great info, thanks for comparing these two high-end devices. but i wanted to ask you "do you wish that the GS4 had a metal body"
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I have an iPhone 5 and an S4 - Comparisons & Observations
- Thread starter Sir Ruben
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Personally, I say no.
The GS4 would gain nothing substantive with such a change...
And my GS4 has a plastic case on it...
One thing that needs to change with GS5 is RAM consumption. I'm at 1.3 gigs of RAM being used with one active process. Samsung needs to streamline there skin.
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I've been holding onto my iPhone 5 ever since purchasing my S4 at launch. And today, it's official - the iPhone 5 has been put on eBay for sale. The phone feels years behind what Android is now doing. So long iPhone. Still love my other Apple gadgets, but the iPhone is a dinosaur and no longer has any use for me.
Well just an update on my experiences using both handsets. Over time the Galaxy S4 has had less and less use. In fact its been sitting on my desk now and hasnt been used for weeks and weeks. I have been using my iPhone 5 running iOS7 and have really enjoyed using it so far.
So the Galaxy S4 has sold (which will pay for my PS4!), but something I have noticed, when selling Android phones the lack of interest is really surprising. I have sold many iPhones in the past and they get snapped up instantly for top prices. With my S2 and now my S4 I have noticed that there was very little interest and it was a real struggle to get a good price even with a 32GB SD card, cases, thrown in. As the S4 is the hottest and highest spec Android handset out there, I just don't get it.
Anyway it was fun to experience both for a while, the S4 was a lovely piece of hardware, but at the end of the day there is no giant gulf between an iPhone and an Android handset (as many would have you believe). Yes I could do more on the S4 but the amount of times I NEEDED to do more were almost never. Plus what iOS does less of it does better, many of the wild features of the S4 were just flakey and half baked. If there is one thing I have learned is that if you are perfectly happy with what your current device does (be it iOS or Android) then just stick with it. Its always tempting to try out the competition but for every pro you may very well find a con. I am contented now, however I certainly wouldnt say no to a bigger screen from Apple
I have been doing a lot of switching lately from my iPhone 5 to android. I first tried my note 2, and now I am back to my nexus 4. I like android over all better because it offers more choices for the user. I like the way it looks as well. The main reason that I have been using my iPhone 5 more is because all my family have iphones. Having imessage is great, but there are so many other messaging apps that is no big deal. Again no one will ever agree because everyone likes different things. I just like android a bit better.
Also Ruben you were saying in your OP that your S4 lags more than the iphone. I am not surprised by that at all, and I understand that this I'd a flagship android that should not be lagging. The thing I would say though is you have is remember that yes it lags, but that is not android. It has everything to do with touchwiz. If you had stock android it would not be lagging like that. I know it is what most consumers are buying right now in terms of android, but it has to be said it does not mean android is still laggy. My nexus 4 is just as smooth as my iPhone 5.
In reality Android should be judged based on the stock AOSP ROM from Google itself with only Google services, IMO, if being compared to iOS. The differences compared to most carrier/manufacturer versions of Android is vast. TouchWiz is its own beast (and a slow one at that). Stock Android flies on even mid-range hardware.
Also, having used both an iPhone 5 and GS4 for extended periods of time, I think the GS4 has the better camera. It has more balanced exposure (less likely to have blown out details), still has vibrant colours, and best of all it has an intensely close minimum focusing distance with a wide angle lens, allowing you to get shots like this:
(Note, this is SOOC but only at half the full resolution of the original photo, and I know it's not a fantastic photo; I was just trying to see how pleasing the DOF would be)
That sort of sealed the deal for me getting the GS4 vs. HTC One vs. iPhone 5. And TouchWiz was gone on day one.
Also, having used both an iPhone 5 and GS4 for extended periods of time, I think the GS4 has the better camera. It has more balanced exposure (less likely to have blown out details), still has vibrant colours, and best of all it has an intensely close minimum focusing distance with a wide angle lens, allowing you to get shots like this:
(Note, this is SOOC but only at half the full resolution of the original photo, and I know it's not a fantastic photo; I was just trying to see how pleasing the DOF would be)
That sort of sealed the deal for me getting the GS4 vs. HTC One vs. iPhone 5. And TouchWiz was gone on day one.
