Holiday Smartphone Buyer's Guide
by Vivek Gowri on December 4, 2010 5:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Guides
- Holiday 2010
- Mobile
Verizon
In the past year, Big Red has gone from having a smartphone lineup almost completely dominated by Windows Mobile and BlackBerry devices, to arguably the forefront carrier for flagship Android devices. The Motorola Droid series of phones has been so aggressively marketed that it's virtually synonymous among laypeople with Android itself, nearly to the point of creating confusion.
Regardless, the choices we recommend on Verizon are differentiated by personal taste. If you want a huge screen, the Droid X is the phone for you. The device is now thankfully running Android 2.2 (we reviewed it when it was running 2.1 after launch), and there's very little to hold against the phone. I loved the hardware android buttons and the form factor and still think Android is completely usable without a hardware keyboard, especially thanks to Swype and Motorola's own multitouch keyboard being included. The other thing to mention about the Droid X is that its OMAP3630 supports 720P HD video encodes, whereas the OMAP3620 doesn't - the result is that the Droid X can shoot 720P video and the Droid 2 can't. The Droid X is currently $49.99 from Amazon Wireless or $199.99 from Verizon on contract.
If you want a keyboard however, the Droid 2 is the next best option. As I noted in our review, very little which is changed from the original Droid hardware wise except for some welcome changes to the keyboard which improve usability, and a slightly different shade of soft touch material. In the wild, the two are difficult to tell apart unless you know what you're looking for. To that extent, it's not really a necessary upgrade from the original Droid unless you absolutely need a faster platform, especially considering the original Droid is running stock Android 2.2. There's also a Droid 2 Global version which packs GSM support and a slightly higher clocked 1.2 GHz SoC as opposed to the 1.0 GHz OMAP3 in the Droid 2 sans Global. We haven't had the chance to fully review a Droid 2 Global yet, so jury is still out whether the $50 difference from Verizon ($199.99 for Droid 2 Global, $149.99 for Droid 2) is worth it, especially considering Android enthusiasts can root and overclock on their own. The Droid 2 Global is also available from Amazon Wireless for $79.99 on contract, curiously enough the Droid 2 is no longer available on Amazon. There’s also the BlackBerry-targeting Droid Pro, though this is another of the Droid newcomers we haven’t taken a look at.
The other tier-1 options on Verizon are the HTC Incredible and Samsung Fascinate. We reviewed both and liked the Incredible's form factor, and it's even better now thanks to Android 2.2. The Motorola Droids' OMAP3 bests the Droid Incredible's Snapdragon SoC in the performance space in almost every category save FPU heavy tasks, but the Incredible is by no means a weak performer. Likewise, the Fascinate bests both with its Hummingbird SoC. The only problem with the Fascinate is Verizon's conscious decision to mandate Bing throughout and strip the phone of almost all mention of Google. Again, the other problem is that the Fascinate like other Galaxy S devices still isn't running Android 2.2. Size and user preference is again what really dominates here - if you want a small Android 2.2 phone, the Incredible is your pick, whereas the Fascinate packs a 4" screen. The HTC Incredible can be had for $0.01 from Amazon Wireless, or $149.99 from Verizon, both on contract. The Fascinate is $39.99 from Amazon Wireless and $199.99 from Verizon on contract.
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VivekGowri - Monday, December 6, 2010 - link
Trust me, I'm a fan of the Adam and have been following it pretty closely ever since CES last year. As an Indian, I'm pretty psyched about the potential for an electronics boom happening in India. However, until it gets closer to shipping, it's only worth a mention. I have the Viewsonic and the Galaxy Tab in hand, which is why I wrote more about them,strikeback03 - Tuesday, December 7, 2010 - link
While I also am an Apple hater, the iPad is shipping now, while the Adam still only qualifies as vaporware. So while the whole Android tablet market is poised to grow, and almost certainly some better designs than the Galaxy Tab and host of cheap iPad knockoffs will be coming, if you are looking to give or get one this holiday season your choices are relatively limited.quickbunnie - Monday, December 6, 2010 - link
Couple of minor errors:The Samsung Epic 4G does have an LED flash.
Also, while there are no reports of OTA pushes for FROYO on the Epic 4g, a signed (no rooting needed) FROYO build is sitting on Google's servers:
http://android.clients.google.com/packages/ota/spr...
Rename to update.zip (make sure windows is showing extensions), put the file on your SD card "root" folder, boot in recovery mode and hit the update.
FROYO v2.2.1 on Epic 4G goodness.
Mixed reports on GPS - seems its either working or not at all with this update. Also, it breaks MediaHub, which requires a workaround to get functional again.
SilthDraeth - Tuesday, December 7, 2010 - link
Exactly, I kept looking at my epic wondering if that isn't an LED Flash then why the heck does it flash when I take pictures?Maybe it isn't LED? Nah, just an error I guess.
And dangit, I just updated to dl18, I need to update to dk28. If I run the update the way you stated, will I lose my contacts, and installed applications?
strikeback03 - Tuesday, December 7, 2010 - link
Samsung has recommended not using that update anyway (http://www.androidcentral.com/sprint-says-froyo-ep... though the choice is up to youssj4Gogeta - Monday, December 6, 2010 - link
Hey Brian,I wonder why you didn't recommend the international Galaxy S version in the international segment. It's similar to the US Galaxy S versions but trades camera flash for a front camera.
Dodger52 - Tuesday, December 7, 2010 - link
Why do all you techblogs get it wrong and don't get your facts right.!!!The blackberry Torch is powered by a new generation PXA 940 built using the 45nm process
(sources:)
http://www.ubmtechinsights.com/reports-and-subscri...
http://translate.google.nl/translate?js=n&prev...
Mook1e - Tuesday, December 7, 2010 - link
You mention the wrong model (or carrier) when talking about the Captivate. If you've used the other models, they would be on Verizon and T-Mobile, not AT&T and T-Mobile. Also, your sentence regarding the flash implies that the Epic doesn't have a flash, when it does.Also, the Epic hasn't been priced at $249.99 on Amazon for months now. It was actually $99.99 for a while (It's currently $149.99)
jed22281 - Wednesday, December 8, 2010 - link
Agreed Re the N900 in the international/unlocked category....Very happy camper, the possibilities really are limitless on this device, I'm surprised on an almost daily basis.
asliarun - Thursday, December 9, 2010 - link
I've been visiting Anandtech for many many years now, and have come to place a lot of trust and reliance on most of the articles.While I am not disappointed with what was IN this article (which was well analyzed and written), I am more disappointed with what was NOT in the article.
Firstly, I had expected this smartphone buyer's guide to be similar to the PC guide - I had definitely expected much more than 1 page worth of content for non-US visitors. I had mainly expected to see recommendations in various price points (budget, price-performance, high-end), detailed breakdown of strengths and weaknesses of key contenders in each segment, and at the very least 3-4 options in each segment along with their price points. A tabular analysis of the various contenders would have, for example, worked very well.
I normally hesitate to write a critical comment as it is easy to criticize as opposed to doing something. I do understand that it takes time and effort to analyze a large number of phones. But man, you have high standards to live up to! This is what separates AT from the thousands of other so-called tech review websites. I'm sorry to say but there is a marked difference in the quality of articles and quality of analysis written by Anand and other senior members and some of the other articles that I am reading nowadays.
Please take this constructively. I am not dissing you guys, but only telling you how you could continue to "wow" loyal readers such as myself. One more thing: you don't always need to do a PhD in every device before being able to write about it. You can, for example, easily do a comparison of the top 10 or 15 Android phones on the basis of various parameters that are relevant to buyers such as speed/responsiveness, battery life, display quality, camera quality, construction quality, price, usability, etc.
Basically, what I want to be able to read a "guide" article on Anandtech, and be able to make an informed purchase decision after reading it, and/or become more knowledgeable about the subject. Please help. There are hardly any such websites nowadays that I can put my trust in nowadays.