Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Galaxy S4 Official Release Date Near?

 Greetings dear readership and welcome back to another post on the Galaxy S4 News blog! Today, we will be discussing the the Samsung Unpacked event that will take place in New York on March 14. Is this going to be the official unveiling for the Galaxy S4? And if so, will the Galaxy S4 official release date be just around the corner as well? But some of you may be thinking - What Samsung Unpacked? New York - what? and I don't blame you for being uninformed about it! I have my doubts about how authentic this information is, but a site a lot of people admire, called AndroidAuthority, puts its reputation on the line saying that the following story is true.

 So, here are the photos of the official invitations to the Samsung Unpacked Event which will be held on March 14, 2013:
Galaxy S4 Release Date
Ready "4" the show? A subtle hint at the Galaxy S4 release?

Episode 1? Is this Star Wars?


 Now, if you compare this to the first fake Galaxy S4 event invitations then you can obviously see that the two photos above are clearly much more professional and much more trustworthy. The first poster is done in the same style as all the previous Samsung Unpacked event posters and even features the event's official logo. The phrases "Ready 4 the show" and "Come and Meet the Next Galaxy" clearly suggest that this will be an event during which Samsung will unveil the Samsung Galaxy S4 to the general public in New York City, but also worldwide via the official live stream.

 The second photograph shows how the official press invitation and media kit look like and this photo was originally published Engadget, a reputable tech blog. The mixture of the the colors that you can see on the word MEDIA as well as the logo in the corner suggest a special type of material which guarantees that this media card is official.

 These special invitations were given to Engadget's journalists during their visit to the Mobile World Congress a few days ago at the official Samsung booth. Sammy is apparently getting tired of all of the new smartphones on the market and has shifted its resources into high gear in order to complete this project a lot sooner than many of us had expected.

 One final question though - what do you think that Episode 1 means? I am guessing that Samsung will first reveal their Galaxy S4 and later show off their Galaxy Note 3. But of course, it also mean that there will be several Samsung Unpacked events for the promotion of the Galaxy S4, although I am personally sticking with the first theory.

 What do you guys and girls think?

Saturday, February 23, 2013

Galaxy S4 Camera Details Revealed by T3.Com

 Welcome back to another post on the Galaxy S4 news blog dear reader! Today, we have some fresh new stories to share with you and all of today's content comes right from T3.Com who I personally find a much reliable news source than many others that are a lot more popular. Today's news are also a lot more original since they focus on the Galaxy S4 camera details and features which is something that a lot of previous rumors and leaks did not mention at all. Yes - today's post won't be about any specs, processors or rumored release dates - today's post is about the S4 camera and I am honestly happy to welcome this change!

Galaxy S4 Camera Specs
The S3 had a really nice thing going for it last year in terms of camera software
 Now, so far we have already heard that the Galaxy S4 will feature a 13 MP camera and this will probably is become and industry standard for high-level devices in the future. The fans are not planning to settle for anything less it would seem and Samsung will really have to put-out when it comes to this. Personally, I never understood why people demanded to have an amazing camera on their smartphone. I would still prefer to use my real camera during a trip or a major social event. Even so, there are just some moments that you want to capture in the best possible way and if you are paying over $700 for a phone why not look for one that has a really good camera?

 Well, those who have high expectation of Samsung when it comes to the Galaxy S4 camera can rejoice! T3.com is saying that they have a tip from AndroidGeeks that Samsung is working on a new feature that will maximize the power of their 13 MP camera. The concept is called Samsung Orb and this is expected to be superior to the S3's Photo Sphere. So, how would you like to take 360 degree pictures with a 13 MP camera on your Galaxy S4? I admit that I am also quite intrigued with this feature and  I certainly welcome a new concept!

 The website is also reporting that the Samsung Orb will have social media integration that will allow you to share your photos with your friends and allow them to enjoy the amazing photos that  you will no doubt be trying to create thanks to latest software and hardware that the Galaxy S4 is expected to dish out.

 So what do you think about this concept? It isn't anything extremely new, but it sounds pretty cool. Are there any other improvements to the camera that you would like to see? Leave a comment down bellow!

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Galaxy S4 Snapdragon or Exynos Processor? You be the Judge!

