Anyone else considering returning their EVO 3D?

boe · #1 (**permalink**) 07-14-2011, 11:35 AM

I love the big screen on this phone.
I like the speed vs. other Android phones I've tried.
I like the HTC sense.

I hate how fast it goes through the battery.
I hate how long it takes to charge.
I'm frustrated it can't lock onto a signal - never had a problem with my previous HTC Sprint phone. I did have the bad battery life and bad signal problem with the HTC Diamond so I ended up returning the phone. The battery life isn't as bad on the EVO 3D as the Sprint Diamond but it ain't no picnic either.

I've got about 2 more weeks to return it. I may have to get the new Sprint motorola phone and then return that to get the Galaxy SII within 30 days after getting the Motorola - I don't think the Galaxy SII will be available in time otherwise.

Pitchblack98 · #2 (**permalink**) 07-14-2011, 12:33 PM

Mine is getting sent back today for the weak signal and constant dropped calls.

I didn't have an problems with battery life. I probably had good battery life with mine since I wasn't ever able to make a call or use data very well though. lol

**scrosler** · #3 (**permalink**) 07-14-2011, 12:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by boe

I hate how fast it goes through the battery.

How long are you getting?

Quote:

I hate how long it takes to charge.

I dont think there is anything we can do about that right now. I think that bothers all of us at the moment.

Quote:

I'm frustrated it can't lock onto a signal - never had a problem with my previous HTC Sprint phone.

I bet that is the reason you have poor battery life. I do admit that the reception is not as good as other Sprint phones that I have

But no, I will not return mine.

boe · #4 (**permalink**) 07-14-2011, 12:45 PM

[QUOTE=scrosler;2127906]How long are you getting?

I bet that is the reason you have poor battery life. I do admit that the reception is not as good as other Sprint phones that I have
QUOTE]

From a full charge plugged in overnight on AC adapter 100%
1 - 4G Off
2 - Wifi -disabled
3 - BT on
4 - 30 minutes of phone calls made on BT
5 - about 15 minutes of reading emails and fiddling with apps
6 - No gaming
7 - 3 bars
8- two exchange accounts sync
9 - no pictures
10 -GPS disabled
11 - screen set for about 15%/20% brightness - nearly all the way down.
12 - htc sense sync turned off

Not good - Battery died after 12 hours off the charger. Lost signal in an area I've never lost signal in the past 6 years.

My 3 plus year old phone with a 3 year old battery did all of those same things on a 1100mah battery. I was hoping with power saving processors, and LCDs and BT 3.0 that this one would have better battery life. My old phone would last a full day when the battery was new. Just fiddling with an app/reading emails/keeping the screen active drains the battery at about 1 percent per minute at about 15-20% brightness.

You could be right about the poor battery life being a result of the signal. I got a diamond 2 or 3 years ago when they first came out - it also couldn't lock onto a signal and it only lasted 4-8 hours on average. I returned it and went back to my old Vogue.

I have 2 more weeks to decide if I can live with the battery and signal issues. I'm used to poor battery life as my old phone had a 3 year old battery in it but I don't think I can live with the bad signal on top of that.

**gator352** · #5 (**permalink**) 07-14-2011, 02:14 PM

I returned my first mostly because of signal issues but the tilted screen was eating at me and I figured if I got a second one, my signal issues would be better and if it had a tilted screen I could live with it. Now that I have my second, it does the exact same as the first which is that it drops calls consistantly where my EVO 4G didn't. It bounces between 1 bar and roaming where I had 3 to 5 bars with the EVO 4G. Ridiculous. So I think I may be returning this one for another EVO 4G as my wife confiscated the 4G I had.

Question though.....If you have 30 days when you buy a phone but it's screwed up and get another one, does your 30 days start over?

boe · #6 (**permalink**) 07-14-2011, 02:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gator352

Question though.....If you have 30 days when you buy a phone but it's screwed up and get another one, does your 30 days start over?

I'd go to Sprint's web site and ask that in a chat session or 2. For some reason you'll get different responses about simple questions from different reps. Save the chat session if it helps you for proof. You'll never get an email on anything you ask a rep over the phone.

**Karl** · #7 (**permalink**) 07-14-2011, 02:28 PM

I'll be keeping the 3D

Quote:

Originally Posted by gator352

I returned my first mostly because of signal issues but the tilted screen was eating at me and I figured if I got a second one, my signal issues would be better and if it had a tilted screen I could live with it. Now that I have my second, it does the exact same as the first which is that it drops calls consistantly where my EVO 4G didn't. It bounces between 1 bar and roaming where I had 3 to 5 bars with the EVO 4G. Ridiculous. So I think I may be returning this one for another EVO 4G as my wife confiscated the 4G I had.

Question though.....If you have 30 days when you buy a phone but it's screwed up and get another one, does your 30 days start over?

