REAL FEATURES OF ANDROID PHONE

Google allows manufacturers a wide berth in choosing hardware and features for their android phones. Manufacturers love this because they can easily differentiate their devices. When you look at the Windows Phone 7 platform, OEMs are forced to try off-the-wall ploys like slide out speakers to stand out.

Most Android phones bring features that you might actually want, but are they all necessary? The problem with having really unique features in a device, is that the OEM and carrier may want a premium because it is so unique, and you also limit the pool of possible phone choices. Let’s go over the various features in modern Android smart phones and see what you can do without.
 

NFC

We really, really like NFC technology. It’s neat and makes us feel like we’re living in the future. NFC technology can be used to share content, interact with advertising, and soon will be the backbone of Google’s mobile payment system. But when it comes down to it, you probably don’t need it.

If you were just charged the price difference for the bit of copper wire and contacts for wiring an NFC chip to the phone, that would be one thing, but this is a feature. It makes a phone different than the competition, and that might demand a premium. We’ll see how things shake out as the next wave of NFC phones come to carriers like Sprint in the coming weeks.

Getting your heart set on NFC will also limit your choices. There will probably only be a few devices with the technology included by the end of Summer. If you don’t foresee yourself using NFC, there’s no particular reason to seek it out.
Dual-Core

Your phone only has a single-core processor? Psh, what a dinosaur. Better grab one of those hot new dual-core Tegra or Exynos chips, right? We’re not really sold actually. For the time being, the Android system on phones does not really offer advantages for having a dual-core chip. It doesn’t understand that process threads can be split up, so much of the benefits go out the window.

Gaming is one of the places where a Tegra 2 chip will pay off. If you plan to play a lot of games on your device, maybe you need one of these. Otherwise, you might be able to save some coin and find a phone that suits you better elsewhere.

These dual-core chips also offer extras like display mirroring over HDMI. Much like NFC, this is a cool feature that will impress your friends. But how many times have you really sat on the couch and thought, “I sure would like to get up and plug my phone into the TV”? It’s a bells and whistles thing. Don’t’ fall for the shiny (but ultimately unused) feature, find the phone that’s best for you, whether that means dual-core or not.
4G Data

Fast data is a nice thing to have on a mobile device, but depending on your situation it might not be necessary in your next phone. When you look at the ability of your phone to utilize the connection, it is often going to come up short. The memory bandwidth on a smart phone (even a powerful one) is often a bottleneck.

Having a 30Mb/s downlink is excellent if you are tethering to your PC, but the real difference in your usage of the phone is going to be smaller. Web pages might load a bit faster, but the rendering speed is the bigger issue than bandwidth. If you do decide to use your phone as a data modem, most carriers will be charging you extra.

This feature is also one that you will often pay extra to get in the first place. Phones like the Droid Charge and HTC Thunderbolt have a premium price attached to them because they use the super-fast new network. And Sprint is still charging a $10 “Premium Data” add-on for users of its WiMAX network. If you are in a non-4G area, have ample Wi-Fi access, or just feel like 3G is fast enough, maybe you can save a few bucks skipping 4G for now.
High megapixel camera

You can bet there will be an Android phone in the next few months that touts a 10 or 12 megapixel sensor. Should you give into your inner shutterbug and buy it? Probably not. Let’s just assume that it actually takes images worthy of that sensor. Is this a necessary feature on a mobile phone? For most people, the point of a mobile phone camera is not to replace a point-and-shoot. It only needs to be good enough, and it's not likely to replace a point-and-shoot anyway. You’re going to still be missing out on features like optical zoom, high-quality optics, and real image stabilization.

That’s just if the sensor is actually any good. There's a troubling trend that a higher megapixel sensor doesn’t actually mean the images are better. They’re just larger. The iPhone 4 has a 5MP camera, but a combination of good software and a high-quality sensor make it one of the best phone cameras out there. An 8MP camera like that on the HTC Evo 4G is fine, but tends to produce less attractive photos despite those extra pixels.
Screen resolution

Okay, so we’ve gone over some features you can potentially pass on in your next Android phone. Now let’s look at some things you should definitely take into account. Most of your interaction with a smart phone comes by way of the screen. The last thing you want is to be stuck staring at a panel you don’t like. Most devices in the market have moved over to WVGA (800x480) resolution screens at least, but you can still buy HVGA (480x320 )screens. This is the resolution phones shipped with back when the first Android phones appeared.

You’ll probably save a bit by getting a lower resolution screen, like the one on the Optimus series. But you will find that images and text are not nearly as crisp as WVGA screen. If you intend to do any reading on the device (or even extensive web browsing), a HVGA screen will make for a bad experience.

You also have the option of getting new qHD resolution (960x540) screen on some phones. Sometimes these may be worth it, and other times not so much. You can see a few extra menu items much of the time, and depending on screen technology text could be much more readable. If you’re going to spend more, the screen is a place to do so.
Build quality

Most phone buyers sign up for a 2-year contract with the understanding the device will last that long. Make no mistake, build quality is a feature. Gorilla Glass, unibody construction -- these are things you want. It’s okay to rule out a device, or spend more on one if you have strong feelings about the construction.

You’re going to be carrying around this device day after day, and it needs to hold up. If a phone ends up inoperable because of a drop that another device would have survived, you may find you made a very expensive error in judgment.
Software and bootloader access

For every checkbox on the spec sheet, you need to consider how it is going to be implemented in software. A good phone from a hardware perspective can easily be ruined by bad software. Because of this, software features should be considered.

OEMs like to differentiate with a custom software load out. It is important you evaluate the features this brings to see if they really are features, or just nuisances. Some users really dig HTC Sense, for example. If you like the look and additional UI flourishes in Sense, that’s a feature. But if you don’t care for it, you might want to look elsewhere.

The status of the bootloader is also important to some users. If you are considering rooting and installing custom ROMs, an unlockable bootloader is a necessity. On a development device like the Nexus line, this is a feature, but you might end up paying for it. This is especially true if you buy the phone without carrier subsidy. This is not the sort of feature that gets advertised, but a locked bootloader makes full customization very difficult. It’s okay to rule out these phones if you truly need the most hackable hardware.

Some features should not make or break your purchase. If you love everything about a phone, but it lacks NFC or the camera is only 5MP, you may want to evaluate what is really important. Let us know what features you can do without.