 The hottest rumor on the web surrounding the Samsung Galaxy S4 is the processor debate - will the company opt for Exynos or will Qualcomm's Snapdragon be the driving force behind the new flagship? Do you want my honest opinion before you hear the facts and rumors? Well, I honestly don't care at the moment since I know that both of these are high quality products. However, what I am worried about is which is better compatible with the rest of the kit. One would assume that an Exynos processor would go better considering that it Samsung's own pride and joy and they can customize it as much as they like until it fits all their needs. Not to mention that the Exynos 5 Octa is a great marketing strategy so far! But this is just me, what do the rumors on the Internet say?

Galaxy S4 Snapdragon VS Exynos Octa

Well the Galaxy S4 news and rumor mill doesn't have all that much to say except for the same repetitive story which sounds a lot like this:

 The Galaxy S4 was featured in unofficial benchmarks last week and the *reliable, trustworthy etc* photos showed that the Galaxy S4 will be running a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor. The chairman of Qualcomm didn't give out any details about their possible cooperation with Samsung, but he did hint us that the company's new hardware is well-optimized and will provide *XX% better battery life*.

Galaxy S4 Snapragon News
Click to zoom
You can see that I was being a bit sarcastic here, but the joke I played is very reasonable since every single article out there looks the same! Even blogs that have a good reputation to uphold seem to be getting lazy and just copy the same thing over and over again. I am telling you it is hard to find an original Galaxy S4 news source right now!

 Anyway, let me state a few facts about why you shouldn't worry about this issue in the first place. First of all, read my opening opinion at the top of the article in case you skipped (how dare you!). Second, please note that Samsung has used Qualcomm's processor units in the past already, specially in the USA. They didn't use them on some unpopular/low-level models as you might be thinking. Far from that! They used it on some of their Galaxy S3 devices, including the Galaxy S3 4G/LTE model which is pretty cool.

 The final thing to note is that Snapdragon 600 is a beast! It is powering the LG Optimums Pro and the new HTC One and I have to tell you that I am impressed by those two phones! I am sure that an improved version of that processor would fit great inside of the Galaxy S4!

 So what do you guys and girls think? Leave me a comment down bellow and have a wonderful day!

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Samsung Galaxy S4 Design - a Fan Concept!

 Hey dear readership, how's it going? There are really no Galaxy S4 leaks and stories worth mentioning today, so we thought we'd spice it up a bit! How, you may ask, well, let me tell you! Instead of doing another hypothetical review, today I will focus on what the Galaxy S4 might actually look like - if the fans had a chance to make it! This is an article that is inspired by the hard work of the guys from AndroidPIT who created an amazing Galaxy S4 design render which I will be basing this article around.

 Here is the photo:

Galaxy S4 Design Features
Looking nice isn't it?

 Looks really good doesn't it? I am not aware of the name of the author, but whoever this person is I salute them! Kudos for the great work! Yes, I really do like this concept and I find it a nice mix between two very different styles. Will the Galaxy S4 design really look anything like this? I don't really know, but if this is the path that the designer decide to go by, I will be very pleased!

 Now, somebody might come along and say - they only took a photo of another phone, made it longer and added a different display and some color effects. Indeed, this person would be correct, but even so, there some technical details about this design that make me very excited about it!

 So what are these things? Well, first of all, they say that the new Galaxy S4 will be a 5-inch smartphone and this means that it will be a lot bigger than we would like it to be. However, should it feature this sort of edge-to-edge display, the size would not have to increase much as all! And honestly, some people really dig this style anyway! If you are afraid of getting the phone damage too easily with such a design, then get a strong, durable, case kit and all your troubles will come to an end!

 I also like the back design that the authors clearly ripped-off from the LG Google Nexus 4. However, this is something I wouldn't mind. Indeed, wouldn't it be awesome if you Galaxy S4 was really a compilation of the best things out there and still brought in a lot of original features of its own? Now that would really be something!

 So, while we wait, feel free to leave a comment and tell us how you see things! :)

Saturday, February 16, 2013

Galaxy S4 Benchmark Rumor (Again!)

 Ready for another stack of Samsung Galaxy S4 rumors? I sure hope you are since this post will have a lot of fun news and stories to cover! However, before we actually get started with today's rumors let us look back on a post from last month, when AnTuTu benchmark reveled some interesting new specs. Today, the story continues as the Galaxy S4 got benchmarked once more (supposedly) and there some new rumors about its hardware and overall performance. So, put your thinking caps on and let us get started on our journey!

