At 16 Nov 2009 04:41:05 -0800 Vic wrote:
> My First Week With DROID Posted by Jason Perlow ZD NET
> One of the first things I noticed is when I tried to pull data off my
> device, in particular photos and videos which are stored on the Micro-
> SD card. If you’re a Windows 7 user, the first thing you’ll wantto do
> is get a Micro-SD card adapter and reader for your PC, because you’ll
> go absolutely nuts trying to make Windows 7 see it over a USB
> connection.

Having a reader for removable media always makes sense- it's typically
faster than hooking up a device and dealing with sync software. I've
never, for example, hooked any of my digital cameras to my computer to
drag files via the camera's USB cable. Pop out card, quickly copy,
reinsert card, get on with your life.

> If he had chosen an iPhone Jason would enjoy seamless USB moving of
> videos and photos to and from the iPhone using iTunes on either a Mac
> or PC. The iPhone doesn't need an easily lost Micro-SD card or extra
> cost reader like the Droid.


True. But it does need a computer with iTunes. That limits the number
ofcomputers you can copy stuff to- if I want to transfer photos or videos
to a friend's computer, asking him to install a few dozen MBs of sync
software first is a bit of an imposition!



> My First Week With DROID Posted by Jason Perlow ZD NET
> You have to get used to the fact that you are not going to be
> “Syncing” the DROID with your PC or Mac, all your data essentially
> lives in Google-land.
>
> Ouch, Jason will be dead in th water every time Google has an
> outage.
> The iPhone syncs with your computer and is automatically backed up
> every time you connect it via USB. Apple also stores all your purchase
> history on their servers, so if your Windows PC is eaten alive by
> viruses and you have to reinstall Windows you do not have to pay for
> your applications or any other iPhone content all over again. That is
> another huge benefit of the Apple store compared to any would be
> contender.


How is that an "advantage" when it requires access to your designated
"sync computer?" Cloud-based sync advantages certainly outweigh the
disadvantages, as evidenced by the feature's extra cost (MobileMe) on the
iPhone.


> My First Week With DROID Posted by Jason Perlow ZD NET
> In order to do a file transfer, I had to load the Android SDK in a
> Linux virtual machine connected to the USB resources of my Windows 7
> system and use the Java-based debugging/developer GUI, which is not
> something your regular end-user should ever have to do. Google really
> needs to get some decent PC and Mac driver and basic sync/transfer
> software.
>
> How many iPhone users want to fire up Linux inside of windows 7 to do
> file transfer? The Droid is a hackers wet dream in that they can
> diddle around for hours to do something that is so simple with the
> iPhone.
> I can feel the Droid love.
> And this is an iPhone killer?

Like the iPhone or any platform, the Android platform has its own set of
limitations. Why is this guy hacking his way into forcing USB file
transfer when he can do it via removable storage? Simple- he's tryingto
make it work like he THINKS it should, instead of how it actually works,
which I'm constantly told is a Bad Idea(tm) by the Apple Corps here when
I ask why I can't, say, drag and drop files to/from an iPhone.


> Could this be a strong clue as to why the iPhone takes better photos
> and videos than the Verizon Droid?


While that may be true, I've yet to find a cell phone camera, including
the iPhone's, worth bragging about. "It sucks less than the others!" is
hardly the stuff catchy slogans are made of!


> My First Week With DROID Posted by Jason Perlow ZD NET
> Even with these quirks, I am really enjoying my DROID purchase...


And that's the bottom line. All the various mobile platforms have their
advantages and disadvantages. Why not just enjoy your iPhone, Vic?
Serious competition will only make Apple work that much harder to keep
improving it, rather than just sitting on their laurels.