Verizon plans to launch the Droid Incredible 4G LTE "in the coming weeks," but consumers should pass and wait.
The Incredible 4G features some decent specs: it's powered by Google's new Android 4.0 software, runs on Verizon's faster LTE network, and features a 4-inch high-resolution display, top-notch 8-megapixel camera with 28-millimeter f/2.2 lens, Beats Audio for better music and a speedy 1.2-gigahertz dual-core Snapdragon S4 chip.
So what's not to love?
1. Consider the HTC Rezound
The HTC Rezound, Verizon's fourth-quarter flagship phone, features a bigger 4.3-inch screen, with a higher 720-by-1280 pixel resolution -- that's a big difference.
The Rezound also comes with an 8-megapixel camera, a plenty-fast 1.5-gigahertz chip, and will soon run on Android 4.0 -- initially released with Android 2.3 -- and works on Verizon's 4G LTE network too.
While the Incredible is thinner, lighter, and offers NFC and Bluetooth 4.0, its only real advantage is HTC's Sense 4 -- over the Rezound's 3.5 -- a big improvement for a more streamlined interface, a 50 percent improvement in processing speed and lower power consumption.
For a new flagship phone, the Incredible offers slight upgrades in hardware. If you're considering the Incredible, give the Rezound some serious thought.
2. Consider the HTC One
The Incredible couldn't have come at a worse time. HTC is in the midst of a turnaround, after a serious decline last year. Why does that matter? The company overhauled its product line to focus entertainment, and the first batch of new phones is the... "One" series, which hit the market a few months ago.
That's right. The One is the future. The Incredible is the past.
AT&T and T-Mobile carry versions of it, but Verizon has yet to announce a launch -- but that's just a matter of time.
3. Sit Tight, HTC Is Revamping Its Products
Still, it's probably best to wait. HTC's second batch will be leaps and bounds ahead. So if you're looking at HTC, give the first generation of One phones a pass, and wait for them to work out the kinks before diving in.
4. Samsung Is on Top of Its Game
There's a reason Samsung sold over 20 million Galaxy S2 phones in under nine months. And the South Korean company just announced the successor, the S3, which also runs on Android 4.0, but features a massive 4.8-inch display, advanced "S Voice" technology that responds to spoken orders and gestures, and a 1.4-gigahertz "quad-core" -- not dual-core -- chip. It also comes with a 8-megapixel camera, but with "intelligent" camera options that tracks and adapts to what it sees you doing.
Verizon may water down the specs before releasing its version in the summer, but if you can wait a few months, it'll blow the Incredible out of the water.
5. The IPhone 5, Nuff Said
Rumors. They're all rumors, really. But still, we'll run through the list: made of liquidmetal, similar 4.6-inch screen, LTE-compatible, and other major changes. In short, it's the iPhone. Expect it sometime in June.
Bottom Line
If you're going cheap, the Rezound is a better choice. If you're sticking to HTC, wait for the next batch. And if you want the best, wait a few months.
When everyone's showing off their quad-core phones, Galaxy S3s and iPhone 5s, just don't say we didn't tell you so.
Verizon plans to launch the Droid Incredible 4G LTE "in the coming weeks," but consumers should pass and wait.
The Incredible features some decent specs: it's powered by Google's new Android 4.0 software, runs on Verizon's faster LTE network, and features a 4-inch high-resolution display, top-notch 8-megapixel camera with 28-millimeter f/2.2 lens, Beats Audio for better music and a speedy 1.2-gigahertz dual-core Snapdragon S4 chip.
So what's not to love?
1. Consider the HTC Rezound
The HTC Rezound, Verizon's fourth-quarter flagship phone, features a bigger 4.3-inch screen, with a higher 720-by-1280 pixel resolution -- that's a big difference.
The Rezound also comes with an 8-megapixel camera, a plenty-fast 1.5-gigahertz chip, and will soon run on Android 4.0 -- initially released with Android 2.3 -- and works on Verizon's LTE network too.
While the Incredible is thinner, lighter, and offers NFC and Bluetooth 4.0, its only real advantage is HTC's Sense 4 -- over the Rezound's 3.5 -- a big improvement for a more streamlined interface, a 50 percent improvement in processing speed and lower power consumption.
For a new flagship phone, the Incredible offers slight upgrades in hardware. If you're considering the Incredible, give the Rezound some serious thought.
2. Consider the HTC One
The Incredible couldn't have come at a worse time. HTC is in the midst of a turnaround, after a serious decline last year. Why does that matter? The company overhauled its product line to focus entertainment, and the first batch of new phones is the... "One" series, which hit the market a few months ago.
The One is the future. The Incredible is the past.
AT&T and T-Mobile carry versions of it, but Verizon has yet to announce a launch -- but that's just a matter of time.
3. Sit Tight, HTC Is Revamping Its Products
Still, it's probably best to wait. HTC's second batch will be leaps and bounds ahead. So if you're looking at HTC, give the first generation of One phones a pass, and wait for them to work out the kinks before diving in.
4. Samsung Is on Top of Its Game
There's a reason Samsung sold over 20 million Galaxy S2 phones in under nine months. And the South Korean company just announced the successor, the S3, which also runs on Android 4.0, but features a massive 4.8-inch display, advanced "S Voice" technology that responds to spoken orders and gestures, and a 1.4-gigahertz "quad-core" -- not dual-core -- chip. It also comes with a 8-megapixel camera, but with "intelligent" camera options that tracks and adapts to what it sees you doing.
Verizon may water down the specs before releasing its version in the summer, but if you can wait a few months, it'll blow the Incredible out of the water.
5. The IPhone 5, Nuff Said
Rumors. They're all rumors, really. But still, we'll run through the list: made of liquidmetal, similar 4.6-inch screen, LTE-compatible, and other major changes. In short, it's the iPhone. Expect it sometime in June.
Bottom Line
If you're going cheap, the Rezound is a better choice. If you're sticking to HTC, wait for the next batch. And if you want the best, wait a few months.
When everyone's showing off their quad-core phones, Galaxy S3s and iPhone 5s, just don't say we didn't tell you so.
Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S3, but the company that likes to call iPhone owners sheep might as well start "baa-ing" because its new smartphone does little to stand out from the pack.
The Score is a weekly column scoring controversial events in the mobile industry. Want to get to the point? We'll break it down and give you the score.
The Setup: Samsung's Galaxy S line has emerged as the company's flagship smartphone model, responsible for some of the most successful devices on the market. The original Galaxy S laid the groundwork for success against Apple's iPhone, and the S2 continued that work last year by selling more than 20 million units worldwide.
The South Korean electronics giant has marketed its devices for customers who want to be different from the masses who consistently line up for the newest iPhone and other devices. Samsung's reveal of the S3 yesterday was the company's biggest opportunity yet to prove it was a true innovator in the smartphone market by unveiling a device with unique features that Apple and others would be forced to try to catch up with.
However, Samsung's initial presentation of the S3 left many critics wanting. Did the smartphone maker forgot to tell the crowd the S3 also features a camouflage mode? Maybe that's the reason the flagship smartphone from the company that prides itself on being different looks like every other phone on the shelf.
