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advice from previous iPhone owners, now with a Desire

CarsnGadgets

Android Expert
May 17, 2010
1,067
252
UK
To anyone that has previously owned an iPhone and now has a Desire,

How would you compare the two phones?
What are the pros and cons (in your opinion)
of the desire compared to the iphone?

Do you regret moving to android or the Desire?

Are you happy with the choice of apps available on android?


I'm probably gonna wait til the iPhone 4 is released (currently own an iPhone 3G) to compare the two phones, but I really like the look and features of the Desire and HTC sence UI.


thanks. :D
 
I had the opportunity to use an Iphone for a few weeks a few months ago. Apps wise it was great, plenty of choice however my primary gripe with it was its inability to remember my hidden SSID for my home wireless.

That put me of it (as well as being tied to iTunes). With the Desire I have no such restrictions or problems and there is an App for anything I have been looking for so far.

I also recently heard (From an Orange employee) copying (legal) media (movies) to the iPhone voided the warranty... Not something I worry about with the desire.

I would suggest using some kind of app back-up program though in the event you need to reset to factory settings or are replacing the phone. Just incase.
 
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I owned an iPhone 3G for a year, then an iPhone 3GS for just under a year until recently purchasing a Nexus One (Which is awesome). I purchased a Desire for my Dad who liked the idea of the Nexus One but didn't like the price tag.
Having used the Desire for a few hours total I really like it, even compared to my N1 it's a nice easy to use phone.
The iPhone has some advantages such as more apps, but realistically if android has the equivelant then what use is more apps? lol
The iPhone also seems to be more integrated into various businesses where they have 'an app for that' but android doesn't have an official app.
I also prefer being able to do what ever I want on the N1/Desire such as custom ROMs which seem to make the device far more responsive and speedy.
And being able to drag/drop music to the SD card from within Windows is soooooo much better than having iTunes.

iTunes does, however, backs up your device (apps included) so this is one drawback to natively backing up your Desire. Your settings, contacts, e-mails etc are stored on the cloud (via your gmail account) and can be re-synced just by logging in after a restore. Apps on the other hand will need to be re-downloaded unless you have something like Titanium Backup which lets you backup individual apps (to your SD card I think, don't quote me on this) I currently only use it for the messages app as I have no better way to backup my messages.
 
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I imagine you'll get very biased answers towards the Android side of things on this forum. It would be interesting (and quite brave) to see what happens if you were to post that question on an iPhone forum....

Point taken,

I realise that i will probably get Desire biassed answers here, but want to hear from owners of the Desire. I doubt i will find many Desire owners on the iPhone forums :D.

Thanks so far people, keep the feedback coming.
 
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Ive used many a iphone, but somethink kept me from purchasing one.... oh i remember, itunes !!! More i use my Desire, the more im pleased not to be an iboy ! Hostilities break out, if i question my friends who own the iphone, but i can tell, when they talk, how their voice trembles. Its nice to have a smart phone, that does indeed whip the iphone in most aspects. I wont even have any ipod device either, for what reason...oh yes itunes.
 
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indeed, iboys are like the blind leading the blind. Ive yet to totally convert any of them, soon as i put any other suggestions into their tiny brains, all i get is itunes this, 4gs that, and ipad waffle. I do chuckle when iphone uses dont actually use their phones for music, they have a ipod nano or somethink, so their iphone does not get damaged ...wtf is that all about ...lol :D
 
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I have no real preference for iPhone or Android, i own an iPhone and think its great, but now i would like to try android.

the reason I asked for opinions from previous iPhone owners is that I hoped by doing so that I may get an educated opinion from someone that had actually experienced both alternatives instead of the one sided opinions that you tend to get from 'fanboys'

must say that I am about 70/30 in favour of getting a Desire as my next phone at the moment. :)

thanks.
 
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Dont get me wrong about the iphone, in an ideal world, i would like to have both, i love gadgets. I just prefer a device without itunes, and im not into apple loving. I wanted somethink similar to the iphone, and the Desire fitted the bill (ok i never actually owned a iphone). Only real way i can see, is to try both, and pick your favorite. Each to their own really.
 
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@CarsnGadgets I haven't owned an iPhone, but i have spent quite a bit of time (my job requires me testing phones quite often :D) using them now and again. You won't be disappointed which ever phone you get, they are both great bits of kit. For me, the extra flexibility and customisation was the deciding point in me getting the Desire.

The main argument you will hear from an apple fanboy for the (current anyway) iPhone is the size of the app store, but honestly, i have never found there to be an app missing from the Android Market, that i need. Better yet, the vast majority of apps for Android are Free!

Given the option betweem the iPhone 4G (or whatever it's going to be called) and the Desire, i'd still have the Desire, hands down, as i'm sure the vast majority of people on here, even those who previously owned iPhones, would.
 
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god i hate fanboys with a passion. from both sides

I second this wholeheartedly.

The IT crowd is already a minority, why segment ourselves further & just make ourselves look like douche bags to everyone else?

If you look at it realistically everything has it's flaws, from the iphone to android to winmo to a candybar phone. What it really comes down to is which flaws you can live with & which you can't.

anyway, to get back on topic, I didn't own an iphone, but I did own an ipod touch. There is a reason that I regret choosing the desire over an iphone, but it's not something that will bother most people.

My problem is the lack of support for audio books and podcasts. the integrated music player does not support bookmarks which means that if I listen to a audiobook on my commute, then listen to a podcast while I'm doing paperwork at work, then, when I switch back to the audiobook it has forgotten my place in the book and starts from the beginning.

There are other apps you can download that support bookmarks, but they are not integrated with the headphone remote, and they do not have player controls on the start screen or whatever it's called. The one that has the slide to unlock part.