Galaxy S4 Benchmark
Another S4 Benchmark photo pops up!
 The specs that the new AnTuTu Benchmark is proposing aren't very different from the original report and there is only one major difference worth mentioning - the CPU. According to the service provider, the Galaxy S4 has a CPU that is running at 1.9 GHz which is a bit better than the 1.8 GHz report we heard last month. While it seems like it is not a big deal, it appears that the little tweaks have been done are actually making an amazing difference. Last month the Galaxy S4 scored a bit more than 20,000 points on AnTuTu benchmark and as you can see right now it has an impressive score over 24.317! Of course, this all goes as long as you are ready to believe all of this.

The Galaxy S4 Sets the Bar Quite High!


 Either way if this report is true, this means that S4 will once again help Samsung set the quality bar very high. The score of over 24,000 points is so impressive that there is currently no phone on the Market that can beat it. The Asus Padfone 2 and HTC J Butterfly come very close since they are the only other devices that got over 20,000 points. And for comparison purposes let us just throw this out: the Galaxy Note 2 "only" scored 17,500 points on the test, which just goes to show how much Samsung is going to improve on their previous lineup.

 Another thing that people are busting their heads over is the CPU issue. The rumors are now indicating a 1.9 GHz clock speed and nobody is sure which unit is going to be placed inside of the phone. One would think that it would obviously be an Exynos CPU, but rumors are suggesting a Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 or Snapdragon S4 Pro. I personally find it hard to believe, although it is possible that Samsung might not be able to  bring the Exynos CPU in time for every single market and thus they will have to settle with a Qualcomm chipset on selected markets. Whatever the case, both units are quality products and will certainly add value to the device.

Don't trust every rumor out there!

Friday, February 15, 2013

Galaxy S4 Mini and a Galaxy S4 Watch Will Also be Released?

 Greetings dear readership and welcome back to another post on the blog! Today's topic is a bit unusual and we have not covered this issue as of yet. The rumors in question is that Samsung will also release a Galaxy S4 Mini device as well as a Galaxy S4 Watch. Now, the first part of the rumor does make quite a bit of sense, but the second part of really got me off my guard and I can honestly say I didn't ever think about something such as this. Let us see where the origin of these rumors is and how trustworthy they really are.

Galaxy S4 MINI
A fan-made render concept that I can somehow see as the new Galaxy S4 Mini
 Well, Samsung has been known for creating many variation of their popular devices and selling them on different markets. Last year they released the S3 Mini, a first variation of this type in the Galaxy series. This device is quite smaller than the original smartphone and it has poor specs in comparison to "the real thing". To compensate for this, of course, the price was much lower and this phone was meant for users with a lower budget.

 Since the Samsung Galaxy S4 is expected to have a 4.99 inch display it makes a lot of sense for the Korean tech giant to actually release a Galaxy S4 Mini a couple of months later. A lot of users will probably enjoy the smaller version just for its size regardless of the poorer specs and lower cost. SamMobile reports that the mini device will not have wireless charging, but will use the same accessory set as its bigger brother.

 But what about this "S4 Watch" thing?

Samsung Galaxy Watch
Is this a concept that you would like to see in the future?

 SamMobile reports that this project is labeled as Project J Active while the codename is Fortius. Now this is quite funny since they also reported that the Samsung Galaxy S4 has the codename Altius. Do you see the connection between those two names? Well, if not let me brake it down:

  • Citius, Altius, Fortius means Faster, Higher, Stronger
  • That is actually the official motto of the Olympics
  Interest isn't it? Although I must say that it makes very little sense, but of course these names would just be come codes and they don't really need to have any obvious meanings. Either way, PC Adviser reports that we cannot say anything decisive about the Galaxy S4 Watch just yet. However, they claim that other portals and blogs have reported that Samsung is planning a bike mount and watch armband accessory which does point the rumor mill in this direction.

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Galaxy S4 Wireless Charger Clears the FCC? [Photos]

 Just when I was afraid that this week will start off poorly when it comes to fresh new Galaxy S4 news, rumors and overall content I stumbled up on a very interesting report involving the rumored wireless charger. What makes the story more believable is a set of photos that was published along with the report and it is quite clear that this is an official Samsung product. However, whether or not this is actually a wireless charger for the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S4 smartphone remains to be seen. Either way, the device has cleared though the FCC tests and is ready to be released at the same time as the latest Galaxy smartphone.

