http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/ Engadget Comments for Gartner: Symbian is 're-arranging the deck chairs,' losing buoyancy fast http://www.engadget.com/media/feedlogo.gif http://www.engadget.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Jul 13th 2010 4:16AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
They rested on their laurels and expected people to blindly follow their lack of development. Any antiquated system ends up like this. Look at what happened when IBM stopped developing OS/2. Not even ATMs use it anymore.]]>Jul 13th 2010 4:33AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Jul 13th 2010 4:59AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
not in 5 years, the mommy phones that have symbian would still be around for that time no matter what.

yeah, my mom has a symbian phone. she doesn't know it's symbian but uses it to read email anyways.]]>Jul 13th 2010 5:04AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
2.: UX will improve a lot with S^3 and then all that's missing are 3rd dev apps. Qt is starting to work out there.

I choose "sometimes single/sometimes doubletab" over "not allowed to store more than 12 icons i a folder". The UI isn't so bad, you just concentrate on points where Symbian is bad and ignore all the points where iOS is worse.]]>Jul 13th 2010 5:10AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/What I think many people seem to be missing, are the market share figures. I'm not going to get my fanboy on with 'Symbian does proper multitasking, Android has better support, iPhone has best UI' etc. The fact is that, yes, Symbian can multitask really well, and has lots of codec support, and is really open. The other fact is that the public in general do not care - there's no point saying 'I see people buying Nokia all the time', because as much as that may be true, and I would like it to be true, the market share figures say otherwise. The way I see it, iPhone has got the share of the users that want the smoothest UI experience, Android has got the share of users that want a bit more freedom in their buying decisions, BlackBerry has the corporate users with a BES installed. Nokia is seemingly going after the share of users who really demand their OS is as open as possible and can theoretically multitask hundreds of apps, with a UI not quite as good as an iPhone. As a geek - that's the OS I want!, as a general member of the public, not so much. ]]>Jul 13th 2010 7:46AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Jul 13th 2010 12:46PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Jul 13th 2010 12:52PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
You seem to be really uninformed about symbian.
A radical UI overhaul ? they are doing that , its called Symbian 4 , which should be out in a few months.]]>Jul 13th 2010 12:57PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
You see, that's where you're being a bit silly. I understand what Nick Jones is saying but he's missed a point entirely as one of the commentators mentioned - whilst he's been watching the deckchairs being arranged the crew have been busy changing the course of the ship.

Symbian^3 doesn't have to beat Android or iOS in terms of UI, it just has to match it to the point where increasingly fine refinements of the user experience simply don't matter to the normal customer. The infrastructure for services is already there so that's kind of a moot point too.

There's a lot of talk about Android but let's be honest - most of the successful handsets do not run stock Android but instead run a UI layer because, frankly, Android's stock layer isn't good enough either. Nokia just have to make something equivalent to Motoblur and the job's done.]]>Jul 13th 2010 2:51PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/1 it will probably not be gone, and perhaps might be the only current top dog smartphone OS to be around, as Intel/Nokia are releasing s monster with MeeGo. A real computer OS on a phone. If Apple and Google follows that trail, they have to do a complete overhaul of their OSes. and since iOS has changed name a few times, and Android is not the only OS from Google, its very likely they will both change the name of their new os. (Bada will probably be around, since its meant for standard phones, and not high end smartphones.)
While Symbian runs on low speced devices, and devices without touchscreens. They can be really cheap and replace dumbphone OSes in cheap phones.

2 well symmbian adn nokia also have for a long time had to big of a market share. falling now might just mean leveling out, to be closer to the shares of other OSes. And brands. And that would be good for the industry.

