Switching from Blackberry to AndroidAugust 17th, 2011 by brianl
I have been a die-hard Blackberry fan for over 6 years now, but lately it’s become too hard to ignore all the cool new stuff that the Androids and iPhones are doing. So after many years of loyal patronage, I have decided to make the switch…and here’s my story.
ANDROID OR iPHONE
The first question that comes to mind is whether to pick an Android or the iPhone. I for one think iPhone is a better choice. As I will explain below, Android just isn’t as polished as the iPhone. But as much as I wanted an iPhone, the current model (and also the upcoming iPhone 5 according to rumors) is not 4G. Since the ability to tether the phone to a laptop for 4G mobile access was an important requirement for me (Internet connection on 4G is wicked fast!), I chose the Samsung Droid Charge from Verizon.
HOW IS THE TOUCHSCREEN KEYBOARD?
Often the biggest worry for a Blackberry user is, “how is the touchscreen keyboard?” Switching from Blackberry’s excellent keyboard definitely took getting used to. Frankly, I was miserable for the first few weeks until I discovered Smart Keyboard available for $2.92 on the Android App Market.
The beauty of this must-have app is that the auto-spelling is so good that you can pretty much “tpye lke tihs” and it auto-magically corrects all your fat fingered inputs. I can honestly say that I type faster now on the touch screen than I ever did on a Blackberry.
ANDROID FOR ENTERTAINMENT
There’s no denying the power of Android as an entertainment device. Take for example a recent trip to Vegas with my wife. During the drive, the Android provided navigation with Google Maps, played the Cosby Show on Netflix, found a great Indian restaurant with Yelp, and settled an argument over whether Benjamin Franklin was a president (I won. He wasn’t).
Android, or iPhone for that matter, is all about apps. There are so many fun apps to choose from, taking a #2 bathroom break has never been more fun!
ANDROID FOR WORK
No matter how you slice it, Android lacks polish. Apps frequently crash or doesn’t work at all depending on your model. Adding to the frustration is the fidgety nature of many tasks. I find that I have to click too many buttons or install a special app to get what used to work out of the box on a Blackberry. Where are my notes from Outlook? Where is my Global Address Book from the corporate email server? How about a simple chat? (My phone came with 3 different chat apps…which one is best? I don’t know.)
Android fans like to point out how many more choices are available when you go Android. Unless you’re a geek, you’ll more likely be frustrated rather than impressed with all the tedious customization that awaits you.
MY RECOMMENDATION
Android is definitely a mixed bag. I love it for some things and grudge it for others. After living with it for two months however, I have learned what works well and what doesn’t. As long as I stick with what works, I find it to be a wonder experience.
If you are the type to not mind occasional bugs and can really benefit from 4G tethering, then I whole heartedly recommend the Android (I LOOOOOVE 4G. It’s awesome!). On the other hand, if you just want your stuff to work and don’t care about all the geeky stuff, go with the iPhone. Even my mom loves it.
P.S. Check out the app “Pdanet” for free USB tethering and skip the $20/mo Wi-Fi tethering. The only downside is that you have to plug your phone in to your laptop with a USB cable, but why would you want to share your sweet sweet 4G over Wi-Fi anyway?
This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 17th, 2011 at 2:00 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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