HTC Droid DNA
Phone Scoop Review
Nov 16, 2012 by Eric M. Zeman
HTC's new superphone is the first to ship in the U.S. with a 1080p HD display. The Droid DNA for Verizon Wireless has more to offer than a good-looking screen, though. Phone Scoop's full review dives deep into all the DNA's features. read review ›
User Reviews
Average Ratings
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excellent phone
I got the DNA last month it is so fast excellent screen,beats by dre a extra+, battery awesome,I have not had one problem with this phone!!!! A very underrated phone!!! My friend she has a iPhone 5 and hates her I phone5 when she started playing with my DNA !!!!!! Very happy with my choice !!!!
Good phone, but...
I got this phone a week ago. I like it, but the lack of removable storage ended up being a deal breaker. I'm taking the phone back for a Note II. I didn't want a phone as big as the Note II, but it has better battery life and removable storage.
Out of the box:
pros:
fantastic screen
similar button layout to Droid X series.
Beats Audio (I actually had to turn the bass in my car down because this added so much extra bass)
Cons:
Battery life (I was having to plug my phone in by 8pm with normal usage. On an average day I send/receive about 100 texts, talk for 10-15 minutes, 2-3 hours of internet usage, some games. My day starts at 6:30am)
Storage (lack of internal storage is a real bummer. 11GB available)
HTC Sense (I prefer ADW launcher)
After Unlocking Bootloader and Rooting phone:
Pros: Uninstall verizon's bloatware can free up about a gig of storage.
Cons: If you like to root and rom your phone, be prepared to lose data on your phone everytime you format since the internal storage is all you get.
I used Jcase walkthrough and then using HTCdev steps to unlock bootloader which Verizon actually locks out. WARNING: If you do this, your phone will show TAMPERED on the bootloader/recovery screen. You can undo this by flashing the Verizon RUU file.
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Years best android
I pre-ordered this phone right after the HTC Conference. I have now had the phone 5 days and I wanted to give my initial impressions.
PROS -
-1080p screen that delivers. The screen is so crisp, its doubtful that this screen will be topped anytime soon. The screen is edge to edge greatness, with rounded tapered edges. Amazing!
- Camera greatness. This is the first (and doubtfully the last) with a WIDE angle front facing camera, which really makes a huge difference for those who Skype or Hangout/Google. The rear camera is about a good as any flagship device out there now. HTC also included some great customizations and filters with the new Sense+.
-Size/Feel. This phone feels absolutely amazing in your hands. When you first hear about it and see the pictures you think, "this thing is too big/huge", but its the complete oposite. The phone feels great to hold and the polycarbonate matte finish adds a the right amount of texture and grip.
CONS -
-11gb of usable storage. This to me, is a negative, but then again its obvious that they are pushing you toward streaming/cloud services. The pre-loaded apps scream that. Thanks Verizon :|
-Locked up tight. The OS and phone are locked up tight to prevent customizations and bricks. HTC normally allows all of its devices to be unlocked via their website, but Verizon made sure to have it removed from their website on launch day. Even though this may cure headaches for Verizon customer services/reps, it also hurts HTC sales figures, as a large percentage of the android community prefer this OS specifically for the customization abilities.
CLOSING -
The battery isn't listed in either category because in all honesty the battery works for me just fine. It will last me 18-28 hours depending on usage, different experience depending on usage. Their also is no removable battery. Which I personally prefer: Solidifies body, better design. Lastly the new HTC Sense+ is the least intrusive skin to android to date.
Great phone but a few shortcomings
I pre-ordered the Galaxy Note2 for VZW and cancelled it to order the HTC DNA once I saw the DNA specs. The last HTC phone I had was the EVO 4G with Sprint.
I received my DNA yesterday so my opinions here are initial.
PROS:
-Amazing display. Not over saturated with colors. Colors seem to be pretty true. The resolution is astounding. The size seems just right for a larger phone without getting obtrusive.
-Great Sound with headphones. A little extra bass is what I like as I listen to Blues and Rock. The sound is clean until you get to the max volume. The speaker on the back is okay, nothing special. It is clear but not that loud.
-Very Impressive Camera. I haven't had a chance to really test it outdoors yet so it is premature to say too much about it yet. However every review I have read on this camera rates it very impressive.
CONS:
-Battery is acceptable but I would have preferred a removable or upgradeable battery.
-Storage Capacity is a real bummer. Why they didn't allow for a micro SD card leads me to suspect that the carrier (VZW) hopes to make the user stream their music or use cloud based services more so they can charge more for data usage. If this is the real reason then it's another example of the carrier prioritizing their profit margins over their customer's benefits.
It may not be justified for me to mention these two disappoints since it was clear that the device had these shortcomings before buying the phone. However, I don't understand why HTC who is in a real slump with sales would design a phone with cutting edge specs but omit the options for battery and storage upgrades.
