So because a TMo store near me had one (ONE) in stock, I took the plunge. For those shopping, everybody/where I've asked has said they get maybe one unit per shipment, and they are usually gone the same day; they're obviously trickling them out, so I can only assume that demand has exceeded supply.
I'm coming from different HTC models over the last 5 years; this is the first non-HTC Android I've had, and no denying there are some changes to get used to! I've got a bunch of questions (jump to the end for those), but I know people want to know about the device, so here are my first impressions. Plenty has been written about the camera and sound so I'm not going to focus on those (since I haven't used them much yet, but here's what I've noticed so far....
Pros
- screen size is magic. Looking at my m9 after working on the V20 to set it up feels cramped and pokey. I have a feeling I'm never going back to a smaller device!
- very responsive so far, even after all my apps etc were transferred.
- The second screen is AWESOME. Maybe some people think it's "gimmicky", but I think it's going to be one of my most-used features. I absolutely love it, and it opens up real estate on the homescreens. I'm also using it as a "speed-dialler" for my most-used numbers.
- Bluetooth has paired quickly and easily so far. Seems stable (although bluetooth in my car is always kind of a pain, so we'll see how it handles that over the next few days!)
- Qslide is a nice inclusion, and another option for miinimizing clutter on the homescreen, and getting quick access to frequently-used apps (although I have some questions about it - see below)
- reception (so far) seems better than my m9. We live in a tiny little corner of our neighbourhood which has CRAPPY cell service (all carriers. We're one of about a dozen houses in a little hollow which seems to have issues, despite near line-of-sight to the nearest tower; Tmo looked it up the day I was playing with the phone in store (they were empty, I was waiting for my car's oil change lol) and apparently we only get band 12, and even that can be iffy. It's worse in summer, so I assume foliage is part of the problem. But I digress...). In any case, the V20 is showing 4-5 bars, whereas the HTC never showed more than 3-4, and frequently 1-2. Big plus
Cons
- tmo didnt give me the code for the headphones! Does that come by email, or....?!
- It's big. I actually LIKE this, but some may not. Its very light for its size, and easy to hold.
- The screen is lovely, but not as good as the one on my HTC m9. There is some lightbleed at the lower corners; not a dealbreaker, but it's there.
- it did get a bit warm in heavy use (while plugged in). Time will tell whether this is a consistent problem, or just that it was working overtime while transferring info from old device etc.
- Sim card, SD card and battery are a little fiddly to install - the sim and SD are nested on top of each other in the same slot which took some figuring out; coming from a sealed unit with sim/SD trays, that was a little confusing! The battery is a snug fit.
- the camera bump-out is significant. I'd seen it in store, but it's only when handling the unit properly that one becomes aware of how significantly it protrudes. I'm not even willing to take this out of the house until it's in a case and has some kind of protection.
- The layout on the "symbols" keyboard is crazy! Everything else is qwerty, but that seems random. Is there a way of customizing that portion of the keyboard?
- if.you hold backspace down, it goes FAST right away (not gradually). Deleted nearly a paragraph before I realised what was happening. Lol
Things I'm missing from HTC (and/or the HTC Sense UI) - if there are ways of doing these things, please somebody tell me how!
* no cursor arrows on vertical keyboard, and no obvious way to set them - this is one of the HTC keyboard's options. Do any 3rd-party keyboards offer this too? On a plus note, the numbers on the main letter keyboard are great, as is the ability to customize the bottom row buttons.
* No obvious way to add extra homescreens - it must exist, but I can't figure out how!
*I'm really missing the "People" widget, where I could keep my 9 most-used numbers as a speed-dial center on a separate homescreen, with images for easy recognition (eg to dial in the car). The "Easy home" layout presents me with EXACTLY what I want for my contacts - large, grid/image layout, on a separate home screen - but then I can't customise the rest of the home screens the way I want as "Easy Home"doesn't let you move icons or put them into folders. Is that easyhome dialler embedded somewhere that I can use in the "Home screen + app drawer" option? I'm using the second-screen for now, but would prefer the larger icons and easier access of the widget!
*is there a drive mode with gigantic icons, like HTC's car mode?
* People have said they use a magnetic mount in the car - does that work through a case, or only on a "naked" body?
* Is it possible to select which apps live in QSlide? And where are the settings/options for that? Can't find them.
I need to re-read the Phandroid tips article (I saw it a while back, but need to re-find it now!) but answers to any of these other questions would be hugely welcomed!
Overall: I like it, although I'm not yet at the "zOMG best device ever!" stage; I have a feeling that the camera and recorder may push me to that, and can't wait to give both of those a spin round the block. My HTC devices feel more solid and better built - although they're also heavier, and the LG's size:weight ratio is impressive, as it's very light in the hand despite being a larrrrrgggeee phone. There are some software things that are going to take some getting used to; there's a learning curve for sure, and I won't fault the device for that - just need to give it time and see what I think once I'm more used to it.
