I finally got a Motorola phone! It’s the AtrixHD and it’s beautiful!
My first smartphone was the Motorola Droid X, so this is kind of like going back home. I love Motorola’s build on their phones. I do have some issues with how locked down they are and that’s why I haven’t had one in a long time. But after this, I’m seriously looking at going back.
The phone was great! From the moment I opened the box I was all smiles. Of course I checked for an update and sure enough, Jelly Bean 4.1! It just kept getting better. So after the update I really dived right in to see what had changed since my last Motorola phone.
It’s a lot. The ‘skin’ they put over Android used to be pretty bad, but the newer version is really pretty good. I am a stock Android person, and this one didn’t really bother me.
There are a lot of really great features they put in, especially, ‘Smart Actions’. It’s a built-in “If This, Then This.” So if you’re at a certain location, you can set up special actions like WiFi on/off, ringer volumes, syncing email, adjust screen brightness – there’s a laundry list of stuff you can do. I loved it.
I said I like the build of Motorola and this is no exception. The phone just feels good in your hand. The screen size is great without feeling ‘too’ big. And while the screen may not be SAMOLED like the Samsung devices, it still looks really good. Perhaps a little washed out, but nothing that you can really complain about. And the speakers on the phone are great!
I could actually play YouTube videos and people didn’t have to hold it up to their ear to hear it. (Something other phones seem to have a problem with.)
How about the camera? It’s great! Shots are crisp and the photo editor on the phone was easy. I don’t do instagram, so having some in-app editing is a must for me. The Front-facing camera was even really good. Motorola seems to have great cameras. Even my Droid X’s camera was excellent.
The phone is snappy and responsive and it never showed any lag. I didn’t have ALL my apps on it, but the majority of them. Even Ingress was smooth, and if you play, you know it’s a resource hog. But what’s more surprising than the speed of the processor is the speed of AT&T’s 4G LTE! I was really blown away. I have Verizon 4G LTE and it’s fast, but AT&T’s speeds outdid my Nexus every time.
There wasn’t a single instance when Verizon beat AT&T in a side-by-side speed test. Even with both phones freshly rebooted and with full signal bars. AT&T seems to have done something right here. It’s fast, and I like it.
So with all that processor speed and 4G LTE, how’s the battery life? It was good. I was able to make it from early in the morning until late and night without any problems. I averaged about 15-17 hours per full charge with Facebook, Twitter, Emails, Google+ and a little Ingress. I was not constantly looking for a charge and that’s always nice.
So, what didn’t I like? Well, I’m a UBS placement snob. I just don’t like it being on the top. But that’s just me. As I mentioned, the screen could have been a little richer in color, but it’s not bad by any stretch of the imagination. I really liked the AtrixHD and now I’m looking at Samsung’s S4 wondering if I should just hold out and see what Motorola may have up its sleeve later this year.
Do you have an AtrixHD? Are you thinking about getting one? Have more questions about it? About Android? Post a comment below or tweet me @Doctor_Droid.
