Disappointed: Rezound is not a popular phone, even within HTC devices

[Colchicine]

See the attached graphic, coming from a quasi-scientific poll of Android users on r/Android.

I think this confirms what we have noticed: VZW hasn't promoted this well enough for a device that is deserving. One compounding issue is that the Rezound came out around the same time as the GNexus, which is a very popular device (see below). Had those releases been staggered, I'm sure there would have been more Rezound buyers.

Also note, since many of us Rezound users are former Incredible users, that apparently a lot of people are still hanging onto their Incs!



The full graphic and results are here:
http://i.imgur.com/gjtgK.jpg

 

[trophynuts]

to be honest with you VZW hasn't promoted the G Nex at all. It's only so popular because of the root community. The only phones i see VZW promote now days are the Moto ones.

I agree tho that the Rez doesn't get the credit it deserves.

 

[Legobricke]

On top of that, HTC hasn't really stepped up to make the Rezound something special either...

I mean that between Verizon's lack of updating the device to ICS yet and HTC only willing to upgrade Sense to 3.6, it has an uphill battle...

I love the device... but I'm getting the feeling that it will end up in the "red-headed stepchild" category same as the Thunderbolt...

Really disappointing... Great device.... Great spec's... Phone has awesome potential... yet the carrier and maker just don't care...

For them, it is off to the next release...

Lesson learned.... Never buy a Winter released phone unless it releases with the latest and greatest... No old OS with promises...

Lego

 

[WA_Bob]

The Rezound seems to be something of a cult device on Verizon, just like the G-Nex. It's almost as if it was something of a test device for allot the technology that went into the One X & S series phones since it shares some of the same specs and came out several months prior to really good technical reviews.

Also, since Verizon won't be getting any of the One series phones anytime soon and they'll probably drop the price even more on the Rez once the DInc 4G comes out, it will end up being Verizon's high end HTC device for a while yet. The DInc 4G may come standard with sense 4.0 and probably a few more commercials, but as far as I can see the Rezound still has the edge in display and storage with the same processing power and camera. In fact, just swap out it's processor for the one in the One S and you'd have a One S V1.5 or a One X V0.75.

 

[esn]

I don't worry about who likes my rezound as long as I do that's all that counts.

 

[backdoc77]

I'm not surprised. I knew when I saw the first commercial on TV that the Rezound would not be popular. It's all about marketing. Aiming the ads towards "kids on the street" is prolly not the best strategy.

 

[zazan]

Ok, so it's not popular, so what? We all have one and know how great it is.

Actually for my needs there is still not a better phone today. Remember, the manufacturers only care about the next release so they can keep up sales numbers. The cell carriers don't care what phone you use as long as you sign a contract and use their service.

Everything is marketing and sales numbers. Individual products are just a tool for revenue dollars. Its funny that the consumer has a stronger attachment for a device than the company who made it does. This shows us how manipulated we all are.

IMHO, YMMV.

Be well all.

 

[answerman]

I don't worry about who likes my rezound as long as I do that's all that counts.

You know, I never understood why it would matter if a phone is popular. My Inc was, well, incredible, and my Rezound is even better. Who cares if it's a popularity contest?

It's not like Verizon's promoting the phone more would make it better. Apples and oranges.

I, plain and simple, think the Rezound is the best phone on the market. What other people think... doesn't matter to me. It's not like a fashion accessory... trust me, I have way more important things to concern myself with than people going "ooh, he's got a *insert name of popular phone here*. I'd like to think I have a little more self confidence than that, to not have my worth based on what phone I have. That's a little too close to the iWorld for me, where people go "look at how cool I am!".

Ok, rant off. And incidentally this isn't aimed at anyone here, just something I've had on my mind for a while and needed to let out. I feel better now

 

[TheMortallyWounded]

I'm GLAD it isn't popular. I am Antipop, I'll run against the grain 'til the day I drop!

