Anyone use Android? UPDATE

[The Artist]

Getting an HTC Hero on Friday with Android on which I presume will be 1.6.

When 2.1 comes out, how will this be done? Will I need to back everything up and re install or will be it automatic?

Also, where do you get your apps from? Any awesome places with a large collection.

[JonB]

I've got the HTC desire. It is an absolutely awesome bit of kit, running Android 2.1 at the moment. Brilliant platform, much prefer it to the iPhone!

It's so nice to be able to run multiple apps @ once. Also Google maps on Android now has UK navigation free. Sat nav, woo!
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[dibbster]

I've got a HTC desire running android 2.1, tis a bit of a battery muncher though. Get yourself over to Android market for apps, not as much choice as for the iphone though.
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[The Artist]

I was going to get the Desire but it was either brown and out of stock or black and not available yet and I quite like the look of the Hero.

I wanted to stay with Orange as I have been with them for 8 or so years now and got a decent discount.

Did you do the backup, flash, wipe and install 2.1 thing? Not sure exactly how to do it. So many different things being said. I read somewhere 2.1 isn't released formally till June for the Hero.

[dibbster]

The thing is the brown one isn't really brown. More like a dark bronze strip round screen.

https://www.htc.com/uploadedImages/Common/Shared_Image/Gallery/HTC_Desire/large5.jpg
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[The Artist]

I might call them up tomorrow and see if I can change. Doesn't make too much difference to me but the Desire has a processor almost twice as fast.

Has anyone had the opportunity of using both? If I go for the Desire I have to wait longer but overall my be more pleased with it.

[Tarmacsurfer]

Put it this way, a good 30% of the Hero chefs were already defecting to the Desire before it had been rooted. Now there's a working root (not perfect but working well enough) there's likely to be a further migration.

I've used a Hero running a MoDaCo 2.0 ROM - one of the faster custom firmwares - and a stock Desire and there's no contest. The Desire is a blisteringly fast piece of kit. The Hero was a mates phone I borrowed to check Android out before I converted from WinMo, suffice to say I was impressed enough to pick up a Desire and now wouldn't go back.

As to the Desire's battery life, after a few cycles of use it settles right down. I'm seeing a good 18 hours of medium/heavy use out of a charge, two or three days if I just use it as a phone.
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[JonB]

Yeah, I only received my Desire on Monday and whilst waiting for my old number to be ported it was just left on standby with Wifi on and I got 2 days out of it with a bit of browsing and always connected to my googlemail.

It is just an awesome bit of kit. I was gonna get the Hero as an upgrade from 3, but I went on mobiles.co.uk and got the desire for free on a 24month contract on Orange for £25/month, unlimited texts, 300 minutes and 500mb of internet which is plenty. Plus £10 auto cashback.

I haven't regretted it at all.

Also it has a much better antenna than the iPhone, my missus has the 3GS on Orange and struggles to even get 1 bar of 2G signal, whereas I constantly have full 2G signal on Orange in our flat on the Desire. Needless to say she isn't best pleased.

This is the first time i've ever got fanatical about a phone. It is just amazing, also has a flash on the 5mp camera which I don't think the Hero does.
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Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it?s worth.

[T1z3R]

regarding updates.
if you get a 1.6 device you will need to backup everything before you update. i got a free app from the market place when acer released an update for my Liquid.

you should get a notification sent to your phone to say the updates available but youll need to download it to a PC and install it to there.
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[The Artist]

Well I spoke to Orange.
They said either pay £100 for the handset and I can keep my £22.50 tarriff or join a £40*24 month contract.
Also, no brown ones left, and black aren't expected till 2 weeks time.

I am fine with the Hero, should be here tomorrow.

[JonB]

Well tell the woman at Orange that you have seen the Desire on mobiles.co.uk for £25/month for 24 months with 300 mins, unlimited texts and 500mb internet and that if she won't honour the deal then you will consider your options elsewhere.
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Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it?s worth.

[The Artist]

[JonB]

I bet if you asked to leave they would soon change their stance.

After I ordered my phone on Sunday I got a call from the Three retentions department and they offered me an iPhone 3GS 16GB for £15 a month. I kid you not. They are only offering the iPhone as an upgrade cause they don't have the contract with Apple.

Kinda meh about not having it, but now I got this i'm happy as it is much better.
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Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it?s worth.

[The Artist]

I said I was going to leave them because I wanted the desire but he point blank refused.

EDIT: Decided to call again. Made it even more clear that I was going to leave and she was like, ok when your hero arrives, ring this number, they will send a box to send it back in and we will send a Desire out to you the same day.

Result

[JonB]

See. Consumer power FTW.
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Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it?s worth.

[The Artist]

Only problem is I have to wait now. Hero arrives tomorrow, I then have to return it and go through the hassle of re applying.

[Dex]

[Handsome]

You utter bastards, I'm about to cancel my Orange contract as it's due the first week in June, and after reading this thread I'm getting tempted by the Desire...

Bastards....

/Will Power fading...Will Power fading...Arrrggghhh...
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[JonB]

Why what phone was you thinking of getting before?
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Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it?s worth.

[Handsome]

Edit...Nope sod it, I'll stick with canceling the Orange contract and save myself the 35 quid a month it currently been costing me...
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[MattHirst]

What made you go for the Hero of the Legend?

I've got a legend, was originally going to go for a Desire, played with their demo phone but found it a bit to big, having to use 2 hands to use it. Then they told me they were out of stock so went with the Legend instead.

It does lack the processor power and RAM compared to the desire and nexus one but it doesn't bother me to much. Apparently, with the bigger and higher res screen, the more powerful phone isn't really that noticeable.

I haven't found a decent android forum, there is one on Phandroid (just search google for it) but it's fairly quiet.

As for apps, most of the ones you'll need are on the market but if you want anymore, download 'Astro File Manager' from the market, go into settings and allow your phone to use 3rd party apps then you can download apps from the internet and send them to your phone via the usb cable.

Some guy at Modaco forums has managed to root the Legend and Desire (suppose it goes for anything that runs 2.1) but he says that there isn't really any benefits at the moment as he has only just managed to get root access, when he manages to dig a bit deeper and releases a decent ROM for it then i may consider rooting my Legend.
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[The Artist]

TBH I quite liked the look of the Hero but almost every review said how awesome it was apart from the snag of the slower processor.

The Desire looks nice as well and is supposedly awesomely fast.

Also the cost of the contract drew me to the Hero but now I have the same price for the Desire it is win win for me.

[butterob]

i have a hero and its a lovely phone but i got annoyed at waiting for 2.1 so rooted the phone. The hero is starting to feel a bit out of date now and can slow down quite a bit at times, i would go with a desire they're meant to be awesome phones!
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[The Artist]

Well the Hero came today so I called up returns and they are sending a jiffy bag for it next week

They said I could use it till then anyway and the Desire can't be ordered till in stock so I am going to wait till it is in stock before sending this back.

[lllN30lll]

I was going to install Android to my iPhone, never used that OS before though.
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