what's with all reviews knocking build quality?

[88horizon5speed]

I've noticed through reading reviews and comparisons that most reviewers say the turbo doesn't feel premium with its "plastic" build and ballistic nylon or Kevlar backing. Oh the competition has a shiny glass front and back they say...what's so premium about glass? Every phone and there predessesor has glass! I just dont see why so many people call the turbo an ugly device, personally I love the rough and tough DROID experience. Its unique.

What do you all think?

 

[mimsiesboy]

The quality of the build is second to none on my device. BN 64gb turbo with a 9-25-14 build date. It's truly a great build. IMHO still the best phone you can buy right now. Even this site slammed it. I don't get it. Anyone else scratching there heads wondering why the bad press?

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Eli_C]

The quality of the build is second to none on my device.

Second to none? Its good, but could be better.

Every model I have seen has a significant and visible gap between the chin plastic and metal.
The BN gets lint trapped in it.

 

[Ch4dders]

IMO, I love the look of the Turbo. It is masculine, has clean lines and does anything I throw at it without issue. I don't want a glass phone or one that draws undue attention to it. I had an iPhone for a previous job and I felt like if I dropped it on my desk from a few inches high, I'd break it. Flashy phones are more likely to be stolen, which I obviously want to avoid. I have had zero issues with the build quality of my Turbo. I've had a few pieces of lint get stuck in the BN but I took it off. No matter what a phone is made of, someone is going to have a different opinion about what is right or wrong with it.

Posted from 64GB BN Droid Turbo

 

[Snareman]

Its well built, but too darn slippery. They should have kept the grippy kevlar of the last few models.

 

[JJ Jones]

Second to none? Its good, but could be better.

Every model I have seen has a significant and visible gap between the chin plastic and metal.
The BN gets lint trapped in it.

Mine does not have this gap you speak of.


I find the build quality to be quite good. Well put together and has a very solid feel to it.
Only thing I'm not fond of is the design of the speakers. Lint does gather there.
Sent from my Ballistic Turbo

 

[HappyFunBall24]

Yeah, I'm irked at how biased many reviewers seem to be against the Droid Turbo based on aesthetics - meaning that they focus on this point while heavily downplaying its strengths. I've read every review that I can find, and it appears that the 4 biggest criticisms cited most often are, in order: "ugly", heavy/thick, Verizon Wireless exclusive, and camera. The latter two points have validity, but the first two are so subjective.

What I've found so interesting is that a number of reviewers that praise particular features/hardware on the Nexus 6 or Moto X will gloss over those things in the Droid Turbo, and vice versa; criticisms of the Droid Turbo, such as the camera, don't seem to be emphasized much in Moto X reviews. I wonder how many reviewers have actually tried out the Droid Turbo for more than just a couple of hours.

I actually believe that the Droid Turbo's aesthetics and build quality are underrated. You have a curved back with tapered edges - as with the Moto X but just not as much. And I agree with what's been stated above about build quality. I think it's great, feels like a tank, and the BN is holding up and meshes well with the soft touch edges. Obviously it's one of the heaviest phones, but that's a trade-off in having a monster battery and Qi charging pad inside - plus, we're really just talking about around a 0.2 oz to 1.8 oz difference here from other smartphones, c'mon people.

I've been to VZW & AT&T stores to compare, and I honestly think that my BN Droid Turbo feels better in hand than just about every other phone (except for the Moto X, which it trumps in every other category) - sadly, not a popular opinion I realize. It's currently the only top-of-the-line phone that comes in such a manageable size.

It's ridiculous that the Droid Turbo doesn't even appear on many sites' top 5 or top 10 best-smartphones-of-the-year lists. All things considered, I think it really should be top 3, but I've only seen that lofty ranking on maybe 3 out of at least 25 lists. I've also read so many reviews about how the Nexus 6 is just a bigger Moto X or vice versa (which is not really accurate) and the Droid Turbo is almost never mentioned.

It's amazing how overlooked this phone is. They don't know what they're missing. Rant over, the beat goes on.

 

[Murph5150]

I have the 64 GB ballistic nylon version. Not at all slippery with the grainy rear. The phone itself feels incredibly durable, and the features loaded in this phone are all useful, and the battery is almost as good as a tablet. My opinion? Best phone on the market.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Cajun_Mike]

I love my turbo but I do keep it in the Diztronic case.

I do admit to wishing I could get one with the custom backs like the moto.

Been digging the look of that football leather back. But I imagine by the end of a two year contract that wouldn't look so hot if phone kept naked.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[MA2GA28]

I love my Turbo. But, playing devil's advocate, I think the angle most reviews are coming from is, 'This is just a Moto X with a bigger battery.' Granted it isn't that cut-and-dry, but since the X came first I think most were expecting a completely different phone. With high expectations come great disappointment.

 

[vzwuser76]

The BN gets lint trapped in it.

Have you ever heard someone say that about their luggage? It has a texture to it, so it will catch lint or dirt. The same thing has happened with the Nexus 4's textured glass. IIRC HTC had a device with a textured back, and had to eliminate the white model because people putting it into their jeans pulled it out and it had a blue hue to it due to the textured surface rubbing against the denim. This kind of thing with any textured surface.

 

[vzwuser76]

@Happyfunball

Their justification for excluding any Droid models is that it's only available on one carrier. Of course a few years back that didn't stop everyone from putting the iPhone on the top lists when it was only available on AT&T, but whatever. However, with the Droid Turbo, there is also the Moto Maxx which is available outside of Verizon. And for the last few years, many if the Droid line of phones have had the ability to be used globally, and many people report being able to use them on AT&T and T-Mobile. Although not officially sanctioned and not available subsidized, it's still able to be used on other carriers.

