Ughh, might be time for a new phone. Yesterday my phone wouldn't charge⦠Actually that's not quite right, it will charge, but real slow and heats up. Maybe it was just a fluke, but wireless charging hasn't been working for the better part of a week. Prolly get the same one again, the 2026 G Power really doesn't offer much, dumping the flaky wireless charging and bumping the batter from 5000 to 5200, along with a couple new colours.Thirteen months, not bad honestly, though that prolly doesn't sound great, but I do a gig version of UPS' work, 4 to 5 days, 6 to 10 hour days, breaking once or twice to hit the bathroom and grab a cup of coffee. There's no phone who's battery will last the whole day, so if'n I'm going from than 2 miles and have less than 90% battery, I usually plug in for a top off, which really isn't that much, but combined with end of day charging to full, I have a funny feeling I've done more charging cycles in those thirteen months than normal, at 2, maybe as much as 4 times as much.
Kinda explains it dying so soon, right?So why buy another?
Because frankly its the best rugged phone bargain out there. Sure, Motorola at best claims its durable, not rugged, but with a mil spec drop rating and IP 68 and 69 water ratings? At $350 compared to $650 starting for a real rugged phone, its hard to beat, and I've certainly tested it, I've dropped it in the warehouse on a concrete floor, onto the street, fumbled and sent it flying, scanned and photographed packages with rain running off the phone, I've really put it to the test. Now that there's a 2026, looks like I can get one for $250 unlocked from Motorola (funny thing, the new prices haven't hit their Amazon store where the 2025 costs more than a 2026 right now), and I'll prolly keep the old as a back up.
So about that new phone...
We did say we got it, right?
loops.video/v/6BstSglyI4 sums up things quickly, but a few details as to why the purchase, as I'm anti-consumerist.
Like I said in here, it's an upgrade in all but memory over my previous G Power 2023. I did have to give up half the memory and settle for 128G, but since I was only using 47 and have an SD card option, that's not exactly a big deal. In return, I got a better camera, bar code scanning yesterday was lightning quick, wireless charging which is a nice plus, IP68 and IP69 water resistance, along with Gorilla Glass 5.
As a delivery driver, those last three are very important, the IP ratings are for water, one is for spray, and one is for splash/submersion, apparently you could clean this by throwing it in a dishwasher. And unlike the model one step down that has Gorilla Glass 3 which is scratch resistance, this one is impact resistant, ostensibly to a nearly four foot drop. I also hedged my bets by buying a case for it.. Actually two, there was a delay on the second as the one I ordered was out of stock, instead of clear magnetic, I'll be getting a black one. That kinda sucks as I like showing off the fact that I have a green phone, something interesting considering how many phones come in black. I did get a clear regular case, but I want to try the magnetic one, as it allows the phone to work like an iPhone does, allowing the use of magnetic charging and accessories.
Not much else to say, light on the pre-installed apps, and all but Google and Motorola are unistallable. Yep, don't want FaceBook on the phone, then feel free to delete it, though you are stuck with Google's stuff as that's an Android requirement. As to the Motorola, that's mostly just stuff to customize it, and it works rather nice, I like the experimental monochrome icon theme m'self.
Obviously it doesn't work on everything, but quite a lot work, with the funniest failure being Frayt, which just turns into a dark blue blob.
Overall, I gotta say I'm liking this, we'll see if'n the battery is big enough for work, I do currently have it set to battery saver where it stops at 80%, the camera works much better than the old one. I'll have to find a magnetic charging mount for the car and see how that works. I definitely have to recommend Motorola if you're looking for a phone that works, and is reasonably priced, they're made by Lenovo who makes computers that are reasonably priced and perform well, but won't blow your socks off, and the same holds true for the phones.
Isaac Kuo likes this.
And the cursed phone arrives
Fairly big box with something clunking around in it...
That's an Amazon quality packing job, though the worst has got to be REI.
New phone got..
Not much to say, ordered a Motorola G Power (2025) this afternoon, should have it tomorrow.
I'm already rocking the same phone but the 2023 edition, this one'll have half the memory, but be faster, have wireless charging, and most importantly considering my job, higher water rating (IP 68 & IP 69 IIRC), along with MilSpec for drop. Memory isn't an issue, I'm only using 47G of 256G right now, so being cut down to 128G is no big deal, especially since this still takes SD cards.
Oh, and the battery might be bigger, which would be nice, the apps I gig on are power hungry, I don't come close to making it through an entire shift with the current phone.
Only bad thing is getting it set up, that'll be a hassle as I prefer not to import my apps and such, I prefer a clean manual install, so lots of work getting everything set up on a weekend where I have to do household finances, normal chores and want to do some extra shopping.
Oh, and I have to sell the old phone, I could've gotten $75, but with them selling on eBay for $90 to $125, I figure I should sell it m'self. If'n anyone wants a good phone, give me a holler. Oh, and I have a 2020 edition Razr for sale too, usable, but needs repair, along with a Lenovo 11 inch tablet if'n any of that interests y'all.