Captivate vs Iphone 4

[jrdoll28]

I respect your opinion and the choice you made, but you seem to really have no explanation. What about the captivate isn't "captivating" you? Its specs are easily comparable to the iphone, but you mentioned you would definitely pick up the R2 D2 droid 2? So I guess you're going for looks then? I don't understand your reasoning.

 

[jdCaptivate]

I respect your opinion and the choice you made, but you seem to really have no explanation. What about the captivate isn't "captivating" you? Its specs are easily comparable to the iphone, but you mentioned you would definitely pick up the R2 D2 droid 2? So I guess you're going for looks then? I don't understand your reasoning.

The Samsung's spec's blow the iPhone out of the water.

 

[vapor311]

if you want a sneak peak into the future? I5 may 16th 2011.

but you didnt hear it from me the lowly fruit employee.

 

[LordHumongouz]

The Samsung's spec's blow the iPhone out of the water.

Too bad the build quality is so spotty, and the software is so flaky.

Reminds me of using Linux as a desktop back in 1996/1997. Yeah, you could do it, but you had to have very low expectations.

For a $600 device, Galaxy S has had a pretty amateur rollout.

I'll go back to my previous phone as soon as my TMobile SIM comes tomorrow. Then the Cappy goes home to Amazon and AT&T.

Looking forward to May, if the above is true. Thanks for the heads up!

 

[razholio]

I'll go out on a limb here and say neither is a great phone. My other posts of my 3week/2device craptivate experience detail what I had problems with, but notably: GPS, battery, poor screen resolution. I've had the iphone4 for 3weeks now, and while the screen, battery and text selection are great, there are just plain ******ed limitations built-in (for no extra charge). only 2 bluetooth profiles? really? only a *single* volume control so either my morning alarm is quiet enough to not wake the whole house, *or* my ringtone is loud enough for me to hear calls come in, but not both. ??? can't change the ringtone on email? great, one person gets an email and all iphone users dive for their phone... brilliant. THere is so much more, but these are deliberate design limitations that prevent the user from making his phone work the way he wants. THAT is broken. FAIL.
The best iphone4 feature? high resale value. When ATT gets a worthwhile android phone, I'll be selling this cripple and buying the android off-contract. thanks, apple!

 

[sremick]

Both phones have annoying flaws, just the Captivate has less and puts me closer to where I want to be with the most promise of progressing further. The issues with the iPhone are mostly based around fundamental design choices and philosophies which won't be changing... it's the "Apple mentality". While with the Captivate they are more along the lines of "bugs" and flaws, and we can actually hope to get resolution and improvements at some point in the future.

For example, we know the benefits that Android 2.2 is going to give us, and we don't even have it yet. What's iPhone OS 5 going to bring? What features of iOS5 are going to be pointlessly crippled on the iPhone 4? Will iOS5 even install on the iPhone 3G/3Gs?

 

[RO3]

I also bought the iphone 4 and thought it was amazing. I started wondering what I was missing out on though and took it back for the captivate, and boy was I missing out! I'm so glad I took back my ip4 for a captivate, the retina display has nothing on the super amoled!

I think one reason I like my captivate so much more is the fact I can change my home screen all the time, where as the ip4 is always the same boring icons.

Ditto.

TXH10538, I owned the Iphone 4 for a day and then sent it back. I have been using Iphone since the 2g to a 3g then 3gs. The Iphone 4 is a good smartphone. I was extremely disappointed in the antenna hardware issue with no fix, and while the retina display was appealing, it has it's own problems.(IE when you are one the phone the screen is so sensitive that the slightest touch by your cheek can mute your phone, press buttons, and even end the call) Also being on at&t the amount of dropped calls with all of my Iphones was a daily problem. If I made it through the day with out one dropped call it was a good day. I just accepted it thinking it was the network, but later discovered it is the Iphone and the hardware itself.

This being said if you are not looking to modify the stock look and feel of the phone and you're happy with the layout and are not interested in alternative methods for controlling what your phone is doing, then the Iphone 4 is a simple, clean, and slick smartphone that will work for you very well.

You will have options too. Like if you are not happy after you have it for a while, you can take the phone and throw it on Ebay. You will probably get about $600 for it. Then buy another phone such as the Captivate for about $480 on Ebay and simply swap it over.

Good luck with your Iphone 4.

 

[jdCaptivate]

Too bad the build quality is so spotty, and the software is so flaky.

Reminds me of using Linux as a desktop back in 1996/1997. Yeah, you could do it, but you had to have very low expectations.

For a $600 device, Galaxy S has had a pretty amateur rollout.

I'll go back to my previous phone as soon as my TMobile SIM comes tomorrow. Then the Cappy goes home to Amazon and AT&T.

Looking forward to May, if the above is true. Thanks for the heads up!

Build quality is spotty? Care to back that up with anything substantive? Every review I've read and my own personal experience says otherwise. Btw... GPS... isn't a build quality issue, its a firmware issue, just in case you were going to use that as your "issue". Oh yeah, its correctable to. However, a poorly R & D'd antenna, most certainly IS a build quality issue and not correctable. Their fix is a cheesy rubberband case. Lol!

Flaky software? How so, other than a firmware issue with GPS? Besides, the "software" is Android. That doesn't belong to Samsung.

Have fun going back to one of the most poorly rated carriers and waiting until mid-year, for your over a year to fix crApple (which their idea of a fix, is making the current model obsolete).

So... you were saying?

 

[LordHumongouz]

Build quality is spotty? Care to back that up with anything substantive? Every review I've read and my own personal experience says otherwise. Btw... GPS... isn't a build quality issue, its a firmware issue, just in case you were going to use that as your "issue". Oh yeah, its correctable to. However, a poorly R & D'd antenna, most certainly IS a build quality issue and not correctable. Their fix is a cheesy rubberband case. Lol!

Flaky software? How so, other than a firmware issue with GPS? Besides, the "software" is Android. That doesn't belong to Samsung.

Have fun going back to one of the most poorly rated carriers and waiting until mid-year, for your over a year to fix crApple (which their idea of a fix, is making the current model obsolete).

So... you were saying?

Pretty full of yourself, aren't you?

Well, my first unit had a WiFi susbsystem that wouldn't pass more than 3Mb on an 802.11G connection. And, the fact that they advertise 802.11N but don't have 5GHz radios in the model isn't spotty build quality: it is purposely asinine and incompatible.

I understand the GPS issue and local storage lag are software issues. Which is why I mentioned that the phone has software issues.

Can you boot your phone into recovery/download mode? I can't. So, all of that vaunted upside about the "openness" of Android? Yeah, that's a moot point with my hardware locked phone. And that was my last deal killer.

Apparently you don't really read this forum or visit others where these phones have many issues affecting their function and durability. if you need to ask what they are, apparently you don't care enough to read or are just baiting.

It's been an interesting demo of the Captivate. However, it's not worth becoming married to it for two years, even for free hardware. I paid nothing for it, and I don't want it. Guess it's not so great, after all.

And, no, I'm not going to an iPhone, either. But, i do build and admin linux boxes for a living, so I know how the device is supposed to work. HTC phones seem to be better made, IMHO. Sorry you disagree.. But, the way you disagree makes you sound like a kid. Waaah, waaah. Perhaps you need a nap.

 

[shark974]

The main reason I am so glad I picked the Captivate is the much bigger screen than the iPhone4. Apple is actually going backwards as the iPhone 4 actually has a SMALLER screen than the 3GS did! Before you argue, yes they are both 3.5" but if you hold a 3GS next to a iPhone 4 you will see the iPhone 4 has a slightly smaller screen!

Whenever I pick up a iPhone now I just laugh at how small the screen is. The iPhone is like 40% bezel to me!

