I could definitely go for a display like this, whether or not I can see the single pixels. Devices with displays this size usually run OS's that are relatively good at scaling - Android or iOS for instance.
Current screens, especially the huge 4"+ monsters on Android devices lately, are just too pixely at a measly WVGA, and I'd welcome higher resolutions such as 720p at 3.7" or so. Viewing web pages and large amounts of text is just more fun when you have enough pixels to play with - especially with web sites being designed for 1024x768 and higher these days.
The iPhone4 is close to perfect. Definitely the best display on the market, IMO, and mainly because of the nice pixel density.
No, I don't mind holding the phone 10" from my face in order to read text, as long as that text is nice and sharp, and I still have the option of zooming in with fantastic scaling.:)
Are you freakin serious? As a Desire owner who's swapped the stock Sense interface for CyanogenMod's stock Android look and Launcher Pro, I couldn't agree less. Stock Android looks awesome, IMO, and I'd be extremely sad if Android 3.0 looked like ugly-ass HTC Sense. The curved dock at the bottom of the screen alone is... well, horrible.
Exactly - the same goes for, well, pretty much everything that's blocked on a corporate network. What with MiFis and smartphones starting to crop up absolutely everywhere...
Actually, this is a common misconception. Assisted GPS itself doesn't use any kind of network triangulation, but rather receives data on the position of satellites in order to find/lock on to them faster. It can also offload computation to servers, but that's not really necessary any more, what with the processors in smartphones and PNDs these days.
Network location is usually used only as an alternative until an actual GPS fix is obtained. This is definitely the way it works on Android devices, iOS may differ in implementation somewhat, but AGPS is definitely not what you're making it out to be.
Not really a valid comparison, as a laptop is nothing but an underpowered portable PC. It can run the same OS, has support for all the same peripherals, and can do everything a PC can, with the exception of certain performance-limited tasks - and even then, you could build a laptop that has just as much power as a usual desktop. It'd just be as big as a desktop, but that doesn't really matter...
The iPad on the other hand is, well... a billion and one people have said it before me: a big iPod.
If you want a big iPod, that's great - I can see why it would appeal to many people. But your comparison is bunk...
I hope you're right... finally someone to show Google how Android needs to be improved.
Would you care to elaborate a little? Is the integration limited to Office and Facebook, as was apparent in the keynote? Or are there already many other deeply integrated features?
"Sure it's also got active sync and great exchange integration, but so does blackberry. "
I haven't used it myself (been staying away from ActiveSync, Exchange and Outlook since I got rid of my last Windows Mobile device), but don't iOS and Android both have Exchange ActiveSync integration natively as well? I thought that had become just another checkbox to tick on the list of features that everyone has anyway...
I'm not an office type (student at a university of applied sciences), but the MS Office integration is still a huge draw. Since I'm a heavy OneNote user (Thinkpad tablets baby!), the sync they showed in the video looks pretty good. Just being able to read my handwritten notes on my phone, synced directly from OneNote, when I'm on the go, would be awesome. No need to boot up my laptop to recap my lecture notes during down-time (in the cafeteria, on public transportation, anywhere I have a few minutes of spare time that would otherwise be unused)... Of course, this would be the ideal setup.
To be honest, I'd be satisfied with working Google Docs (Text and spreadsheets) for Android. Other than the missing Office (or Docs) integration, I'm REALLY satisfied with Android, and other than the UI (which does look fantastic, BTW), nearly all the features that were presented in the WP7 keynote are just rehashed iOS/Android features (yes, I'm aware that Android also copied a lot of iOS features - thank you for that, Apple - but in the Windows Phone 7 keynote they were talking about things like soft-keyboard-autocorrect, being able to search in the Maps app, having a search button on the phone, and many more things that've become standard fare in today's mobile world, as being revolutionary and new, as invented by Windows Phone 7 creators)...
Sounds a bit like the SIP software you're using on the iPhone is to blame. Are there any alternative SIP clients you could try?
