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Which is the superior smart phone
Xperia Play
33.33% (1 vote)
33.33% (1 vote)
IPhone 4
33.33% (1 vote)
33.33% (1 vote)
HTC Desire
33.33% (1 vote)
33.33% (1 vote)
Total Votes: 3
Battle of the smart phones
Posted:
Battle of the smart phonesPosted:
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Status: Offline
Joined: Nov 20, 201013Year Member
Posts: 3,456
Reputation Power: 159
Read the info about all the phone then vote on the poll with whoch you think is the best.
Xperia Play
Sony Ericsson Xperia Play: Specifications
It has a perfectly decent 4-inch capacitive multi-touch LCD touch screen with a 480x854 pixel resolution and 16.7 million colours, and a 5.1-megapixel camera-***-video recorder with autofocus, flash, image stabilizer and geotagging, which knocks the socks off the iPhone but doesn't set the world on fire outside Apple's camera void. It comes fully Gingerbreaded up with Android 2.3.2, which is swift and intuitive, with the usual media player offerings, customisable interface and a very nice cover flow-style integrated Twitter feed. Connectivity-wise it has the expected HSDPA-backed Wi-Fi for internet access, 3G and Bluetooth functionality, as well as A-GPS. There is 400MB of internal memory, but an 8GB microSD card is included and this can be expanded up to 32GB.
So far, so standard. But let's face it, with the frankly gorgeous and similarly priced Xperia Arc rocking a much more impressive rig, not even Sony Ericsson is expecting this to sell on these stats. This is meant to be the first Android handset to kick Apple in the joypads. So what of the all-important gaming inclusion?
Sony Ericsson Xperia Play: Controls
Well, the PlayStation controls hidden within make the handset a little on the chunky side (119 x 62 x 16mm), but less intrusive than we'd imagined. When closed, it's reassuringly solid and expensive looking, unlike the slightly plasticky Neo. At 175 grams it's by no means light, but not as pocket-denting as you might think, so its passes first impressions with flying colours. Get one out on the Tube and people will be impressed, if that's your thing.
The familiar PlayStation controls of a D-pad, four face buttons, two shoulder buttons, select and start, and the not so familiar flat analogue thumb areas, slide down on two runners, but once freed of their casing the build begins to feel a little flimsy. The Play clearly has its design foundations in the reworked PSP Go, although it's noticeable that beyond the iconic square/triangle/circle/cross buttons there's no PlayStation branding anywhere on the handset, and the slide mechanism doesn't feel like it will stand up to much punishment. It's had to be made impossibly thin so that the overall handset isn't too bulky, but the result is it appears eminently breakable under intense gaming.
When playing with the controls slid down, the handset also feels very top-heavy and not particularly comfortable to hold. We didnt get much gaming joy from the slightly bizarre analogue thumb pads, but we can confirm they do kind of work. The shoulder pads are hidden behind the screen and not at all ergonomically designed, while the D-pad feel plasticky and not firm like we've come to expect on dedicated gaming systems, distancing you slightly from the experience. It's functional but not much more. Importantly, it doesn't really feel like you're playing a PlayStation. Or a PSP, for that matter.
Sony Ericsson Xperia Play: Games
Then there are the games. As advertised, there are more than 60 titles available for the Xperia Play at launch. But only six of these are actually purpose-built, PlayStation-certified ones, which you access through the PlayStation Pocket hub, with the rest standard Android games reconfigured to the Play's controls. But unfortunately this lack of conformity some would say the defining issue between Apple and Android means the standard and speed of experience varies wildly, and the button reconfiguration even more so. At present, the term 'PlayStation Phone' seems very much a misnomer.
Qualcomm's 1Ghz Snapdragon CPU and Adreno GPU processor promises smooth 60 frames per second, although this doesn't seem to be being utilised at the moment and its a shame its not dualcore. While FIFA (10, not 11, unfortunately) is palpably faster than the iPhone version, the graphics are poor and controls so unresponsive, we found it more effective to use the touch-screen's virtual stick instead - although the screen slides around a lot on the control-board's runners, so screen-based gaming is far from ideal. The quoted gaming battery life of five and a half hours also seems slightly optimistic.
