I first purchased my Moto Droid about 2 weeks after it was released through Verizon. It was my best scenario phone after coming from the iphone. Yes, I loved the iphone but had to get away from the EVIL AT&T. The service was HORRIBLE and had to pay to get out. I actually lost sleep over the loss of the iphone 
The Moto Droid filled that whole nicely but there were some things I didn't like. The form factor was not so good. Like a brick in your hand, the thing was heavy, too square, buttons were placed in a non-caring fashion and things didn't always work so great. The phone rebooted on a regular basis and then the first update came. The reboot issue was GONE. I learned to live with it until an employee of mine brought in an Eris. I loved the look, the feel and the user interface. I used that Eris for about 3 weeks or so. I then tried to sell the Moto Droid on ebay.... It sold quickly but the JERK never paid. So I thought "what the heck", I've got both phones (Eris and Moto Droid), lets play a bit and give them a real comparison.
It's been about a week and a half now and I just recieved the 2.1 for the Droid Moto. As before, the clunky-ness of the Droid is still there DUH!!!
.
While I'm learning to live with it, it still makes me long for the feel of the Eris.
Form:
The Eris still blows the Droid away. The hard button layout is fantastic. The soft edges combined with the solid feel of a light phone is pretty amazing. The slide out keyboard on the Droid is ridiculous. I know that somewhere there is a guy thinking... "boy, did I screw that keyboard thing up".
Result - ERIS by a landslide
Feel:
The Droid and Eris seem to be well built, and both have fantastic screens. Bright, vivid and warm all in the same breath. The Droid doesn't feel as nice as the bulkiness is realized right away. The lack of the track ball or an accessable pointer on the Droid is a pain. Of course you can slide out the keyboard, but thats just one more step.
Result - Eris
Screen:
The screens on both phones are amazing. I would say that they are pretty sick even when compared to the Iphone. The Eris is smaller, but it doesn't feel that much smaller as it preforms well. Both screens seem to be equally sensitive MOST of the time. Based on the fact that they are similar with the exception of size. The Droid wins this cat. Mostly on size alone.
Result - Moto Droid
Software:
This is a mixed bag. The applications are pretty standard to both phones (in my experience), however the user interface is where things get grey. The Eris uses an interface which puts you in a more enjoyable setting and offers you more involvement. It isn't as steril and quite frankly is more... well, FUN. The Droid does a great job of getting you involved, but it's not as fun. The Droid can be maid to be more fun through the use of downloadable widgets and backgrounds, but it's not quite the same.
Result - Eris, but only by a skoshe.
Usability:
This is where things changed dramatically for me. While it would seem that by all measures, the Eris wins... But there is something here that is a mis with the Eris. Call it "SUPPORT", call it "DEVELOPEMENT", call it, well, "NOT DONE". You might even be able to blame a little bit of the problem on processing power, and maybe even the battery. The fact that this is the CHEAPER phone might even be some of the problem. Let me explain. Because it's cheaper, and not the center of attention, I believe that it's getting less support. Less support by Verizon, by Android Developers and even HTC. The Eris has an NOT-DONE feel. Kind of like a good steak that could be the best steak you ever had. Just not cooked quite the way you wanted it. Wasn't seasoned just the way the menu detailed. Some applications don't work out of the box. Some of the stock stuff just doesn't work. Even the loudness at which the music plays isn't great. It also just doesn't sound as good as the Droid whether it's through earphones or the speaker when talking on the phone. The battery is a different animal all together. I chose to use a task killer after about a week of 7 hours of life per day. After the task killer, I got about 10-12 hours of life (which I'm perfectly happy with - but always could use more). The Droids battery life is up to about a day and a half with a task killer. Honestly, I don't even worry about the battery with the droid. With the Eris, it's in the forefront of my thoughts while using the phone. The Eris isn't always as sensitive to my touch as I would like it to be. Then, of course, there is a problem with being a little slower while navigating through the phone and it's many uses. Even trying to use the phone... It's slow on some tasks. Isn't this what the default use was supposed to be? As of this morning I recieved the 2.1 update for the Droid. It works... no issues and while some have reported a slower frame rate once the Droid is updated, it doesn't play movies any different. They still look fantastic. The update wasn't huge, but again it had some cool stuff in it. It's made it more user-friendly. Seems like everything works. Thats really all I want the Eris to be able to do.
Yes, I can install the leak into the Eris. But for common users, this isn't a great option. Once we do that, we could be voiding our warranty. We could be messing up possible updates in the future. Many will say that "no you aren't messing up any future updates" but who REALLY KNOWS??? If you TRULY knew... you would have probably developed your own UPDATE!!
Result - Motorola Droid.
In the end, I've got to give it to the Motorola Droid. It doesn't feel as nice, it doesn't look as nice and it surely laid out better. But at the end of the day, I need something that works. I need better support, and I want something that is not going to take a back seat when it comes to updates.
I've been reading non-stop in the ERIS section... not so much in the Moto Droid section. Maybe that, in and of itself, is the true test. I probably wouldn't be reading as much in the Eris section if it worked better. I'm hoping that the Eris gets 2.0-2.1. I'll keep both until then. I hope that it's a HUGE update for the Eris. It needs to be better cooked and better seasoned. When they get it back from the chef, we'll then have a phone that.... WORKS.
