Motorola Droid Review!!

[joelseph]

Originally Posted by Jaxx10

I also read that the android cant play off the sd card... so u cant install game on that ...i called verizon to verify and they told me the are still wokring on the final product ..!? huh ?? this phone comes out next week ... i think she just didnt know and dindt want to sound stupid ... lol .... well i hope they come up with a way to utilize the mem card better

Verizon reps will be getting trained about this device this Wednesday... TWO DAYS before it comes out. After all the media hype leading up to the launch it's baffling to me why they would leave all their reps in in the dark until two days before the launch when it is obvious that the ad campaign is going to lead to a flurry of calls/questions.

Between this and crippling PDA/Smartphone features that other carriers leave enabled, Verizon seems to have mastered the art of shooting themselves in the foot. I am convinced that they would be out of the business if they didn't have such a reliable network. They seem to be brilliant in half the business, and brain dead in the other. Oh well...

[joelseph]

Going head-on against the iPhone with this device is a huge mistake in my opinion. If they were going to do that they should have nixed the keyboard, which pretty clearly was added just so they can say it has a keyboard - yet they made it shoddy and flat to still be slim enough to compete and thusly the design is MUCH less sleek and more boxy.

I just don't get it... I guess time will tell and maybe it will give Apple a run for it's money. But from where I stand Verizon is in a great position to make themselves look very silly and give the iPhone lovers more ammo yet another opportunity to point and laugh at yet another manufacturer trying to beat them and falling flat on their face.

This is almost as funny to me as the Obama Administration going after Fox News, and in effect they are doing wonders for Fox's ratings. This phone and it's ad campaign could actually INCREASE iPhone sales. It's apples and oranges, in my opinion.

I so hope I am wrong.

[assman]

that phone and the iphone is cool but with out the apps it sucks i mean you can hack it but you can get windows mobile on it i say the omnia 2 beats them hands down and if you like to know why read the info on them and with the new omnia 2 thats the i920 you can turn it in to anything you like like windows px and more the Motorola DROID can be hacked but it cant do what windows can on my omnia i910 i can play psp games on it and do so much with out paying for sissy apps just to make your phone look good lol i say think and look before you buy i dont need a iphone thats only cools with the apps or the Motorola DROID that only cool with the apps if you love your home computer and thats what you like to do with your phone get a windows mobile phone and on the Motorola DROIDs
internet it sucks look at skyfie that the same thing with that omnia or omnia 2 i can do almost everthing my pc can and its all for free no apps to buy just good clean hacking so read before you buy what your phone can do for you and what you need i like my cell to do everything like my pc lol anyways thats my 2cents and dont get mad sorry to everyone if you got mad but its realy what you like to have lol

[assman]

sorry im too sleepy to type lol

[QrafTee]

The Omnia 2 can play PSP games? Lies...

[Windsponge]

Originally Posted by QrafTee

Let me shine some light on this situation between the iPhone and the Droid. And I'm not an iPhone lover; I like it, but I know I have no chance on getting it while I'm on the Verizon network.

Processor:
iPhone 3Gs: Samsung processor which clocks at 667Mhz (threshold of up to 833Mhz) but is underclocked to 600Mhz.

Droid: TI processor which clocks at 600Mhz but is underclocked to 550Mhz.

Note: Many people will argue that 550Mhz on one processor is not the same on another; true. However, both the Samsung and TI processors in the phones is a derivative of the Cortex A-8 ARM processor. Thus it's not like comparing Pentium 4 v. Core2Duo.

GPU:
iPhone 3Gs: PowerVR SGX 535 which is a graphics core which is used for high-end portable devices.

Droid: PowerVR SGX 530 (like the Palm Pre) which is a graphics core which is used for portable media devices (mid-range).

Note: But, but... dedicated graphics. I have found no clue talking about dedicated graphics anywhere on the Droid.

Internal memory:
iPhone 3Gs: 16/32GB Internal Memory allows one to install... a lot of apps.

Droid: 256MB Internal Memory... WTF? Expandable with microSD card, but can't install apps into it.

Note: Many people have said that developers can install files onto both the internal and external memory and have the app run off internal while catching whiles off the external; correct. However will developers like that idea instead of just straight porting it over? Who knows.

Camera:
iPhone 3Gs: 3MP, no flash. Does videos.

