Quality of the material of ZTE Blade

[Guest pmgomes]

Hello,

I've seen a review on youtube where the host stated that they had the ZTE blade for few days and the power button did not work so good after this time. It actually showed the button and did not look so good.

For the owners of this device, what do you think about the quality of the construction of the mobile?

Thank you,

Pedro Gomes.

[Guest jennie81]

Hello,

I've seen a review on youtube where the host stated that they had the ZTE blade for few days and the power button did not work so good after this time. It actually showed the button and did not look so good.

For the owners of this device, what do you think about the quality of the construction of the mobile?

Thank you,

Pedro Gomes.

The only issue i have is that the back panel can be a bit creaky from time to time. Always the sign of a cheaper device.

[Guest nicksoph]

Hello,

I've seen a review on youtube where the host stated that they had the ZTE blade for few days and the power button did not work so good after this time. It actually showed the button and did not look so good.

For the owners of this device, what do you think about the quality of the construction of the mobile?

Thank you,

Pedro Gomes.

From reading these forums and experience I think there does sometime seem to be a problem with the power button but this seems to be either it wrks or it doesnt situation from the start.

Overall Id say that it is well made from cheap components. The on/off volume buttons are not loose or liable to fall off but they are not great either. The Home,Menu and back buttons are as good as thye can be for a single piece of plastic. The only problem I had was that one of the backs clips didnt sit quite right which I solved by adding the smallest blob of bluetac. Overall Im happy with the construction even ignoring the price.

Edited November 26, 2010 by nicksoph

[Guest JolyonS]

Overall Id say that it is well made from cheap components.

Yeah, that's about right.

Considerably below the quality of my Nokia E71 but at the top end of the cheap-as-chips mobiles.

[Guest oh!dougal]

I think its entirely reasonable.

But then, I try and look after things.

I don't expect an extraordinary little computer to withstand physical abuse (generational thing, I suppose), so I do try to positively be careful with it.

Its not designed to be treated like a toddler's toy.

Treated like that, I'm absolutely certain it won't last very long at all.

I'm certain that there are phones that are more 'ruggedized' than this one.

Its not that the SF/Blade is particularly fragile.

It feels 'solid' to me. But I don't think it was designed for combat duty.

Doesn't bother me - I would fully expect it to break any phone I dropped it into a puddle ...

But treated like a precious and delicate mechanism, (even if you don't really have to), it should last (and look good) for absolutely ages.

Edited November 26, 2010 by oh!dougal

[Guest twatter]

I think its entirely reasonable.

But then, I try and look after things.

I don't expect an extraordinary little computer to withstand physical abuse (generational thing, I suppose), so I do try to positively be careful with it.

Its not designed to be treated like a toddler's toy.

Treated like that, I'm absolutely certain it won't last very long at all.

I'm certain that there are phones that are more 'ruggedized' than this one.

Its not that the SF/Blade is particularly fragile.

It feels 'solid' to me. But I don't think it was designed for combat duty.

Doesn't bother me - I would fully expect it to break any phone I dropped it into a puddle ...

But treated like a precious and delicate mechanism, (even if you don't really have to), it should last (and look good) for absolutely ages.

I agree....I paid 90 pounds + top up..............For that price its well build

[Guest veehexx]

as others - built to a price, but for the price it's well built.

it was the first thing i noticed when i took it out of the box - it didnt feel as good as my old HTC Touch HD. RRP is 4x more than the SF though :P

i've had mine for 3-4 weeks now, and it's as good as when it came out of the box.

I probably saw the same video as you did; wonky power button after a few days/a week - mine isnt like that.

i would like to see a higher quality rear cover, but doubt that'll ever happen.

[Guest spicysomtam]

I think the quality is pretty good. However, some people (ok alot of people...) are very heavy handed, especially with gadgets. Thus this phone may not be sturdy enough for those people. For myself I look after my stuff, and have found this phone to be very resilient, button wise. My only criticism is the front buttons are a little hard to push, especially when using them for navigation; more gentle response would make a better phone. Maybe I need to find a soft button solution?

When the back is removed its flimsy, but when on the phone does the job and is fine. I think you need to be gentle removing it, because its probably not sturdy enough to be removed and put back many times. My tip here: slide your nail gently round both sides of the back to remove it; when its free on both sides, remove it.

[Guest Banner]

I've only had mine since Wednesday but so far I'm really impressed the power and volume buttons do look cheap but they seem pretty solid to me.

If any of the buttons will go I think it'll be the Home menu and back button bar, but only after some abuse I suspect.

It really is a better quality phone than the £90 quid I paid for it would suggest.

[Guest jazz5000]

only had the phone a week and now the power button doesnt work. I have to press it really hard for it to work. I even tried taking the cover off and using my nail. Same thing :P

[Guest vaga88]

only had the phone a week and now the power button doesnt work. I have to press it really hard for it to work. I even tried taking the cover off and using my nail. Same thing :P

same issue after 5 weeks. power button works around 0,5 % of the time i push at it. have to generally try it for hours just to boot up the phone if its turned off.

[Guest nicksoph]

Had a look with a magnifying glass at the way the switch works and I think I may have found an issue with the design.

If the cover goes on and the bottom of the cover (the home button end) goes on first when the top is pushed on it may push the on off switch sideways and this may dislodge or bend the switch.

[Guest oh!dougal]

Had a look with a magnifying glass at the way the switch works and I think I may have found an issue with the design.

