Samsung Galaxy S6 vs Apple iPhone 6 Plus

After stepping off on the wrong foot and losing grip of the market last year, Samsung was obliged to come up with an enthralling flagship phone in 2015. The Samsung Galaxy S6 is already here and it has all the potential to help Samsung get back on track. You can't afford to disappoint when your leading position is endangered by numerous competitors.

One of these is Apple, which has gained quite the momentum with its most recent iPhone lot, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. With the former, Cupertino decided that it's high time it battled the competition in the segment that was almost entirely populated with Android phablets. How does the Galaxy S6 fare against the iPhone 6 Plus? That's what we're about to find out!

In mid-2014, Samsung decided that it's high time it stepped up its design game and make use of higher-tier materials in its phones. The first device to employ such materials was the Galaxy Alpha, but the penultimate result of Samsung's design refreshment is definitely the Galaxy S6, a pretty stark departure from the plasticky roots of the Galaxy lineup, a polished and perfected vision of the company's design language.

The exterior of the Galaxy S6 boasts a metal frame with flattened side edges, complemented by a rear cover made of Gorilla Glass 4 that further adds to the premium status of the new Galaxy. This puts it in a similar league like that of the iPhone 6 Plus, a device that also boasts a hefty amount of premium in its build, though it relies more on aluminum than glass.

Both handset have pleasant in-hand feel, with no sharp edges to cause discomfort, though the sheer size of the iPhone 6 Plus makes it somewhat impractical, in comparison to the more compact Galaxy S6. The former also feels a bit slippery due to its aluminum back. In contrast, the glass rear cover of the S6 is less prone to sliding. Unfortunately, it's also way more susceptible to holding fingerprints and smudges than the iPhone 6 Plus.

Despite sharing a few common design aspects (the bottom-positioned speakers, the protruding cameras, and similar hardware button configurations), the Galaxy S6 and the iPhone 6 Plus stay true to their roots and are full-blown representatives of the design languages of their respective makers.

5.65 x 2.78 x 0.27 inches
143.4 x 70.5 x 6.8 mm
4.87 oz (138 g)
6.22 x 3.06 x 0.28 inches
158.1 x 77.8 x 7.1 mm
6.07 oz (172 g)



The regular Galaxy S6 flaunts a 5.1-inch, Quad HD Super AMOLED display, while its iPhone rival comes with a 5.5-inch, IPS LCD one that boasts a resolution of 1080 x 1920 pixels. The S6 edge exhibits an ultra-sharp pixel density of 577ppi, which makes it one of the sharpest ones around; the iPhone 6 Plus with its pixel density of 401ppi is quite pixel-dense as well. In terms of their properties, neither will disappoint. Both are extremely accurate; yet the Galaxy S6 is more balanced when set to its Basic screen mode, as it has a better white-point color temperature (6550K) than the iPhone 6 Plus (7318K). The reference point is 6500K, which means that the display of the iPhone is slightly more blueish and colder than the one on the new Galaxy flagship.

In its Basic screen mode, the display of the Galaxy S6 is one of the more accurate, if not the most accurate ones we've seen. Our display measurements reveal that its various nuances and shades all match their desired sRGB targets closely.

The iPhone 6 Plus is trailing in this aspect: despite being pretty close to the reference points on the color chart as well, it does not represent all colors as precisely as the Super AMOLED display in the Galaxy S6, and has a slightly colder tone to it.

As far as brightness is concerned, you'd hardly have any issues with viewing them in bright daylight. The iPhone 6 Plus achieves a maximum brightness of 574 nits, while the Samsung Galaxy S6 exhibits a marginally-lower brightness output of 563 nits (in case its super-bright mode kicks in, which usually happens when the phone is directly facing the sun).

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Big-screen battle: The LG G4 takes on the iPhone 6 Plus

The LG G4 is here, and it’s a little later to hit the streets than its prime Android competitors such as the HTC One M9 and the Samsung Galaxy S6. However, it’s coming up to six months behind the Apple iPhone 6 Plus, with which it shares its 5.5-inch screen size. We like the iPhone 6 Plus, and have had the chance to spend some time with the LG G4, so how do the two stack up against each other in a series of early tests? Let’s find out.

