Considering the Fascinate... but should I consider the Incredible?

[epic_engineering]

I had the HTC Eris with sence UI and I absolutely loved it. Finally when 2.2 Came out I rooted it and lost it.. For a little while it sucked then while searching for Sence style widgets I came across Launcher pro and Beautiful widgets . The combo its a super awesome UI!!!!!!!

When I got the Droid2 day 1 the Launcher pro plus was installed and then when I switch to the Fascinate it was installed. Haven't looked back at sence again...

And by the way, The fascinate is the device I'd choose. my X has the Incredible and its a cool phone but I'd still choose the Samsung over it any day.

 

[ppazz1101]

Sweet. Well my Fascinate will be here tomorrow. Ordered it today through work. Thanks for the input everyone!

 

[zero7starz]

I would opt for the fascinate. Here is why:

The 4.0" screen is somewhat of a sweet spot for everyone- its just big enough to accommodate those with large hands, and small enough not to overwhelm those with small hands. It displays color much better, and text is easier to read on it. Its light, it has a LED which is a handy flash light. It runs slightly faster. Bing is fixable. And it has a better camera. Not to mention, touchwiz is actually pretty cool- its the only Android overlay that will let you organize your app drawer and the home screen. My advise, get a case for it. Plus, most of the HTC widgets that people rave over you can download almost exact copies if not better ones.

I like the incredible don't get me wrong, its a great device and it looks super stylish. However, its too small for most men to use (so I've found during my days at work) the battery life is ultra terrible, more so than most other Android phones, and sometimes sense does things that just make no sense. Plus, it doesn't really have anything that any other Android phone has unless you're totally sold on that screen size.

 

[ppazz1101]

Yeah, I've started the search for cases already.

I never considered the size of the screen. That will make a difference. I have large hands and am used to a hardware keyboard. The Fascinate shouldn't be too bad with the bigger screen... at least I hope.

 

[WorldOfJohnboy]

Not to throw a wrench into the works, here, but since I purchase smartphones for my company, I've tried the Incredible, Droid X, Droid 2 and Fascinate and here's my order:

1. Droid X - best overall HW specs, decent Widgets, easily the best screen. Getting Froyo starting tomorrow. Only downfall may be the size.
2. Incredible -HTC has the best Widgets, and great combination of size, weight and screen.
3. Fascinate - I like the fact that Exchange (ActiveSync) mail comes with search feature and that the "Notifications" screen has the toggle buttons for BT, WiFi, GPS & Airplane, but the widgets are practically useless (the only one worth anything was the weather/clock app). Pros are the weight and screen size... this is practically an iPhone 3Gs clone with a bigger screen.
4. Droid 2 - Never could get over the slider keyboard, still don't know anyone that uses it either. For those that love the original Droid, I am sure it's perfect though. Too heavy and the screen looks small.

I did a side-by-side-by-side with the 1st three phones above and played the same exact YouTube video simultaneously. The Fascinate's colors and the pixelation were horrible in comparison to the Incredible and the DX's... My only problem with the HTC Incredible is that the screen seems very small and there is no SWYPE keyboard that comes with it. (Though you can purchase SlideIT for $3.)

I personally have the Droid X and love everything about it. Just my $.02

 

[dricacho]

Initially I had my eyes on the Droid X. Until I heard of the Samsung Fascinate. Comparing the two, screen size wise, the difference is minimal. I actually think that the extra .3" of screen made the DX look funny. The display quality blows the DX away, super amoled is more vivid and rich. The colors on the DX seems washed up. The brightness on the Fascinate need not be turned up much to view it comfortably hence better battery life. I think the front buttons on the DX will eventually pop off and fly off somewhere. I've seen the DX phones on display at this local VZ store already have missing front buttons. I have held both phones in my hand and the Fascinate just feels natural. The rounded corners of the phone's shape is very nice on the eyes. Although the camera on the Fascinate is only 5mp, the quality of the pics is pretty stunning. It's not just the MP that determines picture quality. Also the Fascinate records in HD at 30fps, the DX 24fps. The BT 3.0 on the Fascinate is also a plus. The only minus on the Fascinate to me is the 2GB ROM but I'll live. When FROYO comes around, the SDcard can utilized for this.

I almost forgot to mention that Youtube video quality is determined by data speed. Wifi > 3G, hence when you play Youtube videos while in Wifi, the quality is much better over 3G connection. I think that its thoughtful of Samsung to do this so that you won't have to wait forever for the video to buffer if you are on a slower connection. The video is viewable but not at the quality that everyone is accustomed to. I remember how painful the wait was for the video to buffer on my BB Storm over 3G.

 

[WorldOfJohnboy]

Initially I had my eyes on the Droid X. Until I heard of the Samsung Fascinate. Comparing the two, screen size wise, the difference is minimal. I actually think that the extra .3" of screen made the DX look funny. The display quality blows the DX away, super amoled is more vivid and rich. The colors on the DX seems washed up. The brightness on the Fascinate need not be turned up much to view it comfortably hence better battery life. I think the front buttons on the DX will eventually pop off and fly off somewhere. I've seen the DX phones on display at this local VZ store already have missing front buttons. I have held both phones in my hand and the Fascinate just feels natural. The rounded corners of the phone's shape is very nice on the eyes. Although the camera on the Fascinate is only 5mp, the quality of the pics is pretty stunning. It's not just the MP that determines picture quality. Also the Fascinate records in HD at 30fps, the DX 24fps. The BT 3.0 on the Fascinate is also a plus. The only minus on the Fascinate to me is the 2GB ROM but I'll live. When FROYO comes around, the SDcard can utilized for this.

I almost forgot to mention that Youtube video quality is determined by data speed. Wifi > 3G, hence when you play Youtube videos while in Wifi, the quality is much better over 3G connection. I think that its thoughtful of Samsung to do this so that you won't have to wait forever for the video to buffer if you are on a slower connection. The video is viewable but not at the quality that everyone is accustomed to. I remember how painful the wait was for the video to buffer on my BB Storm over 3G.

Wow, so much wrong with this post, I wasn't going to comment, but the post is really misleading on the Droid X. I'm not going to argue on screen size because that's a personal preference, but I do have to make a few counter points to yours:

• The screen does NOT blow the DX away, in fact I would have to say (as do 5 of my co-workers) that it's quite the opposite. The Fascinate's colors were over-saturated (oranages, reds and yellows were practically fluorescent). The DX was also less pixelated and much smoother and more discernable/pronounced blacks.
• Though you may be correct on the Fascinate having a brighter screen using less power, but I have a spare battery charging at all times and it doesn't kill me to swap batteries when I get home from work (9+ hrs on a charge is typical for me).
• I absolutely NEED the physical buttons on my DX... there may be times when the Fascinate's touchscreen buttons will glitch, or if the screen itself is on the "fritz" when having more physical buttons would be of use. Your point about the Display model of the DX missing buttons is not that good of a comparison, those things get beat to DEATH. I have given mine a lot of normal wear and tear and the buttons look good.
• I know about the YouTube connectivity speeds and quality issues. In my side-by-side-by-side, all three phones were connected to 3G Verizon connectivity will full signal strength. I queued up the same video on all three phones and played them at the same time as they sat on a table untouched by human hands (other than to tap the Play button). The Fascinate was heavily pixelated AND the colors looked way oversaturated compared to both the DX and Incredible.
• As far as the actual "look & feel" of the two phones, yes, the Fascinate is lighter, a bit smaller, and more rounded much like the iPhone, but I felt compared to the Droid X, it felt much more "fragile." The DX feels like it has a metal frame whereas the Fascinate is very "plastic" feeling. I would imagine if I dropped both of them from the same height onto the sidewalk, the Fascinate would sustain much more damage on the bezel compared to the DX. Sometimes it's good to trade weight for duribility.

 

[jlconaway]

Initially I had my eyes on the Droid X. Until I heard of the Samsung Fascinate. Comparing the two, screen size wise, the difference is minimal. I actually think that the extra .3" of screen made the DX look funny. The display quality blows the DX away, super amoled is more vivid and rich. The colors on the DX seems washed up. The brightness on the Fascinate need not be turned up much to view it comfortably hence better battery life. I think the front buttons on the DX will eventually pop off and fly off somewhere. I've seen the DX phones on display at this local VZ store already have missing front buttons. I have held both phones in my hand and the Fascinate just feels natural. The rounded corners of the phone's shape is very nice on the eyes. Although the camera on the Fascinate is only 5mp, the quality of the pics is pretty stunning. It's not just the MP that determines picture quality. Also the Fascinate records in HD at 30fps, the DX 24fps. The BT 3.0 on the Fascinate is also a plus. The only minus on the Fascinate to me is the 2GB ROM but I'll live. When FROYO comes around, the SDcard can utilized for this.

I almost forgot to mention that Youtube video quality is determined by data speed. Wifi > 3G, hence when you play Youtube videos while in Wifi, the quality is much better over 3G connection. I think that its thoughtful of Samsung to do this so that you won't have to wait forever for the video to buffer if you are on a slower connection. The video is viewable but not at the quality that everyone is accustomed to. I remember how painful the wait was for the video to buffer on my BB Storm over 3G.

Wow, so much wrong with this post, I wasn't going to comment, but the post is really misleading on the Droid X. I'm not going to argue on screen size because that's a personal preference, but I do have to make a few counter points to yours:

• The screen does NOT blow the DX away, in fact I would have to say (as do 5 of my co-workers) that it's quite the opposite. The Fascinate's colors were over-saturated (oranages, reds and yellows were practically fluorescent). The DX was also less pixelated and much smoother and more discernable/pronounced blacks.
• Though you may be correct on the Fascinate having a brighter screen using less power, but I have a spare battery charging at all times and it doesn't kill me to swap batteries when I get home from work (9+ hrs on a charge is typical for me).
• I absolutely NEED the physical buttons on my DX... there may be times when the Fascinate's touchscreen buttons will glitch, or if the screen itself is on the "fritz" when having more physical buttons would be of use. Your point about the Display model of the DX missing buttons is not that good of a comparison, those things get beat to DEATH. I have given mine a lot of normal wear and tear and the buttons look good.
• I know about the YouTube connectivity speeds and quality issues. In my side-by-side-by-side, all three phones were connected to 3G Verizon connectivity will full signal strength. I queued up the same video on all three phones and played them at the same time as they sat on a table untouched by human hands (other than to tap the Play button). The Fascinate was heavily pixelated AND the colors looked way oversaturated compared to both the DX and Incredible.
• As far as the actual "look & feel" of the two phones, yes, the Fascinate is lighter, a bit smaller, and more rounded much like the iPhone, but I felt compared to the Droid X, it felt much more "fragile." The DX feels like it has a metal frame whereas the Fascinate is very "plastic" feeling. I would imagine if I dropped both of them from the same height onto the sidewalk, the Fascinate would sustain much more damage on the bezel compared to the DX. Sometimes it's good to trade weight for duribility.

So much wrong with his post? Hate to break it to you, but everything you mentioned is pure opinion.

• Other than the hardware specs of the displays (resolution, technology involved, etc.), the matter of screen is largely up to opinion. I prefer the Fascinate screen over the DX. I think the DX is washed out, where the Fascinate is bright and vibrant.
• Not everyone uses a spare battery; I don't have one, so the bettery life of the SF is better for me. Besides, I don't want to waste the time switching out batteries.
• The buttons on the phone do get beat to death, but if the screen goes out on any touch-screen phone, the phone is pretty much dead. I've buttons pop off on one of my phones in the poast, so I can understand his concern.
• I do agree with you, here; the Fascinate does feel plasticy. The rear cover is flimsy plastic and feels fragile. This was easily fixed with a case, which I get for all of my phones, anyway.

And, yes, all that is only my opinion, not fact.

 

[WorldOfJohnboy]

So much wrong with his post? Hate to break it to you, but everything you mentioned is pure opinion.

• Other than the hardware specs of the displays (resolution, technology involved, etc.), the matter of screen is largely up to opinion. I prefer the Fascinate screen over the DX. I think the DX is washed out, where the Fascinate is bright and vibrant.
• Not everyone uses a spare battery; I don't have one, so the bettery life of the SF is better for me. Besides, I don't want to waste the time switching out batteries.
• The buttons on the phone do get beat to death, but if the screen goes out on any touch-screen phone, the phone is pretty much dead. I've buttons pop off on one of my phones in the poast, so I can understand his concern.
• I do agree with you, here; the Fascinate does feel plasticy. The rear cover is flimsy plastic and feels fragile. This was easily fixed with a case, which I get for all of my phones, anyway.

And, yes, all that is only my opinion, not fact.

