Thinking about coming to Android

[derekcentrico]

Currently, my wife and I run Windows 6.5 phones (with XDA modded ROMs of course).

I'm increasingly interested in Android instead of iPhone, which I never liked in the first place.

My concerns are supporting the few necessities on our phones:

My Phone:
1) I use Skype (older version as Skype isn't Windows-able anymore)
2) I use Mobile Banking*
3) I use Outlook Exchange Server for one email account
4) I use an iMap email account
5) I sync my contacts and calendar with Outlook 2010 using a USB cable (hate having to do that)
*Capitalone and Citicards dropped support for MobileBanking on Windows

My wife is somewhat similar:
1) Skype (older version as Skype isn't Windows-able anymore)
2) Mobile Banking*
3) Outlook Exchange Server for one email account
4) GMAIL email account
5) Syncs calendar and tasks with Exchange Server
*Capitalone and Citicards dropped support for MobileBanking on Windows

Any thoughts on if we can do all of this with an Android phone?

I'm sure it's easily doable, but then I'm curious what version of Android and what phones (not too expensive) are best suitable for our use.

Thanks in advance for advice!

 

[davidnmegan6907]

Currently, my wife and I run Windows 6.5 phones (with XDA modded ROMs of course).

I'm increasingly interested in Android instead of iPhone, which I never liked in the first place.

My concerns are supporting the few necessities on our phones:

My Phone:
1) I use Skype (older version as Skype isn't Windows-able anymore)
2) I use Mobile Banking*
3) I use Outlook Exchange Server for one email account
4) I use an iMap email account
5) I sync my contacts and calendar with Outlook 2010 using a USB cable (hate having to do that)
*Capitalone and Citicards dropped support for MobileBanking on Windows

My wife is somewhat similar:
1) Skype (older version as Skype isn't Windows-able anymore)
2) Mobile Banking*
3) Outlook Exchange Server for one email account
4) GMAIL email account
5) Syncs calendar and tasks with Exchange Server
*Capitalone and Citicards dropped support for MobileBanking on Windows

Any thoughts on if we can do all of this with an Android phone?

I'm sure it's easily doable, but then I'm curious what version of Android and what phones (not too expensive) are best suitable for our use.

Thanks in advance for advice!

You shouldnt have problems with any of this other than you would also have to add a google account, because everything is linked to google for android.

 

[DaedalusxX]

I do almost everything on your list with my phone. The only thing is that skype does not video chat. You can use skypes call and chat features but not video chat. All email types work fine, I have both an exchange server email (for school) and a gmail account.

Mobile banking works as long as the bank has the apps...Chase, BoA, TD, and some others definitely have.

Feel free to PM me if you have any trouble doing any of this when you get your android devices .


Also, the phones depend on the cell service that you want to go with (sprint, verizon, at&t, tmobile)....reply back with that and others can reply with phone recommendations

 

[derekcentrico]

Thanks for the rapid input!!!!

I'm using ATT. I don't mind buying an unlocked phone through Bestbuy or Newegg necessarily. But, I'd like something cheaper than the iPhone 4 and capable of future Android upgrades.

I'm really into the idea of a front-facing camera as well because Skype plans to support video calls soon...

Lastly, I'm a big Netflix user. I know they haven't announced support for specific devices, but that's been another hold-out for me.

I'm just sick of flashing Windows ROMs twice a month and I really don't like Apple in general. (I use Linux for personal stuff)

 

[SoftWyer]

My partner moved from Windows PDA to Android and exported her contacts from Outlook to a CSV file and then imported this into her new Gmail account. Seamless and far easier than it was to go from Palm to Outlook (I recall having to buy some app to do that!)

All the contacts are now synched almost realtime over wi-fi or 3G. No messing around with cables or remembering to synchronise.

Even better, set yourselves up with Google Calendar as well. You can have as many calendars on one account as you like and choose which ones to share with your partner. These are synched automatically too. I my personal calendar, work calendar, our friends birthdays, my friends birthdays and a general calendar that is shared with all the family for family events.

