iPhone 5

[The Dark Lord]

Google Galaxy nexus, LG optimus nexus ... notice how the people who control android are moving away from SD cards ..

Galaxy S3, almost certainly the most popular Android phone, made by the largest smartphone maker in the world...(micro)SD card slot.

 

[TheL8Elvis]

Galaxy S3, almost certainly the most popular Android phone, made by the largest smartphone maker in the world...(micro)SD card slot.

Samsung doesn't control android. Google does.

It will take a while , but google is already pushing towards the no SD direction. The rest of android will fall in line eventually.

 

[The Dark Lord]

Google doesn't make phones (well now that it owns Motorola I guess you could say it does). Samsung does. Its most popular phones have microSD cards.

 

[funk de fino]

Played with the Samsung this weekend. No good. Far too big.

Played with the iPhone5 - Maps is crap. Utter crap.

Dont need a changeable battery or extra storage so will probably get a cheap upgrade to the iPhone.

 

[John Albert]

Google Galaxy nexus, LG optimus nexus ... notice how the people who control android are moving away from SD cards ..

Samsung doesn't control android. Google does.

It will take a while , but google is already pushing towards the no SD direction. The rest of android will fall in line eventually.

I did notice how you just contradicted your own argument.

Google does not make the phones. Samsung, HTC, Motorola, etc. do. Google just makes the OS.

Google is not Apple. They're not "pushing towards" anything.

The handset manufacturers will continue to make the phones they figure will sell the best, just as they've always done.

 

[elgarak]

I did notice how you just contradicted your own argument.

Google does not make the phones. Samsung, HTC, Motorola, etc. do. Google just makes the OS.

Google is not Apple. They're not "pushing towards" anything.

The handset manufacturers will continue to make the phones they figure will sell the best, just as they've always done.

The problem in the Android world is that you always have two companies controlling the final product whose interests may not completely align.

Apple's big advantage is that they control the full product.

 

[TheL8Elvis]

I did notice how you just contradicted your own argument.

Google does not make the phones. Samsung, HTC, Motorola, etc. do. Google just makes the OS.

Google is not Apple. They're not "pushing towards" anything.

The handset manufacturers will continue to make the phones they figure will sell the best, just as they've always done.

Google controls android. Google owns the trademark. Google controls the specifications and rules regarding which phones may be marketed as android phones through the open handset alliance.

Google also wholly owns Motorola, maker of the popular droid phone.

Google commissioned the design for the Nexus family of devices, the reference device for android implementations.

Google definitely has the ability, and uses it, to control many aspects of Android. I don't see the contradiction.

 

[John Albert]

The problem in the Android world is that you always have two companies controlling the final product whose interests may not completely align.

Apple's big advantage is that they control the full product.

Agreed.

Pretty much the only way to get the full Android experience is to buy the Google "Nexus" phones, or else root your phone.

Google controls android. Google owns the trademark.

So what?

Google controls the specifications and rules regarding which phones may be marketed as android phones through the open handset alliance.

Wrong.

Google does not "control" anything through the Open Handset Alliance. The Open Handset Alliance is an open standards organization with some 84 member companies. Neither Google nor any other single company "controls" it. That's why they call it, you know, an "open alliance."

Google also wholly owns Motorola, maker of the popular droid phone.

What's your point?

Are you not aware that the latest Motorola Droid phones are microSD-enabled?

Google commissioned the design for the Nexus family of devices, the reference device for android implementations.

Yeah, and the Galaxy Nexus has a built-in microSD card.

Google definitely has the ability, and uses it, to control many aspects of Android. I don't see the contradiction.

Of course Google "controls many aspects of Android" (the OS which it plays a major role in developing), but it does not dictate all the specs of all the OHA hardware.

Any manufacturer can make OHA hardware. So long as that hardware conforms to the OHA standards, Android will run on it. The OHA standards obviously do not prohibit the use of microSD card storage, because lots of Android phones still use it (including the latest Android devices manufactured by Google's wholly-owned subsidiary, Motorola).

You alleged that Google is somehow leveraging their OS to "push" the handset manufacturers into dropping support for SD cards. Do you have any evidence to support your contention that Google is trying to get rid of microSD?

 

[chulbert]

Google does not "control" anything through the Open Handset Alliance. The Open Handset Alliance is an open standards organization with some 84 member companies. Neither Google nor any other single company "controls" it. That's why they call it, you know, an "open alliance."

Google may not control Android through the OHA but it unquestionably controls the platform through other means. If you want early access to new versions of Android, or you want to market your devices as Android compatible, or you want to include Google applications on the device, you are required to agree with Google's terms and license.

Hell, it was reported that Acer abruptly canceled the release of a device last month because Google threatened to cancel their Android license. Assuming the reports are true, that sure meets my definition of control.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2622..._as_acer_cancels_china_smartphone_launch.html

 

[WildCat]

Google may not control Android through the OHA but it unquestionably controls the platform through other means. If you want early access to new versions of Android, or you want to market your devices as Android compatible, or you want to include Google applications on the device, you are required to agree with Google's terms and license.

