Moment, Hero and Pre Review - Long Post

[IIJBII]

Since there are a lot of questions regarding the Samsung Moment, HTC Hero, and the Palm Pre I thought I?d write my own review of the devices. **Please note this is my opinion based on my personal use and thoughts on the devices. This is not meant to offend anyone or ?push? one device over another.**

To give some insight into my experiences with these devices, I?ve used all three devices and am currently using the Samsung moment.

Samsung Moment:
4.5" x 2.34" x 0.63" Weight: 5.67 oz. Battery Information: Standard Lithium (Li-ion) 1440mAh Talk Time: Up to 5.5 hours
I?ll admit when I first stared using the Moment my first thoughts were the device is big. It feels a lot bigger then the Hero as well as the Pre, but by the actual device specs its only slightly larger. The Moment is also heavier but this isn?t an issue for me. I think the larger size and additional weight helps to give the device a solid feel.
Screen
The screen impresses me on the Moment. Not only is it crisp but also it is also very responsive. The onscreen keyboard is also easy to use and I prefer this to the Hero?s onscreen keyboard. I don?t believe you can calibrate the Moments onscreen keyboard like you can for the Hero, however, I?m finding I don?t really need to.
Setup
The Moment was very easy to setup and includes exchange synchronization. I believe there were some questions on this initially. I think the setup is as easy as the Hero and the Pre.
Interface
The Moment does not use the SenseUI like the Hero. I actually like the UI on Moment better. It feels ?cleaner? to me (not sure how to describe this). The Moment only has 3 Home screens as opposed to the Hero?s 7. I prefer only 3 as it keeps things more organized and I can still access apps as needed. I don?t really use widgets so the additional screens are not something I need.
Speed
The Samsung Moment is very snappy (so far). I?ve loaded the same apps I had on the Hero and its much quicker to open and change task/applications. I know the faster processor helps with this and I?m not sure if the fact the device does not use the SenseUI helps the speed but it does seem a bit faster then the Hero.
Slide out Keyboard
The slide out keyboard was big for me as I prefer an actual keyboard over a virtual/onscreen keyboard. The keyboard is a nice size and pretty easy to use. I?m still getting use to the keyboard layout and think the space key could have been larger (just my opinion). Other then that, I like having the slide out keyboard but actually find myself using the onscreen keyboard on the device as well. As mentioned above I like the onscreen keyboard on the Moment better then the Hero. The device is also very quick to switch views when using the keyboard or rotating the device. This also seems quicker then the Hero.
Misc
Battery ? The battery is close to the capacity of the Hero however I?ve not been able to use the Moment enough to judge the battery performance. I was able to get through a day of work on the Hero?s battery using some apps/tweaks. As long as I can get through a day of moderate to heavy use with a device I?m happy.
Optical Joystick ? I?m impressed with the optical joystick. It?s very responsive and easy to use. I was curious to how the optical joystick would work, as it seems other device will be launching with this in the future. I prefer the Joystick to a trackball/wheel. Time will tell if the there will be any issues with the joystick, but so far I prefer it to other device navigation options.
Overall
Overall I?m happy with the device so far. The apps as we all know are great and there are plenty available. The speed of the device is impressive and makes using the device a lot easier (hardly any lag at all).
The one think I found that I haven?t seen any comments on is the social network integration. I?m not huge on the social network ?scene? so this isn?t a huge factor for me, but I haven?t found a way to integrate contacts with say Facebook. Which means unlike the Hero the Moment (currently) will not pull your Facebook contact information, pictures and status as the Hero did. Again, not an issue for me but may be a concern for others. I will say the Hero and the Pre seemed to handle this very well.

