[Grafixx01#AC]

Ok, so I have been using BlackBerries for years and have the Tour (9630). I was looking at getting the new Bold 9650 but saw that HTC with the 1ghz processor and the 8megapixel camera and now am in a tossup.

Can anyone tell me why an Android phone would be better than a BlackBerry?

I know the question has probably been asked and I know it's more of a "whatever floats your boat" and "get what you like" and "get what suits your needs" but I'm just trying to figure out which is overall better with applications, reliability (as you may have seen with all the Tour problems, etc.)

Please help me...

[scheets973]

Got the 9650-- just returned it. I am getting the HTC EVO. Use it, and get the premiere upgrade and if your not satisfied after the year get a new phone. But, this was far to great of a phone to pass up.

[Grafixx01#AC]

So you just returned the Bold 9650 to get the EVO? I was looking at the Incredible. What was wrong with the 9650? What do you like more about the Android? What is the premium thing you're talking about?

[kennyl10]

Well, I have had my share of smart phones between 4 bb's and now 3 androids and 2 iphones.....The last 3 have been android now...The reason I pick android is first and foremost you can customize the crap out of it the way you cant with bb and iphone..the widgets are awesome and the app store is getting bigger. The browser is better than the bb but not the iphone...although I havent used the browser on my EVO yet. I like having everything sync with my gmail and keeping my contacts on the cloud Blackberry has a more "professional" calendar but android has ones that are catching up...but if you get and HTC Android phone with sense the calendar is awesome...The iphone is always going to look the same and its a solid device, the blackberry theme can change but mostly always looks the same..Android you can have a different setup depending upon your location and it automagicly changes it when you get in the areas set up...that way when im at home my hot chick background isnt there for my gf to see but i have it as soon as i drive away from the house

[Grimagination]

Kennyl10 pretty much nailed it. I've had 3 BB's and just turned in my 9700 for the MyTouch 3g Slide. The browser is light years ahead of the BB (tho I agree with Kennyl, not superior to iPhone) and the customization is pretty spectacular. Imagine changing your BB theme by touching the icons rather than load an entirely new theme. Media apps are also better; I've found the music players on the G1 and MyTouch at least, similar to the iPhone and certainly better than BB. There is also the marketplace for new players and every app you can imagine, many free.

Where BB is still the king of smartphones? Battery life. The Android OS is a power eater, moreso than even the iPhone so if you change over then you definitely need to pick up an extra charger regardless of the device. I put my Slide thru heavy paces and had to recharge in 6 hours, where the 9700 would have been good for another day.

As you mentioned, really it's always your preference. RIM hasn't made any significant effort to grow beyond the business aspects of smartphones and granted it's a solid niche. However if you're looking for more social aspects of a smartphone, Android is certainly worth considering.

[katdoc]

I am currently on 8330. I am also fed up w/ my apps & browser constantly crapping out & having to batt pull 3-6 times a day just to be able to use the features I like. From what I've read, I think the Android OS will fit me better, but all the phones seem the same. I will be staying on VZW & currently they only have 3 phones (1 of which is the incredible on backorder). So looking for suggestions from ppl familiar w/ the Android phones. On my ? I use the browser, push Yahoo email, mp3 player, and facebook & ubertwitter apps. Those are pretty much what I would like to have function better, don't need much else. Any suggestions? Anything I should be aware of that would be too different on an Android phone?

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[utomo]

BB Only won in two thing over the Android
1. Always Connected and Push Mail.
2. Battery Life

if Android can do the same. many people will move to Android

[kennyl10]

I am currently on 8330. I am also fed up w/ my apps & browser constantly crapping out & having to batt pull 3-6 times a day just to be able to use the features I like. From what I've read, I think the Android OS will fit me better, but all the phones seem the same. I will be staying on VZW & currently they only have 3 phones (1 of which is the incredible on backorder). So looking for suggestions from ppl familiar w/ the Android phones. On my ? I use the browser, push Yahoo email, mp3 player, and facebook & ubertwitter apps. Those are pretty much what I would like to have function better, don't need much else. Any suggestions? Anything I should be aware of that would be too different on an Android phone?

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

The Droid Incredible is worth the wait...I have the evo running the same power under the touch screen and it smokes....the browser is 9x better and bb, yahoo is pushing on androids i believe never used tho....mp3 on any of the droids will be an upgrade the facebook app is about the same and you dont need ubertwitter because the htc and android stand alone twitter apps are TOP notch

Stay away from the Eris its not powerful enough....the incredible has sense by htc and that cranks up your custom things much higher...if you are going to stay with big red i would go with the incredible

[vikingjunior]

BB Only won in two thing over the Android
1. Always Connected and Push Mail.
2. Battery Life

if Android can do the same. many people will move to Android

What he said.

[dwaynewilliams#WN]

As a BB user, I will admit that the coolest phones being made right now are Android devices. What one of the previous posters said about the theme changing automatically based on location; that's awesome. Android offers so much to consumers. But my user experience with BBs has been top notch. And I haven't been able to find a device that comes close to a BlackBerry smartphone in that respect. I'm saying this without test driving the EVO. I was going to do that tomorrow to see what that device is like. I still think that Android devices are really cool. But BBs are for me.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[fearmychickens]

I went from an 8900 to a Droid back in January and haven't looked back. BB is nice but it doesn't appeal to me like Android does.

[Grafixx01#AC]

So if I have Gmail, even though its required on Android, it doesn't push automatically like it does on the BlackBerry? I don't want to have to like constantly connect to download mail. That would start to **** me off a whole lot.

[ohgeez]

Well, I like both platforms which is the reason why I have both.

For me, they both have their pros and cons. The list below is my personal view.

Android Pros:
browsing the web
you-tube
fun apps
lots of customization
Android Cons:
lots of force closes on apps
form factor (weight, size, feeling in hands)
at times still feels "beta" to me
Don't like the way it manages my 4 email accounts
BATTERY, BATTERY, BATTERY. Cant go a full day without charge. Always have to be aware of screen brightness, make sure GPS is off, bluetooth, etc to conserve battery life.

BB Pros:
Very efficient. I can get so much more done in a shorter amount of time.
All the shortcuts to open programs
Custom profiles
Form Factor- lightweight, feels good in the hand, can easily manage with one hand
Sexy looking phone
Solid OS (even though it seems a little outdated)
Email
Texting/email typing a breeze
BATTERY BATTERY BATTERY. I have my brightness set to 100, WiFi and Bluetooth always on, twitter, berryweather, FB, browsing throughout the day, streaming Pandora/Slacker thru blue-tooth into my cars stereo system to and from work and by end of day, i'm still about 30-40% battery life.

BB Cons:
Smaller screen
web browsing
Not as many apps

As you already know, it really comes down to personal preference. Only you can know what your needs are and what things your willing to give up on any platform. I don't think there is that "perfect" phone. For me, I have both but my BB is my baby/workhorse

[hal1]

So if I have Gmail, even though its required on Android, it doesn't push automatically like it does on the BlackBerry? I don't want to have to like constantly connect to download mail. That would start to **** me off a whole lot.

No, Gmail is pretty close to what I would call 'native' on Android phones. Seemless operation with emails similar to what you would get on BB's..It's the OTHER email applications like yahoo, that may only refresh every 5-30 minutes.

But yes, you do NOT have to go into gmail.com to get your gmail email

[dragonsamus]

The browser was a big reason i went to android. I use the browser a lot and the bb browser wasn't cutting it anymore after a year. I haven't looked back. I do miss the keyboard though and the battery life of my 8900 but I'll survive. ;-)

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[mazinkaiser]

I had 4 different bb phones and liked most of them a lot until i got the storm2 which really sucked. surepress kept malfunctioning on me and the 9650 wasn't out yet so I got the droid and can't be happier. I'm self employed and I'm more productive now on the droid. BB supporters will say that their keyboard is superior, but the android voice recognition is so superior I use that feature to dictate whole emails and txt messages with great accuracy. And if you use the virtual keyboard, it doesn't take long to get up to speed with it. The future of smartphones are apps and RIM will eventually go the way of palm and windows mobile os (pre win mob 7) and die. Google is aggressively catching up and adding new features all the time and will soon cut into the business/government market with froyo and gingerbread.

