A couple weeks ago, I lost my old phone, a Nexus S. I got that phone after my contract with AT&T expired at the end of the year, which turned my iPhone 3G into an expensive paperweight. In general, I was dissatisfied with Android (on the Nexus), especially compared to iOS (on the iPhone). I had a few options at this point:
- Spend a bunch of money (again) on a top-of-the-line Android phone. Considering Google’s flagship Android phone underwhelmed me already, this didn’t seem like a smart move.
- Get a low-end Android phone to tide me over until my contract with T-Mobile expires. This is an even worse move. If the best Android phone is lackluster, the worst would probably drive me insane.
- Get a phone that is neither an Android nor an iPhone. This is what I did.
I avoided feature (“dumb”) phones. I briefly tried going back to them at the beginning of the year and quickly grew frustrated by the lack of a Qwerty keyboard and internet access. At this point, I’m looking for a smartphone that works on T-Mobile and isn’t an Android. Slim pickings.
Enter the Dell Venue Pro and Windows Phone 7.
Dell Venue Pro
First things first: this phone is huge. Way too big to comfortably hold in my hand. I manage to do most things just fine anyway, but I much prefer the smaller 3.5-inch form-factor to this 4.1-inch behemoth.
It slides vertically to reveal a Qwerty keyboard. I’ve never had a hardware keyboard on a smartphone before, but I’m growing to like it. I use the hardware keyboard more often than not. It’s comfortable to type on, and accurate to boot. My only qualm is that it’s hard to slide the phone closed after opening it, since it ends up being really tall. You’ve got to use two hangs.
The screen is bright and pretty. It compares favorably to the display on both of my previous phones, but it’s definitely not in the same ballpark as the iPhone 4’s retina display. It curves annoyingly outward, instead of staying flat or curving to fit your face.
Which brings me to the over-all form-factor: it sucks. It’s got a curved front and back, making it awkward to cradle in your hands. Everything is curved, in fact: the front, the back, the sides, the top and bottom. Actually, the top and bottom are more like curvy wedges, making the headphone jack worse than the original iPhone’s. Plugging headphones in can be tricky, especially if you want to type on the keyword while they’re plugged in.
Windows Phone 7
I love it. I was skeptical going into this. I stopped using Windows about five years ago and fully immersed myself in OS X and Linux. I figured I might be so far out of Microsoft’s loop that nothing would make sense to me. Luckily, Windows Phone 7 is a fresh start with no cruft. It’s a good start, too.
I don’t have anything bad to say about the operating system yet. The live tiles are great and let you quickly see information about missed calls, voicemail, email, messages, and social stuff. The combined messaging blows me away. It seamlessly pulls together SMS, Facebook chat, etc.
The interface is clean and kinetic. Things smoothly fly in and tear away, giving a sense of depth. Importantly, everything feels responsive. I’m never left wondering what my phone is doing. Microsoft has committed to their Metro UI, which is flat, colorful, and minimalist. I don’t have anything bad to say about it.
Conclusion
In a perfect world, I’d have a Windows Phone in an iPhone form-factor. I don’t think that will happen, but I’m enjoying Windows Phone 7 a lot more than Android. Almost as much as iOS.
