God, it's a depressing time to buy a new mobile

Dodgy_Geezer

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I mean just look at the market; rows upon rows of identikit touch screen mediocrity with not a single glimmer of innovative design or functionality. There was absolutely nothing of interest at the MWC this year with not a single genuinely exciting proposition.

I rarely change handsets but am in a position where I test loads for my company so get to use many. Now this really isn't meant to be a troll posting, more a rant at the current state of the mobile industry.

Take Samsung for example; they've flooded the market with every conceivable version of a Galaxy possible, each as boring and as bland as the previous handset. If you lined them all up side-by-side, you'd be hard pressed to distinguish between them. We have the Galaxy Ace, Galaxy Pro, Galaxy Note, Galaxy Mini and Galaxy S range, and Lord knows what else, each with several different sub-versions.

HTC are no better, the last time they made a decent phone that actually lasted a day on a full charge under normal use was never. At least though, they try to make an effort with the style and materials.

That leaves Sony and Motorola, both of whom are quite innovative and put effort into their handsets. Unfortunately, it means their efforts are pretty much wasted in the endless sea of touchscreen handsets and lack of shelf space.

Why don't companies focus on better battery life instead of cramming the latest <insert pointless gimmicky feature here>? Would it really kill someone to come out with a decent Android BlackBerry beater with a full qwerty and optical trackpad? Why are there no compact smartphones with a normal phonepad for those who don't relish carrying around a brick in their pockets?

And let's not forget the software either, the choices are more limited than the breakfast menu at a Russian Gulag. Take your pick from;

1. The latest buggy build of Android complete with ludicrous hardware specs that has turned this segment into an arms race and d*ck measuring contest.

2. iOs that looks pretty much the same as it did 5 years ago.

3. Windows Phone if you're a 13 year old teen who thinks that the world revolves around social media.

4. The new Blackberry OS 10 that has launched a silly swipe based system, jumped firmly on the touchscreen bandwagon and is currently dragging the donkey along the road to nowhere.


Honestly, the market is getting worse and worse with nothing to look forward to on the horizon. And before anyone mentions the S4, you can put money on it being a) bigger than the last one; b) 4G enabled; c) offering not much more than the previous 2 versions.

If a I had a cane, I'd be waving it angrily by now
</rant>
 
I mean just look at the market; rows upon rows of identikit touch screen mediocrity with not a single glimmer of innovative design or functionality. There was absolutely nothing of interest at the MWC this year with not a single genuinely exciting proposition.

I rarely change handsets but am in a position where I test loads for my company so get to use many. Now this really isn't meant to be a troll posting, more a rant at the current state of the mobile industry.

Take Samsung for example; they've flooded the market with every conceivable version of a Galaxy possible, each as boring and as bland as the previous handset. If you lined them all up side-by-side, you'd be hard pressed to distinguish between them. We have the Galaxy Ace, Galaxy Pro, Galaxy Note, Galaxy Mini and Galaxy S range, and Lord knows what else, each with several different sub-versions.

HTC are no better, the last time they made a decent phone that actually lasted a day on a full charge under normal use was never. At least though, they try to make an effort with the style and materials.

That leaves Sony and Motorola, both of whom are quite innovative and put effort into their handsets. Unfortunately, it means their efforts are pretty much wasted in the endless sea of touchscreen handsets and lack of shelf space.

Why don't companies focus on better battery life instead of cramming the latest <insert pointless gimmicky feature here>? Would it really kill someone to come out with a decent Android BlackBerry beater with a full qwerty and optical trackpad? Why are there no compact smartphones with a normal phonepad for those who don't relish carrying around a brick in their pockets?

And let's not forget the software either, the choices are more limited than the breakfast menu at a Russian Gulag. Take your pick from;

1. The latest buggy build of Android complete with ludicrous hardware specs that has turned this segment into an arms race and d*ck measuring contest.

2. iOs that looks pretty much the same as it did 5 years ago.

3. Windows Phone if you're a 13 year old teen who thinks that the world revolves around social media.

4. The new Blackberry OS 10 that has launched a silly swipe based system, jumped firmly on the touchscreen bandwagon and is currently dragging the donkey along the road to nowhere.


