Concerns with htc one and samsung S4 and which is right for me.

[RavenSword]

Ok, I know this is the question alot of people are asking, but I'm really curious what everyone's concencius is on which is better. Personally, I'm a little put off by all the different toggles and bells and whistles the S4 has. Maybe my opinion would change if I got my hands on it, but I can't ever imagine controlling my tv with smartphone, waving my hand over my phone to pan side to side, or using the eye tracking scrolling and eye tracking video pause. It just seems unnecessary. Again, maybe I'm wrong and there actually really useful, but that my first impression of that stuff.

I do like that the S4 has a bigger battery and, honestly, I feel better about Samsung getting recent updates than HTC. But maybe that isn't accurate.

I really love the HTCs design and how it looks. Honestly, I don't really us my phones speakers for listenig to stuff, so it's boom sound speakers aren't really a big deal to me. And I'm probaly going toput a case on this phone, so I'm unsure how much I'm going to care about the htc ones visual build.

I'm not sure how good the ones battery is, but I'd assume its not quite as good as the S4 because of battery size.

One of e main worries I have with the One is that it's going to struggle to get OS updates because of HTCs current troubles. I mean, what if HTC goes under? Maybe I'm being silly, but I'd imagine a thriving company like Samsung will be able to push out updates faster and more consistently than a struggling HTC.

right now I have a nexus 4 and by the time I have the money to even think about upgrading phons, I kinda wanted a decent idea which new phone to get right now, even though they'll probaly be obsolete by in a few months, right? Do you think both ese phones will be worth it after sometime from now?

 

[japhule]

The S4 has a lot of features. Many of them are probably useless, but that doesn't mean you have to use them. You can just turn them off and not worry about them. Having IR to control tv seems like a neat feature and is a good secondary alternative from a physical remote. Either way, it's available on both phones.

Software updates not only applies to HTC and Samsung, but also dependent on your carrier. The HTC One X just got its JB update on AT&T in March while other One X variants got theirs in Nov/Dec. Keep in mind this is for official updates, you can always go the custom ROM route if you really want the latest versions.

I'm leaning towards the S4 but I really do like the build quality of the One. The S4 has a bigger and removable battery. I carry around a spare battery for my S3 and it is pretty convenient thing to have. Some people may hate on the S3/S4 for having the physical home button but I find it to be convenient way to turn the phone on instead of always relying on the power button. I also like having the menu button and hate seeing the menu on screen button that shows up on the One for older apps. Just my opinion.

 

[nickndfl]

4 > 1

 

[brianphrack]

I'm in the same boat as the original poster, as I'm sure are many others. And, I hope this thread gets more replies to help us.

Honestly I like the HTC One over the S4. But I have some serious concerns with the One:
HTC's longevity and software updates. I still have the original EVO 4G, love it, but it's pretty much obsolete, it was a great device.
After the 4G, HTC got sloppy, releasing device after device without quality updates, which became a mess. Simply, a bad business model.
Can I depend on updates from HTC, HTC's future?

Non-removable Battery.
What do I do when it dies?
HTC has a one year warranty, batteries don't die in one year.
I contacted HTC, asking about this issue. What do I do when the battery dies?
I was literally told, "I don't know. We can't answer that question until batteries start going. As to replacement cost, no one knows yet."
I said, "Well I don't think I can buy the HTC One with an answer like this, you are not instilling me with confidence in your company. Can you offer me anything else, any more information?"
HTC: "No more than I have."
Me: "I guess I may be looking to Samsung then."
HTC: "Alright, is there anything else I can help you with?"
Me: "...... No, I guess not, have a nice day." (Wow, really?)

I contacted Sprint about my battery concerns. After a good deal of asking the same question over and over.
They told me a battery replacement would cost $200 or so...
Which is not worth it.
The rep. kept pushing their insurance on me, which is pretty much a flat-out scam, $10 a month with a $100 to $200 deductible. Yeah, no thanks, I can do math.

So, have I answered my own question? No, not really. I don't like the design of the S4, I like lcd over amoled, I like sense 5 over touchwiz. Further, I feel Samsung, as it appears to me, is becoming what they used to make fun of in their mock-iPhone commercials. The joke of the iphone fanboy saying: "I hear they are moving the headphone jack to the bottom", and how that blew his mind. The S4 appears to be mainly a bunch of gimmicks, a version 3 + 1 device rather than a version 4. Waving my hand over the phone, scrolling with my eyes... To me these are Laughable.

Having said that, I recognize that the S4 is a great phone, as is the One, both have made real improvements over their predecessors.. Yet, I still have my concerns with both.

I'm pretty sure Samsung will come out on top, with the most market share, as they will dump buckets on advertising; this will ensure the longevity of the company, which is a good thing, but I'd prefer that quality alone sell a product, not advertising. And, I'm not really into Samsung design compared to HTC, software and cosmetically.

Ideally, I want Samsung (the company) behind HTC One (the device).

I want to make a good, conscious/informed consumer decision, but I feel I've hit a wall.

To note: I'm not trying to trash any of these companies, I hope they all succeed.
Any help or advice would be appreciated.

 

[omniusovermind]

I was so frustrated with my last non-nexus android I can't bring myself to buy either of these. The Galaxy S3 and HTC One X are both looking to get updated in June. To just 4.2.2. Which will be 8 months old by then. Those are both only last year's flagships. That's freaking ridiculous. I'm not going through that nonsense again with this year's models.

Before the inevitable ROM comment: The customer shouldn't have to DIY a device to do what the seller should be doing already.