Samsung Galaxy S III
Price: $ 904
It’s fortunate that Samsung is good at
making phones, given how bad it is at naming them. The S II has a spec that
eclipses anything available on iOS or Windows: Android 4.1 Jelly Bean will fly
on its 1.4GHz quad-core chip, while the 4.8in hi-def screen has the contrast to
give films and the web real punch. Seriously, it can play a 1080p video in a window
while you browse. Mighty
Pros:
Excellent battery life; microSD slot for extra storage; built-in NFC; power
Cons:
Cheaper-feeling build than HTC One X or iPhone; screen has slightly blue hue
Samsung
Galaxy S III
Special skill – S Health: adding ‘pocket nurse’ to the S III’s CV, the free S Health app sucks
information over Bluetooth from tech such as LifeScan OneTouch blood glucose
monitor range, so it’s easy to track sugar levels.
Apple iPhone 4S
Price: $ 780
Still reeling from being knocked off the
top spot in our rankings, the iPhone is starting to look its age – despite the
botox boost it got from the 4S spec lift last October. The 3.5in screen now
feels restrictive, a feeling only heightened by iOS’ regimented grid design.
But its other attributes, such as its steel and glass build, 8MP camera and Retina
display, still give its familiar face allure.
Pros: Retina
display; steel and glass; sound quality; camera performance; apps
Cons:
Dual-core; 3.5in screen now feels small; no NFC
Apple
iPhone 4S
Special skill – Retina display: it might be dwarfed by the 5.3in Samsung Galaxy note on Android and
WP7’s 4.7in HTC Titan; but at 326ppi the iPhones’s Retina display wins the
pixel density war, giving its fonts and images a peerless crispness.
Nokia Lumia 900
Price: $780
We were charmed by the Lumia 900’s bold
polycarbonate design and its bright 4.3in Amoled screen, but the news that it
won’t be getting an update to Windows Phone 8 means it’s a dead phone calling.
And with just a single-core chip and 480 x 800 screen, it’s now more of a
collectable than a serious Android or Apple Botherer. Expect a WP8 successor by
the end of 2012.
Pros:
Original design; long battery life; bright OLED screen
Cons: Won’t
be getting Windows Phone 8 update; WVGA screen; single-core
Nokia
Lumia 900
Special skill – Clearblack filters: Nokia’s nifty polarizing filters eliminate screen reflections to
keep blacks dark and make colors pop – even in direct sunlight. It’s a real
bonus for WP7’s Metro UI and its ‘Glanceable’ Live Tiles interface.
Smartphones – OS
Android Jelly Bean 4.1
Google’s obsession with sugar and spice
continues with Jelly Bean and its screen-smoothing Project Butter tech, which
speeds up app-switching and responsiveness. Notifications now carry more info,
there’s offline voice control, and search has been rebuilt to make use of
Google’s knowledge Graph, which presents extra intelligently-gathered info. In
short, 4.1 is a bit good
Pros:
Available now (for some); ultra-customisable; slicker than ever
Cons: Many
phones still waiting for Ice Cream Sandwich, with Jelly Bean a long way off
Android
Jelly Bean 4.1
Special skill – Google now: Google now takes all your appointments, news and travel info and
joins them up. It tells you what the weather will be like in the morning, gives
traffic info on the way to a meeting, or tells you when the next train is.
Apple iOS 6
Apple
iOS 6
If familiarity breeds contempt you’d figure
Apple fans would be ditching iOS in droves, but its sixth iteration adds enough
newness to keep Owners sweet. TomTom-powered Maps with navigation, live traffic
and 3D buildings replaces Google cartography, Facebook is fully integrated, and
Passbook is a time- and location-sensitive digital wallet for your e-tickets or
loyalty cards.
Pros: Apps,
apps, apps, the slickest mobile OS out there; Siri does local search
Cons: Still
the same old look; no live tiles or widgets; no NFC (yet)
Special skill – Eyes free: The likes of BMW and Mercedes are adding Siri-compatible voice
control systems to their cars, allowing you to access your iPhone’s sat-nav,
calendar, music, messages and apps just by asking. Politely, mind.
Windows Phone 8
WP8 is a risk. No existing WP7 phone will
run the new OS thanks to stringent requirements, in place to provide WP8 phones
enough power to run the same Metro apps that Windows 8 tablets and desktops
will be able to. That makes it a risk worth taking. It supports multiple cores
(up to a bonkers 64) and 720p screens, and has a nicely customizable home screen.
It really could be big.
Pros: If it
runs WP8, it’ll run it perfectly; multi-core support; Win 8 Metro apps will
work
Cons: Not
supported by older phones relatively few apps (but potential for many more)
Special skill – DirectX: Gaming power-platform DirectX is on its way to Windows Phone. That
doesn’t mean you’ll be playing BF3 on your phone any time soon, but it does
open it up for some serious game devs to make some serious games.
Windows
Phone 8
