Droid 3 - First Impressions

Luigi Montanez said:

I've had my D3 since yesterday (Friday). Weirdest thing: Today, the camera just stopped working. The camera app launches, and the image is all black. I switch to the front-facing camera and that works, but the rear camera gives me nothing. Take a picture, it's black. Take video, it's black.

Yesterday, the camera was working fine...

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First thing I would do is reboot to see if it works after restarting. Returning it would be the next option. (I have to say that so far I'm not impressed with the pictures taken but that might be because I had finger prints all over the lens.)

My battery usage of the day: 12 hours since last charge. I am getting a red notification light and am down to the last 10%.

Statistics:
Cell standby: 38%
Phone idle: 32%
Android system: 16%
Android OS: 7%
Display: 4%
Voice calls: 4%

What did my D3 do today: every 2 hours it updated the weather automatically. it has been syncing Gmail and my Google contacts. It has not synchronized any other apps. Today I have not used GPS or WiFi. It's set to CDMA only. Also, for about one hour it has been in an area where the reception is just terrible, which can be a drain on the battery.

I guess I should be very content with this battery usage. I would have liked it better if the D3 would be at 40% now..

Barbara said:

First thing I would do is reboot to see if it works after restarting. Returning it would be the next option. (I have to say that so far I'm not impressed with the pictures taken but that might be because I had finger prints all over the lens.)

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Id probably most definitely recommend cleaning off the lens, the picture quality is superb. Maybe your just not into the screen?? Try emailing yourself a picture.

mikepinto65 said:

Id probably most definitely recommend cleaning off the lens, the picture quality is superb. Maybe your just not into the screen?? Try emailing yourself a picture.

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Good point. I didn't transfer it to my computer. I took a picture of my foot. Somebody in this house (not me) thinks I'm nuts!

Trillian said:

My battery usage of the day: 12 hours since last charge. I am getting a red notification light and am down to the last 10%.

Statistics:
Cell standby: 38%
Phone idle: 32%
Android system: 16%
Android OS: 7%
Display: 4%
Voice calls: 4%

What did my D3 do today: every 2 hours it updated the weather automatically. it has been syncing Gmail and my Google contacts. It has not synchronized any other apps. Today I have not used GPS or WiFi. It's set to CDMA only. Also, for about one hour it has been in an area where the reception is just terrible, which can be a drain on the battery.

I guess I should be very content with this battery usage. I would have liked it better if the D3 would be at 40% now..

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I think the D3 will surprise VZW with higher than expected sales, so should have better support than the DX2 (I hope).

I am a battery miser, so I do not allow any apps to update in the background, that has options to turn it off. I also do not leave bluetooth or wifi on, nor do I EVER use widgets that update in the background or EVER EVER use live wallpapers.

Just got my D3 today and so far I am loving it!

The first thing for sure that stands out is the keyboard. It feels awesome with space between the keys, and the amount the keys travel when press feels just right. Typing is very very fast on this thing.

The screen isn't great but is not as bad as I imagined after reading some of the impressions. I can definitely notice pixelation with solid colors (notification bar/battery, some text, fine lines, etc). But when holding the phone at 'normal distance' (2 ft maybe?) it does not seem that bad. It is a little disappointing that the screen was supposed to be a big upgrade and doesn't seem as nice as previous models (i'm upgrading from a d2).

The battery doesn't seem to be an issue for me. Phone has been unplugged for 4 hrs, and battery is at 80%

Cell standby 41%
Phone idle 37%
Voice calls 12%
Display 7%
Android System 2%
Android OS 2%

I remember when the d2 launched there were a lot of similar battery issues. Lots of people were having very different battery performance for the first few days of use, then it seemed to settle out over the first week or so. Also I believe moto released an upgrade to help fix some of the battery issues. I'm not going to even start looking at battery life for the first few days until after a few charge cycles.

But so far the phone seems very solid. For me the positives (keyboard, speed, size) far outweigh the negatives (display). More impressions to come soon

rambo47 said:

If anybody has a buddy with an HTC Evo 4G I'd love to hear your thoughts on screen comparisons between the Evo and D3. I'm using an Evo on Sprint right now but my contract is just about up.

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I'm not screen expert but my friend does have an evo 4g and i held them up side by side to compare earlier today. it was pretty much the same as everyone has been saying- the d3 is pixelated, and color reproduction was different. the evo had 'smoother' lines, seemed to have better blues and greens. honestly i think they are both nice screens. i tend to think of myself as pretty picky as far as tech and new toys go, and the d3 screen is definitely livable so far (after about 12hrs of owning it). this may change as i do some more web surfing or play games/media, but i definitely do not think that the d3 screen is a deal breaker by any means.

DX2 display was fine for me, so expect the same or better, due to the tighter packed pixels for same resolution on a smaller display.

After using it for a few days, I can say the pentile doesn't bother me nearly as much on the D3 as it did on the DX2. The DX2, every time I would turn it on I would immediately just go "ugh" looking at the screen without having to think about it. Now with the D3, I have to almost "think about it" to notice the pentile drawbacks. They're still there, but far more minute.

Rush - I'm the same way with turning everything off that can run or update in the background as I possibly can.

My store just got D3 extended batteries in later today. I went and picked one up. It definitely adds bulk to the phone and it doesn't feel as thin anymore. The back of the phone is actually a millimeter thicker than the edge of the camera bezel instead of being a millimeter thinner than that edge. It's not bad by any means, but it's definitely a noticeable change. The battery itself is about 2mm thicker and packs about 25-30% more charge. I'll review it after I've tried it out for a few days (it came at a 10% charge as opposed to the 60% charge of the stock one).

I should note, the thickness doesn't bother me. In fact, with the original cover I was actually concerned that laying the phone down over time would start to scratch the bezel or glass cover over the camera lense. Now that it's actually recessed a tiny bit, I'm not worried about that anymore.

Still surprised there has yet to be a tech media review, but based on the major misses on the DX2, they apparently do not use them much when testing anyway.

User reviews IMO are more from the heart as well as the mind.

cozz said:

The screen isn't great but is not as bad as I imagined...

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This statement here is the number one reason that I am not ordering this thing right away, followed closely by the battery concerns. It shouldn't be that the screen is just okay and not great for a new top of the line phone. I don't know if I want to waste my upgrade (that I still have to slap $200.00 down for) on a phone that is just not as bad as I imagined.

I am going to wait and go see this one in the store. I have my OG droid and everything that I want to improve on the Droid, this phone seems to have with the exception of the screen. A downgraded screen is not worth an upgrade to everything else IMHO.

darrin2520 said:

This statement here is the number one reason that I am not ordering this thing right away, followed closely by the battery concerns. It shouldn't be that the screen is just okay and not great for a new top of the line phone. I don't know if I want to waste my upgrade (that I still have to slap $200.00 down for) on a phone that is just not as bad as I imagined.

I am going to wait and go see this one in the store. I have my OG droid and everything that I want to improve on the Droid, this phone seems to have with the exception of the screen. A downgraded screen is not worth an upgrade to everything else IMHO.

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The thing is only 460 full retail vs the 550+ tags on other phones. I wouldn't say it's top of the line.

darrin2520 said:

This statement here is the number one reason that I am not ordering this thing right away, followed closely by the battery concerns. It shouldn't be that the screen is just okay and not great for a new top of the line phone.

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I was one of the driving people REALLY bitching about the pentile in the DX2. I can tell you, you'll see the D3 screen in the store and it will immediately become less of a concern. Is it perfect? No. But it's a LOT better than the DX2 and the pentile is a LOT less noticeable. Holding it at a "normal" distance now makes it barely discernable, where as the DX2 I had to hold it at a full outstretched arm-length for the pentile effect to "fade". I think another factor is that, at least for mine, the saturation isn't nearly as bad and is closers to where it should be, and there is also no blue push that the DX2 definitely had. To each their own, but I'm definitely satisfied with it.

aostang said:

I was one of the driving people REALLY bitching about the pentile in the DX2. I can tell you, you'll see the D3 screen in the store and it will immediately become less of a concern. Is it perfect? No. But it's a LOT better than the DX2 and the pentile is a LOT less noticeable. Holding it at a "normal" distance now makes it barely discernable, where as the DX2 I had to hold it at a full outstretched arm-length for the pentile effect to "fade". I think another factor is that, at least for mine, the saturation isn't nearly as bad and is closers to where it should be, and there is also no blue push that the DX2 definitely had. To each their own, but I'm definitely satisfied with it.

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Ironic that one of the pickiest, whiniest people in the forums (me) actually likes the DX2 display.

Update on my battery issue. It was definitely not the sd card. I took that out and erased everything except ringtones and notifications because I have some that I like and didn't want to have to go back and get them again. I turned off all syncing that is automatically checked in the system settings. (I did leave calendar sync on because I don't think that happens often.) I was 100% charged at 9 o'clock this morning. Over 3 hours later I'm at 90%. And the phone is not hot anymore. Phew! Sorry for alarming any potential buyers with my battery horror story. Lesson to be learned: turn off syncing immediately!

