Droid3 to Gnex

[Overlord66]

I am thinking about swapping out my Droid 3 for a Nexus and I have a few questions.

The area where I am at does not have 4g LTE service yet so I would be using the phone in 3g mode only. How is the 3g radio compare to the Droid 3? I travel I am in weak areas frequently and need decent service in those areas.

I have read some complaints about the build quality/Screen strength. Is it going to hold up as well as me d3 has? So far I only have minor scratches after several drops and carrying around in my pocket.

 

[trav473]

Moto Build quality is hard to beat as well as their radios. The GNex is a great phone, but if you have issues dropping calls with your D3 and signal is a major issue, you might want to pass on it. Its not bad, but not as good as Moto radios. As far as build quality, I have had a D1, and a DX, the GNex is comparable. While the screen isn't "Gorilla Glass", it is a reinforced, scratch resistant glass. What reasons are you wanting the GNex?

 

[Overlord66]

I was looking to switch because of ICS, a slimmer phone, getting rid of the keyboard that I never use, and a lager screen. If the radios are close then I might just pull the plug.

 

[Sandroidfan]

GNex in forced 3G mode works just as well as other 3G phones from what I saw. You will likely see a little lower signal bars due to it displaying 3G signal vs others showing 1X. But that's just display thing. If there is VZW store near where you are, you'd better test it.

 

[jkc120]

I was looking to switch because of ICS, a slimmer phone, getting rid of the keyboard that I never use, and a lager screen. If the radios are close then I might just pull the plug.

What I would recommend you do is if you're nearby a Costco, purchase the phone there. Even if you have to buy a $50 membership, the ease of return will be well worth it. And if you bought at the VZW store, you'd be subject to the $35 restock fee if it didn't work out for you.

Either way, I think you need to try the phone to see if you like it and if there are any signal issues for you. If the signal is only slightly worse, but the other features of the phone/etc make up for it, ultimately that's a call only you can make.

Best of luck! Let us know what you end up deciding.

 

[Dubbin1]

What I would recommend you do is if you're nearby a Costco, purchase the phone there. Even if you have to buy a $50 membership, the ease of return will be well worth it. And if you bought at the VZW store, you'd be subject to the $35 restock fee if it didn't work out for you.

So spend $50 instead of a $35 restocking fee???

 

[jkc120]

So spend $50 instead of a $35 restocking fee???

Yes, perhaps I should have spelled it out:

- Costco has a 90 day return/exchange policy. You can swap to a different phone or even return it 89 days later
- If he's already a member, he's saving $35

The flexibility in the return policy and being able to:

- buy nexus
- decide nexus isn't for him/her
- swap for otherphone#1
- decide otherphone#1 isn't for him/her either
- swap for otherphone#2

Is well worth $15 IMHO.

 

[finn5975]

I wouldn't rule out a Verizon Corporate store. I returned 3 G-Nexus phones before getting a 4th that has been near perfect and I never once paid any restocking fees nor was I given any hassle about it

 

[kevin86]

I too am in a 3g only area and just switched from a D3. I will be honest with you the D3 has a much better radio than the GNEX. In fact so much that I have thought of returning it, but I just love the rest of the phone too much. When I'm traveling with the family my mother still has the D3 and I'm always using hers because it's so much faster. Where I live my D3 was keeping 3 bars sometimes jumping to full. The Gnex stays at one bar jumping sometimes to 2 and occasionally just losing signal. I don't remember the exact numbers but I have also checked the db levels in settings and it does confirm the GNEX weaker. I have no doubts you would love the phone but if you're struggling with signal now you would probably grow to hate it.

 

[kg2128]

If you live in a 3g only area I would just wait for the galaxy s3 or a different quad core phone, it won't be that long now I think for one of those 2 things to come to Verizon. My Nexus has been the same as my droid x reception wise, but in general Motorola build quality and reception are superior to Samsung. Plus the droid 3 isn't terrible hardware wise, it's still dual core. The Nexus screen and developer support would be the 2 main reasons to upgrade since you don't have LTE in your area.