So as you may remember I wrote an article about how Android wouldn’t replace the iPhone any time soon. Well for me it did. Why? Read on. Warning!!! Mini-rant ahead.

I have a number of reasons for making the switch. Part of it is with the issues that I experienced with the iPhone 4′s design and Apple’s lack of actually fixing the issue. I originally bought a case at the AT&T store when I got my phone on the 24th. I purchased the iFrogz case but it was poorly designed as it interfered with the camera flash. So I returned it and got an Incipio case which interfered with the proximity sensor. I went back to the AT&T store and returned the Inicipio case and talked to them about getting a bumper for free as this is a defect in the phone. Well they wanted nothing to do with that. So I called Apple and pleaded my case and told the guy on the phone that I either wanted a FULL refund on my applications or a free bumper case. After being put on hold for about an hour he came back and said that they were going to refund my applications. SO I returned the iPhone 4 (on Monday July 12th, 2010). What really sucks is that not only did Apple announce that Friday that they were giving away the bumpers but Apple called me and informed me that they were NOT going to refund my $300 something odd dollars in applications like they said they were going to. That’s alright as I am in the process of talking to a lawyer as I recorded the call. I also had to fight with the AT&T store rep (who was a complete idiot, LaKesha I believe at the AT&T store in Crestwood, IL) over a restocking fee on a defective product. Either way I ended up moving to Sprint as the EVO was quite attractive to me (I also considered the Droid X but I wanted the front facing camera) and Apple and AT&T are a match made in hell.

Moving on…

So after being on the iPhone platform for about 3 years it was time to learn the Android OS. The HTC EVO runs the 2.1 version of Android and should be getting an update to 2.2 later this year. There are many advantages to using Android over an Apple iPhone.

Pricing & Features of Sprint’s Network

The HTC EVO runs on Sprint’s 3G & 4G network. I was warned by a friend (who works for AT&T) that I would be disappointed by any other network’s 3G speeds. Am I? No. Sprint’s 3G network averages between 1.2mbps and 3mbps. I live in the south Chicagoland suburbs and get great coverage. I consistently have 3-6 (50%-100%) bars. I have yet to drop a single phone call even when holding the phone normally. I even get good 4G coverage around my house and most areas that I am in. The 4G speeds are amazing. I average between 4mbps-7mbps with only 1 bar (out of 3) of 4G signal. The only downside to 4G is that it is not available everywhere right now. Luckily I live in a 4G coverage area.

As for pricing I am paying a total of $88/month (taxes and fees included) for my line (this is before my 15% discount from work). This includes 450 anytime minutes, UNLIMITED data, UNLIMITED texing/mms, and UNLIMITED calling to ANY mobile phone. This works out VERY well as I am a heavy data user (2-6GB a month) and about 95% of my contacts are on mobile phones. With AT&T I was paying almost $100 for less minutes and limited data service (and terrible service in general).

Customization of the OS

The Android OS has come a long way in a mere 2 years. HTC has also done a very nice job with their SenseUI that they include on their latest smartphones. The SenseUI out of the box has a nice large clock on the main screen with the weather just below it. Along with the Clock/Weather Widget you also get a very nice contact integration with Facebook, Twitter, and Flickr. The email app that comes with the SenseUI is good at best. It does it’s job and looks nice.

The major thing that I love about the Android OS is the fact that is like like an ACTUAL operating system. What do I mean by this? Well lets say I don’t like the standard web browser that comes on my OS? I can install a 3rd party web browser. The difference between Android and Apple’s iOS is that I can set the 3rd party browser (like Skyfire) as the DEFAULT application for web browsing you cannot do this on the iOS. This goes for all programs. Google’s Google Voice application seamlessly integrates with the Android OS and makes sending texts and making calls through Google Voice easy.

Now no matter how awesome HTC’s SenseUI is I found that you can even replace the home screen application (HTC SenseUI by default) with 3rd party applications. There are a few good ones out there like LauncherPro that give you even more customization than the stock SenseUI. I have tried a few but ultimately came back to the SenseUI because of their offering of gadgets. If you go from the SenseUI to a 3rd party one you will NOT be able to use the HTC SenseUI gadgets on the 3rd party home app. I like the ability to use whatever suits me.