Sir Ruben, how do you find the S4's screen in terms of brightness compared to the S2 when in daylight? I have the S2 and its hard to see in daylight, so much so that I have to find shade at times to see anything.
yeah, they're introducing the 3GB RAM with the note 3, so it's obvious that the GS5 will have more RAM.
In reality Android should be judged based on the stock AOSP ROM from Google itself with only Google services, IMO, if being compared to iOS. The differences compared to most carrier/manufacturer versions of Android is vast. TouchWiz is its own beast (and a slow one at that). Stock Android flies on even mid-range hardware.
Also, having used both an iPhone 5 and GS4 for extended periods of time, I think the GS4 has the better camera. It has more balanced exposure (less likely to have blown out details), still has vibrant colours, and best of all it has an intensely close minimum focusing distance with a wide angle lens, allowing you to get shots like this:
(Note, this is SOOC but only at half the full resolution of the original photo, and I know it's not a fantastic photo; I was just trying to see how pleasing the DOF would be)
That sort of sealed the deal for me getting the GS4 vs. HTC One vs. iPhone 5. And TouchWiz was gone on day one.
The issue here is that Stock Android is used on only a small minority of smartphones (and all of them must be purchased directly from Google, no subsidised plans from Telcos, further reducing their accessibility).
So any such comparison isn't very meaningful, when most buyers won't be using Stock Android, nor will they possess the technical expertise to root to Stock Android should they so desire.
To most consumers, Touchwiz is Android. Most of my friends and colleagues either use iphones, S3, Note2 or S4.A few use HTC phones, 1 or 2 use Sony Experia and Blackberry.
But that still does not make it an equal comparison. If you want to make those type of comparisons then you will have to thrown in the iPhone 4S. There are still a ton of people with that phone, so based on your logic we are going with the phones that have the most users. I am not sure that an iPhone 4S would fare as good against an S4 would it? This is one thing I hear the most. Because most people that use android are going to have the most popular android phone we have to compare that phone with iOS. Oh and don't forget there a still a lot of iPhone 4 running around.
That's my point exactly. There isn't just one Android. Every OEM is going to tack on their own skin and launcher, resulting in different user experiences for different consumers.
Claiming that Android does this or is that good is pointless when pretty much every consumer out there is never going to experience what Stock Android is like. In this thread, the OP talks about touchwiz. So it should be touchwiz vs IOS.
Otherwise, you are going to have scenarios where people hear about how Android does this and that, proceed to buy a S4 or Note2, then wonder why their user experience doesn't match what they read online, not realising that Touchwiz =/= Android.
No the problem is you missed my whole point. I am saying you want to compare the two OS that are not the same. If you want to go with the most popular devices then well we have to talk about the iphone 4S. If you want to talk about the newest and best devices then you would have to compare the S4 GE and the iPhone 5. You can't have it both ways. Comparing a skinned version of android just does not make sense. It may be the most popular, but that does not mean it is the right comparison to make. This just makes it easy for iOS fans to say it is smoother, and better.
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Yes the S4 screen whilst lovely IS very poor in daylight. You literally need to have the brightness turned all the way up. As I think I mentioned previously this is particularly problematic when taking pictures outside as its hard to compose the shot or check that it has focused correctly as the screen looks incredibly dim. It's not so bad on cloudy days. Sunlight kills the screens visibility completely which is a shame.
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Just interested on how much you got for your S4? I normally (less hassle) sell my used phones through Mazuma mobile, just did a quick comparison and noticed that a S4 (£280) would get me more than a iPhone 5 (64gb) (£270) on their site, the lower capacity iPhone 5's getting even less, thus suggesting that they would get more for the S4 than the iP5 when they sold them on.
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http://www.mazumamobile.com/?gclid=CPHPnLaClrkCFQbJtAodHxAAQw
£280 is a shocking price for an S4 and the iPhone 5 would go for much more on eBay. I'd never use a site like mazuma mobile though tbh. I got close to £400 for the S4 but I think that was a bit of luck on my part as apart from the person who wanted in there had been very little interest.
Well just an update on my experiences using both handsets. Over time the Galaxy S4 has had less and less use. In fact its been sitting on my desk now and hasnt been used for weeks and weeks. I have been using my iPhone 5 running iOS7 and have really enjoyed using it so far.
