If online forums are a bad place to gauge whether a phone has problems, then where is a good place to gauge?
There are many people that are just dealing with the issues the phone has because they feel like thats what they need to do with a nexus device.
The horrible battery life was more than enough for me to return mine.
I browsed through forums for tips on how to deal with it and all I found was "turn this off" "reduce this" "train your battery".
BTW I'm glad your phone is working perfectly.
Forums and reviews are a great place to find information so long as you remember three things:
First,
people tend to rant more about the negatives that fail their expectations (whether those expectations were based on performance on actual specs or simply on features they'd have like to have seen) than to praise a phone for what it does well.
Second, remember to
take with a grain of salt any praise or condemnation that gives no context. A forum poster could say "I hate the screen" and mean: (a) it's too big / it's too small; (b) resolution is too low, lacking detail / too high, using too much of the battery; (c) it's AMOLED / IPS, and I prefer the other; or any number of other things. If they are more specific and say "I hate the screen because it's ______," you have something to measure in your own personal evaluation, or those of others.
Third,
filter opinions based on bias. Some people will bash any device that isn't made by the brand/type to which they have a cult-like allegiance. Mostly seen in the iOS vs. Android communities, it happens within those groups as well.
Regarding the Nexus 6 battery, I'd agree it's not so hot after the use I put it through compared to what I used to get on my Nokia 5190 w/ extended battery (that beast could carry me close to 2 weeks back in the day!) for its relevant use (voice and text). But then again, it's insanely good compared to what I got on my prior Nexus phones, especially in the context of driving the highest resolution display used on any mobile phone to date, and at the largest scale of any of those. What comparably spec'd android phone do you feel it rates horribly in comparison to (and does your scale have shades of grey, or is it just either 'horrible' or 'makes everything else look horrible in comparison')?
My expectation is that a phone should be able to make it through what is for me a full day with heavy use without need for a recharge. I will end the day after 3-4 hours of screen time, plenty of music/video streaming, browsing, and occasional gaming, and have yet to have less than about 20% life when going to bed. And I wouldn't be stricken by horror at the thought of actually plugging my phone in during a commute, or when it's at my desk, if I had to.
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TLDR?
Forums are great so long as you:
1. Remember that people find more joy trashing than praising in forums
2. Be wary of opinions that give no context for comparison in their evaluation of performance
3. Be wary of members of the "Cult of ______"
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