I just received my nexus one. Initial impressions...

[speg]

However I fail to understand why multi-touch is necessary on a keyboard? I can tap out a message just fine the way it is by releasing a key and pressing another key. Nothing different than typing on a physical one.

On a physical keyboard you have all ten digits on the keys at once. That's a lot different. Since the current versions of the default Android OS don't include support for multiple inputs it can sometimes slow down typing. (because you can't start tapping the next key until you release the previous). I just read that the Euro version does have multitouch support out of the box. Weird!

 

[zerocool84]

On a physical keyboard you have all ten digits on the keys at once. That's a lot different. Since the current versions of the default Android OS don't include support for multiple inputs it can sometimes slow down typing. (because you can't start tapping the next key until you release the previous). I just read that the Euro version does have multitouch support out of the box. Weird!

Well it's because of the horrible patent system we have here in the States that allowed Apple to patent it. In Europe they have no such patent and can't make one there so don't have to pay royalty fees.

 

[daMachine]

Well it's because of the horrible patent system we have here in the States that allowed Apple to patent it. In Europe they have no such patent and can't make one there so don't have to pay royalty fees.

Agreed, US Patent system is quite inept. There seems to be patents on the most basic things. I could see on pinching/zooming, but general touching. Crazy.

I.e. "1-Click purchase", just weak.

 

[Tremulant]

I'm in Downtown L.A. and have had no issues at all with 3G switching. It's been 3G the whole time and it's blazing.

One thing that really sucks is the buttons along the bottom don't really work that well. I have to use essentially the top half of each button. My thumb pressing right in the center doesn't get detected.

I only got data service this morning, so I'm not sure how the 3G switching is for me (though, I did see it switch between 3G and wifi a few times this morning before I left).

For me, the buttons on the bottom are spot on. I don't have the issue that you (or engadget) is having. I can press the bottom buttons right in the middle and it works fine.

As for typing, this is my first smartphone, so I'm still getting used to typing on a touchscreen, but I haven't had any speed issues so far (just some minor typos).

 

[Pliablemoose]

I'm in downtown LA & have noticed my G1 seems slower since TMob upgraded the network, been slow all week...

Am following everyone's experiences, I really want one of these, but I'll likely pick one up used on eBay in a few months...

 

[Fox5]

Were you comparing over wifi or 3g when you noticed the nexus one loaded web pages much faster than the droid?
If over 3g, well tmobile's 3g network (where it exists) is much faster than verizon's, so that would explain the difference in time.
If over wifi, then I'd think at least part of the difference must be in the updated version of android (and thus web browser). >5 seconds difference in page load times doesn't make sense when the processor is only around 50% faster, unless your droid is taking a crazy long time to load web pages.

 

[hanoverphist]

I'll admit that I'm a gadget obsessed guy and lately I've been obsessed with phone tech. I've probably owned at least 10 cell phones in the past 16 months. I need help.

Anyway I just got my nexus one and I'm typing on it now. I apologize for any typos as I also got PRK surgery yesterday morning. Great time to be playing with phones.

OK so I currently have a Droid from Verizon so I'll be comparing it to that mostly.

Form factor: It's well known that the N1 is a slim phone but holding it makes me realize just how thin it is. The Droid is a very husky phone and the N1 is pretty much the exact opposite. Considering that I'm Nora fan of sliders or physical keyboards, I like the N1 much more.

Screen: Not really sure I can test this accurately given the fact my eyes can't tolerate much light due to the surgery but I'll be.happy to answer any questions.

Sound: First thing I noticed is that the droid's external speaker is much much louder than the N1. This may be an issue since I use speakerphone a lot. I haven't made any calls yet since o need someone to drive me anywhere. For tilhe time being, I'd definitely give the nod to the.Droid here.

Performance: it's obvious that the N1 wins here. I did some browser tests on my wifi connection and the N1 was roughly 5-10 secs faster on loading sites than the Droid. In the end, it's not that big of a deal but the overall speed differences is noticeable.

Battery life: just got the N1 so I can't determine this yet.

I think I very loosely covered a few differences but I'm totally open for any and all questions anyone may have.I'm on my way to T-Mobile so I'll see which phone I'll end up keeping based on some other factors,namely monthly cost.

im not picking on the typos, but i did notice that it seems to do the same thing (bolded parts) my omnia does in web page text fields. it places a period instead of a space randomly, have you noticed that to be a regular thing? bugs the hell out of me on my phone. only does it on some web sites tho, like the m.facebook and some others ive noticed. this forum does it as well on my phone.

 

[Jeraden]

I got my Nexus yesterday too. First touchscreen phone for me, and typing on it in general is taking some getting used to. I tried out the Voice-to-Text option and found it works amazingly well actually. So if I'm alone, I tend to be using that method of typing stuff now. Only a few times has it been totally off-base.

