Iphone / BB Torch/ Droid incredible...

[PandaBear]

Originally Posted By: 97tbird
Can someone 'defend' these shortages or explain why these are no big deals?

still undecided.


Battery life.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Practically speaking, my only gripe is that iTunes does not let me "downgrade" to something like 320kBPS AAP rather than forcing 128k for reducing file size.

Did you mean AAC? 128 kbps AAC stream actually delivers very high quality audio, assuming it was ripped directly from original and not re-encoded from some other lossy format. If I rip a CD into 128kbps AAC, I can't tell the difference between it and the original. Maybe my ears aren't as sensitive as they once were...

 

[ToyotaNSaturn]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2

Practically speaking, my only gripe is that iTunes does not let me "downgrade" to something like 320kBPS AAP rather than forcing 128k for reducing file size. Even uncompressed, 16GB is a LOT of space, and I take a LOT of photos. You can only listen to so much music in even a cross-country trip.


You can convert any MP3 or AAC file to AAC HE, 80Kbps, sounds fine. Even the complex music like Rush or Dream Theater doesn't distort at these low bit rates using AAC HE. This codec is great for smashing tons of music onto a 16GB unit. I did this to my entire iTunes collection, comedy and spoken word at 40Kbps.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Practically speaking, my only gripe is that iTunes does not let me "downgrade" to something like 320kBPS AAP rather than forcing 128k for reducing file size.

Did you mean AAC? 128 kbps AAC stream actually delivers very high quality audio, assuming it was ripped directly from original and not re-encoded from some other lossy format. If I rip a CD into 128kbps AAC, I can't tell the difference between it and the original. Maybe my ears aren't as sensitive as they once were...


Yes I did mean 128 AAC. Is it "fine"? Yes, more than likely it is. But all the same, if I took the HD space to do lossless AIFF files, it would be nice for itunes to give me the option for 320 or something along those lines so at least I can feel good about having "superior" audio files

 

[ToyotaNSaturn]

JHZ, why even use MP3, even at 320 when AAC HE at 80 or 64 audibly sounds the same or even better at times?

 

[PandaBear]

Originally Posted By: OVERK1LL
The only one not made in China will be the Blackberry

Ah, that's why they are much more expensive. I was wondering what warrant the $250 with such a small screen.

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: PandaBear
Originally Posted By: OVERK1LL
The only one not made in China will be the Blackberry

Ah, that's why they are much more expensive. I was wondering what warrant the $250 with such a small screen.


Why it is that much lower factory suicide rate because they aren't made at Foxconn

 

[asiancivicmaniac]

I'm not familiar with Verizon, but is a variant of the Samsung Galaxy S II available? If it is, you should give it some consideration. Their Super AMOLED screens are beautiful. And I'm pretty sure it's a world phone since it's in Europe and Asia.

 

[jigen]

Originally Posted By: 97tbird
so what about the whole NO FLASH SUPPORT on iphone?
and no message alert (blinking light)?
and NO expandable storage?

Can someone 'defend' these shortages or explain why these are no big deals?

still undecided.


I have used plenty of Android devices that have Flash support, many high end devices too (Galaxy S ii, Atrix, etc.) I find myself turning that feature off and only enabling it if absolutely necessary. Flash on a mobile web browser has always been a pretty lousy experience for me. Things get choppy, a lot of the smoothness experienced from web browsing on a phone feels held back when I have Flash enabled. But hey, that's just from my experiences.

HTML5 is becoming more popular than ever, and for 95% of the stuff I pull up on iOS, it seems the sites now support HTML5.

Notification lights are convenient, I love having it on my BlackBerry. A lot of phones seem to be phasing it out, which is a shame. I can't defend the iPhone there, I like a good notification light (assigning the colors is a big plus).

Storage is restricted but you at least get a few options, with 64gb being available this time around. iTunes Match is a huge benefit for iOS 5 though. Having your entire at home library scanned and then supported and streamed through iTunes to your iPhone is HUGE. And best part, it uses no storage space.

Battery Life, selection of quality applications, and overall polish of the operating system makes the iPhone my device of choice for what I do. Nothings perfect. Android's intergrated Google Services and free GPS run circles around the iPhone. And blackberry still has an edge as a business phone with more privacy options, and in my opinion, more efficiency with messages and exchange services. Nothing's perfect.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: ToyotaNSaturn
JHZ, why even use MP3, even at 320 when AAC HE at 80 or 64 audibly sounds the same or even better at times?