Palm Pre
2.3" x 3.9" x 0.67" Weight: 4.76 oz Battery Information: 1150 mAh Standard Talk Time: Up to 5.0 hours of continuous talk time
Size
I was happy with the size of the Pre and the screen. It fit very nice in my hand/pocket and I had no issues with the keyboard size. The Pre is smaller then the Samsung Moment.
Screen
I was happy with the screen on the Pre and the gestures were easy to use.
Setup
The Pre was very easy to setup with all accounts/settings. I think Palm did a great job with Synergy (I know there are some issues) but considering this is really a first for a device I think it worked very well.
Interface
I liked the interface on the Pre and the ability to multitask and switch applications. This takes some getting use to moving to a Hero or Moment, but, isn?t a big deal to me.
Speed
The Pre was pretty good for my needs regarding speed. The browser was great, however I did experience occasional lag when using the device. But I need to be fair and understand this is a mobile device so they?ve packed a lot into a small device. Regarding speed I think the Moment is faster all around.
Keyboard
I know some users had some concerns with the Pre?s keyboard. I had some issues getting use to it at first but was able to adapt very quickly and had no issues. I like the feel of the keys on the Pre?s keyboard. The Moment has ?harder? keys and they aren?t the ?gummy? Key?s like the Pre.
Misc
I was happy with the Pre and experienced issues like many others. I?m actually on my 4th Pre but I knew getting a first gen device would lead to some surprises. I have to say Sprint handled each defective device very well and were great to deal with regarding replacements.
One (personal) thing about the Pre is the overall feel. When comparing it to the Moment or Hero it (again my opinion) feels cheap. It has some wobble and cracking sounds, which gives the feel of a cheap device.
The Battery on the Pre seems to be a hot topic. I had issues with my first 2 Pre?s as many others. The device would get very hot and wouldn?t last very long. My current Pre?s battery works fine and gets me through a day of moderate/heavy usage.
Overall
I liked the Pre and think it?s a great device depending on what you want/need out of a Smartphone. I?ve switched to the Hero and now the Moment to try Android and because I was a little disappointed with the updates/apps for the Pre. It seemed Palm made a big splash but has been rather slow to follow-up especially with other devices coming to market. I used homebrew apps and tweaks but still was getting frustrated with the lack of attention from Palm.

HTC Hero:
4.5" X 2.2" X 0.5" Weight: 4.5 oz. Battery Information: Standard Lithium Li-ion 1500 mAh Talk Time: Up to 5 hours of continuous talk time
Size
The size of the Hero was great for me. It felt good in my hand/pocket (not too big) and also had a very solid feel.
Screen
The screen was also nice on the Hero. I had no issues with the screen size. I showed the device to someone and they commented that the icons/apps were too small and hard to read. This wasn?t my experience but I can see what they were talking about. The Moment seems to have the same size icons so this may be a concern for others.
Setup
The setup on the Hero was very easy and seemed well thought out. The Moment is similar which is nice.
Interface
The interface was great. The SenseUI was nice, but I really didn?t need it. The 7 screens was also nice, but for my use was too many. It caused me to clutter the screens with apps I hardly use which I think could have slowed down the device.
Speed
I think this was my biggest concern with the Hero. The speed was good but could lag at times when switching/launching apps or pulling up the keyboard. It wasn?t horrible but it did get frustrating at times. Again, this wasn?t a huge deal but may be concern for others. I also though the web browser was slow at times (on WIFI or EVDO with a full signal).
Keyboard
The Hero?s keyboard was nice but took some getting use to. I think for an onscreen keyboard it?s good but I like the Moment?s onscreen keyboard better. Also, the onscreen keyboard had some occasional lag when typing/opening.
Misc
I think the Hero is a great device and has a lot to offer. There are some bugs like any new device but if you are looking for a nice Android device and don?t need a keyboard the Hero could be a good choice.
The Hero?s battery (after some tweaks) would get me through a day of moderate/heavy use, which I?m happy with. It took some adjustments/apps to help the battery life but after that I was happy with the battery life.
One think I didn?t like about the Hero was it seemed I needed to tweak or install some apps to help manage the system. Task Killer was one of the applications I used to help performance and battery life. This wasn?t difficult to do, however, I felt I shouldn?t have to use applications to help the system manage memory and running apps. I?ve not experienced these issues with the Moment yet.
Overall
I think the Hero, Moment and Pre are all great devices/tools depending on what you need/expect from a device. I know many people are looking for suggestions on what device is the ?best?, but I?ve always looked at these devices like tools. It depends on what you need and what?s important to you. Once you define this you can pick the tool for the job/requirements that fits.

