"by far the most powerful handheld in the world?"

[chad78]

From http://www.openpandora.org/

How powerful is it?
It is by far the most powerful handheld in the world both in terms of raw CPU power and 3D graphics capability, it will be able to handle things such as Firefox3 or Quake3 with ease.

http://www.anandtech.com/gadgets/showdoc.aspx?i=3579&p=2

The iPhone 3Gs has the same CPU. It has the same amount of RAM. It has the same PowerVR SGX GPU. It has far more on board storage.

So, how can the Pandora be "by far the most powerful handheld"? Before someone brings up the controls - that's not power. Plus, the iPhone has controls that the Pandora does not, (specifically the accelerometer). It seems that the facts would say that the iPhone is just as powerful. And, yes, the iPhone is a game system.

Then again, when that front page was written, over a year ago, there was no iPhone 3Gs - heck, there wasn't an iPhone 3G.

 

[fischju]

The SGX is probably clocked at 55mhz (it goes to 110), and I highly doubt any applications will be able to increase the voltage and run The A8 at 750+mhz like the Pandora can. Still technically accurate. The iPhone's specific chips are still speculative.

 

[chad78]

You can't use potential software as a way of measuring "Raw CPU power". And, the iPhone's CPU is not speculative. It was posted on an official service provider's website.

Regardless - the Palm Pre's CPU is not speculative. Same CPU as the 3Gs & the Pandora.

Besides, you have no idea what the software will or will not be able to do on the 3Gs - especially on a jailbroken one. (And, since one of the Pandora makers is also the maker of the jailbroken-only addon - the iControlPad - yes, jailbroken software counts - just like a modded PSP, or FlashCarted DS/DSi.)

 

[hch]

the iphone also has a cortex a9 afaik with a dual core CPU. yeah, the technical lead is gone (pretty obvious with the typical timescales in the it bussiness).

 

[Sugar_Kane]

I guess the main differences are that you'd have to crack the iphone to make it useful, it doesn't have linux, and it costs about twice the price of a pandora

 

[Alpha2]

The iphone does weird things with it's OS that takes a chunk out it's performance in regards to games. I'm not a techie but I read this in layman's terms from the blog of someone writing emulators console emulators for it.

I take it to mean that because it's a hand held that has to always be an Apple iphone at the same time there's a need to split resources. Pandora dosent have this issue so it's simply a game system OR and handheld computer when needed. And yest the gaming controls do matter because the iphone isn't really well equipped for deeper levels of gaming.

 

[lingenfr]

One big difference though is that I can buy an iPhone today. So something is much more powerful than nothing.

 

[Alpha2]

Then I think the solution for that particular argument is "go buy one" See there's a difference between the people who are waiting for the Pandora and people who'd just buy an iphone, Pandora people believe in the device and what it's capable of and are willing to wait for it so we wait. If you arent willing to wait then "b'bye, dont let the door hit you on the way out."

 

[chad78]

I guess the main differences are that you'd have to crack the iphone to make it useful, it doesn't have linux, and it costs about twice the price of a pandora

$199 is twice as much as $330? Is that "New Math"?

 

[danielpwnsricky]

OH LOOK ANOTHER THREAD WHERE WE CAN SEE WHICH DEVICE IS MOAR POWERFULS BY MHZ. at least they have similar architecture this time. and as many people have mentioned, there's an overhead OS on the iphone, but this doesn't mean they are of equal power, wait until a benchmark test or something.

I guess the main differences are that you'd have to crack the iphone to make it useful, it doesn't have linux, and it costs about twice the price of a pandora

$199 is twice as much as $330? Is that "New Math"?

i get the feeling you're a troll. apple sells the iphone 3gs at 700$ without a contract. they actually lose money when the iphone 3gs's are sold at 199$. however, the device is pretty useless without contract (apparently unlocking is illegal), so people usually get them with contracts. the amount of money given to at&t and apple over a two year period (the minimum length for a contract) is well over 700$, making apple even more money.

