Hands On - Samsung Galaxy S, HTC Nexus One, HTC Trophy 7
Tuesday 09 November 2010 at 6:36 pm. Our corporate standard mobile is a simple Nokia with the Smartphone niche filled by the Nokia E63.With the launch of the iPhone, execs and directors have been clamouring for it as the latest 'must have' device. It certainly leaves the Nokias wanting in the style and functionality department but the iPhone is a pricey status symbol.
As a result we're evaluating some handsets at work as possible cheaper alternatives (and its a chance to play with new toys . . .)
First the Android phones - the Samsung Galaxy S (v2.1) and the HTC Nexus One (v2.2). In terms of build quality and styling the HTC Nexus wins hands-down. It has a slightly smaller screen but over-all has a better feel and a feeling of solidity that the Samsung lacks. As for the versions of Android - 2.2 offers significant improvements; particularly in the area of ActiveSync (which you'll need if you want to be taken seriously as a corporate mobile device). In particular; the security policy applied to the phone in v2.1 can be easily circumvented compared to v2.2 - not an ideal scenario if your CEO losses their phone. The Samsung also had appalling battery life and grew pretty warm to the touch over time compared to the HTC.
The Windows 7 device was probably the most impressive of the three. Microsoft have worked pretty hard it shedding the dowdy Windows Mobile baggage. The interface is responsive and relatively intuitive - the feedback tiles pass more information than the Android icons (how hard is it to put a new mail count on an icon?). The biggest problem was trying to get the Vodafone Corporate Connect APN added to the available networks list - not a biggy for the average user but a company with a corporate mobile plan will need to do some tweaking to get it to work. There are a few articles on the web about this issue and more general posts around the targeting of the device for consumers rather than corporates - lets hope some of the niggles are fixed in subsequent releases.
I haven't used an iPhone so my baseline for comparison is the old corporate workhorse the Nokia E63 - its reasonably compact, robust, activesync works, battery life is great and wireless and 3G data work fine. Its not particularly flashy, the Symbian interface is clunky as ever and it also freezes every 3-4 days requiring a hard-reset. But it does its job and its cheaper than the majority of other Smart Phones (Android, iPhone, Blackberry or Windows Mobile).
The Mobile 7 was too new to try out any applications, the Android store had a huge selection of apps but like a lot of Open Source stuff quality-control means it can be a bit hit-or-miss in terms of interface design and functionality.
Hopefully with Android 2.3 and Mobile 7 SP 1 will bring the goods and give the iPhone a good run in the corporate sector. As a personal phone Mobile 7 definitely has more polish than the Android.
