which Android phone

[webrehm]

I do not have a smart phone, just a plain phone on a monthly contract.
Hence I want to get a smart phone before thanksgiving. My main concerns are

1. Battery life
2. good tx and rx audio with reasonable volume on speakerphone
If you ever compare 1 phone audio to another in the store you might be suprised how bad some are.
3. a screen that can work outside on a bright day

I am sure there are other issues but not being a droid user I am not aware which droid phones have advantages over others in other areas.
Could go with ATT or Verizon or maybe sprint (present carrier).
One additional hope, I would like the phone to work in Costa rica which has a nationwide 3G network.

tks

Dennis

 

[chanchan05]

1. Battery life is dependent upon usage. I can make my SGSL last for 2 days if I want to, but due to my style of usage, my settings (which put me at packet data activated for most of the day), limits lifespan to about 15 hours

2. Could be subjective too. Reasonable volume for you may not be for me.

3. Any AMOLED or S-LCD screen works great on a bright day

- What we need is the price limit you are willing to go to, brand preferences, etc.

Otherwise, I'd just say go SGS2 or Sensation.

 

[webrehm]

1. Are some droid phones better on battery life than others?
2. Audio is as much about tonal balance and lack of distortion as it is volume. However I realize most people notice these issues much less than I do.
3.I do not have any brand preferences as I have never had a smart phone.


tks for the help

 

[Saltine713]

1. Yes. The Droid Bionic has awful battery life because it is a dual-core phone. The larger the screen or faster the processor, the shorter the battery life.

3. You should check out the UI of each manufacturer and see what you like. I hate Samsung with a passion, but I am in a romantic relationship with HTC for their Sense. It all depends on what you like.

 

[Casual Pete]

Any AMOLED screen works great on a bright day

Sorry but I have to disagree with this,I had a HTC Desire with a AMOLED screen and it was a pain in the **** to see in sunlight even on the full brightness setting,which by the way will drain your battery really fast (the screen is one of the worst offenders when it comes to battery)

I haven't tried Super AMOLED so don't know weather it's better but so far I've found the Super LCD on my Nexus s much better in both daylight use and battery(mainly because you can set the screen brightness lower)

AMOLED looks better though.

 

[webrehm]

What is meant by the UI of each manufacturer?

tks
Dennis

 

[Casual Pete]

What is meant by the UI of each manufacturer?

tks
Dennis

I guess that means the overlay they put on top of stock Android. Samsung use TouchWizz, HTC use Sense etc. Kind of like a different launcher, it's just a customised OS of sorts.

 

[El Presidente]

What is meant by the UI of each manufacturer?

tks
Dennis

It's the "overlay" they put on their handset to make it look and feel better. Vanilla Android is quite basic so a lot of maunfacturers add their own apps and themes to make it better looking.

Here's Vanilla on the Nexus S:

Nexus S: Gingerbread Demo (Android 2.3) - YouTube

HTC Sense:

HTC Desire Sense Interface Walkthrough - YouTube

Samsung Touchwiz:

Samsung Touchwiz 4.0 review on Galaxy S2 - YouTube

 

[chanchan05]

Sorry but I have to disagree with this,I had a HTC Desire with a AMOLED screen and it was a pain in the **** to see in sunlight even on the full brightness setting,which by the way will drain your battery really fast (the screen is one of the worst offenders when it comes to battery)

I haven't tried Super AMOLED so don't know weather it's better but so far I've found the Super LCD on my Nexus s much better in both daylight use and battery(mainly because you can set the screen brightness lower)

AMOLED looks better though.

I've no experience with HTC AMOLEDs, but Samsung and Nokia AMOLEDs are great even in sunlight.