Why has Verizon put out an update that is breaking most people's phones?!?!

[wjmg1960]

well, I finally fixed my Droid X problems.....I have an HTC Incredible 2 now. Haven't had any problems with gingerbread on it since I've had it. I miss the Droid X screen size and clarity but I appreciate getting and making phone calls when I need to. I will tell you that it was terribly unfair for VZW to keep making me waste time on a phone that clearly has troubles. So many calls, so many managers, so many broken promises....I'd expect better from VZW. Anyway, to all of you still having problems and you're still under the 1 year warranty, and you've tried 2 refurbs, DEMAND a new phone!

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wjmg1960 wrote:

I can relate to all of these troubles! VZ solution after they're sorry about my problem is to send me a refurbished droid x, someone else's problems! Ill let you know how that works out for me! I'll be the one writing in all caps and bold letters!

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droidsw wrote:

I left one out, so once again, what GB has done to my phone:

Display:  Sometimes does not time out. Stays on until I shut it off. Not often. About three times a week. Not a good thing for obvious battery concerns.

Display: After being off for at least 30 minutes, when I press the Power button and turn the display on, the Homescreen appears, by-passing the slide-lock and PIN number lock, i.e., the phone didn't lock. I keep it on a two minute lockout.  This happens, also intermittently.

Browser: Crashes. Has to be restarted.

Camera:  9 times out of 10, pressing the Camera icon does nothing. I have to reboot the phone, then the Camera will work.

Video recorded with Camcorder:  About 1 out of 5 videos, when I try to open them, say  "Corrupted File" and they won't open. These files also sometimes lock up the Gallery until they are deleted.

Video recorded with Camcorder:  Sometimes, after recording a video, I go to open the file and there is not a file there. Gone. Missing.

Homescreen transitions: Are very choppy now, weren't before GB, but I do use a live wallpaper. Blame it on the wallpaper? No, I blame it on GB and I'm keeping the bleeping live wallpaper.

Homescreen transitions: I keep the center of my Homescreens free of icons and use that area to swipe the screens left or right with my finger. So, how can that make the Voice Command, Voice Mail, even Text Messaging apps open when I am switching left or right between Homescreens?

Keyboard/Swype: Totally and completely erratic after the  update. Cursor has a mind of it's own.

Battery: Before GB, I rarely ever charged  my phone during the day. Now, I am often at 60%, or less, by 11A.M. and into the 40's by 1 P.M. if I don't charge it. Nothing changed, only GB.

Astro File Manager: Yes, this is an app, but it never did this before GB. It takes Astro 15-20 seconds to open now and when opening folders, another 15-20 seconds.

Folder Organizer: Another app. Sometimes takes three or four presses to open folders. Again, never an issue before GB.

Reboots: A few after the update. Before that, not one after replacing my router in Dec.

Lock-ups: At least a dozen the past month. Battery pull required.

3G: Loses 3G and phone calling capabilities. I have to reboot the phone. Can't even try *228 until I reboot. Also, only about twice a week.

Difficult to go into a Verizon Store and demonstrate "intermittant" issues.

I've done a reset, without restore, formatted my SD card and installed fresh apps after GB. Did NOT, have NOT tried the Safe Mode method because a lot of these are nuisance issues and intermittent.

Have not tried the reset without installing ANY apps.

These are just nuisance issues that make me an unpleasant Community Member, but I was never the life of the party before.  As I've written before, I'm tired of troubleshooting. Seriously.

If anyone has any ideas, I will read them, might not act on them. Not really looking for suggestions, anymore. Just wanted to list my issues caused by GB

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 DEMAND a new phone.   

[galaxie500fb]

Lol. Demand a new phone? More than likely the same problems will reappear. If anything seek out a new OS.

[droidsw]

galaxie500fb, I have been reading and watching videos about the iOS vs. Android debate lately.

First, the rebooting, lock-ups and browser crashing have not occurred lately. The other line items are hit and miss and still intermittent.

I theorize that as developers continue to update their apps, the conflicts will continue to decrease. And, the rumored patch for GB will take care of more.

I have admitted that I have not and basically refuse to uninstall all apps, or run in Safe Mode. That makes me an open target for criticism and called everything from stubborn to a fanboy.

A fanboy? Because I just want to install apps, music, folders, bookmarks etc, and USE my phone, without the constant troubleshooting, standing on my head, or holding my mouth just right, to have it work? I admit to being stubborn. Fanboy is out of the question.

