I count myself to these mobile nerds that built their opinion on facts, articles and “limited” experience. Limited because most of the time one person is only able to use and test one device at a time. I tried to determine that by carrying around and using two comparable handsets, the well known iPhone 3G and the Samsung Galaxy based on Android, two smartphones with high relevance for predictions for the upcoming smartphone trends.
Some facts and assumptions for the test setup:
- Since more then a year I got addicted to Apple products – starting with an iPhone touch, iPhone 3G, Apple TV, iMac, MacBook Pro – this show already the biggest determination for this test: myself. Please keep always in mind that this test is based on my personal experience and influenced by my daily work. I was already part of requirements analysis for both platforms, iPhone OS and Android.
- iPhone 3G bought in July 2008, running on a daily basis with intensive usage of communication
- Samsung Galaxy bought in July 2009, equipped and used the first time within this test period with intensive and broad usage of all kind of services the phone offers
- Due to the lack of video and compass functionality of the iPhone 3G, these features will not influence the test
- iPhone OS last already 3 years with the third version in place. Android was published last year and is there in version 1.5 (cupcake)
The good thing is that both phones come with features that are comparable and fit to my daily behavior using a mobile device. Following categories build up the test:
- Battery
- Email/Calendar/Contacts
- Messaging
- Sharing
- Applications/Store
- Usability
The test will be qualitative, without judging in numbers, because I have learned in school that tests with one person shall not be called quantitative 
Let’s get started:
Battery
- Within one year of intensive use of the iphone and its functionality I could not experience really significant change in battery life. I simply learned what kind of hardware and software pieces need what kind of power with the device. Therefore I know that Wifi and screen brightness are the biggest consumer, no surprise if you have worked with other portable computers before. Nevertheless having the iPhone’s integrated email push service (not the OS 3.0 push) run in background with Wifi or 3G you will always experience within 12 hours that a power cable is one necessary tool if you are “mobile” with your iPhone and Blackberry-like push service. This taught me to go without push-email and 2G if I really wanted to avoid charging the device regularly. The good thing of the iPhone OS’s lack of multiple processing of applications is that it always closes apps when the user closes them – no background activity leads to no power consumption.
- The new Android phone from Samsung is wasting battery power a lot. But this is as well no surprise if you have read earlier reports and test of the HTC Android devices. The reason is simple: the android device tries all the time to connect to data services if you do not explicit set the device to pure offline mode. The bad thing is here, that without additional task manager, the power consumptions grows exponential with the usage of applications because this apps simply do not close. Opened once the apps continue consuming processor capabilities and most of the times try to get connection. Without task manager the recent android phones are not really usable. To the positive affect of this task management we are getting at the point “Applications”. In standard mode the Samsung needs to get re-charged every 24 hours the latest. You can save battery in the same way as with the iphone, lower screen brightness and limit data connection.
Email/Calendar/Contacts
- Another proper category label would have been “ready for work”. Even so some Blackberry fans are still trying to deny this: the iPhone 3G is a complete business device with all capabilities necessary for a mobile business person. The integration with Microsoft Exchange (Calendar, Mail, Contacts) is very smooth and also additional calendar can be integrated via caldav. The integration with Google Mail is also very good, but limited if you have already a MS Exchange instance running. But in summary the iPhone is able to solve any business related communication issue.
- Android is not yet there. Originally focused only on Google’s services there is still no fully satisfying MS Exchange application available. External solutions are obvious less comfortable and lacking in device integration (even Android is of course doing that better then Apple), but there are rumors that exchange integration is on its way and the HTC Hero comes already with a specific application build for that. The Google services are brilliant integrated, especially Google Talk user are always online and available to chat, which makes the SMS more obsolete then ever (see my last article).
Messaging
- There is a lot written about MMS and iPhone, but honestly – who really missed that on an iPhone. If you wanted to send a picture, you did that via email. Still, the SMS and MMS capabilities of the iphone are probably the best on the market, because the organization of messages is threaded and the best organized. Nevertheless one should have a closer look on the alternatives, the data based messaging via popular chat services like ICQ/AIM, Google Talk, Windows Messenger, Skype or Facebook. After three years there is still no Apple based messenger which still surprises me, because the “Bonjour” protocol and the iChat service are well known as one of the best chat offers available. Until now several third party developers are battling about the winner in multi messaging, but none really succeeded in a complete satisfying offering yet.