So the Galaxy S4 has sold (which will pay for my PS4!), but something I have noticed, when selling Android phones the lack of interest is really surprising. I have sold many iPhones in the past and they get snapped up instantly for top prices. With my S2 and now my S4 I have noticed that there was very little interest and it was a real struggle to get a good price even with a 32GB SD card, cases, thrown in. As the S4 is the hottest and highest spec Android handset out there, I just don't get it.
Anyway it was fun to experience both for a while, the S4 was a lovely piece of hardware, but at the end of the day there is no giant gulf between an iPhone and an Android handset (as many would have you believe). Yes I could do more on the S4 but the amount of times I NEEDED to do more were almost never. Plus what iOS does less of it does better, many of the wild features of the S4 were just flakey and half baked. If there is one thing I have learned is that if you are perfectly happy with what your current device does (be it iOS or Android) then just stick with it. Its always tempting to try out the competition but for every pro you may very well find a con. I am contented now, however I certainly wouldnt say no to a bigger screen from Apple
Ay you will especially find this to be true in the U.S, where Apple is the #1 brand in phones and tablets. I see gs4s are getting a lot more popular tho, so I'm sure they will be easier to sell as time goes on.
Notwithstanding the ludicrousness of comparing a 4s to the s4, I find that my 4s remains very smooth and responsive in normal everyday use. It will likely lose out in terms of processor-intensive activities, but otherwise, it remains a very capable piece of hardware, IMO.
I don't think I miss your point. I understand why you might want to compare two "core" OSes. I just disagree with your rationale for wanting to do so.
How can you? You are trying to compare an unequal playing field. Sure a lot of people think touchwiz, and the S4 are android, but that does not mean it is. People that don't know any better, and want a free iPhone can get the iPhone 4. Is it ok that that is what they think iOS is? That phone is much slower, has less features, but is still iOS. I know we are not talking current smart phones, but that is the only way you can compare iOS and android if you want to compare skinned android. Why do you think we should compare and S4 with the iPhone 5 in terms of smoothness?
Ok so then if we are talking about just the iPhone 5 and the S4 ( which I believe he said in the OP android was still not as smooth) then what about the S4 GPE? It is just as smooth and fast as the iPhone 5. Oh but is that against your rules that keep changing every time I suggest another phone, or stock android?
Well just an update on my experiences using both handsets. Over time the Galaxy S4 has had less and less use. In fact its been sitting on my desk now and hasnt been used for weeks and weeks. I have been using my iPhone 5 running iOS7 and have really enjoyed using it so far.
So the Galaxy S4 has sold (which will pay for my PS4!), but something I have noticed, when selling Android phones the lack of interest is really surprising. I have sold many iPhones in the past and they get snapped up instantly for top prices. With my S2 and now my S4 I have noticed that there was very little interest and it was a real struggle to get a good price even with a 32GB SD card, cases, thrown in. As the S4 is the hottest and highest spec Android handset out there, I just don't get it.
Anyway it was fun to experience both for a while, the S4 was a lovely piece of hardware, but at the end of the day there is no giant gulf between an iPhone and an Android handset (as many would have you believe). Yes I could do more on the S4 but the amount of times I NEEDED to do more were almost never. Plus what iOS does less of it does better, many of the wild features of the S4 were just flakey and half baked. If there is one thing I have learned is that if you are perfectly happy with what your current device does (be it iOS or Android) then just stick with it. Its always tempting to try out the competition but for every pro you may very well find a con. I am contented now, however I certainly wouldnt say no to a bigger screen from Apple
Yeah androids usually have lower sale prices then iPhones but usually the flagships can easily be sold for good prices on eBay. Their value usually really decreases when the new devices roll out.
Bmac4 this topic was merely to compare the s4 and ip5 in very broad terms for the general user who just want a quick and dirty write up. I am we'll aware that there is a lot more to Android and its numerous incarnations however that is not the point of my comparison. As Samsung is super popular then touchwiz will be what most users will experience, with that in mind my comparison does its job.
It's been a month with the GS4. In some areas it excels but it's nothing close to a iPhone 5 killer.
There are still the little things, the Android-isms, that are distracting to say the least.
Let's just say I'm keen to see iPhone 5S and iOS7. Overall I think the GS4 is an awesome device though.
There are still the little things, the Android-isms, that are distracting to say the least.
Let's just say I'm keen to see iPhone 5S and iOS7. Overall I think the GS4 is an awesome device though.