Making the smartphone leap....

[seeker_two]

Well, it's time to renew my AT&T contract and retire my Rugby for a smartphone. My wife is set on getting a iPhone, but Apple-smug is a deal-killer for me....and I want a slider with real QWERTY keys, not the "virtual" crud.  I'm looking hard at the Motorola Flipside with Android 2.2 with the Blackberry Torch a distant second. However, the new Windows 7 phones (esp. the LG Quantum) intrigues me.

Anyone have any experience with these phones or OS's? What's your preference? Is Windows 7 worth the extra $50 over the Android?

Thanks in advance...... 

[Strings]

I'd go for some form of Android. They're growing by leaps and bounds.

If you DO go that path, I'll give you a couple helpful links...

[robear]

AT&T here also.  I recently got the Samsung Captivate.   I was originally wanting a slideout keyboard also, but I use Swype for all my text entry and don't miss the physical keyboard even a tiny bit.   

More about swype here: http://www.swypeinc.com/product.html

[Vodka7]

Android, definitely.

[Silver Bullet]

iPhone.  Get the original.

[CNYCacher]

I've been very happy with a palm pre.  They are a slider with a real keyboard.

[tyme]

Android.

The iPhone app store has fascist policies (randomly pulling apps, and being hyper-discriminatory against things like google voice until they get called on it).  Apple abuses iOS developers.

http://daringfireball.net/2010/04/iphone_agreement_bans_flash_compiler
http://www.engadget.com/2010/09/18/google-voice-apps-begin-returning-to-iphone-app-store/

There's also the matter that Steve Jobs, while obviously a visionary, is a bit psychotic, increasing the probability that Apple will take a wrong turn and cause their iPhone/iOS market share to implode.

Stats
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/08/12/android-sales-worldwide-pass-iphone/
http://dailymobile.se/2010/11/10/gartner-android-market-share-up-with-22-symbian-down-8-in-q3-2010/
http://www.intomobile.com/2010/05/10/u-s-android-sales-beat-iphone-in-q1-study/

iPhone.  Get the original.

Hello, Don Draper.  Here's the iPhone propaganda you're looking for:
http://www.fastcompany.com/1680048/iphone-users-have-more-sex-than-android-owners

[dogmush]

I love my Android.  I would go Android over windows mobile hands down.

Also, FWIW every single person I know (and it's been about 10) that swear they need a real keyboard, has tried a good virtual keyboard and never gone back.

The slide out keyboard adds quite a bit of bulk, to an already kinda big phone, and I've found the newer virtual keyboard software to be really good to type on.

[Iain]

I love swype. You can get pretty quick with it.

Sent a text message on my work phone this morning, doesn't have predictive text. Real pain.

[taurusowner]

Another vote for an android phone.

[Ben]

What Dogmush said. Including the keyboard thing. I swore I would never use, or be able to use a virtual keyboard, but the one on my Evo is big and REALLY easy to use, especially in landscape mode.

I thought I read recently (either Engadget or Phandroid) that AT&T has an HTC phone similar to the Evo. You should go in and give that virtual keyboard a test drive. Regardless, I highly recommend getting one of the larger, ~4" screens. They are really not bulkier than the smaller phones. In fact for my hands, the bigger phone is a really comfortable fit. I have a friend who has the Droid X, and we both get comments from people about how much they like, and how much of a difference the bigger screens make for web browsing compared to their smartphones with smaller screen real estate.

FWIW, I've heard some good reviews about the Windows 7 phones, but I have no experience with one. Android really does seem to be taking a dominant role in the market though.

[AJ Dual]

Another vote for Android.

It's very stable, and completely user friendly if you don't want to mess with it.

However, if you do, there's lots of open sources stuff you can do with it, you're not limited to the Google app store, you can get any Android app from anywhere.

