[jDMJeRk]

Anyone that has seem some of my random posts know that I've really wanted a true comparison on how the Android OS compares to the Blackberry OS in my everyday life. Just using the phone in the store isn't a good enough comparison for me.

I finally made the switch as and Android powered phone was the last phone I hadn't tried (I've used the iPhones and Blackberries for the past 5 years). I went from the Curve to the Edge iPhone to the Bold to the 3GS, back to the Bold (as the iPhone was definitely a phone NOT for me) and got the Torch back in August 2010.

I picked up the Captivate on Sunday for about $180 USD. I had a friend that let me use one of his 2 year contract prices so I was able to get the smoking deal without having to forfeit my Torch just in case I didnt like the Captivate.

My main intentions of this thread is for information. I'm not here to say the Torch sucks, go Android however that might be the way it sounds.

I won't be going back to the Torch as the negatives of it out weighs the positives compared to the Captivate only after 2 days.

Here are some of the differences that I've personally noticed between the two devices. I'm running the latest beta on the torch and the Captivate has been rooted and upgraded to the lastest OS with a custom rom as well.

- The BB doesn't come close to web browsing.
- The ring tones are louder on the BB however I'm sure there is a way to tweak the Captivate to ring louder and I just haven't found out how yet.
- Battery life is better on the BB but Im using the Captivate a lot more than the BB
- I listen to music off my SD card ALOT and the Captivate is REALLLY slow at getting the music started and browsing it. The BB was instant. The BB also plays the music louder than the Captivate EVEN with the amplifier app installed.
- Voice recognition seems to work a lot better on the Captivate.
- Apps seem to install faster and run a lot better as well.
- The Captivate fits between my face and shoulder better as well as in my hand.
- After removing the phone from your face, the Captivate is really slow to realize its not against your face anymore.
- The camera is actually a camera worth while to have on the Captivate. The BB camera is just unacceptable (and in my opinion cameras shouldn't even be on phones!)
- I had one mishap with the alarm on the Captivate and it didnt wake me up- that bothered me but I think it was more user error than anything :P
- The display is worth a million words on the Captivate.
I really do miss the status light on the BB. I'm so used to seeing a blinking light for messages, email, etc that I see it blinking on the Captivate when its not even there lol.

Anyhow, I'm happy with the Android OS. Its definitely the phone for me. Only after two days I'm very pleased with it. My Torch will be up for sale and the spare one that I have for parts in the next week or so.

I'll post things as I go along in case anyone is curious on how the comparison goes in the days to come. Feel free to ask any other additional questions regarding the two.

And as far as not having a physical keyboard, I really didnt notice it missing as much as I expected I would, which is truely why I stayed with BB this entire time and hated the iPhone so much. Swype is really cool and easier to use than I anticipated.

Cheers,

Nick

[tbird57]

How is the captivate with email and pdf?

[DallasFlier]

Thanks for the comparison, seemed pretty balanced. Certainly that hi-res Super AMOLED display is beautiful. Regarding the camera, I wonder though if the difference you're perceiving in the two cameras is more a function of the display that you're looking at them on, rather than differences in the cameras themselves. Both cameras are 5 Mp, and appear to have essentially identical specs. I'm afraid for me the "no physical keyboard" is still a showstopper. I also wonder about the phone itself - haven't heard anything specifically negative about it, but I believe the actual "phone" in the iPhones is still far inferior to the BlackBerry, so I wonder.

[rambo47]

When I've used my Evo I've found a lot of those same pros/cons.

Messaging: BlackBerry still has no equal. Unified inbox anyone?
Screen: Are you kidding?? The Evo's 4.3" screen is gorgeous. And when using Google Maps and GPS the Evo pisses on the BlackBerry.
Battery: BlackBerry by a HUGE margin. Days vs. hours.
Camera: Evo all the way.
Browser: ANYthing is better than BlackBerry.

I think a lot of these factors hold true for almost all Android devices. It's all about how you use your mobile. Messaging: BlackBerry. This is still my #1 priority and all Android's other superiorities don't make up for this. If I were more into multimedia my Evo would be the clear choice. For now, however, my BlackBerry works the way I do.

[jDMJeRk]

Originally Posted by tbird57

How is the captivate with email and pdf?

