Which One is Better
The iPhone 6 and Samsung Galaxy S6 are widely held to be the champions of iOS and Android respectively. At a time when the choice between these two smartphone platforms arguably comes down to personal preference more than how much you can afford or obvious feature deficiencies, that makes a detailed comparison all the more essential.
A close look at these two phones side by side yields more fascinating differences than suspicious similarities. What’s undeniable, though, is that they’re both gunning for a similar premium market.
Both phones have classy metal-and-glass designs, class-leading cameras, and powerful processors – not to mention the top-end price tags to match.
Both phones also mark sizable departures from their predecessors. In the iPhone 6, which was launched in September 2014, Apple finally ditches the restrictive and arguably outmoded 4-inch display size of previous iterations.
It also switches away from the striking square-rim design language that had been part of the iPhone range ever since the iPhone 4 in 2011, returning to a softer and more rounded approach that’s reminiscent of earlier handsets.
Samsung’s design overhaul has been even more radical. The Samsung Galaxy S6, launched in April 2015, marks a fundamental change in philosophy for the South Korean manufacturer.
Gone is the function-over-form mantra, the gaudy-but-robust plastic construction, the emphasis on box-ticking gimmick overload ahead of a crafted user experience. In its place is an elegant handset that concerns itself with how pleasant it is to live with rather than how many things it can do.
Samsung event went as far as to make a variant of the S6 in the form of the Galaxy S6 Edge, with curved dual displays for an even more premium look and feel.
So how do these two flagship phones, separated by six months, compare in the here and now?
Key features
The parallels between these two major phones can be be seen by breaking them down into their key selling points. In this respect, at least, it can be said that the iPhone 6 and Samsung Galaxy S6 precisely mirror one another.
After all, both phones sell themselves on sleek new designs, improved screen technology, and stellar cameras.
And yet, in each key respect, the two phones take a very different approach, as we’ll discuss in greater detail in the appropriate sections.
In isolation, the iPhone 6’s design is notable for marking a big departure from the iPhone 5S before it. It’s bigger, slimmer, and more rounded, and it reverts to the gentle curves of the iPhone 3GS after a prolonged spell of palm-grating angles.
Samsung’s phone, meanwhile, marks a radical rejection of the plastic and faux-leather effects typified by the Samsung Galaxy S5. In its place we have a metal rim and two shiny glass surfaces.
Yes, Samsung has evidently learned a thing or two from Apple in this regard, but as we’ll discuss in the next section it’s not quite as blatant as you might think.
Both phones represent notable leaps forward in screen technology, too, but in very different ways. The iPhone 6 marks Apple’s belated realisation that a lot of people quite like larger phones. As such, its display has grown 0.7 of an inch over its predecessor’s.
What’s next? Samsung Galaxy S7 |iPhone 6S
That doesn’t sound like a lot – and indeed, in Android terms it would still be seen as a ‘mini’ phone – but it instantly makes the iPhone a much better multimedia device than before.
It’s not the sharpest display we’ve ever seen, though. With an unusual 1334 x 750 resolution, it produces the exact same pixel density of 326ppi as previous iPhones.
In everyday use this is actually perfectly fine. Thanks to Apple’s tight hold on its software, everything feels optimised and native on this display, unlike on many 720p Android phones that we could mention.
Still, we imagine plenty of industry-aware Apple fans will wince when they spot the Galaxy S6 display’s vital statistics. It’s a 5.1-inch QHD Super Amoled display, which offers a whole heap of advantages over the iPhone 6 equivalent.
For one thing, it’s about half an inch bigger, meaning that websites and media content are larger and clearer. Also, QHD means that the display has a 2560 x 1440 resolution. We’re talking something not too far shy of four times the number of pixels found in the iPhone 6, and a 577ppi pixel density that’s almost double.
Honestly, in general usage, the difference simply doesn’t feel that pronounced. There’s still much debate over the need for a QHD resolution in smartphone displays.
That doesn’t mean that you can’t see the benefits at all, though. Running the same 4K or 2K video side by side on each, you can undoubtedly pick up more detail in the Galaxy S6. The same advantage sees viewing high quality photos on the Samsung a superior experience.
As for the differences between Super AMOLED and LCD, well, those are a little more subjective. The Galaxy S6 screen has colours that pop more, deeper blacks, yet a generally redder tinge to it. The iPhone 6’s screen is colder and bluer.
Looking at the TechRadar homepage on both, with its whites and greys, the Galaxy S6 looked surprisingly murky and tinted by comparison. It’s not, of course. In fact, the Galaxy S6 gets incredibly close to the 6500K reference standard for colour accuracy, while the iPhone 6 comes in well above that level.
But if you’ve become used to Apple’s distinctive blue tint, and particularly its icy whites, the difference can be jarring.
The iPhone 6 screen also comes across as brighter than its larger, sharper rival. It’s one of those rare phones that can make the S6 seem almost muted. It means that holding the two screens side-by-side isn’t the knocked-out-of-the-park win for the Samsung that we were expecting.
Finally, both phone manufacturers have pushed their handsets’ photographic chops as a major selling point. Both manufacturers are quite right to do so.
