Samsung Galaxy SIII or wait for iPhone 5?

[admin_exported]

Ok so my iPhone 3GS is dying on me a bit. I wasn't blown away by the 4S really and was going to wait for the 5 but I don't think the phone will last that long!

I have had an iPhone since day 1 and love it. I also have an iPad and was contemplating getting an apple tv soon. I mainly use my phone for browsing, email, apps and rarely as an actual phone! I like the look of the sIII and would imagine it would do anything and everything I want. I am getting a NAS soon so will store my music /photos/videos on that and want to access through phone, iPad and apple tv. Would there be any issues with the phone being android?

Is the SIII the best choice? Anyone would pick htc over it?

Would I be better waiting for the iPhone 5?

I welcome your thoughts!!!

Thanks,

Alex

 

[Anonymous]

Ok - clearly not a very interesting post!

Having never had an android phone I just wanted to check that it would do everything I want.

HTC or Samsung?

 

[fr0g]

If you are into Apple in such a way then you are probably better off sticking with Apple.

I say this as a non-Apple fan.

the HTC One X(that I have) or the SGIII are superb phones. They will do pretty much anything an iPhone will do, and a lot more. I haven't a clue what the iPhone 5 will be, but I'd doubt it would be any more powerful than those 2 (I could be wrong).

If I were you I would go to a store where you can play with the phones (not the stupid mock up ones) and get a feel of them in your hand. They are both quite a bit bigger than the iphone and for some that's a problem.

It ultimately depends on your intended use of the phone (outside of being a phone).

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the response Frog. I never really thought of myself as 'attached' to apple really! I loved the iphone when it came out but have been less impressed with recent editions (plus the cost).

So I bit the bullet and from Wednesday I will be the proud owner of a Samsung Galaxy SIII!

 

[Andy Clough]

FYI, we have a Supertest of the latest smartphones (though not of course the iPhone 5!) in the July issue of the magazine, on sale this Friday. Includes the iPhone 4S, HTC One X, HTC One S, Samsung Galaxy Nexus, Samsung Galaxy Note and Sony Xperia S. Well worth a read. And we'll have an online review of the Galaxy S III very shortly.

 

[Sliced Bread]

Sounds like it'll be a good read Andy.

I've just ordered an s3 too. I hope it can stack up against the One X(s) I had.

 

[Exshopguy]

People I know who have gone from an iPhone to an Android one have generally not been very happy and changed back, people who start with Android seem very happy. It depends what you're used to and what features you like - Apple is very solid but never cutting edge in terms of features (though more and more of their newer ones are being copied by Android, where historically this was the other way around!).

The new iPhone5 is looking to have a 4" screen and be a touch larger with expected 1gig of ram, processor will be good and battery life will undoubtedly be decent compared to a 4.8" screen Samsung.

Currently the leaks look to be getting hold of some solid parts so it may not be that far off, presuming these aren't older prototypes. It's all speculation at the moment but the metal backs could be for some kind of inductive charging as they're out of kilter with usual Apple design, the top and bottom sections being glass/plastic for internal aerials etc. Many don't like this look but I expect it will be a lot better in the flesh.

 

[Lee H]

As someone working in the mobile industry, I rarely see an accurate "leak" or rumour for almost any device; especially iPhone. Before now I've had a pre-launch product in my hands whilst reading wildly inaccurate rumours from supposedly respectable sites.

I had an S3 for a weekend a couple of weeks back and it is seriously tempting me away from iOS. This is a crossroads for Apple. Android is already the dominant OS and unless they come up with something new they could fall even further behind. Once you've browsed the web on the One-X or S3 the iPhone seems very small in comparison.

 

[Paul.]

I will hold judgement till I see it. The pics 9to5mac got hold of of the new case design look awful. I remember seeing the engadget prototype photos and thinking the iPhone 4 looked like crap. Still to this date, two years on its the best looking phone on the market. I have faith in Sir Jonnys skills

I have been impressed by the S3 though, its a great peice of kit. It will prob be a lot cheaper than the iPhone by the time the new phone comes out.

 

[Anonymous]

As someone working in the mobile industry, I rarely see an accurate "leak" or rumour for almost any device; especially iPhone. Before now I've had a pre-launch product in my hands whilst reading wildly inaccurate rumours from supposedly respectable sites.

I had an S3 for a weekend a couple of weeks back and it is seriously tempting me away from iOS. This is a crossroads for Apple. Android is already the dominant OS and unless they come up with something new they could fall even further behind. Once you've browsed the web on the One-X or S3 the iPhone seems very small in comparison.

I agree, and I really rate the 4S, but it's compact size, whilst being a plus point for many, just doesn't allow for the same browsing experience as the new larger screened Androids, especially now that they're packing a similar ppi density.

 

[Exshopguy]

For me the design is an important factor and that's the only negative I really have about the S3 - the odd radiuses (radii?) and seemingly thrown in home button that's slightly bent lack the precision design of the iPhone. The lightweight cases are practical but again seem a little cheap. The S3 is also about the maximum size a phone can be now before it becomes a tablet - a new iPhone won't be that big but is certainly going to have a larger screen than the 4S to keep in the game, the only difficulty being ratios and resolution to keep the "Retina display" tag and not upset developers too much.

The reason I think the latest leaks are genuine is that they are using proper machined parts rather than a rendering, as I said though they could well be an older prototype rather than what people will see in production. The iPad 3 had similar accurate leaks not far off launch and since Apple have an event in a couple of weeks there may be something in this. It would mean an ahead-of-schedule launch though and the leaks could also be to steal some of Samsung's thunder with the S3 launch. Who knows!

