Since the Samsung Galaxy Note and the Apple iPhone 4S are officially coming their way here in the Philippines by next month, comparing these two much-sought smartphones along with the other two flagship phones — Motorola Droid Razr and Nokia Lumia 800 — will help us decide if which of these handsets best fit to our lifestyles. Let’s find out which of them stood out as we comparatively breakdown each of these handsets’ specifications and features.
Here’s a comparison of the specs of the Galaxy Note, iPhone 4S, Droid Razr, and Lumia 800:
 Galaxy Note |
 iPhone 4S |
 Droid RAZR |
 Lumia 800 |
|
| Manufacturer | Samsung | Apple | Motorola | Nokia |
| Thickness | 9.7 mm | 9.3 mm | 7.1 mm | 12.1 mm |
| Weight | 178 g | 140 g | 127 g | 142 g |
| Display Size | 5.3″ | 3.5″ | 4.3″ | 3.7″ |
| Display | Super AMOLED | LED-backlit IPS TFT | Super AMOLED | AMOLED |
| Screen Resolution | 1280 x 800 px | 960 x 640 px | 960 x 540 px | 800 x 480 px |
| Internal Storage | 16/32 GB | 16/32/64 GB | 16 GB | 16 GB |
| Expandable Storage | microSD | No | microSD | No |
| RAM | 1 GB | 512 MB | 1 GB | 512 MB |
| Processor | 1.4 GHz Dual-Core |
800 MHz Dual-Core |
1.2 GHz Dual-Core |
1.4 GHz Single-Core |
| Mobile OS | Android 2.3.5 | iOS 5 | Android 2.3.5 | Windows 7.0 |
| Rear Camera | 8 MP | 8 MP | 8 MP | 8 MP |
| Video Recording | 1080p @ 30fps | 1080p @ 30fps | 1080p @ 30fps | 720p @ 30fps |
| Front camera | 2 MP | VGA | 1.3 MP | No |
| WiFi | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| GPS | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Bluetooth | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| HDMI | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| USB | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Accelerometer | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Battery | 2500 mAh | 1420 mAh | 1780 mAh | 1450 mAh |
| Carrier | Smart | Smart/Globe | Unconfirmed | Unconfirmed |
| Availability | December 2011 | December 2011 | TBA | TBA |
| Price | Php35,990 | TBA | Php33,000* | TBA |
Samsung Galaxy Note’s advantage…
The Samsung Galaxy Note is no doubt the most powerful smartphone among the others. Aside from evidently having the largest Super AMOLED Plus display of 5.3 inches, it sports monster specifications including a whopping 1.4-GHZ dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, and 16/32GB of built-in storage, which is expandable to another 32GB of memory via microSD. It currently runs the Android Gingerbread but upgradeable to the latest Ice Cream Sandwich next year.
The Galaxy Note has the best front-facing camera with 2 megapixels compared to iPhone 4S’ VGA and Droid Razr’s 1.3MP.
During the battery life test done by GSMArena, the new Samsung flagship smartphone bested the iPhone 4S in 3G talk time, surviving for almost 13 hours. However, the Galaxy Note got a lower score in the overall test called the “endurance test”.
This smartphone-cum-tablet, which was officially launched in the Philippines just yesterday, is now available in all Samsung stores and SMART outlets nationwide with a suggested retail price of Php35,990!
Apple iPhone 4S’s advantage…
The Apple iPhone 4S, which runs the latest iOS 5, packs a 3.5-inch LED-backlit IPS TFT display that makes the iPhone 4S have the highest pixel density in the comparison. It’s powered by a 800-MHz dual-core processor, which was supposed to be 1GHz but didn’t push through to save up the battery life. It has an internal storage of up to 64GB and 1GB of RAM.
The iPhone 4S is also said to have the best 8-megapixel-camera, which includes a Carl Zeiss lens on the back, just like the Nokia Lumia 800; but the difference is, the iPhone 4S’ can record 1080 Full HD videos while the latter cannot.
As for the battery life of the iPhone 4S, it’s superb. Even though it had a battery-life failure before because of the mobile OS, it still managed to be back on track. In fact, it got the highest rating for the overall battery test (a.k.a. the endurance test).
