G1/Android general questions

**madelk** · 02-25-2009, 10:30 PM

Hi there Android Community peeps,
I'm a iPhone user right now but I'm getting real sick of looking at my iPhone store and seeing that the top 25 downloaded apps currently list two "Yo-Momma" apps and a "that's what she said" program so I want to upgrade to a more mature OS and community, but I need a little help. Now I'm going to be a PITA here and ask a few questions that I may be able to find out myself, but I need a little guidance so I apologise if I throw up some common questions.

1, As much as I hate the iTunes client, I've become reliant on it to deliver syncing of random songs, smart playlists and video podcasts to my phone. What are my options without it? Is automatic podcast & video podcasts even an option?
2, What's the risk of bricking your phone? I see there are some potential reasons to not go with the base OS, so I'd likely set my phone free if there weren't any drawbacks.
3, Would any of you hold off getting the phone because of a new device (Magic) around the corner?
4, Any chance that someone has mentioned a port of FreeCiv?

5, If you had to pick one thing about the G1 that you're not happy about, what would it be?

I'm really looking forward to getting my mits on the Android OS and offloading my iPhone, so I hope you guys can fill me with some information.

Thanks in advance guys!

**thulinhlun** · 02-25-2009, 11:30 PM

3. No, ask for me, i still think G1 is sexier than that Magic.
5. Only the screen slide out, they shud have make the whole-half of the phone slide out and bigger screen.

**mixpix405** · 02-26-2009, 12:06 AM

1. Is there an option? Yes. Is it as seamless or sexy as straight iTunes? No.
- For a while I used Saling Media Sync to sync iTunes playlists/podcasts/videos to my G1's SD card, but ever since converting to Windows7, it doesn't seem to work... so I've changed my methods... I just drag-and-drop the files I want to listen to... simple, but not "easy"
2. Are you talking about gaining root access? I would say the chances are very very slim. You may soft-brick it, but there is a great community of people willing to help (here, and another forum) that will get you back on track... But that being said, I've rooted my phone (twice, actually) and talked about 4 people through the process via AIM... with zero problems at all... So I wouldn't worry about this... But even if you do decide to stick with the original un-modded OS, it's still a stellar device... Can do many things the iPhone can not (some of these things are available to a jailbroken iPhone, but thats comparing apples to oranges)
3. Not me. I have quite the early-adopter mentality. But even at that, I don't see the Magic as being any more attractive, or having better hardware... (I haven't seen or touched the Magic, I'm only going with the fact that the form factor is still exactly the same)
4. I haven't heard anything about it - but I haven't really been listening. I'm not a SIM-game fan, typically.
5. Battery life. I hate to admit it, but I have to. It can't be avoided any longer. The battery in my G1 absolutely sucks. Sure, I could get more life out of it if I didn't use Twidroid, the browser, listen to music, constantly send SMS (sometimes, all at the same time lol), but then I wouldn't be using the phone the way I want to use it... So I just carry a charger with me, etc. Not a huge deal for me, as I'm rarely away from electricity (car or wall).

**plantsrourfriends90** · 02-26-2009, 06:58 AM

Originally Posted by madelk

Hi there Android Community peeps,
I'm a iPhone user right now but I'm getting real sick of looking at my iPhone store and seeing that the top 25 downloaded apps currently list two "Yo-Momma" apps and a "that's what she said" program so I want to upgrade to a more mature OS and community, but I need a little help. Now I'm going to be a PITA here and ask a few questions that I may be able to find out myself, but I need a little guidance so I apologise if I throw up some common questions.

1, As much as I hate the iTunes client, I've become reliant on it to deliver syncing of random songs, smart playlists and video podcasts to my phone. What are my options without it? Is automatic podcast & video podcasts even an option?
2, What's the risk of bricking your phone? I see there are some potential reasons to not go with the base OS, so I'd likely set my phone free if there weren't any drawbacks.
3, Would any of you hold off getting the phone because of a new device (Magic) around the corner?
4, Any chance that someone has mentioned a port of FreeCiv?

5, If you had to pick one thing about the G1 that you're not happy about, what would it be?

I'm really looking forward to getting my mits on the Android OS and offloading my iPhone, so I hope you guys can fill me with some information.

Thanks in advance guys!

Dood stick with the iphone cuz the g1 hardware is crap.. Friends dont let friends buy the g1 so stick with the iphone cuz im tryin to be a friend. Android is tight but not worth the hasssel on the g1 . wait till a new android device comes out .

**webrun** · 02-26-2009, 08:16 AM

Originally Posted by plantsrourfriends90

Dood stick with the iphone cuz the g1 hardware is crap.. Friends dont let friends buy the g1 so stick with the iphone cuz im tryin to be a friend. Android is tight but not worth the hasssel on the g1 . wait till a new android device comes out .

I disagree -- I have had no problems -- zero, zip, nada, with my G1 hardware. Some early G1's had some quality control issues, but it appears that manufacturer issue was resolved fairly quickly.

Re battery life, since the last OTA update from T-Mo, most here find battery life much improved. I find it quite adequate. I can go a day and a half or two days now on one charge. And by the way, b4 I bought the G1, I did a lot of research on the 3G iphone, and the biggest complaint I saw, and I saw it in a huge proportion of user reviews on the 3G iphone, was complaints about battery life. I think any device this compact with 3G, Wi-Fi, etc., is going to be relatively speaking, a battery hog, and therefore get some complaints.

If you search for threads here on battery life, you will find there are ways to find out what is draining your battery and make adjustments, particularly if you have root access. Using task manager (a free ap for phones with root access), you can find out what programs are always running in the background without a good reason, and if you don't really use them much, uninstall them, and often find alternative aps that accomplish the same purpose, but don't drain the batt).

Android open source is wonderful. Make the plunge -- you won't regret it. I doubt that I will buy anything but Android devices here on out. And personally, I prefer the G1 over whatever Android phone is next, because this phone has a physical keyboard. And if it makes a difference, the monthly for a G1 is considerably less than the monthly for an iphone. And T-Mo customer service is great -- something that I have never really heard about AT&T.

**madelk** · 02-26-2009, 09:07 AM

Thank you Webrun, Mixpix405 and Thulinhlun; Plantsrourfriends90 I find it hard to take your argument seriously when you don't make one, why don't you like the G1?

Double thanks to Mixpix405, I guess I'm most worried about the podcast syncing, it doesn't have to be dumb easy as long as there's a good downloader and the G1 can play the usual video formats then I might consider just writing a small Windows app that does some of the work for me. I guess I'm talking about root access, I'm going to have to look into the hacking a little more as I read some things about the G1 being multitouch capabile but some mods people have done have removed the marketplace, I need to research that more.

I'm reading through the manual so I can understand the basics, one of my biggest frustrations with the iPhone is how I can't even run more than one app at the same time, if doing so drains the battery faster then so what? It's my phone it should be my choice! I'm loving the G1 for this reason alone.

Oh and if I could trouble you all for one last question?
As new Android phones come out do you feel the G1 will be left in the dust? The way the phone OS behaves would I be correct in believing that if a newer/better version of the OS is released it'll always be avaialble for the G1? at least with a little hacking?

**fritz269** · 02-26-2009, 12:13 PM

For podcast, I use Doggcatcher. It works great.
Check it out and see if that works for your podcast, unfortunatly I think it has problems with video podcast. If you are like me, then you will not have time to watch them due to the multiple functions of the phone. I find I do not have enough time to watch videos, listen to music, browse since I get easily distracted by the market.

Hope this helps and good luck!