Buying a new Verizon phone....

[Husker Richard]

So I've had the Palm Pixi Plus for about a year and I've grown tired of its weak processor, slow load time, overall sluggish performance. From what I understand, Verizon did away with its new-every-2 program where you get a large discount on a phone upgrade after 2 years.

 

That said, I see no reason to wait and am looking to upgrade to something with the android OS. So far I'm digging the Droid X. I should mention that I haven't been to a Verizon store lately to fool around with the phones and see what I really like. I've just been researching on the internet.

 

I saw that they recently came out with the HTC Thunderbolt, which runs on the Verizon 4G LTE network. Obviously, 4G is the wave of the future, but I'm wondering how long until it is standard and all phones are equipped for it. Meaning, should I hold out on a new phone for a little longer in hopes of getting a 4G phone (as the selection of 4G phones increases) or is that so far off that I should just take the plunge now on a 3G Droid?

 

 

 

Any help would be appreciated. Let me know what kind of phone you have, how you like it, etc. Also if you know of any future developments in phone technology that may aid my decision. Gracias.

[strigori]

I'm not in the market yet for a few months, but I'll offer a few thoughts. 4G is misnamed. Its more like 3.5G. Real 4G doesn't really exist yet. Its a matter of actual download speeds, and really with an item that you will replace in two years anyway, don't worry about future proofing yourself.

 

As to HTC, I have not had one, but the managers at my company have received a HTC phone for their work phones, and the things are always breaking or having issues. So I'm skeptical on the reliability.

[Ringer02]

I'd wait until the droid 3 comes out.

[Husker Richard]

I'd wait until the droid 3 comes out.

 

 

When's that? I'm pretty sure it has a physical keyboard. I'm not big on bulky phones, so I'd like to avoid a keyboard as it just adds bulk.

 

Side note, it looks like the Droid X2 is slated to come out soon. I feel like I should wait until these newer phones come out as the Droid X, Droid 2, etc. have been out for almost a year and we all know how quickly technology evolves.

[Apathy]

Do not get the HTC Thunderbolt. That phone was suppose to come out around Feb 14th or the 24th but didn't because of battery issues. Sadly with the Thunderbolt being released last Thursday on the 17th, the phone is still plaqued by poor battery issues. Here is a link of the poor battery issue with the HTC Thunderbold.

 

I would not get a 4G phone because if you get a 4G phone you'll eventually pay an extra $10 a month even if you don't live in an area that supports 4G.

 

The Droid X2, Droid 3 and the Droid Incredible 2 will be coming out this summer but the bad thing about getting a phone this summer is that Verizon is talking about getting rid of their $30 Unlimited Data plan and going with tethering data plans like AT&T does. I'm a fan of the Unlimited Data plan because I don't have to constantly browse at my phone to make sure that I haven't passed my required data limit for the month.

 

I'm a fan of the iPhone 4 (I own the new iPhone 4) and I get better reception on that among other things on that phone than I have with any Android phone that I've previously owned(Droid X and Samsung Fascinate). But if you're looking at getting a new Android phone right now I'd go with the Droid X. The Droid X has amazing noise cancelation, big 4.3" screen, camera and video quality is decent but there are other phones out there that take better pictures/videos if you take a lot of pictures. If you go with the Droid X and you get a protection cover make sure whatever you get it doesn't make the phone even bigger. I had one for my Droid X and it made it extremely bulky and it felt like I was carring a brick in my pocket. If you have hearing problems like I do (I'm deaf in my left ear) I'd test out the speaker in the store to see if its load enough for your taste.

 

The only reason why I took back my Droid X is because the speaker wasn't load enough. I would miss tons of calls even when I had it in my pocket or if I was watching TV. But right now the Droid X is the best Android phone on the Verizon market. Good luck on your choice.

[Husker Richard]

+1 to you huskerjock, that was some solid info. Looks like I'll wait on 4G, and now the question is to take the plunge now or wait until the summer.... From what you said, it looks like I'll have to pay for that tethering plan regardless of when I purchase a new phone (as in Verizon is switching all their data plans to tethering in the summer). Is the tethering plan only for the new summer phone lineup or any Verizon plan/phone?

 

 

I don't take too many pics, and I usually forgo a case as I like my phone to be as thin as possible. The speaker issue does concern me because I can barely hear the text alert on my Palm Pixi Plus.

 

How was the vibrate on the Droid X? I hate that I can never feel my phone vibrate in my pocket (it doesn't help that the Pixi Plus text notification is a single pulse when the phone is set to vibrate, but I'm lucky if I feel the multiple-pulsing vibration of a call and in that case I have to be sitting still).

[Apathy]

+1 to you huskerjock, that was some solid info. Looks like I'll wait on 4G, and now the question is to take the plunge now or wait until the summer.... From what you said, it looks like I'll have to pay for that tethering plan regardless of when I purchase a new phone (as in Verizon is switching all their data plans to tethering in the summer). Is the tethering plan only for the new summer phone lineup or any Verizon plan/phone?

 

 

I don't take too many pics, and I usually forgo a case as I like my phone to be as thin as possible. The speaker issue does concern me because I can barely hear the text alert on my Palm Pixi Plus.

