New smartphones coming in Aug - which are your favorites?

xmacro · August 2011

I'm about to jump on a new smartphone and try to rejigger my Verizon contract for a smartphone - I've heard about the Samsung
Galaxy S II and it's phenomenal reviews, called by some reviewers the best smartphone on the planet, but it only has 3G (rumored to have 4g LTE for the US release, but unconfirmed), but then there's the much anticipated/much hyped Motorola Droid Bionic which was supposed to be a blowout phenom at CES in January, and then there's the Apple iPhone 5 (really don't want an apple product, but I'm considering it).

Just wondering if anyone else is in the market for a new smartphone and what they're considering?

alienmisprint · August 2011

I just picked up the HTC EVO 4G back on the 4th of July (on sale for $30) and I love it. Not sure if I'd go with the newer, 3-D one though.

JonathanE · August 2011

I'll be sticking with my "old" iPhone 4 for a great while. It's a solid platform and does everything I need it to. I'm just glad to see all of the competition. When iPhones first started getting big there wasn't any clear competition but now you don't hear a lot of Apple geeks saying that they are taking over the world anymore!

JDE

Lasabar · August 2011

Most every Android maker puts their own spin on Android to make it their own product and different (Android the operating system is Open Source, so people/manufacturer's can change it how they want)

That being said you'd have to try the phones out first and see how you like the interaction of the phones.
Currently I'd say go with the Bionic with the list you've given. Samsung Galaxy S II is sweet and has the specs locked up for speed (DUAL 1.2Ghz, 1GB of RAM, 1080P HD Video) but the Samsung software is a bottleneck and the resolution is like that of all the other phones
The Droid Bionic is a little light on the specs comparatively (DUAL 1Ghz, 512MB of RAM 720P HD Video) but it has much better screen resolution and I like the Motorola Droid Software.... Again, on paper the Galaxy S II is AWESOME! But right now my money would be on the Droid Bionic until I play with a Galaxy phone

lilwing88 · August 2011

I'm currently rockin the EVO 4g 3D. Loving it. The 3D option is pretty cool, but other than that its still a great phone. I have Sprint and as far as I know they have the only "truly unlimited" data plan. I think Verizon has a monthly cap of 4gigs. My wife has the original EVO. It's $100 cheaper and just as good of a phone, minus the 3D option.

dennisking · August 2011

If you go with Droid, you can't go wrong. Media is important to me as is the ability to take it with me on a card which an Iphone can't do. I've had the Sony X10 since Dec and I am really happy. Same size as an Iphone so its smaller than the Motorola and Samsung by a lot. 720p hd vid and 8.1mp camera. It doesn't get a lot of press but check it out. The nice thing about droid is that once it is rooted, you can run any phone on any service provider for the most part

t_evan50 · August 2011

Id go anythhing except motorola. I'm ussing the droid 2 and Moto has completelly forgot about this phone. Its got more bugs than my grandmas house and not one ssystem update in over 6 months. They pump out so many new models that they forget about the people that are stuck with their junk. They are the Thompson of the phone world.

ps this message was typed on the droid 2 and that's why all the doublle letters. Known bug yet to be fixed....junk

Redtailhawkoz · August 2011

t_evan50:
Id go anythhing except motorola. I'm ussing the droid 2 and Moto has completelly forgot about this phone. Its got more bugs than my grandmas house and not one ssystem update in over 6 months. They pump out so many new models that they forget about the people that are stuck with their junk. They are the Thompson of the phone world.

ps this message was typed on the droid 2 and that's why all the doublle letters. Known bug yet to be fixed....junk

I am loving my droid X but the bugs are there and i am about to throw it at the **** sales rp!

xmacro · August 2011

Loving the responses so far; this smartphone is gonna last me for 2 years - I'm (usually) not the the kind of guy to chase the latest-greatest, and this sucker is gonna be my first smartphone, so I want it to last; although the Bionic is supposed to be Verizon's flagship model, I'm hesitant to jump on it if it won't be supported in a year. So far, I'm REALLY hoping Galaxy SII has 4G - for a 2 yr commitment, I want serious speed (don't know what I need it for, I just know I want it)

beatnic · August 2011

THERE IS ONLY 1! iPhone
Hell, Apple has more money than the federal government. LOL.

stephen_hannibal · August 2011

beatnic:
THERE IS ONLY 1! iPhone
Hell, Apple has more money than the federal government. LOL.

I was reading that... oddly enough they have better products and service too.

Rhamlin · August 2011

Heck I'm still using the iphone3G dang thing just won't break. But I'll probably get the 4G when 5 comes out, I always like to wait till the bugs are worked out. Plus I'm a cheapskate according to my wife.

xmacro · August 2011

After combing through reviews and more personal experiences, I'm figured to drop the Bionic and Samsung Galaxy S2 from consideration, and I'm probably gonna go with an HTC Vigor, the replacement to the Thunderbolt

From you guys and others, I've heard that Motorola doesn't support their products after a year or so, and if I'm on the hook for a 2yr contract, I'm only gonna go with a company that supports their older stuff; I've dropped Samsung from consideration because although the phone has been called the best smartphone on the planet and has gotten phenomenal reviews, I've heard a lot of rumbling that Samsung is slow as molasses when releasing the newest firmware; apparently they take months, or even a year, to release the newest Android firmware on their phones, whereas HTC is apparently one of the fastest to take the new Android releases, adapt them, then release them for their users.

So unless anything major changes, it seems HTC Vigor is it for me

phobicsquirrel · August 2011

I have an evo and like it though I don't like how it lags every now and again. I was like you, wanting a galaxy 2 however it's not a new phone and while it is just hitting the US here shortly it's been around for a bit across the pond. I hear there are some good phones coming out near the end of the year that will put the galaxy 2 to shame. Personally I'd wait.

BTW why are you extending your contract with verizon? I mean you do no that they are doing price tiers now? I for one wouldn't want to continue to support them after both what they are doing with their pricing and what they are doing to their workers. Then again if say Sprint has bad service in your area and verizon has better than maybe, I mean no since on having really poor service.

Oh btw are you planning on rooting your phone? if so I'd stay away from droids, they have locked bootloaders. If your not planning on rooting then any phone will work really.

phobicsquirrel · August 2011

xmacro:
After combing through reviews and more personal experiences, I'm figured to drop the Bionic and Samsung Galaxy S2 from consideration, and I'm probably gonna go with an HTC Vigor, the replacement to the Thunderbolt

From you guys and others, I've heard that Motorola doesn't support their products after a year or so, and if I'm on the hook for a 2yr contract, I'm only gonna go with a company that supports their older stuff; I've dropped Samsung from consideration because although the phone has been called the best smartphone on the planet and has gotten phenomenal reviews, I've heard a lot of rumbling that Samsung is slow as molasses when releasing the newest firmware; apparently they take months, or even a year, to release the newest Android firmware on their phones, whereas HTC is apparently one of the fastest to take the new Android releases, adapt them, then release them for their users.

So unless anything major changes, it seems HTC Vigor is it for me

Your right about samsung, however if you root your phone then you won't have to wait that long for them to push out firmware. However keep this in mind, my best friend has an epic and while he had his phone loaded with 2.1, once he upgraded to 2.2 he started having lag issues with it. New firmware isn't always the best. He rooted his phone too, so he got the upgrade a bit early however I've noticed the same thing with my evo with the new firmwares.

xmacro · August 2011

phobicsquirrel:
I have an evo and like it though I don't like how it lags every now and again. I was like you, wanting a galaxy 2 however it's not a new phone and while it is just hitting the US here shortly it's been around for a bit across the pond. I hear there are some good phones coming out near the end of the year that will put the galaxy 2 to shame. Personally I'd wait.

I've seen the leaked Verizon release schedule, and nothing else really interests me; the HTC Vigor is posting some impressive stats with the dual-core, 1.5GHz chipset, and rumored Beats by Dr. Dre audio; I know ATT has some impressive phones coming down the pipe (Atrix, I think?), but I'm probably gonna stick with Verizon

phobicsquirrel:
BTW why are you extending your contract with verizon? I mean you do no that they are doing price tiers now? I for one wouldn't want to continue to support them after both what they are doing with their pricing and what they are doing to their workers. Then again if say Sprint has bad service in your area and verizon has better than maybe, I mean no since on having really poor service.

Short answer - coverage. Sprint comes in clear as a bell here in Tampa, but if I move, I want something that'll give me bars in a remote area. Also, reading the paper, it seems Sprint is getting more and more beat up by ATT/Verizon ever since T-Mobile sold off.

The tiers don't really bother me - don't get me wrong, I'm kciking myself for not getting an unlimited plan before they cut them, and it's BS that they charge so much for the plans above 2GB ($50 for 4 GB/$80 for 10GB? Total BS) - but 2 GBs a month is plenty for me; I don't watch many videos on my phone or use it for gaming (mostly web surfing), so although I'd love the option to get unlimited downloads, realistically, it's not an issue since I watch most videos/game from my laptop.

As for the labor issues, it goes both ways; the unions are harrassing the replacements and cutting cables, Verizon's playing hardball with their labor contracts, trying to cut down on its landline dept which has been posting losses as less and less ppl use landlines - just typical bickering, nothing that'll affect my purchase decision, especially since any phone I buy, I'll need to live with it for 2 yrs, well after the labor disputes are settled

phobicsquirrel:
Oh btw are you planning on rooting your phone? if so I'd stay away from droids, they have locked bootloaders. If your not planning on rooting then any phone will work really.

Much appreciated; I'm not sure if I wanna root it or not; mostly scared that I'll do something stupid, so I'm gonna read up on it some more before deciding

phobicsquirrel:
Your right about samsung, however if you root your phone then you won't have to wait that long for them to push out firmware. However keep this in mind, my best friend has an epic and while he had his phone loaded with 2.1, once he upgraded to 2.2 he started having lag issues with it. New firmware isn't always the best. He rooted his phone too, so he got the upgrade a bit early however I've noticed the same thing with my evo with the new firmwares.

damn, that's giving me second thoughts; the only real reason I'd want to root is to get rid of that retarded CityID, and to get some wifi tethering going on; might have to think about this for awhile; thanks again!

Lasabar · August 2011

Having been in the Cell Phone business for the past few years one phone excites me...

The HTC Holiday (code name) it is a dual core 1.2 GHZ phone, with a 4.5" screen with Qhd resolution, more memory than the Galaxy S2 and etc....

BUT the main reason I like this is that it is a 4G LTE phone.

But NATE... Verizon already has 4G OUT!
Yes, but when Verizon's 4G switches to 3G (old network due to coverage) the Verizon 3G is about 1.1mbps vs. the HSPA+ from ATT at up to 14.4 (or most likely 6mbps realistically) That means that the ATT LTE phones will have a range of 6mbps-25mbps where as the Verizon LTE phones have a range of 1.0mbps-25mbps.

PLUS that HTC software, IMHO, is the best without problems/lag...

The main reason for Samsungs LAG is that the logic processor in the TOUCHWIZ layer over the stock android is a 1-in 1-out type process... As you type an email, the text may become laggy for it's updating the WEATHER at that moment... Basically, Samsung wrote the software to only execute one command at a time, thus resulting in some lag, not due to hardware, but software...

I want a Verizon phone badly, due to 4G right now, but ATT has committed to having LTE phones out by the holidays so that will be the fastest, best written software for me

stephen_hannibal · August 2011

And then this... http://news.yahoo.com/google-buy-motorola-mobility-12-5-billion-113914772.html

d-rob · August 2011

I've got an iPhone and the droid x. Gotta say the IPhone is by far my fav. With the iPhone 5 firmware coming out it sounds like whatever apple is lacking currently they are going to steal from android.

stephen_hannibal · August 2011

d-rob:
I've got an iPhone and the droid x. Gotta say the IPhone is by far my fav. With the iPhone 5 firmware coming out it sounds like whatever apple is lacking currently they are going to steal from android.

Like what?

d-rob · August 2011

stephen_hannibal:
d-rob:
I've got an iPhone and the droid x. Gotta say the IPhone is by far my fav. With the iPhone 5 firmware coming out it sounds like whatever apple is lacking currently they are going to steal from android.
Like what?

Apple is going to implore androids alert system instead of their current pop up system for alerts. They are also changing the way text messaging is handled while in another program. There are a couple of other things I cant remember but I think the greatest innovations in programming are nearly always plagiarism.

xmacro · August 2011

Honestly, I'm passing on the iphone 5 for 2 reasons:

1) Iphone 4 vs 5, is from what I've read, like the upgrade from Iphone 3 to iPhone3gs - not much more than a tweak; the iPhone 5 is only going to be 3G because Apple is unhappy that the current generation of LTE chipsets are too bulky and would make the iphone thicker than they want it to be - aesthetics over functionality, essentially, so they're not going to allow 4G chips into their phones, preferring to wait until 2012, when whatever company it is that makes them is rumored to be coming out with a 2nd gen chipset that's supposed to be thinner

2) The Apple fanbase annoys the living crap out of me - the holier-than-thou attitude of so many Apple adherents just makes me wanna choke the living crap out of so many of them, that I just couldn't take being associated with the kind of cultish worship that most iphone users have for Steve Jobs, a total control freak who won't allow any impure software like flash, to desecrate his sacred tablets.

EDIT - not saying you're one of those types, but I've seen so many of these types of people, that I just can't stomach them anymore

xmacro · August 2011

Lasabar:
Having been in the Cell Phone business for the past few years one phone excites me...

The HTC Holiday (code name) it is a dual core 1.2 GHZ phone, with a 4.5" screen with Qhd resolution, more memory than the Galaxy S2 and etc....

BUT the main reason I like this is that it is a 4G LTE phone.

*cough* HTC Vigor on Verizon (aka - Ruby on T-Mobile) stats:

- 4G LTE
- dual-core 1.5 GHz
- 4.3" qHD (rumored 720p)
- 1 GB RAM
- 8-mega-pixel camera
- 2-megapixel front-facing camera
- Bluetooth 3.0

Not sure about Ruby, but the Vigor has more or less been confirmed to have Beats by Dr. Dre audio hardware in it as well

EDIT - Ya got me on the ATT vs Verizon, but my family is on Verizon (free calls!), and I need coverage more than 4g if I ever go in the boonies (I'm in Tampa, so 4G is guaranteed for me unless I go somewhere else).

jsnake · August 2011

I just got the HTC EVO 3D about a month ago and I love it. The 3D feature is cool but not what the phone is all about. It isn't just a gimmick. People just seem to focus on the 3D part which really is cool. I have great photos and videos of my kids. I won't get into all the features but I won't be switching again for a couple years at least.

Luko · August 2011

I have a samsung galaxy s and just recently got a iphone4. I love the galaxy s, but the iPhone is the champ. There are a few features about the droid os I prefer over the iPhone, but there iPhone hardware is superior, and it doesn't have the same annoying lag I've found with my galaxy and heard other droid users complain about.

Lasabar · August 2011

xmacro:
Lasabar:
Having been in the Cell Phone business for the past few years one phone excites me...

The HTC Holiday (code name) it is a dual core 1.2 GHZ phone, with a 4.5" screen with Qhd resolution, more memory than the Galaxy S2 and etc....

BUT the main reason I like this is that it is a 4G LTE phone.

*cough* HTC Vigor on Verizon (aka - Ruby on T-Mobile) stats:

- 4G LTE
- dual-core 1.5 GHz
- 4.3" qHD (rumored 720p)
- 1 GB RAM
- 8-mega-pixel camera
- 2-megapixel front-facing camera
- Bluetooth 3.0

Not sure about Ruby, but the Vigor has more or less been confirmed to have Beats by Dr. Dre audio hardware in it as well

EDIT - Ya got me on the ATT vs Verizon, but my family is on Verizon (free calls!), and I need coverage more than 4g if I ever go in the boonies (I'm in Tampa, so 4G is guaranteed for me unless I go somewhere else).

The nice thing about the cell phone industry is that it is getting hotter and hotter, the first BOOM was when it became affordable to have, now the second BOOM is that the phones are cool!

I've always been into phones and 1.5 years ago I imported a HTC phone from Australia for it was the first phone to have the 1Ghz processor and the 4.3" screen (It was the HD2 on Tmobile as well) but ATT did not have it.
Now I also wanted 3G speeds and Tmobile's bands aren't on the same 3G so I found that the Telstra Company in Australia works on the 850Mhz 3G band and the phone comes unlocked so I imported it.

The beauty is now that EVERYONE is excited about phones again so it's easy to find basically the same phone on each carrier... The one thing I don't like about he Vigor is that it's a 4.3" screen... I'm a big guy, I need big SCREENS!

xmacro · August 2011

Lasabar:
xmacro:
Lasabar:
Having been in the Cell Phone business for the past few years one phone excites me...

The HTC Holiday (code name) it is a dual core 1.2 GHZ phone, with a 4.5" screen with Qhd resolution, more memory than the Galaxy S2 and etc....

BUT the main reason I like this is that it is a 4G LTE phone.

*cough* HTC Vigor on Verizon (aka - Ruby on T-Mobile) stats:

- 4G LTE
- dual-core 1.5 GHz
- 4.3" qHD (rumored 720p)
- 1 GB RAM
- 8-mega-pixel camera
- 2-megapixel front-facing camera
- Bluetooth 3.0

Not sure about Ruby, but the Vigor has more or less been confirmed to have Beats by Dr. Dre audio hardware in it as well

EDIT - Ya got me on the ATT vs Verizon, but my family is on Verizon (free calls!), and I need coverage more than 4g if I ever go in the boonies (I'm in Tampa, so 4G is guaranteed for me unless I go somewhere else).

The nice thing about the cell phone industry is that it is getting hotter and hotter, the first BOOM was when it became affordable to have, now the second BOOM is that the phones are cool!

I've always been into phones and 1.5 years ago I imported a HTC phone from Australia for it was the first phone to have the 1Ghz processor and the 4.3" screen (It was the HD2 on Tmobile as well) but ATT did not have it.
Now I also wanted 3G speeds and Tmobile's bands aren't on the same 3G so I found that the Telstra Company in Australia works on the 850Mhz 3G band and the phone comes unlocked so I imported it.

The beauty is now that EVERYONE is excited about phones again so it's easy to find basically the same phone on each carrier... The one thing I don't like about he Vigor is that it's a 4.3" screen... I'm a big guy, I need big SCREENS!

heh, funny how technology works, eh? I remember when I got a computer with 2 GB of memory - I was freaking ecstatic!! "Holy hell, 2 GIGS!! I'll NEVER fill this sucker up!!" is what I recall saying. What a difference a decade makes

As for screen size, I actually think it's a bit big; I like my phones to look like, well, phones - they're turning into mini-computers!! (do I sound like a troglodyte?) It's amazing what they can do and all, but the sheer size is annoying when I'm trying to stick it in my pocket or coat pocket; I'm still waiting for the down-sizing to begin. Ain't that always the cycle? Bigger = more powerful when it first comes out, then smaller = more powerful and big = outdated? Happened with speakers, computers, cell phones, etc - I'm still waiting for the small-wave to hit smartphones

cabinetmaker · September 2011

Samsung Infuse here. Love it. My wife had just upgraded to the iphone4 12 days before I got this phone. She liked it so much she swapped the iphone 4 for the Samsung Infuse.

phobicsquirrel · September 2011

d-rob:
stephen_hannibal:
d-rob:
I've got an iPhone and the droid x. Gotta say the IPhone is by far my fav. With the iPhone 5 firmware coming out it sounds like whatever apple is lacking currently they are going to steal from android.
Like what?

Apple is going to implore androids alert system instead of their current pop up system for alerts. They are also changing the way text messaging is handled while in another program. There are a couple of other things I cant remember but I think the greatest innovations in programming are nearly always plagiarism.

Iphone 5 I have a feeling won't sell as many units as apple is hoping for. In the latest numbers, more people are jumping onto android. One of the reasons why apple is putting suit against samsung, and other companies. Kinda funny actually. If apple got of their whole, let's lock people out and let's micromanage our stuff then I think they would bring more people over. Don't get me wrong, the iphone is a cool phone and their OS is nice however they need to make their stuff more open.

phobicsquirrel · September 2011

xmacro:
phobicsquirrel:
I have an evo and like it though I don't like how it lags every now and again. I was like you, wanting a galaxy 2 however it's not a new phone and while it is just hitting the US here shortly it's been around for a bit across the pond. I hear there are some good phones coming out near the end of the year that will put the galaxy 2 to shame. Personally I'd wait.
I've seen the leaked Verizon release schedule, and nothing else really interests me; the HTC Vigor is posting some impressive stats with the dual-core, 1.5GHz chipset, and rumored Beats by Dr. Dre audio; I know ATT has some impressive phones coming down the pipe (Atrix, I think?), but I'm probably gonna stick with Verizon

phobicsquirrel:
BTW why are you extending your contract with verizon? I mean you do no that they are doing price tiers now? I for one wouldn't want to continue to support them after both what they are doing with their pricing and what they are doing to their workers. Then again if say Sprint has bad service in your area and verizon has better than maybe, I mean no since on having really poor service.
Short answer - coverage. Sprint comes in clear as a bell here in Tampa, but if I move, I want something that'll give me bars in a remote area. Also, reading the paper, it seems Sprint is getting more and more beat up by ATT/Verizon ever since T-Mobile sold off.

The tiers don't really bother me - don't get me wrong, I'm kciking myself for not getting an unlimited plan before they cut them, and it's BS that they charge so much for the plans above 2GB ($50 for 4 GB/$80 for 10GB? Total BS) - but 2 GBs a month is plenty for me; I don't watch many videos on my phone or use it for gaming (mostly web surfing), so although I'd love the option to get unlimited downloads, realistically, it's not an issue since I watch most videos/game from my laptop.

As for the labor issues, it goes both ways; the unions are harrassing the replacements and cutting cables, Verizon's playing hardball with their labor contracts, trying to cut down on its landline dept which has been posting losses as less and less ppl use landlines - just typical bickering, nothing that'll affect my purchase decision, especially since any phone I buy, I'll need to live with it for 2 yrs, well after the labor disputes are settled
phobicsquirrel:
Oh btw are you planning on rooting your phone? if so I'd stay away from droids, they have locked bootloaders. If your not planning on rooting then any phone will work really.
Much appreciated; I'm not sure if I wanna root it or not; mostly scared that I'll do something stupid, so I'm gonna read up on it some more before deciding

phobicsquirrel:
Your right about samsung, however if you root your phone then you won't have to wait that long for them to push out firmware. However keep this in mind, my best friend has an epic and while he had his phone loaded with 2.1, once he upgraded to 2.2 he started having lag issues with it. New firmware isn't always the best. He rooted his phone too, so he got the upgrade a bit early however I've noticed the same thing with my evo with the new firmwares.
damn, that's giving me second thoughts; the only real reason I'd want to root is to get rid of that retarded CityID, and to get some wifi tethering going on; might have to think about this for awhile; thanks again!

The reason why I mentioned tiered plans is that if you do root your phone, and use it to tether it is very easy to go over your cap. I hear you about spring, however over the last couple of years it's got better around me with outside the city. They are also changing their network in the next year too.

New smartphones coming in Aug - which are your favorites?

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