As for the differences between Super AMOLED and LCD, well, those are a little more subjective. The Galaxy S6 screen has colours that pop more, deeper blacks, yet a generally redder tinge to it. The iPhone 6’s screen is colder and bluer.
Looking at the TechRadar homepage on both, with its whites and greys, the Galaxy S6 looked surprisingly murky and tinted by comparison. It’s not, of course. In fact, the Galaxy S6 gets incredibly close to the 6500K reference standard for colour accuracy, while the iPhone 6 comes in well above that level.
But if you’ve become used to Apple’s distinctive blue tint, and particularly its icy whites, the difference can be jarring.
The iPhone 6 screen also comes across as brighter than its larger, sharper rival. It’s one of those rare phones that can make the S6 seem almost muted. It means that holding the two screens side-by-side isn’t the knocked-out-of-the-park win for the Samsung that we were expecting.
Finally, both phone manufacturers have pushed their handsets’ photographic chops as a major selling point. Both manufacturers are quite right to do so.
Hi!
This is not the section for this. Please see the purpose of Assist sticky thread at the top of the section.
Also, XDA is for android and Windows devices... Not going to find many here that care to compare those to Apple products.
Thanks and thread closed.
Related
I am having a hard time understanding why the iPhone 4s does so well on these benchmark test compared to the HOX. I also can't seem to find anywhere that explains what these tests mean. I assume it is screen and 3d rendering, but I am lost. An apple fanboy showed me this and while I am not any kind of fanboy myself I do find him and others annoying. I would like to offer a little shut up juice, but I do not understand these tests. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6126/glbenchmark-25-performance-on-ios-and-android-devices/2
No expert at benchmarks, by any means. But my take: some benchmarks are dependent on native screen resolution, and the resolution of the iPhone 4s is much lower than just about every flagship Android phone around. Just like with PC graphical benchmarks, if you want to jack up the scores, just reduce the screen resolution. Looks like the benchmarks (in your link) that have resolutions next to each phone, are resolution dependent. This being the case, you are nowhere near comparing apples to apples. Take the first benchmark, it suggests the Galaxy S2 is much faster than our One X, if you don't take resolution into account. No f-ing way is that true. Where the benchmarks that render off-screen are all defaulted to 1080p, you see the iPhone 4 getting beat up in most of the tests.
The fact that the iPhone 4 is barely holding its own in some of the resolution-dependent benchmarks, despite having a much lower screen resolution, suggests to me its GPU power is actually pretty weak compared to the newer higher resolution devices. Hence, the conclusion at the bottom of the article where it says the iPhone 4s "shows its age".
Your Apple fanboy simply doesn't know what he is looking at, and further more didn't bother to read the conclusion at the end of the article.
Similar reasons as to why the "inferior" One S beats the One X in many benchmarks. Lower screen resolution. It's like having a corvette engine push a Bently (One X) and the same engine push a smart car (One S/iPhone). The Smart car will be faster, but you still want the Bentley.
Not trying to say the other phones are bad or cheap, just making an analogy as far as benchmark testing is concerned.
Makes sense, thank you both.
Over the last few years, Android has taken the smartphone world by storm, climbing to the top spot in just about every major market out there. The Google platform offers a mix of features that can't be matched by any of its competitors and is offered on hardware so diverse that it has covered almost every conceivable market segment.
However, with recent trends in flagship droids, we feel there's a substantial group of users that is being ignored. As Android top dogs all choose huge screens for their high-end offerings, those looking to experience the most capable hardware in a mid-sized smartphones are left out in the dry. Despite the large number of companies committed to the Android cause, there's not a single manufacturer to come up with a handset to match the raw power and display brilliance of the Samsung Galaxy S4, HTC One or Sony Xperia Z in a shell that's as easy to pocket as, say, the Apple iPhone 5.
Now, that's not to say that Apple's approach is better than those of its Android counterparts or that large smartphones are in any way bad. The market performance of all those flagships speaks loud enough and there are a number of reasons why super capable hardware makes more sense on larger displays.
However, we firmly believe there is a huge number of people who would gladly trade screen estate for portability as long as that doesn't involve further compromises. As things currently stand, replacing your large Android flagship with a mid-size phone will mean you have to live with a chipset of less than half the processing power and a display with quality and density way below the high-end standard.
Here are what we believe will be the most important boxes that such a device needs to check.
Footprint and profile similar to Motorola RAZR i or Apple iPhone 5
A 4.2" display of at least 720p resolution (1080p would be an overkill on this size)
Top-of-the line chipset (Snapdragon 600, Exynos 5 Octa, Tegra 4)
Adequate camera
That's definitely not too much to ask as using current technology it's perfectly possible to create such a smartphone. We are certain that a large part of the reason why manufacturers haven't invested enough effort in the development of such smartphones is the false assumption that there's not enough demand for it.
That's why we've started an online petition, which we hope will help convince large Android OEMs to pay proper attention to the mid-size market segment. If you share our dream of seeing a properly powered mid-size Android smartphone with all the bangs and whistles of the aforementioned flagships, you can help our cause by following this link and signing our online petition.
If it gains traction, we'll make sure to share it with all our manufacturer contacts and draw as much attention to it as possible. Not even the best performing companies out there can afford to ignore requests singed by thousands of people, so you if you feel as strongly about this issue as we do, we urge you to make your voice heard!
