At the beginning of the week I received my new-to-me iPhone 4. This is my first iPhone. For the past few weeks, ever since the Gingerbread update in fact, I've been having an increasing amount of problems with my previously reliable Droid X. Before I got to the point of smashing the everloving guts out of the thing, I hopped on eBay and picked up a really clean and lightly used iPhone 4 to replace it.
So, review time. I try to be as unbiased as I can, and maybe this will help others looking to make a similar switch.
First, the bad. Not because I'm a pessimist, but because there's really not much to complain about. Note, all these things are completely opinion related.
Cons
1. Size. I'm slowly getting used to it, but I really miss the 4.3" screen of the Droid X. My fingers felt a little less cramped, and it seems to stand out at the moment.
2. It's slick. Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful package (more in the pros), but the slick back has created near incidents a few too many time. It slides off any fabric surface that isn't completely level. A case will fix that.
3. It needs too much protection. I feel like every little thing is going to ruin this phone. Part of it is because it's a damn fine looking phone and I don't want to ruin it if I can help it at all. But that bothers me to some extent. I hate cases for phones.
3b. Kind of a sub problem of the above, but why does this not have Gorilla glass? At no time have I ever felt the need to have a screen protector on the DX. It's been in my pockets, smashed with keys, and I've done the heavy handed scratch test to impress the friends and still the screen looks brand new with nary a scratch. I hate screen protectors.
4. SMS/MMS chat bubbles. Sorry, just not my style. They look goofy.
5. I really miss a dedicated camera button.
6. I really really really miss Swype.
Pros
1. Have I mentioned it's a beautiful design? I never liked the previous edition iPhones. I dislike the curved nonsense. The slab sides really appeal to me. It looks impressive at all angles. Even the volume buttons look sharp and well crafted.
2. Camera. The DX may have an 8 megapixel camera, but it's got a crap sensor. Every picture I took with that phone had washed out colors and a grainy resolution. I've seen what can be done with that camera, but I can't imagine the b.s. that takes place to get a decent shot. The iPhone camera takes superior pictures.
3. Screen. It's fantastic. The colors are bright and vibrant. I remember how dull the colors were when I switched from the first Droid to the Droid X. After a certain amount of time, I got used to it and it didn't bother me anymore, but when I switched to the iPhone, the colors were incredibly bright and vibrant in comparison.
4. E-Mail. I have six email accounts hooked up to this phone and they all work flawlessly. On the DX, I had certificate problems with my hotmail accounts. Also, thank god for a unified inbox. I know there were ways to do it on the DX, but it was cantankerous. And what really bothered me was how there was a Gmail app/program, and then a completely separate app/program to handle any email that was not Gmail. I don't need two separate programs to handle on function.
5. Mute switch. Why do all phones not have this?
6. No fragmentation. Seriously, it's becoming a huge problem. There are android phones that I think are excellent in terms of hardware that I wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole because they ship with an old OS and have a dubious timetable for upgrades. I know some people don't care. I do. I refuse to pay 200 - 300 for a phone that's running and old OS.
That's about it for the moment. It's still very early in the game. I have a case that should arrive tomorrow or Saturday that will hopefully take care of the slick/sliding problem and give it a bit of a boost of protection. I have an iPad that should be here Saturday or Monday to tinker with to get more of a feel of the iOS sandbox. So far so good.
So, review time. I try to be as unbiased as I can, and maybe this will help others looking to make a similar switch.
First, the bad. Not because I'm a pessimist, but because there's really not much to complain about. Note, all these things are completely opinion related.
Cons
1. Size. I'm slowly getting used to it, but I really miss the 4.3" screen of the Droid X. My fingers felt a little less cramped, and it seems to stand out at the moment.
2. It's slick. Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful package (more in the pros), but the slick back has created near incidents a few too many time. It slides off any fabric surface that isn't completely level. A case will fix that.
3. It needs too much protection. I feel like every little thing is going to ruin this phone. Part of it is because it's a damn fine looking phone and I don't want to ruin it if I can help it at all. But that bothers me to some extent. I hate cases for phones.
3b. Kind of a sub problem of the above, but why does this not have Gorilla glass? At no time have I ever felt the need to have a screen protector on the DX. It's been in my pockets, smashed with keys, and I've done the heavy handed scratch test to impress the friends and still the screen looks brand new with nary a scratch. I hate screen protectors.
4. SMS/MMS chat bubbles. Sorry, just not my style. They look goofy.
5. I really miss a dedicated camera button.
6. I really really really miss Swype.
Pros
1. Have I mentioned it's a beautiful design? I never liked the previous edition iPhones. I dislike the curved nonsense. The slab sides really appeal to me. It looks impressive at all angles. Even the volume buttons look sharp and well crafted.
2. Camera. The DX may have an 8 megapixel camera, but it's got a crap sensor. Every picture I took with that phone had washed out colors and a grainy resolution. I've seen what can be done with that camera, but I can't imagine the b.s. that takes place to get a decent shot. The iPhone camera takes superior pictures.
3. Screen. It's fantastic. The colors are bright and vibrant. I remember how dull the colors were when I switched from the first Droid to the Droid X. After a certain amount of time, I got used to it and it didn't bother me anymore, but when I switched to the iPhone, the colors were incredibly bright and vibrant in comparison.
4. E-Mail. I have six email accounts hooked up to this phone and they all work flawlessly. On the DX, I had certificate problems with my hotmail accounts. Also, thank god for a unified inbox. I know there were ways to do it on the DX, but it was cantankerous. And what really bothered me was how there was a Gmail app/program, and then a completely separate app/program to handle any email that was not Gmail. I don't need two separate programs to handle on function.
5. Mute switch. Why do all phones not have this?
6. No fragmentation. Seriously, it's becoming a huge problem. There are android phones that I think are excellent in terms of hardware that I wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole because they ship with an old OS and have a dubious timetable for upgrades. I know some people don't care. I do. I refuse to pay 200 - 300 for a phone that's running and old OS.
That's about it for the moment. It's still very early in the game. I have a case that should arrive tomorrow or Saturday that will hopefully take care of the slick/sliding problem and give it a bit of a boost of protection. I have an iPad that should be here Saturday or Monday to tinker with to get more of a feel of the iOS sandbox. So far so good.