People would die for their iPhones, people would die for their BlackBerrys – and they feel like their lives are in there. People feel connected to their BlackBerrys. Some sleep with them next to their pillow. No one gives a crap about their Android phone, there’s zero emotional attachment.
How can someone write anything like this? Did he go around and ask new 4 day owners of the N1 if they sleep with their phone next to their pillow? When he says 'no one gives a crap about their Android phone' who did he talk to?
After reading this line I basically skipped the rest of the article, the author wrote a biased N1 review and reinforced it even more with the crap he wrote in this separate piece of junk.
Having said that, I will now go make a phone call using GV (or any other application that Apple forces out of its market), use background applications on my Android, I will take a photo with an N1 in the dark using the Led Flash before I go to sleep, positioning my Android phone next to my pillow before permanently I delete the Boy Genius Bookmark from my multitouch Dolphin browser.
Here are some of my thoughts on the negatives that he covered in his review. I was thinking about doing the same for his rant but parts of that sound like the ravings of a lunatic to me, so I think I'll pass. Plus, this post is already too long winded without adding that.
The capacitive display, while excellent, doesn’t have the same response as its largest competitor in the touch screen arena. It’s not bad by any stretch of the imagination, but we feel like the 5% or so difference becomes noticeable with everyday usage.
He doesn’t explain what he means by this. I haven’t really had any issues with the touch screen in the main display area. I have had it glitch a few times where I’d press one icon and an icon 3 rows down would actually get selected, but in each case, it happened while using the callused fingers on my left hand to select the icons. I ran into similar issues with the Droid as well as with the “largest competitor” – everyone who plays the guitar probably runs into this. Switching to the other hand fixed the problem.
One other annoyance is the touch-sensitive buttons below the screen, however. They seem to be the exact same as what’s on the HTC DROID Eris, and we are having the exact same issues. Their contact point seems to sit a little higher than it should, so if you press the button normally from the bottom half, your touch probably will not register.
This is a very valid point. I’ve run into this on my Nexus One and it was quite frustrating at first. I’ve since adjusted to it (for the most part), but still consider it to be a problem. My Droid doesn’t have this issue at all.
And while in our testing Android 2.1 worked reasonably well, we just can’t get over the fact that in addition to software inconsistencies which we’ll touch on below, there are still small slow downs and hiccups even with this 1GHz processor. That’s not good.
No, it’s not good, but hiccups are not unexpected with a brand new phone running a relatively new OS (or even an established one, for that matter). The iPhone has definitely not been immune to slow downs and hiccups over the course of its history. These things happen… and they get fixed. Owners on both sides of the fence rant and rage about the problems… and then they forget about them (until it’s time to point them out on a competitors phone).
There’s also a News and Weather widget/application set which looks great and is pretty customizable. It’s definitely the best implementation we’ve seen on Android in terms of a news/weather widget, but that also speaks to how poorly 3rd party widgets and applications are designed and developed on Android as a whole.
There are indeed plenty of poorly designed 3rd party widgets and applications for the Android OS. From what I’ve seen, it’s a higher percentage of available apps than what we see with the iPhone. Users really have to wade through the chaff to find the gems, but they’re definitely there.
A lot of this has to do with the fact that there’s no screening process for developers – anyone can add apps to the Market… and anyone does! As far as I know, there’s also no standardization for the UI designs, or at least no enforcement of the standards – the method for accessing UI elements in one app may be very different in another. That seems like a pretty big negative for Android, especially in the eyes of the users coming over from the iPhone, where those standards are enforced. I’d personally prefer to see more uniformity between Android apps.
The actual loudspeaker on the phone is decent. It’s definitely loud enough, but it’s not that clear and can get distorted pretty easily if the volume is raised up enough.
The loudspeaker on the Nexus One just plain stinks. The speakers on my Iphone 3GS and Droid are quite a bit better. At first, I thought it was due to the tiny hole on the battery cover above the speaker – how can any decent sound get through that little hole? But even with the battery cover off, the speaker sounds horrible. It’s usable in a pinch, I suppose, but I’m definitely going to avoid using it.
When you think of an AMOLED screen you probably think bright, beautiful colors, crisp, sharp detailing, and you also probably think, “that might not be the best screen to use at the beach.” And, if you thought that last part, you’d be right. The screen on the Nexus One, while gorgeous, is not usable in direct sunlight and it’s rather depressing.
Yup. This screen suffers a LOT more in direct sunlight than the Droid and iPhone screens do. Even in the shade outside on a sunny day, it doesn’t appear to be as bright as the Droid’s screen. When I use the Nexus One in my car during the day, I have to manually set the brightness to 100% and it STILL doesn’t look as bright as the Droid’s screen. It’s definitely still usable in the car – ‘just not quite as pleasant to look at as the Droid’s screen (which I always left on Auto).
Indoors, the opposite is true. My Nexus one looks brighter than the Droid when they’re both set to the same brightness level. ::shrug:: ‘One of the down sides to having an AMOLED screen, I suppose.
Getting over the sunlight issue, the screen isn’t as rich as the Motorola DROID’s display, unfortunately. We didn’t miss the actual resolution in terms of having more room, but the DROID’s display doesn’t show pixelation like the Nexus One does, and just honestly seems like a better product.
My initial reaction to this was, “WTF!? The Nexus One’s screen looks richer than the Droid’s screen to my eyes!” But then he goes on to talk about the resolution so I think his definition of “rich” is not quite the same as mine.
For the most part, those extra pixels on the droid screen don’t buy much. The only place I notice it is on really small print, such as the smallest text on the WeatherBug Elite widget. On Nexus One, that small print looks blurry from a distance and pixilated up close – on the Droid, it’s very sharp. I can see a similar difference in the fine lines on the gStrings icon and on all icon text if I really examine them closely. Score one for the Droid! That same text on the iPhone would be completely illegible, though…
Android’s default camera application is mediocre at best, slightly frustrating, and mildly confusing.
Indeed. The camera app doesn’t even blend well with the rest of the native apps – it feels more like a 3rd party app! It gets the job done, but it really does need some work.
One of many issues is that there isn’t a single amazing application on the Android platform.
I must be a complete simpleton, then. I was fairly amazed when I took Google Sky Maps outside to look at the stars for the first time. My neighbor thought I was high until he looked at the screen. He’s now a Droid owner, btw…
He does make a lot of valid points in his review & I hope I'm not the only one who thinks that (else I'm about to be torn a new one). There was obviously some bias in the review but nothing really unexpected, especially from a site such as his. If he'd left that rant off the site, I think many of us probably would have agreed with most of what he wrote, frowned at his bias, and just moved on.
Here are some of my thoughts on the negatives that he covered in his review. I was thinking about doing the same for his rant but parts of that sound like the ravings of a lunatic to me, so I think I'll pass. Plus, this post is already too long winded without adding that.
The capacitive display, while excellent, doesn’t have the same response as its largest competitor in the touch screen arena. It’s not bad by any stretch of the imagination, but we feel like the 5% or so difference becomes noticeable with everyday usage.
