Nowadays, almost everyone has a smartphone. Last time, phones were not smart enough to perform multiple tasks a time. They were bulky, slow and expensive. Phones nowadays can allow us to perform multiple tasks at one time, helping to ease our lives.
Our smartphones can also replace a computer. We constantly use it to check our mail, Facebook statuses, Twitter feeds, Instagram feeds and even sometimes we play games on it.
As the years go by, more competitors are coming into the smartphone market. Companies like Apple and Samsung are battling to dominate the smartphone market through various tactics such as advertisements.
Some advertisements also sarcastically make fun of other companies.
Here's an example:
Nokia's advertisement making fun of Apple and Samsung.
Phones nowadays have evolved so much compared to last time.
Well, enough of that and let's move on to the different categories that consists in a smartphone.
1.Display
Every year, when a new smartphone is announced by a company the display of the smartphone becomes better than the previous years. Many companies try to step up the resolution of the display so that we can compare with the older phones and if we feel that our phone's display is not good enough, we will change to that particular phone with a better display.
This is why when large companies like Samsung and Apple introduce a higher resolution display on a smartphone, many companies will set it as a must for the new smartphones that they are going to manufacture in order to not be behind of the game.
The resolution of a display depends on the pixels that are present. It is known as 'Pixels per inch'(ppi).
Here is a video explaining about pixel densities in a display of devices that we often use.
2. Processors
You might wonder why are processors so important to the smartphone itself?
Many consumers nowadays only care how the phone looks and what are its features.
Many consumers nowadays only care how the phone looks and what are its features.
There are many people complaining about how their phone lags and stutters when performing a task.This is when processors in smartphones play a big role.
Some companies like to insert many feature sets into their software in order to appeal to the consumers but not to the technology geeks. When the software itself is heavy, the processors have to work harder in order to be able to run the features properly. Intensive tasks and daily tasks have to be taken into consideration as well. The processor not only supports the software, but it also has to light the pixels of the display in the smartphone.
The manufacturer also has to optimise the software for the processor in order for it to be able to run at its full potential.
3.RAM
The more apps you run, the more the RAM is being utilised. The apps can run simultaneously in the background if your phone has more RAM. When switching between one app to another, the app will not be closed unless the software finds that it has not enough RAM.
On the left is the Android Task Manager whereas on the right is the iOS 7 Task Manager.
4.Battery
The more the amount of 'milli amp per hour'(mAh) present in the battery, the more longer the battery life of the smartphone.
Last time, phones like the Samsung Galaxy S3 had only 2100 mAh.
Unfortunately, the battery can only allow the smartphone to run for less than a day due to its low mAh.
Since our phones cannot be charged through other energy sources except for electric energy, manufacturers try to increase the mAh present in the battery. They also come up with other solutions like wireless charging or power banks.
Phones nowadays like the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 have 3100 mAh and it can last for one whole day with heavy to moderate usage.
This is a wireless charging orb from Google, for charging the Google Nexus 4.
This is an example of a powerbank that has 10000 mAh and it can charge multiple devices on the go.
5.Software
There is a software known as an operating system(OS) running in the smartphones nowadays. The software gives the phone more usability as features that are available in that particular software allows us to perform daily tasks like checking the e-mail and etc.
Some manufacturers will try to come up with new features that can capture the consumers' wants as some of the features are appealing to their eyes.
On the left is an Android homescreen whereas on the right is an iOS homescreen.
Some OS's like Android gives more freedom to the user to download many file extensions like mp3,pdf and etc. whereas iOS has restrictions when a user wants to download something. Only certain file extensions are available for download but for the rest, it is read-only.
Android users can also customize their homescreen by applying different themes and arranging their app placement on the homescreen where ever they want to but iOS locks down the customizabilty of the phone.
For the comparison between Android and iOS, here is a video showing more about it:
Here's an article about Android vs iOS if you like reading:
6.Camera
Don't you take out your phone in order to quickly snap a memorable event in order to upload it to social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter or Instagram in order to share it with your friends?
You do not want your pictures taken to be blurry, don't you?
Because when you find it is blurry, you might want to take another shot.
And what if you have no chance to take another shot?
This is where the camera plays its role in a smartphone.
Companies like LG has also included Optical Image Stabilization(OIS) in their cameras present in smartphones that they manufacture to lessen the blurriness of pictures when the device is not held steadily. Videos taken by the smartphone camera will also be less shaky and muddy compared to smartphone cameras without OIS.
Here's an article why megapixels do not count in a smartphone camera and what also contributes to the smartphone camera:
In conclusion, smartphones nowadays are very intuitive to use and it is able to ease our lives. Also, before buying a smartphone one should do a survey on different phones in order to not be let down after purchasing one.
Be a smart consumer and have a nice day.