About itunes, I honestly have no idea why this program bothers people so much. I much prefer organising my ipod touch on the PC over organising it on the desire itself. from installing and removing apps to automatically downloading podcasts to creating playlists etc. The only reason I have ever heard anyone give for why itunes is bad is that it is quite a large program. Honestly though, with the power of computers and the size of hard drives, why does this even matter. It could be twice as big & still not noticeably affect my PC's resources.

Maybe it's the closed store? Really though, it's got everything you need for an iphone right there, so why would you want to go anywhere else?

Another flaw seems to be the battery life. Most people, myself included, struggle with this all the time. People complain about the iphone battery life, but it's much better than the desire.

anyway, imo, the major 'flaws' in the desire (imo) are:
~lack of podcast/audiobook support
~no decent desktop manager that covers all aspects of the desire
~very poor battery life

Having said all that, I love my Desire. You'd have to pry it from my cold, dead hands. Even then, I'd probably try to take it with me!

PS I expect my issues with bookmarking will be solved, but I'll probably have to wait months.
 
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There is a Kindle app coming to the Marketplace soon. Maybe handy knowledge for some. :)

I think you mean the audible app. I know it's coming, but I first heard about it in something like January & there have been no new updates about this. The pessimist in me is whispering that it wont come until xmas if I'm lucky.

Don't get me started on ebooks. You can't buy them (or at least the good books) in Australia without something like a credit card that is registered in the states or somewhere.

I'm really hoping that the ipad launch in Aus will fix this, but I doubt it, not right away anyway.
 
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I've got my HTC Desire yesterday, having owned an Iphone for nearly a year.

To be perfectly honest the Desire isn't perfect. Far from it. Lets talk about the disadvantages first.

Downsides

  • Firstly I miss being able to download apps from the equivalent of iTunes.
  • The music player isn't as polished as the iPod/iTunes and since the iPod is so ubiquitous, many accessories support iPod (eg. my car).
  • There's no supplied media player so again you have to go get one. Little bit annoying but not the end of the world.
  • Too many settings and "options" for your average user. I'm ok. I'm a geek at heart and I bet most people here will be. But your average punter in the street will be lost. I recommended the Desire to a female friend who is baffled and just scratching the surface of what it can do. I see this as Android's biggest strength and weakness.
  • The messaging application is shockingly basic. You pretty much have to download an app to improve it. Right now I cant figure out why when i read a message, the counter stays showing "1"
  • The speaker for playing music is way inferior to the iPhone.
  • Facebook contact Sync is annoying. Seems great at first but then after a while its useless. If I dont have a phone number for them then there's a reason! I don't want them in my phone book thanks!


Upsides

What a phone!!!!

  • Browsing the Internet on this baby is smooth & fast when compared to the iPhone.
  • Browser support for Flash!!!
  • LED Flash
  • There may be more apps on iPhone but the variety of apps on Android is way better. Quality over quantity!
  • Speed of phone in general is better.
  • Multitasking versus Apple's crappy effort.
  • Uses proper connections (eg. MicroUSB, microSD cards) so you are not locked into the Apple machine
  • Removable battery so you can get a spare or bigger capacity (if you want)
  • Sheer flexibility to do what you want. (see above if you are not geeky)
  • Sense UI is way better than standard Apple and even standard Android affair.
  • Like the way I can link Facebook contacts to my phone contacts. (good idea, just poorly implemented)


Overall I am loving the phone. I ummed and ahhed over whether or not to wait for the iPhone 4 but I was tired of only being able to do things the Apple way, using their connectors, not able to upgrade memory/battery and to be frank, the list of new stuff in 4 is hardly earth shattering!

The Desire is in my opinion technically a better phone than the 3GS. Looks wise I think the iPhone still has it but ofc you will pay the Apple premium for that and have to join the Apple collective. Plus every man and his dog has the iPhone now.

For my non-techie friends who've never had a smartphone, I am telling them to get a cheap 2nd hand iPhone first and then later once they get the idea and sold into the concept, the HTC desire becomes an easier move for them.
 
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Facebook contact Sync is annoying. Seems great at first but then after a while its useless. If I dont have a phone number for them then there's a reason! I don't want them in my phone book thanks!
It's easy to disable it showing facebook friends, or even filter it to only show friends who have a phone number (either that you've entered or from their profile).
 
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It's easy to disable it showing facebook friends, or even filter it to only show friends who have a phone number (either that you've entered or from their profile).

You can also link the FB entry to their contact entry (if you have one for them in the phone). This has the advantage of combining their FB info & pics with the phone numbers you have.
 
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simple point....Iphone 4g...as far as i understand it the 4g applies to the next gen faster web, which the UK doesn't actually have!

This is a case of 2 different things having the same abbreviation.

In the iphone, the 4g refers to the fact that it will be the 4th version or 'g'eneration of the phone.

For cell (mobile) phones in the US, they are currently rolling out the 4th 'g'eneration of cell networks which will be faster. Apparently there are 2 competing standards atm, one is called wimax & I forget the name of the other.

So, when people refer to the iphone 4g, the are talking phone gens, not network gens. However, nobody knows whether the iphone 4g will also support cell 4g, but I doubt it. I don't think AT&T (exclusive iphone carrier) has a 4g cell net yet (but I am not positive).

Incidentally, HTC has just launched (or are about to) launch a cell 4g phone called the Evo.
 
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I have to disagree with thinking that the available apps for Android can compare in any way to the ones available at the App Store. I have an ipod touch and have way more apps on that, that I use regularly. I can log into the App Store on my touch, browse the top 50 or featured ones and find an app I decide I want almost every time. Can't say the same for Android. Plus the iphone ones generally have better UI and work better.

This will all change hopefully, basically for the ultimate phone you would have the Desire with the Apple App Store.
 
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