Droid Eris by HTC (Verizon) Rated 3.75 by Wireless and Mobile News' Review of Reviews
Verizon is heavily promoting the well-reviewed Droid by Motorola and the Droid Eris by HTC. The Droid Eris is worth taking for stroll if you need a smartphone with many web and Google features but you don't do enough messaging to need a keyboard.
Eris was the name of the ancient Greek goddess of strife and Eris is a dwarf planet. Dwarf or strife have nothing to do with this powerful smartphone that received excellent reviews for its web browser, brilliant screen, interface, virtual keyboard and excellent call quality.
The size and style of the Droid Eris by HTC is easy to hold and use. It is very similar to the HTC Hero but has been revamped for Verizon.
The Droid Eris by HTC works well everything Google: Google Maps, YouTube, Google Calendar, Google search (with voice), and Google Talk. It even gives voiced turn-by-turn navgation with Google Maps Navigation(Beta). Documents can be easily viewed and the web browser was very well rated.
The features reviewers of the Droid Eris by HTC didn't find satisfying were the poor camera without flash and mediocre video playing. Android doesn't come with an iTunes-like interface so you have sideload music via a USB cable or use a third party syncing program.
Verizon sells the Droid Eris by HTC for $99.99 after a rebate with a new contract and data plans. You can avoid waiting for the rebate by using the Wireless and Mobile News Instant Phone Rebate Only Available with Online Purchase link. When you order online you also get Free Overnight Shipping
Sascha Segan at PCMag rated the Droid Eris by HTC 3.5 out of 5. He called it a "watered-down" Droid, less powerful but still a good smartphone for Verizon. It's firmware is more stable than the HTC Hero. This touchscreen phone doesn't have keyboard bu has two very-good virtual keyboards. It runs on Android 1.5 and lacks some of the features of 2.0 but has its own flavor. Voice calls are better than the Droid, it works well with a Bluetooth headset but can't executive Bluetooth voice dialing. Messaging is decent, because you can do MS Exchange, Gmail and POP3/IMAP email . It's missing IM. Internet access is snappy, music playing decent and lousy video player. Music sync apps are not icluded. The camer is awful with jerky videos. HTC Sense is pleasant. Eris is good but Droid is Great.
Bonnie Cha and Kent German at CNET rated the Droid Eris by HTC 4 out 5. They liked the slim design, features, performance and multi-touc. They didn't like the "mixed" multimedia quality, the Android 1.5 OS, absence of a file manager, and sluggishness. It has a beautiful rounded design that is slim enough to hold. The proximity sensor turns off the screen when you are talking. The 320x480 is sharp and vibrant. The portait/landscape acclerometer only works in certain apps. The HTC virtual keyboard is easier to use than the standard Android keyboard. They love the multi-touchscreen. It's packed with features including Bluetooth, voice dialing, Verizon visual voice mail, a calculator, a calendar, a speakerphone an alarm clock, Wi-Fi, PC syncing, USB mass storage, and a voice recorder. It's very Googled with Google Maps, YouTube, Google Calendar, Google search (with voice), and Google Talk. You can view many document types with QuickOffice and a PDF viewer. The contact manager automatically imports contact information from e-mail accounts and social networks into your address book. Apps can't be saved on the microSD card. The browser is decent with visual bookmarks, copy/paste and sharing functions with email, Facebook and Twitter. The 5mp camera has many editing functions but was disapointing and lacked a flash. Call quality was excellent.
Todd Haselton at LaptopMag rated the Droid Eris by HTC 3.5 out of 5. He liked the reasonable price, Intuitive Sense Interface, multi-touch screen, web browser, and Twitter/Facebook integration. The shape is easy to hold and the on-screen-touch keyboard is one of the better ones he's seen. The photo quality was mediocre. Google Maps Navigation(Beta), delivers spoken turn-by-turn directions for free. Call quality was very good. For those who dont need a keyboard it is good deal for smartphone.