Android

[rusky]

I'm tempted by the G2 Touch but not sure I like the angled base

 

[Dan B]

G1 can't be upgraded beyond Android 1.6 - Cupcake.

Although if you root it (which is not that hard if you're reasonably techie) you can install one of the third-party ROMs like cyanogenmod which has backported a lot of the new stuff in 2.0 and 2.1 onto the 1.6 base

The G1 still has the nicest hardware keyboard of any phone presently out there, IMO (a dedicated row for numbers and the spacebar is in the right place): I'm waiting for something at least as good before I upgrade

 

[ColinJ]

I met up with an old mate for a chat yesterday and he showed me his Android phone. I can't remember what type it was but it really impressed me. He said that it was still running v1.6 but he planned to reflash it to the latest version.

I can't afford one at the moment, but I'd eventually like to buy one and have a go at writing some Android apps.

 

[Tim Bennet.]

Although if you root it, . . . you can install one of the third-party ROMs like cyanogenmod which has backported a lot of the new stuff in 2.0 and 2.1 onto the 1.6 base

I really hope this was some form of self parody . . .

 

[john59]

I have the HTC hero and it’s the first phone that has lived up to my expectation. Emailing and the browsing experience are excellent as well as the other software available.

The new 'HTC Legend' is due for release in March/April.


John

 

[amnesia]

I have had a look at the legend, well online pictures at least, and I actually prefer the Hero in terms of aesthetics.

The optical joystick thingy is a good idea though - no moving parts.

 

[rusky]

So, I picked up a Samsung Galaxy Portal (i5700) yesterday, it's good!!!

Busy downloading apps. my only gripes so far are: -
1) Having to mount the SDcard when you plug the USB cable in if you need to transfer stuff to the phone.
2) Samsung PC Studio is crap.
3) I can't get the DIVX VOD player to register.

 

[Fnaar]

App recommendation

"Spare Parts" from the market. Not sure if it actually speeds things up, or gives the illusion of speeding things up, but either way, I'm happier with it than without it!

 

[2Loose]

I love the Hero, until I found that my mate gets through a full charge in less than 8 hours. This completely kills the usefulness for me. Do any Androids so far last more than 24 hours per charge with 'normal' useage?

If not, I may be forced down the Blackberry route after all.

 

[rh100]

2 days at best with mine, leaving wifi on or BT kills it though. But there is a handy part it that tells you where the battery consumption has gone. But I think it's back to the old days of carrying a spare battery - don't mind too much as the functionality you get out of it is superb.

 

[Fnaar]

Do any Androids so far last more than 24 hours per charge with 'normal' useage?

Whenever I'm not actually carrying it about, mine's on charge... probebly bad for the battery long term (?) but ...
the two biggest downsides to me are
a) battery life
not being able to store/run apps from the sd card (unless you root).

However, the upsides far outweigh these

 

[Piemaster]

I love the Hero, until I found that my mate gets through a full charge in less than 8 hours. This completely kills the usefulness for me. Do any Androids so far last more than 24 hours per charge with 'normal' useage?

If not, I may be forced down the Blackberry route after all.

Two words 'fatty battery', for the G1 anyway, dunno if they come for other android phones. Adds about 1/3 to the thickness. I got one mainly for tracking routes with 'My Tracks' as the gps really hammers the battery. Apparently the phone will boost the signal to its max if it can't pick up a 3G signal until it does pick one up as well - turning off the 3G does help but seems a bit pointless to me as it negates a lot of the phones functions. Wifi doesn't help battery life either.

Iphone 3GS apparently isn't any better for battery life either once you start turning everything on.

 

[mangaman]

Two words 'fatty battery', for the G1 anyway, dunno if they come for other android phones. Adds about 1/3 to the thickness. I got one mainly for tracking routes with 'My Tracks' as the gps really hammers the battery. Apparently the phone will boost the signal to its max if it can't pick up a 3G signal until it does pick one up as well - turning off the 3G does help but seems a bit pointless to me as it negates a lot of the phones functions. Wifi doesn't help battery life either.

Iphone 3GS apparently isn't any better for battery life either once you start turning everything on.

Great phones. The GPS is a battery eater.

I actually deliberately use 2G as I gather it helps battery life and I've noticed no difference at all. If you need 3G you can just switch it on in a couple of clicks

 

[Debian]

Handy tips for improving Hero battery life here:

http://www.gamaze.com/blog/2009/08/improve-battery-life-for-the-android-based-htc-hero-smart-phone/

Mine is rooted and custom ROM and Radio packages installed, along with the tips in the link above I get two days battery life with an always-on 3G connection.

Just checked - my Hero's been on since 8 a.m. today, not made any calls but sent and received a fair few texts, constant 3G connection + WiFi on and I have 89% battery left.

 

[Fnaar]

Folowing this thread (Ordnance survey paid app for iPhone), I thought I'd mention the RMaps (free) app for Android which has various types of map including Ordnance Survey and something called "cycling map" which I have on the phone, but haven't investigated properly yet.