Nokia N900 vs. Motorola Droid / Milestone - Page 6 - maemo.org

Bratag | # 51 | 2009-10-19, 17:28 | Report

Regardless of the OS I can never bring myself to buy another Motorola phone. Used to be a big fan of their stuff but after the last two I had were unmitigated POS I just cant trust em again.

bugelrex | # 52 | 2009-10-19, 17:31 | Report

At a guess, the majority of N900's would be those looking for an iphone alternative but with keyboard an no at&t.

With a much smaller percentage buying because its 'open source'

I feel the droid may steal quite many potential customers away from the n900 when they see:
- its slimmer
- larger screen
-xenon flash. Real camera replacement for low-light shots
-slightly lighter?
-is 'somehow' affiliated with google. Ovi Maps doesn't even come close to google maps in USA.
-developers can use Android NDK to write c/C++ apps now, so casual developers have an excuse to buy it too.

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GeneralAntilles | # 53 | 2009-10-19, 17:33 | Report

Originally Posted by spinnukur View Post

Yeah, I am stating Android is a different beast, because I didn't know Android was Linux based, I thought it was Google derived.

It more or less is. It only resembles Linux at the lower platform levels. It doesn't run X and it doesn't support the usual Linux toolkits. Although it's using the Linux kernel, the userspace is mostly Google-derived.

This, of course, is unlike Maemo which uses X and standard Linux desktop toolkits resulting in reasonably straightforward porting of your favorite Linux applications. Android is a mobile phone platform that's pretending to be a mobile computer platform, Maemo is actually is a mobile computer platform.

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Bratag | # 54 | 2009-10-19, 17:37 | Report

Originally Posted by bugelrex View Post

At a guess, the majority of N900's would be those looking for an iphone alternative but with keyboard an no at&t.

With a much smaller percentage buying because its 'open source'

I feel the droid may steal quite many potential customers away from the n900 when they see:
- its slimmer
- larger screen
-xenon flash. Real camera replacement for low-light shots
-slightly lighter?
-is 'somehow' affiliated with google. Ovi Maps doesn't even come close to google maps in USA.
-developers can use Android NDK to write c/C++ apps now, so casual developers have an excuse to buy it too.

Android NDK is nowhere near fully baked still has to be called via a Java frontend etc. Limited access to the hardware.

UCOMM | # 55 | 2009-10-19, 17:43 | Report

Originally Posted by GeneralAntilles View Post

Android is a mobile phone platform that's pretending to be a mobile computer platform, Maemo is actually is a mobile computer platform pretending to be a mobile phone platform.

finished it for ya

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christexaport | # 56 | 2009-10-19, 18:41 | Report

Moto is from Texas, and they make great phone hardware. But this "Android is Linux based" argument is just like saying corn syrup is corn based. Well so is ethanol 85, but it won't make your Dr. Pepper taste any better. If Android was so wise to use Linux for its underpinnings, and then tout it as a plus, then the N900 being a full Debian Linux OS should be an advantageous selling point.

Like me saying my Camaro has a Corvette ZR1 engine, whereas a Corvette IS a Corvette! The rest of the Camaro is inferior, and so is the rest of Android. They took the easy way out, and Nokia did it right, and successfully. The LiMo coalition should join Maemo, as well as the OHA, since Nokia has done what they've intended, and in Spades! I'm impressed, and that's not easy to do.

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kamakazikev24 | # 57 | 2009-10-19, 18:52 | Report

I have a Q for you! Why oh why does it seem that all Android slider phones have a extra bit at the bottom? Why are the two parts (screen and keyboard) never the same size? Like the N900, both parts have the same footprint. It just looks 'neater'. Even the non slide one has a big lump on the bottom! WHY!

R-R | # 58 | 2009-10-19, 19:13 | Report

Originally Posted by kamakazikev24 View Post

I have a Q for you! Why oh why does it seem that all Android slider phones have a extra bit at the bottom? Why are the two parts (screen and keyboard) never the same size? Like the N900, both parts have the same footprint. It just looks 'neater'. Even the non slide one has a big lump on the bottom! WHY!

I'm afraid they've been having a java tumor that is growing and there is nothing we can do about it. :-(
hehe ;-)

JayBomb999 | # 59 | 2009-10-19, 19:19 | Report

I'm a little sad and torn.

I slowly fell in love with the N900 over the last 2 months, but I must confess that the Droid is probably better for me. My reasons are as follows:

-I'm not a developer.

-I'm a current Verizon customer (Who knew they'd finally release a decent phone?).

-Verizon has a FAR superior 3g footprint compared to T-mobile in my area.

-I have never bought into the "mobile computer" description. It's a phone to me.

-I'm in the capacitive-screens-are-better camp. (No, the ability to use a stylus and interact with the screen wearing oven-mits is not compelling to me.)

-Portrait/one handed interaction matters to me.

-Android is 'open enough' for me.

-Xenon flash. (EDIT: This is untrue. Dual LED also.)

-It's not nearly as bulky, though neither devices are beautiful IMO. (EDIT: It is gaudy though. Licorice and "brown sugar". Ugh.)

-Not as much storage as N900, but internal 16gb + 16gb microSDHC is enough for me. (EDIT: Only comes with a 16 microSD card and zero internal memory. 32GB microSD cards do not exist yet.)

-It's still not an iPhone.

I'm probably going to cancel my pre-order for the N900.

I haven't ruled out getting it just yet, but I want to see how the next few weeks will play out.

That said, as a huge Linux enthusiast for nearly a decade, I look forward to seeing where Maemo 5/6 goes.

Last edited by JayBomb999; 2009-10-23 at 02:01.

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gerbick | # 60 | 2009-10-19, 19:23 | Report

Originally Posted by mdl View Post

My own interest in the Nokia N900 is less as a phone than as a pocket computer. So I think some of these debates --- Android vs. Maemo --- come down to whether one is primarily interested in a phone or a pocketable version of a Linux/Unix desktop. And perhaps if you're not a *nix-head, then Android phones will seem every bit as capable as pocket computers, especially with good Google docs integration. Alas, I happen to be a *nix-head.

Aye. I'm the same. An AIX/*nix head, on top of a few other things. But as it stands, having a terminal on a phone makes no sense.

Having it on a pocketable computer... does make sense.

But the terminal as it stands - I'm basing this solely on my N810 - it's great to have, but I'm rarely in terminal.

Originally Posted by

A locked-down environment also helps Google protect the closed parts of the system (e.g., the Google-specific apps), as was evident in the recent legal actions taken against CyogenMod.

Google was against having their apps redistributed in a binary altered build as the Cyanogen Mod due to licensing. Once the Google Apps were removed, Cyanogen Mod has since resumed being available [ read here ]

Thanks for your answer.