My cell phone is on its last leg. Two years of wear and tear, two drops within the last four months resulting in physical parts of the phone popping off, and the general age of the Windows Mobile 6.0 operating system results in an unfriendly and unruly telephoning experience. External sounds (ringing, speakerphone) are inaudible, the phone has to rebooted often to try and connect to the internet (my main use of which is checking local traffic), and the screen will randomly fade to white mid-use. I've been eying upcoming cellphones for months to see if I could find a suitable replacement, but little has really caught my eye. Here are the candidates.
HTC Magic (or... MyTouch)
I've been leaning towards an Android based telephone (Google's open-source operating system) after trying out a G1 at the T-Mobile store. However, after experiences with my last two phones I'm wary of a phone with moving parts, and the G1 has a slide out keyboard. With moving parts in a phone one also has to worry about mechanical failures either with the physical moving parts or interaction with the software -- there's nothing more annoying than sliding out the keyboard ready to type a message and having to wait ten seconds for the screen to switch orientation.
The HTC Magic is the answer to that, as it is essentially a physical keyboardless touchscreen only G1. I think it's one of the best looking phones I've ever seen, and has been getting pretty good reviews online. The problem? It's on T-Mobile, and they have decided to name it the "MyTouch 3G". They are marketing it as your phone that you can personalize, making it 100% you. Available accessories include hot pink leather carrying case, purple or deep red rubber cases with matching colored tassels, and customizable back plates with pictures of pink flowers. Besides the potential factor of having a phone that will become identified with tween girls, I don't know if I'm willing to switch to T-Mobile, as it seems the plan pricing would be comparable to what I'm paying AT&T right now, and traditionally people who have had T-Mobile at my house have had streaky reception at best.
I've been tempted by picking up this phone for the full retail price when it is released in early August and using it on AT&T, but I won't be able to use the 3G bandwidth. I don't care too much for the loss in data speed, but the main benefit of having 3G is being able to use data and voice at the same time. I'd rather not miss calls because I was using Google Maps.
HTC Hero
Another Android offering from HTC, this phone is using a modified version of Google's operation system which HTC calls the "SenseUI". It adds many features to the widget based operating system and in theory has made the basic Android system much more friendly, usable, and accessible. Preview hardware has been widely lauded by cell phone aficionados in the know, and there is a very good chance that AT&T will be getting it. The downside? I think it looks butt ugly. Also, having not been released anywhere in the world yet, no one has any idea on the battery life of the phone. I'd rather not have a phone that dies before the end of each day with normal use.
Sony Ericsson "Rachael"
Relax, Rachael is just a code-name for the indevelopment phone. I hope. Little is known about Sony Ericsson's first foray into Android (having used Windows Mobile for their high-end phones before) including even whether it slated for release in the US or whether it will support AT&T's 3G bands, but take a little look at the video below to see what this phone is aiming for in terms of its modified Android interface (which, by the way, may or may not be a real video). The hardware also reportedly packs an 8MP autofocus camera (so if image quality is good enough, I won't have to replace my dying 5MP Canon Powershot), and a next-generation Snapdragon processor. While again little is known about the phone, one thing I already see that may bother me is lack of a volume rocker button on the side of the preview renders. Whether I'm missing it and it's craftily hidden away somewhere or not there at all remains to be seen, it's the button I use the most on any cellphone and is something that would factor into a purchasing decision. Rumors also say this may have a 4" touchscreen, which might make this phone just a tad too big (the iPhone has a 3.5" screen).
I've also kept my eye on the recently released (and previously previewed) Palm Pre, but build quality issues, potential pitfalls of the Synergy software, and switching to Sprint are huge roadblocks. My coworker got one and while it looks and seems to work really well, the keyboard buttons are too tiny. I've also kept my mind open on Blackberries, and the upcoming Onyx seems like the one I would get were to join my sister in the Blackberry world. Optical trackpad (to replace the trackball), 3G, wi-fi, Blackberry quality, proven operating system, and traditionally a battery charge that will last days are the main draws of it. The Onyx will be released around December though, luckily on AT&T. I can deal with my current cell phone for now, despite its drawbacks and limitations. The real question is whether it will continue to remain operational until I find its replacement.