Well, technically, an 80 kbps AAC stream cuts all frequencies above about 16 kHz. 128 kbps AAC - above about 17 kHz. A 320 kbps MP3 goes as high as 21 kHz. But I agree with you. If you do some A/B comparison listening and can't tell the two apart, then why bother with larger files? Most of us can't hear much above 17 kHz anyway, and it only gets worse as we grow older.

I can sometimes distinguish between an 80 kbps AAC and 320 kbps MP3. But once I get up to 128 kbps AAC, no way. But each of our ears are different. That's why it's important to do your own experiments.

Anyway, sorry about taking this OT...

 

[Vikas]

I have so far managed to use my iPhone *without* installing iTunes or synching to any computer. Unfortunately, there are few tasks which are pretty much impossible to do using only iPhone. For example, there is no way to put the pictures taken by the iPhone in to different folders :-(

- Vikas

 

[jigen]

Originally Posted By: Vikas
I have so far managed to use my iPhone *without* installing iTunes or synching to any computer. Unfortunately, there are few tasks which are pretty much impossible to do using only iPhone. For example, there is no way to put the pictures taken by the iPhone in to different folders :-(

- Vikas


Hopefully most of those issues are resolved with tomorrow's iOS 5 being launched.

 

[PandaBear]

Originally Posted By: OVERK1LL
Why it is that much lower factory suicide rate because they aren't made at Foxconn

True. Like I said before, the topic is kind of complex and sad:

1) Apple stuff get stolen a lot and people loves leak and prototype news for curiosity more that other companies.

2) Foxconn used to have a life insurance policy covering suicide

3) The Apple plant partnership hire a lot more people than other plants, workers are more stressed for too much overtime.


I don't like it either, but agree with you that it is partly what happen when slave wages are use to reduce cost.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: ToyotaNSaturn
JHZ, why even use MP3, even at 320 when AAC HE at 80 or 64 audibly sounds the same or even better at times?

Well, technically, an 80 kbps AAC stream cuts all frequencies above about 16 kHz. 128 kbps AAC - above about 17 kHz. A 320 kbps MP3 goes as high as 21 kHz. But I agree with you. If you do some A/B comparison listening and can't tell the two apart, then why bother with larger files? Most of us can't hear much above 17 kHz anyway, and it only gets worse as we grow older.

I can sometimes distinguish between an 80 kbps AAC and 320 kbps MP3. But once I get up to 128 kbps AAC, no way. But each of our ears are different. That's why it's important to do your own experiments.

Anyway, sorry about taking this OT...


Not MP3, 320kbps AAC is what Id like. Why? because Ive invested all the HD space on ripping music in full quality, it would all fit perfectly at 320, why not let me do it rather than forcing me to do 128???

 

[T-Keith]

At this point I would wait because there will be three great new android phones on Verizon very shortly. The HTC vigor, Motorola droid razr, and nexus prime(all subject to name changes), will probably be out before December. All will be better than the current crop and the "old" phones will probably be cheaper.

I have a Droid Incredible(a better phone then most currently available imo) and have an upgrade available soon. Can't wait for the new phones . Personally I like all the things Android can do, most of the Iphone arguments are no longer even valid.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: T-Keith
The HTC vigor, Motorola droid razr, and nexus prime(all subject to name changes), will probably be out before December.

What is up with all the humongous 4.3-4.6" screens on all these new phones?? Am I going to have to buy a baggy pair of XL jeans just to be able to fit them into my pocket?

Personally, I actually like the more manageable 3.7" HTC Rhyme.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: T-Keith
The HTC vigor, Motorola droid razr, and nexus prime(all subject to name changes), will probably be out before December.

What is up with all the humongous 4.3-4.6" screens on all these new phones?? Am I going to have to buy a baggy pair of XL jeans just to be able to fit them into my pocket?

Personally, I actually like the more manageable 3.7" HTC Rhyme.



Agreed. And they are all thicker than my iphone. Thickness is the key parameter to me, since I keep it either in my shirt or pants pocket much of the time. There is a premium in thickness, and nothing is better than the iphone there.

And size? Bigger screen = more power draw but also more space for a bigger battery, so it probably balances out and gives an edge to the bigger phone if left on standby. While a big screen is nice, size is a premium and they are just too big. The aesthetic of the iphone size screen is just right - bigger than my BB tour, far clearer too, and just does a good job all around.

 

[97tbird]

What makes me a BIT uncomfortable about the 'droids is that the more I research online, the whole 'droid crowd seems to be just crazy about speed , speed and apps and apps and apps, widgets widgets etc etc, and not much about stability and they seem to hate ANY thing that apple does ... lots of reports about unstable OSs too...perhaps they're trying to make those droids do too much? I know I don't have to be one of those fanatics to use a 'droid phone, but still...