 The source of the leak is the popular and well-respected tech blog Engadget which has published some nice photos and info on the S4 and the charger on the photos. Apparently the device is 90mm wide and uses Qi wireless charging standards. Apart that "qi" is actually pronounced as "chee" I can only tell you that this system can transfer power over a small distance of 1.6 inches.

Here is the first photo from the FCC test:

Galaxy S4 Wirless Charger

 As you can see above this is probably the first photo takes before the FCC's tests since the device is still intact on the photograph. If I understand correctly, the official codename of this wireless charger pad is EAD-W10EWE and Samsung hasn't really been all that secretive about it since a lot of technical details about the tech and schematics of this device where allowed to be released. However, as you may have guessed it there is no official mention of the Galaxy S4 anywhere nor that the S4 will be using this device. This just somehow brings me back to a video we posted not too long ago - Don't trust all those Galaxy S4 Rumors!

 Is this actually an upcoming wireless charging kit for the Galaxy S3 and the Note 2? These who devices have been out for a while and the tops months of their slaves have passed quite some time ago. Still, these devices are more that competitive and are selling quite well already. These charging kits would certainly give an extra reason to new consumers to buy the devices in the first place, and Samsung can make some extra money from the old owners of these devices. 

 Here's how it all looked once the FCC took the device part by part!

Galaxy S4 Wirless Charger Kit

Sunday, February 10, 2013

Galaxy S4 vs HTC One X: A Hypothesis

 The Galaxy S4 isn't out yet, but this guy is the writing a comparison with the HTC One X! - is that you must be shouting at the screen right now. Yes, you are correct, this is indeed not very smart or very accurate, but why not? A lot of sites do this and I have done it in the past as well. A lot of you actually tweeted/liked the Galaxy S4 vs Sony Xperia Z review and I am hopping that you will enjoy this hypothetical review as well! Today, I will pit the S4 against the powerful HTC One X and we will see how it goes!
Galaxy S4 vs HTC One X

 So what is the idea here and how will we be comparing the two devices since we aren't sure what the S4 is going to have once it comes out? Well, we will compare the HTC One X to the rumored Galaxy S4 features as well as highlight some key features that Samsung will have to have/improve in order to be competitive and better than HTC's flagship device. Ready to get started then? Alright, let us start the review, shall we?

Galaxy S4 vs the HTC One X: The Overall Specs

 The HTC One X is a phone a had an opportunity to play around with on several occasions. In my opinion HTC is a company that produces very good smartphone devices and their products are quite reliable in my eyes. The HTC One X is the top gun in their collection and it a very powerful device. Samsung will have to do a lot in order to compete with this device and you can be sure that the Korean tech giant will do all in its power to win the market share war!

 So, here is what the HTC One X is sporting:
  • 1 GB RAM
  • 32 GB of memory (26GB is accessible to the user) and no microSD card support
  • A quad-core processor (1.5 GHz)
  • A Nvidia Tegra 3 Chipset
  • 4.7 inch screen with 312 ppi
  • ULP GeForce for the CPU
  • Corning Gorilla Glass
  • 8 MP back camera and 1.2 MP front camera
  • Android Ice Cream Snadwich out of the box and an official Jelly Bean update
 So far, the One X looks rather sweet doesn't it? Right off the bat you can see why it is a successful smartphone and HTC's pride and joy. However, the Samsung Galaxy S4 should not have a lot of trouble competing with these specs.

Rumored Galaxy S4 specs and design

 As you can see from the above image, the S4's rumored specs are quite superior although HTC One X will not be completely outdated and will still stay quite competitive. Among other things we must mention the obvious advantage that the S4 has when it comes to RAM and internal memory, display quality and processing power. Also, the impressive Galaxy S4 battery should also give this smartphone a lot more durability than what the HTC One X offers. The lack of microSD card support on the One X will also bring a lot of points for Samsung among many users as well.

