Review: Motorola Droid
Browser
The browser on the Droid is the newest Android browser. It supports HTML5, and will support Flash early next year. The basic functionality of the browser itself hasn't changed much, but man does it look good on that HD display.
You can use your finger to navigate around web pages, or use the D-pad to pan about them. You can zoom in and out, and perform basic browsing with the phone in portrait or landscape orientation. You can also double-tap to zoom the browser in and out.
A quick press of the menu key opens up a dock with most of the navigation items you expect, such as Go, Bookmarks, Windows, Refresh, Forward, and more. There is a full list of settings that let you customize how the browser operates (such as enabling / disabling JavaScript, managing passwords and privacy and more). The options are quite extensive.
The bookmarks page has been overhauled, and now offers a pictorial representation of each bookmark. This means you have a nice grid of web site screen shots to pick from, rather than just a boring old list of web sites.
The browser lets you open up to eight different windows at a time. This lets you jump around between different web sites quickly. The browser also supports Google's MyLocation feature, which will help provide local results when you perform searches.
As for speeds, well, the Droid can access Verizon's EVDO Rev. A 3G network. For the most part, web sites load quickly. Every now and then you'll notice a pause or hiccup, but the experience is very good overall. The Droid also has Wi-Fi, and users can switch to that for browsing if they so choose.
Customize
Because the Droid runs Android, there are a lot of ways for users to adjust the way the phone behaves. Ringtones, wallpapers, screensavers and all the simple stuff is old hat; it can all be managed. The settings menu is becoming more complex with each successive release of Android. Users have full control over the radios, connections, syncing, the SD card, accounts, and so on.
One aspect about Android that doesn't appear to be customizable is the colors of the menus themselves. I don't know about you, but the white on black is getting a bit boring. I wish there were a more extensive color palette tho choose from. Perhaps when Android 3.0 rolls around...
First Look: Motorola Droid
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Motorola Droid