HTC Magic (or... MyTouch)
I've been leaning towards an Android based telephone (Google's open-source operating system) after trying out a G1 at the T-Mobile store. However, after experiences with my last two phones I'm wary of a phone with moving parts, and the G1 has a slide out keyboard. With moving parts in a phone one also has to worry about mechanical failures either with the physical moving parts or interaction with the software -- there's nothing more annoying than sliding out the keyboard ready to type a message and having to wait ten seconds for the screen to switch orientation.The HTC Magic is the answer to that, as it is essentially a physical keyboardless touchscreen only G1. I think it's one of the best looking phones I've ever seen, and has been getting pretty good reviews online. The problem? It's on T-Mobile, and they have decided to name it the "MyTouch 3G". They are marketing it as your phone that you can personalize, making it 100% you. Available accessories include hot pink leather carrying case, purple or deep red rubber cases with matching colored tassels, and customizable back plates with pictures of pink flowers. Besides the potential factor of having a phone that will become identified with tween girls, I don't know if I'm willing to switch to T-Mobile, as it seems the plan pricing would be comparable to what I'm paying AT&T right now, and traditionally people who have had T-Mobile at my house have had streaky reception at best.
I've been tempted by picking up this phone for the full retail price when it is released in early August and using it on AT&T, but I won't be able to use the 3G bandwidth. I don't care too much for the loss in data speed, but the main benefit of having 3G is being able to use data and voice at the same time. I'd rather not miss calls because I was using Google Maps.
HTC Hero
Another Android offering from HTC, this phone is using a modified version of Google's operation system which HTC calls the "SenseUI". It adds many features to the widget based operating system and in theory has made the basic Android system much more friendly, usable, and accessible. Preview hardware has been widely lauded by cell phone aficionados in the know, and there is a very good chance that AT&T will be getting it. The downside? I think it looks butt ugly. Also, having not been released anywhere in the world yet, no one has any idea on the battery life of the phone. I'd rather not have a phone that dies before the end of each day with normal use. Sony Ericsson "Rachael"
Relax, Rachael is just a code-name for the indevelopment phone. I hope. Little is known about Sony Ericsson's first foray into Android (having used Windows Mobile for their high-end phones before) including even whether it slated for release in the US or whether it will support AT&T's 3G bands, but take a little look at the video below to see what this phone is aiming for in terms of its modified Android interface (which, by the way, may or may not be a real video). The hardware also reportedly packs an 8MP autofocus camera (so if image quality is good enough, I won't have to replace my dying 5MP Canon Powershot), and a next-generation Snapdragon processor. While again little is known about the phone, one thing I already see that may bother me is lack of a volume rocker button on the side of the preview renders. Whether I'm missing it and it's craftily hidden away somewhere or not there at all remains to be seen, it's the button I use the most on any cellphone and is something that would factor into a purchasing decision. Rumors also say this may have a 4" touchscreen, which might make this phone just a tad too big (the iPhone has a 3.5" screen).I've also kept my eye on the recently released (and previously previewed) Palm Pre, but build quality issues, potential pitfalls of the Synergy software, and switching to Sprint are huge roadblocks. My coworker got one and while it looks and seems to work really well, the keyboard buttons are too tiny. I've also kept my mind open on Blackberries, and the upcoming Onyx seems like the one I would get were to join my sister in the Blackberry world. Optical trackpad (to replace the trackball), 3G, wi-fi, Blackberry quality, proven operating system, and traditionally a battery charge that will last days are the main draws of it. The Onyx will be released around December though, luckily on AT&T. I can deal with my current cell phone for now, despite its drawbacks and limitations. The real question is whether it will continue to remain operational until I find its replacement.
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