Posts Tagged best smartphone

Smartphone Web Browsers

Internet-able smartphones have been out on the market for long enough, and offered by enough major device makers, that now might be a good time to assess the state of the web browser in the never-ending smartphone contest. Especially since now is when a whole bunch of exciting announcements have come out by makers of that very software we count on to get online – web browsers.

Any article that claims to summarize the current state of smartphone web browsers must start with Opera Mini, as it is far and away the best web browser the mobile device market has yet produced. Yes, better than Apple’s Safari, better than the Blackberry Browser. And certainly better than Windows’ troubled IE.

And now Opera has jus announced the beta launch of the next Opera Mini upgrade, Opera Mobile 9.5. Once again the best is getting better, which is as it should be.

Also recently announced was the impending arrival on the smartphone scene of one of the most popular web browsers in the desktop and laptop markets among both Windows and Apple users – Mozilla Firefox. This Linux-based browser has been eagerly-awaited by its devoted fans since smartphones first went online. And now their…our wish is being answered.

A start-up named Skyfire Labs is also planning a smartphone browser launch sometime soon, but what we can expect of it is anybody’s guess. The Skyfire browser will be what’s called a “thin-client” browser, basically meaning that it runs with limited resources of its own, mostly running with the aid of Mozilla’s servers and Firefox desktop browser. Both the Firefox and Skyfire mobile browsers will initially be released, as expected, in beta form.

Personal favorites aside, the statistics cite Apple’s Safari/iPhone web browser as the reigning champ among U.S. smartphone users (this according to StatCounter), and number two globally. The number one browser worldwide, interestingly enough, has yet to be mentioned in this piece – that being Nokia’s. (And to think, all this time we though they were just the best smartphones for making actual phone calls.)

The big improvement that all smartphone web browsers have either implemented or will be wise to any day now is the integration of the desktop interface with the mobile content delivery format. Now users browsing the web on their handhelds can view a full-screen window of the entire web page (minus scroll-downs of course) just like they would on their desktop or laptop. Then to read a specific portion of the page, they just move a sort of magnifying glass over the section with their cursor and zoom in.

In the past, users could only view web pages reformatted in a messy, clunky single column resembling nothing like the web pages they’re familiar with. This made navigation next to impossible, even if one was already familiar with the layout of the web page (as it would appear on a full-sized computer). Thank goodness for progress.

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Get That SmartPhone Now – 5 Tips to Make Your Decisions Easier

Thinking of buying a SmartPhone? This definitely seems to be a very good time. The market is flooded with some excellent choices. We have seen some very interesting features in the Samsung SmartPhones like the Star and the Omnia, whereas HTC has forever been involved with the PDA kind of mobiles and Nokia is not far behind. So in this vast jungle how do you find the right choice? Well it’s not easy, but a few pointers can definitely make the choosing smooth.

1. Make a list:

Do you know what you are looking for in the smartphone? Is it an efficient organizer to plan your day? Or is it a wide screen with excellent resolution? Maybe you like fast internet browser. Or a high resolution camera. It’s all there. You just have to know what you want. Once you are sure or at least tentatively sure of your needs, you can easily make a list. Set your priorities on to what is really important to you and what you can do without.

2. Research:

Visit stores and see the phone for yourself before jumping onto the conclusion. Feel the phone, see the features and talk to the sales guys. Research over the internet. The internet is a great source of information and there are various sites which offer reviews and help for buying phones. Compare features, price and even looks before deciding on the final piece.

3. Search for offers:

Now for the real thing-cost. Is buying online cheaper than getting the phone from a store? If you have a coupon, this could be a great opportunity to use it. Visit the popular sites and check for any special offers. Offers seem to crop up mostly during festival season. Maybe waiting for such a time would be a great idea.

4. Check the warranty:

Is the SmartPhone covered in a good warranty? What are the other assurances and goodies that come with the phone? These are some of the questions you should be asking yourself while buying a SmartPhone. With phones being manufactured at offshore locations, a warranty has become an absolute necessity. Without a good warranty, you could be stuck with a SmartPhone which has managed to go kaput within the first couple of months of buying.

5. Get a good plan:

If you are buying through a cell phone operator, make sure you get a good plan. The plan should not be so long as to outlive your SmartPhone’s life and it shouldn’t be so short as to make you pay through your nose. Getting a plan that fits will have you enjoying your phone rather than reeling under its burden.

Well then, this is my list of tips for buying that SmartPhone. Though this is not a thesis and should not be treated as a bible, it will definitely help you get a better deal with the phone. Hope I have helped in getting the best smartphone for you. Enjoy!

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