Sprint Phones > Verizon???

[JerryB]

Maybe it's just me... but it seems as of recently that Sprint (the supposed lesser network) has been pumping out better phones than Verizon (supposedly the king). They released the first 4G phone with the EVO (which is practically the same phone as the DroidX) and once the Samsung Epic is on the market in a couple weeks, it will be hands down the best featured smartphone on the market because it will have...

-1GHZ hummingbird processor (faster than any snapdragon by quite a bit)
-Slide out keyboard (quite an asset for anyone who uses their cell phone as a back up for their laptop or anyone who like playing games)
-4" screen to me is the PERFECT size. It is just large enough to read books, watch movies, play games, etc. while still realizing it's a phone that has to fit in your pocket.
-Super AMOLED display... supposedly the supperior type of screen for color contrast
-TV out... this is a pretty big deal since no phone offers this currently

Only reason I went on this rant is because I do use my current Droid as a backup computer when I'm out and about and it doesn't seem like Verizon is upping the anti like Sprint (who I don't want to wind up going to)

Anyone share my sentiment?

 

[buxleyp]

It's just you.

But seriously, the networks go back & forth on who's got the best hardware. Today Verizon's got the latest, tomorrow AT&T, Sprint the next day.

But to address your points:
1. Sprint has the first 4G phone because it's the only one currently with a publicly available 4G network.
2. Slide out keyboard - plenty of manufacturers have that. Have you seen the D2?
3. 4" screen may be the perfect size for you, but to some it's too big and for others it's too small. I prefer the larger screen of the X, and with the slimmer body, the X feels much smaller than the EVO.
4. The Super AMOLED screens I've seen have great blacks, but heavily oversaturated colors.
5. Plenty of phones offer TV out... heck the Droid X (you know, the forum you're posting in) has it.

Frankly I think Verizon's got a great lineup. I'm not going to say best because it's an incredibly subjective term. Your "best" is my "mediocre" and vice versa.

If you like Sprint's phones, there's nothing stopping you from jumping networks. I'm pretty sure they also have some sort of no-risk introductory period so you could always switch back.

 

[amigos]

My friend technology changes every day. I am sure you are the type of person who won't be happy with the 'best phone' out there as there will be a new and better one in few months. That being said, stay away from Sprint. Their customer service is not even close to what Verizon offers. My biggest reason for switching was the service and Verizon beats every one hands down. I am extremely happy with my X as it does everything I need from a phone. If you are still not satisfied, try sprint out as they offer a 1 month money back guarantee. If you like it then have fun with your new phone, if not then we will be here to listen to your 'rant' about it.

 

[JerryB]

I understand the current rate of evolution in regards to technology and I have been satisfied with my Droid for the past year. I in no way become unsatisfied once a new shiny device comes out.

Droid 2 did not live up to the standards of the original Droid in regards to setting the tone for devices to come (same screen size, barely improved keyboard and only status quot processor), Droid Incredible was only a slightly faster Droid without the keyboard and the Droid X really just looks like Sprint's EVO which was released months earlier.

I am just wondering if Verizon is planning on releasing another top of the line fully functioning device that will set the pace again like Droid did. Since they are claiming the Droid Pro will just be a global Droid 2 and this new unnamed HTC lacks a keyboard, it doesn't see to be coming anytime soon.


P.S. Phone size was personal preference and I retract it, but the Epic's implementation of TV out mirrors the phone

 

[buxleyp]

I am just wondering if Verizon is planning on releasing another top of the line fully functioning device that will set the pace again like Droid did. Since they are claiming the Droid Pro will just be a global Droid 2 and this new unnamed HTC lacks a keyboard, it doesn't see to be coming anytime soon.

Yes, they are. When? Who knows.

The point that I think you're missing is that Verizon is not always going to have the "best" phone, nor is it ever going to say "you know, we'll just stop competing with Sprint and AT&T on releasing new phones."

BTW, I think physical keyboard is a disappearing feature on the so called "top of the line" phones. The general trend is touch-screen-only for top devices, with a few occasional physical keyboard models. If you're only looking for phones with physical keyboards, then you'll have fewer and fewer models to pick from.

