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Major Problem with Bionic?
- Thread starter xguy
- Start date
) and the reviews I read seemed good. So now I'm wanting to know any common major problems I shoud be aware of and I know you guys know your phones!
Get it updated to ICS. ICS fixed just about all the remaining bugs.
Make sure you have the cable and charger with Motorola logos on them and that is your standard for charging.
Make sure you have an OEM battery.
There were problem after problem after problem that were corrected by ...
- Charge an OEM battery with the OEM charger and OEM cable.
- Upgrade to ICS.
- Do a Factory Data Reset after the upgrade.
You will be hard pressed to find any remaining Bionic problems.
... Thom
Make sure you have the cable and charger with Motorola logos on them and that is your standard for charging.
Make sure you have an OEM battery.
There were problem after problem after problem that were corrected by ...
- Charge an OEM battery with the OEM charger and OEM cable.
- Upgrade to ICS.
- Do a Factory Data Reset after the upgrade.
You will be hard pressed to find any remaining Bionic problems.
... Thom
xguy
Android Enthusiast
OK, What is ICS and is that an update VZW will send? I hope it's an OEM charger and battery, he didn't say anything about the cable and hope it comes with it.
Thanks for the info!
Ice Cream Sandwich (i.e., version "I") of the system.
Go to Settings | System Settings scroll to the very bottom and select About phone.
Android version 4.0.4 is ICS
System version 6.7.246.T875... is the latest version
That's what you want. Is that what it says?
... Thom
Go to Settings | System Settings scroll to the very bottom and select About phone.
Android version 4.0.4 is ICS
System version 6.7.246.T875... is the latest version
That's what you want. Is that what it says?
... Thom
xguy
Android Enthusiast
OK, That sounds easy. No I haven't got my phone yet but will see when it comes. Thanks Thom!
wildkitten
Android Enthusiast
What Thom says is excellent advice.
I would also suggest going to Amazon and getting a couple more OEM batteries as well. The Bionic has been out for about a year and a half, and since it is a smartphone you can count on it having been through many charge cycles already. As with any phone, accessories will only be made for so long yet the device will still be functional useful long after you have upgraded to another one in a year or two. Having batteries on hand will insure you will be able to use it without it being constantly plugged into the wall or the car charger.
xguy
Android Enthusiast
That is a great suggestion. That is interesting that anything other than OEM would cause problems but I'm sure y'all know what you're talking about...must one sensitive phone! Lol. I've used aftermarket everything on my phones and other electronics, but again thanks for the heads up! I know all smartphones suck up some battery like my Dinc but is the Bionic that bad? So guess they don't make an OEM extended battery?
wildkitten
Android Enthusiast
Actually it's fairly common place these days. Since Lithium batteries have like built in circuitry for protection, off brand batteries dont have that, or not near as good, so it causes issues.
And no, the Bionic is not that bad. To me, it actually does pretty good as far as smartphones when it comes to battery usage. And unlike a lot of smartphones you can swap out the battery on the Bionic. It's just that Lithium battery will only have so many recharge cycles and typical usage pretty much means charging every day as with any smartphone. Old feature phones may not needed to be charged for 4 or 5 days, so the battery recharge cycle was never an issue with them. The original battery would last the 2 years and was no reason to hold on to the phone after upgrading.
Well, since smartphones make good GPS devices, media players, etc, people use them even after they no longer use them as phones. So they have longer lives while the batteries have shorter lives because of needing to be recharged more often. That's the reason is smart to pick up a couple of spares.
xguy
Android Enthusiast
Yes I will pick up a couple spares. I have to charge my 3G Dinc daily and just read that a 4G switching back and forth to 3G will cause it to use a lot power. I read that the batteries in the new ones does not come out, so I wonder if a battery goes bad you're out of a phone!
wildkitten
Android Enthusiast
Yes I will pick up a couple spares. I have to charge my 3G Dinc daily and just read that a 4G switching back and forth to 3G will cause it to use a lot power. I read that the batteries in the new ones does not come out, so I wonder if a battery goes bad you're out of a phone!
Well, not neccessarily out of a phone. When I went phone shopping in November of 2011 it came down between the Bionic and the Razr, the Razr Maxx had not yet come out. The 2 phones were identical except for the fact that the Razr had an AMOLED screen and a sealed battery compartment and the Bionic didn't have an AMOLED screen and was user swappable for the battery. I asked what would happen if I bought the Razr and needed a battery replaced. I was told I would have to essentially mail my phone back in with the price of a battery and I would receive another Razr, not the one I had had, but one that was "certified like new" to me. Well, to me personally that was unacceptable.
However, a lot of sealed phones you can actually buy batteries that normally comes with a tool to open the sealed case. If I remember correctly, reports were that the Razr's battery actually had a plug so, if someone were willing to break into their phone, switching it out was fairly easy. But that still made switching out on the fly nearly impossible. Also, not everyone is comfortable doing that.
xguy
Android Enthusiast
I believe I will stick to replaceable battery phones! I know this is hard to believe but I just ordered my FIRST OEM battery for my old Razr V3 about 9 years old and the old battery is STILL not bad, I just have to charge it about every 2-3 days! And that is the clearest phone I've ever had, just like a landline! If I ever find a smartphone that clear I'll be one happy camper!
Yes, they do make an OEM extended battery. I have 2 of them. They come with a thicker battery cover to fit the larger battery. Google bionic standard vs extended battery, there are tons of pics.
EDIT:
DroidLife article http://www.droid-life.com/2011/09/1...es-extended-vs-standard-vs-wireless-charging/
wildkitten
Android Enthusiast
I've long thought that the Bionic was very clear with phone calls. But then I've read a lot of reviews that have talked about Motorola have the best voice radios of any cell phone maker.
As for the OEM extended battery, yes, they do make those. I didn't see that in your other post. Just resist the temptation to get the 4000mA extended battery you will see on Amazon. The OEM is 2600 mA and I have heard really bad things about the 4000 mA one, even worse than the normal bad stories about 3rd party batteries.
xguy
Android Enthusiast
I've only had one Motorola and that's the old razr and soon to be the Bionic.
Can you recommend a good site for a oem extended battey?
Thanks
Yes - Amazon.com. The combo battery/replacement cover is $49.
Amazon.com: OEM BW8X Motorola Droid Bionic XT875 Extended Battery 2760mah and Extended door cover: Cell Phones & Accessories
If you search you will see that others sell the battery for less, but beware - several comments say that the first purchased didn't work. I suspect that those are used batteries.
xguy
Android Enthusiast
One of the main reasons that OEM equipment is highly recommended is because of it being a known high quality. With other brands you have no such guarantee and more often than not, they are sub par. You will actually see these same recommendations on just about any of the better quality phones no matter the brand