S3 for $50 or One for $199..sigh...

[lnong]

My Evo 3D died (screen broke) a few days ago, and I jumped in (too) quick on a deal and ordered the S3 for $50. It's being delivered right now. But I saw some pics and videos of the HTC One and read some reviews, and it does look better than the Galaxy ones. I'm having 2nd thoughts about the S3 now. I having a hard time deciding if I should keep the S3 or return it and wait for the One. Like a lot of ppl here, the camera on the One is a concern. So the question is, $50 for a 8MP or $199 for a 4MP with slicker look and stereo speakers? Is it worth shelling out the extra $150 or so??

You guys might ask, but no, I do not want to wait and get the S4. 13MP camera + 8-core (and probably a heavy price tag) is too insane for me! LOL

 

[Acelx]

The US version of the S4 won't be 8 cores

A lot of reviewers have said the HTC One camera is great.

I would get the HTC One just because it's the latest and greatest. And from what I've seen on YouTube, the camera isn't bad.. But it has a focus problem

 

[tekhna]

I think we're starting to get to a point of diminishing returns, where even a year ago the latest and greatest improved performance noticeably, but now I'm struggling to find a reason to upgrade my GS3 to a One or a GS4. My GS3 was an enormous improvement over my Rezound, but the One and the GS4 don't seem to offer terribly much over my GS3. If I had to guess, the GS3 will hang on like the iPhone 4 did as a reference, simply because so many people own one and probably aren't going to upgrade, because there's not really a reason to. It'd be nice, sure, but I'm not sure at least for myself I can justify plunking down the cash.

 

[Russ Smith]

My Evo 3D died (screen broke) a few days ago, and I jumped in (too) quick on a deal and ordered the S3 for $50. It's being delivered right now. But I saw some pics and videos of the HTC One and read some reviews, and it does look better than the Galaxy ones. I'm having 2nd thoughts about the S3 now. I having a hard time deciding if I should keep the S3 or return it and wait for the One. Like a lot of ppl here, the camera on the One is a concern. So the question is, $50 for a 8MP or $199 for a 4MP with slicker look and stereo speakers? Is it worth shelling out the extra $150 or so??

You guys might ask, but no, I do not want to wait and get the S4. 13MP camera + 8-core (and probably a heavy price tag) is too insane for me! LOL

Yes it's worth it, and the camera might not match the s4 in daylight perfect conditions but don't dismiss it as a regular 4mp, it's really good. Plus the lower pixels mean quicker shots.

Sent from my HTC One

 

[indomie]

On the other hand, if you pre-register with HTC you can send in the old Evo3D and get $100 back on the purchase of a One. Now you're only looking at a $100 price difference.

HTC One?$100 Trade In Offer

Furthermore, if you pick up the HTC One at a Radio Shack, they are apparently giving a $10 discount plus a $50 Google Play card... now you're actually paying $10 less for the One than the GS3 (assuming you use Google Play).

I'm sort of in the same boat as you, but I think my 3D will see me through to 4/19. Otherwise I have an older phone I can re-activate as backup until it releases...

 

[indomie]

Sent from my HTC One

Trying not to be jealous of your signature... can't wait to update mine in a few weeks!!!

Jealousy aside, I'm glad you're on here to give thoughts, tidbits, and advice on the device as a real world owner & user. Not that I didn't have my mind made up already, but it's cool to hear that you're still pumped about it even now that you've had it for a bit.

 

[lnong]

On the other hand, if you pre-register with HTC you can send in the old Evo3D and get $100 back on the purchase of a One. Now you're only looking at a $100 price difference.

HTC One?$100 Trade In Offer

Furthermore, if you pick up the HTC One at a Radio Shack, they are apparently giving a $10 discount plus a $50 Google Play card... now you're actually paying $10 less for the One than the GS3 (assuming you use Google Play).

I'm sort of in the same boat as you, but I think my 3D will see me through to 4/19. Otherwise I have an older phone I can re-activate as backup until it releases...

Thanks for the Trade-In tip. I just pre-registered =)
Yeah, there was nothing wrong with my 3D...until it accidentally dropped on concrete and got kicked. But it had been a very durable phone (I dropped it many other times) and HTC gets kudos for that. Also I like HTC's style and innovation. Wasn't the EVO 4G the first 4G phone? Wasn't the EVO 3D the first 3D phone? Is this HTC One the first to have two amplified, stereo speakers?

But I do REALLY like the 65" LED TV from Samsung =)))))

 

[adriandb]

Who cares about the initial cost? Over the life of the device the initial cost is insignificant compared to the other expenses.

 

[Sapient2k7]

S4 is Not Big.Little in US. IT is Octa core in theory but quad core in practice. the actual A9 cores only work when you need more power otherwise it is A7 cores to keep battery life better. However, even with big.little and higher battery capacity (2600 vs 2300) S4 's battery life is not appreciably better according to first review/hands-ons. S4 does win on standby battery life but otherwise they are comparable.

In my opinion HTC One is a better buy because it will be $50 cheaper upfront with AT&T and comes with 32 gb of internal storage vs 16 gb for S4. The 4 Megapixel camera takes pretty good pictures. Just check your current phone to see what level you are actually photographing at as 13 MP files will be quite huge. 4 MP file is adequate for displaying on HDTV (anything above is downsampled at view time to fit HDTV) so unless you plan to actually print photos greater than 8x11 you should be ok. Low light performance is also much better than anything else out there and it has OPTICAL Image stabilization that s3 lacks. BEtter Audio performance, Stereo speakers and better microphones make HTC One a better product IMO.

I am also enamored by HTC ZOE as I have used this type of editing myself for pictures taken at family gatherings etc.

 

[Sapient2k7]

This link may be helpful


Smartphone OIS video test; HTC One competes well with Nokia Lumia 920 | ZDNet

A quote from the article.

"I'll let you judge the results yourself in the video below, but in my opinion the HTC One did a fine job, and since that device is the best smartphone design I have ever held I think it will be bumping the Lumia 920 out of my pocket soon."