This is funny this article should
come up because it was something I was beginning to wonder about more and more:
if it is such a technological super power why aren’t Chinese brands found in America
and why is it that students from China don’t have Chinese phones that are crazy
advanced but they prefer Iphones? But I began not to think much of it as we
have begun to delve into china’s isolation and independence from the world. I
just simply figured they had their phones we had ours and didn’t think too much
of it. However as I begin read this article a few ideas start floating into my
head: why not, these phones do have better quality, what is the price range
going to be. And as I read farther in I begin to see that the ‘security threat’
that may or may not be more than just simply the American government trying to
deflect foreign goods from taking from American pockets. And lastly I see how much better these
products are than the products we have, better resolution, better cameras,
longer battery life, and an overall larger screen. And while one of these
phones may not be very successful, that is where having two is that much larger
an advantage. If one phone isn’t for a person maybe the other is. And so while
the company not being well known and the company being from a foreign countrymay
be an issue, that has never stopped American consumers and assuming they look
at the statistics; these are incredibly hard to match.
Let’s look at the two phones
themselves. We have the Ascend Mate that is 6.1 inch display. And the Ascend D2
with higher screen resolution than the iphone 5, 13 megapixel camera, two day’s
battery life, and water proof. Both run on Google’s Android Market. And these
are impressive statistics given these are the main complaints from smart phone
users and really any phone use. Dropping your phone in water ruins almost
anyone’s day, smart phone user or not and so does a dead battery. And when it comes to smart phones everyone is
about resolution and screen size since the phone is a touch screen. And while
the Ascend Mate borders on too big and is in the recently created “phablet” category
some people may argue in the western market you can’t have “too anything”
because it is all about excess. So while I personally am not a smart phone user
these statistics look really impressive and a 13 megapixel camera is really interesting
for someone who enjoys photography like myself. But also not being a smart
phone user, I turn to the dark question of price. According to an estimate by fonearena.com
the estimated price of the Ascend Mate is $844.44 and the Ascend D2 at 777.78…
Seemly large numbers so I compared them to that of the Apple Iphone 5 which
weighed in at a totally 1011.11. So assuming you had the money to spend on
these phone,s not only do the specs for these two incoming phones look
impressive but there price is considerably lower than Apple’s. To really sum up
the math, the D2 with a 5 megapixel higher camera, higher resolution, I inch larger
display, is water proof, and is
233.33 dollars cheaper… Why wouldn’t you buy it?
Well
this article would argue that it is a threat to security as it is could be used
to “unlawfully monitor communications and other activity” which I initially
assumed was a way to scare people from what is obviously a better deal but is one
that inadvertently steals American business and sends that millions poured into
the mobile phone market overseas to another country, one which we already
outsource to and use to manufacture a good majority of store bought goods from.
But then something came up in the back of my mind which lead me to look up a New
York Times article. Internet Censorship. We have probably heard about it in China
but not thought much of it or heard specific facts. In pop culture America this
means that Chinese internet bans Facebook and has fought with Google… But wait
these two phones are powered by the Google’s Android Market… And so I figured I
should read this article and gain little more knowledge from a more reputable
source than Facebook memes and rants. This
article talked about government banning of websites with the Dalai Lama and the
word “freedom” and other extreme things like this however that doesn’t really
relate to phones. Or does it? As this began to be protested, China, in the
words of the New York Times “tightened its grip on electronic communications…
phone calls, electronic messages, e-mails and access to the internet.” And so
while the content istself that was blocked and monitored wasn’t super
important, that fact that it was/is makes the issue here. The Chinese government
wanted more and more for people to provide their real name and identity in
order to use the internet, preventing anonymity. Direct threats to these rules
were mobile phone users as they were more easily able to access the internet anonymously.
A rudimentary part of out coming phones in the western world is Facebook,
Youtube and Twitter, however all of these are banned in China. The government
in China has shutdown, according to the New York Times, “more than 1,900 web
sites and 250 blogs…but also online message groups and even cellphone text
messages.” Cellphone text Messages. Now this has made a full connection to
these phones. These new incoming phones have now lost some luster. If I buy a Chinese
phone am I at risk of both being monitored and having my text messages deleted
just simply because of the use of “freedom” or the Dalai Lama in a
conversation? Just simply because of the country from which I bought my phone?
But this is all powered by Google isn’t it? Which is clashing with China for Internet
censorship and monitoring? The whole thing is kind of clouded with issues. And
while I hate to sound like a conspiracy theorist I also don’t want an invasion of
my privacy and violation of my rights as an individual. So these phones look
great, but I think security is a valid concern. I am not saying by any means
not to support this company or their phones but to do more research and make an
educated purchase.
This is fantastic Nate! I love that you followed the questions this article sparks. Thanks for sharing!
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