Holiday Smartphone Buyer's Guide
by Vivek Gowri on December 4, 2010 5:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Guides
- Holiday 2010
- Mobile
Verizon
In the past year, Big Red has gone from having a smartphone lineup almost completely dominated by Windows Mobile and BlackBerry devices, to arguably the forefront carrier for flagship Android devices. The Motorola Droid series of phones has been so aggressively marketed that it's virtually synonymous among laypeople with Android itself, nearly to the point of creating confusion.
Regardless, the choices we recommend on Verizon are differentiated by personal taste. If you want a huge screen, the Droid X is the phone for you. The device is now thankfully running Android 2.2 (we reviewed it when it was running 2.1 after launch), and there's very little to hold against the phone. I loved the hardware android buttons and the form factor and still think Android is completely usable without a hardware keyboard, especially thanks to Swype and Motorola's own multitouch keyboard being included. The other thing to mention about the Droid X is that its OMAP3630 supports 720P HD video encodes, whereas the OMAP3620 doesn't - the result is that the Droid X can shoot 720P video and the Droid 2 can't. The Droid X is currently $49.99 from Amazon Wireless or $199.99 from Verizon on contract.
If you want a keyboard however, the Droid 2 is the next best option. As I noted in our review, very little which is changed from the original Droid hardware wise except for some welcome changes to the keyboard which improve usability, and a slightly different shade of soft touch material. In the wild, the two are difficult to tell apart unless you know what you're looking for. To that extent, it's not really a necessary upgrade from the original Droid unless you absolutely need a faster platform, especially considering the original Droid is running stock Android 2.2. There's also a Droid 2 Global version which packs GSM support and a slightly higher clocked 1.2 GHz SoC as opposed to the 1.0 GHz OMAP3 in the Droid 2 sans Global. We haven't had the chance to fully review a Droid 2 Global yet, so jury is still out whether the $50 difference from Verizon ($199.99 for Droid 2 Global, $149.99 for Droid 2) is worth it, especially considering Android enthusiasts can root and overclock on their own. The Droid 2 Global is also available from Amazon Wireless for $79.99 on contract, curiously enough the Droid 2 is no longer available on Amazon. There’s also the BlackBerry-targeting Droid Pro, though this is another of the Droid newcomers we haven’t taken a look at.
The other tier-1 options on Verizon are the HTC Incredible and Samsung Fascinate. We reviewed both and liked the Incredible's form factor, and it's even better now thanks to Android 2.2. The Motorola Droids' OMAP3 bests the Droid Incredible's Snapdragon SoC in the performance space in almost every category save FPU heavy tasks, but the Incredible is by no means a weak performer. Likewise, the Fascinate bests both with its Hummingbird SoC. The only problem with the Fascinate is Verizon's conscious decision to mandate Bing throughout and strip the phone of almost all mention of Google. Again, the other problem is that the Fascinate like other Galaxy S devices still isn't running Android 2.2. Size and user preference is again what really dominates here - if you want a small Android 2.2 phone, the Incredible is your pick, whereas the Fascinate packs a 4" screen. The HTC Incredible can be had for $0.01 from Amazon Wireless, or $149.99 from Verizon, both on contract. The Fascinate is $39.99 from Amazon Wireless and $199.99 from Verizon on contract.
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ThomasA - Sunday, December 5, 2010 - link
Check that US Cellular (limited regions) is a selling a CDMA version of the HTC Desire. Too bad they won't sell it outside their small coverage areas.synaesthetic - Sunday, December 5, 2010 - link
My girlfriend bought a Charm. We ended up returning it within three days. The screen is absolutely atrocious for a smartphone, even a budget model. I've seen cheap Virgin Mobile featurephones with prettier screens. We ended up buying her a myTouch Slide instead, which could also make use of the wonderful Cyanogenmod 6.I was especially appalled using the Charm because I am a Vibrant owner, so it was like a trip back to the smartphone dark ages!
sykorius - Sunday, December 5, 2010 - link
This article needs some editing - even though the phones were broken down in the carrier segments and unlocked/international portions, the phones were not themselves formatted in easily recognizable outline/title context. An editor would have pointed this out and emphasized the name of the phones in a bold/increase sized font title format alongside the pictures. Also, the site has been established for several years now, but the amateurish journalism still persists. The authors wrote "RIM brought BlackBerry 6 to market with AT&T in the form of the BlackBerry Torch 9800, a device that I honestly found very usable." The authors are suppose to be credible and suppose to be an authority on the technology subject matter, readers do not want your honesty - it's already expected and you are just being redundant with the sentence. More importantly, readers want to make their own judgment of the devices by the facts you state when using the phones, ie, responsiveness of the touch screen, call quality, phone camera & video recording, and other phone feature pros and cons. A better choice of words would be "to be candid" or "to be frank". Get a real editor to look over your articles before the final version is up on the site.fausto412 - Sunday, December 5, 2010 - link
where is my beloved anandtech.com?silverblue - Monday, December 6, 2010 - link
...but the Galaxy S should have Froyo, at least we do throughout Europe.strikeback03 - Monday, December 6, 2010 - link
Blame the carriers, most likely. Whatever the reason, official updates have not yet been pushed out.jah1subs - Monday, December 6, 2010 - link
Everyone of your phone choices is what I would call a chocolate bar because it is thinner than the old style "candybar" form factor. Personally, I prefer to use a clamshell phone and, even in elementary school, my parents received messages home from the teacher that I needed to develop motor skills. The situation is worse now since my fingers are bigger, so I prefer a real keyboard which means that I am most interested in the new Blackberry Style.Since Sprint has an antenna within sight of my home office window, I prefer Sprint service.
I like the ease of use of the menu system on Blackberry BB OS 4.5 once I click on an icon. I want the improved browser and other features in BB OS 6 and hope that the menu system has been kept in OS 6.
The only advance that I have seen for the user interface in the last 5 years is the less busy home screen on Windows 7. I want a phone that I do NOT have to keep looking at.
jah1subs - Monday, December 6, 2010 - link
develop FINE motor skills.GotThumbs - Monday, December 6, 2010 - link
I was really disappointed about the very brief mention of the Notion Ink - Adam. Their tablet is poised to be the IPAD killer. Competitive pricing and way more features than the IPAD. No need to purchase accessory cables for SD cards, USB, etc.I fit in the category of APPLE haters. not just the IPAD but the company as a whole. Their true colors showed when Jobs blamed a customer 'your holding it wrong'. So egotistic, that He is right and everyone else is wrong. I think APPLE is even worse than MICROSOFT was in the 80's and 90's. The ADAM even has an energy saving feature with the Pixel QI display, but no mention about it. I will agree that APPLE is creative and thier computers look pretty. But why would you pay 1,000 or more for a laptop with a two year old processor. SSD is not unique to APPLE and may PC'rs have already updated their laptops and pc's with SSD drives. Apple really only wows the uneducated public. Guess thats why they have to teach them how to hold a cell phone. Anyway. I'm keeping a close eye out for the ADAM. Just Google Notion Ink Adam to really get excited about the tablet market.
GotThumbs - Monday, December 6, 2010 - link
Forgot to mention HDMI connection built in....no accessory cable purchase needed.