 

[chad78]

OH LOOK ANOTHER THREAD WHERE WE CAN SEE WHICH DEVICE IS MOAR POWERFULS BY MHZ. at least they have similar architecture this time.

Not similar - identical, as in the exact same SoC, same CPU, same Graphics, same RAM - many, many times more storage.

apple sells the iphone 3gs at 700$ without a contract. they actually lose money when the iphone 3gs's are sold at 199$

Um, no. Apple *never* loses money on hardware. The $199 price (see, the dollar sign goes in front) is "Subsidized" by at&t - not Apple. Subsidized means that at&t pays Apple for the hardware, and then sells it to you for less than they bought it, since they are going to get a lot more money from you over the 2 years. Money that most people pay to somebody each month anyway. (The average person who would be interested in an iPhone or a Pandora probably already has a cell phone anyway.)

however, the device is pretty useless without contract (apparently unlocking is illegal)

So, since the iPhone without a contract is pretty similar hardware to the Pandora, what does that say about the Pandora? And there's this thing called an iPod Touch which is pretty much an iPhone without a contract (or camera, 3G connection, etc.) - and it sells pretty well. So, I'd say a locked, uncontracted iPhone would be far from "useless". Besides, some people already have contracts with at&t (or other authorized carriers), and can buy the phone without a contract *or* unlocking it - and still be able to use it as a phone. BTW, the iPod Touch costs less than the Pandora, too. And, yes, I already have one.

so people usually get them with contracts. the amount of money given to at&t and apple over a two year period (the minimum length for a contract) is well over 700$, making apple even more money.

First off - Apple doesn't get all the money from the monthly contract - almost all of it goes to at&t. Secondly - why in the world does it matter how much money Apple gets? Whether they lose money, or make money, or get $599 or $199 or $1742.79? We're talking about how much the iPhone *costs consumers* not how much Apple does or does not make. And the price for an iPhone - the way the vast majority of people who buy it will buy it - is $199 for the 16GB iPhone 3Gs. Even the 32GB one costs less than the Pandora - ($299).

And you can ignore all that if you want, because the claim on the website is not the cheapest fast handheld - it's "By far the most powerful". And, I'm sorry, saying the software makes a difference is hogwash. That might make it slightly faster at some point - but no where near "By Far the most powerful". And, if that we're clear enough - the website says, specifically - "It is by far the most powerful handheld in the world both in terms of raw CPU power and 3D graphics capability, it will be able to handle things such as Firefox3 or Quake3 with ease." In terms of "raw CPU power" - it is EQUAL with the iPhone 3Gs - not "by far more powerful". Same with the 3D graphics.

The statement on the Official™ OpenPandora.org™ homepage is *false advertising*. End of story.

 

[hansfranz]

HaHa theyre quite now because youve shown them how STUPID they are i like that

cant stand comments like "If you dont like it go away" or "We believe in Pandora" <_< <_< <_< makes me wanna cancel my order...

 

[emcp]

talk about trolling

prove the iphone is more powerful, you simply cant.
until you can prove the iphone is more powerful than the pandora, which you cant currently do as the pandora isnt release plus the fact that even when you do get it, there was no mention of by far the most powerful-est cpu etc. You are defining what power means to you

to me power, its pretty useless unless you have good controls, which the iphone doesnt. therefore the pandora > iphone and therefore to me is the more powerful.

im pretty sure you cant get brought to court over your own opinion, otherwise film studios/news paper would be f*cked, due to movie reviews. Pandora never lied about the specs. And so this case of false advertisement is bogus.

trust me theres alot more places watchdogs should be. and im pretty sure plenty in your apple world.

so why are you bringing this discussion up. power is useless unless you can use it. the iphone controls are shit. only fitting a very small market of casual games.

not to mention pandoras USB. which is conventional. something apple has no experience about THESE DAYS anyways.
i cant expand the iphones mem. i can the pandora.

your basically stating your own definition of power. power which cant actually be made useful

so your just trolling. go away

 

[hansfranz]

My definiton of power:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1Sa6Umz8YA

prove the iphone is more powerful, you simply cant.

prove that youre no fool. you simply cant

 

[kin]

Lol I feel more powerfull if I own something I have controll over. :wink:

 

[Sly]

Admitantly, an iPhone isn't a bad tool but lets be honest here... it's more of a poser's tool than any kind of game console. I can't stand the idea of having a phone that doesn't allow for programs to run in the background, even a Windows phone can at least do that.

