I am a little disappointed the GeekWire team did not set up a live televised special for my smartphone announcement like LeBron James did when announcing to play for the Miami Heat during his famous “The Decision.”
Anywho, I’ll give my best LeBron impression, sans all the awkwardness:
I’ve decided to take my phone-calling and text-messaging talents to … the Samsung Galaxy S3.
Sorry to the 88 percent of those who recommended I choose a Windows Phone. I loved my old HTC G2 and just couldn’t get away from Android.
I’m very happy with my decision. Frankly, I probably would have been content with any three of the smartphones I was deciding between — iPhone 5, Galaxy S3 and Windows Phone. But there sure is a lot to like about my purchase.
I love all the little neat tricks with this thing. When you’re texting someone, if you hold the screen to your face it will automatically call the person. You can also take screenshots with the swipe of your palm and you can immediately access apps from your lock screen by swiping upward off the icon. I’m also a big Gmail user, so the integration there is excellent.
I’ve installed all the apps I used on my G2 and added a couple more. I think I would have been a little disappointed with the Windows app offerings, much like my colleague Todd Bishop.
Another nice benefit of this purchase is that we can have smartphone showdowns in the GeekWire offices. With my colleagues John Cook recently upgrading to the iPhone 5 and Todd switching from Apple to the Windows Phone, it’ll be nice to have three different OS’s running between us.
I’ve also tested out the “S Voice,” function and it’s been smooth and smart for the most part. Though I wish the robot had a name like Siri for the iPhone’s. The Samsung robot really lacks a personal connection (kidding).
One of my only complaints so far is that I miss my HTC G2 physical keyboard. I did download SwiftKey and once I use it more, I can see it being faster than the physical keyboard.
I do wonder when and if this thing will slow down. It’s obviously lightning quick right now, but both of my last two Android phones — the HTC G1 and HTC G2 — really became laggy the more I used it. I feel like my iPhone friends don’t encounter that as often.
There is one huge downside, however, of not going with a Windows Phone. On my poll post, commentor “basbasics,” told me about his Lumia 920.
“Girls walk up to me all the time asking if they can play with it,” he wrote about his Windows Phone. “They all say it is very cool if not a little heavy and big.”
Ladies, don’t worry: my phone is still really awesome. I swear.
Previously on GeekWire: POLL: Help this 22-year-old find his next smartphone
