This is just a quick post to tell you about something incredible.

I know I shouldn't sound surprised when Acer does something good but this time they've really excelled themselves and I am simply shocked at the degree by which they've gone beyond my expectations.

Let's put things into perspective before I go any further: I own an iPhone 3G. I love it and it has revolutionized the way I discover, access and share information no matter where I am. It's also introduced me to a bunch of non-Windows stuff that really is a lot simpler to live with than you're led to believe.

The iPhone makes you think hard about the way you've had to deal for technology as it glides seamlessly between one amazing app and the next. It's so slick you begin to think that maybe, just maybe, they're actually on to something here.

So it's a paradigm shift more than a phone. Before the iPhone, I text-messaged. Now I Shazam, Tweet, buy on eBay, check out the weather to see whether or not it's snowing before leaving for the mountains and have discovered that Google Maps is like a real life search engine / Yellow Pages hybrid that finds actual businesses, shops and restaurants around you. And let's not forget iTunes...

That's some benchmark and so far every other smartphone I've seen my friends with has never matched it for features and functionality.

But the Acer Liquid does. And then some.

I’m going to go on record here by saying that the Acer Liquid is more than a valid alternative to the iPhone. It’s just as slick, has a better screen resolution, and if anything is slightly faster, but the killer is the Android Marketplace which lets you set it up just the way you want it, which means I’m still Tweeting and Shazamming but I’m also chatting on Gtalk and Skype while getting live updates on my friends’ Social Network sites. What’s more the Acer Liquid multi-tasks unlike the iPhone and some of the simple but oh-so-geeky apps available free of charge mean I have a much better chance of the battery lasting all day unlike it’s flashier rival. Rival? It costs between €150-€200 /$220-$300) more than the Acer Liquid…

And even if there’s no iTunes alternative (yet), all I have to do is drag and drop my music files (including those bought on iTunes – unless protected, damn you DRM!) into the Acer Liquidd’s 2GB microSD folder via USB and I’m good to go.

To find fault with the Acer Liquid you really have to dig deep and most of them come down to lack of applications, therefore no fault of the device itself. Simplify Media should hurry up and get out an Android version of their absolutely brilliant software for this, there should be a better way of buying music on the device and I can’t find a good Flickr app. That’s really about it.

Plusses include brilliant Google synchronization and a total indifference to the computer you have at home. Windows or Mac, it doesn’t care which makes it the most diplomatically correct device Acer has ever made.

I like it so much I’m going to keep it. I’ve ordered a 16GB microSD card from eBay and if my daughter hadn’t intervened, that’s where my iPhone would have ended up, it’s that good. It gets my highest recommendation and I completely and utterly believe you should buy one which is why all the links here point straight to Amazon.

Video review coming…

Tagged As: Acer, Reviews

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  1. A Fan wrote, on December 14th, 2009:

    On one thing, I have to say you are right. As a Phone, the iPhone sucks.

    But what made the iPhone mainstream, is not its phone functions…

    I’m following your blog, but I’m afraid you are missing the point when you say that “even if there’s no iTunes alternative” is still a good product.

    It might be, but what made the iPhone successfull were the following:

    1) New way of usage (just fingers, no pen)
    2) The integration in iTunes
    3) The uge applications and Music store
    4) The (unofficial) possibility to install and run almost anything on it

    I think with this phone, soon or later, you need to decide if you want to go business or you want to go consumer. Don’t forget that Apple, is mainly consumer, but even business customers, let go their Palm, Blackberry and Windows mobiles phones…and got an iPhone…

    The reason? Well… if a business man, spending a lot of hours on transit time, has to carry one device and has to choose between an easy to use Consumer device, or a full featured business phone…which one will bring?

    Anyway, I don’t want to spoil your excitement for the new Acer Liquid. Let’s see it in action and see how it works…

    I really hope you are right about the back cover for the upcoming release ;)

    I looked at the photoalbum you suggested:

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/ulife/4057955856/in/set-72157622569320193/

    Keep up the good work!
    A Fan

  2. Michael Walsh wrote, on December 14th, 2009:

    Not sure I missed the point but it’s an interesting observation.

    The thing about the iPhone is that like all ground-breakers, it set a totally new benchmark that a) took everyone by surprise and b) carved out a huge niche market for itself that quickly became a psychological monopoly.

    The thing that people quickly forget is just how much the iPhone has conditioned the world of mobile communications to the point that at times it doesn’t seem worthwhile even contemplating an alternative.

    First of all not everyone has an iPhone and even though it’s undeniably HUGE, there are still significant gaps in the market that the iPhone, for price, features and even compatibility concerns cannot possibly fill.

    Second, if you looked at usage patterns, user segments and current and projected penetration of “smart” phones, you’ll see the classic long tail curve, at the far left of which, sits the iPhone. That alone means there’s room for alternatives.

    As far as iTunes is concerned, I agree that content is a crucial factor, but again, you’re assuming that everyone uses iTunes (as opposed to Real Player, Windows Media Player, VLC, Winamp etc…) and forgetting the power and reach of sites like Amazon and HMV, Virgin, as well as specialist sites like Linn Records and my personal favorite, Beat Port.

    Not everything is located on the iTunes store and the same applies for the rapidly-expanding Android Marketplace which you can only see on an Android Phone anyway so it’s really hard to describe just how many apps are available there.

    So in light of the above, let’s have another look at your list:

    1) New way of usage (just fingers, no pen)
    2) The integration in iTunes
    3) The huge applications and Music store
    4) The (unofficial) possibility to install and run almost anything on it

    1) Answered – touch is the new way forward for everyone – just have a look at the new Google Phone by HTC if you don’t believe me).

    2) The Acer Liquid features neoPlayer which is every bit as good as the iPod software on the iPhone. Plus drag ‘n dropping from your PC (Mac or PC) to the Phone’s SD card means you can have every bit as much fun on the Liquid. Haven’t done a comparison yet but I bet the Liquid is more file-format friendly than the iPhone too (especially video).

    3) Answered above – Music (from PC) & Apps (directly on phone)

    4) Not a hacker myself but I’m sure this is possible – what is open source anyway if not an invite to do whatever the hell you want?

    Finally, business: The Acer Liquid comes pre-installed with RoadSync which means it’ll work with Lotus Notes and also Microsoft Exchange. Best of both worlds…

    Oh and I forgot. It costs £329.99 as opposed to £440.40 for the entry level iPhone 3GS (8GB).

    There is one glitch – one I hope to sort out today if not tomorrow: switching my SIM card from my iPhone to the Acer Liquid did not mean I was switching data plans. I managed to spend €100 in 5 days… OUCH!!! Once I get the same deal as my iPhone, I’ll make sure I put it to good use, and you get all the videos you need to see it in action.

  3. Jing wrote, on December 15th, 2009:

    I think this battle will be won and lost on Apps. Does Acer have an app store Michael? Or does it get it’s applications from Android?

    I’m utterly clueless in the mobile game. I seem to know every function of the iPhone despite not owning one, but nothing about Android.

    Hopefully the Google Phone rumours are true. That would be an interesting battle. An Android phone designed exclusively by Google.

  4. Michael Walsh wrote, on December 16th, 2009:

    @Jing You and I are on the same wavelength. I also think that Apps are going to make the difference and surprisingly enough right now that’s where WinMo is losing out. Have a look at the Forum and you’ll see how difficult it is to download and install stuff on the neoTouch (which therefore applies to all Windows phones).

    Acer doesn’t have it’s own App store but there’s a huge affiliate marketing business model waiting to be tapped there so expect one soon. I know I’d open one if I were in their shoes. For the record, affiliate marketing is when you sell someone else’s product and make a percentage (usually quite high on software) on every sale.

    This model has really come alive with the Internet as it allows manufacturers to exploit the combination of a huge user base and the simplicity (and necessity) of the purchasing action. Think of it this way: if Acer sells one PC every second (true) it has a huge potential platform base. If it then makes money on every Windows Office activated by clicking on the pre-installed link on the PC, then even if the percentage payout from Microsoft is quite small I think you’ll still see the significance of this business model when you consider the numbers involved.

    The same applies to apps only here the model is called “micropayments” as the percentages are high on very small amounts but the numbers are significantly higher, and everyone is in on the game (think Ovi Store by Nokia). And it works both ways too. You know Shazam? How do you think it works? Shazam distributes its software free of charge over iTunes (except Shazam Encore – £2.99/€3.99/$4.99) and whenever someone buys a song by clicking on the link Shazam makes a tiny commission. According to their site they’ve had over 10 million downloads to date so you so the math…

    You’re right: apps will win – not the device.

    Which brings me to the Google phone. All it’ll do is spice up the market (which is good), but please don’t fall into the trap of thinking that one size fits all – that’s not good for business because a) it eliminates shelf space (Best Buy or Carphone Warehouse or wherever won’t give you a lot of space if you make just one model while Samsung makes 15+) and b) limits your scope because you have no choice but to make the best phone out there which despite what your gut feeling might tell you, not everyone actually wants.

    Plus don’t forget that Android isn’t the same for all manufacturers. It’s heavily customizable and a lot of development work goes into getting it right for the specific user/price segment. That also means that you might get a telephone at some point in the future with a less powerful (previous) core release of Android – simply because they or their phone don’t need all the bells and whistles of the full-on versions.

    I’ll try and make a video of the Android Marketplace – it’s really not bad at all, and like I said, it’s just the start.

  5. Duke Nguyen wrote, on December 31st, 2009:

    I love my Liquid but there seems to be a very small user base and a non existant support base. Reading through the Acer manual is useless unless it is your first time touching a smart phone. Overall the phone/apps/android system work very well but some flaws(?) I’ve come across from using the phone and not just 1hr like a lot of review sites are….

    1. sometimes while texting or surfing, app just randomly shuts down and you are back to the desktop. not sure if this is a android 1.6 thing or a glitch in the acer customization of 1.6

    2. sometimes using the browser, pressing too close to the right edge of screen (?) enables the Acer task manager to pop up so you can select between task. This is really annoying because I don’t want to switch tasks, and there seems to be no documentation how this “feature” is enabled or can be disabled

    Other than these 2 annoyances, the phone would be considered the best phone I’ve ever owned.

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