Next up, the intergalactic shooter Star Battalion takes a mammoth two and a half minutes to get from app press to actual gaming. After much bashing of all the buttons trying to skip the stuttering loading screens, we found that a simple tap of the touch screen at least skipped the relentless intros, despite this not being flagged up anywhere and you being in PlayStation control mode at the time. Confusing.
The one pre-installed PlayStation-certified game, colourful 3D platformer Crash Bandicoot, is fun but the graphics disappointingly don't fill the widescreen display, with big ugly black borders either side, and while it's initially fun, it hasn't aged well over the 15 years since release. This could be a big problem, as while this is undoubtedly a PlayStation experience, it's a really, really old one. The upcoming NGP will boast PS3-quality games, while the PSP already does a good impression of PS2 titles a focus on PS1 titles, as Sonys PlayStation Suite intends to do, feels very regressive, especially when both Apple and Android are doing such a good job of bringing new and dedicated games to market.
Funnily enough, there's a video output that lets you play your games on a big screen if you so wish, effectively turning it into a portable PlayStation One, but you can pick the original PS1 and a bundle of games up off eBay for less than a tenner, so this seems of little consequence. It also puts the 5-7 retail price for Play games into perspective.
The Play retails at 460 off-contract but if you shop around online, you can get the handset for free on a 25 a month contract from several providers if you're prepared to put faith in the slide mechanism lasting 24 months, though some companies, including O2, Vodafone and 3, have delayed its release for a variety of reasons, from stock delivery issues to software bugs. T3 was sent and reviewed a final boxed version of the Play, but in the light of three of the biggest operators postponing release, possible future updates may change user experience.
Iphone 4
Build and design
iPhone 4: At 9.3mm thick, the new iPhone is 24 per cent slimmer than the iPhone 3GS, and Apple claim it's the "slimmest smartphone on the planet. Its built with stainless steel and glass for strength and scratch-resistance.
Processor
iPhone 4: Apples bespoke A4 processor nestles within the new iPhones innards. Its the same as is found in the iPad and provides super speedy operation and quick multi-tasking.
Operating system
iPhone 4: The recently renamed iOS 4 brings much sought-after multi-tasking, the ability to organise apps into folders, the iBooks store, threaded email and the new iAds in-app advertising platform to the phone. iOS4.1 which has just been launched, adds uploading hi-def video over Wi-Fi, High Dynamic Range photos, and a Game Centre for multiplayer gaming.
Multi-tasking
iPhone 4: Double tap the home button to see a list of recently used apps and switch between them. Crucially this means you can listen to third-party music apps (like Spotify) or receive VoIP calls while using other programs.
Display
iPhone 4: Apple calls it the Retina Display- its 3.5 inches and has a resolution of 960x640 pixels, four times more pixels than the iPhone 3GS. With 326px per inch and an 800:1 contrast ratio, it's been lauded as better than OLED.
Battery life
iPhone 4: A bigger battery, coupled with the Apple A4 processor's efficiency, make for claims of 7 hours 3G talktime, 6 hours 3G browsing, 10 hours WiFi browsing, 10 hours music, 40 hours of music, and 300 hours of standby.
Connectivity
iPhone 4: Connectivity is Quad band hspda/hsupa, giving a potential 7.2mbps down, 5.8 up. An 802.11n Wi-Fi chip will provide blistering speeds when in range.
Camera(s)
iPhone 4: The cameras had a major beefing. This time theres a 5-Megapixel cam on the back with a backside illumination sensor and LED flash, plus a VGA cam on the front for the new FaceTime video calling feature. Itll also shoot 720p HD video at 30fps.
Data storage
iPhone 4: 16 and 32GB models are available
Apps
iPhone 4: You know the drill; paid and free apps from all and sundry on the App Store. At the time of writing there are around 225,000 apps. Apple tightly controls what makes it in.
Special features?
iPhone 4: The new iPhone benefits from the iMovie app ($4.99) that lets you extensively edit and upload videos on the phone. Theres also a built in Gyro, for 6-axis motion-controlled gaming, plus a dual mic with noise suppression tech built in. Apple thinks its FaceTime video calling feature will change everything.