30 days from purchase

toddpedersen · #8 (**permalink**) 07-14-2011, 02:28 PM

Wow! I just spent 20 minutes putting together a friggien response only to mistakenly leave the forum page and lose what I wrote.

In a more abbreviated version, the Sprint website below talks about what I think is one of the bigger battery killers, that being Google Talk. Access the application and turn OFF the auto sign in and then sign out.

I also do not have the locate servce on or the power management turned on.

I have installed an app called Brightness level, that is on my homescreen to give me a two key press brightness setting between 0% to 100%. I normally keep it at 25% until I go outside.

Support - Article

I keep my GPS on, because it only drains battery when you see the little Satellite antenna icon. I keep BT off and Wi-Fi off until I need it, and use my phone about like you describe, and I get 24 to 36 hours easily of use.

I found that the Marketplace app called Open Signal was always running in the background and using my battery, because after I uninstalled it, my battery life got better.

I also shy away from programs like Lookout. For starters, they require way too much access to my phone and they seem to really drain the battery.

I keep a widget for Running Applications and the native Task Manager on my left homescreen, basically for easy access. There are many services that run but don't consume battery juice, but some that do, so by looking at what is running, you can see a pattern of what non native program is always running, turn it off or uninstall it and see if that helps your battery, then if it does, decide if you want to reinstall it.

I have installed Battery Indicator for the 1% battery life indication and for the Fully Charged alarm it offers. That way I remove it from the charger immediately after it is done charging, which prevents the quick 10% battery life drop people complain about all over these forums.

About once a month I do the following charging instructions, and I love my battery life.

Fully charge the phone while on, until my Full Battery alarm goes off.
I unplug the charger, wait for thee charge light to go off, then power down the phone. I immediately connect the charger and charge it until green. Sometimes it takes a few minutes to 15 or 20 using the 110V power outlet charger. After it is green again, I unplug it and power the phone one. Not sure if you know this, but using the USB port on a computer takes twice as long to charge the phone due to the lower power output. I can get my phone charged from roughly 25% to full in rougly 3 hours.

Have you noticed that your Awake Time and Up Time are pretty close in duration? If so, that could be the Google Talk or another program doing that.

I have found out that when you charge the phone with the power on, the phone counts that charging period as awake time, which is another good reason to power it down after charging it with the phone on. You get a fresh Up and Awake time counter.

Let me know what your apps are that you have installed and I will let you know if I have had any bad experiences with them.

The bottom line I have determined is this. Many phones get a bad rap because people get a phone, half ass charge it, immediately install a bunch of apps and then expect the phone to perform right.

Out of the box, the battery should be charged until full and then discharged ONLY until about 25 or 30%, fully charged again, discharged to 25 or 30% ONLY, repeating 3 to 5 times or a bit more, before the battery can even be considered optimal for normal use.

Happy 3VO'ing!

[QUOTE=boe;2127914]

Quote:

Originally Posted by scrosler

How long are you getting?

I bet that is the reason you have poor battery life. I do admit that the reception is not as good as other Sprint phones that I have
QUOTE]

From a full charge plugged in overnight on AC adapter 100%
1 - 4G Off
2 - Wifi -disabled
3 - BT on
4 - 30 minutes of phone calls made on BT
5 - about 15 minutes of reading emails and fiddling with apps
6 - No gaming
7 - 3 bars
8- two exchange accounts sync
9 - no pictures
10 -GPS disabled
11 - screen set for about 15%/20% brightness - nearly all the way down.
12 - htc sense sync turned off

Not good - Battery died after 12 hours off the charger. Lost signal in an area I've never lost signal in the past 6 years.

My 3 plus year old phone with a 3 year old battery did all of those same things on a 1100mah battery. I was hoping with power saving processors, and LCDs and BT 3.0 that this one would have better battery life. My old phone would last a full day when the battery was new. Just fiddling with an app/reading emails/keeping the screen active drains the battery at about 1 percent per minute at about 15-20% brightness.

You could be right about the poor battery life being a result of the signal. I got a diamond 2 or 3 years ago when they first came out - it also couldn't lock onto a signal and it only lasted 4-8 hours on average. I returned it and went back to my old Vogue.

I have 2 more weeks to decide if I can live with the battery and signal issues. I'm used to poor battery life as my old phone had a 3 year old battery in it but I don't think I can live with the bad signal on top of that.

boe · #9 (**permalink**) 07-14-2011, 02:34 PM

toddpedersen - can you tell us if you have email set for auto sync? I need that. Can you tell us how long your battery lasts on average?

**gator352** · #10 (**permalink**) 07-14-2011, 02:43 PM

Wow. What a write up! My batt life on the 3D is on par with my EVO 4G, maybe a little better even. So there's no complaints there. One thing I notice though is that people load up thier EVO's with apps and widgets and all the goodies turned on to max then complain that they get only 5 hours. Anywho, it's the signal loss I can't handle.