Re: Samsung fascinate or lg vortex?
ladybell
Enthusiast - Level 3

Oh and you have two options for texting with the Fascinate.  You can use the android keyboard or swype.  Double check these options.  I am so addicted to my swype it is ridiculous. This is my first touch screen device besides my GPS and it's amazing how smooth, easy and responsive it is.  I am on facebook chat and other functions on and off all day long.  My battery is as I described before and got even better with a few tips I learned on a couple of forums.

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Re: Samsung fascinate or lg vortex?
ladybell
Enthusiast - Level 3

And while I am thinking about it, one of the benefits of the 2.2 I believe I have read is the fact that you can utilize your sd card storage better for more applications and other things of that nature.  I have more than 200 pics, more than 600 text messages (that need to be cleaned up), I on average get 300-400 emails per day, I have a couple of videos I have taken with the device, downloaded 76 applications and I still have 1.2 GB on the device plus my 14.73 GB space on my sd card. 

 

I don't recommend buying the dock they sell with the Fascinate as those who are complaining have pointed out only works with 2.2 froyo.  I'd wait to make that purchase until the actual update is made available.

 

Sorry for all the posts but as I remember some things that may be helpful I just add another.   :smileywink:

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Re: Samsung fascinate or lg vortex?
PJNC284
Master - Level 2

This is like comparing apples to oranges.  The only brightspot of the Vortex is that it has Android 2.2 (Froyo) and is still nowhere near the same class as any of the Galaxy S line of phones like the Fascinate.  Hardware-wise, the Fascinate is still arguably the best phone on Verizon in terms of form factor, screen, cpu and gpu.  The lack of software support from Samsung and Verizon prevents it from being the absolute best overall device but it still performs just as well as any of the other high end Android handsets in Verizon's lineup.  

 

Battery life on any of the Android phones isn't going to be anything to write home about.  Data usage varies greatly from person to person and some will say they get great battery life but if you use it heavily, you better have a charger or spare batteries handy.  The data centric nature of Android and the trend for larger screens are always going to make battery life a con for heavy users.  It's just one of those things we sacrifice to keep us connected.

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Re: Samsung fascinate or lg vortex?
maryl
Contributor - Level 1

Do you absolutely have to upgrade now? If not, I would wait for one of the new Moto droids that are soon to be released. As much as I love my Fascinate, the lack of timely updates turned me against ever buying another of their phones. The Moto droids do get frequent timely updates, so my next smartphone will be a Moto droid. And yes I do realize I could have 2.2 on my phone now, but I want it to be an official release....

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Re: samsung fasciante or lg vortex?
itzbob701
Newbie

Maybe I should expand on my "No Samsung" comment from earlier at the risk of being labeled a "whiner". Many people are very happy with their Fascinate and many are not as you can see by looking at many other threads in this forum. Most like me are very frustrated because we were told by clueless verizon reps that issues and updates would be addressed promptly and they weren't. When they attempted to fix issues like GPS problems they broke something else like mounting with a Mac.

 

I have never been impressed with any LG small electronics, my GF and younger daughter have both had LG phones and they were not very good. I would recommend looking very hard at HTC phones and exploring what other carriers might have to offer. It never hurts to look.

 

Now on to my Fascinate review;

 

My positives for the fascinate, number 1 is the screen can't be beat, not by Iphone, not by HTC not any phone I have seen to date.

The size fits perfectly in my pocket, no battery cover bulge, no camera lens sticking out like the Droid X.

Location of power and volume buttons after you get used to them seem to be where they should have been on all phones.

The camera is pretty good and takes decent video.

The Samsung "Allshare" app is awesome for transfering music and picture files from a home computer or network to and from the phone.

Thinkfree Office is a very useful app if you use your phone for work.

Pretty much bulletproof. The screen is nearly impossible to scratch and does not need screen protectors, but some sort of case is probably a good idea.

 

The negatives have been covered.

Horrible software support. The best comparison I can make is buying a fascinate would be like buying a new PC that has top of the line hardware loaded with Windows XP as the operating system.

More and more new apps won't run on the outdated operating system.

Bing by default as search and map applications (google maps available from the Market) but search button always defaults to Bing.

Battery life is at best average with random stuff opening in background and chewing up battery life. All smartphones have bad battery life compared to old school phones.

No flash support and Skyfire is an option but not a great option.

GPS seems to work fine for some but not for others. Has always been hit or miss for me. Sometimes (about 40% of the time) I get a fix in seconds, sometimes 5 minutes or longer, sometimes doesn't connect at all without shutting off the phone and pulling the battery. These complaints have gone down so newer handsets might have fixed it.

Bluetooth has issues. I have a hands free adapter in my vehicle and have to go to settings every time to get it to connect. It does connect with my headset quickly.

Random (infrequently) reboots or freezes.

 

Back to the whining point. Every similar device has been upgraded to a newer version of Android and it is possible to do this yourself which carries some risk and is not something you should have to do yourself. I personally will not purchase another samsung product of any kind and will leave Verizon the second my current contract expires.

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Re: samsung fasciante or lg vortex?
Shinebox
Enthusiast - Level 3

I would recommend the Fascinate over the LG Vortex. The screen and hardware make it one of the best devices that Verizon offers. The software support could be better, but the difference from 2.2 to 2.1 is hardly anything to write home about. 2.2 uses more battery and the GPS takes longer to lock than 2.1 with EA28

 

I am running 2.2 and will probably end up going back to 2.1 because the battery life is much better on that build.

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Re: samsung fasciante or lg vortex?
nickjr
Contributor - Level 3
I guess you probably have a lemon, my 2.2 is now better with battery, no problem with gps, plus I can install apps on the sd card and flash support which is so important...........
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Re: samsung fasciante or lg vortex?
Shinebox
Enthusiast - Level 3

Go read XDA. Froyo uses more battery than Eclair. That's why there are threads about underclocking to increase battery life. This is a fact. There is even a thread where other users are talking about the bad batter life they are experiencing with Froyo. This phone isn't getting a Froyo update because it's functionality doesn't work the same on every device. Verizon would rather keep the software outdated and lose a couple of sales (people who know what Froyo even is) than force themselves to replace thousands of phones were the screen stops responding as result of Froyo.

 

All these people are complaining that they want Froyo on their phones and they were promised Froyo would start complaining about their phones not working and that they want to go back to 2.1 because at least their phone worked that way. EA28 has been tried and is considered the best modem for the Fascinate. EB01 uses more battery and the GPS is slightly slower. DL30 is bugged and not really used.

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Re: samsung fasciante or lg vortex?
PJNC284
Master - Level 2

I never had a problem with battery life as long as stand alone gps was disabled since there's a bug that prevents the gps from sleeping so it's running constantly.  It was on par or better than any of the 2.1 versions.  If people are having battery issues on any of the EB01 based builds, it's probably app and not OS related.    And GPS was pretty much flawless.

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Re: samsung fasciante or lg vortex?
Soulchaser
Enthusiast - Level 3

I love my Fascinate, I love having Froyo on my Fascinate, I love my battery life on my Fascinte, I love everything about my phone, ease of use, it works, does what i want it to do...when I want it to do it. In fact im going to buy the Samsung Charge when it comes out...4G LTE enabled. 4.3 inch screen. 2.2 with Gingerbread and Icecream right around the corner. Vortex is a great entry level android based phone..but if you are wanting the phone to be fast in processing what you want it to do.

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