Should I get the Aria or hold out? - HTC Aria General

Should I hold off on getting the Aria in the hope of ATT picking up a High-end HTC Android device like the desire? I just having a feeling that I could be waiting awhile and I am ready to move to Android right now.
I have the HTC Touch HD fully modded to Sense and WInMo 6.5 but I am just ready to switch.
I have played with the Aria and I am just concerned with the Screen size. Its smaller than the one I have now.
Another concern is the battery life but I figured I would flash ATT bloatware battery draining stuff off the phone. Would it make a difference?
I just need help making my decision. I ahve played with it and it is zippy and fun except for the super sensitive dedicated buttons below.

Shival said:
Should I hold off on getting the Aria in the hope of ATT picking up a High-end HTC Android device like the desire? I just having a feeling that I could be waiting awhile and I am ready to move to Android right now.
I have the HTC Touch HD fully modded to Sense and WInMo 6.5 but I am just ready to switch.
I have played with the Aria and I am just concerned with the Screen size. Its smaller than the one I have now.
Another concern is the battery life but I figured I would flash ATT bloatware battery draining stuff off the phone. Would it make a difference?
I just need help making my decision. I ahve played with it and it is zippy and fun except for the super sensitive dedicated buttons below.
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have you checked out the Samsung Captivate?

I've checked it out but the UI turns me off and since having an HTC Device, I don't think I could ever change. HTC has soooo much community support and the updating could keep the phone relevant long after it should be.
I read the post between the two. I just cannot get past the Captivates UI.

I'm in the same exact boat as you. I LOVE the packaging of the Aria - its rugged appearance with the rubberized grip, and the metal shiny trimmings on it. I think it looks a bit better than the Iphone 4 and way better than the samsung captivate. But the captivate kind of blows this phone away in terms of hardware, and when I was using the browser on the Aria in the AT&T store today, it seemed sorta glitchy. It wouldn't respond to double taps or zooming in sometimes and it seemed like it had to load a lot more than the captivate. I'm also really drawn to the Sense UI, as I currently have a TP and I like the sense. I don't know if I trust Samsung yet with all the HTC support out there... I'm also hoping for AT&T to pick up some slick HTC android device, but I doubt it'll happen anytime soon..

I was in the exact same boat a couple weeks ago. I ended up going with the Aria and I honestly don't regret it in the slightest. I'm not sure what your plans are as far as rooting and what not, but I have a clean eclair rom (No SenseUI) flashed and it runs even quicker than it did when I got it. I can't complain about battery life, I can always make it through the whole day (except the first couple, couldn't put it down ) and have some battery to spare, you may have issues when you initially get it, but you'll quickly see the reason is everything that auto-syncs does so VERY frequently and you can simply lower that time and see an improvement.
I have used the Captivate and it is quite impressive, but I also found the UI leaving something to be desired. And again, I don't regret buying my Aria over it (I'm still within the 30 day period in which I could potentially exchange my phone).
As far as waiting for another, I personally wouldn't hold my breath. I'm quite suprised AT&T has received what they have so far, I was beginning to think jumping ship would be my only way to get a decent android. My advice if you are truly torn, would be hold out as long as you can, keep an eye on any updates as far as AT&T and Android (I frequently use Google News sorted by date for this, quite effective) and when you can't wait any longer, go with the Aria/Captivate and hope you'll get lucky within those 30 days and get a release

aria has been my first jump to android from many years of htc winmo devices. Although the samsung has more impressive hardware, who's to say when it will be as customizable as HTC devices or rooted (if ever). The community support for HTC devices is unmatched and that alone is a selling point for me.
The aria is a SNAPPY device, I say it blows any previous devices I've had in the past and is by far the best phone I ever owned. I even like the small form as I was tired of carrying around bulk large devices (att tilt2). It's absolutely the best web browsing device I've owned to date. I've not experienced the lagged someone else mentioned and honestly am quite impressed with the speed of the entire device (including data speed.. clearly BLOWS away all my previous phones)
I got lucky, I was ready to ditch comcast so I when I walked into the att store I signed up for uverse (got a great deal) and ended up getting the phone for 99 bucks with no contract extension, so it was a no brainer for me.

I would just get HTC Aria!
I have been hoping to get an Android phone. However, many of the Android phones available in the market are just too big for my liking.
The HTC Aria is nice on size and specs. Definitely my choice. However, I do not live in the US, and HSDPA 850 and 1900 is not supposed in my country. Sigh... no 3G support for me.

I think there's nothing wrong with settling down with the Aria as many of us have. It's all user preference...if you like a big screen and high end specs, go with the Desire, smaller screen and lower tech specs (but not to be underestimated!), Aria.

