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HTC One vs Galaxy S4

If you flick through the device/carrier comparisons forum you'll find a number of threads discussing this.

I chose the One - I preferred the size, screen, build, responsiveness, and felt that too many of the S4's features were gimmicks. And you'll find others here who disagree with me on each or all of those points, and that's perfectly fine.

The truth is that both will do pretty much whatever you want, and there's no "best", just a "best for me". If we knew what was important to you we might be better able to advise on that. But the truth is that the real test is to have a good solid play with both yourself - whichever you like best is the correct choice for you.
 
Galaxy S4 for many reasons which have been covered before.

HTC One is a great phone though, it has its own little perks none of which interest me.

Also I still don't like the design on HTC devices.
 
Hi all,

Been an Apple guy for a few years. For my own usage, I'm likely coming to Android in the next week or two because it seems to offer more of the freedom/features I'm looking for (I jailbreak my Apple devices now, but that's becoming more & more of a hassle as Apple closes the "loops").

Anyway, I have it narrowed down to the HTC One & the Samsung Galaxy S4. Read a bunch of reviews & comparisons, & honestly I'm a little torn.

HTC Pros:

Gorgeous device
64GB memory for the price of a 32GB S4
Better colors (to me, the S4's screen is over saturated - this may be fixed w/ adjustment though)
Less useless apps/bloated UI (although I understand that many of these can be disabled)
Cleaner more "grown up" looking UI
Technically slower processor, but I've read in multiple comparisons that it still "feels" faster than the S4
Better low-light camera
More useful camera features
More subpixels per pixel

S4 Pros

More memory (SD Card) - this is mostly offset w/ the 64 GB option the One has
Removable battery
Wireless charging
Technically faster processing
More features (debatable how many are actually useful)
Natively has accessible toggles for WiFi, Bluetooth, etc.
Higher resolution camera (although a lot of useless features/menus just to snap a shot from what I understand)
Larger screen w/ the acclaimed AMOLED tech

Kinda debating between the two, but thought I'd get the opinion of those that have been with Android longer than I have. No fierce brand loyalty here (& that's not what I'm looking for) just want to settle on the best product offering at the moment. That being the case, I posted this here & on the S4 boards so I could get opinions from actual users that know what they're doing. What is it that makes the One the device for you? Or would you pick up an S4 for any reason?

Thanks in advance!
 
Thread moved to the comparison area for you, Zcherub, where members congregate just for that purpose. ;)
 
It was between these two phones for me about a month ago. I ended up buying the HTC One, and don't regret the decision at all. I think the screen on the One is better, and it feels better in my hand. The build quality is great, and it's a very attractive phone. Basically, I chose the better hardware over (questionably) better software.

What really sold me was the speakers. The Boom sounds on the One compared to the S4's single rear speaker is like night and day. The S4 does have more software features. A few of them seem pretty cool, but most of them seem gimmicky. I don't keep much music, video, pictures, etc. on my phone. So, the storage wasn't a big deal to me. If you're looking to root, the removable battery on the S4 is nice. Playing with demo units, I couldn't tell any difference in the screen size or processing power between them.

I do miss having some of the 4.2 Jelly Bean features I have access to on other devices; namely, the quick toggles for settings. But, I think those are going to added whenever the North American update goes OTA. Until then, I'm using Apex Pro for my UI.
 
Also interested in personal experiences with both devices. I'm due for an upgrade on the first of August. So I have 4 days to make a decision. TIA
 
One thing to say about the One feeling more "snappy" and faster in real life usage. Graphic animations on the S4 is set to 1.0, while the One is set to 0.5 by default, so its faster. Also, the S4's S Voice feature causes a delay in the home button operation, as it waits for the double tap for S Voice activation within a time frame. If you turn off home button access for S Voice, the home button functions as fast as on the One.
 
Zcherub said:
Sorry - new here. Must've completely missed that section. Thanks.
Click to expand...

No need at all for an apology, my friend. :) This area is not the natural place that any member would think of for device queries (the device forums seem like the right place for that ;)).

Besides, it's a newer area.. Staff has moved more threads here than have been started here. :D
 
So, I know this is probably the wrong place to ask this question as I am guessing most views will be biased but...

I have recently got GS4 and am loving it. I WOULD have had the HTC ONE but my provider couldn't supply it at the time.

Turns out I am getting a HTC ONE through work so wont NEED both phones.

I certainly don't regret getting the S4 but I am curious what people think.
Anyone used both?

Almost ALL of the reviews put the HTC ONE in front of the GS4 but I am going to try both out and come up with my own favourite.
 
Without the option of a removable battery and SD card storage, the One didn't even make the short list for me.

But I'll be interested to see your thoughts running both phones, just out of curiosity.
 
I have a friend who has the one. I like the aluminum body and the speakers but that's about it personally. I don't like the no sd card and removable battery and I don't like the blinkfeed that you can't remove either on stock anyways. The camera to me is better on the gs4 as well. I didn't get to use it for calling so can't say how I liked that part of it. I like the gs4 far better, but everyone will have different opinions as its a matter of personal preference. I would have the one if the gs4 didn't exist.
 
I initially purchased a S4 after selling my One X to some family over seas for good money. After 5 days I returned it and got the Htc One and I'm absolutely in love with it. The removable battery case for the S4 is the only thing I miss about the S4. I'm not a huge memory fiend so the 32gb (around 29 actual usable memory)is plenty for me. Sense feels a lot smoother to me than touch wiz, and also feels less bloated. I LOVE Zoe and blinkfeed is a great feature if you are a data fiend. I do love the build quality of the phone however my phone has been in a case since day 1 so I only get to see the sexy aluminum ever so often ;) ultimately it will come down to personal taste as with most phone comparisons. If you want a feature phone that will draw attention from some cool tricks (air gestures) then go for the S4 no doubt. If you want to draw eyes towards your aesthetically beautiful phone that has a classy interface go with the Htc One. Either way you'll be getting a fantastic phone!!
 
I'm having a REALLY hard time deciding between these two phones.

I love the look of the HTC and my last two phones have been HTC so I'm familiar with the Sense UI (I currently have a HTC One S which I love).

However whilst playing with phones in the shop I was drawn the bright colourful screen (I'm a sucker for AMOLED) of the Samsung and had a little play with and I quite liked the UI as well.

Anyway, I had a look at some reviews and they seem to favour the One due to the build quality and preference of HTC's UI, saying Samsung's is a little "heavy" and can slow down. My question is for people who have had chance to use either phone or even better, both of them and ask how they both compare and is Samsung's UI slower etc?

I just wish the One had the AMOLED screen and a removable battery cover and my decision would be a no brainer.
 
The UI on the Galaxy S4 does not slow down, on the original software there were some lag issues but that was a while ago and its been updated a few times since then, basically the reviews are outdated.

I'm not a fan of touchwiz UI myself, I install Nova Launcher on all my devices.
 
The HTC UI feels more snappy initially because animations are set to 1.0 speed on TouchWiz by default, whilst the One has a default speed of 0.5. Just adjust it and it will be snappier. Complaints of slow home button response is also addressed by turning off S Voice access from the Home button double tap.
 
chanchan05 said:
The HTC UI feels more snappy initially because animations are set to 1.0 speed on TouchWiz by default, whilst the One has a default speed of 0.5. Just adjust it and it will be snappier. Complaints of slow home button response is also addressed by turning off S Voice access from the Home button double tap.
Click to expand...

I never did notice any difference from disabling the home button for S-Voice, I think that's a myth to be honest.
 
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