OT: Which Smartphone should I buy?

[Knicker23]

Can't speak for Android or any of the other phones... But the iPhone is pretty amazing. I upgraded from an old flip phone a few months ago, and it's like walking around with a mini computer in your pocket. Can really do anything, and the service is great [I got VZW]

[Rich Rane]

By the way, what is so bad about Windows phones? What do these phones you guys mentioned ultimately have that Windows phones do not have.

Windows have actually stepped their game up only just recently with their updated Mango software. Their apps however are limited compared to Android Market or Apple's App Store. I might even look into a Windows phone in my next upgrade as it will be compatible with Windows 8 in the near future.

Look into their upcoming tablets as well if you're thinking of purchasing an iPad soon. It's the best kept secret in the tablet market consistently overshadowed by the iPad.

[makeitstop]

By the way, what is so bad about Windows phones? What do these phones you guys mentioned ultimately have that Windows phones do not have.

Windows have actually stepped their game up only just recently with their updated Mango software. Their apps however are limited compared to Android Market or Apple's App Store. I might even look into a Windows phone in my next upgrade as it will be compatible with Windows 8 in the near future.

Look into their upcoming tablets as well if you're thinking of purchasing an iPad soon. It's the best kept secret in the tablet market consistently overshadowed by the iPad.

Yeah, I just got the HTC Titan (AT&T) last week. It's an amazing phone, and Mango is miles ahead of Windows Mobile.

But like you said, no apps. Maybe one of these days. Still a kickin' phone.

[Pharmcat]

so i went to the store and came back empty handed, i just cant decide

the razr is trash, dont bother with it....of all these 3 phones the rezound is the best: good build quality, great camera, best screen imo...but the nexus has ics

however, im not gonna lie, i still like the iphone b/c of its functionality

i go back tomorro to make a decision as i need to have a phone b4 workweek starts

[Rich Rane]

so i went to the store and came back empty handed, i just cant decide

the razr is trash, dont bother with it....of all these 3 phones the rezound is the best: good build quality, great camera, best screen imo...but the nexus has ics

however, im not gonna lie, i still like the iphone b/c of its functionality

i go back tomorro to make a decision as i need to have a phone b4 workweek starts

If you're getting the Rezound or Galaxy Nexus, might I suggest buying it on opening hours. It'll take time to get used to and once you do, you'll want to customize the menus and settings. THAT will take you days, if not weeks to get it to your personality.

[Pharmcat]

so i went to the store and came back empty handed, i just cant decide

the razr is trash, dont bother with it....of all these 3 phones the rezound is the best: good build quality, great camera, best screen imo...but the nexus has ics

however, im not gonna lie, i still like the iphone b/c of its functionality

i go back tomorro to make a decision as i need to have a phone b4 workweek starts

If you're getting the Rezound or Galaxy Nexus, might I suggest buying it on opening hours. It'll take time to get used to and once you do, you'll want to customize the menus and settings. THAT will take you days, if not weeks to get it to your personality.

yea im going in the AM

the kicker is that every employee at the store has the nexus

that should tell me everything i need to know

[Rich Rane]

Pharmcat, did you decide on a phone?

[Christophersp10]

The only thing that I do not like about the Nexus is the 5.0 Camera. Seems like such a downgrade. A top of the line phone with a major fault.

[DowNY]

Just started a contract with AT&T a week ago after being with Sprint for so many years.

The last phone I had with Sprint was the EVO 4G, so I was targeting a phone that was like that for an easy transition.

What I now have with AT&T is a phone better than the EVO 4G and it's called HTC Vivid with 4GLTE.

Came out around Thanksgiving. There's some YouTube vids on it if you want to check it out.

It's available in white or black.

[Christophersp10]

Just started a contract with AT&T a week ago after being with Sprint for so many years.

The last phone I had with Sprint was the EVO 4G, so I was targeting a phone that was like that for an easy transition.

What I now have with AT&T is a phone better than the EVO 4G and it's called HTC Vivid with 4GLTE.

Came out around Thanksgiving. There's some YouTube vids on it if you want to check it out.