The HTC One X is just not up to the challange

 

According to last year's benchmarks, the Galaxy S3 performed much better than the HTC One X, so it can be said that we are expecting the S4 to wipe the floor with the One X this year! Just for good measure here is what the benchmarks said:
  • Galaxy S3 scored 12016 points on AnTuTu benchmarks which is more than what the HTC One X was able to score (it was 11024 points).
  • The HTC One X has a score of 47,4 on NenMark 2 which is rather good, but the S3 blew it out of the water with its own score of 58,6.
 Now, a a lot of people won't agree that the S3 is better than the HTC One X and this of course their right and I respect their opinion. However, based on every test that was done out there I have to conclude that the S3 was indeed a better device and thus the S4 will have no trouble in winning the Galaxy S4 with the HTC One X battle.

But was it really worth comparing the upcoming Galaxy S4 with the HTC One X? Well, some will say it was a waste of time since it is an unfair challenge, but even so, the consumer has a right to know what they will be getting out of these two for their money. The real battle that we will be looking at in our next hypothetical review will be the Galaxy S4 vs the HTC M7. Until then my dear readers you will have to wait a bit, but fear not! You can follow me on Twitter or via RSS in order to keep updated on the latest Galaxy S4 news, rumors and leaks!

Friday, February 8, 2013

The Number of Samsung Galaxy S4 Rumors is Too Damn High!

 Over the last couple of days I have been visiting a lot of blogs in my search for some reliable Galaxy S4 rumors. Over time I came to a conclusion that some of these blogs were inventing their own stories as well as release dates. I know, I know,  I have covered a lot of stories on this blog that aren't very accurate, but I at least never claimed them to be "official news" and always asked my readership to  take these stories with a grain of salt.

 And this all brings me to my conclusion:

Galaxy S4 Rumors are too dman high

Do you think I am joking and fooling around with this Internet meme? No way! I am really serious about this - the number of fake photos and rumors about the S4 is just too much for me to take! So, what is the point of this article, a rant? Yeah, this is a bit of a vent for more, but to make it more fun for you guys and girls, I will actually include some of the rumors I read over the last couple of days. Some are more likely than others and I would love to hear your opinion in the comments bellow!

Galaxy S4 to Feature Touch-free Control

 When Samsung introduced their eye-tracking feature on the S3 which would lock the screen if nobody was looking at it for a pre-set period of time we considered it very cool, but nothing something particularly useful. Touch-free control, on the other hand, is quite a challenge and is far more useful than an eye-tracker. However, this concept isn't exactly new, although I quite frankly do not care who thought of it first.

 Here is a quick concept
 

 So what are the chanced of the Galaxy S4 coming with such an option? Well, the "floating touch" concept has been developed by a lot companies and Samsung can easily integrate Atmel’s latest maXTouch S sensors. This would certainly allow users to make some on-screen gestures on their Galaxy S4, however, these moves would be quite limited.

The Specs

 Most of the rumors actually say the same thing over and over again when it comes to the specs for the most part. The media has agreed that we should expect a 4,99 inch display with full HD. We should also look forward to 13 MP back camera and a 2 MP front-facing camera. Along with this, rumors also mention that we can expect Android Jelly Bean 4.2 or even the upcoming Key Lime Pie.

 Some are however very daring and will try to convince you into thinking that the Tizen OS will be the new OS of the Galaxy S series, but I already explained why this is highly unlikely and you can read it at this link: Galaxy S4 Tizen OS - We Disagree!

 However, one thing that people aren't agreeing on where it comes to the specs is the processor. Will the really be the "eight" core Exynos processor or one of their powerful quad-core units? Well, I guess we should wait a bit before we come to any (possibly wrong) conclusions.

The Release Date

Galaxy S4 release rumors
Give your own answer!
 I feel that there should be some sort of prize for everyone who guesses the Galaxy S4 release date. However, some blogs would easily win this prize for they have published articles that have claimed so many different release dates that it makes my head swirl and twist in agony! People are mentioning March, April, May, June and July! Wow, that is really not accurate and poor journalism. If you don't have a solid rumor then don't wring anything for God's sake, surely you can find something else to entertain your readership?

 I'll stop here before I get to some really bad ones and ask you another question: What do you think about all the Samsung Galaxy S4 news, rumors and fakes out there? Do they bother/annoy you sometimes? Post you comment in the comments section bellow the article!

