Comments on: Should Original iPhone Owners Ditch Apple for a Pre?

By: Kubricklove

Kubricklove — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 01:43:25 +0000

@kubrickfails

By calling the iPhone iphoney you give yourself away. I’ve been reading your comments on zdnet. It seems to me you are the worst of the fanbois out there, and that includes some of the Apple nut jobs comments I’ve been reading over the weekend. As to the battery issues with the pre, I did not say the battery life is bad, my friends who bought them at launch did. They are honest people who are not Apple users so I trust their opinion, and who cares if the battery life is bad, that’s just one problem with an otherwise great phone. This isn’t a damn religious war, they are phones. Some people need or like one type of phone, and others like or need a differnt type of phone. It’s really not that big of a deal kubrickfails. No need to get your nickers in a twist simply because people like iPhones.

By: KubrickFails

KubrickFails — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 01:06:35 +0000

Kubricklove or should I say AppleLove You are quite wrong,with the latest 1.0.3 update and the problem Pre had with the AimGoogle battery issue all solved Every Pre user that I know gets better battery life then Iphoney users. In fact as Justin said the Treo battery work on the Pre and are dirt cheap. Seido has a 1350mah battery that will fit it that you can get around $15 and they are making a 1500mah That wil double the usgae you get on your Iphoney.I see one guy even lies about the monthy costs of Apples and saying they are not that more expesnive then Sprint’s everything plan.They are eithr clueless or ying I do not care which as they are a fanboy of Apples so the answer is obvious for all.Most of the People in here are just fabricating things about the Pre to serve their onw Apple Zealot Agenda and they should be ashamed at theselves for lying to others.Well nevermind they are Apples Zealots they do not care if they do or say things that they know are not true.Apples Haters hate anything that doesn’t have an Apple Logo and are extremely bigoted and many would say narrowminded people.

By: Kubricklove

Kubricklove — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 20:58:38 +0000

@Justin
The anecdotal evidence I have seen from my friends who have purchased the Pre, and from those who have written about their Pre experience suggest your experience with the Pre battery is unique. Even those who love the Pre admit to it’s abismal battery performance. As for your suggetion that people who use Apple products are somehow shallow, or that they suffer from blind brand loyalty, I’m sure there are people who will blindly buy anything Apple sells, but there are millions and millions of people who use all kinds of Apple products and to suggest that they all demonstrate this behavior is, at best, asinine. Stop lumping huge numbers of people into a single group. There are Apple fanbois, they are loud and annoying but they do not represent the community as a whole. While I realize it is easy to discredit Apples accomplishments by pointing at some of its’ rabid fanbase, it is a disengenous intellectual exercise.

By: Justin

Justin — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 20:20:26 +0000

One of the things I love about Apple fans is the loyalty to any product no matter how flawed. There was an article in the paper last year about issues with Apple products, and the summary of the article was that no matter how bad the products were, people still displayed an amazing loyalty to the company. People with multiple bad LCDs, Mac Book Airs that died 2 and 3 times, etc. Nothing phased them. Now loyalty is good, but blind loyalty is foolish. Apple is a company, it needs to produce a superior product, and the iPhone 3G/3GS is no longer superior against the competition. What was cutting edge 2 years ago is just ho-hum these days.

What is funny is someone commented on the Pre battery life, which isn’t great, but…it’s apparently better than the iPhone, and also than the G1, or HTC Touch Pro.

Also, he is incorrect. You don’t shut features down. There was an issue with the google/AIM messaging that will be patched. Who really uses IM anymore anyway except in specific instances. I do use Skype, but haven’t used AIM in a year. There was also an issue with Hotmail. As one of the few remaining hotmail users, this was the straw that broke the camels back for me, and I am now done with hotmail. Hotmail was never friendly to 3rd parties, even MS tried to discontinue support for outlook on it, and that is their own product.

For everything else, I recommended turning GPS off, but I’ve seen no difference with it on, and it auto connects (turns on) when you open a GPS necessary program anyway so turning it off is really not a loss of function. Since the GPS doesn’t need time to load because it uses A-GPS to locate satelites almost instantly turning it off might save a little power, or it might not.

You actually turn WiFi on the increase battery life. So again, not sure what you “turn off” that matters.

I wish you could comment in more detail as to what you turn off, sounds like you are a dedicated Apple lover too me, who saw that you turn a specific feature off on some blog, and then reposted a myth.

