Phones Debating between the 5S and a Galaxy 4...what will the 5S have to close the gap?

[dvdchance]

Or is their even a gap between them?

I currently have only a iPhone 4 which I love but the battery is starting to run down so quick and I know its not worth it to replace the battery on a 2+ year old phone.

So I'm going to choose between the new 5S and the Galaxy. Most reviews I read say the Galaxy is the better phone, bigger screen and more features.

So what will the new 5S have to close this supposed gap?

Truthfully my daughter has the Galaxy after having a 4 like I do, and she likes the Galaxy but she uses way more of the features then I do.

I'm mainly interested in using it for music, web / email and text.

I love how I can wirelessly sync my iPhone to iTunes without connecting the phone, not sure if the Galaxy can do that or not. But the Galaxy can use a miniSD card for storage for music / videos rather they having to buy a bigger memory phone.

 

[iBrody]

Going from the build quality of an iPhone, you may wish to consider an HTC One instead of the S4, although you will lose the extendable storage with the HTC.

As apps don't appear to be a priority, you may also throw the Nokia Lumia 925 or 1020 into the mix for great audio and camera quality in a solidly built handset.

 

[cynics]

The iPhone will still have what it has now over the S4.

Better and device specific accessories.

Proprietary software and services. iMessage, FaceTime, find my friends, etc

A cloud service that can be arguably better with syncing between devices easily.

More polished and faster updated apps since there is less fragmentation of hardware.

A smoother user experience at least with less raw power pushing it.

On the hardware side, well I don't think Apple will ever put as power and as much hardware in devices like Samsung does.

You just need to ask what is more important to you. For me its all about the software of my Apple ecosystem and the way my iPhone interacts with my friends iPhones. If my friends ever switched to Android devices I really would have no reason to stay either.

 

[pnoyblazed]

why not consider the galaxy note 2?

 

[rockitdog]

More than likely the iPhone will have an updated/ better camera that will be closer to the 13MP offered on the S4 right now. Also seems like there's a safe bet that the iPhone 5S will include a fingerprint scanner that will give added security which is something that the S4 doesn't have.

I spent a fair amount of time this summer playing with the S4 (& HTC One for that matter) and have come back to the iPhone 5. Even despite the areas where the iPhone lags behind, it still offers a superior user experience, IMO than than S4 or Android as a whole offers it's users.

 

[dvdchance]

Thanks for all the great comments so far.

I think IMO the apple devices will always have a better fit and finish then the Samsungs or other competitors. And that is important. It will also help with resell when that time comes. Especially since it seems phones are more then ever becoming a year or year +1/2 at most proposition nowadays. Its good to know you can get some money on the backend to help with your next purchase.

While the iPhone has a better hand fit, the extra screen size of the Galaxy would be nice. Especially for me now that I'm in my mid 40's and it is getting to be more challenging to read the small text on the iPhone. I kind of wish apple would go with a bigger not just longer screen, but I guess they don't want to be accused of copying.

A negative I see on the Galaxy is it doesn't seem to be built as sturdy as the iPhone is, what with the plastic removable back and all.

I also think it's a wait and see regarding the fingerprint scanner. Especially considering a large percentage of the current iPhones problems are in relation to the stability over use of the home button.

Oh yea I'm sure the iPhone user experience will be far superior to the Android + carrier extras experience too.

 

[Fusion79]

Thanks for all the great comments so far.

I think IMO the apple devices will always have a better fit and finish then the Samsungs or other competitors. And that is important. It will also help with resell when that time comes. Especially since it seems phones are more then ever becoming a year or year +1/2 at most proposition nowadays. Its good to know you can get some money on the backend to help with your next purchase.

While the iPhone has a better hand fit, the extra screen size of the Galaxy would be nice. Especially for me now that I'm in my mid 40's and it is getting to be more challenging to read the small text on the iPhone. I kind of wish apple would go with a bigger not just longer screen, but I guess they don't want to be accused of copying.

A negative I see on the Galaxy is it doesn't seem to be built as sturdy as the iPhone is, what with the plastic removable back and all.

I also think it's a wait and see regarding the fingerprint scanner. Especially considering a large percentage of the current iPhones problems are in relation to the stability over use of the home button.

Oh yea I'm sure the iPhone user experience will be far superior to the Android + carrier extras experience too.

