What are the advantages of the Samsung Galaxy S4? - The Express

The new high-end smartphone from Samsung, the successor of Galaxy S3 which has sold over 41 million copies worldwide, released in France on Saturday. It will be sold 679 euros in a single 16 GB version, 4G-compatible. The S4 is an improved version of S3, without much innovation brought to the model, but of good quality and performance. Not surprisingly, it will surely delight fans of trendy gadgets and those seeking a high-end Android smartphone. But for those who already have an S3 for example, compare with the HTC One may be worth it.

design side, the screen S4 is almost imperceptibly larger than the S3 (5 inches instead of 4.8), without increasing the device as it is on the screen margins gained size. The resolution is improved from 720×1280 to 1080 × 1920, with a resolution of 441 dpi instead of 306. The device is thinner (7.9 mm) and slightly more rectangular. The material of the shell does not change, it’s still plastic. This can make it look a little less S4 upscale than the HTC One, aluminum, or Sony Xperia Z which uses glass. That said, this allows it to be lighter than its competitors (130 g). Galaxy S4 is available in black or white.

Many “gadgets”

Samsung has developed the set of features available without tactile interaction. The S3 already left the lights (with some hiccups) screen when the user looking at the screen, even if he does not touch. The S4 goes further. It is for example able to pause a video if the head is diverted. It also scrolls alone if the head or the phone is tilted.

“Air view” function to scroll by using the gesture from the bottom up or top down, but without touching the screen, just approaching hand very closely, or even preview images in movement a video during playback if the finger on the timeline approach to a different location on the dipstick. This is the same functionality as the Note 2, which uses the stylus. However, to scroll, it is faster to touch the screen (because the Air View does not work every time), so the airview is the only way to access the preview, which also applies to calendar or mails.

But these gestures

orders defects. First, they do not work in all applications, only in native applications from Samsung and Android. Then you do not get 100% success. Finally, the interest may be limited. For example, it is possible to answer a call by swiping the screen without touching the hand, which can be used to respond when your hands are dirty. But once we landed, must still be able to activate the speaker or enter the handsfree …

The extras

context menu that appears when you select text on a page to copy and paste for example, is lighter and offers a new built-in feature, automatic translation text and voice. Practice as we have an internet connection (the software is in the cloud), and all reservations that include web like Google Translate.

translators

Galaxy S4 also enriches the “Optical reader” feature, which allows for example to call by scanning a card on which is written a phone number.

So many new friendly but can not alone make a difference to purchase.

Photo / Video: more fun than pure performance

The camera goes from 8 to 13 megapixels. It allows you to add filters, create a variety of animated GIFs, and photo albums. Different capture modes are also more accessible than ever before. The “Dual Camera” function is fun: it simultaneously captures two images superimposed (in the picture or video), with front and rear sensors, thus displays thrombin Photographer inset in the picture. It is also possible to record sound when taking a picture thumbnail to capture the mood of the moment.

But in terms of pure picture quality tests published by specialized websites conclude that the device is not good enough in low light, especially compared to Sony Xperia Z or HTC One.

Galaxy S4 compete

latest Samsung is often placed in front of the HTC One, also on Android, with good reason. Launched in April, the high-end smartphone that rivals the most with the Galaxy S4, although one could also consider the Sony Xperia Z in the selection. The comparison with the iPhone 5 is less valid because the model Apple is more than the previous generation, that of S3.

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Have the latest smartphone, the latest unnecessary or unhelpful functionality comes at a price! Some manufacturers have realized that the “idiots” are many and they are right! That they also benefit market less margin products which fully meet others.