So the [Only registered users can view links. ] has officially kicked off, and Round 1 has me putting Android through it's paces.
Going back to last year's Round Robin, I was pretty happy about aspects of the T-Mobile G1 and especially the Android platform. I liked the Google homescreen user experience and overall found the device to be pretty stable, which was impressive for an operating system in early stages.
For devices, I'm using the Droid and the Hero. So I want to know from you all:
1. how do you find the hardware (comfort of use, ease of use)?
2. how do you find the battery life (everyday light/normal use, heavy use)?
3. if you we're a BB user and switched up to give Android a test, what do you like and not like about it?
4. what are the must have apps? how does the device do with running them all?
5. how do you go about loading up the device with media (music, movies, etc.)
6. with all that, i want to know your background - are you in business (using it for professional use), a consumer, a student, young, old, male, female, etc.
and let me know anything else you think I need to know!
So the [Only registered users can view links. ] has officially kicked off, and Round 1 has me putting Android through it's paces.
Going back to last year's Round Robin, I was pretty happy about aspects of the T-Mobile G1 and especially the Android platform. I liked the Google homescreen user experience and overall found the device to be pretty stable, which was impressive for an operating system in early stages.
For devices, I'm using the Droid and the Hero. So I want to know from you all:
1. how do you find the hardware (comfort of use, ease of use)?
2. how do you find the battery life (everyday light/normal use, heavy use)?
3. if you we're a BB user and switched up to give Android a test, what do you like and not like about it?
4. what are the must have apps? how does the device do with running them all?
5. how do you go about loading up the device with media (music, movies, etc.)
6. with all that, i want to know your background - are you in business (using it for professional use), a consumer, a student, young, old, male, female, etc.
and let me know anything else you think I need to know!
Mucho thanks!!
KEVIN! I've missed ya man, I won't lie, I'm a former BlackBerry Storm owner, but I still have much love for the BB Platform. Anyway...I am using a Motorola Droid, so here goes...
1) Hardware is fantastic. The Droid simply feels solid, and the sliding mechanism on the hardware keyboard is flawless IMO. Although some have issues with the keyboard, I find it easy to use once you get used to it.
2) I'm going to split this up into two parts. First, I'll talk prior to the 2.0.1 software update.
2.0: The battery was pretty decent for me. I could get through an entire day with moderately heavy use and end with about 20 or 30% battery life. This includes 30-45 minutes of web browsing, just over an hour or so of total talk time, at least a hundred texts, and a half or dozen emails sent.
2.0.1: VAST improvement in battery life. Under virtually the same exact amount of use as before, I am now coming home at the end of the day/night with about 60% of battery life remaining, sometimes 70%.
3) I switched from a BlackBerry Storm 9530. As many here have previously stated, one of the things I miss more than anything else is BBM. I had several friends who used BBM almost religiously, so making the switch to Android and no longer being able to use BBM was a tough decision.
There's no doubt that RIM has Push Email down to a science, and although the Droid does a pretty good job at Email, it's just not quite the same. Although my primary email account is Gmail, I do find that Android doesn't do as good of a job with my other email accounts (such as my military, and school emails) as my Storm did.
However, one thing I love about the switch is reliability and the look and feel. I was beginning to feel that the BlackBerry platform was outdated and in need of a refresh. With Android, especially on the Droid itself, it feels sleek, modern and reliable. I can't tell you how many times I've thought to myself "just do a battery pull", but then remembered that this was not a BlackBerry.
4) Although the Droid does a pretty darn good job of memory management, one of the first apps I would recommend to someone who is new to Android is either Advanced Task Manager (Paid App) or TasKiller (Free). They both do an excellent job of monitoring what apps and processes are running on your device, and make it fairly simple to kill running apps on the fly.
Other apps, at least to me, that are a must have are Barcode Scanner, Beautiful Widgets, and PicSay Photo Editor. Many also recommend Chompsms and Handcent. The Droid seems to run off of these apps seamlessly. When you tap the app you want, it seems to open almost instantly. I've found very little if any delay or lag when running multiple apps at once.
5) This is something that I may differ from other users in. I don't really load up a ton of music or media on my Droid. I have however transferred several songs to my Droid to be used as ringtones or alarms by mounting the SD card when connected to my PC.
6) Good ol' Demographics. I am male, 21 years old, MOSTLY use it for personal use, however I do use it to stay connected to my military Email when I am on the go. I am a student as well, and also use the Droid to sync up with my school's email address, and it works quite well.
Hey there Kevin! Former 9530 owner but still have it on one of my lines.
Just to add to the post above, the customization is amazing. There are apps called Home Alternative apps. Some of the most noted are Home++, PandaHome, aHome, dxTop, and GDE. Most of these allow you to choose how many homescreens you want to show (I think PandaHome you can show up to 9 homescreens.) The ability to add widgets make things quick and easy to access. Also with these home alt apps, you can essentially create your own themes on the fly. You can download icon packs and font packs and essentially skin things the way that you want.
The main thing I miss about BB is BBM, although Google Talk is an ok alternative since most of my BBM contacts have gmail accounts as well.
Adding to the post above, I have never had to do a battery pull. I did once the day I got it just to see how long it takes to reboot (under 1 min), and in actuality you don't have to do a battery pull. You can completely shut the phone down by holding down the power button.
Task Killers are ok apps to use, but even without one, Android does a great job at managing memory on its own. It will free up memory from idle apps as needed. What the task killers will enable you to do is set certain apps on an ignore list so that they never close until you decide for them to.
That's about all I have to add. Don't worry I am still a frequent crackberry.com visitor! Looking forward to the OpenGL API!
*EDIT* also wanted to add that the out of the box Exchange support was a big plus for me. My company does not have BES because they supply WinMo phones (which I absolutely was not going to carry) which means I was getting emails 5-7 minutes after they would normally hit my inbox since I had to set it up through Outlook Web Access.
Aside from Exchange however, I don't think the Gmail is true push,although there have been some instances where I have tested and gotten the messages immediately.
RIM rules email hands down
Last edited by hatch.duffy; 12-14-2009 at 01:42 PM.
So the [Only registered users can view links. ] has officially kicked off, and Round 1 has me putting Android through it's paces.
Going back to last year's Round Robin, I was pretty happy about aspects of the T-Mobile G1 and especially the Android platform. I liked the Google homescreen user experience and overall found the device to be pretty stable, which was impressive for an operating system in early stages.
For devices, I'm using the Droid and the Hero. So I want to know from you all:
1. how do you find the hardware (comfort of use, ease of use)?
2. how do you find the battery life (everyday light/normal use, heavy use)?
3. if you we're a BB user and switched up to give Android a test, what do you like and not like about it?
4. what are the must have apps? how does the device do with running them all?
5. how do you go about loading up the device with media (music, movies, etc.)
6. with all that, i want to know your background - are you in business (using it for professional use), a consumer, a student, young, old, male, female, etc.
and let me know anything else you think I need to know!
Mucho thanks!!
Hardware feels a bit heavy but other then that it's comfortable.
Battery life is compatible to Blackberry Storm 2.
Faster browser then blackberry. I like the touch screen better. No need to worry about memory. Apps I like are backgrounds, google voice, Spare Parts, Barcode Scanner (much better then BBM) wave secure, seesmic (twitter), ringroid (mp3 ringtones).
Pictures and music I use Double Twist. I don't do movies so I don't know.
I'm just a consumer who loves smart phones and the Droid rocks.
One other thing the only thing I miss about the Storm vs the Droid is my blue tooth voice call but I'm resolving that by getting a Blue Ant Q1.
As a Tour owner I've been seriously considering trying the Droid out, it's definitely tempting me. Just to throw out some demographics. I'm male, 38, would use it mainly as a consumer user
Hey, I'm a 21 year old university student, and I've tried out my friends' Hero and I have to say the hardware is fairly impressive, built very solidly. I'm not a fan of the keyboard, but I imagine Hero supporters would say that I just need to get used to it!
1. how do you find the hardware (comfort of use, ease of use)?
Hardware is solid, very comfortable, and I think it's like many smartphones: becomes easier to use the more you use it.
2. how do you find the battery life (everyday light/normal use, heavy use)?
I charge every few days, but I'm a moderately heavy user.
3. if you we're a BB user and switched up to give Android a test, what do you like and not like about it?
BBM and BIS were wonderful.
6. with all that, i want to know your background - are you in business (using it for professional use), a consumer, a student, young, old, male, female, etc.
1. The Droid is solid. After using it for a while, the Tour seems alot smaller than before.
2. With heavy use, I can make it through the day. The longest I've went without a charge is two.
3. No battery pulls so far!
6. 18 year old student
In terms of apps, I would say twidroid or swift or seesmic for Twitter.
And check out Google Goggles and let us know how it works. Some people love it, some people don't lol.
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