Moto Droid (Verizon's Android Phone)

[moonpie23]

uhhh dude, i know you're all into conspiracy theories and all, but that's why it's called an AVERAGE.

no, i'm saying that what's odd is, the AVERAGE price is TO THE PENNY....that's just ....i dunno...something's wrong there....

[YourLandlord]

no, i'm saying that what's odd is, the AVERAGE price is TO THE PENNY....that's just ....i dunno...something's wrong there....

...uh, that's how averages work.

Person A pays $43.25/month
Person B pays $36.51/month

Average: $39.88/month

Does anyone actually pay $39.88 a month? Maybe, maybe not. It's just an average, designed to give you a ballpark figure of what you might also expect to pay.

[DevilAlumna]

Windows Mobile, hahahahahahah

I think I just proved them.

Touche!

[moonpie23]

...uh, that's how averages work.

Person A pays $43.25/month
Person B pays $36.51/month

Average: $39.88/month

Does anyone actually pay $39.88 a month? Maybe, maybe not. It's just an average, designed to give you a ballpark figure of what you might also expect to pay.

dood...i know how averges work...

you're missing my point....i just thought it was odd that THEIR average price (to the penny) was EXACTLY (to the penny) the same as the Iphone's "average price"...

you'd think they would somehow make it seem a better bargin...

[hc5duke]

dood...i know how averges work...

you're missing my point....i just thought it was odd that THEIR average price (to the penny) was EXACTLY (to the penny) the same as the Iphone's "average price"...

you'd think they would somehow make it seem a better bargin...

I think both of you are misunderstanding the term "average" in this case. What they mean is not the average of what person A..Z pay, they mean that:
Plan A: some basic features $70/mo
Plan B: most of what you would want included $90/mo
Plan C: everything and the kitchen sink $120/mo

Then the "average" plan refers to Plan B, which costs $90. It has nothing to do with the mathematical average or how much each person is paying at all.

Read it as "Average Plan Total Costs" as "total cost of 'average plan'" not "average total cost of a plan"

[YourLandlord]

I don't know, it looks pretty good to me. Wall St seems impressed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGXK4...eature=related

Holy smokes, that guy's right nostril is enormously larger than his left one.

[ivduke]

The biggest deal is that it is available to Verizon users and the Iphone isn't In this area AT+T service is less than desireable.... Verizon is much better and now they have a comparable phone

I don't understand why people are impressed.

What's the point of a GPS? To a) see where you are now,) determine where you want to go, and c) give you directions on how to get there.

The iPhone, using google maps, already does this.

What's the big deal? That it talks to you? Is that really some world-altering event?

The tech world, amplified by billions of blogs, has really started talking up things that aren't, in reality, that big of a deal. Yes, it's always been this way, but it's getting much worse.

[juise]

The biggest deal is that it is available to Verizon users and the Iphone isn't In this area AT+T service is less than desireable.... Verizon is much better and now they have a comparable phone

I was going to bring up that point earlier.

In every area I've lived (and most that I've visited), Verizon's service has been exceptional and preferable to any other. Five years ago I was really concerned with having the latest phone with the the coolest features. Then I realized that all I really needed was reliable coverage. I have not even thought about changing carriers since. I've been with Verizon for ~9 years now and if I were upgrading to a smart phone, changing carriers would be a dealbreaker for me.

[FireOgilvie]

I don't understand why people are impressed.

What's the point of a GPS? To a) see where you are now, b) determine where you want to go, and c) give you directions on how to get there.

The iPhone, using google maps, already does this.

What's the big deal? That it talks to you? Is that really some world-altering event?

The tech world, amplified by billions of blogs, has really started talking up things that aren't, in reality, that big of a deal. Yes, it's always been this way, but it's getting much worse.

The voice directions actually ARE a world-altering event (for me at least). When I'm driving, especially alone and in traffic, I want to be notified when my turn is coming up. It's hard to keep checking on the display, especially if it's not particularly clear on the display what your next move is. Also, when I am on long road trips, it is easy to forget to look at the GPS, but when it tells me that my turn is coming up in 1 mile, it's very helpful. I have a Garmin and it's a total lifesaver. I haven't lived in my current city very long and several times a week I have to drive to areas I have never been (10-30 miles away). Also, when I change my route on the fly for whatever reason (missed turn, traffic, etc) it recalculates and lets me know another way to get where I am going and I don't have to try to figure out what the screen says. I love it that I can just enter my destination and go, and with Google's search options, that would make it even easier than my current method that involves knowing the exact address and city (which is confusing when there are tiny suburbs and townships). Also, street view and satellite view would definitely be an added bonus in that I'd know exactly what my turns look like if I am totally lost.

