[Nexus One General] Over Achiever:
Unboxing video (Part 1 of 2, part 2 is still uploading)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBzm2yY7Z2g

Background

I'm a medical student (that uses medical software on the wards) and I've previously used a HTC Touch HD, an LG KS20 and others. So this is my first android phone coming from WM devices. I've had it since Wednesday night.

General

The phone feels solid in the hand, a bit narrower and longer than the touch HD, about the same thickness. Comes in a clean white box with basic accessories (headset, AC charger, USB cable) I can't tell if the phone has screen protector on or not.

Screen

Looks pretty good, saturated colors, nice and sharp. The screen is a tad smaller than my Touch HD, but is much brighter (newer screen). There is some glare due to the glass screen, and for me anyway, seems to attract fingerprints. But the capacitative screen needs very little pressure to work, buttery smooth.

Speed

The phone is much faster than my Touch HD, and so far over the past couple days has not lagged much. It's the same speed as my old powerbook! My connection upgraded from EDGE to 3G, so I've noticed quite an improvement in internet speed as well. I was able to download 20-30 applications without much issue at all. I did notice that many of the programs start on startup (I don't know how to adjust that), but it doesn't seem to slow the phone down. I'm impressed.

Keyboard

I'm still getting used to the screen keyboard, I find the HTC layout much better. I may switch back to the Cooltek keyboard I used to use with the T+ layout. But it's working okay for now, I think I may just need some getting used to it.

Applications

The thing I love about going to Android from WM is the Android Market. It makes getting apps so much easier (I'm sure all you iPhone, iPod touch know) and standardizes the install process. I'm still waiting for the Android version of Epocrates, a medical software I rely on. Maps and Navigation have been absolutely great to use, almost better than my in car Nav at times. Google Voice and visual voicemail is a pleasure to work with, with maybe an 80-90% accuracy rate, I was very impressed. Same with voice search, the tech has improved quite a bit in the past few years. Got applications for twitter, music, facebook, etc. If I need something, a quick search in the market is all I need.

Email/Calendar

I wish the gmail and email applications were just one application instead of two, but it's not a big deal. The exchange setup was straightforward, and I had no issues. I also connected an account via IMAP and two Gmail accounts with no issue as well. I didn't know there were some sync settings were under labels, for the longest time I didn't know how to increase it from just 4 days sync. E-mails are viewed just fine in either format.

No exchange support. Really bugging me.

Camera

Looks to be similar quality to the pictures from my Touch HD (which cleans up nicely in Lightroom). The addition of the flash is nice, but is a weak flash and looks poor at times. The application seems fast enough, but I do miss a dedicated camera button. Self portraits are nearly impossible. Still trying to figure out how to turn the sound off.

Music

Music sounds fine in my stereo headset. The music player is adequate, no noticeable lag so that makes me happy. My headset have a generic button and pressing it pauses/plays, and two quick presses is next. I love it. Plus the volume button works to change the media volume even while the phone is locked. Pandora and Slacker radio works just fine as well, especially over 3G. I'm disappointed there's no FM radio though, I did use it a lot (and I don't want to use too much data sometimes, T-Mo does have a 10 GB soft cap on the unlimited plans)

Battery

So, while I get solid battery life, when I'm in a place with no reception, the battery can get drained fast. With low use (just following up on e-mails and keeping the radios on to get notifications) the phone easily lasts the entire day. With my normal use, it seems to last 10-12 hours ... which is adequate, but barely for me with my 12 hr shifts. I was hoping for something more around 16 hours so I only have to charge overnight.

Phone

Oh yeah, this is still a phone after all. The loudspeaker sounds tinny, could be louder but that's to be expected. Sound quality seems to be fine, I haven't really had any problems. The proximity sensor works great, turns the screen off when I have it up at my ear, and turns on as soon as I remove it. Connected to my car's navigation without much issue either. I can't tell how the noise cancelling mic works, but recording a message seems clear while I was in a noisy location.

Conclusion

Overall, seems to be pretty impressive device. I wonder if I would have been just as happy with the Touch HD2 (or happier), but the android system seems to work nicely, and the android market has opened my phone up to new apps and uses. Lack of Exchange calendar syncing is highly disappointing, and I still need to get used to the keyboard. The feel of the phone is great, plays nicely with T-Mobile 3G. Beautiful screen.

I'll update this in a week and see if my opinion changes or if I have more to add.

PS. Some shortcuts I've noticed. Long-press of the menu button brings up the keyboard. Long-press of the home button brings up the 6 most recent apps used. Long-press of the power button brings up airplane/silent mode or turns phone off.