[apolloa]

I did post this in the HTC Magic thread but no ones responded yet

So:

So, HTC Magic, what's it like?

I am thinking about a new handset and it will be long term. I am split between this and the Sony Ericsson Idou. One my criteria was a good camera, now I know the HTC has no flash but what's the camera like? Can you get video editing apps for it? Also I have read that CoPilot Live is going to be launched on the Android platform, is this true as this is another requirement -Sat nav for the car.

I know the Idou is stuffed with many more goodies but I can't help feeling that the Magic has better lngevity as Android get's updated, plus it has the Capacitive touch screen and MAY have multitouch at some point. Is it a powerful platform?

Also if I get one it will be stuck on my Orange pay as you go tarrif, I would therefore like to know if you can switch all the cloud stuff of? I have a googlemail account but don't use it for work and REALLY don't need a phone to sync with it.
And this phone is DEFINETELY unlocked right? can you delete the Vodafone stuff of it?

Thanks for any answers.

I am really really really stuck. I know the Idou isn't out yet but it offers me EVERYTHING I want and I'm used to SE smart phones. But Android is really exciting and the Magic is no doubt cheaper as well but it lacks the camera and at present Sat Nav. It's a tough one, future proof software or hardware? I plan on keeping the phone for a long time.

[RobM]

Since the Idou isn't out yet, it's going to be hard for anybody to make an accurate comparison. And given SE's track record of making awesome looking phones on paper that turn out to be unreliable and badly made, I'd want to get my hands on one for an extended period before buying.

Read through the C905 owner threads and see how many unhappy owners there are vs happy owners. It's certainly a higher percentage than you'd hope, so be careful.

Also, be aware that by the time the Idou hits the shelves (late this year if you're lucky) there will be a heap of other competing devices that better it.

The last time I was this sure a phone would be a nightmare was with the Nokia N96.... and that's hardly a success story for Nokia with one of the highest return rates in recent years for them.

[apolloa]

Originally Posted by RobM83

Since the Idou isn't out yet, it's going to be hard for anybody to make an accurate comparison. And given SE's track record of making awesome looking phones on paper that turn out to be unreliable and badly made, I'd want to get my hands on one for an extended period before buying.

Read through the C905 owner threads and see how many unhappy owners there are vs happy owners. It's certainly a higher percentage than you'd hope, so be careful.

Also, be aware that by the time the Idou hits the shelves (late this year if you're lucky) there will be a heap of other competing devices that better it.

The last time I was this sure a phone would be a nightmare was with the Nokia N96.... and that's hardly a success story for Nokia with one of the highest return rates in recent years for them.

True, but I've had 3 SE UIQ smart phones now and all have worked fine with no faults. I know about the C905, just hope the Idou will be better made. I'm not interested in any other makes or platforms either other then the Magic and Idou. None of the other float my boat, except maybe the Palm Pre but I really want an all touch screen device.

But as your a techy guy what do you make of Android? Will the Magic be upgraded with future versions? What's the camera on the Magic like? Can you disable all the cloud stuff like email sync etc? Watching videos some things seem a bit over simple but I assume you can just get an app to change that like video playback? I see that CoPilot has been shown on the G1 too, and that's a fantastic Sat Nav system.
I really am going to be stuck, Android just seems like a blank canvas that you make your own device from with apps? But that camera just seems poor in the Magic?

[EnigmaCode]

i would go for the Magic because it has the advantage over the Idou in that it's not a sony ericsson.
given that the Idou is feature rich(lots to go wrong) and that SE has a long track record of poor reliability, with some phones having a return rate of up to 50%, i would be even less likely to trust the Idou than i would the c905 to be reliable.

android is an excellent operating system, and the Magic is almost guaranteed to be less hassle prone than the Idou.

in addition, sony ericsson has a tendency to charge overly high prices for what the phone offers.


get the Magic, without a doubt!

[richcandy]

Hi

I would go with the Magic. I had a few SE phones a few years ago and was never all that happy with the build quality.

Alex

[apolloa]

This is interesting with the build quality. All my SE phones have been fine and have never had any faults, well bar the joystick on a K750 began to stick cause of fluff in it.
But I really want a good camera, SE have an announcement on Thursday where the Idou should be officially announced with a launch date.

Please can someone explain what the Magic's camera is like? Also what's it's battery life?

[Rizza]

Unfortunately new gen SE phones since the K750i platform have had software reliability issues. I was a devoted SE customer but I've returned the w880 and w890 and 2 friends with c905's have had various issues.

On that basis I tend to give them a wide berth these days.

Rizza

[RobM]

Originally Posted by apolloa

But as your a techy guy what do you make of Android? Will the Magic be upgraded with future versions? What's the camera on the Magic like? Can you disable all the cloud stuff like email sync etc? Watching videos some things seem a bit over simple but I assume you can just get an app to change that like video playback? I see that CoPilot has been shown on the G1 too, and that's a fantastic Sat Nav system.
I really am going to be stuck, Android just seems like a blank canvas that you make your own device from with apps? But that camera just seems poor in the Magic?

