Up for an upgrade soon on VZW, how long do I hold out?

[Activate: AMD]

As the title says, I'll be up soon for an upgrade to my DINC. Its getting pretty long in the tooth and I'd like to upgrade to something with LTE. My problem right now is that most of the current crop of LTE phones seem to have crappy battery life. Theres also the fact that some new SOCs should hopefully be coming out soon-ish based on new processes and A15 cores, as well as LTE radios with lower power consumption. I'd like to avoid buying something now if a major generational leap is going to be made within a few months of my purchase. I could probably reinstall CM7 to fix some of the bugginess thats built up over the last few months (running a gingerbread sense rom right now) and gut it out if there was really a compelling reason to wait for something great.

Other than that, I can't say I'm in love with any of the offerings right now. GNex would probably be my go-to, but I could hold out hope that VZW will get a GS3 derivative, though it will likely have some typical crappy VZW modifications done to it.

Enough rambling though, anyone have any insight into whats coming up on the horizon within the next few months for VZW?

 

[T4rd]

I held out with my OG Droid from about this time last year to the launch of the Galaxy Nexus, lol. But that was because the Thunderbolt (holds records for worst battery life), Revolution (it's LG and a watered down Thunderbolt), Charge (old Galaxy S w. LTE), DX2 (no 4G), Droid 3 (horrible display and no 4G), and the Bionic (not a bad phone but I was holding out for the GS II at this point) all sucked enough to not want me to keep them for 20 months. The Rezound and Razr were decent, but by the time those came out, the Nexus had been "announced" for Verizon at that point.

But right now is a great time to be due for an upgrade, IMO. There's always going to be something around the corner, but Verizon has arguably the best lineup at the moment with maybe the exception of the One X on AT&T now and soon the Evo LTE on Sprint (though you'll have to suffer with 3G for a significant amount of time before you see LTE on that phone).

If you really want a phone right now, I still don't think you could go wrong with the Galaxy Nexus. But it seems with your preferences, the Inc 4G might be better suited for you. It's basically a One S on Verizon, except with a smaller, but better display, IMO (qHD SLCD 2 vs. qHD Pentile SAMOLED on the other One S variants). So far the S4 chip on the One series has yielded considerably better-than-average battery life over other LTE smart phones due to the buildt-in LTE radio on the S4 SoC and it being a smaller (28nm) fab process over the previous S3s (45nm).

But since it's not quite out yet, you should definitely wait until it is and see how the reviews go for it. I'm pretty sure they'll be pretty positive though. Maybe by then we'll hear something about the GS III coming to Verizon (already one rumor in the news about it) and maybe a ballpark date for it. I wouldn't count on it though considering the cluster fuck that was the launch of the Galaxy Nexus on Verizon because Verizon didn't even acknowledge it until the day before it launched .

 

[Eagle923]

The Razr Maxx has excellent battery life and is a great phone. I had a Galaxy Nexus but had way too many signal problems with mine and after 3 difference exchanges I went with a Maxx.

I rooted mine and installed the ICS 4.03 leak and it runs perfect.

 

[wtburnette]

The Razr Maxx has excellent battery life and is a great phone. I had a Galaxy Nexus but had way too many signal problems with mine and after 3 difference exchanges I went with a Maxx.

I rooted mine and installed the ICS 4.03 leak and it runs perfect.

This. I upgraded my DINC to a Razr Maxx two weeks ago and couldn't be happier.

 

[Activate: AMD]

If you really want a phone right now, I still don't think you could go wrong with the Galaxy Nexus. But it seems with your preferences, the Inc 4G might be better suited for you. It's basically a One S on Verizon, except with a smaller, but better display, IMO (qHD SLCD 2 vs. qHD Pentile SAMOLED on the other One S variants). So far the S4 chip on the One series has yielded considerably better-than-average battery life over other LTE smart phones due to the buildt-in LTE radio on the S4 SoC and it being a smaller (28nm) fab process over the previous S3s (45nm).

The Inc 4G seems pretty pale in comparison to the One X TBH, it has no real distinguishing features other than perhaps the S4 SoC and the fact that its smaller than the other high-end phones these days, which isn't an issue for me. I'd like to get something cutting edge when i do upgrade, since thats really the only way to be sure your device is somewhat relevent by the time the next upgrade rolls around. GNex is close, but the SoC choice was disappointingly conservative and I don't see it having the same staying power as something more recent.

