The Samsung Galaxy S4 is finally here. Having had our hands on the Galaxy S4 at the Samsung launch event last month, we've been itching to get the new flagship smartphone in for a full review. Expectations are high.
Building on the brilliant Samsung Galaxy S3, the Samsung Galaxy S4 (or Galaxy SIV if you prefer) promises performance upgrades all over – with a larger 5in screen; slimmer and lighter build; a more powerful 1.9GHz quad-core processor; a host of connectivity including 4G and NFC; and new features such as Smart Scroll and Air View, which let you control your smartphone in intuitive new ways.
That’s the plan, at least – but with the Samsung Galaxy S4 has Samsung done enough to retain its place at the top of the smartphone review tree?
A glowing Galaxy S3 review last year saw it take our Best Smartphone Award over Apple’s flagship iPhone 5, partly due to the Maps debacle, and the new Galaxy S4 should of course be an improvement.
But other manufacturers have put forward their new flagship handsets since then, and the S4 has some stiff competition from the likes of the HTC One andSony Xperia Z – both have recently received enthusiastic five-star reviews in this magazine.
So how does the Samsung Galaxy S4 stack up against the new contenders? Let’s dive straight in.
Camera
The Samsung Galaxy S4 camera features a 13MP lens with an LED flash on the back, plus a 2MP front-facing camera. The rear camera can also record Full HD 1080p videos.
The Galaxy S4’s camera app boasts a couple of new features, such as Dual Shot to take pictures using both the front and back cameras; Sound & Shot, which includes a nine-second sound clip with the picture; and the Animated Photo option to make animated GIFs.
There’s scope to fiddle with lens and flash settings too, as well as editing pictures and adding effects later. (The following comparison shots show the Samsung Galaxy 4 on the left and HTC One on the right)
Some of the modes are more useful than others, but regardless the camera performs particularly well in daylight and the zoom is great (although the warm colour palette is once again apparent, with pictures taken both indoors and outdoors looking slightly oversaturated).
Video playback could be a touch smoother, too. Similar shots taken with HTC One, meanwhile, show a more natural representation with crisper detail than the Samsung Galaxy S4.
The shutter effect is very subtle, so we’d turn on the haptic feedback (which vibrates the phone as you press on-screen buttons) for reassurance.
And if you hate to sully your screen with fingerprints, you can use voice control to take photos. Say “smile”, “capture”, or (our personal favourite) “cheese” to take photos instantly.
Building on the brilliant Samsung Galaxy S3, the Samsung Galaxy S4 (or Galaxy SIV if you prefer) promises performance upgrades all over – with a larger 5in screen; slimmer and lighter build; a more powerful 1.9GHz quad-core processor; a host of connectivity including 4G and NFC; and new features such as Smart Scroll and Air View, which let you control your smartphone in intuitive new ways.
That’s the plan, at least – but with the Samsung Galaxy S4 has Samsung done enough to retain its place at the top of the smartphone review tree?
A glowing Galaxy S3 review last year saw it take our Best Smartphone Award over Apple’s flagship iPhone 5, partly due to the Maps debacle, and the new Galaxy S4 should of course be an improvement.
But other manufacturers have put forward their new flagship handsets since then, and the S4 has some stiff competition from the likes of the HTC One andSony Xperia Z – both have recently received enthusiastic five-star reviews in this magazine.
So how does the Samsung Galaxy S4 stack up against the new contenders? Let’s dive straight in.
Camera
The Samsung Galaxy S4 camera features a 13MP lens with an LED flash on the back, plus a 2MP front-facing camera. The rear camera can also record Full HD 1080p videos.
The Galaxy S4’s camera app boasts a couple of new features, such as Dual Shot to take pictures using both the front and back cameras; Sound & Shot, which includes a nine-second sound clip with the picture; and the Animated Photo option to make animated GIFs.
There’s scope to fiddle with lens and flash settings too, as well as editing pictures and adding effects later. (The following comparison shots show the Samsung Galaxy 4 on the left and HTC One on the right)
Some of the modes are more useful than others, but regardless the camera performs particularly well in daylight and the zoom is great (although the warm colour palette is once again apparent, with pictures taken both indoors and outdoors looking slightly oversaturated).
Video playback could be a touch smoother, too. Similar shots taken with HTC One, meanwhile, show a more natural representation with crisper detail than the Samsung Galaxy S4.
The shutter effect is very subtle, so we’d turn on the haptic feedback (which vibrates the phone as you press on-screen buttons) for reassurance.
And if you hate to sully your screen with fingerprints, you can use voice control to take photos. Say “smile”, “capture”, or (our personal favourite) “cheese” to take photos instantly.