Martin Spitznagel Pianist. Composer. Writer. Filmmaker.

The Droid You’re Looking For

Can you hear my guilt now? Good.

I have the Internet in my pocket. And yes, it’s excited to see you.

This is not “neat,” “nifty,” or “nice.” This is huge. This is the sectumsempra of tech wizardry. The technological past is bleeding in a watery pile on the ground, as I just booked a ZipCar from my phone. In the middle of the street. At 9:30 PM. For a kid who spent his nerdy teenage years in the 1990s on dial-up, this is freaking sorcery, people.

Sadly, if there is an Apple fanboy Hell, I am on my way to it because I, dear Reader, didn’t buy an iPhone.

I bought a Droid. Worse still, I really like it.

That’s right. Like a modern day Modred, I stabbed Apple Inc., my favorite company on the planet who makes all my computers and who I happily worked for not once but twice, in the heart and bought a phone from their biggest and most dangerous competitor.

Now, the fact that I’m typing this on a six-year old iBook reveals my true allegiance. I am an Apple nut, have been so since 2005, and will continue to be for the duration of my computing life.

So what drove me into the muscly arms of Android? For starters, Apple’s devotion to AT&T. The exclusivity agreement, which made a lot of sense back in 2007, has kept me iPhone-less for years. I have heard this “but the iPhone is coming to Verizon!” stuff for over a year now and guess what: I don’t buy it. The latest word is January 2011, but Apple’s exclusivity agreement with AT&T is good through 2012, and Apple has yet to break it. By then, I’ll be eligible for a new phone.