HTC Rezound First Impressions/Reviews

[tony bag o donuts]

I've been patiently waiting for the Nexus, but these reviews may sway me toward the Rezound. This phone sounds amazing, and as an Android noob, I think a skinned phone (Sense, Blur, etc.) may be easier to learn with.

It was for me when I first got my DINC. Coming from other platforms, it made it an easier transition.

 

[truenoob]

I for one had written off the rezound. It was going to be too thick based on the specs that were released. Well turns out it felt great in the hand. I'm coming from a Droid Charge. To be honest I miss the over saturated colors and deep blacks of the Super AMOLED display. I do like Sense more vs. TouchWiz and there is a bit of a learning curve for me given the differences in the overlays. I was hoping battery life was going to be better, but so far it has been about the same. I'm hoping I can tweak things a bit to help in that regard. The speed of this phone is awesome, so far no lag like what I had on the Charge. It's possible I may return this within my 14 day period, but what would I get? I really think this is the best out there in terms of Android offerings. Sure ICS is out, but who really wants an OS that still has a lot of bugs to be worked out. It's like with WIndows, I typically don't upgrade to a new version of Windows until the first service pack comes out.

 

[Dovahkiin]

I for one had written off the rezound. It was going to be too thick based on the specs that were released. Well turns out it felt great in the hand. I'm coming from a Droid Charge. To be honest I miss the over saturated colors and deep blacks of the Super AMOLED display. I do like Sense more vs. TouchWiz and there is a bit of a learning curve for me given the differences in the overlays. I was hoping battery life was going to be better, but so far it has been about the same. I'm hoping I can tweak things a bit to help in that regard. The speed of this phone is awesome, so far no lag like what I had on the Charge. It's possible I may return this within my 14 day period, but what would I get? I really think this is the best out there in terms of Android offerings. Sure ICS is out, but who really wants an OS that still has a lot of bugs to be worked out. It's like with WIndows, I typically don't upgrade to a new version of Windows until the first service pack comes out.

The cream of the crop this generation, specifically for "power users" such as us, are the Nexus and Rezound. (Razr is a good phone, but it's marketed toward the mainstream, casual user. It has more sales because of this.)
These two phones boil down to superior hardware VS superior software. I chose the hardware, and I always will. When I buy a computer, my first thought isn't "this better have Windows 7 damnit!" I care more about the internals, even though a new OS is almost always a good thing.

That being said, you can get better battery life by heading over to the ROMs sub-section of this forum and using CleanTOOL to disable your bloat and any other features you'd like to freeze.
When it comes to returning your phone, you're pretty much having to choose between better OS and updates, and better components/hardware. Keep in mind, the Rezound will receive ICS, it's just a matter of time.

Oh, and all this will matter very little in a few months weeks when CES rolls around and unveils the next-gen phones.

 

[tony bag o donuts]

The cream of the crop this generation, specifically for "power users" such as us, are the Nexus and Rezound. (Razr is a good phone, but it's marketed toward the mainstream, casual user. It has more sales because of this.)
These two phones boil down to superior hardware VS superior software. I chose the hardware, and I always will. When I buy a computer, my first thought isn't "this better have Windows 7 damnit!" I care more about the internals, even though a new OS is almost always a good thing.

That being said, you can get better battery life by heading over to the ROMs sub-section of this forum and using CleanTOOL to disable your bloat and any other features you'd like to freeze.
When it comes to returning your phone, you're pretty much having to choose between better OS and updates, and better components/hardware. Keep in mind, the Rezound will receive ICS, it's just a matter of time.

Oh, and all this will matter very little in a few months weeks when CES rolls around and unveils the next-gen phones.

Disagree.

If you were to buy a phone with android for the first time, the rezound or a Dinc2, etc. would definitely be the way to go. It's overlay/ skin made it very easy for me to understand android.

The razr is selling based on name only imho. But it has nice specs. Horrible design.

