Would you look at the size of that thing?!
Friday, November 6th, 2009I love smartphones, and in particular the new touch screen smartphones based on the Android, iPhone, BlackBerry, Web OS and yes, even Windows Mobile operating systems. With so many of these phones now competing against one another, we’re witnessing prices drop and adoption soar. It won’t be long until all phones are what we consider today to be smartphones.
One of the best features of this new breed of smartphones is the large screen that lets people surf the Internet, watch videos and easily manage the apps they’ve installed, all with by sliding their finger(s) across the screen.
The other day I was comparing my G1 Android phone to my iPhone (yes, I have an Android and an iPhone… I also have a BlackBerry and a Windows Mobile phone too, and I covet the Palm Pre). The G1 has a noticeably smaller screen than the iPhone. But because of the way HTC designed this first Android phone, the form factor isn’t much smaller. I noticed the G2 also has a smaller screen than the iPhone. I wondered if the iPhone is the large-end of the smartphone category and what this size differential means for usability?
Well if size matters, Sony Ericsson’s first entry in the Android category will have jaws dropping. Clearly the design team behind the Xperia X10 believes that bigger is better. Everything on this phone is big. While some features like an 8.1 Megapixel camera or an 8 GB microSD card may be welcome additions, the Xperia X10 boasts, or maybe I should say flaunts, a 4-inch touch screen with 480×854 resolution.
I don’t know if that 4 inch dimension is the height or the diagonal measurement of the screen (I assume the diagonal), but the iPhone’s screen is 3.5 inches along the diagonal (from upper left to lower right corners) with a resolution of 320 x 480 pixels.
Sitting next to the iPhone, the G1’s screen looks puny, but measures 3.25 inches along the diagonal. That means the Xperia X10 is huge. Just how big? Well see for yourself in Sony Ericsson’s Xperia X10 commercial:
For people who like to keep their phones in their pocket, this might not be the device for you. Do the Xperia X10’s dimensions presage a new trend in smartphone design? Will bigger mean better? Or is the Xperia X10 the Hummer of smartphones, gaining some interest as a status symbol until ultimately the public becomes aware that it’s just too big to be practical?
Time will tell, but for now the Xperia X10 is yet another exciting new addition, among many new additions to the Android lineup coming to a mobile operator near you.
