Motorola’s Droid X just might be the fastest-selling Android phone to date, but apparently for some of the early adopters the brand new gadget has become a paperweight.
A small amount of Droid X owners are reporting that without warning their phone’s screen suddenly began flickering. In some cases, the phone display is rendered completely useless. In all cases that were posted on tech site HowardForums, where the reports began to surface, the device worked properly at first but after several hours or even days, the screen became glitchy.
Verizon acknowledged that it was an issue and accepted blame for the problem. In an e-mail to Engadget, the mobile carrier said, “Verizon Wireless and Motorola are aware of a very small number of DROID X units that have experienced a flickering or banding display. Motorola has resolved the issue and is continuing to ship the phones. Any consumer who experiences a flickering or banding display should contact a Motorola customer support center or Verizon Wireless.”
Although not as wide-reaching as the iPhone 4’s “antennagate” issue, the Droid X problem is much more severe for those who are affected. However, Verizon said that it is sending out an over-the-air patch that should prevent this from happening to any other Droid X customers. That’s a bit too late for those who already have a broken phone through no fault of their own, though.
After the iPhone 4 debacle, mobile phone makers are probably going to be put more closely under the microscope because any minor flaw could burst out into a huge story.
