Verizon's Droid Eris goes on permanent vacation
By Chris Ziegler 
posted June 22nd 2010 9:50PM
posted June 22nd 2010 9:50PM
You might have figured that the recent update to Android 2.1 would've given Verizon's Droid Eris a few months of additional shelf life, but alas, it was not to be; the phone is no longer available from Verizon's online store, and we'd assume that any remaining inventory in the field will dwindle to nothingness in the coming weeks. If anything, it seems like the device -- basically a tweaked Hero -- would be able to effectively soldier on indefinitely for $50 or so on contract, but maybe the carrier's intent on keeping Android a higher-end affair for the time being. And hey, with the Droid X and Droid 2 coming any week now, we suppose it's getting pretty crowded anyhow. Ultra-cheap original Droid, anyone?[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Ok couple of questions, does this mean no more ota updates.... 2.2 :( ? Bought my eris 6 weeks ago, what do you think the chances Verizon will offer a deal like at&t and the iPhone 4? And does anyone know where or how I can score a droid x without breaking the bank.
@ojesse81
No. I remember reading somewhere that 2.1 was all that they were going to go on the eris.
@ojesse81 I am certain the Eris will get a 2.2 ROM or port that us lowly Eris owners will be able to haphazardly install onto our now minuscule, depleted in value devices. The Eris was (is) still a great phone and one of the O.G. DROID's to come out on Verizon. RIP, Eris sales.
And you come to the main difference between android and iPhone...iPhone has top of the line design and construction, while android, though a good OS, is stuck with htc and motorola pos hardware...The EVO is the best they have available and the damn things falling apart already...lol
@Calikid
No, the real difference between Android and the iPhone is that with Android you get choices, and new and improved hardware keeps showing up. With Apple you have no choices (except color and storage) and you have to wait for Apple to decide you need something.
Of course, different things are better for different people. Some people like that their latest and greatest phone isn't outdated when the next better version comes out a few months later, and some people like iPhone's simplicity. That's why the iPhone is good for some, and Android is good for others. Personally I like choice though. Oh, and HTC's awesome phone design : )
"Yeah, I own an Eris." What an eris fail.
They should put this on their prepaid lineup
As an owner of this phone, it was a cheap (got it for like $75 with tax) way for me to get an android based smartphone and to get away from Verizon's proprietary crap. Sure I probably should have saved up a bit more and got a droid but i've had no problems playing roms and 2.1 brought it free GPS with google maps. Battery life is solid and I have even watched some flash youtube video's with the HTC flash player, video quality isn't great but it runs fairly good.
It's a shame if they drop support for it, was hoping I would get 2.2 at some point. For the price I paid I would say it's been an outstanding phone although of course under powered by todays standards.
@Veraky They wont drop support for it, just sales. XDA and other devs will port 2.2 when the time is right, especially if HTC/VZW decides to no longer bring forth their own firmware blend updates. However, they shouldn't ignore the Eris, considering this phone isn't even barely 8 months old.
NOOOOOO!!!! I want a bite of that Froyo!!!
Price drop for the incredible then?
I have an HTC Hero (the same exact guts) and it's basically unusable. Way too slow. The touch screen is amazingly inaccurate. Battery life is awful. I think it's a great move for Verizon to stop selling the Eris. It's complete junk. No one should get stuck with it for 2 more years.
@UptownDonkey
pure hyperbole. the (Sprint) Hero is far from unusable.
So, I was JUST getting ready to go to my Verizon store today to replace my phone because of minor announces and problems with the phone(I pay the full warranty fee). Does this mean that they are going to look at me and say we don't carry this device anymore and i'm stuck with my crapped up phone?
@TheDoctor1177
Hurry up and head over there, quick, most stores likely have some left in stock.
Uh-oh. Droid doesn't.
goodnight
My wife and I each own an Eris. The phone was a great option to try out the Android OS as well as one of the very few options we had going to Verizon (Moto Droid the other). The price (both free) was a great deal too. 2.1 has been great to us as well. Basically, I've come to accept that I can't keep up with a new phone every six months anymore, and my Eris keeps me very content. Would I like an Incredible or an Iphone 4? Sure, but the Eris still is a great Android phone. Also with the developers on XDA, I'm sure that I will enjoy it it more and more.
This is just freaking great. After the 2.1 update, my phone has become less usable. Theres a major issue with it suddenly losing sound when making calls, neither you nor the person you are calling hears anything. The battery life was supposed to be improved, yet I have been seeing LESS battery life now.