 

[jbhumph]

Who the hell is "Verison"???

Sorry, I had to

 

[vr4]

P.S. Phone size was personal preference and I retract it, but the Epic's implementation of TV out mirrors the phone

 

[Martimus]

Sorry but I also think it may just be you...

In a word... Sprint is also responsible for the continuation of the iDEN product line! (Sorry! The Devil made me do it!)

Every carrier has it's moment in the sun! AT&T gave us iPhone (which the Apple fan boys think is the greatest phone). Sprint gave us the EVO 4G (though their new 4G network has some ongoing performance issues which will take time [and money] to resolve). Verizon gave us the Droid X & Droid 2 and will soon release the Fascinate. T-Mobile has the Vibrant which is it's entry in the Galaxy S release.

Each phone has it's supporters and it's detractors. And depending on an individuals needs, wants, and preferences, each may be their optimal and preferred smartphone.

 

[JerryB]

I disagree on physical keyboard. More than likely there will be physical keyboards until a phone can project a keyboard on a surface. There will still be market for people who don't like having a 3rd of their screen real estate taken up by a touch keyboard if it's more "form factor", especially professionals who work with documents. Even iPad owners are going gaga for the clam case that offers a case/keyboard.

I understand Verizon is not going to always have the super duper sweetest phones ever. The only point I was trying to make is that Verizon seems to be getting upstaged by Sprint, who probably has far less capital to push toward purchasing/negotiating the top of the line phones.

P.S. Where is this hdmi thread? I am basing my info off of Droid X Manual and this... YouTube - Droid X HDMI Output Demo I still believe Samsung Epic is first to have full tv out (I could be wrong).

 

[dguy]

The Droid X blows the Evo away by such a huge margin that it just baffles me that anyone could say the X is just Verizon's copy of the Evo.

Things the X has over the Evo

*The X has a more powerful processor. The OMAP 3630 is a next gen 45nm processor just like the Hummingbird, they are comparable to one another and both are more advanced than the Snapdragon.
*The X has well over twice the 3D graphics capability of the Evo and 95% of the graphics capability of the Galaxy S.
*The X records 720P video at 24fps vs the Evo's 20fps. The video quality is also noticeably better per many comparisons.
*The X has three microphone noise canceling for phone calls and video recording, the Evo has no such thing
*X has better call quality as a result of the above
*X gets better reception
*The X has nearly twice the battery life of the Evo and better battery life than any Smartphone in the world(unless you consider Blackberry a smartphone)
*The Evo is notorious for having build quality issues such as the screen separating from the phone or light leaking out of the edges of the screen. The X has no such issues.
*The X is on Verizon's network, which has more 3G coverage than AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile combined. The Epic's 4G implementation is just Wimax, which Sprint has admitted is just something temporary they are doing until they set up LTE. Wimax has no future.
*The X has over 6GB of dedicated app storage, the Evo has something like 700MB.

Things the Evo has over the X

*Front facing camera

The whole HDMI thing is nothing more than a minor software implementation issue that could easily be fixed by a patch or bypassed with an app.

As for the Epic 4G, it is very comparable to the Droid 2, certainly not in some class of it's own. As noted above, the Epic's processor is marginally better, same with the graphics processor. The Droid 2 has better battery life and a better network. The keyboards are a matter of personal opinion, you'll find plenty of people who will say one keyboard is better than the other.

Super AMOLED is better than AMOLED in direct sunlight but still worse than LCD in sunlight. AMOLED is a better screen type in terms of overall picture quality I will give you that.

You're also wrong about the importance of a hardware keyboard. There's a huge number of people who don't need/want one. Having a hardware keyboard does not in the slightest bit make a phone better than one that does not have one. The added bulkiness and weight are things a lot of people do not want to deal with. It's definitely a double edged sword. Because of the Epic 4G, Sprint will not have a thin phone that is as fast as the Captivate, Fascinate, Vibrant, or Droid X.

