Went from iPhone to the Droid when it was released - impressions

[cmaier]

the duplicity in this thread and the imac thread is comical.

so what you are saying is that if an iPhone needs a restore to work (which many do) then it should just be returned?

The Op didn't even do that with the droid..!

I guess he got it to make him feel better about his iPhone.

Yes, that is what I am saying. If I am a first time buyer, and I take my iPhone out of the box and follow the directions, and it doesn't work, I don't want to hear "it just needs a restore" or "jailbreak it, ssh in, and remove this file" or "do a DFU restore and sacrifice a goat." If the damned thing doesn't work out-of-the-box, it's probably an omen of things to come. I return it and go find something that doesn't require a great time investment just to get it working.

And the same applies to iMac or any other device. If there is an alternative, I go get it.

 

[djrobsd]

I bought the droid on launch day, tried it for 3 weeks, and returned it (hassle free) to Verizon..

Battery life wasn't even close to my iPhone
Touch screen accuracy sucks compared to iPhone (and this claim I am making is totally validated by today's article on the front page of Macrumors!)
Slide out keyboard useless to any normal adult hands
Touch screen keyboard better then the Crapberry Storm, but nothing close to the speed and accuracy of the iPhone
No Simplify media... deal breaker for me

I didn't find the screen to be dramatically better then the iphone - but I don't watch movies on my phone

Browser sucks compared to Safari on iPhone

Google apps confusing - Gmail is not in Mail, it's in Gmail, so you have two apps for your mail if you use Gmail and other email accounts.

Calendar sync sucked

Exchange support lacked stuff like lookup addresses from the global address list (GAL) which is a deal killer for me

SQUAREness of the device not as nice to hold in your hands or lean against your face when talking on the phone... The design of the iphone is superior

Lack of integration to itunes... For obvious reasons

I could go on for days, but the point is... Droid is #2, iPhone is #1

 

[ichrisers]

ummm yeah

well the iphone is deffinalty not coming on the verizon network i mean verizon is getting the Palm Pre they already have the Droid and they will have the Nexus in sping.. and umm all those phones are iphone "killas" so yeah.. anyways i think that Android os are really good what sets the nexus phone from other phones is the os I think that the nexus is and android phone will do great i-c.

 

[wkearney99]

It's much easier and lucrative to make iPhone apps than it is for Android.

For now. The iPhone app market didn't exist until recently. And it's growth curve was a lot lower than Android. Time will tell. With luck there will be multiple markets.

Software & Hardware accessory wise, Apple already has so much diversity. Proprietary means nothing as long as there's plenty to choose from.

No way I'll accept being locked into a phone that may at any point arbitrarily cut off my app developer. It'll be refreshing to get actual hardware options like expandable memory, non-proprietary cabling, keyboards and even multiple form factors. Proprietary HARDWARE lacks choice and diversity. A closed market likewise. With luck Apple will wake up from their delusions of soviet-like abuse.

You must not own an iPhone as they are so many great apps to choose from. A much better selection than any WM, Nokia or BB phone that I've owned.

The coverage for AT&T was so bad that I had to leave it. And that was with phones that HAD better radios than the iPhone. I'm not so blind at to think it's sensible to be paying for a phone with bad service. I've no love for Verizon, far from it, but at least they provide working and consistent service everywhere I need it. The same truly cannot be said of AT&T. Made even worse by the poor quality of Apple's phone.

BTW .... All phones and mobile OS have crap apps. You act like this is exclusive to the iPhone.

At least previous phones had a limited number of apps total. It made it a lot less hassle (and wasted money) to wade through the junk. Perhaps the good part will be the porting of any of the few dozen decent ones to the Android platform.

 

[Compile 'em all]

A smart consumer will take a diverse market with hundreds of companies and thousands of engineers trying to create viable products over proprietary solutions that treat you with such hostility any day of the week.

Wrong. A smart consumer will take whatever gets the job done. A product that is easy to use, consistent, and looks nice.

And frankly a great many of the apps on itunes are junk.

I challenge you to find me the equivalent of Tweetie, Convert, Pastebot, FlowChat, Beejive, Facebook, Jaadu VNC, greenbox, Touch DJ, Weightbot, Rolando, Canabalt for the Droid.

Yep, that's right.

The App Store having junk apps is an urban legend.

 

[wkearney99]

Wrong. A smart consumer will take whatever gets the job done. A product that is easy to use, consistent, and looks nice.

On a network that functions reliably. And that ain't AT&T. With phones that make the most of the signals present. And that ain't the iPhone. If all you want is apps and you don't care about your network then just buy an iPod Touch.