He doesn’t explain what he means by this. I haven’t really had any issues with the touch screen in the main display area. I have had it glitch a few times where I’d press one icon and an icon 3 rows down would actually get selected, but in each case, it happened while using the callused fingers on my left hand to select the icons. I ran into similar issues with the Droid as well as with the “largest competitor” – everyone who plays the guitar probably runs into this. Switching to the other hand fixed the problem.
One other annoyance is the touch-sensitive buttons below the screen, however. They seem to be the exact same as what’s on the HTC DROID Eris, and we are having the exact same issues. Their contact point seems to sit a little higher than it should, so if you press the button normally from the bottom half, your touch probably will not register.
This is a very valid point. I’ve run into this on my Nexus One and it was quite frustrating at first. I’ve since adjusted to it (for the most part), but still consider it to be a problem. My Droid doesn’t have this issue at all.
And while in our testing Android 2.1 worked reasonably well, we just can’t get over the fact that in addition to software inconsistencies which we’ll touch on below, there are still small slow downs and hiccups even with this 1GHz processor. That’s not good.
No, it’s not good, but hiccups are not unexpected with a brand new phone running a relatively new OS (or even an established one, for that matter). The iPhone has definitely not been immune to slow downs and hiccups over the course of its history. These things happen… and they get fixed. Owners on both sides of the fence rant and rage about the problems… and then they forget about them (until it’s time to point them out on a competitors phone).
There’s also a News and Weather widget/application set which looks great and is pretty customizable. It’s definitely the best implementation we’ve seen on Android in terms of a news/weather widget, but that also speaks to how poorly 3rd party widgets and applications are designed and developed on Android as a whole.
There are indeed plenty of poorly designed 3rd party widgets and applications for the Android OS. From what I’ve seen, it’s a higher percentage of available apps than what we see with the iPhone. Users really have to wade through the chaff to find the gems, but they’re definitely there.
A lot of this has to do with the fact that there’s no screening process for developers – anyone can add apps to the Market… and anyone does! As far as I know, there’s also no standardization for the UI designs, or at least no enforcement of the standards – the method for accessing UI elements in one app may be very different in another. That seems like a pretty big negative for Android, especially in the eyes of the users coming over from the iPhone, where those standards are enforced. I’d personally prefer to see more uniformity between Android apps.
The actual loudspeaker on the phone is decent. It’s definitely loud enough, but it’s not that clear and can get distorted pretty easily if the volume is raised up enough.
The loudspeaker on the Nexus One just plain stinks. The speakers on my Iphone 3GS and Droid are quite a bit better. At first, I thought it was due to the tiny hole on the battery cover above the speaker – how can any decent sound get through that little hole? But even with the battery cover off, the speaker sounds horrible. It’s usable in a pinch, I suppose, but I’m definitely going to avoid using it.
When you think of an AMOLED screen you probably think bright, beautiful colors, crisp, sharp detailing, and you also probably think, “that might not be the best screen to use at the beach.” And, if you thought that last part, you’d be right. The screen on the Nexus One, while gorgeous, is not usable in direct sunlight and it’s rather depressing.
Yup. This screen suffers a LOT more in direct sunlight than the Droid and iPhone screens do. Even in the shade outside on a sunny day, it doesn’t appear to be as bright as the Droid’s screen. When I use the Nexus One in my car during the day, I have to manually set the brightness to 100% and it STILL doesn’t look as bright as the Droid’s screen. It’s definitely still usable in the car – ‘just not quite as pleasant to look at as the Droid’s screen (which I always left on Auto).
Indoors, the opposite is true. My Nexus one looks brighter than the Droid when they’re both set to the same brightness level. ::shrug:: ‘One of the down sides to having an AMOLED screen, I suppose.
Getting over the sunlight issue, the screen isn’t as rich as the Motorola DROID’s display, unfortunately. We didn’t miss the actual resolution in terms of having more room, but the DROID’s display doesn’t show pixelation like the Nexus One does, and just honestly seems like a better product.
My initial reaction to this was, “WTF!? The Nexus One’s screen looks richer than the Droid’s screen to my eyes!” But then he goes on to talk about the resolution so I think his definition of “rich” is not quite the same as mine.
For the most part, those extra pixels on the droid screen don’t buy much. The only place I notice it is on really small print, such as the smallest text on the WeatherBug Elite widget. On Nexus One, that small print looks blurry from a distance and pixilated up close – on the Droid, it’s very sharp. I can see a similar difference in the fine lines on the gStrings icon and on all icon text if I really examine them closely. Score one for the Droid! That same text on the iPhone would be completely illegible, though…
Android’s default camera application is mediocre at best, slightly frustrating, and mildly confusing.
Indeed. The camera app doesn’t even blend well with the rest of the native apps – it feels more like a 3rd party app! It gets the job done, but it really does need some work.
One of many issues is that there isn’t a single amazing application on the Android platform.
I must be a complete simpleton, then. I was fairly amazed when I took Google Sky Maps outside to look at the stars for the first time. My neighbor thought I was high until he looked at the screen. He’s now a Droid owner, btw…
He does make a lot of valid points in his review & I hope I'm not the only one who thinks that (else I'm about to be torn a new one). There was obviously some bias in the review but nothing really unexpected, especially from a site such as his. If he'd left that rant off the site, I think many of us probably would have agreed with most of what he wrote, frowned at his bias, and just moved on.
Device(s): Motorola Droid, Froyo 2.2 FRG01 by Pete
Thanks: 0
Thanked 14 Times in 12 Posts
Quote:
feeling of connecting to something. People would die for their iPhones, people would die for their BlackBerrys – and they feel like their lives are in there. People feel connected to their BlackBerrys. Some sleep with them next to their pillow
My life is in my droid and it sleeps on my dresser next to my pillow. But I don't have the same kind of emotional attachment to it as an iphone user does to the ipone. Thats why any other phone will never get the same market share as the iphone, it doesnt matter how much better or more polished it is, the iphone gets its market because its the iphone. Beanie babies didn't sell because kids loved playing with them, adults bought them because they were "collectable" they were the big thing, the latest fad. The iphone will always be the in thing just because its the iphone.
No matter what you think of BGR and his iPhone fanaticism, he is 100% correct in everything he says in the blog. For us Android users to believe anything otherwise is to be as delusional as we're accusing him of being. The simple fact of the matter is: Even at 2.1, Android is still in its infancy. If we compared Android to iPhone 2.0, then, yeah, maybe it's acceptable.
Unfortunately, we live in 2010 and the N1 has been preceded by the benchmark iPhone 3Gs. Anything less than that mark would be considered, well, less. Advancing technology beyond the benchmark is the point of innovation. When the DROID came out, it was sort of acceptable that it wouldn't be an iPhone-killer. It was after all, N1's best attempt at dethroning the iPhone from its perch, bringing new user experiences to the Android platform. In that way, there is literally no excuse for the "next big" iteration of Android to be as un-revolutionary as it is now with the N1. Google failed to innovate. In the words of "Office Space," they did just enough not to get fired.
I guess what I am most frustrated with (and ultimately why I empathize with BGR) is that Google didn't allow 2.0 to gain a foothold in order to listen to the community about ways in which to improve it and improve the UI and therefore the UX. Instead, 3 months after the release of the DROID, they release 2.1 as the "next big thing," and what BGR is getting at is: It was NOT the next big thing. The music player is a joke... STILL. The gallery application is a joke. The camera application... still a joke. For a Google staple, you'd think the Gmail interface would be nicer.
In fact, 2.1 was just a small step, but somehow it necessitated whole new hardware?!?
Nothing so far about the UI/UX is improved over 2.0. In fact, many users are still experiencing the same problems they had with the DROID. There was no game changer. It's as if Google hadn't learned anything from 2.0 and DROID. Today, I can't recommend either phone to even my closest friends and I own a DROID! The Android platform is fragmented. The apps are frequently on par or sub-par. So many of them are poor that even the best of them will cause the OS to crash or force close.
I hope for goodness sake that Rubin is right and the N1 brings more development to the platform. And I hope that he knows how to damage control, because manufacturers NOT HTC are furious that Google released this phone. They feel betrayed and placed on a lower rung (a situation that WinMo was careful to avoid). At the moment, Android has a lot of momentum but I feel like it's in a precipitous place, unstable as it were.
I don't normally agree with BGR, but he is 100%, completely correct. The unveiling of the N1 was what opened my eyes, because for a while I was drinking a lot of the Android kool-aid. I wanted to discount WebOS, but until I lived with Android, I didn't realize just how good WebOS was, if only it had better hardware (which the Pre Plus seems to deliver). It's like if Android could take it's openness, combine it with the UI/UX of WebOS and the native mailing/exchange applications of the BB, improve the overall quality of apps by demanding more polish... man, THAT would be a SUPER phone!
Last edited by sooper_droid12; January 10th, 2010 at 06:05 PM.
No matter what you think of BGR and his iPhone fanaticism, he is 100% correct in everything he says in the blog. For us Android users to believe anything otherwise is to be as delusional as we're accusing him of being. The simple fact of the matter is: Even at 2.1, Android is still in its infancy. If we compared Android to iPhone 2.0, then, yeah, maybe it's acceptable.
Unfortunately, we live in 2010 and the N1 has been preceded by the benchmark iPhone 3Gs. Anything less than that mark would be considered, well, less. Advancing technology beyond the benchmark is the point of innovation. When the DROID came out, it was sort of acceptable that it wouldn't be an iPhone-killer. It was after all, N1's best attempt at dethroning the iPhone from its perch, bringing new user experiences to the Android platform. In that way, there is literally no excuse for the "next big" iteration of Android to be as un-revolutionary as it is now with the N1. Google failed to innovate. In the words of "Office Space," they did just enough not to get fired.
I guess what I am most frustrated with (and ultimately why I empathize with BGR) is that Google didn't allow 2.0 to gain a foothold in order to listen to the community about ways in which to improve it and improve the UI and therefore the UX. Instead, 3 months after the release of the DROID, they release 2.1 as the "next big thing," and what BGR is getting at is: It was NOT the next big thing. The music player is a joke... STILL. The gallery application is a joke. The camera application... still a joke. For a Google staple, you'd think the Gmail interface would be nicer.
In fact, 2.1 was just a small step, but somehow it necessitated whole new hardware?!?
Nothing so far about the UI/UX is improved over 2.0. In fact, many users are still experiencing the same problems they had with the DROID. There was no game changer. It's as if Google hadn't learned anything from 2.0 and DROID. Today, I can't recommend either phone to even my closest friends and I own a DROID! The Android platform is fragmented. The apps are frequently on par or sub-par. So many of them are poor that even the best of them will cause the OS to crash or force close.
I hope for goodness sake that Rubin is right and the N1 brings more development to the platform. And I hope that he knows how to damage control, because manufacturers NOT HTC are furious that Google released this phone. They feel betrayed and placed on a lower rung (a situation that WinMo was careful to avoid). At the moment, Android has a lot of momentum but I feel like it's in a precipitous place, unstable as it were.
I don't normally agree with BGR, but he is 100%, completely correct. The unveiling of the N1 was what opened my eyes, because for a while I was drinking a lot of the Android kool-aid. I wanted to discount WebOS, but until I lived with Android, I didn't realize just how good WebOS was, if only it had better hardware (which the Pre Plus seems to deliver). It's like if Android could take it's openness, combine it with the UI/UX of WebOS and the native mailing/exchange applications of the BB, improve the overall quality of apps by demanding more polish... man, THAT would be a SUPER phone!
You realize the same people who were calling it a game changer and the "next big thing" WERE Engadget , BGR , TechCrunch etc.
Google wasnt the one calling it anything. So nice way to hype up expectations yourself then blame the other guy for not filling your own hype.
WebOS is great. Hardware is doo doo thus far. Hopefully that changes.
This is the second piece of legit Android hardware and first clearly superior hardware phone than anything currently out.
Why do people continually expect beauty from google ??
What in your history of Google make you think theyre capable of it ??
I agree theres alot of issues with Android. But most of them are cosmetic not functional. I want Android to be prettier and have more eye catching UI but thats up to 3rd parties because I know Google aint doing it.
The app store and apps in general need more talent and again NEED TO BE MORE ATTRACTIVE VISUALLY.
Function wise they do the job. Google needs to open up things so that Devs can make better and prettier apps.
HTC shutting down beautiful widgets...CorePlayer guys quitting because theres no access to codecs/EQ bands.
CnD to Cyanogen...
But is that what BGR is talking about . NO. Hes ranting like a little baby with clear bias.
I wont even waste my time reading the article. Besides some stupid comments in general thru Twitter he made such a big deal when he got the Droid somehow before anyone else and made it seem like a gift from god (which it is close to imo) and then he writes a less than great review. He is full of crap and just tries to get more hype for his site.
First of all, your condescending attitude is terrible.
Second, your choice to put two schools (that you went to?) in your signature is inappropriate and borders on conceited.
Third, you are right, the original author of the BGR article did have some pertinent points. But the others are right...the article is unnecessarily inflammatory and unnecessarily condemns the Android platform. It exaggerates, oversimplifies and in general ignores the facts to perpetuate an opinion.
I will agree that the Android OS is far from perfect. So is Apple's OS, and it's been out longer, a fact that he blindly ignores. Nor does he acknowledge that the objectives of each, the target audience of each, and the methods used to capture are as different as the Mac vs. PC debate that raged (and still does, although less so now that Windows is such a blatant Mac Clone).
Moreover, the vile blatering about the emotional connection to the phone is irrelevant and ridiculous, not to mention highly suspect. Try posting that about a Droid...you'd probably get a letter bomb, or the electronic mail equivalent from a fervent Droid fan.
Any rational person would agree that the original article is quite over the top.
Device(s): Motorola Droid, Froyo 2.2 FRG01 by Pete
Thanks: 0
Thanked 14 Times in 12 Posts
No OS is perfect. My work just opened a ticket with Microsoft on windows server 2008 clustering and after a day found a fix ourselves by accident and Microsoft asked for the details so they could document it, how many OS versions have they gone though?
If you start thinking your perfect then you stop improving. Examples could be GM, Ford, IBM in the 70's and 80's and other companies came by and changed the face of their respective industries forever.
The Android OS, by nature of being open source has the most potential. Look at Firefox. A few years back when Netscape owned the internet then was AOL'ed and MSIE took over. Then the Mozilla foundation was created and the faster moving open source movement surpassed all the competition in every way.
Here is the part I don't understand... Keep in mind, I'm a former Apple user/abuser. I loved my iPod (touch).
With Android, you can customize your phone to your liking; its your, make it look like its yours. I love that. The iPhone's idea of customization is changing your lock screens background. That's it (unless you jailbreak).
With Android, the possibilities are almost endless. Widgets, pictures, whatever. You want it, do it. Even jailbroken, I've never been able to do that with any iDevice.
Anyways, this guy is allowed his opinion, but I believe he is wrong.
You realize the same people who were calling it a game changer and the "next big thing" WERE Engadget , BGR , TechCrunch etc.
Google wasnt the one calling it anything. So nice way to hype up expectations yourself then blame the other guy for not filling your own hype.
WebOS is great. Hardware is doo doo thus far. Hopefully that changes.
This is the second piece of legit Android hardware and first clearly superior hardware phone than anything currently out.
Why do people continually expect beauty from google ??
What in your history of Google make you think theyre capable of it ??
I agree theres alot of issues with Android. But most of them are cosmetic not functional. I want Android to be prettier and have more eye catching UI but thats up to 3rd parties because I know Google aint doing it.
The app store and apps in general need more talent and again NEED TO BE MORE ATTRACTIVE VISUALLY.
Function wise they do the job. Google needs to open up things so that Devs can make better and prettier apps.
HTC shutting down beautiful widgets...CorePlayer guys quitting because theres no access to codecs/EQ bands.
CnD to Cyanogen...
But is that what BGR is talking about . NO. Hes ranting like a little baby with clear bias.
After seeing these so-called tech reviewers speak from both sides of their mouths with regards to Android and the latest phones, I don't believe any of them are truly sincere. I think they play both sides of the fence to get hits, but eventually their true colors come out - that they are nothing but a bunch of Apple nut-swingers (with the exception of Techcrunch).
I agree with that main point I bolded. The people complaining the loudest are former iPhone users who expect the same look and feel which isn't going to happen, this is a different OS. The BGR opinion piece was more about personal preference than actual flaws. And its comical how the important aspects of Android are brushed aside. It's his opinion but it misses the mark in many areas and the overall tone was that of someone who's bitter. It is rumored that he (BGR) was rejected for first dibs at the N1 and so was pissed. Maybe so but somehow under the veil of fairness and objectivity, I believe his true colors shined through in that last piece.
I disagree about Google not wanting to make the OS beautiful though. 2.1 is some proof they are indeed willing to make visual changes. Maybe not enough to satisfy some but it's probably more than they've done with any previous version of Android. And I don't see why that trend should stop.
I expect to see visual improvements in every version and I hope they continue to develop the card style view similar to WebOS. All in all, I'd rather them steal and incorporate every idea from WebOS than that of iPhone OS. The only advantage I see that iPhone OS has is it's smooth UI. And to me that isn't much of an advantage.
Google didn't even make it "prettier." The Gallery App was NOT even their idea. It was CoolIris. So the swipe to see the next photo, CoolIris. So, if Google gets hammered by Apple for using swipe in the Gallery 2.1, guess who gets the brunt? CoolIris. Not Google. I think we have to be careful and guard ourselves from drinking the Android kool-aid. There are some very valid points that BGR made in between the lines of his iPhone fanboy-ism. No OS is going to be perfect, but it's important that any OS that comes out from now on, understand what is working and what is wanted by users. I can name just a few that don't even violate Apple's patent for MT/pinch:
1) A better virtual keyboard. Don't try to argue it. It's acceptable, but it's not good.
2) A better Music Player. Yeah, the current one is functional, but really? This is the best they could come up with? Sometimes, I think they did that to keep the OS as light as possible, but really?!
3) A better Gallery app. 3D Tilt, really?!? What is the function of that? Get CoolIris back on the phone and get your money back Google!
4) A better Camera function... tap to focus, tap to zoom, some more editing functionality on-board?
5) Better handling of graphics... c'mon Google, let Android take full advantage of these ridiculous GPUs that are on-board the top Android phones.
I don't care that the App Tray rolls into the distance like Star Wars. You (GOOG) want to rip off the zoom-in, fly-in of the iPhone app tray, but you won't give it the same icon handling? There's a reason why people love Sense UI. And they're not doing any thing that special at HTC. GOOG can easily do better than that! Surely!
Last edited by sooper_droid12; January 10th, 2010 at 11:32 PM.
The tech media is getting impatient with Android. That was a pretty unhinged rant from BGR, but some of the points are valid. I think the gallery app shows were Google is trying to go with the OS. I'd like to see 2.5 out in a couple of months with a big UI refresh, new media player, and a better contacts app. I'll be really annoyed though if we get to 3.0 and the music player still looks like it was designed in '96. One of the reasons I bought an N1 was the idea that I could sell it (it's unlocked) and pay the ETF as soon as HTC made something with comparable hardware running Sense. Having had a Hero in the past, I can say almost all of BGR's gripes are addressed by the Sense UI.
What would have actually been groundbreaking? HTC partners with Google to do all UI for Android in the future.
Sometimes though, I think Google just doesn't believe in making things pretty. I mean look at Gmail and Google.com.
That's why BGR said, "To a lesser extent, Sense UI equipped HTC phones..." Honestly, I believe a lot of this is to make the OS light. As if, because it's free, it doesn't have to offer much, since it'll spur developers to do other things, like Sense, like Blur.
That's why BGR said, "To a lesser extent, Sense UI equipped HTC phones..." Honestly, I believe a lot of this is to make the OS light. As if, because it's free, it doesn't have to offer much, since it'll spur developers to do other things, like Sense, like Blur.
Yeah it's just a shame though. I really don't see what the advantage is of all the options open source provides if only one of them (Sense) is really good. The N1 is awesome because of the hardware, but once that is dated, it won't look so hot.
The N1's hardware was outdated the moment they announced it would be used. The Snap @ 1GHz is marginally better than the OMAP3430, and as CES2010 began, it was announced devices that'll be running OMAP4xxx which are dual-cores, ARM CortexA9. Tegra2 out already is based on this architecture and with the new nVidia GPU is just plain sick. Marvell announced a quad-core chipset. All going into the next Smartphone applications. Already at CES2010!
The N1's hardware was outdated the moment they announced it would be used. The Snap @ 1GHz is marginally better than the OMAP3430, and as CES2010 began, it was announced devices that'll be running OMAP4xxx which are dual-cores, ARM CortexA9. Tegra2 out already is based on this architecture and with the new nVidia GPU is just plain sick. Marvell announced a quad-core chipset. All going into the next Smartphone applications. Already at CES2010!
Ok, what phone runs Tegra1 let alone Tegra2? And when something with a tegra chip comes to a phone, the N1 won't be "outdated" just because it's now the second fastest phone on the market. "Outdated" is the chip in the Hero.
But yeah, chips are about to get crazy in phones, which is cool.
The Tegra 6xx isn't a very good chip based on the ARM11 so you won't find that in any device other than media players because the GPU is very good. Tegra 2xx will run an A9 architecture which will make it a viable option for smartphones competing in today's market. When I say "outdated," when HTC is already talking about dropping the Snap dual core into their next phone, that tells me they're done with the mono-core Snap. That's what I mean, but yes, the Hero or any phone running Qualcomm's M7xxx are done and buried. Can't compete with that processor anymore.