Hell, it was reported that Acer abruptly canceled the release of a device last month because Google threatened to cancel their Android license. Assuming the reports are true, that sure meets my definition of control.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2622..._as_acer_cancels_china_smartphone_launch.html

Google is well aware that they have competitors like Microsoft ready to step in and take market share if they get too restrictive with Android.

 

[merentha]

Google may not control Android through the OHA but it unquestionably controls the platform through other means. If you want early access to new versions of Android, or you want to market your devices as Android compatible, or you want to include Google applications on the device, you are required to agree with Google's terms and license.

Hell, it was reported that Acer abruptly canceled the release of a device last month because Google threatened to cancel their Android license. Assuming the reports are true, that sure meets my definition of control.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2622..._as_acer_cancels_china_smartphone_launch.html

Acer is part of the Open Handset Alliance and has to play by the rules. Amazon and Barnes & Nobles aren't, so Kindle Fire and Nook tablets get a pass.

As for Aliyun, the following article explains the issue more clearly: http://www.zdnet.com/is-aliyun-os-really-linux-android-a-rip-off-of-both-7000004318/.

 

[chulbert]

Acer is part of the Open Handset Alliance and has to play by the rules. Amazon and Barnes & Nobles aren't, so Kindle Fire and Nook tablets get a pass.

Exactly. My point was that Google has rules by which anyone must play. If you don't want to play by the rules you must disavow the Android brand, even if you still use the software.

Fits my definition of control.

 

[chulbert]

Google is well aware that they have competitors like Microsoft ready to step in and take market share if they get too restrictive with Android.

I do not disagree but my point was simply that Google controls Android. Perhaps it would be more accurate to say they control the Android brand to a high degree, the actual software to less.

 

[This is The End]

COGrizzly if you think the S3 is too big, wait a couple weeks, they are supposedly coming out with an S3 mini.

http://www.engadget.com/2012/10/03/samsung-teasing-galaxy-s-iii-mini-october-11/

It should have the same number of pixels as it's big brother, which means that the DPI (Pixels Per Inch) should be awesome! Which means it will look very nice.

Played with the Samsung this weekend. No good. Far too big.

Well the S3 mini is confirmed, but it is not as much smaller as I had hoped:

Samsung exec confirms Galaxy S3 'mini' is on the way

It has a 4-inch screen, which is only "mini" when compared to the Galaxy S3's 4.8-inch screen.

 

[OCaptain]

I did notice how you just contradicted your own argument.

Google does not make the phones. Samsung, HTC, Motorola, etc. do. Google just makes the OS.

Google is not Apple. They're not "pushing towards" anything.

The handset manufacturers will continue to make the phones they figure will sell the best, just as they've always done.

So, other than the Android OS, Google has no development path in mind for phones which run its OS? No requirements? Really???

 

[WildCat]

So, other than the Android OS, Google has no development path in mind for phones which run its OS? No requirements? Really???

Where is your evidence that Google opposes memory card slots?

 

[John Albert]

The Open Handset Alliance is a technology consortium dedicated to the standardization of mobile phone handsets. Android is a user interface for mobile devices which is owned by Google and licensed as open-source software. Google is not the only manufacturer in the Open Handset Alliance, nor does it dictate standards to the OHA.

Why are you guys nitpicking at my argument? Have you not been following the discussion?

This whole thing started with me challenging L8Elvis's contention that Google is using the OHA to "push" handset manufacturers into dropping support for MicroSD cards.

He's been making that same argument for almost a year now. As I recall, it all started in the "What's so great about Apple" thread as a misguided attempt to forward the idea that Apple is leading the cell phone market by refusing to adhere to standards, thereby forcing users to buy proprietary peripherals, pay outrageous prices for additional storage, and bring their phones in for servicing to replace dead batteries. He's been arguing that Google is pushing the Android platform in that direction also, starting with the elimination of MicroSD cards. Now here we are almost a year later, and there's absolutely no indication that MicroSD cards are going away from the Android platform any time soon.

 

[This is The End]

Another article, with full specs, on the S3 mini announcement:

http://www.zdnet.com/samsung-announ...th-smaller-size-and-smaller-specs-7000005639/


And yes, this new phone (which will sell 1 jillion copies) has a microSD slot. Samsung isn't stupid.

 

[carlitos]

What do people use these microSD slots for? I have all my stuff in a cloud someplace, so can't imagine a use for a memory card on my phone. It was a real pain in the Blackberry, with the phone forgetting it's there and me having to dig the thing out and re-boot to find the photos.

 

[This is The End]

I have all my stuff in a cloud someplace, so can't imagine a use for a memory card on my phone.

Lots of people do not have unlimited internet. Many are capped at 5 or 6 GB a month.