 

[T4rd]

The Razr Maxx has excellent battery life and is a great phone. I had a Galaxy Nexus but had way too many signal problems with mine and after 3 difference exchanges I went with a Maxx.

I rooted mine and installed the ICS 4.03 leak and it runs perfect.

There must have been a bad batch of G'Nex's or something, I have yet to have signal issues on mine. In fact, a co-worker of mine has the Razr (non-Maxx, but they're identical other than the battery and thickness) and loses 3G in our building all the time while I very rarely lose it on my Gnex. I actually just WiFi tethered her phone to mine so her phone could pull a new update it kept bugging her about.

OP, remember that you have 15 days to return a phone for any reason and keep your upgrade too. That should give you enough time to decide if you want to keep a phone or not.

The Inc 4G seems pretty pale in comparison to the One X TBH, it has no real distinguishing features other than perhaps the S4 SoC and the fact that its smaller than the other high-end phones these days, which isn't an issue for me. I'd like to get something cutting edge when i do upgrade, since thats really the only way to be sure your device is somewhat relevent by the time the next upgrade rolls around. GNex is close, but the SoC choice was disappointingly conservative and I don't see it having the same staying power as something more recent.

The Inc 4G isn't supposed to compare to the One X, hence why HTC launched the One S series which the Inc 4G is based off of. It's a mid-range phone at mid-range pricing ($150 starting out on contract), but I think it's a great phone for the price considering it'll be the fastest phone on Verizon for probably the next couple months at least. The S4 SoC and internal hardware is pretty much the most significant factor in deciding if a phone keeps getting support in future updates and extending the longevity. So it doesn't make sense to me much if you disregard that in spite of the display or whatever else you may not like about the phone.

I don't know how you would be worried about the Gnex's "staying power" either. It's a Nexus device, so it will definitely see at least one major OS update and get that long before any other phone on the market (if they get updated at all). Plus it will probably have the best dev community of any other phone (including the GS III) with all the ROM support it has until the next Nexus device launches. That's half the reason anyone buys it; for the guaranteed longevity of the device. Just because the SoC isn't bleeding-edge, doesn't mean it will be obsolete as soon as the next best thing comes out. It's a Cortex A9 dual-core phone that shouldn't have a problem with anything you throw at it for the next life cycle. The new Exynos is no difference aside from having 2 more cores (since it's just 4x A9s on one chip).

 

[Activate: AMD]

The Inc 4G isn't supposed to compare to the One X, hence why HTC launched the One S series which the Inc 4G is based off of. It's a mid-range phone at mid-range pricing ($150 starting out on contract), but I think it's a great phone for the price considering it'll be the fastest phone on Verizon for probably the next couple months at least. The S4 SoC and internal hardware is pretty much the most significant factor in deciding if a phone keeps getting support in future updates and extending the longevity. So it doesn't make sense to me much if you disregard that in spite of the display or whatever else you may not like about the phone.

Yes I know that, but I'm not in the market for a One S, I'm looking for something like the One X. I also did not disregard the SoC, I mentioned that it was a distinguishing feature. Unfortunately the rest of the package doesn't excite me at all.

I don't know how you would be worried about the Gnex's "staying power" either. It's a Nexus device, so it will definitely see at least one major OS update and get that long before any other phone on the market (if they get updated at all). Plus it will probably have the best dev community of any other phone (including the GS III) with all the ROM support it has until the next Nexus device launches. That's half the reason anyone buys it; for the guaranteed longevity of the device. Just because the SoC isn't bleeding-edge, doesn't mean it will be obsolete as soon as the next best thing comes out. It's a Cortex A9 dual-core phone that shouldn't have a problem with anything you throw at it for the next life cycle. The new Exynos is no difference aside from having 2 more cores (since it's just 4x A9s on one chip).

its a 45nm OMAP 4460 with an SGX540, the same basic SoC thats been kicking around since the bionic, just clocked slightly higher. At least the Exynos is on a smaller process node with a much more powerful GPU, though I honestly think quad A9's are sort of pointless. I know it'll have a lot of dev support and thats why I would probably go with it if I upgraded today. That said, I'm a lot more interested in getting an idea about whats coming, because I'm familiar with whats here right now.

