Reviews

[shadrap]

Rules of reviews about the Evo:

1. Don't trust any reviewer that tends to lean toward the iPhone.
2. Don't trust reviewers that tend to lean toward Verizon, they are incredibly envious.
3. Don't trust reviewers like Uncle Walt, too old to learn android.
4. Don't trust reviewers that run around with the phone on 4G. We already know wi-max is not well seasoned and that it will kill the battery.
5. Refer back to rule number 1.

 

[evotitans]

Ha yea, I agree with all of the above....funny thing is, most reviews are trying to point out issues that we would expect as a means to downgrade the EVO.

Battery life, come on, any regular smartphone user knows that a phone like this will need a charge a day.

Now what doesnt make sense to me, is that they are saying with 4G on, it wont last a full day....isnt that kind of an oxymoron? Besides, until I am to see how or if I will be able to get 4G in my office, this wont even be an issue.

 

[NiCK Crush]

Yea, a charge a day is what I've come to expect with a mobile device these days. As long as you have a car charger as well as one at home, you should be fine. And for heavy usage, keep one at work as well.

 

[SprintFun]

It's so hard for me to be non-biased when I read reviews, and I hate nitpicking something when they're critical of the evo, but sometimes I just can't let the injustice continue

 

[neodorian]

Reviews can be a good place to get opinions but remember that they are just that. If a person's opinion is that they like another device better, think about how much you like the other device in question. If Walt Mossberg says he like the iPhone better but you already know that you prefer Android to iPOS then you don't need to be concerned with that. Likewise if someone laments the fact that it's only Sprint and not Verizon but you already know you get great Sprint service, this also does not apply to you.

Still, if you hate virtual keyboards for example and everyone who tests is says the keyboard is a pain in the ass to type on, then maybe you should take note. Likewise if battery life is very important to you, you may want a phone with a slower processor and smaller screen to save on battery usage.

Reviews are just that...one person's basic overview. Lots of times the people in dedicated enthusiast forums like this will know more about a device than the person who has it in their hands for review so just add it to your store of info and don't take anything as the final word.

 

[nickoakdl]

So basically if they don't tell us what we want to hear, don't trust them? I'm going to adapt this motto to my life.

 

[neodorian]

So basically if they don't tell us what we want to hear, don't trust them? I'm going to adapt this motto to my life.

No. I'm saying that you need to read with context. If someone says they didn't like a sandwich because it was spicy and they don't like spicy sandwiches, you have to stop and think "do I like spicy sandwiches?" If you do not like them then you can assume that the reviewer's opinion is one that you should take into account before ordering lunch. If, however, you love spicy sandwiches then you can safely ignore the reviewer's conclusion since it will not apply to you.

The point of reviews is to give you real opinions but you have to read the opinion in the context of the reviewer in order to gain any useful information out of it.

 

[shadrap]

So basically if they don't tell us what we want to hear, don't trust them? I'm going to adapt this motto to my life.

It's not that, it's just most companies have something to gain my giving slanted reviews. If you have company A advertising with you, can you really be fair and impartial to company B, I don't think so.

I trust reviews from companies that can be fair and impartial, but are also knowledgeable about the platform. I am not a fan boy that thinks the Evo is the beginning and end of all phones, but I do believe from what I have seen and reviews that I trust. That the Evo will be the best phone on the market as of June 4th, 2010, after that, who knows.

 

[jamor]

So basically if they don't tell us what we want to hear, don't trust them? I'm going to adapt this motto to my life.

Wow you hit the nail on the head.

Only make sure to read reviews that say your phone is perfect so that you aren't envious of other users and your phone is the best forever no matter what.

 

[neodorian]

Wow you hit the nail on the head.

Only make sure to read reviews that say your phone is perfect so that you aren't envious of other users and your phone is the best forever no matter what.

And how is that different from you picking the one negative line out of an interview to somehow knock a device for being barely different than your own? I've read every review I can get hold of and so far all of them have been positive overall. The reviewers are paid to identify the good points as well as room for improvement. I don't expect a perfect device as none exists. At the same time I could care less about stuff like having to toggle 4g or whatever. That doesn't matter to me. I would be more worried about a touch screen that doesn't work if the phone is laying on the wrong material.

 

[blozout]

Reviews can be a good place to get opinions but remember that they are just that. If a person's opinion is that they like another device better, think about how much you like the other device in question. If Walt Mossberg says he like the iPhone better but you already know that you prefer Android to iPOS then you don't need to be concerned with that. Likewise if someone laments the fact that it's only Sprint and not Verizon but you already know you get great Sprint service, this also does not apply to you.

Still, if you hate virtual keyboards for example and everyone who tests is says the keyboard is a pain in the ass to type on, then maybe you should take note. Likewise if battery life is very important to you, you may want a phone with a slower processor and smaller screen to save on battery usage.

Reviews are just that...one person's basic overview. Lots of times the people in dedicated enthusiast forums like this will know more about a device than the person who has it in their hands for review so just add it to your store of info and don't take anything as the final word.

