Weather its Verizon or Samsung it doesn't matter. My Moto X is coming soon and I will never again buy samsung. I'm fed up waiting for froyo. It's kinda of ridiculous if you ask me. For non rooters this phone is a joke. I came from a storm 2 thinking I got the coolest phone out there. What a big mistake. Horrible call quality, freezing constantly, UI stutters worse than King George VI, and the list can go on and on. Move on folks. 2.1 is way behind for what these phones are really capable of doing.
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how much longer will you keep your Fascinate?
- Thread starter zaphodbebleebrox
- Start date
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- samsung fascinate
Weather its Verizon or Samsung it doesn't matter. My Moto X is coming soon and I will never again buy samsung. I'm fed up waiting for froyo. It's kinda of ridiculous if you ask me. For non rooters this phone is a joke. I came from a storm 2 thinking I got the coolest phone out there. What a big mistake. Horrible call quality, freezing constantly, UI stutters worse than King George VI, and the list can go on and on. Move on folks. 2.1 is way behind for what these phones are really capable of doing.
If this is to be believed, then you will have to wait longer than that. In the mean time, Bionic, SGS2 will be out to rock on VZW.
Rumor: iPhone 5 going into production in September | PhoneDog
djfrost
Well-Known Member
i am completly in love with my SF...i have it rooted...debloated...and it runs so fast...at the moment, i have no need to get a new phone. although, i can upgrade at any time.
the truth is i am waiting for the bionic and word on whether its rootable...i just love messing around with my phones...LOVE IT!!
the truth is i am waiting for the bionic and word on whether its rootable...i just love messing around with my phones...LOVE IT!!
CharlzO
Android Expert
That would be me. Had the Fascinate for a couple months, then the Tbolt launched, and..suckered me in. Can't complain about either, though. The only complaint really about the Fasc that I had, was the charging port location. I love the cover on it, but being on the very top of the phone makes it feel awkward to me if I have to talk while it's plugged in.
Video recording on a bright day on it was incredible, and I always liked the screen on it. Just too many extra goodies swayed me away.
rugrat1965
Newbie
Until I can sell it. Love the Android community but sick of the buggy, high maintenance, P.O.S. phone.
Jake_Mongoose
Member
THIS.
The community has been great, but I'm taking a giant leap backward and going to a RAZR2. Yeah, I know, I'm a Luddite. The battery lasts forever, and I've realized over the past few weeks that I really don't need to be plugged in 24/7 with TwitBook and all that. If I can't go five minutes without knowing how large my wang can be or just how much that Nigerian prince needs my help, I can always fire up the iPad for Gmail. It was great having free GPS through Google for only $30 a month with that 'unlimited' data, but I think I will have to settle for my Garmin. 'Cause once I bought it, it was paid for.
SirKronan
Android Expert
Keeping it for a while. The Thunderbolt is merely a sidegrade at best, unless you NEED 4G data speeds. The Bionic is likely to have an encrypted bootloader and will be a significant downgrade from the atrix if it keeps the pentile matrix for its screen.
Oh, and official 2.2 is hitting the Fascinate, and the source code from Samsung has hit the devs already, so I see more Fascinate goodness coming down the pipe one way or another. With the current superclean ROM I have on it, it's an absolutely incredible and enjoyable phone. I nearly always get a full day between charges, and I put it to quite a bit of use. Dropped calls are virtually non-existent, and for some odd reason with Superclean my GPS has worked EVERY TIME now. Locks in seconds. I've needed it quite a bit lately, too ...
Good stuff. I'm hanging onto it until I can get a dual core with HDMI out and not an encrypted bootloader. And hopefully NOT Bing.
Oh, and official 2.2 is hitting the Fascinate, and the source code from Samsung has hit the devs already, so I see more Fascinate goodness coming down the pipe one way or another. With the current superclean ROM I have on it, it's an absolutely incredible and enjoyable phone. I nearly always get a full day between charges, and I put it to quite a bit of use. Dropped calls are virtually non-existent, and for some odd reason with Superclean my GPS has worked EVERY TIME now. Locks in seconds. I've needed it quite a bit lately, too ...
Good stuff. I'm hanging onto it until I can get a dual core with HDMI out and not an encrypted bootloader. And hopefully NOT Bing.
SirKronan
Android Expert
If you're into rooting and roms you should give some of the custom roms like superclean (even though it's retired) a try. Really makes for a super snappy phone. If you're not into that, I totally understand. The TB is the cream of the crop of single core phones right now.
djfrost
Well-Known Member
once i rooted my SF...it turned into a completely different phone, in a good way!! it so much faster!! i love it...so its going to take alot from a phone to make me switch!!