Apple’s iPhone 6 Plus is a big phone, and although the G3 looks quite compact in the pictures, it’s actually very close in size and weight. However, there is a considerable difference in the way the two phones feel in your hands. The G4 isn’t curved like the G Flex 2, but it does have a very slight bend to it. It’s barely noticeable, but it’s enough to shape the phone to your palm. The G3 was a comfy phone to hold, but the G4 takes it a step further with its slight curve. It’s not that the iPhone 6 Plus is like holding something covered in spikes, and the rounded edges are a delight, but the G4 has a great shape, which makes it sit just right in your hand.

Related: How does the LG G4 compare to the Samsung Galaxy S6?

The iPhone 6 Plus has a oh-so-expensive aluminum body, that begs to be handled and caressed. With the G4, LG gives us a choice of finishes, ranging from the nondescript metallic rear cases — which are less tactile than the G3 — to the pleasantly chilly white ceramic, and a range of real leather rear panels. Combine the leather with the G4’s minimal curve, and it’s grippy where the iPhone 6 Plus is slippery.

LG has closely followed the G3’s design for the G4. It’s attractive, particularly the razor thin bezels around the screen, and the leather makes sure it looks suitably different. However, the iPhone 6 Plus is a space-age slab of cutting edge design and obsessive attention to detail. The G4 comes apart — it has a removable battery and a MicroSD card slot — which means there are seams and cutouts, where the iPhone 6 Plus is sealed. From a design perspective, that makes the 6 Plus more pleasing, even if there are compromises to the spec.

– Winner: iPhone 6 Plus

LG heavily promoted the G4’s camera at the launch event, and with good reason. It’s technically very impressive, and for once, the extra features seem to make a difference. It’s ideal for those of us who aren’t camera obsessives and just want to take better pictures. You don’t really have to understand about f-stops or manual operation to take great pictures with the G4, but if you are a camera buff, the manual mode is a joy.

Related: Here are our first impressions of the gorgeous LG G4

Even for a novice, it’s very easy to use, and provides tweaks one can only dream of (outside of an app) on the iPhone 6 Plus. What’s more, the shots taken with the manual mode activated looked great, and it was fun and satisfying to mess around with the ISO, focus, aperture, white balance, and other settings. The laser autofocus makes a return on the G4, and is as lightning fast as ever, plus the OIS has been given a Z-axis reading, making for clearer shots.

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The iPhone 6 Plus takes excellent low-light images, surpassing the G3 in many cases, so the G4’s f/1.8 aperture could see the two perform similarly in that area. In some tests where we put the G4 against the 6 Plus, the G4 outperformed Apple’s already excellent camera. However, the tests were designed to make the G4 look its best, so real world results may vary. The G4’s 16-megapixel camera beats the iPhone 6 Plus’s 8-megapixel camera on paper, but that’s rarely mattered in the past, with Apple’s camera consistently beating the competition. Only an extended test will reveal how it does this time.

– Winner: Tie — for now

LG has installed Android Lollipop on the G4 with a new version of its own user interface. It didn’t seem to be all that different to the G Flex 2 — perhaps a little smoother — and it’ll come down to personal preference (or app store allegiance) whether Android trumps iOS for you. One thing that was noticeable on the G4 was the lack of bloatware. LG has made an effort to cut down on superfluous apps, even getting rid of its own browser and simply using Chrome, albeit with a few LG tweaks. Google’s services are more deeply embedded inside the G4 than any LG phone before it, and new owners even get 100GB of Google Drive space free for two years.

The OS is viewed on a 5.5-inch display, regardless of if it’s the G4 or iPhone 6 Plus. The resolution differs though, and while Apple’s 1080p screen is very bright, shows rich colors, and has pleasing depth to its blacks, the G4’s Quad HD screen just edges it out. It’s all thanks to LG’s Quantum Display technology, which it says gets close to the standards laid down in the Digital Cinema Initiative used by Hollywood movie studios. It shows more colors, more brightly, and with a higher contrast than before — and doesn’t suck more battery power when doing so. The results are startling, and the difference was clearly noticeable next to the iPhone.