SIPDroid on Android allows you to adjust both Mic and earpiece gain, so volume is not a problem here.
And obviously the quality of the microphone built into the phone will differ from manufacturer to manufacturer, but I'm not sure I'd believe that Apple is using sub par mics in their iPhones... It's their flagship product, after all.
Most of the audio issues with VoIP calls end up being caused by end-user misconfiguration (hardware or software).
Unlike a regular phone connection, you have to deal with a bunch of end-user variables: Different mics and speakers, people sitting 3 feet away from their mics, people trying to use the crappy speakers on their laptop as a speakerphone without any echo- and/or feedback-cancellation other than what's built into the VoIP software (probably even on the server end).
Just try comparing Skype with laptop mics and the built in speakers to Skype with decent headsets. It's a world of difference...
I've actually been using SIPDroid on Android lately, and it's fantastic. Extremely reliable on both WiFi and 3G (usable on Edge, but the latency is noticable), with crystal clear quality. Sounds as good as any landline I've ever used...:)
Now that I fully understand - but for the author, it seemed like the perfect text editor is one without any of the features that make a text editor good in your or my eyes... THAT is what I don't understand:p
But then why go to all the trouble of finding the perfect text editing software (i.e. a piece of software that has absolutely no features)? Why not just type it up in Word and ignore the fonts and other settings? Or just use what came with your computer (Gedit, Notepad, Wordpad, whatever)...?
Personally, I like Notepad++... don't think I've ever been distracted by all the options, as I only ever actually grab the mouse when I realize I actually need it.
Holy crap, you're right. I just installed Firefox Sync in my Android-stuff Ubuntu VM and it asked me for a passphrase. Luckily the passphrase was my WiFi network key:p
Are you sure? Because for the life of me I can't find any place to enter a key on my desktop Firefox installs... or do I need to completely remove my Sync account for it to ask for my key?
In which case, this would seriously fuck with my life, because I don't remember any keys for Firefox Sync. Username, check. Password, check. But a key?
Ah crap, ignore that comment please... my threshold.was too low and missed the post about the N900, making it look like you were talking about the Galaxy S... I was beginning to question my sanity.
Holy crap, and to think, I almost bought one of those instead of my Desire. Why the hell only 256MB? I mean, swap is fine and all, but it's not like 512MB or even 768MB would've bumped up the price much... the device was already expensive.
That doesn't make it alright. This thing used about 30MB on my Desire, and I'm running Apps2SD with an EXT3 partition, meaning those 30MB probably all landed on/data/. You ARE aware that most Android devices currently out there have far less than 200MB of storage space, right?
Nevertheless, I installed it, and was severely disappointed. The performance is in NO way that of a typical Firefox beta, the menu button seems to be without function (seriously, wtf?), Sync asks me for a key of some sort (my memory is a bit wonky, but I have three laptops connected via Sync, and I don't remember a key of any sort), and the rendering is the worst I've seen yet.
As a huge Firefox fan, I'm so disappointed that I'm not sure I'll be trying the final. Unless that Apps is rebuilt from the ground up, it's just not fit for Android use.... Seriously, has anyone on the team actually compared the performance.and functionality to.the Webkit browser, or Firefox on any other platform, for that matter?
Now if this was a pre-alpha, or hell, a proof of concept, okay... but like this? I don't understand why you would release this:(
Why a karma hit? I've been complaining about the Android situation for the past year (ever since I got my Motorola Milestone, which had an encrypted bootloader and horrible support). Using an HTC Desire now, and as of a week or so ago, that's fully rooted (finally got write-access to the system partition during runtime instead of only in recovery)... but things like this make me fear for the future.
I definitely won't be upgrading to a G2 (Desire Z over here) unless this situation changes... but as I can't afford to right now anyway, that's irrelevant. I just hope that enough G2/Z owners complain that HTC notices and goes back to selling easy-to-root phones along the lines of the Dream/Magic/Hero.
"The funny thing is that HTC seems to be one of the cooler manufacturers, in terms of allowing customization and root; they're typically haven't taken the same bold killswitch action that Motorola has done. This move on the G2 is surprising to me. "
Really? Didn't the write-protection on the Desire's system partition (that was only cracked like a week ago with an S-OFF Bootloader) tip you off? Of course, the last time I posted about that on Slashdot, I think I was modded troll... so I guess you're not the only one:p
This is probably, unfortunately, just another sign of things to come:(
Actually, Windows 7 allows you to configure all types of swypes for different tasks, and things like flick scrolling are built right in. If you really wanted, you could use third party gesture software to get all the gesture stuff you wanted, and as far as I know (my Windows 7 tablet is so old that it doesn't have capacitive multitouch yet) , you should be able to get all the oh so great multitouch gestures on there too.
That's the beauty of Windows - almost all the software you need is already out there.
That said, I'm typing his from a very finger friendly UI (Android 2.2), and for casual use, I like it too... but if I could get full blown Windows 7 in a similar form factor, I'd be all over it.
How is Windows on tablets not good? If I could get a device that runs full-blown Windows 7, but could fit in my jacket pocket and got 24-hour in-use battery life (say a few days of standby), I'd throw my Android phone right out the window.
A 7-inch slate (think Galaxy Tab) with Windows 7, USB ports (host support!), Displayport or HDMI and an additional big-buttons-UI for finger use (although I think that might actually be redundant at WSVGA on a 7" screen with Windows 7's DPI scaling)... now THAT would be awesome. I've been dreaming about something like that since I was twelve, and if the form factor (in combination with the performance and battery life, of course) was available, I'm sure the app ecosystem would have already far, far, far surpassed the iApp Store and Android Market with exactly the same types of apps.
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I could definitely go for a display like this, whether or not I can see the single pixels. Devices with displays this size usually run OS's that are relatively good at scaling - Android or iOS for instance.
Current screens, especially the huge 4"+ monsters on Android devices lately, are just too pixely at a measly WVGA, and I'd welcome higher resolutions such as 720p at 3.7" or so. Viewing web pages and large amounts of text is just more fun when you have enough pixels to play with - especially with web sites being designed for 1024x768 and higher these days.
The iPhone4 is close to perfect. Definitely the best display on the market, IMO, and mainly because of the nice pixel density.
No, I don't mind holding the phone 10" from my face in order to read text, as long as that text is nice and sharp, and I still have the option of zooming in with fantastic scaling. :)
Are you freakin serious? As a Desire owner who's swapped the stock Sense interface for CyanogenMod's stock Android look and Launcher Pro, I couldn't agree less. Stock Android looks awesome, IMO, and I'd be extremely sad if Android 3.0 looked like ugly-ass HTC Sense. The curved dock at the bottom of the screen alone is... well, horrible.
Exactly - the same goes for, well, pretty much everything that's blocked on a corporate network. What with MiFis and smartphones starting to crop up absolutely everywhere...
Actually, this is a common misconception. Assisted GPS itself doesn't use any kind of network triangulation, but rather receives data on the position of satellites in order to find/lock on to them faster. It can also offload computation to servers, but that's not really necessary any more, what with the processors in smartphones and PNDs these days.
Network location is usually used only as an alternative until an actual GPS fix is obtained. This is definitely the way it works on Android devices, iOS may differ in implementation somewhat, but AGPS is definitely not what you're making it out to be.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assisted_GPS
Not really a valid comparison, as a laptop is nothing but an underpowered portable PC. It can run the same OS, has support for all the same peripherals, and can do everything a PC can, with the exception of certain performance-limited tasks - and even then, you could build a laptop that has just as much power as a usual desktop. It'd just be as big as a desktop, but that doesn't really matter...
The iPad on the other hand is, well... a billion and one people have said it before me: a big iPod.
If you want a big iPod, that's great - I can see why it would appeal to many people. But your comparison is bunk...