Applicaton Restrictions

As any iPhone/iTouch user knows “daddy” Jobs has severly limited what can and cannot be installed on their devices. Apple tries to “protect” their users to the point of crazy. What do I mean by this? Well let’s say I want to write an application for the iPhone platform. Well I have to fill out a form and send it to Apple. Then if my application is approved I have to pay a $100 fee to Apple. Then after all that once I have an application written it has to be submitted to Apple for approval. They can then deny or approve the app for any reason that they see fit. The problem with Apple’s App Store is that they will approve stupid apps like one where you set your cigarette on the screen and it flashes different colors to “make the cigarette taste bad” but then deny practical ones like one called WiFi Sync that allowed syncing over a wireless/bluetooth connection.

On Android you have the Google Market that is loosely regulated by Google but not to the point of crazy like Apple does. While Google does not always approve app submissions they are really lenient on what can and cannot enter. The Google Market also gives the consumer a 24 hour period in which if they do not like to app or if it does not work to uninstall the application and get a FULL refund.  Try doing that with Apple on your cigarette app.

Now the Android market is great but if you enable unrestricted application installs you can simply download Android app installers (APK’s) to your phone and install anything you want. There is a cool 3rd party marketplace called SlideMe. You can check them out at SlideME.org.

Tethering

Now the HTC EVO comes with a Hotspot utility from Sprint that allows you to connect up to 8 devices to the EVO’s internet connection. Now according to Sprint’s website you have to pay an additional $29.99 for it but I have been able to use it many times and there has not been any charges on my account for it. But just to be on the safe side there is an app called PDANet that is available in the Google Market that allows for bluetooth and USB tethering to your PC. It works well and I ma able to take advantage of the full bandwidth that the phone has.

Closing

Overall I am very happy with my new Android powered phone. I will be writing another article soon about rooting your EVO and using Custom ROM’s to get better speed, more features, and updates before they are released. Despite Apple’s App Store having over 200,000 apps where the Google market has over 50,000 apps the selection is just fine and the freedom that Android offers is well worth the work to find apps that do the same thing that iOS apps do. Also check out DoubleTwist for a media player on Android. It is in beta stages but works perfectly without any issues.

It seems like it has been much longer since I first got my iPhone 3G back in October 2008. It is probably because I am a technology connoisseur and love to have the latest and the greatest when it comes to gadgets.  Being that way I have thought of going to an Android or Windows Mobile 6.5/7 phones (I am not going to even review Windows Mobile because it still is lacking too much). It’s not that I didn’t like the iPhone it is just that I like something different. Well unfortunately for me my journey took me back to where I started, my iPhone.

Let’s get started with a step by step of why the iPhone platform is the best out right now (and no I am NOT an Apple fanboy, just simply stating the facts here). I know there is jailbreaking and rooting for each platform but I am not going into that right now. I will however say that jailbreaking the iPhone makes its functionality improve greatly because of the additional features and apps that you have access to. I have limited experience with rooting the Android devices so I cannot make a well informed comment about them. Let’s get started!

1. Overall UI Look and Feel:

I have tried many Android based devices, including the new Sprint HTC EVO 4G. The problem that I had with all the Android based devices is that they ALL felt clunky. The user interface was not smooth and had an “under construction” feel to it. For example when I am flipping through pages on my iPhone it’s is smooth and fluid. Where as when I moved through the pages on the Android it was choppy and laggy (like playing Halo on a bad internet connection). Now this is not to say that their user interface is bad. I am just saying that it needs some work. But unfortunately that isn’t the only place where the Andriod devices lack flair.

2. Applications:

Let’s face it. The applications make the phones now, for smartphones anyways. The biggest reason that the iPhone was such a success is that there are over 200,000 applications for it. Now there are some useless and ugly apps for the iPhone but the majority of them are pretty nice and work well. It is quite the opposite for the Android Market. There are roughly 50,000 applications for the Android platform. Now there are applications on both platforms for the same services (Facebook, Foursquare, Pandora, etc..). The problem (it’s not Androids fault) is that they are not all created equal. The worst offender is the Facebook application on the Android. It is clunky, ugly, and not very functional. On the other hand the Facebook app for the iPhone is quite nice and very functional. There are some applications that are good on both platforms but the sad reality is that most of the Android apps are all quite the same, clunky and not very functional, when compared to the iPhone counterparts.

3. Device selection:

Now one thing that Android devices have over the iPhone is device selection. Android is popping up on devices everywhere and there is a new Android device almost every other month now. The latest one, The HTC EVO 4G, is quite nice hardware wise but even with the high processor speed and great looking screen it still doesn’t feel as refined as the iPhone 3G S. They should be able to get this down by now! I will say that I was practically drooling over the HTC EVO before it came out but once I actually got to use one I realized that despite the awesome hardware inside it wasn’t going to be able to replace my iPhone. I also want to add that while the Android market share has FINALLY passed the iPhone please remember that the iPhone is ONLY available on AT&T (unfortunately, unless you unlock and use a different carrier) AND there are only 3 iPhone phones out there versus the 30+ Android based handsets (most of them simply are junk). So statistically if there are 10 times the number of devices running Android versus the 3 iPhone’s they better have a bigger market share.

4. Misc Points:

Now there are a few other points that are important but don’t need their own section. 1. OS compatibility and upgrades. Surprisingly Apple has consistently updated all the iPhones from the original 2G model to the latest 3G S model. Try upgrading any Android 1.6 device to another version. Nine times out of ten you can’t or you will brick your phone trying. 2. Charging/Sync cables. Another plus one the iPhone side is that while they do use the proprietary Apple Dock connector the upside is that they have been using this for YEARS across their iPhone, iPad, and iPod lines. Finding cables and chargers is easy and when you go to the new model you can keep your sync and charging accessories. 3. Cases and other accessories. Because of the popularity of the iPhone there are plenty of cases (cheap and expensive ones) on the market and are readily available.

5. Closing Thoughts:

Now there are going to be people in favor of both platforms and devices. The problem is that most of the people who are on Android and love it have not owned and iPhone and don’t know what they are missing. After using the iPhone for almost 2 years using any other touchscreen phone (Android, Windows Mobile, Proprietary ones) they just seem like cheap Chinese knock offs of the iPhone. I just hope that Android 2.2 will add a little flair and  give the OS the look, feel, and performance that it desperately needs. One feature that I would like to see on the iPhone is a user replaceable battery. I know there are battery packs but it’s still just not the same. I hope one day an Android device can prove me wrong but with the iPhone 4 coming out soon it may be a while.

Earlier today Gizmodo (Gizmodo Article #1 & Gizmodo Article #2) posted an article on AT&T changing their data rates and plans for the iPhone and iPad 3G users. Up until now iPhone and iPad users could get an unlimited data plan for $30 a month + tax. That was a ok deal but now they want to charge you $25 for a 2GB data plan. I know that is definitely not enough for someone like me who streams music about 200+ hours a month (when my connection is working) as well as video and email. Tell me AT&T why are you constantly screwing over your customers? Why are you messing with out plans instead of fixing your spotty network?

What I really want to know is that if they are going to force everyone over to the new plan or will it remain on your account until you make a change to it? I know that when I got the iPhone in October of 2008 the contract stated that I agreed to keep the $30 unlimited data plan on the phone as long as I had the iPhone active on my account. If they are going to force us to use something that is lower cost and far lower data I will be closing my AT&T account for good. I believe that would count as a breach of contract if they did force current users under the old contract over to the new data plan.

Here is a chart for comparison:

It seems that the folks over at Gizmodo managed to get it from someone who “found it in a bar” (we thought that Apple chained their test devices to tables?). After putting it under the knife, it looks very much like the real deal. You have to admit, it looks like the most credible of of all the devices that we’ve seen so far. The new screen has a much higher resolution, there’s a real flash in the back and a front-camera (Skype might go to the next level soon). Check out the full post for the details and a video.

