iPhone 5 or Samsung Galaxy S3?

[hey_dude1643]

with the right rom on the s3, my s3 lasted 12 hours and still have 41% of juice left

screen time?

[sexyj]

20%

screen time?

[hey_dude1643]

that's not your screen time.
Go to battery then tap screen and it will show "time on".
What's that number ?

[kareshi]

Both the S3 LTE and iPhone 5 are dual core phones.

true , i forgot iphone 5 is also dual core. however i think due to the OS diff, iPhone 5 does feel smoother, probably because of better GPU.

[VintagePhick]

The S3 is a stunner. I would get it but I don't do contracts and I'm not willing to pay $600.00 for a phone. Get an Anker battery. I have an S1 and the Anker battery has made a huge difference for me, especially where stand by time is concerned.

[stevelam]

definitely iphone 5. the one thing thats crucially missing (for me) is jailbreak for ios 6. i used the zephyr tweak constantly on my iphone 4 and hate double tapping the home button to multi-task.

if ios6 jailbreak ever comes (its been a long time and still no real progress), iphone 5 basically becomes the best of both worlds again. way better and polished apps + customizability.

[pennywize]

that's not your screen time.
Go to battery then tap screen and it will show "time on".
What's that number ?

His screen time is probably 20 minutes lol

[loybond]

I've owned both and here are my thoughts:

iPhone 5
+ fast (very optimized, so faster "feeling" than the S3)
+ thin, light, build quality
+ camera (best available)
+ Size works for me, everything can be done one-handed
+ Better touch response by a significant margin
+ Keyboard has great error correction, I totally blaze on it (even without looking sometimes)
+ FaceTime works better than Skype (always on, better video for the bandwidth, even Skype engineers have commented on this)
+ I like the e-mail app's layout and the way it displays messages, and for whatever reason, this matters to me a lot
- e-mail app doesn't have robust search like Gmail for Android (arguably, Gmail for iOS is good)
- Multitasking is half-baked
- On my version, battery life was pathetic, never more than 5 hours of real life time, no matter what I did (tried everything), and battery life was a big reason for me
- Full unlocked price just not worth it ($900 for the 32GB I bought)
- Camera not hugely better than 4S
- iOS isn't really getting better
- Inconsistent QC, my front camera was very dark, friend's was bright, like previous devices (same with iPad mini)


Galaxy S3
+ big screen makes browsing a pleasure
+ thin, light, I like the curved edges of the glass
+ I like where Android is going, with Google Now etc.
+ Good multitasking, Skype etc. doesn't just quit when it wants to (or my voip line)
+ Individual notifications sounds etc, I suppose you could call this customization
+ Ability to add SD card
+ Great battery life (I trade a lot of phones, and with the latest batch, the S3 is tops, lasts 10 hours using LTE exclusively and heavily, well over 12 when supplemented with WiFi)
- HATE hate HATE Touchwiz and it's 2007esque graphics and colours, looks just like Touchwiz did on Gingerbread, can't notice ICS/JB stuff at all
- Not as nice-feeling as the iPhone with its materials
- Size a bit big IMO, not great for one-handed use at all
- Keyboards mostly suck (yes, tried them all, found Swiftkey and stock JB tolerable)
- Proximity sensor doesn't register sometimes
- Little Android quirks of apps quitting and restarting, buttons not responding once in a while etc... rare, but feels unpolished
- Camera BLOWS in low light, video basically sucks


I would have kept the iPhone, except that I bought it because I expected a full day on LTE, like so many (bought off?) reviews said. But to get 5 hours of usage was ridiculous, especially for $900. I find the S3 underwhelming too, because it's not all that much better than the S2 (still dual core, same/similar camera etc., LTE available in both etc.). I hope to see a significant improvement with the S4.

I really prefer stock Android, to the point that I've even replaced Touchwiz apps with stock ones, but like the Nexus experience a lot more. It's a shame that the Nexus 4 isn't LTE, otherwise, it'd be probably be the one beside me now.

[litebrite]

It's a shame that the Nexus 4 isn't LTE, otherwise, it'd be probably be the one beside me now.

What provider are you with? If you're with the big 3, the Nexus 4 DOES have LTE, just that it has to be enabled. If you're on Wind or Mobilicity then you're SOL.

[NEMESIS_2008]

The S3 is a stunner. I would get it but I don't do contracts and I'm not willing to pay $600.00 for a phone. Get an Anker battery. I have an S1 and the Anker battery has made a huge difference for me, especially where stand by time is concerned.

Are you referring to the double extended life battery that requires a modded back?

[sexyj]

stats for today

35% battery left @ 13h 59m 36s

screen on @ 1h 8m 28 s

Not sure if the screen time is relevant, most people's phone last less than 10 hours even with no use. Pretty sure its obvious to everybody if you use the screen longer the battery will drain faster ...

His screen time is probably 20 minutes lol

[loybond]

Virgin (TB plan LOL). Yeah, I know it has to be enabled, but I've read that it doesn't stick and it isn't as fast as it should be. Also, is it really LTE without an LTE antenna (just the chip)?