– Winner: LG G4

There are many aspects of the G4 we can’t compare to the iPhone 6 Plus yet, from battery life and the way it runs our favorite apps, to the performance of the new Snapdragon 808 processor against Apple’s proven A8. On paper, the G4 wins. The two batteries are of almost equal size — 3,000mAh inside the G4 and 2,915mAh in the iPhone 6 Plus — but the G4’s cell is removable. It’s interesting to see LG opt for the hexa-core Snapdragon 808 over the octa-core Snapdragon 810 it used for the G Flex 2, suggesting its battle with heat dispersion wasn’t quite the non-issue it made out. The iPhone 6 Plus works its powerful dual-core A8 hard, but the 1GB of RAM is dwarfed by the G4’s 3GB. However, on paper spec wins of this kind rarely translate into quite the same real world advantages, and we’ll find out the truth after fully reviewing the phone.

At this stage, if you’re an ardent iPhone 6 Plus user, the G4 probably won’t convince you to drop Apple’s flagship, but if you’re weighing up between the two, or are considering a change, then the LG G4’s already impressive camera and truly beautiful Quad HD screen make it a compelling alternative.

iPhone 6 Plus

 

LG G4

 

Android 5.1 Lollipop with LG UX 4.032GB (expandable up to 2 terabytes)Hexa-core 2×1.8GHz + 4×1.44GHz 64-bit 20nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 808Accelerometer, barometer, compass, gyroscopUSB 2.0, Qi wireless charging with compatible caseGrey, White, Gold, Blue, Red, Black, Brown$750, $300 with 2-year contractSeptember 19 on AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, T-MobileLate May/early June on AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, and U.S. Cellular

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Mophie’s new iPhone 6 case is waterproof, and it’ll give your phone a full charge

Mophie is the undisputed king of iPhone battery cases, but lately it’s been venturing out into new frontiers with its products. Its latest iPhone 6 Juice Pack also happens to be waterproof, in addition to giving your iPhone 6 a boost in battery power whenever you need it.

The Juice Pack H2Pro sports a 2,750mAh rechargeable lithium-ion polymer battery, which should give you up to 14 additional hours of talk time, 10 hours of Web browsing, 11 hours of video playback, and 50 hours of music, according to Mophie’s tests. The battery size is identical to the one you’ll find in the standard iPhone 6 Juice Pack, but it has a secret ability that could make it even more essential to your average iPhone user — it’s fully waterproof.

Related: Mophie’s Space Pack brings much-needed storage to your iPhone and iPad Mini

The Juice Pack H2Pro has a rating of IP-68, so you can drop your iPhone 6 into a swimming pool and take a half hour to retrieve it, and your phone will still work. The case also provides protection against bumps, spills, and scratches, as the screen is covered by a protective layer. If you’re feeling dangerous, you can even drop it from a height of almost four feet and your phone will be unharmed, thanks to a military drop test standard rating of MIL STD 810G-516.6.

Now, most cases that provide this level of protection are terribly bulky and ugly, but Mophie’s Juice pack H2Pro still looks as svelte and sweet as the Juice Pack Air for iPhone 6. It measures just 0.69-inches thick, which Mophie points out is thinner than most external battery packs and just a hair thicker than a full deck of playing cards. You can still use Touch ID with the case on, as the home button and its fingerprint sensor are protected by a special membrane.

Mophie’s durable Juice Pack H2Pro is up for preorder on the company’s site, is scheduled to ship in late May, and costs only $130.

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Verizon iPhone 5 now $100 cheaper, but only for basic phone users

As predicted, Verizon now has the iPhone 5 available for $100 on a 2-year contract – a whopping $100 cheaper than the smartphone's regular on-contract price. However, it turns out that the deal isn't available to anyone eager to get Apple's finest. It has been confirmed by Verizon itself that the promo is open only to select customers – those who are still using a basic phone, yet are expressing interest in upgrading to a smartphone.Verizon will be the one identifying which of its basic phone customers are eligible for the deal, but what criteria will these lucky few have to meet remain unclear. Note that a page on the carrier's website with further details about the promo does not seem to be present as of this writing. Instead, subscribers who qualify for the $100 iPhone 5 discount will be notified via email about the promotion. Those who have been picked by Verizon and are interested in the $100 price drop will have until June 30 to make the transition to an iPhone 5. Has anyone received a notification email by any chance? Let us know in the comments!

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