Phones iPhone 5 screen compared to S4 & HTC

[bmac4]

So I went into the AT&T store today because I was getting a nano sim for my iphone 5. While I waited I looked at the S4 and HTC One. First thing the One's screen is way better than the S4, but I have to honest I really could not tell that much difference in the One and the iphone 5. I know I only saw it in store, but still. Anyone that has both or used both give some thoughts? It really is surprising that a screen Apple made what almost 3 years ago is still just as good.

 

[skratch77]

That's funny as we compared my gs4 at work to an iPhone 5 and my screen looked more white and the iPhone 5 looked like it had a blue tint.

Even the owner of the 5 said the gs4 looked better and sharper. Haters gonna hate lol

Btw those 3 year old screens were designed and built by Samsung not apple.

Sharp makes the 5 screen and Samsung owns part of sharp

 

[Yeezus]

That's funny as we compared my gs4 at work to an iPhone 5 and my screen looked more white and the iPhone 5 looked like it had a blue tint.

Even the owner of the 5 said the gs4 looked better and sharper. Haters gonna hate lol

Btw those 3 year old screens were designed and built by Samsung not apple.

Sharp makes the 5 screen and Samsung owns part of sharp

I agree with your post to some extent. The S4 screen does appear to be brighter and more lively, mainly due to the OLED. However, there is still the concern with the over-saturated colors, so it really depends on preferences. On a personal note, I prefer the iPhone 5 due to the more realistic colors. There isn't too much of a difference between sharpness as both are pin sharp. Nonetheless, excellent devices with exceptional screens.

 

[bmac4]

That's funny as we compared my gs4 at work to an iPhone 5 and my screen looked more white and the iPhone 5 looked like it had a blue tint.

Even the owner of the 5 said the gs4 looked better and sharper. Haters gonna hate lol

Btw those 3 year old screens were designed and built by Samsung not apple.

Sharp makes the 5 screen and Samsung owns part of sharp

I am by no mean an iphone fanboy. I am not a big fan of the Amoled display. For some reason the iphone 5 looks sharper to me. I guess it just comes down to preference. I just think it is kind of cool that after 3 years it is still that good.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

I agree with your post to some extent. The S4 screen does appear to be brighter and more lively, mainly due to the OLED. However, there is still the concern with the over-saturated colors, so it really depends on preferences. On a personal note, I prefer the iPhone 5 due to the more realistic colors. There isn't too much of a difference between sharpness as both are pin sharp. Nonetheless, excellent devices with exceptional screens.

This is easily changed in the "Screen Mode" settings. It's on Adapt display by default which I don't think is that great. The "Professional Photo" settings is the best IMO, I also like "Movie" settings which has the less saturation.

I feel like I'm the only one who messing with settings while checking out phone in store.

 

[skratch77]

I agree with your post to some extent. The S4 screen does appear to be brighter and more lively, mainly due to the OLED. However, there is still the concern with the over-saturated colors, so it really depends on preferences. On a personal note, I prefer the iPhone 5 due to the more realistic colors. There isn't too much of a difference between sharpness as both are pin sharp. Nonetheless, excellent devices with exceptional screens.

If you go to the screen settings you can set profiles to make it more natural. I actually like the pop it gives when set to dynamic and movie mode looks boring when set to natural

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I am by no mean an iphone fanboy. I am not a big fan of the Amoled display. For some reason the iphone 5 looks sharper to me. I guess it just comes down to preference. I just think it is kind of cool that after 3 years it is still that good.

What seems kinda cool from 3 years ago? Are you really trying to say that a 3 year old screen looks better then a gs4

 

[bmac4]

If you go to the screen settings you can set profiles to make it more natural. I actually like the pop it gives when set to dynamic and movie mode looks boring when set to natural

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What seems kinda cool from 3 years ago? Are you really trying to say that a 3 year old screen looks better then a gs4

Oh dear maybe I should have just not started this thread. Sorry

 

[BlueGoldAce]

Your fine with the thread.