I am on the fence as to whether I will keep this phone or return it for the Galaxy Note2 or wait for the the Galaxy S4 to come out. Honestly, one of the reasons I opted for the HTC DNA is that I was rooting for the underdog here. It's in the consumers best interest to keep cell phone mfr competition going and keep companies like HTC in business.
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Too much of a good thing.
For me this phone is too tall and too thin. Other than that everything else is great. Awesome display, loud speaker, love HTC Sense, great camera. Overall a great device. I just prefer one handed operation and it's a little difficult for me with this device.
I'm updating this review to speak about reception. I found that out of the iPhone 5, RAZA HD, that the DNA does better in fringe LTE areas. By that I mean, it will drop down to the stronger 3G signal. Rather than like the other two, holding onto to 1 bar of LTE. Which although registering one bar, is useless.
Therefore doing away with the need for an LTE switch.
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Fabulous but doesnt take SD cards
On my last upgrade it came down to the DNA or the Moto RAZR MAXX HD, but then my company phone option came up and I took the DNA while using my personal phone upgrade to get the MAXX HD. Basically a coin toss between the two. This review is for the DNA.
PROS:
- Thin, thin, thin
- Great sized screen
- Very fast, snappy interface...response time excellent
- One of the first to get Jelly Bean
- Sound is excellent thru the speaker
- Absolutely beautiful display
CONS:
- Idle for 3 days, battery dead...so much for standby time
- Won't take SD cards...16GB on board is all there is
- Pricey
One of the Best
The DNA, in a word, is awesome. I returned the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 for the DNA. I really liked the Note, but the size proved to be to much unless I was sitting at home or at work. With its five inch screen, the DNA strikes a happy medium.
Pros:
-Screen size.
-Screen quality.
-Call qualiy.
-Build quality.
-Fast. I use the phone as a mobile hotspot.
-Camera.
-Battery life.
Cons:
-No expandable memory.
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An amazing phone
I have had this phone for a few days now, but have played with quite a few of them in the last few months. This thing is an amazing HTC phone, one of the best I've ever played with on any carrier.
Pros : This thing has a beautiful screen. Its just amazing compared to say the Razr or a Galaxy III in the daylight. It's amazingly fast and holds a signal very well. One thing that I've not seen anyone mention yet is that the thing is FACTORY UNLOCKED on the SIM. I took an AT&T sim, put it in, changed the APN and it switched right over to AT&T's HSPA+ network. When I see everyone saying they prefer the Note II I say I love a phone thats coming from the carrier unlocked for ANY carrier. Plus the ability to easily unlock the bootloader thanks to HTC's support, this thing is a dream for anyone who loves to play with roms. And when your not using the phone this thing sips power, it sat on the table for 8 hours and only lost 5% power while doing nothing. Thats nice.
Cons : I understand that the phone is supposed to be water resistant and thats why it has the usb flap on the port but seriously it's a bit of a pain. It wouldn't be as big a deal if it came with the wireless charging pad but thats a separate purchase so yea. If your a heavy user your going to want to keep an external battery charger handy for the battery. The issue isn't as bad as the thunderbolts battery but it still could be better.
Other : People complain about the 16 gigs not being enough, and I can understand that. But I do have to point out with so many free server storage options out there like dropbox and box it's more of an inconvenience to me than a con but others may disagree.
Almost Perfect
I have had this phone since November 2012 when it came out. I have had no problems with it.
The lack of removable memory might be an issue for those who fly a lot, otherwise I don't think that it is. Obviously, Verizon had HTC make the phone without removable memory to promote the use of streaming services (hopefully for them Verizon's own streaming services). The phone works great with the cloud and 4G LTE. It is screaming fast and you can hardly tell the difference between loading and viewing a movie from internal memory and streaming it from the cloud. If you use Wi-FI it won't even cost you any data to stream it, although Verizon's 4G LTE network is faster than some 802.11 WI-FI networks.
The disadvantage to the lack of removable memory is that 11GB is not really a lot of room for movies for use on an airplane flight. Although GoGo In-Flight Wi-Fi is available on many flights now, I have had no experience using it to stream media.
Great Phone If It Wasn't For The Known Issues
The screen is really nice and clear, and the battery last me all day. I do not have any issue with the amount of memory, and love Jelly Bean. I would have given this phone a 5 star rating if it wasn't for a known issue that has not been resolved. The issue is that some of the phones will keep giving you a SIM card error. According to Verizon and HTC they are working on software to resolve the issue. In the meantime this issue can effect everything, some have reported not being able to place calls to 911 in an emergency, while others just have network drop out. Replacing the SIM card or Exchanging the phone has worked for some, but not for others.
Pros:
Bright Crisp Screen
Battery Life
Wireless Charging
Camera and all the options
Customizable
Ease of use
Video Recoding
Cons:
The known issue I mentioned above
Wish it had a microSD slot
