help me choose a phone!

[diego]

I'm changing my company phones and am finding a lot of contradictory info on the net, Ive never had an Android before so maybe someone here is familiar with these phones and can help me out...

I can choose either a sony ericsson xperia pro for 40 bucks, or a motorola atrix for 120; I know the Atrix has better hardware but Ive heard bad things about the motorola software. I like the fact the pro has a keyboard, and that its cheaper. I also hear it will be able to upgrade to ICS, and the Atrix will probably not. I have two toddlers so I dont want to spend a lot of money on something they can easily break. I havent been able to find much on the durability of either phone so if anyone has first hand experience there it will help me decide. I dont know if rooting the Atrix will allow me to get around the (reported) software problems, or if its worth it for that matter. Both of these phones are just coming out here, so I havent been able to pick either of them up in my hands.



The other decision to make is for my wife's phone; she has different price options because her plan is smaller than mine. Basically, her choice is between a Galaxy Si9003 SL for 100 or a iPhone 4 for 270- the iphone is a sure thing but its a pretty big price difference and again, the toddler issue has us leaning towards the samsung. It seems here in Chile they dont have the 2.3 update available (again, I understand rooting will allow to upgrade the software but I dont know if its worth it or not).

Probably the biggest things we are looking for is a good browser, being able to watch videos, good battery life and decent camera performance (we have a great camera for when we really need to take photos). and durability!

Any help is appreciated!

[Heath Ledger]

I'll make it very simple for you.

Iphone. Trust me on this. Just trust me.

[Frenzy]

Simple and Apple do go together.

[lefty]

I third that

Iphone

[Cry Havoc]

Depends on what you want. Android has more options, Apple has a simpler and more straightforward design. I'd highly recommend whatever you get to have gorilla glass though.

[ElNono]

If you can, go try them out. It's the best recommendation I can make.

[Cry Havoc]

If you can, go try them out. It's the best recommendation I can make.

Absolutely this.

[diego]

thanks for the input

unfortunately trying them out is not an option for the atrix / xperia pro, hence the internet searches and forum post. I have tried some friends' iphone4 and I think its not for me, though there is definitely some bias there I'm more interested in an Android phone for myself, but the only ones that I've been able to get my hands on (that are offered with my plan) are the Galaxy SII (nice, but substantially pricier than the other 2 and its so thin that I can almost visualize my daughter literally eating it), the Galaxy i9003 (not bad, but barely cheaper than the other two options which seem better), and then a bevy of entry level models. The only others I was able to try were the experia ARC and LG optimus 2x, but neither are options for my plan.


For my wife, the iPhone makes sense, she will appreciate the simplicity. The price, for the local market, isnt bad at all *for an iPhone*. I'm just a little concerned about the toughness. The Samsung model is nearly a third of the price of the iPhone, and with two children that will almost certainly slobber, drop, knock, and tug on the device... its hard to justify spending a lot on it. Any input to the Iphone 4 durability / kid resistance might help convince me to spend on it.

[leemajors]

thanks for the input

unfortunately trying them out is not an option for the atrix / xperia pro, hence the internet searches and forum post. I have tried some friends' iphone4 and I think its not for me, though there is definitely some bias there I'm more interested in an Android phone for myself, but the only ones that I've been able to get my hands on (that are offered with my plan) are the Galaxy SII (nice, but substantially pricier than the other 2 and its so thin that I can almost visualize my daughter literally eating it), the Galaxy i9003 (not bad, but barely cheaper than the other two options which seem better), and then a bevy of entry level models. The only others I was able to try were the experia ARC and LG optimus 2x, but neither are options for my plan.


For my wife, the iPhone makes sense, she will appreciate the simplicity. The price, for the local market, isnt bad at all *for an iPhone*. I'm just a little concerned about the toughness. The Samsung model is nearly a third of the price of the iPhone, and with two children that will almost certainly slobber, drop, knock, and tug on the device... its hard to justify spending a lot on it. Any input to the Iphone 4 durability / kid resistance might help convince me to spend on it.

