Help What To Do With This New Phone? (New Hero/Android User Inquiry)

[Laymen]

I left the perils of Windows Mobile and have reluctantly joined the ranks of Android. This smartphone game is getting crazy overwhelming so help me out. I've read a lot of people who say root, some who say don't root. Some who say delete apps like Nascar, some who say don't. I'm guessing it's all personal preference.

1. If you were new to Android and just got your first droid phone, what would you do with it?

2. I'm not interested in feeding the creepy Google beast anymore than I need too so I don't want to enter my account and this begs for questions like:

- How/where do I get good apps? I am not an app fanatic so if the choice is limited by my unwillingness to link to the Google "Mothership" then fine.

- How do I synch my excel sheet of contacts w/out google? Is that even possible?


3. How do I make the HTC contacts app "People" allow me to enter contact data via landscape mode? I mean, I see it is not possible but how can I make it possible?

4. Is Handcent the only app to be able to text in landscape mode? Are there better alternatives?

5. Is the only way to change the lockscreen look by rooting or are there apps that do that?

6. Is there a way to make Google Maps work with the pinch zoom tactic or am I stuck with the + / - onscreen buttons?

7. If I root the phone, does that mean less control on Google's end as far as where my data goes?

Thanks.

 

[JB in AZ]

Welcome to the Android world, and the forum! I have moved your post to the support and troubleshooting area where it will get more replies.

 

[Joehunni]

1. I got my Hero and rooted it within the month, just read through some of the threads about it under the "All Things Root section".
2. Android is amazing and regardless of your actions, Google will soon rule the world. You can/will need to download all your apps through "Market", most decent apps are free anyways so you have nothing to worry about.
4. Probably so, also try out Chomp SMS, those are the only viable replacements for the stock app.
5. There are a couple of apps in the market for this but all of them I've tried had issues. To get a real lockscreen you'll need to root.
7. ... I don't even know what you mean by this... Good luck to you.

 

[Laymen]

7. ... I don't even know what you mean by this... Good luck to you.

Yea I suppose I should clarify that - More or less, if I get root then can I basically delete all things Google related that I really don't need in the OS? Or does it not even matter as long as I don't give my gmail ident?

I suppose as I type that I see it becoming more rhetorical and already answered.

 

[JB in AZ]

Yea I suppose I should clarify that - More or less, if I get root then can I basically delete all things Google related that I really don't need in the OS? Or does it not even matter as long as I don't give my gmail ident?

I suppose as I type that I see it becoming more rhetorical and already answered.

Well, what I did was create a unique gmail address just for use on the Android phone.

It is really nice having the contacts all backed up and accessable on the computer if you should ever need/want it that way.

 

[Laymen]

Yea I've thought about doing that as an alternative to at least access the market but I doubt I'd use it to put my contacts up on. I have a good backup system in place for my contacts. Just wonder if there's a good way to import them via excel sheet.

Well, what I did was create a unique gmail address just for use on the Android phone.