HTC Desire
Build and design
HTC Desire: A simple, understated but ultimately classy design, built with a rubberised plastic back to be reasonably tough. The new optical trackpad eschews the trackball for slimness and aesthetics, while tactile buttons at the bottom feel better than the Nexus Ones touch-sensitive ones.
Processor
HTC Desire: The increasingly popular Qualcomm SnapDragon processor gifts the Desire 1 GHz of power, making it extremely swift.
Operating system
HTC Desire: The Desire ships with Android 2.1, but is soon to get the Froyo 2.2 update. According to reports, this will make it 450% quicker, allow you to store apps on the MicroSD and gift support for Flash 10.1 during web browsing.
Multi-tasking
HTC Desire: The Android platform supports multi-tasking like a champ, letting you easily switch between several running apps. Heavy multi-tasking does take its toll on the battery life, though.
Display
HTC Desire: A 3.7-inch AMOLED screen that provides pin-sharp detail while not being too power hungry. Being OLED, it can prove hard to read in bright daylight.
Battery life
HTC Desire: 400 minutes of GSM talk time, 390 over 3G. HTC claim the Desire has 390 hours standby time.
Connectivity
HTC Desire: Near identical. HTC say the Desire boasts a 7.2 Mbps download speed and 2 Mbps upload speed over 3G. The Wi-Fi chip is the same as the iPhone: 802.11 b/g.
Camera(s)
HTC Desire: The Desire sports a very impressive 5-Megapixel camera with LED flash. Video and images arent HD, but its certainly up there with the best smartphones around.
Data storage
HTC Desire: Comes with 512mb (built in) and a 4GB MicroSD card, which is upgradeable to 32GB.
Apps
HTC Desire: Around 70,000 apps at the time of writing, increasing at a rate of around 10,000 per month. Android is open source, meaning anyone can build and publish any kind of app some of which can be used to change the look and UI of the phone. There's also a short-term refund policy.
Special features?
HTC Desire: The Desires Android 2.2 update will give it one major advantage over the iPhone; Flash 10.1 support for web browsing. Given that a huge amount of the web uses the Flash standard, thats a big bonus. You can also download certain apps to completely customise specific functions such as the keyboard or homescreen layout. The Desire also mutes ringing and vibrating once youve picked the phone up.
Xperia Play
Sony Ericsson Xperia Play: Specifications
It has a perfectly decent 4-inch capacitive multi-touch LCD touch screen with a 480x854 pixel resolution and 16.7 million colours, and a 5.1-megapixel camera-***-video recorder with autofocus, flash, image stabilizer and geotagging, which knocks the socks off the iPhone but doesn't set the world on fire outside Apple's camera void. It comes fully Gingerbreaded up with Android 2.3.2, which is swift and intuitive, with the usual media player offerings, customisable interface and a very nice cover flow-style integrated Twitter feed. Connectivity-wise it has the expected HSDPA-backed Wi-Fi for internet access, 3G and Bluetooth functionality, as well as A-GPS. There is 400MB of internal memory, but an 8GB microSD card is included and this can be expanded up to 32GB.
So far, so standard. But let's face it, with the frankly gorgeous and similarly priced Xperia Arc rocking a much more impressive rig, not even Sony Ericsson is expecting this to sell on these stats. This is meant to be the first Android handset to kick Apple in the joypads. So what of the all-important gaming inclusion?
Sony Ericsson Xperia Play: Controls
Well, the PlayStation controls hidden within make the handset a little on the chunky side (119 x 62 x 16mm), but less intrusive than we'd imagined. When closed, it's reassuringly solid and expensive looking, unlike the slightly plasticky Neo. At 175 grams it's by no means light, but not as pocket-denting as you might think, so its passes first impressions with flying colours. Get one out on the Tube and people will be impressed, if that's your thing.
The familiar PlayStation controls of a D-pad, four face buttons, two shoulder buttons, select and start, and the not so familiar flat analogue thumb areas, slide down on two runners, but once freed of their casing the build begins to feel a little flimsy. The Play clearly has its design foundations in the reworked PSP Go, although it's noticeable that beyond the iconic square/triangle/circle/cross buttons there's no PlayStation branding anywhere on the handset, and the slide mechanism doesn't feel like it will stand up to much punishment. It's had to be made impossibly thin so that the overall handset isn't too bulky, but the result is it appears eminently breakable under intense gaming.
