Related
So I bought my first non-WM smartphone. Below is documentation of my quest to replace, and surpass, the experience I was used to with my Touch Diamond 2 running Windows Mobile 6.5. I am what you would probably call a windows mobile 'power user'. I've been averaging about one new WM phone every 6 months since 2005, most of them HTC. But I always keep up on what the other platforms are doing. This is just the first time I've taken the leap, and I quickly became aware of what new doors Android opened for me in just the first few hours of using the Nexus One. The OS is nice, but like most people, it really comes down to the apps for me.
I was initially thinking I'd do a big blog review, but I've run out of motivation. There's plenty of info on the Nexus One hardware and Android out there, so I don't need to rehash that stuff. What I haven't seen a lot of, though, is detailed accounts of people switching and what exactly they found.
There remains a couple major things missing from Android. The lack of an OCS client is probably the biggest one for me professionally, but since it's a Microsoft product, I don't see that changing any time soon. That and the lack of xvid playback will keep me carrying around my TD2 as backup for the foreseeable future. But other than that, I'm extremely happy and will definitely be sticking with the Nexus for a while. The next post will be a comprehensive list of (practically) every app I've installed, what they do for me, and how they compare to their WM counterparts (if there are any).
On to the apps...
Android Apps I've installed and believe I will continue to use.
This is a bit of a brain dump, so I apologize for not editing more thoroughly. Hopefully it will be useful to some, and feel free to suggest other apps you think I should try.
Advanced Task Killer - List of running apps that allows you to easily kill unwanted tasks. Nice to have for an OS that allows background apps, but I don't actually notice it slowing down, it seems to manage memory and close apps as needed.
Aldiko (replacing mobiReader, much better) - eReader with nice UI and quick access to several libraries of free books. Found Doctorow's books right away.
Amazon store - really just easier than using the web browser, but it also does barcode scanning and some other useful stuff.
BeamReader (replacing Adobe's wm reader) - rarely needed, but have to be able to see pdfs on the go sometimes
Beelicious - direct (cached) access to my delicious bookmarks. UI could be better and it's a bit of a pain to wade through them all, but it's useful.
BeyondPod (replacing YomoMedia, HUGE improvement) - It took me years to find a podcast downloader for WM that worked at all, but beyondpod is amazing. The UI is superb and inuitive. The customization is great. I have it setup to download only at night while charging. It remembers my place in podcasts and creates 'smart playlists' to make it easier to start listening. It also integrates with google reader, which is hugely useful because I can add new podcasts I'd like to listen to anywhere from google reader and then import then very quickly into beyondpod later. Also worth noting is the homescreen widget, which gives me access to basic controls and status from my home screen, no need to always navigate back into the app.
Browser (replacing Opera mobile) - Really there's not much difference here. Neither android nor WM have flash or silverlight support yet (although you can sort of get it on WM through skyfire, but that's not performant enough to be an everyday thing). Usability is about the same, but since multitouch zoom isn't enabled on nexus yet (though the hardware can technically support it), you have to use the zoom in/out buttons. This isn't as nice as zooming on the TD2 (zoom bar) or the HD2 (multitouch). Android does links to outside applications better though. It recognizes when you are browsing to a youtube video or RSS feed and will prompt correctly.
Cab4me - Nice little app for finding nearby cab companies making it very easy to see which is rated best, has cars available, and place the call. Not a must-have, but it's one of the little things.
Camera - very fast, 5mp (same as on hd2 and td2 wm phones), the LED flash is certainly better than nothing. Geotagging is default.
Car Home - this is Google's navigation 'car mode'. I think is this very cool, but honestly I won't end up using it much because I have navigation built into my car.
Carr Matey - dedicated app for recording car location so you can find it again. Another little nice thing I didn't have before. Android is just so much better at doing location-aware apps right now.
Documents to Go (replacing ms office mobile) - I'm using the lite version, which does not allow editing, but I have just never had the need to edit office docs on my phone. Sometimes I get one in an email and want to read it though, and this looks to do that fine. I'm happy.
Evernote (replacing Evernote) - I'm using this more and more as a dumping ground for everything that's not in email but I want to remember. This is what I use anytime I want to take a quick note (audio or text), or take a picture of a wine bottle or business card for later reference. It syncs with the cloud immediately and I can search that from anywhere.
Flashlight - not a big deal, but nice to have.
flickr droid (replacing shozu) - i like to have an easy way to upload a picture to flickr, this gives me that. I really like how android allows it to integrate with the normal gallery app. So after I take a picture I just have to view it, select 'share', and then select flickr droid (or other things like email, twitter, etc). It's more centralized than WM.
Flip2Silent and Vibrate During Meeting (replacing WM + HTC ringer management) - The ringer management on android is lacking as compared to WM. I used to be able to have my phone automatically go to vibrate during meetings, and silence the ringer after I pick up the phone (so it doesn't continue to be loud and annoying while I'm deciding whether to answer), AND there was a pocket mode to switch to vibrate and louder ring when the phone detected it was in a pocket. Vibrate During Meeting gives me back the meeting function, but it only works with the google calendar, not the exchange touchdown calendar in which all my actual meetings are stored. My work-around is to sync my exchange calendar with google via desktop outlook, but this doesn't keep it updated unless I have a desktop logged in. The good news is that the developer of this app says he'll look into touchdown. Flip2Silent gives me the option to just lay the phone screen-side-down to mute the ringer/vibrate functions. This will work while a call is coming in and I want to ignore it.
Foursquare - App for checking into various locations. It's treated like a game, you get points, but also get to see where your friends are and if they happen to be near you. Plus people leave tips for places.
g-backup and mybackup (replacing myphone on wm) - MS's myphone app on wm will automatically backup all user data (sms, mms, pictures, video, docs, etc) to the cloud every night. It can also restore these for when you get a new phone or hard-reset your current phone. I got used to having this. All my email and contacts are in exchange or the cloud anyway, but I don't want to lose these other things. MyPhone is also nice because all that data is accessible via the web. g-backup is cool because it will upload all this stuff to gmail, so you have it there, but it can't restore anything. MyBackup will backup and restore most things, but not pictures/video. So I'm using them both, but I'd like a more comprehensive solution.
Gallery (replacing HTC photo gallery) - The nexus gallery is implemented in 3d and is pretty cool, but ultimately it works about as well as the HTC version (which is also flashy). They need to add multi-touch zooming.