3 if you want an eye-candy experience with a touchscreen Symbian phone, just download a fron-end app. Nokias approach is to save resources. But sure, perhaps they should make a front-end app themselves or bundle with a test version of SPB mobile shell... just to show of the potential.]]>Jul 13th 2010 9:05PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Jul 14th 2010 11:26AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Or something that favors the iPhone! Symbian^4 might just have a great UI that people would actually enjoy using. And besides, Nokia does have the MeeGo eh? Please engadget, stop hating on Nokia and try to see what they are really upto and you'll know why they are better than Apple and Android! Peace!]]>Jul 13th 2010 4:18AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Jul 13th 2010 4:21AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
I kinda agree with the Gartner article to the point that the UI needs a revamp. The world wants a better UX no matter the good features behind. Like the iSheep wants a phone that does not call.

But still, many news lately concerning N8 with videos, pictures and so on but you guys decided to put only this one? This is why people think you guys are biased.

And, IMO, you guys are. Check the outrage in you "labs test" post.]]>Jul 13th 2010 4:28AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
1) Less resource hungry than the others by a long shot.
2) Even the cheapest Symbian handset can video chat easily( since that's the flavor of the week).
3) Has enough apps to do every productive task you need. it's a productive OS first, so yeah, games and all those "Fun" apps you use thrice and never again are lacking.
4) Better media support than Android or iOS.
5) Available in any form factor you want.
7) Proper multitasking, the way it should be.
6) Most importantly, no one tells teh users what and what not to do.

Oh, in case you didn't know, an App for MeeGo is an app for S^3/ S^4 too because they use the same authoring environment. SO depending on how one catches up, the other does too, automatically.

It's sad that a common poster has to point these out to a professional blogger.
]]>Jul 13th 2010 4:31AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Jul 13th 2010 4:34AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Jul 13th 2010 4:46AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Jul 13th 2010 4:48AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
Their plan is to use MeeGo for the media heavy phones and use Symbian on the productive side, where it has always shined. Ask anyone who has used an E series phone, it is an excellent tool for someone on the move.

Not being on an N series phone doesn't mean Symbian is dead. Also, Nokia isn't the only manufacturer that makes Symbian phones.]]>Jul 13th 2010 4:52AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
1. DOS is less resource-hungry than Windows 7. Wanna use that?
2. That's just not true.
3. Well, according to current trends, people want to be more than just productive with their phones.
4. Never felt like iOS and Android limited me in terms of file formats.
5. 4.3 inches?
6 (comes before 7). Android's as wide open as you could want an OS to be. And day-to-day iPhone use also doesn't involve Steve Jobs berating you.
7. So does Android.

So again -- what's so uniquely awesome about Symbian?]]>Jul 13th 2010 4:54AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/I agree with what you're saying. I believe that the problem Vlad/Nick Jones mentioned is very real for the Symbian platform.
Perhaps dependence on S^2 (where all the criticism is stemming from) came from the sheer number of different models Nokia were releasing when it was performing at its peak, and that is why they are so slow to change or develop.

However, I feel the reduced number of devices they're forecasting, plus the specialisation in developing MeeGo to account for poor high end device sales (also where the criticism is stemming from) is a good move.
I can only assume that these are the steps Nokia is taking in addressing the concerns voiced in this new article and many before it.]]>Jul 13th 2010 5:00AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Or S^1 - whatever S60v1,2,3,5 devices are called.]]>Jul 13th 2010 5:02AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
To be honest, if you look at the handset landscape today and what's actually being offered in terms of Symbian devices *right now* it's frankly amazing that so many Symbian phones are still sold - and I think it says a lot more about the Android OEMs than about Symbian.]]>Jul 13th 2010 5:10AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/2. That's just not true.
3. Well, according to current trends, people want to be more than just productive with their phones.
4. Never felt like iOS and Android limited me in terms of file formats.
5. 4.3 inches?
6 (comes before 7). Android's as wide open as you could want an OS to be. And day-to-day iPhone use also doesn't involve Steve Jobs berating you.
7. So does Android.

---

Nice twisting of words:

1) Conversely, Win7 is less resource hungry than Vista. How about that? Given the SAME application say Fring, Symbian uses less resources than its competitors.

2) It' isn't? I've used a cheap ass nokia S60 phone to make a 3G video call to another phone in another network. How's that coming along on Android and iOS?

