Bold or Droid?

[brcarn7]

I currently have a Blackberry Curve and need to upgrade my phone for a number of reasons.  I send a ton of emails and use my blackberry all the time for work sending emails, phone cal.  People have been raving about how great the droid is, but I am not sure it is practical to use for work and I already love the Blackberry.  Any advice as to whether

[brcarn7]

Sorry--any advice as to get the Bold (or other BBerry) or get the Droid INcredible or X?  Thanks!

[johnmh]

After months on the fence, I finally got the Bold.  The Droids had 2 deal-killers for me - can't easily sync with Outlook, and no Global feature for use outside the US.  I would love a bigger screen and bigger keys, but I'll now have to wait until the end of my new contract for that.

A day after I bought my Bold, ATT announced a new BlackBerry Torch that sounds pretty good.  Verizon may pick that up some day, and that may fill some gaps.

[brcarn7]

Thank you so much for the information.  I am definitely going to pick up the Bold today.  Thanks again!

[SuzyQ]

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brcarn7 wrote:

Thank you so much for the information.  I am definitely going to pick up the Bold today.  Thanks again!

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Let us know how you like it!  Or not, as the case may be.  Inquiring minds want to know.....

[papercliped]

I'm wondering the same thing. I'm looking to get a new phone soon (from the palm pre plus), and I really like the Droid X because it has a huge screen, better battery, and fully integrated with google. At the same time, I also like the Bold because it is one SOLID phone - blackberry email wins all and I really miss having a phone that lasts the whole day (I used to have an 8330). I'm leaning towards the Blackberry because the OS has totally improved since 4.5.. and they are really getting back in the game hard. Android seems very "bloated" to me.. plus.. the blackberry keyboard is unmatched. 

[TheGreatOne]

I would recommend geting one of the Droid phones. Droid X is newer then the Incrediable. If you want the newest android toy then go with the X.

[StanleyDraughon]

TheGreatOne wrote:

I would recommend geting one of the Droid phones. Droid X is newer then the Incrediable. If you want the newest android toy then go with the X.

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My bother has the Droid Incredible and a close friend has the Droid X.  I have an 8330 with the standard battery and wouldn't trade it for both of the Droids.  I am a heavy user and the battery in my 8330 outlasts either of the Droids easily.  There is a lot to like about the Droids (screen mainly) but they are BLOATED with crapware and the touchscreen keyboards are not in the league with any BB keyboard.  Of course, your mileage may vary!

[StreetDocRN]

Hi,

I would imagine just from looking at the large colorful screen on the Droid X, it is going to use a lot more battery power just because of the larger screen than a BB.  From playing around with my sister's Droid X, it is a really good competitor for the iPhone, with the touch screen and all other features.  I can only imagine a year from now what kind of apps will be available, as the number of apps increases every time I look at its available apps.  However, I love my Bold.  It does everything I want as far as messaging, emailing, and more.  Two different devices for which each device has some great features.

Doc

[TheGreatOne]

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StreetDocRN wrote:

Hi,

I would imagine just from looking at the large colorful screen on the Droid X, it is going to use a lot more battery power just because of the larger screen than a BB.  From playing around with my sister's Droid X, it is a really good competitor for the iPhone, with the touch screen and all other features.  I can only imagine a year from now what kind of apps will be available, as the number of apps increases every time I look at its available apps.  However, I love my Bold.  It does everything I want as far as messaging, emailing, and more.  Two different devices for which each device has some great features.

Doc

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Doc, I hate to admit it but most all android phones have poor battery life. It does not really bother me though because I just love all the features on the phone. When comparing the battery life between a Droid X or another android phone to a blackberry....I got to say Blackberry wins. There ARE ways to improve battery like on your android phone. Just get an extended battery for the phone or even the app Power Manager Full. You should see a good change....

[SuzyQ]

Oh, what to do, what to do?