I plan on getting email setup later on this week as I haven't had a chance too just yet. On my BB I had (1) IMAP address, (1) Hotmail and (1) gmail account. Obviously all I have so far is the gmail account. I heard you can route all your mail through your gmail account but I haven't done that as I thought I'd see what third party applications may be available first. I know this is a BB forum but if anyone could shed some light on this I'd appreciate it.

As far as the PDF goes, is that supposed to be a like a smack in the face that it can't do it or a honest question? I haven't tried to view any invoices that are PDF as of yet but that will REALLY suck if its not able to view them. I always thought that was cool of the BB.

Originally Posted by DallasFlier

Thanks for the comparison, seemed pretty balanced. Certainly that hi-res Super AMOLED display is beautiful. Regarding the camera, I wonder though if the difference you're perceiving in the two cameras is more a function of the display that you're looking at them on, rather than differences in the cameras themselves. Both cameras are 5 Mp, and appear to have essentially identical specs. I'm afraid for me the "no physical keyboard" is still a showstopper. I also wonder about the phone itself - haven't heard anything specifically negative about it, but I believe the actual "phone" in the iPhones is still far inferior to the BlackBerry, so I wonder.

I normally take notes on my BB at church and I wasn't able to quite yet with swype... I was very disapointed but again, I'm only on day three and I'm sure that i'll get used to it. I too was a big believer in the actual keyboard and still am but I'm amazed as what this little phone can do!

As far as the camera goes maybe your right, its more of the layout and such. I haven't compared picture to picture but just viewing them on the phone seemed like a better quality shot. I liked how on the Android software though you can focus the camera specifically rather quickly on a specific part in the photo and also shoot multiple shots faster than the typical pocket camera people have.

Originally Posted by rambo47

When I've used my Evo I've found a lot of those same pros/cons.

Messaging: BlackBerry still has no equal. Unified inbox anyone?
Screen: Are you kidding?? The Evo's 4.3" screen is gorgeous. And when using Google Maps and GPS the Evo pisses on the BlackBerry.
Battery: BlackBerry by a HUGE margin. Days vs. hours.
Camera: Evo all the way.
Browser: ANYthing is better than BlackBerry.

I think a lot of these factors hold true for almost all Android devices. It's all about how you use your mobile. Messaging: BlackBerry. This is still my #1 priority and all Android's other superiorities don't make up for this. If I were more into multimedia my Evo would be the clear choice. For now, however, my BlackBerry works the way I do.

I don't think I could have said it better (as I've been saying that all along). I use the phone for messaging and email mostly and all the extras are just kickers. Its just the extras the BB had were even kickers they were more of a let downer lol. I'm worried about the email setup and what exactly one means by Unified.

As far as the battery life goes... I'm still seeing about the same as of now but from what I read and hear it wont be long till I load this thing up with applications running in the background and really sucking the battery down quickly. I charge my phone every night before bed (bb or android) and I'm usually pretty safe.

I did notice though that if you do have a message or notification on the Android the menu buttons stay lit so thats kinda like a status light but no comparison really lol

I miss the flash light application on the Torch as well. You can't add a physical light to a phone through any application PERIOD. Also, no flash for picture is horrible too I suppose but again, cameras on phones, I mean com'on really?

Nick

[jDMJeRk]

And I also dont see how Android can keep up with the on the fly spell check like ANY of the BB have... I'm going to miss that because I can't spell for shit!

[rdef]

REAL pros and cons?

This is REAL?: "After removing the phone from your face, the Captivate is really slow to realize its not against your face anymore."

Oh brother...another worthless comparison...

[jDMJeRk]

Originally Posted by tbird57

How is the captivate with email and pdf?

Originally Posted by DallasFlier

Thanks for the comparison, seemed pretty balanced. Certainly that hi-res Super AMOLED display is beautiful. Regarding the camera, I wonder though if the difference you're perceiving in the two cameras is more a function of the display that you're looking at them on, rather than differences in the cameras themselves. Both cameras are 5 Mp, and appear to have essentially identical specs. I'm afraid for me the "no physical keyboard" is still a showstopper. I also wonder about the phone itself - haven't heard anything specifically negative about it, but I believe the actual "phone" in the iPhones is still far inferior to the BlackBerry, so I wonder.

Originally Posted by rdef

REAL pros and cons?

This is REAL?: "After removing the phone from your face, the Captivate is really slow to realize its not against your face anymore."

Oh brother...another worthless comparison...

