Is the battery life really that bad? I've heard some people saying it sucked for a few days, then it got better as they allowed it to drain down.
I'm somewhat confused about that, though, since I thought that wasn't how current batteries worked
I've allowed mine to die and charge fully for 12 hours.
When used conservatively it's more than fine. If you want to keep your phone in your pocket and use it for calls, you're more than okay for a full day IME. My phone was somewhere between 80-85% when I went to work, didn't use it at all except for a few phone calls and an SMS, and I was at 48% at the end of my six hour shift.
If you use GPS, browse constantly, have full screen brightness, and listen to music- yeah, you're quite fucked, IMO. Definitely no more than 4-5 hours.
Is the G1 supposed to disconnect from the data service when it's at or lower than 27% battery power?
It's either that, or I hit the 10 GB limit somehow.
victor_c26 on
It's been so long since I've posted here, I've removed my signature since most of what I had here were broken links. Shows over, you can carry on to the next post.
I don't know how people stand batteries on things like the G1 and iPhone. I got my iphone for free and even so I barely use it because it requires a charge every 1-2 days (whereas my w810 takes a charge once a week or so.)
I don't know how people stand batteries on things like the G1 and iPhone. I got my iphone for free and even so I barely use it because it requires a charge every 1-2 days (whereas my w810 takes a charge once a week or so.)
Funnily enough my last phone was a w810 and I loved the battery.
Frankly I've just gotten used to charging every night. It's a routine now.
Above person: quoted from the Tmobile dude, he said there is literally no limit, though after a gigabyte you need to clear out your cache or something?
I don't know how people stand batteries on things like the G1 and iPhone. I got my iphone for free and even so I barely use it because it requires a charge every 1-2 days (whereas my w810 takes a charge once a week or so.)
Yeah, but you're technically supposed to charge them asap always. I talked to a customer who had a phone that ~6 years old and still ticking on the original battery. He told me he charged it every night and it did the trick. Crazy stuff.
Yeah, I don't know why people want a week long battery from phones. Are you really that long between access to power? I use my phone throughout the day, and charge it while I sleep. If a new fancy phone can last that long it's just fine. I don't wait until my battery is dead to put it back on the charger.
Yeah, I don't know why people want a week long battery from phones. Are you really that long between access to power? I use my phone throughout the day, and charge it while I sleep. If a new fancy phone can last that long it's just fine. I don't wait until my battery is dead to put it back on the charger.
Hopefully, wireless power of some type will catch on within the next ten years such that we can charge our phones by simply being in the room.
Anyone picked up the Blackberry Bold from ATT yet? Sprint has lost me as a customer (Third month in 8 that there has been an error in my billing that resulted in me spending hours on the phone with my bank and sprint's magical CSRs) and I'm sort of torn between the Bold and the Storm (and at least raising an eyebrow over the Iphone).
Any opinions?
Noahthered on
"There is not a bus big enough to run over all the people that I hate"
-Sebudai
Anyone picked up the Blackberry Bold from ATT yet? Sprint has lost me as a customer (Third month in 8 that there has been an error in my billing that resulted in me spending hours on the phone with my bank and sprint's magical CSRs) and I'm sort of torn between the Bold and the Storm (and at least raising an eyebrow over the Iphone).
Any opinions?
I have played with the bold, but I do not own one, but I do manage the blackberry network for our work so I can easily compare it to other devices.
It is easily the best Blackberry RIM has ever made. The keyboard is great, the screen is better than the iPhone, just smaller(my opinion, of course, but shared by a lot of reviewers), and the thing feels pretty sturdy. It's also a bit on the hefty side, especially compared to the curve. it's bigger, and heavier, but that's not a bad thing. If feels really good in your hand, where my Curve feels a little cheap. basically if you are alooking for a phone with a great physical keyboard for heavy messaging duties that has a really nice screen for multimedia, the bold is the way to go.
the Storm is an interesting device. I'm going to get one to play with as soon as they come out in Canada(testing new devices for work is fun as fuck), but that wont' be until late november most likely. From what I've heard it's going to be a nice device, but there appears to be some concern that the touch screen is very un-responsive. Hopefully that's a problem limited to pre-production builds.
