OT:Smart Phones

[wco81]

OLED is not ready for prime time, or at least on phones:

http://www.displaymate.com/Nexus_One_ShootOut.htm

http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/news/200 ... s-away.ars

http://www.oled-info.com/oleds-direct-sunlight

[dbdynsty25]

OLED is not ready for prime time, or at least on phones:

http://www.displaymate.com/Nexus_One_ShootOut.htm

http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/news/200 ... s-away.ars

http://www.oled-info.com/oleds-direct-sunlight

Umm...ok? OLED is fine...but I'll still take my Droid screen over anything on the market right now. It's ridiculously good. But as far as OLED in mobile devices, watch a movie on the Cowon S9 mp3 player and tell me it doesn't just destroy most regular LCD displays, especially the iPhone, as far as image quality, black levels and viewing angle goes. I've taken pictures side by side and it's not even a comparison.

[dbdynsty25]

Picked up a Moto Devour today for the wife. It's a pretty nice phone. It still can't really hold a candle to the Droid overall...but it's a solid phone for the money. The keyboard is easier to get used to quickly, so anyone that is picky should be fairly happy with it. The screen is what kills it for me. Very small for the size of the phone which is disappointing because the Droid is basically the entire front of the phone! Oh well...it's a budget Android offering so what do you expect?

[dbdynsty25]

Little more Devour info for anyone who gives a sh*t.

As mentioned before I'm using the Droid and the wife is using the Eris...or should I say USED to be using the Eris. The phone just can't hang with the Droid, and I don't think that was even it's intention. The Droid is just a better phone without a doubt. However, when you compare it to the Eris, you've got a nice little competition.

The speed of the Devour compared to the Eris is pretty significant. The rotation speed of the display from vertical to horizontal is significantly faster as well as the opening of apps/widgets/etc. Obviously it should be because the processor is slightly faster, but I didn't expect it to be as significant as it was.

There were little issues with the software on the Eris as well. Sometimes contacts would double up, same with calendar appointments. All of this seems rectified with the Devour. I'm not sure if it was HTCs fault with their Sense UI or if it was a faulty phone of some sort, but regardless, the accuracy of the data on the Devour has been better so far. Obviously this could change with use, so the jury is still out.

Physically, the screen is needlessly small. It's actually quite disappointing after looking at my Droid display for the last 4 months. I thought they would at least increase the size. I guess if they didn't want to increase the resolution, they would have to keep it fairly small or else it would look pixellated. And of course they put the smaller display in there to save money. The keyboard is slightly difficult to get used to because of the randomness of the bottom row placement, but that would go away after a week or so of use. I still prefer the Droid keyboard and the small flat keys...but then again, I'm the same guy that prefers laptop keyboards over full sized ones, so that's just a personal issue.

It definitely is a lot more bulky than I think it should be. It seems like there is probably a lot of dead space in the phone where the Droid seems like it's packed full and is a little more believable when it comes to the weight of the device equaling quality.

Anyway...it's probably a step up from the Eris. The wife sure thinks so...so obviously the Eris will hit eBay, but there is no way I'd recommend it over the Droid at this point. The display and resolution are reason enough to get the Droid...and obviously the updated 2.0 software (which the Eris may get someday as well as the Devour). It just seems the Devour is a little closer to 2.0 than the Eris is as far as functionality goes. We'll see how it turns out going forward.

[dbdynsty25]

Wow, these Androids phones are coming out fast and furious. I love it!

I can't wait for my 24 month upgrade with Sprint (that I get every 12 months as a Premier user, hehe). By October, I'm sure I'll have quite a few new phones to drool over to replace my Hero.

Yeah...I think the number was 22 in 2010. Obviously that's on all US carriers, so it'll be 4 or 5 per. I'm telling you guys...it's gonna be way bigger than iPhone by the end of the year.

hahahahahaha! Oh wait, you're being serious.

Oh, Mac...this is an interesting little study...not the 73% of Android users are male part...the part about Android catching the iPhone.

http://www.phonearena.com/htmls/73-of-A ... _9869.html

I'll summarize. They said what I did. Android is catching up as far as traffic goes and they will likely pass Apple in the next quarter or so.

Obviously that doesn't mean "sales", but with the increase in traffic...well, you can do the math after that.

[Spooky]

Thanks for your impressions DB!

[Badger_Fan]

I looked at the Devour last night for my wife and ended up getting Droids for both of us. I couldn't justify paying the same for a lesser phone.

The only thing that I liked better about the Devour was the increased springiness of the slider and the keyboard itself. Everything else went to the Droid.

