Samsung Galaxy S4 vs HTC One

Posted: 26 Mar 2013, 06:51 , posted by Ray S.

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Tags: T-Mobile -T-Mobile + AT&T -AT&T + Verizon -Verizon + Sprint -Sprint + Samsung -Samsung + HTC -HTC + Android -Android +

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Introduction

This is it, the most epic Android face-off for the first half of 2013. The Samsung Galaxy S4 and HTC One are coming out at about the same time to go ahead and have it out with one another. When the Galaxy S4 and One are in the same room, there sure ain't much love in the air, which is going to make this fight all the more interesting. Which side will you take? Wait till you've read our comparison!

Design

Isn't it obvious? The Samsung Galaxy S4 and HTC One have a completely different understanding of design. On one hand, we have the light, plastic body of the GS4, and on the other – the heavy, metal one of the One. Both have their pros and cons. The Galaxy S4 certainly doesn't feel like a premium smartphone, but is light, compact and comfortable to hold. In contrast, the HTC One has that expensive feel to it, but is bulkier and not as comfortable to use.


The Samsung Galaxy S4 (left) and the HTC One (right)

Overall, though, it shows that HTC has paid much more attention to the design of its product. The One has an impressive appearance and every small detail like the physical buttons function like they are part of a quality, expensive product, which they are. Meanwhile, the Galaxy S4 has a blander appearance and none of its physical features manage to be particularly exciting, with the sole exception of the fact that Samsung has managed to fit such a big display in such a compact phone (for today's standards).


Left sides	Right	Top

Bottom	Backs	Rear cameras
The Samsung Galaxy S4 (bottom, left) and the HTC One (top, right)

Display

Speaking of displays, both devices are equally impressive in this respect. On one hand, there's the enhanced Super AMOLED screen of the GS4, with its high contrast and lush colors, and on the other – the Super LCD 3 display of the One, which is more natural and also quite vibrant. The HTC One is also more visible when used in bright daylight, thanks to its higher brightness. Viewing angles are very good on both devices, but we seem to prefer the HTC One, as it retains the normal tones of its colors, whereas the Galaxy S4 is quick to degrade color quality as we start to tilt the handsets.

At 5 inches, the Galaxy S4's display is slightly bigger than the HTC One's 4.7 inches, but the difference isn't really that noticeable. Activities such as video watching are super-entertaining on both handsets.

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+ 6 images

Display measurements and quality

	Maximum brightness (nits)Higher is better	Minimum brightness (nits)Lower is better	Contrast Higher is better	Color temperature (Kelvins)	Gamma	Delta E rgbcmy Lower is better	Delta E grayscale Lower is better
Samsung Galaxy S4	289 (Poor)	9 (Average)	unmeasurable (Excellent)	7316 (Good)	2.16	5.52 (Average)	7.31 (Average)
HTC One	460 (Good)	14 (Poor)	1:1758 (Excellent)	8008 (Poor)	2.21	5.89 (Average)	5.33 (Average)

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The numbers below represent the amount of deviation in the respective property, observed when a display is viewed from a 45-degree angle as opposed to direct viewing.

	Maximum brightness Lower is better	Minimum brightness Lower is better	Contrast Lower is better	Color temperature Lower is better	Gamma Lower is better	Delta E rgbcmy Lower is better	Delta E grayscale Lower is better
Samsung Galaxy S4	58.5%	55.6%	unmeasurable	19.9%	0.9%	63.8%	74.4%
HTC One	84.8%	85.7%	77.2%	24.4%	1.8%	3.6%	27.8%

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The CIE 1931 xy color gamut chart represents the set (area) of colors that a display can reproduce, with the sRGB colorspace (the highlighted triangle) serving as reference. The chart also provides a visual representation of a display's color accuracy. The small squares across the boundaries of the triangle are the reference points for the various colors, while the small dots are the actual measurements. Ideally, each dot should be positioned on top of its respective square. The 'x: CIE31' and 'y: CIE31' values in the table below the chart indicate the position of each measurement on the chart. 'Y' shows the luminance (in nits) of each measured color, while 'Target Y' is the desired luminance level for that color. Finally, 'ΔE 2000' is the Delta E value of the measured color. Delta E values of below 2 are ideal.

These measurements are made using SpectraCal's CalMAN calibration software.

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Samsung Galaxy S4 360-Degrees View:

Drag the picture or use the keyboard arrows to rotate the phone.
Double click or press keyboard Space to zoom in/out

HTC One 360-Degrees View:

Drag the picture or use the keyboard arrows to rotate the phone.
Double click or press keyboard Space to zoom in/out

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Interface and Functionality

Related phones

PhoneArena rating:

9.3 Excellent

User rating:

9.2 Excellent

Samsung Galaxy S4

Specifications News^[583] Rivals Size it Videos

PhoneArena rating:

9.1 Excellent

User rating:

9.4 Excellent

HTC One

Specifications News^[403] Rivals Size it Videos

247 Comments

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posted on 26 Mar 2013, 06:56 100

1. fouadqr (Posts: 326; Member since: 21 Nov 2012)

I prefer the htc one !

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 06:59 76

4. sheik (Posts: 249; Member since: 12 Sep 2012)

yikes, I prefer the mighty Galaxy S4!!!

posted on 28 Mar 2013, 08:53 7

164. cloud_atlas1991 (Posts: 61; Member since: 21 Dec 2012)

GS4'S CAMERA IS TOTALLY WICKED!!!!!!!!!!!!!

posted on 30 Mar 2013, 00:52 4

169. kclgphilsbsa (Posts: 765; Member since: 21 Jan 2013)

hahaha the comparison and the rcently held blind comparison says otherwise :)

posted on 30 Mar 2013, 12:27 2

171. asteala8 (Posts: 17; Member since: 26 Mar 2013)

Are you daft? The blind comparison clearly showed the only one better is the iphone... htc failed miserably in the blind test.

posted on 30 Mar 2013, 20:51 1

174. kclgphilsbsa (Posts: 765; Member since: 21 Jan 2013)

ddnt u undrstand my comment?