 

[prot0type]

Awesome review.

Thanks for putting in the time to do one!

Also, I'm assuming it's the standard Sprint pack ins for this phone as well? USB cable, power adapter, 2gb microsd, instructions. No case or pouch?

 

[IIJBII]

Awesome review.

Thanks for putting in the time to do one!

Also, I'm assuming it's the standard Sprint pack ins for this phone as well? USB cable, power adapter, 2gb microsd, instructions. No case or pouch?

Yes, no case. It includes the phone, battery, 2 gig micro SD card, AC charger, wired headset (think its stereo because it has 2 ear buds, and a USB cable. The charger isn't like the one that came with the Hero or Pre where you can remove the cable to plug in to a USB adapter. Its a "standard" AC charger but they include a separate USB cable.

 

[prot0type]

Is the included programs about the same as the Heroe's? Specifically, the media player?

 

[IIJBII]

prot0type - The programs/application seem the same from what I can tell.

 

[ERDude]

Great review

 

[brendanb]

Thanks for posting this. It seems like my best bet would be with the Moment from the looks of it. I tried a Hero today and I feel like SenseUI is a little cramped on that small screen. I feel the Moment will have a cleaner experience, especially with a physical keyboard.

 

[IIJBII]

Thanks for posting this. It seems like my best bet would be with the Moment from the looks of it. I tried a Hero today and I feel like SenseUI is a little cramped on that small screen. I feel the Moment will have a cleaner experience, especially with a physical keyboard.

brendanb - I agree with your statement the Moment (to me) feels like a cleaner easier to use interface especially with the faster processor.

 

[vincarrillo]

I got the Moment yesterday after trading in my awful HTC Touch Pro. I just want to touch on one thing that set me off when I got home with the Moment - I wanted to fully charge it before I started making a lot of calls, just to get an idea how much use I could get out of a full charge. Sprint took just the phone (HTC TP) from me, no charger, no case, no SD card. So I still had the HTC charger plugged into the wall. The HTC charger was so cheaply made, in less than six months with little to no handling, the sleeve had pulled from the USB connector where I could see the silver wiring inside. So I realized at that moment how cheap HTC products are - the phone failed twice (replaced due to a keyboard failure) and the charger was now coming apart.

When I removed the Samsung charging cable from the packaging, I saw it was reinforced at both ends making it unlikely to fall apart like the cheaply made HTC cable. As mentioned in another thread, HTC has spread themselves so thin trying to saturate the market with their branding, their hardware and software are turning into jokes.

 

[sprint_fan]

I got the Moment yesterday after trading in my awful HTC Touch Pro. I just want to touch on one thing that set me off when I got home with the Moment - I wanted to fully charge it before I started making a lot of calls, just to get an idea how much use I could get out of a full charge. Sprint took just the phone (HTC TP) from me, no charger, no case, no SD card. So I still had the HTC charger plugged into the wall. The HTC charger was so cheaply made, in less than six months with little to no handling, the sleeve had pulled from the USB connector where I could see the silver wiring inside. So I realized at that moment how cheap HTC products are - the phone failed twice (replaced due to a keyboard failure) and the charger was now coming apart.

When I removed the Samsung charging cable from the packaging, I saw it was reinforced at both ends making it unlikely to fall apart like the cheaply made HTC cable. As mentioned in another thread, HTC has spread themselves so thin trying to saturate the market with their branding, their hardware and software are turning into jokes.

What a bad experience! I can understand what you are saying with saturating the market, but I think the Hero has awesome build quality. My dad has had his HTC Touch Pro (the AT&T version) and it doesn't seem to be rock solid like the Moment and Hero, but he actually has dropped it in water and it still works. The slider design seems to be a little bit cheap, but with the Hero not having a slider it seems fine to me. I think I will be going to give the Hero a try and if it doesn't work out for me, I will try the Moment.