Does any body feel like the Tether apps are going to come out right after the 90 day free period?
It'd be a smart move. Everybody is craving for a Tether app, and many people (myself included) would pay for one.
victor_c26 on
It's been so long since I've posted here, I've removed my signature since most of what I had here were broken links. Shows over, you can carry on to the next post.
The 16gb microSDHC card is $75.95. The adapter (that allows you to use a 3.5 mm jack and to charge the phone at the same time) is $3.29. Both, shipped, came to under $90.
I have played with the bold, but I do not own one, but I do manage the blackberry network for our work so I can easily compare it to other devices.
It is easily the best Blackberry RIM has ever made. The keyboard is great, the screen is better than the iPhone, just smaller(my opinion, of course, but shared by a lot of reviewers), and the thing feels pretty sturdy. It's also a bit on the hefty side, especially compared to the curve. it's bigger, and heavier, but that's not a bad thing. If feels really good in your hand, where my Curve feels a little cheap. basically if you are alooking for a phone with a great physical keyboard for heavy messaging duties that has a really nice screen for multimedia, the bold is the way to go.
the Storm is an interesting device. I'm going to get one to play with as soon as they come out in Canada(testing new devices for work is fun as fuck), but that wont' be until late november most likely. From what I've heard it's going to be a nice device, but there appears to be some concern that the touch screen is very un-responsive. Hopefully that's a problem limited to pre-production builds.
Good to here. The lack of wifi on the Storm is quickly becoming a deal breaker for me. Touch screen be damned, being able to send and recieve stuff while in my sarcofagus of an office is gonna be awesome.
Noahthered on
"There is not a bus big enough to run over all the people that I hate"
-Sebudai
It's been so long since I've posted here, I've removed my signature since most of what I had here were broken links. Shows over, you can carry on to the next post.
Yeah, I don't know why people want a week long battery from phones. Are you really that long between access to power? I use my phone throughout the day, and charge it while I sleep. If a new fancy phone can last that long it's just fine. I don't wait until my battery is dead to put it back on the charger.
Er, you don't understand why people want long battery life out of something that runs on batteries?
What's not to understand? Longer is better than shorter.
I'm all for the extra features in phones like the g1 and iphone, but even just in terms of phone-use only they're pretty terrible for battery life.
Yeah, but you're technically supposed to charge them asap always.
Lithium Ion batteries expire at roughly the same rate regardless of how often you use them and how often you charge them. The only way to really 'ruin' one early is to keep trying to discharge it when it's empty (at which point the battery is capable of cannibalizing itself) or to leave one completely discharged for an extended period of time (in which case cell cannibalization will also occur.) Oh, heating them up works too... which also causes cannibalization .
Yeah, I don't know why people want a week long battery from phones. Are you really that long between access to power? I use my phone throughout the day, and charge it while I sleep. If a new fancy phone can last that long it's just fine. I don't wait until my battery is dead to put it back on the charger.
Er, you don't understand why people want long battery life out of something that runs on batteries?
What's not to understand? Longer is better than shorter.
I'm all for the extra features in phones like the g1 and iphone, but even just in terms of phone-use only they're pretty terrible for battery life.
Granted, but when people say that they can go a week without charging their current phone, and then complain when a smartphone gets 4-8 hours of good usage, it seems silly. I know my phone could probably go 3 days without making any calls, but if I start taking pictures/video and sending them out to people and spend two hours on the phone with someone, I don't expect it to keep that 3 day battery life.
When you have a smartphone that is constantly connected to check your e-mail, run a GPS unit, and you use it to surf the internet I don't expect to get much of a battery life out of it.
Do I want longer batteries? Absolutely. I guess I just don't expect much when companies are trying to keep phones smaller rather than adding another ounce or two and some extra thickness for a larger battery.
Oh, and I talked to our Sprint rep today (for the company I work for) and he's pushing to get us these as a free or $1 upgrades when it comes out in December! Woo!!!
Nextel version of the Curve, but upgraded and running the same BBOS as the Bold.
