Sprint HTC Hero or Samsung Moment? Why?

[anindrew]

Hi everybody!

[feel free to skip all this background info if you want]

Currently, my family is with AT&T. We have 850 minutes with rollover and...well nothing. No texting and no data. I get a rather large discount with my employer with Sprint, so we have decided to move to them. My parents and I are getting smartphones while my grandma is getting a very simple flip phone to use voice only. She can barely use the RAZR she currently has.

I'm having a VERY tough time choosing between the HTC Hero and Samsung Moment. They both use Android, but the Hero has the "Sense UI" on it. I found it was easier to type on the Moment with the physical keyboard than using the virtual one of the Hero. Also, the Moment is noticeably faster. The Hero has the seven screens and has great social networking integration (not sure I care that much about that, though).

I have read about quirks and issues on both phones. The Moment's Airplane mode seems to turn on at random. I even noticed that happen in two different Sprint stores. It's easy to turn off, but a bit annoying. Also, I have read that GPS is very iffy on the Moment while it works fine on the Hero.

HTC has already rolled out a firmware update to fix a few issues on the Hero. Sprint has not. It is unknown if and when they will.

[skip to here!]

So given all that, Hero or Moment? And why?

 

[Slick5150]

Frankly I don't like either of them. If I HAD to pick one I'd get the Moment as I find the CPU in the Hero to be too slow to effectively use Android.

But I'd get a Palm Pre over either of them.

 

[anindrew]

Thanks for the reply! I liked the Palm Pre's interface, but the itty bitty keys are difficult for me to use. I wish they had a model with a landscape keyboard. So that's one vote for the Moment due to it's speed.

 

[wolf2009]

Very tough decision. I love a physical kebo on one hand and absolutely love Sense UI on the other hand.

Decide if physical kebo is imp or looks imp. Also hero will be getting android 2.1 soon . look here

Also moment's kebo is a bit weird, with the spacebar in the lowest row with keys.

But personally i would go for the pre too, since those phones are still too slow for my liking.

 

[anindrew]

I found the Moment's keyboard to be very easy to use, even with a couple keys in odd places. Hero's keyboards are usable, but I seemed to make far more mistakes with them. If Samsung was more public about their planned updates for the Moment like HTC is with the Hero, the decision would be far easier.

 

[Cstefan]

I have had the hero and moment now and I chose the moment. The hero was a bit sluggish and the HTC interface ruins the android feel. The soft keyboard on the hero isnt bad honestly, but the real keyboard is great.

And dont bother with the pre. IMO of course.

 

[zerocool84]

I found the Moment's keyboard to be very easy to use, even with a couple keys in odd places. Hero's keyboards are usable, but I seemed to make far more mistakes with them. If Samsung was more public about their planned updates for the Moment like HTC is with the Hero, the decision would be far easier.

Yea if Samsung would say they'd release 2.0 on it I'd jump for it but it seems Samsung doesn't care about phones after they release them which is what I'm afraid of. The Moment has too many bugs with it to recommend. I hate virtual keyboards but HTC is guaranteed to keep updating it's stuff. I'd go with the Pre but there's just no support for it which sucks but if it goes to Verizon like it's planned to, support for it would jump drastically. I played with a demo phone of Moment and Hero and I just like the more solid feel of the Moment and yes the bottom row of keys is different but the keyboard is extremely easy to use. If Samsung says they are going 2.0 then definitely go for it. I'd rather take stock Android then Sense UI any day. Sure it's nice but I'm not into skinning OS's and it's not like you can't customize standard Android anyways. The Moment has a proximity sensor so if you hold it up to your face to take a call, it'll turn off the screen. I'd also be worried about the trackball on the Hero getting gummed up. Oh and the Moment has an AMOLED display. It's really beautiful to look at. The 800MHz processor on the Moment will help it a lot but it's hampered by 1.5. GPS on the Moment is borked as of right now as 1.5 only supports satellite GPS and not A-GPS that uses the cellphone towers so if you're in a place with trees or near buildings the regular GPS won't work. Android 1.5 really sucks and it hampers both phones but HTC has already said they are updating the Hero.

 

[BigSmooth]

Just as a heads up, Best Buy Mobile has both of these phones on sale for $70 today on their website.

It's a tough call for me on these two, but if I had to choose now I think I'd go with the Hero. Since I am not a big messaging user, a physical keyboard doesn't mean much to me other than adding some thickness and weight. The screen on the Moment is awesome and I like the faster processor (even though it doesn't seem to be THAT much faster in practice), but in the end the form factor is just not what I would be looking for. I also personally like the Sense UI and the fact that HTC has committed to bringing Android 2.0/2.1 to the Hero.

Again, it's very close though and I think the choice really depends on how you use your phone.

 

[anindrew]

Thanks for the tip on the price at Best Buy! I wonder how long they'll have that price. It seems like there are great phone deals every week this time of year, so it's fine if my family doesn't purchase this week.

Whereas before I was leaning more towards the Moment, now I'm leaning more towards the Hero. What is swaying my decision is how open HTC is about working on the firmware and updates for the phone. I like that HTC is standing behind their product, continuing to improve the software, and being very public about it. All that is known about the Moment's updates is that at least one is coming sometime in 2010. It is unknown if it will be Android 1.6, 2.0 or just bug fixes. HTC has already said that they will have Android 2.1 on the Hero. I think I could get used to typing on the virtual Qwerty. Unless Samsung suddenly makes a statement about updates, I think I'll go with the Hero.

