Thursday 28 February 2013

TECH. KNOWLEDGE ABOUT MOBILE PHONES

By Ishant Gupta
TECH. KNOWLEDGE ABOUT MOBILE PHONES
An endeavour to understand the Mobile phone technology
Do you often get confused because of the technical terms while reading reviews of mobile phones? We present to you important vocabulary and crucial information related to the mobile phones.

Display
Today, the market is rife with various shapes and materials for display of phones. Each company boasts of its superiority over others in mobile phone displays.

Related words
AMOLED, LCD, Super LCD, PPI, Clear Black 

Useful tips
Screen with a large display looks good, but it cuts down the battery life. Decide your budget and accordingly choose a phone with good screen resolution. However, just check beforehand whether the apps you are going to use on the mobile phone work well with the phone’s resolution. Instead of weighing the features of AMOLED and LCD, choose a display that suits you the best. Generally, AMOLED produces bright and deep colours, while LCD displays the text in a clear manner.

Operating system/platform
The operating system is a software that allows the phone to work. It allows simple functions like calling and texting as well as complex tasks like mailing and web browsing. As we have operating systems like Mac and Windows on computer, similarly we have them in mobile phones too.

Related words
Android, iOS, Windows phone, Symbian, BlackBerry OS

Useful tips
Most operating systems offer similar functions and features like email, social networking connectivity and support facilities like calling and texting. The operating systems like iOS, Windows phone and android have a tile or icon based interface. They do not use menu system much. Symbian and BlackBerry still use menu based system. You surely have a range of options to choose from, but choose an operating system which is updated regularly and which gives a scope for addition of new features. Also make sure that the apps that you need to use frequently are compatible with the platform.

RAM
With the help of RAM, you can run many applications and background tasks simultaneously.

Related Words
256 Megabytes (MB), 512 MB, 768 MB, 1 GB (Gigabyte), 2 GB

Useful Tips
Some operating systems require more RAM to run smoothly, whereas some can function with less RAM. The latest android devices have 1GB RAM. On the other hand, most Windows phones run on 512 MB RAM only. Many Symbian devices have a 256 MB RAM only. It should be noted however, that the performance of the device depends more on the operating system than the RAM.

Camera
There was a time when having an in-built camera in a mobile phone was considered a luxury, but with smartphones, it has become a necessity.

Related Words
3.2/5/8/12/41 Megapixel, Auto focus, Shooting modes, HD video, LED, Xenon flash

Useful Tips
Various features like lens quality, camera software, auto focus and different scene settings have transformed the world of cameras. If you are buying a smartphone with the objective of clicking a lot of pictures, you should opt for a phone with the following features: auto focus/touch focus, xenon flash, face detection, macro mode and red eye reduction. A phone with a 5 Megapixel camera can be a good buy for you.

Battery
The battery is consumed while using many features of the mobile phone.

The power of battery is expressed in terms of mAh or milliampere/hour. It is the battery that determines the duration for which your mobile phone will work once charged fully. The bigger the size of the phone, the bigger is the battery.

Related Words
Li-Ion / Lithium-ion, mAh

Useful Tips
If your phone contains more mAh, it gives more backup. The operating systems like Symbian and BlackBerry provide better battey life than android or iOS. There is not much difference between removable and non-removable battery. If you are using a removable battery and if problem occurs with the charging of battery, you can just change the battery instead of changing the phone.

Connectivity
Nowadays wired and wireless technology is used to connect a mobile phone with other phones or tablet.

Related Words
USB On-The-Go, HDMI, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi

Useful Tips
Usually you cannot send or receive files via buletooth on iOS and Windows phone devices. Often you need accessories for connectivity. They can include HDMI cables or USB On-The-Go adaptors.

Applications
Applications or apps are small softwares that help us in carrying out different tasks. You can use them for web browsing, playing games and so on.

Related Words
Apps, applications, App store, Marketplace, Developers

Useful Tips
If you wish to download apps to your mobile device, go to the apps store and find out whether your favourite apps are available. Most app stores have updated list. Also, you should keep a watch on new apps on the apps store.

Internet
You can have internet connectivity through the data service provided by the local operator.

Related Words
HSPA, HSDPA, 3G, 3.5G, 4G, GPRS/EDGE

Useful Tips
Ensure whether you have access to the form of network that your device supports. For instance, the latest iPad does not support the 4G network in India. A slow GPRS/EDGE connection can suffice for web browsing and emailing purposes.

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