I have stated that this phone was EXCELLENT before BOTH the froyo and GB updates.

I accept the fact that "most" people haven't had major issues with their X's. I suspect "most" people have had at least some minor issues.

Why?

Your comment about another OS. This argument is like politics. It's controversial and usually just starts name calling and personal attacks.

The main point Android users make is the "openness" of the Android OS and that they like the "customization" options.

I am a little confused by "customization". Is that referring to U.I. Launchers, widgets, live wallpapers, folders, etc? Is THAT what some people consider so important?

Those VERY features that take me over an hour to go back and put back in place EACH time I do a reset? (I have a lot of folders with bookmarks and apps, custom icons, etc).

If that is the main argument, I'm sorry but that is not a big deal. Nice, but what's the advantage when you lose all your "customization" with every reset?

With the locked bootloader on this phone, how "open" is it, anyway, if this is related to ROMs? Hey, I'm no wildman, or tidbits. I'm asking.

Some will argue that those that "know what they are doing" have little to no issues with this phone. Good for them. But, should those that just want to charge it and use it be insulted and told to go get a "soccer mom" phone?

I don't think it's an insult if soccer moms, or anyone else, want a phone that works without the software conflicts (whatever causes them) that this phone has had.

That infamous rebooting thread in the Moto forum I keep referring to has been around since this phone was released and is still going strong, now at over 215K views. So, someone is at least reading it.

This 3G connectivity issue that appeared after GB is concerning and honestly, the thought of having to reboot your phone to call 911 is ABSURD.

There are personal preference issues in the debate and ultimately few people are probably on the fence.

Probably just those that haven't had both types of phones, because the ultimate factor in compelling a person to choose one over the other is personal experience.

[SEM]

I just now did the update and very frustrated by what it did to my phone and how it broke my main application to sync with Outlook.  After 12-15 factory resets and escalated calls to tier 3 at Motorola and Companionlink and talking with supervisors at Verison there is still not resolution. 

I have read many posts that say if you have 3rd party applications you should do a factory reset before doing the update, but Verizon suggested this update to me and never mentioned anything about any factory reset.  I find this rather absurd that they mentioned nothing about this if it's really true.

Motorola suggested I mail my phone to them so they can to a complete reset - which only Motorola is capable of, but that would mean being without my phone for 2-3 weeks.  That's not acceptable.  Considering the magnitude of the problem (as I see it), Motorola should give Verizon the ability to do this locally or at least to provide expedited shipping service to and from Motorola.

Just my humble opinion.

[kaseythegreat]

     There is not always an easy fix for everything. Yes, i agree that factory data resets fix most issues, but when will Verizon and Motorola realize that this gingerbread "update" can not be fixed with a million factory data resets. That being said, heres my story

I first got my Droid X about a month after it was released. After about two months of use (which i took care of this thing better than most people take care of children.) my speaker and mic both stopped working. I took the phone to my local corperate Verzion store and they were very nice and super prompt about getting me a refurbished phone. (next day shipping blam!)

My first Droid X was before the GB update and had no software issues.

After i got my first refurbished phone having high hopes for Verizon i was sorley dissapointed. The phone would stay blank after i turnned it on for 15 secconds after hitting the lock button. I could touch the phone and use it, but could not see anythihng at all. This happened mid phone call too where i would take the phone away from my ear, and the phone would stay dark for about 10-15 seconds before i could see the keypad. Of course the first thing i did was the usual, pull the battery, turn the phone aon and off, and lastly i did a factory data reset. (two of them actually.) After haveing no luck with that I called Verizon and they apologized and sent me my next refurbished phone, thus begginng my GB nightmare.

This 2nd refurbished phone (3rd droid X total ) worked wonders! it was fast it was loud it was responsive!...for about a week. The first thing I noticed was my 3g data would cut in and out...and by cut in and out i mean would cease to exist until I turnned the phone off and back on again. Also, about 70% of them time, after i turnned the phone back on, i would lose call ability. People who called me would go straight to my voicemail and anyone i called would isntantly hang up giving me the "00:00" call timer.

Doing the data reset and all that jazz (twice for good maseure again) I took to the forums and sure enough noticed, im not alone.