 

How was the vibrate on the Droid X? I hate that I can never feel my phone vibrate in my pocket (it doesn't help that the Pixi Plus text notification is a single pulse when the phone is set to vibrate, but I'm lucky if I feel the multiple-pulsing vibration of a call and in that case I have to be sitting still).

From my understanding the $30 Unlimited plan is still available today but will be switching to tethering sometime this summer. If you buy a phone tomorrow and get the $30 Unlimited data plan, Verizon won't switch your plan to tethering until you purchase a new phone whether that'll be 2 years from your purchase. So right now would be a good time to get a phone if the $30 Unlimited data plan is what you want. Looks like the new tethering plan will go on ALL Verizon phones sometime this summer and there is no date when that will go into affect.

 

The Vibrate was really good and it was really good when texting too. Once you hit a key it would vibrate pretty good one feature that I liked. One thing about getting a phone now is that newer phones will be coming out real soon with advanced technology features but the Droid X is still a solid phone.

[bennychico11]

I just upgraded the other day. And finally upgraded to a feature/smart/internet phone. For the longest time I refused to pay the extra monthly fee for an internet capable phone when I always had a desktop or laptop nearby...but finally caved.

 

I ended up settling on the Samsung Continuum. I know Verizon stated they aren't doing their new every two...but I'm not sure what the fine print involves. I was able to pick this phone up for $50. That was after renewing a 2 year contract, a $50 mail in rebate, and a $50 "loyal customer" rebate. I was set on another phone until the sales guy suggested the Continuum for the same price (after the rebates). He suggested the processor was better equipped to handle the Android OS.

I'm actually pretty happy with my purchase. There are a few quirks with the phone but I'm liking the layout and the functionality.

Don't know how I lived without it.

[eliot1171]

When you guys say tethering, are you meaning tiered?

 

I have the original Droid Incredible. It has been a great phone in all aspects but one. The battery life is pretty bad. From what I've heard about 4G, it doesn't look like the networks will be up and running at any complete capacity or coverage until 2013. I would say your best bet would be to get one now and get grandfathered into the unlimited data plan. As hardware and software improve, they will require more data use to run various applications. The cell companies realize this, and that is why they are all migrating to tiered plans. They would eventually be losing some major $ if they did not. Also, if you are "waiting" for the next best phones (technology), you will always be waiting. There will always be something better months from now. Often times you can get a better deal on a phone through an online retailer like Wirefly or Newegg verse going through an official Verizon store. I've dealt with both with no issues.

[CornHOLIO]

I make around 5 calls a year, depending on whether or not one of the local radio stations has a call-in contest.

I would like to get online, though and am tired of looking for free Wi-Fi and carrying a laptop.

What's the best plan/phone? for internet?

[Husker Richard]

Went to Verizon today to fiddle around with the phones. I've narrowed it down to the Droid X or the Samsung Fascinate. What are your thoughts?

[Apathy]

Went to Verizon today to fiddle around with the phones. I've narrowed it down to the Droid X or the Samsung Fascinate. What are your thoughts?

I'd get the Droid X to be honest way better phone over the Fascinate and I've owned both. After a few months with the Fascinate, I really missed my X because it was a way better phone.

 

I traded in my Droid X that was already updated to 2.2 Froyo software. Back in October Samsung kept informing everybody that owned a Fascinate that an update for 2.2 Froyo was coming at the end of December but that never happened then they said January. January came around and still no update. I finally got rid of my Fascinate in February 16th for the iPhone and the phone still didn't have the 2.2 Froyo update.

 

Samsung is horrible at supporting their phones with updates and they are usually the last ones to be updated with new software. Hell the Motorola Droids were in talks to be updated with the Honeycomb update when I got rid of my Fascinate which didn't have the 2.2 Froyo up software.

 

Here is what was horribly wrong with my Fascinate:

- GPS was WAY OFF and I mean it was way off. Samsung did push out an update to fix the GPS but it was still off.

- Noise Cancelation. If you're going to talk to people on a windy day or anything with loud noise, this is not your phone trust me. I was tailgating before the Texas/Neb game and was around a good crowd of loud people and my uncle couldn't hear me over the noise. I never had problems with noise cancelation on the Droid X or my current iPhone.

- Reception is horrible. Places that i'd only get 3-4 bars with the Fascinate, I'd get better reception with the X and my iPhone.

- Plastic feel makes it feel cheaply made and the OS isn't as smooth and feels sluggish compared to the X and iPhone.

[Husker Richard]

husker jock comes through again! I'm leaning toward the X due to the physical keys over the capacitive keys of the Fascinate.

 

Also, at the store I noticed that the X can be awoken to swipe to unlock by pressing the physical home key as well as the lock/unlock/power button (the Fascinate can only do so by pressing the lock/unlock/power button). Seems minor but was a huge deal to me as I found the location of both the X and Fascinate's lock/unlock/power buttons to be slightly awkward.

 

I did love the Fascinate's AMOLED screen, it was so vibrant. But then I realized that I would never use the phone on full brightness as that would kill the battery. How does the screen of the X perform in sunlight?

