Samsung Galaxy S5

The Galaxy S5 has once again proven Samsung’s ability to make an attractive high-end smartphone. However, its largely familiar features and plastic build leave room for competitors to make their move.
There's no doubt in my mind that the Samsung Galaxy S5 is the next "it" phone. It looks good, it performs very well, and it became a fixture in nearly every aspect of my daily life after just a few days.
The Galaxy S5 has the latest version of Android, arguably the fastest quad-core processor around, and a terrific 16-megapixel camera that just keeps getting better. Yet, with the exception of a few nonessential hardware and software additions — like the fingerprint scanner and flashy heart-rate monitor — and a few design tweaks here and there, you're pretty much looking at the same phone we had before. The S5 is more of a Galaxy S4 Plus than it is a slam-the-brakes next-generation device; it makes everything just a little smoother and faster, but it speaks more to existing Samsung fans than it does to people who already own Apple, HTC, and Sony phones.

Samsung's 5.1-inch, quad-core Android 4.4 KitKat machine is well worth considering, both on-contract, or outright for the RRP of AU$929. However, it isn't the only Android device worth your time. The gorgeous, all-metal HTC One M8 has the sexier design and better speakers. Even Samsung's own supersize Galaxy Note 3 still gives chase. Should you buy the Galaxy S5? Absolutely; but not before scoping out the competition first.

Dimpled design an S4 redux 

When it designed the Galaxy S5, Samsung didn't stray too far for inspiration. Indeed, from the front, you can barely tell the Galaxy S4 and S5 apart. The S5's rounded rectangle is stamped from the same steep-sided, silvery-trimmed mold as the S4, but with an ever-so-slightly more capsule-shaped central home button.

The back panel motif is different, I'll give Samsung that. Tiny dimples cover a rear cover that's blessedly matte instead of coated in reflective gloop. In addition to cutting down glare, the more subdued surface masks accumulated fingerprints.

The GS5 is only a fraction larger than the Galaxy S4: it measures 142mm x 72.5mm x 8.1mm, and weighs 145g. Even though the extra hardware makes it a little taller and heavier than the Galaxy S4, I had no problem carting it around.

This new phone, too, has a 5.1-inch 1080p HD AMOLED display that's 0.1-inch bigger than the Galaxy S4. That means that the screen's pixel density is just a breath looser, though you'll never notice the difference. Images are still extremely crisp and colourful, with high contrast and hard edges. HD photos and videos look especially lush.

What is a little different is the USB housing on the bottom of the phone. Like the Galaxy Note 3, the S5 now features the elongated USB 3.0 port, which is backwards compatible with standard micro-USB cables. In other words, you can still charge the phone with legacy USB cables, but it'll really juice up quickly with the compound USB 3.0 cable Samsung supplies.

A cover that clips securely into place is one indication that the S5 has met IP67 standard for water- and dust-resistance. A rubberised gasket behind the back cover is another clue. Feedback about the waterproof Galaxy S4 Active prompted Samsung to send the Galaxy S5 down its waterproof path, which means that it can take a bath for up to 30 minutes at around one metre. It also means it's time to break out the supersoakers.

Spiffied-up TouchWiz interface 

The GS5 runs Android 4.4 KitKat, with Samsung's latest proprietary TouchWiz interface extending the OS with extra abilities. Samsung has peppered this updated version of TouchWiz with tweaks that freshen up its look and feel. What's different is mostly subtle, like a Google services folder loaded onto the home screen, and an on-screen menu button in nearly every window, like the app tray, for instance.

The S5's Settings menu is one area that's clearly received a visual overhaul with this new TouchWiz. You get a black backdrop, circular icons, and a choice of layouts. You can continue to break out settings into tabs, view them as a list, or plop them into a scrolling menu organized by collapsible sub-categories. I prefer the tidy tabs, myself.

Features and apps consolidate 

Sometimes it's hard to tell where TouchWiz ends and Samsung's apps and features begin. Since the Galaxy S5 already folds in the Galaxy S4's gestures and capabilities, and builds on top of them, I'll just share some newer items.

Let's start with Kid's Mode, an optional, 58MB downloadable sandbox. In it, tykes play with approved apps, even a camera, while keeping the rest of the phone's contents out of bounds. The cutesy interface won't appeal to older kids, who would probably prefer their own profiles if Mom and Dad want to keep their mischievous offspring from snooping, pranks, and unauthorized downloads.

If you're a fan of persistent shortcuts, you're going to love Toolbox. It's a floating circle that expands to reveal five shortcuts for apps like the camera and calculator. Everything's customizable, and you can move the circle if it gets in your way. I really like the notion, but it got in my way so often I wound up closing it for good. I'd love to be able to call it up with a triple-screen tap, perhaps.