The screen tech is 3 years old, but the display on the i5 had been calibrated and enhanced... It is better than the 4s...several reviewers have stated so.

That being said... It's a matter of preference.

 

[LorPGDL]

not a huge but noticeable difference in clarity and sharpness between my one and my old iphone 5.

but its there alright. and i have really bad eyesight

 

[bmac4]

Your fine with the thread.

The screen tech is 3 years old, but the display on the i5 had been calibrated and enhanced... It is better than the 4s...several reviewers have stated so.

That being said... It's a matter of preference.

Yea I am not saying the S4 or the HTC One are bad at all. I really do believe it all comes down to preference. I had the Note 2 and those really bright and overstated colors just got old. I know you can go into setting and set it to nature, but that is not what the screen is made for. Or at least it did not seem that way. The One's screen just seemed more natural to me. All the reviews I have seen seem to be saying the same thing.

Now like I have said before I am not Apple fanboy. Just check out some of my post on here. I will defend android and my nexus 4 as hard as I can, but I do give credit when credit is due. The retina display technology was first introduced on the iPhone 4 about 3 years ago. That technology is still being used and looks almost as good as the 1080p phones that are coming out right now. Like you said Apple has to make some tweaks for the iPhone 5, so yes it has been updated. I just fine it cool that they were able to use this screen so well. For so long.

 

[jrswizzle]

Actually, the screen tech isn't entirely 3 years old......IPS LCDs may be, but Apple used new manufacturing processes and lamination for the iP5 display that gave it much higher brightness and more accurate/bright colors while also increasing its efficiency.....

Hence why there's a pretty noticeable increase in quality between the 4S and 5.....at least I think there's an increase. The 5 looks much sharper as far as colors go.....4S seems washed out by comparison.

Contrary to popular belief, Apple did in fact do quite a bit upgrading for the 5....

As for comparing to the One and GS4? I prefer LCDs, so I can't comment on the GS4 (though I've heard the movie setting gets the AMOLEDs close to the color accuracy of LCDs, albeit not quite there), I will say while I do think the One is better, its not a huge difference. I think we've reached the point of diminishing returns when it comes to display quality......

At this point, the best strides OEMs can make with regards to their displays are to make them brighter and more power efficient (or more power efficient so we can turn the brightness up higher.....the iP5 at full brightness is plenty bright).

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Your fine with the thread.

The screen tech is 3 years old, but the display on the i5 had been calibrated and enhanced... It is better than the 4s...several reviewers have stated so.

That being said... It's a matter of preference.

Beat to it. What this guy said.

 

[bmac4]

Actually, the screen tech isn't entirely 3 years old......IPS LCDs may be, but Apple used new manufacturing processes and lamination for the iP5 display that gave it much higher brightness and more accurate/bright colors while also increasing its efficiency.....

Hence why there's a pretty noticeable increase in quality between the 4S and 5.....at least I think there's an increase. The 5 looks much sharper as far as colors go.....4S seems washed out by comparison.

Contrary to popular belief, Apple did in fact do quite a bit upgrading for the 5....

As for comparing to the One and GS4? I prefer LCDs, so I can't comment on the GS4 (though I've heard the movie setting gets the AMOLEDs close to the color accuracy of LCDs, albeit not quite there), I will say while I do think the One is better, its not a huge difference. I think we've reached the point of diminishing returns when it comes to display quality......

At this point, the best strides OEMs can make with regards to their displays are to make them brighter and more power efficient (or more power efficient so we can turn the brightness up higher.....the iP5 at full brightness is plenty bright).

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Beat to it. What this guy said.

Yea I am sure Apple did a lot of work on the iphone 5 screen. I was just saying their retina screen technology is 3 years old. Oh well I like the screen on the 5 a lot. I did not get a good long look at the One to know if there is that much of a difference, but I would say it is small.

 

[jrswizzle]

Yea I am sure Apple did a lot of work on the iphone 5 screen. I was just saying their retina screen technology is 3 years old. Oh well I like the screen on the 5 a lot. I did not get a good long look at the One to know if there is that much of a difference, but I would say it is small.

