Lg revolution / first basic impressions

[Haxcid]

Why would you use an app to disable lte when you can do it from the wireless settings?

those apps were meant for the TBolt which does not have a way to disable the LTE radio. Also I had no idea the switch was there... Just turned off the 4G radio on mine... No 4G in my area until October. See if it makes a difference on the battery which with light use is at 63% for me. It has been on since 7:30am. 7 hours 37% battery use. Not horrible.

 

[GunnerJim]

Still debating, return it for the Charge again or stick it out, get second battery to overcome 4G battery drain. The major concern now is the loading of 3G/4G pages with the stock browser, Charge has the advantage, every page load test I do in VZW with phones side by side, caches clear, etc... 7-10 seconds over the LG Revo. The Mobile Hotspot is a concern as well, it drops and drops, reconnects, the Charge did not do that. I want to keep the Revo, ordered second battery, hopefully I will figure out the rest.... Any advice??? You all know I like this phone, my reviews were very positive, this 4G network stuff is making me a little depressed.

 

[stetsonaw]

I'm gonna give it til next week, if no recovery, I'm returning it and getting the Charge or Thunderbolt. So much I want to do, but don't want to without the ability to make a nandroid backup. Which sucks, i really like the Revo.

 

[GunnerJim]

Stetson, I agree with you on that front too, both of us have been advocates for this phone. But the last couple of days have bummed me out...

 

[jinwons]

I'm gonna give it til next week, if no recovery, I'm returning it and getting the Charge or Thunderbolt. So much I want to do, but don't want to without the ability to make a nandroid backup. Which sucks, i really like the Revo.

Sorry if I missed what you posted before, but what problems are you having with your Revo?

 

[jinwons]

Today I got back to my local VZW store to test Revo, Charge, Tbolt side by side on browsing after seeing some complains on Revo's data speed here. I cleared cache on stock browser of each phone and they were all running on 3G though they were all set to LTE automatic. My area is not covered with LTE yet. I loaded desktop sites with heavy flash content. I spent about an hour for comparison testing. Here are what I found.

Charge was dead least in browsing speed. Revo finished first by wide margin, more than 10 seconds faster. Tbolt was closely behind Revo just by 2~3 seconds. So to the contrary of GunnerJim's complain on Revo's 3G data speed, it's faster than others at least where I live. I think it depends on the location which one is faster.

Regarding zooming, scrolling in stock browser, Charge was noticeably laggy, choppy both before and after web page finishes loading. So I set plug-in to "on demand" and it got much better in zooming, scrolling. But Revo literally crushes Charge on smoothness of pinch to zoom, scrolling without having to change default plug in setting. Tbolt was fairly smooth zooming too, but Revo felt a little smoother.

Overall Revolution gave most pleasant web browsing experience in both download speed and zoom, scrolling smoothness. I couldn't test battery drain rate as these phones were all plugged to charger though.

 

[Dogwalker]

@ jinwons I came to the same conclusions. I had a Charge for 2 weeks. The battery was good for a 4G phone, but everything else, the Revo is better. Here's the thing, whenever I surf or open apps, sometimes, there's a perceptible lag. Its not bad, but I do want a phone that will last me a while and not leave me saying to myself 6 months later that my phone is too slow.

 

[stetsonaw]

Sorry if I missed what you posted before, but what problems are you having with your Revo?

one glaring issue is the lack of dev support, nobody is trying to get recovery, which means no custom roms. For your average joe user, this is an AWESOME phone, with one GLARING issue...

I don't know if it's my bluetooth stereo just not liking the Revo, but it's never had issues with my wife's dumbphone, or my D1 and D2. When in a call over bluetooth, the audio would cut out for 2-3 seconds and just get fuzzy. I got tired of having people repeat themselves.

Running speedtest.net app at the VZW store tonight, the Charge did horrible (<600dl, <300ul), Revo in second (900dl/600ul) and the Bolt killed them, 1200dl/800-900ul).

