HTC One or Samsung GS4?

[Nevis]

If you had to switch to a new device today and your only choices were the HTC One and the Samsung GS4, which one would you go with and why?

[koiulpoi]

If those were my ONLY two choices? I personally recommend the LG Optimus G over both, for similar hardware, a more dev-friendly manufacturer, and a closer-to-stock experience at $100 less...

 

But, to actually answer your question, I'd go with the Galaxy S4, mostly because there appears to be a higher rate out out-of-box failure of the HTC One. This is my subjective experience, of course.

 

When it comes down to it, both are Snapdragon 600s with 1080p screens, so for the "day to day" phone use stuff, you won't notice a ton of difference. The Samsung Gimmicks and HTC Gimmicks I don't feel will actually matter past Week 1 of use.

[lilg740]

At this point in the NV rollout I would choose HTC One in order to get Hex SCID's

[digiblur]

S4 due to the reports of how well it does in the RF dept

 

I don't understand choosing a phone for Hex IDs. The other serving cells data works just fine.

 

Sent from my little Note2

 

 

[SpenceSouth]

The GS4 is a gorgeous phone with a nice size screen, but I'd get the One.  Can't pass on that camera and Sense has a very sophisticated feel to it.

[Rocket87]

I love my one but I feel it has the same rf issues as the evo lte. Of course I'm biased and have 20+ lte phones at my disposal to test against. The one consistently looses lte signal while sitting next to other phones and speed tests 10 to 20 percent slower sitting next to galaxy note 2s, gs3 and gs 4. Like I said I love everything about the HTC one except rf. I should say it works great around town it just sucks that it's mediocre in the place I spend 45 hours a week.

 

Forgot to add I'm in a launched market.

Sent from my HTCONE using Tapatalk 2

 

[Fraydog]

I would pick the One at this point.

[silverhawknike]

Galaxy S4. Removable SD and Battery

[Mondays In Flames]

HTC ONE, it's just so simple to use, and simplicity with a skinned UI is a good thing. I'm not a big fan of Samsung to begin with, so I'm biased towards HTC. But everything about the ONE is just so much better to me.

 

The Samsung Gimmicks and HTC Gimmicks I don't feel will actually matter past Week 1 of use.

As far as gimmicks, the HTC ones that I can tell are the Boomsound, Zoes, Highlights, Blinkfeed, and the IR Blaster. They actually come in handy and I use them all the time. As for samsung, they packed so many gimmicky features that they just get lost in a sea of gestures and swipes and tilting... It's complicated, to me at least.

 

 

-Luis

[digiblur]

Galaxy S4. Removable SD and Battery

 

Totally forgot about those features not being there.  Those day trips with no charging abilities and Sensorly burning while streaming music kills the battery.  It's nice to just swap the battery.

[clbowens]

GS4 because I have the GS3 and it's a good phone.

[centermedic]

Two cups and a string.

 

Its all so very subjective, especially with two phones that are so closely matched. I would recommend trying out both phones for yourself.

[irev210]

Having used both phones, I have to say I like the One more.

 

Better camera, display, build quality.

 

The only thing that the GS4 has on the HTC One is reception.  Looking at both debug screens at the same time, the GS4 was just able to do better by a few dB.

[JonnygATL]

GS4.  Same obvious reasons - removable battery, expandable storage.  These are just basic "musts" for me and for most people.  But, beyond that, I'm used to Samsung's Amoled screens and actually prefer the oversaturation of colors that I've grown accustomed to.  To me, the display on the HTC one (and on the iphone's "retina" display as well) shows muted, washed out colors that aren't terribly pleasing to the eye.  Again, I know it's only because I've grown accustomed to AMOLED's tendency toward color oversaturation but, hey, just my two cents.

 

Also I am very much against the vertical scrolling on the HTC One versus the lateral scrolling on, oh, every other phone on the market.  It simply feels unnatural and definitely counter-intuitive.  

 

One last thing: regarding the myriad Samsung "gimmicks"...yes, they are many but I choose to simply ignore them.  It's just too much and I don't have time to worry about it, to be 100% honest. 

[V12]

I would also reccomend going to a store and trying each phone for yourself. I have gone and done this. My impressions are as follows:

 

Two cups and a string.

 

Its all so very subjective, especially with two phones that are so closely matched. I would recommend trying out both phones for yourself.

1. Yes both are great phones and have very similar specs as noted.

 

When it comes down to it, both are Snapdragon 600s with 1080p screens, so for the "day to day" phone use stuff, you won't notice a ton of difference. The Samsung Gimmicks and HTC Gimmicks I don't feel will actually matter past Week 1 of use.

2. As far as screen goes, I would give the gs4 the edge on size. At 5" , it's pretty amazing that they were able to fit that screen into basically the same footprint as the gs3 and the One. On the other hand, the screen on the One is gorgeous. So for me the beautiful screen on the One trumps the 5" screen on the gs4.

 

3. As far as the gimmicks that both phones promote, its true that the majority won't matter after a short time. It was noted they could just be ignored.

 

One last thing: regarding the myriad Samsung "gimmicks"...yes, they are many but I choose to simply ignore them. It's just too much and I don't have time to worry about it, to be 100% honest.

 

Unfortunately the features on the gs4 has shown to slow down the phone, as I did notice lag. Additionally, I would often use the Boomsound and the Zoe features of the One.

 

4. The overall experience of the One was smoother due to Sense 5 as opposed to touchwiz and the lag noticed on the gs4.

 

5. Regarding expandable memory and removable battery. The gs4 does get the nod for being able to swap batteries out. However, I currently own the Evo lte and battery always lasts between 1 and 2 days, and fully charges in about 3 hrs. I'm sure I would be okay with the One's battery. Even though the gs4 does have a micro SD card slot, its widely reported that the base 16gb handset has only 8gb of usable space. Whereas the One's base 32gb has 26.1gb usable space, and can be had for $100 less than the gs4. This is the lowest I've seen on Amazon recently. This could be seen as a wash, but for me the One wins out. 3x usable space for less money, and I'm no where near to filling up the 32gb card in my Evo lte.

 

6. Finally, build quality is considered subjective, and like the other factors, could be a wash. The other categories can go either way or one phone may have a slight edge over the other. But for me, build quality is overwhelmingly in the One's favor. I urge anyone who hasn't held an HTC One, to do so. Its a marvel of technology and looks and feels like a $700 handset. I'm dissapointed that not much of the exterior of the gs4 has changed from the gs3. I know plastic works for Samsung and their customers. But I wanted to see just a little innovative and not such a safe approach taken on Samsung's part.

 

Again this is my opinion, and I respect everyone's perspective. They are both great phones. However, HTC took the chances and came up winners when their future survival depended on it. I believe some of their innovations, like front facing speakers and camera, will become staples in future OEM offerings.

Edited June 5, 2013 by V12

[MacinJosh]

I played with both at the Sprint store in Fresno where I got my Galaxy Nexus exchanged again today, and I love the front facing speakers on the One, but overall, I like the GS4 and the GS3 in terms of shape. I may spring for a GS4 in September if I get enough money from grants and scholarships. I'm budgeting in a computer too. This should be an interesting budget, lol. But I really like the GS4.

 

 

Sent from Josh's iPhone 5 using Tapatalk 2

[V12]

I do like the shape of the gs3 and gs4. It was hard for me to choose between the gs3 and the Evo. But the materials used was more important to me than the shape of the gs3. It would have been perfect if the Evo had the same materials with the shape of the gs3. Thinking back, that was a tough decision to make. But I know I made the right one for me every time I pick up my wife's plastic gs3.

Edited June 5, 2013 by V12