Best Phone Blog

Why would people spend so much money on an oversized smart phone? For the very same reason that they are willing to shell out the same amount (and slightly more) for a tablet that does the very same things (and less).

The Apple iPad is a gimmick device, and nothing proves it better than the Dell Streak. This impressive piece of hardware brings people closer with all of its functions and of course, the ability to take and receive phone calls. Others may argue that the iPad is a “tablet” and should not require voice call support.

In this case, one has to ask what determines a tablet. As it is, most smart phones qualify as a tablet device –they have touch screen displays. And if we are to set the line with how large the screen is, the 5 inch capacitive touch screen on the Dell easily matches half the screen size on the iPad. And if this argument is not enough to convince Apple tablet purists, then they want to watch out for the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Tape (which packs a massive 7 inch touch screen).

Going back to the Dell Streak, the handset has been announced as available straight from Dell and retailers at a very decent price of 449 GBP. Not quite a steal, but for all the nice features that this phone offers, it makes for a good investment.

The 5 mega pixel camera, 1GHz Snapdragon CPU, and 5 inch touch screen display all complement each other, and the Android 2.1 Éclair provides an excellent operating system full of useful features that makes the phone worth the seemingly steep price. At the very least, it makes more sense going for the Streak than buying an iPad.

For those looking for contract offers for the Dell Streak; try checking out O2 UK.

While Apple wanted to define the tablet as a separate device from the smart phone, other manufacturers have a different idea.

Take Samsung for example, the Korean phone maker has just announced the Samsung Galaxy Tape, which is packing a huge 7 inch super AMOLED capacitive touch screen and will enable users to make and receive phone calls. It has the best of both devices –a big screen and the ability to make phone calls.

On a side note, for this argument, having a big screen is a definitive factor for what defines a tablet –the Apple iPod Touch is basically a really small iPad, but nobody refers to the device as a tablet, which shows that the general consensus about what determines a tablet also factors in screen size.

With that said, many are wondering, what is the threshold for size?

The most common rule of thumb that people would be willing to accept is that any touch screen device that allows users to make and receive phone calls that fits into a regular pocket is enough to be ruled out of the tablet category. And in that same logic, if the Galaxy Tape is to be the new standard for tablets, then the iPad is lacking features as it fails to allow both voice calls and video chat.

There are however, two types of tablets. The upcoming Android Galaxy Tape tablet and the Apple iPad are basic tablets. There are however, devices that come out before these two which are to be considered as computer or computing tablets (which are basically computers shrunk down into a tablet form). The difference between the two kinds is the purpose; normal tablets are only meant for accessing media, games and the internet. Computer tablets are basically tricked out desktop computers which have very little practical use.

It seems that there is a new trend that the Android operating system is starting; having larger screens. With no doubt, this all started with the release of the Dell Streak (also known as the Dell Mini 5); with its 5 inch capacitive touch screen display it further pushed the accepted limits on what size screen works with mobile phones and with the large interest in the device, it proved that people are willing to sacrifice having a larger phone if it meant having a bigger screen.

As if the 4 inch sized screen on the XPERIA X10 was not enough, Sony Ericsson took on the initiative that Dell started and pushed the envelope further –for about half an inch more.

There is a new Sony Ericsson Android handset that has appeared in a few leaked images just last week showcasing a device that used a 5.5 inch touch screen display. The device looks even more compelling and curious to see with the images which clearly showed the handset sporting a slide out QWERTY keyboard and a hinge that allowed users to set up the device like a small laptop.

Korean manufacturer Samsung has also been playing around with large touch screen displays and from the looks of their latest device, the Samsung Galaxy Tape, they have the largest and fanciest screen displays available. The new tablet-phone hybrid device sports a massive 7 inch super AMOLED touch screen display. With a faster CPU and specs that easily outmatch the Apple iPad, this tablet is poised to take command of the industry when it launches.

With all the new devices using the Android sporting giant touch screen displays, it would not be hard to imagine Google coming with a second variation of the open source operating system that brings more functionality for larger screen displays.