Android 2.1 on hero - the farce continues

[daveybaby]

Yup, so HTC design the Nexus One for Google. And the Desire (which is top of my wish-list right now on looks alone!), the Incredible, the Legend, the Tattoo.... You have to face it, your beloved Hero is no longer the bleeding-edge handset it was nine months ago. HTC make no money from giving away updates for handsets they've already sold , so we're low down the pecking order. It's a fact of life.

My take on this is pretty much the exact opposite. The fact that new phones are coming out with android+senseui means that the hero is much more likely to get continuing updates.

The bulk of the work is in integrating senseui with android. Pasting that on top of each phone's device driver layer is trivial. New android+senseui phones means more updates for hero.

To the moaners: If you really really want 2.1, root your phone and put vanilla 2.1 on it. If you want senseui+2.1 youre gonna have to WAIT UNTIL ITS FINISHED. In the meantime, i'm sure youre all going to carry on stridently demanding your (totally imagined) 'rights' to an upgrade NOW NOW NOW like a child demanding sweets off its mummy.

 

[wuthton]

My take on this is pretty much the exact opposite. The fact that new phones are coming out with android+senseui means that the hero is much more likely to get continuing updates.

The bulk of the work is in integrating senseui with android. Pasting that on top of each phone's device driver layer is trivial. New android+senseui phones means more updates for hero.

To the moaners: If you really really want 2.1, root your phone and put vanilla 2.1 on it. If you want senseui+2.1 youre gonna have to WAIT UNTIL ITS FINISHED. In the meantime, i'm sure youre all going to carry on stridently demanding your (totally imagined) 'rights' to an upgrade NOW NOW NOW like a child demanding sweets off its mummy.

+1

 

[croc9968]

Some of the 2.1 updates are going to be good but the new sense UI is something I'm especially looking forward to

 

[dannywooly]

I am waiting quietly for 2.1, but i really want TATHome!!!!!

YouTube - TAT Home

 

[cowslinger64]

I can understand the frustration this member feels. I've had my Hero for a month now. Sometimes I think it's pretty cool and sometimes I wished I had never bought it. It does so much, but unfortunately for me, it does so much that I don't need it to do. But, doesn't easily do, or not at all do, some of the things I wished it did. Is it the phone or my ignorance? I dunno.. I haven't had time to properly play around with it and don't really have the background experience with this type of phone. So, I'll take some of the heat. But, not being able to send a picture message, switch my contacts over by bluetooth, (according to my carrier)...or some simple phone things, is rather frustrating.

Don't get me wrong, I think this phone is really cool. But, I do think I'd been better off buying just a touch screen phone, which is what I really wanted the most. I also wish I would have gotten one with a physical keyboard, cause this one was built for someone with kiddie fingers.

I think I bought a Ferrari, when I'm just driving around in stop and go traffic. Lol..

 

[capuman]

what do you mean you cant send picture messages? you mean MMS right?..i can..must be your carrier.

 

[Haizum74]

How dare they keep us waiting for a free update that was never promised in the first place! I am still on Windows 95 waiting for my free update to windows 98 ... jeez! Whats taking so long!?!?!


... hint of sarcasm ...


Seriously though, I bought this phone not knowing if an update would ever come out for it at all. Would I like to have one? Hell yeah I would like to have an update to 2.1! ... but what can I do if they say "scratch it"? ... not a whole lot.

Yeh if something needs an update its either out of date or not working correctly, so its needed dick

 

[cowslinger64]

what do you mean you cant send picture messages? you mean MMS right?..i can..must be your carrier.

HTC told me that an update to my phone was needed, but that it was the carrier to had to do it. My carrier told me it was HTC's fault. So, I dunno.

It's not a huge deal, but it seems rather silly that I can use my phone as a level, or gps, or barcode scan, or a million other cool things, but not something as simple as this. I guess I just wished it was a little more a phone and little less a computer.

 

[ken-doh]

just one thought here people having just been lucky enough to play on a Google Phone.

2.1 runs SLOW on the Htc / Google Phone.

if you were running it on a phone with 1/2 the power its going to be VERY SLOW.

there is no way a bigger OS will run on that phone as smooth as the current version does.

just accept it - even if it is released. it will be SLOW and clunky. then you will wish for the current version.

