First impressions - Atrix 4G General

My first impressions are kind of lackluster. Now I should start by saying I was never interested in the docking potential of this phone. Now with that said so far it's obviously faster than my Nexus One which is good. The fact that it can be rooted is good too because I can run my TiBu for my apps. The bigger storage is also a definite plus for me that way I am not shuttling apps off to the SD card because I am low on space.
What is really throwing me off is the fact that it has 1 GB of RAM which seems to only have 800 available and then after all the apps around 500 on a reboot. I am really hoping the devs can come up with a way to fix that aspect because as I originally stated I am not interested in docking this phone and the assumption is that 200 MB is reserved for the Webtop. Secondly I know I am not going to see 4G speeds out of this phone for a long time given my area. I was however hoping to see a little bit more speed out of it versus my Nexus One. Third the power button takes a lot of getting used to on it. Finally the battery in increments of 10% I am really hoping this can be fixed somehow because that's a wicked pain.
Overall I am happy with the phone and I am cheering on the dev community to hopefully be able to do something with my gripes that I have with it.

Go nexus s man if you want a great screen gingerbread and icecream first #Just saying
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App

nucentury08 said:
Go nexus s man if you want a great screen gingerbread and icecream first #Just saying
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nexus S? Is that the phone with only 512MB of RAM and no 720p video recording? What size microSD card does it support? Ohhhh, that's right, it doesn't. Well at least it has NFC, because some time in the next 10 years that might actually be a useful feature!
P.S. Sorry, I don't even have an Atrix. I just like throwing crumbs to trolls!

Up to 50 meg or so is ramdisk too.
On the captivate, with 512 meg of ram, the most usable we could get was around 374 I think. This is about 73% of ram.
If we take this ratio to the Atrix, it's actually about 5% higher than that.

Nexus S
Nexus S does get the newer software and might look a little more flashy but if your into flashy things then go for it.. but the Atrix has a better RES screen, more RAM, better CPU.. Got my Atrix yesterday and must say that I am happy that I got it. There are some things here and there that could be fixed but its the phone's 2nd day in the real world so that is to be expected.

Went from an Iphone 4 to the Atrix 4g. Screen is definitely a little disappointing in comparison, but its really not that bad. Keeping the brightness below 50%ish definitely helps a lot, at 80-100% the screen looks washed out and grainy.

On the RAM issue, can froyo address 1gb of ram?
My wife just got this phone today. I have a captivate and I think this thing handles nicely!

My previous phones have been all the iPhones as well as the Nexus One, The Droid X.
DISLIKES
Weight:
Too light. Feels cheap when you don't have weight to it. It has a little weight but compared to the iPhone, it is very light. I thought it was a guy-thing but even too light for my wife
Material:
Motorola should have used the same material as the Droid X. Nice rubberized exterior that eliminates the need for a case and does not slip. I have large hands and cannot wait to get a silicon cover. The phone constantly slips out of my hand. Have to admit the iPhone 4 is really bad too, without a case.
Photos/Video:
Horrible video and photos. I know the iPhone 4 is, and still is, superior in this field but if I remember correctly, the Droid X had some decent photo quality. Although the video is smoother than the Droid X. The photos/videos are washed out and grainy. Looks like I filmed it using a PlaySkool camera. Definitely will not be hearing of anyone saying, "I filmed this music video using my Atrix!"
Laptop Dock:
Did not order this. Until Moto comes up with an update that makes it more useful or I find a great use for it, I will not be purchasing one. Why didn't they just have it attach to the Xoom or something? That would have been great. Imagine a gutted Xoom that you would pop in your Atrix and it BECOME the tablet. Uses your Atrix 4G service and 'dock' expands the phone with additional ports. Maybe an idea with Ice Cream coming out.
LIKES
Body:
Like the shape and overall feel of the phone. Feels good to have the touch buttons rather than the physical buttons on the Droid X. Would be nice to have a camera button. Overall, has the same look and presence as the iPhone out of the corner of your eye. Closer to the 3GS version (which I prefer over the iPhone 4 form factor) even though it has a larger screen. Everything is nice and uniform. Would love to have the new form factors Samsung has been coming out with but this is doable.
Fingerprint Wake:
Great way to keep it secure without someone looking at the prints on your screen. There is also an alternative passcode in case you need someone else to wake your phone. The location and having to push and swipe at the same time makes it difficult. Not too bad but not easy either.
Front-facing Camera:
Nice feature to have even though I will rarely use it. Maybe when Skype adds video chat. Was not able to set Fring to use the front camera. I'm open for recommendations. But even if I do find something that works, can't see myself doing video chat.
Sound:
Heard some bad things about the speaker but don't think its too bad. Sounds great. Music and calls sound a lot clearer than the iPhone 4. Very similar to the quality of the Droid X.
HDMI:
The best part is when you plug it into the TV with the included HDMI. Has an awesome interface to play your music, photos, and videos. Then you can really see the poor quality of the photos and video, Lol.
Docks:
Although not thrilled with the laptop dock, love docks in general. The Multimedia dock looks cool. Great way to potentially be an Apple TV replacement. Vehicle dock looks like the one I had for the Droid X which is nice. It is great to have the wide range of accessories. One reason the iPhone does so well.
MotoBLUR:
A lot of haters out there on this one but not too bad, I can definitely live with it if Motorola keeps the Android OS updated. I prefer it over Samsung's mutated iPhone look. Nice button graphics and widgets on MotoBLUR. I do wish I could remove the preinstalled apps like Vlingo and Blockbuster. I do agree, it would be great if we had an option to use it or not.

you can't really compare Nexus S and Atrix until the S becomes available on AT&T 3G bands, unless you want Edge only data. I think the Atrix is terrific. You have to realize that the S would cost a lot unsubsidized as well.

You can easily remove all the bloat apps like Blockbuster and etc.. Just goto Applications and they are in the remove list.. I have already removed them all from mine

Thanks. Ok, Blockbuster could be removed but could not find a way to remove Vlingo.

Related

Anyone coming from a Nexus one?

