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Topic: Mobility

Galaxy S4 reviews go live, an obvious win for Samsung

Summary: The embargo on Galaxy S4 reviews lifted, and reviewers who spent the last week with the device are enthusiastic about all the features and functions. Samsung will sell millions, and it should hit stores soon.

Matthew Miller

By for Smartphones and Cell Phones |

The Samsung Galaxy S IV starts shipping this week, and it appears the review embargo was lifted late last night. Reviewers apparently had a week with the S4, and, as expected, everyone believes it will sell millions and is one of the top Android smartphones of the year. I would love to test out some of the features and may have to swing by T-Mobile next week to see if my new HTC One stays or gets replaced by the GS4.

Galaxy S4 reviews go live, an obvious win for Samsung
(Image: Samsung)

I own a Galaxy Note II and awarded it my top pick a couple of months ago. Unfortunately, I have yet to see a Galaxy S4 in person, so I cannot offer any of my own experiences on the device. If you are interested in this device, then check out some of these reviews:

The Galaxy S4 and HTC One match up closely in specs with the hardware design, expansion capabilities, and camera technology being the major differences. If you read the reviews listed above, most state that the HTC One is a better and more unique piece of hardware, but Samsung has a wide range of software features and is an excellent device as well. Samsung has a huge marketing edge over HTC, and we all know it will be Samsung's biggest hit of the year.

Topics: Mobility, Android, Samsung, Smartphones

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8 comments
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  • great phone

    honestly believe this could well be the best phone ever made.
    dmyke
    Reply Vote

  • Removable battery and expandable storage edge the S4 for me

    16GB isn't enough and it's incredibly annoying to have your battery die on you mid-day. The S4 wins. The HTC One looks nicer but really the S4 looks fine.
    bradavon
    Reply 2 Votes

    • +1

      +1
      anywherehome
      Reply Vote

    • HTC seems to always have battery issues.

      The HTC One may be a good phone, but having owned two HTC's in the past I'm leery of trusting the One.

      I'll wait for a little bit and see how the reviews are after a month or three of usage. (Not like I have a choice considering the normal range of selections where I live.)
      longhornak
      Reply Vote

  • Samsung RDF?

    Of the 3 reviews I've read, it's odd that this phone seems to be getting a free pass from reviewers. Maybe it's the norm after so many ibrick reviews?
    All of the reviews say it's a good camera, yet the photos show washed out colours with no real range or depth. All of the reviews like the brushed aluminium but dressing plastic up to look like aluminium is tacky. It seems to be the trend, show more drawbacks to it's features than benefits, then claim it's a really good feature.
    Little Old Man
    Reply 2 Votes

    • Sounds like the iPhone.

      "Of the 3 reviews I've read, it's odd that this phone seems to be getting a free pass from reviewers."
      ye
      Reply Vote

    • Hmmmm.....

      Maybe they don't know how to use the camera feature.
      Gisabun
      Reply Vote

    • Re: dressing plastic up to look like aluminium is tacky

      So what do you calk it when you buy an expensive aluminium phone and immediately stick it in a cheap plastic case?
      ldo17
      Reply Vote
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