It's available in white or black.

why would you leave sprint for ATT? Sprint has a well above average lineup of phones with the best pricing.

The Samsung Galaxy S2 is better than that.

[AndroidMan]

I'd recommend the Galaxy nexus. You get 4g LTE, NFC(Google Wallet), and you get a 720p super amoled display. It's received great reviews on various websites. Also Wallet has been hacked to work on the Verizon nexus.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2397782,00.asp

It's the device I would purchase in your situation.

Also, something not mentioned in this thread. If you get a NExus device then you are guaranteed operating system updates directly from Google. Non Nexus device owners are at the mercy of what the carrier and manufacturer want to do. BS process that takes 6-9 months to see any updates.

Speaking as a well seasoned Android user and Android developer, I would strongly suggest the Nexus.

[Rich Rane]

What I now have with AT&T is a phone better than the EVO 4G and it's called HTC Vivid with 4GLTE

The Vivid is nice, but you had to give up your unlimited data plan, didn't you? That's probably a trade I wouldn't have went through.

I'd recommend the Galaxy nexus. You get 4g LTE, NFC(Google Wallet), and you get a 720p super amoled display. It's received great reviews on various websites. Also Wallet has been hacked to work on the Verizon nexus.

That's a game changer if true. However, more stores need to implement it though.

Also, something not mentioned in this thread. If you get a NExus device then you are guaranteed operating system updates directly from Google. Non Nexus device owners are at the mercy of what the carrier and manufacturer want to do. BS process that takes 6-9 months to see any updates.

If you have no problem voiding warranty and have a day to spare, rooting isn't always a bad option. Though out of the box and for smartphone owners who aren't tech-savvy, Galaxy Nexus has the advantage of getting more ICS updates quickly.

[Governor Dudley]

Galaxy s 2

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk

[DowNY]

Just started a contract with AT&T a week ago after being with Sprint for so many years.

The last phone I had with Sprint was the EVO 4G, so I was targeting a phone that was like that for an easy transition.

What I now have with AT&T is a phone better than the EVO 4G and it's called HTC Vivid with 4GLTE.

Came out around Thanksgiving. There's some YouTube vids on it if you want to check it out.

It's available in white or black.

why would you leave sprint for ATT? Sprint has a well above average lineup of phones with the best pricing.

The Samsung Galaxy S2 is better than that.

I don't see the difference in phone pricing & I've had many different Andriod phones in the past 3 or 4 yrs. Before that, I had pocket pc phones. Was tired of Sprint and their customer service, amongst other things.

So with my experience of all these high tech phones and knowing I like my phone to be almost as fast as my iPad or MacBook , I learned about all the top Andriod phones AT&T had to offer (chose AT&T because of their holiday deal and because I had T-Mobile during the "Sidekick Era" for my side phone years back and didnt really like T-Mobile and I'm just not a Verizon guy).

Did research on the Galaxy S2 and a few other phones, and even used it at the store but it just wasn't my style.

The HTC has 4G LTE with many other specs that intrigued me and the one I have has a more sophisticated/business look for me.

To each it's own, I just prefer the HTC Vivid over the Galaxy. Couldn't be any happier with my decision.

[DowNY]

What I now have with AT&T is a phone better than the EVO 4G and it's called HTC Vivid with 4GLTE

The Vivid is nice, but you had to give up your unlimited data plan, didn't you? That's probably a trade I wouldn't have went through.

Nah, just pay 25 extra per month.

[AndroidMan]

I'd recommend the Galaxy nexus. You get 4g LTE, NFC(Google Wallet), and you get a 720p super amoled display. It's received great reviews on various websites. Also Wallet has been hacked to work on the Verizon nexus.

That's a game changer if true. However, more stores need to implement it though.

More stores will get it. I'm sure you see signs for Google Wallet all over the place nowadays. Also, it works on preexisting technology. Any Mastercard paypass (tap card to pay) will also accept Google Wallet. It's definetely a nice feature to have going into the new year. IMO, I wouldn't dare waste an upgrade on a device without NFC. NFC is mandatory for my next device.

