Motorola Droid estimated to have sold 100,000 in first weekend

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  • Reply 41 of 168
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by melgross View Post


    I predict that various phone makers and even cell carriers will take Android and split off their branch from the Google branch, leading to a number of incompatible Android based systems in a few years. We're beginning to see it already........



    It will be a mess.



    I agree with that assessment. Symbian itself is one such example. The phone makers will be simply condemning themselves to a low-margin, high-volume treadmill in the long run (as has been inevitably the case with all electronics) unless they also control the user experience, which is all about software. This is where, despite detractors who think it's too much control, Apple has the edge vis-a-vis the average smartphone consumer.



    At the moment, the primary thing driving people to Verizon (if that) is not Android, but ATT.
  • Reply 42 of 168
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by rain View Post


    Man, I don't know what country or conditions you live in... but in Canada we aren't forced at gun point to read every article on a website. I'm pretty sure it's the same way in the US and, well, pretty much anywhere i can think of.



    Sorry to hear you absolutely must read every article on a website.



  • Reply 43 of 168
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TenoBell View Post


    Desktop OS are stable platforms. There are different platforms to choose from. The equivalent of what Mel is saying would be HP, Dell, and Acer all using a slightly different version of Windows designed for their own computers and are incompatible with each others machines.

    The reality is that Windows is a stable platform. Mel is saying that Android will likely not end up with the same type of stability and in the long run fracture the entire platform.



    UNIX clones are considered to be more stable, than Windows is.

    Ummm... I'm not interested in Windows that much and might have missed some important point of its evolution, but this system seems to be sold in the form of self-sufficient distributives (unlike Mac OS), which install and run on HP, DELL, and any other IBM clones. So, there should be no machine-specific versions of Windows.

    The point which I hold is that desktop systems tolerate worse performance for the sake of portability. This is not the case of phones. I believe we all are gonna agree on that.

    I was always sure Android is far better choice for some special desktop-based applications, requiring wireless connectivity, than for phones. Yet people are building quite successful phones on the base of that system. Why not?
  • Reply 44 of 168
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by melgross View Post


    A lot of us are interested, as this will have impact on Apple's own product sales and upgrades.



    They can't just talk about Apple products without having some base upon which to compare them to.



    You can tell the interest by the number of posts on a topic. More than 50 shows interest. More than 100 shows a lot of interest, and much more than that shows overwhelming interest.



    1) Since when has apple reacted to another product release?



    2) I agree with you, but if you're going to go that route, the real article is a comparison of Droid to the iPhone, feature for feature. Not sales numbers.



    3) That can't be used as a measuring stick as it's usually the same people cranking up post counts and just bickering about off topic stuff. Like his post, your post and my post. Not really relevant to the article.
  • Reply 45 of 168
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Quadra 610 View Post


    Seen it before.



    http://www.intomobile.com/2009/06/08...at-100000.html



    http://www.fiercewireless.com/story/...id=OTC-RSS-FW0



    Same numbers.



    A slow start for Droid, pretty anticlimactic, and what's worse, fairly unknown by the general public. And it's no competition for the iPhone, that's for sure.



    The Droid's (and Android's) only real hope is long-term growth and a steady decline or levelling off in iPhone popularity. Unfortunately (for some), the latter doesn't seem to be happening (quite the opposite), and what's more, Apple seems to like its iPhone enough to keep up development (and advertise it effectively), which is bad news for everyone else.



    Some key differences?
    1. Verizon bigger and better than Sprint

    2. Android OS in v2.0 not fresh out of Beta

    3. Over 10k apps from the start

    4. A viable public SDK.

    I think the Android is going to do well, and Motorola may actually make a profit this quarter.



    Quote:

    Good for Motorola, though. Unfortunately their hardware is a far cry from sleek or elegant.



    What?s funny is that it?s reported that Verizon already told Motorola to redo the HW because it was too blockish, yet it still looks like it was developed in East Germany during the Cold War.
  • Reply 46 of 168
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    .... yet it still looks like it was developed in East Germany during the Cold War.



    ...in a brick kiln.
  • Reply 47 of 168
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,510member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by steviet02 View Post


    1) Since when has apple reacted to another product release?



    Internally, with their own development, has ALWAYS reacted to other companies releases. They have to. Every standard that Apple uses was developed somewhere, and most were not developed by Apple.



