9 disappointments in iPhone 3G S

New iPhone is here, iPhone 3G S. iPhone 3G S offers as many as 100 new features and more than double the speed of the earliest version. Plus, it comes with a price cut. Seems like users have got all they wanted and wished for in the new gadget. Not really!

iPhone 3G S though offers a lot, still leaves a lot wanting. The revamped iPhone disappoints users on many counts, some which were on top of their wishlist for the new iPhone.

Here are the 9 things that disappoint many users in iPhone 3G S.

No change in looks
Apple products are known for their design. Apple iPhone too scores high on looks. But a change is always refreshing. So, a change in looks was high on users' wishlist. However, the new iPhone 3G S disappoints with almost nothing new in terms of appearance.

The phone looks exactly same like its predecessors with same dimensions and screen display. iPhone 3G S, in both 16GB or 32GB variants, will be available in black and white colour options.

Camera
Apple finally upgraded iPhone's camera megapixel. iPhone 3G S offers 3 megapixel camera over 2 megapixel in the previous version. However, 3 megapixel looks pale in front of the higher megapixel camera smartphones that are flooding the market.

Recently, world's top cellphone maker Nokia unveiled its second touchscreen phone with 5 megapixel camera (with Carl Zeiss optics and dual LED flash). Other iPhone rivals including Samsung, LG and Sony Ericsson boast of a portfolio of higher megapixel camera phones.

No Flash
iPhone 3G S also disappoints fans looking forward to Flash support in the new version. The latest iPhone too offers no Flash support. In case users wish to see those multimedia files that require Flash, they will have to do away with them.

Presently, when users browse through Web pages with Adobe Flash, it displays empty spaces with missing icons. Earlier, Apple said that Flash would run too slowly on the iPhone.

USB port
Another big miss in the new iPhone is the absence of a standard USB port. iPhone 3G S comes with a proprietary USB connector rather than a microUSB. This means users have to shell out extra money to buy separate cables to use phone's USB features.



User-replaceable battery
Like the all earlier versions iPhone 3G S too does not come with user-replaceable battery. Apple has increased the battery life but it does not still allow users to replace battery when it runs out of juice.

Apple had earlier reportedly said that it left out the user-replaceable battery because it adds bulk and weight, but users can't help comparing it with other smartphones.

No front-facing camera
Though Apple has fulfilled a long time wish by enabling the device to record videos, however, iPhone 3G S still lacks front-facing camera for video conferencing. This means the device is not capable of sending videos across a Wi-Fi or cellular network in real time.











No high-resolution screen
Another disappointment is no upgrade in screen resolution. Apple has made no enhancement in the iPhone 3G S screen resolution, which is same as its 2007 and 2008 predecessors. It has 480 x 320 pixel resolution at 163 ppi, same as the iPhone 3G's. Recently-launched Nokia N97 boast of a wide touchscreen that has a 16:9 aspect ratio and a resolution of 640 x 360 pixels.

No HD support
As speculated, iPhone 3G S does not support HD (high-definition) content. iPhone 3G S supports 640 x 480 videos as its predecessors and is not capable of playing higher-resolution videos. The phone supports video formats: H.264 video, up to 1.5 Mbps, 640 x 480 pixels, 30 frames per second.

HD video refers to any video system of higher resolution than standard-definition (SD) video, and most commonly involves display resolutions of 1280 720 pixels (720p) or 1920 1080 pixels (1080i/1080p).







iPhone FM transmitter
Another big rumour doing rounds was an iPhone FM transmitter chip. However, it remained a rumour only. iPhone's new model does not offer support for FM Transmitter. Some reports claim that the chip would have enabled faster wireless connection and FM transmission.

Source : TOI

Nokia's new low-cost phones

The world's top handset maker Nokia, which saw its worst-ever quarter in January-March, has made three new additions to its low-cost cellphone portfolio.

Targeted at the emerging markets, the new launches include a sub-Rs 6K 3G phone. With the launch the mobile giant aims to further solidify its marketshare at the low-end. In fact, Nokia's wide offering at the low end has kept it ahead of its traditional rivals like Samsung Electronics, though the Finnish firm has been losing marketshare at the top end to rivals like Apple and Research in Motion.

Here's looking into the specs sheet of the Nokia's three new low-cost additions.

Nokia 2730 classic
Candybar Nokia 2730 Classic is the cheapest 3G phone to date. Equipped with a 2-inch QVGA (320x240) display, the phone has a micro USB connector, 30MB of expandable memory and Bluetooth 2.0.

The 3G ready phone also supports EDGE. The phone has a 2 megapixel camera with 4x digital zoom. Nokia 2730 classic also comes with a standard 3.5mm jack. The phone offers 3.3 hours of talktime (or about 17 days of standby). It also has Ovi Mail and packs Nokia’s Life Tools.

Nokia says the phone will be available in the second quarter of this year at a price of Rs 5,300. The company also says that the new 3G handset is targeted at entry-level prepaid users in both developing and developed markets.

Nokia 2720 fold
Clamshell Nokia 2720 fold sports a 1.8-inch display with a resolution of 128x160. The phone packs 32MB of memory and has no further memory expansion option. The phone has 1.3 megapixel camera and offers Bluetooth 2.0 support.

The phone, however, is not 3G ready but supports EDGE. Nokia says the phone will make its debut in the fourth quarter of this year at an expected price of Rs 3,600.

Nokia 2720 fold also includes Ovi Mail, Nokia Life Tools and supports up to 18 days of standby time and approximately 5 hours of talk time. The phone also has an FM radio with the ability to record radio, MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service), Bluetooth and MP3 ring tones.

Nokia 7020
The other low-cost phone from Nokia is 7020. The clamshell phone sports a 2.2 inch, QVGA display. The phone comes with 45MB of internal memory with support for further memory expansion.

Nokia 7020 has a 2 megapixel camera and is a Quad band GSM phone with EDGE support. The phone like Nokia 2730 classic does not supports 3G. Nokia says the phone will be available from the fourth quarter of this year (October) at an approximate price of Rs 6,000.