What to get - Maxx or Galaxy S4?

[xweb10]

I use I for work but sync with an exchange server. Works great. Outlook sync is so 2007.

Sent from my Nexus 7

 

[SteelGator]

Does anybody use these phones for WORK? How well does it sync with Outlook? I absolutely have to sync calendar, email, contacts, notes, etc with Outlook on my work PC.

I use it for work. Our company has gone with Divide, which does a full exchange sync, and it works very well on the Maxx. Divide use to choke my Galaxy Nexus, but on the Maxx everything runs smoothly even with Divide in the background.

 

[doublestack1]

Does anybody use these phones for WORK? How well does it sync with Outlook? I absolutely have to sync calendar, email, contacts, notes, etc with Outlook on my work PC.

Syncs email, contacts and calendar from our exchange server. Works well.

Although I do not miss the lag on my S4, I do miss the robust email client (exchange). The DMaxx client is ok but the search feature on the S4 was awesome

 

[doublestack1]

I've had the Droid Maxx for 24 hours. I gave up the S4 for the following reasons:

• Poor voice quality
• Significant lag even after disabling touchwiz (used Nova)

Time will tell with the DMaxx. I already have experienced better call quality and a much faster interface without lag

 

[Eclipse2K]

I've had the Droid Maxx for 24 hours. I gave up the S4 for the following reasons:

• Poor voice quality
• Significant lag even after disabling touchwiz (used Nova)

Time will tell with the DMaxx. I already have experienced better call quality and a much faster interface without lag

Strange, my friend sounds great on his S4 and he has no issues on his end either.

Sent from my Motorola Droid Maxx using Tapatalk 4

 

[tomsspa]

Yeah, I'm not using Exchange, though. I just need to sync with Outlook on 1 PC.

 

[doublestack1]

Strange, my friend sounds great on his S4 and he has no issues on his end either.

Sent from my Motorola Droid Maxx using Tapatalk 4

Here is my update after using it heavy since 6pm yesterday.

1. Voice quality is not as good as I had hoped. Majority of calls today are no better than my S4. In fact I have been having bluetooth issues now which is annoying. The device keeps dropping the handsfree connection to my car intermittently. I will delete the device and re-pair and report back.
2. Battery is excellent compared to the S4. If you do a lot of voice calls, streaming, etc, the battery really is fantastic.
3. Handset volume could be louder. Some folks on the forum state their handset volume is loud; others seems to be having the same issue I am having. A little more volume would be helpful especially when talking with loud background noise. I miss my S4's handset volume

More to come

 

[o4liberty]

I looked at both devices and it was a difficult choice but in the end I purchased S4. I haven't experienced any of the issues I have read in the threads but IMO most issues with a device are user error. Smartphones require you spend time learning the system so you don't encounter issues. I strayed from Android for a few years until the software became more stable.

 

[house44]

I recently purchased the Galaxy S4 after almost 2 years with the Droid Bionic. Needless to say, I was growing tired of the Bionic, especially after what ICS did to it...I understand all the bells and whistles can differentiate a phone, but I honestly look at the company that is behind the phone and how responsive they are with updates. I will NEVER get another Motorola phone again after the agony that I was put through with POOR update schedules and lack of caring on their part about phones that are at the latter part of their life cycle. I switched to the S4 to get on the flagship bandwagon and I can say that I have had NO issues. After using a Motorola for years the interface was a little different but anyone with a technology brain can figure out where everything is...Bloat ware is EASILY REMOVED FROM THE PHONE BY SIMPLY GOING INTO THE APPS MANAGER AND REMOVING IT, so any argument that says it's an issue has not even tried to remove the bloatware. As far as call quality...it's 2013 for gods sake. Everyone's call quality is going to depend on where you are in relation to cell towers and whether you are trying to talk 20 feet underground or if you are talking on Mt. Everest. I love the idea of getting an extended life battery to make it last that much longer, basically nullifying THE ONLY reason why I would want the Maxx.

 

[STARGATE]

I know what you're saying house44, I had the Motorola Photon and after they lied to us and then backed up at the last moment :banghead:
I will never or at least in a long, very looooooooooooooong time I will not buy another moto device again!!! :banghead::banghead:

Sent From a Galaxy S4 Away!

