Inspire 4G testdrive (radio shack)

[AndreaCristiano]

New to the forum, but planning on the Inspire. Intended to jump into smartphones last fall (my Razr still says Cingular) and am locked into ATT because my whole family has iPhones on family plan, but I never cared for the iPhone. I decided on the captivate, but after checking the forums decided to wait for it to get 2.2, so I would have true voice dialing over Bluetooth and good GPS so I wouldn't get grief from the family because both work fine on their iPhones. I'm still waiting.

Anyway, I'm giving the edge to the Inspire over the Atrix in part because it seems to have everything I need and is somewhat more mature technology, so should have fewer problems on launch and accordingly less chance of grief from the family. I'm a bit concerned about the battery, but based on the other posts I should be OK since I am not a heavy user.

I'm hoping I can get Swype on it, since I liked that when I was playing with the Captivate in the ATT Store.

Good move! Welcome.to.the forums and the Inspire!

 

[HustlinDaily]

I'm hoping I can get Swype on it, since I liked that when I was playing with the Captivate in the ATT Store.

The Swype beta is now open to the public- Swype | Text Input for Screens

I am using it on my Liquid and it is awesome.

 

[AndreaCristiano]

The Swype beta is now open to the public- Swype | Text Input for Screens

I am using it on my Liquid and it is awesome.

I like swype but I find the regular keyboard is faster for me

 

[HustlinDaily]

Thank you for posting this, but it looks like the Atrix is the better phone for me.

Unless I am missing something important, this seems like just a 2010 phone with a 4g radio.

Yeah don't see the reason for your post but as somebody who is very closely debating the same two phones (slightly leaning towards this but not going to make a decision until I get to play around with both), let me chime in.

Well it is a late 2010 phone lol (I think it released in Europe in November 2010). That is pretty much 2011. I think you are being a little nit picky here. If by "2010 device" you are referring to the Evo, then you would be wrong. This phone owns the Evo (as it should since it is almost a year newer). It has a better processor, more RAM (768 v 512), more internal storage (4GB v 1GB), Super LCD screen, Sense 2.0.. Also with the unibody aluminum casing, this phone looks better than the Evo imo.

It utilizes the current generation of the Snapdragon system which should be seen in alot of phones this year (including phones by HTC, Sony Ericsson, Acer, LG, Viewsonic and probably more). This generation of Snapdragon processors consumes less power than the previous generation (better battery life), has a better GPU (better graphics/gaming) and can be overclocked to run stable at higher frequencies than the previous generation of Snapdragon chips. While it is single core, it is still a very good single core chip (in terms of everyday performance, the best single-core chip according to Smartbench. Tho in terms of gaming, Hummingbird does have an edge).

Also, considering how dual core devices are still very new and not yet optimized to reach full potential (don't get me wrong, Motorola did make the changes they need to make but I think apps are not yet optimized to take advantage of the full potential except for the TegraZone games and last thing I need is games right now since I can get hooked easy lol), I would say that this will still be a very relevant processor in 2011 (and this can be seen by how many of the manufacturers above are choosing to put it in their 2011 devices).

There is always something better around the corner. Today it is dual core, tomorrow it is 3D, day after it will be quad core. This is a constantly evolving technology. Qualcomm makes a processor, Nvdia makes a better processor than that, TI makes a better processor than that, Samsung makes a better processor than that, Qualcomm makes a better processor than that and the cycle is ongoing forever. Maybe some new players arrive to the game.

Not only that, this phone also features the newest version of HTC Sense (first phone in the United States to do so). A nice video highlighting Sense can be seen here- http://androidforums.com/htc-inspire-4g/267674-new-sense-inspire.html . Personally, I prefer this to MOTOBLUR (which is why this decision is so tough for me). I personally think that this device looks better than the Atrix and the UI looks so much cleaner. I don't think any manufacturer does eye candy better than HTC. They are just so innovative.

And if you care about modding, it has an unencrypted bootloader meaning you are not stuck with Sense. You can try out other ROMs such as Gingerbread (Cyanogenmod 7 available for the Desire HD with all hardware working), stock Android ROMs, other custom ROMs (maybe Sense based but optimized to work faster). While on the Motorola, you are stuck with MOTOBLUR (or MOTOBLUR based ROMs) and the only way you can get a future version of Android working is if Motorola releases it (which is kind of funny since one of the main arguments for the Atrix is how "future-proof" it is).




Wow this really is a tough decision.

