Category: Articles

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Cheap Phones Won Christmas 2019 -or- Consumer Don’t Listen to Tech Reviewers

We’re looking at an analyst report, so it goes without saying that these numbers should be taken with a fairly large rock of salt. That said, this report reinforces a handful of other sales reports and anecdotal examinations of the mobile market. Manufacturers go to great lengths to hide actual sales data these days. Shareholders don’t seem much interested in facts, as much as they are the perception of the brand, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t dig a little deeper.

Flurry Analytics published a report on device activations in North America over the month of December, focusing on the lead up to Christmas day, and how those activations changed from Christmas to New Years.

Out of all the individual brands sold in this region, it’s not too surprising that Apple topped the charts. Overall, Android outsold iOS, but only one company makes iPhones. Apple significantly outsold every other phone manufacturer this year.

What is surprising is the breakdown on the most popular iPhones activated over the holidays. Continue reading “Cheap Phones Won Christmas 2019 -or- Consumer Don’t Listen to Tech Reviewers”

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OnePlus 6 on Android 10: A High Water Mark

The OnePlus 6 is one of my favorite phones from 2018 to revisit. The last offering from OnePlus with a rear fingerprint sensor and a headphone jack, this phone STRONGLY tested my theory on waiting for the “T” version.

The OnePlus 6T was an exciting phone. It came in a gorgeous purple shell. It got a carrier deal with T-Mobile. However, the farther we get from 2018, the OnePlus 6 is the phone I hold closer for its practicality.

Over a year from its initial launch, how well is OnePlus keeping up with support for the 6? Pretty stinking well…

Continue reading “OnePlus 6 on Android 10: A High Water Mark”

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Nokia 9 PureView on Android 10: A Beautiful, Wonderful, Mess…

The Nokia 9 has been updated to Android 10, but that’s only a small part of this long-term review story.

I tend to slow-play my reviews. I don’t think you can really share the experience of using a smartphone when you’ve only used it on pre-release software a week before the phone is officially announced. Some manufacturers update faster than others.

I gave the Nokia 9 a little extra leeway because of the crazy camera experiment on the back of the phone. Getting the software right for that much hardware is a difficult challenge.

From March to December, I think we’ve given Nokia a fair window of software support. Continue reading “Nokia 9 PureView on Android 10: A Beautiful, Wonderful, Mess…”

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SomeGadgetGuy’s TOTALLY Biased Pixel 4XL vs LG V50 ThinQ Comparison! Brains vs Brawn!

I’ve already gone on record proclaiming the V50 as my favorite phone of 2019. As a reviewer and editorialist, I don’t believe there can be “true objectivity” in a review. If you know more about me, how I use my gadgets, and the work I put them through, you will have a better understanding of my analysis. You can apply my experiences which overlap with your needs, and you can disregard the parts of my analysis which don’t apply to you. I made a video on this idea, which you can watch below.

I try to be as fair as I can. I try to examine a gadget based on the claims made by the manufacturer, not my preconceived idea of what the gadget SHOULD be. I try to figure out who the audience might be for EVERY gadget I review.

Every phone I’ve reviewed this year has gotten SOME kind of purchasing recommendation, but obviously some phones have been more broadly recommended than others.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at one of the most brutal comparisons in the premium tier of the Android ecosystem. This is a battle of polar opposites. Two substantially different takes on the idea of an expensive phone. And when the dust settles from this showdown, the songs we will sing of these mighty titans will echo through the halls of history.

Or, we’ll just totally nerd out on two flashy gadgets. Continue reading “SomeGadgetGuy’s TOTALLY Biased Pixel 4XL vs LG V50 ThinQ Comparison! Brains vs Brawn!”

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Silly Tech Geeks! Of course the Pixel 4 is worth $100 more than an iPhone 11!

I feel we all get swept up in popularity trends. It can be difficult to swim against that stream once a general consensus has been agreed upon. I have to be honest here, as an editorialist, I happen to enjoy those situations where I can shine a light on a topic, and maybe poke at that popular trend.

Whether I’m responding to a mega-youtuber about a jack-of-all-trades phone, correcting a popular Android blog about audio, or explaining how camera crop factor works when people flip out about a 3X zoom, I enjoy ruffling a few feathers to spread better data on complicated subjects.