Honestly, the market is getting worse and worse with nothing to look forward to on the horizon. And before anyone mentions the S4, you can put money on it being a) bigger than the last one; b) 4G enabled; c) offering not much more than the previous 2 versions.

If a I had a cane, I'd be waving it angrily by now
</rant>


great post

ive just gone to an iphone 5 for a couple of reasons

I am sick of big phones 5" screen in the hand is too much for everyday use as a PHONE

Android on every device ive ever owned is garbage....its buggy and jerky regardless of handset price and spec(s2,s3,desire HD,galaxy ace) it just feels unrefined i have finally had enough of it,apps crash too often

ios while dull and due for an overhaul works,its smooth and stable,apps are more reliable for one ,scrolling through contacts messages web pages and so on is a different experience to android....the phone fits in my hand and pocket perfectly and its not flashy like some toy

I swear if my bold 9700 had a better browser i would still have it now its fantastic as a PHONE,battery lasts for days,calls are perfect,messaging is easy due to the keyboard and emails are excellent just that browser experience is painfully slow and annoying
 
I know what you mean in some ways, but I wouldn't say they were all crap.

I'm very happy with my Note 2. The camera is more than acceptable, the sound quality using a custom Kernel is very good indeed, I have about 75 Gb of usable storage, it's very fast, it's extremely pretty (UI) with the modifications I've made to mine, the battery life is spot on, and its actually usable for working as well as play.

My GF has an SGS3 and while its a competent enough device, its not really in the same league IMO. Noticeably slower (although I dare say thats fixable too) and with a significantly worse screen.

Granted its not perfect, but nothing is. I've had iphones (a 3G and a 4) and Windows Phone (Lumia 800 and 920) and those bored me to tears quite frankly.

I will agree though that Android still needs quite a bit of polish. Its getting there with Vanilla, but ultimately they do have their usability flaws and only the most deluded would say otherwise.
 
I've been looking at the Galaxy Note 2 for a while and it ticks most of the boxes but is simply too big. And the lack of hardware call buttons on virtually every Android annoys the hell outta me, I've lost count the number of times I've had a call, whipped out the mobile, swiped to answer (like an idiot of course, nobody can seriously suggest that swiping to answer is easier and more efficient than pressing a button) only to have the call go to voicemail because I was 2mm from the end of the screen before releasing the swipe.

And Android seems to be in a perpetual state of beta software that's never polished enough. It's a platform built solely to make money from ads and as such, the marketplace is crammed full of snooping apps that have no right to be granted access to anything. Take a simple battery monitoring app for example; it wanted access to snoop my contacts, network, SMS and God knows what else just to monitor the bloody juice left in the battery. Why the hell does it need that???

No matter how much hardware you throw at Android, it's still never quite enough because the next buggy sub-optimal version just ups the hardware requirements. The Android philosophy, perhaps because of the level of handset fragmentation, always appears to be lets not bother optimising the source code because the hardware will sort it out. Slap the various flavours of TouchWiz, Moto Blur and HTC Sense on and bang goes any notion of actually improving the OS performance. It's why custom mods like Cyanogen are so popular because they strip out the crap and make it actually usable.
I like iOS, by and large, it just works and is slick, ergonomic and efficient. Still a problem with battery not lasting more than a day and still too much dependency on swiping and all manner of silly touchscreen chicanery but at least you can see the quality and effort in the OS.

The less said about Windows Phone the better. The kindest thing I can say is that it's the most innovative attempt at a mobile OS in years if social media is everything you want.

I think the old BB OS7 hit the sweet spot with pretty much everything bar the stupid nuances such as no FM radio on the top end models, no way of silencing the damn camera shutter and the feeble notification system for appointments that got rid of the super useful Today screen and replaced it with that silly notification bar.
 
Sounds like you either want a Nexus 4 or an iPhone then, although whether they'd satisfy you is anyones guess.

I've just come to accept that these devices are still a long way from being perfect. I do agree with many of your points, but it really doesn't bother me these days, as long as it gets the job done.
 
I know exactly where you're coming from, but don't agree on every point you've made.

Android is ruined by manufacturer customisations, IMO. But on the flip side, some of the additions they make offer every-day benefits, be that battery life, security or just tweaks such as recognising you're reading and stopping the screen from turning off or rotating.

