Back To Android: The Camera Showdown

The first thing that worried me about trying the HTC One after using my Windows Phone devices for so long was if the camera would be able to hold up well enough to produce even decent images. Going from the standard Nokia 8MP shooter on my Lumia 810 to the PureView camera on the Lumia 925 was a gigantic step forward. The last thing I wanted was to pull a step backwards and go from amazing images to a poor quality 4MP shot. So, let the testing begin.

These side by sides were shot on an overcast day at Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle. Both cameras were set up on Auto mode and were setup to select settings based on where the screen was touched. So, without further explanation, here is the first set of images.

The challenging aspect of this image set was the highly contrasting skyline and the darker area in the lower area of the penguin exhibit. Looking at the first image, the camera produced a much better exposure of the penguin area, but the sky became blown out. The lower image did a much better job of capturing the background, but left the foreground so dark that it is hard to make out the subject of the image. Overall, I prefer to lose a bit of the background and have the focal area turn out better. This one goes to Camera A.

Again, a challenging shooting situation. The darkness of the inside of the carousel against the brightness of the day outside through the glass enclosure. The first image delivers a better white and slightly more accurate coloring. The background coloring in the second image is more consistent with reality, but again, I am going to pick Camera A for the clarity of the subject over the slightly more detailed background.

 

In this closer in shot, detailing became paramount. Of course, I was also inside a darkened carousel, which was a really great test of the lower light capabilities of both devices. As you can see, the first shot again pops the closer in details out and delivers a natural coloring. The second image is a bit more saturated, which can be a good thing or a bad thing. The gold tones in the second image are actually a bit closer to reality, but overall the first image is just a touch cleaner giving camera A another win.

 

As I went into the bird house, I saw an amazing opportunity to snag a shot of a bird on a branch. Both cameras did a fantastic job of snagging this quick scene. The first image seemed to crop a bit more, but the colors came out almost electric. The second image was a bit more subtle and softer. My personal taste on this one would normally lean towards the sharper of the two images, which will again be Camera A.

On this outdoor shot, both cameras performed flawlessly. Side by side, the images look like they could have been taken by the same camera. You can see in the background again one image is a bit less detailed, but not so much so that you can say there’s a clear winner. I will call this one a draw between the two cameras.

Looking at the next image of an elk in a field, you can see the similar result that was produced with the penguin image above. The light areas at the top of the image are blown out in the first image, but the subject matter is much cleaner. The second image keeps much more detail in the clouds, but loses quite a bit in the subject area of the image. Again, I will take the detail that Camera A captures over the blown out background.

Taking the same image above and applying the full range of the digital zooms of both cameras produces a much different story. The first image just didn’t do a very good job of keeping the image smooth. The second zoomed image is much smoother, even if it is still grainy, at least it is the quality that you might want to share on Instagram or Facebook. This round goes to Camera B.

Moving back in to the forest area, there was a beautiful eagle in a tree behind a fenced off area. Image one was pretty accurate overall, and image two seemed to have a bit better exposure on the back side of things. Overall, this one comes out a tie with a slight, slight edge to Camera B, but not enough to win the round outright.

The close up of the eagle was even more interesting. I give the first camera props for being able to shoot through the fence so cleanly. The image turned out darker, but with decent detail for sharing. The second image is actually a cleaner image, maintaining a much smoother line than the first, but the exposure seemed to be thrown off by the dark bird and the lighter sky behind. Again, I won’t pick a direct winner on this one, but Camera A takes a slight edge on this one, even though I don’t think either one is a particularly great image.

Overall, I have to admit that I have chosen Camera A for the victory in this image contest. With an overall better performance, despite the terrible zoom quality, the device just did a better job in most cases. Now the biggest question is, which was Camera A and which was Camera B? Unfortunately for me, Camera A is the HTC One M7. It was a complete and total surprise to me that the One dominated my choice of images so heavily. Overall, both devices have a very capable camera, but the Nokia did not have the clear edge that I thought it would on this one. So, congratulations HTC on making such a great concept as UltraPixels and actually making them work. Now, that said, how about working on that zoom?

Long Time No See, How Ya Been?

June 8, 2012… I wrote my last post about Android and the Evo series of phones. While I never thought I’d be going back to Android after experiencing Windows Phone, and especially the Nokia Lumia 925, I found myself given an opportunity to give it a go again with the One by HTC. First off, let me clarify that I have an M7, so it’s not the latest or greatest Android powered monster, but what I can say is Droids got quite a bite smoother over the last 2 years.

Two years ago, I kissed Android goodbye. for the greener pastures of Windows Phone. It was cleaner, ran smoother and honestly, the App Gap just didn’t matter to me. My love for HTC devices carried through my Windows Phone days though with a few different HTC devices being my daily drivers. Ultimately, Nokia’s excellent software bundles won me over and I went from the Lumia 900 to a Lumia 810 and finally a Lumia 925, All three of them did what I wanted my phone to do, social media, great cameras and were just buttery smooth everyday. Then HTC happened again.

My boss was upgrading his Droid Maxx on Verizon and had his upgrade narrowed down to the HTC One M8 and the Nokia Icon. I posted on Twitter to Nokia that they needed to get me an Icon ASAP to let him test-drive, and who reached out to me first? HTC did. The grand folks at HTC Developers (and yes we go back a ways) sent over this lovely device to show how smooth their Sense 5.5/6 OS was and how powerful the camera was. The camera was an area of major concern as the “4MP” branding is pretty scary to look at when you compare it to the 20MP Icon, but the One shined in that department.

 

The 4UP and yes, I used the UP rating for the UltraPixel definition for this one, shoots most  situations very well. It does remarkably well in closer action than distance stuff, but even landscape shots turn out nicely. I probably won’t say it will out due my Lumia 925 in lowlight either, but It does a decent job overall. Colors are accurate, clarity is good and the interface is FAST! From lock screen to photo in an instant and snapping shots is even faster.

HTC also built a few new modes into the camera. There are quite a few tricks to it and I don’t want to get in to all of them, but the most amazing one is the Zoe function. Zoe basically shoots a 3 second “video” of your subject, then uses those images to stitch together a video of them. It almost looks like a stop animation film. It’s a very cool effect.

Moving onward to a few other features, I find it necessary to mention that your HTC One can function as a TV and cable box remote. Yes, it sounds a bit strange, but HTC has a mega software App built in to this that will tell you what’s on, when it’s on and change the channels for you. It’s pretty spectacular. Now being a cable cutter, I don’t really see the need for it, but if you have 200+ channels of fun and need a way to stay organized, HTC TV is the way to go.

Since I covered the camera already, the other function that I use my device for heavily is music for my walk to the office. My Nokia was great for this with Nokia Mix Radio, which gave me a free stream download every morning to check out. I don’t have this for the HTC One, but I do have Beats, and Beats sounds good. Actually, Beats Audio sounds superb. Clean, clear and plenty of thump when needed is the only way to sum up the audio quality with this device. I do miss my free playlist every morning, with Google Music I can make playlists online and have them offloaded to my One for listening later. It’s not quite the same, but it is close enough for now.

Overall, so far I am very impressed with how Android has grown up. It almost reminds me of the direction that Microsoft has taken with Windows Phone 8.1. I guess I will see where I am in a week or so and see if the One is really the One or if I am heading back to my Nokia Lumia and the comfort of Windows Phone.

The EVO Lives Again...

Sprint has once again revived itself from the poor showing of the EVO 3D to bring forth a true successor to the original EVO 4G. Whether it was a planned hiatus or if they really thought the 3D tech would woo many newbies to the company, a true EVO hero was no where to be found. Where the EVO Shift, EVO Design and EVO 3D all failed to bring the crowds back to the nation's 3rd largest cellular carrier, the new EVO 4G LTE is doing the trick rather nicely.

The EVO 4G LTE is not a device that I will personally be carrying in my pocket, as I have moved on to a new carrier and a new platform, but for many, it is a shining star that replaces those worn kickstand toting devices from long ago. As the Sprint version of the HTC One X, the EVO 4G LTE is quite an amazing piece of technology. 

Facing a 4.7" display is amazing, but one with a 1280x720 resolution is downright wrong. The clarity, crispness and overall beauty of the screen is brilliant. The dual-core 1.5Ghz Snapdragon processor drives the Sense over-layed Android 4.0 OS easily and without any perceived lag. The 1GB of RAM might be a concern a year from now with the size of Android Apps, but worry about that later, for now, it's more than enough to work through the day. The 16GB of on-board storage is also augmented by a micro SD slot that will expand to 48GB without any issues.

While the hardware is excellent, the one problem that the EVO 4G LTE has is the lack of a network to support it. With Sprint's lowly 3G performance, usually in the 600kbps to 1Mbps downstream range, the EVO 4G LTE just seems mediocre. Hopefully Sprint will be able to start firing up some of the LTE markets sooner than later, but for those in WiMAX areas, that 2 year old EVO 4G will still smoke this new guy in terms of download speeds.

Virgin Mobile and Boost Mobile Bring Back The EVO

The EVO is returning, to a starring role in the next few weeks. Sprint MVNO carriers, Virgin Mobile and Boost Mobile are bringing back the EVO line in the form of the EVO V 4G (a rebranded EVO 3D) and an undecided new name for the EVO Design 4G. The EVO V 4G will be hitting Virgin Mobile shelves at the end of May. The Design will be hitting Boost locations about the same time.

While this may be an uninteresting point in the history of the EVO 4G, one has to appreciate that this means that the WiMAX network will hopefully be up a bit longer than originally thought. In any case, both devices will break with a $299.99 price tag on May 31st and with sub-$60 prices for unlimited plans from either carrier, the deal is a pretty great one.

My Evo 4G is Retiring...

It is a sad day when I think about giving up my favorite phone that I have ever had. Not because I am getting something newer and more powerful, but to save a TON on my bill. Over the last 20 months, my EVO has been everywhere with me. Shooting video, taking amazing photos, and capturing my life in blogs, Facebook, Twitter and Email.

To give the quick history of what brought me to the EVO and what is now leading me from it isn't an easy thing to put down, but to make a very long story short, I started with WAP enabled devices running on AT&Tn 2002. I then moved to Verizon Wireless and the LG VX7000 feature phone tethered via Bluetooth to a Dell Axim X30. After a few months of carrying 3 or 4 devices, I moved to the Windows Mobile powered Motorola Q. After suffering through terrible battery life for a few months, Verizon was kind enough to let me have a new BlackBerry Pearl.

At this point, I was sold on the battery life, push notifications, and performance of the BlackBerry and in a few months the Storm was coming. Unfortunately, the Storm never really worked well and it was back to Windows Mobile and the amazing Touch Pro 2. From the TP2, a quick move was made to the Samsung Moment when I left Verizon for Sprint.

After 3 months with the incredibly underpowered Moment, a brand new EVO 4G was offered up and I took advantage of it. From that lovely June day onward, the EVO replaced my point and shoot digital, my video camera and even about 50% of what I used my laptop for.

Finally, 20 months later, Android apps just overwhelm the storage capacity, the OS is surprisingly buggy for a 2 year old device and most importantly, my Sprint bill continues to climb. So, off to a new experiement for me, and a savings of $50 a month...

Why The Evo 4G Is Dead

While it hasn't quite disappeared from Sprint stores yet, a startling realization is beginning to be found by Evo 4G users, both new and old... Apps have gotten BIGGER!

Unfortunately, as the progression or maybe even the evolution of Apps has happened, devices with limited internal storage are quickly becoming obsolete. Sure, there are options like Apps2SD or even the old just leave it stock, but if you truly want the unlimited experience, then you're going to need more than the 1/2 GB that the Evo 4G offers.

To round this out, keep in mind that the Evo 4G features 512MB of internal storage. Of this, about 1/2 is used by Gingerbread and Sense. This leaves around 250MB of App space. Half of this can be used up with just Google Maps (12MB), Google Docs (15MB), Google+ (30MB), Facebook (15MB) and Bejewelled 2 (50MB).

It might be time to finally root and remove that vintage bloatware that Sprint installed 2 years ago for newer options. Maybe just praying for that Evo 4G+ might work too...

Solving The White Reboot Screen

One area of frustration for all the EVO users, since the Gingerbread update that is, is the "White Reboot Screen from Hell". The white screen slows the device completely to a crawl while Sense reboots. While not all suffer from this terrible affliction, there are more than a few that have had this issue. So, after months of solid testing, the results of the cause are in.

First off, it appears that the cause of the Sense reboot issue is caused by Apps being placed on the SD card. When the SD card is read, it launches the App and Sense is terminated. It appears that this is a safety mechanism built into the file system. Why it's built this way, we aren't sure, but we can tell you we have certainly solved the issue by understanding why it's doing it.

By placing only 'media centric' Apps on the card, we eliminate the common resets and only reset Apps that don't fit well in the internal storage. Google+, Hulu and Netflix are 3 pretty large Apps that will eat the EVO's memory all too quickly. When launching Apps from the card, realize that Sense will reboot and you will get the white screen.

When using daily Apps like Facebook, Foursquare or Twitter, make sure to keep those on the device memory. It's these hourly drivers that seem to cause the phone to kick off regularly and require Sense to restart. By keeping them in the device memory, we've eliminated the reset issue until we launch an App that is stored on our SD card.

So, store on the device as much as possible, but for those monsters that need that SD storage, just be aware that the reset is real and learn to expect it.