We initiated the first round of polls for the SmartFone championship for the best smartphone of 2013 today. Samsung Galaxy S4 and the LG G2 were the first contenders, but, as we had pondered earlier, Samsung seems to be the only company with two flagship devices in their portfolio, which cater to different audiences at the same time. So we thought it is fair enough that Samsung has another device in our polls. On the other hand, Sony, the company that had been so late to the party on the past few years finally sped up with the launch of the Xperia Z, one of the world’s first 1080p phones, but it has already gotten a replacement in the form of a Sony Xperia Z1, which takes the speed up a notch, having all the latest specifications in a similar package, and with a great new camera. So, how do these two compete? Which one is your pick?
UPDATE: Comprehensive victory for the Sony Xperia Z1!
We had already compared the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 with the Sony Xperia Z1 in depth, so here are the list of specifications and some excerpts from our earlier comparison.
Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Specifications
- 5.7-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) Full HD Super AMOLED display
- 2.3GHz Snapdragon 800 LTE / 1.9GHz Exynos Octa-Core
- Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean)
- 13MP camera BSI Sensor with High CRI LED flash with Smart Stabilizer
- UHD 4K video recording 30fps(Only Snapdragon version) / 1080p 60fps / Slow motion 720p HD 120fps
- 2MP front-facing camera with 1080p video recording
- 3.5mm audio jack with UHQA, FM Radio with RDS
- 3GB RAM, 32/64GB internal memory, Upto 64GB expandable memory via microSD card
- 4G LTE / 3G HSPA+, WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS/ GLONASS, MHL, NFC, IR blaster
- 3200mAh Battery
Sony Xperia Z1 specifications
- 5-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) Triluminos Display with X-Reality for Mobiles
- 2.2 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 (MSM8974 (LTE) or MSM8274 (HSPA+)) processor
- Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean)
- Single Aluminium frame with tempered glass on the front and back
- 20.7MP Primary Camera with Exmos RS sensor, HDR photos & videos, 1080p video recording.
- 2MP front-facing camera with 1080p video recording
- 8.5mm thick and weighs 170 grams
- IP55 / IP58 rating for dust and water resistance
- 3.5mm audio jack, FM Radio with RDS
- 2GB RAM, 16GB internal memory, Upto 64GB expandable memory via microSD card
- 4G LTE / 3G HSPA+, WiFi 820.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0 with APT-X, GPS/ GLONASS, MHL, NFC
- 3000mAh Battery with STAMINA mode
As you can see from the specifications, the differences are pretty stark. First of all, the Note 3 itself is really huge and much bigger than the Xperia Z1, but then, all Notes are, and there’s the display, which is arguably much better on the Note 3. Samsung went for a fake leather back and that has greatly improved the feel of the device. On the other hand, Sony Xperia Z1 comes with an industrial design with a rectangular build and a single piece of aluminum at the center and glass for the center and back. Specifications of both these phones are simply top of the shelf.
Samsung Galaxy Note 3 is powered by Samsung’s own Exynos 5420 Octa-core chipset clocked at 1.9GHz and has Mali T628 GPU while the Sony Xperia Z1 has the market leader Snapdragon 800 SoC clocked at 2.2GHz along with Adreno 330. Galaxy Note 3 has 3GB RAM while Xperia Z1 has just 2GB RAM. While the Note 3 comes with a proper Sony 1/3.06″ 13 MP sensor, the Xperia Z1 takes Android to a new level and comes with a 20.7MP Sony G Lens sensor and houses Sony’s own Bionz Image processor for superior image quality. The Software differences are too wide apart to even question or try to differentiate between the two, but the Note 3 does differentiate a lot, with its extra Stylus functionality. Pretty much a tough fight for your choice, so which one do you actually prefer? Vote away!
Check out our in-depth comparison once again, for better judgement.
Poll closed: Winner – Sony Xperia Z1!
You can check out all the other polls that are currently running –
Flagships –
Budget Smartphones –
Sony Xperia C vs Gionee Elife E6
Samsung Galaxy Grand Duos vs Intex Aqua i7