You mean the ppi right?

Apple decided not to stress the battery by adding a million more pixels for no reason.....

Until we see a larger iPhone, we likely won't see any iPhone displays over 326 ppi......its simply not necessary and (I'm guessing) in Apple's mind, the benefit of adding a small amount of sharpness (that even some of the more quality anal people won't notice - me being one) isn't worth the drain on the battery.

I, for one, am perfectly fine with it. I agree with your initial statement - its pretty amazing that iPhone's displays still rival the best of the best, when they rock a "supposedly inferior" pixel count and have been out there for 3+ years - though the retina displays of 3 years ago < today's.

Like I said when the iPhone 5 came out, there are plenty of ways to increase/advance the quality of a display other than more ppi......but alas, all anyone wants these days is a bigger number next to each spec/benchmark.

 

[bmac4]

You mean the ppi right?

Apple decided not to stress the battery by adding a million more pixels for no reason.....

Until we see a larger iPhone, we likely won't see any iPhone displays over 326 ppi......its simply not necessary and (I'm guessing) in Apple's mind, the benefit of adding a small amount of sharpness (that even some of the more quality anal people won't notice - me being one) isn't worth the drain on the battery.

I, for one, am perfectly fine with it. I agree with your initial statement - its pretty amazing that iPhone's displays still rival the best of the best, when they rock a "supposedly inferior" pixel count and have been out there for 3+ years - though the retina displays of 3 years ago < today's.

Like I said when the iPhone 5 came out, there are plenty of ways to increase/advance the quality of a display other than more ppi......but alas, all anyone wants these days is a bigger number next to each spec/benchmark.

Oh I agree 100%. It is all about the number now because what else can we brag about? Phones have gotten so good that there is really nothing to compare and say this is better than that. I still think my iphone 5 screen is just as good as any other. My nexus 4 not as good, but I can still use both and be very happy.

I agree we want see a bigger PPI until a bigger iphone is released. But at this point who cares.

 

[jrswizzle]

Oh I agree 100%. It is all about the number now because what else can we brag about? Phones have gotten so good that there is really nothing to compare and say this is better than that. I still think my iphone 5 screen is just as good as any other. My nexus 4 not as good, but I can still use both and be very happy.

I agree we want see a bigger PPI until a bigger iphone is released. But at this point who cares.

Ya - I've heard that you can re-calibrate the N4 display and get it to look much nicer.....I haven't done so though.

 

[bmac4]

Ya - I've heard that you can re-calibrate the N4 display and get it to look much nicer.....I haven't done so though.

Yea that requires more work than I want to get into. I care nothing about rooting. The screen not that bad just not great either

 

[jrswizzle]

Yea that requires more work than I want to get into. I care nothing about rooting. The screen not that bad just not great either

Haha, I'm right there with you.

 

[Lava Lamp Freak]

The problem I have with the GS4 is the AMOLED display. It still isn't bright enough. At full brightness, it is the same brightness as the iPhone 5 at around half brightness. Also, whites are still not white. Part of that is because of the brightness, but even when the brightness of the iPhone 5 is set to the same as the GS4, the GS4 still doesn't look as white as the iPhone 5. (I have them side by side right now. I'm returning the GS4 today.)

The problem is that it has too many green subpixels. If the GS4 is the only device you use, you might get used to it, but I sit at a computer with an LCD all day so I go back and forth from it to my phone. When my eyes are adjusted to the LCD, the GS4 looks ugly to me, but even on it's own, it doesn't look right. Green is too oversaturated.

Even in Movie mode, which is what I've been using, the saturation has a green push because of the higher number of green subpixels. It is very close to an LCD in color saturation, but the green push ruins it for me.

 

[ppeyton1143]

iphone's screen is not even 720p, how couldn't you find any big difference between a retina display and a Full HD 1080p display. people prefer htc One's screen over s4's screen because it is brighter, btw s4's screen is considered one of the best display in the market.

