Article by Lorin Willis
Welcome to a new era of smartphones.
The buzz surrounding the release of the iPhone 5 was quickly eclipsed by the sad passing of Steve Jobs and the unveiling of the iPhone 4S, but Apple competitors are still trudging forward in their attempt to dethrone the iPhone as the absolute ruler in the land of smartphones.
With Steve Jobs gone to the Big Apple in the sky, iPhone engineers are lovingly working on what promises to be an astounding version that would have dazzled Steve Jobs himself. In the meantime, Nokia is preparing to dazzle Bill Gates with a new lineup of Windows smartphones.
Smartphone lovers do not have to wait for the iPhone 5 or the new Nokia Windows phones to materialize. The newest smartphones on the market offer a glimpse at a promising future.
The Apple iPhone 4S
Apple continues to hold smartphone supremacy with the new and powerful iPhone 4S, a device that is as powerful as the iPad 2. Just like its tablet cousin, the iPhone 4S features a dual-core Apple A5 1GHz processor. That’s seven times faster than the iPhone 4. Battery life has been expanded as well: 8 hours talk time, and 6 hours of 3G data browsing. Connectivity-wise, the 4S lacks real 4G support, but its GSM and CDMA capabilities make it a true world phone. In the looks department, the 4S is virtually identical to the iPhone 4, but once you talk to Siri -the newfangled Apple virtual assistant- you’ll be sold on the 4S. Siri is the smartest application for smartphones, and it is bound to get smarter.
Samsung Galaxy S II
The Galaxy S II is not only the reigning king of the Android devices, it is also a serious competitor to the iPhone. The Galaxy may be thin and lightweight, but it features a lot of touchscreen real estate: more than 5 inches tall and 2.7 inches wide. The touchscreen is highly responsive, but it isn’t the only mode of input. The Galaxy comes bundled with Vlingo, a voice-control app that allows complete control over the smartphone. A quad-band feature and 4G access give the Galaxy international flair. Other connectivity goodies include Bluetooth, WiFi, GPS, NFC, and possibly Google Wallet in the near future. Since the Galaxy runs on Android Gingerbread, all Google services are available.
HTC Rhyme
The focus of the HTC Rhyme is style. With its purple color and charming soft-touch finish, the Rhyme is the sexiest of the smartphones. While the purple finish is mostly geared towards women, the Rhyme is also available in a champagne color in some parts of the world. It comes with a unique cell phone charm: a small cube that lights up with incoming calls and that can be clipped to clothing or a purse . The Rhyme bucks the current trend of extra-large touchscreens with a compact design. It’s an Android Gingerbread device, and that means access to all the Google goodies.
