Verizon iPhone cometh -- Will you be switching?

[Dark_Blu]

What is there to be excited about? It's the iPhone 4 that has been out since last June and drops signal "If you hold it wrong". Granted, it may actually not drop signal due to some "secret fix", but seriously, it isn't a 4G phone. The only attraction is that it's not on AT&T's network. Android phones outgun the current iPhone, particularly the new dual core phones. All bets are off till they release a new iPhone this June. Maybe then, there will be something to get excited about. The current iPhone is a big yawn to me, even on Verizon.

 

[Dark_Blu]

I have three android phones (G2, myTouch 4G and Vibrant) and a Galaxy Tab and there is no doubt to me that the Android UI is more choppy than the iPhone UI (I also have an iphone 4 and 3GS), sometimes annoyingly so and in sometimes ridiculous ways. Just tonight when trying to call someone I went to hang up after I thought there was no answer and the phone didn't respond immediately to the hang up button - it continued to ring through until the person on the other side answered. I was able to talk and hold a conversation but for about 30 seconds or so the UI seemed more or less completely locked up. The hang up button was illuminated as if it had been depressed or was stuck mid press.

Android will sometimes get into situations in which user input gets stalled. I notice it can't reliably playback music under moderate load with PowerAmp and WinAmp - the audio can stutter and stall (Galaxy Tab, G2 - I haven't really duplicated this with the other three) in comparison to the iphone where the music playback seems just about as bulletproof as it can get.

There are other examples that can be frustrating for day to day use but most of these things involve stalls to the point that I have to battery pull rather than patiently wait for what I presume is some garbage collection of death to finish.

The general Android UI paradigm is better - I like notifications showing up in one place, I love the google voice integration and use that daily, I do like the menu button as you described and so on but I think the implementation of these features is barely out of lab or pre-alpha quality at this point and in particular compared to iOS.

Compounding that is that the iPhone seems to attract more polished apps and I still feel that app management and song, video and playlist management is easier through itunes than through android equivalents.

On the flip side of the coin, Android is improving at a tremendous rate and it shouldn't be too long before it's quality is comparable to iOS, but I don't think most people would see the two as equivalent yet. But I also think that every new cool feature is going to appear on Android first. If there's a WiMax 2 phone, it'll be android first. LTE r10 / IMT-Advanced phones will be Android first. Nifty new UI features will probably appear on android first. There's plenty of reason to want to stick with Android even with all it's warts, and I think it's a little delusional to not want to admit that Android has faults. It has faults and they need to be fixed to turn the platform into a more consumer desirable platform.

I don't have any Choppiness on my EVO. NONE, anywhere in any application, including Flash in the browser. Everything runs smoothly with no hiccups. So I'd have to ask what phone folks are getting choppiness out of, because it isn't happening with my EVO.

 

[Dark_Blu]

I kind of agree with you.... I love my x but there are a few flaws that piss me off. I cannot find a program that syncs my music right on my mac. Doubletwist is slow and isyncr doesn't pick up changes in titles. My pros n cons list is this:

Android
google navigation!!! (Use it daily)
Customization
Love my large screen
Flash
Durable phones (my iPhone 3g cracked the day I bought it from a 6 in drop)
Does everything and more

IPhone
Goes well with my macbook
Endless accessories
Way more apps/better quality app store
Predictable updated and life cycle
More stable os

Actually now that I write that out I remember why I love android

PS: feel free to add/subtract to and from this pro cons list....it could help people make a more informed decision

After getting accustomed to having Flash with no crash on my EVO coupled with sense and Android as well as the apps I need, I compared my EVO to my son's iPod touch (iPod without the phone), and came to the conclusion that an iPhone wouldn't do anything for me because I have what I need and it works for me. The only gripe I have with the EVO is the low amount of built in memory, but I can live with that versus a phone without Flash and being tied to iTunes. I can copy files back and forth to my EVO. I don't believe the iPhone can do that and I also have HDMI out. The iPhone doesn't have that either. So I'm not one of those people who's willing to make due with a lack of features just to have an iPhone. I need certain functionality and that's it for me. Steve ever opens up the iPhone to copy and paste to the file system and lets Flash onto it, I'll reconsider. Until he does, nothing else will bring me to the iPhone, at least not until it arrives at Sprint and I doubt that will ever happen.

