Battle of the Smartphones

[aggienaut]

   So I don't very well keep up with the latest in modern technology. Especially things like smart phones, of which new models seem to be coming out constantly.
   I had an android for work for awhile though and quickly became addicted to neurotically checking my email every five minutes.
   But I need a new phone anyway, my ancient artifact of a "dumb phone" seems to have speaker problems wherein I can barely hear anyone ever, and I suspect with a smart phone I might be able to download and play audiobooks off it or something -- visiting the library once a week is delightfully antiquated and all but it would be more convenient not to have to.
   And moreover, my parents have said they'd like to get me a smart phone for my recent birthday.


   In an attempt to figure out out what kind of phone to get I employed my favourite way of getting answers: posted the question as a facebook status.
   Unfortunately I still got a blizzard of different answers.
   To narrow it down then, I'm going to poll you fine technically savvy folks!

   I don't necessarily need the latest and greatest. Keeping in mind that I'd like the phone to last, I don't know, 2-3 years, and it'll inevitably be "not the latest and greatest" for 95% of that time, I'd rather go for the most cost effective option for reasonable value over the 2-3 year life of the phone. You follow?

Also my current carrier is AT&T

[Poll #1843494]

   See also, I know so little about these things it's probably comical. I'm assuming the gs2 someone mentioned is a "galaxy s2?"


And here's a picture of the recent solar eclipse as seen through the lenses of a sextant!

Comments

[teaberryblue.livejournal.com]

It really depends what you'd like to do with it. If you're looking for something that takes nice photos, I'd go with the iPhone or the Galaxy. The Galaxy supposedly has the best battery life. If you want the phone that is going to have the most apps available and/or if you have a mac at home, I'd go with the iPhone.

I'd go for one of the Galaxy models or the iPhone right now. The newer Motorola Android is pretty good, too, and I've heard good things about the HTC Android phones. Androids sync up with Google better (for obvious reasons), iPhones sync up with Mac better and have apps that aren't available on other devices. Those are going to be the main sticking points. I'd really just go to the store, play with each OS for a bit and see if there's one that feels more comfortable and intuitive to you.

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

I have a deep seated loathing for macs if that helps.

Not just in principal but in actually trying to use them. I took a photoshop class at the local jc the other year and we used macs for it and... just everything about them fills me with loathing. The way the buttons on dialogue boxes are on the left instead of the right, the way they inexplicably use different incomprehensible symbols. Why the hell they put only one button on their mouses .... things I'm sure one who is accustomed to them find perfectly fine but for me it filled me with frothy loathing.

[teaberryblue.livejournal.com]

Yeah, then I would go to the store, try using both phones, and see which one is more intuitive for you. The Android OS isn't more like a PC or anything, neither are really like using a mac computer per se. It's just from a syncing perspective that you may want one or the other.

[marstokyo.livejournal.com]

I feel the same way about PC's, and for the same reasons> :-)

[separated.livejournal.com]

i've had an iphone fo ra few years now, and they're pretty great unless you're prone to dropping things.. however, aside from a shattered screen, you should be able to use it still.. the screen will look off, though. a nice case should help prevent that.. anyway, iphone rules, it's pretty quick, nice camera, awesome apps, you don't have to sift throug htons of junk in the app store like you do with droid from what i hear... the best touch screen, as well.... and there are quite a few options of models to get, personally i'd recommend the 3gs if you want to save money but hte 4 is a nice step up. unless you feel like talking to your phone, a 4s is probably not worth the extra cost (unless it's just a small one, in which case, yeah go for it). AHHH SO MANY WORDS.

[angelic-mystic.livejournal.com]

I recommend the Palm Pre if they still make them. I love mine. It has 16g of on board memory to store all the audio or pdf books you might want.

[sdaisyk.livejournal.com]

I have a Galaxy Note - the huge phone with a stylus and all that ("phablet").

The galaxy s2 or s3 (I think s3) was my second choice and I would have gotten it if my mom hadn't also chosen the Note (my excuse is I had to learn to use it so I could teach her)

[greyweirdo.livejournal.com]

I like my HTC droid phone with the slide out keyboard, but a lot of what I like probably works on all smart phones. I really dig the full real keyboard thing though. I have a really hard time typing on touchscreens.

[beki.livejournal.com]

Android phones in general seem to work well. Droids are being surpassed and by my best guess, you won't be able to get batteries and what not in about a year. The good thing is that they seem to be standardizing the charger plugs. I've got a Bionic (my old smart phone wasn't really) I don't use a ton of apps, so I don't feel competent to advise you there.

What you get should really be based on what you want to use your phone for. Most folks use their phones for social media and email more than they do for actual talk time. If you expect to be checking email etc, see if you can get an unlimited data plan. Most cel carriers are phasing them out, but keep your eye out. If all you want to do is talk voice, see if you can get a not so smart phone. They don't make "stupid" phones anymore, so it might be hard to find one.

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

I hardly talk on phones, and since my current phone has crappy speakers I can barely hear people on, I've been talkign to epople on skype when I can (even going so far as telling people I know have skype "hey can you call me back on skype?" when they call my phone). I do do a lot of texting though. With a smart phone I'll probably check my email and like said I would like to be able to DL audiobooks on it. Other than that I don't have much use for apps. I had a droid for work for about a year and the only "apps" I think I ever used were the yahoo mail app, the wells fargo banking app and.... yeah I think thats it. And those might not have been apps at all but just the browser squirreling certain cookies in my phone to make it work faster.

[tick-wonderdog.livejournal.com]

i've got the first samsung galaxy (2 years old) and they're just getting better. decent battery life, good camera, not too big or too small.

[millysdaughter.livejournal.com]

The smallbear has a droid. It held up beautifully to two years of constant use and abuse until very recently, when we had to use the assurion overpriced warranty system. (Still cheaper than buying a new phone, just an annoying system)

[millysdaughter.livejournal.com]

And all the droids apps -- her phone is filled with them, teenagers do that -- all her apps were free apps. I have no apps -- I have a dumb phone. And since **I** pay for her phone, the only apps **she** gets are free apps.

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Lol at "smallbear" (:

Thanks for the info!

[millysdaughter.livejournal.com]

And in the hands of a teenage girl, the phone stays **on** 24/7...they can (and do!) text in their sleep, I have discovered.

[emo-snal.livejournal.com]

Lol!

Sometimes I'll get a text in the night / early morning before I'm up, and it's tempting to respond, but I've discovered that if I do so I will NOT remember the interaction in the morning, potentially leading to confusion.