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First full review of Hero

On gizmodo.
"Tragically flawed" but "the Hero is still the best Android phone yet" so my pre-order still stands

It's making me having second thoughts though. I think I'm going to wait and see. If speed issue isn't there when only a limited number of widgets are used, then I think I'm ok with that.

With a bit of tweaks it will be lightning fast. And who cares of the camera?

Someone in the comments on the article says that a Class 6 micro SD card should speed it up. Guess what I just ordered from Amazon?

The review was pretty much one sided...everything kept coming back to the iphone for some reason
Even after reading through it I decided to go ahead and order my Hero...delivery is on thursday tho...have to wait TWO DAYS lol.

This is interesting from:
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/ph...hero-617981/review?src=rss&attr=all&artc_pg=2
The only problem, and it's a big problem for now, is the whole system does lag quite comprehensively at times. It's at its worst when you take the phone out of the box for the first time, and although it does speed up to an acceptable level on the homescreen, certain aspects (such as updating Twitter or the weather) can cause the whole system to slow down to a complete stop at times.
It's a real shame that this is the case, and could be something to do with the fact there's only a 528MHz processor under the hood, which could be a little underpowered when you're multi-tasking the level offered by the HTC Hero.
However, before you write the phone off, there's more than a ray of hope. The last time we played with the HTC Hero, around a month ago, the problem was there but so much worse. This tells us two things: it's likely it will be fixed by the time the phone is released onto the market (or at least the first firmware update will go a long way to doing so) and HTC have had to rush this to market for some reason (perhaps to stave off the challenge of Samsung's first Android phone, the i7500?).
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It probably is due to the fact that these are review handsets or something like that. The Hero rom runs fine on my G1 tbh, it's slow in some places but with a system that has twice the RAM and ROm I would expect that to stop tbh.

Gizmodo reviews you can ignore anyway .
... but still there are quite a few of mixed stories.
Basicly it seems the animation and core Android menu's are smooth and speedy and responsive.
but it seems they put the HTC Widgets on very low priority, as not to slow down the rest of the phone. So the widgets take their time updating their content, which seems more as a connection-speed thing.
I'm sure that if it's not speedy enough from launch, it will come in ROM fixes, either from HTC or from XDA . And if we somehow can get root on the phone, the usual tweaks such as compcache and/or swap will speed it up a bit.
The CPU is fast enough on those MS7xxx based devicse, it's the internal ROM-storage that's kinda slow. The same reason that file-caching tweaks and using SD cards for storage / OS parts work on both the Diamond and the G1 for example.
I'm just gonna form my own opinion on this device when I have it in my hands . But seeing as I'm more than happy with my tweaked Diamond - which is named quite slow in every review out there - I expect good things from the Hero.

Cnet absolutely HATES IT!
(Not.)
http://reviews.cnet.co.uk/mobiles/0,39030106,49303060,00.htm

bigbamboo5 said:
(Not.)
http://reviews.cnet.co.uk/mobiles/0,39030106,49303060,00.htm
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Thats more like it!

Slash Gear loves it.
http://www.slashgear.com/htc-hero-review-2149880/
Interesting what they comment on the lag other reviews are reporting:
We’ve actually been talking about this in the forums over at AndroidCommunity.com. The reason I didn’t mention lag is because I didn’t really experience any; there’s a slight slow-down in flicking away from a homescreen pane if the widget is updating (such as Peep getting the latest tweets) but it’s incredibly minor (IMO). There was never a lag or delay that I could legitimately say was annoying. The camera, too, seemed faster than some sites are reporting.
The speed you see in the demo videos is basically the speed the Hero ran at all of the time. I’ve talked with HTC about the differing experiences, and they’re just as confused as we are; they say all the review devices (which I’m taking to mean those in the UK and those shipped to the US for reviews there) are running the same production ROM. However there are obviously some differences in performance across the board, not to mention I know a few people have had glitchier devices than others.
In short, this could be a “good” Hero and there could be “bad” ones out there with other reviewers, we just don’t know. Given that Orange UK are apparently beginning sales of the smartphone today, I imagine we’ll soon hear whether those versions live up to expectations or not.
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stilghar said:
Slash Gear loves it.
http://www.slashgear.com/htc-hero-review-2149880/
Interesting what they comment on the lag other reviews are reporting:
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Look at the video "HTC Hero media widget and Flash-capable browser:" in that review.
Now I know what the other reviews are on about. It takes a fraction of a second for it to move between home screens. On default android this was fluid and you saw the "transition" of dragging the screen from one position to another, on the hero it looks more like Homescreen 1, Swipe, 0.2 second wait, Homescreen 2.
Not a problem at all, but most reviewers would criticise for this, especially the ones that always go back and compare to the "all mighty iPhone"

The Hero is far better than the iPhone - me thinks. But I dont want a war about it.
This is just my experience from using apple technology for 20 years

Engadget crushed the hero in their review
"HTC has an explosive entry in the smartphone category with what its done on the software side... now it just needs the hardware to match"
http://www.engadget.com/2009/07/23/htc-hero-review/
if hero is so weak, what's there to say about mytouch (sapphire) (((
rachael?

hihik said:
Engadget crushed the hero in their review
"HTC has an explosive entry in the smartphone category with what its done on the software side... now it just needs the hardware to match"
http://www.engadget.com/2009/07/23/htc-hero-review/
if hero is so weak, what's there to say about mytouch (sapphire) (((
rachael?
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Or the Diamond when it was released or even the TD2... really it's all subjective!!

http://phandroid.com/2009/07/23/htc-hero-review/

Nexus One "does not have multitouch, has 'pinch to zoom'..."

Ok, I will try to keep this short...I just thought this was kinda weird.....
I called to return my phone today, and when they asked if I had any other issues with it (besides the back cover not lining up with the phone) I said yes..and I described how the screen does not let you have two fingers on the same axis and gave them this example: when I was playing 'Prince of Persia' and it had the direction buttons on the lower left of the screen and across on the lower right of the screen were the other 'action buttons' and when I press both they either both do not work or only one will work. Now the rep said 'Oh, well that is because the nexus one does not have multi touch...it has pinch to zoom' ...in my mind I was like "wth?" haha, but is this just their excuse for the Synaptic touch sensor? It seems more as though they are trying to justify it instead of owning up to it...well my response was refering to the Htc incredible and the Supersonic which have new touch sensors that work better and I said I had wished the nexus one had the same...the rep said she was not aware of an update for the problem, but it is not out of the question...(I wondered if she realized I was talking about hardware not software, although hardware can be updated as well just not as easily...)...

