quickly, position on front is fine
+ GPS works much better than on the old Moto, even indoors I typically get a fix both a) faster and b) at all
+ Display, having that crisp 2560x1440p resolution. Colours in saturated mode are strong, bright and I'm impressed.
+ Display colour settings can be set to "standard", which means colours come across as subdued, thinner, and erm less artificial. I use this mode.
+ Touch interactions have that very immediate feel to it, like zero lag and precise positioning. Like!
o the plastic shatterproof feature, well, it comes with a plastic layer on the screen that seems to have a blueish, almost milky tint to it, and that makes it look like plastic very much. Visually speaking it looks plastic when viewed from the side.
+ Connectivity in 4G was good.
o Using two LTE sim cards at the same time though it seems as if only the first one inserted makes use of 4G, the second one can't. Disclaimer: did only test this first evening and unsystematically.
+ Wifi is fast, holds both connections properly on 2.4 and 5 even when in offices or places with more than 40 available networks.
o Using it on commute though it seems as if, even when arrived on destination, it takes those very long extra seconds to connect to a known network. Need to fiddle with a scan interval setting I guess.
+ Built-in battery capacity is smaller, but as of now it lasts me almost two full days, and won't ever go below 20% really. The X Pure's battery is far from dead, but using it heavily means recharging it three times a day.
Overall love after these couple of weeks: an "acceptable meh" Yes, everything works, but I really needed something new and had hoped for something to give me that sensational thrill, but now feel unsatisfied. Had I bought it last year that would have been a serious disappointment.
With all this I think I am in sort of in line with many reviewers who see the oh so revolutionary mods concept as meaning well and ending up mediocre. While I intend to get that Incipio battery mod some day, that might well be the only mod I'll be getting.
mookiexl said:
Still Loving the performance of this device 5 months later. I think my next device will be the z3 force.
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the z2 is the last force edition they will make.
jasperbastianrain said:
the z2 is the last force edition they will make.
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I saw that and it made me cringe. I guess moto figured they couldn't put the price in the range of the Samsung and other more popular manufactures and compete. I still hope they release a device with the SD845 or one with OIS.
Love this phone at all. Just the backside has scratches from the first day on. Never complained, but was there out of the box. More important for me is that the screen has no scratches, even after months. No monday device, absolutly perfect, love this plastic screen. Very sad to know that we don't get any newer model of this force stuff. Battery is very good, too. That's very good at all. But additional screen protector isn't needed, at least at my model the screen isn't scratching. Maybe I have to do it with harder stuff? Don't know how the people get scratches in the screen
I'm absolutely in love with this phone. Obviously everything comes down to value, and for the original $700 or whatever asking price, there were better options. For $260 though (with the projector mod included), it's a downright steal. The phone is blazing fast and the only complaints are no headphone jack and a relatively weak camera. The very un-2017 screen ratio is also a negative, but considering the price you can find the phone for these days it's nothing to me.
ROM support is straight up bad unfortunately (huge thanks to the devs that do support it), but the phone works very well stock. I've always ran my phones with ROMs, but I don't really feel like I even need one.
Yeah I have this phone as well. I don't have any real issues beside poor signal but that's from where I live. Even with the booster T-Mobile sent me from Cel-Fi it can pickup 3 bars and 6 on the booster box I get 4G LTE and 5 bars. I can hear all my friends now. GF she has the same cell as well her's has issues like with most women when it come to cells. Data Mode drops can't do anything except remove the sim but not only that the screen is peeling off. So T-mobile is doing a warranty exchange with a brand new one. Not factory nonsense excuse for a cell. Brand new. Mine is like new!
01/2019 Real user review Great phone, super fast, great size, look outdated due to its form factor (big chin, no notch) Great battery life, super fast charging. Overall great phone, a little slow on updates
Update 01/17/2020. I've had my black, unlocked Sprint version since my last post in 2017. I've been using it flawlessly on Mint mobile for a couple years. It is positively Boba Fetted out with scratches all over the aluminum body. I am on my 3rd IQ shield screen protector. My wife has the white Verizon z2 force and we have almost all the mods.
A few months ago I noticed my battery life take a nose dive. Even after a complete wipe and clean install I struggle to make it through a day with moderate use. I've never had a phone long enough to experience battery degradation.
I went to Best Buy to check out the current crop of new phones. I handled the z3 and z4 and while nice they just seemed kinda..."meh" I didn't notice any speed difference or screen clarity between either of those phones and my 3 year old z2 and I'd be giving up shattershield. I thought about trying something new and was seriously tempted by the S10+ but a case would be a must. It is crazy
My daughter has a pixel 3 so I checked out the 4 and was a little underwhelmed. I ended up leaving with the phone I came with. I got home and started shopping online. I stumbled upon a nib unlocked gray T-Mobile Z2 for $150. Considering the Samsung cost almost 5x as much and would need to be babied I pulled the trigger on the Motorola.
So in summary I love this phone enough to buy it again despite it being old as dirt in the tech world. I plan on riding the gray one until the wheels fall off or until some new hotness comes out that I see and just have to have.
Sent from my Moto Z (2) using Tapatalk
Owner of one of the first Z2 Force XT1789-06 dual sim with Nougat, since of reduced battery life and screen a bit "impressed" I decided to buy a new phone.
I decided for a "brand new" Xt1789-06 dual sim that I set up with Pie. Need I to add something?
enetec said:
Owner of one of the first Z2 Force XT1789-06 dual sim with Nougat, since of reduced battery life and screen a bit "impressed" I decided to buy a new phone.
I decided for a "brand new" Xt1789-06 dual sim that I set up with Pie. Need I to add something?
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Yeah, there is no better phone on the market with unbreakable screen. I would buy it again, too. Costs 399€ (very much, but high end for many years) at the moment. More than 2018 here in europe.
Set Up should be Lineage OS 16 and then it's perfect.