Too me the iPhone 4 really shows Apple is in trouble and we see all the surveys showing how fast Apple is losing market share, Android now outselling iPhone, etc etc. If you showed a non savvy person aka your grandma or joe six pack the iphone 4 sitting right next to the 3GS, they wouldn't be able to tell them apart. I was very disappointed in what a small upgrade 4 is. The main thing iPhone needs is a bigger screen, and they actually downgraded it. Yeah it has higher resolution, but that's simply not a big deal despite what the Apple faithful will say. Anyways 1280X720 Gingerbread phones will blow the retina display up soon in terms of resolution. And I do find it funny the mainstream phone media never cared about DPI until Apple started touting it, when for all that time the Android phones had higher DPI than the low res iPhone 3GS, they never talked about it even once.

Hopefully Apple actually makes the iPhone 5 a major upgrade instead of the small tweak the 4 is, because at this rate Apple wont have much market share left in a couple years, similar to how it is in computers. Even that I'm not sure can save them. It just sucks for iPhone users they get one phone a year and have to watch technology constantly pass them by.

Anyway, love my Captivate, very happy. It's amazing. The screen color, brightness, and size is unmatched.

Too me when you're dealing with screen this small, every tiny bit of screen real estate you can get is absolutely HUGE to user experience. The only difference between an iPhone (terrible to surf the web on) and an iPad (fun to surf the web on) is screen size, which just shows you how important it is.

 

[jdCaptivate]

Pretty full of yourself, aren't you?

This coming from the guy that came at me and uses the ID "LordHumongouz". Spare me the psycho-babble. You're way out of your league.

Well, my first unit had a WiFi susbsystem that wouldn't pass more than 3Mb on an 802.11G connection. And, the fact that they advertise 802.11N but don't have 5GHz radios in the model isn't spotty build quality: it is purposely asinine and incompatible.

Sounds like an isolated incident to me, in regards to your WiFi, as you stated it was your first unit and since you don't mention the 2nd unit, I'm assuming the issue was resolved. To date, I haven't experienced any such issue, nor have I noticed anyone else bring it up. In fact, I typically get between 6 and 6.5Mb on 802.11G connection.

I understand the GPS issue and local storage lag are software issues. Which is why I mentioned that the phone has software issues.

No... the GPS is a firmware issues. There's a difference. The lag issue is an Android build issue and once again... isn't exclusive to the Captivate.

Can you boot your phone into recovery/download mode? I can't. So, all of that vaunted upside about the "openness" of Android? Yeah, that's a moot point with my hardware locked phone. And that was my last deal killer.

Yeah, I can and have.

Apparently you don't really read this forum or visit others where these phones have many issues affecting their function and durability. if you need to ask what they are, apparently you don't care enough to read or are just baiting.

As a matter of fact, I read the forum, every day. I also did over a week of reading reviews, both good and bad, weighing the plus's and minus's of the phone, before I purchased it. I can also go to ANY tech forum, for ANY tech product and find the same complaints about function and durability (though, I do note that you neglected to provide specific examples, in regards to build quality).

Baiting? Remember... you came at me. I didn't know you from Adam, until you decided to falsely present yourself as some sort of expert opinion.

It's been an interesting demo of the Captivate. However, it's not worth becoming married to it for two years, even for free hardware. I paid nothing for it, and I don't want it. Guess it's not so great, after all.

So why are you here? Return the phone, return to one of the worst rated carriers and have fun with your old phone.

And, no, I'm not going to an iPhone, either. But, i do build and admin linux boxes for a living, so I know how the device is supposed to work. HTC phones seem to be better made, IMHO. Sorry you disagree.. But, the way you disagree makes you sound like a kid. Waaah, waaah. Perhaps you need a nap.

Actually, I'm probably quite a bit older than you and certainly been around the block, far more times than you have. If anyone comes off sounding like a child, in this case... its you. Simply for the fact, that you decided to play that card.

Other than that... I'm done with you. You don't add anything to the discussion other than hollow rhetoric, backed up by flimsy logic and bashing a product you've made it blatantly clear, you're no longer interested in. So that puts your motive and method of still posting here, in question.