Rezound is not revolutionary. It's just an upgraded phone. That is not a bad thing. I just think people got tired of the same black slab design with sense and the uncertainty of permanent root which led them to other devices.
I was on the fence about both this and the nexus. I went with the nexus because of it being vanilla android and something different. The Rezound is no slouch, but will quickly be overshadowed by other devices which is a shame.

 

[YourMobileGuru]

Disagree.

If you were to buy a phone with android for the first time, the rezound or a Dinc2, etc. would definitely be the way to go. It's overlay/ skin made it very easy for me to understand android.

Absolutely, SENSE makes Android look nice and adds a boatload of customizations and features.

The razr is selling based on name only imho. But it has nice specs. Horrible design.

Wouldn't go that far I really like the design overall (a bit too wide for me), and yes the name is doing a lot for it but for better or for worse people seem to like thin phones and the RAZR is giving them what they want.

Rezound is not revolutionary. It's just an upgraded phone. That is not a bad thing. I just think people got tired of the same black slab design with sense and the uncertainty of permanent root which led them to other devices.

It's the Verizon version if the Sensation. Much as the Thunderbolt is the Verizon version of the EVO 4G. Both classic examples of what I have been telling people for years. Every time another carrier gets a hot phone, Verizon gets the better version 6 months or so later.

Beats is (arguably) revolutionary but other than that it is just a really nice phone in a really nice package. Taken as a whole I think it is the best phone on Verizon right now.

I was on the fence about both this and the nexus. I went with the nexus because of it being vanilla android and something different. The Rezound is no slouch, but will quickly be overshadowed by other devices which is a shame.

As will the Nexus when Moto puts out another high end device with ICS. Motoblur is basically an almost stock launcher with some custom widgets. Don't like the widgets, drag them off the home screen and use ones that you like. Samsung will screw it up with TouchWiz on the GSIII.

The Nexus S didn't do anything last year other than have a phone with Gingerbread and once other phones came out with Gingerbread was mostly forgotten. Galaxy Nexus will be no different because like the Nexus S, it didn't push the envelope hardware wise like the original Nexus One did. Sad, because it is a really nice device, but fan-boy reviews aside, it's nothing extraordinary to the table besides ICS.

NOTE: coming from a RAZR, Rezound, and Galaxy Nexus owner.

 

[travis4380]

I got the Galaxy Nexus on launch day and just returned it today for the Rezound and couldn't be happier. It's my first sense phone and love of the different widgets. Had the original droid and a droid X.

The Galaxy Nexus was really nice, but hardly and vibrate and ringer/notification that was real soft was making miss calls. I love the rezound and look forward to learning more about sense and how great this phone is, especially love the screen.

 

[humpagardengnome]

...I like how the text on the Rezound is reformatted to fit the screen with one single tap, also, texting and posting is much faster for me now thanks to the trace feature.

Only thing about texting and posting w/ the Rezound that annoys me. Is when it occasionally shifts the text box and ghost scrolls at will. When I'm typing in landscape. I can't see what I'm typing until I rotate to portrait, zoom out and reset it, before going back to landscape to continue. It's rare but it seems like a minor bug in the software.

...I am having a tough time with on the Rezound is connecting the cable to it when it is time to charge it. I wish HTC would have done a better job on the design so it wouldn't be so difficult to connect it, but this might be just a matter of me getting used to a different connector too...

It took a day to get used to it but I love the connector, now. It's different but I really locks it very sturdily in place. Both DXs used to pop out when I used my phone while charging. I love that the USB charging capable is thicker than others, as well. The overall build quality on the Rezound is excellent.

 

[JeffDenver]

After owning the Rezound for a few days, here is my initial review. I am only touching on the stuff that sways me one way or the other...stuff that is mediocre or that I dont care about I will pass on.

