Engadget's Review of the Nexus One (and DROID Owner's Comment)

[kraze0g]

if they don't release news about a sholes tablet, do you think i should go right ahead with the Droid? it's not on its way out is it?

thx for the feedback btw.
-jen

 

[rumdood]

I think the N1 looks like an awesome phone.

That being said, I'm not sad I got my Droid. As many people here have stated, if you want to wait for the thing right around the corner that's better than what's out now, you'll always be waiting because there's ALWAYS something better right around the corner.

I got my Droid in November. I had a WinMo phone that was starting to go on me so I needed a new phone. I knew there were new phones due out after Jan. 1, but I wasn't willing to work with a crappy phone for 2-3 months so that I could have a marginally better phone than what I could get in November.

People who get the N1 will find a new phone coming out that beats it within 3-6 months. It's the nature of the beast.

The only people not worrying about that are iPhone users, who have a "long" turnaround of 12 months before their phone is obsolete.

The N1 is faster than the Droid. Awesome. If I were in the market and willing to go with TMo, then I'd get that over the Droid in a heartbeat...or the Sholes if that comes out.

But I have my Droid. It has yet to make me unhappy. It does what I ask it to do and quickly.

Can't we all just get along?

 

[Fabolous]

Does anyone have any concrete info on this 800MHz processor in the Sholes tablet? Sounds like it could be the same one as in the Omnia II, which would make it a downgrade from the Droid.

 

[kraze0g]

Does anyone have any concrete info on this 800MHz processor in the Sholes tablet? Sounds like it could be the same one as in the Omnia II, which would make it a downgrade from the Droid.

just wondering as i don't know about specs too much, how would 800mhz be a downgrade from the droid? (and whats the omnia II)

and i have heard NOTHING of the sholes tablet coming to us (at least this early in the year) -- i only stated it because someone, who claimed also an htc passion was coming in mid january then fixed his remarks and said april, told me in a message that he head its coming out very soon. but there is no reliability or articles or any sort of confirmation on this except someone telling me over a message on this forum. (which again, is highly unreliable)

-jen

 

[onion]

just wondering as i don't know about specs too much, how would 800mhz be a downgrade from the droid? (and whats the omnia II)

and i have heard NOTHING of the sholes tablet coming to us (at least this early in the year) -- i only stated it because someone, who claimed also an htc passion was coming in mid january then fixed his remarks and said april, told me in a message that he head its coming out very soon. but there is no reliability or articles or any sort of confirmation on this except someone telling me over a message on this forum. (which again, is highly unreliable)

-jen

You dont want the Omnia II. Its a Windows Mobile unit with a junk resistive touch screen.

 

[sooper_droid12]

Just read an article stating that the Nexus One will be made available to at&t network, however, it will be unsubsidized with no plans to be by at&t. It will just work on its network.

That being said, this is the very thing that people are talking about. Why buy an unlocked TMo version, when the at&t version is right around the corner? Likely, there will be a CDMA version right around that next corner for VZW/Sprint customers. So, why not wait for that one? Obviously, we'll find out the details tomorrow at CES, but this just highlights the technology. Nothing is safe, not even for half a year.

Even iPhone @ 12 month device cycles isn't safe, because its tech can be 2, 3, 4 cycles behind tech now. Smartphones are the burgeoning market and TODAY, that 12 month cycle can leave you in the dust. Maybe back when it was WinMo vs. Apple, it worked, but not with Android and these fancy devices coming out. I think you'll see Apple shift its game plan a little to adapt. But even if it doesn't, they have such a loyal fanboy... I mean, user base they don't necessarily need to.

Okay, so you bought a DROID... the N1 is the new kid on the block, but doesn't represent a substantial improvement. It's still a bit faster and feels a bit nicer. What's next? The X10 gets released with Sony goodness. Nice, but now what? HTC releases their 2.1 version with Sense UI; now, the gPhone owners are pining over the fact that there's a real UI mated to the 2.1 instead of gimmicky new animations for old interface. Okay, you picked up the HTC with 2.1 and Sense, but right around the corner is Motorola's Shadow, uber-thin running Snap with 4.3" WVGA OLED screen and 1080p video, and since the Devour is running Blur with 2.1, so might the Shadow.

It never ends...

That's why this gPhone needs to be a game-changer, because who is going to shell out $530 for a phone that represents the "pure Google experience" when the other offerings are so much better. Pay $150 for a DROID, get the service now and the updates later, because while you're waiting around for vaporware, you'd have missed out on the great tech that's out there now.

