The Looming Smartphone Paradigm Split

[scolaner]

There's a coming split in the smartphone market between high-end flagship devices and a smattering of lower-end smartphones, and what they're used for. (And it's a good thing.)

The Looming Smartphone Paradigm Split : Read more

 

[CaptainTom]

For the love of god just let me run full windows or x86 linux so I can play Half Life 2 on my phone.

 

[ldergv]

All I want is Slimport on all phones (I don't want to buy a special MHL TV) and two ports (micro USB to charge and mini or type C to take external input. At present connection, with a source of movies etc such as a portable hard drive, to show on TV with one micro USB port is a wiring nightmare. With falling prices on everything but smart phones $200 to $300 should be the max price for a so called flagship. Most users would take a bit more bulk for a bigger battery too and want the micro SD slot as we don't want Google or Apple to commercialize our storage on line and also pay cellular charges to use it when away from home. Finally make Android compatible with ExFAT and or NTFS.

 

[codo]

Quite simply, you are not a power user if your phone can replace your PC.

 

[bdl211]

All I want is Slimport on all phones (I don't want to buy a special MHL TV) and two ports (micro USB to charge and mini or type C to take external input. Finally make Android compatible with ExFAT and or NTFS.

Doesn't type C usb take care of both the connection and charging? Thought I read somewhere some of the new laptops have only a type C port that takes care of both charging and connection duties. If this is the case, having them built into the phone rather than the micro USB would seem to be the perfect one port solution.

Totally agree on the file formats. Would be nice to be able to have better data inter-operational between smartphone and PC.

I'd like to add my own smartphone gripe, I really wish smartphones could be wiped and have alternative operating systems installed a bit easier. Now that Android is a bit more mature, why can't I just wipe a phone, say, a 2 or 3 year old flagship phone, and then install the newest version of Android on it with all the needed drivers built into the install package like they are in Windows for PCs and laptops? It is currently a huge PIA to update a ROM on a smartphone compared to a PC and having to have a custom ROM built in advance for any given phone seems like a waste of time and resources. Instead of Cyanogenmod having a build for all their supported phones, why can't there be one build with all the needed code built in to run an install script that would install all the needed drivers and software from one package for any given phone that has the horsepower to run the newer version?

 

[codyleemanofaction]

Why is it so hard to understand why the mobile industry (carriers) moved to a leasing option? The prices on plans were inflated to cover the loss on the phones when they subsidized them. Now the plans don't have the invisible 200-400 increase over the course of two years, it's your option whether you pay extra monthly.

 

[ldergv]

Quite simply, you are not a power user if your phone can replace your PC.

 

[Urzu1000]

I recently bought a Asus Zenfone 2 for $299 unlocked, and it smashes the $800 phones I saw my carrier selling when I went to get my old SIM card swapped out.
They also seemed dumbfounded with the dual-sim slot when they were swapping it, which was a bonus.

I'm not certain why people pay so much for phones, which I'm assuming puts me in the second category here. The phone I have can run everything I throw at it with flying colors. Completely smooth, and never a stutter. Who would pay more for less?

 

[ldergv]

My phone can never replace my PC. On my PCs I have terabytes of storage and I edit pictures and video, which is useless on a phone. A phone simply allows simple tasks to be done away from a desk but few people are so called power users. Flagship phones are mainly status symbols or expensive toys to play games and profit machines for their makers. Point of diminishing returns long since passed.

 

[zodiacfml]

flagships are indeed pricey except the S6 if I would be biased as it has a very good display and SoC.

 

[scolaner]

Doesn't type C usb take care of both the connection and charging? Thought I read somewhere some of the new laptops have only a type C port that takes care of both charging and connection duties.

Yes, it can. That's the crux of my point on that issue.

And you're thinking of the new MacBook. It has just that one Type-C port, to handle charging and data.

 

[Valantar]

You don't need a special TV for MHL, you just need an adapter dongle, just like with SlimPort. "MHL-enabled" TVs and monitors just do away with the need for a dongle, so that you can use a direct micro USB to HDMI cable instead. IMO, the dongle is a more practical solution, without the need for proprietary cables.

Also, MHL (both adapters and built-in solutions) charge the phone while it's used.

Adding a second port is neither necessary or practical in a mobile device. They just need to make sure the USB port can handle both MHL and USB OTG at the same time, and then add an USB port on the dongle, or a hub in the TV/monitor. Simple, cheap, effective; uses current, not future, technology.

And, falling prices on everything but flagship mobiles? Have high-end laptops or PC components dropped in price recently? No, if anything, they've gone up, as ever more "premium" features are added. The same goes for phones. Flagships use cutting edge components, which carry a significant premium. I'm not saying that either necessary or fair, but it's the way the world works as of now. Then again, midrange phones are now "good enough" for most uses - which they truly weren't just one or two years ago - so today you can get a great phone for very little money. Just look at the Moto G or Zenfone 2.

 

[PaulBags]

Also, MHL (both adapters and built-in solutions) charge the phone while it's used.

They're supposed to, but in fact they chew battery like a starving dog on a babies face: horribly and without mercy.

