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Last week a bit of a hub bub surfaced around the Samsung Fascinate and its inclusion of Bing over Google as the search widget baked into the device at launch. On top of that, many an Android-purist freaked out when a false rumor began to spread that Verizon would keep Google off of all of its upcoming handsets. Not only did that seem like a ridiculous notion, but it made virtually no sense given the strong collaboration between Google and Motorola on VZW handset launches. Besides, we heard the same story before when people thought Google Maps would be foregone for SkyHook, something that turned out to be totally false.
Still, Bing is the only search option currently available for the Fascinate and the Google widget can’t be installed from the market. Verizon has already debunked the rumor that this would be the case for all upcoming phones, and have since added that the upgrade to Android 2.2 for the Fascinate will once again enable Google Search to be downloaded from the Android Market. Problem solved, at least if you are the type who likes waiting.
If you aren’t the type to wait, then here is a pretty simple way to get Google Search now. You will need to download the Google Search APK outside of the Android Market, install it to your phone, and then use a third-party launcher of your choice (LauncherPro will do the job) to add the widget to your homescreen and reassign your search button. To get Voice search going you will need root, but how is that for sticking it to the man?
[Android Central via Engadget]
F*CK YOU MICROSOFT if you’re reading this…Leave Android alone, AHOLES!
Why wait? To send the message to the carrier that consumers don’t want this type of crap done on other phones. This phone has great hardware but I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone. Every one of these units sold tells Verizon that gimping Android is okay.
@AndroidToy LMAO!
@ AndroidToy: You should be saying that to VZW. Since they are the ones whoring out their phones to the highest bidder, regardless of how much it pisses off their customers.
F*CK Verizon if you’re reading this….Leave Android alone, AHOLES!
Im really upset that vzw is using bing and ruining the google experience ….im only back because sprint is out of my network. I think using bing in a google phone with no other option is a shame
I won’t bother going anywhere close to this phone in the first place. Since I’m at the luxury of having multiple carrier working well for my area, I will boycott verizon for their anti-consumer approach.
@ froyo, yes because Verizon is the only carrier to put bloatware on their phones and “gimp” their phones. If you’re going to boycott every carrier that does this, I’d be curious to see how all that works out for you.
First leave android alone, that is what makes android so God damn good, the fact that you can put any thing on it. If android was not like this it would be the iPhone wouldn’t it. I hate when I here people say don’t do anything to the os like having one flavor of ice cream is better than having a choice. I love android but I hate Google, and have been waiting for a Bing app for my phone. I will not use Google at my home sense Google has admitted that they store all of you information from text, email, and every thing you search on the web and then give it to the military or sell it to other companies. So I want all of you people who complain on every post every day, and I know it’s the same people to shut up and leave our android alone.
F U Big Red.
Hoooray Sprint!!!
Awesome and insightful comments. LMAO. I LOVE ANDROID.
I’d recommend the Fascinate to anyone who wants a great Android phone on Verizon, doesn’t need a QWERTY keyboard, and finds the Droid X a bit too big. The Bing thing is a flaw, but hardly fatal — unless your irrationally allergic to Microsoft.
It’s a great phone.
Sorry, that should have been “you’re irrationally allergic.” I blame Swype.
“many an Android-purist freaked out when a false rumor began to spread that Verizon would keep Google off of all of its upcoming handsets”
Considering that Bing SUCKS, you should refer to these people as “non-suck-purists”. Anyway, these backroom deals with Verizon (and others) with Microsoft (and others) to deliberately replace great stock software with crappy software just shows that phone consumers have actually become the product. The real customer is the search and media companies in the business of getting audience/hits.
@rawar you’re kidding right?? That’s hilarious. ALL search/email/etc companies do this. They are REQUIRED to by law in many cases. The only difference is Google is open about it. Wow.
Bing is a perfectly serviceable search engine. Sometimes it finds things that Google doesn’t. Most ordinary users won’t care which brand of search engine is being used, as long as it finds what they’re looking for.
Head-to-head comparisons of Bing and Google have shown that Bing is very competitive.
No, I’m not a Microsoft fanboy. I actually prefer Google and have applied the fix to my Fascinate. But rejecting the device because you don’t like the branding on the search engine is just silly.
That is not true. How often in the last ten years have you heard this in the news, Google and CIA, Google nsa, and google and the Pentagon. It has also been disclosed that any time you use Google on your computer or phone it goes into a file with all of your info and is never erased. The file on you keeps growing. Google is the watchdog for the government, and who are the watching …. us. Plus at the hackers convention this year IE8 and Bing were found to be the most secure, if there is such a thing on a computer. Just because android is the shit does not mean every thing Google does is the best.
@rawar is that you, Balmer? Except for your last sentence everything you said is BS. Stop astroturfing please. You’re not even good at it.
@rawar, you realize that most isps do the same thing? Or that pretty much everyone does? However, at least in the Us, it’s illegal for the government to access said files without a reason. I honestly trust google to uphold my privacy and even if the government looked army data because of some reason it doesn’t matter. Let’s be realistic.
I don’t know what you are saying. Are you saying I’m someone called Balmer? I don’t know what asroturfing is,but I do know I don’t like fanboys, purist, or people who call BS without any knowledge. If you love the Google browser so much Google it.
Bing is useless, trye to read the latest news on anything, just gives useless results Try searching for something special, day the word ‘pakay’, its a fruit found in south america, being will find useless results, or something more technical, like ‘heim physics’, bing provides useless results. For that mater, yahoo now provides useless info. Whom ever thinks Bing is them adequate our looks up very simple things, our doesn’t really know much about anything.
Bing is useless, and on Android phones its not bloatware, its vaporware or crapware.
Verizon, you made a huge mistake striking a deal with microsoft, I like many other gurus are recommending, stay away from verizon. Keep this up and you will lose your bread and butter, customers.
Thanks comment number 14 …I thought that was so.
@rawar, not to beat a dead horse, but if you were to just Google (or Bing) “Balmer” and “asTroturfing” you’ve have your answer. Which, coincidentally in Chrome takes ‘astroturfing’ + enter > done) and in IE takes at least 5 (ctrl+t > wait forever for tab to load > tab x2 over to search bar > ‘astroturfing’ > enter). Probably why most technologically savvy intellectuals avoid MS technologies when possible. You however, choose to remain ignorant and refuse to use you precious IE w/ Bing to actually get to the root of what Google does with that information you claim it is using to “watchdog for the government”… as if they even care what your little pawn fingers have been typing. All cataloged data is made anonymous and only indirectly linked to your account (which you can choose to keep anonymous), then spread out across servers through out the world… only under situations such as search warrants can that data be aggregated and linked to your I.P. (which still does not truly identify you, and you can easily take steps to make sure it never does). Not to mention they are extremely upfront with exactly what happens to data attained from all of their products on an individual basis http://www.google.com/privacy.html . Show me the MS equivalent of that!
Not to mention, nothing is life is free. You wanna use a free service? Expect to give something up, it’s nothing new. Go cry at your conspiracy theorists meetings.
The Fascinate’s hardware is tempting, and this fix has eased some of my software concerns. How do the Fascinate’s Bing leanings affect Navigation and Maps? Am I able to install Google’s versions and set them as the default? Or do these also require workarounds?
@ural: kind of strange bing found the same answers that google did with your “keyword” the only thing is, if your going to post something to search how about at least spell it correctly. its spelled “pacay” NOT “pakey”. of course if you had put fruit behind it both bing and google would have informed you that you had it spelled wrong.
now, back on topic, seriously,a search engine is all you guys have to bitch about? this article tells you how to fix it or you can root the phone and get rid of the bloat as well as install anything you want. bing isnt going to stop me from buying this phone in 19 days.
I agree with Mylt1. It’s just a the default search engine (which I dislike). I’m a hardware nut, if I don’t like the software I change it. I just with the 2.2 upgrade would roll out so I don’t have to root my phone for flash.
The fact that this phone has Bing on it is annoying, but it does go deeper than just searching. The device has a car dock that has a car desktop to allow you to have quick access to features while driving. This car desktop only allows you to get directions from bing, and only lets you use GPS from that screen with VZ Navigator. Google maps and navigation where a seperate download, and have to be accessed in the apps menu. This whole bing thing is a big flaw, but the hardware is top notch, so in order to use the features I like, I will just click on a few extra screens to get to my Google apps. Remember that Android is an open OS. It has to change and re-change. If they never tried new things, we might be talking on an Apple forum right now. VZW will see what works, and sales will dictate what they do. Also keep in mind that someone is going to match the Fascinate’s hardware, and they might go Google on it. Give it time….
I want this phone so badly, but I hate Bing so much! I want google not Bing! I guess I’ll just have to go with the Droid 2G then. I have to deal with Moto Blur but atleast I have Google :)