I challenge you to find me the equivalent of Tweetie, Convert, Pastebot, FlowChat, Beejive, Facebook, Jaadu VNC, greenbox, Touch DJ, Weightbot, Rolando, Canabalt for the Droid.

Hmmm, and those qualify as 'job' done apps? More like geek toys.

Given how recently all of those were written (many of which are based on others code) it won't take long for them (or their equivalents) to exist for the Android platform. And then they'll be able to run on at least a dozen different devices, on multiple carriers. Lots more choice than the iPhone.

The App Store having junk apps is an urban legend.

There's certainly gems among the sewage, no doubt. There's just an awful lot of sewage to wade through.

 

[Cleverboy]

I have no idea. But the lack of support by VZW and online didn't help. I didn't have time to troubleshoot it, and the fact that apparently no one had a solid solution for this gave me enough pause to decide to return the phone and wait for something else.

the duplicity in this thread and the imac thread is comical.
so what you are saying is that if an iPhone needs a restore to work (which many do) then it should just be returned?
The Op didn't even do that with the droid..!
I guess he got it to make him feel better about his iPhone.

@ archipellago
Don't be ridiculous. Despite the sentence, he DID try to "troubelshoot" it. He went to a number of forums looking for a solution, and couldn't find any support. Were this an iPhone, he could just go to the Apple store and someone would fix it, or he could find any number of sources simply telling him to do a restore. My specific question to him, was whether or not Droid offered any such solution (as a "restore"). His answer seems to suggest to me that such a manuever while childishly simple for the iPhone is painful for the Droid. --For instance, I just hunted for a few seconds and came up with this set of instructions for "restoring" your Droid:

http://alldroid.org/viewtopic.php?f=210&t=1217

Idiot's guide to getting back to stock:

Download droidbr.zip and unzip it.
Put recovery.img onto your sdcard
Open terminal, type flash_image recovery /sdcard/recovery.img
Reboot into recovery and verify it is the stock recovery.
If it is, proceed, if not, post back here.
Download signed-voles-ESD56-from-ESD20.84263456.zip to your sdcard and name it update.zip
Boot into recovery
Pick the option to install the update.zip
Power off and boot back into recovery
Hit 'restore factory defaults' to be 100% certain you are rid of su and busybox etc.
Reboot again and you are back at stock.

THIS is the "idiot's guide"? I'm sorry... but I would just return the damn phone. This whole procedure really pisses me off just reading it.

~ CB

 

[archipellago]

@ archipellago
Don't be ridiculous. Despite the sentence, he DID try to "troubelshoot" it. He went to a number of forums looking for a solution, and couldn't find any support. Were this an iPhone, he could just go to the Apple store and someone would fix it, or he could find any number of sources simply telling him to do a restore. My specific question to him, was whether or not Droid offered any such solution (as a "restore"). His answer seems to suggest to me that such a manuever while childishly simple for the iPhone is painful for the Droid. --For instance, I just hunted for a few seconds and came up with this set of instructions for "restoring" your Droid:

http://alldroid.org/viewtopic.php?f=210&t=1217


THIS is the "idiot's guide"? I'm sorry... but I would just return the damn phone. This whole procedure really pisses me off just reading it.

~ CB

try this

http://www.ehow.com/how_5634169_hard-reset-motorola-droid.html

don't need a PC even..!

 

[Compile 'em all]

On a network that functions reliably. And that ain't AT&T. With phones that make the most of the signals present. And that ain't the iPhone. If all you want is apps and you don't care about your network then just buy an iPod Touch.

The world doesn't revolve around the united states. Other countries out there do exist, with pretty damn good networks. I haven't had a single dropped call on my iPhone since October 2007.

Hmmm, and those qualify as 'job' done apps? More like geek toys.

None of the Apps I mentioned are a "geek toy".

Given how recently all of those were written (many of which are based on others code) it won't take long for them (or their equivalents) to exist for the Android platform.

What difference does it make when or how they were created? They exist NOW for the iPhone and don't for Android.

 

[Cleverboy]

try this
http://www.ehow.com/how_5634169_hard-reset-motorola-droid.html
don't need a PC even..!

Dude. Are you... are you kidding? Ok. I'm going to look at you and say this slowly... "Reset" is different... from "Restore". Got it? Read the instructions I linked to and read your instructions.

On the iPhone, if you go to "Settings", you can then tap "General", and then scroll to the bottom and tap "Reset". This can erase all the content without a PC and reset the phone to factory condition.

HOWEVER, if there is something WRONG with the software on the device, it has been somehow corrupted, or it had a bad version on it... RESTORING the device from a fresh image (downloaded from Apple) is the best bet. It is absolutely DIFFERENT from simply "resetting" your device.