I went in to our local Verizon store today (corporate store; they have been good to me over the years) and messed with the Droid 2, LG Ally, and BB Bold.  Played with the browsers a bit, text messaging, touchscreens, keyboards....just held them in my hands and pushed the buttons to get a feel for them....

I thought I was leaning towards the BB because of the features, the email, the business aspect of it.  And it's a sharp looking phone, I like the way it looks.  But it feels very different than any phone I've had before, both holding it and using it.  The trackpad alone will take some getting used to, although I was starting to have some fun with it, so it likely wouldn't take long.  The screen was very clear, and sharp, and easy to read.

The LG Ally is very close in looks and feel to my current phone, the LG Voyager, so I was immediately more comfortable with that one in my hands.  Very comfortable, in fact.  The keyboard has distinct buttons instead of the "skin" the Droid 2 has.  The touchscreen works a bit differently than the Voyager, and the interface (OS) is different.  Physically it was more comfortable than the BB.

Droid 2 was physically close to my  current phone too, although I wasn't liking the keyboard as much as I like the Voyager'sor the Ally's.  The OS would take some getting used to, as would any of the three.

I'll keep watching the reviews on the Ally and the Bold - after actually playing with them I think those are my top 2 choices right now.  Who knows what will come out in the next two-three months?  In the meantime, anyone that has the Bold, or the Ally, please let me know how you like it, what you like or don't like about it, and help me make a more informed decision!!

~~Thanks~~

[StreetDocRN]

Suzy,

I can't speak for the Ally, but I can for the Bold.  First, the trackpad took me all of about 10 minutes to get used to as compared to the trackball.  The trackpad was the answer to a nightmare for many Blackberry owners, especially Tour owners.  The trackpad was, as you know from the forums, notorious for sticking and not working.  As far as other features I really like about the Bold, the additional memory to 512 mb was my next favorite.  The additional memory allows me to have as many apps as I want and not have to worry about using all of the free memory.  In summary, the Bold for me is a great way to keep up with my email and it is a great messaging device.  Sending pictures with MMS is a breeze.  Messaging is great, especially with Blackberry Messenger.  A lot of my coworkers use Blackberry devices and BBM and we keep in touch with that app.  Also, a lot of my family member use BB phones and we keep in touch with BBM.  It is sturdy and dependable.  I hope this helps you with your decision.  Good luck.

Doc

[TheGreatOne]

SuzyQ any android phone is a COMPLTELY different OS all together. Their NOTHING quite like the standard Verizon phone like your Voyager. Do you have a close friend of family member that has an android phone? Even if their phone android phone is on a different network. I suggest asking to see their phone for a little bit. Then playing around with it.  Just because a phone "looks and is similar to your voyager" doesn't mean it will perform like your old phone. 

[SuzyQ]

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TheGreatOne wrote:

SuzyQ any android phone is a COMPLTELY different OS all together. .... Just because a phone "looks and is similar to your voyager" doesn't mean it will perform like your old phone. 

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I realize this - both the Android and the Blackberry will be a departure from phones as I know them. 

So I'm facing a learning curve regardless.  If the physical handling of the phone is any consideration, then I'm just saying that the Droids are closer to what I am used to than the Blackberry, so it would be one less challenge....

[SydneyK]

I'm on the fence about this myself. Here's my take, after using a Curve for two years and now an Android device for three whole days: If emailing is mainly what you will use it for, BlackBerry cannot be beat. If you already love your BlackBerry, you may be disappointed.

My email delivery has been reliable on Android, but I spent a lot of hours in the Verizon store getting my GoDaddy account to work. And I have it set to poll every 15 minutes to conserve battery, so delivery's not quite as fast. (I'm not so important that I can't wait 15 minutes for email, however.) I am still getting used to not having the incredible battery life of the Curve, but I don't mind charging more often.