Related

G1 vs iPhone 3GS

I have been a loyal T-mobile customer since 2003, so when I had to move to Iowa, I tried really hard to live with the local roaming partner and my G1. After many problems with my service and signal strength at home, I decided to move on. I want to give T-mobile credit here, because I had 15 months left on my contract and they waived the ETF. Thanks to them and here is a rare story for everyone of some good customer service reguarding ETFs. I travel out of the country a few times a year, so I wanted a GSM phone that I could take with me. In my area, that really only left me with the roaming partner I had been frustrated with, (Iowa Wireless) and AT&T. Timing was just right, so I went ahead and bought 2 3GS iPhones for my wife and I. I did get my G1's unlocked and they are for sell if anyone's interested, (one rooted, one stock, both black, one has a small ding from a drop, the other's perfect, make an offer) but I've always wanted to try an iPhone out for myself and this just worked out well for us. I love Android, the open-ness of it, the customization possible and the general ability to tinker and hack it is very appealing to me. That being said, the 3GS is a great phone. The video recording is the best on any phone I've ever used or seen firsthand. I'm sure some of the unlocked HTC or Nokia phones that cost 400, 500 or 800 bucks can match or beat it. But for a subsidized US carried phone I am impressed. Also, the anti-fingerpring oleophobic (probably spelled that wrong) coating is amazing. A friend stopped by with a 3G iPhone and the difference was amazing. Also the speed difference is very very noticable. People here bash some ROM's for being too slow or not "snappy" enough compared to others. The difference between a 3G and te 3GS is way more than any difference I experienced with the roms I tried on my G1. I know this is a HTC dream forum, but as a big Android fan, I wanted to share my experience with the switch. Now after the HTC Hero comes out, among many other different versions of Android phones, I'd place my bets on them. For now, however, the new iPhone is hard to beat in my opinion.
Also, I have not posted very many times as I rarely have any useful input that hasn't already been shared, but I have used this forum so much for the last year. Thanks to everyone who contributes here. Without XDA the G1 and Android wouldn't be near the phone and platform they are.
ive got a g1 and a iphone 2g. i like both of them a lot but even the iphone 2g is a better and faster phone than tha g1
The reason I liked my G1 is totally different than why I like my iphone. Honestly, my G1 was almost a hobby by itself. This started when I got my old Nokia 5300 and started tinkering with it. Then I got a T-mobile Shadow / HTC Juno. Windows Mobile is kind of a pain in the ass, but there's no questioning all the capabilities you can get on your phone if you're patient enough. With Android it was all about what can my phone do next? With the iphone its, damn, this phone actually made my day easier and more enjoyable. So far I use my iphone's capabilites more than I did the G1.
wfagan59 said:
The reason I liked my G1 is totally different than why I like my iphone. Honestly, my G1 was almost a hobby by itself. This started when I got my old Nokia 5300 and started tinkering with it. Then I got a T-mobile Shadow / HTC Juno. Windows Mobile is kind of a pain in the ass, but there's no questioning all the capabilities you can get on your phone if you're patient enough. With Android it was all about what can my phone do next? With the iphone its, damn, this phone actually made my day easier and more enjoyable. So far I use my iphone's capabilites more than I did the G1.
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I guess in this sense its arguable that the iPhone's reliability factor beats the G1. However, I think if we all dropped the custom ROMs and Apps2SD we might be able to gain that reliability factor the iPhone has through the stock ROMs. I don't see many people flashing custom ROMs onto iPhones now ;D
True, we are all blazing ahead with custom G1 roms that aren't as clean or ultimately reliable as the OEM's (although once again the custom roms are a huge part of why I think we all love android). I never really had a problem with reliability on my G1. I kept a copy of a ROM I knew worked well at all times on my sd card and only had to use it once when apps2sd went a little haywire one day. I just don't feel the need to modify the iphone as much as I did with the G1. The one thing I wasn't looking foward to was giving up the G1's actual keyboard. This has proven to be easier than I thought it would be. I can type pretty fast on the iphone. Not as quick or error free as my G1, but it's getting easier and hasn't been the stubling block I thouth it would be. I am a huge google user though and I miss the close connectivity the G1 had more than anything so far.
Seriously? This discussion AGAIN?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=527614
The big thing is that the G1 LETS us modify it, the iPhone... does not.
g1 has potential to be great but is hindered by internal specifications by the devices in which their released with. as soon as there is a phone with the same internal specs as the iphone whatever generation it may be then we will see android pure potential.
xadaniman said:
g1 has potential to be great but is hindered by internal specifications by the devices in which their released with. as soon as there is a phone with the same internal specs as the iphone whatever generation it may be then we will see android pure potential.
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i think thats called the HTC Hero
never had the I phone, but i had many clones and many touch phones in the last 2 years and have many friends with the i phone 3g 3gs and there sorry as in the look and fell they are a nice device. as in speed pssst. my G1 smoked any i phone on 3g with stocked webkit and there browser and on wifi they where still lodading java pics and i was all ready browsing face book. and now with the rooting vs pawing or what ever it is that u do to unlock the i phone remember the first unlocked i phone had to be cracked open and rewired. the first g1 was a change in a bash file directory lol. The i phone is the jessus phone dont get me wrong but the g1 and android are the gods that every person prays to when there phone is stolen broken or lost.
alexjzim said:
i think thats called the HTC Hero
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Not really, the htc hero is identical to the dream except for double the flash/ram and it doesn't have a keyboard. Junk in my opinion.
The Sony X2 looks interesting though, assuming that it'll be possible to root/customize it and ditch their goofy UI.
lbcoder said:
Not really, the htc hero is identical to the dream except for double the flash/ram and it doesn't have a keyboard. Junk in my opinion.
The Sony X2 looks interesting though, assuming that it'll be possible to root/customize it and ditch their goofy UI.
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one word...."Rachel"
pinetreehater said:
one word...."Rachel"
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Yeah, except no hard keyboard, no call buttons, and no trackball/d-pad. Its like one step forward, three steps back.

