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Droid VS Eris....help!

S

Scottyent

Member
Well I went to my local verizon store today, and I played around with the Droid for a good while and I thought it was great! It's my first interaction with Android, but I loved a lot of the features, and the touch screen was fantastic. But...then I played with the Eris as well, since a bunch of the employees there said they'd choose that one over the droid. Thinking it was a weaker less impressive phone, I assumed I wouldn't like it...but I did. It is much more sleek, its lighter, the Sense UI was very good looking whereas the Droid UI was kind of plain and semi boring. Also, the predictive text on the Eris was so much better, and since I intend to be using the virtual keyboard a lot (the physical keyboard on the Droid wasn't so hot), that's a big concern for me.

My question is this, I need to make a decision, and I was wondering what pro's and con's everyone else has about these two phones. One's I've already built

Droid pro: Navigation, faster processor, nicer screen, android 2.0
Con: Heavier and more clunky looking, UI is semi bland, bad predictive texting

Eris Pro: much nicer looking hardware, and UI a lot better looking as well. Seemed to be better camera software, awesome predictive text.
Cons: doesn't run 2.0, much weaker processor, no navigation

The thing is, I feel like the Eris could catch the droid with a 2.0 update, except there might be more lagging with its slower processor. The people at the verizon store said they'd pick the Eris because HTC has been at Android for a long time, and they know how to do it right (aka with the predictive text), and Motorola is just starting. For them I'm sure it's an easier decision, cause later on they can probably get a droid without so much contract worries, but I don't want to get stuck with the wrong phone. What are you guys thinking? What are some other pro's and con's that push you one way or the other? Are there customizations and fixes that can fix predictive text and the semi bland UI on the droid?

I'm going crazy trying to decide.
 
I think the cons for the Eris are more fundamental than the cons for the Droid you listed. Just an observation. UI isnt a big deal with how customizable Android is. Predictive texting is a problem, if you're not a fan of the keyboard it'll be annoying. I would keep playing with the Droid and see if you'll get used to the keyboard. Hardware is something your stuck with - the most important hardware, the processor. I'll take the phone with the better hardware, and that's the droid. Full disclosure though, I've had my eyes set on the Droid and haven't even looked into the Eris because a keyboard for me is mandatory.
 
There are a lot of homescreen replacements that you can get for the droid.. OpenHome, aHome, PandaHome.. just to name a few.

For me, the faster cpu, newer android version and navigation make it a no-brainer for me. Also, folks have said that you'll get upgrades more often with a stock Android device since you don't have to wait for the manufacturer to update their special UI for a new version.
 
So are you saying predictive text is something that can't be changed? You said that is something to be concerned about, but can't that be improved and fixed with software updates? I just wish the eris had a faster processor. It's texting is phenomenal, on par with the iPhone, and since i'll be using the virtual keyboard a lot (since the keyboard that slides out on the Droid isn't too great), so I just want to be comfortable with doing a lot of texting and such with that.

How are you guys loving the droid? Glad you bought it? Second thoughts? Worried about the future phones coming out?
 
yeah, i'm in the same position. i'm like 65/35 in favor of getting the Eris because i don't feel i'm in need of a physical keyboard and it just looks boxy and old school to me. but then part of me wants to at least wait til Xmas to see if the HTC Passion is ever released.

i keep hearing about the 30 day worry free guarantee. so, if i buy one of these phones, and the passion comes out like a few weeks after my 30 days is up, can i return my phone/cancel my service, get my money back around the 30 day mark, then come back and get the passion a week or 2 later? or is the 30 day mark strictly for an exchange in phone, with the contract having to stay in place?
 
Thinking it was a weaker less impressive phone, I assumed I wouldn't like it...but I did. It is much more sleek, its lighter
Click to expand...
In my experience with electronics, lighter almost never = better. To me, the Droid feels solid, like you would expect from a $599 piece of equipment :)

Da_Coynul
 
Da_Coynul said:
In my experience with electronics, lighter almost never = better. To me, the Droid feels solid, like you would expect from a $599 piece of equipment :)

Da_Coynul
Click to expand...

While I agree with you on that, I meant proportionally lighter. Clearly the eris is a smaller phone, but the build quality is still fantastic. If you read some reviews, a lot of them say the weight is about equal in quality the solid iphone 3gs, if not better due to it's rubberized casing.