Originally Posted by apolloa

Please can someone explain what the Magic's camera is like? Also what's it's battery life?

Most of these questions have already been answered in response to your same questions in the dedicated HTC Magic thread. Go have a read.

To answer your new questions though... i.e. battery life and the future of Android...

Battery life is OK, but not amazing. I get a comfortable two-days out of mine if I keep WiFi turned off, which is the killer. I'm not a light user either, I spend a lot of time using the phone. It's on par with the iPhone 3G and Sony Ericsson X1.

The future of Android looks good. I touched on this in response to your questions in the HTC Magic thread, but we will shortly be seeing more mobiles, laptops and media devices all running the Andorid OS. Archos are rumoured to be using it for a future device and Dell are rumoured to be using it for a netbook, where it has great potential.

All this development can only be good news. It will encourage true cross-platform development whereby your same data can be managed and accessed on your phone, media player and laptop and when combined with the Cloud aspects, there is no situation where you wont have access to your information, data, media etc.

It will also encourage developers to come to the Android platform. If you can hit three or more types of device with one application, that's big news. Developers that previously only developed computer software can now enter the mobile and PMP market without having to go right back to the drawing board.

I can't think of any other platform where this could be true. Windows and Windows Mobile are too different. Apples iPhone OS is too restricted by Apple. Symbian seems to have a future only on mobile phones, perhaps with the odd device creaping out into other markets.

It's early days and Android is not a finished product by any means. There are still some things that aren't as consistent as they could be and some things that are losing out for fear of being too close to Apples iPhone OS. But the improvement from the original v1.0 to Cupcake /v1.5 shows the speed at which development is happening. And the ever-increasing number of applications in the market place show the development support behind it.

Exciting times

[RobM]

Originally Posted by Rizza

Unfortunately new gen SE phones since the K750i platform have had software reliability issues. I was a devoted SE customer but I've returned the w880 and w890 and 2 friends with c905's have had various issues.

On that basis I tend to give them a wide berth these days.

Rizza

I agree entirely... although I really like the K800i, it was just a bigger version of the K750i with some evolutionary software changes. The camera was marketed as a big deal, being one of the first 3.2MP cameras, but produced no better results than the excellent 2.-MP K750i camera.

On the subject of cameras... I miss Sharp. They were the last manufacturer to really push things forward. The Sharp 902 I had, with it's autofocus and optical zoom lens, was easily capable of competing with todays phones on image quality, if not size/resolution.

[apolloa]

But what is the camera in the Magic like? Is it up to iPhone standards in picture quality? I haven't really seen an answer on that yet.

[RobM]

Originally Posted by apolloa

But what is the camera in the Magic like? Is it up to iPhone standards in picture quality? I haven't really seen an answer on that yet.

Please take the time to read the responses to your own questions before asking them again.

http://www.avforums.com/forums/htc-m...ml#post9574096

You can't start a thread complaining that nobody bothered to reply to your questions if you can't be bothered to read the answers when people do.

[apolloa]

Originally Posted by RobM83

Please take the time to read the responses to your own questions before asking them again.

http://www.avforums.com/forums/htc-m...ml#post9574096

You can't start a thread complaining that nobody bothered to reply to your questions if you can't be bothered to read the answers when people do.

Please be corrected that it wasn't that I couldn't be bothered to read your reply, it was in fact that I did NOT know you had replied there!

I appreciate your answers and help however, but I still don't know, I have read that the camera is in fact VERY good on the Idou, but will wait for the proper reviews I think before judging. I like SE phones and do not find them unreliable in my experiences.
But Android does offer something. hmmm.
I just want a very good camera and turn by turn sat nav, Co Pilot is the best and has been shown running on the G1.

One thing I can't find with Android though is weather you can switch off all the online syncing and 'cloud' based stuff. As I use pay as you go then g-mail syncing every 5 mins will end up a bit expensive.

[RobM]

Originally Posted by apolloa

One thing I can't find with Android though is weather you can switch off all the online syncing and 'cloud' based stuff. As I use pay as you go then g-mail syncing every 5 mins will end up a bit expensive.

You can. In Settings > Data Synchronisation you can untick any items you don't want to apply. The options are:

Background Data
Auto-Sync
Google Mail
Calendar
Contacts

I would assume that if you added a mail account in the other mail app, that would appear there also.

Un-tick all of these, particularly the Background Data and Auto-Sync and that should be job done.

(edit)

By the way... if SatNav and high resolution photos are the two key priorities for you, I would suggest holding off any purchase until the end of the year. With the Idou out then and all other vendors bringing new products to market, your choice should be wider. There will also be more Android devices hitting shelves later this year, and no doubt some of those will focus on specific parts of the mobile market, such as imaging.

[hutch]

Closing as you are getting answers on the other thread.