Ultra power-saving mode is for those of you who forget your charger when you leave for a weekend trip. A quick press of a button turns off most connections and transforms your phone from colour to greyscale. Limiting colour, apps, and activities boosts your phone's runtime immensely; we're talking days, depending on how much charge you have left. Samsung says that with 10 per cent battery left, you'll be able to make it another 24 hours before charging, a claim we'll test ourselves in the upcoming days.

Another new software tidbit, download booster joins together your Wi-Fi and carrier data connections to give you faster download speeds. Since it works behind the scenes, this is another one of those features that most people won't actively notice, so long as it's doing its job.

One that you will see, and which Samsung hopes you incorporate into your daily routine, in the updated S Health app and widgets, to try to draw fitness-interest folks of all levels. A pedometer and exercise scorecard meets a built-in nutrition monitor and all-new heart-rate tracker.

Inside the fingerprint scanner

There are two high-profile features that Samsung's Galaxy S5 waves over the HTC One M8: fingerprint-swiping security and the heart-rate monitor. Both work as well as advertised, as long as you execute them correctly, but at the end of the day, neither one strikes me as important enough to tip the scale in the S5's favour.

Let's start with the fingerprint scanner. It only stores profiles for three fingers, versus five in the iPhone 5s's TouchID system. It's easy enough to set up through the Settings menu.

On top of swiping to unlock, fingerprint scanning's other (optional) function will be to authorize transactions with PayPal, a Samsung partner. Instead of typing your passcode, you swipe your fingertip. This is Samsung's answer to the iPhone's in-app purchasing, and it works with any mobile site or app that accepts PayPal.

Heart-rate monitor a smartphone first

The Galaxy S5's other trick, the heart-rate monitor, is a neat one in theory because it's cleverly integrated into the camera flash module, and because it ties so well into the health app. However, it's one of those things I wouldn't personally use every day, even though I do exercise regularly. I'm not entirely sure who this feature is for, though, since serious fitness geeks will likely want to invest in a more fully-functioning fitness band if they don't have one already. Still, it was fun to establish a baseline by placing my finger over the sensor.

Improved camera and video

Already on the forefront of smartphone camera tech, Samsung has bumped up the S5's camera megapixel count from 13 to 16. Images taken on automatic mode are characteristically colourful and clear, especially those taken in ample natural light. Samsung's new, co-processing power and Isocell sensor together make the camera quicker, low light images clearer, and some neat tricks possible.

The camera's continuous autofocus is as eyeblink-quick as Samsung claims (0.3 seconds), which gives you a greater chance of nailing that action shot. Of course, most of the rushed-around world isn't going to wait for you to pull out your camera, so expect that you'll still shoot a healthy percentage of blurry dogs, babies, and unsuspecting passersby. Still, I do think fast focus raises your odds of success.

Low light has been a weak point for Samsung in the past, and the Galaxy S5 seems to have indeed improved photos taken without a flash in dim environments. They weren't quite as blurry, grainy, or dark as you'd get on the Galaxy S4. Video captured in 1080p HD resolution is equally beautiful and smooth.

Performance

If performance clinches the deal for you, the Galaxy S5 is one mean speed demon. Its 2.5GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor is at the top of its game, which reflects in both real-world and diagnostic tests. For instance, the graphics-heavy Riptide GP2 racing game was smooth, with all the surface effects and shadow lighting that sticklers for detail may notice. Navigation felt smooth and fast. Apps opened without much delay, and content loaded quickly. After using the Galaxy S5 for a week, the S4 definitely felt a tick slower.

Battery-wise, the phone's 2,800mAh ticker took my pummelling in stride. Its reserves predictably dropped the more videos I streamed — a lot — but didn't drain much overnight when I left it, unplugged, as my alarm. It's always tough to tell battery life needs when you're intensely testing a new phone, which requires constant use, even during times you may ordinarily lay your phone down. How much charge the phone holds also decrease over time, much to everyone's consternation.

Versus the HTC One M8, Galaxy S4, and beyond

Though the Samsung Galaxy S5 has a heap of positive attributes and very few drawbacks, it still may not be the phone for you. Galaxy S3 owners should definitely upgrade to the S5, but if you already own a Galaxy S4, for example, I recommend that you wait. The S5 improves upon its predecessor in almost every way, but the changes are incremental, certainly too small to necessitate abandoning a perfectly good phone.

In terms of rivals, it's the beautiful HTC One M8 that is the Galaxy S5's most formidable competition. HTC can't outdo Samsung's advertising behemoth, but the One M8 boasts HTC's superior craftsmanship and a graphically lush Android interface of its own. HTC's phone also blasts by the Galaxy S5's external speakers. Comparing them standing up side-by-side on full volume, the M8 did indeed sound fuller, louder, richer, and far less jangly. Drop the phones on their backs and there's no comparison. Samsung's external speaker muffles itself.

At the end of the day, these phones are fairly neck-and-neck, with Samsung pulling ahead in camera quality and software capabilities and the One M8 besting the Galaxy S5 on look, feel, and value.