Galaxy S6 Vs iPhone 6 and Galaxy Note 4 Vs iPhone 6 Plus - it seems the battle lines are pretty clear. Except they’re not. While these two pairs compete for our affection, the fact iPhones launch together while the Samsung S and Note ranges launch 5 months apart makes a big difference. In some ways the Note 4 is more like Apple ’s iPhone ‘S updates’ and it tweaks the changes made to its smaller brother. So following stellar reviews of the Galaxy S6 we should just wait for the Note 5? Maybe not... A full review will come shortly, but based on my initial impressions everything which makes the Galaxy S6 great makes me wonder about the future for the Note 5. In fact, for some, I suspect the Note 4 will be the last phablet they consider buying from Samsung. Here’s why: Design - Too Much Change? Here’s the good news: the Galaxy S6 is the best looking, best built, most desirable Galaxy phone Samsung has ever built. Side by side the S6 blows away the Note 4. In fact any casual user is likely to not give the Note 4 a second glance before they've pocketed the S6 and walked out the door. Galaxy S6 (left), Note 4 (right) - image credit Gordon Kelly Read more - Galaxy S6 Vs iPhone 6 Review: Samsung Uses Apple To Beat Apple
But here’s the thing: what makes the S6 look great results in a loss of practicality and functionality that the Note 4 simply doesn’t have to stomach. Consequently the Note 4 may have a plastic back, but it is less slippery to hold, actually feels more durable and means you get both the upgradeable microSD storage and removable battery the Galaxy S6 gave up in its quest for style. I’ll see how this settles for me, but right now this isn’t the walkover I expected. The Galaxy S6 looks the part, but the Note 4 has far more substance to it. Galaxy Note 4 (left) feels cheaper but more practical than the Galaxy S6 - image credit Gordon Kelly Display - Brilliance And Overkill Again a topic for great inspection later, but my early thoughts are that the Galaxy S6 display improves upon the Note 4. This is no small task as the Note 4 had perhaps the best phone screen on the market. Read more - Galaxy S6 Edge Vs iPhone 6 Plus Review: Apple's Past Broken By Samsung's Futuristic Vision Both sport frankly ludicrous 2560 x 1440 QHD resolutions which are overkill, but where the Note 4 has deep blacks, vibrant colours and wide viewing angles the Galaxy S6 appears to have taken them a step further. To my mind the Galaxy S6 now has the display to beat and it will be a crowd pleaser for anyone who wants to preview the phone in store before buying. The S6 (right) edges it, but both it and the Note 4 have stunning displays - image credit Gordon... [+] Kelly Software - Bloatware Out Of Control Here’s the good thing about the Galaxy S6’s software: it’s really fast and TouchWiz has never looked better. The problem is there has also never been more bloatware. Deal with Facebook, WhatsApp, Microsoft and others mean there’s now a bonkers 56 pre-installed apps. Most of which cannot be uninstalled, but merely ‘hidden’. Read more - Galaxy S6 And Galaxy S6 Edge Hide Samsung's Broken Promise Galaxy S6 bloatware is out of control, but it remains very smooth and fast to use - image credit... [+] Gordon Kelly Of course the Note 4 is hardly light on the bloat either, but much of its software actually feels like it has a point. Productivity software, phablet specific optimisation (which Android sadly still drastically needs) and ‘S Pen’ stylus apps and functionality give it more depth as a productivity tool than any Android device on the market. The exception is the S6’s vastly improved fingerprint scanner, but I’ll get into this more in the full review. The problem is with the Note 4 it runs noticeably more slowly and without the same fluency. This presents an interesting dilemma for Samsung when it launches the Note 5 because it surely cannot take both its mass of phablet software and the bloat from the S6. Samsung needs to stop thinking about endless tie-ins and deals and more about customers. Next page: performance, cameras and battery life... Performance - Fast In Different Ways I’ll spend more time on this with my full review, but it is fascinating to compare the performance of the Note 4 and Galaxy S6. Obviously the S6 has the newer chipset (Samsung’s own Exynos 7420 Vs Qualcomm ’s Snapdragon 805), but neither phone feels slow and will run anything you throw at it from the Google Play or Samsung app stores. Then again while both phones are fast, they feel completely different. The smoothness and fluidity of the Galaxy S6 means it appears far ahead of its big brother when in actuality I’ve noticed the two launch apps in very similar times. All of which goes to show how important the impression of greater speed is through the optimisations Samsung has made to the S6. Then again there is one area even the speedy Note 4 cannot catch the Galaxy S6… Read more - iPhone 6 Vs HTC One M9 Review: Beautiful Beasts Camera - Great Meets Greater Until the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus came along, the Galaxy Note 4 had arguably the fastest and best smartphone camera on the market. Or to be more precise, it had the best camera hardware but didn’t make the most out of it due to aggressive image processing that over sharpens images when viewed at larger sizes. An example is below. Now not only has the Galaxy S6 fixed this to finally create image processing software that does full justice to its tweaked 16MP sensor, but it has combined this with a much faster F1.9 lens and the end results leave the Galaxy Note 4 eating its dust. It is a threefold win. The Galaxy S6 camera opens faster, processes images faster and takes better photos than the Note 4. The S6’s nifty shortcut of double tapping the home button to open the camera from any location also is something I’d love to see come to the Note 4 in time via a software update. Read more - Samsung Galaxy S6 Vs Galaxy S5: Should You Upgrade? Battery Life This needs more time, but my early thoughts are the Note 4 walks all over the Galaxy S6. In fact the Galaxy S6 has worse battery life than the Galaxy S5 and as its battery is no longer removable this compounds the issue. As such whereas the Note 4 will easily last all day (even with heavy use) and perhaps two days at a push, the Galaxy S6 has had me reaching for my charger before the end of the working day. Both have quick charging and the S6 has integrated wireless charging (something the Note 4 can add with optional wireless charging backs) but neither helps if you’re out of juice and away from a pocket socket. This one is a no contest and perhaps the most disappointing element of the Galaxy S6. Next page: value and early verdict... Value - How Much Is Too Much? Given the Note 4 does so much more you could be forgiven for thinking that it should be the pricier of the two, but the more premium build materials and some additional costs attached to Samsungs use of its own (less mass produced) internals inside the Galaxy S6 make it far heavier on the wallet. This means off contract RRPs of $699 (32GB), $799 (64GB) and $899 (128GB) while the Note 4’s initially hefty $599 (16GB) and $699 (32GB) tags have fallen heavily since. The other consideration is that given the non-expandable nature of the Galaxy S6, you have to lay down more cash upfront while the Note 4 can be augmented with up to 128GB via microSD as necessary. Will that continue with the Note 5? There has to be a big question mark. Read more - Galaxy S6 vs Galaxy S6 Edge: The Differences Between The New Samsung Smartphones Early Verdict Every new generation of hardware should better the last and, for the most part, in the case of the Galaxy S6 Vs the Note 4 my initial impressions are that this is true. The Galaxy S6 is faster, slicker, better built and has a much better camera than the Note 4. The issue, however, is the Galaxy S6 is also a far more superficial device. The Note 4 simply does far more from both a hardware and software perspective and it wipes the floor with the S6’s mediocre battery life. Still why should you consider the Note 4 now when the Note 5 is due within six months? Because if Samsung is going to follow the guidelines laid down by the Galaxy S6 (and record sales suggest it will) the Note 4 may be the last Samsung phablet to have upgradeable storage, a replaceable battery and also not be filled with even more bloatware. Coupled with the Note 4's (now) significantly cheaper asking price and my initial thoughts are this is going to be a much closer battle than I imagined… |
