Here in the 21st century, it is still an irony that many smartphones still ship with the QVGA (320×240) screen. Though the trend is slowly changing with the likes of HTC Touch Diamond, Toshiba G series and Apple iPhone, it is a pity that almost all S60 phones shipping today still sport QVGA. Of particular note is the upcoming N96 from Nokia. Apart from the E90 no other S60 phone in Nokia’s current portfolio has a screen larger than QVGA. Ha, the good old N80 days!
You may ask- do we really need anything more than QVGA, especially with the kind of mobile browsers available today. When compared to QVGA, VGA at 640×480 provides four times more pixel count. This means less scrolling while browsing. Your pictures and videos will also appear with better clarity and details because of the higher pixel density. Excel mobile becomes usable with QVGA. Look at this comparison picture from Jason Langridge’s blog which shows how better the browsing experience is on a VGA screen, even with the same screen size.
By the way, VGA is not the only option available. The iPhone sports a lower resolution than VGA at 480×320 which is still way ahead of QVGA in terms of usability. I think Apple found this resolution as the sweet spot as some people consider that VGA screens display tiny fonts which could strain your eyes. Some Windows Mobile phones like Toshiba G900 also sport screens with a whopping 800×480 WVGA resolution.
If you want a better mobile experience VGA (or higher) is the way to go. This could be one reason the N96 may not see the kind of success its predecessor, the N95 boasts of.
