The S4 is an excellent device
from a hardware standpoint. Its 5-inch screen is larger than its
predecessor, yet it's a tad lighter and smaller. The display is sharp,
at 441 pixels per inch. Samsung packed the Android device with a slew of
custom features,
including new camera tools and the ability to perform tasks by waving a
finger over a sensor. Many of the features, however, make the phone
more complicated to use. In some cases, custom features work only some
of the time. In other cases, you're confronted with too many ways to do
similar things. The S4 might be for you if you don't mind spending time
customizing it. Otherwise, you must bypass all the gimmicks to get to
what otherwise is a good phone.
— Anick Jesdanun, AP Technology Writer
HTC ONE, HTC CORP.
The One is a phone that can match
Apple's standards of feel and finish. Plastic and metal are joined
together so well that you can't tell by feel where one ends and the
other starts. The 4.7-inch screen is also quite a sight, its 468 pixels
per inch among the best. Two front-facing speakers give you real stereo
sound when turned sideways to watch a movie. HTC's
camera has a lower resolution than most. Promises of better low-light
shots from its larger sensors only partly delivered. Like other Android
phone makers, HTC adds confusion by customizing the interface. There are
four different "home" screens from which to launch apps, for instance.
The One is worth checking out as an alternative to the Galaxy S4 from
Samsung, which also adds complication with its custom features.
— Peter Svensson, AP Technology Writer
— BLACKBERRY DEVICES:
BLACKBERRY Q10, RESEARCH IN MOTION LTD.
The Q10 is a successful marriage of the modern touch-screen smartphone and the iconic BlackBerry
keyboard. The interface takes time to get used to, and it doesn't have
the simple immediacy of the iPhone. But once you learn it, you can
positively zip between tasks. The downside to the new BlackBerry 10
operating system is its relative dearth of third-party software. In
addition, the keyboard eats up space that could be devoted to a bigger
screen, leaving the Q10 with a square, 3.1-inch screen. Nonetheless, the
Q10 is likely to be attractive to the BlackBerry faithful, and it
deserves serious consideration from Android and iPhone users as well.
— Peter Svensson, AP Technology Writer
BLACKBERRY Z10, RESEARCH IN MOTION LTD.
The Z10 is the first phone to run RIM's new BlackBerry 10 operating system and comes across as a very good stab at regaining at least some of the cachet of the BlackBerry. But the Z10 looks like every other smartphone on the shelf. It's a flat black slab with a touch screen, measuring 4.2 inches. Only once you turn it on do the differences become more evident. Older BlackBerrys are great communications devices, but are poor at multimedia and at running third-party apps, something the iPhone excels at. The new BlackBerry 10 software is a serious attempt at marrying these two feature sets.
— Peter Svensson, AP Technology Writer
— IOS DEVICE:
IPHONE 5, APPLE INC.
The iPhone 5 is the biggest overhaul to the line since the release of the 3G in 2008. Compared with other high-end smartphones, however, it's more of a catch-up move. The 4-inch screen is larger than previous iPhones, but smaller than many Android devices. The iPhone now works with 4G LTE cellular networks, something many Android devices already did. The iPhone 5 doesn't break much new ground, but it supports the things that really set the iPhone apart: the slick, reliable operating system and the multitude of high-quality, third-party applications. Released in September, the iPhone 5 is getting old. But don't expect a new model until at least this fall.
— Peter Svensson, AP Technology Writer
[[ source ]]
No comments