 

[Dark_Blu]

You can make an argument that the IPhone 4 is maybe the third or fourth best phone on Verizon right now. No LTE, no simultaneous voice and data and it isn't a world phone. I don't see the big deal.

I'm with you on this one. If it were a NEW iPhone with new features, dual core, LTE, and a world phone, I could see the point, but it's the same old iPhone with a CDMA chipset. It will be funny if it drops calls if you "hold it the wrong way". after CES, the iPhone is old news.

 

[Dark_Blu]

there's a traitor among us lol. Im switching from iphone to android. Atrix here i come baby.

Welcome to the fam!!

 

[slayerfaith1982]

I have three android phones (G2, myTouch 4G and Vibrant) and a Galaxy Tab and there is no doubt to me that the Android UI is more choppy than the iPhone UI (I also have an iphone 4 and 3GS), sometimes annoyingly so and in sometimes ridiculous ways. Just tonight when trying to call someone I went to hang up after I thought there was no answer and the phone didn't respond immediately to the hang up button - it continued to ring through until the person on the other side answered. I was able to talk and hold a conversation but for about 30 seconds or so the UI seemed more or less completely locked up. The hang up button was illuminated as if it had been depressed or was stuck mid press.

Android will sometimes get into situations in which user input gets stalled. I notice it can't reliably playback music under moderate load with PowerAmp and WinAmp - the audio can stutter and stall (Galaxy Tab, G2 - I haven't really duplicated this with the other three) in comparison to the iphone where the music playback seems just about as bulletproof as it can get.

There are other examples that can be frustrating for day to day use but most of these things involve stalls to the point that I have to battery pull rather than patiently wait for what I presume is some garbage collection of death to finish.

The general Android UI paradigm is better - I like notifications showing up in one place, I love the google voice integration and use that daily, I do like the menu button as you described and so on but I think the implementation of these features is barely out of lab or pre-alpha quality at this point and in particular compared to iOS.

Compounding that is that the iPhone seems to attract more polished apps and I still feel that app management and song, video and playlist management is easier through itunes than through android equivalents.

On the flip side of the coin, Android is improving at a tremendous rate and it shouldn't be too long before it's quality is comparable to iOS, but I don't think most people would see the two as equivalent yet. But I also think that every new cool feature is going to appear on Android first. If there's a WiMax 2 phone, it'll be android first. LTE r10 / IMT-Advanced phones will be Android first. Nifty new UI features will probably appear on android first. There's plenty of reason to want to stick with Android even with all it's warts, and I think it's a little delusional to not want to admit that Android has faults. It has faults and they need to be fixed to turn the platform into a more consumer desirable platform.

I totally agree with this. iOS is much less choppy and more responsive than android. I have a Droid Incredible and like it a lot. It moves like butter compared to the original droid. However i still get instances when typing on the keyboard that the haptic feedback and letter entry gets SERIOUSLY delayed. I've also played with the original droid (which is slide-show choppy and slow currently on 2 of my friends phones with all updates), as well as droid X. They're UI is maybe 85% as smooth as iOS at best, and at times (depending on what apps are running in the background or whatevers going on or if it's been a while since you've reset) to like 50% choppier than Iphone.

Plus games on android stink compared to iphone, but not a big phone gamer.

All that being said, I will not be picking up an iphone as I am waiting and hoping the 4g android devices with dual core tegras are finally able to match the responsiveness of the iphone. (Secretly hoping for a 4g windows phone with zune compatability most of all!)

 

[Joker35]

I totally agree with this. iOS is much less choppy and more responsive than android. I have a Droid Incredible and like it a lot. It moves like butter compared to the original droid. However i still get instances when typing on the keyboard that the haptic feedback and letter entry gets SERIOUSLY delayed. I've also played with the original droid (which is slide-show choppy and slow currently on 2 of my friends phones with all updates), as well as droid X. They're UI is maybe 85% as smooth as iOS at best, and at times (depending on what apps are running in the background or whatevers going on or if it's been a while since you've reset) to like 50% choppier than Iphone.

