Dear iPhone fans: Nexus One is better, get over it
Looks like every tech blog is comparing these phones, so I’ve made my own table:
Screen:
OLED screens have much better colors and viewing angles. Blacks are really deep because there is no backlight behind. Below is the picture comparing iPhone, Samsung i7500 and HTC G1 screens.
Camera
With small lenses like in these phones, the number of megapixels doesn’t really matter. As for a LED flash – sometimes it’s good to have it as a flashlight.
Video
Just found this test on the net: Nexus One vs. iPhone 3GS: Which Phone Is the Better Video Device?
Storage
Many reviewers have written about a 256 MB storage for installing apps. Most applications are less than 1 MB in size, so you can easily fit 200-500 apps in Nexus One.
Speaking about gigabyte games: there is no executable code of this size. I think it’s 10-20 MB at most, the rest is game data (levels, textures). And this game data can be stored on your SD card. Did you ever happen to download a small installer which then continued to download the rest of the data? This technique is already been used by Android developers, both in applications and games.
Controls
Back button is used not only to return to the previous screen within the same application, but also to return to the previously started application. You don’t have to return to the Home screen every time.
Menu button might not be very intuitive on first day of use, just like a Mac menu bar for some Windows users. But it saves a valuable screen space.
Trackball is rarely used, but it’s helpful for precise browser navigation and in other apps that support it. It’s also the only possible way you can dial a number with your gloves on.
Audio playback controls. Yes, I’m asking where is audio playback buttons on these so-called “multimedia” phones. And AVRCP support is not very good on iPhone, at least I can’t get to work these buttons on Jabra Halo wireless headphones.
Applications
Many people think that applications on the iPhone are more polished. Well, maybe not all:
My point is: nothing prevents the developers from making polished apps for Android.
Multimedia
Sure, it’s hard to beat the iPod. But I personally think that Spotify and similar services are the future. You can listen and discover music on a mobile device or a desktop, and there’s no need in syncing your music via USB cables or something else.
Multi-touch
It may be a matter of preference, but for me personally the multi-touch proved to be useful only when playing a game or typing on a virtual keyboard. It’s good as an additional zoom method in Google Maps, and may or may not be handy when browsing the Web. As for the latter, a double tap in the browser works good enough for me.
Anyway, the Android platform has multitouch support in its API since version 2.0. If you want multi-touch support in the browser (it’s device dependent) or in the maps application, try downloading Dolphin and Maverick from Android Market.
Update: multitouch functionality in stock apps (browser, maps, gallery) added in the recent OTA update.
Fragmentation
There aren’t many problems with multiple screen resolutions on Android devices. Check out this post on how the same application looks on 240×320, 320×480 and 480×854 screen resolutions.
Of course, different devices have different Android versions, but eventually all of them will be upgraded to 2.x (maybe except Samsung i7500, but some hackers are already porting v2.0 to it). Generally, if you have a phone with 1.6, you can install any app from the Market.
Dear iPhone fans
Please stop shouting “iPhone is better!” on every corner. If you are happy with your current devices, Apple will be happy with their sales. Maybe that’s why 3GS is not that different from its previous generation. Why bother making a better device if your current sales are so good?
Competition has always been a natural way to get the best out of someone. Google has done a remarkable thing in the mobile devices front in terms of openness to software developers, something that Apple has yet to surprise us.
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