If your device has experienced some form of software corruption, RESTORING is an excellent way to insure there is no software malfunction and that any continuing problem is hardware in nature.

The reason I felt the Droid instructions qualified, is that it involved using an external IMAGE of the device.

Hopefully that makes sense to you.

~ CB

 

[archipellago]

Dude. Are you... are you kidding? Ok. I'm going to look at you and say this slowly... "Reset" is different... from "Restore". Got it? Read the instructions I linked to and read your instructions.

On the iPhone, if you go to "Settings", you can then tap "General", and then scroll to the bottom and tap "Reset". This can erase all the content without a PC and reset the phone to factory condition.

HOWEVER, if there is something WRONG with the software on the device, it has been somehow corrupted, or it had a bad version on it... RESTORING the device from a fresh image (downloaded from Apple) is the best bet. It is absolutely DIFFERENT from simply "resetting" your device.

If your device has experienced some form of software corruption, RESTORING is an excellent way to insure there is no software malfunction and that any continuing problem is hardware in nature.

The reason I felt the Droid instructions qualified, is that it involved using an external IMAGE of the device.

Hopefully that makes sense to you.

~ CB

software corruption?

really?


thats only in the 'just works' world.

nice try though..

 

[Cleverboy]

software corruption?
really?
thats only in the 'just works' world.
nice try though..

On the Apple TV, a separate partition houses a backup image of the software that it uses to restore the device when it has problems. Long ago it occured to me that due to the value of hard drive space, these new smartphone's (like the iPhone) cannot afford the same type of mechanism (we lose enough of the advertised space to the OS). A long time ago, I purchased a Compaq that had the same mechanism with a restore partition. It's interesting. If you want to go ahead and keep thinking a "Reset" and a "Restore" is some kind of imaginary distinction that I've made up and that doesn't matter to any customer trying to fix a problem in a malfunctioning device... that's up to you. Don't worry yourself. I'm really not into making snarky comments, just real points.

~ CB

 

[wkearney99]

The world doesn't revolve around the united states. Other countries out there do exist, with pretty damn good networks. I haven't had a single dropped call on my iPhone since October 2007.

And that's great for you. But here in the states their choice of AT&T was a poor one in any of the places I've needed service.

None of the Apps I mentioned are a "geek toy".

Yes, of course, facebook.... ::

What difference does it make when or how they were created? They exist NOW for the iPhone and don't for Android.

And NONE of the existing in the short few months after the iPhone became capable of running apps. The run-rate for the Android development looks like it's taking off a lot faster than the iPhone did. Good to have the iPhone clear the path so the greater number of Android vendors and devices can come eat it's lunch.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

No way I'll accept being locked into a phone that may at any point arbitrarily cut off my app developer. It'll be refreshing to get actual hardware options like expandable memory, non-proprietary cabling, keyboards and even multiple form factors. Proprietary HARDWARE lacks choice and diversity. A closed market likewise. With luck Apple will wake up from their delusions of soviet-like abuse.

The argument of closed vs open vs proprietary vs blah blah blah is getting old.

The coverage for AT&T was so bad that I had to leave it. And that was with phones that HAD better radios than the iPhone. I'm not so blind at to think it's sensible to be paying for a phone with bad service. I've no love for Verizon, far from it, but at least they provide working and consistent service everywhere I need it. The same truly cannot be said of AT&T. Made even worse by the poor quality of Apple's phone.

My experience is the complete opposite.

At least previous phones had a limited number of apps total. It made it a lot less hassle (and wasted money) to wade through the junk. Perhaps the good part will be the porting of any of the few dozen decent ones to the Android platform.

There are things like Search, Reviews, Lite/Trail Versions, etc:

 

[Qjuantum]

What "wins" is a vendor that doesn't treat you like a criminal and actively release updates that destroy your efforts to use your device freely.

Google has made an incredibly smart move with Android. Sure, it'll have some rough spots but there will be hundreds of different vendors delivering Android-based solutions (media players, picture frames, remotes, home controllers, etc).

A smart consumer will take a diverse market with hundreds of companies and thousands of engineers trying to create viable products over proprietary solutions that treat you with such hostility any day of the week.

And frankly a great many of the apps on itunes are junk. There's an old analogy about horse crap and ice cream. Add even the smallest amount of crap to ice cream and nobody wants it. Add TONS of ice cream to crap and, guess what, still nobody wants it. Anyone playing numbers game based on apps would do well to second-guess their logic...