Droid: 5MP, with dual LED flash. Higher resolution videos.

Multitasking:
iPhone 3Gs: Limited

Droid: Up to 6 apps at a single time (according to Attack of the Show)

Note: But if you jailbreak an iPhone... But it's not like that out of the box.

Multi-touch:
iPhone3Gs: Yes, and has pinch to zoom.

Droid: No, but possible; pinch to zoom probably patented.

Note: Yes, they can both do it spec-wise; however, many hands-on and reviews has noted that it doesn't.

Keyboard:
iPhone 3Gs: Touch screen only.

Droid: Touch screen and physical... although many have said the physical could be a lot better.

Tethering:
iPhone 3Gs: Apple removed it with 3.10.

Droid: Possible with app.

Note: But you can enable it if you jail break the iPhone... but that's not intended if Apple removed it.

Carrier:
iPhone 3Gs: ATT-only. Rumors say by Q4 2010, VZN might get a chance with the iPhone.

Droid: VZN-only now, and then other networks will get it (leaked GSM versions have already leaked). VZN has one of the best 3G coverages.

So what does this all mean? The iPhone is a better overall powerhouse. The Droid is backed by additions which has some flaws, but a very strong network.

So if the Droid issues aren't fixed, I might just go with the HTC Touch Pro 2 instead when my upgrade comes up in February.

I own a 3gs and am buying the Droid. It has taken 3 phones and there have been 3 updates for Iphone on 3gs. Give Verizon 3 updates to correct flaws in droid and will see which works better. My Iphone has frozen and before this last update it was not working like it should. Couldn't even use all memory. So please people wait till you have used and give it a chance. I have had many problems with my I phone but I really do like it. I have a gut feeling that I will like Droid also. I wish we could all just get along.

[Windsponge]

Originally Posted by assman

that phone and the iphone is cool but with out the apps it sucks i mean you can hack it but you can get windows mobile on it i say the omnia 2 beats them hands down and if you like to know why read the info on them and with the new omnia 2 thats the i920 you can turn it in to anything you like like windows px and more the Motorola DROID can be hacked but it cant do what windows can on my omnia i910 i can play psp games on it and do so much with out paying for sissy apps just to make your phone look good lol i say think and look before you buy i dont need a iphone thats only cools with the apps or the Motorola DROID that only cool with the apps if you love your home computer and thats what you like to do with your phone get a windows mobile phone and on the Motorola DROIDs
internet it sucks look at skyfie that the same thing with that omnia or omnia 2 i can do almost everthing my pc can and its all for free no apps to buy just good clean hacking so read before you buy what your phone can do for you and what you need i like my cell to do everything like my pc lol anyways thats my 2cents and dont get mad sorry to everyone if you got mad but its realy what you like to have lol

I own an Omnia I 910 and I must say I have never liked it. I dont even use it any one want to buy it cheap? Really I think Microsoft is a joke and it is a shame they cant even fix the system that is out before they release a new one. If you like it get it, that is why they make so many phones. I have pre ordered Droid and after using a while I will post a fair review. Thank You. Good to see you post your view.

[Windsponge]

Originally Posted by joelseph

Going head-on against the iPhone with this device is a huge mistake in my opinion. If they were going to do that they should have nixed the keyboard, which pretty clearly was added just so they can say it has a keyboard - yet they made it shoddy and flat to still be slim enough to compete and thusly the design is MUCH less sleek and more boxy.

I just don't get it... I guess time will tell and maybe it will give Apple a run for it's money. But from where I stand Verizon is in a great position to make themselves look very silly and give the iPhone lovers more ammo yet another opportunity to point and laugh at yet another manufacturer trying to beat them and falling flat on their face.

This is almost as funny to me as the Obama Administration going after Fox News, and in effect they are doing wonders for Fox's ratings. This phone and it's ad campaign could actually INCREASE iPhone sales. It's apples and oranges, in my opinion.

I so hope I am wrong.

Apple made a mastake not giving Verizon a phone. This phone will do more to hurt Iphone than you can believe.

[x51]

I have to say some specs matter and others dont.
You are talking about two different operating systems.. It's very possible that a processor at 500mhz under one OS can outperform the same processor running at 800mhz on another. It has a lot to do with the OS, Applications, and drivers.

