Archive for July, 2010

The cliche says that “A dog is a man’s best friend”, and I’m sure for someone, somewhere, it’s probably true. I’m a tech junkie, however, and that means my cellphone is the the best sidekick I could ask for. This ever faithful piece of technology has been at my side through thick and thin for well over decade. It’s outlasted relationships, traveled the world, and delivered news good, bad, and everything in-between. With all these devices have done for me, I thought it’d be fun to look back and share a few thoughts on each one.

Electronic hunks of plastic that have paraded single file through my life, this is for you. *Tips hat*

Nokia 2160

Nickname: “The Brick”
Network: AT&T
Memorable moments in combat: Ordering Chinese food for pickup from the bus.
Status: Decommissioned
Current Whereabouts: Possibly at the bottom of a milkcrate overflowing with audio cables

We all remember our first cell phone as a wondrous device that unlocked a brave new world of communication. My experience started with the hi-tech Nokia 2160 pictured to the right. While the phone (obviously) lacked abilities we take for granted in our modern era of flying cars, it did possess features such as “not having a wire”, “make calls while zooming down the highway”, and “get in touch with me at Ivan’s house, without calling Ivan’s house”. Pretty innovative stuff if you ask me.

The performance of the phone seemed fine to me, but only because I lacked a proper frame of reference. If asked at the time, I would’ve described call quality/reception as “can make out what you’re saying”, battery life as “three long calls or ten short ones”, and the interface/menu as “Gameboy-ish”

Let history also note that I outfitted the device with an awesome faux woodgrain cover, which was the style at the time.

Nokia 6190

Nickname: None
Network: AT&T
Memorable moments in combat: Can’t remember
Status: Decommissioned
Current Whereabouts: Unknown

While the “Brick” certainly had its charms, I would soon discover that newer and shinier things would follow. My sophomore phone featured a smaller form factor (the size of a Red Bull can was svelte at the time), a brighter backlight, and polyphonic ringtones (If I remember correctly).

There wasn’t a big leap in functionality, but the increased battery life (oh, a fourth long call!) and better pocket-ability were welcome additions. I also enjoyed the fixed stub antenna which was far more aesthetically pleasing that the wiry pull out one the 2160 had. The device would serve as an dependable daily driver for the following year, but overall, it was a bland and forgetful model.

Motorola Star-Tac

Nickname: “The Comm”
Network: AT&T
Memorable moments in combat: Cradling it like a Superbowl football during a vicious skateboard wipe out
Status: Decommissioned
Current Whereabouts: Possibly at the bottom of a milkcrate overflowing with old audio cables

The Star-Tac occupies a place in the pantheon of greatest phones ever made. The clamshell form factor was straight out of the year 4000, and the device was mindbogglingly light and thin. As a bonus, it didn’t fully open up (note picture), which kept it snug on the face. Talk about hands free talking, I can’t even recall the months spent gabbing away while knitting a quilt!

And then…

…I took this device up TEN NOTCHES by adding the personal organizer clip on. This component literally turned the device into a hunk of screens and buttons. Tools such as contact manager, memo pad, world clock, calender, etc were there, albeit in a crude and simplistic form. At the time of course, the functionality blew me away.

Unfortunately, I removed the organizer one day and placed it in my backpack, which I promptly lost. The add-on itself was practically the cost of a new phone, so it wasn’t getting replaced any time soon. After the loss, using the phone just wasn’t the same. I rode out the last few months of the contract and eagerly scanned the horizon for what was ahead.

Motorola T720

Nickname: None
Network: AT&T
Memorable moments in combat: Getting rid of it
Status: Decommissioned
Current Whereabouts: Hopefully the ninth dimension of hell, but probably at the bottom of a milkcrate overflowing with audio cables

On paper, the T720 was an amazing piece of tech. It had a screen with a WHOPPING 4092 colors and an even slimmer form factor than the Star-Tac. It ALSO had an external backlit LCD that would show the ID information of an incoming call. Now take a moment to absorb that last detail. Upon the phone ringing, one could glance at the nightstand, and without even TOUCHING the phone, see who was calling. Are we in the FUTURE or what?

The phone boasted other impressive specs, but unfortunately they weren’t as awesome in execution. The phone had a sluggish and poorly laid out user interface, the reception was abysmal, (likely due to the tiny stub of an antenna), and the color screen was as vivid as a shirt that’s been washed 842 times. It also had an annoying tendency to slip and turn 90 degrees if gripped too tightly. (I don’t know, imagine a lobster squeezing a lathered bar of soap, it’s the best I can come up with at the moment)

Sanyo 5400

Nickname: Can’t recall, but it must have had one
Network: Sprint
Memorable moments in combat: Filming Niagara Falls, messaging the clip to family on the other side of the planet, and getting an instant response.
Status: Decommissioned
Current Whereabouts: Unknown

A phone that will be forgotten in the dustbin of history, but was pretty damn advanced for the time. It was another clamshell similar to the T720, but that’s where the similarities ended. On the exterior, the 5400 featured a COLOR multiline LCD, and a camera with flash and video capability. Open the phone up, and you were greeted with a fabulous 65k color screen and cool blue lighted keypad. Maybe it was all Sprint PCS propaganda drilled into my head, but the reception and call quality were fantastic.

