[mirkules]

I just switched from iPhone 3GS to Android (Galaxy S). My first impression is that it's not as polished as the iPhone, but the overall gain in functionality is worth the switch.

IMO the biggest pros (that iPhone lacks):

- Micro SD card storage

- Mount the phone as a USB drive or as a modem (hallelujah, why did it take so long for phones to get this?!)

- Swype (reminds me of T9 on non-smart phones, sweet, although useless in foreign languages)

- Task management, like the OP said

- Sweet AMOLED screen

- Widgets, surprisingly useful

- Mail client allows multiple attachments (why the iPhone doesn't have this is beyond me), that aren't just pictures or videos

- Access to filesystem (yay!)

Some cons (as compared to iPhone): - Apps and the OS sometimes appear to hang when loading or when pressing buttons (it would be nice to add "loading..." screens)

- CRAPWARE - why can't I remove useless AT&T apps I will never use? This is where Apple has a definite edge. Plus they all get loaded during boot, which is a major PITA

- Lack of decent headphones (Samsung Galaxy S specific, I think).

- Power button on the side (just a minor annoyance)

- Android Market not as organized as the App Store.

[felideon]

You _can_ remove the AT&T apps if you root the phone.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=712546

http://forum.cyanogenmod.com/topic/3319-stock-apps-that-can-...

http://forum.cyanogenmod.com/topic/1950-galaxy-s-has-been-ro...

I'm very close to switching from an iPhone 3G to the Galaxy S (captivate), so I'm glad to see someone confirming what I thought would be my impression: not so smooth but more functionality. Not sure if I should wait a few months though for an Android 3.0 lineup.

[mirkules]

Rooting your phone just to remove ads is like removing an engine from your car just to get rid of hubcaps -- they should just snap right off.

But seriously, a new iPhone costs $199 with 2 year contract. My Galaxy S (Captivate) cost $229 with 2 year contract. You would think that for a higher price than the iPhone -- which is heralded as the end-all-be-all of smartphones, and which doesn't have ANY bloatware whatsoever -- Samsung could afford to not preload an otherwise awesome phone with so much crap.

[felideon]

I agree, I don't like the AT&T pre-installing crapware either, and it should be easy to uninstall. Your gripe on that point is caused by AT&T, not Samsung though (as coderdude mentioned).

I think on Verizon the Galaxy S doesn't have as much bloatware.

By the way, if you buy online from AT&T the Captivate costs $150 instead.

[mirkules]

Ah, didn't know about the online price. I couldn't wait for it to ship anyway, I needed pretty much the same day (for travel). Still, I guess don't get it at Best Buy ;)

[coderdude]

It sounds like some of your issues are specific to your Android device and carrier (power button on the side and AT&T apps). Verizon + Droid has been an amazing experience for me.