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Battle of the Phones: WP7 vs iPhone 4!
Oct
14
Written by:
Thursday, October 14, 2010 9:50 PM
Ok, admit it, you were thinking it in the back of your head right? How does a WP7 phone compare to an iPhone? Lets take a look.

With Microsoft's mobile strategy doing a reboot, it's only normal to be compared to the incumbent, or the perceived market leader. I know some people might expect me to be comparing a WP7 phone to a Blackberry, but to be honest, I think the closed smartphone in functionality is the iPhone (sorry BB friends). So here goes!
The "look" of the two OSs are different. Ok, not nearly as different as OS/2 was to Windows NT (ya, I stretched THAT far back for that reference LOL) but if you look at technolog's Windows Phone apps look good, different than iPhone's article, you'll see a stark contrast between the two user experiences (now known as UX). There are four side by side comparisons there and I'll let you decide which one you prefer. Ok, I'm biased here, but I'm also NOT so naive to think the iPhone's UX will remain static. I'm am as sure as I'll have a coffee tomorrow morning Apple will update their UI and developer's tools to take advantage of it in the next release. That, I have NO doubt of, so if you're looking solely for the UX as your deciding factor.....hhhmm better plan to bounce between Microsoft and Apple and maybe even Palm (ya, stretching on that one, but you get the idea of my point, each player will push the other!).
Ok, since the UX is very much a personal thing, hey, some people LOVE MACs and some LOVE Windows, let's compare apple to apples (DOH! excuse the pun LOL) and compare hardware specs.
Without further adieu, here's my spin on the HW duke-it-out-match! I'm going to pick the Samsung Focus for my WP7 cause, well, it's my blog and that's the one I'm looking at buying when the phones are released. If you have another favourite you want to highlight, PLEASE leave a comment with your summary for others to read! If you REALLY want more comparisons, check out PCWorld's article Apple iPhone 4 vs The Rest of the Smartphone Pack.
Category |
iPhone 4 |
Samsung Focus |
Winner |
Comments |
Height |
4.5" |
4.8" |
iPhone 4 |
Assuming smaller/more compact is better. |
Width |
2.31" |
2.56" |
iPhone 4 |
Assuming smaller/more compact is better. |
Depth |
.37" |
.39" |
iPhone 4 |
Assuming smaller/more compact is better. |
Weight |
4.8 oz |
4.07 oz |
Focus |
Assuming lighter is better. |
Display Size |
3.5" |
4" |
Focus |
Assuming bigger is better. |
Display Pixels |
640 X 960 |
480 X 800 |
iPhone 4 |
Assuming the more the better. |
Display Technology |
Retina |
AMOLED |
Tie |
They are both supposed to be stellar dislay performers. |
Cellular |
All the big boys |
All the big boys |
Tie |
If it's available they will come? LOL |
Bluetooth |
Y |
Y |
Tie |
Come on, what smartphones NOT going to have Bluetooth? |
Camera |
5MP |
5MP |
Tie |
More than acceptable in a pinch. |
Video |
HD, 720p |
HD, 720p |
Tie |
Great for impromptu improvisations |
Flash |
LED |
LED |
Tie |
But do you REALLY want to depend on it? |
Memory |
16GB (or 32GB) |
8GB (Expandable up to 40GB) |
Tie |
This depends on which phone and how much memory you buy. It also depends on the apps you plan on buying/using. And I don't know what are the app size memory requirements for iPhone apps vs WP7/XAP apps? |
Battery - Talk Time |
7h |
7h |
Tie |
Come on, who REALLY trusts battery life stats from the marketing people? |
Battery - Standby Time |
12.5d |
15d |
Tie |
Uh, why are you buying a smartphone to not use it? What I REALLY want to see is a "Sandardized Use" time! Average out talking, texting, surfing and standby, THAT is useful, but only if standardized. |
Battery - Swappable |
N |
Y |
Focus |
Ya, ya technically Focus wins this one, but really you should have USB cords at home/work and a car charger, really. |
Computer Requirements |
iTunes |
Zune |
Focus |
I MUCH prefer using Zune to iTunes. The UX just works better for me, but then again, I'm a Windows guy. Can any Mac users comment on their experiences with iTunes? |
Buttons |
1 |
3 |
Tie |
Does it really matter? If Apple can make it work with the one button, great! I prefer the WP7 3 buttons, but when I had my iTouch, the one worked just fine. |
First Screen |
Home |
Start |
Focus |
I've heard from others, they just like the way the WP7 Start screen works. |
Ok, so.....what's the results? hhhmm you'd think I was a politician after a debate, cause my answer is, depends on who you talk to! DOH! Ya, talk about being on the fence eh? The phone hardware is VERY evenly matched. I mean, come on, battery life the same, they both have super-duper-hitech and bright screens (Apples has more pixels but is smaller than the Focus), the iPhone is dimensionally smaller but heavier than the focus.
