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Thinking about buying an Ally

Sweet Chaos

Sweet Chaos

Android Enthusiast
I am looking into getting a smartphone soon and I'm really liking the LG Ally. I have use many LG phones in the past and currently have the LG Voyager and I LOVE it. I do have 2 concerns, however.

My biggest concern is the internal memory. The reason I'm getting a smartphone is mainly for the apps. I have been checking out apps on androlib.com and have noticed that not all of them are able to be put on a memory card. I am concerned that the small internal memory of the Ally would limit the amount of apps I could use that are not able to be put on a SD card. I've read mixed things about being able to put the apps on the SD card, some saying "yes you can" some saying "no you can't" and some saying "you can but you have to do crazy stuff to your phone first." I want to avoid rooting my phone if at all possible, it's just not something I'm comfortable with doing. I know that the phone has limited internal memory but I need to know if it's going to be to the point where it will not do what I am buying it to do. I have no idea how much memory these apps take up (I've heard some people say hardly any and other say that they can't use certain apps because it takes up all their memory).

Also, I am concerned about the slower processer speeds. I don't mind if the device runs a little slower than the higher end phones as long as it isn't anything too distracting. Again, I'll be running a lot of apps (and games) on it so I need to make sure it does what I need it to do.

The other phones I am considering are the Samsung Fascinate and the Droid 2. Due to my work I have to buy the phones at full retail price in order to make use of my employee discount, though, so the HUGE price difference between these phones and the Ally is daunting. I have no problem getting the Ally as long as it does what I need it to do. If you have any advice or info for me that'd be great. Thanks!!!!
 
App memory\storage would be a concern with the Ally if you intend to download and use a lot of apps, but the main reason why it might be best for you to go with the Fascinate or Droid 2 based on what you said is for the games.

While the Ally will play a lot of the games available, the types of games 'you' want to play has to be factored in. If you plan to play simple games (card games, Jewels, etc.), then you will have no problem. If you plan to play more advanced 3D games like Asphalt 5, then you will need to go with a more powerful phone like the Fascinate or D2. They are more equipped to handle the more advanced games.
 
Well I wouldn't be playing any crazy games, just things to keep me occupied while I'm out. I do have about 40 apps saved in my favorites on androlib.com though (a lot of them are similar programs that I will have to try before I decide which to keep and which to get rid of) and I just don't know if the Ally will be able to handle them. I know a few of them said they are able to be saved to the SD card but I don't know what that requires and I really don't want to have to root my phone.
 
At the moment, in order to save apps to the SDCard you would have to root your phone and install a custom ROM that enables apps2sd. If LG\Verizon ever releases the Froyo update to the Ally, then rooting would not be neccessary because Froyo supports apps2sd. Unfortunately no one knows for sure if Froyo will be pushed to the Ally or not. They said it would be, but it's been a long time coming.
 
Sweet Chaos said:
I am looking into getting a smartphone soon and I'm really liking the LG Ally. I have use many LG phones in the past and currently have the LG Voyager and I LOVE it. I do have 2 concerns, however.

My biggest concern is the internal memory. The reason I'm getting a smartphone is mainly for the apps. I have been checking out apps on androlib.com and have noticed that not all of them are able to be put on a memory card. I am concerned that the small internal memory of the Ally would limit the amount of apps I could use that are not able to be put on a SD card. I've read mixed things about being able to put the apps on the SD card, some saying "yes you can" some saying "no you can't" and some saying "you can but you have to do crazy stuff to your phone first." I want to avoid rooting my phone if at all possible, it's just not something I'm comfortable with doing. I know that the phone has limited internal memory but I need to know if it's going to be to the point where it will not do what I am buying it to do. I have no idea how much memory these apps take up (I've heard some people say hardly any and other say that they can't use certain apps because it takes up all their memory).

Also, I am concerned about the slower processer speeds. I don't mind if the device runs a little slower than the higher end phones as long as it isn't anything too distracting. Again, I'll be running a lot of apps (and games) on it so I need to make sure it does what I need it to do.

The other phones I am considering are the Samsung Fascinate and the Droid 2. Due to my work I have to buy the phones at full retail price in order to make use of my employee discount, though, so the HUGE price difference between these phones and the Ally is daunting. I have no problem getting the Ally as long as it does what I need it to do. If you have any advice or info for me that'd be great. Thanks!!!!
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buy a used droid 1 it is the fastest/cheepest
 
That's an excellent suggestion, especially if you thought the Ally would be a good choice for you. It's as fast or faster than the Ally and it already has the Froyo update so you would have apps2sd support without having to root.
 
Thanks for the advice. I'll definitely take a look at the Droid 1 as well. I have heard a lot of complaints about it, though.
 
As with most things in life, the complainers have a louder voice than those that are happy so I wouldn't put too much stock in what the complainers have to say. Most likely there are far more people happy with their Droid 1 than unhappy. You just never hear from them because they have nothing to complain about.