A good example would be on my high end (well it WAS high end last week :P) Gaming PC.. I had some laggy graphics issues when I first built it. I downloaded and installed the latest nvidia graphics drivers and the "in game" lag was gone... The specs didn;t change.. Better software did the trick.One driver improved performance drastically.

I'd be willing to bet if you you were able to flash Android to an older Windows Mobile phone with all the working drivers... It would probably outperform the original Windows Mobile OS... Same specs. Windows is a well known dog. I've played with Android on my Titan, and it was nice and fast... But as far as I know it cant actually be flashed. And some things were not yet working.

Now storage space is storage space... The more the better on any OS I say. However if a typical app is 10mb for one OS and a similar app for another OS is typically 1MB.. you could theoretically get away with less...

What I care about is that it's fast, and it does what I want it to do. If it will hold all my apps, and run well... I don't care what the spec sheet says compared to any other device.

I used the droid for a quite a while yesterday.. I found it very responsive. I did like it a lot. I'm a windows guy and will probably still pickup the TP2 in a few weeks... I'll reconsider an Android phone when VZW releases one on HTC hardware with a keyboard in a similar form factor to the TP2.

Right now there are several reported Exchange / Activesync issues (a deal-breaker for me, although they are expecting fixes very soon) And the Moto hardware keyboard is another deal-breaker. Something else I hated was that it suffers from same issue that has plagued windows for years... apps don't close. Under Windows there are several apps (I use HTC xbutton) that will kill an app when you close it. I'm looking for one for the droid now... but with no real close button... I don't think I'll find anything other than task managers that will let you see whats running and close the apps.

[QrafTee]

Originally Posted by x51

I have to say some specs matter and others dont.
You are talking about two different operating systems.. It's very possible that a processor at 500mhz under one OS can outperform the same processor running at 800mhz on another. It has a lot to do with the OS, Applications, and drivers.

A good example would be on my high end (well it WAS high end last week :P) Gaming PC.. I had some laggy graphics issues when I first built it. I downloaded and installed the latest nvidia graphics drivers and the "in game" lag was gone... The specs didn;t change.. Better software did the trick.One driver improved performance drastically.

I'd be willing to bet if you you were able to flash Android to an older Windows Mobile phone with all the working drivers... It would probably outperform the original Windows Mobile OS... Same specs. Windows is a well known dog. I've played with Android on my Titan, and it was nice and fast... But as far as I know it cant actually be flashed. And some things were not yet working.

Now storage space is storage space... The more the better on any OS I say. However if a typical app is 10mb for one OS and a similar app for another OS is typically 1MB.. you could theoretically get away with less...

What I care about is that it's fast, and it does what I want it to do. If it will hold all my apps, and run well... I don't care what the spec sheet says compared to any other device.

I used the droid for a quite a while yesterday.. I found it very responsive. I did like it a lot. I'm a windows guy and will probably still pickup the TP2 in a few weeks... I'll reconsider an Android phone when VZW releases one on HTC hardware with a keyboard in a similar form factor to the TP2.

Right now there are several reported Exchange / Activesync issues (a deal-breaker for me, although they are expecting fixes very soon) And the Moto hardware keyboard is another deal-breaker. Something else I hated was that it suffers from same issue that has plagued windows for years... apps don't close. Under Windows there are several apps (I use HTC xbutton) that will kill an app when you close it. I'm looking for one for the droid now... but with no real close button... I don't think I'll find anything other than task managers that will let you see whats running and close the apps.

1. Yes, software can indeed make the difference. But hardware--same type of hardware--clocked at a faster speed has the potential to be better. So with an update from Apple, it can all of a sudden shoot farther pass the Droid in terms of sheer speed.

2. Right, drivers can improve graphic performance; but a GT240 will never be a GT260 no matter how many driver updates you install.

3. You're probably right about WinMo, but most of their phones have on-par to lower specs than the Droid. Of course that's going to change in 2010. In any case we're not comparing it to an HTC Leo; we're comparing it to the iPhone 3Gs (Why? Because Droid [Did] it first)

4. Storage space... you can't skew that no matter how you do it. If Myst is larger than 256MB, guess what? No Myst. This was a huge oversight and I'm disappointed that it was overlooked by Google, Motorola, and Verizon... how can all three companies overlook something so important?

5. You're right. All that matters if how it works for you. But if Droid wants to bring the hurt to the iPhone, it should have what worked for iPhone users plus more.