If the cover goes on and the bottom of the cover (the home button end) goes on first when the top is pushed on it may push the on off switch sideways and this may dislodge or bend the switch.

Yes that's an important point.

If anyone were stupid enough to NOT engage the power switch FIRST when refitting the back, and then they were to finish refitting by forcing the power-switch-end closed, then, yes, they might well damage the switch, by the force they applied.

"Nothing is foolproof against a sufficiently talented fool."

Run the take-apart backwards to put it back together, and its a VERY gentle process.

Edited November 27, 2010 by oh!dougal

[Guest rwalton159]

After 5 weeks mine is like new - I keep it in a case and look after it.

I would like to see an app which does away with pressing the power button but, even a work colleagues new Nokia N8, needs a press of the power button to wake it up.

TBH, I wish people would stop moaning about the SF - too much time is taken up on the forums with negative comments. If you don't like it, then you should have done your home work before getting one!

[Guest deweylewie]

TBH, I wish people would stop moaning about the SF - too much time is taken up on the forums with negative comments. If you don't like it, then you should have done your home work before getting one!

Doing your homework involves reading through threads like this and looking for negative comments.

[Guest rwalton159]

Doing your homework involves reading through threads like this and looking for negative comments.

Well, there's plenty on the site - Go for it :P

[Guest nicksoph]

If anyone were stupid enough to NOT engage the power switch FIRST when refitting the back, and then they were to finish refitting by forcing the power-switch-end closed, then, yes, they might well damage the switch, by the force they applied.

Maybe a bit harsh.

A well designed switch might allow the cover to go on without any problems as long as it wasnt pushed down.

Edited November 27, 2010 by nicksoph

[Guest spannerz]

Maybe a bit harsh.

A well designed switch might allow the cover to go on without any problems as long as it wasnt pushed down.

Maybe a tad harsh but most sensible people will realise that you open from the bottom and put it back in reverse surely?

But then again, an idiot will always surprise you! :P

I agree that the back cover is flimsey and squeaky and the volume keys squeak when pressed (a plasticky squeak noise)

Edited November 27, 2010 by spannerz

[Guest Niks10]

After 5 weeks mine is like new - I keep it in a case and look after it.

I would like to see an app which does away with pressing the power button but, even a work colleagues new Nokia N8, needs a press of the power button to wake it up.

TBH, I wish people would stop moaning about the SF - too much time is taken up on the forums with negative comments. If you don't like it, then you should have done your home work before getting one!

I am a newbie, so go go easy.

So I assume there is no real alternative to pressing power button to wake up the device.

[Guest oh!dougal]

I am a newbie, so go go easy.

So I assume there is no real alternative to pressing power button to wake up the device.

When its asleep, power key only. (Hopefully, ZTE might facillitate some change in future, but not as yet.)

When in screen-save, (on usb/charger, or with an app preventing sleep), power key OR front buttons.

[Guest fonix232]

Assuming from the keyboard layout files, the Home button could be used to wake the device too, while the other keys (back, menu, volume) can only drop the wake (Home has WAKE, while others have WAKE_DROPPED flag).

[Guest oh!dougal]

When its asleep, power key only. (Hopefully, ZTE might facillitate some change in future, but not as yet.)

When in screen-save, (on usb/charger, or with an app preventing sleep), power key OR front buttons.

Assuming from the keyboard layout files, the Home button could be used to wake the device too, while the other keys (back, menu, volume) can only drop the wake (Home has WAKE, while others have WAKE_DROPPED flag).

1/ What I said is the simple truth.

2/ You can put what you like in the files for keys other than the power key, it achieves absolutely nothing when the keys are not connected to the computer ... (as in 'proper sleep' at present)

So, (the reason this cropped up here), if you destroy your power button, you are in trouble.

Which means its worth putting the back on carefully, switch-end first.

3/ I don't think you understand what WAKE_DROPPED actually means ...

4/ This is the wrong thread for this discussion. There are plenty of others to choose from ...

Edited November 30, 2010 by oh!dougal

[Guest seg]

After 5 weeks mine is like new - I keep it in a case and look after it.

I would like to see an app which does away with pressing the power button but, even a work colleagues new Nokia N8, needs a press of the power button to wake it up.

TBH, I wish people would stop moaning about the SF - too much time is taken up on the forums with negative comments. If you don't like it, then you should have done your home work before getting one!

+1

After almost 5 weeks mine is also as good as new; no software problems, no hardware problems - apart from the battery life which is sh*t but there you go.

I am amazed sometimes by all these people who seem to have been unlucky enough to have units where nothing seems to work properly.

For the price point, it's very good.

[Guest Lollingsgrad]

I'm impressed with my Orange San Francisco in grey. I got it from the Orange Store, purchased around 28th Nov. It feels... well... expensive. Seriously I was so surprised. It's slim, it feels tough, all the buttons have nice tactile response where you get a click but it's not a cheap, heavy, plasticky click like a Fischer Price My First Mobile or something. I don't know what to tell you. It's just awesome. If you spent £200 on this you wouldn't feel any different.

[Guest lpinho]

Well,

this depends on the user, I use it every day, I never had any problem, it looks brand new.

There are same users, that are not careful and this device is not childproof, there are mobiles that are build to last (I've a got a Nokia N73 and had a Nokia 6100, that are used has toys by my 1 year daughter and are still in perfect working order), I never tested this one the same way (because is still a new toy), but I bought a cover for this one and it doesn't have a scratch on it and all the buttons work has it should.