Related
Im now torn on whether to keep it or send it back. I got a brown sim free one delivered on friday morning after.much delibration and hesitation.
The hardware is very nice and solidly built...at least mine was. No gaps or anything of the sort.
Android and sense are both great...love them and I love the market place, which in my opinion is superior to the app store since.most apps are free and policy is less...draconian
I want to keep the device I really do.but its just not polished.enough and i know once the novelty wears off and reality sets in i'll most likely be frustrated when using it daily
I've noticed several issues:
-The keyboard works well for the most part with little lag but the spacebar sensitivity/responsiveness could be better. I still make more errors than I do on my iPhone as it loves giving me a period instead of a space
-During calls there's this annoying hiss that gives me a headache.
-Also during calls, sound gets distorted.if you raise the.volume beyond a.certain point and it makesit impossible to hear the other party properly
-Lags/stutters although mine doesn't seem as bad as others have pointed out. Just 1-2sec lags/jerkiness. However it becomes slightly more apparent when browsing the web and viewing photo albums.
-Finally music playback (which is very important to me) kinda sucks. It stutters even when you're not doing anything at all and sound quality is inferiorto the iPhone, very 'closed', poor 'dynamics', relatively weak max volume and no EQ whichis a big setback as mytracks are all EQ encoded> Now i could get revert to an iPod but that defeats the purpose of.an all-in-one smartphone
Anyway like I said I really wantto.keepthe phone but I wantedto know how HTC handles their updates. Apple is very.much on the ball when it.comes to updates in my experience,they optimize, fix bugs and.add.features so you know you're well covered. Does HTC do.the.same.or doyou have to.suck it up and.live with what is shipped to you
If HTC do it like Apple then i'll keep the phone. Otherwise, it means my switch to Android will haveto wait a while yet
Ps the reason my post reads.funny is because.I'm.typing this from.the device and.going back to fix every error.is a.PITA
Regarding the keyboard, have you tried calibrating it? Press the settings button on the keyboard, -> Text Input -> Calibration tool.
kiz said:
Regarding the keyboard, have you tried calibrating it? Press the settings button on the keyboard, -> Text Input -> Calibration tool.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah i have done the keyboard calibration which is why i'm surprised its still finicky. *Shrug*
-Finally music playback (which is very important to me) kinda sucks. It stutters even when you're not doing anything at all and sound quality is inferiorto the iPhone, very 'closed', poor 'dynamics', relatively weak max volume and no EQ whichis a big setback as mytracks are all EQ encoded> Now i could get revert to an iPod but that defeats the purpose of.an all-in-one smartphone
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Click to collapse
That is a breaker for me. The purpose of my looking into android phone is to replace my iphone because I'm sick of the proprietary media expience ala itunes and the ipod player. I want to just plug my phone via usb into a puter (or copy to SDcard) and play the music or radio show directly from some file manager. Android does this well for, at least it did on the g1 I tested with no lag. An all in one device should be that...the iphone is that, if you can stand going thru the hoops to do what should be simple tasks.
The hero seems like a decent machine but there are one of two things (maybe both) that make it seem like an unfinished product: the interface shouldn't be laggy as it is and we shouldn't have to be fussing with standard widgets to get it to function smoothly as it should. I can see tweaking to make it run better than normal, but "normal" being laggy and "smooth" being tweaked isn't a good start. I don't know if this is the hardware limitation or a coding issue. HTC should have either done more testing on the software side or should have including better hardware specs than the magic since the hero is suppose to be an "upgrade" from the magic. I was about to get a hero, but there are too many mixed reviews to make it worth $600. I wanna ditch my iphone 2G for android and still have a 3.5mm jack at the top of the device...is that so hard to accomplish? Guess I'm holding out till later this year to see what else is placed on the table. I almost got a 288 magic but for that money, I might as well save for a better phone that has the 3.5mm jack.
If you are really that annoyed by it now and know yourself well enough to know that you'll be really pissed later after daily use, I would just sell it now on ebay or in the XDA market place while the selling is good. Sure, you could hold out to see what the software update is gonna do...but without more details on that update you're still risking afore mentioned buyers remorse.
El Droid said:
sound quality is inferiorto the iPhone, very 'closed', poor 'dynamics', relatively weak max volume
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Fair enough if you don't like the phone, get rid of it but if you want your music louder than Hero gives you you're gonna have to start thinking about a hearing aid in the future! At least based on my Hero, which is loud!
PS, I trust you'll change your user name to El Pod once you've gone back?
Have you tried typing in landscape mode with 2 thumbs I find it really quick. the portrait mode does suck a bit. also remember there are new updates coming.
megaoptimus said:
That is a breaker for me. The purpose of my looking into android phone is to replace my iphone because I'm sick of the proprietary media expience ala itunes and the ipod player. I want to just plug my phone via usb into a puter (or copy to SDcard) and play the music or radio show directly from some file manager. Android does this well for, at least it did on the g1 I tested with no lag. An all in one device should be that...the iphone is that, if you can stand going thru the hoops to do what should be simple tasks.
The hero seems like a decent machine but there are one of two things (maybe both) that make it seem like an unfinished product: the interface shouldn't be laggy as it is and we shouldn't have to be fussing with standard widgets to get it to function smoothly as it should. I can see tweaking to make it run better than normal, but "normal" being laggy and "smooth" being tweaked isn't a good start. I don't know if this is the hardware limitation or a coding issue. HTC should have either done more testing on the software side or should have including better hardware specs than the magic since the hero is suppose to be an "upgrade" from the magic. I was about to get a hero, but there are too many mixed reviews to make it worth $600. I wanna ditch my iphone 2G for android and still have a 3.5mm jack at the top of the device...is that so hard to accomplish? Guess I'm holding out till later this year to see what else is placed on the table. I almost got a 288 magic but for that money, I might as well save for a better phone that has the 3.5mm jack.
