Smartphone Smarts
All of them have some similarities, but there also are some key differences. Here, we pit the three touch-screen goliaths against each other in a head-to-head matchup to see how the devices stack up in 14 different categories.
Camera Camera and video capabilities are becoming more and more important for smartphone buyers, especially as they become more consumer-focused devices. The Storm, G1 and iPhone 3G all offer cameras. But one device does it better than the others.
The Storm ties in a 3.2-megapixel camera with video capabilities, variable zoom, auto focus and a flash that also provides continuous lighting while recording video. The T-Mobile G1's camera is also 3 megapixels. The G1 offers auto focus, but lacks zoom and video capabilities. And the iPhone 3G clocks in with a puny 2-megapixel camera that also doesn't capture video. Winner: BlackBerry Storm
Memory With all of the multimedia capabilities being wrapped into smartphones these days, users require a good chunk of memory to store songs, photos and data. All three touch-screen titans offer an adequate amount, but the devil is in the details.
The Storm offers 1 GB of onboard memory storage and a microSD/SDHD memory card slot to support up to 16 GB of additional storage. The G1 comes to the table with a 1-GB preloaded microSD card, which is expandable up to 8 GB. The Apple iPhone 3G starts at a base 8 GB for the cheaper model, while $100 more doubles that to 16 GB.
When it comes to storage, the Apple iPhone 3G saves the day, offering the largest amount for multimedia-crazed gadget lovers to save their stuff. Winner: Apple iPhone 3G
Keypad Whether it's for documents, text messages, e-mails or something else, smartphones must offer an easy way to get the message out and a good, easy-to-use keyboard is, well, key. But having a touch screen often throws a little bit of a stick in the spokes, not offering the best environment for firing off a quick message.
The BlackBerry Storm and Apple iPhone 3G both offer touch-screen-based QWERTY keypads. Both also support multitouch input. The Storm ups the ante by bringing a clickable screen into the fold—which slightly depresses when tapped and clicks to let the user know the command has gone through.
While the T-Mobile G1 lacks multitouch on the screen, it does slide open to reveal a full, physical QWERTY keyboard, complete with shortcut keys to jump between applications. The physical keyboard makes the G1 the best bet. Winner: T-Mobile G1
Pricing The most recent of the three phones to be released, the BlackBerry Storm, is $199.99 with a two-year contract after a $50 mail-in rebate. That puts it in the same price range as its two counterparts, costing the same as the 8-GB model of the iPhone and $20 more than the T-Mobile G1, which is $179 with a two-year service contract.
Then the data plans come into play. The T-Mobile will offer two data plans for the G1, a $35 plan with unlimited Web, e-mail and messaging and a $25 plan that offers unlimited Web and e-mail and limited messaging, on top of the monthly voice plan. For the iPhone, AT&T offers an unlimited voice, data and visual voice-mail plan for about $130, with other customizable plans available that offer data for around $30. For the BlackBerry Storm, Verizon announced a $35 activation fee and a $25 fee for each secondary Family SharePlan line with a two-year agreement.
Based on the price of the device, service and what you get for the money, the T-Mobile G1 is the victor. Winner: T-Mobile G1
Network The trio of touch-screen smartphones all utilize their carriers' next-generation 3G networks. The Storm uses Verizon Wireless', the G1 T-Mobile's and the iPhone AT&T's. While Apple has an exclusive deal with AT&T, the iPhone 3G's release was hindered by some 3G hiccups, but word is that's all been taken care of.
So far the Storm has yet to prove itself on the 3G network, so that's a pretty easy elimination, though it promises support for UMTS/HSDPA/GSM/GPRS and dual-band CDMA/EV-DO.