 

[dmiller2007]

How can someone on ANDROID forums be saying that verizon phones aren't the best? They literally have the best android phones out. I'm not counting galaxy s because everyone (i think they have a jitterbug model) are getting them. Evo is the only competition to the dinc, dx, and d2. Don't make such a bogus claim. There is absolutely no reason to think that.

 

[JerryB]

LOL... I don't post here often, because there are far to many "fanboys" that just want to say their phone, their network, their whatever is the bestest. I was never saying that Sprint is better than Verizon and there are some good phones on Verizon, including the DX, D2 and D1 which I own and of course the best phone is not always going to be on Verizon's network.

I'm personally just not too impressed with Verizon phone releases future rumors and just thought I'd post it here cause there is a lot of traffic and thought I'd get interesting responses. Since not a single person has a agree with a single thing I've said, obviously a lively discusion is not to be had here.

The Droid X and EVO are really only marginally different regardless of how many astericks you put (look at speed tests and feature set). The Epic (on paper) is the most functional/feature set device of any carieer (currently of course) and this is the second time Sprint has set the pace on this. I am not talking about personal preference for example, having a physical and touch keyboard means the phone has more function. If some one wants to create or edit a document and does not want 1/3 of their screen taken up by touch keyboard they have that option... The list goes on...

 

[ngsm13]

Meh.

nG

 

[dmiller2007]

Saying the dx and evo are basically the same kinda shows you know nothing about the phone market. Yeah, they're the same because they are both 4.3" screens.

 

[buxleyp]

Yeah, you've pretty much shot yourself in the foot by saying the X and EVO are only marginally different. They each have pros & cons. I like my X; my coworker likes his EVO. But they are different phones, as anyone who's done some research can tell you.

Also, you seem to never mention that having a physical keyboard takes up a lot of space (thickness) but you repeatedly mention a screen keyboard taking up screen space. And I agree with you - there is a market for phones with physical keyboard. However, you may not realize that it's a small market and a shrinking market.

 

[JerryB]

This is obviously not the place to have this discussion so this will be my last post. I am making a commentary that Sprint has been leading the pack since Verizon released the Droid in regards to the most evolved phones. Regardless of whether the Droid X improved upon on the idea or not. When it came out EVO was the first to have alot of features 4.3", FF camera, etc.

The Droid X is a better phone, but very similar still and released months later with no real added features. Motorola Droid X vs. HTC Evo 4G

Sprint seems to be doing it again with the Epic having the fastest Hummingbird processor of any phone currently, having a 4" screen that has a keyboard (not 3.6" that the D2 rehashed from D1) along with offering some other first time features such as tv out via 1/8 jack that allows total view of phone of separate device.

I have just yet to see a device from Verizon (although I know if will probably happen in the future) that has turned my head since the original Droid came out and future release rumors don't look too impressive either. Given they are the largest carrier and bring in the most $$$ I would have expected Verizon to pick more phones that are pushing the limit which Droid Incredible, X and 2 have not really done. Not basing this on personal preference rather shear technical qualities and feature sets.

buxleyp, "However, you may not realize that it's a small market and a shrinking market."

I assume you have data to back that up correct? I have data that a screen keyboard does take up a 3rd of the screen space and yes, a keyboard does take up more space, but to someone editing a word document on the train before work, this may seem like a moot issue...

 

[racerxe24]

Ya.....ummm...NO

 

[dylo22]

This isn't news. Sprint has always been the first to the market with powerful and feature filled phones. This goes back to the windows mobile days where sprint's version are always a step ahead of Verizon. That's the only way they can attract customers.

 

[Steven58]

Hey! I have a GREAT idea!!! How about we continue this OT banter in the lounge?

 

[Pointguard1122]

Are you saying that Sprint is leading in technology even though right now the DX is the most advanced phone available. If your claim is that the next Sprint phone is even better than the DX, well so is the next Verizon phone. Do you not think they will have something that will blow the DX away in less than 6 months? I say if you like Sprint phones, buy one. I am very happy with my DX. All technology will be outdated in 6 months, the trick is to buy something you will be happy with for 18 months or so.