Atrix has the dual core processor, 1GB of RAM (tho 768 is more than enough for me), higher resolution gorilla glass (tho Inspire has a 4.3" super LCD and 480p isn't pixelated for my eyes. Plus SLCD is a big advantage), FFC (not too important tho my sister has an iPhone 4 and she is teaching in Africa for a year so I could use it occasionally), HDMI port which outputs the entire screen (that does sound cool).



I would probably be happy with either but I can see myself wishing I had whichever I do not get at times lol (if I get the Moto, I'd probably be wishing I could flash custom ROMs. If I get the HTC, I'd probably be wishing it had the hardware of the Moto).

I should just flip some coins.

 

[AndreaCristiano]

Yeah don't see the reason for your post but as somebody who is very closely debating the same two phones (slightly leaning towards this but not going to make a decision until I get to play around with both), let me chime in.

Well it is a late 2010 phone lol (I think it released in Europe in November 2010). That is pretty much 2011. I think you are being a little nit picky here. If by "2010 device" you are referring to the Evo, then you would be wrong. This phone owns the Evo (as it should since it is almost a year newer). It has a better processor, more RAM (768 v 512), more internal storage (4GB v 1GB), Super LCD screen, Sense 2.0.. Also with the unibody aluminum casing, this phone looks better than the Evo imo.

It utilizes the current generation of the Snapdragon system which should be seen in alot of phones this year (including phones by HTC, Sony Ericsson, Acer, LG, Viewsonic and probably more). This generation of Snapdragon processors consumes less power than the previous generation (better battery life), has a better GPU (better graphics/gaming) and can be overclocked to run stable at higher frequencies than the previous generation of Snapdragon chips. While it is single core, it is still a very good single core chip (in terms of everyday performance, the best single-core chip according to Smartbench. Tho in terms of gaming, Hummingbird does have an edge).

Also, considering how dual core devices are still very new and not yet optimized to reach full potential (don't get me wrong, Motorola did make the changes they need to make but I think apps are not yet optimized to take advantage of the full potential except for the TegraZone games and last thing I need is games right now since I can get hooked easy lol), I would say that this will still be a very relevant processor in 2011 (and this can be seen by how many of the manufacturers above are choosing to put it in their 2011 devices).

There is always something better around the corner. Today it is dual core, tomorrow it is 3D, day after it will be quad core. This is a constantly evolving technology. Qualcomm makes a processor, Nvdia makes a better processor than that, TI makes a better processor than that, Samsung makes a better processor than that, Qualcomm makes a better processor than that and the cycle is ongoing forever. Maybe some new players arrive to the game.

Not only that, this phone also features the newest version of HTC Sense (first phone in the United States to do so). A nice video highlighting Sense can be seen here- http://androidforums.com/htc-inspire-4g/267674-new-sense-inspire.html . Personally, I prefer this to MOTOBLUR (which is why this decision is so tough for me). I personally think that this device looks better than the Atrix and the UI looks so much cleaner. I don't think any manufacturer does eye candy better than HTC. They are just so innovative.

And if you care about modding, it has an unencrypted bootloader meaning you are not stuck with Sense. You can try out other ROMs such as Gingerbread (Cyanogenmod 7 available for the Desire HD with all hardware working), stock Android ROMs, other custom ROMs (maybe Sense based but optimized to work faster). While on the Motorola, you are stuck with MOTOBLUR (or MOTOBLUR based ROMs) and the only way you can get a future version of Android working is if Motorola releases it (which is kind of funny since one of the main arguments for the Atrix is how "future-proof" it is).




Wow this really is a tough decision.

Atrix has the dual core processor, 1GB of RAM (tho 768 is more than enough for me), higher resolution gorilla glass (tho Inspire has a 4.3" super LCD and 480p isn't pixelated for my eyes. Plus SLCD is a big advantage), FFC (not too important tho my sister has an iPhone 4 and she is teaching in Africa for a year so I could use it occasionally), HDMI port which outputs the entire screen (that does sound cool).



I would probably be happy with either but I can see myself wishing I had whichever I do not get at times lol (if I get the Moto, I'd probably be wishing I could flash custom ROMs. If I get the HTC, I'd probably be wishing it had the hardware of the Moto).

I should just flip some coins.

Very well put and I believe if you reread what you wrote your mind is already made up. You want the inspire. You know that the dual core wont be utilized by software or yourself. You know the HTC has better nodding capabilities. You know you like sense better than blur. You know you like the HTC asthetically better and you know HTC quality is better. So I think your confusing yourself for no reason. You are one of the Inspired Go with the inspiration!!!