The Tegra 6xx isn't a very good chip based on the ARM11 so you won't find that in any device other than media players because the GPU is very good. Tegra 2xx will run an A9 architecture which will make it a viable option for smartphones competing in today's market. When I say "outdated," when HTC is already talking about dropping the Snap dual core into their next phone, that tells me they're done with the mono-core Snap. That's what I mean, but yes, the Hero or any phone running Qualcomm's M7xxx are done and buried. Can't compete with that processor anymore.
Yep, Tegra2, 4.3 inch AMOLED, Sense UI and the N1 is up on ebay. Until then, I love my new fastest-on-the-market phone.
Google didn't even make it "prettier." The Gallery App was NOT even their idea. It was CoolIris. So the swipe to see the next photo, CoolIris. So, if Google gets hammered by Apple for using swipe in the Gallery 2.1, guess who gets the brunt? CoolIris. Not Google. I think we have to be careful and guard ourselves from drinking the Android kool-aid. There are some very valid points that BGR made in between the lines of his iPhone fanboy-ism. No OS is going to be perfect, but it's important that any OS that comes out from now on, understand what is working and what is wanted by users. I can name just a few that don't even violate Apple's patent for MT/pinch:
1) A better virtual keyboard. Don't try to argue it. It's acceptable, but it's not good.
2) A better Music Player. Yeah, the current one is functional, but really? This is the best they could come up with? Sometimes, I think they did that to keep the OS as light as possible, but really?!
3) A better Gallery app. 3D Tilt, really?!? What is the function of that? Get CoolIris back on the phone and get your money back Google!
4) A better Camera function... tap to focus, tap to zoom, some more editing functionality on-board?
5) Better handling of graphics... c'mon Google, let Android take full advantage of these ridiculous GPUs that are on-board the top Android phones.
I don't care that the App Tray rolls into the distance like Star Wars. You (GOOG) want to rip off the zoom-in, fly-in of the iPhone app tray, but you won't give it the same icon handling? There's a reason why people love Sense UI. And they're not doing any thing that special at HTC. GOOG can easily do better than that! Surely!
Forget the gallery, the UI on 2.1 is definitely smoother and more visually appealing than 2.01 on the Droid.
And with every post you're proving my point even more. I'll say it again: if you want Android to be like the iPhone, get an iPhone. It's not going to happen. If that's a deal breaker you might as well sell your Droid now.
Smoother UI? Yes, I'll take that. Iphone's icon handling? NO! Iphone's music player? NO! I listen to music and don't stare at the player like some of you apparently do. I could care less how it looks, as long as it functions. Can it improved functionally? Hell yes..... I'd like to see an EQ for starters.
Can the virtual keyboard be tweaked to be a little more responsive? Maybe and I'd sure welcome it. Do I want to look and feel like the iPhone's?NO!
As for the camera, there are tons of camera apps. Try Pro zoom, it gives you easy 5x zoom and editing functions right on board. And it's only $2.
Last edited by darreno1; January 11th, 2010 at 12:31 AM.
The N1's hardware was outdated the moment they announced it would be used. The Snap @ 1GHz is marginally better than the OMAP3430, and as CES2010 began, it was announced devices that'll be running OMAP4xxx which are dual-cores, ARM CortexA9. Tegra2 out already is based on this architecture and with the new nVidia GPU is just plain sick. Marvell announced a quad-core chipset. All going into the next Smartphone applications. Already at CES2010!
This I agree with and is one of the main reasons I didn't go nuts over the N1. The smartphone market is ever changing and even more so now.
Google didn't even make it "prettier." The Gallery App was NOT even their idea. It was CoolIris. So the swipe to see the next photo, CoolIris. So, if Google gets hammered by Apple for using swipe in the Gallery 2.1, guess who gets the brunt? CoolIris. Not Google. I think we have to be careful and guard ourselves from drinking the Android kool-aid. There are some very valid points that BGR made in between the lines of his iPhone fanboy-ism. No OS is going to be perfect, but it's important that any OS that comes out from now on, understand what is working and what is wanted by users. I can name just a few that don't even violate Apple's patent for MT/pinch:
1) A better virtual keyboard. Don't try to argue it. It's acceptable, but it's not good.
2) A better Music Player. Yeah, the current one is functional, but really? This is the best they could come up with? Sometimes, I think they did that to keep the OS as light as possible, but really?!
3) A better Gallery app. 3D Tilt, really?!? What is the function of that? Get CoolIris back on the phone and get your money back Google!
4) A better Camera function... tap to focus, tap to zoom, some more editing functionality on-board?
5) Better handling of graphics... c'mon Google, let Android take full advantage of these ridiculous GPUs that are on-board the top Android phones.
I don't care that the App Tray rolls into the distance like Star Wars. You (GOOG) want to rip off the zoom-in, fly-in of the iPhone app tray, but you won't give it the same icon handling? There's a reason why people love Sense UI. And they're not doing any thing that special at HTC. GOOG can easily do better than that! Surely!
Precisely my point. You know Google isnt capable of prettifying anything. So why do you expect it ??
Sense UI 3D gallery being other peoples work isnt wrong or bad. Its just they arent opening up there full insides to other 3rd parties. All this screaming about "open" yet to many key factors to making a dramatic visual improvement remain locked down.
1. 3rdparty KBs. Simple answer. Swype/Betterkeyboard/Touchpal/HTC Ime.
You see how something thats left open can be vastly improved and made attractive by someone other than Google ?
2. As above. Open up the APIs for codecs and audio bands and you will instantly attract the best media player coders who have been shunned out by Apple.
WinMo lets these guys run wild but not google ??
3. I have several BIG issues with the Gallery app. Ill list them. Im just curious as to what yours are specifically.
4. People need to start carrying point and shoot cams. Celphone pics will always be shitty no matter what you try. Iphone pics are just as craptacular as Pre,nexus or G1. They all suck and will always suck so long as size matters. All these options are just putting whipped cream on horse manure. SLR>Point and Shoot>>>>>>>>>>>>>Phone pics. Its not gonna change until the laws of physics do. Long as its fast,fairly accurate and has flash thats all you can ask for.
5.This is the only thing you list that Google should be able to control and fix and do much much better in.
Absolutely no excuse for GFX handling to be anything less than stellar. Both Palm and Apple have shown you just how smooth things can be with less resources.
If Google is going to be open then they need to stick by it. Give the talent access since they lack it and refuse to hire it. It would solve a MAJOR hurdle.
But again...none of that is what BGR was talking about.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sooper_droid12
The N1's hardware was outdated the moment they announced it would be used. !
Everything is. 360 was out dated the instant it hit the market. Iphone has always been outdated.
Its what you do with it. If you need quadra core processors to have a smooth beautiful OS to go with functionality youre in the wrong game.
Google needs to work on optimizing this OS and making it as easy as possible for Devs to prettify the UI.