[alteran]

Right, but the fact is -- the iPhone has google maps. And it can give you directions between two places. The only GPS feature it does not have is a voice talking to you (which, on my GPS device, I never use anyway -- far too annoying)

The marginal upgrade of a voice is not worth the celebration that OMG GOOGLE NAVIGATION HAS ARRIVEEEEEDDDDDDDDD!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I think you're missing the fact that the new Android gmaps app does turn-by-turn navigation as well, which is much more useful in a car -- particularly when you make a wrong turn.

[The Gordog]

I don't understand why people are impressed.

What's the point of a GPS? To a) see where you are now, b) determine where you want to go, and c) give you directions on how to get there.

The iPhone, using google maps, already does this.

What's the big deal? That it talks to you? Is that really some world-altering event?

The tech world, amplified by billions of blogs, has really started talking up things that aren't, in reality, that big of a deal. Yes, it's always been this way, but it's getting much worse.

In a lot of places (and more to come) it's illeagal to be on the phone while driving, so if you are alone in the car having a phone that you can put down and let it talk to you is a huge deal.

[2535Miles]

Not really, but it does make the market full of crap. Well, more full of crap than the iPhone market. Anyone with $25 can post an app on the market and it becomes available within minutes - this might be a good thing for developers, but it's a nightmare for consumers. Actually it's not that great for developers either as it dilutes the market and when monetization becomes an issue, quality of apps drops.

I think what they still should have made the marketplace a very closed place like the iPhone AppStore. Then if you want to add a 3rd party app outside the marketplace, you can still do it, you just have to be careful about it.

Great post, I share your sentiments. A marketplace with no quality assurance is a scary marketplace.

[alteran]

Great post, I share your sentiments. A marketplace with no quality assurance is a scary marketplace.

Don't fall for the hype. The Apple QA process is a complete joke. The average application and/or update receives a 6-minute QA review.

6 minutes. I wonder if that counts the thirty second install?

And contra the counter-hype, Android Marketplace is not a bulletin board where any shmoe can put up just anything and it goes live. There is a minimal QA process to prevent virus foolishness, etc. My guess is Google isn't shameless enough to call that a QA check.

I have an Android phone myself. I love it-- but it sure as heck isn't really an iPhone. (Particularly since I don't have the data plan!)

There's a lot of reasons to go with an iPhone over an Android device-- a LOT of them. But a thoroughly QA'd app store is not one of them.

[hc5duke]

And contra the counter-hype, Android Marketplace is not a bulletin board where any shmoe can put up just anything and it goes live. There is a minimal QA process to prevent virus foolishness, etc. My guess is Google isn't shameless enough to call that a QA check.

The minimal process certainly doesn't involve any real person. I uploaded my application in the marketplace, and when I didn't see any "pending" messages, I was curious. I went to my phone and was able to find it in the Android marketplace. Within maybe 2 minutes of uploading my application. My guess is the only thing they do is make sure the application bundle is compiled correctly and the signature matches.

As an aside, I hate how there are tons of fake apps titled "Facebook Browser" or "Yahoo Browser" -- pretty sure it's all from the same Indian or Chinese company. All it does is load up an app that is a web browser (which takes no programming) with a home page set to yahoo or facebook, and every time the app loads, it displays an ad. I tried out the "Yahoo Browser" because it had the official-looking Yahoo icon, and I wanted to check out another browser. If there was any kind of a QA process, this type of dispicable behavior would not have been allowed to continue, but it does, because there is no review process, at least not one that is stringent enough.

The main reason (as far as I can tell) developers get upset about the iPhone platform is its closed nature, in that you can't download some random app unless you jailbreak your phone, which can also void your warranty and whatnot. The Android platform allows you to download anything you want already - what it needs is not a flea market that the current marketplace is, but a mall like the AppStore.

Alternate idea: Maybe there is room for the current Android Marketplace, but if they are serious about continuing the Android platform for phones, there also needs to be a secondary store, perhaps one that charges developers an annual fee (iPhone = $99/yr) and guarantees X amount of QA per app submitted. They can also publicize the app review status and reasons for rejection, and rejected apps can fall through to the current marketplace, and everyone is happy (or maybe just me and 2535Miles).

[HaveFunExpectToWin]

There are a few more hands-on reviews that have come out this week. I'd say that overall they are all positive, although they all note a couple areas of disappointment (keyboard, camera, music).

I pre-ordered mine yesterday.