    Remember the big to do over MMS? Why did Apple release that? We could go on.



    Quote:

    2) I agree with you, but if you're going to go that route, the real article is a comparison of Droid to the iPhone, feature for feature. Not sales numbers.



    Sales numbers are always a part of it. If it doesn't sell, then who cares? If it does, then we all care.



    Quote:

    3) That can't be used as a measuring stick as it's usually the same people cranking up post counts and just bickering about off topic stuff. Like his post, your post and my post. Not really relevant to the article.



    We can't entirely stick to a topic. It's too limiting. Other issues that are part of it come up, and people like to address them. It's hard to find the right point to say, "here's the line."
  • Reply 48 of 168
    richlrichl Posts: 2,213member
    It's worth pointing out that the 256MB limit for applications is only for the actual binaries. Resource files like sounds, graphics and maps can be stored on the memory card.



    A user would need to download every app and game on the Android marketplace to fill the whole 256MB.
  • Reply 49 of 168
    tenobelltenobell Posts: 7,014member
    You've seemed to have changed the context of the conversation. I'm not talking about the stability of the underlying code. We were talking about the OS having the same experience across different hardware manufacturers.



    The point is that Windows is Windows no matter who you buy your computer from. Mel's point is that Android will not be the same from each manufacturer, so there will be no true Android.





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ivan.rnn01 View Post


    UNIX clones are considered to be more stable, than Windows is.

    Ummm... I'm not interested in Windows that much and might have missed some important point of its evolution, but this system seems to be sold in the form of self-sufficient distributives (unlike Mac OS), which install and run on HP, DELL, and any other IBM clones. So, there should be no machine-specific versions of Windows.

    The point which I hold is that desktop systems tolerate worse performance for the sake of portability. This is not the case of phones. I believe we all are gonna agree on that.

    I was always sure Android is far better choice for some special desktop-based applications, requiring wireless connectivity, than for phones. Yet people are building quite successful phones on the base of that system. Why not?



  • Reply 50 of 168
    tenobelltenobell Posts: 7,014member
    That sounds like a worse situation. Most people aren't going to realize that parts of the app are stored on the phone and parts stored on the memory card. So when you remove the memory card the app will no longer work.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by RichL View Post


    It's worth pointing out that the 256MB limit for applications is only for the actual binaries. Resource files like sounds, graphics and maps can be stored on the memory card.



    A user would need to download every app and game on the Android marketplace to fill the whole 256MB.



  • Reply 51 of 168
    timontimon Posts: 152member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by iphonedeveloperthailand View Post


    100,000 compared to 1,000,000 units sold on the first weekend. How is this going to kill the iPhone?



    Get real, I've not heard anyone other than some in the press say that Android phones are iPhone killers. Anyone that thinks that is not using the brain they were given.



    On the other hand the Droid is a good phone that many can live with until the iPhone comes to Verizon. Now that Oualcomm has a true world chip that will likely be late next summer.



    I for one have a Droid coming. I'm happy with that until the Verizon iPhone comes out next summer. If not Oh Well I can either wait a little longer or switch to AT&T.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Aizmov View Post


    I was hoping the Droid be more of a success, Motorola needs it. It'd be sad if Motorola went bye bye but they are to blame for their own failure.



    Strong competition will make it hard for any player to monopolize the market, and will motivate all players to bring in their best. We all win!



    Agreed.



    I'll bet that almost all of the phones you see coming out of MOT from now on will be Android based. It's the only thing that will save them.
  • Reply 52 of 168
    thomprthompr Posts: 1,521member
    ... don't mix.



    The words "image quality" and "camera phone" never belong in the same sentence together.



    It cracks me up when people (even the "professional" media, who should know better!) compare "megapixels" on a camera phone. Don't they know that those teeny-tiny optics have a fairly wide point-spread-function, which limits the resolution to some value that is already wider than the pixel spacing on a 3 megapixel sensor? In other words, adding more pixels via a tighter pixel spacing only adds MORE blurry pixels. So show me the person that brags about his 5 megapixel camera phone (versus my iPhone) and I'll be glad to compare the pictures after they are downloaded.



    If you want real quality, you need a good size lens with a correspondingly long focal length. In other words... you need a camera.



    Camera phones are not for "pro photographers" and are not for quality. They are for convenience. As the saying goes: "the best camera is the one you have with you when you need it." On the other hand, if the moment that you need it is outside after dark (like on Halloween, walking around with the kids) it would be handy to have a flash just so that you can get a picture at all.



    In other words, having a flash is NOT moot. It may be a moot question from the standpoint of quality, but camera phones are not about quality. They are about convenience, and convenience sometimes demands a flash.



    Thompson











    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Rhetoric.assassin View Post


    as a pro photographer, I see this as a moot point... if you want blown out, unusable information in a photo, that has terrible white balance, horrible vignetting, and the same blue-ish look....then yea a crappy camera flash is fOR you teckstud....



    otherwise available light is what is best, this is probably the reason apple has not included one yet, in fact I am positive, since apple is all about proper implementation of technology. Hence the crappy dual flash on the droid and other camera phones. Hmm, the photos (which is an insult to photographers, more like snapshots) all look the same which should come as no surprise to anyone who uses a camera.



  • Reply 53 of 168
    sheffsheff Posts: 1,407member
    Weak!!





    Can anyone confirm that there is only 256mb for storing apps on the device? Does anyone know of batter life when multitasking? I know when I enabled it on iPhone i felt the battery life degrade, guess it would be similar to Droid. How about the camera, can you do anything cool with it or upload to youtube? Will it be available for other carriers like T-Mobile?
  • Reply 54 of 168
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by RichL View Post


    It's worth pointing out that the 256MB limit for applications is only for the actual binaries. Resource files like sounds, graphics and maps can be stored on the memory card.



    A user would need to download every app and game on the Android marketplace to fill the whole 256MB.



    That doesn?t sound good at all. So the first part of the app downloads to the built-in Flash, then when you start the app it looks for the rest of the files, if it can?t find them it downloads them from the server? Even after the first time it?ll be slower to access files from two different sources on your device. One are where the 3GS improved over the 3G is using faster Flash. I can?t imagine this being a viable solution for the average consumer. The Droid seems to be falling into the area of a toy by geeks for geeks.
  • Reply 55 of 168
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by starnyc View Post


    DROID is just another handset. They should have taken the AVIS route and advertised it as "we're #2" and "we try harder" going up against the Blackberry and other smartphones rather than taking on the iPhone, because they created expectations with their advertising that the user experience simply cannot match. In battling unrealistically for #1 they are not carving out their own niche - hard to use geek phone that runs our of batteries quickly.



    this is a geek phone limited to 256MB of application storage memory with NO HOPE of expansion in site, because android does not allow apps to be stored on the removable memory cards.



    any real geek is going to get the 32GB iPhone 3GS and jailbreak it.



    What expectations have they created that the user experience isn't matching? The only thing that I've been reading that sucks is the physical keyboard. Android 2.0 has been getting rave reviews, especially since the Droid's finally got the hardware to show it off.



    Google Maps Navigation with the voice search has also been getting top-notch reviews. Especially great considering it's a "beta" program. That's what sets Android apart from "just another handset". Where is this on the iPhone or any other smartphone for that matter?



    And you couldn't be any more wrong about the "no hope" in expansion part. Google is actively working on an AppsToSD solution. I would expect it to show up either right before they move to Flan or as part of the Flan upgrade.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by sheff View Post


    Weak!!

    Can anyone confirm that there is only 256mb for storing apps on the device? Does anyone know of batter life when multitasking? I know when I enabled it on iPhone i felt the battery life degrade, guess it would be similar to Droid. How about the camera, can you do anything cool with it or upload to youtube? Will it be available for other carriers like T-Mobile?



    Yes, for the near-term, apps are limited to 256 MB. But as I've said, Google is working on a solution. And Android 2.0 does have a YouTube widget that allows you to upload videos directly to your account (provided you signed in earlier) in about 2 or 3 button presses. Camera records video in 720p HD, if I'm not mistaken.
  • Reply 56 of 168
    Those numbers are pretty impressive although i can't help thinking this will be just a blip.



    For example we had the first Android phone namely G1 which didn't do particularly well. The G1 being a reference to the Google brand. Now we have the Droid, again being a reference to Android which is the Google brand.



    So what's going to happen when the other BIG phone companies, who are committed to Android, release their new phones with less than obvious names/references to Google or Android?



    After all, iPhone, like iPod, is a brand which kind rolls off the tongue. I hope i'm wrong but It seems to me Google/Motorola have used up most of their gunpowder early in the battle.



    EDIT: By the way without Googling it, can anybody rembember which company released the G1? Be honest now.
  • Reply 57 of 168
    alfiejralfiejr Posts: 1,524member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Quadra 610 View Post


    Seen it before.



    http://www.intomobile.com/2009/06/08...at-100000.html



    http://www.fiercewireless.com/story/...id=OTC-RSS-FW0



    Same numbers.



    A slow start for Droid, pretty anticlimactic, and what's worse, fairly unknown by the general public. And it's no competition for the iPhone, that's for sure.



    The Droid's (and Android's) only real hope is long-term growth and a steady decline or levelling off in iPhone popularity. Unfortunately (for some), the latter doesn't seem to be happening (quite the opposite), and what's more, Apple seems to like its iPhone enough to keep up development (and advertise it effectively), which is bad news for everyone else.



    Good for Motorola, though. Unfortunately their hardware is a far cry from sleek or elegant.



    no, you miss it. Android will grow steadily as numerous models are released by all the telcos around the world - by taking sales away from WinMo and Symbian products, not iPhone/RIM with their solid ecosystems and market niches. the only impact on the iPhone (in the US) will be to keep a good number of Verizon customers from switching to AT&T and the iPhone.



    don't buy into all the iPhone vs. Droid hype. that is just tech geek bloviating and smart advertising by Verizon. it's the obsolete WinMo and Symbian platforms that are actually about to be "killed."
  • Reply 58 of 168
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by sheff View Post


    Can anyone confirm that there is only 256mb for storing apps on the device? Does anyone know of batter life when multitasking? I know when I enabled it on iPhone i felt the battery life degrade, guess it would be similar to Droid. How about the camera, can you do anything cool with it or upload to youtube? Will it be available for other carriers like T-Mobile?



    512MB on-board ROM with 256MB available for apps. As stated in this thread, programs can store files on the microSD card, but this is a work-aroudn, not an ideal solution.



    Battery life is questionable. Stated talk time when compared to iPhone on 3G is one hour longer, but CDMA-based phones use 2G for talk while GSM-based devices use 3G. Overall, this means that the battery life should be worse. Standby time is rated less than iPhone, we?ll have to see how it compares with audio, video (which it can?t do without a 3rd-party app) and internet.



    The jailbreaking multitasking aren?t very good at power management. The Droid should be better, but it?ll still take a toll.



    The Droid pixels are 180% that of the iPhone, but he software is worse so the images are worse. There are 3rd-party apps for uploading and editing, but none are nearly as good as the iPhone. In fact, they are all down right crappy at this point. Compare Facebook apps and you get and idea.



    You?ll see Android on all carriers, including AT&T, but Droid is licensed to Verizon by LucasFilms. Not sure if they?ll keep the name with Motorola or just use it for all or some of their Android-based devices.
  • Reply 59 of 168
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,510member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TenoBell View Post


    That sounds like a worse situation. Most people aren't going to realize that parts of the app are stored on the phone and parts stored on the memory card. So when you remove the memory card the app will no longer work.



    That's one of the problems I keep bring up about removable cards. These newer phones don't work any differently than does my now old Treo 700p.



    When the card is removed, and another one put back, it has messages about all the stuff that missing, and would I please put the other card back in so that I can use the programs which are STILL listed as being in the machine.



    Removable cards are a BAD idea. Why? Because the companies are using them instead of doing it the right way.



    Then you forget exactly what's on each card. Once you have more than one extra card, things become ridiculous.



    If you then use a program which will allow you to use it even with some of the stuff missing, then you now have TWO cards with stuff from one program, never to unite them. It's a real mess.
  • Reply 60 of 168
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,510member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by sheff View Post


    Weak!!





    Can anyone confirm that there is only 256mb for storing apps on the device? Does anyone know of batter life when multitasking? I know when I enabled it on iPhone i felt the battery life degrade, guess it would be similar to Droid. How about the camera, can you do anything cool with it or upload to youtube? Will it be available for other carriers like T-Mobile?



    There are a bunch of articles about this. I'll just post one.



    http://industry.bnet.com/technology/...deliver-power/
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