Also, something not mentioned in this thread. If you get a NExus device then you are guaranteed operating system updates directly from Google. Non Nexus device owners are at the mercy of what the carrier and manufacturer want to do. BS process that takes 6-9 months to see any updates.

If you have no problem voiding warranty and have a day to spare, rooting isn't always a bad option. Though out of the box and for smartphone owners who aren't tech-savvy, Galaxy Nexus has the advantage of getting more ICS updates quickly.

Rooting is not the problem. Everyone should regardless of timely OS updates. You can gain access to free wifi tether and some other locked down features(Google Wallet)

Problem is that all Roms(Android OS update not released by manufacturer, but by indie developers) are not created equal.

I've heard plenty of horror stories of users changing roms only to find out their GPS got busted, battery sucks, and device may repetitively restart itself. I'm a techie so this is pretty simple to setup, even with hassles of flaky roms. For someone who doesn't want to get involved in that world of mess should just avoid it. Samsung is very shady with updates...

I still have the GALAXY s1 for Verizon(Samsung). I'm still running on Android 2.2

I could install a 2.3 ROm but figured I'll probably upgrade to ICS with the Nexus so why bother.

Some roms are great though. It really depends on the device you get though and whether or not the developer community will take an interest in supporting or creating roms.

I feel much more at ease if I just allow Google to handle the OS updates. Simplify things a great deal.

[Rich Rane]

Rooting is not the problem. Everyone should regardless of timely OS updates. You can gain access to free wifi tether and some other locked down features(Google Wallet)

Problem is that all Roms(Android OS update not released by manufacturer, but by indie developers) are not created equal.

I've heard plenty of horror stories of users changing roms only to find out their GPS got busted, battery sucks, and device may repetitively restart itself. I'm a techie so this is pretty simple to setup, even with hassles of flaky roms. For someone who doesn't want to get involved in that world of mess should just avoid it. Samsung is very shady with updates...

I still have the GALAXY s1 for Verizon(Samsung). I'm still running on Android 2.2

I could install a 2.3 ROm but figured I'll probably upgrade to ICS with the Nexus so why bother.

Some roms are great though. It really depends on the device you get though and whether or not the developer community will take an interest in supporting or creating roms.

I feel much more at ease if I just allow Google to handle the OS updates. Simplify things a great deal.

I'm on XDA a lot. I don't post there, but I created an account to download their ROMs and mods. There's plenty of ROMs to try out and there's always one that works well in terms of GPS and battery, and stability. I currently have an EVO 3D. Even with the official Gingerbread update, I decided to ROM hop with Cyanogen, Synergy, and Hydro Bliss. There's something that doesn't settle with me on sticking to stock.

[AndroidMan]

I agree, if you have freetime to play with roms then they can be great. Im busy most of the time and cant risk installing a crappy rom as i would need my phone to be stab. I could flash back to stock if rom is crap, but then again thats time consuing.

I guess at the end of the day, id rather not have to deal with roms just to update my os. The nexus is google baby, basically the nexus is what google truly envisions as the pure unadulterated android experience.

[Da_Mane_Man]

can you guys touch on the 5mp camera for the nexus? is it that much worse than 8mp? it's really the only thing holding me back from deciding on it.

also, which device has the best battery time?

[AndroidMan]

can you guys touch on the 5mp camera for the nexus? is it that much worse than 8mp? it's really the only thing holding me back from deciding on it.

also, which device has the best battery time?

It's subjective. They say mp arent really that important, but rather the sensor thats being used to capture the image.

In my own iew, pics uve seen from nexus are pretty good. I doubt you would notice a great amount of differenc. Heres a link claiming cam is quite good


http://m.zdnet.com/blog/cell-phones/gal ... llery/7030

For batt, most 4g devuces will clobber batt. 4g is currently for data only, and voice over 3g. Bith radios running will likely cause batt fatigue.

They should have new chip volte, voice over lte, arouns spring summer. Will be much better performance. Sloppy spelling, sorry, on tablet