Sign the petition
My girlfriend would appreciate this.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app
I slept after reading paragraph 2.one word for you :BORING!! just tell me, if online petitions worked, OEMS like Samsung would have released proper source code with their exynos chip set. HTC would have stopped all their crap. Motorola would have allowed bootloader unlocking for their consumer device. All these are useless. The people who frequent this site are too small user base. OEMS wouldn't give a damn as long as they make big bucks.
Sent from my supercharged :tank:
My personal opinion and i just wanna share it (not flaming)
personally i think the issue is not the screens lets say you wrote this in the right (S4) is the same size as S3 and still better bigger and faster in all ways, why would they make smaller one's ? i think no company will go above 5" now since it seems the MAX size for a reasonable phone, honestly large screens make the surfing experience alot nicer and enjoying if you want a phone for calls only get a nokia or an iphone its way small to be browsing a webpage such as XDA isnt even comfortable at all.
a big screen is an advantage, it doesn't hurt your eyes and even people with sight problems are able to ready anything without zooming and reading word by word instead of sentences... its the idea not of portability but usage and performance i can say behalf of many android users our phones aren't for business men its for music, internet, games, fun , hangouts and social communications
a small phone as the S3 Mini was a start for you guys but come on try and see which is better which actually makes you feel relaxed using a phone bigger screen for the need of a small one just in some cases!
4.0 inch
hisname said:
I slept after reading paragraph 2.one word for you :BORING!! just tell me, if online petitions worked, OEMS like Samsung would have released proper source code with their exynos chip set. HTC would have stopped all their crap. Motorola would have allowed bootloader unlocking for their consumer device. All these are useless. The people who frequent this site are too small user base. OEMS wouldn't give a damn as long as they make big bucks.
Sent from my supercharged :tank:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
its all about Android phone manufacturers: Start making mid-size smartphones with high-end specs. :good:
Seems good. I think 4.2" to 4.5" is the perfect size for a smartphone. Here are some dream specs.
4.5" 1366x768 SAmoled display (348 ppi)
Quad core Snapdragon 800 @ 2GHz
13 MP Camera equivalent to S4
16/32/64GB of storage with MicroSD up to 64 GB
2800mAh Battery
2GB RAM
If there was a nice looking phone with such specs, I'll get one in a heartbeat
I fully believe that an edge to edge 4.5" display can be squeezed into the frame of the RAZR i ( 122.5 x 60.9 x 8.3 mm).
Sent from my Xperia Arc S using xda premium
Why is this thread in the S4 forums at all? Please post your unrelated stuff elsewhere.
Sent from my LG-E970 using Tapatalk 2
This will not be successful. @OP, you're talking about slowing down innovation. 1080p screens have already been released, A15 processors as well and there already are plans to move to more efficient, more powerful chipsets in the future. And then comes screen real estate... many of us can't go back to 4.3 inch, not to mention smaller screen. Personally I won't consider a phone smaller than 4.7 inch. I understand where you coming from and it is your opinion (shared by many) but it will be hard to ask OEMs to go back to smaller screens. They will tell you that they have good mid range phones that should suit your needs. Actually now that I think of it, since phones are getting more powerful with bigger screens, most mid range phones will be 720p with good SoCs. That should do it for you guys.
barondebxl said:
This will not be successful. @OP, you're talking about slowing down innovation. 1080p screens have already been released, A15 processors as well and there already are plans to move to more efficient, more powerful chipsets in the future. And then comes screen real estate... many of us can't go back to 4.3 inch, not to mention smaller screen. Personally I won't consider a phone smaller than 4.7 inch. I understand where you coming from and it is your opinion (shared by many) but it will be hard to ask OEMs to go back to smaller screens. They will tell you that they have good mid range phones that should suit your needs. Actually now that I think of it, since phones are getting more powerful with bigger screens, most mid range phones will be 720p with good SoCs. That should do it for you guys.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As stated in the petition, I am one of the people who like smaller screen devices due to portability and usability issues.
I am truly disappointed that smartphones have become more and more hard to use with a single hand and that I almost need a purse to carry around such a phone.
I do not want to wear a purse.
Please stop pressuring men to wear purses!
Please stop posting non S4 items in this forum!
No one gives a crap what size screen you prefer. Post it somewhere else.
Sent from my LG-E970 using Tapatalk 2
haxor said:
As stated in the petition, I am one of the people who like smaller screen devices due to portability and usability issues.
I am truly disappointed that smartphones have become more and more hard to use with a single hand and that I almost need a purse to carry around such a phone.
I do not want to wear a purse.
Please stop pressuring men to wear purses!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well it is your right but you should post in the right place. Good luck to you.
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-6452_7-57587774/screens-test-htc-one-vs-samsung-galaxy-s4/
They compare the LCD technology and the AMOLED technology from the HTC One and the Samsung Galaxy S4 respectively. They determined that color accuracy, image detail, contrast and blacks to be superior in the Galaxy flagship, while giving brightness and outdoor legibility in direct light to its competitor. The iPhone 5 is considered best in class for handheld mobile LCD technology when it comes to color reproduction, due to better screen calibration on a smaller panel.
