Sour Dessert: Ice Cream Sandwich Part 2

Samsung Galaxy Skyrocket aka Galaxy S2 4G LTE

I got my device in and using the regular setup instructions that come with android devices I was up and running in no time.

AT&T isn't really known for their 4G LTE services as of Dec 2011. The service was spotty to say the least. Even living out in D.C. coverage was minimal to none while driving out to the Dulles Airport and neighboring towns.

The phone itself was manufactured by a process known as the 'maximize profit' principles employed by Samsung after launching its Tablet offensive on Apple which started or rather put the "Galaxy Trademark" on the map. Ever since then it has been a roller coaster of a ride for Samsung. Litigation and popularity has increased and quality of devices has significantly decreased.

Let's hone in a bit on the resolution of the phone: 480 X 800. At the end of 2011 if you signed a contract for a phone with this resolution, you my friend have been handed a crappy deal. 720p is by far becoming the standard on phones these days. Granted no one these days sticks with phone for longer than 10 months, just the thought of having to stick with a phone with such a resolution by the time 2012 rolls around is a sad proposition.

The resolution made all the applications look and feel like they were designed for people with poor vision. Everything was huge and thanks to Samsung proprietary skin UI there was no way to adjust the font sizes.

Besides that, not much was wrong with the phone. Let's see, so far we have: An oversized phone with a crappy UI and no signal coverage.

I was disappointed. Barely wasting a day and any time trying to diagnose what would have been a headache of an issue I ordered my iPhone 4S. At full retail value. Boxed up the Samsung Skyrocket and sent it back in to AT&T.

Back to Apple

The road back to apple wasn't a hard one. The UI again was very familiar. I signed in with my apple ID and all my settings were restored. An hour in I was all setup and playing to hearts content with Siri's revolutionary AI prowess.

It wasn't all peaches and cream. Two days in my brother was comparing his iPhone 4 to my iPhone 4S and noticed a glaring difference. The iPhone 4S had a yellow tint on it. At this point I was just beginning to feel more than complacent about my situation and tough luck. I wasn't catching a break. Every device I had set my hands on turned out to have an issue.

I made an appointment with an Apple Genius for the next day and got my device replaced. The second device did indeed seem fresher however still had a yellow hue albeit less noticeable than the last device. 

sour dessert: Ice Cream Sandwich Part 1

In the market for a new Phone

The whole thing began a couple of months ago. I was in the market for a new phone. Being a technology enthusiast I knew when Apple would be announcing its new flagship phone and just like all the enthusiasts out there I was disappointed with the release of an iPhone 4S device instead of the oft rumored iPhone 5 with a tear drop design. Rumors are everywhere that this device still exists and will be introduced next year.

The research

So, my first quandary was to figure out if I wanted to stick with Apple or switch to Android. I had been cautiously anticipating the day I would have to ask myself this question. Not a fan boy but I do like the safety and security of a fixed environment providing me stability, in terms of communications and mobile connectivity.

I saw Apple’s failed Keynote as a means to an end. My final goodbye to the technology giant that brought us the true form of a PDA, an mp3 player, a mobile internet connectivity device, a phone (which at times didn’t deliver) all in a neat and clean package.

Android was the next frontier. The challenge was finding the right device. Since I was overdue for an upgrade the money was not an object. After all I had spent nearly $800 on an upgrade to iPhone 4. I was not disappointed for 16 months.

The research was nominal. Compared to most geeks and technocrats that is. I knew what I wanted. An LTE phone on the nation’s fastest network: AT&T. For this two offerings were available: the Galaxy S2 Skyrocket and the HTC Vivid. I ended up with the former. Partly because I was impressed by the growing number of people who were jumping ship to the Galaxy product line.

The Switch

The switch came with its own set of difficulties. Upgrading on an AT&T network isn't as easy as it should be. Enterprise customers order through a website called "Premier". It is a separate department from the official AT&T store which is owned and operated by Corporate AT&T. Needless to say that my brain was mush after talking to three different customer service representatives. However after all this chagrin the order was placed. The device was on its way to a very anxious switcher.