Motorola's DROID Does Plenty the iPhone Can't

[ElZorro]

nope, always on the rom, not on the card. unless it has been rooted.

aside: i distinctly remember palm os not having any of these problems... *shrug*

Yea, Palm OS you could install on the card. Thats a bummer on the ROM issue... wonder how they deal with apps with large amounts of data/cache, Google Maps for example.

[complacent]

^ like i said, I had much higher hopes for this phone and the platform in general. I really did.

[Katya4me]

nope, always on the rom, not on the card. unless it has been rooted.

aside: i distinctly remember palm os not having any of these problems... *shrug*

Yea, Palm OS you could install on the card. That's a bummer on the ROM issue... wonder how they deal with apps with large amounts of data/cache, Google Maps for example.

I just celebrated my 1 year anniversary with the G1. The memory is starting to get a bit full, but that's mainly from my web cache and stored emails with 68 currently installed apps. Depending on the manufacturer and format, I'd definitely jump on a T-Mobile Android 2.0 phone. Or just see if I can root the G1 and install 2.0.

[complacent]

^ well that's positive news. thanks just out of curiosity, do you know how data intensive apps are cached? if the apps themselves can't be larger than X, can some portion of the program (swap space, datasets, etc) be stored on the card?

i know it's a bit of an odd question, but i don't know many folks with andriod devices.

[Katya4me]

^ well that's positive news. thanks just out of curiosity, do you know how data intensive apps are cached? if the apps themselves can't be larger than X, can some portion of the program (swap space, datasets, etc) be stored on the card?

i know it's a bit of an odd question, but i don't know many folks with andriod devices.

I actually haven't stored anything on the card yet. I can store music, video, pictures, books, etc. on the card and I think I can also download stored emails to the card. Beyond that, I actually haven't investigated. The only time that space has become an issue at all has been since I got Donut and manifests if I am running multiple apps, ie. browser with multiple windows, Gmail, Google Maps, GPS and sometimes 1-2 other items. In that situation, the traffic map overlay will turn off because I am running low on memory.

[complacent]

Orly? Eeeenteresting...

Are you using a stock-ish rom? I may have to go fondle one of these devices afterall...

[Katya4me]

Orly? Eeeenteresting...

Are you using a stock-ish rom? I may have to go fondle one of these devices afterall...

Haven't touched a thing on the phone as I'm trying to follow the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" policy with this one.

[schvin]

i know it's a bit of an odd question, but i don't know many folks with andriod devices.

hijack - speaking of which - has anyone here played with running android on a gumstix box (hard to really call it a box)? i have read of some progress there, and am thinking of going this route for car computer.

[complacent]

hijack - speaking of which - has anyone here played with running android on a gumstix box (hard to really call it a box)? i have read of some progress there, and am thinking of going this route for car computer.

holy crap! that sounds like a bit of work. are you planning on using something like the flow motherboard? or are you just going to build a box just around the gumstix itself?

[Cereb Daithi]

Cnet's review is out

Check it out if you haven't seen it already

[Sabre]

Here's a few things that caught my eye:

...it's a clear departure from Verizon's locked-down past.

Thank god because the other phones that were crippled by them sucked a donkey!

The capacitive display's touch interface is quick and responsive and we love the added multitouch capability

Very happy to hear this because other than the iPhone, the other touch screens have been less than stellar.

The accelerometer will adjust the display's orientation as you rotate the Droid in your hands, but you can turn this feature off.

Funny, the only thing that I got out of this was that the phone had an accelerometer

In a baffling change from previous devices, the Droid does not have a physical Talk control. Instead, you'll have to access the calling functions through a widget on the display. We're not in love with this change, mostly because we prefer to be able to call up the phone dialer without having to go through the home screen. For example, you have to close the browser if you want to make a call while viewing a Web page.

I'm sure this would bother some... but it isn't a deal breaker for me. As long as I can access the website while on a call (as in, looking at a map and yelling at a person where to do), who cares?

Finally, while the Droid's browser doesn't have Flash Lite support, it does have a plug-in that will support Adobe's Flash 10 player when it's available.

This needs to be fixed ASAP.

The Motorola Droid is equipped with GPS/A-GPS, but what's different is the new Google Maps Navigation app. While still in beta, you can now get voice-guided, text-to-speech directions, instead of just text-based instructions, on Google Maps. And the best part? It's free.

w00t!

Photo quality was decent, but not spectacular. Though colors were bright, our images were a tad fuzzy and had a pinkish tone

Of course, you must store apps on the handset's integrated memory, which is limited to 512MB ROM and 256MB RAM. The Droid's memory card slot is only for saving photos, music, and other attachment files. You get a 16GB card in the box, but the slot is compatible with cards up to 32GB

As mentioned above, WTF?!??!