 

[Paul.]

Apple would only announce at wwdc if significant changes by developers would be needed. Most leaks are pointing to an aspect ratio shift with the same dpi and same width, the screen is just getting taller by one row of icons. iOS apps already have some virticle resolution compliance due to the way notifications work meaning it should be an easy job to tweak apps in height by a smidge. Don't think anything will come directly from wwdc, but the developers will find lots of hints in the following weeks in the iOS 6 sdk.

Saying that, who actually knows what they are going to do?

 

[bigboss]

Is the SIII the best choice? Anyone would pick htc over it?

HTC Sense is the best UI in the market today. My HTC Desire was faultless until I upgraded to the Sensation which has had its set of niggles. There have been some issues with the One X which seem to have been ironed out with a software update. Have a play with both phones before making a purchase.

 

[fr0g]

Is the SIII the best choice? Anyone would pick htc over it?

HTC Sense is the best UI in the market today. My HTC Desire was faultless until I upgraded to the Sensation which has had its set of niggles. There have been some issues with the One X which seem to have been ironed out with a software update. Have a play with both phones before making a purchase.

I have a Galaxy Tab and an HTC One X. The UI on the HTC is FAR better than on Samsung. So much so I don't use the Samsung version, I use Go Launcher HD which is much better (as well as more responsive).

Haven't seen the SG3, but I didn't like the cheap plastic on the S2, even though it's a great phone. Neither did I like the gaudy colour cast. The HTC One X IPS panel is fairly natural in comparison.

Also, the build on my last HTC (Desire HD) and this, is exemplary. Very high quality IMO.

 

[Big Aura]

Tesco are doing a HTC One X for £21.50 a month (free phone) - 100 mins, unlimited texts, and 500MB.

O2 suits me, as they're my broadband provider and they discount bb if I'm a mobile customer.

The same deal can be done with an iPhone 4s 16Gb if I buy the phone for £200.

My current phone is failing, but not quite at replacement level (yet...!)

 

[AnotherJoe]

Tesco are doing a HTC One X for £21.50 a month (free phone) - 100 mins, unlimited texts, and 500MB.

O2 suits me, as they're my broadband provider and they discount bb if I'm a mobile customer.

The same deal can be done with an iPhone 4s 16Gb if I buy the phone for £200.

My current phone is failing, but not quite at replacement level (yet...!)

I have to laugh when I see this. The HOX is FREE on this tarrif with its leading edge quad-core 1.5Ghz and 4.7' 720p screen while some (a lot it seems) people are still happy to pay an EXTRA £200 for out of date Apple hardware - in the 4gs case an 800Mhz dualcore and tiny screen.

That Apple reality distortion field is still alive and kicking!

 

[Big Aura]

actually the biggest turn off for me is the size of the HTC (and the SIII).

When I first saw a SII I thought it looked like a freakin' plasma screen. the HTC and SIII are about 2cm longer and 1cm wider than the iPhone. I wear a suit every day, and have to carry a blackberry and a phone and keys and a wallet and change. Smaller is better.

I'm guessing the iPhone (dated as the tech is) is better than my current phone!

 

[AnotherJoe]

In your pocket the HOX would be both thinner and lighter.

If you have a blackberry - why would you need a 2nd phone ?

 

[Big Aura]

My Nokia has "my" number that friends and family use, the blackberry is a work phone that clients/co-workers use - and work get annoyed if I use the berry to call friends/family in Ireland. The Nokia's microphone stopped working for a day earlier this week, and then righted itself. I think it's not long for this world, so starting to look at options.

 

[Exshopguy]

Just an update on potential iPhone 5, another leak, this time a schematic. Indicates 4" approx screen, 16:9 ratio and about 7mm taller than current iPhone.

 

[Lee H]

In your pocket the HOX would be both thinner and lighter.

Very true - I noticed my iPhone 4 in my pocket more than I did the S3

 

[Sliced Bread]

In your pocket the HOX would be both thinner and lighter.

Very true - I noticed my iPhone 4 in my pocket more than I did the S3

+2

 

[Sliced Bread]

Is the SIII the best choice? Anyone would pick htc over it?

HTC Sense is the best UI in the market today. My HTC Desire was faultless until I upgraded to the Sensation which has had its set of niggles. There have been some issues with the One X which seem to have been ironed out with a software update. Have a play with both phones before making a purchase.

Yup. When I had my One X I loved it, but I had too many problems with it and returned it. Most of these are said to be ironed out now, so it's definitely with a look.
I've ordered an s3 now (delivery tomorrow) and looking forward to seeing how they compare.

 

[AnotherJoe]

Comparing the HOX to the SG3 is pretty tricky.

Plus points for HTC

- looks better, feels better in hand.

- better graphics effects for games with TegraZone

- Sense (I like it)

- slightly cheaper

Plus points for SG3

- battery life 19 hours vs 14 hours for me (similar use)

- microSD card

- slightly higher GPU performance

I'm not impressed with the S-voice or the smartstay feature. The performance is pretty much the same - the hox benchmark scores improve by about 10% if u bring the hox up to latest linux kernel. (Both get around 12,000 in Antutu)

 

[Anonymous]

i dont know much information about the iphone but the samsung galaxy s3 is pretty tight

camera

touch screen

picture quality

internet