GCDroid (replacing gcz) - This is my geocaching app, but only until the official geocaching.com android app comes out (which is soon and it will be cool if their iphone app is any indication). Even though there isn't an official app for wm, the community created apps were pretty good. GCDroid is barely usable, but overall this category will be an upgrade over wm soon.
Glympse (replacing Glympse) - Something I'll rarely use, but it's cool when it applies. You can send a link to anyone that will allow them to track you via a webbrowser for x-minutes. So if you say you're on your way, they can actually see how far along you are.
Gmail (replacing hotmail) - both MS and Google have their email services integrated tightly with their mobile os. I used to forward all my gmail to hotmail so I could easily get it on my phone, so now I just flipped it. I like gmail well enough, and there are certainly features that are ahead of hotmail. I'm just happy to happy to have my personal email pushed to my phone.
Google maps (replacing google maps and bing) - This is definitely better than on WM, but ultimately it does the same stuff. It's smoother and a little easier to navigate (except, again, zooming is more difficult).
Meebo IM - nice to have an app that can log into ICQ, MSN, and GTalk all at once. Likely will rarely use it.
Messaging (replacing txt message HTC app) - this seems to be just what you'd expect. But at least it's very fast and predictable, unlike the HTC app which is sometimes laggy as hell.
Flixter Movies (replacing bing) - MS's bing app was good for finding local theaters and showtimes, this one does it with a bit more flash and some awesome additional features that i just found. It shows the rottentomatoes rating along with every movies. Plus, it has netflix integration, so it checks whether any movie is in my queue and lets me add it while browsing. It also has a list of recent dvd releases, which is great with the netflix thing. It also essentially serves as a mobile imdb. Very impressive.
Mother TED - dedicated app for watching TED talks. It seems ok but not great.
Music (replacing HTC media player) - Nothing special here. I don't know that I'll even use it much since i mostly listen to pandora or podcasts.
OpenTable - for the rare occasions when I make reservations (especially last minute) this will make it easy to find a place with an opening.
Pandora (NOT ON WM) - this is almost a reason to switch by itself. I hate that this isn't on wm yet. Very nicely implemented on android because it has a homescreen widget. I get all the basic controls without even having to go into the app, and I can use other apps while it plays in the background. Sound quality is great too.
Dialer - The android dialer is pretty basic, but it seems to get the job done. At least you can add a pause (with a comma) so that dialing conference numbers is somewhat doable (but still WAY harder than it should be, they don't do any smart parsing in meeting invites). This is still hard on WM though too.
PhoneFlicks (replacing official netflix wm app) - This is barely a replacement. Netflix's own app was better, this one is slower and harder to use, but at least I can do basic queue management from my phone, which is really nice sometimes.
SeattleBusBot - This is SO cool, and something I've wanted but couldn't find on wm. Seattle has the gps info of its buses available publicly, but their website is basically unusable on a phone (even on a desktop). This app will tell you exactly when a given bus is going to arrive, not just when it's scheduled.
Seesmic (replacing m.twitter.com on wm) - really good mobile twitter app. There are plenty of wm twitter apps, and HTC even builds one into the os now, but they tended to be slower. I think the HD2 is probably just as good as seesmic.
ShopSavvy - barcode scanning that tells you the closest places to get the given product and for how much. Haven't had a chance to see if this turns out to actually be useful, but I like the concept and test scans in the house have been accurate (which kinda surprises me because I had heard that phone barcode scanning doesn't work, but maybe the 5mp camera and snapdragon is making it more pratical).
TorrentFu (replacing starting torrents via Live mesh mobile) - This is a major upgrade (and rejected from itunes if I remember correctly). I finally switched to uTorrent on my server so I could use this. It uses the utorrent webui to connect, but exposes all the functionality like a local app. You can see progress, search for and start new torrents, and pause/resume. Very cool.
TripIt (replacing tripcase kinda) - I've only started experimenting with these two services, and i don't travel as much as I used to, but they are pretty good at what they do. Just forward your reservation emails and they build up a comprehensive itinerary and keep you updated. having a native app makes using these that much easier. Tripcase is on wm, tripit (which seems to be the better service) is on android.
tv.com - streaming tv from cbs, showtime, and some others. Haven't used this much, but always nice to have some free content.
Google Voice - At first I was skeptical about this because I don't have a real need to create a central phone number that rings all my phones, which was what i thought this service was for. Turns out you don't have to use that feature, and they also provide visual voicemail on android plus they send you transcriptions of the messages to your phone. so you can see who left messages and what they said (approximately) without even listening. So I'm definitely appreciating this feature.
Wapedia - native version of wikipedia. Nice and quick. why not?
y5 - Battery - This app is genius in its simplicity and value. It simply keeps track of where you are when you enable wifi, and remembers that going forward so it can automatically re-enable it when you come back to the same place. The rest of the time, it disables wifi to save battery. The end result here is that I never have to remember to turn wifi on or off when i come home or leave the house.
youtube (replacing youtube) - works well. nothing special to report except google's browser seems to be better at realizing when it should forward you to the youtube player.
yxflash (failing to replace coreplayer) - The only android app that claims to do xvid/divx decoding. I tried it on an xvid torrent that wm's coreplayer had no trouble with and it choked pretty hard. It played, but with extremely jittery video and slow sound. Not usable yet, but at least i know I might get something soon.
Touchdown (replacing exchange activesync on wm) - Saved the most important (and expensive @$22) for last. Without this app I wouldn't be able to sync my exchange data (contacts, email, calendar, tasks) with my phone because Android doesn't support all the required security features by default. (our company, like many these days, will not sync data with a platform that doesn't allow them to force the use of encryption, pin lock, and remote wipe) Beyond that, without the recently added feature of allowing me to flag emails for followup, I would not be able to switch to android because this workflow is too important to my everyday life.
Explanation: I check email on my phone often, and if I can respond then and there, I do, but if I can’t and need to follow up for any reason, I flag it. This creates a task in outlook which I will see the next time at my desk, so i KNOW i won't forget about it.
But there is an additional, more subtle, benefit at play here. And honestly, it's a little unfair to count it, but it makes such a huge difference in my enjoyment of my phone that I can't ignore it. I'm speaking about how the previously mentioned pin lock for exchange only applies (on android) to the touchdown app. I am not required to set a pin to unlock the phone itself. Ever since they turned on that requirement I've been punching in a 4 digit pin every damn time I wanted to glance at my phone, check the time, or even change the stupid volume! Now I'm finally free of that because google didn't bother to properly build in exchange support at the OS level. NICE! seriously though, this saves me so much annoyance it was almost worth the $530 by itself.
For a true windows power-user, it's worth shelling out the <$10 for Remote RDP. It works incredibly well, even when connecting to my Windows 7 PC from 3G across town (or presumably, the world).
The ability to USE MY HOME PC from ANYWHERE WITH NET ACCESS...
Absolutely incredible for a phone..
EDIT: my home net speed is pretty quick, which owes to fast remote access. Wifi will always be fast, though, and that's what this app is really designed for.
Good recommendation. Just downloaded the Remote RDP demo. Seems to work well.
Thank you for the run down... I just made the switch myself and a number of the apps you mentioned helped me fill some of my void from WM. I'm still a little pissed about the exchange issues but the real truth is any company I work for issues me a blackberry and doesn't allow other devices to connect to thier servers. I worked for one midsized company once that let me and that was the only time I was completely in love with my WM device. Since my personal email is through gmail the nexus one is really amazing as my personal phone.
Good Stuff! I'm in the same boat WM to Android and no turning back I'll check out some of the apps u listed...
One thing I'm looking for is a widget with power/memory/storage/sd gauges.
Always had this on the wm home for reference & cool stats!
If you geocache then GeoBeagle is the other main geocaching app. I don't cache much any more, but I have tried GeoBeagle and liked it, though I can't compare it to GCDroid...
Wanted to say thanks for the excellent app list. Touchdown is awesome. A way for me to connect to work without merging my exchange contacts with the rest of my phone. Now thats a win!
@Seraph321 - want to add my thanks for your app info. i'll be getting an N1 soon and knowing there are options to some of my "must haves" apps/features/functionality (e.g., Exchange) will help shorten my learning curve. i'm not going to abandon WM because it will continue to serve as my work phone. the N1 will be my after work/personal phone until i'm comfortable tweaking Android. that's my plan, but once i have the N1 my plan may change!
Great write up, and welcome to Android
A few suggestions
Text Messaging
The two heavyweights are Chomp SMS and Handcent SMS. Both are considerably better than the default SMS app, it mostly comes down to personal preference.
Browser
Dolphin Browser is hands down the best browser on Android right now. Multi-touch zooming, delicious integration, tabs, themes, and much more.
Flashlight
Do a market search for Nexus One Torch. It utilizes the LED from the camera flash to use as a flashlight. Very bright.
Ringer Management
Locale manages your phone based off time and location. Never used it myself, but heard good things, and I believe it was and Android Developers Challenge winner or something.
Backup
I'm simple and only need to backup text messages (most everything else is stored via SD card or synced with Google anyway). I use SMS Backup to backup my texts to Gmail, and it works fantastic. Uploads directly to my mail account, archives the texts, puts them in threads according to contact, tags them, and marks them as read. I can then easily search my text conversations from my phone or desktop browser via Gmail, and don't have to worry about deleting conversations from my phone and losing something. I've never used g-backup, so it may have this function already.
Twitter
I've tried a couple Twitter apps (not Seismic, though I'll be trying that next) and have landed on Swift, which currently is the fastest, and the best looking Twitter app I've used. I'm not a giant twitter user, so I don't know if it supports all the features any other apps might, but it works great for me, and would recommend it.
That's all for now. I don't have my phone next to me or I'd give it a quick run through and suggest something you might be missing, but I'll have to do that another time.
As for getting multi-touch support in google maps, the browser, and gallery... just wait, it's been hacked in for the G1/MT3G, it will certainly be hacked in for the Nexus One.
I'm still up in the air between ASTRO File Manager and Linda File Manager, but a file manager is an important addition to your tools, if you plan on keeping a lot of documents/files on board. Additionally, I know at least Linda has the DownloadCrutch functionality, associating itself with every filetype so that the browser will allow you to download such. To me, this last bit is essential.
Great stuff, I think a lot of people will be going from WM to Nexus because MS have failed to deliver for so long & there is now a great alternative with an OS that can be modded and a really cool handset.
So far I am happy to leave the N1 standard (not rooted) and play with apps - it is a real joy to have so many available & a single source for them.
Never going back !
+1 for Dolphin Browser... definitely a big step up over the default browser IMHO
SpyderMS said:
Great write up, and welcome to Android
A few suggestions
Text Messaging
The two heavyweights are Chomp SMS and Handcent SMS. Both are considerably better than the default SMS app, it mostly comes down to personal preference.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Personally, I find the text bubbles childish and cheesy. I much prefer the stock sms app with sms popup.
bofslime said:
Personally, I find the text bubbles childish and cheesy. I much prefer the stock sms app with sms popup.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tend to agree though why doesnt the icon to the app on my home screen tell me how many unread SMS there are?
The Jones said:
I tend to agree though why doesnt the icon to the app on my home screen tell me how many unread SMS there are?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
SMS Count
ok, at work with nothing to do, so I browsed through my phone, and here's a couple Apps you may be interested in. Some of these are useful, some are just kind of cool
AudioManager Widget
Nice little app that lets you adjust all your volume levels easily and quickly.
AppControl - Full Version
Best app manager I've used. Really fast, nice interface, and lots of options.
Barcode Scanner
Barcode scanning from the phone is fantastic. It's very pronounced in the Android community as well. You'll see barcodes not only on these forums, but on App websites like AndroLib.com, which let you scan the barcode, and instantly be linked to a website or Android Market page. It's not only useful on the Nexus One's 5mp camera and 1GHz processor either. Worked great on my G1.
Google Goggles
Take a picture of just about anything, and Google will search for relevant results.
Google Sky Map
Virtual Planetarium on your phone.
Layar Reality Browser 3.0
Augmented Reality browser. Displays information about objects in front of you overlayed on the camera display.
Pkt Auctions for eBay
If you use eBay at all, this is a great companion tool.
Shazam
Lets you identify music being played around you by letting your phone listen to and analyze it.
Personally, I find the text bubbles childish and cheesy. I much prefer the stock sms app with sms popup.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
handcent settings -> conversation style.
handcent has a ton of settings options, including different settings for individual contacts (conversation style, font, notification tone, etc)
Thanks for all the suggestions. I've already spent too much work time today finding and installing the ones I like.
I don't actually do THAT much texting, so I'm sticking with the stock sms app for now, but I did install sms popup and set my girlfriend to popup. That's convenient.
Someone mentioned SMS backup, and yes, g-backup does the same thing only for more data, but they both need a scheduling option.
I see the nexus one torch app requires rooted access. I'm no stranger to hacking my gadgets, but this app (plus tethering, and maybe installing to the sd card) are the only things I've seen so far that have me interested in doing it. Can anyone provide some examples of why they consider rooting a must?
You mentioned Wi-Fi tethering already, but that reason alone is a pretty big reason. You may also want to theme your phone. Any kind of advancements that developers like Cyanogen come out with will require root as well. Cyanogen is known for pushing the envelope, helping to increase speed, and overall functionality of the G1, and other devices; not to mention you will get features from new versions of Android faster than those without root. I'm sure there are other reasons to, these are just off the top of my head. A lot of people are waiting until someone finds out how to reverse the bootloader unlocking process before they root, in order to preserve their warranty, and that's certainly a good idea if you don't have a lot of use for root at the moment. I did it, like most people that did, just because I can.
I'll make sure to watch the Cyanogen stuff closely. I never followed the G1 enhancements, so I guess I don't know what to expect. Sounds like it's likely I'll do it at some point though.
Is it easy to get all your apps, especially the ones that you paid for, back on your phone after rooting? Does the marketplace just remember it all and let you re-download?
I should just search for these answers.
So I have had the HD2 for a few months now and I can't seem to find its true potential. Ive had no problems with it. I can get everything working smoothly. Done. But can anyone else give me some tips as to what I can do with the HD2? What do you do with your HD2?
I also really want to utilize true multitasking but I dont know what is "true multitasking".
Can someone give me a few examples besides streaming music via web while I do a word document?
What do "YOU" do that is true multitasking?
Listening to music in the bus with Skype and IMPlus running in the background, Opera to check timetables online, Google maps open to know where I am, launch camera to take a photo of something I just saw in the street, receiving a mail and reading it, opening the tasks app to add a reminder related to said mail, switch back to google maps to check where I'm now, switch to opera again to check something online that I just thought about, switch to the music player to skip a track, switch to IMPlus to answer a message I just received, opening adobe reader to check something in a document... going back and forth between all those.
kilrah said:
Listening to music in the bus with Skype and IMPlus running in the background, Opera to check timetables online, Google maps open to know where I am, launch camera to take a photo of something I just saw in the street, receiving a mail and reading it, opening the tasks app to add a reminder related to said mail, switch back to google maps to check where I'm now, switch to opera again to check something online that I just thought about, switch to the music player to skip a track, switch to IMPlus to answer a message I just received, opening adobe reader to check something in a document... going back and forth between all those.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
so by doing all those without having to close a single thing out? And you do this using the task manager in the upper right corner?
What I don't get is how is this different from Apple's iphone. Though it doesnt have multitasking, isnt it the same as opening things up and hiting the center home button and going onto the next app, etc? I dont see the difference.
the difference is on the iphone when you hit the home button it closes whatever you were in.
so any IM app such as skype, aim, facebook all get closed so you cant get messages in the background. you cant have pandora or slacker radio playing in the background. you can do one thing at a time.
pretty simple really
lemonspeakers said:
so by doing all those without having to close a single thing out? And you do this using the task manager in the upper right corner?
What I don't get is how is this different from Apple's iphone. Though it doesnt have multitasking, isnt it the same as opening things up and hiting the center home button and going onto the next app, etc? I dont see the difference.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The difference is multitasking can switch between apps without terminal them. In iphone once you click the home buttom, the running app closes then you are able to start other app. It can't regard as multitasking cause iphone can only run a app at a moment. But wm os can run a number of apps in background at the same time and switch between them instead of close one app and start the other one app. That is mean you can play a game in wm then you skype somebody, when you switch back to the game, it resumes. But in iphone, you start skype before you terminal the game.
lemonspeakers said:
so by doing all those without having to close a single thing out? And you do this using the task manager in the upper right corner?
What I don't get is how is this different from Apple's iphone. Though it doesnt have multitasking, isnt it the same as opening things up and hiting the center home button and going onto the next app, etc? I dont see the difference.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use taskfacade or aebplus' task manager function mapped to the windows button.
The iphone can do most of it, with a few exceptions, for example if you open google maps and do a search, have the results displayed, then close the program to do something else, once you run it again you'll arrive at the main screen and you'll have to do your search again. With skype, you open it and it connects, but then if you close it to do something else you won't be notified of new messages, you'll have to manually reopen skype once in a while to see if you've received something. On the HD2 skype stays open and will sound when you receive something.
Then, I haven't used an iphone enough regarding the web browser, if exiting and coming back keeps all your open tabs etc.
On mine I cycle/run with run.gps running actively in the foreground, Pocketscrobbler running actively in the background, along with Audiobooster, music player doing its thing, RSS reader doing its thing, Push sync doing its thing...
Good thing on multi task is surfing. U can open more than one tab and while the sides are loading u check your mails or something.
I like it and its a feature I would miss on the Iphone...
What's not to get on multitasking?
being an iphone user for a time, one of the largest complaints (even after jailbreaking) was the limited multitasking. Even with backgrounder running, the phone was slow as crap. The touch hd2 on the other hand...
I have 13 applications open and I still see no lag anywhere. nuff said
1) i noticed opera doesnt keep loading if you switch to another task. It stops.
2) music in the bg is normal and most phones can do that. unless they are streaming like pandora. but even so jailbreaking makes it possible to do this for iphones.
3) skype is required, or eventually inevitable. Using hd2 is almost like you're sucked into skype, since everyone is using it, right? LOL
4) jailbreaking an iphone allows it to multitask. why not do it besides the illegal thing and the risk? its like bricking an hd2.
the new iphone OS4 should have multitasking too.. but i heard it only allows the apps to save some services or something, but the app still closes... thats why pandora doesnt work with it i think xD
apple will always be performance > flexibility, thats why they will never have TRUE multitasking, and for me, TRUE multitasking is when the application i open are still running IN REALTIME ( and doesnt stop ) in the background.
I find it really important that I can run my navigation system while having my calendar reminding me for my appointments or being able to receive phone calls.
Can you be on a call and quickly check a document, calendar, email, or web browse on the HD2? Thanks
Tomb77 said:
Can you be on a call and quickly check a document, calendar, email, or web browse on the HD2? Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes. You can be on a call and continue watching a movie also.
lemonspeakers said:
1) i noticed opera doesnt keep loading if you switch to another task. It stops.
2) music in the bg is normal and most phones can do that. unless they are streaming like pandora. but even so jailbreaking makes it possible to do this for iphones.
3) skype is required, or eventually inevitable. Using hd2 is almost like you're sucked into skype, since everyone is using it, right? LOL
4) jailbreaking an iphone allows it to multitask. why not do it besides the illegal thing and the risk? its like bricking an hd2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
which version of opera are you using?
mind loads perfectly well in the background.. as do all the non java browsers I use.
why is skype required, I've used it twice in all the years I've been using winmo, which is quite a while now!
woopee do you can do some basic crap on the iphmoan
***SOME*** not all, but some, try really using the hd2 as it can be used, as a true powerhouse, with full multitasking, not something that you can do a couple of basic things with.
maybe HTC and MS should sue apple for copying multitasking on a smartphone
who gives a damn about jailbreaking the iphmoan? this isn't an apple forum..
Kalavere said:
Yes. You can be on a call and continue watching a movie also.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the quick reply. Unfortunately I do not have the phone in hand but I have an HD2 user that has a hard time with entering their exchange password to get in to multi task while on a call. disabling the password probably wont work and is not a good idea. I assume there is an auto lock while on a call that he may be able to disable. any help or ideas? your help is much appreciated.
Tomb77 said:
Thanks for the quick reply. Unfortunately I do not have the phone in hand but I have an HD2 user that has a hard time with entering their exchange password to get in to multi task while on a call. disabling the password probably wont work and is not a good idea. I assume there is an auto lock while on a call that he may be able to disable. any help or ideas? your help is much appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Everything should work exactly the same while on a call... just hit the home button or start button to get whereever you need to go. Now, depending on your network, you may not be able to access the internet while on a call. If you're on 3g, you usually can... but if your on edge/2g, then you may not be able to.
An example of multitasking (seeing as that is what the op asked for):
Today. after almost bricking it setting it up how i like it (it's only a week old) i did a hard reset. Since that point i have had, the wifi on and wifi remote access doing various things, activesync doing it's thing on direct push to my exchange server, msn messenger bugging the hell out of me, pocketmusic keeping me entertained, facebook for windows mobile pissing me off, various explorer windows, word 2010 (you gotta do some work sometime), the text messaging app keeping up with the boys (and girls) that i call friends and phm registry editor (so i can install the tweaks i like) all running at the same time, since about 9am. The phone has lagged a lil here and there but nothing that has worried me and yeah the wifi needed a rest a couple of times coz the chip was getting hot and the packet loss was getting a bit high but overall i think it's done well considering it was getting hammered. Battery hasn't needed charging yet either (and it's not an extended one).
I've got a couple of friends that have (and i like this so i'm gonna use it) iPhmoan 3GS' and they want the 4G. I'm constantly being pestered by them to switch (i'm on my 5th winmo device) and all i do is laugh at them. Just yesterday one of them was wetting himself over the 4G having 256MB of ram. The direct quote he got was "my phone has 1ghz processor and 576MB of ram and can multitask better than your girlfriend. Go suck it!! It's in the corner over there" and that is my general attitude to the iphone and apple's idea of innovation right now. It's Overpriced, useless, unintuitive, lazy, anti competitive and designed to generate nothing but profit for apple. Anyone that want's or has one is more stupid than they look and far richer too.
Hey everyone,
first off, I've tried searching (this forum and google) for a lot of stuff, but I still have some questions ( I started out with a ton haha).
I just bought a droid x, and I switched from the original storm (blackberry's first touchscreen phone)
1. gmail- I have my school account (which is a business gmail account) as my primary google/email account, and I don't like that when I check my email on my phone, it automatically marks my actual inbox (that I would check on my computer) as read messages. On my blackberry I would get all my email, but the messages would still be new when I went on my computer. That was very helpful for keeping organized. Can I still do this?
2. computer syncing- blackberry had a nice program that automatically synced everything on the phone with the computer. I realize that google does this over the air, but I'd like to have my contacts/calendar/life in sync with outlook. The blackberry program synced: contacts, calendar, photos, (videos and music if I wanted too, but I didn't bother with that), notes, and tasks (and more?). I found a google calendar sync that I am using to keep my outlook up to date with the android/google calendar, and I found a media manager from motorola that I can use for getting pictures off the phone in an orderly manner. I'm worried about other media. What about contacts and notes and stuff? Google doesn't have a sync option like for the calendar. Is there a program I can use to do all of this? or at least the contact stuff? I'd rather not have to export a .csv every time i get a new contact.
3. Rooting/roms--When I bought this phone, all the reviews basically said that the X was possibly the best hardware available and the worst software. I've gotten confused when I looked around at roms. Is there a standard pure google Froyo build that I can put on this phone? Is there a version of HTC sense that will port over? Has gingerbread been ported yet? Is there a sense or motoblur version of gingerbread yet?
4. speaking of gingerbread- how good is moto about updating there phones with new android builds? Any chance of us getting this in my lifetime?
5. apps. I remember reading a review a long time ago about a really really cool program that would let you do basically anything in your imagination with your phone- it was basically a if-then app that had access to every part of your phone and you could get your phone to do whatever you want when something happened (even as stupid/ crazy as opening the camera app if you received an email and stuff like that).
6. how do you determine which apps are best? is there a trust worthy site that rates them?
7. speaking of apps, are there any ones that I really need? I have Ti backup (im still trying to root this thing, no luck so far), google goggles, and a flashlight app. Any other essentials?
8. Media. I've heard that android has a really bad media player compared to zune/wp7 or ios. Is there an app that mimics either of these media players? or what is a really good media player?
9. what is the difference between a rom and a theme?
10. I've heard that this phone starts out laggy and gets faster over time (according to engadget)- my phone is really laggy only a day in (im not running bunches of apps (yet), I haven't even downloaded that many. Is this par for the course?
I'll have more questions, but that's a bunch to start off. Thanks a bunch everyone, I'm really excited to tear this phone apart and see what it can do!
Edit- I got it rooted, I used z4root instead of the PC based one I was trying earlier
1.?
2.?
3.z4Root is the way to go as you did I see
4.like anyone else when Hell freezes over your local Developer's are the best IMHO.
5. Titanium back up,kouch's Droid recovery. for your specific phone style. Root Explorer, and Astro. too name a few.
6. & 7 ratings and what people have to offer. its still a chance now the Google has a 15 minute window the refund .Marketplace and Appbrain
8.I use PowerAmp But that my choice there a few good one to choose its all your taste most have a demo version.
9.Rom's is the engine...Theme is the paint... froyo is the chassis
10. get rid of the Crapware by reading up, then stepping up, to a deblured Rom KEEP READING....
best to yeah ...
1 & 2 don't effect me so I just use whats available I really don't need a calender.
Ok
5: That was tasker. I found it. Any opinions on it? I think im going to pick it up to help with my next question.
11: Coming from a blackberry, one of the biggest things I miss is bedside mode. Basically, whenever the phone was plugged into A/C (so every night) the phone would switch sound profiles and some other stuff. This let me:
turn off the notification LED, mute email notifications, change the ringtone for texts, lowered the volume of my call ringtone, turned off vibration, and displayed a clock on the screen.
I don't really care about the clock on the screen, but otherwise I'd like to replicate this. Is there an app that can do that? Or should I pay for tasker? If anyone has experience with it, is one of the "if" contexts going on A/C power?
(12, kinda) :I haven't found any way to turn off the notification LED at all; am I missing something?
Thanks again guys
Dictator Bob said:
Ok
5: That was tasker. I found it. Any opinions on it? I think im going to pick it up to help with my next question.
11: Coming from a blackberry, one of the biggest things I miss is bedside mode. Basically, whenever the phone was plugged into A/C (so every night) the phone would switch sound profiles and some other stuff. This let me:
turn off the notification LED, mute email notifications, change the ringtone for texts, lowered the volume of my call ringtone, turned off vibration, and displayed a clock on the screen.
I don't really care about the clock on the screen, but otherwise I'd like to replicate this. Is there an app that can do that? Or should I pay for tasker? If anyone has experience with it, is one of the "if" contexts going on A/C power?
(12, kinda) :I haven't found any way to turn off the notification LED at all; am I missing something?
Thanks again guys
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For 12) look into batt mon x in the market. I believe you can modify the led indicator for stuff. I haven't tested this app yet, but will as soon as I finish this msg!
Sent from my DROIDX using XDA App
Thread dedicated to the initial challenges when changing from a Tilt 2 to an LG Quantum.
Why is this thread needed?
AT&T insurance for the Tilt 2 is now sending the LG Quantum as a replacement.
The phones are hardly comparable. Windows Phone 7 is vastly different than Windows Mobile 6.5. It is not HTC. Does not have Sense.
Windows Phone 7 has some very annoying characteristics that can be avoided if you set things up with specific care and knowledge originally.
I just got me replacement phone today. I will continue to update this thread with information as I find it. Hopefully it will help others in the process, since there will be more of us as insurance replaces people's phones.
Tips from day 1 of use
#1. Your intial live account can not be changed without a hard reset. Do not use an old hotmail account as you Windows Live ID. Create a new one. I recommend one that you will only use for this purpose. If you need to change it, you must wipe your phone (hard reset) to replace this. Your primary hotmail account cannot be removed and there is no way to not sync the contacts from it.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2430020
I recommend telling no one this id. Do not use the email for anything. Include some number or something, so it will not be guessed. do not store information in this account, such as emails or contacts, if it can be avoided. Plenty of other options like gmail for this purpose.
#2. Common email domains are easy to setup. Even custom ones are. But it first will try, then let's you configure.
#3. There is a list that has settings. Swipe from right to left to get to the list. Then go to settings. Now you can change things how old of emails to get and how much of it.
#4. Open an email with an attached pdf. Get the viewer. better to do this earlier than later when you need it. By default, the phone has no ability to view a pdf. The pdf viewer lets you do this.
#5. Stop looking for tasks, you won't find them. They don't sync with Exchange.
#6. There is not a built in twitter app. I am downloading moTweets, because I liked that before. I am using the Try option. There is also a free Twitter and a free Foursquare.
Looks like there is some map software. Not sure if it costs money yet.
Not finding Bing or Google Maps.
Bing is built in. just press the button in the lower right. Not sure why that is the only way to launch it though.
#7. Installed Zune with no issues on Windows Home 64 bit. It updates the software on the phone. You do not loose settings during this. Not like a ROM flash. Synced Videos, pictures, and music.
#8 Blue tooth paired easily. Remember most devices are 0000 for the pin.
#9 Found my WiFi and I connected it fine.
#10 Uninstall the bloat that AT&T puts on. It's not much, but you don't want apps that cost a monthly fee when free ones exist.
First impressions after 1 day
Allthough the look and feel is not customizable, it is very consistent.
A few things are not 100% obvious, but once learned is not difficult.
Things do just work.
Very fluid display. Nothing lags.
It's easy to get your stuff onto it. I need to still test copy and paste with Office.
I was thinking that I would be totally unhappy with the phone. But, I think it might just be doable. A non technical person should have no trouble with this phone.
Marketplace has alot of free apps.
Day 2
Not all clock alarm apps are equal.
Big Clock, which I downloaded from the marketplace failed to wake me this morning.
Tested the normal Alarms this morning and it did work with the screen locked.
As always test your alarm before you need it.
Annoyed that there are no snooze options. Just 5 minutes.
Glad Mango is coming soon. Mango gives all the snooze options we used to have.
Back in Windows Mobile 6.5 Digital Outcast gave us the snooze options that we were used to. M$ had taken them away.
For Win Phone 7, I haven't found a short term solution to this yet. Going to have to wait for Mango.
Liking the OS more and more. Marketplace makes the downloading and installing of apps very painless. Wish it was more clear about what has live tiles though.
AccuWeather weather app appears to be live. LG Clock and Weather does not appear to have a live tile, but lets you put in multiple cities.
Wish I could find the HTC tile with weather and clock. HTC Hub is not it.
Post #5
Intended to later have more info.
I like to have 5 posts of each thread I create.
As a potential future WP7 Device owner, I can't think of a better thread to follw than this one, so on behalf of myself and other TP2/Tilt2 owners who may one day move on, thank you very much for creating this thread...a lot of people move on from a deice earlier than the majority but don't leave the majority much of anything to work with in regards to what to move on to or to stay away from, or how to dial in the new device a better way than what the manufacturers have configured, so this thread is indeed very much appreciated...at least by me, and I am sure others as well.
While you will be missed in the Energy thread, I'm glad I have someone familiar to work with the new OS so should the time come, I will be versed as well as can be on what to expect, and do or not do...thank you for all you did for us with the Rhodium, and thank you in advance for all you will do for the WP7 community...you better the community here wherever you go or whichever thread you are posting in ....
Now for my first WP7 noob question...can the live tiles color be changed...and are there alternatives on this device to the live tiles?
GT247 said:
... Now for my first WP7 noob question...can the live tiles color be changed...and are there alternatives on this device to the live tiles?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes. They can be changed, but you get to change them all from 1 color to another.
slide the panels to the left. This now shows a list. Slide down to settings.
In the section titled Theme, tap it and pick a different color.
Other tiles, like music and video, and pictures get the image from what you have played or viewed.
The Me tile gets it's image from Facebook.
And apps can choose to follow the theme or provide their own image.
For the pictures tile, you can manually set it, by: "Open the Picture hub and tap and hold on an empty space and you'll get the option to select the picture you want." source of quote
End of day 2
Realizing that I do not dislike the phone or Windows Phone 7. This is very hard to admit.
With Windows Mobile 6.5 and 6.5.3 and Sense 2.5 with Cookie 2.0. It was fun figuring out all the ways to make the phone do what it should just do. With Windows phone 7. It just does them the way it is supposed to do it. It might not do it how you are used to it doing it, but it does it and it does it well. It can't do everything you're used to it doing, but it does what you actually need it to do and want it to do.
I was expecting to be extremely disappointed in the phone. But I'm not. Things work. You rotate to landscape. They still work. Energy Roms are much prettierand NRGZ28 did a fantastic job at making it do what it should do.
But Windows Phone 7 does a great job.
The things it falls short on will soon be corrected with Mango.
And no M$ did not pay me anything for this post. I am totally surprised that I would feel this way after just 2 days.
I suspected this would be the case....when everything runs faster and smoother and better without having to tweak it to do so, and the initial worry of not being able to tweak to your hearts content to make something you want to work work...when that worry wears off because you dont have to tweak it...well...when any worry wears off and you realize the new phone with the new OS actually really does improve a lot of things.. when everything opens up as your finger is leaving the screen and just starts doing what it's supposed to do...really...how can that be beat?
I'm glad you're giving us positive feedback, as I knew everything would run butter smooth, like yourself, I had reservations about liking the new platform and the new appearance and other changes you're going through with the new device could be overcome by functionality (lol)....
Yep....Mango should come out and lock you in my friend...I imagine after that you'll be glad that usb port died (just please, if you do end up happy about it, don't tell me so...cuz I'm bummed it happened still lol)
I'm curious as you explore...if there will be little things wp7 doesn't have, that the old winmo did...as I have two android devices and the tilt2, I'm finding some things lacking in "the other OS"...little settings (that are sort of kinda actually big deals, to me) are missing...one is...on the tilt2 I can select to show my caller ID to everyone, noone, or just to contacts...can you do that on the Quantum? Have you noticed a need to wonder how ram is controlled? Have you tried opening a zip?.....I'm happy you're on wp7 now (kinda)....I will want to buy a wp7 if someone I trust tells me theye tested it out, put it through it's paces and that it's a solid performer that's user friendly that I can count on to keep me connected to my customers and employees calls and messages and navigates me through my day and gives me awesome browsing and streaming media over the net between my appointments...yep...I'm paying attention to your thread my friend...my usb could go any day too....lol
Thought I found something that I could not do
Thought I could not accept an appointment from Outlook.
In the email, there is a link that takes you to your calender. You accept it from the tentative meeting. I like this better, because you can actually see what your day looks like when accepting it.
Have not found a free twitter program with a live tile.
For weather, the only free one with a live tile update seems to be The Weather Channel. Weather bug does not show anything on the tile. AccuWeather is not updated live.
As plain as the tiles look, they are clear too read. And everything scrolls so fast and smooth. I'll take plain with function for that responsiveness any day.
GT247 said:
I suspected this would be the case....when everything runs faster and smoother and better without having to tweak it to do so, and the initial worry of not being able to tweak to your hearts content to make something you want to work work...when that worry wears off because you dont have to tweak it...well...when any worry wears off and you realize the new phone with the new OS actually really does improve a lot of things.. when everything opens up as your finger is leaving the screen and just starts doing what it's supposed to do...really...how can that be beat?
I'm glad you're giving us positive feedback, as I knew everything would run butter smooth, like yourself, I had reservations about liking the new platform and the new appearance and other changes you're going through with the new device could be overcome by functionality (lol)....
Yep....Mango should come out and lock you in my friend...I imagine after that you'll be glad that usb port died (just please, if you do end up happy about it, don't tell me so...cuz I'm bummed it happened still lol)
I'm curious as you explore...if there will be little things wp7 doesn't have, that the old winmo did...as I have two android devices and the tilt2, I'm finding some things lacking in "the other OS"...little settings (that are sort of kinda actually big deals, to me) are missing...one is...on the tilt2 I can select to show my caller ID to everyone, noone, or just to contacts...can you do that on the Quantum? Have you noticed a need to wonder how ram is controlled? Have you tried opening a zip?.....I'm happy you're on wp7 now (kinda)....I will want to buy a wp7 if someone I trust tells me theye tested it out, put it through it's paces and that it's a solid performer that's user friendly that I can count on to keep me connected to my customers and employees calls and messages and navigates me through my day and gives me awesome browsing and streaming media over the net between my appointments...yep...I'm paying attention to your thread my friend...my usb could go any day too....lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had no idea that you could control the caller id being sent on a per contact basis with the Tilt 2. I imagine it was just inserting *82 or something before dialing. Ultimately the carrier needs to handle the *82 since they do know your number when sending from the tower to the rest of the phone network.
Still early in the testing.
I don't know WP7 settings, on the tilt2, to control caller id setting, I go to start menu>settings>personal>phone>services and then from there I can select "call barring" "caller id" "call forwarding" "call waiting" and "voicemail and text messages"....once an item is highlighted I can click "get settings"...once "get settings" is selected it checks the network settings and then displays the current setting on the network...on the TP2 caller id settings they can be changed on the network from the device...I'm hoping this is possible on WP7
Another question I have is if pinch to zoom works in emails and other apps, not just the browser
GT247 said:
I don't know WP7 settings, on the tilt2, to control caller id setting, I go to start menu>settings>personal>phone>services and then from there I can select "call barring" "caller id" "call forwarding" "call waiting" and "voicemail and text messages"....once an item is highlighted I can click "get settings"...once "get settings" is selected it checks the network settings and then displays the current setting on the network...on the TP2 caller id settings they can be changed on the network from the device...I'm hoping this is possible on WP7
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
GT247 said:
Another question I have is if pinch to zoom works in emails and other apps, not just the browser
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
pinch to zoom works when reading emails, but not when replying or text messaging.
found the setting about sending caller id on the Quantum
Settings - Apps - Phone. You can pick send to everyone, no one, only contacts
when the device is on a call does the lockscreen lock the buttons and touchscreen? ie: is it a waste of time to try to lock the device while on a call? lol
GT247 said:
when the device is on a call does the lockscreen lock the buttons and touchscreen? ie: is it a waste of time to try to lock the device while on a call? lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The exchange server that I use for work pushes a policy forcing the phone to lock.
Pressing the power button on the top not only shuts off the screen but it also locks it.
When I answer the phone, it is easy to unlock, if I want. Just slide up, and enter the code. Then I can do anything while on the call.
The proximity sensor disables the touch screen when you have it by your ear, so you don't actidentally hang up.
Something the phone does not have is physical talk and end buttons. But, I honestly have not had a need for them.
Custom Ringtones and Alert Sounds
Although it's real eay for a developer add ringtones to their device or for anyone that has unlocked it. It is annoying that they have locked this down.
Mango is supposed to allow custom ringtones, so just need to wait.
Supposed to be on September 15th.
Wow...ringtones are locked down? Amazing....really. Please don't think I'm knocking them for doing it, I'm sure there's a reason for it, I just find it surprising is all. Have you examined the GPS Capabilities?
GT247 said:
Wow...ringtones are locked down? Amazing....really. Please don't think I'm knocking them for doing it, I'm sure there's a reason for it, I just find it surprising is all. Have you examined the GPS Capabilities?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
GPS works great.
Good news is that the LG Quantum has a built in reg editor. Kind of clunky. Nothing like the good old Total Commander or Dot Fred Reg Editor.
And the location of there is an app the runs on your computer to make a xap files for ringtones.
And you can then sideload the xap onto the device and the ringtone remains.
First you need to unlock the device.
I have not unlocked mine yet. I should be able to unlock with just a few reg ediits. Haven't done it yet though.
On the 15th Mango officially will be available, and that allows custom ringtones without any hacks.
Some Good threads
Use your Windows Phone as a thumb drive.
Registry mods for WP7 - NoDo
Custom Ringtones
mp3 files work just fine, at least with the NoDo 7392 update.
All the built in ringtones seem to be mp3 as well
Lot of good links here
I am finally giving android a second chance. About 2-3 years a go I left iPhone for a HTC Hero. I couldn't stand the touch screen. So laggy. I went right back to the iPhone. So now after playing with my friends SG2 I thought I might give the GNote a chance to sway me over to android. I currently have the iPhone 4S and got a GNote in the mail arriving on Thursday. I just want some input on what apps to load. I don't think I will root right away just incase I want to return it. But I saw an app where u can browse and download usenet servers right from the phone. This is the main reason I am leaving ios. I am bored with it and want something new from my phone. Hopefully the GNote will satisfy my cravings for something new and not just make me realize why I had an iPhone in the first place.
So please what are the must have/must do things to do to my new GNote?
Thanks
1) The first thing I do on any Android phone is Google Voice for visual voice mail.
Download and install the app, then make sure you have your www.google.com/voice account setup. Then forward your VM calls to Google Voice(different carriers have different ways to do this, look yours up.)
2) Make the transition to your Google Account/Gmail.
Import/Manage all your contacts over, you will not regret it. You will never lose them again no mater what, and they sync without effort. Alternatively the facebook app on Android can sync your contacts, but because Facebook is lame, they don't let you keep the contact info or export it. In any event, if your contacts are on Google/Facebook or the phone itself will make little difference in everyday use. Use whatever you like the most.
I have the iPhone 4, and I plan to switch to the G-Note come early next year. I have been using android on the 7" tablets, and so far I have been able to find the same apps that I use on iOS. I think the switch will be easier then you think...unless you use Siri a LOT while driving.
My reason for switching is pretty singular. I want that Glorious 5.3" inch screen! Oh and that stylus, I love having it on my Flyer....
This is HUGE for me. I am giving up my iPad 2 to get the ok from the wife to buy the GNote. I really want to like android. I guess what I was really asking for in this thread is what apps make Android stand out from iOS? What will I be able to do with the GNote that I will not be able to do with an Jailbroken iPhone. My GNote arrives tomorrow and all I got from you guys is to start a gmail account (which I already had cause i sync'ed my iPhone with google) and to use google voice (which I can't cause I'm in the UK).
Please help me out and let me know the stuff and apps that you guys use on your Androids.
Thanks
Android apps that are great
iphoneric said:
This is HUGE for me. I am giving up my iPad 2 to get the ok from the wife to buy the GNote. I really want to like android. I guess what I was really asking for in this thread is what apps make Android stand out from iOS? What will I be able to do with the GNote that I will not be able to do with an Jailbroken iPhone. My GNote arrives tomorrow and all I got from you guys is to start a gmail account (which I already had cause i sync'ed my iPhone with google) and to use google voice (which I can't cause I'm in the UK).
Please help me out and let me know the stuff and apps that you guys use on your Androids.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Clipper (free) or Clipper Plus - for a clipboard of cut and paste.
AdFree - like it says.
Extended Controls - widget for toggles of wifi, bluetooth, GPS, airplane mode, etc.
Mighty Grocery - nice shopping list app
Tethering Hotspot - not by an app, but by one simple mod to settings.db
Speektoit Assistant - gives you much of what Siri does
Thumb Keyboard 4 - keyboard that has arrow keys for moving back and forth, up and down within your text.
Lots of other apps that are same as (Angry Birds, Cut the Rope) or similar to iOS apps, but the items above give you things that you can't get on most iPhones without jailbreaking. Some of them need rooting, but that is easy enough, and of course rooted phone is untethered, unlike iOS5 jailbreak ATM.
Want something totally different from iOS? SwypePad
IT allows you to create "app menus" that appear when you swipe from the very edge of your screen. The menus are assigned to specific edges, like "upper right" "lower right" "right-bottom corner" and the like. Total of 9 menus, I guess. I love it.
Oh, major bonus: these menus appear when you swipe from any app, even the app menu, inside games and whatnot. But the swipable areas are small enough so they dont interfere with usual swiping natural to those apps.