As happy as I’ve been with the iPhone 4, and my trusty 3GS before it, I’m watching the rest of the industry mature around me and wondering whether Android might be the sweeter nectar. Steve Jobs’ arrogance, as well as Apple’s wall-building fetish, have only increased my wandering eye, which is why I’ve decided to give another device a shot and document my experience here on Wireless Week.
The device I’ve chosen with which to test the Android waters, is the Samsung Captivate from AT&T, which was nice enough to send a long a demo unit. Of all the summer smartphones I’ve seen, aside from the iPhone 4, the Captivate is the one that intrigues me the most. I like the beautiful AMOLED screen, the speed and the UI, which is at least a little like the iPhone’s.
I’m doing my best to remain objective in my experiment. I’m also vowing to get rid of my iPhone 4 should the Captivate, well…captivate me. That said, I have to admit that I like pretty much everything about my iPhone. I like the apps, I like its looks, features etc. but very much like Nick Lachey (Jessica Simpson’s ex-beau), I don’t like the iPhone 4’s domineering father. In fact, said father could be a deal breaker, as I believe was the case with Nick and Jessica.
Given that I’ve been brainwashed by Apple since my first Apple IIc, I don’t expect this to be easy. After fiddling with the Captivate a little bit, I can already tell that my thumb’s habit of going for the home button will not be easily broken. Nevertheless, I hope that that the three to four weeks that I spend with the Captivate will at least allow me the space to learn a new UI and experience a different manner of mobile computing.
Whether my experience with the Captivate results in dropping my iPhone 4, with all of its much-hyped maladies, on eBay will be the culmination of my experiment. If anyone out there knows any must-have Android apps, add-ons, tips or tricks, feel free to drop a comment or send an email to: andrew.berg@advantagemedia.com.
Check back for pics, videos and commentary, as I venture into the land of Android with Samsung, AT&T and the Captivate.
