Smartphones are getting bigger and better as more consumers embrace mobile handsets that have bigger than 5-inch display screen. Till recently, there were mostly Android based phablets. With the unveiling of iPhone 6 Plus, the phablet category adds another member that offers huge real estate.
iPhone 6 Plus; Photograph: apple.com
But, how well does the iPhone 6 PLus fare against its competitors?
In fact, which are the other flagship smartphones that can give serious competition to the new Apple phablet?
Here is a comparative analysis of iPhone 6 Plus against other leading phablets available in the market...
Samsung Galaxy Note 4
Samsung Galaxy Note 4; Photograph: samsung.com
It is definitely one of the strongest contenders to give iPhone 6 Plus tough time. Though the Apple phablet is taller, it's definitely not as thick, heavy and wide as Note 4.
Rounded corners and standard aluminum casing gives the iPhone 6 Plus a slightly premium look than any other smartphone.
The Note 4 comes with curved glass front and faux leather rear casing. The metal strip makes this device look more elegant. S Pen stylus is one of the features that you will miss on the largest iPhone released till date. If you prefer richer colours and better contrasts, the Samsung device surpasses the iPhone 6 Plus by miles because of quad-HD Super AMOLED display against the latter's Retina HD IPS LCD display (2560×1440 pixel resolution over 1920×1080 pixel and 515ppi over 401ppi pixel density of iPhone 6 Plus).
In case of camera, the sensors are far better in the Samsung phablet than that of Apple's (16MP over 8MP rear and 3.7MP over 1.2MP front). However, true tone flash feature along with hybrid autofocus system in iPhone 6 Plus offers more natural photographs than Samsung Galaxy Note 4.
LG G3
LG G3; Photograph: lg.com
LG G3 is one of the fewer rivals which can give some competition to iPhone 6 Plus. This LG phablet is bigger in almost all respect, whether it is width (4 per cent more) or length (5 per cent more). However, iPhone 6 Plus is definitely thinner than G3: almost 20 per cent. The LG device is around 13 per cent lighter.
When it comes to build quality, iPhone 6 Plus is way ahead because the aluminum body is definitely superior to the faux metal plastic of LG G3. The Android run LG product is the first device to introduce Quad HD display and therefore is way ahead of the new Apple phablet.
Though iPhone 6 Plus has the sharpest display, it can't match G3's display quality. Moreover, the latter's camera comes with whopping count of 13MP with amazingly fast auto laser focus feature, as compared to the 8MP sensor of iPhone 6 Plus.
When it comes to the overall performance, iPhone 6 Plus is simply miles ahead of LG G3 or any other Android device, as the latest Apple smartphone works on 64-bit A8 processor in comparison to the 32-bit Snapdragon quad-core processor, clocked at 2.5GHz, used in the LG G3.
Sony Xperia Z3
Sony Xperia Z3; Photograph: sonymobile.com
This Sony smartphone is packed with new advanced technologies and significant improvements over the previous Xperia models.
Metallic frame, glass front/back, water/dust resistant body, and great design makes the Xperia Z3 an instant hit among smartphone users. This is quite comparable with the premium appearance and quality build of iPhone 6 Plus. Both the phablets come with similar resolution and pixel density.
While Z3 comes with Live colour LED and TRILUMINOS technologies, iPhone 6 Plus shows off LCD panel having IPS technology, which is believed to have the highest brightness and contrast ratio in the industry. The Xperia Z3 has 2.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 chip, which is good but not as good as A8 processor on iPhone 6 Plus.
The Xperia Z3 comes with 20.7MP primary camera. Some of the important camera features are Intelligent Active, SteadyShot Digital Stabilisation of Sony, ISO12800 sensitivity in low light, 26mm wide-angle F2.0 aperture, Sony G Lens, etc. iOS 8 in iPhone 6 Plus, on the other hand, provides some interesting features such as Health Kit application suite, HandsOff, Continuity and many more.
The Sony Xperia Z3 also comes with some great features such as high-res audio support, DSEE HX sound-enhancement technology, etc.
HTC One M8
HTC One M8; Photograph: htc.com
This is one of the best rated Android smartphones available in the market. Whether it is looks, features or design, HTC One (M8) ticks all the right boxes o be counted among the leading competitor of iPhone 6 Plus. Though this HTC handset is a tad smaller than iPhone 6 Plus, resolution is absolutely same in both the devices with almost similar pixel density. So, the colour and contrast you will get in both these handsets are more or less same. Both of them have great display.
HTC One (M8) comes with Snapdragon 801 SoC, Adreno 330 GPU and quad-core Krait CPU, which offers quite some juice. However, iPhone 6 Plus comes with Apple A8 SoC, which is more powerful and enables gamers to play console-type games without any stutter or lag.
Both the handsets come with great connectivity features but the 4G LTE version of M8 surely wins the race. Both have great design but the metallic finish of iPhone 6 PLus makes it look more premium.
Overall, the competition between the two is very close.
Nokia Lumia 1520
Nokia Lumia 1520; Photograph: nokia.com
One of the Windows Phablet that is a close competitor of iPhone 6 Plus is Lumia 1520. Both smartphones have same display resolution (1920 x 1080 pixels) and similar pixel density. While 1520 showcases impressive features such as super sensitive touch, wide viewing angle and sunlight readability enhancements, iPhone 6 Plus comes with fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating on front and dual-domain pixels for wider viewing angles.
The 64-bit A8 processor of the Apple product is definitely way better than Qualcomm Snapdragon 800. The gamers will be able to play the most advanced console type games in iPhone 6 Plus.
Though there are many overlapping camera features (OIS, Backside-illuminated image sensor, 1080p HD video recording, etc.) available in both the smartphones, Lumia 1520 seems to be way ahead on this count. The 20MP PureView rear camera, F/2.4 aperture, 6-lens optics, dual LED flash, high resolution 2x zoom and ZEISS optics are some of the features that makes the Windows phone better among the two.
Battery life in both Lumia 1520 and iPhone 6 Plus is somewhat similar.
Samsung Galaxy S5
Samsung Galaxy S5; Photograph: samsung.com
This is one of the highest rated Samsung smartphones. Some of its greatest features include awesome connectivity options, 16MP camera and definitely great display.
Both iPhone 6 Plus and the Galaxy S5 come with 1080 x 1920 pixel resolution and similar pixel density.
The front and rear snapper in Galaxy S5 is better than that of iPhone 6 Plus (16MP over 8MP primary and 2MP over 1.2MP secondary camera). When it comes to overall performance, especially in terms of games, the 64-bit A8 chip fares far better than Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 chip.
Apple has worked hard on its new iOS 8 operating system, where apps like Health Kit, Continuity, etc. are some of the features to look forward to.
The Galaxy S5 also comes with S Health fitness tracker along with few unique features like Ultra Power Saving Mode and Download Booster, which are not present on Apple iPhone 6 Plus.
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