Thursday, February 7, 2013

Samsung Galaxy S4 Displays Already in Production?

 Tech blogs and media are claiming that Samsung is ramping up the production of the 4.99-inch Full HD display which sources expect will debut on the Galaxy S4. Some of the portal such as CNET are also suggesting that the displays will be ready for the smartphone's release on the 15th of March. Once again, all these reputable blogs don't really have a reliable source, but some of them have been known to get it right so I am ready to guess that there is certainly a bit of truth in some of the major rumors. So, what else do we have to report about the Samsung Galaxy S4?

Galaxy S4 Display Production
An old leak published by SamMobile
 This new display isn't something abstract to us since we already saw glimpse of it. As you may remember, Samsung actually first showed off the 1080p HD display on a roadmap at CES 2013. This was fairly recently since CES took place in early January. It appears that the Samsung engineers did a lot of work on the early prototype and that is it ready for massive production. in early January, and it appears that Samsung Display is ready to, or has already started mass production of the new 4.99-inch Full HD display.

 Alright this all makes sense and nobody can say anything against this news since we already saw that the HD display exists. However, where does the news of a March 15 release date come from? Well, from what I understand, the report comes from a Korean publisher called DDaily and was republished by other blogs. I am not sure how I feel about this report since I cannot find the original article and I would probably have a hard time understanding it, bit my guess it is that it is another made-up story, just in Korean language. Then again, the 15th of March isn't such a bad date and it does give Samsung a lot of time to play their cards a prepare a very nice release. 

 So what do you think about all of this? Does the reported production of Galaxy S4 displays mean that the release date is just around the corner? Is March a very likely month for this smartphone? Leave us your comment down bellow this article!

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Samsung Galaxy S4 Design Leaked (yet again!)

 We have a new entry to our photos page thanks to the latest set of leaked Galaxy S4 photos. This time, we have a elegant, sleek design to show to you guys and girls! Personally, I wouldn't trust this photograph for a second, but I must admit that it looks quite good as this Galaxy S4 render is very impressive. Included on the photo is the expected logotype as well as some rumored hardware specs which are based on what we have heard in past reports. The only difference from what are hopping for/expecting to get out of the S4 is the processor. We talked about how Samsung might include their "Octa processor" into this device, but the image suggests that users will instead get a 2.0 GHz A15 Exynos Quad-core processor. This is practically the same as the Exynos 5 Octa has the same performance at top level.

 Here's the photo:

Samsung Galaxy S4 Design leak
This Samsung Galaxy S4 render looks quite good really!
Now, all things considered, this render is very likely a fake design. In fact, there is a 99% of chance of that being so. However, a lot of the fans who have seen this photo actually liked it and said that they would really be satisfied if Samsung adopted a style similar to this.

 The Galaxy S series has featured a nice, classy design in the past, but it really  did lack some innovation. This render does seem like a more elegant and sci-fi take on the S series which is something that I really enjoy.

The Specs

  We also reported in the past that the Galaxy S4 will come with a 2600 mAh battery, but the image above suggests a 3100 mAh Li-Ion battery. In both cases however, this will probably be a removable battery, but the larger the capacity the better! Along to this we will also add that the spec sheet above suggests that the phone will be using Gorilla Glass 3. Since this is something that is not yet available, a lot of Galaxy S4 rumors are suggesting that Samsung will have to wait for Corning to release the new technology before they can put their S4 together and start selling it. Of course, this is just a rumor, but out of all the wild-cards I have heard I want it the most likely.

So, did you like this latest Galaxy S4 leaked design? Have a look at the complete list and tell us which one is your favorite so far!


Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Galaxy S4 vs Sony Xperia Z: A Hypothesis

 Doing an actual Galaxy S4 vs Sony Xperia Z article is impossible as the S4 is not currently available and I have really not held the Xperia Z in my hand nor had a live encounter with it just yet. So, what is the point of making an article like this then? Well, there are no other Galaxy S4 news to report and I know that Android fans like me can't wait to get their next fix of news and leaks! Furthermore, this is also a hypothetical model and is based on analyzing the current market so we will try to separate reality from speculations in this article. Let us start by seeing what the Xperia Z has to offer when it comes to hardware.

