GoodBye iPhone Thanks to AT&T

How I saved AT&T over $180.00 (GoodBye iPhone Thanks to AT&T )

Dear Mr. Jobs and AT&T

Back at the end June as I visited the local AT&T store I came across a poster on a table right in the middle of the store "Great Monthly Discounts" 

So I inquired and applied for this discount on  my single 1st version iPhone.  I supplied the info needed for the discount of 20%.  My bill was $60.00 before taxes, thus it should have come down to $48.00 a savings of $12.00.  I checked around Aug. to see what the hold up was on my new discounted bill.  Some AT&T internal paper work problem was kinda the answer.  Now it's another month has gone bye and I go to the AT&T store and inquire again.  The ANSWER - your orignal (1st version) iPhone plan doesn't apply for the discount, but if I had the 3G or 3Gs iPhone plan it would, was my understanding. 

Sometime back (in July) I was tempted to upgrade to the iPhone 3Gs, but as we have NO AT&T 3G SERVICE for 60 MILES in any direction, I didn't!

Now that AT&T save themselves $12.00 by not giving me a discount.  A 1st version iPhone owner from day 3 of it's announcement in 2007.

I sat back thinking about this!  I knew I needed to help AT&T with their complaints of the lack of 3G service here.  I also I needed to help them save even more than the $12.00 they saved by not giving me the "Great Monthly Discounts".    Ah! Go over to Sprint

I now have 2 HTC Hero's (version 1.5 android)   and I'm as please with them as I was with my olde iPhone.  Add in a 3G usb card and it adds up to about $180, the same as it would have been with 2 iPhones & 3G usb card from AT&T.  Oh! almost forgot, add in 2 more phones (4 total) for even more savings for AT&T.

NOTE: I've had no problems with any AT&T personnel, they always tried their best to help.

All this BS with AT&T has caused me to rethink any new mobile products from Apple.  I always felt that the ease of use was a plus for Apple and was willing to spend a few bucks more for it.  Guess this means no iTablet iSlate iPad (a big honkin' iPod) for me.

Now What to do with my old iPhone? See below!

Parrot AR.Drone - Quadrotor helicopter iPhone wifi

HTC Sprint Hero (Android 1.5) - iPhone (1st gen 3.1)

March ov 10, 2010 update ...............

No service after installing applications  

Cure - Remove the last widgets you installed and reboot

...............

HTC Sprint Hero (Android)  I HaveIt, played WithIt for a day, and I LikeIt. 

 

         Click Photo to Expand

 As y'all know my iPhone lacks a good service provider in my area. I also have a Sprint account and that phone service works better for me, where I now live.  So I upgrade two of my old six year fones to the  Sprint (HTC) Hero.  I almost did a phone upgrade to the Palm Pre last spring but didn't like it's small slideout keyboard. 

Am I glad I held off !!!  Thanks Amanda for the heads up and the GizWiz - Hot Android Phone Joins The Sprint Team.

You'll need one of the Sprint Everything plans, check with Sprint for pricing. ( $000, and $130 for 1500 min. two lines)

Keyboard :

The HTC Sprint Hero version has the type on the screen keyboard just as iPhone, so if you like typing that way, check this phone out.

OS :

It runs the basic Android OS version1.5 (by the Google) on the order of the iPhone OS (by Apple), but a little less refined, as it came out about a year later.  But wait, now the Hero features HTC Sense, which allows you to customize your interface screens to seven of them. Try a tap on the default weather if it's raining.

Apps = Widgets : 

Apple iPhone Apps (85,000), well Android calls them Widgets with a quite a few less. But it's only numbers, and your not going to put all of them on your phone at once.  I found some of my iPhone Apps in the Google Android Widgets format.  I use BrightKite  and just like FaceBook the Social Networks on my iPhone, and now have both those Widgets on my HTC Sprint Hero phone. Oh No, no Evernote widget.

