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Captivate vs Iphone 4

mizzoucat said:
So, I decided to sell my 2 month old Captivate on eBay so that I can go back to the iPhone 4. I purchased the iPhone 4 when it first came out but the 2 I had exhibited severe yellow bands, stuck pixels, etc. So, rather than trying my luck with a third iPhone 4, I decided I would just try the Captivate.

After using the Captivate for the last 2 months, I can say that it comes ever so close to being the perfect phone. I love the openness and customization options that Android offers. I love the Super AMOLED screen and the overall design of the device. That being said, the one thing that I simply can't look past is the %^$#$#@ GPS!! Why the hell doesn't it work? I decided I wasn't going to wait any longer. I sold my Captivate for $480 on eBay and will go back to the iPhone 4 for $200 (Premier customer with multiple lines). Granted, the iPhone 4 isn't perfect, but at least it has GPS that actually works! And where the hell is 2.2? Weren't we promised September???
Click to expand...

I cant speak for the Captivate as to when it will get released but we at T-Mobile for the Vibrant are getting our update for the GPS and other fixes. I just got mine yesterday. Seems my phone is snappier, it added a couple of icons and other things you can read up on in the Vibrant forum.

2.2 was delayed because of an issue. They want it to run good when it is released so i can wait a little longer for that to happen. Now it is said to be this month sometime. Apple releases updates all the time and some dont do really anything or fix anything so it is a waste and some download it anyways and then complain when things arent different.

I really like my Vibrant and just think Android is going to far surpass Apples OS in the next year so i wont be going back to an iPhone. Android just does more things i like.
2.2 will be awesome and then we can look forward to Gingerbread next year.
 
carmendiva said:
Yeah i am probably heading over to Windows 7 when their devices come out(hopefully next month)

I still have my Captivate(it WAS locked away....i was going to sell it but that Super Amoled makes it so hard...even with all the problems)

I was using an HD 2 unlocked from tmobile and despite it being windows mobile, i actually fell in love with it...

and sadly the battery is like completely dead or whatever....
so i am back to using the captivate, unfortunately

But yeah windows 7 appears to be pretty cool from the videos and it's something new(which is what i love and why i always get the latest and greatest phone that comes out)

I had the kin phones on verizon and while the phone sucked...the software/concept was great and i enjoyed it!
Click to expand...

I SO dislike the HD 2. Tried to like it and just couldnt. I did not like the Windows platform at all. Dont know what Windows 7 will have but if it is anything like the previous ones....no thanks!
 
Yeah i was wary about using it but honestly
i liked Windows on the HD 2

having used Windows on the Omnia & Imagio last year with resistive was horrible
but the HD wasn't that bad

I like the UI look of Windows 7 and hopefully
Microsoft will give both Apple & Android run for their money
so we can have much better products from them

I just wish Apple would at least come out with a different type of iphone instead a revised edition of last year's model EVERY YEAR

and I wish Android would start getting a little more in sync and stop with the fragmentation....
 
carmendiva said:
I like the UI look of Windows 7 and hopefully
Microsoft will give both Apple & Android run for their money
so we can have much better products from them
Click to expand...

Not going to happen. ;)

Microsoft is constantly "me too!" in every industry, late to the game and just trying to win via bullying, bundling and brand-recognition... and not based on features, reliability or innovation.

How many people choose a Zune over an iPod?

Windows on a phone is an abomination. Microsoft's broken design methodology and software school-of-thought needs to remain quarantined on the PC desktop where hopefully it can eventually rot away and die from natural selection. We need to use cell phones as an opportunity to break free and have a clean new slate where a better model can grow and develop.
 
I went through the same debate, and I decided to get the iPhone 4. I know the iPhone isn't perfect, but the compactness, the killer screen, and my history knowledge and comfort with Apple products led me to favor it over the Captivate.

I really wanted to like the Captivate, but it just never won me over. The screen is awesome, but the rest of the hardware just feels a bit cheap. The myriad issues being reported also swayed me away. I love the idea of Android, but being stuck on AT&T, I felt like I'd get better support with the iPhone.

