Hey everybody! Travis McCollum here, or I guess "The Gamer Dude" if you feel so inclined to call me so, bringing you a little segment I came up with called "Phoning It In."
I've loved phones for a long time and I consider myself a bit of a phone connoisseur. Although I do my business through Verizon, I always go to the Apple Store or the AT&T stores or the Sprint stores mostly just to see all there new products. Phones are always evolving, always growing and always changing. And to see the latest and greatest from all of the different companies is great. And with the holiday season slowly but surely approaching it's good to look at some of the available options out there. The big problem however is that there are SO many phones out there that it can get a little overwhelming. So hopefully with this segment I can help you pick, or at least narrow down, some potential choices for phones and you might be surprised what some companies are coming out with.
On today's edition we are looking at Verizon's Android based phone lineup. Ever since the end of last year, Android based phones have been trying to work their way into our hearts in an attempt to stop the ever popular iPhone and it's incarnations. And for some people they prefer Android based phones. Granted as soon as AT&T loses it's exclusivity with the iPhone and it's free to be distributed to any carrier it so chooses (the iPad coming to Verizon is a good indication of things to come) then the iPhone will basically become the norm. But until that time comes (And who knows? Some may prefer Blackberries and Android's) all the carriers are trying to sell the best products they can.
And Verizon is no exception. Their "Droid" lineup is quite big. Not only is there the original Droid, which is still a good phone in and of itself, but there is the Droid Incredible, Droid X, Droid 2, Droid R2-D2, and of course the other Android based phones like the Samsung Fascinate, LG Ally and Motorola Devour. If that sounds like a lot of phones, that's because it is. When you walk into a Verizon store the selection can be quite daunting. I got a chance to get my hands on all the aforementioned phones and have a little mini-review for each.
First up- The Original Droid
The Original Droid, or Droid 1, is the first incarnation of the Verizon phone and it actually works really well. Unlike the next few incarnations, this one has a fully functional QWERTY keyboard that works and feels really natural. The buttons aren't overwhelmingly tiny and have a nice resistance to them, in other words you feel like you are pressing each button and not just gliding over them. The space key is bigger then the rest and is placed perfectly where it's supposed to be. In fact compared to the other phones, the space key is actually better. The button on the side is a bit wonky, but that is fixed in later incarnations. The picture size is pretty good, albeit small compared to some of the others. It's also a bit darker then the others and not as well lit. It has a 5.0 mega pixel camera and 720x480 px video and both of them are pretty good, although they do feel kind of standard if ya know what I mean. My older blackberry had a 5.0 mega pixel camera although I will say the Droid has better video.
Overall it's a good phone and it set a standard for the next incarnations. Do I recommend getting it now? Well it is cheaper then most of the other Droids and if you aren't looking for anything top of the line then I suggest getting it. Otherwise look to the other phones.
Next up are the Droid X and Droid Incredible-
The Droid X and the Droid Incredible are so similar that I had to condense my review for both of them into one. Basically they are the same phone but with a few different tweaks that set them apart.
- The Droid X has an HDMI output that can be plugged into any Hi-Def television
- The Droid Incredible runs on Android 2.2 AND HTC Sense with Friendstream (basically the Incredible flows better)
- They both have duel LED flash camera's with a roller zoom and 720p video. The only difference is that the X runs at 24 frames per second while the Incredible doesn't.
- The Droid X can have up to 40 Gig's of memory while the Droid Incredible has only 9 Gigs.
- Because of it's FM Tuner, the Incredible can run more audio files then the X.
- And the Incredible is lighter.
Each phone is basically the same otherwise and really it's just a matter of personal taste whether you get the X or the Incredible. Both phones are pretty state of the art despite them being released earlier but considering the price of both phones right now is about the same of the top of the line phones, it's hard for me to recommend them over the other ones.
Next up is the Droid 2 and Droid R2-D2-
These are the same phones basically but I thought I'd cover both since I know a lot of people are fans of Star Wars.
The Droid 2/R2-D2 are the latest in the Droid family and they both have something that the other phones, and for that matter most phones, don't have: Flash 10.1. What that means is you can watch and experience the internet like you would at home. 85 out of the top 100 sites utilize Flash as one of their main components and the Droid 2/R2-D2 has full Flash functionality. What it sacrifices however is the storage space of the Droid X (It holds 32 of memory altogether) as well as the camera capabilities and video capabilities. It has a 5.0 mega pixel camera and 720x480px video (the same as the original Droid) and also doesn't have the screen size or brightness of the other phones. It does have one thing in common with the original Droid that is a good thing and that is the QWERTY keyboard. The keyboard is much better then the original, except for the space bar, I still prefer the original's space bar. But the buttons have more resistance, the side button is fixed and it feels better overall then the original.
In a lot of ways the Droid 2 is the direct upgrade of the Droid 1. It doesn't have the features or functionality of the Incredible or the X and feels and handles a lot like the original, but it does have Flash and a better keyboard so it's hard not to recommend this phone. If you are more of a camera/video person then I suggest the X or the Incredible but otherwise if you are looking for a Droid then look no further.
The Droid R2-D2's only difference is the phone's back and camera look just like R2-D2, it has Star Wars themed wallpaper and a bunch of Star Wars games, pictures and videos pre-loaded into it. It's slightly more expensive then the Droid 2 but if you are a Star Wars nerd and want the best Droid out there then get this.
Now we are out of the Droid's and into Verizon's other Android based phones. There are only three available, or at least available for me to buy, and two out of the three are actually older then most of the other Verizon Android based phones, the original Droid being the oldest.
First up is the LG VS740 aka the LG Ally-
The LG Ally is LG's first Android based phone. It's the cheapest out of all of Verizon's Android based phones (running about 50 dollars usually) and has a QWERTY keyboard. It has a 3.1 mega pixel camera and video (not HD though), the screen is smaller then all the others and it's only distinguishing feature is the Socialite Application which is like MOTOBLUR but simpler. It integrates your Twitter, Facebook, and E-mail altogether into one place. It doesn't have the depth or functionality of MOTOBLUR or other versions of this kind of program but it was pretty simple to use.
This is the simple person's Android based phone. Not simple stupid but simple as in it doesn't have all the bells and whistles of the other phones but is still a fully functional Smartphone. If you don't want to spend a lot of money then this one is for you.
Next is the Motorola Devour-
The only difference between the Devour and the Ally is the Devour has MOTOBLUR and runs on Android 1.6 while the Ally runs on 2.1. MOTOBLUR is a simple and easy way to integrate your texts, E-mails, Facebook, Twitter and all social networking sites into one place for you to use. It has a 3.0 mega pixel camera and video, and runs about 20 dollars more then the Ally.
Personally I would just go with the Ally because while the Ally may not have all the bells and whistles (neither does this one) it has fully functional and fast internet (sans Flash) which this one doesn't have. Unless you live and die by social networking sites then I suggest skipping this one, especially considering it's price. You don't get your money's worth with this one.
Finally is the Samsung Fascinate-
The Samsung Fascinate is the newest Verizon phone and the Verizon equivalent of the Samsung i9000 Galaxy S series of phones. It has full screen customization up to seven pages, 5.0 mega pixel camera with a ton of extra features (auto-focus, face indicator, panoramic shot, action shot, stop motion, smile shot and self shot) as well as 720p HD video with instant Youtube upload features. It's also one of, if not the lightest and thinnest Android based phones out there and has a ton of features like Buddies Now (let's you look at what your circle of friends are up to), Feeds and Updates (Twitter and Facebook Updates to the minute), Weather Clock, FM Tuner and a ton of apps (which the others have but not to the level that this has).
It looks, feels and acts a lot like an iPhone 3 and if there wasn't the little Android button or the Verizon thing at the top you probably could have fooled me into thinking it was one. It doesn't have a QWERTY keyboard but the swipe technology works great and the buttons themselves feel great. You don't make a ton of mistakes typing with this one.
This is my personal phone and I'm having a blast with it. It's top of the line so it's pretty expensive but it's totally worth it. Unless you absolutely need Flash or the camera with the most mega pixel's out there then pick this one up now.
Verizon has a ton of great Android based phones and all of them fit to a person's need. Besides the Devour, there are reasons for everyone to get any of the phones. Depending on your price range, frequency of pictures or internet use there is a phone out there for you right now.
Well that about does it for this edition of Phoning It In. Tune in next week when I look at the new Windows 7 phones!
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