 

Your comments on the GPS of the Fascinate have appeared numerous times during my internet research. That's no bueno.

 

Coming from the Palm Pixi Plus, any smartphone is going to seem like a brick, but I feel that I'm ready for a larger phone, and really the X isn't that much bigger than the Fascinate.

 

I've had one Samsung phone before and it was the worst phone experience of my life. The Samsung Glyde was the absolute worst phone ever produced. Verizon stopped carrying it like 2 months after they debuted it because it was garbage (they even admitted it), yet they wouldn't allow me to get a different phone. This has me leery of the Fascinate.

 

Can you give me any info on the speed of the X vs. the Fascinate? I'm talking in terms of switching/launching apps, sending texts, browsing the net, etc. In the store it seemed that the Fascinate was a bit slower than the X but I've been reading on the internet that the hummingbird processor of the Fascinate is actually faster than the Snapdragon processor of the X.

 

I'm taking the plunge tomorrow and whichever phone I choose will be an early birthday present. The phones are incredibly similar and I don't really think I can go wrong, but I honestly feel that the physical keys of the X will be the deciding factor.

[Apathy]

husker jock comes through again! I'm leaning toward the X due to the physical keys over the capacitive keys of the Fascinate.

 

Also, at the store I noticed that the X can be awoken to swipe to unlock by pressing the physical home key as well as the lock/unlock/power button (the Fascinate can only do so by pressing the lock/unlock/power button). Seems minor but was a huge deal to me as I found the location of both the X and Fascinate's lock/unlock/power buttons to be slightly awkward. One thing that I might add is that the Droid X has an LED notification light to indicate that you've received a text, missed a phone call, or received a voicemail. The Samsung doesn't have that feature but you can download an app called noLED for the Fascinate but it doesn't work 100% of the time. That is one cool feature that I absolutely missed on my Fascinate. I liked the layout on the text messages on the X BY FAR compared to the Fascinate.

 

I did love the Fascinate's AMOLED screen, it was so vibrant. But then I realized that I would never use the phone on full brightness as that would kill the battery. How does the screen of the X perform in sunlight? The Fascinate does have a better screen when looking at it in the sunlight but how many times will you be outside looking at the screen. To me it wasn't a huge issue.

 

Your comments on the GPS of the Fascinate have appeared numerous times during my internet research. That's no bueno. The X is by far LIGHT YEARS ahead of the GPS on the Fascinate.

 

Coming from the Palm Pixi Plus, any smartphone is going to seem like a brick, but I feel that I'm ready for a larger phone, and really the X isn't that much bigger than the Fascinate. The Fascinate is 4" compared to the 4.3" X screen. The Fascinate felt better in my hand and pocket compared to my X but thats because I had a huge bulky cover on my X. I'm a fan of the 4.3 screen to be honest

 

I've had one Samsung phone before and it was the worst phone experience of my life. The Samsung Glyde was the absolute worst phone ever produced. Verizon stopped carrying it like 2 months after they debuted it because it was garbage (they even admitted it), yet they wouldn't allow me to get a different phone. This has me leery of the Fascinate. My buddy had to replace his Fascinate 5x until Verizon told him to get a different phone. His wife is having problems with her Fascinate as well. It seems like the Motorola phones are the first ones to get the software updates compared to HTC and Samsung phones.

 

Can you give me any info on the speed of the X vs. the Fascinate? I'm talking in terms of switching/launching apps, sending texts, browsing the net, etc. In the store it seemed that the Fascinate was a bit slower than the X but I've been reading on the internet that the hummingbird processor of the Fascinate is actually faster than the Snapdragon processor of the X. I honestly didn't notice a difference on the speed between the two. What I did notice between the two phones is that the X had better reception and noise cancelation and to me that is more important than the speed of uploading a webpage. Believe me when I say this when the Fascinate has horrible HORRIBLE noise cancelation. The X has like 3 or 4 mics to cancel out the noise compared to 2 on the Fascinate

 

I'm taking the plunge tomorrow and whichever phone I choose will be an early birthday present. The phones are incredibly similar and I don't really think I can go wrong, but I honestly feel that the physical keys of the X will be the deciding factor. I actually liked the X physical keys because there have been times where I'd hit the home key on the Fascinate without even knowing I did it lol. You will be making the right choice with the X I'm 110% sure about that!!! Enjoy your X

[krc1995]

I make around 5 calls a year, depending on whether or not one of the local radio stations has a call-in contest.

I would like to get online, though and am tired of looking for free Wi-Fi and carrying a laptop.

What's the best plan/phone? for internet?

 

I am no guru, but I was the same-making few calls, but wanting to use the internet. I got the verizon plan for two phones and pay $160ish with taxes. I frequently tether my phone to my laptock using an app to get my own wi-fi anywhere and it works great. I just heard on the radio during techbytes segment that the Droid 2 is 54% faster then the iphone when using the internet. And I really have been suprised at how fast it is for a phone.

 

I am sure the 4g will be much faster, but it doesn't sound like it will be really up and running in a useful way for two years.