The New York Times has published a long article on Foxconn which, while it doesn’t provide much in the way of new information, does act as a sobering reminder of just how companies like Apple can make so very much money. When our own John Biggs visited Foxconn, he focused on the company itself, its scale, its intentions. When I wrote about Apple’s suppliers failing to meet environmental standards, it was more about the laxity of regulators within China. Today’s NYT piece depicts Apple as prime mover and potential catalyst of change — but its actions and information from insiders suggest that it is simply unwilling.
There is a certain genius to negotiating down the price of every screw and wire, and never paying a yuan more than is absolutely necessary. As in design and build quality, other companies aspire to Apple’s accomplishment in this area.
Something the article only fleetingly acknowledges is that Foxconn is used by most of the major electronics brands in the world. Samsung, Microsoft, Amazon, and the rest all contract with Foxconn to manufacture, assemble, or finish their products. The threatened mass suicide the other week was, in fact, at an Xbox production facility. The author suggests that HP and Nike “push” their suppliers, presumably in a good way, but Apple does not.
The comparison is made without much in the way of evidence. But it doesn’t appear that Apple is being unfairly targeted: people from within Apple confirm the company’s attitude towards suppliers, and acknowledge that they rarely back up their threats with action. This is for the reason that has been making the rounds over the last week: the suppliers they have are the best in the world, and they are barely able to keep up with Apple’s demands.
There’s a sort of power inversion going on there. Here is Foxconn, which celebrates whenever a client like Apple comes by to make a big order. And here is Apple, which dictates the terms and is, to some extent, the money in the relationship. But which one of these two could fare better if the other backed out? Foxconn would have to spend a few billion reconfiguring its factories to pump out Galaxy Tabs and Kindle Fires. Apple, which has come to rely on Foxconn’s guarantee of millions of products being manufactured at will, and to specs that may change by the hour, would be adrift.
So it has never been a surprise to me when I hear that Apple, and others, only do so much to change the situation in factories and factory towns in China. The simple fact of it is they’re not the ones at the reins. Foxconn and China have our all-important tech companies by the scruff of the neck, and bear the big bad audits by Apple (more likely by people representing people representing Apple) like they’d bear a kitten swiping at their face. It’s a high stakes game, and Foxconn and its like hold all the cards.
Well, not all the cards. As I wrote once, the reason Apple does the things it does is to please us, the consumers. We demand a new iPhone every year that must be better and cheaper. We insist that a thousand dollars is too much for a state of the art computer. We want bigger TVs and external hard drives and slim cameras. And we, almost without exception, fail to care when our demand for more iPads drives Apple to double its orders, driving Foxconn to push more overtime, driving poorly-maintained ventilation systems to their maximum, driving a spark to ignite an aluminum-dust explosion. It’s not our problem, it’s Apple’s or it’s Foxconn’s or it’s China’s. Very reassuring.
One dreamer quoted in the NYT article says: “If they committed to building a conflict-free iPhone, it would transform technology.” Yes, and at the same time, it would transform Apple into a bankrupt company. A conflict free iPhone would cost far, far more and would in all likelihood not be as well-built. Apple knows this. The system we and they have in place works, unfortunately, at least for everyone but the workers coated in N-hexane. And at a twelve to a hundred thousand dollars a pop, they aren’t worth rocking the boat for, especially when you’ve got record profits coming in.
Just don’t forget that we’re in that boat too. Unlike many other companies whose profits come largely from ads, enterprise products, or components, the vast majority of what Apple makes comes straight out of a consumer’s pockets, more or less willingly. More than any other mega-corporation you and I deal with on a daily basis, we are fully in control of our contributions to this company. We’re part of this. Some would say the biggest part.
We took a break from the Android round-up in December because, well, to be honest I was on vacation. But January gave us a few extra smartphones and the holidays are over, so we’re back. What we’ve got for you today leans into more expensive turf, and unfortunately, our favorite Android devices for the past two months are also exclusively at Verizon, so Big Red subscribers should pay attention.
Without further ado, these are our favorite December/January releases of the Android persuasion: The Samsung Galaxy Nexus, the LG Spectrum, and the Motorola Droid RAZR Maxx.