The S3 features a quad-core processor, 4.8-inch screen, 8-megapixel camera and will run on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. It represents some of the very best hardware inside a smartphone to date. Samsung:+1,000 points
HTC's One X features a quad-core processor, 4.7-inch screen, and 8-megapixel camera and runs Android 4.0 and went on sale a month ago. Umm, wait a minute. What happened to different Samsung? So much for innovation. Samsung:-1,000 points
The S3 not only doesn't come to the table with anything that stands out when it comes to specs, but its new software features scream copycat. The S-Voice recognition feature allows users to say commands like "How is the weather?" and the device will find results. Sound familiar? Introducing a voice feature is fine and expected, but acting like you reinvented the wheel in the process? BAAAAAA!!!! Samsung:-500 points
The physical design of Samsung's device is also nothing special. Granted, this isn't the most important thing in the world, but a phone that will likely cost $300 should probably not look and feel as if it's made of recycled plastic. In Samsung's defense, other smartphone makers fall victim to the same thing -- except Apple of course. Oh wait, that's the S3's primary competition! Samsung:-500 points
Final Score:Samsung:- 1,000 points
Is this final score harsh for a manufacturer that just introduced one of the best smartphones ever made? Yeah, probably. But you come to expect more from a company that has the arrogance to call Apple customers brainwashed "yes men." Samsung needed the S3 to be a huge step forward if it wanted to stop people from lining up outside Apple stores for the new iPhone. Instead, the company just matched what's already seen as the best smartphone on the market, HTC's One X. Sorry, that's not enough.
Sure, the S3 is going to sell like hotcakes and Samsung has struck a marketing deal that will make it the official phone of the summer Olympics, so it will be seen and purchased all over the globe. But for customers that may have considered an S3 instead of waiting for the next-generation iPhone, what are they left with? A device that's slightly better than the 4S, but will likely look outdated the second Apple announces its new handset.
Analysts don't expect Apple to launch its new smartphone until October, giving the company time to one-up the S3 anyway -- but Samsung just made it easy.
Apple will sell its new iPad at retail stores this Friday starting on 8 a.m. EST, hours before other locations, jumpstarting an increasingly-fierce battle in the tablet market.
If past launches are any indication, buyers might want to arrive early. Customers lined up practically overnight to get the iPad 2 last year, and the device caused near-riot status when it debuted in Beijing.
However, the new iPad arrives in a more crowded tablet market compared to last year. The Amazon Kindle Fire tablet shattered sales records after its November launch, luring customers with its $200 price tag. Barnes and Noble's $250 Nook tablet also proved popular, and rival Google is launching its own branded tablet later this spring. With far more reasonably priced alternatives available for consumers, the new iPad faces challenges its predecessor didn't.
Retailers like eBay also offer special trade-in deals for iPad 2 owners looking to upgrade. Thousands of the relatively new tablets will be resold secondhand at lower prices, meaning Apple could give itself competition with great deals on the iPad 2.
Still, Apple's third-generation device boasts several new attractive features that could propel its success, and pre-order stock is already sold out online. The new iPad's high-resolution retina display, A5X chip with quad-core graphics processing, 5-megapixel iSight camera with advanced optics, and 4G LTE capability make it one of the most advanced tablets to hit the market so far.
Customers in the U.S. can purchase the new iPad at Best Buy, Radio Shack, Sam's Club, Target and Wal-Mart, or from carriers AT&T and Verizon. However, new iPads purchased directly from Apple retail stores include free "Personal Setup" service, including e-mail set-up, software installation, demonstrations, and more, and Apple employees are likely to have a busy day on Friday.
The new iPad arrives Friday in the U.S., Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the U.K., Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Switzerland, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Apple will roll out the device in 25 other countries on March 23, including Italy, Ireland, Mexico, Norway, Poland, and Sweden.
Prices for the new iPad range from $500 for the 16-gigabyte model to $700 for the 64-gigabyte version.
With the iPad 2 less than a year old and other strong tablets on the market, the world is waiting to see if Apple's newest iPad has what it takes to outdo its predecessors and keep its strong hold on the tablet market.
Sony plans to sell the Xperia Sola, an Android Gingerbread-powered device, in the second quarter, as the company looks to rejuvenate its struggling smartphone sales with new features.
The Sola runs on 1-gigahertz dual-core processors and features a 3.7-inch Reality Display, 5-megapixel camera and 8-gigabytes of built-in storage. The device is also NFC-enabled, and comes in red, white or black. Sony says it will give the device an upgrade to Android 4.0 this summer.
One of the features that Sony hopes will set the phone apart from competition is "floating touch." The technology gives users the ability to interact with their phone by holding their finger slightly above the screen. By hovering their finger over the screen, owners can highlight links and text without ever making contact with the device.
