I want a Sony Xperia SX, but I think it's stupid to buy one.

[superboyac]

more bad news:

Xperia SX is a Japan-only model for now. It will work in other countries but you will have more dead spots since it operates mostly on Japan's frequency bands. Only the 3G signal will work, and even then, it won't work with all the 3G towers here in the Philippines.

i give up.  maybe it's just best i get a freaking jailbroken iphone.

[superboyac]

Well, today HTC announced their upcoming 8S windows phone.  4" screen.  That's a little smaller than most, but still too much for me.  Why are these companies so adamant about not going below 4"?

What I don't get is how some of these releases are coming in pairs...like the GX and SX (>4", <4")...this HTC 8S and 8X (both >4")...the Nokia 820 920 (both >4").  What's the deal?  Why offer two phones at the exact same time with just about everything being the same?  I mean, that 820 and 920 are almost identical, yet Nokia made a very conscious decision to release them both in this way.

And then the companies are messing around with 10" tablets, 8" tablets, 7" tablets...ah, I don't get it.  5" tablets...4.5" phones.  Feels like there's a rule that says don't make a phone smaller than the iphone.  Did Apple get a patent on sub 4" phones or something?

[ewemoa]

I have a pretty hard time with web browsers on mobile phones due to my finger size -- things are easier for me when the screen is responsive to finger nails, but that type of screen seems to be mostly a thing of the past.

Pure speculation: For a company that makes money on more time being spent using the network, use of things like web browsers (of course not via WiFi or Bluetooth) seems helpful for revenue.  Smaller screens might translate into less use of the web browser (and of course many other applications) and consequently less revenue.

More speculation: If the smart watch idea (I've heard it referred to some place as "first screen" -- I presume meaning the first point of screening or first screen one looks at) starts to spread, the amount of time one spends needlessly using the network might get reduced significantly.  Perhaps good for users, but seemingly not so for entities that are positioned to make money off of network use.

What do you think?

[superboyac]

I have a pretty hard time with web browsers on mobile phones due to my finger size -- things are easier for me when the screen is responsive to finger nails, but that type of screen seems to be mostly a thing of the past.

Pure speculation: For a company that makes money on more time being spent using the network, use of things like web browsers (of course not via WiFi or Bluetooth) seems helpful for revenue.  Smaller screens might translate into less use of the web browser (and of course many other applications) and consequently less revenue.

More speculation: If the smart watch idea (I've heard it referred to some place as "first screen" -- I presume meaning the first point of screening or first screen one looks at) starts to spread, the amount of time one spends needlessly using the network might get reduced significantly.  Perhaps good for users, but seemingly not so for entities that are positioned to make money off of network use.

What do you think?

-ewemoa (September 20, 2012, 05:36 AM)

pretty sound theory to me.

[wraith808]

What I don't get is how some of these releases are coming in pairs...like the GX and SX (>4", <4")...this HTC 8S and 8X (both >4")...the Nokia 820 920 (both >4").  What's the deal?  Why offer two phones at the exact same time with just about everything being the same?  I mean, that 820 and 920 are almost identical, yet Nokia made a very conscious decision to release them both in this way.

-superboyac (September 19, 2012, 03:31 PM)

From what I understand, the specs and the price points are different on the phones.  Anandtech has a good breakdown on the differences between the 8S and the 8X - not inconsiderable.

[superboyac]

What I don't get is how some of these releases are coming in pairs...like the GX and SX (>4", <4")...this HTC 8S and 8X (both >4")...the Nokia 820 920 (both >4").  What's the deal?  Why offer two phones at the exact same time with just about everything being the same?  I mean, that 820 and 920 are almost identical, yet Nokia made a very conscious decision to release them both in this way.

-superboyac (September 19, 2012, 03:31 PM)

From what I understand, the specs and the price points are different on the phones.  Anandtech has a good breakdown on the differences between the 8S and the 8X - not inconsiderable.

-wraith808 (September 20, 2012, 11:12 AM)

depends on the person, I guess:

Display is a big differentiator between the two devices. The 8X features a 4.3-inch 720p Super LCD 2 display, while the 8S uses a smaller 4-inch 800x480 display.

4.3" vs. 4"...big whoop is what I say.

