Holiday Smartphone Buyer's Guide
by Vivek Gowri on December 4, 2010 5:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Guides
- Holiday 2010
- Mobile
Sprint
When Sprint launched the EVO 4G in June, they had a runaway success on their hands, so naturally, it makes sense to start there in our Sprint holiday picks. I bought an EVO on launch day, after standing in the cold and rainy weather that Seattle passes off as early summer (when in fact, it bears no resemblance to the word summer at all). It was totally worth it. When I wrote up my first impressions bit, the word “beast” came up more than once, and for good reason - it was a monster device, not just in a physically imposing sense, but also just for the number of technologies it housed. It was the first mainstream American WiMAX smartphone and by far the most impressive Sprint device in years, making it a worthy choice if you’re in the market for a high-end slate.
If you want a physical keyboard, Sprint’s other 4G phone, the Samsung Epic 4G, is what you should be looking at. It’s almost as big as the EVO and has the same problems with battery life, but it’s faster due to the Hummingbird SoC inside. It’s the only Galaxy S device with a hardware keyboard and WiMAX, so its a definite step up from the Fascinate, Captivate, and Vibrant. Unfortunately, like all of the other Galaxy S devices, it doesn’t have the greatest build quality in the world, but the extra performance makes up for that. At $249.99, it’s $50 more than the other high end devices, but over a two-year contract with data, that’s roughly 1.8% total additional cost. If the hardware keyboard is important to you, that’s definitely worth it.
On the lower end, Sprint has a motley collection of weird smartphones, with the Samsung Intercept and Transform, Sanyo’s Zio, the old school HTC Hero, the non-WiFi Palm Pixi that we all know and, well, not love, but still. Again though, we find ourselves turning to LG’s new Optimus One (the Optimus S on Sprint). Even with a slower processor, it’s a great deal with Froyo and a pretty solid feature set. And it’s free on contract. This is a free Android phone that doesn’t suck! Easy choice for a low end phone. Did I mention that it’s free?
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TareX - Saturday, December 4, 2010 - link
Actually, I think the best advice is to wait, since the new generation of dual-core smartphones is less than a month away. The era of HD flash-acceleration and dramatic battery life improvement is upon us.Nexus S vs Motorola Olympus
enealDC - Saturday, December 4, 2010 - link
I partly agree with you. Manufacturers and re/e-tailiers are trying to get rid of the previous gen smartphones. Even the great ones like the EVO before the next-gen phones and platforms arrive. But I don't see the promised land quite yet. Battery life will improve, but marginally and as always, users will have to decide what devices provides them their own suitable balance of performance and power consumption.Marvel soniya - Thursday, July 11, 2013 - link
I can provide smartphone APQ451W+ at only USD129.0, it is Quad core ,MOQ is 5K, without sample on hand .Another new model APB401W+ at only USD68.0, it is Dual core, using public housing, MOQ 3K .
Marvel Electronics Limited
Phone: 86-13058001063
Fax: 0755-8318 7023-639
E-mail: soniya.huang@marvelelectronics.com
MSN: soniya.huang@hotmail.com
Skype: soniya.marvelelectronics
Website: www.marvelelectronics.com.hk
StormyParis - Saturday, December 4, 2010 - link
The best advice is *always* to wait. Technology in general, mobiles in particular, are obsolete 6 months after they came out.Unless something revolutionnary comes out (in my case, it would be a dock that morphs my phone into a very basic PC), I'll be getting a slightly outdated smartphone that fits my needs (huge screen, good sound, android) for a bargain, instead.
vol7ron - Saturday, December 4, 2010 - link
All comments pretty much on point, though it's not 6 months, I'd say it's closer to 9. Huge hardware revisions every year (like the iPhone) and by "obsolete", I'm sure you did not literally mean obsolete.I'd still like an infrared transmitter on my phone so I could control the damn TV and DVD player.
My smartphone wishlist:
- infrared transmitter
- pico projector
- better sound
- larger screen (we bought the smartphone for a reason, if we didn't need the screen real-estate, we would be using mini phones).
My iPhone wishlist:
- same as above, but seriously, how many times are you going to refute Flash? Jobs has a personal vendetta that he's letting get in the way. If the new iPhone does not have flash come next July, I'm switching over.
- better software
azmodean - Monday, December 6, 2010 - link
> My smartphone wishlist:> - infrared transmitter
I'm always confused from an engineering standpoint that every portable device with a half-way decent interface doesn't have an IR transmitter. We're talking literally a few cents of additional hardware, though admittedly designing around one more conveniently placed component in a phone enclosure may be non-trivial.
But then I put my cynical business-person hat on and I realize that they want remote control of your devices to be a "premium feature", and they haven't figured out how to make that a reality yet, so you get nothing.
Wonder how small I can make an IR emitter that attaches via micro-usb...
iannet - Sunday, December 12, 2010 - link
The Nokia N900 has a IR port, and it also has a great UI. I have one and love it. It even has better integration with Google Talk than Android; GTalk Voice and Video chat are supported by the built-in chat software.TareX - Sunday, December 5, 2010 - link
Yeah you see but "waiting" now -as the best advice- is different than "waiting" for better technology in general.I mean, these coming few weeks, stores and carriers will want to get rid of all heir old-gen hardware before the new gen rolls (Tegra 2, Orion...etc)
We're talking about a leap in battery life, performance, and general capabilities in mobile phones. The worst time to buy a current gen phone is when the new gen is days away (unless you're looking for the best price).
blueboy_10 - Thursday, December 23, 2010 - link
Totally agreed. Why the hell get an Android phone now when you can get the lastest cutting-edge tech for a smartphone just mere months away. IMO, I wouldn't waste $200 on an Android phone, and then shell out another $200-250 for another phone 6 months down the road. Just doesn't make sense, but if I'm not tech-savvy, then I guess these phones will do. Just my 2 cents. - BLUEBOYMarvel soniya - Thursday, July 11, 2013 - link
I can provide smartphone APQ451W+ at only USD129.0, it is Quad core ,MOQ is 5K, without sample on hand .Another new model APB401W+ at only USD68.0, it is Dual core, using public housing, MOQ 3K .
Marvel Electronics Limited
Phone: 86-13058001063
Fax: 0755-8318 7023-639
E-mail: soniya.huang@marvelelectronics.com
MSN: soniya.huang@hotmail.com
Skype: soniya.marvelelectronics
Website: www.marvelelectronics.com.hk