Nexus one or wait...?

[nhw]

YES, I know people have been asking the same question but most people can't seem to give some sort of unbiased answer.

I currently really like the Android UI and I think Nexus One would be the most affordable unlocked for the hardware specs given. I realllly want to get one but I did much research on problems associated with the phone and have read some horror stories about it. I'm especially turned off by the possibility that the screen could randomly crack! and it shouldn't be put it pockets either!

I just need honest answers on users of the Nexus One for a month or more, what is the condition of their phone? Has the screen cracked spontaneously? Is there a lot of dust trapped under the screen? Is the "multitouch" interface not functioning well? the keyboard not functioning well?

Then I will decide whether to buy the Nexus or wait for other phones.

 

[ParishyM]

i've had my N1 for over a weak and so far had zero problems.
no dust, good signal strength, accurate GPS, touch screen
works fine. all in all i am very happy so far !

 

[Talderon]

I have had my Nexus One for over a month now and I don't have a case or screen protector for it. I only use the soft pouch it comes with.

I always have it in the pouch except when I am charging or using it. I carry it in my front pocket of my pants all the time and even sit with it in my pocket. I have yet to have ANY issues with the screen whatsoever.

The screen is made with Gorilla Glass (google it) so the screen itself cracking is hard to do. You can't even really scratch this thing at all.

I have not had the notorious dust under the screen issue either.

Compared to other phones I have had, I feel it is well worth the money and a great phone. I love it and I doubt i will trade up for a looooooooong time.

Feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions or want to know any more details.

 

[MartinS]

I've had mine since January. I've had no problems with it at all. It's survived a pretty nasty drop without so much as a scratch.

Everything else on it works fine. I'm still as absorbed by the Nexus One as the week I got it.

If you like the phone and Android then go ahead. Most devices have owners with horror stories - and forums are generally there to help fix problems which by nature is what people post so it does make these problems seem mire widespread.

Any more specifics, feel free to ask.

 

[andrew53517]

Good posts guys! Those were really helpful! Thanks!

 

[Talderon]

Good posts guys! Those were really helpful! Thanks!

No problem.

Ok, now that I talked about the good, here is the bad... What I don't like about the Nexus One...

Please note here - I have NOT unlocked the bootloader or rooted my phone - It is still STOCK.

Volume - The volume of the ear piece when using it as a normal phone is a little low. There is a hack to fix this, but you have to unlock the boot loader (which voids the warranty) and install a custom ROM with the Kernel Hack to fix this.

Stock Headphones - They are great in function and quality, however, the ear buds are HUGE... I mean, I am 6'5" tall and a big guy and they are even too big for my ears...

Speaker Phone - Good, not great, but good.

Now, I am sure others can come up with more that they don't like, but those are the "big 3" for me, and on all honesty, none of them I would see as "deal breakers" from my use.

Hope this helps too!

 

[andrew53517]

Okay that's good! I would probably root it when I get it so those wouldn't be a problem for me. (I'm sorta of a hacker )..

Question though; How are the touch sensitive buttons at the bottom? Like back, menu, home, search? My Droid's are amazing, you can touch them anywhere and they respond perfect. So is the Nexus One's pretty good too? (I read they were just average...)

 

[MartinS]

The touch buttons are OK. In reality, the sensitive portion of them is probably set slightly high so if you hit the etching in the middle sometimes there's no response.

I have become used to swiping up over them slightly and now find it natural to do so.

 

[noisemonkey]

Yeah great phone, super fast. The buttons at the top respond better if you touch slightly above where the symbol is but apart from that all cool. I put the Zagg custom designed skin on mine and there's no way it would scratch now although the screen protector was very hard to put on. Had no problem with dust under the screen. Use swype and handcent for texting.

 

[mazzabl]

funny how you believe a small percentage with problems yet anyone who says anything positive about the phone is bias? i challenge you to find 10 people with cracked screens (aside from those who dropped it, which would be their fault). all of these "horror stories" are a small minority of nexus one owners or a rare case, or lemon. people come to forums to get help solving problems not to rant and rave about how awesome their device is, hence you mostly reading negative things. overall, its a great phone, and its just that, a phone, not a life changing purchase. i previously owned an iphone 3gs prior to getting the nexus one, i have no regrets making the switch, although there are things i miss about the iphone, no phone is perfect. you wont be dissapointed with the nexus one, if you are, return it using the 14 day return policy and move on.