 

[mrmarcusdevin]

I've had the Droid Maxx for 24 hours. I gave up the S4 for the following reasons:

• Poor voice quality
• Significant lag even after disabling touchwiz (used Nova)

Time will tell with the DMaxx. I already have experienced better call quality and a much faster interface without lag

I too gave up my s4 for the maxx. I liked the camera on the s4 but my biggest issue was it overheated after about 20 mins of use to the point I had to sit it down. Also it overheated while idle. My maxx doesn't overheat and the battery will give me a full day with everything turned on. The s4 I had to keep a lot disabled to get half a days use. One thing though I am not getting 48 hours of battery on my maxx.

Sent from my XT1080 using Tapatalk 4

 

[SuperTongue]

Any suggestions for the Maxx vs the Note 3? I've currently got the Note 3 on preorder an am having a tough time deciding to keep it or go buy the Maxx.

I love that the Note 3 has a 1080p screen and all, but with my Note 2 I don't exactly use the pen - especially because I've been rolling on an AOSP ROM for quite awhile now. I think the touchless controls sound awesome and I constantly see from a number of people that the active notifications are fantastic (especially from Jerry with his Moto X).

I would go with the Moto X, but since the customization is a long ways away and the Droid Maxx is basically the same phone with a bigger screen and better battery, why not? My only real gripe about the Maxx is the locked bootloder. Is there any reason for rooting? And will there ever be the chance? I've never owned a Moto phone before (Samsung / HTC have been my last few) so I honestly haven't looked much into it.

I also am starting to grow tired of the plastic, cheap feeling of my Note 2. It's just gotten incredibly annoying of late and I don't know that the new faux leather feeling of the Note 3 is going to fix that problem.

I might go play with one this weekend and see how it works. Any suggestions?

 

[thegrants82]

Any suggestions for the Maxx vs the Note 3? I've currently got the Note 3 on preorder an am having a tough time deciding to keep it or go buy the Maxx.

I love that the Note 3 has a 1080p screen and all, but with my Note 2 I don't exactly use the pen - especially because I've been rolling on an AOSP ROM for quite awhile now. I think the touchless controls sound awesome and I constantly see from a number of people that the active notifications are fantastic (especially from Jerry with his Moto X).

I would go with the Moto X, but since the customization is a long ways away and the Droid Maxx is basically the same phone with a bigger screen and better battery, why not? My only real gripe about the Maxx is the locked bootloder. Is there any reason for rooting? And will there ever be the chance? I've never owned a Moto phone before (Samsung / HTC have been my last few) so I honestly haven't looked much into it.

I also am starting to grow tired of the plastic, cheap feeling of my Note 2. It's just gotten incredibly annoying of late and I don't know that the new faux leather feeling of the Note 3 is going to fix that problem.

I might go play with one this weekend and see how it works. Any suggestions?

I would take the moto x first then the note 3. The note 3 is much nicer than the maxx.

Posted via Android Central App

 

[Busted51]

note 3 has what a 3200 mAH battery? 1080p screen is a lot more juice to power it plus its what 5.7 inch ? its a massive phone, I'd say if your into taking lots of notes on the fly and honestly use it to watch blue ray quality movies on your phone then sure.. But I'd personally stick with the Maxx, its more than enough phone and its the perfect size. If I want to watch 720p youtube video's when I'm bored its perfect, if I wanted to watch a blue ray movie i'd use my home theater with surround sound.

 

[SuperTongue]

I would take the moto x first then the note 3. The note 3 is much nicer than the maxx.

Posted via Android Central App

Thing with the Moto X is just that there's no real reason to get it on Verizon over the Ultra/Maxx considering they're practically the same phone. The form factor between the two doesn't exactly make a huge difference. The only way I'd get the X over the Maxx is if Moto Maker came to Verizon soon.

note 3 has what a 3200 mAH battery? 1080p screen is a lot more juice to power it plus its what 5.7 inch ? its a massive phone, I'd say if your into taking lots of notes on the fly and honestly use it to watch blue ray quality movies on your phone then sure.. But I'd personally stick with the Maxx, its more than enough phone and its the perfect size. If I want to watch 720p youtube video's when I'm bored its perfect, if I wanted to watch a blue ray movie i'd use my home theater with surround sound.

Size-wise, I'm okay with 5.7". My Note 2 is basically identical in size to the Note 3, so it's not a bother. My concern is that stepping to the Maxx would basically be like a step sideways - I'm not really moving forward. But on the other hand, I prefer a more stock experience and the X/Droid 2013 Family seems to offer a more "smooth" user experience all specs considered.

Ah, I love actually having choices!

 

[doublestack1]

I too gave up my s4 for the maxx. I liked the camera on the s4 but my biggest issue was it overheated after about 20 mins of use to the point I had to sit it down. Also it overheated while idle. My maxx doesn't overheat and the battery will give me a full day with everything turned on. The s4 I had to keep a lot disabled to get half a days use. One thing though I am not getting 48 hours of battery on my maxx.

Sent from my XT1080 using Tapatalk 4

Handset volume has been inconsistent. I assume it is due to different carriers, signal strength, etc. I am still having major issues with my bluetooth dropping its connection to my car. Supposed to speak with Moto again Monday to troubleshoot.

 

[mrmarcusdevin]

My Bluetooth works fine. I use a pebble watch consistently connected and I alternate between a Bluetooth headset and a monster speaker with no issues. I do notice the wired headset volume is pretty low though

Sent from my XT1080 using Tapatalk 4

 

[russel5150]

I traded my note2 for the maxx. I loved the note2 but got tired of the size of carrying it. I don't have have one complaint on the note2.. Howeverbi was ready to go back to a slightly smaller chassis, and I loved my my RAZR maxx I had so the droid maxx was a logical choice.. Lil over two weeks w the dmaxx and still loving my decision

Using my Moto Droid Maxx

 

[john248]

I managed to get a lot of time with my cousin's GS4 (T-Mobile) and brother's Maxx (Verizon) for roughly the entire day. The GS4 did have Nova Launcher skinned over TouchWiz or whatever Samsung runs on their homepages. First thing is, I didn't consider trying to find an HTC One to play with as my co-worker has one and showed me the "death grip" on it where the signal strength would diminish depending on how you hold the phone; even after an exchange, the same problem persisted.

Personally, I don't think you can go wrong with either phone depending on your preferences. I do like the always on Moto Assist even if I hate hearing my brother say "OK Google now" all the time as it just comes off as free advertisement for Google. Not sure why this bothers me, but it does. Aside from that, way the screen flashes when there's a notifications and easy access to read them is nifty. The screen also flashes periodically if you have pending notifications. The only gripe I had was having to press the send button to reply/send a text message. I cannot compare this to Samsung's S Voice as I didn't get to use it.

The quality of the screen is about the same to my eyes. I could honestly not tell the difference between the 1080p Pentile vs the 720p RGB where I did want to like the Maxx's screen more but objectively cannot say that it is any better or worse. The speaker quality was a little louder on the Maxx. Where the GS4 has a clear advantage is the camera. The Maxx was much too inconsistent and really just plain sucked. Some pics were nice, some were just grainy or not crisp/clear. The GS4 was far more consistent at taking pics. This was taking pics with both of the same things at different light settings at different times of the day. I cannot comment on the battery as both were at different charge levels, and I wasn't paying much attention to it. I think it's safe to say that the Maxx will likely be way ahead of the GS4 on this front though.

As for the UI, again, Nova Launcher was on the GS4. Some made it seem like this phone was super laggy, but it wasn't all that laggy to me. Navigating through the phone was easy with no hiccups or anything like that. There is a slight delay but nothing that was frustrating or even really noticeable on a non-OCD day to day type of use like flipping through screens, opening an app, or taking pictures. With that said, the Maxx was a tiny bit more crisp with webpages maybe loading a hair faster. I don't think there's a whole lot separating the 2 on this front unless you have a ton of apps running in the background, or you have some battery hogging app that's really tying you down.

I can't comment on the quality of the signal either. I'm just going to assume the Motorola is better able to find and hold a signal based on users of both Motorola and Samsung. I live in SF and we were hanging out here. Signal strength was never an issue. I didn't use GPS on either phone.

Verdict: If you live in an area with good signal like I do in San Francisco, I think it'll come down to valuing the camera or battery life. Samsung just has some gimmicky crap where you can just appreciate the Maxx for its simplicity. But the Maxx's camera is garbage. I don't care if someone says to just carry around a point and shoot. Many of us don't lug a separate camera in our pockets but rather use our phones to take photos.