 

[TxGoat]

No offense, but I'm not sure why anyone would care what other people think of their phone. If you're really looking for a phone that turns head, I'd say you're probably better off getting an iPhone. Meanwhile, I'm perfectly fine in knowing that my phone performs better than an iPhone in many areas.

 

[fivaxis]

I'm GLAD it isn't popular. I am Antipop, I'll run against the grain 'til the day I drop!

I am the antipop, the man you cannot stop.

 

[pwned]

It's kind of bad that it doesn't get recognition though. Seriously it is the best phone on Verizon right now if you actually want great reception

 

[Colchicine]

What I'm hearing is a lot of antimainstream-hipster / 10th-grade-don't-care-what-anyone-else-thinks talk. I never said anything about being concerned with what people thought. I posted this because it gave us some real numbers, as opposed to pure conjecture, about the popularity of phone models.

Like some others here, I believe the Rezound is the best phone on the VZW, and I believe HTC is the best manufacturer. I do care very much about the perceptions and misconceptions of Android, and as long as people keep buying sub-par models (and OEMs keep making them) then it puts a huge crimp in the way Android is accepted. Why do I care about how Android is perceived? Because it affects 3rd party support (developers and accessories makers) of the phone I spent hundreds on.

The popularity and acceptance of the Rezound does in fact go well beyond petty social status, as many of you were inclined to repeat. There's an issue with the model being popular enough to have device-specific accesories made for it. Note how a popular brand of screen protector passed on the Rezound Also, thinking long term, how well is this model going to be supported by developers when it is 2yrs plus? It is absolutely legitimate to be concerned with popularity when it can easily affect the utility of the device.

Next time I'll be sure to spell things out a little more so we can get to discussions with substance.

 

[craighwk]

For what it's worth, I just traded in my GNex for a Rezound. Love my decision so far. Was having too many issues with the Gnex. In call audio drops, unable to use touch tones on automated phone systems, Sky Maps/Augmented reality apps were completely out of wack, and the screen was just a tad too big for me. A few of those issues could probably have been resolved with a new unit, but there are a lot of reports of the audio problems.

So far the Rezound fits me perfectly. Thankfully I can get a couple upgrades a year through my company, so I'm sure it'll last me until fall.

 

[answerman]

What I'm hearing is a lot of antimainstream-hipster / 10th-grade-don't-care-what-anyone-else-thinks talk. I never said anything about being concerned with what people thought. I posted this because it gave us some real numbers, as opposed to pure conjecture, about the popularity of phone models.

Like some others here, I believe the Rezound is the best phone on the VZW, and I believe HTC is the best manufacturer. I do care very much about the perceptions and misconceptions of Android, and as long as people keep buying sub-par models (and OEMs keep making them) then it puts a huge crimp in the way Android is accepted. Why do I care about how Android is perceived? Because it affects 3rd party support (developers and accessories makers) of the phone I spent hundreds on.

The popularity and acceptance of the Rezound does in fact go well beyond petty social status, as many of you were inclined to repeat. There's an issue with the model being popular enough to have device-specific accesories made for it. Note how a popular brand of screen protector passed on the Rezound Also, thinking long term, how well is this model going to be supported by developers when it is 2yrs plus? It is absolutely legitimate to be concerned with popularity when it can easily affect the utility of the device.

Next time I'll be sure to spell things out a little more so we can get to discussions with substance.

OK, now that clears things up a little. Well said, sir... especially in the realm of accessories and other device specific items.

If I came off as antipop/contrary/whatever, I didn't make my point well. I sincerely don't care what other people think of my phone. I don't even care if people even notice that I have a phone In my mind, drawing attention to yourself so people will notice you're "different" is no better than drawing attention to yourself by following the latest/hottest trend. Both accomplish the same thing... "look at me!" which I just don't do. I've got more important things to do.

Ok, </rant> (really, this time!)

 

[Puppa]

Maybe it'll become more popular now that Verizon has announced a soon-to-come Global feature for all of us with Rezounds. Also, if you look at that pie chart, remember that a lot of the phones HTC makes on that chart are no longer for sale. So while the number of Rezounds keeps growing, those ones'll stay put.

