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Motorola's Rumored Android Phone Focuses on Screen Size

Posted by timothy on from the aging-eyes-like-size dept.

nottheusualsuspect excerpts from this speculation-laden report at Brighthand that "Motorola is reportedly working on a device that will have one of the largest displays of any smartphone. Code-named the Shadow, it will sport a 4.3-inch WVGA+ touchscreen, Google's Android OS, and a range of other high-end features. When it comes to screen size, the Shadow will be equaled only by the Windows Mobile-based HTC HD2. The closest Android-powered model will be the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10, which will sport a 4.0-inch display. Most other models, like the Motorola Droid and Google Nexus One, have 3.7-inch screens. The display on this upcoming Motorola smartphone will allegedly have a resolution of 850 by 484 pixels."

29 of 134 comments (clear)

  1. So... by gregarican · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This is rumor article about a rumored mobile device. This fascinates me and I'd love to know more. While I'm waiting I'll page through my Star magazine to see about Lindsey Lohan's latest escapades...

  2. Key words by ianare · · Score: 4, Funny

    Well, I might be the son of god, who allegedly created the universe.

  3. Ugh. by girlintraining · · Score: 5, Funny

    First, it's never a good sign when you measure your package using a decimal point, Slashdot. Second this article makes you look like a whore. You should be ashamed! What would your mother think if she saw you dressed in those fishnets, a stolen wonderbra, and humping an android? This is not the way to get in touch with your feminine side, young man. When you've put some decent clothes on, come back down and I'm taking you down to the hex shop and we're going to find you something to play with that won't hurt as much.

    --
    #fuckbeta #iamslashdot #dicemustdie
  4. GOOG employee rumored to take a shit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Seventeen other employees post about it on Slashdot.

    Enough, already.

    1. Re:GOOG employee rumored to take a shit by Nikker · · Score: 3, Funny

      The public demands an answer!!!

      --
      A loop, by its nature, continues. If that didn't make sense, start reading this sentence again.
  5. About the resolution... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

    Sounds really odd that it will be 850x484. I believe it will have 854x480 instead, which makes a lot more sense.

    1. Re:About the resolution... by RedK · · Score: 2, Informative

      Because that is the Droid's screen resolution, which is becoming ubiquitous as a resolution for newer big screen phones and portables. So if you've never seen it before, it's because you weren't looking.

      --
      "Not to mention all the idiots who use words like boxen."
      Anonymous Coward on Monday August 04, @06:49PM
    2. Re:About the resolution... by icegreentea · · Score: 2, Informative

      Its the widescreen (16:9) version of 800x480.

  6. Wow, so yet another screen size by ducomputergeek · · Score: 3, Interesting

    That we will have to test against to make sure our apps work right. Android is starting to get as bad as WinMo. We ported our iPhone apps over to Android, but testing and QA is starting to rack up on the Android side of the house.

    Love of hate Apple, their basic configuration is the same across the various iPhone/iPod Touch models. Make it work well on one, it works well on all 30M or so devices out there. Even Blackberry is basically 2 configs, classic and storm.

    But Windows Mobile is a nightmare as just about every handset has a different UI and hardware spec. And Google seems to be heading down the same road.

    --
    "The problem with socialism is eventually you run out of other people's money" - Thatcher.
    1. Re:Wow, so yet another screen size by beakerMeep · · Score: 5, Interesting

      It's the same resolution as the Droid and Nexus One. There are really only 2 main screen resolutions out there.

      If your QA is backing up for android, maybe you did a bad job porting. Or maybe you should have designed for android to begin with.

      --
      meep
    2. Re:Wow, so yet another screen size by modmans2ndcoming · · Score: 5, Insightful

      perhaps people should start using units that do not rely on pixels to display their app? how about em?

    3. Re:Wow, so yet another screen size by UnknowingFool · · Score: 3, Informative

      Sounds like a formula for long term retardation of progress. Having to stick within rigid standards makes it hard to innovate the device itself.

      That sounds like a judgment from someone who has never had to develop on a device that doesn't have a rigid set of standards. Yes there may be less innovation, but there's also not the crapload of little issues that frustrate the hell out of a developer. Having developed on WinMobile, the fact that the every one of those devices might have a different screen size alone has stopped subsequent development. We may develop one version. It if doesn't fit the screen, it's a pain to make it fit, then there has to be a cost/benefit analysis. If there aren't enough customers to justify further development, we won't develop any further unless a customer pays for development. Then there's difference in capabilities from one device to another which is another large set of headaches.