[wraith808]

• The 8X features Qualcomm's dual-core Krait Snapdragon S4 (MSM8960) running at 1.5GHz. The 8S on the other hand uses a lower clocked MSM8627 (1GHz) with a slower Adreno 305 GPU.
• The two phones differ in the amount of on-package DRAM (1GB for the 8X and 512MB for the 8S)
• Connectivity differs between the two, the 8X features LTE while the 8S is single carrier WCDMA.
• The 8X features a 4.3-inch 720p Super LCD 2 display, while the 8S uses a smaller 4-inch 800x480 display.
• Storage is split between the two as well, with the 8X featuring 16GB of NAND on-board (no microSD card slot), and the 8S with only 4GB integrated and a microSD card slot for expansion.
• Aided by HTC's external imaging processor there's an 8MP f/2.0 rear facing camera with a 28mm lens. The front facing camera sounds pretty impressive at 2.1MP with a f/2.0 aperture and an 88-degree, ultra-wide-angle lens. The 8S features a 5MP f/2.8 camera by comparison.
• Audio is also a priority for the 8X, which gets a 2.55V amplified headphone output for what promises to be a much better implementation of Beats. The 8X also features two microphones for noise cancelling duty.
• The 8X features dual-band WiFi while the 8S continues its cost-reduced theme by only supporting 2.4GHz.

Looks like quite a few differences.  And that is from the linked article.

[superboyac]

 
I know, sorry...I know there are differences.  They're just not that big a deal in the long run.  To me, all these things is similar to the difference between a 8MP camera and a 10MP camera.

If it were me...and I was going to release two phones simultaneously, I'd make them physically quite different and some solid fundamental differences in design and function.  But that's me.

[wraith808]

The 8X features Qualcomm's dual-core Krait Snapdragon S4 (MSM8960) running at 1.5GHz. The 8S on the other hand uses a lower clocked MSM8627 (1GHz) with a slower Adreno 305 GPU

Just that part seems like a big deal.  I bet if you used both side by side, just the CPU difference would be obvious, let alone the GPU difference.

The two phones differ in the amount of on-package DRAM (1GB for the 8X and 512MB for the 8S)

Add that in, and you're going to see a large difference in UX.  Load a few programs, and the 8S is going to be bogging down while the 8X is still cruising along.

Storage is split between the two as well, with the 8X featuring 16GB of NAND on-board (no microSD card slot), and the 8S with only 4GB integrated and a microSD card slot for expansion.

That's a big difference... though I think it curious that the lower priced phone has room for expansion while the pricier one does not.  Hmm...

But on to the issue at hand, to me, personally, there's an obvious difference between the two... and more than the generational gap that 8MP vs 10MP represents- though that's pretty big to actual photographers- my wife had to school me on that by blowing up two pictures from said cameras.  The difference is night and day, even on that!

[superboyac]

http://www.engadget....t-4g-lte-james-bond/

ARRRGH!! 
They just keep getting bigger!!  Now SOny releases a 4.6" flagship model for ATT??  Can I please have one, just one amongst all the big phones, just a single little android phone?

[superboyac]

I gave up on this, but this is one bad ass little phone:

-- [Xperia(TM) SX SO-05D] is also Xi ("crossy") enabled, weighing approximately 95g with a 9.4mm smart body. In addition to advanced specifications, it also provides localized features such as infrared communication, the "Osaifu-Keitai" mobile wallet service and "One-seg" broadcast reception.

The US really is behind in terms of the phone tech.  I don't quite understand it.  Maybe we are more gullible with tech than other countries, and are more impressed with size and shiny pastic vs. things that matter.  We'll see how I feel after I try out the Lumia 920.

[Stoic Joker]

Maybe we are more gullible with tech than other countries, and are more impressed with size and shiny pastic vs. things that matter.

-superboyac (October 09, 2012, 10:27 AM)

I fear you correct in that assessment.

We'll see how I feel after I try out the Lumia 920.

-superboyac (October 09, 2012, 10:27 AM)

If Sprint gets their head out of their ass and offers one I'll go that route myself ... Otherwise I may end up switching carriers.

[Shades]

Good news. Lots of different Xperia models are on offer in the Netherlands (webshops):
http://tweakers.net/...-xperia-s/overzicht/
http://tweakers.net/...ion-zwart/overzicht/

Site is in Dutch, but you can translate those easy. Besides, there are links to the webshops that carry these phones.

And who knows, if they are allowed to be sold in the Netherlands/Europe, then the US should be possible as well.

[superboyac]

Good news. Lots of different Xperia models are on offer in the Netherlands (webshops):
http://tweakers.net/...-xperia-s/overzicht/
http://tweakers.net/...ion-zwart/overzicht/

Site is in Dutch, but you can translate those easy. Besides, there are links to the webshops that carry these phones.

And who knows, if they are allowed to be sold in the Netherlands/Europe, then the US should be possible as well.

-Shades (October 29, 2012, 11:22 AM)

Interesting.  Last week, I also got wind of an article talking about Samsung's new smaller version of the S3, and another article saying how more people want smaller phones.  So once again, something I've been ranting about for a while in tech actually starts happening.  Nostradamus!  There's one I've talked about for over 2 years now and it STILL hasn't happened...the airmouse (for use with HTPC's) with gyro sensor control PLUS a d-pad (like the wiimote, but for a pc).  I'm not sure why they keep making remotes with touchpads cursor keys to control the mouse, but whatever.  If I had the time and money, I would have made it by now and selling them.