The Pixel 4 was one of the worst kept secrets of 2019. It may be one of the worst kept secrets of all time. Now that it’s finally arrived, the tech community is in first stage of impressions and reviews. What makes the Pixel 4 different, we knew pretty much everything about the phone a month before it launched. Google isn’t facing a community just beginning to form opinions on the new Pixel, they’re facing a community that has already made up its collective mind on the Pixel.

It’s pretty clear that Google is setting their sights on Apple as the primary competition. For better, and for worse. When Apple does something, it seems to motivate a LOT of the decisions made by Google’s hardware team.

When the original Pixel launched, we all lovingly joked about it being “Google’s iPhone”. For a hot minute, I really tried to get the nickname “gPhone” to stick.

With the Pixel 4, it would seem Google took those early sentiments to heart. The Pixel 4 seems a purpose-built iPhone competitor, the closest way to recreate an iPhone-style experience, but in the Android ecosystem.

It’s entirely fair to compare Pixels against the phones Apple released this year. What’s frustrating though, is seeing folks cherry-pick one or two features to declare a winner, and to highlight “worth”.

Phones should be judged holistically, and any phone can win or lose a showdown if we move the goalposts to align with a user’s pre-determined bias. The common criticism I see now, is declaring the Pixel 4 unworthy to compete even against the cheaper non-pro iPhone 11. It’s a causally delivered verdict, folks kind of nod along. It’s a surface statement that sounds good, and throws a thumb in the eye of Google.

“The Pixel 4 can’t possibly be worth $100 more than an iPhone!”

The issue is, that statement doesn’t really hold water… Continue reading “Silly Tech Geeks! Of course the Pixel 4 is worth $100 more than an iPhone 11!”

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Smartphone design “improvements” are not progress: Prettier is less practical

And the immediate reaction by consumers will likely be a shrug.

“What can you do?”

The problem is, that apathy shouldn’t be a surprise. We don’t have much room to “vote with our wallets” these days. The reality of the tech market, these supposed “upgrades” happen way too quickly for consumers to react. Gadgets sales paced out over years from individual consumers don’t guide manufacturing decisions.

This week Samsung stumbled into a bit of a security issue on the Galaxy S10.

The in-display fingerprint sensor can apparently be unlocked by ANY finger. I discussed this on the #SGGQA podcast while the story was fresh, and the general sentiment from Samsung fans was that this had to be a case of user error. We’re getting confirmation now that this is a flaw in the current software from Samsung. Users are starting to test this flaw, and it has nothing to do with improper setup or using Non-Samsung approved accessories. BBC confirms Samsung will release a software patch for the problem.

 

Here’s a video of a Galaxy S10 owner on Twitter demonstrating the problem, freshly training a thumbprint, and then bypassing the fingerprint lock with a different finger. Continue reading “Smartphone design “improvements” are not progress: Prettier is less practical”

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Android 10 on the Google Pixel 3a – Living up to Promises and Expectations

Yesterday was Android 10 day! A flurry of podcasts, articles, and videos hit the web showing off the official release of Google’s newest phone operating system. I joined the fun talking about Android’s native Desktop Mode on a OnePlus 7 Pro Open Beta, but yesterday was all about Google’s Pixel. Very few other manufacturers can match the update speed of a first party Hardware + Software solution.

Lot’s of manufacturers make promises about support, and few live up to those promises. Google has had a solid track record with support so far, we all remember the Nexus too, but this year represented two important milestones for the brand.

Judging a manufacturer by its claims, it’s refreshing when those claims are realized. Continue reading “Android 10 on the Google Pixel 3a – Living up to Promises and Expectations”

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The Phone Nobody is Talking About – All About Android 436

It’s always a geeky dream come true to join Jason, Ron, and Flo for some gadgety tech talk. All About Android is one of my favorite podcasts, so it’s kind of surreal to join that conversation. I “talk at” podcasts ALL THE TIME while listening in my car. It’s crazy when the hosts reply!

Makes it even better when the thumbnail is me TOTALLY teched out, with my MeeAudio IEM’s, my Focals, and holding a South Korean Dual Screen LG V50. Whatta nerd…

Don’t forget to vote in this weeks App Arena! (My app is Riptide. VOTE FOR RIPTIDE!) http://twit.to/aaapoll436

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