Superphone vs smartphone: what's the difference?

What do you call a smartphone that's a little bit smarter than other smartphones? A smarterphone? A brainyphone? Nope: it's superphone, and if you're not sick of the word already you will be by the end of 2012.

This year's top mobile phone buzzword describes top-end, multi-core 3G and 4G smartphones, and it's definitely not a big old load of marketing nonsense designed to encompass dual-core phones, quad-core phones and pretty much anything else that runs apps.

So what does it mean, what's the difference between a superphone and a smartphone, and whose phones are eligible? Here's a clue: not much, and not Apple.

Superphones mean Android smartphones

Or at least, they did initially: Google coined the term when it launched theNexus One back in 2010. According to Android partner Samsung, a superphone smartphone has a 1GHz processor or better, really nice cameras, 3D graphics acceleration, motion sensors, at least 720p HD video capture and playback, high quality 3D gaming, 3G (ideally 4G) and social networking apps.

You will be shocked - shocked! - to discover that Samsung just happens to make phones that fit or exceed that specification.

Superphones don't mean iPhones

Samsung's Omar Khan says that superphones have at least 4-inch screens and proper multitasking that doesn't stop apps when you leave them. You will be shocked - shocked! - to discover that by that definition, the iPhone 4 and 4S aren't superphones.

Superphones are Windows Phones

The next version of Windows Phone, dubbed Apollo, will be coming in the middle of 2012 and will be aimed squarely at "the business/superphone market".

SUPER WINDOWS:A superphone can be a Windows Phone - Apollo is aimed at the business/superphone market - but it definitely can't be an iPhone

Superphones are BlackBerry phones

RIM's been promising BlackBerry superphones for ages, and its QNX-loaded phones are due this year. The devices will have dual core processors, 4.1-inch screens and will be out... eventually.

Superphones are dual-core phones, or maybe quad-core phones

The original superphone specification only asked for 1GHz processors, but during 2011 that definition evolved and every self-respecting superphone needed to be a dual-core phone. Inevitably the dual-core phone processor is starting to become a quad-core phone processor. It's almost as if superphone is a nebulous marketing concept that applies to pretty much anything new and shiny.

Superphone means quad-core phone, definitely

True smartphones will arrive in 2012, ARM says, and by superphone it means a multi-core phone. Initially we'll see superphones with dual-core processors, but quad-core phoneswill inevitably follow.

Superphones don't mean quad-core iPhone 5s

The iPhone 5 may come with a quad-core A6 processor, but you will be shocked - shocked! - to discover that no matter how super it is, it won't be able to call itself a superphone if it doesn't grow at least half an inch.

What Makes a Smartphone a Superphone?

Google coined the “superphone” nomenclature at the launch of the Nexus One. Khan said these devices are “optimized from a silicon perspective, a hardware perspective and a software perspective.”

In general terms, a superphone has more deep access to hardware capabilities, and the hardware is a step above what you’d see in a smartphone. Screens are larger — in excess of four inches, in some cases. The superphone has an impressive camera, generally between five and eight megapixels, that lends itself to high-quality photo and video capturing. It has multiple microphones for noise cancellation, both for calls and video recording.

And Khan also said 2010 is “the year of the gigahertz processor.” Newer best-in-class mobiles that feature 1Ghz processors include the Galaxy, the Evo, the Incredible, the Droid X and the iPhone 4.

In addition to better hardware, superphones have better software. The operating system iterations — includingAndroid Froyo and iOS from Apple — are adding “superfeatures” such as true multitasking and are allowing for what Khan called “signature experiences –- a fine marriage of hardware and software.”

This union of hardware and software means that the better displays will allow for high-quality video and gaming experiences — not just social and casual gaming, but games that appeal to the hardcore gamer as well. And accelerometers, cameras and GPS systems built into superphones allow for amazing location-based service and augmented reality applications.

In general, social applications on superphones are more integrated, and web browsing with open-source Webkit browsers is more advanced and much faster.

“It’s the power of a netbook in the palm of your hand,” Khan concluded. “What users expect is the same experience they have on their netbooks or PCs in an uncompromised fashion.”

Of course, mobile apps have been a driving and enriching force in the evolution of the superphone. The Apple/Android arms race has led to a staggering 220,000 apps in the App Store and 70,000 in the Android Market. Year over year, we’re using our mobiles more and more to access news, social networks and even video content. In fact, the most popular apps are accessed every day by around 60% of their users.

So, what comes after the superphone? We can joke about the “superduperphone” or the “überphone,” but the acceleration of technology is mind-boggling to say the least. Will human innovation be able to keep pace with machine capabilities? Will we see more applications that are truly useful to individuals and society, or will the space continue to see waves of novelty or “trash” apps?