HI- So: Do I Want a Droid?? Or are they still the same?

[boomette]

So, I've decided that I probably need to upgrade to a smart phone for business use. The thing is, The Marital Unit and I both HATE his Droid!

It's an older model - don't know which one. He's with Verizon, and his 2-year contract expires in March, so it's from spring 2010. We went pre-shopping, I liked the LG - smaller, fit my hand better, etc. But the salesman said I should get the Samsung Stratosphere. It does look like a nice phone - sleeker and more rounded than our old sharp-cornered beast. But as much trouble as we have with the old Droid, I'm not sure I want one at all. To wit:

Phone powers down and locks itself. When it rings, it's a mad scramble to unlock with the slide and answer B4 it goes to voicemail. Also, the volume keeps getting adjusted. How come the screen locks, but the volume button doesn't? And sleek as it is, would it kill them to add a button to answer the phone?

The whole phone is just so wonky and tetchy. I want the physical QWERTY, since trying to use the touch screen is such a nightmare with my short, fat fingers. It takes me minutes to compose a text; it keeps switching to different screens, when I'm sure I didn't touch the other keys. I can't enter anyone into my contact list unless I already have the phone number on the list - and it's still an ordeal then. My little T-Mobile prepaid cheapie is much more functionaL It's great to be able to access Google and Mapquest and all that; but how do you keep the screen from disappearing for no discernible reason? And call me a Luddite; but a lot of the time, I want to use my cell phone TO MAKE A FREAKIN' PHONE CALL!!

Granted, the phone has fallen out of his pocket a few times - it won't turn off any more. But from the very beginning, straight out of the box, we had these issues.

What I'm really asking, and can't find on the Web, is: Are the newer Droids more stable, user-friendly, and idiot-proof than they were 2 years ago? Or is it the Nature of the Beast to be temperamental, hard to navigate, and generally Crazy-Making for those of us who don't live online, but just want to be able to check the news or look up a restaraunt location between calls? Are they the same old box of aggravation in a new case, with more bells and whistles? Or have they become more usable for regular, middle-aged humans?

Not sure where to post this, so I figured I'd start here. Thanks!

[tjk629]

It depends on the phone your friend has. DROID is a verizon brand name; so not all android phones on Verizon are droids. Based on what you're saying it's possible he may have had something like the DROID Eris.

Advancements have been made with android as well as the skins. So it's possible you'll have a better chance with it.

Just as an FYI you have 14 days when you get a new phone with vzw to return it no questions asked. So if you don't like the phone for whatever reason you can give it back to them within 14days of purchase.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using DroidForums

[JSM9872]

Welcome to DF boomette!

Like tjk said I feel like they are more user friendly now. You do have the trial period (although I believe there is a restocking fee) and on top of that it would not hurt to just go into a VZW location and play around with them a bit.

[SFGate]

Welcome to the site.

[JeffDenver]

The new android phones are dramatically better in every way. "Droid" is just a brand name Verizon uses for advertising. Droid phones are not really any different from any other Android phone.

The best phones on Verizon right now are the Droid Razr, HTC Rezound, and the Galaxy Nexus. Which is best depends on what features you consider the most important. None of them are the best at everything. I personally like the Rezound the best if the three.

[smalltowngirl13]

Hello and welcome!

Good luck on your decision!

[boomette]

Thanks for the info, everyone; greetings from VERY Snowy Denver! I didn't know about the 14-day return; good to know, tho I'm sure they'd ding me with the restocking fee. I really need to at least decide if I want to get a Droid for sure, since there's a business app. I want to purchase, and I need to know which platform version to buy.

So - do the Improvements include stability, where looking at the phone sideways won't make it skip to another screen?

Sorry to be so whiny; but since I'll need this for business communications, I'll be locked in to my decision more than if I was just doing personal use. And it's surprisingly hard to find user reviews online that aren't Techie Talk, or rants - mostly about battery life, of course.

[tjk629]

So - do the Improvements include stability, where looking at the phone sideways won't make it skip to another screen?

Android is very diverse. You have custom skins, different hardware, and what not. So issues with a device usually are not related to the android OS in general. So if one phone has an issue another android phone most likely wont have the issue.

So with that in mind; it's hard to say if the issues your friend had will be fixed or not. Not without knowing what android phone your friend has.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using DroidForums

[JeffDenver]

So - do the Improvements include stability, where looking at the phone sideways won't make it skip to another screen?

Not sure what you mean here. You mean like the auto rotate feature making it switch screens? I don't think thats normal ... Even my Droid 1 didnt do that. None of these new phones do that.

The rezound is the most conventional of the new phones. It is like the old phones but with better everything. It still has all the same buttons and SD (unlike the Nexus) and a removable battery (unlike the Razr).

[boomette]

Oops - LOL - I didn't mean that literally .

I meant that the screen's so touchy that, at least on our current Droid (older model with QWERTY slider), screens just seem to come and go randomly, and I don't think we've even touched a button or icon. I want a phone that's not such an electronic version of an Emo Indigo Child.