      --
      Well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it.
    4. Re:Wow, so yet another screen size by Hurricane78 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      WTF? Have you ever heard of dynamic layouting?

      Yes, I can write one UI that scales from 128x128 to 1920*1080 without compromises. And so should you.

      --
      Any sufficiently advanced intelligence is indistinguishable from stupidity.
    5. Re:Wow, so yet another screen size by Threni · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I've seen that sort of thing on websites. It's easy - just make sure you only use the left 22% of the screen, and leave the rest blank. Or centre the 22% of content. Whatever.

    6. Re:Wow, so yet another screen size by maxume · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Actually, I'm pretty sure the scalable UI is going to involve at least some effort above a fixed layout, which is exactly a compromise.

      --
      Nerd rage is the funniest rage.
    7. Re:Wow, so yet another screen size by tlhIngan · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I'm not a developer, but even so, I have a hard time with this so called screen size problem. I'm typing this on a 19 inch 1440x900 screen, but Chrome would work just fine in 800x600, or 1024x768 or my 10.1 inch, 1368x768 netbook screen. Why is so hard develop for Android with regard to screen size? Nevertheless, it seems that all Android 2.0 have the same resolution, but different sizes. Or am I wrong?

      It's not that it's hard, but it's impractical to test. Ever test high-DPI on Windows? And see how badly apps break? Because the screen sizes of most cellphones and PDAs is pretty standard, the high-res ones run in high DPI mode all the time so buttons don't get impossibly small to operate. Apps have to be coded to be DPI aware so they can scale their UI appropriately. This is easy on most apps using default widgets, but apps with custom widgets often have to be aware of resolution issues (games usually require this).

      It's like websites that use Flash, and you move from a 1024x768 screen to a 1920x1200 screen. Suddenly that QVGA flash game you like suddenly becomes 10x harder to use because you can't see it well anymore. Or streaming video - that app that looked nice at HVGA (320x480) looks bad at VGA+ resolutions because the video was QVGA, and has borders and is now a quarter the size. You could scale, but if you're taxed for CPU time, it's even worse.

      But mostly, it's high-DPI. And Windows apps already prove that most devs can't handle high DPI. Or flash apps.

      In theory, the Apple devices stress the need to produce DPI-aware apps in the SDK, but it'll take a screen change to see it actually happen.

      Some devices (old PalmOS, for starters) actually scaled apps on high-DPI mode if they weren't high-DPI aware. Looked ugly and pixellated, but worked for a large chunk of unaware apps...

    8. Re:Wow, so yet another screen size by shutdown+-p+now · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Scalable UI has many more benefits than just working on screens of different sizes. It means, for example, that user can arbitrarily change font size and family, and the UI will adapt. It enables smooth seamless vector zoom in and out. It allows for easy localization (as lengths of UI strings can change a lot when localizing, so widget sizes need to adapt). And so on.

      In short, yes, it's harder, but it's well worth the effort. If you look at modern desktop UI frameworks, they're all dynamic-layout-centric - Gtk, Qt, WPF, Swing etc. There's absolutely no reason why the same approach cannot be used on mobile devices. Let me define the UI as "two buttons, layed out horizontally, of equal size", and let the software of specific phone decide on the optimal size of buttons etc.

  7. Re:But I thought by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    When you're sporting only 4.3 inches, keep telling yourself that.

  8. I'm holding out. by Beelzebud · · Score: 3, Funny

    It's only a matter of time before I can get my hands on a 65 inch mobile phone, with Blu-Ray, a media center, and digital cable.

    1. Re:I'm holding out. by Tumbleweed · · Score: 2, Funny

      except it is a fake, unless you dont see how it registers button presses before guys finget gets close to the screen

      Dude, it's a SMARTphone - it knows what buttons he's gonna press - even before HE does! Sheesh, get with the times, it's all ball-bearings, now!

  9. That's no phone... by vandoravp · · Score: 3, Insightful

    ...that's a tablet. Seriously, do they think cargo pockets are the predominant pocket variety?

    1. Re:That's no phone... by zullnero · · Score: 2, Interesting

      That's what I thought. Plenty of a certain nearsighted crowd like their big screens, but the overwhelming majority of people wouldn't mind finding a way to make their phone smaller and consume less pocket.

      One of the reasons why I never bought an iPhone, Droid, HTC WinBrick, or BB...I resolved that I would not ever buy another smartphone bigger (height, width, or thickness) than my old Treo. By making their phones smaller, Palm actually kept my brand loyalty. They made their Pre smaller AND made their screen bigger. That's what I was looking for...not just making a screen bigger at all costs.

  10. Re:Basic Requirement by leighklotz · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Until someone shows me something with a keyboard, I am sticking with my BlackBerry.

    The G1 was a good first attempt but everything since has been an iPhone wannabe, all shiny and pretty but missing that important item.

    Exactly. The danger series had good keyboards, as did the antediluvian Motorola T-900 series. I could clock nearly 30WPM on those. And as much as I like the folks at Palm, I couldn't use their chiclets at all.

    The G1 keyboard is just barely tolerable. I've noticed the amount of actual work I get done on my G1 is a tenth of what I used to do. Sure, I can see web pages more clearly and get the info I need more quickly, but as far as acting on it, without an ergonomic keyboard, I can't do much typing.

    I wish Android partners would give up on being what David Pogue calls an iPhone wannabe, and focus on the real promise of small mobile devices.

    Or, else, stop agreeing with as the Onion's quote attributed to Steve Jobs, "People who use keyboards are standing in the way of progress."

  11. WVGA+? WTF? by JesseL · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Does anybody keep a mental table of what these obscure abbreviations actually mean anymore? I can remember that VGA is 640x480 and SVGA is 800x600, after that the letters get meaningless and I've got to go . So why not just save the trouble and tell me the damned resolution from the beginning?

    --
    "Prefiero morir de pie que vivir siempre arrodillado!"
    1. Re:WVGA+? WTF? by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Numbers are scary; but allow the informed to make accurate comparisons. Gigantic acronyms are impressive, and retard easy comparison.

      Blame marketing.

  12. Re:Basic Requirement by natehoy · · Score: 3, Insightful

    And that's great, for you.

    Personally, after trying out an iPod Touch for a few days (even in landscape mode) I just can't type worth felgercarb on it. Audible feedback is just, well, annoying to me. And for some bizarre and unexplained reason, annoying to those around me as well. Can't say why. "tick. tick. tick-tick-tick. tick-tick-tick-tick. tick-whoosh-tick. tick."

    I can kludge along at a decent clip on my trusty old BlackBerry Curve, though, and could since the first day I got it. Nowhere near as fast as I can type on a desktop, but the feel of the actual physical buttons and the tactile feeling of pushing a button are huge advantages to me. I have to put a lot of text into my Blackberry, and I can't imagine NOT using a hardware keyboard.

    Isn't it great that both companies make devices? ;)

    --
    "This post contains words, known to the State of California to cause thought. Wash brain thoroughly after reading."
  13. Apparel + Fashion industry needs to respond by Scowler · · Score: 2, Interesting
    Sure, you can carry over-sized mobile devices in a purse or other small bag, but sales of such devices probably do a lot better if people perceive they can carry them on their person and still be normal people.

    Right now, the standard layman outfit of jeans/slacks + shirt provides limited options... keys + wallet + other junk already leave little space for more than a tiny cell phone as it is.

    I'd bet some apparel company could make a killing, for example, if they made a real attempt to market cargo pants, with larger sized pockets for all the gee-whiz gadgets, to the Best Buy loving crowd.

  14. Screen size is not irrelevant to UI design by SuperKendall · · Score: 2, Insightful

    The physical size of the screen is irrelevant.

    That is totally not the case. In mobile design you are working around very tight constraints around how many pixels wide a target like a button can be, because a finger can only hit a physical target so small (on the iPhone, it's 35 pixels although you can fudge downward a bit).

    So when the physical screen size gets larger, that means you COULD design buttons smaller in pixel resolution to keep the same target size but allow more data to show. Otherwise your interface will end up looking goofy large on such a device - that might be OK, but if you are trying to make a really good application it's silly to ignore things like that. I mean, if no-one designs software to take advantage of this larger screen than what was the point of it all?

    Hopefully the Android API has some way to get at PPI data in addition to screen resolution so the designer can design a flexible layout that allows for buttons and data to expand or contract as needed. I know the Android API very generally but not well enough to know if it has that.

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
  15. Fashion in cycles? by istartedi · · Score: 2, Funny

    Maybe it's just about the right time for the hefty, shoulder-carried piece of tech to come back in fashion. Anybody remember the boom-box?

    Actually, the first thing that popped into my head was to imagine Sting singing "I want my big screen phone".

    Start workin' out guys. Annoying, shoulder-carried big screen portable TV with a phone in it. Videophone your GF on the subway. Oh, this is Slashdot... nevermind.

    --
    For all intensive purposes, "whom" is no longer a word. That begs the question, "who cares"?