 

[DaleKaleD]

I just wanted to pop in and make a comment.

There seems to be a bit of cross talk about carriers and not being that much better than a Droid.

I used to be on Verizon, but when I moved to my current apartment after a cross country move, my apartment was a dead zone, and after trying to fix it, I ended up moving over to T-Mobile for the simple reason that hey, my primary mode of contact would actually work.

I have had a G1 almost since launch, and have enjoyed it, but have been waiting for a 2nd gen, or we could argue 3rd gen phone. I would have liked to try a Droid, as I do prefer a physical keyboard, but again was not able to use Verizon, so I kept waiting. And now I have my reward, I am sure that there may be something else coming later, but for now, this is shaping up to be a really nice phone.

 

[Gark]

Simple. Nobody wants a phone with a huge 4.3" screen because it does not fit in pockets. Not that hard to figure out....

Speak for yourself, I would love a 4.3 inch screen droid. If your pants are that tight then maybe its time for new pants.

A 4.3 inch screen would be perfect for a college students, reviewing notes and all of that ,while on the go, is very valuable.

 

[Fabolous]

just wondering as i don't know about specs too much, how would 800mhz be a downgrade from the droid? (and whats the omnia II)
-jen

It's really all about architecture than clock speed.

A newer architecture CPU (such as the one in the Droid) will get more done per cycle than the older architecture (such as the one in the Moment/Omnia II), so even at a slower clock, it is faster - gets more work done.


Anyways, there'll always be a better phone coming up, that's the way technology works. I'm pretty sure there will be an HTC 1GHz Snapdragon Android phone for Verizon, as the codename 'PassionC' is found in HTC's 2.1 OS software.

For those who don't need/want Verizon, I'm sure the N1 will be a great phone. T-mobile 3G is quite slow in my town (~300-400kbps) while I get 1300+ with Verizon, so I'm quite satisfied with my choice in device and network.

 

[darreno1]

^^All good points being made here. Just look at the phones like the shadow and their specs. It makes little sense for a droid user to jump ship now. Because when they hit the stores it will be buyers remorse all over again. It's better to jump in big increments than go after something a little better.

 

[alamoe]

Just read an article stating that the Nexus One will be made available to at&t network, however, it will be unsubsidized with no plans to be by at&t. It will just work on its network.

That being said, this is the very thing that people are talking about. Why buy an unlocked TMo version, when the at&t version is right around the corner? Likely, there will be a CDMA version right around that next corner for VZW/Sprint customers. So, why not wait for that one? Obviously, we'll find out the details tomorrow at CES, but this just highlights the technology. Nothing is safe, not even for half a year.

Even iPhone @ 12 month device cycles isn't safe, because its tech can be 2, 3, 4 cycles behind tech now. Smartphones are the burgeoning market and TODAY, that 12 month cycle can leave you in the dust. Maybe back when it was WinMo vs. Apple, it worked, but not with Android and these fancy devices coming out. I think you'll see Apple shift its game plan a little to adapt. But even if it doesn't, they have such a loyal fanboy... I mean, user base they don't necessarily need to.

Okay, so you bought a DROID... the N1 is the new kid on the block, but doesn't represent a substantial improvement. It's still a bit faster and feels a bit nicer. What's next? The X10 gets released with Sony goodness. Nice, but now what? HTC releases their 2.1 version with Sense UI; now, the gPhone owners are pining over the fact that there's a real UI mated to the 2.1 instead of gimmicky new animations for old interface. Okay, you picked up the HTC with 2.1 and Sense, but right around the corner is Motorola's Shadow, uber-thin running Snap with 4.3" WVGA OLED screen and 1080p video, and since the Devour is running Blur with 2.1, so might the Shadow.

It never ends...

That's why this gPhone needs to be a game-changer, because who is going to shell out $530 for a phone that represents the "pure Google experience" when the other offerings are so much better. Pay $150 for a DROID, get the service now and the updates later, because while you're waiting around for vaporware, you'd have missed out on the great tech that's out there now.

I understand your point about new phones coming out within months of the N1 that will have slick UI's and whatnot...but it doesn't matter what new UI comes out because once the N1 is rooted it will be like a chameleon, able to run any of those UI's. If someone doesn't want to root their phone or thinks it's unnecessary, I feel sorry for them. In the end, I think all HTC Androids will have more value and a longer shelf-life because of the intangibles like the enormous dev/hacker community, IMO.

 

[gt33]

according to a guy who has inside info with verison, the 4.3 inch motorola shadow is coming to verison 1st half

 

[sooper_droid12]

I don't believe that there is a stable Sense UI port out there. HTC doesn't let that out from their grasp. So, I believe the HTC 1GHz Snap Android phone featuring Sense will be a more desirable product than the N1. Not that I'm a big fan of Sense as it gobbles up 100mb of RAM just to run, but I know there are users who would love to have that UI on their phone instead of a native so-so UI. That being said, I don't think people would be as hyped up or the response as great if they had announced the N1 as: THE GOOGLE PHONE featuring 1GHz Snapdragon and OS2.0.1!!! Same OS, different processor!

 

[sooper_droid12]

according to a guy who has inside info with verison, the 4.3 inch motorola shadow is coming to verison 1st half

I doubt it would be first half. More like late 2010 into 2011. I'm thinking more of a 12-month cycle from the DROID. But we'll find out on the 6th when Motorola has their CES press event.

 

[giomasterg]

I just wanted to pop in and make a comment.

There seems to be a bit of cross talk about carriers and not being that much better than a Droid.

I used to be on Verizon, but when I moved to my current apartment after a cross country move, my apartment was a dead zone, and after trying to fix it, I ended up moving over to T-Mobile for the simple reason that hey, my primary mode of contact would actually work.

I have had a G1 almost since launch, and have enjoyed it, but have been waiting for a 2nd gen, or we could argue 3rd gen phone. I would have liked to try a Droid, as I do prefer a physical keyboard, but again was not able to use Verizon, so I kept waiting. And now I have my reward, I am sure that there may be something else coming later, but for now, this is shaping up to be a really nice phone.

Agree... I was going to jump from my g1 to the Droid until I put my zip on the Verizon site and I have no coverage but I get great T-Mobile 3G... looks like I will be getting the Nexus One

 

[ikon]

I don't know about others but I could care less about SenseUI. I don't want that garbage slowing down my phone. Then you also have to wait for HTC to update Sense for your phone and push it out, meanwhile stock Android users are running 2 versions ahead, eg. htc hero right now. I currently have a G1 and having been waiting to upgrade, I actually went to the Verizon store to checkout the Droid in person and I was shocked at how ugly it was in person, imo. The keyboard is basically complete garbage with those offset keys, the g1 keyboard, as crappy as it also is, is still way better.

All the arguements about "why would you buy a phone on tmo" are all relative to the user. Tmo is pushing 7.2mbs out right now and rolling out 21mbs HSPA+ which will be faster than any other carrier in the States. As for myself, I live in SoCal and am blanketed by 3g and I couldn't care less if I'm able to receive 3g signal in North Dakota.

 

[laztpn0i]

Engadget's official review is up.

Nexus One review -- Engadget

 

[ikon]

http://http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/07/3g-speed-test/

Also, according to wired's speedtest, completely user based, Verizon came in first and Tmo second. And this was before Tmo's 7.2mbs upgrade.

What I'm getting at is, choose the carrier that has the best coverage/speed for where you live/travel. Don't bash the other carriers, they all have faults. Verizon's expensive, Tmobile lacks coverage, ATT drops calls, and I know nothign about Sprint

 

[ManMythLegend]

http://http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/07/3g-speed-test/

Also, according to wired's speedtest, completely user based, Verizon came in first and Tmo second. And this was before Tmo's 7.2mbs upgrade.

What I'm getting at is, choose the carrier that has the best coverage/speed for where you live/travel. Don't bash the other carriers, they all have faults. Verizon's expensive, Tmobile lacks coverage, ATT drops calls, and I know nothign about Sprint

Sprint = great network atrocious customer service...like epic bad.

Its the complete opposite of Tmo.

 

[darreno1]

Y

Engadget's official review is up.

Nexus One review -- Engadget

Just read it. It's amazing the almost about turn they made with this article. It's also somewhat surprising they chose the droid in the end given all the hoopla with their initial review.

 

[AndroidsOfTara]

Just read it. It's amazing the almost about turn they made with this article. It's also somewhat surprising they chose the droid in the end given all the hoopla with their initial review.

There is something horribly wrong with their browser speed test video. Yes, the 3GS browser is very fast, but it's not that much faster than the Droid when tested on the same network (wifi or 3G) with the same website and the cache cleared.

I followed along with the video on my Droid and it loaded the engadget website a bit behind the 3GS, but significantly faster than their Droid or N1.

 

[lekky]

Definitely something up, I'd go with them having that page in the cache of the iPhone browser.