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PROS: Display: This is the best LCD display bar none. Video looks fantastic on this device. The blacks are not as deep as SuperAMOLED, but they are very good for LCD. Color reproduction is great, and retina-display+ pixel density is a luxury. Gradients look ultrasmooth. Processor: I have played with the Razr and Nexus and this phone was the least laggy out of the three, despite being burdend with Sense. Photos scale flawlessly and smoothly. I am not used to a phone that responds this fast to everything...maybe this is common on all dual core phones. I just know it is nice living in a lag free world finally. GPS - This phone has the snappiest GPS of any phone I have used so far. Google maps locks my locations almost immediately, and accurately. I have not seen any other phones that do that yet. Camera - I was pleasantly surprised with just how good this camera is. It handles low light photos better than any camera I have seen so far except maybe the iPhone 4S. Daylight photos are absolutely awesome. I dont care about MPs (though 8MP doesnt suck...more is never a bad thing), I care about image quality, and this camera delivers that. I have not tested video yet. The front camera is the best you can get right now (2MP). Shutter speeds are plenty fast, and auto-focus works well. No hardware camera button makes me a sad Panda, but the on-screen controls are snappy and intuitive.

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CONS: No NFC - That might be a big deal later one. Right now I am not missing it at all. No Super AMOLED - I know this is a preference issue, but I love Super AMOLED. Even the "crappier" Pentile version on the Nexus looks really good. Color reproduction is better on the Rezound, but I like the deep blacks on Super AMOLED more. Sense Pollution - yeah yeah, I know, a lot of people on here have a boner for Sense. I personally would like the option of using vanilla Android if I want to, and HTC does not allow me that option, and this annoys me. I dont like having to jump through hoops to scrub their pollution off of my phone. The nicest thing I can say about Sense is that it is less offensive than Touchwiz and Motoblur. Size - I personally do not consider this much of a con...despite the fact that this phone is a "monster" compared to the other two, it is still thinner and lighter than the Droid 1 I was using before. So for me, its an improvement. But it is technically a con. Controls - Why do the power and volume buttens need to be so flush with the side? QC should have slapped the design nerds for this. Form should FOLLOW function, not the other way around.

The Rezound is the most "conventional" of the top three Android phones at the moment...which IMO is a good thing. It includes the SD slot that the Galaxy Nexus is lacking, and the removable battery that the Razr lacks. It has all the stuff you expect on an Android phone by default.

 

[tony bag o donuts]

Honestly,
I want the nexus experience, made by HTC with an sd card and removable battery.

Sense IMHO is awesome, but beautiful widgets, hd widgets, etc. can get you the same thing.

Razr was nice but way too wide.

I love that we all have choices.

 

[YourMobileGuru]

I love that we all have choices.

AMEN! Love choices!

I really hope Moto gets the contract for the Nexus 4 (whatever it may end up being called) so you get your wish. I too would love to see it.

That being said I am sure it wont be long before someone hacks the Droid X, RAZR, and Bionic so you get an AOSP rom in them.

 

[humpagardengnome]

AMEN! Love choices!

I really hope Moto gets the contract for the Nexus 4 (whatever it may end up being called) so you get your wish. I too would love to see it.

That being said I am sure it wont be long before someone hacks the Droid X, RAZR, and Bionic so you get an AOSP rom in them.

I love the optomism but a Moto on Big Red w/ a custom rom has become a pipe dream, waiting for a small miracle. Crappy thing is, Moto even under the umbrella of Google ownership. Does nothing to solve Big Reds, stance on the unlocking issue among devs & users alike under current policies. If Moto did get awarded the xontract for the Nexus 4, doesn't guarantee, like the SGN, it will be a true, vanilla expierience on Big Reds network. Bloat free, not just disabled and stuffed in the back of an unlit closet.