Ps that should be the commercials slogan!!!
" You are the INSPIRED, go with the inspiration"
Man im good lol

 

[HustlinDaily]

Lol I like it.

It is tough because I can't remember the last time I have been in a 2-year contract and this commitment is fairly long for a technology which is constantly evolving. I know the Inspire will be a very relevant phone this year but who knows how relevant it will be next year, especially given how often an Android OS variant is released (my Acer Liquid is almost one year old and despite the Snapdragon processor, does not run as smoothly as it should on Froyo because clearly Froyo is not meant to run efficiently with only 256MB of RAM, at least for me since I have 7 homescreens full of widgets and alot of apps. And while the development community is still fairly strong, there were some devs leaving for better phones such as the Galaxy S or Liquid Metal)

The thing about the Atrix is that it has hardware which could still be relevant two years down the line (if any phone released early this year will be, it would potentially be that phone).

I think I am 65-45 Inspire-Atrix. Once both phones are released (hopefully the same-day release rumors circling around turn out to be true), I will go to an AT&T store, play around with both and purchase the one which feels right.

 

[SoFLO]

I've deleted 7 posts in this thread...this is just a friendly reminder to all to keep it clean. If you don't have anything nice or constructive to say, don't say it or respond to it

 

[AndreaCristiano]

Lol I like it.

It is tough because I can't remember the last time I have been in a 2-year contract and this commitment is fairly long for a technology which is constantly evolving. I know the Inspire will be a very relevant phone this year but who knows how relevant it will be next year, especially given how often an Android OS variant is released (my Acer Liquid is almost one year old and despite the Snapdragon processor, does not run as smoothly as it should on Froyo because clearly Froyo is not meant to run efficiently with only 256MB of RAM, at least for me since I have 7 homescreens full of widgets and alot of apps. And while the development community is still fairly strong, there were some devs leaving for better phones such as the Galaxy S or Liquid Metal)

The thing about the Atrix is that it has hardware which could still be relevant two years down the line (if any phone released early this year will be, it would potentially be that phone).

I think I am 65-45 Inspire-Atrix. Once both phones are released (hopefully the same-day release rumors circling around turn out to be true), I will go to an AT&T store, play around with both and purchase the one which feels right.

I think youre making a good point. although I have decided especially after I received the CR-48 last night wooohooo!!!!!! So its inspire all the way!!!!

 

[aaaLT]

I know its killing me with this.decision. I came upon it on a website thought it was sweet

see for me the decision between an atrix and inspire isnt dificult. I currently have a motorla backflip and i HATE motoblur, sense is gonna be much better.
The only thing good about the atrix is the dual core processor and the laptop dock.

Id easily fall in love with and 4.3 inch HTC phone with Sense.
The only problem is im not sure weather to get the Inspire or wait for At&T to launch its 4G LTE network and maybe see if they release another HTC phone that runs on the LTE network, maybe one like the Thunderbolt, with a front faceing camera and a better battery.

 

[mattbe213]

I think youre making a good point. although I have decided especially after I received the CR-48 last night wooohooo!!!!!! So its inspire all the way!!!!

AWESOME!!! Do you like it? I may be getting one. One was supposed to deliver today here in Joplin, MO but we had sort of a blizzard so UPS couldn't deliver today.

Matt

 

[AndreaCristiano]

AWESOME!!! Do you like it? I may be getting one. One was supposed to deliver today here in Joplin, MO but we had sort of a blizzard so UPS couldn't deliver today.

Matt

Its pretty cool so far. A little getting used to because its all web app based but its cool

 

[jonnyboy]

dude that phone is soooo sick!! cant wait to replace my shitty iphone 3gs.... what is the deal with 4g i thought that was only on sprint or is att roaming on sprint now... i am going to radioshack TODAY!!!!

 

[Loiselle]

dude that phone is soooo sick!! cant wait to replace my shitty iphone 3gs.... what is the deal with 4g i thought that was only on sprint or is att roaming on sprint now... i am going to radioshack TODAY!!!!

Well, going today won't do anything... try closer to Feb 13th. Like a day or 2 prior.

 

[jonnyboy]

oh no i thought it was already for sale.... why is radioshack advertising it if it is not for sale????

and what is the latest link it is not working????

 

[jonnyboy]

can someone tell me the latest link for that phone please the one at the top has stopped working i have tried email radioshack.com for it but they have not answered.... i want to show my friend he works for tmobile....

 

[Chapp1e]

I believe they pulled the link.

 

[AndreaCristiano]

Yes it seems they have