If you are really that annoyed by it now and know yourself well enough to know that you'll be really pissed later after daily use, I would just sell it now on ebay or in the XDA market place while the selling is good. Sure, you could hold out to see what the software update is gonna do...but without more details on that update you're still risking afore mentioned buyers remorse.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed and yeah...i'm starting to think this might be the way things end up unfortunately
tatwamasi said:
Fair enough if you don't like the phone, get rid of it but if you want your music louder than Hero gives you you're gonna have to start thinking about a hearing aid in the future! At least based on my Hero, which is loud!
PS, I trust you'll change your user name to El Pod once you've gone back?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its not my hearing i've never reached the max volume on my iPods/iPhones but frequently have to do so with the Hero. Maybe its specific to my unit.
robboy said:
Have you tried typing in landscape mode with 2 thumbs I find it really quick. the portrait mode does suck a bit. also remember there are new updates coming.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I typed my post exclusively in landscape mode. I wouldn't even try portrait...unless for short text messages
I will admit that I'm quite confused regarding the lag issues. It does not seem to effect everyone and the ones it does effect consider a problem that if it were solved, the phone would be a fantastic upgrade from an iphone 3g or 2g. At times I hear it is just the live widgets, other times I hear it is just the software in general during media playback and browsing. I honestly don't know what to think and would love to have a means to test a hero as it is now. I'm not gonna upgrade to a 3gs...I'm still considering the hero but I'm going to wait for the software update and to see how things process for it on xda. I really see the potential in android and that is where I would like to stay if all works out..but I'm not so clear about the hero. Given my options and my needs, the the lag can be address with code optimization, then I think the hero is the best choice for me at this point. we'll see. if you're interested in selling it, let know price via PM. If you're any where near south central PA, perhaps I could give the thing a test run first if you don't mind.
I had the Hero, I could wait to get it. I was like a five year old waiting for santa! Anyway, bit dissapointed in it so reluctantly took it back and bought a PAYG iphone 3GS from O2.
Installed redSnow to jailbreak, then ultrasn0w to unlock and now i'm using it on Vodafone. Thank god for the iphone dev team.
The iphone just kicks the ass of the Hero all over the place. Music playback, Video Playback.. signal strength... battery....multitasking...everything. And if you think you might miss out on sense UI check this out:
http://justflikwalk.deviantart.com/art/iVillain-Beta-128791945
http://modmyi.com/forums/attachment...1247179088-beta-release-ivillain-img_0053.png
Jailbroken iphone with 3rd party apps is just unbeatable....game over. iphone wins again! Maybe Android next year?
I agree crappy music playback is terrible. speed is OK, quite laggy compared to an iphone 3G but bearable. Apparantly a rom update will arrive soon.
I'm thinking of returning to an iphone as well. No equalizer is like it's 1999.
mwatson said:
Jailbroken iphone with 3rd party apps is just unbeatable....game over. iphone wins again! Maybe Android next year?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe so but its also piracy
robboy said:
Maybe so but its also piracy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
....and you have a problem with this?
The iphone just kicks the ass of the Hero all over the place. Music playback, Video Playback.. signal strength... battery....multitasking...everything. And if you think you might miss out on sense UI check this out:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll concede that a JB and unlocked iphone is pretty nice as far as apps and ease of us is concerned but the one thing it needs that it won't ever have is the ability to directly transfer files to the phone and manipulate easily. IE, copy a plain MP3 to the phone and play it in itunes or some 3rd party player without having to sync to itunes. the iphone is meant to appeal to folks that just want it to work and the iphone dev team has designed their stuff to match that philosphy. Unfortunately, the linux on iphone project, which was the great hope of getting android on the device isn't going anywhere fast due to lack of drivers for the hardware and what not. The Hero COULD have been a match but it isn't because it isn't consistently a postitive experience. This is why I'm waiting and am a little disappointed that the hero is in the state it is.
megaoptimus said:
I'll concede that a JB and unlocked iphone is pretty nice as far as apps and ease of us is concerned but the one thing it needs that it won't ever have is the ability to directly transfer files to the phone and manipulate easily. IE, copy a plain MP3 to the phone and play it in itunes or some 3rd party player without having to sync to itunes. the iphone is meant to appeal to folks that just want it to work and the iphone dev team has designed their stuff to match that philosphy. Unfortunately, the linux on iphone project, which was the great hope of getting android on the device isn't going anywhere fast due to lack of drivers for the hardware and what not. The Hero COULD have been a match but it isn't because it isn't consistently a postitive experience. This is why I'm waiting and am a little disappointed that the hero is in the state it is.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you can transfer all sorts of files uising wifi discover. It turns the iphone into a wireless usb stick. If you transfer an mp3 it'll play it on the phone. Thats what i do. There is al alternative to itunes on Cydia. Even if you couldn't do that, the sacrifice is a small price to pay when you concider the iphone 3GS is just so slick.
Why can't other manufactures achieve what Apple has done here? Did they back engineer the iphone from a UFO wreck in Navada? BTW i'm no iphone fanboy. I've had HTC devices from the first orange SPV in 2003 right up to The Hero. There is no getting away from it, Palm, Samsung, HTC whoever just can't get close to Apple right now.
Have you tried using some better quality headphones? The ones supplied are rubbish and the ipod head phones are well......appalling (sound leakage to annoy everyone aroundyou and poor bass reproduction)!. Get some phones with a high sensitivity and no sound leakage you'll be surprised The biggest thing is that you don't need to crank up the volume for them to sound great and your ears will thank you for it
Noise isolation headphones are recommended (Sennheiser, Shure, Ultimate Ears) for the hero and for all mp3 players.
