Samsung Nexus S vs. Samsung Galaxy S 2 - Samsung Battle

Samsung Nexus S vs. Samsung Galaxy S 2 - Samsung Battle
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The Samsung Battle of Successors

Samsung has been creating high end smartphones, one after the other, with very little care about cannibalization of sales. In the Samsung Fascinate vs. Samsung Continuum battle, two smartphones from Samsung aiming at the same audience were compared. In this Samsung Nexus S vs. Samsung Galaxy S 2 battle, it’s a similar situation. Both smartphones are aiming for the same high end market and both are being released within a fairly short timespan.

The Samsung Nexus S was Samsung’s exclusive follow up to the Nexus One, a well hyped, but ultimately badly released smartphone. The Samsung Galaxy S 2 is Samsung’s follow up to the Samsung Galaxy S, a fairly well hyped smartphone that ultimately launched Samsung to the top globally. Of these two, which smartphone looks to dominate in 2011?

Design and Display

Both the Nexus S and the Samsung Galaxy S 2 are attractive but they take different design routes. The Nexus S is more rounded and curvy, and even features a curved Super AMOLED screen, the first of its kind. The Samsung Galaxy S 2, on the other hand, takes a more iPhone 4 like approach, being a bit boxier and wider. It’s extremely hard to compare the two smartphones when it comes to design and display, as each has made its own innovative way to the market.

The Nexus S and its subtly curved contoured display is a great differentiator from other smartphones on the market. Its sleek, rounded style is very reminiscent of its predecessor, the Nexus One. The Samsung Galaxy S 2 on the other hand is wider and taller than the Nexus S, while managing to be slimmer and lighter. The extremely slim design is a key difference that makes the Galaxy S 2 stand out. The slight difference that gives the Samsung Galaxy S 2 the edge in this battle is the fact that it has a Super AMOLED Plus display, offering an even more vibrant, crisp and colorful display. So in the Samsung Nexus S vs. Samsung Galaxy S 2 battle, the Galaxy S 2 wins by a small margin.

Winner - Samsung Galaxy S 2

Hardware and Software

The Samsung Nexus S and the Samsung Galaxy S 2 come with some extremely powerful

Samsung Galaxy S 2

hardware and are both preloaded with Android 2.3. The difference in software is the fact that the Samsung Nexus S comes with stock Android while the Galaxy S 2 has Samsung’s TouchWiz overlay on top. The Galaxy S 2 will be the debut of TouchWiz 4.0. For the Galaxy S 2 this can be a blessing in the fact that it differentiates the smartphone, but also a curse, in that updates come out later rather than sooner, or if ever for that matter. The Nexus S being a fully supported Google branded smartphone with stock Android means it will receive the latest version of Android quicker.

The hardware on the other hand is what differentiates the Nexus S from the Galaxy S 2. The Nexus S comes with the impressive 1 GHz Hummingbird processor, which allows it to match up against many of the current smartphones as well as soon to be released smartphones such as the HTC Thunderbolt. The Galaxy S 2, however, is set to be released with a dual core processor clocking in at 1.2 GHz, which, some may feel is a bit excessive, but is enough power to beat out its competition and the Nexus S as well.

From the storage perspective, the Samsung Galaxy S 2 beats the Nexus S again, boasting 32GB of internal storage, with an expandable microSD, for a total of 64GB. The Nexus S is unfortunately limited to 16GB of internal storage.

Winner - Samsung Galaxy S 2

Camera

Samsung Galaxy S 2 - 8 Megapixel Camera

The Samsung Nexus S comes with an impressive 5 megapixel camera that can record up to 720p HD video. The pictures on the Nexus S don’t always come up clear and crisp but compared to its brethren such as the Samsung Fascinate, its more than decent when it comes to photos. The Samsung Galaxy S 2 ups the ante a bit with an 8 megapixel camera over a 5 megapixel camera. It also ups the ante when it comes to video recording, able to record up to 1080p HD video over the 720p.

Both also come with a second camera, a front facing camera for video chatting. The Samsung Nexus S has the standard VGA front facing camera, which is decent. The Samsung Galaxy S 2 packs a 2 megapixel front facing camera, giving it a definite edge over the Samsung Nexus S. It seems Samsung has really upgraded the hardware for the successor to the original Samsung Galaxy S that launched their rise in global popularity. In the camera arena of the Samsung Nexus S vs. Samsung Galaxy S 2 battle, the Samsung Galaxy S 2 easily overcomes.

Winner - Samsung Galaxy S 2

Features

Both the Samsung Nexus S and Samsung Galaxy S 2 are neck and neck when it comes to features. Taking out the camera aspect and putting it into a separate category leaves fewer features for the two to be compared on. The Samsung Nexus S and Samsung Galaxy S 2, both being Android powered handsets have access to the Android Market. This allows both smartphones to gain access to thousands upon thousands of applications. Since both smartphones have powerful processors, new applications and games definitely do not bog down or lag the phones.

Both come with near field communication, GPS, DLNA and Wi-Fi connectivity, giving them a variety of connectivity outlets. The Samsung Galaxy S 2 expands upon this a bit further with the inclusion of an HDMI out, allowing you to port out to a HD television set. This ability, of course, easily lets it compete against the likes of the Motorola Atrix 4G. Speaking of 4G, the Nexus S lacks the capability to use the HSPA+ or 4G network from T-Mobile, which it is currently available on. The Samsung Galaxy S 2, however, is set to be a 4G compatible smartphone, giving it a slight edge when it comes to speed. One thing to note, however, is that the Nexus S 4G is set to debut on Sprint.

In this situation, the ability to share photos and videos on an HD television set through HDMI gives the Samsung Galaxy S 2 the win.

Winner - Samsung Galaxy S 2

The Winner

This looks to be a clean sweep for the Samsung Galaxy S 2. In a previous battle, the HTC Inspire vs. Samsung Infuse, the Samsung Infuse came blazing out with a clean sweep. In this Samsung Nexus S vs. Samsung Galaxy S 2 battle, it seems like another clean sweep by the newer generation Galaxy S smartphone. The time difference of release between the Nexus S and the Galaxy S 2 may be a big reason for the win, and it also shows how fast Samsung, as well as its competitors, are innovating and changing their products. Hopefully this level of speed doesn’t lead to cannibalization and later stagnation down the line. For now, in this Samsung Nexus S vs. Samsung Galaxy S 2 battle, the Galaxy S 2 reigns supreme.

Winner - Samsung Galaxy S 2

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