Android vs Windows Phone 7?

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#532715 13-Oct-2011 10:22

RealityClash: Hey all,

I'm sure there has been multiple threads like this one in the past but I'm looking at buying a new phone in the next 2 - 4 weeks and originally I was set on Android because of its popularity aswell as currently having an HTC Wildfire which I really love, but recently after watching a few videos on phones running WP7 I'm thinking I might look more into that side of the market aswell. One of the things that really started getting me thinking about going for WP7 is that, from videos, the user experience seems to look a lot more smooth and fluid than Android which can often slow down quite a bit and take a while to open apps.

Preferable specs are as follows:
- The more powerful the better (This is one of the things that puts me off WP7 atm seeing as they currently have no dual core phones available)
- Preferably a screen size between 4-5 inches
- Thickness isnt much of an issue as long as the phone still looks nice
- Unless someone knows of any exceptional other phones I'll likely be going with an HTC phone either way
- I'm not a fan of plasticy phones (One of the reasons why I really like HTC)

As for what I'll mainly be using it for:
- General phone tasks (I'm a big texter but hardly ever make calls)
- Music and videos (one of the reasons why I want a large screen)
- Web browsing
- Games, I've heard that the WP7 marketplace has a lot of great games?
- GPS navigation

Also I've noticed that the few WP7 phones that I have looked at don't have micro sd card slots? Whats with that?
But yea, the main phones I'm thinking about atm are either the HTC Sensation or HTC Titan and possibly Samsung's Nexus Prime if that gets released soon (apparently its getting announced on the 19th now).

As I only have experience with Android it'd be great if some of you guys out there who have experience with WP7 let me know what you think of it, how does it compare to Android and which OS is better for what?

Thanks :)

Do you need Flash support? Does WinMo7 have it?

A lot of web content and video requires flash.

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Snowflake

#533110 13-Oct-2011 21:59

Linuxluver:
Do you need Flash support? Does WinMo7 have it?

A lot of web content and video requires flash.

no flash on win pho 7. no flash on iphone either. flash is gonna die soon.

html5 is supported, however, and it screams performance-wise. youtube runs great on html5

to be honest, i cant remember the last time i hit a website on the wp7 that i couldnt use because it needed flash.

even if i find a website that only runs in flash on the desktop, i tend to avoid them.

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billgates

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#533114 13-Oct-2011 22:07

uglyb0b:
billgates: Windows Phone OS does not needs dual core CPU or 1GB RAM to run smoothly. Even with the current generation WP7 which are only 1GHz and 512MB RAM, it's screaming fast and fluid to operate. The newer generation 'mango' Windows Phone have faster and newer generation CPU.

It may not need a dual core cpu to operate smoothly, but this is geekzone. The majority of people on here will want to make the most of their technology and push it to it's limits, just because you can.

I have a Nexus One that runs pefectly well with a single core 1ghz processor, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't want a dual core processor just to see what I can make it do.

The iPhone 4 only has a single core processor, it runs perfectly well too. The iPhone 4S has a dual core processor. The OS does not require it, as it already operates fine as it is. That is no reason to not make it run even better.

Symbian is an even more clear example than WP7 of not needing high clock speed processors to make it run well. I have used an N8 and it keeps up reasonably well with other brands with 1ghz processors. The OS does not require it, just like WP7. That is no reason to not include better hardware.

why add a dual core CPU to a device when it's not needed for number of reasons.

1. OS is not optimized for multiple cores and this includes Android too.
2. It's only going to push the cost of hardware up for OEM's and will result in more expensive phone for consumers.
3. The more cores, the more battery the phone is going to suck.

It's all about the software. The OS has to be optimized to utilize the hardware to it's full potential. Rest is marketing gimmick.

Do whatever you want to do man.

nakedmolerat

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#533166 14-Oct-2011 00:04

Regs: no flash on win pho 7. no flash on iphone either. flash is gonna die soon.

Regs

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Snowflake

#533172 14-Oct-2011 01:15

nakedmolerat:
Regs: no flash on win pho 7. no flash on iphone either. flash is gonna die soon.

LOL. there is a lot of flash on the http://tui.co.nz website. I can still access much of their content on the WP7 though, as they have a fallback for non-flash sites.

seriously though, i can see flash being deprecated in future. the tools will probably be re-jigged to output HTML5 content instead of flash content, so the flash web designers will still be able to create the fluffy stuff - but it will run natively instead of requiring an addon

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kiwitrc

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#533177 14-Oct-2011 06:20

When I was tossing up between iPhone, Android and gulp WinMo6.5 (all my other software is Microsoft) for my first smartphone, Flash was a show stopper for me.

People say its not needed because so many iPhones have been sold and cant use Flash, yet my daughter is always picking up my Android phone to look at some video or other that she cant access on her iPhone.

Flash may be on the way out, I have no idea, but I prefer to make use of the many sites that use it in now and in the foreseeable future and will use other technologies once they widely available.

CruciasNZ

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#533219 14-Oct-2011 09:10

Flash is doomed and Adobe know it

http://labs.adobe.com/technologies/wallaby/

They actually made tools to convert Flash into HTML5

I have to second whoever mentioned not having needed flash. I have yet to run into a website on iPad or WP7 that needed flash.

You can customize Android more, but that in itself has drawbacks. I still maintain that you need to try them equally.

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Linuxluver

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#533234 14-Oct-2011 10:06

CruciasNZ: Flash is doomed and Adobe know it

http://labs.adobe.com/technologies/wallaby/

They actually made tools to convert Flash into HTML5

I have to second whoever mentioned not having needed flash. I have yet to run into a website on iPad or WP7 that needed flash.

You can customize Android more, but that in itself has drawbacks. I still maintain that you need to try them equally.

I have used both flash-capable devices and those that can't.

What you get when you don't have flash is a version of the page that doesn't have it. So it looks like web sites don't use or need flash.

But then you get a flash capable device and find out that a huge number of sites actually do you use Flash....you just weren't seeing that part of the content.

I have Flash on my phones...and wouldn't want a device that can't do it. Maybe it is dying.....but today, right now....it's far from dead.

HTML5 appears to be more processor-heavy than Flash 11.....from my subjective observations so far.

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Snowflake

#533477 14-Oct-2011 19:15

Linuxluver
HTML5 appears to be more processor-heavy than Flash 11.....from my subjective observations so far.

dunno about androids, but theres almost nothing thats as processor heavy as flash 11 on my PC!

HTML5 + IE9 does a lot of GPU offloading, so that helps a ton

i dont tend to "browse" the internet from my phone. thats what my laptop (or ipad, desktop etc) is for. On mobile i tend to only visit a limited number of sites i need on the road, and there arent a lot that require either flash -or- HTML 5 for my purposes. in fact, i'd prefer to use slimmed down mobile versions normally.

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RealityClash

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#533481 14-Oct-2011 19:40

Thanks for all the input guys.
After searching through nearly every shop in town that sells phones I wasn't able to find a single place that had a WP7 phone in stock so I still haven't been able to have a play with WP7. I did get to have a play with the HTC Sensation and I have to say that I am really impressed.
Looks like it may end up being either the Sensation or the Nexus Prime depending on what info gets released on the 19th seeing as I can't see myself going to WP7 unless I've used a device a fair bit before hand.

lokhor

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#533486 14-Oct-2011 20:06

RealityClash: Thanks for all the input guys.
After searching through nearly every shop in town that sells phones I wasn't able to find a single place that had a WP7 phone in stock so I still haven't been able to have a play with WP7. I did get to have a play with the HTC Sensation and I have to say that I am really impressed.
Looks like it may end up being either the Sensation or the Nexus Prime depending on what info gets released on the 19th seeing as I can't see myself going to WP7 unless I've used a device a fair bit before hand.

I have an HTC Sensation and although it's quite a good phone, if I was buying now I'd definitely wait for the Nexus Prime and get that.

All comments are my own opinion, and not that of my employer unless explicitly stated.

RealityClash

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#533494 14-Oct-2011 20:41

Hmm yea.
Also pretty much everyone seems to prefer the Galaxy SII over the Sensation. Anyone know why? Other than it having an AMOLED screen and being a little faster is there really much difference between the two?

Paulthagerous

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#533498 14-Oct-2011 20:48

I think the screen is a big thing. Plus it is a lot lighter. But in my experience, it is the combination of nice hardware with a very simple yet effective UI that suits everyone.

Have you had a play with a S2 yet?

nakedmolerat

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#533500 14-Oct-2011 20:54

RealityClash: Hmm yea.
Also pretty much everyone seems to prefer the Galaxy SII over the Sensation. Anyone know why? Other than it having an AMOLED screen and being a little faster is there really much difference between the two?

why not get Sensation XL ? the spec is pretty much similar / equivalent to nexus prime. sgsII uses Super AMOLED Plus

and a lot faster than the original sensation based on the benchmark scores.

edit: Sensation XL from clove.co.uk will work on all network in NZ - full 3G coverage for XT, Vodafone, 2Degrees

edit: Sensation XL review from Engadget

edit: My bad - Sensation XL only has single core

CruciasNZ

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#533506 14-Oct-2011 21:16

HTC Sensation XL is essentially a rebranded HTC Titan. The phone was designed to run WP7 and therefore doesn't need a dual core chip. Will be interesting to see just how much slower the Sensation is when running a side by side marathon loading test

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