My 3G signal isn't very good, and it does seem to mostly revert back to Edge. I have full signal on Edge from my desk, but when I get it on 3G its only at like 1 or 2 bars. I just checked now and its back on Edge again. Lol, I just checked again and now its at 2-bars of 3G. So in the span of 10 seconds it switched.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

I fail to understand how you seem to know so much about these phones, yet don't know that it's fairly common knowledge that a better keyboard exists, in fact that's its name. However I fail to understand why multi-touch is necessary on a keyboard? I can tap out a message just fine the way it is by releasing a key and pressing another key. Nothing different than typing on a physical one.

Aha, but if you've used the HTC Touch Pro keyboards, you'll never really venture to the Droid's keyboard. The fact is, a good onscreen keyboard like on the iPhone 3GS will do just fine. The Droid's physical keyboard is nothing to marvel at, and with HTC really pushing out an excellent on screen keyboard, it's obvious why on a Droid I first went to the onscreen keyboard. The physical keyboard should be the alternative.

Yes there are crappier phones with resistive screens like the HTC TP2 and Samsung Omnia and Nokia N97 where the touchscreen doesn't cut it, so a physical keyboard is necessary.

When you're typing FAST with your thumbs, there is a tendency to press the next key before you fully let go of the previous one. I know this because I've seen plenty of people move from iPhone to other resistive screens or even capacitive screens w/o multitouch. It's not something everyone notices, because it doesn't happen till you type at a certain speed.

Most of the time I don't type that fast on my iPod and iPhone, but in the past 6 months or so I noticed that if I type as fast as I can, there's a 90% chance or so the auto correction fixes all my typos and its a fully recognizable sentence. So I realized that when typing IMs, I usually just fire away. E-mails on the other hand I take it slow to make sure I'm not writing gibberish to my coworkers/bosses.

Basically, the whole multitouch on keyboard isn't that noticeable unless you've gone hardcore with your Apple iPod/iPhone and then you realize it. I first figured this out when the Samsung Omnia HD came out. A few people on HoFo complained that typing was tough, and people didn't understand why. Later they figured out it was the whole releasing then pressing the next key.

Shrug. I honestly attribute the ability to type fast on an onscreen keyboard due to the fact the iPhone has such wonderful autocorrection. The Touch Pro has never been that great for me. I think if you spend a lot of time with your iPhone to master it, you will realize why other onscreen keyboards pale in comparison, and I can see why people demand a physical keyboard. HTC's HD2 and Droid Eris really come close though with capacitive.

 

[GregGreen]

Aha, but if you've used the HTC Touch Pro keyboards, you'll never really venture to the Droid's keyboard. The fact is, a good onscreen keyboard like on the iPhone 3GS will do just fine. The Droid's physical keyboard is nothing to marvel at, and with HTC really pushing out an excellent on screen keyboard, it's obvious why on a Droid I first went to the onscreen keyboard. The physical keyboard should be the alternative.

Yes there are crappier phones with resistive screens like the HTC TP2 and Samsung Omnia and Nokia N97 where the touchscreen doesn't cut it, so a physical keyboard is necessary.

When you're typing FAST with your thumbs, there is a tendency to press the next key before you fully let go of the previous one. I know this because I've seen plenty of people move from iPhone to other resistive screens or even capacitive screens w/o multitouch. It's not something everyone notices, because it doesn't happen till you type at a certain speed.

Most of the time I don't type that fast on my iPod and iPhone, but in the past 6 months or so I noticed that if I type as fast as I can, there's a 90% chance or so the auto correction fixes all my typos and its a fully recognizable sentence. So I realized that when typing IMs, I usually just fire away. E-mails on the other hand I take it slow to make sure I'm not writing gibberish to my coworkers/bosses.

Basically, the whole multitouch on keyboard isn't that noticeable unless you've gone hardcore with your Apple iPod/iPhone and then you realize it. I first figured this out when the Samsung Omnia HD came out. A few people on HoFo complained that typing was tough, and people didn't understand why. Later they figured out it was the whole releasing then pressing the next key.

Shrug. I honestly attribute the ability to type fast on an onscreen keyboard due to the fact the iPhone has such wonderful autocorrection. The Touch Pro has never been that great for me. I think if you spend a lot of time with your iPhone to master it, you will realize why other onscreen keyboards pale in comparison, and I can see why people demand a physical keyboard. HTC's HD2 and Droid Eris really come close though with capacitive.

Current Moto Droid user and former iPhone 3G user here: I don't know if the Droid autocorrection is worse or if the fact that the iPhone starts predicting your text as you type it as opposed to when a full word is written is the difference. I've read that the iPhone actually runs an algorithm when typing that will help get the right key when you hit it -- it makes the area that is recognized as a specific letter bigger when it is more likely to be used. For example, the area for the letter "r" is going to be larger than the letter "q." The art on screen doesn't reflect this, but the areas in the software do.

Personally, I have also noticed the lack of multitouch on the droid when typing on the soft keyboard and it is infuriating. When going slow it isn't a big difference but when you get really going, it is a huge hindrance. I have gotten used to the real keyboard on the phone though -- even with the terrible reviews the hard keyboard got, once I got used to it, it wasn't a big deal.

 

[deputc26]

To you nexus owners I really want to hear about battery ligpfe, is it good/as advertised, does it usually last the day? (Typed on a droid that has decent but not outstanding battery life).

