These are two high end smartphones that have very little in common.    Watch the video to see just how different and which one you’ll want to be carrying around in your pocket.

And if you’re really interested in delving into the differences between the operating systems themselves, I highly recommend watching my Ice Cream Sandwich vs iOS 5 video.

Congress is now demanding answers.  Specifically Republican Edward Markey has asked Apple to convey more specific information on the data collection to ensure that the iPhone “doesn’t become an iTrack.”  Further, Senator Al Franken wrote to Steve Jobs demanding details on Apple’s conduct.

The first question that comes to mind is why both companies would be interested in tracking consumers’ locations?  Many think such conduct will contribute to the companies building giant databases.  In turn, these databases may help both companies get into the $2.9 billion location-based services market.  Research firm Gartner Inc has predicted that in 2014, the location-based services market is expected to grow into an $8.3 billion market.  Considering these large numbers, it does make sense that the companies would strive to tap into this largely profitable market.

Since the tracking reports released earlier this week, Google and Apple have not released any specific statements.  Many await how both companies will respond and defend their careless conduct.

Here are some thoughts that come to my mind.  Many people voluntarily release information regarding their whereabouts via Facebook or Twitter updates.  So these same people cannot complain about their phones tracking their location information when they themselves voluntarily divulge the information on the Internet.  After all, their actions allow people to track them, just as their phones are doing.

The larger issue here is that Google and Apple failed to inform customers of this tracking capability, and did not obtain consent from customers.  If they had, there would be no issue made of it today.  These are two large companies who can probably afford top-notch lawyers to be their general counsel.  Why then did no one pay attention to the “inform and consent” issue?  Was it consciously ignored?  We would hope that both companies would always strive to behave ethically and not consciously ignore such a huge issue, but then again ethics and business do not always mix.

Alongside informing consumers and acquiring their consent, both companies should have provided an “opt-out” option, where consumers can opt-out of being tracked.  Not only would this have made consumers happy, but it would have shielded the companies from any potential litigation.  Why such approaches were not thought of is simply shocking.

However, I doubt that iPhone and Android sales will suffer due to the tracking news.  Wherever you go, people are hooked onto their smart phones and cannot imagine their lives without them.  Now, there is just a heightened awareness of the vast capabilities of these small devices.

Most likely, both companies may face a class action lawsuit in the near future.    Many people own iPhones and Androids, and are objecting to the invasive conduct by both companies.  However, each individual bringing about a lawsuit for invasion of privacy and any resulting harm is not likely.  However, once a class action commences, adding members to the group will not be difficult.  Further, it is obvious that a lawsuit against deep-pocket corporations such as Apple or Google will likely result in some form of favorable recovery for each individual, without any single person doing a great deal of work.  Therefore, people are likely to corroborate and file a class action against these two large corporations.

If it can be proven that both companies have collected, stored, and disclosed consumer location information without obtaining written consent, it is not likely that they will be pardoned in a court of law.  Although paying a settlement to each member of the suit will not be a huge burden to both billion dollar companies, nor will it likely decrease product sales, it may affect the credibility of both companies.  People may force themselves to think twice, research, and truly inquire about an Apple or Google product before taking it home.

Neha Sareen is a regular contributor to LegalMatch and the LegalMatch Law Blog.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fqz6LzyFqus

The 3D Screen

There’s a lot we like about this phone but since the focus on this phone is the 3D screen, let’s talk about this first.

As far as size goes, it’s the same size as the original EVO and many other new Android phones – 4.3″

The screen has a high resolution – 960 x 540 – which takes it close to the resolution of the iPhone 4.

Just like with the Nintendo 3DS, the EVO 3D doesn’t require glasses for it’s 3D screen though the viewing angle for 3D is quite small.

Even if you don’t care much about having a 3D screen, I’ll tell you the display is still gorgeous as a 2D screen, one of the nicest out there right now even if it isn’t Super AMOLED.

3D Video

One of the big things I think that is really holding back 3D from gaining a foothold is the dearth of content available.   Sprint is currently working with Blockbuster, Youtube, and game developers to hopefully have 3D movies, videos, and games available at the launch.

Of course, you don’t have to wait for 3D videos to come out with this phone – you can make them yourself with the dual 5 megapixel cameras on the back.  You can record 3D video in up to 720p HD resolution.

If you’d rather not record your video in 3D, then you can record in full 1080p in 2D with the rear video camera.

Also, you get a 1.3MP front facing video camera for video conferencing via Qik.

Under The Hood

If you peek under the hood of this thing, you’ll find plenty of power to keep everything snappy and responsive.

It’s packing a dual core 1.2 GHZ Snapdragon processor and a full 1GB of RAM.

