Due for phone upgrade w/VZW....Android or iOS(iPhone)? Thoughts?

[flooritnfly]

So I am due for my upgrade now with Verizon. I have been wanting a smartphone for a long time and that is still what I plan on getting. I gritted my teeth and endured the long wait to see what VZW would unveil at the CES in Vegas last weekend and those new 4g phones look nice...but I sure as heck thought they would launch within 3 weeks or so and not 'til MARCH?! WOW. Now this throws a wrench into the whole thing. No, there is no 4g LTE coverage from VZW where I live now, but could it be right around the corner? Part of me says wait and get a 4g phone (Not just because of LTE, but better specs too: drooling over Droid Bionic: dual-core processor, front-facing cam, ridiculous hi-res screen, etc..) and the other part of me says get a 3g phone now (as far as VZW's current 3g choices, I suppose the Droid X is decent...but the Bionic looks like it will blow it away), as LTE will take a while to be complete and also "to work out all the kinks", as with any new technology. Another wrench into my whole decision-making process is the iPhone. It's going to launch even sooner than the 4 new LTE phones VZW is releasing that's going to make me even antsier. I have done a lot of reading about iOS vs. Android in the past 3 weeks or so and I have to say I am leaning towards Android right now......seems to be much more open/limitless, you aren't getting fingered by Steve Jobs, and also it supports Flash. Also, I would like to get grandfathered in on VZW's unlimited data plan before they cap it, as I am sure they will at some point...this could potentially REALLY blow because what if they cap it before the Bionic launces? In one hell of a pickle here.............

What are your guys' thoughts? Someone has probably thought of something that I have not...

My upgrades always seem to come at the worst possible time.

 

[nklenchik]

Actually this is a pretty good time for your upgrade. Idk if I'd move into the iPhone 4 crowd because that's almost year-old technonogy in the mobile world. Go for a droid. More specifically, go for an HTC Android phone. They roll out updates pretty well

 

[EarlyMon]

Everybuddy needs a sounding board sometimes, we all do.

Here are the choices you've laid out for yourself:

• I'm tough enough to wait it out because I believe in the reward, risk or no risk, that's it for me - I want the future in 4G today
• A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush, I'm getting a rock-solid proven phone, that's it for me - I want the present in 3G today
• Let's face it, the iPhone has become nothing more than a risk mitigation path when it's too hard to make a decision, it's not like it's got enough going on for me to actually weigh it with Android in terms of performance and really get anywhere, but it's a phone, people like it, and I can move on with my life

I'm not in any way making fun of your situation - I'm saying in your heart of hearts you've probably already made your decision and haven't seen it clearly yet. In my personal opinion, just look at the three bullets that re-express your inner voice and just go with this: trust your gut.

In fact, I'll bet you already decided.

Oh - and ps - Welcome to the forums!

 

[flooritnfly]

Good timing because I have so many options........bad timing because I am impatient as hell already and didn't plan on wanting to wait a few more months for VZW's new phones to launch.....

 

[EarlyMon]

Ah - so, you're wanting the future then.

 

[flooritnfly]

The future Conan? As with anybody as savvy as me, I want absolutely as much as possible in this upgrade to work in my advantage

 

[EarlyMon]

Exactly what I said - you want the phone coming out in a few months - the future.

That's what it sounded like to me that you said two post back.

PS - Arnold is making another movie? It's a tie-in to one of the new phones?

 

[Bnice]

Good things come to those who wait...lol

 

[EKG]

If you end up going for an iPhone, don't buy the iPhone 4. The new iPhone will be released in May or so and will be an improvement over this crap model that was hardly an improvement over the 3GS. So to me, it is either wait a few months for the Bionic, or wait a few months for the next iPhone.

 

[zerocool79346]

If you end up going for an iPhone, don't buy the iPhone 4. The new iPhone will be released in May or so and will be an improvement over this crap model that was hardly an improvement over the 3GS. So to me, it is either wait a few months for the Bionic, or wait a few months for the next iPhone.

No. Apple isn't going to launch a completely revamped iPhone (which is what it was) on Verizon in January and then launch another 4 months later. I would be willing to bet that it will be another year before Verizon has the iPhone 5.

 

[Clementine_3]

No. Apple isn't going to launch a completely revamped iPhone (which is what it was) on Verizon in January and then launch another 4 months later. I would be willing to bet that it will be another year before Verizon has the iPhone 5.

I don't know about that, I can't picture Apple NOT having the same phone available for Verizon and AT&T. They will have the iPhone 5 ready for both when it's released. The framework has been laid for CDMA, now it's just a matter of applying any new features to both sets of hardware.
More than Apple not having it ready I truly can't think that Verizon would have signed up after all this time only to be left with an 'outdated' iPhone right out of the gate. They have too much invested already, before the iPhone 4 is even available, to not be on track for the iPhone 5.
Most of the iPhone business and defections from AT&T will be for 5, not 4, and I'm guessing someone at Verizon has figured that out...they are not going to be left behind on this one.

 

[Taylored]

Now is a bad time to upgrade to a smartphone unless you do not care about having a top of the line phone. And if that is the case I would suggest a HTC Incredible. If you look around the Incredibles are free(w/ 2 yr activation).

The CDMA iPhone debate seems like a non-starter to me. $200+ for a phone that has year old technology seems like a horrible investment if you ask me. Anyone who gets this is out of their mind... or has money to burn.

 

[brinky]

Now is a bad time to upgrade to a smartphone unless you do not care about having a top of the line phone. And if that is the case I would suggest a HTC Incredible. If you look around the Incredibles are free(w/ 2 yr activation).

