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VM Optimus V Vs Moto Triumph

I have the Virgin Mobile Optimus V and I'm thinking of switching to the Moto Triumph for the bigger screen. Is there any down side to doing this? Which is the better phone?

Thanks
 
My triumph was awful. I ended up returning it and went back to the V. The simple fact that everything on the V worked very well, and numerous features on the Triumph didn't work at all was enough for me.

Results may vary.
 
My buddy HAD the Triumph and HATED it. I agree, it feels flimsy and cheap. Do a search and you'll see it's a much disliked phone on these forums. If that's not enough, go check VM's facebook page. You'll see people raising hell about how lame it is (unless those posts have been yanked).

Edit: Triumph comments haven't been yanked, they are still up. You'll need to look for the post that was made on 25 Oct. There's 80+ comments about that phone and most of them are not good.
 
I own both and I can honestly say that the Triumph is far better than the V. You can Overclock the Triumph to 1.9ghz and it even has both MIUI and CM7 roms. The only downside it really has is the GPS which can take a while to connect.
 
One of my family members has the Optimus V. It is a great phone and it is very reliable. The only knock on it is that it is a little small, but it is not much smaller than the original Motorola Droid that I own. The speed is comparable to my Droid, and it is lighter phone. The screen resolution is not as good as my Droid, but for the list price of $150, it is worth it at that price.

In fact, I just got my own Optimus V at the Target $50 sale, and I plan on switching over to it when my Verizon contract runs out in December. Sprint/VM coverage is very good in my area, and I can get the $45 a month plan which will give me 3 times the minutes at half the price of my Verizon plan, plus I am not locked into another 2 year contract.
 
What didn't work? Do you think it was just your phone or were the issues you had experienced by other as well?

The GPS was a nightmare, this is a well known fact amongst the community. The responses that we were getting from Motorola in their own forums was, "we understand there is a problem, but we don't know when a fix will occur, if ever." In those times that I did get a lock and attempt to navigate, on multiple occasions, the phone overheated and shut itself down (this has never happened to me once with the OV).

The mp4 video files actually play smoother on the OV than they did on the Triumph (a minor jitter on the triumph that couldn't resolve). It was not a comfortable phone to talk on, both in shape (against the ear) and voice quality. Folks talking about returning their phone three or four times in hopes to get a good one left me wondering if there really was a good one. The ratings on the Best Buy website originally up in the 4's starting falling like a brick to the low 3's once folks start understanding the state of the phone.

I loved having the larger screen, the faster processor made the phone a little snappier than the OV, and I do miss the notification lights that indicate activity when the phone is asleep.

I understand that some folks can overlook these issues, or don't use these features very often, or don't mind the thought of having to return the phone multiple times to get a "good one," but I have to admit, having to stop and ask for directions one day after being out of GPS signal for over 30 minutes, multiple phone reboots ... that did the trick for me (and I only paid $224 for the phone after tax), back to the store it went.

I just don't have time for that kind of quality, or lack there of.
 
Looks like you are getting some form both sides of the issue here. GOOD!

I will add my 2 cents (since I own the Triumph and the wife has the OV). I prefer the Triumph. I never had any of the issues that most people have reported, although very rarely I have trouble with the back key not working right (which is a hardware issue). The OV is very solid and a good phone. The Triumph does feel a little bit less hardy in comparison, but it is far from flimsy in my opinion. My wife has more issues with her OV than I do with my Triumph (partially because I know a lot more than she does, and she doesn't want to take the time to learn it all). The OV has a slower processor, a smaller screen, and less internal memory. If those are important to you more than other issues, you should remember that.

MOST of the issues people have had with the Triumph when it was released are not being seen as much (looks like they have better QC now). Many more of the issues are solved by putting one of the excellent custom ROMs on the phone, and if you feel comfortable with that I would recommend it. The OV has many similar ROMs (like CM7), but does not have MIUI if you would be interested in that. I am not totally current on all the OV ROMs (my wife is just rooted stock), but it seems like there are some really good ones being actively maintained. I think both are going to have ICS before too long from the looks of things.

