Trying to decide between Sprint (and the Epic 4G) and TMobile (and the G2)

[burritohomeboy]

I realize this is being posted on the Sprint board so I'm sure most would say to go with Sprint and the Epic but I'm currently a TMobile user and am considering going to Sprint when my contract is up and going with an Epic 4G.

I'm in the Boulder/Denver area (which doesn't currently have 4G coverage) and haven't been terribly impressed (nor terribly disappointed) with TMobile's coverage. They haven't rolled out their HSPA network to my area either but I'd pick up a G2 if I were to stay with TMobile.

Does anyone on the forum have any recommendations on the plusses or minuses of the Epic v. the G2 and Sprint v. TMobile in this area? Any input would be greatly appreciated!

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[droidhead]

Personally, I am not a fan of ANY Samsung phone, including the Epic. They have great specs, but to me they look and feel cheap and I also hate, hate, HATE amoled screens. Add to that Samsung's notorious track record for failing to support their products and you have a big ol' pile of dealbreakers for me.

The G2 looks like a really slick phone, and it's made by HTC, who I love, but unfortunately it's already behind the curve with its 800mhz processor.

My honest opinion- come to Sprint, get an Evo. After a week of using it, I PROMISE you won't miss the hardware keyboard.

[jak89]

MH Cheers to that. Although i am not as hard on the amoled as MetalHead (i kinda like it) it dont work as well for me. Aside from specs the Evo is on a level by its self.

As far as coverage, i have family in Denver so when i'm there i use my Nav. a lot with no issues in Denver, Bolder, RedRock all with great signal.

Not to mention you will probably save a bit of cash with Sprint

[jak89]

MetalHead every comparison that pops up we sound like Evo salesmen LOL It always seems to work its way into the line up. Just goes to show what a great phone it is

[droidhead]

Whenever people ask me to see my Evo, I always end up trying to sell them one lol

It's an amazing device and I love everything about it, including talking about it.

[jak89]

Same reason i hit the New Post button at the top all the time. I love telling people how great it is.

[burritohomeboy]

So what would you guys say to the points issued by Peter Kellner that's linked to in this forum (http://peterkellner.net/2010/08/31/s...st-impression/) By the end of it, it sounds like he's wishing he still had his EVO. Do you have the same issues with quick battery depletion?

And I completely agree with you, MH. The times that I've stopped by and handled the Epic, it has felt very cheap.

I'm running a jailbroken and unlocked iphone on tmobile right now so not having a physical keyboard isn't too much of an issue for me. But thanks for the info on the EVO -- I think you guys have swayed me. I'm not too stoked about the 800MHz processor in the G2 either but from what I hear, it's just as good performance-wise as the 1GHz Scorpions. But I'm sure we'll get more solid data once the G2 gets closer to its release date.

Have you rooted your EVOs? Is it worth it?

Thanks again!

[droidhead]

That link you posted 404'd so I can't comment on it.

You'll notice when you first get your Evo that the battery life flat out sucks. After using it for a week or so it will level out but still not be the greatest. You gotta keep in mind that the Evo is a very powerful device and cell phone technology has far surpassed battery technology. That being said, there are many things you can do to increase your battery life, further helped by rooting. With all the tweaks that I have done to my Evo I get well over a day's worth of juice out of it. On top of that, I have 5 batteries so even if my battery does die (which it never does), I can always just pop in a fresh one.

Both Jak and myself are rooted, and I consider it a necessity. It's amazing what you can do with a rooted phone. I have a custom ROM, custom kernel, and a custom theme (try doing that with an iPhone!). I also overclock my processor when playing games, and underclock it when I'm not doing anything that's taxing on the processor, further helping battery life. I am always flashing new ROMs, in fact I am currently beta testing a ROM that will end up being my daily driver once the final build is out.

Jak and I have both become very familiar with everything to do with rooting, and just Android/EVOs in general. If you have any questions, odds are between the two of us and all our great members here, we can get them answered for you.

I really do hope you decide to come over to Sprint and grab one of these great phones, you will be very happy that you did.

[burritohomeboy]

DONE! Thanks guys for swaying me away from the Epic and to the EVO. Really the only two negatives I've heard about the EVO are the battery life (which you've discussed, MH) and the screen (is it really only 65K colors?).

Are either of you in areas that get 4G? What type of transfer rates are you seeing if so?

Thanks again for the feedback -- if/when I do decide to move to Sprint, I'll definitely be picking up an EVO!

BTW, I corrected the above link's URL.

[droidhead]

Yeah the screen is only 65k colors (no clue why they skimped out there) but honestly the dithering is done so well that you barely notice any banding at all. It's still better then dealing with amoled and its pen tile matrix that isn't true 480 x 800 resolution. Do a quick google on pen-tile matrix and you'll see what I mean. If you put the Evo side by side with a Galaxy S and look closely at the screens, I'm sure you'll agree that the Evo's is better. It's much sharper.

I get 4G in some locations and when I do my DL speeds are between 5-8 mbps. Not too shabby for a phone.