Verizon's web site says the update offers 14 improvements or corrections, including stabilization of the operating system, three-way calling enhancements, improved camera autofocus, longer battery life, and better audio.

Tinkering Needed

The update, which is being done at low usage times to avoid inconveniencing users, is a good move, said William Stofega, program manager for mobile device technology and trends for IDC. "Like a lot of new devices, the Droid needs some tinkering," he said. "For instance, focusing the camera is an issue and voice quality is an issue. At lot of these things can be done in software rather than hardware ."

Stofega said the update touches on key functions which, if left uncorrected, could hurt the Droid's popularity.

"They're really important. There were some flaws. The camera was the most advertised. There always are some software bugs that get into [the product] that happen out of the box. It is very important and significant that they confront it and do it fairly quickly," Stofega said. "I think its good Verizon is listening to customers and making sure they get the code updates to them before the real complaints start, and especially before they are faced with considering whether or not to get it for a gift."

First Impressions Last

Ross Rubin, director of industry analysis for the NPD Group, agreed that the update is a good step. "The Droid update that Verizon is reported to be rolling out is a minor update, albeit one that can create a meaningful improvement to its users' experience," he wrote in an e-mail. "In an age of advanced smartphones, it is still important to address established functionality such as voice quality and taking pictures. This is the case even if the problems affect relatively few users."

Stofega is impressed with what he has seen of the Droid, which was released by Motorola on the Verizon network early last month. "Everyone wants to position every device as an iPhone killer," he said. "They are just not. They are their own devices. If you told an analyst that Motorola and Verizon would have a hit on their hands [before the introduction], they would have said you were crazy."

This seems to be just what the beleaguered vendor needed, Stofega said. "Motorola had been given up for dead," he added. "When you see people in the blogger community giving it the kudos I think it deserves, you should take your hats off to them for spotting the opportunity and taking the risk with the new device."

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