The iPhone 4S will be officially launched anytime next month via Globe and Smart, as previously reported in my previous post. Until now, there’s no word on its exact release date and price from both telcos. All we need to do now is just wait.
Motorola Droid RAZR’s advantage…
The major and greatest advantage of the Droid RAZR is that, you can hold on to the device with a strong grip as it has the thinnest and lightest body of not just in the comparison, but also all the smartphones around yet. But despite being the slimmest and lightest device yet, the Droid RAZR still remains to be a durable and not-easy-to-break device and packs powerful specs including an enormous 1.2-GHz dual-core chip with 1GB of RAM and 16GB of built-in storage, which is expandable to another 32GB via microSD.
The Droid RAZR also comes up with an 8-megapixel camera but there’s nothing extraordinary about it since no special lens were installed. But it has a better secondary camera than the iPhone 4S though.
As of this writing, there’s no announcement (nor rumors) when would the Droid RAZR be available in the country and what carrier would it fall in. However, there are already a few online stores (or maybe offline as well) who are unofficially selling this for around Php33,000 to 36,000.
Nokia Lumia 800′s advantage…
Looking on the specs alone, there’s nothing special about the Nokia Lumia 800 and it seems like it’s been left out or something. But since it runs the Windows OS, which is a first time for a Nokia phone, the Lumia 800 has caught a number of people’s attention. In fact, it’s said to be doing very well in some countries including the UK, where it’s the second most-popular smartphone as for the Vodafone UK website.
The Lumia 800 is supposedly to top the camera department along with the iPhone 4S but as said, it can only record 720p videos. Worse, it doesn’t come up with a secondary camera, which is very unusual for a flagship device.
On the outside, the Nokia Lumia 800 has a unique yet simple and beautiful body, which exactly looks like a replica of the N9. I also like how to camera has been put at the back along with the flash. Let’s just credit Nokia for “not copying ideas” for the built or body design from other manufacturers.
Though I’m looking forward to Nokia in the coming months. I’m hoping that they will be able to fully catch up in the high-end category by offering a new flagship smartphone that packs monstrous specifications and eye-opening features.
VERDICT
Obviously, specs-wise, the Lumia 800 is now out of place here and the Galaxy Note dominates in the comparison. It’s the clear winner here. The second position is battled closely by iPhone 4S and Droid RAZR. Both smartphones also have more or less the same prices so I think the winner for that place is subjective. Though, if we base the specs by numbers, the Droid RAZR wins the second spot and the iPhone 4S comes third with a very small difference.
Unfortunately, the Galaxy Note is not for everyone. Anyone who has a small palm won’t be comfortable to hold the device and might always use his two hands to use it.
So this is just says that choosing the winner is subjective. Everything depends on what we like, what we want, and what best fits to the kind of lifestyle we have.
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rapid sell out is sure to impact iPhone 4S availability both in the US and abroad, although there is speculation that because Apple maintained the iPhone 4
i’m so impressed with your writing. i couldn’t agree more about the note. it really is the best smartphone yet.
Thank you for sharing your opinion, CSeamus! ☺ Sure, that'll be very much appreciated. Anyway, I just visited your blog; you really write very well. Stay awesome, my friend! ☺
Great comparison chart!
I was actually torn between Galaxy Note and Motorola Razr. Looks like it's the Razr for me. The Note is cool but you would need a Bluetooth headset to use it as a phone for everyday use so as not to look dorky. Iphone is really overhyped, midrange Android phones like Optimus Black can very well stand toe to toe with the Iphone in terms of specs. All boils down to software. If Ice Cream Sandwich becomes as polished as it promises to be (Gingerbread was almost, almost comparable to IOS4) then this would be a beast. I always say that Android is an advanced phone for advanced users. iphone is simplicity for moms and kids.
Great blog btw! Can I add you to my links? cseamush.wordpress.com
Very brief comment, Ralph. Thank you for sharing your thoughts or opinion. Much appreciated! ☺
But if you want a bigger screen for video playback, galaxy Note will be the winner..:D
Galaxy Note – Biggest Screen, Faster Processor, Better Screen Resolution and it can be your tablet and phone ,but it's EXPENSIVE..