Enjoy!
Samsung Galaxy Nexus
Features:
- Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
- Verizon 4G LTE support
- 4.65-inch 1280×720 Super AMOLED display
- 5MP rear camera (1080 video capture), 1.3MP front-facing camera (720p video capture)
- 1.2GHz dual-core processor
- MSRP: $299.99 with a two-year contract
Pros:
- Ice Cream Sandwich is a solid step up from Gingerbread
- That 720p display is huge and beautiful
- Google Hangouts
Cons:
- The phone might be a bit too big for one-handed actions
- Feels a bit plastic-y
- No pre-loaded Google wallet, but you can download it
If you’re looking for Android, the Galaxy Nexus is where you’ll find it. Ice Cream Sandwich is a joy compared to Gingerbread, and this coming from someone who is quite hard on Android. Of course, the screen on this bad boy is amazing, but as MG points out in his review, sometimes the phone is just too big to perform one-handed actions.
We also expected image quality to be better out of that 5-megapixel rear camera, but it simply can’t compete with the iPhone’s 8-megapixel shooter. (And no, I’m not saying that based on megapixels… Image quality is simply better with the 4S.) But that doesn’t really matter — an Android fan is an Android fan, and this is as good as Android gets.
LG Spectrum
Features:
- Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread
- Verizon 4G LTE support
- 4.5-inch True HD 1280×720 Display
- 8MP rear camera (1080p video capture), 1.3MP front-facing camera
- 1.5GHz dual-core processor
- MSRP: $199.99 with a two-year contract
Pros:
- Beautiful display
- Pre-loaded ESPN Sports Center app in HD
- LG Y is actually a nice custom overlay
Cons:
- Not a fan of that brushed plastic back panel
- The silver bezels don’t handle prints well
I was hard on this phone when I first played around with it, and I still maintain that there’s nothing super special about the Spectrum. It’s not like the Rezound with Beats Audio imtegration or the Razr with its anorexic waist line. That said, you really won’t find these kind of specs on an Android phone for just $200. In fact, I’d be so bold as to call it a steal.
I’m also pretty excited about that display. I have yet to put a Super AMOLED Plus up against this 720p True HD display, but I’d say it’s one of the most (if not, the most) stunning displays I saw at CES. Certainly worth consideration, especially if you are a fan of LG phones to begin with.
Motorola Droid Razr Maxx
Features:
- Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread
- Verizon 4G LTE support
- 4.3-inch Super AMOLED advanced 960×540 display
- 8MP rear camera (1080p video capture), 1.3MP front-facing camera (720p video capture)
- 1.2GHz dual-core processor
- MSRP: $299.99 with a two-year contract
Pros:
- 3300 mAH battery is a big improvement from the Razr
- Less of a “Moto bump” along the back
- Bump in storage from 16GB to 32GB
Cons:
- 1.89mm thicker than its predecessor
- UI can slow things down a tad
The Droid Razr Maxx is a very special phone. It kills the few things that were wrong with the original Razr — which is an excellent device, mind you — and then doubles the storage, to boot. I was originally bothered with how light the Razr was. It made premium materials feel cheap, but the extra heft and weight on the Razr Maxx really gives this phone a pricey, solid feel.
A Droid Razr update for Android 4.0 leaked out this week, so if you’re comfortable with tinkering than that’s an extra benefit to the Maxx. We’ll have a full review on this phone up very shortly, but from the short time I’ve spent with it thus far I’d say it has the superior hardware in this particular bunch of Android handsets.
It’ll all come down to what matters most to you. If that giant 720p screen excites you, go Galaxy Nexus all the way. The Spectrum, on the other hand, offers up some pretty killer specs at a much more reasonable price, while the Droid Razr Maxx wins in the hardware/design department.
We took a break from the Android round-up in December because, well, to be honest I was on vacation. But January gave us a few extra smartphones and the holidays are over, so we’re back. What we’ve got for you today leans into more expensive turf, and unfortunately, our favorite Android devices for the past two months are also exclusively at Verizon, so Big Red subscribers should pay attention.
