I had a Motorola DROID... I sold it
By KellyGwen
@KellyGwen (193)
United States
June 23, 2010 12:11am CST
When I first heard about the new Droid I was SO excited!!! I have the "new every two" plan from Verizon but they sent me a coupon for early trade in! YES! So, I ran right out and got my Droid.
After the first week, when I was bedazzled by all the neat "apps", interactive menus and gadgets I discovered that I was REALLY frustrated! This was not a phone, it was a microscopic underpowered computer in a cell phone costume. The lag on this thing was MIND MELTING. The camera was SO slow to boot that you better hope you were trying to photograph a landscape and not some fast moving object... like a snail. Want to actually use it as a phone? Lets hope you bought the optional protective case so the phone wouldn't shatter when you threw it at the wall. Smart-phone my a$$!
I was paying $30 extra a month for a fancy, slow, solitaire machine. I decided to trade it in for a "normal" phone. Much to my dismay, by the time I figured out that I hated this phone I had just missed the end of the "trial period". They wouldn't let me return it. I would have to buy a phone from them at FULL PRICE if I wanted to ditch the Droid. ARGH! Caught in the leg hold trap of the fine print. DAMMIT!
Thankfully there was a local store that bought used phones. They gave me a "reasonable" price for my Droid (still $70 less than I paid for it) so I could afford a second hand turn in from Verizon's secret used phone list.
I finally had what I was looking for in the first place. A NORMAL cell phone with a qwerty keyboard that didn't have a GINOURMOUS cell plan attached to it.
That is my rant. Have you you owned a Droid? What did you think?
1 person likes this
4 responses
@secretagent (41)
• United States
26 Jun 10
Buying a cell phone is a very personal thing, so some people just aren't into the whole Swiss Army gadget that does everything. I've worked with people who just want a 12 key candy bar phone through to folks who want to know how to get phone calls through their netbook. Thankfully, the industry still supports a variety of mobile phones to satisfy everyone, and it sounds like in this case, you were able to get the phone you wanted.
Rude of them not to let you exchange it, Verizon wireless is terrible about that, and even within the return / exchange period, you still are dinged a $35 restocking fee. Why do they make it so hard to do business with? Anyway, that's a rant for another day.
What's shameful about this is that your issue with the Droid was completely preventable - that they should have taken the time to explain how this product worked, and what's required for ownership of such a device. There are things like task killers that are required of the Droid (especially the Motorola Droid) that will stop processes that are killing your phone's memory, making it that slow.
I am glad, however, that they do have their CPO (certified pre owned) program - this was a recent addition that helps folks in your position get another phone - and the pre-owned phones in many ways are superior to buying a brand new one.
You can look at it this way - at the end of the day, you got a phone that was a better fit, rid yourself of a frustrating situation, and saved 480 dollars over the life of your contract.
@KellyGwen (193)
• United States
27 Jun 10
Thanks for commenting!! I actually figured out those task killers, anti-virus, etc apps and had them... I guess it just wasn't the phone for me :(
I LOVE that last paragraph... I'll keep repeating that to myself while I mourn my app-less-ness... lol :) I do prefer my new "normal" phone though... lesson learned :)
@secretagent (41)
• United States
28 Jun 10
There are a ton of apps that are available for most cell phones, and sometimes, those apps are just luxury time wasters - and some are just a waste. Verizon does a pretty good job of putting out applications for their non-smartphones, and there's a ton of stuff on the web that you can consider as well, should you find it necessary.
@iwrite (5034)
• Singapore
23 Jun 10
Well I got the milestone xt, so far I am happy with the phone. it looks great and feels great. The camera need a little getting use to but I am doing pretty well at the moment. I thought it is a waste given a little bit more time, I think you would have enjoy the great phone.
@KellyGwen (193)
• United States
24 Jun 10
I gave that Droid a chance, I really did... I knew how to use it and had a lot of fun shopping for "apps"... Now, before you say it, I didn't overload it with apps and checked my "running programs" often, removing the ones I didn't really use... So it shouldn't have been overloaded... But the lag! When my "real" computer lags I want to hit it with a hammer... the Droid was 20 times worse!
I think my biggest gripe was that this was a PHONE.. that function should have been the most powerful and easy to use function... unfortunately, solitaire was. I found myself borrowing my boyfriends cell whenever I wanted to call anyone. That upset me since I was paying out the nose to have the Droid...
Thanks for commenting!!
1 person likes this
@iwrite (5034)
• Singapore
27 Jun 10
KellyGwen,
I wonder did it lag the moment you got it? because it really surprise me about the phone, when I got it the batt life was what I did not like, however the more I use it the batt life seem acceptable, I can charge after two days, my former acer could not last 4 hours.
could be only because something is faulty with your set and not the all the droid phones. perhaps if you know anyone using the phone you can try testing it again.
@_sketch_ (5742)
• United States
23 Jun 10
I have never owned a Droid and after reading this, I don't think I ever will....eh who am I kidding? I'm too poor for a smart phone. Oh well. :)
@KellyGwen (193)
• United States
24 Jun 10
You aren't missing too much :) I have one of those tiny laptops... I think I'll bring that around to use for games instead of having the $100/month Droid... It's a lot less painful!! :)
Thanks for commenting!!
@damned_dle (3942)
• Philippines
23 Jun 10
Well, it is a 'smart phone' and is to be expected from smart phones. A cellphone with some useful and lots of un-useful features. The most useful is ofcourse the easy access on the internet, easy but not FAST. And the camera? It's just like any camera on all cellphones/smartphones.
I don't have one because it's too expensive here, but I'd love to have one because of it's wi-fi and the cool games you can play with it.
Advice: Research before buying anything! (especially expensive stuffs) =)
