Commercials are something I usually try to avoid like the plague or a physics test. The only time these ads are worth watching is during the Super Bowl.Most shows wind up recorded on my DVR, but there are those unfortunate times when I have to watch a show live, thus suffering through the commercials. But lately one company’s ads have caught my eye.Verizon Wireless pulled out the big guns last month, attacking AT&T with the “there’s a map for that” ad set, comparing Verizon’s 3G coverage against AT&T’s and using the slogan as a pun off of the iPhone’s “there’s an app for that.”It was absolutely genius. Not only because it bashed both AT&T and the iPhone, but it proves Verizon had the “lesticles” to blatantly call out their competition this way.Verizon struck again shortly after that series of commercials.This time, Verizon listed numerous things the iPhone doesn’t do — such as take pictures in the dark or have a real keyboard — and ended the commercial simply with “DROID does.”
This “droid” Verizon was referring to was the Motorola DROID, released last Friday running Google’s new OS Android.Reading numerous online reviews, combined with my own personal “hands-on” experience, I will admit, the DROID is a very impressive phone. The phone runs on the new version of Android titled “Éclair” and includes the ability to run multiple apps at once, Wi-Fi networking, a five-megapixel low-light-capable digital camera, 3.7-inch touchscreen and full QWERTY keyboard among many other notable features.The Android OS is a fast, responsive system. Because Android is open source, developers can easily and quickly put out apps for the Android Market to compete with the more than 100,000 apps the iPhone recently achieved.Another big selling feature for the DROID is its use of Google Maps.Instead of buying a GPS or the $100 TomTom app on your iPhone, the DROID comes equipped with voice directed, turn-by-turn directions.Also most people now seem to use their phones as a camera almost as much as an actual phone, and the DROID’s low-light digital camera is nothing to overlook.But the DROID is far from perfect.Verizon is marketing the DROID exuberantly, comparing it to the iPhone. And while many people believe this phone can be the potential “iPhone killer,” it’s not there just yet.Verizon’s ads boast how the DROID has a full QWERTY keyboard for those who like physical keys to type on as opposed to a touchscreen.But the keyboard is quite underwhelming. The keys are ridiculously cramped, and those with big hands (like myself) have trouble pushing only one button at a time. It’s also hard to distinguish one button from another because all the keys are flush together — unlike say, a BlackBerry.Another huge feature the iPhone has — which I personally love — that appears absent in the DROID is multitouch.For those unfamiliar with the term, multitouch refers to the touchscreen being able to detect more than one object interacting with the touchscreen at a time.For example, to zoom in on the iPhone’s Internet browser, simply put two fingers together on the screen and spread them apart. It works so well, and it’s a shame it’s missing from the DROID. This feature also makes typing on a touchscreen much easier because it doesn’t require the user to take one finger off the screen before you type the next letter.While I’ve yet to find a phone with a touchscreen as quick and responsive as the iPhone’s, this one does come close. But the phone just isn’t up to the iPhone level yet.Aside from that, it’s still one of the best phones out for Verizon and is definitely something to keep an eye on if you’re a Verizon customer. Adam Arinder is a 20-year-old electrical engineering junior from Baton Rouge. Follow him on Twitter@TDR_aarinder.–Contact Adam Arinder at [email protected]