Both phones would be a good choice. Especially since Virgin Mobile has a good replacement policy (as do places like Best Buy) on the chance that you would get a phone that doesn't work quite right.

OK, that was more like 25cents, but hopefully it helped. The people responding all had points you should consider so weigh it carefully. And if you buy one and feel it is the wrong choice I believe you can return it for a full refund for 30 days (that might just be Best Buy, I am not totally positive). Both phones have an active community here at Android Forums, so feel free to stop by both and ask some questions!


p.s. I would probably recommend the OV if you don't think you will ever want to root your phone or put custom ROMs on it. If you feel like you would want to do that I would recommend the Triumph as the custom ROMs fix almost every issue people have had with the phones software. You can PM me if you want any more of my excellent input! :P Good luck deciding!
 
The internal memory is a good point to consider. For folks that really like to load their phone up with apps, the Optimus is going to force you into rooting and having to move apps to the msdcard.

I don't have much of anything good to say about the Triumph, because Motorola's response to their customers cries for help was ... well I won't go into it, but there are plenty of good points about that phone. You may want to hit the Triumph area of this forum for additional positive reviews.
 
The internal memory is a good point to consider. For folks that really like to load their phone up with apps, the Optimus is going to force you into rooting and having to move apps to the msdcard.

I don't have much of anything good to say about the Triumph, because Motorola's response to their customers cries for help was ... well I won't go into it, but there are plenty of good points about that phone. You may want to hit the Triumph area of this forum for additional positive reviews.
Yeah, I have had to do a couple of fixes so my wife's phone doesn't run out of space and stop receiving text messages (she doesn't use all that many apps either!). I have never had that issue on my Triumph.

I can totally understand if you had some bad experiences with it and bad customer service. I had the same sort of thing with my xbox 360 a couple years back and refuse to buy another (although I will buy other microsoft products). Bad experiences can really burn you.
 
Thanks for the great information. Sounds like something I want to stay away from if for no other reason Moto's screw you we will fix it when and if we want attitude. ESPECIALLY since they want $300 for it.

So next question, what is the down side of rooting the Optimus and how hard is it?
 
Well, Motorola may not be helpful, but Virgin Mobile is good and will replace your phone. Motorola just doesn't want to fix the stuff wrong in the stock software (i.e. the drivers).
 
Thanks for the great information. Sounds like something I want to stay away from if for no other reason Moto's screw you we will fix it when and if we want attitude. ESPECIALLY since they want $300 for it.

So next question, what is the down side of rooting the Optimus and how hard is it?


Also keep in mind that you shouldn't have to flash a custom rom to fix issues with a phone (as has been stated about the Triumph). That right there should be a huge red flag I would think.

There's no downside to rooting (other than nixing the warranty). :)
 
Also keep in mind that you shouldn't have to flash a custom rom to fix issues with a phone (as has been stated about the Triumph). That right there should be a huge red flag I would think.

There's no downside to rooting (other than nixing the warranty). :)
I'll do whatever I have to do in able to get the best experience I can with my phone. I understand if people do not want to root/flash/whatever, but suggesting that it can make your experience better should not raise a red flag. I have heard from a number of newer folks that have just bought the phone and there are far fewer people bringing up hardware/software issues (besides stock GPS) that is not caused by user error.

Yes, rooting/flashing/whatever can void your warranty. Yes, I understand not wanting to do that. If things are done properly then there is very little risk (notice I didn't say it is nonexistent) of bad things happening to your phone because of it.

You can have the greatest phone ever made (whatever that would be, I don't claim to guess) and people will still complain. I haven't heard of a phone that people do not complain about. So read reviews, ask questions (like you did here) and judge for yourself. There will be very vocal people for things and against, but in my experience people will get on a site to complain about something a lot more than the people will to praise it. Take it all into consideration. I definitely recommend talking to people that use both phones and seeing both sides before making your decision.

Now that my wall of text is done, I think you know how I feel and I should shut up. If you want any more of my opinions feel free to shoot me a PM.
 
suggesting that it can make your experience better should not raise a red flag.

With all due respect, that's not what I said.

Many more of the issues are solved by putting one of the excellent custom ROMs on the phone

Also keep in mind that you shouldn't have to flash a custom rom to fix issues with a phone (as has been stated about the Triumph). That right there should be a huge red flag I would think.
 