3) Blackberrys are bucking that trend, doncha think? What on a Blackberry is better than the competition other than e-mail? Like Mr. W00t says, you guys have absolutely no problem worshipping RIM products, right?

4) Maybe that's just you. Good luck playing divX/ Xvid without conversion on anything other than a Samsung Android phone (Which are painful in their own special way).

5) O'Rly? That's the only thing that you'd accept from a phone? How's that working out in Apple land? How about a portrait QWERTY on Android? ANY sort of physical keyboard on IOS? hot-swappable memory cards on the same? Oh, that reminds me, Wanna transfer some files over Bluetooth?

6) Symbian is a true open OS. you can modify the code in any way you want, which you can't do with Android (As incidents with Cyanogen proved). You think you can, but you can't. And the less said about iOS on this front, the better. Oh yay, now you get to change wallpapers! Welcome to 2001 or something...

7) No it doesn't. Android only multitasks services and not complete applications. it also autokills apps when there's low memory. Which brings us back to Symbian's low footprint. have you seen the video of a custom ROM on the Omnia HD multitasking 50 apps at one time with ease? Call me when other platforms (Other than Maemo) can do this.

]]>Jul 13th 2010 5:10AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/And one point that's getting more and more important these days, no forced ads or user-information gathering.

As for better handsets, show me one handset with buttons that bests Nokias offerings. Touchscreens are only a part of the market.]]>Jul 13th 2010 5:23AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
Whilst you may be able to pick a few porous points for your arguments there's a lot more solid points that pour in favour of others.]]>Jul 13th 2010 6:34AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
yes, symbian's development has been quite stagnant for a while now, but in case you didn't notice, they're coming out with symbian^3 & 4 really very soon

and the reason why you see android and ios evolving so much faster is because they are younger and have got a lot of catching up to do feature wise

we all know the s60 ui is pretty dreadful, but i'd be interested to hear someone mention a few functionalities that android or ios has to offer that symbian doesn't

*disclaimer: android user]]>Jul 13th 2010 6:39AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
Obviously, I don't dislike nokia and symbian but I was to an absolute point of frustration with using symbian that I made the switch. Android has so many great things going for it and it's a platform that I'm proud to use.]]>Jul 13th 2010 6:47AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
Then there's QT, one app cross-developed for all platforms. Backwards-compatible with S^1 handsets and with upcoming iterations of ^3 and ^4, as well as MeeGo.]]>Jul 13th 2010 6:54AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.cnet.com.au/nokia-c5-339301547.htm

It's not as enticing as an Android phone in terms of looks, but it does what it says on the tin. It can videocall on 3G up to 10.2Mbps down, on an HSDPA network. The phone is about 140 euro.]]>Jul 13th 2010 7:00AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/For the general publich this means nothing if Symbian does not change the icons. This is, sadly, the first thing people will notice. Heck, I even said that many times.

And in a world where people buy the next iPhone knowing that there are screen problems, signal problems, vendor lock-in, outdated hardware from day 1, but it is very shiny and if you own one you are cool... Well, its hard to compete with "the cool" factor]]>Jul 13th 2010 7:12AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Webos can. Just look for the video of the palm pre plus doing it with 60+ apps and no need for a custom Rom]]>Jul 13th 2010 7:35AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/With the childish way you want to argue with the commentors you should go join techcrunch and have a tea party with MG siegler. Real journalist do not bicker with critics of their reporting. They follow ethics and a code of conduct. Which is why bloggers will never be journalist.]]>Jul 13th 2010 7:38AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
"It took me ALOT to switch from nokia's to an android because I had always bought nokia phones. I came to realise every new nokia phone I got was the same s60 and it just didn't look like it was progressing at all. "

I agree, Nokia has already lost me as a customer. I've been a loyal Nokia customer for the last 15 or so years, upgrading every year or two. The N95 was the last Nokia phone I bought, every high end phone they've developed since has been flawed, like the N97 and X6, or not worth upgrading to.

I loved my N95 and didnt think Android would offer much more than the N95, but my expectations were blown away by just how much better Android is than Symbian S60.