 

[T4rd]

Yes I know that, but I'm not in the market for a One S, I'm looking for something like the One X. I also did not disregard the SoC, I mentioned that it was a distinguishing feature. Unfortunately the rest of the package doesn't excite me at all.


its a 45nm OMAP 4460 with an SGX540, the same basic SoC thats been kicking around since the bionic, just clocked slightly higher. At least the Exynos is on a smaller process node with a much more powerful GPU, though I honestly think quad A9's are sort of pointless. I know it'll have a lot of dev support and thats why I would probably go with it if I upgraded today. That said, I'm a lot more interested in getting an idea about whats coming, because I'm familiar with whats here right now.

Cool, it seems like you know what you want then. You just have to decide what's more important to you. Every phone has a trade-off and you just have to decide what you're willing to deal with.

If only they would just make a phone that appeases everyone.. you know; ~4.5" HD display (SLCD 2 or SAMOLED+), A15 or equivalent SoC w/ LTE built in, expandable memory, replaceable/expandable battery or at least something with a ~3300 mAh battery like the Maxx, unencrypted/unlockable bootloader, loud speaker(s), GS II camera or better and have the same exact variant across all carriers so the dev community can code for a single phone (most unlikely thing on this list).

One can dream, eh? Lol

 

[Jeffman]

I actually really like my Rezound. The battery life isn't great, but I get through a full day on it fine.

 

[Activate: AMD]

~4.5" HD display (SLCD 2 or SAMOLED+), A15 or equivalent SoC w/ LTE built in, expandable memory, replaceable/expandable battery or at least something with a ~3300 mAh battery like the Maxx, unencrypted/unlockable bootloader, loud speaker(s), GS II camera or better and have the same exact variant across all carriers so the dev community can code for a single phone (most unlikely thing on this list).

One can dream, eh? Lol

IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK?!

Seriously though, The recipe for success on the hardware front doesn't seem incredibly difficult since so many phones incorporate most of them. it just seems like the best phones incorporate all but one or two and make compromises for no apparent reason... and then the carriers add their own useless bullshit on top, or cut features out (again, for no apparent reason) The phone market is incredibly irritating!

Anyway, I guess what it really boils down to is: will we see phones on VZW based on A15 soc's before the end of the year, since most SoC makers have availability listed in 2Q2012

 

[naa904]

anything with an unlocked bootloader should be good. in that case only samsung kinda does that right now.

 

[Eshelmen]

But that was because the Thunderbolt (holds records for worst battery life),

Lol I dunno , my Samsung Charge gets 2 hours of use time . haha

 

[HeavensCloud]

I'm due for two upgrades, there's nothing out there at the moment for Verizon that I feel would blow my X2 out of the water. I guess I'll be waiting til winter, you know they will drop 100 new phones just in time for Christmas.

 

[Eshelmen]

I'm due for two upgrades, there's nothing out there at the moment for Verizon that I feel would blow my X2 out of the water. I guess I'll be waiting til winter, you know they will drop 100 new phones just in time for Christmas.

Agrees. its almost sickening how much they whore America with phones.

 

[Climber]

There must have been a bad batch of G'Nex's or something, I have yet to have signal issues on mine. In fact, a co-worker of mine has the Razr (non-Maxx, but they're identical other than the battery and thickness) and loses 3G in our building all the time while I very rarely lose it on my Gnex. I actually just WiFi tethered her phone to mine so her phone could pull a new update it kept bugging her about.

Im on my third nexus due to signal issues. This will be the last one. If this one has signal issues then im going to look at a new phone or cancel my verizon contrsct. It is insane that in downtown denver im stuck on 1x while my party of 12 all had full 3g or 4g signal. I cant send texts, make phone calls, or receive email about 30% of the time. The phone is amazing on wifi, sucks ass everywhere else. Hoping this changes with this new one.

On a side note, the battery life has been significantly better on this phone than I ever thought possible. My previous two GN couldn't make it a full 4 hours on heavy use and the battery would drain overnight if left off the charger. This one only drained 4% overnight and I lost a little under 40% using it yesterday at my regular usage pattern.

 

[MrCrispy]

I bet Verizon will delay the GS3 till the holidays (all the more time for them to remove features, cripple the phone and add bloatware) till they have another 10 Droid/Razr variants.