Jumped ship... Regretting it. Should I FrankenPre2?

[nullity]

Some background info, feel free to skip if you're a "tl;dr" type:

I was forced to jump ship in mid 2011. My launch day Sprint Pre- with its cracked plastic screen was close to becoming unusable. I considered buying a new Pre- on eBay or trying to make a FrankenPre+/2 back then, but another plastic screen did not appeal to me and I had recently become a father of twins so I didn't have time to research/make a FrankenPre. Switching carriers was not an option due to a big discount I get on service, so I sadly accepted that webOS and I were going to have to break up for a while.

The Evo 3D had just been launched and seemed like a perfect fit... I had a 3DTV and wanted to be able to make my own 3D content of my boys as they grow up, plus the guys at work had been bashing me for choosing webOS over Android since day one. So I pulled the trigger, and have been kicking myself for it every day. The hardware is nice and the 3D is great, but the virtual keyboard and Android OS just kill me. Every time I use it I feel like I've gone back to using Windows 3.1 with a busted keyboard that incorrectly registers almost all input. On top of that, getting 3D content to my TV is nearly impossible and the a-holes at work still bash me and call me a "webOS ******" because I'm critical of Android for its clunky UI and myriad bugs (which far outnumber and outweigh the bugs I complained about in webOS).

I reached my breaking point now that my phone will about 30% of the time refuse to render the contents of my e-mail... some messages go blank a few seconds after opening them, and there is no way to get them back short of firing up the browser and going to webmail. I had an epiphany that, yes, I am a "webOS ******". I'm a "******" of anything that works and works well. I don't have to suffer through the next 18 months of my Sprint contract with an Android phone. I don't need 500,000 apps... I don't even use the majority of the ones I've installed, and most of the ones I do use are available on webOS.

I'm hopeful that the HP Open Source announcement will lead to webOS on my Evo 3D, but I'm also aware of how long it takes HP/Palm to do anything. I won't be caught in another eternal waiting game. I'm faced with two choices:

1. Try different ROMs on my Evo 3D and hope I can find one that isn't trash...
2. FrankenPre2, and hope that I don't regret it.

I'm leaning toward FrankenPre2. Would anyone be so kind as to respond to my questions/reservations about this process? I usually dig through forums and Googlewebs until I find all needed info myself, but given the amount of free time I have now it would take me months to do so.

• Activation - The FrankenPre doc on webos-internals states that the Sprint comm board must be activated prior to the procedure. Does this mean I need to have Sprint transfer service away from my Evo 3D and back to my Pre- before I can do this?
• Browser - I've been away from WebOS for a while now... I liked the browser on my Pre- but occasionally it would unrender a page (just go white) and didn't support things like DHTML drop-down menu systems and whatnot. I would appreciate any love/hate stories you may have with the webOS 2.x/2.2.4 browser.
• Facebook - I used Facebook a lot on my Pre- because the FB app was awesome. FB for Android? Not so much. The mobile FB site isn't my cup-o-tea, and the full site is too clunky for a touch interface, so I've hardly used FB at all since jumping ship. Has the webOS FB app continued to improve in awesomeness since Ben & Dion left HP/Palm? Is the general consensus that the FB app will continue to be updated to work with the newer features, such as 'timeline'?
• Bugs or Hugs - Any vexing issues I should consider in argument against returning to webOS? Any stories about times you wanted to hug your phone because of how much webOS rocks? I want to come back to webOS, but I'm a little apprehensive since it is on its way to being an unsupported (or, homebrew-only supported) OS. Maybe I just need some reminders of how great it is to be able to slide open your phone, type a few letters, and instantly be where you want to be.

Thanks to anyone who takes time to respond. I sure appreciate any input you may have to offer.

[giggles]

Well considering your love of webos I would say a cheap transition to a franken pre 2 wouldnt hurt. Activation wise yha you would have to switch service. Browser wise I like the support of flash and HTML5 and have no issues really. Especially on wifi its a breeze to use. Facebook, oh man even better then the old days exhibition mode is cool with it notifications are fine functions great. Just excited to see more improvements. Bug wise... Just a few hiccups here and there I guess its different for everyone so.. but nothing detrimental.

If you have the cash and love for webos I'd say go for it. Worse thing is you dont like it and can easily regain your investment. I just love the fluidity of the os how great it looks. Like you get that feeling of pleasure looking at how everything functions and how common sense it is. Multi-tasking alone should bring you back. Throw some patches and oc this baby multi-tasking flies.

[sq5]

First off, let me say that your decision should not in any way be influenced by what anyone else prefers for themselves and mocks you for, especially not some lousy co-workers. The fact that they it matters that much to them to make it their business, makes them losers.

Originally Posted by nullity

[*]Activation - The FrankenPre doc on webos-internals states that the Sprint comm board must be activated prior to the procedure. Does this mean I need to have Sprint transfer service away from my Evo 3D and back to my Pre- before I can do this?

Correct. You cannot activate the comm board outside the original phone. You need to reactivate your Pre- before you remove the comm board from it. Btw, update your PRL on the Pre- before you remove the comm board too.

Originally Posted by nullity

[*]Browser - I've been away from WebOS for a while now... I liked the browser on my Pre- but occasionally it would unrender a page (just go white) and didn't support things like DHTML drop-down menu systems and whatnot. I would appreciate any love/hate stories you may have with the webOS 2.x/2.2.4 browser.

I can't verify definitively, but perhaps someone else can. From my perspective though, it feels as though the the browser performs better under 2.1 than it did under 1.4.5. I particularly seem to have fewer "page goes white" incidents.

Originally Posted by nullity

[*]Facebook - I used Facebook a lot on my Pre- because the FB app was awesome. FB for Android? Not so much. The mobile FB site isn't my cup-o-tea, and the full site is too clunky for a touch interface, so I've hardly used FB at all since jumping ship. Has the webOS FB app continued to improve in awesomeness since Ben & Dion left HP/Palm? Is the general consensus that the FB app will continue to be updated to work with the newer features, such as 'timeline'?

The facebook app has been improved upon occasionally, but i don't use facebook so I'm not up to speed on the latest roadmap.

Originally Posted by nullity

[*]Bugs or Hugs - Any vexing issues I should consider in argument against returning to webOS? Any stories about times you wanted to hug your phone because of how much webOS rocks? I want to come back to webOS, but I'm a little apprehensive since it is on its way to being an unsupported (or, homebrew-only supported) OS. Maybe I just need some reminders of how great it is to be able to slide open your phone, type a few letters, and instantly be where you want to be.

For what its worth, I had to make a similar decision when my Pre- took too much of a beating. I went the Pre2 route and don't regret it. I can't get myself to like the android interface yet (and a lot of other things compared to webOS), so my intent was ultimately to stay with webOS anyway.

[TheDZEdge]

I put off doing the Sprint Franken Pre2 for a while too. But I sure don't regret doing it! It's like night and day in terms of performance. You will probably miss some customization patches (not as many for 2.x.x) but, the overall user experience is SO much better, you'll get over it. Take your time. Follow the directions carefully. You won't look back afterwards. Good comments from the above posters. Oh...just an fyi. I used a VZW Pre2 for my Franken and it went pretty smooth.

[NpManny]

if you want i can do the whole franken pre service for you for a fee i still have an extra sprint pre if you dont have your anymore and i have a pre2 (the screen is cracked tho) but if you wanted to buy a new pre 2 or mine i could do it. I love my franken pre 2 =D i got sprint nav and the latest prl and havent had any issues at all

[stinkyfischer]

i was in the same boat but stuck it out with a pre plus frankenpre from ebay. recently was thinking about an android upgrade, but got a pre2 instead.

i am glad i stayed with webOS. android users love to hate, but i can handle them.

[nullity]

Originally Posted by giggles

Well considering your love of webos I would say a cheap transition to a franken pre 2 wouldnt hurt. Activation wise yha you would have to switch service. Browser wise I like the support of flash and HTML5 and have no issues really. Especially on wifi its a breeze to use. Facebook, oh man even better then the old days exhibition mode is cool with it notifications are fine functions great. Just excited to see more improvements. Bug wise... Just a few hiccups here and there I guess its different for everyone so.. but nothing detrimental.

If you have the cash and love for webos I'd say go for it. Worse thing is you dont like it and can easily regain your investment. I just love the fluidity of the os how great it looks. Like you get that feeling of pleasure looking at how everything functions and how common sense it is. Multi-tasking alone should bring you back. Throw some patches and oc this baby multi-tasking flies.

Hey giggles, thanks for the response. You have a good point that I can recover most of my loss by reselling the Pre 2 if I find that it doesn't meet my needs. I'm also glad to hear your opinion on the FB app, I had forgotten about exhibition mode, and I have a few touchstones so that will definitely come in handy!

[nullity]

Originally Posted by TheDZEdge

I put off doing the Sprint Franken Pre2 for a while too. But I sure don't regret doing it! It's like night and day in terms of performance. You will probably miss some customization patches (not as many for 2.x.x) but, the overall user experience is SO much better, you'll get over it. Take your time. Follow the directions carefully. You won't look back afterwards. Good comments from the above posters. Oh...just an fyi. I used a VZW Pre2 for my Franken and it went pretty smooth.

That is definitely something I needed to hear... The Pre- would make me curse due to lag, but even with the lag I seem to have been able to do whatever I wanted to do faster on my Pre than in Android due to 'just type'. Glad that it worked out for you. I may soon be posting a similar experience!

[mauro1]

I'll summarize it for you in one sentence ... I bought another ATT/ROW Pre2 over the christmas holidays that I'm planning on FrankenPre for my wife to use. In so many words, I'm doubling down on Pre2. Hope this helps.

[nullity]

Sq5- thanks for the detailed response. Typing on this Evo is killing me so I'm going to be brief, but the fact that you shared your experience (or lack thereof) with the whiteout of web pages has helped me decide to FrankenPre. For the record, I didn't jump ship because my coworkers were harassing me, but rather due to lack of alternatives and the fact that I respect my coworkers for their intellect as software developers in a very, uh, unique industry. My time with android, however, has helped me realize more than ever that they are the ones who have had their opinions molded by marketing. Lol... Palm/HP marketing, if anything, has never been accused of influencing people!

[nullity]

Originally Posted by NpManny

if you want i can do the whole franken pre service for you for a fee i still have an extra sprint pre if you dont have your anymore and i have a pre2 (the screen is cracked tho) but if you wanted to buy a new pre 2 or mine i could do it. I love my franken pre 2 =D i got sprint nav and the latest prl and havent had any issues at all

I'll keep your offer in mind, but I'm the type of geek who couldn't sleep at night if i didn't do this myself. Very grateful to hear of your positive experience though!

[nullity]

Originally Posted by stinkyfischer

i was in the same boat but stuck it out with a pre plus frankenpre from ebay. recently was thinking about an android upgrade, but got a pre2 instead.

i am glad i stayed with webOS. android users love to hate, but i can handle them.

Too true! Thanks for sharing. I may complain about the constant bantering with my coworkers about phone OS preference, but I must admit that I'm amused by the stretches of logic they make when it comes down to counting the number of actions required to achieve a certain task. For 1nstance, sliding open the keyboard, typing two letters of a name, then tapping their phone # to call = pushing power button, unlocking, pushing the search button, choosing contacts, typing two letters of name, tapping name, tapping phone #. The more I think about it, the more I loom forward to using this Evolution 3D exclusively as a 3D content camera and Netflix client.

[nullity]

Originally Posted by mauro1

I'll summarize it for you in one sentence ... I bought another ATT/ROW Pre2 over the christmas holidays that I'm planning on FrankenPre for my wife to use. In so many words, I'm doubling down on Pre2. Hope this helps.

Very nice. :-) I regret getting my wife-to-be an Evo Shift. I was still under the spell of app lust before I realized that core functionality matters, too. Although I must say I envy her keyboard! But portrait slider floats my boat more than horizontal with its 90 degree rotation.

[laingman]

Get pre2. I have one and a spare for backup. Install sconix's advanced patches and with stacks you can handle your email and texts better than anything your friends have ever seen. Also I recommend installing the virtual keyboard and fire away with it in just type. I get a kick out showing my android friends my keyboard and give it to them to try and they keep bringing up the launcher. Pretty good laugh

[NpManny]

Originally Posted by nullity

I'll keep your offer in mind, but I'm the type of geek who couldn't sleep at night if i didn't do this myself. Very grateful to hear of your positive experience though!

well then a fellow hardware junkie lol, honestly just do it lol its fun easy and worth it. My offer is still up but if you do decide to take the diy approach and get stuck ill be more than happy to help walk you through it.

[Loiter]

Nice post.

1. Try another ROM if you have the time and the energy to do it.
2. Get a Pre2. It's a really god phone, especially if you were a webOS lover you will love it.

The other things:

Browser: It's not something to be proud, but does its work. Not fast and a bit laggy sometimes but decent.

FB app: In my case I use it for status updates (through Just Type) and to check my notifications. There are some important features missing (individual comment likes, some problems with photos not showing etc.). In general it does its work, but I also use the mobile site too in some cases.

Bugs: There are some and unfortunately 2.2.4 has caused some more. In my case it's not something that will make you regret it. The pros are more than the cons. Of course reading some topics here, there are people having problems. I think that the majority is OK. Also, if you were using previous Pres, you'll find things got better in the Pre2.

[cbosdell]

I can't speak for how the Facebook app used to be but it leaves a lot to be desired now. You can't poke people from within the app, notifications of messages don't seem to come through, and probably only half the status updates from my friends show up in my news feed.

[kataran]

Originally Posted by cbosdell

I can't speak for how the Facebook app used to be but it leaves a lot to be desired now. You can't poke people from within the app, notifications of messages don't seem to come through, and probably only half the status updates from my friends show up in my news feed.

true what you said but that's why I use the mobile site on the web when I need to get things done on FB when I'm out....the client works great for its response monitoring and quick pic snap and uploading

[cwhead321]

My story is almost EXACTLY the same as yours except I went with the MOTO Photon 4g. Snagging a good deal and creating a FrankenPre2 for Sprint was the best thing I've done. It's webOS or nothing for me. I'm ok with it. I'll even consider dropping sprint and moving to AT&T with a pre3 if this whole 'open source' thing doesn't work out.

[ShiftyAxel]

I have a few hug moments to share- I've been through a Pre-, Pixi+ and am currently happily on a Pre3. In-between times I've had Windows Phone 7, Android, Blackberry and even WinMo 6.5 (ew ew ew.)

The first was when my Pre- arrived in the mail, along with the RebelSim I would use to activate it on an unsupported carrier. The first startup, and the fact that I'd been looking for a nice portrait slider for ages was just awesome

That broke and I had my blackberries and droid phones, then I got a Pixi. It was so nice to be back on webOS, imo the others just didn't compare to it's user experience. The Pixi was a bit lacking though, so I tried out Windows Phone 7. It was alright, very nice and fluid, but the interface just wasn't interesting or deep enough for my liking.

So then when I heard about the Pre3s being sold off for firesale, I decided that I'd do everything I could to get one and a Touchpad before they became a pleasant series of collector's items. After a few days of mashing f5 on various sites reporting on it, I got a Pre3 from mobiles.co.uk on a 12-month-with-9-months-rebated-over-the-contract-contract. And despite the monthly cost of the extra bills until I get the rebates, the Pre3 is worth every penny.

webOS 2.x on decent hardware flies, and now that it's going open source I can finally improve all the stuff that always made me think 'I could do it better' about the OS, and share it with the community. So imo, the FrankenPre2 would be a fine idea