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All posts tagged "comparison"


Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Chris Pirillo on the iPhone vs. Windows Mobile for Business Use

Posted by Jason Dunn in "Smartphone Talk" @ 01:00 PM

http://chris.pirillo.com/2007/10/30/iphone-vs-windows-mobile-pocket-pc-for-business/

"I was a Windows Mobile device user for about seven years. I was against the iPhone at first, thinking my Windows device suited my needs just fine. Then Ponzi bought me the iPhone. MajorDef wrote in to ask which is better for business… a Windows Mobile device, or an iPhone? I am a product tester for Sprint, and recently got my hands on their new HTC Touch mobile device. It’s not a bad device. It’s very small and lightweight. It does everything I need it to do. But it just doesn’t compare to my iPhone. I get frustrated trying to push a button that doesn’t work on these Windows devices. After playing with this Sprint HTC Touch for about five minutes, I literally shook my head and said out loud “How did I ever DO this?”. Keep in mind that for seven years, I was perfectly happy with my Windows devices. Enter my iPhone. It’s not just an amazing media device, it’s a joy to use. It’s smooth, it’s functional, it works the way I never thought it could work. It syncs perfectly with my Outlook, which is where I primarily live with my work. It can share my contacts, calenders and tasks. I can connect it to Exchange. It’s just magic. Is it perfect? Hardly. But, it’s the closest to perfect that any mobile device has ever come."


This is from last week, but I thought it was worth sharing - on a dedicated Windows Mobile site like this one, you might consider this flame bait, but I'm hoping we can have some intelligent discussion on what Chris is saying. As a long-time Windows Mobile user, I think Chris' criticism of the platform has significant merit - he's not just some random user that picked up a Windows Mobile phone for five minutes and said he didn't like it. He's used it for years, is aware of the good and bad, and finally decided he couldn't put up with it any more. That's significant. What the video and post your thoughts - is Chris right?

From my perspective, I've only had about five minutes of hands-on time with an iPhone so I'm not the best person to compare the two. But in my hands on time with the product, it's impossible to deny the beauty and fluidity of the product. Apple did a great job with the design. But look deeper from a business user's perspective: can you process a significant amount of email with no physical keyboard? I know I can't - I absolutely need a keyboard. Can you use it as a business tool without third party applications? No, browser-based widgets are not applications. Perhaps some people can, but I know many of you rely on powerful third party software to get more done. And what about the whole Exchange issue? Chris' comments about how great Outlook/Exchange works with his iPhone were news to me - he didn't really go into details, but mentioned Plaxo. I know some people who won't use Plaxo because it's such a potential privacy nightmare. That's my brief take on the subject - what's yours?


Thursday, May 17, 2007

Photo Comparison - Q9, Vox, Asus, and BlackJack

Posted by Mike Temporale in "HARDWARE" @ 07:00 AM

Earlier this year, I managed to take some pictures of a few of the hottest new devices. Unfortunately, these are not the best quality images around. And the devices, well they could use a good wipe down to remove some of those messy fingerprints. Regardless of all that, these pictures really show how these device measure-up when placed beside each other. Just remember when you view these, it's not about the quality of the image, it's all about the comparison. ;)

User submitted image
The new Moto Q9, BlackJack, and Vox lined up side by each. Click the image for a full size version.
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That blurry device in my hand is the new Q9 sitting on top of my BlackJack. Click the image for a full size version.

User submitted image
Adding the Asus Smartphone to the top of the pile. Watch out, the Asus is really a lot thicker than it looks. The sides of the device slant in at the bottom. Click the image for a full size version.

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Looking down from above, you can see that the Q9 isn't that much wider than the BlackJack. The two devices are pretty much the same when it comes to length. Click the image for a full size version.

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The Asus doesn't look much thicker, but is sure feels like it when you hold it in your hand. Click the image for a full size version.

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Everyone's favorite new phone - the HTC Vox sitting ontop of the BlackJack. It sure is small! Click the image for a full size version.

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The reduced size comes with a price. That price is thickness. Click the image for a full size version.