This comparison finding is further supported by the reputable business "DisplayMate" conducting comparison tests on the iPhone 5 and Galaxy S4 only to determine that they're on par.
megagodx said:
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-6452_7-57587774/screens-test-htc-one-vs-samsung-galaxy-s4/
They compare the LCD technology and the AMOLED technology from the HTC One and the Samsung Galaxy S4 respectively. They determined that color accuracy, image detail, contrast and blacks to be superior in the Galaxy flagship, while giving brightness and outdoor legibility in direct light to its competitor. The iPhone 5 is considered best in class for handheld mobile LCD technology when it comes to color reproduction, due to better screen calibration on a smaller panel.
This comparison finding is further supported by the reputable business "DisplayMate" conducting comparison tests on the iPhone 5 and Galaxy S4 only to determine that they're on par.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
"When you deselect the Adapt Display check box you can select from Dynamic, Standard, Professional Photo, or Movie. We measured them all, and Movie delivered the most accurate color. Its saturation error in particular is much lower than that of the other modes. Movie mode's advantage over the others isn't as strong as it was on the Note 2, however."
Movie is the best mode? Movie mode looks washed out, poor and boring close to Dynamic or Adapt Display.
I don't give a damn about synthetic color accuracy. That only makes sense if you are a professional that works with imaging and you NEED color accuracy. I don't care about that, since I don't work with that. I'm just a regular user that wants to enjoy my cell phone and I want rich, vivid images with images exploding with exaggerated color, because that's what makes me feel like having a great screen, and that´s what people tell me when they see my screen and say "wow, look at those colors".
I always thought that Galaxy S screens look much better then iPhone screens, and one of the reasons for that is the natural color boosting AMOLED screens do. Sure, they are not "accurate", but they look great. Accurate = boring. Vivid colors = awesome.
Yea. I switched to Movie Mode on my N2 and it looked horrible and faded.
Sent from my SPH-L900 using xda app-developers app
I much prefer saturated/richer colors, but I did wonder about color accuracy since reading other blogs/reviews/posts people have said the S4 is much less accurate than the HTC One/iPhone with regards to accuracy. I guess this sort of counterpoints those claims.
I am glad that we can chose what we want so... that's really good.
There is mode for everyone and it's great to be able to chose and have more options.
The point is. We all know OLED is not as color accurate as LCD. OLED boosts rich vivid colors that, although unaccurate, look awesome. Not to mention the perfect dark pitch and virtually infinite contrast ratio (unlike color accuracy, elevated contrast ratio is equally impressive both in theory and in practice).
Buying a OLED phone and trying to make it look like an LCD phone makes no sense to me. If I want a LCD-looking screen with LCD color accuracy, I´ll just buy an LCD phone.
^ Are you buying a phone based on the screen?
Point is that Amoled can be great on it's own but also can be good where LCDs are better and improve from generation to generation.
Suchomimus said:
I much prefer saturated/richer colors, but I did wonder about color accuracy since reading other blogs/reviews/posts people have said the S4 is much less accurate than the HTC One/iPhone with regards to accuracy. I guess this sort of counterpoints those claims.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Blogs, pundits of tech sites and such aren't usually knowledgeable when it comes to all factors of determining a good display. I find that they more often than not base their knowledge off of general propaganda. Or they don't have the right type of technology to conduct an invasive and accurate test for gauging the quality of a display in comparison to another.
All the information supplemented in the OP comes from sources that work in the business as screen calibrate technicians; DisplayMate (http://displaymate.com/Galaxy_S4_ShootOut_1.htm) is among the most reputable you'll ever find when it comes to screen assessment, as they do calibration for a living and have the technology to properly asses. I'd rather take their word than some editorial pundit from PocketNow or Gizmodo.
I think they all have their pro's and con's, I suggest you choose what looks good with your eye's and not base on test results or peoples opinions.
richardbroder said:
The point is. We all know OLED is not as color accurate as LCD.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OLEDs are perfectly capable to display absolute accurate colours and go beyond any other display technology in terms of output.
The problem is Samsung's presets accuracy and lack of education.
Sadly because the US variant of the S2 and S3 lacked the hardware for the display modes, that AMOLED got this asinine reputation.
http://www.phonearena.com/news/UL-certifies-the-4.99-FHD-display-on-the-Samsung-Galaxy-S4_id43874
According to UL, the screen on the Samsung Galaxy S4 offers one of the best color reproductions in the mobile industry with the broadest color gamut of up to 97% for the Adobe RGB color space. The screen is said to have one of the best contrast ratios and can be better seen under bright sunlight than the display on many of the phone's rivals.
*Emix* said:
http://www.phonearena.com/news/UL-certifies-the-4.99-FHD-display-on-the-Samsung-Galaxy-S4_id43874
According to UL, the screen on the Samsung Galaxy S4 offers one of the best color reproductions in the mobile industry with the broadest color gamut of up to 97% for the Adobe RGB color space. The screen is said to have one of the best contrast ratios and can be better seen under bright sunlight than the display on many of the phone's rivals.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was thinking about linking that, too. AMOLED truly does seem like it's going to be the future for top-end displays. They really just have to improve energy efficiency with the panel, so it can push higher degrees of brightness, that should dethrone any practical advantageous aspect to an LCD. The panel from S III to S4 was a major leap forward in enhancement. Makes me eagerly curious to see what the Note III and moreover, the S5 will shape this technology into next.
