Motorola Shadow - thoughts?

[Music Ian]

I know this should be in the "new devices" category (or whatever it's called) but I know more people will see it here so I'll post it here too.

So the Shadow - what are your thoughts? Would you consider an upgrade even if it pops out only a year since the Droid? I personally didn't have money for a Droid when it came out, and now that I do I'm not sure if it would be a worthwhile purchase with a potentially 1GHz (maybe more??) processor and most likely pre-stocked Froyo phone with a 4.3" screen right around the corner.

What would you guys suggest?

 

[Brett]

The shadow isn't the Droid 2. It is another Motorola phone that will be released under Verizon's Droid line. It looks like it is a good phone overall but there 3 reasonswhy I'm not sold on it.

1) it will have motoblur with android 2.1 which will cause issues with future updates. Look how long it took sense to get 2.1

2) it lacks a physicalkeyboard. I know the Motorola Droid's keyboard isn't great but it does come in handy. If they made a more user friendly keyboard it would be used a lot more than a software keyboard.

And 3) the 1 ghz snapdragon processor is common place in cellphone technology and seeing how big competition in the general cellphone market, I'm sure something bigger and better is right around the corner.

Is the shadow a good phone? Yes it is. Is it ground breaking and setting any bars or standards? No. It is just a new phone trying to keep up with the competition.

I'm waiting to see what the Motorola Droid2 has to offer. And bizz was telling me about a Motorola Droid Pro that is coming out at the end of the year. That phone is seeming to be something that will create the new standard.

So with the shadow I'm going to have to say, pass.

 

[luniboy26]

While I agree with Brett for the majority of the points he said here's where we differ:

1) This will pretty much be the same processor for the Droid which for some will be a deal breaker but to me I don't find a problem with it cause its speedy enough for the things I do.

2) Being that it will have a lower processor it will have similar battery life to Moto Droid and as long as you have the brightness on the lowest settings on the Droid you are guaranteed to get through the work day.

3) Motoblur can be turned off and/or its easier to ignore than Sense which to me has way too much going on and completely changes the Android experience.

4) Motorola handset quality as of late is better than HTC's (ie. The Driod doesn't have the screen mis tap problems as a Nexus)

 

[nox]

Please don't open up the same thread in two different places, yet alone in the wrong section(s)

 

[Brett]

While I agree with Brett for the majority of the points he said here's where we differ:

1) This will pretty much be the same processor for the Droid which for some will be a deal breaker but to me I don't find a problem with it cause its speedy enough for the things I do.

2) Being that it will have a lower processor it will have similar battery life to Moto Droid and as long as you have the brightness on the lowest settings on the Droid you are guaranteed to get through the work day.

3) Motoblur can be turned off and/or its easier to ignore than Sense which to me has way too much going on and completely changes the Android experience.

4) Motorola handset quality as of late is better than HTC's (ie. The Driod doesn't have the screen mis tap problems as a Nexus)

you do make a few good points about it but even though they are good points they also will none the less be sacrafices by choosing this device:

1) yes, the rumor has it that it will have a very similiar processor as the droid. Keep in mind though that it good for what you use your droid for now. who knows what will be available 1 year from now. certain apps, games, Android upgrades might require a bigger processor. this is not a big issue now but in most cases people are going to be signing a 2 year contract in order to get it so they need to think long term.

2) the battery issue may be true, not sure. i seem to get more life out of my battery when i am over clocked. I dont know if they have some encorperated into their phones like what setcpu does but if they did, that would be an amaizng phone because it would have control of what the processor is set to.

3) i have heard rumors that motoblur might be able to be shut off but it is not concrete at this point. even if you can shut it off it will still take up memory that is not needed if you do not want motoblur. I think they should have an option to download it off of their site and add it if you like to but it did not come stock. some people may like the ability to switch between the 2 but not everyone. I dont know how that will work with upgrades either because if it comes with motoblur 2.1 i would assume the standard Android also has 2.1 and that you would not be able to upgrade to 2.2 if there is not a 2.2 motoblur.

4) i can't even argue about that one haha. Motorola's devices are built with quality in mind. i mean the droid is made out of metal with a plastic back and accents. When you hold a droid, you know you are holding somthing expensive. with htc phones they are light (some people like that, not saying they are wrong for it) and to me they feel cheap and for the majority they are all plastic except for the HTC Legend (i must say i love the way that thing is build, it solid).

all in all, i think Motorola have great concepts now but the shadow is not for me. Bring on the Droid 2 or the Droid Pro

 

[luniboy26]

you do make a few good points about it but even though they are good points they also will none the less be sacrafices by choosing this device:

1) yes, the rumor has it that it will have a very similiar processor as the droid. Keep in mind though that it good for what you use your droid for now. who knows what will be available 1 year from now. certain apps, games, Android upgrades might require a bigger processor. this is not a big issue now but in most cases people are going to be signing a 2 year contract in order to get it so they need to think long term.

2) the battery issue may be true, not sure. i seem to get more life out of my battery when i am over clocked. I dont know if they have some encorperated into their phones like what setcpu does but if they did, that would be an amaizng phone because it would have control of what the processor is set to.

