New Phone..advice?

RWil85 · Jul 9, 2012

Hey all,

If you guys could give me some last minute recommendations on which phone I should grab, I'd appreciate it. I'm coming from a DX on VZW.

I think I've narrowed it down to either the Motorola Razr Maxx or the Samsung Galaxy SIII..

What should I grab? If not either of these, what else?

I know the obvious pros (like the Maxx's battery) - but, is there anything absolutely essential I should know before I decide?

Thanks in advance for your time/help!

trophynuts · Jul 9, 2012

i left the droid x for the Galaxy Nexus last December.

I will never own another Sammy phone.

So i would say either go Moto because you're used to the ui for the most part or try something new like HTC.

VoidedSaint · Jul 9, 2012

RWil85
I am a huge motorola fan, and i do not like samsung all that much.

however it all depends on what you want, to me the RAZR/MAXXX feels like it is more phone than screen, the s3 is going to be a powerhouse, and it will get the latest and greatest software, and will be the dev communities favorite toy. I would suggest waiting til the S3 is out, find out if somone goes from a razr to the s3 and find out if they are happy they made the switch!

or you can do it the old fashion way, wait til the s3 comes out, then go to a verizon store and play with both of them.

super squirrel · Jul 9, 2012

That depends on your what you are going to use it for. The Samsung Galaxy SIII (US versions) has a 1.5Ghz Snapdragon S4 processor which is faster than the Droid Razr Maxx (1.2GHz TI OMAP 4430 processor), so the SIII wins for speed. The Galaxy SIII has the biggest screen, a 4.8 inch Super AMOLED HD display (720 x 1280) while the Droid Razr Maxx has a Super AMOLED qHD display (540 x 960). Both phones have 8MP cameras, but the SIII has better quality pictures and video compared to the Maxx. Obviously the Maxx has stellar battery life, but the SIII has above-average battery life too. The SIII has 2GB of RAM (the more RAM you have the more apps that can run at the same time, there are other factors processor, speed, etc.) while the Maxx has 1GB of RAM. Both as of now have (Ice Cream Sandwich) Android 4.0, though some have already ported Jellybean (Android 4.1) to the Galaxy SIII.
Now for their unique features:
Samsung Galaxy SIII has S-Voice, S-Beam, face recognition time-out, mood options in music player.
Motorola Droid Razr Maxx has Webtop, Smart Actions, MotoCast, MOTOACTV, MOTOPRINT

trophynuts · Jul 9, 2012

^^^ concerning comparisons...i really think signal reception should be at the top of that list....which Moto will win every time. ...which also has an affect on battery life.

RWil85 · Jul 9, 2012

thanks guys, i recognize your names as being a large part of the Android community and, thus, I value your opinions greatly..

I went to the store and saw the Nexus' screen (reason for saying this is that I assume the S3 screen will be similar, if not better than the nexus) and thought it looked a bit more crisp than the RAZR models..don't know exactly how the cameras fared as I didn't have a chance to mess with those..

coming from a DX - I can say that I am a large fan of Moto, also..quality feel, good reception/radios, and the fact that the DX is still fairly relevant today has to say something..

I feel like I have a ton of decisions to make..

Do i save the $100 on the reg. RAZR vs the MAXX model?

Do I pull the trigger on one of the MAXX models and then watch the forums/check to see how the S3 (or even the RAZR HD if it comes out soon) fares and then I would still be inside my 14-day window to exchange the RAZR at VZW?

I am driving myself insane, lol - I think these phones are a big step up with the upgraded specs, ICS and such and am itching to grab something new..

someone decide for me, haha.

mpavlansky · Jul 9, 2012

I'm running my DX and have enjoyed it for about 18 months. I'd probably still be running it for another few more months, but with the silliness VZW pulled, we decided to preserve our unlimited data, and use the last subsidy.

I studied the Razr Maxx, and the GS3. My decision was to leave the solidly built Motorola with reliable radios and take a risk with the GS3. The screen size, processor speed, and especially the 2Gb of RAM were the biggest factors I made my decision on. The removable battery was a consideration, but a lesser one. My belief was that the GS3 would have better radios than the Nexus had, and that with 2Gb of RAM, I'm better prepared for future operating systems.

I studied and waited and waited for some information to come out on the HD Maxx, but they've kept an unbelievably tight lid on it. If the rumors are to be believed, it will have the same radios, but probably a better antenna than the GS3. It seems to have 1Gb of RAM, and who knows what kind of battery yet. It looks like it would hold it's own against the GS3, with a smaller screen (which some people may value more).

If you're not on unlimited data now, I might choose the Razr Maxx and have a value priced phone with killer battery, a nice sized screen, good processor, solid build, and dependable radios. Later on, you could evaluate whatever the next new phone is, and the Razr MaXX will certainly be able to carry you forward until quad cores, etc. come out later.

svensett · Jul 9, 2012

Although there are a lot of people complaining about the signal reported by the S3, very few have actually reported having dropped data, and I have not seen one complaint about dropped calls. So far I haven't had any issues with signal, and it has been as good as my DX was in 3G areas.

As far as battery life goes, the I'm at 13.5 hours since coming off the charger and have 61% charge left. My DX would be about dead even with the fresh battery I put in it at the same usage level as I put the S3 through today. The S4 processor is living up to its billing as very efficient.

If I hadn't been pushed into the S3 to keep my unlimited plan, I probably would have waited for the new Moto to at least compare the 2. That being said, I don't regret going with the S3 at all.

mpavlansky · Jul 9, 2012

That's done great feedback about the GS3. We'll have 7 of them at my office tomorrow. I put 5 of my guys into iphones. I've been holding my breath and hoping that the SG3 decision I made for everyone will pan out. It's good to hear that you've had a positive experience so far.

The original poster has good reason to trust the build quality and radios of Motorola and unfortunately there's not a ton of feedback for the SG3 yet.

If the Max HD ever comes out, it will be very comparable to the SG3. The The Razr Maxx is available now, will continue to drop in price over time and has the best battery. The longer you can wait, the more feedback you can collect on any issues with the SG3, the more the price will drop on the Razr Maxx, and probably in three or so weeks, some more decisive information will be released about the Maxx HD.

This is rather maddening trying to make sense out of it all. I'm thankful my my GS3 is finally here tomorrow.

bubbaken · Jul 11, 2012

Long story short, the current Maxx is NOT HD and has a locked boot loader (S3 has a locked boot loader as well). If that doesn't matter to you go for the Maxx. For what it's worth that's why I went for the Nexus with a 3800 seidio extended battery. I've unlocked my phone, rooted running AOKP ICS and couldn't be happier. This phone is a monster.

No matter what you choose I think you've narrowed it down to two great choices.

Good luck!

New Phone..advice?

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