I agree with pretty much everything you touched upon. My only real issue is the Walt Mossberg review because it was so poorly done. I mean he even says in the review that he really only cared about the quality of the 4G service. I had no problem with his criticism on that end because he was thorough and tested the phone in an established 4G market. However his lack of enthusiasm for the 4G service carried over towards what little review was done of the EVO itself. He didn't draw any comparisons towards other smartphones, didn't cover the OS, didn't really go over anything. But he did manage to throw in a few negative comments. I guess my issue is that he didnt really tell us anything about the phone (we learn nothing about the EVO), but he set a negative tone in the review which happens to be published in a very big, very credible publication. So intended or not, his lack of a review + few negative thoughts, hurt the EVO. If he had written a thorough review with his likes & dislikes, even I would have said you know what he's got a point on this or I need to look into that, etc...Instead, most people who aren't like us (tech geeks) that read his article will think the EVO is not a good phone and Sprint dropped the ball again, etc... Sorry for the rant, but like I said, I really take issue with the WSJ review, it's just poor journalism.

 

[shadrap]

Take everything Walt says about any phone with a grain of salt. He actually gave the Palm Pre thumbs up. Which on the merits of its OS I believe it to be great, but Walt's review, nor the OS has saved Palm. Like others have stated. One person's opinion, is just that, their opinion. The problem I have is it does sway the common consumer.

 

[blozout]

...The problem I have is it does sway the common consumer.

Yup. That was my point. The consumer and even potentially the market (being that it's the WSJ).

 

[Rigmaster]

It sways the market/consumer a little, but not that much - at least not in WSJ's case. Now the gadget & phone sites, that's another story - they really do push people towards or away from phones. And really, only Apple has ever managed them well and has never even let ATT get involved with launches.

 

[kenttz]

I tend to read alot of reviews before buying whatever I am interested in. So if alot of reviews are saying something is bad or good I will use that in consideration and make my decision.

 

[Rigmaster]

Reviews don't sway me so much as they give me specific things to look for when I demo a product.

 

[twospirits]

As for battery life. Lets be honest here. I have a Hero and I have to have the sucker plugged in most of the day cause the battery gets drain with all the crap I have running at one time. The EVO is twice if not more app intensive and with the same type of battery. So you know it will drain as fast or faster. Now a days, unless they improve battery technology, you just have to have the cell phone plugged it most of the time.

TS

 

[drksilenc]

ts root that baby and put fresh toast on there i get almost 2 days out of my hero with a stock battery and a moderate days use

 

[twospirits]

I did have it rooted and did notice an improvement on battery life, but I unrooted it when I was expecting the 2.1 update and since then I haven't rooted it again. I don't think I will cause in a week I'll be getting the EVO.

TS

 

[Roman G.]

I did have it rooted and did notice an improvement on battery life, but I unrooted it when I was expecting the 2.1 update and since then I haven't rooted it again. I don't think I will cause in a week I'll be getting the EVO.

TS

Funny thing I also unrooted because 2.1 was set to drop and evo coming and all that.

Yesterday I was cruising XDA and noticed they have a bootable 2.2, so I thought what the hell I will play, I downloaded it and went to flash and remembered I am unrooted now

Needless to say it was not very funny. As a side note I have yet to get a hit on CL's for my phone listed at 225.00 or trade for moment. Starting to piss me off.

 

[SprintFun]

To me, as a person who can charge my phone for 90% of the day, if the battery life is the biggest deterrent I'm perfectly fine with that. If the 4G coverage sucks and under-delivers, I'm also fine with that, as I'm not in a 4G area. These are not the reasons I'm getting the phone. Some people seem bent on hammering things that don't make a big deal - people need to identify what is important to them and see what the reviews say on that.

I feel like the reviewers are being harsh on the 4G aspect, which is fine and if it deserves to be criticized then do it. But is the Sprint still the best 3G phone on the market? Do they forget it can use both, and for many many people it will be a 3G phone. They criticize how 4G covers 32 millions (out of like 300 million in the country?), but the reviews focus on what the majority don't have anyway. How does the phone work? Not its network, but the phone. Sure, the network is a big component, but the WSJ "review" is pretty clearly a WiMax review, not an Evo review, which disappoints me.

I guess I'm just ranting on and on.

 

[tmaxey1]

The problem i have with almost every review of the EVO is the complaining about the $10 data plan add-on. Now to be clear i would rather it not be their also. But every reviewer likes to mention how its not fair to charge it when many people wont have access to 4g.........

The iPhone has been charging people for the 3g data plans even though at&t doesnt have 3g coverage in the whole US. Remember Verizon's "Maps" commercials? Yet not a single review of the iPhone i have ever read mentions the fact that they are getting charged $30 or more for a data package when many people only have access to 2g data.

Sprint who has the cheapest plans around add a little 10 dollars and its getting hammered to death.

The 1st gen iPhone didnt even have 3g yet they made you buy a data plan. It didnt even have an app store yet.