Im selling my n1 for this and just wanna here some feedback on people that have had the nexus one and why the vibrant is the better choice for them....
Whats better you noticed?
What do you miss?
Any similarities?
I want this phone badddd, trying to sell n1, but craigslist here has over 500 phones posted a day, hard when theres that much stuff for sale... Soon ill sale this for 200.. I mean common I need that phone.... lol... I feel like a idiot but thats all I want at this moment is the vibrant....
Thanks have a good day. Please no Stupid thread comments or etc.... Im getting tired of that. If its a double thread, ignore and let the mods delete, Im sorry if this is duplicate as well. Im tired been up all night. Peace, enjoy your new phone guys and gals, im jealous as hell and hope they dont sale out soon.
i dont think i would sell my n1 for it.
deviusdragger said:
i dont think i would sell my n1 for it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You havea vibrant?
I just got a Samsung a hour ago.. I have a Nexus One now with 2.2 on it.
After 1 hour.. My review..
The usb charging port for the Samsung is on the top of the phone.. Stupid because when you use it in the car the cable needs to reach the top and loop around..
It has 16GB internal and comes with a 2GB microSD card..
It does not seem any faster than the Nexus One, and the Nexus one has the roller ball which I actually use and the Samsung has no hardware buttons on the front..
Camera seems the same, pictures look close to me..
I am suprised how much better the bigger screen looks, I did not think it would be noticable but everything just looks better bigger!!!..
ONE REALLY big thing though... The antenna on the Samsung works better somehow. The Nexus One has never been 3G at my office and the Samsung has full bars on 3G. The Nexus One is showing 3 bars on Edge.. ( I flashed a few days ago to the 2.2 radio, same signal before flash)
So, after 1 hour the I am not sure which is better.. My N1 is pretty beat up and 7 months old (got it jan 5th) but I need 2.2 on the Samsung to actually like using it..
ALSO, the charging port on the top is retarded!!!
duglas said:
I just got a Samsung a hour ago.. I have a Nexus One now with 2.2 on it.
After 1 hour.. My review..
The usb charging port for the Samsung is on the top of the phone.. Stupid because when you use it in the car the cable needs to reach the top and loop around..
It has 16GB internal and comes with a 2GB microSD card..
It does not seem any faster than the Nexus One, and the Nexus one has the roller ball which I actually use and the Samsung has no hardware buttons on the front..
Camera seems the same, pictures look close to me..
I am suprised how much better the bigger screen looks, I did not think it would be noticable but everything just looks better bigger!!!..
ONE REALLY big thing though... The antenna on the Samsung works better somehow. The Nexus One has never been 3G at my office and the Samsung has full bars on 3G. The Nexus One is showing 3 bars on Edge.. ( I flashed a few days ago to the 2.2 radio, same signal before flash)
So, after 1 hour the I am not sure which is better.. My N1 is pretty beat up and 7 months old (got it jan 5th) but I need 2.2 on the Samsung to actually like using it..
ALSO, the charging port on the top is retarded!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sweet. Thanks for that. Yea power on top sounds weird... awesome reception sounds like...
Also do you know where the antenna is on the vibrant.. top or bottom? Thanks...
I believe if i were to get this phone i would have better 3G because of the N1 antenna woes. But i dont think getting this phone is worth the jump but i will convince my brother to ditch is BB for this
Me! I love it! It feels smaller, screen is way better, it is super snappy, and touchcwiz is actually way better than I thought it would be. 3d gallery is now like butter, love it! Market wont download anything yet though, fails everytime. Sucks, but other than that... also, I am itching to uninstall bloat on it, grr
afive720 said:
Me! I love it! It feels smaller, screen is way better, it is super snappy, and touchcwiz is actually way better than I thought it would be. 3d gallery is now like butter, love it! Market wont download anything yet though, fails everytime. Sucks, but other than that... also, I am itching to uninstall bloat on it, grr
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's interesting my market is working 100%
duglas said:
The usb charging port for the Samsung is on the top of the phone.. Stupid because when you use it in the car the cable needs to reach the top and loop around..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This may not be a bad thing for everyone though. Would actually work well for me since it stays in my cupholder and I just use BT. Granted, with my G1, it's upside down but CM's orientation hack makes the screen right-side up (not sure if the Vibrant has that incorporated).
Otherwise, yes, the port on top is somewhat odd.
someone will come out with a 90 degree angled usb connection end - if there's not one out there already
duglas said:
ONE REALLY big thing though... The antenna on the Samsung works better somehow. The Nexus One has never been 3G at my office and the Samsung has full bars on 3G. The Nexus One is showing 3 bars on Edge.. ( I flashed a few days ago to the 2.2 radio, same signal before flash)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
temperbad said:
awesome reception sounds like...
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Click to collapse
This is very ironic considering the earlier thread.
Thanks for the feedback, duglas. Glad to hear that the reception is good.
gsvnet said:
This is very ironic considering the earlier thread.
Thanks for the feedback, duglas. Glad to hear that the reception is good.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Get off my nuts dude. What you mean Ironic? How so?
edit: nevermind. I can tell your a kid. Im grownup... Im not here to spit and spat. Ive been warned already and so have you. But yet your here trying to start some ****... PEACE AND GROW UP
duglas said:
I just got a Samsung a hour ago.. I have a Nexus One now with 2.2 on it.
After 1 hour.. My review..
The usb charging port for the Samsung is on the top of the phone.. Stupid because when you use it in the car the cable needs to reach the top and loop around..
It has 16GB internal and comes with a 2GB microSD card..
It does not seem any faster than the Nexus One, and the Nexus one has the roller ball which I actually use and the Samsung has no hardware buttons on the front..
Camera seems the same, pictures look close to me..
I am suprised how much better the bigger screen looks, I did not think it would be noticable but everything just looks better bigger!!!..
ONE REALLY big thing though... The antenna on the Samsung works better somehow. The Nexus One has never been 3G at my office and the Samsung has full bars on 3G. The Nexus One is showing 3 bars on Edge.. ( I flashed a few days ago to the 2.2 radio, same signal before flash)
So, after 1 hour the I am not sure which is better.. My N1 is pretty beat up and 7 months old (got it jan 5th) but I need 2.2 on the Samsung to actually like using it..
ALSO, the charging port on the top is retarded!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have been playing around with mine for about 3 hours now and i have to agreee with every thing you said and it is pretty much dead on. My reception to is better on the vibrant than the N1 don't know why it just is. I will hold onto my N1 before selling it and play with the SV more to get a "feel" for it
I wish they would have given you a better way to take a picture or activate the shutter, and I wish there was a better way to "wake" the phone up instead of the side button or a double click of the side button.
Also I wanted to comment on the build of the phone I don't think the weight of this phone gives it a "cheap" feel to it I prefer how light it is compared to my N1 and it feels good in my hand.
Just my .02
gthmcty1 said:
I have been playing around with mine for about 3 hours now and i have to agreee with every thing you said and it is pretty much dead on. My reception to is better on the vibrant than the N1 don't know why it just is. I will hold onto my N1 before selling it and play with the SV more to get a "feel" for it
I wish they would have given you a better way to take a picture or activate the shutter, and I wish there was a better way to "wake" the phone up instead of the side button or a double click of the side button.
Also I wanted to comment on the build of the phone I don't think the weight of this phone gives it a "cheap" feel to it I prefer how light it is compared to my N1 and it feels good in my hand.
Just my .02
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree, it felt very sturdy at the store. Im going to pick mine up in about 2 hours, thanks for your feedback as well.... Makes my decision easier...
sweet I'm thinking about picking one up as well
Just pick my up at the local store and is simply AWESOME, Download a bunch of apps but still can get it to sync or mount..
the wify kept my nexus and my HD2 went craigslist..
temperbad said:
Im selling my n1 for this and just wanna here some feedback on people that have had the nexus one and why the vibrant is the better choice for them....
Whats better you noticed?
What do you miss?
Any similarities?
I want this phone badddd, trying to sell n1, but craigslist here has over 500 phones posted a day, hard when theres that much stuff for sale... Soon ill sale this for 200.. I mean common I need that phone.... lol... I feel like a idiot but thats all I want at this moment is the vibrant....
Thanks have a good day. Please no Stupid thread comments or etc.... Im getting tired of that. If its a double thread, ignore and let the mods delete, Im sorry if this is duplicate as well. Im tired been up all night. Peace, enjoy your new phone guys and gals, im jealous as hell and hope they dont sale out soon.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Had my N1 since Jan 5th as well and have LOVED it. Rooted immediately, ran Modaco's Desire Sense port for a while before moving back to CM. Got my Vibrant Monday (yes, really). Rooted Tuesday. Ran Modaco's script to rearrange the internal memory / apps configuration and made the Vibrant go from fast to BLAZING. TouchWiz not bad, but not overly impressed with Samsung's widgets. Some are good, some are a little finicky. Sense nailed widgets much better but Samsung's are decent and better than nothing.
Comparatively, N1 was snappier out of the box as no UI overlay. However with some modding this phone will be on par or perhaps outperform N1 (I say that sensitively as N1 has an extremely special place in my heart . Samsung's Hummingbird processor is phenomenal and outperforms N1 on side-by-side 3d rendering test (YouTube Nexus 1 Galaxy S Quake to see). Vibrant's SuperAmoled Screen is what makes this phone truly special-- it's nothing short of incredible and makes N1's screen seem small and dim in comparison. ESPECIALLY in sunlight- N1 was basically unusable, this thing is nearly un-impacted. Watch the preloaded Avatar on it-- it's just gorgeous. The size and weight are beautiful, the super-light weight does make it almost feel a hair toy-ish but as soon as you touch the silky-smooth screen that feeling disappears. I really was looking for a step up in screen size from N1 and this delivers without the almost-too-big feeling of Evo or HD2.
Cons- miss the trackball for precise in-text navigation and notification alerts. But there's already talk of a mod to flash the capacitive buttons on the bottom for notifications- this will help, especially as there's no LED or anything else to visually alert for notifications. . As previously mentioned, side-mounted lock / unlock button is kind of annoying and will take some getting used to. You can only partially customize TouchWiz's bottom static shortcut dock. Of course, installing ADW Launcher or Launcher Pro will solve that and completely hide TouchWiz but you then lose ability to use Samsung's proprietary widgets, again some of which are actually nice. Also, TouchWiz's unlock on screen method is AWFUL- just a big rectangular movement of the entire screen. Boring and ugly. But you can eliminate lock screen all together with free Market app called No Lock (go figure lol).
All in all, a screen that is definitely a contender for top in the market; all-around outstanding hardware that will take a bit of getting used to from N1; stock software that has improved; modding will make this device a fire-breathing lightning monster (lol).
Love it and highly recommend!!!!!!!!
lp1527 said:
Had my N1 since Jan 5th as well and have LOVED it. Rooted immediately, ran Modaco's Desire Sense port for a while before moving back to CM. Got my Vibrant Monday (yes, really). Rooted Tuesday. Ran Modaco's script to rearrange the internal memory / apps configuration and made the Vibrant go from fast to BLAZING. TouchWiz not bad, but not overly impressed with Samsung's widgets. Some are good, some are a little finicky. Sense nailed widgets much better but Samsung's are decent and better than nothing.
Comparatively, N1 was snappier out of the box as no UI overlay. However with some modding this phone will be on par or perhaps outperform N1 (I say that sensitively as N1 has an extremely special place in my heart . Samsung's Hummingbird processor is phenomenal and outperforms N1 on side-by-side 3d rendering test (YouTube Nexus 1 Galaxy S Quake to see). Vibrant's SuperAmoled Screen is what makes this phone truly special-- it's nothing short of incredible and makes N1's screen seem small and dim in comparison. ESPECIALLY in sunlight- N1 was basically unusable, this thing is nearly un-impacted. Watch the preloaded Avatar on it-- it's just gorgeous. The size and weight are beautiful, the super-light weight does make it almost feel a hair toy-ish but as soon as you touch the silky-smooth screen that feeling disappears. I really was looking for a step up in screen size from N1 and this delivers without the almost-too-big feeling of Evo or HD2.
Cons- miss the trackball for precise in-text navigation and notification alerts. But there's already talk of a mod to flash the capacitive buttons on the bottom for notifications- this will help, especially as there's no LED or anything else to visually alert for notifications. . As previously mentioned, side-mounted lock / unlock button is kind of annoying and will take some getting used to. You can only partially customize TouchWiz's bottom static shortcut dock. Of course, installing ADW Launcher or Launcher Pro will solve that and completely hide TouchWiz but you then lose ability to use Samsung's proprietary widgets, again some of which are actually nice. Also, TouchWiz's unlock on screen method is AWFUL- just a big rectangular movement of the entire screen. Boring and ugly. But you can eliminate lock screen all together with free Market app called No Lock (go figure lol).
All in all, a screen that is definitely a contender for top in the market; all-around outstanding hardware that will take a bit of getting used to from N1; stock software that has improved; modding will make this device a fire-breathing lightning monster (lol).
Love it and highly recommend!!!!!!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you you please provide links to step by step rooting procedure before flashing modacos rom ?
Thank you in advance
Sorry to revive an old thread, but I just traded in my Nexus One yesterday and figured I'd revive this instead of starting a new thread. Had it for a full day, and here's what I think about it so far. (I will try to revive this at a month in, then six months in, then a year in if I keep it that long.)
+ It's much lighter, but very plasticky. I loved the aluminum and heft of the N1, but all of the plastic is made up in spades by it's sleek, smooth design. It's a beautiful device.
+ 3G on the Vibrant is much more consistent than it ever was with the N1.
- I really miss my LED notifications. NoLED is alright, but not as dependable. (It doesn't work with Go SMS popups.)
+ The screen is AWESOME. It's much brighter and more color-accurate, though not by a terrible amount. I absolutely love the size of it.
+ 16GB...internal storage!!! I can not only fit all of my music without a SD card, but can fit my ENTIRE LIBRARY with ANOTHER 16GB card! AMAZING!
+ It's a really fast phone.
+ It's a really fast phone.
+ With Nero 4.1/Voodoo, it's a really fast phone.
+ Multitouch actually works well, since I can use Swype like a normal keyboard and rotate on Google Maps (which is FRIGGIN SWEET)
- No flash is a bit of a letdown.
+ Camera makes up for it; it's quite good. Haven't tried recording with it yet, though.
- GPS is a BIG letdown, though triangulation is getting me by.
+ I thought I would hate Touchwiz, and I found out I (sort of) do. I hate the launcher, but it's apps are REALLY good. For example,
+ The music app is solid, and has an equalizer!
+ Alarm app is full-featured (has a timer, stopwatch, etc.)
+ Daily briefing could be useful
+ Desk mode is nice
+ Galaxy Tab email is really nice, though it doesn't provide any better features over the stock email app.
The one disadvantage...
- Wow, there is Engrish EVERYWHERE
- Proprietary drivers suck, but that's tolerable
- Not as straightforward to unlock at the firmware level, but that's tolerable too.
- Will be last to get official updates, but most of us run rooted/modified stuff, so that point is moot. A Gingerbread port is in the works and there are plenty of great Froyo ROMs for the device right now. (Nero 4.1 is froyo-based, and there is an unofficial, "stock" Froyo-based ROM floating around that I put on my Dad's Vibrant. He loves it, no issues so far.)
Final word (at this point): Highly recommend. I absolutely loved my Nexus One, as it was easily the best phone I've ever owned. However, this and the Nexus S (for the Google support the Nexus One enjoys) are clearly superior devices.