For mainly the first point, no dev support, i returned the Revo. I hated doing it, as i was a big advocate for this phone, but i just couldn't stand not being able to tweak it.

 

[GunnerJim]

Wow Stetson, what did you get? Really want to know, because you too was very excited about this phone with me...

 

[GunnerJim]

Dogwalker, what really made you take back the Charge, the memory? Lag, I think is attributed to RFS file system?

 

[jinwons]

one glaring issue is the lack of dev support, nobody is trying to get recovery, which means no custom roms. For your average joe user, this is an AWESOME phone, with one GLARING issue...

I don't know if it's my bluetooth stereo just not liking the Revo, but it's never had issues with my wife's dumbphone, or my D1 and D2. When in a call over bluetooth, the audio would cut out for 2-3 seconds and just get fuzzy. I got tired of having people repeat themselves.

Running speedtest.net app at the VZW store tonight, the Charge did horrible (<600dl, <300ul), Revo in second (900dl/600ul) and the Bolt killed them, 1200dl/800-900ul).

For mainly the first point, no dev support, i returned the Revo. I hated doing it, as i was a big advocate for this phone, but i just couldn't stand not being able to tweak it.

It's up to you whether to return it or not for whatever reason. But it's a bit baffling to me because you probably knew about slow dev support when getting this phone.

 

[stetsonaw]

Wow Stetson, what did you get? Really want to know, because you too was very excited about this phone with me...

Went with the Bolt, rooting it now.

It's up to you whether to return it or not for whatever reason. But it's a bit baffling to me because you probably knew about slow dev support when getting this phone.

I did, and i figured there would be at least a little bit of chatter out there in the dev community, but there is none. PLENTY of dev support for the bolt, and lastly, that bluetooth problem was killing me.

 

[Dogwalker]

Dogwalker, what really made you take back the Charge, the memory? Lag, I think is attributed to RFS file system?

I took the Charge back for the following reasons:

1) the RFS system. Yes, you can root the phone, but rooting tends to lead to some instability in the early stages. I wanted a phone that was fast, out of the box. Why should I have to modify it and waste all that time working on it when I've paid 200+ clams for it? I used to be into modding and all that crap,at the end of the day, I want a phone that is fast without me fiddling with it.

2) I wanted a faster phone. Sure, the Charge rooted gave about 1400 Quad score, but the Revo is putting out 1900-2100. You can root the charge all you want, but I don't think it will be that easy matching the Revo scores (someone correct me if I'm wrong). The battery performance may be inferior, but it all depends on what you value.

3) I liked the LG UI. Out of the box, I can live with it.

4) My Charge's 4G would drop to 3G and sometimes completely lose signal. Even when 4G was showing on the top bar and I had 3 bars, I had no data connection. Weird huh?

5) Compared Charge's 4G performance against the T-bolt side by side. It seemed that the radio they put in there was not giving as good a performance as the t-bolt. The Revo on the hand, was neck and neck with the T-bolt. The Revo's 3G radio is superior to the Charge's period. I was in places where I kept losing signal with the Charge and the Revo kept me going with 3G.

6) Build quality- Revo, nuff said.

7) The Samoled screen as great as it is in power savings didn't do it for me. Too saturated on the color, some folks like it, I don't. I am a semi serious photographer and color vividness turns me off a little.

I knew the battery performance would be worse, it was expected. The 4G LTE sucks juice like a thirsty camel. All the new 4G phones will have this problem. So the question really comes down to battery life vs. performance out of the box. I had a D1... before this. The D1 in its final days, was slow as heck. I swore never to compromise on performance and the performance scores of the Samsung nagged at me... and the phone costs more than the Revo lol. If the Sammy was as fast as the Revo, no question, I'd take the Sammy. The Revo is the best compromise of the three (t-bolt, sammy, revo).

