Samsung Galaxy S3 vs LG Optimus G

Samsung Galaxy S3 vs LG Optimus G

The Samsung Galaxy S3 is a part of one of the most successful smartphone brands ever. Since the first Galaxy debuted, it has been a roller coaster ride for Samsung, with so many models in its portfolio, spawning a lot of success stories in sales as well as dominance, and right at the top of this is the Galaxy S range of smartphone flagship devices, which have seen three generations of devices and todays, we have chosen the third generation of that series to represent Samsung’s flagship device.

The Galaxy S3, like the other two Galaxy S’ before it, represents Samsung at the high end and like all flagships, it has a lot of firsts. Here are some highlights of the Samsung Galaxy S3 –

1.4 GHz Quad core Exynos processor
4.8 inch 1280×720 SuperAMOLED HD display
8.0 MP BSI f2.8 camera
Countless software enhancements with Touchwiz Nature UX
Currently runs Android Jellybean 4.1.1
As we can see above, at the time of the launch, the hardware was unbelievable but was sort of overshadowed by the HTC One X due to the subjectively not-so-well-received design of the phone. Also, the launch event was a bit of a let down as Samsung tried to do it the Apple way and miserably failed at explaining the most important features of the device that were necessary for people to understand. Instead, the gimmicks, although very novel, like the Smart stay feature, were over blown and hence it took time to pick up in terms of mind share. But once the user reviews started pouring in, it was extremely clear that Samsung had a winner.

In every sense, the Galaxy S3 is a well rounded device and Samsung must be lauded for taking this device everywhere. It’s definitely the most available flagship and that’s a serious achievement that followed tremendous sales. But while all this happened, what was Samsung’s in-home competitor doing? That’s exactly the question that arose within the competitor itself and hence the LG Optimus G was born.

The Optimus G is, in every sense, a direct competitor to Samsung’s flagship, as it is the way it has been since the Galaxy S. The Optimus series of devices are LG’s answers to the Galaxy’s of this world, and that has stayed true till the latest LG flagship, the Optimus G. While it has not been released completely, or even in the U.S, we find this device is every bit worthy of a flagship from the other Korean giant. It’s also an attestation to the fact that LG has been awakened due to their miserable performance in the Smartphone segment for the past two years in which their competitors soared way higher.

This is also the first time that three LG subsidiaries came together for making this device, LG chem, LG displays and LG mobile. In that sense, the device sports probably one of the best HD IPS panels ever made, and finally sports a fresh design with a glass backing, moving away from soulless plastic designs from the past. Here are the highlights of this device –

4.7 inch 1280×768 IPS TFT zero gap display, easily one of the best
1.5 GHz Quad core Snapdragon S4 PRO processor
Fresh new design with a glass backing and a pattern
13 MP camera
Currently runs Android ICS
LG, unlike other manufacturers, has been majorly criticised for one thing, regular updates to its phones. While the skin is getting better, the update situation currently is horrendous and even affects the latest devices it has released. But it is also widely known that the Nexus 4 is completely based on the LG Optimus G and hence that gave a huge sigh of relief for potential users, knowing that they can one way or the other use stock Android on this one fine day. But again, the major roadblock has been availability and it continues to evade users who are willing to plonk their precious cash on it.
With that said, the Optimus G definitely has been LG’s “awakening” and has proven that it is good enough for being selected for the Nexus program by Google. And yes, it has definitely given a good fight to the Samsung Galaxy S3 in terms of specs and features but then, success depends on sales and it seems LG still needs to catch up, a long way.

Nokia Lumia 920 vs HTC One X+

Hello readers!
Both the devices don’t need any introduction, they are the highly acclaimed flagships of two companies very recently getting known for their fresh designs and striking devices. Yes, Nokia and HTC, outside the Apple world, have been leading the industry with the best designed smartphones in the market for a while now, with their Lumias and the One series of devices respectively. But what will happen when they are made to fight head to head? Lets start the battle and find out!

The Nokia Lumia 920 was heralded as the most innovative smartphone by Nokia, when it launched on September 5th at New York City. It also has a huge list of features to support that claim. Lets take a look at them now –

Highly sensitive HD+ 1280×768 LCD touchscreen that can be used with gloves and various other objects that conduct
High refresh rate screen at 60 Hz
Optical image stabilisation for the camera to enable longer exposures and stabilised video
Wireless charging with Qi standard
Dolby stereo
All the above features make the Nokia Lumia 920 the most innovative smartphone according to Nokia. But the features don’t stop there, the Lumia 920 has a whole lot more to offer, with it’s spanking new OS in Windows Phone 8 which is a subset of the larger Windows operating system, and with it brings new chassis updates too, enabling a lot of competitive hardware for the device. For example, the device sports a 1280×768 display, which was not possible with the earlier chassis restrictions imposed by Windows Phone 7. Likewise, the device now supports NFC, bluetooth transfer and more hardware enabled features, making it almost on par with competing platforms. Nokia has also added a lot of value with its own mapping solution, various apps related to mapping etc. to amplify the experience. However the major thing Windows Phone 8 lacks is apps.

Coming to the camera, it is the undoubtedly the most important feature of the Nokia Lumia 920, as it carries the PureView brand that was made famous by the Nokia 808 PureView. While it does not have the oversampling magic that the 808 conjured, the 920 has its own strengths which include optical image stabilisation which enables shake free well lit low light pictures and stabilised video recording. Enough of the Lumia 920, lets get to the One X+ then.

The HTC One X+ one the other hand is currently the HTC flagship, and an upgrade to the ever popular HTC One X that launched at MWC the same year. But why the upgrade so soon, you ask? Well, the One X, while being awesome as it is, came with a few complaints regarding storage, battery performance etc. And in a way to fix, or enhance it, HTC came up with the One X+ very recently. It has improvements in terms of performance too, while looking just like the One X. Here are some highlights of the device –

Highly acclaimed SLCD2 display at 1280×720
1.7 GHz quad core processor
Image sense chip that lets you take pictures while recording a video
Beats audio and amplifier
The One X+, although a revamped One X, is still a great device that has carried forward the brand and everything that the One X stood for. While the camera is a touted feature, apart from the impressively low shutter lag, it is not on par with other devices like the Galaxy S3 and the iPhone 5 let alone the Lumia 920. But the camera holds its own when it comes to shutter performance, by having one of the fastest speeds from focus to shot. The trickery is possible thanks to the Image sense chip that resides beside the BSI sensor.

The One X+ also comes with updated internals, with the new Tegra 3 1.7 GHz processor, that improves performance over the One X. Not only that, the One X+ is the first HTC device to launch with Android Jellybean which brings various improvements like project butter, new notifications panel, Google now.. etc. Android has been the king of the smartphone OSes for a while now, and it doesn’t disappoint on the One X+. Sense 4+, HTC’s updated skin improves over the earlier version, but the jury’s still out on whether it is good or not.

I think enough has been said about both of these device, it will get opinionated if we go in depth. So, we leave the judgement to you, the readers. Tell you verdict in the comment section.