Gadgetory

this comparison is frustrating because it's unbalanced HTC's new one max isn't exactly on the same tier as the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 in fact it would be better suited for a comparison with the downrange Galaxy mega but the mega at least in the United States isn't what Samsung is pushing instead it's heavily advertising the note 3 and the one max is HTC's only oversized smartphone offering to date so it's stuck in the role of a de-facto competitor let's take a look then at how these devices compare on their uneven playing field I'm Michael Fisher this is PocketNow and this is HTC one max vs samsung galaxy note 3 the gulf between the hardware here is wide and instantly apparent the note 3 is significantly trimmer in every dimension and it's almost 50 grams less massive making it substantially easier to hold the Samsung product is also more grippy at least on our black unit here thanks to the faux leather trim now whether you prefer this look and feel with its distinctive retro styling and stitching or the one Max's smooth aluminum construction will depend on your own personal taste the note 3 still won't be anyone's first choice for one-handed use but its markedly better in this department than the one max which almost requires a two-handed grip in exchange for that added bulk the one max features a display that's 0.2 inches larger and it's built on SLCD 3 technology versus the note 3's AMOLED whichever display type you prefer they're both outstanding screens of course the One Maxx also features HTC's trademark front firing boomsound speakers which contribute to its bulk but also deliver the loudest clearest sound we've ever heard from a smart phone the note 3's bottom firing speaker is substantially inferior both of these devices feature a removable back cover with microSD expansion to augment the onboard storage but only the note 3 features a removable battery though it's slightly smaller than the one Max's imbedded unit now further down and the guts is the disparity the speck abscessed will dwell on the note 3 is Snapdragon 800 is a more powerful more buzz worthy processor than the Snapdragon 600 on the One Maxx and it's backed up by half again as much RAM on the Samsung product other specs are roughly comparable with a few standouts here and there but it's pretty clear that one of these manufacturers was going for absolute top of the line in terms of internals and it wasn't HTC you wouldn't know it in terms of software performance though both of these phones run Android 4.3 but HTC's new Sense 5.5 interface is definitely more polished than Samsung's TouchWiz UI that's not to say Samsung's software is bad necessarily but a sense is more responsive and it's less prone to stutter and we think it looks better too with thoughtful touches throughout and a cohesive visual aesthetic compared to Samsung's haphazard bloated interface but what you get in exchange for that bloat is hugely important and here the Samsung device shines the note 3 makes very intelligent use of its large screen size with a convenient split-screen multitasking approach that lets you run apps side by side at the same time along with a less useful but still occasionally handy window to view plus there's the S Pen Stylus that gives the Note 3 its name which allows for lots of added functionality and a comfortable secondary means of using the device two-handed by contrast the one max despite all its responsiveness and visual appeal is basically just a super-sized smartphone the multitasking approach is just an inflated view of the standard tiles and while features like the new blinkfeed social media browser and the new gallery look and perform wonderfully it much better than Samsung's alternatives in fact there's been very little effort made on the max to intelligently use the added screen real estate and while HTC will offer a capacitive stylus for the max separately without a display digitizer to interact with it has none of the capabilities of the s-pen and know where to live on the device HTC says the finger is the best stylus but it's wrong because while HTC's scribble software is once again cleaner and better than Samsung's note-taking offerings using it with a finger just isn't very enjoyable by comparison speaking of fingers the one Max does feature a slight leg up on the note 3 thanks to its fingerprint scanner if you're into that sort of thing but even if it works perfectly it wouldn't be enough to overcome the notes considerable utility advantage in all the one Max's software is we'll say it one more time gorgeous but it feels like a missed opportunity next to the note we've tested both phones on a TN t--'s network in the Greater Boston area and found voice quality to be about on par with color saying we sounded slightly brighter on the one max boom sound gives the HTC device an edge in terms of speakerphone calls though with the note 3 unable to keep up even with boosted volume settings it bears repeating acoustically the one max is unmatched unfortunately for HTC the pendulum swings the other way on the camera neither of these shooters is optically stabilized but the resolution on the note 3 is 13 megapixels over three times that of the one max that's more than just fodder for horsepower comparisons to Samsung's camera consistently outperforms the one Max's module in normal lighting conditions rendering results that are sharper and of course more zoomable and without all the wild swings and exposure that HTC cameras have come to be known for the one Max is superior in one respect though low-light performance even without oh is the ultra pixel camera on the max manages to pull much more light from a scene even when we turn the lights down to near total darkness yes the shots are noisier but at least you can see the subject we also like the Max's wide field-of-view better than the more confining situation on the note 3 we also like video output from the note better again we have the same narrow field of view yes but audio performance is far superior and saturation is higher as well without the strange warping that comes from the Max's software image stabilization of course you also have the option of shooting 4k video in some versions of the note in addition to the 1080p footage you see here there is no accessible setting in the video settings for raw stabilization on the one max so I believe that's automatically enabled just doing a little walking shot here elsewhere in the performance category we're pretty much on par in a daily use sense for those interested in benchmarks please check out the full review of each device available at pocketnow.com in general we could not get these phones to break much of a sweat even with the most intense games and with batteries as large as we're seeing here we're also not too worried about endurance the notes removable pack gives it an edge for the most amp-hour abusive of road warriors but these are both very long lasting machines so in the biggest mismatch of the year the note 3 comes out on top in almost every category what a shocker again HTC wasn't necessarily looking to take on the note with the max but due to the structure and positioning of the different lineups consumers will make this comparison so we had two as well those seeking a great content consumption experience or just an oversized smartphone and who don't mind a huge heavy device will probably really like the max but those looking for the most capable all-around phablet should probably choose the note 3 folks we want to hear from you how do you think these devices compare on the spec sheet in the real world which one would you buy if given the opportunity let us know in the comments down below and drop us a like if you enjoyed the video you can also see the full review of each of these devices at pocketnow.com and you'll want to follow us on social media so you don't miss future coverage on the one max the galaxy note 3 every other device we can get our hands on in the meantime I want to thank you very much for watching this has been michael fisher with PocketNow and we'll see you soon until next time this has been michael fisher with PocketNow thank you for calling this is first yeah max ow ow yeah yeah yes I'm congested sue me yes I'm congested these glasses are awesome alright let's go you