My HD2 makes me feel dirty

Hello friends. I have had my hd2 for about a month and a half now and I have not gotten close to it. My last phone purchase before the hd2 was the g1. I fell for that phone in about an hour. I felt it was at that tome the best phone I had ever had and it was nice and snappy. I had it for 2 years and had no issues ever. Then the touch screen got numbed and it decided to work on and off. I was going to run out and get a new one but I decided that I should just get a newer model. I knew it was going to be htc but the hd2 rePly stuck out foe me. Huge screen Wich felt good in my bear claw hands. And it is so sexy. Hardware is top of the line. I thought I was golden foe at least another 2 years. Yea right. I can't stand this phone. The touch input is not responsive enough to let me type at the speed I feel comfortabl at. And the web browser is not even in the same leauge as the one on the g1. I feel that I got a phone that wasn't me. I feel so bad and it hurts bad. The problem is that I bought it cash on a whim when it was sold out all over for $600.I know a bit high but what can I do. I felt it was fair I figure two years of use is less than a dollar a day for top notch hardware was ok. But this phone is not working for me. I feel bad when I say. Windows mobile killed the hd2. Htc should release some android for this. It seems that windows mobile isn't really the best for me. It may be great but I just fell for android. Now I have this horrid phone and I don't even like it. I actually just got an iPhone 2g and I like it more. And I hate the iPhone but what can I say. I found someone who will take my hd2 and give me a 16gb 3gs and a samsung behold 2. Seems pretty good. I can sll the build for a couple dollars maybe 150 ish and then sll the 3gs for around 400 maybe and then get me a nexus one or maybe I will just hold on to th cash and wait for htc to release another great android phone for tmobile. And no the mytouch slide is not htc top for tmobile I hope. Maybe I should wait till end of summer for some special and then use my renew credit. Tmobile is my only choice. Common tmoble be tops in android again please. The only affordable provider that has 3 lines unlmt talk for $99. I can't leave them
ericm115 said:
Hello friends. I have had my hd2 for about a month and a half now and I have not gotten close to it. My last phone purchase before the hd2 was the g1. I fell for that phone in about an hour. I felt it was at that tome the best phone I had ever had and it was nice and snappy. I had it for 2 years and had no issues ever. Then the touch screen got numbed and it decided to work on and off. I was going to run out and get a new one but I decided that I should just get a newer model. I knew it was going to be htc but the hd2 rePly stuck out foe me. Huge screen Wich felt good in my bear claw hands. And it is so sexy. Hardware is top of the line. I thought I was golden foe at least another 2 years. Yea right. I can't stand this phone. The touch input is not responsive enough to let me type at the speed I feel comfortabl at. And the web browser is not even in the same leauge as the one on the g1. I feel that I got a phone that wasn't me. I feel so bad and it hurts bad. The problem is that I bought it cash on a whim when it was sold out all over for $600.I know a bit high but what can I do. I felt it was fair I figure two years of use is less than a dollar a day for top notch hardware was ok. But this phone is not working for me. I feel bad when I say. Windows mobile killed the hd2. Htc should release some android for this. It seems that windows mobile isn't really the best for me. It may be great but I just fell for android. Now I have this horrid phone and I don't even like it. I actually just got an iPhone 2g and I like it more. And I hate the iPhone but what can I say. I found someone who will take my hd2 and give me a 16gb 3gs and a samsung behold 2. Seems pretty good. I can sll the build for a couple dollars maybe 150 ish and then sll the 3gs for around 400 maybe and then get me a nexus one or maybe I will just hold on to th cash and wait for htc to release another great android phone for tmobile. And no the mytouch slide is not htc top for tmobile I hope. Maybe I should wait till end of summer for some special and then use my renew credit. Tmobile is my only choice. Common tmoble be tops in android again please. The only affordable provider that has 3 lines unlmt talk for $99. I can't leave them
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Sounds like Verizon is a better choice for you phone wise, and t-mobile is your choice for coverage and pricing.
Although T-mobile has some andriod phones the other carriers have the top android/droid phones other than the nexus one. Now you have to find out what one is bigger to you and then figure a solution for the other. HTC will never give this phone anroid but it might be ported by a developer. But doesn't look like any time soon.
Its called the galaxy S. I really think its coming to tmobile just wait for it.
bwest411 said:
Its called the galaxy S. I really think its coming to tmobile just wait for it.
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x2. if you're gonna stick with t-mobile and want to stick with a device that has premium hardware like the hd2, wait for the galaxy s to come out. 4" screen, front camera, rear camera. Super AMOLED display.
i also upgraded from a both a g1 and a mytouch to an hd2. however, i'm not on the same boat as the OP of this thread. i have grown to like win mo 6.5 more and more and have made all the necessary tweaks to make the hd2 the way i want it to run and look in terms of theme and performance.