Android does see some innovation too - I love the idea of the HTC One's programmable iR Remote Control that links to a TV guide so you can browse whats on, hit a TV show and it'll tune you into it. Simple, obvious, but useful. It can also control your AV kit as it's programmable, which has to be of interest to AVForumers.

But... give me plain Android on a Nexus device every day of the week, for many of the reasons you've mentioned. It's more reliable, far better looking, easier and more consistent to use, makes better use of screen real estate and IMO, it looks good.

Your points about permissions shows a lack of understanding about Android security... but equally, I still maintain security shouldn't be something the user has to choose and work out for themselves.

BlackBerry BB10 has to be lived with (i.e. not stood for 15 minutes in CarPhoneWarehouse) to get the most from. If you judge an OS by it's App store you'll be disappointed, if you want a tool, a communications device, live with it and then judge or you'll have no idea. It was always going to be hard launching a brand new OS into a very mature market, but it stands up well with every-day use. A quick test and play will leave you feeling 'what's new?', which utterly misses the point.
What I have noticed with BB10 though, is it doesn't work that well for non-techy people. Explaining peek and flow to somebody with little interest in such things is like explaining Quantum Physics to your cat.

BlackBerry have big ambitions though and will be joining the Phablet game in the not too distant future. They're also a rare breed in that they realise some people prefer physical buttons! They still have a place in this market.

iOS is stagnant, stale and too static IMO. You have to go and fetch everything. But it's still simple, reliable and easy to live with. It needs to be brought into the modern era, quickly. Apple can do it though, without spoiling all that makes iOS great. My thoughts on this have been splattered over the forum many a time recently.

Windows Phone is a funny old beast. It's the only other OS that can match iOS for consistency and polish across all manufacturers, but it still feels like a v1 OS in many ways. I've handed a bunch of them out at work and some absolutely love it and it has replaced Android and iOS devices, others hate it and just can't get their head around it. But equally, it brings some great native functionality to the table that other OS' could learn a lot from, such as consolidated messaging and offline Sat Nav (offline!!).

The biggest problem overall is we're now butting up against physical limitations that no manufacturer can overcome at the moment, things like size, heat and battery life. We're relying on software to overcome these problems, which is always a compromise.

We need a year of fine tuning rather than marketing. Screw ultramegapurepixels and 8-Core CPU's (coming soon to a Samsung near you...), give me battery life measured in many days, phones I don't have to babysit and be fearful of dropping or marking, screens that show colours how they're meant to be (I want a screen, not a carnival, thank you OLED) and for goodness sake give me standardisation - one wireless charging standard and one wireless streaming standard would be a very nice start.
 
I disagree. Now is probably the best time to get a mobile because there is at last choice.

Previously only the iPhone was really the true phone to choose.

Android phones were buggy, ugly and cheap looking. Only reason to buy Android was to save a few quid.

As for blackberry, apart from being given one from work so that work can email you every hour of the day why would anyone buy this piece of s... for personal use.

Now with Jellybean, Android is actually useable. Also Android manufacturers actually have somewhat desirable offerings this year. Before this year, it was really either an IPhone 5, Samsung S3 or Note 2. Now you can pick the Xperia Z, HTC one and possibly new products from Motorola and LG. Even blackberry have moved away from their crap corporate email phones.

In my opinion there has never been a better time to get a phone than now.

Yes battery life is still average but most have gotten use to charging their phone every night just before bed. It isn't really a big deal.

As for the big screens vs the iPhones small screen, who actually uses their phones to make calls nowadays. My personal calls every month would struggle to exceed 30 mins (even my girlfriends phone often has zero minutes of calls a month and this is someone who previously would call her friends for 2 hours each time). It's about messaging, email, social media apps and meeting up face to face. Big screens are therefore much more important for a lot of people. My 5 inch Sony Z screen is still too small for me imo. However it is the best compromise at the moment and is why my iPhone 5 stays at home on the desk next to my work blackberry.
 
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Your points about permissions shows a lack of understanding about Android security... but equally, I still maintain security shouldn't be something the user has to choose and work out for themselves.

What is there to understand? I genuinely mean this, is there some kinda intrinsic at meaning for each permission?