Plus games on android stink compared to iphone, but not a big phone gamer.

All that being said, I will not be picking up an iphone as I am waiting and hoping the 4g android devices with dual core tegras are finally able to match the responsiveness of the iphone. (Secretly hoping for a 4g windows phone with zune compatability most of all!)

i have the Incredible and dont have the choppiness at all. my Dinc going from the the stock phone to rooted then back to stock. i dont find a problem with typing at all. i have the htc keyboard, swype, and the gingerbread keyboard and they all work great. no delay for me.

i will say that the iphone paved the way for our android phones, but i think this is a case that, the student passes the teacher. flash anyone?

you say games stink on android. but if i recall both have Angry Birds and it is free in the android market. so i say things like that are a score for android.

 

[Dexter73]

In early February we will probably see AT&T commercials showing how their IPhone can do simultaneous voice and data and how much faster their phone is than Verizon's. It will be IPhone vs. IPhone.

 

[RHChan84]

I know the iPhone has the loss of signal with a certain grip but has anyone actually seen it happen or dropped a call with that. I talked to a few people and they said, they do see loss of signal but when they are on a call, they never dropped any calls.

Is the iPhone exclusive to VZW only now?

 

[RUSH]

Is the iPhone exclusive to VZW only now?

I would guess so. I guess we just have to face it -? The Iphone is and will always be the most popular phone ever made. Maybe not the best, but most popular.

 

[Cyber Warrior]

In early February we will probably see AT&T commercials showing how their IPhone can do simultaneous voice and data and how much faster their phone is than Verizon's. It will be IPhone vs. IPhone.

Good..... maybe they will destroy each other. Farewell iPhone.

 

[slayerfaith1982]

i have the Incredible and dont have the choppiness at all. my Dinc going from the the stock phone to rooted then back to stock. i dont find a problem with typing at all. i have the htc keyboard, swype, and the gingerbread keyboard and they all work great. no delay for me.

i will say that the iphone paved the way for our android phones, but i think this is a case that, the student passes the teacher. flash anyone?

you say games stink on android. but if i recall both have Angry Birds and it is free in the android market. so i say things like that are a score for android.

I'm not saying its bad at all. Just not iPhone smooth. It's nitpicking in some cases (not as quite smooth pinch booming) to more dramatic at other times (keyboard delay) I don't Di rooting or roms so mine has always been an out of the box experience. I notice the delay mostly within the messaging app as that app can already be sluggish

 

[anon62607]

I don't have any Choppiness on my EVO. NONE, anywhere in any application, including Flash in the browser. Everything runs smoothly with no hiccups. So I'd have to ask what phone folks are getting choppiness out of, because it isn't happening with my EVO.

Here is one example I posted a week ago in another thread, in this case the G2 exhibiting delayed response relative to the iphone 4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugtJs7Fk9uA

I need to post other example videos, I've made a bunch of them showing relative response and stutter. It is painfully obvious at 1000 fps but as you can see, obvious at 240 fps as well.

 

[CarbonOak]

A lot of people make good and interesting points for both Droid and iPhone. It's all personal preference and what you're looking for in a phone.

My friends and I used to be all Blackberry users, but have all switched to Android and found that it better suits our experiences, with no intentions of switching to iphone at all. For us, the customizations and the do-anything-I-want mentality of Android is much more suitable.

One of my friends who has the original Droid is switching to iPhone though, as she finds it far more straightforward and smooth. I don't blame her, as Android is not for everyone, just like the iPhone is not for everyone.

Last summer I bought an iPod touch and gave iTunes a second try (I had tried it long, long ago) and I absolutely hated it. It was slow and messed up my music library. I promptly returned it and now have my music on my phone (Droid X).

As much as I love Android, I do have to give props to the iPhone and it's OS. It's good, it's stable, it's simple, and it's appealing to a wide audience. They have better quality apps (in general, though Android is making great progress there) and a wider developer base. And Apple's marketing is great, which combined with the walled-garden approach, is why millions are hooked into that never ending yearly upgrade cycle.