So yeah, lighter can mean cheaper, but in this case it's still a very high quality phone, just smaller than the droid. More compact, and definitely more pocketable...and in my opinion better looking.

One thing that bothers me that has nothing to do with the handsets is the amount of support and community the droid is getting. Just look at these forums, droid is exploding....eris is almost empty. If I can get more help and find more things to do with the droid due to that, than that's a big plus for the droid.
 
The thing about android phones is you don't need a specific forum for the most part...simply find a good android 1.6 forum and most of your questions will be answered there.

Also you could prolly hit up some HTC Hero forums for questions more closely related to your phone...they are for the most part the same phone.

I played with both as well...and while I love the SenseUI I can honestly say that I also love the stock UI...now many people may disagree and that's fine...but honestly all you have to do is wait maybe a month...two tops and aHome, sweeterHome, dxTop, OpenHome will all be compatible with 2.0.

The droid hardware is amazing and the software is only going to get better and more optimized with time...read faster. I won't say not to get the Eris but the Droid is a fantastic device with a ton of screen real estate for those of us that like to surf the web and the best part...you never have to pull the physical keyboard out if you don't want to...except for the one time during registration.
 
I got the droid yesterday and I will be exchanging it for the Eris today. I love how fast the phone is but I just can't get used to the flat keyboard, I don't really need a full querty.
The eris is small and compact for my purposes. Good luck
 
I'm also having trouble deciding between the Droid and the Eris.. I'm currently using a BB 8330, and one of the most frustrating things is that after only 8 months the trackball is crapping out on me. I'm afraid if I got the Eris, the same would happen.

I was really excited for the Droid because of it's QWERTY but I've been told it doesn't have much feedback and it's not as easy to type on or use as a BB keyboard. But it's so much better than the Eris at the same time =(

If I wanted I could go get the Eris right now.. but not the Droid since it's $100 more. What do I do!? I always have this problem when deciding upon a phone..
 
If I wanted I could go get the Eris right now.. but not the Droid since it's $100 more. What do I do!? I always have this problem when deciding upon a phone..
Click to expand...
$100 more up front comes out to an average of $4.16 a month over a two year contract. If that's gonna break you, maybe you should look at phones that don't need a data plan - that could save you $720 over your contract period!
 
Da_Coynul said:
$100 more up front comes out to an average of $4.16 a month over a two year contract. If that's gonna break you, maybe you should look at phones that don't need a data plan - that could save you $720 over your contract period!
Click to expand...

Well I can't exactly pay that $4 one month at a time? I'm talking in terms of what I can immediately buy.

I can't really get a feel for either phone, because either the Eris has a zip tie slapped around the front of the screen or the Droid keyboard doesnt feel right because of the way they have the power cord set up in the display.
 
While sense ui is pretty and all, its just somethign else to slow things down. Its kind of like how Aero for windows, looks pretty but consumes power etc. Besides if u really want sense ui type theres plenty alternatives. Dont know how easy it is to remove sense ui, but it wasnt a decision for me picking the droid. These phones are so customizable it doesnt matter what gimick they place on top of the operating system, you can change everything. Besides as with anything you would get bored of sense ui at some point and want something different
 
Huh. I didn't realize that the Eris wasn't 2.0, I figured if they were releasing them together they'd have a 2.0 thrown together for SenseUI.

I found that the Droid was actually kind of laggy when going between the 3 home pages. But that may be because the phone was probably loaded down with a ton of apps from the demo package the VZW stores use to demo them.

Also, the accelerometer seemed to be broke. At one point the home screen did rotate with the phone without the keyboard slid open, but later it wouldn't. However the screen would rotate in the browser/messaging/IM area otherwise. Seems kinda broken.
 
You don't have to use the keyboard on the droid - just because it's there doesn't mean you must use it. And don't use broken logic and think "Oh but keyboard is there and i'll be paying for a keyboard that i dont use and i dont wana pay for somethin i dont use" that line of thinking really makes no sense whatsovever. Anyway, you'll end up getting faster and more accurate with the keyboard as time goes on. Really, how long did you have with the phone? I'll tell you: not long enough to learn how to use it well

In my opinion, Droid wins by default due to 2.0. It would win without it also because its a BETTER PHONE GET THE DROID YOU MONG.
 
