Is my sprint salesman blowing smoke about optimus s memory issues?

[tcfulmer]

Was in my local sprint store getting my EVO fixed and was talking to the salesman about upgrading my 12 year old to an optimus s from a rumor touch. He started telling me that the optimus s has internal memory issues and that I shouldn't consider it. He further explained that you can't move most apps to the sd card so your internal memory fills up quickly.

I've dealt with this particular store in the past and have caught the other salesmen being less than truthful. When I went to buy my EVO, they kept telling me that I didn't want an EVO and that I really needed to buy an epic. Later found out from another, independently owned sprint store that they were doing this because they had epics in stock but no EVOs. I only deal with the first store because they have repair facilities.

Is the statement about the optimus s having memory issues truthful? If so please explain them.

 

[apinkel]

There is a limited amount of storage available for applications. I can't say I've ever heard of any other storage issues. You can move apps to the SD card.

I get around the limited storage by loading a custom ROM (I've got a work email client that eats up 26MB, plus 3 other apps that are 10MB apiece). The custom ROM uses 40MB less than the stock ROM... I haven't had a storage space issue since.

 

[tcfulmer]

I have to admit that as far as loading ROMs and the ramifications of installing them, I am a complete novice. Would doing that get me in trouble with sprint?

 

[apinkel]

If you have an issue with the phone and need to return it, you do need to return it to stock.

Honestly, I doubt that a 12 year old would be loading the kind of apps that would burn thru the storage on the phone. The apps that are storage hogs on my phone are... a secure work email/calendar client, copilot navigation, docs-to-go, yahoo mail... and these kind of apps probably wouldn't be something a 12 year old would need. Games are probably going to be the largest apps a 12 year old might load and most of those can be moved to the SD card.

 

[Izzy1706]

Don't do it. I've had this phone for eight months and am ready to throw it out the window and collect the insurance. I HATE it. In this case, the salesman was absolutely right about the memory issues. Most of the apps cannot be moved to your SD card. I have very few and ended up deleting most of what I had because my memory was gone. I clear my cache, moved all apps that I could to the card, and regularly clear call logs/texts. The battery is nearly shot already, even though I only charge it when it needs to be, shut off GPS, have the screen turned down to the lowest brightness, and use the internet minimally. 70% of my battery usage is devoted not to talk or internet, but to searching for service because the reception on this thing is almost non-existent. I would not recommend this phone to anyone. It's probably the nicest phone I've ever had, yet the crappiest. All my other phones have lasted me at LEAST 18 months, the most 3 years. My previous phone was still in good condition after 18 months but my DH got me the Optimus for Christmas. Now I wish he hadn't.

 

[MyNamesTooLong]

tha apps to sd function is on the developers end, and not all apps are coded to be moved. Also there is still some space taken up by apps on the phone even after they are moved to the sd card

 

[Ez Duzit]

I've had this phone since Jan. It's a pretty good phone and it does not have memory issues. It does however have less memory then some other phones as someone else said. I run the stock os and just delete apps once in a while that I don't use anymore or rarely use, so no problem here. But keep in mind this is only a midrange phone. Most of what a 12 yo will use this phone for will be no problem. The phone can handle it.
Gaming is generally ok, but the screen is small and the phone won't run some of the more intense action games.
Bottom line. If you can afford the $100 Evo upgrade, get that. It's definitely a better phone. With that said, the Optimus S is leaps and bounds better then the rumor touch and any 12 yo would be extremely happy to have it.

 

[Highbird]

I just upgraded my 16yr old daughter's Rumor Touch to an Optimus S. This was after upgrading my Wife from a Reclaim to an Intercept (piece of junk!! returned within a month) to an Optimus S. The Optimus S is an extremely slick phone. The person saying its a piece of crap and has non-stop problem with it HAD to have gotten a defective phone or is trying to do or expects way too much from it.

As far as moving apps to SD card, that has NOTHING to do with the phone. Its all coded within the app.

For a free phone, Optimus S is insanely good. My 13yr old daughter has the Transform and she likes it but the Optimus S outperforms it easily. I can't recommend the Intercept or the Transform to anyone because the Optimus S really does blow them both out of the water. Did I mention it was free?! Sprint offers it for free on the website (Don't go to the store, as of now its $70, then you do a $50 mail-in-rebate). We got my wife's Optimus S from Best Buy for free. Do some shopping around at those 3rd party stores before you decide to buy! But I definitely recommend this phone to anyone looking for a mid/entry-level Android phone.

edit: and I don't know about your 12yr old but any of them I know will EASILY fill the phone with all kinds of junk apps. Nonsense soundboards, gun sounds, just loads and loads of junk apps that make having a phone with "apps" so appealing to people when in reality add no real usability to the phone. 140mb is a very little amount of space but once the phone owner gets passed the initial "OMG I HAVE APPS!! DOWNLOAD DOWNLOAD DOWNLOAD!!!!!!" they'll learn to get rid of the junk and keep the phone's memory clear.

 

[tcfulmer]

I just upgraded my 16yr old daughter's Rumor Touch to an Optimus S. This was after upgrading my Wife from a Reclaim to an Intercept (piece of junk!! returned within a month) to an Optimus S. The Optimus S is an extremely slick phone. The person saying its a piece of crap and has non-stop problem with it HAD to have gotten a defective phone or is trying to do or expects way too much from it.

As far as moving apps to SD card, that has NOTHING to do with the phone. Its all coded within the app.

For a free phone, Optimus S is insanely good. My 13yr old daughter has the Transform and she likes it but the Optimus S outperforms it easily. I can't recommend the Intercept or the Transform to anyone because the Optimus S really does blow them both out of the water. Did I mention it was free?! Sprint offers it for free on the website (Don't go to the store, as of now its $70, then you do a $50 mail-in-rebate). We got my wife's Optimus S from Best Buy for free. Do some shopping around at those 3rd party stores before you decide to buy! But I definitely recommend this phone to anyone looking for a mid/entry-level Android phone.

edit: and I don't know about your 12yr old but any of them I know will EASILY fill the phone with all kinds of junk apps. Nonsense soundboards, gun sounds, just loads and loads of junk apps that make having a phone with "apps" so appealing to people when in reality add no real usability to the phone. 140mb is a very little amount of space but once the phone owner gets passed the initial "OMG I HAVE APPS!! DOWNLOAD DOWNLOAD DOWNLOAD!!!!!!" they'll learn to get rid of the junk and keep the phone's memory clear.

Sounds like a learning opportunity for my son. Thanks for the info.

 

[eldiablojefe]

Don't do it. I've had this phone for eight months and am ready to throw it out the window and collect the insurance. I HATE it. In this case, the salesman was absolutely right about the memory issues. Most of the apps cannot be moved to your SD card. I have very few and ended up deleting most of what I had because my memory was gone. I clear my cache, moved all apps that I could to the card, and regularly clear call logs/texts. The battery is nearly shot already, even though I only charge it when it needs to be, shut off GPS, have the screen turned down to the lowest brightness, and use the internet minimally. 70% of my battery usage is devoted not to talk or internet, but to searching for service because the reception on this thing is almost non-existent. I would not recommend this phone to anyone. It's probably the nicest phone I've ever had, yet the crappiest. All my other phones have lasted me at LEAST 18 months, the most 3 years. My previous phone was still in good condition after 18 months but my DH got me the Optimus for Christmas. Now I wish he hadn't.

Wow, you must have gotten a defective unit, because my Optimus S has the BEST battery life of any smartphone I've ever had. I've had it last almost 3 days (approx. 60-65 hours) on a single charge. Granted that is with minimal usage, but my wifi, GPS, etc. are always on. Sounds like you got a sh*tty unit.

 

[paintball31390]

Seriously Optimus s sucks on memory, its annoying. I know that devs should make it possible to put apps on the sd card. but still with my Motorola Droid I did not have to worry about moving apps to the sd card at all.

 

[uniquenameEVO]

My 12 year old kills her optimus weekly. The culprit....Facebook app. I've avoided rooting for a new rom since I don't want to constantly deal with issues I allow her to create...I think I have to do it. Sick of clearing Facebook all the time.

 

[RazzMaTazz]

I, my wife, my 15-year-old son, and 13-year-old daughter have all had Optimus S's since January. At the time I bought them, it was BY FAR the best bang-for-the-buck 3G phone in Sprint's lineup and infinitely better than the Samsung Transform which I bought and returned. However, at that time I chose the Optimus S in part because 3G smartphones were $10/month cheaper than 4G smartphones (which is no longer the case with Sprint since 1/31/11.) If I had to buy a Sprint phone now (and pay the $10/month adders), I'd probably lean towards spending more money for one of the newer, faster, bigger, more future-proof 4G phones with LED-flash, video-conferencing, Adobe Flash suppport, etc. But it's all a cost trade-off.

My family has been extremely happy with our LG Optimus phones. No real memory issues. Crashes are extremely rare (like maybe once every 3 months). I have 71 apps on my phone-- basically everything I could want. My wife and kids have also downloaded a LOT of apps and they have never complained to me about lack of capability or memory. (But my kids WOULD like to have a phone with a larger screen and a Flash player so that they can play Flash games. They'd also like new top-of-the-line PCs, bikes, motorcycles, etc.) It depends how much money you're willing to spend (and risk) on a 12-year old.

Some apps can be moved to the SD card. That's a function of the OS and the app. It has nothing to do with the phone.

Battery life depends on what you do with the phone, of course. I never have any problem lasting a full day (or even 2 days) on a charge for normal "phone" usage. Things like TV, GPS, and games drain the battery faster. I can watch Sprint TV for about 3 hrs on a charge.