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Sony Xperia Z1S vs LG G2 vs Samsung Galaxy S4: specs comparison

By Chris P.

Published: Jan 06, 2014, 7:00 PM

17comments

Sony Xperia Z1S vs LG G2 vs Samsung Galaxy S4: specs comparison

Months after it made the Xperia Z1 available unlocked for $649 stateside, Sony has finally inked a deal with a US carrier that will see the flagship receive some subsidy love. The (un)carrier of choice: T-Mobile. Exclusively.

The new handset, dubbed the Z1S, is a near-exact replica of the original Z1, though not entirely. We're talking quite the miniscule changes, of course, but they are there. For starters, the 3.5mm audio jack, previously found on the top left side, is now just slightly off center. Moreover, the front camera's placement has been reversed (right to left) and the microSD and microUSB slots have exchanged places, while the all-glass rear has seen the addition of the T-Mobile logo. The rest of the Z1S remains as formidable as on launch-date, though we're a little worried that Sony may have missed the prime opportunity in the US, as new flagship devices are not too far off. In any case, Sony still has quite the package with the Z1S, including a crisp, 5-inch, 1080p Triluminos display, a powerful 2.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800, 2GB of RAM and last, but certainly not least, a 20.7-megapixel camera unit with G Lens and an Exmor RS sensor. And all of this – water- and dust-proof. So are these quite enough to launch a serious case of soul-searching for future flagship buyers? Very much so – despite its bulkier outer appearances, the Z1S sure matches the competition hardware for hardware, and it is the finer, more subjective notions that buyers have that will end up tipping the scale in favor of any one of the trio right below.

Note: The specs you are seeing below are for the Sony Xperia Z1, which are completely identical to the new Sony Xperia Z1S for T-Mobile, with the exception of the larger, 32GB of internal storage.


Sony Xperia Z1	LG G2	Samsung Galaxy S4

Design

Dimensions
5.69 x 2.91 x 0.33 inches 144.4 x 73.9 x 8.5 mm	5.45 x 2.79 x 0.35 inches 138.5 x 70.9 x 8.9 mm	5.38 x 2.75 x 0.31 inches 136.6 x 69.8 x 7.9 mm
Weight
6.00 oz (170.0 g)	5.04 oz (143.0 g)	4.59 oz (130.0 g)
Materials
		Back: Plastic
Resistance
Water, Dust; IP58
Features
	Notification light	Notification light
Keys
Right: Volume control, Camera shutter, Lock/Unlock key	Back: Volume control, Lock/Unlock key	Left: Volume control; Right: Lock/Unlock key
Colors
Black, Purple, White	Black, White	Black, Blue, Red, White

Display

Size
5.0-inch	5.2-inch	5.0-inch
Resolution
1920x1080px, 441 PPI	1920x1080px, 423 PPI	1920x1080px, 441 PPI
Technology
TFT	IPS LCD	Super AMOLED
Screen-to-body
64.52 %	76.28 %	71.91 %
Colors
16 777 216	16 777 216	16 777 216
Peak brightness
	450 cd/m2 (nit)
Features
Scratch-resistant glass, Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor	Scratch-resistant glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 3), Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor	Scratch-resistant glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 3), Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor

Hardware

System chip
Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 MSM8974	Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 MSM8974	Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 8974
Processor
Quad-core 2200 MHz Krait 400	Quad-core 2260 MHz Krait 400	Quad-core 1900 MHz Krait 300
GPU
Adreno 330	Adreno 330	Adreno 320
RAM
2GB (LPDDR3)	2GB (LPDDR3)	2GB (LPDDR3)
Internal storage
16GB	32GB, available to use: 24 GB	64GB
Storage expansion
microSDXC up to 64 GB		microSDXC up to 64 GB
OS
Android (5.1 Lollipop, 5.0 Lollipop, 4.4.2, 4.4, 4.3, 4.2.2)	Android (5.0 Lollipop, 4.4.2, 4.2.2)	Android (5.0 Lollipop, 4.4.2, 4.3, 4.2.2)

