iPhone 5 or Galaxy S3?

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John Canfield

John Canfield

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My AT&T iPhone 3GS is getting long in the tooth and I'm okay for an upgrade, so the hunt is on.  I've spent a bunch of time reading reviews and comparisons of the two subject phones and I'm still on the fence.

I have really enjoyed my iPhone - the user interface works and works very well.  DW has a Samsung Nexus and I had to help her set it up and occasionally function as her help desk so I'm somewhat familiar with Samsung's implementation of Android (plus I have an Android tablet.)

Having said that, I'm leaning toward the S3 but have a couple of reservations - call quality and picture (as in camera) quality.  It appears the iPhone 5 with its three microphones has the edge over the S3 for call quality and the iPhone has better color balance and dynamic range.  Oh, another demerit for the S3 was the screen seems to be dimmer and harder to read in bright light.

So we sit here and ponder...
 
I use an S-III myself. I do agree in bright light it has a problem.

Call quality is not an issue, does very well.  Speakers more than mics are important.

I am not an "I" fan, I think there are too many "I-things" out there already.

I am very happy with my S-III, save for the high light conditions things. (Bright sunlight) 

There are apps that improve the camera.. I don't use them.
 
I have the iPhone 5 and am very happy with it.  Have not used an Android phone yet, so I won't say anything about them.  I will say that the iPhone 5 is pretty cool.  It all works as advertised, and if you haven't used Siri yet, she is pretty neat.  She has some shortcomings, but all in all works pretty well. 

The bad thing with the new iPhone is the new connection cables.  With the new connection, none of your old cables will work anymore without an adapter.  And of course, the adapters are rather pricey. 

Other than that, I don't have much bad to say about the new one.  I like it and will continue to use it.
 
John C - The problem you will have here with this question is that there are very few people who have used both  phones extensively. I have a Galaxy Exhibit and absolutely love the phone. But it is certainly not perfect and neither is the iPhone. I really think it is a 6 of one half a dozen of another question. Both are great phones with lots of fans and neither will disappoint you. I went with Android because they have the largest market share.
 
Thanks for the comments guys.  Tom - yeah, probably a very small number of people have used both.  I need to wait for a clear day and make a trip to the ATT store and see what the S3 looks like in bright sun.
 
Love my Iphone 5.  Never had any other for comparison.  But I love Apple service and  packaging!  The panoramic feature on camera is very neat.  Suri is my friend!
 
Thanks Betty!  From what I've read, Siri is more functional (evolved?) than Samsung's knock-off of the voice assistant, but I'm sure Samsung will tweak their version.

There's also talk about an iPhone 6 this spring.  The upgrade cycle never ends.

At this point I'm biased just a tad toward the iPhone but I need some hands-on with both.
 
I've never used either and I vote for the iPhone. :D Guess I just like Apple, their philosophy and products, and their superb customer service. But that's not to detract from those who make other choices at all, that's just my experience (various Macs, iPad mini, etc.). As far as photos, the need for higher quality may depend on what you want to do with the images. (If it's for the web, either is probably good; if you print wall-size, I'd be concerned.) I wish you good luck in your choice and enjoy whatever you get!
 
I love my iPhone and would not trade it for anything else. It is user friendly so even a technically challenged person as I can understand the operation of it. That said it is a decisions only you can make after asking, as you did, and getting your hands on the the different phones to see what you like or not like. 

Good luck!
 
The iPhone's operating system is very evolved and polished and you have to admire Apple for a great product.  On the other hand, a Droid-based phone is friendly towards the 'tinkerer' of which I would classify myself.  The S3 is very customizable (the iPhone isn't to the same extent), has a replaceable battery (the iPhone doesn't) and a slot for external memory (the iPhone doesn't.)

So it's a tough decision.  Thanks again for the comments guys.
 
a Droid-based phone is friendly towards the 'tinkerer' of which I would classify myself.  The S3 is very customizable (the iPhone isn't to the same extent), has a replaceable battery (the iPhone doesn't) and a slot for external memory (the iPhone doesn't.)
Click to expand...

John, I think you just made your decision :D
 
I have a Droid phone (that will soon be replaced for another Droid) and my wife has an iPad.  I am not an Apple person and probably never will be, but the iPad is too restrictive and to me, not as user friendly as most Apple people say that it is.  Always searching for how to accomplish something.  Apple wants to protect every thing they sell for profit as well as protect the user from "bad things" like "Adobe Flash".

In my search for a new phone I have looked at the Galaxy S3 but am leaning toward the Motorola Droid Maxx HD.  Large screen, large battery and no Apple "stuff".
 
I'm all for tinkering and having control over my own destiny, so my choice will always be a device with the Android os. But if you don't mind always and only doing things the i-way, the iPhone is a terrific device.
 
John,
I do use both phones, well not quite. Diane has a Iphone 4, which is our talk phone. I have the Samsung Exhibit. I talk to my kids and grand kids with text more than voice. There choice, but that is life. The swipe method of typing is fast and far less trouble that the touch keyboard. With the Android its always ready. With the Iphone you must select it. JM2C
Jim
 
We are a divided family.  Mary Ann has the iPhone 4; I have the Galaxy S III.  Both get the job done.  I like the Galaxy's larger screen, but the downside is that the larger size makes it harder to carry around conveniently.  The only available carrier for the Galaxy is the back pocket of  my jeans.

FWIW, while we don't use our phones as cameras often, I have been disappointed with the quality of the Galaxy photos.  I think he iPhone takes better quality pics.

Have fun shopping!

Don
 
Yeah Ned, the +'s are adding up for the S3  :D. 

I have never appreciated how tightly Apple has you locked/restricted to their product stream and iTunes is a good example - that's the only way to interface a PC to an iPhone.  Perhaps if you jailbreak (hack) an iPhone that changes - dunno, never tried it.

Of course with Apple tightly controlling all of their products, they can ensure a consistent user experience, there's a lot to be said for that.

Don - the S3 is a little larger than Jane's Sammy Nexus, so I'm okay for the size.  I very briefly looked at the giant (relatively speaking) Samsung Note 2 - very cool product and if I was back at my old job where I dressed up five days a week, that would be a contender.  That boy is shirt or jacket pocket only.

Thanks again for all of the helpful comments!
 
iPods are great, once you replace the Apple software with Rockbox :D
 
Ned said:
iPods are great, once you replace the Apple software with Rockbox :D
Click to expand...
Absolutely correct Ned. However my Sony has better sound, it looks better, it costs half the price and has many more features. And I don't have to download software to make it work.
 
I've had iTunes on many Mac's and PC's over the years and have no issues with it. Nothing has been over installed, nor does it take over anything that it either hasn't asked about beforehand or a live prompt. And that goes for any other Apple created software.

While the iPhone is locked down, the good thing about that is that I don't worry about bogus software since Apple has washed it pretty cleanly. While I like the open-ness of the Droid, I've just never warmed up to the GUI, and the iPhone does everything I need with excess of 400 installed apps (it's a 64g). The only exception is a WiFi analyzer that Apple locked down several years ago for unknown reasons.

As for anyone calling Jobs names... That's somewhat laughable considering the impact he has had completely changing the world of computers, MP3 devices, phones, video and music editing and composition for common folk and the industry as a whole, and movie animation (Pixar). People would be shocked at the movies, sitcoms, strips, and news clips edited on a Mac.

Yep.. Laughable..
 
The Apple franchise of the last few years (iPod going forward) is simply amazing - innovative, creative, beautifully designed products that work well.  Yup Jeff, the Mac is by far the preferred non-linear video editing platform (Final Cut.)
 
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