Without further ado, these are our favorite December/January releases of the Android persuasion: The Samsung Galaxy Nexus, the LG Spectrum, and the Motorola Droid RAZR Maxx.
Enjoy!
Samsung Galaxy Nexus
Features:
- Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
- Verizon 4G LTE support
- 4.65-inch 1280×720 Super AMOLED display
- 5MP rear camera (1080 video capture), 1.3MP front-facing camera (720p video capture)
- 1.2GHz dual-core processor
- MSRP: $299.99 with a two-year contract
Pros:
- Ice Cream Sandwich is a solid step up from Gingerbread
- That 720p display is huge and beautiful
- Google Hangouts
Cons:
- The phone might be a bit too big for one-handed actions
- Feels a bit plastic-y
- No pre-loaded Google wallet, but you can download it
If you’re looking for Android, the Galaxy Nexus is where you’ll find it. Ice Cream Sandwich is a joy compared to Gingerbread, and this coming from someone who is quite hard on Android. Of course, the screen on this bad boy is amazing, but as MG points out in his review, sometimes the phone is just too big to perform one-handed actions.
We also expected image quality to be better out of that 5-megapixel rear camera, but it simply can’t compete with the iPhone’s 8-megapixel shooter. (And no, I’m not saying that based on megapixels… Image quality is simply better with the 4S.) But that doesn’t really matter — an Android fan is an Android fan, and this is as good as Android gets.
LG Spectrum
Features:
- Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread
- Verizon 4G LTE support
- 4.5-inch True HD 1280×720 Display
- 8MP rear camera (1080p video capture), 1.3MP front-facing camera
- 1.5GHz dual-core processor
- MSRP: $199.99 with a two-year contract
Pros:
- Beautiful display
- Pre-loaded ESPN Sports Center app in HD
- LG Y is actually a nice custom overlay
Cons:
- Not a fan of that brushed plastic back panel
- The silver bezels don’t handle prints well
I was hard on this phone when I first played around with it, and I still maintain that there’s nothing super special about the Spectrum. It’s not like the Rezound with Beats Audio imtegration or the Razr with its anorexic waist line. That said, you really won’t find these kind of specs on an Android phone for just $200. In fact, I’d be so bold as to call it a steal.
I’m also pretty excited about that display. I have yet to put a Super AMOLED Plus up against this 720p True HD display, but I’d say it’s one of the most (if not, the most) stunning displays I saw at CES. Certainly worth consideration, especially if you are a fan of LG phones to begin with.
Motorola Droid Razr Maxx
Features:
- Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread
- Verizon 4G LTE support
- 4.3-inch Super AMOLED advanced 960×540 display
- 8MP rear camera (1080p video capture), 1.3MP front-facing camera (720p video capture)
- 1.2GHz dual-core processor
- MSRP: $299.99 with a two-year contract
Pros:
- 3300 mAH battery is a big improvement from the Razr
- Less of a “Moto bump” along the back
- Bump in storage from 16GB to 32GB
Cons:
- 1.89mm thicker than its predecessor
- UI can slow things down a tad
The Droid Razr Maxx is a very special phone. It kills the few things that were wrong with the original Razr — which is an excellent device, mind you — and then doubles the storage, to boot. I was originally bothered with how light the Razr was. It made premium materials feel cheap, but the extra heft and weight on the Razr Maxx really gives this phone a pricey, solid feel.
A Droid Razr update for Android 4.0 leaked out this week, so if you’re comfortable with tinkering than that’s an extra benefit to the Maxx. We’ll have a full review on this phone up very shortly, but from the short time I’ve spent with it thus far I’d say it has the superior hardware in this particular bunch of Android handsets.
It’ll all come down to what matters most to you. If that giant 720p screen excites you, go Galaxy Nexus all the way. The Spectrum, on the other hand, offers up some pretty killer specs at a much more reasonable price, while the Droid Razr Maxx wins in the hardware/design department.
We took a break from the Android round-up in December because, well, to be honest I was on vacation. But January gave us a few extra smartphones and the holidays are over, so we’re back. What we’ve got for you today leans into more expensive turf, and unfortunately, our favorite Android devices for the past two months are also exclusively at Verizon, so Big Red subscribers should pay attention.