Hmmm... did this ever actually happen with phones/PDAs?
I hope you're right... finally someone to show Google how Android needs to be improved.
Would you care to elaborate a little? Is the integration limited to Office and Facebook, as was apparent in the keynote? Or are there already many other deeply integrated features?
"Sure it's also got active sync and great exchange integration, but so does blackberry. "
I haven't used it myself (been staying away from ActiveSync, Exchange and Outlook since I got rid of my last Windows Mobile device), but don't iOS and Android both have Exchange ActiveSync integration natively as well? I thought that had become just another checkbox to tick on the list of features that everyone has anyway...
I'm not an office type (student at a university of applied sciences), but the MS Office integration is still a huge draw. Since I'm a heavy OneNote user (Thinkpad tablets baby!), the sync they showed in the video looks pretty good. Just being able to read my handwritten notes on my phone, synced directly from OneNote, when I'm on the go, would be awesome. No need to boot up my laptop to recap my lecture notes during down-time (in the cafeteria, on public transportation, anywhere I have a few minutes of spare time that would otherwise be unused)... Of course, this would be the ideal setup.
To be honest, I'd be satisfied with working Google Docs (Text and spreadsheets) for Android. Other than the missing Office (or Docs) integration, I'm REALLY satisfied with Android, and other than the UI (which does look fantastic, BTW), nearly all the features that were presented in the WP7 keynote are just rehashed iOS/Android features (yes, I'm aware that Android also copied a lot of iOS features - thank you for that, Apple - but in the Windows Phone 7 keynote they were talking about things like soft-keyboard-autocorrect, being able to search in the Maps app, having a search button on the phone, and many more things that've become standard fare in today's mobile world, as being revolutionary and new, as invented by Windows Phone 7 creators)...
Turrets? WTF is turrets?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tourette_syndrome
Sounds a bit like the SIP software you're using on the iPhone is to blame. Are there any alternative SIP clients you could try?
SIPDroid on Android allows you to adjust both Mic and earpiece gain, so volume is not a problem here.
And obviously the quality of the microphone built into the phone will differ from manufacturer to manufacturer, but I'm not sure I'd believe that Apple is using sub par mics in their iPhones... It's their flagship product, after all.
Most of the audio issues with VoIP calls end up being caused by end-user misconfiguration (hardware or software).
Unlike a regular phone connection, you have to deal with a bunch of end-user variables: Different mics and speakers, people sitting 3 feet away from their mics, people trying to use the crappy speakers on their laptop as a speakerphone without any echo- and/or feedback-cancellation other than what's built into the VoIP software (probably even on the server end).
Just try comparing Skype with laptop mics and the built in speakers to Skype with decent headsets. It's a world of difference...
I've actually been using SIPDroid on Android lately, and it's fantastic. Extremely reliable on both WiFi and 3G (usable on Edge, but the latency is noticable), with crystal clear quality. Sounds as good as any landline I've ever used... :)
Ah, okay. From the summary and other comments, it sounded like Ed was more or less Notepad without a menu bar ;)
Now that I fully understand - but for the author, it seemed like the perfect text editor is one without any of the features that make a text editor good in your or my eyes... THAT is what I don't understand :p
But then why go to all the trouble of finding the perfect text editing software (i.e. a piece of software that has absolutely no features)? Why not just type it up in Word and ignore the fonts and other settings? Or just use what came with your computer (Gedit, Notepad, Wordpad, whatever)...?
Personally, I like Notepad++... don't think I've ever been distracted by all the options, as I only ever actually grab the mouse when I realize I actually need it.
Holy crap, you're right. I just installed Firefox Sync in my Android-stuff Ubuntu VM and it asked me for a passphrase. Luckily the passphrase was my WiFi network key :p
Thanks for clearing that up.
Are you sure? Because for the life of me I can't find any place to enter a key on my desktop Firefox installs... or do I need to completely remove my Sync account for it to ask for my key?
