Paying Attention to all things Technology

I would like to preface this article by saying, I purchased my first iPhone two years ago while I currently owned an HTC Touch Diamond. The Diamond was a phone that I dreamed about, but just didn’t live up to the hype. I fought off buying the iPhone, but after the overwhelming popularity, plus everyone talking about how good it was, I gave in went and bought one. When I purchased it I told myself and others that I was only using the iPhone until something comes out comparable or better. Remember, I was an anti Apple kind of guy. There were some small things I didn’t like about the iPhone, but the good out weighed the bad. Being able to buy your apps all in one place on the device was one of the greatest features leaving from Windows Mobile. I loved the iPhone, because it was the best technology out there at the time.

During my time with the iPhone I traded my Touch Diamond for a little phone called, Google Android G1. This was Google’s first phone, it was fun for a play toy, and I saw some real potential in this phone. My G1 was used mainly on WiFi, because it was a T-Mobile phone and I had AT&T. If you are not aware, T-Mobile and AT&T’s 3G bands are not the same, so only Edge would work with an AT&T sim card installed. To make a long story longer after time went by I sold the G1, then went to the Sprint Hero. The Hero was good, and I saw a lot of progression in Android, but still wasn’t up to par with the iPhone. Keep in mind I always had both phones, the iPhone for primary and Android for secondary. I am currently on my 3rd Android Phone, and it is the Nexus One.

The Nexus One is the first phone that I have had that is fast and snappy with Android. Now that Android has been out for a while and is on most carriers, the app store is growing by leaps and bounds. I have been carrying both, iPhone 3Gs and Nexus One since January, and it changes on which one I like the most, all the time. It has been the best of both worlds having both operating systems at all times. I have always been dependent on my iPhone, and have always wanted to try to be completely reliant upon my Nexus One, but I always take the iPhone just in case. With that said, I decided to sell my iPhone one week ago, so that I would get more money for it before the new one comes out. This was the perfect time to rely only on Android.

However, on day one without the iPhone there was a disconnect, and I think it was just because I knew the iPhone wasn’t there if i needed it. After day one I started feeling quite good about not having it for some reason. I started looking to replace some apps on the iPhone that I did not need to install on the Nexus One previously. It hit me on day 3, I don’t have to have the iPhone anymore, and being forced to use Android all the time was making me like it more and more. I do still have an iPad, but I don’t carry it with me all the time, so it does fill some of the void if any. Now I want to get into a couple of things that you have to think about if you would like to switch to Android from the iPhone.

In the meantime let’s start with apps. Not every app on the iPhone is on Android and vice versa. Overall though, every app you need from the iPhone is on Android, and if it’s not, there is a different app to fill the void there. The apps aren’t the same, they have different UI’s (user interface) and it’s something you have to adjust to at first. Some of the UI’s are better on the iPhone and some are better on Android, and this is my personal opinion. I realize other people may have different opinions. The main place where Android apps are lacking the most are in the games. It is improving over time, and now that 2.2 Froyo is out you can install apps to the storage cards. Additionally, I think the more graphic intensive games will come soon.

The next step I want to talk about is customization and ease of use. If you are an average user that doesn’t like a lot of options, and prefer ease of use over anything, then the iPhone is the device for you (That is if AT&T works in your area). It has been proven over time that everyone can use an iPhone, kids, geeks, grandparents etc.. Android is easy to use, but there are several different ways to do things. You can customize the phone to your liking, and thats the beauty of it. If you want Android to do something different or act a different way, there is an app to change it or make it more to your liking. On the iPhone that is not an option. There is one way to get to things, one way to change things, and you are held back in that aspect. Remember this isn’t a bad thing though, it just depends on what the user likes. This doesn’t mean the average person can’t use Android though. My mom uses one, and the learning curve might be a little bit longer.

Meanwhile for another comparison, I would like to mention carriers. I feel one of the iPhones major downfalls is that it has been stuck on AT&T for its lifetime. Additionally for some it works fine, and for others it does not work at all. It is very nice to be able to pick the carrier and get an Android phone at almost everyone of them. Even though there are downfalls with the Android platform not being on the same software versions. The general amount of public isn’t even aware of this. There also is a choice in the brand of phone you use wether it be, HTC, Motorola, Samsung, etc.. Carrier choices and brand choices make a huge difference on the consumer side.

To wrap this up with why I currently am leaving the iPhone, I’m a phone geek, and I like the progression at which Google is going. They are pushing the market faster and higher. The devices coming out are improving drastically, and the Android OS is growing by leaps and bounds. There are very little restrictions with the platform, after all it’s open, you can customize it, and find any kind of app, to practically do what you want. At this current point, we have not seen the new iPhone officially yet, and don’t know everything it will intel, but from what we do know, it sounds like Android is headed to be the new number one platform. As stated earlier this is a personal opinion, each person is different, and you should use what fits best for you. The time has come for me to hold to my words. I’m only using the iPhone until something comparable or better is out.

So we have heard the announcement this week, Windows Phone 7 Series has been announced to deploy somewhere in the holiday season this year. There is a lot of talk about what they have shown in their demo and what they are saying that this OS is going to do. There have been times in the not so distant past that I have thought, I really wonder if Microsoft even cares about the mobile space at all any more? Well they have proved that they do care, and they are coming out with their boxing gloves on. First let me say that Microsoft finally used their heads this time and said, lets integrate the Zune and the Xbox experience all into one device which will be the phones. I don’t think this was a real hard thing to decide but I’m sure glad they have pulled the trigger on doing this. I have owned two Zunes in my life and have liked both of them. I feel their music, with the subscription style service is hard to beat. I don’t carry a Zune anymore because I’m out of pocket space, especially for a device that just plays music. So we will have integration with the Zune experience and Xbox all in one device. Now, looking at the OS, it reminds me a lot of the Zune HD user interface, and I think is geared towards that, very elegant and classy looking operation. So will this be enough to get Microsoft and Windows Phone back into the marketplace where they belong? We won’t know until later of course, but I think the way things are looking, they will be giving Google, Palm, and maybe Apple a decent run for their money. If they can do things right and make the general public (not just the geeks) see this device, and make it a pleasure to use like Apple has done, then I see them having a real chance with the ecosystem of Zune and Xbox. If they can get developers on board, and allow them to build apps to integrate into this device it should be a winner. So in the mean time, we will keep watching and see what more comes out this year with other companies. We will see if any of them get scared or not! Do you think they will?

We have heard the news today that Verizon Wireless has finally gotten their Palm devices out for the general public today. First you have the Pre Plus and then their is the Pixi Plus. These are the same phones that are out on Sprint with some small upgrades. Palm had it’s big launch last year with the Pre and Sprint. The response hasn’t been awesome, it was okay but nothing ground breaking. I think they were in a hurry to get it out and had to have a premature launch. Mainly because they promised it would be out the first half of the year last year. I used a Pre for a couple of weeks and I really did like the device other than Web OS was a little laggy at times. It was very user friendly and easy to use. They are constantly working on their software to make every improvement that they can. Now with that being said their is Sprint, which has a very good network but isn’t on par with Verizons. The question going over in my mind is, since these devices are on the Big Red and Sprint now, will it boost sales enough to get Palm back up to where they need to be? My guess is no. I don’t think they have the mind share in people to really boost the sales like they are probably hoping. With the two Droid phones being Verizons flagship devices where do these devices stand in their line up? Oh and god forbid if Apple announces that the iPhone is available on Verizon. I wish Palm the best of luck and think they do have a future, but at this point don’t see it being a huge future unless something drastic happens. What do you think?

So we all heard it today, what we have been waiting to hear, Apple is having an event on January 27th. I see blogs posted and news press stories everywhere saying, Apple Tablet is official, iPhone 4 is here. Then the next thing I know I have people asking me “Have you heard about the new iPhone and the new Apple Tablet?”  Yes, for a matter of fact I have, I have been hearing about it forever it seems like, and I have also heard that nothing is official! People throw that word around like its the real deal and we all know that nothing is official until we hear those magic words, ” Oh and one more thing”. With that out of the way, I am super excited about this event and I do hope we see an iTablet, iSlate or whatever it might be called. I do think we will see something about the new iPhone announced, probably 4.0 software and that it will be available on some other carrier (not for sure about it being Verizon though). I’m really not sure what else they have up their sleeve, but I just hope it’s good and lives up to the hype. Apple still amazes me how they can hype the press so well and get so many people excited about a keynote. I think the tactic of not saying anything to anyone really does help, because us as Americans, are all impatient, and the longer we have to wait the more excited we get. While i am writing ths we have a little over a week until the event, and I can’t wait to “Come see our latest creation”.

So with all the news at CES about several new Android devices coming on AT&T and other carriers constantly getting them, I’m really trying to figure out what Google’s plan is. Yesterday i also heard from the Engadget Show that there is already a new version of the OS updated called FROYO (Frozen Yogurt) and another device in the works called the Nexus Two. Google is moving at a very rapid rate with OS updates and and devices, which is something that we have never seen in the cell phone market before. I’m just not sure what the plan is though for them. We are hearing that a lot of older devices are going to get the latest updates pushed out, but with the carriers and handset makers being in control of the updates we are not seeing them very fast. While current Android holders are waiting for a 2.0 update, there are already going to be two more updates come out in the mean time. With that all being said I think that Google needs to get an update process that is a little different. It is causing confusion with the app developers and people with current Android devices don’t know what is going on. If they would be clear on the front end to everyone and just say “Hey everyone if you have a current Android device you aren’t going to get to update to the new OS unless you get a newer device”. I’m not sure that is the best answer for what they are doing but, I think they need to be clear about what is going on. So with the fast pace of all the devices and updates are they trying to take over all the cell phone market? Is it good to be updating stuff at this fast of a pace? It has me wondering if Google might fall as fast as they rise. Only time will tell but in the mean time I’m still going to ponder and try to figure out in my mind what they are thinking. Maybe they aren’t thinking and they are just doing what Google does, we shall see.

This is the area, where i will be posting all my normal general news that i think you should hear about in technology.