Time: Phone specs don't matter

[Bateluer]

http://techland.time.com/2010/12/14/do-phone-tech-specs-matter/

I didn't withhold those specs intentionally--for the record, the S has a 1-GHz Samsung Cortex A8 processor and 512MB of RAM, and here are full details on its guts. It's just that as I wrote, the CPU and RAM didn't seem all that important. I nearly mentioned them, but veered away as I got concerned about my word count. Instead, I simply said that the Nexus S felt like an impressively fast phone.

snip

But are specs worth mentioning otherwise?

Uh, yeah. If I'm going to pay top dollar for a smart phone, I don't want the original Android 528Mhz Qualcomm CPU beating at its heart. Specs matter a great deal, particularly on the CPU and RAM, and will matter much more as more games and video see more use on smart phones.

 

[thescreensavers]

That writer is a freaking moron....

 

[Deeko]

The average person doesn't understand the difference between the specs...especially with mobile where core type matters more than clock speed...but they certainly still have a big impact on the performance of the phone.

 

[Bateluer]

The average person doesn't understand the difference between the specs...especially with mobile where core type matters more than clock speed...but they certainly still have a big impact on the performance of the phone.

True enough, but not understanding is not the same as not mattering.

 

[gorcorps]

Well can you really expect decent tech knowledge from Time?

 

[Deeko]

True enough, but not understanding is not the same as not mattering.

I agree. Just pointing out what he might have meant.

 

[Deeko]

He could have also been smarter than he sounded and meant that even impressive specs don't make a phone smooth - the software is as much or more important. However, I don't that's what he was going for.

 

[EightySix Four]

Actually, I kind of agree with him. The specifications in the phone only matter so much, well written software can make a slower phone feel faster than a faster one, which is obvious if you've ever played with a high end Android phone vs. an iPhone 4. The 4 feels faster and smoother despite the slower hardware, though this gets better with each new release.

I know that some people will always "have to know" the specs in their phone, but to me I could not care less as long as the phone is smooth and feels snappy.

 

[DivideBYZero]

Only geeks and gadget warriors (those who endlessly compare specs with colleagues) care about specs. People in general want a responsive phone that does what they require.

 

[Bateluer]

*snip* but to me I could not care less as long as the phone is smooth and feels snappy.

Until you try to do something that requires the more power specs. Gaming on phones is growing more and more popular, if your phone lacks a decent CPU/GPU, thats not going to be a very pleasant experience. Same with playing back HD video.
Next year, we're going to see phones with much higher resolutions than 480x800 and 640x972, Android phones will see ~1280x800 before the end of the year. Again, you'll need decent specs to play back HD videos on that. Shoot, having the higher resolution display is a spec itself, and its one thats readily visible to the end user.

 

[akugami]

Until you try to do something that requires the more power specs. Gaming on phones is growing more and more popular, if your phone lacks a decent CPU/GPU, thats not going to be a very pleasant experience. Same with playing back HD video.
Next year, we're going to see phones with much higher resolutions than 480x800 and 640x972, Android phones will see ~1280x800 before the end of the year. Again, you'll need decent specs to play back HD videos on that. Shoot, having the higher resolution display is a spec itself, and its one thats readily visible to the end user.

And the most graphically and CPU demanding games are on where? On the iPhone you say? The "weak" iPhone compared to Android phones?

Similar to consoles vs PC's, it's easier to exploit the power of the iPhone because there are realistically only two models. This year's and last year's. All other models are depreciated. This is almost like a console where every PS3 is the same as the next PS3 in terms of hardware power. On Android, it's more like PC's. You'll have some super powerful phones from a hardware perspective but you also have a lot of clunkers.

And previous threads have already gone over why more powerful games haven't appeared on Android. Fragmentation and the cost of support. This is something not some anonymous guy on a forum said but John Carmack and recently Epic's Mark Rein.

As for HD video on a phone, today's top end phones (and that includes the iPhone) can play back at least 720p video and that reaches a "good enough" state for a mobile device even when factoring in video out to a TV. Will it get better? I'm sure next year's phone models may feature 1080p playback/output but it's not like today's models are that bad.

