So, I finally went and got my first smartphone. I like it well enough… though while it has huge upsides, there are large downsides too.
The ability to access the internet from your pocket is amazing, but even at the oh so touted 3g speeds this phone gets, it’s hardly comparable to DSL speeds. If I am home, I make sure to connect to the local wifi network that is the same monthly cost as the data plan of the phone at twice the speed.
On the same note, you are required to carry a data plan as long as you have a smartphone. $30 for unlimited usage at these “3g” speeds may be bad, but the alternative is far, far worse. $15 for 150 MB of data transfer. 150 MB! That’s per month! To put that in perspective, Windows Update to get Windows XP Service Pack 3, a standard security update, was approximately 350ish MB. That’s either 3 months worth of download or $45 on the limited plan.
To top it all off, many features you would expect to be built in simply are not. For example, want to toggle your 3g connection to save on your data plan? Can’t do it. At least not without buying a 3rd party app. Sure, it’s only $0.99, but would that not be something expected to be present right from the start? Also, the camera built in makes a great flashlight… if you don’t mind getting another 3rd party app to use it. Nope… Not even the flashlight comes built in.
On the flip side, the GPS navigation works beautifully. It displays your route clearly, adapts to misdirections in your driving, and even speaks to you. However, even this has it’s down points. If you aren’t lucky enough to be found by the satellites before you get moving, you might very well find yourself halfway to your destination before it ever does.
Integrated email is nice. Nothing spectacular, but nice.
Browsing the web is better than I expected… until you encounter a “mobile” version of a site that both cannot be switched off and lacks many, many features the real site offers (cough cough Newegg).
All in all I sppose it could be worse… though given the chance to do it again, at this rate I’d probably go with a Jitterbug.
Note: This was entirely written on said phone. I will definately not be doing this again. Also, my “u” key doesn’t like to work when pressed. If there is any missing, yo know why.