Yeah thats a REAL difference between my Torch and my Captivate because the Torch was always really quick to respond where the Captivate isn't. Now if that's a setting which can be fixed I haven't found it yet. Thanks for the worthless addition to my thread
Maybe the screen isn't as sensitive or something- I dunno.

I noticed the Captivate fits between my shoulder and ear better (hands free without the handsfree device lol). The overall "feel" of the device in my hand is nicer too imo.

I still haven't found a fix for the quite ring tones.

The syncing software (which isn't available for my phone) is non existent.

I had some other things that I wanted to share but since the blackberryforums.com server had some issues, I wasn't able to log in for the past three days :(

Cheers,

Nick

[tbird57]

Thanks for the update keep us posted!
Posted via BlackBerryForums.com Mobile

[duane534]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the Captivate lacking a camera flash?

As far as web browsing is concerned, it is really nice to have native Flash support, but there are a number of third-party browsers for BlackBerry that render Flash off-device and stream it to you. Not an ideal solution, but people should be aware it's out there.

On the Fascinate, at least, the ringer just ISN'T loud. You can't make it loud. It's the hardware.

Battery life won't improve with more email accounts. If you run your alternate accounts THROUGH your Gmail account, it won't get worse. But, if you add them as pull accounts, you will either get emails fast(-ish) or have short battery life. Both isn't an option.

The lag time with the memory card is odd. That shouldn't happen. Perhaps, you have background processes slowing the audio codecs?

Voice recognition IS better, but it isn't local. It goes OTA to Google. Thus, it will consume your data plan and not work when there's no data connection.

Apps being faster is more due to the chipset of the phone than the platform. Try doing it on a Motorola Backflip. LOL

Your mention of lag time with the proximity sensor SCREAMS lag due to background apps. The Galaxy S phones are top-tier (or close to). You need a task killer.

The Captivate display is absolutely gorgeous, but it's likely part of your battery issues, too. Try dialing down the screen a bit with the Power Control widget.

There are Android phones with LED notifications. Just not the Galaxy Ses.

Swype is pretty awesome. I'm a SureType guy myself (for when my Torch is in portrait-mode, but I don't have the keyboard out for some reason).

I wouldn't offload the BlackBerries so quick. I did EXACTLY what you did in between my Bold 9700 and Torch. You work to justify why you left your BlackBerry. Thing is, those quirks will irritate you more and more. Enough missed calls due to quiet ringtones... Not to mention due to a dead battery. Staring at your phone because of the proximity sensor lag or staring at it because of a dead battery gets no more done than starting at it due to an hourglass.

Regardless, Godspeed...

[duane534]

You can sync with your PC. Just install Google Sync to the PC and attach it to the same Gmail account as is on your phone. Similar premise to Desktop Manager, just OTA. That's how Google likes it.

[Max Peck]

Interesting thread. Makes me wonder, though - are you trying to convince us that you're happy with the switch or yourself?

-Max

[duane534]

Originally Posted by Max Peck

Interesting thread. Makes me wonder, though - are you trying to convince us that you're happy with the switch or yourself?

-Max

That's kind of how I interpreted it, too, 'cause I did the exact same thing. LOL

[duane534]

You got 6.0 on that Bold, Max?

[Max Peck]

Originally Posted by duane534

You got 6.0 on that Bold, Max?

Hey Duane,

Yup, sure do.

-Max

[jDMJeRk]

Originally Posted by duane534

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the Captivate lacking a camera flash?

As far as web browsing is concerned, it is really nice to have native Flash support, but there are a number of third-party browsers for BlackBerry that render Flash off-device and stream it to you. Not an ideal solution, but people should be aware it's out there.

On the Fascinate, at least, the ringer just ISN'T loud. You can't make it loud. It's the hardware.

Battery life won't improve with more email accounts. If you run your alternate accounts THROUGH your Gmail account, it won't get worse. But, if you add them as pull accounts, you will either get emails fast(-ish) or have short battery life. Both isn't an option.

The lag time with the memory card is odd. That shouldn't happen. Perhaps, you have background processes slowing the audio codecs?

Voice recognition IS better, but it isn't local. It goes OTA to Google. Thus, it will consume your data plan and not work when there's no data connection.

Apps being faster is more due to the chipset of the phone than the platform. Try doing it on a Motorola Backflip. LOL

Your mention of lag time with the proximity sensor SCREAMS lag due to background apps. The Galaxy S phones are top-tier (or close to). You need a task killer.

