The spec gap between the
Magic and the
Hero is mighty small -- other than the entirely revamped Sense UI, the Hero's 5 megapixel camera is about the only thing the newer model has over the original, physical design notwithstanding. That gap is on the fast track to getting even smaller, too, now that HTC has issued a press release detailing
a Sense upgrade for the Magic (assuming you haven't already nabbed it off xda-developers, that is). It looks like current owners will get hooked up some time in October for NT$1,500, which works out to about $46; what we don't know, though, is which Magics will be eligible for the upgrade. Just like HTC's WinMo wares, we're guessing that subsidized units are going to be at the mercy of their carriers, which means that T-Mobile, Rogers, and Vodafone customers (among others) should take a somewhat pessimistic view of this announcement until they've heard otherwise. Hey, we're just looking out for your mental health here.
[Thanks, Steve G.]
Update: Depending on how you interpret the press release, HTC could be saying that the upgrade is
valued at NT$1,500, but will actually be free. We're working to get a clarification.
Update 2: Alright, we've gotten the skinny on this straight from HTC. The update will be free -- thing is, it's only coming to Taiwan's Chunghwa so far. The fate of Magics on other carriers remains unknown, but we do know that so-called "with Google" versions will definitely be left out (that includes you, myTouch 3G).
posted August 16th 2009 1:03PM
I thought that the t-mobile and vodaphone versions have less ram than the regular HTC Magic o_O
That Sense UI is going to be weezing along on a MyTouch 3G or vodaphone Magic
I run Hero (JACxHerov1.2) on my G1... There is no "wheezing" taking place. It runs very smoothly, virtually no lag at all. It runs MUCH better than the stock firmware on my friends myTouch 3G. That thing is a lag fest.
Maybe HTC's stock hero will be laggy, but if you get one of the latest builds from xda, you shouldn't have any problems.
I have run JACxHero too, It runs smooth with a bit of messing around, apart from the lack of bluetooth and the annoying rotate issue. It's definitely usable.
@ouch!
stfu. Nobody likes rabid fanboys.
JACxHero has some HTC framework built in but its not the full fledged thing, which is why it runs smoothly. The JACHero is the actual Sense UI kernel and it is wicked slowwwww. Everytime you press home its another minute and a half of waiting for it to load, which is not a viably usable product, unfortunately. I do like JACxHero(i'm running 1.3, I'm not sure if there is much difference between the 2 versions) and it runs beautifully...even more so than the JF and Cyanogen mods(in my experience).
Plus, if Sense UI runs slow on the new Hero, why would anyone expect it to run well on the lower spec'd G1? It just isn't plausible because the Sense UI has a continuous amount of memory hogging(those animated widgets just eat up everything). I'm content with what I'm running now, and don't plan on switching to Sense anytime soon.
@Tyler: Mine runs fairly well, I set up a Linux swap to avoid the load screens and don't use that many widgets. I agree though, I prefer Cyanogens efforts over it.
Do they really think Sense UI will save them from falling? Sense is still running WinMo! Seriously, WinMo has demised as far as market is concerned.
What? WTF are you smoking? SenseUI runs on android. It's TouchFLO3D and 2D that's on WinMo, and it's latest version does a bloody good job of making it a usable OS.
@Josh
You sir, failed. That's android under the hood.
No reason to pay for it when you can get better versions of the Hero rom from xda.
My thought exactly... been running hero for over a month now. And its almost as fast as cupcake even with widgets on screen... so I don't need a magic or Hero and will wait for the official G2 replacement coming out later this year or that SE x3 release... I just hope that HTC decides to use another processor this time around. They really need to change that because its almost been a year and they are still using the same qualcomm processor with every new release.
True, maybe HTC will optimize it so that it will run better on the magic. Cause from what I hear from reviews is that sense UI runs sluggy on the hero as it is. I think it's a great UI and wish apple would get something similar.
it would be nice if htc gave the G1 some love so we can get official sense upgrades too...
there are two things wrong with that.
1. http://androidandme.com/2009/08/news/the-g1-storage-problem-in-charts-and-numbers/ read that
2. i have run JAC Hero 2.3.6 on my G1, it was slower than 2 Christmases
Make a USB based update and completely inform the user. I would suggest they repartition it. Lower the cache partition and expand the system partition. Who cares if it won't be able to do OTA updates anymore, If I were a G1 user I would rather have manual USB updates than no updates.
Meh! all you need is one person to buy and upload the htc kernel. Should fix all the bluetooth, wifi and sms issues on the current ROMs.
One to feed a million
An all important difference for me among the two is the 3.5mm audio out. Very important.
wow $46!!! really. I don't know if anyone will buy it at that price point. It should be free or maybe $5-$10 tops
Keep in mind this is a conversion from another country, they never usually translate. Due to the sucky USD right now, it will probably be less than it looks.
Are they serious?! $46 is outrageous. Not even Apple, the company which I despise, would charge that much. And I don't think the Magic(or at least the MyTouch 3G) could handle Sense UI. Though maybe they trimmed it down quite a bit.
There is no performance difference between 32A Magics (288MB RAM) and the Hero. Both have that 528MHz Qualcomm processor.
@coolbho3000
That's just not true, 192 vs 288 mb ram is a big deal from the 32A and 32B that i have used
How do I check which version of the magic I have got?
I said between the 32A and the Hero. They both have 288MB RAM. I'm aware that the amount of RAM makes a huge deal, especially when us G1 users have to resort to swap and compcache.
Maybe it will but only with a manufacturers UI on top of it
We heard you already, could you now just kindly shut the fuck up?
I was excited when i finally rooted my tmo mytouch and started flashing roms on it. i soon realized the hero roms are a real stretch on the 32B. especially when you've used something as fast as a cyano rom (which is what i've reverted to). i'd love to have senseUI on my android, but i think HTC needs to tweak it down to work fast first. xda community can pick up and do the rest for us =)
-g-
as long as they keep jasmine brooks on there..............
owned
From the HTC home page:
"In addition, until early October ended October 31, where to buy HTC Magic of consumers will be able to HTC official website to download the latest software free of charge (to upgrade the market value of about NT services 1,500 million), HTC to allow more users to experience the HTC "to people-oriented "design concept, specially-made mobile phones are the perfect you."
So..it's free?
Maybe there is a promotion so the people who buy it within that timeframe will get the upgrade for free, like how Windows 7 upgrade works.
this is what I could translate from the original press release:
in the month of october, consumers who buy the htc magic can download the latest software from the htc website for free. the software is valued at nt $1,500 (about US $45).
htc will probably charge an upgrade fee starting in november.
I can haz Sense on my MyTouch? I'd kill for that!
You're not as funny as Jason Bateman.
Who let this guy out?
Rogers will provide the upgrade for free...as long as you sign a ten-year contract extension...
I don't understand WHY HTC ships the phone with less than at the very least, a GB of flash memory. Can someone explain this?
If a 2GB usb flash stick sells for $5 (or less) retail, why can't HTC and other phone manuf. ship the phones with at the very least 2GB or so of flash memory? Granted, I suppose the actual type of memory on the phone is much faster (and thus more expensive?) than typical flash memory, still I think it's a habit they need to break fast and soon. The phones are being sold for in most cases, upwards of $200 and absorb much of their actual construction costs with every purchase - the least you can do is assure some use for the long term.
When I got my G1 it was with the thought/idea that this is the one phone I'll be happy with for more than 2 years. I don't buy phones for fashion. I buy them for comfort and features. I figured, alright...I'll be able to receive software upgrades well into the future. I don't really care about things like the camera going from say, 5mp to 10, etc. But if newer software is more intuitive or the interface is more efficient/fun/friendly/better-in-some-way, of course I want that. While I'm happy with the phone right now, I'm disappointed to now hear that I'll have to at some point (sooner than later, and def. sooner than the minimum 2 years or so I wanted) upgrade to be able to use a newer/better Android build - especially because of the fact that this is due to something as 'easily preventable' as space restrictions.
Give me a G1-esque phone (that basically means something like the G1 specifically in terms of a physical keyboard and features of the G1) with say 8GB of internal memory (2GB allocated specifically as RAM), a memory card slot and a faster processor and I'm a happy camper. But I suppose, that would be too perfect and people like me would then never spend another $200 to buy a new phone in a year or 2.
well...the mytouch comes with 4 gigs so....
Um... You do know that you can run sense on a G1, right?
http://www.xda-developers.com/
Victor,
Indeed, too bad it doesn't have a physical keyboard. At least it will be able to run upgrades unlike the G1.
King,
Not without hacking the phone. The G1 has practically no physical space for any more software updates/changes to the OS other than bug fixes etc. And I'm not speaking in terms of just the Sense UI, I'm speaking in terms of the future of the phone like donut and future OS upgrades.
I agree, the lack of storage space for applications on the G1 was an absolute tragedy. It severely hindered the usability of the phone. The Magic is relatively limited too, but still a VAST improvement over the G1's storage situation. There's really no excuse to ship these phones with less than a gig of application storage, I think that they missed the point of what an app-centric OS is supposed to be about.
Why *yawn*?
Is it because of the sedatives that they administer you at the asylum?
(osnap)
I've lost interest in any of these Android phones until someone releases one with a 3.5" screen. Anything less & a lot of us can't easily read the small fonts. I can't count the number of people I know & chat with that sold their G1 for the same reason. Give Apple credit for knowing that some people need a larger screen & larger font.
A 3.5" screen would definitely help make portrait typing easier with the on-screen keyboard, but with the exact same resolution on both screens I just can't imagine that the relatively small difference in screen size would actually make fonts more difficult to read.
The Sense UI is downright beautiful.
HTC really knows how to spruce up an OS.
I can't be the only person who prefers the stock Android UI over HTC's Sense, can I?
Personally looking at the T-Mobile MyTouch3G. Anyone flashed this with the JACxHero version yet?
Also still considering waiting on the Hero (even if I have to buy an unlocked phone from Taiwan) or Motorola Morrison (or in T-mobile speak the G1v2).
ok. so, it says "no 'with google' magic phones"
sorry, but im confused. ive looked everywhere to buy an unlocked magic, and they all say "with google" where are there non-google magics i can buy?
Man, I was going to get a MyTouch3G but if it won't receive the upgrade for SenseUI I guess I'm stuck hoping for a HERO for T-Mobile.