Karganeth said:
You don't have to use the keyboard on the droid - just because it's there doesn't mean you must use it. And don't use broken logic and think "Oh but keyboard is there and i'll be paying for a keyboard that i dont use and i dont wana pay for somethin i dont use" that line of thinking really makes no sense whatsovever. Anyway, you'll end up getting faster and more accurate with the keyboard as time goes on. Really, how long did you have with the phone? I'll tell you: not long enough to learn how to use it well

In my opinion, Droid wins by default due to 2.0. It would win without it also because its a BETTER PHONE GET THE DROID YOU MONG.
Click to expand...

If you're referring to me....then I spent about 45 minutes with the phone. In regards to this "broken logic" I have no problem NOT using the physical keyboard, its the issue that I might use it because the virtual kebyoard isn't the best either. I spent equal time with the Eris and the Droid, and I have extensive experience with touch screen phones. The Eris, I was typing as fast as an iPhone the first time I touched it, the droid, I constantly made mistakes on the virtual keyboard, and they weren't fixed correctly a lot of the time. While I agree i didn't get to know the phone as well as I would if I owned, I think the side by side comparison will show the Sense UI type is definitely more efficient, and while the Droids virtual keyboard may have a learning curve, I haven't heard from anyone that "learning" to use it brings it up to par with an iphone or eris.

Either way, I think I'm going with the Droid. it has the best hardware for the future, hopefully virtual keyboard support gets better, and the bonuses of 2.0 will be enough.

Eris will get to 2.0, but like mentioned above, not for awhile. In the long run, the much slower processor in the Eris is what worries me, and although I like the Sense UI...I dont like the fact you have to wait for HTC to rework it everytime to get any updates, and it's true, if you grow tired of it you're kind of stuck. Clearly stock android is really really customizable, so I think I'll give that a shot! I'm not going into the purchase saying WOW this is the best phone in the world I can't wait to use it, but I think the benefits of the operating system, and the serious screen and processor will make me fall in love with it once I start using it.

Tomorrow or monday I'm going Droid :)
 
The passion is supposedly an Htc machine with an even faster cpu, sense, and android 2.0. No official word on release date.
 
I'm through waiting for an Android on VZW, and the Droid will be obsolete in 6 months time anyway.

Still curious about the accelerometer deal though. It worked, and then suddenly didn't work! I've been hearing about a lot of bum Droids, ranging from reboot issues, dead pixels and bad accelerometers. Anyone know whats up? I even tried switching the accelerometer setting on and off on the phone.
 
I thought that Eris was a better phone also, except for its processor speed, lagging OS (1.6 vs. 2.0) but depending on what you want your phone to do, there is one more test anyone should do. In a quiet environment call a friend on the Eris and then call them on the Droid and ask them to tell you which sounds the best. They will say "Droid" 100% of the time. So if you don't want to sound tinny...get the Droid. Both phones sound great to the person using them.
 
i tried out the HTC Hero on Sprint. I think the Eris has a vastly superior hardware design (the fact that the menu, back and search buttons on the Hero were flush to the phone caused problems) but there were 2 fundamental problems issues that caused me to return the Hero:

1) The CPU was lacking. You didn't notice it until you started installing all the HTC Sense widgets and having apps run in the background. Eventually, the phone would slow down to a crawl....this was especially evident when using the soft keyboard. Sure you could kill everything with a task manager app (I have one installed on my Droid) but the HTC Sense layered on top of the stock Android combined with the slow processor resulted in me having to kill all apps a few times a day. I certainly didn't to enough testing to correlate this, but I think that when the Hero was heavily taxed, it even affected the phone...especially Google Voice. I also have an iPhone and my Google Voice number was set to forward to both phones. On many occasions my iPhone would ring way before the Hero. I even tried deleting the iPhone from my Google Voice account, but when I would call my Google Voice number it took around 5 rings before the Hero would ring. This could have just been my phone, but it was a deal breaker for me as I had too many calls goind to voice mail.

2) Though the HTS Sense UI is great, it does mean that updates to the Eris will be delayed. Every time Google releases a new version of Android, HTC will have to do extensive testing (and potential modifications) to ensure that Sense UI is compatible with the new version of Android. Also, be aware that there could be bugs/performance issues with the Eris, due to the Sense UI that are not there with stock Android builds. A perfect example is that there is a bug with the messaging app in the Hero/Eris that keeps constantly keeps the phone awake once a text is sent and kills the battery life.

