CHAMP VS CHAMP
At one point, HTC made the best Android smartphone; at another, Samsung held that title. The mobile giants step back into the ring for another round, as Javed Anwer referees the fight between the Samsung Galaxy S4 and the HTC One
The Galaxy S4 boasts some nifty software features. For example, Multi-window allows users to work on two apps in a single screen. Not all apps support this feature, but it’s available for a few important ones such as Gmail, Chrome, Twitter, Messages and Youtube. Then there’s Dual Shot, which allows a user to superimpose his stamp-sized image taken from the front camera on a scene shot with the rear camera. S Health is another feature that stands out. It allows a user to monitor his physical activity like walking or jogging throughout the day, and also shows the actual temperature and humidity in his surroundings. However, some features don’t work as consistently as we would have liked, such as Air View, which allows a user to preview images without even touching the screen, and Air Gesture, which allows a user to take a call with a swiping gesture above the device. Still, the features that work are enough to make the S4 a more useful and handy device than other smartphones. Besides, the S4 allows for interchangeable batteries and expandable memory via a microSD card.
HTC has a history of excelling in product design. With the HTC One, the Taiwanese company is at its sparkling best. The phone is exquisitely designed using premium materials. Its unibody shell, fabricated out of aluminium alloy, feels tough, is wonderful to hold, and is resistant to fingerprints. Its curved back fits well in the hollow of your palms, and the device’s chamfered edges give it a finish that feels superior to all other smartphones.
Another highlight of the HTC One is Blinkfeed – a dynamic homescreen widget that connects to various news services and your social network accounts to give you constant updates at all times.
SCREEN: If the screen size is the only criterion, the Galaxy S4 wins with its 5-inch screen when compared to the HTC One’s 4.7 inches. But numbers alone don’t define experience. In terms of quality, the displays on both the Galaxy S4 and the HTC One are excellent. Text looks sharp on both handsets due to their FullHD (1920x1080 pixels) resolution.
But there are a few subtle differences: The screen on the Galaxy S4 has very deep blacks, and is capable of richer colours. The screen on the HTC One, however, shows truer colours. It also offers better readability under direct sunlight and outdoor use.
Winner: Tie
BATTERY: The battery in both handsets lasts long enough to allow for a single day’s use, which includes phone calls, 3G videos, web browsing, emails, social networking, some gaming and a little bit of photography.
Still, in absolute terms, on heavy use, the HTC One wins here with an average battery life of 13 to 14 hours, when compared to around 12 hours for the Galaxy S4. In actual usage, this means that you’ll have to charge both devices every night.
Winner: HTC One
PERFORMANCE: The Galaxy S4 and the HTC One are superb performers, running demanding games like Dead Trigger with ease. Web browsing is smooth; GPS is fast and accurate; and 3G speeds are good. In our use, we consistently got over 7Mbps download speeds on both handsets.
The availability of 2GB RAM on both also means multi-tasking is effortless. Overall, however, the HTC One seemed better.
The S4 suffered from the occasional lag, especially while switching between tasks. This is not a deal-breaker and probably won’t even be noticed by most users, but we definitely found the HTC One to be smoother.
Winner: HTC One
CALL QUALITY: The Galaxy S4 and the HTC One are premium phones and as such have no issues handling phone calls. Both feature noise cancellation for background sounds, and we found that we got excellent voice clarity during calls; the people we called could also hear us clearly.
Winner: Tie
MUSIC: Both phones handle digital music formats such as
MP3, FLAC, M4A with ease. In terms of audio quality, we found the HTC One’s Beats Audio to be better than Samsung’s Adapt Sound tech.
Importantly, the HTC One has placed its speakers, called Boomsound, at the front; they are loud, and produce distortion-free sound even at high volume. Also, the HTC One has an FM receiver; the S4 doesn’t.
Winner: HTC One
VIDEO: The Galaxy S4 gets our nod here. While the HTC
One had trouble with certain video formats like AVI at FullHD resolution, the Galaxy S4 handled the same clips like a champ. When used with a third-party app like MX Player, the S4 even handles FullHD MOV files with ease. Its larger screen, which produces rich colours, also makes watching videos on the Galaxy S4 more enjoyable.
Winner: Samsung Galaxy S4
CAMERA: The Galaxy S4 and the HTC One are very capable shooters. But in our use, we found the S4’s 13MP camera to be a more consistent performer. The images shot with it are detailed, comprise good colours, and subjects appear in sharp focus. The S4 especially excels at close shots and is capable of shooting images that match the output of a good pointand-shoot camera in good light.
In breaking away from the trend that ‘more megapixels are better’, the HTC One’s main camera is only 4MP. Still, it is just as capable of good colour reproduction and sharp focus. It, however, loses out to the Galaxy S4 when it comes to the level of details.
In low-light, the HTC One performs marginally better, but if you use Galaxy S4’s night mode, the difference between the two is negligible.
Winner: Samsung Galaxy S4
USER INTERFACE: The HTC One uses a proprietary UI called Sense, while Samsung calls its custom interface TouchWiz.
In terms of aesthetics, Sense looks better with its subdued and minimalistic design. TouchWiz, on the other hand, uses lots of widgets and is defined by its use of colours.
In terms of usability, we liked TouchWiz. The HTC One has just two physical buttons for navigation – Back and Home. The menu can be accessed through the settings option provided in various apps, while multi-tasking requires double-tapping Home.
Touchwiz uses three buttons – Back, Home and Menu – which is easier to use. It is also easier to customise your home screen and manage widgets here.
Winner: Samsung Galaxy S4 So which one you should buy? It’s actually a tough call to make. Both the Samsung Galaxy S4 and the HTC One are fine devices in their own right. The S4 scores on software features and boasts a fantastic camera. The HTC One, on the other hand, is an elegant handset that you want to show off.
If aesthetics, music quality and battery life are important to you, pick the HTC One. If camera performance, videos and software features take precedence, get the Galaxy S4. Either way, you have a winner.
That said, we don’t think either phone warrants a purchase if you already own a high-end handset.
If you are using a smartphone older than one year and feel you need better performance and features, both Galaxy S4 and HTC One are good options.
TL130519
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