FINALLY! T-Mobile to get a sweet Android phone

The Snapdragon processor will broadly bring smart phones at a decent level. Samsungs and iphone will have faster processors but I doubt a casual user will notice.

 

Unfortunately, this is happening to EVERY phone device. Technology, R&D, and competition are moving at a breakneck pace that having any smartphone over a year old makes you feel like it's obsolete, especially if you're in the Android camp.

I would just get the best phone that you can right now (or Xmas) and hope that it is going to be easily updated software-wise (and since it's Android, I doubt it'll have any hiccups).

 

It is <b>fully</b> functional, programmed in multiple techniques.

 

I'm iffy on getting any phone with some custom UI on top of it (e.g., Sense UI with HTC phones). Here's an article with more on why. Apparently Samsung's "Behold II" UI addition on top of Android is awful in particular. Hopefully this phone won't have that, because the specs are pretty impressive.

 

I just read that article. I would take the entire thing with a huge grain of salt. As someone who has had first-hand experience with stock Android and with HTC Sense, I can equivocally say that Sense still does fill in some gaps where Android is missing some features and it improves the aesthetics and usability of the OS in a lot of ways.

I also don't think you can make an educated guess on how fast these companies with custom interfaces are going to be able to upgrade to 2.2 and 2.3. The 2.X upgrades are more incremental jumps, whereas in the past moving from 1.X to 2.X necessitated a long delay for testing because it was such a big upgrade and because the older phones weren't optimized to run the new OS version. How quickly all the carriers are able to upgrade to 2.2 is going to be very telling on how detrimental custom UIs will be in the future for getting OS upgrades.

If you are getting a 2-year contract, I would think really hard about going with anything other than stock Android. Otherwise, you should try out each version a bit in person because the reviews on the web are definitely not comprehensive.

 

Thanks. So will this phone be better than the HTC HD 2?

 

I misspoke: what I was trying to say is that, in the end, T-Mobile is more focused on their European operations, with which they're doing quite well, than with U.S. operations. Would they like to be a major player in the U.S.? Of course! What company wouldn't? But they're primary focus has been, and continues to be, Europe.

Couldn't agree more. I wish T-Mobile had been able to gain more of a foothold in the U.S. I was always pleased with their service.

I agree. What I was trying to say what that, in the grand scheme of things, they have "bigger fish to fry".

 

Gaps that Android's missing in what version? I've never used Sense, so I don't know what gaps there are left, but I imagine they're not as useful as being able to update your Android OS quicker.

This Samsung phone will come with Android 2.1 out of the box. I mean cripes, 2.2 was released in May and a new phone in late July still won't have it because they want to put their custom skin on it? Seems pretty slow to me, especially since Google's releasing new versions every 4-6 months. I'd wonder if this Samsung phone would even have Android 2.2 by the time 2.3 comes out.

 

This. Though T-Mobile in particular tends to target mid-range devices. I'm surprised they even got the Galaxy S at all after all the hooplah about the MyTouch Slide. Aside from the Nexus One, they don't have anything else comparable to the Evo, Incredible, iPhone 4, etc. which sucks when T-Mobile help pioneer the Android market.

 

The N8 definitely is not getting enough run in the mainstream. That phone is a beast.

 

I think he's referring to the stock Android's lack of personality and UI friendliness.

Even though Google left interface design up to the manufacturers, they should provide better stock support for it.

 

Lack of android is a killer

 

I'm fairly certain the 2.2 source hasn't even been released to OEMs yet, so it hasn't really been "released" like you think it has. OEMs may not have access to it until the end of June, so the Galaxy S having 2.1 out of the box isn't a big surprise.

To put things in better perspective for you, the Motorola Droid, a handset that runs the stock Android OS received its upgrade from 2.0.1 to 2.1 three months after it was released to the Nexus One. If you want to be able to upgrade your OS the minute it is released, you need to get a Nexus One. Otherwise, you may still be waiting months even with a stock Android OS phone. The real questions are, will non-Nexus stock Android OS phones upgrade quicker now? And will devices with custom UIs upgrade just as quickly?

Google stated at I/O that they want to lengthen their development cycle now that Android has a solid base. They want to move toward only 1 update a year. I would imagine that going into effect after 2.3 is released.

 

Most definitely. Android is a great OS. Although, it may not #1 for quite some time due to the popularity of the iPhone every year, it really has some of the best features in a smart phone that Apple just quite doesn't offer yet. HTC HD2 also is only WM 6.5 which sucks because WM 7 is coming out soon. Hardware wise, they are pretty much similar.... you can't go wrong with buying either one if both had Android on it.

Look, I give Android it's dues... why are you trying to win my opinion? I don't believe it's that one-sided in the battle between iPhone and Android. There are a lot of things to consider, and everyone has their own opinion.

 

The Super AMOLED sound delicious. Not a surprise at all since I think Samsung has always been ahead of the game when it come to AMOLED. But the downside is that I don't like their UI.

http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_i9000_galaxy_s-review-478p2.php

 

I'm not sure what you mean. The SDK was released during Google I/O, so I'd only assume if the SDK is out then the OEM's would have the OS source, too. I have Android 2.2 on my phone. They have it.

 

First, the SDK and the OS source code are two entirely different things.

Second, Google hasn't even released the official version of Froyo to anyone yet. If you are running 2.2 right now (I'm assuming you flashed a rom?), you are not running what will be the final build. OTA updates for Froyo on the Nexus One have not even started and Google is still working on finalizing 2.2 for release. This information is current as of 6/9/10. So, like I said, OEMs may not even get the source code until the end of June.

 

they did put android on it and they called it the HTC Evo 4G.