This would make a good case arguing that phone specs don't matter. Relatively speaking, I'd say it doesn't. Today's phones are actually pretty powerful. In the case of the iPhone vs Android, we're seeing where a phone may not be the absolute best (though no slouch) being the better platform for more demanding games/apps due to consolidation. Going forward, specs will matter less and less.

This is not to say that I think today's phones are there yet. I do think we're getting close to the sweet spot for phone sized devices where specs will matter very little even for most of the tech crowd. I think looking past next year's models which will likely contain dual core ARM CPU's we're going to need more efficient processors from an energy consumption standpoint or better battery technology. I'd kill for a Droid or iPhone 4 sized device capable of 8-12 hours of gaming or video playback.

 

[Deeko]

Only geeks and gadget warriors (those who endlessly compare specs with colleagues) care about specs. People in general want a responsive phone that does what they require.

Well, that's the point I was hinting at above. The average person doesn't understand or care about specs - but they care about the results of those specs. Whether its finely tuned software, or mediocre software with powerful hardware to power through it, they want a smooth experience.

 

[OS]

time is a useless rag anyways

 

[zerogear]

So is Gizmodo

Did anyone read this article:
http://gizmodo.com/5713374/android-23-gingerbread-review-better-than-fruitcake

Android media experience is still pretty weak compared to the iPhone, from getting music on there (sorry, drag and drop is not media management) to the better-but-still-mediocre music player (just because I can download WinAmp doesn't excuse Android's native app's suckage).

I'm sorry, but anyone who prefers iTunes over Drag and Drop needs to be freakin' shot in the head and pissed on.

 

[Deeko]

So is Gizmodo

Did anyone read this article:
http://gizmodo.com/5713374/android-23-gingerbread-review-better-than-fruitcake



I'm sorry, but anyone who prefers iTunes over Drag and Drop needs to be freakin' shot in the head and pissed on.

I don't like iTunes as an application, but you seriously have that much of an issue with managed sync services? Maybe if your torrent all of your music drag-and-drop is easier, but for most people, a managed service is easier.

For example - I have a Zune Pass. I download all of my music via the Zune software, and when I listen to music on my computer, I also use the Zune software. Why would I want to manually copy new songs to my MP3 player/smartphone, when the Zune software will do it automatically for me?

 

[Patranus]

Uh, yeah. If I'm going to pay top dollar for a smart phone, I don't want the original Android 528Mhz Qualcomm CPU beating at its heart. Specs matter a great deal, particularly on the CPU and RAM, and will matter much more as more games and video see more use on smart phones.

I couldn't disagree more.

Just look at the whole desktop CPU push. So much was focused on increasing GHZ and in the end of the day CPU efficiency won.

Cell phones are consumer electronics. Consumers don't care how they work as long as they "just work". Consumers do not view nor do they shop for these devices as computers.

If a phone has the latest and greatest CPU and a ton of ram but the GUI transitions suck balls, or the OS doesn't have a nice fit and finish, it isn't going anywhere.

Specs do mean NOTHING in the world of cellphones because consumers don't see them as computers. Hell, in the computer market, specs are essentially meaningless and nothing more than marketing terms to get people to pay more money for something they don't need.

 

[shortylickens]

I used to say that Time knows as much about gadgets as Gizmodo knows about international politics.
Lately I've been thinking neither one knows a god damn thing.

 

[Bateluer]

Specs do mean NOTHING in the world of cellphones because consumers don't see them as computers. Hell, in the computer market, specs are essentially meaningless and nothing more than marketing terms to get people to pay more money for something they don't need.

Derp, we proved this wrong in a few past threads. People do see the smart phone as mini computers, especially on the larger screens.

Just because the consumer doesn't understand the specifications and abilities of the hardware they're purchasing doesn't mean they mean nothing. They mean a great deal. You're failure to understand how and why is a whole separate problem.

 

[zerogear]

I don't like iTunes as an application, but you seriously have that much of an issue with managed sync services? Maybe if your torrent all of your music drag-and-drop is easier, but for most people, a managed service is easier.

