HTC Diamond2 or HTC Magic(Google2)? Help me choose, please.

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I have waited faithfully for a long time for Android, but now I have fallen in love with Diamond2...

I am a student, and will mostly need the phone for entertainment purposes. For my use, (mostly internet, skype, taking the occational picture, watching .avi's, mp3, old school games like nes or scummvm), which one would you pick? It's important for me the the phone is fast and responsive, and that it can edit .doc files (word, openoffice, something like that). I also would love for it to have a file-organizer (something like norton commander would have been excellent), ability to run and install files from the phone directly, and the ability to download with it (torrents, etc) and if possible, stream online content. So basically a mini-computer. Which phone do you think is best for me? I do not care about calender, email (e.i outlook) integration, or anything that has to do with planing and\or actual work, in other words

Also:
Do you belive android will get ported to the diamond 2 in the forseeable future?

So to sum up, Should I just go for the Diamond 2 or wait a month or two for the Magic (thats the earliest it will be released here in norway)?

im not an expert at this (ive had no luck with my herald), but if you check around, there are diamond android ports.

most likely, they will be on the diamond2 if they r on the 1st one.

winmo - buisiness/planning/work

android - consumor, but can do buisiness and work

(i can say this because, like i said, i had a herald, and i have the dream)

ur choice buddy ;]

just want to add my opinion. I have had 4 WinMo phones in the past, currently have the Blackstone, which im trying to get rid of. Anyways, I am a "medical" student, who really doesn't use all the features that can be found on a WinMo phone. I have played with a friends G1 and was honestly amazed at how much it just "fit" with me. I know I will probably be bashed for saying this, but phones like the android (G1) and the Iphone are really what I am interested in now. They are simplistic to use, but still can outperform your normal plain old phones. For me, if the G2 Magic doesn't wow me when it hits the U.S. shores in a couple of weeks, than I will probably purchase an Unlocked Iphone. Now, you have to base your decision on what you will use the phone for, especially if you are a student. This is my opinion, but if you are really into business type stuff where you would need all the necessities of a PC than go with the Diamond. If you want a cool, visually appealing phone that isn't as powerful as the Diamond but still gets the job done! than go with the G2.

I agree with redrazr's post above, but I would also like to add that for me a big part of going Android was to be part of something huge, right from the start. I mean, the first Android phone (the G1) has been out less than eight months and Android is already this good? That's pretty damn amazing. WinMo fanboys won't like this, but give Android eight months more and it will blow WinMo out of the water in every single aspect.

And no, WinMo 6.5 (and not even WinMo 7) will not revolutionize WinMo since they're still based on the same old crappy, sluggish platform/core. My understanding is that WinMo 8 will be the first WinMo based on a completely new and/or revamped core, and won't be out until 2013 or so.

Originally Posted by mannyb

I agree with redrazr's post above, but I would also like to add that for me a big part of going Android was to be part of something huge, right from the start. I mean, the first Android phone (the G1) has been out less than eight months and Android is already this good? That's pretty damn amazing. WinMo fanboys won't like this, but give Android eight months more and it will blow WinMo out of the water in every single aspect.

And no, WinMo 6.5 (and not even WinMo 7) will not revolutionize WinMo since they're still based on the same old crappy, sluggish platform/core. My understanding is that WinMo 8 will be the first WinMo based on a completely new and/or revamped core, and won't be out until 2013 or so.

He he, I have a D2 and I will not flame you for supporting Android (but then I am not a microsoft fanboy at all, I am typing from ubuntu right now ).

The problem with the smartphones imho is that they still are differentiated using their OS, sometimes even from the carrier customization. Their are more carier network toy than than their are your own toy, while they should be judged on their design, hardware specs and support only imho. Like a PC, where you can install any OS and applications you want, and are even expected to do so.

Thanks to xda-devellopers, HTC phones are closer to what every smartphone should be: an handheld computer with a large array of network connectivity options on which the user (you, that have paid for a device that is now your own, damnit ) can install the OS of his choice.

All that to say that Android should be installable on the TD2, and likely will be installable quite soon. Which is only the absolute minimum to be expected for an open-source OS for which google took A LOT from the opensource community to develop. Android should be installable on any device that has compatible hardware to run it, no excuses (HTC is at fault here, it should halp xda-develloper in the porting effort if not offering multiboot himself from the start, especially as all it's top-of-the-line smartphones are so close to each other hardware-wise).

