BY BRIDGET CAREY
bcarey@MiamiHerald.com
Product: Verizon Motorola Droid X smartphone
Features: Has a 4.3-inch touch screen, powered by 1 GHz processor running Android 2.1 operating system with Motorola's Application Platform. It has 8-megapixel camera with mechanical shutter, auto focus and flash. Camera records 720p HD video. Has 8 gigabytes of internal memory and comes with a 16 gigabyte microSD memory card, but supports up to a 32 GB microSD card. Is also a 3G Mobile hotspot and has an HDMI output to play recorded HD videos on an HD TV. Installed with Swype keyboard, giving users the option to slide finger across keyboard while typing, instead of picking up fingers.
Price: $199.99 after two-year contract
Ups: No need to fumble with opening a camera app with the shutter button built into the side. Lets users get creative with different effects in shooting video and photos and has a text-friendly, low-quality video option. Some may find the large screen to be cumbersome, but I found it to be easier to type and read on. The screen also is good for viewing high-definition videos on YouTube. Audio recording sharper than on other phones running Android.
Downs: Motorola's widgets worked great, but left me visually bored (the animated graphics on HTC-brand Android widgets have spoiled me). There was a noticeable delay when opening and closing some applications or when unlocking the phone from sleep. But a flaw that irked the most has to do with sharing vertical photos or videos. If you send a vertical photo or video to someone through text, it's sent horizontally to the receiver, forcing them to turn their head to see it (because turning a smartphone -- in most cases -- will only continue to flip the photo in the wrong direction). Bottom line: It's a powerful phone that has great features, but I'm left unimpressed. The lag I saw in some programs, along with how it can't share vertical videos and photos, sours my view of this phone. The Droid X is built to be a social-sharing dream phone, and it's disappointing that Motorola has chosen to ignore fixing this detail that's also present in other models.
I don't recommend this phone for those who love to share photos -- that is, until Motorola fixes its software. And even if that wasn't a problem, I'd still recommend anAndroid phone with HTC Sense for the more appealing interface.
Features: Has a 4.3-inch touch screen, powered by 1 GHz processor running Android 2.1 operating system with Motorola's Application Platform. It has 8-megapixel camera with mechanical shutter, auto focus and flash. Camera records 720p HD video. Has 8 gigabytes of internal memory and comes with a 16 gigabyte microSD memory card, but supports up to a 32 GB microSD card. Is also a 3G Mobile hotspot and has an HDMI output to play recorded HD videos on an HD TV. Installed with Swype keyboard, giving users the option to slide finger across keyboard while typing, instead of picking up fingers.
Price: $199.99 after two-year contract
Ups: No need to fumble with opening a camera app with the shutter button built into the side. Lets users get creative with different effects in shooting video and photos and has a text-friendly, low-quality video option. Some may find the large screen to be cumbersome, but I found it to be easier to type and read on. The screen also is good for viewing high-definition videos on YouTube. Audio recording sharper than on other phones running Android.
Downs: Motorola's widgets worked great, but left me visually bored (the animated graphics on HTC-brand Android widgets have spoiled me). There was a noticeable delay when opening and closing some applications or when unlocking the phone from sleep. But a flaw that irked the most has to do with sharing vertical photos or videos. If you send a vertical photo or video to someone through text, it's sent horizontally to the receiver, forcing them to turn their head to see it (because turning a smartphone -- in most cases -- will only continue to flip the photo in the wrong direction). Bottom line: It's a powerful phone that has great features, but I'm left unimpressed. The lag I saw in some programs, along with how it can't share vertical videos and photos, sours my view of this phone. The Droid X is built to be a social-sharing dream phone, and it's disappointing that Motorola has chosen to ignore fixing this detail that's also present in other models.
I don't recommend this phone for those who love to share photos -- that is, until Motorola fixes its software. And even if that wasn't a problem, I'd still recommend anAndroid phone with HTC Sense for the more appealing interface.
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