Galaxy S4 VS Sony Xperia Z

Galaxy S4 VS Sony Xperia Z: The Specs

 This is what we already know about the amazing Sony Xperia Z:
  • 5-inch Reality Display with 1920 x 1080 resolution
  • 1.5 GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro quad-core processor
  • 16GB Storage (microSD Card Slot)
  • 13.1MP rear camera/2.2MP front-facing camera
  • 2,330 mAh battery (Non-Removable)
  • 2GB RAM
  • NFC
 Obviously this phone has quite a nice thing going for it already. The 5-inch screen looks great and it even splash resistant along with the rest of the casing! The default brightness and LUX settings look rather well and it seems that they will not consume to much of your battery as well. The S4 will also have a 5 inch screen (well 4,99" to be exact!) and it will be in full HD so this might be a tough call. 

 Furthermore, the Snapdragon S4 Pro is a great quad-core processor and is quite an industry standard to place into a flagship of this level. The battery is also very impressive, although non-removable and the camera is simply breath-taking!

 Let us look at a photo test that compares the Xperia Z's camera with some other top dogs in the mobile industry:

Galaxy S4 VS Xperia Z CAMERA

 Now, the ISO settings are a bit unfair but they were probably preset for the best possible photo on all three devices. Either way, you can see that the Xperia Z does a very nice job with its 13 MP camera. You can expect the Samsung Galaxy S4 to perform quite well too, since their flagship is also rumored to feature a 13 MP back camera with some awesome features that should be greatly improved compared to what we saw on the S3.

Ready to continue?

 In terms of battery life, Samsung is rumored to offer a 2600 mAh which is slightly better, however, the S4 will also have a removable battery and possibly even wireless charging which would certainly be a great feature and a major trump card over the Sony Xperia Z.

 In terms of processor power, the S4 might have another edge over the Xperia Z. This is because they will put the Exynos 5 Octa processor into this device most likely. As we explained already, this doesn't mean that this Octa processor is two times as powerful. In fact, it may not even be much stronger that any other quad-core out there! However, this processor has 4 small units and 4 bigger ones. The smaller ones work on easier task while the 4 bigger A15 chipsets are shut-down. When the user starts streaming HD video, playing 3D games or doing some other complex stuff, the bigger chips take over for the little guys. This should lead to optimum performance while conserving battery and is a great feature of Samsung's new flagship. For more info, consult this article!

Exynos Octa vs Snapdragon S4

  
 That covers some of the specs. But what about software? Well, it will generally not play such a major role in your decision as far as the official software goes. Both devices will come with the latest available Android OS versions. Sony is loved for its Time Scape UI, but even so a lot of people still love what Samsung does with the TouchWiz. I guess this will just be a matter of personal preference.

The Design

 Maybe we should have started this Galaxy S4 vs Sony Xperia Z review/battle/hypothesis with the whole design thing, but it just made very little sense since we don't know how the S4 will really look like. Also, this is a rather subjective thing as well and people's opinion's on the design of the phone are not always the most important factor when they are choosing what to get. I would personally want an uglier phone if it was the most advanced thing available rather than a great-looking one with nothing to offer in terms of hardware and software.

 Anyway,  I will point out that the Xperia Z looks very elegant and that I am a fan of the design. However, I also like how all the Galaxy S models have looked so far as well. Also, I am very anxious to see if the S4 will really be coming with an S-Pen to be honest. If you want to see some speculations about the S4 design, have a look at this post.


 So, that what I can say so far, both are great phones, but I am wondering what their prices will be since this is also a major issue. What do you guys think? Did you enjoy this article? Let me know what you think in the comments bellow!

Monday, February 4, 2013

Galaxy S4 a no-show on MWC

 The World Mobile Congress in Spain will not be the place where Samsung will reveal their new Galaxy S4 device. This is something that I have written about on this blog already in the past and recently it was official confirmed by CNET. This popular tech portal reports that Samsung won't be holding and press conferences as the MWC which implies that the Korean tech giant will not be presenting their S4 nor any other new devices during the event.

 In the past I have said something along these lines and I will repeat it again: the Samsung Galaxy S4 is a flagship and as such it will have its own event during a Samsung Unpacked.

Galaxy S4 no-show during MWC event
 In another article I also asked - where will the next Samsung Unpacked be held? The Galaxy S3 was released in London, and the Galaxy Note 2 had its own event in Berlin. Samsung is a lot richer and more powerful now than they were back then, so which major city is the new target? 

