As is the case with many other mobile users, we’re trying to decide whether to switch from Verizon to AT&T in order to get an iPhone. AT&T doesn’t come in very well at our house because we’re on the back-side of a north-facing hill that shadows us from the closest ATT tower. It would normally be a no-brainer, since Verizon has beat all others here in terms of speed and reliability.
We’ve learned that AT&T, Verizon and ComCast are all crooks. They regularly employ bait-n-switch and false advertising practices. My wife is in a battle right now with Verizon who offered the business (in writing) a $79 phone/internet deal. We switched from Comcast, set up new equipment, yada, yada — but when the bill came it was more than double. The voice on the phone sez “No, we never had a $79 deal.” But they agreed to lower it, and change the account. Next bill: double. So, on the phone they tell you they’re changing it, but it never gets changed. Unfortunately, Verizon at the office is much faster and consistently faster than Comcast, even though Comcast claims the service is ‘faster’ than Verizon. Go figure. Any of them will say anything to get a customer.
Our “trial month” on the iPhone runs out in just a few days, and now we’re really at odds. Our son points out all the deliriously cool apps and plug-ins available and we drool with anticipation. This is his third – one stolen at a bar, another crushed in a skateboarding spill. (I suspect that there aren’t any mobile devices available that will survive being the landing pad when a 170lb skateboarder hits pavement.)
We took the iPhone along on our road trip down to Key West, and had a blast. During the trip, ATT was clear and strong in the cities. From Lauderdale, down through the keys, we would enter areas where AT&T was blank, but Verizon had five bars… then a switch. But once we passed Islamorada, AT&T had five bars and Verizon zero. Once on Key West, Verizon came back again, and both were good.
We went and tested the Droid, and just could not get over how much better the iPhone interface and usability is. So, as far as the elegance of the device, the iPhone wins hands down. The Droid even seems a little clunky — a step backwards in technology — as if designed by a committee. (Over the years, I have learned that committees are never effective, and always late.)
My wife will probably keep the iPhone. But I will not buy — yet. I’m still waiting on the ‘ultimate’ device.
Taking the Droid on the road
David Haskin of Computerworld writes of his experiences …
I’ve lusted for an iPhone ever since it first went on sale — but the nearest AT&T tower to my home is about 10 miles away. So I use Verizon Wireless and an ancient (four years old!) Motorola Q smartphone. That’s why I was excited to receive a Motorola Droid review unit. Could Droid be the iPhone substitute that I — and undoubtedly many other Verizon subscribers — have been longing for?
Catch up with David’s account at www.SFGate.com
Ultimate smartphone smackdown: Motorola Droid vs. iPhone 3GS
Spectator.com’s author Angelo Carosioa presents what appears to be a fairly level look at the iPhone vs. the Droid… he writes:
The buzzword in the cell phone industry since 2007 has been “iPhone Killer.” Since mere days after the release of the iPhone the other players in the industry were talking about how they were going to compete with the amazing piece of technology. Many have been up to bat since then: LG Prada, T-Mobile G1, Palm Pre, Nokia N90, the list seems to go on and on. The one thing they all have in common? They failed miserably at replicating the great experience that Apple offers with the iPhone. They just weren’t the same.
Enter the holy trifecta of Motorola, Google, and Verizon Wireless. Motorola is looking for a bump in business after they have failed to see success with any device since their RAZR, Google is looking for a way to push their Android OS to new levels of popularity, and Verizon Wireless is just looking to carry a smartphone that people actually want to buy. The three have teamed up to create the Droid, the kickoff phone for version 2.0 of Android as well as a new Verizon campaign to bring Android devices to the carrier. Is this the perfect storm needed to knock the iPhone off its pedestal? We’re going to compare the Droid and the iPhone in a category-by-category, side-by-side battle to the–death? Let’s begin after the jump.
This is a great article, but you have to watch out for pitfalls.
The computer industry is basically two kinds of people. Those who know about Google and those who don’t. I suspect both Haskin and Carosioa is two who don’t.
Syncing your contacts and information on the Droid requires a Gmail account, and requires uploading all your data to Google, then back to your computer. Those who don’t know about Google never give this a second thought. For those who do know about Google, this becomes an alarming red flashing light, buzzers and bells going off. For those of you who don’t know, Google takes unlimited permissions and license to read, capture, archive, leverage, utilize, and even sell any and all data uploaded, including any personal data, contacts, habits, where you surf, who you call, when you called them, and so forth. Uncomforting to say the least. Yes, other phone companies do the same. But it’s my understanding they don’t actually use the data except in law enforcement issues. Google, on the other hand is the king of metrics — of tracking everyone, very specifically. Google leverages all this market data into their search engine advertising scheme. Additionally, if you follow my anti-spam tracking, you’ve seen numerous hacks and breaches involving Google, as well as their open willingness to include phishing and cybercrime activities in their groups and search results. It will be interesting to see how much more spam and criminal attacks take place on the Droid as opposed to the iPhone. So for me, I wouldn’t touch the Droid with a ten-foot pole.
Read: Carosioa’s smack down (Be sure to read the comments!)
At any rate, Carosioa ends up with
WINNER: Verizon — Hardware: Tie — Display: Droid — OS: Droid — App Store: iPhone — Camera: iPhone — Network: Droid
For me, syncing is a true issue — do I really want to share my personal life and the lives of my friends with Google? Service is a real issue: Verizon’s “unlimited” service is NOT unlimited. Note the small print on service fees and surcharges for through-put. Another issue is the Droid has a more limited battery life and does not work outside the U.S.
You can please some of the people all the time, and all of the people some of the time, but ….
Thanks for reading
Editor / Publisher: InfoManager