Battery

Capacity
3000 mAh	3000 mAh	2600 mAh
Type
Li - Ion	Li - Polymer	Li - Ion

Camera

Rear
Single camera	Single camera	Single camera
Main camera
20.7 MP (Autofocus, BSI sensor) Aperture size: F2.0 Focal length: 27 mm Sensor size: 1/2.3"	13 MP (Sapphire crystal lens cover, OIS, Autofocus, BSI sensor) Aperture size: F2.4 Focal length: 29 mm Sensor size: 1/3.06" Pixel size: 1.12 μm	13 MP (Autofocus, CMOS image sensor, BSI sensor) Aperture size: F2.2 Focal length: 31 mm Sensor size: 1/3.06" Pixel size: 1.14 μm
Flash
LED	LED	LED
Video recording
1920x1080 (Full HD) HDR, Continuous autofocus, Video light, EIS	1920x1080 (Full HD) (60 fps) OIS	1920x1080 (Full HD) (30 fps) EIS
Front
2 MP, Video capture: 1920x1080 (Full HD)	2.1 MP, Video capture: 1920x1080 (Full HD)	2 MP, Video capture: 1920x1080 (Full HD)

Connectivity & Features

Bluetooth
4.0	4.0	4.0
WLAN
802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band Hotspot, Wi-Fi Direct	802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band MIMO, Hotspot, Wi-Fi Direct	802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band Hotspot, Wi-Fi Direct
USB
microUSB, USB 2.0	microUSB, USB 2.0	microUSB, USB 2.0
HDMI
	Yes	Yes
Location
GPS, A-GPS, Glonass	GPS, A-GPS, Glonass	GPS, A-GPS, Glonass
Sensors
Accelerometer, Compass	Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass	Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Thermometer, Gesture, Humidity, Barometer
Other
NFC, ANT+, Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync	NFC, Infrared, Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync	NFC, ANT+, Infrared, Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync

Multimedia

Headphones
3.5mm jack	3.5mm jack	3.5mm jack
Speakers
Earpiece, Loudspeaker	Earpiece, Loudspeaker	Earpiece, Loudspeaker
Features
Album art cover, Background playback, Music recognition, Custom equalizer	Album art cover, Background playback, Dolby Mobile	Album art cover, Background playback
Screen mirroring
DLNA,MHL,MirrorLink,TV-out	DLNA,Wireless screen share,MirrorLink,SlimPort	DLNA,Wireless screen share,MHL
Radio
FM, Stereo, RDS	FM, Stereo, RDS
Additional microphone(s)
	Noise cancellation, Video recording

Cellular

4G (FDD)
Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(AWS-1), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 20(800 DD)	Bands 1(2100), 3(1800), 7(2600), 8(900), 20(800 DD)	Bands 1(2100), 3(1800), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 18(800 Lower)
3G
Bands 5(850), 8(900), 4(1700/2100), 2(1900), 1(2100)	Bands 5(850), 8(900), 2(1900), 1(2100)	Bands 5(850), 8(900), 2(1900), 1(2100)
Data Speed
LTE Cat 4 (150/50 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s, UMTS	LTE Cat 4 (150/50 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSDPA+ (4G) 21.1 Mbit/s, HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s	LTE Cat 3 (100/50 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s, UMTS
SIM type
	Micro SIM	Micro SIM
VoLTE
	Yes	Yes

Phone Features

Notifications
Haptic feedback, Music ringtones (MP3), Polyphonic ringtones, Vibration, Flight mode, Silent mode, Speakerphone	Haptic feedback, Music ringtones (MP3), Polyphonic ringtones, Vibration, Flight mode, Silent mode, Speakerphone	Haptic feedback, Music ringtones (MP3), Polyphonic ringtones, Vibration, Flight mode, Silent mode, Speakerphone
Other features
Voice dialing, Voice commands, Voice recording	Voice dialing, Voice commands, Voice recording	Voice dialing, Voice commands, Voice recording

Regulatory Approval

FCC approval
Date approved: Sep 30, 2013 FCC ID value: PY7PM-0450	FCC ID value: ZNFD802	Date approved: Mar 14, 2013 FCC ID value: A3LGTI9505
Measured SAR
Head: 0.75 W/kg Body: 0.77 W/kg Simultaneous Transmission: 1.33 W/kg Wireless Router: 1.15 W/kg		Head: 0.50 W/kg Body: 0.65 W/kg Simultaneous Transmission: 1.17 W/kg Wireless Router: 0.67 W/kg

Buyers information

In The Box
Charger, microUSB cable, User documentation

Availability

Officially announced
Sep 04, 2013	Aug 07, 2013	Mar 14, 2013

See the full Sony Xperia Z1 vs LG G2 vs Samsung Galaxy S4 specs comparison or compare them to other phones using our Phone Comparison tool

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Chris Panayotov is a former mobile tech reviewer of phones, tablets and wearables at PhoneArena. However, his contribution to PhoneArena content includes not just reviews, but all kinds of regular and experimental features, such as news stories, buying guides, and an exclusive column on the most notable phones out of Asia.