Verizon Droid

Verizon’s full video demo of the HTC Droid Eris

Matthew Miller from ZDNet calls the HTC Droid Eris the best $100 smartohone. Here’s why:

…because the form factor is so compelling. It is wrapped in black soft touch material, it is narrow so it feels like a phone, it is thin, it is dense, and it has curves that make a supermodel envious…HTC was able to pack in their awesome Sense UI into the ERIS at this low $100 price point

Compared to the Motorola DROID, we see this device with a sleeker form factor, better performing camera, and the Sense UI (with all the great HTC widgets and customizations) while the DROID has the a slightly faster processor, larger higher resolution display, hardware QWERTY keyboard, and vanilla Googla Android experience with support for the new Google Maps Navigation beta. The Motorola DROID runs Android 2.0 while the HTC DROID ERIS runs Android 1.5. Which Google Android device do you find more compelling on Verizon?

The HTC DROID Eris will go on sale alongside the Motorola DROID tomorrow, priced at a bargain $99 with a new two-year contract.
Here are some pictures of the HTC DROID Eris box:

[Source: Slash Gear]

HTC’s first “DROID” phone is nothing more than a rebadged, shape-shifted Hero, and that it’ll be launching on Verizon on November 6th, the same day as Motorola’s DROID. That means Android 1.5 “Cupcake,” Sense UI, 3.2-inch screen, 528MHz processor and so forth. The Eris will retail for $199 but with a $100 mail-in rebate. It’ll pack in an 8GB microSD card and the hopes and dreams of a generation of cheapskates that will be hopin’ and prayin’ that HTC manages to push Android 2.0 onto this thing so they don’t look too bad in front of their DROID-toting buddies on Verizon.

[source: EngadgetMobile]

CIO.com has some articles about the Motorola Droid:

Is the Droid Good News for iPhone Owners?
“The more platforms, the merrier,” says Gartner analyst. “Competition is a good thing.”

Verizon Droid: 5 Standout Features
Well, gang, it’s official: Verizon’s Motorola Droid smartphone is on its way into the world. The Droid, unveiled Wednesday, will hit store shelves on November 6 with a $199.99 price tag, after a $100 mail-in rebate and with a new two-year contract.

Motorola Droid Vs. Apple IPhone 3GS: Finally, a Contender?
Today’s formal unveiling of the Motorola Droid smartphone on Verizon’s network was an anticlimax, given most of the details had been leaked days earlier. Nevertheless, it’s the boldest, most open iPhone challenge yet.

The Motorola Droid party is still going on, and here are 2 more reviews for you:

From Phone Arena:
Comparison between the leading Android phones:

Conclusion:

It’s almost unfathomable to see Verizon tie the knot with Android – especially seeing how the carrier passed up the iPhone and usually packs on its applications on smartphones. The obvious comparisons will be made between the DROID and other premier handsets available on the market, including ones that are already part of the Android lineup. Verizon has definitely got itself a jewel in the form of the Motorola DROID and will most likely provide some much needed attention to the open platform. In doing so, it shows Verizon’s commitment in lessening their control on how a phone should be retrofitted with software out of the box. As for Motorola, the hype and talk around this phone lives up to the expectations. Being the creators of such a quality product, it clearly places Motorola in the correct direction to becoming the dominant figure it once was. We’ve slowly seen in the last year how they’ve changed their focus on the design of their handsets, for example the Motorola Krave ZN4 and Karma QA1 – all culminating to the eventual creation of the Motorola DROID.

With a lot of attention in both ads featured online and television, the DROID is fast becoming a household name. We found very few faults with the device – specifically the minor choppy movements when you navigate through the three home screen pages. Its improvements in the hardware department make it a worthy addition to the Android lineup that’s becoming more robust. It’s too early to tell whether the DROID will have a profound impact on how the Android platform is received by consumers, but we’re sure that its presence on Verizon will attract a whole new audience, not to mention that the HTC DROID Eris will also make its Verizon debut. For Google, this is a win-win position for them thanks partly to Android 2.0 – we’re going to expect to see a shift in the mind share of Google’s playing field in various software industries. Pack all of these things in a sleek body that’s constructed and put together with the finest of materials, you’ll have yourself a winner that’s sure to stand top among the best of the best. It may not be completely perfect, but it does place the emphasis of DROID in Android.

From The Gadgeteer:
The Droid’s home screen:

and Facebook widget:

Manufactured by HTC (and also known as the HTC Desire), the HTC Droid Eris is widely tipped to be the second Android phone to launch on the Verizon Wireless network.

Apparently planned for a November 6th launch alongside the Verizon Motorola Droid, the Droid Eris has somewhat underwhelming specs in comparison to the Moto Droid.

Whilst the exact specs of the Droid Eris are still unknown, the latest batch of leaks reveals that the handset will run Android 1.6 and will feature 528MHz Qualcomm CPU. The Droid Eris also includes a 5 mega-pixel camera, and Wi-Fi connectivity.

Latest reports also suggest that the handset will be priced at just $99, which when compared with the HTC Hero ($180 on Sprint for 2-year contract) seems like a good deal.

The HTC Droid Eris does ofcourse feature the HTC Sense custom Android interface.

[source: Talk Android]

Further detail have hit the net waves on the HTC Droid Eris, the second Android smartphone to join the Verizon line up along with the Motorola Droid reports an article over on itproportal.

The HTC Droid Eris was formally known as the HTC Desire and will become available on the Verizon network commanding a price tag of $99 based on a 2 year agreement and should become available as of the 6th of November as warehouses across the US already have the HTC Droid Eris in stock.

Unlike the Motorola Droid, the HTC Droid Eris loses the QWERTY keyboard, but does pack Android OS 2.0, a 5 megapixel camera with auto-focus but no flash, HADPA, GPS and WiFi.

[source: Phones Review]

Verizon has the HTC Droid Eris in the pipe too, which is shaping up to be little more than a branded Hero in a slightly different shell. It’s looking like Verizon is going to be pursuing an aggressive tiered pricing strategy that might allow these phones to coexist in peace and everlasting harmony: unlike the DROID’s $199 sticker, gdgt has it on good authority that the Droid Eris will run a hundie less at $99.

[Source: Engadget]

Verizon Droid party day today:
The Droid by Motorola is back live on Motorola’s home page.