[DenverRalphy]

Android Pros:
browsing the web
you-tube
fun apps It goes beyond "fun" apps. I have over 65+ quality productive apps installed. All of which are free and better than their BB counterparts. No fart apps, games, or redundant apps included in that count.
lots of customization

Android Cons:

1. lots of force closes on apps Nowhere near the problem BB apps have on multi OS's. And in the rare cases there's an issue from OS fragmentation, Android handles it much better than the BBOS does.
2. form factor (weight, size, feeling in hands) This is a load of bull... With the exception of Motorola Devices, BB has nothing to compete in this area.
3. at times still feels "beta" to me You should rephrase to... Does not feel BlackBerry to me.
4. Don't like the way it manages my 4 email accounts. I would love to hear your explanation as to how BB handles your email accounts better. With the exception of the one email account that is provided with your BIS account, explain in detail how any other email account has an advantage. The only exception being your BES accounts (which can be replicated with exchange servers on Android)
5. BATTERY, BATTERY, BATTERY. Cant go a full day without charge. Always have to be aware of screen brightness, make sure GPS is off, bluetooth, etc to conserve battery life. With the exception of 1 HTC device, this is a misnomer. As well, not every BB device handles battery life well. Additionally BB users are constantly trying to improve battery life using the same tactics most Android users do

BB Pros:

1. Very efficient. I can get so much more done in a shorter amount of time. I support a BB device (and pay for 3 other BB devices on my plan) as well as 2 Android devices, and I can honestly say that's a load of bull. I can fire off messages, check statuses, check websites, fire off emails etc... each while a BB device is still showing an hourglass. BB's are nowhere near efficient.
2. All the shortcuts to open programs BB doesn't hold a candle to how well Android handles shortcuts.
3. Custom profiles Android devices offer much much much more customization in profiles than BB could ever think of.
4. Form Factor- lightweight, feels good in the hand, can easily manage with one hand. As mentioned above... not even close.
5. Sexy looking phone If Retro is your idea of sexy..well okay.
6. Solid OS (even though it seems a little outdated) BWAAAHAHAHAHA! Yeah Okay.
7. Email Apparently you haven't seen all the complaints about BB and their email lately.
8. Texting/email typing a breeze. Messaging on the BB is nothing compared to any other smartphone platform these days. I can type up and send off an email or message on an Android device SO much quicker than you could ever think to do on a BB. 2 years ago this argument was held sacred for BB users and their physical keyboards, and the same argument is still desperately held onto these days, but it simply isn't true anymore. I will happily stand toe to toe with any BB user and see who could type up and send off any message or email faster. With my Android device I have literally (not figuratively...literally) taken rapid dictation with Swype and mailed it off on the spot without interruption. Try that with a BB...ain't gonna happen.
9. BATTERY BATTERY BATTERY. I have my brightness set to 100, WiFi and Bluetooth always on, twitter, berryweather, FB, browsing throughout the day, streaming Pandora/Slacker thru blue-tooth into my cars stereo system to and from work and by end of day, i'm still about 30-40% battery life. This is strictly hardware device specific, has nothing to do with BB vs Android. My Android device handles power just as well as any BB I've ever owned. And if you honestly run all that all day on your device and claim to make a full day, I call fud. Especially if you claim to run Bluetooth all day.

BB Cons:
Smaller screen
web browsing
Not as many apps
You forgot to mention poor memory management, reliance on crappy garbage collection, sub-par hardware, abysmal developer API's, crappy process management, poor emphasis on consumer feedback...

As you already know, it really comes down to personal preference. Only you can know what your needs are and what things your willing to give up on any platform. I don't think there is that "perfect" phone. For me, I have both but my BB is my baby/workhorse

Whatever......

[howarmat]

^^fanboy

Both are fine devices really, battery life is worse for sure on a droid device

ohgeeze pretty much laid out several great points that i can back up.

[l.a.rossmann]

The main reason for me was the lack of lag. It's just faster. It was so easy for my blackberry to get bogged down and all it had on it was google maps, youmail, and opera mini. My Incredible never gets bogged down.

Also, the email on the Android platform is far superior. Not only can I go back to see older emails so I can find strange odds and ends like merchant account #s when I need them and am not near a computer, I can also manage IMAP subfolders across multiple accounts. It's great.

[Tre Lawrence]

The fact that my battery pull days will soon be over is quite enough for me...

Seriously though, I think the open nature of Android OS as compared to RIM BB OS is/will be the biggest determining factor. They both have a niche, but Android better fits me now.

[fearmychickens]

The main reason for me was the lack of lag. It's just faster. It was so easy for my blackberry to get bogged down and all it had on it was google maps, youmail, and opera mini. My Incredible never gets bogged down.

Also, the email on the Android platform is far superior. Not only can I go back to see older emails so I can find strange odds and ends like merchant account #s when I need them and am not near a computer, I can also manage IMAP subfolders across multiple accounts. It's great.

Lag is present on lower end models (both BB and Android).

I never experienced lag on my 8900 after loading OS5. Never even had to do battery pulls.

A friend of mine's G1 was lagging when he was navigating through menus. That's not the case at all on my Droid. I'm not experiencing any lag at all.

[CarbineGuy]

My blackberry has five apps and has 3.9mb free. I miss calls all the time because of freezing and do almost 5 battery pulls a day. Who wants to deal with that?

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[Mr. Orange 645]

My blackberry has five apps and has 3.9mb free. I miss calls all the time because of freezing and do almost 5 battery pulls a day. Who wants to deal with that?

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

Then there is something wrong with your BB if you have only 3.9mb free memory. Even with a Curve 8330 running OS 5.0 and several apps I stayed in the 20-25mb free range.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[nore03]

Well, I like both platforms which is the reason why I have both.

For me, they both have their pros and cons. The list below is my personal view.

Android Pros:
browsing the web
you-tube
fun apps
lots of customization
Android Cons:
lots of force closes on apps
form factor (weight, size, feeling in hands)
at times still feels "beta" to me
Don't like the way it manages my 4 email accounts
BATTERY, BATTERY, BATTERY. Cant go a full day without charge. Always have to be aware of screen brightness, make sure GPS is off, bluetooth, etc to conserve battery life.

BB Pros:
Very efficient. I can get so much more done in a shorter amount of time.
All the shortcuts to open programs
Custom profiles
Form Factor- lightweight, feels good in the hand, can easily manage with one hand
Sexy looking phone
Solid OS (even though it seems a little outdated)
Email
Texting/email typing a breeze
BATTERY BATTERY BATTERY. I have my brightness set to 100, WiFi and Bluetooth always on, twitter, berryweather, FB, browsing throughout the day, streaming Pandora/Slacker thru blue-tooth into my cars stereo system to and from work and by end of day, i'm still about 30-40% battery life.

BB Cons:
Smaller screen
web browsing
Not as many apps

As you already know, it really comes down to personal preference. Only you can know what your needs are and what things your willing to give up on any platform. I don't think there is that "perfect" phone. For me, I have both but my BB is my baby/workhorse

I'm with you on this one. I have my BB9700 and The incredible and so far i am in love with both phones. I have been a blackberry user for a while starting with the 8800 all the way to the 9700 and they have made some great improvements. The Blackberry is by far more of a productive phone. You can get alot done with it and its very efficient. I don't deal with battery pulls anymore. The battery last me a couple days and its great for typing long emails, attaching documents to emails, and basically doing whatever you want to the device. It is not a fun phone though. Sometimes i would like to just play around with my phone. When i'm bored, find new apps and mess around with them. Or even surf the web and not have it take forever to load and still not come out right. Android's OS does all that for me. I can pretty much do all the fun stuff on it like nothing else. Better than the Iphone i used to have and its on its way to being as productive as the blackberry. Its still early for the android OS. It hasnt been around as long as BB so it is working its way up. Once it does a better job with its push notifications and handling the productive stuff like attaching documents to emails without having to install different software it will be a beast.

[Tre Lawrence]

I am interested in the point of the BB being more "productive." Keep in mind I am a huge BB fan.