Thank you, MML. Like I said, you have to read between the lines in BGR's blog. There is iPhone fanaticism and he does tend to bring up the same old quibbles, but at the heart of it is frustration about what Android should be at the moment and it is not. Do I want it to look like an iPhone? Absolutely not. But do I want it to look, interact, feel and function better? Absolutely! Nothing wrong with the overall function of the music player, but it'd be nice if it looked better. Hire a gfx artist like they did for the Gallery, spruce it up. Add some musical EQ presets. How about control of the music player from the lock screen some how? These are terribly great ideas, but certainly better than the current execution.
Hmmm. That was one of the worst reviews I have ever seen.
Before I get flamed, I'll explain where I'm coming from.
I am a long time Nokia user. Not because I'm a fanboy, but simply because they have been the ones to offer what I want. Recently however, Nokia have dropped the ball big time, putting far too much into that OVI rubbish (and it is rubbish) and not handsets. Nor OS.
Winmo's hardware is always behind, and on the few handsets it's not, they are too big, usually PDA sized.
Apple, meh. Not a huge fan of the phones, but the main stopping factor is the insane price. Handsets seem ok, but for what they cost? Complete joke (to me at least).
So Android it is. Sadly, the tech is still behind (look at handsets like the Omnia HD - brilliant phone, just a little too large for me).
So, having hopefully established I'm not a fanboy of any maker - which is daft in itself, it's not like they reward their casual fanboys, they pay for the handsets - I say again this review is nothing more than a silly little rant.
While he might make relevant points, it's completely lost within the diatribe he throws out.
Having not used Android much, I don't know if the issues he speaks about are true, but what I am sure about, is that I wouldn't trust his opinion on anything. His completely odd rant about it - with obvious feeling - makes everything he says untrustworthy.
So does he make good points? That's irrelivent, since his opinion is obviously biased.
I'm not defending Android, since I haven't used it much. But I say that for sure this 'review' is nothing of the sort.
A lot of people on this forum continue to defend android with arguments related to cosmetics vs. functionality, multitasking, open-source advantages, and customizability and at the same time dismiss the BGR article using the fanboy label, along with a misunderstanding of BGR’s statements regarding Tweetie 2, VLC paid app, and implied emotional attachment to the phone.
I wish to make a few arguments to those who continue defending android.
On BGR’s emotional stuff with respect to smart phones:
People!!! All he was trying to say is this: iphone and blackberry users love their phones because they use them daily to perform multiple essential tasks related to communicating with the world. Because these phones are so good, easy to use, smooth and effective at these few essential communicative tasks, people who use them tend to get extremely attached to them. Madonna sleeps with her blackberry under the side of her pillow. My brother sleeps next to his iphone. While there are many people on this forum who do the same with their android phones, I would imagine that most android users in the real world don’t have that kind of connection towards their phones; I say this because when you see and talk to the average people who purchase the mt3g, the droid, and the hero, you realize that they are just seeking an iphone substitute; most would have purchased an iphone if they had the chance, the money, or At&T; soon enough, they realize that android is hard to get used to and does not do these essential tasks as easy as the other smart phones.
For example, for the average t-mobile customer who has no idea that better keyboard and touchpal exist and does not have the time or the resourcefulness that enable the scouring of android user forums, essential tasks like text messaging become difficult with any android phone because of the mediocre VK and the ugly UI. The smooth UI of the iphone makes it a joy to text message; this encourages the user to text message. The clunky, ugly, and slow VK of android makes it a hassle to type. This discourages the user, especially when one wants to type a long message. This prevents the kind of “bond” that BGR is talking about. Blackberry people find it very easy to do e-mail. The same can be said about them. Note that these are examples of how design/looks are connected to function.
The other day I told my brother (iphone user) that a 4th G iphone is looming; he was indifferent. I asked him if he would upgrade. He said “no” because “I cannot see how 3gs could be improved because it is perfect the way it is” Off course, 3gs has a lot of flaws and could be improved in many ways but the fact that my brother feels that it’s flawless tells you that the iphone fulfills the requirements of an average person. In fact, any iphone user can probably list at least 5 areas in which the iphone is flawless and not in need of any improvement. I highly doubt that any android user can list even three. This is why average people love their iphones and blackberries but don’t feel that way towards their mt3g. Personally, I have become neutral towards my mt3g.
On the pitiful android market:
Again, BGR is not concerned with quantity. In fact, given the age of android, the number of android apps is pretty impressive. It is quality that’s the issue, and you folks know this; many, including myself, have pointed out the ghastliness, mediocrity, and clumsiness of the grand majority of android’s apps. Consider face book and twitter silly and superficial if you wish but it remains a fact that the average person uses those more than they use Google sky and Google voice, and hence the lack of a decent app for either program is nothing short of shameful. It is shameful and unacceptable!
But the decrepitude of the android market goes beyond that: Why was I not able to find a timer app for my mt3g? Why? Is it that hard to come up with a functional timer app? People say android has thousands of apps. Well, forget thousands. How about one timer app that works? One, not more! Am I being too needy by requiring a timer for my “Smartphone”?
Besides, while apple’s imperious stance with respect to its app store and app content is annoying, Google’s laissez-faire free for all attitude is not a better alternative. The apple app store is like a club for which a membership ought to be earned through an approval process. The android market is like a noisome public bathroom for anyone who wants to defecate or urinate without flushing after themselves. I would not be surprised if at some point fraud is committed through the android market due to lack of oversight.
So what if most android apps are free while apple’s are not? A costly app that combines form and function is superior to a cheap or free app that has neither. And when you realize that the best apps are those developed by Google itself and that the popular 3d party apps today are the same ones that were popular at the time of the G1 phone, you come to one logical conclusion: the android market is simply NOT THRIVING.
When BGR mentions tweetie 2, it’s not because tweeting is paramount; it’s to set an example of quality and indicate the absence of usable android apps with respect to popular websites such as twitter.
Now when it comes to gaming, I am not even going to go there….
On fragmentation:
Why must I spend 5-10 minutes on a Wednesday morning updating a whooping list of 10 or 20 apps just because you got a Motorola cliq? Why? It’s annoying, battery, and time-consuming. Also it must be irking to developers to have to update their apps every time a new phone comes out; no wonder why their work is half-hearted. What’s up with these manufacturer custom ROMs? Do people really think that just because you got sense UI, you’re no longer going to interact with stock android? No matter how great the manufacturer’s ROM is, stock android will eventually rear its ugly head. You can run from android but you cannot hide.
Google’s poor management:
What’s up with these updates, every few months, released unpredictably, bringing only minor improvements to android? This is annoying to users and carriers trying to get the latest version and to developers having to update an app they had just updated a month ago because some new phone came out. Also, here’s a quote from the BGR article:
“Beleaguered Android developers are voicing their annoyance that end users have received the 2.1 version of the operating system before they did, with no SDK having been released as yet. This means devs are unable to test their software against the latest update without buying a Nexus One, and this is already proving an issue with developers receiving complaints that their software is having issues on Android 2.1 – and they’re unable even to test it.”
I don’t know if I should criticize android’s devs for shabby apps or commiserate them.
