BEATRICE ISOLA highlights some of the smartphones to have this season
Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge
The new Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge is a top-of-the-range waterproof phone with high-density screen. This is phone rivals the iPhone 6s Plus. It is narrower, shorter and lighter; it feels slightly better in the hand; and it has the near-breathtaking, UFO crash survivor look. The S7 Edge’s AMOLED screen, with its 534 pixels-per-inch density make it the best phone to have. It is also waterproof enough to survive a tea or coffee spill or being dropped in a bathtub full of water.
It may not look any different from the iPhone 6, but as a business tool, the 6s has some not inconsiderable improvements. Principal among these is 3D Touch. Nearly eight years ago, the iPhone brought tapping, swiping and pinching into the world; now the screen on the 6s senses and interprets how hard you are pressing – something pioneered on the Apple Watch. This brings another dimension to how users interact with their pocket computers. A light touch of the screen gives you a useful peek of something like an email or a feature on a map.
Motorola Moto X Force
The X Force is a new version of Moto X with an apparently unbreakable screen, using what it calls ShatterShield tech. The Moto X Force is light and fast, with a Snapdragon 810 processor and 3GB of RAM. It also has a good two days’ active battery life. Plus Moto has tinkered with the touch-for-the-time thing, meaning that now you can just hover your hand vaguely near the phone. So useful. The camera isn’t great, but then this is a business phone.
Google Nexus 6P
One thing that stands out for the Google Nexus 6P phone is its fingerprint reader. Not only is it much easier to set up than Apple’s, its placement is more intelligent and practical. Another standout is Google’s intelligent voice inquiry feature, which reaches its peak to date in the 6P’s operating system, Android 6.0 Marshmallow. It’s simply outstanding technology. These aren’t phones any more, they are pocket computers so advanced that even science fiction writers did not imagine we would have such things as early as 2016.
HTC One M9
The HTC is less different from its predecessor than the Moto or the Samsung are from theirs. But, curiously, HTC’s shallower innovation curve has produced a phone with valuable features. For example, while Samsung (like Apple), has sealed the S6 models so you can’t slip in a memory-expanding Micro SD card, HTC retains a card slot. The overall result is that the M9 is a formidable phone with surprisingly good sound from its stereo speakers good enough to listen to radio. And because it’s HTC, you can also design your own version of the Android homescreen, making it one of the most customisable phones around. Nice, with definite personality.
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