Build
The Samsung Galaxy S4 is a large plastic device while the HTC is a large aluminum device and both have their benefits. The plastic shell on the Galaxy S4 help keep the weight of this super phone to a minimum while in contrast provides a somewhat cheap, not inexpensive but cheap feel to the phone in comparison to some other high end Android phones. The HTC One on the other hand consists of and aluminum chassis with a zero gap construction and this is by all means beautiful but it does provide users with a slightly larger phone and adds on a few grams of weight in comparison to the Galaxy S4. Here's how the two stack up.
HTC One | Galaxy S4 | |
Height | 137.4mm | 136.6mm |
Width | 68.2mm | 69.8mm |
Depth | 9.3mm | 7.9mm |
Weight | 143grams | 130grams |
So the Galaxy S4 is a better size but when we consider the materials the two phones are constructed out of we have to go with the HTC One. Sacrificing a few grams of extra weigh to carry around and a slightly thicker body for such a well crafted phone isn't that big of a deal to us.
Display
Again here it looks as though the Samsung Galaxy S4 takes top prize over the HTC One but there is some criticism about the S4's ability to produce visible images well in bright light conditions. With that exception aside well see how the two screens stack up to one another.
HTC One | Galaxy S4 | |
Size | 4.7in | 5.0in |
Resolution | 1920x1080 | 1920x1080 |
Ppi | 468 | 441 |
LCD | Super LCD3 | PenTile Super AMOLED |
Glass | Corning Gorilla Glass 2.0 | Corning Gorilla Glass 3.0 |
The size of both the Android super phones is close enough that we think screen size does matter so the Galaxy S4 takes the size victory here but with the details we can see why Samsung's screen has trouble keeping up in high lighting conditions in comparison to the HTC One. The Super LCD3 is a much better display if not just for luminance but more for the rendering of colors which gives the impression that the screen is brighter because the colors are more vivid. This Super LCD3 also possesses quicker pixel response times providing a better high definition experience. Samsung on the other had has given us the new Gorilla glass for a stronger and and more resistant screen and with so many square inches to protect that's a good thing.
Both the displays offer more then enough pixel density to please the eye and in our best opinion shouldn't be a deciding factor in the purchase of one device over the other. Held side by side they appear just as clear.
CPU & RAM
While this article will be focusing on the North American versions of both these phones we do believe due to production purposes that aside from the CPU, all other information should be relevant to global devices.
HTC One |
Galaxy S4
|
|
CPU | 1.7Ghz Quad Core Snapdragon 600 | 1.9Ghz Quad Core Snapdragon 600 |
GPU |
Adreno 320 | Adreno 320 |
RAM | 2GB | 2GB |
RAM Speed | 533Mhz LPDDR2 | 800Mhz LPDDR3 |
If the Samsung Galaxy S4 and the HTC One were computers (they pretty much are) sitting side by side and you could see these specs the choice would be clear but we have to consider the design and other features as well since these are not just black boxes we are stashing under a desk somewhere.
The Galaxy S4 takes the top here and if it came down to having to use these phones connected to a HD display as a virtual laptop the Samsung's S4 would most likely provide the better user experience over the HTC One.
Camera & Features
We have read a lot about the cameras on both these phone and how they compare to other cameras out there including the iPhone 5 which has or had the best camera on the market. We wont be focusing on camera quality because each have their perks so we will highlight the best features of both. Included in this features list will be storage and battery information as well as speakers.
HTC One | Galaxy S4 | |
Camera MP | 4.0 Ultra Pixel | 13.0 |
Low Light | Very Good | Not Good |
Ideal Light | Ok | Very Good/Excellent |
Speakers | Dual Stereo - Excellent | Single Stereo - Ok |
Storage | 32/64 | 16/32 (to date) |
Sd Card | No | 64GB UHS-1 |
Removable Battery | No | Yes |
Battery Size | 2,300 mAh Li-Po | 2,600 mAh Li-ion |
It starts to become pretty clear from a hardware stand point just which of these phones is better and if all you care about is whats in the phone then the choice is clear but there are other thing to consider like future software upgrades, how important removable storage is, just how often you use the camera and for what, as well as design.
The remaining features like WiFi and Bluetooth are pretty standard these days in high end phones so they wont be covered at all. What we wanted to do was provide the final word on just which phone is better and from a hardware perspective that is clearly the Samsung Galaxy S4. Now with that said, if what you prefer is a sleek and stylish Android phone that does everything you current phone does and most likely more, well that choice is clear too and its the HTC One.
The choice is simple now. Are you more Geek or more Sleek?
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