HTC One X vs Samsung Galaxy S2 – Introduction
Being referee in a bout between the HTC One X vs Samsung Galaxy S2 requires that prejudices are put to one side. The HTC One X is this year’s device. It’s up there with the best of them. The Galaxy S2, while impressively ahead of its time has been in market for way over a year.
The Galaxy S2’s looks ( Galaxy plastic rectangle ) are passably current, the HTC’s are cutting edge and next generation. It would be easy to conclude, through a quick comparison of the key specifications, that the HTC One X would win this by a mile.
Let’s do the Galaxy S2 justice and go through things in more detail. We need to consider real life usage of both mobile phones and see if we can help you find you an answer. In this review could be the right mobile for you.
HTC One X vs Samsung Galaxy S2 – Overview
Comparing the HTC One X vs Samsung Galaxy S2 physically, they’re essentially the same size. The One X is slightly less than a centimeter taller than the S2 and 4mm broader but you’re never going to realize those small differences when they’re in your pocket or bag.
The 1X weighs 14 grams more but talk of weight differences in mobiles is always over rated in my view. I can’t tell the difference weighing them in my hands.
The One X feels more robust. As with the Galaxy Note, the S2’s plastic body feels slippier and more prone to fracture or screen break when dropped.
Reviewing the differences between the product shows the advantages of a year of substantial research and development at HTC.
They had that long to improve the product between the launch of the Galaxy S2 and HTC One X.
HTC One X vs Samsung Galaxy S2 – What’s different :
- Processing power : The Galaxy S2 has dual core 1.2 GHz processors. The HTC One X Quad Core 1.5 GHz processors. The difference in the smoothness of navigation / scrolling and screen updates is marginal – tending towards negligible but, to be fair to the One X, it is there.
- Screen : The HTC One X has a better screen. It’s a 720 x 1280 Super LCD screen compared to a Super AMOLED Plus 480 x 800 version on the Galaxy S2. The colors are more real on the HTC One X and zooming in is quicker, smoother and looks better compared to the S2. This is not to say the S2 is shabby. The screen is great. It’s just that, next to the HTC One X, it comes off second best.
- Memory : The 1X comes with 32 GB of on board memory which, because of the sealed ‘unibody’ of the product can’t be changed. The S2, on the other hand, shares the characteristic of expandable memory with others in it’s Galaxy family. You get 16GB on board when you buy and can add to it if you need it which, obviously, is preferable.
- Battery : The 1X’s battery is up there with the best. It’s slightly better than the Galaxy S2. I tend to get a good 12 hours of heavy use out of the One X ( with push email, pretty much constant playing with some element of it and a bunch of phone calls and texts each day. The Galaxy S2 was less impressive in this regard and ran out much sooner. It’s not a deal breaker – you just need to make sure you leave some charging cables in the car and / or office so you’re never far from juice when you need it.
HTC One X vs Samsung Galaxy S2 – Specification Comparison :
What’s the same ?
Everything else is the same :
- Camera : Both have 8 MP cameras and offer great shots. Usability of the 1X is slightly better. Again, the year to work on the software has paid dividends. You can run ‘burst mode’ on the 1X and not on the S2. Burst mode allows you to take lots of individual pictures one after the other and then choose the best one. The 1X also allows you to take pictures while shooting video. It’s just a more powerful, refined smartphone.
- Video : Both the S2 and 1X take great video. The FPS refresh on the HTC One X is slightly slower. The S2 will take 30 frames per second, the HTC One which gives a marginally more blurry pan – until the camera focused and settles
HTC One X vs Samsung Galaxy S2 – other influences
- Latest versions of the S2 have been shipping with Android 4.0 ( the Whatphone S2 is running Gingerbread because we got it ages ago ! ) This leaves the differences in experience to the User Interface ( UI ) which sits on top of the operating system. HTC use Sense 4.0 in their One X. The S2 has Touchwiz, also 4.0, on the latest versions of the S2. The differences between them are about 20% of the apps installed at purchase and really come down to the users preference. I go for the Sense option.
- Beats Audio : I don’t often mention this, I guess because it’s not a key component of my buying decision or a key reason for anyone to buy a mobile phone. But, the Beats Audio loudspeaker on the HTC 1X does have a clarity benefit over playing the same music from the Samsung Galaxy S2.
HTC One X vs Samsung Galaxy S2 – summing up
The extra year of time to think, research and develop has put the HTC One X ahead of the Galaxy S2 by a small margin in almost any department. But the Galaxy S2 is offered these days at a completely different price point. I go for the latest, most modern products. Since we have them in the Whatphone office anyway, I figure I may as well use the best. But for anyone on a budget or who doesn’t require the very latest, the Galaxy S2 is a terrific mobile phone. Especially considering it’s been in market for a year.
If I was a new buyer and I was looking for a low use, entry level mobile, it’d be hard to find a better product than the S2 to get me started. It is quite simply a lot of Phone for not much money.
Sept ’12
Written by:
Kurt Hands