Android Buying Guide: High-End phones
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The Android platform continues to see a lot of growth, and is estimated to grow to 50 percent market share in the smart phone segment, which is impressive considering that it had zero back in late 2007. The experts and industry watchers back in 2007 ignored the arrival of the operating system but the same experts say it will capture 50% in the Smart phone category. The number games aside, with close to two dozen phones launched over the last year in India, you might want to own one. This feature should serve as a basic guide on buying your ideal Android phone.
Unlike its competitors Apple, Blackberry, and Nokia, Android does not have ‘one’ unique selling point. Every phone has its pros and cons, and with every manufacturer, user interface patched on to the Android OS is different.
The biggest challenge for Android right now is lack of knowledge about the operating system, except the fact that it is from Google. Most of the Indian market - upscale and low-end users alike do not want to ‘experiment’ out of their comfort zone. The lack of knowledge hurts Google’s strategy with Android – which was to make smart-phones cheap (and to maintain the dominance of their services in the mobile space.) The OS is packed with all of Google’s applications and access to the Android market, which makes the buy worthwhile. Google applications are not the only USP of their phones, but the way a manufacturer develops the software around it is crucial, like HTC with Sense UI. Every manufacturer is trying to carve a niche into the system in a quest to make Android better. With Android 2.2 Froyo, one needs to wonder if these customisations are of any use.
Android phones are available in three segments:
High-end (iPhone competitors), mid-range (around 18,000), and cheap ones, (around 10,000).
The average high-end Android phone can cost anything between Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 35,000. The price range might extend a little when the projector-laced Samsung Galaxy Beam hits the market.
Buy for:
Gaming
Rich Multimedia
Plenty of Apps
Personalisation
Now, having said that it becomes even more important to understand what should one look for in a phone.
The Essentials
Processor Speed: (Above 800 MHz)
Processor speed has become of epoch importance in the Android circle and there are varied choices. Nevertheless, these phones in addition to a speedy processor have a graphics processor. Motorola Milestone happens to be on of those phones, which even with a lesser processor speed of 600 MHz remains impressive.
Ideally, this segment must be 1 GHz and up but for now I think anything above 800 MHz does qualify. Nevertheless, 800 MHz would phase away with the expected dual core processors (http://androidandme.com/2010/09/phones/samsungs-dual-core-cpu-orion-coming-to-galaxy-phones-this-year/) expected from Samsung. The Orion is expected to have a pair of 1GHz ARM Cortex-A9 with a GPU that is to offer 5x 3D graphics performance compared to the current Hummingbird.
Android Version: (Above 2.1)
By the end of this year, most of the Android high-end devices should be upgraded to 2.2 Froyo, which is expected to robustly add to the functionality of the phones. Anything under 2.1 is unacceptable for a phone in this price range. The most important reason to upgrade to Froyo is for SD card support to install applications.
Default Widgets:
Google’s platter of amazing apps comes built-in into every Android phone but the manufacturer has to do plenty to adapt it to a particular form factor. In this particular aspect, HTC has won my vote a thousand times over. The treatment to the Android OS with its HTC Sense is marvelous.
Simple widgets like clock, calendar, email, messages and music player make a world of difference to the overall usability of the phone.
Camera: (Above 3.2, LED necessary)
Most of the cameras in these phones have anything above five mega pixel, the same camera on a HTC Hero is pure disappointment. Even the Galaxy S does not have flash but is still functional at night. So, make it a point that it has a LED flash - or at least is clear if used in the night. HTC Evo4G has a very impressive camera 8MP camera with HD video recording capabilities.
Apps:
The most important application one needs to have is App Killer, which kills un-necessary background apps. As a note, avoid using the ‘Auto-Kill’ application as it inadvertently ends up killing even the useful processes. For the list of 15 applications click here.
RAM/ROM (Minimum 512MB)
RAM is random access memory that works complimentary to the phones processor units for a better output. Unlike the popular belief more, the RAM the merrier it is always better to have an optimized RAM that can regulate the processor and at the same time be battery economical.
ROM in an Android phone has a very important job of utilizing space to install applications. This is a place where iPhone earns big over Android it is made necessary by Google to install applications on the phone memory on the versions below 2.2 Froyo.
Screen: (Above 3.5”)
The minimum screen is 3.5” and the resolution never being 320*240. Also, watch out for the AMOLED screens by Samsung – in this price range it always has to be HVGA or above - nothing else.
Battery: (Above 1,500 mAh)
A large screen size, in most cases drains even a 1500 mAh battery very quickly. Battery life on large Android phones are notorious, there are some extra remedies like switching off GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and learning to use it at the optimum levels. However, for now it will be necessary to learn to move around with the charger, or buy an extra battery.
Tariff Plan: (GPRS Rs. 99)
Most of the Indian telecom operators are offering a Rs. 99 GPRS service that works efficiently on nearly all Android phones. It allows email sync, messengers and most of other cloud applications. However, Uninor has a Rs. 90 plan that one ought to check out.
My current Top 3 High-End smart phones in the segment:
HTC: Evo4G
Samsung: Galaxy S
Motorola: Milestone
There are other options and we would love to know which ranks high on your desirability quotient. So, do participate in the poll ‘The most desired high-end Android smart phone’
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