Apple iPhone X vs Samsung Galaxy S8 – Apple Plays Catch up with Samsung S8

The Apple iPhone X is about to be launched. After months of speculation with regards to its look, specs and so much more, finally, we get to know all about it. But is there really a cause for celebration when we already have the Samsung Galaxy S8?

In this review, we will take a look at who comes ahead in this battle of the flagships – iPhone X vs Samsung Galaxy S8.

Ever since the evolution of multi-media phones into smartphones, iPhone specs and features have been on quite a different scale than Android phones. I’m not talking about whether it’s higher or lower, better or worse, but just different.

The earlier iPhones did not have a headphone port, USB port or even Bluetooth. But they were awesome phones. Right now, the world is inundated with Android smartphones, where the main competition lies in price and specs.

In this regard, Apple can be seen as playing catch up to the rest of the crowd, and especially Samsung.

The iPhone X looks extremely beautiful with its edge-to-edge screen display and at last integrating an OLED screen after years of using the LCD screen. In fact, the iPhone 8 still uses an LCD screen. In contrast, Samsung has already released the S8, S8+ and Note 8 which all feature edge-to-edge OLED screens.

One of the other highlights in the Apple iPhone X is its Face ID. Face ID is touted to be an advanced security feature that can recognise your face among thousand others and help you keep your phone secure. Unfortunately, human beings are known to be averse to sudden change.

Given the success of the Touch ID, it would have been preferable to keep the Touch ID as the primary security feature with the Face ID as its backup. Samsung leads the way in this aspect as well, since it already has Touch ID, iris scanning and face-scanning features on the market for, albeit not as sophisticated as the Face ID. As a result, it’s easier to trust something people are familiar with rather than completely switch to something unknown.

Specs-wise, Galaxy S8 and iPhone X stand toe-to-toe. With regards to the camera, the iPhone features dual lens, 12MP camera and dual-OIS (optical image stabilisation) on its rear camera, with Galaxy S8 sporting a 12MP camera with OIS as well. Both phones have 4K video recording capabilities on their primary cameras.

The secondary or the front camera provides a bit of an edge to Samsung since it features an 8MP camera as against the 7MP on the iPhone X. But then again, Apple has been known to make subtle improvements over time to create a more compact product, instead of bumping up the specs.

But even so, the common theme remains that the iPhone X, intended to commemorate the 10 years of Apple iPhone, adds nothing new. All that’s on the iPhone already is available on the market.

Samsung Galaxy S4 – First Peek Review

Samsung is back with a bang. It is about to release the much-anticipated Galaxy S4 which is being touted as the fastest smartphone yet. The Galaxy range has been in action for quite some time and is only second to Apple’s iPhone series in sales volume. The company is supposed to retain the basic design from the previous Galaxy SIII. However, there are supposed to be changes under the hood.

The Galaxy S4 will be competing with iPhone 5 and is expected to give some much-needed thrust to the Samsung’s mobile business. Let’s take a look at the Galaxy S4 specifications and how it performs.

Features of Samsung Galaxy S4 Design

Well, the overall design remains the same. It is available in two colors – White Frost and Black Mist. The dimensions of the phone are pegged at 136.6 x 69.8 x 7.9mm. The larger screen is the only aspect where the S4 is different from the S3 in terms of design.

The Korean giant could have improved the outer body build quality since it feels really fragile as of now. The body of the phone displays the polished look that it has carried since S2. However, the plastic feels cheap and since consumers are going to pay upwards of INR 40,000, it is only right that Samsung should have done a better job.

Display

The screen size and quality are impeccable. It is fitted with a 5 inches Full HD Super AMOLED screen. It has a mind blowing 441pixel per inch density. The sharpness and colour contrast has improved and the touch on the screen is extremely smooth. Though Samsung is not the first one to bring out the Full HD screen, it still manages to excite the smartphone fanatics. The screen is protected by Cornilla Gorilla Glass 3.

User Interface

As expected, the S4 comes with Android OS v4.2.2. Jelly Bean. The user interface is helped by Samsung’s proprietary software TouchWiz UI. The interface could have been improved and further changes could have been made.

However, there are a few modifications that will capture your mind for times to come. The lock screen, for example, identifies your finger when it approaches the screen from a distance. A light beam follows your finger as you type in the digits.

Under the Hood

It is being touted as the fastest smartphone in the world and rightly so. It has a quad-core 1.6 GHz Cortex A15 and another quad-core 1.2 GHz Cortex A7 processor. The chipset is identified as Exynos5 Octa 5410. Graphics are powered by PowerVR SGX 544MP3. Multitasking is a thing of the past with these state of the art technologies. More powerful software and applications can be used with the help of the strong processor in the heart of the phone.

Camera

If the 13MP LED primary camera does not excite you enough, the things this camera does will surely do. S4 is fitted with a dual shot, simultaneous HD video and still image recording, image stabilization and HDR. It also has a 2MP secondary camera. A special feature is its ability to combine the pictures from the secondary camera and the primary camera into one shot.

It takes the background from the primary camera and places the picture from the secondary camera as the foreground. It will be hard for users to stop playing with this feature!

Samsung Galaxy S4 Price

All in all, with the huge array of quality services integrated into this phone, it will definitely attract huge attention in the global market. It is supposed to be priced upwards of $740. The expected release date is April 26th, 2013.