Once Android 2.0 came out, I became sold on stock Android as a legitimate mobile OS. I know the Eris will eventually get Android 2.0, but I don't think it will happen anytime soon (at least not before the end of 2009) Even when it does, I'm not convinced that the Eris's CPU will be up to the task performing with no lagging once there are several apps/widgets running.

I think the form factor and keyboard on the Eris are wonderful, as is the Sense UI. It's not a bad choice for a phone, but the lagging just got to me. Unless the smaller form factor really wows you, I would go with the Droid.
 
ecb said:
i tried out the HTC Hero on Sprint. I think the Eris has a vastly superior hardware design (the fact that the menu, back and search buttons on the Hero were flush to the phone caused problems) but there were 2 fundamental problems issues that caused me to return the Hero:

1) The CPU was lacking. You didn't notice it until you started installing all the HTC Sense widgets and having apps run in the background. Eventually, the phone would slow down to a crawl....this was especially evident when using the soft keyboard. Sure you could kill everything with a task manager app (I have one installed on my Droid) but the HTC Sense layered on top of the stock Android combined with the slow processor resulted in me having to kill all apps a few times a day. I certainly didn't to enough testing to correlate this, but I think that when the Hero was heavily taxed, it even affected the phone...especially Google Voice. I also have an iPhone and my Google Voice number was set to forward to both phones. On many occasions my iPhone would ring way before the Hero. I even tried deleting the iPhone from my Google Voice account, but when I would call my Google Voice number it took around 5 rings before the Hero would ring. This could have just been my phone, but it was a deal breaker for me as I had too many calls goind to voice mail.

2) Though the HTS Sense UI is great, it does mean that updates to the Eris will be delayed. Every time Google releases a new version of Android, HTC will have to do extensive testing (and potential modifications) to ensure that Sense UI is compatible with the new version of Android. Also, be aware that there could be bugs/performance issues with the Eris, due to the Sense UI that are not there with stock Android builds. A perfect example is that there is a bug with the messaging app in the Hero/Eris that keeps constantly keeps the phone awake once a text is sent and kills the battery life.

Once Android 2.0 came out, I became sold on stock Android as a legitimate mobile OS. I know the Eris will eventually get Android 2.0, but I don't think it will happen anytime soon (at least not before the end of 2009) Even when it does, I'm not convinced that the Eris's CPU will be up to the task performing with no lagging once there are several apps/widgets running.

I think the form factor and keyboard on the Eris are wonderful, as is the Sense UI. It's not a bad choice for a phone, but the lagging just got to me. Unless the smaller form factor really wows you, I would go with the Droid.
Click to expand...

Much in agreement here with the Eris comments. I felt the processor would never be enough and for me, the voice test I made calling a friend from both Eris and Droid...he said the Eris truly sounded like sh** and Droid sounded like a landline. I need people to not have to tolerate a tinny phone conversation.

The only thing that bothers me about the Droid is a stupid one, but true. I will never...and I mean NEVER use the physical keyboard of the Droid. I hate it and I have large fingers so can't type easily on it, but the virtual keyboard in either mode is perfect. So I feel that I have half a phone sitting there being wasted. I'd like a Droid that was half as thick and didn't have the keyboard. I know I am way the minority with this thinking...so will likely get it anyway.
 
ecb said:
i tried out the HTC Hero on Sprint. I think the Eris has a vastly superior hardware design (the fact that the menu, back and search buttons on the Hero were flush to the phone caused problems) but there were 2 fundamental problems issues that caused me to return the Hero:

1) The CPU was lacking. You didn't notice it until you started installing all the HTC Sense widgets and having apps run in the background. Eventually, the phone would slow down to a crawl....this was especially evident when using the soft keyboard. Sure you could kill everything with a task manager app (I have one installed on my Droid) but the HTC Sense layered on top of the stock Android combined with the slow processor resulted in me having to kill all apps a few times a day. I certainly didn't to enough testing to correlate this, but I think that when the Hero was heavily taxed, it even affected the phone...especially Google Voice. I also have an iPhone and my Google Voice number was set to forward to both phones. On many occasions my iPhone would ring way before the Hero. I even tried deleting the iPhone from my Google Voice account, but when I would call my Google Voice number it took around 5 rings before the Hero would ring. This could have just been my phone, but it was a deal breaker for me as I had too many calls goind to voice mail.

