Inspire vs Captivate

[Griffspen]

I'm curious to hear opinions from new Inspire owners who were previously Captivate owners. I'm very interesting in replacing my Captivate with an Inspire. Even after installing Cognition 3.04 I still find my Captivate lagging often. How does the Inspire compare?

Please compare the overall experience as well as comparing:

Aesthetics- look and feel in your hand compared to Cappy.
Screen
Hardware
Phone call quality
Overall User Interface
Signal quality
GPS (If the Inspire's works it'll be better)
Battery Life
Overall Performance of GUI
Media (music, movies, DLNA)
Keyboard's
Camera (both still & video)
Disappointments (if any)

 

[dchandler]

The only thing that the Captivate has over the Inspire is the Super Amoled screen and thats not by much, everything else is hands down better on the Inspire. Just my 2 cents

 

[netposer]

I just unboxed my Inspire so my use is limited to just about 2 hours.

Took it out of the box, fought with the battery door cover. Thought I was going to break it to get it off.

It's heavier and it's obviously larger.

I like the Sense UI and the way HTC allows you to create a Sense account to track your phone if lost. Not sure what else it will do. Backup? Config?

It asked me if I wanted to transfer data from my previous phone to this phone but the Captivate was not listed in the supported devices... oh well.

I slapped my 3G SIM into the Inspire and it worked on my Microcell and on WiFi but when I went outside I had not data. I'm guessing you have to use the new 4G SIM card that ATT has been shipping for the past couple of weeks. I noticed there's only the ATT Globe graphic on the SIM card (no more 3G logo).

And ATT screwed up my data plan while I was on the phone and told me I won't have data until Feb. 24. WTF? So I got a manager on the phone to make sure I had data but they put me on the 2GB limited data plan until an offline team could put my truly unlimited $30 plan back on my account. Scary that a CSR would tell them that and leave it at that.

Some differences compared to the Captivate:

• The MicroUSB port is upside-down. Meaning the wider side is on the top side instead of the bottom side. And it's on the bottom of the phone
• The Power button is on the top so it's going to take some getting used to.
• The volume button is a rocker. (One long button) but seems to function well.
• The Home and the Menu button are transposed....that's proving to be a pain but I'm sure I will get over that soon.

I will probably have a few more observations these next few days.

 

[Sooks]

I'm curious to hear opinions from new Inspire owners who were previously Captivate owners. I'm very interesting in replacing my Captivate with an Inspire. Even after installing Cognition 3.04 I still find my Captivate lagging often. How does the Inspire compare?

Please compare the overall experience as well as comparing:

Aesthetics- look and feel in your hand compared to Cappy.
Screen
Hardware
Phone call quality
Overall User Interface
Signal quality
GPS (If the Inspire's works it'll be better)
Battery Life
Overall Performance of GUI
Media (music, movies, DLNA)
Keyboard's
Camera (both still & video)
Disappointments (if any)

Looks and feels GREAT in the hand not like cheap plastic like the captivate
The screen is AMAZING, sharp and clear, the SLCD looks really really clean
Hardware feels topnotch and is rocking
Call quality is leaps and bounds over the captivate sounds very nice
signal for me has been hit or miss just depending on location
GPS is dead on and havent had a issue at all
Battery life is roughly about a day ( 8AM to 10PM for me )
VERY responsive and FAST no LAG at all
Media is nice with the sense GUI
I love the sense keyboard i think its the best and with 4.3" better than iphone
Camera as a still i LOVE very nice, as video a little choppy needs optimization
No disappointments thus far.

 

[reednatron]

This is pretty simple really, the Inspire works as advertised. My 3 Captivates did not. Here are the main differences:

The GPS works.
No lag... ever.

My Captivate with a hacked ROM was usable ( except for GPS ) , but the Inspire is a better package.

 

[BadBrad]

I slapped my 3G SIM into the Inspire and it worked on my Microcell and on WiFi but when I went outside I had not data. I'm guessing you have to use the new 4G SIM card that ATT has been shipping for the past couple of weeks.......

I just upgraded from a Moto Rzr and used my 3G SIM no problem. The Inspire show H+ at the top for signal type.

 

[constantschange]

This is pretty simple really, the Inspire works as advertised. My 3 Captivates did not.

This. I didn't have problems with my Captivate AFTER I flashed a custom ROM. GPS never REALLY worked for me. I think it found my location about 2 times in the 3 or so months I had the phone. No problems whatsoever with GPS on the Inspire.

I never had serious lag on the Captivate, but I can tell the Inspire is a lot more responsive and smooth.

This is a personal plus for me: LED NOTIFICATIONS! Captivate did not have any LED notifications when you missed a call/received a text etc. The Inspire does.

The overall look and feel is top notch in my book compared to the Captivate. Not a fan of the high grade plasticy feel. And yes, the Inspire weighs more than the Captivate but I love that

Sense 2.0 in my opinion KILLS TouchWiz. TouchWiz seems too...iPhone-ish to me. And don't forget about all the lovely widgets Sense provides.

The one gripe I have in this comparison is battery life. Even tho Inspire uses a 2nd gen snapdragon processor and is supposed to be easier on battery life, I still can't go more than a day without charging (which isn't a HUGE problem for me as I usually charge my phones nightly anyway). Keep in mind tho that I am a heavy user (customizing my screens often, using/adding different widgets, apps - Words With Friends for Android FINALLY! - so I can understand why my battery dies quickly. I could usually go a day and a half to 2 days on my Captivate.

I also posted a thread on audio output on the Inspire, specifically with custom ringtones. They seem a little distorted to me which kinda sucks. No such problems on the Captivate, but again not sure why this is. I may be the only one with this problem for all I know. Also volume isn't close to as loud as the Captivate, even at the highest settings.

I'm still waiting for an easier way to root the Inspire. The Captivate has a one-click root that was pretty damn simple. Hoping something similar comes out for the Inspire as I'm not too savvy when it comes to those things.

I know most of these were opinions but I hope they help

 

[netposer]

I just upgraded from a Moto Rzr and used my 3G SIM no problem. The Inspire show H+ at the top for signal type.

I was showing H with the check mark but could only make calls. No data. I used the same 3G SIM taken out of my Captivate.

I'm going outside now and should report back in about an hour.

Calling ATT back since I have no data at all...just voice. argh!

The irony is if you had a non-smartphone plan and put that SIM card in a smartphone then ATT would automatically add a data plan to your bill.

 

[YoungSpade8]

I was showing H with the check mark but could only make calls. No data. I used the same 3G SIM taken out of my Captivate.

I'm going outside now and should report back in about an hour.

Calling ATT back since I have no data at all...just voice. argh!

The irony is if you had a non-smartphone plan and put that SIM card in a smartphone then ATT would automatically add a data plan to your bill.

Yea I think you're going to have to switch plans; im sure they're at the same price though but I think it is an indicator if who is on 5G or not.

 

[TripperGetem]

I plan on buying the Inspire next monday. I currently have the Captivate. A lot of people said the captivate's battery life was pretty bad, but I never actually have problems with it. I hook it up to an AUX chord while I drive and play music, use a few apps, I dont really play games though, and I get a full day out of it, I'm pleased with the Captivate's battery life so I'm hoping I can get the same experience with the Inspire. Captivate is just too buggy for me. Keyboard doesn't type anything 2/5 times so I have to close out of my messages and go back and try to type my msg again. Not a MAJOR problem but when it happens atleast twice a day it gets quite annoying, also among other issues I have. Plus I want a bigger screen and have been waiting since before i got the captivate for a decent sized HTC Android device to come to AT&T, Aria just wouldn't cut it.

 

[vailjo91#WP]

Aesthetics- look and feel in your hand compared to Cappy.
Screen
Hardware
Phone call quality
Overall User Interface
Signal quality
GPS (If the Inspire's works it'll be better)
Battery Life
Overall Performance of GUI
Media (music, movies, DLNA)
Keyboard's
Camera (both still & video)
Disappointments (if any)[/QUOTE]


Asthetics- The phone is absolutely gorgeous. It has a very Evo like feel. It is a nice clean looking phone and dosent seem like a cheaply built phone.

Screen- To be completely honest this phones screen seems just as clear as my old Captivates. Good Video Quality and good picute quality.

Hardware- The phone is a good hardware piece. The Camera is one of the best parts on there. Not cheaply made good battery and good position of the buttons and the battery worked.

Call Quality- It is a nice clear sound but the speaeker seems kind of quiet.

UI- It works awsome. I have always loved Sense and it dose not slow the phone down at all. It has a good feel and dose not make the phone look like crap.

Signal Quality- I have been having real good reception with my phone. A few areas I never got reception I now do.

GPS- Works awsome I have used it 3 times in the last 2 days. I was able to use it and it took me to my exact spot unlike my captivate where I used it to get to Lambo Stadium and was telling me to go far past.

Battery Life- It has been lasting me through the day.

Performance- Good Benchmark scores fast moving snappy dosent freeze up to much.

Media- works good with me for videos music and picutes.

Keyboards- I have just been using the stock one so I dont have info on that one.

Camera- Very clear works perfect good video quality. Good zoom specs also.

Disappointments- The main issue is the batter cover is a pain in the ass. Other then that I have none so far.

 

[lkwmeg]

I went from an Iphone 3G, to the Samsung Captivate (returned it before the 30 day period was up), went back to the 3G and waited for the Inspire to come out.

I really disliked the Captivate. The only positives I found were the beautiful screen and the Droid apps, etc (which obviously aren't specific to the phone). The phone's sharp edges make it uncomfortable to hold in your hand, and I found of the placement of the buttons (power, etc.) very awkward. It also could not get my email notifications down. The phone would tell me I had email, I would go check, and no email... Then when it did work, I would check my email, clear the notifications and 30 seconds later I would have another email notification and no new email in my inbox. I had to force closes on native apps all the time after an error message would pop up. Also, the thing refused to auto sync with my car's bluetooth hands free setup. I had to manually connect the phone each time I got into the car, or it wouldn't work at all. Another thing that was constant was a strange laggy touch screen. Each time I would try to drag my finger across the screen, it would hiccup and then have to catch itself up. My battery life was awful. Around dinner time, the phone was dinging at me to charge the phone or it would die. And that's barely using the phone. Pretty useless to me...

I realize you already have the phone, but someone else might be interested in the issues...

I love my Inspire. It's fast, no lag, touch screen is very responsive, haven't had to force close anything since I received the phone, and it's pretty intuitive to use. I will say that moving from an iphone 3Gs, it's close to the same size and shape (this is a little bigger), but the button placement is almost identical and it works well for me. The rounded edges and curved back make it comfortable to hold in your hand. I was worried that it didn't have the AMOLED screen, and wondered if that would be noticable coming from the Samsung, but it's not at all. The screen is gorgeous and huge. Battery life is so-so, but is about the same as my iphone was... By the end of the day, I'm at about 50% battery life (using it moderately, not surfing all day, etc). No complaints at all. So glad I returned the Captivate and waited for this!