As far as storage goes, it’s not bad but it’s not great either.  You get 4GB of internal memory (which helps the phone perform faster) and an included 8GB microSD card.  You can expand the microSD card to 32GB so more capacity is a simple trip to the store away.

It’s also running the latest version of Google Android – 2.3 Gingerbread.

Battery Life – One of the biggest disappointments with the original EVO was how miserable the battery life was.  I remember one of my friends telling me that he always made sure that when he left to go to work in the morning, he had a spare battery with him because the battery life on it was so bad, it simply wouldn’t last a full day.

The EVO 3D has a bigger battery – a 1730 mAh battery compared to the 1500 mAh battery which should hopefully help the EVO 3D have battery performance on par with other high end smartphones.

Other Specs

4G WiMax

HDMI Connectivity

Size: 5″ x 2.6″ x .47″ (127 x 66 x 12 mm)

Weight: 6 ounces (170 grams)

Price: Unknown

Release Date: Summer 2011

Conclusion

I have to admit that I was a little disappointed to see the kickstand found on the original EVO is gone and while NFC is still and up and coming technology, it’d have been nice to see that added into this phone, but otherwise I don’t have many complaints.

Even if the 3D thing doesn’t really take off, the HTC EVO 3D is a fine phone and a worthwhile upgrade if you’re on the Sprint Network.  And seeing as how Sprint’s unlimited plans are actually unlimited and their wireless plans are a little less expensive than Verizon and AT&T, you may actually want to switch if you live in an area with good Sprint coverage.

What do you think – like it? love it? hate it?

Let me hear from you in the comments below.

Well, that’s changing today as Google and Sprint announced the Nexus S 4G.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=zomH5m5NikY

Not much has changed with the Nexus S phone itself.  You’re still getting the stock Android experience and you can expect to always be first in line for the latest updates to the Android operating system (right now it’s running Google Android 2.3 Gingerbread – the Nexus phones are the only ones that have the latest and greatest Android OS at the moment).

Internally, about the only change is that instead of GSM technology, it’s using CDMA technology and of course the WiMax (4g) antenna being added.

The New Google Nexus S 4G For Sprint

Price: $199.99 with 2 Year Contract

The release date hasn’t been announced but it shouldn’t be more than a month or two for it to be released.

Today, I thought I’d change things up a little and do a post on apps that aren’t necessarily essential to any Android owner, but these are some of the coolest Android apps out there that really show you what your phone can do.   There aren’t any games, but these 10 apps sure nifty.

Tasker – Tasker is the only app on this list that isn’t free, but the $6 or so you’ll have to spend on it is well worth it.  Tasker is pretty much the Swiss Army Knife of the app world – it can do pretty much whatever you want it to.   Read more extensive reviews here and here.  To sum it up, this app will allow you access to 160 built-in actions to help you automate frequently performed tasks on the phone.   For example, this app will put your phone into airplane mode at night to save batteries but will turn the antennas back on every 15 minutes to check for email, text messages, and voicemail.   You can also use it to launch your music player (whichever one you choose) when you plug headphones into your phone.  There are thousands of different uses for this app and plenty of profiles pre-made for you so you don’t need to know how to program at all to get a ton of use out of this app.  Note: If you have a Droid Razr, you probably don’t need this app as the Smart Actions functionality built into the phone is very similar to what Tasker does – Tasker is a bit more powerful while Smart Actions are a bit more user friendly.

Soundhound – This is a music identification app which really isn’t anything new.  Shazam has been identifying songs playing on the radio for a couple years on Android now and even longer on the iPhone.  However, Soundhound can identify songs much faster, sometimes in as little as four seconds.  Of course, my favorite feature is that if you have a song stuck in your head and just can’t think of the name of it, just load up Soundhound and sing a few lines or hum a few bars.  It’s not perfect, but it can get you the song in most cases if you can remember 10 seconds or more of the song.

Google Maps – While I’m still waiting for a speedometer in my Google Maps Navigation, there is plenty to like about Google Maps on Android.  First and foremost – free GPS navigation which saves you a bundle over similar apps on the iPhone.   While every GPS navigation system can do driving directions, Google Maps Navigation also does walking directions, bicycling directions (using bike trails whenever possible), and can even help you take the bus by telling you which bus to take to get where you want to go as quickly as possible.  If you ever leave the house, make sure you’ve got this app installed on your phone.

Google Googles – Google Goggles is an app that has been around for a while now, but they keep adding in new features that really make you say wow.   Google Goggles has a built in barcode scanner for finding information about products (came in handy at Sears a couple weeks ago – we found out the item we were thinking of buying didn’t work as advertised), can translate street signs and restaurant menus, tell you what a product is by taking a picture of it and can help you identify art, locations, landmarks, and products just by taking their picture.  Oh yeah, and if that’s not enough, just for fun they threw in the ability to solve Sudoku puzzles and it works great on those extra hard puzzles you just can’t solve.

