Phone Comparison: EVO 3D, Nexus 4G, Atrix, T-bolt, SGS2

[milominderbinde]

FEATURE COMPARISON

NOTES​

Some manufacturers use different model names for different carriers:
- Samsung Galaxy Nexus comes in International, Verizon, Sprint, and AT&T Skyrocket HD versions.
- The LG Spectrum is almost identical to the LG Nitro HD.
- The Sprint Epic 4G Touch & T-Mobile Galaxy S II are similar to the 4.27" AT&T Galaxy S II.
- The HTC Sensation is like the HTC EVO 3D except: no 3D, 768MB RAM, 640x480 front camera, and 1520mAh battery.

Choosing a Phone

Over the two or more years you might have this phone, you may spend $2,000 or more so get the one you want. Androids are evolving so quickly that no phone stays on top more than a few months. Start by considering the basic features.

4G - Speed Thrills
Make sure you get 4G (or LTE). Monthly plans are often just as much for slow phones as fast ones. You may have this phone a long time. Don't get one that is already slow. To turn 4G on:
? Tap Home > Menu > Settings > Wireless > 4G.
? To add a 4G icon to a home screen: Long-press an empty spot on a home screen then tap Shortcuts > Settings > 4G.

Get the right size for you
What is the Right Size Phone? Only you can answer that question. Android phone comes in sizes from 2.5" to 5.3". A survey of 5,000 phone owners found that Only 9% Want a Screen Under 4". See what feels right for you. Don't let anyone tell you the one size phone you are to buy. See the Sizing Chart: What is the Right Size Phone?

Notification LED
The iPhone 4S still lacks a Notification LED for incoming or missed calls, emails, texts, Facebook or calendar events, etc. Most Androids not only have a Notification LED but the Flashlight Alerts app can also turn the camera LED into a notification LED.

microSD
A microSD card is about $50 for 32GB. less. Get a "Class 10" microSD for fast 10 MB/s speeds. The Galaxy S II and Droid Bionic. The App 2 SD app frees up space on your phone by moving apps to your SD card.

Removable Battery
Apple will 2-3 weeks. Android replacement batteries are typically $30-$50. For most Androids, you can pop off the back cover and put in a spare battery. Better yet, get an extended life battery.

Video Calls
Flagship Android phones typically have 1 or 2MP front cameras for HD video chat. That coupled with 4G gives you a amazing clarity. Android Qik, Skype and ooVoo give you free unlimited video calls over WiFi, 3G and 4G. Apple Facetime is still only VGA and only over WiFi.

LED Displays
LCD Displays is nice but Apple use LED backlights that are always on with an LCD layer blocking light to produce colors. Organic LED phones like the Galaxy Nexus and Galaxy S II don't need backlights so blacks take almost no power because the LED's are off. The iPhone may get an LED display but not this year.

DLNA Mirror Video to TV's
DLNA allows you to show whatever is on your phone on your compatible TV, Blu-ray player, PS3, or Xbox so you can watch HD movies or make presentaitons right from your phone. The iPhone 4S only works with Apple TV.

Full Facebook Sync
Most Android owners take for granted that friend's photos, status, messages, phones, events, birthdays, emails, and notifications are automatically updated from Facebook. Incoming calls pop-up with updated Facebook profile photos. Facebook-iPhone integration may not be coming any time soon.

Flash
Much of the web including this site rely on Adobe Flash for multimedia but Apple does not allow a Flash app on the iPhone. Unfortunately the HTML5 standard to replace Flash is still not finalized. But you will have Flash now.

NFC
Near Field Communication (NFC) allows instant payments, keycard, ID, and instant Bluettooth pairing and WiFi setup. Android NFC can share a contact, photo, song, application, and video or pair Bluetooth or WiFi devices. See the Google NFC Demo.

? USB Host (USB-OTG) let's you connect a USB Flash Drive, mouse or keyboard directly to a Galaxy S II. Video.

? Multitasking: Compare Android Multitasking, Powermat, Enerergizer Wireless Charger, and Duracell myGrid are wireless charging accessories based on Nikola Tesla's induction patents.


