Lessons learned from my Eris

[bottlecap]

I've had my Eris for over a year and I think I have some feedback for HTC and Verizon regarding it, and thoughts in general. When I got the phone for a Christmas present I was SOO excited to have a ANDROID phone, I mean I was the f'ing cats pajamas, and I loved it the platform coming from the Blackberry, (sad but true).

Here are my complaints the battery life is a joke, I was told by Verizon that 4 hours of texting and some gchat with the wifi/gps/bluetooth turned off is normal. Really? That's NORMAL? I can't have my phone with me for work for 1 8 hour shift without needing to charge it.

Processor is 528Mhz which isn't bad at all, BUT when you compare Mflops the Motorola Droid scores 4.507 Mflops/second versus Eris

 

[doogald]

MHz means nothing: the Droid has a far more modern CPU, which includes a discrete graphics processing unit, making it a more powerful phone.

The Eris was designed to run 1.5 (and ran it well, for what that's worth), but I think Sense on 2.1 with this hardware stock was asking a bit much. Though, FWIW, rooting and running xtrSENSE is a far more pleasant experience. Meanwhile, the Droid was designed to run 2.0/2.1.

The Eris was using hardware that was nearly 6 months old (and that's only factoring in more RAM and ROM space; otherwise, this was the same hardware as the year-old G1) when the phone came out on Verizon, so it shouldn't be surprising that Verizon (which had replaced it as a low-end Android device with the LG Ally and the Moto Bravo by then) EOLed it when they did.

If you thought when you bought the Eris that you were buying an equivalent to the Moto Droid, then you didn't do your research before you bought. I will say that when I bought mine, in December 2009 (a month after launch), the salesman tried very hard to convince me to buy the Droid instead.

Having tried Sense on a phone that runs it well, I like Sense, actually; running xtrSENSE, I like it on the Eris, actually again.

All IMHO.

 

[T-Keith]

The eris's main problem is the processor, it is just out of date. Let's face it when newer phone are posting 20 times the benchmark scores, your in trouble. Especially when a smaller and smaller percentage of people have this phone. I guess a secondary problem would be RAM and ROM space, but the form factor, durability and quality is top notch IMO.

 

[doogald]

but the form factor, durability and quality is top notch IMO.

I like the form factor, but there are a number of Eris users and former Eris users with failed trackballs and other durability issues who may argue the durability and quality argument. And I have noticed that the WiFi radio pulls a signal in a far smaller radius than other devices do, including the iPod Touch.

 

[Demache]

I like the form factor, but there are a number of Eris users and former Eris users with failed trackballs and other durability issues who may argue the durability and quality argument. And I have noticed that the WiFi radio pulls a signal in a far smaller radius than other devices do, including the iPod Touch.

That's odd. My wifi radio on mine is about as good as a 2G Touch. About 900 feet from my house (also, the signal meter is never f'n accurate, I go by the dB rating and the fact that the connection becomes unstable) is the max range with no objects in between obviously.

I think the biggest thing I learned from my Eris, is that I should DO RESEARCH before I buy a smartphone. Although, back when I got it, it was either this or the Droid, I still think I should have coughed up that extra $100 for a superior device.

All in all, I'm satisfied with my Eris. Only one crapped out on me (trackball) and Gingerbread makes the second bearable again, and I think I will be able to survive until the end of the year. I pretty much rely on the 3500 mAh battery to get me through the day, since I have the screen set to never shut off automatically. Its not hard for it to fall down to 20% at the end of the day under heavy use.

 

[Heelpir8]

Stock battery life has been fantastic for me when running Gingerbread 2.3.3.

See [ROM][5/16/2011] GSB v3.3 | GingerBread 2.3.4 [CM-7.1.0 RC0 NIGHTLY] - xda-developers

 

[bottlecap]

Stock battery life has been fantastic for me when running Gingerbread 2.3.3.

See [ROM][5/16/2011] GSB v3.3 | GingerBread 2.3.4 [CM-7.1.0 RC0 NIGHTLY] - xda-developers

Cool I'll give that a shot.

 

[MOS95B]

I've been running (and hosting downloads) GSB since it came out. I've only had one issue that may have been app related. Even have it on The Missus's phone.

Makes the Eris run like a brand new phone!!

 

[jassyfr]

battery life is really a problem for me also.
if that can be solved, i will surely stick with eris. I do not like gaming while recharging, makes my smart phone hot to touch.

 

[doogald]

battery life is really a problem for me also.
if that can be solved, i will surely stick with eris. I do not like gaming while recharging, makes my smart phone hot to touch.

See my answer to your other post: http://androidforums.com/htc-droid-eris/350312-problems-regarding-htc-battery.html#post2789670