SirKronan
Android Expert
once i rooted my SF...it turned into a completely different phone, in a good way!! it so much faster!! i love it...so its going to take alot from a phone to make me switch!!
The thing I can't get over is the GPS performance. I mean, it usually worked with stock 2.1. It worked decently well with 2.1 custom roms and kernals too. once in a while it would take a few minutes to lock though. In addition, when I first tried some of the locked leaks, there were entire days I could never get the GPS to lock. Basically it was getting worse little by little.
I put superclean on it and updated to the EC10 kernel (I think??? it was the one just newer than EB01) and now the GPS is just amazing. Like crazy good. Even today I used it. Turned on GPS with pull down menu and it locked almost instantly. It's been spot on right away, even seconds after I enable the GPS hardware. It's never worked that good. And I can't discern a detriment to battery life in the least. I'm really happy about that ...
djfrost
Well-Known Member
i completely understand...i was in the same boat. but i did whats in this post...and my GPA signal is AWESOME!!
[MOD] Better GPS EC01 - xda-developers
(credit to calebv2)
locks in in seconds...on the real!!
Danzanzio
Newbie
Yes, once your garmin was bought it was paid for....but what about map/road updates? My car gps messes up so much because i have to buy the map update that is like $90
SirKronan
Android Expert
Yes, once your garmin was bought it was paid for....but what about map/road updates? My car gps messes up so much because i have to buy the map update that is like $90
Google maps is what I've been wanting in a GPS ever since google earth came out. I always asked myself and others, "Wouldn't it be nice if we could get a GPS based on google earth? Imagine a satellite overlay as you're driving. You look out the window and see landmarks that you see on your GPS. That would be like the perfect GPS."
Now, it's here. I haven't picked up my Garmin (which was an excellent device - even WAAS enabled) in well over a year. I do wish I could get some different voices, though. I miss Karen's accent on my Garmin.
II Kings 9:20
Android Enthusiast
Until June 2012 at which time I am eligible- will go to iPhone- i will miss google Navi, but i will get mapquest turn by turn as a free iPhone app.
This latest debacle with 2.2 is the final straw. I like Android and some features but it is too big for it's own britches. My colleagues at work with iphones love it without the excuses I have to come up with- Right now I am using a friend's wife's old Blackberry until my Fascinate is factory re-set after attempting a 2.2 upgrade that failed and bricked the phone (stock, unrooted).
This latest debacle with 2.2 is the final straw. I like Android and some features but it is too big for it's own britches. My colleagues at work with iphones love it without the excuses I have to come up with- Right now I am using a friend's wife's old Blackberry until my Fascinate is factory re-set after attempting a 2.2 upgrade that failed and bricked the phone (stock, unrooted).
SirKronan
Android Expert
I don't know if I could go back to an iDevice after owning a Fascinate ... even with the long wait for 2.2 it's been one heck of a fun device. The screen is simply unmatched for video and photo playback, as well as viewing angles and daylight visibility. Of course the new "plus" will be even better w/o pentile. I realize the iPhone's screen is still the highest resolution, but that resolution only benefits you in select situations, such as reading eBooks. And I don't know if I could give up google maps ...
II Kings 9:20
Android Enthusiast
Goog maps are of no value if your phone just shows "searching for GPS". Recently, 50% of the time it can't find my location.
Edit: I'll add that my associates iphone has an impressive video display and a camera that can take 3 superb quality pictures in the time the fascinate takes one. As much as I like the SF/Android, I am just disappointed with many issues.
II Kings 9:20
Android Enthusiast
Iphone has goog maps but not goog nav, frre mapquest is an app. Iphone 5 will have built in nav.
Oh yes, it certainly was.
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I know nothing about that. I wouldn't wish this thing on anyone though.
I do know some simple math though -
time wasted on this thing x what my time is worth = way more than what the device is worth.
I'm money ahead by smashing it and buying something new (Sprint?) than to continue down the same path I'm currently on and waste even more time on garbage.
If Samsung were to be the only company left to produce a microwave, I'll eat my food cold or starve.
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I know nothing about that. I wouldn't wish this thing on anyone though.
I do know some simple math though -
time wasted on this thing x what my time is worth = way more than what the device is worth.
I'm money ahead by smashing it and buying something new (Sprint?) than to continue down the same path I'm currently on and waste even more time on garbage.
If Samsung were to be the only company left to produce a microwave, I'll eat my food cold or starve.
.
SirKronan
Android Expert
Sounds like your phone failed you at exactly the wrong time in exactly the worst way ...
