First Impressions: HTC Sensation 4G

10 06 2011

For those of you who know me pretty well, it should be no shock to hear that I bought a new phone. For the past several years I’ve undertaken a quest to find the perfect phone (for me, at least). Having just picked up the HTC Sensation 4G, I think I might have found the holy grail.

Although excited for the 15th to arrive so that I could pick up a Sensation at the T-Mobile store, the other night I learned that some Wal-Mart stores were selling their stock early. As much as I despise Wal-Mart, I was going to give them a pass for the 30 minutes it took for me to walk through their store, buy the phone, and quickly exit. I felt cheap and dirty afterward, but I had my phone.

Once home, I fired her up. Wow! This phone is fast! The high-res qHD screen is gorgeous and easy on the eyes. A few months ago I gave the Motorola Atrix 4G a spin and the qHD screen it had just plain sucked. Aside from the fantastic display, the dual-core processor and Sense 3.0 made the phone very snappy. Screen transitions, animations, video, and apps all seem to run at blazing speeds… very impressive.

The build quality of the phone is terrific, too. I’m digging the curved display and unibody back case. The phone is much thinner than I had expected. In fact, before seeing the phone I thought it was going to be nothing more than a rebranded HTC Thunderbolt. I was wrong. Thinner than the Thunderbolt, the Sensation feels good in the hand and is pretty light, although very solid. HTC definitely hit one out of the park.

Having given it a run for the past coupe of days, I’m very happy with my purchase. There’s one quirk with connectivity, as it seems sometimes to take a little while to establish a data connection to T-Mobile’s 4G network. I think this can be fixed with a simple software fix. Speaking of software, I’m eagerly awaiting an HTC update to unlock the bootloader. I’m happy with the stock ROM, but would love to root this thing and remove the bloatware.

All in all, however, a great phone that I’m sure will keep me happy until the next great thing comes around :)

EDIT: Someone posted a fix to address the connectivity issues… smokin’!


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Categories : android, cool

Sprint EVO 4G

12 06 2010

In my unrelenting quest to find the perfect smartphone, I took one step closer this past week. Having used the HTC Incredible for a little over a month, I grew tired of its plasticy feel and horrible call quality – seriously horrible call quality. Granted, the Incredible had great features – fast, gorgeous display, lots of memory – but at the end of the day, it just wasn’t doing it for me.

So along comes the Sprint EVO 4G. I thought for sure I’d be able to resist the attraction to the EVO, but I eventually gave in and purchased on through Sprint’s website. I was a bit apprehensive at first not being all that familiar with Sprint, but I thought why not. Brushing aside the plethora of reviews chastising the phone for its poor battery life, the EVO found its way into my hot little hands in a tad over 24 hours.

I knew as soon as I unpacked the EVO that this puppy was going to be a keeper – good weight and a solid feel. Once fired up, it seemed just as fast as the Incredible and had a gorgeous TFT display to boot. Sprint’s 3G coverage in my area is decent and download speeds were on par with that of Verizon, albeit slower than AT&T. I’d love to take 4G for a spin, but Sprint has yet to offer coverage in my area – perhaps one day. Phone calls were clear and the sound quality was leaps and bounds better than the Incredible. Battery life isn’t too bad, getting me through the day with normal use – perfectly acceptable by my standards. All in all, a kickass phone that’s fast, sleek, solidly built, and makes a great phone call. I plan on holding onto this one for a while… or at least until something much better comes out.


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Categories : android, review

HTC Incredible Rooted?

31 05 2010

Reports of the HTC Incredible being rooted are floating around the internet. As preliminary proof, a picture was provided; however, no instructions, videos, or other evidence has been provided to suggest the phone has in fact been rooted. I hope this isn’t a hoax.

UPDATE: It’s looking more and more like a hoax. Damnit.

UPDATE: Yep, it’s a hoax. Double damnit.


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Categories : android, cool

Test post with Android client

30 05 2010

Test using the WordPress client on my HTC Incredible.


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Categories : android

First week with the Droid… and it rocks!

14 11 2009

Since my Droid arrived last Monday I have yet to put it down. In fact, I absolutely love this phone! Yes, it’s a tad heavier than the iPhone… yes, the battery life isn’t all that great… yes, the Android Market has only a fraction of the apps that you’d find in the iTunes Store. Aside from those (very) small inconveniences, the Droid kicks ass.

The Android 2.0 operating system is both quick and smooth. The Droid’s touchscreen feels just as responsive as the iPhone’s, yet looks much better, which makes since it sports a larger screen and higher resolution. Being able to run multiple apps is nice and I love having them able to run in the background, providing me with real-time alerts and messages.

The absolute best feature with the Droid is the tight Google Voice integration. I’ve been able to configure all calls to be handled through Google Voice; therefore, when I make calls to others my GV number is presented on their caller ID. No more fumbling with setting calls up through the web-based GV app on the iPhone. Additionally, it was a piece of cake to setup all SMS messages to be handled by GV, as well.

Potential downside related to the inability to sync with iTunes… not! DoubleTwist allows me to sync the music I’ve purchased through iTunes with my Droid. Since Apple ditched the DRM, I’m able to play both MP3s and Apple’s AAC-formated music on my Droid. Yes, previously purchased music with the DRM won’t play, but there are ways around that :-)

Bluetooth connectivity with my car (2010 Mazda 3s) is there, which is a must for handsfree phone calls; however, music streaming over bluetooth doesn’t seem to work. My stereo’s controls interface, but there’s no audio. Hopefully this will be corrected in the future, but it’s by no mean a show stopper now.

All in all I have been very happy with my purchase and have yet to go through the iPhone withdrawal I was expecting. A couple of months ago I had given the myTouch 3G a spin, but quickly ran back to the iPhone. the myTouch’s clunkiness and slow-as-hell T-Mobile network were unbearable. Not this time, however. The Droid’s smooth as silk and Verizon’s 3G network runs circles around AT&T… it’s soooo much faster! Definitely a good move.


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Categories : android, cool, iphone

Droid it is, then

13 11 2009

Great cartoon.


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Categories : android, cool, funny

Goodbye iPhone?

7 11 2009

Having looked into the Droid, I’ve decided to (once again) make the jump from the iPhone. A couple of months ago I gave the myTouch 3G a spin, but found the T-Mobile network not all that reliable in my area. Although I enjoyed the Android OS on the myTouch, the hardware felt immature and clunky. Shortly thereafter, back to the iPhone I went.

But the Droid looks much more promising… and I eagerly await it’s arrival on my front doorstep on Monday. There are a couple of iPhone apps that I will dearly miss (1Password being my favorite); however, the Google Voice integration with the Android OS is something that I desperately want in a phone… and I can’t get it with the iPhone. The transition will be tough at first, but I’m confident I’ll be happy.

I’ll follow-up with a comparison after I’ve gotten my hands on the Droid.


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Categories : android, cool, iphone


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