Introduction:
The smartphone war is in full swing with nearly every major domestic wireless carrier calling one handset on their lineup as their premier smartphone. This past year we’ve seen some fantastic products delivered by various manufacturers that truly offer an immerse experience that caters to the needs of individuals. Unlike the PC market where one or two platforms dominate the scene, mobile phones offer users a variety of operating systems to really provide their own unique experience. Palm came out of the pits of nowhere to launch the Palm Pre on Sprint where it received praise for its revamped platform in the form of WebOS. Soon afterwards, the Apple iPhone 3GS for AT&T was released that built upon some of the successes of the previous incarnations to deliver a faster and responsive interface. Finally, Motorola also sprung back to life with the best Android handset to date with the DROID for Verizon Wireless. We’ll compare and contrast these premier devices and see which ones really cater to the specific individual.Design:
The Apple iPhone 3GS really didn’t change in design from the previous generation, but it still exudes one of the best looking and constructed smartphones out there. The chrome bezel outlining the sides accents well with the hard plastic used for the rear – it still radiates a sense of fashionable appearance from afar. Between the three, the iPhone 3GS has the brightest screen – which can cause you to squint if you view it in complete darkness.
With a slightly more pocketable form factor, the Palm Pre integrates a sliding out portrait QWERTY to its stone polished look; making easy for those who prefer a physical keyboard to input characters. Although the black shiny plastic material doesn’t give off that high premium feel, we question its durability over time – especially the sliding mechanism holding the phone together. Having the smallest screen size, it still does not deter us from being able to clearly see text on-screen.
Then there’s the Motorola DROID which will appeal to those looking for something with an industrial design. You get a sense of relief of quality construction and premium materials when you first hold it in your hand. On top of sporting the largest and most detailed touchscreen, it tucks away a QWERTY keyboard that’s roomier than the one of the Palm Pre.
One item that’s a standard feature on all of them is the 3.5mm headset jack – so picking up your own pair of headphones and using it on any of the phones won’t be an issue. While the Pre and iPhone 3GS stick to using physical buttons for just about everything, the Motorola DROID ditches it with touch sensitive ones. Although it works well most of the time, there are instances when it is accidentally pressed causing you to lose focus on what you are doing. The Pre adds in the gesture area which give you finger friendly method of navigation or accomplishing certain functions. Both the Palm Pre and Motorola DROID will make it easy for everyone with their microUSB ports. With the iPhone however, you’ll have to put up with Apple’s proprietary standard. Finally, the Pre and iPhone 3GS limit you to the amount of memory you have because there’s no expandable source. Luckily for the DROID, it’s more flexible with its microSD card support – so you can even swap out cards at will. The Palm Pre is by far the most compact and doesn’t feel too overbearing in the hand. If text messaging is your kind of thing, then the Motorola DROID will be able to accommodate you with its full line of QWERTY keyboards. Finally, the iPhone 3GS has a uniform body that still can appeal to almost anyone thanks to its solid construction.
Interface & Organizer Functions:Phones can only go far solely relying on good looks, but the underlying platform that’s powering the handset behind the scene can make all the difference. Already into its third generation device, Apple for the most part kept its user interface unchanged while the increase in horsepower under the hood makes for an intuitive experience. One thing that really stands out with the iPhone 3GS is the lack of personalization – so pretty much every phone looks exactly the same with its grid-like setup of icons. In addition to not being able to run multiple applications, it becomes a bit monotonous having to go back to the home screen and switch between apps. On the other hand, its static look makes for the most responsive experience navigating on any of the phones. Looking up contacts is quite a breeze thanks to Spotlight which can be accessed by moving to the left most menu. From there, you can simply start typing something and a list is brought up with the associated contact or application.
Palm took the user experience to a new level and added some visual flare with WebOS. Switching between applications is such a breeze, not to mention fun as well, with its layout of cards that can be rearranged to your specific liking. Other than being able to modify the homescreen wallpaper, there is very little in the way of personalizing your handset. Even with all the nice graphical eye candy of moving between cards, it still manages to run smooth for the most part. Palm implemented Synergy to integrate your standard contacts with Google, Facebook, Microsoft Exchange, LinkedIn, and Yahoo. We like how Synergy is able to figure out your contacts without the aid of the user having to manually associate all your accounts. With its universal search function, one can simply type on the QWERTY and a list of possible matches will begin to populate.
Android has proven itself in being the king when it comes to creating a slick looking interface. Being able to use various personalized applications instead of the stock ones is definitely worth noting here. Add in the fact that there are three homescreens to personalize to your liking, we know there’s an almost limitless way of making it your own. It might not have the iPhone 3GS’s fluid interface or WebOS’s ingenious switching between apps; the Motorola DROID manages to share everything we like about both of those platforms with Android 2.0. Similar to the Palm Pre, there is a universal search function that enables users to use the physical QWERTY to search the handset for just about everything – these include contacts, applications, bookmarks, and Google searches.
All three platforms make setting an appointment in your calendar a breeze – you’ll be able to view it in either a daily, weekly, or monthly view. It’s no surprise that the Palm Pre takes top honors in being able to immerse the user in a new fancy way of multi-tasking between applications. If speed is your kind of thing, then the iPhone 3GS will enthrall you with its lightning quick reflexes in opening and running programs. Then there’s the Motorola DROID which takes personalization to a new level in its dynamic depth of personalizing options.
Smartphones can do so many things that can aid you on a daily basis, one of them being email ready right out of the box. All of three have the ability to setup just about any kind of email service right on the phone; including support for Microsoft Exchange. At the core, all work relatively the same in being able to compose and send out messages. Apple has been perfecting its email application with each new update – it can even search for keywords in your folders to narrow down specific messages. On top of that, you can use certain finger gestures to easily delete multiple emails. The Palm Pre takes a similar approach to what’s offered on the iPhone 3GS – everything is intact including the search function to browse emails. The one advantage it does have is just the flexibility to open multiple cards to read or even reply to an email – it takes the hassle of having to close one thing out just to look at another. The Motorola DROID steers off the path with two separate applications to access your emails. Hands down the DROID implements Gmail to the fullest thanks to its superb replication of the desktop experience. Your emails in Gmail are viewed in a threaded format which makes it really simple to view messages you’ve replied to and read. In addition, there’s a whole separate application to view your other emails – we still scratch our heads as to why this is so. You can choose to combine your inboxes to one which is broken down by a color coding system. Now on the downside is the fact that the DROID requires to constantly pull emails from the server to view them on the phone. Unlike the Pre and iPhone 3GS where messages are downloaded and stored locally on the handset, the DROID has to download them on the go as you move through your long list of messages. Even though it’s a champ when it comes to Gmail, the Pre and iPhone 3GS have a much more versatile email applications.
The iPhone 3GS may not sport a physical keyboard, but that doesn’t stop it from being able to dish out messages in a heartbeat. When it comes to on-screen keyboards, the iPhone 3GS is still the leader in that category. Not only does it have the most responsive and usable on-screen keyboards, but its predictive text is also the smartest – it’ll literally know what you’re trying to say even with all the mispresses you might do. When the S stands for speed, you can recognize that the iPhone 3GS flies when you’re trying to type a long message.
It may seem a bit unorthodox to see a touchscreen phone missing an on-screen keyboard option, but the Palm Pre’s compact form factor will reveal a decent tactile physical QWERTY that shares some commonalities with its older siblings. Buttons are a bit smaller and just slightly raised from the surface, but don’t let its looks fool you because it works well for the most part. However, you’ll still rely on using the tip of your fingernails to really make out each button press. We’ve seen a hacked Palm Pre sporting an on-screen keyboard before, but we hope that Palm will release one down the road as WebOS matures.
When it comes to messaging, we feel that the best balanced out of the three is the Motorola DROID. Combining both a physical and virtual QWERTY keyboards, the DROID takes some key points from the other two handsets in its implementation. The QWERTY is a lot roomier than the cramped confines on the Pre, but its decent tactile feel makes typing a breeze too. It’s really tough to gauge which physical keyboard is better just for the fact that one is in portrait and other in landscape. Whichever one you decide to go with, you’ll eventually get adjusted to the feel and layout after a period of time. The DROID’s on-screen keyboard is one of the better ones offered for the Android platform, but still not up to the level in terms of responsiveness that the iPhone 3GS exudes.
Web Browser:
Data usage has exploded since the original iPhone arrived on the scene with its smooth looking WebKit based web browser. Throw in a fast processor to easily make scrolling a smooth experience and support for multi-touch; you get the market leader in mobile web browsing that still manages to impress just about anyone with the iPhone 3GS.
The Pre follows a similar path with its web browser - although it doesn’t quite have the pep in speed to rival what the iPhone 3GS offers. You can visually compare the intuitiveness of scrolling long pages at every direction and see that the Pre has a somewhat choppier experience. Still it doesn’t deter us from the overall experience and easily name it as the best device on Sprint’s network for web browsing. Of course switching between multiple pages is better visually on the Pre thanks to its multi-tasking prowess and the fact you can rearrange them in any order you want.
The Motorola DROID is easily, of course, the best Android phone to date for web browsing. Omitting multi-touch support may be glaring at first, but its lightning quick page loads and seamless scrolling makes for a decent experience. With some impressive hardware powering the handset, the DROID is capable of also opening multiple windows without a hitch in performance.
So far there is no true Adobe Flash support for all three handsets, but both the iPhone 3GS and Motorola DROID displays YouTube embedded links to watch videos. The iPhone 3GS does the best to resize a web page for the most optimal viewing on a touchscreen. In addition, it loads up pages super fast which is closely rivaled to the Motorola DROID. These devices are the cream of the crop on their perspective carriers, so they perfectly emulate the desktop experience on a mobile level.
If you’re a numbers type of person, then the 5-megapixel camera on the Motorola DROID wins by a long shot versus the 3-megapixel sensor used on the Pre and iPhone 3GS. There’s plenty of good detail and rich color tones in images captured on the DROID. With its high pixel count, the DROID does take some time in saving photos before proceeding to take another shot – it’s not too much of a problem when you consider the quality it provides. Out of the three, the Pre performs the weakest partly because it lacks an auto-focus which is essential in getting the best detail. Fortunately, the Pre is able to take shots consecutively with barely a pause – even when using the flash it still maintains a short break between shots. The iPhone 3GS doesn’t rival the DROID’s pixel count, but it did a good job in reproducing vivid colors while detail was better than the one on the Pre.
The Palm Pre camera interface
The DROID triumphs in the video capture category with its ability to shoot at DVD-like quality – it’s very detailed and runs smooth with no indication of choppiness. The iPhone 3GS also performed well even though its maximum video capture resolution is a bit less versus the DROID. Nonetheless, it’s still usable in saving those precious memories. Unfortunately software limitations have placed the Palm Pre in the boat of no video capture ability – we’re sure that down the road this feature will be available.
All three phones are able to view a variety of video codecs ranging from H.264 to MPEG4 – but we have to say that the Motorola DROID makes for the best experience watching a video. Its high resolution screen really places it well ahead of the Pre and iPhone – making it suitable to watch videos on the go.
Software:
Apple has transformed the way apps are marketed and sold thanks to the introduction of the App Store. The iPhone 3GS has by far the most compelling and eclectic mix of applications to appease anyone’s appetite. With over 100,000 apps available and growing, the iPhone 3GS truly does have an app for just about anything. It may seem far-fetched, but Apple has its own niche in the gaming market – we’ve seen beautiful 3D games run smoothly on the handset. Sure there are plenty of free applications to download on the App Store, but Apple has proven that money can be made with paid apps.
Luckily for Android, it isn’t too far away from replicating Apple’s successes. Android has steadily pushed out some decent apps on the Android Market and the Motorola DROID gets treated to some spectacular Google based applications – like Google Maps Navigation. It’s right on pace with applications that rival the ones on the iPhone 3GS, but lacks in the 3D gaming department. They’re mostly simple apps right now and we hope to see a rapid growth in the development of application offerings in the coming years. With a good amount of handsets offering Android, we will see a rapid growth in the development of applications in the coming years.
The Apple iPhone 3GS App Store
The Motorola DROID Android Market
The small following of WebOS is probably its Achilles heel with only two devices running the operating system. Barely eclipsing the 400 app mark, the App Catalog is nowhere close to the levels found with the App Store or Android Market. We find that a good portion of the apps are somewhat gimmicky and lack depth when compared to the other ones. Basically the Palm Pre is still sitting tight trying to attract developers to craft some decent programs.
