Did you by any chance download the update for the hero? the update fixes a good amount on the phone. yea some of us experience some of the problems that you are having as well. and i agree a phone should work considering the amount of money and commitment spent on it. but i have never heard of the text problem you are having and about the dimming problem, the phone does that when you have auto dim on, you can turn it off in the settings. other than that it really sounds to me you are having hardware issues. i would just have it replaced and see how things go with the replacement before deciding to go with a PRE or PIXI. id also do research on the palm if i were you. i recommend going to precentral.net and asking the guys there about their PREs or PIXIs

i myself came from a pre, and i found the phone lacking in alot of areas within the OS. alot of basic features you would expect out of a smartphone just werent there. Dont get me wrong, webOS is great and i loved the phone and there have been major improvements since ive had the phone, but the dealbreaker for me atleast was the hardware. The quality of the phone was just non-existent. to me it felt like it was going to fall apart just looking at it. my first pre had the infamous "oreo effect" only after 2 weeks and i absolutely baby my phone. i had replaced for a another pre that had dead pixels. i said to myself theres no way this phone could last me 2 years. i may be exaggerating a bit but if you plan to keep your phone for the term of your contract, iam certain that you will be going through alot of replacements. Alot of the guys on precentral have gone through atleast 2+ replacements in a 2 month span. now thats saying something. but thats my experience with the pre. in regards to the pixi, to me its a step down from both the hero and the pre in terms of internal hardware. but i mean if you dont care about stuff like that then by all means get the pixi.

my hero has been flawless. i absolutely love it. best phone ive ever had hands down. i really think you should consider just getting another hero, but thats just me. for me android has been awesome. i love the phones and their capabilities. most of all i love the booming community that goes along with it and i firmly believe that android is the future.

 

Same as above. You probably got a defect. Try another one first. Great phone. You should know better with electronics. Sometimes you get a defect. No one else I heard of has all of your problems. So it's a good chance you have a defective unit.

 

I had that same issue..you haven't happened to have Bank of America txt alerts sent to your hero have you? if you did, then all the other msgs would all end up in that single thread. its not the hero so much as it is the way that BofA addresses the txt alerts. you will need to wipe the phone, and afterward all the msgs will get their own threads. If you still want to have it send you alerts, then you can set the alerts to deliver to your email, and sync the email to your hero.

As far as many of the other issues, some do have methods of addressing them, but a few of those sound like you got a bum unit. I'm sure many people here will echo this sentiment, but give android a chance, and it'll really earn it's keep. either way best of luck!

 

You know when trolling android forums to spread disinformation you should stick to one or two issues as it makes it more believable than trashing every feature the phone has. I mean really, nothing on your phone works? Nice try.
My Hero works fine. Good luck with your pixie, lol

 

Lol...

People tend to forget manufacturing process in any industry allows for certain percentage of defects (called "Quality Control"). Nothing is perfect, hence the warranty's and also the 30 day policy... that said... it would appear you received a lemon! I would give another unit a shot and see if works out. Seeing nothing worked for you, then you have nowhere to go - but UP and I would imagine you will find the phone enjoyable!

 

Sounds like you have a defective phone, or are exaggerating (more than) slightly. You're basically saying that your phone can do NOTHING at all, and when it does try to do things it CRASHES.

Honestly bud, the Hero is better than those phones you listed, so take it back and get a replacement for this defect. Might be a good idea to take it to a store, and phyiscally show the rep so they believe you, because if you tell them the same as you told us they will need to see it to believe it.

 

I'm sorry, but lol @ thinking these issues for the most part are not isolated.

look at sprint's website:

Overall rating = 4.6 out of 5 (800 people)

92% would recommend the Hero to a friend

Numbers don't lie, this phone is excellent, the very few issues it has are minor and with a little patience can easily be accepted when you understand the big picture and how capable this phone is

 

Yea I would have to agree with the above. I have had my phone for about 2 weeks and this thing just rocks. I have zero issues with it. I read these forums for a long time before buying one and was worried when I read posts like the one here. I decided to go ahead and get one anyway and man am I glad I did. Best phone out there and Sprint just rocks in my area, been with them for 5 years. I would return it and try another, you just can't be having that many issues.

