Not Convinced With Windows Phone 8? Samsung And HTC May Have Something For You

30 Oct Not Convinced With Windows Phone 8? Samsung And HTC May Have Something For You

For those of you who are interested in what Windows Phone 8 has to offer, but aren’t quite convinced by Nokia’s Lumia range, HTC or Samsung may have something for you.

Windows Phone 8 hasn’t really taken off as a mobile OS just yet, however, it is still in its early stages. Established handset makers Samsung and HTC have decided to bite the bullet and delve into the Windows Phone 8 platform, which might be enough to begin generating interest in the highly competitive mobile OS environment.

To see what Samsung and HTC have to offer, check out the specs of their WP8 options below:

Samsung Ativ S

 

The best way to think of the Ativ S is to think of it as a Galaxy S3 running WP8 instead of Android.

If large screen real estate is what you are after in your WP8 phone, then look no further than the Ativ S’ huge 4.8 inch, 720p Super AMOLED HD screen. Despite the larger screen size, the Ativ S is actually thinner and lighter than the Nokia Lumia 920, making it a much more attractive choice in the range of WP8 phones. The 920 measures 10.7mm thick and weighs 185g compared with the Ativ S, which measures 8.7mm thick and weighs 135g.

In terms of processing power, the Ativ S packs a 1.5 GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM and offers 16GB or 32GB of internal storage plus a microSD slot to further extend the storage space. Samsung have packed a large 2,300mAh battery, which should give you a decent amount of battery life, however, though the 920 only has a 2000 mAh battery, it benefits from the inclusion of the Qi wireless recharging technology, which will certainly make it much easier to charge your device. The Ativ S also comes with 7GB of free storage on SkyDrive, Microsoft’s cloud storage product.

The Ativ S comes with a 8MP rear camera and a 2MP front camera, while offering 1080p video recording like the Galaxy S3. While the camera is not quite as impressive as the Lumia’s 8.7MP camera with PureView, the Ativ S will be more than sufficient for casual snappers.

Both the 920 and the Ativ S have the major connectivity features such as NFC, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and a microUSB port.

To get a feel for the Ativ S check out this hands on video from TechCrunch below:

HTC 8X and 8S

Tech publication Wired has dubbed the 8X and the 8S as WP 8’s “best shot” in trying to move mobile users away from Android and iOS. In fact, the 8X and the 8S will be marketed as the “signature”  Windows Phone 8 smartphones, HTC’s global head of sales, Jason Mackenzie, told attendees at the company’s New York launch event, where Microsoft Chief executive Steve Ballmer also spoke (source: SMH).

The first thing you will notice is the bright range of colours HTC offers for its WP 8 phones, which resemble Nokia’s colourful Lumia range. Both the 8X and the 8S sport a polycarbonate unibody design, which wraps around the device to a curved Gorilla Glass display. The 8X and the 8S are both not entirely thin, measuring at 10.3mm, however, the taped edges do provide the illusion that both handsets are thinner than they actually are. The 8X sports a 4.3-inch screen with a 720p Super LCD 2 HD display, while its little brother the 8S has a 4 inch screen.

The 8X and the 8S will be powered by a 1.5Ghz dual core processor and a 1Ghz dual core processor respectively. The 8X has a 1,800mAh Li-polymer battery and 16GB internal storage, while the 8S comes with a 1,700mAh battery and only 4GB internal storage. However, an interesting thing to note is that the 8X does not offer a microSD slot to expand the 16GB storage, while the 8S does, which may be a deal breaker for those who value large storage in their phone.

In terms of photo shooting capabilities, the 8X offers an 8MP rear facing camera with 1080p HD video recording and a 2MP front facing camera , while the 8S has a 5MP rear facing camera and no front facing camera.

Both phones include enhanced audio through Beats audio technology, in which HTC has a stake of about 25%.

Both phones will be available in November from Telstra, Optus and Vodafone, with the 8X supporting LTE.

While both Samsung and HTC have come up with fairly compelling options for WP8 phones, the Lumia range benefits from Nokia’s exclusive Nokia Maps application which comes standard on the Lumia. It offers free, turn-by-turn navigation in 110 countries, which also works offline.