Without further ado, these are our favorite December/January releases of the Android persuasion: The Samsung Galaxy Nexus, the LG Spectrum, and the Motorola Droid RAZR Maxx.
Enjoy!
Samsung Galaxy Nexus
Features:
- Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
- Verizon 4G LTE support
- 4.65-inch 1280×720 Super AMOLED display
- 5MP rear camera (1080 video capture), 1.3MP front-facing camera (720p video capture)
- 1.2GHz dual-core processor
- MSRP: $299.99 with a two-year contract
Pros:
- Ice Cream Sandwich is a solid step up from Gingerbread
- That 720p display is huge and beautiful
- Google Hangouts
Cons:
- The phone might be a bit too big for one-handed actions
- Feels a bit plastic-y
- No pre-loaded Google wallet, but you can download it
If you’re looking for Android, the Galaxy Nexus is where you’ll find it. Ice Cream Sandwich is a joy compared to Gingerbread, and this coming from someone who is quite hard on Android. Of course, the screen on this bad boy is amazing, but as MG points out in his review, sometimes the phone is just too big to perform one-handed actions.
We also expected image quality to be better out of that 5-megapixel rear camera, but it simply can’t compete with the iPhone’s 8-megapixel shooter. (And no, I’m not saying that based on megapixels… Image quality is simply better with the 4S.) But that doesn’t really matter — an Android fan is an Android fan, and this is as good as Android gets.
LG Spectrum
Features:
- Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread
- Verizon 4G LTE support
- 4.5-inch True HD 1280×720 Display
- 8MP rear camera (1080p video capture), 1.3MP front-facing camera
- 1.5GHz dual-core processor
- MSRP: $199.99 with a two-year contract
Pros:
- Beautiful display
- Pre-loaded ESPN Sports Center app in HD
- LG Y is actually a nice custom overlay
Cons:
- Not a fan of that brushed plastic back panel
- The silver bezels don’t handle prints well
I was hard on this phone when I first played around with it, and I still maintain that there’s nothing super special about the Spectrum. It’s not like the Rezound with Beats Audio imtegration or the Razr with its anorexic waist line. That said, you really won’t find these kind of specs on an Android phone for just $200. In fact, I’d be so bold as to call it a steal.
I’m also pretty excited about that display. I have yet to put a Super AMOLED Plus up against this 720p True HD display, but I’d say it’s one of the most (if not, the most) stunning displays I saw at CES. Certainly worth consideration, especially if you are a fan of LG phones to begin with.
Motorola Droid Razr Maxx
Features:
- Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread
- Verizon 4G LTE support
- 4.3-inch Super AMOLED advanced 960×540 display
- 8MP rear camera (1080p video capture), 1.3MP front-facing camera (720p video capture)
- 1.2GHz dual-core processor
- MSRP: $299.99 with a two-year contract
Pros:
- 3300 mAH battery is a big improvement from the Razr
- Less of a “Moto bump” along the back
- Bump in storage from 16GB to 32GB
Cons:
- 1.89mm thicker than its predecessor
- UI can slow things down a tad
The Droid Razr Maxx is a very special phone. It kills the few things that were wrong with the original Razr — which is an excellent device, mind you — and then doubles the storage, to boot. I was originally bothered with how light the Razr was. It made premium materials feel cheap, but the extra heft and weight on the Razr Maxx really gives this phone a pricey, solid feel.
A Droid Razr update for Android 4.0 leaked out this week, so if you’re comfortable with tinkering than that’s an extra benefit to the Maxx. We’ll have a full review on this phone up very shortly, but from the short time I’ve spent with it thus far I’d say it has the superior hardware in this particular bunch of Android handsets.
It’ll all come down to what matters most to you. If that giant 720p screen excites you, go Galaxy Nexus all the way. The Spectrum, on the other hand, offers up some pretty killer specs at a much more reasonable price, while the Droid Razr Maxx wins in the hardware/design department.
