Earlier quoted context omitted.
nexus phones never did AFAIK
Galaxy Nexus had a bit of VZW bloat, but that was the only one I can remember having any.
Yeah, Galaxy Nexus did. And HTC One (m8) did as well.
Behind the Pixel: Google’s First Real Threat to Apple’s iPhone
191–200 of 874 posts
Re: Behind the Pixel: Google’s First Real Threat to Apple’s iPhone
#192I think this doesn't make sense from a business perspective. The cell phone like the PC will become a commodity item. Why get into a business with a lot of competitors. No real differentiation. Google should be trying to get google search into every phone which they are already doing. That is where they make their crazy margins and strength.
Re: Behind the Pixel: Google’s First Real Threat to Apple’s iPhone
#193I'd have thought that with innovation and greater availability of components, smartphones would become cheaper. Instead, I experience quite the opposite with all these new devices.
Using this as evidence for that view is sort of like saying you're surprised at the relatively increasing expensiveness of cars after the press release about the new BMW 7 series, or Tesla Model S. Big sexy press releases are for high-end products. Consumer grade, cheaper offerings generally don't get as much media since they are lower margin products, but they do exist[1]. 1: http://www.androidcentral.com/best-cheap…
Seriously. You can get a decent smartphone, new and unlocked, for like $50 now. The market has just expanded hugely so of course entries like this, which vie for "best phone in the world" status, are going to be higher price.
Re: Behind the Pixel: Google’s First Real Threat to Apple’s iPhone
#194Earlier quoted context omitted.
Haven't heard/read about this aspect, yet. Pixels are more locked down?
One of the things that makes a phone developer-friendly is how accessible it is from a price perspective, i.e. not a £599 price tag.
Is that true? Usually developer friendly means not-carrier-locked, which has always commanded a _higher_ price tag.
Meanwhile, iPhones have no cheap developer option either. When has developer equated with cheap?
Re: Behind the Pixel: Google’s First Real Threat to Apple’s iPhone
#195I'm liking my Nexus 6 but it feels a bit big at times so I think the trend towards 5 or 5.5 is a good thing. Not sure about the price though, my 6 would have to completely croak before I upgrade from it.
Re: Behind the Pixel: Google’s First Real Threat to Apple’s iPhone
#196Earlier quoted context omitted.
Given that we all know headlines are made for clicking, I think it's pretty clear why this time is very different vs the previous 10 years: "He notes that the company is now managing inventory, building relationships with carriers, sourcing components, making supply chain deals and managing distribution. Google is even making accessories, including cases and cables." This article isn't about the technical approach, i…
It's different, but it doesn't mean it's an iPhone killer. MS started making their own hardware and it certainly helped push the market but the Sufarce never turned into the 'iPad killer' that tons of sites decided to declare it. It's a new Android phone, Google was heavily involved (more than the Nexus line). That's it. That's not bad , but it doesn't automatically make something an X killer .
> MS started making their own hardware and it certainly helped push the market but the Sufarce never turned into the 'iPad killer' that tons of sites decided to declare it.
The Surface is basically a superior option to the iPad Pro, which all accounts give inferior sales to.
Re: Behind the Pixel: Google’s First Real Threat to Apple’s iPhone
#197So will it come with non-removable carrier crapware or not? That's the main selling point of the iphone for me.
Carrier crapware? I guess possibly if you decide to buy yours from the Verizon store. Still, I'm not sure why you'd get it there instead of ordering online straight from Google (unless you can only get one that works on VZW from the Verizon store). Interestingly, on the order page they don't even ask you what carrier you're on. When I've ordered iPhones from Apple they usually ask if you want the Verizon model, the A…
> Still, I'm not sure why you'd get it there instead of ordering online straight from Google (unless you can only get one that works on VZW from the Verizon store).
One reason is that VZW structures the phone price into your bill. So buying directly from Google costs more than getting it through them. (They don't lower your bill for not using the phone upgrades.)
Re: Behind the Pixel: Google’s First Real Threat to Apple’s iPhone
#198Still sad it doesn't have a hardware keyboard. I really, really, really want a good phone with hardware keyboard. Even better if the dialer is not a common app, and is something you can access immediately even if the "user OS" crash.
Like blackberry?
Re: Behind the Pixel: Google’s First Real Threat to Apple’s iPhone
#199And yet not a single hard detail in the article as to why the headline might be true. For going on ten years we've seen the "iPhone killers" come and go, and this article does nothing to tell me why this time it will be different. Perhaps because it won't be. Of what very few details the article outlines, they just go on about nifty hardware. Have we not learned by now that cool hardware still sucks when hamstrung by…
You probably haven't used a Google branded Android phone in the last 3-4 years. Project Fi + Nexus 5X + Stock Android is as good as it gets in integration and UX. The other day I lost my phone so I typed "where is my phone" into google. It showed me immediately. How many passwords do you have to type and licences to accept to do that on your Apple cloud? I agree the article doesn't explain it very well, but the botto…
>How many passwords do you have to type and licences to accept to do that on your Apple cloud?
No out-of-the-ordinary licenses, I just have to use the find-my app on iOS or my password + the iCloud.com website to locate any of my missing devices (including laptops), and make them play a sound. Apple's internet services are often behind, but I don't think this is a good example here - it just works, the UX is very discover-ably named "find my x", and it's reasonable to require a password for this.
I think we need real competition as consumers. I know I don't want to see Apple's approach of the phone being the product and privacy as a feature being "killed". But I don't think they're in any danger yet.
Re: Behind the Pixel: Google’s First Real Threat to Apple’s iPhone
#200I'd like someone to save me from Apple's garbage cloud services, but I just can't get away from their hardware. It's just too good. So... Can anyone convince me that this thing is going to be different from the iPhone killers that are reported on every year in these regurgitated press releases?
Google is just trying to get you to switch to their own cloud service - "Say goodbye to those “storage is full” notifications."
It's not a differentiator from the iPhone it's a marketing bite. Not a lot to pull me into this phone either.