Price: $9,100
Website: apple.com
What’s the story?
Apple’s latest iPhone is a typically lovely
piece of kit: thin, light and beautifully crafted, without feeling cheap. And
rightly so, given the price. Sure, that casing is easily damaged, iOS is
looking a bit tired and the new Maps are rubbish, but this is still a premium
product. It’s also the biggest and fastest iPhone yet, with the screen having
been boosted to 4in and a new A6 chip inside it. So not all bad news.
Is it any good?
Not everyone wants a side order of cramp
with their smartphone, so the iPhone 5’s 4in, 16:9 screen is just fine with us.
It’s improbably high-res at 326ppi and beats the Nexus 4 for color and contrast
too. Design is a no contest compare the iPhone’s classy form with the Nexus 4’s
sparkly back and you begin to see where your money’s gone. The dual-core A6
chip handles everything that can be thrown at it with aplomb, its8MP/1080p rear
cam is one of the best on the smartphone market and 4G is a bonus. And then
there’s the App Store, which is still a fair way ahead of Android’s Play. But
despite all that, it’s impossible to escape the feeling that the iPhone’s halo
has slipped this year. Jelly Bean is more interesting, lively and intuitive
than iOS 6, and Apple’s device lacks next-gen tricks such as NFC and wireless
charging. It’s close, but given the prices, we’d go for the Nexus 4.Still one
of the greats, but it’s not worth the price of two Nexus 4s.
It’s
improbably high-res at 326ppi and beats the Nexus 4 for color and contrast too.
Tech specs
·
iOS 6
·
4in IPS, 1136x640, 326 ppi
·
Dual-core A6 processor,1GB RAM
·
8MP/1080p (rear);1.3MP (front)
·
Wi-Fi, 3G, 4G(optional), Bluetooth 4.0,3.5mm
·
8hrbattery
·
123.8x58.6x7.6mm; 112g
Google Nexus 10
Price: $7,000
Website: google.com
What’s the story?
The first Android tablet with a
Retina-trashing resolution, the 2560x1600 Nexus 10 comes in at an eye-bursting
300ppi. Built by Samsung, it’s also light and easy to hold with a reassuringly
familiar design and a dual-core 1.7GHz processor for the brain power.
Is it any good?
That 10in screen is supremely sharp, but we
prefer the iPad 4’s contrast and colors and Android 4.2 doesn’t show off the
display as well as iOS. In many other respects, Jelly Bean is the better OS
though, with multiple user accounts, two pull down menus and other treats such
as Google Now. The Nexus 10 is generally fast in use, although we have seen
Jelly Bean run more smoothly (on the Nexus 4 for starters), and we did get the odd
glitch during intensive gaming. Still, the speedy MIMO Wi-Fi helps web pages
load swiftly, the5MP snapper is good and while it’s not as well built as the
iPad, it is at least expected to be cheaper.
The
first Android tablet with a Retina-trashing resolution, the 2560x1600 Nexus 10
comes in at an eye-bursting 300ppi.
Where it really loses out to Apple’s
flagship, though, is for apps. Android has a far smaller selection of tablet
optimized apps, and good luck finding many that make use of the Nexus 10’s
high-res screen. Until that changes, the iPad beats it.
A hi-res screen and Jelly Bean impress, but
pixels aren’t everything.
Tech specs
·
Android 4.2
·
10.1in IPS, 2560x1600, 300 ppi
·
Dual-core A15 @ 1.7GHz,2GB RAM
·
5MP camera (R); 1.9MP (F)
·
Wi-Fi, Bluetooth4.0
·
263.9x177.6x8.9mm; 603g
Apple iPad 4
Price: $6,100
Website: apple.com
What’s the story?
If you’ve come to the iPad 4 expecting a
raft of exciting new features, look away now. The new iPadis a modest upgrade
over the 3, gaining a more powerful A6X chip, dual-band Wi-Fi, improved front
camera and Lightning connector. If it ain’t broke, and all that…
Is it any good?
As Omar Little, The Wire’s anti-hero
stick-up man, said: “You come at the king, you best not miss.” And so it is
here. The Nexus 10’s screen may be higher-res, but the 2048x1536 effort on the
iPad is brighter, more accurate, better. And while the iPad 3 was no slouch,
the 4 is like some kind of flats screen Usain Bolt, with hardly a pause as you
open games, watch video or flip between apps. Want more? Its 5MP rear cam fares
well in daylight, while the new 1.2MP/720p Face Time camera gives you more
detail and better colors than any other front-facer. And of course its major
selling point remains the wealth (275,000 and counting) of optimized iPad apps
to splash your cash on.
The
Nexus 10’s screen may be higher-res, but the 2048x1536 effort on the iPad is brighter,
more accurate, better.
On the flipside, it’s a little heavy and
isn’t a really essential upgrade from its predecessor. But really that’s all
we’ve got. Nice shot, Google, but the iPad is still the king.
The upgrade might be minor, but this is the
fastest and app-list iPad yet.
Tech specs
·
iOS 6
·
9.7in IPS, 2048x1536, 264ppi
·
Dual-core A6X, 1GB RAM
·
5MP camera (R);1.2MP (F)
·
Wi-Fi, 3G, 4G (optional), Bluetooth 4.0, 3.5mm
·
241.2x185.7x9.4mm; 652g