The Pandora, is an amazing peice of tech for any and all nerds, over the years there's been few Linux portables (android looking to be mostly a dissapointment) in recent years, let alone one with gaming + keyboard controls that is cheaper than a number of netbooks. The only thing that bugs me about the Pandora is the wait which is killing me.

--------

Plus I'm hoping the Pandora will aid me in working with the Lego NXT 'robots', With hopefully a lot of time etc. I can produce some software to link the two allowing me to have a way of navigating aswell as sensor input... could I do that on an iPhone, nope, I'd need a computer inbetween to do it, mainly because apple don't even have a working bluetooth stack in their phones capable of bluetooth functions beyond using headsets.

If you want to look cool, buy a new suit and buy a round of drinks at the bar, people will prefer that over you showing off your iPhone. If you want a cool device, you buy a pandora, simple as.

 

[danielpwnsricky]

OH LOOK ANOTHER THREAD WHERE WE CAN SEE WHICH DEVICE IS MOAR POWERFULS BY MHZ. at least they have similar architecture this time.

Not similar - identical, as in the exact same SoC, same CPU, same Graphics, same RAM - many, many times more storage.

does the iphone have GPU? (a real question, i don't know)

apple sells the iphone 3gs at 700$ without a contract. they actually lose money when the iphone 3gs's are sold at 199$

Um, no. Apple *never* loses money on hardware. The $199 price (see, the dollar sign goes in front) is "Subsidized" by at&t - not Apple. Subsidized means that at&t pays Apple for the hardware, and then sells it to you for less than they bought it, since they are going to get a lot more money from you over the 2 years. Money that most people pay to somebody each month anyway. (The average person who would be interested in an iPhone or a Pandora probably already has a cell phone anyway.)

sorry, i'm not very knowledgeable in this area. thank you for correctly me.

however, the device is pretty useless without contract (apparently unlocking is illegal)

So, since the iPhone without a contract is pretty similar hardware to the Pandora, what does that say about the Pandora? And there's this thing called an iPod Touch which is pretty much an iPhone without a contract (or camera, 3G connection, etc.) - and it sells pretty well. So, I'd say a locked, uncontracted iPhone would be far from "useless". Besides, some people already have contracts with at&t (or other authorized carriers), and can buy the phone without a contract *or* unlocking it - and still be able to use it as a phone. BTW, the iPod Touch costs less than the Pandora, too. And, yes, I already have one.

you don't get it. an iphone without a contract is very different from a pandora. compare an ipod touch with iphone 3gs specs with the pandora. i was wrong before, it's not entirely useless, but at this point, a pandora is much more preferable (except the size). i didn't really understand what you said after that... you're saying someone with a contract with at&t already can use an iphone without a contract as a phone?

so people usually get them with contracts. the amount of money given to at&t and apple over a two year period (the minimum length for a contract) is well over 700$, making apple even more money.

First off - Apple doesn't get all the money from the monthly contract - almost all of it goes to at&t. Secondly - why in the world does it matter how much money Apple gets? Whether they lose money, or make money, or get $599 or $199 or $1742.79? We're talking about how much the iPhone *costs consumers* not how much Apple does or does not make. And the price for an iPhone - the way the vast majority of people who buy it will buy it - is $199 for the 16GB iPhone 3Gs. Even the 32GB one costs less than the Pandora - ($299).

no. you're still talking about contracted iphone that costs 199$/299$, including the two year contract. i'm saying the price for one without a contract is about 700$ (don't remember which model) where at&t gets no money from a contract, well over the price of a pandora. the 199$/299$ price is to only trick people into paying large amounts of money for the contract.

