Droid X -> Droid 3? Advise...

[sx4dude2013]

Hey ya'll.
So ive been with the X a lil over a year.
My moms EN V Touch is giving up on her....It used to be my phone and i gave it to her.
She like the keyboard and I used to love it. Txting was good.

We have 2 lines and 2 upgrades (ones early).
If I can convince here to get a data phone (arnt many feature phones out there) should I give her my X and get a D3?

I know D3's are currently BOGO, BUT I DO NOT wanna use both upgrades since it isnt a HUGE upgrade.

I do a lot of web browsing and texting...thats about it. I use the camera for spurr of the moment stuff to.

So.....If you were me and you could upgradea (but still keep an upgrade avaiable) would you? $199 isnt that bad and I dont have 4G in my area.
I have never had a droid slideout and dont know about durability....I need it to stay together. Ill also need an outerbox when it comes out. lol

So basically should mom have the new phone or should I? lol
I like the Dual-Core, Mirrio mode, SUPPOSEDLY AMAZING keyboad, etc.
IDK...Ive got 1 week to decide, mom needs me to get her set-up before I leave. lol

THANKS!!!

 

[Kevmueller]

We had an upgrade come up a few weeks ago and I told my soon to be 17 year old son I would let him get a smart phone (we moved him to an old one on July 3rd to get the unlimited data) that was under $200. He was looking between the X2 and the D3 and went with the D3. He has been very happy and the little bit I have used it, it is a really nice phone. Like you said not a huge upgrade from the DX. Mainly being dual-core. The screen is a bit smaller, but not as bad as the D2 (which my wife has) so typing on the screen is not that cramped and the keyboard is really nice, nicest one I have ever used or seen.

It is a motorola so the quality is top notch (IMHO no one builds a phone like motorola) so I would not worry about having issues with a slide out keyboard. The battery life is great, it is hard to say how great because my son is always playing on it now, but with heavy use he gets 14 to 16 hours easily. Also being a motorola it has a locked bootloader, however there are rumors that it will be unlocked (I would not hold my breath), but once it can be rooted (it shipped with Gingerbread and just this weekend it looked like a phone shipped with Gingerbread was rooted, not SBFing back to FroYo and installing a rooted version) I would think there should be good development for it.

They are both really good phones and you can't go wrong keeping the X until you are ready to upgrade it, or giving up your X and going to the D3. I would go in to the store and see how you like the bigger size (it is a little thinker, but not a brick) and the keyboard. Personally for me with all the recent development on the X I would not make the change, but I still feel that the X is one of the best phones that has been made to date.

 

[sx4dude2013]

We had an upgrade come up a few weeks ago and I told my soon to be 17 year old son I would let him get a smart phone (we moved him to an old one on July 3rd to get the unlimited data) that was under $200. He was looking between the X2 and the D3 and went with the D3. He has been very happy and the little bit I have used it, it is a really nice phone. Like you said not a huge upgrade from the DX. Mainly being dual-core. The screen is a bit smaller, but not as bad as the D2 (which my wife has) so typing on the screen is not that cramped and the keyboard is really nice, nicest one I have ever used or seen.

It is a motorola so the quality is top notch (IMHO no one builds a phone like motorola) so I would not worry about having issues with a slide out keyboard. The battery life is great, it is hard to say how great because my son is always playing on it now, but with heavy use he gets 14 to 16 hours easily. Also being a motorola it has a locked bootloader, however there are rumors that it will be unlocked (I would not hold my breath), but once it can be rooted (it shipped with Gingerbread and just this weekend it looked like a phone shipped with Gingerbread was rooted, not SBFing back to FroYo and installing a rooted version) I would think there should be good development for it.

They are both really good phones and you can't go wrong keeping the X until you are ready to upgrade it, or giving up your X and going to the D3. I would go in to the store and see how you like the bigger size (it is a little thinker, but not a brick) and the keyboard. Personally for me with all the recent development on the X I would not make the change, but I still feel that the X is one of the best phones that has been made to date.

Thanks for the great write up.
I kinda don't wanna move from the X cause I just got a new case and extended battery. Lol
I also do like the development into the x. The d3 doesnet seem to have that. I'm gonna go try out the keyboard today after work

 

[Metfanant]

the D3 is the better phone, and there is no doubt about that...However i personally have no use for the keyboard so the D3 is not for me...

if you like the keyboard then the D3 should be fine...

there are things to remember though...

the D3 is still locked down like the X, and there is no real reason to believe that will change...so the development community will be smaller, and will have to rely on work arounds like 2nd init to run ROMS like MIUI or CM just like the X...there are certainly better phones out there if you're looking to mod...

 

[sx4dude2013]

the D3 is the better phone, and there is no doubt about that...However i personally have no use for the keyboard so the D3 is not for me...

if you like the keyboard then the D3 should be fine...

there are things to remember though...

the D3 is still locked down like the X, and there is no real reason to believe that will change...so the development community will be smaller, and will have to rely on work arounds like 2nd init to run ROMS like MIUI or CM just like the X...there are certainly better phones out there if you're looking to mod...