I'm using a pair of Ultimate Ears Metro Fi 220s
rickyb90 said:
Have you tried using some better quality headphones? The ones supplied are rubbish and the ipod head phones are well......appalling (sound leakage to annoy everyone aroundyou and poor bass reproduction)!. Get some phones with a high sensitivity and no sound leakage you'll be surprised The biggest thing is that you don't need to crank up the volume for them to sound great and your ears will thank you for it
Noise isolation headphones are recommended (Sennheiser, Shure, Ultimate Ears) for the hero and for all mp3 players.
I'm using a pair of Ultimate Ears Metro Fi 220s
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I never even took the stock earbuds out of the box. Been alternating between V-Moda Vibe Duos and Bose Quiet Comforts
mwatson said:
The iphone just kicks the ass of the Hero all over the place.....multitasking...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Multitasking? Are you kidding? That's the reason I never got an iPhone, it doesn't multitask at all.
Plus, music playback is crap on all handsets. I'll always have a stand-alone media player because I care how my music sounds so yes, music playback is crap on the Hero but it's crap on the iPod (and iPhone) too.
And sense UI on the iPhone? Not quite. A few icons copied from the Hero but they aint no widgets.
Each to their own I guess though. I used an iPhone and it just wasn't good enough, too simplified for me. I'm quite techy tho so I like the open source of Android and the customisation etc.
Switchbitch said:
Multitasking? Are you kidding? That's the reason I never got an iPhone, it doesn't multitask at all.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you don't count playing music whilst browsing the web or any other task, and background checking your email / calendar sync... but it sure sounds like multitasking to me
And all because you can't choose other apps to have open in the background dosn't mean it can't multitask 'at all'. And lord just look at the Hero (slowwww/laggggg) as a case point why multitasking might not always be the best way to go about a mobile phone operating system.
I don't know if talking about lag is a valid point as I, and many others have experienced no lag at all, even during intense useage.
Personally, I understand that many people are experiencing lag issues but I'm keen to see what happens with this update coming out soon.
And background processing/multitasking is absoultely vital for a smartphone OS.
Switchbitch said:
Multitasking? Are you kidding? That's the reason I never got an iPhone, it doesn't multitask at all.
Plus, music playback is crap on all handsets. I'll always have a stand-alone media player because I care how my music sounds so yes, music playback is crap on the Hero but it's crap on the iPod (and iPhone) too.
And sense UI on the iPhone? Not quite. A few icons copied from the Hero but they aint no widgets.
Each to their own I guess though. I used an iPhone and it just wasn't good enough, too simplified for me. I'm quite techy tho so I like the open source of Android and the customisation etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Goto Cydia > download "Backgrounder" and multitask as much as you want!
I'm a techy too, but the Hero just doesn't impress. Jailbreak an iphone and become a geeky as you want. Widgets on lock screen and the springboard.
The iphone apps are like a 100 years ahead of android! one day android will be great. Just not today.
http://gizmodo.com/5340981/software-update-fixes-the-htc-heros-only-real-problem
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYV9NNoI8Hc
Well, this changes things. Right after it came out, Matt called the HTC Hero "tragically flawed." Why? Because the otherwise fantastic Sense UI was slooooow. HTC, presumably run by competent, rational human beings, has fixed this.
From the review in July:
The Hero is flawed, though, in ways that are truly depressing in light of its potential and how much it does get truly right: It's often sluggish, which absolutely destroys the user experience. It's a particularly unfortunate affliction as the iPhone 3GS and Palm Pre emphasize speed, making the Hero feel that much slower.
This was all but a dealbreaker, this frustrating slowness. But! Paul at MoDaCo has a preview of HTC's forthcoming update, which was vaguely announced yesterday, without much mention of what it would actually do. Now we know: It's about speed. And as someone who's been using a Hero for a few weeks now, this video makes by fingers tingle, ever so slightly.
Best of all, this update, due in a few weeks, looks like it could be ready before the Hero even shows up on whatever US carrier it's destined for, by which I mean, Sprint. Now, excuse me while I go remove the asterisk from that "Best Android Phone Ever" title. [MoDaCo via Slashgear]
Can I get a 'Hell yeah!'?
awesome
Can't wait. Loving my hero so far, except for the lagginess.
Rebooting helps but that's just a bit too "windows mobile" for my taste
I come from an iphone and i really like the openness.
I've got an unbranded urban brown so i should be able to get the update when they release it.
One thing i've noticed from the video is that the clock widget thingie is no longer animated but is now just a static picture.
It's very un-HTC like to actually release an update so quickly and to actually *gasp* fix things
But OTOH, they really set out to prove something with this phone, they can't afford to screw the pooch on this one.
HTC guys, we deffinately know you read these boards and all i can say is ... if this proves to be true and you keep releasing updates on a regular schedule ... i think you will win a lot of customers and dominate the android market.
Take Care,
-Kevin
does the new update lets HERO play video files encoded at 3p FPS ??
and what about the keyboard messaging speed?? is it better now??
I have no problems running videos at 3 fps. Keyboard text input does get unbearably sluggish at times though.
ghoonk said:
I have no problems running videos at 3 fps. Keyboard text input does get unbearably sluggish at times though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The keyboard can get very slow in webpages I find.
I hope that this update also fixes the missing text messages issue, lots of angry peeps because I don't reply to them!
ghoonk said:
I have no problems running videos at 3 fps. Keyboard text input does get unbearably sluggish at times though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
actually i meant 30 fps...LOL i made a mistake by typing 3 only...lol 3fps is supported by even the most basic video phone!
thank God...
I really wanted to love the Hero (but the speed problem totally made me reconsider, having had a slow Diamond before) as the UI really is one of the best among the likes of the iPhone, and despite the fact that I am still using WinMo now I must admit that the iPhone UI is just a hell of a lot more out there. The Hero's UI is the first I see on any phone that really does match the iPhone's UI (if not exceed it).
If it actually speeds up so much with the update, it would be absolutely perfect, and I will buy one.
nin2thevoid said:
I really wanted to love the Hero (but the speed problem totally made me reconsider, having had a slow Diamond before) as the UI really is one of the best among the likes of the iPhone, and despite the fact that I am still using WinMo now I must admit that the iPhone UI is just a hell of a lot more out there. The Hero's UI is the first I see on any phone that really does match the iPhone's UI (if not exceed it).
If it actually speeds up so much with the update, it would be absolutely perfect, and I will buy one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed. I've just boxed/RMAd my Hero for return. I thoroughly enjoyed the time i spent with it but as it is now, its just not practical for me. Plus i dunno how HTC do their updates and if they truly fix anything useful or just random fixes no one cares about, which is why i wasn't willing to gamble.
If the update does improve things significantly then i'll come back or simply wait for the next iteration but in the meantime i'm returning to my trusty iPhone. Yes its UI is dated, yes it sucks at multitasking, yes the app store policy is draconian, yes battery life sucks. However the little things the iPhone does, it does well and is dependable for me.
I'm looking for a phone to buy in the next 2/3 months and if the hero gets as fast as we can see on the video, my choice is done. Otherwise I'll stick with my old phone waiting for a real Iphone competitor...
Speed the only problem?
I'd say that functional shortcomings are even worse. The speed-issue is mostly a feature of true multitasking. Don't expect good performance from a low-end CPU when it's trying to run all the fancy widget applications simultaneously. Optimisation is always appreciated though.
More important issues IMHO are:
Email not able to display messages with digital signatures. Never mind verification of the signature, but there's no good reason why the unencrypted message body can't be displayed. K9mail from the market handles it, as well as the mail-app in a stock android 1.5 dev.kit.
Email has no option to specify the path for IMAP folders. No folders other than the inbox can be read from servers which require the path to be specified.
The currently used 2.6.27.x kernel has serious issues with wi-fi (performance issues, temporary loss of connection). There are good reasons why the entire wi-fi stack was replaced shortly after (see kernel mailing-list) and we should hopefully soon see Android built with kernel 2.6.30 or later.
LEDs and trackball lights have stopped working on some units. It's been claimed that these problems are software related.
The music-player needs more consistent sorting of songs. Now it sorts songs alphabetically when browsing all tracks from an artist, while the default should be sort by album+disc_number+track_number. Similarly when you browse all albums the ordering of tracks within an album seems random. The natural order here would be by track-number.
Fade out-in between music tracks can be more smooth, as can the fade in/out of alarms and phone-calls.
Peep needs fixing so that it doesn't drain the battery when there's no twitter account configured. I don't know what it does, but it certainly can't be idle when it reduces the standby-time to 6-8 hours. Kill Peep, or give it a valid twitter user-name/password and the problem is gone.
The dialler and phone-book could do with some optimisation. This is the only place I've found where lagging actually causes a problem as it sometimes leads to calls being accidentally initiated.
These are just some of the problems I've found. I'm sure people with other priorities and who use the device differently have other issues.
I really would like that person to post a video showing the contacts app THEN we can know if performance issues have been really solved.
Hero lag can't be worse than what the Pre has in just about every program. Looking forward to playing with one in person so I can check it out for myself. Palm has done a terrible job of implementing a good idea.
Aridon said:
Hero lag can't be worse than what the Pre has in just about every program. Looking forward to playing with one in person so I can check it out for myself. Palm has done a terrible job of implementing a good idea.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pre was very zippy/responsive when i played with it
Speaking of terrible jobs of implementing good ideas, how about the fact that despite creating a fancy new UI for Android, including an innovative widget idea, yet again HTC have given us an essentially useless music player. Why on earth didn't HTC learn from the Diamond's problems in order to implement a music player that did not skip during tracks. Unbelievable! I'm so furious about this. And before someone tells me that if I want a music player I should use a seperate player, if the phone cannot perform the most basic function of any music player, which is to play music uninterrupted, it should not be included at all; I am not an HTC tester.
I have a class 6 micro SD card coming soon, if this doesn't help, it's bye bye Hero and hello iphone. It may not multitask and have a bland UI and have a draconian app store (frankly, who cares!?), but what it can do, it does very well indeed.
As for the update, I like many cannot get too excited about this because I am with Orange and their update will no doubt follow in 2015.
What a bum deal.
Yours sincerely,
A fed up HTC customer.
simcarloc said:
Speaking of terrible jobs of implementing good ideas, how about the fact that despite creating a fancy new UI for Android, including an innovative widget idea, yet again HTC have given us an essentially useless music player. Why on earth didn't HTC learn from the Diamond's problems in order to implement a music player that did not skip during tracks. Unbelievable! I'm so furious about this. And before someone tells me that if I want a music player I should use a seperate player, if the phone cannot perform the most basic function of any music player, which is to play music uninterrupted, it should not be included at all; I am not an HTC tester.
I have a class 6 micro SD card coming soon, if this doesn't help, it's bye bye Hero and hello iphone. It may not multitask and have a bland UI and have a draconian app store (frankly, who cares!?), but what it can do, it does very well indeed.
As for the update, I like many cannot get too excited about this because I am with Orange and their update will no doubt follow in 2015.
What a bum deal.
Yours sincerely,
A fed up HTC customer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My Hero never skips when playing music not that I do so that often. Its so much better than my Diamond was.
simcarloc said:
As for the update, I like many cannot get too excited about this because I am with Orange and their update will no doubt follow in 2015.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well that may not be entirely true.
The Jones - listen more often and you will experience it. Unless of course, it's a problem only affecting certain handsets, in which case there are serious inconsistencies in HTC's manufacturing at work here, I doubt it though.
What audio formats you are using? With mp3 and wma (some are high bitrate) I use both wired and ad2p heastets about 4 hours a day and never experienced stuttering. I have a brown one from mobiles.co.uk with vodafone.
Also, while listening to music usually a few applications such as browser or news readers are being used as well.
Interesting sproxy, mine is also from Mobiles.co.uk on Orange and I get no skipping here either, listened to music loads on the phone over the last couple of days. Mine is also one of the ones with no lag, or screen gap I wonder they had a newer "fixed" batch or something?
Hello-
I was hoping any and all users can giver their 2 cents here. What are the real world limitations of this device? I have done a fair amount of research and this phone seems to fit the bill, but wanted some feedback on it. I know I want an Android based smartphone, and I must stick with AT&T as it's what my company has and it's the ONLY provider in my rural part of Texas.
While the phone has been labeled "mid-spec" it still seems pretty impressive. I also know being tied to AT&T means I'm REALLY limited, and I do not want an iPhone. My wife has one, I've tried it... It completly DIED after 3 months. I know in other posts people have said iPhone still best bang for the buck for AT&T smartphone, but a smartphone that does not work as a phone, doesn't show the net as it really appears, and has updates that seemingly copy Android does not seem too "smart" to me. Yes, iTunes looks pretty, and I could play "Words w/ Friends," but seems like a lot of fluff.
I have found due to hardware Aria cannot run Google Earth, is there anything else it cannot do? I know there is debate about Gingerbread being compatible, but that seems a ways down the road. I'm really torn, as I like the size of this thing: it still looks like a phone and not a flat panel TV, but the car guy side of me thinks "no replacement for displacement" when it comes to a processor.
That would mean getting a Nexus One, but I worry about the trackball popping out like my sister-in-laws Blackberry, and the cost is hard to swallow. The Desire looks AWESOME but if I have read correctly it will not work on 3G for data, only voice, and it is expensive. Then there is the Samsung Captivate which is coming, but it seems HUGE, or does the camera add 10 lbs???. I'd like to limit the physical size to an iphone-esque size at most so it is pocketable. I also have read Samsung can be difficult to work with from a consumer standpoint with respect to updates, etc.
I also like the Sense UI as it seems elegantly simple and worked well while I messed with the phone in the store.
Overall, I want the most bang for the buck phone. A true "dream machine" would be an Aria sized phone, with the Desire specs, that does it all on 3G. What really would be the closest thing to such a device? I'm open to any ideas and suggestions, but again I CANNOT change providers; seriously, AT&T is the ONLY provider with coverage in my area.
Thanks in advance for any and all answers and help!!!
The phone does have some limitations (you have done your homework). If you want a great phone on att, this is a good choice. The galaxy s (coming soon to ATT) may be better if you must have a high end device.
I would say that if you are stuck with AT&T, the Aria may be your phone. I have a had HTC, Samsung, Motorola, and Apple phones and HTC has been the most solid of all of them. I just came from an iPhone and I can honestly say it has better reception, call quality, and adaptability than my 3GS. Phones seem to be almost a matter of taste, some people will deal with the most ridiculous shortcomings if it has a feature they feel is the most important. That being said, I played with a lot of phones and found the Aria to be the best package for a smartphone on AT&T at this moment. That could change as soon as another high end phone hops on but for now, I'm very pleased. I will say this, the battery life takes some getting used to, but its right in the same area and any other smartphone. Also, the speaker phone is quiet but since I never use it, it doesn't even make my list for pros vs cons. Being that it is locked down to certain apps and such is annoying, but coming from an iPhone makes it seem like a walk in the park to get other apps and such on it. I would say read a little more of these forums to see what some complaints are and see if any of them make your list of important features. But otherwise, you have on recommendation here.
Some of the gripes I have with this phone include:
* The screen isn't quite adequate in size for reading ebooks, which I didn't expect I would do at the time of purchase.
* The speaker is pretty crappy. It's not very loud and it sounds irritating at volume - very tinny.
* It doesn't appear to support very many video file formats. In fact, the only format I've gotten to work with Act1 video player are the base h264 and h263 formats. To my understanding, it is up to the manufacturer to include any extra codecs, so you're SOL if you're planning on using this as a mobile media player.
* It doesn't come with live wallpapers or an option to sideload apps. You can enable both of these by rooting the phone (which is a pain in the ass, by the way), but I've found that the processor isn't up to the task of running some of the more complex live wallpapers (like the mario wallpaper). I'm hoping this will be less of a problem with Froyo and the JIT.
* It gets a little warm when you have the gps on in navigation, but not enough to scald your junk if you're keeping it on your lap. It's actually not that big of a deal, just makes me worry about damaging the battery.
* Typing is a bit hard in portrait mode. Some applications seem to crash in landscape mode, like 'better terminal emulator', but I suspect that's more of a problem with the program and not the Aria.
* The camera is a bit mediocre and doesn't include a flash, but to be fair, it's primarily a phone and not a camera (I have yet to see a phone's camera be on par with a midrange point & shoot).
* Sense UI can't be disabled/enabled as an option, like on the Evo 4g.
I was going to test Google Earth for you, but I can't seem to find it in the Market.
Anyway, in summary, it has a few shortcomings, it's a midrange phone after all, but I love it regardless. It's slips into my pocket comfortably and feels solid in the hand. The interface is nice and smooth (unless you have some crazy live wallpaper enabled). It doesn't bog down when you fill the screens with widgets, and the browser experience thus far has been great. All in all, it was definitely worth the $50 I paid for it from Amazon.com.
P.S. I was considering holding out for something higher spec'd to come along on AT&T, but who knows when that will happen? The Dell Aero was supposed to be out months ago. Likewise, we are actually supposed to have 3 HTC phones running Android to choose from right now, and yet we only have the Aria. The Samsung Captivate is supposed to be 'coming in the next few months,' but I've grown to distrust AT&T's timelines. A major part of why I got the Aria was because I was simply tired of waiting for ATT to get their act together.
I went to an AT&T Retail Store here in Corpus Christi, TX to look at it again and see what they could do for me deal wise because I'm mid-cycle in my contract. The Mgr. told me he is suppose to get the "sample" Captivate on Friday, and it's suppose to be on sale the 15th. I guess to go head-to-head with the X??? I'll wait til Friday to see if it true. He claims there is a lot to coming down the pike with Android OS as it's the "next big thing..." (Well, for AT&T I guess....) I've waitd this long, another couple of days won't kill me to see it, and help reduce buyer's remorse...
lonestarmotorcyclist said:
I went to an AT&T Retail Store here in Corpus Christi, TX to look at it again and see what they could do for me deal wise because I'm mid-cycle in my contract. The Mgr. told me he is suppose to get the "sample" Captivate on Friday, and it's suppose to be on sale the 15th. I guess to go head-to-head with the X??? I'll wait til Friday to see if it true. He claims there is a lot to coming down the pike with Android OS as it's the "next big thing..." (Well, for AT&T I guess....) I've waitd this long, another couple of days won't kill me to see it, and help reduce buyer's remorse...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good luck fighting the urge!
modest_mandroid said:
* It doesn't appear to support very many video file formats. In fact, the only format I've gotten to work with Act1 video player are the base h264 and h263 formats. To my understanding, it is up to the manufacturer to include any extra codecs, so you're SOL if you're planning on using this as a mobile media player.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not exactly. Do a search on 'Rock Player'. It's a media player that's still in Beta, and it expands upon the selection of video codecs that are handled by the standard media libraries.
It plays DivX-encoded videos like a CHAMP.
EDIT: Actually, here's the forum for it: http://www.diffthink.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=4
Regards,
Corporate Dog
* It doesn't appear to support very many video file formats. In fact, the only format I've gotten to work with Act1 video player are the base h264 and h263 formats. To my understanding, it is up to the manufacturer to include any extra codecs, so you're SOL if you're planning on using this as a mobile media player.
I was planning on using it as a media player... So, in simple English for my simple mind, what does this mean: that it can only use those two formats? Does it mean it's limited to what can be seen via the internet or does it mean I'm limited to the type of video formats I could directly load from my computer, or both???? Is there a way around these limitations because I want to be able to have infotainment in one device and do not want to drag around multiple devices. (Sorry if this seems like a dumb question but I am FAR from well versed in this field.)
Also, thanks again for the replies and info.. It is GREATLY appreciated!!!
Corporate Dog said:
Not exactly. Do a search on 'Rock Player'. It's a media player that's still in Beta, and it expands upon the selection of video codecs that are handled by the standard media libraries.
It plays DivX-encoded videos like a CHAMP.
EDIT: Actually, here's the forum for it: http://www.diffthink.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=4
Regards,
Corporate Dog
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, I'll check it out when I get home, don't have any divx files to play here.
lonestarmotorcyclist said:
I was planning on using it as a media player... So, in simple English for my simple mind, what does this mean: that it can only use those two formats? Does it mean it's limited to what can be seen via the internet or does it mean I'm limited to the type of video formats I could directly load from my computer, or both???? Is there a way around these limitations because I want to be able to have infotainment in one device and do not want to drag around multiple devices. (Sorry if this seems like a dumb question but I am FAR from well versed in this field.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To my understanding, there isn't any "CorePlayer" equivalent. I dunno if you're coming from a Windows Mobile world or not, but CorePlayer could run pretty much anything your desktop computer could.
What I meant by my comment was that the Aria appears to be limited to the .mp4 format for videos (I have not tested .flv). So, if you wanted to toss some movies onto the sd card and use the stock media player or Act1 video player (appears to be pretty popular in the market), then you're stuck re-encoding all your videos to h264 .mp4. The iPhone is limited in this way too, or so I hear.
But, from what I've seen with RockPlayer just now, it's seems to be very bare on options but looks like it can play a very wide range of formats. I just played some mp4 videos I had on my sd card and they run flawlessly. Hopefully this program is in active development and will turn into Android's CorePlayer.
Thanks for the info and links; you both cleared up the questions I had. I just want to cover every aspect so when my iFamily tells me I made a poor choice I can show them it does EVERYTHING I want it to and more, not what the manufacturer thinks I need it to do or should do...
I just am not seeing where you can go wrong with this thing compared to other devices.....
lonestarmotorcyclist said:
I just am not seeing where you can go wrong with this thing compared to other devices.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the small size can either be a huge plus or killing minus depending on your habits/needs
for me it s a definate plus
lonestarmotorcyclist said:
Thanks for the info and links; you both cleared up the questions I had. I just want to cover every aspect so when my iFamily tells me I made a poor choice I can show them it does EVERYTHING I want it to and more, not what the manufacturer thinks I need it to do or should do...
I just am not seeing where you can go wrong with this thing compared to other devices.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are buying the phone for yourself or are you replacing iphones for your family?
Corporate Dog said:
Not exactly. Do a search on 'Rock Player'. It's a media player that's still in Beta, and it expands upon the selection of video codecs that are handled by the standard media libraries.
It plays DivX-encoded videos like a CHAMP.
EDIT: Actually, here's the forum for it: http://www.diffthink.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=4
Regards,
Corporate Dog
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been using rock player on my Aria for a while, and I am hoping this is just cause it is still beta, but SD AVI files run like molasses. If there is more than one thing going on on screen the video lags and gets out of sync with the audio. You have to pause the video, wait for it to catch up and play it again.
This is my only gripe about this phone, but it may be the program, not the phone.
Whatever phone I get will be just for me. My in-laws got their 3Gs' about a yr ago and like most, thought they were the greatest thing sinced bread. So then my wife "needed" one. I've played with it and it is nice to be able to access the web, and have music right there, but.... there seemed something lacking. I like the concept, but I also like to tinker with stuff. I'll admit, I LOVED the Droid ad campaign of "Droid Does" and since my phone has died, I started looking to get something new. It just seems better in everyway I can think of, but I want to know all I can to properly inform those who will tell me I'm wrong when I get my new phone. (And there will be a lot, I know...)
I just don't see how they really can be compared. Everyone I know who has an iPhone loves them, but they use them for the web, Facebook, Words W/ Friends, and as an iPod. I think it's great there are 200K apps, but I don't know anyone that uses more than 1% of them and every "cutting edge feature" seems to be copied from Android. I guess there is also the fact that there are a truckload of docks and cases to "personalize" them, but I think I rather personalize the stuff that matters.
In reality, I want to blow their socks off with what it can do and know it inside and out as soon as I get it. (You know, the ones that were excited about folders and backgrounds on iPhones. Does that make me a bad person??? Or just honest???)
My wife has an Aria, I have a Nexus One. I'm REALLY surprised when I use her phone, it's actually smoother than my Nexus. Long lists scroll like butter, the launcher scrolls extremly smooth, apps list, etc... I've never seen the phone slow down, it's all very smooth.
She doesn't watch videos on it, but she will eventually load her iTunes music onto it, but hasn't yet. She loves the smaller size, but you're right that it is a tad touchier to type on.
She raves about how fast the browser is.. And how everything just opens, bam... And her GCal euphoria moment was pretty awesome too; suddenly she can see my entire calendar, add to my calendar, see when I'm in a meeting until 5...
She's really been looking for something to complain about moving from her iPhone and so far I don't think she's found anything.
Just an update on the video playback capabilities in RockPlayer - I tested it with a 320x240 mpeg, 700x500 divx, 640x480 .mp4 and a 720p mkv video. The mpeg and mp4 ran perfectly fine, the divx ran pretty slow (maybe 10fps) and the sound was constantly desychronizing, and the mkv was unwatchable. It didn't scale down to the Aria screen size, and it ran so slow that you could see the individual frames (like 2-4fps).
Considering the speed difference between the .mp4 and the divx, I'm assuming this is a lack of hardware acceleration issue with some codecs?
I know people from samsung do read xda so this is my request to them.
Can you please release a high end device with unmodified Android most manufacturers are so into making their own UI's that no one is using actual andorid.
You already have the best hardware and can differentiate from others by highlighting it their is no need for you to make a UI to differentiate your device. Just give us a pure Android device with OS that works like Google intended I know some will say we have nexus S but with it not having the same screen for different regions plus it was already not the best device when it was released Hardware wise.
Why? I imagine that a lot of people that buy their devices - you know, the non-technical types that don't frequent places such as XDA - actually quite like TouchWiz. Simple to use and with a few more features than stock, sprinkled with eye candy.
The hard core always have the option of replacing it.
I have a Nexus S and i'm not pleased
I actually like the I9000 experience better,
the pure Google phone does not have hardware support for multimedia files like MKV, DivX, AVI, HD movies, flac, aac, etc...
it's kinda useless to have the state of the art phone, and being unable to play a video file on demand
yes, you can use software decoder, but the quality and lag is horrible
Dopedangel said:
I know some will say we have nexus S but with it not having the same screen for different regions plus it was already not the best device when it was released Hardware wise.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It wasn't the best hardware on release anyways. Have you checked the specs of both phones? Nexus S lacks some things aside of the screen.
AllGamer said:
I have a Nexus S and i'm not pleased
I actually like the I9000 experience better,
the pure Google phone does not have hardware support for multimedia files like MKV, DivX, AVI, HD movies, flac, aac, etc...
it's kinda useless to have the state of the art phone, and being unable to play a video file on demand
yes, you can use software decoder, but the quality and lag is horrible
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The hardware is the same in both phones. I agree that the touchwizz video player is a nice addition however. Does it uses the GPU for decoding? Maybe, but I don't think so. I think it's software.
In all cases, the same technique could be used on the Nexus S to decode video.
zorxd said:
The hardware is the same in both phones. I agree that the touchwizz video player is a nice addition however. Does it uses the GPU for decoding? Maybe, but I don't think so. I think it's software.
In all cases, the same technique could be used on the Nexus S to decode video.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
it uses hardware to decode. and the nexus can be made to as well (it decodes basic stuff in hardware most likely)
just install rockplayer otherwise.
bilboa1 said:
just install rockplayer otherwise.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
already using it, it's horrible compared to native support from hardware
i have much more fun and Higher quality playing the same video on the SGS than the SNS, even when using rockplayer
since rockplayer lets you choose hardware decode or software decode
I like my sgs a lot, but I have to say that I'm really disappointed. I don't mind having touchwiz or anything similar as long as I can flash any rom. But we need developers for that. What I want is to have a good phone out of the box. Still, gps, lag, battery ...completly wrong.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
Well touchwiz must be appealing to the general public... I mean 10 million sold with a 2nd one the way with touchwiz v4, Personally I love what Samsung did software side. Sure the FS blows but isn't too bad
I've tried just about every other launcher (Gingerbread, Zeam, LauncherPro, ADW), but I still prefer TouchWiz, albiet gtg465x's modded version
Samsung could release 1 device and two roms (a custom one, an aosp one), so everybody could be happy.