Though I wish we used Verizon Wireless at work so I could push to get the Storm.
Enh, my point isn't that my w810 can go for a week without being charged if I don't talk on it, my point is that it will play video, audio, take calls, and regardless of which of those things it does, it'll last MUCH longer than the iphone does when doing the same thing. Video playback might not be a fair comparison for the two phones (as the iphone does it at higher res and framerate) but audio playback and talk time? The phones are playing the same game, there...
I guess I'd just like to know phones like the iphone and g1 make it out that are good for maybe 5 real hours of talk-time per charge, are considerably larger and heavier than phones like the w810, and people still think they're good phones.
I think they're terrible phones. Good portable web browsers, mediocre portable computers, but terrible phones. If I'd paid for mine (like I originally intended) I would have been so angry.
So I now have to juggle three email accounts (one work, one school, one personal) and it's time to upgrade my phone so I have been looking at T-Mobile's smartphone offerings for the first time. I can get a BlackBerry Curve for $99 or the G1 for $179. Service is the same for both. I really only need the email functionality, though having a browser to do a quick Google search every now and again would be nice, and I love playing with technology. Also, my four year old iPod finally kicked it, so having a few albums on the phone might be nice. Help me decide PA. All the BB/G1 comparisons I have have found have featured the Storm, not the Curve which appears to be quite a different animal.
[EDIT] Both my computers are Macs if that makes a difference.
So I now have to juggle three email accounts (one work, one school, one personal) and it's time to upgrade my phone so I have been looking at T-Mobile's smartphone offerings for the first time. I can get a BlackBerry Curve for $99 or the G1 for $179. Service is the same for both. I really only need the email functionality, though having a browser to do a quick Google search every now and again would be nice, and I love playing with technology. Also, my four year old iPod finally kicked it, so having a few albums on the phone might be nice. Help me decide PA. All the BB/G1 comparisons I have have found have featured the Storm, not the Curve which appears to be quite a different animal.
[EDIT] Both my computers are Macs if that makes a difference.
If you're going the mp3 player route, I'm pretty sure all Blackberry devices have a 3.5mm headphone port built into them. Maybe go with the Blackberry, as I believe it will let you tether internet to a computer.
And to play the devil on your shoulder (though I don't really disagree with anything AW said): converters from miniUSB to 3.5mm can be acquired online for less than $5... and a third party tethering application is almost guaranteed for the G1 sometime in the future.
However I will note that if you actually like typing a lot of emails- or messages- I think the BB would be a clear winner then. Typing is not rapid at all on the G1 (for me, anyway).
The Behold doesn't have wifi? Fuck that noise. Also- that Blackberry looks rugged as hell.
I actually kinda like the all-black look it has going there, though I could do without the Nextel yellow. I guess I'm just one of those guys who likes a clean black on their electronics (black Zune 120GB, black WD external HDD, black headphones). I don't know if it's technically "rugged" at all, they don't seem to be advertising it as such, but it does seem more rugged than the standard curve.
Vater5B: I would personally go with the Curve. Blackberry phones are excellent for e-mail, and you can keep separate inboxes for each account if you want and typing on the curve keyboard is very nice. Internet isn't too bad, though not full HTML iirc. Plus battery life on BBs is incredible.
Got a Bold today. I really can't say enough about how much of a work of art this thing is. Blackberries have always been high quality devices, but this thing takes it to a whole new level. It's amazing. Definitely worth the wait. This is my first phone on ATT so far, so I think the real test is going to be their network worthy of this device. Driving around my area all day, I've managed to maintain constant 3G coverage. Couple things of note.....
-I have no idea how, or if it's even possible, to turn 3G off. Admittedly, it eats the battery for lunch if I use it like normal. However, anyone who needs a Bold probably has access to chargers in their car, work, and at home.
-The screen is funky as hell. It's not like (every)other BB screens. Very crisp and clear. It's like a miniature computer LCD rather than a blown up phone LCD.
-BB Maps apparently is locked out. Google maps works though.
-The browser is much better. Not Iphone better, but definitely miles ahead of anything previous. I'm left to assume the Storm's browser will be similar.