 

I liked my hero but my local sprint sucks. Main problem was not being able to exchange my 2nd hero for another new one at my local sprint dealer. They would only do a refurbished replacement. I know the policy but I refuse to get a refurbished one if I am still under my first 30-day trial. Spint online was cool with my getting a new one be my local was not. Don't wan't to deal with them any more. So I'm going to Verizon with the Moto Droid. I'll see how that works out.

 

as a current Verizon customer... good luck with them.. I'm leaving after 10 years of bad customer service and high prices... oh yeah... Verizon doesn't have a 30 day trial, a $350 ETF for Smart Phones an extra $30 per month per smartphone even if you had a premium plan with unlimited data.. they also replace phones (if under warranty or covered by TEC) with refurbished phones.

 

Are you sure? When did you leave? This is from the verizon website:
Take advantage of our 30-day Satisfaction Guarantee.

We stand behind our service. If you're not completely satisfied, you can return your device and cancel service within 30 days of activation and pay no early termination fee.


note: there is a $35 dollar retocking fee if you do terminate your contract even within the first 30-days.

 

30 days to keep it or cancel.. but not exchange for a different phone.. it took me 4 hours on the phone with their support to get a phone exchanged that died in the first 30 days.. the store wanted me to pay the replacement cost.. after getting the replacement (a refurb) I added TEC just to make sure it didn't happen again.

the point is.. if you think going from Sprint to Verizon will make it all better as far as service in the store.. you're in for a shock.. of course, in the end it's up to you. for me, I have a Treo 755p.. I got it just before they mandated the data plans. so does my wife. we both want new phones, we both want an Android phone. We also have 2 teenagers on the account. I have a family share plan with unlimited txt and unlimited data.. when I found out they wanted to charge an additional $30 per phone and that even a phone like the HTC Ozone (HTX Snap in Sprint land) required the extra data plan (oldest son wanted that phone) I could see paying an extra 60-120 a month for a smart phone on top of my regular plan. I'll save money in the end by switching to sprint.. that was my main reason for jumping ship from Verizon. For me, in 2 months it's bye bye Verizon and Hello Sprint

before leaving Sprint and running to Verizon look at the amount saved over the entire contract. If the CS at the local store sucks then call Sprint CS and get better service.

 

Good luck with the Pre or Pixi. I had the Pre and liked it well for a short time. The BETAness of the phone and the flimsy build quality drove me away. I really like the Hero. But, I would like a bigger screen.

 

Hahaha, the threads get hijacked all the time, relax...

I feel your pain, went through it with the Palm Treo 800W, WinMo totally sux, nothing worked native, only 3rd party apps and had to hack the phone to keep it from locking up 6x a day where only fix was a battery pull. If I used the phone on the train to work, it had to be plugged in, I was always tethered to an outlet... anyway...

Honestly, the HERO is an awesome phone, I have had next to zero issues with the phone and those I did have were fixed by learning about it here and elsewhere. Iff there are anything more than minor issues, I would suggest seriously getting in touch with CS or the local store for a swap out. If within the 30 days you are in an even better position. Be nice but firm and don't accept anything less then you are willing to accept, period.

Just a word... I have found that calling CS after 6 p.m. (Eastern Time) results in getting better knowledgeable and customer friendly Sprint Representatives and have gotten ANYTHING I asked for from them.

Give it a shot... let us know how it goes.

Happy Trails

 

So do you still want the Pre or Pixi? LOL Glad everything is working for you now. I just got the Hero yesterday and im super happy!

 

I'm glad we saved you

 

I had the Pre. I am not going to knock it. It was a very good phone. It just lacked some features (and programs). I also had the Moment. Also a very nice phone. However, the Hero is just awesome.

 

I just had to pop in and say how sorry I feel for the guy who started this thread. I didn't have the attention span to read his ENTIRE first, but it seems he is having some real difficulties.

Good luck to ya Bud.