 

[mvp4him3]

It comes from them having tiny hands.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[HappyFunBall24]

I love my Turbo. But, playing devil's advocate, I think the angle most reviews are coming from is, 'This is just a Moto X with a bigger battery.' Granted it isn't that cut-and-dry, but since the X came first I think most were expecting a completely different phone. With high expectations come great disappointment.

If it were that simple, the Droid Turbo should be the phone of the year for all of the websites that rate the Moto X as #1; instead the Droid Turbo usually doesn't even make the top 5 or 10. Also, I don't remember anyone expecting a completely different phone; I remember people saying they were hoping it would be what the Moto X should have been. I just don't think there were many expectations in general because no one knew this phone was coming out until just a few weeks before launch. And then it actually delivered, surpassing the Moto X in many ways except for aesthetics.

Most reviews note the similarities, but then proceed to discuss the Moto X's build quality, elegance, blah blah blah, while downplaying the Droid Turbo's advantages and overstating the criticisms. I've previously ranted about how this very site did that when reviewing the Droid Turbo and comparing with the Moto X, so I won't go into it again.

 

[HappyFunBall24]

Their justification for excluding any Droid models is that it's only available on one carrier. Of course a few years back that didn't stop everyone from putting the iPhone on the top lists when it was only available on AT&T, but whatever. However, with the Droid Turbo, there is also the Moto Maxx which is available outside of Verizon. And for the last few years, many if the Droid line of phones have had the ability to be used globally, and many people report being able to use them on AT&T and T-Mobile. Although not officially sanctioned and not available subsidized, it's still able to be used on other carriers.

Definitely some reviewers have stated that they don't include the Droid Turbo on year-end-lists because of carrier exclusivity, but I think that's pretty weak reasoning - especially with how you explained it, spot on. It looks to me like more reviewers overlook it because of the aforementioned physical qualities and sometimes the camera.

 

[MA2GA28]

If it were that simple, the Droid Turbo should be the phone of the year for all of the websites that rate the Moto X as #1; instead the Droid Turbo usually doesn't even make the top 5 or 10. Also, I don't remember anyone expecting a completely different phone; I remember people saying they were hoping it would be what the Moto X should have been. I just don't think there were many expectations in general because no one knew this phone was coming out until just a few weeks before launch. And then it actually delivered, surpassing the Moto X in many ways except for aesthetics.

Most reviews note the similarities, but then proceed to discuss the Moto X's build quality, elegance, blah blah blah, while downplaying the Droid Turbo's advantages and overstating the criticisms. I've previously ranted about how this very site did that when reviewing the Droid Turbo and comparing with the Moto X, so I won't go into it again.

The Turbo was in the rumor mill for close to 6 months (longer if you assumed a Maxx upgrade was imminent, as an annual release is the norm). The specs were also leaked in August, two full months before release.

Believe me, reviewers got the Turbo expecting to be wowed, but it was just too similar to the new X.

 

[HappyFunBall24]

The Turbo was in the rumor mill for close to 6 months (longer if you assumed a Maxx upgrade was imminent, as an annual release is the norm). The specs were also leaked in August, two full months before release.

Believe me, reviewers got the Turbo expecting to be wowed, but it was just too similar to the new X.

I was referring to when this phone was actually leaked, including specs, which I said was "a few weeks" before but was actually 2.5 months, as you noted. I can see if you're saying that everyone expects a Droid or two in the 2nd half of the year since that's happened for the past few years, so definitely there's always some built-in expectations. But I'll just have to disagree about reviewer expectations.

If we're talking about just reviewers, a number of them have mentioned that the Droid Line has been 'down' the past couple of years, so that doesn't sound like wildly high expectations to me. I actually do remember reading that point specifically, but I don't remember seeing much on high expectations nor expecting a "completely different" phone. Again, closer to release date I read on tech sites that expectations were that this would be an improved Moto X (mainly based on the leaked specs, probably) - which it delivered on. I'm sure some on the forums had even greater expectations.

One specific point about not meeting reviewer expectations is the camera. Even though many acknowledge that it's Motorola's best ever camera (which isn't saying a lot), it clearly lags behind the competitors. Other than that, the sense that I've gotten from most reviews is that the Droid Turbo actually does 'wow' in many areas, but it's just difficult for them to see past the aesthetics, carrier exclusivity, and/or camera.

 

[88horizon5speed]

Honestly I have had no problems with this phone, and dam this phone does everything well. Even takes pictures I that are so crisp and clear and can zoom forever in on. It is definetly the best hone I'd say. My first android phone was the droid x and it was just like this, a good looking talk of a phone with high end specs. Then I had the gnex...it was ok...then I went back to Motorola and I have to say I believe they make the best and highest quality most durable phones.

Also I am glad we got the snapdragon 805. With the overheating problem of the 810 I believe future processors need better cooling systems.

 

[Eclipse2K]

There is a build quality issue where some phones have a bump (Ballistic Nylon) and others don't. This may (can't confirm for sure) also prove to be related to static sounding speakers too. Other then that and an some Turbos having the crunch noise its solid.

Far better then the S5.

 

[Bitterman]

I've had the 64GB BN for a couple months now. Feels solid with excellent build quality. The only thing I don't like is the volume rockers seem too recessed. Overall it's the best cell phone I've ever had.

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk