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Android Upgrade Questions

926 views 24 replies 11 participants last post by  brianfast 
#1 ·
Greetings OCN.

I was thinking about ditching my crappy LG Cosmos for a smartphone. (Yes, the time has come.)

Currently, I'm on Verizon, and want to stay that way. I also am not going to get the iPhone, as I'm anti-Apple.

That leaves Android. I have a few questions though...

1.) What phone should I get? The Thunderbolt seems nice, but is way to expensive at the moment.

2.) Some of the phones (such as the Droid Incredible) don't have Youtube, Facebook, etc standard. Does this mean I can still get them, or not?

3.) Is there any way to jailbreak Android to get unlimited tethering, like on the iPhone? (I'm not even sure it's possible for the iPhone on Verizon.)

4.) And finally, which would you recommend? Verizon phones only, please.


Thanks in advance, I know it's a lot of questions, but I'm new in this field.
 
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#2 ·
I dont see the difference between Q #1 and #4. but to answer your questions.

1. wait abit and price will go down.

2. It does not matter what comes stock and what not. You can download those Apps in the android market for free without any hacking.

3. yes, you can root your phone and have S-OFF which gives you the ability to tether without the plan, but it depends on what model you decided to get.

4. If i were on Verizon and wanted an android upgrade, i would go with thunderbolt as my 1st choice and Droid X as my second option.

Android is indeed fun to mess around with.
 
#3 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by tian105;12785175
I dont see the difference between Q #1 and #4. but to answer your questions.

1. wait abit and price will go down.

2. It does not matter what comes stock and what not. You can download those Apps in the android market for free without any hacking.

3. yes, you can root your phone and have S-OFF which gives you the ability to tether without the plan, but it depends on what model you decided to get.

4. If i were on Verizon and wanted an android upgrade, i would go with thunderbolt as my 1st choice and Droid X as my second option.

Android is indeed fun to mess around with.
Chances are I'll go with the Droid X then. I don't have the extra cash to pay an extra $150 for the Thunderbolt.
Does the Droid X support S-OFF and tethering?
 
#4 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mibgranny;12784874
Greetings OCN.

I was thinking about ditching my crappy LG Cosmos for a smartphone. (Yes, the time has come.)

Currently, I'm on Verizon, and want to stay that way. I also am not going to get the iPhone, as I'm anti-Apple.

That leaves Android. I have a few questions though...

1.) What phone should I get? The Thunderbolt seems nice, but is way to expensive at the moment.

2.) Some of the phones (such as the Droid Incredible) don't have Youtube, Facebook, etc standard. Does this mean I can still get them, or not?

3.) Is there any way to jailbreak Android to get unlimited tethering, like on the iPhone? (I'm not even sure it's possible for the iPhone on Verizon.)

4.) And finally, which would you recommend? Verizon phones only, please.


Thanks in advance, I know it's a lot of questions, but I'm new in this field.
Few things..The Droid Incredible has Facebook, youtube and everything else + more. It's one of the best non-4G phones available. There are TONS of roms for it, HTC Sense is awesome. Anything the phone doesn't have you can get on the Market for free. You can root and tether your phone, but it's not unlimited. Verizon will throw a hissy fit if you go past 5GB.

I love the Incredible. It's awesome, but I'd have to ask how much you're going to pay and how much you care about future proofing and if you're going to pay straight up cash for it or if you're renewing contract.

If you're renewing contract, I would wait for the Bionic or something just to future proof your purchase. If you're paying cash and are not renewing, but can get the Incredible cheap, I'd do it. Has almost every rom available to it. 1ghz fast, AMOLED screen (some have SLCD). It's a beautiful thing.
smile.gif


Also, it's 3.7" screen. Big enough to enjoy, but not big enough so that you feel like you're carrying around some huge device in your pocket. Slides in pockets very nicely. Many complained the 4.3" screens are too big. It's user preference though.
 
#5 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Simca;12785317
Few things..The Droid Incredible has Facebook, youtube and everything else + more. It's one of the best non-4G phones available. There are TONS of roms for it, HTC Sense is awesome. Anything the phone doesn't have you can get on the Market for free. You can root and tether your phone, but it's not unlimited. Verizon will throw a hissy fit if you go past 5GB.

I love the Incredible. It's awesome, but I'd have to ask how much you're going to pay and how much you care about future proofing and if you're going to pay straight up cash for it or if you're renewing contract.

If you're renewing contract, I would wait for the Bionic or something just to future proof your purchase. If you're paying cash and are not renewing, but can get the Incredible cheap, I'd do it. Has almost every rom available to it. 1ghz fast, AMOLED screen (some have SLCD). It's a beautiful thing.
smile.gif


Also, it's 3.7" screen. Big enough to enjoy, but not big enough so that you feel like you're carrying around some huge device in your pocket. Slides in pockets very nicely. Many complained the 4.3" screens are too big. It's user preference though.
So now it's between the Droid X and the Incredible...

Future proofing doesn't mean much- I've been using feature phones up until now, which get outdated, what, every month?
Also, with the tethering you mentioned, do you have to pay for it?
 
#6 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mibgranny;12785367
So now it's between the Droid X and the Incredible...