 We can exclude Asia as this part of the world gets a separate form of release and instead let us focus on the West. This is because the rumors are suggesting that Samsung will be attacking Apple on their home turf. Yes, that is right, we might be seeing the Samsung Galaxy S4 release in the USA! I wouldn't consider this shocking, but I do have my doubts about this rumor.

 Non the less, the release date is getting closer with each day, even though we are unsure about it. Will it be late April or early May? I this this time period is something we can bet on as it is very likely. Of course, take this with a grain of salt and don't hold me accountable if I am wrong!

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Samsung Galaxy S4 Release Date in April?

 It seems that all the Galaxy S4 news and rumors point that the release date should be set somewhere mid-April and the latest evidence confirms these stories. The following photograph is not fake, although the content  can be interpreted in several ways. Namely, a mobile device retailer from New Zealand is running a contest in which all of the winners will get a free Samsung Galaxy S4. The contest will be finished on the 8th of April which suggests that the phone will be either announced or released by then. Have a look at this photograph:

Galaxy S4 Release Date in April

 That looks and sounds great as this is just the news we were all hopping for, but I have to be a bit skeptical about this. Why would a retailer from New Zealand even posses the information that Samsung is so carefully hiding? It makes no sense that this company should have any insight when the new phone was going to be released. And even if they did, why would they so carelessly leak such vital information? Now, I am not saying the phone is fake, I am just suggesting that the company isn't saying - Hey, the Galaxy S4 will be released in April and all the winners will get one. I am rather sure that there is a small footnote somewhere in there that says that the prize is subject to availability and will be issued once it is available.

 In fact, the photo above even says "All winners come to an event in Auckland in late May". I find this part much more important as it may be suggesting that by late May all the prizes will have to be available and this includes the Samsung Galaxy S4. Now, this part of the photo above is great news and any true fan will love it!

 For those of you wondering, this mobile retailer from New Zealand that is holding the contest is 2Degrees and they are an official Galaxy S3 and Note 2 carrier, which means that they could have some insight on the Galaxy S4. Furthermore, this contest is only for employees, so the folks from the company maybe didn't expect any of their staff to leak this information on the Internet.

 Whatever the case, this isn't the first rumor that has suggested that April will be the Galaxy S4 official release month. Browse through our blog if you are interested in the rest of the rumors and make sure to follow us for more!

Friday, February 1, 2013

Galaxy S4 Will Boost the S3's Sales When It Is Released

 Instead of digging up the rumor mill to search for some fishy Galaxy S4 news, I will dedicate today's article to another business analysis of Samsung's Galaxy business model. In this article we will try to explain how the S4 will not just help Samsung make money by selling this device to the loyal consumers, but will also help boost the S3 sales as well! Additionally, this concept will spoil Apple and BlackBerry smartphone sales, but there is a lot of competition out there that Samsung needs to think about as well. Additionally, you can expect a lot of people to upgrade to the new S4 as soon as it comes out!

Galaxy S4 will boost S3 sales
Samsung's best seller is in for another frenzy?
 As things currently stand, a lot of people have a contact for the Galaxy S3 that will be expiring sometime in April or May, which is an ideal time for a Galaxy S4 launch. If the timing is good, then a lot of people will be able to easily upgrade to a new device and extend their contracts or even switch their provider. However, aside from the people rushing to buy the new flagship, a lot of people will go crazy over the older S3 model, especially once the price drops down a bit which is fairly logical.

 Of course, this can happen only if Samsung really puts out a good quality product! Towards the end of 2012 a lot of iOS users have switched to Android thanks to the S3 which has done its job quite well. It is needless to say that the new flagship smartphone from the Korean tech giant will have big shoes to fill and expectation are rather high!

 Should the rumors about its specs and features be true, this will be a very good device that will be able to blow the Apple iPhone 5 out of the water as well as outsell the new BlackBerry and Sony devices. Hopefully for Samsung their engineers won't let their previously won fame hit them in the head to much and they will actually do their best to create another best-seller in the mobile industry. Samsung certainly has the resources and their chance to take the spotlight in the mobile industry for a second year in a row are quite high.

 While we wait to see how things roll out, make sure to follow this blog for more Samsung Galaxy S4 news!