If you get the right case with any phone you should be fine. My daughter has been using my iPhones since they came out (she was 2 when the original came out, 6 now) and has not messed up any of the three I have now had, but they have always had cases. I drop it way more than her, but I do get nervous when she waves it around in a seemingly careless manner.

[hater]

LOL fanboys clamoring him to get an Iphone

get an iphone dude, make these poor souls happy

[diego]

I was able to negotiate the iphone to 210 bucks, so I'm getting that (and 2-3 layers of casing ) for my wife.

as for me, I think Im going with the xperia pro- its cheap, I want a keyboard, and it cant possibly be any worse than the 2 year old entry level feature phone I have now, right?

[leemajors]

LOL fanboys clamoring him to get an Iphone

get an iphone dude, make these poor souls happy

he asked for recommendations

[Cry Havoc]

thanks for the input

unfortunately trying them out is not an option for the atrix / xperia pro, hence the internet searches and forum post. I have tried some friends' iphone4 and I think its not for me, though there is definitely some bias there I'm more interested in an Android phone for myself, but the only ones that I've been able to get my hands on (that are offered with my plan) are the Galaxy SII (nice, but substantially pricier than the other 2 and its so thin that I can almost visualize my daughter literally eating it), the Galaxy i9003 (not bad, but barely cheaper than the other two options which seem better), and then a bevy of entry level models. The only others I was able to try were the experia ARC and LG optimus 2x, but neither are options for my plan.


For my wife, the iPhone makes sense, she will appreciate the simplicity. The price, for the local market, isnt bad at all *for an iPhone*. I'm just a little concerned about the toughness. The Samsung model is nearly a third of the price of the iPhone, and with two children that will almost certainly slobber, drop, knock, and tug on the device... its hard to justify spending a lot on it. Any input to the Iphone 4 durability / kid resistance might help convince me to spend on it.

Get an Otterbox Defender for whatever you buy.

[PM5K]

Yeah otterbox defender, but why the are your kids messing with your phones? They aren't ing toys. I have three kids and I don't think a single one has ever touched a single phone of mine ever.

[diego]

i've heard good things about otterbox cases, but I doubt I'll be able to find one here... I'll probably have to settle for something temporary here while I wait for it to get here.

[diego]

kids imitate their parents and their siblings. they see me talking on the phone and they try to do the same. on top of that, if you use your phone to play a video to entertain your kids while in a line or at a restaurant, they begin to ask for it. I havent been handing them 400 dollar phones, just cheap candybar feature phones, which is precisely the reason I'm now hesitant to switch to something more delicate and expensive.

please provide me your address so I can send you your medal for having 3 kids and yet none of them touching a single phone ever, that is very impressive. my kids come into contact with things that aren't ing toys all the time, and they sometimes do things not befitting of a 2 year old, like chewing on the rails of their crib or throwing pillows or even -gasp- fighting over non-toy objects, like my keys or my bike helmet. What do you think, an isolation chamber or just beat the out of them till they learn not to touch anything without daddy's permission?

[Viva Las Espuelas]

Yeah otterbox defender, but why the are your kids messing with your phones? They aren't ing toys. I have three kids and I don't think a single one has ever touched a single phone of mine ever.

What a horrible parent.

[hater]

They aren't ing toys.

they arent????????!?!?!?!?!?

[hater]

kids imitate their parents and their siblings. they see me talking on the phone and they try to do the same. on top of that, if you use your phone to play a video to entertain your kids while in a line or at a restaurant, they begin to ask for it. I havent been handing them 400 dollar phones, just cheap candybar feature phones, which is precisely the reason I'm now hesitant to switch to something more delicate and expensive.

please provide me your address so I can send you your medal for having 3 kids and yet none of them touching a single phone ever, that is very impressive. my kids come into contact with things that aren't ing toys all the time, and they sometimes do things not befitting of a 2 year old, like chewing on the rails of their crib or throwing pillows or even -gasp- fighting over non-toy objects, like my keys or my bike helmet. What do you think, an isolation chamber or just beat the out of them till they learn not to touch anything without daddy's permission?

my 2 year old nephew already can open netflix app and choose his movies (Toy Story 3, Tangled or Mr. Bean)