 

[derekcentrico]

But, can you somehow sync your Outlook calendar and contacts to the Google one?

 

[jimdroid]

But, can you somehow sync your Outlook calendar and contacts to the Google one?

Yes. You use Google Calendar Sync from Google (unless you are using 64 bit Outlook 2010): Getting started with Google Calendar Sync - Google Calendar Help

 

[SoftWyer]

But, can you somehow sync your Outlook calendar and contacts to the Google one?

I've managed to wean our family off that particular product

 

[derekcentrico]

Well, I use it as it has always been what there was to use.

I'm open to replacing it with something more stable and useful. My email is stored remotely on my personal Courier-IMAP server. So, not hard to switch assuming I find something that will sync from my computer (contacts and calendar) via the internet with an Android phone.

The link above just seems to be for calendars...

 

[SoftWyer]

If you can forward your email to a google account then it can sync automatically to your phone. I guess it depends where you think the 'master' email is. Google is cloud centric and likes to think it's the master. I use IMAP *from* my gmail account to my PC, although it does sync any changes I make on the PC back to the gmail account. I don't think you can configure gmail to pull via IMAP.

If you do use gmail IMAP, look at the IMAP 'labs' plugin in the gmail settings as this allows you more control over what is synched.

Calendars in Google also sync automatically to the phone. They also allow you to pull in any 'ical' calendar too, but I guess it must be visible to the google servers.

 

[jimdroid]

The link above just seems to be for calendars...

There is currently no contact sync from Google. If you have an HTC phone, HTC syncs both calendar and contacts to Outlook.

 

[adi19956]

what do you mean there's no contact sync from Google? all my contacts are backed up to Google?

 

[jimdroid]

what do you mean there's no contact sync from Google? all my contacts are backed up to Google?

If you follow the thread, the poster was inquiring about sync between Outlook and Google.

Google has from time to time mentioned that a sync between Outlook contacts and Google contacts would be forthcoming, but as far as I can tell, it does not yet exist.

 

[derekcentrico]

I guess my concern is that all of my contacts on my Windows Mobile phone come from my Outlook 2010 installation through USB syncing. This is also how I get my calendar.

I'm afraid of losing all of those contacts and calendar appointments when migrating to an Android phone. Also, I'm concerned about how I could keep them stored in two locations and easily add/edit/delete both contacts and appointments from a PC and sync to the phone.

I'm sick of USB tethering to sync. But, I hate having to add a lot of details to appointments via phone keyboards. It's a lot better typing on the laptop and syncing the phone with the cord.

 

[jimdroid]

derek,
Transferring contacts is different from syncing. You can easily transfer your Outlook contacts to gMail contacts (via export/import).

Keeping them in sync is another matter, and right now, there are some third party solutions that will keep the contacts in sync (none of which I've tried). Here is one as an example: http://sourceforge.net/projects/gocontactsync/

Again, if you get an HTC phone, HTC includes an USB tether Outlook Sync (not sure if it works on 64-bit Outlook 2010 yet, though).

I do most of my contact editing on my computer in gMail, so those changes are automatically synced to the google contacts on your phone. If that contact is one I also wish to have in Outlook, I export it from google as a .vcf and import it into Outlook. It's a bit of a pain, but not too difficult, unless you are making zillions of changes a day... I don't.

Over time, I've been migrating most of my contacts to gMail. The sync between gMail and the phone is fantastic, almost instantaneous and no wire required.

For the calendar, you need only install and launch the Google Outlook Calendar sync for which I gave you the URL in an earlier post. Any change to either calendar will be wirelessly transmitted to the other calendar (or calendars).

I hope this helps!

 

[derekcentrico]

Tons!

My last delimma is what phone to get or to wait for a phone. I'm an ATT customer but don't mind paying extra for a no-contract unlocked phone if it isn't too steep on the price.

I'd like a frontfacing camera for Skype video calls (which is said to be coming and which can be had by some program hacking I heard).

Also, I'd like to have a phone that will support Netflix streaming.