The CDMA iPhone debate seems like a non-starter to me. $200+ for a phone that has year old technology seems like a horrible investment if you ask me. Anyone who gets this is out of their mind... or has money to burn.

Aren't most of the android phones on Verizon now year old technology too?

 

[Taylored]

Aren't most of the android phones on Verizon now year old technology too?

Yes, they are, but you can get them for <$50. Where as the ip4 will be at least $200.

 

[armoredsaint]

If you end up going for an iPhone, don't buy the iPhone 4. The new iPhone will be released in May or so and will be an improvement over this crap model that was hardly an improvement over the 3GS. So to me, it is either wait a few months for the Bionic, or wait a few months for the next iPhone.

i hope you are right, i am due for NE2 next month and with the current iphone 4 from vzw i'll like to wait for the 5 and see how it compares.

 

[Bswartz95]

I'm upgrading on February 3rd to the iPhone. From some of the information I've read, it's very possible that the next version of the iPhone won't change a lot for Verizon (if they even get it). 2012 seems to be the more likely scenario for the iPhone jump to 4g.

If you wait for the next best thing to come out, you will always be waiting. Phone technology is changing everyday. Talk to someone with an iPhone 3gs, and you will find most are still completely happy with their "outdated" phone.

The best case scenario would be a 1 year agreement.

 

[cmathis]

I'm upgrading on February 3rd to the iPhone. From some of the information I've read, it's very possible that the next version of the iPhone won't change a lot for Verizon (if they even get it). 2012 seems to be the more likely scenario for the iPhone jump to 4g.

If you wait for the next best thing to come out, you will always be waiting. Phone technology is changing everyday. Talk to someone with an iPhone 3gs, and you will find most are still completely happy with their "outdated" phone.

The best case scenario would be a 1 year agreement.

I'm doing the same thing. Even if the new iPhone this year is revamped and does include LTE, I can't say that I'd want it because LTE is such a new technology. I'm going to wait a year or two before I upgrade to an LTE phone, because most LTE offerings right now won't offer the battery life I look for in a phone. LTE is a battery hog.

Verizon 3G is perfectly fine for me for the next several years. I've had no complaints at all.

 

[Caddyman]

get the iphone, pickup chicks, prosper.

 

[EarlyMon]

^lol

 

[wtherrell]

I'd wait for Thunderbolt or Bionic.

With Steve Jobs on medical leave who knows what BigA will do. Stock already dropping like stones. If you want just an out of the box phone you don't plan to tinker with go with iPhone. Frankly, I would not have one. I like playing with rooting, roms, etc. Go with HTC, or one of the new MOTO's about to drop. Personally, I would prefer HTC since it is more likely they can be rooted.

 

[fparkin]

i get iphone ,i would got one but sprint dont offer them i cant afford att no rooting no troubles

 

[oppendroid]

I was in the same dilemma last May waiting for the rumored Incredible to drop. You could wait for months for the new phones and by then an even better phone will be announced. It could hypothetically go on forever.

Buy a phone now. If it's your first smartphone, you will be very happy with pretty much any of the phones out there. Do you research, check them out in the store, and go for it.

And then start begging family members for their upgrades in six months like me! :-D

Best of luck!

 

[butthead007]

The iphone is a very slick device. Well polished and just plain works. It is very closed and tied into Apple.

Android is more open and customizable. You are not locked into itunes or Apple for anything. Granted, you will not have flash media, but hey, up until the Froyo release of Android, the rest of the world didn't either (ok, a little more there, but suspend disbelief).

I often refer to the iphone as a smartphone with training wheels. It is a very consumer friendly device. But not exactly a "geek" device.

I have been using Apple computers for many years (since, I dunno, 1977 or so). Apple has done 1 thing that so many people do not know and many tech pundits ignore. The Linux Kernel was the one thing richard stallman from the GNU project needed to make their own free version of Unix. Prior to Linus releasing the kernel and Linux taking on a life of its own, Unix was a complete power user operating system. And now, there is a derived OS called Linux. And the Linux kernel runs Android phones.

But Apple, when they brought Steve back and bought up Nextstep took a commercially viable version of Unix called OpenBSD which powered NextStep and made it into a consumer product. They created a very consumer friendly version of Unix, created their own window manager called Aqua, and sold it to the masses.

Yes, Apple made digital content available to everyone and created a market. Apple also made Unix into a commercial product and succeeded in doing so. Linux has tried for years but never caught on with consumers.

I am very impressed that Apple was able to make Unix a consumer product. So I cut steve alot of slack with his current products.

Android or ios, tell us how you want to use it. Sorry for the text wall, but if we all actually learned about the history behind these products and how they evolved, I think we'd make better choices as consumers.

 

[EarlyMon]

Except iOS is in no way OS X.

 

[nkk]

I think you are also missing the whole point of Linux. There is a large contingent of users who would prefer it not become commercial. Sure, they want it to succeed, but becoming commercial would imply some lock down, and commercial support cannot happen if users are totally free on their systems. Plus, different distribution of Linux go different ways. Ubuntu is the closest to the commercial mindset, whereas Arch is much more "here, geek. Build your own OS with our base". To classify Linux as a while shows some misunderstanding of what Linux is. Sure, the overarching ideals of freedom and whatnot are the same, but there are many other ideals that are valued differently by different distribution coders and corporate sponsors.

If we want to even further our definition of Linux to anything running the Linux kernel, look at things that use embedded Linux. They offer (at least in many cases) very little customizability, and are mostly commercial. That is NOT where most Linux fans want the desktop to go.


As for the question at hand, I would wait for a 4g android phone. But if you do not want to, and current one will serve you well. They are still great phones, just not the newest.

-Nkk