Sunday, March 18, 2007

Windows Mobile 5.0 vs Windows Mobile 6 Comparison Document

Posted by Kris Kumar in "SITES & RESOURCES" @ 07:45 AM

http://blogs.msdn.com/jasonlan/archive/2007/03/18/windows-mobile-5-0-vs-windows-mobile-6-comparison-document.aspx

"Since we announced Windows Mobile 6 at 3GSM the most common question I get from customers and partners is how the product compares to Windows Mobile 5.0 and what the incremental capabilities are. The second most popular question is - what features require Exchange 2007."

User submitted image

Jason Langridge is sharing with us a document (PDF) that highlights the new features in Windows Mobile 6 by comparing it with Windows Mobile 5.0. The document also highlights the differences between the various flavours of Windows Mobile 6 - Classic, Professional and Standard. The only difference that the document didn't highlight is that Windows Mobile 5.0 has an extra ".0" in its name and Windows Mobile 6 does not. :D


Monday, June 5, 2006

Comparison of RIM Blackberry 4.0 and Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0 with MSFP

Posted by Kris Kumar in "ARTICLE" @ 05:10 AM

http://download.microsoft.com/download/f/7/7/f77a4fb4-a617-481d-a1e5-ef321b621aaf/MobileDevicePlatforms-ComparisonofRIMandWindowsMobile.pdf

"IT managers are increasingly being asked to provide mobile access to corporate email, business applications and other critical network resources. The cost of providing and supporting access to these resources is significant and IT managers should give careful consideration to the associated costs and capabilities before deploying an enterprise mobile solution. Wipro Technologies, a leader in the IT services and consulting industry, conducted a comparative lab based study of mobile platforms by benchmarking the Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0 Messaging and Security Feature Pack (MSFP) coupled with Exchange Server 2003 SP2 solution against the RIM Blackberry Handheld 4.0 and Blackberry Enterprise Server 4.0. Wipro conducted detailed testing of both environments in a simulated production environment and extrapolated the efforts and costs obtained from the lab environment to project the total cost of ownership (TCO) of managing each mobile platform in an enterprise production setting. To validate the lab data, Wipro also conducted interviews with enterprise organizations with large RIM Blackberry deployments."

User submitted image

In this comparison sponsored by Microsoft, Wipro Technologies conducted a comprehensive lab based study of the mobile solutions offered by RIM and Microsoft. The results show that the Microsoft solution offers the following benefits: lower TCO, less infrastructure costs, lower support costs, tighter integration and larger application selection. RIM offers better user policy management and security, which in my mind are the two things that matter the most to corporations. Even though the report shows Microsoft in a favourable light, I think it still has some catching up to do. Another thing that worries me is that the TCO savings difference between the two decreases as the number of users increase. Didn't Microsoft suggest it to be the other way around? :? If you are evaluating mobile solutions for your IT department or are simply interested in understanding the pros and cons of the two systems then check out this report. [PDF file]


Thursday, February 23, 2006

Apples to Apples Comparison of the "Big Four" U.S. Wireless Providers' Calling Plans

Posted by Jerry Raia in "OFF-TOPIC" @ 02:00 PM

http://www.thewirelessreport.com/2006/02/13/apples-to-apples-comparison-of-the-big-four-u-s-wireless-prov/

"For those who have become confused and bewildered before when attempting to compare wireless and calling plans from several companies, we would like to help a bit by giving you a real-world, typical-scenario comparison of the �big four� wireless companies in the U.S. In this feature, we will compare, as apples-to-apples as we can, an example of what an individual customer (you) could use to compare when shopping around for a post-paid (monthly) wireless plan."

User submitted image

Here is a snapshot of the big guys plans. I use the word "snapshot" deliberately because the plans have probably already changed. Every once in a while I call my carrier (Cingular) to see what's new plan wise. Occasionally a better plan has popped up that I can take advantage of.

