Quote:
Originally Posted by Malaki86
That all sounds good in theory, but . .
I, too, use EVO and a laptop and agree with you. The smartphone is great for all it can do, especially since it's the hot-spot for my laptop . . if I have a cell signal, I have WiFi and I really like that but it won't replace my laptop.
INTERNET:
Many, probably most web pages are not optimized for mobile and are an absolute pain to navigate on the phone. Those that are tend to sacrifice a lot of their form and function for the sake of being "optimized". That said, it is very convenient to be able to carry the Internet with you at pretty much all times. I was in Portland, OR, recently, parked at Jubitz. I found an app for TRIMET (public transportation); there's a stop opposite their office building at the east side of the complex. From there, I was able to make my way downtown ($1.10) see live English Soccer starting at 0700, to lunch for some of the best fish ever, to Portland's oldest strip club, to a brew pub for . . er . . dinner and back to Jubitz around 2130. All done on the fly, no planning or pre trip.
NAVIGATION:
There's just no comparing a 17" laptop screen to an EVO. The EVO is great and I think it has an even better GPS interface than the DeLorme Street Atlas USA I've been using for 6 years. But that little screen can't deliver the big picture like the laptop does. From everything: planning, searching and executing . . big screen. On the other hand, I was north of Albany, NY, just the other day, and had requested a change to my fuel stop. In predictable fashion, the change came after I had resumed rolling and long after I had passed the sign that says "Last (rest) Area Before Throughway". I was on a route I was quite familiar with and the laptop was off and I wouldn't be inclined to edit my route while negotiating the interstate had it been on. I switched on the phone, called my DM and got the new fuel assignment in Rotterdam; not too far but way out of route and I immediately experienced mind melt. I knew where I was, I know where Rotterdam is but I couldn't link the two. I reached for the EVO, hit NAVIGATE, hit SPEAK DESTINATION and zimscalabim, I'm on my way to Rotterdam. Once I had my bearings, the melt passed and I knew where I was going. EVO would have taken me to within 1 exit of where I wanted to be with no address and no typing; just "Rotterdam, NY", spoken safely, all on the fly.
Note: Search within the Market app under either compass, heading, or bearing (I was looking for a simple compass). In at least one you'll find an app that claims to use the phone to create a "Heads Up" display as you'd expect to find in the cockpit of a fighter jet. It's there and people have commented to say it's amazing. Now that's navigatin".:thumbsup:
PHONE:
It is a phone and it's fortunes rise and fall on the strength of Sprint's network. No unexpected problems there. Calls drop but rarely. My only real complaint is the number pad and speaker switch don't display at the same time. Sprint! You're a flarking phone company! Switching back and forth from one another is a pain!
EVO: $199 after 100 rebate (I still haven't received after 45 days, +/-). $69.99 for 450 phone minutes, unlimited (not true, 5 gig*) web and texts, $10 premium data which means absolutely nothing, near as I can tell and $29.99 WiFi hotspot for up to 5 devices (untested except for one laptop) plus the usual taxes and fees and you see it's not cheap. My phone service is higher than my mortgage. Worth it? Every penny. Star rating? 4 out of 5. The touch screen is just too sensitive. It's the biggest part of the pain in navigating web pages. I've mastered the keyboard and don't make many mistakes there but text links and scrolling are a pain. Otherwise, the stuff you can do with this phone is amazing and it's not my first smartphone.
* I had to add . . 5 gig sounds like a lot and it is, but . . if you do a lot of intensive gaming or you like to stream TV and movies, it gets eaten up FAST! The over charges are incredibly outrageous. Talk to your Sprint rep to make sure you understand them. I mean ridiculous! It's like $5 a megabyte (or worse, even) and you can't prevent it by buying a better package. You reach Sprint's "unlimited", prepare to pay. In fairness, a somewhat neutral COSTCO guy selling Verizon told me all carriers are about the same.