Anxiously awaiting the arrival of Android on Verizon

[freebirds87]

Hello, I am a new member to the community. I had a couple of questions and I was hoping some of you could answer them for me.

A little bit about myself, I am currently a Blackberry Storm 9530 User on the Verizon Network. I've been with Verizon for about 3 years now. I love their service, it's really the only provider in my area that's worth a dang. I would love to be using the G1 on T-Mobile but T-Mobile does not have good coverage in my area. Anyways, the Storm has been a pain in my ass now since purchase. I've loaded different OS's and Hybrid OS's and deleted all my themes and etc.. (sounds like a great user experience) My storm currently runs great now, with no problems. (No thanks to official OS's)

I recently saw the comments made by Verizon's CEO (comments that have been made before I know) and I am hoping that this is not him talking through his rear again. I really want an Android device. So, this leads me to my questions...

1) Any rumors you all might know of which device (if any) will be coming to Verizon running the Android OS?

2) Are there any current devices that can be unlocked to run on Verizon? (Would love to retain 3G compatibility)

I did a search in the forums to see if this had been asked before and I did not find any posts. If for some reason I overlooked a post, please just post me the link. Thanks for the help in advance and I look forwards to being a member of this community and a fellow Android User.

[DrVeronica]

According to this article, not 'til the end of this year can you Verizon-folk expect android phones, so perhaps as the end nears we would be able to come to learn what phone(s) will be made avail:

http://www.androidauthority.com/index.php/2009/05/28/verizon-ceo-says-android-phones-by-year-end-hints-at-motorola-making-them/

Funny too, since Verizon talked crap about Android......

[deserttopping]

i'm a former verizon customer (bought out of contract to switch to t-mo/android). frankly, i can't emphasize enough how much they suck. i had a samsung a990, which was about the best camera phone on the market when i bought it. verizon had disabled several features of that phone: bluetooth file transfer, usb picture transfer (wtf??), adding mp3 ringtones. i had to physically remove my sd card to move pictures to my computer, or email them to myself at a reduced quality.

sure, verizon's signal reception was great. that was all. their business model has been way too geared toward charging for every little extra: ringtones, for example. going to android would probably mean changing that model, or customizing/lobotomizing android, if possible.

maybe they're coming around to meet users' desire to have control over the devices they payed good money for, but i wouldn't hold my breath if i were you.

that's my $0.02.

[freebirds87]

Yeah, I read some articles about how Verizon had snubbed its nose at Android and the OHA. I wasn't happy with that decision but I thought once the Storm came out I would be happy with it. Not the case...

Oh, Desert I have lived with the pains you mentioned. I have what's supposed to be a "high end" smart phone with no WiFi. Before this phone I had a Blackberry Curve 8330 with a locked GPS. Yeah, I hate VZnav and it ticked me off not being able to use the GPS that I payed for...

It seems as if Verizon has changed some of these unpopular policies though. I know at least on the Blackberry side the GPS of the newer devices is no longer locked, bluetooth is as open as can be, and rumors of WiFi are circulating like crazy.

My contract with Verizon is up in January and if I don't see any impressive Android phones, then I guess T-Mobile is my only option. Hopefully T-Mobile will expand its network before then.

[deserttopping]

oh, yeah, the dreaded VZ navigator. what a bargain!

dude, if you can find a decent provider w/ android, i would totally recommend switching. i'm very happy w/ T-mo so far, but the signal here is great, so i see your dilemma.

welcome to AC, btw. :)

[freebirds87]

welcome to AC, btw. :)

Thank you :)

[freebirds87]

So I saw the pictures of the HTC My Touch for T-Mobile, also know as the HTC Magic on Vodaphone, and I must say that I am extrememly envious. I really like the design of that phone and I would really like to have it. I have a couple of questions though, if some one doesn't mind answering them.

First: What ever happend to this phone? Motorola Android Handset (http://img10.imageshack.us/i/motorolatouchscreenandr.jpg/)

I really like the look of this and as long as Verizon did not put it on lock down this would be my choice.

Second: Does anyone know if the HTC My Touch (G2) is going to support the UMA calling? I had forgotten about T-Mobile having this option and if it were possible I would be much more likely to go with the G2 on T-Mobile in the future.

Third: Not exactly sure how the UMA network works. I know it requires broadband access at home and a T-mobile router?? Would it be possible to piggy back the T-Mobile router off of a pre-existing router? (Xbox gamer got to have an open NAT)

Thanks muchly in advance!

=========================

Also is this: T-Mobile Hot Spot Router (http://cgi.ebay.com/Linksys-WRTU54G-TM-Wireless-G-Router-w-TMobile-Hotspot_W0QQitemZ330336258782QQcmdZViewItemQQptZCO MP_EN_Routers?hash=item4ce9934ade&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=65:12|66:2|39:1|72:1234|240:1307|301:1|2 93:1|294:50) a good buy? And would I have to pay extra for UMA calling? If so how much? I did search the T-Mo website before I asked this... lol

[thunderstruck]

I did an early termination with Verizon after being forced to the conclusion they would never have cool phones, and if they got anything close to cool they'd screw it up so bad it wouldn't be. Service wise, they are great, but phone wise they suck donkey. Every little thing you want they charge for. I got tired of hacking my phones just to bring them up to my level of acceptability. Now I do it because I can, not because I have to.

[freebirds87]

Thought I would update this thread....

I bought my White G1 today through Wirefly. It's on the way to my house as I type this... I did consider the "MyTouch" as well as the Hero, but I decided the G1 made up for it's lack of memory with the flip out keyboard. Just hard to beat the convenient physical keyboard.

Anyways, I have a battery question for anyone willing to share. I am considering purchasing the Seido 1400mah battery (the one that fits in the OEM backing) and I was wondering how well this helps with the battery life on 1.5?

-Thanks in advance...

[deserttopping]

nice, you got a G1. it'll be a worthy museum piece someday.

here's a battery review (http://androidcommunity.com/forums/f13/1600mah-actually-1700-extended-battery-review-18025/) that may be helpful.

[konzern]

congrats on joining the elite! so your with t-mo now?

[kitsunisan]

I was with Verizon for three years, crap customer service, crap phones. Switched to T-Mobile and never looked back. Coverage isn't as great as Verizon, I'll admit, but customer service is excellent, and the phones are starting to come around.

[freebirds87]

nice, you got a G1. it'll be a worthy museum piece someday.

here's a battery review (http://androidcommunity.com/forums/f13/1600mah-actually-1700-extended-battery-review-18025/) that may be helpful.

Well it's like I said, the G1 just appears to be more user friendly than the Magic. All of the Magic reviews have really made typing on the phone look like a pain. I don't plan on messing with the OS any. I had to do enough of that with my Blackberry.

Thanks for the review. I'll probably order my Seido 1400.




congrats on joining the elite! so your with t-mo now?

Thanks! Yes I am a T-Mobile customer now. I have heard that their customer service is second to none, the service maps they showed online looked pretty good. Not as good as Verizon's but it has service in all the areas I need it.

[ggrant3876]

I picked up the Seidio 1400 at Amazon. When I purchased, it was $39.00. It's now $33.00 at Amazon.

[freebirds87]

I picked up the Seidio 1400 at Amazon. When I purchased, it was $39.00. It's now $33.00 at Amazon.

Thanks for the heads up about Amazon. I got the Battery, a screen protector, and an OEM HTC Leather case for my G1. It only cost 50$ for all 3 which is way better than 50 for just the battery...

-Thanks!

[Meever]

Verizon hates tech junkies. It's simple as that. They take almost a year to get phones that ATT and Sprint. They'll get those old outdated phones and cripple them (drop ram, take out wifi, yank out the number pad and scramble the buttons for sh*ts and giggles, etc, etc). They also have the balls to spend millions on advertising and claiming they're the fastest or the most reliable when it's just plain untrue (speed wise anyways). Then to top off this mess they'll overcharge you!

Thanks Verizon! Thanks a bunch!

[wlanguide]

I have been expecting G1, however, like G2 more, lol.