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1The Galaxy’s Bigger Screen
2No Contest on Processors
3Hands-Free, Anyone?
4Near-Field Communication Is Nice
Near-field communication is the feature that Android vendors commonly overlook in their product unveilings because, well, it’s become so commonplace that it makes no sense to spend time on it. However, the iPhone 5 doesn’t support near-field communication, meaning the wireless transfer of data between devices is impossible. It’s an unfortunate omission in the iPhone 5.
5RAM Means Better Performance
The amount of RAM in Samsung’s Galaxy S 4 is double that of the Apple iPhone 5. Samsung’s device comes with 2GB of RAM, while the iPhone 5 has 1GB. More RAM enables applications to open faster and promotes overall better performance for the device. Extra RAM is always a major selling point for mobile devices.
6A Higher-End High-Def Display
When Apple unveiled the Retina display, the company made a fuss about its 326 pixels per inch. At that time, the Retina display was the best option available. However, these days, the iPhone’s display is looking second-rate. The Samsung Galaxy S 4 comes with 441 pixels per inch. That’s a huge difference, and should make for a nice visual experience when watching movies on the handset.
7Oh, What a Camera
The 8-megapixel camera in the iPhone 5 is certainly a nice addition to the device, but let’s face it, that feature can’t compare with the 13-megapixel lens in the Galaxy S 4. More megapixels don’t necessarily mean better picture quality, but they do enable the printing of larger higher-resolution images.
8Don’t Forget the SD Card Slot
Both the iPhone 5 and the Samsung Galaxy S 4 come with data storage options of 16GB, 32GB and 64GB. However, unlike the iPhone 5, Samsung’s handset has a Secure Digital (SD) card slot, allowing for more storage on the device. The future might be in cloud storage, but until then, having a hard drive and a storage device like an SD card is awfully nice.
9Samsung Apps Is an Important Feature
Although the Galaxy S 4 supports the Google Play marketplace, the important thing to keep in mind is that Samsung Apps are running on the platform, too. As noted, the Galaxy S 4 is the Android market’s best smartphone. However, developers need to build apps that accommodate devices of all shapes and sizes. The Samsung Apps marketplace eliminates that problem and allows developers to build apps that are designed to take advantage of Samsung’s best handset design yet. That should come in handy as Samsung takes on the iPhone 5.
10It’s a Samsung-Enhanced Jelly Bean World
The Galaxy S 4 is running Android 4.2.2. Jelly Bean. However, the device’s operating system is enhanced by Samsung’s own proprietary software skin. That Samsung user interface makes using the handset much easier to use and is actually more stylish than iOS on the iPhone 5. It’s a nice addition to an already high-end device.