The myth of customizability:
Supposedly android is customizable; on paper I agree. In practice I am not so sure. The iphone too has a customizable home screen and home screen background. Therefore, it can be reasonably inferred that the special customizability that android apologists refer too is what a phandroid member coined as “system replacement apps” (SRAs); these are apps like handcent, meridian, steel, superdial, phonebook, pictureviewer…etc, that can customize how android performs essential tasks like dialing, web-browsing, messaging…etc. the premise is that these SRAs have more functionality and better looks.
When I first got mt3g, I spent hours over three weeks customizing it with SRAs because I thought it was fun and cool. But these SRAs slowed the phone and the apps themselves are slow. Native apps are much faster. For instance, after having spent hours downloading contact pics and cropping them--so that the pic appears when the contact calls or when I roam through the contact list of phonebook—it got very disheartening and disappointing to see that the pics lag or fail to appear in phonebook and only appear half of the times when the contact calls. You feel that you wasted your time. In conclusion, these SRAs undermine the phone’s performance and don’t increase functionality as they are supposed to.
The disregard that devs and Google have towards overall design results in a tacky color mosaic. In conclusion, SRAs don’t improve the looks.
The frequency of updates is annoying. I mean how many times do I have to download a handcent update? Seriously….enough font packs for handcent; how about faster performance?
Android, due to its mediocrity, does not observe the user’s choice. Every time you tell android what to use as default, it once again, an hour later, asks you “complete action using…..” at some point I was about to cry and found myself talking to my phone, begging it to stop asking me “complete action using…..” it’s like my android phone tells me “ok, are you done crying? Now complete action using……” In conclusion, android’s functional flaws preclude you from enjoying SRAs.
I wish I could show you my mt3g today; it has no SRAs, as I uninstalled all of them to rid myself of all the headache that comes from them; I only have Google and a few 3d party apps (layar, ringdroid, g maps, places directory, shazam….total is no more than 10). What really bothers me is the fact that I wasted precious time installing and tweaking the SRAs only to end up uninstalling them; mind you, I could have used these hours to read a good book, go out on a date, or go to the gym. Android and its “customizability” are a waste of precious time. Give me back my lost time.
To those who feel that android is still in its infancy and hence Google should not be vituperated for it, I have a couple of things to say:
None of android critics on this forum is unwilling to consider the infancy factor. After all, if we were unwilling to do so, we would have not bought android phones in the first place. We all knew that android was new; we bought android phones because we believed in it; we liked its idea. The issue here is not infancy; it is the stunted growth! How long are we going to have to wait for this infant to walk on two? It’s been more than 1.5 years but this infant is developing at an alarmingly languid pace.
People! Android’s problem is not infancy; it’s a clear case of failure to thrive.
Moreover, even if it’s still ok for it to be infantile, how come webOS is still in version 1 and yet it runs circles around android? It is far more functional, intuitive, and polished than android; go check out the 10 minute palm pre video at phone arena if you don’t believe me. Palm could teach Google a lesson or two on multitasking and how to use “cards.” Palm’s catalog has only 1000 apps but make no mistake; the quality is superior to that of android’s useless apps.
Before the droid, android’s apologists used to blame hardware for android’s poor performance; now that android has the best hardware in the world, they are blaming infancy. How about the truth?
To those who say that Google cannot make or does not care about pretty stuff:
People! Nothing is further from the truth. Google does care about looks and presentation; just image-Google Google headquarters and see for yourselves. It’s all modern and classy looking. After all, Google has a lot of preppy young employees who care about aesthetics. Google can make pretty things: look at Google’s main search page; it is simple, handsome, yet the Google logo is florid and changes according to the current events, all done in class. Look at Gmail and how handsome it is; it’s the most pleasant looking e-mail app; it’s a work of art, combining both form and function. When you’re in Gmail, look how cool the M in Gmail is; it’s trivial but it shows that Google can make cool things. Look at Google’s apps; they are handsome and refined.
To those who argue that android’s issues are “cosmetic” and not functional, when compared to the iphone:
I beg to differ. Forget that form and function are related, which they are btw. Let’s just talk function.
Here I go: unresponsiveness (black home screen and complete action using….. are good examples); force closing (happens very frequently even with home screen); lag (I don’t need to expound on this and for those who have N1, enjoy the speed while it lasts and while you’re at it, thank the snappy chip, not android; in a fortnight from today, the performance will change after downloading a certain number of apps). Mediocre VK is unacceptable at this point (in a phone that has no physical K, the VK is critical; how long will it take Google to develop a decent VK? How long? Better keyboard lags and you know it. Touchpal is almost paralyzed when you’re on the browser and you know it). Poor touch screen performance (choppy scrolling and less sensitivity and accuracy) No Outlook syncing; no media sync; mediocre browser; poorly implemented multitasking; no multitouch (MT) with native android (at this point, “OEM model” and “personally I don’t like MT” are simply unacceptable). Markets respond to consumers; we buy the phones and we want native MT so Google: give us what we want!
No! MT with cooked up ROMs and 3d party apps is not as smooth as native; we don’t want second rate MT.
Yes, it is clear that legalities preclude Google from enabling native MT but palm does so. Well, people explain this by saying that apple itself has copied some of palm’s ideas and so there is an unspoken agreement between the two. I guess such an agreement does not exist between Google and apple. Well, in that case Google should start paying apple and hence enable MT without fear of legal action. If Google truly cares about their customers, then it should not be a problem to give up a smidgen of their profits.
On multitasking….
This aspect of a Smartphone’s performance is important but tricky; when it is properly implemented, it’s an asset, otherwise it’s a liability. Multitasking in the palm pre is an asset. In android phones it’s a liability because the user’s difficulty in monitoring and controlling what’s running in the background slows down the system.
Yes, the back button is supposed to close the running app; usually it does, but not always. It is the beleaguered user’s responsibility to know when the back button is malfunctioning or when the app itself is known to be not-closable by the back button; this is stressful and time-consuming. The user’s experience becomes less about enjoying the phone and more about figuring out memory and advanced task management. Apps like taskiller don’t help and they are hideous; the user also needs to tell these apps which background apps are to be ignored. Again, it’s complicated.
With Android, multitasking’s liability outweighs its assets.
On Google…..
May I remind everyone that android users have been clamoring for a native task management method since the day the G1 was born? Finally, with android 2.1 we get cards; alas, the cards are for current screens, not tasks! How lame. How sad.
I have already mentioned Google’s responsiveness when it comes to MT demands by android users. And then there is the scruffy media player. Again, Google ignores the users’ plea for a more functional and less repulsive media player. Meridian is ugly, imeem is makeshift and we just can’t keep waiting for diggin’s mercy.
When it comes to Google, it seems like it is one way communication. They ignore our grievances and now, how much effort can we expect them to put on android when they are busy with another OS (chrome), a tablet, nexus one customer service, and nexus two?! Google seems to be better at starting projects than optimizing them; I suppose chrome OS might be just as unpolished as android--if that’s even possible. The tablet might wind up just as problematic as the N1 (poor screen build quality, poor speaker, poor ringer, trackball issues, antenna issues, daylight visibility, button responsiveness, live wall screen and notification light issues, and quick charge drainage).