 

[YourMobileGuru]

I love the optomism but a Moto on Big Red w/ a custom rom has become a pipe dream, waiting for a small miracle. Crappy thing is, Moto even under the umbrella of Google ownership. Does nothing to solve Big Reds, stance on the unlocking issue among devs & users alike under current policies. If Moto did get awarded the xontract for the Nexus 4, doesn't guarantee, like the SGN, it will be a true, vanilla expierience on Big Reds network. Bloat free, not just disabled and stuffed in the back of an unlit closet.

Locked bootloaders dont stop them it merely slows them down and Google has only barely taken over Moto (and remember that they will be operated independently). Give the devs time. You will see your AOSP Roms for ICS soon enough.

Despite all of the hullabaloo about two actually useful apps the Galaxy Nexus is a true open experience. The bootloadar is un-encripted and many of us have already unlocked it (once we got the stupid drivers to work in Windows). That had nothing to do with Samsung and everything to do with Google.

 

[buckwheat-phd]

This phone is a work of art. And the display is - well it can't be beat (as of today) BUT:

1) Can't be rooted because they locked down the boot. This is to protect us from ourselves (and the VZW bloatware nearing 50+ useless and resource-hogging apps that all want your credit card or email)
2) The buttons are so small, tight and flush with the case they're almost unusable.

 

[YourMobileGuru]

This phone is a work of art. And the display is - well it can't be beat (as of today) BUT:

1) Can't be rooted because they locked down the boot. This is to protect us from ourselves (and the VZW bloatware nearing 50+ useless and resource-hogging apps that all want your credit card or email)
2) The buttons are so small, tight and flush with the case they're almost unusable.

Your information is incinerate / out of date

1a. having a locked down bootloader has nothing with the ability to root the phone. Tjere are pleanty of phones with locked boot loaders which are rooted ie anything Motorola)
1b. If you go to the HTC Dev website you can now unlock the bootloader on this device (though it is not actually listed as being supported).
2 That's your personal opinion, which you are certainly entitled to, but many of us will not agree with it.

 

[JeffDenver]

This phone is a work of art. And the display is - well it can't be beat (as of today) BUT:

1) Can't be rooted because they locked down the boot. This is to protect us from ourselves (and the VZW bloatware nearing 50+ useless and resource-hogging apps that all want your credit card or email)
2) The buttons are so small, tight and flush with the case they're almost unusable.

1) HTC allows you to unlock the bootloader now. The site does not list the Rezound as supported yet, but it works and is all legit. It also works on the vivid and the Thunderbolt.

2) I actually agree with this. It is one of the few flaws of the design. I would add that it would have been nice to have a kickstand. I know that Otterbox cases fix both problems. My Droid 1 Otterbox case had embedded raised controls for the volume and power buttons that made it MUCH easier to use.

 

[lou61166]

Not a single issue,everything is great,where i cannot get 4G in my area,i got to to test it at my sisters house the day i got it wow it's fast,why Verizon is not advertising this phone more makes no sense,the only thing i don't like is the usb port is on the side.

 

[JeffDenver]

I dont mind that it is on the side (it was on my Droid 1 too) but why the bottom instead of the top?

 

[YourMobileGuru]

Not a single issue,everything is great,where i cannot get 4G in my area,i got to to test it at my sisters house the day i got it wow it's fast,why Verizon is not advertising this phone more makes no sense,the only thing i don't like is the usb port is on the side.

My guess would be that they have a lot of stock on Razr's. Plus as nice as it is (I love mine!), it's basically the Verizon version of the Sensation so not really unique except for Beats, which is more of a gimmick than anything.

 

[tony bag o donuts]

I want to put this in my sig too!

Android is all about Personal Choice: Droid Bionic, Droid RAZR, HTC Rezound, Galaxy Nexus... Hating is so Apple... we're better than that!

 

[YourMobileGuru]

I want to put this in my sig too!

Android is all about Personal Choice: Droid Bionic, Droid RAZR, HTC Rezound, Galaxy Nexus... Hating is so Apple... we're better than that!

Yeah I was proud of myself when I came up with that one

Sooo sick of the "family" hating in the forums as of late