 

[dylo22]

Are you saying that Sprint is leading in technology even though right now the DX is the most advanced phone available. If your claim is that the next Sprint phone is even better than the DX, well so is the next Verizon phone. Do you not think they will have something that will blow the DX away in less than 6 months? I say if you like Sprint phones, buy one. I am very happy with my DX. All technology will be outdated in 6 months, the trick is to buy something you will be happy with for 18 months or so.

eh..I don't think the DX is the most advanced phone. Other than the slightly better TI OMAP processor, the DX doesn't have anything that the EVO already have. I think his point is, sprint is always the first one coming out with phones that are a step up from the competition, where as verizon only comes out with phones that are on par or slightly below what sprint is offering.

 

[dmiller2007]

I'll give them credit for the evo, though its not my preference, it really helped the move to bigger screens. Which I'm a huge fan for. One could argue tho that verizon beat them with there 8 mp, amoled, dinc. Its like the evo's little brother. The x has a number of features that make it stand out over the evo. Better dimensions, better battery life, mechanical shutter, higher res screen, etc. And I could be mistaken, but doesn't the iPhone 4 have the same processor as the galaxy s? Making it less revolutionary as being touted.

 

[jroc]

eh..I don't think the DX is the most advanced phone. Other than the slightly better TI OMAP processor, the DX doesn't have anything that the EVO already have. I think his point is, sprint is always the first one coming out with phones that are a step up from the competition, where as verizon only comes out with phones that are on par or slightly below what sprint is offering.

I'm not saying the X is the most advanced phone, but if u think the EVO has things the X has, please go back and read dguy's post...And I would say Verizon has phones on par or slighty better, not slightly below what Sprint offers.

Remember the Droid 1 is still available at Verizon....

And the EVO should have a better speaker than the X. Front facing camera and speaker, out the box HDMI on the EVO is better.

If I'm not mistaken when the Inc came out, there was nothing on Sprint that was similar to compare to it.

If its top of the line Android phones we talking about...Sprint has the EVO and the EPIC.

Verizon has the X, Droid 2, Inc, Fascinate.

Like someone mentioned, the X has a better cpu/gpu than the EVO. The X has more hardware advantages vs. the EVO. The Epic and Fascinate cancel each other out. The Droid 2 has the same cpu/gpu as the X. Then the Inc is in there as a wildcard.

Not to sound like bashing other phones is going on...but some phones have hardware advantages over others. Hardware cant be replaced like software...Each phone on both carriers has its own identity. It doesnt need to be the best available. No phone is. It just needs to be the best for u.

Then there are the rumor phones that havent came out yet. HTC may come with a dual core on Verizon later this year. Motorola is in the near future.

I'll give Sprint and HTC credit for coming out first recently with phone features. And Sprint has more Android phones than Verizon.

 

[Mistiq]

At first I thought the OP was crazy saying that Sprint was leading the pack but after thinking about it, I think I see his point. Even though Verizon has more phones, they're all nice but not none of them are really anything that will blow you away (currently.) The Droid Incredible was nice, but I'd prefer the EVO, Droid X is pretty nice as well (spec wise) seems very ugly to me IMO but that's not important and even though it's an upgrade to the EVO it doesn't make me say I want the X over the EVO.

Then you have the Droid 2, It seems pretty cool but I've been lusting over the Epic 4G and the Droid2 has done nothing to take away from that. Also Verizon is finally coming out with the Fascinate but the Epic 4G can do almost everything it can plus it has more features.

So to me, it seems that Verizon doesn't really have anything to stand out to me (Droid X is supposed to be better) but it hasn't really made an impact compared to the EVO while if I wanted a keyboard or a Hummingbird processor I would choose the Epic 4G over the Droid2 or the Fascinate.

I think I'm as unbiased as can be, due to the fact that I currently don't have a smart-phone and even though I spent 6 years with Sprint I've been waiting on the opportunity to try a different company. Unfortunately none of the other companies have put up something that will seduce me away from Sprint

 

[HustlinDaily]

Wait until Verizon gets the HTC Merge. It is supposed to be their version of the Evo. Based on leaked pics, I think it is much better looking and will probably be slightly better spec-wise.