C-Section Comics came up with this matrix of how smartphone users see each other. Pretty accurate if you ask me. Interesting to note that Nokia is not included. It seems it has lost relevance in the smartphone space.
Wherefore Art Thou Samsung Galaxy S?
Globe supposedly has the exclusive right to sell the Samsung Galaxy S but I’ve been to several Globe business centers and I haven’t seen one. One business center told me it’s not in stock. Another told me it’s on reservation basis with a possibility of delivery in 1-2 months (vs the Apple iPhone 4’s 1-2 weeks). Yet another told me it has been phased out. What is the story really? I wonder if Globe was required by Apple to sell so many iPhone 4s that they’ve decided to curtail sales of its most potent competitor.
Nokia N8 First Impression
Had the chance to play around with a Nokia N8 display unit. Build is very good. The body is mainly made of anodized aluminum. It’s not stainless steel but it’s reasonably tough. The display is covered with Gorilla glass so it should also be tough. Even the plastic ends and port covers seems to be of a durable material. No flimsy rubber here like that on the E51. It comes in many colors but no black. Only a watered down dark gray.
The camera is great. The main selling point of the N series has always been the camera and it doesn’t disappoint. The lens is Carl Zeiss and it has a Xenon flash. It is good for general purpose shots and even has macro. The shutter is a two-stage focus then shoot button. It also takes 720p video at 25fps. There’s supposedly a hack out there that makes this 30fps. The trade-off is that the camera module is quite big and significantly protrudes from the back.
What Kind of Starbucks Customer Are You?
The iPhone 4 and the Genius of Apple’s Marketing
You have to hand it over to Apple’s Marketing. They don’t exactly have the best product technically speaking, but they are able to sell and sell lots. Take for example the claims they have for the iPhone 4:
FaceTime – Phone calls like you’ve never seen before.
Reality: False. Video calls, which is what FaceTime is, have been seen before in other phones since 3G came about. Another limitation is that FaceTime requires WiFi. If you have WiFi you could just as well be using video chat apps such as Yahoo! Messenger and Skype (assuming the iPhone lets you run those).
Retina display – The world’s sharpest, highest-resolution phone display.
Reality: True. At 960×640 is the highest out there. But not by much, some phones such as the Samsung Galaxy S (800 x 480) also have relatively high resolutions. Plus resolution is just part of the picture. Super AMOLED is more power-efficient, better contrast ratio, better color reproduction, and faster response time. Check here for more.
Multitasking – Done the right way.
Reality: False. iOS multitasking allows only for specially made apps to run in the background. This is almost like cooperative multitasking which is what Windows 3.1 (remember that?) had. Preemptive multitasking is doing it the right way.
Here’s one ugly reality: The iPhone 4’s antennas are the metals bits on the sides. Your hands can interfere with the signal and in areas of low signal strength, can result in dropped calls.
Here’s another ugly reality: The iPhone 4 has two glass sides compared to previous iPhones. Gorilla glass or not, it has twice the chance of breaking if it falls.
But then I guess Apple’s target market don’t really care much about these things.
still superior in contrast ratio, color reproduction and response time.