"Floating touch" may be a fun feature, but it probably won't do much to help Sony sell phones unless developers commit to the technology. "Floating touch" could be used in games or utility apps to improve gameplay mechanics and functionality, providing owners of the Sola a truly unique experience they can't get anywhere else.
The Sola will also come with support of Sony's SmartTag system. Users can hit the SmartTags button and program it for up to 10 commands. For example, the SmartTag button could be used in the living room to activate users' Wi-Fi, and then used in the bedroom to put the handset on silent and set the alarm.
Sola's unique features like SmartTag and floating touch could set Sony's device apart from the myriad of other Android smartphone makers. The company aims to make a comeback in mobile phones after parting ways with Ericsson to build its own brand. Sony has fallen far behind manufacturers like Samsung, HTC and Motorola, and the Sola is part of a line of Xperia device it's banking on to make it relevant in the smartphone market.
The Sola has a few unique features, but unless developers merge them into games and apps, it may not be enough to help the smartphone stand out among other devices on store shelves.
T-Mobile plans to sell the Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G on March 21 for $150 with a two-year contract, showcasing the carrier's focus on high-end services.
The Bellevue, Wash.-based company announced the Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G will arrive nationwide on March 28, but some stores will get an early shipment the week before.
Samsung promoted the handset's 4-inch AMOLED screen, advanced GPS system and high-quality entertainment apps at CES and the Mobile World Congress, and now the phone has an official price point, starting at $150, after rebate and a two-year contract.
Along with the Galaxy Blaze, T-Mobile is planning to carry the iPhone 5, signaling the company's dedication to high-end products. Carrying Apple's signature phone will boost T-Mobile's credentials, and offering the latest from rivals like Samsung lets the carrier attract Android loyalists as well.
The Galaxy Blaze is set to run on T-Mobile's HSPA+ network, but the carrier announced a heavy investment into LTE, meaning the Blaze may switch over to the cutting-edge network once it launches. T-Mobile's decision to invest in LTE reflects its desire to compete with leaders like AT&T and Verizon, as the rival carriers already boast developed LTE networks and the iPhone does not support HSPA+.
T-Mobile's bolstered product lineup will the carrier regain momentum lost in its failed merger with AT&T, but spectrum troubles may hinder further growth. T-Mobile walked away from the botched deal with a chunk of money to invest in spectrum, and it is choosing to concentrate on LTE.
T-Mobile still lags behind giants like AT&T and Verizon in the market. To strengthen its position, T-Mobile is starting legal battles to prevent the dominant carriers from snagging too much spectrum. As T-Mobile seeks to get its LTE network off the ground, the company faces constant competition from bigger carriers making similar spectrum grabs.
The Galaxy S Blaze 4G boosts T-Mobile's roster and reputation as a carrier which offers a selection of top-quality handsets, signaling an upswing in the company's fortunes. In addition to Blaze's promise, the company has its hands full juggling spectrum management and the continued acquisition of strong handsets to stay competitive.
Apple unveiled the "new iPad," a 4G LTE device with an improved display and 5-megapixel camera, leaving rivals scrambling to catch up.
The Cupertino, Calif.-based company said the iPad, which kicks off in 10 countries, including the U.S., on March 16 and around two dozen others a week later, offers an ultra-clear display with blazing intensity and contrast, surging past competitors who've tried to improve on Apple's design.
The changes to the new iPad focus on functionality, from display to media capabilities. Apple rivals seeking to secure a part of the tablet market for themselves will be hard-pressed to find ways surpass the features, or offer the same quality at a better price. The new iPad dares competitors to keep up in the tablet market, while its LTE connectivity cements it as the first tablet to utilize the faster network.
"Until you see it, you can't understand how amazing it is," said Apple CEO Tim Cook at the event.
Despite speculation its name might be the "iPad HD," the new tablet will reset expectations on what a tablet should provide. Prices for Wi-Fi-enabled models are $500, $600 and $700 for 16-gigabyte, 32-gigabyte and 64-gigabyte models, while corresponding LTE models are available for $630, $730 and $830.
The iPad is a bold answer to the challenge of the growing tablet market, now teeming with lower-priced upstarts. Apple's next-generation tablet essentially raises the bar of what is possible in the tablet, setting even higher standards for consumers to desire and device makers to meet.
When Apple first introduced the iPad in 2010, it was groundbreaking territory for tablets and portable computing. Since then, competitors attempted to capitalize on tablets' entertainment functions while offering smaller models at lower price points to widen the tablet frenzy. The Kindle Fire, for example, crept into the market in 2011 and pushed its video capabilities at an affordable $200 price, taking handheld entertainment to a wider audience as it sold millions of devices by the end of the year.
But the features of the iPad surpass anything on the market. Established apps will be automatically tailored for high-res display, but developers can tailor their products to serve the iPad with graphics and interface that surpass those of console gaming.
Apple's Tim Cook boasted the iPad as the "poster child of the post-PC world," and sales numbers support that case. With 15.4 million iPads sold in the last quarter of 2011, Apple surpassed sales of all devices from companies like HP with 15.1 million, and Acer with 9.8 million.
Better video display and connectivity is the hallmark of the iPad, with an evolutionary Retina display doubling the dots per inch, and boasting a resolution of 2,048 by 1,536 pixels. With a whopping 264-pixels per inch, pixels are invisible to the naked eye even upon zoom. When tablet makers are battling for rights to high-res displays, Apple's new iPad will offer the best on the market.
The new screen also lends well to 4G LTE connectivity, which makes video streaming swifter and clearer than 3G or HSPA versions. Users are switching over to the new network as new devices hit the shelves, and Apple is positioning the third-generation iPad to capture those customers on the tablet market, too, with availability through Verizon as well as AT&T. Additionally, the iPads are equipped to be 3G-ready to accommodate LTE expansion, and can operate as a personal hotspot.
Updates to the iLife suite also bode well for the iPad's success. Programs like iMovie, iPhoto and Garage Band allow for production and editing in one place on the device, with an interface tailored to the iPad's size and function. The possibilities for creators and media seem endless, as the iPad offers instant documentation as well as polishing for distribution on the go.
As with past Apple releases, customers are likely to jump on pre-orders and wait in line to get their hands on the iPad, garnering strong profits for Apple in 2012.
While competitors failed to take away Apple's massive edge in the tablet market, manufacturers like Samsung offered smaller tablets at 7-inches. The iPad doesn't respond to potential for a smaller device, clocking in at 9.4-millimeters and weighing around 1.4-pounds.
In the industry that never stops moving, rival tablets will likely struggle as the third-generation iPad hits the shelves. While Apple caters to its core fan base, and reaches new customers with its groundbreaking releases, mobile and PC manufacturers alike will be racking up the research on how to keep up in a tablet market whose tempo is set by the tech giant.
T-Mobile plans to sell the Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G, a speedy Android 2.3 device, in late March for $150 with a two-year contract.
The device continues the Bellevue, Wash.-based carrier's focus on high-end Android offerings, and features cutting-edge entertainment apps and a 4-inch AMOLED screen. T-Mobile is promoting the Blaze's navigation system, a sophisticated hands-free GPS.
Following its failed merger with AT&T, T-Mobile reformulated its strategy to hone in on high-end Android handsets. The Galaxy Blaze represents the latest in the company's roster of exclusive smartphones, and it points to the phone's high-speed capabilities as a huge plus.
T-Mobile is concentrating on amassing a strong portfolio of handsets and competitive pricing plans instead of developing an LTE network. Though its main rivals boast their LTE networks, T-Mobile insists its current HPSA+ system, which it calls 4G, runs just as fast. The carrier acquired a large chunk of spectrum after the unsuccessful merger, but appears reluctant to invest in a new system.
The company is hesitating on LTE but demonstrates conviction in its budget-friendly pricing strategy, slashing prices on popular smartphones to make room for the Galaxy S Blaze.