Resources:
? Apple iPhone: Apple User's Guide to Android - Engadget - Disappoints - Why Apple went after Samsung - Five years of iPhone
? BlackBerry Torch 9850/9860: GSMArena - Engadget - PhoneArena
? Motorola Atrix: Motorola - ATT - PhoneArena: Atrix-Thunderbolt-Pre 3
? Samsung Nexus S 4G: Sprint - Phone Arena: Nexus S, Nexus S 4G
? Samsung Galaxy S II: Engadget "...might well be the best.."
- - Sprint Epic 4G Touch - T-Mobile Galaxy S II - AT&T Galaxy S II
- - BGR: Already Upgraded - Engadget Comparison - PhoneArea - S2 Benchmarks
- - S2 vs. LG 3D, Sensation - S2 Specs - 10 million S II's this year
? Samsung Galaxy Nexus: International, Verizon, Sprint, aka AT&T Skyrocket HD
? Motorola Photon 4G: Announced - PhoneArena - Thisismyntext - Engadget - Motorola - Users Manuals
? Samsung Droid Charge: Samsung - PhoneArena - Benchmarks - Charge vs T-bolt
? HTC Titan II Phonearena
? HTC Thunderbolt: HTC - Verizon - PhoneArena - Tbolt-Inspire-EVO3D
? HTC Inspire: HTC - ATT - PhoneArena
? LG Optimus 3D: Engadget - cnet Specs - Benchmarks
? LG Spectrum is almost identical to the LG Nitro HD.
? HTC EVO 3D: HTC - Benchmarks - 3D demo - Phone Arena: EVO, EVO 3D, Pre 3
? Droid Bionic: Specs - Hands-On - Quadrant Tests - Verizon - User Manual - Bionic vs. GSII - Specs
? Samsung Infuse: - PR - ATT - Samsung - cnet - PhoneArena - Infuse-SII-LG3D
? Samsung Galaxy Note: Engadget - Hands-on - GSMArena - PhoneArena (comparison) - TechRadar
? Atrix 2 - Specs - Review - Comparison
? Motorola RAZR Has NFC Chip
? PDAdb.net Atrix, Thunderbolt, EVO 3D, LG 3D, Nexus 4G, Pre 3, Veer Comparison
? HP Veer official page - HP Pre3 official page
? Samsung Galaxy S 3: Features - PCMag: 2GHz - Battle over Galaxy S3 and iPhone 5
? Apple iPhone 6 to use Sharp's p-Si LCD display for launch next year
? Sell your old phone to Gazelle

See our sister site, TiPb, and the Apple User's Guide to Android for much more on the iPhone 4S. Also see the Android Getting Started Guide for more on Android features.

 

[RamboDroid]

What? the Sprint Nexus S 4G has a Micro SD? IDK that.... so that changed from the Org Nexus S which had no Micro SD just 16g internal?

 

[trooper54]

Newegg.com - ADATA 32GB Class 4 Micro SDHC Flash Card with Adapter Model AUSDH32GCL4-RA1

cheaper 32gb micro sd, if you have no particular brand preference... once you know you newegg lol

Just sayin =P

You didn't mention that the EVO 3D is the only phone with a marketed 3D display... you don't have to move your phone around to watch 3d...

 

[sprinttouch]

Fantastic spec sheet! thanks!

(P.S. although there has been some debate Sprint's specs for the Evo 3d list 4GB of internal storage not 1 GB )

 

[Melaza]

The only thing is that the Evo 3D has:
4 GB internal memory

but cool comparison!

source:
Sprint- All Together Now

 

[stephen866]

Add Flash support to the chart and the Iphone gets 7 categories with a no !

Where it would be Iphone 5+ / 7 - and the Evo 3d 10 + / zero -

Great List

 

[mtmjr90]

Aaaaaaand I'll be getting the Evo 3D...early upgrade

 

[MrD2K5]

Very Nice!

 

[milominderbinde]

Add Flash support to the chart and the Iphone gets 7 categories with a no !

Where it would be Iphone 5+ / 7 - and the Evo 3d 10 + / zero -

Great List

Good idea. I will add Flash.

 

[milominderbinde]

What? the Sprint Nexus S 4G has a Micro SD?

The only thing is that the Evo 3D has:
4 GB internal memory...

Add Flash support to the chart and the Iphone gets 7 categories with a no!...

Thank you! All are fixed/updates.

To sum it up...

The EVO 3D and Atrix 4G are the run-away spec hits. The Atrix is rumored to be announced for Sprint later this month and has a body size (volume) that is nearly as tiny as the Veer. The Atrix also has a huge battery.

The EVO is faster, bigger, and badder.

The Thunderbolt is basically last year's EVO with LTE instead of WiMax.

The Nexus S 4G is lower def, less RAM, no microSD, DVD quality out not HD, without HDMI, and single core.

The Kyocera Echo is one of the lowest pixel per inch, NO 4G, no 3D, thick, heavy, no HDMI, no DLNA, single core, and no front camera. It is basically two Zio's from last year put together.

The iPhone 4 is only 512 MB, no DLNA, and no HDMI but it is smaller than the Veer and has the highest def screen.

 

[milominderbinde]

Newegg.com - ADATA 32GB Class 4 Micro SDHC Flash Card with Adapter Model AUSDH32GCL4-RA1

cheaper 32gb micro sd, if you have no particular brand preference... once you know you newegg lol

Just sayin =P

You didn't mention that the EVO 3D is the only phone with a marketed 3D display... you don't have to move your phone around to watch 3d...

I changed to your link for the 32GB and then used the matching 16GB from newegg.com as well. Local Fry's stores often have store only sales at nearly those price but $25 and $55 are so cheap, you can't go wrong with the 32GB for your movies, music, and photos.

