Does Hardware in Smartphones Matter?

[guardianangel42]

[citation][nom]rpmrush[/nom]That was a very scatter brained article. I felt a better point could have been made. Droid phones can have an unpolished feel at times, but if the point was a more polished software package is better than bleeding edge hardware than it was poorly made.[/citation]

I agree with this. I got the message the author was trying to convey, that right now software integration is much more important than hardware integration, but it wasn't terribly well done.

I also disagree with the author's offhand dismissal of WP7. I have a windows phone 7 phone, the Samsung Focus, and am extremely satisfied with it. It has the software unification of the iPhone and the hardware to run it. Microsoft set a minimum system requirement and while my Focus currently has just that, the minimum, it works just as well, and as fast, as the iPhone 4 my best friend has and so, so much better than the Samsung Impression my mom has.

In fact, I honestly have no idea how the two phones are made by the same manufacturer. Other than the relatively low build quality and the awkward button placement, these two phones couldn't be more different.

And with the update that (finally) came out, my phone now runs twice as fast as when I bought it.

 

[HappyBB]

I agree that a tougher standard must be set by Google for hardware manufacturers and app developers to follow and develop on Android. Only until then, Android can truely compete against iOS.

 

[Guest]

I agree on the platform integration point; but my friend has a better experience in Android from iOS. He uses expensive HTC Nexus One (3G GSM) and Samsung Nexus S (AWS/3G type 5) versus an iPhone 3GS.

The article gets one thing but in a ho-hum manner: had I on a market for smartphone, I narrow down on HTC or Samsung and a regular phone Sony Ericsson is good to look for. Price is indeed great equalizer that puts LG design on the map but you do get what you paid for with $100 Android phone.

My $100 Windows Mobile phone from HTC is solid; extremely crispy loud speaker, good battery life; a manufacturing befit the HTC brand; but Windows Mobile 6.5 Standard gives out whole slew of app problems that puts it no better than a Sony Ericsson. Though AWS did limit my choices across only few selections.

 

[dimar]

When do I get a phone that could capture Ultra HDTV (7680x4320) at 120fps with 200Mbps H.265 encoding, which then I could burn on my 6TB holo-disk?

 

[duaneriverat]

If you want SmartPhone or Android Update. You know what to do? Right. Just visit here: http://mytechnoisland.blogspot.com/ so simple

 

[blackened144]

[citation][nom]dimar[/nom]When do I get a phone that could capture Ultra HDTV (7680x4320) at 120fps with 200Mbps H.265 encoding, which then I could burn on my 6TB holo-disk?[/citation]
Tonight... In your dreams.

 

[mayankleoboy1]

[citation][nom]dimar[/nom]When do I get a phone that could capture Ultra HDTV (7680x4320) at 120fps with 200Mbps H.265 encoding, which then I could burn on my 6TB holo-disk?[/citation]

call me. i have this setup.

 

[gm0n3y]

[citation][nom]dimar[/nom]When do I get a phone that could capture Ultra HDTV (7680x4320) at 120fps with 200Mbps H.265 encoding, which then I could burn on my 6TB holo-disk?[/citation]
I also have 2 of those. The problem is that their both stuck here in my country and I can't get them to the US. If you could help me out I'll give you one of them as payment. Just send me $5000 to cover some expenses and I can get them right to you.

 

[brett1042002]

After the iPhone 3G slowness debacle, I switched immediately to a Motorola Atrix 4G. Very happy with the phone all around. Great battery life (about 2-3 days battery life with my usage, yours may vary), stable OS (no weird crashes), fast performance in all apps (yay dual-core), and user-friendly.

 

[fulle]

OK. I understand... you got an entry level Android device with inferior hardware, the user experience suffered as a result, so you decided to write an article about the importance of hardware in modern smartphones, and how we're not going to reach a point where stronger hardware isn't a major factor for a very long time.

Wait... you're arguing the opposite... i don't get it.

 

[sykozis]

I still fail to see the need for a "SmartPhone"....even after owning one myself. Sure, my Blackberry was the best phone I've ever owned, but I didn't need 98% of the features that the phone had. I don't see "Smartphones" ever replacing desktop or laptop computers due to cost, battery constraints and size....as well as software availability.

[citation][nom]dalauder[/nom]Anyone remember the Nokia 3210 of 1999 and 3310 of 2000? Those phones were excellent and EVERYONE had them. Why isn't there a market for phones that lack systemic flaws?[/citation]
Not everyone had a Nokia 3210 or 3310. My sister had several Nokia phones from 96-98 all of which failed within 2-3 months. My family has avoided Nokia like the plague ever since.

 

[Lamiel]

I've said it before, and I'll probably say it again - I can scroll down through the article titles on Tom's home page and ALWAYS pick out which ones were written by W.G., just by the pointlessness of the subject. Does hardware in smartphones matter? This is a question that no one with half a brain needs to ask. Just once I'd like to see Mr. Gruener tackle an issue that's actually worth writing about.

 

[scuba dave]

[citation][nom]gm0n3y[/nom]I also have 2 of those. The problem is that their both stuck here in my country and I can't get them to the US. If you could help me out I'll give you one of them as payment. Just send me $5000 to cover some expenses and I can get them right to you.[/citation]

Win! +1

 

[MeanSquare]

My experience is markedly different. I had an HTC HD2, which had great hardware, but was hampered by the WM6.5 OS. Then I got an HTC Evo 4G; great hardware and pretty decent OS. The experience was so good, I mark it as one of the best purchasing decisions I've made. For various reasons, including substantial subsidies, I'm soon to be upgrading to the HTC Evo 3D; even better hardware and even better OS. We'll see how the experience measures up.
I'll be the first to say that the hardware here is top-notch and the OS integration (and to some degree, augmentation) done by HTC is also top-notch. So, the "problem" with Android is that you can get a cheap minimal system as well as a not-so-cheap not-at-all minimal one? I'm not sure I see that as an issue, other than having to explain "you get what you pay for" to cheap-skates.

 

[fir_ser]

Good article by Wolfgang Gruener.