T-Mobile showcases its Samsung line, but the company recently mulled shelling out hefty fees to carry the iPhone 5. Carriers consider the iPhone essential inventory, despite its high costs, because customers often choose carriers based on the iPhone's availability. Despite T-Mobile's embrace of Samsung's smartphone line, the company recognized the need to carry Apple, despite its earlier insistence on Android's superiority.
Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G showcases a rapid 1.5-gigahertz dual-core processor and a ProApp pack with valuable business applications. Although T-Mobile added the iPhone to its roster to stay competitive, Samsung remains the star of its handset lineup, and the carrier expects the Galaxy S Blaze to perform well.
Verizon plans to sell the Motorola Droid 4, its flagship Android 4G device, on February 10 for $200 with a two-year contract.
The Droid 4 runs on Verizon's 4G LTE service and allows customers to access the Web at a speedy 5- to 12-megabits per second. Users can also share its 4G connection with eight other Wi-Fi-enabled devices.
Verizon is looking for ways to differentiate its offerings -- either with faster 4G service, competitive data plans and services or, in this case, releasing another "Droid" smartphone, available only its network. Since AT&T and Sprint both carry the popular iPhone 4S, the Droid 4 offers Verizon a unique device to lure data-hungry customers, along with its flagship phones like the iPhone 4S and Razr Maxx.
The company's push to release 4G phones fits largely with its strategy to profit from data services. As voice and texting profits wane, carriers, including Verizon, have shifted to emphasizing data services, capping unlimited data plans and instead offered tiered plans. And as customers begin to stream bandwidth-heavy services, such as video and music, data plans will account for a large part of its profits.
Meanwhile, Verizon is racing to expand its nationwide 4G network, as well as release a portfolio of 4G-capable devices to capitalize on the shift to data.
The Basking Ridge, N.J.-based carrier said the Droid 4 runs Android 2.3.5, dubbed "Gingerbread" and includes an upgrade to Android 4.0, or "Ice Cream Sandwich." The Droid 4 also features a 4-inch HD LCD on scratch-resistant screen, an 8-megapixel front-facing camera capable of HD video capture, a front-facing camera for video chat, a 1.2-gigahertz processor and 16-gigabytes of storage.
Earlier today, Verizon announced a "double-data" promotion to boost its 4G LTE network.
Samsung will launch its Galaxy Note tablet in the U.S. through AT&T on Feb. 19, with a $300 price tag, a move which will introduce a hybrid product into the highly competitive mobile device market.
The Galaxy Note is sized between a smartphone and a tablet, featuring a 5.3-inch HD screen, 4G LTE data access, and a unique stylus called the "S. Pen" that translates handwriting into text and allows users to mark up screen captures and websites.
The Note runs on Android Gingerbread, but the company will upgrade it to Ice Cream Sandwich later this year. It is significantly larger than any other smartphone on the market, but still looks and operates more like a phone than a tablet. The product draws comparisons with Dell's botched Streak tablet, but Samsung remains confident that its merchandise will avoid the same fate.
The device sold well overseas, and its price tag reflects the gadget's presentation as a high-end product. Makers priced the phone with confidence that consumers will demand the exclusive features it offers, with the Note's abilities to amend web pages and capture script anticipated selling points.
Samsung's Galaxy phone series propels the company's mobile division, keeping the South Korean corporation in tight competition with Apple. Apple once again bested Samsung in smartphone sales, increasing expectations for the Galaxy Note to etch into Apple's smartphone and tablet sales.
The Note may also appeal to tablet users looking for a more compact mobile device. In this regard, it offers an alternative to Samsung's Galaxy Tab, which competes against Apple's iPad devices, both for consumers and in the courtroom.
Steve Jobs accused the Galaxy series of "slavishly copying" Apple's mobile devices. With the Galaxy Note, Samsung illustrates that it is capable of innovative mobile design, and confident in its products' marketability. The new device is smaller than an iPad and priced a bit lower, and adds features that may attract some buyers away from Apple's signature device.
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