Samsung Focus vs Samsung Captivate

Introduction:

Samsung has been on a roll for the better portion of the last few months as consumers all around the world are praising their meticulous work in bringing out the stunning Samsung Galaxy S smartphone. With AT&T, the Samsung Captivate provided the number two carrier in the US with a much needed high-profiled offering to stand prominent in this competitive space – and that's exactly what the Samsung Captivate managed to accomplish. Establishing itself as a venerable smartphone maker, Samsung just recently entered the market with their first Windows Phone 7 powered device for the carrier; the Samsung Focus. Since both smartphones are currently vying for attention on AT&T's lineup, it's only inevitable to see these two look at each other straight in the eye to find out which one offers the superior experience – not to mention which device is right for their customers.

Design:

There are quite a number of similarities between the two that are taken directly from the original Samsung Galaxy S – like their exceptionally streamlined looks that make them pocketable. However, they're placed on the extreme opposite sides from one another in terms of materials as the Focus mainly relies on glossy plastic whereas the Captivate has a sturdier metallic skeleton. Even though the plastic shell of the Focus might scratch more easily and attract fingerprints, it's still one pretty looking handset with its curvier design that makes it natural to hold. Conversely, the carbon fiber-esque rear cover of the Captivate is durable enough to withstand most punishment while repelling smudges like no other. Still, they both present a sense of quality workmanship that makes them feel solidly built all around to give you peace of mind.



Being their most striking features, the Super AMOLED displays employed by both smartphones prominently stands out more than anything thanks to their stunning clarity, saturated looking colors, and high resolution of 480 x 800 pixels. Not only does it deliver some sharp looking visuals that'll melt your eyes, but their flawless viewing angles enable you to maintain a level of visibility at almost every angle you look at them. And since they are identical in size at 4”, they're more than manageable to use without feeling too overbearing to use with one hand. In essence, you're not going to notice that one is better than the other in terms of display quality seeing that they perform in the same identical manner.



Even though capacitive buttons are in use with both devices, we actually prefer the ones on the Focus seeing that they're spaced further away from one another to reduce the amount of accidental presses – which is a problem for the cramped layout of the Captivate. When it comes to their physical buttons, they're all identical in terms of tactility and placement, but we like the distinguishable feel of the Captivate's dedicated power button over the recessed one of the Focus. In addition, the dedicated shutter key offered by the Captivate is naturally appreciated. Finally, both the 3.5mm headset jacks and microUSB ports are found on the top edges of both phones – and it's nice to see their sliding latches aiding in keeping out debris from entering their charging ports.




Endowed with 5-megapixel auto-focus cameras, it's only the newer Samsung Focus that's graced with an LED flash for illuminating your photos. But when it comes to removing their rear covers to gain access to their inner compartments, we like the mechanism employed on the Captivate as it feels more secure versus the easy to remove cover of the Focus.

Interface and Functionality:

Without a doubt, both are entirely different from one another with their platform experience seeing that the Focus offers Windows Phone 7 while the Captivate is packing Android. But thanks to their lightning quick 1GHz processors, Snapdragon for the Focus and Hummingbird for the Captivate, navigating around is effortlessly accomplished with some responsive tendencies that don't exhibit much detrimental slowdown. However, it's more than obvious that Windows Phone 7 on the Focus is a fairly straightforward experience versus the slightly more complex nature of Android on the Captivate. It's not to say that it's a bad thing for the Captivate, which is undoubtedly more mature, but it'll require a moderate learning curve for new users.

Still reigning above all others, Android has a knack for providing users a high level of personalization that dramatically makes it so unique with its options for wallpapers, widgets, shortcuts, folders, and even live wallpapers. And even though you might not have complete control of every aspect with the Windows Phone 7 powered Samsung Focus, its dynamic homescreen interface will enthrall anyone as certain live tiles will display countless pieces of information ranging from status updates to photos. Though, we have to admit that we adore how the Captivate enables users to monitor every single item with its homescreen layout.



For those who live and breathe social networking sites, we'd recommend the Samsung Captivate just a tad bit more seeing that it incorporates Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter simultaneously with its platform. So essentially, you can use its “Feeds and Updates” application or widget to post a message on all three accounts at the same time. As for the Samsung Focus, it only tightly integrates Facebook and Windows Live with its core experience – which is most evident in the “People Hub.” Regardless, you can always download and install dedicated social networking apps that'll unify the experience between the two.


We've praised on numerous occasions at how well the Windows Phone 7 on-screen keyboard on the Focus works as it establishes the fine art speed texting with its responsive nature and well-sized buttons. However, you can't count out the Captivate in this arena since it offers the same performance while offering three different input options to appease the taste of many. Nevertheless, you can't go wrong in this department with either devices since typing up messages will be easy on your thumbs and without much fault.