A Nexus One Fanboy's review of the Vibrant

So I got the wife the T-Mobile variant of the Galaxy S, T-Mo's latest and greatest Android until next month when the 21 mb/s G1 Blaze comes out.
The T-Mo version on paper is the retarded brother compared to Sprint's version (which has a front camera, hard keyboard and LED flash), but T-Mobile's family plan saves us over $50 per month over going to Sprint (we pay $140/month for unlimited minutes and data for two Android phones), and TMo's HSPA+ is very quick here, in many cases faster than Sprint's 4G.
On to the review...
Good: screen is bigger (4"), but not TOO big. The brighter, multi-touchscreen is a generation ahead of ours and very accurate and responsive. Watching Avatar on it is unreal. Though it does not have the resolution of the iPhone 4, the contrast and vibrance is superior. It makes the N1 and iphone4 look a tad washed out by comparison. Samsung has itself a sick little screen here. It's very thin and light. Comes with an internal 8gb memory so with a 32 gb sd card you're carrying 40 gb of space! Speed of phone appears to be really snappy, due to dedicated video processor. You can definitely see the difference in 3d rendering. The speaker is much nicer than ours. IT has a TV out and a mini usb to HDMI support coming, so you can plug it into a TV and embiggen your screen. The camera and camcorder software is very nice (and quick).
Bad: Tmo's version looks like an iPhone, which is silly (maybe so tmo users can stay but still look trendy in public?). It's made of plastic instead of our elegant metal, and is a fingerprint magnet. It doesn't have an LED flash. Night time indoor shots worked fine in ambient light, but forget about taking pictures in a bar. GPS is spotty, but i understand there's already a fix for that (Fixed. It works fine now) No Froyo yet, but Samsug S version has already been leaked on the interwebs and the phone does come with what appears to be flashlite. Uninstallable bloatware. Big Boo to that. Die in a fire, Slacker and TeleNav GPS... (REALLY, TMo? TELENAV GPS?)
Things that make you go, "Meh":
Samsung's user interface is both a blessing and a curse. They've got some interesting widgets (buddy call, buddy updates), but I miss stock. No LED notifier light (like N1's trackball). However this has been remedied by a third party app that renders a small notifier light on the screen when phone is asleep, but eats up battery. The lack of customization ability to the UI's default buttons is an annoyance, but I have to admit the integration of social services (twitter, facebook, snapfish, kodak etc.) into the contacts is impressive and convenient.
End result:
Tmo did castrate a lot of this phone's capability. I'd love to play with Sprint's Epic, which will have the hard keyboard, LED Flash and front facing camera (no wi-fi required for the equivalent of FacePalm).
Though I have an upgrade available now, I'm sticking with the N1 fdr several reasons. It's a more elegant looking phone and it's "pure." It will still get all of Googles software upgrades way before the other Android phones out there-- I love you Froyo! I use the heck out of the LED flash. Plus we have noise cancellation which is a godsend for me.
Also, if i want to use graphics intensive apps and games, I can always temporarily steal the wifie's phone.
PS.
Ok, her phone does something completely awesome that blew me away. i found out accidentally that it can share videos from itself to our TV over the wireless network. It actually took over the TV and played our HD videos on it without any setup at all. All I had to do was longpress any picture or video in the gallery and share it to TV. Supposedly it can also grab media from other sources on the network and play it on the TV but I haven't tried that yet.
Unfortunately, my efforts to rip the app out and install it on the Nexus One have failed miserably...
For now.
Oh, I just saw one yesterday and my buddy is gonna buy one! I am seriously jealous, should i sell my amazingly awesome modded n1 for the galaxy??
If it had a camera flash and stock Android [FroYo] on it, I'd probably switch. Not having stock Android or FroYo on it can be hacked on of course, but updates will always take much longer to hack than on the N1. And the lack of a camera flash is downright absurd in 2010.
I believe DNLA support is the source of the tv sharing.
Awesomeness that can be brough to any device with the right developer.
honestly the camera flash is not a factor unless you plan on taking lots of low light pictures (ie. outdoors at night or in a bar).
I've had apps that turn the N1 into a DLNA server, but none that actually took control of the TV. That was sweet. Probably doesn't hurt that the TV was a Samsung too.
mythamp This phone is very nice, performs great, but it's certainly not worth spending an upgrade from the N1. To be honest, my first thought when holding the phone was, "Wow, this phone feel cheap."
It definitely excels at whatever it is designed to do. That said, they left out a lot of stuff (little and big) we N1 users take for granted.
If you're really that itchy for a new phone, I'd at least wait for the G1 Blaze
tanman1975 said:
If you're really that itchy for a new phone, I'd at least wait for the G1 Blaze
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Indeed! I was slightly itchy for this phone just for the simple fact that I'm getting tired of having to apologize to myself every time the N1 digitizer messes up, but seeing the spy pics of the alleged G1 Blaze have stopped the itch entirely until we see what's up.
I think nexus one is pretty straightforward and clean from massive junk.
The only thing I want from Vibrant is: internal storage.
No camera light is a big minus, but you can expect same thing on all GSM variants.
The Blaze will purportedly max out at 14mbps...not 21.
Paul22000 said:
the lack of a camera flash is downright absurd in 2010.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1
I never really thought I would use an LED flash coming from the iPhone 3gs but I have to say its just one of those things that once you've had one it sets a standard that you can't go backwards and give it up. I love the ability to have a flashlight and to take pictures in places that are too dark for night mode.
How much do you think T-mobile saved by telling Samsung to not include an LED flash? $2 - 4 per phone? Probably alot considering the amount they might sell but still leaving off an LED flash when BOTH Sprint & Verizon versions have one just screams penny pinching to me.
ap3604 said:
+1
I never really thought I would use an LED flash coming from the iPhone 3gs but I have to say its just one of those things that once you've had one it sets a standard that you can't go backwards and give it up. I love the ability to have a flashlight and to take pictures in places that are too dark for night mode.
How much do you think T-mobile saved by telling Samsung to not include an LED flash? $2 - 4 per phone? Probably alot considering the amount they might sell but still leaving off an LED flash when BOTH Sprint & Verizon versions have one just screams penny pinching to me.
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I don't think it was a t-mobile decision, none of the four Galaxy S phones have a flash on them (epic/vibrant/captivate/fascinate).
JCopernicus said:
I don't think it was a t-mobile decision, none of the four Galaxy S phones have a flash on them (epic/vibrant/captivate/fascinate).
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Click to collapse
You a great man JCopernicus
I think the Epic and Fascinate both have LED flash's. Lemme check to make sure...
Edit: Yeah Sprint told Samsung to have an LED flash on the Epic - http://androidandme.com/2010/07/carriers/sprint/samsung-epic-4g-spec-sheet-finally-surfaces/
And Verizon told Samsung to include one as well on the Fascinate - http://phandroid.com/samsung-fascinate/#specs
So it was T-mobile that decided not to include the LED flash just to save a few bucks and pinch pennies
I agree with everything you posted - I've got my own N1, and scored a Vibrant just for fun.
It just feels cheap and gimmicky, which is weird, because on paper, it really is a good looking phone.
I hate TouchWiz - too many tweaks that don't really make it any more efficient. The amount of bloatware is insane too. Things it should have: TV out, LED flash.
it does have tv out
Doesnt the Vibrant have 16gb internal storage?
As far as the lack of flash im not for sure if i will miss it. My n1 seems to make everything off color using the flash..........also if i want to take pics Ill use my DSLR.
I havent picked the vibrant up yet. I'm going today to get it and use the 14 buyers remorese time to see if i like it.
I also got a guy wanting to trade a new 32gig Iphone 4 for my N1
tanman1975 said:
IT has a TV out and a mini usb to HDMI support coming, so you can plug it into a TV and embiggen your screen. The camera and camcorder software is very nice (and quick).
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Yes... good connectivity embiggens the smallest screen
I always have said nexus build quality is above all other phones, especially the galaxy s t-mobile version. Build quality and materials is a big factor for me, if you're paying 500 dollars, you want it to feel like it.
RogerPodacter said:
I always have said nexus build quality is above all other phones, especially the galaxy s t-mobile version. Build quality and materials is a big factor for me, if you're paying 500 dollars, you want it to feel like it.
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I always respect your comments Roger, you speak the truth!
Embiggen.. It's just. fun to say! So played a bit more with the touchwiz, and must say despite its drawbacks, it's growing on me. It has call rejection with text message which I would love. Can we install that? I still can't believe how much nicer the sound is. Bummer is you can only add custom ring tone to contacts in the phone, not, say, a gmail Contact. However the is very good about linking duplicate contacts together automatically. Very nice feature,

Is everyone happy with the atrix

I came from the samsung captivate with high hopes and well I have noticed a few things the i would rather have over the atrix
one would be the screen, items like the opening screen to the xda app comes out pixaled
the overal make of the phone is I would say is cheap compared to the captivate. It feels as it would break on the first drop not to mention the plastic back cover feel as if it would break after a few openings. Overall I am content with it but not as happy as expected
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
Agree here. Regret to have my inspire sold.
I'm pretty happy with it, coming from an iPhone 4 (and an Evo.)
Pros:
- Screen looks great, pretty close to my i4. Yeah, if I touch my nose to the glass, I can see pixels. I'm also fine with the screen not being AMOLED over-saturated. My regular laptop isn't, my PC isn't, my Atrix lapdock isn't, my i4 isn't, my Evo isn't, my HDTV's aren't, so it doesn't really bother me that the phone looks exactly the same as everything else I own.
- It is quite fast. As an example, I tend to install or update multiple apps at once, and on my Evo (which was overclocked), it would drag the phone to being nearly unresponsive having more than 1 thing going at once.
- I'm digging the accessories so far. The DLNA feature has been great for grabbing stuff from my media server and displaying it in 720p on my TV. It's not 1080 yet, but it still looks quite good. The browser works well on the TV as well. The lapdock has been quite nifty so far as well. Barring Windows games, I've had no problem doing everything else I use my standalone laptop for.
- Battery has been amazing, compared to either my Evo or i4.
- Fingerprint scanner works extremely well, I was surprised by this, pleasantly.
- The on-screen keyboard is fantastic, right up there with the i4. Far better than any other Android I've owned to date (which is quite a few.)
Cons:
- When flipping through the screens on the phone, it hasn't been all that smooth, even after a fresh boot. It's not bad, but its like my Evo, circa launch day, prior to mods to improve its responsiveness. Might be Motoblur related?
- Data uplink is killing my latency, which if it isn't something that is fixed relatively soon, could actually be a deal breaker for me, since I do like to tether to play stuff like Bad Company 2 while at work... 130ms latency on my Evo is okay, 400 on the Atrix... isn't.
- This might sound odd, but it's so smooth that it is slippery as hell. I've had a few miraculous catches following the phone just sliding right out of my hand.
- When grabbing media for my server, I have to copy it via DLNA to the device first, THEN play it, when using the Webtop OS in either the entertainment or lapdocks. I have a feeling this will come down to someone making a crafty software fix, but who knows.
- The lapdock needs a way to hide the icon bar at the bottom to expand the browser window. If you try a Facebook game, you can't quite fit the whole game window into view, and there are other things that have a similar issue.
Overall I'm pretty happy with it, and it seems like most of the issues I have can be solved in software, one way or another.
No stock UI works that well other than Sense. I suggest getting ADW launcher and theme it like your stock UI. Its very smooth side to side etc.
One thing I noticed - this phone is flat out HORRIBLE with UI animations such as the gingerbread launcher. My captivates UI speed blows this out of the water.
They need to fix that asap.
Pretty happy so far.
Im pretty happy with it so far. I came from the LG Expo which was a WM 6.5 device. This is my first Android phone, so it was a pretty big upgrade.
If there is one thing I am slightly disappointed in is the phone's ram. The "1gb" of ram appears to be split in half between the phone and the web top environment, so either one can only access 512mb at any one time. I'm only slightly disappointed because I expected it. It's another case of misleading, but not totally false advertising...now, about my missing "G" in network speed....
Also from iPhone 4. Still haven't decided if I am going to keep it yet, overall the phone is really nice, but it still just doesn't feel as smooth/fluid/solid as the iPhone. I was really hoping a nice Tegra 2 chip would make things smooth on Android but alas I was still disappointed. The phone is fast don't get me wrong, but the UI still has plenty of places that are just ... chunky. Overall build quality of the phone is also nice, but it still doesn't feel nearly as solid in my hand as the iPhone does.
I like the phone just not sure I like it tons better than my captivate. I think a lot of people that downplay samoled screens have never owned one. Its very tough going back. Overall my phone flys using launcher pro plus with 3d animations. No slow Downs or chunkiness whatsoever.
I'm definitely happy. I @so came from the Captivate and there isn't anything I would change.
I LOVE the fact that the pixel Dr/ity is larger, therefore making everything smaller. today is going to be the first day I see how it performs out in the realworld so I hope that goes well
I'm thinking about picking up the laptock dock since you can tether for free as well... might wait a while though since I don't need it now.
Rooted/ROM Captivate
Rooted Atrix
I'm unimpressed. Of course it's fast but not noticeably faster than the inspire. I really want to keep this phone and use it as my main device but it's not looking good right now. The touch screen isn't as responsive as the captivate or the inspire. When I try to fly through things, I find the phone missing registered touches. At first, I just thought I need to get used to this device but I could do this on the inspire and captivate with no problem at all. I'm going to give this more time so we'll see how it goes. Another thing I noticed, Motorola has a load of crap that runs on the device that I'll never use (see running services) and it takes up a significant amount of memory. It'd be a pain to go through and manually end these services. Even after using a task killer, most of the services persisted.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
Coming from the Nexus One, which is still regarded as the baseline for a good Android device, I'd have to say I'm pretty happy with it, no regrets at all in selling my N1 to get this. Yes, I do sorely miss the stock UI and being in that comfort zone that I'll be first to get updates (even though Google has been slacking lately). With that said, the pros out number the cons.
Pros
- BLOODY fast
- Battery is 1000x better than the Nexus One. I can go a whole day on one charge and it's not an iPhone? Say it ain't so
- Screen is 1000x better than the Nexus One, and very, very close to my wife's iPhone 4
I don't know what the guy above is smoking, but the Atrix is a 1000X better than the Captivate in terms of build quality. I was sorta anxious about it being all plastic, but the phone feels rock solid. With an Otter Box Commuter on the way, I doubt I'll ever notice it was any different than my ex-N1 (with a Commuter case as well).
Neutral
- The phone isn't the prettiest, but certainly nice.
Cons
- Motoblur adds some nice touches, but overall it's slow. I'm using LauncherPro Plus which is getting me back some of my sanity.
- Doesn't come with Gingerbread out of the box :-(
- Power button location sucks
- Volume buttons are on wrong side :-(
- I know people hate trackball, but until Gingerbread makes it out to the Atrix, copy-n-paste SUCKS
I prefer this phone over my captivate 10 fold. The screen is not a big issue to me as a lot of times on the captivate screen peoples faces always had a tint of red to them. Over saturation is over saturation no matter how you look at it. The phone is also super fast in UI transitions for me and is worlds better then the captivate in that respect. Motoblur home UI used to cause all sorts of slow down but switching to launcher pro fixed all of those issues. The phone is really quick and snappy. The XDA load screen is pixelated i would assume because it is a lower res image in the first place. Also why is that even important? it's just a load screen?
Some people are just trying too hard to find any excuse to hate the phone.
tbae2 said:
The XDA load screen is pixelated i would assume because it is a lower res image in the first place. Also why is that even important? it's just a load screen?
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Click to collapse
Coming from a Nexus One (which btw was a great phone in its own right), and having had a plethora of phones including an iPhone 4 and a Captivate, I am very happy with the Atrix.
There are a lot of people making a big deal of AMOLED vs LCD. What I'd like to add is that it really is COMPLETELY A MATTER OF PERSONAL PREFERENCE! I, for one, prefer the more natural tones and higher brightness of an LCD display, but do see the draw of the higher contrast AMOLED. There are valid arguments for the pros and cons of both types of displays, and it really is best to see the two side by side in various environments to determine what works best for you.
Moving right along to the data speed: I've read a lot of posts about the data being capped and slower than 3g phones, but this has not been my experience! I used the new SIM they sent me and made sure I was on the 4G plan, and now my downloads are consistently faster than they are on the N1 and even faster than the iPhone (funny how that the iPhone still sets the benchmark).
Lastly, I want to address the performance of the phone: I think it's phenomenal! I did root and replace the stock launcher right away, but besides that everything is stock. The phone is super responsive. The transitions are seamless. Everything works great with one exception - the lock screen which takes a second to come up.
To wrap up, I think the Atrix is a very nice upgrade to my N1 and that Motorola hit a home run with this phone. Granted, we won't realize it's full potential for a few months, but I believe that the Atrix is a great platform and will have superb development support from the community!
dew.man said:
Coming from a Nexus One (which btw was a great phone in its own right), and having had a plethora of phones including an iPhone 4 and a Captivate, I am very happy with the Atrix.
There are a lot of people making a big deal of AMOLED vs LCD. What I'd like to add is that it really is COMPLETELY A MATTER OF PERSONAL PREFERENCE! I, for one, prefer the more natural tones and higher brightness of an LCD display, but do see the draw of the higher contrast AMOLED. There are valid arguments for the pros and cons of both types of displays, and it really is best to see the two side by side in various environments to determine what works best for you.
Moving right along to the data speed: I've read a lot of posts about the data being capped and slower than 3g phones, but this has not been my experience! I used the new SIM they sent me and made sure I was on the 4G plan, and now my downloads are consistently faster than they are on the N1 and even faster than the iPhone (funny how that the iPhone still sets the benchmark).
Lastly, I want to address the performance of the phone: I think it's phenomenal! I did root and replace the stock launcher right away, but besides that everything is stock. The phone is super responsive. The transitions are seamless. Everything works great with one exception - the lock screen which takes a second to come up.
To wrap up, I think the Atrix is a very nice upgrade to my N1 and that Motorola hit a home run with this phone. Granted, we won't realize it's full potential for a few months, but I believe that the Atrix is a great platform and will have superb development support from the community!
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Click to collapse
exactly, my phone pulls the same DL speeds I could get from my captivate in my area. The only thing I'm lacking is the upload speed.
Think I'm going back to my inspire.....on another note, the Atrix's GPS is STELLAR
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
I'm extremely happy with mine. Coming from a ton of phones recently, including iP4, Captivate, Inspire, Surround among others. It may be the perfect size of phone/screen combo for me. Atrix is super fast and I'm good with the screen.
Everyone sees it's a pentile display and all of sudden it's garbage. I don't notice pixels. Sure, maybe if I got really close and squint my eyes I might. I'll never know because I don't spend all day trying to figure out how my phone sucks. Web page loads are faster than the Inspire for me.
Battery looks to be insanely good compared to the Inspire. I'd been using mine heavily since 10am yesterday googing around with it and playing games. I didn't plug it in when I went to bed and it still said 40% when I woke up. I realize that it goes in increments of 10, but that's pretty solid.
Sound quality is excellent! Talking on the phone shows really great audio quality for me. The biggest surprise was how loud/clear the speaker is for music and nav. I couldn't be happier with the phone.
Aaron J said:
If there is one thing I am slightly disappointed in is the phone's ram. The "1gb" of ram appears to be split in half between the phone and the web top environment, so either one can only access 512mb at any one time. I'm only slightly disappointed because I expected it. It's another case of misleading, but not totally false advertising...now, about my missing "G" in network speed....
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Click to collapse
Hey, that's interesting. How did you come to this conclusion? I can't find any place in the settings that tells exactly how much RAM is in use/available.
Happy from aa TP2 but furious about what I paid for. Horrible Service no, Signed bootloader. Capped 3g Speeds, forget about 4g that is non existent where I live although it says 4G+
sdlopez83 said:
Happy from aa TP2 but furious about what I paid for. Horrible Service no, Signed bootloader. Capped 3g Speeds, forget about 4g that is non existent where I live although it says 4G+
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Click to collapse
Just curious why you bought it if your service is so bad? We all knew the bootloader was going to be locked down because it's Moto.
I found the Inspire to be light years ahead of the Captivate, and the Atrix to be just a notch above the Inspire. Also, I like the Atrix's skinned version of Swype. I honestly didn't even know it came with Swype until last night. I was using stock the whole time. lol
As for the iPhone 4, I can see why some aren't as impressed. When it comes down to it, no phone on the market can match its polish. Some come close, but none match. For me, I just prefer Android over iOS.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App

Atrix \ Galaxy S2 Comparison

I have prepared this thread to help myself and others compare and contrast the different phones and hopefully come to a decision here. If anyone has anything to add to the comparison that I have missed, please list it and we can get it all chocked up.
For the record. I have only listed something as a "Disadvantage" if I believe that the category is below what we would expect of the average Android.
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Advantages:
ATRIX
Battery Life - This is a big thing for me. I can make my vibrant last through a 14 hour day by crippling every single possible feature. But people here are saying that the Atrix runs solid though 30 hour periods. This is a huge plus for me.
Higher Resolution (even if its fake) - Even though this resolution is fake and can actually cause text to blur, I can say first-hand that I saw the screen in action at a local wal-mart and found it to be acceptable by my standards. I think it may help overall with browsing. The GS2 has a larger screen size, and no pentile matrix display, which could possibly be considered better. This is one that may work out to be a tie.
Tegra 2 - I list this as an advantage not because it is faster, the various benchmarks for either processor seem to be inconclusive at this point. I am listing it as an advantage because it has its own series of games optimized specifically for it, and because Google has chosen to build their framework around tegra 2.
Webtop - I am initially hesitant to even mention this. The phone has a webtop environment, it is most likely Debian Linux and it is said to also be very sluggish. If, in the future, devs gain access to this environment and find ways to optimize it and add in worthy apps such as Chrome and open office, then this will be a massive advantage, but right now it is pretty much just a gimmick.
The webtop interface retains its session when you disconnect it. So you can plug the phone back into another dock and go right back to what you were doing. This is one of the good things about webtop.
Laptop Dock - We all know it is hideously overpriced right now and maybe in the future a cheaper solution will be available. But regardless of how you get the dock, it is an advantage to run your apps in full screen, even if you don't use the sluggish webtop interface and firefox.
The dock charges your phone, but plays sound through your atrix speakers, it has no speakers of it's own, you can answer calls by removing the phone, picking it up on bluetooth or by just yelling at it from behind the laptop. The phone retains its session when you remove it and there is no special unmounting procedure, you just grab it and run.
GALAXY S2
Screen - Bright beautiful and extremely rich. Those who have seen the screen firsthand have claimed that there is nothing like it at all and that it is miles above even the old Super Amoled display. The 4.3 inch size is also a bonus for those of us with large hands. This is probably the best overall feature of the Galaxy S2.
Camera - 8 Megapixels, and 2 megapixel front facing camera. People say that megapixels don't really matter in the long run but the Atrix camera is also said to have a purple wash to it and that the video can be splotchy in certain situations.
Design - Even though it looks way too much like the iPhone, this phone actually looks exceptionally nice. I like the three button design much better than the 4, the search button is pretty useless overall. The thinness of this phone is also amazing if you are into that sort of thing. Naturally it may come down to the US carriers to ruin the design, but by it will likely be summer before that happens.
32GB internal storage - Expect to pay for it, but it is there, you get 64 gigs total with this phone.
Gingerbread - The Atrix won't likely get gingerbread until at least this summer, this phone will have it much sooner if you get the international version coming sometime this quarter.
Gyroscope - This phone has it, do any apps support it? Not sure, but it is there.
NFC - In the off chance that any stores upgrade to NFC this year, you will have the ability to use it. NFC may have other uses that we haven't envisioned yet. It is a protocol, so it can be applied to just about anything. You could potentially set it up to unlock your home, cars could start with it, whatever.
So it has a lot of potential use other than having your money stolen from you.
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Disadvantages:
ATRIX
Bootloader - To sum it up for those not familiar, the phone can be rooted, a custom ROM can be flashed, but the kernel cannot be altered at all. (someone will likely correct me here) but if part or all of the webtop code is contained in the kernel somehow it will be difficult to alter it to add new software or make it run more efficiently. This would be a terrible shame.
I can tell you that Team Whiskey has made my Vibrant browse faster than I have seen in Atrix videos, with half the memory and a single core processor. It is scary to think of what this phone could actually accomplish if Moto decided to allow it.
Motoblur - I read that this requires you to sign up for an account before you can even use the phone. I find it alarming that Motorola has decided to help themselves to all this information and it makes me wonder just exactly what they really have access to and why.
Crippled FM radio - WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY. All of these phones have both transmitters and receivers for FM. So can someone tell me why in god's name anyone would disable them? FM radio has many more uses than just listening to local stations and why again should I have to burn my limited data on
internet radio when there is a receiver right in my phone?
GALAXY S2
Heat - My current Galaxy S runs very hot already, if the screen is active while the phone is being charged it will heat up to what seems to be a very dangerous temperature. The pre-release Galaxy S2 was said to be scorching hot after running with the screen on and the charger active.
Fail File System, Hideous and crippling lag - Update: the galaxy S2 is said to not use RFS. Chock one up for Samsung.
Updates - Samsung has a horrible reputation for updates when working with US carriers, even for new phones. If it was not for this community I would have likely given up on Android and Samsung altogether. Although I know that part of the update delay has been t-mobile, it is also in Samsung's interests to ship out new phones instead of updating their old ones.
Battery Life I have a feeling that Samsung tried to push the limits to get their phone to be as thin as possible and I am worried that they have done so at the expense of battery life. We won't know for sure until it gets in people's hands but I expect the battery life to be subpar.
NO HID Bluetooth Support (possibly) - I have had a black wiimote sitting here for 6 months waiting to connect to my Vibrant. I love emulated classics but action games are near impossible to play with the on-screen kb. So if you want this feature, I would make sure that the GS2 has it first, because it is not likely that it will.
Availability - What it really comes down to now. Unless you want to shell out over 1000 for the phone, you will probably need to wait 5 months from now for any kind of US availability this summer. And don't doubt that those versions will become crippled and even more bloated in the process. But again there is no locked bootloader here.
Ok I think that covers it. Having written all this down, I think I am really leaning more toward the Atrix. There just doesn't seem to be anything else out there now that will be able to match it at the moment. And as you can see, our experience with Samsung has not been exceptional.
Good comparison there. I am also looking at the exact 2 models and thank you very much, looks like Atrix will too be my choice.
I guess I'll get the atrix laptop dock too and prays for the devs here to make it all better. Otherwise, I think its still a good piece of hardware I don't mind owning.
""Samsung's dual-core, Gingerbread-powered Galaxy S II has appeared on Play.co.uk alongside a tentative SIM-free price and release date. According to Play, which is currently taking pre-orders for the phone, it'll ship Mar. 31 for £599.99 (~$960). Pre-release prices are never guaranteed to be accurate and are always subject to change, but £599 seams like a realistic price point for the Galaxy S II, as it's slightly higher than current single-core offerings from other manufacturers.""
Just published at androidcentral. £599.99 (~$960)?? Get a grip..
Not bad, just a couple of things to note that I thought of while reading. First, the screen resolution can be arguable considering the Pentile screen that the Atrix uses. That gives the SGS2 more sub pixels, but then it's a bigger screen, so less (I believe) pixel density still... it's really kind of a toss up, but I think they will both look great. I think the lower resolution and bigger screen on the SGS2 will look just fine with the full 3 subpixels per pixel.
Also, the SGS2 looks nothing like an iPhone. I wish people would stop saying that about every phone that comes out. Apparently every square black phone with a screen is an iPhone now.
And also it's been reported that the SGS2 does not use RFS.
The Galaxy S2 looks like a great phone, but even as much as I hate Motorola's implementation of the lockdown...I can't *STAND* Samsung for updates. They've promised up and down that they would release updates for every phone since Android came out, and they've delivered on about 3 of those promises...out of probably 20. They are *HORRIBLE* at updating devices and they don't even apologize when they cancel. I would *never* buy a Samsung on the hopes that it would get an updated OS.
As for the screens, I don't really notice much of a difference. I'm a pretty severe audiophile and videophile and although I can tell a difference it's absolutely not enough to make me go with one phone over another. I'm coming from an iPhone 4 which has the best screen to date on a mobile phone...and even between that and my Atrix I barely see a difference. They're both fantastic screens.
hotleadsingerguy said:
The Galaxy S2 looks like a great phone, but even as much as I hate Motorola's implementation of the lockdown...I can't *STAND* Samsung for updates. They've promised up and down that they would release updates for every phone since Android came out, and they've delivered on about 3 of those promises...out of probably 20. They are *HORRIBLE* at updating devices and they don't even apologize when they cancel. I would *never* buy a Samsung on the hopes that it would get an updated OS.
As for the screens, I don't really notice much of a difference. I'm a pretty severe audiophile and videophile and although I can tell a difference it's absolutely not enough to make me go with one phone over another. I'm coming from an iPhone 4 which has the best screen to date on a mobile phone...and even between that and my Atrix I barely see a difference. They're both fantastic screens.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The updates aren't really an issue for people who visit sites like this. I would never rely on Samsung to update my phone. My Captivate has been running 2.2 for ages while they just released the update for everyone else. Yes, Samsung sucks at updating, but the hacking community will always get it done regardless.
I must be the only one, but i use the search hotkey absolutely all the time. I love it and I realize that you can hold menu for the same effect on the SGS2, but i'd prefer to have the 4th hotkey than their ugly stupid home button. It is not an iPhone, embrace uniqueness samsung.
eallan said:
I must be the only one, but i use the search hotkey absolutely all the time. I love it and I realize that you can hold menu for the same effect on the SGS2, but i'd prefer to have the 4th hotkey than their ugly stupid home button. It is not an iPhone, embrace uniqueness samsung.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I really miss the hardware home key! The orientation of the 4 buttons makes it a bit awkward to thumb navigate since its so close to the bottom. Its actually one of the things about the sgs2 that is making me think twice about my atrix. Despite how much I love it.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
Man_of_Leisure said:
I really miss the hardware home key! The orientation of the 4 buttons makes it a bit awkward to thumb navigate since its so close to the bottom. Its actually one of the things about the sgs2 that is making me think twice about my atrix. Despite how much I love it.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wouldn't mind if the buttons were hardware, thats another debate. I just want all four of them!
The back button is beyond crucial. Maybe back and home should be two hardware with the other capacitive? For symmetry, obviously a concern for samsung .
I definitely want the new Galaxy S 2. I've heard that the Atrix was a huge let down. I used to own a Captivate and I loved everything about it except the ****ty build quality and lack of flash for the camera. It was so smooth with voodoo and custom roms. The Galaxy S 2 will have an amazing screen and I think it will do average on battery consumption. Just my 2 cents
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
King Shady said:
I definitely want the new Galaxy S 2. I've heard that the Atrix was a huge let down. I used to own a Captivate and I loved everything about it except the ****ty build quality and lack of flash for the camera. It was so smooth with voodoo and custom roms. The Galaxy S 2 will have an amazing screen and I think it will do average on battery consumption. Just my 2 cents
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
****ty build quality? Like hardware wise? I personally think the Captivate is the nicest of all of the Galaxy S phones. The hardware itself has been absolutely wonderful for me. The software quality leaves a lot to be desired from a stock standpoint though.
AJerman said:
****ty build quality? Like hardware wise? I personally think the Captivate is the nicest of all of the Galaxy S phones. The hardware itself has been absolutely wonderful for me. The software quality leaves a lot to be desired from a stock standpoint though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The plastic build was a huge downgrade for me, especially coming from a beautiful iPhone 4. I'm much happier with the Inspire 4G now though. HTC Sense is amazing and super smooth, and HTC build quality is great. The phone feels ultra solid.
SGS2 is apparently RFS-free. Also, some versions will have Tegra2 instead of Exynos - hope this includes us.
People knock Samsung's plastic designs, but they're actually a lot harder to break than the "well-built" iPhone 4.
Very good write up man, these are the posts that I like to see.
By looking at my signature, you can see that I just got the Atrix as well, and I love the phone. Amazingly fast, awesome screen (love the higher density and the effect itbhas on the overall experience), and the battery is pretty good too.
I'm seriously thinking about buying the laptop dock, but I don't know how well that will perform, and I haven't seen any live videos of it.
I really like the design and specs of the GS 2, but there are a lot of possible problems holding me back....
Rooted/ROM Captivate (For Sale)
Rooted Atrix
FLAC Vest said:
Very good write up man, these are the posts that I like to see.
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Thanks a lot, bro.
I am no engineer and I can't build tools. But I can put a few thoughts together and provide someone with some information.
This is an amazing community and what people do here is outstanding, I just want to do what I can to add to that.
King Shady said:
The plastic build was a huge downgrade for me, especially coming from a beautiful iPhone 4. I'm much happier with the Inspire 4G now though. HTC Sense is amazing and super smooth, and HTC build quality is great. The phone feels ultra solid.
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S2 looks like meizu m9
I have both and a Galaxy S 2 on order
Why? I really liked the Captivate. My plan was to use both but the Atrix is so much more fun to use I'm selling the Captivate. Well, maybe. Maybe not.
Yesterday after I removed the SIM card and replaced it, the Atrix went bonkers with freezes and instability issues. After numerous soft resets, two factory resets and replacing the SIM card, SD card and battery a couple of times it seems to be back to normal. I suspect I had reinserted the SIM card incorrectly but maybe there was another issue.
So why would I pay $1000 for the Galaxy S 2? The Captivate was that much fun. Although I'm sure we will be able to do more custom rom's shortly on the Atrix, the Galaxy S 2 sounds like an even bigger blast than either. And boy oh boy does that LG 3D look interesting. But you have to draw the line somewhere.
Here is what the Atrix has that the Captivate does not:
1-better graphics and screen quality, dynamic and vivid visuals, a joy to read and watch (text as well as video quality is sharp and crisp, very clear)
2-more interactive features with outside devices (i.e. computers)
3-interacts more efficiently with e mail, voice and text programs (really like the way it handles multiple incoming calls especially when you are already on one-notification, instructions and directions for handling)(I can now actually use Excel spreadsheets and Word documents) (works well with contacts)
4-updated browser can handle more types of video content and pop up windows better
5-it feels better when you hold and talk or watch or do most anything with it (I did make one call and even though I could hear the other party clearly they could not hear me-I do not what happened.)
My friends all tell me I should get an iphone. I had one for years and the Androids are far more fun. I'll never return. I don't think. LG 3D anyone?
I think Tegra2 is actually a disadvantage for Atrix 4G.
As a new generation dualcore processor, it's early, but not strong.
It's video playback ability of H.264 is limited, but H.264 is currently the most frequently played format.
It has no neon support, big loss on processing power.
Till now Tegra2 has not proven itself in Graphics power. In benchmarks it's no superior to Hummingbird.
However the performance of Mali400MP on GS2 is also questionable, so just wait and see...
hotleadsingerguy said:
The Galaxy S2 looks like a great phone, but even as much as I hate Motorola's implementation of the lockdown...I can't *STAND* Samsung for updates. They've promised up and down that they would release updates for every phone since Android came out, and they've delivered on about 3 of those promises...out of probably 20. They are *HORRIBLE* at updating devices and they don't even apologize when they cancel. I would *never* buy a Samsung on the hopes that it would get an updated OS.
As for the screens, I don't really notice much of a difference. I'm a pretty severe audiophile and videophile and although I can tell a difference it's absolutely not enough to make me go with one phone over another. I'm coming from an iPhone 4 which has the best screen to date on a mobile phone...and even between that and my Atrix I barely see a difference. They're both fantastic screens.
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+1 great post!
King Shady said:
The plastic build was a huge downgrade for me, especially coming from a beautiful iPhone 4. I'm much happier with the Inspire 4G now though. HTC Sense is amazing and super smooth, and HTC build quality is great. The phone feels ultra solid.
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See, I don't understand that. There is far less plastic on the Captivate than the majority of the phones out there. The front is all glass, and the back is mostly metal. It's only the top and bottom on the back that are plastic, and they have both felt very solid to me since I got the phone on launch day. I came from an iPhone 4 as well, and granted nothing compares to the iPhone 4 in build quality, the Captivate definitely doesn't seem bad at all to me.
As long as you're happy with what you have now though, that's what matters. I just think the Inspire is a bit of a waste of money considering it's lack of power compared to all the other phones coming out now. It feels like it's last generation still. I did play with it a little at the AT&T store though, and it seemed nice. If it had come out last summer with the Captivate (even if it didn't have 4G), I might have gotten it. Now I'm going to wait until a dual core offering I like though.