Anyway, first impressions. Feel free to ask any questions, and I'll do my best to answer them.
I'm coming from different HTC models over the last 5 years; this is the first non-HTC Android I've had, and no denying there are some changes to get used to! I've got a bunch of questions (jump to the end for those), but I know people want to know about the device, so here are my first impressions. Plenty has been written about the camera and sound so I'm not going to focus on those (since I haven't used them much yet, but here's what I've noticed so far....
Pros
- screen size is magic. Looking at my m9 after working on the V20 to set it up feels cramped and pokey. I have a feeling I'm never going back to a smaller device!
- very responsive so far, even after all my apps etc were transferred.
- The second screen is AWESOME. Maybe some people think it's "gimmicky", but I think it's going to be one of my most-used features. I absolutely love it, and it opens up real estate on the homescreens. I'm also using it as a "speed-dialler" for my most-used numbers.
- Bluetooth has paired quickly and easily so far. Seems stable (although bluetooth in my car is always kind of a pain, so we'll see how it handles that over the next few days!)
- Qslide is a nice inclusion, and another option for miinimizing clutter on the homescreen, and getting quick access to frequently-used apps (although I have some questions about it - see below)
- reception (so far) seems better than my m9. We live in a tiny little corner of our neighbourhood which has CRAPPY cell service (all carriers. We're one of about a dozen houses in a little hollow which seems to have issues, despite near line-of-sight to the nearest tower; Tmo looked it up the day I was playing with the phone in store (they were empty, I was waiting for my car's oil change lol) and apparently we only get band 12, and even that can be iffy. It's worse in summer, so I assume foliage is part of the problem. But I digress...). In any case, the V20 is showing 4-5 bars, whereas the HTC never showed more than 3-4, and frequently 1-2. Big plus
Cons
- tmo didnt give me the code for the headphones! Does that come by email, or....?!
- It's big. I actually LIKE this, but some may not. Its very light for its size, and easy to hold.
- The screen is lovely, but not as good as the one on my HTC m9. There is some lightbleed at the lower corners; not a dealbreaker, but it's there.
- it did get a bit warm in heavy use (while plugged in). Time will tell whether this is a consistent problem, or just that it was working overtime while transferring info from old device etc.
- Sim card, SD card and battery are a little fiddly to install - the sim and SD are nested on top of each other in the same slot which took some figuring out; coming from a sealed unit with sim/SD trays, that was a little confusing! The battery is a snug fit.
- the camera bump-out is significant. I'd seen it in store, but it's only when handling the unit properly that one becomes aware of how significantly it protrudes. I'm not even willing to take this out of the house until it's in a case and has some kind of protection.
- The layout on the "symbols" keyboard is crazy! Everything else is qwerty, but that seems random. Is there a way of customizing that portion of the keyboard?
- if.you hold backspace down, it goes FAST right away (not gradually). Deleted nearly a paragraph before I realised what was happening. Lol
Things I'm missing from HTC (and/or the HTC Sense UI) - if there are ways of doing these things, please somebody tell me how!
* no cursor arrows on vertical keyboard, and no obvious way to set them - this is one of the HTC keyboard's options. Do any 3rd-party keyboards offer this too? On a plus note, the numbers on the main letter keyboard are great, as is the ability to customize the bottom row buttons.
* No obvious way to add extra homescreens - it must exist, but I can't figure out how!
*I'm really missing the "People" widget, where I could keep my 9 most-used numbers as a speed-dial center on a separate homescreen, with images for easy recognition (eg to dial in the car). The "Easy home" layout presents me with EXACTLY what I want for my contacts - large, grid/image layout, on a separate home screen - but then I can't customise the rest of the home screens the way I want as "Easy Home"doesn't let you move icons or put them into folders. Is that easyhome dialler embedded somewhere that I can use in the "Home screen + app drawer" option? I'm using the second-screen for now, but would prefer the larger icons and easier access of the widget!
*is there a drive mode with gigantic icons, like HTC's car mode?
* People have said they use a magnetic mount in the car - does that work through a case, or only on a "naked" body?
* Is it possible to select which apps live in QSlide? And where are the settings/options for that? Can't find them.
I need to re-read the Phandroid tips article (I saw it a while back, but need to re-find it now!) but answers to any of these other questions would be hugely welcomed!
Overall: I like it, although I'm not yet at the "zOMG best device ever!" stage; I have a feeling that the camera and recorder may push me to that, and can't wait to give both of those a spin round the block. My HTC devices feel more solid and better built - although they're also heavier, and the LG's size:weight ratio is impressive, as it's very light in the hand despite being a larrrrrgggeee phone. There are some software things that are going to take some getting used to; there's a learning curve for sure, and I won't fault the device for that - just need to give it time and see what I think once I'm more used to it.
Anyway, first impressions. Feel free to ask any questions, and I'll do my best to answer them.
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