Call Quality & Battery:
Out of all the phones, the Palm Pre managed to give us the best call quality all around. There wasn’t the slight static background noise heard on the Motorola DROID nor the iPhone 3GS’s cutting in and out sounds – it was neutral to say the least with audible and distinct voices. When it comes to speaker phone use, we can’t help but cover our ears to the DROID’s powerful tones. It easily trumps the levels that both the Pre and iPhone 3GS produce; so callers are more than hearable on the Motorola DROID’s speaker phone.Smartphones in general have a stigma for being battery hogs – and these three devices still fit that category. When used daily as a primary phone, the iPhone 3GS still tops our list for getting the best battery life with both the DROID and Pre coming in at second. One thing we noticed that contributed to the iPhone’s longevity is that it had the dimmest screen levels offered. When setting the brightness of the screen to the lowest level, we clearly noticed that the iPhone was the dimmest while the Pre still seemed bright in dark viewing conditions. Throw in the fact that the iPhone 3GS does a good job at adjusting brightness levels depending on lighting conditions, it clearly optimizes the battery for longer life. If a data intensive device is able offer you a solid one working day’s worth of usage, we’d definitely put that down in our books as usable.
Conclusion:
We’re now at the home stretch and compared in detail all the strengths and weaknesses of each smartphone. It’s a tough call because all of them are highly regarded in the industry as market leaders for their perspective wireless carriers. Again it’s really tough to truly compare them all because they all weren’t released at the same time – so there’s no way of saying that one is expected to be better in specs just because it’s newer. With that, here are some of our final thoughts about each one.
Coming back from the pits of nowhere, Palm has again reestablished itself as a big time player in the smartphone arena. It was a long time coming, but it was worth the wait for the Palm Pre to make its grand debut. WebOS has proven itself to be the best platform to multi-task and rides close to the heels of Apple’s multi-touch abilities. Unfortunately the stale application offerings on the App Catalog have clearly placed it at the bottom of the barrel. There really aren’t many that are considered to be useful or even fun – it’s even made worse when you see some paid apps sporting a mundane approach. Although it has some shortcomings, WebOS on the Palm Pre is still exciting and continues to improve with each update. We’d recommend this handset to the focused business professional that doesn’t want to be distracted with games on their phone. Additionally the QWERTY keyboard and compact form factor will make this an appealing option. Since its release at $199, the phone has taken a plunge in recent months to a $99 price tag to try and attract customers – it seems like a better fit at that level just because of its 8GB of storage.
DROID does, well, just about nearly everything you can dish at it. The Android platform had a small following at first, but the Motorola DROID has really opened the gates to a whole new following. There’s no other Android powered device out there yet that can match the DROID’s quality design and swift performance. Motorola has been on the fence too for the longest of times and now they’re once again basking in the glory with their premier smartphone for Verizon. Priced similar to the 16GB iPhone 3GS at $199, the Motorola DROID definitely has an advantage at that price point because of its superior spec sheet – higher resolution screen, physical QWERTY, slim profile, and 5-megapixel camera to point out. That’s a lot of phone packed to its streamlined body; also backed with a sturdy construction that’s sure to withstand the elements. This phone really can be marketed to just about anyone – whether it is for business or pleasure. It’s really hard to deny what the Motorola DROID has in store within its confines.
The iPhone 3GS continues Apple’s reign of being the most balanced of the three – making more suitable for the multimedia user in mind. Their music interface is still considered to be top notch by some –still not yet eclipsed by anyone else here in the US. Apple’s “There’s an App for that” campaign really showcases the most thought out applications that appeal to just about everyone. One area where the iPhone is really starting to show its age is in its interface – it’s still the same one we’ve seen with the first generation iPhone. The other two platforms have really set the bar in terms of visual flare in its operating systems; Apple has yet to move past that road block. There’s no surprise that the speed factor propels the handset to become the most intuitive and just about lag-free one available on the market. With that in mind, the iPhone 3GS’s improvements are worthy enough to stand high above the elite crowd of smartphones. With $199 being the price point of the 16GB iPhone 3GS, Apple has really changed the way pricing is factored into play.
Palm Pre, iPhone 3GS and Motorola DROID: Side by Side Video comparisson:
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