Yea. The D3 would be something temporary. Atleast to get me through tell aomethibg great comes a long. I am very happy with the dev group for the DX. Do u think it will be similar with the D3?
I don't kno if I like the keyboard cause I'm been without one for so long...

 

[GandalfTehGray]

I think the Droid X has the best dev community for a locked down device due to it being the flagship phone for Verizon for a time, i doubt that it will get as much support as the X did so if i were you i would just wait and give your Mother the upgrade.

 

[WTF]

The D3 appeals to me too, although I was concerned about the quality of the pentile screen (I love the clarity, brightness and color of my DX). Last week I stopped by my local Verizon store and played with their display D3 for a bit - all my concerns disappeared after seeing the Droid 3 in real life. The screen is beautiful and the higher resolution is very cool. Yes, it is a bit smaller than the DX but not that much so. I did a side-by-side comparison of the D3 to my DX using Google Maps and the higher res was very pleasing to my eyes. I also have to say I didn't notice any pixelization (sp?) as some have reported that the pentile screens of the DX2 and Atrix have had, the D3's screen looked every bit as nice as my current phone.

The keyboard felt great as well. I came from Palm smartphones with the tiny keyboard on the front - the one on the D3 is huge by comparison and very easy to use, tactile feedback was solid and my huge hands didn't have problems with "fat-fingering" while typing.

Overall I was very impressed and will definitely consider this as an eventual replacement for my DX. I'm not jumping on it right away because my final upgrade discount is still 6 months away and I'm currently running a rooted OC/UV modded Froyo OS on my DX that allows for tethering when I need it on occasion (very handy) and as I understand it Gingerbread hasn't been rooted for the Droid 3 as of yet.

Just my $.02

 

[Steven58]

My son has the D3. Fantastic.

 

[Metfanant]

\Do u think it will be similar with the D3?

no, not even close

 

[sx4dude2013]

After going to the store and playing with the D3 I did notice a few things...

Pros:
*Keyboard is GREAT!!! Very nice to type on.
*VERY snappy....seriously, i loved the dual core
*IMHO I really liked the screen...no issues for my eyes
*Felt sturdy....good build quality

Cons:
*The key board was HARD to open. You def cant "open it on the fly"
*Also the slider action was difficult. One side with open up more than the other. Cause the screen when sliding out to "slant to the side" if you dont move both sides up at the same time..annoying...
*Smaller screen...I dont think i would wanna decrease in size

OVERALL, I liked the device, but its not for me. I really think my mom will enjoy it though.

NOTE: This is only after 10min in a local store...just things I noticed. lol
Plus it was hooked to the wall so I couldnt get the FULL effect
Thanks for everyones advice...I THINK im gonna pass.

 

[VoidedSaint]

no one can step away from the X, its the most impossible phone to leave once you realize what all is out there that is the same and for $300

 

[bouchigo]

Well there are quite a few better phones out there better than the X, just not justifiably (price vs what you get) better enough to move up

 

[VoidedSaint]

to make me move away from this X, the phone has to be unlocked, and doesnt need 4G but i wont complain if its there, because my town will be the last to get 4G in 2013 lol

 

[bouchigo]

I need a 4G phone, supposedly it's coming by the end of this year in my area

 

[VoidedSaint]

ugh your lucky, but i dun wanna pay that outrageous fee to use 4G lol

 

[bouchigo]

It shouldn't be outrageous, we get to keep our unlimited data for the same price we pay now

 

[VoidedSaint]

yeah but how long do you expect that to last?

 

[bouchigo]

Don't know, but I'm riding it until it's gone

 

[VoidedSaint]

yeah im apparently barely using 2 gb lol

 

[bouchigo]

I use between 2-3GB usually because I'm on wifi a lot.

 

[VoidedSaint]

same here, when i get home im on wifi

 

[bouchigo]

If 3G was faster I would use it more.

 

[VoidedSaint]

yeah i would too

 

[Optimus]

I have a strange story for you guys..I got an HTC Trophy from another person and I haven't switched back to my X yet lol...I still plan too but I'm digging WP7 (mango) alot, it has A TON more integrated services and apps than Android, but the polish isn't quite there. About the D3 vs the X..if you do alot of texting and precise input I would say it's good enough but to be honest it's too expensive right now. I saw it in VWZ and yes it's a terrific mid spec phone. However, the Bionic and GS2 are right around the corner and those are going to be phones in a completely different class....for 100 than the D3 more on contract renewel..I would wait for those.

 

[kg2128]

Was thinking about using a buddy upgrade on the droid 3 to hold me over until 4g coverage was a lot better but this changed my mind:

A Closer Look at the DROIDX2 and its qHD Display, PenTile at its Not-so-Finest - Droid Life: A Droid Community Blog

The droid 3 has the same screen but .3 inches smaller, according to the droid-life review of the droid 3. I realize some people don't care that much about the screen or don't care at all, and the hardware on the droid 3 is awesome. But definitely a deal breaker for me.

http://www.droid-life.com/2011/07/21/motorola-droid3-review-verizon/