 

[capuman]

If/when they release it all we have to do is wait and see what people say about it.

i for one wont be downloading it the day it comes out. Id rather wait and see what other people say first. If they say its slow then i wont bother.

Having said that, i doubt HTC will release an update which actually makes your phone worse. Its probably why they are taking so long, because they need to optimise it for best performance.

 

[jsp_1983]

Question:

With the 2.1 update, will the Hero be quicker and smoother in basic operations (like SMS, phone and contacts)?

At the moment, it can take up to four seconds for me to get to a contact via 'People' and about the same time as it takes to start to browse SMS.

If I turn off the Sense UI, it speeds up slightly, but still not at an acceptable speed.

Reading past articles and threads, some people have said that 2.1 will be 'quicker' - does this include the Hero and will it fix the issues with speed and fluidity of the interface?

 

[D-Noc]

just one thought here people having just been lucky enough to play on a Google Phone.

2.1 runs SLOW on the Htc / Google Phone.

if you were running it on a phone with 1/2 the power its going to be VERY SLOW.

there is no way a bigger OS will run on that phone as smooth as the current version does.

just accept it - even if it is released. it will be SLOW and clunky. then you will wish for the current version.

What do you build these statements on? What makes you think bigger OS version equals more CPU/memory intense?
I haven't tried the Google Phone, and I DON'T say the 2.1 update (WHEN released) won't be slow and clunky, but it doesn't necessary have to be like that.

D-Noc

 

[alchemistkevin]

has anybody else used hero/n1 side by side - the n1 really slow? (compared to hero as in a post above)

 

[ken-doh]

I have a Hero and a guy in the office bought the n1 off the net so I have been comparing them.

its a nice phone. but it is missing senseui - apart from the voice dictation and the navigation (which are bothamazing) there isnt anything new

as for speed - its not any faster than the hero - if anything - some tasks were not as smooth.

there are new HTC handsets coming out based on the n1 with senseui - so maybe they will be better.

 

[rdelfin]

maybe so, but I paid 600.00 for a phone and i expected it to be able to be upgraded, not be outdated 1 month after I bought it. At least with a PC you can upgrade software until the hardware can no longer handle it, letting you keep an expensive device longer.

Correction: yes, you may upgrade the Operating system in you computer as long as your hardware can handle it (i.e. from Windows Vista to Window 7). Question: are you entitled to demand to have this upgrade for FREE provided there was NO such clause when you first got your PC? Microsoft will NOT charge you for Vista Service Packs (updates), but of course they can choose to charge you if you opt for replacing your current OS to the next newer one (upgrade). So why would it be any different with the OS for your phone then?

This is what I'm talking about. You paid 600 and you got a working device, and if something doesn't work right, HTC will issue a fix to correct it (update). What I don't agree with is the entitlement of demanding an upgrade just because the company released a newer model sporting that newer OS. It would be as saying this:

"I bought a 2009 car in December and I expect to be able to have its engine "upgraded" to the 2010 edition at no cost, and not be outdated 1 month after I bought the car". If something is wrong with the engine of your car, the company will do a recall and fix the issue, but you will look like fool demanding an "upgrade" for the engine of the 2010 model for free just because you spent a lot money when you first got your 2009 car. Your 2009 car's engine still runs and it still takes you places. Your HTC Hero with Sense User Interface over Android 1.5 still works, and still makes calls. If you're getting Sense over Android 2.1 at no cost, is a bonus you're getting from the company (admittedly, something that does not cost them that much to give away) and not something you deserve out of nature. If you use the argument that you don't expect something to be outdated after one month, well guess what? Don't get this year's car model and wait for next year's (and the same with your phones, toys and whatnot). Newsflash: regardless how early you get something, it will be outdated in a matter of days, deal with it.

Yes, I want that free upgrade for my phone too as much as the next guy. But as majority confirmed in the poll: just sit quiet and wait for it rather than complaint in a nonsensical manner.

 

[vido.ardes]

I think this thread has run it's course. HTC and the carriers have stated the update is real, it is coming to the Hero and it will be here in Q2 2010 (that's April - June inclusive).

If it doesn't arrive then, I suggest you kick up a fuss, until then, the only thing we can do is wait.

Thread closed