I’ve recently had occasion to carry a Motorola Droid, then an iPhone. I thought the droid was a pretty great phone, at first. The elements were all there – I could quickly see the basics, which is really my main criteria:
- what time is it?
- do I have email (if so, is it easy to digest it quickly, moving from msg to msg)?
- text msgs inbound & outbound
- good call functionality (logging, etc)
- functional contacts access
- …and I could play Angry Birds.
Over time, apps bogged it down, and it needed to be reloaded, but I’m used to that with Microsoft operating systems. (sorry to my MS friends, but you know it’s true). The wireless functionality is barely there to non-existent. Very poor quality, low signals, etc. The OS is not baked – sometimes no matter how hard you try, the slider will not answer the phone. HELLO, kind of important. The internet is better than previous smart phones, but again, not a great experience, kind of slow.
Enter the Verizon iPhone. Wow. Every phone EVERY phone should be an iPhone. it’s not because of any one feature. It’s just magic. The glass, the apps, the web, the interface, the camera …you name it, it’s the phone evolved.
I should say that I’m not a gadget guy, nor am I a brand loyalty kind of guy, and my love & trust for a company is typically in reverse proportion to it’s market position as a status symbol or monopoly. I guess it’s kind of political; it is mostly a reaction to consumerism & the very profitable push that keeps Americans spending money they don’t have to keep up with the cool kids. That’s objectionable. So my resistance to all things i has been pretty high.
But several things push me over the edge, and I really like this phone.
- Verizon makes it far more affordable than AT&T
- The data plan cost is the same on the droid as on this iPhone
- This is an amazingly well engineered device.
- the camera is amazing
- video is amazing
- the size is stunningly small
- nothing is half-baked on it, nothing. That cannot be said of virtually any other rushed-to-market consumer device, particularly in the smartphone arena.
The thing I’m not wild about: being corralled into itunes. I have been spoiled using Rhapsody, where my whole family - including two college kids and a teen at home – all get all-we-can-eat music for 15/mo. We can load up our computers, devices, etc. It’s a really great value. Want to listen to that WHOLE CD until you’re sick of it? Go ahead.
I think the Incredible2 is pretty darn awesome, although I haven’t carried one. I have a coworker who does and loves it. I think the Droid X’s big screen is its downfall, too much of a power hog, too big for your britches – bulky.
If you’ve gone the other way, I would be interested to hear about it – are you an iphone user turned droid user?
