Samsung Galaxy S5 : Features, Review & More

Smartphone manufacturers are on a launching spree, with every coming year we see a new and improved smartphone if not major changes but those minute changes or features here and there which make every smart phone new and improved every year. Samsung being a major manufacturer of smartphone have an advantage of launching the biggies every year, this year it has come up with Samsung Galaxy S5. But, is it as new and improved as Samsung could have done? Let’s check it out.

Look and Feel

Samsung Galaxy S5 is no different than its siblings, with some design changes like two little ridges around the chrome ring edges. Back is satiny plastic with dotted structure. Also, the back is sort of a leather stitching look. Overall, you can easily spot this as a Samsung phone from far away.

When coming to the placement of the buttons, the power button is on the right edge with the volume rocker being at the opposite. Also, there is a 3.5mm head socket along with and IR emitter and an additional mic for noise cancellation. Samsung has a 3.0 Micro-USB port at the bottom of the phone and a mic for calls. Since the USB port is covered and a bit oversized you need to be careful before inserting the cable into the phone.

Samsung has done quite intelligent job with its finger print reader as it is located at the Home button which is hardly visible but does its tasks very dexterously. The heart rate sensor is located at the back just below the camera lens and in the same housing as the camera flash.

Another less noticeable but yet an intelligent change is the Android Menu button is no longer the ‘menu/ button but it pulls out the recent apps thus easing the multitasking, although if you press the button for long you can surf the menu screen.

On comparing the outer looks we can see S5 is taller, less curvy and organic than S4 keeping the weight in balance due to its plastic body.

Software

Samsung Galaxy comes with the same preloaded touch wiz with modifications done in the UI. Changes have done to the icons and the Home screen with little curved icons and the ‘Recent’ function in the conventional Home button. Also, a great feature has been added called the super saver power mode, when the entire screen will be monochromatic with all the back end processes at a halt and no sync, it also shows the battery life remaining, This feature is really helpful when you are travelling and certain that no charging will be possible.

Click on Images to Enlarge

Specifications

Samsung Galaxy S5 has surely worked its way on the hardware. When compared to S4 the screen is 1080x1920 pixels with a better and larger range of brightness settings fr various conditions.

The processor is Exynos 5420 eight core processor where all on any of the cores can run simultaneously while the phone’s software and hardware is designed so as to recognize them individually. There are four ARM Cortex A15 cores running at up to 1.9GHz alongside four A7 cores running at up to 1.3GHz.

A 2 GB RAM is supported with 16GB of internal memory and external expandable up to 128GB. Everything else is latest and perfect be it Wi-fi, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC, USB 3.0 or a 2,800mAh battery

Camera

The camera can take 16-megapixel stills and 2160p 4K video. Samsung touts a number of camera improvements, such as quick hybrid autofocus, contrast and phase detection.

Sample Image Taken from Samsung Galaxy S5 : Click to Enlarge

Photos taken are extremely clear, bright and lively. The close-up shots are amazing with the level of details and clarity , while the 16 megapixel resolution is enough to scale down minor photographic details when photos seen are in a smaller screen.

The S5 performs impressively in nearly all light conditions. 4K video is stunningly clear, though you should be prepared for enormous file size and HDR works pretty well.

Verdict

At a price of 40000 INR, Samasung Galaxy S5 is pretty impressive phone when compared to HTC and Sony Xperia phones of this range , as the software features and hardware is pretty decent and fun to use.