nearly ready to upgrade my HTC diamond which I like but it has some limitations - like screen size and some minor email issues.

I'm wondering whether to stick with HTC - apparently the Hero is really good! or whether to get an iphone? I'm not that keen on the iphone really - everyone who has one raves about them and shows off pretending to drink beer from one, or does the whoopee cushion thing etc etc which kinda makes then uncool in my humble opinion.

so which to go for?

I like to have internet and email on it but I want it to be a decent phone too.

Cheers

Mark

htc hero is new software and packaging on top of the old htc magic architecture. It can do some snazzing things... once its stopped crunching.

I have got an iphone 3g, im yet to drink beer/trump using it, but its definitely my best buy of '09

I have an Iphone 3G which i purchased before the HTC Hero came out. In the past ive had several HTC's with different versions of Windows mobile. the last phone being the original HTC Touch.

If i was to buy a phone again, then it would be between the HTC Hero, and the Iphone. Ive never had a go with the Hero though to know all of what its capable of

I have had a hero for a couple of months now and it's the best phone I have ever had, although I haven't had an iphone!
There was a software update a few weeks back which fixed the speed issues with the interface, it flies along now.
My money is on Google Android being the next big thing, v2 is just out and the Hero will get a free upgrade.

mate at work has just got the HTC, it looks very good and he is over the moon with it, does everything the iphone can plus more. Personally i have a blackerry curve 8900 and love it and can't see me going away from BB in the future. I hate touch screens (had a M700 - orange branded HTC) with a passion where as the full qwerty and roller ball on the BB is a delight to use.

[Edited on 18/11/09 by MK9R]

iPhone is good, but unfortunatly geeks need to show off too, hence the crap apps being passed round the pub. Never used hero so can be objective sorry.

I've had an iPhone 3G for nearly 18 months now and have no hesitation in recommending one. There are over 100,000 applications available so don't be put off by the "novelty" apps and don't confuse an uncool user with an uncool product.

What I love most about the iPhone is just how useful it is in a wide range of circumstances. I use it daily for travel reports on my route to work, music, emailing, browsing, texting, twittering, the odd game, brain training, weather reports, calendar, address book, oh yes, and the occasional phone call! It is still as clean as teh day I bought it too with no technical issues at all in 18 months and the battery life is perfectly good.

All, in all a revolutionary device - the competition are all still playing catchup in my opinion. Some have individual features which are better but as a total package the Motorola Droid is the only one which comes close but still falls down a bit on usability.

Craig.

I have got the Nokia N97, it has a 32 gig internal memory and a slot for a card, theres good apps and i have over 400 songs on it and a dozen full length movies, and even the sat nav works in this Nokia.

the iPhone lacks android's customizable desktop (iphone doesnt have one at all!) Fi, if you quickly want to browse your calendar or check the weather you need to start an app on the iphone, while android lets you add that info to the homescreen.

[Edited on 18/11/09 by rost]

Hero htc all the way ,put a 8gig class six memory card in mine and its speeded it up even more when browsing music and photos ,the hero has 7 screens you can customise to your own liking .. A few friends now wish they had brought the htc as the novelty has worn off there iphone
the new htc hd looks a nice bit of kit if you like that sort of thing

I've recently bought a Samsung Omnia II, which is really good. Windows Mobile 6.5 isn't as slick as the iPhone but I paid £300 for it on eBay BNIB where the iPhone is a whole lot more. 800 x 480 display is almost DVD quality and it has a 5 Mpixel camera with flash that the iPhone doesn't have.

I would say HTC all the way. I had a Compact II and a Touch (elfin) and now I've got a TMobile G1 (Dream) and I think HTC phones beat IPhones hnads down. Plus there is a huge modding and developing scene for the Android OS. Android is new but its open source so loads of people are developing software for it

I have the T-mobile G1 (HTC Dream) and I've been very impressed. I don't like on-screen keyboards so the fold-out one was ideal.

Android is an excellent operating system (it's a version of linux) and I've now had 2 updates pushed to it (successfully!).

The biggest bonus is that the phone doesn't have an inflated price simply because of its name. In fact, mine was free from T-mobile because I was due for an upgrade - the only 'catch' was that I had to commit to a further contract but that didn't bother me - still the same monthly payment. There are loads of deals for similar phones at either zero price or for a small down-payment (plus a contract, of course). Compare this with the huge down-payment and expensive contract for the iPhone.

Quite a few technical reviewers think that Apple are going to have a hard time because of Android...

I wouldn't be without my iphone now. But it depends what u want from it. I use the train a lot & the rail app with live train times is really useful. Apparently Orange & maybe Vodaphone will be selling iPhones soon giving O2 some competition & hopefully bringing charges down a bit.
I think Android could overshadow the iPhone in a year or two when the apps start to build up & manufacturers try to outshine each other but I don't think it's there just yet.

Just got an HTC Hero yesterday and tonight I'm going to sleep with it on my privates


YES!!!!! its THAT good

I've not had a HTC Hero, but my wife has a Touch Diamond II, and I've had many Nokia, Sony, Panasonic and Windows phones before. I've now got an iPhone 3GS (32Gb) and I wouldn't swap it for anything - it's the best bit of technology I've bought in years!
I don't do the iBeer drinking or other daft stuff but I do use it for a lot of things I used to use my laptop for such as browsing this forum, eBay, email, and other such things.
The iPhone is quick and reliable, and I got fed up with the way other phones tried to accomplish some tasks. Android is ok, but the iPhone OS is simply superb.

Get down to a showroom and try them both side by side, and then go and get a deal online. It's your phone so you need to make the most informed choice possible. Or just go and get an iPhone!

Ed.

[Edited on 18/11/09 by Madinventions]

Also consider the Blackberry Storm 2, my brother just bought one and the touchscreen and user interface is up there with the iPhone.

I have the HTC magic and has been faultless. The google facilities make searching phone and internet easy. As I am not geeky or under 20, apps collecting is not important. I have a few and these will only get better as Android expands. It keeps applications open at last used position unlike iphone. The only downside is the quality of the camera.

GPS is a must, it links to google maps etc. free sat nav!! tracker and locator (incase you need to see where your wifes 'Gym' is.)

HTH

Moss

I should say that I have a number of trivial apps on my G1 (best one is called 'The Schwartz' - it's a light-sabre that buzzes when you wave the phone around ) a few that I have put on because they're mind-bogglingly clever (Google's Sky Map, for example) but there's a core of indispensable ones such as a dictionary, google search, browser, etc that I use several times per day.

quote:

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Originally posted by FFTS
Just got an HTC Hero yesterday and tonight I'm going to sleep with it on my privates


YES!!!!! its THAT good

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HTC all the way, had them for several years and they have always been reliable and good spec.

Will continue with them when my next upgrade is due too.

David