 

[idilium]

welcome to the fun side of the force

 

[CASUAL]

Not that you asked, but I don't agree with your decision for multiple reasons. As there have been way too many posts regarding the GPS issue, there have also been too many posts regarding iPhone vs. Captivate. Plus, I believe there's a 10,000 word limit for replies (so much to say, so little room to say it in) .

In any event, you're prose is courteous and your respect for this forum admirable, so...best wishes moving forward.

that guy has proper Netiquette

 

[Loremonger]

Having the Captivate for over a month, every time I pick up an iPhone, I can't believe how much of a difference it is. It's just so... little.

 

[dmp316]

Having the Captivate for over a month, every time I pick up an iPhone, I can't believe how much of a difference it is. It's just so... little.

x2 when i pick up my wifes iphone it's looks and feels and looks wired. Awesome phone but i love my Captivate much much more.

 

[digitaldroid]

good post man, I am a mac geek and switched over to the dark side and I just love my Captivate and dont miss my iPhone at all.

I like the freedom I have with my Captivate, dont need to jailbreak I can customize and install what I want. Also biggest selling point for me is no more dam iTunes and now I can just drag and drop my music where ever I am.

Looking back at the iPhone I just shake my head at the size of the screen and the iOS, I mean come on the OS is still the same just a little upgraded.

If I buy a smartphone I should be able to do what I want and install what I want since I own it, this is why I love my Captivate.

 

[iploya]

I also tried the iPhone4 (my first iPhone) and soon replaced it with the Captivate. The Captivate provided everything I felt was lacking in the iPhone, e.g. the iPhone was too heavy and too much of a battery hog. Despite having a larger screen, the Captivate is lighterweight and more battery efficient, and provides the same general functionality as the iPhone (e.g. icons, downloadable apps, etc.).

 

[rfound]

I wrote this for a guy at work who is choosing his first smartphone, I figured some curious folks might be interested.





There has been a lot written about Android vs. iOS, but I would like to offer my opinions, after a week with an android device. My overall impression is that the iPhone is a really great media player, which also includes the ability to make phone calls. Android can play music and such as well, but its not as polished or as integrated into the OS as iPod is in the iPhone.



I am coming from an iPhone 2G, but will make comparisons to the iPhone4, as that was what I was considering besides my Captivate.



Size/handfeel: The iPhone is marginally thinner (almost imperceptibly so) than the Captivate. The iPhone has a smaller screen which yields an overall smaller device by a hair. On the flip side, I personally find the shape of the Captivate to be very nice to use, an easier phone to hold in the hand, again, because of the shape of the edges of the phone. The Captivate is also much lighter in the hand.
Screen: One key difference between these phones is the display. iPhone4 has a ultra high resolution LCD display. It is incredible for text clarity. No other display comes close to the pixel density and I can say from firsthand experience, the sharpness of text and rendered objects is beyond compare. The Captivate also has an amazing display. The screen is huge, 4", and uses Samsung's Super AMOLED technology... The color gamut on this screen is incredible, far better color saturation and black levels than my monitors or TVs at home. Video on this screen is amazing, and color photos look incredible. I find the resolution is still more than enough for great use on text... certainly a lot better than iPhones before the iPhone4. If I could choose only one of these two screens, I think the AMOLED is a more pleasing display to use. If I was doing a lot of long-format text reading, my opinion might be different.

Applications: Yes, the iPhone certainly has more, particularly games. I was never a huge app user on the iPhone, but the Android appMarket is more centered on customization and utilities than the entertainment apps. I really wish there was a Netflix App for android. They've said it’s in the works. Skype supports iOS to some extent, but hasn't done much with android, besides some stuff with Verizon specifically that is very locked down. Seems like skype is going for a money grab in the mobile marketplace, rather than trying to replicate what they do on the PC. I fully expect more from Google in the VOIP scene to allow calls. I suspect the call-out from gmail and google voice will get interconnected sometime soon and be brought to the mobile platform. Android marketshare is growing much faster than iOS, so expect the App Offerings on android to catch up (and even overtake) iPhone in the coming year or two.