Future proofing doesn't mean much- I've been using feature phones up until now, which get outdated, what, every month?
Also, with the tethering you mentioned, do you have to pay for it?
When you root your phone, you just download a tethering program off the Android Market (free) and you can tether. You don't HAVE to pay for Verizon hot spot fees. Just don't go over 5GB.

Also, I've had my Incredible for almost a year now and I don't at all feel like I've been outdated. Even though people are saying the Incredible is near it's EOL, I have no issues with it whatsoever. I don't have to pay 4G data fees, I don't feel like my phone needs dual cores or anything so at the moment I'm fine and dandy with my phone.

Visit a Verizon store and test out both if they still have them for show. See if the Droid X is too large for you. Know that the Droid X has a locked bootloader though. HTC phones aren't locked and are easy for rooting and putting roms on.
smile.gif
Also HTC's stock interface is pretty awesome in and of itself while Motorola Blurs...bleh
puke.gif
 
#7 ·
If the phone doesn't have YouTube or Facebook pre-installed, that's no problem, since they're free on the Android Market.
 
#8 ·
I have the Droid X and <3 it, it has a faster processor, bigger/sharper screen (the incredible's no longer come with AMOLED's), the stock battery life is better, its thinner/not as bulky, the only downside which only applies to you if you are heavily into custom roms is that the X isn't as customizable as the Incredible.
 
#9 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Simca;12785408
When you root your phone, you just download a tethering program off the Android Market (free) and you can tether. You don't HAVE to pay for Verizon hot spot fees. Just don't go over 5GB.

Also, I've had my Incredible for almost a year now and I don't at all feel like I've been outdated. Even though people are saying the Incredible is near it's EOL, I have no issues with it whatsoever. I don't have to pay 4G data fees, I don't feel like my phone needs dual cores or anything so at the moment I'm fine and dandy with my phone.

Visit a Verizon store and test out both if they still have them for show. See if the Droid X is too large for you. Know that the Droid X has a locked bootloader though. HTC phones aren't locked and are easy for rooting and putting roms on.
smile.gif
Also HTC's stock interface is pretty awesome in and of itself while Motorola Blurs...bleh
puke.gif
Alright, HTC it is then. Two questions: Does rooting your phone make it slower? And are there any new HTC phones about to come out?
Quote:
Originally Posted by error10;12785480
If the phone doesn't have YouTube or Facebook pre-installed, that's no problem, since they're free on the Android Market.
Alright. Well that's one of my questions answered.
 
#10 ·
I have the incredible and I love it. Another user helped me root my phone, and it's pretty sweet ^_^ My battery lasts at least 50% longer than my wife's (she's on stock unrooted incredible), and the HTC sense (a UI that you can put on your phone) is much better than the stock imo. However, the stock incredible is pretty awesome as well. I'm very biased, though, this is the first smartphone I've owned.
Quote:
Does rooting your phone make it slower? And are there any new HTC phones about to come out?
Rooting in and of itself will do nothing to your phone, afaik. It just makes it so that you can run any program on your phone. Thus, it won't make it slower at all. Some of the roms (user created UI's) might cause your phone to run slower, however of that I'm not sure. I think there are some dual core phones about to come out (bionic?), but I'm certain that other users on here can give you a more definite answer.
 
#11 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mibgranny;12785599
Alright, HTC it is then. Two questions: Does rooting your phone make it slower? And are there any new HTC phones about to come out?

Alright. Well that's one of my questions answered.
Not in the near future AFAIK.

Thunderbolt and who knows when the Pyramid will come out. But those will be 4G and you'll have to pay premium price+more expensive data fees.

Rooting does nothing but unlock certain aspects of your phone. You can download some features on the Android Market that you couldn't before..but what it does is allow you to put roms on your phone. With Kernels you can actually SPEED UP your phone for faster performance, or you can underclock it for longer battery life.

You can even completely change the look of your phone so that you never get bored with it.
 
#12 ·
Quote:


Originally Posted by Simca
View Post

Not in the near future AFAIK.

Thunderbolt and who knows when the Pyramid will come out. But those will be 4G and you'll have to pay premium price+more expensive data fees.

Rooting does nothing but unlock certain aspects of your phone. You can download some features on the Android Market that you couldn't before..but what it does is allow you to put roms on your phone. With Kernels you can actually SPEED UP your phone for faster performance, or you can underclock it for longer battery life.

You can even completely change the look of your phone so that you never get bored with it.

Sounds absolutely delicious...

I'm still stuck one which phone to get. Right now I'm leaning more toward the Incredible (versus the Droid X). Any notable differences between the two?

EDIT: Sorry, I forgot about the HTC vs. Motorola thing. That point put aside, are there any major differences?
 
#13 ·
It largely depends on whether you like Sense UI. Personally I hate it even more than I hate Motoblur. But the later Motorola phones being locked down... Tough choice.

Making it tougher is the fact that the Incredible was rather poorly made and suffers from lots of QA problems. These things die at a much higher rate than any other phone in recent memory. Of course VZ will just hand you a new one, no questions asked, but it's still inconvenient.

TL;DR: You can't win either way.
 
