Database Users

Thinking about getting Aria

I'm thinking about getting the Aria.. can anyone tell me any downsides to the Aria? Is PDAnet in the marketplace? The one at the ATT store had it removed. I'm probably just going to root it.. is it possible to root it and revert back to ATT's firmware if I need to?

MJennings said:
I'm thinking about getting the Aria.. can anyone tell me any downsides to the Aria? Is PDAnet in the marketplace? The one at the ATT store had it removed. I'm probably just going to root it.. is it possible to root it and revert back to ATT's firmware if I need to?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lack of keyboard and small on screen keyboard
Apart from that I have NO complaints.

MJennings said:
I'm thinking about getting the Aria.. can anyone tell me any downsides to the Aria? Is PDAnet in the marketplace? The one at the ATT store had it removed. I'm probably just going to root it.. is it possible to root it and revert back to ATT's firmware if I need to?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You will be able to revert back to the original AT&T firmware; HTC already has the original shipped ROM on their support site for the Aria.
As for downsides, what kind of phone do you currently have? I upgraded to the Aria from a WM 6.5 Samsung Jack, so it is a bit smaller and has a virtual keyboard instead of a physical keyboard. The battery life on the Aria is on par with Jack. Yesterday was my first full day with in on the job and by 10PM the battery gauge showed about 40%.
As you mentioned, there are no tethering apps in the Android Market, so you would have to either side-load a tethering app using the Android SDK 'adb' utility or root the phone. So that it is the one thing that I am currently missing. If I go out of town and need to tether, I will just pull my SIM card and put it back in the Jack.
Regards,
Tom

MJennings said:
I'm thinking about getting the Aria.. can anyone tell me any downsides to the Aria? Is PDAnet in the marketplace? The one at the ATT store had it removed. I'm probably just going to root it.. is it possible to root it and revert back to ATT's firmware if I need to?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The big worries I had before ordering it were that due to it's small screen, slower cpu and being on ATT, it might not get updates as quick as some other flagship android model ATT might put out, and that it's service life in terms of updates might be limited by the fact that it's a mid-lower range device.
I personally don't mind the 'unknown sources' lock so much simply because it's so easy to get around. I was kind of disappointed by the lack of live wallpapers, though I'm pretty sure there will be a way to hack them on later.
To be honest, I wanted to wait until after the iPhone release to order mine, simply to see if ATT would announce anything else. If you recall, they promised us 5 Android handsets by the end of H1 2010 (Motorola Backflip, Dell Aero, HTC Aria, and two other yet unknown HTC devices). Then I saw the Aria for $50 on Amazon with a contract extension and figured it wasn't worth the wait.

I got the phone.. it seems the phone is kinda quiet on normal and speaker phone, anyone else think so?

I have a Tilt that is a little beat up, but runs well for an old phone.
For the last month, I been looking to switch. Tilt2 sucked so my decision came down to Bold 9700. Then I saw the iPhone 3GS for $100. But I waited and got a chance to miss around with the Aria and for the 15 minutes of playing around with Android, I was very happy with the device.
So it looks like by Wednesday, I will have to make a decision. Bold 9700 is a sold phone, but I have never had a BB and have heard very mixed reviews. Plus, the fact that without a data plan the phone becomes very limited in terms of GPS, etc., that was a turn-off. I have never been too high on an iPhone, but the nice thing is, I could get unlimited data for $10 a month for it (connection). After the Tilt, the Aria's size is a big plus. I don't plan on getting a data and can get the phone for $45 without a contract extension.
So now it comes down to iPhone or Aria? Man, that Aria is sexy as heck! Do I make the leap? I have been looking the Aria forum and while I have a lot to learn about Android, I learned enough about flashing, etc. with the year I had the Tilt that I think with some reading and Q/A from the good folks at XDA, I can learn to take all the crap off of my Aria.
I have 24/7 wifi so no need for giving damn ATT an extra $15 a month.
So do I wait a little while to see what else comes out or dive into the Aria? I usually keep my phones for about 2-3 years. What's this about the Aria being a mid-range phone? I don't really play games, etc. on my phone other than the occasional Tetris or something on my commute. And from my interaction with the Aria, it was way faster than the Tilt.

I just upgraded from a Fuze (Energy Rom) to an Aria yesterday. I'm not a microsoft fanboy, but I'm a huge fan of the Zune / Zunepass (Best deal in music stores IMO) I've been trying to hold out for a windows mobile 7 phone, but then again who knows when one will be released. I recently played around with XANDROID on the fuze and fell in love with it. It runs my phone better than WM6.5 aside from the bugs and the 3 hr. battery life (im sure at some point xandroid will be usable but not yet) I was eligible for an extension but still 6 mo from being out of contract so I needed to stay with ATT. I thought about a droid milestone, nexus one, and did some searching for unlocked droid phones. I stopped in the store and tried out the aria and loved it. Ive avoided touch screen only phones for the fact that i like keyboards, until I realized I actually type faster with the aria on screen keyboard than with my Fuze. The phone is light. thin, and compact, but not too compact. The screeen is plenty big, and the touch screen is responsive. Its also extremely smooth, no noticeable lag in android. I recommend trying it out in the store to see what you think, if its durable I think it will prove to be a great phone for the price, it also looks fantastic.

The loudspeaker is a bit low and harsh sounding for music and no camera flash. Other than those things I can't really think of anything I don't like about my Aria. My battery life has been very good over moderate usage and call quality is solid. I haven't made any changes to dl 3rd party apps yet and I haven't really missed anything.
This phone is very fast and never lags on me. That's something I can't say for really any of the Smartphones I've had except for my 3gs.

I don't own the phone but the concerns i have are:
1) No camera flash
2) small screen
3) no BT voice command (from what i hear)
4) some reports that HTC sync is kind of buggy

G1 stilll worth getting?

I'm considering jumping to T-Mobile here in a few days, as my Sprint contract is ending. A friend of mine is selling his G1 for pretty cheap in good condition. That combined with the Even More Plus plans sounds like a better deal than being stuck in a contract again for 2 years.
I know the phone is crazy old, but it still seems to have great support for roms and such. I have no problems with rooting and flashing at all.
Also, for the people who are with T-Mobile right now, if I start a Even More Plus plan right now, would I be able to "upgrade" to contracted phone down the road, which would prompt me to the more expensive plan, should I ever get a real itch for a Vibrant or things coming out later this year.

I just got mine today lol i love it
My other phone is a tilt 2 tho

Really no point. On CL in my city g1s are 60 used 120ish new. It still has awsome support but remember, its close to 2 years old.... With technology going at the pace its at, think of it like comparing a 2010 mustang against a very well maintained 1985 mustang. Its definately a usable phone and will make you pleased, but won't compare with the advancements in speed, fuel economy, safety, etc...
If you asked this question 7-8 months ago, I would have totally recomended it. Now, not so much.
P.S. download the APN on/off widget or APNdroid to turn off data, so you can qualify for cheaper talk/text only plans. Data is roughly $20-30 more expensive, plus your phone will be functional under wifi. Plus battery lasts longer
Sent from my T-Mobile G1 using XDA App

i would say the same as mej,
but totally.. now.. its not much worth. I would totally go for a nexus one if i had to buy a new phone

T-Mobile don't even sell G1s anymore, do they?
Anyways, if you're getting a contract, don't buy an old phone! Get a myTouch slide or wait for the Sidekick Twist.

I would just get the Vibrant right now, because I think if you come into your contract with a used G1 you can't get a new phone till you're up for an upgrade. Besides, the Vibrant(along with most of the other Galaxy S lineup) is top of the line right now. They are benchmarking higher video framerates than a EVO 4G. Plus it has 720p HD video recording, and HD video out so you can play back what you recorded on a hdtv. Also has a accelerometer and gyroscope, giving it a 6-axis g-sensor for epic gaming. Oh yeah, and it's the baddest phone T-Mo has right now, period.

I purchases my G1 2 months ago, best buy ever (paid 100 uk pound,around 130euro then, with 8GB microsd, ...).
Still no phone with a tilt keyboard yet (had a tilt, htc kaiser, much better then htc pro, but the G1 has a nicer touch screen (the tilt was also running android 2.1).

If your stuck on Tmobile, don't want to spend too much, and want a new phone before your contract ends, then go for it
Nowadays with a new contract you can get some pretty good phones for really cheap prices

I've had my G1 since I received it after preordering it. It's an EXCELLENT phone. However, it's age is showing. There are some things it simply cannot do and many things it cannot do well.
If you're going the as-cheap-as-I-can route in the short-term, a G1 may do the trick (And, if it were January of 2009, I'd say get the G1.). But, as it's been said before, if you're going to be locked into a 2 year contract, you'll really want to get hardware with enough power to last you those two years and not leave you wanting more.
Personally, if I were buying right now, it would either be a NexusOne or a Vibrant. Something with enough processing power and RAM for Android 2.2+
Good luck!

I got my G1 this past January... and while I don't regret it, there's no chance I'd buy this phone now. Every day I wish this thing had a Snapdragon in it. If you're really worried about contracts go with an unlocked phone for more money upfront - at least with T-Mobile, the plan will be cheaper, so it'll even out.
Again, the G1 is a great phone and I love the design/form factor, but for this day and age it's just not fast enough.

I don't believe you'll be able to take an Even More Plus plan and then go to an Even More plan right off the back, at least not with your same number...but, If you sign up for google Voice at the same time as getting the g1, give out that number to everyone as your new number, when you upgrade your to a contract(if you do), that GV number will still be the same and you'll just have to change the number under your GV settings.
Would I buy a G1 right now? If it was 0-50, maybe 75 with an 8 gig sd card. We've got 2.2 running on our phones now as a daily driver. it makes/receives calls, what more you need from a phone?

Zoltair Wright said:
the G1 is a great phone and I love the design/form factor, but for this day and age it's just not fast enough.
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Click to collapse
^^ this i love my dream and i've had it less than a year but would trade up 2 a droid in a heartbeat (i still need that real keyboard even if the droids is crap)

Zardos66 said:
I'm considering jumping to T-Mobile here in a few days, as my Sprint contract is ending.
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Click to collapse
I do have one question... why not stay with Sprint? Their plans are competitively priced with T-Mobile, and they have excellent Android devices. The Epic 4G is due out soon, which should be an amazing phone by anyone's standards. And it will have a hardware keyboard, like the G1...
If price is the most important, don't go with T-Mobile. Get an unlocked T-Mobile phone and take it over to Simple Mobile at mysimplemobile.com. They use the same 3G bands as T-Mobile but you get unlimited talk, text, and internet for a flat $60/month.

t140568 said:
I've had my G1 since I received it after preordering it. It's an EXCELLENT phone. However, it's age is showing. There are some things it simply cannot do and many things it cannot do well.
If you're going the as-cheap-as-I-can route in the short-term, a G1 may do the trick (And, if it were January of 2009, I'd say get the G1.). But, as it's been said before, if you're going to be locked into a 2 year contract, you'll really want to get hardware with enough power to last you those two years and not leave you wanting more.
Personally, if I were buying right now, it would either be a NexusOne or a Vibrant. Something with enough processing power and RAM for Android 2.2+
Good luck!
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Click to collapse
He is not interested in a contract. He wants to get a used G1.

Well I Just bought one to hold me off until the "Project Emerald" phone comes out. It's better than using a non android phone. I think that using it as a temporary phone it will do the job.

Still an awsome phone but :] mTS 2 for 1 lol

If you don't care about having a fast phone, go for it. I just went from g1 to vibrant, and the vibrant is everything I wanted the g1 to be. The g1 is gonna give you a taste of what android can do, so you may end up wanting something better.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

well ive gone from a blackstone (WM) to a G1 and I love it. If you get the right rom it isnt slow and android is just great I love it....also devs are still making stuff for it all the time its great....

worth it to buy?

is it worth getting the MyTouch 3G with all the new android phones coming out? any cons to it? im coming from an HTC Fuze...

Not so much android 1.6 is kinda getting outdated. You should go for the Nexus one or the vibrant. Best android phones at the moment for T-Mobile

well im actually on ATT, but i see mytouchs goign pretty cheap, but doesnt it run froyo and stuff? i see stuff about cynogenmod?

I don't think it is worth it, in my opinion. I've actually recently sold mine after using it for about 2 months. It may be good first Android phone, for an average user that doesn't care of the latest and the greatest. I've moved onto a Nexus, then to a iphone(but that's another topic).
MT3G left me with wanting more. ie- bigger screen, faster cpu, better interface(2.2). Nexus was an awesome phone, but I had problems with it. At the moment, Samsung Galaxy S variants are the one I'd pick. One day, I'll have it.

hmm yeah i think immma get the captivate then..dont wanna drop $500 though lol

Theres a lot of things to consider:
Price:
How much are you getting it for?
Carrier and Plan:
If you're on AT&T, you won't get AT&T's 3G if you even have a data plan. With that in mind, you'd have to buy it unlocked or use another method to get your AT&T sim card to work on a TMobile deivice.
Needs:
Are you a big texter? I wouldn't recommend this phone if you are a big texter. Swype is a good substitute for a virtual keyboard, but all the other keyboards suck hardcore. As for everything else, I think it does a fairly good job.
Contract: How close are you to the end of your contract? If you're close, I would just get an Iphone 4 or a Captivate or some other AT&T phone.
Overall, like xdame said, it's a good first android phone for the average user. However, after using it, I do have a craving for a more high end device.

G2 or Vibrant

Tomorrow I'm going to T-mobile and I'm going to be upgrading to one of these devices. which one would you choose and for what reasons. thank you

well in a couple of weeks tmobile is going to start selling the vibrant 4g, but if you have to get a phone tomorrow go with the g2, samsung sucks. You will de regret buying a vibrant when less than a month later there is going to be a better version of the same phone out

That's kind of what I was thinking. The G2 is already 4G capable. The vibrants internal storage is nice, but coming from the slide anything is better.
Sent from my T-Mobile myTouch 3G Slide using XDA App

I would definitely go with the G2... I actually think on tmobile site its free with an upgrade but of course there is that lovely upgrade fee...
My sister has the vibrant.. She had some minor issues with it.. (I say operator issue) but the first phone wouldnt take pictures with less then a half a battery. But rooting it hmm easy but cant get the damn recovery to stick....
I have an upgrade due as well.. But holding out to see what other phones are coming out soon... Not much in the rumor mill besides vibrant 4g, and a few others not worthy enough of mentioning. => cliq2 hahaha sorry see... and the sidekick making a comeback... anyway my choice would be the G2!

Neither. Save your upgrade. 2 years is an eternity to get another break on upgrade pricing. If you're a 3D game player and need the extra processing power for those games then the G2 is a solid performer. If you need Adobe Flash support again the G2 is a solid performer. The only product I would get from Samsung would be a Nexus S or anything Google decides to support as a developer device. I'm regularly getting 5mbps DL speeds from the HSPA network and it is plenty fast for me ... in fact I have to monitor my data usage closely so as not to get throttled. I can't imagine I would need anything faster nor would it benefit me with the current caps in place by TMO. So hold off if you can, the Slide is a very nice Android phone and should hold you over until the next handsets are available (summer?). Just my opinion.

I picked the G2, and I'm not on contract so that doesn't matter. the installment plan works for me. some people probably wouldn't agree with it, but with my plan it works out to about the same per month as getting it for free on a 2 year contract (cheaper actually), plus no two year contract. obviously you have to pay for the device over a certain time period, but again. i'm not gonna go anywhere else. verizon is too expensive, and at&t is at&t. sprint is the only company i would ever give a second look.
back on topic, i picked the G2 over the vibrant for a few reasons. the number one and main reason being the 4G capability. I live in an area that has it and i'm anxious to see how it performs. secondly, the keyboard. i enjoy typing on it so much more than the slide. the buttons on the slide are a little too far apart for my taste. and lastly the stock rom is basic android, which makes me hope for more updates far into the future. the Vibrant is still on eclair, and with the vibrant 4G coming out next month, it doesn't make sense for Tmo and Samsung to support the device for very long, in my opinion.
I did like the screen on the vibrant a little more than the G2.
In conclusion, I'm going to be selling my slide. NJAZ, you are correct in saying that the slide is a solid android phone but the lack of internal memory and lack of support that it is getting doesn't make me fill confident.
Thanks everyone for your advice

thenaut said:
I picked the G2, and I'm not on contract so that doesn't matter. the installment plan works for me. some people probably wouldn't agree with it, but with my plan it works out to about the same per month as getting it for free on a 2 year contract (cheaper actually), plus no two year contract. obviously you have to pay for the device over a certain time period, but again. i'm not gonna go anywhere else. verizon is too expensive, and at&t is at&t. sprint is the only company i would ever give a second look.
back on topic, i picked the G2 over the vibrant for a few reasons. the number one and main reason being the 4G capability. I live in an area that has it and i'm anxious to see how it performs. secondly, the keyboard. i enjoy typing on it so much more than the slide. the buttons on the slide are a little too far apart for my taste. and lastly the stock rom is basic android, which makes me hope for more updates far into the future. the Vibrant is still on eclair, and with the vibrant 4G coming out next month, it doesn't make sense for Tmo and Samsung to support the device for very long, in my opinion.
I did like the screen on the vibrant a little more than the G2.
In conclusion, I'm going to be selling my slide. NJAZ, you are correct in saying that the slide is a solid android phone but the lack of internal memory and lack of support that it is getting doesn't make me fill confident.
Thanks everyone for your advice
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Click to collapse
hey naut, jw, how much are you selling the slide for?

thenaut said:
In conclusion, I'm going to be selling my slide. NJAZ, you are correct in saying that the slide is a solid android phone but the lack of internal memory and lack of support that it is getting doesn't make me fill confident.
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I know you're going to love your G2! Wish I would have known it was coming out right after the Slide was released because I certainly would have preferred and waited to use my upgrade discount on the G2. Enjoy!

Well, the vibrant just got froyo. So the flash statement is gone, and the gpu is better than the g2. Either way, I would save the upgrade for the optimus 2x tegra 2.

G2, HSPA+ is a huge pro, flash on the camera (most people don't think about that) and stock Froyo really helps. But I hear it's a pain to flash in comparison to the vibrant.
Vibrant does have a way better GPU though, so if you'll be gaming on the device, that's the way to go.
I concur with what was said above, if you can wait for the vibrant 4G, do it.

no doubt about it, the hardware on the G2 is weak compared to the vibrant. though samsung is certainly not the best with updates, they arent as bad as sony or motorola (on non-Droid devices) the build quality is light and solid, and i love not having moving parts. the only reason a G2 is even in the same league is the fact that the G2 has a bit better dev support.

Need 2nd Android phone for wife recommendations on At&t?

The wife's iphone 3g finally is taking a dive. Like to put her into an entry level android based phone that will work on At&t. What phones will work on the at&t network?

http://www.wireless.att.com/cell-ph...2&allFeatures=on&allManus=on#fbid=WbfKe3rhII7

How about the motorola atrix.
Dual core and all the works..
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App

Are you sure you want an entry level Android phone for her? AT&T doesn't have a particularly good selection of low-end Android devices, and of those available they would hardly compare for a person coming from an iPhone. The HTC Aria is just ridiculously underpowered, and all Motorola devices that I've used with Motoblur have been terrible.
I suggest the Samsung Captivate or the HTC Inspire. They're easy to use and you can pretty much guarantee she won't have anything to complain about in terms of speed and responsiveness.

earlyberd said:
Are you sure you want an entry level Android phone for her? AT&T doesn't have a particularly good selection of low-end Android devices, and of those available they would hardly compare for a person coming from an iPhone. The HTC Aria is just ridiculously underpowered, and all Motorola devices that I've used with Motoblur have been terrible.
I suggest the Samsung Captivate or the HTC Inspire. They're easy to use and you can pretty much guarantee she won't have anything to complain about in terms of speed and responsiveness.
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I would recommend you stay away from the Captivate, it has a few hardware issues that Samsung is not addressing. I am on my sixth Captivate, and all have had issues, and have recently switched to a Nexus One that was given to me. I looked at the HTC Inspire yesterday, it is a pretty nice device. The Motorola Atrix also looks very promising.

If you're not aware, the Vibrant's radio, although a TMo phone, do work on AT&T 3G bands.
Just be careful if she's interested in any of Google's location-based services. I had (have, sitting on my desk now) a Vibrant for awhile and could never resolve the notorious GPS issue. I came back to the Nexus One because of it.

Lancellor said:
How about the motorola atrix.
Dual core and all the works..
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are these the works?
locked bootloader
bloatware
expensive
motoblur
apparently shipping with Froyo
Froyo (and currently Gingerbread) does not even support dual cores, lol
Engadget says the docking experience is very poor
once Gingerbread supports dual core (maybe April?), Motorola has to push the update out.. my guess is this won't be timely.
For these reasons, there are going to be a LOT of pissed off people who cough up the money for this phone because its "dual core"

I made a post earlier about the atrix . Wasn't aware dual core isn't supported yet on froyo . I'm trying desperately to avoid another iphone (cough) but cannot buy anything through att with the fear of having my account screwed with and losing the unlimited data plans. Have to buy out of pocket and $500 is a bit high for a casual android user. Maybe a used N1 is the way to go.

Big_O said:
I made a post earlier about the atrix . Wasn't aware dual core isn't supported yet on froyo . I'm trying desperately to avoid another iphone (cough) but cannot buy anything through att with the fear of having my account screwed with and losing the unlimited data plans. Have to buy out of pocket and $500 is a bit high for a casual android user. Maybe a used N1 is the way to go.
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I switched my wife's line from iPhone 3GS (unlimited data) to iPhone 4 to Windows Phone 7 and now to Android (N1) and still have the unlimited data (yes, I spoil her and she knows it ). If you previously had unlimited data you'll be grandfathered in and keep your unlimited data plan, unless you ask for a different tier for whatever reason. That's how it was explained to me, and I've switched her line a few times, and I just went from my N1 to an Inspire and still have the unlimited data plan from when I had my iPhone 3G a couple years ago.
With that being said, as I mentioned I just got the Inspire. I'm giving it a week to check it out and see if I like it. I love my N1, and it'll be hard to part with it as my main phone, but it'll stay nearby "just in case"! The Inspire seems pretty nice so far, but everyone's entitled to their own opinion.

I just set up the HTC Inspire 4G for a friend and it is a pretty good experience. Has a little ATT garbage on it that cannot be deleted (you can hide the icons) and also HTC Sense. Actually Sense is not too bad. It is a great price at $99 and just came out last Sunday.
PHIL

I know it is older and not supported by ATT or SE anymore but the Sony Ericsson X10 has been nothing but good to me. The guys over at X10 section here in XDA have some good things going on as far as development goes. 1ghz snapdragon, 8 mp camera, 720p video with flash, 4 inch screen.
I ran it for a while until I gave it to my wife when I got my N1. They are finishing up the 2.3 build and it is all being done with out even cracking the bootloader.

I've got a mint condition att n1 for sale in the marketplace. I highly recommend it!
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App

crachel said:
Are these the works?
locked bootloader
bloatware
expensive
motoblur
apparently shipping with Froyo
Froyo (and currently Gingerbread) does not even support dual cores, lol
Engadget says the docking experience is very poor
once Gingerbread supports dual core (maybe April?), Motorola has to push the update out.. my guess is this won't be timely.
For these reasons, there are going to be a LOT of pissed off people who cough up the money for this phone because its "dual core"
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Click to collapse
check out this thread...they are saying that dual core support is there, just not for single threaded apps. So really we are waiting on developers to support multiple cores in their apps, but the os already does.

I'd say htc inspire is a good one to pick. Price of a midrange but runs like a high end. Plus htc sense is pretty useful for women in my opinion. And if you wanna change to a different rom later on, it won't be hard cuz htc is fine with customizations.
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App

Get an HTC Inspire. It rocks I got it on launch day and previously had a Nexus One

For the price you simply can't beat the Inspire 4G, got mine at Costco for 79.99...
I replaced my N1 with this phone and I love it..

HTC Inspire 4G the best choice

I would hang tough a few weeks and see what happens with the atrix. Depending on whether they get root and so on that would probably be the handset to have as it will probably have the longest legs of the bunch depending on how quickly multi core support arrives.

probers1 said:
check out this thread...they are saying that dual core support is there, just not for single threaded apps. So really we are waiting on developers to support multiple cores in their apps, but the os already does.
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agree.. which raises the next point that the apps to take advantage will be games, as the computational requirements for a general purpose cell phone app tends to be minimal, the bottlenecks mostly lying in the cellular connection speeds. for instance, LevelUp can add dual core support all they want, but checking Twitter with Plume just isn't all that needy, hardware wise.
from a specs standpoint, the Atrix is interesting but is basically an expensive, closed gimmick.
dual-core is an important step to push the platform & apps but we are a LONG way from a practical benefit to end users (unless you play games)

I think the main hardware aspect of the atrix that would make me lean to it is the front facing camera. If that phone can be rooted it may be my next device.