Lastly, the build quality was exceptional. While a few of the lower end Samsungs featured creaky plastic bodies, the 5400 had a solid and sophisticated metal outer shell which was anodized blue.

Blackberry 8700

Nickname: “Bat Berry”
Network: T-Mobile
Memorable moments in combat: Composing ten emails on the subway and having them fire off as soon as I got “air” again
Status: Decommissioned
Current Whereabouts: Cluttered desk at a friends house

It was with this single purchase that I crossed the digital Rubicon. I was originally interested in buying a Sidekick, which had lured me in with a giant screen, qwerty keyboard, and satisfying sliding snap. That’s until I encountered a Blackberry 7100 at a party one night, and was blown away by the sheer “gadgetness” of it. I would have grabbed that device, but I got wind of “an even better ‘berry” (8700) hitting T-Mobile shortly.

Once I got my hands on one, I was in love. The phone was a solid hunk of plastic, equally as adept at communication as it was halting the charge of an elephant with a desperate hurl. The degree of connectivity was something I’d never experienced before. Send and receive email in real-time while on the move? WOW. The color screen was gorgeous, the speaker phone was crisp, and the thumb wheel provided the same level of comfort and emotional stability that a “blankie” provides a three year old.

Blackberry Curve

Nickname: Pimpcomm 2000
Network: T-Mobile
Memorable moments in combat: Picking it up in the morning
Status: Decommissioned
Current Whereabouts: Next to the 8700 on my friends cluttered desk

After anxiously awaiting this device, I managed to grab one a few days early from a T-mobile clerk that should have left them in the back room. Let me tell you, the Curve featured the convergence I’d been waiting for. Removable memory card and a standard 3.5 mm headphone jack? Good bye iPod! A 2 mpx camera with flash? Good bye daily driver 4 mpx Sony, I’ll dust you off when it’s vacation time! WI-FI with unlimited Hotspot@Home calling over the internet and a perfect 5 bars of reception? PEACE OUT land line! In fact, the only thing I didn’t immediately love about the device was the trackball, and I got over that in 15 minutes.

Blackberry Storm

Nickname: Pimpcomm 4000
Network: Verizon
Memorable moments in combat: Streaming Qik video from the Eiffel Tower
Status: Switched to reserve duty, then damaged in action
Current Whereabouts: Acting as a paperweight on the shelf

So I was suffering from some iPhone envy, I’m only human! As tempting as it was, there was no way in hell I was 1) Giving up my BB push email and 2) Jumping ship (going back) to AT&T.

The Storm has to be one of the most frustrating devices I’ve ever come across. On the one hand, the potential was definitely there, the display was gorgeous and the click screen was innovative. But on the other hand, the software was laggy, unstable, and obviously rushed to market. Especially aggravating, was the belief in the community that the device was ONE mythical software update away from Nirvana. Each OS leak and hybrid version was hyped to be “The One”, and each consistently failed to meet expectations. The bi-weekly ups and downs were just too irritating to put up with, and I knew it was time to switch. That, and I couldn’t type on the fucking thing to save my life. A giant screen is nice, but if I can’t communicate faster than two words a minute, what’s the point?

Blackberry Tour

Nickname: None
Network: Verizon
Memorable moments in combat: None
Status: Transferred, still active
Current Whereabouts: GF’s pocket

This phone brought me home to the classic Blackberry experience I enjoyed with the Curve. It was a communication workhorse, all thanks to the return of a physical keyboard. The problem though, was that I really had exchanged one deficiency for another. So, while I could now type like a demon (which was impossible on the Storm), I quickly discovered the Tour’s small screen was unbearable. Reading an email was one thing, but scrolling scrolling scrolling through a web page with a trackball? That’s a task I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy.

Here’s a test….

1) Take a piece of paper and cut out a 2 x 2 square
2) Hold it up to your computer monitor
3) Move it around to “surf” the page

If you want to bang your head against the desk in frustration, congrats, you need a bigger screen too!

A pity, aside of me squinting at the screen, it was a well designed device.

Motorola Droid

Nickname: None needed, “Droid” is badass enough
Network: Verizon
Memorable moments in combat:To be determined
Status: Active on the front lines
Current Whereabouts: My pocket

Not since the BB 8700, have I had such a WOW moment with a new device. I find Android’s interface, usability, and apps to be light years ahead of my previous BB’s. All the usual capabilities I’m accustomed to are there, facebook, twitter, email, chat, surf the web, etc, but the integration is just unreal. One click sharing of a web article, for example, or automatic syncing of Google and Facebook contacts, are subtle yet appreciated features. Then, I throw on a few FTP and file sync apps, and everything is wired together. Now, my phone is the ringleader of my personal information cloud. I can access any file on any of my computers, and do whatever I need to do with them, all from the comfort of the local dive bar.

(And yes, I’m aware that other phones can do these same tricks, here’s a cookie)

——————————————————————————————

So this is where I’m at now. It’s equally amazing and scary to think that in another decade, my Droid will appear as quaint as my Nokia 2160. No matter what the future holds, it’s been a blast experiencing the evolution of these devices firsthand. Here’s hoping we have many more adventures together!

The Droid X has been one of this summer’s most hotly anticipated devices. While the release date is today (happy B-day X!), we’ve had a ton of previously available information to sift through . Many respectable blogs received demo units over a month ago, the device was accidentally sent out early to a few hundred customers, and there’s even been a nationwide scavenger hunt where 21 lucky people happened to be standing right next to where VZW was standing. So, pretty much everyone else in the world has this phone except me and the stray cat across the street.

Anyway, I’m not going to let a few minor details like “holding it” or “using it” get in the way of conveying my impressions to you readers. After some info scrounging, I think I’ve come up with enough to throw an article together. Shall we dive in?

Overall design

From what I can tell looking at other reviews and augmenting them further in my imagination, the X is a gorgeous looking device. The form factor is boxy yet sleek, invoking an impression of a calculator from the year 4147. Overall, the device has a thickness of…..um, a box of Tic Tacs, but there’s a tapered “bump” at the top where the camera is housed. According to Motorola, this helps give the X an aerodynamic drag coefficient that’s HALF of the iPhone’s.

The build quality of the phone appears to be solid. In my mind, I don’t hear or feel the device creaking when typing on the screen. The buttons look to be glued on tight, and most of the ports (in pictures) seem well aligned with the casing.

I’ve included additional information in the following infographic.

The weight of the phone is listed at 5.4 ounces, which is roughly equivalent to a partially filled coffee cup. If fractions are not your forte, remember that TWO X’s = ONE full cup. If that’s still not good enough and you have the time and materials, you can fashion a crude (5 oz) replica out of clay to get a better “hands on feel”.

Screen

The first thing you’ll notice when looking online at pictures of the Droid X is the massive screen. This gorgeous TFT capacitive touchscreen comes in at 4.3 inches and has a resolution of 854 x 480, SAME as the original Droid. One could argue that I can’t judge the screen without seeing it in person, but they’d be wrong. All I need is our little friend mathematics…

Invoking the transitive property of equality (if A=B and B=C, then A=C) we can conclude that the X’s screen (being identical in resolution) looks just as nice as the original Droid’s. See? I paid attention in class.

Call Quality

We often forget the phone part of a smartphone, but voice clarity is paramount for communication. The call quality on the X should be pretty good, if only because Motorola has been making phones for 57 fucking years and should have figured it out by now. I mean all you make are phones, how could you possibly mess that aspect up?

Battery

The battery fueling the X is a monstrous 1540 mAh, which means you’ll probably get anywhere between a minute and week of power, depending on usage of course. In case you’re wondering, an ampere-hour or amp-hour (symbol Ah , A·h, A h) is a unit of electric charge, with sub-units milliampere-hour (mAh) and milliampere second (mAs). One ampere-hour is equal to 3,600 coulombs (ampere-seconds), the electric charge transferred by a steady current of one ampere for one hour. The ampere-hour is frequently used in measurements of electrochemical systems such as electroplating and electrical batteries. The commonly seen milliampere-hour (mAh or mA·h) is one-thousandth of an ampere-hour (i.e., 3.6 coulombs).

Camera

Motorola has done a great job of “staying in the megapixel race”, and the X is no slouch in that department. The camera weighs in at a hefty 8 Mpx, features a dual flash, and is even capable of shooting 720P video, albeit it at 24 frames per second.

But what type of performance can we expect in the real world? I have no idea, since I’ve never touched the device. Instead, I conjured up some fictitious review devices in my imagination. I figured the ultimate test would be to to pit the Droid’s camera against Apple’s latest offering.

The comparison shots on the right practically sell themselves. We can see that the photo quality of the X easily surpasses the iPhone in a number of key areas. The grey “pops” out with a far more life-like vibrancy, the pixel noise is practically non-existent, and the focus seems to be slightly sharper. Great job Moto!

Software

The phone ships with operating system version 2.1, which is what most Android phones are running these days. Pick up (or borrow a friend’s) your/their Android device. What do you think? If it’s slow and buggy, then the X is slow and buggy. If it’s fast and “buttery smooth”, then the X too will be fast and buttery smooth.

Many phones (including the X) will be upgrading to 2.2 in the near future. At that time you may rinse and repeat the above exercise.

Final thoughts

The Droid X, from what I’ve read and been told, is a really solid device. I think it’ll make a great addition to Verizon’s Android line up, probably because their marketing people think it’ll make a great addition. I can’t wait to get some actual hands on time with the X, possibly by playing with one at a house party or peering over a shoulder while in line at Starbucks. If I discover anything new, I’ll be sure to report back!