1. kelton's Avatar
    I think I'm going to finally take that darn BB Storm from my girlfriend and give her something a little more fun and usable. (yes, I'm referring to her as the fool... because she is a phone-fool)

    I know only a little about Android phones, but I'm pretty sure that I do not want to go with the iPhone. I'm with Verizon.

    Also, I'd rather not extend my contract, so I'm thinking I'll buy something slightly used from Craigslist.

    OK, so she is not a power user. She seems to like the touchscreen (so keyboard not necessary). She is involved in google (calendar, email), so the android life would assist in making all of that work easily.

    I'm not hearing great reviews re: android cameras, but a decent camera would be very cool. (and it does NOT have to be 8+mp... they are cramming too many on those little chips).

    She would probably want to easily email photos to herself and others.

    I've seen some huge androids, so maybe one that isn't so darn big.

    The ability to tether or even"wirelessly hotspot" would be great. I'd also like a phone that isn't known to have super short battery life (or at least, has the capability of accepting an over-sized battery)

    Any recommendations?

    We aren't broke, so we can avoid the nicest phones available, but this girl amazes me with how little she cares for or uses cool gadgets.

    Thanks!
    02-11-11 06:21 AM
  2. VideoEngineerAJS's Avatar
    It really depends on how much you are willing to spend. In my area there were quite a few original Motorola Droids that were barely used at $175 or under on Craigs List.

    I ended up getting a one month old Motorola Droid for my wife for $175 about a week ago. Of course she wanted the keyboard so that's part of the reason she was looking for the Droid or the Droid 2.

    The Droid 1/2 are a bit bulky but I don't know if it would really be noticeable if she already has a Storm. The Droid 1/2 have 5MP cameras but I know the 1 doesn't have a flash.

    All of the other Droids seem to sell for a lot more and I've heard HTC battery life leaves a bit to be desired. This is part of the reason I'm still not sure if I'm going to get the Thunderbolt or if I'm going to wait for the Bionic.
    02-11-11 08:34 AM
  3. Chris2183's Avatar
    Take a look at the Samsung Fascinate. It has a beautiful 4in screen and a 1ghz processor. The interface (Touchwhiz) is good looking and easy to navigate. You will not get the battery life from a droid like you do a BB but my wife makes through an entire day on a charge on her Fascinate

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    02-11-11 10:02 AM
  4. Xopher's Avatar
    I have the Samsung Mesmerize (same device as the Fascinate) and it has a decent camera. The 4" screen seemed big at first, but now my Tour feels small.

    There are some HTC models that aren't as big that might work well for her, too. Anything with a 3.5"+ screen should be fine. The bigger issue is finding one that either has 2.1 or 2.2 installed (or, if you feel comfortable tweaking, root and put a different ROM on the device). Having a 2.2/2.3 device would be optimal, but 2.1 is just fine.

    If the two of you use BBM a lot to communicate, you'll want something like PingChat or LiveProfile (which isn't out for BB yet) so you can keep the similar experience. Google Talk also works well (although doesn't have the S/D/R confirmations).
    02-11-11 10:12 AM
  5. Chris2183's Avatar
    I would have reccomended the HTC Droid Incredible if the battery life wasnt so horrible on it.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    02-11-11 12:15 PM
  6. Blkbear's Avatar
    Personally I'd let the wife play with a few phones in the stores to see which ones she likes, as far as size and fit for her, then hunt for what you can find on the used market.
    lssanjose likes this.
    02-11-11 12:50 PM
  7. kelton's Avatar
    Hmmmm

    Your advice is much appreciated. Somehow, I'm a little disappointed in the android offerings (or is it with Verizon's offerings?). I went to the Verizon store and was underwhelmed.

    If my girlfriend would go for it, I would be just as happy if she'd take a new blackberry.... at least I know my way around those phones.

    Thinking again, maybe the iPhone would be the easy choice. Not buggy or fiddly, kinda cool, easy for her, etc. (and I think the iPhone has one of the nicer cameras.)
    02-11-11 02:13 PM
  8. jd914's Avatar
    Hmmmm

    Your advice is much appreciated. Somehow, I'm a little disappointed in the android offerings (or is it with Verizon's offerings?). I went to the Verizon store and was underwhelmed.

    If my girlfriend would go for it, I would be just as happy if she'd take a new blackberry.... at least I know my way around those phones.

    Thinking again, maybe the iPhone would be the easy choice. Not buggy or fiddly, kinda cool, easy for her, etc. (and I think the iPhone has one of the nicer cameras.)
    Verizon has probably the best line of Android devices.
    What exactly were you looking at?

    You would be doing her a great disservice by convincing her to get a Blackberry IMO.
    02-11-11 02:18 PM
  9. Tre Lawrence's Avatar
    It wouldn't surprise me if some VZW stores did a little bit of, uh... rearranging in the last few weeks to push their new flagship device...
    02-11-11 02:39 PM
  10. VideoEngineerAJS's Avatar
    It wouldn't surprise me if some VZW stores did a little bit of, uh... rearranging in the last few weeks to push their new flagship device...
    If the iPhone is their "flagship", then something is horribly wrong. I thought the Thunderbolt or the Bionic would end up being their flagship.
    02-11-11 03:14 PM
  11. Accidental Post's Avatar
    Got the wife a fascinate and she has been very happy....which makes me very happy.....
    02-11-11 03:21 PM
  12. jd914's Avatar
    If the iPhone is their "flagship", then something is horribly wrong. I thought the Thunderbolt or the Bionic would end up being their flagship.
    iPhone might be their flagship at the moment but from the turn out yesterday I doubt VZW will give it anymore thought after the Android heavy hitters arrive.
    02-11-11 03:23 PM
  13. xliderider's Avatar
    Got the wife a fascinate and she has been very happy....which makes me very happy.....
    My wife is very happy with her Fascinate as well...

    Have you put the Froyo EB01 rom on it yet?
    02-11-11 03:30 PM
  14. 67Tucker's Avatar
    My wife and daughter both love their Incredibles.
    02-11-11 03:54 PM
  15. Xopher's Avatar
    You have to remember that Android is made to be tweaked. Out-of-the-box, it can seem very plain. The trick is to get it set up the way the individual wants it.

    It is sort of like picking a theme to go on your BlackBerry. You can pick one (or a couple) that fits your style. Just with Android, you can change out widgets, backgrounds, and so on, to make the device yours. It's a lot more flexible than a BlackBerry in that respect (and much more so than an iPhone). That nice feature is also sometimes the downfall, since what you see when you look at a stock Android device might be a little less flashy than what they are capable of being.
    02-11-11 04:02 PM
  16. Jude526's Avatar
    I have the Incredible I have the 1800 mAh battery and get 12-15 hours with it and still fits the back that comes with the device. I love it and I come from BB
    02-11-11 04:39 PM
  17. lssanjose's Avatar
    I think BlkBear said it best. We just have to remember it's the other's device, and not ours. I may like a Droid, but my sister got a little frustrated with it. Also, each person has different objectives for their phone use. I like to tweak the device much, my sibs rather have something working out of the box, without much maintenance, if any.
    K Bear and Blkbear like this.
    02-11-11 10:52 PM
  18. Blkbear's Avatar
    ......We just have to remember it's the other's device, and not ours. I may like a Droid, but my sister got a little frustrated with it. Also, each person has different objectives for their phone use. I like to tweak the device much, my sibs rather have something working out of the box, without much maintenance, if any.
    When buying gifts like a phone for someone else, it's always best to let them have more input. Cause it won't matter what I like, if they have other tastes in their electronic devices. Anytime I have spent a few bucks on electronics, I have always asked the person to come with me when "picking" out their gift, that way they get what they want in the price range I had set in mind, and if they want something a little more, they are more than welcome to make up the difference.

    Crass? Nah not really, because with some items, you have to go with what they will use, like and want, vs what you think they might like.
    K Bear likes this.
    02-13-11 02:44 AM
  19. eric6052's Avatar
    The Incredible would be my suggestion as well. HTC Sense is a very nice and easy to use skin on Android. Otherwise definitely look at the iPhone. For non power users ios is very easy to use even if alot of us geeks think its boring as ****. Definitely let her play with phones and see what she likes since it will be her phone.
    02-16-11 10:40 AM
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