The Samsung Galaxy S4 Review- Should Apple Be Worried?

There was a time when no one could touch Apple.

No one.

Not any more. For the past three years, phone makers like Samsung and Nokia have been cranking out models that have creeped up on the iPhone franchise in terms of features, usefulness and design.

Now, with the Samsung Galaxy S4, it appears the iPhone may now be the one playing catch up. With elements the iPhone lacks and some improvements over the S3, the new Galaxy offering is something to behold. With a 5" screen that dwarfs the iPhone's and mimics the Galaxy Note II, the S4 presents a sharp, bright screen with the ability to follow your finger strokes without you having to actually touch the screen!

Lookin' Good, Samsung
(droidlife.com)

Also, the S4 will follow your eye movements and will pause a video when it "sees" that your eyes have looked elsewhere. Does this feature work or is it even needed? Who knows? It seems likely that this will be party trick feature, used to impress iPhone users, but with no real-world utility.

Some quibbles? Well, it's still made entirely of plastic, but it is high quality and nicely finished- plus, it didn't seem to hurt S3 sales any, so why change? Also, the visual design changes made to the case is so subtle, most folks won't notice that you've acquired the la-di-da phone of the moment.

Techradar.com actually got their hands on an early-production model and got the chance to run it through it's paces...they even made a phone call with it. Go to the review by clicking here. 

Should Apple be worried?

Yes. Yes they should.

An Alternative to the iPod Touch- the Samsung Galaxy Media Player Review

I check my reader stats from time to time and what strikes me as one of the most interesting factoids is that several of my older blog posts always seem to be in the top five for number of hits per month. Time after time, the articles that start with the phrase "An Alternative to..." always seem to be of consistent interest to people seeking out something else, something past the mainstream other don't consider.

If you read the title of today's post, you'll see that I'm no fool (usually) and today's alternative product is a legitimate contender for the title of "iPod alternative". The Samsung Galaxy 4.0 Media Player. It looks just like a standard Samsung smart phone without the phone part and that's pretty much what it is. The Media Player sports a 4" screen, dual cameras and even GPS(!) as well as the Android operating system (but only runs Gingerbread, a three year old OS).

The Samsung Galaxy Media Player
(Samsung.com)

However, the best part is the price. Ipod Touch's can easily run north of  $250 for the 32G model while the Samsung starts at $150 (street price) and can be expanded to as much as 64 gigs by adding a 32 gig micro SD card to the 32 gig version.

So, how does it work? Based on the thousands of reviews posted online, it seems others agree that the player is an ideal "other choice" for those who have had it with the bugs and self-imposed limitations of iTunes. The reviews state the player is easy to use- especially with Google Music- and others also report using the player a type of poor-man's cell phone when paired with Skype (free calling!). There's is also the 100,000+ apps in the Google Play store with games, video players and other applications available to anyone with an Android OS system.

The pros are:

- Decent battery life
- A micro SD slot to expand memory up to 32G
- dual cameras
- uses Flash to play videos
- 100,000+ apps
- good external speakers
- GPS
- Also available in 5" and 5.8" sizes
- Price! Less than $150 online.

Cons:

- Older Android issue OS
- far fewer accessories
- screen not as sharp as iPod (ok, but not great)
- Bland styling
- Plastic construction
- Managing MP3 files not as intuitive as iPod

But nothing says as much as the opinions of others and hundreds of those regarding the Samsung Media Player can be found at Amazon.com by clicking here and at Ebay.com by clicking here.

If my stats are telling me anything, they say consumers are starting to seek out choices beyond the mainstream that deliver just as much satisfaction as the most popular one and if Samsung can update the player with the latest software- at least the Jellybean OS- then Apple better start working overtime with an iPod Touch replacement.

The Galaxy S4- What's Next and Why the Name is a Bad Omen.

I don't know much about physics and what little I do know comes from watching "The Big Bang Theory". But, I do understand momentum and for business, momentum can be a powerful thing. For nearly the past decade, Apple has enjoyed that business momentum with the iPhone. For years, nothing the competition put out could touch it for looks, operational simplicity and elegance. It sold like crazy, with lines forming days before the debut of each iteration. But, lately, it seems Apple has slowed somewhat and the competition is even in many ways. In fact, the introduction of the iPhone5 was met with a thundering chorus of "meh". 

Hot or Not?
(technobuffalo.com)

But business, like momentum itself, cannot stand still and Samsung has been gaining on the company from Cupertino with offerings like the Galaxy Note 2, and the Galaxy S3. In fact, Samsung was one of the only cell phone makers to gain market share in the US during 2012. 

The S3 has been out for some time now and has established a reputation as a fast, easy to use Android based phone that many prefer to the iPhone itself. In the tech world, everything ages quickly and soon we can look forward to the introduction of the Samsung Galaxy S4. And eerily enough, there is a group of fanboys out there drooling at the idea of this next generation of iPhone competition. In fact, CNET has started a very iPhone-like rumor roundup for the S4 and what it might have to battle the iPhone for smartphone supremacy in 2013. 

Is this leaked photo the next Galaxy S4? 

Some of the rumors include a 5 inch screen, wireless charging and a 13(!) megpixel camera. 

For the latest on the S4, go to CNET's Galaxy S4 Rumor Roundup here. 

To find out the cultural reason the S4 may not be called the S4, read the Digital Trends post at their site here. 

The momentum is building for Samsung right now and the impending introduction of the S4- rumored to be this April- only means more attention for Samsung, and at Apple's expense. 

However, funny thing about momentum- it can shift direction instantly and Apple is working hard to see that it rolls toward Silicon Valley again ASAP. Competition is a great thing and when it heats up like this, the winners are the consumers like you and me.