App Store: the user experience with the Android market (through appbrain) is quite a bit better, IMO than the iOS app store. I don't have to put in my password every time I want to download a free (or paid) app, and paid apps are automatically refunded if uninstalled within 24 hours.

Widgets: Android has them, iOS doesn't. Widgets can really change the way you use a phone, streamline things, etc... I love the simplicity of the widget I use... a large clock, weather, and calendar are all right there. Love it. I also keep a Pandora wiidget on my 2nd home screen. I could add more widgets but I'm constantly torn between adding more crap to my homescreen, or keeping it looking really clean and beautiful. To each his own, but that's the beauty of Andoid, you can customize everything (Without even jailbreaking/rooting).

Application Organization: Apple has the simplest UI here... Every app is installed as a chiclet-icon on the home screen, and you can group them into folders. Its also the most nonsensical way of installing software ever. It's like installing everything to your desktop on your computer. Android featured an app-drawer... so all of your apps are organized in there, and you can put shortcuts to the ones you like most on your homescreens.

UI: With iOS, every phone has a great (albeit boring) UI... the iOS. With android, a great deal of your UI experience can be changed with different "Launchers"... think of these like the core UI layer that you interact with all the time. Each handset maker builds a custom one (HTC Sense, Motorola MotoBlur, Samsung Touchwiz, or plain Android), Samsung's Touchwiz is essentially an iOS clone, and as with most clones, it sucks. It makes the phone look less attractive and is generally not worth using. The good news is that with Android you have choice. Just download LauncherPro or ADW Launcher from the app-store and you will have a bunch more options. LauncherPro is AWESOME, IMO, a huge improvement over Touchwiz or iOS. All this is very easy to do without “Rooting” or hacking of any kind.

Button Layout: This goes both ways. I miss having the physical Home button on the iPhone, for one reason... turning the screen on to unlock the phone. On the Captivate, the only button that will activate the screen is the power button, so I am still getting used to the position of that (used an iphone for 3 years+). However, the 4 (capacitive touch on the Captivate) buttons in android (Menu, Home, Back Search) are a HUGE improvement over the buttonless iPhone. Access to settings and such within the apps, the back button, etc... These are things I had always wished for in the iPhone. I sometimes wish the 4 buttons were physical instead of touch, but the physical buttons on the Motorola Droid feel pretty crappy to me, I definitely prefer the capacitive buttons to that. I do think there could be a better physical button solution, but this is more than acceptable.

Hardware/Speed: Both phones are speed demons. The iPhone and Captivate both use a Samsung "hummingbird" processor. Apple recently purchased a chip design firm that worked with Samsung, so they are branding it an "Apple a4 hummingbird" processor. It is a very close, if not identical, to the Processor in the Samsung, with one notable exception: Samsung runs at 1Ghz (same as iPad), where the iPhone is underclocked by an undisclosed amount (believed to be running around 800Mhz). In the real world, both are snappy and will perform great.

Battery: Charge both phones daily. Watching video, streaming a lot of data, and playing games will kill battery. Any time the displays are on, you're using a lot of power. iPhone is probably a tad more power efficient IMO, but the Samsung has the benefit of cheap spare batteries, and the potential down the road for larger capacity replacement batteries. Neither phone is going to last much more than a day under normal usage for the average user.

Camera: The camera on the iPhone 4 and Captivate are both 5 megapixel, and record 720p HD video. The iPhone has the LED flash, and I think their camera is a bit better. Neither is a replacement for an actual Camera, particularly in anything but bright outdoor lighting.

Media Playback: iPhone uses the iPod software which is very good. It syncs and integrates with iTunes extremely smoothly, and plays any copy-protected content that is tied to your iTunes account. Also, any apps you already own for iOS on an iPod Touch or iPad will also be on your iPhone. The Captivate isn't as good at media, but it has a couple benefits. You can simply drag-and-drop media files onto your Android device from any computer with USB, and you have your choice of media playback options. Double-Twist does a decent job of replicating iTunes syncing on the Android platform, and bypasses DRMed tracks. Still, even with all the openness of android, the iPhone is still a much more polished media player... but it is forever handcuffed to iTunes.