And you can ignore all that if you want, because the claim on the website is not the cheapest fast handheld - it's "By far the most powerful". And, I'm sorry, saying the software makes a difference is hogwash. That might make it slightly faster at some point - but no where near "By Far the most powerful". And, if that we're clear enough - the website says, specifically - "It is by far the most powerful handheld in the world both in terms of raw CPU power and 3D graphics capability, it will be able to handle things such as Firefox3 or Quake3 with ease." In terms of "raw CPU power" - it is EQUAL with the iPhone 3Gs - not "by far more powerful". Same with the 3D graphics.

you're the one who brought up price when someone said price is a main difference, and you were wrong. i NEVER said that the software made a difference. your whole point is based on a year-old claim, of course it's going change. it is equal in raw CPU power, however, you seem to ignore the overhead OS of the iphone that makes a huge difference in the amount of power that the machine can use to run things like quake. it's not the same way with the 3D graphics if the iphone doesn't have a GPU, but i don't know about that.

The statement on the Official™ OpenPandora.org™ homepage is *false advertising*. End of story.

the statement on the homepage is not false advertising. it's just old. i have the feeling you're out to get the openpandora team. get over it.

Admitantly, an iPhone isn't a bad tool but lets be honest here... it's more of a poser's tool than any kind of game console. I can't stand the idea of having a phone that doesn't allow for programs to run in the background, even a Windows phone can at least do that.

The Pandora, is an amazing peice of tech for any and all nerds, over the years there's been few Linux portables (android looking to be mostly a dissapointment) in recent years, let alone one with gaming + keyboard controls that is cheaper than a number of netbooks. The only thing that bugs me about the Pandora is the wait which is killing me.

--------

Plus I'm hoping the Pandora will aid me in working with the Lego NXT 'robots', With hopefully a lot of time etc. I can produce some software to link the two allowing me to have a way of navigating aswell as sensor input... could I do that on an iPhone, nope, I'd need a computer inbetween to do it, mainly because apple don't even have a working bluetooth stack in their phones capable of bluetooth functions beyond using headsets.

If you want to look cool, buy a new suit and buy a round of drinks at the bar, people will prefer that over you showing off your iPhone. If you want a cool device, you buy a pandora, simple as.

looks like we've gotten into an argument about which device is better, but we're only talking about hardware specifications. you've got a good point with the background programs though.

 

[Kramy]

The statement on the Official™ OpenPandora.org™ homepage is *false advertising*. End of story.

Hi chad. I'm sorry you feel that way, because you're wrong.

http://www.zodttd.com/blog/2009/02/24/e ... y-so-slow/

Have a nice day.

 

[danielpwnsricky]

The statement on the Official™ OpenPandora.org™ homepage is *false advertising*. End of story.

Hi chad. I'm sorry you feel that way, because you're wrong.

http://www.zodttd.com/blog/2009/02/24/e ... y-so-slow/

Have a nice day.

nah, he's talking about the raw computing power if apple were to get rid of the overhead OS. too bad that's never going to happen.

 

[chad78]

i didn't really understand what you said after that... you're saying someone with a contract with at&t already can use an iphone without a contract as a phone?

Yes. For example, I have a contract with at&t. If I straight out bought an iPhone, with no contract, I'd just have to put my current SIM card into the iPhone, and it would work.

no. you're still talking about contracted iphone that costs 199$/299$, including the two year contract. i'm saying the price for one without a contract is about 700$ (don't remember which model) where at&t gets no money from a contract, well over the price of a pandora. the 199$/299$ price is to only trick people into paying large amounts of money for the contract.

You are correct in saying that an uncontracted iPhone costs about twice as much as a Pandora.

The 3D Graphics GPU on the iPhone 3Gs is the PowerVR SGX - same as the Pandora - and same as the Palm Pre, I must add.

So, if someone doesn't like the iPhone, the Palm Pre has the same CPU/GPU combo as the Pandora and iPhone. Another handheld that the Pandora is not "Far more powerful" than. And the Palm Pre does multitasking, too, (those "background processes" that someone was complaining about).