So once the playfield is levelled and Android is installable on the TD2 (as it is on the HD, even if it is work in progress), I think that the TD2 and Magic should be compared from hardware and design alone. That's why I have chosen the TD2 (I like its design more, and a higher resolution screen is a big plus for me, I read a lot on my smartphone). But for other people the Magic could be better (digital compass, larger battery, more physical inputs like the trackball and additional buttons are its advantages imho)

Originally Posted by gkai

So once the playfield is levelled and Android is installable on the TD2 (as it is on the HD, even if it is work in progress), I think that the TD2 and Magic should be compared from hardware and design alone. That's why I have chosen the TD2 (I like its design more, and a higher resolution screen is a big plus for me, I read a lot on my smartphone). But for other people the Magic could be better (digital compass, larger battery, more physical inputs like the trackball and additional buttons are its advantages imho)

Could not agree more. I'd pick Android over WinMo any day of the week, but let's be honest; WinMo phones have the best hardware. The few Android phones on the market definitely can't hang in that aspect. The only thing I can't stand about WinMo hardware is the resistive touchscreen they're stuck with. WinMo does not support capacitive screens as far as I know.

im going with the magic

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i dont really like the look of the diamond 2 and the magics screen is bigger..and plus its going to have a 5mp camera for the US version ..i miss android..i went from the G1 to the Touch HD to the iPhone...touch hd was the worst expierence..windows mobile was dreadful for me...iphone..i dont feel as free with it but the variety of apps is quiet appealing to me especially after you jailbreak it..and android..lacked alot in the beginning but it was awsome i just hated the fact that i have to open the damn keyboard for every little thing i needed to type and i didnt want to wait for cupcake..but magic here i come

So in the last 15 or so months I have had 8 PDA's... 6 of them were WinMo, & Honestly I love WinMo for its versatility & The touchFlo interface is freeking awesome.. But.. I am using a g1 now & The only phone I am looking at other than it is the MyTouch (magic) the day T-Mo releases it (if not sooner).. The android OS has shown me to be much much more intelligently designed & Has yet to have any major issues (I have only had to soft reset the phone 2 or 3 times in the last 2 months).. The App Store is also a huge factor as well.. With free apps that actually work & improve the value of the device.. My last phone before this was a Touch Diamond (unlocked GSM) & I loved it for that beautiful High Res screen & The fact that movies on it were Absolutely Amazing.. Not to mention the small form factor.. But on the other Hand using the Cinema App downloaded for free from the android app store My movie playback looks almost as good (ie 1080i vs 1080p ish) & on a bigger screen.. Also Much less herky jerky to start & stop...
I am super excited for the Magic to come out, but if I had my choice I Would have kept my Diamond & Used Android on it & Somehoe managed to make a MicroSDHC work on it.. That would be my absolute perfect phone.. The Diamond 2 on the other hand I Think only had 1 thing over the diamond & thats the MicroSDHC slot as the increased screen size isnt in my opinion enough to be worth the increased mass.. Its like an inbetween size from the original diamond & an HD & I Dont think thats a necessarry spot to fill..

My 1 And only complaint with the G1 is the bulk & The Magic will obviously resolve that & only a Pocket test will be able to tell if it feels as small & easy to cary/use as the Diamond was..

The port for the diamond 2 will never be complete and always behind the current release of Android.

While the Diamond 2 has a higher resolution screen than the Magic the Magic is capacitive and performs much better in direct sunlight. Android will never run as well on the Diamond 2 as the magic.

Originally Posted by macsbac

The port for the diamond 2 will never be complete and always behind the current release of Android.

While the Diamond 2 has a higher resolution screen than the Magic the Magic is capacitive and performs much better in direct sunlight. Android will never run as well on the Diamond 2 as the magic.

Capacitive vs resistive is not so simple an issue: After testing the iTouch, I was all for capacitive, partly because it is more responsive to fingers, but even more because it offer a hard glass screen, much harder and durable than soft plastic resistive screen...
However, after testing the TD2 resistive screen, I must say that reactivity is almost as good as capacitive (not as good, but it is ok for me).
Durability could still be an issue, but the screen seems harder than my previous PDA, and with screen protection + flip case this is not an issue anymore.
BUT with resistive screen I have the possibility to use the stylus, which is very nice for accurate pointing (not relly needed for android, but very usefull for WM) and freehand drawing/ handwriting recognition. this may look like a gadget, but given the number of time I use my PDA as a notepad for quick drawing (abroad, when you do not speak the local language, a picture is worth a dozen words, and a thousand innacurate gesticulations ;) ).

Capacitive do not allow the use of a stylus (except of the fat-and-soft tip variety, which I consider as completely useless, because it offer no real accuracy improvement), and, for me, this is a significant drawback. If a capacite technology evolve to allow for a pen-like stylus with pinpoint accuracy, then it would definitely burry resistive technology. Not before, especially for asian countries where the ability to draw characters is really useful.

For the direct sunlight, I agree: TD2 is not good under direct sunlight. Barely readable with high contrast large font text, but nothing more. Older PDA were better for this, and I believe you that Magic may be better too. I would be surprised if it was great, though, besides e-ink or passive LCD (reflective technologies), no screen has ever been great under direct sunlight ;)

And for Android not running as well on the TD2 than on the Magic, yes, but the difference should be minimal: the hardware is almost the same, and Android is opensource, so the porting, once the bootloader/HARDSpl is done, should be quite straightforward...