The Captivate display is absolutely gorgeous, but it's likely part of your battery issues, too. Try dialing down the screen a bit with the Power Control widget.

There are Android phones with LED notifications. Just not the Galaxy Ses.

Swype is pretty awesome. I'm a SureType guy myself (for when my Torch is in portrait-mode, but I don't have the keyboard out for some reason).

I wouldn't offload the BlackBerries so quick. I did EXACTLY what you did in between my Bold 9700 and Torch. You work to justify why you left your BlackBerry. Thing is, those quirks will irritate you more and more. Enough missed calls due to quiet ringtones... Not to mention due to a dead battery. Staring at your phone because of the proximity sensor lag or staring at it because of a dead battery gets no more done than starting at it due to an hourglass.

Regardless, Godspeed...

This is loaded with great information. Before I made the switch I wasn't able to find alot of information on the difference between the two phones. And like I said before its hard to really compare two phones side by side until you really take each them into your everyday life style.

As for me, charging the phone once a day is all I ask for. I suppose some of you that are using the phone alot of emailing on multiple accounts or text messaging/BBMing all day will benefit from the BB battery life.

My phone doesnt have a camera with a flash which isn't a big deal. I apologize if I misinformed you. I'm missing the "flash light" app more than the actual flash that the BB provided.

I didnt know that flash was available for the Torch however my complaint wasn't not having flash it was the lack of, not even a good but decent browser. If I wanted to look something up quick, 9 out of 10 times I was asking my wife for her iPhone- this is a red flag in my book that my cell phone isn't doing its job (or a prime a example of user error on my part! :P)

The lag time on the SD card has improved.. It almost seemed like you mentioned I had too many applications running or maybe the card had to be indexed in the file system? I haven't had much of a problem with that lately.

I've got the task killer and I use it quite frequently but proximity sensor just doesn't work like the Torch did.

I have found that the navigation keys on the phone do light up when you have a missed email, text or phone call so its good enough for me as a status light.

The email is an issue and I'm working on that but as of right now my main email is gmail and I have one more imap account and it seems to be syncing properly.

As the ringtones go I didnt know I couldn't make them louder. I thought forsure with the AMP gain on the headphones they'd have something similar for the ringtones. We'll see how this goes then lol.

I sold the Torch today- I got $475 for the used one and the used one that was broken due to the genius that washing it in the machining machine. I made out on the deal and the captivate was cheap. If push comes to shove I'll buy a 9700.

Originally Posted by duane534

You can sync with your PC. Just install Google Sync to the PC and attach it to the same Gmail account as is on your phone. Similar premise to Desktop Manager, just OTA. That's how Google likes it.

Thanks for the suggestion- I dont sync a lot I just wanted to transfer my contacts from my bb to the Captivate.

Originally Posted by Max Peck

Interesting thread. Makes me wonder, though - are you trying to convince us that you're happy with the switch or yourself?

-Max

Your probably right, I'm trying convince myself haha, jk. Really though I was just trying to bring the facts to the forefront. These are the comparisons, likes and dislikes that I came across in my everyday life. I was just trying to contribute to the forum is all.

I think there are more lurkers on here then participating members- hell I'm probably one of them :D

Cheers

[tbird57]

Your just fine! I enjoy reading your comparison. Thanks!
Posted via BlackBerryForums.com Mobile

[shanezam203]

Is there a way to enable swipe on the Torch?

[Max Peck]

Originally Posted by jDMJeRk

Your probably right, I'm trying convince myself haha, jk. Really though I was just trying to bring the facts to the forefront. These are the comparisons, likes and dislikes that I came across in my everyday life. I was just trying to contribute to the forum is all.

All this technology has driven me crazy (in a good way) over the years. Much fun playing with the gadgetry. It's good to hear about how the different gadgets work.

I think, though, I'm going to take a break from the tinkering and just use the BB for awhile. This is the first smart phone I've had that I think I'll be able to leave alone and just use without fooling with it!

-Max :D

[andriver]

I did the reverse. I went from Bold to Captivate to Torch. The young man at AT&T convinced me to buy the Captivate. He showed all the cool features, swiping, etc. I was sold. When I started using it the newness wore off. I did not like the virtual keyboard. The biggest drawback for me was not being able to sync my contacts and calendar from Outlook. Yes there are apps you can buy that will take care of this but honestly it should have been part of the package to begin with.

The Captivate is a cool phone but it is geared more to entertainment than business.