3) i have heard rumors that motoblur might be able to be shut off but it is not concrete at this point. even if you can shut it off it will still take up memory that is not needed if you do not want motoblur. I think they should have an option to download it off of their site and add it if you like to but it did not come stock. some people may like the ability to switch between the 2 but not everyone. I dont know how that will work with upgrades either because if it comes with motoblur 2.1 i would assume the standard Android also has 2.1 and that you would not be able to upgrade to 2.2 if there is not a 2.2 motoblur.

4) i can't even argue about that one haha. Motorola's devices are built with quality in mind. i mean the droid is made out of metal with a plastic back and accents. When you hold a droid, you know you are holding somthing expensive. with htc phones they are light (some people like that, not saying they are wrong for it) and to me they feel cheap and for the majority they are all plastic except for the HTC Legend (i must say i love the way that thing is build, it solid).

all in all, i think Motorola have great concepts now but the shadow is not for me. Bring on the Droid 2 or the Droid Pro

Good points also sir lol. Picking a phone in todays world especially an Android phone requires lots of questions like the one we are bringing up. I'm not saying I'm sold on the shadow because that would be silly to praise a phone that's not released. Personally I would just rather have a vanilla Android experienced without the training wheels or handicaps of some OS skins. I'm just looking for a slim sleek device that can keep up with Android progress and it seems that your only choice is the Nexus with second place coming to the Moto Droid. I'm glad we can come to some sort of an agreement and your points are all valid questions that I'm also looking for the answers to. So for now ill just play the waiting game like everyone else and see if this Shadow can bring enough to the table without sacrificing the battery life too much. Better processors would remedy this somewhat but people always think better equals higher (ie snapdragon is the highest available on phones so everyone wants this on their phone not realizing the strain it puts on the battery). I would take the Droids style processor over the current snapdragons available in the Incredible, Nexus, and Desire because its been out longer and has been tweaked to the max to give better results. At this point I don't really see the processor lacking in the Droid because its pretty close to the one found in the Apple iPhone 3Gs which has way more graphically intense games and still manages to play them well. What we need is developers intergrating everything available and stop half a**ing the games in the marketplace when compared to their equivalent on iPhone and that would press manufactures to use better processors or lose sales due lags and slowdowns from
gameplay compared to other phones. If done the right way I would be more than happy to get the Shadow over the Incredible which to me is a less attractive nexus already obsolete and of course the Droid 2 is on my list granted the keyboard is significantly better I'm not saying its sucks because its better than nothing but it could make you not want to reply to people if you use it too much lol thank God for voice to text.

 

[ulnek]

so droid pro is diff from droid 2? hopefully we get to see droid 2 sometime soon like aug. >_<

 

[Holsum]

And 3) the 1 ghz snapdragon processor is common place in cellphone technology and seeing how big competition in the general cellphone market, I'm sure something bigger and better is right around the corner.

The 1 ghz was quarter one chip model. Just wait till Q4 with Qualcomm's 1.5ghz DUAL core cpu....MUAHAHAHHAHA. Motorola is lagging way behind release this phone with a year old chip.

http://gizmodo.com/5443976/qualcomm...dragon-smartphones-are-about-to-go-hyperspeed

 

[ylexot]

A higher clock frequency does not necessarily mean a faster processor.

Also, the OMAP 3630 processor is not the Moto Droid processor.

 

[Trophias]

I've never actually had a Motorola device, what is MotoBlur? Is it just another UI like the Sense UI from HTC?

 

[ylexot]

I've never actually had a Motorola device, what is MotoBlur? Is it just another UI like the Sense UI from HTC?

MOTOBLUR - Motorola USA

 

[Trophias]

gotcha! Thanks

 

[thebizz]

its going to be a great phone the processor is close to what we have now but supports much more. the screen is bigger and it should run without issue with a snapdragon phone dont be fooled. no amoled screen so you shouldnt have issues seeing it in bright sunlight. all in all a great alternitive for the incredible and specs alone its close to the evo.

 

[moosc]

No ssnapdragon no more Motorola for me

 

[Kyle Gibb]

I reserve judgement until this thing becomes official. But I am sure having another great high end Android phone on Verizon is nothing but good =)

 

[thebizz]

No ssnapdragon no more Motorola for me

You must not understand how overrated the current Gen snapdragon processors are. The omap 3639 will do everything the 65nm snappys can while being better on the battery and producing less heat

 

[Droid800]

No ssnapdragon no more Motorola for me

The current Snapdragon is already outdated. The platform has existed since 2008.

Just because QSD might boast a high clock speed, it doesn't mean that all of those that boast lower clock speeds are inferior. The Droid Shadow's performance running on Android 2.1 ALREADY is faster than ANY non-2.2 QSD-equipped HTCs.

 

[derichio02]

We also must point out that the Snapdragon, even though at 1ghz, has an integrated GPU. The OMAP 3630 has a discrete(dedicated) gpu. So while the Snapdragon is 1ghz it also has to use some of that processing power to assist the integrated gpu. Think of it in computer terms.

 

[SpartanDroid]

Ya I agree that the Shadow looks real nice. I am pretty excited to see what its going to look like when it comes out and how its going to be setup. I am assuming it is going to run exactly like the droid because of how profitable that did for them. Motorola is finally turning their company back around it seems

 

[thebizz]

It's fast theirs currently talk going on why it benchmarks so fast running 2.1 and using the omap 3630. Their are picks of it in other forums.

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