So I picked up two Droids last night at Best Buy ($99 each) and am loving the new phone.

Thanks for the feedback DB.

Mike

[dbdynsty25]

I looked at the Devour last night for my wife and ended up getting Droids for both of us. I couldn't justify paying the same for a lesser phone.

The only thing that I liked better about the Devour was the increased springiness of the slider and the keyboard itself. Everything else went to the Droid.

So I picked up two Droids last night at Best Buy ($99 each) and am loving the new phone.

Thanks for the feedback DB.

Mike

Glad to hear that you're happy Mike. It really is silly to get the Devour if the Droid is the same price...it's not really even a competition as I mentioned before.

I actually like that the Droid screen doesn't spring up when you open it up. I like the resistance. It makes it feel a little more substantial and hefty. Most people definitely prefer the spring tho...I'm in the minority there.

So what do you think of the "Google Experience" Android as opposed to "Motoblur"? My wife, who went from Sense UI to Motoblur is pretty happy. Blur isn't quite as customized as Sense, so it's a lot more usable for her. Like I said before, I still prefer the Google Experience version...which is just Android in it's basic form.

Have you missed the customizations on your Cliq?

[XXXIV]

Have you missed the customizations on your Cliq?

Id like to know too...Plus, I know its a better phone but is it as much better as I hope its not .
I get my service through work and Im stuck with T-mobile so I couldnt grab the Droid.

[dbdynsty25]

Have you missed the customizations on your Cliq?

Id like to know too...Plus, I know its a better phone but is it as much better as I hope its not .
I get my service through work and Im stuck with T-mobile so I couldnt grab the Droid.

It is THAT much better than the older Cliq. But the price of free is ALWAYS better than no free, so I'd use a Cliq too if it was paid for.

[XXXIV]

Have you missed the customizations on your Cliq?

Id like to know too...Plus, I know its a better phone but is it as much better as I hope its not .
I get my service through work and Im stuck with T-mobile so I couldnt grab the Droid.

It is THAT much better than the older Cliq. But the price of free is ALWAYS better than no free, so I'd use a Cliq too if it was paid for.

You could at least soft sell it a little ...Ive got another 22 months with this thing ...the price is definately right.

[Badger_Fan]

I looked at the Devour last night for my wife and ended up getting Droids for both of us. I couldn't justify paying the same for a lesser phone.

The only thing that I liked better about the Devour was the increased springiness of the slider and the keyboard itself. Everything else went to the Droid.

So I picked up two Droids last night at Best Buy ($99 each) and am loving the new phone.

Thanks for the feedback DB.

Mike

Glad to hear that you're happy Mike. It really is silly to get the Devour if the Droid is the same price...it's not really even a competition as I mentioned before.

I actually like that the Droid screen doesn't spring up when you open it up. I like the resistance. It makes it feel a little more substantial and hefty. Most people definitely prefer the spring tho...I'm in the minority there.

So what do you think of the "Google Experience" Android as opposed to "Motoblur"? My wife, who went from Sense UI to Motoblur is pretty happy. Blur isn't quite as customized as Sense, so it's a lot more usable for her. Like I said before, I still prefer the Google Experience version...which is just Android in it's basic form.

Have you missed the customizations on your Cliq?

I like the Droids UI more than the Cliq, though it isn't a huge difference for me. I did a lot of research before getting the Cliq, so I knew that you could take away whatever widgets you wanted to. And while some of the Blur things were good, some of it was a little half-baked (gmail doesn't automatically show up in the messaging widget, etc.). At this point, the only part of the Droid that doesn't measure up in my mind is the keyboard, but to be honest, the on-screen keyboard in landscape view is so accurate that I use that more often than not.

The wife had just gotten used to the Cliq when I took it away from her and came back with the Droid. Her take is that she misses her messaging and news widgets but likes the better touchscreen (the Cliq's touchscreen is pretty bad compared to the Droid; just inaccurate and doesn't even register touches sometimes).

Someone (or some blog) said it fairly accurately. The Droid is a phone for people who are interested in putting in a little work to make the experience what they want it to be. If you are willing to work at it a little, it's a hell of a phone.

[bdunn13]

Google is giving me a droid or a Nexus one - not sure which one as it is luck of the draw.. Hope I get the Nexus though.

They are giving one away to all Android developers with apps up on the market that have at least 5K downloads and 3.75 stars - just to say thank you...

Pretty sweet.

[dbdynsty25]

Google is giving me a droid or a Nexus one - not sure which one as it is luck of the draw.. Hope I get the Nexus though.

They are giving one away to all Android developers with apps up on the market that have at least 5K downloads and 3.75 stars - just to say thank you...

