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New Phone Time (FOUND) What APPS do I need?
blakfeld
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
So after AT&T screwing around with my bill and not doing anything to work with me even the slightest on it, I need a new carrier. My new carrier shall be decided by which awesome phone I want.
iPhone's out since I want to distance myself from AT&T, but I'm looking at the Nexus One, the Droid, and the HTC HD2. So far I'm thinking about the Nexus One, even attempted to order it, but due to a glitch in Google's ordering system was unable to do so, and probably shall be until I can get ahold of some support. But that's given me time to settle down my gadget cravings and come to you all for advice.
Any owners of these phones care to share some suggestions? I like the snapdragon in both the Nexus One adn the HD2, but it seems like buying a Windows 6.5 phone might not be wise with 7 coming out so soon, and I feel like Android might end up with a better app selection, and may be easier to write my own code for. The Droid just seems like a nice all around phone, and reviews seem to have both people pining for the other.
So PA, any thoughts?
iPhone's out since I want to distance myself from AT&T, but I'm looking at the Nexus One, the Droid, and the HTC HD2. So far I'm thinking about the Nexus One, even attempted to order it, but due to a glitch in Google's ordering system was unable to do so, and probably shall be until I can get ahold of some support. But that's given me time to settle down my gadget cravings and come to you all for advice.
Any owners of these phones care to share some suggestions? I like the snapdragon in both the Nexus One adn the HD2, but it seems like buying a Windows 6.5 phone might not be wise with 7 coming out so soon, and I feel like Android might end up with a better app selection, and may be easier to write my own code for. The Droid just seems like a nice all around phone, and reviews seem to have both people pining for the other.
So PA, any thoughts?
blakfeld on
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I love my droid. So far the only complaint is that the app store is a little too new, and while there are tons of apps coming out all the time, I of course want more.
But seriously 20 dollars for a recently 200 dollar phone is a good deal. Just don't cancel for the two years and you won't have to pay any stupid fees.
It also depends on the relative merits of T-Mobile and Verizon in your area. Ask your friends about their coverage if they're on them.
Yeah, the keyboard might be nice, but I don't know how necessary it is. In my area, T-mobile and Verizon are about equals in 3G service, since I live in a college town, it's practically bathed in coverage by everyone, except strangely AT&T
Well, I use a full QWERTY soft keyboard on a 2.8" low-res screen (HTC Touch from ~2 years ago) without too many problems, so for me personally, I wouldn't give up the N1's superior hardware just for a keyboard.
I'm on Sprint, though, so I'm waiting on the HTC EVO 4G to come out this summer, especially since I live in a 4G market.
edit- 6 hours later I realize I failed at typing.
I can't really find a lot of information on the Incredible (granted I'm at work, so I can't look to hard) and it looks mostly the same. What exactly is the Sense UI? And the carrier isn't too big a deal in general, like I said, both have equal coverage in the areas I spend all my time, and will for at least the next two years
Sense UI is HTC's skin of Android. It also adds a few widgets for the home screen. The big downside of Sense UI devices is that it takes a lot longer to update them to new releases of Android - ask anyone with a Hero about that :P.
Since the N1 runs what can be called "canonical" Android, it will presumably be one of the first devices to get updates until it's obsolete. That said, the only update that is coming in the somewhat near future (maybe?) is 2.5 (aka "FroYo"), which is going to begin the process of separating out some of the major apps (like the browser) from the OS so that fragmentation is less of an issue going forward.
Now... RECOMMEND ME SOME APPS!
Weebo for IM. It's not great, but it lets me connect to everything I use for IM.
The Last.fm app if you have last.fm radio
A Online Radio for shoutcast. it gives lyrics for songs I'm told though i've never used it.
SportsTap if you're into a specific team or a specific sport you get pretty up to date coverage
WikiMobile is what I use for wiki access
Dolphin browser used to get recommended but because of the 2.1 the standard might be fine
Astro a file browser for your phone / SD card
Google Goggles is fun.
Lookout is a antivirus, backup, and phone tracking software. you have to register an account with their site but it seems pretty nice, backs everything up to your account on a time you set. If you lose your phone you can goto the website and if the phone is on, it will play a loud tone to track it, and show it's google map location.
I got skype mobile but it only works on 3g and won't use wifi.
I assume you're going Verizon so get the My Verizon app to check your usage and pay your bill if you want.
Games:
Robo Defense - Try the light but if you like tower defense this game is good
Cestos - Kind of like PvP marble madness. I play this all the time.
Netrunner - if you like MUD's this is a "hacker" themed one.
ProjectINF - Overhead MMOFPS. Kinda fun but sorta slow pace.
Sketch Online - Draw pictures, people guess. I like it
Chess Online - It's well chess, online!
I also grabbed Auto Process Killer. This app basically needs to be setup to tell what programs to not kill, and anything else to be shut off if it lingers for a set time limit. More handy than I thought it would be.
That's about all I use right now.
There isn't much on the game market I want yet really. I play Fishin' 2 Go (lite) at work some just for fun. It's pretty easy as far as fishing games go.
-Lookout: antivirus, sounds like you got it, I love it!
-WaveSecure: Cannot recommend this one more. You MAY have to pay for it; I got it during the free beta period. Basically it's all around phone-loss security. It backs up all your texts, contacts, calls, history, etc. to a secure server (you have to backup manually though). You can log on to their site to use GPS tracking to find your phone, or lock your phone remotely if you're worried it's been stolen. It's amazing.
-SMS backup: Backs up your SMS and such on a daily basis automatically. Great since I sometimes forget to backup with WaveSecure for a while.
Utility:
-Astrid: Good "to do" list app. Can set priority of items, make alarms and reminders to get stuff done, etc.
-ColorNote: Sticky note app that I love. Great for making grocery/shopping lists and whatnot.
-BatteryTime: Puts your battery level in a % fashion in the toolbar up top. Also has a widget that you can put on your homescreen that displays the same info.
-Advanced Task Killer: The most ubiquitous task-killing app. Just make sure it doesn't kill any apps which use widgets or you'll mess up the widgets.
-Bump: Haven't used this one a whole lot, but it's been very useful when I need it. Basically makes it extremely quick and easy to exchange contact info with someone who also has Bump on their phone (works with the iPhone too!).
-WeatherBug: Good weather app that displays the temperature in the top toolbar. The app itself has satellite info, good forecasting info a week out, weather alerts and warnings, etc.
-Weather Widget - great clock and weather widget. I think it looks awful pretty on my homescreen. (yes I have two weather apps, call me silly if you like) I paid $1 for the upgraded version but the free one works just fine.
Fun:
-Google Sky Map: Great if you have any interest in astronomy, and it's one of my favorite apps to use to show off my Droid.
-Pandora: Perfect music streaming.
-Shazam: Listens to any song and identifies the name and artist.
-Urbanspoon: Lots of great restaurants to find here! Can filter according to area in your city, type of food, or price point.
The only paid app I have listed is WaveSecure. Everything else should be free.
edit: I've heard a good podcast app is Listen - it's from the google labs.
From what I've gathered yeah it's only good from Amazon. At least my local Verizon store wouldn't match it. You could see if Best Buy might though.
Kind of what I thought, But these days why not. plus it's free.