1) Less resource hungry than the others by a long shot.
..because Symbian is less functional than the others by a long shot.

2) Even the cheapest Symbian handset can video chat easily( since that's the flavor of the week).
Thats absolutely not true. The cheapest Symbian handsets such as the 1661 cant do video chat. Most low end Nokia phones dont even have a front facing camera.

3) Has enough apps to do every productive task you need. it's a productive OS first, so yeah, games and all those "Fun" apps you use thrice and never again are lacking.
I disagree. Android has many, many more useful apps that are productive and are not available on Symbian. Some examples include Google Voice, Google SkyMap, Carr Matey, dropbox, locale, moozone, flixster, nhs near, screebl, wheres my droid

4) Better media support than Android or iOS.
I've never had any problems playing any music or movies on my Android phone, and Divx will be supported in an upcoming update.

5) Available in any form factor you want.
As long as its got a small screen, has a lame resistive touchscreen, or uses buttons for input rather than a capacitive touchscreen.

7) Proper multitasking, the way it should be.
So does Android, this is not a USP for Symbian.

6) Most importantly, no one tells teh users what and what not to do.
As above.]]>Jul 13th 2010 8:02AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
Symbian simply sucks.

When I saw the first video of the N8 with Symbian ^3 it seemed that all the underlying bothches of the OS remained, and for fear that I will ever again be faced with an "unknown error", OVI sync hanging, chewed up memory card, embedded html link in email taking me to some psychedelic half-browser of weirdness I resolved to get an android, knowing it had fewer features but the 10 it had were the 10 I liked. ]]>Jul 13th 2010 8:09AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Jul 13th 2010 8:33AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
Odd.. I bought my iPhone 4 because I loved my iPhone 3GS. The iPhone 4 added:

Front camera, flash, better camera, way better screen, faster, better battery life, thinner, HD video, video chat (front camera), better (native) OS.

SO just about ever small "beef" I had with my 3GS was fixed and made better.

And out of date hardware? Why? Because it has a 5mp camera vs. an 8? I've taken pics with my iPhone 4 and they look amazing. I've never though "Wow, I wish I had more Em Pees!"

Seems the iPhone 4 has one of the best and highest res screens, some of the largest amounts of system memory, great battery life (next to the 'higher spec' phones), one of the fastest CPUs, the slimmest smart phone (while having all of the above), HD video (which yes, some others have).

So how is it behind? Honestly, maybe I'm missing something

(and if you say "What about widgets and movie wallpaper!", I'm just gonna laugh...)

Cody
]]>Jul 13th 2010 9:18AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
A long fail.

1)..because Symbian is less functional than the others by a long shot.

How so?

2) Thats absolutely not true. The cheapest Symbian handsets such as the 1661 cant do video chat. Most low end Nokia phones dont even have a front facing camera.

Already addressed by someone else.

3) I disagree. Android has many, many more useful apps that are productive and are not available on Symbian. Some examples include Google Voice, Google SkyMap, Carr Matey, dropbox, locale, moozone, flixster, nhs near, screebl, wheres my droid

He said Symbian has enough apps to be productive. Saying that Android has apps Symbian doesn't have does not mean Symbian doesn't have enough apps to be productive.

4) I've never had any problems playing any music or movies on my Android phone, and Divx will be supported in an upcoming update.

"You" is but one single individual so it doesn't mean anything. I can say I have no problem with the current Symbian UI, does that mean it indeed has no problem? Of course, not.

"and Divx will be supported in an upcoming update"

So I guess you agree that Symbian has better media support than Android or iOS. :)

5) As long as its got a small screen, has a lame resistive touchscreen, or uses buttons for input rather than a capacitive touchscreen.

Again, that's only but your own opinion/taste which doesn't reflect the entire market. So it's completely irrelevant -- it doesn't counter the argument that choice of form factors is a good thing.

7) So does Android, this is not a USP for Symbian.

Already addressed by someone else.

6) As above.

Meaningless.


So again, your points were just a long list of fails.

]]>Jul 13th 2010 9:55AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
What the hell?

