Ranadok …finally remembered his login info

The Android Goods

So, I've been using my Android phone (Rogers HTC Magic) for a couple of months now, so I think I have a good sense of what there is to like and dislike about the handset and the platform in general.  Most of these are in comparison to my old Palm handsets (IIIxe, IIIc, M505, Zire 72 in that order), as that's what I was using for the longest time. I was going to put the likes and dislikes both in one post, but it turned out quite long, so I'll split it into two. That isn't to say that this won't be long, though. It is. So, here are the 20-some-odd things I like about my Android phone in no particular order, divided into hardware and software:

Edit Oct 26: Added a few new items and features from updates

Edit September 5, 2010: a few new items

Android (Software):

• The openness. Granted, I haven't done anything substantial with this yet (soon!), but the billions of available ROMs and ability to install pretty much anything you want from the market or otherwise... I like that.
• Google synchronization for (most) things. Changing something on your calendar online and have it pretty much instantly appear on your phone is just cool. Beats the pants off of the Palm Desktop sync in most ways.
• The near complete Internet at all times. This is coming from an old dumbphone/Palm combo, so this point would be shared with the iPhone or probably any of the new class of high-end smartphones, but I really love being able to check bus schedules, read the news, chat with people, and pretty much do my Internetting anywhere I am (Roger's Pass excluded). It's a whole new thing for me and it is awesome.
• I love the notification pulldown shade. You can see at a glance what's going on, pull it down for more information, or ignore it if you are busy on something else. Simple, elegant, and powerful. It's probably the best UI element on the phone and the best way of handling notifications on a mobile device that I've seen.
• The market. It's really easy to find and download new stuff anywhere without being tied to a computer. Miles ahead of the old 'billion websites of questionable content'' Palm days. It could use some work (screenshots would be nice, though I understand they are coming), but the current implementation is solid enough.
• The multiple desktops. Combined with folders, I can have one screen for everyday use (browser, calendar, chat, etc), one for phone/system use (dialer, contacts, system tools, etc), and one for less commonly used applications in folders (games, reference programs, etc). It keeps them organized and separate, and looks slick when I transition between them. Applications that are almost never used are stuck in the pull-up application tray with the complete list. It's a good system, and I can quickly find what I am looking for.
• The physical interface buttons (back button/menu/home). I like the back button, it's something that Sony did way back in their PalmOS Clies, and it was handy then. It's still handy now, being able to go back to the previous screen at any time regardless of where you are or how you got there. The same thing for menu. It's handy being able to pull up the menu the same way in every application. The home button is good too. Those last two are pretty much the same as in the Palm OS (not as hardware buttons, but as dedicated software buttons in the graffiti area), which made the transition pretty straightforward. I could do without the search button, anything that I use it for has a software search button (pretty much just the market and the search widget). That may change when the new phonewide search is available, though.
• Long presses. I could take or leave multitouch (though it's certainly something that SHOULD be there), but I love the long press for some reason. It's like finding bonus buttons and hidden functionality all over the place! It would be nice if it were implemented a little more consistently, but it's a good way to keep the UI from being too crowded without sacrificing ability. The little physical pulse when it activates (on either a physical or virtual button) is oddly satisfying as well.
• Widgets. I don't use too many of them because I find they slow things down too much, but it's nice having some capability on the desktop directly without having to launch a separate app. I'm still looking for a good weather one, though (Agassiz is NOT Chilliwack!).
• Multitasking. Switching back and forth between a few different programs with a long press of home feels surprisingly like a standard desktop as far as usability, though it may not be up to Pre levels. The phone wouldn't be nearly as useful without it.
• Software keyboard. This is more of a love/hate thing (it'll turn up on the other list, too), as it has some real upsides and downsides. I'll touch on the downsides later, but I will say that they keyboard is implemented fairly well, and I really like the long press to pull up alternate characters (I much prefer it to the multitouch alt-key on the iPhone). I would like to see the numbers in the special character popups as well, but that's just nitpicky.
• There are so many inventive programs available. Metal Detector, Locale, Shazam, Barcode Scanner, Layar, and so forth. Lots of neat stuff that's just fun to play with.
• (Added) Constant Development. I love the fact that Android is under active development with new features being added all the time. I think there was only one OS update ever that I installed on any of my Palm PDAs, and the only thing that added was support for SD cards that I didn't own.
• (Added Oct 26) Voice Search. It's faster than typing, creepily accurate (so long as you are looking for something it knows), and feels like the future. I don't know why it wasn't in the stock Rogers ROM, but that's no longer my problem.
• (added Oct 26) System-wide Search. It's fast and seems to find everything I use it for. Very handy, and it replaces a for-pay application that did the same thing before.
• (added Sept 5/10) Voice commands. Pretty much the same as the voice search above, but pretty much system-wide. I can dictate wherever I can type, and use commands for things like sending texts and navigation with a single keypress. So very cool.
• (added Sept 5/10) Navigation. Navigation on par with (or better than) my dad's dedicated Garmin. For free. Integrated with Google's usual quality of search. There are a few places where the maps are a little out of date, but hopefully that'll improve with time
• (added Sept 5/10) Launcher Pro. I don't know if it's fair to give Android credit for a third-party home screen, but this is incredible, and has really made it feel like a new phone at times. The parts that stand out are the scrollable dock, the resizable widgets, and the piles and piles of customization options. It's the first (and so far only) Android app that I've felt the need to pay for, and that's even with the free app being full-featured.

HTC Magic (hardware):

• The hardware is sleek, especially compared to the Palms that I've had. The glossy black and dark grey work well together and look classy. It also feels natural in the hand and feels solid (some minor creaks of the battery case aside).
• The camera. I'm hardly a photographer, so the camera is great for quick shots.  The autofocus also makes it much better at snapping papers/signs/etc than the fixed-focus camera on my old Zire. Plus reading barcodes of various shapes and sizes is neat (Barcode Beasties!).
• Removable battery. I've had problems with several of my previous handsets with non-replaceable dead batteries, so it's good to know that won't happen this time. All I'll have to do is buy a new one and pop it in, not send the unit off for costly and time consuming repairs.
• Expandable memory. I don't use it to listen to music or view videos very often (thank the headphones for that), but it's nice not being limited in the storage in the device. Having the card slot behind the battery cover is a good balance between keeping the outside clean and keeping it available.
• GPS. Useful for navigation, plus it makes Locale possible, which is something I've wanted literally since I got my first PDA.
• Standard USB to charge and transfer data. I don't need to buy expensive cables if I lose the one that it came with and I can use the same car charger as my dad's GPS. Excellent.
• Notification LED. It's something I missed in my recent Palms, it's good to have it back.
• Feature-wise, it's pretty much everything I would want in a portable device were I to make a list. GPS, accelerometer, Wifi, phone, and so forth. It may have some problems in implementation for a few things, but there isn't much I would add to the specsheet.
• It's a toy. It's fun to learn the abilities and quirks of a new gadget, and it always has been.
• (added Sept 5/10) The hardware buttons. It's not like this has changed since I wrote the original list, but the recent slew of handsets with the terrible touch-sensitive buttons (which, in fairness, I have not actually tried for myself) have made me appreciate the physical, clicky ones that I have now.

So there you have it. Everything I can think of right now that I like about Android and the HTC Magic. I'm sure more things will come to mind (and I may add them when they do), but for now, I think that's the meat of it. The things I don't like will be coming soon enough.