In the world of
smartphones, there are always a few models that stand out. Two of the most
popular are Apple's iPhone and Samsung's Galaxy SII (S2). While the S2 has been out
since mid-last year, it has been recently updated to the latest Android version
4, or what most people call ICS (Ice Cream Sandwich). When it was released,
most of the top tech blogs called it, “the best smartphone you could buy”.
Let's see if this latest update has given it a breath of fresh air.
Last month's
Mobile World Congress showed us what to expect in 2012. Design-wise, the S2
still looks good and can still compete with the new models that are coming out.
Its Super AMOLED screen is still gorgeous.
Compared to an iPhone, it might make you wonder how you could live with such a
small 3.5” screen. Especially if you have room in your pocket for it.
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| 4.3 inches is the maximum size for normal one hand operation |
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| So easy to accidentally press the Lock/Unlock button |
Typing is much
easier and looking at web pages looks so much better. It's 1.2 Ghz dual core
processor and Gig of RAM makes for a smooth and snappy experience. The problem
with entry-level Android phones is that while it may seem snappy out of the
box, once you load it with apps, you really feel it start to slow down. Not so
with the S2, even after installing numerous apps, it's still smooth as butter.
As for the
camera, while its photo and video quality is up there with the best of the
bunch, (in fact, probably as good if not better than the iPhone 4/4S) its
performance is not as fast as I hoped it would be. The iPhone still smokes in
start-up and autofocus speed.
Now let's go to
the newest add-on to this phone, the ICS upgrade. Samsung has always put its
TouchWiz layer over Android. Some people love it and some hate it. If you’re a
new smartphone user or somewhat used to the iOS, then you really won't mind TouchWiz.
It's actually quite intuitive and user friendly. If you're after a pure Android
experience then you will probably fall in the category of those that hate it.
I've been using the S2 with Android 2.3 Gingerbread so I was really excited
when the ICS update finally came out. To my disappointment, after my update, I
first thought it did not work because nothing looked new. I had to double-check
the settings to see if it was really running the latest firmware. Because of
the TouchWiz overlay, it just felt like the old phone I had. Perhaps this was
the intention of Samsung all along so as not to confuse their users. The only
noticeable differences are in the settings menu, the task manager and some minor
differences here and there. But the average user will not even notice that they
are running the latest and greatest from Google. And I take that as a good thing. My disappointment gave way to the
realization that sometimes a little subtlety goes a long way.
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| Old Task Manager |
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| Old Options Menu |
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| ICS Task Manager |
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| ICS Options Menu |
Overall, the
Galaxy S2 is still one of the best smartphones out there. The ICS upgrade is
just icing on the cake for an already great device. The only real reason that
you can possibly have for not buying this phone is because you are waiting for
the Galaxy S3.
The Good:
- Great Hardware and Specs
- Probably still the best Android phone
- Speed and Performance
- Great Photo and Video Quality
The Bad:
- So easy to accidentally press the Lock/Unlock and Volume buttons
- Camera operation not as fast as the iPhone 4S
- The Galaxy S3 coming out soon
