I'm thinking of getting the HTC Hero from Sprint 10/11 - my current AT&T contract runs out the last week of September and I'm twitching to get a smartphone. The iPhone is obviously a contender but I'm really digging some of the stuff I've read about the Hero and Android in gereral. Can any Android users give me feedback about their phone? Is Cooking Mama available? How are the radio apps? Any help is appreciated.
Any Google Android Users?
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csidegamer
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I've had the HTC Dream (G1 from T-mobile) since lauch.
Love it.
Recently rooted the phone, and am running a customized rom, making it better than when originally purchased.
Not seen Cooking Mama, but wasn't really looking for it either
Love it.
Recently rooted the phone, and am running a customized rom, making it better than when originally purchased.
Not seen Cooking Mama, but wasn't really looking for it either
Thanks for the feedback all. I'm not a Best Buy rewards member, but I'd heard that they were out there so I went to the Sprint store thinking I could at least look at one - they had (according to the worthless lump of flesh I spoke to) no phones and no literature yet.
I'm still really excited to get one but now I'm right there with you BigPopov about the faster phones coming out. I don't want to be one of those guys that's always waiting for the next gen and I have to travel for work for a week to the middle of nowhere where last year everyone just IMd and played on their phones, so this time I want in on that too. I don't like the physical keyboard phones because of the added bulk and I'm thinking I'm okay with the screen size for the same reason... I haven't committed to getting the phone yet but I'm still strongly leaning towards it. My work provides a discount for Verizon phones and service so I really wish they'd get cracking on a good one (they're working on it).
BTW to anyone else that may be interested in picking up a phone Best Buy is doing the $100 mail in rebate from Sprint as an instate discount, so it may be worthwhile to go there instead of a Sprint store.
I'd love to hear more about users Android experience... I'm kind of obsessed with this at the moment and probably will be until I get it. This is how I was before I got my XBox about a year ago.
I'm still really excited to get one but now I'm right there with you BigPopov about the faster phones coming out. I don't want to be one of those guys that's always waiting for the next gen and I have to travel for work for a week to the middle of nowhere where last year everyone just IMd and played on their phones, so this time I want in on that too. I don't like the physical keyboard phones because of the added bulk and I'm thinking I'm okay with the screen size for the same reason... I haven't committed to getting the phone yet but I'm still strongly leaning towards it. My work provides a discount for Verizon phones and service so I really wish they'd get cracking on a good one (they're working on it).
BTW to anyone else that may be interested in picking up a phone Best Buy is doing the $100 mail in rebate from Sprint as an instate discount, so it may be worthwhile to go there instead of a Sprint store.
I'd love to hear more about users Android experience... I'm kind of obsessed with this at the moment and probably will be until I get it. This is how I was before I got my XBox about a year ago.
imacjenn
CAGiversary!
I picked my Hero up from Best Buy last week (I also really recommend going through Best Buy to avoid waiting on the $100 Sprint rebate). It's been a week now and I will say one thing about the Hero... it's complicated. That's not necessarily bad, but you WILL need to read the instruction book for this phone. My last phone was ancient with bare features, but I'm pretty gadget intuitive and this thing has a million settings and getting to them doesn't always make the most sense. You will also need to become familiar with the HTC website help section!
The Android market is pretty vast and they have a lot of free apps, but it's no easier to search than the Apple app store. It will list things by category, then by popularity or date - but the sorting options, as in the Apple App store, are pitiful. Android market also has a few "featured" apps listed at the top, and the catalog does give star ratings and lets you see reviews but there are no screenshots at this point - which until they weren't there, I didn't realize how useful they are! Annoyingly, to delete an app from your phone, you have to go into the Market and view your downloads and uninstall them from there.
Lag...it's minimal, but is there. Again, I don't know that you would notice it unless you were used to using the iPhone/iPod Touch. The keyboard is pretty responsive - but not quite as good as the iPhone. Make sure you calibrate the keyboard because that does help. I have an iPod Touch and my boyfriend has the iPhone, so I am more used to using those devices. If you haven't used those, I don't think you'll notice the keyboard being off at all. But I'd compare it to playing PS2 games on the PS3 - they work, and work well, but it's just a little off.
The camera is pretty good and I think it's better than the one on the iPhone, but it's not stellar by any means. It has a few effects (grayscale, negative, sepia) and you can download other effects for free off the Marketplace.
Battery life...Sucks, but my old phone was a horse in that department. I can get through a day - barely - and that's with suggested modifications made (like turning off wifi, limiting facebook updates and twitter updates, turning off the vibrate mode for the keyboard response - which can be a nice feature to have on, btw). I turn the phone on for an average of 10 minutes every hour and make almost no calls and the battery is below 20% by the time I get off work. I think most phones of this type suffer with battery time though and I would say it's a little worse than the iPhone but maybe there are still a few more settings I can switch off. The battery does seem to charge up pretty quickly.
Small annoyances... The alarm feature is decent BUT the snooze indicator is miniscule and doesn't register being touched most of the time. (I always use my phone as my alarm so this is really annoying to me but probably not to most people!) You have to turn the phone on and unlock it (assuming you have lock set) to be able to change the ringer volume. You cannot have it on the loudest ringer setting with vibrate, as my last phone allowed. And the vibrate itself is a joke and can barely be felt, even in my girl jean pockets. As far as I can tell, HTC sync is Windows only. You don't unlock with a number code, but by a "pattern," which I understand is the Android norm.
Nice touches... the teflon backing is nice to the feel. The trackball is nice, though I really worry about its ability to withstand 2 years of use without failure. It has visual voicemail. You can do a google search by voice. Sprint TV is a nice bonus. The contacts ("people") are well arranged and by looking at a contact, you can also see a list of all your emails, phone calls, and texts with that person. There is also a nice "send directly to voicemail" option. Now, if only I had someone I didn't like who called me that I could use that on.
So overall, honestly, I'm undecided. I do prefer a physical keyboard, so the Samsung Moment might be more up my alley, but I think the screen is smaller. I've been with Sprint since 2000 and I've never had any problems with them, and I get a great plan due to having a 20% discount. I would switch to the iPhone in a heartbeat if it was on Sprint, but I hate AT&T and their massive amounts of dropped calls and their overpriced calling plans. The Hero is a good phone, but most of the reviews I've read (and I've read many) seem a little overly glowing.
Oh, and no Cooking Mama. You can see what there is in the Market by searching online: http://www.android.com/market/ There are some screenshots on the website, but not in the actual Market that you see on the phone. And I haven't really used the radio apps yet.
Now I know the CAG iPhone app is almost ready... I just wonder if there is going to be an Android app too?
The Android market is pretty vast and they have a lot of free apps, but it's no easier to search than the Apple app store. It will list things by category, then by popularity or date - but the sorting options, as in the Apple App store, are pitiful. Android market also has a few "featured" apps listed at the top, and the catalog does give star ratings and lets you see reviews but there are no screenshots at this point - which until they weren't there, I didn't realize how useful they are! Annoyingly, to delete an app from your phone, you have to go into the Market and view your downloads and uninstall them from there.
Lag...it's minimal, but is there. Again, I don't know that you would notice it unless you were used to using the iPhone/iPod Touch. The keyboard is pretty responsive - but not quite as good as the iPhone. Make sure you calibrate the keyboard because that does help. I have an iPod Touch and my boyfriend has the iPhone, so I am more used to using those devices. If you haven't used those, I don't think you'll notice the keyboard being off at all. But I'd compare it to playing PS2 games on the PS3 - they work, and work well, but it's just a little off.
The camera is pretty good and I think it's better than the one on the iPhone, but it's not stellar by any means. It has a few effects (grayscale, negative, sepia) and you can download other effects for free off the Marketplace.
Battery life...Sucks, but my old phone was a horse in that department. I can get through a day - barely - and that's with suggested modifications made (like turning off wifi, limiting facebook updates and twitter updates, turning off the vibrate mode for the keyboard response - which can be a nice feature to have on, btw). I turn the phone on for an average of 10 minutes every hour and make almost no calls and the battery is below 20% by the time I get off work. I think most phones of this type suffer with battery time though and I would say it's a little worse than the iPhone but maybe there are still a few more settings I can switch off. The battery does seem to charge up pretty quickly.
Small annoyances... The alarm feature is decent BUT the snooze indicator is miniscule and doesn't register being touched most of the time. (I always use my phone as my alarm so this is really annoying to me but probably not to most people!) You have to turn the phone on and unlock it (assuming you have lock set) to be able to change the ringer volume. You cannot have it on the loudest ringer setting with vibrate, as my last phone allowed. And the vibrate itself is a joke and can barely be felt, even in my girl jean pockets.
As far as I can tell, HTC sync is Windows only. You don't unlock with a number code, but by a "pattern," which I understand is the Android norm. Nice touches... the teflon backing is nice to the feel. The trackball is nice, though I really worry about its ability to withstand 2 years of use without failure. It has visual voicemail. You can do a google search by voice. Sprint TV is a nice bonus. The contacts ("people") are well arranged and by looking at a contact, you can also see a list of all your emails, phone calls, and texts with that person. There is also a nice "send directly to voicemail" option. Now, if only I had someone I didn't like who called me that I could use that on.
So overall, honestly, I'm undecided. I do prefer a physical keyboard, so the Samsung Moment might be more up my alley, but I think the screen is smaller. I've been with Sprint since 2000 and I've never had any problems with them, and I get a great plan due to having a 20% discount. I would switch to the iPhone in a heartbeat if it was on Sprint, but I hate AT&T and their massive amounts of dropped calls and their overpriced calling plans. The Hero is a good phone, but most of the reviews I've read (and I've read many) seem a little overly glowing.
Oh, and no Cooking Mama. You can see what there is in the Market by searching online: http://www.android.com/market/ There are some screenshots on the website, but not in the actual Market that you see on the phone. And I haven't really used the radio apps yet.
Now I know the CAG iPhone app is almost ready... I just wonder if there is going to be an Android app too?
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Verizon has two Android phones coming out this year:
Motorola Droid
HTC Desire
The Droid does have a querty keyboard but it is very thin. It will also be the first device with Android 2.0 (Eclair). They've already started airing commercials for it and it should be available in early November.
BGRs hands-on preview
The Desire is basically VZWs version of the Hero.
Motorola Droid
The Droid does have a querty keyboard but it is very thin. It will also be the first device with Android 2.0 (Eclair). They've already started airing commercials for it and it should be available in early November.
BGRs hands-on preview
The Desire is basically VZWs version of the Hero.
Ive been an Android Fan since last December. I love my Rooted G1 running CM 4.0.4 and Apps2SD. Im starting to itch for a new phone after seeing all the new ones.
Also if anyone needs Exchange Mail, i highly suggest using Touchdown. Its the Best app you can buy for $20.
Also if anyone needs Exchange Mail, i highly suggest using Touchdown. Its the Best app you can buy for $20.
saturnotaku
CAGiversary!
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Got my Droid this morning. I'll be playing with it more this weekend as I had to get to my office right away after picking it up. But I can say right now, I am so glad to be rid of that PoS LG Voyager. The Verizon saleswoman gave me a list of some free apps that I'll download and try later.
Verizon was jam packed this morning as I went to get my droid. Its gonna take me a lil while to get used to it. The keyboard is not so good but its there and it also has a very tactile touch keyboard. Lag is very minute and im really loving all its features. Getting a little overwhelmed but that is a good thing.
Verizon's Droid is wicked sexy (and I love the iDon't commercial) but I'll never get in bed with Verizon for cell service again. The fact that none of their phones run on SIM cards makes me antsy.
I have a G1 with T-Mobile and, despite the fact that it's already starting to feel a bit antiquated, I really like it a lot. Android's amazing and it keeps getting more impressive and fleshed-out with each update.
[quote name='mxyzplik']Any great apps or games?[/QUOTE]
If you like word/spelling games, you should play Wixel. Tons of fun.
Twidroid is great for accessing Twitter.
I have a G1 with T-Mobile and, despite the fact that it's already starting to feel a bit antiquated, I really like it a lot. Android's amazing and it keeps getting more impressive and fleshed-out with each update.
[quote name='mxyzplik']Any great apps or games?[/QUOTE]
If you like word/spelling games, you should play Wixel. Tons of fun.
Twidroid is great for accessing Twitter.
Why the desire for sim cards? Unless you frequent overseas there's no point. Android can sync contacts with your Gmail account.
I'll probably be getting the Samsung Moment over the Hero for Sprint, but if I was open to any network and wanted Android I'd be getting a Droid on Verizon.
I'll probably be getting the Samsung Moment over the Hero for Sprint, but if I was open to any network and wanted Android I'd be getting a Droid on Verizon.
I picked up my Droid yesterday morning around 8:45. I was the only one there when I went in. The guy at the store said it had been slow, but steady.
I'm loving it so far. I've mostly used it indoors, away from windows and in areas that I know, so I'm looking forward to trying the location-based applications in a place I don't know. I haven't tried any games on it yet, but I'll be trying them tonight.
It's the first smartphone I've used, so I can't compare it to an iPhone or Blackberry or anything. It's really responsive, and the screen is great. Overall, I'm very pleased.
I'm loving it so far. I've mostly used it indoors, away from windows and in areas that I know, so I'm looking forward to trying the location-based applications in a place I don't know. I haven't tried any games on it yet, but I'll be trying them tonight.
It's the first smartphone I've used, so I can't compare it to an iPhone or Blackberry or anything. It's really responsive, and the screen is great. Overall, I'm very pleased.
I bought my Hero the day of release, love it way better then my old samsung instinct. One app that was on my instinct that I really found useful was the app where you just speak the name of the store your looking for, and it brings up all of that store withen 50 miles of your current location.
is their a android app like that, where you just speak the name of the store and it brings up all of them stores?
is their a android app like that, where you just speak the name of the store and it brings up all of them stores?
[quote name='bmachine']Verizon's Droid is wicked sexy (and I love the iDon't commercial) but I'll never get in bed with Verizon for cell service again. The fact that none of their phones run on SIM cards makes me antsy.[/QUOTE]
I have Verizon and my phone has a SIM card. Verizon's "dumbphones" don't have them. The smartphones (including the Droid) should have them. I know for a fact that all of the Blackberries on Verizon have SIM cards.
I have Verizon and my phone has a SIM card. Verizon's "dumbphones" don't have them. The smartphones (including the Droid) should have them. I know for a fact that all of the Blackberries on Verizon have SIM cards.
-GoodFella-
CAGiversary!
[quote name='BigPopov']Why the desire for sim cards? Unless you frequent overseas there's no point. [/QUOTE]
There are many advantages to having a sim card. Say your phone breaks or stops working for some reason you can get one of those cheapo pre-paid GSM phones just so you have a working cell phone. How about you want to get a new phone without being tied to a multi year contract or take your phone to another carrier.
There are many advantages to having a sim card. Say your phone breaks or stops working for some reason you can get one of those cheapo pre-paid GSM phones just so you have a working cell phone. How about you want to get a new phone without being tied to a multi year contract or take your phone to another carrier.
[quote name='-GoodFella-']There are many advantages to having a sim card. Say your phone breaks or stops working for some reason you can get one of those cheapo pre-paid GSM phones just so you have a working cell phone. How about you want to get a new phone without being tied to a multi year contract or take your phone to another carrier.[/QUOTE]
That's exactly why I prefer phones with SIM cards.
That's exactly why I prefer phones with SIM cards.
bread's done