Samsung Galaxy S vs. Samsung Galaxy S 2 - What is the Difference?

Samsung Galaxy S vs. Samsung Galaxy S 2 - What is the Difference?
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The year 2010 can easily be considered the year of Samsung in the smartphone world, mostly because of the fantastic Samsung Galaxy S smartphone. The Samsung Vibrant, Captivate, Fascinate and Epic 4G sold tremendously well and met with great success in the U.S. market.

It seems Samsung is not planning to stop. At the 2011 Mobile World Congress, the official successor to the throne, the Samsung Galaxy S 2 was unveiled and shown to the public. Featuring some impressive specifications, the Samsung Galaxy S 2 seems to be the smartphone that will keep the Samsung steam roller going, and mowing through the competition. This Samsung Galaxy S vs. Samsung Galaxy S 2 is not a battle, like the Samsung Fascinate vs. Samsung Continuum article, but more of a comparison to see what areas of the Galaxy S have been upgraded in the successor.

Design and Display

Samsung Galaxy S

  • 4 inch Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen display
  • Dimensions - 4.8 x 2.4 x 0.4 inches

Samsung Galaxy S 2

  • 4.3 inch Super AMOLED Plus capacitive touchscreen display
  • Dimensions - 4.9 x 2.6 x 0.3 inches

The design and display of the Samsung Galaxy S is definitely hard to beat. The sleek look, especially due to the Super AMOLED touchscreen display really makes the Galaxy S classy. The Samsung Galaxy S 2 comes with a Super AMOLED Plus touchscreen, which is even more vibrant than the original. In addition, it’s even slimmer, currently the slimmest smartphone on the market.

Hardware and Software

Samsung Galaxy S

  • 1 GHz Hummingbird
  • 512 MB RAM
  • 16 GB On board storage with expandable up to 32 GB microSD
  • Android 2.1

Samsung Galaxy S 2

  • 1 GHz dual core Orion
  • 1 GB RAM
  • 16 or 32 GB On board storage with expandable up to 32 GB microSD
  • Android 2.3

While the Samsung Galaxy S was powered by Samsung’s Hummingbird processor, the Galaxy S 2 will feature the dual core Orion processor, capable of pushing the smartphone even further. The RAM has also doubled to 1 GB and the storage capabilities have also doubled to 32 GB, depending on the model. On the software front, the Samsung Galaxy S was released with Android 2.1 and recently updates for 2.2 have been released. The Galaxy S 2 will come with Android 2.3.

User Interface

Samsung Galaxy S

  • TouchWiz 3.0 UI

Samsung Galaxy S 2

  • TouchWiz 4.0 UI

Samsung Galaxy S 2

TouchWiz is hit or miss affair for many folks as it does delay releases of future Android updates. The original Samsung Galaxy S debuted TouchWiz 3.0 which gave the Android interface a bit of an iOS feel. TouchWiz 4.0 doesn’t disappoint, offering a bit of a more seamless experience with the see through applications screen and more hubs for media, social and applications. In addition the Galaxy S 2 comes with NFC support, meaning you can use the device in the future as a ticketing device, a credit card, a travel card or even an electronic key.

Features

Samsung Galaxy S

  • 5 megapixel camera with front facing VGA camera, 720p HD video recording

Samsung Galaxy S 2

  • 8 megapixel camera with front facing 2 megapixel camera, 1080p HD video recording

The Samsung Galaxy S had an impressive 5 megapixel camera capable of 720p HD video recording. The Galaxy S 2 ups the ante by featuring an 8 megapixel camera with 1020p HD video recording. In addition, the Galaxy S 2 also builds upon the front facing camera, making it an impressive 2 megapixel front facing camera.

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