-It's big. This is a good thing. Over time, my 8830 began to feel small as my thumbs became more and more mutated by the small QWERTY keyboard. My friends with Curves and Pearls must have had it even worst. The Bold is refreshingly large. It's not too big though. I don't know if it will fit in my holster (left it at work :P) so we'll see.
-It comes with stereo headphones. I just really liked this "feature" because finding good headphones for my 8830 was awful.
-Call quality is excellent. If you are coming from a Curve or Pearl, this will be less noticable. If you are coming from an 88xx series or anything older though, you will notice a difference.
-I almost feel bad using a Bluetooth headset. It just looks so cool :P
-The new OS (4.6?) is extraordinarly more responsive and agile. That's not to say Blackberries are historically sluggish or clumbsy. Just more worth noting how good the new OS is. Startup time is probably half what it is on my 8830.
-It comes with I think 2gigs of memory, and can be upgraded to as much as 16. With the cheap prices on mem cards these days, no real excuse to not use one.
All in all it's a badass little phone.
As for Blackberry vs Everything else?
Unless you just have your heart set on having an Ipod that doubles as a phone, or you need a Windows device, I really can't think of a reason to buy anything other than a Blackberry right now. ATT just released the Bold this week. Verizon releases the Storm next week. TMobile has the 8220 (Pearl flip) and soon the Javelin 8900 (Basically everything the 9xxx phones have minus 3G). Sprint....doesn't have shit....but they never do so whatever. Black friday is in a few weeks so if price is an issue, you can most likely get one pretty cheap then.
*edit*
Word on the street now is that the Storm is getting delayed by a month or more for whatever reason. Don't take this as anything more than rumor of course. I may get a Storm for personal use when it comes out so hopefully I can let yall know whats going on.
Noahthered on
"There is not a bus big enough to run over all the people that I hate"
-Sebudai
Quick question about the G1 (and other HTC phones, I guess.)
I know on the G1 you can use the included headphones to listen to music, and that double-clicking on the button will skip to the next track. Will that work with a set of iPhone earbuds (or any other headphones with a mic), connected to the G1 via a 3.5mm to mini-USB connector?
I just used the G1 to find the bar where Polysics are going to play tonight in Chicago. It was pretty good. i didnt expect it to be so detailed.
The only thing that was missing was the voice giving out the visual turn by turn directions.
victor_c26 on
It's been so long since I've posted here, I've removed my signature since most of what I had here were broken links. Shows over, you can carry on to the next post.
Right now we're just walking around the North Side of Chicago before the doors open.
Doors open at 8:00PM Central, and the show starts at 9:00PM Central.
victor_c26 on
It's been so long since I've posted here, I've removed my signature since most of what I had here were broken links. Shows over, you can carry on to the next post.
The build quality of the earbuds = terrible. Be warned. I never sat on these- this came from untangling them, I guess pulling too hard on a wire. They're not well built at all.
Thankfully I was only using them until my adapter arrives in the mail next week. Also picked up the 16 gb microSD card, plus a pair of SE110s for music.
I just used the G1 to find the bar where Polysics are going to play tonight in Chicago. It was pretty good. i didnt expect it to be so detailed.
The only thing that was missing was the voice giving out the visual turn by turn directions.
how was Polysics?
To give an update. Polysics were awesome.
Kayo was fucking adorable during Peach Pie On The Beach.
EDIT: and now with some [crappy] pics from the G1!:
victor_c26 on
It's been so long since I've posted here, I've removed my signature since most of what I had here were broken links. Shows over, you can carry on to the next post.
Posts
I'm somewhat confused about that, though, since I thought that wasn't how current batteries worked
I've allowed mine to die and charge fully for 12 hours.
When used conservatively it's more than fine. If you want to keep your phone in your pocket and use it for calls, you're more than okay for a full day IME. My phone was somewhere between 80-85% when I went to work, didn't use it at all except for a few phone calls and an SMS, and I was at 48% at the end of my six hour shift.
If you use GPS, browse constantly, have full screen brightness, and listen to music- yeah, you're quite fucked, IMO. Definitely no more than 4-5 hours.