In which case, this would seriously fuck with my life, because I don't remember any keys for Firefox Sync. Username, check. Password, check. But a key?
Yes, username and password are normal... but there's also a field called "key" which stops Sync from working if left blank. Any idea what that is?
Ah crap, ignore that comment please... my threshold.was too low and missed the post about the N900, making it look like you were talking about the Galaxy S... I was beginning to question my sanity.
Holy crap, and to think, I almost bought one of those instead of my Desire. Why the hell only 256MB? I mean, swap is fine and all, but it's not like 512MB or even 768MB would've bumped up the price much... the device was already expensive.
Glad I went with a Desire...
That doesn't make it alright. This thing used about 30MB on my Desire, and I'm running Apps2SD with an EXT3 partition, meaning those 30MB probably all landed on /data/. You ARE aware that most Android devices currently out there have far less than 200MB of storage space, right?
Nevertheless, I installed it, and was severely disappointed. The performance is in NO way that of a typical Firefox beta, the menu button seems to be without function (seriously, wtf?), Sync asks me for a key of some sort (my memory is a bit wonky, but I have three laptops connected via Sync, and I don't remember a key of any sort), and the rendering is the worst I've seen yet.
As a huge Firefox fan, I'm so disappointed that I'm not sure I'll be trying the final. Unless that Apps is rebuilt from the ground up, it's just not fit for Android use.... Seriously, has anyone on the team actually compared the performance.and functionality to.the Webkit browser, or Firefox on any other platform, for that matter?
Now if this was a pre-alpha, or hell, a proof of concept, okay... but like this? I don't understand why you would release this :(
Why a karma hit? I've been complaining about the Android situation for the past year (ever since I got my Motorola Milestone, which had an encrypted bootloader and horrible support). Using an HTC Desire now, and as of a week or so ago, that's fully rooted (finally got write-access to the system partition during runtime instead of only in recovery)... but things like this make me fear for the future.
I definitely won't be upgrading to a G2 (Desire Z over here) unless this situation changes... but as I can't afford to right now anyway, that's irrelevant. I just hope that enough G2/Z owners complain that HTC notices and goes back to selling easy-to-root phones along the lines of the Dream/Magic/Hero.
"The funny thing is that HTC seems to be one of the cooler manufacturers, in terms of allowing customization and root; they're typically haven't taken the same bold killswitch action that Motorola has done. This move on the G2 is surprising to me. "
Really? Didn't the write-protection on the Desire's system partition (that was only cracked like a week ago with an S-OFF Bootloader) tip you off? Of course, the last time I posted about that on Slashdot, I think I was modded troll... so I guess you're not the only one :p
This is probably, unfortunately, just another sign of things to come :(
Actually, Windows 7 allows you to configure all types of swypes for different tasks, and things like flick scrolling are built right in. If you really wanted, you could use third party gesture software to get all the gesture stuff you wanted, and as far as I know (my Windows 7 tablet is so old that it doesn't have capacitive multitouch yet) , you should be able to get all the oh so great multitouch gestures on there too.
That's the beauty of Windows - almost all the software you need is already out there.
That said, I'm typing his from a very finger friendly UI (Android 2.2), and for casual use, I like it too... but if I could get full blown Windows 7 in a similar form factor, I'd be all over it.
How is Windows on tablets not good? If I could get a device that runs full-blown Windows 7, but could fit in my jacket pocket and got 24-hour in-use battery life (say a few days of standby), I'd throw my Android phone right out the window.
A 7-inch slate (think Galaxy Tab) with Windows 7, USB ports (host support!), Displayport or HDMI and an additional big-buttons-UI for finger use (although I think that might actually be redundant at WSVGA on a 7" screen with Windows 7's DPI scaling)... now THAT would be awesome. I've been dreaming about something like that since I was twelve, and if the form factor (in combination with the performance and battery life, of course) was available, I'm sure the app ecosystem would have already far, far, far surpassed the iApp Store and Android Market with exactly the same types of apps.