You're absolutely right though, the user shouldn't have to work anything out. Can anyone explain why a simply app to monitor battery life would need all those permissions? There was a case a few years ago with a very popular messenging app (WhatsApp or Kik I think) that, once installed, spammed everyone in your contact list with a message telling them to install the app. Now I'm not saying everything should be bolted down so you can't fiddle with the OS, Android after all is a tweakers dream. But why make it like the Wild West with a free for all so anyone can release any app with whatever the hell permission they like to do whatever they like?

Again, can anyone please explain why a simple battery app would need all these perms? I'm picking on a battery app but even Angry Birds is guilty of "over-permissioning"


BlackBerry BB10 has to be lived with (i.e. not stood for 15 minutes in CarPhoneWarehouse) to get the most from. If you judge an OS by it's App store you'll be disappointed, if you want a tool, a communications device, live with it and then judge or you'll have no idea.

I've had BB Z10 for 2 weeks now since launch. AFAIK, there is no retail shop that has a working BB Z10 on display to fiddle with, either through stock shortage or because they've not been given demo units.

Of the several handsets we got on launch, not one single bod has decided to keep theirs. And again, absolutely right Rob, BB10 is pointless for non-techies. And therein lies the problem.

BB's are used in the corporate world (at least in Banking) mostly by non-techies and because they excel at messenging and security. A large part of the appeal is the killer keyboard. Launching a handset that takes away one of the main reason for buying a BB is just plain stupid. Sure, there's a messaging version on the way but it still relies on those God awful gestures.

Here's an interesting point; we recently spent a whole load of effort converting a bunch of apps on BB OS7 to be touch-screen compatible for Bold users. Watching users try out the app, hardly anyone made use of the touchscreen. That optical trackpad was more than enough and far more ergonomic.

I love the old BB's, they're brutally efficient and just work. You can't get better for messenging. I really hoped they'd do something better with BB 10 but after 2 weeks of owning one and using it, I can't wait to get back to the Bold.


iOS is stagnant, stale and too static IMO. You have to go and fetch everything. But it's still simple, reliable and easy to live with.

Tha's why I like it. I'd rather have stale and stagnant as long as it "just works" than something more flashy that's less reliable. The bug bear is the walled garden that's about as necessary as knickers on a kipper.


Windows Phone is a funny old beast. It's the only other OS that can match iOS for consistency and polish across all manufacturers, but it still feels like a v1 OS in many ways. I've handed a bunch of them out at work and some absolutely love it and it has replaced Android and iOS devices, others hate it and just can't get their head around it. But equally, it brings some great native functionality to the table that other OS' could learn a lot from, such as consolidated messaging and offline Sat Nav (offline!!).

Nokia had offline maps for years before WinPhone.


We need a year of fine tuning rather than marketing. Screw ultramegapurepixels and 8-Core CPU's (coming soon to a Samsung near you...), give me battery life measured in many days

+1 :smashin:


Now with Jellybean, Android is actually useable.

I thought Jellybean was a step back. Gingerbread was the apex of Android usability for me. I bloody hate the way anything useful on Android requires an effing Google account. Why for God's sake? Take video's for example. There's no longer a separate video app, there's a crappy Google Movies app instead that forces you to set up an account and register even if you want to watch offline. Sure, you can download an app but why should I have to do that?


Also Android manufacturers actually have somewhat desirable offerings this year. Before this year, it was really either an IPhone 5, Samsung S3 or Note 2. Now you can pick the Xperia Z, HTC one and possibly new products from Motorola and LG.

Dunno about desirability. They're all still meh. Take you pick from a big-ass brick with a stupidly oversized screen or a slightly smaller but still big ass brick with a slightly smaller touchscreen. We got an Xperia Z in the other day. Beautifully built with a slick UI but still stupidly oversized and competing with other stupidly sized bricks. I recognise there's a market for bigger screens but equally, there's a market for smaller and more discrete screens, one that manufacturers can't abandon quick enough.


Yes battery life is still average but most have gotten use to charging their phone every night just before bed. It isn't really a big deal.

It is if you travel a lot or are a frequent flyer.


As for the big screens vs the iPhones small screen, who actually uses their phones to make calls nowadays ... It's about messaging, email, social media apps and meeting up face to face. Big screens are therefore much more important for a lot of people. My 5 inch Sony Z screen is still too small for me imo. However it is the best compromise at the moment and is why my iPhone 5 stays at home on the desk next to my work blackberry.

I see where you're coming from but plenty of people still use a phone for making calls. It's one of the reasons why there's been a steep decline in people taking landlines. Ironically, the spead of social media and messenging means that fewer people are bothering to make calls and meet face-to-face. In some ways, mobile's have brought people ever closer but in other ways, they've isolated us more by reducing the necessity to make calls. These days, it's much easier to send a message asking how someone is instead of ctaully bothering to call them up or make the effort to meet. And that's a sad thing I think, everything is less personal.

Speaking for myself, if I can't conclude a conversation within 5 mins of messenging, I just call the person, it's much easier and quicker.
 
What is there to understand? I genuinely mean this, is there some kinda intrinsic at meaning for each permission?

Yes and No... it's not as black and white as it seems. I don't know exactly what App you're talking about though, so it's hard to be specific about a very complex subject. The most important thing is you're in control and the Apps are forced to declare the permissions they're asking for up-front, so you know exactly what's happening.

Of the several handsets we got on launch, not one single bod has decided to keep theirs. And again, absolutely right Rob, BB10 is pointless for non-techies. And therein lies the problem.

It's funny really, as I've a queue of people bothering me for them and few are techies. How they get on after the first month remains to be seen. I know I'm contradicting my earlier point a bit, but there does seem to be a real desire to use this sort of thing, it's just not everyone has the patience for the learning curve of a new OS. Time will tell.

BB's are used in the corporate world (at least in Banking) mostly by non-techies and because they excel at messenging and security. A large part of the appeal is the killer keyboard. Launching a handset that takes away one of the main reason for buying a BB is just plain stupid. Sure, there's a messaging version on the way but it still relies on those God awful gestures.

The gestures aren't essential to the experience. You can still use it like iOS and open each App individually and not worry about where it takes you - click into Text Messages for instance and you're taken to the Hub, but without gestures. But, as said, the gestures are a big selling point and some people just really don't 'get it'.

As with everything in life, it won't please everyone but at least you're not forced to use them any more than you are on any other device. iOS still has gestures, swipe down for NC being the most obvious example, yet that's considered simple.

I love the old BB's, they're brutally efficient and just work. You can't get better for messenging. I really hoped they'd do something better with BB 10 but after 2 weeks of owning one and using it, I can't wait to get back to the Bold.

Personal choice and all that, but I'm yet to find anything worse about messaging in BB10. The physical keyboard vs onscreen is again personal choice, but when I rolled out physical keyboard BB's I had just as many people say they hate it as love it - some refused point blank and insisted on a touchscreen keyboard as that was their preference.

Fortunately BB10 will have both options in the not too distant future, something very rare in modern smartphones sadly.

I thought Jellybean was a step back. Gingerbread was the apex of Android usability for me. I bloody hate the way anything useful on Android requires an effing Google account. Why for God's sake? Take video's for example. There's no longer a separate video app, there's a crappy Google Movies app instead that forces you to set up an account and register even if you want to watch offline. Sure, you can download an app but why should I have to do that?

For the same reason as in iOS I guess - because you want to. I've used Android without a Google account just fine (I refuse to sign into my Google account when security-testing Android devices at work) and while there are things that don't work without it, it's no worse than any other OS IMO. But as you say, if you don't like an App you can download another. The benefit of Android is you can then make that the default App.

I don't like Safari browser in iOS but without Jailbreaking, I cannot replace it fully. I've installed Chrome and want all links to open in it, but that's not possible.

I 'get' the walled-garden approach and the many, many benefits it brings, but user choice shouldn't always be ignored.

Dunno about desirability. They're all still meh. Take you pick from a big-ass brick with a stupidly oversized screen or a slightly smaller but still big ass brick with a slightly smaller touchscreen. We got an Xperia Z in the other day. Beautifully built with a slick UI but still stupidly oversized and competing with other stupidly sized bricks. I recognise there's a market for bigger screens but equally, there's a market for smaller and more discrete screens, one that manufacturers can't abandon quick enough.

I kinda agree with your point, if not the way you've put it. I find it sad that all flagships are larger screens, I see no reason why manufacturers can't make a truly high-end device with a smaller screen that is no less capable than their larger screened alternatives.

But having lived with a Note 2 and other large screened phones, there are a lot of benefits to them. I personally think 5" is tops for every day use, but even that will put people off. It's just a shame those who are put off can't get the same high-end experience with a smaller screen.

It is if you travel a lot or are a frequent flyer.

Couldn't agree more. Battery life really bugs me. It IS a big deal as it's the one certain with all smartphones - no power = no use. In this day and age, nobody should spend ÂŁ500+ on something and worry that they can't use it to it's full potential for more than a day.
 
I have to say my biggest beef with android at the moment is the gigantification of it, I've got the nexus 4 and I've got used to it but seriously stop there, 5 inch is too big as a phone. I know there's a market for the size but it's more that if you don't want a 4.5" plus phone the hardware just isn't up to scratch, I like having the power but to go any smaller you'd be limited to dual core and 1gb of ram
 
^^

but the phones arnt really increasing in size that much, theyre mostly improving on providing more screen real estate relative to phone size.

most 4.7 to 5 inch phones are just around a cm taller than an iphone
 
The only thing putting me off the Galaxy Note 2 is the stupid size. Then again though, I'm sure that if it was smaller, the battery would be much smaller too and like other Androids, it'd barely last a day. It really bugs me how manufacturers cram ever more ludicrous hardware specs into Android and then shove a bigger battery into it thus offsetting any longevity the extra cells would provide for more reasonable specs.

Why not just cram a larger battery into a normal size mobile without the quad core, 2GB, hyperthread crap? We know it's possible so quit screwing the consumer with rubbish batteries!
 
I disagree. Now is probably the best time to get a mobile because there is at last choice.

I agree with your disagreement :D

For the tech savvy, now is a great time to buy a phone because there's so much competition which is creating tons of choice and driving prices down to the point where even those on a tight budget can pick up a handset that performs extremely well. We have several excellent operating systems (or 'eco systems') to choose from, each getting better and better all the time and offering innovative new features with regular updates. The mobile tech industrty is in an exciting phase right now.

However my only disapointment is that hardware innovation has more or less come to an end. It's reached it's final evolved state of high resolution thin slab. There's nowhere else it can go. Samsung might release some flexible screen phones but they will be a pointless gimmick. The future is Google Glass, this time in 2-3 years we'll all be ditching our slabs and walking around with heads-up displays :cool:
 
The only thing putting me off the Galaxy Note 2 is the stupid size. Then again though, I'm sure that if it was smaller, the battery would be much smaller too and like other Androids, it'd barely last a day. It really bugs me how manufacturers cram ever more ludicrous hardware specs into Android and then shove a bigger battery into it thus offsetting any longevity the extra cells would provide for more reasonable specs.

Why not just cram a larger battery into a normal size mobile without the quad core, 2GB, hyperthread crap? We know it's possible so quit screwing the consumer with rubbish batteries!


You moan about laggy and buggy android and you want a single core processor?

If battery is such an issue for you, why dont you buy external batteries and put them in your wallet? They are cheap as chips, not that big in size and hardly a pain to swap over. With my Note 1 and 2, I would carry an external battery in my pocket fully charged at all times. It took less space than the wad of ÂŁ50s in there so wasnt an issue to carry.

The size of the Note 2 is for people who want a smartphone but dont make many calls. This isnt you judging by your previous comment so it wouldnt suit you.

You probably want an iphone 5 in all seriousness.
 
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I can certainly understand where the OP is coming from, I've been commenting similar for a good year or so now.

For me the Nokia 808 even putting aside the camera takes some beating. It design is unique and sits perfectly in the hand, good size good thickness, battery can get through 3 whole days of genuine moderate use, has forgotten features such as FM Transmitter, always displayed notifications(Nokia Sleeping Screen) and also full offline GPS navigation. The list goes on, but people wrongly assume that being Symbian it's clunky and unreliable, yet it's the opposite and has been rock solid for me, oh and the antenna is the strongest I've witnessed in any smartphone.

The only upcoming smartphone that interests me is the Blackberry Q10, sounds to me it could well be tge device for the OP too as has everything you like about Blacberry, and should eliminate your dislikes of the Z10.
 
You moan about laggy and buggy android and you want a single core processor?

Asking this question comes from the same attitude as Androids performance problems in the first place, the belief that the answer to 'better' performance comes from adding more cores and a higher clock speed.

Android is the only OS where manufacturers shout, scream and creating marketing hype around a processors clock speed.

Windows Phone has proven how good performance can be, how responsive an OS can be, with just a single core, dual core at most. Any more isn't necessary, even if it is inevitable to attract people who think more = better.

Software is far more important. Efficient design can make more of a difference than adding more and more CPU performance. It just takes effort.


If battery is such an issue for you, why dont you buy external batteries and put them in your wallet? They are cheap as chips, not that big in size and hardly a pain to swap over. With my Note 1 and 2, I would carry an external battery in my pocket fully charged at all times. It took less space than the wad of ÂŁ50s in there so wasnt an issue to carry.

Doing so is a workaround to sub-par battery life that shouldn't be necessary. Also, telling somebody who wants a smaller phone to carry more stuff seems to miss the point D_G is making entirely.

If manufacturers can find a way of getting 8-cores into a tiny smartphone processor, fitting 128GB of storage into a tablet, making 1080p screens that are less than 5" in size, why can't they put that same skill and determination into making OS and hardware design more efficient and into improving battery technology so carrying external batteries. This should be what we're arguing and shouting for, rather than telling people to carry yet more stuff.
 
Rob for someone who apparently works in tech in some form (I am assuming this from some of your other posts) you do talk a lot of rubbish.

The reason why Android lags is because of the widgets. The best thing about Android is also the widgets. Therefore to get the best of Android you need memory and processing power. If you use Android by having a blank screen and just clicking on the app drawer you don't need power. However you may as well buy an iPhone in that case. Android has been laggy because of lack of power/memory to handle the widgets.

As for windows, it is slightly like apple in that it doesn't use widgets although has live tiles. Because it doesn't employ widgets it will not lag as much but at the same time also isn't an attractive OS for a lot of people. If you apply widgets on a windows pc it slows down the pc heavily. Therefore widgets on a windows device will also require power and memory. It's the nature of widgets. Can widgets be made more efficient? Probably yes, but no one has been able to it on any system.

As for battery life, you should know that tech improves over the years. These improvements consume largely two things, battery juice and memory/data. 10 yrs from now a 500gb phone would probably be laughed at let alone a 16gb one. In short battery tech has improved but it is constantly fighting improvement in technology. Since there are still lots more improvement to be made in our devices don't expect the battery life situation to improve too much any time soon. Yes everyone would favour more battery performance but everyone also wants to get to the stage where their phones transform into a robot and does all their chores at night.

Besides, as mentioned carrying an extra battery is hardly taxing, not that most people really need to anyway. At the end of the day, if battery life was an issue no one would be buying today's phones.

I wish my car never gets dirty when driving. Perhaps they could have invested in paint technology rather than giving me 540 bhp.

The actual depressing market is the tablet market. Apart from the ipad there is no choice. For smartphones there is plenty of choice.
 
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Having recently gone from a Nexus S running stock JB to a Nexus 4 running stock JB I can safely say that more cores and more memory = better, much better.
 
4 days from one battery charge on my Note 2.

Initially I was a little worried about its size. I now look at other phones and think they are really small, rather than think mine is too big!

Like a flat screen tv, after a week or so you wonder what the fuss was all about, as you get used to the size.

I love the battery in my Note2......which was one of the main reasons for ordering it. It lasts long and can be replaced in the future if required.
 
you do talk a lot of rubbish.

Agreed. Bin bags.

The reason why Android lags is because of the widgets. The best thing about Android is also the widgets. Therefore to get the best of Android you need memory and processing power. If you use Android by having a blank screen and just clicking on the app drawer you don't need power. However you may as well buy an iPhone in that case. Android has been laggy because of lack of power/memory to handle the widgets.

Wrong. Android is not laggy because of widgets. You can demonstrate the same behaviour with and without widgets, in and out of Apps, on stock and heavily customised phones.

Project Butter improved things considerably (even with widgets) but it did so by increasing CPU usage (amongst other things), Android as an OS is not as efficient and needs conscious effort to make Apps designed for it as efficient as possible. There are many articles to read if you have trouble sleeping that discuss it and give performance tips, including some very good ones on the Android Developers website. Let me know if you want some examples.

Also look to the developer community for further proof that widgets are not the problem. A lot of effort goes into customised kernels to increase efficiency, allow CPU clock speeds to be reduced, battery life increased, all without sacrificing performance and still allowing as many widgets as you like. The results are often a smoother experience, less lag, loads of widgets and good battery life.

Widgets are not the problem.

As for windows, it is slightly like apple in that it doesn't use widgets although has live tiles. Because it doesn't employ widgets it will not lag as much but at the same time also isn't an attractive OS for a lot of people. If you apply widgets on a windows pc it slows down the pc heavily. Therefore widgets on a windows device will also require power and memory. It's the nature of widgets. Can widgets be made more efficient? Probably yes, but no one has been able to it on any system.

Wrong again. As above, widgets are not the problem. Windows uses a kernel that doesn't need as much processing or graphics power to operate smoothly, it was designed from the outset with this sort of thing in mind.

As for battery life, you should know that tech improves over the years. These improvements consume largely two things, battery juice and memory/data. 10 yrs from now a 500gb phone would probably be laughed at let alone a 16gb one. In short battery tech has improved but it is constantly fighting improvement in technology. Since there are still lots more improvement to be made in our devices don't expect the battery life situation to improve too much any time soon. Yes everyone would favour more battery performance but everyone also wants to get to the stage where their phones transform into a robot and does all their chores at night.

You've not made any comments to reply to here. No points, no reasoning, nothing. Moving on...

Besides, as mentioned carrying an extra battery is hardly taxing, not that most people really need to anyway. At the end of the day, if battery life was an issue no one would be buying today's phones.

Bizarre. If people with attitudes like yours were in any position of power, we'd be doomed. You find battery life good enough, that's great, but for many others it isn't. The fact we're discussing it and you're the only person arguing it's good enough speaks volumes.

Also, what good is carrying a battery if your phone doesn't allow you to change it? I'm sure your answer will be 'carry a battery pack' but that's simply not viable for everyone, especially those who need to travel light or who don't carry manbags with them 24x7.

I wish my car never gets dirty when driving. Perhaps they could have invested in paint technology rather than giving me 540 bhp.

By your own logic, the problem isn't the car but the dirt. If widgets are the cause of Androids performance problem, not the OS, dirt is the problem with your car, not the paint. Have a word with mud. And rain.

The actual depressing market is the tablet market. Apart from the ipad there is no choice. For smartphones there is plenty of choice.

You're point is so highly contradictory it's funny. There is just as much choice in either market. Whether you want a ÂŁ100 tablet or a ÂŁ1000 tablet you're spoilt for choice. If you look beneath the surface, smartphones and tablets share OS, Apps and hardware, so it's just as easy to find competition in the tablet space as it is the smartphone space.

By your logic nobody would be buying smartphones if battery life was a problem. Using this same logic, nobody would be buying anything but iPads if there weren't competition, which we know is a statement nobody would be daft enough to make.
 
Carrying a battery is not a solution to the root problem. It's a work around. We should not have to resort to this.

Big screens can get annoying but somebody is buying them? I find it odd nobody is contesting the iPhone at the mid-range size. They've clearly given up. Definitely a big market here but I don't think manufacturer's think they can compete?
 
Agreed, I think a smartphone that packs the performance and functionality of the Xperia Z / Nexus 4 / Z10 / Lumia 920 / Galaxy S3 / HTC One / Something else but in a smaller package would sell off the shelves.

Smaller = Lesser model sadly :(
 
Bigger = better, simple as.

(Until that is I have to swap my SIM card into a Lumia 800 when I go out cos my Note 2 is too big for my jeans pocket :D)
 
Stop wearing skinny jeans, you big girl ;)
 
Stop wearing skinny jeans, you big girl ;)

Haha, I wear the baggiest jeans known to man! But I have one pair that do have very small pockets!

Even so the Galaxy Note with a case on is still massive!
 

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