When playing with the controls slid down, the handset also feels very top-heavy and not particularly comfortable to hold. We didnt get much gaming joy from the slightly bizarre analogue thumb pads, but we can confirm they do kind of work. The shoulder pads are hidden behind the screen and not at all ergonomically designed, while the D-pad feel plasticky and not firm like we've come to expect on dedicated gaming systems, distancing you slightly from the experience. It's functional but not much more. Importantly, it doesn't really feel like you're playing a PlayStation. Or a PSP, for that matter.
Sony Ericsson Xperia Play: Games
Then there are the games. As advertised, there are more than 60 titles available for the Xperia Play at launch. But only six of these are actually purpose-built, PlayStation-certified ones, which you access through the PlayStation Pocket hub, with the rest standard Android games reconfigured to the Play's controls. But unfortunately this lack of conformity some would say the defining issue between Apple and Android means the standard and speed of experience varies wildly, and the button reconfiguration even more so. At present, the term 'PlayStation Phone' seems very much a misnomer.
Qualcomm's 1Ghz Snapdragon CPU and Adreno GPU processor promises smooth 60 frames per second, although this doesn't seem to be being utilised at the moment and its a shame its not dualcore. While FIFA (10, not 11, unfortunately) is palpably faster than the iPhone version, the graphics are poor and controls so unresponsive, we found it more effective to use the touch-screen's virtual stick instead - although the screen slides around a lot on the control-board's runners, so screen-based gaming is far from ideal. The quoted gaming battery life of five and a half hours also seems slightly optimistic.
Next up, the intergalactic shooter Star Battalion takes a mammoth two and a half minutes to get from app press to actual gaming. After much bashing of all the buttons trying to skip the stuttering loading screens, we found that a simple tap of the touch screen at least skipped the relentless intros, despite this not being flagged up anywhere and you being in PlayStation control mode at the time. Confusing.
The one pre-installed PlayStation-certified game, colourful 3D platformer Crash Bandicoot, is fun but the graphics disappointingly don't fill the widescreen display, with big ugly black borders either side, and while it's initially fun, it hasn't aged well over the 15 years since release. This could be a big problem, as while this is undoubtedly a PlayStation experience, it's a really, really old one. The upcoming NGP will boast PS3-quality games, while the PSP already does a good impression of PS2 titles a focus on PS1 titles, as Sonys PlayStation Suite intends to do, feels very regressive, especially when both Apple and Android are doing such a good job of bringing new and dedicated games to market.
Funnily enough, there's a video output that lets you play your games on a big screen if you so wish, effectively turning it into a portable PlayStation One, but you can pick the original PS1 and a bundle of games up off eBay for less than a tenner, so this seems of little consequence. It also puts the 5-7 retail price for Play games into perspective.
The Play retails at 460 off-contract but if you shop around online, you can get the handset for free on a 25 a month contract from several providers if you're prepared to put faith in the slide mechanism lasting 24 months, though some companies, including O2, Vodafone and 3, have delayed its release for a variety of reasons, from stock delivery issues to software bugs. T3 was sent and reviewed a final boxed version of the Play, but in the light of three of the biggest operators postponing release, possible future updates may change user experience.
Iphone 4
Build and design
iPhone 4: At 9.3mm thick, the new iPhone is 24 per cent slimmer than the iPhone 3GS, and Apple claim it's the "slimmest smartphone on the planet. Its built with stainless steel and glass for strength and scratch-resistance.
Processor
iPhone 4: Apples bespoke A4 processor nestles within the new iPhones innards. Its the same as is found in the iPad and provides super speedy operation and quick multi-tasking.
Operating system
iPhone 4: The recently renamed iOS 4 brings much sought-after multi-tasking, the ability to organise apps into folders, the iBooks store, threaded email and the new iAds in-app advertising platform to the phone. iOS4.1 which has just been launched, adds uploading hi-def video over Wi-Fi, High Dynamic Range photos, and a Game Centre for multiplayer gaming.