1. DOS is less resource-hungry than Windows 7. Wanna use that?
That is a poor analogy. Symbian is more feature rich, and uses less resources. And this has nothing to do with UI, which is what is apparently an issue. The UI is fixed in S^3, and greatly improved in S^4. To the point that even Eldar concedes it is really good. Besides, Android is a tacky java vm on top of stripped linux.

2. That's just not true.
There is truth in that. Cheap phones that have been able to do that for ages.

3. Well, according to current trends, people want to be more than just productive with their phones.
So just because it is a current trend, every phone should be touchscreen?

4. Never felt like iOS and Android limited me in terms of file formats.
Well maybe you just didnt try hard enough then. iOS most certainly is limiting, Android less so.

5. 4.3 inches?
Portrait Qwerty?

6 (comes before 7). Android's as wide open as you could want an OS to be. And day-to-day iPhone use also doesn't involve Steve Jobs berating you.
And THERE, you completely miss the point. As soon as S^4 (or even S^3) is better polished, companies will to a certain degree move back to symbian, because it is not owned by a competitor. Android is not free, Google calls the shots.

7. So does Android.
Android has not proper multitasking thank you very much, and the switcher is a joke compared to S^3.

So again -- what's so uniquely awesome about Symbian?

Vlad, perhaps you have trouble distinguishing UI and OS, or perhaps you do not really know a lot about code. What is uniquely awesome is that it does the same and more as Android, its native, not a VM, it allows for better battery life than Android, it is the most code optimized and stable OS.

What has sucked is the fact that it has used Avkon for its UI for too long. S^3 is as good as it gets with that tech, but it is pretty good in my mind, our friend Nick has only seen video's and Engadgets own preview was much more positive about S^3. S^4 is based on Qt, and has all the fancy transitions, inertial scrolling and fonts you would like, as well as some changes in notifications, lay out, etc.

If you want to complain, do it right, say S60 sucks as a touch implementation. Then realize S^3 does some important fixes and is ok, and S^4 is going to be very good.

Dont be like techcrunch, and just repeat others. He bases his opinion on a preview video fro crying out loud. ]]>Jul 13th 2010 10:03AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Thanks for educating, your post will stop innocent people from buying the worst Symbian OS phones.
Some symbian fans have down ranked your comment.
I requested engadget to unhide your comment]]>Jul 13th 2010 10:07AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
I gotta say, for a tech blogger, these are some pretty weak arguments. I would have expected much better from you especially. Some of them do hold true, if you look at the market through the american blogosphere.

It is true alot of people want to have the most pretty devices. But on the flip side there are plenty of people that do indeed want a phone that does what people want (which in some cases is more than the competitors functionality-wise) using less power. Twist the words all you want, that statement is true. As a professional blogger you should at least acknowledge that these people do exist.

This may seem a little generalized and is kind of. But when it comes down to it, most people's gripes with symbian are with its icons, transitions, and UI. It is an efficient and mature OS. Yes, android is catching up in terms of functionality but with its use of vm, efficiency is still a far cry away. And battery efficiency is still a big part of many people's decisions.

Ahh, another low point for engadget. For just a tech blog its fine if you lean a certain way. People have different taste and needs. Some need efficient functionality. Others need pretty colors, icons, and transitions. Which is perfectly fine. Just don't project your needs on to the needs of others and try to pass it off as true. They should get Tomi to write an editorial here. Actually thats not the best idea. That would be too much of a downgrade for him.

Anyways, the 7 points you made seem hardly like good counter arguments. Just logic that is full of fallacies and analysis of the market in a limited view.

1. Excellent comparison and great use of logic (sarcastic). You could have at least used a comparison like Ubuntu to OSX.

2. Maybe not in the U.S. but most of the world (including African countries) would say it is not too hard. And in those areas you can at least use it over 3G without skype through fring.

3. Already addressed it. Another point being that QT will bring a dev community that will be hard to ignore so the games and such will come, and most other apps are weak browser replacements.

4. someone else already addressed it above.