#14 ·
Quote:


Originally Posted by error10
View Post

It largely depends on whether you like Sense UI. Personally I hate it even more than I hate Motoblur. But the later Motorola phones being locked down... Tough choice.

Making it tougher is the fact that the Incredible was rather poorly made and suffers from lots of QA problems. These things die at a much higher rate than any other phone in recent memory. Of course VZ will just hand you a new one, no questions asked, but it's still inconvenient.

TL;DR: You can't win either way.

I'm reading some reviews online, and it seems that the Droid X seems more powerful, but is not made by HTC. Is it still rootable, and is it possible for me to still get the free tethering from it?
 
#15 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mibgranny;12790468
Is it still rootable, and is it possible for me to still get the free tethering from it?
Yes and yes.
 
#16 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mibgranny;12790468
I'm reading some reviews online, and it seems that the Droid X seems more powerful, but is not made by HTC. Is it still rootable, and is it possible for me to still get the free tethering from it?
If you aren't already aware, check out XDA developers. They have a section for almost every smartphone...your smartphone never gets dull there.
smile.gif
 
#19 ·
I recommend The Droid X. Proud owner of one since February. I just liked it more than the incredible; even though they're comparable. You can get all those apps for free. The X has build in motorola messaging for twitter, FB, etc; but I still prefer the actual apps.

They can be rooted, but that's on you and your warranty.

The thunderbolt is the only 4g by verizon atm. Unless you're extremely lucky; 4G service is few and far between atm in most areas.

Also, wirefly has some great deals right now on the Droid X.
 
#20 ·
Not doubting what anyone has posted about the Incredible having problems or dying because I simply have not heard of that issue from anyone that owns an Incredible.

Worst thing I've heard about the Incredible is that Samsung ran out or AMOLED screens for HTC and the newer incredibles had to use an SLCD screen.

From my experience, this phone is great and has had zero problems.

Have had it for a year.
 
#21 ·
Quote:


Originally Posted by gre0481
View Post

I recommend The Droid X. Proud owner of one since February. I just liked it more than the incredible; even though they're comparable. You can get all those apps for free. The X has build in motorola messaging for twitter, FB, etc; but I still prefer the actual apps.

They can be rooted, but that's on you and your warranty.

The thunderbolt is the only 4g by verizon atm. Unless you're extremely lucky; 4G service is few and far between atm in most areas.

Also, wirefly has some great deals right now on the Droid X.

Just checked Wirefly- They have the Droid X for half the price Verizon offers on their website. Though, when it asks about "Calling Plan Features", It gives me 4 options regarding texting. I'd like to keep unlimited texting, but that's not one of the options.
What do?
 
#22 ·
I would personally choose HTC over motorola simply because of the massive dev community HTC phones have over Motorola.

For example, HTC phones were the first to get gingerbread roms, the incredible has Desire Z roms (updated sense/UI), and the Incredible 2/thunderbolt roms are in the process of being ported to the Incredible. Also, since the EVO and Incredible are almost identical hardware wise, many roms are made for both phones.

The Droid X may have a larger screen, but the dev community that HTC allows to thrive by not locking down the bootloader would win me over over a slightly more powerful Motorola phone any day.

The thunderbolt is up for $175 this weekend.
 
#23 ·
Quote:


Originally Posted by Higgins
View Post

I would personally choose HTC over motorola simply because of the massive dev community HTC phones have over Motorola.

For example, HTC phones were the first to get gingerbread roms, the incredible has Desire Z roms (updated sense/UI), and the Incredible 2/thunderbolt roms are in the process of being ported to the Incredible. Also, since the EVO and Incredible are almost identical hardware wise, many roms are made for both phones.

The Droid X may have a larger screen, but the dev community that HTC allows to thrive by not locking down the bootloader would win me over over a slightly more powerful Motorola phone any day.

The thunderbolt is up for $175 this weekend.

I don't plan on doing much modding other than rooting my phone, and making it so that I can get the free tethering. Therefore, I'll stick with the Droid X.
Thanks for the input, though.
 
#24 ·
I don't have either the DX or the DINC

I have a OG Droid

rooted of course

I will say this my phone is oc'ed to 1Ghz and still lasts all day with heavy data usage

the Droid 2 is also a great option if you want a qwerty keyboard. I think its as powerful as the DINC or close to the DX.

if you are worried about size I would stay away from the DX because that sucker is huge, so the DINC would be a smaller option.

I have messed around with the version of Android the Droid X runs and it is okay but I would run with a stock android instead of the ninja moto blur it runs. Stock is the easiest to run and most rom creators like to go from the stock os instead of the different variations of Android ex. MotoBlur and SenseIU(which is know to eat up battery)

hope this helps
 
#25 ·
Hey I would advise you against getting a droid X.

The phone has good specs, but Verizon/Motorola ruined it somehow, maybe with the intrusive skin.

My roommate has a DX and I have a G2, and my phone was 3x as fast in Linpack as his phone, and his phone has a higher clockspeed. Stock android experience is really worth it, avoid phones with excessive skins like Motoblur at all costs. It literally ruins phones.

The G2 is a sweet phone by the way.
 
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