android vs apple

The recently released LG G2 is one of the top phones out right now. Matter of fact if I weren't planning to get the Nexus 5 (which is actually based off of the G2), I'd be getting the LG G2. In addition to some of the most top end hardware I really like how LG handles their customizations to stock Android. Many manufacturers (including LG on past phones) add their own custom skin over Android.  This allows them to tweak and differentiate their software offerings and hopefully separate from their competitors. While some are executed well many are not. LG does an excellent job of keeping true to stock Android while lightly integrating in their unique features.

I stumbled across a good Tips and Tricks video that shows a bit of what I am referring to. If you have or are considering getting an LG G2 definitely check out the great tips in the video below. Let us know what you think of the G2 tips and tricks in the comments below.

Here on BHT I'd love to get my hands on and review every single phone that comes out (yes even Apple ones lol), but thats just not feasible. Luckily I can reach out and rely on friends and family (and flexible return policies ;) lol). I recently helped out my friend Chris, Law and Journalism MA student at Miami U,  as he made the great exodus from the limited world of iOS to Android, grabbing one of my favorite devices of 2013, the HTC One. He was kind enough to provide his impressions of this top tier smartphone. Check out his quick review of the main features (with a few of my tips sprinkled in)! For full details check out HTC's site.





BASIC SPECS

• Size: 137.4 x 68.2 x 9.3mm
• Weight: 143gDisplay
• Display: 4.7 inch, Full HD 1080p, 468 PPI
• CPU: Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 600, quad-core, 1.7GHz
• Platform: Android with HTC Sense™ with HTC BlinkFeed™
• SIM Card Type: micro SIM
• Total storage : 32GB/64GB, available capacity varies
• RAM : 2 GB DDR2
• Network:  AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile (World Phone support)
• GPS: Internal GPS antenna + GLONASS and Digital compass
• Sensors: Gyro sensor, Accelerometer, Proximity sensor, Ambient light sensor
• Connectivity: 3.5 mm stereo audio jack, NFC, Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/ac/b/g/n, DLNA® for wirelessly streaming media from the phone to a compatible TV or computer, HTC Connect, Support consumer infrared remote control, micro-USB 2.0 (5-pin) port with mobile high-definition video link (MHL) for USB or HDMI connection (Special cable required for HDMI connection.)
• Sound Enhancement: HTC BoomSound™ Dual frontal stereo speakers with built-in amplifiers, Studio-quality sound with Beats Audio™

CAMERA

• HTC UltraPixel Camera, BSI sensor
• Pixel size 2.0 µm, Sensor size 1/3'
• Dedicated HTC ImageChip 2, F2.0 aperture and 28 mm lens
• Optical Image Stabilization (OIS)
• Smart Flash: Five levels of flash automatically set by distance to subject
• Front Camera: 2.1 MP, 880 wide angle lens with HDR capability
• 1080p Full HD video recording with HDR Video
• HTC Zoe™ with Sequence Shot, Always Smile and Object Removal
• Gallery with Video Highlights and HTC Share
• Continuous shooting and VideoPic
• Slow motion video recording with variable speed playback 

MULTIMEDIA:

• Audio supported formats:
• Playback: .aac, .amr, .ogg, .m4a, .mid, .mp3, .wav, .wma (Windows Media Audio 9)
• Recording: .amr
• Video supported formats:
• Playback: .3gp, .3g2, .mp4, .wmv (Windows Media Video 9), .avi (MP4 ASP and MP3)
• Recording: .mp4

BATTERY:

• Embedded rechargeable Li-polymer battery
• Capacity : 2300 mAh
• Talk time: Up to 18 hours for 3G
• Standby time: Up to 500 hours for 3G

Best Buy exclusive blue HTC One

CHRIS's REVIEW:

Sound = A+: 
Beats audio makes a big difference, especially in your car. It is clear and the bass is significantly louder. If you have noise cancelling headphones - even non-beats headphones - there is a noticeable difference with beats audio. Also, playing through the phone speaker with headphones unattached is loud and clear.