 

[nhw]

funny how you believe a small percentage with problems yet anyone who says anything positive about the phone is bias? i challenge you to find 10 people with cracked screens (aside from those who dropped it, which would be their fault). all of these "horror stories" are a small minority of nexus one owners or a rare case, or lemon. people come to forums to get help solving problems not to rant and rave about how awesome their device is, hence you mostly reading negative things. overall, its a great phone, and its just that, a phone, not a life changing purchase. i previously owned an iphone 3gs prior to getting the nexus one, i have no regrets making the switch, although there are things i miss about the iphone, no phone is perfect. you wont be dissapointed with the nexus one, if you are, return it using the 14 day return policy and move on.

Hmm I know what you mean, but when a more credible source like CNET reports about their own Nexus having cracks for no reason, adding on to many have said the inside of their screen suddenly started cracking for no reason, I've got reason to doubt right?

Not only that, a lot of people have difficulties admiting the cons to their own phone and feel the need to show that they are intellectually superior and more well informed in forums or something. Which is basically what I was referring to.

Not expecting it to be life changing of course but it's an expensive investment I want to make sure it's worth it.

 

[Talderon]

Hmm I know what you mean, but when a more credible source like CNET reports about their own Nexus having cracks for no reason, adding on to many have said the inside of their screen suddenly started cracking for no reason, I've got reason to doubt right?

Not only that, a lot of people have difficulties admiting the cons to their own phone and feel the need to show that they are intellectually superior and more well informed in forums or something. Which is basically what I was referring to.

Not expecting it to be life changing of course but it's an expensive investment I want to make sure it's worth it.

I find comments like "screen cracked for no reason" kind of funny because I find it hard to believe to have the screen crack just sitting on my desk with nothing around it. I mean, if they say "I pulled it out of my pocket where I had my keys and about $3.00 in change as well as some wadded paper and remembered I had my phone in there after I sat down and heard a "crack" sound", then I would tend to believe them.

If they dropped the phone and it cracked, ok, but we would need to know how high, what kind of surface it hit and all that. Now, Manufacturing is not perfect. There could be those rare cases where someone drops a phone from about 2 feet up onto carpet and something breaks. 1 in 100,000 does not mean the phone sucks and is defective, just means you got a bad one and it should be replaced. Luck of the draw there, and this could be true about ANYTHING.

One of the issues I have with reading all of these "horror stories" is that reporting "Hey, this phone is great and I have had it a month with no issues" won't get your press time or clicks, but reporting something bad, defective or whatever will get a million times more attention than just saying it works.

I mean, if you visit forums that have multiple handsets, you are going to find more and more posts about issues with the phone than posts of people saying they have no issues.

I just don't buy into the hype and would rather do what you have done and get honest perspectives from folks that have on and use one regularly.

Oh yeah, the human element as well. I have worked customer service (in the past) long enough to know to not believe anyone when they call and say something like "I went to use my phone and it is locked up and can't boot" and you ask them "what did you do just before it happened"... They will almost ALWAYS answer "nothing" and yet, after digging and digging, you will finally get out of them that they tried to do something with the phone they were not supposed too (like run over it with the car on accident, or install an app for one device on a totally different device and on and on).

Long post, sorry about that...

 

[nhw]

I find comments like "screen cracked for no reason" kind of funny because I find it hard to believe to have the screen crack just sitting on my desk with nothing around it. I mean, if they say "I pulled it out of my pocket where I had my keys and about $3.00 in change as well as some wadded paper and remembered I had my phone in there after I sat down and heard a "crack" sound", then I would tend to believe them.

If they dropped the phone and it cracked, ok, but we would need to know how high, what kind of surface it hit and all that. Now, Manufacturing is not perfect. There could be those rare cases where someone drops a phone from about 2 feet up onto carpet and something breaks. 1 in 100,000 does not mean the phone sucks and is defective, just means you got a bad one and it should be replaced. Luck of the draw there, and this could be true about ANYTHING.

One of the issues I have with reading all of these "horror stories" is that reporting "Hey, this phone is great and I have had it a month with no issues" won't get your press time or clicks, but reporting something bad, defective or whatever will get a million times more attention than just saying it works.

I mean, if you visit forums that have multiple handsets, you are going to find more and more posts about issues with the phone than posts of people saying they have no issues.

I just don't buy into the hype and would rather do what you have done and get honest perspectives from folks that have on and use one regularly.

Oh yeah, the human element as well. I have worked customer service (in the past) long enough to know to not believe anyone when they call and say something like "I went to use my phone and it is locked up and can't boot" and you ask them "what did you do just before it happened"... They will almost ALWAYS answer "nothing" and yet, after digging and digging, you will finally get out of them that they tried to do something with the phone they were not supposed too (like run over it with the car on accident, or install an app for one device on a totally different device and on and on).

Long post, sorry about that...

Yeah I know that mostly users who have problems go to the forums however I have read alot of "I really love this phone and had a week/month with it and no issues but suddenly the screen starts cracking for no reason/dust starts rapidly collecting/multitouch not working etc."

