- It's buggy. The process com.android.phone has stopped unexpectedly. There are numerous problems with the Market - sometimes I have to open Google Talk for it to work, sometimes opening Google Talk doesn't help.
- It lacks basic functionality that should be present in every phone: call meters and (for smartphones) a task manager. Windows without forced IE and Windows Media Player - good. Windows without Task Manager and Windows Explorer - you decide.
- It makes you pay extra for features like Bluetooth file sharing.
- Some features are flat-out unavailable, even if you're willing to pay - Bluetooth tethering - which my previous phone I got 2 years ago for half the price had.
- It costs more than an iPhone 3GS, even though it's less powerful and has less memory - even if you add a microSD card, you can't install applications on the card.
- I can't even rearrange bookmarks in the browser.
Minor issues:
- Doesn't vibrate on incoming SMS - even on vibrate mode.
I am appalled that companies like HTC, maker of premium phones, and Google, the genius behind the search engine, Gmail, Google Earth and Maps, dare to market a half-baked confection such as this. If it wants any hope of competing with the iPhone, it has to outdo it, not just attempt to copy it and fail miserably, while costing more. I thought if Google wants to join the smartphone OS market, maybe it had something new to bring to it, but now it looks like Google just wants to make money. The fact that it lacks basics such as rearranging bookmarks shows no afterthought at all on the part of Google. It looks very much that Android 1.5 is only a prototype that was rushed to market too early.
I believe the consumers will decide and if Android does not shape up fast, it will fall flat in no time. May the best OS win.
Would I recommend this phone to anybody? Absolutely, if you're a Google fanboy. In fact, I know where you can get a second hand one in great condition.
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