Google Translate – While there are plenty of other good translating apps out there, the new Google Translate app for Android takes the cake with its new real time translations by voice.  It’s not perfect yet, and it only does English and Spanish, but real time voice translation on your phone is certainly could certainly come in handy in a pinch and it sure is gosh darn cool to play with.

Google Skymap – This is the last Google made app on the list, but it does go to show you that Google has gone through great pains to make sure some of the best apps available are available on Android.   Google Skymap is one of those gee-wiz apps that you never knew you wanted, but once you’ve tried it out, you want to show it off to everyone else too.  Google Skymap will tell you where the constellations are and what their names are.  If you’re looking for the planets, it’ll tell you where they are as well.

Glympse – This app is actually pretty simple.  It allows you to be tracked.  Of course, you get to say who and when someone can track you and how often it updates.  For example, let’s say you’re planning on meeting a group of people for lunch but you’re coming from out of town.  Well, now you can let those contacts track your location so your friends can see how far away you are so they know if they’ll be waiting for you or if you’re running late.  This app would have been helpful a few months ago when I had to go help out a friend who got stranded on the interstate.  It was dark and I wasn’t exactly sure where he was (he didn’t know what mile maker he was near either) so  I had to drive along until I could find him.  Had we had this app at the time it would have told me exactly where he was.

Gmote – There are plenty of remote control apps for Android.  Heck, I’ve devoted one of my screens just to various remote controls for different devices.   This neat little app allows you to use your phone as a remote control for your computer (you’ll have to install a program on your computer too).  For example, you can launch and control a movie remotely or launch and stream music or control a Powerpoint presentation.

FXCamera – While the standard camera app on Android is a little lacking, you can dress it up by installing the FXCamera app on your phone.  This app gives you several different settings for taking pictures.  For example, there is a Polaroid mode that you can use for vintage film, faded, aged, and mono effects.  Stop taking boring photos and install FXCamera and then share them on Facebook using the button within the App.

Easy Metal Detector Lite – Does just what it says.  It turns your phone into a metal detector.  Your phone does have the equipment inside it to do the task, but it doesn’t have a very strong magnet so you do have to get pretty close to metal for it to detect it, but it’s still a cool way to show off some of the lesser known capabilities of your phone.

Google finally announced their Nexus S phone (by Samsung) which means we can finally stop rumor-mongoring and get to reviewing the real phone instead of speculating about features.

Let’s cover the specs first:

• 1 GHZ Processor (Hummingbird A8 Cortex)
• 16GB Memory
• VoIP Support (Internet Calling via Skype!)
• Accelerometer
• Three-axis gyroscope – just like the iPhone 4!
• 512MB RAM
• 4” Super AMOLED Contour Display – The first smartphone with a curved glass screen.
• Front Facing VGA Camera For Video Chat – Rear Facing 5 Megapixel Camera for pictures and HD Videos.
• Dedicated GPU for playing games and watching videos.
• NFC Chip (Near Field Communications)
• Runs Android 2.3 Gingerbread

Google Nexus S Phone by Samsung with Contour Display

What you’ll notice is that from a raw power standpoint, it’s similar Samsung’s Galaxy Class Smartphones.  It uses the same 1GHZ processor and has 512MB of RAM.

Better Gaming

One area where it looks like Google is really trying to step up its game is in mobile gaming… an area where the iPhone is clearly ahead.   With a built in GPU (video card), and a 3-axis gyroscope (like the iPhone 4 has), coupled with software enhancements from Google Android 2.3 Gingerbread, the Nexus S is built to be the best gaming Android Phone by far… at least until the next generation of Android phones comes out sometime in 2011.

Pure Android Experience

First and foremost, the Google Nexus S is about delivering the Android experience Google meant it to be.  There’s not bloatware or user interfaces built on top of the software – it’s exactly how Google intended it to be, hence the “pure Android” tagline that Google has been so fond of using.

Video Chat

With the addition of a front facing VGA camera, the Nexus S joins the ranks of the Epic 4G and EVO 4G (both for Sprint) as Android phones capable of supporting video chat.

Always Up To Date

If you always want to be running the latest and greatest version of Android, then this is the phone you want.  As Nexus One owners will tell you, since Nexus phones run the stock Android installation, there’s no many month (or year long in some cases) wait for the update to be pushed to your phone.  Typically, you’ll get the latest and greatest Android update pushed to your phone within 24 hours of the release of the version.