But Android has proven far more useful and powerful for my friends and I. I don't have one company limiting what I can and can't do with my phone. I can sideload apps, I can customize my UI to the moon, I have great and useful widgets, I have an awesome notification system, and I can truly multitask. And I don't have iTunes bulking up my PC and taking forever to sync music.

As said before, competition breeds innovation, so let's see what Google can do with Honeycomb, Ice Cream (Sandwich), and beyond. That Xoom tablet is very interesting....

 

[mikeracn]

Why? I have used Photoshop on both platforms, and I can't see why graphic designers prefer macs. Maybe they like them because, being artists, they like the design of the cases/hardware and the pretty UI?? Seriously, the hardware is identical to PCs and Windows has better support for 3D and graphical hardware (except for the cheesy desktop animations on Macs and Windows). Please explain what makes Macs superior for graphic design with today's computing technology.

 

[eric6052]

My dad is one of the most technophobic people in the world and he's decided he needs a smartphone on Verizon. Money is right for him so I'm of 2 minds. He'll be adding a line to my family plan to come over so he gets the discount pricing. The iphone would probably be easier to teach him to use but it would be more expensive for him since he would have to but the phone. Or I could give him my Droid X and use the upgrade for a Droid Bionic. He likes the screen size of my X for ease reading. I think I can set the homescreens up to make it similar to IOS with a grid if icons on 3 or 4 screens. I'm not sure but that's probably what I'll end up recommending for him but the decision is his.

 

[iSRS]

I have been an apple hater for well over 15 years and personally didn't want the Iphone to hit VZW. Even though I don't have an android phone as of yet I have been trying my best to be patient to get the best I can when I have the money so im not unhappy with a device for 2 years again like I have been with my storm1/2 ( Got Duped 2 times :-( ) And from what I have been reading on most sites now is proving what I feared would happen when apple joins a company. New crappy policies are being announced and changes are being made and thats what apple loves to do. Next phase we will see is apple starting what they do best and sueing everyone for yet something else they claim is theirs. Thats why I wish they would have stayed exclusive to ATT because that was a match made in heaven.

I will first admit, I have been using Apple products since the Apple ][e days. Always have, always will. I am also a long time Verizon customer, so wanted to get all that out. That said, over the past few years, the writing was on the wall that this was going away. They dropped the amount from $100 to $50, to $35 to now $0. I doubt this was an Apple "Demand" - Verizon likely saw this as the perfect time, knowing they will be getting new customers because of the iPhone. The only thing the changes have to do with Apple/iPhone is timing. Not a demand.

As far phones, I have a Palm Pre plus, and my son has a Droid Incredible he got for Christmas, because he didn't want to wait any longer. So I have experience with other Operating Systems, including iOS on my iPod. For ME, iOS is everything I want. This is a good move for iOS fans, Android fans, webOS fans, etc. It gives us all a choice.

I am another member who will not be leaving Android for the iPhone. Why would I move to a device that charges for apps that are free on Android?

(i.e., Angry Birds free on Android, but .99 on Apple). This is just one example.

Angry Birds on iPhone (I have it on my iPod touch) is 99? with no ads. Free on Android with ads. I am sure Rovio could release an ad supported version on iOS, but they clearly see that there is enough money being a paid app. I am not sure if it is still true, but I remember reading something about 6 months ago about iOS users spend more on apps. That is good for developers. Again, not sure if it is still true, or if it is because it is easier to track the one App Store vs the choice/various markets on other platforms.

Basically, all the platforms have their strength and weakness.

I think it may hurt Android due to the fact that there ARE people out there (certainly not everyone) who got Android because it was all they could get.

This is true. My entire family (wife, kids, parents, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc) is on Verizon. When I posted a link to one of TiPb.com's rumor links, the comments were all along this line "Great! I am due in April. I'll be getting one" - Many of them still with "feature phones" - but several use Android phones today.

I wonder how tech support is going to be with the Verizon iPhone. I know someone who has to drive 2 hours to the nearest Apple Store and then wait in line to talk to someone because the local AT&T store won't support his.