The dirty secret behind AT&T and the iphone isn't just the network. Looks like the radio in the phone itself sucks too.

Oh man, I could NOT have put it better myself, one of the reasons I am really considering switching to a Nexus one is that exactly. I was one of the first to buy an overpriced iPhone when they first came out, what really did it for me is that they would not allow an app that records video into the apple store because they were coming up with the 3Gs, most of my friends had the video app on their jailbroken phones and it seemed very unfair to me that I had to buy yet another phone to get better quality. I am still with my 3G and I am really thinking to switching to VZ w/ the Nexus phone once that is available. You get GPS with it, don't have to pay for it. Open source apps....
THAT to me is HUGE...

 

[Qjuantum]

You really think that? The reality is Apple and AT&T couldn't be happier that Jailbreaking exists. Imagine how many users would switch to the competition if jailbreaking didn't exist. I myself would have been sold my 3GS if the option to hack it's default restrictions wasn't there.

Maybe for Apple, I know ALOT of Jailbroken friends that switched to T-Mobile

 

[strike1555]

What difference does it make when or how they were created? They exist NOW for the iPhone and don't for Android.

Wow...just wow. Your post truly deserves this:

What difference does it make? It makes every difference. These weren't around at the beginning of the App store. It's a a timetable of when applications really become mainstream.

Think before posting. Jesus Christ.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

Maybe for Apple, I know ALOT of Jailbroken friends that switched to T-Mobile

But consider the ratio of iPhones sold with contract vs without one.

 

[cmaier]

Maybe for Apple, I know ALOT of Jailbroken friends that switched to T-Mobile

Apple's not thrilled either. They don't get their 30% cut for apps that aren't distributed through their storefront.

 

[Qjuantum]

The point here is, I have been tied to AT&T for a looong time, I bought my 1st iPhone when they came out. I was refusing to Jailbrake my iPhone to stay true to apple and paying for apps to support developers but I am starting to dislike apple's business model, not really caring for us the consumer.

I have played with the Nexus One as a good friend of mine that works at Google let me borrow it for a few days.

To be honest, I still love the iPhone but for me is time to move on. The Nexus one looks very promising, I like that you have more liberty with it, is expandable to 32GB, I won't be buying a G4 this summer and will move to a different carrier.

Big ++ for the Nexus one to me are the built in GPS which works very good, the 5MP camera and the flash is great, built in Video. Droid interface and the keyboard takes a while to get used to but there are a TON of free apps and way more liberty to customize the phone.
Before you start flaming me... yes, I still love iPhones but for me is time to move on.
Cheers!

 

[GeekGirl*]

The point here is, I have been tied to AT&T for a looong time, I bought my 1st iPhone when they came out. I was refusing to Jailbrake my iPhone to stay true to apple and paying for apps to support developers but I am starting to dislike apple's business model, not really caring for us the consumer.

I have played with the Nexus One as a good friend of mine that works at Google let me borrow it for a few days.

To be honest, I still love the iPhone but for me is time to move on. The Nexus one looks very promising, I like that you have more liberty with it, is expandable to 32GB, I won't be buying a G4 this summer and will move to a different carrier.

Big ++ for the Nexus one to me are the built in GPS which works very good, the 5MP camera and the flash is great, built in Video. Droid interface and the keyboard takes a while to get used to but there are a TON of free apps and way more liberty to customize the phone.
Before you start flaming me... yes, I still love iPhones but for me is time to move on.
Cheers!

My Nexus one will be here today, not that i dont love my iPhone but wanted something to play around with till the next iPhone comes out sold my 16G on ebay for 550.00 so it covered the cost completely.

Why not try others phones, its a blast!

 

[Ish]

As in - no removable battery or memory card. Memory card not THAT big of an issue, but seriously, why remove useful design features?

I agree a removable battery would be very useful. I'd like to carry a spare for long journeys.

 

[Cleverboy]

Given how recently all of those were written (many of which are based on others code) it won't take long for them (or their equivalents) to exist for the Android platform. And then they'll be able to run on at least a dozen different devices, on multiple carriers. Lots more choice than the iPhone.

What difference does it make when or how they were created? They exist NOW for the iPhone and don't for Android.

Wow...just wow. Your post truly deserves this:
What difference does it make? It makes every difference. These weren't around at the beginning of the App store. It's a a timetable of when applications really become mainstream.
Think before posting. Jesus Christ.

Actually... YOU deserve the FACE PALM. If it DOES make a difference... this "timetable", it might interest you to know that Google's App Store came into existence roughly 3 months after Apple's App Store. Developers have taken to Android much more quickly than the iPhone (which you need special hardware for, and need to pay a $99 fee and go through an often long waiting period to be registered... at least in the past). The MAIN difference between the platforms, from the developer investment side, is that iPhone developers have been able to make MUCH more money than on Android.

