Samsung SIII vs iPhone 5: Which one to go for this festive season?

It’s that time of the year again. Christmas is right around the corner and almost everyone wants to find that 64GB smartphone with an A6 processor, Retina Display, the intelligent assistant with a sense of humor and most importantly, “a fifth row of icons” or the phone with a 4.8 inch screen with Super AMOLED Display and a Snapdragon quadcore processor under their Christmas tree.

Except, poor Santa’s going to have a tough time choosing between the iPhone 5’s silky smooth interface and the S3’s compatibility and the apparent freedom to modify everything.

But today, we’re going to pit them against each other, head to head, to end this argument, once and for all.

Design

Apple has always been known to make devices that feel just right in your hands and the iPhone 5 is no different. Not many changes compared to the 4S except for the length and thickness but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Apple’s improved the scratch resistance and shatter proofing of the iPhone’s 4 inch screen and aluminum body, which feels extremely light in my hands.

The S3’s 4.8 inch screen may seem too big for comfort but once you use it for a while, you adapt. While most consumers are moving towards bigger screens, few manufacturers have managed to balance the size as well as Samsung. Even with a plastic shell body, the S3 feels pretty solid and fits snugly in my hand. That being said, my hands are big enough to clutch the iPad breadthwise. You will see people with petite hands leaning towards the iPhone but most average hands should adapt to the S3. Yet, in terms of overall design, Apple goes one up.

Winner – iPhone 5

Display

Ever since Apple unleashed the Retina Display on the world, cell phone manufacturers have tried to come up with a suitable competitor. Samsung went with the Super AMOLED display, a version of the OLED display. Several sites have carried out in depth comparisons between the two displays and concluded that the iPhone is a clear winner.

Winner – iPhone 5

User Interface

This is an age old debate that comes up every year. The iOS ecosystem is hard to beat aesthetically. It’s classy and easy to use. It would hardly take an hour to understand. The S3’s UI is a bit more complex. It would’ve been so much better if it ran on the standard Android software but Samsung’s mods have, in a way, made it worse. Apple Inc’s got the UI on lockdown.

Winner – iPhone 5

Battery

The iPhone claims an 8 hours of 3G talk time and the S3 boasts of 11.4 hours. I’ve never actually tested this but from what I read, the S3’s a clear winner.

Winner – Samsung S3

Memory

The iPhone comes in a 64 GB variant and the S3 comes with 32 gig extendable to 64. Apple gave the iPhone 1GB RAM whereas the S3 yields twice that.
Winner – Samsung S3

Personalization

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication“, Steve once said. Personalization, in terms of what you can see on the screen are very limited in iOS. You can change your ringtones, wallpaper and lock screen background. But, that’s about it. The S3 comes with 7 empty screens that you can add widgets to, that come with the phone and ones you can download. Additionally, you can also have a video background in the S3, which impressed me quite a bit. The S3 trumps Apple here.

Winner – S3

Apps

The Apple App Store and Google Play are brilliant in their own ways. The App Store has many well priced apps, especially games and Google Play has more apps that depend on ad-based revenue systems. However, the custom app store on the S3 is just plain bad and the user experience is just far superior on an iPhone.

Winner – iPhone 5

Camera

The iPhone camera is by far one of the best I’ve ever seen on a mobile device. Even the user interface of the camera is simple and serene and the Panorama mode is icing on the cake. But the S3 camera is not all that bad and has loads of features packed into it. Just, not better than the iPhone.

Winner – iPhone 5

The Small Things That Matter

The EarPods that come with the iPhone are a new experience all together. They come in a neat travel pouch and are a necessity for a music lover. The S3 has nothing up it’s sleeve in this department but it’s got wireless charging. I’m a big fan of this aspect of the S3 and absolutely adore Samsung for adding this feature.

Winner – S3

Final Verdict

The iPhone 5 wins 5- 4 over it’s fiercest competitor, marking yet another year of domination in the cell phone market. However, it all boils down to which aspect of the phone matters to you the most. There will never be a clear winner between these two for years to come and it all rests on your preferences and tastes.
In all probability, you’ll be getting one of these by the end of the year. Unless Santa used Apple Maps, of course.

[About the Author: Ganesh Agni Jasthi is a fifteen year old who has an opinion on everything and plans on putting a dent in the universe. A tenth grader from Bangalore, studying in National Public School, Indiranagar, Agni is an avid writer, sportsman and entrepreneur who hopes his work will make a change somewhere, somehow, someday.]