The discussion of operating systems of technology.

[Bias X]

The discussion of operating systems and technology.

So I wasn't exactly sure where to place this thread. I figured something geared toward the future since this is what this is getting at. Mods feel free to place this in a more fitting place.

So with the Samsung Galaxy S III being announced today I can't help but notice the awful load of overkill they put in this device.

This admittedly is mostly just a preference, but I believe the majority of the population will agree with me.
The screen size. Its much to big. Do companies see bigger screen = as more success? As technology gets better, yes we have more power to give to the screen size, but do we want it?
I say no. Admittedly again, I would like the iPhone to be slightly bigger, but no where near 4.8 inches.

720p Screen. Okay... I can see the use for this, especially with the resolutions of blu rays.
But the evolution of going beyond 720p should never happen. 1080p is completely useless at this time. No one would even be able to spot the difference between the two on such a small screen. Especially at the viewing distance at which you would hold your phone to watch a movie.

Quad Core CPU. I can't even fathom the reason why they put this much power in such a device. It really has no place in it. Mobile phones barley even have a reason to advance to dual core.
I once read that an app is unable to be run on dual cores. It can only draw all of the power from one. It has something to do with the way apps are made, more specifically the language in which they are made.. I can't confirm this (hopefully someone can).
Even still if they can, do any of the apps really need it? How much power can a phone even garner? A game like NOVA 3 and Infinity Blade II, okay using Dual Core. Photo and Video editing, again Dual Core would be sufficient.

No phones can even use true multitasking at this time. Although, I don't have a doubt in my mind that phones today could handle small true multitasking, but thats up to the companies to implement it. It begs the question "Will we ever get true multitasking?". My believe is no (in the near future), now of course this is just my opinion. But I don't see a reason why a company would profit from something like this. I don't believe it would draw enough attention of the general public to make someone switch.
Also I haven't seen enough evidence of them trying to make mobile OS's heading towards something of a computer OS. As evident with that phone that has windows 7 on it (slow, has tons of bugs, and its a flippin brick!) its definitely possible, so why aren't they headed in that direction?
Well thats part of this discussion, which I'll get in a second.

The only company I could see so far implementing a Quad Core CPU would in fact be Apple. But it would be for gaming. Apple has made some huge strides in gaming with the power lying somewhere between a DS and a PSP (just a guess). If they decided to take it that way (like creating a controller), they very well could compete with the 3DS and Vita. Even then it still probably wouldn't be needed.

"We'll they are just preparing for the future"
Well putting aside the fact that Android phones hardly see one major software update, let alone two.
Technology has leaped the need of the mobile OS at least 2 or 3 times. If companies had put forth the effort we could still be using single core CPU's that could run just as good as current dual and soon to be Quad.
But I guess better to optimize the OS for it sooner than later?

So I guess my questions comes down to "Are smartphone operating systems heading in a direction where we need this kind of technology?" At least for the next 5 years. I know eventually down the road we will need this technology.
"We obviously have the technology to advance the OS further than most have taken it, so why don't we?"
I would love to hear you think why or why not on both.

 

[iDonev]

First would be the size of the phone ... Samsung is definitely pushing over the edge with this. Technology does not equal bigger.

That's not entirely Samsung's fault. Most advertisers are pushing bigger as better (hell, look at the US car dimensions compared to the Japanese/European car models). Also when you get to the grocery store and see a "Now with 20% more product" or a "Now 20% off" label, you're trained to think you're getting a good deal. Samsung is playing this card and it just might work for them.

Next is the quad core CPU. Is there really a purpose for this?

I'm not a chipset engineer so I can't say anything with 100% certainty, but having multiple cores allows you reduce the core frequencies and therefore saving battery life, making the device cooler (as in temperature) and increasing the life span.

Are operating systems heading towards a place where we need this kind of technology?

One way or another - yes. In the short term game developers will make games (they have started already) that compete not only with PSP and DS, but also with PS3 and 360 consoles.
In the long term I expect to be able to stream a full Mac OS X from an iDevice to an AirPlay enabled display. Now, that doesn't say the phone/tablet will actually run the OS, it will be like a "guest" operating system.

Screen resolution is a thing that bothers me... anything beyond [720p] is just, to put it bluntly, stupid.

I agree with that one. The reason they did it is so they can say they did it first.

 

[Bias X]

That's not entirely Samsung's fault. Most advertisers are pushing bigger as better (hell, look at the US car dimensions compared to the Japanese/European car models). Also when you get to the grocery store and see a "Now with 20% more product" or a "Now 20% off" label, you're trained to think you're getting a good deal. Samsung is playing this card and it just might work for them.

Are the phones designed in the US? Samsung is a Korean company. Although even if it is a Korean based company, I guess the US could be its largest investment.

I'm not a chipset engineer so I can't say anything with 100% certainty, but having multiple cores allows you reduce the core frequencies and therefore saving battery life, making the device cooler (as in temperature) and increasing the life span.

You are correct, but with such little use for the other cores is it really saving us that much battery life?
I'll give you cooler device.

One way or another - yes. In the short term game developers will make games (they have started already) that compete not only with PSP and DS, but also with PS3 and 360 consoles.
In the long term I expect to be able to stream a full Mac OS X from an iDevice to an AirPlay enabled display. Now, that doesn't say the phone/tablet will actually run the OS, it will be like a "guest" operating system.

I would say the GPU has more to do with it than the CPU like how it is with computers. Apple has shown that the GPU is important with the update to the 4S, so they care at least somewhat.
I would agree with your long term goal, but I feel its a long way off. At least for 1080p streaming.

Also I revamped the post.

 

[iDonev]

Are the phones designed in the US? Samsung is a Korean company.

It doesn't really matter where they are designed/produced. What matters is they are competing in the US market which hold the above mentioned values. I'm not demonizing the US, you'll find consumers like that all over the globe.

... with such little use for the other cores is it really saving us that much battery life?

Well, that depends on how the OS is written doesn't it? The first iterations of webOS were so poorly written that they hit the small Pre battery like a truck. They've gotten better since then.
As far as Android is concerned - it will be a real challenge to write close to the metal, considering there are 100s of metal combinations...

I would say the GPU has more to do with it than the CPU like how it is with computers.

Agreed. My previous comment was directed at phone/tablet hardware in general.

 

[Bias X]

It doesn't really matter where they are designed/produced. What matters is they are competing in the US market which hold the above mentioned values. I'm not demonizing the US, you'll find consumers like that all over the globe.

I of course don't have any proof of this, but I find the US to be very different than the rest of the world. Even when it comes to things like designs. I still don't see why advertisers would see it as better. Besides being a phone the whole point of the phone is its portability, its mobility. If it can't fit in your pocket, kinda defeats the purpose doesn't it?

Well, that depends on how the OS is written doesn't it? The first iterations of webOS were so poorly written that they hit the small Pre battery like a truck. They've gotten better since then.
As far as Android is concerned - it will be a real challenge to write close to the metal, considering there are 100s of metal combinations...

But webOS was poorly written in the first place. It has gotten a lot better than it should have been, but it still doesn't compete with any other smartphone device. I would like to this iOS and Android have had much more experience at fine tuning it, but again just an opinion.

Agreed. My previous comment was directed at phone/tablet hardware in general.

Heh, I kind of misread that. I'm a little tired need to go to bed.