Now with them taking it out of the lineup, I am afraid that I will only get crappy refurbished phones when I go to get mine replaced for the sound issue.
At least if the phones I get to replace my current one have issues as well, they will let me get a different phone.
@JohnEBoy Funny you mention this. I finally gave in and called VZW tech support today on that very issue, the sound in-call dropping, and, the battery life. They're sending my replacement Thursday. Call now, tell them about this issue and get your replacement before it's a refurb.
Android of the week... Someone besides HTC needs to step up
The fucking thing has barely been available 6 months. And they got HTC to build a custom hero for a whopping sub 1 year sell life? If I was HTC, i think i would be pissed.
- Aside from that, I look forward to Evil Eris w/ 2.2
@Slick HTC couldn't care less. They already got their money from Verizon. Heck, HTC said it themselves, that people should buy phones at least on a yearly basis.
Well, so much for future updates then. Really, the more you look at it, the only true Android phone is the Nexus One. All of the other provider-locked ones have no certainty of longevity. Forget about 2.2, there are still plenty of phones still with 1.5/1.6, with empty promises for 2.x.
@pika2000
Try looking at it from a layman's point of view though. The fragmentation of Android seems horrible to us, but compare it to many of the other phones out there.
When you buy a 'feature-phone' you may get minor updates to fix glitches or bugs, but what you start out with is pretty much all you have until your next phone. For a little extra upfront, you can instead buy an Android phone and get much more functionality. Even if you never get an upgrade, the phone is still as useful as when you bought it.
Being jealous of the newer Android phones with the latest revision is the same as being jealous of newer feature phones with newer features. There will always be newer and better phones, usually within months of your purchase. At least with Android there is the possibility of an upgrade or two.
@TheOneAndOnlyJH
So, you're saying Android phones is like feature phones then?
"At least with Android there is the possibility of an upgrade or two."
Well, isn't that the problem? I have yet to see any significant updates to existing Android devices other than the Nexus One. 1.5/1.6 devices are not even getting 2.x, while 2.0/2.1 devices are not even getting 2.2.
Of course. After I got a droid like a month and a half ago.
Why do people argue over which phone is better. Please people if you want to debate then debate something that actually matters. Good god its a freakin phone.
Geez verizon goes through android phones fast. iPhone has a one year life cycle. The androids really are a dime a dozen. It almost seems like just a few months ago this thing was announced and now............lol. Maybe verizon is just getting ready for the the return of the god phone. I know I would if my sales numbers were about to look like shit from an ant.
Hey on and only I didn't mean to down rank u but u can't try a phone out for 8hrs and decide. That means u already had made up your mind and that's cool. it took me a few weeks to see how I really liked the phone and OS. you will be happy with your iPhone. Also my AT&T experience wasn't too bad but it is the reason that the iPhone is limited.
People seem to forget that it's Verizon Wireless that sells the phones, not HTC directly. Their Droid line-up is pretty crowded now.
The mid-range Android device to buy now is the LG Ally. Its specs are similar to the original Motorola Droid (complete with slide-out physical keyboard), and it's more powerful than the Devour and has stock Google Experience Android OS 2.1.
Plus the off-contract price of the LG Ally is ~$350, which is cheaper than the Eris's ~$450 off-contract price.
Verizon has replaced the HTC Eris with the LG Ally. The Moto Devour is their tween "social networking" phone, which I think the two Kins were meant to replace.
Google's practices remind me of an acquaintance who fathers a couple of kids and moves on to the next wife, leaving his exes and now 5 kids with next to no support. He's a handsome, charming type, but I can't understand how he attracts the girls to a life of single motherhood.
Android v1.6 was always a 1.0 effort. Lots of features were promised for the future: Flash, better speed, bugfixes, customer support, security patches, etc. Guess the very bright folks at Google don't have time for that boring stuff, and HTC seemingly wants you to replace a year-old phone with a new model.
Remember when Microsoft stabbed PlayForSure in the cradle? No upgrade path, ability to play purchased tunes on a Zune, etc. The Zune, a technically pretty darn good player, has reaped the reward of this sort of cavalier behavior: near-zero sales, because no customers are confident that MS actually cares a whit about consumer products besides the flashy XBox.
RIP Eris. And good luck to the Nexus, Incredible and other HTC customers.
My 6 month old phone is now a permanent POS. :(