Iphone or Droid for FDX
#21
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Feb 2006
Posts: 1,068
Ultimately I went with the iPhone because: I like to be able to put my phone in my shirt pocket at work and while the Droids are very light they are aircraft carrier size; like most Sprint customers I do not live in a 4G area so theoretical data speed advantage of the Droids isn't there in reality and Sprint will begin shuttering WiMax in favor of LTE next year; I have other Apple devices making syncing easier than Droid although it's not hard on Droid; iOS 5 gets rid of a lot of people's complaints; Apple seems to have a better accessory assortment because there are simply so many Droid handsets to cover; while neither are as easy to Jailbreak/Root as webOs which is manufacturer approved and supported, the process for Apple devices seems far less 'techy/involved' than the Droid process which works for me.
The final kicker for me was apps. Both devices have a great selection, but my bet is that the iPhone will have the better selection of pilot specific apps like Fx Cal. This isn't meant to be a dig at our native developers as it's their time, choice and business imo, but anyone who's read this board has seen the reaction when people ask for a Droid, Windows, or Mac version of popular programs for FedEx pilots. You see the same thing if you look at the reactions from the guys who develop other aviation programs around the web like LogbookPro or APDL. The common denominator to me is that they're pretty much all developed by pilots and knowing 'how we do' the odds of the current opinions changing in the future seem slim to me. So I figured I'd just try and position myself to be able to have whatever the next 'greatest pilot app that I never even thought but can't live without' is. Besides Sprint has a 14 day return policy anyway so if I don't like my 4s I can just return it and grab a S2 plus a microSD card.
#22
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Sep 2006
Position: MD11 FO
Posts: 1,109
I think the Droid is a better phone than the Iphone - I know plenty of people that have owned both and all of them prefer the Droid. That being said, FX CAL is great and is only available on the iphone. I hate AT&T but love being able to use it int'l. Was just on a trip and ran into a snag and being able to turn it on int'l was extremely helpful - even if it cost a lot. Do any Droids work int'l (and I mean more than just China)?
#23
Banned
Joined APC: Aug 2011
Posts: 1,134
I'm probably wrong, but I don't believe it's a WebOS vs. Apple OS vs. Android thing, etc for what works where overseas as much as it is phone type network capability.
In other words, a phone that's running on a quad band/GS technology vs. CDMA.
I thought I've talked to guys on T-mobile that have coverage in various parts of the world, just not sure if it's as extensive as what the agreements that ATT has worldwide though.
#24
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jan 2006
Posts: 394
I think the Droid is a better phone than the Iphone - I know plenty of people that have owned both and all of them prefer the Droid. That being said, FX CAL is great and is only available on the iphone. I hate AT&T but love being able to use it int'l. Was just on a trip and ran into a snag and being able to turn it on int'l was extremely helpful - even if it cost a lot. Do any Droids work int'l (and I mean more than just China)?
#25
A sort of related question for those using Macs for a recently converted if you would please.
Using Safari and checking open time, each time I check on a trip and then try to go back to view the list of open time trips, the computer makes me resend the data every time, causing another ping on the open time counter. Using Firefox and a PC it would just go back to the previous page without actually pinging open time again.
Is there some setting I can adjust to make Safari just go to the last page viewed (open time) without having to resend the request?
Thanks in advance for any help for the iNob!
Using Safari and checking open time, each time I check on a trip and then try to go back to view the list of open time trips, the computer makes me resend the data every time, causing another ping on the open time counter. Using Firefox and a PC it would just go back to the previous page without actually pinging open time again.
Is there some setting I can adjust to make Safari just go to the last page viewed (open time) without having to resend the request?
Thanks in advance for any help for the iNob!
#26
Oh yeah, just got an iPhone a few months ago, wished I had waited for the 4s so I could have kept Sprint. I ended up having to switch to AT&T and although all my neighbors and friends who have AT&T said it was ok, I have had more dropped calls in a few months than I had in over 15 years with Sprint.
It will be interesting to see how the coverage works out for folks who pick up the iPhone with Sprint.
All that said I love the iPhone, glad to have switched even with the dropped calls. I tried a couple other Sprint phones that other people had and none were as easy to use at the iPhone, especially since I had been using an iPod touch for a couple of years.