I use Movie mode and find it the best for me beacause im not a big fan of saturated colors.
They just need to sort motion blur and burn in before they can get back to the top.
That article is all well and good, but doesn't take into account that side by side with a HTC One, the S4 screen is underwhelming in real world.
I have gone with Samsung since S2 as I loved that device to bits, but the screen on the S4 blew me away for all the wrong reasons, hence why I bought the HTC One.
Had to chime in as I love samsung phones, but feel they dropped the ball with this one. The S4 screen for me is not even as nice as the S3. I don't know why, maybe by trying to mimic LCD, they lost what was good about AMOLED in the first place. The "pop".
First I will explain my story: I went from owning the SGS 1, then SGS 2 and then I bought a Droid DNA for something different, but someone stole it. Luckily a friend sold me an SGS 3 for very cheap. By the time I played around with the SGS 3, I realised why I was getting bored of Samsung to begin with. It's because of the screen. Yes it looks sharp and clear but the amoled screen was so fake and forced with saturation which my Droid DNA wasn't suffering from. Not to mention the SGS 3 seemed exactly the same as my SGS 2 only a different shape and size. It was quite frankly boring!
After my insurance company replaced my Droid DNA I could no longer use the SGS 3 because of these facts. I continued to use the Droid DNA for the following months and I can not fault it besides the screen being too small for me now, I have simply outgrown it. I have since sold all of my phones including the DNA to purchase a new phone. I automatically wanted the Note 3 because of the size and hardware and well known projected development but my main questions are:
Is the screen on the Galaxy Note 3 improved with life like colours in comparison to the SGS 3?
Is the camera going to be good enough without OIS?
If you want to know my other choices and reasons why I am considering them please look below. (Was going to include Sony Xperia Z Ultra but the camera has no flash and is only 8mp and the size form factor is too much for me)
My first choice (hoping the screen doesn't put me off)
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Samsung Galaxy Note 3
Pros:
Biggest screen in a small chassis in comparison to any other phablet
Stylus might come in handy but I have never used one before
Has the best internals out of the competition Snapdragon 800/Adreno 330
Development support is massive for Samsung!
Massive battery
4K recording on specific model I am interested in
More RAM
Cons:
Amoled screens have always seemed boring to look at to me and everything seems fake, almost like a cartoon. I need to use the GN3 in person before I can be sure. They might have made it better than the SGS 3? - This is the main reason I am concerned about - My Droid DNA felt so lifelike and easy to look at)
Camera has no OIS (and apparently the auto focus is slow according to some reviews)
My second choice
Acer Liquid S2
Pros:
Screen appeals to me more as it is not amoled like the Note 3
6" display
Same internals as Note 3
Same battery capacity as Note 3
Highest contrast amongst my choices?
Better Front Camera than the other choices
LED Ring Flash (4 leds)
Cons:
Bigger than Note 3 and not sure if it is worth it for the size increase of the screen (TOUGH DECISION)
Has a slower clock speed at 2.2 instead of 2.3 in other Snapdragon 800 phones
If it is not a lot cheaper than it will make me lean towards the Note 3
Reflective screen might cancel out contrast levels outdoors
Not sure what development will be like?
My third choice (more information on release might push me to buy this phone)
Oppo N1
Pros:
Rotating 6 lens camera with F/2.0 Aperture
First Cyanogen Mod Integrated Phone
Duel LED Flash
Biggest battery of all of my choices
Back of the phone has a touch panel which I bet will become very customisable
Aluminium
Some images make it look like the phone is waterproof?
Cons:
Phone might be tooooo big
last generation internals Snapdragon 600/Adreno 320
My third choice tied (more information on release might push me to buy this phone)
HTC One Max ( Some specs might still be unconfirmed)
Pros:
Screen might appeal to me more as it is not amoled like the Note 3
Larger screen
Camera has OIS and might be great. (The HTC One camera didn't impress me too much however)
External surround speakers
Development has really started picking back up with HTC
Cons:
Physical size must be big considering the speaker layout and camera
last generation internals Snapdragon 600/Adreno 320
Another tied third choice (Price is so cheap it might make do)
LG Optimus G Pro (Was also looking at Note 2 but this trumps it in every way besides stylus/software which I am still unsure if I will use often enough and of course I prefer a non amoled screen)
Pros:
This phone is literally half the price as the note 3 costing me $450 vs $850 for the Note 3 (This phone might keep me going until a newer phone entices me and for half the price it is tempting)
Dolby mobile sound enhancement
Great sized screen
Big battery
Camera is better than average
The development is not tooooo bad
Cons:
last generation internals Snapdragon 600/Adreno 320
My fourth choice (most disappointing because screen is probably not going to be big enough!! but I love all of the other features. If this phone was 5.5" I would be getting it over anything else! I am so annoyed it has on screen keys and a smaller screen! - It's why I sold my Nexus 4 so quickly)
LG G2
Pros:
Screen appeals to me more as it is not amoled like the Note 3
Large battery for a small phone (not as good as the note 3 but the life should be close to the same as it has a smaller screen to power)
The phone is cheaper to buy outright by $200 dollars in my country in comparison to the note 3
Camera is outstanding - 4K record might be possible with firmware update - f/2.4 aperture and OIS has proven to take better images and video with the right settings in comparison to my other phone choices
Internals are the same as Note 3
Cons:
Screen is only a little step up in quality and size from my Droid DNA (especially if I choose to keep on screen keys active)
LG usually have little development support compared to Samsung
The button placement at the back makes the phone look weird and maybe awkward. I thought it was a camera lens cover when I first saw it
At the end of the day if the Note 3 didn't have an amoled screen and did have OIS I wouldn't be looking at other phones at all. Even if it just had a different screen it would probably lock me in to buying it. That goes the same for the LG G2 if it had a larger screen! To make a definitive decision, I need to use all of these phones in person but because I live in Australia, most of these phones aren't available to me. Makes it very hard to make a decision! I need to look at the Galaxy Note 3 screen and see if I can deal with the amoled, if I can I will buy it. It is released in Australia in 3 days for me to check out.