As far as the size, there is no doubt the Pre is more ergonomic, it feels nice in your hand opened and closed, it looks modern. The iPhone reminds me of my Dell Axim X3. Square and awkward. Yeah, 2 years ago it’s design was cutting edge, now it’s sort of dated.

Keyboard? Hmm, a small physical keyboard that actually quite easy to use (and yeah, I haven’t figured out why yet, but I can type pretty well on it considering I came from an LG EnV and Voyager which have 2 of the biggest keyboards on the market). Sorry, the keyboard looks small but is pretty easy to type on.

Finally, the Pre comes with a replacable battery, that cost $6.99, yes it uses the Treo battery that can be bought OEM for under $7. With a standalone charger you are out another $10. If the battery life is that bad, carrying an extra battery is an option, while the iPhone is not. Personally, my wife and I are getting a full days use out of a charge, possibly even 1.5 days with every feature but IM turned on. Is that bad for a smart phone these days?

Oh, and is the iPhone thinner? I think it is 1/10 of an inch thinner. If that is noticeable to most people, then by all means point it out. But in reality it’s not a big difference.

Overall, it always seems to come down to subjective factors with iPhone owners. “well my iPhone looks cooler” or something like that. Fine, but that doesn’t make it a better phone/lifestyle device.

By: Susan

Susan — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 23:24:56 +0000

I’m a happy original iPhone owner who is now an ecstatic iPhone 3GS owner. The new iPhone rocks! It’s so much faster; yes, the “S” IS for Speed! The iPhone is so much more than a phone—it’s a lifestyle (just so Apple!).

By: Jim Gibson

Jim Gibson — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 21:44:13 +0000

As a former long-time Treo user who bought the version 1 iPhone, I was quite curious about the Pre. All questions were answered, though, once I got my hands on it. Compared to the iPhone it feels cheap and plasticy. The smaller size is a negative in my book, with the screen feeling undersized and the keyboard impossibly small. I went out that same day and pre-ordered a new iPhone 3GS and I’m very happy. The Pre’s multitasking was its most inviting feature to me, but I have been noticing that there is much online discussion of the Pre’s short battery life. The suggested work-around to get through a full day is to shut almost every feature down. I had been wondering whether Palm had figured out some way to defy the laws of physics that all battery using devices are subject to. It looks like they did not.

By: John

John — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 20:54:47 +0000

iPhone 3GS vs Pre? Is this a joke? A week ago I upgraded from the first gen iPhone to the 3GS. The 3GS is fantastic. It is not just that it has great features but they work well together and they are fast. Google Maps is now pretty amazing. You open it, click for your location, enter a search string and in seconds you get the result. It saved my bacon when I was rushing to the airport and needed to find a gas station to top off the rental car.

The Pre may have a smaller outline but it is thicker. The iPhone slips nicely into your pocket. Also, the new oleophobic screen is amazing. You have to try it to understand but your finger just glides across the screen and any fingerprints you get disappear with a quick wipe of a soft cloth. Amazing.

One more, speculation but it looks like Apple at least partially waterproofed the iPhone. There is a video of a guy who accidentally dropped his phone into the pool while taking a video and the it kept working. Kind of like those old Timex commercials with John Cameron Swayze.

By: Wodster

Wodster — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 07:14:20 +0000

“Apple will never add a physical keyboard to iPhone”

I’m still surprised I haven’t seen someone make one that attaches to the dock port, seems like an obvious accessory, one that you could carry in your briefcase or purse for those times on the road when you want to do some serious typing, but wouldn’t get in the way the rest of the time

Either that or a bluetooth one that you wouldn’t even have to physically attach, doesn’t that make a lot of sense?

By: Justin

Justin — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 03:18:42 +0000

Just to let everyone know the Pre (and all sprint phones) roam seamlessly on verizons network, some phones even have an option to force roaming (haven’t found it on pre yet) so if you live or are traveling in a fringe area you don’t switch between weak home and strong roam. Roaming is free to the customer and data roaming is included. As far as sprints network as a 10 year VZW subscriber I can say I have coverage everywhere I did before and data is better. Glad I shed $50 a month in cost for a family share, for what seems to be an equally good network (when roaming is factored in) .

By: Beavis

Beavis — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 02:30:16 +0000

aaaaaaaaaaaaaah…nope.