"says otherwise"

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 07:13 67

12. TROLL (banned) (Posts: 4851; Member since: 13 Apr 2012)

I like both!

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 07:45 39

33. _Bone_ (Posts: 2155; Member since: 29 Oct 2012)

Agreed. May be controversial, but I don't think the GS4 looks bad next to HTC's beauty at all. Roughly the same size and curves, more screen, less premium feel, probably different in the hand but neither can be knocked for the looks, the question is built quality.

Time for a drop test! :)

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 08:04 10

41. jinxed (Posts: 107; Member since: 10 Jan 2013)

drop test?? y u use ur phone to play yo yo?!

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 14:48 10

123. AnTuTu (Posts: 1580; Member since: 14 Oct 2012)

I would say both of them are great smartphones ever in the history so far.

I would pick S4 on HTC only because of its software features and support here. But would definitely buy HTC One if I get some extra cash.

Hats off to you HTC and Samsung for these devices. Thanks

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 13:33 4

114. rizevnarastek (Posts: 349; Member since: 06 Sep 2012)

Biast PA trying their best do make HTC's camera look horrid :S

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 20:42 6

136. SleepingOz (unregistered)

First, it's "biasED" and no they're not..
GSMArena came to the same conlusion!

http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_s4_vs_htc_one-review-913.php

Guess which one won the battle.. =3

posted on 27 Mar 2013, 02:53 3

142. kclgphilsbsa (Posts: 765; Member since: 21 Jan 2013)

even in low-light conditions, samsung did a great job on optimizing Sony's exmor sensor
htc one got the loud sounds, but s4 handles the noise better..
PA said htc one's display is superior than gslaxy s4, gsmarena says otherwise, galaxy s4 has better viewing angles accdg to gsmarena..

yesterday im not sure if iLL pick s4 or htc One..
today im desperate to have the s4 :D i really really want it!!!!

posted on 27 Mar 2013, 06:53 2

153. SleepingOz (unregistered)

GSMArena actually did a more detailed test, so you can't go wrong with their conclusions.

posted on 31 Jul 2013, 10:13

242. Samsungadroidrules (Posts: 104; Member since: 28 Jul 2013)

Yeah i find this one Biased too. Many reviews and tech sites find GS4 Better and Advanced than HTC ONE. Even in real life, many people loves GS4 even those who has HTC ONE.

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 07:14 50

13. abdane (Posts: 503; Member since: 07 Oct 2011)

Galaxy S4, Definitely !

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 07:24 60

19. lovenyc8 (Posts: 164; Member since: 13 Mar 2013)

HTC ONE IS BEST

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 07:25 45

21. MrJerry (Posts: 403; Member since: 05 Oct 2012)

and I prefer GS4 :-)

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 07:51 36

38. MrJerry (Posts: 403; Member since: 05 Oct 2012)

And you know what?

GS4 will be even better than this by finalizing its software in a month...
And the true GS4 version with Octacore Cpu + PowerVR SGX 544MP3 GPU is coming soon..

posted on 08 May 2013, 06:16 1

232. smutty.puppet (Posts: 24; Member since: 24 Apr 2013)

what about the s4 most prominent feature, S Lag? you didn't know about octa-core problems?!!

posted on 13 May 2013, 14:26

234. yadu004 (Posts: 72; Member since: 26 Apr 2013)

it has been rectified in the software patch (have been the user of the exynos version).

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 07:28 38

24. danny_a2005 (Posts: 336; Member since: 06 Oct 2011)

HTC FTW!!

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 07:45 32

34. sergiobr (Posts: 717; Member since: 25 Feb 2013)

Galaxy S4 with 60fps !

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 10:02 4

77. xvasek (Posts: 7; Member since: 26 Mar 2013)

Unfortunately no. Look to Androidauthority...
Know anyone if is HTC ONE able record 1080p 60 fps?

posted on 27 Mar 2013, 05:01 9

147. TempUse (Posts: 5; Member since: 21 Mar 2013)

Samsung fanboys believe even 90 fps on S4. what a pity!

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 08:04 30

40. cmatej000 (Posts: 13; Member since: 22 Jan 2013)

I would choose HTC design packed with S4 inside :D

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 08:07 9

42. kclgphilsbsa (Posts: 765; Member since: 21 Jan 2013)

guys dont fight, i want both even thou im a samsung fan because they really made big in android with s2, s3 and notes that pushed hardware & software limits and wowed us and thats why Sony, HTC, LG & others are now doing their best to come with the best devices around.. stop the hate,
let's wait for other review sites,,

my dream device>
a polycarbonate body. but more on htc one X style for back, front>galaxy s4 style.. dont want aluminum and glass, they had the most undesirable disadvantages..
Xperia UI with the polished features of HTC One and all Touchwiz Features and everything abt Galaxy software..
Boomsound but make the speaker grills smaller so the phone wont b tall
camera>galaxy but if possible pureview :D
battery>galaxy
replcble battry, microSD
software support>samsung
display>SuperAmoled

w/ the amazing Spen

posted on 26 Mar 2013, 09:31 14

71. amiroo (Posts: 269; Member since: 03 Sep 2012)

both are great and best for 2013..
i respect to sami fans but i think one is most solid and best package speceially with great design and bady material..
ONE in Top .