Samsung’s Galaxy Note 4 is not yet released but its features are already known to many excited tech followers. The South Korean future flagship will definitely be one of this year’s sensations and as expected, rumors and speculations about “what will it look like?” and “what will it do more and better than the others?” have already surfaced all over the internet. Gathering everything we found out about it until now makes us believe that indeed, the Note 4 will be a great device and a fierce rival on the market. Meanwhile, other smartphones that have already grown popular among users have proven themselves worthy of being called flagships and real innovations in terms of design and hardware. One such device is no other than Sony’s Xperia Z2, a very appreciated smartphone that comes geared-up to take over the market. If you are looking to buy a new smartphone and have not decided which one to choose, you should take a look at both these devices and think again if you want to wait, or if you’ll run to the closest carrier and buy one as soon as you’re done reading.
Design and Display
Latest rumors regarding the Note 4’s design suggest a 5,7-inch display, even if following Samsung’s logic regarding its Note line, the Note 4 will have to feature an incredible 5.9-inch display. Apparently the company decided not to go this far and settle for the same display size as the Galaxy Note 3. The similarity stops here, because for its next flagship, Samsung decided to go with a new display technology, namely the PLS LCD, thus cutting the production costs with 20%. The bendable display was also one of the rumored features, even if many disliked and argued the idea, but nothing is certain, perhaps only the three-sided screen that allows you to read notifications from side on. A leaked image shows a curved, multi-sided screen and some on-screen buttons such as the camera, settings or email will be lined up on one side instead of on the front, thus leaving more space for the actual screen. Such licked images suggested two variants of the Note 4, one with a traditional flat screen and one featuring a flexible display, for those who want a device with a bendable display. The 5,7-inch display will have a 2560 X 1440 and a pixel density of 500ppi, as rumors suggested.
The Xperia Z2 is not very different from its predecessor, the Xperia Z1, having the same slim, one-piece aluminum frame with a glass panel. The Xperia branding sits proudly on the back along with the camera lens placed on the top-left corner, while the big power button is placed on the right edge. Measuring 146 x 73,3 x 8,2 mm, the smartphone has an athletic look, being long and slender and the fact that it comes in many color tones makes it customizable. It weights 163g, being larger than its predecessor, but it’s still quite comfortable to hold and use. The Z2 features a 5,2-inch Triluminos IPS LCD display with a 1080 x 1920 resolution and a pixel density of 424ppi. Considering the display is smaller compared to its rival’s, we expected a higher resolution, but that’s not a problem at all, you’ll still enjoy bright colors and clear images. Very attractive features are also the multi-touch function, the scratch resistant glass and of course, the X-Reality Engine.
Hardware and Software
Regarding its hardware, rumors suggested the Galaxy Note 4 will have a 3200 mAh battery, which is more that enough for a 5,7-inch device, ensuring a good battery life. It will come with a Snapdragon 805 SoC with CAT6 capabilities, a Wacom digitizer, a 2.4GHz speed and what’s been rumored lately, 4GB RAM. Note 4 will also have IP 67 rating, meaning it will be dust and water proof, a feature most flagships have, so not having it would have been a bad move from Samsung. It’s also expected The Note 4 to run Android 4.4.2 KitKat, as the Galaxy S5.
Meanwhile, Sony’s Xperia Z2 is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 SoC , four Krait 400 cores clocked at 2.3GHz CPU, Adreno 330 GPU and 3GB RAM. Regarding its internal storage, the Z2 comes with 16GB and a microSD card slot that allows you to expand the storage up to 128GB. The 3200mAh battery promises a long-lasting life for the Z2, allowing you to use it carefree for quite some time.
Camera
The Note 4 will probably have the best smartphone camera yet, considering the Note 3 features a 13MP camera and the S5 a 16MP camera, we could only assume Note 4’s camera to have about 21MP. The assumption might be correct, because Samsung is preparing to release a 20MP sensor later this year, probably by the same time as the Note 4 will be released at the IFA in Berlin.
Talking about great cameras, here comes Xperia Z2 with an astonishing 20,7 MP camera with 4K recordings support and a 3840 X 2160 resolution for Full HD details. It also features 1/2,3 Exmor RS for mobile CMOS image sensor, G lens and BIONZ. It can record stereo due to its STM10 Stereo Microphone and the 2.2 MP front camera allows you to record 1080p videos.
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Verdict
Choosing either of the two will make you the happy owner of a great smartphone, so whether you go for the Xperia Z2 now rather than waiting a couple of months for the Note 4 to hit the shelves, you’ll make a good decision. The Note 4 sounds great, with a good battery, a beautiful appearance, probably having the best smartphone camera on the market, but will it be the flagship everyone expects? Maybe, considering we’re talking about a Samsung device. The Xperia Z2 is also a remarkable smartphone, very good-looking and very reliable. It features various connectivity options like 4G LTE, HSPA+, WI-FI and Wi-Fi hotspot functionality, DLNA, GPS with A-GPS, Bluetooth v4.0 and the list goes on. All in all, a great device that will definitely give you everything you need from a smartphone. Being a worthy competitor for any Samsung device, Sony Xperia Z2 is here and waiting for a owner. What do you think?