As I approach the end of my two year contract with AT&T, naturally I’m considering the next cellphone. Do I get the new iPhone 4 or do I try something else? While I love my iPhone and will keep this 3g around at the end of the contract and use it like a iPod Touch (handy for handing to a bored kid), I’m not sure if I want to replace it with the new iPhone. I’m not that much of a fangirl that I HAVE to replace the old iPhone with a new one. Yes it has been a fave tech toy since I bought it almost two years ago.
What am I considering? The Motorola Droid X.
I read an excellent review of it here. As a developer, this phone has two advantages for me over the iPhone:
- Apps are written in Java – which as a C# developer I pretty much already know as opposed to Objective-C which has some similarities but is far more different and is a far bigger learning curve. While learning yet another language is not a bad thing, I could be up and developing Android apps far faster.
- The distribution of Droid apps is an open market – not closed like Apple. I don’t believe I would have to pay $100 to even get the SDK let alone distribute any application I do happen to eventually turn out.
- Since the language is Java, I could develop apps either on my Macs or a PC, depending on how the mood was flowing and which computer I actually felt like carrying around. With the iPhone, I was locked into a Mac. Now this is not necessarily a bad thing as I do heart my Macs, but my netbook is far lighter to
schlepcarry than my MacBook.
That’s the short list. I’m sure, given enough time, I can come up with a few more reasons. On the other hand, I’ve invested a bunch in iPhone apps. Fortunately, that won’t go to waste as I’m still holding onto the 3G and I’ve got the beloved iPad that can take advantage of all.
Anyone have an android phone and can offer up advice either way? I have some time to do further research as my contract ends in early August and the X ships finally in mid-July. I don’t want to be paying early termination like I did when I made the jump from Sprint to AT&T (though it was worth it for the iPhone). I wonder if I could get a temporary number from Verizon and then port the old number from AT&T when that contract ends… hmmmm.
Oh and since the iOS4 update, my battery indicator is flaky. Unless I reboot the phone, the indicator is pretty much stuck. Awesome. Hope that patch fix is soon.
Wait, what is that you’re saying? This is a crafty blog? Hmm. I better show some crafty pictures then post haste! Would a picture of two different crafts make up for the geektalk above?
The sock is the Roundabout Socks (rav). I finished the first one on Saturday and started the second yesterday during my morning commute. The yarn is mmMalabrigo Sock in Stonechat colorway.
The spinning is ITW Merino-Silk in the Autumn in Burgundy colorway. I’ve moved to the high speed whorl and bobbins on my Matchless. I’m going to two ply this stuff and hopefully get enough yardage for a decent lace project.
Okay, that’s all for today.
Craft on!
9 responses so far ↓
1 Donna // Jun 29, 2010 at 12:49 pm
Lots of things to consider with the possible new phone purchase. Your apps wouldn’t go to waste since you do have the Ipad. I am an iphone junkie so I don’t have any insight to give on the Droid, but I am sure you will got lots of feedback.
Cool sock!!
2 Ina // Jun 29, 2010 at 1:50 pm
Nice fibery stuffs. I’m amazed the Droid X can be a wi-fi hotspot.
3 --Deb // Jun 29, 2010 at 5:50 pm
Considering that I’ve been using the same, old-school flip cell phone for something like 6 years now, I’m no help here whatsoever.
4 jess // Jun 29, 2010 at 8:45 pm
I’m a sw dev too and when the first android phone came out, I got one (htc g1/dream on t-mobile). I’ve been really happy with it as a phone and device (I work from home, so having a phone that functions as a phone AND can handle calendaring and the like is a necessity) and I’ve written a few android apps. The Android SDK is pretty good. I’ve found that there seem to be a LOT more free apps for Android than for the iPhone.
I do know people who have had trouble with Android’s UI, especially if they are coming from the iPhone. It might be worth going out and playing with an Android phone (even if not the Droid X) a bit.
I have serious issues with the way Apple handles iPhone/iPod/iPad apps… which was a big part of my decision to go with the g1 almost two years ago.
5 Sairy // Jun 30, 2010 at 12:22 pm
DH just got the HTC droid incredible and his only complaint about it so far is the sucky battery life, but apparently this is a known problem and is going to be fixed with newer generations (where have we heard this before?).
My new every 2 is in October, not sure I would wait for iphone on verizon if the rumors that are hitting bloomberg today are true – and even then I have had such bad luck with motorola phones that I’m not considering the droid X, but would pick the incredible instead.
6 Janette // Jul 1, 2010 at 11:34 pm
With Sprint I get a new phone every year. In Feb I was considering the Samsung Moment or the Blackberry Curve 8530. I couldn’t cut the dark fruit ties so I went with the Curve. This Feb, I think an Android phone will be making its way home with me. Several of my coworkers have them and they love them. The battery thing seems to be universal with the droid.
7 lynne s of oz // Jul 2, 2010 at 4:01 am
You’ve sold me on the android! LOL
And no problems with dropout “cos you are holding it the wrong way.” Grr, cos I am left handed and the iphone4 doesn’t like lefties. “Buy our nifty case so you don’t have that problem.”
why not just engineer it properly in the first place/
8 Laurie // Jul 4, 2010 at 3:24 pm
Husband has Droid (Nexus) and is happy. He has not done app dev. I’m happy with iPhone but not happy to hear that the next time I hotsync, my battery indicator won’t work. Is that what you are saying?? Sheesh.
LOVE your laceweight. Let the wheel do the work, sez Judith, and you did. Can’t wait to see the ply. Looks like a colorway homology on my screen.
9 Paula // Jul 20, 2010 at 12:14 pm
So I walked in the Verizon store, said, “I want a Droid X,” and was out in 10 minutes, tops. Hee hee. Fed Ex will bring it soon. I updated my 3rd gen 64GB iPod Touch to iOS4 the same day. (iTunes locked up, so still don’t have new music) I still get to play with iPhone apps. I am a geek! Put a QR code on my Facebook profile. Love this post. I have been sock knitting, too.