Any thoughts?

 

[DaedalusxX]

Hey Derek,

1) Netflix is coming out with an app this month or early next month (as long as it does not get delayed)...trust me, I'm waiting for this one as well ...Don't let that be a deal breaker.

2) As far as calendar. If you set up your exchange email on the phone via exchange or Active Sync, it automatically syncs up to your phone calendar events from the exchange directory you have online.

3) For outlook, If your outlook is set up with exchange, then your emails and events are all synced up with your exchange server online. If this is the case, then by my statement in #2 (above), your information will sync up to the phone.

----
EDIT: Removed last comment. The contacts do sync between the android contacts and the exchange/active sync contacts. They should automatically be displayed, but if they are not, then open the "People" app (default contacts app), Hit "Menu" > "View" > Make sure that the "Exchange/ Active Sync" box is checked. This will have them show as well .

To the OP, I know you don't have the phone yet but I posted the instructions just in case. For future reference or maybe someone else will find it helpful

----

 

[sandeep108]

I was also using Outlook for my calendar and backup for my contacts in my symbian Nokia - synced via Nokia PC Suite. I also had years of data in outlook and contacts, which I could not lose.

Though jimdroid has explained most of it, this is what I did:

Installed google calendar sync and did one way sync from Outlook to Google calendar (this program is only getting better).

Exported my contacts from Outlook and imported them into google contacts. Did some housekeeping as there were several duplicates, etc. With google contacts it is very easy to merge contacts - it almost finds them and does it for you. Created whatever groups I wanted and allotted contacts accordingly. This is the most tedious part as I do not recall anything syncing groups. Contact photos also do not sync, I added them manually - you can do this in google contacts or on the phone.

When I started the phone, gave it my gmail a/c and signed in. In 10 minutes, all my contacts with photos, groups, etc. and calendar entries were on my phone. I simply enter my calendar entries on my PC and they are almost immediately synced. I have set my calendar to send me event reminders by e-mail so even though I have the smooth calendar widget showing me upcoming events, I always get my gmail notification of it also on the phone.

I actually feel happier this way - everything is backed up on google so any HDD crash or other virus, etc. would not bother me. I will try and find some phone backup software, but after having used gmail for years without issue, I doubt I will need any more backup anyway.

For tasks, you can use gTasks, it syncs with google calendar tasks.

 

[derekcentrico]

Cool. Now, one question I have not posed. Right now with my custom ROM for my HTC Touch Diamond 2, it has Facebook integration where it matches contacts and friends, downloads all of the Facebook photos for my contacts, etc...

Does Android have similar integration?

Silly questions I know!

I've been excited about Android for over a year, but haven't made the change because I've just been uncertain and keep waiting on the features I really want.

 

[takeshi]

I use Outlook Exchange Server for one email account

If ActiveSync is available to you then there's no need to sync Outlook with Google, export/import data or whatever work-around solutions are suggested above. A lot of Android forum users don't seem to be very familiar with Exchange. Your device will have native support for Exchange but you might find that the stock app isn't sufficient as many do. I didn't and I use Touchdown. It can sync contacts, calendar and tasks. If you're on an Exchange 2010 server it can also sync Notes. If not, Nitrodesk has an unsupported USB sync solution for Notes that you can try (it's what I use). That said, Touchdown isn't the only Android Exchange client out there and I strongly suggest looking into the various options and test driving them. I can't list them all but I recall trying HTC's Work Email app, Moxier and RoadSync. There are certainly others out there as well.

Be careful stating "Outlook" when mentioning your Exchange account. Many people also seem to be unaware that Outlook and Exchange are 2 separate things. Outlook is the client app (Exchange is the server) so it's not relevant anyway unless you are specifically looking for Outlook sync for some reason. There are a number of solutions for Outlook sync but most are wired. You can also sync Outlook with your Google account using Google Sync, gsyncit, etc. I happen to also use gsyncit as I use Google Voice and I need my Exchange contacts synced with my Google account (one way sync to Google) for GV. While I don't use the other features of gsyncit it seems to be a very good and flexible solution if you do need Outlook-Google sync.