I will say this though, the Droid 1 is an old phone so I wouldn't pay too much for one right now. Unless you can get it for a really cheap price, it might not be worth the money. Personally, I wouldn't pay more than $50 for one now and I'm not even sure i'd pay $50. New Droid 2's can be bought from Verizon for $150 so spending over $50 for a Droid 1 wouldn't make much sense cost wise.
 
flyinjoe13 said:
As with most things in life, the complainers have a louder voice than those that are happy so I wouldn't put too much stock in what the complainers have to say. Most likely there are far more people happy with their Droid 1 than unhappy. You just never hear from them because they have nothing to complain about. I will say this though, the Droid 1 is an old phone so I wouldn't pay too much for one right now. Unless you can get it for a really cheap price, it might not be worth the money. Personally, I wouldn't pay more than $50 for one now and I'm not even sure i'd pay $50. New Droid 2's can be bought from Verizon for $150 so spending over $50 for a Droid 1 wouldn't make much sense cost wise.
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Cheapest ive seen droid 1's are $150 on ebay. Even the Ally costs more on ebay but not by much. With the price of the Incerdible and other high end phones being $350+ i think $150 for a droid 1 isnt bad.
 
Yeah I haven't looked into the Droid yet but looking at the Ally on eBay it seems they run about $100-$150, and that's before checking the ESNs to make sure they aren't stolen phones. We have the Droid 2 in the store I work at for $100 with a 2 year contract (after $100 mail-in rebate) so I can't image being able to find it cheap without a contract. If I can get my hands on a Fascinate or Droid 2 for less than $200 I'll nap that up but I don't really want to get a used phone unless it's in perfect condition and the seller has a good rep.
 
Each phone out there seems to have some sort of issues.

I hate the physical keyboard on the Droid and Droid2. I don't like the lack of physical keyboard on the Incredible. I don't like things about my Ally, too (inconsistent battery life, very finicky at times with force closures, saving pics to the sd card, and playing music).

When my Ally works - I absolutely love it.
 
White I'm not a huge fan of the D1 or D2 keyboard and the keyboard on the Ally is very nice, the Ally's drawbacks overpower it's great keyboard. The Ally is my wife's phone and just a couple of days ago she said to me, get a better phone after having the phone for about 6 months. The app storage and text message storage issues are huge problems. Not only is battery life not good, but also problems posting pictures to facebook from the phone. I would say wait a couple of weeks and get the HTC Merge.
 
The d2 keyboard isnt nearly as bad as the d1. i love the ally's keyboard. but i love my incredible. i traded my d2 for it. as far as app storage on the ally, you have to watch what apps you install. and text storage uses internal memory as well as apps so alot of apps and texts will slow it down alot. lg socialite sucks, stick with the actual facebook app. and as far as uploading pictures go from the app its not too bad. as far as battery life, are you running task killers and alot of widgets? those drain battery fast as they keep the phone from "sleeping" another thing to try is to condition the batter. charge it up completely and let it drain completely then charge again and drain completely the charge back up.
 
If you don't mind going for screen only phone, LG vortex is a good mid-range device that I can recommend. I switched to it from Ally last week, and I am very happy with it so far. It's got only 50% more internal storage than Ally but has twice the RAM 512Mb and mostly importantly it's running 2.2 froyo on board. I couldn't believe that it has the same CPU as Ally. Everything is moving so much faster, smoother than Ally even in the stock LG launcher. It almost feels like Dinc, Fascinate in the basic apps except for the screen quality.
 
I agree about the Vortex. It was a surprisingly smooth running phone when I played with it at the VZ Store. I imagine that's due to Froyo and the extra RAM. It's just a shame it doesn't come with a keyboard or a better display or I would have made the switch right then and there. Probaly going to hold out until the HTC Merge is released before I switch phones. I just gotta have a physical keyboard.
 
I was looking at Vortex, Fascinate, D2 global at the Costco mobile store where I bought my Ally before. It was tough decision. Fascinate screen looks very nice, but it's still stuck with 2.1 and I am not fan of TouchWiz UI. D2 global felt very fast, but the battery life seems to be short, and keyboard is worse than Ally. I was swayed to Vortex mainly by its lower price, 2.2 on board and light, sleek form factor.

The screen quality is my only gripe on Vortex with lower resolution than Ally. But it's not too bad. It's fairly bright, crisp and feels a little wider because of lower aspect ratio than Ally's WVGA screen. The virtual keyboard on Vortex feels quite comfortable in landscape mode and it also supports swype mode. Though it's not top of the line super-phone, I am happy with it.
 
Based on what I've learned, I don't think the Ally is going to be the phone for me. I am looking more seriously at the Fascinate but I'm worried about the lack of a keyboard. I currently have the LG Voyager (standard multimedia phone with full keyboard) so I've gotten used to using the keyboard and I'm nervous about going to a virtual keyboard. How hard is it to make the switch?

