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Why the Sprint Hero / Droid Eris is better than the DROID

D

Dreamliner

Android Enthusiast
I have both of these phones, here is my review.
1.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Seven home screens instead of three.
2.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Better designed widgets
3.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Brighter more vibrant screen
4.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Smaller form factor
5.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Better Battery Life
6.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Dedicated call/end call buttons
7.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Better Camera
8.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Multi Touch
9.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Eye Candy
10.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Brighter LED Indicator Light
11.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Standard USB Plugs
12.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Better Keyboard

Some people may claim the higher resolution makes the DROID way better, I can tell you that it doesn
 
That is a very interesting perspective. Shows that based on the way a person uses their phone, there isn't one device that is best for all. A coworker just got a Droid and I have a Hero. I've played with it a bit and it is cool, but I also think I prefer my Hero.

The larger screen is nice, but like you said, I don't feel like it ads any more usability. I suppose if you had poor eyesight the fact that everything is just bigger might be a pro.

The pros in the Hero's favor (for me at least) out-weigh the cons. Hero has better battery life, smaller form factor, multi-touch and much cheaper and better plans with Sprint. The hardware buttons and 7 home screens aren't a big deal for me, but they ARE nice. I know Verizon is supposed to be the best network, but I've had very good signal and reliability with Sprint everywhere that I've gone.
 
flammenwurfer said:
That is a very interesting perspective. Shows that based on the way a person uses their phone, there isn't one device that is best for all. A coworker just got a Droid and I have a Hero. I've played with it a bit and it is cool, but I also think I prefer my Hero.

The larger screen is nice, but like you said, I don't feel like it ads any more usability. I suppose if you had poor eyesight the fact that everything is just bigger might be a pro.

The pros in the Hero's favor (for me at least) out-weigh the cons. Hero has better battery life, smaller form factor, multi-touch and much cheaper and better plans with Sprint. The hardware buttons and 7 home screens aren't a big deal for me, but they ARE nice. I know Verizon is supposed to be the best network, but I've had very good signal and reliability with Sprint everywhere that I've gone.
Click to expand...
My friend and my boss both have sprint and their calls get dropped like every other time I talk to them. It sucks.
 
That does suck. It must be a an issue with the coverage in your area, because I don't have any problems with dropped calls.
 
I have the eris so the call quality should be the same as moto droid. As for battery life, is the Eris really better?

Some days I can make it through 1 day (using all recommended battery tips). Sometimes I can only make it half the day(listening to music). I guess the droid has the same battery issues...
 
Well.. I have a Hero and my friend just got a Droid also.. It's cool no doubt, but as flammenwurfer mentioned, I still prefer my Hero. Cheaper, seems faster and more convincing then DROID.

Regards
 
Dreamliner said:
I have both of these phones, here is my review.
1.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Seven home screens instead of three.
2.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Better designed widgets
3.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Brighter more vibrant screen
4.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Smaller form factor
5.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Better Battery Life
6.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Dedicated call/end call buttons
7.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Better Camera
8.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Multi Touch
9.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Eye Candy
10.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Brighter LED Indicator Light
11.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Standard USB Plugs
12.)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Better Keyboard

Some people may claim the higher resolution makes the DROID way better, I can tell you that it doesn
Click to expand...
 
Thats a very good post. I went to the Verizon store and I did the side by side comparison and did the keyboard test. Ultimately the Eris was the winner, I like the form factor, I liked the touch keyboard much like the iPhone. I have an iTouch so I am used to typing in it. I liked the clean look the Eris has and its neatly laid out and looks classy to me compared to the Droid. Plus I am not a fan of the slide out keyboard. I just didnt think it will work all that well six months down the road. I am glad I got my Eris.
 
Hmmmmm....Every review I've read says that the Eris battery life is horrible. So you're saying the Droid's is worse? I hope not. I'm getting one tomorrow.
 
My Droid battery life, super good....It gets yellow after about 12 hrs, but I run my phone from 5 A.M. til about 8:30 - 9:00 at nite before it gets plugged in.. Some YouTube, internet, phone calls, tons of texts, probably average usage.. Hope this helps.
 
.. I'll have to go on record as preferring the MotoDroid.

As I have said in some of my other posts, the 'feel' of the Eris is nice, but the capabilities of the MotoDroid far surpass the Eris..

There are quite a few advantages, but just to name a few:

The camera has a FLASH.

The gmail app allows you to add multiple accounts.

The screen is much better and bigger.

