Android Wars: Samsung vs HTC vs Motorola
By Branko Miletic
Reviewing mobile phones isn’t what it used to be, especially in the smartphone market. This is because with smartphones there is a huge growth of apps and, most have very similar specification, which in real terms means that what you’re really comparing is either individual app stores, the operating systems and perhaps a small number of internal phones attributes.
In this review, we looked at three Android 2.2 phones, the HTC Desire, the Samsung Galaxy S and the Motorola Milestone, which meant at least one of the attributes for comparison, the operating system was not an issue.
Being all Android-based also meant that there were no differences in the App Store, so again another variable was eliminated.
In the end, it was the phones themselves that were under the microscope and after subjecting all three to my Shopping Centre Test, in actual fact, there was very little between all three contenders.
Having said that, when all the testing results were collated, it was the Samsung Galaxy S that came out as a clear winner—by a nose in some cases, but a winner nonetheless.
The main reasons for this were its superior battery life and its total ease of use and connectivity in some really bad coverage areas. (I use a shopping centre on the city fringes for this test).
For those that use their smartphone as a storage device, the Motorola has a much higher storage space and for the fashionista stakes, the HTC Desire is a very nice piece of engineering.
However, all in all, the Samsung Galaxy S proved to the real pick of the bunch and considering that it had the best battery life also means you won’t need to carry around a recharger with you as much with the Galaxy.
Check the chart below for test results and overall rating.
|
|
HTC DESIRE |
SAMSUNG GALAXY S |
MOTOROLA MILESTONE |
|
Overall Feel
|
Sleek, sturdy and |
Feels very much like |
Keyboard slider |
|
Battery Life
|
4 days stand- and 1 |
6 days stand- and 1 |
4 days of standby |
|
Display
|
AMOLED- crystal |
Large AMOLED |
Slightly smaller LCD |
|
User Inferface
|
Touch screen and |
Touch screen and |
Has an extra |
|
Overall Usabilty
|
Easy and fun to use. |
The best to use out |
Fair- the touchscreen |
|
Apps
|
50,000 and growing. |
50,000 and growing |
50,000 and growing. |
|
Connectivity
|
Easy connection with |
Easy connection with |
Easy connection with |
|
Speakers
|
Loud speakers- can |
Loud speakers- can |
Ordinary speakers. |
|
Social Network Applications |
Facebook, Twitter, |
Facebook, Twitter, |
Facebook, Twitter, |
|
Dimensions |
68 x 11.8 x 123 mm |
64 x 9.9 x 122 mm |
60 x 13.7 x 116 mm |
|
Camera
|
5 megapixel (no |
5 megapixel with 4 |
5 megapixel with 4 x |
|
Memory |
1.5 MB |
16GB |
8 GB |
|
Operating System |
Android 2.2 |
Android 2.1 |
Android 2.2 |
|
Connectivity
|
Wi-Fi, 3G, HSDPA |
Bluetooth, 3G, WiFi, |
GPRS, WAP, UMTS, |
|
Ease of Use |
High |
High |
Medium-High |
|
Conclusion
|
An excellent phone |
The pick of the bunch- superior to the other two by a nose. |
A very sturdy phone |
|
Overall Rating |
4/5 |
4.5/5 |
3.5/5 |
Brought to you by CyberShack.com.au