Being angered now and seeing for most of these issues being answered as "U SHLD FACTERY DATA RECET NOOB LOLZ"

i took it as ok this phone is just a pile (yet again) and called Verizon one more time, and here i am on refurbed number 3. (4 Droid X's total)

Now this phone started out working as should, for about the first day. Every time I plug it into a wall charger, the phone turns itself off, and on again.....constantly...so now my only means of charging it are through the computer.

now as of a week ago. My phone has been locking  itself up. I will pull it from my pocket and try and return it from sleep mode, and it will show me the lock screen, then freeze. I cant slide to unlock, cant hit the power button nor home button, have to pull the battery.

Seeing the Verizon forums light up with GB issues and Motorolas do the same, i know this is not just coincidence, nor is it an easy factory data reset.

with no update being mentioned by both companies it leaves me to wonder "My year warrenty ends in a month, is my only option to keep getting broken phones? is there anyway to get a new phone? even a refurbished one?"

[galaxie500fb]

let me say that i`m no fanboy either and i do hear what your saying about wanting your phone to have the ability to be turned onand function like it should. Like we all want. Kind of like an (here`s where i get the blood boiling from the real fanboys) an iphone. The iphone while not perfect has demonstrated to be far more reliable than any android based device. Does that mean i want one? Uhmm... nope.

I enjoy my 4.3 inch screen. 6plus gigs of internal storage and 16 gb sd card. Customization used to be a big thing for me once i began to understand what i could do but that quickly wore off. The cons outweighed the pros. I wanted stability and the ability to run just about any app i wanted. The ability to listen to my large library of music on my sd card through my blutooth stereo headset and i really didn`t want to go out and buy multiple chargers and a car dock and extra batteries just to keep my self going all day. After getting fed up with hearing that the best solution was to wipe out everything that i`ve accumulated over months time just to find a rouge app i decided to take matters into my own hands. This is where i have to cut short because explaining how i finally eliminated my problems violates the term of service of this forum. But i will say that my phone no longer freezes or locks up requiring a battery pull. not one app that i have installed has caused any instability problems and i`m enjoying excellent battery life from a stock battery. So in a sense i have the best of both worlds. The reliability of an iphone and the openness of android. 

[droidsw]

galaxie500fb, I hear what you are saying in a non-violating T.O.S. way.

Sounds logical, with my one year warranty expired. But, it kind of goes back to the thing about Android that is frustrating. That it's up to us to troubleshoot and even go to measures such as that to get a smooth functioning device.

I like this phone for the reasons you mentioned, too.

I probably won't go that route. Probably just see how it goes until my next update.

[furyzin]

I have been following topics related to this issue on this forum for months. The problem with both Verizon and Motorola and Android is that they shift the burden of their mistakes to their consumers. I've read time and time again posters like Wyldman say that there's no problem at all, just do a factory reset and then reinstall all your apps, etc. etc.

I'm very tech saavy but I refuse to jump through hoops and hurdles just because a developer is too lazy to demand quality. This is why Apple has become the most profitable company on the planet! I can can guarantee you that when iOS5 is released in the fall there will be ZERO issues with it. As soon as my contract is up in January I'm dumping this brick of a phone which gets WORSE with every succesive update and I will definitely be getting the iPhone 5(and switching to AT&T). I'm through with Motorola and Android.

[Cody21]

Welcome to the forum - for the short time you apparently will be here.

I don't think @Wildman necessarily says/said that there are NO problems going on ... in fact the issues with the latest Gingerbread update to our phones are widely and thoroughly documented. But there are ways to minimize or ease the pain with this upgrade as  many of us here have suggested (Clear Cache, Factory reset, etc.).  - or FIX -    But there are also issues going on with 3rd party Apps that are the developers' responsibility and are slowly.mostly getting fixed. As far as the iPhone vs. anything else, that is a personal choice. I you want amore "locked-down" experience, then the iPhone probably the choice that willl make you happy. Everyone has their own reason - and CHOICE - for selecting a phone. I hope you find the one that better suits you and brings satisfaction to you.  Good luck.   peace out.

[droidsw]

furyzin, not long ago, I would have been adamantly opposed to most of what you wrote. Not any more.

Cody, is it REALLY the responsibility of the app developers? Apple never lets unapproved apps onto their phones. Another way that "open" isn't always "better".

What is more important, "unlocked" or "unusable" (referring to the 3G issue that requires a reboot to reestablish a 3G connection)?

I don't know.