What carrier are you on? If you are on Verizon I would seriously give the new Droid Maxx a look. I just got one as my work phone and it is the first android phone I have used that I could see myself carrying around more then my iPhone. The active display notifications are a killer feature in my opinion and way more useful then they gimmicks on the S4. Fit and finish on the maxx is top notch, has a huge battery, and is wireless charging ready if you are interested in that. The phone runs lightning fast with no lag and the display, while 720p, is great.

If you don't use Verizon, you might want to give the Moto X a look. Same software as the Maxx, just a different shell.

I really like what Google/Moto have done with these phone. They took a page out of Apple's book. Instead of just chasing specs, they put together hardware and software that works very well together. I am really impressed.

I love my iPhone 5 but I am not impressed with what I have seen with iOS 7. I am reserving final judgement until I actually get some time with it. The big thing that has been bugging me with Apple is their resistance to a larger display. I was one of those that used to think 3.5" or 4" was fine. But I will say that after using some of the larger displays on the Android devices, it get's harder and harder to go back to the iPhone. 4.7" to 5" is just about right IMHO, and with the edge to edge displays we are starting to see, you can get the larger display without increasing the footprint too much.

 

[dvdchance]

What carrier are you on? If you are on Verizon I would seriously give the new Droid Maxx a look. I just got one as my work phone and it is the first android phone I have used that I could see myself carrying around more then my iPhone. The active display notifications are a killer feature in my opinion and way more useful then they gimmicks on the S4. Fit and finish on the maxx is top notch, has a huge battery, and is wireless charging ready if you are interested in that. The phone runs lightning fast with no lag and the display, while 720p, is great.

If you don't use Verizon, you might want to give the Moto X a look. Same software as the Maxx, just a different shell.

I really like what Google/Moto have done with these phone. They took a page out of Apple's book. Instead of just chasing specs, they put together hardware and software that works very well together. I am really impressed.

I love my iPhone 5 but I am not impressed with what I have seen with iOS 7. I am reserving final judgement until I actually get some time with it. The big thing that has been bugging me with Apple is their resistance to a larger display. I was one of those that used to think 3.5" or 4" was fine. But I will say that after using some of the larger displays on the Android devices, it get's harder and harder to go back to the iPhone. 4.7" to 5" is just about right IMHO, and with the edge to edge displays we are starting to see, you can get the larger display without increasing the footprint too much.

I'm on AT&T. I will look into the Moto X. I just read another thread here regarding the Moto X and it's battery life.

Your so spot on with your display size comment. It's probably the reason I'm going to wind up changing from the iPhone. It just looks so much...more, yet still fits into my pocket fine. I was worried it would be too wide but my fears were misplaced after testing my daughters Galaxy.

 

[jr866gooner]

If you have been on iOS for some time a change if OS may be welcome but I personally wouldn't go Samsung.. Reason being that even I was blind to the poor build quality. Only other option for me at the time was HTC but wasn't a big fan if those.

I've got an iPhone 4 changing from a galaxy s2 but tbf the s2 was the best phone I've had (until now)

I have decided that when I do upgrade I will def go for an IP5

 

[Fusion79]

I'm on AT&T. I will look into the Moto X. I just read another thread here regarding the Moto X and it's battery life.

Your so spot on with your display size comment. It's probably the reason I'm going to wind up changing from the iPhone. It just looks so much...more, yet still fits into my pocket fine. I was worried it would be too wide but my fears were misplaced after testing my daughters Galaxy.

Yup, and I just don't get their resistance. I understand the concern with fragmentation, but they have two display sizes on the iPad and it does not appear to be an issue. They could easily do two display sizes on the iPhone and have the best of both worlds. I know several people that have switched to android during their latest renew cycle mainly because of display size.

 

[Appl3FTW]

Or is their even a gap between them?

I currently have only a iPhone 4 which I love but the battery is starting to run down so quick and I know its not worth it to replace the battery on a 2+ year old phone.

So I'm going to choose between the new 5S and the Galaxy. Most reviews I read say the Galaxy is the better phone, bigger screen and more features.

So what will the new 5S have to close this supposed gap?

Truthfully my daughter has the Galaxy after having a 4 like I do, and she likes the Galaxy but she uses way more of the features then I do.

I'm mainly interested in using it for music, web / email and text.

I love how I can wirelessly sync my iPhone to iTunes without connecting the phone, not sure if the Galaxy can do that or not. But the Galaxy can use a miniSD card for storage for music / videos rather they having to buy a bigger memory phone.

Champagne color...

for the record.. i will buy iphone > any crap anyday.

 

[maccompaq]

My iPhone screen is too small for me, so I will buy the Galaxy Note 3, however I will also keep my iPhone active.