 

[billecorgan#AC]

I have had the Pre before (haven't had hero because I hate touchscreen only phones). I have to have a physical keyboard. So far, I'm loving the moment. It's fast, the home screens are so customizable. My Pre felt so laggy compared to this phone. I'm very glad to have this phone!

 

[ramiss]

I agree. I just left a Touch Pro for the Moment and I am loving it. Still playing with the features but so far I have no complaints at all.

One observation. I think the Moment's key placement is odd. For example the shift and enter keys are way up high which is hard to get used to. I keep pressing enter when I want to press the backspace.

However, after using the Moment for a few hours and then trying the TP keyboard I found it difficult to press the TP keys. The Moment's keys have such a light and full feel to them that the TP keys just seemed sticky and unresponsive.

 

[Applejackson]

Just want to point out as well, for people who are interested in the extra screens on the Hero, you can use Pandahome (free) to customize your UI on the Moment. If you drag an icon to the edge of an outside screen, it will make a new screen for you (up to 7). The new screen will stay as long as you have icons on it, but if nothing's there, will disappear. In that respect I think the customized Moment is actually a more efficient way of handling extra screens. Personally, I can't imagine needing 7 unless you're running a lot of widgets, which I feel would put too much of a strain on battery life. Pandahome also gives you side-docks that will follow you to all of your screens and you can bring them out whether on screen 1, 3, 7, whatever . They'll always contain your 8 favorites though (4 on each side) so you don't have to flick through 4 screens to get back to your contacts icon, just tap the side-dock and it's right there. I have to point out that you can, of course use Pandahome on the Hero, but then what's the point when the Moment hast the AMOLED, the slide out keyboard, and the faster processor?

 

[rldev]

I have to point out that you can, of course use Pandahome on the Hero, but then what's the point when the Moment hast the AMOLED, the slide out keyboard, and the faster processor?

Well form factor is important to many people, including myself. The Moment is a brick. For example even though the Droid is heavier, it feels much better in your pocket because the weight is distributed evenly on the device and it is much thinner. The Hero is obviously much lighter than the Moment. For people like my wife who carry it in their bag, this is not a concern. Hence, she will be getting a Moment for the added pluses. For people like me that carry their phone in their front pocket, the Hero is a better fit.

 

[Applejackson]

I guess that comes down to personal preference. I upgraded from an Instinct version 1, which is obviously much smaller and lighter (and crappy as anything but just a phone), and I thought the weight and size of the Moment might be an issue. Once I had it for a day I got used to it and now actually prefer the heft and solid feel to the phone. It doesn't seem large at all when I'm not directly comparing to other devices. Really the only dimension it's larger than most is in thickness, and that's because of the keyboard (a worthwhile trade-off for me for sure). I also carry my phone in my front pocket. I don't see it being an issue unless you're an emo kid with those tight little pants, LOL. I'm not bashing on the Hero anyway. I was seriously considering it as well. I was mostly pointing out that if the UI was going to be a deciding factor for someone, then they should know that you can recreate Hero's SenseUI (or better) using home replacement apps. It just wont be set up out of the box, so if you don't want to get into customizing then the Hero might be the way to go. I have to say it was a smart move by HTC to get rid of that stupid chin-jut on the US Hero. I wouldn't have even considered it if it still had that, so form-factor is definitely important to me too. That would feel weird in your pocket, I think.

 

[sprint_fan]

Yes. The chin is so horrible with the European Hero. Makes it look so ugly! The one thing on the Moment, though, is I didn't like the virtual keyboard. I liked with the Hero having the dialpad, compact QWERTY, and then both a full vertical and landscape. I know the Moment has a physical, but I like having the different options. And I like the prediction better on the Hero than the Moment. Just personal preference. Will see how it goes though.

 

[twgreg727]

Thanks for the thorough reviews.

I just traded in my Hero for the Moment. I had the Hero for two months, but the lack of BT Voice-Dialing and the horrible voice-command app (which worked 5% of the time) was the final deal breaker for me. I had no hands-free option for using the phone while driving.