 

[Cuda1447]

Battery life is what you would expect on a huge touchscreen. I ran the phone with GPS and Wifi off, screen brightness all the way up from about 1pm to 11pm. When I got done with it I was at about 40% battery life. That is with pretty moderate to heavy usage.

 

[secretanchitman]

phobic9, thanks for your impressions! i pretty much agree with you on every point you mentioned.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

Current Moto Droid user and former iPhone 3G user here: I don't know if the Droid autocorrection is worse or if the fact that the iPhone starts predicting your text as you type it as opposed to when a full word is written is the difference. I've read that the iPhone actually runs an algorithm when typing that will help get the right key when you hit it -- it makes the area that is recognized as a specific letter bigger when it is more likely to be used. For example, the area for the letter "r" is going to be larger than the letter "q." The art on screen doesn't reflect this, but the areas in the software do.

Personally, I have also noticed the lack of multitouch on the droid when typing on the soft keyboard and it is infuriating. When going slow it isn't a big difference but when you get really going, it is a huge hindrance. I have gotten used to the real keyboard on the phone though -- even with the terrible reviews the hard keyboard got, once I got used to it, it wasn't a big deal.

You're right. Prediction-wise, I think it's not too hard to do what the iPhone is doing. I think I even like HTC's prediction style better with their keyboard. The droid does pretty well, but as you pointed out the mispreses on an iphone like if you type "yhe" instead of "the" you really don't have to worry.

On many older phones you had to type slowly, so I gues this is where the bias against onscreen keyboards is. I've had a pocket PC and I've extensively used WinMo devices. I wouldn't say they were bad, but after ocming to the iPhone it was a HUGE change. Took a while to get used to but the tex prediction + correction is really a life saver. I realized I could type so much faster and not even look at what I'm typing. Whereas on other keyboards I have to TRY to hit the right key, on the iPhone I can go blindly and have no issues. That's what I'd like to be able to do on the Droid.

So the solution seems to be to either use the hardware keyboard or to install HTC's keyboard. Not too shabby.

 

[idiotekniQues]

mine arrives tomorrow at work. switching from spring to t-mobile for this phone. my cubicle buddy at work has a 3gs and we will be doing some comparisons. looking forward to it.

 

[Dream Operator]

Check out the Swype keyboard!

Not sure if this works on the Nexus One or not, but it's great on my Moto Droid.

http://www.androidcentral.com/download-beta-version-swype-android

 

[idiotekniQues]

i just wanted to say that this phone makes me drool. of course i am not coming over from an iphone but rather my work blackberry and sanyo flip.

this thing feels so solid in hand. very thin. ill post more in-depth thoughts when i get home.

 

[sygyzy]

Check out the Swype keyboard!

Not sure if this works on the Nexus One or not, but it's great on my Moto Droid.

http://www.androidcentral.com/download-beta-version-swype-android

Been using it on my Nexus One. It's awesome but since it's not officially supported, there's this annoying error message.

 

[Phobic9]

im not picking on the typos, but i did notice that it seems to do the same thing (bolded parts) my omnia does in web page text fields. it places a period instead of a space randomly, have you noticed that to be a regular thing? bugs the hell out of me on my phone. only does it on some web sites tho, like the m.facebook and some others ive noticed. this forum does it as well on my phone.

Yeah it does do that more than I'd like. Also, my eyes are still adjusting from having PRK surgery last week so it's harder to see my mistakes and correct them but over all yes, I still hit the period button more than I'd like. I'm gonna give Swype a try later today to see if I can type any better with it.

 

[hanoverphist]

Yeah it does do that more than I'd like. Also, my eyes are still adjusting from having PRK surgery last week so it's harder to see my mistakes and correct them but over all yes, I still hit the period button more than I'd like. I'm gonna give Swype a try later today to see if I can type any better with it.

mine isnt from me hitting the period button tho, it does it on its own. ive noticed it only does this when im typing quickly, if i wait a moment to hit the space and then another moment for the next word it doesnt do it. otherwise it kills the space and tosses a period in there at random points in the last word.

edit: only reason i know im not accidentally hitting period is that they are a few buttons away from each other... it would switch me into symbols before it got to the period key

 

[secretanchitman]

are any of you guys getting the reported 3G drops that ive been hearing?

 

[aceO07]

How do you feel about the lack of the 'dial'/'hangup' physical buttons? It doesn't seem phone-ish to me since it doesn't have those buttons.

All my phones have had those buttons and I'm just curious if I'm the only person who would miss those buttons. I currently have a G1.

 

[abaez]

1. I'm not getting 3G drops at all (in downtown Los Angeles)

2. It has a "Phone" button on the homescreen - which takes you to a dialpad, or with tabs along the top for your contacts. You can hangup right on the screen when you finish your call.

 

[Raduque]

I want a Nexus one, but I just can't afford one right now.

 

[Muadib]

Damn I am not aware the Nexus One already come out...I thought it should come out AFTER CES show this week.

Since Google only sold 20,000 Nexus one phones during the first week, it appears that you weren't the alone. Google had better get an ad on tv asap, or this phone will fail.