I guess this really made me skeptical about the quality of the device, but now after reading everyones comments I guess as you guys said it's probably mostly lemons/unfortunate events/plain lies in some.

Thanks alot for the feedback everyone! Didn't think I'd get such swift responses but this forum is amazing...!

I'd be happy if anyone had more opinions to share.

 

[inspiron41]

i purchased the nexus like 1-2 hrs after it was launched and got it the same week. i applied my own person scratch resistant screen and i purchased a protective skin like as soon as i could. i always keep it my pants when i'm not using it. and the rest of the time when i'm home it's charging connected to notebook. i havent develop any dusk under the screen nor is the screen is showing any sign of cracking. I will admit i dropped it three times. Once off a treadmill going 6.8 mph and it got flung behind me. and i dropped it consecutively at waist height while trying to open a fridge with the same height. and it's still functioning well.

i will admit i have miss-alignment issues with the keyboard. i dont know how often, but it's at least 2-3x a week. but it's easily correctly by hitting the power button and turning it on again. i really believe it's a software error and not a hardware error.

other than that....my only big problem is finding a universal keyboard. i like swype and i like the stock keyboard because of the voice input. swype isnt the best keyboard for all the programs, but it's the best way of input text. idk, they should just one perfect keyboard. i have to flip through three keyboard.

 

[Talderon]

i purchased the nexus like 1-2 hrs after it was launched and got it the same week. i applied my own person scratch resistant screen and i purchased a protective skin like as soon as i could. i always keep it my pants when i'm not using it. and the rest of the time when i'm home it's charging connected to notebook. i havent develop any dusk under the screen nor is the screen is showing any sign of cracking. I will admit i dropped it three times. Once off a treadmill going 6.8 mph and it got flung behind me. and i dropped it consecutively at waist height while trying to open a fridge with the same height. and it's still functioning well.

i will admit i have miss-alignment issues with the keyboard. i dont know how often, but it's at least 2-3x a week. but it's easily correctly by hitting the power button and turning it on again. i really believe it's a software error and not a hardware error.

other than that....my only big problem is finding a universal keyboard. i like swype and i like the stock keyboard because of the voice input. swype isnt the best keyboard for all the programs, but it's the best way of input text. idk, they should just one perfect keyboard. i have to flip through three keyboard.

The only misalignment issue I have had in the past (that I have not had recently) is when I am connected to the BT Handsfree in my truck and try to hit Mute. Again, I have not had that issue in a long while, but the fix was the same, hit power to turn off the screen, hit power again to turn it on and poof, fixed.

As for the keyboard, I use the HTC_IME that comes with the Sense ROM's. There is a great set of Dev's over at XDA that ported it over (High-Res version for the N1 screen) and works for rooted AND non-rooted N1's.

Original: [APP MOD] HTC_IME Keyboard (5th April) v20: More swiping and fixes - xda-developers

Pre-Skinned: [Skins] HTC_IME High Res v20 pre-themed HTC_IME.apk update.zip style! Apr-05. - xda-developers

Any of you that want to use it, follow the directions in the posts. If you are non-rooted you just need to get the APK file out of the ZIP for both the Keyboard and Clicker apps, install with Astro or other file manager.

Once you do that, you need to go to:

Settings > Language & Keyboard > Touch Input

Then, on a screen with text input, Lock Press and hold until a menu pops up and click Touch Input and your new keyboard will be used.

The work prediction is nice and always being enhanced as well as the voice input.

Thanks!

 

[MartinS]

BTW - the Nexus One screen is not Gorilla Glass.

Having said that, if you drop any large screen phone (including Droid which does have GG) you are asking for it to break.

 

[Talderon]

BTW - the Nexus One screen is not Gorilla Glass.

Having said that, if you drop any large screen phone (including Droid which does have GG) you are asking for it to break.

Source? (other than forum posts)

 

[Chopes]

Source? (other than forum posts)

...Where's your source confirming it is?

 

[BigTimeNexusFan]

YES, I know people have been asking the same question but most people can't seem to give some sort of unbiased answer.

I currently really like the Android UI and I think Nexus One would be the most affordable unlocked for the hardware specs given. I realllly want to get one but I did much research on problems associated with the phone and have read some horror stories about it. I'm especially turned off by the possibility that the screen could randomly crack! and it shouldn't be put it pockets either!

I just need honest answers on users of the Nexus One for a month or more, what is the condition of their phone? Has the screen cracked spontaneously? Is there a lot of dust trapped under the screen? Is the "multitouch" interface not functioning well? the keyboard not functioning well?

Then I will decide whether to buy the Nexus or wait for other phones.