If I don't like the Note 3 screen, I will need to handle the Oppo, Acer and HTC One Max to see if I am comfortable with the size of them. If I am then I will buy whichever one I like better, the problem is these phone will probably not come to Australia anytime soon, if at all for me to test them so I can only go by user opinion!
If I am not completely happy with the Acer/HTC/Oppo size I will end up buying the LG Optimus G Pro for so much cheaper than the others and I will then look to replace it when I am happy with another phone even if the phone is lower spec, it has decent development and an upgraded screen size and quality over my DNA.
I also need to see the LG G2 in person to judge the screen size for myself, again the phone is not available in my country until November! and I will want to make a decision by then
Note 3 Ftw!
Sent from my SM-N900K using Tapatalk 2
Come on brotha, your posting in a Note 3 thread. That'd be like me going to a Republican rally and asking which is better: Republicans, Democrats, or the Green Party? lol
uppon2 said:
First I will explain my story: I went from owning the SGS 1, then SGS 2 and then I bought a Droid DNA for something different, but someone stole it. Luckily a friend sold me an SGS 3 for very cheap. By the time I played around with the SGS 3, I realised why I was getting bored of Samsung to begin with. It's because of the screen. Yes it looks sharp and clear but the amoled screen was so fake and forced with saturation which my Droid DNA wasn't suffering from. Not to mention the SGS 3 seemed exactly the same as my SGS 2 only a different shape and size. It was quite frankly boring!
After my insurance company replaced my Droid DNA I could no longer use the SGS 3 because of these facts. I continued to use the Droid DNA for the following months and I can not fault it besides the screen being too small for me now, I have simply outgrown it. I have since sold all of my phones including the DNA to purchase a new phone. I automatically wanted the Note 3 because of the size and hardware and well known projected development but my main questions are:
Is the screen on the Galaxy Note 3 improved with life like colours in comparison to the SGS 3?
Is the camera going to be good enough without OIS?
If you want to know my other choices and reasons why I am considering them please look below. (Was going to include Sony Xperia Z Ultra but the camera has no flash and is only 8mp and the size form factor is too much for me)
My first choice (hoping the screen doesn't put me off)
Samsung Galaxy Note 3
Pros:
Biggest screen in a small chassis in comparison to any other phablet
Stylus might come in handy but I have never used one before
Has the best internals out of the competition Snapdragon 800/Adreno 330
Development support is massive for Samsung!
Massive battery
4K recording on specific model I am interested in
More RAM
Cons:
Amoled screens have always seemed boring to look at to me and everything seems fake, almost like a cartoon. I need to use the GN3 in person before I can be sure. They might have made it better than the SGS 3? - This is the main reason I am concerned about - My Droid DNA felt so lifelike and easy to look at)
Camera has no OIS (and apparently the auto focus is slow according to some reviews)
My second choice
Acer Liquid S2
Pros:
Screen appeals to me more as it is not amoled like the Note 3
6" display
Same internals as Note 3
Same battery capacity as Note 3
Highest contrast amongst my choices?
Better Front Camera than the other choices
LED Ring Flash (4 leds)
Cons:
Bigger than Note 3 and not sure if it is worth it for the size increase of the screen (TOUGH DECISION)
Has a slower clock speed at 2.2 instead of 2.3 in other Snapdragon 800 phones
If it is not a lot cheaper than it will make me lean towards the Note 3
Reflective screen might cancel out contrast levels outdoors
Not sure what development will be like?
My third choice (more information on release might push me to buy this phone)
Oppo N1
Pros:
Rotating 6 lens camera with F/2.0 Aperture
First Cyanogen Mod Integrated Phone
Duel LED Flash
Biggest battery of all of my choices
Back of the phone has a touch panel which I bet will become very customisable
Aluminium
Some images make it look like the phone is waterproof?