The Rezound is one of the best. However (I feel like a lightning bolt may come out of the blue and hit me any second...), I bought my son a Razr Maxx and while it's not quite as fast as my Rezound, it's a surprisingly-stable LOOOOOONG battery life phone. He had my old Incredible with extended battery before. That Razr Maxx will go for two days, easy, with HEAVY use. I'm a bit surprised, given the crappy firmware and BLUR I saw on the Droid 2. Motorola's definitely moved up a few notches.

So best phone may boil down to use-case and personal preferences (others call this "fragmentation"), but it's Android's main strength.

 

[varaonaid]

Maybe it'll become more popular now that Verizon has announced a soon-to-come Global feature for all of us with Rezounds.

Can you please tell more about the Global feature of the Rezounds that's supposed to be forthcoming?

I agree about the popularity for popularity's sake. I think we all know, if you want the mainstream popular phone, you just get an iphone. We all love Android for the choice and all the things that you can do with Android that iphones can't. I do agree that the popularity of a phone does affect accessories and possibly third party development of ROMs etc. So from that standpoint, I think a well received phone has advantages for continuing support in many aftermarket areas.

But, popular or not, the Rez rocks.

 

[breadnatty08]

Can you please tell more about the Global feature of the Rezounds that's supposed to be forthcoming?

Verizon: Updates to Add Global Capabilities to the RAZR, RAZR MAXX, Rezound and DROID 4 Coming This Summer – Droid Life

 

[NightAngel79]

I agree that if nothing else the Rezound being popular directly relates to available accessories.

Apple crushes all in this area cause their devices are essentially the same size/shape. Specific Android phones have to fight/scrape for just a handful of accessories

 

[TheMortallyWounded]

Honestly, I don't have a need for accessories. I've got the car dock (which shall be modified to eliminate the connection sensing feature and charging resistance) and the extended battery, as well as the spare battery charger. Other than the media dock, I don't have much use for anything else that I can't just make.

 

[Colchicine]

Honestly, I don't have a need for accessories.

Good for you!

But the rest of us do.

 

[dmunz]

Honestly, I don't have a need for accessories. I've got the car dock (which shall be modified to eliminate the connection sensing feature and charging resistance) and the extended battery, as well as the spare battery charger. Other than the media dock, I don't have much use for anything else that I can't just make.

I only wish for a built in kick stand. I loved that on my T-Bolt. I don't usually use a case and having the kickstand was great for watching video.

I am curious though, did they actually release the media dock? Does it have a decent HDMI connection?

TIA
DLM

 

[edshropshire]

If I wanted popular I would have bought an iPhone. On Android I could have stayed on AT&T and bought a GSII and been part of the "crowd". I bought the phone I wanted with the specs I wanted. I got the Rezound back in November and I still love the phone.

The Rezound has the right size and feature set for me and that is all that matters, I am not buying the phone for someone else.

 

[Colchicine]

Please see my post above.
http://androidforums.com/htc-rezoun...hone-even-within-htc-devices.html#post4393607

 

[edshropshire]

Please see my post above.
http://androidforums.com/htc-rezoun...hone-even-within-htc-devices.html#post4393607

I guess maybe you can name some of these accessories that are missing for the Rezound. I have a great screen protector from probably one of the best companies. Lots of choices on cases, extra batteries, car holders. I maybe missing something. Sure my iPods had tons of accessories, but I don't see anything like that for any Android device.

As for development, seems to have a decent following, but any CDMA phone is going to be limited to pretty much US only, thus a smaller pool of developers. I guess you could go with the Samsung galaxy series, if you like Samsung. I personally have tried several (GSM and LTE) and the ones I have tried all seem to have weak radios.

Far as I can tell the most popular Android phones only really stay popular for about 12-13 months at best.

Personally I never saw the Rezound being a major phone on the market for several of the reasons listed above. Any phone that does not have a GSM version available will in my opinion always have a limited market and audience.