With Samsung announcing its new Android flagship, the Galaxy S4, towards the middle of last month (March 2013), the stage is set for this generation’s “superphone” shootout.
The Samsung Galaxy S4 is only expected to launch from later in April 2013, however, so a full comparison of the features of this batch of smartphones will only be possible later.
A comparison of the hardware specifications among the top-end phones may give an indication of what to expect from this year’s top Android smartphones.
| Specifications | Samsung Galaxy S4 | HTC One | Sony Xperia Z | LG Optimus G |
| Dimensions | 136.6 x 69.8 x 7.9mm | 137.4 x 68.2 x 9.3mm | 139 x 71 x 7.9mm | 131.9 x 68.9 x 8.45mm |
| Weight | 130g | 143g | 146g | 145g |
| Operating system | Android 4.2.2 | Android 4.2 | Android 4.1 | Android 4.1 (upgraded) |
| Display | 5″ 1080p HD (1080×1920) | 4.7″ HD (1080×1920) IPS | 5″ full HD (1080×1920) Bravia Engine 2 | 4.7″ WXGA (768×1280) |
| Rear camera | 13MP | 4MP “Ultrapixel” | 13MP | 13MP |
| Front camera | 2MP | 2.1MP | 2.2MP | 1.3MP |
| Storage, internal | 16GB/32GB/64GB | 32GB/64GB | 16GB | 16GB |
| Storage, expandable | microSD | No | microSD | microSD (in E970 model) |
| RAM | 2GB | 2GB | 2GB | 2GB |
| Processor | Exynos Octa 5410: 1.6GHz quad-core Cortex-A15 + 1.2GHz quad-core Cortex-A7 / 1.9GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon | 1.7GHz quad-core Qualcomm | 1.5GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 (APQ8064+MDM9215M) | 1.5GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro |
| Graphics | PowerVR SGX 544MP / Adreno 320 | Adreno 320 | Adreno 320 | Adreno 320 |
| Battery | 2,600mAh | 2300mAh | 2,330mAh minimum | 2,100mAh |
| Cellular data | LTE and HSPA+ models | LTE / HSPA+ | HSPA / LTE | HSPA / LTE |
| SIM type | Micro SIM | Micro SIM | Micro SIM | Micro SIM |
| NFC | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
The above table suggests that we’re in for a tight race in terms of performance this year.
At the very least it will be interesting to see what Samsung’s Big.Little Octa Core processor brings to the Android experience compared to the more conventional Qualcomm quad-cores.
More Android and news
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BlackBerry vs Android vs Apple vs Windows
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