AT&T "cripples" Android phones?

[whitenack]

I currently have TMO, with a palm treo. I have been researching making a change for about a month now, and have decided that I will wait on a Samsung Galaxy S through the AT&T network.

However, I read a blog or two today that was complaining about AT&T's Android phones, saying that they hope the Galaxy S is not "crippled" like the other Android phones that have been released on AT&T in the past. There was no other explanation of what they meant by this.

Can anyone offer comments on what these bloggers might have meant? Has AT&T crippled or hindered Android phones in the past? Or, is this just unfair bias against AT&T for being so buddy-buddy with Apple?

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[terpitude71]

basically it means that AT&T does not allow "side loading" of apps on the android phones they have released. or in ley terms, you can only download apps from the marketplace on phones such as the backflip. on other carriers, you have the option to install apps directly from .apk (the extension for android apps) files that you throw on your phone or download from other sites. there are quite a few apps that are pretty awesome (like music junk for example) that you cant install on those At&T android phones since they arent in the marketplace.

 

[quetzalcoatl]

You can side load apps on to a backflip yes it is an extra step but you can get to anything really that will work with 1.5. That is the big problem with the backflip is the version of the OS.
As to what will or will not happen with the GalaxyS. Remember Samsung signed a deal with Yahoo. So I would not be shocked if it comes with it.

Are the blogs being fair to AT&T not really but AT&T did bring it upon themselves. They have released one android phone and they did do some dumb things on it. But a lot of what has been bitched about is due to it running 1.5. And that is because moto was working on the darn phone so long and did not get it out when they were going to and is still wokring on upgrading it.

 

[Jeremy]

AT&T has not real high quality Android device yet. They are more "novice" devices. When and if that happens, you will be able to side load apps.

 

[whitenack]

As to what will or will not happen with the GalaxyS. Remember Samsung signed a deal with Yahoo. So I would not be shocked if it comes with it.

OK, now you have me worried about the Galaxy S. I assume if Samsung is buddy-buddy with Yahoo, they won't have all the great Google stuff installed?

 

[YourMobileGuru]

AT&T has not real high quality Android device yet. They are more "novice" devices. When and if that happens, you will be able to side load apps.

I wouldn't count on that bud An UNcrippled top tier Android device like the Milestone, Desire, Galaxy S, would blow the iPhone out of the water and the are never gonna bite the hand that feeds them and risk the wrath if Uncle Steve...