perhaps you should try flashing a rom or find the necessary .cab files such as cookie's home tab to help you change your mind about ditching this phone.
ryan562 said:
x2. if you're gonna stick with t-mobile and want to stick with a device that has premium hardware like the hd2, wait for the galaxy s to come out. 4" screen, front camera, rear camera. Super AMOLED display.
i also upgraded from a both a g1 and a mytouch to an hd2. however, i'm not on the same boat as the OP of this thread. i have grown to like win mo 6.5 more and more and have made all the necessary tweaks to make the hd2 the way i want it to run and look in terms of theme and performance.
perhaps you should try flashing a rom or find the necessary .cab files such as cookie's home tab to help you change your mind about ditching this phone.
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Exactly. I had mixed feelings about this phone when I first got it, and felt the same way you did. I paid full price for it (because of my hatred for contracts) and felt like I had made a huge mistake and instantly wanted to buy a Nexus One so I could shelf this device. But as I got more involved with the development community and tried different ROMs and 3rd party apps, I began to love it, not only is the performance better, but it is much sexier than it was. I still plan on buying a Nexus One (fandroid ) but by no means am I going to excommunicate myself from this device.
WinMo 6.5 was like an ugly girl with a great personality. You want nothing to do with her until you get to know her
But seriously, do not give up on this phone before testing everything out with it
Thanks for the responses.
I think that i have found the main issue with my phone. I have spbshell on it and i feel restricted. I think im going to just try and make my own rom. with what suites me. I also realized that i have a phone fetish or something. In my collection i have a G1, MyTouch 3g 1.2, iPhone 2g, HTC Hero, HTC HD2, Samsung Behold 2. I have to many phones. most recent was the iPhone 2g and it is not as bad as i thought. i was thinking of getting a iPhone 4 but i cant. I need to find a way to make this hd2 work for me. I hate the battery life also. o well,i guess i could just make a small 2000mah battery pack. that would fix things.
again thanks
Seriously dude, check out some different ROMs, and try Cookie's Home Tab. CHT actually mods the stock Sense interface, which is likely to work much better/smoother, and with less restrictions. Most of the ROMs available get rid of all the bloatware, and add speed/stability to the device.
I was in the same situation as you... and was seriously considering returning my HD2 and picking up the N1 instead. However, after installing several tweak apps and flashing Dinik & Miri's new ROM, I'm VERY satisfied. Works smooth, looks great, and has a lot of the features that I wanted from Android.
It really pays to do your homework, and spend some time modding your device... it takes time and trial/error to figure out what works best for you, but I'm sure you can get your HD2 running as you hoped it would. Just spend some time scouring these forums, and you'll find lots of good info on how to get the most out of your device. It can be a bit overwhelming, as a lot of the info is scattered throughout different subforums, but I'm confident you can find what you're looking for.
Also, it would help to know what mods/tweaks you've done to your HD2 so far, so we make recommendations on what you can do to make you happy with it (I.E.- ROM version, .cabs installed, etc.)
I took the plunge and traded it, I got a great deal. 1 iPhone 3GS and a Nexus one with a cracked screen. Now i have repaired the nexus one. I am happy with my trade. The HD2 had power but i didn't like it, not very fun to use. The 3gs is great and the nexus one is also great. true smaller screen but the ui is much better on both the iphone and nexus one. I wish tmobile would have something lined up for next year that is better than the incredible. If not i see no reason to stay with them. my contracts up in 3 months and they don't really have anything they could offer me to stay. plus the prepaid unlimited all on tmo network for $60 looks nice.
Glad to hear it worked out for you. I honestly love the HD2 and sleep with it nightly. But everyones different and uses different features. How you liking being a Machead?
ericm115 said:
I took the plunge and traded it, I got a great deal. 1 iPhone 3GS and a Nexus one with a cracked screen. Now i have repaired the nexus one. I am happy with my trade. The HD2 had power but i didn't like it, not very fun to use. The 3gs is great and the nexus one is also great. true smaller screen but the ui is much better on both the iphone and nexus one. I wish tmobile would have something lined up for next year that is better than the incredible. If not i see no reason to stay with them. my contracts up in 3 months and they don't really have anything they could offer me to stay. plus the prepaid unlimited all on tmo network for $60 looks nice.
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Sprint carries the HTC EVO 4G, which is the same as an HTC HD2 except running Android, with an 8mp camera that can shoot video in 720p.
I must admit I wish I had signed for that instead, but I'm stuck for 2 years.
Evo's a great phone I just feel it came out at the wrong time. I think by Christmas it will be old news and we may see dual core's. Had it come out at the same time as the HD2 I would be liking it better.