Ya, know what is the final outcome? In my opinion, you have to decide which interface you like better. And by that, I don't JUST mean the phone's UX, no, no, no, you have to look at iTunes vs Zune as well! Cause when you're searching, rating, researching your phone app, you will have a more pleasurable experience on your computer than your phone. Sure the phone is great when you're away from your computer. But come on, being able to see and compare six flashlight apps at once is better than going one by one!
Ok, so now that you have a bit of a better idea about what I'm going to buy, I hope you're a bit more informed about your next smartphone purchase too! Now it's time to grab a coffee and get coding!
Resources
Apple.com: iPhone 4 Technical Specifications
GSMArena: Apple iPhone 4
Samsung.com: Coming Soon - Samsung Focus i917
phoneArena.com: Samsung Focus
ComputerWorld: Windows Phone 7 could rival Apple's iOS4
Technolog: Windows Phone apps look good, different than iPhone's
PCWorld: Apple iPhone 4 vs The Rest of the Smartphone Pack.
4 comment(s) so far...
Re: Battle of the Phones: WP7 vs iPhone 4!
I keep reading the comparisons of WP7 and iOS but find the arguments very lacking since you wouldn't compare Guess to Gucci or a Ford to Mercedes.
Iphone will stay in it's own little world as a high priced, highly engineered "elite" device and thus a "status" symbol vs the competitors. Apple keeps laughing to the bank... great profit margins. Apple is now the second largest company in the world and the largest US computer producer (I include expensive Ipad's since everyone includes cheap netbooks in their figures).
An alternate comparison is WP7 to Android, that's where this battle will be. All the current Android hardware/manufacturers are repurposing their Android hardware to also run WP7 and they are going to let the consumers decide what they want. Unfortunately this also means a race to the bottom with pricing... major competition with many many different devices, configurations and ultimately consumer confusion. Android already has this problem with device manufacturers slow to upgrade the OS, why do they want to when they'd rather sell you new hardware. Microsoft will have the same problem when dealing with the manufacturers.
Apple on the other hand will continue to control the entire experience (hardware, software) and thus able to maintain it's pricing, margins and "status symbol".
My conclusion: Totally different markets. WP7, Android (GM, Ford); RIM (Volvo), Iphone (Lexus, Mercedes) BUT at the end of the day they all win... another couple of billion smartphones will be sold over the next 5 years.
By ColinF on
Monday, October 18, 2010 9:08 AM
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Re: Battle of the Phones: WP7 vs iPhone 4!
RE Guess to Gucci? Well my knock off Guess jeans did last longer than my knock of Gucci watch. Mind you, the watch was in the 80s and the jeans were in the 90s! DOH! And I drive a Ford and I love my Focus! As for a Merc? We have no autobahns here, so I'd just get poor with speeding tickets. DOH! hahahah
re iPhone for exclusive It seems to be shaping up that way. Nice assessment.
re WP7 vs Android Yup, I think you're right, another Win vs Linux battle! Didn't we do this ten years ago?! DOH!
re they all win Ya, very true. I don't see Apple, Microsoft, nor any of the cell phone companies losing in this deal.
Thank you for your comments Colin! Now it's time for beddie-bye-time.
By phenry on
Saturday, October 16, 2010 1:21 AM
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Re: Battle of the Phones: WP7 vs iPhone 4!
I don't see the iPhone as being a highly priced, 'elitist' device; it costs the same amount as any other new phone when purchasing it on contract (which is what most people tend to do).
By Chris on
Friday, October 29, 2010 4:01 PM
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Re: Battle of the Phones: WP7 vs iPhone 4!
Hi Chris. Interesting point, I think Apple wants people to get "hooked" onto the low price now, pay more as you go, option. I HOPE the WP7 phones are going to be cheaper, only a week left to find out!
Thanks for the comment Chris!
By phenry on
Friday, October 29, 2010 4:02 PM
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