John Gruber from Daring Fireball says that his contact from Apple told him that the back of the next iPhone is made from some kind of fancy “glass”. He points out that Apple has obtained a patent for a ceramic glass-like, scratch-proof, enclosure. The justification to use this is that the ceramic enclosure would not block radio waves. Interesting read. John also says that Apple considers the unit to be “stolen”

New features

• A front-facing camera
• Improved camera on the back with a larger lens
• Camera flash
• Micro-SIM cards instead of the standard SIM. Same with that used in the iPad
• Improved display, but it’s hard to tell if it’s the rumored 960 x 460 resolution
• Something that looks like a secondary microphone, possibly for noise cancellation
• Split buttons for volume
• Power, mute and volume buttons are all metallic.

Changes

• The back is entirely flat, possibly made from glass or something ceramic.
• An aluminum border
• Slightly smaller screen than the 3GS, but apparently higher resolution
• Square-ish design
• 3 grams heavier
• 16% larger battery
• Reduced internal component size to accommodate larger battery

With the iPhone and iPod Touch begin something that users typically carry with them why not have it replace your USB thumb drive? There is a multitude of programs and apps that you can transfer files over wifi, ssh, or USB but they are all pretty complicated and hard to use everyday as well as requiring special software AND iTunes to be installed on the host machine. I have found a program called USB Drive App 1.1. What the program does is modify the USB signature of the device to emulate a USB Mass Storage device. This is handy because most modern operating systems have support for USB Mass Storage devices right out of the box.

All you have to do is install the repo into your Cydia package manager and then add the USB Drive app. Once it’s installed you have a few different options. The iTunes + Drive option requires that you have iTunes installed to go into USB mode. The default mode is normal operation of the device (aka iTunes). The drive only option requires NO additional software on the host. I like this because I have my iPhone with me all the time and not only does it charge while in the USB Mass Storage mode but its quite a good flash drive. Below are some screenshots of the install and it in use. You can get more information from the publishers website at: http://www.dmytro.me/search/label/usb.

Back in October 2008 I took the plunge and purchased a 16GB Black iPhone 3G. I had some extra money and was getting tired of my AT&T Tilt and its many quirks that Windows Mobile 6.0 gave it. I was quite content with the features and portability of the iPhone 3G until a friend of mine was getting rid of his White 16GB 3GS for a very reasonable price so I figured why not? I couldn’t see paying full price for a little more speed and a compass or would I?

I primarily use my iPhone for making phone calls, texting, tweeting, watching videos, streaming music, appointments, and the occasional game or two. I do have the phone jailbroken so that I can tether, use themes, IRealSMS, and this nice app called SBSettings.

So I got the 3GS home and promptly did a backup of my 3G to my laptop and then restored the 3GS with my 3G backup. After the backup finished I jailbroke the 3GS and installed my jailbroken apps. The first thing that I noticed is the speed. With a slightly faster CPU and twice the amount of ram the 3GS has a clear gain over the 3G. Everything from loading my contact list to browsing the web on MobileSafari was blazing fast. My tethering bandwidth was even faster on the 3GS. I used to average about 200KB/s to 250KB/s at my house with the 3G. With the 3GS I was now pushing 400KB/s to 450KB/s. There was also a noticable speed boost in packet transfer. I was able to finally play Left 4 Dead on my laptop using my iPhone for the internet connection.

Aside from the speed boost there is also the compass. Now one might first think “big deal a compass”. The default compass app isn’t anything special but the developers of AppStore apps have done some really cool things with the compass and the accelerometer. For example the “UrbanSpoon” application has a cool feature called “Scope” where you can point the phone in a direction and you see where food places are on the screen through your camera. You can then tap on one to select it.

All in all the 3GS is a welcome improvement over the 3G and if you are getting one under contract it is a much better deal than the 3G was. I paid $300 for my 16GB 3G in October 2008. Now you can get the 16GB 3GS for a measly $200 under contract with AT&T. Just a note the cell service was the same between the 3G and 3GS. I still get a dropped call every now and then but it’s because how the iPhone handles going from a 3G cell tower to Edge towers. Can you fix that soon Apple? Please?

Is it worth the upgrade from the 3G to the 3GS? If you can get it for under $300 I would say yes. If its more than that and you want to save some coin then just keep on using your 3G.