I bought mine in Jan. and no cracks in the screen. After a month of having the phone I liked it enough I got my wife one. Dumped the 3gs for this phone and haven't looked back. Love it. The ONLY issues I've really had was the screen being un-responsive some times. But after a reboot, it is back to normal. Not sure why it does that but it isn't too often. Love the phone. Love Android OS 2.1..... the ONLY thing I would do different is get one on Verizon (when it comes out) vs T-mobile. Thinking of selling mine when the verizon model comes out and just get that one for coverage purposes.

 

[myrv]

I have not had any problems with cracks in the screen, however, I have had two Nexus One phones and kept each less than a week. Both were returned as dead on arrival due to defects. Now, to be fair, these were the new AT&T versions and I was an early adopter, but still, quality control should have been better. That is actually what is holding me back on trying out a third.

Here is my honest review. The touchscreen isn't as responsive as an iPhone, however, it is very close. Also, as others have mentioned, the four buttons can be a pain as you have to swipe near the top to get them to work and you can easily hit them by mistake when going for the space bar on the keyboard.

Overall it was a great phone and I really liked it. However, one had a malfunctioning trackball and the other had a place on the screen with a permanent white spot. Even though I had to return them both, I will say that Google and HTC were prompt with shipping me my phone, issuing a return sticker, and refunding me my money. Overall a good experience there.... just need to have a meeting with quality control department.

As a last statement, I wish Google would sell their phone in BestBuy. That would allow people to see it in action and realize how great of a phone it is, as well as make sure it works before leaving the store.

 

[nhw]

Thanks for the input guys, I just bought my Nexus One today and hopefully everything turns out good!

 

[nickacs]

As a last statement, I wish Google would sell their phone in BestBuy. That would allow people to see it in action and realize how great of a phone it is, as well as make sure it works before leaving the store.

+1... If that was the case Google would be selling a lot more of these babies... Grrr... Wish it would happen for all the carriers, but oh wells..

 

[loganss]

I've had my n1 since February and I think it's great.

I don't have a case for it or screen protector. I just keep it in the soft pouch it came with. I always keep it in my front pocket with my keys and other phone. No cracked glass or dust in screen.

The purchase of the n1 is one of my best electronic purchases I've ever made. It replaced a bunch of devices.

Mulit-touch works ok. Its not perfect but it gets the job done. Sometimes when attemptin to pinch to zoom the screen just pans.

Only time the screen becomes unresponsive is when I'm lying down in bed w lights off n usin the n1 by keepin it above my head. Like others said cycling power button makes things go back to normal.

 

[Roze]

I'm new to the N1 world, just owned mine for over a week now. Loving my N1 so far, it's a mini laptop I can carry around everywhere! No major issues as discussed in some of the threads. I find the touch screen very responsive (4/5 if iphone is 5/5 in responsiveness). I love Android OS, that I am able to customize what I want and where I want it with the apps/widgets.

Only time the screen becomes unresponsive is when I'm lying down in bed w lights off n usin the n1 by keepin it above my head.

I notice that too, when I'm lying down and trying to use it, can't really scroll or pinch/zoom.

Not a big fan of the KB, I'm trying to adjust from a resistive screen where I was able to use my nails to a capacitative screen. I've put myself on the waiting list to be a swype beta tester. Tried to use scriptwriter but it didn't work : <

As mentioned by others, volume isn't the greatest. It's average at best and I feel the noise cancellation mic is more of a gimmick than anything.

I find the accelerometer sort of slow. I'm not sure how fast is fast..but 0.8-1.2 seconds along time to wait for the screen to adjust imo. Is this normal and I'm just impatient or is this really slow? I usually shake my phone to get it to landscape/portrait quicker XD

I also find the trackball to be very slow (when I'm trying to move between letters). I'm wondering if there's a way to have it speed up?

Also...how do I cut and paste sections of what I write? I can copy all..paste all but that's about it XD

Thanks,
-Roze-

P.S. don't know if it's inappropriate for me to ask these questions here...or maybe I should create my own thread XD

 

[crabman]

First time I saw a slow screen rotation speed complaint. Mine moves around with very little delay. Coming from winmo I was able to adjust the rotation speed and I found that if you make it too quick you end up with unintended rotations when you moved the phone around a little. There needs to be a little bit of a "ok my owner really wants me to rotate the screen" lag so that unintentional rotates are weeded out. Just eyeballing but mine rotates right about the same speed as I settled on in winmo which was about the best compromise I found between speed and erroneous rotations. Not saying you dont have an unseemly lag but I have been prowling the various forums for weeks as I recently bought in and not seen this complaint. That implies that you have an issue or your expectations may be unrealistic.