Internet and Connectivity:

You're going to be extremely satisfied with the wonderful web browsing experience that each handset is able to deliver. The commonalities are all there as Internet Explorer and the Android browser feature fast load times, multi-touch gesture support for zooming, proper rendering, and smooth scrolling to liven the overall experience. At their core, there isn't much to separate the two, but there is one difference that isn't too noticeable – unless your have a keen eye of course. As we mentioned, the two provide for some fast scrolling, but there is a subtle hint of choppiness evident with the Captivate – but more importantly, it doesn't prove to be detrimental.



When you've got quad-band GSM radios built inside, you're going to be able to place voice phone calls just about anywhere on the planet – which makes for the perfect solution to bring along on your travels. Even though you might not get 3G connectivity everywhere, especially abroad, you can always switch to using their built-in 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi to connect for faster web browsing. Moreover, both include Bluetooth to allow you to connect various wireless devices to it, but it's worth noting that the Captivate utilizes Bluetooth 3.0 versus 2.1 with the Focus.

Camera and Multimedia:

Based on the images we captured with each of their cameras, you really can't find any distinguishable differences between the results of the two. In fact, they're able to produce some pretty nice looking images which don't differentiate in any way with their 5-megapixel auto-focus cameras. Photo quality is rather stunning to say the least with their natural looking color tones and attention to the finest of details. Photo enthusiasts are going to love using either devices to capture all the precious moments of life, but even more when they catapult directly to the upper end of the spectrum in this category. However, the Focus manages to pack on an LED flash to enable you to better capture images in low lighting conditions – which can be the sole driving force for people to choose it over the Captivate.













Strangely enough, the Samsung Captivate shoots 720p at the capture rate of 29 fps versus the mark of 23 fps with the Focus. Even though there is a difference, it's not too evident to drastically separate the performance of te two handsets. Actually, they both manage to record some good looking high definition videos that are able to stand equally tall not only against one another, but also over all other smartphones in general as they sit near the top of the heap.

Samsung Focus Sample Video - Daytime




Samsung Captivate Sample Video - Daytime




Samsung Focus Sample Video - Night




Samsung Captivate Sample Video - Night



Music buffs will adore the fresh looking music player interfaces offered by both handsets as they deliver some high marks in the area of presentation. The Zune experience on the Focus is strikingly different from what's out there as it provides relevant content regarding the song you're playing – such as the bio of the artist, background images, and a live tile to match the band playing the current song. As for the Captivate, it might follow a traditional look at first, but after placing it into landscape, it will uncover a rotating carousel of CDs that gives it some level of uniqueness over others out there. Now even though their speakers are capable of emitting the same level of tones, the Captivate provides a wealth of equalizer settings to fine tune the audio quality to match the genre of music that's playing.



Thanks to their Super AMOLED displays, you'll probably never want to watch videos on anything else after experiencing its gratifying performance. There is zero evidence of any slowdown or lag with playback after loading a video encoded in MPEG-4 1280 x 720 resolution on both handsets. Not only does it chug along at a healthy rate, but the popping colors of the Super AMOLED displays manage to set these guys apart from anything else out there in the market – so it's needless to say that both the Focus and Captivate will really intrigue you in this category.

With 16GB of internal storage offered by both, it should be sufficient in terms of media storage. However, both offer microSD card slots to supplement their internal memory, but with the Focus, you'll have to place one in its slot first thing before setting up the phone initially.



Software:

Again, the recent launch of Windows Phone 7 manages to bring forth a decent set of top tiered third party applications to the mix, but with time, we'll eventually see more developers on board to bring its tally up. And that's exactly what's going on with Android as it steadily climbs the ladder with its ever growing list of apps in its Android Market. But in the mean time, you might want to stick with the Captivate due to the fact that its apps are also a bit more fine tuned versus the offerings available in the Windows Marketplace for Mobile on the Focus.

Performance:

Calling quality on both handsets is nearly identical, but it's not to say that it's an entirely good thing. In reality, voices do sound a little hissy through the near deafening tones of their earpieces. While on the opposite end of the line, our callers did say that we sound mute and muffled in tone when using both smartphones. Thankfully, their speakerphones are able to output high level tones to make conversations quite understandable.

When so many smartphones have difficulty in just obtaining a battery life of one day, it's so rewarding to find that both Samsung smartphones accomplish feats that are almost unfathomable. Easily lasting a day of heavy usage, both handsets are the staple of what battery life performance should be with touchscreen smartphones. Furthermore, we managed to tap it out completely after two days of normal usage and setting the brightness to automatic.

Conclusion:

If Samsung keeps on producing fantastic devices like the Samsung Captivate and Focus, there is no stopping them from creeping up to the top spot in the global scene. Even though they sport opposing platforms, the results in various categories are in fact relatively similar – and that's why they're both wonderful solutions in the smartphone realm. However, consumers that are shopping around right now are going to need to weigh the benefits offered by both platforms since they have their own unique perks. Windows Phone 7 is the newer of the two and employes a straightforward experience that's supplemented by its consistent responsiveness.  On the other hand, Android 2.1 on the Captivate still manages to impress with its personalized look, equally responsive feel, and depth of features akin to any mature platform. All in all, you really can't go wrong with either of them!

Samsung Focus vs Samsung Captivate Video Comparison: