Google Nexus S vs Samsung Focus

Introduction:

Striving to become the top smartphone maker in the world, Samsung has been absolutely relentless in releasing a handful of devices the last few months – both Android and Windows Phone 7 models. Two of their latest models, the Samsung Focus and Google Nexus S, stand highly in their arsenal as representing the best offerings for their respective platforms. But when they're priced evenly at $200 with a contract, it makes for a difficult decision in choosing which is the preferable handset.

Design:

Quickly glancing over both smartphones, you probably won't notice too many differences with their overall design styles as they mainly rely on the typical slate form factor. On one hand we find a clean and minimalistic looking Nexus S, which happens to have a curved profile thanks to its Contour Display, but it's so discrete that it doesn't necessarily jump out during an initial glance. While with the the Focus, it's carefully accented with a slight chrome-like trim.  Now even though their all plastic construction aids in making them extremely light weight, they're prone to the occasional smudging and scratching. Luckily, their overall size hits the sweet spot as they're perfectly comfortable to hold thanks to their streamlined looks. In actuality, there isn't one device that has the wow factor to undeniably grab our attention, but they're more than practicable.

Never letting us down, the 4” Super AMOLED displays that both offer will literally grab the attention of anyone thanks to their WVGA (480 x 800) resolution, high contrast ratios, vibrant looking colors, and responsiveness. Moreover, you'll always have stunning clarity and visibility because of their near perfect viewing angles – which still enables them to work well under bright conditions. However, it's clear from looking at both devices the same time that the panel in use with the Google Nexus S is brighter in terms of luminance over the Focus. Still, there is no arguing the kind of alluring appeal their displays have to offer.




Even when both devices are completely turned off, you can still make out the outlines of the capacitive buttons found on the Samsung Focus. Furthermore, it's surely more appreciated seeing that we rarely accidentally pressed them – unlike the indistinguishable looking buttons of the Nexus S.



Lucky for the Google Nexus S, it's enabled for video chat thanks to its 0.3-megapixel front facing camera – which is something missing with the Focus.



However, the Samsung Focus offers the convenience of a shutter key to instantly run the camera application.



Between the two, the placement of the 3.5mm headset jack and microUSB on the bottom edge of the Nexus S feels more natural since they don't get in the way of operating the handset. However, it just feels somewhat more prone with the Focus as they're located on the top side. Naturally, the Nexus S has the advantage of sporint an NFC chip, while the Samsung Focus benefits from having a microSD card slot to increase its memory capacity – but it's not hot swappable.

Interface & Functionality:

Even though these two top tiered smartphones feature processors operating at the speed of 1GHz, the Nexus S resorts to using Samsung's tried and true Hummingbird chipset, while the Focus packs a Snapdragon SoC in its belly. Regardless of the difference, they're still able to exhibit a sense of speed as everything you do resonates with responsive actions. From launching apps to scrolling long lists, we're rarely ever presented with a situation when either device ever slowed down to a crawl.

Largely being the most important item to consider before making a decision as to which device you'll want to choose, you'll have to meticulously break down whether or not you'll want to stick with Android or Windows Phone 7. Naturally, they both have their strengths to intrigue consumers, but it's fairly reasonable to say right now that Android 2.3 Gingerbread on the Nexus S is drastically more in-depth and mature in functionality. Additionally, there's a higher level of personalization thanks to the choice of widgets, shortcuts, folders, and live wallpapers available to the user. However, there are some people who will love the look and feel of the Metro UI on the Samsung Focus. Granted that it feels considerably polished for a newcomer, there is still some work required to get it to the same level on which we find Android right now.




Without downloading dedicated apps, the Samsung Focus manages to tightly integrate some aspects of social networking with its platform better than the Nexus S. That's partly due to the “People” Hub which aggregates content accordingly and provides you the opportunity to even reply to comments. However, you can basically receive the same experience when you download the Facebook and Twitter apps for the Nexus S. In fact, you'll even have widgets available to you which will provide the same functionality we find with Windows Phone 7.



Text messaging oriented individuals will be more than satisfied with the performance of both smartphones since the on-screen keyboards are super-conducive to speed typing. Thanks to things like predictive text, auto-correct, and their responsive tendencies, the overall experience is utterly stellar to make anyone quickly adapt and type with few mistakes. Now even though the portrait keyboard option of the Samsung Focus might look larger, their landscape keyboards are relatively similar in size – thus making it easy on your thumbs to type away.




Email setup is a hassle-free experience with both devices since accounts will automatically set up by only providing an email address and a password. However, there are some instances when other pieces of information are required to properly complete. But if you truly want to witness a productive Gmail experience, you'll more than likely find the Gmail app with the Nexus S to stand tall. That's because it tastefully brings along some useful features, like threaded view, that are commonly attuned to the desktop version.



As we mentioned already, the Google Nexus S sports a 0.3-megapixel camera front facing camera which allows for things like video chatting – which is something blatantly missing with the Samsung Focus.

Continuing to show off its depth of functionality, the Android 2.3 Gingerbread powered Nexus S offers features like tethering via USB or Wi-Fi, NFC support, native VoIP support, and a built-in gyroscope. Sadly, the Samsung Focus lacks any of those striking features which is a shame, but then again, you can hardly utilize the Nexus S's video chat camera, or its gyroscope, due to almost non-existent software for the purpose.

Internet and Connectivity:

For something new to the game, Internet Explorer with the Samsung Focus boastfully supplies an adept performance that rivals pretty much what the Android browser has to offer in its current and latest form. However, Flash support with the Nexus S is the only noticeable feature that separates the two – which some prefer since it provides that near desktop like feel. Nonetheless, they both perfectly offer rewarding things like multi-touch gesture support for zooming, smooth kinetic scrolling, and peppy load times. Still, the only small blemish found with the Nexus S is its jerky movements when navigating on pages with heavy Flash content.




These GSM devices are the perfect traveling companion for trips abroad since they'll work in just about every corner of the globe. In the unfortunate event that you don't have any network connectivity, you can always rely on their good old 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi for an alternative connection. Moreover, we find Bluetooth 2.1 with EDR on board to allow a magnitude of other wireless devices to connect to them.

Camera & Multimedia:

After shooting some photos with the two, there's no denying that the Samsung Focus slightly produces more distinctive looking colors with its camera. Granted that there's a fair amount of detail seen with photos on both devices, you can visually tell that the color production with the Nexus S is a bit more on the bland side. In addition, the Samsung Focus continues to excel over the Nexus S since it still capitalizes on its strength by producing subtle looking colors – not to mention its LED flash does a better job at lighting up the scenery as well.


When you're presented with one device offering DVD-like (720 x 480) quality with its video capture and another being 720p, one would suspect the handset with the higher quality would be preferable. And that's exactly the case in this mash-up as the Samsung Focus shows off its prowess. Boasting a fair amount of detail over the Nexus S, videos move along at a healthy rate of 23fps. However, the Nexus S moves at a smoother rate of 29fps – which clearly looks more fluid in its playback over the competition. Nevertheless, you'll more than likely want to bring along the Focus on your escapades.

Samsung Focus Sample Video:

Google Nexus S Sample Video:

Sure you've got the more than functional stock music player with the Google Nexus S, but it begins to show its bland presentation when you check out the full blown Zune experience with the Focus. In fact, Zune combines a variety of elements, like being able to read bios in order to enhance your music enjoyment outside of the traditional experience. Moreover, the speaker with the Focus emits sharper and deeper tones over the Nexus S – which is still more than satisfactory in output to the ears.




Most people will be satisfied with the 16GB of internal memory offered by both handsets, but the Samsung Focus packs a microSD card slot to increase its capacity. However, it's not hot swappable and you can only insert one when you first set up the device – because removing it any time after that will result in possibly crashing your phone.

Software:

When you compare Bing Maps and Google Maps, there's no question that the latter provides a deeper and more invigorating experience over its competitor. In reality, there's a small amount of functionality found with Bing Maps in its current incarnation as Google Maps gladly boasts things like street views, 3D maps, and free voice guided turn-by-turn directions. Additionally, it manages to combine other useful Google services to its hold – such as Google Latitude, Google Talk, and Google Buzz. All in all, you'll want to bring along the Nexus S if you plan on going somewhere unfamiliar.




Partly because it's still new to the game, the Windows Phone Marketplace has a significantly poorer catalog of applications, versus what's in store with the Android Market. But as more consumers adopt Windows Phone 7 devices, we'd surmise a radical shift in the amount of apps available for the platform.

Performance:

Calling quality is more satisfying with the Google Nexus S because voices are distinctive and natural on both ends of the line. Conversely, we find some hissy voices through the earpiece of the Samsung Focus – which doesn't help when our callers say that our voice sounds mute in tone on their end. As for their speakerphones, it's recognizable that the Focus emits the stronger tones, but its output on the loudest setting tends to make it sound strained – whereas the Nexus S emits a modest level.

Battery life in our experience is fairly the same with both smartphones as we achieved 1 ½ days of normal usage – while manually setting their brightness to the middle setting. Naturally, light user will benefit more with longer battery life, but heavy users will more than likely get by through an 8 hour work day with no problem. Compared to other touch enabled smartphones on the market, these two are clearly above average considering the bright looking displays they carry along.

Conclusion:

Ultimately, you're going to have to make the decision of which platform seems to prove more alluring to you. However, it's instantly recognizable right now that the Android 2.3 Gingerbread experience on the Google Nexus Smanages to offer more functionality and personalization over the Windows Phone 7 powered Samsung Focus. Even then, there are some aspects of the Focus that make it the better choice – like its superior performance in taking photos and videos. Additionally, there's just something about the overall look and feel of Windows Phone 7 that makes it one polished experience from the onset. Regardless, the Nexus S still seems to offer more bang for the buck since it employs things like a front facing camera, tethering support, multi-tasking, Flash Player 10.1 support and NFC.

Google Nexus S vs Samsung Focus Video Comparison: