Captivate'd by the Droid
So, two weeks ago 2007 called and asked for their propel back. I looked down at my innovative green propel, the little gadget that kept me entertained and in trouble for the past years. It wasn't a bad phone, it worked like it was supposed to. Except there was a lot of things it couldn't do..and with the display of almost a calculator, I was a little behind the times.
I've never been the bandwagon hopper. In fact when I got the propel, it was no longer the hottest item. But I try not to follow the mass hysteria running like wild goose after every new shiny object.
Until.. Google stepped up to the plate and presented the Android.
I curiously stepped into the local ATnT store as it was time for my upgrade, and wasn't really shock-and-awed by the cellphones on display. That is, until I walked up to the salesperson and asked curiously about the Droid vs the Iphone. My first question was,
"Which is the most user-friendly phone?"
"The Iphone, definitely," he replied, not missing a beat. "Its very easy to use, but on the flip side, there's only so much personalization you can perform to it."
At the moment, I didn't have the money to upgrade to anything but free, so I asked a couple questions and left to do my research. In the following week I read article after article comparing the two master phones.
The more I read, the more I grew inclined towards the Droid.
Cash in hand, the following Thursday I stomped pridefully inside the ATnT store and in two shakes of a lamb's tail had my pretty shiny black sleekness beauty in my hands. Even my brother, hovering behind me with his chunky Iphone 3Gs was a little jealous. ;)
Its thin, sleek design is definitely attractive. It fits nicely in the palm of my hand and is the perfect weight.
Certain things I noticed right away:
1) Phone calls are difficult to pick up. You have to press and slide a button, and it took me several missed calls to figure it out.
2) Screen resolution is gorgeous. Sharp contrast and bright display.
After playing with it the following day, I learned some other things.
1) The battery drains itself pretty quickly. I played music, surfed the web, and already the bar was halfway through. If you constantly use your phone, I recommend carrying a charger with you, be it wall or car. It will last about 2 hours if you are constantly using it.
2) From the camera, you can access your pictures, but not edit them. That's what the Gallery is for, where you can zoom in, edit, and crop.
3)Google maps does indeed work as a navigation system, and a great one at that, measuring levels in traffic and picking the best route.
4) Taking a picture of yourself is hard. I constantly kept pressing the voice button and accidentally ran google search on random things. I guess Google doesn't favor conceited egomaniacs.
5) Its easy to call someone by accident. If you tap a text message and slide, you will have placed a call to that person. In my opinion, its hard to control calls because the screen doesn't show you you are placing a call if you are doing something else while you're at it. Maybe that's a setting I haven't tweaked yet.
6) For some reason, Google Talk is always running in the background. I force close it constantly, and yet it always seem to be running a minute later. We get it google, chatting is fun, but stop logging me in and making me seem like I'm a lifeless cyber addict to my friends! Geez
As far as apps go, I will blog later on about some of the best, and some of the worst. One thing I have to beg developers is to PLEEEEASE create a Netflix app where I can stream movies directly from my phone. Currently, the only "app" is just a shortcut to the Netflix website. Fail.
However, any way you look at it, hopping from a Propel to an Android Smart Phone is definitely an upgrade. I have faith in the Google Market, and look forward to the cool things they will continue to offer as they close in on World Domination.
So far I'm comfortable with my choice. Droid can step up to the plate and battle it out with the IPhone, and may even win a couple rounds ;)
I've never been the bandwagon hopper. In fact when I got the propel, it was no longer the hottest item. But I try not to follow the mass hysteria running like wild goose after every new shiny object.
Until.. Google stepped up to the plate and presented the Android.
I curiously stepped into the local ATnT store as it was time for my upgrade, and wasn't really shock-and-awed by the cellphones on display. That is, until I walked up to the salesperson and asked curiously about the Droid vs the Iphone. My first question was,
"Which is the most user-friendly phone?"
"The Iphone, definitely," he replied, not missing a beat. "Its very easy to use, but on the flip side, there's only so much personalization you can perform to it."
At the moment, I didn't have the money to upgrade to anything but free, so I asked a couple questions and left to do my research. In the following week I read article after article comparing the two master phones.
The more I read, the more I grew inclined towards the Droid.
Cash in hand, the following Thursday I stomped pridefully inside the ATnT store and in two shakes of a lamb's tail had my pretty shiny black sleekness beauty in my hands. Even my brother, hovering behind me with his chunky Iphone 3Gs was a little jealous. ;)
Its thin, sleek design is definitely attractive. It fits nicely in the palm of my hand and is the perfect weight.
Certain things I noticed right away:
1) Phone calls are difficult to pick up. You have to press and slide a button, and it took me several missed calls to figure it out.
2) Screen resolution is gorgeous. Sharp contrast and bright display.
After playing with it the following day, I learned some other things.
1) The battery drains itself pretty quickly. I played music, surfed the web, and already the bar was halfway through. If you constantly use your phone, I recommend carrying a charger with you, be it wall or car. It will last about 2 hours if you are constantly using it.
2) From the camera, you can access your pictures, but not edit them. That's what the Gallery is for, where you can zoom in, edit, and crop.
3)Google maps does indeed work as a navigation system, and a great one at that, measuring levels in traffic and picking the best route.
4) Taking a picture of yourself is hard. I constantly kept pressing the voice button and accidentally ran google search on random things. I guess Google doesn't favor conceited egomaniacs.
5) Its easy to call someone by accident. If you tap a text message and slide, you will have placed a call to that person. In my opinion, its hard to control calls because the screen doesn't show you you are placing a call if you are doing something else while you're at it. Maybe that's a setting I haven't tweaked yet.
6) For some reason, Google Talk is always running in the background. I force close it constantly, and yet it always seem to be running a minute later. We get it google, chatting is fun, but stop logging me in and making me seem like I'm a lifeless cyber addict to my friends! Geez
As far as apps go, I will blog later on about some of the best, and some of the worst. One thing I have to beg developers is to PLEEEEASE create a Netflix app where I can stream movies directly from my phone. Currently, the only "app" is just a shortcut to the Netflix website. Fail.
However, any way you look at it, hopping from a Propel to an Android Smart Phone is definitely an upgrade. I have faith in the Google Market, and look forward to the cool things they will continue to offer as they close in on World Domination.
So far I'm comfortable with my choice. Droid can step up to the plate and battle it out with the IPhone, and may even win a couple rounds ;)
Comments
Totally agree on the Netflix App...Of course I keep cleaning the screen every 5 seconds with my OCD lol I feel like I only use like 5% of what it has to offer. So keep giving me tips LOL