Smart Phone

**Xiphos** · 08-05-09, 01:39 PM

Time to jump into the smart phone club.

I've spent the last year following development of the Android operating system and the phones it's on. This holiday season is going to be a buffet for Android smart phones.

My contract ran out with Verizon so I've been waiting to see what they pick up. The rumored Motorola Calgary Android phone looks amazing and it's supposedly going to Verizon.

More rumors of Verizon locking it down and forcing you to use its own app market also taint that. Verizon has a history of micromanaging their phones so no shocker there.

My little flip phone fell apart a few weeks ago. I still wanted to see some more Android phones and what finally landed on Verizon. I went to Ebay and bought a used version of my phone. Cheap and in good condition. Within days I broke it identically again.

I managed to use it for a couple weeks in two pieces.

Today was the official launch of the T-Mobile MyTouch 3G. This is the latest Android phone on the market and I decided to jump on board.

It is lighter version of the first Android phone, the G1. There's no physical keyboard. It also has memory and ergonomic upgrades.

I should have the phone tomorrow. T-Mobile's coverage map shows some good signal here although we are in an Edge area, not 3G. A friend with a G1 here likes it and the service isn't bad.

I'm looking forward to linking my Gmail and Google Voice accounts and giving it a swing.

With the research I've done I think I know what apps to download right away. There's an upgraded keyboard and a task killer that shuts down hidden apps that bog down performance. A few others too.

I'll post my review as I get a few days to play with it and see.

**Jenna** · 08-05-09, 01:43 PM

Enjoy your new smart phone! Hopefully it will enable you to spend even more time on O/R!

**Xiphos** · 08-07-09, 02:05 PM

Badass! I'm browsing OR on the phone in a browser. Looks like my computer. I'm still playing with it but so far it's rocking!

**ManImBored** · 08-07-09, 02:20 PM

My g/f has the G1 and she loves it. I think you will find the Android operating system very user friendly. The amount of apps is also large. Mirrors the iPhone in the things you can do with the apps.

**Jenna** · 08-07-09, 02:21 PM

Originally Posted by Xiphos

Badass! I'm browsing OR on the phone in a browser. Looks like my computer. I'm still playing with it but so far it's rocking!

Cool! Now you never have to be away from O/R!

**pgg** · 08-07-09, 09:39 PM

I have the iPhone here. The only company with any service is AT&T up here

**Xiphos** · 08-08-09, 12:39 AM

So far so good, I really like it. I'm trying to get my old number ported and my Google Voice set up on it.

**Odd** · 08-08-09, 09:27 PM

Speaking of Google Voice....

Google Challenges Apple's Authority By Moving Google Voice App Online

Getting rejected from the app store is no biggie for Google, apparently

Apple rejected Google Voice almost two weeks ago, removing it from the app store. Now under investigation by the feds, AT&T has pointed the finger at Apple for the rejection. Now in an exciting move Google is moving its rejected application online in an effort to essentially negate any attempts by Apple to police the application.

The new app can be installed as an icon on your homescreen. The specially crafted iPhone-shaped webpage will offer all the features of the original app. In other words, in a move akin to flipping the bird to Steve Jobs, Google has essentially highlighted a way for app developers everywhere to easily publish their rejected content.

There are some important caveats. First, Google's app was intended to be free in the first place. Apps like "MeSoHoly", which Apple rejected as offensive were intended to come at a minimal charge. Donations could work, but Apple's simple revenue sharing would be missed by developers forsaking the app store. Second, its not as trivial to build the app online, and there's still things that can't be done within the iPhone's version of Safari.

On the other hand the move could usher in a new era of freedom for iPhone users. Freed from Apple's dictates of what apps are fit and proper, the phone's true potential could finally be achieved. Rejected apps like eBook readers (rejected en masse over piracy concerns) could simply move online. As the New York Times' Dave Pogue puts it, "What's Apple going to do now? Start blocking access to individual Web sites?"

Google Voice online will offer free SMS text messaging and reduced rate international calling. The cheap calls are achieved via a scheme similar to Skype's. Text messages are normally almost completely free to carriers use extra capacity for SMS which was previously unused. Granted, they represent a minimal cost in terms of cell phone tower power and the loss of potential revenue from selling the part of the channel, but in the end they come at little cost to the telecoms, while the average cell phone users pays $10 or more on their phone bills a month for them (some plans include per-message billing, which can run as much as $0.20 per message).

Google's decision to defy Apple is an exciting development. And one thing's for sure -- Apple's likely not happy and is likely trying to scheme how to stop them.

**Xiphos** · 08-08-09, 09:58 PM

Rock on Google! I'm using voice now. It's sweet but needs some tweeking. I have no texting plan because voice handles it through my data plan.

**Jenna** · 08-08-09, 10:01 PM

Originally Posted by Xiphos

Rock on Google! I'm using voice now. It's sweet but needs some tweeking. I have no texting plan because voice handles it through my data plan.

**thanantos** · 10-13-09, 08:53 PM

I am using Google Voice on my Nextel Blackberry right now. I use it essentially just for voicemail transcription since I hate checking my voicemail. I love the BB, but will be either moving to Sprint BB (for the 3g network) in the future or an Android phone if the development on that platform really takes off.

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the OS.

**bayern** · 10-14-09, 07:25 AM

Shit, all this talk about what your phone does/doesn't do, etc., etc. What with web browsing, texting, playing music, games, flying to the moon, etc, is confusing. I use my phone to make and receive telephone calls. period, nothing else, Nada, nein, etc. After all that's what they were invented for. And yes, I am old fashioned and keep my powder dry.

**Odd** · 10-14-09, 07:45 AM

I never wanted a cell phone to start with, but society changed. I was overruled.

The mobile computing platform appeals to me, but for now I have a cell phone wrapped in a napkin in the glove box. *I like my toys unscratched* Since I don't want to walk 30 miles to find a phone booth I have one in case the car breaks.

Rather than fight unstoppable social chance I say up with smart phones. The sooner they kill the "phones as something to talk on" model the better. I used to be with you, but I'm weary of tilting at windmills anymore. Let's get away from talking on phones at all. Let's get rid of voicemail while we're at it, deleting those unheard is too much like deleting unread spam.