[Q] Torn Between Atrix and Iphone 4

I like a lot of things I'm hearing about the Atrix, i'm just concerned about the low data speeds, and wonder if the iphone 4 might just have it beaten (for now).
Seems like many of you out here have good experience on both. You guys can help me (a lot) by rating which phone is better in my areas of biggest importance. And i know i am going to get iphone haters but I'm not sure i understand specifically WHY. The phone really is a great device, so please be fair to it here, but do feel free to also tell me why you think i won't like it.
1. GPS
2. Internet Browsing speed/ease
3. Stability/Speed
4. Call Quality/Least dropped calls
5. Speaker Quality/Volume
Feel free to touch on any deciding factors you might feel i did not have listed...and thanks
Your going to get some very biased answers asking this on the atrix forums, let alone xda!
Sent from my DAMN Galaxy 4G¡!
1. GPS
Pretty damn good; I used it while walking down the street to the coffee shop and got a fast lock and accurate reads.
2. Internet Browsing speed/ease
Very, very fast, although not that much faster than current generation top tier phones.
3. Stability/Speed
Amazing; the phone in its entirity feels fast and snappy. It never sslows down, even when a lot of applications are running.
4. Call Quality/Least dropped calls
I'm part of the group that never gets dropped calls or a bad signal wherever I am. Nothing but positive experiences with me.
5. Speaker Quality/Volume
Very good. Calls canned through clear. However, there is a widespread issue with the notice cancelling feature. If you have it set too high, people can't hear you.
I ended up taking mine back though. The fact that on the same wifi network, it only beat my Nexus 1 aand Captivate by asecond or so; and the quality of the screen isn't that great, even though it has a higher pixel density.
Honestly i had this same debate before i bought my atrix, after having my jailbroken iTouch(which isn't much of a difference from an iphone) and my htc aria, i've noticed how locked down the iphone is, and i love customizing my phones/devices, and android seemed like it had so much more to offer, i can't lie, i like the design of the iphone 4 and almost bought it, but the atrix is waaay more powerful and has a very bright future ahead of it rather than the iphone 4 which is about to be sorta outdated in a few months when the iphone 5 comes out(which really isn't gonna have much of a difference from the iphone 4.
This is my first motorola phone with motoblur, and a lot of people don't like motoblur but actually it's not bad at all, i blame the bad rep on the motorola backflip
ok now to answer your questions:
Motorola Atrix
1: the GPS works great, no complaints
2: the internet is blazing fast and very smooth
3: 1ghz dual core processor, pretty self explanitory lol, but i haven't experienced any lag at all
4: I haven't had any dropped calls, and the speaker is very clear and loud
5: speaker is clear and loud enough to hear from another room
and no i'm not giving a biased opinion, i like both phones, but the Atrix seems more stable and dependable which is important when on the go
I will play devil's advocate for you. My buddy's Iphone 4 is "faster" in a speedtest.net race. I have NEVER seen him upload anything through his iphone. So saying that the iphone is faster is almost a mute point, but it does upload faster. Our download speeds are the same, his Iphone, my captivate, and sadly my Atrix all hit the same download speeds.
The ONE thing that makes me android green with envy, his stupid "unreal" games. I mean its freaking gorgeous to look at, I dont even know the name of the game but its badass. I know that we are going to get some sweet game via nvidia tegra zone, but so far they all look cartoony to me. I am sure we will eventually overtake the iphone in terms of games.
Ok so back to why my phone is better... I can use my phone as a nintendo, supernintendo, playstation 1, or nintendo 64 AND connect it to the big screen AND play the games from my wii remote...
And we have webtop so neiner neiner.
atrix screen
I strongly disagree with the previous post. The Atrix screen is GREAT. Motorola did not include any hi res movies either becasue they were rushing it out the door or just not fully developed the apps. But I have seen hi res videos on the Atrix and the screen is excellent. The Atrix beats the IPhone hands done in every category. Droid phones can be optimized and customized and the result is a phone that does exactly what you want, better than any other phone out there. Trust me, get the Atrix...spend time here looking at the apps and homescreens and spend time on it....it's worth it!
Dillsnik said:
1. GPS
2. Internet Browsing speed/ease
3. Stability/Speed
4. Call Quality/Least dropped calls
5. Speaker Quality/Volume
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WINNERS:
1. Atrix - by a lot
2. iPhone 4, by a small margin
3. Speed goes to Atrix, stability goes to Atrix if you are familiar with Android
4. Atrix, hands down. very loud speaker, very clear voice. Far fewer dropped calls.
5. ATRIX - loudest speaker I've ever had.
I just came from the iPhone 4 to the atrix, so I figure I can speak better then most.
I really like both of these phones, and figure that either way you go will be a win for you. So that's the good news.
Some quick comparison thoughts:
The screens on the same are very very comparable. They both have a notably high pixel density, and look super sharp and clear. The colors on the iPhone are perhaps a tiny bit better, but maybe that's just a trick of the mind. Regardless, they are very comparable.
Both phones are fast, very fast. Generally, I would say that the Atrix is a bit more responsive then the iPhone. But this is not true when it comes to changing orientation. I've noticed that the Atrix can stutter for a second, where the iPhone was instant. Could be my launcher.
GPS is excellent on both. But the Atrix comes with Google Navigation built in, which basically gives you a full blown GPS on your phone. iPhone requires an expensive app, or more of a maps view then a nav view.
Stability wise, I'm torn. The Atrix does... weird things sometimes. I can't exactly explain it. I had to do a battery pull to get it to work yesterday... brought me back a few years to my blackberry days. Not that it's a terrible thing, but it is a little different. I don't think I was forced to reboot the iPhone once due to issues. It is very very stable.
Build quality goes to the iPhone 4 hands down. The Atrix has little annoying things like the fact that the back on it creaks on some phones (mine is one). Not a big deal by any stretch. But I do miss the awesome build quality of my iPhone 4. Again, Atrix is awesome, but just can't compare to the best in class iPhone.
I love the notification LED on the Atrix. That was probably the thing I missed most on my iPhone.
Call quality and clarity is better on the Atrix. The earpiece is crystal clear, which I can't say for the iPhone. My friends say I sound better on the Atrix too.
To me what it comes down for overall is the software though. I am by no means an expert developer or crazy programmer, but I am very good with most technology. I love controlling my experience, and being able to mess with it. The iPhone is... for lack of a better word, very boring. It is kind of all the same stuff, and once you have it for a week, nothing ever really changes on it. You have the same home screen and everything else. It is what it is.
The possibilities on Atrix are endless. Even without an unlocked bootloader, there is a ridiculous amount of stuff you can do with this phone. Depending on your mood on a given week, you can completely customize things to fit your demands. What widgets and setup you use one day you can completely change the next. I like that freedom a lot.
And call me stupid... but I love my live wallpapers. They are so cool to me.
Overall, the move to Atrix was an awesome decision for me.
I just switched from an iPhone 4 yesterday to the Atrix and the bottom line is that I am incredibly happy with the switch.
A lot of people covered the basics: The GPS is great and built in Nav is nice. Call quality is very crisp, the phone is fast and web browsing is just as smooth as the iPhone. I have had no difficulty adjusting and actually, a lot of things, such as notifications, are designed much more logically.
My reason for a switch was that I was very bored with iOS, going through 3 generations of the phone. The OS is sort of stagnant.
There are a few hiccups on the Atrix - I don't love the texting app and the way it handles embedded images. I also think that the battery indicator is a little strange - still figuring it out.
Aside from, the customization options (even without bootloader access) are incredibly diverse. I love the screen (don't understand all the hate, honestly) and I similarly have had no problems with motoblur yet. Some of the moto widgets are bad, but I just delete them.
One more key factor - I LOVE BEING ITUNES FREE. It is SO nice to just drag and drop files to my phone and have them show up appropriately. It's a world of difference.
If you have any specific questions for a recent iPhone 4 switcher, feel free to PM me.
Thanks
As an owner of both phones, I can say both phones are great. As much as I hate Apple as a company, it has saddened me the past year to say build quality wise, nothing really compares to the iPhone4...it's like a nice expensive watch, glass on both sides and metal on the sides. The Atrix's plasticy build with small creaks here and there(all phones with some plastic removable battery cover will always creak). Both phones are pretty snappy but iOS has always been more smooth and fluid when it comes to UI transitions. My i4 is jailbroken and tweaked to hell, but I don't theme it with Winterboard as I see some lag with it. Apple must use a better digitizer and have some better touch algorithm implemented, because no other touch device is on par with them. The Atrix screen comes close, but you still can feel the difference on touch response. You can also tell the IPS screen on the iPhone4 is still sharper and produces colors more accurately, but then again, it is an IPS screen. While I've always loved how the Android browser loads the pages quickly with no transparancy checkerboard, browsing on the iPhone4 is just smoother, but that could be a by-product of the better screen. Sometimes people say I sound muffled on the Atrix, but it may depend on how I hold the phone.
I wanted to see the hype about Tegra2 so I download Samurai2 for Tegra2. It looks stunning on the Atrix, however, it looks just as good on the iPhone4 too. So that was kind of a letdown to see that Tegra2 was matched by Apple's 9month old SOC. I also have a NexusOne(currently running on Modaco's GB) and love how I can install ROMs and Nandroid to backup my device to try other other ROMs, but with this bootloader lockdown and the possibility that there is a Nvidia efuse in Tegra2, it makes buying Moto almost as bad as buying Apple. While xda is a great community with some very very intelligent people, the jailbreak scene on iOS has worked wonders because they only focus on one OS version for basically one device(Pod/Pad/Phone/TV).
Basically, you shouldn't even consider the iPhone4, when the 5 is coming. Spec wise, if it's using the dual core A5 chip that they just announced on the iPad2, then it will probably be one of the fastest and most powerful phones available. The only thing is, you have to deal with the Apple tax of iTunes and a locked down system until it's jailbroken. The Atrix is a great phone and if you had to buy a phone tomorrow, it should be the one to get...but July isn't that far away.
If you can wait....
I have been thinking about both. It might make sense to wait a month until iPhone 5 details come out. It is supposed to have a HW upgrade and there are some pretty interesting rummours out there (NFC, etc).
Do not buy the iPhone 4 right now as 5 is coming out in a few months...
That being said, the Atrix has VERY fast web browsing. From what I remember of using the iPhone 4 for a month, whenever you try to scroll quickly or zoom out quickly, you get a slight gray loading area. This also happened on the Captivate and n1, but on the Atrix, that never happens on heavy content sites like Engadget.
If you really dont care about the differences between iOs and Android, and LOVE gaming and the best battery life of any smartphone, get the iPhone. But if you want "freedom" and hands down the best integrated google service, get the Atrix.
I think both devices are extremely good. If you want to live in the iTunes ecosystem, then the iPhone is the way to go. However, I have not a single dropped call with my Atrix in St. Louis, and my cousin's iPhone 4 drops calls constantly. It's not the network, it's the phone.
The iPhone has a better app store ecosystem in that the quality of apps are often better and there are a ton of high-quality iOS games from big developers, not quite up there for Android yet.
The iPhone also has a very good camera and camcorder. Better media support (as in netflix, hulu +, AirVideo streaming, etc).
The Atrix is a great all-around device too. I think the camera and camcorder are pretty good, and the screen is wonderful. I just can't use a 3.5" screen on the iPhone anymore. And the iPhone notification system is just terrible.
Google Maps, Voice and Gmail are extremely good on the Atrix and they are all lacking on the iPhone. I also think the battery life on the Atrix is incredible. I'm getting better battery life than I had on any other phone ever.
I had to make this decision and I chose the Atrix.
illmatic416 said:
Basically, you shouldn't even consider the iPhone4, when the 5 is coming. Spec wise, if it's using the dual core A5 chip that they just announced on the iPad2, then it will probably be one of the fastest and most powerful phones available. July isn't that far away.
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Agreed, At least on a personal level. used my upgrade for the Atrix, returned it for the iPhone 4 a few days later. Today ill be going back, returning the iPhone and getting the Atrix at full price ($499). That way ill get my full upgrade back for July when I see how the next iPhone looks (if its not a 4" screen I doubt i'll waist my time, but we will see). I'm considering just staying with the Atrix and maybe supplimenting my lack of iOS games with the iPad 2, but we will see.
iPhone screen seems awfully small after using an atrix
I went from an iPhone 4 to an Atrix, and i don't miss the iPhone at all, really. Will the iPhone 5 be better? Possibly. Will i care? Not really. The main turn-off for me in regards to any Apple product is their OCD towards iTunes. I want my phone to be a phone..... just as much as i want a 16GB storage media to be a 16GB storage media. I don't want to have to either constantly sync it to iTunes, or rely on some 3rd party work-around to be able to access the data stored on my phone without using Apple's sh*tty software.
If it wasn't for iTunes, lack of complete customization, and basically being just another sheep in the herd carrying one around.... i wouldn't mind another iPhone. But until that time comes (which it never will), buh bye iPhone.
elementaldragon said:
I went from an iPhone 4 to an Atrix, and i don't miss the iPhone at all, really. Will the iPhone 5 be better? Possibly. Will i care? Not really. The main turn-off for me in regards to any Apple product is their OCD towards iTunes. I want my phone to be a phone..... just as much as i want a 16GB storage media to be a 16GB storage media. I don't want to have to either constantly sync it to iTunes, or rely on some 3rd party work-around to be able to access the data stored on my phone without using Apple's sh*tty software.
If it wasn't for iTunes, lack of complete customization, and basically being just another sheep in the herd carrying one around.... i wouldn't mind another iPhone. But until that time comes (which it never will), buh bye iPhone.
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Definitly agree
Well, the choice also depends on whether you prefer stable and simple os or a more complex but not as cleaned up os. As for now, I agree with the other posters to wait for the iphone 5, then compare. Right now I have the atrix, and already the iphone 4 camera and screen are both better. The atrix may be powerful, but nothing is capable of fully utilizing it, not to mention that the iphone 5 will be just as, if not more, powerful. The atrix may be good in a few months, but for fast updates, reliable stability, and damn nice designing, wait for the iphone 5.
Oh and android doesn't have monopoly (I mean the board game)
Thank you everyone
Thanks to all that contributed...some very good points made all around.
Basically here's how i have broken down the comparison with all other things being practically equal:
Iphone has slightly better screen, excellent build (best of any phone possibly), and better cams, but proprietary OS etc make it hard(er) to customize.
Atrix has more customization/freedom, led notifications, possibly better call quality, and the potential to be a great phone once it's cracked.
I can't hold off for i5, although i'm sure i can give it a look when it's here. For the meantime i think i am going to go with the Atrix. It's a shame Apple turns off so many with having to use itunes bc i think that is where it's biggest argument against seems to be from and i am sure if i owned it i would not like that either
after 4 years of using an iPhone, once I tried out Android, I stayed. User-customizability is what won me over (among other things such as notifications, google apps, swype, google nav, google voice, etc).
My timeline of smartphones as follows:
iPhone 2G, iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, Evo, Captivate, Nexus One, Atrix

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