Out of all my phones I've ever owned the Fascinate BY FAR is the phone that has brought me the most enjoyment. You probably feel about your Fascinate how I felt about my Eris. Day after day, call after call, pushing the answer button and hearing SILENCE, or pushing the answer button and hearing the phone keep ringing while your caller thinks you're ignoring him/her. Or my favorite: dialing a number and having the phone call SOMEONE ELSE when you press the send button. This happened with 2 of the 4 Erises I owned. That's right. Verizon replaced my Eris THREE TIMES. Each time I could reproduce specific errors on each phone that they couldn't fix in the store or troubleshooting with a tech. This even happened after full factory wipes and resets, and with a phone that had ZERO apps on it. There were times I had to exercise considerable restraint in order to not smash my Eris with a hammer like you smashed your Fascinate.
But I have never owned a phone that hasn't frustrated me. I owned a Razr and a Razr v3m after. Both phones had great reception and battery life, but were consistently slow slow slow and clunky. They were an absolute pain to operate on a daily basis. I have them, and they still both work, and I fire them up from time to time to use as alarms, toys for my son, w/e. And I'm reminded how sorrowful it is to try to do anything on it, like send a text!
My LG 8700 on the other hand was a JOY to operate. Amazing phone, also with great reception. But the first one had horrendous battery issues. Battery dying in 3 hrs of standby with bluetooth off. Battery dying during a single 20 min. phone call, right after a full charge. I complained to Verizon that I needed a new battery, and they said I just needed a new phone. They sent me a new one, and by golly, they were RIGHT! My battery life was great on the replacement. But guess what else didn't work: the bluetooth. Didn't work at all. I took it in and one of their more knowledgeable techs put it through a ton of diagnosing and testing and could never get bluetooth to work. Heck, when you tried, the phone got hot enough that it was a little uncomfortable to hold at times. Very strange. So they replaced it. The THIRD 8700 has been the charm, and it continues to be a placeholder for my Wyoming phone number and third line of service that I don't really need. The thing still works perfectly though when we need it.
But it took me THREE tries to get a working model.
Then I had the Omnia. Don't get me started on that piece of CRAP. My sister and I both bought them at the same time. Big huge mistake. I thought I wanted a stylus. My sister thought it would be cool to have the same phone so we could learn it together and share apps or something .... what a crappy device. You push the number 3 on the screen and it dials a 6. You put it up to your cheek and it just hangs up on them. Everything was slow. Battery life was mediocre at best. Support was nonexistent.
That's when I bought the Eris, which you heard about above. I fell in love with Android right away. It was even better than my iPod touch at first. Contact management, appointments, MP3 player that switched to bluetooth for calls, what a great OS that I can install apps on and customize to my liking, etc. But the phone was near junk.
So then I got the Droid X. Great telephone for making calls. Decently fast when you replace the blur launcher with something faster. But it was uncomfortable, and the camera wasn't that great. I use it a lot since I have kids and pets, and sometimes for work.
That's when I got the Fascinate. Stock, I didn't like it. But I loved how open Samsung left it to the world of developers, and it has been a joy to root and customize and truly make "my own." I'm running the community ROM on it now, and it's far and away the best device I've ever owned. With the lagfix and a clean install of android with only what I need/want on it, it's exceptionally fast. I have NEVER had dialer or call receiving issues, and reception and battery life have always been good. I always get a full day unless I spend a ridiculous amount of time using the GPS or something like that on it.
Still, it has not been without it's problems. Some of my best friends have iPhones, and they have problems with them too. My dad had to get a second Fascinate, as his first had signal issues and call dropping issues. A coworker also recently replaced her fascinate as well. It was buggy from the get-go, and nothing I did, rooting, de-bloating, trying custom roms, etc, ever seemed to make it work. putting it back bone-stock did no good. It was simply a lemon, and Verizon replaced it. Her new one so far works very well, and she hasn't had a single problem she had with the first one.
My point is, these are tiny sensitive devices that are complex, and seem to me to have a reasonably high rate of defective devices coming off the fab. I would never throw out a piece of equipment when the first one didn't work. But if you've been through 3 or 4, and still continue to have dreadful problems with it that make it impossible to use and/or hopefully enjoy, then I understand.
Still, I agree with the above. Donate it to charity, or a developer, or a family member. Make Verizon/Samsung replace it. It still has months of warranty left! What a waste. I totally understand your frustration, but destroying a device worth several hundred dollars doesn't seem like the best answer ... however, if I'd been through what you went through with it, who knows, I may have smashed it too.