 

[Mrbobb]

I love how I can wirelessly sync my iPhone to iTunes without connecting the phone, not sure if the Galaxy can do that or not. But the Galaxy can use a miniSD card for storage for music / videos rather they having to buy a bigger memory phone.

This is not your first phone so you know how big your media library is. Rumour is, the new iPhone will top out at 128GB, enough?

If u sync every night, you are going to miss WIFI sync, but otherwise sounds like S4 is 4ru. You and your daughter can tap your phones like they show on the Ad. Your daughter likes The Little River Band?

 

[dvdchance]

This is not your first phone so you know how big your media library is. Rumour is, the new iPhone will top out at 128GB, enough?

If u sync every night, you are going to miss WIFI sync, but otherwise sounds like S4 is 4ru. You and your daughter can tap your phones like they show on the Ad. Your daughter likes The Little River Band?

A 128gb iPhone would be nice, but way too pricy. It's not so much the size, but the convenience I'm mostly interested in. I currently have 32gb and it is fine. What I do is I download daily talk content so being able to sync it easily is a big deal to me.

The more I think about it the more it seems I'm looking for reasons not to get the Galaxy rather then reasons to stay with the new iPhone. And it usually seems to come down to the bigger display.

 

[Darryjr]

I have the s4 and HTC one, came from the iPhone 5. I would look into the HTC as opposed to the s4. Fit and finish is much better, classy looking. Like I said, I have both, the s4 lags at times, stutters occasionally, none have which I have experienced with the HTC. That's just not my s4 either, I have seen it on a few of them. Just saying, if you are looking to jump ship, try the HTC.

 

[maximus96]

Champagne color...

to match your car, amirite?

 

[Jimmy James]

This thread has the best, most objectively expressed opinions I've seen on this forum. I enjoyed the read.

 

[CrzyP]

I bought an S4 about 6 weeks ago. At first I liked it, then I hated it and then convinced myself I would get the next iPhone when it is announced. However in the last week or so, there are some things I'm starting to really like about the phone. The screen is amazing both in function and in size. Sometimes it is too big, but that usually isn't a problem. I'm using the Google keyboard with the swype feature. I'm starting to feel like I can't live without swype because it makes typing SO much easier. I also think the phone is really solid and does not feel cheap. I don't really use the gimmick features, so I kind of wish I got the HTC One or waited for the Moto X. I think the HTC is bigger than the S4 despite the smaller screen. So I'd got with a Moto X because the screen size seems to be in the sweet spot, battery life is awesome, and it is almost vanilla Android. Samsung's TouchWiz sucks and handcuff's some of the great things about Android Jellybean.

The biggest disadvantage is that my family and most of my friends are iPhone users. So its hard to get them to use things like Skype instead of FaceTime. We all live in different states and cities, so we utilize FaceTime frequently. iMessage is not as big a deal until you want to share a photo or video via iMessage. So that means MMS messages with bad picture and video quality being sent and received.

 

[576316]

The iPhone will still have what it has now over the S4.

Better and device specific accessories.

Proprietary software and services. iMessage, FaceTime, find my friends, etc

A cloud service that can be arguably better with syncing between devices easily.

More polished and faster updated apps since there is less fragmentation of hardware.

A smoother user experience at least with less raw power pushing it.

On the hardware side, well I don't think Apple will ever put as power and as much hardware in devices like Samsung does.

You just need to ask what is more important to you. For me its all about the software of my Apple ecosystem and the way my iPhone interacts with my friends iPhones. If my friends ever switched to Android devices I really would have no reason to stay either.

All of this. Seems the GS4 is a massively in-superior device. I can't see that there's a similarity. But maybe that's my Apple loyalty showing through.

 

[SR71]

Do not switch to the S4. I just did and I've had it since May when it was released on Verizon. Traded my iPhone 5 for it to see how Android has matured (my last Android device's had been the Droid 1 and the Droid X, so the OS had changed quite a bit since then), as I've always loved the Android OS. Again, let me make that clear: I love the Android OS. It's an amazing OS, and to put it bluntly, after using the S4 for the past few months, I can't stand it. Little things have added up to making it the most frustrating smartphone I've ever owned. Other than the big, beautiful display and the camera (which was AMAZING and took the best pictures I've ever seen a smartphone take, even blew away pictures taken by an iPhone 5), the phone was garbage. Little things added up to make the experience of using the phone extremely frustrating.

I'm not going to go into details, but I wrote a huge post about this over on The Verge's forums and I'll link to it at the bottom of this post. If you're really considering this phone, I'd suggest reading my post or PMing me, because it really is not an ideal phone if you want to have a good experience with Android. I'm not saying this because I hate Android -- that's actually far from the truth -- but rather because this just overall is not a good Android device.

Link to my post on The Verge forums: CLICK HERE

 

[stormchaser]

Nice detailed write up. Ideal for someone wanting a S4 experience

 

[Harthag]

Or is their even a gap between them?

I currently have only a iPhone 4 which I love but the battery is starting to run down so quick and I know its not worth it to replace the battery on a 2+ year old phone.

So I'm going to choose between the new 5S and the Galaxy. Most reviews I read say the Galaxy is the better phone, bigger screen and more features.

So what will the new 5S have to close this supposed gap?

Truthfully my daughter has the Galaxy after having a 4 like I do, and she likes the Galaxy but she uses way more of the features then I do.

I'm mainly interested in using it for music, web / email and text.

I love how I can wirelessly sync my iPhone to iTunes without connecting the phone, not sure if the Galaxy can do that or not. But the Galaxy can use a miniSD card for storage for music / videos rather they having to buy a bigger memory phone.

I own the GS4 and iPhone 5. I'll give you my take on what you say your needs are.

1) Music- I got the GS4 because I got major iTunes errors prohibiting me from playing music that I myself ripped, from CDs I paid for and put in my library, I still have authorization issues. I can't find the original CDs so I'm SOL. I love the SD card in the GS4 and just dragging and dropping music from my PC to the phone.

I do however like the iPhone because the music playback is gapless, I haven't been able to do this on the GS4. Maybe I'm dumb and its easy to do but I haven't gotten it yet. And when iTunes works it works quite well and is unrivaled. Maybe these are non issues for you.

2) Web and email- for viewing websites and media I prefer the larger screen of the GS4 hands down. Email efficiency I think is a wash, both are fine.

3) Texting- if you use mostly imessage then stay with Apple. I don't miss it. For some reason the iPhone keyboard has always been more responsive and quicker for me, I prefer it over the GS4 typing experience. The only thing I love about the GS4 is swiftkey keyboard similar to swype. Love it. Very fast to shoot out text messages and emails. I can swype faster than I can type on either phone, haha.

Overall I still prefer the iPhone even though I've been using the GS4 for the past few weeks. There are reasons why I don't like the GS4 and will be looking at selling it to get a Moto X, but above are my quick thoughts concerning your specific uses.

 

[drew0020]

I'm going HTC One for a month. My brother (huge Apple fanboy) just got the S4 and loves it. I love my iPhone 5, but it still has major annoyances for me. I've been using iOS 7 and unfortunately this is more of a skin than anything else with the exception of control center.

If I don't like the HTC One I'll get the 5S. We will see but I definitely prefer the larger screen. I might miss iMessage, but I love google hangouts, google now, and the customization that Android offers.

I have 30 days starting tomorrow when my One arrives.

 

[blairh]

Or is their even a gap between them?

I currently have only a iPhone 4 which I love but the battery is starting to run down so quick and I know its not worth it to replace the battery on a 2+ year old phone.

So I'm going to choose between the new 5S and the Galaxy. Most reviews I read say the Galaxy is the better phone, bigger screen and more features.

So what will the new 5S have to close this supposed gap?

Truthfully my daughter has the Galaxy after having a 4 like I do, and she likes the Galaxy but she uses way more of the features then I do.

I'm mainly interested in using it for music, web / email and text.

I love how I can wirelessly sync my iPhone to iTunes without connecting the phone, not sure if the Galaxy can do that or not. But the Galaxy can use a miniSD card for storage for music / videos rather they having to buy a bigger memory phone.

Whose your carrier?

 

[JayJayAbels]

Had the original iPhone and then the iPhone 3G.

Decided to give Blackberry Bold a go.
Hated it.

Decided to give a Motorola Razr Maxx a go.
Loved the big screen and battery - LOATHED the entire user experience.

Went back to the iPhone last year. Currently on my iPhone 5 and will NEVER change smartphones again.

The simplicity. The reliability. The customer service. The user experience. The ecosystem.

It's simply unmatched and in a class of its own.

When people say "should I give Android a go?" I say go for it. Knock yourselves out but you're wasting your time. You WILL be back.

I encourage it though. The S4 and HTC One are supposedly great phones.

But they're not iPhones.

Trust.