- Multi-Messaging is not really needed on the Samsung Android phone because you can easily run all apps on their own. GTalk, Skype, ICQ/AIM and MSN are already there, an official Facebook app will appear soon, which makes the Android to the complete and best messaging device available.
Sharing
- Looking at the biggest and most active social network platforms at the moment (Facebook, Twitter & Flickr) worldwide the iPhone suffers again in offering integrated ways of sharing digital content from the phone. Third party offerings try to solve this issue as well as with messaging – but are still not there after 3 years.
- The native android photo or video app is offering “share” to any relevant app from scratch. No need to open another app first, the user flow starts right from making a picture/video. Like in messaging the android platform is already more sophisticated then all other mobile OS.
Applications/Store
- The store within iTunes is the most mature, best organized and very smoothly integrated with all devices from Apple. The user gets almost for every kind of “mobile problem” he could face, an application solving it. For sure one can still arguing about the value of the biggest share of the market, the fun applications and the many games, but as long as this is wanted by the users no one can really complain. The only few things the user might miss are solutions that determines Apples business goals or manipulating their device experience. Which leads to the biggest known weakness – the closed approach. Everything needs to be approved, which leads to very long publishing periods and less innovation in a long term. For instance user would highly appreciate simple hardware toggle functionalities, like Wifi on/off from the home screen – but since this is an Apple specific core functionality no one is yet able to offer a solution.
- The android market is still small, but growing and the biggest difference to the iTunes store is the relevance of the applications in regards to the device and the problem solving. Like stated before the administration of tasks is very necessary and therefore there are a real bunch of apps available in the store. And because of the upcoming growing number of devices for Android there will be as well a growing interest in developing software solutions for this market – which leads obviously to higher innovation capabilities.
Usability
- This is definitely the candy side of Apple. The way the user flips the screens, zooms in or out with multi touch or even how you type on the on-screen keyboard – it is simple and intuitive. For sure there are some finger moves trained within the years, but still the way Apple improved and controls the speed and the animation of the transformations is extra class and unbeaten.
- Samsung and Android are 2 years behind – and have a really long way to go to challenge Apple in terms of usability – this is not their core competence yet. I do not want to blame Samsung too much, but the hard key behavior and default functional setting is very complex and far from intuitive. If you want to wake up the screen one button at the right side needs to be hold for more then 3 seconds which leads to a high level of frustration especially in the beginning. Also the amount of buttons (6 with additional directions keys) is not satisfying utilized (e.g. two buttons only for classic telephony). It is here more obvious that Samsung comes more from a classic mobile device direction then Apple – a lot space to improve here. But also Android is lacking in speed and transformation effects compared to the Apple bro. The sliding is for instance not at all smooth, the on-screen keyboard reacts too slow and not as accurate. Also the multi-touch possibility is painful missing if the user wants to zoom in. Nevertheless from my short experience with Symbian S60 and especially with Microsoft Windows Mobile, Android is already No 2 in terms of usability.
I am fully aware that one could this test from various and additional other perspectives, but for now I would assume that these categories are very critical for upcoming users to make a buying decision.
To sum up I can say that I am the first time really fascinated by another phone then the iPhone. The Samsung Galaxy could easily substitute my iPhone as soon as the major usability issues are solved. It covers everything that I need being mobile and gives the user already the flavor about what might be possible in 2 years time when the OS is as mature as the Apple OS today. I am really looking forward to the growing market of Android devices and the progress which comes along.
I am pretty sure that I have the leading Mobile OS for 2010 here on my table.
Related Links:
http://twitter.com/o2SamsungGalaxy (german)
http://www.mobile-zeitgeist.com/2009/07/30/android-market-im-web-mit-statistiken/ (german)
http://www.androidpit.de/ (german)
{ 3 comments }
One thing that you did not mention in your test – especially valid for the messaging section – is the keyboard function. I have been using a blackberry pearl for some time, and after changing to iPhone I need to say that the touch screen keypad don’t allow fast and error-free typing, even if getting used to after half a year or so.
My next phone will definitively have a keypad – that’s for sure!
I touched the topic, but because the on-screen keyboards of the two devices are pretty much the same I skipped a comparison to a hw-keypad. For me personally, a keypad is not worth it to miss the amount of features the two devices above offer compared to a BB for instance
Thank you this nice post.
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