Thoughts on the current operating systems

I've been shooting off random information about the different operating systems that run on smartphones today, but I've yet to give my opinion on each one. I figured I would take the time to post my thoughts on Android, iOS and BlackBerry's operating systems. As I've never owned an Android phone my experience with that platform is limited, but I will give my opinion from the short experiences I've had.

Android:

I had the chance to use my roommates original Droid which is running Android 2.2 or Froyo. Aesthetically the user interface is very pleasing. Similar to the iOS the Android platform features pages that the user can swipe through when looking for applications.

Pros:

• Open platform
• Aesthetically pleasing user interface

Cons:

• Confusing menu selection
• No multitasking

iOS:

Pros:

• Easy menu selection
• Multitasking
• AirPrint and AirPlay
  
• Understandable UI
• Attractive UI

Cons:

• Closed platform
• Restrictive application store

BlackBerry:

Pros:

• None

Cons:

• Abundance

As a previous BlackBerry user, I really enjoyed the operating system when I was using it. The system had some weird quirks that I didn't enjoy, but overall I didn't mind it. This was at a time when I hadn't experience many other phone operating systems and was before the first iPhone had come out. There was nothing else really on the market to play with. But once Android and iOS came out I learned what I was missing. It wasn't up until this past year that I purchased an iPhone 4 and I absolutely love it. The iOS as a whole was vastly superior to the BlackBerry experience I had years ago. Today things may have changed, BlackBerry may have caught up and made some strides with the system. Let's just say that I don't regret moving from a BlackBerry to an iPhone 4. It does everything I want it to do and it does it well. It's intuitive and easy to use. The BlackBerry operating system just felt very clunky to me. As did the Android operating system, I just didn't find either of these to be that appealing.

That's just my two cents. Take it or leave it.

BlackBerry PlayBook

Research in Motion has recently provided an in-depth look into the BlackBerry PlayBook. While this doesn't have much to do with a smartphone operating system, the operating system used on this tablet is the same as in the BlackBerry smartphones.

Analysts believe that the tablet will retail for somewhere below the $500 mark. If this is the case the tablet will be able to compete easily with Apple's iPad which retails at a higher price point.

According to a BoyGeniusReport Hands on,

"The entire experience we saw was fluid, quick, and downright impressive. Apps opened and closed instantly, browsing through long lists like photos or music data was fast and effortless."

They go on to say that,

"The multitasking on here is incredibly slick -- in addition to flicking up from the touch sensitive bezel (we're told all four bezels are touch sensitive) you can flick apps away to close them, flick left and right to switch apps, and flick from the right bezel to enter into an almost Palm-esque card view which shows app near full screen."

From these little snippets from the hands-on preview the PlayBook seems like it will be a formidable competitor for the iPad. Being at the lower price point and with the excellent features that the PlayBook should contain it seems like the iPad will have a hard time keeping it's domination of the tablet market.

Windows Phone 7 Push Notification Limit

Another weird quirk with the Windows Phone 7 has been discovered. There is a limit to the amount of push notifications. Only fifteen third party applications can receive push notifications at one time. OEM applications do not count toward the limit.

This presents an interesting problem for the power user who relies on the use of push notifications to keep themselves up to date. Jaime Rodriguez said that Windows Phone 7 was designed for the typical user. If this limit were to remain in effect it would negatively affect the entire line of Windows Phone 7. Cutting out an entire sector of the market merely over a limit that can be changed is something that Microsoft sees and will hopefully acknowledge in the near future. According to Rodriguez that the limit is not set in stone, so there may be a time when the power user will find Windows Phone 7 a useful alternative to the other superior smartphone choices that are already out on the market.

The new Windows Phone 7's seem to be stuck in a rut after being recently released. Microsoft has quite a bit of catching up to do if they want to become a competitor in this market. The use of tiles and some of the other features that are present on the phone are welcome, but there are some basic features that are missing. Most of the other smartphones were hit with this issue as well, but that was a long time ago. Microsoft has quite a bit of catching up to do, but there is a lot of potential there.

Motorola To Split

Motorola is set to split itself into two separate entities on January 4th in an effort to raise stock prices. The company hopes that will benefit all parties involved with Motorola. Ever since the release of the Razr and it's phenomenal success, they have been in decline. With a falling stock price, they see this as one of the few options to recoup some of the lost price. The company will split into Motorola Solutions, Inc. and the mobile division will become Motorola Mobility Holdings, Inc.

Greg Brown and Sanjay Jha are currently the co-CEOs of the company as it is now. After the split Brown will become CEO of Motorola Solutions and Jha will become CEO of Motorola Mobility.

[via: BoyGeniusReport]

iOS4 update to 4.2

With the newly released iOS4 update, the iPhone 4, 3G, and 3GS all receive a number of new features. These features include, AirPlay, AirPrint, and messaging with text tones.

AirPlay:

AirPlay allows users to wirelessly stream their pictures, videos, and other digital media from an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to Apple TV. This enables users to watch their movies on the televisions instead of on the smaller screens of the other devices.

AirPrint:

AirPrint allows users to print almost anything from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. There aren't many printers currently on the market that support AirPrint, but in December a large firmware update for some existing printers will enable them to make full use of AirPrint.

Messaging with text tones is something that most phones have had for a long time, but Apple is just getting around to adding it. It allows users to select specific tones for texting, depending upon who sent the text.

iOS 4.2.1 jailbroken

For readers who do not know what jailbreaking is, it's a method that allows users root access to the operating system of the phone. Jailbreaking opens up applications to be downloaded and installed that are otherwise unavailable through the Marketplace or App Store. While there are many upsides to doing this on your phone, there is one downsides.

The biggest downside to jailbreaking your phone is the possibility that it will brick your phone. Which does exactly what it sounds like it would do, makes your phone as usable as a brick. This essentially renders your phone completely useless and you would have to go through the restoring process that is required depending upon which type of phone you have.

The jailbreaking tool ultrasn0w will soon be released, it jailbreaks iOS 4.2.1. The tool isn't ready to work on the iPhone 4, but it will work on the iPhone 3G and 3GS. If you're interested in jailbreaking your phone, make sure to keep a look out for the new ultrasn0w to be released sometime in the very near future.

Creating a YouTube video in iOS4 and Android

I was recently given an assignment to create a video that was to be uploaded to YouTube. Originally, this seemed like a difficult task. After trying to figure out the logistics in my head, I realized I had an iPhone 4 that had the ability to do just what the assignment called for. I decided I would make a video going through the Android marketplace, luckily, my roommate has a Verizon Droid that runs Android.

All it required was to switch the camera over to video instead of still shots and hit record. I had rehearsed my scripts quite a few times before I made the video. Without any extra applications I was able to create the video and even had the ability to trim what parts of the video I wanted. It was an editing tool, but a very crude one at that. Uploading the video was simple, a button in the bottom left corner of the screen needs a click and then you are given a few options. Out of these options one of them says, "Upload to YouTube." Give this button a click, sign into your YouTube account and boom! it starts to upload.

I had a very different experience when I was attempting to use an Android device to upload a video onto YouTube. I used a Droid to capture the video. Capturing the video was as simple as iOS4 but when it came to actually uploading the video to YouTube it was quite a different story. Instead of the simple login page that I was shown on the iPhone. I had to log in to my gmail account and have all of my information sync onto the new device. Once I did that I was finally able to upload the video and it took a bit longer than the iPhone did.

Overall, both experiences went rather smoothly. The only hiccup in the process for Android was logging into the user YouTube account. Both of these user experiences are simple and straightforward.