It's not ONLY because Apple's iPhone OS platform has more customers, but because of customer behavior as well (and Google's Marketplace software and policies). There is a study on buying behavior between the platforms that underscores this.

This... "It's just a matter of time" attitude is really smoke and mirrors. What do you hang this fictional "timetable" off of? Anything real? It doesn't seem so. If you BUILD IT, they will COME. If what you built has significant issues, "they" might not come for a long time, if at all.

The point here is, I have been tied to AT&T for a looong time, I bought my 1st iPhone when they came out. I was refusing to Jailbrake my iPhone to stay true to apple and paying for apps to support developers but I am starting to dislike apple's business model, not really caring for us the consumer.

"Stay true to Apple"? "Paying for apps to support developers"? I'm sorry, but those two sentiments are horrible. You shouldn't "stay true to Apple" for ANY reason other than your own self-interest, and you should PAY for apps because they do what you want, and you're not a thief. Maybe you're better off on Android where you can try every app for free for 24 hours. I suspect there is a modification you can make to fool Google into refunding your money even while you keep the app. I suppose this fact will make you feel you're doing developers a favor by "paying" for anything in Android Marketplace too. I'm sorry, but that attitude really irks me.

To be honest, I still love the iPhone but for me is time to move on. The Nexus one looks very promising, I like that you have more liberty with it, is expandable to 32GB, I won't be buying a G4 this summer and will move to a different carrier.

Until they work out App encryption so that space can be used for Apps as well as music and photos, I'm not sure how many people are scrambling to get a 32GB card for their Droid, especially since its not hot swappable.

Big ++ for the Nexus one to me are the built in GPS which works very good, the 5MP camera and the flash is great, built in Video.

What happens if Apple releases a new iPhone 3Gs this month that has a 5MP camera and flash? Worth considering. Personally, I love that so many aspects of the iPhone aren't prone to issues like these:

http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/17/...autofocus-fixed-in-secrecy/comments/23182303/
https://supportforums.motorola.com/message/68078

Dan Morrill, Posted Nov 17th 2009 11:26AM

Yes, this is exactly what is happening.

There's a rounding-error bug in the camera driver's autofocus routine (which uses a timestamp) that causes autofocus to behave poorly on a 24.5-day cycle. That is, it'll work for 24.5 days, then have poor performance for 24.5 days, then work again.

The 17th is the start of a new "works correctly" cycle, so the devices will be fine for a while. A permanent fix is in the works.

Dec 29, 2009 2:57 PM in response to: iancaz
Re: DROID Autofocus issue "normal"?
Is anybody still having this issue after 2.0.1? I know I am

Really dampens the bar code scanning abilities to have a flakey autofocus. The excellent autofocus is why I upgraded to the 3Gs.

Droid interface and the keyboard takes a while to get used to but there are a TON of free apps and way more liberty to customize the phone. Before you start flaming me... yes, I still love iPhones but for me is time to move on.
Cheers!

You shouldn't have such a persecution complex. If you're opinion is solid, then only trolls can pick at you by hollering, "I LLOoooVE iPhonez. You BAD!" Personally, the carrier update relationship with Android phones disturbs me. I like how on the iPhone, when a new OS is released, you can update immediately. I don't jailbreak, so I agree that Droid offers MUCH more customizeability, and that's great. I just look at the Android users getting hacked ROMs in order to upgrade in a timely manner, and its irksome. I totally don't want to go through that, and have "Android update envy" everytime a new handset is releases with a new ROM no one else has official access to for a long while. That's crap to me. It's exactly why I don't jailbreak actually. I don't need someone telling me its "safe" to upgrade.

~ CB

 

[ThatsMeRight]

At a lot of points I do not agree. But I guess your conclusion is what you like most. Not what's best.

Just like Xbox 360 vs PS3. Some think PS3 is better, others Xbox 360. It's just how you are going to use it.

 

[heavy2healthy]

The dirty secret behind AT&T and the iphone isn't just the network. Looks like the radio in the phone itself sucks too.

You are right I had a nokia E51 before I got the iphone. The call quality was amazing and I never lost a call or didnt have a signal. In my home I have almost no signal on my iphone when on the nokia I had 5 bar.I was in vegas last week for business and I wanted to throw my iphone out the window. I couldnt make calls inside the buildings it sucked big time. I love love my iphone as a internet device but needing a phone that actually works is more important. Im thinking of taking a hit and making a change.