And thank you for your help and advice, everyone!

 

[boomhower]

I am going through the same dilemma. I currently have a Pre but want to also play with Android. If the Hero had the option of running vanilla Android I would jump on it. I like the form factor of the Moment better but I just don't trust Samsung getting out updates in even a remotely timely manner but I would prefer to have a vanilla Android experience. Sense just doesn't do it for me. I mean really, seven home screens? I for one don't want or need that many. Chances are likely get whatever is selling second hand for cheaper after Christmas. It'll finally give me a chance to use that google voice account I have had sitting around for months.

 

[zerocool84]

So which did you decide on?

 

[anindrew]

Best Buy gave my family a great deal this past Saturday for the three phones we purchased there; they made the overall price the same as if we bought two of the phones from Amazon. I went with the HTC Hero. So far I really enjoy it. Texting on it is surprisingly easy, especially with the predictive/corrective text. I'll have to see how well I fare compared to my father who bought the Samsung Moment.

I got the silicon case for it that Best Buy sells. While the case does the job, it feels flimsy and attracts a lot of lint. I'm going to return the case (not the phone) and get something more durable elsewhere. Has anyone ever used those Zagg body protectors? Or even their screen protectors?

 

[state 08]

Frankly I don't like either of them. If I HAD to pick one I'd get the Moment as I find the CPU in the Hero to be too slow to effectively use Android.

But I'd get a Palm Pre over either of them.

I did just that. Renewed a 2 year contract a couple of weeks ago, and went with the Pre over the Android Phones.

 

[zerocool84]

Well now my worries are gone, both the Moment and Hero are getting 2.0 but they didn't say exactly when just the first half of 2010 but it's set for me. I'm getting the Moment.

 

[Gooberlx2]

So will the update to android 2.1 improve performance or lagginess on the hero? I'm still in my 30 days with sprint. I like the hero, sense, form factor, virtual keyboard, etc... but the performance definitely leaves something to be desired. Otherwise I may return it for the moment.

 

[zerocool84]

So will the update to android 2.1 improve performance or lagginess on the hero? I'm still in my 30 days with sprint. I like the hero, sense, form factor, virtual keyboard, etc... but the performance definitely leaves something to be desired. Otherwise I may return it for the moment.

It'll help but it has the same slow processor that makes it lag but 2.1 will help a lot as there's a ton of optimizations in it.

 

[Gooberlx2]

It'll help but it has the same slow processor that makes it lag but 2.1 will help a lot as there's a ton of optimizations in it.

Ugh...I wonder if the update improves performance enough. Still have a couple weeks left. (+$30 "restocking fee" if I do change phones...grrrrrr)

I wish the pre had more apps in its marketplace...and a better keyboard.

 

[foghorn67]

I helped a friend of mine pick out an Android phone. She really wanted a smartphone, so we went over the iphone, WM, BB, WebOS, and Android options. She really gravitated towards the Android. She did like the Pre, but was put off by the keyboard. A physical keyboard was a must. And the cheapest plan possible was a must. The physical keyboard knocked out the iphone, the HTC Hero/Droid Eris. She didn't like the BB, too business for her.
She really wanted the Moto Cliq. The keyboard was great, she loved the look and feel of how it felt in her hands, and the Moto Blur interface was great for her needs. But the Sprint plan was too good to pass up.
So it was the same choice, HTC Hero and the Samsung Moment.
She fell in love with Moment. The bright AMOLED display, keyboard and the speed won her.
She did like the Sense UI, but I couldn't get her to use it. She did admit that if forced, she could use a on-screen keyboard...but why bother with Moment available.

 

[abaez]

Go to xda developers and get a custom rom for it. I'm sure some already have 2.0 roms.
I'm actually importing a GSM hero from Canada (Telus HTC Hero has AT&T bands), and I can't wait to try out some of the roms out there.

 

[zerocool84]

Go to xda developers and get a custom rom for it. I'm sure some already have 2.0 roms.
I'm actually importing a GSM hero from Canada (Telus HTC Hero has AT&T bands), and I can't wait to try out some of the roms out there.

I know that many people don't like tinkering with their phone like that. I know for sure when I get my Samsung Moment the first thing I'm going to do is root the phone and install 2.0 or 2.1 or whichever is the latest since 2.1 won't officially be out for months for it.

 

[Fingolfin269]

I'm torn on this. I've got an old bb8830 and now its time to upgrade so I'm kind of holding out for the essex. However, the Hero seems like a pretty cool phone. I hate the keyboard on the moment (wtf decided on that space bar placement?????) and the keyboard on the pre is a little rough with that lip hindering the top row.
Sometimes I wonder if more choice is actually a bad thing.

 

[boomhower]

I bought a Hero this morning. Ended up picking it due to the size of the moment, it was just to big to tote around.

There are 2.0 and 2.1 ROM's available but they are a little rough, i.e. no camera or wifi.

 

[Fingolfin269]

I bought a Hero this morning. Ended up picking it due to the size of the moment, it was just to big to tote around.

There are 2.0 and 2.1 ROM's available but they are a little rough, i.e. no camera or wifi.

What are your thoughts thus far? And what phone were you using previously?

 

[boomhower]

What are your thoughts thus far? And what phone were you using previously?

I haven't got it yet, I bought it off ebay should be Tuesday or Wednesday. I am currently using a Pre.

 

[teneriffa2005]

Thinking of buying a Hero, but not sure at the moment. :hmm:
Will read more about here at the forum

Tom