The
Samsung Galaxy Alpha
is shaping up as more than just a good-looking smartphone. It is
regarded as the company's answer to the phone which Apple is expected to
launch in the very near future – the iPhone 6, or whatever it ends up
being called. And we'll definitely pit the two against each other as
soon as we get the chance, but until then, here's a comparison between
the Galaxy Alpha and the
iPhone 5s.
Design
At
long last, Samsung has crafted a truly premium Galaxy smartphone. The
Galaxy Alpha sports a metal frame with chamfered edges, which gives it a
nice, solid feel. On the back we find a plastic cover treated to a
delicate, cross stitch pattern. Add the fact that the Galaxy Alpha is
Samsung's slimmest Android phone to date and you end up with a handset
really worthy of attention. But the iPhone 5s does not lag behind. In
fact, some might find its premium construction even more appealing. The
iPhone's frame and back are made of metal, with glass elements spicing
things up.
When
held, the iPhone 5s fits nicely in the palm thanks to its compact size
and low weight. The Samsung Galaxy Alpha is a tad bigger, yet still very
comfortable to handle and fit into any pocket.
Fingerprint
scanners come embedded in the home buttons of both handsets, but while
the one on the iPhone 5s works with only a touch and at any angle, the
one on the Alpha reads fingerprints only with a vertical swipe. This
could make it somewhat less convenient to use.
The
sensor that you see next to the Galaxy Alpha's camera is actually a
heart-rate monitor. Yup, it can be used for pulse measuring, either
while exercising, or whenever you feel like it. Naturally, the lack of
one on the iPhone 5s isn't too big of a deal as it is something only a
small fraction of users would use regularly.
Display
One
of the biggest assets in the Samsung Galaxy Alpha's portfolio is its
4.7-inch Super AMOLED display. It has a resolution of 720 by 1280
pixels, which results in a pixel density of around 312 PPI. On the
iPhone 5s we find a significantly smaller, 4-inch LCD display. It is
usable, of course, but some might find the Alpha's 4.7-incher much more
convenient, especially when the actual size difference between the two
phones isn't too major. Folks who go with the iPhone will be enjoying a
display resolution of 640 by 1136 pixels, which produces a very similar,
326 PPI pixel density figure. Both screens are in the same category
when it comes to detail reproduction – not industry-leading, but still
more than enough.
As we already stated, the
Galaxy Alpha is equipped with a Super AMOLED display, while the iPhone
has an IPS LCD panel. The former is likely to be superior when it comes
to contrast and its colors are probably going to "pop out" more, but the
latter will probably produce more accurate colors and should be easier
to read outdoors. That's what we could deduct after looking at the two
screens side by side, but only a proper screen test will show whether
that's the case.
Interface
Samsung
will ship the Galaxy Alpha with Android 4.4 KitKat out of the box – an
OS known for its openness, customization flexibility, and huge selection
of free applications. Samsung's TouchWiz user interface will be layered
on top, adding a ton of goodies, including Multi Window, Ultra Power
Saving Mode, S Health, Kid Mode, and much more. The iPhone 5s, on the
other hand, will be updated to iOS 8 in the very near future. Apple's OS
is simpler, easier to get the hand of, and more reliable as a whole,
not to mention the huge selection of high-quality applications available
on it. And with the newest iOS update, the platform will become more
customizable than ever, with its support for third-party widgets and
on-screen keyboards.
Processor and memory
You'd
be wrong if you assume that a phone as design-focused as the Samsung
Galaxy Alpha would be underpowered. Under its hood ticks an octa-core
Exynos chip comprised of four high-performance, 1.8GHz cores and four
power-efficient 1.3GHz cores. 2GB of RAM are also on board for minimal
delays while switching between apps. To no surprise, we did not
encounter any performance issues during our hands-on time with the
Galaxy Alpha. Inside the iPhone 5s we find a 64-bit A7 SoC and 1GB of
RAM. Inferior? Well, not really. When it comes to real-world
performance, the iPhone delivers a top-notch experience, with no lags
and no choppy transitions.
Neither of the two
phones lets you add extra storage as they both lack a microSD card slot.
With the Samsung Galaxy Alpha, however, you get a generous 32GB of
storage space, while a 32GB iPhone 5s costs $100 more than the 16GB
one.
Camera
With the
Samsung Galaxy Alpha you get a very promising 12MP camera. It sports one
of Samsung's new ISOCELL sensors which support extras like real-time
HDR preview and super-fast phase-detection focusing. But we have a
feeling that the iPhone 5s will be a worthy rival in the camera
department even though it has only 8MP at its disposal. The iPhone's
camera takes great images, as we know from experience, and its ease of
use would be considered an advantage for many. Plus, the iPhone 5s has a
two-tone LED light, which produces more natural light when fired.
Expectations
Of
course, we can't draw any final conclusions at this time as we have not
spent enough time with the Samsung Galaxy Alpha. But we're happy with
what we've seen so far, and we'd say that Samsung's offering is shaping
up as a worthy competitor to Apple's highly-acclaimed smartphone.
Choosing a Galaxy Alpha over an iPhone gets you a significantly larger
screen, an eye-catching design, and a very promising camera. Still, if
you don't demand a screen any larger than the iPhones, you won't be
missing out on much.
Samsung Galaxy Alpha vs iPhone 5s
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In the Galaxy S4,
Samsung introduced a built-in pedometer and the S Health app. Earlier
this year it followed up with a built-in heart rate sensor in the Galaxy S5. And now in the new Galaxy Note 4,
the Korean manufacturer brings a couple more sensor capabilities into
the mix. Read on for a quick look at S Health's new tricks.