I'm still waiting for the 4.1 Jailbreak though, and that is KILLING me
 
The 4.1 jailbreak is out I believe, so give it another try. I bought the Captivate after seeing it in person and playing with it at the AT&T store. Within a month, was super upset with the GPS issue and some other minor issues. I didn't mind waiting for an update, I wasn't expecting perfection but did want to see Samsung being aggressive with their support. When the update finally came and I updated my phone, I couldn't believe the GPS issue was still there.

I then started calling AT&T and thanks to them, finally got an iPhone4. Like you, I'm happy with my decision to move to this phone. Nothing is perfect but this phone works as advertised and Apple has been frequently updating it. Not only that, the updates don't need to be reviewed by AT&T like is the case with the Captivate, so it makes the overall experience a pleasant one. It's a shame that the Captivate turned out to be a disappointment, Android has a ton of potential and features that I miss on the iPhone. I can only imagine how good Gingerbread will be and future phones that will ship with it. I'll probably look into Android after my two years are up but for now, enjoying my new phone.
 
Cuerbo said:
The 4.1 jailbreak is out I believe, so give it another try. I bought the Captivate after seeing it in person and playing with it at the AT&T store. Within a month, was super upset with the GPS issue and some other minor issues. I didn't mind waiting for an update, I wasn't expecting perfection but did want to see Samsung being aggressive with their support. When the update finally came and I updated my phone, I couldn't believe the GPS issue was still there.

I then started calling AT&T and thanks to them, finally got an iPhone4. Like you, I'm happy with my decision to move to this phone. Nothing is perfect but this phone works as advertised and Apple has been frequently updating it. Not only that, the updates don't need to be reviewed by AT&T like is the case with the Captivate, so it makes the overall experience a pleasant one. It's a shame that the Captivate turned out to be a disappointment, Android has a ton of potential and features that I miss on the iPhone. I can only imagine how good Gingerbread will be and future phones that will ship with it. I'll probably look into Android after my two years are up but for now, enjoying my new phone.
Click to expand...


I have seen so many threads in the macrumors forums that say otherwise on the iPhone 4. Proximity issues, dropped calls. It is all relative to where you are really.

But I am happy you are enjoying your iphone. I really liked mine, but the only way I found to enjoy it was to jailbreak it. And I can't speak for the 4, but on my 3G, the battery life was the worst I had ever seen....But, I was changing tons in my phone too!!!!

For my wife, I think the iphone is great...she wants it basic, and is great with it doing what she needs, call, text, little bit of internet, etc.

For me, I want something that I can play with. GPS? Please. I am a man. I can find my way with a map if need be, and my phone can show me a map, so the rest is good. Don't you guys remember that we don't ask for directions? GPS tricked us into asking for directions without having to actually ask someone. We all lose a little bit of our man card when we use it!!! :D
 
I have both the iPhone4 and Samsung Captivate. Both of these were brought because I'm a serious app developer for both platform.


Comparison

- iPhone4: Unbeatable screen resolution, the grand daddy of all HD screen. The size of the screen itself is a bit smaller then the Captivate but the resolution is alot better. iphone win.

- iPhone4: Pure accurate GPS that always work. Captivate: GPS never work, even when it work, it's way off. iphone win.

- iPhone4: Faster system and applications, no lag compared to Captivate. iphone win.

- Captivate: can customize everything from lock screen, home screen, launcher, etc.. iPhone4: everything is locked down. captivate win.

- Captivate: home screen widgets and icons. iPhone4: everything is an icon or folder. captivate win.

- Battery: iPhone4 win outright. holds and charge faster on iphone, take hours to charge on captivate.

- Camera: iPhone have led flash and a front facing camera. Captivate: no flash, no front camera. Both have about the same quality. iPhone win.

- Picture gallery: look better on the Captivate, faster on the iphone4. the captivate took the idea from the iPad. tie.

- Files: easier to manage the files on your Captivate then the iphone4. Captivate have removable memory cards. iPhone is locked in. When on a trip and running out of space on the phone, I can bring extra cards and switch it out on the fly. Not possible with iphone4. captivate win.

- Phone quality: iPhone 4 is superior then the captivate. Captivate seems like its made out of cheap plastic. iphone win.