For example - I have a Zune Pass. I download all of my music via the Zune software, and when I listen to music on my computer, I also use the Zune software. Why would I want to manually copy new songs to my MP3 player/smartphone, when the Zune software will do it automatically for me?

I can use MediaMonkey to sync it to any device I want without a encrypted protocol -- I rather have it Drag/Drop or in regular MTP than any encrypted protocol. It's not about how I acquire music. But FYI, I buy CDs and rip them to FLAC to archive, so D&D is a lot easier for me than going through software that locks you into a single type of player.

Read the article carefully, it compares it directly to iTunes, and I've made no mention of Zune/etc.

Anyway, that was OT, we can get back on topic.

 

[Deeko]

I can use MediaMonkey to sync it to any device I want without a encrypted protocol -- I rather have it Drag/Drop or in regular MTP than any encrypted protocol. It's not about how I acquire music. Read the article carefully, it compares it directly to iTunes, and I've made no mention of Zune/etc.

You bolded "drag-and-drop is not media management" and then went on a tirade about how people that prefer iTunes should quite literally be murdered and have their corpse desecrated...and now you want to talk about semantics of your argument?

Anyway, despite your clear anger management issues, I believe what you meant to say is that a device shouldn't be locked down to one syncing service or another. There's nothing wrong with using something like iTunes, Zune, or your dear MediaMonkey to sync your music - but in an ideal world, you have the choice to use what you want.

Of course, I believe Gizmodo's point is that there is no built in/default media syncing included with Android, forcing you to either use drag and drop or some third party app that the average consumer has likely never heard of. Do note that while they mention it in comparison to the iPhone, they also do not mention iTunes, nor do they say Android should sync with iTunes. They are simply making the valid point that there is no simple, easy to use, default software for syncing.

 

[Anubis]

hes got a point, to 99% of the people who but phones specs don't matter. we and those on other tech/phone forums are the minority

 

[hanoverphist]

hes got a point, to 99% of the people who but phones specs don't matter. we and those on other tech/phone forums are the minority

this. if the article was limited to a specific number of words (like usual), he made the choice to drop the specs so his article would appeal to a bigger audience most likely. i would have done the same, especially knowing how many listings there are online for the specs already.

 

[akugami]

Derp, we proved this wrong in a few past threads. People do see the smart phone as mini computers, especially on the larger screens.

Just because the consumer doesn't understand the specifications and abilities of the hardware they're purchasing doesn't mean they mean nothing. They mean a great deal. You're failure to understand how and why is a whole separate problem.

People who frequent websites like Anandtech, Xbitlabs, Hardocp, etc are the more informed tech oriented crowd. Joe Consumer doesn't know and probably doesn't care about tech specs. History is rife with products that were inferior, but well presented/packaged, that beat out technologically superior rival products.

Heck, how else do you quantify the success of a product like the Wii when both the Xbox 360 and PS3 are both much more powerful from a tech standpoint. Add up all of the Android phones that are more powerful (hardware wise) than the iPhone 4 and it's very likely that the combined number for all of them are lower than the iPhone 4. VHS vs Beta. I could go on.

 

[ElFenix]

Only geeks and gadget warriors (those who endlessly compare specs with colleagues) care about specs. People in general want a responsive phone that does what they require.

actually everyone cares about specs because numbers are easy to compare. marketing knows that and that's why you get TVs with ridiculous claims like 5,000,000:1 "dynamic" contrast ratio. the fact of the matter is that specs don't matter, user experience does. but you can't boil down user experience into a number and sell it.

 

[Gooberlx2]

I'm sorry, but anyone who prefers iTunes over Drag and Drop needs to be freakin' shot in the head and pissed on.

Really? I'm pretty sure Android music/sync can be managed in WMP11/12 since it's a removable device. I'd much prefer that over navigating my hundreds of artist/albums folders and thousands of songs manually.

Drag n Drop is nice to have when needed, but it's a last resort for me...at least in terms of music.