At least they could provide a git repository, so people could compile it.
On my computer I can install the os I want (except MacOS - ) and many flavour of linux. I can even obtain updates...
We should really be able to do the same with smartphones and tablets...
Hey guys,
I have a Xoom and recently tried to use the movie studio...maybe I can't figure it out, but I am disappointed with how generic it is.
The ability to add clips/pictures is fine, but it is annoying that I cannot trim clips before I put it into the timeline.
Also, this is huge, but why can't I put multiple audio files into the movie? It plays ONE song, over and over for the entire movie...I want to be able to trim audio clips and even MUTE the original video clip...iMovie can do all of this, and it seems like this movie studio is just a generic rushed POS that Google put out just to get it out.
Honestly, I am severely disappointed in the movie studio....BUT maybe it is my fault...thats why I am asking if there is any documentation for the studio.
Like when I click on audio files, there is one option at the top right that does not seem to do anything. It looks like a box with sound waves in it that get bigger or smaller depending if I toggle it...but it doesn't do ****.
Any thoughts?
It's a basic and free app included with the OS. If you want to do extended editing, get a computer or wait for a better app to come out.
And wow, comparing it with iMovie? Honeycomb is a new OS, and this is the very first offering and you're *****ing about it.
iMovie is a paid app ($5 I think) and NOT available for the iPad.
iMovie works with iPhone 4,
fourth-generation iPod touch, and iPad 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
who cares if its a first offering...I am still disappointed in it. It is a lacking movie editor.
iMovie was Apple's first attempt at it with the IP4 on a mobile device and it was already much better than the Movie Studio...being a "first" iteration is not an excuse for something sucking.
And I dont think the movie studio has anything to do with Honeycomb...I love honeycomb
frenzy757 said:
who cares if its a first offering...I am still disappointed in it. It is a lacking movie editor.
iMovie was Apple's first attempt at it with the IP4 on a mobile device and it was already much better than the Movie Studio...being a "first" iteration is not an excuse for something sucking.
And I dont think the movie studio has anything to do with Honeycomb...I love honeycomb
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So put forth your money and buy one of the paid apps if you want something more.
My point, don't complain about something that was thrown in as a little bonus for free. If you paid something for it, sure, complain, but you didn't, and you're comparing it to a paid application on another system that isn't even comparable to the Xoom (iPhone vs Tablet).
And I can guarantee that iMovie on the iPad 2 is going to be at least twice as much as the iPhone version, maybe even more knowing how Apple likes to soak their users. I'm guessing $15
What paid one do you suggest...
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App
Never needed one since I don't do much video. Check out the market?
https://market.android.com/apps/MEDIA_AND_VIDEO/
There's only 1 in the market and it just takes any video clip u have and you can edit that one clip
I agree with the op. Google seems to always release beta software. I would love to record a couple videos, clip them and mix them together, add more than one music track I would even pay for an app that does all this.
I don't even want to show the app to any of my apple loving friends because it just makes the xoom look even more unfinished
I honestly think people need to chill out around here. The op was stating a couple things he didn't like about an app on his xoom whether it's free or not doesn't matter, he's got the right to complain about what ever the hell he wants. And furthermore he's really just asking for some type of documentation because maybe he missed something. And this lame ass excuse that because this is Google's first shot at a tablet os is starting to get old. Just because honeycomb is the first tablet os doesn't mean that google shouldn't be held accountable for their **** ups. For example, the ****ing market. Who's genius idea was it to remove the ability to comment on apps from the device? Whoever that was is an asshole. /rant
Sent from my Xoom using XDA App
The video editing software is just made for basic video editing...features that you find in window video editing software.
exactly. Thanks.
I was stating how bad I thought it was then was asking for some/any documentation...
Does anyone know what the heck the button is on the top right when you click on the audio track? It looks like sound waves....and clicking it makes them flatter or larger but I can't see or hear what it does.
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App
frenzy757 said:
exactly. Thanks.
I was stating how bad I thought it was then was asking for some/any documentation...
Does anyone know what the heck the button is on the top right when you click on the audio track? It looks like sound waves....and clicking it makes them flatter or larger but I can't see or hear what it does.
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i'm baffled too. my first guess would be it helps eliminate crackles or background noise from your audio as my first guess. music files shouldnt have any background distortion.
How to get video off device?
I have another video editor. How can I get the video file off of the xoom? I have tried:
- email as attachment in gmail
- email as attachment in isp mail service
- ftp
None of these actually transmit the file.
Thank you
Tom
Usefulness of the application aside. Google could have done more on documentation for Movie Studio.
http://www.google.com/support/mobile/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=169129
http://www.google.com/support/mobile/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=1197893
page 115
any answer on the music button? Figured out what it does yet?
I wish we could fade the music at the end instead of an abrupt ending...I'd rather have that than multiple songs in a short clip.
Export problem
I have flashed my Galaxy GT-I9000M with IGS 4.0.3 SGS rom RC4.2.
I cannot export anything with Movie Studio, each time I want to export, the screen appear at 0% and exit after few second and say "error occur, cannot export"
I have try just to import one clip and export it, not work. Try different quality and resolution, don't work.
Exporting folder not created?
Writing permission ??
Any idea ???