iPhone 5 vs Galaxy S3 vs Lumia 920 Specs, Design, Power

iPhone 5 vs Galaxy S3 vs Lumia 920 Specs, Design, Power

The Apple iPhone 5 is finally real. While its specs are premium, the iPhone isn't the only worthwhile smartphone on the block.

See below comparison, spec to spec, between the top Android and Windows phones: the Samsung Galaxy S3, and Nokia Lumia 920.

	Apple iPhone 5	Samsung Galaxy 3	Nokia Lumia 920
Operating system	iOS 6	Android 4.0	Windows Phone 8
Display	4-inch IPS LCD; 1,136x640 pixels, 326 ppi	4.8-inch HD Super AMOLED; 1,280x720 pixels, 306 ppi	4.5-inch AMOLED; 1,280x768 pixels, 332 ppi
Price	$199.99, $299.99, $399.99	$199.99-$329.99, depending on carrier	Unannounced
Carrier	Sept. 21: AT&T, Sprint, Verizon	Now: AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular, Verizon	Unannounced
4G LTE	Yes	Yes	Yes
Camera	8-megapixel, 720p front-facing	8-megapixel, 1.9-megapixel front-facing	8.7-megapixel, 1.2-megapixel front-facing
Processor	Proprietary A6 CPU	1.5GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4	1.5GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4
Memory	16GB, 32GB, 64GB	16GB or 32GB; 2GB RAM	32GB; 1GB RAM
Expandable memory	No	Up to 64GB	No
Battery	Capacity TBA (Talk time up to 8 hours on 3G); embedded	2,100 mAh, removable	2,000 mAh, embedded
NFC	No	Yes	Yes
Weight and thickness	3.95 ounces, 0.3 inches	4.7 ounces, 0.34 inches	6.5 ounces, 0.42 inches
Colors	Black, white	White, blue, red (AT&T); Also, globally: black, brown, gray	Black, white, yellow, red, gray

Design and Build

Apple's aluminum-and-glass iPhone 5 retains its super-industrial aesthetic, metal buttons and all. Its new, all-metal backing could look slightly less luxe than the iPhone 4S', but it will survive far more drops.

Then you have the Nokia Lumia 920, whose yellow, red, white, black, or gray polycarbonate body and rounded edges produce a punch of pop sensibility in an otherwise staid design world. It's a good look for the phone, and a smart one that really helps Nokia stand out; however, distinctiveness and the nevertheless plastic body aren't everyone's cup of tea.

We find the GS3's design appealing, but shiny, glossy plastic doesn't scream "quality." That isn't to say that the GS3 is more prone to breaking or shattering than the other two; in fact, plastic has the benefit of scuffing rather than shattering. However, we do really love the GS3's in-hand feel, which is comfortable despite its much larger size.

Screen Size and Clarity

The iPhone 5's 1136x640 pixels on its 4-inch screen still yields 326 pixels per inch and gives the phone a 16:9 aspect ratio, wider than the iPhone 4S. However, Apple boasts that its sRGB display delivers 44 percent more color saturation and cuts down on glare.

Samsung's Galaxy S3 has the largest screen of the three, an 4.8-inch HD Super AMOLED, which yields a 1,280x720-pixel resolution and a pixel density of 306 pixels per inch. Its size offers the most expansive real estate for watching videos, reading, and composing messages, but there are three minor drawbacks: the lowest pixel density of the trio, high reflection, and a dimmer maximum brightness than the iPhone 4S and the HTC One X.

Nokia's Lumia 920 has a 4.5-inch Nokia PureMotion HD+ display, which is a fancy name to describe its AMOLED screen technology. Its WXGA resolution (1,280x768 pixels) is a little higher than the standard HD (1,280x720 pixels). Combined with the screen size and the 332 pixels per inch, resolution could be tighter than on the GS3 and iPhone 5.

Nokia has also brought its ClearBlack Display filter to the Lumia 920; it definitely cut down glare on the Lumia 900, and Nokia claims that this version is even better.

Camera Prowess

This is a tough call since all three phones bring their A-game here. The iPhone has set the benchmark in terms of camera phone performance for quite a while and the improvements to the iPhone 5's imaging system will no doubt cement its lead. These include improved low-light performance and a new panorama shooting mode that catches up to Android.

Of course Android devices in many cases surpass the iPhone. Samsung's Galaxy S3 has a sensor that offers the same 8-megapixel resolution as the iPhone 5, plus it features tons of fancy shooting modes like panorama and multishot burst mode.

The Nokia Lumia 920 is the real dark horse in the smartphone camera phone arms race. On paper, its 8.7-megapixel camera and PureView technology promise better performance than both the iPhone and Galaxy S3. It also will be able to run special apps within the camera application itself, allowing you to upgrade its functionality greatly over time - at least that's the theory.

LTE and Network Promise

A this point, LTE on the iPhone 5 was an inevitability, and a feature that's been in the hopper for some time. Verizon has already sworn that all its new smartphones will have LTE, and AT&T and Sprint are expanding their respective networks.

Battery Life

Nokia plans to equip its Lumia 920 with a 2,000 mAh battery, which should provide a good amount of run time, especially considering that Windows Phone has traditionally been a very economical operating system. Meanwhile, the Samsung Galaxy S3 comes with a slightly larger 2,100 mAh battery that lasted for well over 9 hours playing video. Apple is coy on the iPhone 5's capacity, but promises that its will offer 10 hours of video playback and 8 hours of Web surfing over LTE.

Of course, if you're constantly using battery-draining features like S-Voice on the Galaxy S3, or streaming video, no phone will last as long as you'd like.

NFC

Apple's iPhone 5 needed a few features to shore up some weak spots: a larger screen, LTE, and, to a lesser extent, NFC. It got the first two, but Apple didn't mention anything about NFC for the iPhone 5.

NFC, which makes it possible to share content across phones and pay for purchases, might not be a big deal to you, but it is an entire category of software capability that's closed on the iPhone 5.

Voice Assistant

Siri in the iPhone 4S and Google's Voice Actions are evenly matched, but Samsung is standing behind its own S Voice assistant, which falls far behind.

Nokia phones stick with Microsoft's integrated, much more subtle voice command software, TellMe, but in Windows Phone 8, Microsoft will let third-party app-makers work in their own commands, so you can bark at individual apps like Audible, to read aloud, pause, or stop.

Source:  Brian Bennett and Jessica Dolcourt