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Has anyone considered a different phone brand?
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If you're a music fan it will be the best phone you've ever used for listening to music w/ quality wired headphones. The phone's DAC is phenomenal, I was blown away. Nothing in the history of cell phones has ever come close and nothing out at the moment comes close. Those who haven't personally heard it shouldn't comment on it or speculate. That is the phone's best feature in my opinion. I can go on and on about it...you can adjust the highs, mids, and lows - for each ear - and save multiple profiles for different sets of headphones. It is baked into the phone's OS and so easy to navigate through. It compensates if your headphones are slightly uneven left vs. right, and brings up certain levels or lowers them, depending on your circumstances. It also is good for those who have hearing loss. You can adjust each ear separately.
Build quality is VERY solid. The max screen brightness could've been a little brighter but it was fine for me honestly. No complaints with battery life, the turbo charger is sweet. Call quality was good enough. WiFi calling did not work well, if that is something you care about. Often times it would keep relying on a very weak Verizon signal. Doesn't happen with the iPhone.
*Edit- I had a bad time with the camera on the HTC. I'm not that into shooting photos from my cell phone but when I did use it I was not at all impressed with the quality.
I think the HTC 10 is the 2nd best Android phone I've used aside from the Droid Turbo 2.
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Thanks for the review! I use my phone for taking pictures a lot and sucks to hear that the quality isn't quite there. Sounds like it's great phone otherwise.
I'm sure I could've adjusted some settings to improve the quality, I'm just not into shooting photos from the phone. You should definitely give it a whirl if you have an interest in something other than Apple. Especially since the price just dropped. Be forewarned though about the brightness control!
I am not an HTC fan nor have ever owned one. So do not have direct experience. That aside, they did release a firmware update. The sample photos look great to me.
http://www.androidcentral.com/htc-10-camera-patch-updated-impressions-and-sample-shots
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Google is offering 24/7 support with their Pixel line. https://madeby.google.com/phone/support/
But agree they need to offer some brick & mortar stores that can service Android devices to be competitive.
Why brick and mortar? For most electronics I buy, from appliances to computers to smartphones, I never visit the store from a support perspective. The only time I really visit the Apple Store is because I was directed there. Have taken a couple of their in ouse classes...
One aspect of a store that is beneficial, but I can use Best Buy or others for that, is to get the "in hand feel" for a device or to look at it up close.
I think a physical store is more important for phones than other consumer electronics considering how dependent we are on them. I know of people who don't even have computers anymore and their smartphone is their only source of internet at home. Not to mention how many people have let go of their landlines.
Yes, and no.
I think here in the US something like 60%+ have dropped landlines. I have. What is interesting for cell phone purchasing, is the majority of people either order online via their carrier, direct from the manufacturer, or a 3rd party supplier like Amazon. The majority who go into a store to purchase already know what model they want. Outside of allowing the salesperson the opportunity to change their mind, they could have just ordered on line.
I like being able to walk into a store if I want. Still, does it make fiscal sense?
I switched to the Note 4 back in 2014 when the iPhone 6 was released, I lasted about 1 week and realised the error of my ways. I am a sucker for Apple I know but I am happy to be so!
Apple hardware is probably the best in the industry but iOS bores me to death. Feels like it belongs in a 2005 phone.
Absolutely ZERO customization. I wish they would allow for some without a jailbreak.
I don't see any appealing devices out there at the moment. If there were, I would have not gotten a 7+. The Note 7 was a appealing, and I did get that at first, but we all know how that turned out.
If the pixel phones were about 150$ less, I can honestly say I would be very tempted to switch. I feel like they're pricing like Apple and Samsung but they haven't "earned" that privilege.
I totally agree. I just saw the pricing. Decided to hold off. Until they prove that they produce a device worthy of that price I cannot spend the money on it. Beautiful device and software seems awesome but again, do not price a device in its infancy the same as one that has been around for 10 years.
That's because iPhone users are too mature for that kind of childish crap.
If it wasn't for the lack of OIS, the Pixel would have been a great alternative.
Agree, though it does have EIS if that helps.
"However, certain consumers were a bit puzzled by the fact that the Google Pixel and Pixel XL don’t feature optical image stabilization (OIS) technology, something that’s expected from pretty much every modern flagship. So much so that one interested party recently took to the Google Product Forums to ask why is it the case and whether electronic image stabilization (EIS) is “just better” than OIS. Fortunately, a Google employee nicknamed “IsaacOnCamera” soon explained the company’s decision to pick EIS over OIS. For starters, the employee asserted that neither of the two is better than the other, because they’re both used for different goals. IsaacOnCamera stated that OIS is mostly used for improving performance in low-light conditions by mechanically compensating for the inevitable shaking of the user’s hand within each frame. This means that longer exposures in badly lit areas are still possible as long as users are willing to accept the existence of motion blur in their photographs. On the other hand, EIS is used to compensate for shaky hands during video recording as it’s designed to electronically maintain framing.
Besides OIS being primarily used for photography and EIS having most uses for video, Isaac also noted that EIS is easier to fit into smaller cameras, which makes sense given how it doesn’t require any particular optical components like the optical image stabilization does. Given how both the Pixel and Pixel XL are only 8.6 mm thick, opting for OIS within their cases without ending up with a bulge would have been difficult. In addition to that, the aforementioned sensor size means that both Pixel flagships are already quite capable of performing in low-light conditions, and IsaacOnCamera argues that performance is the only thing that matters, not the way it’s achieved."
I also have a hard time imagining the Pixel holding its value the way Apple does. I could sell my 7 plus for probably 70% of what I paid for it. Six minths down the road the Pixel may get me half of what I paid.....
True. iPhone has always had great resale. However am curious how the 7/6s/6 resale will fare if Apple really meets the rumors for the iP8 or what ever they will name it coming Sept. '17? The improvements & innovation may sway more people to purchase new over used?
No issue other than the annoying Bluetooth problem. If I get rid of my iPhone, I'll be going back to a dumb flip phone.
Pixel's problem will be Google itself and its propensity to throw things at the wall and SE what sticks. And abandoning everything else without recourse.
Moreover, outside of phone forum members, it has no real history to serve as a foundation for premium pricing. It may be a great phone, but Google is not now positioned to charge so much for it.
Moreover, outside of phone forum members, it has no real history to serve as a foundation for premium pricing. It may be a great phone, but Google is not now positioned to charge so much for it.
Yup, and lots of stuff sticks. At least they are trying to please you with innovation. Or would you rather you get less for your $650+?
I beg to differ. Plenty of people are fed up with Apples approach to ride the brand and not do anything extra. You got an iPhone 6 3rd year in a row - sorry, it's the same damn phone (for many the 7 is less). I had a 6, 6S and 7. Know the OS inside out. Every year you get top of the line hardware but very incremental software update - makes sense to you that only the current hardware can keep up with the current software? Wake up!
The problem with Android has been selling out to the carriers so they can hijack the OS. Pure Android is bliss. Rich in useful features, customizable, fluid, snappy. Customization isn't a phone geek term - it is feature rich environment that you can augment to your needs and level of understanding of the OS - bottom line you get a powerful device that save you precious minutes every day in your short life.
Keep an open mind and explore - certain things will be life changing for some of you (such as pure Android).
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