picking out new phones tomorrow, help

[skyking]

Long story short, we are going on a company plan with verizon share everything. Tomorrow or Sunday is about it for time to look at and pick out a new phone for both my wife and I.
We have not had a smart phone before
Both of us are firmly in the Android camp. We've played a bit with iphones.
She likes the S3.
I like a Razr for battery life, smaller size, and durability.
I am thinking either the new M or the Maxx.
The big question for me is, the Motorolas seem a bit harder to root. Having never had a smart phone, I have no clue what I would be missing to just leave it be. Of course, the geek in me will have a hard time with that philosophy.
Waiting for the next generation Nexus is not an option.

 

[Mopetar]

Seems like you've already answered your own question. Get an S3 and a RAZR MAXX.

 

[skyking]

I guess I was looking for some additional insight, about rooting and maybe some folks with experiences with those models.

 

[boomhower]

Seems like you've already answered your own question. Get an S3 and a RAZR MAXX.

I concur. Unless you are dying to flash roms rooting is overated. It's not nearly as important as in the past. OEM software has gotten a lot better.

 

[dagamer34]

Long story short, we are going on a company plan with verizon share everything. Tomorrow or Sunday is about it for time to look at and pick out a new phone for both my wife and I.
We have not had a smart phone before
Both of us are firmly in the Android camp. We've played a bit with iphones.
She likes the S3.
I like a Razr for battery life, smaller size, and durability.
I am thinking either the new M or the Maxx.
The big question for me is, the Motorolas seem a bit harder to root. Having never had a smart phone, I have no clue what I would be missing to just leave it be. Of course, the geek in me will have a hard time with that philosophy.
Waiting for the next generation Nexus is not an option.

How are you in the Android camp if you've never had a smartphone before? Seems like an odd statement to make.

 

[RockinZ28]

How are you in the Android camp if you've never had a smartphone before? Seems like an odd statement to make.

Said they played with an iphone a bit. Makes sense to be firmly in the Android camp afterward .

 

[s44]

A Maxx version of the M would be nice, but the next Maxx will be 4.7" and at that point you might as well get the S3.

As far as I've seen, Moto has always been pretty easy to root... you just can't flash much because of the locked/encrypted bootloader. Current not-Blur is pretty close to stock, though -- it's not like Sense -- so flashing is only a big issue if you want a custom version of the *next* Android version.

 

[Elropian]

How are you in the Android camp if you've never had a smartphone before? Seems like an odd statement to make.

We've played a bit with iphones.

Good enough for me.

 

[Nvidiaguy07]

please dont get a razr, so frriggin ugly and huge. I can't see the battery being that much better on that than the s3. Havent really used one, but motoblur imo is MUCH worse than touchwiz, but they both suck.

Tried running stock software on my GS2 for just a day and wanted to shoot myself. Not sure why you arent considering a nexus, but after FINALLY getting a nexus device, i can say im never using anything else.

In terms of power, the nexus is right on par with the GS2, but it is just so silky smooth compared to it. Hard to describe, but the difference is very noticeable. Having played around with the GS3, i was actually very impressed by how it felt in the hand vs the nexus. Thinner, and you always have a bigger screen when taking into account the on screen keys on the nexus (which i still prefer anyway). That being said, i would still prefer the nexus, because you dont have to deal with crappy touchwiz, and will run into much more bugs with any custom rom you put on there.

Gs3, nexus, whatever, just dont get the razr. Wasnt impressed with it when it first came out, and now its dated as well.

 

[WelshBloke]

I concur. Unless you are dying to flash roms rooting is overated. It's not nearly as important as in the past. OEM software has gotten a lot better.

I'd say rooting is way more important than being able to flash ROMs.

Want to debloat, better have root.
Want to be able to do a proper back up, better have root.

 

[Oyeve]

Said they played with an iphone a bit. Makes sense to be firmly in the Android camp afterward .

Oh snap!

 

[shortylickens]

I was wanting the M cuz its slim and powerful. But I didnt want to deal with Verizons bullshit. If the company is paying for it then I think thats what you should get.

 

[skyking]

Thanks all!
I mentioned the Nexus because it was so popular with the geeks, but also it was already dated hardware and best to wait for the next gen.
I'm forking over the initial buy money. 100 for an M, 200 for a G3, 100 for a Gnex. I figure I can get a new Gnex at upgrade time. The lack of an SD slot on the Gnex bothers me, though it should not with 32 Gb of internal memory.
The M has about 2/3rds the battery of the Maxx, and quite a bit more (advertised) life than other phones. It is the size I like, I come from flip phones in the front pocket. Maybe if I change jobs it would be different but the G3 feels too big for me, but fine for my wife's purse

 

[bearxor]

Said they played with an iphone a bit. Makes sense to be firmly in the Android camp afterward .

So if I say "I played with a nexus for a bit", but then chose an iPhone, does that mean I have no sense? Sheesh. People's personal preferences are not absolute an don't have to follow your opinion of what is right.

But to the OP, I would not buy a RAZR or MAXX at this point. The phone is a year old now and is quite a bit long in the tooth as far as the android market goes. I would seriously consider the RAZR M. Not only is the hardware significantly better, but the battery saw a healthy increase from the RAZR to a 2000mah battery with the more efficient processor, should give you a bit extra battery life.

If the screen on the M doesn't do it for you, then it's really in your best interest to wait until the RAZR HD launches. Now we're talking a 2500mah battery. Not as high as the MAXX, but still very respectable.

Of course, the RAZR MAXX HD is an option as well, with its 3300mah battery, but I suspect it's out of your price range. If history is any indication, the RAZR HD will be $200 and the MAXX will be $300. If the MAXX comes in at $250 or less, I'd jump on it. But, at this point, I'd give the OG RAZR/MAXX a wide berth.

 

[ponyo]

The only problem I see with RAZR M is the lower screen resolution. I would pick SGS3 but that's me. But coming from dumphone, it's going be like whole new world no matter what you choose.

 

[skyking]

The only problem I see with RAZR M is the lower screen resolution. I would pick SGS3 but that's me. But coming from dumphone, it's going be like whole new world no matter what you choose.

You have that right
I need a durable phone, judging from my past history of killing then now and then. Smaller seems more durable.

 

[s44]

TPU case = way more durable

 

[skyking]

TPU case = way more durable

I was looking at those too. I need all the help I can get.

 

[Geekbabe]

I have a Gnex & have loved it but I just got the S3 a week ago & battery life is quite noticeably better, the screen is flat out amazing. I'm still running the stock rom & not having any problems with it.

 

[skyking]

She has the s3 and I have the M just like I figured. The folks who helped us really did like the M, and the s3 is quite nice as well. I have been learning pretty much the whole weekend about apps and how to manage the phone. We attended a class at the verizon store this morning
I was surprised that the guys there did not know you could push apps onto the phone from the desktop. That is my favorite app installation feature.

 

[MagickMan]

I don't even bother doing fancy ROMs and stuff, the only reason I root is to do complete backups and remove stubborn OEM apps. That aside, I hate Motorola with a passion. Their hardware has been nothing but grief to me. I love my GS3, it's the best Android phone I've ever owned, by far. And my wife is ga-ga over her iP5, it's very sharp and fast.