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Owner comparison of iPhone, Incredible, and Droid

IamGov

Member
Ok so I have owned quite a few smartphones in my day, well to be honest 32 different models in 3 years time. You could say that I am either really picky with what I get or am just looking for the latest and greatest item. Since picking up the Incredible I have been overly pleased with it's capabilities, so I thought I could comment on the most recent smartphones that have really entertained my interests! Hope you all find this somewhat useful in case you are on the edge!

:iphone:iPhone: Some say the pioneer of the new revolution in smartphone design. Some say the blood sucking tool of Steve Jobs. I say it is one of the best all around devices presented to you on the crappiest network around. Yes I said it, sorry AT&T, but when your contract explicitly reads "Do not guarantee service within buildings", and you use that to your benefit, it makes people wonder if they have to be in the great plains in order to access the MOST BARS IN MOST PLACES. As for the device it is the great mix between business and pleasure, but does have some significant fall backs. 1. There is not much capability for customization with hacking. Unless you jailbreak one of these you are stuck with simply changing background images. 2. Prior to 3G-S the devices had very little temporary memory. Maybe this is the driver behind not multi tasking :). 3. Unless you are willing to spend 100 bucks more you are limited to 8gb of memory. Now this may have been good a year or so ago, but now with HD movies, pictures, games, and much more this memory will become limiting. 4. Apple likes Apple stuff made by Apple people that costs enough to make Apple salaries ridiculously high. That's right, be ready to spend a pretty penny to keep this device up to date and running the best apps. No freebie Google stuff here!
:motdroidhoriz:Droid: This device is what I like to call the opportunity window for the Android community. Prior to this device Android run phones were few and far between. Now some of this can be contributed to the fact that T-Mobile held the market share on Android for awhile, and with their lack of strong 3G support, the devices were falling on def ears. With the inception of this device on a larger, much more powerful network, came the culmination of the community. The app market has been growing exponentially and hundreds of thousands of units have been sold. The device it's self was a great build by Motorola. The design makes the device feel durable and easy to use. The slide out qwerty keyboard immediately have this device a one up on the iPhone. In addition the upgradable HD space via SD cards also drew some customers over from iPhone. From the 5 mp camera to the nice speaker package to Google maps, this product was truly the first honest competitor to the iPhone market. With all of these great items also came some down falls. 1. Motorola has not had a big breakthrough since the RAZOR and that lack of current knowledge is present with the Droid. The software that runs with Android OS is almost non-existent. I cannot speak for any of you out there, but I was expecting much more user interface, maybe an attempt at MotoBlur? 2. The ROM is ok, but not great. Combine this with an under clocked processor and you get a recipe for non-conforming technology. Soon apps were being produced that the Droid could simply not efficiently run without some lag. Hacking and overclocking the device takes care of some of these issues, but then you will run into battery issues, over heating problems, and lack of warranty. 3. Lack of accessory support. To this day not getting love from outside vendors, the Android based phone could not compete with iPhone here. It is kind of hard to do when every electronics manufacturer is embedded in making a 16 pin iPhone attachment, no one seems to care about micro-usb. It is something out of the control of the Droid, but yet will still have an effect on consumers.
dancedroid The INDREDIBLE: Now I have owned many HTC based products and all seem to push the envelope with design, both hardware and software. I do understand this phones is not as "durable" as the Droid, but then again either is the iPhone. Moto made a good shell, but HTC put together some great internals and software packages. Being a businessman I prefer the great internals over a rugged shell. Everything I thought the Droid was going to give me, the Incredible ended up doing. To explain a little further I had high expectations for the Droid to be able to interface my contacts, FB, Twitter, and various other things all within the OS. Unfortunately this was NOT the case with the Droid. HTC fixed this issue with HTC sense and the inception of "people" and "Friend feed". These apps, if not familiar with them, really show off the capabilities of the OS. I can go to one area of my phone and check Twitter/FB updates, as well as see who emailed me, text me, and what calls I have outstanding. It really put everything together. I don't really miss the QWERTY keyboard as I used the iPhone for awhile and also found myself using the screen more on the Droid than the keyboard. The touch interface is very easy to use and with the addition of the optical trackball, similar to trackpad/ball on blackberry, it makes the device easily navigable. I have not seen many flaws on this device that cannot be fixed with a few software updates. I can only think of 2 deterrents to buying the phone 1. You love the durable feel of the Droid 2. You like all the pretty accessories you can buy for your iPhone. (But just remember they don't hold a 1ghz processor and around 200mb of free ROM).