I am not one of those people who needs loads and loads of apps and widgets and customizations all day...i like to use SOME apps, most of which are probably standard on most smart phones these days...

The iphone does seem simpler and in some ways 'limited', but is that why they're also stable and probably more than enough for the average user who still concentrates on calling and messaging and occasional browsing and taking a FEW pics once in a while ?

I feel apprehensive that the immense choice of droid stuff and all i could (SHOULD? MUST?) do to make them ultra cool would overwhelm me if I got one...I mean I am a guy who likes Ubuntu because it's so plain, simple and uncluttered, but just works and is very stable...I just FEEL that the iphone 4s is more along those lines...

and I must say, I find this rather cool, and miles ahead of whatever voice commands 'droids have had so far

oh and BTW - Verizon doesn't have the Galaaxy, which looks like a bigger copy of the iphone to me somehow...
I also like a 4" screen MAX. Bigger screen is just too much for me.

 

[Hokiefyd]

I have the HTC Droid Incredible 2 on Verizon wireless. I like this phone a lot. It's more stable than the Motorola Droid 2 I had previously. Mine has Android 2.3.4 on it (the latest version) and it's very good. I'm not really into big speed or apps. Truthfully, an iPhone would work just as well for me, but I'm just more comfortable with Android at the moment.

The camera is also very nice. Here's a picture I took with it of the New River Gorge bridge this summer.

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/zcjohxZ8rTSd5eQqklrSPQ

It's a very nice phone at a good price. The screen resolution is very nice, very crisp. I think HTC makes the best phones these days. Combine the quality phone construction with the superior HTC Sense user interface on Android, and you have a phone that's hard to beat.

 

[jigen]

Originally Posted By: Hokiefyd
I have the HTC Droid Incredible 2 on Verizon wireless. I like this phone a lot. It's more stable than the Motorola Droid 2 I had previously. Mine has Android 2.3.4 on it (the latest version) and it's very good. I'm not really into big speed or apps. Truthfully, an iPhone would work just as well for me, but I'm just more comfortable with Android at the moment.

The camera is also very nice. Here's a picture I took with it of the New River Gorge bridge this summer.

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/zcjohxZ8rTSd5eQqklrSPQ

It's a very nice phone at a good price. The screen resolution is very nice, very crisp. I think HTC makes the best phones these days. Combine the quality phone construction with the superior HTC Sense user interface on Android, and you have a phone that's hard to beat.


I agree with some of your points, mainly about HTC Sense. As far as Android user interfaces go, there's stock Android (which is hard to come by these days) and there's HTC Sense. Those two are the best.

Android devices are the new Windows Mobile phones of today. People can hack them, overclock them, make custom roms, etc. It's a hobby for many. And since iPhone makes doing this much more of a chore than Android, many Android users will write off iPhone and just stick with Google Phones.

Android fans trash a company for making a mobile OS that Google sorta, kinda, copied off of... *sigh* Speed and benchmarks are a big selling point for Android devices, but just keep in mind the specs on paper don't always equal real world usability. A Galaxy S phone from last year had specs that trashed a 3GS in every category imaginable. Much faster processor, top of the line GPU, more ram, etc... But it was a buggy mess and in almost all situations the 3GS would get the job done more efficiently. This has to do with software and when you have a closed ecosystem like Apple does, you'll notice how everything seems to work a little smoother. For Android I blame hardware manufacturers thinking they can do software. Samsung and Motorola are the first two I can think of. Incredible hardware on some of their Android phones, but custom software that just brings the whole experience down.

Keep in mind battery life too. If you are coming from a BlackBerry, even a Pearl, you might be disgusted with the battery life from some Android phones. Power Management has never been Android's strong point, and some manufactures are much worse than others.

Most of the new Samsung Android devices have respectable battery life but beware of most of the HTC's. I don't know if it has something to do with HTC Sense, but some HTC devices are so poor with battery life I would probably not be able to stand the phone for 18+ months of use. Two charges a day with medium use isn't unheard of with some of these phones.

I don't want to sound like I am trashing Android. I work in the wireless industry and I use about 12 new devices a year. I try to be a pretty unbiased guy when it comes to the phones too. I've used all of the new OS's... Android, WebOS, BlackBerry, Windows Phone (which is overlooked by many). Compared to Android I just see iOS as a better experience for day-to-day use.