It's either that, or I hit the 10 GB limit somehow.
Funnily enough my last phone was a w810 and I loved the battery.
Frankly I've just gotten used to charging every night. It's a routine now.
Above person: quoted from the Tmobile dude, he said there is literally no limit, though after a gigabyte you need to clear out your cache or something?
Yeah, but you're technically supposed to charge them asap always. I talked to a customer who had a phone that ~6 years old and still ticking on the original battery. He told me he charged it every night and it did the trick. Crazy stuff.
Hopefully, wireless power of some type will catch on within the next ten years such that we can charge our phones by simply being in the room.
Once they arrive and I've 'tricked it out', I'll write up a full and proper review of the G1.
Any opinions?
-Sebudai
I have played with the bold, but I do not own one, but I do manage the blackberry network for our work so I can easily compare it to other devices.
It is easily the best Blackberry RIM has ever made. The keyboard is great, the screen is better than the iPhone, just smaller(my opinion, of course, but shared by a lot of reviewers), and the thing feels pretty sturdy. It's also a bit on the hefty side, especially compared to the curve. it's bigger, and heavier, but that's not a bad thing. If feels really good in your hand, where my Curve feels a little cheap. basically if you are alooking for a phone with a great physical keyboard for heavy messaging duties that has a really nice screen for multimedia, the bold is the way to go.
the Storm is an interesting device. I'm going to get one to play with as soon as they come out in Canada(testing new devices for work is fun as fuck), but that wont' be until late november most likely. From what I've heard it's going to be a nice device, but there appears to be some concern that the touch screen is very un-responsive. Hopefully that's a problem limited to pre-production builds.
How much was the 16GB card?
Does any body feel like the Tether apps are going to come out right after the 90 day free period?
It'd be a smart move. Everybody is craving for a Tether app, and many people (myself included) would pay for one.
Good to here. The lack of wifi on the Storm is quickly becoming a deal breaker for me. Touch screen be damned, being able to send and recieve stuff while in my sarcofagus of an office is gonna be awesome.
-Sebudai
-5 Megapixel Camera
-Full HTML Browser
-3G
-Samsung's OS
I may upgrade from my LG Viewty. It would be nice not to lose my 5mp camera and gain a good (hopefully) browser.
Cellphone model names are getting silly.
And yes, it is coming November 10th.
Er, you don't understand why people want long battery life out of something that runs on batteries?
What's not to understand? Longer is better than shorter.
I'm all for the extra features in phones like the g1 and iphone, but even just in terms of phone-use only they're pretty terrible for battery life.
Lithium Ion batteries expire at roughly the same rate regardless of how often you use them and how often you charge them. The only way to really 'ruin' one early is to keep trying to discharge it when it's empty (at which point the battery is capable of cannibalizing itself) or to leave one completely discharged for an extended period of time (in which case cell cannibalization will also occur.) Oh, heating them up works too... which also causes cannibalization
this is the Behold
5MP camera with flash
3G
GPS
no wifi
supports 16GB SDHC
Granted, but when people say that they can go a week without charging their current phone, and then complain when a smartphone gets 4-8 hours of good usage, it seems silly. I know my phone could probably go 3 days without making any calls, but if I start taking pictures/video and sending them out to people and spend two hours on the phone with someone, I don't expect it to keep that 3 day battery life.
When you have a smartphone that is constantly connected to check your e-mail, run a GPS unit, and you use it to surf the internet I don't expect to get much of a battery life out of it.
Do I want longer batteries? Absolutely. I guess I just don't expect much when companies are trying to keep phones smaller rather than adding another ounce or two and some extra thickness for a larger battery.
Oh, and I talked to our Sprint rep today (for the company I work for) and he's pushing to get us these as a free or $1 upgrades when it comes out in December! Woo!!!
Nextel version of the Curve, but upgraded and running the same BBOS as the Bold.
Though I wish we used Verizon Wireless at work so I could push to get the Storm.
I guess I'd just like to know phones like the iphone and g1 make it out that are good for maybe 5 real hours of talk-time per charge, are considerably larger and heavier than phones like the w810, and people still think they're good phones.
