Thinking of Buying

[anon(883913)]

I was thinking of buying a Droid DNA to upgrade from my cracked in half, scratched up, beaten to death, Droid Razr but I just wanted to get a few opinions and thoughts first. Is there anything major I should look out for when buying one (I would be purchasing from Craigslist or eBay to keep unlimited data on VZW) and is there any know bugs that I should know about before I venture out and purchase one (I read about the SIM bug but I keep reading about some update). Oh and can anyone confirm that FoxFi works on the DNA without rooting? I rely on the hotspot a lot (I do not subscribe to it through VZW but I use Foxfi and a few other apps on my Droid Razr) for stuff at school and when traveling.

* Any other thoughts / concerns about the DNA would be gladly welcomed!! *

THANKS IN ADVANCE!

 

[Ezduzit]

I loved mine when I had it, battery life was great to, couldn't get foxfi to work....

Sent from my XT907 using Tapatalk 2

 

[jec11718]

Do you know about buying a new one at vzw and paying installments for 12 months? You can keep your unlimited and get the phone at retail, but make 12 equal payments. It basically adds about 60 to ur bill for a yr.

sent from my Nos M7 DNA

 

[bradleyem]

I just traded my DNA for a Razr Maxx HD. It was a great phone. Beautiful screen, battery life wasn't bad, foxfi did work great for me unrooted.

Yes there was a SIM card issue, but between making sure the SIM tray is flush with the case, and the update, that is fixed.

The reason that I got rid of mine was because I HATE the new HTC Sense interface. The e mail client sucks for exchange server. There are tons of little annoyances that I didn't like about it.

Just be aware that there is still no root/unlocked boot loader for the phones with the recent updates, which you will probably have unless you buy a used rooted/unlocked phone.

Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Tapatalk 4 Beta

 

[clickclick#AC]

Actually there is now a root method moonshine and revone both work I used moonshine last week to obtain s-off I also used foxfi unrooted and it worked just fine for me aswell

Sent from my HTC6435LVW using AC Forums mobile app

 

[bradleyem]

Ok, good to know that there is finally Root/S-Off. I'm missing some things about the DNA (mainly the screen), but I'll keep the Razr HD until the next generation comes out. Devs are getting 4.2 pretty stable now, so I'll start playing with those ROMs soon.

Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Tapatalk 4 Beta

 

[bigcatman]

I love mine. Super nice screen, super fast, really smexy phone. No bugs for me so far. I got mine S-OFF and rooted stock. Put nova launcher on so I don't have to see most of the ugly sense. It's a great phone. I came from the Galaxy S3 and I'd put this above it.

 

[jec11718]

I rooted my DNA with moonshine. Worked so good with windows that it only took about seven minutes after I got every thing ready. It's the best phone I've had yet.

sent from my Nos M7 DNA

 

[bradleyem]

I probably would have kept my DNA if I knew that root and S-Off were so close, and I could flash a clean ROM and get rid of Sense....lol

Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Tapatalk 4 Beta

 

[wxrusss8]

I probably would have kept my DNA if I knew that root and S-Off were so close, and I could flash a clean ROM and get rid of Sense....lol

Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Tapatalk 4 Beta

The DNA is a whole new phone with CM 10.1 on it. Sense 5 is OK, but nothing like an aosp ROM.

Posted via Android Central App

 

[Jordan Miera]

How is the reception on this phone? In other words, how does it perform in fringe areas?

 

[stkorn97]

How is the reception on this phone? In other words, how does it perform in fringe areas?

I am in an area where I barely had service with some of my older phones. But since my rezound more or less, its been easy to get 4g out here and can make calls without issue. The DNA performs even better overall I think. The wifi reception has been amazing also, i can go much much further than the gs3 we also have in the house. Overall, I have no complaints about this phone, and if i had to do it again, i would pick this phone out of everything verizon currently offers.

 

[pblakk]

Same here ...and I don't like Samsung at all. But I know ill be tempted by the One and I already am since seeing one at ATT. But after a few weeks with the DNA screen size it can be hard to switch to a smaller screen. I still get annoyed by the DNA sometimes when trying to quickly find a contact a place to phone call or text. My hand gets kinda cramped. Do you guys find the DNA a bit too large still?

from my DNA

 

[stkorn97]

At first it felt like a little too bulky, but Ive gotten used to it since and I cant imagine going to a smaller phone now. I messed with a demo unit of the One and while nice, I just preferred the DNA look and color scheme. The Butterfly S they showed pics of is perfection. Pretty much the DNA with new processor and front facing speakers of the One. Its awesome. Oh and a 3200 or so battery. How I wish we would get that, but we will get the One instead sadly.

 

[anon(883913)]

Just another quick question. What would you consider a FAIR price to buy a used Droid DNA? This is the first time I have ever ventured out and bought used devices through CL / eBay and I just really don't wanna get burned. Oh and will Asurion cover any phone I purchase (I already have Asurion on my phone line for my Droid Razr).

@Jec11718, I would do that but l just can't justify spending what would be almsot 700 bucks when you could buy the same phone on the internet for half the price.

 

[mightyfacundo]

I bought mine slightly used for $325 about 6 months ago, but I believe that was a great price at the time since I saw them selling on ebay for $400+. However, seeing as how the phone has been out for quite a while and retailers like Best Buy are giving it away for free as an upgrade, I don't think I would pay over $300 for one, which is still a worthwhile price.

Edit: I just looked on ebay at the buy it now DNA's, and people are still trying to get over $350 for their phones, so maybe I'm a little off on not paying over $300 for one... although there are a few DNA's up for auction that claim to be in near mint condition that are still way under 3 bills.

 

[mgullick]

My upgrade date is coming (July 7) and I just checked pricing. Verizon still wants $200 to upgrade on contract but Amazon how has the DNA for $0.01. I may have to go for that.

Anybody know of a downside when buying from Amazon? I know they have some kind of side contract but I don't plan to drop Verizon or any reduce the number of phones on my plan so I don't "think" there should be any issue with buying from them but I figure it's better to ask and look stupid than not ask and be stupid...

[Edit] Just read the earlier posts more closely and saw the comment about Best Buy having the DNA as a freebie upgrade. Maybe I need to head over to the local store (regular Best Buy - no specialty phone store here) and see what their side contract requires.

 

[SouthernDroid]

How is the reception on this phone? In other words, how does it perform in fringe areas?

Reception is excellent. I get better reception than I did with an iPhone.