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  • Source: Geek.com


Monday, February 20, 2006

Comparison Shopping with Pricepirates

Posted by Jason Dunn in "OFF-TOPIC" @ 06:00 PM

http://www.jakeludington.com/downloads/20060217_pricepirates.html

"Sometimes the winning bid on eBay isn't the steal you hoped it would be. On occasion, the price on eBay ends up being higher than the price through traditional retail channels. Instead of second guessing and digging through hundreds of shopping sites and comparison options, Pricepirates pulls in eBay bid prices and compares them against shopping comparison sites, Amazon Marketplace for a more complete picture of your shopping options."

This is a bit off-topic, but since I'm sure that many readers here have used eBay for buying gadgets and accessories, I thought it would be worth sharing - I've often found myself bidding on an item, only to have some mildly-insane bidder come along and jack up the price to the point where it's almost at full retail price. This tool helps give a more complete picture of the market value for your item. And hey, it's free!


Tuesday, October 26, 2004

Smarter.com Launches True Comparison Shopping via SMS

Posted by Kris Kumar in "NEWS" @ 03:00 AM

http://www.smarter.com/sms/

"Smarter.com, one of the fastest growing comparison shopping search engines, announced today the Beta launch of its free shopping service via SMS (Short Messaging Service)...Consumers can access the free Smarter SMS service by text messaging product names or SKUs (commonly known as manufacturer part numbers) to (610) SMARTER or (610) 762-7837. Consumers are free to search using generic keywords like �mini ipods� or �dell dimension�, but are recommended to be as specific as possible, using the SKU number for best results."

User submitted image

Smarter.com claims that its SMS based search engine is superior to the recently launched Google service, because it returns the lowest price for the user specified product. They even have a side by side comparison of the two services, check it out over here. I am all for competition and free services. ;-)

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  • Source: Wireless Developer Network


Friday, September 3, 2004

Smartphone Comparison Chart

Posted by Andy Sjostrom in "SITES & RESOURCES" @ 01:19 AM

http://www.cewindows.net/faqs/comparison/smartphone.php

Chris De Herrera has put together a very useful comparison chart of Smartphones 2002 and 2003. The chart is functional in that you can sort the table by each feature to more easily find the Smartphone of your preference.

I went through the chart and ended up picking the SPV C500 (no surprise) as my best candidate! Version of platform, tri-band, CPU, RAM and weight were the features I weighed in. What about you?


Tuesday, May 25, 2004

Bluetooth Headset Comparison Review

Posted by Mike Temporale in "SITES & RESOURCES" @ 06:45 AM

http://www.mobileburn.com/review.jsp?Id=739

"Back in the early days of Bluetooth headsets, there was a lot of things that separated one headset from the next. The designs were wildly different, the battery lives varied greatly, and the audio quality was often spotty, at best. In those days it was not unusual for firmware changes to cause new units of a particular model to sound markedly better than earlier units of the same type. Bluetooth was pretty new, the chip sets were still not mature, and nobody had that much of a clue as to how to do things. Today we find literally dozens and dozens of new headsets coming on to the market. Chipset designers like CSR and Infineon have turned the entry hurdle for manufacturers into more of a speed-bump. New designs can be developed relatively quickly, and as such, we are seeing all sorts of new players in the market. Tekkeon and Tekram, two of the companies featured in this comparison, being prime examples."

MobileBurn has individually reviewed each headset and done an overall comparison. The 4 headsets they review are the Motorola's HS810, Plantronics' M3500, Tekkeon's ezTalker, and Tekram's TM-312. If you're in the market for you might want to give this a read first.


Thursday, August 21, 2003

Comparison of MiTAC Mio 8380 and P800

Posted by Robert Levy in "HARDWARE" @ 10:10 AM

http://howardforums.com/showthread.php?threadid=181674%22%3eHowardForums.com

If you're still having trouble deciding whether or not to buy a MiTAC Mio 8380 Smartphone, check out the link above. Over at Howard Forums, somebody has posted several great photos comparing the Mio to Sony Ericsson's P800. These photos make it pretty easy to understand why people are complaining about the Mio being such a big device. Of all the available Smartphone devices, it has the best hardware specs (XScale processor, integrated camera) but it really does seem unnecessarily massive.

User submitted image

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  • Source: BostonPocketPC


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