Syncing: iPhone syncs to an individual computer, Android syncs to the google cloud, and isn't really tethered to any computer for anything. No one way is better, but more a matter of preferences. The ability to use all the google-services naively is really great. The GMAIL APP is AWESOME... as it allows you to do everything you would on a computer, including search the archives, add attachments from your files (iOS doesn't let you add an attachment after you start an email, you have to initiate the email from the gallery app), etc... Additionally, you can store any type of file locally, iPhone allows for no local storage besides synced media, pictures (a major annoyance).

Notifications: Android's notification systems is head-and-shoulders more useful than that on the iphone. much more information, more options, and it just makes more sense. iOS feels primitive by comparison.

Issues: Captivate has a software issue on the GPS that they have promised a fix for this month. They are also a little late getting android 2.2 released; though I would expect it in 2-6 weeks as well (android 2.1 is quite good, but 2.2 promises speed enhancements and other improvements).
iPhone has the well-known Antenna that is more prone to Signal loss and attenuation due to your hands than most other phones. All phones are prone to signal attenuation, the iPhone4 is more affected than most. Forget about the number of bars you see in any location, it means nothing. I will say that the Captivate is routinely making phone calls where my iPhone 2G formerly did not. I can’t offer much more on that.

Frustrations: I have always been annoyed beyond belief that apple would not allow the iphone to be used as a mass storage device. It seems with these phones, everyone is carrying around a perfectly capable USB storage device, but apple specifically locks that out for unknown reasons.
On the Captivate, it’s hard to imagine why the USB connection is on the top of the phone. I really prefer the bottom-connection of the iPhone for the purposed of docking. Additionally, for all I hate the proprietary connector, the Apple Dock connector is EVERYWHERE. I’m a bit sad that I can’t just plug my phone into an alarm clock, a speaker, etc… and have everything charge/work. The flipside is I can buy a charging cable for $.99 on eBay, and the MicroUSB seems to be the standard for most new phones these days.

Price: On contract, both are $200 from AT&T... however; there are deals for about $100 on the Captivate through Amazonwireless.com on a contract extension. Deals can be even better for new contracts.


Either way, both are great phones.


iPhone/iOS is better media player, More UI simplicity, and has better app support to date.


Android is a lot more flexible. There's very few "you can't do that" moments in Android, but its by and large more complicated to use (though I find it very intuitive). The Android is a lot more of a computer than an iPhone is.

In closing, the captivate was clearly the best phone for ME, but between the two, I would still probably recommend the iPhone to my parents.

 

[Yggdrasil]

Well written, and I agree with you on almost all of those points.

For me, the Android system is the way to go.

I find using my mom's iPhone 3GS to do things is simply... unintuitive. I did not think that before having the Android (since July 29th, 2010). Funny how you don't miss something until you don't have it.

Swype...

 

[Endoran]

Well done sir! I agree with you on all your points (I reallywant to believe you about the froyo date...but). Your last bit about recommending the iphone to your parents made me smile! I couldn't imagine my mom or dad even being able to enjoy android as is at the moment. They don't want a computer in their hand they want a brainless phone that is intuitive and fool-proof; and that its exactly what appl aims for, and provides spectacularly.

 

[lordhamster]

Well done sir! I agree with you on all your points (I reallywant to believe you about the froyo date...but). Your last bit about recommending the iphone to your parents made me smile! I couldn't imagine my mom or dad even being able to enjoy android as is at the moment. They don't want a computer in their hand they want a brainless phone that is intuitive and fool-proof; and that its exactly what appl aims for, and provides spectacularly.

Exactly! I think the locked-down nature of the iPhone is exactly what makes it such an excellent device for the less tech-savvy out there.

Sure us computer nerds want to be able to have a moving wallpaper and have this that and the other widget, and root access and be able to overclock blah blah. But the Mom crowd out there simply want to click the little Phone icon to make a phone call and perhaps occasionally hit the browser icon to look up a movie showtime.

I had my mom buy an iPad rather than a real computer for this very reason. I've had zero tech support phone calls from her since. She can email, download music, look things up all without having to be afraid of messing something up.


Anyway, on to the Captivate vs iPhone debate. While I really love the android OS, I hope that samsung releases the GPS fix soon. My GPS doesn't work at all and I absolutely need to have working GPS in my phone. Also, as good as the android market is, it is still a bit behind. Many great apps are either missing or Nerfed on the android side, not to mention how much of a pain in the ass searching the market is with all of the spam apps. (Just try finding Angry birds and you'll find tons of apps trying to trick you.)

I love the automatic refund if you return an app though. Apple needs to implement this feature as well.

Finally the one thing that drives me nuts with the Captivate thus far is the Calendar. Why can't I make a google calendar the default destination for new events on a google device?

 

[alphadog00]

A good write up and I agree with most of your comments.

For people that have trouble navigating a computer (PC and Mac) and already have all their music in iTunes and only know how to Sync - the iPhone is for them. It takes easy to a new level, but also removes much in the way of choice.

Apple made a device so easy that it ushered in mass adoption of smart phones. WinMo and BB had been around for years, but BB was not really a multimedia device, and WinMo (like android) offered a lot of freedom and so cause people a lot of pain (bad battery life and stability issues due to poorly written apps). The iPhone only allowed one way to do things, one software source, and one hardware source - so it was a success for the masses.

How many android users still look for iTunes to sync music - they don't realize there are other ways.

 

[St_G]

Arcane means secret or esoteric, not old-fashioned or antiquated.

 

[gilgehmesh]

Very thoughtfully written write up without the flaming partisanship seen in some other post. I do agree with the point that for people who want things to work well but in just one way (the Apple way) iPhone is for them. That's why it really isn't for me. I hate having to sync your phone to your computer (iTunes specifically.) If my parents wanted a smartphone (they don't) I would probably recommend the iPhone for them. My significant other is quite happy with her iPhone and I don't think she would understand use an Android phone so I would never get one for her.

However, I do not entirely agree that the iPhone is a better multimedia phone. I think this would be true if iTune is already your multimedia universe but not as much if it is not. I have had people ask me how do I sync my phone to the computer and I have to explain that I can add whatever files I want to the phone without any computer having to know about it. That the flexibility of Android. Another flexibility (especially true of Galaxy S phones) is that you just drop in a DivX or a mkv file into your phone and you can play it. Not true if you are in the iTunes multimedia universe. You can convert to a format that iTunes can play but it is a hassle. I enjoy how I can download a file directly from the web and play it right away on the phone. That flexibility make the Galaxy S a better multimedia phone for me. I have lots of media I can just play straight on iTunes. However if your multimedia universe is already all set up in iTunes you should really keep on buying the iPhone.

 

[suedely]

rfound very well written analysis. The only thing I find fault with is the syncing statement "No one way is better, but more a matter of preferences." I HATE...REPEAT HATE iTunes and I sold my ipod touch 3rd gen and bought my Captivate outright. Therefore I love being able to put content on it just like a mass storage device. I think when people realize there is another option than using iTunes that Android will take off even more. iTunes is a clunky piece of junk and I hate supporting my mother's iphone due to having to sync it to the same PC, therefore she has to lug a laptop when she visits. I agree for now that supporting our parents iPhone vs Android phone is easier, but that damn iTunes gets me everytime. Also my wife has had her iPhone for 5 months and still doesn't have any music on it yet...again due to iTunes. Saying that no one way is better than the other is a little bit off IMHOP.

In addition I love my AMOLED display and I love even more so the fact that it has a larger screen than an iPhone. ;-)

Thanks again for the break down rfound.