The Apple iTunes also has PodCasts, some call them NetCasts. Whatever.  On the iPhone, I download a few of these to play in the background.  I've found the same is true with the Sprint Hero's Android Market and it's under the "Listen" Widget button.  I've found a "WiFi OnOff" Widget, and a the BarCode Scanner to be useful.  These are all FREE on both platforms. The Sprint Navigation is a built in GPS widget.

TV :

Then there's NFL Mobile Live, that's the most used button on my wife's Hero, along with the SprintTV.

Sync :

Unlike the Apple MobleMe account ($99.00 less if you shop around) the Sprint (HTC) Hero can use Google's Android to link to the Google.  So you'll have to setup a gMail account if you don't have one already.  I've found that it syncs the Gmail, Calendar and Contacts, and it's FREE. Of course you can use MS Exchange ActiveSync if that's what you have.  Note: If you have Mac computer, the iPhone does sync to it via the local computers iTunes program, along with the mail & contacts (iPhoto also) programs on the Mac that are included with any Mac, iMac computers.

Camera and Video :

The camera is 5 mega pixel camera, with a camcorder mode.  Snap a picture (start video) by pressing the trackball.  I find it jerks the camera, but I'm still working with the settings.  As with the iPhone, I'm sure someone will make a app widget that lets you just tap the screen to snap the shutter. Neither has a Flash.

  Click Photo to Expand

Settings :

To adjust setting of Widget, Camera, etc. just press the menu button at the bottom of the phone. In most cases this will take you to the settings for that program if your in that program.

the phone :

Got me I have made phone calls with it. Yet.  But I'll let my wife test that as she like to jaw.

Battery Life :

So far the battery life on the Hero seems to be shorter then my old version iPhone, but I haven't tweaked it. 

 Hint: from your home screen press the menu (the hard button) then click Settings lower right bottom, scroll down the screen( about 7) to click Location (Set My Location) Enabble GPS satellites click un-check this if you not using the GPS.

 Or try these widget toggles from  CurveFish

P.S.

If Apple only made iPhones, I'd short the stock because of the AT&T carrier short coming, for me and others. AND Android is Coming on Strong!  (also windows 7)

Disclaimer :

The only way I make  money from this, is by printing my own monies on this computer and that's the same computer I type this review with.

UpDate: 01/18/09  GoodBye iPhone Thanks to AT&T

the Palm Pre - iPhone (1st gen)

Palm Pre Don't HaveIt (yet) but did a little playing WithIt and thinking OfIt when they go on sale tomorrow.

(See what I ended up with on 10/11/09 click here)

First off keep in mind that I'm a bit older person, not the texting type.

I have a few Sprint phones and the service and signal works real good for me. I also have an iPhone (1st Gen) from AT&T and the service in my area sucks and I'm talking Edge (No 3G for 50 plus miles), it (Edge) also sucked in a northern city with 1,000,000 people 3 miles from downtown over the last two years. So now may be the time to replace my 2002 version Sprint phones and the piss poor AT&T signal.

The Palm Pre felt a little heavier than my old Apple iPhone and the viewing screen is smaller. The small keyboard works for those that do texting, but if you use reading glasses, you best have them on to see the keys.

The sideway swipe gets the app your using back to the desktop (home menu screen) and shown as a smaller screen on the home screen, to remove it you do an upward swipe, and it's gone. Pinch to make the screen smaller and a spread to magnify, just like the iPhone. So far so good. Yes, you can run more than one app (cards) at a time.

The camera is a way better picture (with flash) over the iPhone and the pictures again use the pinch mode.

The Palm Pre Web Browser works about the same and the iPhone and just like the iPhone I didn't see flash player pages show up.

Has a backup app that saves your phone info with a tape on the backup icon. If you have your life that is on the google it will tranfer your contacts, calendars etc. Very Nice!

Did try the TV mode and watched the NFL channel.

So yes I LikeIt, and would BuyIt.  But this is mostly base on the Signal of the Carrier Service provided, as the two phones do much the same.

So I'll have to wait until this Monday to see what Apple is up to at WWDC 2009 (newer iPhone?). Also the "here say" of Verizon getting the iPhone would work great for me, as they have a good signal where I live.

I'll keep y'all posted .....