Having said that, the ERIS is a very nice device.. My son will LOVE it. :)
 
Dreamliner said:
I have both of these phones, here is my review.
1.)Seven home screens instead of three.
2.)Better designed widgets
3.)Brighter more vibrant screen
4.)Smaller form factor
5.)Better Battery Life
6.)Dedicated call/end call buttons
7.)Better Camera
8.)Multi Touch
9.)Eye Candy
10.)Brighter LED Indicator Light
11.)Standard USB Plugs
12.)Better Keyboard
Click to expand...
I have a Droid and my wife has the Eris. I also tried the Hero for a week when it came out. So I have used both Android implementations extensively. Here's my perspective on your list.

1) Ageed. I'd like more home screens on stock Android, but alas...
2) Can't argue with that. Sense has great widget design.
3) Disagree there. The lower res screen (480x320) on the Eris/Hero/iPhone looks muddy when compared to the Droid. Not to say it's bad, just not as good. Yeah, you don't get more icons on the screen on the Droid, but then how could you hit them?
4) If you're into that kind of thing.
5) That's questionable. I find that the wife and I have pretty similar battery life. Her's is maybe a bit worse seeing as you can really pack those Sense widgets in there and eat up CPU cycles.
6) Ageed. I would prefer hard buttons, but I get that they wouldn't fit with the Droid's design aesthetic.
7) Yes, for stills it is a bit better (but not all that much in my experience). The video is worlds better on the Droid though.
8) Yep. It is nice. The Eris' MT implementation is fairly good.
9) Sure, why not. This is sort of like the widget design argument above. Not sure it warranted an additional bullet point.
10) I can honestly say this is of no interest to me or 99% of other phone buyers.
11) Wrong there. The MicroUSB on the Droid is the standard. Manufacturers have agreed to use MicroUSB on most phones. The Eris (and other HTC phones) currently use a slightly modified MinUSB called EXT USB. Regular MiniUSB cables do work they just don't accommodate the audio pins (which you don't need). Never the less, MiniUSB is the standard.
12) Absolutely. The Sense keyboard is a dream. If the CPU was a bit faster it might be even better. I have the occasional irritating hang with the sense keyboard.
 
I agree with much of what you posted. Especially, anything Sense UI related. It is just damn beautiful...I had an Eris for about 2 weeks before I swapped it for the Droid.

In the end, for me, the bigger screen, higher resolution, and faster processor where just to much for me to ignore. I may have stayed with the Eris, but once I got to play with my brother's Droid extensively, I had to go with it...
 
FALSE...do more research before you preach my friend! While the droid is nowhere near perfect, and has not been around long enough to be udated and given the polish your phones have....you are either mis informed...or blatantly fooling yourself and others!

1.)with open home my DROID has 7 home pages...and many think future updates of 2.0 and the droid...you will be able to add them natively
2.)Love the Hero and Eris widgets...THATS WHY I DOWNLOADED THEM
3.)screens.....UMMMM...ok...your opinion...but wrong from all the specs I have read...the Droid has the better screen
4.)Smaller form factor...because it has less built in
5.)Battery is no issue....My droid goes all day without a charge and I use the crap out of it...just need power management.
6.)Dedicated call/end call buttons....Overtated...and when you are on a call all the buttons you need are on the screen...plus much less likely to pocket dial with no dedicated call button. AND if I am on my home page and want to make a call or see my log or even contacts... I just have to push one button and I can see them all.
7.)Better Camera...while your software is supperior for now...my hardware is better. One or two good updates and things will be very different
8.)Multi Touch....Again!...research my friend. Multitouch is buit in...just not active...with a few good downloads you have all the multi touch you will need
9.)Eye Candy...again preference...maybe I am am no fashionista like you...but I like the look and feel of the droid. Heavier and more durable feeling...the others just feel like pieces of plastic to me.
10.)Brighter LED Indicator Light...HUH??? seriously???
11.)Standard USB Plugs...oh? since when is having an older connection type better?
12.)Better Keyboard....hmmm again fixable with downloads.

Seems like you are just trying to convince yourself that your phone is the best because you own it. Not trying to take an objective look at the fact that newer phones will come and go...and even the droid will be inferior to the next new thing.
 
The Hero/Eris may be a better value and work fine for you, but saying it's better than the Droid because of SenseUI is absurd. Droid has significant hardware advantages over the Hero/Eris that no amount of slick HTC interface can change. It's OK though, you can still enjoy your phone without rationalizing its superiority.
 
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