Droid Eris VS Sprint Hero

[t1jordan]

Has anyone compared the Eris and Sprint Hero? They seem as tho they are the same exact phone.









GEEKMAN AKA t1jordan

 

[Edaze55]

For the most part, they are.

 

[t1jordan]

For the most part, they are.

Im just looking for a good old dogfight!

 

[bray424]

The Eris is $80 cheaper out the door, but you'll probably end up paying that several times over on Verizon's more expensive plans.

 

[dbpaddler]

cheaper phone price and you get an 8gb card instead of 2gb. Kind of a gyp if you ask me though that gets made up after a month of service costs. Slight design differences too.

 

[g0tr00t]

I touched one yesterday and played with it. It feels like those old cigarette boxes that were made of metal....heavy too..Smaller than I expected though. Sense UI has me hooked though..

 

[t1jordan]

I touched one yesterday and played with it. It feels like those old cigarette boxes that were made of metal....heavy too..Smaller than I expected though. Sense UI has me hooked though..

Was the phone exactly the same?

 

[dbpaddler]

have a feeling he looked at the Moto Droid and doesn't understand the op was talking about the different versions of the Hero (Eris on V and Hero on S)

 

[g0tr00t]

have a feeling he looked at the Moto Droid and doesn't understand the op was talking about the different versions of the Hero (Eris on V and Hero on S)

Oye! Sorry about that, I was multitasking when I responded. You are right. SORRY!

 

[princem131]

The Eris is supposed to have a proximity sensor which is pretty cool, I wouldn't mind having that. But I played with it at the store briefly and one thing I didn't like was it has a tiny trackball.

 

[maddmatt02]

eris has a smaller capacity battery also

 

[mcbtrain929]

just curious, how much is it for 1 month of sprints service? the cheapest minutes plan + internet?

 

[maddmatt02]

verizon has a plan for smartphones with 450 minutes, unlimited data and messaging, nights from 9pm-6am for 99.99 (dont get 5 friends/family til a higher priced plan) same thing w/o messaging is 79.99.

sprint stomps all over them with 450 minutes, unlimited data and messaging, nights start at 7pm, and free calling to ANY mobile number, all for 69.99.

sprints unlimited is 99.99 where verizons is 149.99.

 

[cooolone2]

Sprint has always offered the most competitively priced plans that the other providers are afraid to touch. But with the Hero/Android it is the first time I can remember them attacking the competition with cutting edge equipment, something they have always trailed everyone else on. As long as the equipment they sell is supported there is no question right now Sprint and the Hero is the better deal. Just imho...

 

[dbpaddler]

not really cutting edge equipment when Verizon has an Android device running Android 2.0 with a much better processor and a best in class screen along with rumors of the HTC Passion looming as well. Also considering we have no definite date for the Hero going 2.0 and the Moment even getting an update. Both of which are running on 1.5 with old 1st gen processors (even if the Moment is running at a higher clock speed).

Just saying. You should adjust your post to say modern instead of cutting edge.

 

[cooolone2]

No correction required! Thanks for the "technical" information... but I did post "imho" and as such for all the phones offered by Sprint in recent memory with respect to what was available comparatively by competitors, this batch of Android phones "is" cutting edge! Just because some want it perfect now, and the newest chipsets doesn't take away from the fact that the Hero is hot hot hot... lolz. Back to topic please...

 

[quentinfisher]

I would say the only difference really would be the networks. Sprint network is slower in my area so the Eris downloads, loads webpages faster, and so it's pretty much better lol.

 

[Scott]

It is generally the case that the lower the coverage, the lower the price the the plans. Verizon is pretty expensive because they have the best service. Sprint and T-Mobile are more limited, but much more attractive on price.

I don't think the Eris is designed to attract people to Verizon, but only to give Verizon customers an option on par with Sprint's Hero and T-Mobile's MyTouch. If you want a small, cool and capable Android phone with no physical keyboard, you can now get essentially the same [outstanding] phone on all three networks.

The Droid, on the other hand, is intended to draw customers from other networks, because nobody has a phone that comes close in terms of "pocket-computer" capability.

Scott

 

[headcase]

I've been using the Hero for the last 30 days, and I picked up a Eris yesterday, as I'm still undecided on which phone to go with for the next 2 years (perhaps the HTC Passion is going to be the winner). The key differences I've seen so far (putting aside the different networks & pricing):

Advantages for Eris
- Eris is slightly smaller, lighter, and thinner -- nice on the hands
- Button layout seems a little easier to use, given better spacing between keys
- Phone app is a little more intuitive, while in a call
- If you like black, certainly looks better
- No bloated crapware from the carrier

Advantages for Hero
- Stronger battery
- Superior glass (seems to resist smudges a little better, doesn't have the cross hatch touch sensor / visible dots, and the graphics are still visible when turned on side while looking through rose-tinted sunglasses -- yeah, the last one was a surprise -- try for yourself)
- Double-click of physical menu button allows you to quickly wake device
- Sprint Navigation (until Android 2.0 and Maps comes out)

Other comments:
- When talking on the Eris, you can hear your voice slightly over the built-in ear speaker; I assume this is by design, to give the effect of home phones. Not sure if I like it, as it almost feels like an echo effect.