I want to thank everyone again for your replies. I was on a forum that just focused on the Ally before I joined here and the people there were very rude and not helpful at all. I appreciate your willingness to help those of us who are new to Android without being snarky and rude. You guys rawk <3
 
Sweet Chaos said:
Based on what I've learned, I don't think the Ally is going to be the phone for me. I am looking more seriously at the Fascinate but I'm worried about the lack of a keyboard. I currently have the LG Voyager (standard multimedia phone with full keyboard) so I've gotten used to using the keyboard and I'm nervous about going to a virtual keyboard. How hard is it to make the switch?
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If you should rely on your phone for typing long messages regularly, I think having physical keyboard is definitely handy. But with large screen phones like Fascinate, Droid X, I guess virtual keyboard should work fine too.
There are only two android phones with physical keyboard on Verizon, Ally and Droid 2. Ally is still capable phone for any basic task with very good keyboard. It's just slower, has less storage than other fast phones. I think you can't go too wrong with any of these phones and you have 30 days to see if it's good one for you or not.
 
Yeah, I think once I get my line in order I'm going to give the Fascinate a try. Hopefully the virtual keyboard won't ruin the experience for me.
 
Sweet Chaos, if you can, go to a phone store, or ask a friend if you can try their phone, and type for several minutes on a phone's virtual keyboard. If you are like me, it won't take long. I hate all of them.

I chose the Ally because it has the slide out qwerty keyboard when I could have gotten a Droid Incredible with a 1GHz proc. had I wanted one instead. It's lack of a keyboard killed that for me. I see some of the newest Android phones coming out still have keyboards, and I am so GLAD to see it. I do a lot of typing on my phone, and use it far more for a PDA than for communicating. I like the Ally keyboard all except for where they put the Home key on it. But my large fingers cause that issue so likely not anything you would notice.

But you will definitely have memory space issues with the Ally after what I read above that you want. I just rooted mine yesterday to solve that lack of memory problem myself, and I don't have as many apps as you mentioned. Some have small footprints, but some of mine are 12-15MB each. Those fill things up fast.

I'll tell you that I was anxious about rooting too, and kept putting it off hoping the Froyo 2.2 OS version was coming to the Ally "some day". We may yet see it (Last I hear is Feb 2011) and some people on here are actually making a knock off ROM that will probably be better, but I got tired of waiting on LG/VZ to act. Once you root the Ally most of the fears melt away. It isn't really all that dangerous or difficult. But if you don't want to, I completely understand. :)

I can say the little Ally is pretty robust. Mine has unfortunately skittered across the floor (even concrete) a few times, even with the keyboard open, and never took any damage at all. I have a screen film on it, but no case. It is holding up really well for me.

Zoandroid
 
Zoandroid said:
Sweet Chaos, if you can, go to a phone store, or ask a friend if you can try their phone, and type for several minutes on a phone's virtual keyboard. If you are like me, it won't take long. I hate all of them.

I chose the Ally because it has the slide out qwerty keyboard when I could have gotten a Droid Incredible with a 1GHz proc. had I wanted one instead. It's lack of a keyboard killed that for me. I see some of the newest Android phones coming out still have keyboards, and I am so GLAD to see it. I do a lot of typing on my phone, and use it far more for a PDA than for communicating. I like the Ally keyboard all except for where they put the Home key on it. But my large fingers cause that issue so likely not anything you would notice.

But you will definitely have memory space issues with the Ally after what I read above that you want. I just rooted mine yesterday to solve that lack of memory problem myself, and I don't have as many apps as you mentioned. Some have small footprints, but some of mine are 12-15MB each. Those fill things up fast.

I'll tell you that I was anxious about rooting too, and kept putting it off hoping the Froyo 2.2 OS version was coming to the Ally "some day". We may yet see it (Last I hear is Feb 2011) and some people on here are actually making a knock off ROM that will probably be better, but I got tired of waiting on LG/VZ to act. Once you root the Ally most of the fears melt away. It isn't really all that dangerous or difficult. But if you don't want to, I completely understand. :)

I can say the little Ally is pretty robust. Mine has unfortunately skittered across the floor (even concrete) a few times, even with the keyboard open, and never took any damage at all. I have a screen film on it, but no case. It is holding up really well for me.

Zoandroid
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Thanks for the info. Yeah the keyboard was one of the things that drew me to the Ally. The other is that I've had other LG phones in the past and they are all working perfectly now, even though they're a number of years old. I'll definitely have to try what you said and get typing on one. I was thinking the Droid 2 but I don't really like the look of it. I'm just gonna have to do some playing around.
 
Here is what i have to say, i read down to you dont want to root at all if possible.

With the LG Ally if you want a decent phone, you have no other option but to root. Go with the Droid 2 for large internal memory. It has 8GB our phones have around 100MB
 
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