Single hardware flaw of Moto X imho

[quietlybrilliant]

Is the lac of front-facing speakers. Having used an HTC One for a while there's just no going back and every time my phone makes any sound I can not fathom why a company would put a speaker in the back, so each soundwave has to scatter off the world around me before coming to my ear.

Especially with the design of the Moto X with no capacitive buttons on the front there would have been ample space: all sensors above and below the screen could have been beautifully embedded in the speakers.

All the other "not a premium device" complaints from people are minor minor issues in comparison -- the speaker one isa true usability issue.

 

[mattopotamus]

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Speakers on the back is the main reason I have started putting my phone face down. The way the moto x handles active notifications makes me think they thought people would do the same.

 

[Strawdawg]

that is the one endearing feature of the HTC One as far as I am concerned. I am surprised others are not doing it, but it may be a question of packaging and the goal of keeping the phone as small as possible so that it is basically all screen??

I agree with you....I would like it

 

[rajeshr68]

Is the lac of front-facing speakers. Having used an HTC One for a while there's just no going back and every time my phone makes any sound I can not fathom why a company would put a speaker in the back, so each soundwave has to scatter off the world around me before coming to my ear.

Especially with the design of the Moto X with no capacitive buttons on the front there would have been ample space: all sensors above and below the screen could have been beautifully embedded in the speakers.

All the other "not a premium device" complaints from people are minor minor issues in comparison -- the speaker one isa true usability issue.

I would assume there was a lack of space to put the speakers in front and the Moto engineers decided to keep it in the back to keep the size the same. I will take the trade-off for one handed use over speakers any day! I would assume a lot of folks would too - the GS 4 doesn't seem to have suffered with a similar issue. Don't get me wrong - I would have loved front facing speakers, but not if the size got bigger.

Yes, the HTC One speakers were awesome - but most other devices have it in the back too (Samsung GS 4). So the Moto X doesn't have the best speakers around - other than the HTC One, I'm not sure which device could make that claim.

 

[quietlybrilliant]

Not sure what your point is. Are you trying to say this is a flaw one just has to deal with by putting it face down? Or that it's a feature somehow?

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Speakers on the back is the main reason I have started putting my phone face down. The way the moto x handles active notifications makes me think they thought people would do the same.

 

[mattopotamus]

Not sure what your point is. Are you trying to say this is a flaw one just has to deal with by putting it face down? Or that it's a feature somehow?

And since I have started doing it... It actually makes sense. It actually protects the screen better from anything else around it. Just make sure the surface is clean.

 

[quietlybrilliant]

And since I have started doing it... It actually makes sense. It actually protects the screen better from anything else around it. Just make sure the surface is clean.

Hmm, but I tend to *use* the screen while e.g., being on speakerphone with somebody, on Skype, watching YouTube, etc.

Plus note that the microphone on the Moto X is in the front of the phone, so if you do it the way you do it your voice will be muffled.

Finally, I find my screen is safer when it is facing up, because almost all surfaces have grains of sand or smudges on them that come with a risk of damaging the screen or at least making it dirty.

 

[mattopotamus]

Hmm, but I tend to *use* the screen while e.g., being on speakerphone with somebody, on Skype, watching YouTube, etc.

Plus note that the microphone on the Moto X is in the front of the phone, so if you do it the way you do it your voice will be muffled.

Finally, I find my screen is safer when it is facing up, because almost all surfaces have grains of sand or smudges on them that come with a risk of damaging the screen or at least making it dirty.

When I talk I flip it over or hold it. I just meant in terms of hearing a phone call. With my Nexus 4 I miss a lot of calls if it is face up. The speakers are horrific.

 

[quietlybrilliant]

I would assume there was a lack of space to put the speakers in front and the Moto engineers decided to keep it in the back to keep the size the same. I will take the trade-off for one handed use over speakers any day! I would assume a lot of folks would too - the GS 4 doesn't seem to have suffered with a similar issue. Don't get me wrong - I would have loved front facing speakers, but not if the size got bigger.

I agree with you in that the size of the Moto X is perfect. However it looks like two speakers of the size of the single one it has in the back could *easily* fit in the front, without interfering with any of the sensors (or even by embedding them, as is also the case in the HTC One).

My suspicion is that the avoidance of front facing speakers is simply the result of somebody in Google thinking phones should be just a slab of glass in the front, without any features. I'd be willing to bet some money that that attitude will go away with time. It just becomes obvious once one has used the HTC One that anything else is pure silliness.

