IPhone 5s vs Nexus 4, and nexus 4 display question.

Does a 1080p display have more pixels? Yes. Does it matter on a 4.7 inch screen? No. The pixel density is so great you can't even pick out individuals pixels on any of the devices you listed above.

The iphone 5s has a better camera, but keep in mind you are talking about a smartphone here. Both will suit you fine on the go and if you are really looking for high quality photographs you shouldn't be using a smartphone camera to begin with.

Finally the N4 uses a Snapdragon S4 Pro processor with 4 cores running at 1.5Ghz. The processor is very powerful, but suffers from performance issues in the N4 due to inadequate cooling thanks to a design error. It still runs better than 95% of Android devices on the market and is by no means under-powered.

The iphone focuses more on software and doesn't attempt to compete with Android in the spec arms race. The iphone 5 was still using a 2 core processor with 1GB of RAM, while high end Android phones at the time came with 4 cores and 2GB of RAM. You don't buy an iphone for cutting edge specs, you but it for software support, simplicity, and ease of use.

I hope that answers your questions.

To me, both phones are great. The decision is all about the OS and I choose Android.

Even though the specs for Android phones are better on paper, it doesn't seem like it is doing anything for them in benchmarks. Has everyone already seen the benchmarks that Anand Tech has run on the 5s?

I would hope that the iPhone 5s would be better, given it's a year younger

How much difference 1080p makes would depend on how often you watch 1080p media, I guess. Personally, that's pretty much never so it's not a big deal for me

Not quite sure how watching 1080p works with a 768p screen - I guess the phone has to do some work re-proportioning the video. If that's the case, then a 1080p screen might mean a very marginal improvement in battery life because the phone would have less work to do. On the flip side, it would have more work to do when watching non-1080p video, so again, it comes down to how often you watch 1080p.

mustardtiger56 said:

specifically the camera, display, and processor. Also do you guys think the nexus 4's 768p display is still comparable to today's 1080p offerings?

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In terms of the 5s, the Nexus has a 4.7" screen vs 4.0". PPI is almost the same on both. So unless you are judging the screen by something subjective like how well it fits in your hand, the N4 (barring some terrible quality) is better. It's like a 40" TV vs a 46". Unless one has real issues, the bigger one will be preferred by almost anyone.

Camera, the iPhone is generally regarded as better. However, Android keeps bringing better stuff, like HDR and photo sphere with 4.2. Kit Kat may have some improvements as well, we don't know. You already know what is in iOS7, though.

CPU, Apple is selling a phone at $650-850. Google is selling a $200-250 phone. Apple can spend more on the CPU. And it's a year-newer tech. The "3DMark" benchmark puts the 5s ahead of the N4. Though not by a ton. The N4 hammers the 5, though, for some perspective. The N4 does have 2GB of RAM though, vs 1 for the 5s.

On 1080p phones, obviously more pixels will look better, again unless one screen is really messed up or something (all else reasonably equal).

However, you are talking phones with similar hardware and batteries. More pixels means more battery burn when the screen is on. And it means the hardware has to work harder to draw all those pixels. The 720p screen will have an easier time looking "smooth" than the 1080p screen when the hardware gets taxed. Something like the Snapdragon 800 shouldn't have any issue overcoming that. But something like the S4 vs N4, I imagine at native resolution the N4 could do better frame rates.

It would be silly to suggest the N4 is the best phone that will ever be made. Phones are better. But right now for the price, it doesn't seem like anything out there compares.

aurora40 said:

Apple is selling a phone at $650-850. Google is selling a $200-250 phone.

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Just to clarify this point. While the phone will cost you the $200 to 250 this is heavily subsidised by google. If you were to buy the phone without this subsidy it would cost a lot more.

With regard to the specs for the CPU, I believe that iOS doesn't need as much power to run as Android, so the CPU and RAM dont need to be as large on iOS.

For me the hardware isn't important anymore, its all about the OS and thats why I like my Nexus 4

ooberandy said:

Just to clarify this point. While the phone will cost you the $200 to 250 this is heavily subsidised by google. If you were to buy the phone without this subsidy it would cost a lot more.

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Maybe. The iPhone is also likely heavily marked up (as likely are all on-contract phones, to make contracts more appealing). But the reality is to buy either, they cost what they cost.

The N4 may not have much R&D cost, because it's mainly based on an existing phone. How much does it cost to assemble?

The iPhone 5s is potentially under $200 to build.

To your last line, I'd just add that the exact same OS on something like the Galaxy Nexus is not as smooth/enjoyable as on something like the Nexus 4. Hardware isn't the only thing that matters, but it matters.

Hey all! :wavey:

I've moved this thread over to the Device / Carrier Comparisons area for you.

Thanks!

aurora40 said:

To your last line, I'd just add that the exact same OS on something like the Galaxy Nexus is not as smooth/enjoyable as on something like the Nexus 4. Hardware isn't the only thing that matters, but it matters.

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I agree with this, but if I'm choosing a new phone in the bracket of the Nexus 4 or iPhone 5s then I dont think hardware is an issue - look at the Moto X for example. The specs of that phone are quite average, but the software inside are what makes it a good phone.

the iPhone is just too small, so who cares how good its display may be.

timelord65 said:

the iPhone is just too small, so who cares how good its display may be.

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And someone else can say "the Nexus 4 is just too big so who cares how good its display may be.."

To each his or hers own. They are both great phones. I personally choose the Nexus

IMO if you're going to compare flagship to flagship, you've gotta compare the same year.

Wait till the nexus 5 is announced this month and then pet the comparisons fly