I'm in a similar situation. I may pick up the droid2 on a 30 day rental. I need an Android device and don't think I can wait on the sidelines for the Facinate to be released. I think the facinate is the much superior device but I'm willing to mess with Droid 2 for 30 days. I suppose I will just have to swallow the $30 restocking fee.
No Fascinate For A While
- Thread starter TreyDaPrince
- Start date
I'm in a similar situation. I may pick up the droid2 on a 30 day rental. I need an Android device and don't think I can wait on the sidelines for the Facinate to be released. I think the facinate is the much superior device but I'm willing to mess with Droid 2 for 30 days. I suppose I will just have to swallow the $30 restocking fee.
Yep. I think the Fascinate will be superior as well. To me, it's mainly whether I can deal with an all-touchscreen device.
Anyone know if the Fascinate can be WiFi hotspot? I haven't seen anything about this.
In the videos from the event, they show the Fascinate with mobile hotspot. It would be nice if Verizon gave it to us free, but they will most likely charge for it.
I returned my phone to Verizon and am currently without an Android device. So shameful I know. I feel like less of a man now...
I suppose I am going to go ahead and try to get the droid 2 for a 30 day rental. Hopefully Samsung get their act together and release the Facinate.
I alos think verizon is stupid to not have the Facinate release already, especialy with limited stock of Droid X's. If you create hype with a new device, the x, and you run out of inventory then what do you tell your customers.. "We don't have it?"... Why not stock the Facinate and anyone wanting an X can redirected to a comparable or even better device.
Why do they think customers are dumb or will want to wait?
Why not stock your stores with as many high end devices as possible?
It's not like they have an excuse either since ATT and Tmobile have already released their Galaxy S versions.
Well, it could be October before the Fascinate is released.
Verizon upcoming phones – 10MP Android, Storm 3, two tablets and more by the end of the year (Phone Arena News)
This rumor has it being released in October, along with the Droid Pro. As far as the DPro, that's a month earlier than what was rumored earlier. But, the Fascinate in October? Samsung and Verizon customers are getting screwed with this one if that's the case.
Verizon upcoming phones – 10MP Android, Storm 3, two tablets and more by the end of the year (Phone Arena News)
This rumor has it being released in October, along with the Droid Pro. As far as the DPro, that's a month earlier than what was rumored earlier. But, the Fascinate in October? Samsung and Verizon customers are getting screwed with this one if that's the case.
I hate to say it, but if Verizon delays the Fascinate until October, they might as well just kill it. What would be the point of releasing a phone that is that far behind the curve? The Galaxy S will be old news by then. As much as I want one, I'm not sure I'll wait that long, or (if I do) that it will still seem like the best choice in October.
I sure hope that info is wrong. (And I'm rather skeptical -- a handset called the "Sick"? I don't buy that for a second...)
And then there's this report that the Fascinate has shown up in Verizon's Cellebrite system (which is used to transfer contacts between phones):
Samsung Fascinate hitting cellbrite systems | DontHateTheGeek
It's not clear what this means, but in the past it has been seen as an indication that release of a phone is "imminent" -- whatever that means.
I sure hope that info is wrong. (And I'm rather skeptical -- a handset called the "Sick"? I don't buy that for a second...)
And then there's this report that the Fascinate has shown up in Verizon's Cellebrite system (which is used to transfer contacts between phones):
Samsung Fascinate hitting cellbrite systems | DontHateTheGeek
It's not clear what this means, but in the past it has been seen as an indication that release of a phone is "imminent" -- whatever that means.
The Fascinate will be my next phone even if I have to wait till December. Hopefully, VZ is just waiting for Samsung to get the GPS working at 100% before they release it. I just wish the Fascinate looked like the Captivate, that's a nice looking piece of hardware.
As much as I don't want to believe the late-October release date, the more I think about it, the more it kind of makes sense (at least from Verizon's perspective).
Samsung has promised a Froyo update for the Galaxy S in September. They've also promised a GPS fix in September. Verizon may well have decided that the best way to set the Fascinate apart from the other Galaxy S variants is to ship it with Froyo and functional GPS.
Frankly, I'd rather have the phone now, with 2.1 and the broken GPS, and take the OTA fixes when they come. But from a marketing perspective, I can see the argument for shipping "The only Galaxy S phone with working GPS and Android 2.2 out of the box!"
Now I have to decide whether I'm going to wait that long. I'm starting the think that the Droid Incredible (which is actually available) is looking pretty good.
Samsung has promised a Froyo update for the Galaxy S in September. They've also promised a GPS fix in September. Verizon may well have decided that the best way to set the Fascinate apart from the other Galaxy S variants is to ship it with Froyo and functional GPS.
Frankly, I'd rather have the phone now, with 2.1 and the broken GPS, and take the OTA fixes when they come. But from a marketing perspective, I can see the argument for shipping "The only Galaxy S phone with working GPS and Android 2.2 out of the box!"
Now I have to decide whether I'm going to wait that long. I'm starting the think that the Droid Incredible (which is actually available) is looking pretty good.
dsignori
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- Jun 25, 2010
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Except that by that time every other high end phone on every carrier will have upgraded to 2.2, and 3.0 Gingerbread will at that point be just 1-2 months away supposedly. Not much to brag about IMO ..
I think you guys are looking at the delayed release of the Fascinate from the wrong perspective - technical vs. business.
Think about it - you are Motorola in negotiations with VZW for the first Droid and several more models to be released later (if the first model reaches a certain number of units sold). You are about to dump a bunch of money into R&D on an unproven platform (at the time) and want to maximize your return on that investment. Because of this, you put a clause in your contract that says that VZW will not release a phone with the same or better features or specifications within x weeks or months of the release of your products. That way, you have some time to recoup some of your development money before a competing device comes on the market with that carrier. In return for that, you commit to releasing a certain number of phones in a certain timeframe.
So, my guess is that the reason for the Fascinate delay is business, not technical.
Just my thoughts on this Thursday morning.
Think about it - you are Motorola in negotiations with VZW for the first Droid and several more models to be released later (if the first model reaches a certain number of units sold). You are about to dump a bunch of money into R&D on an unproven platform (at the time) and want to maximize your return on that investment. Because of this, you put a clause in your contract that says that VZW will not release a phone with the same or better features or specifications within x weeks or months of the release of your products. That way, you have some time to recoup some of your development money before a competing device comes on the market with that carrier. In return for that, you commit to releasing a certain number of phones in a certain timeframe.
So, my guess is that the reason for the Fascinate delay is business, not technical.
Just my thoughts on this Thursday morning.
Not sure that most believe it's a technical issue over a business one. I, for one, think that it's more a business one. The problem is that VZW may be shooting itself in the foot by delaying it because the longer they delay it, the worse it will do in sales. So, while it's been apparent that VZW doesn't like to release devices close together such that they can take full advantage of their releases, waiting until October seems much too long and would be an extreme detriment to them IMO. By October, the device would simply be irrelevant, and even more so with the Droid Pro coming out in the same timeframe. IMO, they'd be much better off releasing it at the beginning of September to maximize their sales since sales with the D2 would have started to decline, and it would be far enough in advance of the release of the R2D2 D2.
dsignori
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Yup, Amen. As I've said, I think most of us believe that VZ thinks it's in their best interests to wait. It's just that none of us believe it actually is in their best interest to do so.
There is little chance VZW is being forced contractually to wait. I can't believe they will make any significant additional profit by selling a X over a Fascinate to a given person. So why not sell them both? They still get the sale, still get the contract. What they get by not having it is possible defections, and also exactly what DolfanCole states, i.e. a less relevant phone at release.
Now if this was a mid level or lower end phone, these things don't matter. But this is, and is being pitched as, a TOP TIER phone. It seems unlikely that come late October it actually will be. At best, there will be leaks and rumors about new awesome phones, and Gingerbread, etc (god help us if this phone releases in Oct with 2.1 too).
I just don't see any possible advantage at all to this delay. Plenty of downsides to waiting, zero upside that I can see. I know VZW thinks they see something, that is clear. I would be 'Fascinated' if they would enlighten me though
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You are forgetting the third player in this, Motorola. It is in Moto's best interest for VZW to delay the Fascinate. As long as VZW hasn't released the Fascinate, the only choice for a top tier Android device on the VZW network is Moto (think Apple and ATT). This is why they would have put that stipulation into a contract to bind VZW.
I agree that it is not in VZW's best interest to delay the Fascinate. I agree that the longer the delay, the less relevant the Fascinate becomes. I agree that this delay may cause defections.
My only point was that this delay in the release of the Fascinate may be due to terms in VZW's agreement with Moto made back during the original Droid development. From Motorola's point of view, the longer the Fascinate isn't on the market, the better.
I agree that it is not in VZW's best interest to delay the Fascinate. I agree that the longer the delay, the less relevant the Fascinate becomes. I agree that this delay may cause defections.
My only point was that this delay in the release of the Fascinate may be due to terms in VZW's agreement with Moto made back during the original Droid development. From Motorola's point of view, the longer the Fascinate isn't on the market, the better.
Yup, Amen. As I've said, I think most of us believe that VZ thinks it's in their best interests to wait. It's just that none of us believe it actually is in their best interest to do so.
There is little chance VZW is being forced contractually to wait. I can't believe they will make any significant additional profit by selling a X over a Fascinate to a given person. So why not sell them both? They still get the sale, still get the contract. What they get by not having it is possible defections, and also exactly what DolfanCole states, i.e. a less relevant phone at release.
Now if this was a mid level or lower end phone, these things don't matter. But this is, and is being pitched as, a TOP TIER phone. It seems unlikely that come late October it actually will be. At best, there will be leaks and rumors about new awesome phones, and Gingerbread, etc (god help us if this phone releases in Oct with 2.1 too).
I just don't see any possible advantage at all to this delay. Plenty of downsides to waiting, zero upside that I can see. I know VZW thinks they see something, that is clear. I would be 'Fascinated' if they would enlighten me though
Nor would VZW want to be contractually obligated to do so. I can't imagine VZW agreeing to signing a contract that would basically force them to wait so long that they would effectively be prevented from selling a phone until it becomes irrelevant. If they did, whoever agreed to it should be fired.
Understand your point, but I just can't imagine that VZW would make any such agreement. There's just no good business-sense to making it from VZW's perspective. And I can't believe that Motorola has enough negotiating power over VZW to force them into such an agreement.
You might agree to it if:
1) Your competitor is working with Apple and has a long-term exclusive agreement
2) Google tells you they have a rockin operating system
3) You need a phone developed to use that operating system - by a company people recognize
4) You won't get hardware developed without a clause like that
5) You aren't sure if this OS will fly or fall
Just think back to the landscape when the original Droid was developed and released.
Not sure how Motorola and Google are tied in with this together. So, don't really understand how (2) through (5) even apply. Plus, two words for Motorola, "HTC" and "Samsung". Motorola is not the only phone manufacturer of Android phones.
I don't buy the conspiracy theories about Verizon having some deal with Motorola that is holding back the Fascinate. If Motorola had the kind of clout that people are suggesting, I doubt very much that Verizon would have been able to release and promote non-Motorola Droid-branded phones like the Incredible.
Instead, I think it's all about differentiation. Remember, Verizon probably doesn't make a dime on subsidized phone sales (they're very likely taking a loss on each sale). They're in the business of selling wireless service, and the phones are one way they get customers in the door.
That's where the Fascinate has a problem. All of the other carriers have Galaxy S variants, and except for the Epic 4G, they're mostly identical. So the Fascinate is not going to bring anyone to Verizon; you can go to AT&T or T-Mobile and get the same thing. I think that explains why Verizon is so much more interested in promoting their exclusives, like the Droids, rather than a "me-too" phone that probably won't win any new customers.
Mind you, I think their reasoning is wrong. They're forgetting people like me: I'm on AT&T now, but I want to switch because Verizon has better 3G coverage where I live. I know which phone I want, and by refusing to sell it, they're losing my business. Every month they delay the Fascinate is another month I give my money to AT&T.
Instead, I think it's all about differentiation. Remember, Verizon probably doesn't make a dime on subsidized phone sales (they're very likely taking a loss on each sale). They're in the business of selling wireless service, and the phones are one way they get customers in the door.
That's where the Fascinate has a problem. All of the other carriers have Galaxy S variants, and except for the Epic 4G, they're mostly identical. So the Fascinate is not going to bring anyone to Verizon; you can go to AT&T or T-Mobile and get the same thing. I think that explains why Verizon is so much more interested in promoting their exclusives, like the Droids, rather than a "me-too" phone that probably won't win any new customers.
Mind you, I think their reasoning is wrong. They're forgetting people like me: I'm on AT&T now, but I want to switch because Verizon has better 3G coverage where I live. I know which phone I want, and by refusing to sell it, they're losing my business. Every month they delay the Fascinate is another month I give my money to AT&T.
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