So no iphone 5, what are currently the leading android alternatives?

[DTES]

Anyway. Moving on. To save me actually having to read lots of techy nerd stuff, can someone please explain this Siri thing Apple were on about yesterday, and why it is (or is not) so good?

If you can see through the Apple spin, it does all the stuff on this link: Siri

I quite like the fact you could say "Send an e-mail/text to Dave saying I'll meet him in the bar in an hour". What I want to know is whether it can link to Tapatalk and follow an instruction like "Log onto NSC and post a message telling [insert poster] s/he is a BINNER".

 

[Drumstick]

My HTC HD2 which run Windows 6.5 (Ithink) Is crap! Well it is a good phone but has zero apps of any point and those that are interesting cost loads, Then I brought a wait for it JPAD when I was in Hong Kong which runs android and I must say its a brilliant OS love the adroid store and the free apps Angry birds and other games. But here is my problem missus has a iphone4 which looks amazing, I always loved my old ipod touch and I do buy into 'theres an app for that' line there really is. Contract ends in march so if the new iphone 5 is out or due soon by then I dunno if I should get it or go for whatever android is going. Put off windows now.

 

[Laughing Gravy]

It is a difficult choice these days because contracts are so long, that if you make a mistake an end up with a phone you don't like you are stuck.

I had an iphone 3gs for 2 years and i loved it but i was pissed off with the way that apple only let you do what they want you to do. So i went for an HTC Sensation and i am very happy with it.
I still miss my iphone, but i can do so much more with the HTC.

The best thing about the htc is flash player which lets you watch seagull player anywhere you want. Drag and drop music and other stuff rather then twating about with itunes.

Go and check them all out before you choose.

 

[BensGrandad]

According to the radio news snide copies of the new phone are now available in China and Thailand.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

If you can see through the Apple spin, it does all the stuff on this link: Siri

I quite like the fact you could say "Send an e-mail/text to Dave saying I'll meet him in the bar in an hour". What I want to know is whether it can link to Tapatalk and follow an instruction like "Log onto NSC and post a message telling [insert poster] s/he is a BINNER".

I've just watched the video, I couldn't help wondering EXACTLY the same thing. Will it cope with colloquialisms, particularly as it's presumably an American program, or would it be like the auto-correct function when you're texting, and you write "wanker" (well obviously not me personally, I would do no such thing ), and the phone tries to change it to "wander"?

 

[Bold Seagull]

I've just watched the video, I couldn't help wondering EXACTLY the same thing. Will it cope with colloquialisms, particularly as it's presumably an American program, or would it be like the auto-correct function when you're texting, and you write "wanker" (well obviously not me personally, I would do no such thing ), and the phone tries to change it to "wander"?

If it did do that, it could save many people lengthy bans from this forum, especially the abusive ducking wanders.

 

[fork me]

However, iOS is a different OS to Android. Of course you won't be able to transfer apps any more than you could transfer apps from android and get them to run on windows phone or webos.

There's more to life than apps. Of course I wouldn't expect to be able to transfer apps.

However, I DO want to be able to easily transfer video, images and music from laptop to phone and vice versa. Piece of piss with Android, pain in the ass with any Apple product. Hell I don't even like having Apple software on my laptop, it's always the worst for constant nag screens trying to get you to buy stuff you don't want.

My laptop has over 8000 tracks on it and it's an iTunes free zone.

 

[DTES]

I've just watched the video, I couldn't help wondering EXACTLY the same thing. Will it cope with colloquialisms, particularly as it's presumably an American program, or would it be like the auto-correct function when you're texting, and you write "wanker" (well obviously not me personally, I would do no such thing ), and the phone tries to change it to "wander"?

I can see it putting "anchor" or something similar, yeah. I must admit I haven't watched the video on there - but I haven't seen any mention of it customising or "getting to know" the user. Auto-correct does seem to recognise when you use words regularly so Siri might do the same...

You know what will be great though? Just being able to say "book me a cab to pick me up from HERE". You can't do that when phoning a taxi company drunk with no clue where you are... so assuming it can understand a slurred voice, you are suddenly free to land yourself a massive fine for vomiting all over a seat...

 

[Lady Whistledown]

You know what will be great though? Just being able to say "book me a cab to pick me up from HERE". You can't do that when phoning a taxi company drunk with no clue where you are... so assuming it can understand a slurred voice, you are suddenly free to land yourself a massive fine for vomiting all over a seat...

Brilliant.