Now before android enthusiasts whip out their blades to slash my jugular vein, I have to remind everyone that I am an android user. I spent $200 on my mt3g because I subscribed to the idea of android. I had all sorts of ideas running through my head about android’s promised customizability, openness, freedom, and multitasking capability; I spent more than a total of $100 on android market because I wanted to encourage devs to develop better apps; when there were two versions of an app, I purposely went to the paid version to support the android cause. My primary e-mail is Gmail and my searches are only through Google. I am neither an android nor a Google hater; ours (android critics) is a serious case of resentment and disenchantment over failed yet realistic expectations.
In conclusion, Android has been a crock and hence every new android phone turns out to be a lemon. We don’t need another android lemon; rich hardware that’s outdated the minute it’s released in our quickly advancing tech world does not compensate for poor software and pitiful app collection. Why must we live with second rate OS, second rate apps, second rate games, second rate multitouch, and second rate everything? Android is not thriving and Google is not listening.
In less than a fortnight, apple will announce the 4th generation iphone, which will blow everyone’s mind and once again position apple as the innovation leader that everyone else futilely tries to follow.
Apologies for the long post but I had to let it out of my system for once and for all.
Last edited by anotherfandroid; January 14th, 2010 at 01:08 PM.
mind you, I could have used these hours to read a good book, go out on a date, or go to the gym. Android and its “customizability” are a waste of precious time. Give me back my lost time.
I say you could've done any of these things instead of just reiterating what BGR already said.
__________________
"Man's mind, once stretched by an idea, never regains it's original dimensions."
First thing I notice is that you seem to trump iphones. A lot. So first thing I do is look at some of your past posts from different threads.
I am not calling you a fanboy, however you are seemingly biased to iphones. Reason I'm saying this, is you make the very classic habit of applying some things that are a matter of opinion as fact. A lot of things iphone you consider the best, while it's subject to user preferance.
The BGR review cannot be taken seriously, for the same reason. And also that there is an emotional influance in there.
I do not, at all think there is a case for some emotion in a review. It should be impartial as possible, and it's not.
Things like this:
Quote:
I would imagine that most android users in the real world dont have that kind of connection towards their phones; I say this because when you see and talk to the average people who purchase the mt3g, the droid, and the hero, you realize that they are just seeking an iphone substitute; most would have purchased an iphone if they had the chance, the money, or At&T; soon enough, they realize that android is hard to get used to and does not do these essential tasks as easy as the other smart phones.
....point out utter bias. (my bold)
It has to be said, only fanboys give lines like that. Do you honestly think we all secretly want iphones? Or can't afford them?
Seriously, my 5800 suits me best right now, that's over N series, iphones, and whatever else you can suggest. Nearest anything came was the Omnia HD, which I bought and used for a while. Sadly, it was just a tad big enough to annoy me in everyday use. Otherwise it was absolutly fantastic. Cost isn't an issue if it's a phone suitable for me, but it has to be worth it.
I mod at Nokiausers.net and allaboutsymbian. And at the former I have very often discussed how I feel Nokia isn't bringing anything out worth mentioning recently. Hence me being on these forums, I'm seriously thinking of buying a Nexus.
I'm doing my reading, and looking up all the faults, issues and niggles people are having. Something anyone should do when seriously looking for a new phone. After all, it's going to be 100s of pounds that will be spent for something that's used often.
In exactly the same point I made about the BGR stuff, you might well make some good points in your post.
However, in that single line I quoted in bold, makes everything else you say totally irrelevent and not worth reading, because it points to some bias. And that bias could be making false issues out because you seem to want to trump one phone maker.
I am not defending Android, nor am I knocking any other OS/maker. I am pointing out why such reviews and posts are not worth making an opinion on.
RATHER than focus on the NEGATIVE reviews... let's FOCUS on the POSITIVE ONES... here's a great OBJECTIVE, UNBIASES review of the Nexus One by ArsTechnica...
Apologies for the long post but I had to let it out of my system for once and for all.
Now that it's out, go buy an iphone and go away. Android is clearly not for you, you seem to have made a big mistake buying a mt3g. Why come here and rant with your opinions? You're not convincing anyone.
Device(s): HTC ThunderBolt, Moto Xoom, Google Nexus One, BlackBerry 9000, Blackberry Pearl 8100
Thanks: 92
Thanked 55 Times in 46 Posts
Quote:
Originally Posted by mi_canuck
RATHER than focus on the NEGATIVE reviews... let's FOCUS on the POSITIVE ONES... here's a great OBJECTIVE, UNBIASES review of the Nexus One by ArsTechnica...
Wow. Nice to see a professional type of review, with benchmarks and actual data, as opposed to edgadget and BG, who's reviews were fluff, inaccurate, and lazily done.
Very nice job, ArsTechnica. It's nice to see that honesty, fairness and objective data have not been abandoned by everyone.
Very nice job, ArsTechnica. It's nice to see that honesty, fairness and objective data have not been abandoned by everyone.
The only flaw in the data is not providing data for all the phones per benchmark. It seems like he is picking and choosing which phones to represent in each test. Being a scientist who has published, these graphs would be returned to the author to include all devices. The other thing is, he doesn't explain the differences between phones that are using the exact same SOC chipsets. Why are there variations? Also, some benchmarks required optimized drivers/software. These are variables he has not controlled for.
Device(s): HTC ThunderBolt, Moto Xoom, Google Nexus One, BlackBerry 9000, Blackberry Pearl 8100
Thanks: 92
Thanked 55 Times in 46 Posts
Quote:
Originally Posted by sooper_droid12
The only flaw in the data is not providing data for all the phones per benchmark. It seems like he is picking and choosing which phones to represent in each test. Being a scientist who has published, these graphs would be returned to the author to include all devices. The other thing is, he doesn't explain the differences between phones that are using the exact same SOC chipsets. Why are there variations? Also, some benchmarks required optimized drivers/software. These are variables he has not controlled for.
Oh I absolutely agree. However, this is still the best review I've seen. At least it attempts to provide some data. Now, I wouldn't take anything said or posted as gospel. What would be nice though is if some outfits such as Endgadget and BG would follow this review's lead and do a proper review with data and tests that are clear and fair. They have the resources yet simply have not done it.
I'm just giving props to someone for at least TRYING to provide objective data. I agree with you, I doubt the methodology is perfect in this review...but again, that begs the question: WHY more popular sites have so far refused to provide such tests, test results or data.
I personally believe it's because the results will not be to their liking. They could prove me wrong though.
Last edited by Air Force One; January 14th, 2010 at 04:25 PM.
Oh compared to Engadget's review which IMO isn't even good enough to be toilet paper (not that it could because, well, it's an online review, which would be a messy proposition, but in either case...) this is a well written review and makes an attempt at being objective. But this is a far cry from how, for example, PC Magazine used to do benchmark comparisons between computers. For example, we all know that in the OpenGL Benchmark, the iPhone 3Gs toasted the HTC HD2 (same hardware as the N1), but after they optimized the HD2 drivers, it was a little more comparable. The same thing with the Neocore 3D Benchmark, which works well for Qualcomm processors, but stinks on other chipsets.
Last edited by sooper_droid12; January 14th, 2010 at 04:58 PM.
Long before the Nexus One launched, the media was filled with speculation, buzz, rumors, and excitement regarding the possibility of a "Google Phone". The rumors were put to rest when Google announced the Nexus One, the first ever Google ... Read More
