Motorola DROID 3 Pro Reviews

If you’re in a market that Verizon hasn’t included in its official list for deployment by the end of 2011, there’s really no point to owning a first generation LTE smartphone. At that point, current devices like the Droid X2 or Droid 3 make sense, or waiting for devices based on some less power-hungry second generation basebands that will no doubt be the rage around the same time next year. I like the Droid 3 a lot more than I thought I would going into it, just because of how much importance I personally put on having the fastest cellular connectivity. It’s sort of a running joke among friends and people that know me that I spend far too much time running speed tests, and so I went into this review ready to be underwhelmed by more EVDO slowness. I was definitely wrong about how great this device really turned out to be. Keyboard, display, OMAP4, and overall size culminate to a device that feels like way more than just an updated Droid 2. The device has had another unintended side-effect as well. The Droid 3’s awesome keyboard has made me wish more of the Android flagship, triple-A devices had physical keyboards. Capacitive multitouch keyboards are great, but something is always going to get lost in the process of making a keyboard virtual. It’s also clear to me that developer focus has shifted away from landscape view, with so many Android applications forcing you into portrait-only mode because there’s so much more attention on portrait than landscape devices with keyboards. Maybe it’s time for a Nexus device with a keyboard to remind developers that landscape still exists.

The Motorola Droid 3 could be accurately summarized as a lot of little upgrades that come together to create a big upgrade. Dual processor cores, HDMI-out, larger screen, a generous amount of memory, it has a lot of strong points in favor of it. But that has to be weighed against a few notable shortcomings, including the fact that it lacks 4G in an environment where almost all its competitors will have it. Given the problems with LTE phones right now, you might actually prefer going without, but I suspect most everyone will prefer having a robust and reliable 4G service, and not have to make too many compromises.The Droid 3 is, in some ways, a victim of heightened expectations. In another circumstance, I might give it an enthusiastic recommendation. But with more and more devices pushing the limits of what a high-end phone can do, the D3 comes off as being somewhat more conservative and evolutionary of an upgrade, rather than one which captures the imagination. That's not necessarily a bad thing, since not everyone is looking for something exciting. High-end business users should love it--with worldwide roaming, plus HDMI output perfect for presentations and lots of potential to keep you entertained on long flights: it's a strong fit for them. For high-end civilian users who are looking for something fun, it might strike their fancy as well, but they should carefully explore the alternatives first. The Droid 3 has it's positives, but it's not the most impressive device on the horizon.

The Motorola Droid 3 is mostly good, but has a few glaring problems that bug me. The hardware, while huge and chunky, works well and offers the best QWERTY on a Motorola phone that I can remember. Lovers of the physical keyboard will surely enjoy that of the Droid 3. Signal and battery performance were great, but sound quality of calls was a real problem in my book. If you spend a lot of time on the phone, you might want to look elsewhere. If you don't often make use of the gift of gab, then perhaps this fault can be overlooked. The software tools on board the Droid 3 are as good as other smartphones. It handles messaging with ease, and offers a few unique tools when it comes to social networking, such as the universal inbox. Media playback is good and the Droid 3 offers plenty of options for the media savvy user. The camera software and gallery in particular are very good. It’s a shame the results of the camera and video camera were so average. The Droid 3 is a satisfying sequel in the way that Toy Story 3 was. It's not as unique as the first, not as polished as the second, but still an overall good device.

While not a perfect device, the Droid 3 is certainly a phone we could recommend. Great battery life, a screen that is easily seen bright sunlight (even at the cost of color accuracy and ghosting), and with a slide-out keyboard. It was a pleasure to use a Verizon device that wasn't bogged down by the carrier as well. What about 4G you ask? At this time, I can't say the lack of 4G is a con with this particular device. It would simply eat into the battery life. In all, the Motorola Droid 3 from Verizon is a major upgrade from its predecessors and well worth the price.

The Droid 3 has three things going for it: the top-notch keyboard, the latest Gingerbread Android operating system, and it can easily be used outside the United States. The well-thought-out keyboard with its offset keys, dedicated number row, and useful arrow keys is a wonderful addition to the Droid lineup. It surpasses any previous Motorola keyboards that we’ve seen. Add to that a good on-screen keyboard, the text-entry features of this newest operating system, and the Android voice recognition, and you have a phone which excels at accepting text data.