Although, sooner or later people are going to start getting seriously caught out by all this software that tells people where you are. If I update Facebook from my phone now, it tells people where I was when I updated it. I presume there's a way to turn that function off, as I'm not sure it will always be a good thing...

 

[BeardyChops]

That doesn't make sense. It's still one development team (Google) versus another (Apple) when it comes to the OS.

What then happens, in Android-land, is that various manufacturers desperately try to find a way to differentiate their super spangly new phone from the 78 other Android phones with almost the same components and same spec.

So what they do is develop their own shit to stick over the top of the vanilla Android. They try and jazz it up a bit. I'm being a little bit unfair - some of the UI bolt-ons aren't bad at all, but plenty are.

It's exactly the same as the PC market of old (maybe it still is - I don't know) where if you bought a PC from a major manufacturer such as HP or Packard Bell etc, you'd find the machine had been loaded up with masses of custom bloatware on top of Windows. In many cases, a complete re-install of Windows was the best thing to do before you even used your new PC.

That's not quite the whole story.
The quick and easy way of customising Android is indeed to take an AOSP release and slap lots of silly features on top. However, the handset manufacturers do actually do a lot more customisation than that - and in fact have to. The Google sources are only to run on specific chipsets and hardware boards. For a manufacturer to run Android on their own handset - with their own input devices, their own screen, their own radio hardware etc etc - they have to still write a lot of code.
Unfortunately, they might also get carried away and put a load of unwanted bloat on top because they know that something needs to differentiate (see MotoBlur or Samsung's hub stuff). HTS Sense on the other hand is really an improvement on the standard UI. Similarly, Samsung's use of the large screen on the Galaxy is pretty smart.

Currently Samsung are looking very good - mainly because they own the entire operation and are very much into "screens", so it makes sense for them to go after it.

 

[BeardyChops]

btw, anyway looking to move to Android but concerned about their iTunes music, either try and get hold of a Google Music account (you need to sign up in the US, but can use it here), or else check out DoubleTwist.

 

[Hiney]

Don't want to get involved in the usual Android v Apple wankfest that ALWAYS breaks out on here from time to time.

I have an HTC Desire HD which I love and my wife has an HTC Sensation which is an AMAZING phone.

The next version of the Sensation, the Sensation SE will come bundled with Beats sound and ear buds and looks fantastic

HTC Sensation™ XE with Beats Audio™ Product Overview - HTC Smartphones

 

[DTES]

I have an HTC Desire HD which I love and my wife has an HTC Sensation which is an AMAZING phone.

The next version of the Sensation, the Sensation SE will come bundled with Beats sound and ear buds and looks fantastic

Will it come with an option get rid of that ruddy great annoying CLOCK at the top of the screen? (If my large font there is a good enough representation of the size and pointlessness of it). It's just a little thing that annoys me - that aside I quite liked the HTC when I had a play with one...

 

[Hiney]

Will it come with an option get rid of that ruddy great annoying CLOCK at the top of the screen? (If my large font there is a good enough representation of the size and pointlessness of it). It's just a little thing that annoys me - that aside I quite liked the HTC when I had a play with one...

You can change the clock for a smaller version if you go into the HTC widgets through the little 'paint palette' icon in the bottom right hand corner of the homne page

 

[DTES]

You can change the clock for a smaller version if you go into the HTC widgets through the little 'paint palette' icon in the bottom right hand corner of the homne page

Good

So I think the plan now is to wait for the announcement of this new Sensation SE, and the Nexus, and then decide which of the three to get. Which means carrying on with my faulty 3GS for a while longer...

 

[Razi]

Which is exactly what Apple want you to do. They make all their stuff incompatible with everything else so that once you start with Apple you have to stay with them. The main reason I have never bought an Apple product in my life, and probably never will.

I've never 'This'd something more in my NSC lifetime as much as this occasion.

This.

 

[northampton_seagull]

HTC Sensation I have is quality. HD video, very fast, battery life is like that of an iphone though. Shit.

Have you downloaded any battery saving app?

with my Sensation continually connected to the internet and normal use it easily beats any iphone on battery. It also lasts ages on standby,

 

[northampton_seagull]

Also the HTC Sensation has a low SAR rating.

 

[gullty]

To get any phone to perform at full potential you have to root it. Some are easier to do than others. All the information you need before purchasing is at xda developers.

 

[driller]

According to those in the know, the new iPhone's camera is so snazzy, it actually filters out poor people ...