Moving from iPhone to DroidX

[mgurmgur]

Hey everyone,

My contract with AT&T is about to expire and I firmly decided to dump "we drop your calls and our customer service sucks" AT&T and "we make the decisions for you and we are evil" Apple.

As a complete Android newbie, I have a bunch of basic questions on Android; specifically, could someone give me some direction on the following:

1. I use iTunes to subscribe to 20+ podcasts, manage my music and video libraries. Could I use the iTunes with Android or I would need to switch to another program?

2. I would like to be able to open and read MS Word, MS Excel and PDF docs (both email attachments and syncs from the my main computer's HD) which app would you recommend?

3. Droid X comes with a 16GB SD card. Does that mean I could simply copy things onto this hard from my PC, and Droid X will recognize the data (mp3s, mpegs, PDFs?)

4. I have a brand-name Class 4 miniSD 16GB card.. what kind of miniSD card is included with Droid X - generic, cheaper, slower Class 2 card or a high quality one? Should I stick with Droid X's original miniSD card or use my own when in doubt?

5. Could I set up my Yahoo mail to be the default mail client, and not the Gmail? I've had my Yahoo email account for 15+ years, and do not plan on switching..

6. Some podcasts come with embedded photos.. will I be able to see the those embedded pictures on my Droid device?

7. is there a site with "top 20" or "top 100" apps for Android you'd recommend?

8. When will the desktop (PC) program that would allow me to look for new apps and backup the Droid X come out? How do I back up my Droid X now?

9. What kind of additional tips and hints would you give to someone who is switching from iPhone to a Droid? (i.e.: if you phone suddenly stopped dropping calls, or plays back Flash - don't freak out - it's normal)


Thank you all in advance,
Mark

 

[Phil Nickinson]

1. You'll need to switch. DoubleTwist is good, or you can just use an on-device app. Here's a good list.

2. QuickOffice is good. So's Docs to Go.

3. Yep. It's that simple.

4. My review unit came with a Class 4.

5. Yep. Yahoo works just fine.

6. Depends on the podcatcher app, but, yeah.

7. Try AndroidCentral.com. And the forums.

8. AppBrain.com is our favorite, though Google will have a better web Market in the near future.

9. You can always do a hard reset and start from scratch. No worries. (Hell, I've reset my phone while driving. You'll get all your apps and e-mail back.)

Hey everyone,

My contract with AT&T is about to expire and I firmly decided to dump "we drop your calls and our customer service sucks" AT&T and "we make the decisions for you and we are evil" Apple.

As a complete Android newbie, I have a bunch of basic questions on Android; specifically, could someone give me some direction on the following:

1. I use iTunes to subscribe to 20+ podcasts, manage my music and video libraries. Could I use the iTunes with Android or I would need to switch to another program?

2. I would like to be able to open and read MS Word, MS Excel and PDF docs (both email attachments and syncs from the my main computer's HD) which app would you recommend?

3. Droid X comes with a 16GB SD card. Does that mean I could simply copy things onto this hard from my PC, and Droid X will recognize the data (mp3s, mpegs, PDFs?)

4. I have a brand-name Class 4 miniSD 16GB card.. what kind of miniSD card is included with Droid X - generic, cheaper, slower Class 2 card or a high quality one? Should I stick with Droid X's original miniSD card or use my own when in doubt?

5. Could I set up my Yahoo mail to be the default mail client, and not the Gmail? I've had my Yahoo email account for 15+ years, and do not plan on switching..

6. Some podcasts come with embedded photos.. will I be able to see the those embedded pictures on my Droid device?

7. is there a site with "top 20" or "top 100" apps for Android you'd recommend?

8. When will the desktop (PC) program that would allow me to look for new apps and backup the Droid X come out? How do I back up my Droid X now?