 

[jinwons]

Also Charge has only 2Gb of internal storage while Revo has huge 16Gb. That's big plus for Revo to me. Tbolt says 8Gb on spec, but it really has only about 2.5Gb left for user.

 

[rushmore]

Dogwalker, what really made you take back the Charge, the memory? Lag, I think is attributed to RFS file system?

If the Charge did not have the lethargic excuse of a proprietary I/O system (RFS), the Charge would probably be a snappy device. Low Quadrant scores do not lie, in regards to the Charge.

Until an LTE device ships with ALL of the noted items, I will avoid (until no choice):

1. Absolute switching to CDMA without a reboot
2. Great battery life
3. Great radio reception
4. Dual core
5. 4.3" display
6. 16gb internal
7. Great display

The DX2 will cover me for a while, until the LTE dust settles. As said before, sure wish the Tegra 2 and LTE would have played nice together AND the LTE network not be a big beta.

 

[Saporia]

I bought this phone the day it came out. I had the Droid X and it was getting on my nerves with the lag and I was on my third phone because it was just cut off. Not lose a signal, but cut off. I was excited about the LG because basically with all other things being equal you want the phone to make a call. I have had LG phones (before I moved to the Smartphone) that have let me talk on the metro (DC) in the tunnel and not lose connection.

Anyway, my dilemma is I tried to test the theory of more battery life without 4G (although I don

 

[rushmore]

I bought this phone the day it came out. I had the Droid X and it was getting on my nerves with the lag and I was on my third phone because it was just cut off. Not lose a signal, but cut off. I was excited about the LG because basically with all other things being equal you want the phone to make a call. I have had LG phones (before I moved to the Smartphone) that have let me talk on the metro (DC) in the tunnel and not lose connection.

Anyway, my dilemma is I tried to test the theory of more battery life without 4G (although I don&#8217;t know why I listened to y&#8217;all because why have a 4G phone just to run it in 3G). So, I had to reboot and the phone wouldn&#8217;t come back on. I returned it for a new one. I was scared to test the new one and reboot (although it should be able to do this without me being scared). Last night and the night before I turned the phone off because I thought it froze and it wouldn&#8217;t come back on. I had to do a hard factory reset (press the power and volume down button). Frankly, it pissed me off because I kept setting it up again. (Thank God for Go Launcher EX.) But I LOVE this phone!! I like the screen, I can see it in direct sunlight and it is so fast that the minute I press something it opens, not like the stupid Droid X where I had to wait 10 minutes to open an app or make a phone call. Does anyone know what is going on? Should I take this phone back also and get a new one. My feelings are so hurt :-( Any help/advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks,

To get CDMA only, the only current absolute way is to set it and reboot. There are apps and hacks that try and force it, but due to the network protocal of LTE, it expects an LTE device to be using- LTE. If you followed normal process, no reason to be concerned, other than perhaps a faulty device.

Your experience with the DX1 is odd though. It seemed always to be a snappy device and reports are is even better with Gingerbread. Did you mod your phone and perhaps mess it up?

Besides some sporadic heat issues due to some (not all) Flash content and some MP3 pops & skips while multi tasking, the DX2 is the best device I have owned (FWIW, since everything is relative. My owners path: N-Gage, Tmo Dash, G1, N900, Droid 1, Incredible and now the DX2).

I slam the DX2 to some degree, but do the same for ALL devices (if issues). Well, the only device I could not pick a hole in was the Alienware M11X. That little lappy rocked a year ago and still does today

Added: This time next year, we should see a stable LTE system... and established tiered LTE for folks that do not already have unlimited web plans.

 

[Saporia]

To get CDMA only, the only current absolute way is to set it and reboot. There are apps and hacks that try and force it, but due to the network protocal of LTE, it expects an LTE device to be using- LTE. If you followed normal process, no reason to be concerned, other than perhaps a faulty device.