If you want some wired Outlook sync solutions (you stated you didn't -- this is just for reference for other readers), check out http://syncdroid.net.

I use Mobile Banking*

Are you referring to an app or a mobile site for banking? Or something else?

I'm sure it's easily doable, but then I'm curious what version of Android and what phones (not too expensive) are best suitable for our use.

I can't see any device being better than any other for the needs listed. What you're looking for mostly relies on selecting the proper apps rather than the proper device. Pretty much any Android device should do. Selecting one will probably need to be based on other requirements/preferences.

Your carrier, at&t, will partially narrow down the selection for you. You'll want to check out options in person to assess your preferences for physical characteristics, as with any device selection thread.

Cool. Now, one question I have not posed. Right now with my custom ROM for my HTC Touch Diamond 2, it has Facebook integration where it matches contacts and friends, downloads all of the Facebook photos for my contacts, etc...

Does Android have similar integration?

Yes. Facebook contacts sync is actually something I'd specifically disable whenever I loaded the app in the past.

I've managed to wean our family off that particular product

Good for you. However, again, Outlook isn't Exchange but it's one of a very few desktop Exchange clients out there. The OP uses Outlook with Exchange. It's probably nothing like the situation with your family. I could certainly be wrong but it seems rare that families use Exchange.

Sorry for the tone. Suggesting alternative solutions is one thing but the anti-evangelism that solutions like Outlook tend to produce drive me nuts when there's no apparent consideration of the OP's needs/wants. A lot of people may dislike Outlook -- or anything else out there, for that matter -- but that doesn't mean that everyone does. Be careful with projecting your preferences blindly upon others.

EDIT: Removed last comment. The contacts do sync between the android contacts and the exchange/active sync contacts.

They don't on the Droid. Touchdown can copy changes made to Exchange contacts to Phone contacts but it couldn't sync with Google contacts which is why I'm using gsyncit.

I actually feel happier this way - everything is backed up on google so any HDD crash or other virus, etc. would not bother me.

OP is using Exchange. The data in that account resides on the Exchange server (which should be backed up as well). Effectively, it's the same as relying on gmail as a backup.

 

[DaedalusxX]

Cool. Now, one question I have not posed. Right now with my custom ROM for my HTC Touch Diamond 2, it has Facebook integration where it matches contacts and friends, downloads all of the Facebook photos for my contacts, etc...

Does Android have similar integration?

Silly questions I know!

I've been excited about Android for over a year, but haven't made the change because I've just been uncertain and keep waiting on the features I really want.

This is something that it does not have (to my knowledge). I have all of my contacts in Gmail, and there is a small desktop software that I use to connect my Gmail contacts with facebook so they can grab the pictures. This is the only way I know of achieving this...

 

[derekcentrico]

But, doesn't Netflix intend to support only a few devices?

I don't want to be stuck with a device that doesn't have Netflix support.

 

[DaedalusxX]

It'll probably support devices running 2.x+. Almost anything that you get on the market now through a cell service is going to be running 2.2 by now. I highly doubt you have to worry about Netflix not supporting your device, I can almost guarantee that it'll work for any device you purchase on the market...

When you're looking for a phone, try and find one that has Froyo (v2.2). What will be better is if you post phones that you are thinking about and let some of the guys and gals on here give you advice for and against each one

 

[adi19956]

get a Nexus for updates or root and Cyanogen, I'd advise against hardware makers that don't update. eg Dell, SE etc

 

[derekcentrico]

Well, I'd like a Nexus S but the price for a NO CONTRACT isn't enough for this military paycheck to cover...

I'm thinking about:
Motorola Atrix 4G (have to wait)
Samsung Infuse 4G (have to wait)
Samsung Captivate*

Not sure if he Captivate has the frontfacing camera.

Hardly any devices I've found have frontfacing cameras though. The first two phones will be coming out in the next couple of months but will have the cameras...