5. I guess you got me there, though it seems thats the territory meego will now take up.

6. Someone else already addressed that though it is open, it is not the most open. I don't find it much of a gripe but there are def some devs that do.

7. Android is essentially the same multitasking as ios4. Don't try to pass it off as real multitasking.]]>Jul 13th 2010 10:17AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/i would have loved to reply to your comments with a vengeance, but Mr. (unverified) did it a lit better than i could have.

have a good day, and record it in HD with your 5 megapixel camera :)]]>Jul 13th 2010 10:31AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Uh, im sick of people saying Engadget only trashes Symbian and only plraises the iPhone.
Engadget has posted all the good things S^3 and S^4 are trying to fix. It is also well known and common knowledge what makes Symbian great
Likewise, if you listened to the podcasts when iOS4 came out, Engadget had plenty of bad things to say ab it and Josh seemed legit pissed off (so Im not sure why the iPhone4 came out w a 9/10)

And seriously, what can you say good ab Symbian lately? Name the last good Symbian phone. Sure as hell wasnt the N97, I have one and cant wait to have the money to get rid of it. Satio? That got pulled by a carrier bc of all the problem]]>Jul 13th 2010 10:53AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
it's easy for a fanboy to tell, something is good, something is not... but you need to use something to know whats good and whats not. I'm using android since it was 1.5, now 2.2 is getting good, but symbian is good since I remember! I'm a nokia user just because their phones are REALY better than any other... Nokia made those phones like tanks!!!

Before you say something is good or something is bad USE IT!!! for yourself... don't repeat it because someone told you!!]]>Jul 13th 2010 11:03AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
I agree, i tipped Engadget before 2 days about Dolby's interview about the importance of N8, but they did not put it here.
Yet, they will have special reports from Michael Gartenberg talking about new Apple TV, though it has not been announced or confirmed, but will not publish good news about N8, which is already announced.]]>Jul 13th 2010 11:35AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/I have a 3GS and decided to wait for the N8 because:

- Better camera.
- Better video camera
- integrated photo & video editing
- drag & drop
- automatic profiles (really usefull)
- widgets
- fast screen transition
- fast UI navigation
- Contextual menu with usefull options
- HD video with Dolby
- USB OTG
- landscape and portrait mode OS wide
- FM transmitter, radio
- advanced option available in each apps; don't need to go every time in "system" (that is not intuitive at all in iOS)
-green/red key for one step access to the phone part. (that's missing on the N8 but I hope there is a way like double tap the menu button to access the dialer from anywhere in the OS)
- dedicated key for camera
- better call logs management
- better mail app
- Flash lite support
- really fast switch from standby mode (I like it)
- better contacts app; easy to text someone from your contact screen (on iOS you have to scroll all the way down, select text, and choose the right phone number if there's more than one; that's not intuitive at all)
- love the right and left key on the virtual keyboard (editing something is a nightmare on the iPhone, the cursor is almost impossible to place at the far left/right in a box text entry)
- Etc.

I'm sure there is more.

I found iOS nice and simple like simple to use and basic feature with a nice UI.

symbian^3 looks good and is powerfull. I think I'll not miss iOS too much. I would like to hear from those who made the move (from symbian to other OS or vice versa).

I like Android voice to text, OTA sync and frequent" updates which bring lots of new features. I'll get an android device for sure. Wreid things is happening; as I type on my iPhone, I can't see any letter on the Its blank, the cursor move , I can see suggestions but none of anything I'm typing appear on the screen. W. It. It happened since I wrote "…brings lots of new features". I decided to continue typing tosee if it'll reappears when I post my reply. And since I'm running iOS 3. I can't close engadget app and relaunch itor I'll lose everything. Y I can't co. - I can copy and paste but will it copy t the invisible text? Sorry for the mistakes ]]>Jul 13th 2010 11:36AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/:-/]]>Jul 13th 2010 11:43AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/
/rant]]>Jul 13th 2010 11:59AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/13/gartner-symbian-is-re-arranging-the-deck-chairs-losing-buoya/Jul 13th 2010 12:21PM