So I recently made the switch from AT&T and iPhone to Verizon Android...I gotta say, that so far I am VERY far from impressed and am wondering if I am missing something that everyone else who absolutely loves their phones sees.
I purchased the Droid X and picked up a Fascinate for my fiancee. She LOVED her iPhone and after everything I read/heard about the Fascinate, it was the closest competitor. She is so frustrated with the phone that every time she has to use it she shakes her head and mummers, "Ugh, this phone!"
I had my own issues with the Droid X, but they mostly centered around the inefficient and cumbersome UI. After installing some widgets and Launcher Pro Plus, the "feel" of the phone has GREATLY improved. I am still very disappointed with things like not having visual voicemail, VERY limited cut and paste options, and that I still get "file not supported" when attempting to play MP4 files.
So to the Fascinate...WOW...its like they went backwards with this phone! While the screen is very vibrant with AMOLED, it is NOT very responsive. Just trying to unlock the phone with the scroll bar takes a few tries unless you get it just right. What bothers me most about the Fascinate is that the UI is not the problem. In fact, it is much like the iPhone. The problem is with the phone's function. So please tell me if we are missing something, but:
1. The phone does not support enhanced message service. I sent her several texts today and after some, I received, "Message Delivered to <number> as plain text Destination does not support enhanced message service". REALLY!? Any text over 160 characters or containing special characters is a mess. She just received a message from her friend (sent via iPhone) and the second portion of the message came BEFORE the first. Its like a puzzle trying to piece the conversation together. iPhone easily supported EMS and messages of any length, character, or picture attachment.
2. While connected to WiFi, the phone drops 3G. That means that you cannot download anything on the VZ network? No updates, no picture mail, nothing. REALLY!?
3. No visual voice mail. Self explanatory.
4. Limited cut and paste
5. Abundance of little quirks. For example, she was on a work call earlier today and a friend called in. Of course, call waiting beeped on her end. The problem is it beeped on her coworker's end as well. In fact, it was so loud she asked my fiancee what that was.
I would think that these would be basic concerns for developers. Maybe we were spoiled with iPhone; but things like WiFi/3G connectivity, text/MMS function, visual voice mail, and comprehensive cut and paste capability were non-issues.
Im hoping maybe we are missing something here and these issues can be remedied, but reading things like this make me wonder:
Samsung Fascinate Known Issues document leaks Boy Genius Report
I purchased the Droid X and picked up a Fascinate for my fiancee. She LOVED her iPhone and after everything I read/heard about the Fascinate, it was the closest competitor. She is so frustrated with the phone that every time she has to use it she shakes her head and mummers, "Ugh, this phone!"
I had my own issues with the Droid X, but they mostly centered around the inefficient and cumbersome UI. After installing some widgets and Launcher Pro Plus, the "feel" of the phone has GREATLY improved. I am still very disappointed with things like not having visual voicemail, VERY limited cut and paste options, and that I still get "file not supported" when attempting to play MP4 files.
So to the Fascinate...WOW...its like they went backwards with this phone! While the screen is very vibrant with AMOLED, it is NOT very responsive. Just trying to unlock the phone with the scroll bar takes a few tries unless you get it just right. What bothers me most about the Fascinate is that the UI is not the problem. In fact, it is much like the iPhone. The problem is with the phone's function. So please tell me if we are missing something, but:
1. The phone does not support enhanced message service. I sent her several texts today and after some, I received, "Message Delivered to <number> as plain text Destination does not support enhanced message service". REALLY!? Any text over 160 characters or containing special characters is a mess. She just received a message from her friend (sent via iPhone) and the second portion of the message came BEFORE the first. Its like a puzzle trying to piece the conversation together. iPhone easily supported EMS and messages of any length, character, or picture attachment.
2. While connected to WiFi, the phone drops 3G. That means that you cannot download anything on the VZ network? No updates, no picture mail, nothing. REALLY!?
3. No visual voice mail. Self explanatory.
4. Limited cut and paste
5. Abundance of little quirks. For example, she was on a work call earlier today and a friend called in. Of course, call waiting beeped on her end. The problem is it beeped on her coworker's end as well. In fact, it was so loud she asked my fiancee what that was.
I would think that these would be basic concerns for developers. Maybe we were spoiled with iPhone; but things like WiFi/3G connectivity, text/MMS function, visual voice mail, and comprehensive cut and paste capability were non-issues.
Im hoping maybe we are missing something here and these issues can be remedied, but reading things like this make me wonder:
Samsung Fascinate Known Issues document leaks Boy Genius Report