|
|
|
Smart Phone Rankings | View information about Smart Phone Rankings within our Technology Website Directory section by reviewing this area of our website. We provide a wealth of information online to help our visitors become better informed about Computer Buzz. |
|
Smart Phone Rankings
|
|
|
|
Computers, cell phones, digital cameras, and PDAs have all been morphed into a gizmo that is being loosely called a "smart phone," at least until a better name comes along. You can typically use a smart phone to store contact information, check your junk email, take fuzzy photos, play solitaire, and maybe even place a phone call.
Computer Buzz has taken a close look at the general flavors of smart phones that are currently available, and we have ranked them according to our totally subjective whims. As always, we invite your comments.
|
|
|
|
|
|
1ST PLACE: APPLE iPHONE
|
|
Apple hit a grand slam over the center field wall in mid-2007 with the introduction of the iPhone. Even its goofy name couldn't keep the iPhone from being a smashing success. Everyone agrees: Apple has done it yet again.
It's far more than a phone; it's an iPod (of course), a camera (aren't they all?), an email client, a Web browser, a contact manager, a photo album, a stock ticker, and more. Everything it does, it does better than just about any of its competition, and it does it with only a single hardware button on its face.
Computer Buzz has a few gripes about the iPhone, albeit fairly minor ones. The smallish on-screen QWERTY key pad that some of its apps require will be a bit of a challenge for most adult males and large women with fat fingers; its telephone function does not include voice dialing; the battery is adequate but not user serviceable/replaceable—the phone has to be bundled up and sent back to Apple for that; unlike its iPod cousin, the iPhone's sonic output plug is recessed so that a clunky adapter (not included) is required for most headphones and/or external speakers; and the price—$500 for the less expensive model—reminds us that this is cutting edge technology.
The iPhone is easily the smartest of all the smart phones. It's hard to say if it's really a PDA in smart phone clothing, or a very sophisticated iPod, or a...? Whatever it is, telephony is one of its lesser functions. It excels at everything it essays, and Computer Buzz ranks it Numero Uno Grande.
Official Website: www.Apple.com/iPhone/
|
|
|
|
|
|
2ND PLACE: PALM OS TREO
|
|
Runner up to the iPhone is the venerable Palm OS-powered Treo. The Palm OS is just as intuitive and easy to use as it always was, largely because it has changed little in the last decade or more. Its interface is thoughtful and uncluttered.
The Treo features a miniature QWERTY keypad below the screen that will be challenging for those with large fingers. The keys all do double duty via a shift key, but that can be learned easily enough. You can access all the Treo's basic functions without ever touching the touch screen.
The Treo syncs nicely with your Windows computer. It also syncs with a Mac, although there is some concern about how much longer Macs will be supported by Palm, especially now that Apple has become a major player in the smart phone game.
Official Website: www.Palm.com
|
|
|
|
|
|
3RD PLACE: BLACKBERRY
|
|
The BlackBerry, by Research In Motion, was the very first smart phone, and it still has a lot of that early momentum even if it is not in first place any more. If it were up to corporate America alone, BlackBerry might still be in the lead. BlackBerry's strong suit (other than telephony) is email, which seems to be of significant importance to a lot of business types.
The early BlackBerries had a QWERTY keyboard on which every key serviced a single character, thus making it larger and wider than most other phones. Recent models are smaller and narrower; consequently each key must now service two characters. This makes entering data slower and trickier. Add to that the BlackBerry's unique and awkward navigation functions, and it ceases to be a smart phone that we look forward to using except when necessary.
Official Website: www.BlackBerry.com
|
|
|
|
|
|
4TH PLACE: WINDOWS MOBILE OS
|
|
As you might expect, Windows Mobile OS on a smart phone is very reminiscent of Windows on your desktop. It has a Start menu and Internet Explorer as well as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. It syncs well with a Windows computer, of course, but you can forget about syncing with a Mac or Linux.
Windows Mobile includes Windows Media Player for audio and video files, and its Messaging app supports POP, IMAP, Outlook, and Hotmail. We judge it to be adequate, but not exciting.
Official Website: www.microsoft.com
|
|
|
|
|
|
DEAD LAST: SYMBIAN OS
|
|
"Last, but not least" never seemed so appropriate. Telephones that use the Symbian OS account for more than two-thirds of all the smart phones on planet Earth.
Problem is, Symbian phones only work on a type of cell network called GSM which covers most of the globe, and judging by their popularity, they seem to be working just fine. But the US—the only nation on Earth that has yet to adopt the metric system--mostly uses an incompatible type of network called CDMA. Oh sure, you can get GSM phone service in the US—but only from Cingular and only on a couple of handsets made by Nokia. Symbian just has not taken off in the States, and Computer Buzz is guessing that it never will.
Official Website: www.Symbian.com
(Adjacent image shows European model of Samsung SGH-i570 Symbian mobile phone.)
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Back to Directory Page |
|
|
|
|
 |