9. What kind of additional tips and hints would you give to someone who is switching from iPhone to a Droid? (i.e.: if you phone suddenly stopped dropping calls, or plays back Flash - don't freak out - it's normal)


Thank you all in advance,
Mark

 

[mgurmgur]

Thanks for your very prompt reply Phil, big fan of your show! Btw, do you use dolphin HD browser, or the built-in one?

 

[DWMorse]

Hah, excellent thread timing. I even had Apple's iPhone 4 in my hands on Friday, having preordered it and then it showing up early. But I resisted - too many problems, tired of the same ol' AT&T lackluster, tired of worrying when Apple will inform me that I'm merely renting my device from them. Reception problems and, yet again, no replaceable battery... deal-killers.

I've been stalking Droid X sites for a few weeks, and I'm really in love with this phone I haven't even held yet. So much want. Also, I'm really glad I forgot to pick up a class 4 16GB MicroSD card after dropping the iPhone 4 back in the mail to Apple without opening it. I didn't realize it came with one.

So, come Thursday, I'll be stalking my local Verizon stores.

I've downloaded Doubletwist, and it looks ... familiar. I could've wept. See, I love iTunes. Sure, speed-wise it runs like ass on a new Core i7 Win7 Ultimate x64 build, but I love what it does. The other music player I used before it was WinAmp.

I can't figure out how to download apps ahead of time without having my device actually connected. This isn't a big issue really, as a quick Notepad session has generated a good list of 20-some-odd apps for me. I was sad to see that LogMeIn's app is still in Beta apparently, and not readily available. I know there's other options, but you really can't beat the simplicity of LogMeIn. With a little routing trickery I even have WOL set up through it. I already dropped, what, $20 on the iPhone version, but, oh well.

Do you have any recommendations for a Simplify Media replacement? Ever since that went belly-up, I've been sad, trying to stuff my favorite albums amid my sea of apps onto my 8GB 3G. I'd be interested in learning about any kind of media streaming application, actually, if you know of any offhand.

Are there any particular apps you'd recommend for someone coming into Android from the iPhone? I'm not sure what apps are stock in iOS 4 that Android 2.1 doesn't have, if it's not even the other way around.

Truth be told, I'm entirely new to the Droid community, and I know little of the Android environment. I'm a Network Engineer, (yay I can finally get WiFi Analyzer again!) and while I'm not into app development or anything, I'd love to take a look at the more technical side. Any particular reading recommendations for that end of things?

Sorry for the large wall of text. I'm really pumped about this new device and joining the good side. I have the feeling that the X is precisely the Droid I'm looking for. >_>

 

[Kyle Gibb]

I can't figure out how to download apps ahead of time without having my device actually connected.

Are there any particular apps you'd recommend for someone coming into Android from the iPhone? I'm not sure what apps are stock in iOS 4 that Android 2.1 doesn't have, if it's not even the other way around.

1) Use appbrain.com, you can login with your gmail ID (its how appbrain will communicate with your phone once you get it) and just queue up a bunch of apps.

2) The free Google Navigation is awesome. Its basically like having a free, and way better, TomTom or Garmin in your phone at all times. Other than that, pretty much anything you can do on an iPhone you can do on an Android phone. Plus, Google doesn't block apps like Apple does . Thus, you can do stuff like tethering or wifi music syncing with no problem.

 

[mgurmgur]

Thanks Kyleg!

 

[takeshi]

I use iTunes to subscribe to 20+ podcasts, manage my music and video libraries. Could I use the iTunes with Android or I would need to switch to another program?

You'll want a sync solution. Many are discussed in existing threads.

is there a site with "top 20" or "top 100" apps for Android you'd recommend?

Suggested above already but see the Apps forum on any Android forum site.

The free Google Navigation is awesome. Its basically like having a free, and way better, TomTom or Garmin in your phone at all times.

Better, as with anything, is highly subjective. Google Maps Nav isn't better if you need features that it lacks such as: more routing options, 3D follow me map, locally stored maps, etc etc. That said, it meets my needs and it's all I use. YMMV.