I think they're terrible phones. Good portable web browsers, mediocre portable computers, but terrible phones. If I'd paid for mine (like I originally intended) I would have been so angry.
[EDIT] Both my computers are Macs if that makes a difference.
If you're going the mp3 player route, I'm pretty sure all Blackberry devices have a 3.5mm headphone port built into them. Maybe go with the Blackberry, as I believe it will let you tether internet to a computer.
However I will note that if you actually like typing a lot of emails- or messages- I think the BB would be a clear winner then. Typing is not rapid at all on the G1 (for me, anyway).
Vater5B: I would personally go with the Curve. Blackberry phones are excellent for e-mail, and you can keep separate inboxes for each account if you want and typing on the curve keyboard is very nice. Internet isn't too bad, though not full HTML iirc. Plus battery life on BBs is incredible.
Except my cell phone. Idk what's up with that.
-I have no idea how, or if it's even possible, to turn 3G off. Admittedly, it eats the battery for lunch if I use it like normal. However, anyone who needs a Bold probably has access to chargers in their car, work, and at home.
-The screen is funky as hell. It's not like (every)other BB screens. Very crisp and clear. It's like a miniature computer LCD rather than a blown up phone LCD.
-BB Maps apparently is locked out. Google maps works though.
-The browser is much better. Not Iphone better, but definitely miles ahead of anything previous. I'm left to assume the Storm's browser will be similar.
-It's big. This is a good thing. Over time, my 8830 began to feel small as my thumbs became more and more mutated by the small QWERTY keyboard. My friends with Curves and Pearls must have had it even worst. The Bold is refreshingly large. It's not too big though. I don't know if it will fit in my holster (left it at work :P) so we'll see.
-It comes with stereo headphones. I just really liked this "feature" because finding good headphones for my 8830 was awful.
-Call quality is excellent. If you are coming from a Curve or Pearl, this will be less noticable. If you are coming from an 88xx series or anything older though, you will notice a difference.
-I almost feel bad using a Bluetooth headset. It just looks so cool :P
-The new OS (4.6?) is extraordinarly more responsive and agile. That's not to say Blackberries are historically sluggish or clumbsy. Just more worth noting how good the new OS is. Startup time is probably half what it is on my 8830.
-It comes with I think 2gigs of memory, and can be upgraded to as much as 16. With the cheap prices on mem cards these days, no real excuse to not use one.
All in all it's a badass little phone.
As for Blackberry vs Everything else?
Unless you just have your heart set on having an Ipod that doubles as a phone, or you need a Windows device, I really can't think of a reason to buy anything other than a Blackberry right now. ATT just released the Bold this week. Verizon releases the Storm next week. TMobile has the 8220 (Pearl flip) and soon the Javelin 8900 (Basically everything the 9xxx phones have minus 3G). Sprint....doesn't have shit....but they never do so whatever. Black friday is in a few weeks so if price is an issue, you can most likely get one pretty cheap then.
*edit*
Word on the street now is that the Storm is getting delayed by a month or more for whatever reason. Don't take this as anything more than rumor of course. I may get a Storm for personal use when it comes out so hopefully I can let yall know whats going on.
-Sebudai
I know on the G1 you can use the included headphones to listen to music, and that double-clicking on the button will skip to the next track. Will that work with a set of iPhone earbuds (or any other headphones with a mic), connected to the G1 via a 3.5mm to mini-USB connector?
The only thing that was missing was the voice giving out the visual turn by turn directions.
how was Polysics?
Right now we're just walking around the North Side of Chicago before the doors open.
Doors open at 8:00PM Central, and the show starts at 9:00PM Central.
They're still not letting employees order them either!
The build quality of the earbuds = terrible. Be warned. I never sat on these- this came from untangling them, I guess pulling too hard on a wire. They're not well built at all.
Thankfully I was only using them until my adapter arrives in the mail next week. Also picked up the 16 gb microSD card, plus a pair of SE110s for music.
To give an update. Polysics were awesome.
Kayo was fucking adorable during Peach Pie On The Beach.
EDIT: and now with some [crappy] pics from the G1!: