Droid Incredible 4G LTE Preview: Is There Room For A 4" Smartphone?
by Jason Inofuentes on July 9, 2012 11:34 AM EST- Posted in
- HTC
- Verizon
- Droid Incredible 4G LTE
LIke I mentioned, part of Verizon's strategy is to dial the processor back by 20% to 1.2 GHz on the CPU. We were curious, though, whether the GPU would face a similar clock hit. So we held it up against its One family counterparts, which includes several devices running the S4 at its full 1.5 GHz.
GPU performance is just spot on with its One kin, even coming close to leading in some benchmarks. So, looks like the GPU isn't restricted at all. But, how big is the CPU performance deficit?
Here we start to see the penalty paid for the lower clock speed. The delta was as small as 12% and as high as 35% compared ot the top S4 performer in each chart. Some of that delta can be chalked up to differences in software builds; Qualcomm provides optimized Android builds to OEM partners, but it's up to them and the carrier to decide whether to implement them or not. So, there is a real performance hit, but perception of that hit isn't necessarily going to mar the experience, especially with GPU performance unaffected.
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So, there's mixed results here, GPU performance is good, but CPU performance takes a hit. The display is smaller and has a lower resolution, but maintains good characteristics. But there could be something to gain from these cut-backs, with display size and clock speed held in check, battery life SHOULD see a benefit? Will it? We're finding out right now.
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Thud2 - Wednesday, July 11, 2012 - link
326 PPI not a big impact in use. Larger font size, big impact in use.JasonInofuentes - Wednesday, July 11, 2012 - link
I appreciate your frankness and think there's real strength in your statement. There are people out there with bad vision that don't wear their glasses and want to use a smartphone. There are people out there with chunky fingers that would really like the icons bigger and more spaced apart. I hate that on the iPhone when I'm typing I can't see the keys once my thumbs are over the keyboard, it slows down my typing.KitsuneKnight - Wednesday, July 11, 2012 - link
Apparently, you're the only type of person anyone in the smart phone industry (and reviewers) care about.So how long until 5.x devices drop the claim of being 'hybrid' phone/tablets and are just phones? With the way things are going, ones like the Note are going to be on the smaller side for high end phones by the end of next year.
coolhardware - Wednesday, July 11, 2012 - link
The iPhone 4 was released June 24, 2010, in the United States which was before the HTC Rezound (approx Nov 2011) and the Sony Xperia S (approx Feb 2012).More info: http://pixensity.com/list/
So Anandtech's statement:
"The iPhone 4 premiered with the highest pixel density in a mobile device we’d ever seen"
was totally legit :-)
blanarahul - Thursday, July 12, 2012 - link
Honestly. I prefer 3.7 inch screens but i hate keeping a big phone near my ears when i talk. I have a phone with 3.2 inch screen and i find it a little small. But as a phone, its perfect size.The stupid manufacturers should take advantage of androids on screen buttons to reduce phone size. But large smartphones are all the rage these days. The phones are moving towards being only media consuption devices. Manufactures should understand that smartphone or thisphone ir thatphone, it is still a phone and peope are gonna talk with it. Who likes keeping monsters near their ears?
I honestly would love to have a phone with Snapdragon s4 and a very high resolution 3.2-3.7 inch screen. But who cares about people like me, who use their phone as a phone?
EnerJi - Friday, July 13, 2012 - link
I hear you, larger phones are often less comfortable to hold up to the ear. You may want to try using a wired or bluetooth headset. I use a bluetooth headset the majority of the time that I use the phone and so am rarely bothered by the size.shady28 - Sunday, July 15, 2012 - link
Same as many other posters, I don't get the screen size going up ad infinitum. The iPhone screen is on the low end of what I think is ok, 3.7 - 4.3 is a good range depending on finger size / user. Anything bigger than that is an annoyance, but that's me.
What I don't get is technophile article writers who think of smaller screen size being a negative. It isn't a negative, it's a choice. The single best selling phone in the world has a 3.7" screen and commands top dollar. Use some critical thinking skills and get a clue (I have a 4.3" Droid Bionic BTW, so Apple haters piss off).