Music Player = B+: 
I absolutely hate that the Android music app does not let you sort songs by title once you are in a playlist. You have to search by artist, which really sucks because most people know the song name instead of the artist, and even once you find the artist you have to search for the song you want. If you have downloaded music (not bought), the artist may be saved under a different name so it can be frustrating. I feel that this is the worst part of the phone if you use your phone as a music player with multiple playlists.

Luckily I stumbled across the Power Amp app and it let me sort by title. It also allows you to manually adjust the tone, bass, and treble, and save your settings under preset settings, which is amazing. I have a setting for my car and one for my headphones. My car, 2012 Camaro, already has nice factory audio as is, but the beats audio plus power amp makes it sound AMAZING. It is a very noticeable difference.

One thing I love is how quickly the phone downloads album art that you don't already have, and you can even select the option to display the song lyrics as the song plays! Very sweet and seamless.

HTC Sync allows you to easily transport media from your computer or iTunes so if you like your old media player you can edit things there and then just launch HTC Sync and transfer it to your phone. Simple.

Messaging = B:
The autocorrect is not as smart as it was on iOS. If often puts accent marks when the letter "a" stands alone and it took a week for it to consistently capitalize "I". However, after about a week the phone became better at recognizing words, namely because I would manually select the word I want it to autocorrect (the phone gives you options) and it apparently recognized my typing style. Also, after calibrating my finger with the screen the phone became better at selecting the letter my finger landed on, resulting in less typos. If all else fails using your voice to text by holding the voice icon is very effective and the phone rarely misspelled words I said when spoken clearly.

(I'd add to this that the beauty of Android is that it lets you change your default keyboard (or any system app for that matter), I've been using Swiftkey for about a year now, and have never looked back since!)

Speed = A+:
Very fast, faster than my laptop, and it made no difference when launching classic or mobile sites.

Customization = A:

You can pick your news sources (e.g. ESPN, CNN, Huffington, IGN ... a bunch) that will quickly launch and refresh by simply pulling the screen down. You can pick your widgets and apps and easily select what screen they are on and where. However, I don't like the limited choices for text messaging letter colors. You can pick a background for your text messaging screen, but it's hard to read the messages with the colors they give you.

(Again, as you play with Android you'll find text messaging apps you like better, I rarely use manufacturers text apps. Its an adjustment from iOS, but anything you don't like you can replace with an app of your liking in the Play Store. I'd reccomend popular apps, Go SMS and Handcent SMS they're both super customizable!)

Button Placement = B:
If you are right handed, when messaging or generally holding the phone it is a good chance you will incidentally hit the volume up/down button with your right thumb because of its placement. It is also awkward that the power on button is at the top left of the phone instead of top right, because again you have to stretch your finger really far to power on/off.



Camera = B:
Very good effect options after taking pics. It has some pretty cool lighting options to dramatically change the pictures you take and download. Before snapping effects are decent, but not too exhaustive. You also lose quite a bit of clarity when you zoom in. The camera is good, not great.



Overall = A-:
Very solid phone. The pros significantly outweigh the cons on this phone. It looks good, feels good in your hand, it's smooth, fast, trendy, the LED display is large and beautiful. The beats audio is what really sets this phone apart. If you really utilize music on your phone it will likely be your favorite feature, and it gets even better with the Power Amp app ($3.99). There are things about this phone to dislike - awkward button placement and at times ineffective autocorrect - but I can't imagine too many phones on the market are better than the HTC One and it is hard to imagine a better phone will be released at least within the next year or two.

Since my first posts about the upcoming Google Nexus 5 by LG and Android 4.4 KitKat there have been even more leaks. It's beginning to look like we can expect a mid-October release maybe as soon as October 14th! Leaks have been coming from all over the place and possibly for the first time ever, tech leaks have even come from a candy company. Nestle, who has partnered with Google for the launch of the candy-codenamed Android 4.4 KitKat and the upcoming Nexus devices, "confirmed" on Facebook that the release is  due in October.




So what do we know from all the leaks so far? We've seen what will likely be the design of the new phone, now including pictures, a short video (posted below) and even an interactive 3D rendering made from the leaked images. I for one, really hope this is the new design. It looks like they have taken a lot of the design elements from the new Nexus 7 by Asus, which is definitely a good thing. As far as specs, the FCC leaks have confirmed a few and more rumors have been leaking out as well. It most likely will not have a removable battery or micro SD port (no surprises here). It is expected to come in 16GB and 32GB storage options with a 5" 1080p display and a 2300mAh battery. The FCC has confirmed the rumors that the Nexus 5 would have a Snapdragon 800 quad-core processor from Qualcomm, same processor found inside the Samsung Galaxy Note 3.




Camera



The camera is a feature that Google has said they will be putting a lot of energy into, and it is sounding like they will do just that. Rumors have it that the Nexus 5 will be based on the LG G2 (the Nexus 4 was based on the LG Optimus G) which brings some great camera features including a 13MP sensor and OIS (Optical Image Stabilization), which should help eradicate those blurred images from shaky hands. Check out the video from LG below to see how this works.



A Few Things Still Up In The Air

Nexus 5 render, Nexus 4, and Samsung Galaxy Nexus

Though we keep calling it the Nexus 5, we don't actually know that its what it will be called. Google has not confirmed this name and the history of Nexus phones doesn't guarantee it either. HTC made the first Nexus, the Nexus One, followed by the Samsung Nexus S, Samsung Galaxy Nexus and the the Nexus 4 by LG. So, technically it could be called anything. The only part we know for sure is that it will have Nexus in the title. We also don't know the prices yet, though we expect that they will be quite competitive. The Nexus 4 was $299 (8GB) and $349 (16GB) unlocked at launch and recently saw a $100 price cut which cleared out their total inventory. Google has set a precedent of launching Nexus devices a mid-range affordable prices. The Nexus 7 tablet saw a slight price bump this year and it is reasonable to think that the new phone may as well but I'd still expect to see it at no more than $350 and $450 unlocked and off contract for each of the two memory configurations.

We also don't know exactly what to expect from Android 4.4 KitKat. The Nexus 5 (and possibly refreshed Nexus 10 tablet) will be the first devices to launch with KitKat 4.4. So far from the leaks we have gotten the following details:

• Firmware availability to older phones
• Fragmentation changes (screen resizing)
• Miracast updates
• New Gallery Visualisation
• New APIs regarding animations
• Change android default blue to other preset palette colors
• New notification widgets

The Firmware availability and fragmentation changes seem to address getting updates out to more phones faster, a problem they've been working on for years. Hopefully they finally found a decent solution which would make it easier for manufacturers to update ROMs to the latest version of Android and get around the carriers slowing the process. I'm also excited about the potential to easily customize the color palette throughout the OS. As far as what else KitKat will bring is still up in the air. I'm sure it will have additional improvements to UI smoothness and battery performance.



Finally we have carrier support. This has always been a touchy area. GSM carriers (T-Mobile and AT&T) tend to get the most love and offer the best, more streamlined solutions, but Verizon and Sprint have had some level of support in the past with the Nexus S and Galaxy Nexus. However, CDMA (Sprint and Verizon) versions of Nexus phones have proven to be somewhat of second rate Nexus experiences, with the carriers complicating and delaying the direct line upgrade process that the Nexus line is designed for. Additionally in the past it has been difficult to make one devices that supports all of the carriers various frequencies, resulting in multiple variants for each carrier. With advancements in the tech in both the phones and the networks themselves, it is becoming easier to put multiple radios in one device, and currently based on the leaks it sounds like the next Nexus phone may support T-Mobile, AT&T and Sprint. Still leaving out VZW, but they are also one of the most notorious for delaying updates and adding bloatware to devices.

How many of you are excited to see the new Nexus phone getting closer to release? Are you planning on grabbing one at launch? What are you most excited about?