 

[Aquila]

The sound does seem to be getting great reviews, but I think that I agree it'd be nicer to have them facing you.

Nexus. Through spacetime.

 

[quietlybrilliant]

I guess the lesson from this thread is that Apple did the right think by putting the speakers neither in the front nor back of the device ;-)

 

[Farish]

I guess the lesson from this thread is that Apple did the right think by putting the speakers neither in the front nor back of the device ;-)

Blasphemy

 

[TheLibertarian]

I guess the lesson from this thread is that Apple did the right think by putting the speakers neither in the front nor back of the device ;-)

Personally, I cannot stand the iPhone's speaker placement. I use devices in landscape far too often that I'm constantly covering them.

I definitely agree all devices going forward should model the One's speaker designs.

 

[Aquila]

Personally, I cannot stand the iPhone's speaker placement. I use devices in landscape far too often that I'm constantly covering them.

I definitely agree all devices going forward should model the One's speaker designs.

By the time it was released, the devices we get this year were probably done with that part of the design process. I'd hope for adoption in the next 12-18 months by more OEM's.

Nexus. Through spacetime.

 

[Ry]

Is the lac of front-facing speakers. Having used an HTC One for a while there's just no going back and every time my phone makes any sound I can not fathom why a company would put a speaker in the back, so each soundwave has to scatter off the world around me before coming to my ear.

Especially with the design of the Moto X with no capacitive buttons on the front there would have been ample space: all sensors above and below the screen could have been beautifully embedded in the speakers.

All the other "not a premium device" complaints from people are minor minor issues in comparison -- the speaker one isa true usability issue.

But then, wouldn't this be the same flaw on every released phone since the HTC One (and One mini)?

Curious, have you posted this in the GS4 forum too?

 

[Aquila]

I tend to think of design flaws as mistakes. As in, "I tried to make Mr Potato Head, but his foot was where his mouth should be and he had a hard time walking". Something that prevents intended usage, etc. Speaker placement seems to be a fairly intentional decision.

 

[sunburned]

I think it's kinda funny that one phone in the history of the world comes out with forward facing speakers and all of a sudden every other phone has a massive flaw.

Don't get me wrong, I think it's a great idea because I hate having to cup my hand around the phone to hear a video or whatever. But all of a sudden saying every other phone is crap because it doesn't have it is a bit misguided.

 

[jschu22]

Well it seems as though the decision has been made. Be sure to alert the manufacturers.

Posted via Android Central App

 

[Lynette_Kay]

Well; I reiterate this concern. My mother got a Motorola a month ago and almost lost her life due to not knowing there was a speaker issue with the phone. Her family did not make a life saving call at an early time; we just thought she wasn't answering because she did not know how to use the phone (a recurring problem for three weeks) when, in fact, she was unable to answer since she did not hear the phone. She lay on the floor 2 days (couldn't reach the phone) before help arrived...just in time.

Putting the phone face down to hear the speaker works, but not when you need to be on the go and throw it in a purse or pocket that can be a problem. I will be glad when they fix this design flaw...and putting the speaker in the front will have some issues as well. So the immediate answers...no phone case; keep the phone face up and don't stuff the phone anywhere you can't hear it. Thank goodness I have an iPhone!

 

[KWKSLVR]

Well; I reiterate this concern. My mother got a Motorola a month ago and almost lost her life due to not knowing there was a speaker issue with the phone. Her family did not make a life saving call at an early time; we just thought she wasn't answering because she did not know how to use the phone (a recurring problem for three weeks) when, in fact, she was unable to answer since she did not hear the phone. She lay on the floor 2 days (couldn't reach the phone) before help arrived...just in time.

Putting the phone face down to hear the speaker works, but not when you need to be on the go and throw it in a purse or pocket that can be a problem. I will be glad when they fix this design flaw...and putting the speaker in the front will have some issues as well. So the immediate answers...no phone case; keep the phone face up and don't stuff the phone anywhere you can't hear it. Thank goodness I have an iPhone!

No offense, but it sounds like the volume wasn't up. The speaker on the Moto X is incredibly loud and it gets even louder bouncing against a hard surface with the phone screen facing up due to the curve back. iTard speakers can't come close to rivaling Motorola hardware. They never have and never will. Motorola and RIM own the telephony and speaker departments.

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