Umm I'm not sure how much that tech actually knows, because I was playing a game on my N1....idr the name of it but it was a first-person shooter, and I was able to use the on-screen movement controls AND look around by dragging my finger across the screen at the same time.

I think that's because they are on two different horizontal axes.

N1 can detect TWO touch points at the same time, and thats according to the touch sensor manufacturer. I think the game, Prince of Persia, is not efficient enough for detecting two points at the same time. We should wait till 19th May and see what Google brings for gaming scene on android...

yeah the update is right around the corner, so i would be curious to see if it fixes that issue.
but i would not expect some customer service rep to know a damn thing about the Y-axis issue or what model the touch screen is synaptics clearpad 2000. you're giving them way too much credit. they just know it has pinch to zoom, and that's the end of it.
anyway that game should work OK using 2 touch points, but i havent tried it to know for sure. i have seen that there are other games that use 2 points and they work fine. i guess the game crosses the Y-axis is when it would not work, but i didnt know any type of those games exist yet. i admit it sucks that this limitation is present.

The error occurs if the two fingers are on the same axis ...i.e. horizontal / vertical from each other ...but if it is diagonal it should work...even slightly diagonal should work unless the two points get close to each others axis....this is not a software issue and I surely would love to see it fixed with a software update but I doubt this will be so...only time will tell.....now I would not blame it on Prince of Persia...check other games with the same control layout and see how it works...or even try something without the same layout and just use one control and touch your finger on the same axis of the control and you will see the error occur....
It sucks, a BRAND NEW 2010 phone, over $500....and yet cannot even use proper multitouch...even my old iphone 2g works better in the multitouch aspect....(sad and disappointing) ...it has all these nice specs but the multi touch aspect kills it for me...

People expecting the N1 to not have any quirks make me laugh

ap3604 said:
People expecting the N1 to not have any quirks make me laugh
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so you are fine that a piece of hardware made 3 years ago out performs this new one? That is something that you normally expect eh?....hmm " " ....

erebusting said:
so you are fine that a piece of hardware made 3 years ago out performs this new one? That is something that you normally expect eh?....hmm " " ....
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Well actually I am.. but that's because I don't play poorly made games on my phone, at least not ones that require multi touch, and even then.. it doesn't really mess up though :/
If there are games that are actually made with quality for Android, that multi-touch is really required on.. then maybe I will then know your pain. Other than that, apps and etc. are pretty fine.

erebusting said:
so you are fine that a piece of hardware made 3 years ago out performs this new one? That is something that you normally expect eh?....hmm " " ....
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yes i am totally fine with it. maybe i live in reality but this minor design issue is NOTHING to worry about. i think some people are not well adjusted to the world....

RogerPodacter said:
yes i am totally fine with it. maybe i live in reality but this minor design issue is NOTHING to worry about. i think some people are not well adjusted to the world....
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your eggagerated response is funny, you live in 'reality' where you would pay top dollar for something supposedly top notch, but I think in REAL reality you would want the best for your money....basically would you pay $2.00 for a Ferrari/MaxTouch sensor or $2.00 for a pinto/Synaptic touch sensor ...... why not get the most for your money? are you just trying to make yourself feel better about the phone your are now basically stuck with?

Eclair~ said:
Well actually I am.. but that's because I don't play poorly made games on my phone, at least not ones that require multi touch, and even then.. it doesn't really mess up though :/
If there are games that are actually made with quality for Android, that multi-touch is really required on.. then maybe I will then know your pain. Other than that, apps and etc. are pretty fine.
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wth are you talking about...'made with quality for Android, that multi-touch is really required on.'...? this is a hardware issue, how does it matter how good or bad the game is made, the hardware supersedes the software in this case....
I guess the real thing is, as long as you are all happy with your non multi touch phone/ the 'pinch to zoom' phone...
haha

yes i am totally fine with it. maybe i live in reality but this minor design issue is NOTHING to worry about. i think some people are not well adjusted to the world....
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your eggagerated response is funny, you live in 'reality' where you would pay top dollar for something supposedly top notch, but I think in REAL reality you would want the best for your money....basically would you pay $2.00 for a Ferrari/MaxTouch sensor or $2.00 for a pinto/Synaptic touch sensor ...... why not get the most for your money? are you just trying to make yourself feel better about the phone your are now basically stuck with?
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I don't know why you think the nexus price is any different than any other smartphone. its actually cheaper than most smartphones.
my response is not exaggerated at all. I'm happy with my phone 100%.

RogerPodacter said:
I don't know why you think the nexus price is any different than any other smartphone. its actually cheaper than most smartphones.
my response is not exaggerated at all. I'm happy with my phone 100%.
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well that is not what the discussion was about now any ways right(the price)...the price is another issue, but for being the same price as about any other smartphone while some of those smart phones can do proper multitouch and with the same or better specs, why would you want to limit yourself if you could choose the best...
disregard the exaggerated comment because it just brings up another discussion for another day
just answer this...
wouldnt you want the best you can get for the hard earned money you spend?
I understand this phone is great...I believe it should have been at least a little bit better than what it came out to be...

i can't think of two (one isn't really worth the think) reasons for a multi-touch sensor. pinch/zoom seems to work well for maps and pictures. not being a gamer means a good deal of drama is lost on me i suppose.
as far as the price of the n1, and being 'stuck' with the phone... that's laughable. anyone can sell their n1 TONIGHT on ebay or craigslist for 100% of what they paid for it from google, and then some in certain cases. smart phones co$t MONEY. beit an iphone, n1, n97, or whatever is going to be badass next summer. i _LIKE_ the idea of buying off contract, using a NO CONTRACT carrier, and selling/leaving when i want.
should a N1 come out for att/whoever without contract, with a sweet keyboard like the G1, i'd switch overnight. water proof ? i'm there. 12 mp camera with HD and a gig of rom space ? sweet.
this is more a rant thread than a progress in motion thread. if you feel you've been wronged or led by false advertising, sell your phone. get one that does everything you have to have. i don't recall anyone saying "holy **** it haz multi-touch i gotta haz it !!!!!" when the n1 was released.
that was much longer than i expected. shoulda just said "lol" and left it.

erebusting said:
wth are you talking about...'made with quality for Android, that multi-touch is really required on.'...? this is a hardware issue, how does it matter how good or bad the game is made, the hardware supersedes the software in this case....
I guess the real thing is, as long as you are all happy with your non multi touch phone/ the 'pinch to zoom' phone...
haha
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When I said made with quality, I was saying how much quality are put into Android's games. I was referring nothing to hardware issues.
Most Android games (to me) are horrible little 2D games that get boring in a few minutes. I don't even really "want" to play them, so therefore I don't need a complicated multi touch system until 'quality' games are made. Games that are worth playing for more than a few seconds, sadly to say, iPhone type games. Google is trying, though.
The only application that "plays" the games I want to play is GameBoid, where the multi-touch works perfectly. I can hold down a directional input, along with B, or A, and reform actions that result in those two presses perfectly. Such as running.
You seem to love to whine though, you did pay a lot for this phone though, I guess I would be pissed if this really mattered to me as well. Right now I'm like "whatever, who cares". It does what I want..

I don't know why you think the nexus price is any different than any other smartphone. its actually cheaper than most smartphones.
my response is no
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well that is not what the discussion was about now any ways right(the price)...the price is another issue, but for being the same price as about any other smartphone while some of those smart phones can do proper multitouch and with the same or better specs, why would you want to limit yourself if you could choose the best...
disregard the exaggerated comment because it just brings up another discussion for another day
just answer this...
wouldnt you want the best you can get for the hard earned money you spend?
I understand this phone is great...I believe it should have been at least a little bit better than what it came out to be...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've owned so many phones in my life, and every single one of them had some type of issue, defect, missing feature, or whatever. if the only complaint about the nexus is this one minor issue, than I say its a winner.
great so the original iPhone could do it, but it couldn't do pics with a flash, or copy/paste, or mms. so what scenario is better/worse? I say the nexus is the better situation by leaps and bounds.
if this issue is important to you then you should switch phones. for me its not that important. my Nokia n97 had a faulty camera lens issue that scratched itself when opening. every phone has its quirks. if the nexus ones quirk is this Y axis issue, then I proclaim we all are winners with such a minor issue.

erebusting said:
so you are fine that a piece of hardware made 3 years ago out performs this new one? That is something that you normally expect eh?....hmm " " ....
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and it took the iphone how long until they got copy and Paste? that wait winMo had since the ipaq days
or wait MMS?
hm whatever? does it do bluetooth file transfers yet? without needing alternative programs?
even myk750 from sony does bluetooth lol

habs101 said:
and it took the iphone how long until they got copy and Paste? that wait winMo had since the ipaq days
or wait MMS?
hm whatever? does it do bluetooth file transfers yet? without needing alternative programs?
even myk750 from sony does bluetooth lol
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lol that is not the point, I was just saying that when I heard it was able to do multi touch I thought it was going to be like the iPhone's multitouch ...since that tech is now older tech I thought it was implied that it would have equal or better multi touch especially since everything else is definately better...The iPhone was a competitor for a while there and you would think they would have beefed up the multitouch (or at least made it on par) since they beefed up every other aspect....
haha damn, this IS becomming a 'rant' thread...sorry on my behalf for that didn't mean for it to come to that ...I am irritating myself right now with this thread... I just wanted to bring up what the rep had said it was kind of odd to hear that....but the issue she was referring to is something that bugs me..
Now in reference to the gba emulator comment, I haven't tried it but the SNES emu works fine (it has the directional pad diagonally across from the buttons, so it does not suffer from the so called 'y axis' error)
BTW I have some Nexus Cases, anyone interested ?

erebusting said:
wth are you talking about...'made with quality for Android, that multi-touch is really required on.'...? this is a hardware issue, how does it matter how good or bad the game is made, the hardware supersedes the software in this case....
I guess the real thing is, as long as you are all happy with your non multi touch phone/ the 'pinch to zoom' phone...
haha
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Well, go get the best you can get for your money, i guess. Some people are satisfied with their nexus ones (nexii?)
erebusting said:
lol that is not the point, I was just saying that when I heard it was able to do multi touch I thought it was going to be like the iPhone's multitouch ...since that tech is now older tech I thought it was implied that it would have equal or better multi touch especially since everything else is definately better...The iPhone was a competitor for a while there and you would think they would have beefed up the multitouch (or at least made it on par) since they beefed up every other aspect....
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The iphone and the nexus are not competitors, strictly speaking. The devices are competing in different classes. If you feel that they are, you could probably do some research, which would give you a good idea of how they compare.
Less ranting please.

nexus one = top phone in the world (read more inside)

ok, i'm tired of seeing all of these threads about how much the nexus sucks or there's blah blah blah issue with it. listen, if you own this phone, you own the top piece of tech on the globe.
the g1 forum was never like this (and apparently they're ****ed cause they will never see a 2.x officially, so they actually have a reason to ***** but they don't), so what is the issue? there are threads saying the droid incredible is the nexus killer.. yea right. if i decided to travel the world, my nexus one will support that. if i decided to make a call in a freakin lambo at 120 miles per hour with the top down, my nexus one will support that. if i wanted to have the first cell phone in the world that actually has flash, my nexus one will support that. the droid incredible wasn't even rooted yet, and the situation is looking pretty grim. the iphone, wow, i shouldn't even waste my time talking about that piece of garbage. anyone that uses that crap, i look at them in disgrace and shame. sorry, i don't want something so basic that my grandmom can even use it.
so my point is, if you want a real phone, then get a nexus one. if you already own one and like it, my respect goes to you. if not, please don't waste space on this forum and find a phone that better suit your needs.

I have a couple of theories as to why there's a lot more... scrutiny here than in other forums. Most G1 users were able to buy their phones under contract, and as such the proverbial stakes may be lower because they didn't pay as much as N1 owners who probably paid full price (like myself).
The bigger theory, though, is that Google trumped this phone up to be the first 'super phone'. There's nothing super about not being able to handle more than 2 touch inputs, making gaming a hard task. There's nothing super about the GPU, or the jittery scrolling in some websites and on the home screen.
When you say a phone has a 1ghz processor in it, and you claim it to be a superphone, you don't expect to run into performance issues. I know I sure didn't. I've since grounded myself to the realities of hype and marketing, but it still gets under my skin that I'm still playing the same 'upgrade every other day to try to get the phone to actually be what I bought it for' game I've done with past Windows Mobile devices.
All in all I like my N1 a lot. I think it's one of the best phones out right now, and will be for some time to come, but they could have saved themselves a lot of grief by coming up with a better touch screen sensor. You just don't take shortcuts with a 'superphone'.

Purchasing an amazing smartphone like the N1 and b*itching about an annoyance is like getting married and getting pissed when your wife leaves crumbs on the counter or doesn't tuck in the sheets: grow up, get over it, and start appreciating it for all the great things that it does for you.
And please... dont use the excuse "but but... I paid $500 for my phone so I expect it to be be perfect and not have anything wrong with it". This is a idiotic since nothing is perfect (even the EVO 4g will have something wrong with it). Try telling this stupid argument to your future wife and see what happens "Honey... I spent $500 on you so I want you to be perfect and not have any quirks".
The N1 is amazing for me. So much that I can see myself using it beyond 2 years. It fulfills every single one of my needs. After years of searching I have finally found my "perfect" phone. Its that good.

I appreciate the sentiment, ap. For the most part I agree, but every person has different needs. One of the big things I use my phone for is gaming when I ride the metro to work. I also work on my book with my phone when I commute to work.
Imagine my surprise when I buy SuperGNES and realize I can't use the gamepad as advertised because the betweens are 15mm within the same axis so I couldn't do a running jump in Super Mario World. Yet my girlfriend can do this fine on her 2 year old iPhone 3G. And I have the superphone.
Or picture the look on my face when try to type really fast on the Android keyboard as I work on my book but letters don't register that did on the iPhone I used to have. I could hold down one key, and press another and not have the first one register on the N1, my superphone. This isn't a HTC Touch Cruise I'm using.
If I go to www.textsfromlastnight.com, the scrolling is choppy and not aesthetically pleasing. I hate to use the iPhone again, but the scrolling on that is fine. Websites seemingly at random do not perform well on the N1, my superphone.
Don't get me wrong, though. I do like my phone. But some of its shortcomings are not ones I'd expect, given the hardware specifications. I also did not expect Google to skimp on the touchscreen sensor on its flagship device.
If your phone does everything you want it to do, then that's great, and I'm happy for you. Not everyone can say that, though, and that's criticism I feel Google exposed itself to by calling the N1 a superphone, a class that's supposed to be above everything that came before it.

halorin said:
I appreciate the sentiment, ap. For the most part I agree, but every person has different needs. One of the big things I use my phone for is gaming when I ride the metro to work. I also work on my book with my phone when I commute to work.
Imagine my surprise when I buy SuperGNES and realize I can't use the gamepad as advertised because the betweens are 15mm within the same axis so I couldn't do a running jump in Super Mario World. Yet my girlfriend can do this fine on her 2 year old iPhone 3G. And I have the superphone.
Or picture the look on my face when try to type really fast on the Android keyboard as I work on my book but letters don't register that did on the iPhone I used to have. I could hold down one key, and press another and not have the first one register on the N1, my superphone. This isn't a HTC Touch Cruise I'm using.
If I go to www.textsfromlastnight.com, the scrolling is choppy and not aesthetically pleasing. I hate to use the iPhone again, but the scrolling on that is fine. Websites seemingly at random do not perform well on the N1, my superphone.
Don't get me wrong, though. I do like my phone. But some of its shortcomings are not ones I'd expect, given the hardware specifications. I also did not expect Google to skimp on the touchscreen sensor on its flagship device.
If your phone does everything you want it to do, then that's great, and I'm happy for you. Not everyone can say that, though, and that's criticism I feel Google exposed itself to by calling the N1 a superphone, a class that's supposed to be above everything that came before it.
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Interesting points made about some of the short comings of the N1. Coming from a BlackBerry Pearl 8120 to this phone is quite a step up. It is hard for me to find negatives with the phone, besides being spoiled by the BB battery life of 2-3 days with moderate use compared to the N1 ~24hrs.
I am not sure about your experience while typing. I installed Swype and find it easier and faster to type e-mails and forum posts, and SMS compared to a physical keyboard and the default keyboard on the N1.

Coming from most phones the N1 will be a HUGE step up, and rightfully so. I'd say that the N1 is about 90% of what I thought it would be, which in its own right is pretty damn goood.
The keyboard issue I'm talking about refers to the current limitation where if you press more than one spot on the same axis within about 15 mm the input will flatten to one. There's something called multitouch visualizer on the market that shows this. It's the same hinderance that makes same axis multitouch on games not work well. Using Swype will make this a non-issue, I would imagine since it's just the one touch sliding around.
Android 2.2 is rumored to fix some of this, but it's a head scratcher that Google would use such a low-end touch screen on their breakout device.

halorin said:
Coming from most phones the N1 will be a HUGE step up, and rightfully so. I'd say that the N1 is about 90% of what I thought it would be, which in its own right is pretty damn goood.
The keyboard issue I'm talking about refers to the current limitation where if you press more than one spot on the same axis within about 15 mm the input will flatten to one. There's something called multitouch visualizer on the market that shows this. It's the same hinderance that makes same axis multitouch on games not work well. Using Swype will make this a non-issue, I would imagine since it's just the one touch sliding around.
Android 2.2 is rumored to fix some of this, but it's a head scratcher that Google would use such a low-end touch screen on their breakout device.
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The N1 is new to me in a lot of aspects. This is my first touch screen phone, first Android phone, first phone that supports 3G/HSPDA, first with GPS support.
Hmm, I'll have to find that app regarding the sensor in the marketplace; read about it before in other threads.
2.2 should be coming out this month or next month? I'm assuming N1 would be on top of the list to get the update and I think the new myTouch 3G 3rd gen is getting it too?

It's a shame that the Nexus One got stuck with the clearpad touchscreen, but it's a relatively low volume phone and HTC probably either had enough stock or an existing contract with a supplier that lined up well with their projected sales numbers. I'm sure the designers would have loved to have used a better part, but typically the bean counters are the ones that get to make those decisions.

To my understanding, 2.2 should be out sometime next month. Keep in mind that I am no way trying to bash the Nexus One. I'm just objective about it. All in all it's an amazing phone. It's arguably pound for pound the best phone out, and it's certainly the best one I've ever owned.
It's just not a 'superphone'. Not to me, for the reasons I stated above; reasons I feel are valid.

halorin said:
To my understanding, 2.2 should be out sometime next month. Keep in mind that I am no way trying to bash the Nexus One. I'm just objective about it. All in all it's an amazing phone. It's arguably pound for pound the best phone out, and it's certainly the best one I've ever owned.
It's just not a 'superphone'. Not to me, for the reasons I stated above; reasons I feel are valid.
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Hah, I know you're not bashing the phone Just picking out somethings that stuck out that is either a flaw or we prefer something else.
Be interesting to see what is included in 2.2 that might be derived from CM5.0.6

Well, there are a few things already in ROMs that are supposed to be in 2.2, namely the trackball color change business. I want to say some of the OpenGL upgrades are already floating around, but I may be wrong on that. I hope I am. There's always talk of JIT compiling, a concept I don't know a lot about other than it's a different way for the processor to handle stuff that's supposed to be faster. I hope/think that's in 2.2.
The biggest concern for me is (shocker) the supposed multitouch changes.

While i do love the phone and it is a sexy piece of hardware... i am still bitter about the quality of the touch screen...
the fact that i cannot really play games because the multi-touch is kind messed up is a real downer for me... i really hope this issue gets somewhat fixed in the froyo update but i do not have my hopes up... emulators and stuff was something i was really looking forward to on my phone but the touch screen sort of put the nix on that....

t0mmy said:
ok, i'm tired of seeing all of these threads about how much the nexus sucks or there's blah blah blah issue with it. listen, if you own this phone, you own the top piece of tech on the globe.
the g1 forum was never like this (and apparently they're ****ed cause they will never see a 2.x officially, so they actually have a reason to ***** but they don't), so what is the issue? there are threads saying the droid incredible is the nexus killer.. yea right. if i decided to travel the world, my nexus one will support that. if i decided to make a call in a freakin lambo at 120 miles per hour with the top down, my nexus one will support that. if i wanted to have the first cell phone in the world that actually has flash, my nexus one will support that. the droid incredible wasn't even rooted yet, and the situation is looking pretty grim. the iphone, wow, i shouldn't even waste my time talking about that piece of garbage. anyone that uses that crap, i look at them in disgrace and shame. sorry, i don't want something so basic that my grandmom can even use it.
so my point is, if you want a real phone, then get a nexus one. if you already own one and like it, my respect goes to you. if not, please don't waste space on this forum and find a phone that better suit your needs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are my hero.
Agree completely. People need to slap themselves real hard and remind themselves what kind of piece of technology they own. STOP *****ing. Christ, N1 forum is becoming a collection of spoiled crybabies.
Wake up!

JHaste said:
While i do love the phone and it is a sexy piece of hardware... i am still bitter about the quality of the touch screen...
the fact that i cannot really play games because the multi-touch is kind messed up is a real downer for me... i really hope this issue gets somewhat fixed in the froyo update but i do not have my hopes up... emulators and stuff was something i was really looking forward to on my phone but the touch screen sort of put the nix on that....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can play SuperGNES in landscape with the d-pad and the buttons at diagonally opposite corners and play pretty much without issues. I'm able to do running jumps in Super Mario World. I don't know why SuperGNES and Snesoid both do not have LR button capabilities, but I'm no designer. I haven't tried other emulators.

DarkDvr said:
You are my hero.
Agree completely. People need to slap themselves real hard and remind themselves what kind of piece of technology they own. STOP *****ing. Christ, N1 forum is becoming a collection of spoiled crybabies.
Wake up!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I disagree. I don't think I need to slap myself because I expect a 'superphone' to be able to handle more than two touch inputs reliably.

halorin said:
I disagree. I don't think I need to slap myself because I expect a 'superphone' to be able to handle more than two touch inputs reliably.
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Click to collapse
+1 agree with this

halorin said:
I disagree. I don't think I need to slap myself because I expect a 'superphone' to be able to handle more than two touch inputs reliably.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why is everyone so fixed on the multi-touch? Seriously. Let's face the facts for a second. Besides playing console-ported games with 2 controls on left and right of the screen, there is no other place where you need that.
Fact: pinch-to-zoom works flawlessly (as in "without any issues") everywhere you need it - maps, browser, gallery. If it doesn't for you - talk to your doctor about fixing your hand coordination. Where else do you need multitouch in the real world? Nowhere.
Besides, we need to stop being hipocritical. We found ONE problem with Nexus that still remains and we freak out. I cannot even start listing the difficiences of other "SUPERPHONES" like iPhone. They can't do **** in comparison. Yet I don't see so much hate and dissapointment over their devices as we have here. Think about it. Apple fanboys are actually less hipocritical about their devices, albeit somewhat ignorant. Yet they can appreciate their devices and value them for things they can do, and we, informed and educated, hate our devices (far more advanced) for tiny flaws. So who's better off here?
The reason for my rant is for us to face the facts and be just. No device is perfect, humans created it, and we are not perfect. Everything has flaws. You cannot focus on one _insignificant_ flaw and forgo all the good stuff. People would never marry if that were the case =) Look at the whole picture, value something (or someone) for it's good qualities, don't hate it for the flaws.

halorin said:
You can play SuperGNES in landscape with the d-pad and the buttons at diagonally opposite corners and play pretty much without issues. I'm able to do running jumps in Super Mario World. I don't know why SuperGNES and Snesoid both do not have LR button capabilities, but I'm no designer. I haven't tried other emulators.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
so you CAN play NES emulators with no problem. i thought i read that you cant do this because of the stupid touch screen limitation. damn false info.

halorin said:
I disagree. I don't think I need to slap myself because I expect a 'superphone' to be able to handle more than two touch inputs reliably.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I disagree. You need to slap yourself.
If you don't think the phone is a good value, sell it on Ebay. You'll get the bulk of your money back and you can go whine about your expectations about your new phone elsewhere. *****ing about what it isn't/doesn't have is pointless.

DarkDvr said:
Why is everyone so fixed on the multi-touch? Seriously. Let's face the facts for a second. Besides playing console-ported games with 2 controls on left and right of the screen, there is no other place where you need that.
Fact: pinch-to-zoom works flawlessly (as in "without any issues") everywhere you need it - maps, browser, gallery. If it doesn't for you - talk to your doctor about fixing your hand coordination. Where else do you need multitouch in the real world? Nowhere.
Besides, we need to stop being hipocritical. We found ONE problem with Nexus that still remains and we freak out. I cannot even start listing the difficiences of other "SUPERPHONES" like iPhone. They can't do **** in comparison.
The reason for my rant is for us to face the facts and be just. No device is perfect, humans created it, and we are not perfect. Everything has flaws. You cannot focus on one _insignificant_ flaw and forgo all the good stuff. People would never marry if that were the case =) Look at the whole picture, value something (or someone) for it's good qualities, don't hate it for the flaws.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think you are undervaluing the intentions people have for their phones simply because they aren't yours. While I may not be as fanatical as some others have been, I'm going to take notice of the idea that my two year old iPhone 3G does something better than my new Nexus One because someone between HTC and Google decided that the touchpad sensor they chose was enough.
If the flaws of the phone were enough of a problem for me, I'd sell it on Craigslist and get something else. Just because they aren't that glaring for me doesn't mean I'm going to be ignorant of them, though.
Also, it's been well documented that the touch sensor on the N1 can misbehave in a variety of cases, even with just one touch. I've personally experienced this. Touches refuse to accurately register until you turn off the screen and turn it back on sometimes. Play around with the multitouch application for a while and you more than likely will see some anomalies.
I think I stand somewhere in the middle of 'This phone is perfect, why complainomg' and 'This phone is broken and flawedomg'.
It's hard to make the argument you're trying to make about no phone being perfect when phones like the Evo 4G and the Droid Incredible are basically the same phone except they didn't get cheap touch sensors. I'd wager to guess they'll be around the same price as the N1 as well, if not cheaper also.
I'll agree that some people take their complaints too far, but you almost make it sound like people should have nothing to complain about at all, which I disagree with.

How are you guys fairing without Multi Touch?

Im curious to see if you guys have any issues without the multi touch. I would love to love this device but I do like to play games once in a blue moon and want to know if this would have an effect.
Also, if you had to do it all over again, would you purchase this device?
Thanks for your feedback

stanglx said:
Im curious to see if you guys have any issues without the multi touch.
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Click to collapse
If by multitouch you mean "pinch and zoom", it doesn't work for me. Otherwise, it's known the A7 doesn't support more than two simultaneous touches.
Also, if you had to do it all over again, would you purchase this device?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't decided yet, but right now I'm inclined to return it. Reasons:
Feels heavier in the hand after using it several times.
No USB-to-computer connection... unbelievable...!
In bed, I rest the tablet on my lap/stomach... yet they placed the AC connection at the bottom... another unbelievable decision...!

I do find mine frustrating to type on due to the lack of multitouch. I'm not the world's fastest typer or anything but many times I touch down for my next keypress before removing my first and that causes a misregistered touches.
Other than that I'm satisfied with the tablet... though I am getting some pretty screwy touch behavior at times. I may follow up with elocity support about that.

This was my fear... Games require multi-touch.. but what many dont realize is so does typing on these things...
I appreciate the feedback... Seems this device is a no go for me... I dont care about more then 2 point touch.. but 1 point doesnt make it for me..
I just cant understand how they can come out with such a promising device and skimp on something would have amounted to an extra $10 per unit... they could have passed that on to the consumer and had a significant amount of units sold... as of right now they are the only Tegra 2/512Meg unit on the market...Really ashame...
On to my research...
eskaryo said:
I do find mine frustrating to type on due to the lack of multitouch. I'm not the world's fastest typer or anything but many times I touch down for my next keypress before removing my first and that causes a misregistered touches.
Other than that I'm satisfied with the tablet... though I am getting some pretty screwy touch behavior at times. I may follow up with elocity support about that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Multi touch
The Hardware for the touch screen is does support "Multi touch" or 1 + 1, pinch/zoom, etc.... inputs that being said it looks like the drivers that Stream are using have such poor support for it that it might as well not be there. they never Stated that it was multi-touch so you cant really hold them to it.
But in theory someone (Maybe on the XDA Forums) with right skills and mad skills at that because it looks like it would need a complete driver rewrite might be able to bring true Multi touch support to the device.
But I am not holding my breath, its a Amazing tabet for what it does, and even better for the price but with everything there is need/room for improvement, if there wasnt there wouldn't be XDA or any other hardware hackers

It is unbearable!!
Seriously though the pinch and zoom is cool and I hope it gets supported soon either by XDA or is Elocity is really reading these forums and wants repeat business from the early adopters than I hope they might actually support their own device and add the functionality.
What is a shame that I have seen with other manufacturers is that instead of fixing or updating or improving existing devices they just improve the next model that is released like 3 months after the initial release and expect people to upgrade if they want the problems fixed or leave it to devs. Seems like pretty poor support to me.
Look if you are going to build something and ask people to shell out a good deal of money then you should give the consumer the extra value by extending updates and improvements to the device as they come along. In other words development should continue on the device after it is sold so the existing customer base has a good user experience and then shares that experience with friends. As it is now I would not recommend these tabs to any friends unless I know they are tech savy. If I knew Elocity would back up their products then I would be more vocal about the product to others.
However, the lack of pinch and zoom is a problem and it would be nice to have. However, everything I have tried to do with this tab is does remarkably well. I have enjoyed using for now and hopefully soon there will be work arounds to the problems or limitations of the device but as it is now without any changes it is a very nice device and I like it a lot. For $300 there are not many other devices that come close. The Galaxy tab is nice but at $500 without Honeycomb I will stick with an iPad. For me that is what it comes down to. Cost and choice. If I can get an Aple iPad for $429 with an amazing screen, good processor, tons of cool apps, 4.2 ios then I think it is very hard to compare anything else. Android is cool but it is very much a phone os and it shows. While iPad uses a phone OS but it works very well and it shows the customization apple has done with their devices. I think when 3.0 comes out it is really going to change everything. The peek photos I have seen are simply jawdropping cool. So I did not want to fork out a bunch of cash on something that will be updated with a totally new os soon. The Elocity a7 was a way for me to experience Android without a phone or data plan and I am happy so far with my choice!

The A7 was purchased for my wife. Her use is eBooks, browsing, email, facebook, and some casual gaming. For that use case, the device (after Dexter's Mod) is perfectly fine. The only complaint I have is the fact that the menu buttons aren't backlit (onscreen keys work fine, but it's a workaround, not a fix).
For me, however, I like to tinker with everything (see my sig, running CM7 nightlies on my Droid Incredible) and I would prefer to have a Viewsonic G Tablet. Being that the A7 only cost me $300 and it's not really mine anyhow, I can't complain. Yes, the slew of new devices coming in the very near future will be better. But if you go by that logic there will ALWAYS be something better in the pipeline.
The A7 is a good device at a reasonable price. To make it great would take true multi-touch support and xda developer support for further Android versions (I'm not conviced we'll see much support from eLocity and while Dexter has done a phenomenal job with his mod, he's limited in his capacity to support a device he can't even get his hands on).

The lack of real multitouch does not bother me in the least. I'm using it mostly for surfing. What games require multitouch? Not angry birds
I absolutely love turning the tablet vertically for typing. I can really fly! Way better than my Galaxy S
Anyway, Dexter's mod really makes this thing real.
Only complaint so far is the standby time (32 hours). That may be due to the mod.

I'm very happy with my device. Aside from the lack of back lit buttons. On a side note the app "button savior" helps alot with the onscreen buttons. Yes i would of liked to have a multi touch experience right out of the box, but the price tag helped me get over that. That being said i would rate my elocity a solid 9.5 out of 10. Im just super excited to see what is to come!!!
And might i add Dexter makes this thing worth wild!! Big props!

I'll echo everyone in the button comment. Maybe we can come up with a glow-in-the-dark solution? I'm thinking some relatively invisible (during daytime) material/glue to put small marks near the edge to indicate the middle positions of the buttons. I think I know the order of the buttons by now, so simple dot would be enough. I'll let you know if I think of something.

dburckh said:
The lack of real multitouch does not bother me in the least. I'm using it mostly for surfing. What games require multitouch? Not angry birds
I absolutely love turning the tablet vertically for typing. I can really fly! Way better than my Galaxy S
Anyway, Dexter's mod really makes this thing real.
Only complaint so far is the standby time (32 hours). That may be due to the mod.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Angry birds allows you to zoom in and out to get better view of the targets. So you are not getting best experience without multitouch

[Q] UI responsiveness not quite up to par--why?

I haven't seen any posts commenting on this issue too directly. I played with the Xoom in the Verizon store and noticed that although the UI animations were pretty smooth (with the exception of the app list fly-in, the rotation, and the page-turning in the reader, which all had a little frame stutter), the touch responsiveness in general still just wasn't quite up to par with the Ipad. When scrolling through homescreens there's a small but noticeable delay before the screen actually starts to scroll, whereas with the Ipad the scrolling seems to begin instantly. The Xoom is similar in feel to the Galaxy S phones, which were smooth but not quite as responsive as IOS, whose instantaneous responsiveness just inspires more confidence when you're navigating the device.
Ultimately it's a small difference but one that makes a big difference in the perception of the device's responsiveness. Is this a hardware or software issue? If Honeycomb finally has hardware acceleration, why are IOS and WP7 still ahead in this department? Is it because Android's more complex homescreens require more power to scroll? Is this due to something inherent in Android and Java? Is it possible that a future Honeycomb update might fix this completely? If someone with some expertise in the subject can comment on this, I'd really appreciate it. I fully expected Honeycomb to kill any complaints people could have about UI responsiveness, but it just doesn't seem to have happened yet, and I haven't seen any thorough explanation for it. Thanks a lot.

I just pulled out my Xoom and tested each of the things you talked about.
Auto rotation is slower than my phone.
Everything else is instant... though I have not used the reader. I have noticed stutter in the Kindle app.
But in the main UI, scrolling home screens and app list fly in is instant.
I have head of the auto rotate complaint and Kindle page turning complaint in other comments in this board and others... but the main UI? Nope.
I do not know what was the situation with the Xoom in the Verizon store, but in my personal usage the problem you describe does not exist... I think if it did on a wide basis, you would hear about it.
Describing something as a Hardware vs. Software issue in this case is non-productive. In every instance you can start with the hardware and say if it had more "oomph", you can often make a problem go away. Most issues like this can be dealt with in Software. The only time the whole thing is problematic is if the hardware is so underpowered in relation to what the software is trying to do. My guess is these things that are definitely happening (rotate, slow page turn) can be fixed in software, especially on this hardware.
My experience on the Android platforms is future updates fix first release issues.
My experience is also that extending future OS versions to hardware that cannot support them can be problematic, but Apple has experienced the same issue.

I have to agree that this is not as quick as I thought it would be.
I am blaming it on an app maybe, so I am removing everything back to stock.
The app list fly in is the worst. Looks better on my evo.

hctarks said:
I haven't seen any posts commenting on this issue too directly. I played with the Xoom in the Verizon store and noticed that although the UI animations were pretty smooth (with the exception of the app list fly-in, the rotation, and the page-turning in the reader, which all had a little frame stutter), the touch responsiveness in general still just wasn't quite up to par with the Ipad. When scrolling through homescreens there's a small but noticeable delay before the screen actually starts to scroll, whereas with the Ipad the scrolling seems to begin instantly. The Xoom is similar in feel to the Galaxy S phones, which were smooth but not quite as responsive as IOS, whose instantaneous responsiveness just inspires more confidence when you're navigating the device.
Ultimately it's a small difference but one that makes a big difference in the perception of the device's responsiveness. Is this a hardware or software issue? If Honeycomb finally has hardware acceleration, why are IOS and WP7 still ahead in this department? Is it because Android's more complex homescreens require more power to scroll? Is this due to something inherent in Android and Java? Is it possible that a future Honeycomb update might fix this completely? If someone with some expertise in the subject can comment on this, I'd really appreciate it. I fully expected Honeycomb to kill any complaints people could have about UI responsiveness, but it just doesn't seem to have happened yet, and I haven't seen any thorough explanation for it. Thanks a lot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not finding the same issues you are. The orientation delay is 100% intentional. I wish there were built in options that let you mess with the delay, but that will happen soon enough. I don't mind or notice this intentional lag in daily use.
I'm not finding any other lack of smoothness. I've played with iOS on many different devices, and I find my Xoom to be just as smooth. The iOS devices were smoother than my Droid X (always have been smoother than my phones), but I like what powerful hardware mixed with Honeycomb has shown me.

I'd certainly love to be wrong about this. Maybe it was the display unit that was faulty. But even though the homescreen scrolling was perfectly "smooth," it was more the delay in response that bothered me. When I set my finger down and swiped from one screen to another, there was always a very short, split-second delay before the screen started moving, which felt as if my finger was "slipping" for a few millimeters before gripping the homescreen. This probably isn't even something that I would have noticed if I hadn't been comparing it side-by-side with the display-unit Ipad, which, in comparison, seemed to start scrolling without even the tiniest delay, which ultimately gave the Ipad app list a more authentic sense of tactility.
It looks like Bielinsk is having a similar experience, so we know this isn't a completely isolated phenomenon. Maybe both Bielinsk's and my experience had to do with the specific units and installed apps, but even the possibility that installing a certain app can degrade the whole UI experience on Honeycomb seems to be a problem that IOS is less prone to. I've also read reviews, such as the one on Anandtech, that note that smoothness in Honeycomb is improved but not quite at IOS-level. Again, I hope I'm wrong. Everything else about Honeycomb seems fantastic, but the not-as-responsive-as-IOS issue just seems like something that Android can't fully shake.

Bielinsk said:
I have to agree that this is not as quick as I thought it would be.
I am blaming it on an app maybe, so I am removing everything back to stock.
The app list fly in is the worst. Looks better on my evo.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Please update us on whether wiping fixes the problem for you.

I uninstalled all the apps that are not Tablet apps and have the same issue.
Removed all widgets, except the clock.
I don't see any delay or pause changing home screens, but the app fly down list just really looks like ****. I put on spare parts and turned the animations to fast to see if that would help and it didn't see to do anything.

Actually the app fly-in frame-stutter was something that I first thought I noticed when Google demoed the tablet at their Honeycomb event. And then it seemed confirmed when I tried it myself at the store.

Yea, I noticed that when I played with one at Costco. I couldn't really tell if it was designed to look like that or not. I remember everyone raving during the Xoom's debut at CES about how smooth it was and using the app fly in as an example of said smoothness. Weird.

I think the lag and less responsive than expected phenomenon is absolutely real and undebateable even if some have not experienced it. We've seen it many times in online reviews and I have personally experienced it on demo units in store.
What it comes down to is development. Combinaton of hardware and software.
Although the experience is optimized on Android, it is prioritized on Apple.
That is the key idea you need to understand and unless the hardware and software BOTH prioritize it, Apple will always win here since they control both hardware AND software.

DatterBoy said:
That is the key idea you need to understand and unless the hardware and software BOTH prioritize it, Apple will always win here since they control both hardware AND software.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, but then you look at the fluidness of WP7 devices for which the hardware is made by companies that aren't Microsoft, and this argument doesn't really seem like the whole story.

I love my xoom, so this is not a complaint, but the device is not as smooth as I expected it to be. I have an og droid running one of the cm7 builds and overclocked to 1.2ghz. It is a much smooter device than my xoom in many situations.
I do not experience lag on my home screens or when using widgets, but the app fly in is crap and the browser scrolling is laggy. It was this way when I purchased it so I do not attribute it to any apps in particular. I just think honeycomb is in need of some coding polish.
Really makes me wonder if the dual core is being used for anything aside from keeping the CPU in a lower state of energy consumption for battery life. I wish there was some sort of widget that could show CPU usage so that I can see what is making use of the hardware and what is not.
Sent from my Xoom using XDA App

This is depressing. I really don't understand how it's possible that a hardware-accelerated version of Android on a dual-core device can be, in certain UI animations, consistently laggier than non-hardware-accelerated versions of Android on certain single-core phones.
Edit: For example, the app drawer fly-in on a Samsung Vibrant with a custom ROM or just Launcherpro is extremely smooth--seems like twice the framerate of the same animation on any other Android phone I've seen.

I have 100% the same thoughts/experience, I bought this on day 1, and when I had it up with zero apps it was throwing me similar lag to what has been described so far - the experience just isn't smooth or polished.
The f'd up thing? We basically have to rely on groups like CM (who I love!!!) to make our exerperiences closer to what we expect, I think we can all agree that once/if (PLEASE!) the CM crew starts building custom ROM's for us it'll be optimized and if it still runs like this, that's proof (in my eyes) that something is seriously wrong with this platform.
Fingers crossed we see some kind of update soon... Either official or non.

hctarks said:
... But even though the homescreen scrolling was perfectly "smooth," it was more the delay in response that bothered me. When I set my finger down and swiped from one screen to another, there was always a very short, split-second delay before the screen started moving, which felt as if my finger was "slipping" for a few millimeters before gripping the homescreen. ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think this is actually by design. This prevents screen movements when one touches the screen for whatever reason and moves slightly, but does not intend to slide the screen, preventing screen jitter. In testing, the slide amount is something less than a centimeter.
I'm trying to decide if I would turn it off or leave it on if it could be toggled.
I'm interested if alternate desktop app's would do this.
So, it is like the orientation delay that is apparently by design. I wish my phone had that, if flips a little to easily (vibrant).

I think IOS demonstrates pretty adequately that such a touch-response delay is not necessary. Same goes with, I think, orientation-switch delay. Re: the latter, when it's a problem on a device it seems like it's usually due to the threshold for the switch being set too low--not the responsiveness of the switch, which I think should happen immediately when the device is tilted a certain amount.