Paying full price for a device

So I am wanting a new android device..
The aria pops up for a few reasons.
1. It has gained huge praise.
2. It supposedly has great battery life!
3. It is relatively cheap for off of contract. (339$ on amazon)
I was just wondering if anyone could tell me anything bad about it.. I hear that it has a bad speaker.. or that bad speakers are a problem.. That is the only "constant" i've seen for it besides stuff that people argue over..
I was wondering if anyone out there had this phone and the captivate and could give me a break down of which one goes faster while doing the same things..
Like if your playing robo defense on aria and captivate which one goes faster? Which one do you find last longer over all normally?
Even paying full price for the device should I consider just paying another 160$ or so and getting the captivate? For some reason I find myself looking and thinking the Captivate is a better deal with an upgrade vs the free aria..
But, the aria feels like a better deal off contract.. (I could be wrong here.. but, feel free to agree/disagree)
To be honest I would love to get a captivate but, I am worried that in the future.. the Aria could possibly receive more updates than captivate.. I am not against samsung products mind you, they make spectacular hardware and I'm usually happy with it right out the box..
However, even if captivate gets 2.2... What about 2.3? I can see aria getting 2.3 and captivate being left behind... However, I see captivates hardware more likely to support a 3.0 than the aria.. but, that doesn't matter if samsung won't do it..
I do realize the captivate is a gorgeous phone with a lot of advantages.. but, I'm due for an upgrade in feb.. I really want a better phone than my pay as you go neon (i'm on contract just using a cheap cellphone since my last got washed). And by feb they will probably have something all around better than captivate anyway..
Although it does slightly annoy me.. I'm not a fan of otter box but, I was kinda hoping they might have a defender series case for the aria..
So I think it just makes more sense to buy the cheaper one now.. and then later on... grab the best of the best in terms of upgrade.. (see if I can make the aria last a year or two.. and if I can't.. well just upgrade later then..)
The HTC Aria is a fantastic phone, I own one and I too purchased it because of the low price tag, and because I'm still locked into a contract with AT&T. Right off the bat, you're going to have to acknowledge that the Android phones AT&T carries arent going to measure up to some of the more expensive phones sold by other carriers, but if you're stuck with AT&T you may as well enjoy your phone right?
The key difference between the Aria and the Captivate is size. The Aria has a somewhat tiny screen, don't get me wrong, its plenty screenspace, its just that Android phones are notorious for their large touch screens. From my experience, the HTC Aria has one of the best touch screens I've ever seen. Its ultra responsive, and typing with the stock keyboard (If you dont want to use Swype) feels natural and easy. The Samsung Captivate is of the Galaxy S line of phones, all of which come with their new AMOLED screens, which, in a nutshell, have fantastic contrast and anti-glare, and blacks that are so deep, you cant distinguish the screen from the phone. It doesnt really sound fantastic, and before I'd seen one in real life I thought it was just another LED gimmick, but they are BEAUTIFUL screens, my father bought the Captivate to smite me for saving up all summer for an Aria (lol), and its a beautiful phone. Typing is easy and the touch screen is very responsive, though for some reason I still think the Aria has a better touch screen.
As far as the processors go, yes, the Aria runs a 600mhz processor, while the Captivate is running the new Snapdragon 1ghz. The thing is, apples to apples, they're phones. The Aria has all the power it needs, its a small phone that only has to draw so many pixels, and calculate so much, so the 600mhz in comparison to bigger processors is absolutely fine, if you're a speedfreak like myself, you may be put off by not having the fastest, sleekest phone, but its amazing nonetheless. The Captivate 1ghz processor is, well, fast lol. It can handle a lot and the phone comes preloaded with Live wallpapers and a beautiful UI from Samsung.
I'm not really sure what else I can say, but really, just buy whichever you can afford. If you dont want to fork over the 500 odd dollars for the Captivate, theres no need to "settle" for the Aria, you can still love it
Whichever you buy, they're both amazing phones, so just get whichever one you're comfortable buying.
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Sorry I kind of rambled, as far as you asking what's BAD about the Aria? Nothing really, the speaker sounds fine, I mean yeah, if you try playing a movie off of it, its going to crackle because phones simply cant handle bass very well, but for calling and playing ringtones and notification sounds (i.e., doing everything a phone should) its a high quality speaker. If you want to listen to music or watch movies, the sound is bearable, but you'd probably want to have some headphones just in case. Oh and the Aria doesnt support Live Wallpapers by default, nor does it come loaded with Swype. It also has Wifi Tethering disabled, and loading apps that arent on the market is disabled by AT&T, but you can solve these problems:
By rooting your phone you can:
-WiFi and USB Tethering
-Sideloading apps (non-market apps)
---Swype
---Live Wallpapers
However, sideloading apps is possible if you have a computer, just install the Android SDK and put the app files in the 'tools' directory inside the Android SDK and using the command "adb install filename.apk" to install non-market apps from your computer.
Snow Fox,
Thanks for posting this. I'm much the same situation that you are in with my Tilt2. Only have an entire year to go before I'm eligible for an upgrade. I've been playing with XDAndroid and would love get a full blown Android device.
While I had been holding out to see WP7 (and At&t) had to offer, the more I learn about WP7 the less I'm liking it. So its either the Captivate, Aria, or a used Nexus One.
There is something else for you to consider... check with your local At&t store, the last I enquired the rep told me that IF you have a good record of paying your bills on time, they can give you a deal of $75 over the listed contract price. So if the Aria lists for $129, you could get it for $184.
OK I won't write up a huge essay but I'll give you my quick opinion.
In march I upgraded from an old motorola L6 to the backflip, AT&T's very first android phone! I really loved that phone. Soon I became frustrated because the poor little guy only runs android 1.5 and I was unable to install many of the cool apps that I would read about. after waiting for about three months, to see if the backflip could get rooted by someone I caved in. I went down to AT&T and bought myself a brand new Aria, I had to pay the full price since I had used my upgrade on the backflip and I was passed the 30 day return period.
I was trying to decide between a Nexus One or the Aria. I chose the Aria because I thought it would be a great phone to have for a year or two while a really great phone came out on my carrier. It wasn't SUPER pricey like the N1 would have been, and it can really handle anything that you throw at it. To this day I haven't regretted buying my Aria.
I <3 my Aria.
I won't list the cons with the Aria, as I just got mine yesterday and haven't had time to really investigate the minor issues against it, so here's the reasons I did use my upgrade credit to get one:
#1 It's smaller and significantly lighter than the Fuze it has replaced. I have no ass, and without a belt, quite simply, the fuze pulls my shorts down. TMI, I know, but there you go. Anyway, the aria is so much lighter and compact that I have found I forget which pocket I put it in. The ladies are thankful for the reduction in appearance of "plumber pants".
#2 Despite the slower processor, it still does everything I need it to do with the utmost of smoothness. No more second guessing whether it detected my actions, pressing again, only to have it catching up to do things I didn't actually want. My Fuze does that a lot!
#3 It's ultimately as hackable as any other HTC phone on here, with a gaggle of devoted phone nerds anxious and ready to apply the latest mod, patch, or fix, there WILL be plenty of life left to exploit in it's features and OS (at least until the next contract re-up anyway).
#4 Lastly, despite the lower resolution of the screen and smaller size relative to other phones, a cell phone will likely never be central to my TV/movie watching experience no matter how good or large the screen, nor will I ever worry too much about games. There are simply far better devices available devoted to such entertainment such as a PSP. And while some phones may be approaching that level of sophistication, they all appear to be doing it at the expense of reason #1.
The Galaxy is too big and too expensive in my book, making the extra performance simply not worth it.
I'd prefer to buy my phone outright used versus extending my contract 2 years. After researching online, for my first android device, I was definitely going to buy a captivate until I saw an Aria for $150 on craigslist. I picked up the Aria and have since used a galaxy s and I couldn't justify the price difference. The galaxy feels cheap, I don't like touchwiz, and I'd prefer HTC over Samsung.
I'd definitely check craigslist before buying new. I thought my price was a fluke but I've been using CraigsNotifica, on my aria, and I've seen several arias under $200.
There's really nothing bad about the aria imo. The captivate is probably better for games/mobile entertainment due to screen size & processor, but those aren't high up on my priority list. I can't feel a difference in speed in everyday use, plus theres a perfectly working version of cyanogenmod out for the aria already.

[CHAT] How long do you think you will keep your HD2 for...?

I've posted in Android General here as I reckon it's those of us who have switched OSs who are getting a Second Life(TM) from their HD2s...
Personally, I am finding my phone experience so different from the WinMo days. At that time I was always switching ROMs, always trying to get better use from the phone/solve the glitches, but never quite getting there (altho there is/was fantastic work from the ROM devs here)
But now with Android, I find my experience is great, and glitch-free. I'm still always playing with new ROMs, but only for the excitement of new features rather than to solve annoyances. I've had my HD2 a year and I personally think I could stay with it even another 2 years.
The hardware has been (imo) perfected for the current time (4.3" screen, decent processor, nice form-factor, expandable micro-SD), and all the excitement now is in Google's OS improvements, with perhaps two new iterations of Android planned for this year. Even to the extent that I would be tempted to buy a spare HD2 for future use (as my hardware buttons may be about to give way...)
The only features that could cause me to upgrade are:
- Pico Projector (but as a novelty appealing to my geekiness than anything useful)
- HDMI-out (which again, I think I would get use out of perhaps 4 times a year, and as a novelty the rest of the time)
- Maybe a hardware keyboard a la HD7 Pro, but only if it has Android and was as a free upgrade
But apart from that, here is to an almost perfect hardware phone, now matched by perfect and evolving software. Long live HD2!!
So how long do you think you will stay with the HD2?
well my hd2 felt down several times to the floor and has some scratches at the rubber edges now. further i have the "jitterbug" of the touchscreen since first day (is mostly handable with swype)!
so let me think about your question... i guess i will stick to my hd2 for another year! want to buy a device with a hardware keyboard after that.
I agree with you in many ways smeddy. For me the HD2 is perfect in terms of it's size and layout (personally I do not want a hardware keyboard), the processor is snappy enough, the ability to expand the storage with an sd card is brilliant especially with a2sd+ and such like - for me I would have prefered a 1024TMOUS just for the extra space.
The only thing I can see on the horizon that may tempt me away is the Motorola Atria
For me, the only reason i'd upgrade is for more internal memory, say a 8/16gb device, since i'm feeling threatened by my lack of space. So i guess i'll keep my hd2 for maybe 4 months to a year.
I'll probably be keeping it for another year or so till I am due for re-contract. The phone served me well and its still doing well, probably I will get an andriod tablet if I need to make video call from oversea
will use it till it stops working
Waiting for htc dual core
I'll keep mine until this becomes true
http://www.coolsmartphone.com/2011/01/09/2ghz-motorola-atrix-coming-to-orange-soon/
this year will be the year for Motorola
Holy Shi# that thing is sick. I seen one of the devs talk about that phone on irc. Never knew what it was.
I bought it relatively late ...Still have it for a year now without a scratch!The phone has served me well.The options between OSs,the design/yes i really like it !/the functions,the hardware,the display...It is perfect!It is now a LeoNANDroid and i like it even better!
I like how the little Apple fanboys mistake it for iPhone4,i like how the people at my provider's store look like that when they see im runnin Linux/Android.Maybe the only thing i miss is 720p recording...So basicaly i will run it till it dies,then il buy anotherone if i can^^.The best spent $400 in my life!
I'll keep it until something better comes along that makes it worth upgrading. The Moto Atrix looks nice, hardware list wise, but I'll skip it due to it being Motorola. Other companies will release an equivalent or better.
Going back to a slide-out keyboard is very tempting as well.
Ill keep hold of mine for a bit,maybe wait for the Desire HD to come down in price,see what Htc bring at the MWC in Feb,in the mean time im happy with it
good opening post.
I love my HD2 on Android (wish it was a TMOUS though with the additional on board mem.)
NAND Android rocks and I love the hardware and (now) software on the phone.
Would just like a better camera with a real flash ... 720p recording?
So at the moment nothing on the market matches it.
GG
Late to the party but i have just ordered one, had a Blackstone up until Christmas and can't resist the tweakability and amount of OS's this thing can deliver!
Can see myself owning it for at least 2 years!
I have been using HD2 for little over a year. I have flashed so many roms on it; I lost count a long time ago. However, the screen started freezing right before the Android NAND boot came out. I still flashed NAND on my phone to see it works and it did but without the touch screen.
I send my phone to HTC for repair last week and it is on the way back. I am planning to keep it for at least another year. The only thing I am missing is a front camera for video chatting and the ability to go 4G. I don’t do a lot of video chatting and the 4G is only available at selected location.
I like everything about this phone! The look, the feel, everything…. I don’t have a reason to change the HD2. The support which is available for the phone out there is incredible. When I get bored with a particular style, I flash a new rom! If we get to a point where we use 4G every day, I might change to a 4G phone. Or they have to invent a phone which will make me breakfast, lunch and dinner!
HD2 is definitely a keeper.
How long do you think you will keep your HD2 ?
That's a question that can only be answered by my wife's wallet
Cheers,
/Cacti
onebyside said:
will use it till it stops working
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This.
Sent from my HD2 using XDA App
The Atrix does look interesting. Thanks for he heads-up.
I think "use it until it stops working" is the most concise way of stating it
Johncmolyneux - from Northampon! I've followed your work so much on XDA, and never knew you were from my hometown, well from Wellingborough to be exact
smeddy said:
Johncmolyneux - from Northampon! I've followed your work so much on XDA, and never knew you were from my hometown, well from Wellingborough to be exact
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks man - it's appreciated
I've moved about a bit, but keep ending up back in Northampton. It's a good place, as is Wellingborough. If you ever need any assistance, come round my house Not really
BIGUP The Northants!!!

[Q] [4 July] [DISC] Is there any phone as sweet as the HD2?

Well my Hermes is getting a little old and I'm shopping for a new phone. The HD2 seems extremely awesome. I love that I could always fall back to WM6.5 if WP7 and Android don't suit me. It seems this phone is also quite common so with a little patience I should be able to find one at a price I want to pay. The only thing that I'm not crazy about it the lack of a hard keyboard. I see that there is a Toshiba K01/IS02 with a hard keyboard that also has a capacitive screen even though it shipped with WM6.5 but it seems to be a rare and undeveloped phone.
Can anyone tell me if there are any other WM6.5/WP7 phones besides the HD2?
I think no atm,
I too was not keen on no hardware keyboard but ended up getting a T-Mob HD2 because the price was right.
All I can say is typing on screen is far faster than any HTC hardware keyboard I have tried & you can use a mini hardware keyboard via BlueTooth if required.
All in all the lack of hardware keyboard was a step forward for my typing experience ...
For the criteria you are asking HD2 is the best. This is the best dual OS phone out there. And I agree with previous post that screen keyboard is way better. My prevois phone was TyTyn II but I think I like sceen keyboard more than hard keyboard. It just takes a little time to get use to typing on the screen. I am really happy with HD2 and I can not think of the better phone for now that does not cost more than 300 euro and have such features. But the choice is yours. Good luck.
Sent from my HTC HD2 using XDA Premium App
Wait a sec. No video out? What the dip?
evilwise said:
Wait a sec. No video out? What the dip?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Indeed that was a big mistake from HTC ... The flagship model at the time with no video out ! between that & the selected battery capacity some HTC designers & market researchers should of been shot ...
Well I'm not sure about w7 but the HTC touch pro 2 can run Android & w6.5..(a bit laggy though & very outdated) & also has tv out I believe. It's been sometime since I've owed it so I can't remember. I text (up 2) 4000 texts each month & Im coming from the mytouch slide which has a keyboard....I have 2 say I really dont miss it. I will admit it took me a good few days b4 I could text as fast as any of my old phones that had a keyboard.
Personally I would suggest to buy a phone that has good development that way you won't be left in the dark. Going from the tp2 to the mytouch was horrible bc I had a phone that was well developed & then went 2 a phone that was slim pickins 2 mod it.
Sent from my Desire-HTC HD2 using XDA App
The Desire HD is sort of like an upgraded HD2. I hear that a lot of devs are also working on it.
I was just like the OP, really excited that I could fall back on to WM6.5 if I didn't like Android or WP7. Then I moved to Android and never looked back.
I do admit the HD2 is a beastly device, I can't think of any other device that is nearly as hackable... the HD2 runs WM6.5, WP7 and Android all basically as if those were all natively supported.
Still though, it will soon be 2 whole years since the HD2 was announced. I personally had one for 18 months before buying a Galaxy SII. The HD2 looks pretty modern on paper... 4.3" screen, Snapdragon processor... but next to a truly modern phone like the GSII the HD2 looks clearly dated.
I put WP7 on the HD2 but it's not really my cup of tea. I also tried going back to WM6.5 but after a year with Android I found it laughably slow and clunky. So I may end up selling the HD2, though it would be by far the hardest device I've ever parted with.
I don't really know what to tell the OP. The HD2 is a hell of a phone and can run the newest versions of WP7, but when you set it next to a newer, official WP7 device you will see the differences. If you don't already own an HD2 I'd advise getting a WP7 phone, maybe one with a better screen than the HD2 has got... unless you really have a need to still be running WinMo 6.5.
wildfire dipped in honey+chocolate sauce is sweet !!
Love the hd2. Got it for it's support of tzone grandfathered plans on 3g. Wm6.5 is a joke. I could not believe how amazing the phone was after removing that dead weight of an os.
Sent from my HTC HD2 using XDA App
I am too trying to upgrade my HD2. I am thinking of Nexus one. It seems similar in many ways to HD2, but will have a better battery life. My plan is to: sell HD2 + $50 = Brand new Nexus one.
I was also thinking of Moto Defy...
AntonJart said:
I am too trying to upgrade my HD2. I am thinking of Nexus one. It seems similar in many ways to HD2, but will have a better battery life. My plan is to: sell HD2 + $50 = Brand new Nexus one.
I was also thinking of Moto Defy...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd recommend looking at a Nexus S... a bit plastic, but the Nexus One is long in the tooth now, in terms of hardware.
Wow thanks for all the input today, Guys! I discovered a couple more things today that are going to affect my phone purchase. The first thing is that the T-Mobile branded HD2 does not support the 850 band and I am an AT&T user so not only would I not get 3G on it, but AT&T generally sends me angry emails when I use like a gig of data while "roaming" on T-Mobile's towers.
I doubt I'm going to be able to get an HD2 that does HSDPA850 at a bargain price so I checked out my upgrade options through AT&T. I am considering the following phones which I can get practically free, and here's my thoughts on each from most to least likely to be my next phone.
Samsung Focus - I've played with this phone at the store and it has the nicest looking screen by far of the three AT&T branded WP7 phones. Looks nice (except no video out). Everyone posting ITT has given me some faith in on-capacitive-screen keyboards and I must have had to work on my Hermes a million times because of the slide mechanism damaging, or more often just twisting the ribbon cable. I guess the only doubt that I have in my heart about this phone is that it's a WP7 only phone and I don't believe in WP7 largely because it's not backwards compatible with any of my WM6.5 apps. It boggles my mind that someone asked why I would want WM compatibility after I have spent nine years using it.
HTC Inspire - Seems like a pretty solid Android phone, and one of only two Android phones in the price range I want to pay (although still $50 more than the Focus). Video out only through DLNA
iPhone 3g 8gb - I think we all know everything we need to know about this animal. It's solid, spare parts are plentiful, and it's extensively developed. I just hate Apple. I don't want to have to install iTunes on my computer and so forth. Still may be my choice purely for resale value.
LG Quantum - Ditto most of the Samsung Focus opinion. Noticeably poorer screen (smaller and backlit LCD vs OLED), but does have a hardware keyboard and is the form factor I am accustomed to from the last six years with Wizard and Hermes. I guess Focus or HD2 would just feel like Wallaby in my pocket though.
Samsung Solstice II - Basically what the Quantum is to the Focus, the Solstice is to the Inspire in the Android arena. Smaller, poorer screen in exchange for a slide out keyboard. DLNA compatible though.
Palm Pre Plus and Palm Pixi - Seem like decent phones but a little too cute for me. Plus I have even greater misgivings about Palm's WebOS than I do about WP7.
Sony Ericcson Vivaz - I carried an Ngage for a while switching back and forth with Wallaby. There seemed to be a lot of development for Symbian back then and it was stable. Probably not the thing to discuss on this forum though..
Anyway, hopefully I'm not derailing my own thread too much or getting it off the topic of the section I posted it in but I appreciate all the replies and would love to hear what everyone thinks. Deciding which phone to get can be a real brain drain! And what's up with hardly anything having video out? My friend's Evo has a freakin' HDMI port right on it!

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