- If someone called on my Hero while it was paired to my BT headset, answering the call on my phone would result in the audio going through the normal handset mode -- I would have to turn on BT mode while in the call for the headset to pick up the audio. On the Eris while paired & connected to the BT headset, when I answer incoming calls via the phone, the audio comes through the BT headset right away as you would expect. Probably a small bug with the Hero BT.

- Some apps have yet to be visible in the Android Market via the Eris (eg. TV.com, PhoneMyPC, etc.) -- something Google will hopefully fix soon, since this seems to be the same OS as the Hero.

 

[cswee10582]

In terms of plan price, in upstate ny Sprint Is the way to go if looking at the hero/eris...the coverage is the same or better throughout the northeast so far...only been with sprint a couple months.

Chris

 

[cooolone2]

The BT issue may be with your headset, my jawbone works just fine. That proximity thing coulda cool but surly will cause battery drain. I've been with Sprint for many yeara now and locally to NY I would say there is no issue in difference of coverage... Best plans says a lot. Also, have seen major improvements with CS dept. I currently get 15% off my bill cause id inconveniences I complained about... lol... customer retention is major issue now with all carriers. Is why all are jumping on Android bandwagon. Lol... even AT&T now with unit made by Dell... lol, gotta love competition, its so good for consumers and technology.

 

[Grimster]

I've been using the Hero for the last 30 days, and I picked up a Eris yesterday, as I'm still undecided on which phone to go with for the next 2 years (perhaps the HTC Passion is going to be the winner). The key differences I've seen so far (putting aside the different networks & pricing):

Advantages for Eris
- Eris is slightly smaller, lighter, and thinner -- nice on the hands
- Button layout seems a little easier to use, given better spacing between keys
- Phone app is a little more intuitive, while in a call
- If you like black, certainly looks better
- No bloated crapware from the carrier

Advantages for Hero
- Stronger battery
- Superior glass (seems to resist smudges a little better, doesn't have the cross hatch touch sensor / visible dots, and the graphics are still visible when turned on side while looking through rose-tinted sunglasses -- yeah, the last one was a surprise -- try for yourself)
- Double-click of physical menu button allows you to quickly wake device
- Sprint Navigation (until Android 2.0 and Maps comes out)

Superior glass on the Hero? HA!

The Eris is simply a superior device. The build quality is much better, slimmer, and more pocketable.

1. The glass is actually superior on the ERIS not the Sprint Hero because its SEALED. The sprint hero has a gap between the screen and sensor and people are already complaining about dust getting under the screen and there is NOTHING you can do about it. This is not an issue with the Eris as the screen is sealed. Your comment about more finger print smearing on the Eris IS true but it makes absolutely no difference since everyone buys screen protectors anyway so its a non-issue and the tiny "dots" on the screen are nearly impossible to see even if you look for them.

2. The Eris does not have the stupid bubble chin near the track ball like sprint Hero.

3. You can wake the Eris instantly with ONE simple press of a button.

4. Eris has proximity sensor Hero does not.

5. Eris does not have the lag issues the sprint Hero has.

Basically the Sprint Hero is simply a prototype / BETA device to the Eris which is more refined.

 

[yxan]

Superior glass on the Hero? HA!

The Eris is simply a superior device. The build quality is much better, slimmer, and more pocketable.

1. The glass is actually superior on the ERIS not the Sprint Hero because its SEALED. The sprint hero has a gap between the screen and sensor and people are already complaining about dust getting under the screen and there is NOTHING you can do about it. This is not an issue with the Eris as the screen is sealed. Your comment about more finger print smearing on the Eris IS true but it makes absolutely no difference since everyone buys screen protectors anyway so its a non-issue and the tiny "dots" on the screen are nearly impossible to see even if you look for them.

2. The Eris does not have the stupid bubble chin near the track ball like sprint Hero.

3. You can wake the Eris instantly with ONE simple press of a button.

4. Eris has proximity sensor Hero does not.

5. Eris does not have the lag issues the sprint Hero has.

Basically the Sprint Hero is simply a prototype / BETA device to the Eris which is more refined.

so is the euro htc hero an alpha pre prototype to the sprint then?

 

[kpozan]

The Hero has a 1500mAh battery, while the Eris has a 1300mAh battery.

 

[tmaxey1]

Superior glass on the Hero? HA!

The Eris is simply a superior device. The build quality is much better, slimmer, and more pocketable.

HAHA. You have obviously been reading internet reviews of this phone. You really chose to stress the pocketability of the phone vs sprint hero. How small and tight are your pants if the less than 1 mm difference in phone sizes makes eris more pocketable. Stop repeating internet reviews and develop some original thoughts.

Also no. Everyone does not use screen protectors. Maybe everyone who uses the phone with the inferior screen (Eris) need a screen protector.

They are pretty much the same phone.Stop trying to make yourself feel better about paying at least $700 more for the same device (over your over priced contract).