One of the most useful types of apps you can have on your phone or tablet is a good office suite app that supports Microsoft Office. This is also one of the first types of apps that I was willing to spend money on. For years I've used Documents to Go Pro, which I got on sale for $10 I believe (currently on sale for $14). I really like this app but free is always better than paid, and right now Google is offering it's newly acquired office app, Quickoffice for free! Quickoffice fully supports Microsoft Office documents created in Word, PowerPoint and Excel and formats them to fit on your mobile device. It also allows access to your Google Drive account and documents within the app. Just download the app on your device (supports Android and iOS) and log in with a Google account before Thursday, September 26th. Also, as a bonus Google is throwing in an additional 10GB of free Google Drive storage space. I haven't used it much yet to give a review but it seems pretty legit thus far. I downloaded it for the free Drive space alone! Who's not up for free stuff? So download and log in! Even if you don't think you need it now at least it will be saved to your account free for later use!

Ok those of you who know me or have been reading the blog know that I don't care much for the iPhone. In my recent post about the new iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c I tried my best to be unbiased and just give the facts about the new devices, but when I saw this video I knew I had to share. It truly sums up what Apple does with it's new devices and a few of the many reasons why I don't like iPhones (and love Android).

Check out the hilarious video below:

Today Google released footage of the raising of their new Android statute. For every version of Android there is a statue placed in front of Google HQ based on the Android version name. Google has set the precedent  of using various desserts, candies and sweets in alphabetical order: Cupcake (1.5), Donut (1.6), Eclair (2.0), Froyo (2.2), Gingerbread (2.3), Honeycomb (3.0), Ice Cream Sandwich (4.0), and Jelly Bean (4.1-4.3). Android 4.4 is K, KitKat not Key Lime Pie as has been rumored for a while.

No details were offered about the new version except, "It's our goal with Android KitKat to make an amazing Android experience available for everybody." This on the tail of the announcement that Google Android has had over one BILLION activations! As I stated in my last post, its a good time to be #teamandroid!



Also, what appears to be the new Nexus 5 was also accidentally revealed, in the video of the KitKat statue going up. A 5 inch-ish LG made Nexus can be seen being used by an employee next to another with the Nexus 4. Confirming recent rumors and predictions that the next Nexus will be a 5 inch device based off the LG G2. I am one of many, who are very excited to see this phone move closer to release. Google has not set an announcement or release date yet, but the appearance of the KitKat statue and the glimpse of the new Nexus phone are good signs that they are both coming soon. It is also highly likely that the Nexus 10 tablet will be released alongside the presumed Nexus 5, joining the new Nexus 7 and rounding off the 2013 Nexus refresh.



Check out Google's official site with review of previous versions of Android: Android KitKat

Looking forward to the new version of Android and Nexus 5? Let us know in the comments!

 

 

 

What's up?!!! It's been a minute, I know. I'm back though, by popular demand. I've been really busy with work, preparing for my wedding, life and debating if I wanted to continue with the blog. But as more and more people have been asking about the blog I realized more people were checking out my post than I thought and that maybe it was time to start back up! Not to mention there have been soo many changes in the tech world. I got the new EVO LTE and didn't even do a post or video review which is unheard of since I've done every EVO since the OG dropped and actually launched BHT!

All the recent tech news is just too much for me to resist commenting on lol. So new post are on the way. I'd like to thank all of you who have read my posts and watched my videos in the past it means alot to me! I'd also like to ask you all a favor. Many of you have commented on my posts in the past, but typically you comment on whatever social media site you see me post the links to the blog on. It would help me TREMENDOUSLY if you could post comments here on BHT. This keeps all the discussion in one place and lets readers who get updates through different methods to converse with each other in one spot. I'd love to see convos started right here on the blog. I'll also be honest in that it helps me to generate more traffic here on the site!

Again thanks for all that have read, commented and given me words of encouragement on/regarding Brown Hands Tech!

Just got my hands on a new Nexus 7 (2013). Google's newest version of their 7" tablet. Check out my initial impressions and be sure to leave comments below.

Specs and Comparison