@ekyle: How about top of the line android phone with a physical keyboard? I know what you are saying, but the way I look at it, I have an upgrade coming and I will be slapping down around $200.00 regardless and have to wait another 2 years for a covered upgrade. I want to make the best choice. I would rather use my OG droid for a while longer if I don't see the Droid 3 as an entirely better phone (display included)

@aostang: Thanks for that. It does make me feel better about it. I figure waiting the extra week to actually see it in the store isn't going to kill me. (I do love getting new toys though...)

darrin2520 said:

This statement here is the number one reason that I am not ordering this thing right away, followed closely by the battery concerns. It shouldn't be that the screen is just okay and not great for a new top of the line phone. I don't know if I want to waste my upgrade (that I still have to slap $200.00 down for) on a phone that is just not as bad as I imagined.

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After spending some more time with it, maybe i should expand on my original statement. After hearing other people's opinions about the screen (before i got mine), and reading a couple of articles on the DX2's display, in my head i was imagining this phone to have an awful display. That is definitely NOT the case. Overall I think the display is quite nice. There are some things that seem more 'grainy' or pixelated, such as the battery indicator small font (such as reading posts on this website fully zoomed out) and other fine lines, but holding the phone at a normal distance or zooming in even slightly on fine print makes the graininess go away almost entirely. 90% of the time you really have to be looking for it to even notice it. Overall I am pleased with the display.

And as for battery life i think it really depends on what apps/widgets people are using or have running in the background. For mine i've had it unplugged for 18h (7 or so while i was sleeping so phone was idle), and still have 50% battery life. While i've been awake i've been playing with the phone a lot - tweaking settings, installing apps, etc, so for me to still have 50% left seems pretty good. And this is only the second charge cycle.

Cell Standby 45%
Phone idle 42%
Voice calls 6%
Display 4%
Android OS 2%
Android System 2%

The thing that stands out for me is why the standby and idle seem so high, maybe this will get fixed with a future update. I think the battery life is right on par with other smartphones, and will probably get better with a few more charges and drains.

I'm definitely not trying to convince you to go order one online if you have any concerns. I just figured since you happened to quote me originally, you gave me a nice opportunity for an update of my thoughts on those issues

overall i am quite pleased with this phone. a very nice upgrade over the other droids imo

I truly wish Sprint got or will get the Droid line. It's pretty much the ideal device for me. I tried the Samsung Epic 4G and loved the screen, but the keypad was terrible. Too big, bad feel, spread out too much, etc. I've gotten used to the virtual keyboard on my Evo, but I still prefer a physical keyboard. The Droid has it all: styling, great keyboard, optimal screen size, and all the bells & whistles you expect with a top-knotch Android device.

Picture taken with camera set normally:

rambo47 said:

I truly wish Sprint got or will get the Droid line. It's pretty much the ideal device for me. I tried the Samsung Epic 4G and loved the screen, but the keypad was terrible. Too big, bad feel, spread out too much, etc. I've gotten used to the virtual keyboard on my Evo, but I still prefer a physical keyboard. The Droid has it all: styling, great keyboard, optimal screen size, and all the bells & whistles you expect with a top-knotch Android device.

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If the D3 had LTE, it would be MEGA huge for sales. This does not even consider extra 512mb of ram, since can be debatable (all depends on how the firmware devs allocate it).

Even sans the LTE- if the D3 has no glaring DX2 type issues, my guess is the D3 will sell well, in spite of no LTE.

@Incognito, GPS and sync can be big power drainers. The GPS depends on how Moto set up the power and idle states.

Barbara said:

Picture taken with camera set normally:

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Could have used that pool yesterday, after foolishly jogging several miles in 90 plus temps

rushmore said:

Could have used that pool yesterday, after foolishly jogging several miles in 90 plus temps

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I was trying to show a scene with lots of color to get an idea of the quality of the camera. I still think it looks a little fuzzy (but maybe it's just my eyes). I did a zoomed picture and it was TERRIBLE so I didn't even bother posting it.

But you are welcome to jump in anytime if you jog by.

I am still impressed with this phone! I was uploading vids to Youtube, listening to tunes and viewing pics in Gmail...all without a hitch or stutter. No way could the D1 have done that. What it can't do is play tunes and record video at the same time. Lol, it got confused with that request.
I'm still not thrilled with the blue display though...getting used to it but it sucks for picture viewing.