A couple weeks ago, I put up a post called
My tech dilemma. It was about which operating system was meant for me. I thought a blend of Android's hacking goodies with Windows Phone's awesome UI would keep my posse of selves happy. But through your comments I found that Android wasn't too necessary, even as a secondary operating system (Thanks guys). Despite certain
short-comings in the OS, Windows Phone has triumphed over the two overlords of the market in terms of usability and fluidity (at least for me). So, I have decided that I will spend big bucks to get myself a phone that'll keep me hooked on to it as a baby monkey would to her mother, when her mother was swinging from tree to tree.
The paradigm of the term 'mobile phone' has evolved in meaning from something like a miniature cordless device to a fad (those sliders and flippers) to the center of technological attention and development. The iPhone was truly a mind-blowing, boundary shattering device. This was the world's first media-centric phone and was quite smart for it's time. Since then, there has been a hundred-fold growth in display, touch-screen, camera and microchip technology. So where do these developments leave the rather voiceless, ignorant and brain-washable consumer? What do all these developments mean to him? And most importantly What is my point in this paragraph?
All these questions have the same answer (lucky me, huh!). A mobile phone is now a device that is a bit of everything, where everything includes a camera, a software development ecosystem, a media player and also a communication device. So the ideal smartphone is one that can replace your point and shoot camera, your notebook for browsing and allows you to communicate through a variety of social networks, while providing a rich experience to the user.
Since I am interested in a Windows Phone handset, there isn't too much choice. Like many others, I have decided to buy the Nokia Sea Ray or whatever they might call it. There are quite a few reasons and if you follow on you'll find all of them.
Since there is a consistency in the operating system and user experience, the choice will be based on the hardware. The Sea Ray is said to carry on the design of it's doomed cousin, the N9. A single solid block of polycarbonate is used to make this phone. I am not totally convinced by the looks of this device. It might be sturdy, but is nowhere near the aesthetic look of the iPhone or that of those curvaceous HTC devices. Unfortunately it's not as thin as Samsung's devices either, with a considerable waist. But, on the bright side, it's not got breakable glass on both sides and the polycarbonate provides an ideal body for for signal reception. Though it's plastic, it is definitely stronger than Samsung's recycled polyethene phones. The design: it could have been better looking, build quality is pretty much expected to be top notch.
The first thing you would see on getting the phone is the bill. Hopefully, Nokia will keep the surprises to a minimum. Once you get past the bill, and open the box, the display will be sitting in it's convex posture. If it's a 4.0" WVGA screen, pixel density won't be too less keeping text et al sharp and clear*. The display type itself is AMOLED. Known for their perfect blacks and good viewing angles, this is one hell of a looker. To top it of (literally), Nokia is adding it's Clear Black Display (CBD) anti-glare coating on the screen, making it beyond beautiful**. For those unable to understand the beauty of the display, imagine Emma Watson (AMOLED) in a bikini (CBD). This screen is definitely as good as it gets for watching movies and videos for at least two people (You and your lousy neighbor in the plane).
But movies have long stopped being silent. Multi-media is both a Visual and an Audio experience. A good display would be incomplete without good speakers. Thankfully, sound quality is one of Nokia's strong points. Nokia clearly emerges out as the winner, when compared to other OEMs. Samsung doesn't have particularly pleasing speakers and I do NOT want to start on HTC or LG.
The X6 contains a dedicated audio chip, making music sound realistic and recording crystal clear. If Nokia goes down that path, stereo speakers and a dedicated audio chip would be on the Sea Ray (WOOOOT). So the best phone for multi media experience- definitely a Nokia.
The camera. Need I say more? An 8MP Carl Zeiss lens and a dual LED flash. Hopefully, Nokia will bring in that uber fast camera software from the N9 that let's the camera focus in 2.6 seconds Windows Phone devices do take quite a long time to open up the camera, hopefully Nokia will improvise.
This just leaves the internals.
This video conforms the SnapDragon ready to roar in it. The N9 comes in a 16GB or 64GB flash storage flavors. Hopefully it will be carried over to the Sea Ray (or whatever it might be called). This leaves the RAM in doubt. The iPod touch has left me bitter: a fast processor coupled with less RAM won't be good. The N9 had 1 generous GB of RAM. Will the Sea Ray (or whatever it will be called) have at least half of that? I wonder?
So in all these criteria it's Nokia who tops the charts. All other OEMs have something or the other missing, either the screen was poor or the camera unreliable or flimsy bodies. This was a good combo (Nokia and Microsoft), let's see if theses two turkeys can make an eagle. Also let us know, if there is anything else you would consider before purchasing your next windows phone device 4G, big batteries, free apples, robots, anything.
*- * means there is a footnote
**- Similar display technology is present in the C6-01, which I have spent considerable time with.