MOST of the issues people have had with the Triumph when it was released are not being seen as much (looks like they have better QC now). Many more of the issues are solved by putting one of the excellent custom ROMs on the phone, and if you feel comfortable with that I would recommend it.

Also keep in mind that you shouldn't have to flash a custom rom to fix issues with a phone (as has been stated about the Triumph). That right there should be a huge red flag I would think.

With all due respect, that's not what I said.

I was not trying to misquote you. I was trying to clarify a bit when it seemed to me like you were misunderstanding my point. I never tried to say you had to flash a ROM to "fix" the phone, if it came across that way then excuse my blunder. I think that recently the phone has a much better experience on stock than at release. I think it is even better with a custom ROM. I would use this phone stock (and did for quite a while). Sorry if that was misconstrued. I am sure the OP is glad to have everyone's input.
 
I didn't misunderstand. :) "Solve issue" or "fix issue". It means the same thing in regards to the topic of problems/issues/bugs with a stock rom and/or hardware. Any item with a $300.00 price tag that has issues/bugs/problems with the hardware/rom right out of the box should be avoided at all costs. ;)

Adding a custom rom should enhance the users experience, add additional functionality, and should be something one chooses when they're ready. No one should have to install a custom rom in order to solve issues with a device, which is indeed what you said. :)

Not like this is your fault though. Moto is responsible and they're the ones who should be pushing an OTA patch so that a custom rom is not needed to fix their mistakes. A truly good phone can stand alone by itself without the need for a custom rom. The OpV can do this, the Triumph cannot.
 
I didn't misunderstand. :) "Solve issue" or "fix issue". It means the same thing in regards to the topic of problems/issues/bugs with a stock rom and/or hardware. Any item with a $300.00 price tag that has issues/bugs/problems with the hardware/rom right out of the box should be avoided at all costs. ;)

Adding a custom rom should enhance the users experience, add additional functionality, and should be something one chooses when they're ready. No one should have to install a custom rom in order to solve issues with a device, which is indeed what you said. :)

Not like this is your fault though. Moto is responsible and they're the ones who should be pushing an OTA patch so that a custom rom is not needed to fix their mistakes. A truly good phone can stand alone by itself without the need for a custom rom. The OpV can do this, the Triumph cannot.


I will just say that I do not agree with that. Having used both I would still prefer the triumph in a stock state over the OV, but I know others disagree.
 
If I was researching this phone and ran across this as a first post on a forum, I'd be scared.

Sticky: Summary of problems for Triumph (
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Thought I would chime in here, I have the V, love it, it's rooted, oc'ed but stock.
My wife has the Triumph, bought it a month ago, she has had no problems with it.

Virgin Mobile is having a Cyber Monday sale today, Triumph is running 149.99, V is 64.99.

promo code 'save20' give's you 20% of, which makes the Triumph only 120.00.
 
I personally think that the OP wanted real user info on the Triumph and Optimus "V". Any info given out of speculation and hearsay and or third party info should not have been brought up and simply clouds the actual facts.

If you actually own a Triumph then give the pros and cons to owning it. Same with the "V"
That's what the OP really needs.
 
The stock "v" for me was a little slow, mostly because of the CPU speed being capped at 600MHz. The stock virtual keyboard will drive anybody batty,but there are plenty of good keyboards on the market. The screen is smaller,but with the right case can be put in the back pocket without fear of breakage(this is a plus for me as I work in commercial and industrial construction).
The battery life is quite good if you turn every thing off until you need that particular function. With light usage I can go a day easy on one charge. Constant internet usage 5 to 6 hours, which is better than the laptop I had.
The stock browser leaves something to desired but with Dolphin HD you can have a near PC experience with the proper add-ons. The ARM 6 processor doesn't support flash play and you cannot download any of the adobe flash players. Firefox Browser solves some of this issue, but not totally.
I personally have not had any major problems with my "V" and would not trade it for another phone until flash play or HTML 5 was available as well as 4G LTE on a Virgin Mobile phone. I like the $25.00 plan and don't plan on paying more.
 
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