Pretty sweet.

Actually...there are pluses and minuses to each phone and I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss the Droid. Either way you'll be happy I'm sure.

[fsquid]

Work got me a bold 9700. I'm happy with it.

[bdunn13]

One of the big reasons I want to get the Nexus is the fact I have t-mobile and I don't think google is going to send me an unlocked phone. They have no knowledge of who my carrier is....

I will miss the qwerty keyboard(if I get the NX 1) - the last 3 phones I have owned had one and that has been one requirement for me in the past... but the droid KB is not as nice as the G1 one anyways...

[dbdynsty25]

One of the big reasons I want to get the Nexus is the fact I have t-mobile and I don't think google is going to send me an unlocked phone. They have no knowledge of who my carrier is....

I will miss the qwerty keyboard(if I get the NX 1) - the last 3 phones I have owned had one and that has been one requirement for me in the past... but the droid KB is not as nice as the G1 one anyways...

Once you get used to the Droid keyboard, it's very very good. Everyone that bitches about them have only used them for a few minutes or hours. It takes a good week to touch type on it and once you do, the key travel and locations are fantastic. I've grown to love it more and more as I use it.

[Badger_Fan]

One of the big reasons I want to get the Nexus is the fact I have t-mobile and I don't think google is going to send me an unlocked phone. They have no knowledge of who my carrier is....

I will miss the qwerty keyboard(if I get the NX 1) - the last 3 phones I have owned had one and that has been one requirement for me in the past... but the droid KB is not as nice as the G1 one anyways...

Once you get used to the Droid keyboard, it's very very good. Everyone that bitches about them have only used them for a few minutes or hours. It takes a good week to touch type on it and once you do, the key travel and locations are fantastic. I've grown to love it more and more as I use it.

I've gotten used to the slide-out keyboard on the Droid, but I prefer the landscape version of the touchscreen keyboard. I'm faster and more accurate with it. It works really, really well.

[dbdynsty25]

I've gotten used to the slide-out keyboard on the Droid, but I prefer the landscape version of the touchscreen keyboard. I'm faster and more accurate with it. It works really, really well.

If you've got two bucks I suggest getting Smart Keyboard from the Android Marketplace. It's quite a bit better than the standard Android keyboard. It's a lot faster and it allows you to long press to select the symbols/numbers. It's worth every penny in my mind if you like using the virtual keyboards. I'm pretty much equally as fast on all of the keyboards...but the one I use the most is the slider...especially if I'm in a conversation and not just sending a quick text or gtalk.

[Badger_Fan]

I've gotten used to the slide-out keyboard on the Droid, but I prefer the landscape version of the touchscreen keyboard. I'm faster and more accurate with it. It works really, really well.

If you've got two bucks I suggest getting Smart Keyboard from the Android Marketplace. It's quite a bit better than the standard Android keyboard. It's a lot faster and it allows you to long press to select the symbols/numbers. It's worth every penny in my mind if you like using the virtual keyboards. I'm pretty much equally as fast on all of the keyboards...but the one I use the most is the slider...especially if I'm in a conversation and not just sending a quick text or gtalk.

Thanks for the tip. I'll check it out.

[jondiehl]

I found my next phone, a 4G capable Android from Sprint/HTC:

http://www.engadget.com/2010/03/23/htc- ... hone-armo/

[jondiehl]

It's a lot faster and it allows you to long press to select the symbols/numbers.

Just a tip, but with the default Android software keyboard, you can long press to select symbols/numbers.

Is there a demo though for Smart Keyboard? I'll check it out.

[dbdynsty25]

It's a lot faster and it allows you to long press to select the symbols/numbers.

Just a tip, but with the default Android software keyboard, you can long press to select symbols/numbers.

Is there a demo though for Smart Keyboard? I'll check it out.

Not on a Droid you can't. On your Hero with the Sense UI...that is true because HTC changed it. Come on man...you really don't think I know these things? Disrespectful.

And yes, the Evo is legit...it's a little big tho. 4.2 or 4.3 inch screen is a little much for a phone. Not to mention the resolution is STILL less than the Droid's, so it's not going to be as crisp/accurate. Of course I'll still get it if the LTE version comes out on Verizon eventually. The HD Video recording and 8mp camera are awesome.

[10spro]

I found my next phone, a 4G capable Android from Sprint/HTC:

http://www.engadget.com/2010/03/23/htc- ... hone-armo/

Surely looks sexy, I am very tempted.

[wco81]

Sprint is kind of out on an island by itself, using a WiMax when everyone else will be using LTE.

Not a good strategy for a carrier struggling to keep customers.