I'm sure knowledgeable Android users find tweaks to get the email experience closer to BlackBerry's. And I'm amazed at how much my new device can do and how much fun it is. With BlackBerry, I was starting to feel like I was paying $30/month just for mobile email, as that's all I was doing on my Curve, but it was definitely reliable and easy and didn't require much thought or effort.

Good luck deciding!

[SydneyK]

After giving it a go for a week, I ended up returning the Android device and reactivating my BlackBerry. I had to see what the hype was about, but Android wasn't for me. I really missed the simplicity and familiarity of my BlackBerry. I wasn't crazy about the touch-screen and I really did not like the horizontal sliding keyboard ... it was awkward for me and I found myself not replying to messages so I didn't have to use it.

I won't bore you with all the things I didn't like about Android in general, but I've tried many other devices and can't find anything that comes close to BlackBerry's security, keyboard, and push e-mail capabilities (that also use data much more efficiently).

I think Android is a fun, exciting platform though and I'm glad I tried it.

[StreetDocRN]

Sydney,

Yay, we can now play Word Mole...

Doc

[SuzyQ]

Interesting discussion...thanks for letting me listen in! 

In the coming months I'll be looking at both the Android phones and Blackberries.  Depending on the holiday deals and how good they are, I may upgrade before my NE2 rolls around in January.  I haven't yet played with either one (Droid or BB) but any feedback and information from "real" users is helpful!!  I know that what you are used to and your expectations for a new device play a huge role in how satisfied you are likely to be, so I try to take that into consideration when reading reviews.

Trying to make a device do things it was never intended to do, or wish it had features that it wasn't designed for is just setting yourself up for disappointment and dissatisfaction, so first I need to learn what to expect from each device, and see if it's something I really do need and will use.  Then go play with them in the store and see if friends will let me mess around with theirs.

Anyway, I'm rambling....but I do enjoy hearing others' experiences, and this thread seems to compare the two phones I am contemplating....so thanks for the insights!

[TheGreatOne]

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SydneyK wrote:

After giving it a go for a week, I ended up returning the Android device and reactivating my BlackBerry. I had to see what the hype was about, but Android wasn't for me. I really missed the simplicity and familiarity of my BlackBerry. I wasn't crazy about the touch-screen and I really did not like the horizontal sliding keyboard ... it was awkward for me and I found myself not replying to messages so I didn't have to use it.

I won't bore you with all the things I didn't like about Android in general, but I've tried many other devices and can't find anything that comes close to BlackBerry's security, keyboard, and push e-mail capabilities (that also use data much more efficiently).

I think Android is a fun, exciting platform though and I'm glad I tried it.

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 Once a blackberry user....always will be a blackberry user?  Yeah touch screen does take some getting used to. I know for myself it took me awhile to warm up to the touch screen on my phone. Then I got to not minded it and actually do like it. I guess everyone is different

[LCromwell]

Suzy I have been a BB Storm user for 1 year this month. I have to tell you I like my storm, with that being said it requires constant maintenance. I have had to install quick pull which I use at least 3 times a day. I have to clear the cache after every internet browse or search. Most people would not like to have to do all this maintenance. Also you cannot trust a new OS release from RIM. You have to hide and watch boards like this one and Crackberry to see how the new OS is affecting others phones and even then you may have to find a Hybrid OS as I did and VZW never released an OS number above .328 ! RIM released .419 and it works great other than excessive bat. Drain and huge memory loss, but hey the phone works great. So if you don't want to fiddle with the phone a lot stay away from BB's. Maybe the new 9800 series OS and phone will be better. I start out with 12 Mb of free memory and in no time I have to pull bat. I have one game Word Mole, none of the office apps no themes . The storms just do not have enough memory period.

[HazelEyedGemini]

I have the Pro.  It's basically made like a Blackberry.  The battery is terrible on the phone.  I switched back to the Blackberry because I can get more than one day out of it.  The Droid Pro dies in one day.  You'll need to ge the extended battery.