Iphone 4s – Very Good OS, good camera, very wide selection of apps, but people get tired of seeing same OS every other update, updates are not so very useful to some, also, most apps are not free. EXPENSIVE
Motorola RAZR – Yes, it's the thinnest and lightest smartphone among the four but I think it is the weakest. That's my opinion..EXPENSIVE
Nokia Lumia 800 – Good OS but apps selection are at far from Android and iOS, but I think, people will choose this among the four, it has the best design I ever seen, accrdng to reviews, OS is very smooth and easy to use. And this phone is NOT AS EXPENSIVE among these phones.
This is only my opinion..Maybe Im wrong..:D
Boy that rellay helps me the heck out.
Finally. It's great to hear that somebody's putting his bet on the Lumia 800. I agree that Nokia's flagship phone runs very smoothly via the integrated Windows OS. However, I think it's too early to tell if Windows 8 mobile OS will prevail in 2012. BTW, thanks for sharing your opinion! ☺
windows 8
i think lumia 800 is the beast here despite of the low specs compared to the other devices it runs smoothly just like the other windows phone out there …..and i like the integration if the windows phone ….. next year will be the windows phone year esp…. the launching of tablets with windows on on board :)
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Dude, don't be too harsh with Nokia. They might not want to create a new phone again for that. ha ha :P
Thank you for sharing your opinion, Dennis! But I think it's too early to tell that they "failed again". Have a great day! ☺
Does anyone here like the Lumia 800? If none, I pity them. At least they tried. But too bad they failed again.
No problemo señor. :)
Thank you very much for finding my post useful. Good luck on your new gadget! ☺
Thank you for visiting us! More power! ☺
Thanks for supplying us with this kind of information. :) Cash for cell phones available at cashforsmartphones.com
Thank you for sharing. :) Cash for cell phones available at cashforsmartphones.com
I'm really confused if what to buy between Razr and Galaxy note. But I think I'm taking the latter. Learned a lot from this post, btw. Thanks!
You're always welcome! I like your site as well!
Thank you, John! Have a great day! ☺
Thank you for the correction. I apologize for not noticing that. Stay awesome! ☺
This is very helpful and AWESOME! Keep it up! (:
Since when did iPhone used Super AMOLED screen? It's IPS LCD screen for crying out loud.
For communication purposes? It's a battle between the Galaxy Note and the iPhone 4S. You can choose either. The Galaxy Note lasts for almost 13 hours of continuous 3G talk time compared to iPhone 4S which only last for approx. 8 hours. However, for the overall performance (browsing, 3G talk time, and video playback), the iPhone 4S is far better than the Galaxy Note.
Hello, David! Thank you for appreciating my article. It's great to hear positive comments from people like you. I hope you'll enjoy your Galaxy Note after buying one! ☺
You're welcome. Since I already have iPad 2, which of the 4 smartphones above would best compliment it? (I don't want my iPad 2 be used less as I want to use it more often still to get my money's worth). :) With that said, the smartphone will be used mainly to communicate, and my iPad 2 will remain to be used as a device for browsing. :)
I was planning to buy the iPhone 4S next month through Globe. But after seeing this post, I'm now going to buy the Galaxy Note. It's an amazing phone. Thanks for sharing your knowledge about these new gadgets! More power to you, Mancelita.com!
Thank you very much for the compliment, Andy! I really appreciate your kind words. I'm very happy that this has helped you. Good luck in choosing your phone! Hoping that you'd enjoy it! :)
I've been scouting for a smartphone since I lost mine 2 months ago. Since the launch of iPhone 4S last October 5, I've been wanting to have it. But a slew of better smartphones have arrived that make me all the more confused on which to purchase. This great review has helped me a lot to move closer to a decision come December. Thank you for your help!
Thank you very much, Arvin! I really appreciate it. I worked hard on this. ☺
This could not possibly have been more helupfl!
Very well written article! Yes, I agree that the Galaxy Note is the clear winner! =)
Thank you for your kind words, Iam! ☺ SIRI is an application from iOS5 that works as a virtual assistant. It doesn't work well here in the country though. Thanks for dropping by, btw. ☺
Thank you very much, June! ☺
Very intense review Robert :) I just know by now this iPhone 4S is the one they called SIRI? It's what my wife bugs all the time
Haha, shouldn’t you be charging for that kind of knwoeldge?!
GALAXY NOTE FTW! Nice post by the way…