2) Though the HTS Sense UI is great, it does mean that updates to the Eris will be delayed. Every time Google releases a new version of Android, HTC will have to do extensive testing (and potential modifications) to ensure that Sense UI is compatible with the new version of Android. Also, be aware that there could be bugs/performance issues with the Eris, due to the Sense UI that are not there with stock Android builds. A perfect example is that there is a bug with the messaging app in the Hero/Eris that keeps constantly keeps the phone awake once a text is sent and kills the battery life.

Once Android 2.0 came out, I became sold on stock Android as a legitimate mobile OS. I know the Eris will eventually get Android 2.0, but I don't think it will happen anytime soon (at least not before the end of 2009) Even when it does, I'm not convinced that the Eris's CPU will be up to the task performing with no lagging once there are several apps/widgets running.

I think the form factor and keyboard on the Eris are wonderful, as is the Sense UI. It's not a bad choice for a phone, but the lagging just got to me. Unless the smaller form factor really wows you, I would go with the Droid.
Click to expand...

Had the same experiences and very well said. I agree 1000%
 
ecb said:
i tried out the HTC Hero on Sprint. I think the Eris has a vastly superior hardware design (the fact that the menu, back and search buttons on the Hero were flush to the phone caused problems) but there were 2 fundamental problems issues that caused me to return the Hero:

1) The CPU was lacking. You didn't notice it until you started installing all the HTC Sense widgets and having apps run in the background. Eventually, the phone would slow down to a crawl....this was especially evident when using the soft keyboard. Sure you could kill everything with a task manager app (I have one installed on my Droid) but the HTC Sense layered on top of the stock Android combined with the slow processor resulted in me having to kill all apps a few times a day. I certainly didn't to enough testing to correlate this, but I think that when the Hero was heavily taxed, it even affected the phone...especially Google Voice. I also have an iPhone and my Google Voice number was set to forward to both phones. On many occasions my iPhone would ring way before the Hero. I even tried deleting the iPhone from my Google Voice account, but when I would call my Google Voice number it took around 5 rings before the Hero would ring. This could have just been my phone, but it was a deal breaker for me as I had too many calls goind to voice mail.

2) Though the HTS Sense UI is great, it does mean that updates to the Eris will be delayed. Every time Google releases a new version of Android, HTC will have to do extensive testing (and potential modifications) to ensure that Sense UI is compatible with the new version of Android. Also, be aware that there could be bugs/performance issues with the Eris, due to the Sense UI that are not there with stock Android builds. A perfect example is that there is a bug with the messaging app in the Hero/Eris that keeps constantly keeps the phone awake once a text is sent and kills the battery life.

Once Android 2.0 came out, I became sold on stock Android as a legitimate mobile OS. I know the Eris will eventually get Android 2.0, but I don't think it will happen anytime soon (at least not before the end of 2009) Even when it does, I'm not convinced that the Eris's CPU will be up to the task performing with no lagging once there are several apps/widgets running.

I think the form factor and keyboard on the Eris are wonderful, as is the Sense UI. It's not a bad choice for a phone, but the lagging just got to me. Unless the smaller form factor really wows you, I would go with the Droid.
Click to expand...

Yup - same for me. Spot on.
 
I *just* picked up an Eris, and then an Eris (long story), and now a Droid. I agree with *most* of what was said there about the Eris, except for one thing: SenseUI is *amazing*, and it makes up for every single flaw in the Eris *except* the abysmal battery life.

Switching from the Eris to the Droid feels like moving from a mansion to a small box. While the Eris does start lagging a bit once you've loaded a number of widgets, the lag is nothing compared to the time you spend on the Droid dropping in and out of various apps, since there's just no *space* to add widgets.

On top of that, despite what people will say, there aren't any apps on the market that can touch the SenseUI widgets. "Beautiful Widgets" comes closer than anything else, but is still miles away.

The SenseUI clock/weather app lets you track multiple locations and swipe through them, and it never failed to fetch the weather data.

HTC Peep is almost the equal of Twidroid, only really missing Lists (which I don't really see as an issue).

And HTC's selection of default ringtones and alarm sounds was far superior to Motorola's weird collection of beats. (though, yeah, I know that's subjective)

Given the horrible battery life of the Eris, I didn't have TOO much trouble switching to the Droid, but man... I really miss Sense. And no, I honestly couldn't see getting 'tired' of it over 2 years.

If HTC sold SenseUI on the market as a Home replacement, I'd easily drop $30 or $40 on it.
 
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