Help New G'zOne/smartphone owner, introduction and q's

[Steel Surgeon]

Well, hello. I'm the proud new owner of a G'zOne, and I LOVE this thing! Seriously, I'm thinking of having it surgically attached.

This is my first smartphone, as I was waiting for something like this to come to market, all the other smartphones on the market seemed a little too, well, fragile for me. I'm an Auto Technician for a living, and own and operate my own repair shop. I'm also pretty clumsy, and get the "drop-sees" a lot. Plus my phones tend to get covered in every fluid and type of detritus an automobile has to offer. All of these conspire to make me a cell-phone serial murderer. No kidding, I've managed to kill a half-dozen flip phones in the last three years. And EVERYONE I know (all of the guys, anyway) that have a smartphone (either Iphone or android) are looking at their phone through a shattered screen. So, when I saw the ads for the Commando (the ones they ran during the X-games) It piqued my interest, but I put it out of my mind as "yeah right, it still wouldn't live with me owning it". But then I saw one in person, got to handle it, and realized it's the most solid-feeling phone I've held since my old Motorola "black brick" back in 2000. Then i HAD to have one.

So, when our "new every two" (as you guys say) was up, and the batteries in both me and the wife's phone puffed up like balloons and refused to take a charge (my Samsung Hue II actually started smoking while I was transferring my contacts from it to my Commando) we decided it was time to step into the 21st century. So, I bit the bullet and got the Commando, while my wife got an HTC Rhyme, and my dad, (who lives with me and the wife, and is on our family plan) got an HTC Thunderbolt.

And like I said, I LOVE IT! It's already proved it's toughness. I've had it two weeks and it's slipped out of my shirt pocket four times, and I've dropped it twice while trying to answer a call with oil on my hands. All Directly onto concrete. Not a scratch, other than a few tiny dings on the silver part (I can live with that.) And just today I dropped it into a catch-pan full of antifreeze. It didn't care. I killed two LG's and a motorola that way.

Here's my impressions so far:
Pros:
The touch-screen works just fine when visibly smeared with grease and oil.
Looks cooler than any other smartphone I've seen.
It's definitely waterproof. (though I will try and retain it's water-tightness as described here)
The speakers on this thing are great for a phone.
So far it's done everything I have tried to do with it. (except transferring files between phones via bluetooth, but I get into that later)
Cell signal is good. Better than some flip phones I've had. I live in a crappy cell area, and this does pretty well in an area where NO cell phone works worth a dang.

Cons:
The touchscreen, even when clean, is not as sensitive as my wife's HTC. (which to my gorilla sausage fingers, seems a little TOO sensitive) Not enough to be a problem really, but at the edges of the screen sometimes it won't register a touch the first time.
The bluetooth simply does not work.
It will randomly re-boot at least once a day.
Not the fastest phone on the planet (but I knew that when I ordered it)
The battery life SUCKS. I'm charging it twice a day, at a minimum. I worry about the o-ring seal on the charge cover.
Bloatware. (See? I've been reading before I posted the first time!)

Now on to my questions.

As I've said, the bluetooth simply does not work. I got it to connect to my old Samsung Hue II to get some pictures off it, but other than that, attempts to connect it to other devices has been futile. My laptop, the wife's and dad's HTC's, even my bluetooth earpiece (which is a few years old now) all just refuse to connect at all. I've read in other places about people having bluetooth issues, but never any answers on fixing them. Any ideas?

Is there any way to transfer music/pictures between phones? My wife and I can't find any way besides sending through text, and that will only work for pictures, and uses up data when not either at home or at the shop, as we're on Wi-Fi there.

Data use: Even with the 3G turned off, and running Wi-Fi only, the little "My Verizon Data" widget tells me I'm using about ten to twenty MB of Data a day. One night, it shot up over 100mb, while I was sleeping. WTF?

My GPS doesn't work. Period. This thing simply cannot find where it is. I've tried Google GPS, Verizon GPS, they all say "no GPS signal". Now, I LIVE in a dead zone, I live in a VERY small rural town in Nebraska, (about 130 people) and this thing ain't gonna find but the one tower that's about ten miles away from here, the next closest one is twenty miles. Does it need to get a signal from more than one tower for the GPS to work?

If I "root" the phone to get rid of the bloatware and try to improve the battery life, is there any way to restore it back to factory?

Web browsers: The stock one sucks, Firefox for mobile sucks, what do you guys use?

The charge cradle you guys talk about, where did you get it? Did your phones come with it? Mine didn't. I asked at my local Verizon store (local is 30 miles away, lol!) and they looked at me like I was from Mars.

And what are the truly "essential" apps that you guys would install right away? I have Avast! for android and Super Task Killer, but that's about it, other than a bunch of games.

Thanks for your time, guys.

BTW, watching my 67-year-old dad try to do ANYTHING on his Thunderbolt is HILARIOUS!

 

[Steel Surgeon]

seriously? 324 views and no answers?

 

[breadnatty08]

Steel, appreciate your feedback on the phone. While I'm not familiar with it, I can give you some general feedback on your questions.
Bluetooth, I really have no idea about. If it's simply not working, it's likely a hardware issue and I'd bring it to the attention of Verizon. Same with the GPS.
Rooting will allow you to delete the bloat (or at min. freeze). In terms of improving the battery, there's a few things that rooting will help you with, but general battery saving practices are best (you can search around the forum for ways to accomplish this). I'm not sure about unrooting your phone. Have you searched the Root section?
Essential apps are all about the user experience. Depends on what you want to do as there are hundreds of thousands in the Play Store. Lastly, I'd recommend ditching your Task Killer. It is unnecessary on Android and is likely playing a part in killing your battery.
A lot of what you're looking for can be found in other threads or other parts of the forum. A few minutes of searching will yield that and lots of other great info.

 

[agentc13]

As I've said, the bluetooth simply does not work. I got it to connect to my old Samsung Hue II to get some pictures off it, but other than that, attempts to connect it to other devices has been futile. My laptop, the wife's and dad's HTC's, even my bluetooth earpiece (which is a few years old now) all just refuse to connect at all. I've read in other places about people having bluetooth issues, but never any answers on fixing them. Any ideas?

I don't have any experience with the device, best to call Verizon or wait for an answer from someone here who knows the device.

Is there any way to transfer music/pictures between phones? My wife and I can't find any way besides sending through text, and that will only work for pictures, and uses up data when not either at home or at the shop, as we're on Wi-Fi there.

Do they both have SD card slots? If so you can do that. Possibly bluetooth as well, but I've always found it easier to move things via SD card.

Data use: Even with the 3G turned off, and running Wi-Fi only, the little "My Verizon Data" widget tells me I'm using about ten to twenty MB of Data a day. One night, it shot up over 100mb, while I was sleeping. WTF?

Do you have "Background Sync" enabled? It's quite possibly some app using that data with some sort of updates (emails, weather widgets, anything that checks for updates or gives notifications) that is causing the issue.

My GPS doesn't work. Period. This thing simply cannot find where it is. I've tried Google GPS, Verizon GPS, they all say "no GPS signal". Now, I LIVE in a dead zone, I live in a VERY small rural town in Nebraska, (about 130 people) and this thing ain't gonna find but the one tower that's about ten miles away from here, the next closest one is twenty miles. Does it need to get a signal from more than one tower for the GPS to work?

GPS should connect to the GPS satellites, not the cell towers. Try downloading an app called GPS Status, enable the GPS on your phone, and it will tell you how many satellites get a fix. It works much better outdoors and with a clear view of the sky.

If I "root" the phone to get rid of the bloatware and try to improve the battery life, is there any way to restore it back to factory?

You could download an app like Titanium Backup which you can use to "freeze" the apps and make sure it runs okay without them. You can also use that to back them up in case you ever want to put them back on the phone. If you delete them without backing them up, you won't be able to get them back ever.

Web browsers: The stock one sucks, Firefox for mobile sucks, what do you guys use?

Try Dolphin Browser or Boat Browser, I have heard a lot of folks that like those.

The charge cradle you guys talk about, where did you get it? Did your phones come with it? Mine didn't. I asked at my local Verizon store (local is 30 miles away, lol!) and they looked at me like I was from Mars.

No idea here, sorry.

And what are the truly "essential" apps that you guys would install right away? I have Avast! for android and Super Task Killer, but that's about it, other than a bunch of games.

I like ES File Explorer, Dropbox, Doggcatcher (for podcasts), K-9 Mail (e-mail), Tapatalk, Swiftkey X (paid keyboard app), SoundHound, Instagram, QuickPic, Tasker, and the new Phandroid news app.
I would definitely do like Dread said and ditch the task killer, they don't do you any good. I don't use antivirus either. I just watch what apps I am installing and checking the permissions/reading reviews. Some folks like the anti-virus apps though.

Hope that helps some.

 

[jova33]

You're not going to be able to root this device last time I checked.
The random reboots are a common problem. You might be able to get a replacement under warranty if it happens too much.
The Bluetooth and GPS problems might be the hardware and you'll need a replacement under warranty.
Tell Verizon you're going to drop their service because you get horrible reception where you live. They'll provide you with a signal extender I've heard.
The using up data might be your play store apps auto updating. Turn off auto update in the app.
Or its trying to do an OTA update.
The my Verizon app/widget is a big fat liar too. You'll get a better idea of your data off the website.


I also had the problem of the edge of the screen not registering. I went through three commandos in a year. I had to get it replaced under warranty for another issue (I was testing its toughness and three it at a wall and it ruined the sensors). The next one didn't have the issue with the screen. Then I had to get another replacement because it constantly tried to do an OTA update downloading 100 mb a day and then not installing. My third one I didn't close one of the ports properly and went swimming. My forth one I bought off Ebay.

I'll agree, it is a solid phone. I finally moved on to better because of the bad software, the random reboots, lack of developer support, and not being able to unlock the phone to answer a call. Also you can't root it, and that's a big factor.

Good luck to you and your new phone.

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[jova33]

As for the battery, pick up a mugen battery for 80 bucks. Worth it!
Turn off wifi, auto sync, GPS, and Bluetooth when not in use.

Your email app and other apps that sync, set to sync every hour.

Also with a new phone with a new battery there's a breaking in period. Fully charge the battery, let it drain completely, and put it on the charger and don't take it off til its fully charged. I do this cycle 5 times with a new battery. Some say its overkill, but it doesn't hurt.

I bought my charging cradle off of Verizon website for 20 bucks.
Anti virus on Android is a scam I say. There's been like one or two actual viruses on Android. There's some shoddy apps out there that want too many permissions. Just be cautious and don't install a game that wants permission to read your contracts or read your texts. A firewall app is more practical..... But I believe you need root for that...

Use the USB cable, connect to computer, and transfer files that way. If you need the drivers they're in the root section.

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