Multi-tasking
iPhone 4: Double tap the home button to see a list of recently used apps and switch between them. Crucially this means you can listen to third-party music apps (like Spotify) or receive VoIP calls while using other programs.
Display
iPhone 4: Apple calls it the Retina Display- its 3.5 inches and has a resolution of 960x640 pixels, four times more pixels than the iPhone 3GS. With 326px per inch and an 800:1 contrast ratio, it's been lauded as better than OLED.
Battery life
iPhone 4: A bigger battery, coupled with the Apple A4 processor's efficiency, make for claims of 7 hours 3G talktime, 6 hours 3G browsing, 10 hours WiFi browsing, 10 hours music, 40 hours of music, and 300 hours of standby.
Connectivity
iPhone 4: Connectivity is Quad band hspda/hsupa, giving a potential 7.2mbps down, 5.8 up. An 802.11n Wi-Fi chip will provide blistering speeds when in range.
Camera(s)
iPhone 4: The cameras had a major beefing. This time theres a 5-Megapixel cam on the back with a backside illumination sensor and LED flash, plus a VGA cam on the front for the new FaceTime video calling feature. Itll also shoot 720p HD video at 30fps.
Data storage
iPhone 4: 16 and 32GB models are available
Apps
iPhone 4: You know the drill; paid and free apps from all and sundry on the App Store. At the time of writing there are around 225,000 apps. Apple tightly controls what makes it in.
Special features?
iPhone 4: The new iPhone benefits from the iMovie app ($4.99) that lets you extensively edit and upload videos on the phone. Theres also a built in Gyro, for 6-axis motion-controlled gaming, plus a dual mic with noise suppression tech built in. Apple thinks its FaceTime video calling feature will change everything.
HTC Desire
Build and design
HTC Desire: A simple, understated but ultimately classy design, built with a rubberised plastic back to be reasonably tough. The new optical trackpad eschews the trackball for slimness and aesthetics, while tactile buttons at the bottom feel better than the Nexus Ones touch-sensitive ones.
Processor
HTC Desire: The increasingly popular Qualcomm SnapDragon processor gifts the Desire 1 GHz of power, making it extremely swift.
Operating system
HTC Desire: The Desire ships with Android 2.1, but is soon to get the Froyo 2.2 update. According to reports, this will make it 450% quicker, allow you to store apps on the MicroSD and gift support for Flash 10.1 during web browsing.
Multi-tasking
HTC Desire: The Android platform supports multi-tasking like a champ, letting you easily switch between several running apps. Heavy multi-tasking does take its toll on the battery life, though.
Display
HTC Desire: A 3.7-inch AMOLED screen that provides pin-sharp detail while not being too power hungry. Being OLED, it can prove hard to read in bright daylight.
Battery life
HTC Desire: 400 minutes of GSM talk time, 390 over 3G. HTC claim the Desire has 390 hours standby time.
Connectivity
HTC Desire: Near identical. HTC say the Desire boasts a 7.2 Mbps download speed and 2 Mbps upload speed over 3G. The Wi-Fi chip is the same as the iPhone: 802.11 b/g.
Camera(s)
HTC Desire: The Desire sports a very impressive 5-Megapixel camera with LED flash. Video and images arent HD, but its certainly up there with the best smartphones around.
Data storage
HTC Desire: Comes with 512mb (built in) and a 4GB MicroSD card, which is upgradeable to 32GB.
Apps
HTC Desire: Around 70,000 apps at the time of writing, increasing at a rate of around 10,000 per month. Android is open source, meaning anyone can build and publish any kind of app some of which can be used to change the look and UI of the phone. There's also a short-term refund policy.
Special features?
HTC Desire: The Desires Android 2.2 update will give it one major advantage over the iPhone; Flash 10.1 support for web browsing. Given that a huge amount of the web uses the Flash standard, thats a big bonus. You can also download certain apps to completely customise specific functions such as the keyboard or homescreen layout. The Desire also mutes ringing and vibrating once youve picked the phone up.
#2. Posted:
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Joined: Jul 17, 201013Year Member
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Status: Offline
Joined: Jul 17, 201013Year Member
Posts: 1,994
Reputation Power: 84
great post i would say the htc would be the best cause my dad has my brother has iphone but htc is the best
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