Captivate or BB Torch?

[dt81]

I want to add another device to my inventory and have been looking at the Captivate AND the BB Torch. I know this is an Android forum but hoping someone has used both to point me in the right direction.

 

[Brett]

seeing as how nobody has responded yet and there are 60+ views, ill jump in haha.

well as you stated this is an android forum so all of the opinions here will prob be biased based on either past experiences with BB (i had a storm so im not a fan from the get go) or from just loving android and not know anything else.

if you are a business user then BB is probably the safest bet. the keyboard is nice and the layout is very professional. that's all i got haha

android on the other hand is fast (apps and the browser blows away BB's browser). Android has a stronger app market then BB by far and there are a lot of free apps and even the paid ones don't really cost you an arm and a leg. Multi-tasking is great because unlike the BB's out there, you do not have to really worry about lag from too many apps being open. Is it possible to experience lag on android with too many apps open? sure it is but it will take a lot to be open before it is extremely noticable. The screen resolution on all of the new android handsets blows away the BB which from what i have heard on reviews isn't great. Google sync is great too because all of your google tasks, calender, contacts etc. are all stored in the cloud so you can switch to another android phone and just login with your google account and you have all of it pushed directly to that phone.


EDIT: I did not even notice your name haha. Great name

 

[planoman]

Depends on your needs...

Very long time BB user came to android a few weeks after the captivate came out. A few important things to note:

1. Do you depend on email for your business or is it very important to you?

2. Do you use gmail as your main email?

If you are not on gmail and email is important I would go with the BB. There are several email apps and workarounds for other emails and android has a stock email app but they are no where near the speed and reliability of blackberry. Gmail is really the only email system that works well on captivate out of the box.

3. Is battery life important to you? not too sure about the torch but the captivate battery will last 8 hour day with moderate use. On heavy use days you will have to plug in.

4. I think the BB is a better phone. Never had a issue with bluetooth or handset volume on a BB and I owned 3 different models. The volume on the captivate is lower at max than a BB.

5. Captivate is funner, more complex and more customizable. Takes a bit longer to master but we are only at 2.1 on the OS so many more things are coming.

6. Do you like apps games etc? Captivate is a great screen and the android marketplace has already surpassed the BB app world. Lots more for the captivate than the torch.

Just some thoughts and of course my own opinion...

 

[anneoneamouse]

One other issue not mentioned here is basic device security-

(i) Android doesn't have hardware based encryption
(ii) The lock-screen doesn't seem as secure as entering a code
(iii) Device-wipe from exchange only kills your email, not the whole device (security-suite apps can be bought to do this, but they need to run in the background all the time; those I've tried seem quite slow)
(iv) device-reset doesn't include multi-writeover with zeros.

BB implements better protocols for all these things. If I lose my captivate, I'll be terrified. If I lost a BB, no problems.

AoN

 

[dt81]

Ya, Brett is a pretty good name. haha. I know the hardware aspect and the pro's and cons of Android vs BB6. I was looking more at how the captivate as a phone is better then the Torch. Are there any known issues with the captivate that one may not like?

 

[dmnall]

Well let me chime in on my opinion of the BB Torch vs Captivate *be it I bought the captivate the day it launched on ATT* but I did get a chance to spend a couple of hours with the torch. For a BB User the torch is an easy transition but it is not the best user experience in my opinion. The touch screen is slow to respond, OS 6 is sluggish *worse then the stock firmware the captivate came with* and the interface is all over the place. THe web browser is slow. But the latest JH7 I have not experienced any lag and I have been running it for a few days, seemed a lot faster compared to JF6. The Captivate has a more responsive screen and after being on the Captivate since July 18, 2010. I am not going back to Blackberry... Android just has a lot going for it, yes it is not as secure for screen locks but the os is getting better and better...

HTH,
Charlie

 

[jflexe99]

Have you played with both?

I myself came from two blackberrys(and loved em) to the captivate. had the bold and bold 2. when the torch came out, I WANTED IT! But when I actually played with a phone I never seen before...the captivate, I fell in love. The speed, the screen, the apps/abilities, the ability to really customize your phone(unlike a fruit based phone) was just awesome.

Are you looking for more business/texting based phone? Keep well organized and pushed data? Or something that is a serious powerhouse in speed, web browsing, media and most things?

No one...can compete with BB pushed email, they are the best for getting updates/notifications out FAST! Pushed data...I MISS IT!

 

[Apanther]

bberry beats Captivate in enterprise security and pushed email. other than that, the experience of the Captivate makes bberry look and feel like you're using 5 year old technology.

I carry a bberry for work and its not even in the same class. not even close.