[Nick1911]

Android, 100%

[MillCreek]

My AT&T contract comes up in January.  I am thinking about going with the $ 25/month flat rate plan from Virgin Mobile for 300 minutes and unlimited text, email and web, and getting an Android phone from Virgin to do this.  I don't talk on the cell all that much, but would like web and email access.  I just don't want to pay the $ 45 or so per month for the AT&T data plan on top of the cell phone charge of $ 42 per month.

[grislyatoms]

I have had Verizon's Droid X for a couple of weeks now. I thought the virtual keyboard would be  a hindrance but now I'm finding it quite useable. In landscape orientation, anyway. Vertically, the keys are just too close together.

The 3G wi-fi hotspot capability comes in quite handy at times.

As far as other capabilities- amazing. It seems they tried to cram as much tech as they could into the smallest package possible. Successfully.
Now if someone will just write apps to wash the dishes and vacuum...

[Vodka7]

I will say, my next Android phone will have a physical keyboard. I walk everywhere, and walking when I text on a virtual keyboard is way slower. WIth my old BlackBerry I could type without looking at the keys, which meant I didn't have to stop or risking walking into a car/person/bike.

[go_bang]

If you like to tinker with apps and stuff and don't mind feeding the Google monster go with Android.  If you want a device that just works, has enough of the right apps, and encrypts your mail traffic right from the start then get the Blackberry.

I have no idea what Windows Mobile 7 brings to the table. 

[Strings]

>I have no idea what Windows Mobile 7 brings to the table.  <

That it isn't Crackberry, Android, or Apple.

Not aware of much else it can claim...

[go_bang]

>I have no idea what Windows Mobile 7 brings to the table.  <

That it isn't Crackberry, Android, or Apple.

Not aware of much else it can claim...

I think Microsoft is going to have a hard time getting a significant part of the smartphone market with it.  WM 7 is a complete rewrite of the OS and has nothing in common with WM 6.5 and earlier versions.  None of the old apps will carry over.  They had to do something, as the old Windows Mobile was so sadly neglected and crufty.  They became one of the dominant players in the market after they beat Palm, and then they just sat on their butts while the iPhone and the Blackberries pushed them off the charts.  They tried to make a go of it with WM 6, but kludging parts of a finger-based UI on top of a stylus-based UI was a disaster and nobody wanted to mess with styli anymore anyway.

[Ryan in Maine]

Verizon is offering an R2D2 phone running Droid. Yes, R2D2 from Star Wars. I'm trying to save my money. 

[erictank]

'Nother vote for Android.  I loves me my Moto Droid, and will likely replace it with the new iteration of same when my New Every 2 comes up in a year or so.

 

Not to hijack, but has anyone got any strong recommendations for onscreen Android keyboards?  I'd like to give one a try.  I was never a big fan of onscreen keyboards (though I'll admit I've never used a GOOD one - just the stock ones, and only one or two of those).  I liked the onscreen writing I did with my WinMobile PDAs, and it was a big adjustment to not be able to write onscreen on the Droid, but I've made the switch now.  I've always preferred the option of a physical keyboard, though, and missed it on my last PDA (a Dell Axim X51v).  I used the keyboard on my older HP Ipaq (model 4155?  can't remember) about evenly with onscreen-handwriting.

[zahc]

I bought my wife an Android phone, partly as a guinea pig so I could check it out. I am thoroughly impressed. It's pretty polished. And the phones are much better IMO. Some of them actually have those new tactile digital user interface devices called 'buttons'.

[Strings]

My understanding is that the BEST of the keyboards is Swype. Which is currently unavailable again...

Spoon has Swype on her Samsung Mesmerize (rebranded Galaxy S). She likes it so far...

Oh... for those who it might help: the most popular widgets...

http://androidforums.com/android-applications/149327-most-wanted-widgets.html#post1372839

You need the barcode scanner for this, but you should have already downloaded that from the market...

[Marnoot]

My wife has Swype on her Motorola Defy (the Defy comes with Swype installed), and it's what she usually uses for text entry. It's pretty slick.

[Strings]

Rub it in while you're at it...