The Moment (with the CL14 update) now supports voice commands over Bluetooth and the Moment's Voice Control app works great, with an adaptation feature that trains the VC app to better recognize your own voice. The hardware keyboard is also a BIG plus for me.

Here's what I miss about the HTC Hero:

The Size - Hero's smaller profile felt a little better in my pocket, but I've adjusted to the extra girth of the Moment.

HTC Sense UI - The UI seemed a little more responsive on the Hero. I liked having the ability to resize objects with my fingers. The extra home screens were nice too, but I had a tendency to be more cluttered. With the 3 home screens of the Moment, I've started using folders to organize my apps (more like my home PC).

HTC Widgets - There were some very nice native widgets with the Hero that I got accustomed to. Well executed and looked cool too.

The Music Player - I'm old school... I've got alot of albums loaded into my music folder and I like to listen to them start to finish, beginning with track 1. The Music Player widget in the Hero had the ability to organize the tracks in their proper order (by track number), nicely displayed the album artwork, and had a simple interface. It could read the ID3 tags in my MP3 files properly.

The native music player in the Moment doesn't organize my individual album music tracks by track number, it puts them in alphabetical order. Unacceptable. So, since getting the Moment, I've been on a quest to find a simple music player app that can play back my MP3 "albums" by track number.

Why is that such a tall order? The only player I've found so far (and I have tried them all, as far as I know) that does it properly is the Museek, and I hate the interface. Far too confusing, with too many features and options that I don't need and that get in my way.

I've tried RockOn, Museek, Meridian, MixZing, and a few others. They all seem to be geared toward creating, sharing, and organizing Playlists! Playlists have no use for track numbers.

I just need a very simple music player that supports a few popular music file formats (not video) and has the ability to organize tracks by their track number. It should also be able to read m3u playlist files. I don't need EQ (would be nice, though). Essentially what I need is plain vanilla Android MP3 player app.

Is that asking for too much? Any suggestions?

Cheers,
Tim

 

[twgreg727]

Just discovered TuneWiki. This comes closest to what I'm looking for, just need to disable a few bells and whistles.

Cheers,
Tim

 

[JTnTX#AC]

Thx for the Moment/Hero/Pre review. A Palm user from the time of Handspring, I am **not** in love w/ my new Hero ... lack of a physical keyboard turned out to be a bigger drawback than I had anticipated, and the lag time was a disappointing surprise. I love the Pre's UI but the phone itself feels like such a piece of junk! I'm afraid one tumble from my uncoordinated hands would be the end of it. (And what's w/ not just including Classic on the Pre??) The Moment feels very sturdy (almost to the point of unwieldy), and I've had excellent experience w/ Samsung phones in the past. Putting sentiment aside, Android is the OS of the moment (no pun intended) as well as the future. Looking forward to trading in my Hero for a Moment.

 

[ItsaMamaLuigi]

Two weeks ago I bought a Pre. A week after that, and after much agonizing over the decision, I swapped it for a Moment. I'm very happy with my decision. The Moment's keyboard is actually usable, the phone itself feels solid and well-built, and it's fast. I do miss the easy multitasking of the Pre, the contact list synergy, and the compact, attractive form factor. But there are so many things about the Moment that are better.

Obviously, Android OS has tons more apps. Way more potential. There's really nothing webOS can do that Android can't. Having a customizable home screen with widgets and more than four apps visible at a time is much better than on the Pre. The Moment almost has too many buttons; the touchpad is a bit much IMO and doesn't work very well, but on the other hand, the Pre's dialer was a bit laggy and sometimes caused me to dial the wrong number by accident. Calling someone was a many-step process. It still requires several steps on the Moment, but not as many.

And there are little details about the Moment that I just like. The rubberized back feels much nicer than the smooth one on the Pre and it doesn't attract fingerprints. The slider mechanism is more solid, the volume rocker is a lot better, and the door covering the USB port doesn't completely suck.