- Call quality: iPhone4 have better call quality then the captivate. This does not account for area with bad signals. iPhone 4 speaker is on the top/bottom of the phone whereas the Captivate is on the back, this make it hard to talk on speaker with the phone on the desk, or when you're holding the phone your hand may be covering the speaker in the back. This is not a problem with the iphone4. iphone win.

Overall: Both phones are different. If you win quality build, get the iphone4, if you want features, get the Captivate. IF YOU NEED GPS, get the iphone4. Both are great phones. The captivate just sucks badly at gps. This may even be a hardware issue, not software related which can easily be fixed.


I'm using the Captivate because I like the customization. When I need GPS, I use the iPhone4 and the captivate goes back into it's hole. Both phones are different. It's llike comparing a 2 door sport car to an SUV.
 
L
kennz said:
- Picture gallery: look better on the Captivate, faster on the iphone4. the captivate took the idea from the iPad.
Click to expand...

Actually, the picture gallery app is from the original Android 2.1 AOSP drop from a year ago that launched on the N1. It was written by CoolIris quite a while before that as an extension in certain browsers (especially Google's) and pre-dates the iPad or any code Apple had published, so... Considering the timeframe I would hope Apple implemented it faster/better, they had a bit more time to bake it...
 
kennz said:
I have both the iPhone4 and Samsung Captivate. Both of these were brought because I'm a serious app developer for both platform.


Comparison

- iPhone4: Unbeatable screen resolution, the grand daddy of all HD screen. The size of the screen itself is a bit smaller then the Captivate but the resolution is alot better. iphone win.

- iPhone4: Pure accurate GPS that always work. Captivate: GPS never work, even when it work, it's way off. iphone win.

- iPhone4: Faster system and applications, no lag compared to Captivate. iphone win.

- Captivate: can customize everything from lock screen, home screen, launcher, etc.. iPhone4: everything is locked down. captivate win.

- Captivate: home screen widgets and icons. iPhone4: everything is an icon or folder. captivate win.

- Battery: iPhone4 win outright. holds and charge faster on iphone, take hours to charge on captivate.

- Camera: iPhone have led flash and a front facing camera. Captivate: no flash, no front camera. Both have about the same quality. iPhone win.

- Picture gallery: look better on the Captivate, faster on the iphone4. the captivate took the idea from the iPad. tie.

- Files: easier to manage the files on your Captivate then the iphone4. Captivate have removable memory cards. iPhone is locked in. When on a trip and running out of space on the phone, I can bring extra cards and switch it out on the fly. Not possible with iphone4. captivate win.

- Phone quality: iPhone 4 is superior then the captivate. Captivate seems like its made out of cheap plastic. iphone win.

- Call quality: iPhone4 have better call quality then the captivate. This does not account for area with bad signals. iPhone 4 speaker is on the top/bottom of the phone whereas the Captivate is on the back, this make it hard to talk on speaker with the phone on the desk, or when you're holding the phone your hand may be covering the speaker in the back. This is not a problem with the iphone4. iphone win.

Overall: Both phones are different. If you win quality build, get the iphone4, if you want features, get the Captivate. IF YOU NEED GPS, get the iphone4. Both are great phones. The captivate just sucks badly at gps. This may even be a hardware issue, not software related which can easily be fixed.


I'm using the Captivate because I like the customization. When I need GPS, I use the iPhone4 and the captivate goes back into it's hole. Both phones are different. It's llike comparing a 2 door sport car to an SUV.
Click to expand...

im going to make a few points. the build quality of the iphone is good no doubt, but it was poorly thought out, the entire thing is made of glass. you drop the captivate you probably gouge the plastic and thats about it, you drop the iphone you crack it

and now with the battery. from what ive seen the captivate battery lasts much longer, unless you have tons of widgets and stuff updating very often. and even if you do you can get replaceable batteries which you cant do on the iphone. i personally bought 2 with a wall charger off of amazon for like $25 and i never plug in my phone. when a battery gets close to dying i just put a new battery in. also the captivate battery needs to be broken in for several weeks before it is at its full capacity

and finally the screen. the iphone has the better resolution but thats it. i personally would take a 3.5 inch samoled over a 3.5 inch retina display, i love the colors so much more than the resolution. so a 4inch samoled over a 3.5 retina is a no brainer for me but thats different for everyone
 
Big Pope Daddy said:
I have seen so many threads in the macrumors forums that say otherwise on the iPhone 4. Proximity issues, dropped calls. It is all relative to where you are really.

But I am happy you are enjoying your iphone. I really liked mine, but the only way I found to enjoy it was to jailbreak it. And I can't speak for the 4, but on my 3G, the battery life was the worst I had ever seen....But, I was changing tons in my phone too!!!!

For my wife, I think the iphone is great...she wants it basic, and is great with it doing what she needs, call, text, little bit of internet, etc.

For me, I want something that I can play with. GPS? Please. I am a man. I can find my way with a map if need be, and my phone can show me a map, so the rest is good. Don't you guys remember that we don't ask for directions? GPS tricked us into asking for directions without having to actually ask someone. We all lose a little bit of our man card when we use it!!! :D
Click to expand...

Pulling out a paper map and figuring out where you are and what road and heading you need to be on is quite satisfying. I especially like the convoy-pull-over and group huddle around the map like we're planning an invasion into Russia. True GPS is handy (especially if you are back-packing) but really it is unnecessary (even in the backcountry [as in out in the wild you city slickers]). A map and the knowledge that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west is all you need. So +1.
 
Went to my brother in law house the other day.. the community he live in is like a maze. Even though I went there hundred of times, I couldn't figure out how to find his house. The GPS on the Captivate just failed badly. The iPhone4 showed the way. And it does really look like a maze on the map. lmao
 
Captivate sucks. great concept, terrible execution.

iPhone 4 has great execution, ho-hum concept.

Personally, I don't want anything on AT&T. This was a lesson that my Captivate experience taught me. it made Sprint and verizon seem so much better.

A colleague has the new HTC G2 on T_Mobile and its HSPA+ works at 7+Mbit. Much better than AT&T 3G and nearly twice as fast as Sprint wiMax in the same area. An HTC phone in the same format as the Captivate with HSPA+ would be the best of all worlds, for me. Too bad no one is making it currently.

For me, I decided to stick with a good phone on TMobile, and get an Archos Android tablet for e-book and light internet apps. And, it saves me $1500 over the Captivate for two years.
 
bitemytaint said:
Captivate sucks. great concept, terrible execution.
iPhone 4 has great execution, ho-hum concept.

Personally, I don't want anything on AT&T. This was a lesson that my Captivate experience taught me. it made Sprint and verizon seem so much better.

A colleague has the new HTC G2 on T_Mobile and its HSPA+ works at 7+Mbit. Much better than AT&T 3G and nearly twice as fast as Sprint wiMax in the same area. An HTC phone in the same format as the Captivate with HSPA+ would be the best of all worlds, for me. Too bad no one is making it currently.

For me, I decided to stick with a good phone on TMobile, and get an Archos Android tablet for e-book and light internet apps. And, it saves me $1500 over the Captivate for two years.
Click to expand...
im sure if that were the case the captivate wouldnt be the top selling high end android phone
 
You must be new to technology, CP.

The market leader rarely makes the best product. Ever used Windows 3.1, Windows 95, Windows Me, Vista?

If the Captivate were so great, why would this forum be so busy? I know you fanbois like to stroke each other over how sophisticated you are with your phones. "Oh, you're so cool with your Captivate!" "No, _you_ are cool with your captivate!" It's like watching the volleyball scene from Top Gun, over and over. Please.

In reality, the iPhone 4 works better. If you are a hacker, and don't mind possibly bricking your Android phone, you can achieve better than stock results.

How is your OEM FroYo 2.2 install? oh, what, you still don't have it, 2.5 months after it was promised? Hmm, what selective perception you collectively have.

I learned a lot by playing with the different Android phones that I tested. However, the Captivate seems to have the most problems, for me, over any of the others that I have tried out (four total, three with FroYo; not the Cappy, since it isn't supported yet).

My GF's iPhone 4 can call and get data better than the Captivate, in our area and lifestyle. YMMV. However, I was shocked at how the Captivate's call quality was worse than a phone that has known issues with reception! Forget that, I call that flawed.
 
^^^I find the Captivate to have better call quality than any phone I've owned since the SE W810i...about 5 yrs ago. I measure call quality by how it does in a fringe signal area-like my house..and I can tell you my daughter's iphone doesn't do as well in the same spot. Any phone can do well in a full signal area-and that is where this captivate really does well IMO
 
bitemytaint said:
You must be new to technology, CP.

The market leader rarely makes the best product. Ever used Windows 3.1, Windows 95, Windows Me, Vista?

If the Captivate were so great, why would this forum be so busy? I know you fanbois like to stroke each other over how sophisticated you are with your phones. "Oh, you're so cool with your Captivate!" "No, _you_ are cool with your captivate!" It's like watching the volleyball scene from Top Gun, over and over. Please.

In reality, the iPhone 4 works better. If you are a hacker, and don't mind possibly bricking your Android phone, you can achieve better than stock results.

How is your OEM FroYo 2.2 install? oh, what, you still don't have it, 2.5 months after it was promised? Hmm, what selective perception you collectively have.

I learned a lot by playing with the different Android phones that I tested. However, the Captivate seems to have the most problems, for me, over any of the others that I have tried out (four total, three with FroYo; not the Cappy, since it isn't supported yet).

My GF's iPhone 4 can call and get data better than the Captivate, in our area and lifestyle. YMMV. However, I was shocked at how the Captivate's call quality was worse than a phone that has known issues with reception! Forget that, I call that flawed.
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yes i use windows, ive owned 98 through 7 and i will never own a mac

this forum isnt nearly as busy as the evo forums, does that make the evo a worse phone?

the iphone, imho, sucks. if you want a phone that is boring, very bland, bad call quality and reception. a phone made of glass to where one drop and you likely have an unusable phone was definitely not a good idea on the design front

froyo works fine on my personal phone. but it was never promised 2.5 months, and if you think it was please provide a link

ive never experienced this problem, maybe you had a bad phone, or maybe youve never used one which seems highly plausible
 
bitemytaint said:
You must be new to technology, CP.

The market leader rarely makes the best product. Ever used Windows 3.1, Windows 95, Windows Me, Vista?

If the Captivate were so great, why would this forum be so busy? I know you fanbois like to stroke each other over how sophisticated you are with your phones. "Oh, you're so cool with your Captivate!" "No, _you_ are cool with your captivate!" It's like watching the volleyball scene from Top Gun, over and over. Please.

In reality, the iPhone 4 works better. If you are a hacker, and don't mind possibly bricking your Android phone, you can achieve better than stock results.

How is your OEM FroYo 2.2 install? oh, what, you still don't have it, 2.5 months after it was promised? Hmm, what selective perception you collectively have.

I learned a lot by playing with the different Android phones that I tested. However, the Captivate seems to have the most problems, for me, over any of the others that I have tried out (four total, three with FroYo; not the Cappy, since it isn't supported yet).

My GF's iPhone 4 can call and get data better than the Captivate, in our area and lifestyle. YMMV. However, I was shocked at how the Captivate's call quality was worse than a phone that has known issues with reception! Forget that, I call that flawed.
Click to expand...

I have never had any problems with my captivate. I know, I can't be serious, but I am. As soon as I got it I loaded up cognition, and my GPS is working fine, even though I never use it. Call quality is exceptional, it's really snappy, and It's way better than my previous droid and iPhone 3gs. I'm actually enjoying ATT too, despite how many apple fanboys whine about them, in my area I get perfect reception and the CS is much better than verizon. I do feel sorry for the people who are seemingly having this many issues with their phone.
 
bitemytaint said:
Captivate sucks. great concept, terrible execution.

iPhone 4 has great execution, ho-hum concept.

Personally, I don't want anything on AT&T. This was a lesson that my Captivate experience taught me. it made Sprint and verizon seem so much better.

A colleague has the new HTC G2 on T_Mobile and its HSPA+ works at 7+Mbit. Much better than AT&T 3G and nearly twice as fast as Sprint wiMax in the same area. An HTC phone in the same format as the Captivate with HSPA+ would be the best of all worlds, for me. Too bad no one is making it currently.

For me, I decided to stick with a good phone on TMobile, and get an Archos Android tablet for e-book and light internet apps. And, it saves me $1500 over the Captivate for two years.
Click to expand...

HSPA is faster than 4G but they (TMo) call it 4G when advertizing because everyone knows 4G as opposed to HSPA. TMo is putting out as pretty good network that AT&T cant match and Sprints 4G ....their phones have two antteneas in them for 3G and 4G and they suck battery life.
The new MyTouch 4Ghat just came out for TMo is a real good phone. Dont have a keyboard and is thin, has different colors but has a 3.8" screen. A bit smaller than ny Vibrant but i really like it. Has Froyo 2.2.1
 
VegasTouch said:
HSPA is faster than 4G but they (TMo) call it 4G when advertizing because everyone knows 4G as opposed to HAPA.
Click to expand...


Yes, the HSPA+ T-mobile (and AT&T, although their speeds are much slower because of greater load) is using is faster than Sprint's "4G," but there is no true 4G in the US or the World yet. The "4G" currently being thrown around is referring to the 4th generation of technology in the US, not the official international technological standard that is true 4G in terms of speed. So while T-mo is faster than Sprint, they are not "faster than 4G."
 
I had a Captive then went to iPhone, sorry, there's no comparison. Apps are better and with 4.2 around the corner, I'll soon be able to print from my phone. Captivate would have been a great phone if someone, other than Samsung, brought it to the market. Samsung has lost its footing with the Galaxy S line, they didn't do an aggressive job like HTC/Motorola, to keep their phones up to the latest.

As for call quality and data speeds, I have no issues, AT&T is delivering on both sides of he fence for me.
 
s.m.knipe said:
Yes, the HSPA+ T-mobile (and AT&T, although their speeds are much slower because of greater load) is using is faster than Sprint's "4G," but there is no true 4G in the US or the World yet. The "4G" currently being thrown around is referring to the 4th generation of technology in the US, not the official international technological standard that is true 4G in terms of speed. So while T-mo is faster than Sprint, they are not "faster than 4G."
Click to expand...
Yes, HSPA is faster than 4G. You will find out soon enough.
 
VegasTouch said:
Yes, HSPA is faster than 4G. You will find out soon enough.
Click to expand...

To be true 4G according to the ITU (the International Telecommunications Union- who sets the standards) the mobile receiver (phone) must pull 100+ Mbps (or 1 Gbps) download. HSPA+ is theoretically able to pull about 21 Mbps (less than 1/4) but realistically pulls around 7-15 Mbps. Sprint's WiMax and Verizon's planned LTE have a theoretical threshold of about 15 Mbps but realistically see/will see about 3 - 12 Mbps. Sprint has really confused the public with their marketing schemes...
True 4G really isn't even possible yet due to insufficient bandwidth and impractical receiver technology. This was all over the blogosphere like a month ago, just Google ITU 4G versus 3G or LTE or whatever...
 
What about a Captivate vs an iPhone 3gs as opposed to the iPhone 4? I'm really racking my brain here - I can get a Captivate for around $15 with my contract upgrade. I can get a refurb 16 GB 3gs for $99.

From what I understand, the iPhone 4 - with the exception of a few minor issues - is essentially the same as the 3gs with the OS 4 upgrade. But if GPS works, and if there are THOUSANDS more apps available, and the list of available accessories is in the billions, is the 3gs close enough to the Captivate that I won't miss it?

I use three email accounts, text, and need a good calendar. That's the jist of my needs. I currently have a Blackberry Bold 9000 which with its 8 GB of onboard memory only allocates 1G for applications, and its always clogging up.

I have no qualms about jailbreaking an iPhone, nor do I have problems rooting a Captivate. I just want a skosh bit more control over MY phone than AT&T wants to give me.

I'm leaning towards the Captivate. That's why I've been lurking here. But I use GPS a LOT and don't want to be handicapped for 2 years by an inferior product.

Upgrade day is Tuesday. HELP!
 
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