Yoda
05-15-11, 01:40 PM
Pretty hooked, at this point; I took the plunge around six months ago and got a Droid Incredible, and it's a heck of a machine. Wish it were slightly wider, but the web browsing is good (I've banned people with it several times, hehe), the interface is slick and customizable, and I love how tied into Chrome it is.
So, I was wondering; who else has a Droid? What kind? What do you like or dislike about it? What apps would you recommend to new Droid users?
Here are a few I'm really digging:
Chrome to Phone
Killer idea. A little button that sits next to the address bar in Chrome; just hit it and it sends the page you're on to your phone. If you're on Google Maps, it sends the directions. Little buggy (slight delays, or I'll get the link twice), but this is one of those things that pretty much everyone with a Droid will have use for.
Texty
Have to ask for a beta invite and get approved for this, but I think it's worth it: it's an extension on Chrome that links up to a corresponding app on your phone, and it allows you to send and receive text messages on your computer, rather than type them out on the phone every time. Way easier, and since I still do most texting while I'm near a computer, it's very useful. It even still stores the messages you receive on the phone, so you don't "lose" them by having the conversation on the computer instead. Interface leaves something to be desired, but it's still in beta and that's a small concern.
Google Voice
As cool as this is, the thing that prompted me to switch to it was that Verizon's built-in voicemail is really, really clunky, and their Visual Voice Mail costs a few extra dollars per month -- and is also kind of poorly designed, in that I have to delete the message off of my phone AND off of the voicemail server to get rid of it. No thanks.
Google Voice is pretty flippin' awesome; records the messages, whips up rough transcripts on the fly (often riddled with mistakes, but works fine for getting the basic thrust of the message across), and comes with a great widget you can throw on any of your home screens showing the latest voicemail, along with a contact's picture. The best commercial for Android is that you can do all this without jailbreaking your phone.
Speaking of which, I've avoided rooting my phone, and I might wait quite awhile to do so. It's so customizable without doing so that I've hardly felt the need.
Also, I particularly love how easily programs can tie into the entire phone's operating system. When I install a new dialing program like Google Voice, the next time I hit some contact's number, it'll prompt me to choose which dialer I want to use (Google Voice or the HTC default, for example), and ask me if I want to make my choice the default next time. Ditto for launcher programs, which replace the entire desktop home screen setup! They allow these third-party applications to completely supplant even basic functionality so that you can replace huge parts of the phone's workings without ever leaving the user-friendly framework. Really awesome stuff.
So, I was wondering; who else has a Droid? What kind? What do you like or dislike about it? What apps would you recommend to new Droid users?
Here are a few I'm really digging:
Chrome to Phone
Killer idea. A little button that sits next to the address bar in Chrome; just hit it and it sends the page you're on to your phone. If you're on Google Maps, it sends the directions. Little buggy (slight delays, or I'll get the link twice), but this is one of those things that pretty much everyone with a Droid will have use for.
Texty
Have to ask for a beta invite and get approved for this, but I think it's worth it: it's an extension on Chrome that links up to a corresponding app on your phone, and it allows you to send and receive text messages on your computer, rather than type them out on the phone every time. Way easier, and since I still do most texting while I'm near a computer, it's very useful. It even still stores the messages you receive on the phone, so you don't "lose" them by having the conversation on the computer instead. Interface leaves something to be desired, but it's still in beta and that's a small concern.
Google Voice
As cool as this is, the thing that prompted me to switch to it was that Verizon's built-in voicemail is really, really clunky, and their Visual Voice Mail costs a few extra dollars per month -- and is also kind of poorly designed, in that I have to delete the message off of my phone AND off of the voicemail server to get rid of it. No thanks.
Google Voice is pretty flippin' awesome; records the messages, whips up rough transcripts on the fly (often riddled with mistakes, but works fine for getting the basic thrust of the message across), and comes with a great widget you can throw on any of your home screens showing the latest voicemail, along with a contact's picture. The best commercial for Android is that you can do all this without jailbreaking your phone.
Speaking of which, I've avoided rooting my phone, and I might wait quite awhile to do so. It's so customizable without doing so that I've hardly felt the need.
Also, I particularly love how easily programs can tie into the entire phone's operating system. When I install a new dialing program like Google Voice, the next time I hit some contact's number, it'll prompt me to choose which dialer I want to use (Google Voice or the HTC default, for example), and ask me if I want to make my choice the default next time. Ditto for launcher programs, which replace the entire desktop home screen setup! They allow these third-party applications to completely supplant even basic functionality so that you can replace huge parts of the phone's workings without ever leaving the user-friendly framework. Really awesome stuff.