The Droid is Coming!

My Crappy Phone So I’ve been working from the same, boring ‘ol, non-smartphone phone for longer than I can even remember now. Verizon sent me a text message something like 6 months ago telling me I’m elligible for a new phone, but I’m still holding out. I’ve known for years that I want an Android phone, but of course the G1 is slow and chunky. The MyTouch 3G doesn’t seem much better. Only now are we starting to see some proper Android phones coming out.

The upcoming Droid phone (or Sholes if you believe this report) from Motorola seems to be not just be the Android phone of my dreams, but a smartphone that will truly shake up the whole mobile space and perhaps give the mighty iPhone a run for its money. Just about everything about it seems appealing: big (854×480 — iPhone is 480×320 for comparison), beautiful screen, slide-out keyboard, fast processor, 5 megapixel camera, and of course all the usuals like an accelerometer, GPS, compass, etc. It’s only a hair thicker than the iPhone, to boot!

I think I may also grab the separately-sold dock accessory. It lets the phone become a little widget dashboard so I can see bits of info and run all manner of nifty apps off to the side.

Why didn’t I just get an iPhone already? I’ll tell you why. If I buy a piece of hardware, I expect to be able to install software on it. The iPhone platform has some serious issues with that way of thinking since you can only install software that Apple has deemed “OK” via the “App Store.” Further, their approval process can seem entirely arbitrary as they have approved apps only to later deny them, and deny apps only to later approve them. And if they don’t like you, they’ll take their sweet time at coming to any conclusion! Oh, and while I know Verizon employees are trained to ignore basic math, I have heard a slew of even more horrifying stories pertaining to the locked-in iPhone carrier, AT&T.

I’ve already began dabbling in Android app development, and it looks like their API’s are very workable. I think it’s pretty empowering to be able to write software for my phone, and I really don’t think Apple belongs in my way when I want to share my app with a friend. And the ability to actually have background processes running like a modern, multi-tasking operating system is also very appealing!

So needless to say, I’m psyched. Verizon’s big announcement is on the 28th of October, but based on some leaked infos, we’re expecting to see the phone(s) become available on the 6th of November.

Check out this hands on preview from Boy Genius Report!

Sunday, October 25th, 2009 General, Technology

3 Comments to The Droid is Coming!

I totally agree on you point about having Apple in your way on sharing apps. They have the most support from the community right now, simply because they have the best phone. I’m excited for that not to be the case anymore, because it’ll force Apple to make a better product. If they don’t we’ll all switch to whatever is the best. :)

As a very happy iPhone user, I will say that I am geeked that Verizon is finally stepping up to the plate. They are a much better provider than AT&T and if anyone can give Apple a run for their money, it is Verizon/Google/HTC.

Watch out AT&T, my contract is up in December! :-P

Drew on October 25th, 2009

I hope at least one decent Android phone ends up coming to Canada on the new carriers that are launching around the new year. You know, because I’m expecting you to write some pretty funky Android apps. :)