I honestly cannot close this off with a little love to my friends over on :blackberry:Blackberry. Those devices are the true pavers of this community. Without the innovations RIM developed over the past decades we would not have the smartphone community that we see today. I loved my Blackberries, but sad to say the times are passing RIM as more and more users like to do more with their devices than just email. Yes I know you cynic out their, Blackberries do a lot more than email, but play around with one for awhile (i.e. browser, FB, nav, etc..) and you will see a lag. Now do the same with an Android or iPhone....see the difference? Yeah I though so.
:heart: to all :blackdroid::motdroidvert::greendroid::reddroid
 
I have also had all three, and must say I like the incredible most of all. Didn't think my wife would ever drop her 3GS, but after watching me show my brother the incredible she had to have it.
 
I have had them all as well as several other android and HTC phones. I think the inc. is by far the best with the iPhone in 2nd only because i wasnt a huge fan of the moto's design. But OS vs. OS i obviously like android way more!!!:icon_ banana:
 
Well, I think you hit on pretty much all the areas I was looking at prior to purchasing the Incredible. I almost bought out my contract to buy an iphone. My wife has one and for a while I was very jealous. Don't like AT&T so held off on doing anything. Can't tell you how many times I'm on the phone with her and we get dropped calls from her iphone, she complains about that often, and it's her business phone so not good. Then came the MDroid, I bought it and loved it. Then I saw the INC had surfaced, and after 29 days of use I returned my MDroid for the INC and couldn't be happier with it. Now my wife is jealous of my phone and all the features it has that her iphone can't do. So glad I waited and was able to make the change to a very capable device like this one and stay with Verizon's network.
 
Well, I think you hit on pretty much all the areas I was looking at prior to purchasing the Incredible. I almost bought out my contract to buy an iphone. My wife has one and for a while I was very jealous. Don't like AT&T so held off on doing anything. Can't tell you how many times I'm on the phone with her and we get dropped calls from her iphone, she complains about that often, and it's her business phone so not good. Then came the MDroid, I bought it and loved it. Then I saw the INC had surfaced, and after 29 days of use I returned my MDroid for the INC and couldn't be happier with it. Now my wife is jealous of my phone and all the features it has that her iphone can't do. So glad I waited and was able to make the change to a very capable device like this one and stay with Verizon's network.

Seems crazy a husband and wife with different carriers...seems you would save alot of money on a family plan...unless work phones or sumpin
 
It's her business phone, her company picks up the tab. My 2 kids and I have the Fam plan. All is good....
 
Having had all 3 of these myself after ditching my BB for the first time, I must say the Inc wins hands down for me. I do think that the Inc feels durable as well, weight does not always equal durability. If battery tech ever gets on par with the hard/software, these new gen smart phones will really be fun!
 
With all due respect to the OP and the level of devices that they have owned, That's a short period of time for so many devices, so I beg to wonder how one truly gets to know a device in a relative short period of time? I say this out of support for the Moto Droid. Sure, the Incredible is a great phone specs wise, but when I went to the store to get some hands on time with it, other than doing some things faster, the overall factor wasn't there. The Sense UI doesn't appeal to me at all. The lack of physical keyboard is a huge detractor to me. No dedicated camera button was also a major pain point as I couldn't figure out how to take a damn picture while playing with it. My Jeep may not do some of the things a higher spec'd suv may, but it works fine for me is what I'm saying here.

OP, you state that Moto hasn't had a big breakthrough since the Razr, and on some levels, I agree, but since we're talking smartphones, I'd have to say that the Moto Q had lots to offer in the smartphone field. That phone did so much and Windows Mo actually ran fairly well on that device. I kept that phone for 18 months....almost as long as I held on to my Treo 650. Unheard of for me as I, too, like switching phones, however, I tend to go with 3/year.

Bottom line, the rumour mill has some nice devices coming down the pipeline that will pique my interest once again (and keyboards sound like they will be making a re-appearance on some of these flagship devices). I'm hoping for something that will make me want to switch, but there's nothing there yet. I've had the iPhone, the Pre, and the Storm all within the past 1.5 years. There just hasn't been anything that has held my interest like this Moto Droid. OP, I respect your opinion and your knowledge, but on your point of the Droid, let's agree to disagree there.

Still.....a great read and thanks for the post!
 
These phones are obviously are very personal devices. All I can say is after running around with the mdroid for 29 days the INC is a cut above IMO. It's one thing to spend a few minutes in the store playing around but a whole different experience taking it home and actually spending weeks learning how a new device is actually going to perform in the real world.
 
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Just to offer an option about how one can own so many phones so quickly - one possibility is as follows: I owned the Blackberry Storm, the Storm 2, the Motorola Droid and now the HTC Incredible. However, I only owned the Storm 2 and Motorola Droid for about 2-3 weeks each. In both cases, I played with each phone, used applications, etc. and determined after two weekends and full work weeks that I was not getting what I wanted or expected. I returned both and kept my original Storm until the Incredible arrived.

Now mind you, I don't make a habit out of buying and returning phones just to test them. I liked the original Storm, but had a button tear off of it (they are just thin covers) when I pulled it from the case one day. I got a refurbished one and had nothing but problems ever since. I returned 3 refurbished Storms only to have different problems each time. And I HATE the RIM browser. On a side note, I sincerely hope RIM gets it right with the BB 6.0 OS rumored to be released this summer. So, I couldn't stand it any more and bough a Storm 2. After a few days, I felt I had paid for the Storm 1 with a different click on the keyboard.

So I waited and was talked into a Droid by a sales person at Verizon when I went in for yet another Storm problem. In the end, I wasn't a huge Motorola Droid fan due to the slide-out keyboard. I should have known better, as I was SICK of clicking on the Storm, and wasn't a fan of the Moto's virtual keyboard.

So, I have played with and briefly owned a few of the Verizon smart phones, but I really only owned two of them.

And after all of that, let me say that I'm pleased with my Incredible so far. Had some battery issues, and I occasionally get a problem where a part of the OS seems to crash, but it resets itself seamlessly and doesn't seem to cause other problems. Looks like Google got it right. Sorry Apple, you aren't alone on a pedestal anymore :)

With all due respect to the OP and the level of devices that they have owned, That's a short period of time for so many devices, so I beg to wonder how one truly gets to know a device in a relative short period of time? I say this out of support for the Moto Droid. Sure, the Incredible is a great phone specs wise, but when I went to the store to get some hands on time with it, other than doing some things faster, the overall factor wasn't there. The Sense UI doesn't appeal to me at all. The lack of physical keyboard is a huge detractor to me. No dedicated camera button was also a major pain point as I couldn't figure out how to take a damn picture while playing with it. My Jeep may not do some of the things a higher spec'd suv may, but it works fine for me is what I'm saying here.

OP, you state that Moto hasn't had a big breakthrough since the Razr, and on some levels, I agree, but since we're talking smartphones, I'd have to say that the Moto Q had lots to offer in the smartphone field. That phone did so much and Windows Mo actually ran fairly well on that device. I kept that phone for 18 months....almost as long as I held on to my Treo 650. Unheard of for me as I, too, like switching phones, however, I tend to go with 3/year.

Bottom line, the rumour mill has some nice devices coming down the pipeline that will pique my interest once again (and keyboards sound like they will be making a re-appearance on some of these flagship devices). I'm hoping for something that will make me want to switch, but there's nothing there yet. I've had the iPhone, the Pre, and the Storm all within the past 1.5 years. There just hasn't been anything that has held my interest like this Moto Droid. OP, I respect your opinion and your knowledge, but on your point of the Droid, let's agree to disagree there.

Still.....a great read and thanks for the post!
 
To Grit: "Sorry Apple, you aren't alone on a pedestal anymore." :) +1 to that. I've played around with the iphone and so happy I have my current Incredible. Not to take anything away from the iphone because it is a very nice device, just saying glad I have some other great choices finally.
 
Just to offer an option about how one can own so many phones so quickly - one possibility is as follows: I owned the Blackberry Storm, the Storm 2, the Motorola Droid and now the HTC Incredible. However, I only owned the Storm 2 and Motorola Droid for about 2-3 weeks each. In both cases, I played with each phone, used applications, etc. and determined after two weekends and full work weeks that I was not getting what I wanted or expected. I returned both and kept my original Storm until the Incredible arrived.

Now mind you, I don't make a habit out of buying and returning phones just to test them. I liked the original Storm, but had a button tear off of it (they are just thin covers) when I pulled it from the case one day. I got a refurbished one and had nothing but problems ever since. I returned 3 refurbished Storms only to have different problems each time. And I HATE the RIM browser. On a side note, I sincerely hope RIM gets it right with the BB 6.0 OS rumored to be released this summer. So, I couldn't stand it any more and bough a Storm 2. After a few days, I felt I had paid for the Storm 1 with a different click on the keyboard.

So I waited and was talked into a Droid by a sales person at Verizon when I went in for yet another Storm problem. In the end, I wasn't a huge Motorola Droid fan due to the slide-out keyboard. I should have known better, as I was SICK of clicking on the Storm, and wasn't a fan of the Moto's virtual keyboard.

So, I have played with and briefly owned a few of the Verizon smart phones, but I really only owned two of them.

And after all of that, let me say that I'm pleased with my Incredible so far. Had some battery issues, and I occasionally get a problem where a part of the OS seems to crash, but it resets itself seamlessly and doesn't seem to cause other problems. Looks like Google got it right. Sorry Apple, you aren't alone on a pedestal anymore :)

Yeah, I really do understand your scenario. I see/hear that one a lot. Curious though...was it just the keyboard that was a deal breaker for you? You didn't mention how the phone (the Droid) performed for you. I'm just curious to your thoughts.
 
I too have played with the incredible for a few minutes in the store but I didnt have any real world, day to day use of it so my opinion is just that of a person in the verizon store "checking it out". But from the 5 minutes I did mess with it IMO it didnt compare to my rooted Droid. If my droid was stock then yes of course it kills it. The Sense UI is cool and Im sure Id like it more if I had a chance to own the phone. I use the keyboard on the droid religiously and Im not sure I could go w/o it. I walked out of the Verizon store confident I had the better phone, or at least I had a bad ass enough phone with a smooth Rom (BB v1.0) that the Incredible with its killer specs didnt bother me.

I dont have heat or battery issues with my droid, but then again I dont abuse it either. And speaking of battery issues wasnt that the first thing people complained about with the Incredible?

Once the Incredible is rooted Id love to see what that processor can do....2ghz?
 
Would one of you gentlemen with both a motoDroid and the Incredible mind describing, or preferably posting, some comparison pictures from the two devices?

Yes, I know these cameras are not a substitube for my Canon 5dmk2, but I do find myself taking more and more family pics with the phone since it is with me during all waking hours. While I find very little to complain with the motoD, especially w/ the ProZoom5x camera app, I would move on to the Incredible if the photos are noticeably more improved.. especially in terms of dynamic range, or at least better highlight control/recovery.
 
As an ex Blackberry, current Droid user and ex-(I'm in love with the ipohne although I've never even used one) person, this was very entertaining.

Although I'd like the Incredible, my Droid will due fine until a bigger badder google phone comes out. I have a year and 6 months until I get a new phone for cheap through verizon, I can't even image the leaps and bounds the google phones will have made by then.
 
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