I also add a line item for 3D.

Thanks! Good suggestions.

 

[I Monarch]

Newegg.com - ADATA 32GB Class 4 Micro SDHC Flash Card with Adapter Model AUSDH32GCL4-RA1

cheaper 32gb micro sd, if you have no particular brand preference... once you know you newegg lol
...

United States Postal Employees can get 50% off accessories at AT&T with a one-year warranty. That brings down a SanDisk 32GB card to $70, only five dollars more. I'm sure there's some people that have a buddy or two that got "hooked up" with the USPS discount on their AT&T account back in the day when it was possible. Ask around.

 

[Bigfire]

The video demos I saw from CTIA indicated the Evo 3D has 5MP with 3D enabled, while 8MP available for standard pictures. Can that be confirmed/refuted for this feature sheet? Plus the specs I was reading up today on the T-Bolt indicated a 1940 or 70 mAH battery, and that it's a qHD: 960X540 screen.

 

[trooper54]

The video demos I saw from CTIA indicated the Evo 3D has 5MP with 3D enabled, while 8MP available for standard pictures. Can that be confirmed/refuted for this feature sheet? Plus the specs I was reading up today on the T-Bolt indicated a 1940 or 70 mAH battery, and that it's a qHD: 960X540 screen.

I don't see how there could be 8 mp for non 3D. It has (2)x 5mp on the back. I don't think you can get more pixels by just deactivating one of the cameras.

You will have however higher quality photos in regular D instead of 3D, but I think that's because of the sensors ability to process images, and the image compression.

I'm no expert, so if any one has a more detailed explanation feel free to chime in.

 

[milominderbinde]

The video demos I saw from CTIA indicated the Evo 3D has 5MP with 3D enabled, while 8MP available for standard pictures. Can that be confirmed/refuted for this feature sheet? Plus the specs I was reading up today on the T-Bolt indicated a 1940 or 70 mAH battery, and that it's a qHD: 960X540 screen.

The AndroidCentral review and all the official Thunderbolt sites like HTC Thunderbolt Website, Verizon, and even Amazon put the Thunderbolt at:
Battery: 1400 mAh lithium-ion battery
Display: 4.3” WVGA 480 x 800 pixels

Would you share that link with us that says 1940mAH and qHD: 960X540?

Would you share the link that says that the EVO 3D camera in 2D mode is 8MP because again, all the official sites say 5MP.

 

[milominderbinde]

Note
The goal of the comparison is to show key US smartphones in as small a chart as possible so that it can be easily viewed on small screen. The 11 columns now is about the limit.

Comparison Additions
Samsung Galaxy S 2
The Samsung Galaxy S II is shipping in the UK with promises it come to 128 countries and all major carriers in the US. Samsung intends to sell 10 million S II's this year.

Key specs are: 4.3", 1024 MB RAM, HDMI, DLNA, 1080p recording, and 16GB plus microSD. As with the Galaxy Tab 10.1, the S2 was upgraded before it could ship.

The S 2 is the thinnest smartphone at 0.33" giving it a total volume of 4.23 in? compared to the 2.6" Veer at 4.20 in?. Only the iPhone 4 has a smaller over-all body size of just 3.85 in?. This year's iPhone 5 is expected to be thinner still.

14 million of the previous Samsung Galaxy S have sold since last summer. First US carriers are expected to be T-Mobile and AT&T followed by Verizon and Sprint this summer. The Samsung Galaxy S3 upgrade is expected this fall, with 4.5" edge-to-edge Super AMOLED Plus display giving the S II just 6 months to sell.

Engadget has said that the S2 "...might well be the best smartphone..."

LG Optimus 3D
The LG Optimus was the first 3D announced thought the EVO 3D may ship first. Key specs are: 4.3", 3D, HDMI, DLNA, and 1080p recording. LG 3D may be hamstrung with only 512MB RAM. The LG Optimus 3D has the fastest Benchmarks ANandTech has tested.

HTC Sensation
The HTC Sensation coming to T-Mobile is much like the HTC EVO 3D except: No 3D, 768MB RAM, 640x480 front camera, and 1520mAh battery. The Sensation is included in the EVO 3D column.

 

[milominderbinde]

The Samsung Infuse 4G has replaced the Kyocera Echo in the comparison. The Echo specs are actually similar to the Zio from last year with no HDMI, no DLNA, no front camera, and single core. Early sales results are what you would expect.

The Samsung Infuse is a beast at 4.5" but actually smaller overall than the Echo and half of the other compared phones. See the updated opening post that also now includes the LG Optimus 3D, Samsung Galaxy S II, etc.

 

[STL 314]

Nice chart...Looks like the EVO 3D will be a summer blockbuster

 

[beijinghaw]

great post!

 

[fundragon]

Great post!

HTC Thunderbolt doesn't have HDMI, though.

Samsung Charge would be a great addition