- Conclusion Get the lowdown
- Features How they compare
- Performance Real world benchmarks
- Differences Technical showdown
- Reviews Word on the street
- Competition Others to consider
- Discussion Answers and opinions
Compare with...
- LG Nexus 4
- Nokia Lumia 920
- Apple iPhone 5
- HTC One X
- Samsung Galaxy S III mini
- Android 4.1 Jelly Bean
- 4G
- 4.8"
- Dual core 1.5 GHz
Released June, 2012
by GSM Arena (Oct, 2012)The HTC One S is also worth a look if 4.8" is too big for you and you prefer AMOLED over LCD.
by GSM Arena (Oct, 2011)The things to expect of all this tech are better colors, better noise performance, more sharpness and more precise white balance.
Conclusion Which is better for you?
Features Key features of the Samsung Galaxy S III compared to the Apple iPhone 4S
GHz1.5
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean 4G
by GSM Arena (May, 2012)Sunlight legibility is splendid too - the HD Super AMOLED isn't the brightest around, but its reflectivity is so low that even when outside in the brightest day, you'll still be able to make out what's on the screen quite clearly.
0.8 GHz
iOS 5 3.5G
Rated 100% by by sheila-Rolle (Feb, 2013)i like this product because it was inexpensive and for a use phone it is in excellent condition cant tell the difference from a new one I had the phone 1 week but lovvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvve it , it is slim and light weigh i had a3g for 3 years and love it, this one is spectacular.
screen size
4.8"
3.5"
Galaxy S III by GSM Arena (Oct, 2012)The pretty large, sharp display with great colors makes reading a joy.
iPhone 4S by Jaffrey-W.-Ali--Relentless-Pursuit-of-TechnologyI guess if you play a lot of games then a larger screen may be acceptable, but as a daily smartphone the iPhone 4S is extremely well designed aesthetically and in size.
screen resolution
Galaxy S III by GSM Arena (Oct, 2012)The first chart shows better sharpness over the S II - it's especially noticeable in the small numbers below the color patches.
iPhone 4S by electronicnut (Mar, 2013)She loved the crisp, clean retina display, the beautiful images it took, and the overall ease of using the phone.
memory
| 0 GB | 2 GB | 2 GB |
processor
Galaxy S III by c|net (Jun, 2012)From the outside in, it has a large, vibrant HD display; Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich; a sharp 8-megapixel camera; 4G LTE support; a zippy dual-core processor; and tons of internal memory and 2GB RAM.
iPhone 4S by GSM Arena (Oct, 2011)The iPhone 4S is promoted to the dual-core league and has more powerful graphics.
camera resolution
| 0 MP | 8 MP | 8 MP |
Galaxy S III by c|net (Jun, 2012)After all, the outdated assumption that the more megapixels you have the better simply isn't true (and here's why).
iPhone 4S by GSM Arena (Oct, 2011)The iPhone 4S has a strong claim on being the best 8 megapixel cameraphone.
Performance Real world tests of Samsung Galaxy S III vs Apple iPhone 4S
cpu speed
Galaxy S III by GSM Arena (May, 2012)Samsung seems to have done quite well here as the speed increase goes further than the 16% or so CPU frequency advantage that the Galaxy S III has over its predecessor.
iPhone 4S by Bill-L. (Nov, 2011)It's sleek solid build of the phone.-The A5 chip processor that is claimed to be twice the iPhone 4's speed is amazingly fast and for a heavy data user, it is very appealing.-The 8MP camera.
talk time
700 min
840 min
Galaxy S III by GSM Arena (Oct, 2012)The 3G talk time ended up the same as with the ICS-running Galaxy S III and is one of the best performers we have seen.
iPhone 4S by c|net (Oct, 2011)Despite the more powerful processor, the company claims that the smartphone will be able to provide 8 hours of talk time over 3G, 14 hours over 2G, 6 hours of browsing over 3G, 9 hours via Wi-Fi, 10 hours of video playback, and 40 hours of music playback.
Differences What are the advantages of each
Advantages compared to the Apple iPhone 4S
| Supports Adobe Flash | Yes | vs | No |
|---|---|---|---|
| Somewhat common; Many games and videos on the Internet require Adobe Flash | |||
| Store much more stuff | 64 GB | vs | 16 GB |
| 4x more storage capacity; free yourself from memory cards | |||
| Has expandable storage | microSD, microSDHC | vs | None |
| Use storage cards to increase your phone's capacity for apps and data | |||
| Has a removable battery | Yes | vs | No |
| Somewhat common; Old batteries can be replaced inexpensively | |||
| Screen uses OLED technology | Yes | vs | No |
| About half of phones are OLED; OLED screens are typically higher contrast and use less power | |||
| Uses standard video out connectors | Yes (USB) | vs | No (Proprietary) |
| Somewhat common; Standardized connectors are cheap, compatible and easy to find | |||
| Is 4G | Yes | vs | No |
| Somewhat common; Supports the fastest, most reliable networks | |||
| Supports NFC | Yes | vs | No |
| Somewhat common; Enables payment by phone and other wireless communications | |||
| Much faster processor | 1.5 GHz | vs | 0.8 GHz |
| Around 90% faster processor; run computation-intensive applications, such as photo editing, faster | |||
| Supports FM radio | Yes | vs | No |
| Somewhat common; Listen to music and news from local radio stations | |||
| Significantly longer standby time | 47,400 min | vs | 12,000 min |
| Around 4x longer standby time | |||
| Noticeably bigger screen | 4.8" | vs | 3.5" |
| Around 40% bigger screen | |||
| Significantly more battery capacity | 2,100 mA·h | vs | 1,420 mA·h |
| Around 50% more battery capacity | |||
| Much better theoretical download speed | 84 Mb/s (HSPA+) | vs | 14.4 Mb/s |
| Around 6x better theoretical download speed; enjoy lightning fast downloads on modern networks | |||
| Higher resolution screen | 1280 x 720 | vs | 960 x 640 |
| 50% higher resolution screen | |||
| Supports multitasking | Yes | vs | No |
| Somewhat common; Run multiple apps at once | |||
| Marginally newer | Jun, 2012 | vs | Oct, 2011 |
| Release date 8 months later | |||
| Lighter | 133 g | vs | 140 g |
| Around 10% lighter | |||
| Thinner | 9 mm | vs | 9 mm |
| Around 10% thinner | |||
Advantages compared to the Samsung Galaxy S III
| Significantly smaller | 59 x 115 x 9 mm | vs | 137 x 71 x 9 mm |
|---|---|---|---|
| More than 20% smaller | |||
| Longer talk time | 840 min | vs | 700 min |
| 20% longer talk time; go days without charging | |||
| Sharper screen | 328 ppi | vs | 305 ppi |
| Around 10% sharper PPI; enjoy photo-realistic, crisp images | |||
Reviews Word on the street
Samsung Galaxy S III | Apple iPhone 4S | ||
 |  
|
| |
|---|---|---|---|
 |  Rated by 11 users at amazon.com Rated 100% by by electronicnut (Mar, 2013) Rated 100% by by electronicnut (Mar, 2013) Rated 20% by by ebusemih (Jul, 2012)  | Rated by 646 users at amazon.com Rated 80% by by Shelley-Gammon--Geek (Feb, 2012) Rated 100% by by Erik (Sep, 2012) Rated 100% by by Umairi786 (Mar, 2012) | |
carrier
Samsung Galaxy S III Dual core - 16GB - North American Edition | Rated 87% by by c|net (Jun, 2012)Miller/CNET). Peer closely at the phone (it comes in ceramic white, pebble blue, and later a red shade exclusive to AT&T) and you'll see that Samsung has rounded the edges and corners to attain smooth spines and trim pieces all around.
Samsung Galaxy S III Dual core - 16GB - North American Edition | Rated 87% by by c|net (Jun, 2012)At the time of writing, U.S. Cellular had recently launched its 4G LTE network in select cities in Iowa, Maine, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Texas, and Wisconsin, populations that cover 25 percent of the carrier's customers.
Samsung Galaxy S III Dual core - 16GB - North American Edition | by GSM Arena (May, 2012)The internal storage will come in three capacities - 16GB, 32GB and 64GB.
apps
Apple iPhone 4S Unlocked, White, 16 GB | Rated 100% by by dennis (Nov, 2011)The 64gb is what i been waiting for, got so much music and videos its perfect and I can use this phone anywhere in the world!
Apple iPhone 4S Unlocked, White, 16 GB | Rated 87% by by c|net (Oct, 2011)iPhone owners finally get a 64GB model and a better camera, the dual-core processor delivers more speed, and Siri, the iPhone 4S' personal assistant/robot friend/gofer, adds a new and sassy experience.
Apple iPhone 4S Unlocked, White, 16 GB | Rated 100% by by Stacy-G. (Dec, 2012)16GB is perfect for me because I don't put tons of apps on my phones or store lots of pictures.
network technology
Samsung Galaxy S III Dual core - 16GB - North American Edition | Rated 87% by by c|net (Jun, 2012)3G now, 4G LTE when Sprint launches its LTE network; Google Wallet, unlimited data option; available in 16GB (blue, white) and 32GB (blue, white) models.
Apple iPhone 4S Unlocked, White, 16 GB | Rated 100% by by DavidI believe having a GSM quad-band unlocked phone like this is very useful for anyone since it works in almost every country in the world.
Apple iPhone 4S Unlocked, White, 16 GB | Rated 60% by by Frankie-Haddocks (Dec, 2011)Sellers should read the Apple site where unlocked is.........unlocked which means one can use their iphone anywhere in the world with a GSM sim card.
video
Apple iPhone 4S Unlocked, White, 16 GB | Rated 100% by by Prashant-Patel--Prashant-Patel (Oct, 2012)Unless you are looking to shoot a great deal of HD movies with the phone, the 16GB should be sufficient.
storage
Apple iPhone 4S Unlocked, White, 16 GB | Rated 100% by by Prashant-Patel--Prashant-Patel (Oct, 2012)Sound quality is great and 16GB is more than enough built in storage for the beginner to intermediate user.
Competition What else you should consider
 | 1 | LG Nexus 4 2-way tie: OK operating system |
 | 2 | Nokia Lumia 920 Rated the best by consumers |
 | 4 | HTC One X 5-way tie: Supports Flash |
 | 6 | Sony Xperia V Blazingly fast |
 | 7 | Samsung Galaxy S4 Lots of battery capacity |
 | 8 | Alcatel OneTouch 997D Transmits music over FM radio |
Popular Questions
September 12, 2012
App question
I have all apple products with many paid apps already stored in the iCloud. Should I not worry about that and go for a phone that's 4g/lte?
Visitor
3
Answers 