[alteran]

The minimal process certainly doesn't involve any real person. I uploaded my application in the marketplace, and when I didn't see any "pending" messages, I was curious. I went to my phone and was able to find it in the Android marketplace. Within maybe 2 minutes of uploading my application. My guess is the only thing they do is make sure the application bundle is compiled correctly and the signature matches.

As an aside, I hate how there are tons of fake apps titled "Facebook Browser" or "Yahoo Browser" -- pretty sure it's all from the same Indian or Chinese company. All it does is load up an app that is a web browser (which takes no programming) with a home page set to yahoo or facebook, and every time the app loads, it displays an ad. I tried out the "Yahoo Browser" because it had the official-looking Yahoo icon, and I wanted to check out another browser. If there was any kind of a QA process, this type of dispicable behavior would not have been allowed to continue, but it does, because there is no review process, at least not one that is stringent enough.

The main reason (as far as I can tell) developers get upset about the iPhone platform is its closed nature, in that you can't download some random app unless you jailbreak your phone, which can also void your warranty and whatnot. The Android platform allows you to download anything you want already - what it needs is not a flea market that the current marketplace is, but a mall like the AppStore.

Alternate idea: Maybe there is room for the current Android Marketplace, but if they are serious about continuing the Android platform for phones, there also needs to be a secondary store, perhaps one that charges developers an annual fee (iPhone = $99/yr) and guarantees X amount of QA per app submitted. They can also publicize the app review status and reasons for rejection, and rejected apps can fall through to the current marketplace, and everyone is happy (or maybe just me and 2535Miles).

Thanks for this. I am surprised that the vetting is THAT minimal.

I must concede that while 6 minutes of review by the iPhone App Store doesn't mean much, it really should stop some of the abuses you're referring to, which means it does have some significance that I underrated.

According to the press I've read, the cell phone providers are planning to, in fact, move in the direction you describe by either setting up alternate stores (Verizon) or branded Marketplace "channels" (T-Mobile).

Android is never really going to "beat" the iPhone in functionality for a lot of reasons. But since it has a target, it's going to get closer over time. And as that happens, it's going to put pressure on iPhone pricing.

[alteran]

There are a few more hands-on reviews that have come out this week. I'd say that overall they are all positive, although they all note a couple areas of disappointment (keyboard, camera, music).

I pre-ordered mine yesterday.

Would love to hear what you think.

[HaveFunExpectToWin]

I skipped BestBuy and got it this morning at a VZW store.

So far, I love it. A lot of the reviews by the bloggers focused on the keyboard and the lack of pinch-zoom multitouch in the standard apps. I have to say that I have zero issues with the keyboard, both physical and software. They work great. I've been chatting with a friend on Google Talk throughout the day. The lack of pinch zoom is disappointing, but isn't as much a dealbreaker as I thought it'd be.

The Android Market app store may not have 100K apps, but the 10K that they do have are great. I've played with my wife's iPod Touch quite a bit and I don't think I'm missing any must have apps. Also, Android has Widgets, which are pretty useful. Oh and Google Voice is excellent, you can make all your calls/SMS through it.

One of the cooler features is the Voice Search. You hit a button on the home screen and then speak what you want. "Call John", "Navigate to Washington DC", "Duke Basketball Report", etc. It's Google, so they somehow know what you are meaning to do.

I also really like the contacts syncing. My previous phone's contact, my Gmail contacts, and my Facebook contacts were instantly merged. The are also constantly synced. Address book maintenance was one of those tedious tasks that I've always hated. I'm done with that.

I'm taking it on a trip to Boston tomorrow, so I should have more time to play with it. If you have any specific questions, let me know.

While I'm just an anonymous stranger to most of you, I would basically say this about the Droid. If you want Verizon Wireless and a very cool phone, this is the phone for you.

(one last note - there is almost no Verizon Wireless influence on this phone... this is a very good thing)

[DevilAlumna]

The lack of pinch zoom is disappointing, but isn't as much a dealbreaker as I thought it'd be.

I believe Apple's filed patents on pinch-zoom. And just about anything else multi-touch related.

http://www.macrumors.com/2009/01/26/...-touch-patent/

How's the hardware feel? Solid/substantial?

[HaveFunExpectToWin]

I believe Apple's filed patents on pinch-zoom. And just about anything else multi-touch related.

http://www.macrumors.com/2009/01/26/...-touch-patent/

How's the hardware feel? Solid/substantial?

Definitely a solid feel.

The patents didn't stop HTC or Palm. Both the Pre and the Droid Eris (Htc Hero) have it functional. I suppose google is playing it safe.