Cons:
Phone might be tooooo big
last generation internals Snapdragon 600/Adreno 320
My third choice tied (more information on release might push me to buy this phone)
HTC One Max ( Some specs might still be unconfirmed)
Pros:
Screen might appeal to me more as it is not amoled like the Note 3
Larger screen
Camera has OIS and might be great. (The HTC One camera didn't impress me too much however)
External surround speakers
Development has really started picking back up with HTC
Cons:
Physical size must be big considering the speaker layout and camera
last generation internals Snapdragon 600/Adreno 320
Another tied third choice (Price is so cheap it might make do)
LG Optimus G Pro (Was also looking at Note 2 but this trumps it in every way besides stylus/software which I am still unsure if I will use often enough and of course I prefer a non amoled screen)
Pros:
This phone is literally half the price as the note 3 costing me $450 vs $850 for the Note 3 (This phone might keep me going until a newer phone entices me and for half the price it is tempting)
Dolby mobile sound enhancement
Great sized screen
Big battery
Camera is better than average
The development is not tooooo bad
Cons:
last generation internals Snapdragon 600/Adreno 320
My fourth choice (most disappointing because screen is probably not going to be big enough!! but I love all of the other features. If this phone was 5.5" I would be getting it over anything else! I am so annoyed it has on screen keys and a smaller screen! - It's why I sold my Nexus 4 so quickly)
LG G2
Pros:
Screen appeals to me more as it is not amoled like the Note 3
Large battery for a small phone (not as good as the note 3 but the life should be close to the same as it has a smaller screen to power)
The phone is cheaper to buy outright by $200 dollars in my country in comparison to the note 3
Camera is outstanding - 4K record might be possible with firmware update - f/2.4 aperture and OIS has proven to take better images and video with the right settings in comparison to my other phone choices
Internals are the same as Note 3
Cons:
Screen is only a little step up in quality and size from my Droid DNA (especially if I choose to keep on screen keys active)
LG usually have little development support compared to Samsung
The button placement at the back makes the phone look weird and maybe awkward. I thought it was a camera lens cover when I first saw it
At the end of the day if the Note 3 didn't have an amoled screen and did have OIS I wouldn't be looking at other phones at all. Even if it just had a different screen it would probably lock me in to buying it. That goes the same for the LG G2 if it had a larger screen! To make a definitive decision, I need to use all of these phones in person but because I live in Australia, most of these phones aren't available to me. Makes it very hard to make a decision! I need to look at the Galaxy Note 3 screen and see if I can deal with the amoled, if I can I will buy it. It is released in Australia in 3 days for me to check out.
If I don't like the Note 3 screen, I will need to handle the Oppo, Acer and HTC One Max to see if I am comfortable with the size of them. If I am then I will buy whichever one I like better, the problem is these phone will probably not come to Australia anytime soon, if at all for me to test them so I can only go by user opinion!
If I am not completely happy with the Acer/HTC/Oppo size I will end up buying the LG Optimus G Pro for so much cheaper than the others and I will then look to replace it when I am happy with another phone even if the phone is lower spec, it has decent development and an upgraded screen size and quality over my DNA.
I also need to see the LG G2 in person to judge the screen size for myself, again the phone is not available in my country until November! and I will want to make a decision by then
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol, well at least you did your research I am a former amoled hater, I returned my galaxy nexus because of the crappy colors and green tint, so I understand your concerns. In seeing friends gs3 vs gs4 the screen is much improved and I find the colors more realistic, the colors on LCD being super saturated, and the blacks are miles better. I then played with a gnote2 for a few days before deciding if I wanted the 3 and the answer was a resounding yes, the screen was fantastic
Best way is like you said, to just wait until it reaches your country and you can see it in person. Amoled displays have vibrant over saturated colors, better viewing angles, better battery efficiency than LCDs, and better blacks. LCDs have better whites, better brightness and viewing eligibility under the sun, more realistic colors. See which benefits you like the most and get the phone with the corresponding screen.
Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
I bought the Note 3 for its unparalleled stylus integration. (and screen size/beast-mode specs) It has no competition at this point in time (Although a few competitors are in the works).
FWIW, I think the Note 3's screen is gorgeous.
When you posted it here, you should have known the answer is skewed.
If Note 3 did not have so much restriction, it should have been my choice.
mingkee said:
When you posted it here, you should have known the answer is skewed.
If Note 3 did not have so much restriction, it should have been my choice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not arguing, but what restriction?
Change the screen mode in settings to Natural and if it's still not to your liking try Movie. By default it's on Standard and can even be increased with Dynamic. Changing the saturation has been present in settings since the GS2, idk how people miss that one option that could end their complains. If that doesn't do it for you then the Galaxy line might not be for you.
Sent from my SPH-L900 using xda app-developers app
MohJee said:
Best way is like you said, to just wait until it reaches your country and you can see it in person. Amoled displays have vibrant over saturated colors, better viewing angles, better battery efficiency than LCDs, and better blacks. LCDs have better whites, better brightness and viewing eligibility under the sun, more realistic colors. See which benefits you like the most and get the phone with the corresponding screen.
Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Doesn't anybody use the movie mode or adobe rgb mode? Looks great in either mode. The galaxy series are on dynamic mode out of the box. Similar to how TV manufacturers and resellers put display TV's in this mode to stand out.
MohJee said:
Best way is like you said, to just wait until it reaches your country and you can see it in person. Amoled displays have vibrant over saturated colors, better viewing angles, better battery efficiency than LCDs, and better blacks. LCDs have better whites, better brightness and viewing eligibility under the sun, more realistic colors. See which benefits you like the most and get the phone with the corresponding screen.
Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is all personal taste, of course, but I find LCD screens more over saturated, and the sun viewing thing is overstated, while technically true, the reflections off the glass of all these screens makes it mostly mute. I've used my iPhone, iPad, friends galaxy devices, they all ultimately stink in direct sun
Thanks for the replies guys. I posted this here because amongst bias choices, people will still give me answers I want to hear. A lot of people buy the Note series for the stylus and software features alone, where these features are simply bonuses that I might use and not even close to the reason I want a large screen device!
If it wasn't for my need of the digitizer pen for documents there are a lot of strong contenders like LG G2 (especially the price <$200), Sony Z1, etc.
mi7chy said:
If it wasn't for my need of the stylus for documents there are a lot of strong contenders like LG G2 (especially the price <$200), Sony Z1, etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is my point exactly. People can usually see the benefit of a stylus and that might play a huge roll in choosing the device! As this is not my primary concern I would choose the Z1 if it had a larger screen or The LG G2 if it had solid AOSP support; I guess I could make do with hiding the soft keys
I think this thread is a bit premature at the moment as there's too many unknowns about some of the other devices, the Acer looks potentially interesting but whether it's going to be worth considering will depend a lot on the price and how well it works in practice.
John
I have yet to see a note 3 in the flesh but colour rendition in the s4 is better than in the s3 so it may be an indicator of what to expect.
Sent from my GT-N7100
vtjay said:
Not arguing, but what restriction?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Knox (prevent rooting)
Regional SIM locking (this is a major issue for travelers)
Regional sim locking won't effect anyone. It's only meant to prevent people from purchasing phones out of their region.
sgh-TWEAKED-889©
It won't affect people who travel to other countries?
Warrior1975 said:
Regional sim locking won't effect anyone. It's only meant to prevent people from purchasing phones out of their region.
sgh-TWEAKED-889©
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not true. Read the main thread...
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317
Ok, so I prefer my phone to be top end but I kind of feel that I'm being forced to purchase phones with increasingly larger displays because the smaller display phones tend to needlessly gimp out the rest of the spec (CPU, RAM, storage, camera etc).
People say that manufacturers are only reacting to consumer choice but is this really true.
Take for example the original Samsung Galaxy S. This was a 4" display. The phone was very popular. When they upgraded the phone (S2) the phone went from 4" to 4.3" screen. Anyone who preferred the 4" size had two options:
1. Force to get the 4.3" and still benefit from the latest top end specs in other areas or
2. Look at other 4" phones that may not be a top end phone.
I reckon most people who preferred the 4" display reluctantly took option 1.
A year later the same situation occurs with Galaxy S3 and the 4.8" display. People who preferred the smaller screen size had to choose from the same previous two options. The same thing pretty much happens going forward so we have a history like this:
S1: 4"
S2: 4.3"
S3: 4.8"
S4: 5"
S5 and S6: 5.1"
Same thing for the Galaxy Note:
Note 1: 5.3"
Note 2: 5.5"
Note 3 and 4: 5.7"
Same for Motorola and Moto X:
1st gen: 4.7"
2nd gen: 5.2"
3rd gen: Style 5.7" and Play 5.5"
Same is true for pretty much every other manufacturer.
How can manufacturers say consumers want larger display phones when they offer no comparable alternative to their previous generation?
For me personally, I preferred the size of the Galaxy S2 phone. Although that came with a 4.3" display, I wouldn't mind if they managed to squeeze in a larger display into the same dimension of the phone by reducing the bezels so I'm guessing a 4.7" phone is around the sweet spot for me. But wanting a smaller display phone doesn't necessarily mean I don't want top end specs everywhere else.
I think pretty much all manufacturers are missing a trick. Top end phones with large phablet size displays are in a massively competing market. They all find it difficult to differentiate their phone to create a unique selling point.
One easy way to create a phone that stands out from the crowd with instant unique selling point:
A 1080p, 4.7" display phone with smallish bezels. All other specs should be relatively top end. Boom, that'll be a winner right there.
The only manufacturer that seems to get this is Sony as they do this with their Xperia Compact phones. General review feedback and sales of the Compact version of the phone are comparable to their full size Xperia phone so I do believe there are consumers who want this. The thing with Sony is that their phones are not massively popular (even the larger Xperia phone) so while the Compact brings in decent sales figures for Sony's overall sales, it is dwarfed by bigger names like Samsung.
Plus, if you want a top end phablet size phone then you have dozens to choose from. If you want a top end compact size phone then you only have one to choose from which is priced pretty high (typical Sony pricing) and therefore even those who are inclined with top end phones that are compact, may not go for the only option they have available for many reasons.
There are many who prefer phablet phones so I'm no trying to take away anything from those consumers. I still think manufacturers should create phablet phones as there is a market for those but I'm just saying that I reckon there are a good portion of users who prefer top end compact phones but there is only one option for them and that will never indicate the huge consumer market potential for this preference. Manufacturers should create both variety of phones so they can see how sales compare. But if all they do is produce the larger phone and say "see, everyone is still buying the larger phone" then this doesn't show those who reluctantly forced into buying those type of phones.
Anyway, I just thought I'd air my opinion and see what others think.