Google Pixel phone leaked before unveiling
theguardian.com
theguardian.com
The time when even Android fans wish Steve Jobs was still around.
Innovation has faltered and we are now just focusing on incremental improvements in current techs. No new trends.
Newer trends could be 1) iPhone/Tablet docks to a full laptop (Continuity was a dismal step). 2) App synergies between web and phone 3) daul screen phones 4) perfected implementations of all of the throwaway features you mentioned.
I guess the trends are now focused on smart watches. But it is underwhelming. I am not going to give examples, because there will be plenty of dissenters. But the smartwatch could be so much more.
I'd say tech-focused blogs which earn advertisement dollars on hypes and clickbait-titles are interested. They'll try to push it as something must see interesting to drive their own traffic. As an annual event for several vendors it's probably a source of regular, primary income.
But this is The Guardian. I'd expect better from them.
Why do I still need to carry a laptop and a phone around ? Of the big guys the only ones doing anything interesting here are Microsoft and Continuum https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/Continuum - seems like the meme of distrupting yourself; cannibalizing your own revenue streams is great in theory but not in practice...
(Although, yes, that will work well for Netflix and badly for coding. The question in my mind is what about everything in between)
But this one _could_ be made for one market, and other people could buy a _different_ phone that was made for a different market...
It is very easy to find without looking, and you can unlock the phone one handed. I actually can't imagine why one would want the fingerprint scanner on the front of the phone.
What's the point in having a giant bezel to fit a front button like the Pixel if you're moving half of the function of that button to the back? Now I have to specifically place my finger somewhere just so the fingerprint can be read.
I unlock an iPhone one-handed all the time. Just tap the home button. Done.
That design was actually based on Proper Market Research (tm) wherein LG determined that most phone droppages occurred when people were using edge-mounted buttons and therefore only holding the phone lightly. With the buttons on the reverse you can keep a firm grasp of the phone whilst activating them.
Plus of course it's a differentiator in a crowded market, but I wouldn't be surprised if it originated on a Chinese design. That's where the real innovation is happening.
I miss the old days when all kinds of mobile phones were being innovated in a mobile phone primordial soup.
Of course, granted, they were far less useful!
1. Sony Ericsson W800, the first Walkman phone with a good music player
2. Sony Ericsson K800, the camera phone with a good camera (even had Xenon flash)
3. Nokia N95, the everyday phone with multitasking
4. Apple, the iPhone with a good web browser and UI to support the next generation of mobile apps
After that it's all been iteration to get everything up to acceptable speeds and capacities to support the app ecosystem
The 2013 Moto X was perfect: flagship specs, 4.7 inches, and basically stock Android. Seems such perfection was a flash in the pan.
This being said, I recently discovered the "one-handed keyboard feature" on my OP2 and absolutely love it. I can finally answer messages while swiping with a single hand.
Screenshot: https://ibin.co/2xCShGbpGdGt.png
Here's an older post of me asking: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12540268
Z5C (350$) or Z3C (250) seems to come up a lot in my search. I'm also tempted by the nexus 5x (probably at my limit at 5.2" but it's only 250ish), and perhaps the new pixel (which is 5" but probably way more than I'm willing to pay for a phone). Another interesting contender is Nextbit Robin, which is 5.2 inches for 230ish and very pretty.
I've been eyeing Xiaomi phones for a while, but unsure that I want to go to the hassle of getting a device that's unservicable in the US.
On another route, HTC one M8 (5" - 170ish!) seems to be an old flagship that still does well, and us now super cheap. I wonder what other similar ones there are.
edit: to be honest I've given up on finding sub-5", and thinking about 5.2.
Edit: Also, I hope not. Mobile phones don't need anymore gimmicks, we just need removable SD cards and batteries brought back and we'd all be set.
I think there will be other announcements. The Android SVP is certainly hyping the event: "We announced the 1st version of Android 8 years ago today. I have a feeling 8 years from now we'll be talking about Oct 4, 2016."
I never really understand this. Surely Samsung has the technical expertise to develop an OS to suit their own hardware?
Is it really worth relying on Google to make Android, and then "modify it" to suit their needs?
It is clear the benefit of Apple having control over the entire product - why do other large smart phone companies not do this?
Samsung is, however, developing Tizen, their own OS, which runs on the gear s3 watch and a number of smartphones. But the appstore is still pretty empty and consumers are weary.
Samsung phones would be worth much less without the Play store, and everything follows from there.
But it means Samsung's versions lag Google significantly, and Samsung is quick to orphan their own products. So Samsung customers start behind, and get stranded in the past of Android. Also, app developers often have to to test specifically on Samsung phones because Samsung has introduced bugs and security issues with their modifications.
Sure, they do. Its just a huge expense and then you've got to market both your tech stack and your app store to developers, otherwise, you've got a smart phone without apps to sell. With Android, you've got apps, plus you can still try to market your own unique stack on top of android and app store for additional benefit (and Samsung does), but in the worst case you've still got access to the Android ecosystem and Google Play Store, which provides value to your hardware.
EDIT: appears to also have microSD slot!