The Moto Droid filled that whole nicely but there were some things I didn't like. The form factor was not so good. Like a brick in your hand, the thing was heavy, too square, buttons were placed in a non-caring fashion and things didn't always work so great. The phone rebooted on a regular basis and then the first update came. The reboot issue was GONE. I learned to live with it until an employee of mine brought in an Eris. I loved the look, the feel and the user interface. I used that Eris for about 3 weeks or so. I then tried to sell the Moto Droid on ebay.... It sold quickly but the JERK never paid. So I thought "what the heck", I've got both phones (Eris and Moto Droid), lets play a bit and give them a real comparison.
It's been about a week and a half now and I just recieved the 2.1 for the Droid Moto. As before, the clunky-ness of the Droid is still there DUH!!!
. While I'm learning to live with it, it still makes me long for the feel of the Eris.
Form:
The Eris still blows the Droid away. The hard button layout is fantastic. The soft edges combined with the solid feel of a light phone is pretty amazing. The slide out keyboard on the Droid is ridiculous. I know that somewhere there is a guy thinking... "boy, did I screw that keyboard thing up".
Result - ERIS by a landslide
Feel:
The Droid and Eris seem to be well built, and both have fantastic screens. Bright, vivid and warm all in the same breath. The Droid doesn't feel as nice as the bulkiness is realized right away. The lack of the track ball or an accessable pointer on the Droid is a pain. Of course you can slide out the keyboard, but thats just one more step.
Result - Eris
Screen:
The screens on both phones are amazing. I would say that they are pretty sick even when compared to the Iphone. The Eris is smaller, but it doesn't feel that much smaller as it preforms well. Both screens seem to be equally sensitive MOST of the time. Based on the fact that they are similar with the exception of size. The Droid wins this cat. Mostly on size alone.
Result - Moto Droid
Software:
This is a mixed bag. The applications are pretty standard to both phones (in my experience), however the user interface is where things get grey. The Eris uses an interface which puts you in a more enjoyable setting and offers you more involvement. It isn't as steril and quite frankly is more... well, FUN. The Droid does a great job of getting you involved, but it's not as fun. The Droid can be maid to be more fun through the use of downloadable widgets and backgrounds, but it's not quite the same.
Result - Eris, but only by a skoshe.
Usability:
This is where things changed dramatically for me. While it would seem that by all measures, the Eris wins... But there is something here that is a mis with the Eris. Call it "SUPPORT", call it "DEVELOPEMENT", call it, well, "NOT DONE". You might even be able to blame a little bit of the problem on processing power, and maybe even the battery. The fact that this is the CHEAPER phone might even be some of the problem. Let me explain. Because it's cheaper, and not the center of attention, I believe that it's getting less support. Less support by Verizon, by Android Developers and even HTC. The Eris has an NOT-DONE feel. Kind of like a good steak that could be the best steak you ever had. Just not cooked quite the way you wanted it. Wasn't seasoned just the way the menu detailed. Some applications don't work out of the box. Some of the stock stuff just doesn't work. Even the loudness at which the music plays isn't great. It also just doesn't sound as good as the Droid whether it's through earphones or the speaker when talking on the phone. The battery is a different animal all together. I chose to use a task killer after about a week of 7 hours of life per day. After the task killer, I got about 10-12 hours of life (which I'm perfectly happy with - but always could use more). The Droids battery life is up to about a day and a half with a task killer. Honestly, I don't even worry about the battery with the droid. With the Eris, it's in the forefront of my thoughts while using the phone. The Eris isn't always as sensitive to my touch as I would like it to be. Then, of course, there is a problem with being a little slower while navigating through the phone and it's many uses. Even trying to use the phone... It's slow on some tasks. Isn't this what the default use was supposed to be? As of this morning I recieved the 2.1 update for the Droid. It works... no issues and while some have reported a slower frame rate once the Droid is updated, it doesn't play movies any different. They still look fantastic. The update wasn't huge, but again it had some cool stuff in it. It's made it more user-friendly. Seems like everything works. Thats really all I want the Eris to be able to do.
Yes, I can install the leak into the Eris. But for common users, this isn't a great option. Once we do that, we could be voiding our warranty. We could be messing up possible updates in the future. Many will say that "no you aren't messing up any future updates" but who REALLY KNOWS??? If you TRULY knew... you would have probably developed your own UPDATE!!
Result - Motorola Droid.
In the end, I've got to give it to the Motorola Droid. It doesn't feel as nice, it doesn't look as nice and it surely laid out better. But at the end of the day, I need something that works. I need better support, and I want something that is not going to take a back seat when it comes to updates.
I've been reading non-stop in the ERIS section... not so much in the Moto Droid section. Maybe that, in and of itself, is the true test. I probably wouldn't be reading as much in the Eris section if it worked better. I'm hoping that the Eris gets 2.0-2.1. I'll keep both until then. I hope that it's a HUGE update for the Eris. It needs to be better cooked and better seasoned. When they get it back from the chef, we'll then have a phone that.... WORKS.
) The fact that it took 5 months to get root just says that HTC/Verizon did a pretty damn good job of sealing up the known vulnerabilities to the previous releases of the OS.