 

[sooper_droid12]

As I read the article some things stuck out to me:

1) Why have the track ball if nothing in the OS requires it? I've said earlier, "optical track-pad" like the Devour would have been nicer for cursor control. Also, I have to agree, on visual inspection, the track ball is rather low on the phone, on the bottom leading edge.

2) No camera button? Honestly, I don't know how other Android phones have done it in the past, but without a physical camera button, or a touch focus like the iPhone, how do you ensure that your image is focused before the picture is actually taken? I've had spotty results using the on-screen capture button.

3) How do you accidentally tap the four dedicated buttons while texting? Minor quibble, but a definite shout-out for the DROID

4) Is the screen actually less resolute than the DROID? 480x800 instead of 480x854? Holy crap, it is less resolute. It's not a true 16:9 format. Although, the screen does look more iPhone-like, in that it's squarish than long-rectangle like the DROID. And the AMOLED being blown out in sunlight as expected from screens of this type. Should still look awesome indoors though.

5) Another mention about it not being substantially faster than the DROID. Where's that 70% boost that people are quoting in the "benchmark" tests?

6) Call-quality an issue. I heard that HTC skimped on the speaker bits for this phone. Glad to see that the DROID's got an upper-hand in this department. Another shout for DROID owners! Even so, I've read that while the speaker is bad, it's still better than the iPhone's.

7) Really? WiFi browser test? Did they clear the cache before attempting to do it? DROID got caught with its pants down sync'ing data mid-download. DROID also starting its download from the search screen instead of the Google browser like the other two. And the scrolling, really? How many more pixels is the DROID/N1 pushing compared to the iPhone? Between the two Android phones, 2.1 browser is said to be a bit quicker than 2.0.1 (which seemed to have gotten slower after the updated from 2.0).

8) As I mentioned earlier regarding the software, no real upgrades from 2.01 to 2.1 other aesthetics. Anyone else mad that Google added that little "bounce" when you've reached the top of a menu or something, like the iPhone? I hate that!

And dang it! He said, "Cute 3D animation..."

9) Gallery 2.1. Someone with the DROID's port of the Gallery 2.1 confirm that it works the same way? I might just download it and port it to see. I like the new Gallery, but the Music app, really!?

10) Why wasn't Swype added to the gPhone as a native app? C'mon Google, revolutionize! If Samsung did it with the Omnia II, gPhone HAS to have it too! By the way, if you haven't tried Swype, do it!

11) FAIL for no keyboard. I'm telling you, a d-pad is NEEDED for gaming, unless you choose to play accelerometer games all the time. I just played a healthy dose of Double Dragon on my Nesoid with ease

12) Wow. He picked the DROID over the N1. You know, I'm not surprised by this review. Josh is a huge iPhone user and anything that doesn't match the iPhone is just going to lose out. It doesn't help that a large portion of the article dealt with form-factor instead of the techy bits. Though, I'm surprised that he picked the DROID over the N1, but I think it's because the N1 just didn't offer up on the goods. Hopefully, TODAY, Google will announce something that will really separate the N1 from the DROID, other than 2.1 vs. 2.01. That being said, I thought one of the reader comments summed it up:

Someone posting as Eric Schmidt: "It's a damn good phone."

Response: "Not good enough."

COME ON GOOGLE, ANNOUNCE A GAME CHANGER TODAY!!! For the sake of Android users!

 

[rushmore]

You MUST be kidding....

The GPU in snapdragon is THREE time faster than the PowerV GPU in the moto droid. Yes, THREE time faster.

Moto Droid GPU = 7 million triangles
SnapDragon GPU = 22 million triangles

Plus 2D acceleration in snapdragon blows away the PowerV chip in the droid.

Simply too funny IMO. Please read the white papers on each phone and chips used before posting again.

Are you one of them there Snapboys / fanboys?

Please show me where the 8250 has a discrete GPU in the architecture. Embedded function and an actual chip are not the same thing, but the line there is getting fuzzier as nm levels decrease in fabrication processes.

Also, do you appreciate that to get the performance you are mentioning you need to pump the power and clock up to correlate in performance? Are you assuming the relationship is linear or exponential

Enough, let us try Duke Nukem (demanding 2D game) and Quake 3 on both chipsets and see which perform the best. Be interesting to see which performs the best between the 3430 and Snapdragon. 3430 performs normally at 600mhz, but the Snapdragon was NOT designed to be ran in a phone form factor at 1ghz. Heat and battery drain would not be practical.

I look forward to your all knowing, self-important spin

BTW, the Endgadget review seems fair.

 

[XM_JDM]

Why is it that everything that is NOT an iPhone is crapped on by Engadget Mobile?