It is the battle that Sprint users have waited for! We put the Samsung Epic 4G Touch versus the Motorola Photon 4G. These two super smartphones really pack power and features let’s see which one comes out on top.
Hardware & Design
Samsung Epic 4G Touch
The Epic 4G Touch comes with 4.52” Super AMOLED Plus display, 1.2 Ghz Samsung Exynos dual-core processor,1GB of ram, 2 megapixel front facing camera, 8 megapixel rear facing camera with LED flash with 1080p HD video recording, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS and 4G WiMax data speeds. The overall hardware design is a sleek and slim profile even with the bigger screen and chooses a minimalist look for buttons and ports with just micro USB and headphone jack for ports and volume and power for buttons.
Motorola Photon 4G
The Photon 4G comes with a 4.3” LCD display with qHD resolution, 1 Ghz dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2 processor, 1 GB or ram, VGA front facing camera,, 8 megapixel rear facing camera with dual LED flash plus 720p HD video recording, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS and 4G WiMax data speeds. The design is a big more industrial with a thick bezel, sharp rounded edges and had the buttons and ports you need with micro USB, mini HDMI, headphone jack and power, volume and camera buttons. They have also include a kickstand to watch content hands free which is a nice added features.
Software and Usability
Samsung Epic 4G Touch
Samsung uses Android 2.3 gingerbread with Touch Wiz 4.0 as the operation system on the Epic 4G Touch. They have made several improvements to Touch Wiz from new ways to navigate through the system to performance tweaks to make the system run smoother. Holding down and dragging across the desktop number indicator will allow you to scroll through each desktop to get to the on you want quicker. This same action can be done in the applications menu as well. The have added some cool new software such as new voice command software that is much easier to use and very accurate, photo editor to manipulate images rights on the device and a video editor to edit videos you capture on the go, add some style, export and upload in 720p HD. A nice feature they have added is the ability to get the stock android experience through Sprint ID packs for those that don’t want any extra fluff in their Android experience. You can also uninstall any preloaded software included the Sprint apps.
Gaming has also gotten a boost with faster load times and smoother gameplay. Battery life is solid with power using being able to get through a full day on a single charge and they have included a Power Saver move to help increase battery life even further. Call quality is also excellent with clear audio on both ends of the call. The overall performance on the Epic 4G Touch is excellent.
Motorola Photon 4G
Motorola also users Android 2.3 gingerbread with a combination of Motorola’s user experience and Sprint ID packs. The interface will be familiar to those that have use some of the more recent Motorola phones in the past with the custom Motorola dock, widgets and UI enhancements where stock android lacks. The Sprint ID packs add the extra apps and widgets to it but also dropped some of those graphics and animations that you see in full Motorola UI phones like the DROID 3. You can also get a clean version of android using Sprint ID packs but it mostly clears off the widgets and still keeps the same UI on it but you can uninstall all pre-loaded software including the Sprint apps. There is some lag when scrolling through desktops which is small and not a deal breaker but it is noticeable.
Gaming on the Photon 4G is great with the Nvidia Tegra 2 processor games are quick to load, fast and responsive. Battery life is solid with power users being able to get through 1 full day on a single charge and using maximum battery saver mode will extend the battery life. Call quality is also excellent with clear audio from both myself and the caller on the other end. The overall performance from the Motorola Photon 4G is solid with a few quirks here and there.
Overall
Between the two of them I would have to hand the win in the battle over to the Samsung Epic 4G Touch. The Photon 4G is a strong phone but just doesn’t quite measure up to the Epic 4G Touch which outclasses the Photon 4G in screen quality, processor and software performance. If your on Sprint and looking for a high-end phone and want the best of the best the Samsung Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch is the top phone on the NOW Network.
Samsung Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch Review
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