Yes I realize that his and my posts were opinion, not fact, as were yours and as will be this post by me. I just felt the need to specifically counter his opinions as I feel that the two devices are about as opposite as you can get within the Android family and he specifically bashed the Droid X. Responses to your comments:

• The Fascinate is too "vibrant" (to recycle your term) when compared to the other Android screens. Also, the Droid X has a better resolution than the Fascinate (that is a fact, look up the specs) which I can very easily tell the difference. To me, watching a video on the DX is like watching a Blu-Ray 1080p Movie and the Fascinate is at best a 720p (though I would beg to differ even on that).
• I understand that not everyone uses a spare battery. I would suggest if you go through any battery in less than 8 hours that you get a spare with wall charger though... I have never used my DX and had to change the Battery prior to 8 hours of typical business use (includes data and voice uses). Oh, and swapping the batteries on the Android platform takes me literally 1 minute at most, so I wouldn't call it a waste of time... if you think 1 minute is bad, try changing the battery on a Blackberry.
• I can understand the concern with the buttons, but I've not been worried about them with the DX and I have beat them up. Also, your statement proves my point: On the Fascinate, if the screen goes on it, you are SOL except for power-cycle or volume rocker. If my DX screen dies, I can at least do some navigation and back things up and/or document programs and settings for the replacement phone.
• The feel is plastic, but it looks like an iPhone... in fact, when my shipping docks got the demo phone, he called me and told me that they got an iPhone in, lol. Personally, I think that the square/metal feel is more "robust" whereas the rounded/plastic comparitively feels like an eggshell to me.

They are both GREAT phones and you can't go wrong either way. I do feel like Samsung needs to focus on Widget development as I think that is also the biggest gap in comparison to the HTC and Motorola widgets.

 

[dricacho]

There's no right or wrong opinions. The opinions here obviously differ as not all have the same phone. For the sake of the user, the information presented here will hopefully help him decide later on which phone to get. IMHO....I still say that Samsung's display is better than the DX as I have seen them both in person before making my decision. I like rich sharp colors and we are talking about minimal pixel differences. I have never met anyone that looks at each pixel on their phone instead of looking at an icon or an image. Hey that pixel looks tight yo!!! LOL

Almost forgot, one of the biggest turn off for the DX, TO ME, is that hump in the back for the camera. I like an even rear surface so that you can put the phone flat on its back in landscape orientation. I don't care about kickstands or props to hold the phone up. To me, that's just silly for a little thing like our phones.

 

[WorldOfJohnboy]

There's no right or wrong opinions. The opinions here obviously differ as not all have the same phone. For the sake of the user, the information presented here will hopefully help him decide later on which phone to get. IMHO....I still say that Samsung's display is better than the DX as I have seen them both in person before making my decision. I like rich sharp colors and we are talking about minimal pixel differences. I have never met anyone that looks at each pixel on their phone instead of looking at an icon or an image. Hey that pixel looks tight yo!!! LOL

Almost forgot, one of the biggest turn off for the DX, TO ME, is that hump in the back for the camera. I like an even rear surface so that you can put the phone flat on its back in landscape orientation. I don't care about kickstands or props to hold the phone up. To me, that's just silly for a little thing like our phones.

Never said I looked at every pixel, in fact, the DX is smoother and less pixelated when watching the identical video. The colors on the Samsung appear to be off when compared to the DX and/or real life. (It almost makes the videos "cartoon-like" on the Samsung for some reason.)

I don't lay my phone flat, so the hump doesn't bother me. I have a Car Dock and Media/Home dock, and when I hold it in my hand, the hump actually saves the phone from sliding out in portrait mode. (Doesn't really come into play when holding in landscape.)

 

[jroc]

As far as the screens...peek at a youtube video of Monsters Inc of the Galaxy S vs. the iPhone 4.

[video=youtube;SRHonmYY7S0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRHonmYY7S0"]YouTube - Samsung Vibrant (Galaxy S) vs. iPhone 4: Monsters, Inc. clips[/video]

Sorry I have to use the iPhone 4 as a comparison...lol hey, it does have an LCD screen too..look in the comments, see user jmcb74 comments.

There is no best screen in the Amoled vs. LCD debate. Its whats more important to u that will make u like the screen more. Amoled doesnt blow away LCD, not for details, sharpness...and with white backgrounds, Amoled will eat thru the battery bad...as in web browsing. (Unless folks use that black background Google browser, I havent tried it myself yet.)

 

[dricacho]

Never said I looked at every pixel, in fact, the DX is smoother and less pixelated when watching the identical video.

Mine doesn't look pixelated. It was pixelated when I tried using images as a wallpaper that came from my BB Storm due to the low res photos taken by the BB camera. I don't see any pixelations on the widgets or icons. I haven't seen much noticeable pixelation while viewing videos. But then again, I rarely watch videos on my phone as I try to conserve battery power for more important stuff like emailing, texting, and trying different apps from the market.

The colors on the Samsung appear to be off when compared to the DX and/or real life. (It almost makes the videos "cartoon-like" on the Samsung for some reason.)

I guess if the color on mine is off, I prefer off than washed-out colors. And I can see my phone's display outdoors under the bright sunlight just fine. :happy:

I don't lay my phone flat, so the hump doesn't bother me. I have a Car Dock and Media/Home dock, and when I hold it in my hand, the hump actually saves the phone from sliding out in portrait mode. (Doesn't really come into play when holding in landscape.)

Car and media/home docks to me are a waste of money. I have a 52" flat screen LCD tv at home to watch my movies on. I don't use my phone while driving, unless I'm using Navigation, I still haven't seen the need for a car dock. Maybe its just me, I'm not an accessory freak.

 

[WorldOfJohnboy]

Mine doesn't look pixelated. It was pixelated when I tried using images as a wallpaper that came from my BB Storm due to the low res photos taken by the BB camera. I don't see any pixelations on the widgets or icons. I haven't seen much noticeable pixelation while viewing videos. But then again, I rarely watch videos on my phone as I try to conserve battery power for more important stuff like emailing, texting, and trying different apps from the market.

Try YouTube, even HD YouTube videos. There is severe distortion on the Samsung comparted to the DX.

I guess if the color on mine is off, I prefer off than washed-out colors. And I can see my phone's display outdoors under the bright sunlight just fine. :happy:

As I can see my DX's display just as well. Turning both phones up to the highest brightness setting and then watched a DVD rip of "I Love You, Man" on both phones side by side. I could easily discern the blacks on the Droid X when the contrast on the Samsung was less discernable (The various shades of dark blues/blacks seemed to all mesh into one on the Fascinate.) The whites are whiter on the DX and yes, the video was even brighter on the DX. Also, I just installed Froyo on my DX and I have to say that the speaker on the DX is probably 2x's louder... I would hope for you Fascinate owners, Froyo does the same for your speaker that it did for the DX.

Car and media/home docks to me are a waste of money. I have a 52" flat screen LCD tv at home to watch my movies on. I don't use my phone while driving, unless I'm using Navigation, I still haven't seen the need for a car dock. Maybe its just me, I'm not an accessory freak.

That's cool, I also have many large screen LED/LCD TVs at home that I watch my movies on. I got the media dock for charging my phone while I sleep and to convert my phone into a virtual alarm clock. (I also have a "white noise" app that I run to fall asleep to.) You can't access the "Media Dock" application without having the media dock from Verizon, unless you can figure out where and how to put a magnet on correctly.

I use the car dock as I do use the navigation in the car quite a bit. I also use Pandora or MP3 files from my music player and have the phone connected to my car's AUX input. The Car Dock app does an excellent job of multitasking between phone calls, music playing and GPS navigation really well.

Both of the docks hold my phone securely in a matter so that I can easily see the screen.

 

[dricacho]

As mentioned in post #21, the Youtube quality was based on connection speed. It's not the display's fault. I can watch other videos stored in the SD card and its as sharp as can be. It seems like the Fascinate has taken into account the time it takes to buffer HQ videos versus lower quality videos over slower connections hence it loads the video in low quality on 3G. It remind me of the same thing when on your desktop web browser, you can set it for 240p, 360p, 480p, etc. Anyhow, I'll live, its not the end of the world not being able to view HQ Youtube videos while on 3G connection. I guess I didn't get the Fascinate with the main purpose of watching videos on it unlike what many does. I just can't see myself sitting on a chair in a coffee shop for hours or standing in the middle of a busy sidewalk with eyes nailed onto the phone display watching Youtubes all day. Yea I would use it if there was some content a friend told me about and I was curious enough not to wait til I get to my desktop computer. I'm not a gamer either so again, you won't see me glued to my phone while the rest of the world is walking by me. I got the phone for its snappy performance, gorgeous display and vivid colors, and the way it fits in my hands. That's why I got the Fascinate. Some people got the Fascinate for gaming purposes, some for video watching purposes, and maybe some just because it is the closest you will get to the look and feel of an iPhone 3GS. Again, everything being said is based on opinion and personal preferences.