What provider are you with? If you're with the big 3, the Nexus 4 DOES have LTE, just that it has to be enabled. If you're on Wind or Mobilicity then you're SOL.

[pigeontology]

The iP5 has two major weaknesses, a smallish screen and a battery life that requires constant charging. Get over them and you will be pretty happy.

[pennywize]

stats for today

35% battery left @ 13h 59m 36s

screen on @ 1h 8m 28 s

Not sure if the screen time is relevant, most people's phone last less than 10 hours even with no use. Pretty sure its obvious to everybody if you use the screen longer the battery will drain faster ...

Of course it's relevant as it shows your usage vs battery life. I can say my phone lasts 48 hours... But not say that's with only 10 minutes screen time. Kind of misleading without the screen time.

Anyways, running the latest 10.1 Cm with KT's kernel and getting about 12 hours with 2 hour screen time. Not bad.

[Cas77]

Androids will have a weaker battery life than ios unless you own a razr maxx. If you value easy access to your file system go android. If you like gaming then go for iphone. Productivity should be both equal. Android is easier to customize, apple is locked down. You can expect support for your iphone for at least 2 years and for most androids forget about it.

While the ios app store is better right now, This will change in about a few years. marketshare is king and android is going to take over like windows did.

This question always comes up. In reality, there is no definitive answer.

Apple vs Samsung
Honda vs Toyota
Windows vs Mac

etc.....

Each has their strengths and weaknesses. Apple vs Samsung is no exception. I own a Samsung Note 2 and my sister has the iphone 5. Here is what I noticed:

IOS has the edge in fluidness, smoothiness for navigation. Even with JB, IOS5 is clearly the winner.
Android is way more customization.
Android has more handsets which can cater to more people vs just one from Apple.
I won't really want to speak about the app store because I can care less who has more apps. 90% of the apps are useless fart apps or Justin Beiber apps. I am totally satisfied with the offerings in Google Play app store even though it has less apps than IOS.
Apple wins in build quality.
Battery life is a tough one. In general, Apple has the edge. The Note 2 may turn the tables in the future though...
Ease of use? Apple looks to be more simplified. Android has a slightly higher learning curve due to its vast customization.
Music and videos, I would choose Android for its simple drag and drop instead of dealing with itunes.

Anyways, that's just my findings and opinion. My advice is to go to a store where they have display models so you can try both out.
You CANNOT go wrong with SG3 or Iphone5!!

I've owned both and here are my thoughts:

iPhone 5
+ fast (very optimized, so faster "feeling" than the S3)
+ thin, light, build quality
+ camera (best available)
+ Size works for me, everything can be done one-handed
+ Better touch response by a significant margin
+ Keyboard has great error correction, I totally blaze on it (even without looking sometimes)
+ FaceTime works better than Skype (always on, better video for the bandwidth, even Skype engineers have commented on this)
+ I like the e-mail app's layout and the way it displays messages, and for whatever reason, this matters to me a lot
- e-mail app doesn't have robust search like Gmail for Android (arguably, Gmail for iOS is good)
- Multitasking is half-baked
- On my version, battery life was pathetic, never more than 5 hours of real life time, no matter what I did (tried everything), and battery life was a big reason for me
- Full unlocked price just not worth it ($900 for the 32GB I bought)
- Camera not hugely better than 4S
- iOS isn't really getting better
- Inconsistent QC, my front camera was very dark, friend's was bright, like previous devices (same with iPad mini)


Galaxy S3
+ big screen makes browsing a pleasure
+ thin, light, I like the curved edges of the glass
+ I like where Android is going, with Google Now etc.
+ Good multitasking, Skype etc. doesn't just quit when it wants to (or my voip line)
+ Individual notifications sounds etc, I suppose you could call this customization
+ Ability to add SD card
+ Great battery life (I trade a lot of phones, and with the latest batch, the S3 is tops, lasts 10 hours using LTE exclusively and heavily, well over 12 when supplemented with WiFi)
- HATE hate HATE Touchwiz and it's 2007esque graphics and colours, looks just like Touchwiz did on Gingerbread, can't notice ICS/JB stuff at all
- Not as nice-feeling as the iPhone with its materials
- Size a bit big IMO, not great for one-handed use at all
- Keyboards mostly suck (yes, tried them all, found Swiftkey and stock JB tolerable)
- Proximity sensor doesn't register sometimes
- Little Android quirks of apps quitting and restarting, buttons not responding once in a while etc... rare, but feels unpolished
- Camera BLOWS in low light, video basically sucks


I would have kept the iPhone, except that I bought it because I expected a full day on LTE, like so many (bought off?) reviews said. But to get 5 hours of usage was ridiculous, especially for $900. I find the S3 underwhelming too, because it's not all that much better than the S2 (still dual core, same/similar camera etc., LTE available in both etc.). I hope to see a significant improvement with the S4.

I really prefer stock Android, to the point that I've even replaced Touchwiz apps with stock ones, but like the Nexus experience a lot more. It's a shame that the Nexus 4 isn't LTE, otherwise, it'd be probably be the one beside me now.

What's with all these non-biased intelligent non-fanboyish replies in a IOS vs Android thread on RFD? Must be a cold day in hell but very insightful! Is RFD all growns up now?