We tested the dual-band (CDMA 800/1900; EV-DO Rev. A) Motorola Droid in San Francisco using Verizon service and call quality was excellent.

Very happy to hear this!

[schvin]

hijack - speaking of which - has anyone here played with running android on a gumstix box (hard to really call it a box)? i have read of some progress there, and am thinking of going this route for car computer.

holy crap! that sounds like a bit of work. are you planning on using something like the flow motherboard? or are you just going to build a box just around the gumstix itself?

i think just around the gumstix + their add-ons. i'll start a thread for it once i have the hardware in hand.

[ElZorro]

Or just see if I can root the G1 and install 2.0.

Done.

http://www.boygeniusreport.com/2009/10/ ... e-g1dream/

[complacent]

review round up:

Gizmodo second look.

Engadget review.

Engadget supplementary review.

BGR complete review.

Gizmodo final review.

General consensus - Best smartphone on Verizon, horrid camera, buggy apps, huge potential. Sounds about right for a 1.0 product. I'll be following reviews after a few months and possibly a software update or two.

[complacent]

Looks like Google is serious about letting apps live on an SD card. No really, I mean it.

this holds promise.

[Sabre]

EXCELLENT!!!!!!! It just became my next platform*97%

[Mr Kleen]

they have 18 months to get it right.

[complacent]

discussion went like this:

moi - should wait a quarter, see what bugs appear, get fixed.

her - okay, that makes sense and sounds smart. especially since i'll be using it for work.


ffd 5 hours


her - got the droid!

moi - :facepalm:



I love my wife.

[Sabre]

Awesome!

[Sabre]

/. article

Tom Bradley reports in PC World that the new Motorola Droid smartphone will cost users $199.99 with a 2-year contract, with an additional $30 per month for the mandatory 'unlimited' data plan that has a monthly cap of 5Gb. Verizon will charge $50 for each additional gigabyte over the 5Gb limit on the unlimited data plan. Verizon has confirmed that tethering will cost another $30 per month for an additional unlimited data plan that is also limited to 5Gb. If you want tethering you will pay $60 above and beyond the monthly contract for service for an 'unlimited' 10Gb of data per month, and if you plan on connecting with an Microsoft Exchange email account you have to pay another $15 a month. 'Verizon seems to be doing everything it can to make the Droid as unappealing as possible by nickel and diming customers so that actually using it is not cost-effective,' writes Bradley. 'After all of the hype around Verizon's marketing efforts, and generally favorable reviews of the Motorola Droid, users that rush out to get the new device may be in for a shock.' Droid users will have to wait until sometime in 2010 for tethering. 'That service is on our schedule for next year,' says Verizon spokeswoman Brenda Raney. The delay is because 'the service has to be tested on the phone so until we know it works, we don't offer the service. It is not uncommon for us to introduce the phone and continue to test the service and offer it later

OUCH.

[scheherazade]

" 'unlimited' data plan that has a monthly cap of 5Gb "

tee hee

-scheherazade

[ElZorro]

" 'unlimited' data plan that has a monthly cap of 5Gb "

tee hee

-scheherazade

I'm still waiting for the 'false advertising' class action lawsuit in this area...

[schvin]

her - got the droid!

despite data plan stuff, how is the actual phone?! haven't played with one yet...

[Libra Monkee]

It's a bit heavy and I only got half of the SMSs sent from it. Oh wait was that question for me? Either way the phone looks very cool. I gave it a good drunken fondle.

[complacent]

/. article

OUCH.

That FUD-spreader Tom Bradley needs to check his damn facts, period. I hate s like him.

$30 extra data plan? So what? Same as the data plan for all of Verizon's smartphones. Coincidentally, it's the same for the iPhone plans. And the other AT&T smartphone plans. Go figure, right? Sprint has mandatory plans that start at $70... same as iPhone. how bizarre!

You only pay $15 more a month for if you are on a corporate exchange plan. Businesses only. Personal accounts are able to access exchange accounts just fine on the standard $30/mo data plan...again, just like the iPhone.

5GB cap? That's been discussed ad nauseam with multiple carriers for some time now. Almost every major US provider is doing it. Don't like it? Try a canadian data plan.

Waiting for tethering? Still waiting for the iPhone to get (official) tethering, Sprint has completely removed tethering from their plans. And at $30 it is comparatively cheap when held up against a dedicated data card, which normally go for $60/month on most providers. Oh yea, they also require a separate contract commitment. People who are used to stealing tethering from Verizon with the older qualcomm chipsets (you nerds know who you are) are probably the ones complaining about the tethering charges the most. Although I will admit that Verizon used to charge only $15 extra for tethering.

Bottom line, I'm not exactly sure who he's intending to aim for, or why he's being misleading with the facts. The droid isn't anymore expensive than AT&T, and only moderately more than Sprint. You want cheap? Go T-mobile and don't complain about lack of 3G coverage across the country.