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Will I regret an eris?

S

Soybomb

Newbie
I'm shopping for a cheap used droid for verizon and think I have it narrowed down to the eris or droid 1. I really like the eris for the price, however the droid has a lot of perks too like bigger higher res screen, more modern cpu, and improved battery life. I plan to root either device. What do you guys think, will I be disappointed with an eris? Is the smaller lower res screen bad for browsing? Can I expect to leave the wifi radio on all day for voip without too much in the way of battery life problems?
 
The Eris, while isn't a horrible phone, I don't think I would recommend it. You would probably be much better off with a Droid 1. It at least uses a far more modern processor and is faster than even than even the fastest of Eri.
 
Get the droid 1. It has a faster processor and a bigger screen.
The eris is a nice phone and I really like mine, but the small screen is a bit difficult to type on.
 
I would call it bad investment to purchase a D Eris right now for anything over $40. Don't get me wrong, it was a great android starting device, and did me well, but it's outdated and forgotten, Droid1 is a better choice for the price. keyboard sucks, but it's faster and there is a lot of good stuff going on in the world of root for the d1
 
I would also base my choice on if you need a physical keyboard or if you need a more compact phone. I love my Eris and the only phone I would trade if for is a Droid 2 because I want a physical keyboard.


Luke
 
Unless you root the Eris and jump through hoops, it is very laggy and a frustrating phone. If I hadn't root'd mine I'd literally throw it away. It is actually a bad PHONE. The phone part, the dialer etc. blows.
 
I don't understand or see how anyone can say a rooted eris is a bad phone. Stock Eris then yes I would agree it a POS lag monster. But Rooted it is a whole new monster.
 
Soybomb said:
I'm shopping for a cheap used droid for verizon and think I have it narrowed down to the eris or droid 1.

I really like the eris for the price, however the droid has a lot of perks too like bigger higher res screen, more modern cpu, and improved battery life.

I plan to root either device.

What do you guys think, will I be disappointed with an eris?

Is the smaller lower res screen bad for browsing?

Can I expect to leave the wifi radio on all day for voip without too much in the way of battery life problems?
Click to expand...

Have you handled both devices yet? If not, go to a Verizon store and play with them both for a while; that is what moved my attention away from the Droid and to the Eris.

How important is the slide out keyboard to you? If that is something you don't think you'll use much, you may feel frustrated or a sense of "waste" with the physical keyboard a major portion of the size/thickness of the Droid and yet unused by you.

Screen size is quite a difference in comparison. That was not important to me once I slid out that keyboard in the store and found its toy-like nature disturbing.

You are planning to root; that is a good idea with the Eris because doing that washed out the two main issues, on most Erises, not all, with that particular device: keyboard lag and battery life.

Droids have quite a following now, and many who root for similar reasons Eris users do; configuration possibilities and a new world of apps, not to mention that with both devices now Froyo, the 2.2 operating system, is available in rooted ROMs. ;)

There is a lot of info in the Eris All Things Root forum.. be sure to go there if you decide on the Eris; you'll find tons of advice and hordes of happy Eris rooters in that forum. :)

Eris - All Things Root - Android Forums
 
lukesdiesel said:
I don't understand or see how anyone can say a rooted eris is a bad phone. Stock Eris then yes I would agree it a POS lag monster. But Rooted it is a whole new monster.
Click to expand...

While I sort-of agree, I've been rooted since May, and I am pleased with what my phone can do, after playing with a friend's rooted Droid it's pretty clear that if you can get past its clunkiness and very mediocre physical keyboard, it is a much nicer handset. It's faster, with a bigger screen, and it has better battery life to boot.
 
I had the choice of either a Droid or an Eris about 3 months ago (both would have been free for me as I switched through Let's Talk from ATT to Verizon). I chose the Eris because of the clunkiness of the Droid. It was just too big and heavy to tote around. The Eris just fit in my hand and pocket better. I didn't mind the smaller screen - pinching the screen works great on most sites. The fact that the Eris had a $50 rebate on top of being free didn't really factor in that much, but it *was* a factor. If I had it to do all over again, I'd probably still pick the Eris, although I came *this close* to getting the Droid, especially when Let's Talk threw in the dedicated dashboard mount right around the time I was buying. It's just a far more "comfortable" phone for me, but I don't text, so, if I did, it might go the other way. I never liked the way that the Moto fit in my hand. It just didn't have the "golden mean" sort of dimensions that the Eris has, especially when you stick a hard case on it (I know that most prefer the feel of it without the case, but I'm the exception).
 
It's really going to come down to personal preference. FWIW, I've had both and like both but for me I prefer the Droid for the performance. It comes down to whether you're a form over function or function over form kind of person. I use the Droid and my wife uses my old Eris, both are rooted. The eris does perform better rooted, no question there. But the Droid rooted is awesome IMO, it's an extremely powerful device that some can overclock to 1.2 GHz (not everyone can run this high but the majority can run at least 1 GHz).
 
i prefer the form factor of the Eris. but the hardware and processor and def better on the Drpid. Motorola products are great. the Droid is heavier and bigger and that probably wouldn't work for me.
 
Thanks for the advice, I thought I might be able to make do with the eris but you've swayed me, picked up a used droid, car charger, and dock for $200 off ebay.
 
ACD168 said:
I would call it bad investment to purchase a D Eris right now for anything over $40. Don't get me wrong, it was a great android starting device, and did me well, but it's outdated and forgotten, Droid1 is a better choice for the price. keyboard sucks, but it's faster and there is a lot of good stuff going on in the world of root for the d1
Click to expand...

FYI: I would buy an unlimited number of functional, moderately used Eris'es at $40/pop if I could - they could be turned around on eBay for a profit north of $100 each.

Right now, $40 gets you a "parts" phone on eBay (at the very best a phone with a smashed screen) - used phones with normal "wear-and-tear" cosmetic imperfections are going from about $130 - $170. Some a little less, some more (depending on accessories, chargers, etc).

Sort of interesting to watch - buyers over there will pay a $40-60 premium for phones in a "near mint" condition. I don't know what that means - I suppose it means that some people are in love with the Eris form factor. A near mint phone with a Dock went for $225 last night.


Not saying you shouldn't buy some other phone, though - only that you shouldn't expect to find a used Eris that is still in reasonable shape for less than about $130 right now.

When you consider that a nationwide calling plan with 250 texts and a data plan are going to run you $85/month with Big Red - over a two year term VZW is in to your pocket for $2K - how much sense does it make to scrimp on a phone?

eu1
 
Get the Droid. Simple. Plenty of us have migrated to the Droid and haven't look back (at the phone, at least) and I'm sure most people will agree.

If the form-factor is an issue for you, then go for the Eris. If you want a phone that works and works well, get the Droid.
 
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