All in all, the network nod goes to the iPhone 3G. It started the 3G touch-screen revolution and regardless of issues has remained on top. Since fixing some of the initial issues, complaints have dropped dramatically. Winner: Apple iPhone 3G
E-Mail And Messaging RIM set the gold standard for mobile e-mail and messaging. And with the Storm, RIM continues its recent trend of giving not just corporate users, but consumers, access to their e-mail and messaging applications on the go. The Storm works with BlackBerry Enterprise Server for Microsoft Corp.'s Exchange, IBM Corp.'s Lotus Domino and Novell Inc.'s GroupWise, and it also integrates with existing corporate and personal e-mail accounts. On the instant messaging side, the Storm supports most major consumer and corporate IM applications.
The G1 falls a little short on the e-mail side. The device features no native integration with Exchange, though application developers have worked around that problem. It does offer push access to Gmail and access to other POP3 and IMAP e-mail accounts. It also supports many consumer instant messaging platforms.
And the iPhone supports popular e-mail servers and providers like MobileMe, Microsoft Exchange, Yahoo Mail, Google Gmail and AOL, along with most industry IMAP or POP mail systems.
Far and away, the BlackBerry Storm wins the e-mail category, with its legacy of corporate e-mail excellence and its ability to access a host of other consumer-oriented e-mail accounts. Winner: BlackBerry Storm
Next: Additional Connectivity Additional Connectivity Cellular access is one thing, but smartphones now carry the burden of having to have multiple forms of connectivity. Both the G1 and iPhone offer access to Wi-Fi, but the Storm does not. All three also have some form of GPS capabilities, but the G1 also offers traffic, satellite and street-level views from anywhere.
The nod in this category goes to the G1 for its innovative use of GPS along with its Wi-Fi integration to supplement 3G connectivity. Winner: T-Mobile G1
Display When it comes to touch-screen handhelds, the display is everything. Whether searching the Web, writing an e-mail or watching video, it's a must to have a high-resolution, crystal-clear screen. All three touch-screen titans offer a nice-quality screen, though there are some slight differences.
First, the BlackBerry Storm offers a 3.25-inch display with 480 x 360 resolution at 184 ppi. The iPhone offers another quarter-inch with a 3.5-inch diagonal widescreen with 480 x 320 resolution at 163 ppi. And the G1 has a 3.2-inch HVGA with 480 x 320 resolution.
With screens: bigger often is better. The iPhone 3G has proven itself to offer crisp and clear viewing and navigation, making it the display leader. Winner: Apple iPhone 3G
Multimedia Another key to survival in the ever-changing smartphone market is advanced multimedia capabilities, and the three latest touch-screen chiefs are no exception. The BlackBerry Storm offers an advanced media player with support for pretty much every video and audio format out there. It also brings a 3.5-mm stereo headset jack and support for Bluetooth audio profile to the mix.
The iPhone makes no bones about its music and video support. On the video side, with its support for every video and audio format known to man and integration with the iTunes music store, the iPhone 3G is a multimedia titan.
The G1, which integrates with Amazon's MP3 store, also supports a host of music and video formats and features native support to view mobile YouTube videos.
When it comes to multimedia, Apple takes the cake. As CEO Steve Jobs continues to update the portable music player, there's no telling what he has in store for the next generation of iPhones. Winner: Apple iPhone 3G
Applications The Apple iPhone has the AppStore, a marketplace where developers can build and sell apps for users to download, for a fee, to their devices. Apple, however, takes a fee from the developers and has control over which applications make it into the AppStore to be consumed by the general public.
The G1 takes a more hands-off approach through the Android Market, the open-source Linux Google Android's own application depository where third-party developers can create applications and offer them to users "for free or for a fee" without Google taking a cut or even limiting which apps get in and which don't.
RIM also announced the availability of new developer tools for creating and testing mobile-savvy applications for the Storm, the BlackBerry Bold and the BlackBerry Pearl Flip.