Apple will continue to handle, I believe. We have only had an Apple store here for about 6 months. Prior to that, the closest was about 2 hours away. One thing you can do, though, to help avoid the line/wait, is go online and make a reservation. This will give you a pretty accurate time to go to the store for.

 

[Dark_Blu]

Does the iPhone have a 4.3 inch screen? HDMI out that mirrors? A replaceable battery, so I have the option of an extended battery? Is there a fully rugged case available for it? No? Then no, I'm not swapping an EVO or my carrier to become a DRONE instead of a DROID.

 

[Brett]

Here is one example I posted a week ago in another thread, in this case the G2 exhibiting delayed response relative to the iphone 4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugtJs7Fk9uA

I need to post other example videos, I've made a bunch of them showing relative response and stutter. It is painfully obvious at 1000 fps but as you can see, obvious at 240 fps as well.

Okay, yes you can see a slightly noticeable speed increase on the iphone but what does the iphone's home screen really do that uses resources? That's the major difference that causes the slight lag.

On an iphone you can look at thumbnail sized images that represent your apps, that's it. Android lets you use widgets on the home screen where you do not have to open an app to check the weather (or whatever the widgets you choose to use).

I know my opinion is obviously biased but I will say this. The iphone is a great device. Great screen, fast and there are a lot of accessories available for it. Though, if you are coming from an android device and have been using one for at least 4 months minimum then you will most likely experience regret with the lack of customizable features and appearances.

Don't get wrong, speed is great but without much function from the home screen what do you have? A really fast app drawer? I would love iphone speed with android function. since this is not completely possible with stock phones then I will sacrifice a small bit of speed in order to use something that is designed for me by me (widget/app placement). If I want an app drawer as a home screen then maybe I'll pick up an iTouch (although I'm am perfectly happy with just using android).

Sent from my Droid Incredible because I'm too lazy to walk over to my computer.

 

[anon62607]

Okay, yes you can see a slightly noticeable speed increase on the iphone but what does the iphone's home screen really do that uses resources? That's the major difference that causes the slight lag.

On an iphone you can look at thumbnail sized images that represent your apps, that's it. Android lets you use widgets on the home screen where you do not have to open an app to check the weather (or whatever the widgets you choose to use).

I know my opinion is obviously biased but I will say this. The iphone is a great device. Great screen, fast and there are a lot of accessories available for it. Though, if you are coming from an android device and have been using one for at least 4 months minimum then you will most likely experience regret with the lack of customizable features and appearances.

Don't get wrong, speed is great but without much function from the home screen what do you have? A really fast app drawer? I would love iphone speed with android function. since this is not completely possible with stock phones then I will sacrifice a small bit of speed in order to use something that is designed for me by me (widget/app placement). If I want an app drawer as a home screen then maybe I'll pick up an iTouch (although I'm am perfectly happy with just using android).

Sent from my Droid Incredible because I'm too lazy to walk over to my computer.

It's not just the home screen, but that's the easiest one to catch on video. For example, normally when sending an sms to my girlfriend, I only need to type out the first three letters and her name completes and is looked up in the contacts. There's perhaps a perfectly acceptable second or so delay for it to do so. Two days ago the delay was more like 20 seconds and the phone very sluggish otherwise (tmo g2). Rebooting the phone fixed that and that goes into the intermittent category, but I never see that on iphone. It seems like an odd problem for a phone to have.

There are more consistent UI stalls. For whatever reason the web browser is much more choppy than any iOS device (the video of that is more dramatic than the home screen scrolling video), pinch to zoom across several types of apps is more smooth in iOS.

Also in terms of an active home screen, it's true that android is doing more than iOS, but windows phone 7 also has an active home screen and doesn't have the same choppy feel.

Keep in mind my impressions are coming from there different android phones (plus a galaxy tab) and one of those is pretty close to completely stock. I think it's in general an android issue rather than something specific to any one device.

I won't switch from android, I switched from an iphone 4 (which I still have as a secondary phone) to android. There is a lot to like about android and I prefer it to iOS, but the UI, to me, is much more choppy than iOS and iOS seems quite a bit faster on the same class of hardware in general.