 

[nitrium]

This "paradigm shift" of having your phone replace your laptop/desktop is imo total rubbish, at least for the near future. Until phones can run full versions of x86 Windows or OS X, and thus can run full versions of Office, Photoshop and other producive apps etc (and at usable speeds), not to mention AAA games, they can't possibly replace even an entry-level laptop or desktop. If all you do it browse the web and send the odd email, then sure, a smartphone hooked to mouse/keyboard/monitor will probably suffice but for everyone else the lack of quality industry standard productive software on smartphones renders them next to useless as a replacement for Windows/OS X.

 

[lamorpa]

Basically, the phone companies figured out a way to charge people $20-25 extra dollars a line and people fell for it. The cost of the phone was supposed to be rolled up into that $40-50 a month plan (after your $100 for a flagship), but they eliminated it and just sucked up the money. I'm not fooled. Call it what it is - a huge rate increase. Organized stealing.

 

[PaulBags]

This "paradigm shift" of having your phone replace your laptop/desktop is imo total rubbish, at least for the near future. Until phones can run full versions of x86 Windows or OS X, and thus can run full versions of Office, Photoshop and other producive apps etc (and at usable speeds), not to mention AAA games, they can't possibly replace even an entry-level laptop or desktop. If all you do it browse the web and send the odd email, then sure, a smartphone hooked to mouse/keyboard/monitor will probably suffice but for everyone else the lack of quality industry standard productive software on smartphones renders them next to useless as a replacement for Windows/OS X.

Phones can do light work, web, email, 1080p video, teleconferencing. Phones can do these things at lower watts than a desktop can idle. Want use photoshop or play the latest pc game then boot the pc, want to sort corrospondance and surf the net then plug your phone into ANY monitor and save the power hungry desktop for when it's needed.

How is that a bad thing?

 

[Doug Lord]

Quite simply, you are not a power user if your phone can replace your PC.

If your phone can replace your PC - you are either the most powerful or the least powerful person in your company.

 

[scolaner]

If your phone can replace your PC - you are either the most powerful or the least powerful person in your company.

Lol, MVP comment so far--

 

[nitrium]

Phones can do light work, web, email, 1080p video, teleconferencing. Phones can do these things at lower watts than a desktop can idle. Want use photoshop or play the latest pc game then boot the pc, want to sort corrospondance and surf the net then plug your phone into ANY monitor and save the power hungry desktop for when it's needed.

How is that a bad thing?

It isn't. Indeed, that is actually what we're doing already, so there is no "paradigm split". We do a number of things on smartphones we might have previously done on our laptops/desktops. That is not what I was getting at. The article suggests a looming shift of smartphones FULLY REPLACING your laptop/desktop. I say such claims are somewhat premature... until such time that a smartphone is capable of running full blown Windows/OS X without a significant compromise speed-wise (i.e. that you get an acceptable experience). That time imo is still a long, long way off (probably >3 years).

 

[vaughn2k]

I still don't get the view how how and when phones will replace laptops (or desktops) soon.

 

[turkey3_scratch]

I still don't get the view how how and when phones will replace laptops (or desktops) soon.

They won't. It actually seems the desktop market is increasing whereas the smart phone hype is dipping down IMO.

 

[wCastle]

Completely agree except for the stranglehold that our Cellular Service Providers have on our phones. Only in America, do you have to change phones when you change providers. Can you imagine getting new computers because you have to or want to change ISPs. The hardware makers need to know that we are the customers and not Verizon/AT&T/Sprint/T-Mobile. I know that every CSP is not compatible with every phone but if we had truly open phone free market then that would quickly change. Just like every video went to VHS and blu-ray because we demanded a single standard of hardware. We NEED to free our phones from the chains of the CSP. It will happen. I just wonder how long we are willing to suffer.

 

[anathema_forever]

this seems a bit more like an article about how smartphones will someday replace chromebooks lol.

 

[scolaner]

Phones can do light work, web, email, 1080p video, teleconferencing. Phones can do these things at lower watts than a desktop can idle. Want use photoshop or play the latest pc game then boot the pc, want to sort corrospondance and surf the net then plug your phone into ANY monitor and save the power hungry desktop for when it's needed.

How is that a bad thing?

It isn't. Indeed, that is actually what we're doing already, so there is no "paradigm split". We do a number of things on smartphones we might have previously done on our laptops/desktops. That is not what I was getting at. The article suggests a looming shift of smartphones FULLY REPLACING your laptop/desktop. I say such claims are somewhat premature... until such time that a smartphone is capable of running full blown Windows/OS X without a significant compromise speed-wise (i.e. that you get an acceptable experience). That time imo is still a long, long way off (probably >3 years).

You're missing my point. No one is positing that smartphones can *COMPLETELY REPLACE YOUR LAPTOP AND DESKTOP*.

My guess is that you're only thinking of the way(s) that YOU would want to use a smartphone/laptop/desktop. Shake that off for a second and think about how others might want to use their technology. Can you imagine different use cases?

This is already happening, in a different way, in developing countries where people can only afford one computing device. A lot of folks are opting for a tablet with VoIP capabilities to function as both their smartphone and PC. That's a very different computing paradigm than what I, and probably you, have ever considered for ourselves, but there it is.

 

[manon255]

Although the replacement cycle of smartphones is becoming longer, that are design, screen size, speed, storage capacity, and features that boost sales of smartphones.