Motorola Droid X: Thoroughly Reviewed
by Brian Klug on July 20, 2010 4:27 PM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Motorola Droid X
- OMAP
- Mobile
Conclusions
It’s hard to argue that the new Motorola Droid X hasn’t captured the Android performance and flagship crown once again. Eight months after the original Motorola Droid, Motorola has launched a worthy successor. Further into the summer, we'll see a true followuup to the original Droid - the Droid 2. It will pack an improved hardware keyboard, the same size and form factor as the first Droid, and probably the same SoC as the X.
Motorola Droid X. Image Courtesy of Sarah Trainor.
The X brings a lot more than just a bigger screen and the Blur interface - after the iPhone 4, it's the second phone on the market with a 45nm SoC. TI's OMAP 3630 is the new Snapdragon. You get the same real world performance as a 1GHz Snapdragon, but with much better GPU performance. Unfortunately for TI the latter only really matters in 3D games, which are still at their infancy on smartphones.There's still some occasional choppiness scrolling through menus, but that seems to be an Android thing
The battery life offered by Motorola's design (both hardware and software) and the OMAP 3630 is just great. Despite its size the Droid X lastest the longest on a single charge of any Android phone we've tested thus far. While the iPhone 4 lasts longer for browsing, the X is our new champion for talk time weighing in at just under 9 hours. We're only a generation or two away from all smartphones having better-than-notebook battery life for all of our major tasks.
If you're on Verizon and prefer the larger screen, the Droid X takes our pick for the best Android phone on the market today. All we really need is a good Nexus One successor for those users who want something a bit smaller, and maybe an entirely new form factor for the ultimate smallest in devices.
From a higher vantagepoint, the Droid X isn't going to change your opinion on Android. If you love the OS then you'll be very happy with the device. While we would definitely appreciate Froyo on the X today, we're starting to get really excited about Android 3.0 (Gingerbread) due out by the end of the year.
There are also OMAP 4 and Tegra 2 to keep in mind. While the 3630 is the cream of the crop today, in less than 12 months it'll move down to mainstream and we'll be pining for the next wave of dual-core Cortex A9 smartphones. We wouldn't recommend waiting another year if you need a new phone, but just plan on wanting to upgrade really bad next year.
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numberoneoppa - Wednesday, July 21, 2010 - link
Can't wait, I look forward on your impressions on Samsung's touchwizz overlay, from what I can tell, it rather hurts the GUI performance. :(Zebo - Wednesday, July 21, 2010 - link
Would be nice if these smart phones reviews had a large table for quick access to pro's and con's of each phone.Each box/catagory in the table could be based on 1-10 with a little narrative or to as simple as just check mark for superiority.
Hey it's a perfect review so i had to make something up to nag about:)
Droid X seems to be top dog android...- Evo is unsuitable you actually USE the phone's unlimited plan with it's poor batt life but just as nice too. Hard to pick.
radium69 - Wednesday, July 21, 2010 - link
Thank you Brian & Anand, for this in depth review.I find your articles to be very interesting, and well written!
Keep up the good work!
mvmorr01 - Wednesday, July 21, 2010 - link
Thanks, cool app!LoneWolf15 - Wednesday, July 21, 2010 - link
(quote)"The Droid X is the spiritual successor to last year’s Droid."(/quote)Actually, I'd say the upcoming Droid II is the sequel, as it has a fully tactile keyboard, as opposed to the touchscreen Droid X. I'd say the Droid X is a new product rather than a successor.
I'm waiting to see what the Droid II can do --I won't buy a smartphone that doesn't have a physical keyboard.
tbuck79 - Wednesday, July 21, 2010 - link
I have a Droid X, the WiFi is terrible on my Netgear Router but at work on a Linksys router it's fine (both are single band N), however, using any WiFi the distance is really bad with the X, compared to an iPhone 4 in my other hand, the iPhone can get MUCH farther away from the AP than the X, could you guys see if there is an actual problem with range on the X?WaltFrench - Saturday, July 24, 2010 - link
you must be holding the X the wrong way.Ratman6161 - Wednesday, July 21, 2010 - link
The Droid and the Doid X are both Android 2.1 and both are soon to be upgraded to 2.2 (mine already is). The run the same apps and do the same things (weather or not you like Motoblur and find it an advantage is up to you). The Droid will basically do everything the Droid X does - just not quite as fast. So "obsolete" is a matter of perspective. That's what Verizon and Motorola would like us to think. They just love people like your friend who ditched his Droid for an Incredible and now wants to ditch the incredible for a Droid X.Lets face it - it's evolution not revolution. If you are always trying to have the latest cool gadget, you are always going to end up disappointed and with a much thinner wallet.
Good review though. If I were buying today I'd probably go with the X. But with another year to go before the next upgrade, something else will come along long before I'm ready to buy.
digipro55 - Wednesday, July 21, 2010 - link
Incredibly well written and through review. I can admit I didn't understand all the jargon in the performance tests but it certainly is a wealth of knowledge concerning the best Android phone on the market. Thanks again for a very informative reviewAikouka - Wednesday, July 21, 2010 - link
Hey Brian, just to let you know, the mini-HDMI to HDMI cables are available at Monoprice, but of course it sounds like you were looking for one ASAP from a B&M store :). So I guess if you know you'll need one, you can order one, but it also looks like they're not terribly commonplace as you mentioned as they're kind of expensive on Monoprice compared to standard HDMI cables.