The third-generation Droid isn’t a trailblazer like its original forefather, nor is it a disappointment like the Droid 2 — it’s more of a middle-of-the-road phone. It’s got one of the best keyboards on an Android phone to date, a crisp qHD display, and some solid battery life. On the other hand, its somewhat sluggish skin, chunky bod, data speeds, and camera (with a lack of a camera button!) cannot match the competition from the likes of HTC and Samsung. Bottom line, the $199 (with a two-year contract) Droid 3 is a solid update to the Droid 2 and is the obvious (and only) choice for those looking for a Verizon phone with a fantastic physical QWERTY keyboard (what did ever happen to the HTC Merge?!), but it doesn’t quite have what it takes to put Motorola back in Big Red’s top spot. Hey, we’re looking at you now, Droid Bionic.

The Droid 3 is a definitive step up from previous slide-out Droids. The 4-inch screen is appreciated and we think the keyboard is pretty much best-in-class. Also, thanks to Android 2.3, it runs much more smoothly than the Droid X2, which means users can actually take advantage of the fact that they own a dual-core phone. On the downside, we’re not fans of Motorola’s NinjaBlur interface, and found that the phone’s camera and screen are both somewhat washed out, taking and displaying faded images.

The Motorola Droid 3 is a good upgrade from the Droid 2. The overall design has remained mostly unchanged, which will be good for fans of the original that are looking for the same form factor but with boosted specs.

The Motorola Droid 3 for Verizon Wireless aims to be a top-notch business smartphone, but it's stuck in the Internet's slow lane. The Motorola Droid 3 is the best phone for one niche group: globe-trotting executives who want to be able to carry their Verizon smartphone on frequent international trips.

Okay, we get that Motorola likes to have variety, but after checking out what the two handsets are able to bring to the table, it’s very hard to side with the DROID X2. When looking at their same $199.99 pricing, it’s blatantly obvious that the Motorola DROID 3 is packing a bit more gear under its carriage to increase its overall worth to the consumer – like its front facing camera, exceptional keyboard, global function, and an updated customized Android experience.

The Motorola DROID 3 offers more of a well-rounded experience and beefier specs to make it last a bit longer than the competition. Featuring eye-catching things like a higher resolution display, dual-core processor, the convenience of its fantastic physical keyboard, mirrored experience with its microHDMI port, and global support, there are plenty of things that place the DROID 3 higher in the pedestal than the HTC ThunderBolt. Not taking away from HTC’s product, we still find its Sense UI appreciable, while dishing up the better quality with its camera. Regardless, we can’t help but contemplate the huge arsenal that the DROID 3 is packing within its carriage to make it one of Verizon’s standout hits right now.

For Verizon customers who crave physical keyboards, the Motorola Droid 3 offers an excellent one, but the rest of the Android smartphone's improvements fail to impress.

The Motorola Droid 3 is a disappointment. On paper, Motorola seems to have done everything right: The company put in a fast processor, a high-resolution display, and a great keyboard, and it even loaded the phone with Gingerbread. But when it came time to deliver, it really dropped the ball. I understand that not everyone cares about bloatware, and not everyone uses their phone to take pictures, but I've never seen a dual-core phone take so long to open apps or had so many preinstalled applications just crash on me. The keyboard is great, but even that cannot save a phone that has so many other issues and quirks.

The Droid 3 is a perfectly respectable handset. It’s fast, solid and well made, with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard that’s one of the very best out there, and a good (if slow) camera. The 4-inch screen is large and colourful but do sample it alongside the Nexus S, say, before committing yourself to emailing and surfing on it for a full 2-year contract. It’s far too early yet to write off the Droid range, and the Droid 3 would certainly make a safe choice for anyone who absolutely demands a physical keyboard. But Motorola should take care. One good idea and reliable build quality will only get you so far - today’s handsets need to be genuine all-rounders. Unless keyboards are your thing, this probably isn’t the Droid you’re looking for.

By far, the Motorola DROID 3 is able to remarkably differentiate itself from its predecessor in the DROID 2 – thanks to its far superior amped hardware and larger than life presence with its design. Concurrently, we totally dig the considerably improved QWERTY keyboard since the refinements we see easily enable it to become one of the best messaging devices out there right now. Likewise, we like the direction that Motorola is taking with its customized Android experience as it takes advantage of the raw processing power of its dual-core processor. Obviously, the Motorola DROID 3 isn’t shining brightly in all areas, like its unenticing photo quality with its camera and sub-par battery life, but considering that it holds up firmly overall as a high-end smartphone, it’s rather hard to not take notice of the handset.