Your experience with the DX1 is odd though. It seemed always to be a snappy device and reports are is even better with Gingerbread. Did you mod your phone and perhaps mess it up?

Besides some sporadic heat issues due to some (not all) Flash content and some MP3 pops & skips while multi tasking, the DX2 is the best device I have owned (FWIW, since everything is relative. My owners path: N-Gage, Tmo Dash, G1, N900, Droid 1, Incredible and now the DX2).

I slam the DX2 to some degree, but do the same for ALL devices (if issues). Well, the only device I could not pick a hole in was the Alienware M11X. That little lappy rocked a year ago and still does today

Added: This time next year, we should see a stable LTE system... and established tiered LTE for folks that do not already have unlimited web plans.

No I did not mod my DX. It was funny that it would just cut off on the 3 phones that I had. Also, it was way too laggy. I couldn't take it. Anyway, do you think I have a faulty device again with the Revo? This one, I only turned off to reboot and it wouldn't come on. So, I had to hard reset and it has happened twice. Now, I am scared to try to put it in CDMA and scared to turn it off. Holla back,

 

[rushmore]

No I did not mod my DX. It was funny that it would just cut off on the 3 phones that I had. Also, it was way too laggy. I couldn't take it. Anyway, do you think I have a faulty device again with the Revo? This one, I only turned off to reboot and it wouldn't come on. So, I had to hard reset and it has happened twice. Now, I am scared to try to put it in CDMA and scared to turn it off. Holla back,

When in doubt- don't. That is my normal policy (not in this case). I have come to LUV my DX2, so will avoid the LTE issues and let the dust settle for the network and device firmware & radios to get to speed.

I suggest testing the device with switching 3G/4G a lot before the 14 days are over, since it is a reality for the network and devices (unless battery is not a concern or never leave a heavy 4G area). If you have the issue again with another Rev, it seems it could be an issue with the switching process.

 

[xxxegoxxx]

I must say that this phone does get better reception then my TB did where I live. Before my TB would either get 1x or no signal at all. The only real complaint I have is the microsd slot. The spring that helps eject the card broke when I was taking the 16gb one out to replace with my 32gb. So I guess it's off to verizon later....

 

[Dogwalker]

Also Charge has only 2Gb of internal storage while Revo has huge 16Gb. That's big plus for Revo to me. Tbolt says 8Gb on spec, but it really has only about 2.5Gb left for user.

Yup, I forgot that point. Folks rave about the 32 gb sd card that the charge has, but forget that the revo's 16 gb on board plus the 32 sd slot ensure that it has tons of space. Onboard memory also tends to outperform sd memory in general.

 

[jinwons]

If the Charge did not have the lethargic excuse of a proprietary I/O system (RFS), the Charge would probably be a snappy device. Low Quadrant scores do not lie, in regards to the Charge.

Until an LTE device ships with ALL of the noted items, I will avoid (until no choice):

1. Absolute switching to CDMA without a reboot
2. Great battery life
3. Great radio reception
4. Dual core
5. 4.3" display
6. 16gb internal
7. Great display

The DX2 will cover me for a while, until the LTE dust settles. As said before, sure wish the Tegra 2 and LTE would have played nice together AND the LTE network not be a big beta.

I think Revol has got 3, 5, 6, 7 in your list. Early indication is Revo has pretty reliable signal reception unlike Tbolt, Charge which sometimes drops even 3G connection. Though it requires rebooting, switching to 3G is possible and it looks like seamless toggle switch is also in the work.

I wouldn't hold my breath on seeing dual core paired with LTE anytime soon, especially after seeing overheating DX2. If tegra2 does that with 3G radio, what will happen when it's coupled to LTE radio? I would rather have 4G connectivity issue than overheating device like DX2. 4G network issue is for VZW to fix, stabilize and it will be done eventually. But overheating is likely from hardware device component or design which is not easy to fix. It might be flash related partially, but it remains to be seen if that can be addressed by firmware update.