Recently been very impressed with Android...

[.Ben.]

I've recently begun looking beyond Apple's devices and want to consider any viable alternatives to the iPhone 4.

As a bit of history: I've had all of the iterations of the iPhone since launch.

I'm very particular about responsive, logical and easy-to-use interfaces on consumer electronics and I also like a device to 'feel' as if it's of good, durable quality in my hand. So far, the iPhone has fit my requirements to a tee.

My experience of competitors to the iPhone are, admittedly limited. The reason for me being dismissive lies with their over-complicated and counter-intuitive interfaces, sluggish software and cheap, nasty feel in my hand. The fact my 2-year old son can use my iPhone tells me they got something right on the usability front!

Now though, it seems Apple's competitors (particularly HTC, IME) are producing devices (running Android + Sense) that are really pleasant to use and actually very responsive - approaching Apple OS levels, if I'm being honest. However, the devices themselves *still* feel cheap and not particularly durable (when compared to my 3GS).

Are there any devices that are out/ due out this year that may fit my requirements?

Constructive comments welcomed! :approve:

 

[colossuss]

I have a G1, and I can safely say that wouldnt be up to pair with your standards. It can be slow at times, ie. opening the browser and answering/hanging up phone calls

I would recommend you look at the Desire (Or Nexus one, pretty much the same phone with different cameras and hardware buttons. But same specs otherwise), which you will probably hear a lot. It should easily match up to the iPhone (I'm not saying it will for sure as I havn't used one yet)

Also, and you will probably over look this, the HD2 is very quick. I know it runs windows mobile and most people seem to hate that, but its still quick

 

[mugglesquop]

looked at BlackBerrys? some of the new ones are nice. not sure on usability tho.

i've been a HTC fan boy for a while, since WinMob 2003. Currently using a HTC Touch Diamond with WinMob 6.5 and Sense 2.1 (altho 2.5 looks nicer).

I find that if you have the knowledge/ability to learn how to edit ROMs (its not actually that hard) you could end up with a nice responsive phone with WinMob too especially if you get one with a later generation Snapdragon processor....

With regards durability, my Diamond is now 2 years old, i recently re-built it giving it a new screen and chassis as the old one was scratched (never used cases or protectors). All still going well... altho the battery isnt great at the mo, but then that could just be the ROM i'm running. joys.


oh, and you can also boot Android from WinMob i'm dual booting WinMob 6.5 and Android 3.0.0.1 at the mo

have a read here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/ covers most of the HTC devices.

 

[realnumber 1]

Don't bother with win mobile. It dead in the water now with 7 on the way. I've been a win mobile fan since I had a Orange spy about 6 years ago and have now gone Android with a desire.
Amazed with it, easy better than my brothers 3gs at most things and prob will be as good as the 4g when they release android 2.2 in the next month or 2. Plus its much cheaper!

 

[theduck]

Sony xperia x10. Just had one for Mrs duck and its brilliant, solid feel and runs android.

 

[mugglesquop]

Sony xperia x10. Just had one for Mrs duck and its brilliant, solid feel and runs android.

size of a small town tho :dead:

 

[PinkoCommie]

size of a small town tho :dead:

And only runs Android 1.6

The Samsung Galaxy S looks interesting.

i have a Nexus One and a Desire. The Nexus feels much more solid and it actually is, as a few weeks after I got it I dropped it on the top corner onto concrete while out on the piss. Tiny gouge in the metal and the case seperated slightly, but clicked back together and is perfectly fine. The screen is very durable as well, it lives in my pocket with my change and keys without a screen protector and is perfectly scratch free.

HTC legends are made out of a block of Aluminium, so they should be pretty solid as well.

 

[.Ben.]

This looks interesting:

[YOUTUBE]MdDAeyy1H0A[/YOUTUBE]

 

[mugglesquop]

The Samsung Galaxy S looks interesting.

same ARM processor (near enough) as the iPhone 4.0

just doesn't have the Apple logo on it

ARM processors are used in HTC's as well

 

[.Ben.]

Just seen a few things that are interesting (if maybe a bit outdated?):
Android vs. iPhone OS

and

[YOUTUBE]Vad6t9mYbqo[/YOUTUBE]

^ LOL. How much does the Galaxy S look like a 2G iPhone? :S

Though SWIPE and Layar look like fantastic features!

Looks like the quality of materials used to build the S-GS are still below expectation, though?

 

[Revels]

HTC are really moving forward, but to compare their new phones relatively, you need to wait and get a hands on with the iPhone4. That will be a lot faster than the 3GS.

 

[PinkoCommie]

same ARM processor (near enough) as the iPhone 4.0

just doesn't have the Apple logo on it

ARM processors are used in HTC's as well

ARM based processors are used in pretty much every smartphone going. Though the A4 from Apple is likely manufactured by Samsung anyway but does share the same core as the one in the Galazy.

 

[Revels]

Lol @ still posting that link after Snoop explained why it's wrong.

 

[sideways danny]

HTC are really moving forward, but to compare their new phones relatively, you need to wait and get a hands on with the iPhone4. That will be a lot faster than the 3GS.

This pretty much. HTC did really well with the Desire launch, getting the jump on apple with faster processor and really good functions, but you do need to be realistic and compare to new Apple stuff, and not the older tech. I think they're going to be a very close match and it'll be mostly down to individual taste

If you do want to look at Android, I'd avoid anything still running 1.6.

You're welcome to have a play with my HTC if you want Ben

 

[PinkoCommie]

Lol @ still posting that link after Snoop explained why it's wrong.

No he explained why my thoughts about running Android on the iPhone were wrong. (and I think he's wrong about that, the peripherals are just a matter of drivers, the core is the important part for the kernel, but it's not important, I just thought it was interesting)

Even if he was correct, the A4 is still likely to be actually manufactured by Samsung as Apple does not own a production chip fab plant. So the link is totally valid. To claim otherwise appears as some sort of fanboi wailing trying to convince us that the A4 is some sort of unique snowflake chip that is somehow mystical and better because it has an apple on it.

 

[colossuss]

HTC are really moving forward, but to compare their new phones relatively, you need to wait and get a hands on with the iPhone4. That will be a lot faster than the 3GS.

Wouldn't predict it will be faster than the 3GS, because of the multitasking

 

[Revels]

Time will only tell mate but that chip in the iPad is lightning fast. Obviously that doesn't have multitasking either yet.

 

[colossuss]

I think it will probably be pretty damn quick, just depends how much stuff is open and what it is. Like you said, the chip is pretty damn quick and the iPhone os is very smooth anyway

 

[sideways danny]

not noticed multi-taking slowing down the desire, just rapes battery. I'd expect similar from iP4

 

[sn00p]

No he explained why my thoughts about running Android on the iPhone were wrong. (and I think he's wrong about that, the peripherals are just a matter of drivers, the core is the important part for the kernel, but it's not important, I just thought it was interesting)

Even if he was correct, the A4 is still likely to be actually manufactured by Samsung as Apple does not own a production chip fab plant. So the link is totally valid. To claim otherwise appears as some sort of fanboi wailing trying to convince us that the A4 is some sort of unique snowflake chip that is somehow mystical and better because it has an apple on it.

Seriously dude, I've been doing embedded software development on ARM processors before ARM as a company existed and when the ARM processor had a 26 bit address bus and was fabbed by a company called VLSI. I even have the original ARM archictecture chipset guide (The ARM2 required other chips to work, MEMC and VIDC).

A few facts about the ARM architecture.

* ARM doesn't manufacture anything themselves, they sell IP.

* Both Apple and Samsung are licensees of the ARM architecture.

* Samsung is fabbing the A4 processor. The A4 processor uses the cortex core.

* The IP they sell includes everything from the high level RTL to the low level gate synthesis.

* If samsung have a synthesis of a cortex core then it makes sense for apple to use it as samsung will already have a process for making it.

* Even the pictures included in that link show that only the ARM core is the same/similar, everything else is different.

And you do realise that peripherals are hardware right? Drivers are software that interface the hardware. A processor core without peripherals is as about as useful as a chocolate teapot.

A kernel cannot run without peripherals. The MMU is a peripheral, you can't have dynamic RAM without a memory controller peripheral, video is a peripheral, timers are peripherals, usb is a peripheral, WiFI is a peripheral, you get the picture.

The core is a minor part of a processor, important, but no less so that the peripherals that allow it to actually do something useful.

Fwiw the samsung chip and the A4 are what I would refer to as a microcontroller, something that contained just a processor core with external bus control would be a microprocessor, like intel and AMD "pc" processors - all their peripherals are provided externally.

 

[sn00p]

Wouldn't predict it will be faster than the 3GS, because of the multitasking

It will be.

Multitasking is a bit of a misnomer, it's not really multitasking as you'd recognise it.

iPhone applications that want to "multitask" have a limited set of services which they can provide interfaces to (voip, timers etc). iOS will call these specific portions of the application as necessary, the whole application is not running as normal, but instead only the bits to implement the service. Apple even states that you must not update the UI as its pointless and wasteful.

Combined with notifications this covers 99% of all "multitasking" situations.

 

[colossuss]

It will be.

Multitasking is a bit of a misnomer, it's not really multitasking as you'd recognise it.

iPhone applications that want to "multitask" have a limited set of services which they can provide interfaces to (voip, timers etc). iOS will call these specific portions of the application as necessary, the whole application is not running as normal, but instead only the bits to implement the service. Apple even states that you must not update the UI as its pointless and wasteful.

Combined with notifications this covers 99% of all "multitasking" situations.

Seeing as its Apple's first multitasking device I just wouldn't get my hopes up about it, maybe after a couple of updates but at first I think it wont be as fast as it could be

 

[sn00p]

Seeing as its Apple's first multitasking device I just wouldn't get my hopes up about it, maybe after a couple of updates but at first I think it wont be as fast as it could be

The current iPhone OS already does multitask and makes full use of it even when you're running "game x", there are many OS tasks that have to run concurrently and in the background and some of apples tasks quite happily run in the background (SMS, iPod etc), it's just that in the current OS switching away from "game x" causes the "game x" task to quit.

In the new iOS4 implementation, third party tasks continue to operate as they did, except that now they have the ability to "suspend" instead of quit, there is as much "multitasking" happening with the new implementation as there was in all previous versions of the iPhone OS.

In iOS4 when game x is "backgrounded", it's put to sleep, the kernel doesn't service it, it has no need to until it's bought back to the foreground. The exception to this is that the kernel will continue to service specific portions of the code if the application has provided interfaces for them, so for example, it will get location updates if the application is programmed use that service. No other parts of the application will be serviced.

 

[sn00p]

Oh hai, tuaw must have read my mind.

http://www.tuaw.com/2010/06/14/multitasking-in-ios4-is-not-a-magical-sparkle-pony/#continued

 

[SharkyUK]

LOL! Got to agree with sn00p et al... it makes me laugh how Corporate bigwigs like to twist technical jargon so that it has no bearing on its true meaning. They should be in marketing. Mind you, I guess that's why they do it... :S