Gadgetory

on this edition of verses its TouchWiz versus jellybean hey it's Josh a regard for manager at 30 what's going on everybody and this is the Samsung Galaxy s4 versus the Samsung Galaxy s4 Google Play edition all right so we're basically going to coast through many of the different aspects of this review as the GPE is more quite literally the same phone from top to bottom from design to battery as the original Galaxy s4 if somehow you still don't know much about the s4 after all the coverage we have on Android authority feel free to check out my full reviews links are in the description below as far as design goes you have the very same device that makes handling a 5-inch screen about as easy as it can get the same button layout and the same plastic body throughout I will admit that for the s4 in general I personally like it in white both phones bring Samsung's signature Super AMOLED display capable of 1080p resolution and 441 PPI they're highly saturated on the original s4 you can customize the general motif Android 4.2 though looks absolutely gorgeous on this screen the performance aspect is handled in both by the Snapdragon 600 clocked in at 1.9 gigahertz and backed by the audrina 320 and two gigabytes of RAM while the overall more stripped-down GPE should yield somewhat smoother and faster speed over the jam-packed TouchWiz the general experience is fluid and easy either way you still get the same removable battery and microSD card slots between these two allowing for the expansion of power or the built-in 16 or 32 gigabytes of storage only 16 gigabytes are available in the GPE though all of the sensors and the IR blaster make returns in the google fight version but as you'll see in the software section the story is different for the GPE battery life is overall the same as these 2600 milliamp hour battery found in either device offers a full busy day of work it is worth mentioning that you lose all the power saving features from the original s4 s touch with settings if you relied on them to eke out that last bit of power they are not available in the Google Play edition so we get to the main areas of difference starting with the camera the 13 megapixel shooter in the original s4 was very well received as it provided good detail in pictures and brought a level of vibrancy to every photo the app is what changes the most as the original TouchWiz app with all of its modes and settings brought tons of options into smartphone photography it's a different story in the GPE as you get the stock Android camera app that loses everything from eraser mode to drama mode to the dual recording instead you get a different interface that uses touch and swipe arch menus that do make sense for touchscreens it's an unobtrusive interface that also brings HDR some scene modes and of course the photosphere but it doesn't look like the modes or all that you lost in the transition from the original s4 in taking some reference shots it looks like the original s4 our software helped bring sharpness to pictures it was an uncharacteristically cloudy summer day in Southern California today but you can still see the detail in either photo zoomed out it doesn't look so bad but once you zoom closer you see that level of sharpness that was lost low-light performance remains largely the same though you can kind of see a little bit more saturation in the original s4 I took a flash shot for posterity but it served as a final example about how the original s4 software did help with the sharpness so it looks like you lose a little more than just the modes in this transition all things considered the pictures you get either way look good it's just when you zoom in that you get a better idea of what you're getting it comes down to whether or not you want all those extras and modes as the stock camera app in Android is good-looking and just gives you the bare essentials and finally the crux of this comparison the software I'm already seeing in the comments for the GPE full review that the software part is a little polarizing on the one hand we love our stock Android because it doesn't try too hard and manages to look great in the process but when you pit it against the full-featured TouchWiz of the original s4 some people think jelly bean is overly simplistic both are good points depending on where you stand now Samsung packed at the s4 with a ton of extras right down to the way you navigate the sensors for air and hand gestures are just a couple examples and then you have s health and wot on apps while you might not use everything all the time there may be those few instances like in my case when they did come in handy some people might get overwhelmed seeing all of the extras which may be where the GPE comes in yes stock Android jelly bean is very stripped-down it doesn't take advantage of all of the various sensors and hardware editions or Samsung originally put in you get homescreens original notification drop-down with the shade for settings and google now i understand those out there who think that it is a waste with all the potential that the s4 does provide on the app side it is possible to replicate what the original brought to the table s health can be replaced with other health apps and I'm sure there are some watchon equivalents all those gestures and new ways of navigating are left by the wayside unfortunately maybe in the future developers will make apps that do use those sensors but right now that just isn't the case in the end jelly bean on the s4 is given a boost by the hardware just not all of it it's elegant simple and easy to use but it might be too simple for some all that loss potential makes the price hard to handle for some the Google Play edition of the Samsung Galaxy s4 is around the same price as the original was upon release $649 which is about the top cap for the original s4 nowadays and so there you have it the Samsung Galaxy s4 was given a refreshing new look and feel with this change to Android 4.2 it's worth it to mention that even though the GPS should be getting updates faster than the originals they still might not be as fast as the Nexus devices still you get some benefit from having a stock Android experience maybe if you thought the s4 was too much this will be just the right simplistic fit if you look to stock Android and wish for more the original s4 is there for the taking or if you feel stuck with the original s4 this google play edition gives you an example of what stock or even custom Android might be like on it so in the end you do have a few choices here for all of the best coverage stay tuned to the Android Authority youtube channel drop us a like down below and don't forget to subscribe and once you're done with all that head on over to android authority comm because we're your source for all things Android