So far, the G1 leads the pack when it comes to third-party application integration, with Android's hands-off approach and freedom for developers allowing them to unleash creative and innovative apps on the masses with little to no hindrance. Winner: T-Mobile G1
Browsing Another staple of the touch-screen revolution has become high-quality browsers. And when it comes to offering smartphone users the same Internet experience they'd get on a desktop, device makers are pulling out all the stops.
The iPhone 3G ties in a Safari browser that works via EDGE, Wi-Fi or 3G. Users can zoom in and out with a tap or a pinch and view Web sites in both portrait and landscape mode. The iPhone's browser also lets users create a home screen icon for their favorite Web sites so they can be accessed with just a tap.
The G1 has a full HTML browser with on-screen controls to zoom in and out. It allows users to open multiple pages at once. Both the iPhone's Safari and the G1's browser are based on Webkit, an open-source browser.
The BlackBerry Storm's HTML browser also is expected to support flip functions to move the screen, cut and paste and copy with the slide of a finger. It's also expected to let users click through URL links and a host of other functions.
Right now, the G1 promises the best mobile Internet experience, despite its close similarities to the iPhone. Time will tell if it stands up, but if it's loosely based on Chrome, it has the potential to be the more dominant touch-screen browser. Winner: T-Mobile G1
Battery Life The whole point of a mobile device is to have access to information on the go. If the battery conks out, a smartphone is nothing more than an expensive paperweight in your pocket.
The BlackBerry Storm offers 15 days of standby time and about 5.5 hours of talk time, not including time spent surfing the Web, sending e-mails or listening to music.
T-Mobile's G1 promises up to 130 hours of standby time and up to 5 hours of talk time. The iPhone 3G goes above and beyond, offering up to 5 hours talk time on 3G or up to 10 hours on 2G with standby time of up to 300 hours, or 12.5 days. For Internet use, the iPhone 3G offers up to 5 hours on the 3G network and up to 6 hours on Wi-Fi. It also promises up to 7 hours of battery life for video playback and up to 24 hours for audio playback.
In this case, the Apple iPhone 3G lays it all out on the table, setting user expectations for various scenarios. For that, the iPhone 3G takes the battery life category. Winner: Apple iPhone 3G
Size And Weight Size matters, especially when you carry a device in your pocket or on your hip. The BlackBerry Storm measures 4.43 x 2.45 x .55 inches and weighs in at 5.5 ounces. The Apple iPhone 3G, the slimmest of the trio, measures in at 4.5 x 2.4 x .48 inches, a bit taller than the Storm, and weighs 4.7 ounces. And the T-Mobile G1 is the bulkiest of the bunch, measuring 4.6 x 2.16 x .62 inches and weighing 5.6 ounces, with the full physical keyboard adding some extra heft.
When it comes to weight and measures, the iPhone takes the cake, but probably doesn't eat it to maintain its trim figure. Winner: Apple iPhone 3G
Document Viewing And Editing To survive in a corporate environment, smartphones must offer access to business documents.
The BlackBerry Storm comes preloaded with the DataViz Inc. Documents To Go suite for editing Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint files directly on the handset. The G1 currently lets users view Office documents and attachments, but offers no support for editing Microsoft documents. The iPhone 3G also lets users view, but not edit, a host of documents.
As expected, when it comes to corporate uses, the BlackBerry Storm rises to the top, enabling native viewing and editing of documents from the device. Winner: BlackBerry Storm
The Winner: Apple With the iPhone 3G, Apple has established itself as the leader, targeting the consumer with advanced Web browsing and multimedia capabilities while adding in just enough corporate sass to keep C-level executives connected while on the go.
Granted, the iPhone 3G has been on the market for six months now and by comparison, both the T-Mobile G1 and the RIM BlackBerry Storm just arrived. It's possible that once these devices get further into the wild and into users' hands, the results could be different, but until they prove themselves, the Apple iPhone 3G is tops.
Final Scores: Apple iPhone 3G: 6 wins T-Mobile G1: 5 wins RIM BlackBerry Storm: 3 wins