Of course, not all is perfect on this phone – two things in particular were a disappointment…

Things we wanted but are missing

• No HSPA+ Support – T-mobile calls their 4G (which is really 3.5G) network HSPA+, unfortunately you’ll have to get the G2 if you want HSPA+ support as the Nexus S only supports up to 3G speeds.
• Rumors ran wild about this phone potentially using one of those spiffy new dual core processors, but alas it was not to be, it uses the same single core 1GHZ processor used in all Samsung Galaxy S Class phones – the Hummingbird.

Conclusion

While it may not be the giant leap forward that many were hoping for, the Samsung Google Nexus S phone is the gold standard other Android phone developers should be looking to match or exceed.

There are a lot of behind the scene changes, but not a lot of big “gee whiz” features you’ll notice.    Developers, on the other hand, will notice a lot more options.

Better Games Should Be Coming

One area where Android and Android phones have really been lagging behind Apple’s iPhone and iOS is in the gaming department.  Gingerbread has given gamer developers gyroscope support (though current generation Android phones don’t actually have gyroscopes, expect the next generation to include them) and direct access to Open GLS and audio.    Basically, this gives developers the tools they need to make better games for your Android phone (or tablet).

Support for Tablets

Speaking of tablets, Gingerbread has an XLarge resource qualifier for tablets.  Up to this point, Gingerbread didn’t really look all that good on screens larger than that of a cell phone – this addition to the SDK will fix that.

Near Field Communications

The addition of Near Field Communications is probably the biggest enhancement that most people do not understand.  I had to look up what the heck this is myself and I write about smartphones pretty often so don’t feel bad if you’re not sure what it is.  Basically, you can scan NFC tags and they’ll be shortcuts to websites, similar to what you can currently do with QR codes.  Here’s an example of one application of NFC if you’d like to see it in action for yourself.

User Experience Enhancements

As far as enhancements you’ll actually notice when the 2.3 upgrade comes to your phone (Nexus One users will be getting it shortly, the rest of us will have to wait a few months), the major ones are a built in download manager so you won’t need to download one any longer.  You will also be able to close applications and see what’s running to keep your phone from getting bogged down and running slowly – while this has always been easy with third part apps, now it’s part of the platform.   The keyboard has also been improved (finally) and Google has also added a one-touch word selection and copy/paste feature.

List of Features:

• Theme and user interface touch-ups
• Redesigned virtual keyboard with different font
• Switch to voice mode to make text corrections
• Multitouch capabilities to enter keyboard shortcuts
• One-touch text selection
• Power manager closes some CPU-hogging apps
• WebM video support
• More accessible power management app
• Internet calling via SIP (This means your phone can now do VoIP calls)
• NFC (near field communication) support
• New download manager
• Access to front-facing camera from camera app
• Enhancements for game developers
• API support for sensors including gyroscope, gravity, and barometer
• New audio effects for developers, including sound mixing
• Support for VP8/WebM video compression
• Camera API access for developers

Here’s the Gingerbread user guide if you want to know every last detail.

More in depth articles about Gingerbread;

• Beta News – What’s New In Android 2.3
• Ars Technica Discusses Gingerbread and the Nexus S
• Android 2.3 Highlights From Official Android Developer Blog

To get one directly from Google, just login to your Developer’s account and you can get one for $529.  It ships with Android 2.1 at the moment but will upgrade to 2.2 shortly after being powered on.

While the Nexus One may not have been a hit with consumers, the Android operating system itself sure is proving to be a star.  Google estimates 200,000 Android equipped smartphones are being sold each day and analysts say that at its current rate of growth Android will be on more devices than iOS (the iPhone operating system) by 2012.

Official Android Developer's Phone - Google Nexus One

You know how in 24 Jack is always getting stuff sent to his phone?

Now you can do the same thing.  If you’ve ever been doing something on your computer and wanted to send it to your phone (this seems to happen to me daily), now you can with Chrome to Phone.

If you’re wondering why you haven’t heard of this app before, it’s because it only works on Android 2.2 – which is still only available (as of this writing) on the Nexus One or to those of you who have rooted your Android phone and installed the custom ROM (if you’re going to do it, I’d recommend Bugless Beast, Titanium, or Chevy).

I see myself using this app mostly for maps and for sending files to my phone (like non Android Market Apps), but it comes in handy for a whole lot of things, especially long, complicated links I don’t want to painstakingly type in via my Droid keyboard.

If you have Android 2.2, just go install this extension for Chrome and then install the Chrome to Phone Android App on your phone and you’re all set.

For those who wonder how all this magic works, it uses Gmail synching to do it.

Learn all about it with this video:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=7oyCWEUqNvY