We took a break from the Android round-up in December because, well, to be honest I was on vacation. But January gave us a few extra smartphones and the holidays are over, so we’re back. What we’ve got for you today leans into more expensive turf, and unfortunately, our favorite Android devices for the past two months are also exclusively at Verizon, so Big Red subscribers should pay attention.
Without further ado, these are our favorite December/January releases of the Android persuasion: The Samsung Galaxy Nexus, the LG Spectrum, and the Motorola Droid RAZR Maxx.
Enjoy!
Samsung Galaxy Nexus
Features:
- Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
- Verizon 4G LTE support
- 4.65-inch 1280×720 Super AMOLED display
- 5MP rear camera (1080 video capture), 1.3MP front-facing camera (720p video capture)
- 1.2GHz dual-core processor
- MSRP: $299.99 with a two-year contract
Pros:
- Ice Cream Sandwich is a solid step up from Gingerbread
- That 720p display is huge and beautiful
- Google Hangouts
Cons:
- The phone might be a bit too big for one-handed actions
- Feels a bit plastic-y
- No pre-loaded Google wallet, but you can download it
If you’re looking for Android, the Galaxy Nexus is where you’ll find it. Ice Cream Sandwich is a joy compared to Gingerbread, and this coming from someone who is quite hard on Android. Of course, the screen on this bad boy is amazing, but as MG points out in his review, sometimes the phone is just too big to perform one-handed actions.
We also expected image quality to be better out of that 5-megapixel rear camera, but it simply can’t compete with the iPhone’s 8-megapixel shooter. (And no, I’m not saying that based on megapixels… Image quality is simply better with the 4S.) But that doesn’t really matter — an Android fan is an Android fan, and this is as good as Android gets.
LG Spectrum
Features:
- Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread
- Verizon 4G LTE support
- 4.5-inch True HD 1280×720 Display
- 8MP rear camera (1080p video capture), 1.3MP front-facing camera
- 1.5GHz dual-core processor
- MSRP: $199.99 with a two-year contract
Pros:
- Beautiful display
- Pre-loaded ESPN Sports Center app in HD
- LG Y is actually a nice custom overlay
Cons:
- Not a fan of that brushed plastic back panel
- The silver bezels don’t handle prints well
I was hard on this phone when I first played around with it, and I still maintain that there’s nothing super special about the Spectrum. It’s not like the Rezound with Beats Audio imtegration or the Razr with its anorexic waist line. That said, you really won’t find these kind of specs on an Android phone for just $200. In fact, I’d be so bold as to call it a steal.
I’m also pretty excited about that display. I have yet to put a Super AMOLED Plus up against this 720p True HD display, but I’d say it’s one of the most (if not, the most) stunning displays I saw at CES. Certainly worth consideration, especially if you are a fan of LG phones to begin with.
Motorola Droid Razr Maxx
Features:
- Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread
- Verizon 4G LTE support
- 4.3-inch Super AMOLED advanced 960×540 display
- 8MP rear camera (1080p video capture), 1.3MP front-facing camera (720p video capture)
- 1.2GHz dual-core processor
- MSRP: $299.99 with a two-year contract
Pros:
- 3300 mAH battery is a big improvement from the Razr
- Less of a “Moto bump” along the back
- Bump in storage from 16GB to 32GB
Cons:
- 1.89mm thicker than its predecessor
- UI can slow things down a tad
The Droid Razr Maxx is a very special phone. It kills the few things that were wrong with the original Razr — which is an excellent device, mind you — and then doubles the storage, to boot. I was originally bothered with how light the Razr was. It made premium materials feel cheap, but the extra heft and weight on the Razr Maxx really gives this phone a pricey, solid feel.
A Droid Razr update for Android 4.0 leaked out this week, so if you’re comfortable with tinkering than that’s an extra benefit to the Maxx. We’ll have a full review on this phone up very shortly, but from the short time I’ve spent with it thus far I’d say it has the superior hardware in this particular bunch of Android handsets.
It’ll all come down to what matters most to you. If that giant 720p screen excites you, go Galaxy Nexus all the way. The Spectrum, on the other hand, offers up some pretty killer specs at a much more reasonable price, while the Droid Razr Maxx wins in the hardware/design department.