 

[jrswizzle]

iphone's screen is 720p not even full HD, how couldn't you find any big difference between a 720p and 1080p display. people prefer htc One's screen over s4's screen beacuse it is brighter, btw s4's screen is considered one of the best display in the market.

Because "720p" and "1080p" have no real meaning on devices that small as far as "full HD" quality goes.....

You're using marketing terms that were applied to screens MUCH bigger than smartphones.

PPI is much more indicative of sharpness and quality and at that size, given the distance you generally hold a phone from your face, anything over 300ish ppi yields diminishing returns.

Like it or not, "retina" has WAY more basis in reality and science than the term "full HD".

 

[Lava Lamp Freak]

iphone's screen is not even 720p, how couldn't you find any big difference between a retina display and a Full HD 1080p display. people prefer htc One's screen over s4's screen because it is brighter, btw s4's screen is considered one of the best display in the market.

The GS4 is a PenTile display and not true 1080p. For red and blue subpixels, the GS4 is 312 PPI compared to the iPhone 5 at 326 PPI. For pictures, I can't see a difference in sharpness between the GS4 and the iPhone 5, but with text I can see a difference in sharpness. (The iPhone 5 has sharper text.) The HTC One is the best display as far as resolution goes. The GS4 is a 1080p display by marketing only -- not in reality.

 

[joudbren]

I recently replaced my Galaxy Note 2 with an HTC One (had a GS3 before the Note 2 and iPhones before that) and the HTC One is the best screen I've ever used. Period.

Resolution on the HTC One is simply breathtaking but the BIG thing for me is screen brightness. I was looking hard at the GS4 and the OLED screen is still way too dim so I decided on the HTC.

I never had any problems in my car using my iPhones for GPS while wearing sunglasses and when I went to Samsung I found I was constantly flipping off my shades to see stuff on the screen. Unbelievably annoying not to mention dangerous as it then made me a distracted driver vs. stealing a quick glance at the screen.

Sorry but for me I couldn't care less about colour accuracy, saturation, whatever. If those parameters are "in the zone", I'm good. It's a phone, not a colour calibrated studio monitor. My phone is a working phone all day long and I need a device I can see in sunlight and in the car with my sunglasses on. LCD still seems to very much have the edge over OLED in this regard. I have no doubt that will change in the future but for now, LCD for the win.

The HTC hits all the right notes (for me) and I'm a seriously happy camper again. Bottom line, this phone simply works and works well. Cheers!

 

[durant35]

The GS4 is a PenTile display and not true 1080p. For red and blue subpixels, the GS4 is 312 PPI compared to the iPhone 5 at 326 PPI. For pictures, I can't see a difference in sharpness between the GS4 and the iPhone 5, but with text I can see a difference in sharpness. (The iPhone 5 has sharper text.) The HTC One is the best display as far as resolution goes. The GS4 is a 1080p display by marketing only -- not in reality.

So I suppose you know more than consumer reports who after their massive amounts of scientific tests, including many just on its display, concluded that the S4 is the best smartphone on the market? Good to know. Please tell us where you are getting your test results and please include the details of your test. Thanks

 

[jrswizzle]

So I suppose you know more than consumer reports who after their massive amounts of scientific tests, including many just on its display, concluded that the S4 is the best smartphone on the market? Good to know. Please tell us where you are getting your test results and please include the details of your test. Thanks

The display doesn't make one the best smartphone on the market......

It's certainly up there, and most definitely the best AMOLED display out there, but google display tests and you'll see most rank it either in line or slightly below the iP5 and HTC One.

To be quite honest, Consumer Reports rating the GS4 as the best causes me to lose a little respect for them....I have an entirely different opinion from that magazine.

But to each his/her own.

 

[bmac4]

I did not mean to start an argument, but I guess I should have expected that. All I am saying is. Me having my iphone 5 in hand, and holding the One and S4 for about 10 minutes. If I am honest there is not that big of a difference. Maybe some people can see it, but not me.