I would get the iPhone.
It will be interesting to see how the coverage works out for folks who pick up the iPhone with Sprint.
All that said I love the iPhone, glad to have switched even with the dropped calls. I tried a couple other Sprint phones that other people had and none were as easy to use at the iPhone, especially since I had been using an iPod touch for a couple of years.
I would get the iPhone.
#27
A sort of related question for those using Macs for a recently converted if you would please.
Using Safari and checking open time, each time I check on a trip and then try to go back to view the list of open time trips, the computer makes me resend the data every time, causing another ping on the open time counter. Using Firefox and a PC it would just go back to the previous page without actually pinging open time again.
Is there some setting I can adjust to make Safari just go to the last page viewed (open time) without having to resend the request?
Thanks in advance for any help for the iNob!
Using Safari and checking open time, each time I check on a trip and then try to go back to view the list of open time trips, the computer makes me resend the data every time, causing another ping on the open time counter. Using Firefox and a PC it would just go back to the previous page without actually pinging open time again.
Is there some setting I can adjust to make Safari just go to the last page viewed (open time) without having to resend the request?
Thanks in advance for any help for the iNob!
#28
Just open the trips in a new tab. RightClick will open a link in a new tab. Sometimes I have 20 or more tabs open and go through one by one and close the tabs I am not interested in. Command W will close a tab. Learn a few keyboard shortcuts and this is a really fast easy process!
#29
On Reserve
Joined APC: Apr 2007
Posts: 22
Droid vs. Iphone
I've been a Verizon Droid user but made the switch to the iPhone4S this last Friday. I returned it yesterday and am very happy. Really comes down to how you use the phone. One thing not being mentioned is Navigation capability. The Droid's turn-by-turn Google navigation is simply amazing and the most useful app I have seen on either phone. I couldn't believe the joke of a nav app that Google gave the iPhone, and Mapquest, while turn-by-turn, is crappy too. And I haven't read good things about Verizon's subscription nav app. The iPhone does have a nice display, and while the screen is smaller than the Droid's, it seems to re-size text very well and so the (lack of) screen size doesn't seem to be a limitation. Beyond that, it was easy to use, except I prefer the Droid's "back" and "menu" buttons. The Siri app, like many IPhone apps, seems to me to be one of those "hey look what my phone can do" things that you don't actually use. Most of us control freak pilots would prefer to avoid the frustration of not having the Siri app do what we intended. As far as worldwide, I have never had an iPhone user have coverage I didn't on my Droid, and I'm talking some "exotic" locales (Afghanastan, Africa, Stan-Land, etc.). BTW, I am very happy with Verizon.
So I got the Droid 3, to replace my Droid 2. The Droid 3 is much lighter, has a better display, and a better hard keypad, than the Droid 2. Comparing the IPhone and the Droid 3 side by side, you don't notice the slight larger size of the Droid, you notice the much larger screen of the Droid, and the hard keypad....
But to each their own...
So I got the Droid 3, to replace my Droid 2. The Droid 3 is much lighter, has a better display, and a better hard keypad, than the Droid 2. Comparing the IPhone and the Droid 3 side by side, you don't notice the slight larger size of the Droid, you notice the much larger screen of the Droid, and the hard keypad....
But to each their own...
#30
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jan 2010
Posts: 176
Two recommendations: find out what your friends and colleagues use - the ones the will be around when you have questions. If everybody in your crash pad has an Android phone , that may be enough right there. Also, find out which apps you'd like to use. These aren't really phones so much as pocket computers, so, for example, if FxCal is the key app then you want an iPhone. The apps are going to make the phone more than specs or operating system.
Carriers aren't an issue for the iPhone anymore; I heard today that even Cellular South is getting the iPhone, too. All iPhone 4S are CDMA and GSM, so even a Sprint iPhone should be able to accept a foreign SIM card.
Carriers aren't an issue for the iPhone anymore; I heard today that even Cellular South is getting the iPhone, too. All iPhone 4S are CDMA and GSM, so even a Sprint iPhone should be able to accept a foreign SIM card.
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