HTC Hero vs iPhone 3GS, is the HTC Hero the first legit iPhone Killer?

The HTC Hero is here(well it will be soon) and this could be a legitimate iPhone killer, or at least the first phone that makes me want to jump over and snag it in place of my iPhone.

HTC made a good choice and dropped Windows Mobile for the Android OS, as that was one of the major things keeping me, and alot of people, from the HTC Fuze. Since we need to know if it can really “kill” the iPhone, I made a breakdown:

Things HTC Hero has but the 3GS doesnt:

Right now it has a few things that even the iPhone 3GS doesnt have.

5.0 megapixel camera, which in of itself is worth the phone.

It has a flash enabled web browser, so there is a whole new realm of possibilities when it comes to streaming video, music and other things via the internet.

It comes with a MicroSD slot so you can expand the memory as well.

Wide range of audio/video file support.

Open phone OS with Android.

Things HTC Hero matches with the 3GS:

It comes packed with a Digital Compass, same screen size and resolution, multi-touch, internal GPS antena, Bluetooth 2.0, WiFi, 3.5 MM Audio Jack,

Things it doesnt match up with 3GS:

Internal Harddrive: So far there is nothing listed on the HTC site that mentions anything sort of internal harddrive for storage. At this point you will have to rely on the microSD for all storage which I am not a big fan of, I prefer the internal HD the iPhone boasts.

I also see no mention of an external speak like the iPhone for music playback. That is also a big turn off for this phone since I listen to my iPhone on a daily basis through the external speaker.

The design is almost as thing as the 3GS, but I am not a big fan of the “chin” or the curved bottom part of the phone. Seems like it would be uncomfortable in my pocket if turned the wrong way, and look strange to people if turned out.

It makes no mention of the Auto Focus option the 3GS now supports, so that would be a win for the 3GS as well.

Height/Width/Weight/Battery vs 3GS:

iPhone 3GS Height: 4.5 inches
HTC Hero Height: 4.41 inches

iPhone 3GS Width: 0.48 inches
HTC Hero Width: 0.57 inches

iPhone 3GS Weight: 4.8 ounces
HTC Hero Weight: 4.76 ounces

iPhone 3GS Battery Talk Time: 5 Hours on 3G
HTC Hero Battery Talk Time: 7.8 Hours on 3G

iPhone 3GS Standby Time: Up to 300 Hours
HTC Hero Standby Time: Up to 440 Hours

All in all this is going to be one that I give a strong look at to take the place of my iPhone for the camera, multi-touch and android alone.

Here are some additonal photos for you to enjoy…

iPhone 3GS makes my heart flutter

I primarily wanted the iPhone 3GS for the video recording, and the 3.0 megapixel camera. What I quickly realized is that not only are both of those features great but the speed(the S in 3GS) is where its at. The 3G ran a little sluggish at times and took longer to boot up apps, and run them smoothly. The 3GS scoffs at sluggishness, and makes it worth the entire upgrade.

Lets also take note that the new surface is spectacular and very smudge/fingerprint proof. It is easily wiped clean with just one swipe of your pant leg(unless you wipe your hands on your pant leg, then you are just creating double work moron).

Needless to say, the new iPhone 3GS is spectacular and I couldnt be happier to have it. Now we just need AT&T to get on the ball with MMS, and tethering(without ridiculously high prices).

I broke up with Twitterfon because TweetDeck is so sexy..

Twintterfon: It was a good ride, and you stood by my side at Sundance, SXSW and many months since your initial release. I am sorry that I have to let you go but I am like most guys and want the newer, younger versions as opposed to old reliable. Maybe we can see each other for lunch dates here and there, but when I need my twitter fix, I will be using TweetDeck. I love like you still.

I use TweetDeck on my Macbook and its a pretty great app for using twitter outside of the web. I didnt expect it to be this damn sexy though, it really takes advantage of the iPhone UI like no other app has done. I hope this is a sign of things to come…

iPhone 3.0 software releases tomorrow..

On June 17th we are getting 3.0 software which is packed full of stuff that we should have gotten during the iPhone 1.0 software. Copy and Paste, MMS(unless you are on AT&T), Buy/Download TV and Movies on the fly, Tethering(unless you are on AT&T), Find my iPhone, and Push Notifications for apps in the background.

I am pretty stoked that finally get alot of these features, unfortunately AT&T dropped the ball on a few of these features and I have to wait until the end of the summer for MMS and who knows how long for tethering. What I am super pissed about however is the fact that because I bought the iPhone 3G I cannot get the upgrade price($299 for 16 and $399 for 32gb) until July 11th 2009. Being the gadget geek that I am this is driving me freaking nuts because a bunch of other bastards will pay full price or sign up as new customers and get theirs. I am a cheap asshole and refuse to pay full price for it…so I wont have it until July 11th.

I wonder what time 3.0 will be released…iPocalypse is upon us.

iPhone 2.1 software drops tomorrow..

So apparently the 2.1 software will come out tomorrow. The only question is how long the servers will go down from all of the people downloading it?

Here are some of the updates/fixes that are supposed to come with 2.1:

Less Dropped Calls
“No” Crashes
Better Battery Life
Short Backup times/Faster Sync

The shitty thing about all of this, is that they have done 3 updates since 2.0 and all of them have just been bug fixes, and no enhancements. Where is our video capabilities? Cut and Paste? MMS? Get on the ball Steve, get on the ball.